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"We measure fewer and smaller earthquakes as time goes on," Jonsdottir told a press briefing on Saturday, as reported by RUV, Iceland's national broadcaster. Although the magma intrusion continues to deepen and widen, the process is notably slower than in previous days. This diminishing activity is indicative of magma reaching significant heights in the Earth's crust, raising the possibility of an eruption, similar to the events leading up to the 2021 volcanic activity. "While model calculations still indicate ongoing magma flows into the intrusion, it must be considered probable that an eruption will occur," said Jonsdottir. Data analysis points to the most significant widening occurring in the middle of the intrusion, specifically in the area west of Hagafell. This location is identified as the most likely site for a potential eruption, although Jonsdottir emphasizes that eruptions could happen anywhere along the intrusion. She said that the precise location of the magma source is crucial for predicting potential lava flows. If the source is indeed in the middle, west of Hagafell, lava could flow towards the town of Grindavik, as well as to the north and west. Last Saturday, the town of Grindavik, home to approximately 4,000 people on the Reykjanes Peninsula, was evacuated. Civil Defense declared a Level of Danger in the area. According to the Icelandic Meteorological Office, a magma corridor lies beneath the town of Grindavik, and a fissure could open anywhere in that magma corridor. The mayor of Grindavik, Fannar Jonasson, said on Saturday at the press briefing some 1,200 households in the town need (more permanent) shelter. According to Vidir Reynisson, director of Iceland's Civil Defence, a design exists for a defense wall that could protect Grindavik from lava flow. "That is part of what we are considering." (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) Company chief inspects Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant By Ko Dong-hwan Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) CEO Kim Dong-cheol visited the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in Abu Dhabi on Thursday (local time) to check the fourth and final reactors that begin commercial operations, according to the state-run utility firm, Sunday. The visit is part of the CEO's global trip to promote Korea's nuclear power plant technology and expand KEPCO's global presence. KEPCO, the main contractor of the power plant project in the United Arab Emirates, saw the final stage of the reactor's construction completed last May and began preparations for fueling before commencing commercial operations. A day after Kim's visit to the plant, the reactor received the green light from Abu Dhabi to start operations next year. The power plant's first reactor, Barakah 1, started running in April 2021. Barakah 2 and 3 commenced operations in March 2022 and February this year, respectively. Launching commercial operations of each of the reactors in less than a year is a rare achievement in the nuclear power plant industry, according to the company. Kim's Barakah plant visit is just the first leg on his tour of nuclear power plant project sites around the world in which KEPCO has invested. At the Barakah site, the CEO met field workers and encouraged them to "have pride in being part of the world's biggest nuclear power plant construction project with its four reactors built simultaneously." Later the same day, Kim visited another construction site: The high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system installed under the UAE's waters. KEPCO won the project's bid in December 2021 and Samsung C&T started construction in September 2022. The project, once complete, will send power generated from the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant to the country's offshore oil drilling facility. At the site, Kim reminded field workers of the project's importance as its successful completion will enable the company to make a bid for the follow-up project of installing a grid that connects to the HVDC transmission system. On Friday (local time), Kim met Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, founding chairman of the Abu Dhabi government's Executive Affairs Authority, and Mohamed Al Hammadi, who heads the country's Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC), and discussed ways to continue bilateral partnerships in the nuclear energy industry. "We will keep in touch with ENEC to ensure the successful commercial operation of Barakah 4," said Kim, referring to the UAE energy firm that was in charge of the Barakah project. "The successful operation of Barakah will enable us to venture into other nuclear plant projects in the Middle East and Europe." The second leg of Kim's global tour will include the UK, where his company sees the potential for another nuclear power plant project. KEPCO signed a memorandum of understanding with the UK last April for cooperation in its new Moorside nuclear power plant project. Kim's interest in nuclear energy sectors overseas came as KEPCO's debt last June soared to past 200 trillion won ($147.6 billion), the highest level recorded by a listed firm in Korea. Observers said the company winning bids for future energy projects overseas will help lower its debt. Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong arrived in Hanoi at around 7:00 am on Sunday, concluding his four-day U.S. visit to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders Week 2023 in San Francisco, California at the invitation of U.S. President Joe Biden. This marks President Thuongs first official U.S. visit, lasting from Tuesday to Friday, since he assumed power in March this year. Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong (L) shakes hands with a U.S. representative before returning to Vietnam. Photo: Vietnam News Agency Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son told the press that President Thuongs U.S. trip wrapped up with great success and helped convey key messages about Vietnams stance on existing challenges facing the region and the world. President Thuong and his high-ranking Vietnamese entourage made significant contributions to the success of the APEC Leaders Week 2023 hosted by the U.S.. The Vietnamese head of state put forward his ideas and proposals to cope with pressing issues of the global economy, especially the requirement for a new mindset which is inclusive, harmonious, and humane. Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong (R) attends a session of the APEC Leaders Week 2023 in San Francisco, November 17, 2023 (U.S. time). Photo: Vietnam News Agency He also made specific suggestions for APECs missions and tasks in the new period. His ideas and proposals were highly valued by other leaders and the business community and were featured in the meetings document, helping open up new directions for APEC cooperation, Minister Son said. In addition, President Thuong proposed that Vietnam act as the host of APEC in 2027. This proposal affirmed Vietnams commitment toward multilateralism, the Asia-Pacific region in general, and the APEC forum in particular. Minister Son added that all APEC members lauded Vietnams practical contributions to APEC over the past two decades and affirmed their trust in the nations chairmanship in 2027. Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong (C) sits next to his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden (R) at a session of the APEC Leaders Week 2023 in San Francisco, November 16, 2023 (U.S. time). Photo: Vietnam News Agency Aside from attending the APEC Leaders Week 2023, President Thuong met with his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden and a number of U.S. officials. The top Vietnamese official also hosted receptions for some leading U.S. companies, attended events connecting businesses and localities between the two nations, as well as addressed a meeting with U.S. scholars. His U.S. trip contributed to efforts to implement agreements signed between top U.S. and Vietnamese officials after both countries upgraded their bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in September this year, Minister Son continued. Through their meetings and bilateral activities in the U.S., both sides mostly discussed issues linked to economy, trade, and investment, with the U.S. soon granting the market economy status to Vietnam and considering science-technology and innovation as breakthrough cooperation fields. Further, President Thuongs speech on the global situation, Vietnams foreign policy, and the Vietnam-U.S. ties at the Council on Foreign Relations was highly valued by the U.S. side. Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong witnesses the signing of cooperation agreements reached by ministries, agencies, localities, and enterprises between Vietnam and the U.S. in San Francisco, November 15, 2023 (U.S. time). Photo: Vietnam News Agency U.S. businesses evinced their high interest in the Vietnamese market and affirmed their further investment in the Southeast Asian nation, especially in the fields of hi-tech, infrastructure development, and energy. These American firms also pledged their support for Vietnam in training highly-skilled workforces to serve digital transformation and green transition. Multiple cooperation agreements reached by ministries, agencies, localities, and enterprises between the two nations were exchanged in the presence of the top Vietnamese official. Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong delivers a speech at a meeting on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) in San Francisco, November 16, 2023 (U.S. time). Photo: Vietnam News Agency In related news, as part of the APEC Leaders Week 2023, representatives from the U.S. and 13 other countries joined a meeting on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF). President Thuong on Thursday (U.S. time) gave a speech at the meeting, in which he put forward three major proposals for the IPEF. He and other leaders of IPEF partner nations made a statement with the aim of developing the IPEF into an open, inclusive, flexible, long-term, and dynamic forum. The IPEF is an economic initiative launched by the U.S. in May last year, with 14 participating member nations including the U.S., Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! The body of a 40-year-old man who was swept away by floodwaters on Thursday evening in Phu Yen Province, south-central Vietnam has been recovered, a local official confirmed on Saturday. The deceased victim was identified as M.V.C., a native of Ea Ly Commune in the provinces Song Hinh District, said Hoang Dinh Nam, chairman of the Ea Ly Commune administration. Earlier, when it was raining heavily at around 9:45 pm on Thursday, C. and his wife visited their farm, which is located in a field far away from home, to check if their livestock were alright. When the couple crossed a spillway bridge spanning the Ho Nai spring in the commune, C. was swept away by floodwaters while his wife managed to survive the incident. Authorities dispatched around 50 rescuers to the scene of the incident to search for the victim from Thursday night. The rescuers recovered the body of the victim at around 7:00 am on Saturday. His body was located some 200 meters downstream of the Ho Nai spring. Heavy downpours have hit this south-central province over the past few days, leaving many roads and nearly 300 local households flooded. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! UNICEF is calling for enhanced mental health strategies to support the young generation in Vietnam, including the launch of a communication campaign entitled Open Up & Connect as part of World Childrens Day 2023, which falls on November 20. The campaign will be rolled out on November 20, which marks the anniversary of the coming into force of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and run until December 11, which is the 77th anniversary of UNICEF. The Open Up & Connect campaign will provide tips, resources, and creative ideas to help people learn how to better identify when a friend, daughter, son, student or oneself is struggling. Quick tips and activities will provide coping strategies as well as encourage all to open up and connect with others -- a friend, parent, or teacher -- who can provide support. Mental health has been identified as a matter of concern by young people themselves. The findings of the latest National Adolescent Mental Health survey highlight a concerning reality: many children, adolescents, and young people are struggling with mental health challenges, lacking the essential coping skills, support or services critical to their overall well-being. The survey showed that one in five Vietnamese adolescents had a mental health issue, with only 8.4 percent of them able to access necessary support services or counseling for emotional and behavioral challenges. Moreover, only 5.1 percent of parents recognized that their adolescent needed help for emotional and behavioral problems. Congratulating the Vietnamese government on its current efforts to develop a comprehensive mental health strategy, UNICEF encourages a specific focus on early intervention, introducing relevant strategies and interventions specifically designed for children and adolescents that build skills and resilience and promote mental well-being," said Rana Flowers, UNICEF representative in Vietnam. Children and adolescents, parents and teachers need to be equipped with skills, knowledge, and resources to enjoy and promote mental well-being. It is essential that all of us parents, teachers, social workers, health workers, government, and the private sector work to de-stigmatize mental health, understand how the experience and response for girls and boys may differ, and actively and persistently promote mental well-being approaches and strategies to strengthen the prevention of serious risks in this area." Earlier this year, UNICEF Vietnam consulted its network of young people (U-report) on the issue of the greatest concern to the population UNICEF serves: children, adolescents, and young people. The majority of participants selected mental health,' appealing for stronger attention and support, asking UNICEF to dedicate World Childrens Day 2023 to championing their mental well-being. Mental health is just as normal and important as our physical health, said Flowers. It is critical that this should be addressed at all levels at home, at school, in communities, and by the government to ensure that the National Mental Health Strategy that the Vietnamese government is working on has a specific focus on children and adolescents." To promote mental well-being, UNICEF Vietnam will also organize an event on November 28 in Hanoi where experts from several ministries and academia will analyze the national mental health situation of children and adolescents while sharing ideas and lessons learnt in support of a dynamic and child/adolescent-sensitive national strategy. Importantly, the participants will learn about concerns and ideas to promote mental well-being directly from young people, as well as from outcomes of the Hackathon Competition 2023 taking place in Da Nang City, central Vietnam until November 26. Children and youth participation is a core principle of the CRC, and UNICEF is committed to engaging the population that it serves in activities and discussions on areas that matter to them and will impact their lives. Thus, during every World Childrens Day, UNICEF Vietnam enhances their participation, including childrens takeovers in various offices undertaking worker roles for a few hours, speaking about their concerns, sharing ideas, and gaining insights into the future employment opportunities that will need their skills. UNICEF Vietnams young entrepreneur network NexGen initiative has also partnered with businesses in Ho Chi Minh City to welcome groups of children and adolescents as a part of the World Childrens Day agenda, while landmark buildings in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang will switch their lighting to blue to celebrate the rights of every child. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A throng of local residents and international visitors have come to the Hang Dau water tower in Hanois Hoan Kiem District to explore an art space inside this 129-year-old historical relic, which opened its doors to the public for the first time on Friday. Jaty Fairisa, a Spanish tourist who has been in Vietnam for six weeks, and his travel buddy only knew about this water tower after they accidentally saw so many people queuing up outside the building. After entering the water tower, I discovered a colorful space inside and the sound of water relaxed me when touring the inside of the tower. This is the most amazing experience that Ive never seen before. Its truly impressive, Fairisa said. The Hang Dau water tower, which was built in 1894 during the French colonial period, sits at the junction of such old streets as Hang Than, Hang Luoc, Hang Giay, Hang Dau, Quan Thanh, and Phan Dinh Phung. A design team comprising architect Cao The Anh, painter Nguyen Duc Phuong, and their colleagues transformed the water tower into a brilliant art space with lighting and sound installation systems. What made the inside of the tower more impressive is that embellishments and pieces of artworks are all recycled items. The water dripping sound combined with lighting effects seemed to make the art space look broader. Multiple international tourists visited the century-old Hang Dau water tower in Hanoi when it opened its doors to the public for the first time on November 17, 2023. Unlike the hustle and bustle outside, visitors could immerse themselves in a quiet and glamorous art space along with a wooden path and the sound of water in nature. To ensure a seamless visitor experience, the water tower imposes a visitor cap of 20-30 people for each period of visit. Many visitors line up waiting to enter the Hang Dau water tower when it opened to the public for the first time on November 17, 2023. Do Duc Vinh, residing in Hanois Hai Ba Trung District, was among the early birds as he arrived at the water tower at 5:00 am on the same day and could not hide his delight at entering the water tower, a place which brought his childhood memories back. I passed by it [the water tower] many times when I was little, but I only saw it from the outside," Vinh said. Its awesome to explore the inside in-person now. Ill tell my neighbors about it, so that they can visit and enjoy the beauty inside this water tower. Lots of local residents went to the Hang Dau water tower early on the morning of November 17, 2023 to become one of the first visitors to explore the significant art space inside the tower. Another local visitor named Phuong Uyen from the citys Cau Giay District said that she felt like she was living in a cave with a vividly colorful stream. I got impressed by the colorful space inside. If I hadnt read information about this exhibit in advance, I wouldnt have known that the artworks are made of plastic bags, Uyen said and lauded authorities efforts for reviving the citys historical relics and letting young people like her learn more about these destinations. Pieces of artworks displayed inside the Hang Dau water tower are made of plastic bags, one of the most common types of urban waste. The exhibition on installation art in the Hang Dau water tower is among a wide range of events within the Hanoi Creative Design Festival, taking place from November 17 to December 31 this year. The festival, co-held by the Hanoi Peoples Committee and the Vietnam Association of Architects, will also feature other art spaces at Gia Lam Train Factory, Hanoi Train Station, and century-old Long Bien Bridge during the said period. Architect Nguyen Van Thanh (L), who is in charge of lighting design for the art space in the Hang Dau water tower, says the lighting installation needs to spotlight its circular structure. The development and design of the art space in the Hang Dau water tower were carried out in a careful and strict manner so as not to negatively impact the tower. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Many international travelers are thrilled to go kayaking and admire the pristine beauty of the Cua Can River in Phu Quoc City, a popular tourist site in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang. The Cua Can River in the namesake commune in the city meanders around mountain ranges covered with green trees, to the sea, creating a dreamy space for kayaking and natural exploration. Nguyen Van Dung, a kayaking tour operator in the commune, said on Saturday that like the charming Duong and Rach Tram Rivers, the Cua Can River, with clean water, fascinates throngs of visitors to the Vietnamese island. The 20-kilometer-long river runs across four communes, including Cua Can, Cua Duong, Bai Thom, and Ganh Dau before flowing into the sea. International travelers on board a ship admire the scenic view of the Cua Can River on Phu Quoc Island off Kien Giang Province, Vietnam. Photo: Chi Cong / Tuoi Tre Both banks of the river are lined with nipa palm trees, mangroves, and acacia trees. The Cua Can River turns serene from November to April, smoothing the way for domestic and international visitors to go kayaking and immerse themselves in the picturesque scenery. The river has emerged as an appealing tourist attraction for foreigners due to its unspoiled natural beauty, Dung said. His firm serves at least 1,000 international visitors each year. Some 50 foreign tourists coming from Poland and the United States took kayaking tours in the Cua Can River on Saturday. They were exhilarated with the water sport and stunning landscape. Some international tourists opted to board a ship running along the river to admire the scenic view and learn more about locals lifestyle. Alexandria Ramirez, an American traveler, said that Phu Quoc Island is an ideal tourist destination. She was surprised by the beauty of the river there. It was sunny and warm on the island, so she and her friends were keen on going kayaking there, she said. Traveling to Phu Quoc Island is an interesting experience. People here are friendly, while the food is tasty and the river is gorgeous, according to Ramirez. We will return to Phu Quoc and stay longer next time." The Cua Can River on Phu Quoc Island turns serene from November to April. Photo: Chi Cong / Tuoi Tre Foreign visitors go kayaking for some two kilometers in the Cua Can River to explore the natural beauty of the river. Photo: Chi Cong / Tuoi Tre A foreigner takes a selfie on a boat in the Cua Can River. Photo: Chi Cong / Tuoi Tre Statistics from the Kien Giang Department of Tourism indicated that since the start of the year, the province has welcomed more than 548,000 international visitors. Of the total, over 540,000 tourists came from South Korea, India, China, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Poland, and the United States. The Cua Can River is over 20 kilometers long, meandering around green mountain ranges down to the sea. Photo: Chi Cong / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! By reusing an object as well as giving it a new ability and a new life through restructuring, Vietnamese artist Tia-Thuy Nguyen utilized a ton of welding rods to create an artwork called Hoa Doi (Flower of Life) and displayed it at an exhibition in France on Saturday. In Vietnam, Tia-Thuy Nguyen is not only known as a fashion designer with the Thuy Design House brand, but also as an artist. Flower of Life is the name of the exhibition and her artworks were inspired by her life and loss after the passing of her beloved father in 2022. 'Flower of Life is inspired by Tia-Thuy Nguyen's life and the passing of her beloved father. Photo: Supplied Tia-Thuy Nguyen said that his death urged her to return to the memories they had shared, and that she had learned to cherish every moment in life. The loss prompted me to reflect more deeply on pain, the meaning of death, and the process of rebirth. This is also the inspiration for me to create the artwork 'Flower of Life' and explore the possibility of reuse and regeneration in life. I believe that everything in this world has the ability to change and develop, just like a dead tree that can become a beautiful work of art. Workers use the welding technique to cover the dead oak trunk with stainless steel plates. Photo: Supplied With inspiration from life, the artist said she has never felt depleted of such inspiration. Starting to pursue fine arts in 1999, Tia-Thuy Nguyen has more than 20 years of experience working in painting and 12 years working in fashion design. The derivative exhibition 'Hoa Doi,' with a thoughtful installation art product by Tia-Thuy Nguyen, took place at Chateau La Coste in Aix Provence, France. Her artwork was created based on the trunk of an 18-meter tall oak tree that died on a road in France. It took her two years to complete this work. The dead oak trunk is covered with stainless steel plates, while thousands of stainless steel leaves are hung on tree branches that were produced in Vietnam and were transported to France. This entire metal plating process took more than 3,000 man-hours and nearly one ton of welding rods. Stainless steel leaves hung on the branches of a dead oak tree. Photo: Supplied A birds-eye view of the Flower of Life artwork by Tia-Thuy Nguyen. Photo: Supplied The exhibition featured more than 10 works of various genres and materials. "What I am most proud of is that I have contributed to bringing international audiences closer to Vietnam's fine arts, and promoting the creativity of Vietnamese artists, said Tia-Thuy Nguyen. Before college, Tia-Thuy Nguyen was recognized as a phenomenon. Although she had just begun to be passionate about art at that time, her paintings were selected by several galleries for display. In the late 1990s, the golden age of Vietnamese fine arts, Tia-Thuy Nguyen accumulated a lot of experience in practicing and even selling artworks at Cafe Gallery, Gouman Gallery, the Hanoi Expo Center, and Impression Gallery in France. 2019 marked a key milestone for the female artist as her first artwork was displayed at Chateau La Coste in France. In 2022, Tia-Thuy Nguyen continued to make a splash for her return to Chateau La Coste for an exhibition, with her two artworks Silver Room and Floating in the Nothingness. Another artwork by Tia-Thuy Nguyen displayed at an exhibition in France. Photo: Supplied Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Da Nang City in central Vietnam ranks second among the 11 best places to visit in Asia in 2024, according to U.S. travel magazine Conde Nast Traveller. Da Nang is the only representative of Vietnam named in the list, following Bangkok Chinatown in Thailand. Asia is back brighter, bolder, and more ambitious than ever. The region took longer than others to shake off pandemic-related travel restrictions and border closures, but has returned in full force, eager to remind international travelers what theyve been missing, according to the U.S. magazine. Da Nang, a modern beach city located amid dozens of UNESCO-recognized sites in Vietnams heartland including Hoi An City and the former imperial capital city of Hue is one of Asias big post-COVID-19 success stories. The city welcomed more than 1.6 million international tourist arrivals in the January-September period this year, exceeding the target of 1.5 million set early this year. Many international air routes have been reopened, making the city easier to get to than ever. Tourists visit Ba Na Hills, a popular tourist site in Da Nang City, central Vietnam. Son Tra Peninsula, located just 20 minutes from the city center, is another tourist draw. It is home to a 17-story, 67-meter-high statue of Lady Buddha, as well as endangered red-shanked douc langurs that live in the peninsulas nature reserve. Food specialties like mi Quang, a noodle delicacy of the central region, and banh xeo (Vietnamese sizzling crepes) should be another feature of any travel itinerary, the U.S. magazine suggested. Hotel and resort developers are also taking note of Da Nangs newfound popularity. Other destinations in Conde Nast Travellers list are Kathmandu Valley in Nepal, Kobe City in Japan, Kochi City in India, Mongolia, Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates, the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia, Singapore, the Silk Road in Uzbekistan, and south and central Sri Lanka. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! In the $6 trillion Wellness Industry, Australia ranks sixth globally for spend per person. While the World Health organisation has 12 million followers, Kim Kardashian has 363 million, figures that alarm Mirror Mirrors Todd Sampson. The challenge we face with the wellness industry is that we live in a world today where the three biggest health influencers in the world, are not medical doctors and have no formal degrees. Gwyneth Paltrow, Joe Rogan, Kim Kardashian influence hundreds and hundreds of millions people. You could combine all the doctors in the world, and they still wouldnt have the reach of those three people, he tells TV Tonight. I dont hate Gwynneth at all. Despite approaches to Gwyneth Paltrow to participate in his new two part documentary Are You Well?, the actress / businesswoman did not agree to a sit down interview. But he fully expects some of her millions of followers to take issue with his commentary on her power and recommendations. I dont hate Gwynneth at all. I dont know her at all, other than her Godfather is Steven Spielberg, he insists. But I wanted to have her voice. Because many of the things, particularly in the first episode, tantra, the weekend spa for detox, the bee sting therapy, linked back to her in some way, shape or form. So I thought its only right to give her a voice, he explains. But I get it. The New York Times attacked her, shes under a lot of criticism. I think shes considering selling the business. So I understand that she wouldnt bother. Im not a gotcha kind of person. Its not A Current Affair. He also nominates Australian model Miranda Kerr as having mega-influence in Wellness. But again, he missed out with an interview. I was disappointed in Miranda Kerr. I thought for sure she would at least agree to an interview because she has a crystal business. Im not a gotcha kind of person. Its not A Current Affair. I would not have approached it from that angle. I wouldnt have done that with Gwyneth either. I would have explored it, trying to find the why? He did get close, sort of, when Kerr was texting a leech therapist (yes really) who was busily attaching parasites to his body as part of a bloody facial (yes really). I felt like saying, Dont tell her Im here. But, again, I wouldnt have been mean at all. I want to understand how she built up this crystal empire. The facial was part of a treatment he underwent in the USA during his 6 months of filming. Amongst his other studies are treatments with magnets, crystals and even bee sting therapy. While he warns against the leech and bee sting practice, he admits to a possible placebo effect from the 2+hrs of attention. Please, please do not do that at home Theres so many lovely, caring people in the film who, in their mind, are doing the right thing and in some cases they are and other cases theyre not. The leech therapy is not ending well for the leech, but also having coagulated blood covering your face is probably not a great idea, he warns. Even worse, is doing dental work in your living room with leeches. Please, please do not do that at home. Time-wise, at least, theres a lot to be said to 2+hrs compared to the standard GP appointment time. If I go to see my medical doctor, who I have been with for many, many years, Im there for 15 minutes max, no matter what I have. As a doctor says in the series, they work in increments. When I go see that crystal woman for two and a half hours, that level of care is completely different. Whether its placebo, whether its just touching you and making you feel good, were talking two and a half hours (compared) to 15 minutes. You are going to walk away feeling a lot better, but not really understanding why, he says. I am, or was, a wellness addict myself Sampson is personally no stranger to wellness therapies. Hes tried plenty of zen concepts himself. It would be fair to say I am, or was, a wellness addict myself. Ive tried many, many things: retreats, mini-cults, Ive done all the acupressure, acupuncture. I havent really tried crystals until the film. That was a new one for me, he admits. But I now look back at some of those and Im a little bit embarrassed. My style of filmmaking is immersion anyway so Im happy to go and try it. In episode two he admits to being high on psychedelics while hosting the show. Thats going to be a little confronting, I think, for some people, and some of the things that happened afterwards It made me think of my mother who had died an addict, and I ended up commenting on that. Things I never thought I would do, I did in that sort of psychedelic realm. Its rare that youre on the drug that you are trying to explain down the lens, Sampson continues. Theres so much risk around lack of regulation Australia is the first country in the world to legalise the use of psychedelics for psychiatric treatment. Theres so much hope and promise when it comes to depression and PTSD. On the other hand, hopefully we demonstrate in the film, theres so much risk around lack of regulation and science not having caught up. It just becomes a kind of westernised McDonalds version of psychedelics. With that comes incredible risk. Despite this he does see a future in psychadelics. Yet there are still some fundamentals that will extend life expectancy without costing too much money. Psychedelics, I think is incredibly worthwhile. I think we need to learn to walk before we run, but I think its incredibly worthwhile. Meditation is scientifically proven. Most the scientists (profess) the basics. Eat well. Eat less. Try to sleep eight hours a night. Be social with other people. Walk for 20 minutes a day. That prescription is not a bad one. Thats not misinformation, not hyperbole. Thats just really good advice, he suggests. Theyd rather get some kind of magical crystal put on their forehead. But people would rather find a supplement. Theyd rather get some kind of magical crystal put on their forehead. If Mirror Mirror holds up a mirror to the individual and society as a whole, what is he hoping people take away from the documentary? I hope that on some level, the show is helpful, maybe educational, good for kids. And I hope people take another level of scepticism when it comes to wellness. Its one thing to choose a filter on your profile. And its another thing to be influenced by people online, that have no medical experience, degrees or qualifications, and then either ingest something or do something to yourself, says Sampson. I hope that watching the film theyll be entertained, but theyll also be able to talk to the kids and their family and go, Hey, you should watch out for that.' Mirror Mirror: Are You Well? 7:30pm Wednesday & Thursday on 10. By Baek Byung-yeul Uncertainties are weighing on Korea's top conglomerates Samsung, SK and LG as their owners have all become entangled in legal problems, which industry officials and experts say could hamper the future plans and major decisions of the respective groups, citing the U.S.-China power tussle, Russia-Ukraine war and pandemic-driven supply chain issues. The owners of these family-controlled conglomerates play a crucial role in supporting the Korean economy, but, according to experts, judicial challenges surrounding their respective court trials could potentially bring adverse effects to the national economy. I can say the role of the top executives in Korean companies can be roughly estimated at 90 percent. They are in significant decision-making positions, which greatly influences the fate of an organization. If these leaders become entangled in judicial risks, they may not be able to make crucial decisions effectively, leading to a crisis for the company and potentially impacting the Korean economy as a whole, Kim Dae-jong, a professor of business administration at Sejong University, said. In particular, Samsung accounts for approximately 25 percent of the Korean economy, while SK and LG are also significant conglomerates. When these companies in Korea are exposed to such risks, it poses a serious threat to the stability of the country's economy, the professor said. On Friday, prosecutors demanded a five-year prison sentence and a fine of 500 million won ($387,000) for Lee Jae-yong, executive chairman of Samsung Electronics, alleging that the Samsung Group leader engaged in unfair mergers of Samsung affiliates and accounting fraud. The leader of the memory chip giant is accused of illegally interfering in a merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries in 2015 for the purpose of facilitating his leadership succession. Prosecutors claimed that Lee and executives manipulated the merger ratio of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries and that there was accounting fraud in Samsung Biologics, a subsidiary of Cheil Industries, in the process. The executive chairman has previously served a total of 565 days in prison, starting in 2017, on charges of bribing former President Park Geun-hye and her close friend. He was granted a special pardon in August of last year but now faces another judicial risk. The verdict for the current case is scheduled for January 26. Given there is a possibility of both the prosecution and Lee filing appeals depending on the outcome, Samsung Group will continue to be entangled in the case for some time yet. In his final statement at the court, the chairman claimed, "I can clearly say that I never had any intention of pursuing the merger for my personal gain or causing harm to other shareholders. The reason behind the merger was for the future of the group. Lee also appealed for an opportunity to fulfill his responsibilities, saying he acknowledged the significant challenges ahead of him as Samsung leader. As an entrepreneur, I have a duty to continuously generate profits for the company and provide employment opportunities to young people who will be responsible for the future. Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, and Koo Kwang-mo, chairman of LG Group, are also personally embroiled in recent lawsuits. Chey, also chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and co-chair of the Bid Committee for World Expo 2030 Busan, is currently overseas to attract World Expo 2030 to Busan. He has been making other headlines over a divorce lawsuit with his wife Roh So-young, the daughter of late former President Roh Tae-woo. On Nov. 9, Roh told reporters during the appeal hearing that it is pathetic that a 30-year marriage has come to this end. On Nov. 11, in an interview with local media, she added, those who break up other people's marriage must pay the price." In response, the chairman issued a statement, saying, "the marital relationship had already completely broken down long before I met a new person. In 2022, the first trial accepted Rohs divorce claim and ordered the chairman to pay 100 million won in alimony and 66.5 billion won in cash as a property settlement. Both sides appealed. The LG leader is also embroiled in an inheritance dispute over the ownership of late Chairman Koo Bon-moos shares since early this year when the chairmans mother, Kim Young-sik, his two sisters, Koo Yeon-kyung, the chief of LG Welfare Foundation, and Koo Yeon-soo, filed a lawsuit with the court requesting the estate of the late chairman to be redistributed equally. In a recording, released during the trial on Nov. 16, the mother and two sisters of the chairman, who had been involved in the management, are said to be suing to break the existing agreement they made with the chairman and redistribute the inheritance share, citing their intention to involve management. "I want to receive some shares again. I want to receive shares for participating in management, the LG Welfare Foundation chief said in the recording. Kim, the chairman's mother, said, "I would like to receive some equity again. I would like to receive shares to participate in management. The chairman received 8.76 percent of his fathers 11.28 percent shares in LG Corp., the holding company of LG Group, while the two sisters received 2.01 percent and 0.51 percent, respectively. Assuming that the inheritance property is divided again as claimed, the chairmans shares, which were 15.95 percent as of September, will be reduced to 9.7 percent, which is lower than the combined shareholding of his mother and two sisters at 14.09 percent. LG views the mother-daughter team's inheritance lawsuit as an attempt to shake up the management of LG Group and has said it will take a firm stance against them. The impact of their decisions and responsibilities on the Korean economy is enormous. In light of this, they should be able to manage their companies in accordance with the law and principles, the Sejong University professor added. One of the workshops under way in at the Nerve Centre in Derry. Photo: Francisca Valentim. A total of 15 students from Northern Ireland and 15 from the Reoublic of Ireland, taking Media, Journalism and Performing Arts courses at North West Regional College in Derry, gathered over five days to reflect on their viewpoints around key issues and produce short films about them. Led and hosted by Nerve Centre Northern Irelands leading creative media arts organisation and by the college, the Citizenship Workshop is part of the EU/ UK Youth Stronger Together programme from the British Council. One of the workshops under way in at the Nerve Centre in Derry. Photo: Francisca Valentim. One of the biggest issues impacting on the lives of the youth is, naturally, post Brexit and everything around its consequences, but there are other subjects that are not only related to the UKs exit from the EU, like the cost of living, health problems and the environment. The purpose was precisely to look at how their questions impact differently on each side of the border and how collaboration across border might help to address them. The big challenge given to the students was to make stories with a strong local flavour, but at the same time accessible and engaging to audiences from across Europe, resonating with a wider public through their messages. At the Nerve Centre in Derry. Photo: Francisca Valentim. During the week, they went through intensive days of brainstorming, planning, writing and filming their works, which were presented on Friday, November 10 at the Nerve Centre. Besides being able to express their worries and voices, one of the best parts of the week was being able to work alongside professional filmmakers, who were chosen to guide and mentor all the process. The students were divided into four teams, each one with one mentor. They could choose the genre of the film, and just had to follow the 3 minute maximum guideline. The result was a variety of subjects and paths: the tough cost of living crisis, a comedy about border control, the impact of connections when calling an ambulance, and even reaching The Troubles. One of the workshops under way in at the Nerve Centre in Derry. Photo: Francisca Valentim. Reporting from this event in Derry were Francisca, from Portugal, and Gabriela, from Bulgaria. We are the young journalists grantees of the EU/UK Youth Stronger Together programme to create follow-up stories of this workshop. We have really enjoyed this opportunity and getting to know Northern Ireland. Story continues From my part, Francisca, from the Porto region, I have to say that people from Derry are the nicest that I have ever met no overstatement so I want to thank the conviviality, helpfulness and openness from everyone across the city. It was a very pleasant stay, in a beautiful and easy-to-walk city. I noticed and appreciated the good conditions for people with physical mobility disabilities an aspect that is still largely lacking in too many European cities. Despite the stores closing quite early (especially compared to my country!) I always found a market open when I needed it! We hope to come back one day! Stay safe. The Israeli military on Sunday said it had uncovered a tunnel under Gaza's Al Shifa hospital that stretched 55 metres beneath the war-torn complex where troops have been conducting a major operation. More than 30 premature babies have been evacuated from the same hospital, which the World Health Organization says has become a "death zone". Read our blog for Sunday, November 19. All times are Paris time (GMT+1). This live blog is now closed. Head here for the latest. Key Developments from Saturday, November 18: Hundreds of people evacuated Gaza's Al Shifa hospital on Saturday, making their way towards the seafront in Gaza City. Some staff stayed behind to care for more than 100 wounded patients and premature babies that could not be moved, the Hamas-run health ministry said. Al Shifa director Mohammed Abu Salmiya said Israeli forces had issued orders to evacuate patients, displaced people and staff from the medical complex. Israel's army denied ordering the evacuation . It said the army responded to a "request of the director of the Shifa Hospital" to enable Gazans to leave the hospital. Some 17,000 litres (about 4,500 gallons) of fuel entered Gaza on Friday through the Rafah crossing with Egypt, a Palestinian border official said Read yesterday's blog here. (FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters) Read more on FRANCE 24 English Read also: More than 80 killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza refugee camp, Hamas-run health ministry says Thousands march to press Israel's government to do more to free hostages held in Gaza 'The scene is apocalyptic': FRANCE 24 reports from Gaza with Israeli army Lotus-themed tourism Your browser does not support the audio element. Lotus flowers are so much more than just a pretty sight on our lakes. They have so many different uses like tea, healthy drinks, and they are even used to make conical hats and art! Now authorities in Ninh Binh want to use the flower to encourage more eco-friendly tourists to visit the province. HA NOI President Vo Van Thuong, his spouse, and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation arrived in Ha Noi on Sunday morning, concluding their US trip for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders Week and bilateral activities at the invitation of US President Joe Biden. The success of the trip has a significant meaning in Viet Nam's external relations both bilaterally and multilaterally, contributing to maintaining and reinforcing the external relations situation of peace and stability for national development. Within the APEC Leaders Week and related events, President Thuong conducted a series of activities, including discussions, working sessions, and bilateral meetings. He attended and addressed the 30th APEC Economic Leaders Meeting and delivered a speech at the APEC CEO Summit. The Vietnamese leader had working sessions with representatives from the US-APEC Business Coalition, and Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) partner nations. The President participated in a dialogue between APEC leaders and representatives of APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). He joined other APEC leaders in a dialogue and a working lunch with guests, and attended a retreat of APEC economic leaders. The President also had a conversation with leaders of Vietnamese firms having exhibition booths at the APEC Leaders Week. He also had meetings with leaders of APEC economies and guests. President Thuong had separate meetings with Sultan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, and Peruvian President Dina Ercilia Boluarte Zegarra. At the meetings, leaders of economies and guests hailed the role and position of Viet Nam, and agreed to increase delegation exchanges as well as partnership in politics-diplomacy, economy-trade, science-technology, education-training, and locality-to-locality and people-to-people relations with Viet Nam, pledging to strengthen mutual support at regional and international forums. For bilateral activities, President Thuong received Governor of California Gavin Newsom, Deputy Mayor of Los Angeles city Erin Bromaghim. He attended and delivered a speech at a roundtable connecting Vietnamese and US businesses and localities in high technology, and received representatives from leading US firms in aviation and technology - Boeing and Apple. The State leader also met officials from Vietnamese diplomatic representative agencies in the US, and visited Stanford University's hospital. Particularly, President Thuong had a policy discussion at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). His speech about the global situation, the foreign policy of Viet Nam and the Viet Nam-US relations at the CRF was highly evaluated by circles in the US. Commenting on President Thuong's speech and discussions at the CRF, American historian Prof. Larry Berman, author of many books on Viet Nam, said that the Vietnamese President has a successful conversation, giving straightforward answers to questions mentioning core contents in Viet Nam's foreign policies. Lauding the outcomes of the Vietnamese leader's four-day trip to the US with a large number of bilateral and multilateral activities, Berman held that President Thuong's participation at the APEC Leaders Week and bilateral activities with the US affirmed the special position in the world arena, while showing the urgency of implementing commitments of the Viet Nam-US comprehensive strategic partnership. The expert emphasised the need for the two sides to turn commitments into action. VNS HCM CITY The chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat Group is facing accusations of orchestrating the activities of Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SCB) to embezzle VN304 trillion (US$12.4 billion). According to the Investigation Police Department for Corruption, Smuggling, and Economic Crimes (CO3) under the Public Security Ministry, Truong My Lan, 66, was recommended for prosecution on three charges: bribery, embezzlement, and violations of regulations on banking and related activities. In addition, 85 other individuals are also facing charges related to embezzlement, violation of banking regulations, bribery, abuse of power, negligence causing serious consequences, and misappropriation of property. According to the investigations conclusion, SCB Bank is a joint stock company operating under Business Law and a credit institution operating under the Law on Credit Institutions. Although Lan does not hold any positions at SCB, she has control over the bank as she has held a controlling stake (from 85 to 91.5 per cent) since a merger in 2012. The C03 stated that with her controlling shares, and with close relatives of hers appointed to key leadership positions at SCB (Board of Directors, Executive Board), all activities of the bank basically serve Lans purposes. She is accused of utilising SCB to raise capital, then directing individuals at SCB and Van Thinh Phat Group to take out loans to withdraw money, resulting in embezzling a significant amount of VN304 trillion from the bank. Last October, Truong My Lan and other individuals were arrested for alleged fraud related to the issuance and trading of bonds worth VN30.1 trillion ($1.22 billion). Most of the buyers of the bond packages purchased the bonds at SCB. Following Lans arrest, numerous depositors rushed to the bank to withdraw their money, leading to SCB being placed under special control by the central bank. Other individuals who were also arrested included Truong Hue Van, CEO of Windsor Property Management, Nguyen Phuong Hong, an assistant at Van Thinh Phat, and Ho Buu Phuong, former chairwoman of Tan Viet Securities and Van Thinh Phat former deputy financial director. On March 28, the C03 arrested o Thi Nhan, former director of Supervision Department II at the central bank, and four members of an inspection team under the central bank for abusing their power while performing their duties. Earlier, the Public Security Ministry announced seven executives of SCB were currently wanted for their involvement in the fraud case of Van Thinh Phat Group. They are former chairs of the SCB Board of Directors, Nguyen Thi Thu Suong and inh Van Thanh, former SCB deputy general director Chiem Minh Dung, former members of the SCB Board of Directors Tram Thich Ton, Sun Henry Ka Ziang, and Lam Lee George, and deputy director of SCB Ben Thanh Branch Nguyen Lam Anh Vu. Their current whereabouts remain unknown. Truong My Lan is known as a prominent Chinese-Vietnamese billionaire in Viet Nam's business community. Her company, Van Thinh Phat Co., Ltd., operates in commerce, hospitality, and real estate and owns major projects and buildings in prime locations in HCM City. In relation to Viet Nams GDP at the end of the third quarter of this year (VN4.7 quadrillion), the amount that the chairwoman is accused of misappropriating is equivalent to 6 per cent of the countrys GDP. VNS By Tran Khanh An Since 1945, he has been a legend to the entire Vietnamese people, from young to old, which we all are aware of and grateful for, wrote Professor Phong Le in his remark for the conference celebrating the 100th birth anniversary of composer Van Cao. Born Nguyen Van Cao on October 15, 1923 in the port city of Hai Phong, Van Cao was the author of the iconic revolutionary song Tien Quan Ca (Marching Song) written in 1944, which one year later became the national anthem of the new independent Viet Nam until now. Since then, generation after generation of Vietnamese citizens have learned the national anthem and his name by heart, as the song is a summons from the motherland, reflecting the inner voice of their hearts. Although the anthem alone undoubtedly marks Cao's eminent career, he was also an extraordinary talent, a virtuoso in music, poetry and painting with a long career and an extensive collection of works. Elegance in music, poetry Cao only wrote over 30 songs in his entire career. His only poetry collection La (Leaf) includes 28 poems; and the collection Anthology of Van Cao Poetry, published after his death, contains just 59 poems. Though Cao did not have a great number of compositions, his music and poetry have endured, representing the essence of his generation and the country. Cao's music contains the romance of an artist and heroism of a patriot. He composed rhythmic lyrical songs with folk influences such as Mua Xuan au Tien (First Spring), Lang Toi (My Village), and soldiers' marching songs such as Chien si Viet Nam (Vietnamese Fighters) and Tien ve Ha Noi (Marching to Ha Noi). His music also fused the Vietnamese soul with traditional culture and the melody and rhythms of modern Western music. He transcended conventional musical forms and became a pioneer in a musical genre imbued with national creativity, with Truong Ca Song Lo (The Epic of the Lo River). Cao's music contains diverse and complex transformations linked with significant developments in the nation's history, while also conveying the artist's humanity," said art researcher o Anh Vu. Autumn and spring themes feature frequently in Cao's poetry and music, with autumn representing separation and nostalgia, and spring representing happiness and unity. If Tien Quan Ca is the music that urges soldiers to go to the battlefield, Mua Xuan au Tien praises soldiers' homecoming to reunite with their families. "His music and poetry are full of artistry and fusion between the two genres. His poetry is abundant in melody and his music is also abundant in poetry," said art researcher Nguyen Thanh. All of these characteristics have added a distinct elegance to Cao's music and poetry, as celebrated musician Trinh Cong Son once said: "In music, Van Cao is as elegant as a king." Illustrator Cao's versatility extended to painting, and the majority of his artworks were book illustrations. Although his painting career was less prominent than his music and poetry realms, he still established a new perspective on modern Vietnamese graphic and illustrative art. "Cao is firmly a pioneering design artist in Viet Nam," said art critic Phan Cam Thuong. Over half a century, he created thousands of covers for publications such as the Van Nghe magazine, the Lao ong newspaper, and the ai oan Ket newspaper, as well as illustrating more than 300 book covers for Vietnamese and foreign authors worldwide. The highlights of Cao's illustrations include his basic expressive outlines and strong structures, with bright colours and pleasant dispositions. "In the 1960s, it was Cao and a few others who established a new aesthetic for book illustrations and graphic designs," translator-writer Thai Ba Van said. For every new day in Viet Nam and many other places throughout the world, the melody of the Vietnamese national anthem Tien Quan Ca resounds eloquently, representing the Vietnamese people's tremendous spiritual power throughout thousands of years of history. Though Cao passed away in the summer of 1995, his artistic legend will live forever in Vietnamese hearts. Van Cao was posthumously awarded the Resistance Order, the Independence Order and the Ho Chi Minh Prize in Music in 1996 by the state for his outstanding contributions to the nation's cause of independence and freedom. VNS Israel prepared on Sunday to expand its offensive against Hamas militants to southern Gaza after air strikes killed dozens of Palestinians, including civilians reported to be sheltering at two schools. After earlier in the week dropping leaflets, Israel on Saturday again warned civilians in parts of southern Gaza to relocate as it girds for an onslaught in that part of the small coastal enclave, after subduing the north. Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini of UNRWA, the U.N. aid organization for Palestinian refugees, said on social media platform X that Israel bombarded two agency schools in the north. More than 4,000 civilians were sheltered at one of them, he said. "Dozens reported killed including children," he said. "Second time in less than 24 hours schools are not spared. ENOUGH, these horrors must stop." A spokesperson for Gaza's Hamas authorities said 200 people had been killed or injured at the school. Israel's military did not comment. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, whose government controls parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on Saturday said, "Hundreds of forcibly displaced people were killed" at the two schools in Gaza. Israel vowed to destroy Hamas after the militant group's Oct. 7 rampage into Israel in which its fighters killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. As the conflict entered its seventh week, authorities in Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip raised their death toll to 12,300, including 5,000 children. Abbas on Saturday made an appeal to U.S. President Joe Biden to intervene to stop the Israeli operation in Gaza. In an address aired by Palestine TV, Abbas said "hundreds of forcibly displaced people were killed" at the two schools in Gaza and demanded "that you and world leaders take responsibility to stop this aggression and genocide against our people." Biden, who opposes a ceasefire, was looking to the end of the conflict, saying in a Washington Post opinion article that the Palestinian Authority should ultimately govern both Gaza and the West Bank. Asked about Biden's proposal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told reporters in Tel Aviv the Palestinian Authority in its current form was not capable of being responsible for Gaza. Israel has not disclosed a strategy for Gaza after the war. As Israel's military looked to move southward, Palestinian officials accused the Israeli army of forcibly evacuating most staff, patients and displaced people from Al Shifa Hospital, Gaza's largest, and abandoning them to perilous journeys southwards on foot. Israeli forces denied the accusation, saying evacuations were voluntary. Military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Israel opened a safe corridor for civilians who were in the hospital to go south, at the request of the hospital director. Israeli forces seized Al Shifa in their offensive across north Gaza earlier in the week, saying it concealed an underground Hamas command centre. An Israeli offensive in the south could compel hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who fled Gaza City in the north to uproot again, along with residents of Khan Younis, a city of more than 400,000, compounding a dire humanitarian crisis. The conflict has already displaced around two-thirds of Gaza's population of 2.3 million. An advance into southern Gaza may prove more complicated and deadlier than in the north, however, with Hamas militants dug into the Khan Younis region, a senior Israeli source and two top ex-officials said. Early Saturday, an air strike in a busy residential district of Khan Younis killed 26 Palestinians and wounded 23, health officials said. Eyad Al-Zaeem told Reuters he lost his aunt, her children and her grandchildren in the air strike in Khan Younis. They all had evacuated from northern Gaza on Israeli army orders only to die where the army told them they could be safe, he said. "All of them were martyred. They had nothing to do with the (Hamas) resistance," said Zaeem, standing outside the morgue at Nasser Hospital, where the 26 bodies were laid out before they were to be carried by loved ones to burials. A few miles (kms) to the north, six Palestinians were killed when a house was bombed from the air in the town of Deir Al-Balah, health authorities said. A third Israeli air strike on Saturday afternoon killed 15 Palestinians in a house west of Khan Younis, close to a shelter for displaced people, witnesses and medics said. Israel says Hamas typically conceals fighters and weaponry in residential and other civilian buildings, which Hamas denies. An Israeli military statement said only that over the past 24 hours its air force had hit dozens of Gaza targets including militants, command centres, rocket launch sites and munitions factories. Israel said five of its soldiers had been killed in Gaza since Friday, bringing its losses in the territory to 57. (Reuters) by Bo Xuan Hiep While artificial intelligence (AI) empowers cyber attackers, it can also be effectively utilised to empower users in navigating the challenges of disinformation. Viet Nam News spoke with Vitaly Kamluk, APAC director of the Global Research & Analysis Team at Kaspersky, a global cybersecurity company, about the proactive measures that businesses and individuals can take to ensure a more secure digital future. Inner Sanctum: What are the ways in which AI empowers cyber attackers? AI has increasingly become a valuable tool for cyber attackers, allowing them to carry out more sophisticated and damaging attacks. From aiding the development of malware to automating large-scale attacks, AI has the potential to significantly enhance the effectiveness and reach of cybercriminals. One major way AI empowers cyber attackers is through its use in advanced persistent threat (APT) cyber attacks. AI can analyse vast amounts of data and identify vulnerabilities, enabling attackers to exploit weaknesses in targeted systems. AI can also play a role in the development of malware by automating tasks like purchasing network infrastructure and compromising accounts, making it harder for antivirus software and spam filters to detect threats. AI can also be used to manipulate or create fake data, leading to confusion or impersonation of officials. For instance, deepfake scams utilise AI to create realistic fake videos or audio recordings, which can be used for identity theft or blackmail purposes. Inner Sanctum: Can you talk about the risks and flaws of AI which have been discovered in relation to cybersecurity? One significant concern is the emergence of AI-powered password cracking. Cyber attackers can use machine learning and AI algorithms to analyse large data sets of passwords, generating variations and improving their ability to guess users passwords, which poses a significant threat as weak or easily guessed passwords can be easily compromised. AI-assisted hacking has also become a growing concern. With AI algorithms, cybercriminals can automate and enhance various hacking activities, including vulnerability scanning, system weaknesses detection, and adaptive malware development. By incorporating AI in these activities, hackers can execute attacks more precisely and swiftly, making it even more challenging for defenders to mitigate threats. In addition, there is a risk of AI being used in supply chain attacks. Cybercriminals can insert malicious code or components into legitimate software or hardware products, compromising an organisations cybersecurity defences. These attacks can go unnoticed for extended periods, enabling malicious actors to access sensitive information or disrupt critical systems. Perhaps the most concerning prospect is the creation of an intelligent malicious system that is fully independent and autonomous. Such a system could imitate known threat actors, automatically launch attacks, and keep defenders occupied with false noise. Inner Sanctum: How can AI be effectively utilised to empower users in navigating the challenges of disinformation? First and foremost, accessibility is crucial. We must limit anonymous access to intelligent systems built and trained on rich data volumes. By storing the resulting content history and identifying how synthesised content is created, we can establish transparency and accountability in the AI ecosystem. Policy also plays a pivotal role in leveraging AI for the benefit of users. The European Unions discussions on tagging AI-assisted content are a step in the right direction. By providing users with a quick and reliable way to detect AI-generated images, sounds, videos, or text, we can enhance their ability to discern the authenticity of information. Violators must face punishment, ensuring a safer digital environment for users. Education is key to empowering individuals to navigate the challenges of disinformation. By creating awareness and teaching people how to detect artificial content, validate information, and report possible abuse, we can equip them with the necessary skills to make informed decisions. Schools should include lessons on AI, explaining its concept, the differences to natural intelligence, and the reliability or potential shortcomings of AI systems. Inner Sanctum: What proactive measures can businesses and individuals implement to adapt to the progress of AI while ensuring a more secure future for all? First, businesses should invest in staying future-focused with their technology. Outdated technology and redundant manual labour can leave businesses vulnerable to exploitation. Staying ahead of the curve and using forward-thinking solutions, such as Kaspersky Integrated Endpoint Security, can help businesses adapt and protect themselves from potential vulnerabilities. Instead of replacing human workers with AI, businesses should augment their teams with AI and machine learning capabilities. It is crucial for businesses to ensure that their IT teams are trained to work with and support this infrastructure, utilising AI as a tool rather than solely relying on it. Businesses and individuals should also routinely update their data policies to comply with evolving legislation. Data privacy has become a focal point for governing bodies across the globe, and it will continue to be a significant concern for most enterprises and organisations in the future. VNS Within the framework of President Vo Van Thuong's business trip attending the APEC 2023 Conference in San Francisco, the Chairman of the HCM City People's Committee had a meeting with nearly 30 large USA businesses to promote investment in green growth and high technology fields. At the Conference, the Chairman of the City People's Committee Phan Van Mai emphasized that the City always determines its pioneering role and mission in implementing specific cooperation contents, focusing on developing high technology, chips, semiconductors, digital economy, green economy, etc, ... Informed to US investors about the City's green growth - sustainable development strategy, Chairman of the HCM City People's Committee Phan Van Mai said that the City has completed the green growth strategic framework to 2030, vision to 2050 and determined to take citizens - businesses as the center of transformation. Specifically: Firstly, focus on 4 contents: green resources (highly qualified human resources, green finance, green connection/cooperation); green infrastructure (Green energy conversion, clean water, and water saving, resource circulation); green behavior (green consumption, green transportation, green construction); Priority industry/field groups (high-tech manufacturing, green startups - innovation, green tourism, green food, green Can Gio(Vietnam)). Secondly, the city calls for investment in the development of Clean energy(reaching 35-40% by 2030), green transportation (infrastructure/metro, reducing gas emissions), wastewater and garbage treatment, development Developing carbon credits, and building a green Can Gio. The city also wishes to access green credit and develop green finance. Thirdly, the city focuses on building plans with specific progress (itinerary) and designing policies and standards for socio-economic development in the City. Participating in the discussion session, Mr. David Lewis, Chairman and CEO of Energy Capital Vietnam, a company founded in 2017 by a group of investors and experts with experience in the energy and infrastructure fields. He pledged that Energy Capital Vietnam Company will invest in the areas of innovation and green energy in the coming time. Mr. Patrick Sweeney, Vice Chairman of the Council of Businesses Executives for National Security (BENS), said that many BENS' business members are eager to invest in the HCM City in the fields of technology, aerospace, defense, finance, health, energy, etc,... In the afternoon on the same day, at the Investment Promotion Conference of HCM City in 2023, Mr. Marc Knapper, US Ambassador to Vietnam, highlighted the advantages of Ho Chi Minh City's investment environment, wishing US businesses to invest stalwartly in HCM City The conference also witnessed the awarding ceremony of 4 Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) and 2 letters of interest between organizations and businesses to promote green growth and high-tech projects. Previously, at the round table discussion about "connecting businesses and localities in Vietnam - America" organized by the Ministry of Planning and Investment in the afternoon of November 15, HCM City departments also signed three MOUs with the Green Alliance. These three agreements include: Cooperation in organizing investment and business activities towards green growth, and sustainable development in HCM City; cooperating on investment in building a private sector innovation center in HCMCity; and investment cooperation on the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in the field of transportation. A veteran Baylor Law School professor has been chosen for its top leadership position, bringing to the job a trusted reputation both at Baylor and in McLennan County legal circles. Jeremy Counseller, a 20-year tenured law professor, will become law school dean July 1, taking over from interim Dean Patricia Wilson. Brad Toben stepped down at the end of June after 31 years as dean of the law school, where he continues to teach. Baylor Provost Nancy Brickhouse chose Counseller, a graduate of the law school, after a nationwide search, citing overwhelming support for him across the campus. Professor Counseller knows Baylor Law well both its strengths and its opportunities for growth and improvement, Brickhouse said in a statement. He has articulated a vision for Baylor Law that is ambitious and aligned with that of Baylor University. The campus community also knows Professor Counseller very well and expressed overwhelming support for his vision and his leadership. Professor Counseller has the courage and mandate to lead Baylor Law into the future, preparing lawyers and producing scholarship informed by Christian perspectives on service and leadership. During the selection process, Counseller spoke to stakeholders about aligning the law school fully with the universitys focus on research, Brickhouse said. As we become a national university, we want to be known not only for educating great lawyers, but also for producing great (legal) scholarship, Brickhouse said. Scholarly articles in law journals can have an impact on the practice of law, and the U.S. Supreme Court and circuit appeals courts cite them in opinions, Counseller said. Trial attorneys may not reference journal articles in arguing before a judge but will often use them to craft their arguments and determine legal precedents. It is through legal scholarship that we can help to shape the future of the law, Counseller said in an interview. Brickhouse said she also was looking for a dean who understands and respects the educational processes that have brought Baylor to national prominence in trial advocacy. During Tobens tenure, Baylor Law School earned a No. 2 national ranking for trial advocacy by U.S. News & World Report. The provost said she wants the law schools programs in business and transactional law to grow as well. Aligned with Brickhouses goals, Counseller said his first objective as dean is to preserve the excellence in education and training that Baylors law school is known for, thanks to the work of others who came before him, including Toben, Wilson and other faculty and staff colleagues. I want to preserve the excellence thats here, Counseller said. As he prepares for the post, Counseller said he wants to wants to listen and learn. I really do want to listen to what people have to say across the law school and the university, (which is) an incredibly substantial institution, and so even for someone like me whos been here for 20 years, theres a lot that I have to learn. Brickhouse praised the role Wilson has played as interim dean. Wilson was a professor of employment law before becoming associate dean of the law school. Im very appreciative of the work Dean Wilson has done, and she has been really terrific in that role, Brickhouse said. She said Wilson has done important work in hiring and getting the preparation right for the new bar exam, which is required to practice law in Texas. Among the projects Wilson is proud of during her interim tenure is a new family law clinic, suggested by professor Stephanie Tang. Baylor law students will help people seeking adoptions or divorces or navigating the other pathways of the family court system. Transitions are hard when theres uncertainty, but now that Dr. Brickhouse selected Jeremy Counseller we all know what were bridging toward and were really thrilled, Wilson said. Professor Counseller has intriguing ideas that will continue the trajectory of excellence that has been established before, and Im excited about his tenure as dean. Before stepping down as dean, Toben became the longest-serving leader among the deans of the 200 American Bar Association accredited law schools, Brickhouse said. Toben said he thinks the law school will be in good hands when Counseller becomes dean. Jeremy knows the mission and he understands our values, Toben said. He understands our culture, and that is a tremendous asset to have as you come into a leadership position because those factors mission, values, culture form an institution. He also said Counseller will succeed because of his role in the practice court preparation process that Baylors law school requires of its third-year students. Many judges, prosecutors and other attorneys in Waco are graduates of Baylor Law School. In interviews this past week Justice Matt Johnson of Wacos 10th Court of Appeals, Judge Ryan Luna of McLennan County Court at Law No. 3, McLennan County District Attorney Josh Tetens and defense attorney Abel Reyna said the rigor of Baylor Law School and its practice court program were important to preparing them for trial. Toben said Counsellers connection with a network of Baylor Law School alumni will be a strength in the new job. Counseller taught one of the procedure courses that all first-year students are required to take, Toben said. He also teaches in the third-year practice court program, so he has taught and trained nearly all of the graduates over the past 20 years, he said. That network of graduates will help Jeremy as he seeks out future professors, lecturers, guest speakers and mentors, Toben said. It will also help him when seeks donors to the law school foundation. Before he became a trainer in the practice court process, Counseller served in the McLennan County District Attorneys Office for a few months in 2009, trying cases in Wacos 54th State District Court when Johnson was the courts judge, and negotiating pleas as well. He always had a command of the facts and the law, Johnson said of Counseller. He had excellent courtroom presence and advocacy skills. Advocacy skills means making persuasive arguments, Johnson said. When I was called upon to make a difficult evidentiary ruling, it was good to have a law professor in court to argue the point, Johnson said. It was refreshing to have a law professor who knew the rules of evidence inside and out. Johnson said he followed Counsellers career after he left the DAs office. He said Counseller prepared himself well in his legal career as a practicing attorney and a professor. I have known several of the past deans of Baylor Law, and Jeremy has quite a legacy to fulfill, Johnson said. Im confident the hes up for the challenges of the job. One of the defense attorneys Counseller faced in court and in negotiating pleas was Reyna. Reyna, who would later serve as McLennan County district attorney, recalled a case in which he and Counseller negotiated to find justice for the defendant and the victims of the crime. Likewise, Tetens and Luna said they believe Counseller will uphold the ideals and rigorous training Baylor Law School is known for. After graduating from Baylor Law School himself in 2000, Counseller served as a law clerk on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. He joined the Baylor law faculty in 2003. Riesel blood drive Riesel High School, 600 E. Fredrick St., will host a blood drive from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 29 on a Carter BloodCare Bus. To schedule an appointment, call Brittany Lessman at 254-896-3171. Floyd Casey feedback The city of Waco is seeking feedback for plans involving the development of parkland next to the former Floyd Casey Stadium site, where a residential and retail development is starting. To provide input, go to www.surveymonkey.com/r/embracingplaywaco. Results will be shared on the project website, embracingplaywaco.com, after the survey closes Sunday, Nov. 26. Fruitcake sale Waco Methodist men will start selling Collin Street Bakery fruitcakes and Navarro pecans Friday at the corner of Lake Air and Cobbs drives. The sales trailer will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Proceeds benefit local charities. For more information, call 254-292-8848. Sabor The Cen-Tex Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will present Sabor: Taste the Nations, from 6 to 8 p.m. Nov. 30 at the Cameron Park Clubhouse. The event will provide culinary delights, wine and music from different nations. The event is intended to celebrate unity, diversity and the power of community in Waco. Tickets cost $75 and are available at 254-754-7111. Murray Watson Jr. Scholarship The Brazos Education Foundation is accepting applications through Nov. 30 for the Murray Watson Jr. Scholarship, a $5,000 award available to graduating high school seniors, undergraduates and graduate students who are Texas residents and meet the eligibility criteria. Applications are available at https://www.studentloans.com/scholarship. Applicants must be a Texas resident, at least 17 years of age, with a minimum 3.3 GPA, or equivalent, and admitted to or enrolled in college. For more information, email Missy Larson at missy.larson@brazos.us.com. Santa at Richland Mall Santa will be available for photos daily through Christmas Eve in the JCPenney Court in Richland Mall, 6601 W. Waco Drive. Prices start at $40. Photos with pets will be available Mondays through Dec. 18. For more information or to reserve a spot, go to https://bit.ly/3ubR7LE. Turkey Trot The 2023 Waco Turkey Trot will start at 8 a.m. Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, at the Waco Suspension Bridge, 101 N. University Parks Drive. There will be a 1-mile fun run or walk and a timed 5K run or walk on a certified course, beginning at 8:30 a.m. Entry fee is $40 for the 5K and $35 for the 1-mile event. To register, go to wacoturkeytrot.com. Thanksgiving volunteers Friends for Life is seeking volunteers to prepare about 400 meals on Thanksgiving morning. Volunteers will report to 5000 Lakewood Drive to help cook, package and deliver the meals before 10 a.m. For more information, email WacoCoordinator@Friendsforlife.org or call 254-772-7600, ext. 110. Holiday break camps Waco Parks and Recreation will offer holiday break camps daily from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. Cost is $45 per child. The camps will take place at the Dewey, Doris Miller and South Waco community centers. The camps keep kids engaged and active during their holiday break with outdoor adventures, crafts, games and educational activities. For more information, call 254-750-5980. Thanksgiving meal Mission Waco will hold its annual Thanksgiving lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday at the Meyer Center, 1226 Washington Ave. All are invited to come and enjoy lunch and fellowship. Chapel will run from 11:30 to noon, with lunch served from noon to 1 p.m. and new coat bingo from 1 to 2 p.m. Volunteer needs for the lunch have been met, but Mission Waco is accepting monetary donations and donations of new coats. Salvation Army meal The Salvation Army of McLennan County will hold its Thanksgiving meal from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at the Community Kitchen, 300 Webster Ave. Volunteer slots for the Thanksgiving lunch are full, but The Salvation Army is accepting monetary donations and seeking volunteers to work as bell ringers for its Red Kettle campaign, to staff its Christmas meal and to staff nightly meals at its Community Kitchen while Baylor University students are on break, especially on nights when the facility is open as a warming center. Riesel blood drive Riesel High School, 600 E. Fredrick St., will host a blood drive from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 29 on a Carter BloodCare Bus. To schedule an appointment, call Brittany Lessman at 254-896-3171. Advent event Dec. 3 Peace Lutheran Church, 9301 Panther Way in Hewitt, will present its annual Celebrate Advent event December 3 at 4 p.m. All are invited to attend the performance and the reception following the event. Featured performers include The Stringed Coalition, The Peace Choir, and Bells of Peace. There will also be a mens ensemble and a womans ensemble. A variety of music will be presented from Africa, Germany, France, Spain, Ireland, and India. West historic homes A holiday tour of three historic homes in West will be available from 3 to 8 p.m. Sunday. The homes, The 1888 Estate, The Oak House and The Village House, are decorated and ready for Christmas. Tickets are $35 per day and available at Shoppe 826, 205 E. Columbus St. in West, or by going to shop826.com and searching for tour. Fruitcake sale Waco Methodist men are selling Collin Street Bakery fruitcakes and Navarro pecans at the corner of Lake Air and Cobbs drives. The sales trailer will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Proceeds benefit local charities. For more information, call 254-292-8848. Turkey Trot The 2023 Waco Turkey Trot will start at 8 a.m. Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, at the Waco Suspension Bridge, 101 N. University Parks Drive. There will be a 1-mile fun run or walk and a timed 5K run or walk on a certified course, beginning at 8:30 a.m. Entry fee is $40 for the 5K and $35 for the 1-mile event. To register, go to wacoturkeytrot.com. Thanksgiving volunteers Friends for Life is seeking volunteers to prepare about 400 meals on Thanksgiving morning. Volunteers will report to 5000 Lakewood Drive to help cook, package and deliver the meals before 10 a.m. For more information, email WacoCoordinator@Friendsforlife.org or call 254-772-7600, ext. 110. Holiday break camps Waco Parks and Recreation will offer holiday break camps daily from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. Cost is $45 per child. The camps will take place at the Dewey, Doris Miller and South Waco community centers. The camps keep kids engaged and active during their holiday break with outdoor adventures, crafts, games and educational activities. For more information, call 254-750-5980. Thanksgiving meal Mission Waco will hold its annual Thanksgiving lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday at the Meyer Center, 1226 Washington Ave. All are invited to come and enjoy lunch and fellowship. Chapel will run from 11:30 to noon, with lunch served from noon to 1 p.m. and new coat bingo from 1 to 2 p.m. Volunteer needs for the lunch have been met, but Mission Waco is accepting monetary donations and donations of new coats. Salvation Army meal The Salvation Army of McLennan County will hold its Thanksgiving meal from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at the Community Kitchen, 300 Webster Ave. Volunteer slots for the Thanksgiving lunch are full, but The Salvation Army is accepting monetary donations and seeking volunteers to work as bell ringers for its Red Kettle campaign, to staff its Christmas meal and to staff nightly meals at its Community Kitchen while Baylor University students are on break, especially on nights when the facility is open as a warming center. After many years of military and civilian professional flying, Captain Giancarlo Gusso wanted to own an airplane for himself to enjoy flying in freedom, whenever and wherever he wanted, and without the rules and timetables imposed by his professional flying career. Captain Gusso, known in the Italian Vintage Aviation circles as Gux, was a fighter pilot in the Italian Air Force. He flew MB-339, G-91T, and AMX, and served in the Aeronautica Militare for a total of 9 years. In 1987, he was hired by Alitalia as a First Officer on the venerable MD-80. When flying for the now-defunct Alitalia, Captain Gusso flew MD-11, Airbus A320, and Boeing 777, until he finally retired in January of 2023 after almost 20,000 hours of flight time. After owning a vintage SAAB 91 for a few years, his next airplane had to meet a series of criteria. It had to check all the boxes. It had to be historic, ex-military, inexpensive to operate, perhaps aerobatic (because I know myself and sooner or later I would have liked to observe the earth upside down), and possibly with more than two seats. With these criteria, the shortlist of candidates was limited to very few airplanes. After conducting online research, his first choice was a Saab 91D, ex-Austrian Air Force. The Saab fit the bill but had a flaw: it was not an Italian aircraft. Captain Gusso told us: The circle narrowed further and the search for the definitive aircraft was gradually taking shape. Ex-military, acrobatic, historical, 4-seater.All of a sudden I had found it a Piaggio P149D! It is interesting to note that the Italian Air Force ordered the Piaggio P.148, a two-seater trainer, for only its liaison and logistical needs. It was preferred to a troubled Aermacchi by purchasing the M.416. So, MM559 was the only Piaggio P.149 that ever served in the Italian Air Force. Captain Gusso finally found the airplane that checked all the boxes in July of 2021, but it, too, had a major flaw: an almost unwatchable civilian livery. Captain Gusso told us: I evaluated a series of proposals from aircraft painting companies, but they were definitely too expensive for my pocket. I evaluated others abroad but due to logistical travel and language barrier problems, I had to give up. So I started to entertain the idea of doing things on my own as soon as I retired. The Captain started looking for a hangar near Caorle (Venice), his hometown, where he could do the long cosmetic operation without having to dismantle the plane. After a tedious search, he eventually found one. Thanks to the help of the curator of the Guardia di Finanza Museum in Pratica di Mare, Captain Gusso was able to acquire technical documentation for the Federal Standard colors used in the restoration of the museums Beechcraft C-45, which was from the same period as the Piaggio. That meant the same colors were also applicable to Captain Gussos Piaggio. In addition, an expert painter and representative of Lechler Colours, an Italian paint manufacturer, offered to help the Captain with the painting scheme and process. The choice for the paint scheme was actually very simple as there was only one Piaggio P.149 that served with the Italian Air Force serial number MM559. This Piaggio was used by the Italian military attache in Bonn in the early 60s, so the choice obviously went to this aircraft. Captain Gusso also told us: I started looking for paint stripping products since I absolutely didnt want to disassemble the wings or the flight controls. In particular, I was looking for a gel product that could also be applied on the lower surfaces. For the next three months, I spent most of my time in overalls, glasses, masks, rubber gloves, and with a spatula and rolls of paper. This first phase was followed by the orbital sander, then a brass brush to clean the old paint around the rivets. I spent about 8-10 hours each day of continuous work until the plane slowly changed its appearance finally showing its original primer layer. Eventually, the airplane was fully prepped for the paint booth; however, there was no paint booth available nearby. Captain Gusso told us, We built a beautiful 15 x 15 x 5-meter booth inside the hangar using wood and plastic sheets! After four months of work, the Piaggio was finally flight-ready. The actual history of the Piaggio follows: Focke Wulf Piaggio 149D (Deutschland), serial number 119 FWP was built by Bremen and Focke Wulf under the Rinaldo Piaggio Aviazione license in March of 1960. It served as a trainer in the Luftwaffe at the FFB Furstenfeldbruck Air Base (Bavaria) until 1993, with the following fuselage numbers: 90+99, AS+461, part of WaffenSchule 49 (WaSch49) flight group of the Fluglergruppe Furstenfeldgruppe. Due to age reasons, it was later decommissioned and registered as D-EKLY and owned by three partners from Erlangen (north of Nuremberg); ownership was reduced to one, who upon his death gave instructions to sell it to his daughter. The first official flight in the new MM559 livery was at the Aquila Air Show in May of this year. Captain Gusso had the honor to fly in the Italian Air Force 100th Anniversary Air Show at Pratica di Mare in June of this year, as well as participate in the 2023 Royal International Air Tattoo with the Italian contingent. The airplane that checked all the boxes makes Captain Gusso a very proud owner: Now I look at my Piaggio satisfied. I admire it. The Piaggio is exactly the plane I wanted, and I feel like a father in love with his newborn son! A mechanical watch movement is a tiny-but-complex system made up of components in equilibrium, operating flawlessly. But because the those components are delicate especially the parts that make up the escapement its operation can be influenced by external factors, including shock, moisture, and more commonly, the position of the watch, whether on the wrist or off. The position of a watch determines how gravity affects the moving parts of the movement. In other words, the timekeeping of a watch can vary according to whether it is laid on its back or on its side. That resulting variation is known as positional error, and it is largely because of gravitys effect on the balance wheel the oscillator in the regulating organ of the movement. Beyond the position of a watch, positional error is also shaped by factors like the amplitude of the balance wheel, the type of hairspring, and the poise of the balance. All are inextricably linked and must be adjusted just right properly regulated in watchmaking parlance in order for a watch to have minimal positional error and thus keep good time. [Editors note: In this article well just deal with movements constructed traditionally with conventional materials, leaving out silicon-equipped movements, which are still relatively niche.] A matter of position The position of a watch significantly affects its accuracy; specifically, it is the consequence of gravitys effect on the balance wheel pulling it downwards regardless of the position of the watch. The balance wheel of a watch can be thought of as a bicycle wheel lying flat on the ground that oscillates back and forth. It has a pivot (or balance staff) through its centre, which is supported by jewelled bearings on each end. Over each jewelled bearing is a cap jewel, or end stone, that serves to limit the axial movement of the pivots as well as to hold lubricants in place. And the end stone is in turn secured by a tiny spring, often produced by Swiss specialists Kif or Incabloc, that functions a shock absorber. A watch is usually running at peak performance when it is face up or face down, or dial up or dial down in watchmaking parlance. This means the movement is horizontal, or parallel to the ground, and has the least friction, with the main contact being the tip of the lower pinion thats supported by the bottom cap jewel akin to a spinning top on a table. Thus, a practical tip for watch owners: when a mechanical watch is removed for the night, it is best to place it dial up or dial down to keep accurate time. Meanwhile, when a watch is placed in long-term storage, the position doesnt matter as the watch will eventually stop running once the mainspring runs down. When the watch on a bracelet or with a folding clasp is laid on its side in a vertical position, this is called crown up or crown down in watchmaking parlance. In this situation, the surface contact area of both pivots of the balance wheel is much greater since both pivots turning against the wall of the bearings. Its akin to a pen being laid flat on a table, instead of standing on its tip, as is the case when a watch is face up or down. Consequently, friction on the pivots will always be higher when the watch is placed on its side. However, this can be kept to a minimum by ensuring the watch is clean, well-oiled and with the pivots in good condition. The four vertical positions of a watch will result in timekeeping variation. This is due to the hairspring being attached to a fixed point on the balance wheel, and is affected by gravity downwards. Thus, it is a balancing act for a watchmaker to regulate a watch as it simply impossible to obtain theoretically perfect timekeeping in all positions priority will be given to the most common positions first. As there are six positions dial up and down, and the four vertical orientations well-adjusted watches will be advertised as adjusted to all six positions, with some adjusted to five positions as a nearly-as-good compromise. The most important are the dial up and down positions, as these should demonstrate good and identical timekeeping since the pivots are not resting on the inner walls of the bearing jewels, and are indicative of a healthy gear train. Then, crown down is considered which represents someones arm hanging down while standing. This is followed by crown left which happens when resting your arm horizontally on a desk. Lastly, crown up and crown right are least considered as they are uncommon positions, such as lifting your arm straight up or behind your head. It is important to note that the above is applicable to the majority demographic which is right-handed a left-handed person will experience all the vertical positions in reverse. This is evident considering that wearing a watch on the right wrist results in the crown pointed upwards the forearm, instead of downward towards the left hand. With all this discussion on the vertical position, why is friction of the balance wheel pivots an issue? While the prolonged effects would be eventual wear of the thin pivots, a more immediately apparent issue arises a drop in amplitude. Various watchmakers have created complications to combat positional error, including one that made its debut just last year, the F.P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain Vertical. It has the balance wheel perpendicular to the dial, so that the balance is always vertical whether the watch is crown-down or face-up, which are the most common positions. And because the balance is within a tourbillon, gravitational errors are averaged out. A matter of degree Beyond the position of the watch, its timekeeping is also affected by internal factors. A watch requires energy to run, which is produced the mainspring and transmitted through the going train to the balance wheel, causing it to oscillate. The magnitude of the back and forth swings of the balance wheel, expressed in degrees, is known as amplitude. In general, more power means greater amplitude; greater amplitude means greater inertia and more stable timekeeping. A healthy movement usually runs with an amplitude of between 270 and 310 when fully wound. Low amplitude watches will be more susceptible to stopping and erratic timekeeping. This is because its easier to transfer external unwanted forces, such as shock, which interrupts the low momentum of the balance wheel. However, having an overly high amplitude is not good either. This occasionally happens when servicing a vintage watch with the use of better, modern lubricants and if the mainspring is replaced with an overly strong one. The result is overbanking or knocking, whereby the balance wheel wants to swing a full revolution but collides with the outer edge of the pallet fork potentially damaging the roller jewel. Well poised Another factor that determines positional error is the poise of a balance. Poising refers to the process of ensuring weight is evenly distributed across the rim of the balance wheel. Without poising, a balance wheel will have heavy spots along its rim, which will be influenced by gravitys pull especially in the vertical orientation. Imagine riding a bicycle with a heavy weight attached on one part of the wheels rim the shifting weight as the wheel rolls result in varying effort for the cyclist while pedalling. For the same reason, car tyres also requiring balancing, which is done by sticking or clipping tiny weights to the wheel rim. The same applies to the balance wheel of a watch, except that the balance oscillates back and forth rather than spinning in one direction. Consequently, the amplitude of oscillation especially matters for an unpoised balance wheel in the vertical position. This is because different amplitude causes the heavy spot to travel different distances along the arc of oscillation. Depending on orientation, gravity will pull the heavy spot downwards either in favour or against the direction of oscillation and therefore, resulting in the watch running fast or slow. Thus, regulating a watch with an unpoised balance wheel is futile even if the watch is perfectly regulated at its healthy amplitude of between 270 and 310, its timing will drift as its amplitude inevitably drops as the mainspring winds down. Not to mention erratically, depending of the orientation of the watch with respect to gravity. Therefore, for a watch to have the lowest positional error possible, the balance wheel must be perfectly poised, or equally weighted all along its rim. This is achieved by removing material from the heavier side of the rim via drilling tiny holes, or by changing the weights on screwed balances usually found on traditional watches. When a movement is being assembled at the factory, new balance wheels will be automatically poised via modern computer-aided machines. The poising is done via removal of material with lasers, which etches a tiny hole or groove into the underside of the balance wheel. However, when a watch is returned for repair and requires the balance wheel to be disassembled, the poising will be completed manually by a watchmaker. This is because reassembly of the balance wheel will override any previous poising attempts, due to unavoidable minute errors when fitting the components back together. Wear and tear That could potentially happen due to worn parts that requires replacement, which is another source of rate variation and positional errors to the balance wheel, especially over the long term. For instance, with wear and tear over time a balance staff may need changing. This happens when the balance pivots become worn down and thinner over time, robbing the watch of healthy amplitude via friction. The greater the friction generated by the worn pivots, the greater the loss in amplitude which is especially noticeable in the vertical position. And in severe cases of wear, replacing worn parts is a pressing issue in order to avoid further wear and tear, as worn-out parts generate metal filings due to abrasion, which can migrate to other parts of the movement. Replacing a worn balance staff often results in an instant increase in amplitude and greater accuracy. But as such replacements go, the entire balance assembly has to be poised again as discussed above. Also, the pivots and ends of the balance staff should be kept as clean as possible since they contact the bearings having one pivot dirtier than the other may result in positional errors between dial up and down for instance. The hairspring An inseparable companion of the balance wheel is the hairspring, which allows a controlled oscillation that defines the timekeeping. Ideally, the balance spring needs to expand and contract, or breathe, in a concentric manner. This means the spring maintains the same amount of space between its coils throughout its motion. Balance springs generally come in two varieties flat or with an overcoil. The latter comes in many forms, with the best known being the Breguet overcoil, named after French watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747-1823), who invented it in 1795. A flat hairspring is exactly that perfectly flat in profile. Its outermost end is immobile and pinned to the balance cock of a watch, while the innermost end is fixed to the balance wheel that is free to oscillate. Geometrically however, a flat hairspring doesnt breathe perfectly concentric the oscillation causes the innermost end to turn and distorts the hairspring eccentrically, shifting the hairsprings centre of gravity and varying the springs restoring force on the balance wheel. This is undesirable as it results in the hairspring forces varying with amplitude, compromising isochronism the property that the oscillation time is maintained regardless of amplitude. As discussed earlier, varying amplitude affects timekeeping depending on the watchs orientation, as the mainspring barrel slowly uncoils and gradually supplies less power to the oscillating balance wheel, resulting in less amplitude overtime. To mitigate this, some hairsprings are formed with an overcoil. Put simply, the outer curve of the hairspring is bent over the hairspring coil in a specific curve to ensure the breathing is as concentric as possible. This results in better isochronism as the breathing of the hairspring is centred throughout its oscillation. However, overcoil hairsprings are more costly and time consuming to produce, since they typically have to be bent by hand. Furthermore, an overcoil requires extra height, resulting in a thicker movement, which is usually a space constraint especially with thin or automatic movements. This is why flat hairsprings are the industry norm, rendering overcoils a desirable feature especially on higher-end watches. And it is worth noting that overcoil hairsprings are almost all made of metal alloys, as silicon is not malleable enough to be bent into an overcoil. A handful of specialists have managed to create silicon overcoils, either by joining two separate pieces of silicon, as Breguet has done, or by treating the silicon with a special process to allow it to be bent into shape, something pioneered by Master Dynamic in Hong Kong. The concentricity of an overcoil can also be replicated with a double hairspring, which is only found in niche, high-end watches. It is made up of twin hairsprings stacked one on top of another in opposite directions, therefore the breathing of each hairspring compensates for each other. Amongst the best known are the tourbillons of H. Moser & Cie. and Laurent Ferrier, both of which use double hairsprings made supplied by Mosers sister company, Precision Engineering. Free and smooth balances Even if the parts of a movement are perfectly fabricated and assembled, a watchmaker often still needs to perform manual adjustments to ensure the balance wheel beats at the correct rate. This is known as regulation. Practically all mechanical watches are designed with a way to tweak the rate of the oscillator. The two most common methods of fine-tuning the rate are the hairspring regulator and the variable inertia balance. In theory, both methods of regulation should produce similar results if done correctly. The traditional method is the regulator, a nearly universal piece of kit that can be found in the most affordable to the most expensive wristwatches. The regulator consists of two small pins that change the active length of the hairspring. These parallel pins are called curb pins and do not directly contact the hairspring, but allows the hairspring to breathe and bounce across each pin as it expands and contracts. The position of the curb pins determine the effective length of the hairspring a shorter hairspring beats at a faster rate and vice versa. The spacing between the pins must be carefully adjusted to be parallel, otherwise the watch will become susceptible to positional errors. Bent pins will result in varying interaction of the hairspring with the pins, for instance between the dial up and dial down position. In contrast, the variable inertia balance, or adjustable mass balance, is the more sophisticated modern design and is typically found in higher end watches, with the best-known examples being the Rolex Microstella and Patek Philippe Gyromax. Nevertheless, the technology is slowly trickling down to more affordable watches, including all of Tudors watches equipped with in-house movement (and as it happens, Tudor is a subsidiary of Rolex). An adjustable mass balance has no regulator instead, it relies on weights or screws attached to the balance rim for regulation. The small screws or weights are rotated to fine tune the rate of the watch shifting the weights outwards increases the balances inertia which slows down the watch, and vice versa. A common analogy is an ice skater will spin slower with arms spread out, due to increased rotational inertia. Since they do not have regulator pins and the hairspring breathes freely, they are also called free-sprung balances. In theory, these are less susceptible to positional error over regulator watches because the hairspring will not be susceptible to colliding with the regulator pins due to gravity. However, in practice a well-adjusted regulator balance would perform as well as a variable inertia one. Upward progress Watches dont keep good time by accident. Much care is put into ensuring the precision stays consistent. Over time, this accuracy will deteriorate and thus the watch will require servicing to maintain its timekeeping and longevity. But the fact that watches are put through daily use, and sometimes abuse, yet still manage to keep remarkably good time while relying on engineering of such a minute nature is a marvel. Though the basic concepts are centuries old, the technology is still progressing, albeit gradually, with better manufacturing methods and use of modern materials such as silicon. While Thanksgiving is hands-down my favorite holiday of the year, there is one thing I look forward to even more than our family feast: the day-after turkey soup. Whether I was the one cooking or was sent home with a generous pile of meat, a hearty pot of turkey and vegetable soup has been my tradition for nearly all of my adult life. Its the sort of light (yet still comforting) fare thats always nice to tuck into the day after a big meal. Dice up extra veggies while prepping Thanksgiving dinner As all post-Thanksgiving meals should be, this one comes together with little time and effort. The most this soup will ask of you is chopping vegetables and dicing or shredding the leftover turkey. Want to make it even easier? If youre cooking Thanksgiving dinner, add a few more onions, carrots, and celery to the pile for dicing while youre prepping for other dishes. It only takes a few minutes and it will save you from doing the same again in a couple days. Store the diced veggies in a zip-top bag in the fridge until youre ready to simmer your soup. Post-Thanksgiving Turkey Vegetable Soup Serves 4 to 6 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 medium yellow onions, diced 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch rounds 3 medium celery, cut into 1/4-inch slices 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon tomato paste 6 cups (48 ounces) low-sodium chicken or turkey broth 3 cups cooked, diced turkey meat 2 bay leaves 1 sprig fresh thyme 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley leaves 1. Melt the butter in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste, stir to coat the vegetables, and cook for 1 minute more. 2. Add the broth, turkey, bay leaves, and thyme, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir once more and ladle the soup into bowls. Top with the parsley and serve. Recipe note: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. The United States said Saturday it was still working to secure a deal between Israel and Hamas after a reported tentative agreement to free women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a pause in fighting. "We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal," White House National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said on X, formerly Twitter, in response to the Washington Post reporting a deal had been agreed. The Post said a detailed, six-page agreement could mean hostage releases begin within days and could also lead to the first sustained pause in the conflict in Gaza. Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said all parties would halt combat operations for at least five days while some hostages were released in batches, with overhead surveillance monitoring movement to police the pause. But the White House quickly responded on Saturday evening with its message on X to deny any major breakthrough. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the Oct. 7 attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw about 240 people taken hostage. The army's relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. U.S. President Joe Biden's main adviser on the Middle East said earlier Saturday there would be a "significant pause" in the war if hostages held by militants in Gaza were freed. "The surge in humanitarian relief, the surge in fuel, the pause... will come when hostages are released," Brett McGurk told a security conference in Bahrain. The release of a large number of hostages would result in "a significant pause... and a massive surge of humanitarian relief," he said. McGurk said Biden had discussed the issue on Friday evening with the ruler of the Gulf nation of Qatar, which is leading mediation efforts toward a ceasefire and release of the captives. This week Biden said he was "mildly hopeful" of reaching a deal to free the hostages, believed to include about 10 U.S. citizens. Israel has refused to heed calls for a ceasefire before all the hostages are released. (AFP) WATERLOO Progress on Waterloo projects and their budgets will be a focus of the City Council Monday. The meeting is at 5:30 p.m. in the council chambers of City Hall. The bulk of the agenda is made up of public hearings and resolutions regarding the citys tax increment financing districts. City officials will provide project updates in nine public hearings. Later in the night, the council will consider approving resolutions for those nine areas related to certifications for the Black Hawk County auditor. The city could also approve the electronic submission of last fiscal years TIF reports to the state of Iowa. These TIFs are labeled as East Unified; Schoitz, near the area of Kimball and Ridgeway avenues; University Avenue; Crossroads; Downtown; Northeast Industrial Park; Martin Road; San Marnan; and Rath. The council is also expected to receive and file recommendations from the Waterloo Safe Neighborhoods Commission, which started in the summer of 2022 as part of an effort to reduce gun violence in the city. In other business, the council will consider approving: A resolution to issue no more than $1.01 million in sewer revenue capital loan notes. An ordinance to rezone almost 3 acres at 438 W. Airline Highway for a trucking business, requested by Schotts Trucking, LLC. A three-year software contract with Polco for $40,000 for community engagement for budget simulation, capital improvement project prioritization and taxpayer receipts. A development and minimum assessment agreement with The Martin Flats, LLC, for rehabilitation of 319 E. Fourth St. into commercial and residential space, including a grant of $199,000 and rebates for 15 years at 70%, with a minimum assessed value of $993,060. Advances in childhood cancer are a success story in modern medicine. But in the past decade, those strides have stalled for Black and Hispanic youth, opening a gap in death rates, according to a new report. Childhood cancers are rare and treatments have improved drastically in recent decades, saving lives. Death rates were about the same for Black, Hispanic and white children in 2001, and all went lower during the next decade. But over the next 10 years, only the rate for white children dipped a little lower. You can have the most sophisticated scientific advances, but if we cant deliver them into every community in the same way, then we have not met our goal as a nation, said Dr. Sharon Castellino, a pediatric cancer specialist at Emory Universitys Winship Cancer Institute in Atlanta, who had no role in the new report. She said the complexity of new cancer treatments such as gene therapy, which can cure some children with leukemia, can burden families and be an impediment to getting care. You need at least one parent to quit their job and be there 24/7, and then figure out the situation for the rest of their children," Castellino said. "Its not that families dont want to do that. It's difficult. More social workers are needed to help families file paperwork to get job-protected leave and make sure the child's health insurance is current and doesn't lapse. The overall cancer death rate for children and teenagers in the U.S. declined 24% over the two decades, from 2.75 to 2.10 per 100,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report. The 2021 rate per 10,000 was 2.38 for Black youth, 2.36 for Hispanics and 1.99 for whites. Nearly incurable 50 years ago, childhood cancer now is survivable for most patients, especially those with leukemia. The leading cause of cancer deaths in kids is now brain cancer, replacing leukemia. Each year in the U.S., about 15,000 children and teens are diagnosed with cancer. More than 85% live for at least five years. The improved survival stems from research collaboration among more than 200 hospitals, said Dr. Paula Aristizabal of the University of California, San Diego. At Rady Childrens Hospital, she is trying to include more Hispanic children, who are underrepresented in research. Equity means that we provide support that is tailored to each family, Aristizabal said. The National Cancer Institute is working to gather data from every childhood cancer patient with the goal of linking each child to state-of-the-art care. The effort could improve equity, said Dr. Emily Tonorezos, who leads the institute's work on cancer survivorship. The CDC's report is upsetting and discouraging, she said. It gives us a roadmap for where we need to go next. Despite lower diagnosis rates, Black men are more likely to die from melanoma Despite lower diagnosis rates, Black men are more likely to die from melanoma Black Americans less likely to be diagnosed with melanoma How to detect skin cancer early Jayne Jordan, 61, was a lifelong Californian until August, when she sold her home in Corona and moved to Azle, Texas. Jordan wanted to stay close to her daughter and grandchildren, who are planning to move from Irvine to the Lone Star State next year in order to buy a home. When she joined a Facebook group of California migrants to Texas, she found a community willing to help her choose the right moving company and weigh in on which route to take for the 1,360-mile drive. She soon found through the Facebook group that her neighbor across the street in Azle had also moved from the same neighborhood in Corona. Its a small world, Jordan said. A lot of people from California are moving here. Jordans move is reflective of a larger trend for California, which has seen more residents moving out over the past few years than new people moving in. In 2022, 818,000 Californians left for other states, while 476,000 moved in, resulting in a total domestic loss of 342,000 to the Golden State, according to newly released census data. But some states have been taking in more of Californias former residents than others, with Texas leading in that category. In 41 U.S. states, more people arrived from California than moved to California last year, according to the data. More than 100,000 Californians moved to Texas last year, compared with around 40,000 who made the opposite move. Florida drew nearly 75,000 people from California, with 30,000 moving in the opposite direction. Washington, Nevada and Florida each saw around 50,000 Californian arrivals and far fewer people move to California. Only 42 West Virginians moved to California in 2022, by far the lowest total of any state. New Jersey, the state that most bucked the trend, had around 6,600 more people move to California than arrived from the state. Experts attribute the exodus from California primarily to the high cost of housing in the state but also to issues such as crime, politics and traffic. As Texas booms, the state will have to contend with many of the same issues that are driving California to leave, says Mechele Dickerson, a professor of law at the University of Texas at Austin and an expert on the housing crisis. Between July 2020 and July 2022, Texas housing stock grew by almost 5% the third-biggest gain of any state. Californias housing stock increased by just 1.6% during the span. In raw numbers, Texas added more than twice as many housing units as did California. Some people blame Californians for driving up housing prices, particularly in the city of Austin, Dickerson said. As buyers come here with cash in hand having sold their homes in California, she said, longtime renters are priced out of cities like Austin. Those renters are pushed to suburbs and exurbs, which are seeing booms comparable to those in Californias suburban and exurban areas. We used to laugh at those people in L.A. because of their long commutes, Dickerson said, and now thats what were seeing as people move farther from city centers in search of affordability. Texas is seeing rising home values that are making some areas less affordable, and cities are also grappling with other social issues Californians are familiar with. We have been challenged by what to do with a growing unhoused population as low-income people are displaced by the cascading effects of a housing crisis, she said. California saw an exodus during the COVID-19 pandemic, as remote work and soaring home values had some residents moving to cheaper locales. Recent data show the so-called exodus which hit coastal cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco particularly hard eased considerably in the last two years. The California recovery has been uneven, with some suburban areas seeing major booms while downtown San Francisco continues to struggle. Issues of traffic, homelessness and affordability may have driven people to abandon California, but those issues may not be far behind in Texas major cities, either. Marie Bailey, 44, moved from El Segundo to a Dallas-Fort Worth suburb in 2017. She and her husband built a home for $750,000, while a tiny fixer upper in El Segundo wouldve cost upward of $1 million. The couple quickly figured out that they could capitalize on the niche in the real estate market for California migrants to Texas. For years, Bailey has administered the Facebook group where Jayne Jordan and 45,000 others swap recommendations on how to make the move. She runs a real estate firm that places Californians all over the state. 99% of our clientele are people moving from California, Bailey said. As for why people make the move, No. 1 is cost of living and No. 2 is politics. Texas is Republican red in the same way California is a bastion of Democratic blue, battling on issues including abortion, gun control, immigration and LGBTQ+ rights. The political difference might make some hesitant to make the move, but for others it is a major bonus. Baileys husband, who was previously employed by the UCLA medical system, wouldnt even talk about his politics because he was afraid of losing his job, she said. Nowhere is perfect, Bailey said, but we fit in a lot better here. People are still moving away from large cities, while mid-sized cities are growing People are still moving away from large cities, while mid-sized cities are growing How domestic migration has changed since 2020 MAYVILLE This is go time for Jessica Youso and her crew at the Wedge Uncorked. On Wednesday of last week, the focus was on cutting and wrapping chunks of bright orange cheddar speckled with chipotle peppers. Ordered by one of Yousos largest accounts, the cheese will ultimately become Christmas gifts, not uncommon at this time of the year as half of Yousos yearly sales happen from October through December. Located in the lower level of a former brewery building, the retail shop, which also sells wine and beef sticks, includes an old beer cave with an arched ceiling that is home to more than 800 varieties of cheese stored between 37 and 38 degrees, thanks to modern cooling systems. But 74 years ago, Gouda in this Dodge County village made a national splash thanks to a special vacation issue from the publisher of the Saturday Evening Post that made Wisconsin its centerpiece. And there, on page 44, is a photograph of at least six women seated at a long table weighing rounds of Gouda wrapped in what appears to be red wax. The photo caption only says the factory was in Mayville, but its highly likely it was in Yousos building, which at the time was home to the Frank Ryser Co., known for its Red Rooster brand of cheese. Thats pretty cool, Youso said when I showed her the magazine. I like old stuff like that. Same here. Which is why this weeks column is a bit different and needs some explanation. It was sometime last year that I received two magazines from a woman who was cleaning out her parents home in Missouri. They came in the mail with a note, which unfortunately I misplaced. One of the issues was the much-heralded Sept. 6, 1948, Life magazine that trumpeted The Good Life in Madison, Wisconsin, and asked, Is it the best place in America to live? The other magazine was from Curtis Publishing, which in 1946 introduced a travel magazine called Holiday. It was the same size and in the same style as Life magazine and included a story about fishing the Gulf Stream near Havana, Cuba. The author of the piece, who appears in several photographs, was a guy named Ernest Hemingway. The magazine also featured a story about the Ganges River and the city of Benares, India, and another on the Tour de France. The ads in the magazine are also a joy to observe and most have a travel bent to them. They include full-color pages selling Hudson, Packard and Cadillac automobiles, rum from Puerto Rico, cruises on the S.S. President Cleveland and Ansco color positive film. But its Wisconsin that gets the royal treatment by Curtis, which also published the Ladies Home Journal and the childrens magazine Jack & Jill. The July 1949 issue dedicates 26 pages, plus the cover, to the state and includes 78 mostly color and some black-and-white photos. The centerpiece story is written by Mark Schorer, who would go on to write the biography of Sinclair Lewis, the first author from the U.S. to receive the Nobel Prize in literature. Schorer, who died in 1977, was also the chair of the English department at the University of California, Berkeley, but grew up in Sauk City and waxed poetic about his homeland here in the Midwest. The Wisconsin River flows through the richest farmland in the state, where wooded valley gives way to rolling hills, and hills to folding prairie, Schorer wrote. Given even a minimum of cooperation between man and Nature, the chances of agricultural success in Wisconsin are greater than in most states. The very names of towns suggest the lavish potentialities of earth Spring Green, Richland Center, Black Earth. Agriculture, which remains one of Wisconsins three economic pillars, along with manufacturing and tourism, unfolds before the reader. There are pictures of apple orchards, geese from Watertown and hogs at the UW-Madison swine breeding laboratory. A -page photo shows the dramatic landscape of Louis Engfers threshing operation near Cochrane, Holstein cows in the barnyard of Henry Hafermans farm in Sheboygan County, Sammy King of Madison picking cherries in Door County and the former pea cannery in Columbus, which is now home to an antique mall. One of the most idyllic images was taken just north of Stoughton. It shows two young boys, Roland and Gunder Rein, wearing white aprons, sitting on stools and milking cows with their father in a dairy barn. Another image shows the Rein family sitting around a table having what appears to be supper. The farm, located along Highway B, still holds the dairy barn and its outbuildings, including a long tobacco shed that at one time held 22 acres of tobacco. Both Roland and Gunder went on to have long careers in agriculture and are still living in the Stoughton area, according to family members. Rolands son Andy went on to become a U.S. Olympian in wrestling and won the silver medal in 1984. Roland sold his dairy herd in 2011 and his daughter, Kelly Boyd, and her husband, Bob Boyd, now raise bison on the farm and live just to the west. Both Roland and Gunder, through family members, declined interviews for this story. Farming is the only thing I ever knew, Rollie told John Onken, an agricultural correspondent, who attended the auction for The Capital Times. I loved the cows and the farming. But the magazine also delves into other aspects of the state like Bradford Beach in Milwaukee, Doris Stuessy playing the accordion in New Glarus, the Pendarvis House in Mineral Point and of Welsh elders in front of a Cambria church. A fantastic, colorful, full-page cartograph created by Libbie Lovett shows off the states culture on page 49 with paintings of a Green Bay Packers player, a cranberry bog, a Lake Superior freighter, a nod to the states paper industry in the Fox River Valley and a giant musky over Phillips. The magazines cover is Richard Howards interpretation in tempera watercolor of a vacation paradise and shows a cabin on a lake surrounded by pines. Howard, in an editors note, said he had spent time near Madison but that the house was just a rugged little place on a lake. The one on my cover is the kind a Wisconsin lake deserves, Howard wrote. And if I cant afford to build it today, it doesnt cost me a thing to paint it. At UW-Madison, one image shows the sorority sisters of Alpha Gamma Delta standing on a set of stairs and being serenaded from some Theta Delta Chi jongleurs, the caption reads. Theres also a shot of economist Selig Perlman giving a lecture, another of research on vitamins using a simian monkey and a sweeping photo of Bascom Hill taken from the second floor of Bascom Hall. In northern Wisconsin, the magazine shows off the Brule River, a raft with an elevated platform filled with swimmers on Lake Minocqua; hunters at Pat and Kelly Wilsies White Birch Lodge in Boulder Junction, where the main lodge was ordered out of a Montgomery Ward catalog in 1915; and downtown Hurley, shown at dusk, its neon bar signs aglow. Hurley is exceptional, yet not wholly so, Schorer wrote. Most of these northern towns have something stark about them, even something brutal. They were the products and the victims of the lumber interests, an enterprise too ruthless to allow for geniality or social grace. Schorer, a UW-Madison alum, who has no quotes from any sources in his Wisconsin story and appears to be riffing off the top of his head, describes himself as a persisting hayseed and wrote two novels set in the state. A House Too Old was set in his hometown and The Hermit Place in Madison. He came to Madison in 1925 where he studied under Helen White and began writing stories. After graduating in 1929, he went to Harvard but later returned to Wisconsin for a time as a part-time English instructor. His influences included architect Frank Lloyd Wright; Zona Gale, a Portage native who in 1921 won the Pulitzer Prize for drama; and Alexander Meiklejohn, who created an experimental college that operated from 1927 to 1932 at UW-Madison. I think all these people were somewhat responsible for me going out into the world, Schorer wrote. But theres still no other landscape or historical atmosphere that is as real to me as Wisconsin. Photos: Images of Wisconsin from 1949 We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form FILE - Russell Brand speaks at the opening of The Trew Era Cafe, a social enterprise community project on the New Era estate in east London, Thursday, 26 March, 2015. Brand has been interviewed by British police over three alleged sexual offenses, U.K. media reported Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. During her four years in Washington, she worked to pass the Equal Rights Amendment, raise awareness of the need for childhood immunizations, and, above all, aid the mentally ill. She served as the honorary chair of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health and fought for the passage of the 1980 Mental Health Systems Act, to give grants to community centers. When President Ronald Reagan, a Republican, defeated Carter, a Democrat, for a second term, she made no secret of her disappointment, especially as funding of our legislation was killed by the philosophy of a new president. It was a bitter loss. Mrs. Carter said in an Op-Ed for CNN.com in 2019 that she first became an advocate for the mentally ill in 1966 when she was helping her husband campaign for governor of Georgia. 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When I asked if she would be able to get some sleep, she told me she hoped so, but that she had a daughter who had a mental illness and needed care while the womans husband was at his job. That conversation would start me on a lifelong crusade for better treatment and policies for people living with mental illnesses. When Mrs. Carter and her husband opened the Carter Center in Atlanta in 1982, she established a mental health program to end the stigma of psychiatric disorders since, It still keeps so many people from getting help. In 1999, they were awarded Presidential Medals of Freedom for their work. Born Eleanor Rosalynn Smith on Aug. 18, 1927, the daughter of an auto mechanic and a dressmaker, she experienced what she called the end of her childhood when her father died of leukemia when she was 13. Though she was salutatorian of Plains High School and went on to Georgia Southwestern College, she was forced to drop out to assist her mother in her business and in raising the younger siblings. Jimmy Carter with his wife Rosalynn and their family at the Democratic Convention in 1976. Rolls Press/Popperfoto via Getty Images One evening in the early 1940s, she attended an event at the Plains United Methodist Church, where she became reacquainted with young Jimmy Carter, home from the U.S. Naval Academy. He remembered when she was born the two families had lived next door to one another briefly, and his mother, Lillian, a registered nurse, had helped deliver her. All those years later, he asked her to a movie, and the following day, told his mother he had met the woman he was going to marry. The couple wed in 1946 and had four children three boys, John William (Jack), James Earl III (Chip), Donnel Jeffrey (Jeff); and a daughter, Amy Lynn but their life together could be difficult. Mrs. Carter did not always get along with her mother-in-law, who found her unsuitable for her son. And in the early years of their marriage, they struggled in attempting to grow the family peanut farm and supply business, living for a year in subsidized housing before becoming successful. Mrs. Carter learned accounting to manage their bookkeeping. Empire Announces Changes to Board of Directors Sydney, Nov 17, 2023 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Empire Energy Group Limited ( ASX:EEG ) ( EEGUF:OTCMKTS ) announces that Mr Paul Fudge and Ms Jacqui Clarke have retired as a Non-Executive Director and alternate Director of the Company. Mr Fudge is Empire's largest shareholder and the founder of Pangaea Resources ("Pangaea") which was acquired by Empire during 2021. Mr Fudge is one of Australia's most successful investors in unconventional gas development and was one of the early movers into the Northern Territory's Beetaloo Sub-basin. During his time with Empire, the Company has successfully integrated Pangaea into the Company and become the largest holder of net acreage in the Beetaloo. At the time of Mr Fudge's appointment to the Board, it was disclosed in the Notice of General Meeting to approve the acquisition of Pangaea dated 2 July 2021 that Mr Fudge was dealing with health issues. Whilst he is strong, these health issues remain and are a significant reason for his decision to leave the Board. It has been his stated intention to transition from the Board once Pangaea was successfully integrated into Empire which has been completed. Further Mr Fudge has expressed his confidence that Empire is in good hands with strong management and an experienced Board. The Board and management extend their gratitude to Mr Fudge and Ms Clarke for their significant contribution to Empire during their tenure. Karen Green Appointed to the Empire Board Empire also announces the appointment of Ms Karen Green as an independent Non-Executive Director with effect from today. Ms Green will also be appointed Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee. Ms Green resides in Darwin, Northern Territory. Ms Green will stand for election at Empire's 2024 Annual General Meeting to be held during May 2024. Empire welcomes Ms Green to the Board and is confident that she will add material value as the Company moves from explorer to producer focused on the Beetaloo Sub-basin. About Empire Energy Group Ltd Empire Energy (ASX:EEG) (OTCMKTS:EEGUF) holds over 14.5 million acres of highly prospective exploration tenements in the McArthur and Beetaloo Basins, Northern Territory. Work undertaken by the Company since 2010 demonstrates that the Eastern depositional Trough of the McArthur Basin, of which the Company holds 80% has very considerable conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon potential. The Beetaloo sub-Basin, in which Empire holds a substantial position, has independently assessed world class hydrocarbon volumes in place with a major ramp up in industry activity underway to appraise substantial discoveries already made by major Australian oil and gas operators. Empire Energy is an experienced conventional oil and gas producer with operations in the Appalachia region (New York and Pennsylvania). Empire has been successfully developing and producing oil and gas since 2006. Related Companies State 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 D.C. 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As tensions run high with neighbours China, Russia and North Korea, the drill on the southwest island of Tokunoshima capped an 11-day series of exercises nationwide dubbed 05JX, meant to show the readiness of ground, sea and air forces to defend Japan's territory and infrastructure, including nuclear power plants. "The goal of JX is to show that if there is an emergency situation resulting from an attack, that we are able respond in a joint way," General Yoshihide Yoshida, chief of staff of the Self-Defence Forces' Joint Staff, said after observing the drill on Tokunoshima. Ground Self-Defence Force amphibious assault vehicles launched from two Maritime Self-Defense Force landing ships anchored offshore. Other troops arrived in semi-inflatable rubber boats, with heavy equipment carried to shore on military hovercraft. Unlike many of the beaches along Japan's southwest island chain stretching toward Taiwan, the one on Tokunoshima does not have a coral reef that would make military operations more difficult. The scope and pace of military exercises in Japan are likely to increase over the next few years, including with U.S. forces, after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in December unveiled the country's biggest military buildup since World War Two, with a pledge to double defence spending over five years. Kishida has warned that East Asia could be the next Ukraine, if China, emboldened by Russia's assault on its neighbour, attacks Taiwan. The 43.5 trillion yen ($290 billion) in planned spending will go to new weapons such as longer-range missiles as well as to increase stocks of spare parts and munitions to fight a sustained conflict. But the yen's sharp decline this year has forced Japan to cut back on some planned purchases, including new models of the U.S.-made Chinook helicopters that Japan's military used in the Tokunoshima drill. (Reuters) Cover Images/PapJuiceLA/INFphoto.com Music On the new song, which features guest appearances from Ty Dolla $ign, Lil Durk and Bump J, the 46-year-old rapper and Yeezy designer also takes a shot at his former manager Scooter Braun. Nov 19, 2023 AceShowbiz - Kanye West has addressed his anti-semitism controversy on a new song. On the tune, which premiered Friday, November 17 on WPWX Power 92 Chicago, the Yeezy designer questions why he has been labeled "antisemetic." "How I'm antisemitic?" the 46-year-old raps on the track, which features guest appearances from Ty Dolla $ign, Lil Durk and Bump J. "I just f**ked a Jewish b***h." Ye also drags his former manager, Scooter Braun, in his verse. "I just f**ked Scooter's b***h," the ex-husband of Kim Kardashian spits. Ye was once banned from X (formerly Twitter) back in December 2022 over his controversial and offensive post, which featured an image of a Nazi swastika embedded inside the Star of David. "YE24 LOVE EVERYONE #LOVESPEECH," he captioned the snap at the time. The emcee also sparked outrage for showing love for Adolf Hitler and Nazi on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' "Infowars" podcast. "I see good things about Hitler... every human being has something of value that they brought to the table, especially Hitler," he said. "I do love Hitler, I do love the Zionists - I love everyone." After explaining that he loves everybody equally, the "Gold Digger" hitmaker stressed, "I like Hitler... they (the Nazis) did good things too, we've got to stop dissing the Nazis all the time." He continued, "The Jewish media has made us feel like the Nazis and Hitler have never offered anything of value to the world." You can share this post! Instagram Music The 'So What' hitmaker is handing out 2,000 free copies of books that are banned by school in Florida when she stops by the state for several concerts as part of her tour. Nov 19, 2023 AceShowbiz - Pink gives away 2,000 copies of banned books at her Florida gig. The outspoken Grammy-winner, 44, who has been open about everything from her drugs past to her support for women's access to abortions, said she will hand out tomes barred in the state's schools when she plays the state this week. "Books have held a special joy for me from the time I was a child. That's why I am unwilling to stand by and watch while books are banned by schools," Pink said. Florida has become the centre of the book-banning debate and Pink's plan has been formed with the national free speech group PEN America. They have chosen four titles to give away to fans - Toni Morrison's "Beloved", Todd Parr's "The Family Book", Stacia Deutsch's "Girls who Code", and the poem recited by Amanda Gorman at Joe Biden's presidential inauguration in January 2021 titled "The Hill We Climb". PEN America's database of censored tomes lodged 3,362 book bans in US public schools in the 2022 to 2023 school year. Of those more than 40 per cent - the equivalent of 1,406 book-ban cases - happened in Florida school districts. The state's Republican governor Ron DeSantis, 44, oversaw a bill he signed into law in 2022 called the Parental Rights in Education Act. Commonly known as the "Don't Say Gay" rule, it prohibits elementary schools from discussing sexual orientation or gender identity. In June 2022, mum-of-two Pink - born Alecia Beth Moore - slammed fans of hers who "believe the government belongs in a woman's uterus" and ordered them to stop listening to her music. She made the statement after the US Supreme Court ruled to overturn the historic Roe v Wade decision, which had legalised abortions across the US since 1973. The Republican-controlled Supreme Court ruled on June 24, 2022 in favour of a Mississippi law that outlaws abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy - while also overturning key precedents established by the 1973 decision in Roe v Wade as well as an affirming decision in 1992's Planned Parenthood v Casey. You can share this post! Celebrity The actress known for her roles in Martin Scorsese's gangster movie and TV series 'The Sopranos' is confirmed by her family to have passed away at the age of 89. Nov 19, 2023 AceShowbiz - Suzanne Shepherd has passed away aged 89. She was well known for being a "mob actress" due to her roles in Martin Scorsese's "Goodfellas" as the mum of character Karen Hill and as Carmella Soprano's mother in "The Sopranos", and the star's passing was confirmed by her family on Saturday, November 18 night. No cause of death was provided and the family did not offer additional details as Suzanne's granddaughter Isabelle told The US Sun of the actress' death. Along with Isabelle, Shepherd is survived by her daughter Kate, son-in-law Miles, and daughter-in-law Joyce. Fans flooded social media with tributes to the star, hailed as one of America's "go-to" actresses for gangster movies. In "Goodfellas", she had a scene-stealing role as the mum who despaired over Lorraine Bracco's character getting married to Ray Liotta's Henry Hill gangster. In "The Sopranos", she was again despairing as Mary DeAngelis, the mum of Carmela Soprano, played by actress Edie Falco, who is married to James Gandolfini's Tony Soprano. "Sopranos" actor Ray Abruzzo, 69, was among the stars who took to Instagram to pay tribute to Suzanne, saying, "Sad to hear of the passing of Suzanne Shepherd. A force of nature. Actress, teacher. Played Carmella's mother on 'Sopranos' and Karen's mother in 'Goodfellas'." Suzanne's career spanned more than 35 years, with her first role as Aunt Tweedy in 1988's "Mystic Pizza" starring Julia Roberts. Her TV appearances included on "Law and Order" and "Blue Bloods" and she played a friend of Ellen Burstyn's drug-addled mum in "Requiem for a Dream", which also starred Jared Leto and Jennifer Connelly. Her last appearance was in 2023's "The Performance", and she was a renowned theatre director. An upcoming documentary called "A Gift of Fire" will also chronicle her career as a leading acting teacher. You can share this post! NBC Celebrity The 'Home Alone' actor will receive a star on the iconic Walk of Fame at 6353 Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles with his co-stars expected to attend the ceremony. Nov 19, 2023 AceShowbiz - Macaulay Culkin will be honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The "Home Alone" actor will be presented with the 2,765th star on the iconic Walk of Fame, and the presentation ceremony will take place on December 1st at 6353 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood. "Macaulay Culkin has been a staple in pop culture for decades. He has an extensive trajectory of work but his movie, 'Home Alone' is one of the most beloved holiday movies known the world over," said Ana Martinez, Producer of the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Macaulay, 43, will receive his star in the category of Motion Pictures. He is best known for starring as Kevin McCallister in the first two films of the "Home Alone" movie series, in 1990 and 1992. Macaulay's "Home Alone" co-star Catherine O'Hara - who played his mother Kate McCallister in the two films - is to be a speaker at the presentation ceremony, as will the actor's "Adam Green's Aladdin" co-star Natasha Lyonne. Ana added, "How fitting that Catherine O'Hara who played Macaulay's mother in the film is reuniting with her movie son and will be speaking at the ceremony." The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce administers the iconic Hollywood Walk of Fame for the City of Los Angeles, and it has been a tourist attraction visited by millions since 1960. Macaulay's first film appearance saw him portray the grandson of Burt Lancaster's character in 1988's "Rocket Gibraltar", and in 1989 he played the nephew of John Candy's alter-ego Buck Russell in John Hughes' movie "Uncle Buck". But his big break came in 1990 when he led the cast of "Home Alone" in 1990, for which he was nominated for a Best Actor Golden Globe. He went on to star in the likes of "My Girl" - for which he won Best Kiss at the MTV Movie Awards alongside his co-star Anna Chlumsky - and he has also appeared in "The Good Son", "Richie Rich", and "Saved!". More recently, Macaulay starred in "American Horror Story", Double Feature" in 2021 and adult animated music TV special "Entergalactic", which was created by musician Kid Cudi, in 2022. You can share this post! Instagram Celebrity The heir apparent to the British throne is amused when one of the young students in a Manchester school he recently visited quizzed him about his bank balance. Nov 19, 2023 AceShowbiz - The Prince of Wales has no idea about how much cash he has in the bank. Prince William, 41, has an estimated net worth of around 100 million, but he said he "doesn't know" his balance after an 11-year-old boy quizzed the royal about his riches while he was on a visit to Moss Side in Manchester to learn about a project tackling youth violence. "How much do you have in your bank account?" William was quizzed by school pupil Amir Hassan, who made the royal laugh with his question. The schoolboy said the event the future king had replied that he "didn't know." William was also asked whether he wanted to join an art project that saw kids cutting out hairstyles they thought were empowering. The balding royal joked about it, "I'm literally the last person you should ask. My hair is disappearing." William was with Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, 53, on his visit, and announced a 100,000 scheme, designed to boost the work of the Manchester Peace Together Alliance, and which has been jointly funded by the Royal Foundation and the Labour politician's office. William also joined in a game of pool, with kids groaning when he twice failed to pot a yellow ball. The 100,000 of funding will be used to create an employment, skills and training programme for young people at risk of violence and is a first for the community-led initiative which is combating the underlying causes of youth violence with targeted mentoring and activities. William's exact net worth is notoriously difficult to nail down, but his great-grandmother the Queen Mother, put the bulk of her estimated $89 million fortune in a trust fund for him and his younger brother Prince Harry, 39. The BBC reported, "Princes William and Harry will reportedly share about 14 million from the estate of their late great grandmother." After Queen Elizabeth died in 2022 William also received a hefty inheritance as well as a string of new titles that expanded his property portfolio in addition to his title as the Duke of Cambridge and Rothesay. Among his inheritances was the Duchy of Cornwall - around 130,000 acres in southwest England worth approximately $1.2 billion in 2022. You can share this post! Cover Images/MUNAWAR HOSAIN Celebrity Jessica Hecht who starred with the recently-deceased actor in 'Friends' describes her co-star who died from Jacuzzi drowning as someone who was 'so silly' and 'so easy to love.' Nov 19, 2023 AceShowbiz - Matthew Perry was "so easy to love," according to "Friends" star Jessica Hecht. The actor passed away aged 54 on October 28 in an apparent drowning incident in the hot tub at his Los Angeles, and 58-year-old Jessica - who played Susan Bunch, the wife of Ross Geller's lesbian ex Carol Willick on "Friends" - opened up about her tragic co-star at Manhattan Theatre Club's 2023 Fall Gala. "He was so silly when he was young, and he was so easy to love," she told Page Six. Jessica said her favourite episode of NBC's "Friends" was "The One with the Breast Milk" in series two that saw Matthew's wisecracking character Chandler Bing and Ross, played by David Schwimmer, 57, left disgusted by Carol breastfeeding. She said, "(Matthew's) was the silliest attempt to taste the breast milk. I just remember how kind he was and how he tried to make everyone else at ease." Tony nominee Jessica added Matthew "was kinder to other people" than himself, saying "many people are who suffer from addiction and all of that" are "just desperate for other people to be relieved from the pain that they feel." Matthew died after years battling drink and drug addictions that almost killed him, which at one point saw him downing 55 Vicodin and a quart of vodka every day. His main "Friends" co-stars said in a joint statement they were left "utterly devastated" by his shock death. Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, and David said, "We were more than just castmates. We are a family." "There is so much to say, but right now we're going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss. In time we will say more, as and when we are able. For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty's family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world." Matthew graphically detailed the impact of his addictions in his 2022 memoir "Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing". He said he "nearly died" a few years ago when his colon burst from opioid overuse, leaving him wearing a colostomy bag for nine months. Matthew was laid to rest on November 3 at a private funeral attended by the "Friends" cast and he has been buried in a private, star-studded section of Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles. You can share this post! Instagram Celebrity The 33-year-old 'Hogan Knows Best' star, whom the wrestler shares with ex-wife Linda Hogan, was reportedly arrested on Saturday morning, November 18 in Clearwater, Florida. Nov 19, 2023 AceShowbiz - Hulk Hogan's son Nick Hogan had a run-in with the law. The TV personality was reportedly arrested for DUI over the weekend, but he was already released from jail. According to online records obtained by TMZ, the 33-year-old was busted before 4:00 A.M. on Saturday morning, November 18 in Clearwater. He was then booked on suspicion of DUI as he refused to submit to sobriety testing. It was unclear what led to Nick's arrest. However, the "Hogan Knows Best" star, whom the wrestler shares with ex-wife Linda Hogan, was let go from prison later that day and was assessed a $500 bond. The report arrived more than 16 years after Nick got into a serious car accident in downtown Clearwater. Authorities said that Nick, who was 17 years old at the time, was driving a Toyota Supra at a very high rate of speed when it lost control and hit a raised median. The car was flipped around and the back ended up hitting a palm tree. Sad to say that the car was completely destroyed and Nick and another male passenger were immediately flown by Medivac helicopter from the accident scene to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg. Nick pleaded no contest to reckless driving involving serious bodily injury. In the lead-up to that plea, police had alleged alcohol was involved. Nick subsequently served an 8-month sentence in Pinellas County Jail. He was also sentenced to five years probation and 500 community service hours. Prior to that, on September 13, 2006, precisely, Nick was driving a loaned yellow 2001 Lamborghini Diablo VT when it caught on fire. A few days later, he was stopped twice for driving over the speed limit in Miami and Tampa, Florida. You can share this post! Cover Images/PAPIX/INSTARimages.com Celebrity Jerry O'Connell admits there's 'a little bit of an eye roll' at home with his wife Rebecca when they heard her ex made unflattering comments about her in his book. Nov 20, 2023 AceShowbiz - Jerry O'Connell and Rebecca Romijn felt annoyed after John Stamos branded her "the devil." The actress' ex-husband talked about their bitter divorce in his book "If You Would Have Told Me" and he made a series of unflattering comments about her as he promoted the tome - and Rebecca's second husband Jerry has now revealed the reaction at home. "There's like a little bit of an eye roll happening with each other. But it's pretty crazy when your kids come out for breakfast and they go, 'Hey, mom, your ex has a book out and called you the devil. What are your thoughts?' " he told Andy Cohen on his SiriusXM radio show. Rebecca and John were married for five years before they finalised their divorce in 2005 and as he promoted the book, the actor told PEOPLE the split was "shattering" but he finally acknowledged the part he played in the breakdown of their marriage. He said, "You start thinking, it's like, 'Oh, she wasn't the devil. Maybe I was as much to blame as her.' It was very much the opinion that she dumped me because her career was going great and mine wasn't. I don't blame her for it. It was just the perception that people took. Maybe they weren't wrong. She was doing great at that time and I wasn't." Despite all the publicity surrounding the book, Jerry went on to admit the couple haven't actually read it. He added, "I have not read it. There was an interest in my household. But it's so funny, after hearing his interview beginning to end on 'The Howard Stern Show,' any interest of reading the book went away." Jerry admitted the only part of the book the couple talked about was John's suggestion that he felt emasculated during his marriage to Rebecca after her career began to eclipse his once "Full House" came to an end. He said, "I think those are the only parts we were interested in our house, and we got to them and they were talked about ... I don't really need to hear about the casting process of famous sitcoms. That's not something that really interests us." Jerry and Rebecca married in 2007 and they are parents to twin 15-year-old daughters Dolly and Charlie. You can share this post! Cover Images/Instagram/Janet Mayer Celebrity Rumor has it, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would not turn down an offer to spend the festive season with the royal family if they receive an invitation from Buckingham Palace. Nov 20, 2023 AceShowbiz - The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are said to accept an invitation to celebrate Christmas with King Charles. Prince Harry, 39, and his 42-year-old wife Meghan Markle, have reportedly broken an alleged six-month silence with the monarch earlier this month when Harry called him to wish him a happy 75th birthday. "I can't imagine the Sussexes would decline an invitation to spend time with His Majesty," a source has now told The Times about how the couple may be prepared to come to Britain from their home in Los Angeles for the festive season - but only with "heightened" security. The insider added, "As of yet, there have not been any invitations for the holidays." It was also suggested the Sussexes, who have son Archie, four, and two-year-old daughter Lilibet, would also be willing to accept an invitation to Balmoral, in Scotland, during the summer. The apparent thawing of the relationship between the Sussexes and Charles comes as a source told the Mail on Sunday the king wanted to "spend more time with his grandchildren." It is also understood by the Mail another phone call between Harry and the king is planned for the coming week. Harry and Meghan last spent Christmas at Sandringham in 2018, and sources told The Times they would both need "heightened protection" to be able to make any UK visit happen. Harry no longer benefits from police protection while he is in the UK, following a decision by the Home Office to withdraw his minders. He has had a frosty relationship with the royals in the wake of the publication of his bombshell memoir "Spare" and his and Meghan's tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey after they left Britain for a new life in America. Harry's book contained a string of allegations about his life with the royals, including secrets about his relationship with his father and a claim his older brother Prince William, 41, brawled with him in a fight as their relationship fell apart over the younger prince's marriage to Meghan. You can share this post! Northport police have charged an 80-year-old man with shooting his 79-year-old wife to death. According to police, officers were called to a residence in the 3200 block of 28th Street in Northport Sunday at about 12 p.m. Officers arrived to find the body of a 79-year-old woman, identified as Donna Adams, dead from a gunshot wound. Her husband, Gerald Adams, 80, was still on the scene and was taken into custody. According to police, Donna Adams had been suffering from a prolonged illness. There was no evidence of an argument prior to the shooting. Gerald Adams has been charged with murder and is being held in the Tuscaloosa County jail with no bond, pursuant to Aniahs Law. The case is still under investigation. A Friday night disagreement over a Facebook Marketplace transaction ended with a north Alabama man shot in the head area and a suspect in custody, Athens police said. Police said they responded to the scene in the 25000 block of Delilah Circle at about 10:45 p.m. They found the 24-year-old homeowner shot. He was taken to Huntsville Hospital by helicopter and transferred to the UAB Hospital in Birmingham. He is expected to survive, according to law enforcement. Officers detained and charged Donald Lamar Smith, 45, of Athens with first-degree assault, police said. Police said the shooting was an isolated incident resulting from a disagreement over the timing of a Facebook Marketplace transaction. Cranes have cleared a path for traffic in Calera following a partial train derailment, according to police. Police Chief David Hyche said Norfolk Southern dispatched cranes to the site to help clear crossings near Alabama 25. As of 3 p.m., traffic is clear. According to police, a broken section of track caused a partial train derailment in the area, which blocked traffic at Milstead Drive, Orangewood Circle and the entrance to the Lhoist North America plant. Norfolk Southern had advised police that they currently cannot break the cars apart to clear the roads immediately following the derailment. Authorities have released the name of a man fatally shot in Saturdays predawn hours. Birmingham police Saturday night identified the victim as Demetrious Restee Williams. He was 36 and lived in Fairfield. Just before 3 a.m., West Precinct officers responded to a Shot Spotter alert of gunfire at Avenue W and 18th Street in Ensley. While they were en route, the call was updated to report a man lying in the roadway. Sgt. LaQuitta Wade said when police arrived, they found Williams wounded and unresponsive. Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service pronounced him dead on the scene. Wade said Shot Spotter registered about nine rounds. Details are limited, Wade said. Williams was the first of three men killed in shootings in Birmingham on Saturday. At 3:33 p.m., a 24-year-old man was fatally shot while in a vehicle outside an Ensley store. Less than 30 minutes later, another man was injured in a shooting in the 2600 block of Avenue C. He was pronounced dead at UAB Hospital. No arrests have been made in any of the slayings. Anyone with information is asked to call homicide detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. Marshall County authorities have identified a drowning victim whose body was found Saturday morning. The Marshall County Coroners Office was dispatched around 8:15 a.m. to the Mountain Lakes RV Resort in Langston after the body of a man was found in the water, near the resorts boat dock on Lake Guntersville. The victim, identified as Joshua Coker, 38, was a resident of another resort in the area, visiting family at the time. No foul play is suspected, the coroners office said in a statement. The Marshall County Sheriffs Office is investigating the incident. Marshall Health Systems EMS and Wakefield Volunteer Fire Department provided assistance at the scene. This is a guest opinion Investing in Alabamas infrastructure will help create shovel-ready jobs, support local businesses and industries, and boost local economies in communities throughout the state. However, for us to fully realize the potential of federal infrastructure investments, lawmakers in Congress must also pass permitting reform at the national level. Through the bipartisan infrastructure law, Alabama is set to receive $5.8 billion just for upgrading, improving, and building out our core transportation infrastructure, including funding for road and bridges, like Highway 45. That could help move critical, long-overdue projects forward, like building a new bridge across Mobile Bay to ease traffic congestion, facilitate commerce, and improve quality of life for Alabamians. These kinds of projects are vital to spurring economic growth and creating new opportunities in Alabama communities. However, without federal permitting reform, major infrastructure projects could get tied up in the review and approvals process for years, preventing or majorly delaying residents and businesses from reaping the benefits these initiatives could create. The current permitting process can take many years to complete. Not only does that delay the actual construction of infrastructure projects, but it also drives up costs, makes investors hesitant to fund, and undermines financial liability. Without federal permitting reform, the United States will fall behind the rest of the world, particularly when it comes to infrastructure and energy development. We need commonsense permitting reform that increases transparency, keeps infrastructure and energy projects on a reasonable timeline, and, most importantly, encourages businesses to continue investing in Alabama. Senator Katie Boyd Britt and our entire congressional delegation should continue working to get bipartisan permitting reform across the finish line before the end of this legislative session. Rep. Shane Stringer, of north Mobile County, represents District 102 in the Alabama House of Representatives Back in 2019, when the Builders Library was launched the goal was simple: gather Amazons most experienced builders and share their expertise built up over years of working on distributed systems. Almost all of the articles in the Builders Library talk about non-obvious lessons learned when building at Amazon scale usually with a lightbulb moment towards the end. A fantastic example of this is Colm MacCarthaighs Reliability, constant work, and a good cup of coffee, where he writes about an anti-fragility pattern that he developed for building simple, more robust, and cost-effective systems. It certainly got me curious about how I could apply this in other settings. The full text is included below, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did. W Reliability, constant work, and a good cup of coffee One of my favorite paintings is Nighthawks by Edward Hopper. A few years ago, I was lucky enough to see it in person at the Art Institute of Chicago. The paintings scene is a well-lit glassed-in city diner, late at night. Three patrons sit with coffee, a man with his back to us at one counter, and a couple at the other. Behind the counter near the single man a white-coated server crouches, as if cleaning a coffee cup. On the right, behind the server loom two coffee urns, each as big as a trash can. Big enough to brew cups of coffee by the hundreds. Coffee urns like that arent unusual. Youve probably seen some shiny steel ones at many catered events. Conference centers, weddings, movie sets we even have urns like these in our kitchens at Amazon. Have you ever thought about why coffee urns are so big? Because they are always ready to dispense coffee, the large size has to do with constant work. If you make coffee one cup at time, like a trained barista does, you can focus on crafting each cup, but youll have a hard time scaling to make 100 cups. When a busy period comes, youre going to have long lines of people waiting for their coffee. Coffee urns, up to a limit, dont care how many people show up or when they do. They keep many cups of coffee warm no matter what. Whether there are just three late-night diners, or a rush of busy commuters in the morning, therell be enough coffee. If we were modeling coffee urns in boring computing terminology, we could say that they have no scaling factor. They perform a constant amount of work no matter how many people want a coffee. Theyre O(1), not O(N), if youre into big-O notation, and who isnt. Before I go on, let me address a couple of things that might have occurred to you. If you think about systems, and because youre reading this, you probably do, you might already be reaching for a well, actually. First, if you empty the entire urn, youll have to fill it again and people will have to wait, probably for a longer time. Thats why I said up to a limit earlier. If youve been to our annual AWS re:Invent conference in Las Vegas, you might have seen the hundreds of coffee urns that are used in the lunch room at the Sands Expo Convention Center. This scale is how you keep tens of thousands of attendees caffeinated. Second, many coffee urns contain heating elements and thermostats, so as you take more coffee out of them, they actually perform a bit less work. Theres just less coffee left to keep warm. So, during a morning rush the urns are actually more efficient. Becoming more efficient while experiencing peak stress is a great feature called anti-fragility. For now though, the big takeaway is that coffee urns, up to their limit, dont have to do any more work just because more people want coffee. Coffee urns are great role models. Theyre cheap, simple, dumb machines, and they are incredibly reliable. Plus, they keep the world turning. Bravo, humble coffee urn! Computers: They do exactly as you tell them Now, unlike making coffee by hand, one of the great things about computers is that everything is very repeatable, and you dont have to trade away quality for scale. Teach a computer how to perform something once, and it can do it again and again. Each time is exactly the same. Theres still craft and a human touch, but the quality goes into how you teach computers to do things. If you skillfully teach it all of the parameters it needs to make a great cup of coffee, a computer will do it millions of times over. Still, doing something millions of times takes more time than doing something thousands or hundreds of times. Ask a computer to add two plus two a million times. Itll get four every time, but it will take longer than if you only asked it to do it once. When were operating highly reliable systems, variability is our biggest challenge. This is never truer than when we handle increases in load, state changes like reconfigurations, or when we respond to failures, like a power or network outage. Times of high stress on a system, with a lot of changes, are the worst times for things to get slower. Getting slower means queues get longer, just like they do in a barista-powered cafe. However, unlike a queue in a cafe, these system queues can set off a spiral of doom. As the system gets slower, clients retry, which makes the system slower still. This feeds itself. Marc Brooker and David Yanacek have written in the Amazon Builders Library about how to get timeouts and retries right to avoid this kind of storm. However, even when you get all of that right, slowdowns are still bad. Delay when responding to failures and faults means downtime. This is why many of our most reliable systems use very simple, very dumb, very reliable constant work patterns. Just like coffee urns. These patterns have three key features. One, they dont scale up or slow down with load or stress. Two, they dont have modes, which means they do the same operations in all conditions. Three, if they have any variation, its to do less work in times of stress so they can perform better when you need them most. Theres that anti-fragility again. Whenever I mention anti-fragility, someone reminds me that another example of an anti-fragile pattern is a cache. Caches improve response times, and they tend to improve those response times even better under load. But most caches have modes. So, when a cache is empty, response times get much worse, and that can make the system unstable. Worse still, when a cache is rendered ineffective by too much load, it can cause a cascading failure where the source it was caching for now falls over from too much direct load. Caches appear to be anti-fragile at first, but most amplify fragility when over-stressed. Because this article isnt focused on caches, I wont say more here. However, if you want to learn more using caches, Matt Brinkley and Jas Chhabra have written in detail about what it takes to build a truly anti-fragile cache. This article also isnt just about how to serve coffee at scale, its about how weve applied constant work patterns at Amazon. Im going to discuss two examples. Each example is simplified and abstracted a little from the real-world implementation, mainly to avoid getting into some mechanisms and proprietary technology that powers other features. Think of these examples as a distillation of the important aspects of the constant work approach. Amazon Route 53 health checks and healthiness Its hard to think of a more critical function than health checks. If an instance, server, or Availability Zone loses power or networking, health checks notice and ensure that requests and traffic are directed elsewhere. Health checks are integrated into the Amazon Route 53 DNS service, into Elastic Load Balancing load balancers, and other services. Here we cover how the Route 53 health checks work. Theyre the most critical of all. If DNS isnt sending traffic to healthy endpoints, theres no other opportunity to recover. From a customers perspective, Route 53 health checks work by associating a DNS name with two or more answers (like the IP addresses for a services endpoints). The answers might be weighted, or they might be in a primary and secondary configuration, where one answer takes precedence as long as its healthy. The health of an endpoint is determined by associating each potential answer with a health check. Health checks are created by configuring a target, usually the same IP address thats in the answer, such as a port, a protocol, timeouts, and so on. If you use Elastic Load Balancing, Amazon Relational Database Service, or any number of other AWS services that use Route 53 for high availability and failover, those services configure all of this in Route 53 on your behalf. Route 53 has a fleet of health checkers, broadly distributed across many AWS Regions. Theres a lot of redundancy. Every few seconds, tens of health checkers send requests to their targets and check the results. These health-check results are then sent to a smaller fleet of aggregators. Its at this point that some smart logic about health-check sensitivity is applied. Just because one of the ten in the latest round of health checks failed doesnt mean the target is unhealthy. Health checks can be subject to noise. The aggregators apply some conditioning. For example, we might only consider a target unhealthy if at least three individual health checks have failed. Customers can configure these options too, so the aggregators apply whatever logic a customer has configured for each of their targets. So far, everything weve described lends itself to constant work. It doesnt matter if the targets are healthy or unhealthy, the health checkers and aggregators do the same work every time. Of course, customers might configure new health checks, against new targets, and each one adds slightly to the work that the health checkers and aggregators are doing. But we dont need to worry about that as much. One reason why we dont worry about these new customer configurations is that our health checkers and aggregators use a cellular design. Weve tested how many health checks each cell can sustain, and we always know where each health checking cell is relative to that limit. If the system starts approaching those limits, we add another health checking cell or aggregator cell, whichever is needed. The next reason not to worry might be the best trick in this whole article. Even when there are only a few health checks active, the health checkers send a set of results to the aggregators that is sized to the maximum. For example, if only 10 health checks are configured on a particular health checker, its still constantly sending out a set of (for example) 10,000 results, if thats how many health checks it could ultimately support. The other 9,990 entries are dummies. However, this ensures that the network load, as well as the work the aggregators are doing, wont increase as customers configure more health checks. Thats a significant source of variance gone. Whats most important is that even if a very large number of targets start failing their health checks all at oncesay, for example, as the result of an Availability Zone losing powerit wont make any difference to the health checkers or aggregators. They do what they were already doing. In fact, the overall system might do a little less work. Thats because some of the redundant health checkers might themselves be in the impacted Availability Zone. So far so good. Route 53 can check the health of targets and aggregate those health check results using a constant work pattern. But thats not very useful on its own. We need to do something with those health check results. This is where things get interesting. It would be very natural to take our health check results and to turn them into DNS changes. We could compare the latest health check status to the previous one. If a status turns unhealthy, wed create an API request to remove any associated answers from DNS. If a status turns healthy, wed add it back. Or to avoid adding and removing records, we could support some kind of is active flag that could be set or unset on demand. If you think of Route 53 as a sort of database, this appears to make sense, but that would be a mistake. First, a single health check might be associated with many DNS answers. The same IP address might appear many times for different DNS names. When a health check fails, making a change might mean updating one record, or hundreds. Next, in the unlikely event that an Availability Zone loses power, tens of thousands of health checks might start failing, all at the same time. There could be millions of DNS changes to make. That would take a while, and its not a good way to respond to an event like a loss of power. The Route 53 design is different. Every few seconds, the health check aggregators send a fixed-size table of health check statuses to the Route 53 DNS servers. When the DNS servers receive it, they store the table in memory, pretty much as-is. Thats a constant work pattern. Every few seconds, receive a table, store it in memory. Why does Route 53 push the data to the DNS servers, rather than pull from them? Thats because there are more DNS severs than there are health check aggregators. If you want to learn more about these design choices, check out Joe Magerramovs article on putting the smaller service in control. Next, when a Route 53 DNS server gets a DNS query, it looks up all of the potential answers for a name. Then, at query time, it cross-references these answers with the relevant health check statuses from the in-memory table. If a potential answers status is healthy, that answer is eligible for selection. Whats more, even if the first answer it tried is healthy and eligible, the server checks the other potential answers anyway. This approach ensures that even if a status changes, the DNS server is still performing the same work that it was before. Theres no increase in scan or retrieval time. I like to think that the DNS servers simply dont care how many health checks are healthy or unhealthy, or how many suddenly change status, the code performs the very same actions. Theres no new mode of operation here. We didnt make a large set of changes, nor did we pull a lever that activated some kind of Availability Zone unreachable mode. The only difference is the answers that Route 53 chooses as results. The same memory is accessed and the same amount of computer time is spent. That makes the process extremely reliable. Amazon S3 as a configuration loop Another application that demands extreme reliability is the configuration of foundational components from AWS, such as Network Load Balancers. When a customer makes a change to their Network Load Balancer, such as adding a new instance or container as a target, it is often critical and urgent. The customer might be experiencing a flash crowd and needs to add capacity quickly. Under the hood, Network Load Balancers run on AWS Hyperplane, an internal service that is embedded in the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) network. AWS Hyperplane could handle configuration changes by using a workflow. So, whenever a customer makes a change, the change is turned into an event and inserted into a workflow that pushes that change out to all of the AWS Hyperplane nodes that need it. They can then ingest the change. The problem with this approach is that when there are a large number of changes all at once, the system will very likely slow down. More changes mean more work. When systems slow down, customers naturally resort to trying again, which slows the system down even further. That isnt what we want. The solution is surprisingly simple. Rather than generate events, AWS Hyperplane integrates customer changes into a configuration file thats stored in Amazon S3. This happens right when the customer makes the change. Then, rather than respond to a workflow, AWS Hyperplane nodes fetch this configuration from Amazon S3 every few seconds. The AWS Hyperplane nodes then process and load this configuration file. This happens even if nothing has changed. Even if the configuration is completely identical to what it was the last time, the nodes process and load the latest copy anyway. Effectively, the system is always processing and loading the maximum number of configuration changes. Whether one load balancer changed or hundreds, it behaves the same. You can probably see this coming now, but the configuration is also sized to its maximum size right from the beginning. Even when we activate a new Region and there are only a handful of Network Load Balancers active, the configuration file is still as big as it will ever be. There are dummy configuration slots waiting to be filled with customer configuration. However, as far the workings of AWS Hyperplane are concerned, the configuration slots there nonetheless. Because AWS Hyperplane is a highly redundant system, there is anti-fragility in this design. If AWS Hyperplane nodes are lost, the amount of work in the system goes down, not up. There are fewer requests to Amazon S3, instead of more attempts in a workflow. Besides being simple and robust, this approach is very cost effective. Storing a file in Amazon S3 and fetching it over and over again in a loop, even from hundreds of machines, costs far less than the engineering time and opportunity cost spent building something more complex. Constant work and self-healing Theres another interesting property of these constant-work designs that I havent mentioned yet. The designs tend to be naturally self-healing and will automatically correct for a variety of problems without intervention. For example, lets say a configuration file was somehow corrupted while being applied. Perhaps it was mistakenly truncated by a network problem. This problem will be corrected by the next pass. Or say a DNS server missed an update entirely. It will get the next update, without building up any kind of backlog. Since a constant work system is constantly starting from a clean slate, its always operating in repair everything mode. In contrast, a workflow type system is usually edge-triggered, which means that changes in configuration or state are what kick off the occurrence of workflow actions. These changes first have to be detected, and then actions often have to occur in a perfect sequence to work. The system needs complex logic to handle cases where some actions dont succeed or need to be repaired because of transient corruption. The system is also prone to the build-up of backlogs. In other words, workflows arent naturally self-healing, you have to make them self-healing. Design and manageability I wrote about big-O notation earlier, and how constant work systems are usually notated as O(1). Something important to remember is that O(1) doesnt mean that a process or algorithm only uses one operation. It means that it uses a constant number of operations regardless of the size of the input. The notation should really be O(C). Both our Network Load Balancer configuration system, and our Route 53 health check system are actually doing many thousands of operations for every tick or cycle that they iterate. But those operations dont change because the health check statuses did, or because of customer configurations. Thats the point. Theyre like coffee urns, which hold hundreds of cups of coffee at a time no matter how many customers are looking for a cup. In the physical world, constant work patterns usually come at the cost of waste. If you brew a whole coffee urn but only get a handful of coffee drinkers, youre going to be pouring coffee down the drain. You lose the energy it took to heat the coffee urn, the energy it took to sanitize and transport the water, and the coffee grounds. Now for coffee, those costs turn out to be small and very acceptable for a cafe or a caterer. There may even be more waste brewing one cup at a time because some economies of scale are lost. For most configuration systems, or a propagation system like our health checks, this issue doesnt arise. The difference in energy cost between propagating one health check result and propagating 10,000 health check results is negligible. Because a constant work pattern doesnt need separate retries and state machines, it can even save energy in comparison to a design that uses a workflow. At the same time, there are cases where the constant work pattern doesnt fit quite as well. If youre running a large website that requires 100 web servers at peak, you could choose to always run 100 web servers. This certainly reduces a source of variance in the system, and is in the spirit of the constant work design pattern, but its also wasteful. For web servers, scaling elastically can be a better fit because the savings are large. Its not unusual to require half as many web servers off peak time as during the peak. Because that scaling happens day in and day out, the overall system can still experience the dynamism regularly enough to shake out problems. The savings can be enjoyed by the customer and the planet. The value of a simple design Ive used the word simple several times in this article. The designs Ive covered, including coffee urns, dont have a lot of moving parts. Thats a kind of simplicity, but its not what I mean. Counting moving parts can be deceptive. A unicycle has fewer moving parts than a bicycle, but its much harder to ride. Thats not simpler. A good design has to handle many stresses and faults, and over enough time survival of the fittest tends to eliminate designs that have too many or too few moving parts or are not practical. When I say a simple design, I mean a design that is easy to understand, use, and operate. If a design makes sense to a team that had nothing to do with its inception, thats a good sign. At AWS, weve re-used the constant work design pattern many times. You might be surprised how many configuration systems can be as simple as apply a full configuration each time in a loop. Recommended reading from the Builders Library English News Flying Tigers spirit promotes China-U.S. friendship Alwihda Info | Par pd - 18 Novembre 2023 "The U.S.-China relationship is the most important bilateral relationship in the world and is highly regarded by the international community. We should set an example for the world, set aside our differences, extend the hand of friendship, and work towards our common goals," she said. By Bai Ziwei, People's Daily Nell Calloway, granddaughter of Claire Lee Chennault, commander of the Flying Tigers, said she hopes to take the sincerity and goodwill of the American people to China, and share more wonderful stories with the Chinese people during a recent interview with People's Daily. Calloway came to China for the 14th time for a visit with a delegation from the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation. The delegation included both Flying Tigers veterans and their descendants, who aimed to reminisce about the old days of the Flying Tigers in China, carry forward the spirit of the Flying Tigers, and pass on the friendship between the two peoples from generation to generation. Over the years, Calloway has been actively promoting people-to-people friendship between the United States and China. She has established the Chennault Aviation and Military Museum and the Chennault Aviation Academy. Her efforts started in 2002 when she made her first trip to China together with her mother. Calloway recalled that her grandfather came to China when her mother was only nine years old. Her mother could not understand why he stayed in China for 7 years until their first visit to China, where they learned about the events that took place during the war era. Since then, Calloway and her mother have been dedicated to promoting Flying Tigers' tales and the history of China's resistance war against Japanese aggression to the American public. She believed that it's crucial to share with the world how Chinese people admirably overcame difficulties and fought against Japanese invaders, and said she has always taken it as her mission. During the resistance war against Japanese aggression, General Claire Lee Chennault led the Flying Tigers to fight alongside the Chinese people. "We must remember the history," Calloway has mentioned multiple times in interviews, saying Flying Tigers veterans and their descendants have the responsibility to carry on this precious friendship, to help and assist each other, and to create a better future for future generations. During her visit to China this time, Calloway always took photos with General Claire Lee Chennault's pictures at each site. She said these photos touched her deeply because they signify that many Chinese people still remember the contributions her grandfather had made. "Over the years, I have witnessed the development and changes in China. It would be wonderful if my grandfather could see today's China," Calloway told People's Daily. Calloway believes that history needs to be recorded and told, and common memories must be passed on by those who have lived through it. She said the Flying Tigers veterans she interviewed had great admiration for the Chinese people and were proud that they had fought alongside them against the Japanese invaders. "Both the United States and China need to understand this shared history," Calloway noted. As one of the descendants of the Flying Tigers veterans, she said they have a greater responsibility to speak up and continue telling the story of the Flying Tigers. Coming to China again after four years, Calloway placed particular importance on the power of face-to-face exchanges, believing it to be crucial for promoting people-to-people friendship between the two countries. She said the two peoples need to engage in more exchanges in order to enhance mutual understanding. When the two peoples are separated by oceans, it is difficult to have a tangible sense of connection; when they come to each other's land and make eye contact, everything falls into place naturally, she explained. Calloway expressed her hope that the two peoples, especially the younger generation, can continue to inherit the spirit of the Flying Tigers. "The U.S.-China relationship is the most important bilateral relationship in the world and is highly regarded by the international community. We should set an example for the world, set aside our differences, extend the hand of friendship, and work towards our common goals," she said. Dans la meme rubrique : < > China voices to lead global AI governance A glimpse into express packaging box's carbon reduction journey in China Strengthening partnership the right choice for future of China-U.S. relations Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena) When I suggest that its time to pull the fire alarm, Im not talking about Representative Bowman, who actually and knowingly committed a crime when he pulled a fire alarm in the Capital to stall a vote of the US Congress (a crime for which he received a minimal consequence, unlike the J6 defendants). Instead, Im talking about significant problems in America that require immediate (and possible) remediation. The US is in a leadership freefall, and well be in a political ice age when that fall breaks. The world is picking sides and making bets on who will survive the most significant power struggle since the end of World War II. Its metaphorically the day after Pearl Harbor, and our spirit is broken. Worse, there is no defined enemy to go after this time; were isolated and alone for all intents and purposes. Its different this time. Were no longer the omnipotent America the entire free world expected to come to the rescue. Instead, were gradually being seen as yesterdays news and an unreliable partner exhibiting a lack of leadership thats needed now more than ever. The two different Worlds, the free and the authoritarian, are taking their cues from our words and actions. What happens over the next two years will either doom us to slavery or see us rise like a phoenix from the ashesthink: Rocky Balboas comeback in Rocky II. Unfortunately, that was a movie; this is real life. No one knows if well ever get that comeback fight. These are the stakes we play for. Also, like WWII, we have to deal with our fifth columnistswhat Netanyahu recently called Israels fifth frontwho have already been doing their dastardly work, sapping our will and vitality. Millions of Americans woke up from a deep sleep to find that our countrys ethos was stolen as hundreds of thousands marched through our streets chanting Death to Israel, encapsulated in the meme From the River to the Sea. From Luke 23-34: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. That Bible verse fits many of the actions we see and hear today. Only now is the source of most of this hatred and misinformation becoming apparent. Billions of Middle Eastern dollars have flowed to universities and programs that have been teaching hatred of Jews and Israel for more than 25 years. The Biden administration, by violating our immigration laws, allows in people who never leave and are here only for the havoc they can cause. And of course, lawmakers and so-called leaders seek moral equivalencies when there are none. All these things together require that sane individuals pull the fire alarm and pull us back from the precipice. Image: Fire alarm (edited) by jcomp. If you doubt just how bad things really are, here are two specific examples of threats to America (although there is some light to be seen): One: Chinas Xi Jinping is escalating his push to challenge Americas global leadership, as seen last month in Beijing, when Xi, flanked by Russian President Vladimir Putin, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and some two dozen top dignitaries from around the world, hailed China as the only country capable of navigating the challenges of the 21st-century. A China watcher, Shen Dingli, looking at Americas disarray, said, All this makes China think America is quickly declining. China has published a lengthy document outlining its vision for global governance and identifies what it sees as the source of current global challenges: Some countries hegemonic, abusive, and aggressive actions against othersare causing great harm and putting global security and development at risk, it reads. For those who find it difficult to parse this, he means us. On the flip side, China can no longer sustain its growth, and growing unemployment threatens what even Biden identified as a dictatorship. Antony Blinkens reaction to that bit of tactlessness shows that China and the Biden administration make not become best friends, which is good for America. Two: Bidens National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby is showing increasing American weakness when he speaks about Iranian aggression. The best he can offer is that Biden says our message to any hostile actors seeking to escalate or wide this conflict is very simple: dont do it. As opposed to, I guess, bombs to fend off over 50 attacks by Iran on our soldiers in three countries, some of whom were significantly injured. Are we waiting for actual dead Americans before we take this seriously? Then what? A measured and proportional response when an out-of-proportion response would be strategically correct? Having said that, Kirby, rather than presenting a balanced, professional facade after October 7, broke down on live TV. Biden may be asking his own staff to lie more than they are willing to. This is even more hopeful because it proves there are real people behind the diatribe. So, where are we today with these genuine perils facing us? Do we even know what were dealing with? If you lived in a cave and the only thing you could view was cable news, what would you see? Thats easy: Donald Trump, Climate Change, and so-called Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion issues. There is no fourth place. These three subjects reliably suck up virtually all the oxygen. They also serve to misdirect, miseducate, and mis-prioritize our country against the genuine perils aligning against us. This isnt surprising. With few exceptions, Americas journalists graduated from many of those same radical hotbeds of anti-Americanism that are now, for the first time, showing their true colors. Students, graduates, and faculty will need a generation or more to grasp the truth if they ever do. Given the lunacy in America, both socially and politically, were looking at serious pain for a very long time unless we regroup and take a stand against the lies we accept at face value. Biden will not be the anointed one to make that happen. Almost everyone knows the truth, no matter their side. The electorate must recognize that 2024 may be the last time we can save an America that the Founders would recognize and be proud of. But first, someone needs to pull the fire alarm, and the countrys klaxons need to be heard by every American still worthy of the name. Recognize that it is every functioning Americans time to be that small percentage that screams Not on my Watch and pushes back against the gathering dark clouds threatening to snuff our Freedom and Individuality out. Its over once the American experiment ends; there is no coming back. May God Bless America and save us. Author, Businessman, Thinker, and Strategist. Read more about Allan, his background, and his ideas to create a better tomorrow at www.1plus1equals2.com. After the constant Hamas missile attacks on Israel and the unspeakable October 7 massacres there, and Israels subsequent military incursion into Gaza to destroy terrorist tunnels and launch sites, I was interested to learn, via archived livestream, the reaction of pastors in prominent self-styled progressive mainstream Protestant congregations. I focus on ideas and expositions (or lack thereof) and not on personalities or locations. At one church on the day after the attacks, the minister began by acknowledging the surprise attacks and expressing concern for friends whom she had met in Israel, for whom she choked up for a moment. I was moved by this heartfelt reaction, but tensed up when she quickly observed that the October 7 attacks were just one in a long line of brutalizations between Palestinians and Israelis stretching back over 75 years. Just one? It took her a month to revisit the topic, when the prescribed reading was about Elijah, whom she depicted as being braggadocious and murderous in ordering that the people of another faith, the priests of Baal (who had, by the way, incited violence and instigated national disaster), be put to death. She would later refer to Elijahs (and Old Testament Jews?) indiscriminate slaughter. But praising the description of the Israelites falling on their faces before God, she chanted, in Arabic, passages of the Koran that are invoked while kneeling. (She had chanted the Shema the week before, so I guess she wanted to be even-handed.) She did not mention that there are violent passages in virtually all religious scriptures, including the Koran, which are still cited during acts of violence. Instead, she encouraged general appreciation of other faiths, along with turning to friends like my rabbi with whom she had just had dinner, and her activist organizer Palestinian friend whom she planned to join at a rally to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. She referred to the latter friend as her sister in the struggle, and urged the people to contact their elected officials and to demand that ceasefire. She didnt care that ceasefire would mean that, like several times before, Hamas would regroup and continue to launch rockets and tunnel attacks on Israel. The next weeks sermon was even worse. Our preacher made Israeli soldiers in Gaza the paradigm of humans executing fierce anger upon Gods children, humans destroying other humans, and compared them to Sudanese who go from house to house, exterminating native African tribes. She indicated that the Gaza war forced her do her homework about all the other genocide and ethnic cleansing in the world, citing several other countries and calling for fierce love, godly love. Again, she choked up for a moment. She said she could not understand the tensions between competing protests at the UN over calling for a ceasefire. But the footage from October 7 shows Hamas terrorists filming the most horrible atrocities, with pride and glee, and boasting to their parents and friends in Gaza about how many Jews they murdered. Another pastor theorized about the history of the conflict in the Middle East. Jews, he said, got their name from Judea, renamed after they had taken it from Canaanites. So, he suggested, its only natural that the Jews should have been exiled a couple of times, because the land is desirable real estate as a bridge from Europe to the Middle East, Egypt and Africa. As any Evangelical Christian would remind this pastor, who also happens to teach at an intersectional seminary, biblical teachings attributed religious significance to the land long before widespread global travel. But he is convinced that its real significance is not religiouswhether to Jews, Christians or Muslimsbut geopolitical (as an intersection?). I found this sermon particularly offensive and hurtful because this multimedia pastor projected upon the altar wall a map on which Israel was not marked, with the disclaimer that he did not want to get political. So, he began by erasing Israel from the land, and then wrote out the Jewish People by asserting that since the Roman exile, the land became Christian and then Muslim while the Jews were everywhere else. Is he unaware that there were always Jews in Palestine, not to mention flourishing Jewish cultures such as the Kabbalists of the sixteenth century? His take on the establishment of the Jewish State is that Israel declared independence in 1948 and the day that they declare independence they declare war and push all of the Palestinian people out. So, 600,000 Jews, many of them in the land for centuries, all of them traumatized and wounded and weakened from the Holocaust, decide to declare war against all the Arab nations, willfully bringing death to 1% of their struggling remnant? Israel was established by a plurality of nations following a war in which the Palestinian mufti and a plurality of his followers actively supported the Nazi cause and advocated for the final solution against Jews in Palestine and throughout the Middle East. Most Arabs chose to leave under the assurance that they would return after a planned pan-Arab war to wipe out a new Jewish State. One of my congregants had fled from Austria to Palestine, where she and her family lived through Israels War of Independence before moving to Chicago. In 1947, a Palestinian Arab neighbor and friend came to her house and said, Youre just not going to be allowed to have a Jewish State here. While we very much like you, we wanted to come to take a look because family members might take over your home, but we will remember you. Another congregant told me that a Palestinian Arab neighbor, a female physician, blurted out, I cant wait to meet my fuehrer. The multimedia pastor did describe Zionism as a non-violent movement for self-determination, but slipped in that there was talk of establishing a Jewish State in Kenya, asking sarcastically whether there were no people there. But why mention such a blip on the screen of Zionist chatting (at British suggestion!) if not to alienate black listeners and everyone else from the Zionist cause, which he had already erased from the map? He concluded that the Israel-Palestine conflict is not about two peoples fighting over the land, but the result of the military industrial complex in other lands gaining financially by dividing them. Therefore, in the spirit of Jesus, Jews and Palestinians must come togetherostensibly in one state, in solidarity against the rest of the world. True, during the Cold War and even now, the Russian and American militaries are learning about each others weapons, but Arab assaults on Israel with threats of destroying the Jewish State began long before. This pastor totally ignored Hamas (Islamist) ideology, reiterated in recent weeks, that there can only be peace when every state is Islamic, and that all who oppose this, whether Jews or not, are fair game. At a leading African American church, a guest professor-preacher worried that no matter what one thinks of what Hamas did, the scale of response will be unimaginable against two million people who live in an open air prison. But of course, the response was never unimaginable. It was always part of the calculus of Hamas whose desire to murder Jews overshadowed any concern for the people of Gaza. A direct analogy between modern Israeli and American leadership was drawn with the priests of Israel, as this preacher imagined them being rebuked by Jesus. The preacher saw the priests as believing that the earth is their possession, that their dignity and standing belongs [sic] to them and to them alone, thatthe very fact of life rest [sic] in their hands and in their hands alone. He warned (relished?) that they will come to see a different order of things, a regime change, which fundamentally upends the world as it is, not just to turn it upside down, but to make it right. The implication is that Israeland America, with its history of slaverywill get their come-uppance. This professor preacher was downright apocalyptic, in ways far more extreme than Evangelicals are falsely accused of being, not to mention his lack of moral clarity regarding America and Israel in comparison to their enemies. If he wanted to speak truth to power, why did he not call out those who still practice slavery and sex trafficking, and those (Hamas, Iran) who trap the masses from within Gaza with intimidation, endangerment and hateful ideologies? Why not call out the Iranian leaders and other Pan-Islamists who make policy of the belief that no non-Islamist state is legitimate, and the Hamas henchmen (many of whom who have become wealthy) who keep using fuel to launch missiles instead of to operate hospitals, and hide under those very hospitals? (Israels offer to send fuel to the hospitals was just rejected by Hamas!) In the throw-in-the-kitchen-sink part of his sermon, he castigated anti-immigrant statements as being in the language of Hitler, but did not acknowledge that the methods of murder by Hamas reflected the Nazi sympathies still rooted in Palestinian Arab society (an Arabic copy of Hitlers Mein Kampf having just been found by Israeli soldiers in a Hamas childrens room!). Another prominent minister spoke of just returning from what was described elsewhere as a trip to Israel under progressive solidarity auspices. This was the next day after the Hamas barbarism against kibbutzim where people lived a modest agrarian life, advocated for peace with their Arab neighbors, and transported children from Gaza to Israeli hospitals. He mentioned nothing about the massacres, characterizing the attacks on Israel as rockets from a small group of cheering radical extremists who do not represent the Palestinian people, while there was cheering and laughing on the other side as the bodies of [Palestinian] children were being pulled out of the rubble. I never saw any accounts of people in Israel who were laughing and cheering. Everyone was too grieved and devastated. But he built his discombobulated (jet-lagged?) sermon on that image, self-righteously boasting that his God is a God of love and justice who does not selectively cry for certain people. But is it justice to represent Hamas and the Israelis as having the same reaction and to ignore the danger to Israel from the tunnels? Or to suggest that striking against the tunnels and the rockets, wherever they are located, is akin to the Tulsa massacre or the Trail of Tears policies against Native Americans? Of course, the point was to equate Israels response to Hamas barbarism. Some preach moral equivalency by padding their sermons, and others by quoting their friends. The latter was the preferred method of another minister who exploited a friends combined Arab and Jewish ancestry. She made her points by quoting her friends anguish: Im just tired. I cant just turn off the news and put my head in the sand. I have friends in Jerusalem; I have a cousin in Tel Aviv. AndIm worried about my sons Jewish pre-school. So many pro-Palestinian groups are anti-Semitic, so many American synagogues are draping themselves in Israeli flags. Where do I join the side that is pro-civilian and anti-child murder? Where do I join the group that believes in basic human rights? We all root for the good guys. Where are the good guys? You could say that there are no good guys to root for in this conflict, or rather that there is no single bad guy to root against because there are good guys on both sides. The pastor rightly lamented that Israelis and Palestinians are in desperate situations trying to stay safe from bombs and to find food and water, though she didnt mention that the Palestinian leaders planned to expose their own people to such deprivation in order to stir up global anti-Israel hatreds, and poured billions of international aid dollars into lethal provocations to war. Would this pastor and her friend deign to root against them? The preacher rightly urges sensitivity to the feelings of others and to the dog whistles heard by them, along with seeing their humanity and the humanity of those they care about. But she still comes down on the side of moral equivalency, definitely owning her friends voice: There are no good guys and bad guys, only centuries of history and occupation, intractable problems, helping all people, good and bad, by which I mean that all of us are both good and bad. Does it even matter that Israel turned Gaza back to the Palestinians in 2005? Or that the occupied territories were won by Israel after invading armies used them in an attempt to destroy the Jewish State, which was legally allowed by the UN to administer those lands until a lasting peace? As for our good and bad pastor, she soon posted on the church website an interview with an American Muslim interfaith scholar who regards the entire State of Israel as occupied Palestinian territory, who believes that the goal of Israelis is to exterminate Arab Palestinians, and who denies that there is anti-Semitism among Arab Palestinians and Muslims. He spoke of his chagrin as a child at not seeing Palestine on the map. (It would have been there had the local Arabs accepted the two states offered in 1947.) He pointed to historic Jewish communities in the Arab world but neglected to say that few remain since 800,000 Jews had been forced to flee from them. He insists that anti-Semitism is only a Christian European phenomenon despite the vile hatred spewed forth on every Arab and Muslim street. The last two pastors in my sampling of sermons dealt with Christian anti-Semitism. The tone of anti-Jewish gospel passages is, according to the associate pastor of a world-renowned American church, not unlike Hamass brutal attack on Israeli citizens and civilians and Israels brutal retaliation against Palestinians in Gaza. She went on to observe: The battle lines seem to be drawn around the conflict that we want and not the conflict that we have, by which I mean either Israel is a nation that is innocent and all retaliation on their part is justified, or Palestinians are oppressed and justified in any acts of violence perpetrated in their behalf [or by them?]. The preacher concludes that neither of those stances are [sic] borne out by the facts, by nuanced challenging and inconvenient truth. The facts must be placed in the context of both Jesuss condemnation of occupying empire [as she reads the Gospels] and the long and terrible history and present reality of global anti-Semitism led by Christians. Since no violence is congruous and fully rational and 100% proportional, the current violence comes from consensus and power. She affirms that all human beings are made in the image of God with inherent dignity and worth and beauty, and that terrorism which targets Israeli neighborhoods and families [but not Israeli police and soldiers or government officials?] is wrong, that bringing the full might of the Israeli army upon the heads of civilians is wrong. But she stops short of dealing with the fact that not acting against Hamas now will result in continuous attacks with more lethal weapons later. One sermon moved me; I liked the soul of the preacher, who is the head chaplain of a prestigious university and a professor in its divinity school. As he saw it, Jesuss comments about the image of Caesar on a coin is an affirmation that every human is created in the image of God and that the organizing principle of a religion and of a society should be not one of hatred but of belonging and love. We have to reject hatred, he enjoined. But he added: If my child had been kidnapped or killed by a missile in the shelter, I would be full of rage. I would hope that I could wish for peace but I know that I would cry out for vengeance. Then he sensitively noted: Christians must cry out for peace, but if we only cry out and ask for peace with trivialities or niceties, we risk leaving the impression that we do not understand how much these children of God have been hurt. Hatreds, he concluded, have histories, and those histories were caused by Christians who were colonialists, crusaders and anti-Semites. Christians must stand against all hatredsfor peace, and in taking that stand must begin by falling to our knees. Though touched by this sermon, I could not help feeling that while repentance is always helpful, it should not lead to obsessing on the sins of the West instead of calling out the evils of radical Islamist hatred and violence. What has mainline Protestantism done to bring all its influence to bear on calling out Iran and its surrogates, Hamas and Hezballah, through pressure on Arab nations that have pursued cultural and economic dealings with the West (especially at universities)? Survivors of the Oct. 7 attacks report that some of the Hamas butchers and rapists were clearly high on a drug produced in Syria. Was this true of the 9-11 attackers as well? If so, will the churches demand international bans on such drugs, and discourage recreational drug use by their own constituents? What have they done to ensure honest reporting about Gaza instead of vowing allegiance to so-called solidarity demonstrations which are a feeding frenzy for diverse hatreds, identity grievances, treacherous sponsors, and mob action? Where are creative interfaith efforts to reach Muslim political and religious leaders with recognized authority to counter hard line hatreds in the name of peace and democracy? Photo credit: Maseltove CC BY-SA 3.0 license Murder and Mayhem This week the Ventura County Sheriff arrested Professor Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji in the death of Paul Kessler, a 69 year-old man who had been standing on the sidewalk peacefully supporting Israel. Alnaji, who bashed Kessler with a megaphone, was charged with involuntary manslaughter and battery causing serious bodily injury and both these charges contain special allegations that Alnaji personally inflicted great bodily injury. This comes as no surprise to most of us who get their news online but it must have been news to those who read headers which said he died after falling and hitting his head on the sidewalk. Even after no charges were brought against the sidewalk, CNNs header read arrest made in death of Jewish protestor who fell and hit his head. (CNN has now stealthily edited the header.) The media effort to downplay anti-Semitism, like its coverage of the Israeli response to the butchery by Hamas, doesnt seem fixable. Its certainly bias, but stupidity also plays a part, as is demonstrated by their claims that they didnt know the Gaza stringers were Hamas or the scenes of injured civilians in Gaza were Pallywood. Reporters who post on social media regularly display their total ignorance. This week it was the New York Times opinion columnist Elizabeth Spiers, who learned for the first time that Gazas Health Ministry -- like every office in Gaza -- is Hamas. (The ignorance must be endemic to the western press, which has been touting Hamas casualty figures for Gaza -- roughly a bazillion civilians and no Hamas terrorists from the moment Israel entered Gaza.) Just as the J6 tapes were released (which, inter alia, showed police welcoming in citizens, people marching peacefully through police lines where they were cordially treated, a law enforcement officer admitting he was undercover posing as Antifa, and evidence that several key law enforcement witnesses before the J6 Committee were lying) the Hamas Jugend surrounded the DNC and prevented their meeting. After a significant melee with police, they blocked the doors to the House Office Building, preventing exit and entry. Congressman Dan Goldmans office was covered in hateful graffiti. The Capitol Police described the assaults: We have handled hundreds of peaceful protests, but last nights group was not peaceful. The crowd failed to obey our lawful orders to move back from the DNC, where Members of Congress were in the building. When the group moved dumpsters in front of the exits, pepper sprayed our officers and attempted to pick up the bike rack, our teams quickly introduced consequences -- pulling people off the building, pushing them back, and clearing them from the area, so we could safely evacuate the Members and staff. Six officers were treated for injuries, from minor cuts to being pepper sprayed to being punched. Reportedly only one person was arrested. This contrasts with the way the local police force ignored the outbreaks of violence at the 2016 inauguration, but this time its the Left attacking Democrats and the response was more forceful. Still, as this spirals, I wonder how smart it was for the DNC to schedule its 2024 convention for Chicago now that theres no Mayor Daley in charge. In New York City they vandalized Grand Central Station and interrupted train travel. In San Francisco they invaded the Bay Bridge, seriously disrupting commuters. In fact, transport of time-sensitive medical transplants was blocked by their action. Similar riots in support of Hamas took place at the University of Michigan and Harvard. These riots are well-funded and organized and generally receive some support from the academic remoras in studies programs and the DEI apparat. (The DEI apparat at Michigan cost $18 million dollars each year -- money better spent on teaching staff or cut out entirely to lower tuition costs. Instead, its frittered away on staff whose sole job is to foment divisions, find oppression where there is none and ignore it where it actually exists.) University of Michigan emeritus Professor Mark Perry explains:. UM pays a total of $18,120,242 to support more than 142 staff members who work to promote DEI initiatives on campus during the 2022-2023 school year, according to data analyzed by Perry. The total equals the amount it would take to cover the cost of in-state tuition for 1,075 students, he told the Daily Caller News Foundation. In my opinion, most colleges like UM are spending way too much money on DIE efforts, and its incredibly wasteful because those efforts are part of advancing the new DIE religion in higher education and directly contradict the core mission of a university -- to educate students, teach critical thinking and expose them to intellectual diversity -- in favor of pursuing misguided goals of social justice, racial justice, and gender justice, Perry told the DCNF. Those misguided and expensive DIE resources could be better spent by reducing tuition instead of feeding new layers of costly administrative bloat that end up getting passed along to students in the form of higher tuition and fees. Unless the Federal Bureau of Investigation intends these serious disruptions to carry over for months to impact life and the presidential election as did the BLM and Antifa riots earlier, its time they got off the stick and start investigating those behind this and prosecuting those engaged in the interstate mayhem. (Having promulgated the fake Russian Collusion and the bald-faced lie that the Hunter laptop was disinformation, just maybe they can examine how much foreign money is being funneled into these demonstrations. You know, something real for a change.) Theres a New Osama Bin Laden Cult and its Not Arabic The Guardian, a reliably left-wing British paper, reprinted a Letter from Osama written after 9/11 (probably authored by the late Adam Gadahn who was marinated in the same idiocy as young TikTok fans). At the urging of TikTokker Lynette Adkins, the letter got 800,000 views and over 80,000 likes. A similar endorsement by rayereads received over 640,000 views and, to the young people thoroughly brainwashed, it struck a welcome note. As you can imagine, it is virulently anti-American and anti-Semitic. All told, the letter was praised more than 10 million times before the Guardian pulled it. TikTok announced that all videos mentioning the letter have been deleted and accounts which initially shared it have been banned. Consider this: a mere twenty-two years after al Qaeda murdered thousands in New York, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia, millions of viewers praised the instigator of these murders. I agree with Simon Montefiore: The enthusiasm on TikTok for Osama bin Laden shows where the enthusiasm for Jihadist terrorist killers Hamas leads, much based on a zombie ideology that applies simple but brutal eliminationist gibberish Decolonisation to a complex world without knowledge of history or present. It seems most of these viewers were young Americans. Pew Research Center poll says 14% of American adults say they regularly get their news from TikTok. If you dont know, TikTok is Chinese owned. Its biggest following is among young adults 18-29. The Wall Street Journal asks How can Americans trust that TikTok is really trying in good faith to stop its platform from being used to spread ideological poison? Apparently, we cant. College Reform reports that more than one in five college students say they sympathize with Hamas, and that is deeply concerning. David Burge (Iowahawk) has a different take on these dummies, saying he doubts any of them could ever fly a 737. Moreover, he says: I've had some recent experience in this matter, and from my perspective the Al Qaeda-curious accounts I've been blocking represent a broad intersectional coalition of grad-school tankies, incel anime porn groypers, and ululating Hamas bots. Cui Bono if Hamas is Eradicated? The World Does. The colleges and universities and domestic press may be ignorant and bonkers, but there is strong support for Israels conduct against Hamas, from the UAE, the Saudis, Bahrain, and Arab commentators like Hussain Abdul-Hussain who posts on X: A century of conflict, tens of thousands killed, four failing states -- Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran -- and three economies in free fall. All of this is to liberate Palestine from the river to the sea and create an independent Palestine. The date of the creation of Palestine is unknown, the conflict is open-ended. Palestine is not a goal, it's a death cult. Even if Palestine is created, nothing in all of the history of Palestinians suggests that they know how to create and manage a scouts club, let alone a state. Palestine will be another mess, like Lebanon, Syria, Iraq or Gaza. Enough is enough! The Arabs and Iranians have paid a heavy price for a failing lifestyle called Palestine. As an Arab, I say that we MUST lose and surrender, soonest. Successful nations are the ones who know when to lose and when to win. Japan became closest allies with America that struck it with two atomic bombs. Japan hosts US military bases (occupation?) until today. So did Germany, Italy, and South Korea. People die to live in these countries that lost, surrendered, conceded, and became best friends with their past enemies. Enough is enough! Hamas should surrender. The Palestinian Authority should be disbanded, all its leaders should retire. Erdogan should be told that 30 years in power has gotten to his head, made him crazy. Qatar's insecurity of "look at me," promoting death and destruction, should come to its end. Iran mullahs should go back to mosques, lead the believers in prayers only, and let Iranians who know how to run governments take over and put an end to a regime that's delusional, messianic, and crazy. Palestinians should settle for local councils of self-government, at most, and enjoy having Israel offer them a great economy to benefit from and a good infrastructure. Gaza only lost electricity 40 days ago. Wealthy Baghdad spent its sweltering summer without electricity. Impoverished Lebanon produced 13 percent of its electricity need at best, and that's only thanks to Iraqi oil gifts. Enough is enough! Enough with Palestine! Enough indigenous! Enough with imagined colonialism! Live and let live. Make immediate and unconditional peace with Israel now, and by now, I mean yesterday. The Saudis have arrested anyone who shows support for Hamas or the Palestinians in Mecca and Medina. Bahrains Minister of Finance and National Economy, Sheikh Salman bin Khalifa al-Khalifa, said the Israel-Hamas war should not hold back regional integration, noting in the Bahraini newspaper Al-Ayyam Bahraini, that the existing accords will underpin a secure, safe region in which we are delivering prosperity for all, and delivering hope and opportunity. The UAE does not seem to be allowing the war to strain relations with Israel. In sum, the Trump-facilitated Abrahamic Accords are far from dead, though I suspect the international pro-Hamas demonstrations were at least in part designed to kill it. If Israel succeeds, I suspect they know it will help these other countries defeat their worst enemy Iran -- and in one blow, the Israelis, the Gazans, and the Iranian people will be free, and it will be done without an American-led war. Like Wretchard the Cat, I see this conflagration has exposed as rotten a lot of stupid notions and will lead to the demise of things like open borders, identity politics, corruption power hungry bureaucrats, Gramscian culture. War is awful, but sometimes you just have no other way to sweep out the stables. UPDATE: This article has been updated to correct the location of the vandalized train station in New York. Republicans are invariably frustrated that facts dont move the dial in elections. No matter how bad Democrats are, nothing changes. The reason is simple: Democrats associate blue with all good things. One of the most powerful persuasive techniques in existence is simple association. Want to sell more Aqua Velva? Show a gorgeous woman caressing a freshly shaved handsome man. Two simple associations theremen who use Aqua Velva are handsome like this guy; and men who use Aqua Velva attract beautiful, affectionate women like this one. Want to sell more Hyundais? Show beautiful, hip, smiling, and clearly successful people driving them. Multiple positive associations there. In the 1950s, Philip Morris was trying to sell more filtered cigarettes but found that men were resistant, viewing them as feminine. The solution was one of the most successful and longest-running ad campaigns in historythe Marlboro Man, a cowboy with a face like rawhide, staring wisely and wistfully over the open plain, representing the epitome of the rugged, masculine, heroic, independent, adventurous, and free man. Want to be more like him? Smoke Marlboros. Much of the power of simple association stems from the complete bypassing of facts, logic, and education. In his best-seller, The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell explains that part of why too many young people remain stubbornly attracted to smoking, despite decades and hundreds of millions of dollars of educational campaigns, is that Hollywood and other key influencers continue to portray heroic and cool counter-culture characters as smokers (think of the iconic James Dean photo from Rebel Without a Cause, but modernized a thousand times over). Image made by Andrea Widburg using AI. Conservatives would do well to understand that this same dynamic is playing out with many Democrat voters. In his interview with Fox News, former San Francisco mayoral candidate and analyst Richard Greenberg was asked about new polls showing President Bidens underwater approval ratings even in California and whether this means a Republican could finally win there. His answer: Doubtful. He explained that, despite Bidens sinking polls and despite years of deteriorating conditions under Democrat leadership, many Californiansmostly Democratssimply will not vote for a Republican. He explains this with a commonly expressed philosophy of this voting block: Always vote blue, no matter who. In a nutshell, that slogan/explanation provides the answer that has confounded so many observers over the years. They have puzzled over why California Democrat voters seem impervious to things like soaring homelessness, poverty, crime, taxes, and cost of living, a shrinking quality of life and population for the first time on record, the second worst public school system in the nation, massive unmet infrastructure needs now hovering near $1T, state debt also measured in $Trillions, all topped with the leadership hypocrisy of things like maskless French Laundry dinners during mandated lockdowns. Not only did Governor Newsom survive the recall vote, he did so with a whopping 62% of voters supporting him. Many reasonable people scratch their heads and ask, How does any logical person vote for more of this? What those people dont understand is that logic is not in play. Simple association is. Blue = Always. Red = Never. Republicans should wake up and take note of this dynamicspecifically, by acknowledging that Democrats have successfully used it for decades, especially on college campuses. While liberal and left-leaning university faculty have historically been overrepresented as compared to conservatives, that trend has been in overdrive in recent years. Today, 60% of college faculty are leftists. Those who identify as far left now equal in number all conservative faculty (11.5%), a tripling since 1992. At the Ivies, it is even worsewith less than 2% of Harvard faculty, for example, identifying as conservative, and over 82% identifying as liberal or very liberal. Perhaps more telling of the lopsided campus environment than polls is where faculty put their moneywith only 4% of universities faculty making political donations to Republicans. In his 2017 work, Yes, Campus Indoctrination is Real, Peter Wood, president of the National Association of Scholars, points out that, as significant as this rising imbalance of left versus right faculty may be, it is not as powerful as the things missing from campuses: The courses not offered, the professors not appointed, the speakers not invited, the student clubs that are not formed: the nots are the real key to campus bias, especially because they are usually invisible to the students. He concludes . . . no, conservative fears of campus indoctrination are not overblown. [T]aken all in all, contemporary American higher education does indoctrinate students in progressive ideology. And it does it so well that most of the graduates dont even realize it. In this way, the positive things put before the students to study, emulate, and involve themselves inthe courses themselves, key theories, leaders, speakers, books, role models, projects, etc.are overwhelmingly left-leaning. Conversely, right-leaning people and ideas, if even present, are put before them as things to eschew, condemn, and oppose. The left/right associations are simple, powerful, and all-encompassing for four years or more. Relatively new and mushrooming DEI staff and related student and faculty committees help ensure the bubbles integrity. The bubble allows for increasingly fewer alternative views. In the most comprehensive free speech study yet conducted, FIRE found that fully 60% of students reported feeling that they could not express an opinion because of how students, a professor, or their administration would respond, especially the 73% of students identifying as strong Republicans. This indoctrination process not only pushes left-leaning thinking while censoring or condemning conservative positions. Significantly, it promotes reflexive belief more than critical thinkinga belief built from simple association: Blue = Good; Red = Bad. Those with the always blue mindset believe this dictum as they believe in gravity. This extends beyond mere certainty about a proposition. It means that they need no evidence to support the belief. To them, it is something that has always been and always will be true. So, what should Republicans take from this? Most importantly, when they create messages aimed at Democrats, especially to convert them, those efforts are wasted. Sure, you see some exceptions among particularly bright people (e.g., Thomas Sowell, Andrew Breitbart, or Ronald Reagan) but, in general, it is a relatively rare occurrence. A blue candidate may have been undeniably caught in lies, corruption, and blunders. He may demonstrate hypocrisy on a grand scaleengaging in the very behavior he has criticized, maybe even campaigned against. He may appear lost and incoherent, stumbling, mumbling, or shouting at virtually every public appearance. He may have committed illegal, even treasonous, acts, such as taking bribes or weaponizing multiple governmental agencies against opponents and citizens. He may have demonstrated a track record of failure in every major area of concern to votersthe economy, foreign policy, national security and immigration, energy policy, etc. And yet, many always blue Democrats will still vote for him. How large is that number? Apparently, far larger than Republicans understood. The concept of Always vote blue, no matter who has been programmed into tens of millions of voters. California may be the most prominent showcase for the dynamic, but it is not isolated to that state. Republicans must understand that there are no magic facts or talking points, no silver bullet arguments, no game-changing photographic or videographic evidence that will suddenly open the eyes of most Democrats. Gravity still exists, and so does the always blue mindset. Republicans need to forget conversion and focus on the base and independentsexclusively. Democrats have done an amazing job of collecting intersectional grievance groups, picking at the scabs of discontent by convincing said groups that the Democrats, and they alone, can solve their grievances, by expanding government power in service to their groups interest and concerns. That many of these grievance groups often have diverging interests (queers and Palestine, blacks and Hispanics, Jews and Muslims) is overridden by their (seeming) common interest: undermining Western civilization, Americas Judeo-Christian founding, and capitalism. American Jews I wish not to belabor how and why Jews have leaned left in America, as other essays have documented this extensively, but to discuss how and why we need to work to convert more Jews to vote Republican. Not all Democrats support Hamas, but all American Hamas-supporters are Democrats. The October 7 attack on Israel and subsequent rallies in America and abroad have shone a light on the lefts widespread support for Hamas and Palestine. This should be a catalyst for Jews recognizing the Democrat partys duplicity of hate and antisemitism. Israel and America have two common enemies: radical Islam and leftism. Radical Islam refers to Israel as the little Satan and America as the great Satan. In this vein, radical Muslims are in lockstep with the left, who also despise both Israel and America. While Islams hatred is religiously founded, the globalist left see Israel and America as the last bastions of a (r)epublican form of governance. Europe at one time maintained a republican form of government but has (seemingly) ceded its allegiance to Klaus Schwab and the WEF. While Republican support for Israel is not universal, and the question of American boots on the ground has both supporters and detractors, Republicans generally speaking are not antisemitic, in spite of leftist propaganda. While the left and the media (but I repeat myself) wish to depict Donald Trump as Hitler and Elon Musk as Goebbels, this is nothing but projection, to cover for their own blatant antisemitism. Leftist Jews have been a destructive force in America with their funding of leftist causes (university endowments, BLM, Media Matters, etc). Lets hope (pray) that as events play out in Israel and across America, Jews have a come to Yahweh moment and join forces with Americans who share the common causes of liberty, justice, freedom of religion, and self-determination. These traits are found in the Republican, not Democrat party. Image: hendricjabs via Pixabay, Pixabay License. Perhaps there are new approaches to the belligerent Gaza population that need consideration. I assume Israel will win the war and that the Biden administration, the EU, and the United Nations, will immediately want to flood the region with money to reinstate the same toxic, Hamas-run society as before. It doesnt have to be that way, though. Given the strictures on Israel that those international entities are currently imposing on Israel, its apparent that they believe the current welfare state of Gaza has only a single purpose, which is to serve as a base for a future Palestinian state. Actually, I thought it already was a Palestinian state but, apparently, the Biden administration wants to add Judea and Samaria to Gaza under the Mahmoud Abbas regime. It can do this easily if Israel foolishly agrees to place Gaza under international control. Currently, the following informal suggestions have been bandied about as an alternative to the Gazastinians being allowed to form yet another failed Palestinian state: Forced relocation to anywhere Voluntary relocation to anywhere Population transfers to Sinai or Jordan Population transfers to Western Europe and the United States Population transfers to other Muslim countries Population transfers to South America Policing powers assumed by Israel None of these are likely to take root because they frustrate the aims of the international community, which seeks the inanition and pauperization of Israel so it can no longer defend its own borders. Making Israel subject to the largesse of institutions such as the UN means that those who hate Israel no longer have to deal with this Jewish irritant in world affairs. A weakened Israel also protects Iran, a goal of the OBiden administration, the reasons for which remain poorly understood by rational thinkers. Israeli independence of action has never been a viable option under the New World Order. Image by Andrea Widburg Israel, though, has options not normally placed on the table. The United States recently gave millions of dollars to an organization that props up Hamas terrorism, a mere drop in the bucket compared to the billions America has funneled into Gaza over the years. This eternal injection of cash is necessary to purchase all the goods necessary to maintain 2.1 million non-productive people since the area has no income of its own. It is a pariah population used as cannon fodder for the bellicose elements involved in the strange Middle East. However, if Israel could negotiate control of these continuous cash infusions, it could prevent the money from being used to build more tunnels. In short, Israel can take on the duties of a banker for the Gaza residents. In gaining control of these funds, a few good things might happen. Israel can run a program akin to Birthright (which brings diaspora disaffected Jews to Israel to see past the anti-leftist propaganda) for the Gaza population. Gazans can be invited to view Israeli society and then be sent back home with the new dissonant information they will have gathered with their own eyes and ears. Currently, they suffer from many cognitive deficits, chief among them that life cannot change for the better no matter how they seek to organize their society. The potential effectiveness of an Arab Birthright approach can be gauged by polling those Gazans who have been coming to Israel for specialized medical treatment over the decades. Have their feelings of bellicosity towards Israel diminished? Israel can revamp the educational system from pre-K to high school for the Gazan children who have been perverted with hatred for generations. Israel can construct educational experiences for Gazan men and, separately, for women. Israel can get rid of UNRWA. Thus, a key to the success of any re-education program is preventing the hiring of teachers by UNRWA employees who owe their loyalty to Hamas or are actual members of the organization. Who could be opposed to revamping the ideological inclinations of the Gazans, both children and adults? If the Biden administration balks at re-education, then there should never be a rational Israeli government that even considers independence at any level for the Palestinians. Currently, Gaza is a perfect one for what happens when there is no alternative on the table to forever war. The vast majority (approx. 75%) of Gazastinians favor a government run by Hamas (or Hamas and the Palestinian Authority). This tells us that the level of their twisted delusions is quite pronounced. Israel, of course, cannot countenance continued Hamas rule. A further indication of the brittle rigidity of Gazastinian thinking is reflected in their sincere belief that Hamas is winning the war in Gaza. This is so despite their access to Israeli news broadcasts, as well as the manifest destruction of the Hamas redoubts dotted throughout their residential areas (especially in and around hospitals and schools). Palestinians will continue to believe these things until reality asserts itself, perhaps motivating some change in their thinking. Without those changes, coexistence will always be impossible. Having Israel control the money to fund a truly civilized infrastructure and a humanist education may lead them to forswear those parts of the Koran requiring them to kill Jews wherever they find them. Quick! Lets play a game of word association. Ill write a word, and you say out loud the first associated word that comes to mind: Black Dog Bacon Homosexual. If youre an ordinary Joe or Jane, Im betting you associated Black with White, Dog with Cat or maybe Lovable Life Companion, Bacon with Eggs or Pig, and Homosexual with Liberace or Rock Hudson. But if youre Californias Governor Gavin Newsom, when it comes to homosexuality, what you associate it with is graphic sexual exhibitionism. Theres simply no other way to understand whats going on behind Gavin Newsoms tweet saying that Murfreesboro banned being gay in public when it outlawed public indecency, lewdness, nudity, and sexual conduct. Lets start with Murfreesboros ordinances, which are completely normal, at least as of five minutes ago in America. Murfreesboro, as all American cities once did, has a public indecency ordinance prohibiting sexual conduct and content in the public square. American communities did this to protect their children from inappropriate conduct and to keep their communities safe from the anti-nuclear-family degradation that comes with commodifying sex. To this end, Section 21-23(C) of its Municipal Code defines sexual conduct as follows: Sexual conduct means acts of masturbations, homosexuality, sexual intercourse, or physical contact with a persons unclothed genitals, pubic area, buttocks, or if such person be a female, her breast. That definition covers all sexual conduct, whether homosexual or heterosexual. The distinction between homosexuality and sexual intercourse is necessary when you understand that sexual intercourse applies very specifically to the mechanics of male-female sex, which sees one actor insert Tab A (the male procreative organ) into Slot B (the female procreative organ). Homosexual conduct is, by definition, missing either Tab A or Slot B, so it needs to be called out separately from heterosexual sexual intercourse. A comprehensive ordinance must list both. Image: Gavin Newsom by AI (this is not a real photo). But basically, the citys definition of sexual conduct falls into that famous category that Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart articulated when he was asked to describe his obscenity test in 1964: I know it when I see it. We may be more permissive nowadays, but we still know the difference between physical conduct that is purely sexual in nature and physical conduct that is not. Youll notice that hand-holding, for example, is not on the Murfreesboro list, whether homosexual or heterosexual. Now that weve established what constitutes sexual conduct, what kind of behavior does the Murfreesboro code ban? Section 21-23(A) states: (A) A person who knowingly or intentionally, in a public place: (1) engages in sexual conduct; (2) appears in a state of nudity; or (3) fondles the genitals of himself/herself or another person, commits public indecency, which is an offense against the City by a fine of up to $1,000.00 for each offense. In other words, a person who appears in public and engages in overt sexual activity, whether homosexual or heterosexual, has committed an offense against public decency. Those of us with children or minimal standards can only approve. But leftists have no minimal standards, so The New Republic reports with breathless horror that Murfreesboro has essentially gone full sharia against gays (not that youre allowed to disapprove of gay roof tossing in Gaza, of course): A city in Tennessee is using a recently passed ordinance essentially prohibiting homosexuality in public to try to ban library books that might violate the new rules. With this rule in place, city officials have pulled from county libraries books that graphically depict homosexual acts. Moreover, The board also implemented a new library card system that categorizes books into certain age groups. When it takes effect next year, children and teenagers will only be able to check out books that correspond to their age group; they will need permission from a parent or guardian to check out adult books. The horror! The ACLU, of course, is on the case, trying to ensure that on the streets and in the libraries, children have unfettered access to witnessing graphic homosexual sex acts. But its not just the ACLU. Californias Governor Gavin Newsom displayed his word association with homosexuality and exhibitionism, too: A city in Tennessee has banned being gay in public. This is just the beginning. We have to call this out. https://t.co/0G1i7dKTgp Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) November 16, 2023 Of course, you can understand why Governor Newsom has this word association. While heterosexuals understand that they will be arrested if they engage in sexualized conduct in public or give children sexually explicit reading material, the entire LGBTQ+ community has been hollering that they must be allowed to engage in overt, graphic sexualized conduct in schools, at fairs, in theaters, and on streets. Anything else is homophobic. It says a lot that the LGBTQ+ community insists, and Gavin Newsom, potential presidential candidate, agrees that the essence of homosexual sex is exhibitionism. In 2009, a book came out titled, "I Can't Believe You Said That," which gave quotes from various leftists which they uttered in unguarded moments. Since the left must moderate its statements when the audience isn't completely onboard, a book like this is one way to understand the left's real outlook on a particular issue. Another way to decipher their agenda is to look at how the left operates when it gets into power. Lets first look at quotes since October 7 of this year, on the Hamas invasion of Israel - some of these quotes are from Muslims in Western countries, some are from non-Muslim leftists. Muslim journalist Latifa Abouchakra, a broad smile spreading across her face, said, Nothing will ever be able to take back this moment, this moment of triumph this moment of humiliation of Jews. Keep in mind that in the Hamas invasion, the killers filmed their own atrocities with pride. They seemed to enjoy what they were doing, which included shooting children in front of their parents. Israel retaliated, as Hamas of course expected, and legions of protesters, from Australia to New York, came out to decry Israel's invasion of Gaza. Pro-Israel Jews pasted posters of the hostages that Hamas had taken back to Gaza, and anti-Israel protestors tore them down. This tearing down was not good for PR, so: Linda Sarsour, (co-chair of the 2017 pink pussy-hat Woman's March) argued that the kidnap posters were a Jewish conspiracy to make her side look heartless. Linda stated to demonstrators: "There are provocateurs all across the city" waiting for you to rip down "their little posters ... Theyre on your college campus, theyre outside the supermarket, theyre outside Grand Central Station. Leftists who applauded the invasion, included Russell Rickford, Associate Professor of History at Cornell University who said: many Palestinians, conscious, who abhor violence -- as do you, as do I -- who abhor the targeting of civilians -- as do you, as do I -- who were able to breathe! They were able to breathe, for the first time in years! It was exhilarating. It was exhilarating, it was energizing. And if they weren't exhilarated by this challenge to the monopoly of violence... Then there was: Jemma DeCristo, Assistant Professor of American Studies at University of California, Davis, who in numerous tweets claimed that anti-Israel activists should start putting hands on journalists who misrepresent the situation. On Oct. 10, 2023 she tweeted that these zionist journalists have houses w addresses, kids in school... they can fear their bosses, but they should fear us more. Apart from the Hamas operation, leftists have come out against Israel to sympathetic audience. Patrice Cullors, a founder of Black Lives Matter, said during a 2015 panel, Palestine is our generations South Africa. If we dont step up boldly and courageously to end the imperialist project thats called Israel, were doomed. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said this at a progressive conference. "Lets say it out loud. AIPAC [a pro-Israel lobby] backs extreme election deniers and then goes after people of color, most of whom are women, who dare to do our jobs and fight for our constituents. Their MO is to try to shame and blameand elect a Republican majority. So who do leftist regimes historically ally with when they get into power? A few examples: In 1968 Castro sent military instructors into Palestinian bases in Jordan to train Palestinian Fedayeen. The Egyptian newspaper Ahar Sa'ah reported on Sept. 13, 1978 that 500 Palestinian fighters were training in Cuba. In 1972 three members of the Japanese Red Army took a flight from Rome to Tel Aviv. Dressed conservatively and carrying slim violin cases, they attracted little attention. As they entered the waiting area, they opened up their violin cases and extracted assault rifles and began to fire indiscriminately as well as toss grenades. Around 1970, the Soviet 18th Air Defense Division, manning batteries of SAM-3 anti-aircraft missiles, had taken an unsustainable toll on the Israeli Air Force. In particular, the Soviet missiles had shot down many of Israels new, vaunted American-made F-4s Even now, MEMRI reports that Hamas leaders have good relations with Vladimir Putin's Russia. As the Doha-based Hamas leader abroad Khaled Mash'al said, "Russia has benefited" from the October 7 attack "because we distracted the U.S. from them and from Ukraine ... The Russians told us that what happened on October 7 would be taught in military academies." The agenda of the hard left is the elimination of Israel. If we do not share this agenda, then it behooves the rest of us to be wary of the so-called moderate left on that issue, as well as on others. Image: Festival of Faiths, via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 2.0 Antony Blinken, our current Secretary of State, appears to be an unimpressive man. My most vivid memory of him is of him being excoriated by a Chinese official and sitting there and taking it. Blinken is also a genetically Jewish person who likes to talk about the fact that he is related by blood or marriage to people who survived the Holocaust. More significantly, though, Blinken is a leftist, and that is his true faith. That faith explains why, as Mark Levin writes, Blinkens allegiance isnt to Americas security or the survival of the worlds only Jewish state. Instead, hes all in for Iran and its satellites, including the violent, blood-thirsty people who call themselves Palestinians. Yesterday, Mark Levin posted a very long tweet in which he called out Blinkens long-standing hostility to Israel and his continued allegiance to Obamas plan to raise up Iran as the most powerful nation in the Middle East. Iran, of course, has been at war with America since 1979, openly announces its plans for the mass genocide of Jews inside and outside of Israel, and foments and pays for most of the worlds anti-Western, anti-Christian, and anti-Jewish terrorism. Heres the tweet, along with my somewhat simpler version of the very densely packed ideas Levin includes within it: MUST READ! THE DIABOLICAL BLINKEN PLAN EXPOSED! It is crystal clear now that Blinken is exploiting the war against Israel to destroy the existing state of Israel by using pressure, threats, blackmail, leaks, the media, diplomatic backstabbing, the Arab states, the EU, and the Mark R. Levin (@marklevinshow) November 18, 2023 Although many have forgotten, Blinken worked as Deputy Secretary of State for Obama. Already then, Sen. John McCain knew that Blinken was a dangerous man whose foreign policy was invariably antithetical to the well-being of America and her allies. He excoriated his values and ineptitude: Additionally, as I noted above, there was Blinkens famous deer in the headlights moment when the Chinese foreign minister abused him to his face: Blinken has been at Bidens right hand for the withdrawal from Afghanistan, the war in Ukraine, the sanctions lifted from and the hundreds of millions of dollars made available to Iran, and the anti-Israel foreign policy that emboldened Hamass murderous attack on October 7. In an email to antisemitic, anti-Israel State Department employees, Blinken reiterated his belief that the Gazastinians, whose charter calls for Israels extinction and the genocide of her people, deserve a country and that this remains his highest priority. He is also behind the push to stop Israel from destroying Hamas, which will allow the organization to regroup and continue its war against Israeli civilians. Ultimately, Blinken is on board with Obamas vision of a Middle Eastern realignment, one that sees Irananti-American, genocidal, antisemitic, anti-Christian, homophobic, misogynistic Iranas Americas biggest ally and the dominant force in the region. This Harvard-educated leftist who, like George Soros, hauls out the Holocaust whenever hes attacked but whose behavior reveals a deep and abiding hatred of the Jewish people, is a danger to the Middle East and America. He embraces the enemies of Western civilization and turns his back on Americas allies and all behind a deceptively meek exterior that implies a powerless figure. Levin issues a stark warning at the end of his long tweet: The question is, how long will this go on before Blinken is stopped? Where are the House Republican committee chairmen? Where are the Senate Republicans? Where are conservative think-tanks? Where are the conservative media? I understand that the Democrat Party media and the Democrat Party are worse than useless. In fact, they are colluders and propagandists for this, from Thomas Friedman at the New York Times to Jamie Raskin in the House. But if there is not an organized pushback immediately, a relentless and public demand for accountability and transparency, and the targeting of Blinken for impeachment (successful or not), evil to prevail. Never forget all the disasters the Biden whisperer has unleashed in a mere 3-years running American foreign policy, and the death, inhumanity, and impoverishment he has imposed on one region and society after another. Image: Antony Blinken (edited). YouTube screen grab. In past conflicts, one side has successfully managed to push through propaganda that changes how civilians on the other side view military action. However, we have never before seen a situation in which the worlds media simply hand over to one of the combatants the entire responsibility for reporting on the war. Thats whats happening across the West, though, including in America, as rising antisemitism is fueled by news reports direct from Hamas central. One of the most powerful stories out of WWII was the claim that the Allies engaged in malevolent overkill when they bombed Dresden in 1945, murdering over 100,000 people (or, as the Nazis claimed, over 200,000) without any clear military objective. While these claims didnt affect the wars conduct, they were one of the foundational beliefs behind the post-war narrative that the Allies were no better than the Nazis. For post-war leftists and their increasingly ignorant followers, it didnt matter that the Nazis had directly targeted civilians across England and Europe. Nor did the deaths of six million Jews matter. The Dresden story was simple and buried deeply into the Western psyche: Allies, led by America, were evil. Hamas "journalist: image by Andrea Widburg using AI However, the truth is that far fewer civilians died in the Dresden bombing raids than the propaganda reported. Moreover, just as Trumans successful decision to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki brought a swift end to the war, the Dresden raids also sought to drive Germany to surrender before millions more died: The Allied firebombing of the eastern German city of Dresden in 1945 killed no more than 25,000 people far fewer than scholars' previous estimates running as high as 135,000 a special commission has found. The team of a dozen experts, including university professors, archivists and military historians, said Wednesday that four years of research so far has confirmed 18,000 deaths and showed that police and city administrators at the time believed there were about 25,000 victims of the bombing. One doesnt have to travel back to 1945 to find an enemy narrative driving popular opinion. You probably remember the 2006 study from the once-reputable British medical journal, The Lancet, which claimed that the 2003 invasion of Iraq resulted in 100,000 deaths. (Later, leftists pumped up those numbers to a million.) That study was thoroughly debunked, but not before it supercharged the anti-war movement that hampered U.S. foreign policy and that, until the even more successful 2020 BLM movement, gave new life to the American left. Those incursions into the narrative, though, are small potatoes compared to whats happening nowadays. While the Western media were occasionally vulnerable to false narratives, they mostly wrote their own copy and came up with facts based on their own observations. This time around, its different. In a receipt-filled X thread, David Collier, an actual investigative journalist, provides chapter and verse showing that the Western media are simply reprinting the narrative straight from Hamas. What were getting isnt news; its hardcore propaganda from a combatant that, while its losing on the ground, is successfully spreading antisemitism throughout the West, especially in America: Over the past few weeks we have seen an explosion of stories coming out of Shifa hospital. From wild dogs eating corpses - to fetuses taken out of dying mothers. These are not from alt-right newspapers. This wave of fake news - all appear in mainstream media. 2/19 pic.twitter.com/3mWFyhpdBF David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 Well on 7th Oct as Hamas terrorists slaughtered 1200+ Israelis Ezz Lulu (sorry CNN - a student not a doctor) posted that it was the 'best birthday ever'. A day later he posted a picture of a hand glider. Do @CNN usually rely on these type of people as reliable sources? 4/19 pic.twitter.com/1m16E4asqC David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 Some doctor! On 7 October Abu Samra posted that 'history is being made' and he liked posts honouring and praising the resistance. On 27 Jan 2023 he & his partner wrote celebratory posts about a terrorist attack outside a synagogue in Jerusalem that killed 7 Israelis. 6/ 19 pic.twitter.com/iEzPNisx6O David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 His family have history. In 2003 his brother was killed in a targeted strike by Israel. His brother was Khalid Abu Salima - a leader in the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades - the Hamas military arm. 8/19 pic.twitter.com/gdLhlAXl2i David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 How about Munir al-Borsh: Director General of the Palestinian Health Ministry. This man is also quoted everywhere. He was also the source of outrageous stories such as the one about the dogs eating bodies of civilians. 10/19 pic.twitter.com/B7nG0uom8L David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 Dr Mohammed Ghneim has also been all over the news. He is the source of the story about fetuses pulled from dying mothers. He was also sent to the Baptist hospital - where he reported on a massacre that never happened. 12/19 pic.twitter.com/Tdgh1c1MzM David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 A few more. Mohamed AlShareif is a medical analyst specialist at al-Shifa - he called 7 October the most beautiful day in a generation. Mohammed Ayesh is an Orthopaedics & Traumatology surgeon at Al Shifa: He also posted support for 7 October and the 27 Jan. 14/19 pic.twitter.com/r9Ztd7l7EL David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 One example. A tweet says all the ICU patients are dead. Those spreading it: @Stone_SkyNews (Sky News). @JaneFerguson5 (PBS) @malonebarry (Reuters). The source? Head of Shifa. With a terrorist brother and endless support for terrorism. This is not journalism!! 16/19 pic.twitter.com/HKGoW9cD6L David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 Media reporting such as this is culpable for the rise in antisemitism. It fuels the fire that has left Jewish families fearful of going out and scared of publicly identifying as Jewish. You can see the full story and more examples here 18/19 https://t.co/U1LnVQM6eQ David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 My research is unique. Help to support the fight for truth in 2023 Support my Patreon- https://t.co/LX3lwOqTPu or donate via PayPal/CC https://t.co/orYQZG9mTj or through the links on my blog https://t.co/kPpEOKQcq9 THANK YOU -let us all keep exposing the truth! END David Collier (@mishtal) November 19, 2023 To understand what is happening, imagine The Times of London and The New York Times, in 1943, running a purported news story written by Joseph Goebbels. In it, he states as fact (and thats how the media sell it) that, despite Allied claims that they had no boots on the ground in Germany, British and American troops had actually infiltrated German territory, where they joined up with millions of Jews who had been lurking on the Polish border, waiting for this raid. Joining together, these forces had indiscriminately raped and slaughtered German civilians. Then, imagine that this wasnt a one-time error. Instead, it was the norm, with these outlets relying solely on reporting to come from Hitlers Propaganda Ministry. That is what were seeing now. How's Joe Biden's oil-for-democracy diplomatic deal going with Venezuela? The one where he would drop sanctions on Venezuela's oil production and Venezuela would hold free and fair elections as well as release its American hostages? About as well as his Iran deal. According to the Associated Press: A California mans family is pleading for his release after they say he was wrongfully arrested in Venezuela and held for tens of thousands of dollars in ransom just days after the Biden administration eased crippling oil sanctions on the socialist-run government. Savoi Wrights Oct. 24 arrest, which had not been previously reported, has become the latest flashpoint in the tenuous relationship between the U.S. and Nicolas Maduros government that critics say should lead to a return to sanctions. But all Wright's family wants is for the 38-year-old businessman to be returned home. They know precious little about the circumstances of his arrest. No criminal charges have been filed, he has not been allowed to see a lawyer and the Venezuelan government hasnt said where he is being held. "Its a nightmare. Its like youre watching a horror movie but youre in it, his mother, Erin Stewart, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from her Oakland home. The Maduro regime didn't free its American hostages -- it took another one, some innocent dude who probably should have thought twice before setting foot in the socialist hellhole, but likely an innocent man nevertheless. Which shows the value upon which the Maduro regime places any agreement with the Americans, even in its own interest. Most likely, Maduro has calculated that Biden isn't going to do anything about this raw abuse of police-state power. And Joe Biden's conditions for the sanctions' end is nothing he needs to deliver on from his end -- Joe will give him what he wants anyway, because ahead of elections, oil prices are going up. Meanwhile, an extra hostage amounts to an extra bargaining chip for an extra concession. What could be better? He's not going to deliver on any of his promises -- and all it too was a day after the sanctions were lifted for him to prove it. It goes to show the uselessness of Joe Biden's diplomacy and deal-making with the world's dirtiest dictators. it's not for nothing that experienced diplomats have characterized Biden's incompetent diplomatic team "the three stooges." Maduro, as buffoonish as he is, would know it better than anyone. Image: Pixabay / Pixabay License It is gut-wrenching to have to revisit the events of October 7 in southern Israel. But new evidence emerges that should shake our foundational thinking about Gazan civilians presumed innocence. The Free Beacon has collected survivor reports. One of the survivors filmed the attacks: Eyal Barad and his family hid in the safe room of their house from about 6:30 a.m. until the Israeli military evacuated them 12 or so hours later. But Barad, an engineer, had a rare view of the outside world thanks to a speed camera he had recently set up to bust his neighbors for driving on the sidewalk. On the cameras livestream, Barad watched three types of Gazans pass by his house: uniformed Hamas commandos carrying automatic weapons, RPGs, and grenades; casually dressed gunmen; and ordinary-looking men, women, and children. Barad said the ordinary Gazans vastly outnumbered the armed terrorists. He estimated that he saw at least a dozen children, who were between the ages of 10 and 15, and 30 women from Gaza. {snip] I can say with 100 percent certainty that [the women and kids] were not just innocent bystanders or looters. They were part of the massacre. They were part of the horrors that we endured that day. A mother describes hiding in her safe room with her children while a Gaza woman spent hours eating her food, serving meals to the Gazan men, and stealing the Israeli womans personal items, including her underwear. Image: Gazans at al-Shifa hospital cheering footage of the October 7 massacre. YouTube screen grab. Another survivor says he saw children between six and ten wearing Hamas military outfits, riding with a group of Hamas commandos. (my emphasis). Some of the boys were given rifles and told to kill the Israelis, which they did. The combatants young age would be surprising if one were not aware of how early military training begins in Gaza. In this video, we watch kindergartners execute a complex takeover of an Israeli outpost by killing a soldier. It is a graduation ceremony, and we see the whole family in proud attendance: Tender-hearted people plead that these women and children are innocent. They are merely brainwashed and can be re-educated. Maybe. Perhaps some can. But that argument makes the mistake of projecting ones own values onto others, whose values may be substantially, and unchangeably, different. In this case, the decency and respect for human life that characterizes non-Muslims get projected onto a military/religious organization that values success at jihad more than anything elsemore than ones own life and certainly more than regard for an enemys life. That sadistic contempt for Israeli life is displayed very ominously in a movie showing the October 7 atrocities that was watched by a vast audience of Gazan men in, of all places, the al Shifa hospital. The Gazans cheered wildly. So much for the notion that hospitals are only about saving lives: The uproarious delight of the entertained jihadis should be chilling. Consequently, Israel and her supporters must think realistically about what to do with the Gazansand their hideous ideologyonce they win the war. Madeline Brooks, M.A., is the former head of the New York chapter of ActforAmerica and is a conservative and counter-jihad writer. Her articles have been published in AmericanThinker.com, CanadaFreePress.com, FamilySecurityMatters.org, and elsewhere. Her book, What You Need To Know About Islamic Jihad: Information The Main Stream Media Is Not Giving You, is available on Scribd. She can be reached at ResistJihad@aol.com. (ANSA) - ROME, NOV 19 - Filippo Turetta, a 22-year-old Italian engineering student suspected of murdering his 22-year-old ex girlfriend Giulia Cecchettin, has been arrested in Germany after an eight-day search, his lawyer told ANSA Sunday. Turetta's arrest at the spa town of Bad Durrenberg near Leipzig came a day after fellow information engineering student Cecchettin's body was found with many knife wounds to the neck and head, as well as defensive wounds, in a gully near a lake in the northeastern Italian Friuli region. Turetta, who is suspected of murdering Cecchettin in a rage after she left him, was stopped on an international arrest warrant issued by Venice police and is set to be extradited from Germany. After the pair went missing last Saturday, Veneto-born Cecchettin's body was found this Saturday near Lake Barcis near Pordenone. She is believed to be the 103rd femicide in Italy this year as a spate of gender-based violence continues. Premier Giorgia Meloni said on Saturday that the news of Cecchettin's murder is heartbreaking, expressing her hope that "full light will be shed" on the latest in the long string of femicides in Italy. "I have followed the updates on the case with apprehension and I hoped for a different outcome until the last," said Meloni on Facebook. "The discovery of Giulia's lifeless body is heartbreaking news," she said. Earlier opposition centre-left Democratic Party (PD) leader Elly Schlein renewed her call to Meloni to work together to prevent violence against women. "At least on the fight against this slaughter of women and girls, let's put to one side political conflict and try to make the country take a step forward," said Schlein. "Repression is not enough if prevention is not done," she continued, calling for an immediate law introducing compulsory education on respect and affectivity in all schools in Italy. Her comments came after Meloni said Thursday she was seeking agreement on measures to up the fight against gender-based violence (GBV) after an appeal from Italian comic and actress Paola Cortellesi that she and Schlein work together on the issue. Cortellesi's directorial debut C'e Ancora Domani (There's Still Tomorrow) on violence against women picked up three awards at the closing ceremony of the 2023 Rome Film Fest. The black-and-white film, telling the domestic drama of an abused housewife in post-war Rome and confronting issues of patriarchy and women's empowerment in the year Italian women got to vote for the first time, got a special mention and won the special jury prize and the public's prize and has been a box office hit in Italy. Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Sunday that Cecchettin, who was set to discuss her thesis and graduate from Padua University, should be granted an honorary degree from the prestigious Veneto university. "This dramatic affair which has struck all of us for the heinousness and brutality of the murder has come to a tragic end for a girl who was set to graduate," he said. "I think we should give her a degree 'honoris causa'." (ANSA). (ANSA) - ROME, NOV 19 - A hearing is underway to validate the arrest in Germany of Filippo Turetta, a 22-year-old Italian information engineering student accused of murdering his 22-year-old fellow student and ex girlfriend Giulia Cecchettin, judicial sources said Sunday. Turetta will appear "before the judge of Halle, who will decide on his detention", said a spokeswoman for the city's police, speaking to ANSA. After this stage, she added, "he will most likely be transferred to a prison, without returning to the offices of the Halle Police." At that point, she concluded, "the Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) of Naumburg, expected tomorrow or early this week, will decide on his case and whether there will be extradition soon". Foreign Minister Antoio Tajani said earlier that Turetta would be extradited within 48 hours. (ANSA). (ANSA) - ROME, NOV 19 - Iconic punk group Ramones drummer Marky Ramone has bought a home near Arezzo. The house is in a corner of the iconic town of Castiglion Fiorentino, which Marky Ramone fell in love with after performing at a charity concert in 2021. "First he was a tourist here," said Mayor Mario Agnelli, "and now the America drummer has come back to Castiglion Fiorentino, but in his new home. "He has fallen in love with the quality of life that he found here". Over the last few years, Marky, whose real name is Mark Steven Bell, and his wife, have visited the lovely small town near Arezzo on several occasions. (ANSA). An Albanian woman who acted as a fixer for people smugglers arranging small boat crossings to the UK has been jailed for seven and a half years. Ujeza Kurmekaj, 32, facilitated crossings from France for Albanian nationals before her arrest last year as part of a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation. Hundreds of messages on her phone made clear her key role in linking people smugglers with passengers, the agency said. She sent instructions to contacts in France on who they should pick up, with messages such as family one 3 women, children 14 17 12 years old and we have here one family, man wife one child. Other conversations indicated conditions, including very bad sea, and map location pins instructing where to pick migrants up or where boats were positioned in the Channel. Further exchanges showed people making contact with her to arrange crossings for their families. Her phone also contained 21 images of Albanian ID cards and passports which, when checked on immigration systems, showed that nine of the individuals had arrived in the UK by small boat. She was arrested by NCA officers at her home in Banbury, Oxfordshire, last October before being charged in September with facilitating illegal immigration. Ujeza Kurmekaj pleaded guilty to facilitating illegal immigration (National Crime Agency/PA) She pleaded guilty to the charge at Oxford Crown Court earlier this month before being sentenced on Friday, and will be deported automatically on her release from prison. NCA senior investigating officer Andy MacGill said: Ujeza Kurmekaj played a major role as a broker, linking migrants with people smugglers who could transport them on dangerous journeys across the Channel. For this, she would arrange payments of hundreds of euros per person. Kurmekaj had little interest in the safety and security of the people she was arranging crossings for, only that she and her employers received payment. Disrupting and dismantling organised crime groups responsible for people smuggling is a priority for the NCA and well continue to target offenders involved at every step of the journey. Humza Yousaf has described how his brother-in-law, a hospital doctor in the Gaza strip, has witnessed death and destruction in the ongoing war. Mr Yousaf said his brother-in-law is in a terrible way as he continues to treat patients in the south of Gaza. The parents of the First Ministers wife Nadia El-Nakla were visiting relatives when the war between Israel and Hamas broke out, leaving them trapped in the Palestinian territory for weeks amid intense bombardment. They were able to return to Scotland earlier this month after being permitted to pass through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt. Members of Mr Yousafs family returned to Scotland earlier this month (X/@HumzaYousaf/PA) The First Minister was asked about his familys situation as he spoke to BBC Radio 4s Broadcasting House programme on Sunday. His parents-in-law are still recovering from the ordeal, he said, adding: In all honesty, I did not think I would see them again as time went on. There was a particular call which Ill never forget as long as I live. My mother-in-law called around 1.30 in the morning, saying theyd been told their neighbours house was going to be targeted and therefore theres no doubt the blast would hit them. She began to say her goodbyes to me and Ill never forget that she told me to look after her girls. The First Minister said he had exchanged messages with his brother-in-law, who has been working almost non-stop, on Saturday. Mr Yousaf said: He says hes never seen death and destruction like it. He told me he doesnt know how hes going to recover from it. He said one of his early jobs, when the conflict began, was to try to match body parts with the correct body. Thousands marched in Glasgow on Saturday (Jane Barlow/PA) Hes in a terrible way. He called for a ceasefire but acknowledged it would take unbelievably hard work. His comments came after thousands of demonstrators marched through Glasgow in support of the Palestinian cause. Those attending the march on Saturday had been urged to write their names on their arms as a gesture of solidarity with the besieged population of Gaza, who have used the method so they can be identified and buried with relatives if they are killed. On Tuesday, the Scottish Parliament will debate calls for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said he and his party would support a ceasefire when it came to a vote in Holyrood, a position which differs from that of Sir Keir Starmer. He told BBC Scotlands Sunday Show: I support a ceasefire. I support the end of rocket fire going out of and into Gaza, the immediate release of hostages, the immediate access to humanitarian aid and the pathway to a peace process. I would have liked the Labour amendment (in the House of Commons) to go further last week and include that call for a ceasefire. Jeremy Hunt has backed Rishi Sunak to solve the fearsomely complex challenge of getting the Rwanda asylum policy to work after it was deemed unlawful by the Supreme Court. The Chancellor said the Government does not want to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) despite calls from the right of the Tory Party. He said he does not believe it will come to that as the Prime Minister keeps the threat on the table as an option to stop the flagship policy remaining stuck in the courts. Mr Sunak has promised a new treaty with Kigali and emergency laws to deem Rwanda safe despite widespread concerns in a bid to ensure it is legally compliant. Sacked home secretary Suella Braverman has been increasing the pressure, arguing his tweaking and fine-tuning will fail to get flights off before the election. Mr Hunt conceded the policy isnt easy stuff but said Mr Sunak is the most persistent, the most determined prime minister I have ever worked with. He suggested Mr Sunak is more determined than Lord David Cameron, who returned from the political wilderness to become Foreign Secretary in the reshuffle this week. I enjoyed working with David Cameron very much, but when it comes to solving fearsomely complex problems I have never worked with anyone as phenomenal as Rishi, Mr Hunt told the BBCs Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. I think we will see that, because I do think, when you interview me next year, we will be having a discussion about how we have succeeded in this plan, and I will be saying look, it wasnt easy, we kept at it, but that is what we promise to do. In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Mrs Braverman said the Prime Minister has lacked the moral leadership to deal with pro-Palestine marches, which she has described as mobs. She welcomed Mr Sunaks plans for emergency legislation but said the changes need to be meaningful, adding that tweaking and fine-tuning is not going to cut it and we will not get flights off before the next general election. The Tory MP said elements of the domestic and international human rights legislation need to be excluded, as some colleagues on the right want the ECHR to be ditched altogether. However, Mr Hunt told the BBC that at this stage he does not believe following Vladimir Putins Russia in exiting the ECHR is necessary. (PA Graphics) What we are saying is in the end it must be Parliament, elected representatives in Parliament, not foreign judges, who decide who can come to this country, he said. We dont believe it will come to that at this stage, we think there are ways we can avoid that, we dont want to do that. Former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption argued the Rwanda plan is probably dead in its current form and believes judges in the European Court of Human Rights would probably agree with the top justices in the UK who blocked the plans. It will investigate safety for itself and probably arrive at a conclusion very similar to that of the Supreme Court, he told Skys Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips. The five justices ruled on Wednesday that the policy was unlawful, citing concerns that Rwanda could send genuine refugees to the countries they fled from. Many Conservative MPs fear losing their seats at the next general election, with Labour riding around 20 points ahead in the polls. They believe that failing to achieve the Prime Ministers pledge to stop the boats crossing the Channel will be highly damaging. Mr Hunt acknowledged holding onto his own seat in Surrey will be a tough fight, despite having won in the 2019 election by 8,817 votes. I believe I can win it but I dont underestimate the challenge and Im out knocking on doors every week, Ive got a fantastic team and, to use that phrase, well do what it takes, he told the BBC. Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf has said he was not misled by Michael Matheson in the revelations over his iPad data roaming bill, but the Health Secretary should have handled the situation better. The First Minister defended Mr Matheson as a man of integrity as a possible motion of no confidence in him looms at Holyrood. The Scottish Governments Health Secretary admitted on Thursday that his teenage sons used data from his Holyrood-issued iPad to watch football matches while on holiday in Morocco, running up a roaming bill of almost 11,000. Despite initially insisting the device was used for parliamentary work during the family trip in December and early January, he revealed he had recently discovered his familys involvement but did not initially disclose the information to protect his children. Mr Matheson gave a personal statement to the Scottish Parliament (Jane Barlow/PA) In his personal statement to the Scottish Parliament, he said he informed the First Minister of the truth on Tuesday. The following day, Mr Yousaf told the PA news agency the matter was now closed despite the new information. On Sunday, Mr Yousaf appeared on BBC Radio 4s Broadcasting House programme, where he was asked if Mr Matheson misled him. The First Minister said Mr Matheson had only used the iPad himself for parliamentary purposes and only discovered his sons use of the data at the end of last week. Mr Yousaf said: Theres a legitimate question that people have asked, and Michael addressed last week, around whether he at that point should have been upfront publicly around the fact that was the reason that he was choosing to repay the entire bill. He was trying to protect his children. He continued: For me, Michael who Ive known for well over 15 years is a man of integrity, honesty. He should have handled the situation better, Michael knows that and hes apologised for that. He added: No, I dont believe Michael did (mislead me). Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said Mr Matheson was hiding away from scrutiny. The Moray MP said only his party could bring forward a motion of no confidence in the Health Secretary. Appearing on BBC Scotlands Sunday Show, he commented on the fact that neither Mr Yousaf, Mr Matheson or the Deputy First Minister had agreed to appear on the programme. Douglas Ross said the Health Secretary should have resigned already (Jane Barlow/PA) Mr Ross said: This is affecting all levels of government in Scotland because none of them are willing to come on to speak about really important issues. Because they cant and wont defend this Health Secretary, who should have resigned by now and Humza Yousaf should have sacked him. Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also appeared on the Sunday Show, repeating his call for the Health Secretary to resign. Mr Sarwar said: I dont think the First Minister or the Parliament should have any confidence in Michael Matheson, he should resign. He says he found out the truth on Thursday, but he continued to tell mistruths to the public for days after. He says he told the First Minister on Tuesday, the First Minister also told mistruths the day after as well. Thats not acceptable in public life. Kenji Endo is slumbering in his student room, casually listening to the sound of American rock 'n' roll, which has now become commonplace on Japanese radio since the days of post-World War II occupation. Only this time, the half an ear he is lending it is suddenly perked up by the sound of Bob Dylans counterculture masterpiece, 'Like a Rolling Stone'. It rudely snaps him out of his slumber, and he wonders to himself whether this tripe can even be considered music at all. He attempts to turn off the radio. By the time of Endos third listen, he is rushing off to inform his friends of Dylans brilliance. This guy is creating something that has never been created before, he proclaims to his roommate, but it couldve just as well been a stranger in the street had his college buddy not been more conveniently placed to hear of Enzos good tidings. You see, for so long, Japan had been a country where doing something that had never been done before was culturally out of place. Suddenly, that was changing. Endo would go on to form bands of his own, re-interpreting Japanese through a fresh lens in the same manner that Dylans shocking drawl was transmuting the folk stylings of America through the Judas defilement of charged particles. Students all over the country, still reconciling the nuclear destruction of their cities, were stirred into daring cultural action. The sound of the US military's country-wide radio broadcast was forming the crackly backbeat of a revolution. ...continue reading Photograph: WPA/Getty Images Explosive evidence about the tensions and disagreements between the then prime minister Boris Johnson, his ministers and the countrys top scientific advisers at key moments during the Covid-19 pandemic is expected to be made public this week at the official inquiry into the crisis. On Monday, Sir Patrick Vallance, the governments former chief scientific adviser whose incendiary private diary entries are being quoted selectively at the inquiry will give evidence at an all-day session on Monday that looks certain to cast new light on the chaos in government as the virus swept across the globe. Vallance will be followed in the witness box by the other top scientists who flanked ministers at the televised daily Covid press conferences. Prof Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer for England, will make an all-day appearance on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday, Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, the former deputy chief medical officer, and the current chief scientific adviser, Prof Dame Angela McLean who described the-then chancellor Rishi Sunak as Dr Death in the weeks following the Treasury- inspired eat out to help out scheme in August 2020 will appear before the inquiry. One of the issues that is certain to be explored is whether the scientists were adequately consulted at key moments, including about the eat out to help out scheme, in which the public were offered a discount on restaurant bills to encourage them to eat out. The inquiry is also likely to examine whether the scientists found themselves under political pressure to toe the line as part of the government team, with the result that the true extent of the dangers that they knew existed was not conveyed to the public. One former government minister with knowledge of the Covid threat at the time said: In the early days, there was a political imperative not to overstate or overreact. These scientists were not accustomed to finding themselves in Downing Street, alongside politicians at televised press conferences, the minister said. They will obviously have felt under pressure and couched what they said. That was certainly an issue. One potentially difficult area for the scientists could be evidence that has already emerged which suggests that they had on several occasions seemed to have been stronger in their warnings about the Covid pandemic in private than they were in public. It has already emerged that Dominic Cummings, Johnsons former chief adviser, told a No 10 aides WhatsApp group on 6 February 2020 that Vallance had just said to him that the virus was probably out of control now and will sweep the world. However, on 25 February 2020, Whitty and Vallance had briefed journalists saying that data from China suggested it was still possible to contain the virus. Vallance added: Weve always taken the view that this may either be containable or it may not. One extract from Vallances pandemic diary that was released to the inquiry read: Number 10 chaos as usual. On Friday, the two-metre rule meeting made it abundantly clear that no one in Number 10 or the Cabinet Office had really read or taken time to understand the science advice on two metres. Quite extraordinary. Vallance and Whitty said in their original witness statements that had they been consulted on the eat out to help out scheme at the time, they would have advised against it because they suspected that it would increase transmission of Covid-19 at a crucial time in the fight to control the virus in the UK. college campus. At least seven schools across the U.S. are under investigation after alleged incidents of Islamophobia and antisemitism were reported. The probe into possible discriminatory behavior is being carried out on three Ivy League schools, Columbia, Cornell, and the University of Pennsylvania, along with Wellesley College in Massachusetts, Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, and Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York. The Maize Unified School District in Kansas is also part of the list. The U.S. Department of Education has said it would consider withdrawing funding if administrators don't properly address the issues and comply with recommendations put in place by the federal agency. Civil rights investigations by the Education Department are now focusing on seven schools as the conflict between Israel and Hamas rages on, causing intensifying tensions between some students and others. The Education Department launched the probes under Civil Rights Act legislation that puts forth a requirement that campuses and leadership at schools must protect students from discrimination. There are at least five cases that stemmed from accusations of antisemitism, with at least two of the investigations being blamed on incidents of Islamophobia, authorities said. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona signaled that officials believe the escalation incidents are at least somewhat alarming. "I think we need to match it with a level of response that meets the moment. We need to be listening to our students. We need to let them know that they will be safe in our schools, that we're not going to tolerate hate or threats on campus," he said. SEE MORE: Michigan teen pleads guilty to threatening mass shooting at synagogue The Department of Education said it would offer another set of recommendations to schools after their investigations have concluded. "If an institution refuses to follow the law to protect students, we would withhold dollars. That said, I haven't spoken to a college leader that doesn't want to do everything they can to remedy the situation," Cardona said. Further details on the federal investigations had not been released by late on Saturday. Last month, at least one arrest was made after a Cornell student was accused of making threats in an antisemitic manner, authorities said. Jewish students at Cooper Union in New York also accused that school of not doing enough to protect them from a perceived threat from a pro-Palestinian demonstration there. "Colleges should be places where students could express themselves. And it's okay to have different beliefs, and it's okay to express those different beliefs. But when it becomes a threat to students or when students can't feel safe walking from their dorm to their classroom because they're afraid that they're going to get harmed, that's unacceptable," Cardona said. The Department of Education could release a public statement on the agency's findings and updated recommendations in the coming days or weeks. Republicans hold all four of Arkansas U.S House seats LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) A Pine Bluff attorney challenging U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman was among the final candidates to file paperwork with the state before Tuesdays deadline to qualify for the ballot next year in Arkansas. Risie Howard filed to run as a Democrat against Westerman, a Republican, in the 4th Congressional District next year. Westerman was first elected to the seat in 2014. He was reelected last year with 71% of the vote and has more than $2.2 million on hand for his reelection bid. Republicans hold all four of Arkansas U.S House seats, and Democrats are fielding candidates to challenge those lawmakers next year. Risie Howard speaks to reporters at the Arkansas Capitol, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023, in Little Rock, Ark., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023, to mark the end of the filing period for next years election. (AP Photo/Andrew Demillo) More than 350 candidates made their candidacies official during the Arkansas filing period, which began Nov. 6. Arkansas primaries and nonpartisan judicial elections will be held on March 5. Democrats touted recruiting successes for the predominantly Republican Legislature, where the GOP holds 82 of the 100 seats in the House and 29 of the 35 seats in the Senate. All 100 House seats and 18 Senate seats are up next year. State Democratic Party Chairman Grant Tennille portrayed GOP Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders as a recruiting tool for the party, citing the governors education overhaul that created a new school voucher program and questions shes faced over the purchase of a $19,000 lectern for her office. The party said it will contest 64 House districts, the most since it last held a majority in the Legislature in 2012. In all, the party has 78 candidates running for state House and seven for the state Senate. Put simply, the conduct and political arrogance of the supermajority party in this state have led to a stronger position for the Democratic Party and the results are speaking for themselves, Tennille said. But Seth Mays, executive director of the Republican Party of Arkansas, said the governor remains an asset for GOP candidates. I think the governors popularity will be a net positive, and youll see that from the number of candidates she appears with and that they use in mail and digital advertising, Mays said. I think that alone will speak for itself. Sanders is not on the ballot next year, but an outside group has been running TV ads touting her accomplishments and last week the governor endorsed her former boss Donald Trumps bid for the Republican presidential nomination. Trump is running in a field that includes Sanders predecessor, former Gov. Asa Hutchinson. The judicial filings set the stage for a crowded race for state Supreme Court chief justice. Three members of the court Justices Karen Baker, Barbara Webb and Rhonda Wood and former state Rep. Jay Martin are running for the open seat. TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku and Android TV. Also, please download theGrio mobile apps today! The post Arkansas attorney Risie Howard, Democrat, launches congressional campaign appeared first on TheGrio. Khalid El-Estal, his four year old son Ali and one year old daughter Sara in Dublin Airport with their uncle Mohammed Jendia A Belfast-born man who lost his wife, his mother and other family members in a bomb in Gaza has been reunited with his young children in Dublin Airport. Khalid El-Estal vowed to look after his four-year-old son Ali and one-year-old daughter Sara in honour of his wife Ashwak Jendia who died last month. The children left Gaza via Egypt with assistance from the Irish government. They are among more than 50 Irish-Palestinian citizens and dependents who have travelled to Ireland with help from the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. "Finally we did it, but we lost a lot we lost their mum and my mum and my brother," Mr El-Estal told reporters at Dublin Airport. "But its ok, we will be strong and I will take care of them." He thanked everyone who joined him at the airport and asked for his wife and family to be remembered. Mr El-Estal said the reunion was bittersweet. It is mixed emotion, you dont understand what you feel, he added. My little daughter, she dont even know, shes afraid of me, because I left when she was only three months. Mr El-Estal moved away from his family to work when his children were very young. He had publicly appealed for help to get his children out of the war zone after five members of his family were killed in the same attack. His wife, mother, brother, uncle and two cousins died in a bombing at an apartment block in Gaza. Speaking to BBC's Sunday Sequence programme ahead of his expected reunion with his children, Mr El-Estal said he had "mixed emotions". He said: "Of course I am excited and happy for them but I am thinking about my wife and how great it would be if she was with them." Sara and Ali arrived into Dublin Airport on Sunday evening on a flight from Cairo 'Dangerous journey' Mr El-Estal was working in Saudi Arabia when his wife was killed. He returned to Belfast a few weeks ago and sought diplomat assistance to get his children to safety. He told the BBC of the children's "very difficult, dangerous" journey, travelling from Khan Yunis in Gaza to the border crossing at Rafah. With a communication blackout in the territory, Mr El-Estal was left without information as the children made the journey. "They spent all the day on the border... I didn't know until they made it to Egypt." 'Welcome news' Born in Belfast, he attended primary school in the Botanic area while his father worked as a lecturer at Queen's University. When he was aged eight, the family relocated to Gaza, where he met his wife Ashwak at university. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says more than 12,300 people have been killed in the territory since Israel began its campaign last month. Israel launched air strikes in response to an assault on 7 October when Hamas gunmen entered Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 200 hostages. The first group of Irish citizens and their dependants returned to Dublin Airport from Gaza on Saturday. There were emotional scenes at Dublin airport this evening as Belfast-born Khalid El-Estal was reunited with his two young children who travelled to Ireland from Egypt with their uncle after fleeing Gaza. @BBCNewsNI @bbcnewsline pic.twitter.com/cx1mQGVLZs Michael Fitzpatrick (@micjfitz) November 19, 2023 Meanwhile, former Irish president Mary Robinson has co-signed an open letter to US President Joe Biden calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. The letter, signed by a group of former international leaders known as The Elders, of which Mrs Robinson is chair, urged the president to lead international efforts in resolving the situation between Israel and the Palestinians. "We have to see a new vision for peace and an American leadership of a coalition to achieve that," she told the BBC's Sunday Politics programme. However, Mrs Robinson said it would be impossible to reach an agreement while the current leaderships of both Israeli and Palestinian sides remained in place. She described the Israeli government as "very right-wing", adding that it showed "no sign at the best of times of being willing to see the need for a state of Palestine". "On the contrary we've seen Jewish supremacy talked about very openly," she said. Mary Robinson is a former president of Ireland 'Speak with a moral voice' Mrs Robinson said she was "shocked" when she visited the region in February with former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. She said it was important that Ireland is prepared to speak with a "moral voice" on the conflict. There is a need to "recognise the injustice of the occupation" while being "very clear that Israel has a right to defend itself, that its absolutely vital to get the hostages released", she added. Mrs Robinson, 79, was Irish president from 1990 to 1997. She was a UN high commissioner for human rights between 1997 and 2002. You can see the interview with her in full on the BBC iPlayer. More on Israel-Gaza war WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden said on Saturday the Palestinian Authority should ultimately govern the Gaza Strip and the West Bank following the Israel-Hamas war. "As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority, as we all work toward a two-state solution," Biden said in an opinion article in the Washington Post. "There must be no forcible displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, no reoccupation, no siege or blockade, and no reduction in territory," Biden said. He used the op-ed to try to answer the question of what the United States wants for Gaza once the conflict is over. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took issue with Biden's plan for the Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza. "I think that the PA in its current form is not capable of accepting the responsibility for Gaza after weve fought and done all this, to pass it to them," he said at a news conference in Tel Aviv. Netanyahu has previously said Israel must maintain "overall military responsibility" in Gaza "for the foreseeable future." The Palestinian Authority used to run both the West Bank and Gaza but was ousted from the latter in 2007 after a brief civil war with Hamas. Biden also said the United States is prepared to issue visa bans against "extremists" attacking civilians in the West Bank. Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians living in the Israeli-occupied West Bank has increased since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. "I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable," Biden said. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas urged Biden to pressure Israel to stop violence against Palestinians. "I also call on you to urgently intervene to stop the attacks by Israeli forces and the continuous terrorism by settlers against our people in the West Bank and Jerusalem, which foreshadow an imminent explosion," he said in a special address aired by Palestine TV. The West Bank, home to 3 million Palestinians who live among more than half a million Jewish settlers, has been seething for more than 18 months, drawing growing international concern as violence has escalated after Oct. 7. (Reporting by Steve Holland and Eric Beech; Additional reporting by Emily Rose; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Daniel Wallis) The Cadillac Optiq 2025 GM DESIGN / Cadillac The US carmaker Cadillac is expanding its electric vehicle portfolio. The company has announced a new, more affordable model called Optiq, due for release next year. GM, which owns Cadillac, plans to become a fully electric company by 2035. Cadillac has announced that it will be adding a new model, named Optiq, to its portfolio of electric vehicles. The company, which is owned by General Motors, said that it will "act as the entry point" for buyers and that it offers "spirited driving dynamics." Further details will be unveiled next year, the company said in a press release. Optiq, which will be Cadillac's fourth electric car, is being pitched as a more accessible model, and it is expected to come in at a lower price point than the Lyriq, which is currently their cheapest offering at $58,590. At the upper end of the brand are the $130,000 2025 Escalade IQ SUV and the $340,000 Celestiq sedan. The announcement comes as General Motors continues to ramp up electric vehicle production across all its major brands, including Chevrolet, Buick, and GMC. The 2025 Optiq comes in a burnt orange color. GM DESIGN / Cadillac In 2021, the US automaker announced an ambitious plan to embrace an electric future and stop selling all non-electric vehicles by 2035. However, supply chain issues and battery cell production have delayed their progress. Recent strikes led by the United Auto Workers (UAW) were in part related to the risk of job losses caused by GM's electrification strategy. The strikes, which were held in September and October of this year, cost General Motors $200 million a week, the BBC reported. EV demand has plateaued in the US auto market this year, as the wave of early-adopters dies out and the electric vehicles remain too expensive for the average buyer. EVs accounted for 9% of all sales through September 2023. "No matter what claim somebody can make about the long-term ownership cost of a vehicle, if the entry point is $45,000-plus, that's still steep," Vince Sheehy, a car dealer in the Washington, D.C. area, previously told Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider Joe Biden said Hamas's 'ideology of destruction' means a ceasefire will not bring peace to Israel and Palestine - David Paul Morris A ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas will not bring peace, Joe Biden has said. The US president said Hamas would merely exploit it to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters and restart the killing by attacking innocents again. As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a ceasefire is not peace, he wrote in an opinion article in the Washington Post. Mr Biden said Hamas hid among Palestinian civilians, used children and innocents as human shields and positioned terrorist tunnels beneath hospitals, schools, mosques and residential buildings. If Hamas cared at all for Palestinian lives, it would release all the hostages, give up arms, and surrender the leaders and those responsible for October 7, he said. He proposed that a revitalised Palestinian Authority should govern Gaza and the West Bank after the war as one unit until a two-state solution can be definitively agreed. 10:02 PM GMT Thats it for today The live blog is now closed. Thank you for following The Telegraphs coverage of the war in Gaza. Check back again tomorrow for all the latest developments. 10:01 PM GMT Today's headlines An overnight air strike killed 26 in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Israel killed five fighters from the armed wing of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbass party A UN-run school in a Gaza refugee camp was hit by an airstrike, with hundreds killed and injured Scholz condemned Israeli West Bank settlements and urged Israel to ease Gazas humanitarian crisis Bidens main Middle East advisor said aid would only come to Gaza when Hamas releases hostages The IDF denied forcibly evacuating the Al Shifa hospital Netanyahu finally agreed to meet the families of hostages taken by Hamas Biden said a ceasefire would never bring peace to Israel and Palestine because Hamas would not obey it Netanyahu hit back at Bidens proposal for the Palestinian Authority to rule Gaza after the war Hamass spokesperson said it does not know where some of the October 7 hostages are 09:48 PM GMT Israel 'almost launched pre-emptive strike against Hezbollah' Israel almost launched a pre-emptive strike against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon in the early days of its war against Hamas, it has been reported. The Washington Post published claims that Israel came close to the attack because it feared its disorientation would be exploited by Iran and its proxies, of which Hezbollah is one. David Ignatius, the articles author, did not cite any specific sources but said he met defence minister Yoav Gallant and nearly a dozen IDF commanders in a recent visit to Israel. There have been regular cross-border skirmishes and strikes between Israel and Hezbollah ever since the war began. 09:34 PM GMT Hamas: We don't know where some hostages are Hamas does not know where some of the 240 hostages it seized in its October 7 terror attack are. The terror groups spokesperson said it has lost contact with some of the groups who are holding the hostages captive, Al Jazeera and The New Arab reported. The fate of the captives and those holding them is still unknown after we lost communication with them, spokesperson Abu Obeida is quoted as saying. He did not identify the number and names of the hostages whose whereabouts are unknown. 08:51 PM GMT Netanyahu hits back at Biden's post-war plans Benjamin Netanyahu has dismissed the Palestinian Authority as not fit to govern after Joe Biden said it should rule Gaza after the war is over. The US president wrote in the Washington Post that the authority should govern Gaza and the West Bank as one unit until a permanent two-state solution can be agreed. But the Israeli prime minister hit back at the suggestion in a Saturday night press conference, saying the authoritys president Mahmoud Abbas has refused to condemn the October 7 massacre and a number of his ministers are celebrating what happened. It is impossible to put in Gaza a civil government that supports terrorism, encourages terrorism, finances terrorism and educates for terrorism, Mr Netanyahu said. 08:31 PM GMT Israel to publish new Al Shifa evidence 'soon' Israel will publish new evidence of Hamass presence in the Al Shifa hospital in Gaza City soon, spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari has said. Even at this hour, special forces are operating at the shaft we uncovered at Shifa, and we will publish material soon, he said. He added that Israeli soldiers are searching other hospitals in northern Gaza. 08:13 PM GMT Hamas leader is dead man walking, hints Israel The Qatar-based leader of Hamas is a dead man walking, Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant have hinted. Speaking at a televised press conference, the Israeli prime minister and defence minister said all members of Hamas are dead men walking whether they are in Gaza or elsewhere. There is no difference between a terrorist with a Kalashnikov and a terrorist in a three-piece suit, added Mr Gallant in an apparent reference to Ismail Haniyeh, who is believed to live in Qatar. 07:57 PM GMT Israel must ease Gaza humanitarian crisis, Scholz tells Netanyahu Israel must urgently ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has told Benjamin Netanyahu. Mr Scholzs office said he underscored the urgent need to improve the humanitarian situation for residents in the Gaza Strip in a call with the Israeli prime minister on Saturday afternoon. Humanitarian ceasefires could contribute to a significant improvement in care for the population, the statement added. Israel has refused to heed growing international calls for a ceasefire until Hamas frees all the hostages it abducted in the October 7 terror attack. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have killed more than 12,000 people in the territory since the war began. More than two-thirds of Gazas hospitals are no longer functioning and food, water and fuel are all in short supply. 07:44 PM GMT We are marching with you, Netanyahu tells hostage families Benjamin Netanyahu has told the families of Hamass Israeli hostages that we are marching with you after they protested outside his office. We are marching with you, I am marching with you, all of the people of Israel are marching with you, he said in a televised press conference, adding as of now there is no deal to bring the hostages home. Saturday afternoons rally attended by thousands of Israelis marked the end of a five-day walk to Jerusalem by the families and their supporters, who have called for Israel to do more to free the hostages. Mr Netanyahu has been criticised for not meeting any of the families but appears set to do so this week. He told the press conference he has invited the families to meet Israels war cabinet this week. 07:31 PM GMT Pictured: IDF operations in southern Gaza City Israeli soldiers operate in the south of Gaza City - Ashraf Amra An IDF armoured vehicle rolls past Palestinians fleeing Gaza City on foot - Belal Al Sabbagh 07:18 PM GMT Hostage negotiations stall but military pressure pushing Hamas towards deal Hostage negotiations with Hamas have stalled but military pressure is pushing the terror group towards a deal, an Israeli official has said. All Israeli television channels reported the anonymous remarks, suggesting a coordinated government leak. The reports also indicate that Israel will not compromise on its red line that all children being held by Hamas are released alongside their mothers. 07:05 PM GMT Netanyahu finally agrees to meet hostage families Benjamin Netanyahu appears to have finally agreed to meet the families of hostages being held by Hamas. The families have been dismayed by the Israeli prime ministers reluctance to meet them for weeks. But it now seems that Mr Netanyahu will meet them alongside defence minister Yoav Gallant on Monday, according to a report by The Times of Israel. A five-day march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in support of the hostages finished today outside the prime ministers office. The families have now been without their loved ones for more than six weeks. 06:44 PM GMT IDF denies forcing patients to evacuate from Al Shifa hospital Israel has denied that it forcibly evacuated doctors, patients and displaced people from Al Shifa hospital on Saturday morning. According to doctors inside the biggest hospital in Gaza, the Israeli military gave everyone inside the hospital grounds a one-hour evacuation order. Doctors said they were forced to leave their most sick and wounded patients behind at gunpoint. Videos from inside the hospital showed chaos as people streamed towards the exits and doctors trying to move the wounded. Israel vehemently denied the claims, saying that it had just expanded evacuation efforts for the displaced at the request of the hospital director and was offering safe passage to the south. The head of the Al Shifa hospital said that 120 patients and five doctors remained inside the complex, which had been housing thousands of displaced people. Conditions inside the hospital for those who remained were very difficult, with water and electricity cut off, he said. Thousands of people left Al Shifa holding white flags to head toward the south of Gaza, the place where Israel has indicated it may soon move its ground operations. 06:29 PM GMT Hard-Right Israeli minister proposes mandatory death sentence for terrorists Itamar Ben Gvir, the hard-Right Israeli security minister, has proposed introducing a mandatory death sentence for all terrorists. Mr Ben Gvir said he would brill the bill to the Knessets national security committee for initial approvalon Monday. I expect all members of Knesset to support this important bill, he writes. Only two people have received the death penalty in Israels history: Meir Tobianski, a posthumously-exonerated IDF officer wrongly accused of espionage, in 1948 and Holocaust architect Adolf Eichmann in 1962. 06:08 PM GMT IDF investigating Jabaliya school blast The IDF is investigating the blast at a UN-run school in the Jabaliya refugee camp earlier today after being accused of killing more than 50 civilians there. Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner, an IDF spokesperson, told the BBC: I cant confirm this incident is IDF, but we are seeing the images like you on social media. We are looking into it. He added in remarks to Times Radio: Were looking into it, weve seen the reports. Id be vary cautious in accepting anything that Hamas determines is a fact so we are looking into it. I cant confirm that this is an Israeli strike at this time. As soon as we have something we can say about this incident, we will say it. Of course, the images are terrifying. Gazas Hamas-run health ministry has claimed the IDF launched a dawn strike on the Al Fakhoura school, which is being used as a shelter for displaced civilians. The AFP news agency has verified social media videos showing bodies covered in blood and dust on the floor of a building in Jabaliya where mattresses had been wedged under school tables. Jabaliya is the largest refugee camp in Gaza. 05:54 PM GMT In pictures: Hostage marchers reach Netanyahu's office Israelis marching in support of the 240 hostages being held by Hamas reached Benjamin Netanyahu's office today - Christopher Furlong They walked for five days from Tel Aviv to urge the government to do all it can to free the hostages - Christopher Furlong 05:41 PM GMT Gaza will get aid and pause when Hamas frees hostages, says Biden advisor Gaza will receive a massive surge in humanitarian relief and there will be a significant pause in the war when Hamas frees its Israeli hostages, Joe Bidens main Middle East advisor has said. Brett McGurk told a security conference in Bahrain that releasing a large number of hostages would bring a significant pause... and a massive surge of humanitarian relief. The surge in humanitarian relief, the surge in fuel, the pause... will come when hostages are released, he said. Mr McGurk added that the situation in Gaza is horrific and intolerable. 05:25 PM GMT Israelis protest against war in Tel Aviv A group of Israelis has gathered in Tel Aviv to protest against the war in Gaza and call for a ceasefire. Hundreds attended the rally, which was organised by the predominantly Arab Left-wing Hadash party. Slogans on placards included in Gaza and Sderot, children want to live, an eye for an eye and everyone is blind and no to occupation and siege, yes to peace. Permission for the protest was granted by the police on Thursday after several similar ones were banned in recent weeks. 05:12 PM GMT Israel announces deaths of six more soldiers in Gaza Israel has announced the deaths of six more IDF soldiers in Gaza, bringing its current death toll to 57. They are: Major Jamal Abbas, 23, a company commander in the Paratroopers Brigades 101st Battalion from Pekiin Captain Eden Provisor, 21, a platoon commander in the 401st Armored Brigades 52nd Battalion from Alfei Menashe Master Sergeant (reservist) David (Dudi) Digmi, 43, a paramedic in the Gaza Division from Rishon Lezion Staff Sergeant Shlomo Gurtovnik, 21, a combat medic in the 401st Armored Brigades 46th Battalion from Modiin Staff Sergeant Adi Malik Harb, 19, of the Nahal Infantry Brigades reconnaissance unit from Beit Jann Staff Sergeant Shachar Fridman, 21, of the Paratroopers Brigades 101st Battalion from Jerusalem 04:58 PM GMT UNICEF follows UNRWA in backing claims of school deaths in Gaza Childrens charity UNICEF has joined the UNs aid agency in Palestine in backing claims by Gazas Hamas-run health ministry that Israeli strikes killed many children and women at two schools today. Were seeing horrifying images of children and civilians killed in Gaza yet again as they shelter in a school which must always be protected, executive director Catherine Russell said. The carnage must end. The suffering must end. This nightmare for children must end now. Adele Khodr, the charitys director in Africa and the Middle East, added: The scenes of carnage and death following attacks on Al Fakhoura and Tal Al Zaatar schools in Gaza, killing many children and women, are horrific and appalling. These horrible attacks should cease immediately. Children, schools and shelters are not a target. Immediate ceasefire needed now. The IDF is yet to comment. 04:38 PM GMT Israel set for 'dustbin of history' says Iran as thousands march for Palestine Israel is bound for the dustbin of history, the commander of Irans Revolutionary Guards has said as thousands joined a state-sponsored march for Palestine in Tehran. Palestine stands on the path of a war of attrition...Israel will face a definitive defeat and end up in the dustbin of history, Hossein Salami told the rally. The battle is not over, the Islamic world will do whatever it has to do. There are still great capacities left. The march in Irans capital city was shown live on state television and some protestors were seen carrying bundles wrapped in white cloth, symbolising the Palestinian children killed in the war so far. 04:12 PM GMT Hostage's mother: We'll walk to Gaza to free our children The mother of an Israeli woman being held captive by Hamas has said she would walk to Gaza to bring the 240 hostages home. Orin Zacharias daughter Eden was abducted by Hamas terrorists as she tried to flee the Supernova desert rave on October 7. Mrs Zacharia was one of thousands of Israelis who have walked from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem over the past five days to call on the government to do all it can to bring the hostages home. Weve been walking for five days without stopping and my legs hurt and my shoulders and everything hurts, but nothing hurts like my heart does, which really really hurts, she told the crowd outside Benjamin Netanyahus office. Even if we need to walk to Gaza we will walk to Gaza. Wherever we need to go we will go, we wont give up on our children. 04:02 PM GMT Scholz condemns Israeli settlements in West Bank as he backs two-state solution Olaf Scholz has condemned Israeli settlements in the West Bank as he urged Israelis and Palestinians to back a two-state solution. We dont want any new settlements in the West Bank, no violence by settlers against the Palestinians in the West Bank, the German chancellor said. He added that a two-state solution is the best solution to the war for both Israelis and Palestinians. If some in Israeli politics distance themselves from this, we will not support them, he said. 03:48 PM GMT UNRWA backs Hamas-run health ministry's claim of school deaths The UNs aid agency in Palestine has backed claims by Gazas Hamas-run health ministry that scores of people have been killed at a school in an Israeli strike. The health ministry has claimed that hundreds have been killed or injured at the UN-run Al Fakhoura school in Jabaliya and the Tal al Zaatar school in Beit Lahiya. Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), said he has seen horrifying images and footage of scores of people killed at a UNRWA school, which he did not name. These attacks cannot become commonplace, they must stop. A humanitarian ceasefire cannot wait any longer, he added. The IDF is yet to comment. 03:39 PM GMT IDF advances on Hamas command centre The IDF is expanding its operations in northern Gaza and is advancing into Gaza Citys Zeitoun neighbourhood and Jabaliya, a city two miles to the north. In a statement, the IDF said Jabaliya contains the command and control centre of the Northern Gaza Brigade, which it called one of the most significant terror strongholds. It published video footage of its Golani Infantry Brigade engaging Hamas in Zeitoun and said the 162nd Divison is now operating on the outskirts of Jabaliya. During the encounters, numerous terrorists were killed and the troops struck a large number of terror infrastructures, including underground infrastructure and significant targets of the terrorist organization, the statement added. 03:18 PM GMT Lord Cameron speaks to Israeli foreign minister for first time Lord Cameron has spoken to Israels foreign minister for the first time since becoming Britains new foreign secretary. He said he expressed condolences to Eli Cohen for Hamass brutal October 7 terror attack and discussed the need for humanitarian pauses. We are committed to preventing wider regional instability, the former prime minister added. Lord Cameron was unexpectedly appointed foreign secretary on Monday by Rishi Sunak, seven years after resigning as prime minister after the Brexit referendum. 03:06 PM GMT Watch: IDF strikes Hezbollah in southern Lebanon The IDF has struck a number of Hezbollah compounds and observation posts in southern Lebanon in retaliation to attacks by the Iran-backed terror group on Israel. It released videos of strikes at three locations. IDF strikes several more Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon in response to the repeated attacks on northern Israel. The IDF says the sites include military compounds and observation posts. pic.twitter.com/M8lcvjVeIf Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 18, 2023 02:41 PM GMT Clarification on Gaza death toll A spokesperson for the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry this morning told The Telegraph and other press that the death toll had reached over 16,000. We reported this figure, but the spokesperson later deleted the message without notifying us. The last official death toll from the health ministry is 12,000 people have died, which they reported to us last night. The numbers, which in previous conflicts has been found to be reliable by independent organisations, have been slow to update over the past week since many Gazan hospitals were besieged by Israeli tanks and communications were largely cut. 02:12 PM GMT More than 80 killed in Jabalia double strike, Gaza health ministry says An official in the Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip said more than 80 people were killed on Saturday in double Israeli strikes on the Jabalia refugee camp. At least 50 people were killed in an Israeli strike at dawn on the UN-run Al Fakhoura school in the camp, which had been converted into a shelter for displaced Palestinians, the official told AFP. Social media videos showed bodies covered in blood and dust on the floor of a building, where mattresses had been wedged under school tables. A separate strike on another building in the camp on Saturday killed 32 people from the same family, 19 of them children, the health ministry official said. The ministry released a list of 32 members of the Abu Habal family it said had died. 02:11 PM GMT Watch: Thousands march in Israel to demand the release of Hamas hostages 01:49 PM GMT Turkey will seek to rebuild Gaza if ceasefire achieved, Erdogan says Turkey will make efforts to rebuild damaged infrastructure, hospitals and schools in Gaza if a ceasefire is achieved there, Turkish media on Saturday reported President Tayyip Erdogan as saying. If a ceasefire is reached, we will do whatever is necessary to compensate for the destruction caused by Israel, Erdogan told reporters on his plane returning from a trip to Berlin, where he held talks with German leaders. We will make efforts to rebuild the damaged infrastructure in Gaza and rebuild the destroyed schools, hospitals, water and energy facilities, he was cited as saying by broadcaster A Haber. 01:33 PM GMT 'Hundreds' of killed and injured in Jabalia schools strike Medhat Abbas, a spokesperson for the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry has said that hundreds of people have been killed and wounded in two Israeli air strikes on Al Fakhoura and Tal Al Zaatar schools. As we reported earlier, the IDF has yet to comment on the alleged strikes. Footage online clearly showed many dead and injured inside Al Fakhoura school, including children. 01:31 PM GMT The fuel agreement for Gaza is only half of what is needed every day, the UN says Following long weeks of delay, the Israeli Authorities approved only half of the daily minimum requirements of fuel for humanitarian operations in Gaza, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees has said after the first fuel shipment arrived in Gaza last night. The statement read: This is far from enough to cover the needs for desalination plants, sewage pumps, hospitals, water pumps in shelters, aid trucks, ambulances, bakeries and communications networks to work without interruption. Fuel should not be restricted for these activities. Without the full amount of fuel: 01:06 PM GMT Families of hostages on final day of solidarity march Families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza continue their march from Tel Aviv to Knesset in Jerusalem demanding the release of their relatives in Jerusalem on November 18, 2023. - Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images 01:04 PM GMT Reports of a UN school hit in Gaza Al Jazeera and Palestine TV are reporting that al Fakhoura school in Jabalia refugee camp has been hit by an air strike for the second time this month. Many are believed to have been sheltering in the school and Al Jazeeras reporter said that dozens have been killed. The IDF, which does not usually comment on individual strikes, has yet to confirm it. The school has also been a target for strikes during the 2009 and 2014 conflicts. Well bring you more when we have it. 12:03 PM GMT Violent uptick between Hezbollah and Israel continues The dangerous escalation of attacks on the Lebanese border with Israel is continuing today with Hezbollah announcing that they directly hit an Israeli barracks with missiles and artillery. Today, Israel said that Hezbollah launched 25 attacks. In return, Hezbollah said that they have shot down an Israeli drone with a surface-to-air missile. Lebanese state news said that Israel hit Nabatiyeh, some 15 kilometres away from the border, for the first time since the 2006 war. 11:59 AM GMT Organisers of Israel's hostages march say tens of thousands headed toward Netanyahu's office : 1. sha_b_p@ pic.twitter.com/Pjs7ddvr62 Haim Rubinstein (@haim_ru) November 18, 2023 11:54 AM GMT The bottom of the barrel is visible: Inside the Wests scramble for more ammo The sound of heavy machinery at the munitions factory in Washington, North East England, rumbles day and night for most of the week. At the BAE Systems plant, workers are busy forging 155mm shell casings that will eventually be fired by Ukrainian soldiers battling Russia more than 1,400 miles away. With Kyivs need for ammunition still enormous, all production lines are set to ramp up to a 24/7 operation by 2026 boosting capacity eightfold. Until recently, operations like these were largely neglected as governments cashed in the peace dividend following the fall of the Berlin Wall 34 years ago and the military-industrial economy in Europe was allowed to wither. Now, governments around the world are scrambling to ramp up production as stockpiles run low and the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war signals yet more demand for munitions. The Washington factory is just one cog in a vast industrial complex that is slowly spinning up again throughout the Western world, as the need for weapons and munitions reaches levels not seen since the Cold War. Read more from Matt Oliver here. 11:23 AM GMT Al Shifa evacuation a 'death sentence' says ActionAid This mornings one-hour evacuation order of Al Shifa, which Israel denies, is a death sentence according to the charity ActionAid. We are appalled by reports that doctors and critically ill patients including premature babies in incubators are being forced out at gunpoint by the Israeli military, said Riham Jafari, Advocacy and Communication Coordinator at ActionAid Palestine. This morning we have seen chilling scenes of doctors taking patients in critical conditions on beds and wheelchairs out of Al-Shifa hospital a death sentence for hundreds of people who will be forced to leave behind lifesaving care and travel miles to hospitals that are no longer operational. Day after day, doctors, nurses, and ambulance drivers are risking their lives to provide lifesaving care to patients whose lives are hanging on by a thread. Jafari added: The evacuation of Al-Shifa is yet another potential breach of international humanitarian law in a crisis where the rights of patients to access lifesaving care are being violated daily. Healthcare workers, ambulances, and hospitals are never a legitimate target they must not only be respected but also protected under international law. 11:20 AM GMT Al Shifa 'completely deserted' hospital director says The director of Al Shifa hospital has said that it is completely deserted in an interview with Al Jazeera after Israel carried out a forced evacuation, which it denies. Mohammed Abu Salmiya, says only him and few others, including staff and patients, are left at the hospital. The centre of the hospital is surrounded by Israeli soldiers. They are in total control. Even we, the very few medical staff that remains, cannot move freely, he told Al Jazeera. Many of those in critical conditions including newborns and kidney patients will die imminently if they are not evacuated. Doctors have reported being forced to leave at gunpoint carrying white flags out as they were pushed down south. The Israeli military has denied that they told doctors and patients to leave and said that it was expanding the evacuations due to a request by the hospital director. Piecing together exactly what has happened at Al Shifa hospital over the past few days has been challenging due to the lack of communications, but we will bring you more when we have a clearer picture. The emergency room supervisor Omar Zaqout told Al Jazeera that the Israeli army ordered everyone at al-Shifa Hospital including doctors, patients and displaced people to evacuate the medical compound in one hour through the al-Wehda road. About 450 patients were evacuated, while about 120 patients were left behind with five doctors, including the director and a few nurses, because they were immobile, Munir al-Barsh, director-general of Gazas Health Ministry told the broadcaster. 11:12 AM GMT IDF says it destroyed Hamas cell that launched attacks into Israel yesterday The IDF has said that it killed the Hamas cell that launched a barrage of rockets toward Israel on Friday evening. In a statement the Israeli military said: Less than an hour after the barrage of rockets from the Gaza Strip toward Israeli territory yesterday (Friday), IDF troops identified the terrorists who carried out the launches from the roof of a building and directed an IAF aircraft that struck them. In addition, over the past day, IDF fighter jets and helicopters struck dozens of terror targets in the Gaza Strip alongside terrorists and additional terror infrastructure, including operational command centers, launch posts, and weapon manufacturing laboratories. 11:11 AM GMT Pictured: Surgery in Nasser hospital Surgeons operate on a Palestinian man, injured during the Israeli attacks, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, Gaza on November 16, 2023 - Abed Zagout/Anadolu via Getty Images 11:05 AM GMT Israel hits Nabatiyeh in Lebanon for first time since 2006 war An Israeli drone fired two missiles at an aluminum plant outside the southern Lebanese market town of Nabatiyeh early Saturday, causing a fire and widespread damage, Lebanese state media said. There was no word on casualties. The strike near the village of Toul is the first to hit the area since the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, and is far from the border. Lebanons National News Agency said firefighters and ambulances rushed to the area, but it did not mention casualties of the strike that occurred around dawn. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the strike at the factory but it did say that the Israeli army is currently striking Hezbollah targets. Hezbollah today claimed to have shot down an Israeli Hermes 450 drone using a surface-to-air missile, in addition to launching five other attacks on Israels northern border. 11:02 AM GMT David Cameron speaks to Israeli foreign minister "I spoke to Israeli Foreign Minister @EliCoh1 yesterday and shared my condolences for the Israeli civilians killed in Hamas brutal October 7th terror attack. We discussed the situation in Gaza and the need for humanitarian pauses. We are committed to preventing wider regional Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (@FCDOGovUK) November 18, 2023 09:49 AM GMT UAE official says Israel statements on longer term presence in Gaza worrying A top foreign policy adviser to the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has said that statements from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about a longer term presence in Gaza were worrying. We hear now from the Israeli prime minister and indeed the Israeli president about the sort of longer term Israeli connection to Gaza. They are very worrying, Anwar Gargash said at the Manama summit in Bahrain. This indicates that perhaps the lesson that we as the majority of people in region are taking away from the Gaza crisis which is the need to go back to the two state solution, we need to go back to an Israeli and Palestinian state living side by side. That lesson has perhaps not been the same. 09:45 AM GMT Pictured: Khan Yunis this morning Donia Al Mobasher carries a cat in a damaged apartment at the site of an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip November 18, 2023. - REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa 09:36 AM GMT Five Fatah fighters killed in Israeli air strike on the West Bank Five fighters in the armed wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Fatah party were killed early Saturday in a rare Israeli airstrike on the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Red Crescent and Fatah sources told AFP. The Israeli army said it had killed a number of terrorists in an airstrike on the Balata refugee camp in Nablus. The Palestine Red Crescent Society said overnight five people were killed and two hurt in a strike, which the camp administration said hit local Fatah headquarters. Those killed in the strike included Muhammad Zahed, the Israeli military said, describing him as a prominent terrorist in the city of Nablus and saying he had been involved in a shooting in April in Jerusalem that wounded two Israeli civilians. It would continue to operate to eliminate threats and target operatives involved in terror attacks against Israel, it added in a statement. Witnesses said Israeli forces entered the camp on foot after the airstrike and destroyed an empty house without causing further casualties. The airstrike came a day after Israels army said it had killed at least seven militants in two separate confrontations in the West Bank. 09:25 AM GMT Civilian casualty toll won't prevent Israel from moving down south, official says Giora Eiland, a former head of Israels National Security Council, said a ground campaign might take three to four weeks to subdue Hamas resistance in the south, where its leadership was now concentrated. One of the more challenging situations is the simple fact that most of the people of the Gaza Strip are now concentrated in the south, he told Reuters. There will probably be more civilian casualties ... It is not going to deter us or prevent us from moving forward. The escalating civilian toll of the offensive has already stirred outcry across the Middle East and among Western nations, including Israels closest ally the United States. The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said on Friday that more than 12,000 people have been killed as the fighting entered its seventh week. 09:22 AM GMT First plane carrying children with urgent medical needs from Gaza arrives in UAE The first plane carrying 15 people from Gaza, including children and their families, arrived in the UAE Saturday, according to the countrys state-run WAM news agency. President of the UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has said that hospitals in the UAE will care for 1,000 children accompanied by their families from the Gaza Strip. The plane arrived in Abu Dhabi carrying children with urgent medical needs, including severe injuries, burns and cancer patients, according to WAM. 09:18 AM GMT Another premature baby dies in Al Shifa hospital Were still trying to verify exactly what has happened with the evacuations from Al Shifa hospital this morning. In the meantime, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza has said that another of the premature babies who are trying to survive with incubators since the electricity cut last week has died, bringing the total to five. 09:16 AM GMT IDF responds to 25 launches from Lebanon Following the sirens sounded in Kibbutz Sasa and Moshav Shtula, northern Israel, 25 launches were identified a short while ago. No injuries were reported. IDF artillery is striking the sources of the launches. The IDF is currently striking Hezbollah terror targets, details to follow, the IDF said in a statement. Hezbollah, meanwhile, said that it had confirmed there were casualties from its assault on a military command headquarters around an hour ago. 09:06 AM GMT In Khan Yunis this morning, families queue to collect the bodies of their relatives killed in air strikes overnight People mourn as they collect the bodies of Palestinians killed in airstrikes on November 18, 2023 in Khan Yunis, Gaza. - Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images 08:49 AM GMT Israeli troops ordered evacuation of hospital in the next hour over loudspeakers Israeli troops ordered the evacuation of Al-Shifa hospital in the next hour over loudspeakers on Saturday, an AFP journalist at the scene reported, as troops continued to comb the facility. Doctors who were inside the hospital have told Al Jazeera that they were forced to leave and that there was a sense of great panic in the hospital. In a statement the IDF said that the evacuation was requested by the director of Al Shifa hospital. At no point, did the IDF order the evacuation of patients or medical teams and in fact proposed that any request for medical evacuation will be facilitated by the IDF, it added. The doctors who can get messages out are describing it as a forced evacuation and said that they had to leave patients behind. We will bring you more once we have a clearer picture. The difficulty in communications in Gaza makes verifying live reports at pace difficult. 08:38 AM GMT Air strike in Khan Yunis kills 26 overnight, doctors say At least 26 people were killed in a strike on a residential building in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, AFP reported this morning, citing the director of a local hospital. The director of Nasser Hospital said the facility received 26 dead bodies and 23 people with serious injuries after a strike on the residential building in Hamad City, a middle-class housing development built in recent years with funding from Qatar. A few miles to the north, six Palestinians were killed when a house was bombed from the air in Deir Al-Balah, according to health authorities. 08:30 AM GMT Jordan's strained relationship with Israel on display at the Manama conference: No Arab troops will enter Gaza Jordans foreign minister Ayman Safadi has said that no Arab troops will be entering Gaza to bring stability when the war is over. Let me be very clear. I know speaking on behalf of Jordan but having discussed this issue with many, with almost all our brethren, therell be no Arab troops going to Gaza. None. Were not going to be seen as the enemy, he said. How could anybody talk about the future of Gaza when we do not know what kind of Gaza will be left once this aggression ends? Speaking at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain, Safadi said that Arab countries would not come and clean the mess after Israel. Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza, Safadi, who is also the deputy prime minister of Jordan, said. All of us have to speak loud and clear about the catastrophe that the Israeli war is bringing, not just on Gaza, but on the region in general, Safadi said. This is not a time for mincing words. This is a time to state facts as they are. He added: This is not self-defense. This is a blatant aggression, the victims of which are innocent Palestinians. 08:23 AM GMT Partial restoration of phone service in Gaza Internet and phone service has partially returned to the Gaza Strip after a fuel delivery was allowed into Gaza last night that ended a telecommunications blackout which had forced aid deliveries in the desperate enclave to stop. Israel has said that going forward it would allow in 10,000 litres of fuel daily for communications service to continue, according to the US State Department, who pressured Israel into allowing fuel into Gaza. A very minimal amount of fuel will also be let into Gaza each day for humanitarian purposes, Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said. COGAT, the Israeli military body responsible for Palestinian affairs, said it would amount to 60,000 litres a day for the UN. But, that is only 37% of the fuel needed by UNRWA to support its humanitarian operations, including food distribution and the operation of generators at hospitals and water and sanitation facilities, the UN said. The fuel deliveries have angered members of the Israeli far-right. National security minister Itmar Ben Gvir said Israel was heading toward the wrong policy and that there is no sense in giving the enemy humanitarian gifts. Meanwhile finance minister Bezalel Smotrich described it as a grave mistake that gives oxygen to the enemy. 08:13 AM GMT Good morning Good morning and welcome to The Telegraphs daily live blog of the war in Gaza. Follow along as we bring you all of the latest updates from overnight and throughout the day. First up this morning: IDF hints at moving into south Gaza Israel has warned that it could continue its ground incursion into south Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people have fled, as the north of the territory is now mostly under its control. . The Israeli military dropped leaflets over areas of Khan Yunis, in the south of the Gaza Strip, asking civilians to evacuate their homes and seek shelter elsewhere. Were asking people to relocate. I know its not easy for many of them, but we dont want to see civilians caught up in the crossfire, Mark Regev, an aide to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told MSNBC in an interview overnight. With shelters overflowing with the displaced, it is not clear where civilians in Khan Yunis can flee. Were asking them to move to an area where hopefully there will be tents and a field hospital, suggesting they should move toward the Egyptian border. The fresh warnings come as the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said that the death toll has risen to above 12,000 since Israels war in the enclave began. The south of Gaza is in the grips of a humanitarian catastrophe, aid agencies and the UN report. The population has doubled since the Israeli military invasion of the north, leaving food, water, and the basic essentials for survival, hard to find as winter sets in. 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. Chinas neighbors are trying to capitalize on current tensions with the US by wooing American CEOs who are more open to making their goods in other parts of Southeast Asia. The lobbying from China's Asian rivals was on full display this past week at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in San Francisco, even as Chinese President Xi Jinping tried to make his own case for why the US business world should keep its money with him. On a day when Xi and President Joe Biden huddled at a resort roughly 35 miles away, American CEOs and leaders from other Southeast Asian nations rubbed elbows inside a San Francisco convention center. The global chair of PricewaterhouseCoopers International appeared alongside the prime minister of Malaysia. The CEO of Uber (UBER) was with the president of the Philippines. The CEO of Microsoft (MSFT) appeared in a session with three Southeast Asian leaders. The heads of companies like ExxonMobil (XOM), Alphabet (GOOG), GM (GM) and Visa (V) were also on hand for conversations. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks during the APEC CEO Summit on Nov. 15, 2023, in San Francisco. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Justin Sullivan via Getty Images) "This is the right time to invest," said Indonesian President Joko Widodo from the stage as he touted his nations efforts in areas like electric vehicles and clean energy. He called it "the right and promising choice to make," according to the official translation. Philippines President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. also used his remarks at APEC this past week to push for tighter economic ties, saying "this opportunity to collaborate once more is light in the economic horizon in our efforts to preempt a prolonged downturn and its very negative consequences." American companies have long been looking to diversify their supply chains beyond China thanks to a US-China trade war. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated those discussions, with companies unable to get goods out of the world's second-largest economy as manufacturing hubs and ports within China shut down. Now even more firms are considering such moves because of geopolitical uncertainty and opaqueness around the Chinese economy. More than 10 executives from major companies met with China's President Xi Jinping. The diversification strategy received strong encouragement from the Biden administration this past week, with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen encouraging companies to look at "friend-shoring" or focusing on countries that are trusted trade partners. "There's no question that these other Southeast Asian countries are going to be making a strong pitch for why they need to be added to the supply chain basket," said Shehzad Qazi, managing director at China Beige Book. "I think the question that the CEOs and their staff will be wondering about continuously is, do these other countries have the capacity to become big players." The nations that stand to benefit Experts say tech manufacturing and the transition to clean energy offer the biggest opportunities for businesses that want to seek out opportunities in Asian countries outside of China. Its already happening in India. That country has emerged as a key alternative to China for companies like Tesla (TSLA) and Apple (AAPL), which has long relied on Chinese companies for its iPhone components. India is not a member of APEC. Apple is also reportedly pushing for more investment in Vietnam, as are major chipmakers including Intel (INTC) and GlobalFoundries (GFS) that recently visited the country to reportedly discuss building out the country's semiconductor assembly and design capabilities. Prime Minister of Malaysia Anwar Ibrahim at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO Summit on Nov. 15. (Carlos Barria/REUTERS) (Carlos Barria / reuters) Vietnam is trying to gain benefits from both the US and China, said Nicholas Lardy, an expert on the Chinese economy at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, setting up the nation as a middleman. Chinese firms "are producing things [in Vietnam] and selling them into the US and avoiding the tariffs," he notes. "So this is a workaround." But both Lardy and Rhodium Group Director Reva Goujon point out that these complicated arrangements could end up backfiring on the West. "It's kind of ironic because the US is trying to pull these countries into our orbit and reduce their dependence on China, but their dependence on China is actually growing," Lardy notes. Goujon adds that "dependencies are still very sticky so you can have investment move to Vietnam or Thailand or Indonesia but the inputs for those manufactured products are still likely coming from China." A China that isn't going away The Chinese president put on his own charm offensive this past week. At a dinner Wednesday night that included Apple CEO Tim Cook, Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Stan Deal, and FedEx CEO Raj Subramaniam, he tried to reassure the CEOs in attendance by suggesting his political controls would be less restrictive going forward. He also engaged in some panda diplomacy, suggesting new bears could be coming to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., after the former residents were recalled to the PRC earlier this year. China's President Xi Jinping claps as he speaks at a dinner with business leaders during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference on Wednesday, Nov. 15. (Jeff Chiu/AP Photo) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) And in a second written statement, Xi alluded directly to the burgeoning rivalry with his neighbors, writing "China has become a synonym of the best investment destination, and that the next China' is still China." "Decoupling and supply-chain disruption are not in anyone's interests," he added. China could also benefit in the months and years ahead from troubled efforts to get a trade framework across the Asian region in place. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo acknowledged Wednesday at a dinner attended by CEOs as well as Xi that many American businesses remained keenly interested in China. "I know that because half of you have come to see me to tell me that." Akiko Fujita is an anchor and reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @AkikoFujita. Ben Werschkul is Washington correspondent for Yahoo Finance. Click here for politics news related to business and money Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance At Plymouth-based Preferred, Realtors Ltd., the top-ranked business among small companies in the 2023 Michigan Top Workplaces competition, team members have been known to work together, learn together and even throw axes together. The latter activity has taken place the past two years during an annual summer party, which is central to the companys culture, as team members are bussed down to Detroits Corktown neighborhood for several hours of planned fun. We are a family! says office manager Pam Bartling with conviction about the company which was founded in 1989 by its current broker and owner Jim Stevens. Sometimes people come in and they may think that what Im saying is too good to be true, but Im not going to tell our team members something that is not going to happen. Office manager Pam Bartling, center, listens in a staff sale workshop at Preferred, Realtors in Plymouth on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. Under Stevens leadership, the company has prided itself on customer satisfaction and serving the metro Detroit community. But Bartling says one of the best ways to determine if Preferred, Realtors is also meeting the needs of its team members is simply to check a listing of Preferred, Realtors team members through the years. In our business, agents move around a lot, but we have high retention of our agents, Bartling explained. We have agents that have been here up to 20 to 30 years, and if an agent leaves and wants to come back we welcome that agent with open arms. Its just a very friendly, supportive environment. Bartling says that within Preferred, Realtors friendly, supportive environment are many opportunities to learn and share regardless of a team members tenure. Office manager Pam Bartling talks to realtor Nate Kielb at Preferred, Realtors in Plymouth on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. We focus a lot on education, said Bartling, who said her team will soon be gearing up for its annual holiday party, which is enjoyed as much as the summer party, in large part because the event has supported local charities in the past. As an organization, we pride ourselves on making sure everybody is kept informed of the changes in the market and the real estate industry as a whole. We realize that no one is perfect, so there is no arrogance, not even from our most experienced agents; everyone helps each other. Preferred, Realtors Ltd. Industry: Real estate agents/brokers Top leadership: Jim Stevens, broker and owner Home: Plymouth Township Employees: 132 (115 Michigan employees) Website: preferredrealtorsltd.com This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Working together leads to team-member retention at Preferred DENVER (AP) As weary migrants arrive in Denver on buses from the U.S.-Mexico border city of El Paso, Texas, officials offer them two options: temporary shelter or a bus ticket out. Nearly half of the 27,000 migrants who arrived in Denver since November 2022 have chosen the bus, plane or train tickets to other cities in the U.S., city data shows. In New York and Illinois, taxpayer dollars also are being spent on tickets, creating a shuffle of migrants in the interior U.S. who need shelter, food and medical assistance as they await rulings on asylum cases that can take years. The transfer of migrants has gained momentum since Republican governors in Texas and Florida started chartering buses and planes to Democratic-led cities in what critics waved off as political stunts. More than a year later, some of those cities, their resources dwindling, are eager to help migrants move on to their final destinations. The efforts show the increased pressures cities are facing as more migrants from around the globe are coming to the U.S. southern border, often fleeing economic turmoil. Illegal border crossings topped 2 million during the government's fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, the second-highest number on record. With many migrants in shelters or living on the street, the next phase of the challenge is getting them to their families, friends or court cases, said Mario Russell, director at the Center for Migration Studies of New York. That "has been in a sense dropped into the laps of interior cities without much preparation, without much forethought really at any level, Russell added. Denver alone has spent at least $4.3 million in city funds to send migrants to other U.S. cities, freeing up shelter beds for new arrivals while adding to the numbers in other Democratic-led cities such as Chicago and New York that are struggling to house asylum-seekers, mostly from Venezuela. Data wasn't yet available from New York, though the city is offering one-way plane tickets to anywhere in the world. Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago has used state funds to help buy tickets for more than 2,500 migrants who have family, friends or sponsors elsewhere, according to Chief of Staff Mary Krinock. The cities say they buy tickets only for migrants who want to travel and they do not coerce people to leave. Texas and Florida have chartered buses and planes to take migrants only to certain cities. They say people board them voluntarily. The people who are desperate, who are coming here for shelter and assistance, were not going to turn those people away, Jon Ewing of Denver Human Service said. But at the same time we have to make it very clear to them thats theres only so much we can do. Advocates working with migrants say many come to Denver on their way to other cities because of its relative proximity to the border, reputation for being welcoming and the cheaper bus fare. But charities are feeling the pressure as the weather turns colder and migrants end up sleeping in tent encampments. It breaks my heart. It is like we have so many children and little ones that we know we cant even help, said Yoli Casas, executive director of Vive Wellness, which works with new migrants to Denver. Theres just no more room. Theres no more funding. Theres no nothing. Were not prepared," she said. Denver has bought nearly 3,000 tickets to Chicago and 2,300 to New York, almost half of the more than 12,000 tickets the city has purchased for migrants since November 2022. The vast majority were bus tickets, but Denver also purchased about 340 tickets for flights and 200 for train rides. Roughly 1,000 tickets were bound for Texas and Florida, whose governors have sent chartered buses and planes of migrants to Democratic-led sanctuary cities" that limit their cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Russell of the Center for Migration Studies said greater communication among cities is required to ensure people go where its most appropriate rather than potentially going in circles and circles, from one city to the next. "That doesn't help anybody," he added. Tensions flared between political leaders in January when Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis chartered buses for migrants to Chicago. Then-Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and New York City Mayor Eric Adams penned a letter urging Polis to stop and saying overburdening other cities is not the solution. Cities including Denver, New York, Chicago, Houston and Los Angeles recently have presented a united front, with their mayors going to Washington, D.C., to meet with President Joe Biden and ask for more assistance. You have mayors across the country that are struggling with this international crises and we need the federal government to do more, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who took office in May, told reporters this month. Ewing gave a similar message regarding El Pasos busing of migrants to Denver, saying the two cities have been in communication. They were overwhelmed, Ewing said, We certainly didnt encourage it, but we do understand it. El Paso's mayor is a Democrat and the city's practice of chartering buses for migrants is separate from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, whose office says it has bused more than 50,000 migrants total to Washington, D.C., New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Denver and Los Angeles since August 2022 to highlight Biden's border policies. Abbott spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris said the governor is acting "to provide relief to our overwhelmed border towns." Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis got attention last year by flying migrants from San Antonio to Marthas Vineyard in Massachusetts. This year, state lawmakers approved $12 million in funding for Florida's migrant relocation initiative. In Denver, the millions spent on tickets for migrants has reduced shelter costs, which reached upward of $31 million, largely from federal aid with support from the state. But the city also recently instituted shelter bed limits. Migrants without children have two weeks in city-run shelters, while families have more than five weeks. The city also has sent flyers to border towns warning migrants that the Rocky Mountain metropolis has expensive housing and no shelter space. In Massachusetts. Democratic Gov. Maura Healey set a threshold of 7,500 families in emergency shelters. New York City and Chicago also are limiting migrants' shelter stays. A few Chicago City Council members want to gauge voter support for ending sanctuary city status with a nonbinding ballot measure in the March primary. Strong backing could help efforts to limit Chicago's decades-old sanctuary status. Among other things, city employees aren't allowed to ask about immigration status and law enforcement are barred from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. We have other Democratic cities, Denver, California, L.A., sending their people to Chicago, New York. Theyre sending their migrants to Chicago. Why? Because they are saying, We cant take anymore. Chicago has yet to say, We cant take anymore, Alderman Anthony Beale, who has backed the ballot measure, said at a recent council meeting. We have to draw the line somewhere. ___ Associated Press writer Sophia Tareen contributed from Chicago. ___ Bedayn 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. 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They screamed it at the steps of the Memorial Auditorium, while they clutched Palestinian flags. They yelled it as they shut down nearby streets, carrying signs with the same words. And they chanted it inside a downtown convention center, the site of a California Democratic Party gathering. There, they disrupted speeches and other programming on multiple occasions during the afternoon. By the evening, Democratic officials had canceled hours of events planned for that night, including parties and group meetings. Earlier in the day, Jenny Lynn, a communications director for the California Progressive Alliance, said a goal of the days protests was to make sure Democratic leaders heard from residents who were in support of ending the Israel-Hamas war. We will not be ignored, Lynn said. Message sent. Beyond that, Saturdays demonstrations were the latest sign of the growing fervor over the war and the divisions it has caused between members of the states Democratic Party. At its peak, Sacramento police estimated roughly 2,500 people attended the rolling protests. We are not going to forget come 2024, said Lynn, alluding to elections next year. Cease-fire protesters make 1st breach of California Democrats convention The California Progressive Alliance, and other groups, helped put on the days main demonstration which began at the Memorial Auditorium, a few hundred feet from the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center. Event organizers billed the rally as coming at a pivotal moment with the epicenter of a powerful gathering so close by. Yet even before it began at 3 p.m., protesters had disrupted the convention. About 100 people staged a sit-in outside of a meeting where hundreds of party delegates heard from U.S. Senate candidates. Demonstrators chanted Free Palestine and In November well remember, referring to the November 2024 election, outside the hall where U.S. Reps. Katie Porter, Adam Schiff, and Barbara Lee spoke. A small group of protesters from the sit-in disrupted remarks from Porter and Schiff during a candidate forum. Schiff and Porter have not called for a cease-fire, but Lee has. Longshot fellow candidate Lexi Reese also called for one as protesters entered the meeting hall while she spoke. It was just the latest demonstration calling for an end to the war, which began last month. In another recent example, protesters also advocating for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip disrupted traffic for hours Thursday on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. An Oct. 7 attack on Israel by the militant group Hamas, which governs Gaza, sparked the fighting that the protests are looking to end. As a result, the Israeli military says 1,300 people have been killed and hundreds more abducted. Israels government responded to the attack with force, launching a counter offensive into Gaza with a goal of killing Hamas fighters. More than 11,400 Palestinians have been killed and roughly 2,700 are believed to be missing, the Associated Press reported citing Palestinian health authorities and the United Nations humanitarian affairs office. The people killed in the conflict, particularly Palestinian children, were on the minds of many who protested Saturday. For Safwan Farooq, of Sacramento, calling for an end to the war wasnt about supporting one group of people, or religion, over another. Were only concerned with the humanity. Demonstrators calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war sit in front of the stage, disrupting the afternoon session at the Democratic nominating convention Saturday at SAFE Credit Union Convention Center. Evening protest shuts down Democratic delegate voting, events After the first disruption of the convention, many of those protesters joined others at the Memorial Auditorium. The crowd there swelled. Demonstrators led chants and lined J Street, which runs in front of the auditorium. Police eventually blocked off the road. Protesters heard speeches in support of the cease-fire from representatives of local and political groups, along with Sacramento City Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela. While state Democratic Party leaders were a focus of the rally, demonstrators also directed frustration at the United States government, particularly President Joe Biden, for its military and political support of Israel. Some of their signs read: Stop U.S. Aid for Genocide and DEFUND ISRAEL DEFEND PALESTINE! A demonstrator carrying the Palestinian flag rides a horse named Midnight in front of a protest march in support of Palestine near the Memorial Auditorium in downtown Sacramento on Saturday. The protesters were calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war. Before 5 p.m., the rally moved from the front of the auditorium to nearby 16th Street. Protesters filled the road and then turned up I Street, before turning again towards the convention center. Ammar Farooq, who lives in the Sacramento area, watched from the back along with his five young children. They should do the cease-fire, Farooq said of the U.S. government. They should stop the funding of Israel. Shortly after, a group of demonstrators marched into the convention center, waving flags, beating drums, and chanting as they went up an escalator to protest outside voting rooms, which were empty at the time. One of the goals of the three-day Democratic Party gathering was for delegates to endorse candidates for upcoming elections. Resistance is justified when people are occupied, protesters chanted. Another group tried to get into the center from the west lobby. They were briefly held off by security guards before making their way inside. As of Saturday evening, Sacramento police said there were no arrests or reports of vandalism from the days rallies. The California Legislative Jewish Caucus, in an emailed statement, condemned protesters storming past security into the center and said a number of Jewish delegates believe it is unsafe to continue participating in the convention. We must never allow the Democratic Party to be unsafe for anyone, the group said. By 6 p.m., protesters continued to occupy different areas of the center while many others remained outside banging drums, clutching to signs and yelling Shut it down. Adeeb Alzanoon, chair of the Sacramento Regional Coalition for Palestinian Rights, watched the scene from outside the building. Alzanoon, who is Palestinian, said seven of his extended family members have been killed in Gaza, along with dozens of others that are more distantly related. Along with a cease-fire, he called on U.S. leaders to end apartheid in Palestine. He also had a message for Democratic Party delegates attending the convention: Do more. The demonstration prevented some from casting endorsement votes, leaving them frustrated. As the protest continued, Democratic officials canceled evening events at the center. Shery Yang, communications director for the California Democratic Party, said in an emailed statement that it was Due to circumstances beyond our control, and for the safety and security of our delegates and convention participants. The calls to shut it down had been heard. Protesters were still waiting on the cease-fire. Erin Kissane, a co-founder of the COVID Tracking Project, rolled up her sleeve for the Novavax Covid-19 vaccine in mid-October soon after it was finally recommended in the United States. Like many people with autoimmune diseases, she wants to protect herself from a potentially devastating Covid infection. Kissanes autoimmune arthritis seems to make her susceptible to unusual vaccine side effects. After getting an mRNA booster last year, her joints ached so painfully that her doctor prescribed steroids to dampen the inflammation. She still considers the mRNA vaccines miraculous, knowing Covid could be far worse than temporary aches. Nonetheless, when the pain subsided, she pored through studies on Novavaxs shot, a vaccine that is based on proteins rather than mRNA and has been used since early 2022 in other countries. Data from the United Kingdom found that people more frequently reported temporary reactions like low fevers, fatigue, and pain as their immune system ramped up in the days following booster vaccination with Modernas mRNA vaccine versus the one by Pfizer. And those boosted with Novavaxs had fewer complaints than either of those. That finding was corroborated in an analysis of international data published last year. Such studies have driven people with long Covid and chronic fatigue syndrome (also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis, or ME/CFS) to seek out Novavax, too, since the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention greenlighted Novavaxs vaccine updated to protect against recent omicron coronavirus variants about three weeks after recommending updated mRNA vaccines in September. Waiting paid off for Kissane, whose arm was briefly sore. It was a dramatically different experience for me, she said. I hope that plays out for others. Another group who waited on Novavax are biologists who geek out over its technology. When asked why he opted for Novavax, Florian Krammer, a virologist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, replied on X, formerly known as Twitter: Because I am [a] vaccine nerd, I like insect cell produced vaccines. Whereas mRNA vaccines direct the body to produce spike proteins from the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which then train a persons immune system to recognize and fight the virus, Novavax simply injects the proteins. These proteins are grown within moth cells in a laboratory, while other protein-based shots use cells from mammals. And Novavax has said that a special ingredient derived from the bark of Chilean soapbark trees enhances the vaccines power. Research suggests that the Novavax vaccine is about as safe and effective as the mRNA shots. Its main disadvantage is arriving late to the scene. Vaccine uptake has plummeted since the first shots became widely available in 2021. Nearly 70% of people got the primary vaccines, compared with fewer than 20% opting for the mRNA Covid boosters released last year. Numbers have dwindled further: As of Oct. 17, only 5% of people in the United States had gotten the latest Covid vaccines, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Daniel Park, an epidemiologist at George Washington University, said low rates might improve if people who felt lousy after their last mRNA shots gave Novavax a try. It protects against severe illness, but researchers struggle to specify just how effective this and other vaccines are, at this point, because studies have gotten tricky to conduct: New coronavirus variants continuously emerge, and people have fluctuating levels of immunity from previous vaccines and infections. Still, a recent study in Italy suggests that Novavax is comparable to mRNA vaccines. It remained more than 50% effective at preventing symptomatic Covid four months after vaccination. Some data suggests that mixing and matching different types of vaccines confers stronger protection although other studies have found no benefit. Given all this, Park held out for the Novavax vaccine on account of its potentially milder side effects. Between a demanding full-time job and two young kids at home, I wanted to stay operational, he said. His arm was sore, but he didnt have the 24-hour malaise accompanying his last mRNA shot. Most people dont strike a fever after mRNA shots. Even when they do, it is brief and therefore far less detrimental than many cases of Covid. In fact, most reactions are so minor that theyre hard to interpret. During clinical trials on mRNA vaccines, for example, up to a third of people in the placebo group reported fatigue and headaches after injection. People with ME/CFS and long Covid a potentially debilitating condition that persists months after a Covid infection have responded to Covid vaccinations in a wide variety of ways. Most participants with long Covid in an 83-person Canadian study said their levels of fatigue, concentration, and shortness of breath improved following vaccination. Inflammatory proteins that have been linked to long Covid dropped as well. However, larger studies have yet to corroborate the hopeful finding. Dr. Jennifer Curtin, a doctor who co-founded a telehealth clinic focused on long Covid and ME/CFS, called RTHM, said vaccines seem to temporarily aggravate some patients conditions. To learn how Novavax compares, she posted polls on X in late October asking if people with long Covid or ME/CFS felt that their symptoms worsened, improved, or stayed the same after Novavax. Most replied: unchanged. Its not scientific, but we need to figure it out since these folks dont want to get Covid, Curtin said. My patients are all wondering about what vaccine to get right now. Adding to the uncertainty, the rollout of Novavax and mRNA vaccines has been bumpy as pharmacies struggle to predict demand and insurance companies figure out how to reimburse providers for the shots. Unlike previous vaccine offerings, these options are no longer fully covered by the federal government. A testament to this seasons struggle to get vaccinated is that at least one do-gooder has created an online tool to find open appointments for Novavax. Buoyed by anecdotes of relief from others with long Covid, Hayley Brown, a researcher at the Center for Economic and Policy Research who has the condition, opted for Novavax recently. Unfortunately, her symptoms have flared. She said a temporary discomfort will still be preferable to risking another infection. As someone with long Covid, the idea of getting Covid again is terrifying. Matt Keeble/Dave Benett/Getty Images Tom Hiddleston is a dad, and having a baby has hugely changed his life. The Loki star, 42, was asked if his perspective changed after welcoming his first child with fiancee Zawe Ashton. Of course, it has to, he said on the Thursday, November 16, episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast. I think I probably knew it would, but I could never have imagined how deeply it would until it happened. And yeah, its before and after. Ashton, 39, gave birth to their first child together in 2022, Us Weekly confirmed. Tom and Zawe are loving being new parents and are filled with joy, a source exclusively told Us at the time. They have been having the struggles of new parents and arent sleeping much but are thrilled. How Zawe Ashton and Fiance Tom Hiddleston Keep Their Romance Private Tom Hiddleston and Zawe Ashton played a married couple in the 2019 revival of the play Betrayal and a real-life romance quickly blossomed between the two. Though the couple have been effusive about one anothers talent and work, Hiddleston once detailed how his whirlwind romance with Taylor Swift in 2016 taught him to be [] The actress also recently joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe, playing the villainous Dar-Benn in The Marvels, which hit theaters earlier this month. Im so proud of her yeah, and shes terrific in the Marvels, Hiddleston shared during the podcast while discussing trading tips about playing a supervillain. I just only saw it recently. Yeah, it has been it has been bizarre to to share those stories. I mean, I kind of want her to talk about her own work in her own way, but but yeah, Im so proud of her. Weve had some definitely had some laughs along the way about zippers and bathroom breaks. Dave Benett/Getty Images Earlier this month, Hiddleston was asked if Loki and The Marvels connected, given that the finale debuted on Disney+ at the same time the film hit theaters. I mean, there are connections. Some secret, some not-so-secret, Hiddleston said while on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. I dont know what the fans think the secret connection is. My other half is in The Marvels and Im very proud of her. So there you go. Tom Hiddleston Dating History: A Timeline of His Famous Exes and Flings A man in love! Tom Hiddlestons love life has made headlines over the years as he navigates dating in the public eye. In June 2016, the U.K. native was spotted spending time with Taylor Swift not far from her Rhode Island home. The connection came shortly after Swift called it quits with Calvin Harris following [] Ashton met Hiddleston in 2018 while they starred on Londons West End in a play called Betrayal alongside Daredevil actor Charlie Cox. They brought the show to Broadway in 2019, but their relationship didnt end there. They confirmed they were dating when they made their red carpet debut as a couple at the Tony Awards the following September 2021. The British duo got engaged in early 2022 and Ashton debuted her baby bump the following June. Hiddleston and Ashton were looking to build a long-term future together, another source exclusively told Us in March 2022. [They are] hugely ambitious but still make time to relax and switch off from work as often as they can. The couples friends and family all agree its a great match with a ton of potential, the insider added. Theyre crazy about each other. Germany is unwilling to criticise Israels conduct in the war with Hamas because of its psychology of guilt over the Holocaust, Turkeys president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has suggested. At a tense joint press conference during Mr Erdogans first visit to Germany since 2020, chancellor Olaf Scholz said it was no secret they held very different views on the conflict, which was reignited on a level not seen in decades by Hamass brutal cross-border massacre of 1,200 Israelis on 7 October. The Israeli-Palestinian war should not be evaluated with a psychology of guilt. I speak freely because we do not owe anything to Israel, Mr Erdogan told reporters, before the two leaders held private talks. Those who feel indebted to Israel cannot speak freely. We did not go through the Holocaust process, we dont have such situation, because our respect for humanity is different, the Turkish president added. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and German chancellor Olaf Scholz held talks in Berlin on Friday (Sean Gallup/Getty Images) Deep atonement for the Holocaust which saw the genocide of six million Jews and five million others is at the heart of Germanys post-Second World War identity. The state of Israel was founded three years after the war ended as a safe haven for Jews. Mr Scholz did not respond directly to the remarks but restated Germanys commitment to Israels right to defend itself, adding: If you know Germany, you know that our solidarity with Israel is beyond all question. Israel has the right to defend itself. At the same time all lives are equally precious and the suffering in Gaza distresses us. More than 12,000 Palestinians including 5,000 children have been killed in Israeli attacks on the densely-populated strip since 7 October, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, in figures deemed credible by the United Nations. There is hardly any place left to call Gaza. Everything has been razed to the ground, said Mr Erdogan. Palestinians inspect the destruction after an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip in Nusseirat refugee camp on Friday (AP Photo/Marwan Saleh) But the Turkish president stopped short of repeating his more controversial remarks made in recent days, in which he labelled Israel a terror state and said its legitimacy was being questioned due to its own fascism an assertion dubbed absurd by Mr Scholz in the run-up to the visit. During Fridays press conference, Mr Scholz said it was no secret that we have very different perspectives on the conflict, adding: Thats why our conversations are important. Especially in difficult moments, we need to talk to each other directly. While Mr Scholz had faced some domestic pressure to cancel the visit, planned since May, German commentators noted the need for cooperation after geopolitical tensions caused by repression in Turkey in the wake of its 2016 coup attempt. Germany is also home to a vast Turkish diaspora of nearly 3 million people, roughly half of whom hold voting rights there. Recep Erdogan stopped short of repeating more controversial remarks made in the run-up to the visit (Tobias Schwartz/AFP via Getty Images) While Mr Scholz who is dealing with a 60bn hole in his budget, a coalition row over the economy and rising immigration needs Ankaras help in stemming migration to the EU, Mr Erdogan could also benefit from Berlins backing for modernising Turkeys customs union with the EU and visa-free EU travel for Turks, ahead of key local elections. A question of whether Germany could potentially block the sale of 40 Eurofighter jets to Turkey also brought a moment of tension, as Mr Erdogan insisted he could procure the jets from many other places if Berlin rejected the deal, and berated the journalist who raised the issue. Mr Scholz declined to respond when asked whether he would approve the sale. Additional reporting by Reuters The book on famous composers from the St Paul public library in Minnesota must have been a really good read. Related: Penguin Random House launches high schoolers award to combat book bans It was more than a century overdue when it was finally returned recently. Titled Famous Composers and exploring the lives of composers such as Bach, Beethoven and Mozart, the tome turned up while a Hennepin county resident was sorting through a relatives belongings. The library checkout slip shows it was last borrowed in 1919, Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) reported. This week, a book that was checked out over 100 years ago was finally returned to the Saint Paul Public Library! This 1902 edition of Famous Composers vol. 2 by Nathan Haskell Dole was found by a patron in Hennepin County while sorting through their mothers belongings. pic.twitter.com/b3ypL6lXxF Saint Paul Public Library (@stpaullibrary) November 17, 2023 The St Paul digital library coordinator, John Larson, said it was the most overdue book he ever saw returned in his 25 years working for the library. Theres been a time or two when something has come back and maybe it has been checked out for 20 or 30 years, but nothing where it looks like it has been out for some 100 years, he said to MPR. Maybe once every five or 10 years we will see something that is incredibly overdue. Larson investigated the books markings and found that it had first been entered into the librarys catalog in 1914. That was the year before a fire at the Old Market Hall where the library was housed destroyed 160,000 books in the facilitys collection. At the time of the fire, nearly a third of the librarys books were checked out, Larson discovered. That made Famous Composers one of the lucky pieces of literature to survive the blaze. A stamp in 1916 confirms that it was re-entered into the librarys collection. Our @stpaullibrary just received a book that was returned wait for it 100 years overdue! At the 1919 rate of a penny per day, that would have been a $36k fine but #SaintPaul is a #FineFreeLibrary system so no charge! https://t.co/hOvKyCtpuC Melvin Carter (@melvincarter3) November 18, 2023 St Pauls mayor, Melvin Carter, joked in a tweet on Saturday that there would be no fine. The library like many across the country stopped charging late fees in 2019. During the time period the book was checked out, Larson thinks a late fee would have been a penny a day. The books future is uncertain. Larson said he doubted it will go back into circulation because of its delicate condition, but he expected the library to hang on to it. It has reached a point where its not just an old book its an artefact, he said. It has a little bit of history to it. Kari Lake is looking to hit the reset button with Republicans she isolated during her gubernatorial bid last cycle as she vies for Sen. Kyrsten Sinemas (I-Ariz.) seat next fall. Lake sought to strike a more conciliatory tone with Republicans during a phone interview with The Hill on Tuesday, saying she had been meeting with and having conversations with Republicans in Arizona who have been skeptical of me. I want to meet with everybody who is kind of on the fence I truly do and people who maybe in the past we were foes. I dont want to be foes with any Republican, she told The Hill. We have way too much to solve and accomplish to turn America around, and I dont want to be enemies with any Republican. Best Black Friday Deals Its a stark contrast from the tone she set more than a year ago in which she lashed out at several of her opponents in the Arizona gubernatorial race and claimed that we drove a stake through the heart of the McCain machine just days after she won her GOP primary. A GOP source confirmed Lake had met with former gubernatorial rival Karrin Taylor Robson, as was first reported by The Arizona Republic, and was also reaching out to other people within the McCain faction of the party. Though Republicans and political observers think its a good move, its uncertain how effective it will be. Its smart. I mean, I think shes got to try and do that. How its received is a whole different ball game, Republican strategist Chuck Coughlin said. But thats clearly what she has to do is, you know, tidy up the Republican base, and then additionally make herself available to unaffiliated voters, he added. Lake, who spent more than two decades as a local news anchor for Fox 10 Phoenix, quickly gained notoriety during the 2022 midterm campaign season, when she launched her bid to replace then-Gov. Doug Ducey (R). The Trump-aligned candidate made baseless claims about the legitimacy of the 2020 election and took jabs at the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), suggesting to supporters in remarks before the GOP primary that it was time to replace that disgusting, dirty McCain Swamp with a Lake. She has traded barbs with 2022 gubernatorial rivals Robson and former Rep. Matt Salmon (R-Ariz.), calling Robson a Ducey-clone RINO who was trying to buy the election with her 95-yr-old husbands millions. Lake also defended retweeting a controversial post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that claimed Salmon was OK with special needs children being sexually assaulted after he voiced opposition to her proposal to have cameras allowed in the classroom. Arizona Capitol Times noted the post was referencing to a Scottsdale child abuse case. Fast-forward more than a year later, and Lake is now trying to win some of those detractors back in a race that also includes GOP contender Mark Lamb, Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and potentially Sinema, who has not yet said whether shes running for reelection. I want to bring people together, I truly do. I 100 percent do, and when I reach out to people, it is in good faith. And even if they dont come around to me, I am not planning to go to war with Republicans, Lake told The Hill. She called McCain absolutely a war hero, while adding, I do think that his voting record was up for scrutiny. She argued that some of her comments about McCain Republicans were misinterpreted and made long before the November election. Lake also noted that some Republicans who might be unlikely backers of her have endorsed her, such as Senate Republican No. 3 Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). While Lake is looking to woo over moderate Republicans in Arizona, she hasnt backtracked from disputing the results of her gubernatorial race, which she lost to Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) by just more than half a percentage point. She filed an appeal brief in court this week over Maricopa Countys handling of the 2022 election, arguing she was entitled to a new election a brief that was filed after a lower court rejected her challenge of her election loss earlier this year. Asked how she would make her case to voters who were concerned she was an election denier or had concerns about her comments on the 2020 election, Lake argued, Im not an election denier. Im not denying there was an election, Im denying that the election was run fairly and honestly, and Im continuing with my court cases, she continued. I am about having election reform so that all Arizonans all Americans, frankly whether theyre Democrat, independent or Republican, know that their one legal vote counted, and that they can trust in the results, she added. Some Republicans dont see much of a difference between the candidate that ran last cycle and the one running for Senate. I know shes making attempts to try to come off as a little bit more of a moderated candidate, but that doesnt necessarily match with what shes saying and doing in the state, said Lorna Romero Ferguson, a former McCain campaign aide. I think it might work with some people, and others, probably not. I think with some part of the electorate, too much damage has been done, she said, referring to Lakes attempts to reset with the moderate GOP. There has been concern among some within the party that it risks losing a winnable Senate seat with Lake as the nominee, though polling shows a tight race. The Republican firm National Research Inc.s poll has shown Lake maintaining a 4-point lead over Gallego, while one commissioned by Gallegos campaign showed him 5 points ahead in a three-way match-up with Lake and Sinema. Republican strategist Barrett Marson expressed surprise over Lakes comments to The Hill that she wanted to make amends with those she had been at odds with and said shes got a lot of work to do to mend those fences, suggesting one way might be to offer a public apology to the McCain family. At least one of her opponents isnt quite sold that he could support her in the general election. I would have a very, very difficult time jumping up and supporting her for anything to be honest, said Salmon, who ran against her in the Arizona governors race and later dropped out to support Robson. Its one thing to criticize somebody, somebody for a bill that they supported or a vote that they cast thats all fair game, he said. But when you get really personal and you employ the politics of personal destruction, its hard to come back and win those people. But other members of the party think her comments to make amends with Republicans shes been at a crossroads with is a good political move. If Kari Lake is doing, ironically, a different version of a Hillary Clinton listening tour, it is and will be very smart for her prospects, said Arizona GOP consultant Jason Rose. One Republican strategist who requested anonymity to speak candidly argued that members of the party didnt have a choice. [At] the end of the day, these Republicans have to make a choice here, if theyre gonna vote for Kari Lake again, who they agree with almost 90 percent of the time if not more, or Krysten Sinema and Ruben Gallego, who agree with Joe Biden 100 percent of the time, the strategist argued. On Capitol Hill, some Senate Republicans have offered her praise. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) called her impressive. Barrasso told The Hill shes going to be a terrific United States senator the next senator from Arizona, and Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), last cycles chair of the Senate GOP campaign arm, said she has a really good chance. All three are senators shes spoken with. And in a recent memo obtained by The Hill, Lakes campaign has also sought to make the case that Arizona is worthy of Republican investment, calling the state the best pickup opportunity for Senate Republicans in 2024 outside of West Virginia. The memo pointed to an internal poll from the Senate Republicans campaign arm that suggested 38 percent of voters had either never heard of Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) or had no opinion of him, compared to 7 percent who said the same about Lake. By defining him on this record, the case can be made to Arizonans that Gallegos brand of politics is not in line with the common-sense voters of Arizona. If executed properly, come Election Day, this portion of the electorate will have a much more informed view of Gallegos progressive record, giving Lake an opening to overtake him, the memo said. Though its unclear how much Lakes efforts to reach across the Republican aisle to win back detractors might work, members of the party say itll be needed either way. I think shes going to have some success, not total success, with mending fences with not only key individuals but more broad constituency groups. Its a necessary effort, explained Republican strategist Stan Barnes, whos been close to Lake. And if its successful, she can win. And if its not successful, it was still necessary, because she simply cannot win without it. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. When Joe Biden seeks release from Washington pressures, he goes to his house in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Donald Trump, of course, had Mar-a-Lago in Florida and even Richard Nixon had the Western White House, in San Clemente, California. Presidents often have places to go to escape. Related: An end of American democracy: Heather Cox Richardson on Trumps historic threat Abraham Lincoln needed an escape more than anyone but his bolt hole was closer to home: a cottage at the Soldiers Home, on a hill north of the White House in Washington DC itself. Its still there, a lesser-known historical site in the capital. Callie Hawkins, chief executive of President Lincolns Cottage, a national monument since 2000, says: At the height of the civil war, some of Lincolns close friends suggested he take a break, go somewhere else. And he said, Three weeks would do me no good. This follows me wherever I go. It would be natural to think of this place as a retreat of some kind. But in many ways, this place brought him closer to the war. He was surrounded by veterans who were wounded. At that time, they lived in the building next door. Just in front of us, about 200 yards away, is the first national cemetery. And then from the other side of the house, he could have looked out on to Maryland and Virginia, both slave-holding states. And so it was really a constant reminder, being out here, of reality. Well walk up to the statue, because I want to see how you stand up to Lincoln. Youre pretty tall yourself. Im 6ft 4in but in his famous hat, Lincoln has me matched. The bronze, by Ivan Schwartz and showing the 16th president with the horse he rode to and from the White House each day in the hot months June to November was installed in 2008. Its different in purpose to the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, Hawkins says. We wanted to push back against that idea that Lincoln can only be viewed from afar, as a figure larger than life, on a throne in a temple. Here, you can walk up and look him in the eye. And this is a view that many people who were part of this community, on the grounds of the Soldiers Home, would have had. The statue is the most obvious manifestation of Lincoln at the Soldiers Home. But his presence is evoked elsewhere. From the terrace, where Lincoln played checkers with Tad, his son, visitors can look out as Lincoln did, down over Washington, to the Capitol, or out to Virginia and Maryland. Inside, the house is sparsely furnished, without attempt to recreate its look in Lincolns day. The result is strongly evocative. With the shutters closed, the study where Lincoln worked is dark. Next door, the drawing room is light. Its pretty magical, Hawkins says. Theres this thing that happens to a lot of people when they come in the cottage. Its one of those sensations you cant quite describe, but we have done our best and call it the Lincoln shiver. Its this full-body sensation as you are standing in this place and moving throughout these rooms, that Lincoln did the same at one of the most pivotal moments in American history. Added to that is that its a home, and homes are our most intimate spaces. You can just imagine Lincoln in his night shirt, or pajamas and bedroom slippers, moving about these grounds. Hawkins describes one such appearance by Lincoln, during an evening visit from George Borrett, a British traveler, in 1864. They brought them into this room and told them to have a seat. A few minutes later, Lincoln came walking through those folding doors. I turn, see the doors, and there it is: the Lincoln shiver. There are other reasons for it. Lincoln and his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, grieved here, after the death of their son Willie at the White House in 1862. Hawkins now oversees a striking exhibition about the Lincolns and grief, meant to help those grieving today. Other projects also seek to apply Lincolns legacy to modern problems. In January, Prison Reimagined will show portraits of presidents by incarcerated artists. But Hawkinss evocation of Lincoln, in the drawing room he used, remains extremely powerful, conveying the simple humanity for which Lincoln has long been loved but also his place as perhaps the most powerful expressor and expression of the American democratic ideal. His hair was ruffled, his eyes were sleepy, and his feet were enveloped in carpet slippers. He was essentially in his pajamas to greet people he had no idea were coming and who he did not know. Borrett said, naturally enough, the president asked about their travels. And then President Lincoln asked what I consider to be a really strange question. What do you think of our great country? This was a country that in 1864, at the time of their visit, was literally at war with itself. And Lincoln asked a stranger, What do you think of our great country? Its such a such an interesting question. I think it really demonstrates Lincolns love for this country, his hope for this country, and what he thought was possible. The conversation with Borrett happened the year after Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg Address: a short speech, at the site of the greatest civil war battle, that became a foundational text. Lincoln delivered it 160 years ago today. My visit to President Lincolns Cottage is somewhat less momentous, an hour or sos respite from reporting the politics of a country as divided as at any time since that civil war. But for those of us who ponder such problems daily, Lincolns conversation with George Borrett has more to offer. Lincoln started to talk about democracy, Hawkins says. This country being the last best hope of Earth. That if democracy didnt take hold here, it didnt have a chance anywhere. Dr. Xavier Cole (right), new president of Loyola University New Orleans, talks with Dr. Paul Coreil, chancellor of LSU at Alexandria. Cole was the guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Alexandria's weekly luncheon. Declining enrollments and questions around access to affordability have many questioning whether a higher education degree is actually worth it. Im her to say emphatically that yes, it is, said Dr. Xavier Cole, who stepped into the role of president of Loyola University New Orleans, a Jesuit institute of higher learning, six months ago. He is the first person of color and the second layperson to serve as president since Loyola New Orleans founding in 1912. Making his first visit to Alexandria, Cole was the guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Alexandrias weekly luncheon. Education is deeply important, Cole told Rotarians. And were going to talk about that a bit today. What that means, particularly for those of you who are businesspersons and entrepreneurs. Our role in higher education is to educate, humanize and foster meaningful connections among a diverse group of people. He said they seek to create servant leaders with deep sense of service to their communities. We seek to support social justice informed by faith, which shows up as a preferential option for the poor. We intentionally develop the mind, body and spirit of others in service to God, said Cole. We are intentionally creating these countercultural opportunities to combat the crush of technology by the encouraging the development of an interior life among our students, our faculty and our staff to combat the more negative aspects of information bombardment of our handheld technologies. Loyola New Orleans student population is over 30 percent first generation and of that, over 50 percent is diverse, he said. So, they are educating an increasingly diverse demographic. He said the work they engage in in higher education is about positively engaging young people in ways that help them believe that they can be difference makers in their communities. Intellectually, we are creating liberal learners, that is to be liberally educated to think critically, speak eloquently, to act with purpose, always with the greater needs of the community in mind, with care for the person at the center of all they do, said Cole. For business leaders and entrepreneurs in Alexandria, that means Loyola New Orleans is preparing their future workforce to be not just academically prepared, but spiritually and ethically prepared to be servant leaders who show up at their companies and communities as forces for good. He said their law school is a standout. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, their law clinic was instrumental in being a voice for the voiceless. And help them fight large companies to get the settlements that they needed to move forward. And to remain in Louisiana. It was because others were not successful that they left this state, said Cole, leading to a brain drain. But Loyola was on the ground leading the way pro bono to make sure that this community could get the justice they deserved, he said. They also engage in community service with kindergarten through 12th grades. Early positive mentoring, coupled with food security programs and connections to mental health supports, will yield stronger children who will be ready to learn, he said. This will help them grow into young adults wanting to learn and possibly be mentors themselves. I know Rotarians are also investing in the space of early childhood education, knowing that this is an investment in all our futures, said Cole. He challenged business leaders experiencing workforce challenges to not only think about university graduates who are narrowly trained in one discipline or job, but to think about humanities majors who will be trained to perform in almost every setting. Because they come from excellent reading, writing, research, communication, interpersonal, critical and creative thinking skills, said Cole. So dont sleep on the English and philosophy and theology, modern languages and history majors. He said if they wanted to know what a person with two history degrees can become, they can look at him. Cole graduated from the University of Mississippi with a bachelors degree in history then got his masters degree in history from Miami University in Ohio. He later earned a doctorate in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania in Philidelphia. He and his staff completed their grand tour of Louisiana, ending in Alexandria. On their tour, they met with city leaders, legislators, economic and workforce developers, Catholic and college prep high schools, higher education leaders and loyal Loyola New Orleans alumni and asked them what their needs are and how Loyola New Orleans can be of service to meet those needs. Cole told the Rotarians that Loyola University New Orleans is also partnering with Ochsner Health System to address the growing nursing shortage that started during the pandemic Without nurses, without teachers, we have a real, serious problem, he said. They are also partnering with financial industry leaders to design curriculum in their business school to meet the current need for well-trained accountants and Certified Public Accountants. We will seek out other partnerships that understand how Loyola can further be of service, said Cole. This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Loyola president tells Alexandria Rotarians that education impacts businesses, communities Doctors have been able to prescribe cannabis in NI since November 2018 At one high street cafe in County Antrim, there's a high chance you will find someone openly using cannabis alongside their morning coffee. But this is medication, not recreation. Alan Robinson owns Northern Ireland's first legal medical cannabis vaping lounge, Stay Medicated, in Ballyclare, where 227 members can do just that - legally. "You don't have to fund organised crime, you don't have to walk out to a street corner and risk being taken advantage of or ripped off," he told BBC News NI. Like his customers, Alan is a private medical cannabis patient, meaning he pays for his prescriptions in full. Doctors have been able to prescribe cannabis since November 2018 after several high-profile cases in which patients' conditions appeared to have been improved by the drug. At the time, the Department of Health (DoH) warned changes to the law "do not pave the way towards legalising cannabis" and penalties still apply for unauthorised supply and possession. "When we opened we found there were a lot of people in Northern Ireland who didn't have any idea cannabis was legal on private prescription," Alan said. Alan Robinson helps patients through the process of obtaining a private prescription Stay Medicated members have private prescriptions for medical cannabis to treat a range of physical and mental health conditions. A sign above the till reads: "We don't sell cannabis, please don't ask." Safety needs to be proven Medical whole cannabis uses the entire cannabis plant - which includes the compound THC, the part which can make people feel high. There are now 31 private prescribing centres across the UK, which have issued more than 140,000 prescriptions between November 2018 and 2022, all obtained through the private sector. But fewer than five NHS patients in Northern Ireland have been given the medicine. The government said safety needs to be proven before it could be officially licenced. Vaping is a less harmful way to consume the drug, Alan Robinson said At the high street shop, customers must show their prescription details and tobacco use is strictly prohibited. "When you have a prescription, there is a plethora of strains and strengths, flowers and oils for you to try - you can work with a clinic to find the strain which works for you personally," Alan said. It is estimated the UK's medical cannabis market will be worth 1bn in 2024. A new medical cannabis factory is due to open on the outskirts of Belfast next year, the first on the island of Ireland. The company behind the factory, Growth Industries, describes it as a "high-security, climate-controlled facility enabling fast, easy access to distribution networks". Louise McConnell, a 56-year-old grandmother from Londonderry, spends about 240 a month from her benefits on a private prescription. She uses a variety of cannabis strains throughout the day to manage hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS), a rare genetic condition which affects her connective tissues. Before she began using the medicine, Louise said she needed to take 57 pills every day. "I would have no life without cannabis," she said. "On tablets, I just spent the day in bed. Now I'm growing my own vegetables and I'm out planting fruit trees. "Cannabis medicine has allowed me to live and enjoy my life to the best of my abilities." 'Stigma has been horrendous' Life as a medical cannabis user has not been easy for Louise, however. "The stigma has been horrendous," she said. "But my body has been through so much, I do not need to fight with people over what I choose as a medicine. "I choose a plant over pharmaceuticals and it's working." Some patients say buying cannabis on the black market increased their anxiety Private prescriptions for medical cannabis can be expensive. "No more so than buying it on the street," said Joe (not his real name), a private medical cannabis patient from County Fermanagh. "But it does seem a bit unfair to people who can't afford it. "It's a few hundred pounds each month and for people who are less well off it's kind of out of reach." Joe, an IT worker in his 30s, considers himself a "non-stereotypical stoner" and agreed to speak to BBC News NI anonymously as his employer is unaware he uses the medication. He has suffered with anxiety and depression since childhood and described the cannabis treatment as "life-changing". 'A vicious circle' He was a black market cannabis user for years before learning medical cannabis was legal on private prescription through a YouTube video. "It was like a vicious circle," he said. "I knew it helped me with anxiety but I was still having to be put through the mill of buying it on the black market, which in itself causes extreme anxiety. "Now I just get it delivered to my front door by Royal Mail." To be eligible for a prescription for mental health reasons, patients must have at least two previous treatments. The Department of Health said specialist doctors can only prescribe medical cannabis-based products for medical use (CBPMs) "where clinically appropriate". "As with any unlicensed medicine, unlicensed CBPMs can only be prescribed on a named patient basis for indications where there is clear evidence of benefit, where there is a clinical need which cannot be met by a licensed medicine and where established treatment options have been exhausted," a spokesperson said. NHS advice on cannabis-based products for patients in Northern Ireland can be found here. 2023 Miss Universe Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua was crowned the 2023 Miss Universe at the annual beauty pageant on Saturday night in El Salvadors capital of San Salvador. Anntonia Porsild of Thailand placed as the first runner-up. Palacios, 23, is the first contestant from her country to win the pageant in its 72 years, according to E News. The Miss Universe pageant said on its social media her activism will surround mental health, inspired by her own struggles with anxiety. The other contestants who rounded out the top 10 were second runner-up Moraya Wilson from Australia, Colombia's Camila Avella, El Salvador's Isabella Garcia-Manzo, Peru's Camila Escribens, the Philippines' Michelle Dee, Puerto Rico's Karla Guilfu Acevedo, Spain's Athenea Perez who was crowned Miss Congeniality and Venezuela's Diana Silva. Miss Universe 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel of the U.S. presented Palacios with the crown. This years Miss USA, Noelia Voigt, placed in the top 20 of the competition before being eliminated. Just like in years past, the competition featured a round of swimsuits, evening gowns and elaborate costumes to represent each contestant's country. There were a few historical firsts in this years Miss Universe pageant. Jane Garrett of Nepal was the first curvy contestant. Miss Pakistan Erica Robin, who was the first to represent the country in the competition, wore a burkini during the swimsuit competition. The competition was not overshadowed by the fact that the owner of Miss Universe, Thai firm JKN Global Group, filed for bankruptcy. The company, which bought the Miss Universe Organization for $20 million in 2022, announced on Thursday that it had submitted a petition for business rehabilitation that was accepted by Thailands bankruptcy court, according to CNN. Join hands for high-quality development in Asia-Pacific Xinhua) 12:38, November 19, 2023 * It is of utmost significance for leaders in Asia Pacific to figure out what they "should do to usher in another 'golden 30 years' for the region, and how we can bring out the best of APEC in this process," as Xi pointed out. * The importance of preserving peace across continents, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, deemed a powerhouse of the global economy. * Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries. SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- In the beautiful U.S. city of San Francisco, leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) members gathered on Friday, uniting in their commitment to deliver a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, inclusive, and predictable trade and investment environment. In the world today, changes on a scale unseen in a century are unfolding at an accelerating pace. The world economy faces multiple risks and challenges. The Asia-Pacific region, which is an engine of global growth, thus has greater responsibility. "We, the leaders of Asia-Pacific economies, must think very hard as to what kind of Asia-Pacific region we should have by the middle of this century, what we should do to usher in another 'golden 30 years' for the region, and how we can bring out the best of APEC in this process," said Chinese President Xi Jinping in a speech at the 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. China will continue to pursue high-quality development and high-standard opening up. Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries, he said. Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech titled "Staying True to APEC Founding Mission and Enhancing Unity and Cooperation to Jointly Promote High-Quality Growth in the Asia-Pacific" at the 30th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco, the United States, Nov. 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) "GOLDEN 30 YEARS" "Since the establishment of the economic leaders' regular meeting mechanism, APEC has always stood at the global forefront of openness and development," said Xi. "It has played a robust role in promoting Asia-Pacific trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, economic growth and technological progress, and the flow of goods and people. It has helped create the 'Asia-Pacific miracle' that has staggered the world," he said. Over the past three decades, the Asia-Pacific has cut its average tariff rate from 17 percent to 5 percent and contributed 70 percent of global economic growth. Per capita income in the region has more than quadrupled, and one billion people have been lifted out of poverty, an important contribution to human progress and global sustainable development. As the world entered a new phase marked by turbulence and rapid change, accompanied by sluggish economic growth, it is of utmost significance for leaders in Asia Pacific to figure out what they "should do to usher in another 'golden 30 years' for the region, and how we can bring out the best of APEC in this process," as Xi pointed out. To achieve this, Xi offered a Chinese solution in which he called on leaders of the APEC member economies to stay committed to innovation-driven development, openness in development, green development and inclusive development that delivers benefits to all. As for China, Xi said his country is advancing the noble cause of building a great country and national rejuvenation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization. "Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries. I am ready to work with you for new success in Asia-Pacific cooperation and for another 'golden 30 years' of the region," Xi said. China's commitment to contributing to the modernization of all countries demonstrates a cooperative and inclusive mindset, said Rusa Bagirishya, a Rwandan expert in economic and political affairs. "By inviting all parties to participate in global development initiatives and advocating for unity and cooperation, China plays a vital role in creating a golden future for the Asia-Pacific," said Bagirishya. BRINGING OUT THE BEST OF APEC Since its inception, APEC has become a dynamic engine of economic growth and one of Asia Pacific's most important regional forums. Its 21 member economies are home to around 2.95 billion people, representing approximately 62 percent of world GDP and 48 percent of world trade in 2021. In an increasingly complex world full of challenges, how can we bring out the best of APEC to bolster economic growth and prosperity for the region? The answer is to further promote cooperation among APEC economies. "We must remain steadfast in our commitment to APEC's founding mission. We must respond to the calls of our times responsibly and meet global challenges together. We must fully deliver on the Putrajaya Vision of building an open, dynamic, resilient and peaceful Asia-Pacific community for the prosperity of all our people and future generations," Xi said. Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech titled "Staying True to APEC Founding Mission and Enhancing Unity and Cooperation to Jointly Promote High-Quality Growth in the Asia-Pacific" at the 30th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco, the United States, Nov. 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) For Egide Karuranga, a retired Rwandan professor of International Economics at the University of Virginia in the United States, Xi's words are significant as they remain committed to the founding mission of APEC while highlighting the importance of state-to-state relations. "Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region has always been at the forefront of global development, creating miracles. Currently, as the world is undergoing significant changes, Xi, in the speech, deeply analyzes and reflects on the responsibilities the Asia-Pacific region should undertake and how to respond to the call of the times. This demonstrates the image of a responsible major country in the region and the far-sightedness of regional leaders," Karuranga said. Commenting on Xi's call for unity and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region, Zoltan Kiszelly, director of the Center of Political Analyses at Hungary's Szazadveg Institute, noted the importance of preserving peace across continents, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, deemed a powerhouse of the global economy. "By offering cooperation on the basis of mutual respect and connectivity, not only the nations in the Asia-Pacific region but also those in other regions can benefit from the growth," he said. CHINA'S CONTRIBUTIONS Addressing the 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, Xi called for staying committed to inclusive development that delivers benefits to all. Global development now faces severe challenges and the development divide is getting wider, said the Chinese president, adding that he had said on many occasions that "true development is development for all." As China celebrates 45 years of its reform and opening up this year, it will continue to pursue high-quality development and high-standard opening up. Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries, he said. Over the decades, China has achieved staggering economic success and has been sharing its development opportunities. Xi's speech reinforces China's commitment to promote multilateralism, which is essential for lower and middle-income countries. It is time for all countries to open up and improve collaboration, so no countries will be left behind, said Karuranga. Kin Phea, director general of the International Relations Institute of Cambodia, commended China for sharing the fruit of its peaceful development with the rest of the world. Kin said China has worked closely with like-minded international partners to maintain and restore confidence in multilateralism, build an open world economy, and create new pathways for inclusive and sustainable development. Meanwhile, China has also offered solutions fused with Chinese wisdom to address various challenges articulated through global initiatives, including the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Global Development Initiative (GDI), Global Security Initiative and Global Civilization Initiative. China welcomes participation by all parties in the GDI to deepen cooperation in poverty reduction, food security, industrialization and development financing and build a global community of development so that the fruits of modernization are shared by people across the world, Xi noted during his speech. He said that China will continue to support APEC in its economic and technical cooperation and work together with other member economies to make the "cake" of Asia-Pacific development bigger. China's global initiatives, including the BRI and the GDI, cover a wide range of regions spanning from Asia to Africa and Europe, and they are critical to expanding regional economic collaborations and boosting the global economy in general, said Selcuk Colakoglu, director of the Ankara-based Turkish Center for Asia-Pacific Studies. The China-proposed global initiatives, especially the BRI, have provided new opportunities for countries to develop and modernize. They play an essential role in building a new international relationship based on mutual respect, win-win cooperation and building a community with a shared future for humanity, said Konstantin Blokhin, an expert at the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) Foster Lake, the city of Sweet Homes water source, has turned the color of chocolate milk, filled at times with 14 times as much sediment as normal. Story updated at 3:46 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 16 Its a point of pride in Sweet Home that the city has Oregons most delicious drinking water. Theyve even got the award to prove it. The town of 10,000, nestled in the Cascade Foothills, is surrounded by deep forest and clear streams that roll into the towns drinking water source at Foster Lake. Last April, the citys water won a blind taste test and was awarded best tasting overall water by the Oregon Association of Water Utilities. It was even sent to Washington, D.C., to represent the state. Normally, our water is just about pristine, Sweet Home public works director Greg Springman said. The city of Sweet Home won the "best tasting overall water in Oregon award" from the Oregon Association of Water Utilities. Thats made the past month feel all the more disorienting, as the citys streams and reservoirs turned the color of chocolate milk. Not just after one major rainstorm, but for weeks at a time. Sometimes it gets so muddy it looks like pudding, Sweet Home mayor Susan Coleman said. The citys public works crew has worked 24-hour days to filter and treat the water to keep it safe for drinking, taxing their facilities to the limit. They worry they will eventually need $5 million to replace water filters. And even after all that work, some residents said the odd color and smell mean theyre choosing bottled water for now. The muddy water has made fishing, one of the towns most popular pastimes and tourist draws, next to impossible. Those whove paddled Foster Reservoir in kayaks have been greeted by masses of dead fish, including the die-off of tens of thousands of kokanee earlier this fall. People are pretty upset by it, Coleman said. If this continues into the future, I think it will be devastating for the community. Sweet Home mayor Susan Coleman has been frustrated by the extremely muddy water flowing into the city of Sweet Home's drinking water system. A surprising culprit: A plan to save wild salmon The cause of Sweet Homes fouled water is coming from a court-ordered plan meant to save endangered salmon. In response to a lawsuit from three environmental groups, U.S. District Judge Marco Hernandez in 2021 ordered U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to undertake a series of actions meant to prevent the extinction of Upper Willamette River wild spring Chinook. The most impactful of those actions was drawdowns. In this case, requiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to take Green Peter Reservoir, located about 10 miles northeast of town, to historically low levels. The reservoir was lowered all summer and this fall plummeted to levels not seen since the dam was constructed in 1966. As the reservoir transformed back into a river, the water began flushing out mass amounts of built-up sediment into the South Santiam, Foster Lake and the main Willamette River. The amount of sediment in the water has reached 10 to 20 times its normal levels at times. The muddiness of the South Santiam River, caused by the drawdown of Green Peter Reservoir, is illustrated as this small creek drops into it from the side in Sweet Home. Drawdowns at Green Peter, along Lookout Point Reservoir to the south, are expected to keep the water muddy in the South Santiam, Middle Fork Willamette and mainstem Willamette rivers until at least Dec. 16, when the Army Corps will start to raise the level of the reservoirs. The Lookout Point drawdown has brought its own set of problems, including dried up wells that have required residents to pay nearly $30,000 to restore drinking water. Mark Sherwood, executive director of the Native Fish Society, one of the groups that filed the lawsuit that led to the court order to draw down the reservoirs, said the turbid water should be temporary. In other cases where these drawdowns were used and where theyve been successful we saw a spike in turbidity the first year and then it tapered off is subsequent years, Sherwood said, citing previous experiences at Cougar and Fall Creek reservoirs. Greg Taylor, supervisory fish biologist for the Corps in the Willamette Valley, said the muddy water may ease in the future, but it could still be an issue. Its unclear what will happen, said Taylor. A container on the left shows water coming from Foster Lake and a container on the right shows water treated by the Sweet Home Water Treatment Plant. Corps officials originally told the Statesman Journal and city officials that the drawdown wouldnt impact drinking water. That has not ended up being the case. "I don't think there was real understanding about the magnitude and duration of the turbidity (muddy water)," said Taylor. But the Corps also pointed out they had no say in the matter. The court order was clear: drop the reservoir. Why lake levels were dropped at Green Peter and Lookout Point reservoirs The reason for such an extreme move, in a nutshell, is to help baby salmon migrate through dams. The Army Corps is using trucks to move adult salmon above the dams, into high-quality spawning habitat of streams such as Quartzville Creek, the South Fork McKenzie and the upper Middle Fork Willamette. U.S. Army Corp of Engineers fish biologist Chad Helms, center, moves a chinook salmon to a waiting truck for transport above Fall Creek Dam after examining it at a facility at the foot of the dam. After the adults spawn, juvenile fish swim downstream. Historically, when they hit the reservoir, they have struggled to continue through the dams because of the reservoir depth. Fish are surface oriented, meaning they live in the top 20 to 50 feet of the water column and they just dont find those gates unless theyre closer to them, Taylor said. Short of expensive fish collection devices, the best option is for fish to migrate out through the gates or outlets low in the dams, environmentalists and Corps officials said. That means dropping the water down. Way, way down. Green Peter Reservoir levels, seen in blue, have dropped to historically low levels. The red line is the historical "normal" water level of the reservoir. The goal: restoring salmon runs in the Upper Willamette Given time, the drawdowns should work to help restore wild salmon, said Sherwood. When salmon reach quality spawning grounds above the dams, and juveniles can migrate back to the ocean, populations can rebound, he said. Sherwood cited success in the Clackamas River, where improved fish passage systems in North Fork Reservoir a fish ladder and slide helped improve wild spring chinook runs to 3,125 fish per year over the past five years. The Clackamas system does not use drawdowns, however. One place that has used drawdowns is Fall Creek Reservoir. It has seen an average of 350 wild salmon return, and numbers as high as 834 in 2020. Mark Sherwood, executive director of the Native Fish Society, said drawdowns at Green Peter Reservoir will help restore salmon populations in the Willamette Basin If we get fish passage right, we really can restore wild spring chinook in the Willamette this iconic Oregon fish. That would be a boon for every community in the Willamette Valley, Sherwood said. Drawdowns are the only way that's been shown to have good fish passage success at the large dams in the Willamette. The goal is building a tourism and fishing economy around abundant wild salmon and steelhead. We really can do it. But right now theyre in a lot of trouble. Time is running out for them and if were not careful, they could just blink out. We cant let that happen. Wild spring Chinook, first listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1999, have seen numbers continued to decline. Their populations dropped to between 4,000 to 7,000 fish over the past five years in the Upper Willamette Basin, down from 18,000 in 2004. That's brought an urgency to establish populations above the dams and led to the lawsuit and court-ordered drawdowns. But there also is no guarantee the drawdowns will work, as salmon runs are impacted by a host of issues ranging from ocean conditions to pollution to sea lions predation. Declines in wild spring chinook salmon in the Upper Willamette Basin. A pause on the drawdowns? Oregon politicians weigh in Coleman, the Sweet Home mayor, is advocating for a pause on the drawdowns next year. In addition to having a major impact on the towns drinking water, economy and quality of life, she noted the impact on wildlife. In addition to documented die-offs of resident fish and fresh water claims, she said the habitat of protected species such as Pacific lamprey and Copes giant salamander is at risk due the high level of mud and sediment. If a logging company came in and had this much impact on water quality and wildlife, it would get shut down in no time, Coleman said. Why is this a different situation? It just seems backward. A pause in the drawdowns would require a court order, legal experts said. To that end, Oregon Republican Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer sent a letter to Judge Hernandez requesting the federal court revisit the court injunction, and develop a better alternative at Green Peter dam to improve fish passage. She added that this injunction is causing more harm than good. Water behind Lookout Point Reservoir near Lowell is at historically low levels. Oregons senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley also made statements supporting finding a solution, though its not clear what that would be. The drawdown of the reservoirs is creating a massive problem, Merkley said. This challenge needs an all-hands-on-deck approach. Thats why we are working with the governors team, USDA, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to find a solution. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek's office added: The Governors priority is to ensure that all Oregonians have access to clean, safe drinking water. Members of the Governors team are staying closely in touch with the congressional delegation, Army Corps of Engineers, and local leaders in the region to understand the impacts of the drawdowns and what options exist to support the impacted communities. Lebanon mayor Ken Jackola said he also supports a pause in the drawdowns. But at the very least, Jackola said, the cities should get funding for their drinking water systems. If theyre going to force us to go through this, the federal and state governments need to ante up for these extra costs, Jackola said. Sherwood, with the Native Fish Society, said he understands the frustration of the people of Sweet Home and Lebanon, and also is lobbying state and federal officials for funding to help treat water in the short term. We strongly support relief for them, Sherwood said. Correction: A previous version of this story said North Fork Dam and Reservoir on the Clackamas River used drawdowns for fish passage. It doesn't. The dam has a fish ladder and slide for upstream and downstream passage. The Statesman Journal regrets the error. Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter in Oregon for 15 years and is host of the Explore Oregon Podcast. To support his work, subscribe to the Statesman Journal. He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors. This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Sweet Home, Lebanon grapple with drinking water amid dam drawdown MADISON A group of nearly two dozen people waving swastika flags and chanting antisemitic rhetoric marched on the Wisconsin state Capitol grounds Saturday afternoon, performing a salute originally used by Nazis at political rallies, often called the "Hitler salute." The group was dressed in red shirts with "Blood Tribe" written on the back. The Blood Tribe is a neo-Nazi group that promotes hardline white supremacist views and "openly directs its vitriol at Jews, 'non-whites' and the LGBTQ+ community," according to the Anti-Defamation League. The neo-Nazi group's march in Wisconsin's capital city comes amid skyrocketing reports of antisemitism and islamophobia in the United States as the Israel-Hamas war stretches into its second month. The group on Saturday chanted "Israel is not our friend," threatened "there will be blood" and shouted racial slurs at bystanders while marching and chanting other hateful rhetoric. A group with iconography matching the neo-Nazi group "Blood Tribe" marches in downtown Madison on Saturday, Nov. 18. According to bystander reports, photos posted to social media platforms and local authorities, the group marched up Madison's iconic pedestrian thoroughfare State Street that connects the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus with the Capitol Square. The group stopped outside the statehouse near the building's south entrance around noon Saturday, where it remained for about 30 minutes before marching toward a nearby Madison park. Videos posted to Twitter show the neo-Nazi group also stopped in front of a local synagogue, Gates of Heaven, the fourth-oldest surviving synagogue building in the United States. The building is currently owned by the city of Madison and has fallen out of active use as a synagogue, according to the city's website and a Jewish Federation of Madison webpage. To see neo-Nazis marching in our streets and neighborhoods and in the shadow of our State Capitol building spreading their disturbing, hateful messages is truly revolting," Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement Saturday. Let us be clear: neo-Nazis, antisemitism, and white supremacy have no home in Wisconsin. We will not accept or normalize this rhetoric and hate. Its repulsive and disgusting, and I join Wisconsinites in condemning and denouncing their presence in our state in the strongest terms possible. Dozens of bystanders expressed open disapproval of the group while they were stopped on the Capitol Square. One of the demonstrators appeared to be Christopher Pohlhaus, a former U.S. Marine turned Blood Tribe leader, according to matching facial tattoos. Multiple other state and federal lawmakers from Wisconsin condemned Saturday's demonstration. "This has no place in Wisconsin," Sen. Tammy Baldwin said in a tweet. "At a time when we are seeing disturbing spikes in antisemitism, it is more important than ever to denounce this hate in no uncertain terms." Rep. Lisa Subeck, a Democrat from Madison who is Jewish, said the appearance of a neo-Nazi group at the statehouse is "alarming." "Especially right now where we've seen a rise in antisemitic activity," Subeck said. "I think it's something that we should all be concerned about." The group marched within feet of the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus Saturday. Jennifer Mnookin, the university's chancellor, condemned the group in a statement. The presence of this hateful group in Madison is utterly repugnant, Mnookin said. Hatred and antisemitism are completely counter to the universitys values, and the safety and well-being of our community must be our highest priorities. Rabbi Bonnie Margulis, executive director of Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice, said people living in Madison sometimes have a false sense of security given its reputation as a progressive enclave. "We're living in very, very scary times," Margulis told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "The American Jewish community is very scared right now, as is the Muslim community and the Sikh community. There's no place that we feel safe." Both Margulis and her husband, Rabbi Jonathan Biatch of Madison's Temple Beth El, encouraged people to "lead with love" and reach out to friends and neighbors in marginalized communities who are likely "feeling very alone and very isolated." "The second thing is, there's so much misinformation and disinformation that you can find online on social media, or even just in conversation with people," Margulis said. "Speak out. Counter misinformation or disinformation. Or if you don't know, don't repeat things just because you heard them." Both Margulis and Biatch were at an LGBTQ+ Pride event in Watertown in July where about a dozen men dressed in black tops and khaki pants brandished semi-automatic rifles, did Nazi salutes and displayed swastikas. "Whenever you see or hear messages of hate, you've got to counter them with messages of love," Margulis said. Stephanie Fryer, spokeswoman for the Madison Police Department, said police became aware of the group's presence via calls placed to their office. Officers on bikes were dispatched to determine the group's purpose for marching. Fryer said police are continuing to monitor the incident, but the demonstration was lawful. "Whether you believe that's what this group is doing or not, it's First Amendment rights," Fryer told the Journal Sentinel. The Blood Tribe is known to be armed at past events, but Fryer said the group appeared to be unarmed Saturday. Molly Beck and Jessie Opoien of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributed to this report. Tyler Katzenberger can be reached at tkatzenberger@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Neo-Nazi group Blood Tribe marches on Wisconsin state Capitol WASHINGTON Congressional leaders are hoping to muster a supplemental package to aid the war efforts in Ukraine and Israel, as well as make improvements to the U.S. immigration system, by the end of the year, according to multiple people involved in discussions. The ambitious timeline would mean striking a deal that satisfies the funding requested by the Department of Defense to aid conflict zones, while simultaneously crafting an immigration package that not only provides resources for border security but includes a suite of policy changes to appease conservatives without alienating progressive Democrats. The Republican-led House has already passed an aid bill for Israel, but it includes hefty cuts to the IRS and excludes humanitarian assistance both items that the White House and Senate Democrats find untenable. The question is how the next stage of negotiations will proceed. Senate leaders, both Republican and Democratic, believe the best path toward writing a piece of legislation that has a hope of passing both chambers and getting President Joe Bidens signature would likely need to originate in the Senate, where there is room for bipartisan negotiation. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has made it clear that passing the supplemental aid would be a top priority for him in the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I know both sides genuinely care about approving aid to Israel and Ukraine and helping innocent civilians in Gaza, Schumer said from the Senate floor Wednesday. So I hope we can come to an agreement even if neither side gets everything they insist on. But it we will be working on it immediately when we get back after Thanksgiving. People search buildings destroyed during airstrikes (Ahmad Hasaballah / Getty Images) But while Senate leaders are moving forward with their process, there is a group of conservative Republicans pushing the new House speaker, Mike Johnson, to pass a GOP-led bill in the House as a starting point for bicameral negotiations. If the effort is successful, the House bill would be far more conservative than what might emerge in the Senate and could give hard-liners in the upper chamber more leverage in their negotiations over the final package. Johnson cant make the Senate do the right thing, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., a Johnson ally, told NBC News. But guess what? If they do their spending bills, if theyre going to be able to pass Ukraine aid with border security, if they do it with real benchmarks, I mean that makes it awfully difficult for senators to vote against it. Johnson has not yet said how he plans to handle the negotiations. But House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, who is a strong proponent of funding for Ukraine and Israel, has been in regular contact with the speaker on the supplemental aid, and he suggested in interviews last week that he expects the Senate to act first. McCaul recently got back from a trip to Israel with a bipartisan delegation and said Israeli leaders are pushing for help from the U.S. as soon as possible. A committee source said McCaul is regularly fielding calls from leaders in both Israel and Ukraine who are getting increasingly uneasy that critical support from the U.S. may never come. People with yellow balloons and signs with photos of the hostages held by Hamas stand in a street (Alexi J. Rosenfeld / Getty Images) A senior Senate GOP aide also expressed skepticism that a bill that originates in the House would ultimately become law. It needs to be a bipartisan product if it has any chance of becoming law, the aide said. A House product would likely only be supported by Republicans. Four Senate sources directly connected to the negotiations told NBC News the window between Thanksgiving and Christmas is crucial, and that there is concern among both Republicans and Democrats that if the calendar slides into the New Year, the chances of getting all four planks of the plan aid to Israel, Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific, and for border security over the finish line reduces dramatically. My best guess is Israel is passed as stand-alone, and Ukraine done in tandem with progress on border, said one GOP lawmaker who supports the contours of the administrations aid request. On the positive side, I believe the speaker wants results on Israel, Ukraine and border. Congress passed a short-term spending plan last week to avoid a government shutdown but punted the broader and more challenging discussions over the long-term budget to mid-January. If negotiations over the supplemental aid get caught up in those budget talks, it could make the process much more difficult. Add to the mix the ramp-up of the 2024 presidential election cycle, and the chances of striking a grand bargain could be elusive. If talks drag into the new year, Johnson may try to attach only Israel aid to whatever funding bill Congress takes up to meet the first of the two spending deadlines which would make the passage of Ukraine aid that much more unlikely, the Senate sources said. There is no appetite among House Republicans to allow Schumer to steamroll the House with all of those priorities attached to a new funding package. Some progressives, including Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, have said any aid to Israel should be contingent on the IDFs easing its bombing of Gaza and other conditions. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said in an interview Sunday on "Meet the Press" that he would oppose conditioning aid to Israel. I dont know how the United States Congress, which has yet to pass a budget, can impose conditions for combat on an ally that is trying to defend itself, he said, adding that he would be very loath to impose conditions that would in effect straitjacket or handcuff the IDF in this very, very excruciatingly difficult challenge. By Nidal al-Mughrabi and James Mackenzie GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Hamas gunmen battled Israeli forces trying to push into Gaza's largest refugee camp on Sunday and at least 11 people were killed by an Israeli air strike on a house, medics said, as hopes rose of a deal to free some hostages from the enclave. The Washington Post said on Sunday that U.S. mediators were close to a deal between Israel and Hamas to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in their war that would help boost emergency aid shipments to Gaza civilians, citing people familiar with the matter. The Post had reported on Saturday that a tentative deal had been reached, but this was denied by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. officials, with a White House spokesperson saying efforts were continuing to clinch a deal. On Sunday, however, Israel's Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog said in an interview on ABC's "This Week" that Israel was hopeful a significant number of hostages could be released by Hamas "in coming days". Hamas took about 240 hostages during its deadly cross-border rampage into Israeli communities on Oct. 7, which prompted Israel to lay siege to Gaza and invade the Palestinian territory to eradicate its ruling Islamist group. Reuters reported on Nov. 15 that Qatari mediators had been seeking a deal between Israel and Hamas to exchange 50 hostages in return for a three-day ceasefire, citing an official briefed on the talks. At the time, the official said general outlines had been agreed but Israel was still negotiating details. On Sunday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told a press conference in Doha that the main sticking points blocking a hostage release deal were now "very minor" - mainly practical and logistical issues. The delicate hostage talks coincide with Israel preparing to expand its offensive against Hamas to densely populated Gaza's southern half, signalled by increasing air strikes there on targets Israel sees as lairs of armed militants. Israeli tanks and troops stormed into Gaza late last month after a devastating aerial blitz in response to Hamas's shock Oct. 7 attack, and say they have wrested control of large areas of the north and northwest and east around Gaza City. But guerrilla-style Hamas resistance remains fierce in pockets of the heavily urbanised north, including parts of Gaza City and the sprawling Jabalia and Beach refugee camps, according to Hamas and local witnesses. HEAVY FIGHTING Witnesses reported heavy fighting overnight between Hamas gunmen and Israeli ground forces trying to advance into Jabalia, the largest of the enclave's camps with nearly 100,000 people. Jabalia has come under repeated Israeli bombardment that has killed scores of civilians, Palestinian medics say. Israel says the strikes have killed many militants sheltering there. Via social media in Arabic, Israel's military on Sunday urged residents of several Jabalia neighbourhoods to evacuate towards south Gaza "to preserve your safety" and to that end said it would pause military action from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. After the "pause" period expired, 11 Palestinians in Jabalia were killed by an Israeli air strike on a house, the enclave's health ministry said. Most of Jabalia's inhabitants rejected previous Israeli appeals to clear out to the south of the narrow coastal enclave. The south has also been repeatedly bombarded by Israel, rendering Israeli promises of safety absurd, Palestinians say. After several inconclusive wars since 2007, Israel vowed to destroy Hamas after its Oct. 7 attack in which around 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed, according to Israeli tallies, the deadliest day in the country's 75-year history. Gaza's Health Ministry raised its death toll from the unrelenting Israeli bombardment to 12,300, including 5,000 children. AIR STRIKES IN CENTRAL GAZA In the centre of the narrow coastal enclave, Palestinian medics said 31 people were killed, including two local journalists, in Israeli air strikes targeting a number of houses in the Bureij and Nusseirat refugee camps late on Saturday night. Another air strike killed a woman and her child overnight in the main southern city of Khan Younis, they said. In Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, dozens of Palestinians marched to a funeral for 15 residents killed in an Israeli strike on an apartment block on Saturday. "Our youth are dying, women and children are dying, where are the Arab presidents?" wailed Heydaya Asfour, a relative of some of the dead. The Israeli army says Hamas uses residential and other civilian buildings as cover for command centres, weapons caches, rocket launchpads and a vast underground tunnel network. The Islamist movement denies using human shields to wage war. Hamas's armed wing, the Al Qassam Brigades, said militants killed six soldiers at close range in the village of Juhr al-Dik, just east of Gaza City, after ambushing them with an anti-personnel missile and closing in with machine guns. Seven Israeli soldiers were killed in the fighting on Saturday, the military said, without giving details. A total of 62 soldiers have died in fighting, according to army tallies. 'DEATH ZONE' AT GAZA'S BIGGEST HOSPITAL A team led by the World Health Organization that visited Al Shifa, Gaza's biggest hospital, described it as a "death zone", days after advancing Israeli forces seized the premises to root out an alleged underground Hamas command centre. The WHO team reported signs of gunfire and shelling and a mass grave at Al Shifa's entrance, and said it was making plans for the immediate evacuation of 291 remaining patients, including the war-wounded, and 25 staff. On Sunday, 31 premature babies were evacuated from Al Shifa in a joint operation by the U.N. and Palestinian Red Crescent and would be taken over the southern Rafah border crossing to Egypt for hospitalisation there, Gaza's health ministry said. Eight premature babies previously died at Al Shifa for lack of electricity and medications crucial to care, it said. Hundreds of other patients, staff and displaced people who were sheltering in Al Shifa left on Saturday, with Palestinian health officials saying they were ejected inhumanely by Israeli troops and the military saying the departures were voluntary. Gaza's traumatised population has been on the move since the start of the war, sheltering in hospitals or moving from the north to the south and, in some cases, back again, in desperate efforts to stay out of the line of fire. (Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, James Mackenzie Henriette Chacar and Reuters bureaux; writing by Kim Coghill and Mark Heinrich; editing by Cynthia Osterman, William Mallard, Hugh Lawson and Andrew Heavens) Kenyans took part in the country's first tree-planting holiday on Monday Kenya's President William Ruto has been named by Time Magazine as one of the world's 100 most influential leaders shaping global climate action. The listing comes in the week he led a national holiday aimed at planting 100 million trees in a single day. Mr Ruto was named alongside the mayor of Sierra Leone's capital Freetown, Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr. Burkinabe-German architect Francis Kere and Ethiopian climate entrepreneur Kidus Asfaw also made the Time list. The ranking, known as "Time 100 Climate", was released on Thursday, and is the magazine's inaugural attempt to name those it sees as significant in highlighting and doing something about the issue of climate change across the globe. Time said it selected those listed for "making significant progress in fighting climate change by creating business value". The magazine also said that the honourees were chosen because their efforts in fighting climate change were recent and produced "measurable, scalable achievements" rather than "commitments and announcements". Mr Ruto has been vocal in trying to deal with the impact of climate change in Kenya and Africa. The tree-planting holiday held on 13 November was part of his larger ambition for Kenya to plant 15 billion trees in 10 years. In September, he hosted the first ever Africa Climate Summit in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, which ended in a joint declaration demanding that major polluters commit more resources to help poorer nations. But some environmentalists have called Mr Ruto a hypocrite for championing tree planting while failing to tame illegal logging in public forests. Last month, an environmental court stopped a directive that Mr Ruto gave in June to lift a 2018 ban on logging. In October, he called for the eviction of people living in the 380,000-hectare Mau Forest. While some environmentalists hailed the move as critical to safeguarding the forest, some human rights lawyers said the government illegally evicted the Ogiek indigenous community which has inhabited the land for generations to profit from carbon offsetting schemes. Mr Ruto's recognition as a leader on climate action also came as the World Bank on Friday warned that Kenya's economic output could decline by 7.25% by 2050 if the country fails to tackle climate change. Architect Francis Kere was named by Time for his innovative sustainable design projects, including for the state houses in Benin and his home country Burkina Faso. In 2022, he became the first black person and African to win the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize. Mr Asfaw runs a start-up that repurposes plastic waste into affordable low-carbon construction materials. Time said that his start-up offers "a sustainable and speedy solution to housing shortages as Africa's population grows". Mayor Aki-Sawyerr was listed for "tackling environmental degradation and climate resilience" through efforts like developing a climate action plan for Freetown and appointing a chief heat officer for the city, the first in Sierra Leone and Africa. You may also be interested in: November 19, 2023 at 12:07 AM Watch the dramatic moment police arrest the leader of an international drug cartel in Istanbul, Turkey. Authorities apprehended Nenad Petrak, a Croatian drug trafficker on Saturday, 18 November. Petrak was on Interpols red notice list for his alleged involvement in drug trafficking from South America into Europe. He is accused of being the mastermind behind a transnational criminal network involving widespread drug trafficking operations. Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on his social media account that Petrak was arrested in Istanbuls Uskudar district. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D), several lawmakers and the University of Wisconsin-Madison condemned a group of neo-Nazis that marched through the streets of Madison on Saturday. According to reports and videos posted on social media, the neo-Nazi group called the Blood Tribe was spotted marching through downtown Madison carrying swastika flags and doing the nazi salute. Evers released a statement Saturday afternoon condemning the march and called the behavior repulsive and disgusting. To see neo-Nazis marching in our streets and neighborhoods and in the shadow of our State Capitol building spreading their disturbing, hateful messages is truly revolting, Evers statement said. Let us be clear: neo-Nazis, antisemitism, and white supremacy have no home in Wisconsin, Evers continued in his statement. We will not accept or normalize this rhetoric and hate. Its repulsive and disgusting, and I join Wisconsinites in condemning and denouncing their presence in our state in the strongest terms possible. According to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the group marched from the State Street Mall to the state capitol around noon on Saturday. The university, located in close proximity to where the march occurred, released a statement condemning the groups presence and offering support to the campus community. The presence of this hateful group in Madison is utterly repugnant, University Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin said in a statement. I am horrified to see these symbols here in Madison. Hatred and antisemitism are completely counter to the universitys values, and the safety and well-being of our community must be our highest priorities. The university said the march was not announced to campus officials and they will continue to monitor the situation. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D) was one of several lawmakers who condemned the march, posting online that the march has no place in Wisconsin. At a time when we are seeing disturbing spikes in antisemitism, it is more important than ever to denounce this hate in no uncertain terms, Baldwins post said. Rep. Mark Pocan (D) echoed a similar sentiment in response to Baldwins post, saying, hate has no home here. These despicable extremists do not speak for the people of Madison, Wisconsin, or the United States, he said online. I strongly condemn this blatant showcase of antisemitism. Our community stands resolute against such bigotry. Rep. Gwen Moore (D) said she was deeply disturbed by the demonstration. Hate, white supremacy, and anti-semitism have no place in America, her post said. Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R) responded to Mnookins post, and said that he is working to remove federal funding for universities that do not vigorously condemn the neo-Nazis and the pro-HAMA/antisemetic rallies being held around the country. Zero federal dollars without equal condemnation of both, his post said. According to the Madison Police Department, there were around 20 people that were carrying Nazi flags. Police noted there were no weapons displayed and that they had received many calls to report the group, but didnt take action against it. The Madison Police Department does not support hateful rhetoric. The department has an obligation to protect First Amendment rights of all, they said in a post on Facebook. The march comes at a time of heightened antisemitism in the United States following the onset of the war in the Middle East between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. This story was updated at 10:09pm. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Igor Girkin is currently in jail awaiting trial for extremism An outspoken pro-war blogger who has fiercely criticised Russia's military strategy in Ukraine has said he wants to challenge Vladimir Putin in next March's presidential elections. Igor Girkin, 52, led pro-Russian fighters in eastern Ukraine in 2014, following Moscow's annexation of the southern Crimea peninsula. Girkin is in jail awaiting trial for extremism, which he denies. He said he wanted to disrupt the "sham" poll with the winner already known. This comment is widely seen in Russia as a reference to President Putin, who is yet to publicly declare that he will run again. In a letter to supporters published on Telegram on Sunday, Girkin, whose nom de guerre is Strelkov, said: "I understand perfectly well that in the current situation in Russia, participating in the presidential campaign is like sitting down at a table to play with card sharps." But he said he hoped his attempt to unite patriotic forces would disrupt the Kremlin's plans for the polls in which "the only winner is known in advance". "This is our chance to unite in the face of external and internal threats," he said. He told his supporters to set up a headquarters for his campaign, and to start collecting signatures for his candidacy, even though he knew he would not be allowed to stand. Supporters of Girkin told Reuters that his criminal investigation had been extended until 18 December, and that he could theoretically take part in the polls as he has not been convicted yet. Girkin is a former FSB intelligence colonel. He was one of three men convicted in absentia by a Dutch court last November of murder for his role in the 2014 shooting down of a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet with the loss of all 298 people on board. After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he gained prominence by mocking Russian tactics and repeatedly warned that Russia faced revolution and even civil war unless President Putin's military top brass fight the war in Ukraine more effectively. He was arrested in July. If convicted of extremism he could face up to five years in jail. Russian authorities have cracked down on nationalist critics who have called for a much tougher approach to fighting the war in Ukraine, after the failed mutiny by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in June. Prigozhin was killed in August in a plane crash, the causes of which are still unclear. President Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview published on Friday that he hoped his boss would stand for another term. He first served as president from 2000 to 2008, returning to the role from a stint as prime minister in 2012. Recent amendments to the Russian constitution allow him to stay in power until at least 2036 if he is elected again. Former first lady Rosalynn Carter has died at the age of 96, the Carter Center announced Sunday. The Carter Center said she died "peacefully, with family by her side" at 2:10 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 19, at her home in Plains, Georgia. "Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished," former President Jimmy Carter said in a statement. "She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me." The former first lady had been diagnosed with dementia and continued to live at home in Plains, Georgia, with her husband, her family said in May. They said last week that she had entered home hospice care. President Biden and first lady Jill Biden paid tribute to her for "inspiring a nation and the world." saying in a statement: "Throughout her incredible life as First Lady of Georgia and the First Lady of the United States, Rosalynn did so much to address many of society's greatest needs. She was a champion for equal rights and opportunities for women and girls; an advocate for mental health and wellness for every person; and a supporter of the often unseen and uncompensated caregivers of our children, aging loved ones, and people with disabilities." First lady Rosalynn Carter is seen in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, July 23, 1979. / Credit: Diana Walker/Getty Images As a close confidante and trusted adviser to her husband, Rosalynn Carter played an active role in the White House and championed causes such as research into mental health. Though she grew up as a small-town girl who never planned on a public life, she understood the power of political office and its potential to change the world. Rosalynn Carter: A life in photos Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter had a partnership unlike any other known at the time for a president and first lady. Though other first ladies privately advised their husbands, the Carters' bond was deep. Rosalynn Carter was willing to speak her mind to her husband, and he valued her advice. She sat in on Cabinet meetings a first and took the heat for it. "Jimmy Carter has always taught me you do the best you can and you don't worry about the criticism," she told CBS News' Bob Schieffer in October 1980. "It does not matter what you do. It does not matter. I could stay here and pour tea and be a hostess and do nothing else and I would be criticized, or I could have one project it doesn't matter what I do, it doesn't matter what he does we're going to be criticized. You just have to have confidence." Born in Plains on August 18, 1927, the oldest of four children, Rosalynn Smith started dating Jimmy Carter when she was 18. "The first time I had a date with him I came home and mother said, 'You know I like Jimmy, he has the nicest smile,'" she once told CBS News' Ed Rabel. "So he's had a nice smile a long time." President Jimmy Carter and first lady Rosalynn Carter dance at a White House Congressional Ball, in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 13, 1978 . / Credit: Marion S. Trikosko / Getty Images The couple married a year later, in 1946. Jimmy Carter was in the Navy, and his job allowed them to see the world. Their three sons were each born in a different place. Rosalynn Carter loved the life and didn't want to return to her small town. "I think I was away from home and very independent and had three little babies, and I thought that if I came home I would have my mother and Jimmy's mother to tell me what to do," she told Rabel. But when Jimmy Carter's father died in 1953, they returned to Plains to run the family peanut business. The couple had bigger plans, however, and Jimmy Carter was elected governor of Georgia in 1970. Rosalynn Carter campaigned by his side and on her own. That continued in the 1976 presidential campaign, and she became his eyes and ears in places he wasn't able to get to. They'd meet in Plains every week and compare notes. They'd had their fourth child, Amy, by now, and she was often on the campaign trail with them. "Every time we came home, we liked to go out to the farm and walk in the fields, and it gave us two or three hours just to talk about, to visit," Rosalynn Carter told CBS News. "We talked about the campaign and the things he saw and the things I saw and how we wanted it to go and how it was going and so forth. I could tell him about the impressions I had gotten, I had gotten about different states." After they moved into the White House, she continued her role as a sounding board for her husband and used the power of the first lady's office to promote better understanding of the mentally ill, one of her long-term causes. She served as the honorary chairperson of the President's Commission on Mental Health. She also continued to travel as first lady, visiting Latin America as the president's emissary, and acknowledging with a smile how unusual it was. "I'm going to convey all this information I have to Jimmy. As a matter of fact, I look forward to consulting with him on a regular basis," she said to laughter in 1977. Former President Jimmy Carter and wife Rosalynn Carter make a surprise appearance at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Aug. 25, 2008. / Credit: AP Photo/Ron Edmonds After leaving Washington in 1980, the Carters set upon the next phase of their lives with characteristic zeal. They built the Carter Center in Atlanta, which promotes peace and conflict resolution. Their projects ranged from breaking ground on new homes for the poor through Habitat for Humanity in the U.S. to visiting far-flung places around the world in pursuit of peace. President Clinton awarded the Carters the Medal of Freedom in 1999. The couple's close partnership the longest presidential marriage in the nation's history lasted more than three-quarters of a century. They celebrated their 77th wedding anniversary on July 7, 2023. Rosalynn Carter spoke at the funeral of her fellow first lady and friend Betty Ford on July 12, 2011, and described her in terms that might well apply to herself: "Isn't this the most appropriate description of Betty? Someone who was willing to do things a bit differently than they had been done before? Someone who had the courage and grace to fight fear, stigma and prejudice wherever she encountered it." The Chicago sandwich joint that inspired "The Bear" A sweet celebration of pawpaw fruit Texas BBQ, with a foreign flavor Sen. Gary Peters already had what seemed like an impossible task: Holding Democrats razor-thin Senate majority while defending twice as many incumbents as Republicans all with limited pick-up opportunities and with two Democrats at risk in states former President Donald Trump won in 2020. Then, Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin announced he wouldnt run for reelection. And now West Virginia is off the table a reality the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee acknowledges as he adjusts his plans for a shifting landscape. West Virginia is a very tough state, Peters, a Michigan Democrat running the Senate Democrats campaign arm for a second straight cycle, told CNN on Inside Politics Sunday. Joe Manchin had the ability to win there because of his long career and the brand that he built. But we are focused on other states that also have those kinds of incumbents running for reelection. Peters new goal: Holding every other Democratic incumbent including in red states like Montana and Ohio and clinging to a 50-50 Senate with the hope that President Joe Biden wins reelection and gives them control of the chamber. And Peters says his party will try to pull off another difficult feat: defeating Republican incumbent Sens. Ted Cruz and Rick Scott, even as Democrats have long struggled to win statewide in both Texas and Florida. Despite the odds, Peters said Democrats can defy expectations, pointing to the fact that incumbents are typically difficult to beat; the potency of abortion rights as an issue; and some messy GOP primaries that could end up hurting Republicans next November. Theyre not strong in their states But to do that, Democrats have virtually no margin for error next fall. Peters said they hope to go on the offensive in Texas and Florida, noting that Democratic donors in particular are eager to knock off the two GOP incumbents there. Theyre not strong in their states, Peters said of Cruz and Scott. Were going to have a very strong challenger coming out of the primaries of those two states. And well be able to raise resources. Certainly donors around the country have very strong opinions about those two individuals. And we believe well have the resources to make the kind of contrast necessary to win those states. But running competitive races in mega-states like Texas and Florida would drain precious resources and its too early to know how much money national Democrats would dump into those GOP-leaning states. Scott, running for a second term in a state that has increasingly trended Republican, also has a vast personal fortune he could dip into. I wouldnt want to run against me, Scott told CNN. Cruzs office didnt respond to requests for comment, but the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Steve Daines, said that national Republicans are keeping an eye on Cruz. Just because hes Ted Cruz hell draw a lot of money from the other side to try to defeat Ted Cruz, Daines told CNN in a recent interview. Steep challenges The daunting map with Democrats defending 23 seats and Republicans just 11 includes Democratic seats from several purple states like Nevada, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. They will have to defend two states that will draw the most amount of attention: Ohio and Montana, where Trump easily won in his first two White House runs and where Democratic Sens. Sherrod Brown and Jon Tester face what could be the toughest races of their careers. Added to their challenges: Bidens unpopularity particularly in red states and real concerns among Democrats that he is losing support from key parts of his coalition that helped power his 2020 White House run. But Tester is not too concerned. I dont think it makes much difference, Tester said of Biden on top of the ticket. We havent had a popular Democratic president since LBJ. Yet Democrats will likely have to run ahead of Biden and pick up voters who would vote for Trump if hes at the top of the ticket. Peters is fully aware of the challenges ahead for Montana and Ohio, but argued that Brown and Tester have distinct brands that will help them outrun the Democratic ticket in those states. The states that were competing in are traditionally battleground states for both the president as well as for the Senate so we have to run very good races and campaigns in those areas and those places like Montana and Ohio that are clearly going to be very challenging, Peters said. And for others in swing states, campaigning with Biden may be their only choice. No, Sen. Bob Casey, a Pennsylvania Democrat, told CNN when asked if he thought Biden would drag him down in his race against Republican Dave McCormick, who lost in the GOP primary last cycle but so far has a clear field next year. Asked if he would campaign with Biden, Casey said he would and already has. Were gonna be on the ticket together. Ive got a damn good record on delivering for the state even as he acknowledged McCormick is tough Ill leave it at that for now. Very contentious GOP primaries But Peters hopes that Republicans will undermine their chances in 2024 in their bruising primaries as theyve done in past cycles namely 2022, 2012 and 2010 all of which saw weak GOP nominees collapse in the general election and effectively hand Democrats the majority. Republicans are concerned that could happen in Michigan a prime pickup opportunity with Democrat Debbie Stabenow retiring as well as Montana, if hard-right Rep. Matt Rosendale runs against the NRSCs preferred candidate, Tim Sheehy. In Ohio, Republicans are battling in a crowded primary, but NRSC officials maintain that they would be comfortable with whomever emerges as the nominee there. A lot of the dynamics that we had in the 22 race are the same in 24, Peters said. And were seeing very contentious primaries on the Republican side that will likely mean that a very damaged candidate comes out of those primaries to face a very strong incumbent. Despite the parallels, Senate Democrats in the 2022 midterms were not defending any states that Trump carried in the last presidential election. Yet just like 2022, Democrats are buoyed by this years election results in Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky that underscored the power of abortion rights as an issue a year after the Dobbs decision, something Peters predicted will be a powerful issue in 2024. Some states, however, present unique dilemmas namely Arizona. There, Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego could face Republican Kari Lake in a general election. But its still uncertain whether Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, will run again in Arizona and whether she would do so as a third-party candidate. If she does, Daines told CNN last month that Sinema would have a difficult path to win. Both parties are uncertain how her potential candidacy could impact their respective candidate. So far, neither the DSCC nor Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has endorsed Gallego or detailed how they would handle a three-candidate race, instead waiting for Sinema to make her decision known. We are making investments in those states that we want to make sure that a Republican does not win, Peters said when asked if the DSCC would back Gallego. Were going to continue making investments in Arizona like we do in other states. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Lauren Smith - Paramount In last weeks chapter of Bass Reeves, the legendary lawman finally had the opportunity to wrangle some outlaws. It was an exciting and action-packed change of pace from the premiere episode's focus on Reeves origin story. Bass even did some detective work down at the saloon! The deputy U.S. marshal also saw firsthand what happens to the criminals that he brings in alivethey're sentenced to death by Judge Hanging Parker (Donald Sutherland). How will Reeves reckon with his sense of justice, and what awaits the great historical figure next? Well, we kick off Episode Four of Lawmen: Bass Reeves with a two-year time jump. Reeves approaches a secluded house somewhere in Arkansas, and a woman stares him down from her porch with a shotgun. He tells her that his name is Joe Gamble and asks her for some whiskey. Reeves is undercover, it seems, looking for information about her two wild sons. Hell, one of them is even named Wylie. Its a tight cold open before the title card appears. The two outlaws wake up in the morning wrapped up in chains as Reeves sits on the bed, pistol in hand. Emerson Miller - Paramount Riding back to town, Reeves passes the men on to Billy Crow. We met the Native American outlaw for the first time last week. His character is a wink-wink reference to The Lone Rangers famous sidekick, Tonto. Now, he appears to be fully partnered with deputy Bass Reeves. One night, theyre taking the prisoners back to Arkansas, when one of the men starts telling a ghost story. He speaks of a slave catcher named Mr. Sundown. This fictional devil "is building a plantation out of skin and bonea dark, dark church full of hells music." Metal. But Reeves, being the devoted Christian man than he is, silences him. Later that night, a stranger attacks him in his sleep. 'You aint no law here," the prisoner tells him. "This heres hell." Reeves beats the living shit out of him, with Crow holding him back from killing him. The crazed man even ripped another sleeping prisoners face off. "Until God say otherwise," Reeves tells him. "Im the only law there it is." Grim! It's a bone-chillingly dark scene. In the morning, we're treated to a cameo from Yellowstones Mo Brings Plenty. Hes playing a Native American named Minco Dodge. (Very cool name.) He seems to be an informant for Reevesand a friend. He tells Bass about Silas Cobb, a horse thief, and a guy with a TV villain name if I've ever heard one. Figure I sweet talk Cobb into a pair of cuffs? Reeves jokes. There are also some outlaws who've placed a bounty on Reevess head. Seems as if hes made a reputation in the past two years. A little trip to the gambling house/saloon/brothel might give Reeves some information as to Cobbs whereabouts. The head woman of the establishment speaks to him in a gravely, scary voice. She sounds like shes doing an impression of a dragon. Lucky for Reeves, Cobb is here. The same thing happened last episode when he was looking for a different gang. This man just has the best luck. So, Reeves busts in on Cobb with a prostitute. Cobb offers the location of another outlaw, Jim Webb, in exchange for his life. Reeves seems to like the deal. Maybe this Jim Webb guy is even more evil. But Reeves is smarter than that. Deal is I wouldnt shoot ya, he tells Cobb. Plus, Ill tell Parker you sang. Cobb jumps out the window and escapes, but he rides his horse right in the direction of Billy Crow. Crow fires a bullet right through his gut and kills him. Cobb still has time before he dies to write a letter to his wife, and Reeves agrees to bring it to her. She basically knows what Reeves is there to say before he even rides up, marking an even bleaker end to the episodes already dark beginning. As his story continues, Bass Reeves is still the coolest guy of all time. "The second I called out his name, that man was my responsibility," he tells Crow. He then hands him a bullet from his pistol and tells him to think of each round as a mans life. "One were either saving or taking," Reeves says. "Law says we get to make the choice because we got the badge. But only God knows know if it was right. Good thing, too, cause I sure dont." Damn. The two men ride off, ready for their next adventure. You Might Also Like Editor's Note: For the latest news on the Israel-Hamas conflict, please see our live updates file here. Hostage negotiations aimed at producing a multi-day ceasefire in return for the release of some of the estimated 240 people believed held by militants in Gaza were progressing Sunday but a deal remained uncertain, officials said. "The sticking points, honestly, at this stage are more practical, logistical, not really something to present the call-off of the deal," Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, who has been involved in the talks, said at a news briefing. Reports of various deals for the release of dozens of women and children have been circulating for weeks, but thus far only four hostages have been released and one rescued. Still, Deputy U.S. National Security Advisor Jon Finer said Sunday the talks had reached a "very sensitive" stage. He said the fate of the hostages remains an "incredibly high priority" for President Joe Biden and his entire administration. "Were following this minute by minute, hour by hour, and have been over a number of weeks." Finer told ABC's "This Week." Israel has been focused on crushing Hamas since Oct. 7, when Hamas militants made the now-infamous raid into Israeli border communities that left more than 1,200 dead and another 240 people captured and taken to Gaza as hostages. The Gaza Health Ministry says Israel's ensuing military campaign has killed more than 12,000 Palestinians. Fuel getting to Gaza 'far from enough' to cover humanitarian needs, U.N. official says Palestinian medics care for premature babies evacuated from Al Shifa hospital to the Emirates hospital in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on November 19, 2023. Developments: Biden pitched his plan for post-war Gaza and the West Bank in a Washington Post op-ed, saying the two Palestinian enclaves should be reunited "ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority." Israel, however, has balked at ceding security control of Gaza after the war. Cpl. Noa Marciano, a 19-year-old female Israeli soldier whose body was recovered last week in Gaza, was killed by Hamas after sustaining non-life-threatening injuries during combat operations, the Israeli military said. She had been captured in the Oct. 7 attack. Hamas has said an Israeli air strike killed her. "Hamas terrorists took Noa into Shifa Hospital, where she was murder quickly,'' an Israel spokesman said. Beijing will host a delegation of foreign ministers from Arab and Islamic countries, including the Palestinian Authority's foreign minister, to help find a solution to the war, the Chinese foreign ministry said Sunday. 31 sick infants evacuated from embattled Gaza hospital The World Health Organization led a team into the embattled Shifa Hospital on Sunday, rescuing 31 sick premature babies and at least 16 health workers and other staff as Israel continued its devastating military campaign across northern Gaza. It was the second WHO-led mission to the hospital in as many days. On Saturday, WHO officials described the hospital as a "death zone," with staffers struggling amid limited supplies of food, water and power. Mohamed Zaqout, director of Gaza hospitals, said four babies had died at the hospital late last week. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO's director-general, credited the Palestinian Red Crescent Society with conducting the evacuations "under extremely intense and high-risk" conditions. "Were deeply moved and impressed by the extraordinary bravery and service of the health workers in Gaza, who continue to serve under the most dire and difficult circumstances," Tedros said. The babies were taken to the neonatal intensive care unit at a maternity hospital in southern Gaza and are expected to go from there to facilities in Egypt. They had dehydration, hypothermia and sepsis in some cases, Zaqout said. Planning is underway to transport the dozens of hospital staff and critically ill patients remaining at the hospital when safe passage can be secured, Tedros said. The hospital has been under siege for weeks amid Israeli claims it was being used by Hamas to stash fighters and weaponry. Israel says new videos show Hamas uses hospital for military purposes This Israeli military has responded to stinging criticism of its Shifa Hospital raid by insisting Hamas uses the sprawling 20-acre complex as a command center and the patients as human shields, and posting videos trying to prove the case. One such video Sunday shows what the Israel Defense Forces calls "the first, very sophisticated shaft'' on hospital grounds, along with several weapons and ammunition cartridges. The IDF said the shaft leads to a 180-foot tunnel about 30 feet under the compound and included a staircase, blast-proof door and a firing hole that could be used by snipers. The findings could not be independently verified. The Israeli military also posted security camera videos saying they showed two foreign hostages taken to the hospital by Hamas forces after the Oct. 7 attack. "These findings prove that the Hamas terrorist organization used the Shifa Hospital complex on the day of the October 7 Massacre as terrorist infrastructure,'' the posting said. Neither that assertion nor the contents of the video could be verified. In response to the videos showing the shaft and tunnel, senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told the Associated Press: The Israelis said there was a command and control center, which means that the matter is greater than just a tunnel. 100 Hamas militants taken prisoner Over 100 Hamas militants have been captured and transferred for questioning in Israel in the last few days, the Israeli military said in a statement. Some operatives disclosed Hamas' operating methods and details on tunnel digging and the recruitment process, the military said. "The information gained from the interrogations of the terrorists serves the troops who are operating from the air and the ground in the Gaza Strip," the statement said. It said that the information gleaned is providing "precise and up-to-date intelligence from the field" in support of combat efforts. Cargo ship hijacked in Red Sea by Iran-backed militants The cargo ship hijacked by members of the Iran-backed Houthi militia in the southern Red Sea is not Israeli and has no Israeli crew members, Israeli officials said. Earlier Sunday, Houthi leaders had threatened to hijack Israeli-flagged ships. Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement saying the ship was British-owned and was operated by a Japanese company. The ship had departed Turkey on its way to India staffed by about 25 civilians of various nationalities, the Israeli military said. UN agency: 24 die in attack on school-turned shelter At least 24 people were reportedly killed in an Israeli air strike on a school-turned-shelter for displaced families in northern Gaza, Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, said in a statement Sunday. He said as many as 7,000 people were in the school, which also was hit two weeks ago. At least 12 people were killed and 54 injured in that attack, Lazzarini said. The Israeli military said its troops were active in the area and were targeting militants. This is yet another proof that no one, and nowhere is safe in Gaza," Lazzarini said in a statement. "These acts not only blatantly contravene the rules of war, they also show a total disregard for humanity." Large groups of people are fleeing Gaza City, satellite images show Contributing: The Associated Press This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Israel-Hamas war live updates: 31 babies rescued from Gaza hospital Former President Trump claimed Saturday that the judge in his New York civil fraud trial is a complete and total puppet of New York Attorney General Letitia James. Judge Arthur Engoron, the most overturned and stayed Judge in the State, and the Racist New York State Attorney General, the most corrupt & incompetent A.G. in the Country (Violent Crime Is Raging!), have FRAUDULENTLY Undervalued my properties, by many times, in order to make me look bad, and make the Judges original ridiculous finding of Fraud pass the smell test, which it does not, Trump said on Truth Social. Trumps newest attack comes after the temporary lifting of a limited gag order by an appellate judge that prevented the former president and his attorneys from talking about Engorons staff. His comments also follow a denial of a motion for mistrial in the case, pushing back against a claim by Trump that the trial judge and his principal law clerks alleged bias against him had tainted the case. Best Black Friday Deals This Judicial and Prosecutorial corruption and misconduct took place BEFORE THE TRIAL EVEN STARTED, & WITHOUT ANY KNOWLEDGE OF THE CASE, the former president continued Saturday. Judge Engoron just did what the highly partisan A.G. told him to do. He is her complete and total puppet! New York Rep. Elise Stefanik (R), a staunch Trump supporter, added onto her original ethics complaint against Engoron on Friday, claiming the judge wrongfully denied Trumps mistrial motion. Following the gag order lift, Trump immediately took to Truth Social to blast Engoron and his law clerk. Judge Arthur Engoron has just been overturned (stayed!) by the New York State Appellate Division (Appeals Court), for the 4th TIME (on the same case!), Trump posted Thursday. His Ridiculous and Unconstitutional Gag Order, not allowing me to defend myself against him and his politically biased and out of control, Trump Hating Clerk, who is sinking him and his Court to new levels of LOW, is a disgrace, he added. Despite the pushback, Engoron has already ruled the former president and his business are liable for fraud. James, in her case, alleged that the Trump Organization sought lower taxes and better insurance coverage by falsely inflating and deflating the value of its assets. The attorney generals office is seeking some $250 million in financial penalties and to bar Trump and his adult children from operating businesses in New York. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Modi, while addressing a public rally in Bharatpur, claimed that the Congress will vanish from the state after the election JAIPUR: With the poll season in Rajasthan entering the final lap ahead of the November 25 polling for 200 Assembly seats, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday continued his attack on the states ruling Congress over its policy of appeasement, crime against women, deteriorating law and order situation. Predicting the ouster of the Ashok Gehlot-led government from the state, Mr Modi, while addressing a public rally in Bharatpur, claimed that the Congress will vanish from the state after the election. He said: "3 December, Congress chhoomantar." Later in the day, the PM addressed another rally in Nagaur, where he again highlighted the "red diary" issue and the tussle between the CM and his one-time deputy, Sachin Pilot. Taunting the Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot, the PM claimed that the people have decided not to vote for the "jadugar". Before Mr Gehlot entered politics, he toured the country performing magic tricks. His father was a professional magician. "On the one hand, India is becoming a leader in the world. On the other hand, you all know what happened in Rajasthan in the last five years. The Congress has made Rajasthan a leader in corruption, riots, and crimes. That's why Rajasthan is saying -- Magician ji, you won't get any votes," Mr Modi said. Mr Modi also accused the Congress of giving a free hand to criminals with its policy of appeasement. "Wherever the Congress comes, terrorists, criminals and rioters are let loose. Appeasement is everything for the Congress. The Congress can go to any extent for appeasement, even if it means putting your life at stake," Mr Modi said. Accusing the Congress of being anti-Dalit, Mr Modi said that the state under the Congress' five-year rule has seen a maximum number of crimes against women and Dalits. "Be it Holi, Ram Navami or Hanuman Jayanti, you people could not celebrate any festival peacefully. Riots, stone pelting, curfew -- all this continued in Rajasthan," he said. The PM said the Congress has shattered the confidence of the women of Rajasthan. "The chief minister says that women file fake rape cases. Can he protect women? Does such a chief minister have the right to remain in the chair even for a minute?" Mr Modi asked. He also called out a minister close to Mr Gehlot, without naming him, for terming Rajasthan a manly state, saying such remarks gave rise to crime against women. The Congress should be ashamed of such a statement by its members, he said. Mr Modi's comments apparently were directed at Rajasthan urban development and housing minister Shanti Dhariwal, who had last year attracted criticism for making light of incidents of rape in a comment. Mr Modi said he wonders whether the minister was let go without punishment because he held some secrets of the CM. "Instead of punishing this minister, the Congress gave him a reward. He got a ticket. So the people sitting in Delhi agreed with this sin. What other red diary does the magician's favourite minister have that has even made Delhi bow and give him a ticket?" he said. Mr Modi called the Congress "anti-Dalit" by nature, and alleged that the party could not digest a Dalit becoming a chief information commissioner. Heeralal Samariya, the newly appointed CIC, is a resident of the Deeg district of Rajasthan. Mr Modi said the Congress even boycotted the meeting, which was held for the officer's appointment. "The Congress cannot see a Dalit officer reaching a higher post." Later in the day, while addressing the Nagaur rally, Mr Modi took a swipe at the Congress over the tussle between Mr Gehlot and Mr Pilot, saying the two are only pretending to join hands for elections and there has been no reconciliation despite a hundred handshakes. "Delhi Darbar has been busy trying to loot the chair of its own CM and the CM has been busy dealing with them. These people had left the people of Rajasthan to fend for themselves," the PM alleged. "Now that the time for elections has come, these people are reluctantly getting themselves photographed together... Big leaders from Delhi come here and make the chief minister and another leader who wants to become the chief minister shake hands in front of the camera," Mr Modi said. Recently, several 'deepfake' videos targeting leading actors went viral, sparking public outrage NEW DELHI: Amid serious concerns over 'deepfake' videos, the government is all set to meet social media platforms on the issue, with IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday asserting that safe harbour immunity clause will not apply if platforms do not take adequate steps to remove deepfakes.Vaishnaw told reporters that the government had recently issued notices to companies on the deepfake issue, and while the platforms have responded, companies will have to be "more aggressive" in taking action on such content. "They are taking steps...but we think that many more steps will have to be taken. And we are very soon going to have a meeting of all the platforms. Maybe in the next 3-4 days, we'll call them for brainstorming on that and make sure that platforms make adequate efforts for preventing it (deepfakes), and for cleaning up their platforms," Vaishnaw said on the sidelines of a conference. Asked if big platforms like Meta and Google would be called for the meeting, the minister replied in the affirmative. Vaishnaw also made it clear that the 'safe harbour immunity' which platforms currently enjoy under the Information Technology (IT) Act will not be applicable unless they move swiftly to take firm action. "The safe harbour clause, which most social media platforms have been enjoying...that does not apply if they do not take adequate steps for removing deepfakes from their platforms," he said. Internet platforms and social media platforms - the likes of Google, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and others - fall within the ambit of an intermediary. The safe harbour clause - under India's Information Technology framework - protects intermediaries from legal action on them for content posted online by their users. Recently, several 'deepfake' videos targeting leading actors went viral, sparking public outrage and raising concerns over the misuse of technology and tools for creating doctored content and fake narratives. On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi cautioned that deepfakes created by artificial intelligence can lead to a big crisis and stoke discontent in society, as he urged the media to raise awareness about its misuse and educate people. Deepfakes refer to synthetic or doctored media that is digitally manipulated and altered to convincingly misrepresent or impersonate someone, using a form of artificial intelligence. Recently, a deepfake video with a morphed face of actress Rashmika Mandanna went viral on social media, raising a furore and prompting calls for regulation of technology to curb its misuse. The original video was stated to be of a British-Indian influencer, whose face had been edited with Mandanna's face. Doctored video of some other actors have also reportedly surfaced on social media platforms. Last week, the Centre issued an advisory to major social media companies to identify misinformation, deepfakes and other content that violates rules and remove those within 36 hours after being reported to them. Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar had said that deepfakes are a major violation and harm women in particular. "Safety and trust of our Digital Nagriks is our unwavering commitment and top priority for the Narendra Modi Government. Given the significant challenges posed by misinformation and deepfakes, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) has issued a second advisory within the last six months, calling upon online platforms to take decisive actions against the spread of deepfakes," Chandrasekhar had said. To another question on Apple threat notification issue, Vaishnaw said that Apple is doing its investigation, and so is CERT-In (government's cybersecurity agency). "Apple is doing their investigation, and CERT-In is also doing investigation. I think we should be able to get some results," Vaishnaw said. Nearly a fortnight ago, several opposition leaders had claimed they received an alert from Apple warning them of "state-sponsored attackers trying to remotely compromise" their iPhones and alleged hacking by the government, a charge Vaishnaw had categorically rejected but assured a thorough probe. The 2023 UN Climate Change Conference will be held in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, 2023. With dramatic changes in the climate overtaking our world, the ferocious pollution in Delhi, the most polluted city in the world and across North India, the irony should not be lost on anyone that world leaders will be sitting down to yet another ineffectual talkathon on arresting climate change just over a week from now. The 2023 UN Climate Change Conference will be held in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, 2023. The main meeting will be the COP 28 (28th meeting of the Conference of the Parties) as well as the 18th meeting of the parties to the Kyoto Protocol. And the fifth meeting of the parties to the Paris Agreement. The Kyoto Protocol of 1997 was an international treaty to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases causing global warming. Industrial countries with high emissions were required to cut back more than the less polluting developing countries. The Paris Agreement of 2015 was a pledge to keep global temperature rise well below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to aim to keep the rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius. The hyperbolic agenda of COP 28 is: Fast-tracking energy transition and slashing emissions before 2030; Transforming climate finance, delivering on old promises and setting the framework for a new deal on finance; Putting nature, people, lives, and livelihoods at the heart of climate action; and even more immodestly -- Mobilising for the most inclusive COP ever. I wonder how many people believe any of this. Nothing except hot air has emerged from these treaties and the global climate has only worsened, causing the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, to despair recently that humanity has opened the gates to hell by allowing the climate crisis to worsen. As if to provide the scientific underpinning to Mr Guterres hopelessness, a new report has just come in October titled The 2023 State of the Climate Report: Entering Unchartered Territory. Brought out by Oxford University Press, the report is authored by a multi-disciplinary team of scientists from different countries. The headline message of the report is that Life on Planet Earth is under Siege and we are now in Unchartered Territory This bald, terrifying statement says in so many words that it is possibly too late to reverse the damage done to the climate and that it is going to get increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to predict the timing, the nature and severity of anomalous events that will take place in the future. 2023 will probably turn out to be a benchmark year when many planetary boundaries were irretrievably breached. In July, 2023 was recorded as the hottest year on record. Scientists derive from paleo evidence that this July was probably the hottest in 100,000 years. If that doesnt sound crazy enough, July 2023 is also when the Antarctic Sea ice reached its lowest level so far and unprecedented numbers of wildfires were seen across temperate areas, particularly in North America. Asia is turning out to be particularly vulnerable to climate upheavals and disasters. We are seeing the increasingly vulnerable state of North India, particularly in the Indo-Gangetic plains, where high levels of pollution persist for months and uncharacteristic weather events have become more frequent. Cloud bursts and heavy monsoon rains cause flash floods and landslides in northern India. The heavy, nonstop rain for three days starting with a cloud burst wrought havoc in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand in 2021. If the devastating floods of Pakistan in 2022 and the frequent flooding in Bangladesh and China are any indication, the Asian region has already slipped into a highly atypical weather pattern. The climate of the regions around the Hindukush and Himalayan mountains is directly influenced by the snow-capped ranges which are bearing the brunt of global warming. Glaciers here are melting at a quickened pace. It is estimated that over half of the earths 215,000 glaciers will melt by the end of the century, even if global warming is limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Images captured by Nasa satellites reveal that the Himalayas have already lost about one third of their permanent ice (permafrost) in just the last 50 years. This has serious implications for the water availability in the major rivers of North India. When glaciers melt and retreat, glacial lakes are formed collecting the melted water. These are fragile, highly unstable structures that can rupture their banks easily, resulting in large volumes of water flowing down in torrents, producing devastating floods. Such GLOFs (Glacial Lake Outburst Floods) are becoming more frequent. A GLOF event is what caused the 2013 Kedarnath disaster, when at least 5000 people lost their lives. A GLOF is also what caused the flash floods in Sikkim in 2023 where along with a significant number of lives lost, huge damage was caused to expensive infrastructure, including Chungthang dam and hydroelectric power project. In a swiftly warming world, there is a greater likelihood we will see more instances of catastrophic floods caused when the unstable glacial lakes breach their insubstantial banks. As it is, satellite data show that the last 30 years have seen a big surge in the volume of glacial lakes. All this tells us how precarious our hold now is on the planet that has sustained human civilisations over millennia. Population growth coupled with an economic growth model that is anchored in a rapacious appetite for more and more has extracted more resources and emitted more pollutants that the environment could handle. We have destroyed the equilibrium of nature. I could end on a prescription of What to Do to make things good again, but the solutions have been screamed from the rooftops at every COP meeting. Only, nobody listened. I am afraid that they will not listen at COP 28 either. The BJPs troubles are giving a lot of breathing space to the ruling Congress despite its internal problems. Some truths hit hard. Notwithstanding plans for a grand inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya in January 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi realises that polarisation alone cannot ensure a third term for the BJP in the Lok Sabha polls. Mr Modi is no doubt the only Hindu Hriday Samrat and the RSS and the entire Sangh Parivar would go to town from early next year to sell Ram for the BJP. They would not leave anything to chance to drum up support, but doubts still linger. And these are serious doubts. They are growing by the day. The BJP and its top brass have become desperate to come up as the winner in all the polls and are using every trick in the trade to bolster up its Hindutva vote bank, as it has nothing new to offer. But it is not having the desired impact. The polarisation plans are being unfolded non-stop. So, one sees Yogi Adityanath and his Uttar Pradesh government lighting 24 lakh lamps at Ayodhya on Diwali, but the darkness on governance is discernible. In a first, Yogi held his Cabinet meeting in Ayodhya as well. The bulldozer is also deployed wherever possible to tighten the plot. The Uttarakhand government has announced plans to bring a bill to usher in the Uniform Civil Code. Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is Mr Modis man who saved his post despite losing his Assembly seat in the elections last year. Such people are extra obedient. But signs of impending trouble are visible in the Assembly polls in five states. Observers rue that even the manifestos put up by the BJP have nothing much to offer and are virtually copycats of those of its detractors, especially the Congress, sometimes promising more things than others. But that does not mean that the BJP has good prospects in all these states. The crisis is deepening. With a challenging situation in the South after the defeat in Karnataka, the BJP is fighting feverishly in the Assembly polls, but is groping in the dark for a good result. The BJP needs to win at least two states to send home the message ahead of the Lok Sabha polls that Brand Modi is still intact. No doubt, the Lok Sabha polls are a different cup of tea. But signs of the polarisation card not working in the Assembly polls are visible. Take the case of Telangana. The BJP is again playing the card and has brought in controversial leader T. Raja Singh and given him a ticket. But the BJP is looking more desperate despite the PM announcing that the party will have an OBC CM in the state. In the state, the BJP is shocked over its growing irrelevance happening all of a sudden, and the fortunes of the Congress brightening by the day. As the battle is turning bipolar between K. Chandrasekhar Raos BRS and the Congress, observers note that if the BJP collapses completely, it will benefit the Congress more in the keen tussle. In Madhya Pradesh, Congress CM candidate Kamal Nath has virtually punctured the polarisation card by projecting himself as the most ardent devotee of Bajrangbali and showing himself as a true believer. The focus has shifted to the 18 years of anti-incumbency of chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who carries the fatigue factor. After the abolition of Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP should have won the first election for the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council-Kargil since Ladakh was designated a Union territory in 2019. But the BJP got just two of the 26 seats in the polls held over two months ago. There is a delay in holding the polls in the new Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The Waterloo of the BJP in Karnataka, despite invoking Bajarang Bali and raising controversies like hijab, has shown the limits of polarisation. Bringing in B.S. Vijayendra as state BJP chief is a signal of the defeat of the likes of B.L. Santosh, who were instrumental in showing the door to a veteran like B.S. Yediyurappa. It is a tacit admission that the Basavaraj Bommai experiment was a terrible mistake. The BJPs growing nervousness in Karnataka is reflected in the alliance with the JD(S). It could do more harm than good, as is clear from the unease within the state BJP. Two plus two is not always four in politics. It could be zero too. The BJPs troubles are giving a lot of breathing space to the ruling Congress despite its internal problems. In Mizoram, where voting is over, a strange thing was seen. The PM, who excels in campaigning unlike any other PM, kept away from canvassing. It was virtually a compulsory sit-out as Christian-dominated Mizoram was shocked by the ethnic violence in neighbouring Manipur and the virtual silence of the PM. The BJP may not be saying anything, but it is realising that the Congress is gaining strength slowly but surely, notwithstanding contradictions in the INDIA alliance coming to the fore. The BJPs problem has been compounded by the developments in Bihar where chief minister Nitish Kumar is doing everything to queer the pitch of the saffron party as well as its allies in the state. After the caste census and raising the reservation limit to 75 per cent, Nitish Kumar is pitching for the status of special state for Bihar for its speedy development. He has even threatened to launch a movement for the purpose. The timing is just perfect. The ruling party is equally uneasy with the sudden rise of Manoj Jarange Patil in Maharashtra, who is aggressive on the Maratha reservation issue. Despite the Eknath Shinde government being dominated by the BJP, it has been grappling with the sticky situation for long without success. The BJP and its top brass are weary of things getting out of hand. The failure of the Maharashtra government to stabilise is helping the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi to get its act together. Mr Modi and home minister Amit Shah have painfully realised that Mr Nitish Kumars action has made Bihar a harder nut to crack. They also worry about more than a spillover effect in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, the BJPs Hindutva laboratory after Gujarat. So, suddenly, it is all things to all people, such as the announcement on extending the free ration scheme to 800 million poor people for the next five years, and the Rs 24,000-crore programme for tribals. It gets even merrier when the chips are down. I'm fine, as I'm very fortunate to own my home I own, but I'm feeling the pinch on my mortgage with other inflation costs I rent and it's expensive, but it could be worse I'm seriously considering leaving the valley if something doesn't give Vote View Results Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. SUV kWh Photo: RSymons RSEV on YouTube kW Lotus currently sells three versions of its first, and it just so happens to be battery-electric. Customers can order the Eletre, the Eletre S, and the Eletre R. Prices start from 89,500 ($111,490) for the base model, go up to 104,500 ($130,176) for the middle option, and reach the 120,000 ($149,484) mark for the top version with a Taycan-like two-speed gearbox integrated into the rear axle.This particular customer got the "entry-level" Eletre. Finished in Galloway Green, the eSUV looks strikingly good without commanding your attention. It's going to pique your interest for sure, but your eyesight won't be bothered by it. The color compliments the vehicle's silhouette and helps it retain that British-specific elegance.But this all-wheel-drive Chinese-made vehicle isn't only about looks. It puts out 603 hp, promises a range of 373 mi enabled by a 112-(gross capacity) battery boasting the 800V architecture, and features active air suspension plus Kinematic Posture Control -like torque vectoring. The latter means the vehicle uses the brakes to apply stopping force to a single wheel for sharper cornering. Rear-wheel steering is also available, which this customer optioned.When it comes to electricity consumption, 23.2 miles covered in the city and on the highway at an average speed of 23.2 mph on a rather cold day with no preconditioned battery and a few mild sprints here and there revealed that the SUV consumed 9% of the battery. The computer displayed an efficiency of 41.1 kWh per 100 miles or 2.4 miles per kWh for that quick trip. But the Eletre is relatively new, and things could improve along the way. The manufacturer might unlock more of the battery buffer if it deems it feasible.The standard features list includes keyless entry (key fob needed), a plethora of safety and driver-assistance features, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, a 15-speaker, 1,380-watt KEF sound system, a 15.1-inch OLED infotainment screen, 5G, cameras instead of side mirrors, a 29-inch head-up display with some Augmented Reality implementations, and matrix LED headlights.Even in entry-level spec, the Wuhan-born Eletre feels almost complete. It nearly ticks all the right boxes. Some could even consider it too much.This customer, however, added a couple of options. He chose a different 22-inch wheel design that features carbon fiber rim inserts, the active aero pack, a more capable A/C system, configurable interior lighting, the electrochromic panoramic glass roof, and the dynamic handling pack, and tinted windows for the rear passengers. Those upgrades meant the cost rose to almost 111,000 ($138,273).That's more than double the VAT-including price of a Tesla Model Y Long Range. The popular crossover SUV costs 52,990 ($66,010) in the UK, while Americans look at an MSRP of $48,990. Given that discrepancy, anyone would rightfully expect the Lotus to be better and maybe even twice as good as the Tesla.But while the Eletre is a major upgrade from the Model Y on some levels, there still are some misses Lotus should take care of. The owner of the eSUV believes the vehicle would benefit from better efficiency, some software polishing that should add popular apps like Netflix or YouTube, and the phone key.Fortunately, these are suggestions that can be addressed via over-the-air software updates. Lotus could take care of them as more customer feedback is received.The Eletre buyer also mentioned Supercharger access as a Lotus "cons," but that's not something we would take into account. The 800V architecture enables charging speeds of up to 350, and the Ionity network supports this feature thanks to a wide network of high-power stalls. That's something Tesla's EVs can't currently take advantage of. But V4 Superchargers are just around the corner! From the 1960s to the present day, Dodge has produced some of the most legendary muscle cars that ever roamed on public roads. 1964 Dodge Polara 500 Max Wedge Photo: Mecum 1968 Dodge Charger R/T HEMI Photo: Mecum 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona Photo: Mecum 2022 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Jailbreak Photo: Stellantis North America 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 Photo: Stellantis North America The brand's story started in December 1900 when Horace and John Dodge founded the Dodge Brothers Company in Detroit.Initially, the company produced and supplied components for Detroit-based carmakers (primarily Ford), then began manufacturing complete automobiles in 1914.By 1920, the company ranked second in US sales (behind Ford), but only seven years later, it dropped to 13th place. To mitigate losses, parent investment group Dillon, Read & Co (which purchased Dodge from the brothers' widows in 1920) sold the brand to the Chrysler Corporation in 1928.Dodge rebounded under the Chrysler corporate umbrella, becoming known for its blue-collar automobiles and trucks.By the 1960s, the rise in popularity of performance-oriented cars turned Dodge into one of the premier muscle car manufacturers. Then, during the 1990s, it shocked everyone with its outstanding Viper supercar.When high-powered muscle cars became popular once again in the late 2000s, Dodge revived iconic nameplates like the Challenger and Charger, equipping them with a new generation of HEMI engines.These days, the brand is stepping away from V8-powered muscle and jumping on the electric bandwagon. So, as we say goodbye to the gas-guzzling monsters that produced multiple generations of car enthusiasts, let's take a look at five of the coolest, most powerful Dodge muscle cars ever built.Introduced in 1960 as Dodge's flagship full-size model , the Polara was downgraded to an intermediate platform just two years later.Among the Polara versions available in 1962 was the sportier 500, which was available as a two-door hardtop, a convertible, and a four-door hardtop.By 1964, the second-generation Polara 500 had reached its peak in terms of styling and performance.That year, the muscle car era officially started when Pontiac introduced the GTO, but while it didn't benefit from the same marketing campaign, the 1964 Polara 500 was far more potent when equipped with Chrysler's top-performing engine: the 426 Max Wedge Only available to reputable drag racers in select dealerships, the V8, nicknamed Orange Monster and marketed as Ramcharger 426, transformed the Polara 500 into a ridiculously powerful tire shredder.The engine could be had in one of two compression ratio versions, with output ratings of either 415 or 425 hp.Though the engine was conceived for the drag strip, the Polara 500 was still very much street-legal. Moreover, without visual upgrades or unique badges, it was one of the era's most powerful sleepers.The Charger was introduced in 1966 as a slightly larger, more upscale alternative to the Plymouth Barracuda pony car.While the idea seemed great, sales were not encouraging, so by 1967, Dodge designers went back to the drawing board and redesigned the model.Released in 1968, the second-generation Charger became one of the most gorgeous models from the golden age of muscle cars, and in the sportier R/T guise, it was also one of the most potent.As standard, the car was powered by a 440-ci (7.2-liter) Magnum V8 that made 390 hp, but buyers who wanted more power could get the optional 426-ci (7.0-liter) HEMI, conservatively rated at 425 hp.Equipped with the latter engine, the Charger R/T was the most powerful factory-built muscle car that one could buy in 1968.Moreover, its aggressive front end with hide-away headlights and its curvacious, coke bottle-style tail made it one of the coolest muscle cars ever built.During the late 1960s, one of the most profitable ways of promoting performance models was to race them in NASCAR.However, with Ford winning the title in 1968 and prepared to enter an aerodynamically-improved version of their Torino (dubbed Talladega ) for 1969, the Mopar camp answered back with their own aero car: the Charger Daytona.To gain homologation, a street-legal version of the Daytona had to be sold to the public, so Dodge introduced it for the 1969 model year.Donning a redesigned nose and a massive rear wing, the Daytona could be had with either a standard 440 Magnum V8 that made 390 hp or the optional 425-hp HEMI.The Daytona was only available during the 1969 model year. In 1970, it was replaced by the similar yet more aerodynamically advanced Plymouth Superbird.One of the wildest muscle cars of all time, the Charger Daytona is among the most sought-after American classics. Surviving models equipped with the Magnum usually go for six-figure sums, while the rarer, more powerful HEMI cars can reach seven figures.When Dodge decided to revive the Charger nameplate in 2005, Mopar fans were enraged by the brand's decision to apply it to a four-door sedan.But, as time passed, they were appeased by ever-more potent, HEMI-powered versions and special editions.In 2015, even the hardcore purists still holding a grudge had their jaws drop to the floor when Dodge unveiled the SRT Hellcat Powered by the supercharged HEMI with the same name, the car now had 707 hp on tap, and even though it still had four doors, it earned the right to be called a muscle car.Luckily, that wasn't the end of it. In a bid to give its fans an even more insane Charger, Dodge introduced the 797-hp Hellcat Redeye for the 2021 model year.A year later, the SRT Hellcat Redeye Jailbreak took high performance to another level. With an 807-hp supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI High-Output V8 under the hood, the beast became the world's most potent factory-built, gas-guzzling sedan.Besides the ridiculously powerful engine, the Redeye Jailbreak has unique interior trims, luxury upholstery options, and several minor exterior enhancements.Unlike the modern Charger, the revived Challenger , which debuted in concept form at the 2006 North American International Auto Show, was a reinterpretation of the legendary 1970 model.The retro-inspired design was continually improved, with the model becoming one of the most beautiful muscle cars ever produced.Like its four-door sibling, the third generation has been available with a number of potent V8s.Until earlier this year, the most potent Challenger was the 2016-2018 SRT Demon (808 hp with 91 octane gasoline and 840 hp with race fuel), and with Dodge announcing that it will discontinue the model after 2023, we didn't expect that to change.Luckly, Dodge decided to retire the third-gen Challenger with a bang and surprised us all with an even more insane version: the limited-edition SRT Demon 170 Aided by a three-liter supercharger, the 170's 6.2-liter HEMI V8 engine can make 900 hp on regular gasoline and up to 1039 hp when fed race fuel.According to the manufacturer, the four-wheeled insanity can sprint to 60 mph (97 kph) in a record-breaking 1.7 seconds and run the quarter mile in 8.91 seconds.That makes the Challenger SRT Demon 170 the most powerful production muscle car of all time and the fastest-accelerating, street-legal production vehicle powered by an internal combustion engine. In nearly six decades since the debut of the legendary nameplate, several Mustangs have appeared in Hollywood blockbuster movies. Some were just ordinary models that didn't really stand out, but these five awesome 'Stangs were anything but ordinary. 1968 Ford Mustang GT Fastback - Bullitt Photo: Ford Motor Co. 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback - The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift Photo: Toprank Vehicle Imports 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1/Boss 429 John Wick Photo: Classic Restorations Saleen S281 Extreme Transformers Photo: Mecum 1967 Shelby GT500 - Gone in 60 Seconds (2000) Photo: Mecum Since it debuted at the New York World's Fair in 1964, the Mustang has become not just the most famous production model manufactured by Ford but also one of the most famous cars ever built.The model that coined the pony car segment and the only one of its kind to be continuously produced since the sixties, the 'Stang has reached its seventh generation Even if the automotive industry is stepping away from ICEs and embracing EVs, the iconic Ford seems destined to continue galloping for years to come.A marketing hit from the get-go, the Mustang was an obvious choice for many Hollywood producers who featured the car in their films.While some went more or less unnoticed, these unique five 'Stangs have reached superstar status by scoring high on the cool scale.For the younger, streaming platform-addicted crowd, the 1968 neo-noir action thriller directed by Peter Yates might seem too old to watch.I'm not trying to convince you that it's still an excellent movie, but if you're a car enthusiast, you must watch at least the first ten minutes.The movie starts with what is still one of the most thrilling car chases ever filmed, in which a black Dodge Charger with bad guys on board is trying to evade a Highland Green Mustang GT driven by the main character - Detective Frank Bullitt.Because of that scene and the fact that the detective was played by Hollywood god, Steve McQueen (aka King of Cool), the Mustang became one of the coolest, most iconic movie cars ever.Based on a stock 1968 GT fastback, the 'Stang featured in the movie was tuned by car builder Max Balchowsky, who reinforced the suspension, added some hot rod magic to the 390 engine to harness more power, and gave it some minor exterior enhancements.Contrary to popular belief, two nearly identical examples were used during production. The one featured in the famous car chase survived largely unrestored, and in 2020, it became the most expensive Mustang ever sold, fetching $3.74 million at a Mecum auction.The other car, used for more hardcore stunts, was believed to have been scrapped, but recently, the original shell was discovered in Mexico, and it's currently undergoing a painstaking restoration process.The first two movies of the Fast & Furious franchise had a more profound impact on popularizing car tuning than any other film ever produced.While arguably not as great, the third movie of the franchise contributed to the car culture by drawing attention to the Japanese drifting scene.The plot centers around teenager Sean Boswell (played by Lucas Black), who gets in trouble for crashing a car and, ends up moving to Tokyo, where his US Navy father is stationed.While the movie features many amazing JDM cars, arguably the coolest one is an American-made, first-generation Mustang, which serves as Sean's go-to weapon as he tries to make a name for himself in the local drifting scene.A 1968 Fastback painted Highland Green as a tribute to the Bullitt 'Stang mentioned above and adorned with Shelby-style dual stripes, the car is turned from a heap of junk into a tire-shredding monster.Apart from the Bullitt homage, the coolest thing about this car is the Nissan RB26 straight-six found inside its engine bay.The unique Mustang was built by Sean Morris, who used a tuned, single-turbo RB26 linked to an FS530RA five-speed manual transmission and a Ford 9.0-inch rear end.Additionally, five other V8-powered 'Stangs with the same paint scheme were used for most of the action scenes, including those where the car went sideways.Unlike the Fast & Furious franchise, the Jonk Wick movies are not about cars, but the main character, a retired assassin played by Keanu Reeves, returns to his old habits after Russian gangsters steal his car and kill his puppy.The car in question, which earned the nickname "Hitman," was a gorgeous 1969 Mustang Boss 429 Though each of the 'Stangs used during the production of the initial movie was customized to resemble the legendary Boss, none were genuine 428s, but instead 1969 Mach 1s.The car became so popular that Oklahoma-based shop Classic Restorations was given the go-ahead to produce a limited number of replicas powered by custom Coyote V8s capable of 1,000 hp.According to the company's website, the genuine Mach 1-based restomod movie replica can still be ordered with pricing starting at $372,000.In 2007, Hasbro's Transformers toy line was brought to life in an epic science fiction action film starring Shia LaBeouf, Tyrese Gibson, Megan Fox, and Jon Voight.The action centers around a teenager who gets caught up in a war between two factions of alien robots (Autobots and Decepticons) who transform into Earthly machines - primarily vehicles.Though the star transformers are a 1994 Peterbilt 379 semi-trailer truck ( Optimus Prime ) and a 1976 Chevrolet Camaro (Bumblebee), one of the coolest transforming vehicles in the movie is a fifth-generation Mustang-based Saleen S281 Extreme Police car.A Decepticon called Barricade, the 'Stang used during the making of the film, didn't actually transform into a robot, but it was nonetheless epic.Powered by a supercharged 4.6-liter V8 rated at 465 hp, the beast was capable of accelerating from 0 to 60 mph (97 kph) in under 5 seconds and ran the quarter mile in the low twelves.Apart from the car used on set, two additional Barricades were constructed for press duties. One was auctioned off by Mecum in 2020, fetching $88,000.The action film Gone in 60 Seconds initially hit the cinemas back in 1974, and one of its stars was a yellow first-generation Mustang.A reboot followed in the 2000s, and while many argue that it was worse than the original, the Mustang it featured was undoubtedly better.Though it was also dubbed Eleanor, as in the original movie, the pony car used was no longer a yellow 1971 Mustang SportsRoof, but a restomodded 1967 Fastback finished in silver with black "Le Mans" stripes that was depicted as a Shelby GT500 Designed by Steve Stanford and Chip Foose , the car was built by Cinema Vehicle Services (CVS) in around eleven examples. Five were reportedly used during film production, and six took on press duties.Out of the initial cars, only three were fully functional, with power coming from Ford 351 crate V8s.Apart from the 400-hp engine, these cars also received a host of modern hardware like improved suspension, steering, and braking components.Today, the Eleanor is the most reproduced design by custom builders, and it's by far the coolest, most famous movie 'Stang of all time. Most, if not all, auto companies run a plethora of tests on and with their cars before sending them off to buyers. Sadly, we don't get a chance to see what these verifications entail. We can definitely make some educated guesses, but we would never be completely right. Every manufacturer has their own thing going on and prefers keeping it a secret. What you're about to see is an exception! SUV kWh EV Buying a brand-new all-electric Rivian must feel great. Not only are you getting a very capable vehicle, but you are also supporting an American company's mission to make the national auto park even more diversified and less of a burden on the environment.Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) are not perfect, but they are one of the many solutions needed to decarbonize our world and the fight against global warming. They come with a plethora of advantages. In Rivian's case, these novelties are very well put on display.This customer, for example, bought an R1S a three-row, zero-emission, and highly capable. The Rivian can be ordered with two or four motors depending on the preferred spec. When writing, buyers can also choose between two high-voltage energy storage options a 135-or a 149-kWh battery Prices start at $84,000 and can quickly go over the $100,000 mark. The R1S doesn't qualify for thetax credit right now. It might be eligible next summer. In 2024, Rivian plans on adding a smaller and more affordable LFP battery pack. But we must wait because the rules regarding which vehicles qualify are changing.What's certain, however, is that California-based Rivian wants to succeed. It has a plant in Normal, and it'll soon open another one in Georgia, where the R2-series vehicles are expected to enter manufacturing.Another admittedly simpler proof that this startup is bent on becoming one of America's most important auto brands is that its employees are taking factory testing seriously. We don't often get to see how cars are being verified before embarking on their journey to meet their new owner. But thanks to Gear Guard Gary (Rivian's Tesla Sentry video surveillance system), we get a sneak peek at what that stage entails.A buyer found a recording on their brand-new R1S and checked it out. They decided to upload it online so anyone can see what happens with a Rivian before they're deemed fit for delivery.The nighttime footage shows that the company's employee puts the SUV through its paces and tests the acceleration, the lighting system, the steering, the air suspension, and the brakes.It's not clear what triggered the recording to start and remain in storage. It could have been those pesky stop signs, but we can't say for sure. What we can be certain of is that Rivian is taking this verification process very seriously. It has happened before , but with the all-electric pickup truck!If your new R1S or R1T comes with a few miles on the odo, now you know why. Someone made sure your vehicle was ready to start serving you well. Google Maps keeps evolving in terms of navigation capabilities, and drivers know this very well, as the application provides them with more advanced features to get them from where they are to where they want to be. Most recently, the Mountain View-based search expanded the eco-friendly routing engine to more locations, allowing drivers to reach their destinations while cutting vehicle emissions and fuel consumption.Now, Google is expanding Google Maps on a front that will make it easier for users to leave their cars at home and use public transportation.A new Google Maps update includes an overhauled transit directions engine, which takes into account more factors, including the ETA, the trip length, and the number of transfers. As in the case of car navigation, Google Maps now allows users to customize the route with various filters, including a route with less walking, to arrive at the destination.The route recommendations appearing in Google Maps will make the transit engine more convenient, as the application will try to get you as close as possible to the final point based on your settings. For example, if you don't want to walk too much, Google Maps can find a route with more transfers or stops, eventually getting you closer to the destination. On the other hand, if you don't mind walking for ten minutes, Google Maps can suggest a route with fewer stops but a shorter ETA, offering walking directions to reach your destination.Google Maps is also getting other goodies, including support for showing the station entrances' location and existence. It means the application will indicate precisely the side of the street where the entrances and exits are located and will then offer accurate walking directions to guide you to the destination.The feature isn't yet available for everybody, but Google says it'll debut in 80 cities worldwide, including London, New York, Tokyo, Paris, and Madrid. It'll eventually expand to more locations, but for now, the new transit updates are projected to land for select users on Android and iOS in the coming weeks. Google did not reveal if it plans to bring the same capabilities to the web, as such an update would allow users to do the route planning part of the navigation on a computer and then transfer it to a mobile device for the journey.Google is making big efforts to improve Google Maps and support sustainable transportation, and the eco-friendly routing is living proof. Google says this feature works like a charm, as it has already reduced emissions by the equivalent of taking half a million cars off the road. It debuted in 2021 and is already available in the largest markets, with Google working around the clock to bring it to everybody. Photo: TFLEV on YouTube Photo: TFLEV on YouTube Photo: TFLEV on YouTube Steering wheel locks are still very effective in the fight against the rising car theft trends, while others turn to new-generation devices, such as AirTags, to always monitor the vehicle's location. AirTags allow owners to permanently see the car's location, even if it gets stolen, as the device can communicate with nearby iPhones to share its coordinates.Thanks to its small form factor, the AirTag can be hidden virtually anywhere in the car, making it difficult (though not impossible) for a thief to locate and disable the device.General Motors offers an alternative that's harder to disable and comes pre-loaded with the vehicle for OnStar subscribers. And the way it works not only helps law enforcement locate the vehicle but also recover it and eventually arrest the thief.Called Stolen Vehicle Assistance, the service isn't supposed to provide the car owner with location information but to allow a team of advisors to work with the police on finding the vehicle and recovering it.It all starts with the Theft Alarm Notification. A vehicle fitted with an alarm system pre-installed by General Motors from the factory can remotely send an alert to the owner on the mobile device, letting them know about the unauthorized access. It's the first sign someone broke into your car, so if you receive the alert, you'd better go look if the car is still where you parked it.If not, it's the right moment to let the experts step in. The first step is contacting the police and letting them know someone drove away in your car. You should tell them the vehicle is equipped with the OnStar Stolen Vehicle Assistance so they know they can obtain valuable location information to locate it. The owner must contact the OnStar call center to report the theft, at this point, an advisor begins the recovery process by remotely connecting to the vehicle.Thanks to the GPS system installed on the car, it's a matter of seconds to determine where it's located. The OnStar staff can obtain the vehicle's location and provide the police with real-time data so they can go to the address and attempt a recovery and maybe an arrest.The OnStar advisor checks to see if the vehicle is in motion or parked. If it's parked, the whole thing is easy. The police get the current location, and to buy more time, the advisor remotely locks the engine, making it impossible for the thief to drive away.On the other hand, if the vehicle is reported as moving, the OnStar staff feeds the police officers with real-time location data so they can get closer to it. To make sure the patrol cars follow the right vehicle, the OnStar advisor can remotely activate various functions, such as the hazard lights . These features are enabled without the thief behind the wheel knowing, so the police can spot the vehicle and get closer to continue the pursuit.There's no need for Hollywood-style pursuits or similar things, as the remote access to the vehicle allows the OnStar teams to bring the car to a halt by pressing a single button.The OnStar Stolen Vehicle Assistance packs a feature to gradually slow down the vehicle, so even if the thief presses the throttle, the car no longer accelerates. The car will eventually stop, giving the police the opportunity to block it and arrest the thief.It all sounds great on paper, but it doesn't always end well, as thieves sometimes heavily damage the car in their attempt to run away from the cops. They occasionally crash the vehicle or try to get away by foot, but in 99 percent of the cases, they end up arrested, especially if the police are on their tail.The whole system is based on the assumption that the police can promptly respond to your report, so theoretically, the moment you notice the vehicle is missing and alert law enforcement, it should be a matter of minutes until a police officer jumps behind the wheel and starts looking for your vehicle based on the information provided by the OnStar call center. Things don't always work so smoothly, as the police typically need more time to begin the search for your vehicle, but if you're lucky, a patrol officer spots the stolen vehicle and recovers it before it's too late.Meanwhile, equipping your car with additional safety equipment certainly helps. The Kia Boyz madness taught us that steering wheel locks can still keep thieves away, even if they break into your car, as removing such hardware takes time, and nobody wants to spend several minutes in a vehicle they just broke into. Pour one out for a special occasion, but don't spill a single drop! When you're treating yourself to one of the rarest, most exquisite, aged single malts in the world, spillage is to be avoided and it becomes quite a challenge when you're at sea. Photo: James Reeves for The Glenrothes Photo: James Reeves for The Glenrothes Photo: James Reeves for The Glenrothes Photo: James Reeves for The Glenrothes For the whiskey connoisseur who also happens to be an experienced seafarer , that's probably a real problem, as funny as it might sound. The roll and pitch of a vessel during nightcap hour will undoubtedly lead to spillage and, as noted above, spillage is the last thing you want when you're about to treat yourself to a glass of "unicorn whiskey," the Demijohn 1969 from The Glenrothes.This is how Philos was born, a luxury product that places itself at the intersection between luxury commodity, high art, design, yachting, and whiskey making. It could become the latest must-have for superyacht owners , on the condition that they also be whiskey drinkers and lovers of beautiful art in a more general sense. Or, you know, simply want to show off to their equally well-heeled friends.Philos is a gimbal decanter that self-pours an exact measure of the world's most precious whiskey without spilling a drop, but it's also a statement piece and an artwork, a tribute to naval legends, and an impressive piece of engineering.There's no mention of price in the official description, but all things considered, it's probably safe to assume it's expensive as well.Unveiled in early November this year, Philos is the result of a collaboration between The Glenrothes, which also provides the rare whiskey that goes in the decanter, design studio Studio Indigo, which boasts an impressive resume in interior yacht design, and master craftsman shop Little Halstock, which specializes in one-off functional luxury pieces.The idea for such a decanter came to be out of necessity: how do you present and then serve a rare whiskey when there's risk of spillage? A superyacht might be a lot of wonderful things, but in rough weather, it's not synonymous with balance, no matter how well it's done and the tech it uses.Once the problem was identified, Anna Lisa Stone, head of creative for The Glenrothes, knew that whatever solution they'd come up with, it had to have flair. Whatever solution they'd find had to be functional and address the problem, but it also had to deliver "unparalleled beauty" and craftsmanship and more than "a dash of theater."When not in use, Philos is a spherical structure that both hides its contents from the world and provides protection for them, angled at precisely 23.5 degrees to mimic the rotational axis of Earth. Inspired by the ancient armillary spheres used in navigation, this structure is an aluminum multi-layered protection case or a fancy drinks cabinet with six interlocking layers. When The Glenrothes sets out to deliver, they deliver!Inside the case is the self-pour decanter, a four-way gimbal that holds the custom piece of crystal in perfect balance, even in rough seas. The self-pouring mechanism is fully automated, but you have to invert the gimbal with the glass by hand and lock it in position with a secret key.The precious whiskey flows from the decanter into the secure glass at the base of Philos once you twist the bezel around the 1981 Edinburgh brass compass, also located at the base. The antique compass doesn't just activate the cogs in the invisible mechanism of the piece but is also fully functional, allowing the seafarer to always find his way home. Even when he might have imbued too much, we assume.In order to create the casing and the rotating mechanism of Philos, the team turned to aerospace engineering experts for advice. The challenge was to create a decanter that not only poured by itself without spillage but was able to always pour the perfect 50 ml serving without fail. Similarities between the Aerotrim, the three-axis gimbal that NASA uses to train astronauts, and Philos are not coincidental, we hear."Enchanting aesthetics brought into being by some of the worlds leading luxury designers and craftsmen," The Glenrothes says. "Science and artistry converge, transcending mere functionality and awakening enigma."Philos, named in honor of the Greek inventor of the gimbal Philo of Byzantium, is described as a study in balance and luxury, a product that would feel at home on the main deck of any superyacht, ultimately adding an extra touch of sophistication and drama, turning every experience into a memorable one.Forget about multi-millionaires getting custom pools, private cinemas, or other fancy features for their luxury leisure craft : Philos is the next stage in luxury, bringing a solution to a real problem in the most beautiful, artsy, and exclusive package.No word yet on whether any of the future superyacht deliveries are getting a Philos, but worry not: if they do, we're going to hear about it. This is exactly the kind of feature you're meant to brag about The road to hell is paved with good intentions, if we're to give credence to popular wisdom. On the same note, the road to progress is paved with broken dreams, except for those times when dreams are actually financial scams feeding off people's hopes for a better future. Photo: New China An old idea with a new spin Photo: Zhao naiyu/imaginechina The beginning of the end Photo: New China The end Photo: Screenshot from video For all its joys and opportunities, life in the city has become plagued by problems. Pollution, over-population, increased congestion that leads to higher pollution, higher stress, and lower efficiency, and a seemingly unbreakable vicious cycle of problems without solutions these are all issues we're dealing with on a day-to-day basis, to various degrees depending on the city we live in.Proposing an idea that would solve several of these issues at once is, then, a sure way of proposing a better future. A city without traffic jams, less pollution, and a more time-efficient commute is a city of the ideal future. Throw in reduced costs compared to other similar solutions, and you've got yourself the modern equivalent of a unicorn A unicorn is precisely what the TEB was.TEB, short for Transit Elevated Bus, was also called the Straddling Bus, the Tunnel Bus, and the Land Airbus but was ironically not a bus at all. It was a gigantic road train shaped like a catamaran, a train on stilts riding high above traffic so that it could glide over congestion. It would run on tracks by the side of the road using electricity, so it was green and, due to its size, more efficient than regular buses because it could carry up to 1,200 passengers at once.TEB was a star public transit vehicle in its home country, China, for the better part of six years, starting with 2010 , when the concept was unveiled at that year's Beijing International High-tech Expo, making its way on TIME's list of Best 50 Inventions of 2010.The same trade event was chosen for the unveiling of the first scale model six years later, followed by the announcement that test trials would begin shortly and would undoubtedly be followed by a large-scale deployment of the project.We're talking large-scale in every sense of the word: at the 2016 event, designers of the TEB boasted interest from several countries, including Brazil and France, and at least four major cities in China. This would be the biggest, most revolutionary, and future-proof vehicle designed for public transport , they said.As futuristic as TEB looked, it wasn't based on a new idea. In fact, the idea for such a public transit vehicle that could glide over traffic had been around since 1969, when American architects Craig Hodgetts and Lester Walker presented their "immodest proposal" of redesigning NYC, mostly through what they called the Bos-Wash Landliner.The Bos-Wash Landliner looked very much like the TEB and used the same principles. The TEB was different because it wasn't just fiction.Even better, it would become a reality in just a few months, as company TebTech announced a trial run would take place in 2016 in the port city Qinhuangdao on a 300-meter (980-foot) track. This was a huge downgrade from the initial proposed length of 185 km (115 miles) that should have been built in the Mentougou District of Beijing by late 2010, but as the saying goes, it was better than nothing.On paper, TEB would be the answer to most modern problems of city life . Running on two tracks by the sides of the road, it would be 4.8 meters (15.9 feet) high, allowing standard passenger vehicles to pass underneath, while it would still have enough clearance for passes.The passenger cabin would be 22 meters long and 7.8 meters wide (72.1 feet by 25.5 feet), so it would span the width of two car lanes and seat about 300 people. In future iterations, articulated TEBs would carry as many as 1,200 people at once, with access done either via elevated platforms or stairs.The TEB was designed to be electric, charging on the go from overhead wires and traveling at speeds between 40 and 60 kph max (25-37.2 mph). Chief engineer Song Youzhou optimistically pointed out in 2016 that even the smaller version of the TEB would replace 40 buses, which, in turn, could cut annual fuel consumption by 800 tons and carbon emissions by approximately 2,500 tons, paving the way for a greener, more sustainable future.Despite initial criticism saying that a vehicle like TEB would have issues turning or, for that matter, with any other course that wasn't arrow straight, Youzhou insisted the concept was perfectly adapted for city transit, with everything it entailed. It even included safety features , like underbelly light warnings and projections that informed drivers passing underneath of nearby road signs, proper traffic lights, and a road infrastructure designed for TEB efficiency and crash prevention for other participants.In the summer of 2016, TebTech proudly announced that TEB-1, a prototype for this revolutionary straddling bus, had been built and would undergo testing in Qinhuangdao. This proved to be the beginning of the end, despite the hype surrounding the actual test, broadcast online and in the media.Less than a week later, TEB-1 had been abandoned, as initially whispered criticism grew louder and reports emerged of a fraudulent scheme that had tricked investors into buying into a business that would never materialize into anything.Despite how the test run was presented, TEB-1 never ran on tracks but rolled on rubber wheels , was painfully slow, and overheated several times during that very short run. Seeing it in physical form also helped with the realization that it would simply not fit in an urban scenario, particularly since SUVs, cars with roof racks, or trucks wouldn't fit underneath, and the train itself wouldn't have clearance to pass under lower city bridges.TebTech tried to put an end to the controversy by arguing that the first run had been meant to test braking and the overall feasibility of the vehicle, but by then, it was already too late.The Shanghai Jiao Tong University's Institute of Automotive Engineering, which had been name-dropped as having assessed the feasibility of TEB, had already denied involvement in the project. Moreover, the city of Qinhuangdao said they had no idea of TEB tests being planned there, which effectively stripped whatever credibility still remained from the project.The prototype was abandoned on site for months afterward an unintentionally ironic reminder of a giant of public transit meant to help with traffic congestion, effectively blocking traffic.The TEB-1 prototype would remain in the same place for at least another year. By next summer, police arrested 32 individuals for "illegally raising funds to finance the TEB," based on complaints from 72 investors who had been deceived into supporting the initiative. Among those arrested was entrepreneur Bai Zhiming, who had bought the patents for TEB and ran a website raising money for it, which proved to be a fraudulent scheme.In July 2017, the test site in Qinhuangdao was finally dismantled, and all traces of TEB were erased from the Chinese media. Throughout the year, searches of TEB or related terms on Baidu and Weibo returned zero results, and all mentions of the concept and the "successful" test run were removed from the internet.Today, TEB is just a memory not of a beautiful future with cleaner air and convenient public transit in overcrowded cities, but of a dream for one, shamelessly exploited by a handful of people trying to get rich.But the biggest problem with TEB wasn't that it was never meant to be real, but rather that it couldn't have even if it wanted, as experts would later point out: you can't solve existing problems by inventing new vehicles that sidestep the problems. In other words, traffic jams are the problem themselves, and they require a healthy approach; you can't just glide over them. The auto industry is a very dynamic one, in the way that we often get new car models, but also new powerplants meant to power them. By contrast, the aviation industry is a lot more stable, with many aircraft and engine designs being kept in operation for decades. Photo: Rolls-Royce plc Photo: Rolls-Royce plc Take Rolls-Royce for instance, perhaps the largest maker of aircraft engines in the world. The British company had over the years several powerplant families in its portfolio. The current lineup comprises several variants of something called the Trent, and the Pearl line.This breed was born in the 1990s, and presently offers those involved in aircraft-making nine versions to choose from. Yet, despite being just 33 years old, the engine uses a three-spool architecture Roll-Royce introduced more than half a century ago.That's one of the reasons why the upcoming UltraFan unit is such an important piece of tech for the engine maker. Dubbed "the ultimate turbofan" engine, it is the first new architecture one the company has introduced in 54 years.The powerplant was first unveiled as a concept back in 2014, but it took Rolls-Royce almost a decade to have the thing ready for testing. It was only early this year that testing for the thing started at the engine maker's facility in Derby, UK.The engine is for now just a technology demonstrator, but at the rate at which things are now moving it probably won't be long until we see it deployed on an aircraft. Following the initial tests at the beginning of 2023, Rolls-Royce gradually increased the power of the unit until earlier this week it was ready to announce the completion of the first UltraFan test to maximum power.It's unclear exactly what that means as the engine was built to be scalable. It can develop anywhere between 25,000 and 110,000 pounds of thrust, not in small part thanks to the fan that is a staggering 140 inches in diameter (3.55 meters).The blades of the piece are made of carbon composite titanium and their size makes them the largest of their kind in the world.The specially developed hardware that should help the powerplant run as advertised includes a gearbox rated at 50 MW, or about as much as 500 family cars would be capable of generating. The system even went to 64 MW during testing, an aerospace record, and that translates into roughly 87,000 horsepower!The geared design of the engine not only makes it different than anything Rolls-Royce has made before, but it also makes for something no other player in the industry has been capable of doing at this scale before.The aero engine is considered the largest of its kind in the world, and it has been specifically developed to power narrowbody and widebody aircraft arriving to the aviation scene in the 2030s.Compared to the first-generation Trent family engine, the powerplant should deliver 25 percent more fuel efficiency. That's a ten percent improvement over the current Trent XWB, the present-day most efficient aero engine of its size. On top of that, the UltraFan should release 40 percent less NOx and generate 35 percent less noise than the Trent.That is possible thanks in part to something called the Advance3 core architecture and the ALECSys lean burn combustion system that help increase burn efficiency and cut down on emissions.More importantly, the powerplant can run completely on Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), which it actually did during the tests whose completion was announced by the Brits.As per the details of this most recent test, the UltraFan "has performed in line with our expectations." Rolls' engineers will now gather all the data to analyze and further refine the engine.Technically speaking the UltraFan engine should be ready for operation sometime by the middle of the current decade, but realistically speaking the late 2020s is probably a safer bet. Until it gets here, though, some of the technologies developed for it might make it into the Trent family of engines. The company does not say exactly what technologies those would be.Like most other companies in the transportation business, Rolls-Royce too has set a target for Net Zero flying. In its case it plans to achieve that by the middle of the century, and the UltraFan is one of the pillars on which that target was built.In fact, it's the most important such pillar, as it is supposed to account for no less than 80 percent of the goal, when running completely on SAF.It's not clear at this point when we'll get to see the first actual test flight of the engine. It will probably be soon, marking an important moment in the company's history. And probably in our lives too, as it's not everyday when we get to see a brand new aircraft engine being born. By SA Commercial Prop News Mark Kleynhans, Head of commercial property at Aucor. Last week friday Aucor Property confimed that it had received bids worth R75 million worth of stock being sold on the day during their multiple commercial property auction held in Johannesburg on Wednesday 17th April. Mark Kleynhans, Director of Aucor Property comments, The team at Aucor Property is extremely pleased with the results from these two auction events which were both headlined by strong commercial and retail offerings. Feedback from our clients and intensive market research by our business development team has given us insight into bringing the right stock to the auction floor. With this knowledge in hand, we actively engaged with both buyers and sellers here and in Cape Town and this approach has enabled us to have such excellent results. Some of the properties that were sold on the day include the Growthpoint properties on Diederich Street in Witbank which fetched a combined sale price of R47 million. In addition to this, 16 Theo Kleynhans Street White River, a bustling Retail Centre on the taxi rank, was sold for R16.9 million, whilst 68 Wolmarans Street in Hillbrow fetched an offer of R5.57 million. Kleynhans concludes, The combined success of these two events has further entrenched Aucor Property in the last year as a key national player in the commercial, retail and industrial property sectors and has reiterated the effectiveness of the auction mechanism for selling property across the board. This feat comes on the heels of a R57 million multiple commercial auction event in Cape Town. A grandfather from Australia proved to the world that there's no age limit for being a tech-savvy person, as he hid an AirTag into his scooter in case the worst-case scenario happens.And it happened, as a thief spotted the scooter parked in front of a supermarket, so they didn't miss the occasion and took it away. After a 50-minute trip, the thief arrived home, hiding the scooter in their apartment.They had no idea their every move was monitored by the small device planted in a place the grandfather didn't want to reveal to the local media. However, the man decided to follow the location of the AirTag, and when he arrived in front of the apartment building, he called the police.It was only a matter of hours until law enforcement got a search warrant. A few more hours later, the thief was arrested, with the scooter returning to the happy owner.AirTags are pill-shaped devices that connect to nearby iPhones to share their location with the master smartphone. Apple designed the AirTag to maximize the battery life, so the device doesn't sport built-in Internet connectivity. The CR2032 battery unit inside can last up to six months as the device looks for iPhones in proximity and connects to them to broadcast the location via the Find My network available on all Apple devices, including smartphones and PCs.The AirTag owner can look up its location by launching the Find My app on their iPhone. The paired device reveals its coordinates when it finds a nearby iPhone, so in an apartment building, it's nearly impossible not to detect an Apple smartphone to send the data. The chances are that even the thief owned an iPhone, so no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't hide the scooter as long as it was in their possession.AirTags were designed to show anti-stalking alerts on iPhones when the tracker moves with the smartphone. As a result, if the thief had an iPhone, they might have received an alert, but the AirTag was probably so well hidden inside the scooter that the suspect didn't have the time to disable it.The police needed 30 hours to find the AirTag's location, obtain a search warrant, and break in to recover the scooter and arrest the thief. It's not always that seamless, but the AirTag once again proved that when installed in the right place, it can become a valuable tool to recover your stolen belongings, whether wallets, bikes, scooters, or cars. The Order issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on November 17 after Armenias request for a provisional measure following Azerbaijans lightning offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh in September that resulted in the exodus of the regions ethnic Armenian population has been hailed in Yerevan as well as in Paris. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France said in a statement that the ICJs Order that also stipulates that Baku should ensure the safety of people who wish to depart Nagorno-Karabakh and that those who wish to stay must remain free from the use of force or intimidation that may cause them to flee correspondents to the position of Paris. Azerbaijans Foreign Ministry called the statements by the French ministry irrelevant and unacceptable. Frances disregard for the rejection by the Court of most of the unlawful requests by Armenia is another vivid example of double-standards and bias against Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani ministry said, as quoted by Azerbaijans APA news agency. It is lamentable that this country, which has presented itself as the greatest advocate of justice and order, misinterprets and meddles into the Courts affairs on a matter that has nothing to do with France, it added. Citing Frances biased position against Azerbaijan, in early October Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev refused to attend a meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian that was to be mediated by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and European Council President Charles Michel. Azerbaijan has also condemned France for its arms supplies to Armenia based on cooperation agreements signed by the two countries defense ministries in October. The latest diplomatic spat between Azerbaijan and France comes amid Bakus refusal to engage in negotiations with Yerevan in the United States, the other Western country that has spearheaded international efforts to find a negotiated solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict since the early 1990s. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said the decision was in response to what it called one-sided and biased remarks against Azerbaijan made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James OBrien during a November 15 congressional hearing on the future of Nagorno-Karabakh. In its statement issued on Saturday the Azerbaijan ministry said that the Washington platform is no longer acceptable for Baku in negotiations with Yerevan. At the same time, Baku said that the Brussels format where it is the European Union that acts as a mediator remained acceptable for continued negotiations. Besides, Azerbaijan prefers direct negotiations with Armenia, the Azerbaijan Foreign Ministry said. 19 November 2023 10:21 (UTC+04:00) By Sara Ganjiyeva A tree planting event dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Heydar Aliyev's birth was held with the participation of about 100 local and foreign students of ADA University, including teachers and staff. According to Azernews, the action was jointly organized by the ADA University Foundation (Azerbaijan) and the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Azerbaijan. This action is a continuation of the projects carried out by the ADA University Foundation together with the "Coca-Cola" Foundation and the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources. The purpose of the action is to improve the ecological situation of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev, to continue the ecological culture and the traditions of caring for nature in society, and at the same time, to support the protection of the environment by encouraging the planting of trees and the reproduction of greenery. Firuza Ismayil Aliyeva, Director of the Department of Sponsorship Projects of the ADA University Foundation, said that as a result of the joint cooperation of the ADA University Foundation with the "Coca-Cola" Foundation and the Ministry, more than one hundred thousand trees were planted in the last 10 years. "Currently, a new joint project on the effective management of water resources has been launched. We express our deep gratitude to our partners for supporting us in the implementation of these ecological projects, and we hope that this cooperation will expand further in the coming years," she added. Fatima Abdullayeva, a student of the Faculty of Law of ADA University, said that being a part of this initiative of the University is an irreplaceable experience for her: "Contributing to the planting of trees here is contributing to global work." James Ezimoha, a student of the Faculty of International Relations of ADA University, said, "It is important for me to take care of the environment because it also takes care of us and is our home. That is why I have always tried to take every opportunity to plant trees and make a positive contribution to the environment. I am grateful to the ADA team that helped me achieve this goal," he added. It is planned to plant up to 5,000 trees in the Mushfigabad settlement during this campaign, which was carried out within the framework of the "Green Future" platform, which was created on the initiative of the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan. It should be noted that the "yasilgelecek.az" electronic platform allows everyone to contribute to social and ecological development by planting trees. At the end of the action, it was noted that the trees planted in Mushfigabad will be properly cared for in the future. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 09:00 (UTC+04:00) Another migrant caravan sent from Gobu park 3 residential complex of Garadagh district of Baku city to Zabukh village of Lachin district has reached its destination. Recently resettled families were handed keys to flats, Azernews reports. On November 18, 25 families (103 people) living in the capital city and Absheron left the Gobu Park 3 residential complex in the Garadagh district of Baku for Zabukh. The resettled families will settle in the houses where they once lived in Lachin, which were restored or rebuilt on the basis of instructions from the head of state after the end of the Armenian occupation. Lachin residents thanked President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva for their comprehensive care and expressed gratitude to the valiant Azerbaijani Army, which liberated the lands from occupation. Thus, until today, a permanent settlement in the village Zabukh has been provided for 71 families - 291 people. To recall that the first migration to Zabukh took place on August 25 this year. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 11:00 (UTC+04:00) The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs hastily made a statement about the decision of the International Court of Justice dated November 17, 2023, trying to create the impression that the decision was in line with France's position. Azernews reports that the information has been released in the statement of the Western Azerbaijan Community. "French diplomacy is well aware that the decision of the International Court of Justice only lists the steps that Azerbaijan is already taking. Azerbaijan ensures the rights of all people living in its territory, regardless of their ethnic and religious affiliation. Azerbaijan should clearly state its policy regarding the right of return of Armenians who moved from the Garabagh region. Therefore, France's intervention in this matter is inappropriate, baseless, and provocative. It would be good if France directed its remarks to itself and to the Armenian government, which does not even theoretically agree to the return of the expelled Azerbaijanis. By unconditionally supporting Armenia, France is complicit in its crimes against humanity, including the violation of the right of return of Azerbaijanis. The Western Azerbaijan Community will continue to expose France's attempts to advance its nefarious neo-colonial goals in the region by abusing the sublime value of human rights," it was said in the statement. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 16:30 (UTC+04:00) The State Committee for Work with Diaspora reports that the II Forum of Azerbaijani Doctors in Germany, held at the Azerbaijan Cultural Centre in Berlin within the framework of the "Year of Heydar Aliyev", continued its work with a panel session, Azernews reports. The panel session moderated by Nuran Abdullayev started with a report by Bahadur Rzayev, head of the Rehabilitation, Quality Control and Service Organization Department of the State Medical and Social Expertise and Rehabilitation Department of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of Population. The presentation was entitled "Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities in the Republic of Azerbaijan: Achievements and Goals". Then doctors-specialists working in Germany - Elvin Huseynov, leading specialist on internal diseases of "Helios Siegburg" clinic, "The Last of Us", ambassador of European School of Oncology (ESO), Narmin Talibova, oncologist of Ulm. University Hospital, "Career woman? A happy woman", Director of the GFO Kliniken Troisdorf Dr. Nuran Abdullaev, "A Star is Born", leading specialist in neurosurgery at the University Hospital Essen. Dr Ramazan Jabbarli "Innovations in spine surgery: navigation and robotics", leading specialist at the AEGI Clinic for Plastic Surgery in Hannover, Dr. Gulshan Ahmadli "Hand surgery on the example of Germany. Potential of development in Azerbaijan", Doctor of Medical Sciences, leading specialist in the field of radiology in Wiesbaden. Orhan Safarov "Breast cancer and screening in Germany", cardiac surgeon of Giesen University Hospital, MD. Zulfugar Taghiyev "MBA - Cardiac Surgery and Research in Germany: challenges and opportunities?", Dr Nijat Nasirov, radiologist at the Westphalian Clinic, "Red or Blue Pill", cardiac surgeon at the Helios Krefeld Clinic, Dr. Javid Fatullaev, "Generating electricity from the human body. A new opportunity?", Javid Huseynzadeh, leading specialist for ear, throat and nose diseases at Bad Salzungen Clinic, "Plastic surgery of skin derivatives on the face. Principles and perspectives", Nariman Jabbarli, dentist at the Denterra Clinic Mannheim, said: "Opening a private clinic in Germany. All subtleties and tips", Agil Huseynzadeh, leading specialist in ophthalmology of "Nordstadt" clinic in Hannover, "Practice system: introduction of outpatient medical care system in Azerbaijan. What can change?" they made presentations on their topics. A representative of the Scientific Surgical Centre of Prof. Topchibashov in Baku took part in the series of reports at the panel session. Gurbanhan Muslimov completed his speech on "Development of visceral surgery in Azerbaijan". During the discussions Azerbaijani doctors, who revealed their scientific approaches to various topics and provided information about their inventions and discoveries, put forward their proposals. Attention was drawn to the positions of our compatriot doctors in the German and world health care system, and success stories were presented. It should be noted that the First Forum of Azerbaijani doctors in Germany was organised in Cologne on 5 May 2022 with the support of the State Committee for Work with Diaspora. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 18:00 (UTC+04:00) President of the Iraqi Republic Abdullatif Jamal Rashid arrived at the Alley of Honourable Burial, paid tribute to Heydar Aliyev, the national leader of our people, architect and founder of the modern independent state of Azerbaijan, laid a wreath and laid flowers at his grave, November 19, Azernews reports. The Iraqi President honoured the memory of Zarifa Aliyeva, outstanding ophthalmologist, academician, and laid flowers at her tomb. Then, guests coming to Shehid Alley honoured the memory of heroic children of the Motherland who died in the struggle for independence and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, and laid a wreath at the "Eternal Torch" monument. President of the Iraqi Republic Abdullatif Jamal Rashid, who was observing the view of our capital from the highest point of Baku, was informed about the history of Shehid Alley and the improvement and construction works carried out in the city. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 16:40 (UTC+04:00) "The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (PA) supports Baku and Yerevan in continuing negotiations on normalisation of relations and believes that there is an opportunity to sign a peace agreement." According to the OSCE PA Chairperson Pia Kauma, Azernews reports. "We as an organisation call on the sides to continue negotiations and look for new opportunities to reach an agreement. As this region is very important from an economic point of view, there are many opportunities here, but peace and security are necessary," Head said. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 18:22 (UTC+04:00) By Muhammad Asif Noor The recent summit between President Xi Jinping of China and President Joe Biden of the United States, held in San Francisco, stands as a pivotal moment in the complex landscape of international relations. Against the backdrop of heightened global uncertainties and evolving power dynamics, the meeting aimed to recalibrate the trajectory of Sino-U.S. relations. The multifaceted discussions held during this meeting have implications not only for the two nations involved but also for the broader global landscape. The discussions between the leaders covered various crucial topics, ranging from the sensitive Taiwan issue to collaborative efforts on addressing climate change. As the world has closely observed the meeting, it becomes evident that the changing dynamics of US-China relations carry profound consequences for global stability, economic cooperation, and diplomatic engagements. At the heart of the discussions was the palpable desire for stability. The leaders, cognizant of the complexities, sought to recalibrate their nations' relationship towards a track of managed competition. Both China and the U.S. face internal and external pressures, and a stable external environment is as crucial for China's economic trajectory as it is for the U.S. to foster employment and development. The commitment to trade cooperation hints at a willingness to build bridges for mutual benefit. Navigating the complexities of the Sino-U.S. relationship is no facile task. The recent U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission's 2023 report and biased media narratives underscore the entrenched challenges. Economic matters took center stage at the summit as well, with a commitment to convene the first vice-ministerial level dialogue on trade and commerce in the first quarter of 2024. The emphasis on removing trade and investment barriers reflects a shared interest in fostering economic cooperation. Both sides expressed willingness to work together to implement the consensus reached during their leaders' meeting, signaling a potential shift toward more constructive economic engagement. The strategic security consultations between China and Russia, immediately following the talks with the United States, are indicative of China's efforts to engage major countries in a constructive manner. In an era marked by global turmoil and economic recovery challenges post-pandemic, China appears committed to shaping relations with influential nations to stabilize the Asia-Pacific region. The depth and intensity of the discussions, spanning multiple rounds and various international locations, reflect the gravity of the issues at hand. China's proactive approach to shaping major-country diplomacy, particularly in the context of the Asia-Pacific region, underscores its commitment to injecting positivity and certainty into the international arena. The emphasis on regular two-way dialogues with influential nations reflects a strategic effort to contribute to an improved international order. One of the key issues addressed in the talks was the Taiwan question, which remains a crucial and sensitive matter in Sino-US relations. President Xi emphasized the principle that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one China, highlighting China's stance on opposing any moves toward disrupting the status quo. Any U.S. action that infringes upon this red line risks not only strained diplomatic ties but also threatens to disrupt the fragile equilibrium of Sino-U.S. friendship. President Xi outlined the "Five Pillars" for bilateral ties, providing a strategic roadmap. Right perception, effective management of disagreements, mutually beneficial cooperation, shared responsibilities as major countries, and promotion of people-to-people exchanges serve as the foundation. These pillars, if embraced and implemented, offer a holistic approach to building a sustainable and constructive relationship. The outcomes of the talks with the United States include agreements on three specific consultations: Asia-Pacific region, maritime affairs, and foreign policy. Important step was agreeing on Fentanyl and the drug trafficking related matters. These areas of focus suggest a commitment to addressing regional and global challenges collaboratively. The discussions on the Ukraine crisis and the Korean Peninsula further emphasize the broader scope of China's diplomatic efforts. The China-Russia strategic security consultations, a routine activity within an established framework, demonstrate the depth of the evolving comprehensive strategic cooperation between the two nations. China's ambassador to Russia highlighted the significance of this cooperation as a "mainstay" for maintaining international peace and security, indicating the far-reaching impact of China-Russia relations. The renewed emphasis on people-to-people exchanges and reducing negative factors hindering such interactions aligns with China's acknowledgment of the foundational role of the people in bilateral relations. The reference to the role of people in shaping, writing, and creating the future of China-US relations underscores a commitment to inclusive and mutually beneficial engagement. The Xi-Biden summit was more than a diplomatic formality; it was a strategic recalibration with far-reaching implications. The achievements from climate cooperation to economic dialogues offer a glimpse into the potential of Sino-U.S. relations. Yet, challenges persist, and the road ahead demands careful navigation. The international community, in this moment of geopolitical flux, looks to China and the U.S. not just as economic powerhouses but as architects of global stability. The Xi-Biden meeting, with its strategic depth and comprehensive agenda, exemplifies the power of diplomatic dialogue in shaping the future of nations and the world at large. *The writer is the Founder of Friends of BRI Forum and Advisor to Pakistan Research Center, Hebei Normal University, China. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 10:00 (UTC+04:00) According to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, that Turkiye may break diplomatic realtions with Israel, Azernews reports. "We have considered the possibility of breaking relations with Israel, but we believe that it should be a collective decision with the participation of other Muslim countries. We do not agree that Washington fully supports Israel and does not accept a permanent ceasefire," FM Fidan said. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz No to APEC protesters march on Market Street in San Francisco last Sunday. Despite hundreds of Bay Area protesters demanding a cease-fire in Gaza, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit ended this weekend with a joint statement omitting any reference to the Israel-Hamas war. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle A man waves a Palestinian flag outside the old San Francisco Mint building during a protest against the APEC summit last Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle No to APEC protesters, some carrying Palestinian flags, block Fifth and Howard streets in San Francisco last Sunday. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle A demonstrator tells a police officer a driver stuck in traffic threw a bottle at his group during an APEC summit protest last Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle A young boy waves a Palestinian flag on San Franciscos Market Street during the No to APEC protest last Sunday. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle A man waves a Palestinian flag at Fifth and Natoma streets during a protest against APEC last Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle Despite hundreds of Bay Area protesters demanding a cease-fire in Gaza, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit ended with a joint statement omitting any reference to the Israel-Hamas war. The statement, which was negotiated by the national representatives attending APEC and capped off the weeklong meeting Friday, primarily represented member economies agreements on how to best promote trade. A separate statement from the White House said that representatives exchanged views on the ongoing crisis in Gaza. The White Houses statement dedicated more attention to the Russia-Ukraine war, expressing concern at the human toll of the conflict and its economic impact on the global economy. That section of the statement closely mirrored the language of the 2022 APEC joint declaration, which dedicated a section referencing the United Nations condemnation of the war. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Some leaders attending APEC, the White House statement said, objected to including the language on Ukraine and Gaza in the joint declaration. A San Francisco police officer stands guard near the Exploratorium on Wednesday as protesters demand a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas conflict as world leaders are gathered for the APEC summit. Stephen Lam/The Chronicle A few other countries have followed the United States in issuing their own statements. On Saturday, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei jointly called for an immediate humanitarian truce in Gaza, where Israel has barred the vast majority of food, water and other supplies from entering. The United Nations has warned that Gazas 2.3 million people are running out of food and clean water. Gaza health authorities have said more than 11,000 people, most of them women and children, have been killed there since Israel began its barrage. The war started after Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 people in southern Israel on Oct. 7, taking 240 others hostage, Israeli officials said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad APEC, which serves mainly as a forum for Pacific Rim economies to discuss trade issues, presented an opportunity for protesters to amplify calls for a cease-fire and an end to the United States military aid to Israel. 19 November 2023 11:49 (UTC+04:00) The distribution of water resources in the Araz River will be discussed at the second meeting of the Iran-Turkiye Water Cooperation Committee, Azernews reports. At the meeting to be held in Tehran, officials will discuss bilateral relations and issues of mutual interest, including defining the framework and necessary mechanisms for the development of joint water cooperation between the two countries. The meeting will be chaired by the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of Turkey, Ibrahim Yumakl, and the Deputy Minister of Energy of Iran, Mohammad Javanbakht. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 14:12 (UTC+04:00) The Maldives has a new president, Mohamed Muizzu, who has requested India withdraw its military from the country. Muizzu won the presidential election in September, ousting incumbent Ibrahim Solih in a runoff. He had campaigned on altering the tiny Indian Ocean archipelago's "India first" policy, and promised to remove the small Indian military presence of some 75 personnel, Azernews reports. Muizzu's victory was seen as a setback for India, which has had a long-standing influence in the Maldives. His opposition alliance portrayed the relationship strengthened by Solih's India-first policy as a threat to the Maldives' sovereignty and security. Muizzu has spoken highly of Chinese infrastructure projects in the Maldives, and his alliance favors closer ties with China, which has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in the Maldives in the form of loans and grants for infrastructure and development projects. Muizzu was sworn in as president on November 19th, and said he will ensure there is no foreign military presence in the archipelago. He said the right of the Maldives to lay down such limits should be respected. Critics say secrecy in the agreement between India and Solih's government regarding the role and number of Indian military personnel has led to suspicion and rumors. The Indian military is known to operate two Indian-donated helicopters and to assist in the rescue of people who are stranded or facing calamities at sea. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent a congratulatory message to Muizzu following the announcement of his victory. India remains committed to strengthening the time-tested India-Maldives bilateral relationship and enhancing our overall cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region, Modi said. Muizzu has asked the current administration to move Yameen from a high-security prison to house arrest in the capital Male. But given Yameen's uneasy and tense relationship with Delhi, it could well be a struggle for Muizzu's new alliance to balance ties with India. Muizzu sounds determined to take the Maldives out of India's orbit but convincing Delhi to withdraw its troops may be his first big challenge. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 17:02 (UTC+04:00) According to a press release Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Oncu Keceli Today plans to evacuate another hundred people from the Gaza Strip to Turkiye, Azernews reports. The Foreign Ministry spokesman said: "Depending on the situation, if conditions do not change, another hundred people, including Turkish citizens and their family members, are planned to be evacuated." The 44 people evacuated from the Gaza Strip on 18 November will be taken to Turkiye today. In addition to Turks, they include citizens of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and their family members. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 18:54 (UTC+04:00) Japan's Self-Defence Forces carried out an exercise to retake control of Tokunoshima Island (Kagoshima Prefecture), located in the southwest of the Japanese Islands in the northern Ryukyu Islands, according to The Japan Times, Azernews reports. The manoeuvres were the conclusion of a series of 11-day 05JX national exercises aimed at demonstrating the Self-Defence Forces' readiness to defend the country's territory and its infrastructure, including nuclear power plants. During the Tokunoshima exercise, the Japanese military had to dislodge the troops of a notional enemy occupying the island. Soldiers of the Ground Self-Defence Force landed on the island from amphibious assault vehicles launched from two ships. Other troops arrived on the island in inflatable rubber boats, and heavy equipment was delivered by hovercraft. The Japan Times explains that Japanese authorities consider Tokunoshima Island vulnerable in the event of a conflict with the PRC. Amid Tokyo's growing tensions with Russia, China and the DPRK, as well as increased defence spending, Japan is likely to conduct military exercises more frequently and on a larger scale, the publication adds. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 19:12 (UTC+04:00) At an international cultural forum in St Petersburg, the grandson of General Charles De Gaulle mentioned the possibility of France joining BRICS. Putin said that if France submitted a request, he would consider it, Azernews reports. French President Macron has requested an invitation to attend the BRICS summit in South Africa this summer as an observer. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 20:42 (UTC+04:00) Foreigners are losing the Chinese market. For Volkswagen, 2023 will be the year of the worst sales in China since 2012. Hyundai, Toyota, Nissan and the Europeans are also losing market share. Nissan and Huindai, for example, are experiencing their worst years in the market since 2009, Banksta's tg channel writes, Azernews reports. Only the Chinese car industry is growing at the expense of electric cars, for example, the share of BYD concern is noticeably growing. At the same time, the local car market has grown by 20% compared to last year, including due to the benefits given by the state to its manufacturers. China will become the world's largest exporter of cars, overtaking Japan and Germany, according to Moody's analysis published in August. In September, the European Union launched an investigation to fight Chinese companies producing electric cars. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 November 2023 21:43 (UTC+04:00) Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday that against the backdrop of the situation with the Gaza Strip, Islamic countries should sever relations with Israel at least for a limited period of time, Azernews reports. "Islamic governments should cut off relations with Israel at least for a limited period of time," Press TV quoted Khamenei as saying while visiting an exhibition of the latest achievements of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) aerospace forces. He also suggested restricting the supply of energy resources and other goods to Israel. Khamenei noted that the Israeli military, despite modern weapons and massive bombardment of the Gaza Strip, failed to destroy the Hamas group. It is noted that the exhibition, in particular, presented a new Iranian hypersonic missile "Fattah 2" and drone "Shahid-147". --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Robert Price is a three-time Emmy-winning reporter for KGET-TV. Reach him at rprice661@gmail.com or via X, formerly Twitter: @stubblebuzz. The opinions expressed here are his own. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. The first day of the annual West Coast Craft fair drew thousands to Fort Masons Festival Pavilion in San Francisco on Saturday. The event concluded Sunday. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle By Shawna Chan mugs are displayed at the West Coast Craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Jessica Gonzalez greets customers at her Happy Organics booth. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Take Taks creations are displayed at the craft fair, which attracts thousands of visitors each year. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Bailey Hikawa shows her toilet seats and phone case sculptures to a customer during the first day of the craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Thousands of shoppers attend the first day of the annual West Coast Craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Mal Trans ceramics are displayed during the first day of the craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Monsters of the Underworlds booth at the annual West Coast Craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Earrings are displayed at Shy Natives booth during the first day of the annual West Coast Craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle A hand-printed upcycled jacket at Monsters of the Underworlds booth. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle A phone case sculpture by Bailey Hikawa is displayed at the craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Shanna Brandt browses hand-knit cardigans at Society Manos booth during the first day of the craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Mochi pastries are displayed at Happee Bellys booth. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Fort Masons Festival Pavilion draws large a crowd for the first day of the annual West Coast Craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Thousands of people flocked to Fort Masons Festival Pavilion in San Francisco on Saturday for the 10th annual West Coast Craft winter fair, where craftspeople and designers displayed all kinds of products, from puzzles to vintage clothes to stuffed llamas. Groups of friends and families huddled at the entrance below a giant rainbow hanging from the ceiling, strategizing how they would fan out to hit the maximum amount of booths in the time they had. The fair featured 300 small craft makers from all over the country, and organizers expected 10,000 to 15,000 guests each day of the two-day craft fair. Weve got a lot of ground to cover! one woman said to her friend before dashing toward one of the first aisles at the fair, which also runs 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The booths, arranged in several rows inside the pavilion, had as much visual variety as the products did. Some were decorated simply, with just white walls and minimalist signage, while others were explosions of color, with quilts and furs hanging on the booths walls and signs made from balloons. Hundreds of designers displayed their handiwork Saturday during West Coast Craft at Fort Mason Center in San Francisco. Michaela Vatcheva Special to the Chronicle Visitors browsed the various offerings, bustling past each other in the narrow aisles, admiring the products, which sold from a few dollars to hundreds, and excitedly pointing things out to friends. One seller that caught peoples attention was Hikawa, which had a light blue toilet with a neon yellow and blue seat in front of it. As people stopped to look, they saw two other resin toilet seat creations one bright green with watches embedded in the resin, another clear with synthetic hair strands inside. Isnt that fun? Bailey Hikawa, the artist behind the eye-catching creations, said to a visitor checking out the hair-filled toilet seat. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The California College of the Arts graduate said she wanted to make art that is functional, which is how she ended up creating phone cases and toilet seats things people use every day. Im really interested in where art and design meet, Hikawa said. Each toilet seat takes about two weeks to make, she said, and most are made to order. Bailey Hikawas toilet seats are displayed during the first day of the craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Hikawa said that while she does much of her business online and doesnt often go to craft fairs, this is her third time attending West Coast Craft. She said its a great way to get her products in front of more people. These craft fairs are amazing, she said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Tess Clabby and Dicapria, who said they do not use a last name, were at the craft fair for the first time with their brand, Monsters of the Underworld. Several people stopped by the small but colorful booth, checking out their handmade coats, T-shirts, puppets and prints, each featuring or inspired by bright, whimsical monsters. The Bay Area couple said they have been performing at festivals and events with the giant puppet creations together for a few years, and started making merchandise together this year. Its kind of like a band, Dicapria said. Were installation puppet artists, and this is our merch. Justin Kienes ceramic artwork is displayed during the first day of West Coast Craft. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Another popular booth was Justin Kiene Ceramics, which featured colorful, textured cups, mugs and pots with designs inspired by amoeba. People spent several minutes at the booth, picking up and examining the various designs, looking closely at the details and deciding which they liked best. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Kiene, who is based in Oakland, said he has dabbled in ceramics his whole life but dived in completely during the pandemic. It became an obsession, he said. Now, he sells his ceramics online through his website and Instagram, but he prefers in-person events such as West Coast Craft, where he can talk with people about his designs. This is the event of the year for me, he said, adding that its his favorite market. Shoppers loved the market as well. Many were impressed with and thrilled by the number of vendors and the variety they brought. Cosmic Peace Studio displays its wares during the first day of the craft fair. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle Advertisement Article continues below this ad Rachel Garcia, who brought her mom, husband and best friend to the craft fair, said she saw an advertisement for the event on Instagram in the summer and immediately put it in her calendar, excited by the assortment of artists the event promised. As the event was getting closer and they kept posting more and more, I was like, This is amazing, she said. By noon, her arms were full of bags, which she was putting in the car before coming back into the building. Elle Pan, Garcias best friend, was visiting from Portland, Ore., and was excited that the fair was on their itinerary for the weekend. Within three days of this week's state Appeals Court ruling against the Wilson County school board in a pension-spiking case, state lawyers have highlighted the ruling in two other outstanding cases.In documents known aslawyers from the state Department of Justice have cited the Wilson County ruling to bolster their cases in pension-spiking disputes with school boards in Harnett and Union counties.The Justice Department lawyers represent the Retirement Systems Division in the Department of State Treasurer Dale Folwell.The Wilson school board will have to contribute another $400,000 toward a former assistant superintendent's retirement, based on Tuesday's state Court of Appeals opinion. It's the latest legal battle over North Carolina's 2014 pension-spiking law.The unanimous three-judge Appeals Court decision reversed a trial judge's ruling in favor of Wilson schools. The Appeals Court restored an administrative law judge's earlier decision in favor of the Retirement Systems Division.Folwell said in an emailed statement.The Wilson County Board of Education had challenged the pension-spiking law as unconstitutional.wrote Appeals Court Judge Allegra Collins.The Wilson school board was the petitioner in the case.The dispute stemmed from Assistant Superintendent Susan Bullock's retirement in 2018. Because her final annual compensation exceeded $100,000, retirement system officials applied the state's anti-pension-spiking law, NC Gen. Stat. 135-5(a3).A calculation required by the law found that Wilson County schools owed $401,763.96 to cover costs of Bullock's retirement benefits. The school board appealed the ruling. An administrative law judge ruled in favor of the retirement system in September 2021, but the school board appealed to Superior Court.Collins wrote. A trial judge ruled in favor of the school board in June 2022.Appellate judges rejected the school system's argument that the pension-spiking law violated the US Constitution's prohibition on state lawsCollins wrote.Collins and her colleagues also rejected the notion that the Wilson County school board had an implied contract with the retirement system.TSERS is the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System.Collins wrote.The Appeals Court rejected the school board's argument that the additional retirement contribution would hurt its ability to provide ato students. That would amount to a violation of the NC Constitution.Collins wrote.Nor did the retirement system apply the law retroactively, according to the Appeals Court.Collins wrote.Judges Chris Dillon and Toby Hampson joined Collins' opinion.In the Harnett County case, the Retirement Division seeks $197,805.61 from the local school board to help fund retirement benefits for a school employee who retired in 2017. In the Union County case, the Retirement Division seeks $13,269.18 to cover retirement costs for an employee who retired in 2017. Tom Campbell Two recent headlines grabbed my attention. The first was the announcement that Toyota, having already announced a major project to build batteries for electric vehicles in Randolph County, has expanded their plans. Next was the revelation that North Carolina had the third fastest population growth of all states in 2022. Both speak to our future.The Japanese auto company had already announced that their new Liberty plant would invest $1.29 billion into battery production and hire 1,750. Following Governor Cooper's recent successful economic development mission to Japan, Toyota's President Sato proclaimed the North Carolina project would invest an additional $8 billion and hire an additional 5,000 jobs, making this the largest single economic development project in the history of our state.North Carolina's recent economic development announcements have come at an almost dizzying pace and include Vinfast, the Vietnamese auto maker, that will invest some $4 billion and hire 7,500 at their Chatham County production facility. Boom Supersonic projects to hire 1,750 building jet airplanes at its $500 million investment in Guilford County. Wolfspeed, the semiconductor manufacturer will invest billions and employ 1,800. And the list includes Apple (3,000 jobs), Fidelity investments (1,500 jobs), Google (1,000 jobs) and others. North Carolina has never seen so much economic activity in such a short period.The Census Bureau updated population growth for 2022 at 133,088, ranking us behind Texas and Florida. We are now home to 10,698,973 people and Michael Cline, state demographer, projects that North Carolina will have a population of 14 million by 2050. That means adding 122,000 new residents each year for 27 years, a meteoric pace. 100,000 of us currently turn 65 each year and by 2031 there will be more older adults than children. Our median age will increase from 35 in 2000, to 41 by 2050. Racial changes will also result as the white population shrinks from 62 percent to 52 percent in 2050, with Hispanics increasing from 11 to 14 percent.All of this news promises a bright and exciting future for our state, but it also poses questions and concerns. Is our state prepared for such rapid changes? Do we have leadership thinking futuristically about how these changes will impact our state? What must be done?A greatly increased population will place exponentially greater demands on a road system that, in too many instances, is already congested. Business as usual in road construction funding won't be sufficient.New residents will result in more housing units, in turn placing expanded demands on public utilities, especially clean water and sewer facilities. The electric power grid will require expansion and new waste disposal sites will be needed.Our already stressed healthcare system will face major challenges. Nowhere will this be more urgent than in rural communities that have experienced hospital closures, sparse numbers of urgent care facilities and counties lacking care providers. We pay little attention to seniors now, but with an increased population over 65 their healthcare needs will become important. An aging population will demand more senior centers and assistance. All ages and races will demand more recreation facilities and parks.And let's look at education. While there will be some decline in numbers of school aged children there will be increased urgency to improve public education. Many aging school buildings need renovation or replacing and the shifts in population will require new school construction in more urban areas. Industries with new technologies will present increased demands for our community colleges to train or retrain our workforce. Higher education, already undergoing upheaval, will continue to compete for students and face budget constraints.Here's my spin: We are are not adequately meeting today's public infrastructure needs. And if there are folks anticipating future needs, they are a well-kept secret. We always seem to be playing a game of infrastructure catch-up instead of getting ahead of the curve.We have state legislative leadership intent on concentrating all power for themselves. They don't want, don't seek or heed input from local communities, business, educators or other sectors. The state has billions of dollars stockpiled inreserves but seems unwilling to appropriate money for meeting current public demands, much less those in the future. Instead, they continue to cut taxes, further restricting funds for those services which the public needs and deserves. Their own budget projections (not including the above growth projections) show the state facing revenue problems after 2025.So, the exciting prospects for our future are dimmed by the lack of forward-thinking leadership. Candidates are now announcing themselves for election in 2024. We need to get them on the record, asking them to tell us their current and future vision for our state and how they plan for us to meet those needs. If the North Carolina of 2050 includes 14 million residents we need to know where candidates stand on these and other issues before giving them our votes. By M.H. Cavanaugh Christian Action League November 15, 2023 In a recent interview, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) passionately discussed the vital role of faith in the public square, emphasizing that the concept of the separation of church and state is often misunderstood. Johnsons remarks came during an insightful interview on CNBCs Squawk Box, where he delved into the intersection of faith and politics. The conversation was sparked by a photograph of Speaker Johnson praying on the House floor earlier this year, a powerful gesture that symbolized his belief in the importance of faith within the nations public life. In his interview, Johnson shed light on the intentions of the United States founders, emphasizing that they envisioned faith as a cornerstone of the nations public life. He noted that the founders sought a vibrant expression of faith in the public square because they believed it was essential for establishing a general moral consensus and virtue. Moreover, Johnson challenged the common misinterpretation of the phrase separation of church and state, highlighting that this phrase does not appear in the Constitution but originates from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson. He clarified that the founders primary objective was to prevent government interference with religious institutions, not to exclude the influence of faith-based principles from public life. Speaker Johnson, a staunch advocate for religious conservatism, has consistently voiced his faith-based worldview and its profound significance in shaping his political positions. His commitment to these principles has garnered attention, particularly due to his unwavering stand for the unborn and traditional marriage. In a poignant moment, Speaker Johnson brought a Bible to the House rostrum before taking his oath of office, symbolizing his belief in the indispensable role of faith in leadership. During the interview, Johnson underscored the founders prescience in recognizing the critical role of religion in maintaining the nations democratic system. He stressed the need for a diverse array of faith expressions within the public arena, emphasizing such diversity is a fundamental aspect of the nations identity. Rev. Mark Creech, executive director of the Christian Action League, expressed his support for Speaker Johnsons commitment to his faith-based worldview. Creech noted, Speaker Johnson has said that the way to learn how he feels about any issue is to read the Bible: Thats my worldview, thats what I believe, he has said. Undoubtedly, many will not believe it, and some will gnash their teeth over it. Nevertheless, the evidence is voluminous that Johnson is very much on the same page with our nations early settlers, the colonists, and our founders. Creech went on to highlight the decline of biblical literacy in recent years and its negative impact on the nations direction. He said America had largely become secularized in recent generations. Perhaps the greatest culprit of secularization has been the churches, where professing Christians do not view lifes issues through the lens of Gods Word. This is not only unfortunate but sinful. Only a few ministers today, proclaim and teach the Bible, applying its teachings to the issues of our time. Instead, most weave and dodge the social issues and stay clear of anything that smells of politics, said Creech. With this kind of environment, it should be no surprise that biblical illiteracy is deeply and negatively impacting the overall direction of the West. As we have abandoned the Bible in recent decades, we have experienced a creeping loss of liberty, justice, and prosperity being supplanted with tyranny, oppression, and less opportunity. I feel very sorry for the younger folk. They are mostly rudderless in life, and their opportunities arent nearly as good as those of their parents and grandparents. Creech also acknowledged the role of education in this secularization process, with public education often prioritizing secular subjects and institutions of higher learning emphasizing secular knowledge and research. Speaker Mike Johnsons commitment to his faith-based worldview serves as a beacon for those who value the role of faith in American public life. His dedication to preserving the principles upon which the nation was founded echoes the sentiments of the Founding Fathers and provides a true north in an ever-evolving societal landscape. I thank God for Speaker Johnson, said Creech. In these days of troubled waters, he is like a lighthouse for the ship America to find her way safely back to shore. It seems like almost everything the propaganda media and corrupt government tell us ends up being false. From weapons of mass destruction to COVID, the 2020 election, and even the death of George Floyd, each of these spin jobs conceals a different actual truth. When these truths are revealed, they expose the deep-seated rot in our country. Revolver recently published a thought-provoking article on this topic, highlighting the absolute decay of our judicial system and the deterioration of juries, which has steered America into a dark, unjust wasteland wrought with radical activism and blind stupidity. Revolver: The Anglo-American common law was supposed to save Derek Chauvin. That it failed to says a lot about the America we all actually live in now. Its been two and a half years since the former Minneapolis police officer was convicted of murder for the death of drug addict and lifelong criminal George Floyd. Chauvin is barely one-tenth into his twenty-two-year prison sentence, which he is serving concurrently with a 21-year federal sentence for depriving Floyd of his civil rights. The Chauvin verdict was an obvious, sick joke from the moment it happened, but even on the American right, the full realization of this fact seems to have taken until the last few weeks. Helping to lead the charge was Fox host-turned-X-titan Tucker Carlson, who highlighted little-noticed recent developments in the Chauvin aftermath. It turns out everything you were told about the Floyd case was a lie. Are you shocked? We didnt think so. Yet, the Revolver piece highlights that the problem is more profound than just the Floyd issue. Its a symptom of the deeper decline in our government, education, and justice systems. Were a nation in grave danger, with these outcomes being the telltale signs of our fall. We encourage you to read the piece entitled, Trial by Ordeal: The Chauvin Verdict and the Dark, Embarrassing Truth of the American Jury System. Meanwhile, unsettling revelations about George Floyd and the lies weve been fed continue to emerge. In one of the most startling confessions, the AG from Minnesota, known for his disdain for America, has now admitted the ultimate truth about the George Floyd casea situation we were told centered around racism. Our country witnessed riots and death, all in the name of George Floyd, the so-called persecuted man allegedly victimized by American racism. Yet, as Keith Ellison now states, racism was never actually a factor in the case. Heres the stark reality in a nutshell: Our ruling elite, including the media and political figures, incited angry black (and some diverse, equitable, and inclusive) mobs with the lie that George Floyd was murdered by a white cop simply because of his race. In response, these mobs rioted, destroyed peoples livelihoods, ruined lives, and committed murder, all under the banner of Floyds name and a complete and total race hoax. Click here to go to the original source. Democrat candidates just seem to get weirder and weirder. Oregon now has a Democrat candidate for Congress who worked for years as a professional dominatrix prostitute. This follows this year's election in Virginia where one Democrat legislative nominee posted hard core porn videos online to raise money from "tips" and another posted a video of her peeing out in the open in a public park instead of using the public restrooms provided, saying on the tape "yeah, I'm peeing, avoid yellow snow." Both were in competitive districts, and both lost. Oregon Democrat Congressional candidate Courtney Casgraux, 41, is running for the US House in Oregon's 1st district in Portland's suburbs. In her 20s and 30s, she worked in a sadiomasiochist "dungeon" in New York City as a dominatrix prostitute, charging clients $500 per hour for her whips and chains routine. When someone released a tape of her activities in New York, Casgraux responded by putting up a profile on the Playboy site selling sexually oriented pictures of herself for $150 each. The Democrats regularly screw the taxpayers, but their candidate choices are getting ridiculous. https://nypost.com/2023/11/18/news/oregon-democrat-candidate-courtney-casgraux-was-a-dominatrix/ https://redstate.com/jeffc/2023/11/18/from-whips-and-chains-to-washington-democrat-exposed-as-former-dominatrix-seeking-to-win-congress-seat-n2166529 https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/11/democrat-congressional-candidate-oregon-panics-after-shes-outed/ Next year, more Californians enrolled in Medi-Cal will have access to Kaiser Permanente plans. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle Some big changes are coming to Medi-Cal, Californias Medicaid health care program for low-income people, next year. Starting Jan. 1, two groups of people that had not been eligible for full-scale Medi-Cal will gain access: low-income adults ages 26-49 and some people who are disabled or older than 64. On the other hand, some current Medi-Cal enrollees will lose coverage as the state finishes unwinding the federal continuous coverage program that kept people on Medicaid in the pandemic, even if they no longer qualified. Meanwhile, about 1.2 million Medi-Cal members in 21 counties including more than 100,000 in Alameda and Contra Costa will have to switch to a new managed health care plan on Jan. 1 because of a big shakeup in the states contracts with managed care providers. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Full-scope Medi-Cal provides free health, mental health, vision and dental care to low-income Californians. It also covers long-term care in the persons home or a nursing home; Medicare generally does not. To qualify based on income, most adults cant earn more than 138% of the federal poverty level for their household size. Thats $20,124 for an individual or $41,400 for a family of four. About 15.3 million people, or almost 40% of the states population, are enrolled in Medi-Cal. That number grew by about 3 million during the pandemic. The surge was partly a result of continuous coverage. Additionally, since January 2020, the California Department of Health Care Services which administers Medi-Cal has implemented various laws that let more people qualify for full coverage. Heres a closer look at upcoming changes. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Expansion for immigrants Although Medicaid is a federal-state program, states cannot use federal funds to pay for full-scope Medicaid for non-citizens without what the state calls satisfactory immigration status. California, however, has been using state funds to phase in full-scope Medi-Cal for undocumented immigrants who meet its income and other requirements. Coverage was expanded to children lacking permanent legal status through age 18 in 2016, to young adults 19 through 25 in 2020 and to adults 50 and older on May 1, 2022. As of August, about 670,000 people gained full coverage thanks to those three expansions combined, according to the California Legislative Analysts office. Starting Jan. 1, adults between 26 and 49 will also qualify regardless of their immigration status, which could cover an estimated 700,000 more people. Before they could get full Medi-Cal coverage, undocumented immigrants could get restricted-scope Medi-Cal, which is generally limited to emergency and pregnancy services. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Other states have expanded full Medicaid coverage to certain undocumented groups, but California will be the first to extend it to all, said Jennifer Tolbert, director of state health reform with KFF, a nonprofit organization focused on health care. As of May, the department estimated that the age 26-49 expansion would cost the state $1.2 billion in 2023-24, nearly double the previous cost estimate of $635 million. In the first full year of the expansion, we estimate costs to the general fund to be nearly $3 billion, said Ryan Miller, the LAOs principal fiscal and policy analyst. Reasons for the increase include new data showing that utilization and costs for prior expansions were higher than previously assumed, Miller added. Continuous coverage unwinding Normally Medi-Cal must make sure members still qualify every year, but for three years during the pandemic, in exchange for enhanced federal funds, states were not allowed to drop people from Medicaid. This program ended March 31 and states gradually began unwinding continuous coverage. On April 1, Medi-Cal started to redetermine whether all 15 million members are still eligible and if they were not, disenroll them. That process will end on May 31, 2024, and normal operations will resume June 1, the department said via email. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Its too early to tell how many members ultimately will lose coverage because people who are disenrolled have 90 days to prove they are still eligible and can be reinstated. But from June through September, about 731,000 people, or 17% of those due for redetermination, had been disenrolled. Most disenrollments have been for procedural reasons, such as missing or erroneous paperwork. Only 5% lost coverage because their income was too high or they didnt live in California. The California Health Care Foundation predicts that the vast majority of those disenrolled will be eligible for other types of coverage, such as Covered California or an employer plan, but may need help transitioning. Many members will be renewed without taking action. Before contacting members to complete a renewal, their county Medi-Cal office will try to verify them using outside sources such as electronic tax data or other state programs, such as CalFresh or CalWORKs. If the county can complete the renewal this way, the member will receive a notice that they were automatically renewed. Members who are dropped from Medi-Cal but think they are still eligible should first contact their local Medi-Cal office or a Health Enrollment Navigator in their county. Advertisement Article continues below this ad If they were discontinued because of missing information and are still within their 90-day cure period, the county will work with them to restore coverage. If the county cant reinstate them, they can file an appeal for a Medi-Cal Fair Hearing. For more information, see KeepMediCalCoverage.org. Asset test eliminated Historically, Medi-Cal had both income and asset limits. The Affordable Care Act removed asset limits for most people effective Jan. 1, 2014, but retained them for some groups in certain Medi-Cal programs. These include people with disabilities, those in nursing homes or using long-term care and those who are also on Medicare. For the latter group of dually eligible people, Medi-Cal covers costs that Medicare does not, such as premiums and copayments. Before 2022, the asset limit for seniors and people with disabilities was extremely low $2,000 for one person or $3,000 for a couple. Some assets do not count toward this limit, such as a primary home, primary vehicle and retirement accounts if the person is taking required minimum distributions. Starting July 1, 2022, these limits were raised dramatically to $130,000 for one person and $195,000 for two. On Jan. 1, the asset test will be eliminated but there will still be income limits, which vary by program. The asset limit increase allowed a larger number of applicants to become eligible for Medi-Cal benefits, and allowed current Medi-Cal members to retain a larger amount of non-exempt assets and still be eligible for Medi-Cal, the department says on its website. Its unclear how many more people will qualify when the asset test is eliminated. People with limited income tend to have limited assets, said Alice Burns, associate director of KFFs Program on Medicaid and the Uninsured. The change will also help people who are already eligible to enroll in and maintain their coverage because they will not be required to document their assets during the application and renewal processes. Eligibility is renewed at least once a year, she said. People who might be newly eligible because of the asset test elimination can get help from their local Area Agency on Aging or their county health office. Managed care shakeup Most people enrolled in Medi-Cal are in managed care plans, which typically require members to use health care providers within their network. The state contracts with a small number of plans some public, some commercial in each county to serve members of that county. As part of a managed care overhaul, Medi-Cal put its contracts in all counties up for competitive bidding. As a result, some Medi-Cal members in 21 counties will have to change plans next year because their old one is exiting. In some of these counties, new plans will enter. But in others, members will simply have fewer choices. There will be more counties with only one plan, said Chris Perrone, a director with the California Health Care Foundation. As part of a separate deal with Kaiser Permanente to increase its Medi-Cal enrollment by 25% over five years, Kaiser will be available in 10 new counties next year. It is already available in 22 counties, including all nine in the Bay Area. Unlike other plans, however, Kaiser generally accepts new Medi-Cal members only if they have been with Kaiser (perhaps through an employer or individual plan) within the past six or 12 months (depending on the county) or have a family member who is a Kaiser member. That wont change next year, except the look-back will be 12 months in all counties. Also, current and former foster youth and people with both Medicare and Medi-Cal will be able to join even if they have neither prior Kaiser coverage or a family member with Kaiser. In the Bay Area, the big change will be in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, where Anthem Blue Cross is exiting. In Alameda County, about 81,000 Anthem members will have to switch to the Alameda Alliance for Health a public, not-for-profit agency or to Kaiser if they meet the qualifications. In Contra Costa County, about 34,500 Anthem customers can choose the Contra Costa Health Plan or, if they qualify, Kaiser. Those losing Anthem have already been notified. The Alliance and Anthem contract has about 92% of the same health care providers, said Matt Woodruff, the Alliances chief executive officer. As for the remaining 8%, if an Anthem member has seen a doctor or specialist in the past 12 months, and that provider is not in the Alliances network, the member may be able to continue to see that provider for up to 12 months by requesting continuity of care. Medi-Cals managed care transition is also designed to improve patient outcomes by placing many new requirements on participating plans, such as reinvesting a portion of profits in their communities, increasing transparency, focusing more on primary care and having a chief health equity officer. Kaiser direct Another change is that, starting next year, Kaiser will have a direct contract with the state in all 32 counties where it offers Medi-Cal, which should help to streamline Medi-Cal members entry into Kaiser. Currently, Kaiser has a direct contract with the state in five of its 22 counties, but in 17 others including all Bay Area counties it operates as a subcontractor through plan partners. In Alameda County, for example, Medi-Cal members would first go through the Alameda Alliance (the direct contractor) and then ask to enroll in Kaiser. Next year, members will still have access to Kaiser doctors and facilities but will now deal directly with only Kaiser. It streamlines entry into Kaiser Permanente, said Kaycee Velarde, Kaisers executive director for Medi-Cal contracting and policy. Members wont be getting duplicate information or two IDs, and trying to figure out what to use. Existing members have been notified of the change and will get new ID cards. It should feel like a very seamless transition, she added. On Nov. 16, a cybersecurity contractor admitted guilt for unlawfully accessing the computer systems of Lawrenceville, Ga.-based Gwinnett Medical Center back in 2018, Law360 reported. Vikas Singla, who was the COO of a metro Atlanta network security firm specializing in healthcare, pleaded guilty to orchestrating a cyberattack on Gwinnett, according to the publication. During the attack, phone lines were disrupted, as well as the network printer service. Mr. Singla also was able to illicitly obtain data from a digitizing device from the hospital during the attack. The government said the crime cost Gwinnett Medical Center $800,000 and that the cyberattack was, in part, carried out with the intention of securing financial benefits for Mr. Singla's company. Mr. Singla was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 8, 2021. William Beggs who was convicted of the murder of Barry Wallace (right) A Co Armagh man who murdered and dismembered a teenager in 1999 has lost a legal challenge against a decision to turn him down for release on parole. But William Beggs, from Lurgan, has been told he could be released from jail despite the decision to refuse his parole if he meets conditions set by the Parole Board. Beggs, once described by police as a serial killer in the making, completed the 20-year minimum term of his life sentence for the murder of Barry Wallace in December 2019 in a case which became known as the limbs in the loch murder. The following month the Parole Board for Scotland refused his application for release. Beggs (60) raised a judicial review at the Court of Session in Edinburgh but a judge has now refused his petition. Judge Lord Richardson said he was entirely satisfied that the decision met the legal test. A diver trawls Loch Lomond for the remains of Beggs victim Barry Wallace Beggs was convicted for the murder of Mr Wallace, a supermarket worker who went missing after a staff Christmas party in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, on December 4 1999. Part of his dismembered body was subsequently found in Loch Lomond. The trial judge described the murder of the 18-year-old victim as a most horrific crime. Beggs took the teenager to his flat and subjected him to a serious sexual assault before murdering him. After cutting up his body into eight pieces he disposed of the arms, legs and torso in Loch Lomond and kept the head for two days before he dumped it from the Troon to Belfast ferry. It washed up on Barassie beach in Ayrshire some 60 miles away, found in a plastic bag by a local woman walking her dog. His parole board tribunal said the killer had refused to comply with offence-focused work while in prison and had not been tested in less secure conditions. Beggs argued that the decision was unlawful as it breached human rights legislation because the tribunal had not acted as an independent and impartial court. Lord Richardson said factors identified by Beggs would not lead the fair-minded observer to conclude that there was a real possibility that the (parole board) tribunal lacked either independence or impartiality. But the judgment revealed details of conditions set by the Parole Board under which Beggs could reapply and be released including taking part in prison programmes. It said: Mr Beggs reintroduction back to the community must be done with great care. The tribunal would expect testing to begin with special escorted leave and then increase slowly as was considered appropriate. He would be extensively tested by whatever means are available. It is important for him to build up the relationships which will support and monitor him in the community and it is also important that these relationships are fully tested prior to his release. Mr Beggs should complete offender-focused work and then be extensively tested prior to release. Graeme Pearson, former MSP and head of the Scottish Crime Enforcement Agency, said: He has refused to engage in any remedial work that might help him identify why he conducted himself in the way that he did. At his trial in October 2001 judge, Lord Osborne, said Beggs should serve a minimum of 20 years in what he described as the most distressing of cases and appalling of offences. It was Beggss second conviction for murder and mutilation. His first conviction was overturned in 1989. He was also jailed in 1991 for a razor attack on a man who warned that Beggs would strike again. The eldest of five children from a respected Lurgan family, Beggs had left Northern Ireland as a teenager to study in England. The UVF would later claim it had ordered him out of the country suspecting he was involved in sex offences. Police have urged the killers of a Catholic man shot dead by the UVF more than 30 years ago to do the right thing and come forward. Detectives issued a new appeal over the murder of Peter McCormack in the Thierafurth Inn in Kilcoo, Co Down, on November 19, 1992, on the 31st anniversary of the attack. Mr McCormack, a 42-year-old former schoolteacher from Drumena Road in Kilcoo, was shot dead when two gunmen burst into the public house and opened fire on customers inside. Three others, including a 69-year-old man who was registered blind, were also injured. Detective Chief Inspector Mark Byrne from the Legacy Investigation Branch said: Mr McCormack was enjoying a drink in his local when he was murdered. The bar was full of customers about to take part in a charity darts match. Peter was an innocent victim of a sickening sectarian attack. Police believe the gunmen escaped in a Grey Ford Orion car found abandoned nearby in Tollymore Forest Park. It had been stolen from east Belfast earlier in the day. Mr Byrne added: More than 30 years have passed since Peters murder, and I am appealing for anyone who has any knowledge of what happened who have not spoken to police previously, or who have any new information, to do so now. A number of people were involved in the murder. They know who they are and they are going to have to live with that. I would appeal to them to do the right thing and make a difference to Peters family by making themselves known to police. Sinn Fein blasted by free speech coalition over chilling effect of partys defamation cases European and Irish coalition says lawsuits seem to be part of co-ordinated campaign against the media Michelle O'Neill and Mary Lou McDonald have taken cases. Photo: Frank McGrath Mark Tighe Sun 19 Nov 2023 at 15:53 A coalition of European and Irish freedom of expression advocates has warned Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald that a spate of defamation cases taken by Sinn Fein TDs has a chilling effect on democracy and appears to be a coordinated campaign against the media in Ireland. Leo Varadkar has said that he finds the idea of a Sinn Fein politician as a justice, foreign affairs or defence minister repugnant. Sinn Fein TD Matt Carthy responded by calling the Fine Gael leaders comments pathetic attempts at deflection from his partys record in government. After criticising the main opposition party at a Fine Gael event on Saturday, the Taoiseach rounded on opinion poll-leaders Sinn Fein again on Sunday. Mr Varadkar questioned Sinn Feins stance on legacy issues relating to The Troubles. Its highly disturbing, the idea of there being a Sinn Fein justice minister, or foreign affairs minister, or defence minister, is repugnant to me, he told RTEs The Week In Politics. Theres a lot of people talking about some of the horrific things that are happening now in the Middle East. We have, in Sinn Fein, a party that will not acknowledge war crimes that may have happened in this country and they still need to be investigated. Those people need to be brought to justice and the families need to get the answers and justice that they need. Leo Varadkar with Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe (centre) and Minister for Justice Helen McEntee during a Fine Gael special conference (Brian Lawless/PA) At a Fine Gael special conference on Saturday, Sinn Fein was criticised by Mr Varadkar and Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris in events with party members. Justice and rural issues were addressed as Fine Gael gears up for the local council and European Parliament elections next June, with the threat of a general election also looming in 2024. Sinn Feins spokesperson on foreign affairs and defence Mr Carthy said that Fine Gael had overseen abysmal records while in power. In order to deflect from his partys failures in housing and health, Leo Varadkar has decided to shine a light on Fine Gaels equally disastrous legacy in justice and defence, he said in a statement to PA. After 12 years of Fine Gael government we have a retention and recruitment crisis within both An Garda Siochana and the Defence Forces. Morale with the Gardai is at an all-time low while communities feel less safe. Our Defence Forces are unable to fully provide the service they wish due to government underinvestment. Sinn Fein will turn around the abysmal records that Fine Gael have overseen. On foreign affairs, for decades Sinn Fein has developed important and long-standing international relationships with successive US administrations and on Capitol Hill. Coupled with our work in the EU, Australia and further afield, we are proud of our record in building support for the peace process and for Irish interests. We are also very proud of our record of international solidarity with South Africans in their struggle against apartheid, our track record on Palestine and supporting those who strive for peace and justice worldwide. On all of these issues we have worked constructively with government. Leo Varadkar knows this. His pathetic attempts at deflection will be seen by the Irish people for what they are. Asked about whether the Irish Government had made a decision on taking a case against the UK Government over its legacy bill, Mr Varadkar said the decision would be made in the coming weeks. The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act received royal assent despite widespread opposition from political parties, victims organisations in Northern Ireland and the Irish Government. Mr Varadkar said: Were very much against the legacy legislation that the British government has brought through. We have a decision to make as to whether we bring an inter-state case against the UK Government or whether we support one of the third-party cases. Were going to make a decision on that in the next couple weeks. We have the advice from the AG (Attorney General), we havent made a definitive decision yet, but we will make a decision on that in the next few weeks. Khalid El Estal is reunited with his son Ali (4) and daughter Sara (1) after they arrived in Dublin Airport from Gaza with their uncle Mohammed Jendia. Picture; Gerry Mooney Khalid El Estal is reunited with his son Ali (4) after he arrived in Dublin Airport from Gaza. Picture; Gerry Mooney Khalid El Estal is reunited with his son Ali (4) after he arrived in Dublin Airport from Gaza. Picture; Gerry Mooney Khalid El Estal is reunited with his son Ali (4) after he arrived in Dublin Airport from Gaza. Picture; Gerry Mooney As more Irish-Palestinians fleeing Gaza arrived at Dublin Airport on Sunday afternoon, a long wait to be reunited was extended by a few hours. The flight, originally scheduled to land at 12.20pm Irish time, landed at around 5.45pm. One young woman muttered almost time, almost time under her breath as airport staff provided families with constant updates. Supporters with Palestinian flags, who were at Saturdays protest in Dublin city, turned out to join the families in welcoming their loved ones home, as did the Palestinian ambassador to Ireland, Dr Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid. Belfast-born Khalid El-Astal has been fighting for his children Ali (4) and Sara (1) to be brought to Ireland since the war broke out on October 7. His wife Ashwak Jendia was killed in an explosion that also injured the two children, but they recovered at a hospital in southern Gaza. He ran to his children as they finally came through the arrival gate in Terminal 1 with their uncle Mohammed Jendia, a father at last given another chance to hug his son and daughter. Khalid El Estal reunited with his daughter. Photo: Gerry Mooney Fighting back tears, Mr El-Astal said he is happy to be in Ireland and happy to have his kids back with him. "I cant describe it. It was a long wait, I had a lot of support from everyone. Finally we did it. We lost a lot, my wife, their mum, her mum, my brother, he said. "But its OK, we will be strong. I will take care of them and everything. "These people, they are like my family now, he said of those who supported him while he waited for his children. "They will stay forever my family. Thank you, thank you. Irish-Palestinian man appeals for world to help Gaza after his wife and mother die in Israeli bombardment Read more Belfast-born Palestinian man waiting for news of children leaving Gaza as border crossing unlikely today Asked what his plan was now that Ali and Sara are with him and can return home with him to Co Kildare, he said: I dont know where to go now. Thats OK, I have my children back. The family will now have a chance to celebrate Alis fifth birthday on November 22 with him and his sister safely back with their father, albeit tragically without Ashwak there by their side. Khalid El Estal is reunited with his son Ali (4) and daughter Sara (1) after they arrived in Dublin Airport from Gaza with their uncle Mohammed Jendia. Picture; Gerry Mooney While there was joy for many arriving at Dublin Airport, it was a heartbreaking homecoming for Mazen Haia. The 19-year-old and his family are safely in Ireland now, but they were forced to leave his father behind. At 19, in his second year of college in computer engineering at the Islamic University of Gaza, he is now responsible for his six younger siblings. "Its very difficult, I dont know how my life will continue now. We left our father to die and my cousin. "They bombed our university, they bombed schools, they bombed our houses. We were walking when we got out the IDF told us to get our of our houses, there were bodies where we were walking. "We left everything, I only have some clothes. We dont have any money. Now Im responsible for all these kids. How can this happen?, he said. Mr Haia said he and his siblings are left without a father, an education, money or a place to stay. This is his first time back in Ireland since 2011 and he has nowhere to go. "Communications now are very hard. We dont know, any time now we could receive a message saying our father is dead. It is a disaster, we dont know what to do. "I came here just to be safe. If I sleep on the street, I dont care, I just want to be safe. All that matters to me right now is that we are safe. Thank God that we are safe. We dont know what will happen now, if they can come to Ireland. The Israeli authorities didnt let their names on the list for the Rafah Crossing. "Me, Im the father now. I am the son and the father now, he said. An MP who relinquished the Conservative whip after being convicted of racist abuse has announced he is standing down at the next election. Bob Stewart, who has represented the London constituency of Beckenham since 2010, said he would not seek re-election in a brief statement on X, formerly Twitter, which made no reference to the recent conviction. Earlier this month, a Government source told the PA news agency that Mr Stewart had informed Chief Whip Simon Hart that he wished to surrender the party whip until a possible appeal of his conviction is resolved. Mr Stewart currently sits as an independent MP in the House of Commons. Mr Stewart said on social media: Serving Beckenham as its Member of Parliament for 13 years has been an honour and privilege. I am incredibly grateful to everyone who has given me this opportunity. However, it is time for a new candidate, so I will not be seeking re-election at the next election. The geographical boundary of the Beckenham constituency is expected to be changed at the next general election following a regular review process carried out by the Boundary Commission for England which is seeking to introduce greater uniformity in population sizes across the seats for Westminster. A new constituency of Beckenham and Penge has been proposed. Mr Stewart, 74, who is also a former British Army officer and served as a United Nations commander in Bosnia, was earlier this month found guilty at Londons Westminster Magistrates Court of racially abusing an activist by telling him to go back to Bahrain. Chief magistrate Paul Goldspring found the MP guilty of a racially aggravated public order offence, and despite mentioning Mr Stewarts immense positive character, remarked: I accept he is not racist per se, but that is not the case against him. Good men can do bad things. We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content Mr Stewart had been attending an event hosted by the Bahraini embassy in London on December 14 last year when confronted with a protester who asked him for how much did you sell yourself to the Bahraini regime? Addressing the allegation of racist abuse, Mr Stewart has previously said: Thats absurd, its totally unfair, my life has been, I dont want to say destroyed, but I am deeply hurt at having to appear in a court like this. The MP said he was not a racist, and added: Go back to Bahrain meant Why dont you go back to Bahrain and make your point there? A crowdfunding page set up by Brendan Clarke-Smith, the Conservative MP for Bassetlaw, to cover Mr Stewarts fine and any further legal costs has already raised more than 18,000. Mr Stewart joins a growing list of Tory MPs who have announced they will not stand at the next general election, expected next year. Sean OKane and his brother Eoghan have raised almost 9,000 for Marie Curie on the 20th anniversary of their mother Martinas death (Marie Curie/PA) Two brothers from Co Londonderry have spoken of going sky high on the other side of the world in a bid to fundraise for a charity which supported their mother. Sean OKane, 25, and his brother Eoghan, 24, have raised almost 9,000 for the charity Marie Curie on the 20th anniversary of their mother Martinas death. The brothers were young children when their mother died from cancer at the age of 37 on November 20 2003. She was nursed at home by Marie Curie. Eoghan, an electrician, moved to Sydney in June with his girlfriend, where Sean, an actuary, joined him for the fundraising skydive. It was a great buzz to do the skydive and really exciting as it was something we hadnt done before, Sean said. It was also very emotional for us just before and after we jumped, just thinking of Mummy as we were doing it in her memory. Mummys 20th anniversary is a very special anniversary for us as a family as my sister Naomh is expecting our familys first grandchild and we know how happy she would have been about that. She has missed so much of our familys milestones so to have been able to do this and to raise money for Marie Curie who looked after her so well is really something. Eoghan said: We will remember and honour Mummy as a family on her anniversary, just as we have done every year since I can remember. We keep her memory alive for us all by getting together surrounded by family and friends on her anniversary and on special family occasions. Their aunt, and mothers sister, Sandra Kelly, from Belfast, said their mother would be proud of all four of her children. Sean OKane (left) and his brother Eoghan (right), have raised almost 9,000 for Marie Curie on the 20th anniversary of their mothers death (Marie Curie/PA) When Sean and Eoghan told me they were doing the skydive, I thought it was a very courageous thing to do, she said. Im honoured to be their aunty and thrilled they completed the skydive. Martina would be the proudest mother in the world of all four of her children, now 20 years later. The family raised just over 70,000 for Marie Curie from a gala dance to mark the first anniversary of Martinas death, and also raised more than 7,000 for Marie Curie to mark the 10th anniversary. The charity recently launched its Christmas appeal, Give Care, Comfort and Joy. Details on making a donation can be found at www.mariecurie.org.uk. Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as US president, has died aged 96. The Carter Centre said she died on Sunday after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. A spokesperson said she died peacefully, with family by her side at 2.10pm local time at her rural Georgia home. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, Mr Carter said in a statement. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. President Joe Biden called the Carters an incredible family because they brought so much much grace to the office. He also spoke of the couples great integrity. Imagine they were together for (77) years? Mr Biden added. God bless them. The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a full partnership. Former US president Jimmy Carter and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn, celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary (John Bazemore, Pool/AP) Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to Mr Carter sometimes referred to her privately as co-president. Rosalynn is my best friend the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life, Jimmy Carter told aides during their White House years, which spanned from 1977-1981. Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Mrs Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicised Cabinet shake-up became known, she was forced to declare publicly: I am not running the government. Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husbands they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanour and a soft southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her the Steel Magnolia. Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carters landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington. Former president Jimmy Carter and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, wave to the audience at the Democratic National Convention in Denver in 2008 (Ron Edmonds/AP) Mr Carter trusted her so much that in 1977, only months into his term, he sent her on a mission to Latin America to tell dictators he meant what he said about denying military aid and other support to violators of human rights. She also had strong feelings about the style of the Carter White House. The Carters did not serve hard liquor at public functions, though Rosalynn did permit US wine. There were fewer evenings of ballroom dancing and more square dancing and picnics. Throughout her husbands political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media did not cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticised reporters for writing only about sexy subjects. As honorary chairwoman of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate sub-committee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying: Weve been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach. First lady Rosalynn Carter is pictured in the Vermeil Room of the White House in 1977 (The White House via AP) She said she developed her interest in mental health during her husbands campaigns for Georgia governor. I used to come home and say to Jimmy, Why are people telling me their problems? And he said, Because you may be the only person theyll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them, she explained. After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, Mrs Carter seemed more visibly devastated than her husband. She initially had little interest in returning to the small town of Plains, Georgia, where they both were born, married and spent most of their lives. I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles, she wrote in her 1984 autobiography, First Lady From Plains. But we slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before, she said. After leaving Washington, Jimmy and Rosalynn co-founded The Carter Centre in Atlanta to continue their work. Frequently, the Carters left home on humanitarian missions, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and promoting public health and democracy across the developing world. I get tired, she said of her travels. But something so wonderful always happens. To go to a village where they have Guinea worm and go back a year or two later and theres no Guinea worm, I mean the people dance and sing its so wonderful. In 2015, Mr Carters doctors discovered four small tumours on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she did not know what she was going to do. I depend on him when I have questions, when Im writing speeches, anything, I consult with him, she said. She helped Carter recover several years later when he had hip replacement surgery aged 94 and had to learn to walk again. And she was with him earlier this year when he decided after a series of hospital stays that he would forgo further medical interventions and begin end-of-life care. Jimmy Carter is the longest-lived US president. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nations first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died aged 97. US Special Envoy to Northern Ireland Joseph Kennedy III at the Edward M Kennedy Institute Five local politicians travelled to the US in September to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement at a cost of more than 6,000. Those who attended were Sinn Fein MP John Finucane, SDLP MP Colum Eastwood, UUP MLA Mike Nesbitt, Alliance MLA Andrew Muir and DUP MLA David Brooks. The event was organised and paid for, except in Mr Finucanes case, by the Edward M Kennedy Institute in Boston. It was held at the organisations plush headquarters, featuring a series of speeches and panel discussions. Senator George Mitchell speaking at the Edward M Kennedy Institute The cost of each members trip, bar Mr Eastwood who has yet to declare what, if any, financial contribution he received, was published on the register of interests for the House of Commons and the Assembly. North Belfast MP Mr Finucane registered 1,868.35 in flights and subsistence, paid for by Friends of Sinn Fein USA. According to the register, the purpose of the visit was to brief the Irish diaspora and speak at the institute. The other politicians who have declared had their costs covered by the institute. East Belfast MLA David Brooks flights and accommodation came to 1,622.24. North Down MLA Andrew Muir registered 1,577.46 in flights, accommodation and travel. Strangford MLA Mike Nesbitt declared 1,060 for return flights and two nights accommodation. The overall total was 6,128.05. Photos of politicians at the event were posted on the institutes website alongside other attendees, including Senator George Mitchell and US Special Envoy Joseph Kennedy III. US Special Envoy to Northern Ireland Joseph Kennedy III at the Edward M Kennedy Institute A description of the event on the groups website says: Featuring remarks and conversations with representatives of the UK and Irish governments, Northern Irish political parties, and international business leaders, the conversations reflected on 25 years of progress since the signing of the agreement and explored the challenges and opportunities in building peace and economic prosperity. It was not the first trip abroad for some of the representatives this year. Mr Brooks was in Washington in March to attend an academic conference hosted at the American University in association with Georgetown University and Ulster University, according to the Assemblys register of interests. The cost of his Dublin return flights and three nights at the Glover Park Hotel came to 967.20, which was met by the American University. Mr Nesbitt visited New York in March for a seminar organised by the National Committee on American Foreign Policy, which paid 500 for accommodation. All other costs were met by the UUP. In May he visited Texas and Atlanta to speak at two events marking the 25th anniversary of the agreement. They were organised by the Irish Consulate, with costs of 2,400 met by the Irish government. Jessica Flores is a reporter for The San Francisco Chronicle. Before joining The Chronicle in 2021, she worked for USA Today, NPR affiliate KPCC and Curbed LA. Originally from L.A., she received her masters degree in journalism from the University of Southern California and a bachelors degree from Mount Saint Marys University in Los Angeles. She can be reached at Jessica.Flores@sfchronicle.com. A diplomat working to ease the horrors of the war in Gaza is from Northern Ireland. As the UKs ambassador to Israel, Bangor man Simon Walters is involved in behind-the-scenes negotiations. The Middle East specialist previously worked as director of national security in the region for the Foreign Office. He was appointed to his current role just months before the war broke out. Mr Walters said he had been extremely fortunate to land the job, which he described as an opportunity I was not going to let pass. In a recent interview, he said the UK needed Israel to win the war against Hamas but also cautioned: Israel must adhere to the laws of war. The former Bangor Grammar pupil wrote an article for his old schools magazine, saying: I do recognise that some of the factors which got me to where I am now do go back to my time at Bangor Grammar School. He added he had been tempted to join the police, but the RUC had the good sense not to reply to my application I would have made a terrible policeman. He also wrote how he remembered his school days with fondness, perhaps aided by the anaesthetic effects of distance, including the flap of gowns, bad jokes about the life-threateningly caustic canteen custard (and) horizontal sleet at the Ballymac playing fields. In a speech just before he took up his latest role, Mr Walters said being brought up at the height of the Troubles gave him a keen awareness of the dangers of sectarianism. He had barely begun to find his feet as ambassador when Hamas launched a wave of attacks on October 7, killing at least 1,200 people. Mr Walters is no stranger to conflict zones, having previously worked in Iraq, Afghanistan and Yemen. He was then appointed to what he described as a rather more comfortable job in Jerusalem, a city my wife and I quickly fell in love with. After that, he had a series of postings in London, followed by a stint in Istanbul, which he described as one of the great cities of the world. A Rohingya refugee rests with other new arrivals at a prayer hall in Kulee, Pidie regency, in Indonesias Aceh province, Nov. 19, 2023. UPDATED at 8:04 p.m. ET on 2023-11-19 Up to 525 Rohingya were allowed to disembark in western Indonesias Aceh province when their three boats landed there on Sunday after weeks at sea, the latest in a wave of new Rohingya arrivals since Nov. 13, according to officials. Sundays landings in Aceh included about 250 people who were on a boat that had reached the provinces coast last Thursday but was pushed back to sea by villagers at two locations before it was finally allowed to come ashore after an urgent appeal by UNHCR, the U.N.s refugee agency. The three ships that landed this morning were in three different locations, in Bireuen, Pidie and East Aceh, with around 500 people, Mitra Salima Suryono, a spokesperson for UNHCR in Indonesia, told BenarNews. The landings brought to 866 the total number of Rohingya who have arrived in Aceh aboard five people-smuggling boats since last Monday. The three boats that landed on Sunday had spent between a month to two months on the open water after setting sail from Coxs Bazar, in southeastern Bangladesh, officials said. The district is home to sprawling camps that house about 1 million stateless Rohingya Muslim refugees from the nearby Rakhine in Myanmar, officials said. Some of the 241 Rohingya who disembarked from the boat in Pidie regency (pictured) looked famished, sick and exhausted, according to a representative of a local fishermens association. Their physical conditions were unstable because they didnt eat enough while at sea, Marfian, the secretary in Pidie for Panglima Laot, the fishermens group, told BenarNews. Newly arrived Rohingya refugees rest at a prayer hall in Kulee, Aceh, Indonesia, Nov. 19, 2023. [Khairu/AFP] A police official in Bireuen confirmed that the boat with 249 people, which was pushed back to sea twice earlier, had landed in that regency along the northern coast near the western tip of Sumatra island. We are looking after them and making sure everything goes well, Second Inspector Marzuki, a spokesperson for the Bireuen police who goes by one name, told BenarNews. Residents of two villages along Acehs coast pushed back the boat on Thursday after two other boatloads of Rohingya had landed in the region on Nov. 13 and Nov. 14. Police at the time said that locals had been complaining about bad behavior shown by some among the 1,000-odd Rohingya who were already sheltering in Aceh. Indonesia and neighboring Malaysia, both majority-Muslim countries, are popular destinations for Rohingya who decide to pay human smugglers money to embark on the often perilous and potentially deadly sea journey from Coxs Bazar. [T]he sailing season has started, and many refugees try to leave the camps in Bangladesh where they face precariousness, overcrowding, insecurity, lawlessness and now also food rations cuts, Chris Lewa, the director of the Arakan Project, a Thailand-based human rights group that advocates for rights for the stateless Rohingya people, told BenarNews in an email early Monday (Bangkok time). We know of one more boat still at sea, maybe more. Surely more will be planning to leave. Miftachuddin Cut Adek, deputy secretary-general of Panglima Laot, the fishermen's association, said that members of his group were always open to allowing in the Rohingya. "We accepted them for humanitarian reasons," he told BenarNews. It's a pity that they were adrift in the sea when they reached the shoreline, but were rejected. Usman Hamid, executive director of Amnesty Inetrnationals branch in Indonesia called it irresponsible for locals to have forced the Rohingya on that one boat to return to potential perils out on the open sea. This reflects a major decline in Indonesian civility. Even though the locals previously showed generosity and humanity towards Rohingya refugees, Usman Hamid said in a statement issued before the boat with 249 people aboard was allowed to land. Indonesia has an obligation to help them. The policy of returning them to their country of origin clearly violates the non-refoulement principle, a basic pillar of the life of civilized nations," said Usman. This picture taken on Nov. 18, 2023 in the Batee subdistrict of the Pidie region in Indonesia's Aceh province shows playing cards left on the deck of one of the two boats that carried Rohingya refugees to Batee and Laweung on Nov. 14 and Nov. 15, 2023. [Chaideer Mahyuddin/AFP] In January 2023, Jakarta called for region-wide cooperation to conduct rescue operations for Rohingya stranded at sea, so that Indonesia wouldnt have to bear the burden of this task disproportionately. Indonesia does not grant asylum or legal status to refugees. Refugees who arrive in Indonesia are usually confined to temporary shelters or detention centers, and face an uncertain future, as they have no access to formal education and jobs. Human rights groups have said that the number of Rohingya leaving for third countries highlights the dire conditions at the refugee camps in southeastern Bangladesh and the deteriorating situation in post-coup Myanmar. Many Rohingya have grown desperate because they see no hope of being repatriated to Myanmar, which has been convulsed with violence following the February 2021 coup by the Burmese military, rights advocates and NGOs in the region have said. The year 2022 was the deadliest since 2014 for Rohingya attempting such sea voyages, according to the United Nations. At least 348 individuals died or went missing at sea, UNHCR reported in January. Imran Vittachi contributed to this report from Washington. It was updated to add comments by Chris Lewa. Given the troubling trends in insurance reimbursements as well as ballooning budgets and expectations for EMS organizations, these are questions and assessments that should be made sooner rather than later hopefully before another Berkshire EMS service flatlines. Artist Adrian L. Burrell unveils his exhibition Venus Blues at the Minnesota Street Project Foundation in the Dogpatch district of San Francisco on Oct. 6. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrells exhibition Venus Blues employs mixed media to represent his familys roots from Senegal to Louisiana to Oakland. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrell poses with his exhibition Venus Blues at the Minnesota Street Project Foundation in the Dogpatch district in San Francisco. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrells exhibition Venus Blues employs mixed media to represent his familys roots from Senegal to Louisiana to Oakland. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrells exhibition Venus Blues employs mixed media to represent his familys roots from Senegal to Louisiana to Oakland. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrell stands for a portrait Oct. 6 at the Minnesota Street Project Foundation ahead of the opening of Venus Blues. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrell at the Minnesota Street Project Foundation. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrell inside his exhibition Venus Blues. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle Adrian L. Burrells mother in a 2020 photograph called God Dont Like Ugly. Adrian L. Burrell There is a powerful connection between the physical and emotional journeys focusing on Black family lineages in Adrian L. Burrells multimedia exhibition Venus Blues at the Minnesota Street Project Foundation. In the dark of the vast San Francisco arts venue, visitors take a path between two mammoth burnt-red exhibition walls meant to evoke colonial architecture in Senegal, Burrells matrilineal homeland. Entering the round structure dubbed the Radius Room, viewers walk around an installation that looks like a large pile of sugar, a crop once frequently farmed by enslaved labor. In the center of that heap is a metal tub where water from a bucket above drips into it, providing an unsteady beat. Then, on the back wall of the Radius Room, we are confronted with a 2016 photograph Burrell took of the infamous Door of No Return in the House of Slaves on Goree Island off the coast of Dakar. The door was the final exit for millions of Africans before the Middle Passage to enslavement in the American colonies. Now the site is associated both with the slave trade and the journey some Black people have taken back to Africa seeking their roots. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The walk in the exhibition echoes the one taken by Burrells ancestors to that same door. Its a journey that will bring the artist and viewers from Senegal to Louisiana to Oakland, then back to Senegal. Adrian L. Burrell at the MSP Foundation. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle You dont know what this structure is until you see the picture of the Door of No Return, said the 33-year-old Oakland artist. Then theres this stutter, a ripple, that reminds you that now and then are closely related to each other. I think about what it means for this structure to be in a conversation with the people that are in my familial lineage. Tiffany E. Barber, the exhibitions curator, said she and Burrell wanted to create the experience of time moving forward and backwards. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Its a reference to the way African descendant folks experience time and the world as a kind of circular experience, she explained. That time is not linear, its in motion, front, back and sideways all at once. In every corner of Venus Blues there are references to that suspension and circularity of time film installations of water rippling in rings, a living room installation that looks preserved and yet reclaimed by nature as well as reminders of Burrells family history and its place within the larger African diaspora. Connecting those themes is a letter from Burrells grandmother, Threather Lewis, addressed Dear Future, detailing life from her birth in Miden, La., in 1927, to a final question: I wonder, when the Future comes, whats it gonna be like? Venus Blues is the second show at the Minnesota Street Project Foundations newest exhibition space, which opened in May in the Dogpatch neighborhood. The former popcorn factory includes a screening gallery that is currently screening Burrells ongoing film project, The Saints Step in Kongo Time. The 17-minute film, like the exhibition, spans the locales of Burrells maternal familys diasporic journey that reference the importance of the sugar crop in the enslavement narrative and the violence Black people have endured for decades (Burrell himself is a survivor of police violence). Throughout, the connecting nature of history is represented in archival, performance and interview footage. In these cyclical repetitions of catastrophe, there is at one point a break, said Burrell. And in that break theres an opportunity for a restructuring of things when were willing to make it happen. In the 1800s, if you ran away and you were a slave, you were breaking the law, he went on. To free yourself, to steal yourself away, was to break the law. Venus Blues looks at the ways in which my family, across time and history, have stolen themselves like my grandmother who stole herself away from Louisiana. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Lewis is specifically given extended stretches of time in the film where she talks to her grandson about her life, giving birth to 16 children and her experiences with racism in the South. Those interviews led Burrell to a series of letters from the 1920s written on behalf of relatives who were enslaved and conscripted into the Confederate army during the Civil War, demanding reparations for their wartime bondage. Adrian L. Burrell sits for a portrait at the Minnesota Street Project Foundation. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle While his relatives were unsuccessful, within the letters, Burrell was able to research other family members. He found a bill of sale for a woman referred to as Venus Senegal, who was kidnapped from Northern Senegal in the 1730s and sold to enslavers in southwest Louisiana. More Information Venus Blues: Multimedia. 3-7 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday; noon-7 p.m. Friday-Saturday; noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Through Sunday, Dec. 3. Free. Minnesota Street Project Foundation, 1201 Minnesota St., S.F. https://minnesotastreetproject.org Its interesting to think about Adrian being a Black male artist making this work about Black women, Barber said. Hes bringing a thoughtfulness and intentionality and a sensitivity to the work. You really get the sense that his whole world view has been shaped by the Black women in his life in particular, and the mother figures that he is surrounded by. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Indeed, the central Venus motif in the show is the women in Burrells family. In America, Burrell can trace his lineage back to his great-great-grandmother Alice Smith, who was born into slavery in Louisiana. She is represented in the exhibition in an enlarged archival photograph. Other Venuses represented by Burrell in the exhibition include his mother, Vanessa Burrell, in the photo God Dont Like Ugly, pictured wearing a white suit and holding a gun outside the 91-year-old Oakland restaurant Mexicali Rose, which closed in 2018. His sister is featured in Antonia, a painting in her namesake that depicts her pregnant and standing in front of a patch of sugar cane in Oakland. The photograph was printed onto a shredded and restitched American flag. Both images strongly connect the women in his life to their familys journey in the African diaspora and Black America. Further exploring the theme, when Burrell was selected as an artist-in-residence at Kehinde Wileys prestigious Black Rock Senegal for its 2022-2023 cohort, he said he connected with spiritual diviners and Grio storytellers to try to piece together parts of what might have been Venus song. I was thinking about these ideas of the blues as a modality of storytelling, but also a form of agency, Burrell explained. We all come into this world with a song, and sometimes people get to sing it and sometimes people dont. Burrells show utilizes all of the venues 20,000-square-foot space. In addition to Burrells photography and art being presented, massive warehouse doors are painted with phrases like For all times space and agency and For rest and the allure of impossible things. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Over the area dedicated to public programming, swaths of white fabric hang like sheets on a twisted clothesline or sails on a ship, while moss and vines are wrapped around chairs and encompass the presentation stage. An unfinished wattle and daub wall made from branches, straw and mud, using ancient building techniques, occupies a large part of the space. Its partly built quality adds to the flexibility of time, the blending of past and present. Venus Blues at the Minnesota Street Project Foundation. Felix Uribe/Special to The Chronicle With a bachelors degree in film from the San Francisco Art Institute and an MFA from Stanford Universitys department of art & art history, Burrell has seen his star steadily on the rise in recent years. In 2021, Burrells photographic series titled Its After the End of the World, Dont You Know That Yet? was acquired by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. The following year, he had his first solo museum show, Adrian Burrell: Sugarcane and Lightning pt 3, at the Institute of Contemporary Art San Jose. Now, amid the run of Venus Blues through Dec. 3, he is developing his first feature film, Cousins, made possible in part by the SFFilm Rainin Grant he was awarded last year. In 2024, he expects to release his first book Sugarcane and Lightning, published through Minor Matters Books. Italy has just delivered a devastating blow to the controversial agenda of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and billionaire magnate Bill Gates for global food control, with the historic approval of a ban on the production and sale of cultivated meat. The Chamber of Deputies voted 159 in favor, 53 against, and 34 abstentions in support of the bill presented by Minister of Agriculture Francesco Lollobrigida. The legislation, representing a significant turning point, prohibits the production and market introduction of foods and feeds derived from cellular cultures or tissues of vertebrate animals. Italy thus positions itself as the first country in Europe to adopt such a radical measure. The debate in the Chamber was heated, with the Democratic Party choosing to abstain, while the 5 Star Movement and Forward with Hope voted against the measure. The decision has sparked mixed reactions, but it is undeniable that this move puts a brake on Gates' ambitions in the food sector. The tech magnate had recently heavily invested in the research and development of cultivated meat, arguing that it represented the sustainable future of food production. However, Italy has now clearly voiced its opposition, rejecting Gates' vision and thwarting his attempt to dominate the global food market. Minister of Agriculture Francesco Lollobrigida defended the measure, stating that the decision aims to protect the identity and quality of Italian food products, preserving the country's culinary tradition. "We will not allow our traditional meat to be replaced by artificial products and cellular cultures," declared Lollobrigida. Despite differing opinions, Italy's decision to ban cultivated meat poses a direct challenge to Bill Gates' influence in the food sector. It remains to be seen whether other European countries will follow the Italian example or if this move will be an isolated exception on the continental stage. However, one thing is certain: Italy has sent a strong and clear signal against Gates' dominance and the World Economic Forum's sustainability agenda in the world of food. The Vaticans Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith has forbidden Catholics from joining Freemasonry. Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) of the Vatican has reiterated teachings from the Catholic Church that laypeople or clergy who practice Freemasonry are in a state of grave sin. With the signatures of Pope Francis and DDF Prefect Cardinal Victor Fernandez, the DDF made public a letter on November 13 that exhorts the faithful to neither join nor participate in Freemasonry organizations. On the doctrinal level, it should be remembered that active membership in Freemasonry by a member of the faithful is forbidden because of the irreconcilability between Catholic doctrine and Freemasonry, the document reads, citing the 1983 Declaration on Masonic Associations by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who would go on to become Pope Benedict XVI. The Freemasons listen during a wreath-laying ceremony at the National World War II Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C, on the third and final day of the 9th World Conference of Masonic Grand Lodges on May 10, 2008. (Aude GUERRUCCI/AFP via Getty Images Therefore, those who are formally and knowingly enrolled in Masonic Lodges and have embraced Masonic principles fall under the provisions in the above-mentioned Declaration. These measures also apply to any clerics enrolled in Freemasonry, the document continues. The first Grand Lodge of Freemasonry was founded in England in 1717. Freemasonry is the greatest secret society in the world, with millions of members spread throughout nearly every nation. Members of the society take vows of secrecy, camaraderie, and brotherhood, and they have amassed an extensive collection of rituals, ceremonial clothing, and coded communications between masons. Despite being utilized for non-Christian rites, these artistic affectations frequently incorporate Christian imagery. A statue of Paul the Apostle stands in front of St. Peters Basilica in the piazza San Pietro in Vatican City. (iStock) While it is not required of Freemasons to believe in any particular deity, they are typically expected to proclaim belief in a supreme being. The deistic, non-Christian beliefs about deities held by Freemasonry groups prohibit Catholics from becoming members or affiliates with them. Geologist Bruce A. Black built a cozy home on vertical cliffs in New Mexico influenced by Puebloan architecture called Kokos Cave, or Kokopellis Cave. Furthermore, Catholic authorities have frequently accused Freemason lodges of idolatry and covert anti-Christian sentiment because of their ritualistic and secretive nature. An Apprentice Is Initiated Into Freemasonry, from a 19th century illustration of a Freemasonic ritual. (Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) Freemason groups, however, are far from homogeneous, and national bodies of Freemasonry, lodges, rites, and sects all have quite different Masonic cultures. With a more ideological tone, the Catholic Church has engaged in the most vigorous combat with continental European Masonic entities. While still connected to foreign lodges, freemasonry in the United States and the United Kingdom is said to be more socially and professionally oriented. In 1738, Pope Clement XII declared freemasonry to be an offense against excommunication, labeling the secret society as depraved and perverted. As per the most recent document from the Vatican, the 1983 document written by Cardinal Ratzinger maintains that the negative judgment in regard to Masonic association remains unchanged since their principles have always been considered irreconcilable with the doctrine of the Church and therefore membership in them remains forbidden. Masonic Scottish Rite Chamber at a lodge in Washington, D.C. (Carol M. Highsmith/Buyenlarge/Getty Images) The document from 1983 states, The faithful who enroll in Masonic associations are in a state of grave sin and may not receive Holy Communion. The Vatican advised national bishops in the Philippines to advocate for increased laity education on the topic of freemasonry as part of a pastoral response to the problem. On the pastoral level, the Dicastery proposes that the Philippine Bishops conduct catechesis accessible to the people and in all parishes regarding the reasons for the irreconcilability between the Catholic Faith and Freemasonry. Whether being a member of a Freemasonic lodge automatically results in excommunication from the Catholic Church under canon law is a topic of controversy. FILE - Former first lady Rosalynn Carter arrives with her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, left, for an annual Carter Town Hall held at Emory University, Sept. 18, 2019, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. John Amis/AP FILE - President Jimmy Carter, right, and his wife, first lady Rosalynn Carter, lead their guests in dancing at the annual Congressional Christmas Ball, Dec. 13, 1978, at the White House in Washington. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. Ira Schwarz/AP FILE - Former first lady Rosalynn Carter answers questions during a news conference at a Habitat for Humanity building site, Nov. 2, 2015, in Memphis, Tenn. Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. Mark Humphrey/AP FILE - This photo provided by the White House is the official portrait of first lady Rosalynn Carter in the Vermeil Room of the White House, Feb. 18, 1977. Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (The White House via AP, File) AP FILE - Four-year-old Prem, whose name means "Love" in Hindi, applies a spot of dry colored powder to the forehead of first lady Rosalynn Carter, left, at a boarding school in New Delhi, Jan. 2, 1978. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. CHW/AP FILE - Former first lady Rosalynn Carter makes phone calls to voters at the campaign headquarters on behalf of her son, Jack Carter, a Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, Oct. 3, 2006, in Las Vegas. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. LAURA RAUCH/AP FILE - Former President Jimmy Carter, left, and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, right, sit together ahead of an NFL football game between the Atlanta Falcons and the Cincinnati Bengals, Sept. 30, 2018, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. John Amis/AP FILE - Georgia Gov.-elect Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, celebrate his election win, Nov. 3, 1970, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (Billy Downs/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File) Billy Downs/AP FILE - Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter listens to a speaker at The Carter Center in Atlanta on April 6, 2011. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. Jason Bronis/AP FILE - First lady Rosalynn Carter, left, and daughter Amy leave the White House in Washington, March 26, 1978, for a violin suburban Virginia. Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. Anonymous/AP FILE - Jimmy Carter gives a victory sign as his wife, Rosalynn Carter, holds a newspaper after winning the Wisconsin's Democratic presidential primary, April 7, 1976, Milwaukee. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. Paul Shane/AP FILE - Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, sit together during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. John Bazemore/AP FILE - Democratic presidential candidate Jimmy Carter with his wife Rosalynn and daughter Amy head to a motel room in Orlando, Fla., March 9, 1976, to watch Florida Primary returns on television. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. BH/AP FILE - Former President Jimmy Carter, right, holds hands with his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, as they work with other volunteers on site, Aug. 27, 2018, in Mishawaka, Ind. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (Robert Franklin/South Bend Tribune via AP, File) Robert Franklin/AP FILE Rosalynn Carter, left, and her husband former President Jimmy Carter update donors about current activities of the Carter Center in Atlanta, April 23, 2010. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. John Amis/AP FILE - Jimmy Carter, second from left, receives a hug from his wife, Rosalynn Carter, after the third presidential debate ended, Oct. 22, 1976, in Williamsburg, Va. First lady Betty Ford, center, and moderator Barbara Walters, right, can be seen in the background. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. Anonymous/AP FILE - Former President Jimmy Carter, left, and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, are seen ahead of an NFL football game between the Atlanta Falcons and the Cincinnati Bengals, Sept. 30, 2018, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. John Bazemore/AP FILE - Jimmy Carter, right, and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, wave together at the National Convention in Madison Square Garden, July 15, 1976, in New York. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. Anonymous/AP FILE - Former President Jimmy Carter, right, and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, hold hands as they walk from a state funeral for former President George H.W. Bush at the National Cathedral, Dec. 5, 2018, in Washington. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. Carolyn Kaster/AP FILE - President Jimmy Carter, right; his wife Rosalynn Carter, left; and their daughter Amy, center, during a reception for the Democratic National Committee at the White House in Washington, Jan. 21, 1977. Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. Peter Bregg/AP FILE - Former first lady Rosalynn Carter speaks during a news conference at The Carter Center, Nov. 5, 2019, in Atlanta. Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. Ron Harris/AP In this photo provided by the Florida Keys News Bureau, Rosalynn Carter, right, wife of former President Jimmy Carter, center, greets Nemo the dolphin at Hawk's Cay Resort near Marathon, Fla., Dec. 29, 2010, in the Florida Keys. On Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023, The Carter Center announced that the 96-year-old former first lady had died at her rural Plains, Georgia, home. Back in 2010, the couple and their family stayed at the resort during a vacation in the Florida Keys. (Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau via AP) Andy Newman/AP FILE - Former first lady Rosalynn Carter speaks next to her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, during the opening ceremony for the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project, Aug. 26, 2018, inside the University of Notre Dame's Purcell Pavilion in South Bend, Ind. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (Robert Franklin/South Bend Tribune via AP, File) Robert Franklin/AP FILE - Former President Jimmy Carter twirls his wife, first lady Rosalynn Carter, to the music of a country band at a rally in their honor, Jan. 20, 1981, in Plains. Ga. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. Joe Holloway, Jr./AP ATLANTA (AP) Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died Sunday after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. The statement said she died peacefully, with family by her side" at 2:10 p.m. at her rural Georgia home of Plains. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, the former president said in the statement. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. Advertisement Article continues below this ad President Joe Biden called the Carters an incredible family because they brought so much grace to the office. He had this great integrity, still does. And she did too, Biden told reporters as he was boarding Air Force One on Sunday night after an event in Norfolk, Virginia. God bless them. Biden said he spoke to the family and was told that Jimmy Carter was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. Later, the White House released a joint statement from the president and first lady Jill Biden saying that Carter inspired the nation. She was a champion for equal rights and opportunities for women and girls; an advocate for mental health and wellness for every person; and a supporter of the often unseen and uncompensated caregivers of our children, aging loved ones, and people with disabilities, the statement added. Reaction from world leaders poured in throughout the day. The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a full partnership. Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to President Carter sometimes referred to her privately as co-president. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Rosalynn is my best friend ... the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life, Jimmy Carter told aides during their White House years, which spanned from 1977-1981. The former president, now 99, remains at the couples home in Plains after entering hospice care himself in February. Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Rosalynn Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicized Cabinet shakeup became known, she was forced to declare publicly, I am not running the government. Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husbands they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanor and a soft Southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her the Steel Magnolia. Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carters landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Jimmy Carter trusted her so much that in 1977, only months into his term, he sent her on a mission to Latin America to tell dictators he meant what he said about denying military aid and other support to violators of human rights. She also had strong feelings about the style of the Carter White House. The Carters did not serve hard liquor at public functions, though Rosalynn did permit U.S. wine. There were fewer evenings of ballroom dancing and more square dancing and picnics. Throughout her husband's political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media didn't cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticized reporters for writing only about "sexy subjects." As honorary chairwoman of the President's Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate subcommittee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying, "We've been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach." She said she developed her interest in mental health during her husband's campaigns for Georgia governor. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I used to come home and say to Jimmy, 'Why are people telling me their problems?' And he said, 'Because you may be the only person they'll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them,' she explained. After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, Rosalynn Carter seemed more visibly devastated than her husband. She initially had little interest in returning to the small town of Plains, where they both were born, married and spent most of their lives. "I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles," she wrote in her 1984 autobiography, "First Lady from Plains." But "we slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before." After leaving Washington, Jimmy and Rosalynn co-founded The Carter Center in Atlanta to continue their work. She chaired the center's annual symposium on mental health issues and raised funds for efforts to aid the mentally ill and homeless. She also wrote "Helping Yourself Help Others," about the challenges of caring for elderly or ailing relatives, and a sequel, "Helping Someone With Mental Illness." Frequently, the Carters left home on humanitarian missions, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and promoting public health and democracy across the developing world. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "I get tired," she said of her travels. "But something so wonderful always happens. To go to a village where they have Guinea worm and go back a year or two later and there's no Guinea worm, I mean the people dance and sing it's so wonderful." In 2015, Jimmy Carters doctors discovered four small tumors on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she didn't know what she was going to do. I depend on him when I have questions, when I'm writing speeches, anything, I consult with him, she said. She helped Carter recover several years later when he had hip replacement surgery at age 94 and had to learn to walk again. And she was with him earlier this year when he decided after a series of hospital stays that he would forgo further medical interventions and begin end-of-life care. Jimmy Carter is the longest-lived U.S. president. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nation's first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died at age 97. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains on Aug. 18, 1927, the eldest of four children. Her father died when she was young, so she took on much of the responsibility of caring for her siblings when her mother went to work part time. She also contributed to the family income by working after school in a beauty parlor. "We were very poor and worked hard," she once said, but she kept up her studies, graduating from high school as class valedictorian. She soon fell in love with the brother of one of her best friends. Jimmy and Rosalynn had known each other all their lives it was Jimmy's mother, nurse Lillian Carter, who delivered baby Rosalynn but he left for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, when she was still in high school. After a blind date, Jimmy told his mother: "That's the girl I want to marry." They wed in 1946, shortly after his graduation from Annapolis and Rosalynn's graduation from Georgia Southwestern College. Their sons were born where Jimmy Carter was stationed: John William (Jack) in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1947; James Earl III (Chip) in Honolulu in 1950; and Donnel Jeffery (Jeff) in New London, Connecticut, in 1952. Amy was born in Plains in 1967. By then, Carter was a state senator. Navy life had provided Rosalynn her first chance to see the world. When Carter's father, James Earl Sr., died in 1953, Jimmy Carter decided, without consulting his wife, to move the family back to Plains, where he took over the family farm. She joined him there in the day-to-day operations, keeping the books and weighing fertilizer trucks. We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, Rosalynn Carter recalled with pride in a 2021 interview with The Associated Press. I knew more on paper about the business than he did. He would take my advice about things. At the height of the Carters' political power, Lillian Carter said of her daughter-in-law: She can do anything in the world with Jimmy, and she's the only one. He listens to her. Ceremonies celebrating the life of Rosalynn Carter will take place after the Thanksgiving holiday in Atlanta and Sumter County, Georgia, the Carter Center announced Sunday evening. Compensation paid out to victims of violent crime under a scheme established by the Government almost 50 years ago almost trebled to over 6.3 million last year. The latest annual report of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal shows compensation totalling 6,321,559 was awarded to 192 claimants in 2022 an average payout of 32,925. Advertisement It represented a significant increase on compensation levels awarded by the CICT the previous year when 120 claimants received just under 2.3 million with an average award of 19,160. The compensation scheme, which was established in 1974, is open to all applicants who have been victims of a violent crime. One claimant, who suffered an acquired brain injury as a result of a violent assault when he was still a minor, was awarded compensation of 302,256 under the scheme last year. The award took into account that he had separately been paid 3,250 in compensation by his assailant. Advertisement Advertisement The tribunal has also operated a separate compensation scheme since 1990 for prison officers who suffer personal injuries during the course of their work. The latest report shows 91 prisoner officers were awarded compensation totalling over 1.7 million by the CICT in 2022 an average award of 18,987. Three prison officers each made two successful claims under the scheme last year. The report shows there was a 37% annual increase in the number of applications for compensation in 2022. Advertisement A total of 162 people submitted a claim to the CICT last year, although the figure is still below the pre-pandemic level of 2019 when 238 applications were received. Another 74 applications were received by the CICT from prison officers last year an increase of 10 over 2021 figures. The CICT chairperson, Conor Heaney, said there had also been a significant increase in the number of appeal hearings which were listed and determined during 2022. in addition to an increase in the overall number of files sent to the Tribunal for decision. Last year was also the first full calendar year in which an increased membership of the CICT (from 7 to 14 members) was in place which facilitated the increase in hearings. Advertisement Mr Heaney said the CICT also engaged in several fora last year in an effort to develop and heighten public awareness and understanding of the compensation scheme. Advertisement The scheme allows victims and their dependents in fatal cases to apply for reimbursement of expenses and losses they may have suffered as a direct result of a violent crime. The tribunal also considers claims for compensation from people injured in coming to the aid of gardai or trying to prevent crime in a public place as well as anyone injured in preventing the escape of a criminal from custody or attempting to save a human life. It is also a requirement that any criminal incident which resulted in an injury for which compensation is sought must be reported to gardai without delay, or to the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission in cases where the alleged offender is a garda. Advertisement An application for compensation must be submitted to the tribunal within three months of the offence, although a longer deadline of up to two years is accepted in exceptional circumstances. The scheme does not consider applications from people injured as a result of road traffic offences except in cases where there has been a deliberate attempt to run down a victim. Since 1986, compensation is only paid out in relation to special damages losses which are quantifiable such as wages as the CICT does not consider any award for general damages such as pain and suffering. The tribunal consists of qualified barristers and solicitors appointed by the Minister for Justice who received combined fees worth 308,853 last year. Awards by the tribunal are limited to the amount in annual funding voted to it by the Dail each year. The CICT said it understood there are a number of legal challenges before the Irish courts challenging a number of elements of the scheme over the question of whether it complied with EU legislation including whether compensation should be awarded for pain and suffering. In January, the Minister for Justice had to announce amendments to the scheme after a successful High Court challenge by two males won tests cases over being excluded from making claims for compensation after lodging their applications outside approved time limits. Leo Varadkar has said that he finds the idea of a Sinn Fein politician as a justice, foreign affairs or defence minister repugnant. Sinn Fein TD Matt Carthy responded by calling the Fine Gael leaders comments pathetic attempts at deflection from his partys record in government. Advertisement After criticising the main opposition party at a Fine Gael event on Saturday, the Taoiseach rounded on opinion poll-leaders Sinn Fein again on Sunday. Mr Varadkar questioned Sinn Feins stance on legacy issues relating to The Troubles. Its highly disturbing, the idea of there being a Sinn Fein justice minister, or foreign affairs minister, or defence minister, is repugnant to me, he told RTEs The Week In Politics. Theres a lot of people talking about some of the horrific things that are happening now in the Middle East. We have, in Sinn Fein, a party that will not acknowledge war crimes that may have happened in this country, and they still need to be investigated. Advertisement Advertisement Those people need to be brought to justice and the families need to get the answers and justice that they need. Leo Varadkar with Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe (centre) and Minister for Justice Helen McEntee during a Fine Gael special conference. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA. At a Fine Gael special conference on Saturday, Sinn Fein was criticised by Mr Varadkar and Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris in events with party members. Advertisement Justice and rural issues were addressed as Fine Gael gears up for the local council and European Parliament elections next June, with the threat of a general election also looming in 2024. Sinn Feins spokesperson on foreign affairs and defence Mr Carthy said that Fine Gael had overseen abysmal records while in power. In order to deflect from his partys failures in housing and health, Leo Varadkar has decided to shine a light on Fine Gaels equally disastrous legacy in justice and defence, he said in a statement to PA. After 12 years of Fine Gael government, we have a retention and recruitment crisis within both An Garda Siochana and the Defence Forces. Morale with the gardai is at an all-time low while communities feel less safe. Advertisement Our Defence Forces are unable to fully provide the service they wish due to government underinvestment. Sinn Fein will turn around the abysmal records that Fine Gael have overseen. Advertisement On foreign affairs, for decades Sinn Fein has developed important and long-standing international relationships with successive US administrations and on Capitol Hill. Coupled with our work in the EU, Australia and further afield, we are proud of our record in building support for the peace process and for Irish interests. We are also very proud of our record of international solidarity with South Africans in their struggle against apartheid, our track record on Palestine and supporting those who strive for peace and justice worldwide. On all of these issues we have worked constructively with the government. Leo Varadkar knows this. His pathetic attempts at deflection will be seen by the Irish people for what they are. Advertisement Asked about whether the Irish Government had made a decision on taking a case against the UK Government over its legacy bill, Mr Varadkar said the decision would be made in the coming weeks. The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act received royal assent despite widespread opposition from political parties, victims organisations in Northern Ireland and the Irish Government. Mr Varadkar said: Were very much against the legacy legislation that the British government has brought through. We have a decision to make as to whether we bring an inter-state case against the UK government or whether we support one of the third-party cases. Were going to make a decision on that in the next couple weeks. We have the advice from the AG (Attorney General), we havent made a definitive decision yet, but we will make a decision on that in the next few weeks. Palestinian ambassador Dr Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid thanked Ireland for its efforts to get its citizens out of Gaza. She was speaking as a group of Irish citizens arrived at Dublin Airport from Cairo on Sunday. Advertisement First of all I would like to thank Ireland very much for putting the effort to bring the Palestinians, Irish citizens, to Ireland, the ambassador said. I know the Tanaiste and the Irish people, they put huge effort into bringing the Palestinians (here) safe. It breaks my heart to see them here. I want to see all the Palestinian people safe in Gaza. This genocidal war against the Palestinians should stop, and I want to raise my voice from here in Ireland to the whole world: I think its enough, enough the killing of the Palestinians, enough killing of innocent people. Advertisement She added that she knew some of the Irish-Palestinians arriving at Dublin Airport on Sunday. Whatever we can do, definitely we will not save any effort to help our Palestinians here. I know that they are Irish but they are Palestinians originally. So we will not spare any effort to help. The rate of increase of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland over the past 12 months was 10 times higher than the average increase in numbers fleeing to the EU from Ukraine over the same period. Official statistics published by the European Commission show that there has been a 72.1 per cent increase in the number of Ukrainians seeking international protection in the Republic in the 12 months to the end of September 2023 as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Advertisement Over the same time, the number of Ukrainian citizens seeking refuge across the EU rose by just 7.2 per cent. The figures were published shortly after Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said the Government had to take action to slow down the number of Ukrainians coming to Ireland. It is the second-highest rate of increase among the 27 EU member states over the past year after Romania, where the number of refugees from Ukraine have effectively doubled to around 140,000. Advertisement Over the same period, the number of Ukrainian refugees has dropped in six countries including Poland where they have fallen back by over 30 per cent with over 400,000 availing of temporary protection. Advertisement The other EU member states were the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, France, Sweden and Austria. However, numbers fleeing the war in Ukraine are up 20 per cent or more in all other EU member states apart from Estonia. Figures show the number of Ukrainians who have been granted temporary protection in Ireland stood at 53,830 in September 2022. However, the figure increased by almost 40,000 in the space of 12 months to 93,050. Advertisement When citizens of other non-EU countries who fled the Russian invasion of Ukraine are included, the figure rises to 94,085. According to the latest monthly figures, Ireland has the third highest net increase in new arrivals of people seeking international protection from the war in Ukraine in absolute terms within the EU in September. Official statistics show that there was a net increase of 2,875 in individuals from Ukraine granted temporary protection status in the Republic in September It represented a 3.2 per cent increase on the previous month. Advertisement It was also the largest monthly percentage increase recorded in any EU member state where overall numbers rose by 0.8 per cent on average. Advertisement Only Germany and the Netherlands had larger net increases in new temporary asylum seekers from Ukraine in net absolute terms with 19,205 and 3,685 respectively in September. In the same month, five EU member states the Czech Republic, France, Poland, Slovenia and Luxembourg, recorded a decrease in the overall number of people from Ukraine under temporary protection. The latest figures show almost 4.2 million individuals fleeing Ukraine have temporary protection status in one of the EUs 27 member states with Germany accounting for over 28 per cent of the total with almost 1.2 million, followed by Poland with almost 959,000 and the Czech Republic with around 358,000. Advertisement The strong increase in the numbers seeking temporary protection in Ireland is believed to be one of the reasons the Government is considering lowering the level of accommodation and welfare supports to refugees from Ukraine. A row broke out among ministers at a Cabinet meeting in recent weeks over the current level of supports. Among the proposed changes being promoted by the Minister for Integration, Roderic OGorman, is a 90-day limit on accommodation provided by the State due to the pressure being experienced in finding housing for all new arrivals from Ukraine. However, the Tanaiste Micheal Martin has opposed the measure claiming it would simply create problems for the Minister for Housing, Darragh OBrien. Advertisement Several Government ministers including the Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys, have acknowledged that any change to supports is a complex issue. A decision on possible changes to supports is not now expected before next month at the earliest. A spokesperson for the Department of Justice said an EU directive placed specific obligations on Ireland and all member states to provide supports and benefits that beneficiaries should be entitled to. The spokesperson said Ireland had taken a higher number of beneficiaries from Ukraine than the EU average to date. Ireland has the 9th highest rate of refugees fleeing the Russian invasion on a per capita basis. The ratio of people from Ukraine granted temporary protection across the EU is 9.3 per 1,000 population with the Czech Republic having the highest at 33.1 per 1,000 population. Several other countries have ratios in excess of 25 per 1,000 population including Estonia, Poland, Bulgaria and Lithuania. Ireland currently has 18.1 refugees from Ukraine per 1,000 population. Ukrainian citizens account for 98 per cent of beneficiaries of temporary protection across the EU. Adult women make up 46.5 per cent of those granted temporary protection with children accounting for 33.7 per cent of the total and adult men comprising just under 20 per cent. In September, the European Council agreed to extend the temporary protection for people fleeing from Russias war of aggression against Ukraine a further 12 months to March 4th, 2025. Ireland "needs to slow the flow" of Ukrainian refugees and reform its offering to others seeking asylum, the Taoiseach has said. Speaking on Sunday afternoon, Leo Varadkar said that Ireland's offering to incoming Ukrainian and other refugees would have to change because it was not feasible to continue to take in people with no limits. Advertisement As the Irish Examiner reports, Varadkar told RTE's The Week in Politics. "Migration is a good thing for Ireland." He said economic migration numbers are already controlled by work permits and visas. "When it comes to irregular migration, that's people coming from Ukraine or people seeking international protection, I think one of the things we have to do when we have to be honest with each other about this, is to make sure that what we offer in terms of accommodation, in terms of work, in terms of money is similar to what's offered in other EU countries. Advertisement He said "even countries with hard-right governments and anti-immigration governments" haven't stopped irregular migration, but that airport border controls needed to be improved. Advertisement "We're doing that. I got off a flight from Helsinki two weeks ago and it was great to see people not getting the opportunity to destroy documents." However, he added, the country needed to "align with" what is provided by other countries due to the numbers coming from other EU countries and the UK. "There are a lot of people who may have left their home country a number of years ago or a number of months ago, maybe they weren't safe in those countries, but they actually have spent months or even years in the UK or France before coming here. That's what's called secondary movements. You shouldn't be encouraging them." He was speaking as the European Commission published statistics showing that the rate of increase of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland over the past year was 10 times higher than the average increase in numbers fleeing to the EU from the war in Ukraine over the same period. There has been a 72.1 per cent increase in the number of Ukrainians seeking international protection in the Republic in the 12 months to the end of September 2023. The death of Ben Dunne, former Irish rugby players set to sue over brain injuries and, revenue set to collect the license fee is amongst the headlines in Sunday's papers. The Sunday Times leads with a report that says a group of former Irish rugby players are set to sue over brain injuries picked up during their career. Advertisement The Sunday Independent leads with a child psychiatrist who is accused of raping a girl. The Irish Mail on Sunday reports that Revenue are set to be in charge of collecting the television license fee in the future. Advertisement The Irish Sunday Mirror leads with the death of Irish businessman Ben Dunne, who has died at the age of 74. British papers The front pages on Sunday feature a variety of stories, including the Rwanda plan, the healthcare system and possible tax cuts. Advertisement Advertisement The Sunday Express has a headline about a terror cell that arrived in the UK on a migrant boat. SUNDAY EXPRESS: Terror cell sneaks in on small boats #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/ycLrMiAjQK Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) November 18, 2023 Advertisement The Sunday Telegraph reports on British officials being sent to Rwanda to address a growing rebellion. Advertisement The front page of tomorrow's Sunday Telegraph: 'PM deploys Whitehall officials to Rwanda as revolt grows'#TomorrowsPapersToday Sign up for the Front Page newsletterhttps://t.co/x8AV4OoUh6 pic.twitter.com/3H1JGdDQVR The Telegraph (@Telegraph) November 18, 2023 The Mail on Sunday features a story on a convicted rapist who was deported back to Somalia at the taxpayers expense. MAIL ON SUNDAY: After FIVE YEARS, Britain sends plane-mutiny rapist back to Somaliawith a plush hotel, armed guards and therapy you paid for #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/RptYxYu2cn Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) November 18, 2023 The Sunday Mirror reports that the Tory Government wasted 100 billion in just four years. The Independent used its splash to focus on the pitiful and shameful plight of mental health patients in A&E, with some left waiting for treatment for five days or more, as doctors warn of a dire state in the healthcare system. Advertisement INDEPENDENT: Dumped in A&E and left untreated for 5 days or more #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/kL2KdyHseZ Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) November 18, 2023 The Sunday Times reports that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is considering tax cuts for millions of UK citizens. SUNDAY TIMES: Hunt weighs up surprise cut in tax for millions #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/vUcocwRq2E Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) November 18, 2023 The Sun features a story about Im A Celebs Grace Dent making jokes about co-star Nigel Farages near-fatal plane crash. On tomorrow's front page: Im A Celebs Grace Dent made sick jokes about co-star Nigel Farages near-fatal plane crashhttps://t.co/cLbbvziwJy pic.twitter.com/yAwSGIKoe3 The Sun (@TheSun) November 18, 2023 Sunday People has a warning about bed bugs. SUNDAY PEOPLE: Bed bug warning after couple killed #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/sJ85zo8g3m Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) November 18, 2023 And the Daily Star splashes with a story on beer belly busting berries. Humza Yousaf has described how his brother-in-law, a hospital doctor in the Gaza strip, has witnessed death and destruction in the ongoing war. Mr Yousaf said his brother-in-law is in a terrible way as he continues to treat patients in the south of Gaza. Advertisement The parents of the First Ministers wife Nadia El-Nakla were visiting relatives when the war between Israel and Hamas broke out, leaving them trapped in the Palestinian territory for weeks amid intense bombardment. They were able to return to Scotland earlier this month after being permitted to pass through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt. Members of Mr Yousafs family returned to Scotland earlier this month. Photo: X/@HumzaYousaf/PA. Advertisement The Scottish first minister was asked about his familys situation as he spoke to BBC Radio 4s Broadcasting House programme on Sunday. His parents-in-law are still recovering from the ordeal, he said, adding: In all honesty, I did not think I would see them again as time went on. Advertisement There was a particular call which Ill never forget as long as I live. My mother-in-law called around 1.30 in the morning, saying theyd been told their neighbours house was going to be targeted and therefore theres no doubt the blast would hit them. Advertisement She began to say her goodbyes to me and Ill never forget that she told me to look after her girls. The First Minister said he had exchanged messages with his brother-in-law, who has been working almost non-stop, on Saturday. Mr Yousaf said: He says hes never seen death and destruction like it. He told me he doesnt know how hes going to recover from it. Advertisement He said one of his early jobs, when the conflict began, was to try to match body parts with the correct body. Thousands marched in Glasgow on Saturday. Photo: Jane Barlow/PA. Hes in a terrible way. Advertisement He called for a ceasefire but acknowledged it would take unbelievably hard work. His comments came after thousands of demonstrators marched through Glasgow in support of the Palestinian cause. Those attending the march on Saturday had been urged to write their names on their arms as a gesture of solidarity with the besieged population of Gaza, who have used the method so they can be identified and buried with relatives if they are killed. Advertisement On Tuesday, the Scottish Parliament will debate calls for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said he and his party would support a ceasefire when it came to a vote in Holyrood, a position which differs from that of Sir Keir Starmer. He told BBC Scotlands Sunday Show: I support a ceasefire. I support the end of rocket fire going out of and into Gaza, the immediate release of hostages, the immediate access to humanitarian aid and the pathway to a peace process. I would have liked the Labour amendment (in the House of Commons) to go further last week and include that call for a ceasefire. A barricade is seen at the Metreon ahead of the 2023 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders Week (APEC) in San Francisco on Nov. 11. Stephen Lam/The Chronicle No one power-washed the streets the first time I visited San Francisco in 2014 to attend the American Sociological Associations annual meeting at the Hilton on Union Square. As a born-and-bred New Yorker who had only stepped on a plane for the first time five years before, I had heard rumors about San Francisco similar to those you hear today. My sister, who lived in West Hollywood and had traveled extensively in California, assured me Youre gonna love it. These are your people. She was right. I didnt require any artificial touch-ups to fall in love with the city. I walked San Franciscos eclectic neighborhoods: the Mission, the Castro, the Haight, North Beach, Chinatown, the Financial District, the Embarcadero and Fishermans Wharf. Clanging cable cars, impressive hills and pastel Victorians charmed me. Advertisement Article continues below this ad But it was the Tenderloin that captured my heart. My husband, also a lifelong New Yorker who had never visited San Francisco, cautioned, Dont go there. But his warnings just reminded me of my mother, who told me to stay away from seedy, pre-Disneyfied Times Square when I was a kid. I ignored her, too. In the Tenderloin, I encountered rich diversity, history and friendly residents, many of whom struggled, yes, but who embraced and accepted me with a smile or a hello whenever I felt lonely and lost. Whether warming up over lemongrass chicken at Pho 2000 or taking a shot of Jameson at the Ha-Ra, people there welcomed me there like nowhere else Id ever been. The serendipitous conference trip changed my life. Months later I left my husband and rented a room in the citys Richmond District. The mix of Russian, Irish and Asian American residents reminded me of ethnic neighborhoods I adored in New York Citys outer boroughs. My roommate, a retired cab driver from Dublin, Ireland, said of his own decades living in San Francisco, The city gets its hooks in you. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I treasured the Richmonds quietude but found myself pulled toward hustling downtown, which became my stomping ground. I served as a volunteer hospitality monitor for the Gubbio Project, which provided a safe place for unhoused people to rest and receive other vital services at St. Boniface Church in the heart of the Tenderloin. My duties included checking on people sleeping in pews to ensure they were comfortable and still breathing, and handing out hygiene items, medication and the occasional rosary to those who asked. My ex suspected I had another lover. He was partly right. Id begun a love affair with the city, which continues today. In my own version of Billy Joels song, San Francisco, I love you just the way you are. Every bit of you. The grime, the glitz and everything in between. You offered me refuge a place to mend, to explore, to reinvent myself. This week, San Francisco gussied up its downtown to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders Week. In an attempt to resurrect the citys declining image, public employees scrubbed graffiti, repaved roads, installed colorful public art, repainted bridges, deep-cleaned train cars and stations, and removed the Ferry Buildings scaffolding. One journalist likened the preparations to teenagers racing to tidy after a messy house party before their parents returned. As someone who spends significant time downtown, I appreciated some of these efforts. But I also felt conflicted and doubtful about their long-term sustainability. Sprucing up efforts included moving unhoused people from around the events vicinity, uprooting a vulnerable population from proximity to the services they need to survive. Weve been here before. Such displacement recalled the encampment sweeps before the Super Bowl in 2016. They solved nothing. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Treating people as an aesthetic problem hardly honors APECs theme of Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All and band-aids the entrenched problems that keep people on the streets. Furthermore, shielding summit attendees from our gravest urban challenges missed the opportunity to palpably spotlight the human toll of shared crises such as global drug trafficking and the flows of fentanyl from China and Mexico. Those suffering include a friend of mine, who recently relapsed on crystal meth after a year clean. Before moving to a single-room-occupancy hotel near the APEC security zone, he had multiple stints living on San Franciscos streets and in its shelters. In many ways, San Franciscos APEC cleanup was a mirror of its longstanding Tenderloin containment strategy hiding the things that make us uncomfortable and pushing them into becoming someone elses problem. Other APEC member countries face similar challenges as we do with high housing costs, economic inequality and the devastating consequences of drug trafficking. But collective solutions to alleviating human suffering and promoting prosperity require more than throwing a good party or parade or erecting a facade to impress guests. San Francisco remains a beautiful, complicated place. We shouldnt hide its shadow parts. I hate rain, but this weeks stormy forecast was a fitting reality check and reminder that we cant orchestrate everything to keep up appearances. Sometimes it pours. Gale-force winds, heavy rain and snow have hit large parts of Bulgaria, claiming the lives of two people, causing severe damage and disrupting power supplies in towns and villages. Residents in eastern Bulgaria, which was hit the hardest, said they had never before experienced such extreme weather. Advertisement A state of emergency was declared in the Black Sea city of Varna, which received torrential rain mixed with snow along with intense wind. Officials said the conditions posed risks to the population. The mayors office reported power disruption in all boroughs of Varna. Fallen trees and branches blocked key roads, leaving vehicles stranded. The city called on residents to stay at home and not to use their cars unless they had urgent needs. A person walks on a road blocked by a fallen tree in the town of Varna (Bulgarian News Agency via AP) Advertisement Advertisement Varna International Airport was open but had delayed and cancelled flights, airport officials said. Police reported that a man died on Saturday after his van hit a fallen tree on a major boulevard in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia. In Varna, a woman died after being struck by a falling tree branch. Bulgarian meteorologists issued warnings for dangerous weather for most of the countrys east on Sunday, forecasting winds gusting up to 78mph. The heavy rain was expected to turn into snow as temperatures fell. Across the Black Sea, the severe weather also caused widespread disruption in Turkey, including damage to a cargo ship and the evacuation of a prison. Advertisement The Maritime General Directorate said the Cameroon-flagged Pallada broke into two due to heavy weather conditions after running aground amid 5m-high waves off Eregli, a coastal town east of Istanbul. All 13 crew members were rescued safely. The weather hampered efforts to reach another cargo vessel, the Turkish-flagged Kafkametler, as the ship drifted close to a breakwater outside the towns harbour. A car sits abandoned on the road near Dobrich, Bulgaria (Bulgarian News Agency via AP) Advertisement Justice minister Yilmaz Tunc said prisoners were moved from Ereglis prison to surrounding facilities due to rising water levels. Advertisement Turkeys emergency agency, AFAD, earlier issued severe weather warnings for 72 of the countrys 81 provinces. Turkish Airlines cancelled 105 scheduled flights from Istanbuls two airports on Sunday. Snow led to travel disruptions on the Istanbul-Ankara highway. The private Demiroren news agency reported fallen trees, lampposts and phone poles in Zonguldak and Sakarya provinces, as well as damage to buildings. Istanbul governor Davut Gul said 210 homes and workplaces were flooded in the Black Sea town of Sile. Wind speeds had reached up to 62 mph, he reported. Advertisement On the Marmara Sea, fishing boats moored at Esenkoy were destroyed and heavy rain led to landslides. A manhunt is under way in the US after three women and a teenage girl were shot dead at three locations during a deadly domestic violence spree. Another teenage girl was badly hurt. Advertisement Police officers in Memphis, Tennessee, were called to a shooting on the 100 Block of Howard Drive at 9.22pm on Saturday. They found a woman, who was declared dead at the scene, suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Investigators have linked the killing to two other shootings with a woman and 13-year-old girl killed and 15-year-old girl critically injured in Field Lark Drive and another woman shot dead in Warrington Road, police said. Mavis Christian Jr, 52, is wanted, with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies said to be involved in the search. Advertisement Police have not released the timings of each shooting but warned the public not to approach Christian, who is believed to have been driving a white 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. Advertisement Each shooting is believed to have been a domestic violence incident, police added. Thirty-one premature babies have been safely moved from Gazas main hospital to another in the south and will be moved to Egypt, health officials said. It comes as scores of other critically wounded patients remained stranded there days after Israeli forces entered the compound. Advertisement The fate of the newborns at Shifa Hospital captured global attention after photographs showed doctors trying to keep them warm. A power cut had shut down incubators and other equipment, and food, water and medical supplies ran out as Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside the hospital. Advertisement World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media that the very sick babies were evacuated, along with six health workers and 10 staff family members. He said they were taken to a hospital in the southern Gaza city of Rafah where they are receiving urgent care. Advertisement A WHO team that visited the hospital on Saturday said 291 patients were still there, including the babies, trauma patients with severely infected wounds and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. Advertisement About 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left Shifa Hospital on Saturday morning, the WHO said. It said 25 medical staff stayed with the patients. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa, part of its wider accusation that the fighters use civilians as cover. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end Hamass rule in Gaza following the militant groups wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago, which killed more than 1,200 people and triggered the war. After searching the grounds for days, Israels army said on Sunday it had discovered a 55m tunnel about 10m under the hospitals 20-acre complex, which includes several buildings, garages and a plaza. It said the tunnel included a staircase, blast-proof door and a firing hole that could be used by snipers. The army said it was still uncovering the tunnels route. Advertisement Advertisement Israeli soldiers near the border with the Gaza Strip on Sunday (Leo Correa/AP) Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations and critics have held up the hospital as a symbol of what they say is Israels reckless endangerment of civilians. Thousands have been killed in Israeli strikes and there are severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel in the besieged territory. Israeli troops who have been based at the hospital and searching its grounds for days say they have found guns and other weapons and showed reporters the entrance to a tunnel shaft. Advertisement The Associated Press (AP) could not independently verify Israels findings. Heavy clashes were reported in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza overnight into Sunday. There was the constant sound of gunfire and tank shelling, Yassin Sharif, who is sheltering in a UN-run hospital in the camp, said by phone. It was another night of horror. Dozens of people were killed in what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike on a crowded UN shelter in the Jabaliya camp the day before, according to witnesses. AP photographs from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. Advertisement More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Palestinians evacuate an injured woman found under the rubble of a destroyed house following an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday (Mohammed Dahman/AP) Around 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians killed during Hamass October 7 attack, in which the group dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza and shattered Israels sense of security. The military says 52 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two were found near Shifa in an area where there had been heavy fighting. Israel, the United States and the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating over a hostage release for weeks. On Saturday, a senior White House official suggested it would need to be completed before the entry of large amounts of desperately needed aid. A release of a large number of hostages would result in a significant pause in fighting and a massive surge of humanitarian relief, Brett McGurk, the White Houses National Security Council co-ordinator for the Middle East, said at a conference in Bahrain. Qatars prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said on Sunday he is confident a deal will soon be reached, telling reporters the sticking points, honestly, at this stage are more practical, logistical. Advertisement More than two-thirds of Gazas population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, is struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of thousands of people sheltering in and around schools and other facilities. Their misery has worsened in recent days with the arrival of winter, as cold winds and driving rain buffet tent camps. Palestinians look for survivors inside the remains of a destroyed building following an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday (Mohammed Dahman/AP) Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days and to keep internet and telephone systems running. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gazas sole power station and most water treatment centres to shut down, leaving most residents without electricity or running water. Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant said on Saturday that Israels forces were expanding operations in Gaza City. With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate, he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza in the coming days. His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to southern Gaza, where Israel has told Palestinian civilians to seek refuge. Israel has repeatedly struck what it says are militant targets across the south, often killing civilians. Advertisement The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Egypt has refused to accept any influx of Palestinian refugees, in part because of fears that Israel would not allow them to return. A suspect in Tennessee died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound while on the run after a series of shootings that killed four people and seriously injured a fifth, police said. Officers found the body of Mavis Christian Jr (52) in his car during a manhunt following the shootings at three locations in Memphis that left three women and a teenage girl dead and another teenage girl critically wounded, the Memphis Police Department said. Advertisement We are deeply saddened by the tragic and senseless shootings on Saturday resulting in the deaths of four innocent family members and a fifth victim critically injured, the statement posted on social media said. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their loved ones as our community grieves more lives taken by domestic violence. Mavis Christian Jr was found dead in his car (Memphis Police Department/AP) Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said that incidents like these shake us all to our core. Advertisement Advertisement Memphis Police Department officers responded to a report of a shooting at 9.22pm on the 100 Block of Howard Drive. Police found a woman with an apparent gunshot wound who was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators determined there were two other connected fatal shootings. At Field Lark Drive, a woman and a 13-year-old girl were killed, and a 15-year-old girl was critically wounded. Another woman was found shot dead on Warrington Road, Memphis Police Officer Christopher Williams said. Police believed Christian was responsible for the shootings and began a search involving local, state and federal law enforcement agencies until the suspects body was found. Pro-Palestinian protesters have held a national day of action on Saturday, with thousands of people taking part in events around the UK. On previous weekends thousands of protesters and counter-protesters have converged on the capital. Advertisement However, the movements presence was more muted in London on Saturday, with protesters split across more than 100 smaller rallies around the nation. Advertisement London hosted 10 events, including rallies in Islington, Camden and Tower Hamlets. Around 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators were from Londons Waterloo station after holding a sit-in protest demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. British Transport Police said at least five protesters were arrested at Waterloo station and no train services were affected (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Advertisement The group chanted: Free, free Palestine; Sit down, join us; and From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free as they protested in the centre of the station. Police officers surrounded the protesters before they were escorted from the station, with at least two demonstrators carried from the scene. Advertisement British Transport Police (BTP) said five protesters were arrested at Waterloo station and no train services were affected. Advertisement Advertisement A group of demonstrators who were removed from the station then made their way to Westminster Bridge where they sat in the road before moving to Parliament Square, the Metropolitan Police said. The force said on X, formerly Twitter: We believe the group in Parliament Square is a mix of pro-Palestinian protesters and JSO (Just Stop Oil) activists. We have arrested a prominent JSO activist from within the group. We have a significant number of officers ready to respond if there is further disruption in the road. It comes as protesters held sit-in protests at major UK train stations despite increased policing across railway networks. *SIT-IN AT LEEDS TRAIN STATION* In protest against the Parliament's rejection of a ceasefire and joining local actions in solidarity with Palestine across the country, we are holding a sit-in at Leeds train station to demand an #ENDTOGENOCIDE #CEASEFIRENOW! pic.twitter.com/pepFQsmdn4 Leeds Sisters Uncut (@UncutLeeds) November 18, 2023 BTP deployed enhanced officer patrols in England, Scotland and Wales on Saturday. Footage shared on social media showed a small crowd sitting on the floor in Manchester Victoria Station, while the force confirmed another group of around 25 had done the same at Leeds station shortly after 2pm. Advertisement BTP issued Section 14a orders prohibiting protests on Saturday at many of Londons main rail stations from 10am to 11pm, but shortly after 2.30pm the force posted on X that a group of approximately 200 protesters had arrived at London Bridge station. A police cordon was also put in place around London Bridge, but five minutes later they posted again to say the group had left the area and passengers could access the station as usual. BTP deployed enhanced officer patrols in England, Scotland and Wales on Saturday (Stefan Rousseau/PA) BTP said its officers made five arrests in London on Saturday, while the Met Police said its officers had made 10 including pro-Palestinian and JSO protesters. BTP Assistant Chief Constable Sean OCallaghan said: In line with our strategy, protesters were issued notices and announcements were made over station sound systems before officers moved to the arrest stage. The vast majority of protesters left peacefully, however five arrests were made at a large protest at Waterloo station. Transport Secretary Mark Harper posted on X: Grateful to @BTP officers for their swift work removing those who are intent on spreading intimidation on our rail network. I backed officers with the extra powers they needed, powers possible due to the legislation this Govt passed. Thank you to those who were on duty today. Advertisement Before Saturdays protests, the Met Police said the force had made more than 380 arrests for related offences since the October 7 attacks in Israel. Meanwhile, organisers estimated that around 18,000 protesters turned out for a pro-Palestinian event in Glasgow. Optus is shaking up its communications function as a former Crown Resorts executive takes over the telcos marketing and corporate affairs after senior executives were widely criticised for their handling of the outage that affected some 10 million customers. Danielle Keighery, who has served as chief brand officer at Crown Resorts since January 2022, will take on the role early in 2024 and will report directly to chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin. Andrew Sheridan, the telcos current executive in charge of corporate affairs, reports to Optus executive in charge of enterprise and business, former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian, and the re-shuffle underscores the telcos desire to reset its public perception after multiple reputational crises. Optus boss Kelly Bayer Rosmarin says hundreds of triple-zero calls went unanswered and Optus conducted welfare checks when its network was restored. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen Danielle is experienced at managing high-profile individuals and companies with strong issues management and brand reputation expertise, her LinkedIn profile reads. The worlds second-largest producer of champagne has lamented the post-pandemic practice of remote and hybrid work as fewer people gather for dinner and drinks amid cost of living pressures that has seen champagne snubbed in favour of more affordable wines. Madame Nathalie Vranken, the co-owner and director of Vranken-Pommery Monopole, which produces the highest volume of champagne after Moet & Chandon, praised Sydney Harbour as one of the most beautiful waterfront cities in the world that, until COVID, would consistently draw crowds of people to bars and restaurants on Friday nights. Vranken Pommery Monopole Group co-owner and director Madame Nathalie Vranken. Maybe Thursday night will become the Friday night of tomorrow. On Friday, you do something else; you entertain, but differently, at home, with friends. In my world of lounges, bars, restaurants, friendship, parties, it[s] changed a lot, she said in her annual visit to Australia. Vranken observes that the practice of working from home, more so than cost of living pressures, has resulted in weaker champagne sales for the Pommery, Vranken, Monopole Heidsieck & Co and Charles Lafitte brands, which are largely sold through restaurants and bars at roughly $30 a glass. Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Food broadcaster Maeve OMeara and her partner Toufic Charabati are set to take over local eatery Zacs Place in the tiny beach town of Currarong. If the local cafe has become the heartbeat of small towns across Australia, the tiny south coast village of Currarong just got lucky. Foodie broadcasters Maeve OMeara and Toufic Charabati have snapped up local eatery, Zacs Place. We bought Zacs and took over a week ago, OMeara confirmed as word of the purchase spread beyond the tiny coastal community of 479 people, just south of Culburra Beach in the Shoalhaven area. TV host and travel guide Maeve OMeara. Supplied OMeara, the personable host of the Food Safari TV series, and her TV producer partner, Charabati, are already well-versed with the area, which is known for its white-sand beaches and coastal walks. Weve been visiting beautiful Currarong for many years and bought a tumbledown house in 2011, which Toufic rebuilt, OMeara says. The cafe has been closed for four years [to eat-in customers] and we hope to reopen in a limited way during the summer, she says. The idea is to try and create something special for the people of Currarong. We love this community. His pants were pulled down, exposing his bare buttocks wearing both a black G-string and pink womens underwear. There were two cigarette butts and a red lighter with the inscription TONY close to the body. These items held DNA evidence that would come to haunt the detectives tasked with finding the killer. The official cause of death was hemopericardium a bleeding heart caused by a single stab wound to his chest. The dead man was Anthony Cawsey, a 37-year-old from Redferns housing commission towers who worked odd shifts at a stage set-up company. His eyes were open, Stewart says. The blood had obviously stopped moving and pooled up towards his head. As the brothers entered the sprawling inner-city parklands on September 26, 2009, they noticed a man on the banks of Busbys Pond outstretched and face down. Bryland Stewart and his brother woke before sunrise for a weekend jog in Sydneys Centennial Park. Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. An investigation by this masthead has retraced that police investigation and what followed. It reveals the extraordinary steps taken by detectives to hold Kellie accountable for the murder, which ended in his death by hanging in an immigration detention cell. It knocked back a second police attempt to bring charges for the same reasons. The police never had any other suspects. Moses Kellie, a refugee from Sierra Leone living in the park at the time, was charged with the murder in 2015, more than five years after the crime. But the Director of Public Prosecutions dropped the case, citing problems with the evidence and Kellies mental health. But the knife was never discovered nor was the identity of the person who had used it. Moses Kellie was the sole suspect for the murder of Anthony Cawsey. Credit: NSW Police Police closed the running track with crime scene tape as they photographed the body and a team of divers searched the water for the murder weapon. Stewart wasnt carrying a mobile, so he rushed to find someone in the park to call the police. The death triggered a riot among detainees and remains the subject of a NSW coronial inquiry plagued by delays and cloaked in secrecy. Kellie spent three years in Villawood Immigration Detention Centre awaiting the outcome of his visa. Interviews with dozens of immigration system insiders reveal cascading failures in his medical care before he died in January 2019. Instead they launched a behind-the-scenes campaign to persuade then-immigration minister Peter Dutton to have Kellie deported. Through interviews with witnesses, immigration guards, detainees and detectives and obtaining hundreds of public and leaked documents, the investigation reveals detectives went beyond their usual remit of gathering evidence to secure a conviction. It comes after this months landmark High Court ruling that indefinite immigration detention is unlawful in some circumstances, reigniting a fierce political debate about the rights of detainees and the safety of the Australian community. This is a story of two deaths without answers, and exposes the little-known flow of information between police and politicians that experts warn undermines the principle of being considered innocent until proven guilty. Shortly after, Cawsey connected with a man in what would be his last call. They mutually masturbated over the phone before hanging up. At 4.44am, he recorded a message on a gay chat line: Hi Im a tall slim guy feeling really horny and kinky. Im just in a park on the edge of the city in Sydney. CCTV captures Cawsey leaving his apartment for the last time at 4.24am. Credit: NSW Police Records released by the NSW Special Inquiry into LGBTIQ Hate Crimes piece together his final moments including CCTV that captured him leaving the Redfern flats in the early hours of the morning of September 26, 2009 headed for Centennial Park. It was a warm spring day when Cawsey woke before sunrise to start work. It would be his last day alive, spent doing drugs, having phone sex with men on gay chat lines and cycling to the beach for a swim with his housemate. For those left behind, many unanswered questions remain. Why did my brother die? Justice must prevail, Kellies sister Elizabeth Josiah says in her first interview. I will never give up. That unit was disbanded in May 2009 five months before the murder and wasnt reinstated until 2012. Steer said general incident data did not indicate any bias crimes (those motivated by race, religion, sexuality) in the area at the time, but warned these types of crimes were often under-reported. In 2016, they turned to detective Geoff Steer for help, who had set up the bias crimes unit in the aftermath of the Cronulla riots. Detectives sought advice from an expert, who determined the lack of excessive violence or mutilation of the body indicated the murder was not a hate crime. Detectives looked at whether the murder was a gay hate crime. They interviewed dozens of people who used the gay chat line, taking DNA swabs from more than 70, but found no leads. Centennial Park was a known gay beat. Standing near the crime scene in the days after the murder, then-NSW Police assistant commissioner Paul Pisanos told media it was an extremely sensitive matter and all information would be treated with the strictest confidence. Thirty-two minutes later, Cawsey was found dead on the banks of Busbys Pond. Today, Steer says homicide detectives still have no idea how to identify bias crimes, let alone investigate them, as the training and resources are simply not available. The NSW government set up the Special Commission of Inquiry into LGBTIQ Hate Crimes last year to investigate all unsolved suspected hate crime deaths between 1970 and 2010, and Cawseys murder was among the last to be reviewed. The inquiry subpoenaed a tranche of documents from the police investigation interview transcripts, evidence briefs, correspondence. In July, counsel assisting Kathleen Heath made submissions that, despite the opinion given to police, the facts did give rise to the possibility that his sexuality was a factor in the attack. Heath said it was difficult to ignore the confluence of features the public masturbation, the crime scene being near a known gay beat and the position of Cawseys clothing that indicate the murder was a hate crime. Former detective-turned-journalist Duncan McNab has closely followed the way these types of crimes are investigated and said conclusions like the opinion police relied on were often based on preconceptions. I always get troubled when they say gay hate crimes have to have a degree of ferocity. They always think its some crazed murder, he says. It can be as simple as coming across someone you dont like. If you throw someone off a cliff, its not excessive force, its just one dreadful, fatal moment. Friends shocked For Cawseys friendship circle, this remains shocking. Ten of Cawseys friends this masthead spoke to said they had no idea his sexuality was anything other than straight. Cawsey grew up in Melbournes Ringwood, the youngest of a strictly Christian family. He moved to Sydney as a teenager and finished school at Cumberland High. Those close to him describe Cawsey as the smile behind my smiles, a man who quickly became the life of the party, who had a sharp intellect and astute street sense. He was a real kind of crazy guy. Happy-go-lucky. You know, like a lot of energy, a manic energy, says high school friend Brenden Parker. The tight-knit friendship circle was formed in the 1990s during the colourful parties of Sydneys underground rave scene. Vibe Tribe was a party collective that mixed psychedelic music with protest politics. Cawsey was a mainstay at all parties, held in parks or empty warehouses around the city. Cawsey made a strong group of friends through Sydneys rave scene in the 1990s. Drugs were the lifeblood of these events and Cawsey was not just taking drugs, but selling them. Friend Luke Lorenz says organised crime surrounded the fringes of the scene. It got scary, Lorenz says. I never knew where anything came from, but of course it came from bikies, or drug lords, or dangerous people And Tony was one of those people who actually touched the edge of the scene and dealt with these people. As the 1990s ended, the friendship group splintered. Some focused on building families and careers others, including Cawsey, continued to party. Addiction became a feature of Cawseys life, and he spent days with friends in his Elizabeth Bay apartment using and selling amphetamines. It was great fun. Until the drugs kind of took over in the early 2000s. And then it got ugly, said one friend who dealt drugs with Cawsey and declined to be named due to fear of self-incrimination. That was the death of the party scene, to be quite honest. So it was definitely not a party any more. It was just a bunch of drug addicts hanging out together. When news of the murder spread among the friendship group, they rushed to give statements and DNA to the police. Lorenz was an avid watcher of American crime show 48 Hours, so he went to Maroubra Police Station the day he learnt of his friends death. He told the officers about Cawseys drug dealing, and fallouts hed had with friends. The [gay] phone line stuff was completely out of the blue for us, Lorenz says. So I was honest to the police, and I told him as much as I could, just because I thought that might be clues, avenues to look at. He remembers being shocked by mistakes made by the officer taking his statement, who wrote facts incorrectly and fumbled with the computer, allowing the murder scene photos to flash on the screen. My hopes of this being resolved or to try to see justice or anything dissipated very quickly, Lorenz says. Former homicide detective Anthony Macklin worked at Maroubra Police Station from 2004 to 2008 leaving a year before Cawseys murder and says the station was plagued by systemic problems at that time, from under-staffing to high turnover that meant often junior staff were put on complex cases. What people may not realise is, it was one of the busiest stations in the state, Macklin says. It wasnt uncommon for detectives to have 30 cases. At times, I remember, we didnt even have enough computers for the detectives that were on. So I think there were three cars for the detectives to use. And most of the time you were kind of sharing a computer with someone else, he said. It was very stretched. Cawseys high school friend Parker also had concerns about the early stages of the police investigation. He visited Cawseys housemate in the days after the murder, who said detectives had been to his home, but only briefly. The cops went in, said, Right, wheres his bedroom? OK. Got the ice. Left, Parker says. Why didnt they come around and upend the place? You know, get the forensic team in there with the rubber gloves and have a good, good scrub of his room. They didnt do that Was it because he was just another junkie poof? The detectives seized 26 items from the apartment that day, records show, and interviewed more than two dozen of Cawseys associates during their investigation. None returned any leads. Overall, police took DNA samples from more than 120 people, including users of the gay chat lines, friends, colleagues and associates. Police also had a number of tip-offs including one man who marched into the Dee Why Police Station and confessed to the murder, twice. These were both dismissed as lacking credibility. Macklin said detectives were facing a tough investigation from the start, with no CCTV in the park and few witnesses. That makes it that much harder for the investigators to try to find the person find the right person and prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it was. NSW Police declined a request for an interview, but a spokeswoman said it was inappropriate to comment on the investigation before the NSW hate crime inquiry handed down its final report. She said the police support the inquiry and look forward to considering its recommendations. Lorenz called the station regularly for updates. He was told they were looking into it, but there was nothing to share. He had almost given up when he received a call out of the blue from a distant friend, Jojo Dorman. Dorman, who died last year so could not confirm the conversation, told Lorenz she knew a detective on the case who was leaking information. Theyve got their eyes on someone, Lorenz says he was told. Hed accidentally confessed to this, thinking it was something else. That someone was Moses Kellie. Sole suspect A week after Cawseys murder, homicide detectives were back at the crime scene at 4.30am looking for witnesses. Detective Peter Bishop walked the dirt track that runs along Busbys Pond when he saw a man in a black hood who would become the sole suspect in the case Kellie. The dirt track where detectives first encountered Moses Kellie. Credit: NSW Police Then aged 24, Kellie had arrived in Australia three years earlier on a special humanitarian visa from Sierra Leone, escaping the civil war that had killed more than 70,000 people, including his mother, who was murdered by rebels. Kellie became an orphan at nine and inquiry records show his childhood was filled with violence, drugs and alcohol. By 12, he was smoking several marijuana joints a day and drinking to the point of intoxication, according to medical records. The family split during the war, and Kellie spent time in a refugee camp in Guinea, before his sister arranged for him to come to Australia and live with her family in Sydneys Blacktown. Here, he became close to Daniel Josiah, who remains shocked by what police would allege about his conduct. Having Moses, it felt like I had a big brother. We shared a lot of stuff, he says. He never showed any signs of violence, or anger. In Sydney, Kellie studied aged care and volunteered at Parramattas Wesley Mission. But when Centrelink declined to pay for a course he needed for a paid aged care job, he started work in a factory before becoming unemployed. He was living in a share house in Marrickville and struggled to find a new job due to poor English when Centrelink cut off his payments. With no income, he became homeless. He reapplied to Centrelink several times, but each time he was refused. He knew of no one who could help him, wrote a psychologist who later interviewed Kellie in prison. Kellie posing for a photograph on the day detectives first took his statement. Credit: NSW Police He felt demoralised, desperate and saw no future. He lost confidence in himself. He had no one to talk to and his sole companion was a small radio. He was happy when he arrived in Australia and looked forward to making a positive start in life, but he was now depressed and anxious about where his life was heading. Living in the park, Kellie used methamphetamines around once a week. He heard voices, barely slept and became reclusive. He was seen muttering to himself and wearing heavy clothes in warm weather symptoms of psychosis, according to forensic psychologists. He resorted to petty crime to provide him with basic necessities and some money. His activities also included stealing wine from a local supermarket. The alcohol numbed his distress, albeit temporarily, according to one psychologists report. Loading In the park that morning with the detective, Kellie showed Bishop where he slept one campsite under a pavilion when it rained, and another in the south-west corner of the park. Afterwards, he went to the station to give a statement about his movements on the night of the murder. He told police he woke at 3am, walked to a newsagent to collect old newspapers and returned for water when he saw the police taping off the track. He read in the news the murder was a hate crime. There was a picture of a male who had his hat turned backwards and who was smiling. I have never seen this male before, Kellie said in his statement. The detectives found DNA samples of three anonymous men on Cawseys body and items nearby. Kellie consented to a mouth swab, which didnt return a match. A forensic link between Kellie and the murder would never be established. Did you kill Tony? Less than a week after Kellie gave his statement to the police, he committed a crime that would send him to prison. During the early hours of the morning on October 11, a man was walking along the perimeter of the park speaking on his mobile to a friend. Kellie approached him, shouting incoherently and waving a silver object believed to be a knife, according to statements. The man dropped his phone, ran off, and later discovered a slash on his arm which required two stitches. The victims friend called the phone and heard a man with a thick accent on the other end of the line. It was Kellie hed stolen the phone. Kellie pleaded guilty to robbery with wounding. The homicide detectives would allege this demonstrated a pattern of offending that made him more likely to be the person who killed Cawsey. The following week, homicide detectives made a breakthrough in the case when they discovered another campsite in a drainpipe less than 100 metres from where Cawseys body was found. There, detectives found a stash of knives, newspapers, sleeping bags, socks filled with coins, and the stolen phone. The site was described by police as unhygienic, and infested with spiders. The discovery of Kellies drainpipe campsite would be a turning point in the murder investigation. Credit: NSW Police When Kellie arrived, police said they suspected he was involved in the murder but did not have enough evidence to arrest him. They did, however, have powers to seize items that may be connected with a crime and wanted his clothes. The ones Im wearing? Kellie responded. Youre going to take all my clothes? The police said they would give him a pair of overalls, but they needed to test his clothes for forensic evidence. He said hed already given DNA, but agreed. I dont have any problem with that, Kellie responded. Kellie went to Maroubra Police Station for a second time to answer questions. The interview transcript shows he signed a Details of a Person at a Police Station Voluntarily form and declined to speak to a lawyer. Police assured him he was free to leave, and anything he said could be used against him. In this interview, Kellie confirmed the campsite was his, and claimed possession of the items including the stolen phone and knives. But he insisted he didnt sleep there on the night of the murder and said he used the knives for food. Towards the end of the interview, detectives asked a series of direct questions. Did you kill Tony Cawsey? No, replied Kellie. Did you use any of those knives to kill Tony Cawsey? Ive never seen him before, Kellie said. Kellie was not detained and returned to the park. All the seized items, including Kellies shoes from the night of the murder, were then tested for Cawseys DNA but, again, no matches were found. An expert examined the knives and found they could not be conclusively matched to Cawseys wound. Regardless, the discovery would form the backbone of the case against Kellie. The police alleged Kellies failure to disclose the campsite was a lie that amounted to a consciousness of guilt. Detectives now asked the park rangers to keep an eye out for Kellie and call triple zero when he was spotted. A ranger saw Kellie on October 24 and asked him to stay in the car until the police came. They both fell asleep waiting for the cops to arrive, another ranger, Colin Cheshire, says. We always used to tease him and say, You know he was alleged to be a murderer. Cheshire was surprised that Kellie had changed from witness to suspect, he says. A ranger of more than 20 years, he said the parks homeless population often kept to themselves and held knives for self-protection. Cheshire gave a statement to the police, confirming he had seen Kellie sleeping in the south-west corner of the park, where Kellie first took the police. The police didnt actually confide in us rangers very much, Cheshire says. It seems to me they only came to us when they were really desperate. The police never came to take Kellie away, and that encounter with the rangers was the last time he was seen in the park. He took a bicycle and headed south, where he was found in the coastal town of Eden, arrested and questioned about the phone robbery. This 43-minute interview would be the final plank of the police case against Kellie. It was here that Kellie described interactions that police would allege confused the robbery with the murder and counted these as admissions, a quasi-confession. However, the detectives only put this theory to Kellie five years later when they charged him with murder and were met with a denial. You dont mix two things together, Kellie said in response. Armed robbery and murder, thats two different things. Unfairness to accused The NSW special inquiry painstakingly retraced the steps taken by police investigating Cawseys murder and in June this year, delivered submissions. The hearing took place in a heritage-listed sandstone building on Bridge Street in Sydney, in a small room with high ceilings where Cawseys sisters sat and took notes. Counsel assisting Kathleen Heath started by reading the statement provided by the family, who believed police did everything they could and lay blame with the prosecutors for refusing to take Kellie to court. It should also be noted that Tony was loved. He displayed, like many gifted people, eccentric behaviour. And he always walked to the beat of his own drum, Heath read. Heath described the police investigation as thorough and extensive, but was critical of the five years it took to lay charges, which she said can result in unfairness to an accused person. Much of the evidence against him had already been collected by early 2010, Heath said. Delay can result in witnesses becoming unavailable, memories fading, or documents, records or other exhibits being lost. Heath ran through the entire police investigation the DNA samples of unidentified men from the crime scene, the police evidence of lies as consciousness of guilt, tendency and coincidence evidence and admissions made in the Eden interview and found while ultimately the case was compelling, it fell short. She argued Kellie may have chosen not to disclose the campsite near the murder to protect what little privacy he had, to distance himself from the murder, or simply because it was a reflection of his disorganised mind. She also found his other offending was not unique enough, or similar to the murder, to amount to a pattern of behaviour that could be used in a murder trial. It is submitted the findings should reflect that the person who inflicted the stab wounds is unknown or cannot be conclusively determined, Heath said. The DPP agreed with this conclusion, and twice refused to prosecute the case. Kellie detained Kellie spent five years in prison for the phone theft and charges of another knife possession and assault committed near Fox Studios. In sentencing remarks, Judge Michael Finnane in the District Court of NSW noted Kellies severe mental illness at the time of offending and traumatic and tragic personal background. While in prison, Kellie completed a violent offender program and started a treatment plan for schizophrenia. He self-harmed, got into fights with other inmates, and told his sister he had been raped. During one visit from the family, he spoke of his plans for when he was released. He was ready to come out, start fresh, cousin Daniel said. He had his life planned. He had goals, just like we all do. And he was looking forward to starting his life afresh, and making something out of it, and making himself proud. That never happened. New laws were introduced in 2014 making visa cancellations mandatory for non-citizens sentenced to more than 12 months in prison. There has since been a tenfold increase in the number of visa cancellations, where the character test must be passed to remain in Australia a matrix that weighs up family connections, rehabilitation prospects and other factors against the safety of the Australian community. Kellie was one of the first people to be impacted by the law change, and his visa was mandatorily cancelled in December 2014. He then began the process of challenging the cancellation to stay in Australia. But his prospects of success became more complicated when homicide detectives became involved. Correspondence obtained by this masthead under freedom of information shows a detective emailed the Department of Immigration in January 2015 asking what information can be considered by the minister when making deportation decisions before charges are laid. Specifically, I am raising the fact that Moses Kellie is a person of interest for the murder of [Cawsey], one detective wrote on January 27, 2015. Can Kellies status as a person of interest in this homicide investigation be held against him? If this is a factor that can be taken into account, will I be contacted to provide relevant material? Two days later, a department official responded. In the usual course of events, pending charges would not be included in the submission to the decision maker as they have not been proven and there is a presumption of innocence, the letter said. If Mr Kellies status as a person of interest in a homicide was to be taken into consideration in any request for revocation of the visa cancellation, this would need to be disclosed to him and he be given an opportunity to respond to the allegations. The murder charge was laid in October 2015. When Kellie finished his prison sentence in September 2016, he was transferred to Villawood Immigration Detention Centre, to await the decision on his future in Australia. That same month, on 13 September 2016, the DPP dropped the murder charge, informing the NSW Police there was no reasonable prospect of conviction due to problems with the police evidence and Kellies history of mental illness. Despite this, and against the earlier advice of the department, the detectives then made a direct approach to then-Immigration minister Peter Dutton. Kellie is the prime suspect in the murder of [Anthony Cawsey], the detective wrote to Dutton three weeks after the DPP dropped the murder charge. There is no doubt from our perspective that Kellie murdered [Cawsey] by stabbing him in the chest with a knife. The five-page letter detailed the police case against Kellie for the murder, and included a suite of other alleged and unproven offences police said he had committed in the park and prison. The detectives cast doubt on Kellies experience in Sierra Leone, and his ability to adhere to his mental health medication regime. Most painful for his family, the police told Dutton that Kellie no longer has family support in Australia. His sister was interviewed she advised that Kellie would not be welcome in her home. The family says this could not be further from the truth. They had signed waivers taking responsibility for his care, they say, and were desperate to help him get back on track. The most devastating part was that we were treated like we didnt exist, Daniel says. By the police, by the government, by everyone. Dutton and current Home Affairs Minister Clare ONeil declined requests for interviews and did not answer questions about the case or the process with police. NSW Police did not respond to questions about how often this information sharing occurs, or what policies are in place to ensure procedural fairness to non-citizens. I need some help Psychiatrists who reviewed Kellie after he self-harmed in prison found he was at high risk of relapse if his medication discontinues and had documented a history of psychosis, drug use and violence. Despite this, a Serco risk assessment completed upon his arrival in Villawood stated he had no history of violence, drug use or self-harm. Serco is paid by the federal government to run onshore detention centres, providing security, non-health service welfare, catering and transport services. Six days after entering immigration detention, Kellie attempted suicide. Ahmed Sherif was his roommate in Villawoods Blaxland compound a since-closed dormitory that he described as overcrowded, violent and infested with vermin. Sherif found Kellie hanging and cut him loose before emergency staff performed life support for two minutes. I saved his life, Sherif says. This is the incompetence of the people running the sites. Over the following years in detention, Kellies mental state deteriorated. Sherif says he would regularly wake in the middle of the night, screaming his mothers name. Retirees Graeme and Sue Swincer were part of a volunteer group which visited refugees and saw Kellie regularly. I detected a distinct change of mood where he used to be a little bit bubbly and friendly and even-tempered. He started, to be, to say nonsensical things, Graeme says. We couldnt make sense of what he was saying. He was very disturbed. What they didnt know was that his mental health medication was changed and increased and that International Health and Medical Services (IHMS), the healthcare provider in immigration detention, and Serco, routinely failed to administer the correct dose. Deficient IT systems failed to alert staff when he skipped medications or missed appointments. These broken systems resulted in Kellie routinely missing his antipsychotic medication, according to confidential sources, once for a period of more than 80 consecutive days. Eventually, Kellie passed a handwritten note to another detainee: I am Moses I need some help and need to talk to someone about my problems so I can get some mental help or something please. MOSES KELLIE. This would trigger an intervention, where Kellie was sectioned in Liverpool Hospital for two weeks. When he started to show signs of improvement, he was sent back to Villawood and the facility was given a strict medication regime. However, once again, IHMS failed to follow the hospitals instructions or monitor him, according to several detention officials and detainee sources, speaking anonymously because of confidentiality agreements. Kellie became more reclusive, skipped meals and spent days in bed. He was observed more than once staring blankly into his cells bathroom, where three weeks later, on January 25, 2019, he was found hanging for the last time. Another detainee, Butrous Chol, found him and cut the ligature this time. Guards were called and a code blue (for medical emergencies) was declared. Paramedics arrived and performed life support. Kellie was intubated and suffered cardiac arrest. At 6.32pm, he was pronounced dead in the cell. The detainees were furious. Sherif, Chol, and others had warned guards that Kellie was unwell, and they could not understand why he had been left alone. He had already attempted suicide, they should have had him on watch. They didnt do that, Sherif says. A riot ensued. One guard, familiar with the event but who cannot be named due to strict Serco confidentiality agreements, says it was chaotic. Screaming, yelling, shouting, throwing things, people trying to punch the officers, kick them. It was getting physical, the guard said, noting there were no serious injuries. Chol said the day Kellie had returned from Liverpool Hospital, government officials began threatening him to be removed forcibly back to [his] country of origin. Kellies fellow detainees sought to calm him by reminding him of Australias non-refoulement obligations, Chol says, that prevent the government from sending detainees to countries where they are at risk of harm. He kind of relaxed a bit after we spoke to him, and then later on that day he committed suicide, Chol said via WhatsApp message. I strongly believe [his] death was preventable. The medical observation on him shouldnt be lifted. The findings of the coroners inquest, which will examine these claims, are yet to be delivered. Serco declined an interview, but a spokesman said it would be inappropriate to comment while Kellies death was being examined by the coroner. The safety and wellbeing of all detainees in Sercos care is of paramount importance to Serco, the spokesman said. Serco extends its sincere condolences to the family and friends of Mr Moses Kellie for their loss. Border Force also declined an interview. A spokesperson said they cant comment on individual cases but defended the quality of healthcare services and facilities of immigration detention centres. No closure For those left behind by both deaths, there has been no closure. Kellies family say his death at 34 years old, and then dealing with the immigration system and coronial inquest, was more traumatising than their wartime experience in Sierra Leone. We came here for protection. Moses was here to be safe from what happened to my country. And now, look what happened to him, his sister Josiah says. She says it took almost a year for the government to release Kellies remains and the family had to crowdfund the money needed to expatriate the body to bury him in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Kellies funeral in Sierra Leone, December 2019. The familys pain has been compounded by ongoing delays in the coroners inquest which they hope will provide some justice and prevent other families from having to endure what they have. Moses wasnt treated like a human being, Daniel Kellie says. Its a very sad way to go. His story is very sad They treated us like we didnt exist, and were right around the corner. Loading Daniel says Kellie trusted the authorities, but was let down. From the get-go, thats just how its always felt like people get treated, because they dont know their rights, or they dont know how the justice system works. So they get bullied into it, they get pushed to do things that they dont know what theyre doing, or sign[ing] up to. The Cawseys, on the other hand, want an overhaul in the way cold cases are handled regular DNA testing and a national database. But for now, theyre confident in the actions taken by police. The police did everything they could, says Kerri Cawsey. If you or anyone you know needs support call Lifeline 131 114, or Beyond Blue 1300 224 636. The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the days most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here. One of Sydneys oldest private all-boys schools, Newington College in Stanmore, will become a fully co-educational campus for kindergarten to 12 students within a decade. In a letter to parents on Monday, Newingtons chairman Tony McDonald said the boards decision to shift the 160-year-old college to co-education was unanimous, and that the transition to admit female students would be gradual, starting with primary years. Newington College, in Sydneys inner west, will become fully co-educational within a decade. Credit: Steven Siewert The school first floated the idea to parents almost two years ago, along with a proposal to make the school more culturally and socio-economically diverse. McDonald told parents the school conducted a third-party consultation on co-ed and single-sex schooling research, consulted the Uniting Church and other GPS schools, ran workshops with current students and asked the old boys union to consult former students about their views on moving to co-education. Most states allow people to carry concealed firearms, and the Supreme Court's Bruen decision paved the way for the right to carry in public to become the law of the land. Mark Weber/Tribune News Service In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court ushered in a new era of gun regulation when it struck down New Yorks century-old concealed carry law. The Bruen decision paved the way for the right to carry a concealed firearm in public to become the law of the land. Debates around right-to-carry pit the argument that a good guy with a gun can prevent crimes against concerns about an increased threat of gun violence, with research generally supporting the latter. But new research I co-authored found that right-to-carry is dangerous for other reasons. In 1979, nearly all U.S. states either prohibited the concealed carry of firearms or required anyone who wished to carry a concealed firearm to be evaluated before obtaining a license. But by 2000, over half of the states had passed so-called shall-issue laws, which mandate that authorities grant a concealed-carry permit to virtually any individual who applies. By the time Bruen arrived before the Supreme Court last year, only six states did not have a near-universal right-to-carry system in place. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Like most researchers, we found that right-to-carry increases violent crime, especially in large cities. However, our findings were novel because we probed the mechanisms behind this increase. It wasnt simply a matter of people with right-to-carry permits committing more violent crimes. Rather, we identified two particular causes of increased crime: declines in police effectiveness and increases in gun thefts. To investigate right-to-carrys impact on police effectiveness, we studied the police clearance of violent crimes the number of violent crimes for which police were able to identify a perpetrator. We found that right-to-carry caused a 10% total reduction in police clearance in the U.S. cities where it was adopted. Nationwide using the FBIs 2019 estimate that 1 million violent crimes take place annually in the U.S., of which about half are cleared by police this could add up to an extra 50,000 crimes going unsolved every year. There are a number of reasons for this decline in police effectiveness. As my co-author John Donohue has outlined in previous work , the most straightforward is that right-to-carry takes a toll on police time and resources, whether because of the need to investigate accidental shootings or simply to process permits. Additionally, in contrast to the logic of the good guy with a gun, the intervention of bystanders with firearms during crimes particularly those poorly trained in firearms safety can make it more difficult for police to catch criminals. Another concerning possibility is that right-to-carry makes police more fearful of the people in their community. This could cause police officers to shy away from investigating suspicious behavior. Or it could make officers more likely to escalate their use of force. Right-to-carry increases violent crime by creating more opportunities for firearm theft, inadvertently causing permit-holding gun owners to provide firearms to criminals. Reports from police agencies suggest that firearm theft, particularly from motor vehicles, is a large and growing problem nationally. A 2017 survey from Harvard University estimated that there are 380,000 firearm thefts in the U.S. every year more guns than are in civilian hands in Ireland or Japan. We found that right-to-carry may increase gun theft by a staggering 50% in large cities. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Much of the public attention on right-to-carry has focused on the deliberate actions of permit-holding gun owners: whether they commit many crimes, and whether they stop many crimes from being committed. In fact, they do neither. Instead, as our research shows, the unintentional actions of concealed carry permit holders may be fueling violent crime by providing a flow of firearms ripe for theft and weakening law enforcements ability to apprehend criminals. The good guys can unwittingly end up helping the bad guys. So, now, its up to lawmakers across the country to enact pragmatic policies to curb the worst public safety impacts of a permissive gun-carrying culture. Teaching responsible gun ownership may be the most feasible reform that goes the furthest to promote public safety. Research suggests that making firearm safety training a requirement of receiving a concealed carry permit has been effective at ameliorating some of the rise in violent crime. While there is no conclusive explanation for why these trainings reduce crime, it is quite plausible that gun carriers who undergo training are more careful with how they store and use their firearms, resulting in fewer firearm thefts and accidental discharges. Safety training is no panacea to gun violence. But if the good guys with guns know how to safely store firearms and when to fire them, they have the best chance of promoting public safety. Australias Defence Department has offered its sincere condolences to a former Queensland soldier who died while fighting in eastern Ukraine. Matthew Jepson, from Townsville, was killed in recent weeks while fighting in the Avdiivka region. An unconfirmed online post from someone who said they were a friend of Jepson suggested the former soldier had sacrificed his life while guarding a Red Cross station to save someone during a Russian artillery strike. Another unconfirmed post online suggested Jepson had joined the foreign mercenary unit with the highest casualty ratio, The Chosen Company. The Defence Department said it would provide support to Jepsons former unit in Queensland and other members of the Australian Defence Force. Defence offers its sincere condolences to the family and friends of the former soldier at this difficult time, Defence said in a statement. A spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said consular assistance was being provided to Jepsons family. We send our deepest condolences to the family at this difficult time, DFAT said.No further information about Jepson was provided given privacy concerns. Gender-affirming procedures such as chest surgery and genital reconfiguration would be subsidised by Medicare under a push to improve mental health and quality of life for transgender people. The federal health department will consider an application from the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons that seeks to establish 21 Medicare items for gender-affirming surgeries for people who have gender incongruence, in which a persons experience of gender does not align with how they were born. The application said gender-affirming surgery is already being performed in Australia but the system is fragmented and can have high out-of-pocket costs. Credit: Eddie Jim The application to the Medical Services Advisory Committee says gender-affirming surgery a catch-all term for procedures that align a persons body with their gender identity is already being performed in Australia but that the system is fragmented and can have high out-of-pocket costs. It estimated there would be 64,101 transgender people who were born male and 64,044 transgender people who were born female who could be candidates for the procedures in Australia. Tech giants including Apple, Google and Meta will be forced to do more to tackle online child sexual abuse material and pro-terror content, including deepfake child pornography created using generative AI, in world-first industry standards laid out by Australias eSafety Commissioner. Following more than two years of work, and after rejecting draft codes created by the tech industry, eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant will release draft standards on Monday covering cloud-based storage services like Apple iCloud, Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive, as well as messaging services like WhatsApp, requiring them to do more to rid their services of unlawful content. Australias eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman-Grant. Credit: Rhett Wyman Inman Grant, a former Twitter executive, said that she hopes Australias industry standards would be the first domino of similar regulations globally to help tackle harmful content. She said the requirements would not force tech companies to break their own end-to-end encryption, which is turned on by default on some services, including WhatsApp. In the 1950s, unbeknown to the Australian public, the British government tested three atomic bombs in the Montebello Islands off the Pilbara coast. The last was five times larger than the atomic bomb that flattened Nagasaki. The Montebello Islands from above the site of 1950s bomb tests. Boom. Then for 70 years after, nothing but secretive silence and understated signs (Elevated radiation levels exist here) to warn visitors away. But anyone with a sense of adventure can visit at least for a while. The Montebellos are hard to get to: their remoteness is what attracted the British bomb testers. They appear like pie crusts on the horizon as I squint from the deck of my small Coral Expeditions cruise ship. Alpha Island is low and grey-green and as we putter into Burgundy Bay on our tender, stingrays drift below in the blue and purple water on this sunny day. If youve been to Singapore you may have discovered the Changi Chapel and Museum near the airport, with its poignant exploration of Singapores fall to the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II. It reopened in 2021 after a major redevelopment. The Bus Collective comprises 20 Scania buses previously operated by local public transport operator SBS Transit. But many visitors might not know Changi Village, which is also near the airport. This is largely a weekend recreational spot, with a few unremarkable hotels, a coastal boardwalk, a popular hawker centre and some nearby military bases. But now theres a new reason to head to this area in the east of Singapore. The Bus Collective is a unique stay in the heart of Changi Village right next to the hawker centre. Bookings are now open and guests can stay from December 1. The Bus Collective comprises 20 Scania buses previously operated by local public transport operator SBS Transit. Lucknow, India: Officials trying to reach 41 workers who have been trapped in a collapsed tunnel in northern India for eight days were contemplating alternative rescue plans after snags with a drilling machine caused them to halt digging. A new drilling machine arrived at the accident site in Uttarakhand state over the weekend to replace one that was damaged while breaking through the rocks and debris. They had been using the drill to create a space to insert wide pipes through which the trapped workers could crawl to their freedom. Rescuers inside a collapsed road tunnel where workers were trapped by a landslide in northern in Uttarakhand state, India. Credit: AP Loading Authorities have so far drilled 24 metres through rubble and debris, but it would require up to 60 metres to allow the workers to escape, said Devendra Patwal, a disaster management official. London: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will station Home Office officials in Rwanda as he tries to see off an escalating Conservative Party rebellion over his small boats policy. The prime minister is expected to unveil a new treaty with Rwanda this week in response to a court ruling that the scheme to deport illegal migrants to the country is unlawful. The immigration issue has led to British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak losing the confidence of his partys right. Credit: Getty The decision to deploy British officials to support the African nations asylum system will be seen as vindication for Suella Braverman, the recently deposed home secretary, who pressed for the move while in government. It comes as Conservative MPs on the partys right warned their leader that he is facing electoral catastrophe including the Tories being reduced to a rump of 60 seats if the prime minister fails to tackle illegal migration. 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 In one video, three apartment towers sit side by side until, suddenly, there are two enormous explosions and two of the buildings collapse. The smoke and debris clear to reveal the third somehow still standing, like a remnant tooth. Spared, but for how long? We dont know if there are casualties, but the scale of destruction is shocking. We are told it is the result of an airstrike. In another video, troops rush into what we are told is a basement of a childrens hospital. They appear to discover explosives, weapons and a sinister room where hostages have been held, with a chair, a rope and a bundle of nappies: the stuff of horror movies. The children in the wards above have apparently been used as protection from military assault. Both episodes one posted on Instagram in Gaza by photographer Motaz Azaiza, the other released by the Israeli military seem to fall well outside what we might consider ethical behaviour, even in wartime. Wholesale destruction of civilian property, the use of civilians to shield military targets, hostage-taking: all seem impossible to justify. But are they actually war crimes? What rules must Hamas and the Israeli military follow in this conflict? What happens if they break them? Credit: Artwork by Monique Westermann When did warfare first get rules? Weve all heard of the Geneva Conventions, which dictate how warfare should be conducted by civilised entities. Yet there were indications in ancient times that humanitarian concerns were considered then too, including in the Mahabharata, the Old Testament, and by Hammurabi, the sixth king of the first dynasty of Babylon. His Code of Hammurabi, compiled between 1755BC and 1750BC (a hard copy of which is now in the Louvre), made rules on pretty much everything: lawsuits, adultery, receiving stolen goods, the care of date orchards, and what to do with builders who didnt put up walls properly. There is much putting to death for what we might today consider fairly minor crimes (if you helped put out a house fire but tried to steal something while you were there, they threw you into the very same fire). But Hammurabi also introduces broader principles, particularly that the strong might not injure the weak and that we must protect the widows and orphans sentiments that inform international law today. Advertisement In the modern era, a significant effort to regulate warfare itself began in 1859, when Genevan businessman Henry Dunant witnessed the aftermath of the battle of Solferino, near Verona in Italys north. A milestone in the efforts to nationalise Italy, it was brutal. Here is hand-to-hand struggle in all its horror and frightfulness, Dunant writes. Austrians and Allies trampling each other under foot, killing one another on piles of bleeding corpses, felling their enemies with their rifle butts, crushing skulls ... No quarter is given; it is a sheer butchery; a struggle between savage beasts, maddened with blood and fury. The Geneva Conventions largely concern the treatment of wounded and sick soldiers, prisoners of war, and the protection of civilians during wars. Appalled, Dunant suggested that combatants should agree to allow trained volunteer relief groups to treat the wounded. This eventually led to the formation of the International Committee of the Red Cross; it also prompted delegates from 16 countries to meet in Geneva to discuss a humanitarian agreement to govern aspects of warfare. In 1864, they adopted the first Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field. Loading Updated in 1906, 1929 and most substantially in 1949, after World War II, the Geneva Conventions largely concern the treatment of wounded and sick soldiers, prisoners of war, and the protection of civilians during wars, including foreign occupation. In 1977, two more protocols were adopted: one extending the rules applicable in international armed conflict, and the second concerning non-international armed conflicts. Among other things, these prohibited collective punishment (such as revenge on a civilian population), torture, hostage-taking, terrorism and outrages on personal dignity in particular humiliating and degrading treatment, rape, enforced prostitution and any form of indecent assault. These laws are referred to collectively as international humanitarian law. Other treaties have since added to this tapestry of rules, including restrictions on the use of chemical and biological weapons, anti-personnel mines and cluster munitions. In 1998, the Rome Statute established the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague (in the Netherlands) with jurisdiction over certain violations of international humanitarian law as well as genocide, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression, which attaches individual criminal responsibility to manifest violations of the prohibition of the use of force. Advertisement The Code of Hammurabi in the Louvre in Paris. Credit: Getty Images What rules apply to the Israel-Hamas war? Five main principles apply: distinction, precaution, proportionality, humanity and military necessity. In the current conflict, these apply equally to the Israeli military and Hamas, which is the elected ruling authority in Gaza (elections were last held in 2006) and which is designated a terrorist organisation by several countries, including Australia. An army or armed group must distinguish between civilians and civilian objects and combatants and military objects and only target combatants. This prohibits indiscriminate attacks on populated areas and means soldiers must take care to target only the enemy while sparing civilians, even if this means they face greater risks themselves. A party to an armed conflict must also take all feasible precautions to protect the civilian population and objects against the effects of attacks, says Dr Monique Cormier, senior lecturer at Monash Universitys faculty of law. Proportionality prohibits attacks against military objectives that are expected to cause incidental harm to civilians and civilian objects that would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated. Humanity imposes limits on the means and methods of warfare and requires that those who have fallen into enemy hands be treated humanely, while the principle of military necessity permits only the degree and the kind of force required to achieve the legitimate purpose of a conflict. Hamas has not adhered to the rules of warfare, particularly those governing the indiscriminate killing of civilians as well as the taking of hostages. Whatever its avowed justifications for its attacks in Israel on October 7, Hamas has not adhered to the rules of warfare, particularly those governing the indiscriminate killing of civilians and the taking of hostages crimes under international humanitarian law, according to the United Nations. Advertisement Hamas is clearly not complying with its obligations, says Ben Saul, Challis chair of international law at the University of Sydney. However, the killing by Hamas of Israel Defence Forces personnel on October 7 was not necessarily a war crime, he notes. Its not prohibited under international humanitarian law for a non-state armed group like Hamas to target state military soldiers in armed conflict. It has been reported that the families of nine Israeli victims of the October 7 attacks have lodged a complaint with the ICC asking for Hamas leaders to be prosecuted for genocide and war crimes. Their lawyer stated: The complaint states that the Hamas terrorists do not deny the crimes committed, which they have amply documented and broadcast, and that the facts cannot therefore be disputed. A charred living room in a home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, in the south of Israel, where multiple civilians were killed and others abducted in brutal attacks by Hamas militants on October 7. Credit: AP Many complex factors would be weighed up in examining whether or not Israel itself had breached any of its legal obligations. For example: if an airstrike destroys an apartment block within which a lawful military target is located, was the expected harm caused to civilians and civilian objects excessive compared to the anticipated military advantage; and what precautions were taken to prevent civilian harm? Says Saul: If you can accomplish the military task with a 100-kilogram bomb instead of a 500-kilogram one, then you shouldnt use the more extensive weapons if thats likely to kill more civilians. Intelligence gathering is essential, too, he says. Youve got to take all feasible measures to verify the military target and learn how many civilians are nearby. They could be using electronic means or drones or informants or visual confirmation a robust information-collection process, so that youre not targeting when you dont know what are going to be the consequences. Atrocities committed by Hamas, and the claimed use of civilians as shields, do not excuse Israel from its obligations to target only the military and avoid disproportionate or indiscriminate attacks, says Saul. It absolutely makes it much harder for Israel to fight. It has to be more discriminating in the way it fights. These are obligations every party owes unilaterally. Theyre not dependent on reciprocity. What exactly is the weapon that youre using to carry out that legitimate military attack? And what could be the consequences arising from it? Advertisement Donald Rothwell, a professor of international law at the Australian National University, puts it this way: The expectation is that as a state, you comply with international law. Before any attack, he says, military forces must run the same complicated calculus. You cant drop a missile on a residential tower block in the hope that there might be a Hamas fighter there. You need to have appropriate intelligence to confirm that you can legitimately attack that feature. And you then get into the question of the means and methods of warfare. What exactly is the weapon that youre using to carry out that legitimate military attack? And what could be the consequences arising from it? On October 9, in response to the Hamas attacks, Israel closed its crossings into Gaza. Its Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, declared: We are putting a complete siege on Gaza No electricity, no food, no water, no gas its all closed. Could Israels blockade be a breach of humanitarian law, amounting to collective punishment? Some groups think so. On November 10, three Palestinian human rights organisations asked the ICC to investigate Israel for alleged war crimes committed in the current conflict and called for arrest warrants to be issued against Israels President, Isaac Herzog, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gallant. Loading The brief prepared by human rights organisations Al Haq, Al Mezan and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights called for urgent attention on the continuous barrage of Israeli airstrikes on densely populated civilian areas within the Gaza Strip. The document also asked the court to investigate the suffocating siege imposed on [Gaza], the forced displacement of its population, the use of toxic gas, and the denial of necessities, such as food, water, fuel and electricity. Relevant rules that come into play amid blockades and mass airstrikes, says Cormier, are prohibitions on starving civilian populations as a method of warfare; destroying objects indispensable to the survival of a civilian population; the obligation to facilitate the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians in need; and the need to ensure that persons deprived of their liberty must be provided with adequate food, water, clothing and medical attention. Advertisement Astronauts Frank Borman and Ken Mattingly saved the U.S. space program. Jack Ohman/The Chronicle On Dec. 24, 1968, Frank Borman was perhaps the most famous man on the planet. Except he wasnt technically on the planet. He was the commander of Apollo 8, and he, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders, were the first men ever to fly to the moon. Borman died last week at 95. Coincidentally, Ken Mattingly, an astronaut who got bumped off Lovells Apollo 13 flight crew and later was a major force in saving that perilous mission, also died last week. He was 87. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Arguably, Borman and his crew are best remembered for his Christmas Eve reading from the Book of Genesis, which was incredibly moving and put mankinds place in the universe in context: We all live on a tiny, fragile planet, and we are here but briefly. Anders stunning photograph of the earthrise over the moon also perfectly captured the spirit of the mission. To have a moment like this, particularly with the backdrop of the bloody stalemate of the Vietnam War and the corollary catastrophes of 1968, a year of assassinations and rioting, Bormans words had specific resonance. Our conflicts and priorities are cosmically irrelevant. Look what we can accomplish together. President John F. Kennedy, who initiated the Apollo program, spoke to this point in a speech on June 10, 1963, at American University mere months before he died, For in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our childrens future. And we are all mortal. In May 1961, Kennedys audacity in calling for a lunar landing by the end of the 1960s was the propellant that put Borman, Mattingly and 22 other Americans on missions to the moon. Hundreds of thousands of Americans contributed to the effort, which still stands as mankinds greatest collective accomplishment. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Most of those alive then can recall the stark beauty of Borman and his crews words, no matter ones religious or political philosophy. For a brief moment, the entire world was rapt and united as one. Mattinglys contribution to the Apollo program is incalculable: He was instrumental in saving it. If the United States had lost the crew of Apollo 13, it is not inconceivable that American politicians might have lost their nerve and canceled future missions. Indeed, three years earlier, Borman also had a hand in saving the Apollo program. A manned test of the Apollo 1 vehicle had ended in tragedy on Jan. 27, 1967, when a fire erupted in the cockpit. The crew, commanded by Gus Grissom, along with Ed White and Roger Chaffee, was killed. Borman was chosen for the accident inquiry panel, and he testified before a now-skeptical congressional committee: We are trying to tell you that we are confident in our management and in our engineering and in ourselves. I think the question is really: Are you confident in us? Advertisement Article continues below this ad They were. Borman and his colleagues persevered to save the lunar program, along with Mattingly. Some have suggested that America should have sent a poet on a mission, to adequately capture the mood and the words needed to convey the moment. Bormans words before that committee were poetic enough to assure the United States would continue its journey to the moon. Mattinglys role was even more direct. NASA doctors told Mattingly that he had been exposed to measles, and he was pulled off the Apollo 13 mission as the command module pilot and was replaced at the last minute by Jack Swigert. On the ground, Mattingly performed critical experiments on simulators in Houston and was far more valuable than he would have been as a crew member: He figured out how to save just enough power to save Apollo 13, something he would not have been able to do trapped in a crippled spacecraft. Mattingly later was the command module pilot on Apollo 16 and was even on a still-classified space shuttle mission later in 1985. The entire U.S. space program should be viewed as a sequence of missions, one missions task leading to an advancement of the next missions tasks. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In Bormans and his crews case, it was the first manned flight of the Saturn V, a behemoth of a machine standing 363 feet tall, weighing as much as a nuclear submarine and packing 32 million horsepower with the engines burning 6,000 pounds of fuel per second. Borman, along with Lovell, the future Apollo 13 commander, had set the record for a manned spaceflight duration: 14 days, the last three of which left Borman wishing for something to go wrong so he could return to Earth early. Borman and his crew sat atop a kerosine bomb, a controlled explosion that got Apollo 8 to 17,500 miles per hour, allowing them to escape Earths orbit and hurled them to the moon, 240,000 miles distant. Imagine the trust and the courage you would need to perch yourself in a space the size of a medium-sized tent. Imagine having the ability to say, yes, we can do this. With Bormans and Mattinglys passing, in a divided political and social culture, with a space program that is now more defined by Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk than Frank Borman and Ken Mattingly, it is difficult to see how their moment could be somehow recreated. Thanks to both of these astronauts, we can go back and look at their lives with appropriate reverence. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Delhi Police has arrested a 42-year-old pharmacist for his alleged involvement in death of of a patient during surgery in a clinic in south Delhi's Greater Kailash, officials said on Sunday. The pharmacist used to refer patient to the clinic where two patients recently died during surgery. The police have arrested four persons, including a quack, in the case. Neeraj Agarwal, who runs the Agarwal Medical Centre, Jaspreet Singh (both MBBS doctors), Agarwal's wife Pooja and former laboratory technician Mahender Singh were arrested on November 14 and produced in a court on November 16, which sent them to five-day police custody. The latest development in the case came on Sunday with the arrest of Julfiqar who runs a pharmacy shop in the Sangam Vihar area, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Chandan Choudhary said. Julfiqar sells homeopathy and allopathy medicines and has done a course in D.Pharma. He used to refer patients who came to his shop with ailments such as kidney stones, gynecological issues or other diseases to Agarwal's clinic, the DCP said. Agarwal used to pay Julfiqar almost 35 per cent of the total bill amount per patient, he added. Asgar Ali, the last patient Julfiqar sent to Agarwal's clinic died during surgery at Agarwal Medical Centre, the DCP said. Julfiqar was in touch with Agarwal for the last five to six years. He had referred around 40 to 50 patients to Agarwal for delivery, abortion, and treatment of diseases, he added. Julfiqar, a resident of Lal Kuan in the Prahladpur area here, was nabbed from his pharmacy shop. He was arrested after interrogation on Sunday, the police said. The Delhi government's Directorate General of Health Services has issued a showcause notice to the proprietor of Agarwal Medical Centre for allegedly violating the Delhi Nursing Homes Registration Act, according to an official order dated November 16. Amid the ongoing efforts to rescue the workers trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel, a portion of which caved in earlier, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami will on Sunday conduct an on-site inspection of the operations, the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) informed through an official release. The CM will be accompanied by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari during his visit to the tunnel site on Sunday. "Along with the Chief Minister, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari is also arriving to take stock of the relief and rescue work," the CMO added in its statement. On Saturday, a top official from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) took stock of the relief operations at the under-construction Silkyara Tunnel located on the Uttarkashi-Yamnotri road. The local administration on Saturday informed that it would deploy a tree-cutting expert as part of the ongoing efforts to extricate 40 workers trapped inside the tunnel for seven days now. A tree-cutting expert, Ashiq Hussain, was called by the Forest Department to the tunnel site, officials said on Saturday. Officials added that they were trying to reach the workers through vertical drilling from the upper part of the tunnel. "We were trying to reach them horizontally, now we will also try vertically. A spot right above the tunnel has been identified and marked. A hole will be drilled from there to reach there. The depth of the hole would be approximately 300-350 feet... The horizontal attempt of rescue would also begin from Barkot end of the tunnel," said Uttarkashi DFO DP Baluni. Sharing details of the ongoing rescue operation, Bhaskar Khulbe, a former advisor to the PMO, told ANI, "Efforts are on to bolster the entire area's strength to the order that it remains totally safe for workers to approach the rescue work that we are intending to do. I feel that our concerted effort will yield good results in the coming four to five days." Also, on Saturday, Chris Cooper, a micro-tunnelling expert, arrived at the Silkyara tunnel incident site to monitor and oversee the rescue operation. Cooper is a Chartered Engineer with an experienced track record for delivery of Major International key civil engineering infrastructure, Metro tunnels, Large Caverns, Dams, Railway, and Mining Projects. "I don't have any information as of now. I only reached here last night (Friday)," he told ANI. "The heavy-duty drilling machine, which was expected to arrive on Saturday from Indore, has also reached the Silkyara tunnel site," informed Cooper, who is also a consultant for the Rishikesh Karnprayag rail project. The under-construction tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri national highway collapsed in the early hours of November 12. Minister for Business, Employment and Retail, Neale Richmond has commenced an Enterprise Ireland led Trade Mission to the Gulf Region. The three-day trade mission visiting Kuwait City, Riyadh and Jeddah, will focus on enhancing the existing trade links with the region and promoting Ireland as a world-class provider of goods and services across the Aviation, Digital Technology and Consumer sectors. Major Growth Market As a major growth market, Enterprise Ireland has had a presence in the GCC (Gulf Cooperative Council) region for over 20 years. In 2022, Enterprise Ireland client exports to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region increased by 8%. Irish companies exported 163.5m in goods and services to Saudi Arabia in 2022, making it Enterprise Irelands largest trading partner in the MENA region, along with 44.9m in exports to Kuwait. 'Global Aviation Sector' The Gulf region offers huge opportunities for exporting Irish SMEs, with over 200m in exports to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia combined in 2022," said Minister Neale Richmond. "Irelands particular strength in the global aviation sector is an impressive success story. "With a large focus on the aviation sector throughout the Trade Mission, Im looking forward to promoting Irelands capabilities as a global leader in the sector, with the aim of opening up further opportunities for Irish enterprise. Clevamamma During the Kuwait leg of the Trade Mission, the Minister will meet with Enterprise Ireland client company, Clevamamma who are celebrating a partnership with Mothercare (Alshaya Group) in the region since 2017 and ClevaMamas 20th anniversary. He will also hold meetings with the new national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, RiyadhAir and major airlines and operators in Kuwait. 'Large Economic Ambitions' Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have large economic ambitions over the coming years," said Tom Kelly, Divisional Manager for Industrial and Life sciences, with Enterprise Ireland. "During this Trade Mission Enterprise Ireland, along with our client companies, aims to further showcase the very best of what Irish companies have to offer and to engage with business leaders across this region. Source: www.businessworld.ie Sunday, November 19, 2023 at 3:59AM The Google Home app has a new search feature that lets you easily find the Wi-Fi devices on your network. You can access this feature by going to the Wifi page and tapping on the Devices page. There, you will see a Search for devices bar at the top. As you type, the app will show you the devices that match your query. You can see both online and offline devices. This feature is useful because the device list can change frequently depending on the Real time sort option. With a search, you can quickly find the device you are looking for. The Wi-Fi device search feature is available on Google Home 3.9 for Android. We dont know when it will come to iOS. We also hope that Google will add a similar feature to the Devices tab and the Automations list, where it can be hard to find the right device among many smart home gadgets. The Favorites option helps, but it is not enough. Source Protesters calling for a cease-fire in Gaza disrupt the California Democratic Party convention in Sacramento on Saturday. Joe Garofoli/The Chronicle SACRAMENTO The dozens of young people massed outside the entrance to the California Democratic Party convention Saturday chanted a message for California Democrats who dont support a cease-fire in the Middle East: In November, well remember! Moments later at a forum for the hotly contested Senate race, demonstrators shouted Cease-fire now! as Rep. Katie Porter who does not support a cease-fire was speaking. It took California Democratic Party chair Rusty Hicks walking on stage to demand that every candidate will be heard to quiet them. Advertisement Article continues below this ad It was only a temporary muzzling. Moments later, Hicks repeated his message when Rep. Adam Schiff, who also opposes a cease-fire, was speaking. Rep. Barbara Lee is the only top Democratic candidate who backs a cease-fire and is one of only roughly three dozen House members who do so. Demonstrators calling for a cease-fire in Gaza disrupt the California Democratic Party convention in Sacramento on Saturday. San Francisco Chronicle Im calling for a cease-fire now! Lee said to punctuate her speech. The crowd of delegates roared their approval. The calm was short-lived. A short time later, dozens of pro-cease-fire demonstrators swarmed inside the hall and drowned out the last part of Senate candidate Lexi Reeses appearance. At 7:12 p.m., roughly 90 minutes after more than a couple of hundred demonstrators from a nearby march breached convention center security and entered the building, party officials canceled the rest of Saturday evenings program as the center went on lockdown. Due to circumstances beyond our control, and for the safety and security of our delegates and convention participants, we are canceling tonights caucus meetings, hospitality suites, and VoteFest taking place at the convention center, said Sherry Yang, communications director for the California Democratic Party. Afterward, leaders of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus said several Jewish delegates felt it was unsafe to participate in the rest of the convention. The statement by the caucus, which is co-chaired by San Francisco state Sen. Scott Wiener and Assembly Member Jesse Gabriel of Encino (Los Angeles County) said protesters were chanting from the river to the sea, which some interpret as a call for the eradication of Israel. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We must never allow the Democratic Party to be unsafe for anyone, the caucus statement read. We fully support the right to protest loudly and vociferously. But storming through security and shutting down a democratic process particularly with chants calling for the destruction of Israel and appearing to justify the Hamas attack is completely unacceptable. Hicks said Sunday that the state party has already begun an investigation into Saturdays events. Any delegate who actively participated or aided in the furtherance of those activities in violation of the partys code of conduct will be held accountable, he said. It was a visceral reminder of how Democrats, who gathered at the partys three-day convention that ends Sunday, are struggling with how to talk about the conflict in the Middle East. And of how their inability to do so threatens to weaken their support among young and progressive voters. The party needs to reckon with the fact that their complicity and silence will lose them a generation of voters, said Farah ArdLana, a 22-year-old organizer with Palestine Youth Movement and Students for Justice in Palestine at Sacramento State University, who was leading the chants outside the convention. These politicians say that they support us, but theyre empty words. Theyre not following their morals. It is not that young Democrats, in particular, are going to vote for Donald Trump. The concern among Democrats is that they might vote for a third-party candidate or just not cast a ballot. And that could be fatal to President Joe Bidens reelection bid. He needs strong turnout from young voters and communities of color to win. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Protesters call for a cease-fire in Gaza at the California Democratic Party convention in Sacramento on Saturday. Joe Garofoli/The Chronicle The question of a cease-fire is what is dividing Democrats. More moderate members of the party mostly support Bidens opposition to a cease-fire. Progressives want a cease-fire, but stress that their position isnt an anti-Israel one. It is one rooted in concern about the plight of the 11,000 Gazans killed, according to Gazan health officials, after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants that killed about 1,200 Israelis, according to Israeli officials. On Saturday, while the Sacramento demonstrations were going on, the Washington Post reported that the U.S, Israel and Hamas had agreed to a tentative agreement that would free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in the war. The White House denied that a deal had been reached as of Saturday night. Navigating the million layers of nuance and millennia of history behind the conflict is too daunting for many to touch in this era of binary politics. So, many Democratic officeholders and office-seekers are tiptoeing around the issue, fearful of a verbal misstep that could offend one side or the other especially in an election year when Congress and the White House will probably be decided by slim margins. We just want to ensure that everyone is simply heard, Hicks said Friday at the start of the convention. He chalked up the disagreements to Democrats being Democrats. Yes, it is occasionally rambunctious. Yes, folks do get passionate. But its our job as leaders within our party to ensure that everyone has their voice heard. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Hundreds of demonstrators calling for a cease-fire in Gaza breached security at the California Democratic Party convention in Sacramento on Saturday. Joe Garofoli/The Chronicle Hicks downplayed whether the controversy might affect Democratic House candidates in battleground districts. Flipping several battleground House seats in California is key to the Democrats hopes retaking the House from Republicans. I think theres a long way between here and Election Day in November of 2024, Hicks said. But the issue is existential to partisans on both sides, which is why many arent hiding their feelings. Saturdays demonstration at the nations largest Democratic Party convention, following the shutdown of the Bay Bridge days earlier during the APEC gathering of world leaders, is the latest high-profile act by cease-fire supporters. Late Saturday afternoon, after the Senate candidates had spoken, hundreds of demonstrators from a pro-cease-fire march and rally outside the convention breached the convention security and filled a large mezzanine in the center. Even Gov. Gavin Newsom, who didnt attend the convention, wasnt spared by cease-fire supporters. Alluding to Newsoms surprise trip to Israel last month, demonstrators chanted, Newsom, Newsom, you cant hide! We charge you with genocide. Newsom has said he is also working to get relief supplies to Gaza. Advertisement Article continues below this ad State convention delegates are typically more left-leaning than the general Democratic Party voters, which in part explains the demonstration. But support for Palestinians is growing particularly among young voters. An NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist College survey released this week found that 50% of Gen Z and Millennial respondents sympathized more with the Palestinian people than with Israel, while older voters were more sympathetic to Israel. The survey found that 38% of the respondents said that Israels military response to Hamas has been too much up from 26% in the week after the Oct. 7 attack. Overall, Democratic sympathies were evenly split. Hundreds of demonstrators calling for a cease-fire in Gaza breached security at the California Democratic Party convention in Sacramento on Saturday. Joe Garofoli/The Chronicle There were some efforts to seek a middle ground of sorts at the convention. At one session before the full convention, a Muslim leader and a Rabbi stood together to acknowledge the thousands who have died on both sides. The partys Progressive Caucus, its largest internal affinity group, held a panel discussion called Understanding Trauma: Palestinian Humanity and Unraveling Antisemitism in the Face of Genocide. If we dont center the most vulnerable among us every single time, in every situation, and have deep empathy and compassion, then we are somewhat complicit in that oppression for not speaking up, Progressive Caucus chair Fatima Iqbal-Zubair said. Schiff, who supports the administrations opposition to a cease-fire, said the U.S. role in the war is to help Israel protect itself against further Hamas attacks. But also urge Israel to make every effort to avoid civilian loss of life. As for how to explain that position to young voters who might be considering not voting for Democrats, Schiff said, You have to make the case to be able to do two things at once which is to respect the loss of lives, both Israeli and Palestinian. The need for peace. The need for the return of hostages. The need to have a governance in Gaza that is not run by terrorists. And that all of these things are prerequisites to peace. Lee, a cease-fire supporter, said everyone has a right to their own opinion in a democracy. Demonstrators calling for an end to the Israel-Hamas war disrupt the California Democratic Party convention Saturday in Sacramento. Joe Garofoli/The Chronicle However, Lee continued, we have to also understand the dangers of not voting for President Biden and Kamala Harris, because one vote not for them is a vote for Donald Trump. And this man, Donald Trump, wants to lead this country into an autocratic government. Other House Democrats who are campaigning in moderate districts, such as Adam Gray, a former Central Valley Assembly member, are trying to put the issue in context in regions like his where a lot of people live paycheck to paycheck. So you can imagine whats top of mind for them, right? But that doesnt make it any less important. Gray said: We have to hold the line in supportive democratic institutions, period. We have to support Ukraine. We have to support Israel. At the same time, we dont have to pretend that holding the line and supporting our allies and supporting democracy in the world doesnt mean we cant empathize for the communities that are suffering. A court ruling could change the way real estate agents commissions are shared in the Bay Area. Lara Aburamadan A historic federal court ruling against the National Association of Realtors is sending shock waves through the real estate industry and looks likely to change the way we buy and sell homes. More real estate: Most Californians own a home by 49 years old. These maps compare that to other states Consumer advocates say the ruling is probably a win for both home buyers and sellers. But what could the impact look like in the ultra-competitive Bay Area market? Advertisement Article continues below this ad What does the ruling say? Currently, the NAR the largest trade group in the United States, with more than 1.5 million registrants requires members helping sell a home to offer a commission to the agent representing the buyer. That commission, often a share of the home price, is technically paid by the seller but is often included in a homes listing, according to real estate listing site Realtor.com. But a Missouri jury found on Oct. 31 that the NARs policy effectively prevented buyers from negotiating their agents fee in violation of antitrust law, and unnecessarily increased the costs incurred by sellers. They ordered the NAR and its co-defendants, real estate brokerage firms Keller Williams Realty and Homeservices of America, to pay $1.8 billion in damages. The NAR, which has pledged to appeal the case, has asked the judge to reduce the damages charged. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The commission amount offered to the buyers representative can be as low as $0, the NAR has said, but typically the buyers agent and the sellers agent each make between 2.5% and 3% of the home price. In the San Francisco metropolitan area, where real estate brokerage site Zillow says the typical home costs more than $1.1 million, those commissions could run the seller about $60,000. With the rise of Redfin and Zillow and virtual home tours, that value-add from brokers has gone down, said Jenny Schuetz, a housing researcher at the Brookings Institution. Which raises questions about what services buyers are getting from brokers, and whether those services warrant a 3% fee exactly the point of the lawsuit. What happens now? Experts are still trying to sort out how the landmark ruling will affect the industrys future. The ruling hasnt changed the NARs compensation rules, and what happens now will probably depend on whether the judge in the case decides to require the NAR to alter its policy or to ban commission sharing outright. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Some consumer advocates have suggested homes could become cheaper if sellers no longer need to consider the cost of buyers agents in their price. And buyers, like sellers, would be able to negotiate their agents commission. Its not clear which party would bear the brunt of the fee. Many buyers would probably offer less money for a home, said East Bay Realtor Megan Micco, to account for the cost of the commission. Will the ruling impact the Bay Area market? Nikki Edwards, a South Bay Realtor with EQ1 Real Estate, expressed doubt that ending NAR compensation rules would substantially change Bay Area prices. Homes in the region rarely get cheaper, she explained, and its unlikely even a major change in how people buy and sell homes would alter that trajectory. Plus, factors such as low inventory and job availability affect home values more than agent fees, she said. Money will always be here in Silicon Valley, and theres always going to be a buyer willing to pay the price for that property, Edwards said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Emma Morris, an East Bay Realtor with Red Oak Realty, said she doesnt think the lawsuit will change the Bay Area market. Even if commission sharing were to go away entirely, most buyers especially those in a complex housing market like the Bay Areas will still be willing to pay a premium for some kind of representation, she believes, and thus agents would still be in demand. Sellers are usually selling the biggest asset in their life and buyers are purchasing the biggest purchase in their life, Morris said. How quickly will they want that support system that Realtors provide to change? Still, even if the ruling does not dramatically change the cost of buying or selling a home, Schuetz of the Brookings Institution said the ruling is largely a win for both home buyers and sellers and could upend the system. If the ruling stands, it has the potential to shake up an industry that has been stubbornly resistant to changing technology and consumer preferences, she said. We dont yet know exactly how things will shake out, but this is potentially a very big deal. Police responded to a noise complaint at Exile Bar, 1634 Rossville Ave., at 11:20 p.m. Police spoke to a person who had called in previously regarding the ongoing excessive noise levels coming from Exile Bar. Police had been to the Exile bar several times in the past and issued citations for the bar violating the city's noise ordinance. The current directive from Chattanooga executive staff is to refrain from citations at the bar until they have their hearing at the end of the month. * * * While on patrol, police located an open door at a residence on S. Holtzclaw Avenue. Police cleared the residence and found no one inside. Police attempted to secure the door with a bungee cord due to the door not being able to shut all the way. * * * A man on Taylor Street told police there was at least two people at his house attempting to gain access to his house, but they were unsuccessful. He noticed that his door panel had been damaged and needed a report for insurance. The man believes that it could be a man he identified to police, but was unsure if it was him because he didn't physically see him. While police were on scene the first time, the man did not mention anything about his back door panel being damaged. Police were later dispatched again to the same residence because the man noticed his back door was also damaged. Police do not have enough suspect information to obtain warrants. * * * A man on Chestnut Street told police that over the last year he has had approximately $1,500 worth of mail packages stolen from his mailbox/mail room at his apartment complex. The packages contained a variety of shoes and clothes, he said. There is no suspect information available. * * * A security guard at the Tennessee Aquarium told police a man was on the property after being told to leave by security multiple times throughout the night. He said security would like him to be trespassed from the property. Officers arrived on scene and made contact with the security guard, who said the man might have left the property. Officers looked around the area, but were unable to locate the man in order to trespass him. * * * A woman on Hicks Road wanted to report to police that some unknown men looked as if they came from the street next to her property and got into an unknown dark car parked at the stop sign in front of her house and left. * * * A man told police he works at Shady's Corner and was getting off shift at approximately 4 a.m. When he started his vehicle, he could hear that it was louder than usual. When he checked underneath, he observed the catalytic converter to be cut out. No security footage or suspect description is available. * * * A man on Marylin Lane told police that sometime during the night his 2015 Hyundai Sonata was stolen from his driveway. He said the keys were not with the vehicle at the time it was taken. He said that he has no idea who could have taken the vehicle, but knows that it was not repossessed because the vehicle was paid for and he possesses the title. Police entered the vehicle into NCIC. Police did not view glass on the ground and the vehicle was supposedly locked. * * * A man told police that he parked his 2015 Subaru Forester in parking lot space #651 at 150 River St. He said sometime between 5-9 a.m. his vehicle was damaged on the front passenger side bumper area. There was no evidence of what definitively caused the damage. * * * Police learned several vendors left their merchandise inside their tents overnight in the field at Coolidge Park. Sometime during the night, someone went inside Envision Positive tent and stole approximately 72 rings (metal and aluminum), 30 keychains and 10 wristlets. The owner of Envision Positive said over $1,000 worth of merchandise was taken. There is no suspect information. * * * A person told police they found a wallet at the Hamilton County Juvenile Court, 1600 E. 3rd St. Police met with the person, who wished to remain anonymous, and she handed in the woman's wallet. Police turned the wallet into Property. * * * A woman told police that her rental car, a Nissan Altima, was damaged while parked in the parking lot at the apartments at 2120 Chestnut St. It is unknown what caused the damage. Due to the delayed report and not being on scene, this information could not be verified or evidence collected. * * * Police were contacted by a man who was upset after receiving a parking citation while attempting to pay for parking. The man showed police where he took a picture of his vehicle's tag at 2:41 p.m. in order to pay for parking. The citation did show 2:41 p.m. as the time stamp on the citation. * * * A man on Hargraves Avenue told police his Honda Civic displaying a Georgia license plate was damaged in an apparent auto theft attempt. Police observed damage to the steering column shroud and ignition switch consistent with this. The ignition switch was observed to have damage to the metal as if someone attempted to start the vehicle with a device other than the key. There is no suspect information. * * * Police were alerted by a passerby of a man hitting a dog in the area of 829 Houston St. Police located a man walking with a dog on a leash. The man told police that he became upset with the dog after it ran from him. He said that he wanted to hand the dog over to McKamey Animal Center due to his lack of patience. Police transported the dog to McKamey. Anyone following Tennessee politics is aware of the growing divide in state government. Though Republicans possess a super majority, the party seems fractured since heated debates of gun control and mental health have raged. Governor Bill Lee championed extreme risk protection orders, a move that brought the ire of Republicans across the state, especially those in the legislature. Though far greater consensus exists on issues of mental health, the special session saw rifts grow between a fast-paced House of Representatives and a more patient Senate. On the heels of that special session around those issues, there seems to be little healing. Just this week, House Speaker Cameron Sexton joined a popular talk radio program to suggest the Senates inaction during special session made them complicit in the recent murder of a Belmont University freshman. Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson followed on the same program calling Sextons comments inaccurate and counterproductive. It seems more than ever, despite single-party control, the legislature is apart. Feuds from the Governors residence to the two legislative bodies have many concerned at what the second semester of the 113th General Assembly might accomplish. But during argumentative chaos, there seems to be those who have remained above the fray. This past week, first-term Senator J. Adam Lowe (R-Calhoun), who represents the newly formed District 1 consisting of Bradley, McMinn, Meigs and Rhea Counties, hosted a private event in Nashville. Unlike the normal legislative fundraisers, Senator Lowe and his team chose to host a more causal assembly, choosing the upper deck of a local restaurant outside the cityscape. The atmosphere was relaxed with propane fires and soft music provided by Emmy Moyen, a local Belmont music major. But what was most interesting about the event were those who were present and that they lingered for over an hour. Rarely do I see people stay this long, said one attendee who chose to remain nameless. We attend dozens of these events during the fall and the normal goal is to make an appearance and get out. It is customary for legislators to use down time while out of session to host such gatherings and fundraisers, even in off-election years. Just elected in 2022, Senator Lowe is not up for re-election until 2026 yet the event had upwards of 40 lobbyists, legislators, and state directors. Senator Lowe was little known to the Nashville political establishment prior to his election to replace long-time Senator Mike Bell. He is a college professor, father of four, and former small business owner who enjoyed a brief stint on the Bradley County Commission a decade ago. His election was a surprise to many in the establishment. Senator Lowe raised the majority of his support from the district to secure a decisive win over a sitting state representative in the primary and then won the general election with 83 percent of the vote. Senator Lowe also attributes his win to a strong grassroots support by individuals in his district. Senator Lowes lack of notoriety has not seemed to hamper his ability to quickly garner influence among his governmental peers. His event was well-attended but what was most revealing were those in attendance including Senate leadership, members of the House of Representatives, commissioners, and the Governor himself. So how does a freshman senator from Southeast Tennessee manage to fill a venue with such individuals in a time where no one seems to get along? The answer seemed to lie in the comments offered by Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson and Governor Bill Lee. Senator Lowe has quickly become a valuable part of our body, said Majority Leader Johnson. He is a true friend and confidante, and his insight has become valuable to me and our colleagues. Governor Bill Lee echoed similarly. There are very few legislators that I know I can trust to discuss ideas and get feedback, said Governor Lee. Very few that call, or I can call and just work through ideas, and I am grateful (Senator Lowe) was sent here to Nashville. During the months leading up to special session, Senate leadership and the Governor were at an impasse around proposed red-flag laws, few further apart on the issue than Leader Johnson and Governor Lee. Further, at present, the House and Senate chambers are on the verge of war over delayed bills around mental health. Yet, one freshman senator has built trust and shown leadership enough for everyone to lay down their arms, if only for one evening. I am thankful for all those who have dedicated their time and passion to serve Tennessee, said Senator Lowe. Though there may be great disagreement, I still believe everyone is working toward what is best for the families of Tennessee. Senator Lowe said that though he and Governor Lee had disagreed on passing red-flag laws, they were able to move forward on other measures to improve public safety. Lowe was the only senator outside of leadership to carry a bill during special session. One of only five bills to pass, Lowes safe storage bill eliminated sales taxes on safety devices and expanded a state program for free gun locks. Even now, Senator Lowe may be guiding some discussion around the Governors upcoming push for school choice, an initiative that is sure to bring even more vitriol to the Capitol in 2024. That despite only having served for a year, Senator Lowe may be prepared for it all and in a position of trust with those who desperately need a bridge. Time will tell how much of a rising star Senator Lowe is becoming but what is certain is that stardom is not what compels him. He rarely engages Nashville media but instead opts for radio and public appearances back in his district. Since adjournment, he has hosted more than a dozen town halls and meetings with constituent groups and plans to have more. Recently prior to the special session, he invited the Democrat Caravan to come to Athens to see the opinions of his constituents regarding the gun issue. He stated that he is not focused on pursuits of leadership but rather is most excited about the legislation he is working on for the next session. Senator Lowe may not be in leadership, but his influence is becoming apparent.The State Senate is made up of 27 Republicans and six Democrats The General Assembly will reconvene in January 2024. 'They make me feel more 'her,'' Princess Diana actor Elizabeth Debicki said of two of her co-stars in 'The Crown' Season 6. The final season of The Crown has arrived. Well, Part I, anyway, which consists of the first four episodes. And with it, the award-winning dramas depiction of Princess Dianas final days. That means scenes of actor Elizabeth Debicki frolicking in the sun prior to the fateful night in Paris, France, ending in the late royals death. Emotional to film for the cast, Debicki found herself happiest on set with two of her co-stars. Who exactly? Her TV children playing Prince William and Prince Harry. Prince William and Prince Harry are each played by 2 different actors in The Crown Season 6 The final installment of The Crown covers the years 1997 to 2005 of Queen Elizabeth IIs (Imelda Staunton) reign. As such, the now-Prince of Wales, 41, and Duke of Sussex, 39, are played by different actors. Rufus Kampa and Fflyn Edwards play young William and Harry leading up to and in the aftermath of Dianas death. Ed McVey and Luther Ford play the brothers years later in the 2000s, with William and Harry as young adults. Because Diana died when she and the now-King Charles IIIs sons were 15 and 12 years old, respectively (Harry was just weeks shy of turning 13 at the time), Debickis scenes with her onscreen children feature Kampa and Edwards. Elizabeth Debicki felt bereft on The Crown set without her onscreen children Rufus Kampa, Elizabeth Debicki, and Fflyn Edwards | Rodin Eckenroth/FilmMagic I think the most important thing, Debicki told Newsweek, one of the areas that I have always focused on and found a huge amount of joy and creative joy and personal joy, is the relationship with her children. That to me was always the centre [sic]thats the tent poll, she explained. Its also the times that I feel the happiest on set. I feel the most connected to the scene. I feel the most supported. The 33-year-old continued, saying she herself felt unmoored if the actors who played William and Harry werent with her. You know, I quite literally, when the kids arent on set, I feel quite bereft, she said. Ive always felt quite bereft. And sometimes you have a half-day where you know theyre coming in the afternoon. And I always just thought, When are the kids here?' I just wanted to be with them. And they made me feel whole in a way, and they make me feel more her, she added. Theyre glorious to work opposite. And Ive been so blessed that all the kids who have been cast in this have been the most sublime actors, little actors. That to me is the kind of key, I think, she went on. And its also the place that Ive been happiest playing her. Debicki wants Diana, William, and Harrys trio of love to come through in season 6 After watching hours and hours of footage featuring Diana, William, and Harry to prepare, Debicki shared she hopes the love between them is clear. I hope what comes across in season 6, too, is that theres this little trio of love between them, she said. Debicki explained her research showed her how incredibly important making Harry and William feel normal was to Diana. It was so incredibly important for the real Diana to really kind of make what was an extremely unusual set of circumstances, duties, responsibilities for children to endure, she said. To try and make them feel at times just as regular as possible and do things that kids want to do go to the cinema, go to the store, go on vacation. Part I of The Crown Season 6 is streaming on Netflix. Part II premieres on Dec. 14, 2023. At long last, Paul McCartney made a song with The Rolling Stones. Jagger explained why the song is a punk rock song. He also discussed the importance of the tune given the history of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Paul McCartney and Mick Jagger worked on a song with a legendary producer During a 2023 interview with the CBC, Jagger discussed the origins of The Rolling Stones Bite My Head Off. The track was produced by Andrew Wyatt, the maestro behind songs like Dua Lipas Dance the Night and Lady Gaga and Bradley Coopers Shallow. Paul was in LA when we were recording, and he was supposed to work with Andy one week, Jagger said. Andy said, Im working on this record [Hackney Diamonds], and if it takes six months Im gonna do nothing else.' Wyatt did not keep his promise. Suddenly, we get to this one week and he says, I forgot to tell you Im supposed to work with Paul this week,' Jagger recalled. So we worked out the schedule and [Wyatt] said, Why dont we get Paul to come in and play on something?' The song went in a direction many Paul fans and Rolling Stones fans might find surprising. We suggested he played on this punk tune, Jagger recalled. I didnt know how it was gonna work out, but he really rocked it and he loved doing it. He said, Its great playing with a band! Really enjoyable playing with a band.' What Mick Jagger said about the importance of making a song with Paul McCartney A reporter told Jagger that Bite My Head Off means a lot in the context of The Beatles feud with The Rolling Stones. Yeah, it does, Jagger agreed. And its fun. But it seems so natural, you know? Part of what makes The Beatles and The Rolling Stones so compelling is that they both covered a lot of musical ground. The bands delved into rock, blues, soul, country, psychedelic music, and other genres. Its interesting that Paul decided to collaborate with The Rolling Stones on a punk song, considering thats not his style, and it certainly wasnt The Beatles style. The Rolling Stones, however, dipped their toes into punk rock during the Some Girls era. How The Rolling Stones Bite My Head Off performed on the charts Bite My Head Off was not a single. It did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The tune appeared on 2023s Hackney Diamonds, The Rolling Stones first record of original material since 2005s A Bigger Bang. Hackney Diamonds, which is still on the charts, has reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and stayed on the chart for three weeks. According to The Official Charts Company, Bite My Head Off did not chart in the United Kingdom either. On the other hand, Hackney Diamonds peaked at No. 1 in the U.K. for a single week. It has spent a total of four weeks on the chart so far. Bite My Head Off is an unexpected collaboration but a welcome one. Prince Harry happened to be in the United Kingdom when he learned the news of how sick Queen Elizabeth was -- but he nearly missed that phone. Meghan Markle encouraged him to answer it. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle happened to be in the United Kingdom when Queen Elizabeth died in September 2022. Harry and Meghan spent more than a week in the UK grieving the loss of Harrys grandmother, and they spent a good bit of time with Harrys family despite not having communicated much with them in the couple years leading up to the queens death. However, a royal author and friend of the couples has just revealed that Harry nearly missed the phone call regarding the queens death; Meghan encouraged him to answer it. Queen Elizabeth causes Prince Harry to laugh while inspecting a line of soldiers in 2006 | Tim Graham/Getty Images Prince Harry nearly ignored the phone call regarding Queen Elizabeth IIs death Queen Elizabeth was 96 when she died, meaning the Palace had likely been preparing for her death for quite some time. But on the day it happened, Harry wasnt prepared and nearly missed a phone call from his father that the queen was having her last moments, according to an excerpt from royal author and friend of Harry and Meghans Omid Scobie in his new book, Endgame. The Sussexes had no idea that Buckingham Palace was already planning for the Queens final hours Until the dukes phone started ringing. An unknown number. He usually ignored those, part of Scobies book reads. It was Meghan who prompted him to answer it, only to hear his father, King Charles, on the other line. He told Harry to make his way to Scotland immediately. Harry had to figure out how to get to Scotland on his own after his brother, Prince William, reportedly didnt answer his message about traveling together. Scobie added that Charles called him again and asked that he come alone. Kate also did not attend. Prince Harry appears to wipe tears while paying his respects to Queen Elizabeth at her funeral in 2022 | Christopher Furlong/Getty Images Prince Harry has only been back to the UK a handful of times since Queen Elizabeths death Harry and Meghan spent quite a bit of time over there in response to the queens death; the couple did a walkabout with Prince William and Kate Middleton, too, which the public was surprised to see but ultimately appreciated. However, once the dust settled on the queens death, Harry and Meghan hardly returned. Meghan has not returned to the UK even once since Queen Elizabeths funeral. However, Harry did make his way across the pond back in May 2023 to support his father at his coronation ceremony. Harry has also returned to the UK for various court appearances regarding ongoing lawsuits that stem from his time spent as a working royal. Harry reportedly does still speak to his father, though things between him and William seem a bit more tense. While there is still plenty of tension between Harry and the rest of his family, there is a chance that Harry and Charles will be able to reconcile to the point of having a decent relationship. The jury is still out on whether Harry and William will ever be able to solve their problems, though both of them having young kids could be the one thing that brings them closer. They might want the kids to grow up having some kind of relationship with their cousins, though nothing of the sort has happened just yet. Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum is seen, Aug. 21, 2020, at his campaign headquarters in Tulsa, Okla. The Muscogee (Creek) Nation filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023, against the city of Tulsa, arguing Tulsa police are continuing to ticket Native American drivers within the tribe's reservation boundaries despite a recent federal appeals court ruling that they lacked jurisdiction to do so. Sam Altman participates in a discussion during the CEO Summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in San Francisco on Thursday. A day later, OpenAI pushed him out as CEO. Eric Risberg/Associated Press Recently removed OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has been in talks to return to his old company while also planning to start his own artificial intelligence venture, according to news reports. The Verge reported Saturday that Altman and former OpenAI President Greg Brockman have been talking to friends about starting a new company, but added that Altman is also in talks with OpenAI to retake his position as CEO. One source told the outlet that Altman was ambivalent about a potential return. Some OpenAI investors have expressed interest in investing in Altmans potential new company, the New York Times reported Saturday. Read more: What upheaval at OpenAI could mean for San Francisco and its fledgling AI industry Advertisement Article continues below this ad On Sunday, the Information reported that Altman and Brockman joined executives at OpenAIs San Francisco headquarters to discuss a possible reinstatement, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Interim CEO Mira Murati said she and her leadership team had pushed the board to reinstate Altman and Brockman, the Information reported. Emily Chang, host of The Circuit on Bloomberg, provided a wild update Sunday night that Murati was in talks with OpenAIs board representative to rehire Altman and Brockman and that the board was looking to hire its own CEO and had reached out to two candidates. Later Sunday, the Information reported that talks with Altman had broken down and that Emmett Shear, co-founder of the video streaming site Twitch, would take over as interim CEO, replacing Murati. Earlier this weekend, citing one person familiar with the matter, the Information reported that Altman has told investors he plans to start an undisclosed AI venture. The person also reportedly told the Information that Brockman, who left after the news of Altmans ouster, would also be involved in the new venture. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Chronicle has not independently verified the reports. The reports come after OpenAI, the inventor of ChatGPT, announced Friday that co-founder Altman was being pushed out of the company. In a statement, the company said its board was no longer confident in Altmans leadership, saying he had not been consistently candid in his communications. Directly after the announcement, stock in Microsoft which has invested billions into OpenAI dipped. The Information reported Altmans departure also led three senior researchers to resign from OpenAI. The Times reported Microsoft has been pushing for Altmans reinstatement. Altman had addressed the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco on Thursday, saying the past year has been a turning point for AI and that it will be the most transformative and beneficial technology yet invented. After the announcement of the OpenAI CEOs ouster, both Altman and Brockman hinted at next moves on X, formerly known as Twitter. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Will have more to say about whats next later, Altman posted shortly after the news broke. Migraines rank as one of the top chronic pain conditions globally, impacting up to 20% of adults. Recent progress in understanding its genetics and biology has led to new treatments that benefit numerous individuals with migraines. However, these treatments arent universally effective for all migraine types. So, an international team of scientists, spearheaded by deCODE Genetics in Iceland, recently conducted a study examining genetic data from over 1.3 million people, including 80,000 individuals who suffer from migraines. This data was generated by sizeable population-based studies from FinnGen and the UK Biobank. The researchers concentrated on identifying genetic sequence variations linked to the two primary forms of migraines: migraines with aura (commonly known as classical migraine) and migraines without aura. Their findings emphasize distinct genes that predominantly influence one subtype of migraine over the other. This discovery sheds light on novel biological pathways that could be leveraged for developing new treatments. The research uncovered links to 44 genetic variants, including 12 previously unidentified ones. Among these, four novel associations were found in migraines with aura, and 13 variants were primarily linked to migraines without aura. Notably, three rare variants stood out due to their significant impact, indicating distinct underlying pathologies for different migraine types. The study highlights a rare frameshift variant located in the PRRT2 gene that significantly increases the risk of migraines with aura and epilepsy but not migraines without aura. In the SCN11A gene, crucial for pain sensation, multiple rare loss-of-function variants were found to offer protective effects against migraines. Conversely, a common missense variant in SCN11A is linked to a modest risk of migraines. Sign up for Chip Chicks newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox. Have you ever noticed how loud it can get at the movies? At times, the sound can feel like its blasting directly in your ears. If youve experienced this before, youre not imagining things. Some movie theaters reach such loud volumes that theyre unsafe for your health. TikToker Jareen Imam (@jareenimam) is discussing how the sound levels in movie theaters can damage your hearing without you even knowing it. Jareen loves the experience of going to the movies. She makes sure to hit the theaters every other week, but after the pandemic, she started becoming aware of the fact that theaters seem to be getting louder. At first, I thought it was in my head, but no, that paranoia is not in my head or in yours. It really is getting louder in movie theaters, and its causing hearing loss, she said. She refers to an article from Northeastern University that outlines how movie theaters have been increasing in volume, which can lead to your hearing being damaged. According to Dr. Nicole Laffan, an assistant professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, watching just one movie can hurt your hearing, depending on the film. And most people dont even realize the risks that come with going to the movies. The National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders states that the noise levels in movie theaters are similar to the sound of motorcycles and dirt bikes. These vehicles are incredibly loud, and they do cause damage to your ears, which is why bikers wear earplugs to reduce harm when riding. Noise-induced hearing damage is more common than you might think. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 17 percent of adults and 12.5 percent of children have hearing loss caused by noise alone. So, why exactly are movie theaters getting louder? Jareen explains that its partly due to issues with audio control. Some theaters crank up the sound, thinking itll make the moviegoing experience more exciting. Sign up for Chip Chicks newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox. Home World American-Israeli author Joel C. Rosenberg pleads with Israel to evacuate Christians from Gaza 'There are no safe havens for Christians in southern Gaza,' Joel Rosenberg warns Bestselling Evangelical American-Israeli author Joel C. Rosenberg penned an open letter on Friday urging Israeli leaders to evacuate the roughly 1,000 Palestinian Christians in northern Gaza to the West Bank amid fears Hamas will murder them if they move south. "Palestinian Christians in northern Gaza are in extreme danger, and the situation is becoming worse by the hour," wrote Rosenberg, who is editor-in-chief of All Israel News and works closely with Evangelical leaders in the U.S. As an Israeli and an Evangelical, I urge @IsraeliPM@Netanyahu, Minister @gantzbe, the @IDF chief of staff and National Security Advisor @Tzachi_Hanegbi to protect Palestinian Christians in Gazabut do not move them South or they face genocide from Hamas. https://t.co/LTEzbD1KSnpic.twitter.com/BfDT7n13BA Joel C. Rosenberg (@JoelCRosenberg) November 17, 2023 Emphasizing that Palestinian Christians support neither Hamas, radical Islamic terrorism nor the attacks against Israel, Rosenberg said they find themselves in an "impossible situation" because they have nowhere to find safety in Gaza amid the bombardments. "They just want to live in peace and be free to follow the Bible and love their neighbors," he said. "The policy of the Israeli Defense Forces has understandably and rightly been to urge all Palestinians in and around Gaza City to flow to sanctuary areas in the south of the Gaza Strip, where they [will] be safer from Israeli military operations, and have access to food, clean water, and medical care," he wrote, but added that Christians are terrified to move south for fear of facing genocide from Hamas. Rosenberg went on to explain that Palestinian Christians and Muslims face very different situations. Remembering how they were treated by ISIS in recent years, he said Christians fear similar brutality from Hamas if they move south within the coming days as the IDF has ordered them to do. "As followers of the crucified and risen Christ Jesus of Nazareth they are considered pagans, and heathens, and idol-worshipers by Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and all violent Islamist extremists," said Rosenberg, who noted they can "expect no mercy from Hamas and the others in the south." He said Christians are afraid Hamas will "butcher them," "behead them," and "burn them alive," but "only after raping, torturing, and mutilating them." Rosenberg went on to cite a friend with direct knowledge of the situation who informed him that tanks have been surrounding the churches where the Palestinian Christians have been sheltering. To the best of his knowledge, Rosenberg said 590 Christians are sheltering in the Catholic Church under the Latin Patriarchate in Gaza City, 350 Christians are in the Greek Orthodox church, and 53 are sheltering in Deir El Balah. "Already over 20 of them have been killed, and they are very close to our hearts," his Christian friend reportedly told him. "A couple of days ago, four more were injured due to the shelling. We have been in constant contact with them. They are desperate to leave but not to the South, where it is not safe." "Dearest Joel, we are asking you in the name of Jesus to help them and find a way to help them while they are in the churches or find another way to get them to a safe place," his friend asked him. "Jesus came to give them life, not death." Rosenberg urged the Israeli government to allow Christians to evacuate to the West Bank, and said he is "certain that the Palestinian Christians who live in the West Bank will warmly welcome their brothers and sisters from Gaza and make sure they have places to live." "My Evangelical Christian colleagues all over the world will then do everything possible to work with Christian NGOs and others to provide these Christians the humanitarian aid they desperately need," he added, pleading with Israeli leaders to "move with compassion and speed to rescue these Palestinian Christians in Gaza from genocide." Christians in Palestine have faced a difficult situation amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Israel admitted last month that an airstrike intended to strike a Hamas command center damaged the compound of the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrios, the oldest church in Gaza. The compound was reportedly sheltering hundreds of people, at least 18 of whom were killed, leading the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem to accuse Israel of a "war crime." Home World Kidnappers shoot pastor dead after church members hand over ransom payment for his release ABUJA, Nigeria A pastor kidnapped earlier this month in Nigerias central state of Kogi was killed on Tuesday after church members paid a ransom for his release, sources said. The Rev. David Musa of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) in the Obajana area, Lokoja County, had been kidnapped from his farm by armed terrorists, said church member John Emmanuel. With a heavy heart, I want to inform you that an evil act has taken place. My pastor, Rev. David Musa of ECWA Church, Obajana, who was kidnapped on Saturday, [Nov. 11] while he was in his farm, has been killed by his terrorist captors after they collected the ransom they demanded, Emmanuel said in a text message to Morning Star News. Kindly pray for the family and the church, the ECWA Obajana Local Church Board, and the ECWA church denomination at large. Church members said the terrorists had demanded 20 million naira (US$23,676) but had accepted 1 million naira (US$1,184). Rev. Musa was killed by the terrorists after they were paid a ransom of 1 million naira by the church leadership, church member Stephen Danladi told Morning Star News in a text message. This is because the church was unable to raise the 20 million naira demanded by the terrorists. The kidnappers had agreed to accept 1 million naira as ransom before two church members went to recover the pastor, said a church member identified only as Mary, according to local news media. After the kidnappers told the church members to take Pastor Musa and leave, they called the pastor to return and shot him dead as he was coming back, she said. The ECWA Obajana District Church Council confirmed the abduction and murder of Pastor Musa. With a heavy heart but in total submission to the will of God, we write to inform you that the abductors of our brother, Pastor Musa David, have killed him after collecting a ransom of 1 million naira on the night of Tuesday [Nov. 14], the council said in a statement. Let our prayers be with the family, the church and the District Church Council in this trying moment. Church member Danladi said Christians had prayed for his release. We have accepted his demise in good faith as Christians, believing that this is within the sovereign will of Christ, Danladi told Morning Star News. Let us continue to pray for his family and the church at large. William Ovye Aya, spokesman for the Kogi State Police Command, on Thursday confirmed the kidnapping and murder of the pastor. We have received a report from ECWA about the incident, and the command has begun investigation into it, Aya told Morning Star News. We want to assure the church that those behind the killing of Pastor Musa will be arrested and prosecuted. In 2021, a Christian kidnapped in Kogi state was killed in a rescue operation on Oct. 2, the same day three other Christians were killed in another attack in the state. Nigeria led the world in Christians killed for their faith in 2022, with 5,014, according to Open Doors 2023 World Watch List (WWL) report. It also led the world in Christians abducted (4,726), sexually assaulted or harassed, forcibly married or physically or mentally abused, and it had the most homes and businesses attacked for faith-based reasons. As in the previous year, Nigeria had the second most church attacks and internally displaced people. In the 2023 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, Nigeria jumped to sixth place, its highest ranking ever, from No. 7 the previous year. Militants from the Fulani, Boko Haram, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and others conduct raids on Christian communities, killing, maiming, raping and kidnapping for ransom or sexual slavery, the WWL report noted. This year has also seen this violence spill over into the Christian-majority south of the nation. Nigerias government continues to deny this is religious persecution, so violations of Christians rights are carried out with impunity. Home World Last pupil of 121 Bethel Baptist High School students abducted by radical Fulani escapes captors Treasure Ayuba, the final captive from the 121 students abducted from Bethel Baptist High School in Nigerias Kaduna state in 2021, has escaped his captors. His escape ends a harrowing ordeal that lasted over two years. On July 5, 2021, armed individuals, believed to be radicalized Fulani herders, stormed the school located near Kaduna metropolis, abducting 121 students. Over the ensuing months, the students were released in groups as ransom demands were met. However, Ayuba, who was just 12 years old at the time of the abduction, remained in captivity. The persecution watchdog group Open Doors U.K. announced Ayubas escape Friday. The Rev. Israel Akanji, president of the Nigerian Baptist Convention, which oversees Bethel High School, expressed profound relief and gratitude on social media following Ayubas return. The Convention faced the daunting task of negotiating with the kidnappers, ultimately paying a staggering 250 million Nigerian Naira, or over $311,000 (250,000), for the release of the students over the last two years, Open Doors USA said in a statement to The Christian Post. Joseph Hayab, chairman of the Kaduna State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, dispelled rumors that Ayuba had chosen to stay with his captors. Instead, Hayab clarified that the kidnappers had planned to keep Ayuba as a means to convert him. Ayubas escape was a daring and risky endeavor. He managed to sneak away from his captors, navigating at night and hiding during the day. His journey led him to hunters who helped him reach his hometown. The reunion with his family was unexpected and emotional, with his mother unaware of his escape until he appeared at her doorstep. Plans are underway to provide necessary trauma care for Ayuba, who's now 14 years old. In a telephone interview, Hayab shared further details of Ayuba's ordeal. The teenager had been given a degree of freedom within the kidnappers' enclave and was occasionally given pocket money. Despite this, the psychological impact of his captivity is undeniable. Hayab also noted that Ayuba's health was a concern, as he had been vomiting after eating upon his return. The situation in northern Nigeria has been increasingly perilous, particularly for Christian communities. The infamous abduction of 276 schoolgirls by Boko Haram in Borno State in 2014 marked a significant escalation in kidnappings for ransom. This trend has continued, with violence spreading further south. Nigeria ranks sixth on the World Watch List for persecution of Christians, but if ranked solely by violence, it would be at the top. Kaduna State is one of six states in Northwest Nigeria severely impacted by bandit activities. Hundreds have been killed and several others kidnapped in the last four years. The persecution of Christians in Nigeria is particularly severe, with 90% of the over 5,600 Christians killed for their faith worldwide last year being Nigerian, according to Open Doors. In its latest International Religious Freedom Report, the U.S. State Department noted a spike in deadly violence impacting both Christians and Muslims in Nigeria. The NGO Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project reported there were 3,953 civilian deaths from violence across the country in 2022. Home Church & Ministries Church of England votes to proceed with trial blessing services for same-sex couples The Church of England has decided to proceed with trial blessing services for same-sex couples. This decision, made during the General Synod, marks a significant shift in the denomination's stance on same-sex relationships. The Bishop of Oxford proposed the amendment for these trial services, which narrowly passed in the House of Laity by one vote, the U.K.-based group The Christian Institute noted, adding that the House of Bishops supported the motion 23 to 10, with four abstentions. The House of Clergy also voted in favor, 100 to 93, with one abstention. The House of Laity also voted in favor, but by 104 to 100, with no abstentions. Originally, the House of Bishops proposed that these services be formally authorized under a two-year process, requiring a two-thirds majority in each of the three Houses. However, the approval allows for the use of prayers of blessing in existing services as early as December, while the bishops discuss implementation. The Rev. John Dunnett, national director of the CofE Evangelical Council, expressed disappointment with the decision, stating it departs from a biblical understanding of sex and marriage. CEEC plans to announce provisions for orthodox Evangelicals and aims to ensure their continued presence in the denomination. The Anglican Network in Europe, the Anglican Convocation in Europe and the Anglican Mission in England had previously urged the House of Bishops to adhere to biblical teachings on sexual conduct. They described the decision as offensive to God and a distortion of His message. At the Synod, Christian Concerns Benjamin John criticized the CofE's move, calling it a rebellion against Gods Word. Rebecca Bensted from the Christian Legal Centre, the legal arm of Christian Concern, highlighted the lack of transparency and legal process in the proposal. The rector of Buckingham, the Rev. William Pearson Gee, emphasized the importance of adhering to the teachings of Jesus and the apostolic church. To say that a practice is sinful is not opposed to a Savior who came to save us from sin, is all of our discovery that we are sinful and that it is pastoral to be told how, and to be called to change. Charlie Skrine, the rector of All Souls in London, pointed out the contradiction between the CofEs doctrine on marriage and the proposed pastoral step. The Rev. Neil Barber from Derby and the Rev. Ian Paul from Southwell and Nottingham raised concerns about the perceived abandonment of doctrine and the need for integrity and transparency. The watching world sees that the Church of England is dumping its doctrine, even though we assert that legally, we are not. But they know that we are not doing nothing. They see that we are changing doctrine, he reiterated. Anna De Castro from Sheffield called for consistency between the confessed and lived doctrines. Daniel Matovu expressed concerns about the lack of a clear timescale for the motion passed. The CEEC said it remains committed to working toward a permanent structural settlement that secures orthodox life and witness within the denomination. They continue to uphold the doctrines of the Church of England as expressed in the 39 Articles, the Book of Common Prayer, and the Ordinal. Genesis Energy (NZX/ASX: GNE) has selected Gentrack (NZX/ASX: GTK) g2.0 to enable a digital transformation focused on delivering an enhanced customer experience. Genesis Chief Transformation and Technology Officer, Ed Hyde, said selecting Gentrack g2.0 is another sign of the commitment to providing market leading customer experiences and is a significant milestone in the companys push toward a simpler, digitally driven future. What we like about the g2.0 solution is the bringing together of two market leading capabilities in Gentrack and Salesforce. This powerful combination will deliver a significant lift in customer experience through automation and digitisation of the customer proposition for our Retail customers, Hyde said. g.2.0, with Salesforces Energy and Utility Cloud embedded, includes all the out of the box customer journeys required by utilities to deliver outstanding customer experiences across industrial, commercial and residential market segments. These journeys can be configured to accommodate constant business changes thanks to low-code/no-code technology. Genesis and Gentrack have a 25-year history of working together and Gentrack CEO, Gary Miles, said the g2.0 solution will enable Genesis to service customers digitally across a range of products, channels and brands. The programme will focus on customer experience and enable Genesis to launch and broaden its range of innovative offerings. We are pleased to be working with them in this new era of decentralised energy sources, green targets and operational excellence, Miles said. g2.0 is a cloud-native environment, running on AWS. It brings the highest level of security, scalability and availability while remaining modular, open and extensible. The solution comes with a complete suite of products and capabilities, including Salesforce Energy and Utilities, high volume smart meter services, charging, billing, invoicing, servicing, data and analytics and much more. This covers the life-cycle from product definition to profit optimisation. In addition to the technology stack, Gentrack provides a full suite of utility-specific professional services for transformation and ongoing SLA accountability. The roll-out of g2.0 will be phased across the Genesis brands beginning with Frank*Energy. ENDS About Genesis Energy Genesis Energy (NZX: GNE , ASX: GNE) is a diversified New Zealand energy company. Genesis sells electricity, reticulated natural gas and LPG through its retail brands of Genesis and Frank Energy and is one of New Zealands largest energy retailers with more than 480,000 customers. The Company generates electricity from a diverse portfolio of thermal and renewable generation assets located in different parts of the country. More information can be found at www.genesisenergy.co.nz About Gentrack We are entering a new era, with utilities worldwide transforming to meet business and sustainability targets. For over 35 years Gentrack has been partnering with the worlds leading utilities, and more than 60 energy and water companies rely on us. Gentrack, with our partners Salesforce and AWS, are leading todays transformation with g2.0, an end-to-end product-to-profit solution. Using low code / no code, and composable technology. g2.0 allows utilities to launch new propositions in days, reduce cost-to-serve and lead in total experience. Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Me Today - Notice of Annual Shareholder Meeting FSF - Director Scott St John to retire from Fonterra Board Greenfern announces change in Chief Financial Officer AIA Provision of Financial Assistance - Employee Share Plan CBD - Recording and Presentation of Investor Call AUCKLAND CAR PARK CONCESSION AGREEMENT - HIGH COURT JUDGMENT CRP - Korella North Mining Lease Lodgement Approved Genesis Energy launches new strategy November 30th Morning Report IFT270 - Interest Rate Reset Home Church & Ministries This week in Christian history: Pope elected, Isaac Backus dies, Baptist Convention formed Throughout the extensive history of the Church, there have been numerous events of lasting significance. Each week brings anniversaries of impressive milestones, unforgettable tragedies, amazing triumphs, memorable births and notable deaths. Some of the events drawn from over 2,000 years of history might be familiar, while others might be unknown to many people. The following pages highlight anniversaries of memorable events that occurred this week in Christian history. They include the death of Isaac Backus, the formation of the Baptist Foreign Mission Convention, and the election of Pope Clement XI. 1 2 3 4 Next Home Opinion Consulting God first is the antidote to regrettable decisions Life is full of confusion. How we navigate through alternative options and life choices is always difficult for many of us as Christians. There were some decisions that I personally made in the past that I now regret deeply. I strongly believe that I am not alone in this. Consulting God on whatever decision we want to make is very important if we want to live according to the will of God. Most often, what we want to do and follow is always in conflict with what God wants. Relying absolutely on our psyche and feelings is not good enough. There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death (Proverbs 14:12). Many Christians have stepped into trouble searching for jobs, spouses, business partners, and spiritual help, by following their hearts. The effect of wrong decisions is always devastating and most often unavoidable without divine help. We have a helper in the person of the Holy Spirit whom God has sent to us to ensure that we do not make wrong decisions. "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future (John 16:13). The truth is that many of us make important decisions without consulting the omniscient and the omnipotent God. It is only when they backfire that we remember that consulting God is essential. We complain when we find it difficult to drag Him into our human-orchestrated plans and agenda, and its absolutely wrong. Even in the midst of provocation and trauma, we should be careful not to act out of irritability. Experience has proven that decisions taken in anger are always regrettable. When the Amalekites invaded Ziklag and burned down everywhere and took women and children hostage, David who was the commander in chief of the armed forces was devastated. Scripture says that he cried until there was no strength in him. David did not make the decision to go after the Amalekites in anger. He consulted God, first and foremost. So David inquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them? And He answered him, Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all (1 Samuel 30:8). God went with David and his foot soldiers, and they succeeded in recovering all. He would have gone after the Amalekites without consulting with God, but he knew the devastating consequences of embarking on any project without Gods approval. Nothing gives confidence to a believer like knowing that you are in the will of God. It helps you to remain steadfast even in the midst of terrible obstacles. Acting without recourse to Gods will draws us back and gets us in trouble. Moses, unlike David, looked at his surroundings and the circumstances and acted on impulse. Moses grew up. One day he went and saw his brothers, saw all that hard labor. Then he saw an Egyptian hit a Hebrew one of his relatives! He looked this way and then that; when he realized there was no one in sight, he killed the Egyptian and buried him in the sand (Exodus 2:11-12). He looked horizontally left and right but did not realize to vertically look up to Heaven before making his decision. He was anointed as a deliverer to the Israelites, but he acted not according to Gods timing, and that took him into the wilderness for 40 years where God taught him how to rely on Him absolutely. He learned his lessons so well that even when God eventually commissioned him to go and confront Pharaoh to let Israel go, he did not want to make a step without God. The LORD replied, My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest. Then Moses said to him, If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? (Exodus 33:14-16). Let us learn not to do a thing without first seeking the face of God who knows the end from the beginning. Home Opinion F.L. Copelands suicide is a painful glimpse into the inner conflict of trans identity The tragic death by suicide of Alabama mayor, business leader, and Baptist pastor, F.L. Copeland became a national focus last week when LGBTQ Nation, followed by Fox News, broke the story. Sadly, it is the perfect injustice to incite public outrage on many fronts: the complex tragedy of emotional distress among those who identify as transgender, the lived experience of the transgender subculture, and the intersection of these with Christianity. For many, the outrage is motivated by protecting and affirming those who identify as transgender. For others, there is anger at the perversion and lack of integrity of Christian leadership through sexual immorality. However, I want to caution against reducing this heart-wrenching situation to either of these perspectives. Any suicide is a tragedy, and Copelands death should cause followers of Jesus to pause. Shouldnt there have been a Christian setting in which Copeland could disclose his transgender feelings (including the despair that ultimately led to suicide), better understand them, and ultimately find peace and congruency as a biological man? Im hoping that news of his death transcends the polarities of popular discourse to see the humanity of a man who was struggling beneath the weight of feelings he couldnt, and shouldnt, embrace. Churches are among the only refuges of escape and peace from LGBT identities and culture. Public shaming and condemnation will never help people working through these feelings. The solution for people facing this struggle is about radical honesty with trusted friends, counselors, and therapists to find congruence. The stress of a dual life, especially while married, pastoring, and serving as a civic leader, must have been unbearable. Oversimplifying the causes of depression among LGBTs by pointing primarily to social stigma is a harmful approach that limits care. Despite significant nondiscrimination gains socially in the U.S., it remains that LGBT-identifying people experience higher rates of mental health disorders than most Americans. By over-emphasizing social stigma rather than psychological health issues, thousands of LGBT-identifying people are being led to believe their only hope is societal change. Yet, according to the National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI), It is estimated that nearly 90% of people worldwide who die by suicide have a mental illness. Only about half of people who die by suicide in the U.S. are actually diagnosed. But in the case of Copeland, there is more to consider. The transgender experience is one of inner turmoil, where ones own body feels foreign. Imagine not knowing whether you are a man or a woman in todays culture. Transgender individuals are nearly four times as likely as cisgender individuals (people whose gender identity corresponds with their birth sex) to experience a mental health condition. This report referenced by NAMI indicates that within a study of 10,270 transgender-identifying patients, 58% had at least one psychiatric diagnosis, most commonly major depressive disorder. We should acknowledge the despair Copeland was experiencing after 1819News confronted him with their expose. My friends who once identified as transgender describe incredible frustration and pain in the conflict between ones body and psyche. To prepare for this article, I spoke with my friends Ted Halley and Billy Burleigh, two men who underwent invasive surgeries to live as women but, through their faith, have desisted from transgender identity. Ted grew up just twenty miles outside Smith Station and lives in Alabama. Ted Halley: All through my life, I suffered in the closet with off-and-on episodes of cross-dressing [until finally choosing to identify fully as a woman.] I know that this gentleman had an extreme dichotomy going on to take your life. Like this man, I was at the end of my rope. But I praise God that I had an amazing encounter with God, and he rescued me. Even as a Christian, there was no one to talk to about this. When I was 14, I prayed to be a girl. Who do you talk to? The Church wasnt open to it, sadly. I think this is what this man encountered. People just dont understand it. We have a huge wave of people leaving this. I dont say this lightly the church is ill-equipped to handle this. Instead of pointing fingers, we need to have mercy. We need to be willing to extend the hand of grace. We need to walk alongside people. Billy Burleigh: Ted and I are both here attesting that it took seeking God to find peace, happiness, and joy. If we embrace this lifestyle and seek security in 'the world,' eventually, 'the world' will leave us empty. No matter how far down the road we go on the wrong path look, I went 7 years with a number of surgeries, Im hacked up! At the end of 7 years, I had a choice to make, but I called out to God. No matter how far down the road we go, God always gives us the opportunity to turn around. Jesus Christ taught that all people have value. Repeatedly, Jesus cautions against objectifying and demeaning others for personal gain (e.g., Matthew 5:22-26). What did 1819News.com stand to gain by publicly exposing Copeland against his requests? Though their disclosure brought his situation to light and forced Copeland to face his moral crisis, the 1819News expose is a symptom of the medias callousness. I believe their articles crossed ethical lines. Should Copeland have been made accountable? Yes, but not in the public news cycle. Meanwhile, according to their articles, Copeland did not appreciate the religious implications of his actions and apparently had no Christian oversight. These matters point to a broader issue within churches, including embracing biblical orthodoxy and the steady influence of sexual immorality among congregations. Above all, however, Copeland likely had no Christian setting to address his feelings safely. As I have written elsewhere, many people are leaving LGBT identities and culture to follow Christ. Still, fewer are finding churches offering them care and discipleship in Christian identity. Amidst accusations of so-called conversion therapy and the rising influence of LGBT-affirming messages coming from leading national pastors, the pathway of repentance and conversion to the Christian faith is challenging for those seeking to surrender to Jesus wholeheartedly. F.L. Copelands suicide speaks to these challenges. It releases a clarion call to Christians to redirect their outrage against transgenderism to see the people struggling behind the persona. Please pray for Copelands family and offer them the privacy we would all wish during this incredibly painful tragedy. The first Christians in North America The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews reminds Christians that they are surrounded by a great "cloud of witnesses." (NRSV) That "cloud" has continued to grow in size since then. In this monthly column we will be thinking about some of the people and events, over the past 2000 years, that have helped make up this "cloud." People and events that have helped build the community of the Christian church as it exists today. Considering who were the first Christians in North America seems particularly appropriate in November, as this is the month in which the US remembers the first 'Thanksgiving' of the Mayflower Pilgrims in 1621, following their first successful harvest. Three questions and their unexpected answers Today, if one asked a citizen of the USA or Canada to name the first Christian buried in North America, they might suggest the name of one of the settlers who sailed to Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607. If an actual name did not spring to mind, they might suggest that such a person must have accompanied that voyage, or one of the other early European ventures which made landfall from the sixteenth century onwards. Asked who was the first Christian born in North America, they might suggest a Spanish colonist or perhaps a Mayflower settler. Asked when the first Native American was baptized as a Christian, they might name Pocahontas, who converted to Christianity in Virginia in the early seventeenth century. It is highly unlikely that anybody would suggest that the answer to the first question is: Thorvald Eriksson, brother of Leif "the Lucky" (aka Leif Eriksson) of Viking-age Greenland. Or that the answer to the second question is: Snorri Thorfinnsson, the child of Thorfinn Karlsefni and Gudrid Thorbjornsdottir, who had sailed to North America from Brattahlid on Greenland a thousand years ago. Or that the answer to the third question is: two children, captured on "Markland" (probably Labrador) by the companions of Thorfinn Karlsefni and Gudrid Thorbjornsdottir. The fact that all these named-people lived in the early eleventh century, and were Norse, would astonish many people. However, according to Icelandic sagas, these are the names that are the answers to those three questions. Furthermore, evidence discovered in the twentieth century gives us a great deal of confidence in the general witness of the medieval saga accounts. For, traditions that were long dismissed as Norse tall tales are now corroborated, in outline at least, by the findings of archaeology. The Norse were, indeed, the first Christians anywhere in the Americas. The Viking discovery of North America Two thirteenth-century Icelandic sagas tell the remarkable stories of Viking-age voyages to North America. These sagas are Erik the Red's Saga and Saga of the Greenlanders. Together they tell the story of the discovery of a place called "Vinland" that was located to the west of the Norse settlements in Greenland. The accounts differ in several ways, but they are remarkably precise when it comes to descriptions of topography. The western lands that were discovered according to these medieval accounts were for a long time regarded as legendary and the products of thirteenth-century Icelandic imagination. That has changed over the last century. As a result of more critical study of the medieval texts themselves, comparison of their accounts with the geography of North America, and conclusive archaeological evidence of Norse settlement in Canada, it is now clear that Norse voyages this far west did indeed occur. The archaeological evidence comes from a coastal site, known as L'Anse aux Meadows, on the northern tip of Newfoundland, Canada. Discovered in the 1960s, the buildings and artefacts found there constitute indisputable evidence of Viking settlement in North America. Furthermore, some finds from the site (butternuts and types of wood) indicate that the Norse explorers travelled further down the coast, at least as far south as New Brunswick, and very possibly into northern New England. A Viking-Age coin, found in 1957 on a Native American trading site in Maine, adds to other Norse finds, from the Canadian arctic and sub-arctic, as evidence of Viking-age journeys to North America. We cannot be certain but there is a likelihood that the site at L'Anse aux Meadows may correspond to the camp called "Straumfjord" in the Norse sagas. What is clear is that Scandinavians crossed the wild seas of the North Atlantic and were the first recorded European discoverers of North America. They did this almost five centuries before the voyages of Christopher Columbus, and those who followed him. The first recorded European landing in the Americas was a Viking achievement and one accomplished by Scandinavian adventurers who included Christians among their number. These were, indeed, the first Christians to reach the Americas. The first "American Christians" According to the saga accounts, the voyages to Vinland took place at an important point in the history of Christian conversion in the North Atlantic. This was because it was in AD 1000 that Iceland officially converted to Christianity, after a period of tension between Christianity and the pagan beliefs of the Viking inhabitants. Christian influence increased within the Norse settlements on Greenland at about the same time. The account found in Erik the Red's Saga includes a woman named Gudrid Thorbjornsdottir, who had relocated from Iceland to Greenland, and who is explicitly described as a Christian. It was about this time that King Olaf Tryggvason of Norway organised a mission to convert the Greenlanders to Christianity. However, Gudrid was already a believer. A later arrival in Greenland, named Thorfinn Karlsefni, married the (by now widowed) Gudrid and they decided to emigrate to the newly discovered Vinland and take their livestock with them. The sagas describe tensions among the settlers in Norse America, which reveal the conflicting Christian and pagan beliefs held by different members of one of the expeditions. They hit trouble as they lacked sufficient provisions and there were disagreements within the group between Christians and pagans over what was causing their problems and how best to respond to the crisis. The writer of Erik the Red's Saga explained that the explorers prayed to God but one of their number, Thorhall the Huntsman, rejected their reliance on Christian faith and claimed that a beached whale they had found was a reward for his composing a poem in honour of the pagan god Thor. Thorhall remarks: "Didn't Old Redbeard [Thor] prove to be more help than your Christ?" But the whale meat made them sick and so they threw it away and called on the mercy of God. Eventually, improved weather, abundant fish stocks, game to hunt, and eggs to gather saved them from starvation. The saga-writer went on to say that Thorhall the Huntsman who continued to compose pagan poetry, this time to Odin was eventually driven ashore in Ireland by storms and was there enslaved. This was clearly stating a Christian verdict on his paganism. The saga literature also contains a record of the first Christian buried in North America. An account of the death of an explorer named Thorvald Eriksson includes a mysterious warning concerning an attack by Native Americans (called skraelings by the Norse) through the intervention of an unidentified voice. We are not sure whether the compiler intended this to be identified as fate (prevalent in Old Norse pagan beliefs) or a warning from the Christian God. It was possibly a mix of the two. What comes next, though, is unambiguous. Thorvald Eriksson received a fatal arrow wound. But, before he died, he requested that he be buried in the newly-explored land, with the significant detail that his companions should "mark my grave with crosses at the head and foot". For this reason, the spot was remembered as "Krossanes," which means "Cross Point" in Old Norse. With this telling detail we have the first record of any Christian buried in North America. It is not now possible to identify where this took place. The sagas also record the first child born to a Christian family in America. Just before the start of her second winter at their settlement site, Gudrid Thorbjornsdottir gave birth to a son: Snorri Thorfinnsson. No other births are recorded, as the settlement could not be sustained in the face of conflict with Native Americans; and because the settlers were too few in number and Norse Greenland did not have a large enough population to reinforce them. However, this is not the last we hear of the intrepid Gudrid. The saga evidence gives us some more information about her following her adventures in Vinland. She and Thorfinn Karlsefni took trade goods to Norway and then eventually settled in northern Iceland. After Thorfinn Karlsefni died and their son, Snorri, got married, Gudrid made a pilgrimage to the south. It is likely that Rome is implied, but the saga-writer was not explicit about this. When she returned to Iceland, she found that Snorri had built a church at their farm, where she lived out her days as a Christian anchoress (one living a solitary life of prayer). From Snorri were descended three bishops in the later Icelandic church. That her story ends this way reveals the Christian faith of the compiler and the role of Christianity within the lives of this family of Vinland explorers. After this, Vinland slipped into a half-remembered world until the archaeological discoveries of the twentieth century. Today, though, we know that there were "American Vikings", and these included the first Christians to reach North America. Martyn Whittock is an evangelical historian and a Licensed Lay Minister in the Church of England. The author, or co-author, of fifty-six books, his work covers a wide range of historical and theological themes. In addition, as a commentator and columnist, he has written for several print and online news platforms and been interviewed on TV and radio news and discussion programmes exploring the interaction of faith and politics. His most recent books include: Daughters of Eve (2021), Jesus the Unauthorized Biography (2021), The End Times, Again? (2021), The Story of the Cross (2021), and Apocalyptic Politics (2022). In his co-written book The Vikings From Odin to Christ (2018), he explored the conversion of the Norse of the Viking Age to Christianity. It is a theme which reoccurs in his latest book American Vikings. How the Norse Sailed into the Lands and Imaginations of America (2023). A pro-Palestinian rally in Toronto on Saturday afternoon began at the U.S. Consulate General on University Avenue before the crowd of several thousand people began marching through the downtown core. Earlier demonstrations, for this and other causes based on overseas disputes, have turned violent, reflecting badly on Canadas reputation as a safe country to live in and move to. Oman has announced the official launch of a 17-megawatt solar farm facility, mainly designed to power the Sharqiyah Desalination Plant at Sur region of the sultanate. Developed in partnership with global multi-energy company TotalEnergies and French water management specialist Veolia, the solar farm boasts an annual capacity of over 32,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) of green electricity. Construction work on the facility began last year, with testing taking place from March to April this year followed by its commercial operation the same month. The solar plant is a significant step toward decarbonization efforts in the region, as it is expected to reduce 27,200 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, equivalent to the emissions from roughly 6,000 internal combustion engine-powered vehicles over the same period, said Engineer Salim bin Nasser Al Aufi, the Minister of Energy and Minerals in Oman. He was speaking after officially inaugurating the 17MWp solar photovoltaic farm, the largest of its kind for a desalination facility in Oman. Lauding the project, Al Aufi emphasized its role in supporting clean drinking water for over 600,000 residents in the Sharqiyah region. He highlighted its alignment with global efforts toward energy transition for a net-zero world and its contribution to water security in Oman. The project is in line with Omans National Energy Strategy, aiming to derive 30% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030, as part of Oman Vision 2040, he added. Philippe Bourdeaux, Vice President of Africa, Near & Middle East of Veolia, lauded the support from the sultanate and the private sector partners in their efforts to contribute to energy transition and decarbonization. Veolia, with over 40 years of experience in the Middle East, including 15 years in Oman, has been instrumental in delivering sustainable solutions and supporting Omans green and circular economy objectives. Bourdeaux pointed out that the sultanate remains a strategic location for Veolias operations in the region. "Veolia remains committed to ecological transformation and its expertise in reducing carbon emissions through renewable energy and sustainable operations," he added. The inauguration ceremony was attended by senior management from Veolia and Total Energies, as well as government officials and representatives from the Sharqiyah Desalination Company and the Nama Power and Water Procurement Company (NPWP).-TradeArabia News Service Leading Indian engineering and construction conglomerate Larsen & Toubro (L&T) showcased its key technology solutions and expertise at the recently held Water, Energy, Technology, and Environment Exhibition (Wetex) and the Dubai Solar Show 2023. Over the last four decades, L&T has established its credentials in the Gulf region, developing vital infrastructure in various countries including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Kuwait, and Qatar. L&T has lent itsexpertise to constructing power and water infrastructure, high-rise buildings, stadiums, airports, hospitals, transportation infrastructure and executing projects in the hydrocarbon space. Apart from playing a crucial role in the NEOM project, the Indian engineering conglomerate is rapidly making its presence felt in the Renewables space with the execution of key projects in the region. With their enviable track record and several key projects under execution, L&T made a significant mark at the Wetex and the Dubai Solar Show 2023. "Over the last few years, our focus on international business has sharpened that is reflected in the fact that over 30% of our total turnover comes from international markets, especially from across the Gulf Region," said T. Madhava Das, the Whole-Time Director and Senior Executive Vice President (Utilities), L&T. "We are delighted that we are playing a significant role in the huge wave of development that is going on in across the Middle East, led by Saudi Arabia, and with our expertise and experience built over decades, we are well placed and well-equipped to continue making a difference," stated Das. "Wetex always has an ideal platform for us to showcase our capabilities and it was no different this year," he added. L&T in Saudi Arabia In the renewables sector, L&T has achieved significant milestones through its involvement in the world's largest green hydrogen plant project, conducted in collaboration with NEOM Green Hydrogen Company in Oxagon, Saudi Arabia. With an investment of $8.4 billion, this project focuses on producing green hydrogen and green ammonia for global export. L&T has received approval from Air Products, the EPC Contractor and exclusive off taker, to establish renewable energy generation, storage and grid infrastructure, with a contract value of close to $3 billion. Progress has been substantial in surveys, design, engineering, temporary facilities, and long-lead item procurement. The project includes the construction of a 2.2 GWac PV Solar Plant, a 1.65 GW Wind Generation Balance of Plant, and a 400 MWh Battery Energy Storage System, said Das. "L&T continues to play a vital role in Saudi Arabia's energy development, executing crucial substation and transmission line projects for entities such as the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) and Saudi Aramco, and developing major gas fields and processing facilities, including the Hasbah offshore gas field and the Midyan gas processing facilities," he noted. "Our Power Transmission & Distribution (PT&D) business excels as a global leader in EPC services for power transmission, distribution, renewables, and integrated solutions, encompassing transmission lines, substations, cable networks, and more," he added. In the realm of power transmission and distribution, L&T said it has a proven track record with many completed projects, including 317 substations, over 4,901 km of transmission lines, and more than 2,011 km of cabling projects. Presently, L&T is actively involved in more than 50 projects, serving various utilities in the region, including Dewa, Transco, SEC, Saudi Aramco, Kahramaa and OETC. The Indian engineering conglomerate's track record in the water infrastructure space in the UAE, Oman, and Qatar is impressive too, having successfully completed more than 10 water projects cumulatively worth over $1 billion, including the Jebel Ali Sewage Treatment Plant in Dubai, with a capacity of 375 million liters per day, the largest wastewater treatment plant in the UAE. Its expertise has found expression in Oman's Ad Dakhiliyah water transmission project, one of the largest undertaken in the country. Key water infrastructure projects have also been delivered for organizations such as Ashghal in Qatar, Oman Water and Wastewater Service Company, Madayn and SFZ in Oman, and Dubai Municipality, Dubai Electricity & Water Authority, and Abu Dhabi Distribution Company in the UAE, it added.-TradeArabia News Service Washington, Nov 19 (UNI) The United States, Israel and Hamas are close to an agreement on a five-day pause in fighting in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of hostages, The Washington Post reported on Sunday, citing sources. The six-page agreement provides for a cessation of all combat operations by the parties to the conflict for at least five days and the release of 50 or more hostages, the report said, adding that the release of the hostages could begin in the coming days. The pause will be monitored from the air, the newspaper reported. The outline of the agreement was drawn up during weeks of negotiations in Doha between Israel, the US and Hamas, indirectly represented by Qatari mediators, the report read, citing Arab and other diplomats. It is still unclear, however, whether Israel will agree to temporarily suspend the offensive in the Gaza Strip, provided the conditions are right, the newspaper said. UNI/SPUTNIK AKS Chinese smartphone companies like Huawei are rebounding in their home market, giving a boost to domestic suppliers and increasing the pressure on Apple . It's a reflection of a geopolitically-driven shift in the tech industry. A clear takeaway from last week's meeting of the U.S. and Chinese presidents is that American restrictions on sales of high-end tech to China will not be going away. While the summit could reduce the risk that tensions escalate in the near term, Morgan Stanley analysts said that "'competitive confrontation' will likely remain for now." That "does not mean a complete decoupling, but instead continued tech competition and derisking away from China," the analysts said in a note Thursday. Chinese President Xi Jinping called on the U.S. to lift its sanctions and provide a non-discriminatory environment for Chinese companies, according to a readout. But the U.S. said President Joe Biden emphasized the need to prevent advanced U.S. tech from undermining national security. In fact, Raymond James analysts said in a note Thursday their conversations with Washington, D.C., contacts supports expectations for more tech export controls. The Biden administration has also taken pains to emphasize the majority of trade with China is not affected by the restrictions, and that it does not target consumer-related applications. Huawei suppliers outperforming But investors are already moving. In a year in which negative sentiment has sent the MSCI China index down by nearly 11% in U.S. dollar terms, a Wind Information index of Huawei corporate partners and suppliers is up 36%. That is more than double the 15.5% increase so far this year for a Wind index of Apple suppliers. Telecommunications giant Huawei was a relatively early target of U.S. sanctions, halving its revenue from consumer products such as smartphones. The restrictions, imposed in 2019, included licensed access to the latest versions of Google's Android operating system. Huawei has instead built out its own operating system. Reviews also indicated the company's new Mate 60 Pro smartphone offers download speeds associated with 5G thanks to an advanced chip, made by Chinese semiconductor giant SMIC. Huawei smartphone sales surged by 83% in October from a year ago, Counterpoint Research said in a note Tuesday. Honor, a Huawei spin-off, saw sales climb by 10%, while Xiaomi smartphone sales rose by 33%, the report said. The report did not break out Apple sales, only saying a broad category of "others" saw October smartphone sales drop by 12% from a year ago. Shenzhen-listed Lihexing sells smartphone testing equipment to Huawei and expects the company to ship at least 70 million phones next year, Nomura analysts said in a report Tuesday, citing a meeting with Lihexing management earlier in the week. The stock is up by more than 80% so far this year. In the most optimistic scenario, Lihexing expects Huawei could ship 90 million smartphones in 2024, the Nomura report said. "For the mid-/long-term, management expects additional revenue streams from EVs and charging stations, thanks to its long-lasting relationship with Huawei," the analysts said, noting Lihexing does not plan to increase market penetration in Xiaomi and other Android brand phones "due to low profitability and intensified competition." For context, Shanghai-based CINNO Research expects a 2% decline in Apple iPhone sales in China this year to 45.5 million units. Huawei sells a range of mass market phones in addition to premium models. On the electric vehicle front, Huawei has focused on providing in-car tech while partnering with manufacturers to make the vehicle. Shanghai-listed Sokon manufacturers the hybrid and pure battery-powered cars for Huawei under the Aito brand, officially launched in late 2021. In the last week, Huawei claimed it had already delivered 120,000 units of the Aito M5 alone. Shares of Sokon have climbed by more than 100% so far this year. Nomura analysts also said they met with Guangdong Topstar Technology, which became a supplier of Huawei, Xiaomi and others this year in the industrial robot space. The Shenzhen-listed stock is up by about 10% so far this year. Nomura does not yet have ratings on the Lihexing or Topstar. But Chinese investment banking giant CICC has an outperform rating on both Sokon and Topstar. Shenzhen-listed BYD shares and Shanghai-listed Foxconn Industrial Internet shares are in both Wind's Huawei and Apple indexes. CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, attends the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit in San Francisco, California, U.S. November 16, 2023. Carlos Barria | Reuters A wide swath of Silicon Valley has hitched its hopes and fortunes over the past few years to the kind of generative artificial intelligence technologies that OpenAI helped popularize. Many industry experts point to the debut of ChatGPT late last year as an iPhone-like moment, ushering a potential shift in the way people interact with computers via written prompts that can produce creative, seemingly human-like text. Just as Apple had the late Steve Jobs acting as the company's esteemed figurehead, articulating the appeal of the iPhone and personal computers to the masses, so too did OpenAI have its own charismatic leader in Sam Altman. With Altman out as CEO at least for now after his sudden firing on Friday, the Apple comparisons are flowing freely. Jobs was fired as CEO of Apple in 1985, a move that lives in Silicon Valley lore, since it was after his return in 1997 that Apple found the path that eventually made it the most valuable company in the U.S. Altman, who previously ran startup accelerator Y Combinator, has spent the past year cozying up to world leaders and making routine appearances at tech events, turning the 38-year-old executive into an industry celebrity, in the mold of Jobs, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Along with Altman, OpenAI's board removed Greg Brockman from his role as chairman. Later Friday, Brockman said he was quitting the company. "What happened at OpenAI today is a Board coup that we have not seen the likes of since 1985 when the then-Apple board pushed out Steve Jobs," longtime startup investor Ron Conway said Friday evening in an X post. "It is shocking; it is irresponsible; and it does not do right by Sam & Greg or all the builders in OpenAI." Efforts are already underway by OpenAI investors to get Altman back, according to people familiar with the matter. Microsoft , Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital and Thrive Capital are among a number of OpenAI's top backers that are trying to reinstate Altman, said the people, who asked not to be named because discussions are confidential. The Verge reported on Saturday that Altman is "ambivalent" about the possibility of returning. Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky referred to Altman in an X post as "one of the best founders of his generation" who "has made an immense contribution to our industry." Silicon Valley reacts to OpenAI Matt Schlicht, the CEO of the startup Octane AI, told CNBC that Altman and Brockman, who was formerly the chief technology office of Stripe, "made a technology available that we'd only ever dreamed about" and called it "the most exciting and powerful development of our lifetime." Octane is one of many new startups using the so-called large language models that OpenAI packages under its GPT family of software tools. Schlicht said the technology has so far "enabled us to put human-level intelligence inside of our code, and because of that we have helped entrepreneurs generate over half a billion in revenue." "I've known both Sam and Greg for over a decade, they are incredible and inspiring leaders," Schlicht said. "After hearing about their untimely departure I was immediately filled with sadness. Innovation in the world was suddenly halted." watch now Ryan Jannsen, CEO of Zenlytic, shared Schlicht's sentiment. "The AI community is reeling," Jannsen said, adding that technologists are confused about the circumstances related to Altman's firing and what it means for OpenAI going forward. "Sam and OpenAI were the catalyst that showed the world what AI tech is capable of," Jannsen said. "A huge amount of the excitement and activity in AI today is very directly thanks to their pioneering work." Whether or not Altman returns, the turmoil at OpenAI could give rivals an advantage in what's quickly become a highly competitive market for advanced LLMs. From heavily funded startups like Anthropic and Cohere to cloud computing giants Google and Amazon , companies will likely be "looking for the next best alternative," given the perceived instability at OpenAI, said industry analyst Patrick Moorhead. "They're not the only game in town," Moorhead said. Josh Wolfe, a partner at venture firm Lux Capital, said OpenAI is taking a huge reputational hit at a time when companies are deciding what models they're going to use as building blocks. "There was a perception of steady, predictable, reliable reputable progress and engagement and communication with industry," Wolfe said. "The surprise capriciousness of the move signals total unpredictability, which is terrible for companies making plans to work with or trust OpenAI." OpenAI's unusual structure A big part of the challenge in understanding OpenAI is its unusual company structure. The board of OpenAI oversees the nonprofit, of which the corporate entity is a part, and "acts as the overall governing body for all OpenAI activities," according to the blog post announcing Altman's ouster. The post said that a "deliberative review process by the board" concluded that Altman "was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities." Silicon Valley's high-profile startup CEO firings typically involve wrongdoing, rather than just philosophical differences about where the company is headed. Several investors told CNBC that OpenAI's hybrid model presented a red flag from the beginning, in part because incentives can too easily be misaligned. Now, they said, the company risks severe brain drain if top talent chooses to follow Altman to his next project or a competitor in the industry. Altman, meanwhile, has the advantage of having made such a name for himself that he'd have no problem raising money for a new project from investors who view him as the next great tech luminary. "Sam Altman is a hero of mine," former Google CEO and investor Eric Schmidt said in an X post. "He built a company from nothing to $90 Billion in value, and changed our collective world forever. I can't wait to see what he does next. I, and billions of people, will benefit from his future work- it's going to be simply incredible." Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google, arrives for the Inaugural AI Insight Forum in Russell Building on Capitol Hill, on Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023. Tom Williams | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images Airbnb's Chesky wrote that he'd spoken with Altman and Brockman and that they have his "full support." "I'm saddened by what's transpired," Chesky wrote. "They, and the rest of the OpenAI team, deserve better. He added in a separate post that Altman is "one of the best founders of his generation." As for Microsoft, whose CEO Satya Nadella was reportedly caught off guard by the shakeup, several venture capitalists were surprised that the company could be so unaware of what was brewing given the billions they've invested in the company. "I imagine Microsoft might ask for a board seat next time they decide to plow $15 billion into a startup," said Zachary Lipton, a Carnegie Mellon University professor of machine learning and operations research. Industry analyst Moorhead said Microsoft could "figure out how to buy this company and how to put Sam in charge." "That's the first play, it's potentially finding ways to remove the current board of directors, reinstall new board of directors and then bring Sam and company back in making sure the band stays together," Moorhead said. Regardless of the current chaos, Carnegie Mellon's Lipton said he expects investors to remain bullish on AI. "This story has elements of corporate and ideological discord, but not even a whiff of diminished promise," Lipton said. watch now CNBC's Lora Kolodny contributed to this report WATCH: OpenAI says Sam Altman exiting as CEO because 'board no longer has confidence.' US President Joe Biden speaks during a press conference after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' week in Woodside, California on November 15, 2023. US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping shook hands and pledged to steer their countries away from conflict on November 15, 2023, as they met for the first time in a year at a high-stakes summit in California. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) President Joe Biden's approval rating has declined to the lowest level of his presidency 40% as strong majorities of all voters disapprove of his handling of foreign policy and the Israel-Hamas war, according to the latest national NBC News poll. What's more, the poll finds Biden behind former President Donald Trump for the first time in a hypothetical general-election matchup, although the deficit is well within the poll's margin of error for a contest that's still more than 11 months away. The erosion for Biden is most pronounced among Democrats, a majority of whom believe Israel has gone too far in its military action in Gaza, and among voters ages 18 to 34, with a whopping 70% of them disapproving of Biden's handling of the war. "I do not support his support of Israel," said Meg Furey, 40, a Democrat from Austin, Texas. "Failed promises, student loans, foreign policy in general," said Democrat Zico Schell, 23, of San Diego, when asked why he disapproves of Biden's job performance. "Joe Biden is at a uniquely low point in his presidency, and a significant part of this, especially within the Biden coalition, is due to how Americans are viewing his foreign policy actions," said Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates, who conducted this survey with Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies. McInturff said he can't recall another time when foreign affairs not involving U.S. troops transformed the American political landscape. "This poll is a stunner, and it's stunning because of the impact the Israel-Hamas war is having on Biden," he said. But Horwitt cautioned that Biden can bring these disaffected Democrats and younger voters back into the fold. "These are people who have a proven track record in voting for Biden and Democrats," he said. And, he added, there's plenty of time and more potential political surprises to come between now and Election Day 2024, which could see the political landscape transform again. "Jury verdicts in Trump's trials, unforeseen events both foreign and domestic, and the rigors of a campaign all have a funny way of upending what may be true today," Horwitt said. According to the poll, 40% of registered voters approve of Biden's job performance, while 57% disapprove, representing Biden's all-time low in approval (and all-time high in disapproval) in the poll since becoming president. It's only a slight overall change from September, when Biden's approval rating was at 41% which was then tied with his previous low in the poll. Yet what stands out in the new survey is the shift among voters ages 18 to 34. In September, 46% of these voters said they approved of Biden's job performance. Now? Biden's approval rating dropped to 31% among these voters. Americans owe more than $1 trillion in credit card debt as of the third quarter of this year, according to Federal Reserve data. The average consumer's outstanding balance breached $6,000 as of September, according to TransUnion. Ron and Cristina, however, have around $30,000 in credit card debt, the couple recently told self-made millionaire Ramit Sethi on the Netflix star's "I Will Teach You to be Rich" podcast. Only their first names were used. That number may seem daunting to the average consumer, but the couple didn't seem too worried about it they even bought a $10,000 timeshare last year. But Sethi revealed their larger financial issues at play. "The two of you were so calm about this credit card debt, and it's because you don't understand the implications of this debt," Sethi told them. "If you can't pay this debt off quickly, it will stay with you for five, 10 years." Tackling the debt will be a challenge in and of itself. But a lack of financial literacy has led to habits that are holding Cristina and Ron back from achieving financial freedom and building wealth. Here are the habits that got the couple into a tough financial situation, and how Sethi suggests getting out. Habit No. 1: Avoiding money conversations altogether When Sethi asked Ron to describe his feelings toward money in a single word, he said "afraid." Cristina handles all of the couple's budgeting and is the only one who keeps an eye on their account balances. As a result, the couple said, Ron never wants to spend money and leaves it up to Cristina to decide everything on her own, which has caused rifts in their relationship. Ron considers himself frugal. He is loath to spend money on things like dinner at a restaurant or the occasional vacation Cristina wants to plan. But Sethi explained that there's a difference between being frugal and being cheap. "If you are a conscious spender ... your frugality only affects you," Sethi said. "But if you're cheap, your cheapness affects everyone around you." He helped Ron realize that they earn enough income to cover their necessities plus some of the more fun things, like dining out and traveling. But they need to properly manage their money. Habit No. 2: Managing money through trial and error Although Cristina manages the couple's finances, she doesn't always understand what she's doing, Sethi pointed out. "What I'm hearing is that both of you are not exactly savvy with money, and that's OK you haven't made huge mistakes yet," Sethi said. Part of where they lack awareness is around how their attitudes about money affect their spending. They have also struggled to figure out a financial plan that works for them. "Money is never simply a series of numbers on a page it's contextualized within your culture, your upbringing, your risk tolerance, even your basic understanding of money," Sethi said. In talking with Sethi, Ron realized a lot of his hesitancy to spend money comes from his upbringing, since his father was afraid to spend money. Cristina, on the other hand, experienced severe poverty while growing up in the Philippines, so she's proud of how far she's come, but also knows the importance of smart money management. Sethi encouraged the couple to learn together about good financial habits and discuss any money attitudes that could be getting in the way of their long-term goals. Habit No. 3: Falling for money traps Former U.S. First Lady Rosalynn Carter poses for a portrait in New York City, New York, on Friday, September 23, 2011. Carter was among nearly a dozen current and former first ladies who gathered to explore ways to grow their leadership roles as part of RAND African First Ladies Initiative. (Photo by Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post via Getty Images) The Washington Post | The Washington Post | Getty Images Rosalynn Carter, the Georgia-bred former first lady and humanitarian who championed mental health care, provided constant political counsel to her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, and modeled graceful longevity for the nation, died Sunday, according to the Carter Center. She was 96. She was widely regarded for her political shrewdness, drawing particular praise for her keen electoral instincts, down-to-earth appeal, and work on behalf of the White House, including serving as an envoy to Latin America. Carter devoted herself to several social causes in the course of her public life, including programs that supported health care resources, human rights, social justice and the needs of elderly people. More from NBC News: Biden tells 2 different stories about Israel-Hamas war Lawmakers aim to pass Ukraine, Israel aid Colorado judge rejects bid to keep Trump off ballot "Twenty-five years ago, we did not dream that people might someday be able actually to recover from mental illnesses," Carter said at a mental health symposium in 2003. "Today it is a very real possibility." "For one who has worked on mental health issues as long as I have," she added, "this is a miraculous development and an answer to my prayers." Jimmy Carter, Democratic presidential candidate, and his wife, Rosalynn, share a moment aboard his campaign plane on Oct 24th, 1976. Bettmann | Getty Images In late May 2023, the Carter Center, the couple's human rights group, announced that she had been diagnosed with dementia. "She continues to live happily at home with her husband, enjoying spring in Plains and visits with loved ones," the organization said in a statement. Bess Truman, the wife of President Harry Truman, is the only first lady to have outlived Rosalynn Carter, according to the National First Ladies Library. (Truman died in 1982, at 97.) Jimmy and Rosalynn were the longest-married presidential couple in U.S. history. The Carters earned admiration for their humanitarian projects after they left the White House. They were closely linked with Habitat for Humanity, considered by the charity to be "tireless advocates, active fundraisers and some of our best hands-on construction volunteers." Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains, Georgia, on Aug. 18, 1927, the first of four children reared by Allethea Murray Smith and Wilburn Edgar Smith. Rosalynn's father died when she was 13, and her mother became a dressmaker to provide for her family. The loss of her father at such a young age forced Rosalynn to assume additional responsibilities alongside her mother. But the family unit managed to stay afloat. Rosalynn finished high school and enrolled at Georgia Southwestern College. In 1945, following her freshman year, she went on a date with Jimmy Carter, a childhood friend of the family who was home from the U.S. Naval Academy. Rosalynn Carter during Habitat for Humanity - 2005 Jimmy Carter Work Project - Day 2 at Benton Harbor in Benton Harbor, Michigan, United States. R. Diamond | Wireimage | Getty Images "She's the girl I want to marry," Jimmy Carter told his mother after their first outing, according to a biography compiled by the White House Historical Association. They were married the following year, on July 7, 1946. They relocated to Norfolk, Virginia Jimmy's first duty station after graduation. But life as a Navy family meant they had to move frequently. Their four children were each born in different states: John William in Virginia, James Earl III in Hawaii, Donnel Jeffrey in Connecticut, and Amy Lynn their only daughter in Georgia. Jimmy's father died in 1953, sending the couple back to Plains to run the family peanut business. Rosalynn soon started working for the enterprise full time, assisting with accounting and other front-office functions. Jimmy decided to launch a political career in the early 1960s, winning a Georgia state Senate seat in 1962. He unsuccessfully sought the governorship in 1966; during that campaign, Rosalynn learned more about the challenges facing people with mental illnesses, as she recounted to Time magazine in 2010. "The more I thought about it and found out about it, the more I thought it was just a terrible situation with no attention," she said. Rosalynn helped lay the foundation for her husband's winning bid for the Georgia governorship in 1970 and, six years later, advised her husband's grassroots presidential campaign. Political reporters took notice of her vivacity on the trail. "Rosalynn Carter, 49, the candidate's wife, campaigns with the untiring race-horse type of energy which has typified Carter's operation for the past 18 months," U.S. News & World Report wrote in May 1976. "Not only that: Top aides claim Mrs. Carter is her husband's most influential political adviser," the author of the article added. Rosalynn attracted particular attention for the skillful way she connected with voters, nabbing their support for her husband with down-to-earth warmth. In an unusual move for the era, she traveled across the country on her own, making the case for her husband on her own terms. A portrait of President Jimmy Carter and his extended family. Left to right: Judy (Mrs. Jack Carter); Jason James Carter; Jack (John William Carter); Annette (Mrs. Jeff Carter); Jeff (Donnel Jeffrey Carter); first lady Rosalynn Carter; daughter Amy Lynn Carter; President Carter; daughter-in law Caron Griffin Carter holding James Earl Carter IV; and son Chip (James Earl Carter III). Historical | Corbis Historical | Getty Images Sam Adler-Bell at Commonweal: In an essay on the voluble New York intellectual Dwight Macdonald, George Scialabba cites Lionel Trillings assessment of Orwell, who, for Trilling, exemplified the virtue of not being a genius, of fronting the world with nothing more than ones simple, direct, undeceived intelligence, and a respect for the powers one does have, and the work one undertakes to do. Much the same could be said of George Scialabba. For forty-four years, he has made a gift of his direct, undeceived intelligenceI would not say simpleto those fortunate readers who, as Richard Rorty once recommended, stay on the lookout for [his] byline. Scialabbas new collection, Only a Voice, contains twenty-eight previously published essays, the earliest from 1984, the latest (from this magazine) in 2021. Theyre gathered here with a new introduction that takes up a perennial question for ScialabbaWhat are intellectuals good for?and an apposite epigraph from Audens September 1, 1939. More here. Cambodia recently inaugurated its largest airport, the Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport, which is expected to give travellers an enhanced gateway to the iconic Angkor Wat temple complex. The airport is spread over 700 hectares, approximately 40 kilometers east of Angkor Wat and features a 3,600-meter-long runway. It was Initially operational on October 16, the airport is designed to accommodate 7 million passengers annually, with expansion plans to handle 12 million passengers by 2040. There were concerns about the previous airport's proximity to the Angkor temples and the potential damage caused by vibrations from passing flights. The countrys Prime Minister Hun Manet emphasized the importance of the tourism sector and said that it is a key pillar supporting Cambodia's economy. Also read: The airport has been financed by China at a cost of about $1.1 billion. The initiative is part of the Belt and Road Initiative, fostering bilateral economic ties and showcasing deep friendship between the two nations. China's influence is evident in various projects across Cambodia, with over 40% of the country's $10 billion foreign debt owed to China. Another Chinese-funded airport, the Techo International Airport in Phnom Penh, costing $1.5 billion is currently under construction and is expected to be completed in 2024. Angkor Wat, located in the northwestern province of Siem Reap, Cambodia, is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the most iconic and well-preserved temples in the world. Built in the 12th century by King Suryavarman II, Angkor Wat is a masterpiece of Khmer architecture and a symbol of Cambodia's rich cultural and historical heritage. The temple complex cover 400 acres of land and is renowned for its towering spires, and stunning galleries that depict scenes from Hindu epics. The central temple is surrounded by a vast moat and is designed to represent Mount Meru, the mythical home of the gods in Hindu cosmology. Angkor Wat attracts millions of visitors annually, drawn by its awe-inspiring architecture and the sense of wonder inspired by its ancient grandeur. Tourism plays a pivotal role in Cambodia's economy, with Angkor Wat being a major magnet for international visitors. In recent years, Cambodia has welcomed a significant number of tourists, with around 3.5 million international visitors in the first eight months of 2023 alone. Prior to the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019, Cambodia received approximately 6.6 million foreign tourists. NEW MEXICO Lawsuit alleges unsafe conditions at migrant detention facility SANTA FE A new class-action lawsuit alleges that U.S. immigration authorities disregarded signs of unsanitary and unsafe conditions at a detention center in New Mexico to ensure the facility would continue to receive public funding and remain open. The lawsuit announced on Nov. 8 by a coalition of migrants' rights advocates was filed on behalf of four Venezuelans ranging in age from 26 to 40 who have sought asylum in the U.S. and say they were denied medical care, access to working showers and adequate food at the Torrance County Detention Facility, all while being pressed into cleaning duties, sometimes without compensation. The detention center in the rural town of Estancia, about 200 miles from the Mexico border, is contracted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to accommodate at least 505 adult male migrants at any time, though actual populations fluctuate. Advocates have repeatedly alleged in recent years that the the facility has inadequate living conditions and there is limited access to legal counsel for asylum-seekers who cycle through. The detention center failed a performance evaluation in 2021, and the lawsuit alleges that ICE scrambled to avoid documentation of a second consecutive failure that might discontinue federal funding by endorsing a "deeply flawed, lax inspection" by an independent contractor. A spokesperson for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said on Nov. 9 that the agency does not comment on litigation. Last year Chief of Staff Jason Houser said ICE would continuously monitor the facility and noted that it stopped using the Etowah County Detention Center in Alabama when expectations there were not met. Attorney general says landowners keeping public from Pecos River ALBUQUERQUE New Mexico's top prosecutor is going after landowners who he says are illegally and unconstitutionally depriving the public of access to stretches of one of the state's most well-known rivers. The case involving access to the Pecos River is the first brought after the state Supreme Court in 2022 settled a long-simmering dispute over whether boaters and anglers had a right to access streams and rivers that cross private property. Under the New Mexico Constitution, water within the state belongs to the public but the banks next to that water and the land beneath the water may be owned privately. The court found that public easement covers what would be reasonably necessary to use the water itself and that any use of the beds and banks must have minimal impact. Attorney General Raul Torrez brought the case after people reported being threatened by landowners with physical violence for wading, fishing and boating on portions of the Pecos River that flow through private land. Some landowners had put up concertina wire and other barriers to keep people from floating or wading in the river. Advocates of private property rights have argued for years that opening up waterways will result in decreased property values and less interest by owners to invest in conserving tracts of land along streams. The complaint also asks the court to declare that the river is a public waterway and that the defendants do not have the right to defend their adjacent property with deadly force or threats of violence. IDAHO Federal judge pauses 'abortion trafficking' law during lawsuit BOISE A federal judge has temporarily blocked Idaho's "abortion trafficking" law from being enforced while a lawsuit challenging its constitutionality is underway. "This lawsuit is not about the right to an abortion. It is about much more," U.S. District Magistrate Debora K. Grasham wrote in the ruling handed down on Nov. 8. Abortion is banned in Idaho at all stages of pregnancy, and the law enacted in May was designed to prevent minors from getting abortions in states where the procedure is legal if they don't have their parents' permission. Under the law, people who help a minor who isn't their own child arrange an abortion out of state can be charged with a felony, though they can then attempt to defend themselves in court later by proving that the minor had parental permission for the trip. Supporters of the law call it an "abortion trafficking" ban. Opponents say it is an unconstitutional prohibition on interstate travel and free speech rights. Two advocacy groups and an attorney who works with sexual assault victims sued the state and Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador over the law earlier this year. They said the law is so vague that they can't tell what conduct would or would not be legal, and that it violates the First Amendment right of free expression. They also argued that the law infringes on the Fourth Amendment right to travel between states, as well as the right to travel within Idaho. Grasham agreed with the state's attorneys that there is no court-protected right of travel within the state under existing case law in Idaho, and she dismissed that part of the lawsuit. But she said the other three claims could move forward, noting that the plaintiffs' intended assistance to minors is essentially an expression of their core beliefs, in the form of messages of "support and solidarity for individuals seeking legal reproductive options." UTAH Court dismisses child sex abuse lawsuit against Mormon church An Arizona judge has dismissed a high-profile child sexual abuse lawsuit against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ruling that church officials who knew that a church member was sexually abusing his daughter had no duty to report the abuse to police or social service agencies because the information was received during a spiritual confession. In a ruling on Nov. 3, Cochise County Superior Court Judge Timothy Dickerson said the state's clergy-penitent privilege excused two bishops and several other officials with the church, widely known as the Mormon church, from the state's child sex abuse mandatory reporting law because Paul Adams initially disclosed during a confession that he was sexually abusing his daughter. Although the church excommunicated Adams, its decision to withhold his abusive behavior from civil authorities allowed him to continue abusing his daughter for seven years, during which he began abusing a second daughter, starting when she was just 6 weeks old. Adams recorded his abuse of his daughters on video and posted the pornographic videos on the internet. The abuse stopped only when Homeland Security agents arrested Adams in 2017 in Arizona, after authorities in New Zealand and the United States traced one of the videos to him. Adams died by suicide in custody while awaiting trial. Lynne Cadigan, an attorney representing the Adams children who filed the 2021 lawsuit, said she will appeal the ruling. In a prepared statement, the church said the court found that the church and its clergy handled this matter consistent with Arizona law." ARIZONA Capitol rioter plans 2024 congressional run as Libertarian PHOENIX Jacob Chansley, the spear-carrying rioter whose horned fur hat, bare chest and face paint made him one of the more recognizable figures in the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol, apparently aspires to be a member of Congress. Online paperwork shows the 35-year-old Chansley filed a candidate statement of interest on Nov. 9, indicating he wants to run as a Libertarian in next year's election for Arizona's 8th Congressional District seat. U.S. Rep. Debbie Lesko, a 64-year-old Republican representing the district since 2018, announced last month that she won't seek re-election. Chansley pleaded guilty to a felony charge of obstructing an official proceeding in connection with the Capitol insurrection. He was sentenced to 41 months in prison in November 2021 and served about 27 months before being transferred to a Phoenix halfway house in March 2023. Chansely grew up in the greater Phoenix area. Chansley is among the more than 700 people who have been sentenced in relation to Capitol riot-related federal crimes. Authorities said Chansley was among the first rioters to enter the Capitol building and he acknowledged using a bullhorn to rouse the mob. Although he previously called himself the "QAnon Shaman," Chansley has since disavowed the QAnon movement. So, youve committed a crime. We get it. Every single one of us have done the same. That doesnt mean you need to get yourself caught. And if you do get yourself caught, you dont have to make it any worse for yourself. You definitely dont have to copy the behavior of the following criminals. Sometimes, youre better off just sitting back and doing nothing. 4 A Bathroom Arsonist Doubled Down and Lost A fire broke out in the bathroom of a plane from England to Egypt in 2015. We dont know who started it. In a few moments, were going to tell you about a second fire aboard this same flight, but officially, the two fires were unrelated. The pilot went on the public address system and reminded passengers that smoking in an airplane is moronic. The crew managed to put the fire out, and in the process, they exhausted two fire extinguishers, as well as a fair chunk of the plane's water supply. Hours later, on the same flight, the crew noticed fire number two. This one also blazed in a lavatory wastepaper bin, but it was a different lavatory and a different bin from the first one. The plane was now short on fire equipment, so they prepared to stage an emergency landing of the 200-passenger flight which wouldnt be easy, since they were a hundred miles from shore. However, they did manage to put the fire out after all, with help from a passenger who just happened to be a firefighter. Tobias Rehbein/Unsplash Youve all heard of planes asking, Is there a doctor on board? But what about firefighters? They identified the smoker behind the second fire as drunken Englishman John Cox. He pleaded guilty to arson once he was back in the U.K., and he received a sentence of four years and six months. He hadnt accepted the sentence as part of the plea itself, and once word of the sentence came down, he figured it was too harsh. He appealed. The judges at his appeal agreed that this original sentence had been improper. They doubled it to nine years and six months. Advertisement Incidentally, though airplanes forbid smoking onboard and forbid it extra hard in the bathrooms, many airplane bathrooms still do include receptacles where smokers can safely dispose of cigarettes. People break the rules, and we have to be ready for that. 3 Another Man Took His Sentence Even Worse Floyd Allen killed at least one man, and shot another, but that happened in the 19th century, when that stuff was considered a normal part of growing up. Our story skips past that to the year 1911, when Allen was a respectable deputy in Virginia. Respectable still meant he was convicted and jailed for beating prisoners, but the governor granted him clemency for it. Advertisement Two nephews of Allens got into a fight one December morning, something to do with corn shucking and kissing the wrongs guy lady. They fled the authorities, who caught up with them and threw them in a carriage to cart them off to jail. This carriage, operated by one Deputy Thomas Samuels, soon came upon one Deputy Floyd Allen. Allen busted his nephews out and fought with Samuels, leaving him unconscious in a ditch. via Wiki Commons Sorry its so hard to describe this crime without making it sound awesome. Advertisement Allen soon turned his nephews in, so he evidently never had long-term plans for smuggling them into Canada or anything like that. That still left him indicted on assault and battery charges, plus the catch-all charge of interfering. The verdict came a year later. The judge recommended a year in prison. Gentlemen, I aint a-goin! said Allen, reaching into his coat. Advertisement We dont know for sure who shot first. Besides Allen himself, the nephews were in the court and armed, as were various officials. When the gunfire ended, the judge, the sheriff, the prosecutor, one witness and two jurors were all dead. Allen and half a dozen others were wounded. Allen went on to be found guilty of murder and died in the electric chair. Suddenly, a year in prison doesnt sound so bad. 2 Outsourcing Corpse Disposal The following story is recent. You might well be hearing bits of it on the news at this very moment, with the story being dubbed the Hollywood headless torso murder. The basics of the tale is that police have a womans torso, and theyve charged the husband with the murder. Maybe he killed his in-laws as well, we dont know. Authorities are far from knowing the whole truth. Advertisement Wed like to focus on one little part of this case. It comes to us courtesy of a group of Spanish-speaking day laborers interviewed by NBC. Just a couple weeks ago, say these laborers, Los Angeles man Samuel Haskell hired them to haul away some bags of garbage from his property. The bags contained rocks, they were told. But the contents felt squishy. Suspicious, they stopped their truck after driving a block away and opened one bag. It contained human remains they found themselves looking at a womans belly button. Courtney Cook/Unsplash Kinda like this, but more murdery. Advertisement The laborers say they went to two different police stations to report the discovery. According to them, both stations refused to listen to them, saying they should instead dial 911. Before going to police, though, they did dump the bags back with Haskell, who now claimed the contents were Halloween decorations. Advertisement Asking these guys to dispose of the bags was never a good idea, but hearing they'd discovered what was inside should have been a wake-up call to take a lot of care with disposal going forward. Not much care actually followed, judging by how a construction worker spotted the torso in a public dumpster the very next day. After appearing in the highest-grossing romantic comedy of all time, a short-lived television spin-off and an inoffensive but ultimately unnecessary sequel, the Portokalos are back for yet another wedding and this time they actually brought the Big Fat Greek Wedding to Greece. But with that aforementioned inoffensive but ultimately unnecessary sequel under her belt, Nia Vardalos had some serious work to do to make a film that was six years in development feel fruitful. Unfortunately for the writer/star/now director, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 feels like another derivative entry in the franchise. The themes and jokes were all done more successfully in the original, and even when new elements are introduced a la Marias dementia that accelerates with the loss of her husband theyre almost immediately abandoned. For better or for worse, its the type of movie that only a Greek mother could love. That said, the trip to the family village in Greece wasnt all for naught. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, which just debuted on Peacock, has these three things going for it that at least make it worth a passive watch 3 A Reminder that John Corbett Can Act When He Wants To For an entire generation, Corbett is nothing more than Carrie Bradshaws on-again, off-again, on-again, off-again, on-again, one-more-time-again partner on Sex and the City and now And Just Like That As iconic as Aidan Shaw is within the SATC Universe, Corbetts acting in the dramedy leaves much to be desired, which is insane when you consider that he was nominated for an Emmy in 1992 for his performance on Northern Exposure as bohemian radio personality Chris Stevens. Advertisement His return as the token non-Greek in Vardalos film is also a return of his acting chops. Sure, theres nothing groundbreaking in his third go around as Ian Miller, but theres definitely nuance, warmth and humanity in his performace. He isnt just reading poorly-written words off the page, hes giving those poorly-written words some depth and relatability. As a character who was famously the butt of this chaotic Greek familys jokes in the first two films, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 gives Corbett his time to shine as a jokester. Hes hardly the funniest person in the film (well get to that diva in a moment), but its still refreshing to see him let loose and have fun in a way thats not cloying or immature. 2 Its a Gorgeous Commercial for Greeces Ministry of Tourism To be honest, if you asked me for a streamlined plot of the film, Id struggle to provide an answer. The third movie feels more like a bunch of scenes that are glued together purely by vibes. Home videos of my family have more sound structure and narrative flow than My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3. The film feels like Vardalos in very Sandler-like fashion mostly wanted to hang out with her movie family and take a vacation in Greece on the production companys dime. Advertisement Advertisement While we dont get a good movie in the traditional sense, we do get some gorgeous settings in whats like a fruit sensory video made up of Mediterranean landscapes. So many of the social aspects of Greek-American life were present across the franchises first two films, and the new location is a nice way to explore identity through a different (literal) lens. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 is truly beautiful to look at, starting with its opening-credits shot of the most decadent baklava youve ever seen. As you get lost in trying to make sense of the plot, youll at least be happy to be similarly lost in cinematography that has no business being as good as it is. FILE - Kerri Ketcham, of Wilton (left), and friend Dale Sitler, of Gansevoort, look at the decorated trees on display during the annual Festival of Trees at Saratoga Springs City Center, in Saratoga Springs on Friday, November 30, 2018. The Festival of Trees are on display till Sunday, closing at 2pm. Rishi Sunak wanted last week's Cabinet reshuffle to be a political 'game-changer'. And for one Red Wall Tory MP it certainly was. 'He's betrayed us,' they told me bitterly. 'He's surrendered to all those liberal, soft, muesli-loving, woke, knee-taking b******s in the South!' Another Red Wall MP agreed. 'Rishi's cut us loose. He's going to circle the wagons round the traditional seats and see how many he can save. Well, we're not going to lay down and take it. There's going to be a reaction.' What that reaction will be is the subject of intense discussion this weekend. For some Red Wallers it's time to again start thinking the unthinkable. 'There's cold fury at the PM,' one claimed. 'I'm not personally there yet, but a large number of colleagues are saying, 'We've nothing to lose, we may as well roll the dice one more time.' I don't think Rishi is going to lead us into the next election.' Rishi Sunak wanted last week's Cabinet reshuffle to be a political 'game-changer'. And for one Red Wall Tory MP it certainly was. 'He's betrayed us,' they told me bitterly. Another Red Wall MP agreed. 'Rishi's cut us loose. He's going to circle the wagons round the traditional seats and see how many he can save. Well, we're not going to lay down and take it. There's going to be a reaction' Rather than the nuclear option of yet another leadership contest, others advocate some sort of sustained parliamentary guerrilla warfare. 'It's basically every man and woman for themselves,' one explained to me. 'We're going to be pushing our own agenda from now on.' However this dramatic statement of Red Wall UDI manifests itself, only time will tell. But one thing is certain. The great political realignment seemingly presaged by Boris Johnson's 2019 general election victory is dead. 'We had a golden opportunity to reshape British politics,' one Minister told me, 'but we've completely blown it. Former Labour voters were reaching out to us in their droves. But now we've turned our backs on them.' The brief life, and untimely death, of Red Wall Tory Britain is the product of a number of factors. When Covid struck, I remember a Cabinet Minister predicting: 'That's it for Boris and his Red Wall strategy. There's now no way we'll get the necessary investment in place in time for the next election.' So it proved. Last week, the National Audit Office published a report into the Government's Levelling Up, Towns Fund and UK Shared Prosperity Fund programmes. It found that since 2020, 10.6 billion of new investment had been announced. Of that, 9.5 billion had been allocated by central government. But only 2 billion had been handed to the various local development agencies. And just 0.9 billion of that has actually been spent on projects on the ground. The NAO published a similar report into the Government's pledge to build '40 new hospitals'. It revealed the first hospital, the Dyson Cancer Centre in Bath, will not open till the end of the year. The second hospital, the Shotley Bridge Hospital in County Durham, won't be open until late 2025. The NAO concluded there is 'inherent uncertainty' about whether 30 of the 38 remaining hospitals were either 'affordable or achievable'. Another factor driving the Tory Red Wall implosion is the decline and fall of the standard bearer of that triumphant 2019 strategy, Boris Johnson. Over the past couple of weeks, Johnson's allies have been highlighting what they believe was a calculating and co-ordinated plot to assassinate their champion, and destroy his political project. Another factor driving the Tory Red Wall implosion is the decline and fall of the standard bearer of that triumphant 2019 strategy, Boris Johnson Others argue he was the architect of his own downfall, and that his removal became both necessary and inevitable after he was caught flouting the lockdown regulations millions of Red Wall voters had been diligently observing. But the reasons for his demise are irrelevant. Whatever his faults, Johnson was able to reach over the Red Wall in a way neither of his successors nor any readily identifiable replacements have been able to match. When Sunak became PM, one Red Waller told me they were optimistic. 'He's a Yorkshire MP, he understands the area, and he's very popular in the constituency. He gets us,' they said. Yet somewhere in the transition from the Yorkshire Dales to Downing Street, the MP for Richmond has morphed into the Rt Hon Member for Mars South. 'It's like he's from another planet,' one Tory grandee opined. 'Artificial Intelligence conferences. A British Baccalaureate. Bans on smoking. How's any of this supposed to cut through to my working-class voters?' Another fundamental failure has been the Tories' inability to understand never mind leverage the broader cultural and political undercurrents of their bold Red Wall incursion. One reason that so many Labour supporters finally cast aside voting habits ingrained over generations was because they genuinely felt Boris Johnson and his party represented a challenge to the political status quo. What they definitely weren't voting for was the spectacle of the newly ennobled Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton striding confidently along the main corridor of Downing Street to a chorus of 'Daddy's back!' from his cheerleaders. No10 insiders insist Cameron's appointment as Foreign Secretary represented a mature response to the increasingly chaotic and dangerous picture on the international stage. Which may be true. But to Red Wall MPs, the appointment represented a slap in the face. Followed by a knee to the groin. 'Ditching Suella [Braverman] was bad enough. My voters were right behind her,' one raged. 'But bringing back Cameron? That was just an insult. It's just sticking a finger up to my people. And then they basically say, 'Yeah sorry. But here, you can have Esther McVey as your consolation prize.' In fairness, some Red Wallers recognise Sunak had little choice over ridding himself of his increasingly troublesome Home Secretary. 'To be honest, she brought it on herself,' one told me. But in dispensing with Braverman and receiving a vitriolic resignation letter condemning his failures to deliver on the Rwanda strategy Sunak has highlighted what is probably the biggest single reason for the collapse of the Tories' Red Wall support. In response to Braverman's letter, and the subsequent Supreme Court judgment ruling the Rwanda policy illegal, Sunak has gone on the offensive. 'I will not allow foreign courts to block these flights,' he said boldly, in reference to the European Court of Human Rights legislation he believes underpinned the ruling. According to senior No10 sources, this is not political grandstanding. They claim to have proof that the mere existence of the Rwanda plan is having some deterrent effect on small-boat numbers, and point to the fact that over the past year these have fallen by a third in the UK, while migrant numbers are rising across the rest of Europe. One source said: 'Every time Sir Keir Starmer says that, as PM, he would scrap the Rwanda scheme, he undermines its power. It leaves more potential migrants thinking 'OK, let's chance it.' But people in Red Wall constituencies don't put themselves in the minds of those contemplating the risky journey across the Channel. Instead, they are more likely to think back to what they were told by Rishi Sunak and his Tory colleagues back in 2016. 'Vote for Brexit and you'll take back control' was the promise ahead of the referendum. It was repeated by Johnson in 2019 when he pledged that a vote for him meant finally getting Brexit done. And yet here we are again. With Sunak admitting that foreign courts are still able to block the will of the British people. And desperately appealing for one more chance to deliver on the promises made to Red Wall voters. He won't get it. Because to their eyes, the Tories have had enough chances. The promise to deliver levelling up. The promise to shatter the old political consenus. The promise to stop the boats. The promise that people would be handed back control of their lives and communities. 'Rishi's abandoned us,' one Red Wall MP claimed to me. He has. And in response, the voters of Red Wall Britain are now preparing to abandon him. If you ever wanted more evidence that Westminster is dangerously disconnected from the rest of the country, look no further than the events of last week. First came the sacking of Home Secretary Suella Braverman, swiftly followed by her resignation letter read by 37 million people on social media which blasted Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for having failed to deliver on his promise to the British people to lower immigration and stop the cross-Channel boats. His flagship policy to that end to fly asylum-seekers and illegal migrants to Rwanda to have their claims processed was then torn down by the Supreme Court. More Britons support than oppose the Rwanda plan. People demonstrate outside the constituency office of Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer Palestine sit in protest, calling for a Ceasefire Now, at Waterloo station despite a section 14 notice being issue by the police And despite most of them now being absolutely convinced that our borders are out of control, an assortment of activist lawyers, pressure groups and unelected judges, cheered on by the radical woke Left, blocked the only thing that might deter people against entering the country illegally. But more worrying is what the Supreme Court judgment and the Home Secretarys sacking says about the state of the country. With Braverman gone, no frontline politician is left to voice the concerns of the vast majority of voters on issues such as immigration, multiculturalism and the breakdown of our borders. Nor is there anyone who will take on the two big threats that are rapidly undermining our shared identity, history, values and culture. And what are these threats to Britain, exactly? The first was on show again yesterday in the hundred or so rallies held across the country as part of the Palestinian Day of Action. The recent ugly expressions of anti-Semitism and support for Hamas at these marches represents the creeping and insidious spread of radical Islamism. Its hardcore adherents who are taking to the streets every weekend spout their hatred not only of Jews and Israel but of Western values and our way of life. There have been calls for jihad on British streets. Radical preachers have been recorded describing Jews as filth and usurpers, and urging their followers to tear them apart. The constituency offices of some Labour MPs have been vandalised with red paint by groups chanting shame on you. The crime of these individual politicians, some of whom understandably now fear for their families safety, is to have not voted for the Scottish National Partys motion last Wednesday that called for a ceasefire in Gaza. The crowd continue to responding to the latest outbreak of violence and the Israeli response in Gaza Is this what our ancestors, whose memory we solemnly observed last weekend, fought for? To see elected representatives and British Jews, much like their ancestors in Nazi Germany, scared to leave their homes, go to school or show their faith? How has it come to this? The rise of radical Islamism, I believe, has been facilitated by what Suella Braverman warned about decades of mass, uncontrolled and unassimilated immigration that has led to the importation of tribal grievances from abroad into British communities. The Government has not only failed to deport foreign nationals who openly glorify Islamist terror, but at least one senior Hamas militant has been granted British citizenship, as well as social housing and welfare support. Much of this is being enabled by the second big threat, which has also been apparent in recent weeks: the rise of a radical woke Left, whose supporters have joined marches in the full knowledge that elements within them are endorsing terrorism and anti-Semitism. This was best symbolised, last week, by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn refusing more than a dozen times during a TV interview to call Hamas what it is a terrorist group. As in America, the woke Left is reshaping society around an utterly divisive and unBritish worldview which contends that the country comprises only two competing groups: the morally inferior oppressors, including the white majority, Jews and basically all Western nations, and the morally superior oppressed minorities, such as Muslims and other chosen minority groups. The woke Left argues that our history, identity and culture are institutionally racist, and a source of shame and embarrassment. They say that it should all be revised, if not fully deconstructed, or, in other words, overthrown. The woke Left also promotes a fundamentally flawed model of multiculturalism that fails to integrate racial groups into wider British society it champions the differences among them instead of the shared values that bind us all. Over the last two decades, this warped worldview has captured some of the most important and influential institutions in our society the universities, the BBC, much of the media, the creative industries, big corporations and cultural institutions. Even our primary and secondary schools are now infected with the woke Lefts divisive creeds, such as radical gender and critical race theories which promote the idea that racism is entrenched in society and white people still have the whip hand. The woke Left and radical Islamism are not just feeding off one another but are, together, undermining British values that have prevailed for centuries. Their common cause comes from them sharing many worrying things in common. Both are illiberal. They routinely impose religious, gender or sexual agendas regardless of the rights that individual citizens have. Both are dismissive of the values that lie at the heart of democracy, such as tolerance, pluralism and free speech. Both shun serious debate, preferring to indoctrinate the young through faith schools or woke curriculums, while attacking or cancelling those who oppose them, variously using charges of Islamophobia or racism to silence those who criticise them. Both are iconoclastic, united in wanting to tear down British institutions, and both are revolutionary, in wanting to fundamentally transform society. And both, as weve seen recently, are either openly anti-Semitic or willing to march alongside those who are. The result is that we now face a toxic erosion of the sense of shared identity, values, culture and history we have in Britain. Whether on the Right or Left, none of our leaders appears capable, or even willing, to defend us from the radical wokeism or extreme Islamism that we are currently experiencing. Meanwhile, those who dare challenge the consensus in Westminster from Boris Johnson and Liz Truss to, as we saw last week, Suella Braverman have promptly been pushed out of frontline politics. The return of David Cameron to the Cabinet, a centrist who hasnt the stomach to take on these twin ideological threats, confirms that the towel has been thrown in. So let me end by asking a different question. The servicemen and women whose sacrifice we remembered last weekend fought for a Britain that is free, tolerant and democratic one that defends our shared values and traditions. Do todays leaders have the will to do the same? Last week, Sir Keir Starmer endured the biggest revolt of his leadership when 56 of his MPs - including eight frontbenchers - defied the whips to vote in favour of a ceasefire in Gaza. But the Labour leader's problems over the war may only be beginning. Frontbencher Rushanara Ali abstained from the vote, prompting an extraordinary outburst from prominent lawyer Mohammed Akunjee, whose clients include Shamima Begum, the Isis bride in Syria fighting in the English courts to restore her citizenship, which was revoked in 2019 on security grounds. Akunjee proclaimed on social media: 'Rushanara Ali - what did your leader promise you for your silence and complicity? Rushanara Ali needs to be replaced.' In another post, he said: 'She needs to pack her bags. Vote her out.' Despite Ms Ali sitting on a 37,500-strong majority in her Bethnal Green and Bow constituency, Labour insiders fear she may be ousted by the charismatic Akunjee, who is thought to be considering running as an Independent in the constituency at the next General Election. Last week, Sir Keir Starmer (pictured) endured the biggest revolt of his leadership when 56 of his MPs - including eight frontbenchers - defied the whips to vote in favour of a ceasefire in Gaza Frontbencher Rushanara Ali abstained from the vote, prompting an extraordinary outburst from prominent lawyer Mohammed Akunjee, whose clients include Shamima Begum Shamima Begum (pictured) is the Isis bride in Syria fighting in the English courts to restore her citizenship, which was revoked in 2019 on security grounds Lawyer Mohammed Akunjee's clients include Shamima Begum The seat in Tower Hamlets, in London's East End - once a proud Labour stronghold - is already convulsed in political turmoil. Last year, its council was captured by the Aspire party, whose 24 councillors are all Bangladeshi-heritage Muslims. The council and Aspire leader Lutfur Rahman - who has also joined marches demanding a ceasefire - is considering whether to field candidates across the country in areas where there is a large Muslim vote. Akunjee, were he to join Aspire, would be a huge feather in Rahman's cap. My Labour mole confides: 'Akunjee is becoming more direct in his challenge to the party. In safe seats like Bethnal Green, we shouldn't have to lift a finger. But if he stands, we'll have to divert resources from marginal seats.' Ed's itsy-bitsy bikini confession Discussing body-waxing on Good Morning Britain, the wonk-turned-media-personality Ed Balls made a shock admission: 'I have worn a bikini... I was once 'Sharron Davies' [the Olympic swimmer] in a swimsuit competition for charity. I looked really good.' Were there any photos? 'I don't think so.' A relief, perhaps - but over to you, Gary the cartoonist! Common sense fail for Phil Tory MP Philip Davies was working in his Shipley constituency last week while Rishi Sunak was conducting his Cabinet reshuffle. Having been an MP since 2005 and never been offered - or been interested in - a ministerial position, Davies was shocked to learn that No. 10 was urgently trying to contact him. He feared a job offer was imminent ... but fortunately the PM was merely trying to get hold of Davies's wife, fellow Tory MP Esther McVey, who revealed: 'Hilariously, Phil said it was the only time he has been called by No. 10 during a reshuffle.' Tory MP Philip Davies was working in his Shipley constituency last week while Rishi Sunak was conducting his Cabinet reshuffle McVey now holds the role widely nicknamed 'Minister for Common Sense'. Perhaps if her husband had any, he'd have known the call wasn't for him. Before disappearing into the I'm A Celebrity jungle, Nigel Farage delivered a typically upbeat message to supporters of his Reform UK party: 'The thought of doing certain bush-tucker trials doesn't thrill me, but I am used to dealing with snakes and other horrible reptiles both in the European Parliament in Brussels and at Westminster over the years.' Farage, who is reportedly being paid a record 1.5 million for his spell Down Under, quips: 'It looks like Coutts might even want to take me back after all.' Before disappearing into the I'm A Celebrity jungle, Nigel Farage delivered a typically upbeat message to supporters of his Reform UK party Boris Johnson praised his former Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries, describing her as the new Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, the Russian dissident jailed for criticising Stalin. Speaking at the launch of her political memoir, The Plot: The Political Assassination Of Boris Johnson, Boris cried: 'Go Nads... she's got more balls than the Cabinet.' Last week saw the appointment of the 16th Housing minister since 2010. In that time there have been ten Education secretaries, 12 Culture secretaries, nine Work and Pensions secretaries and seven Transport secretaries. Meanwhile, new Home Secretary James Cleverly is in his seventh berth in under five years, averaging eight months in each role. It's no wonder so many voters think that the country is in such a mess. Don't miss our brilliant new podcast, The Crown: Fact or Fiction with Robert Hardman and Natasha Livingstone. Listen now on Spotify, Apple or wherever you get your podcasts It might be a little unfair, but from modern architecture to the 'grey goo' of nanotechnology, King Charles has often been accused of sticking his nose in where it's not wanted. But when it comes to food and drink, he's really quite an expert. And that's when the royal schnozzle comes right into its own... King Charles has a good sniff at a food truck samosa in Nairobi last week. He suggested the food could 'blow your head off' Prince Charles gets a whiff of local Honey on a trip to Exmoor National Park in 2019 Clean living Charles smells olive soap during a visit to a traditional olive grove and fruit orchard at The Carmelite Convent in Bethlehem in January 2020 An organic aroma at Sedlescombe Vineyard in the East Sussex village of Fletching in May 2000 The Prince of Wales gets to grips with a Sri Lankan leek in Kandy, 2013 Charles shows us how to do it once again, this time with a box of wild mushrooms in Ljubljana, Slovenia in March 2011 Get a load of that! Charles at the Kizimbani Spice Plantation on a 2011 visit to Tanzania That's garlic, Sir. Chalres at a Farmers' Market in Swiss Cottage, London in November 2000 The heir to the throne inspects the produce in Settle, Yorkshire, in March 2017 Cheese-fan Charles gets to work on a visit to Edinburgh in September 2010 The smell of Brooke's Dairy Ice Cream in Gloucestershire, December 2004 Now its the turn of a melon at Marks & Spencer in July 2009. Executive Chairman Sir Stuart Rose is on the left Double-breasted Charles has a serious looking smell of a Howland Wonder Apple - a rare English fruit - a the Cheshire Show in June 1998 An enraptured Prince of Wales learns that this loaf of bread was made from the Highgrove Estate's organic flour, in January 2001 Charles seems abstracted in the presence of green tomato chutney Hotwells Primary School in December 2005 It looks like soup - and the Prince makes sure, at the kitchens of Nottingham's City Hospital Lovingly crafted by hand, it is a touching memento of the days when Harry was very much in the Royal fold. But this birthday card also includes a hint of a future that no one could ever have imagined for the young royal. It is decorated with a heart in the colours of the American flag and the words 'Love Harry' also includes a stars-and-stripes motif. It is thought that the card, which is due to go on sale at Dominic Winter Auctioneers on Wednesday, dates from 1987 or 1988. The auction house's website states: 'Nicki, the recipient of the card, was given this birthday card by Harry when he was three or four. Diana told her Harry had made it specially (but possibly with some assistance from Diana).' The auction house stated that Diana told the recipient of the card that Harry had made it specially. Pictured: King Charles, Diana, William and Harry Lovingly crafted by hand, it is a touching memento of the days when Harry was very much in the Royal fold It adds that it is made from 'folded dark grey paper with colour paper cut-outs of circles, diamonds, hearts etc, pasted to front cover and inside pages, and 'Stars and Stripes' transfer capital letters reading 'LOVE HARRY' neatly pasted to right inside page'. The card, which has an estimated value of between 1,000 and 1,500, is one of several items of royal memorabilia up for sale. Other lots include a 1987 signed Christmas card featuring Charles, Diana, William and Harry, plus a 1990 letter signed by Diana expected to fetch up to 1,000. It was written to Anne-Marie of Denmark, the wife of Constantine II, the last king of Greece, who died earlier this year. A 1992 letter to Reg Spinney who served as a bodyguard to William and Harry is tipped to fetch up to 3,000. Diana wrote: 'I did so want you to know how deeply we've all appreciated your marvellous (& no doubt challenging!) work during the last five years. William & Harry have been more than fortunate to have you by their side.' She put the controversy over her parents' business behind her Australia's Moraya Wilson has come third in the annual Miss Universe pageant, seeming to put the revelations of her family's dark history behind her. This year's event, which was held in the Central American country of El Salvador, was won by Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua, with Anntonia Porsild of Thailand coming second. Ms Wilson's entry has sparked controversy in Australia due to her parents' business dealings. Her father, Anton Wilson, ran multiple companies which collapsed owing creditors more than $45million. He was banned by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) from managing corporations until 2027 and his ex-wife Melinda Wilson was disqualified from managing corporations for five years, with debts of $39million. But Ms Wilson kept her mind focussed on the competition on Saturday night in El Salvador's capital San Salvador to finish in third place. Australia's Moraya Wilson (pictured) has unexpectedly come third in the annual Miss Universe pageant, seeming to put the revelations of her family's dark history behind her Miss Australia Moraya Wilson is pictured walking onstages during the 72nd Miss Universe competition in San Salvador, El Salvador There were 84 contestants in the running at the start of the night, which was narrowed down to a top 20 after the first hour of the event. Then, after the swimsuit portion of the event, the number was further culled to 10, which included competitors from Colombia, El Salvador, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Spain and Venezuela, as well as the eventual top three. After a round of questions from the selection committee, a last look at the contestants and then a final question, the Miss Universe top three was announced. The disappointment of not finishing first might be the least of Ms Wilson's troubles, though. She is alleged to have been a director of 10 companies which owed thousands of dollars in tax as of September 2 - a day after winning the Australian crown in Melbourne, though she has denied any knowledge of, or involvement in, the businesses. The controversy has even spread to Victoria's Parliament with shadow transport minister and former opposition leader Matthew Guy calling on ASIC to reopen investigations into her parents. During his statement to the state's parliament, Mr Guy said a number of his constituents contacted his office concerned about the 'actions of Mr and Ms Wilson'. 'I do note that there is a lot of money in this issue that is owed and has been at play, and many Victorians have been financially hurt and seek rightful redress,' he said. 'It is not right that a number of companies linked to these individuals continue to operate while tens of millions of dollars in unpaid debts remains outstanding.' The MP alleged that ASIC had previously investigated the couple but the inquiries had been 'bizarrely' concluded 'with no serious attempt to seek financial redress or assist those who are seeking to obtain justice'. 'How can it be that our federal regulatory authorities cannot commence or reopen investigations into people who owe so much money to so many?' Mr Guy asked. He requested the state assistant treasurer to contact his federal counterpart, Stephen Jones, to 'reopen an investigation' into Mr and Ms Wilson. Mr Guy also called on Victorian Premier, Jacinta Allan, to put her support behind an investigation promptly for the sake of 'Victorians involved who have been financially hurt'. Daily Mail Australia has approached Moraya Wilson for comment. Miss Thailand Anntonia Porsild (who finished second), Miss Australia Moraya Wilson (who finished third) and Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios (the winner) are pictured at the 72nd Miss Universe Competition Miss Thailand Anntonia Porsild and Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios are pictured as Ms Palacios was announced as Miss Universe 2023 Miss Universe Australia Moraya Wilson stepped onto the stage at the international pageant wearing a native wildflower inspired gown by Perth designer Emma Daley Moraya Wilson (centre) poses for photos alongside other Miss Universe contestants In the costume part of the show, Ms Wilson stepped onto the stage wearing a native wildflower inspired gown by 29-year-old Perth designer Emma Daley. Other contestants wore extravagant, sometimes eccentric, bejewelled ensembles - with everything from an Oxford English Dictionary to tulips, trains and even airplanes, on display. An array of animals such as butterflies, goats and birds graced the stage in an explosion of colour - and one entry even dressed as a cobbled street. After updating its eligibility rules last year, married women and mothers are allowed to compete in Miss Universe for the very first time - held at the Jose Adolfo Pineda Arena. For the last 70 years, the pageant was only available to women who had never been married or had children, but now, both mothers and married women can enter the pageant. 'We all believe that women should have agency over their lives and that a human's personal decisions should not be a barrier to their success,' an internal memo obtained by The National said. Hundreds have called for Miss Universe Australia, Moraya Wilson (pictured), to step down from her role after she was revealed to be the daughter of bankrupt property developers Anton and Melinda Wilson Moraya lives in a two-bed apartment in upmarket Armadale in inner-city Melbourne' with her former AFL rookie boyfriend Sam Alabakis (pictured) In her Miss Universe biography, Moraya Wilson (pictured) said she planned to launch a fashion business as part of her business marketing degree at RMIT University Josh Yugen, the national director of Miss Universe said 'The Miss Universe Organization is always the greatest and most innovative platform of its kind and now it will be more inclusive and welcoming to mothers and married women. 'For me, this is aligned with what I have been fighting for breaking stereotypes and unlearning the stigma that the old society has forced on us from many many decades ago.' Likely in celebration of the new ruling, Miss Canada Madison Kvaltin was seen sporting a gigantic maple leaf costume with the words 'Inclusivity makes dreams come true' during the show. Andrea Meza, 27, who represented Mexico and was crowned Miss Universe in 2020, noted the new rule was long overdue. 'I honestly love that this is happening,' she said in an interview with Insider. 'Just like society changes and women are now occupying leadership positions where in the past only men could. 'It was about time pageants changed and opened up to women with families.' This year's costume show saw a wide variety of outfits donned by the participants, including a train, multiple dragons and what appeared to be a money chandelier. Possibly most peculiar of all was Miss Great Britain Jessica Page's choice of outfit, as she stepped out as an Oxford Dictionary. Miss Cameroon Issie Princess's costumes honours women who have made an impact on the women's empowerment movement in Cameroon. Meanwhile Helena Bleicher, Miss Germany, opted to go as Rapunzel - wearing a long plaited wig and a pink and purple co-ord, while carrying a storybook. Miss Curacao Kim Rossen went as the Olympic torch for her costume, while Miss Netherlands Rikkie Kolle stepped out as a blooming flower. The beginning of the competition comes just days after it was announced the company behind the Miss Universe pageant sensationally filed for bankruptcy. Possibly most peculiar of all was Miss Great Britain Jessica Page's choice of outfit, as she stepped out as an Oxford Dictionary Miss Netherlands Rikkie Kolle stepped out for the competition as a blooming flower Miss Canada Madison Kvaltin was seen sporting a gigantic maple leaf costume with the words 'Inclusivity makes dreams come true' during the show Miss Angola Ana Barbara Coimbra takes part in the National Costume Show during the 72nd Miss Universe pageant Miss Curacao Kim Rossen went as the Olympic torch for her costume, while Miss Ecuador Delary Stoffers appeared to be a train Anne Jakrajutatip acquired the event for $20 million in 2022 from IMG Media, adding it to the portfolio of JKN Global Group. Between 1996 and 2015, the Miss Universe Pageant was part of Donald Trump's business empire. The bankruptcy comes after the company missed out on fulfilling a $12 million loan repayment. Despite the setback, JKN was bullish and maintained that the event would go ahead as planned. Back in 2015, Trump was forced into selling the pageant after TV companies refused to deal with the then-presidential candidate over his racist remarks while on the campaign trail. Around this time, one former Miss Universe, Alicia Machado, said that Mr Trump called her Miss Piggy after she gained weight after winning the contest in 1996. Nicaragua's Sheynnis Palacios has been crowned Miss Universe 2023 at the 72nd annual beauty pageant held in San Salvador last night - making history as the first delegate from Nicaragua to win the title. In addition to Sheynnis' victory, the event saw several more historic firsts, including two mother candidates, two transgender women and a plus-size individual. Sheynnis, 23, pipped Anntonia Porsild of Thailand for the prestigious title, and looked elated as she was crowned by last year's winner, USA's R'Bonney Nola Gabriel. Two trans women featured at the pageant this year. Rikkie Kolle, a 22-year-old LGBTQIA+ rights activist who was crowned Miss Netherlands in July and Miss Portugal's Marina Machete, 23, who works as cabin crew, and was named as her country's entry in October. Mothers, married women and divorcees were allowed to compete for the first time after a rule change in 2022, with Miss Colombia, Camila Avella, and Miss Guatemala, Michelle Cohn, the first women with children to make the finals. Elsewhere, Miss Nepal, Jane Dipika Garrett, who had been tipped to win, became the first plus-sized model to enter, although she was eliminated before the final round. Also eliminated at the same stage was Pakistan's first entry into the competition, Erica Robin, who wore a burkini in the swimsuit round. Nicaragua's Sheynnis Palacios has been crowned Miss Universe 2023 at the annual beauty pageant held in San Salvador last night The winners of the national pageants from 84 countries participated in this year's Miss Universe, judged by a panel that included model Halima Aden and 'Queer Eye' star Carson Kressley, TikTok influencer Avani Gregg and two former Miss Universe winners, Janelle Commissiong of Trinidad and Tobago (Miss Universe 1977) and Iris Mittenaere of France (Miss Universe 2016). On the coronation night, Sheynnis consistently progressed to the next rounds, with strong performances in both the swimsuit segment and the evening gown competition. During the Top 5 question and answer segment, she was asked about the qualities and values that guide her as a leader and role model for others. Left, Rikkie Kolle, 22, is an LGBTQIA+ rights activist and transgender woman who was crowned Miss Netherlands in July. Right: The other trans contestant this year was Miss Portugal's Marina Machete, 23, who works as cabin crew and was named her country's entry in October Trans contestant Miss Portugal Marina Machete strikes a pose during the 72nd Miss Universe Competition Rikkie Kolle, a trans woman representing The Netherlands in the competition, uses her platform to fight for LGBTQ+ rights The competition included the first 'curvy' contestant to reach the pageant's semi-finals, Miss Nepal (right) and the first contestant to wear a burkini swimsuit, Miss Pakistan (left) Sheyniss is a mental health activist and audiovisual producer from Managua, Nicaragua Her response was: 'The quality that has inspired me and has inspired millions of women and girls is humility and the ability to appreciate the little things, because that's where the most valuable thing is: the essence of being a human.' After reaching the Top 3, alongside Thailand's Anntonia Porsild and Australia's Moraya Wilson, Sheynnis was asked: 'If you could live one year in another woman's shoes, who would you choose and why?' Her winning answer was: 'I would choose Mary Wollstonecraft, because she opened the gap to give an opportunity to many women. 'What I would do is to have that income gap open up so women could work in any area that they choose to work in because there are no limitations for women. That was 1750. Now in 2023 we are making history.' In the competition, Sheynnis chose mental health as her advocacy, drawing from her personal experiences with anxiety. Hailing from a country where this issue is rarely addressed, she started an initiative called 'Understand Your Mind', which involves interviewing specialists on emotional care in her television segments. Sheynnis, 23, pipped Anntonia Porsild of Thailand for the prestigious title She looked elated as she was crowned by last year's winner, USA's R'Bonney Nola Gabriel Nicaragua's Sheynnis Palacios has made history as the first delegate from Nicaragua to win the title Sheynnis was passed a huge bouquet of flowers to congratulate her on her victory Additionally, the 23-year-old has organised events and other audiovisual projects centered on the theme of mental health. According to the Miss Universe organisation, Sheynnis' goal in life is to 'work in the service of humanity, by running a newsroom and producing content and commercials for international brands.' Sheynnis outshone the 83 other candidates, making history as the first delegate from Nicaragua to win the Miss Universe title. However, she is no stranger to pageantry, having started competing in national pageants at the age of 16. Sheynnis clinched the title of Miss Teen Nicaragua in 2016 and achieved a Top 10 placement in the Miss Teen Universe pageant. In 2020, she secured victory in the Miss World Nicaragua pageant and once again represented her country at the Miss World 2021 edition, where she earned a place in the Top 40. Her extensive pageantry experience made her one of the frontrunners for the Miss Universe 2023 competition, with numerous pageant pages and experts including the Nicaraguan beauty queen in their top picks. Before the Miss Universe 2023 coronation night, Sheynnis took to Instagram to reflect on her journey. 'Tonight, I dedicate it to my inner girl and to each of the girls who yearn to fulfill this dream, even the sky itself is the limit, a dream so big that people think it is impossible to achieve. Because that is where you know that your dreams and goals will exceed obstacles, and remember to accompany them with determination, perseverance, and passion,' she wrote. The beauty queen impressed with her captivating demeanor during the swimsuit segment The mental health advocate sported a dazzling silver evening gown and tiara Sheynnis welcomed last year's winner on to the stage to present the crown The final three candidates: Anntonia Porsild of Thailand, Moraya Wilson of Australia and Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua Miss Nicaragua could not believe it when she was crowned Miss Universe The new beauty queen was crowned by last year's winner, USA's R'Bonney Nola Gabriel Miss Nicaragua scoops Miss Universe 2023 at pageant full of historical firsts Miss Nicaragua sheds tears of joy as she is crowned Miss Universe Sheynnis was beaming as she looked to the cheering audience Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios is crowned as Miss Universe 2023 during the 72nd Miss Universe Competition Sheynnis Palacios looked breathtaking as she walked onstage during the event Her evening gown sparkled under the lights as she waved to the audience Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios competed with several other countries Miss Nicaragua reacts after being called in the top 20 finalists during the Miss Universe coronation ceremony in San Salvador John Legend performed during the coronation ceremony on 18 November Top 10 finalist Miss Spain Athenea Perez parades during the Miss Universe coronation ceremony in San Salvador Newly elected Miss Universe 2023 Sheynnis Palacio of Nicaragua attended a press conference afterwards In the preliminary competition, the beauty queen impressed the audience with her dazzling gown and captivating demeanor during the swimsuit segment. But it was her national costume - a purple and black ensemble inspired by the Nicaraguan grackle bird species El Zanate - that garnered attention online. Apart from the elaborate costume, which included wings and a headpiece, Sheynnis made a lasting impression on the runway by kneeling and gracefully flapping her costume's wings. Sheynnis, who has a degree in Mass Communications from the Universidad Centroamericana, serves as a television host on a local channel. She is proficient in three languages: Spanish, Portuguese and English. Her favourite sport is volleyball and she's happiest when watching the sunset. The beauty queen also noted she couldn't live without her family or pets. Within an hour of Saturday night's event, 20 semi-finalists were announced based on the results of the preliminary competition and a global fan vote. Then, after the swimsuit segment, the group was culled to 10 - including competitors from Colombia, El Salvador, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Spain and Venezuela, as well as the eventual top three. The evening gown round halved the number of contestants further. After two rounds of hot-topic questions from the selection committee, the Miss Universe top three were announced: Sheynnis, Anntonia and the second runner-up Moraya Wilson of Australia. After updating its eligibility rules last year, married women and mothers were allowed to compete in Miss Universe for the very first time - held at the Jose Adolfo Pineda Arena. For the last 70 years, the pageant was only available to women who had never been married or had children, but now, both mothers and married women can enter the pageant. 'We all believe that women should have agency over their lives and that a human's personal decisions should not be a barrier to their success,' an internal memo obtained by The National said. Josh Yugen, the national director of Miss Universe, said 'The Miss Universe Organisation is always the greatest and most innovative platform of its kind and now it will be more inclusive and welcoming to mothers and married women. 'For me, this is aligned with what I have been fighting for - breaking stereotypes and unlearning the stigma that the old society has forced on us from many many decades ago.' Here's how to add just the right amount of country flair to your wardrobe Fashion houses are no strangers to the timeless elegance of country style. Ganni, the Danish brand synonymous with Scandi cool, has recently collaborated with Barbour and earlier this month, the Princess of Wales stepped out in a jacket from the stalwart of British outerwear, Burberry. Coming in at 900, the jacket was a re-imagined version of the quilted jacket worn by the late Queen at Balmoral. Black kick-flare jeans and sturdy ankle boots completed Kates country-made-modern look. Heres how to add just the right amount of country flair to your wardrobe... BOOT CAMP Two equally appealing, but very different, boot options are available here (Left: Contrast tab, 170, blundstone.co.uk, Right: Tassle, 359, penelopechilvers.com) Leather knee-high, 159.99, mango.com Two equally appealing, but very different, boot options are available here. The first? The knee-high, flat equestrian type of boot that wouldnt look out of place at a point-to-point, or on a cavalry officer at Hyde Park Barracks. Mango has a pair in the perfect shade of brown for 159.99 that could be Hermes. Tuck a pair of loose jeans into them for a prim-meets-cool fusion. The other option? The track-soled, sturdy ankle-length type of boot the Princess of Wales favours. Practical enough for woodland, but stylish enough for pavements, the Princesss go-tos are by cult Australian brand Blundstone, or the fashion crowds favourite, Penelope Chilvers. SNAFFLE A SNAFFLE Inspired by the elegance of the racing set he encountered during his time as a bellhop at The Savoy hotel, Guccio Gucci added horsebit hardware to many of his leather goods during the 1930s. And his son, Aldo, then added it to the brands loafers in the 1950s, which gained a huge and varied fanbase: not many shoes have been worn by both U.S. president George Bush and Madonna. Snaffle headband, 27, and wristwarmers, 35, waringbrooke.com Equestrian flair has a perennial appeal, it would seem. Diehard urbanites consider the snaffle the least scary way to inject just a small dose of country polish to your wardrobe. Arket has a suede snaffle belt (67, arket.com) that would be chic over a supersized blazer, while Fairfax & Favors loafers (185, fairfaxandfavor.com) feature gold hardware similar to a snaffle. Suede snaffle belt, 67, arket.com Or try Waring Brooke for snaffle accessories made on a traditional knitting machine in the Nottinghamshire countryside. EMBRACE TEXTURES Stylish: The Princess of Wales in a Burberry quilted jacket Velvet shirt, 224, lavestelaveste.com Velvet shoes, 79, moilondon.com Its no coincidence that country clothing is heavily textured: tweed, corduroy and quilted fabrics are a necessary antidote to the biting cold of the grouse moor and the draughty corridors of country houses. Texture is another shortcut to incorporating a feeling of heritage into an urban wardrobe. Co-founded by agricultural student Sam Pullin and Jermyn Street apprentice Edward Bonnar, Beaufort & Blake makes a culotte-style cord trouser (71.20, beaufort andblake.com) that the country set slide on in the city. Even they know theres a time and a place for plus fours. And Oxford Street probably isnt it. Velvet offers an opulent take on warmth by evening. JUMP INTO JODHPURS L-R: Traditional, 99.95, houseofbruar.com; black velvet, 279, ralphlauren.co.uk; stirrup, 19.99, reserved.com Earlier this month Ascot released its first-ever lookbook for the winter racing season, and it provides a modern, approachable take on the traditional equestrian style. The city slickers shortcut to the country look? A jodhpur-style trouser thats less Pony Club, and more Jilly Cooper. Head to Mango and Reserved for stirrup legging styles for under 25 that subtly nod to the traditional jodhpur, or to Ralph Lauren for a luxurious black velvet pair (279) that will be perfect with a statement shirt and heels for party season. Just dont forget the golden rule of laundry beyond the M25: dont leave anything drying on the Aga for too long. Or maybe do, if you want the authentic orange Aga burn marks that pepper every toffs clothing (and knickers, I might add). GOOD GALS LOVE A GILET Houndstooth tweed gilet, 99.95, joules. com (available from mid-December) Forget the padded sort of gilet that has become de rigueur for any self-respecting banker of late. This is a tailored gilet, probably in tweed. The sort of thing Katharine Hepburn would have worn tucked into high-waisted trousers. This season, heritage brand Schoffel is branching out and has made a ladies gilet in British-milled Lovat tweed (269.95, schoffelcountry.com). Paired with jeans at the weekend or black tailored trousers during the week, the joy of a warm body and non-constricted arms is not to be scoffed at. CHECKMATE The easiest way to spot a country bumpkin in the wild? A check, of course. Vest, 71.20, and shirt, 63.20, beaufortandblake.com The check to the countryside is what camouflage is to the military: a uniform. And the check is steeped in history. The Tattersall version is named after Tattersalls horse market, which opened in 1776 and had horses draped in check blankets. Head to Troy London founded by sisters Rosie van Cutsem and Lucia Ruck Keene and based up the road from the Waleses Norfolk home at Anmer for a Tattersall shirt that fuses the androgyny of the check with the femininity of a pussy bow in a modern re-imagined stock shirt (135, troylondon.com). Paired with jeans and ballet flats, it brings perfect country flair to the city, too. As the Sun and Mars separate from their weekend rendezvous, they both link to mysterious Pluto. To make good use of this cosmic gift, we need to dig for buried treasure... and work creatively with whatever we find. Chances are, we won't uncover any sparkling jewels. But the reward this work brings has the potential to be valuable... in ways that benefit both ourselves and those we care about. ARIES March 21 - April 20 You are who you are. And I am who I am. Nothing will change that. Except... that's not the whole story. Life is a process of discovery. Everything we do holds the potential to teach us something new about the world, ourselves, and our place in the world. And, even if it's in imperceptible ways, we can't help but be influenced and changed as a result of what we experience. You enjoy change. Today, as your ruler, Mars, connects to Pluto, you can access a recently acquired piece of wisdom to make a great decision. There's no need to worry. All you need is some guidance. Your in-depth forecasts can help at cainer.com Oscar Cainer tells Scorpios that they have no reason, whatsoever, to doubt their entitlement to anything today. It's time to go beyond any lingering self-doubt TAURUS April 21 - May 21 You might not have a suit of armour or a steed, but there's no doubt you're coming to someone's rescue. Something needs to happen, and you're the only person who can make it happen. The irony is that it involves taking an action you'd never dream of undertaking on your own behalf. But for this person, you'll do whatever it takes. Quite right, too. You're embarking on a quest to make the world a better place. If you sincerely do what you need to do, your kind-hearted gesture will bring a reward that benefits you too. What does your heart desire and how can you achieve what you really want? See your in-depth forecasts at cainer.com GEMINI May 22 - June 22 We often make choices based on following the path of least resistance. Even if we set out along a more difficult road, it doesn't take long before we start to feel worn out by the challenges. Why keep doing something difficult? Surely, it's better to take the easier route (or the one that looks easier)? Yet even trains that run along straight tracks reach a place where they need to change direction. Today brings a chance to make a bold decision about where you want your emotional and personal life to go next. Ready? Curious to know more? There's always valuable news in your in-depth forecasts at cainer.com CANCER June 23 - July 23 We're not meant to leave things until the last minute. But 'better late than never'. Although you're in an untenable situation, you're in a position to make a difference. So, when today's opportunity arises don't let your doubts risk masking this chance to create change. If you let them, they'll stop you from seeing the right way to proceed. You can work through your confusion. Your uncertainty obliges you to consider every possibility with care. Watch out though, for a sense of conviction. It's a sure sign of a risky assumption! Success is about attitude and timing. Your in-depth forecasts show the way to positive change. Visit cainer.com LEO July 24 - August 23 Devious advertisers and scammers know there are some statements that most people are always pleased to hear. 'Congratulations. You've won a free holiday/car'. The opening gambit disguises their hidden, darker intentions. This policy obviously works surprisingly well, (otherwise they'd find another strategy). I'm not advising you to stoop to such depths today. But you'd be wise to find a way to sweeten the info you need to share. If you want someone to support you with your plan, find a good way to open the dialogue. You've got lots to look forward to. The inspiration you need is in your in-depth forecasts at cainer.com VIRGO August 24 - September 23 What would the world be like if we only ever embarked on easy tasks? If we all steered clear of challenges? If we simply overlooked/ignored complicated scenarios? It's easy to look at what's going on around you and think that people are doing their best to take the simplest path. But if they really were, lots of things would be different. For all that we're attracted to ease, everyone makes an effort to stretch themselves sometimes. And, the reason we push ourselves, is that our efforts pay off. Today, your efforts will be richly rewarded. Knowledge is power. Find out how to take full advantage of your astrological assets at cainer.com LIBRA September 24 - October 23 Knowing that you need 'a reality check' is all well and good... but where are you supposed to get one from? Surely reality is what you're already living? But because it's what you're living, it's not quite the same as everyone else's experience of it. Our unique perspectives and personalities mean that, in a way, we all exist in a series of eternally evolving parallel universes! What seems obvious to you might seem anything but obvious to someone else. And vice versa. Don't rule out something that seems impossible today. What's in the sky for you? Helpful planetary alignments! For good news, see your in-depth forecasts at cainer.com SCORPIO October 24 - November 22 Are you sure this is your forecast? How do you know it's not written for another Scorpio? Do you need their permission? Will they be offended if you read it first? Maybe I should keep my thoughts to myself until the right person comes along. Oops, hang on a second. You are the right person. This prediction is for you! There's no reason, whatsoever, to doubt your entitlement to anything today. It's time to go beyond any lingering self-doubt. As the Sun and Mars link to your ruler, the cosmos has much to give you now. Your job is to receive it. Make the most of your opportunities. Your in-depth forecast have inspiring news at cainer.com As the Sun and Mars separate from their weekend rendezvous, they both link to mysterious Pluto (pictured). To make good use of this cosmic gift, we need to dig for buried treasure... and work creatively with whatever we find SAGITTARIUS November 23 - December 21 We all know the saying 'mind over matter'. It's the attitude that helps us find the resolve to power through when we face an obstacle. But this mindset can work against us. You're determined to complete what you've set out to do. Wild horses couldn't change your mind. You've managed to quash your doubts, Even that uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach has gone. But would a rethink be wise? If something isn't going to plan, it could be for a very good reason. Listen to your heart today. A small adjustment might be required. Transform your life! To move forwards in a positive direction, there's good news when you visit cainer.com CAPRICORN December 22 - January 20 The best inventions fit into our world so easily that we find it hard to remember how we managed to exist without them. The best example, of course, is the wheel. How did people cope without it? It's just so obvious. So beautiful in its simplicity. It's so effective... it's literally life-changing. With your ruler, Pluto, in such a strong position today, the skies are encouraging you to seek a solution to a complex problem. If you get tired of looking for the right answer, just remember the wheel. You can find a perfect, simple solution. For advice to guide you through the twists and turns ahead, see your in-depth forecasts at cainer.com AQUARIUS January 21 - February 19 When one door closes, another opens. We know this. We understand it. But that doesn't make endings any easier. Even if we're excited about our prospects, the nerves are always there. We're ready for change... we just don't want too much of it! And there's no way of knowing if we've got the right balance until it's too late to turn back. It's less problematic if, deep down, we think we're doing the right thing: a sense of inner confidence balances our emotional responses. If you're not feeling confident today, you should be. How can you stay focused and happy? Your in-depth forecasts hold the advice you need. cainer.com PISCES February 20 - March 20 We live in a bewildering world. The more we try to understand it, the more confusing it gets. Which is why we don't tend to think about it too much. It hurts our brains. And we don't seem to gain more awareness. You're struggling to understand a specific issue right now. It's different to other conundrums because you feel as if you've got to solve it. Today though, try putting it to the back of your mind. If you pay it less attention, you'll find that it becomes much less problematic. And you can focus on something much more rewarding. For excellent advice to guide you through the twists and turns ahead. cainer.com The next pandemic could spark from a disease with a 40 percent mortality rate within just two decades, top virologists say warning Covid could have been just the tip of the pandemic iceberg. DailyMail.com spoke to three virus experts who agreed a respiratory virus spread via droplets from coughs and sneezes was most likely to trigger the next fast-spreading disease that causes a global shutdown. They said the infamous 'disease X' would most likely appear after a farm worker is infected with an animal-borne disease that mutates, but said they could not rule out the disaster would be sparked by a lab leak, a main theory as to the origin of the Covid pandemic. It was also possible, they warned, for the outbreak to be even worse than the Covid pandemic, pointing to the 1918 influenza outbreak, which killed an estimated 50million people globally, compared to the seven million deaths from Covid. Top culprits for the next pandemic, the experts speculated, were another coronavirus and avian influenza a virus that infects birds but could possibly jump to humans. This disease has led to the slaughter of five million birds in the US this year in an attempt to prevent an outbreak. The experts, though, could not rule out other diseases like Ebola and outbreaks from insect-borne diseases like malaria and yellow fever. There was a silver lining, however. They pointed to rapid advances in vaccine technology and antivirals as a sign the pharmaceutical industry would be able to rapidly rollout treatments against a pandemic disease when the next arises. Below DailyMail.com reveals the opinions of three experts on what could cause the next pandemic and where it could come from: Dr Leonard Mermel: Avian influenza An infectious disease expert told DailyMail.com he believes the next pandemic will be caused by an avian influenza that mutates to spread rapidly between humans. Avian influenza, also referred to as bird flu and H5N1, is a virus that primarily infects birds and tends to be spread via respiratory droplets. In rare cases, this virus can cross the species divide and infect mammals including humans. Dr Leonard Mermel from Brown University who has studied viruses for decades, said the next virus would likely appear when a poultry worker sick with human flu is infected with the avian strain at the same time. Dr Leonard Mermel, an infectious diseases expert in Rhode Island, suggested the next pandemic could be caused by avian influenza He explained: 'These two viruses would then meet inside one of their cells and swap genes to create a new chimeric virus.' A chimeric virus is one that contains genetic material from more than one virus. The supervirus would then start to spread rapidly from human to human via respiratory droplets, he explained, spreading around the world and triggering the next pandemic. The Rhode Island-based researcher warned in the beginning the strain could kill 30 to 40 percent of people it infects. For comparison, when Covid first emerged it had a fatality rate of five percent in the epicenter of Wuhan. China is the most likely place the new virus would first appear, he said, because the country often records cases of human infection with avian influenza. Data from the World Health Organization showed China has the third-highest number of human avian influenza cases recorded since 2003, at 55 infections. It is behind Vietnam at 128 and Cambodia at 58, but the data is reliant on the number of cases submitted by each country meaning the true toll may actually be much higher due to reporting delays and cases not being recorded. Dr Mermel said: 'Something that has concerned me for a long time is avian strains of influenza being transmitted in humans, that is of grave concern. 'One particular strain is H5N1, which has made incremental changes over the past 10 to 20 years, but is yet to evolve to be easily transmitted from human-to-human. 'It has gained some mutations so it can infect humans, which is scary. On the other hand, it has been around for a while, but I think we may be in a false sense of security at the same time. I think this is because these viruses can mutate very quickly. 'It is certainly possible that it could cause a pandemic within the next 10 to 20 years, there would be consensus over that time span. But it could also take longer.' Concerns over avian influenza have been increasing since 2022 and farms have been obligated to slaughter their entire poultry flock when just one bird tests positive for the virus since at least the 1980s. Last year, an estimated five million chickens were slaughtered at farms across the US after avian influenza was detected in their flocks. While this is a decline from the nearly 58million slaughtered in 2020, the recurring infections show the virus has found a way to survive the summer months and keep infecting flocks. Last year, a prison inmate in Colorado tested positive for bird flu, but did not pass on the disease to others. Dr Mermel also did not rule out it is 'possible' that a future pandemic could be triggered by a lab leak. He said: 'There is some evidence that one of the flu pandemics may have come from a lab in Russia.' In 1977, a flu pandemic swept the world infecting millions of people and killing approximately 700,000. It was caused by an H1N1 flu strain that emerged in the former Soviet Union that scientists said was a close match to an earlier strain that had circulated worldwide from 1946 to 1957. Scientists at the time also noted the virus was infecting primarily younger people, who had never been exposed to this flu before, but mostly steering clear of older individuals who had lived through the initial outbreak and likely had a level of immunity. Dr Mermel did suggest there was hope for the next pandemic, however, pointing to work to develop a universal flu vaccine and improvements in antivirals. He said vaccine research would be turbo-charged in the event of another pandemic, using Covid's vaccine development as an example and highlight it took just under a year for the first Covid vaccines to be made available after the virus emerged. The above graphic shows how an avian influenza could be spread to humans, which may trigger the next pandemic The above graphic shows the number of human infections with avian influenza reported in select countries by year Dr Martin Hirsch: Avian influenza or coronaviruses A virologist, a doctor who studies the management and prevention of infection, with more than 50 years of experience and who has worked in the most high-risk BSL-4 labs also said the next pandemic could be sparked by an Avian influenza, but added it could also begin with a coronavirus. Dr Martin Hirsch, currently at Massachusetts General Hospital, warned the outbreak would likely be sparked when the viruses infect an intermediary animal like a pig and mutate, allowing them to be transmitted among humans. A pandemic involving a coronavirus, the family of viruses to which Covid-19 belongs, could come from bats, he suggested, while the avian influenza would likely jump from domestic poultry. Dr Martin Hirsch, who has more than 50 years of experience with viruses, said the next pandemic could be triggered by an avian influenza or coronavirus He said this was likely to occur in either the US, Europe or China, where many animals are kept in dirty, cramped conditions ripe for diseases to spread. As for when it would happen, he said this was 'very hard to predict' but added flu outbreaks tend to be from 10 to 40 years apart. The last major flu outbreak was the 2009 swine flu pandemic, when 1.4billion people were infected across the globe and 284,000 died from the respiratory infection. 'I think coronaviruses and influenza would be most likely to cause the next pandemic,' he told DailyMail.com. He added: 'But I wouldn't rule out other viruses like HIV, Ebola, yellow fever, dengue, which are spread by different routes. They are certainly possibilities. 'But, in my mind, I see a respiratory virus as having the greatest chance of quick worldwide transmission. 'Certainly, Covid spread that way and also influenza spreads that way, and almost all the major and most recent pandemics and epidemics have been spread due to RNA viruses.' An RNA virus is one that uses RNA protein strands as its building blocks instead of DNA. These viruses are more prone to mutations because RNA is less stable than DNA, raising the risk they could cause a pandemic. Asked whether the next pandemic would be worse than the Covid outbreak, he said: 'That is impossible to say. Nobody expected the last one, but it is possible.' Like Dr Mermel, he also said it was 'possible' that a lab leak could start the next pandemic rather than a natural transmission event. 'I don't think we can rule that out,' he said. 'It is certainly possible that that kind of lab accident can occur and, on rare occasions, it has occurred,' he told DailyMail.com He added: 'It is extremely important that we maintain rigorous procedures for safety at BSL-3 and BSL-4 labs. Scientists also should not be cavalier about what they work with and how they work with it. 'I feel strongly that the "gain of function" laboratories should be closely monitored. Their experiments should not be done unless there is a very good reason and they are done under very rigorous containment procedures.' Dr Elmer Gray: Insect-borne diseases An entomologist, or a scientist specialized in the study of insects, has warned Americans cannot dismiss disease outbreaks caused by mosquitoes and ticks. Dr Elmer Gray, at the University of Georgia, said warming temperatures coupled with globalization had generated a situation where the US must take it 'year by year' when it comes to disease outbreaks, though he stopped short of saying these kinds of viruses would spark an all-out pandemic. He warned warmer overnight temperatures were fueling the growth of mosquito populations, leaving people at greater risk of infections. Dr Elmer Gray, an entomologist at the University of Georgia, warned insects and ticks could spark outbreaks of infectious diseases in the coming years He also said there was a risk of once-vanquished diseases returning to the United States, such as malaria and dengue fever. This year, Florida, Texas and Maryland all recorded locally-transmitted cases of malaria, causing a flurry of concern among public health experts and officials. Malaria, which is nearly always fatal if left untreated, was eradicated from the US in the 1950s but cases continue to be imported every year via international travel. Dengue fever which can leave sufferers with a severe headache, pain behind the eyes and skin rashes was eradicated in the US in the 1940s and 50s but there was a resurgence in the early 2010s. Dr Gray said another, entirely 'unknown disease' spread by mosquitoes could also take the US by surprise in the coming years. 'Every year has the potential for an insect-borne disease outbreak,' he told DailyMail.com. 'This year, we didn't have a tremendous amount of hurricanes... but all the eggs deposited this year are still there and will be ready for the next hurricane for sure. 'What really concerns me though is the longer warm seasons. 'At night, the water stays warm now allowing those larvae to grow so much faster and that speeds up their life cycle raising mosquito numbers.' He added: 'Insect-borne diseases are not going to cause the next pandemic, but there is definitely potential for outbreaks and for large areas of concern.' He pointed to several examples from within the last two decades of insect-borne diseases being introduced to the United States and quickly taking root. West Nile Virus, which can cause inflammation of the brain and lifelong disability, now causes an estimated 400,000 infections and 130 deaths per year in the US. It arrived in the US in 1999 in New York and within five years had spread across the entire country. Despite regularly spraying pesticides to stop the disease which is carried by mosquitoes from spreading, it has now become endemic across the country. You don't have to be a cocaine addict to be at risk for serious health problems from using the drug. A case report of an otherwise healthy patient found using any amount of cocaine increases a persons risk of seizures, heart failure and severe lung damage. A 34-year-old man arrived at a hospital in Wisconsin experiencing respiratory distress and a life-threatening blood clot in a case that baffled doctors for days until it was revealed the patient was an occasional cocaine user. The man arrived at the emergency department with severe shortness of breath that had gotten gradually worse over a month, a high heart and respiratory rate, high blood pressure, and extreme anemia - a condition in which the blood doesn't have enough healthy cells. Scans of his chest and pelvis revealed he had severe blood clots in his lungs that had originated in his leg and migrated through his veins. He was the third known case of severe blood clotting in the lungs tied to cocaine use, though he is the first to have a case that could not be tied to underlying health problems or a family history of clotting disorders. Regular cocaine use has been shown to increase blood pressure, putting extra strain on the heart, which then has to work overtime to pump blood. CT scans of his chest revealed a severe pulmonary embolism, the term for a severe blood clot in the lung arteries, as well as fluid buildup in his lungs, suggesting pneumonia The patient, who was treated at the Mayo Clinic in La Crosse, Wisconsin, came to the hospital with an extremely pale complexion and trouble breathing. His temperature was normal, but his heart rate was very high at 115 beats per minute. A rate above 100 at rest indicates a problem. His respiration rate of 24 breaths per minute was also higher than the normal range of 12 to 18. His blood pressure was high at 155/101 mmHg, compared to a healthy pressure of 120/80 mmHg, indicating that every heartbeat placed very high pressure on the walls of his heart, which was working overtime to a dangerous degree. The mans level of hemoglobin - the most important component of red blood cells that transports oxygen throughout the body - was 0.56 grams per deciliter (gm/dL). This is approximately 28 times lower than the normal range of 14 and 17.5 gm/dL. When these levels fall below a healthy range, a condition known as anemia can occur, which makes people feel fatigued, short of breath and have an irregular heartbeat. All of his abnormal test results, however, were only the beginning of problems for the patient, who is not named in the case report. Scans of his chest showed a severe pulmonary embolism, the term for a dangerous blood clot in arteries of the lungs, as well as fluid buildup in his lungs, suggesting pneumonia. An additional scan of the mans pelvis revealed he also had a deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot that breaks loose from a vein in the leg or pelvis and travels through the body to the lungs. DVT is a common cause of pulmonary embolism. He was quickly transferred to the intensive care unit where an ultrasound showed the walls of his heart were enlarged and, because of his clot, part of his heart was working harder to pump blood to his lungs. By day five, the man showed high levels of liver enzymes, or proteins that speed up different processes in the body. High levels are typically a warning sign of a liver injury due to a lack of blood flow, but doctors said his presentation was inconsistent with this diagnosis. Additionally, an ultrasound and MRI of his liver revealed 'unremarkable' findings. Other tests for autoimmune diseases and infections were negative, the doctors added. An additional CT scan of the mans pelvis also revealed deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot that has broken loose from a deep vein in the leg or pelvis before it travels up to the lungs Though he initially told doctors he did not use illegal drugs, on day eight of his hospital stay the man admitted he had a habit of snorting cocaine once every one to two weeks when his parents were not around. He had most recently taken the drug five days before going to the hospital. His failure to admit to cocaine use, particularly in the presence of his parents, amounted to a significant barrier for doctors trying to diagnose him. They said: The reluctance of the patient to discuss drug use habits, particularly in the presence of his parents, resulted in delayed detection of drug use by self-reported data, rendering urine and blood drug screens ineffective. Furthermore, this information was not discovered until later; hence it was not feasible to check for adulterants in the blood or urine and determine the appropriate tests to use. The patient eventually improved and he was sent home on antibiotics for three to six months and given supplemental oxygen. Doctors advised him against future cocaine use. In the US, cocaine led to nearly 25,000 deaths in 2021, and those rates are climbing. Nearly more than 19,400 cocaine overdose deaths were recorded in 2020, up from roughly 15,800 in 2019. A government survey published in 2021, the most recent data, reported roughly 4.8 million Americans 12 and older had used cocaine in the previous 12 months. And about 1.4 million Americans have cocaine use disorder. Researchers said this case report demonstrates that doctors must create a judgment-free space that encourages their patients to be honest, even about illicit drug use. Experts maintain that no amount of cocaine is safe, even when taken sparingly. Portuguese and Brazilian doctors reported in 2020 that while chronic cocaine use has been shown to be highly toxic to the brain with a high risk of death, dangers of 'recreational' use, which may lead to addictive behavior, are often overlooked. Researchers said: 'This occurs, in part, due to the belief that exposure to low doses of cocaine comes with no brain damage risk. 'A single low dose of cocaine, which did not change locomotor behavior and brain metabolism, has the potential to induce structural neurological damage. 'There is no safe dose for cocaine exposure. Brain structural changes must be considered regardless of the used dosage.' Although there is a robust body of literature regarding acute high doses of cocaine, as well as cocaine addiction scenarios, an integrated analysis of behavioral, metabolic, and structural brain changes associated with an acute low dose of cocaine is lacking. Regular cocaine use has been shown to increase blood pressure in the lungs, putting extra strain on the heart, which then has to work overtime to pump blood. This could lead to heart failure in the future. Inhaling cocaine through the nose also inflicts major damage to mucous membranes and nasal passages, leading to lesions in the upper airways. Snorting the drug also exacerbates asthma and causes spasms in the muscles that line the lungs, potentially leading to respiratory failure. Cocaine is a schedule II drug in the US, the same category as meth, oxycodone, Adderall, Ritalin, and Vicodin. It is mostly smuggled in from outside of the country and is derived from the coca plant primarily grown in Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia. Since his near death experience, Spencer has gone on to become safety speaker A flash fire left the former flooring technician with third and fourth degree burns A man who nearly burned alive in a horrifying fire has revealed the incredible moment he was inspired to fight through his trauma and help others. Spencer Beach, 49, was turned into a human fireball when a blaze erupted on a house he was working on in Edmonton, Kentucky in the U.S. The dad was laying down flooring when flames ripped through the home setting him on fire for 20 agonising seconds and leaving 90 per cent of his body covered in third and fourth degree burns. On the fateful day in April 2003 Spencer had been spending several days removing linoleum from a home under construction, reports The Safety Magazine. During his third day on the call out, the technician only had the laundry room and another half of the bathroom left to finish. He had considered calling in sick that day, but chose to get the rest of the job done. Spencer Beach, 49, was turned into a human fireball when a blaze erupted on a house he was working in Edmonton, Kentucky in the U.S Spencer had been removing linoleum from the home when suddenly he heard a loud whistle and a bang, before a flash fire spread and set him alight While working on his hands and knees, ripping up the linoleum, Spencer suddenly heard a loud whistle and a bang, before a flash fire that spread quickly engulfed the entire house while the technician was still inside. While one fire, Spencer attempted to open the front and back doors, but due to the fire sucking up all the oxygen, the handles wouldn't budge. Running to the garage, he made a final attempt to open the only available door, but it wouldn't open. After 20 excruciating seconds of being set aflame, Spencer collapsed onto the ground, fighting for his life. But as the heat and pain disappeared and time stopped, he thought of his wife and unborn child, he summoned the strength to get up and pull the garage door open. Miraculously, Spencer managed to flee the burning property and survive the flash fire - but not without agonising life-changing injuries and damage to his body. While at the hospital, the then dad-to-be learned he had third and fourth degree burns on 90 percent of his body - and was told he had a five percent chance of living. After being placed in a coma for six weeks and undergoing over six surgeries, Spencer was completely immobile when he woke up, as the scar issue had deeply set in. Spencer recalls being '100 percent useless' as his lungs were severely burned and had steel holding each of his fingers together. He had one tube going to his stomach to feed him and another in his mouth to simply breathe - he could not even call for nurses or change the channel on the TV. Spencer quickly developed depression, followed by anxiety and then hallucinations - before the survivor knew it, he began thinking of ways to kill himself. Then, five months later, Spencer's wife, Tina, gave birth to their first child, a baby girl named Amber. He said: 'That was the first day I fought the pain, just to hold my daughter. 'What happened holding my daughter was that was the first day I looked outside of myself. That was the first day in five months I stopped feeling sorry for me.' While going through therapy during recovery, Spencer met many people who had been injured while on the job, and they would exchange stories of how the incidents happened. A common theme arose in these discussions - 'bad' practices and a lack of following PPE and safety guidelines while at work. Spencer thought of his wife Tina and their unborn baby as he fought to survive after the fire (pictured, the couple on their wedding day) Spencer has gone on to become a motivational and safety awareness speaker, delivering around 100 presentations-a-year in the U.S Spencer regularly speaks at presentations about what happened to him and encouraging workers and employers to learn from his mistakes Spencer said: 'They would say, "I didn't think it was going to happen, I didn't see it coming, no one told me. I didn't fill out my forms, I didnt wear my PPE, I didn't pick up the hazard."' On the day of his incident, Spencer recalled grabbing onto the red-hot door handles with his bare hands - while his gloves were in his vehicle. He said: 'Those gloves would have helped me hold on to those handles longer, try a little harder. 'And what if they were to help me get out a little faster? That would have reduced the burns to the rest of my body.' Now, Spencer has turned his 'wounds into wisdom' and has gone on to become a motivational and safety awareness speaker, making a successful living touring around North America to deliver around 100 presentations per year. Spencer regularly speaks at presentations about what happened to him and encouraging workers and employers to learn from his mistakes. 'It's in your hands if you are going to come to work impaired. It's in your hands if you're going to use your PPE. It's in your hands if you're going to be in a hurry and rush and disregarding safety,' he told Safety Magazine. When Spencer was working at the home in Edmonton two decades ago, he used a shortcut. His employer had developed a quicker method for removing linoleum where a compact thinner is poured onto the floor. It seeps into the backing of the linoleum, reactivating the glue, and the flooring peels off. It saves both time and money, but it comes with one fault - it is explosive. Had his employer required its workers to remove the flooring the proper, longer way, Spencer's tragic incident could have been prevented. But Spencer still partially blames himself, and insists he won't be ignoring alarm bells again. He said: 'I had a feeling removing flooring with that chemical wasn't right, but I failed to listen to my gut feeling. By not listening to myself and doing nothing to control that hazard my gut was warning about, I effectively did nothing to control the risk.' MailOnline have contacted Spencer's representative for further comments. In April 2013, a builder in China survived an horrific accident which saw a foot long metal bar impaled in his head. Jin Hongping was working in the city of Linxia in northwest China's Ganua province, when the 40 cm bar dropped from a height and went through his skull. But the new town chiefs rubbished these claims and said their grassroots campaign was evidence local residents could say no to corporate power Gotion, the firm behind the factory, and the ousted town boss have both suggested the fight back is futile as the land has already been purchased Green Charter Township's entire board was kicked out last week in a seismic vote after residents rebelled against its backing of the Chinese-linked project Town leaders in Michigan who kicked out their predecessors in a seismic vote over plans to bring a Chinese-linked factory to their rural idyll have blasted claims that the project is a 'done deal' as 'hogwash'. Last week, Green Charter Township's five incumbent board members were voted out in a recall election after they backed proposals by Chinese-owned firm Gotion for a $2.4billion EV battery plant. The town's new leaders wasted no time in stamping their authority, changing the locks on the local government building hours after their victory. The grassroots backlash has been hailed as democracy in action after many of the area's 3,200 residents raised national security and environmental concerns over the project, which lies around 50 miles east of Lake Michigan. But Gotion and Green Charter's ousted town boss Jim Chapman have both suggested their attempts to fight back are futile. Jason Kruse, pictured here, led a revolt against the township of Green Charter's local government on Tuesday after they backed China-linked company Gotion Physical therapist Jeff Thorne, 64, who was elected as a new town trustee, said Gotion's claims that the project is a 'done deal' were 'hogwash' Kelly Cushway, 68, who was elected as a trustee alongside Thorne, has previously told DailyMail.com that the plant does not belong in the 'quiet and peaceful' community The site is already under construction and Gotion, which 'pledges allegiance' to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), purchased the 270 acres of land it requires for the project in August. Gotion recently sent a letter to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) saying they consider the plant 'a done deal' and they're moving forward with many facets of the project. But Green Charter's new town chief, supervisor Jason Kruse, told DailyMail.com that Gotion 'can be stopped, 100 percent'. 'There's a lot of holes that can be pulled apart and we can dissect this project,' he said. New township trustee and physical therapist Jeff Thorne, 64, described claims the project was a 'done deal' as 'hogwash'. 'I've had a number of people ask me this locally: 'Don't you think no matter what you do, it's going to happen anyway?' he told DailyMail.com. 'I tell them, 'no'. I wouldn't be in this fight. I wouldn't be involved in this if I thought it was fruitless, if it was a done deal. There are a lot of things that can be done.' Thorne, 64, who has lived in the area for almost 40 years, pointed out that the project had not yet passed a state environmental review. Meanwhile, there are also calls from congressional Republicans for the Committee on Foreign Investment to revisit national security concerns over Gotion's ties to the CCP and the location of the plant 100 miles away from a US military camp where the Michigan National Guard has been training troops from Taiwan. In ousting Green Charter's town board, voters in the community also sent a message to President Joe Biden, who has touted EV plants and other clean energy projects as key to his economic growth plans. Resident Corri Riebow (above), who has no experience in politics, ran for town clerk in the recall election, defeating incumbent Janet Clark Voters in Green Charter Township, Michigan, on Tuesday recalled all five town board members (circled) over their support of a Chinese-affiliated company's plans for a battery plant Set to be built on the outskirts of Big Rapids, the planned plant would be set only a few miles from one of the state's National Guard bases A billboard expresses the feelings of many residents of the 3,200-strong township, who oppose the building of a battery factory in the area by CCO-subsidiary Gotion Protest placards litter the roads entering the town, around 50 miles east of Lake Michigan Gotion has broken ground on one large portion of land in Green Charter Township, MI Residents are worried that a large industrial factory will disrupt the serenity of the community China is a leader in the global supply chain for advanced batteries and other green technology. The communist country is now trying to take advantage of tax credits for businesses that manufacture renewable energy products in the US. Gotion is to be paid $175million in direct taxpayer funding to help it build its battery plant in Michigan. State Governor Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D.) has welcomed the investment, which she said would create 2,350 'good-paying jobs'. But Kruse said the local rebellion showed residents were not powerless to stop top-down edicts. 'We have a big problem in the country right now where they're trying to push down on all these local townships and municipalities and have their way with them,' he added. 'They [the previous board] weren't listening to the people - and the people spoke on a very large margin.' According to unofficial results from the Mecosta County clerk's office, incumbent supervisor Chapman garnered 498 votes but lost his race to Jason Kruse who received a total of 740 votes, with one additional vote for an unresolved write-in candidate. Kelly Cushway, 68, who bought his first farm in the township in 1977, was elected as a new trustee alongside Thorne, while Corri Riebow, who has no prior experience in local politics, was elected as the new town clerk. Green Charter Township incumbent treasurer Denise MacFarlane garnered 582 votes and lost her race to Robert Henderson who received 656 votes, with two votes for unresolved write-in candidates. After the vote, Chapman insisted the land was zoned properly and his removal would not stop the project going ahead. 'That's not going to affect it at all? All right, the land is sold,' he said. 'The land is zoned properly, it has been for 20 years. There is no decision-making-pull-the-plug decision that can be made in Green Township. There's not... there's nothing legally that can be done.' China owns 383,935 acres of US farmland as of December 2021, with almost half of it in Texas Camp Grayling (pictured), a Michigan base used by the US military to conduct training exercises, is around 100 miles away from the land bought by Gotion The Michigan National Guard has been training troops from Taiwan - a territory neighboring China that some security experts say China is preparing to invade Although it is backed by Volkswagen with operations in Germany, Gotion's parent company is based in China. Critics of the Michigan project have highlighted a clause in its business filings that states the company 'shall set up a party organization and carry out party activities in accordance with the constitution of the Communist Party of China'. The company has publicly denied allegiance to the Communist Party, but China has moved in recent years to enhance the CCP's influence in Chinese firms, where maintaining a party unit is often required under law. In reaction to the recall vote, Republican Congressman John Moolenaar wrote: 'Now the (Michigan Economic Development Corporation) MEDC and Gotion should announce they are heeding the election results, listening to the will of the people, and ending this deal.' Chuck Thelen, vice president of Gotion Inc. North American Manufacturing, told DailyMail.com: 'All state and local contracts are already finalized and Gotion Inc. will continue to meet all contractual obligations with all its partners, including Green Charter Township. 'We support the statement from the governor's office that the project is locked in and believe the new jobs will be an asset to the community for many years to come.' He added: 'Congressman Moolenaar's ongoing attempts to derail good-paying jobs for his constituents is disheartening and misguided.' MEDC spokesperson Kathleen Achtenberg said it 'remains committed to growing prosperity in our state by making Michigan a top state for job growth, income growth and population growth with projects like Gotion which will bring more than 2,300 good jobs to northern Michigan'. Meghan started it. Then Kate took it up. Beatrice and Eugenie followed. Zara was next. No, were not talking about the latest type of yoga. Its Aquazzura heels were on about - duh. Any discerning royal style fan will have noticed that the Italian luxury shoe brand has become the royals go-to of late and with good reason. When Meghan Markle stepped out for her engagement photographs in November 2017, fashion fans were quick to spot her shoe choice. Aquazzuras Matilde pumps were markedly different from the more traditional shoe choices hitherto made by royal women. Megan Markle broke the royal mould when she stepped out in Aquazzura's stylish Matilde pumps Meghan attends the opening of Oceania exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in Aquazzura's Bow Tie Pumps 105 The Bow Tie pumps make an appearance at Buckingham Palace in 2018 Eugenie gets with the trend, wearing Aquazzura Matilde pumps in July 2018 These were doubtless influenced by the late Queen Elizabeth, who had conservative views on footwear - and strong views on certain styles. It is said that her distaste for a wedge heel meant Kate only ever wore them for events the Queen was not attending. So Meghans engagement shoes, with their four-inch heel and crossover detail, were quite a departure. They were certainly not chic-meets-sensible trademark Anello & Davide block heel loafers worn by the Queen and a contrast, too, with the classic, no-frills L.K. Bennett pumps favoured by Kate. No, Meghan was offering a new take on the heeled pump that was whisper it a little bit provocative. Provocative?! Theyre hardly eight-inch platforms, I hear you say. Well, yes. But theres something about the addition of the spaghetti-thin crossover strap on the front of Meghans Aquazzura Matilde heels that creates a beautifully elegant v-shape on the foot. And the heel was that tiny bit higher than the royal pumps of old just a centimetre or so, but it makes all the difference. Less frumpy, 1980s mother of the bride and more elegant. Kate leaves a ceremony for the re-opening of the National Portrait Gallery in Aquazzura Bow Tie heels Kate's smooth heels are on show from the back during the Coronation celebrations The iconic bow tie pumps worn by Catherine, Princess of Wales and other royals Princess Beatrice in her Aquazzura Forever 105 black suede pumps for the Easter Service at St George's Chapel Windsor this year Kate soon cottoned on that an Aquazzura pump could immediately modernise a look. It is thought she now owns six different styles. Kate doesnt have a pair like Meghans with a crossover front, but, as well as several of their traditional pump styles (with update royal pumps of old with their ever-so-slightly higher heel), she has some of their bow tie pumps. Theyre a traditional pump with a modern twist small cut-outs at the sides are topped off with a bow detail on the back of the ankle. Sounds grim, looks chic. Why are they modern? Because, much like Meghans engagement heels, they draw attention to the foot. You can see a glimpse of Kates (perfectly pedicured) heels when she wears her bow tie pumps. Theres a reason why royals dont traipse around in toe-baring sandals in the summer its an unwritten rule amongst the elegant that open-toe shoes or shoes that in any way expose the very front of the foot are unacceptable. Aquazzura, though, has worked out how to modernise the traditional pump without ever lapsing into vulgarity. Queen Letizia of Spain and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands have joined the Aquazzura gang too. And theyre not the only international royals who love the brands timeless-meets-modern fusion: the twenty-seven-year-old achingly cool Princess Olympia of Greece was announced as their ambassador last year. Zara Tindall at a VIP reception in Forever Marilyn black suede pumps from Aquazzura Queen Letizia in her Aquazzura in the Forever Pump 105 in March 2023 Queen Maxima wore a wool cape from Belgian couture label Maison Natan over a trouser and top by the same designer. She added a splash of colour with the Lady Dior pouch in a shade of cherry red. The look was finished with black suede pumps by Aquazzura Princess Olympia of Greece is the Royal brand ambassador for Aquazzura Princess Olympia models the Tequila Plexi sandals for Aquazzura There are few fashion houses that successfully unite traditional craftmanship with cutting-edge design so often, its either one or the other. And this is Aquazzuras appeal for the royals: their shoes are handmade with a comfort-first approach something needed when youre on your feet on a public engagement all day. They do this without looking remotely orthopaedic they are cool and modern but never, ever ostentatious. Comfort and style? A footwear double threat, if you will. Zara Tindall stepping out last night for King Charles birthday party in a pair of the brands Forever Marilyn pumps cemented it: who needs glass slippers when you have Aquazzura? Homeowners who have installed costly heat pumps at the behest of the government or who have found themselves living in the vicinity of them due to their neighbours have complained that the noisy contraptions are making their lives hell. It comes after a report warned the pumps too loud to be installed in millions of homes under the government's own noise guidelines. Heat pumps can produce a low constant hum of between 40 to 60 decibels (similar to the noise made by the average fridge or dishwasher) and typically run for long periods of the winter. The effect of this noise pollution has led residents to complain of restless nights and permanently droning urban environments which some have compared to the sound of a 'jet engine taking off.' This week, a new report found that most air source heat pumps are too loud for properties in built up areas as the constant hum of the outdoor units would violate noise limits set for those who wish to install one without planning permission and with a government grant. Homeowners who have installed costly heat pumps have complained that the noisy contraptions are making their lives hell Heat pumps can produce a low constant hum of between 40 to 60 decibels - a similar amount of noise to the average dishwasher A report presented to Net Zero ministers has said heat pumps are too loud to be installed in millions of homes In order to qualify for the government grant, any installations of heat pumps must meet noise regulations set out by the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) which state they should not generate a noise louder than 42 decibels within one metre of a neighbours door or window. But the new report, which was compiled by experts from the consultancies Apex Acoustics, Sustainable Acoustics and ANV Measurement Systems, found that none of the top heat pumps from the five main manufacturers would meet MCS standard unless they were four metres away. It stated: 'Without the MCS there is no BUS grant and, therefore, a likely significant reduction in uptake of [heat pumps] across England and Wales.' Despite these concerns, as part of their commitment to Net Zero, the government has announced it wants to install 600,000 heat pumps a year by 2028. In order to help meet this target, last month they announced new grants of up to 7,500 for homeowners swapping their gas or oil-powered boilers for heat pumps. And for those people living next to the 'noisy' contraptions, the change to their daily lives has been seismic. In Reepham, Norfolk, local campaigner Mark Bridges has been waging a one-man war against a local high school after they installed two enormous heat pumps in their science block. Reepham High School's installation of the two outdoor pumps has been controversial for residents - with Mark alleging that he and his neighbours can hear them droning 'from 50 meters away.' Speaking to MailOnline, he said: 'They don't actually produce enough heat to match the heating level previously enjoyed in that building and they're very, very noisy. 'It's a fan noise like the one you get on an extractor fan in in the kitchen but much more disruptive. 'They've put some noise mitigation measures in place but I'm an engineer with experience in noise mitigation and I can see its their cheapest option that wont satisfy regulations to be compliant for the planning permission to be upheld. 'It sounds horrendous. A frost cycle compressor comes on any anytime in cold weather, this and the fan noise wakes us neighbours. 'You would not sanction the this outside your own home, so why do we neighbours have to put up with this?. It's just unacceptable at every level.' Reepham High School's installation of the two outdoor pumps has been controversial for residents Some claim they can hear the 'noisy' pumps from as far as 50 meters away A spokesman for Reepham High School told MailOnline that the new heat pumps would help the school save 8.34 tonnes of carbon per year and that 'further acoustic testing' would be taking place. Broadland Council has said that the retrospective planning application for the heat pump at the school were approved with noise mitigating conditions and that a noise assessment as part of that condition was forthcoming. The new report analysed factsheets from various heat pump manufacturers who covered around 70 per cent of the market to see how noisy they could be and how far they would have to be placed from neighbouring properties to comply with guidelines. Amazingly, it found that some models designed to provide a higher heat output for bigger homes could have to be placed as far as 10 metres away. In the report, Peter Rogers, of Sustainable Acoustics, said that homeowners living in terraces, flats and tenement buildings may struggle to install a heat pump under MCS guidelines. These properties equate to 47 per cent of Britain's housing supply. He also warned that some installations in semi-detached homes, which equate for 31 per cent of homes, could also breach guidelines. Typically, an individual heat pump placed outside a home gives off a sustained hum of between 40 and 60 decibels (stock image) The Telegraph reports that due to to this the report surmises that Welsh local authorities are bracing themselves for a 'sharp increase' in noise complaints in urban areas due to the pumps. Should a homeowner wish to meet the noise regulations and still receive grant funding the report suggests they may need to build a sound barrier which can cost as much as 5000. Alternatively, they could choose a split system where half of the heat pump is installed within the house - however this is more expensive. And whereas Mark has taken the fight to his local council and the school, there are many other homeowners who have been forced to just endure the noise from the pumps for fear of upsetting their neighbours. Speaking to MailOnline on condition of anonymity, Tony from East Sussex relayed that since his neighbours installed a heat pump next door his house has been infested by a droning hum. He explained: 'You can hear it all day when it when it's very cold. They didn't tell us they were going to install it, it just turned on one day. 'I wasn't happy about it at all and I told her that, she seemed embarrassed and said she might try and put a shield round it. 'I don't know what sort of shield, but I mean, it's right on the path and they can cost as much as 5000. 'Whatever they put around it is going to be be in the way so I can't see that happening. 'Sometimes just as I'm getting to sleep the compressor kicks in. It's extremely annoying.' Richard King installed his heat pump a few years ago and hasn't looked back However, he freely admits the noise can be quite startling at times Richard claims the pump is incredibly energy efficient for his Dorset home And even those who have installed heat pumps themselves aren't blind to the noise they can make. Richard King installed his pump a few years ago and through a process of trial and error claims he's found one that's incredibly energy efficient for his Dorset home. However, he freely admits the noise can be quite startling at times. He said: 'When you turn it on and it runs up to full power, it can be very noisy. I described it as an airplane moving up to to take off at the end of the runway. 'It's pretty loud, but I will say that it doesn't last for very long. 'When it goes back to normal running, I would say it's probably a bit louder than the average fridge. 'My partner doesnt like the noise because sometimes at night, when it's heating the water she says it disturbs her, and it is quite loud, but not for very long.' Speaking to MailOnline, Mike Foster of the Energy Utilities Alliance urged the government to commit to further trials on the cumulative effects of heat pump noise pollution. He said: 'There are concerns quite rightly about the noise emitted from the outdoor units of heat pumps and as more of these appliances are rolled out obviously the likelihood of them impacting upon neighbours grows. 'The government are consulting about whether they should reduce the restrictions and regulations around the noise and for me thats a backward step. 'One of the key issues we should be looking at is the noise from a concentration of heat pumps in a neighbourhood. So if you had five or six houses in a terraced block with heat pumps for instance, all running at the same time, we dont know how loud that noise would be. 'This is why we should at the very least have a trial. If there was a village scale trial of heat pumps, so that every house in the neighbourhood was told it had to have a heat pump we could see what happened. 'If products are getting quieter, that is a good thing. 'But the only way in which products continue to get quieter is if you tighten up the regulations. not relax them completely. If you relax the rules completely. then there's no need to make these products quieter. 'The government seem to be taking the opposite view. They seem to wish and hope that the products become quieter without necessarily providing the regulations to make them do so.' Charlotte Lee, Chief Executive of the Heat Pump Association said: 'To date, we are aware of only a very limited number of concerns about noise emissions from air source heat pumps. 'There are many viable alternative heat pump solutions being deployed now for higher density buildings, apartment blocks and tenement buildings. 'These do not require individual external devices. 'Industry continues to invest in product development and the number of ultra-quiet heat pumps will inevitably increase once the unit size increases from England's Permitted Development Rights current limit of 0.6m3. 'With only a small increase in physical volume, the noise level could significantly decrease yet further. 'It is noted that the report makes it clear that heat pump technology is key to the decarbonisation of UK homes and business premises. Our industry will continue to support the installation of the most appropriate heat pump solution in all situations.' The Government says 'heat pumps can be installed in the overwhelming majority of homes without the need for planning permission' Peter Rogers of Sustainable Acoustics said: ' This claim by the Telegraph is in inaccurate, and misleading for the public given the urgency with which decarbonisation needs to occur and with urgency. 'The work is aiming to do this with regard for the evidence. 'It is right to say that noise emissions are an important factor when selecting the right Air Source Heat Pump for the right location and the public can find guidance on this from the Institute of Acoustics website, to help the public make a choice that will neither disturb them or their neighbours.' Jack Harvie-Clark from Apex acoustics said: 'While noise is a valid concern with heat pumps that needs to be addressed, technology improvements and proper installation can mitigate noise issues in most homes. 'The Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) rules are designed to prevent disturbance. With proper siting and installation, most properties could comply with the rules, if they could identify the appropriate heat pump. 'Our paper presented in October 2023 at the Institute of Acoustics conference demonstrates how many heat pumps are too noisy for some properties. We dont believe that this is significantly constraining the roll-out yet, as there are so many properties for which noise is not a constraint at all. 'UK data shows noise complaints about heat pumps are very low. The survey reported in our IOA paper suggests about 100 complaints for 300,000 installations. Proper installation is key to preventing noise issues. 'The MCS standards provide reasonable noise limits that aim to prevent nuisance noise, rather than obstruct heat pump installations. A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson told MailOnline: 'These claims fail to recognise that heat pumps have got significantly quieter over the past decade, with ultra-low noise emission models now available. 'Heat pumps can be installed in the overwhelming majority of homes without the need for planning permission or additional acoustic insulation. 'We remain committed to our ambition of 600,000 heat pumps a year installed by 2028, backed by a 50 per cent increase in the Boiler Upgrade Grant the most generous of its kind in Europe.' Pfizer is set to cut around 500 jobs at the company's site in Sandwich, Kent The tiny British town where Viagra was born is facing hard times - as locals are hit by hundreds of 'horrendous' job cuts. Nearly 35 years on from the invention of the miracle erection drug pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is set to cut around 500 jobs at the site in Sandwich, Kent. This amounts to more than half of the 940 staff employed at the town's Discovery Park, with reports claiming the roles will be moved away from the UK to India and the United States. And residents - who proudly declare that the seaside town 'invented the erection' - have been left to fear the effect the cuts will have on their businesses as the influx of scientists is halted. It comes just a decade after the company announced the closure of the site with 2,000 jobs slashed - leaving behind a much smaller research and development team. Former seamstress Valerie Calderwood, 85, who has lived in Sandwich for over 20 years, says the village has 'completely' changed and shopkeepers have been left 'desperate' since Pfizer pulled out. Locals in Sandwich (pictured), a medieval town in Kent, called the Pfizer job cuts 'horrendous' Nearly 35 years on from the invention of Viagra pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is set to cut around 500 jobs at its UK HQ site (pictured) in Sandwich, Kent Former seamstress Valerie Calderwood, 85, (pictured) says the village has 'completely' changed and shopkeepers have been left 'desperate' since Pfizer pulled out She added: 'I used to run a dress shop so a lot of very wealthy and very clever women would come in who worked at Pfizer. 'When the job cuts came, everything changed. There is a very different type of people around here nowadays. Not good or bad, just different. 'The cafes and the restaurants have seen a big change it changed the town completely. It's a different clientele. 'Like any other town, it's moving, it's changing. More people doing one thing. Fewer people doing another. 'But the shopkeepers are desperate for trade and it's very quiet.' Butcher Jake Andrews says he fears for his income as his customers are hit by the cuts - but he remains proud of the impact the invention has had on the town. The 28-year-old, who works at the Sandwich Sausage Company, said: 'If you can make the 'drill sergeant stand to attention' you are going to be famous, aren't you! 'It's a shame about the job cuts. We get a lot of business from them. We are the only butchers shop in town. 'We've got customers who do work up there and I hope they're safe they're my income.' Residents - who proudly declare that the seaside town 'invented the erection' - have been left to fear the effect the cuts will have on their businesses as the influx of scientists is halted Butcher Jake Andrews (pictured) says he fears for his income as his customers are hit by the cuts - but he remains proud of the impact the invention has had on the town The job losses come amid Pfizer's plans to slash 2.8bn in costs across the company (pictured: Pfizer's Sandwich site) The job losses come amid plans to slash 2.8billion in costs across the firm - with the company stopping its pharmaceutical sciences small molecule (PSSM) operations at the site, which employs around 940 people. Pfizer say the company will see other operations continue at the Kent location 'with a different size'. Staff from the Kent site will have to work on transition projects as the operations in Chennai and Connecticut, Sky News reported. The company has been based in the town for more than 70 years - after it was established shortly after the end of the Second World War to produce penecillin. And Peter Flower - whose wife worked at the Pfizer plant while Viagra was being developed - told how the company's withdrawal has been a shock for the town. He said: 'I am worried about what the new layoffs might do to the town. Before when they were here on mass, we lost a lot of people when they left. 'Whether it's 500 or 5,000 it's a lot of people. We never expected them to pull out when they did.' The blue pill was discovered accidentally in 1989 - when one nurse noted that men testing new angina medications were left with 'very hard erections.' Peter Flower - whose wife worked at the Pfizer plant while Viagra was being developed - told how the company's withdrawal has been a shock for the town Debbie Smith's husband was made redundant in the initial tranche of cuts in 2011 and had to move to the US as a result The blue pill was discovered accidentally in 1989 - when one nurse noted men testing new angina medications were left with 'very hard erections' While the young scientists did not realise the importance of their discovery, they soon discovered its lucrative potential when older patients refused to give the remaining drugs back, hid the packets and lied about how many they had left. When the medication hit the streets in 1998 it became a lucrative money-spinner for the pharmaceutical giant - with the chemist who lead the project earning a knighthood and a blue plaque being put up in Sandwich to commemorate the achievement. Alongside the erection drug, the site has also discovered Celsentri, which is used to treat HIV, antifungal medication Diflucan and high blood pressure drug Cardura. The new cuts come a decade after the American company announced the closure of its site in 2011, with more than 2,000 jobs slashed. Leaving behind a much smaller research and development site, a report into the closure alongside the decommissioning of Dungeness Power Station and public sector cuts by Kent County Council found that 13,700 jobs would be affected in the area. Joe Quinn - who runs the town's historic ironmongers - said he was fearful of the effect on the historic business. The 29-year-old, who's shop has been a mainstay of the town square since the 1940s and has an intact RAF Association dancehall in its attic, said that what he fears most is that the town will be deserted as scientists move away from the area He said: 'A lot of the Pfizer employees live in the local area. I hope that losing jobs doesn't mean they move out of the area. That would really impact us the most. 'I hope it's a repurposing rather than laying people off left, right and centre. 'It'd be nice if there were more young families in the area - there's a lot of good schools. But there's nothing else to do. 'It's quite an expensive town to live in if you don't already live here or have been here for generations. I can't see it happening though.' Fran Boreham has owned businesses across the small town since 1980, and currently runs the Balloons R Us party shop in the village. She said: 'It's going to be horrendous for those people. Being moved somewhere else in the best case like the last time. Not everyone can do that. Joe Quinn - who runs the town's historic ironmongers - said he was fearful of the effect on the historic business When the medication hit the streets in 1998 it became a lucrative money-spinner for the pharmaceutical giant - with the chemist who lead the project earning a knighthood and a blue plaque being put up in Sandwich to commemorate the achievement 'We will see whether the town can take it. There are other factors at play though. 'A lot of other towns see it. And they don't have Pfizer on their doorstep. It's just the economic climate that we live in.' Debbie Smith's husband was made redundant in the initial tranche of cuts in 2011 and had to move to the US as a result. She and her partner eventually moved back to Sandwich after years across the pond, wanting to spend more time with family. She said: 'We ended up going to America for five years. 'We live in Goodnestone now. It was a good experience but it's good to be back.' Talking about the job losses, a Pfizer spokesperson said: 'The company has made the difficult decision to propose a discontinuation of our PSSM operations at Sandwich, Kent, impacting approximately 500 roles. Under the proposals, other functions at our Sandwich site will continue with a different size. 'We are proud of our heritage of breakthrough science in the UK and we will retain a scientific presence in the UK including at our Discovery Park location in Sandwich. 'These proposals are now in consultation with the affected colleagues. All job-related decisions will be made with transparency, respect, and in compliance with all applicable laws. More information around this global program will be shared over the coming months and as part of the full-year guidance for 2024. 'Delivering breakthroughs that change patients' lives means operating more efficiently and effectively, and focusing our resources in those areas where we can make the biggest impact. 'We recognise that these proposals are disappointing, but we remain committed to contributing fully to the future of life sciences innovation in the UK as an important part of our mission to deliver breakthroughs that change patients' lives.' But others in Sandwich are not so daunted by the company's exit - as they call the town 'resilient', and say the effect of new job cuts is underwhelming compared to the first round of redundancies. Bar manager at the George and Dragon Pub, Joel Russell, 42, said: 'Pfizer has been here for donkeys years. I remember Viagra getting started. 'We have an aging population in Sandwich so there's obviously a need for it! 'I wouldn't say Pfizer has put us on the map though. It was important. Most of my friends' parents worked there growing up. But Sandwich is much more than that. 'I am sad they are leaving, but that horse bolted a long time ago.' Trevor Howard, in his 50s, has lived in Sandwich all his life and runs family shoe shop Brewers & Howard in the centre of the town. He said: 'The shop has been here since 1963. When the first exit of Pfizer happened, it was a massive effect in the town. 'Any job losses within the local community are a loss it's such a small town. 'A lot of people were employed in the town from Pfizer. A lot of the friends I had moved with Pfizer to other places. 'But the town is resilient it weathered the last set of layoffs and it will do again. It's a strong community.' And Aynsley Waite, 36 - who went to school alongside children whose parents worked at the site - said the company leaving will have a 'huge impact' on the town he grew up in. 'We invented the sandwich and the erection that's not bad! But people who worked there know they invented loads of stuff. 'They put up this massive park and they left! People were generally angry when they initially pulled out. 'There was a huge impact on restaurants, pubs and taxi services. They were very sad. It was a huge employer for the town.' Cllr Dan Friend of Dover District Council who represents Sandwich, said that it is important to remember the successes of the plant alongside its 'challenges'. He continued: 'We are proud of our association with scientific innovation in Sandwich. Bar manager at the George and Dragon Pub, Joel Russell, 42, had friends at school whose parents worked at the Pfizer site Trevor Howard, in his 50s, has lived in Sandwich all his life and runs family shoe shop Brewers & Howard. He says the town is 'resilient' with a strong community - and it has weathered storms before 'In light of Pfizer's regrettable job reductions. It is important to remember what has been achieved since 2011. The significant strides of Discovery Park as a world-leading Science Park showcase its resilience and potential for growth. Despite the challenges, it remains a hub for scientific innovation. 'Alongside Natalie Elphicke MP, Sir Roger Gale MP, and Craig Mackinlay MP, I am dedicated to supporting affected employees during this transition. We'll ensure transparency, respect, and compliance with all laws throughout the consultation process. 'We should concentrate on providing opportunities for those affected to explore alternative employment within the same campus. Our collective efforts aim to mitigate individual impacts while contributing to the continued success of Discovery Park. 'My thoughts are with those directly impacted by this news. Sandwich has seen tough times in the past and faced them. I have been in discussions with officers at DDC about the possibility of a jobs fair at Discover Park for those affected by this move. 'I am hopeful that Pfizer may be in a position in the future to expand operations again.' And in a joint statement, East Kent's MPs Craig Mackinlay, Sir Roger Gale and Natalie Elphicke expressed their regret regarding the job cuts. They said: 'The loss of employment locally will undoubtedly be a challenging development for the affected staff and their families.' But they added: 'We should also note that Pfizer intends to maintain a presence on the Sandwich site, and we highlight the significant strides made by Discovery Park in evolving into a world-leading Science Park. 'The diversified functions at the Sandwich site underscore the Park`s resilience and potential for growth. The strength of Discovery Park as a hub for scientific innovation will offer opportunities for those affected, and whose jobs are not transferred to other sites, to explore alternative employment within the same campus. 'We are committed to supporting the affected employees during this transition and are working closely with Pfizer to ensure transparency, respect, and compliance with applicable legislation throughout the consultation process. 'We remain very optimistic about the future of Discovery Park and its contribution to scientific advancements, fostering a dynamic and thriving research and development community.' An American mother-of-three who moved to England has revealed the British customs she finds odd. Jessica Wilkinson, from Utah, was thrilled to cross the pond with her family of four in August, but there are still some things on British soil she finds confusing. She now amuses followers by documenting all of the ups and downs of their move to England on TikTok. Ms Wilkinson took to the social media platform to film a round-up of her most baffling moments - including discovering a lack of plug sockets in UK bathrooms. Jessica Wilkinson (pictured with her husband) made the move to Britain in August No plugs in the bathroom Another baffling aspect of British life according to the American is that we have no plug sockets in our bathrooms. She shared in the clip with over 1.3 million views: 'There are no mirrors or outlets in our bathroom so I can't plug in a blow dryer or a straightener' Ms Wilkinson comedically quipped: 'Queue extension cords!' The American was stunned to find there were no open sockets in bathrooms meaning she could not straighten her air or use a blow dryer Registering for School As a mother of three young children, enrolling them into a school was likely a top priority for Ms Wilkinson. However, the content creator explained there was a lot of confusion on how to get her children into full-time education. Ms Wilkinson found it odd that Britons organise their children's education via the local council and not the school itself. Advising future ex-pat parents, she said: 'Whatever you do not try to register your kids for school through the school. 'You have to go through the city be prepared to wait a long time for your placement.' Ms Wilkinson also urged any potential ex-pats or visitors to be 'prepared for oncoming traffic' when driving on the narrow country roads (stock image) Narrow country roads It's not just schools Ms Wilkinson finds strange, it is also our narrow country roads. Tight lanes running through the British countryside aren't quite the wide freeways Americans are more accustomed to. She warned ex-pats to be 'prepared for oncoming traffic'. Many baffled Britons took to the comments to express their confusion after watching her round-up and warned the TikToker not to mix water and electric. 'Please don't get an extension for the bathroom. We have a much higher voltage of electricity here - just dry your hair in your bedroom mirror.' A second quipped: 'I can't get over why so many Americans struggle with us not mixing water and electric.' But the mother-of-three warns you have to be more alert to potential traffic coming you way. 'England has very narrow roads to get in between the villages, be prepared to pay attention to oncoming traffic,' told the content creator. Brits flooded the comments with confusion, with many urging the American not to mix water and electricity Others were shocked to find out those across the Atlantic allegedly don't focus behind the wheel. One stunned user wrote: 'Be prepared to watch out for on coming traffic? You don't watch out for traffic in America?!' 'It's wild that you've had to learn to be prepared to pay attention to traffic,' added another. One jesting viewer commented: 'We're all vampires here in the UK, that's why we don't have them in the bathroom. 'Hope this helps, just off to slumber now. It's way past my slumber.' The eco-nut who threw eggs at the King is using their crime as clout as they posts 'antisemitic' tweets about Israel on social media. Patrick Thelwell, 24, who uses 'they/them' gender-neutral pronouns, proudly calls themselves the 'egger of monarchs' on X, formerly Twitter - and starts their replies to other accounts by saying 'I'm the person who egged the King'. In posts shared on their social media, they claim the Israeli Defence Forces are unleashing a 'second Holocaust', says Palestinians are being forced into a 'new concentration camp' and calls the Gaza strip 'the Gaza Ghetto'. Further messages compare the Jewish state, the UK and the US to 'Nazi Germany' and blast the war in Gaza as 'the most brazen extermination campaign many of us will have ever witnessed'. In another they say Israel must be stopped 'by any means necessary'. Thelwell has been blasted by Jewish groups - who rage that the 'non-entity' activist 'should be shunned by every decent, patriotic Briton'. At the same time the former politics and international relations student claims they are preaching for 'solidarity, peace, justice and love' across the world. Patrick Thelwell has been blasted by Jewish groups - who rage that the 'non-entity' activist 'shunned by every decent, patriotic Briton' Patrick Thelwell, 24, proudly calls themselves the 'egger of monarchs' on X, formerly Twitter - and starts their replies to other accounts by saying 'I'm the person who egged the King' In posts shared on their social media, they claim the Israeli Defence Forces are unleashing a 'second Holocaust', says Palestinians are being forced into a 'new concentration camp' and calls the Gaza strip 'the Gaza Ghetto' Further messages compare the Jewish state, the UK and the US to 'Nazi Germany ' and blast the war in Gaza as 'the most brazen extermination campaign many of us will have ever witnessed' In another post Thelwell says Israel must be stopped 'by any means necessary' It comes a year after the former Green party candidate threw 'at least five eggs' and shouted abuse at King Charles - with every one of the breakfast projectiles safely missing the monarch. A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: 'Patrick Thelwell is something of an archetype. 'A non-entity who has built some notoriety following a criminal act against the sovereign, and whose contempt for the UK drips from their social media account, also, surprise surprise, posts antisemitic material and despises the Jewish state. 'Their posts accusing Israel of committing a Holocaust are a clear breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism. 'This person and the others like them who show contempt for our armed forces and national institutions while joining marches that feature no end of antisemitic rhetoric and signage should be shunned by every decent, patriotic Briton.' Thelwell escaped jail after they were found guilty of threatening behaviour and ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work in April this year. Speaking to Metro, the green-fingered activist bragged that they had a 'great time' doing this - because they enjoy litter picking and planting trees. The former University of York student was arrested by police in the crowd as bystanders rushed to protect the King and his wife the Queen Consort last November during a visit to York. It comes a year after the former Green party candidate threw 'at least five eggs' and shouted abuse at King Charles - with every one of the breakfast projectiles safely missing the monarch Thelwell escaped jail after they were found guilty of threatening behaviour and ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work in April this year Speaking to Metro , the green-fingered activist bragged that they had a 'great time' doing this - because they enjoy litter picking and planting trees But now Thelwell has turned their hand to international politics as they bizarrely demands a 'global general strike' against Israel from their 5,000 followers. Taking on X, they say in one post: 'The Israeli Defence Force has moved into Gaza to unleash a Second Holocaust. 'The Gaza Ghetto is being liquidated. Waves of conscripts and tanks are hunting amidst the rubble and murdering every man, woman, and child who hasn't fled South to the planned new concentration camp.' In a second post he adds: 'Just as Nazi Germany was dismantled and its leaders put on trial for Crimes Against Humanity; Israel, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America must be rebuilt in the harsh glare of accountability for the centuries of barbarism that led to this moment, right now.' And in a third they rage: 'This is the most brazen extermination campaign many of us will have ever witnessed.' A further posts includes advocating trying Rishi Sunak and Joe Biden in a 'new Nuremberg' - a reference to the trials for the Nazi German leaders. They say that their work is the 'culmination of years of... academic study of International Relations and my personal experience within the Climate Justice Movement'. Following their attack on the King, the Extinction Rebellion activist set up a fundraiser on Paypal which had raised 577. They said they expected to go to jail, adding: 'The money will be used to pay my fine & to support me whilst in jail.' The former University of York student was arrested by police in the crowd as bystanders rushed to protect the King and his wife the Queen Consort last November during a visit to York But now Thelwell has turned their hand to international politics as they bizarrely demand a 'global general strike' against Israel from they 5,000 followers. Pictured: Thelwell's mugshot He had previously launched a GoFundMe page last night in a bid to raise 10,000 for their 'legal fees' - managing to crowdsource 178 of their target before the page was taken down. However, the judge spared him a custodial sentence and reduced their fine to just 5, with Thelwell saying they had 1,870 left over, which was donated to a charity. Legal aid documents obtained via a Freedom of Information request further found that their legal representatives received a total of 1,012.24 of taxpayers money - 313.25 for police station advice and 698.99 for representation at Magistrates court. After their sentencing, Thelwell announced on Twitter at around 4.20pm: 'My crowd-funding will cover my costs, since that is what it was set up for. The rest will be donated to a local refugee charity.' During the incident Thelwell shouted obscenities as they hurled the eggs and as police arrested them. Prosecutor Mr Smith said they shouted 'paedophile', 'King Charles is a paedophile' and 'friends with Jimmy Savile'. The court found Thelwell had 'pre-targeted the King on the day' and 'intended his behaviour to be threatening'. The judge also ruled the student intended to cause King Charles and others that immediate unlawful violence would be used against him and others. Responding to the article Thelwell said: 'My great grandmother was a Jew who escaped the pogroms in Russia. 'When I was 17 I visited Auschwitz and saw with my own eyes the horrors of the Nazi extermination camps. This experience informed my lifelong commitment to ensuring that nobody ever suffers under the horrors of Fascism again. 'I am calling on all the Citizens of Earth who believe in Solidarity, Justice, Peace, and Love to establish local People's Assemblies; collectively organise a Global General Strike Against Genocide; and hold Peoples Trials of all politicians who have refused to assert maximum pressure on Israel to implement a ceasefire. This is what I mean when I say that the Genocide must be ended by any means necessary. 'I defer to anti-Zionist Jewish Peace activists Ellen Brotsky and Ariel Koren: "We see plainly the reality of [Israel's] so-called defence: a terror campaign and... genocide from above. With Western support, Israel is plunging headfirst into slaughter." 'The attempt to smear myself as an anti-Semite - a person of Jewish heritage - is testament to the antisemitism routinely demonstrated by Zionists who claim that criticism of Israeli Apartheid is "un-Jewish". 'History demands of us that we must be willing to start a Global Revolution to ensure this Genocide ends. Anything less will mean that we have all failed the people of Gaza, and failed Humanity. 'From the River to the Sea, Free Palestine.' They added: 'I am proud of the direct action I took against the monarchy in Solidarity with all the victims of the Crimes Against Humanity committed by the British State. 'These include the historical crimes of Colonialism; present day investments in Fossil fuels that are an assault on the Earth and all it's life; and the government's complicity in Apartheid Israel's ongoing Genocide of The Palestinian People. 'I use my platform to draw attention to these issues and to advocate for Global Revolution Against Fascism.' The grandmother of six children killed in a horrific arson attack over a decade ago has criticised the decision to release an accomplice of the killer. Paul Mosley, 56, was convicted of starting the fire in Derby in 2012 with friend Mick Philpott and his wife Mairead Philpott. He has now been approved for release by the parole board. Vera Duffy, the mother of Mairead Philpott, attacked the decision saying: 'He should stay behind bars.' The May 2012 attack killed Ms Duffy's six grandchildren: Duwayne, 13, Jade, 10, Jack, 9, John, 8, Jesse, 6, and Jayden, 5. 'Do I think he should be out? No he should stay behind bars with Mick [Philpott] where he belongs,' Ms Duffy said. Paul Mosley was convicted of starting the fire in Derby in 2012 with his friend Mick Philpott Pictured: Mairead Philpott alongside her husband Mick Philpott Philpott had planned to run in and rescue his children. But the plan backfired, with the fire killing all six children inside the property 'No one told me he would be coming out and certainly he shouldn't be allowed back in Derby we should just let those little kids rest in peace.' Ms Duffy added that she didn't know where her daughter Mairead was. 'I'm trying to put it all behind me,' she explained to the Mirror. READ MORE - Evil Mick Philpott 'flirted with women in the mortuary' as he prepared to identify the bodies of five of his children he killed by setting fire to their family home Advertisement The decision by the parole board to allow Mosley back onto the streets had earlier been labelled as 'appalling' by a Philipott family source. He was originally released in May 2021 and was recalled to jail over concerns surrounding his behaviour. But now the parole board said his 'imprisonment was no longer necessary for the protection of the public.' The Ministry of Justice said that he can be recalled to prison if he breaks the conditions of his release. In May 2012 Michael 'Shameless Mick' Philpott set fire to his house with six of his children still inside. After campaigning for years, it was an extreme plot that he invented to get a larger house from the council. Philpott had planned to run in and rescue his children. But the plan backfired, with the fire killing all six children inside the property. The couple and Paul Mosley burnt down the family's three-bedroom council house in Osmaston, Derby, in 2012 in a bid to get a bigger home He tried to cover up what had really happened and even went as far as addressing TV cameras in a press conference, presenting himself as a hero who tried to fight through the flames to save his children. He had hatched a plan with wife Mairead and friend Paul Mosley to incriminate her while posing as a hero who saved his children. His wife Mairead and family friend Paul Mosley were jailed for 17 years, and Philpott was jailed for life. The trio had been convicted of six counts of manslaughter. Mosley, Philpott and his wife all denied their part in the blaze - despite a wealth of evidence against them. It was revealed in court that Mairead was also having sex with Mosley. Mosley who it is understood will not be allowed to live in Derby again now he is released still maintains his innocence today. A family source said: 'This is a disgraceful decision. Mosley has never admitted his guilt despite clearly being involved. 'He has killed six kids and is free to walk the streets. It's appalling. He's an evil monster. How can someone like that be let out?' The board said Mosley's behaviour in jail had been 'largely without issue' and his release would be subject to strict conditions. These include living at a designated address and a limit on who he can contact. READ MORE - How sick Mick Philpott 'revealed his true nature' when he towered over MP Ann Widdecombe Advertisement The decision said: 'In reaching its decision, the panel considered the contents of Mr Mosley's dossier, prepared by the Secretary of State. 'At the hearing, the panel took oral evidence from Mr Mosley's probation officer based in the community, his former probation officer and the official supervising his case in prison. 'Mr Mosley, who was legally represented at the hearing, also gave evidence to the panel. 'The Secretary of State was not represented by an advocate at the hearing and did not provide written representations. 'The panel had the benefit of a victim personal statement which clearly conveyed the impact of Mr Mosley's crimes and the consequences of his offending. 'The contents were given careful consideration by the panel.' On its decision, it said: 'After considering the circumstances of his offending and time on licence, the progress made while in custody and the evidence presented at the hearing, the panel was satisfied that imprisonment was no longer necessary for the protection of the public.' Licence conditions include living at a designated address, be of good behaviour and a curfew, among others. After tough times for popular Schoolies destinations such as the Gold Coast during the pandemic years, the celebrations are full steam ahead again in 2023. Around 20,000 teenagers are expected to make their way to Surfers Paradise Beach, with many already arriving this weekend. Hundreds hit up the clubs on Saturday night with a high school leaver dressed in a Fireball Whiskey outfit among the more bizarre costumes spotted on the night. McDonald's was evidently the most popular midnight snack with several partygoers feasting on the takeaway food as they tucked into their meal on the streets. The revellers are being told to look out for their friends and to keep safety at the front of their minds. But it's perfectly acceptable to go casual (pictured) at Schoolies events too Wearing your old school uniform (pictured) is a great way to let people know why you're in town Getting your photo taken with a police officer (pictured) is a right of passage for many Schoolies These teenagers have their lanyards for getting into various events around their necks School uniform? Check. Mobile phone? Check. Lanyards? Check. White sneakers? Check Hundreds hit up the clubs on Saturday night with a high school leaver dressed in a Fireball Whiskey outfit among the more bizarre costumes spotted on the night Volunteers from the Safer Schoolies initiative and Red Frogs are patrolling around the most popular areas, providing support to those who need it. They, the authorities and, most importantly, the school leavers themselves all play a vital part in making sure the end of exams celebrations run smoothly. With live music, DJs and a lot of people letting off steam after finishing high school, the main aim of everyone is to have a lot of fun. 'We have sold out for Week 1, with capacity back to pre-Covid levels for the first time this year,' Schoolies.com CEO Matt Lloyd told the Gold Coast Bulletin. The two-week event, which will see students from NSW and Victoria arriving next weekend, is expected to be worth around $30million to the local economy. The Gold Coast is by far the most popular destination, with alternatives such as Sunshine Coast, Airlie Beach and Byron Bay quite a way behind. Some students splash out for a trip abroad to places such as Fiji or Bali. Either this schoolie (pictured) is very tall, or the police officers he is posing with are not Sometimes you just need to take a break, have a sit down and put things in perspective You can't party all night without taking a break for some food, as these people (pictured) know Finding a good place to sit down to eat your takeaway dinner (pictured) is always important Just in case anyone forgets what Schoolies year is being celebrated, these women have 2023 written on their skirts Put your hands up if you're having a lot of fun at Schoolies on the Gold Coast... In case anyone needed to have the party area pointed out to them, signs like this around Surfers Paradise helped steer them in the right direction Every Schoolies year brings a different trend, and this year's one seems to be staying in higher end accomodation. There has been very strong demand for three of the most expensive hotels listed on Schoolies.com the 5-star Hilton Surfers Paradise, Mantra's Circle on Cavill and Towers of Chevron. Those staying in the Towers are reportedly paying between $900 and $1,100 each for a week, which is about half the regular weekly price. 'The more expensive accommodation is what books out first these days, so the 4 and 5-star towers are very, very popular and book out early,' Mr Lloyd of schoolies.com said. 'Instead of looking at something cheap and cheerful, students are definitely looking for more luxury accommodation.' Not everybody at Schoolies smiles all the time - these young people may have been tired The night's events get a two thumbs up from the young man on the right of this photo Around 20,000 teenagers are expected to make their way to Surfers Paradise Beach, with many already arriving this weekend The two-week event, which will see students from NSW and Victoria arriving next weekend, is expected to be worth around $30million to the local economy The revellers are being told to look out for their friends and to keep safety at the front of their minds You will want to remember this time forever, so remember to take plenty of selfies And if a professional photographer wants to take your photo, give him or her a wave Queensland's state government and the Gold Coast council jointly run The Schoolies Hub to be 'a proven diversion away from the streets, beaches, hotel rooms and balconies for legitimate Year 12 school leavers of all ages'. So far in 2023, the police have reported mostly good behaviour, though some previous years have seen tragic deaths, including teenagers falling to their deaths from balconies. In 2019, 18-year-old Victorian Charlie Scott fell from the 42nd floor of the Hilton. One of the most important messages from Safer Schoolies - a coordinated response in its 20th year - is 'Be balcony safe.' Surfers Paradise apartment owners have a zero-tolerance strategy to balcony hopping. The sign says is it all - you are in Surfers Paradise... and you are there to have fun after your exams A good way of making sure you don't lose track of your friends is to hold their hand (pictured) Or you could just put you arms around each other, that works for keeping hold of your friends too (pictured) Sneakers, such as worn by these three teens (pictured) are proving popular at Schoolies If you are too tired to walk any more, maybe you can get a strong friend to carry you on their shoulders (pictured) This young couple seem to be pondering where to go next on their night out in Surfers Paradise Sam Altman was pulled as CEO of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI over fears he was flouting the dangers of artificial intelligence, a new report has revealed. The concerns, aired by a fellow OpenAI board member, culminated with the 38-year-old's sudden firing Friday - sending the tech world into frenzy, and a storm of speculation. Founded by Altman and ten others in 2015, OpenAI rolled out ChatGPT a year ago - and its ability to mimic human writing has proved polarizing ever since. Aside from sparking worry amongst the public, this uncertainty was apparently also felt within OpenAI's six-person board, according to The New York Times report - particularly, by one of Altman's cofounders, Ilya Sutskever. In a series of interviews, people familiar with the matter described how the AI researcher had become worried about OpenAIs budding technology prior to the firing, and shared a belief his boss was not paying enough attention to the risks. Those concerns came as many warned AI could one day result in a dystopian, machine-run landscape, as it did in James Cameron's famed Terminator series. Sam Altman, 38, was pulled as CEO of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI Friday over fears he was flouting the dangers of artificial intelligence, according to a new report In a series of interviews, insiders described how one of Altman's cofounders had become concerned about OpenAIs budding tech prior to the firing. Those concerns came as experts warned AI could result in a machine-run society, as it did in James Cameron's Terminator series A dramatic statement this past May warned of such a reality, stating that 'bad actors' will use the budding technologies to harm others before potentially ringing in an apocalypse. Signed by experts from firms like Google DeepMind and vets like Google alum Geoffrey Hinton, who resigned over the growing dangers of AI, the statement was also pushed by Altman - but was ultimately flouted, according to the Times. Per their report, prominent computer scientist Sutskever, 37, led the charge to have him pulled afterwards - successfully swaying three other board members to do so. Those execs, according to the Times, were Adam DAngelo, chief executive of the question-and-answer site Quora; The Rand Coporation's Tasha McCauley, and Georgetown University Center for Security and Emerging Technology Helen Toner. McCauley, a scientist at the Santa Monica Think Tank, and Toner, director of strategy and foundational research grants at the college, both have ties to movements that have repeatedly voiced a belief that AI, one day, could end up destroying humanity. Born in the Soviet Union, Sutskever, over the past year, had become increasingly aligned with those beliefs, three insiders said, and reportedly came to them with his concerns. The Times said that neither Toner nor McCauley responded to requests for comment Saturday about the claims. Both women, though, along with DAngelo, would go on to vote to oust Altman - to the chagrin of fellow board members Jakob Pachocki and Greg Brockman, who both quit in protest of the alleged ambush late Friday night. Founded by Altman and ten others in 2015, OpenAI rolled out ChatGPT a year ago - and its ability to mimic human writing has proved polarizing ever since Aside from sparking worry amongst the public, this uncertainty was apparently also felt within OpenAI's six-person board, according to The New York Times report - particularly, by one of Altman's cofounders, Ilya Sutskever Per the report, Sutskever led the charge to have Altman pulled - after successfully swaying fellow board members Tasha McCauley (left) and Helen Toner (right) Both women have ties to movements that have repeatedly voiced a belief that AI, one day, could end up destroying humanity - creating a society that is effectively run by machines Both women went on to oust Altman - to the chagrin of fellow board members Jakob Pachocki (left) and Greg Brockman, who both quit in protest of the alleged ambush late Friday night The Times report also shed some light on the still-shrouded meeting between the board members, during which Altman - hours after appearing publicly on behalf of his company at Thursdays APEC Summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping - joined via video. There, an insider said, Sutskever read from a script that closely resembled a post the now $90million company penned in the wake of the vote - one that blamed their boss's sudden sacking on his lack of transparency with the rest of the board. That blog post, while vague, claimed Altman 'was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities.' Neither Sutskever - an undergraduate at the University of Toronto who helped create a breakthrough in AI called neural networks - nor Altman immediately responded to the Times' requests for comment. Two insiders who spoke to the paper added that Sutskever, in his bid to get his cofounder out of the company, also objected to what he saw as a diminished role inside the company, amid its somewhat sudden success. In a series of tweets late Friday and early Saturday, both Altman and Brockman - another co-founder and the companys now former president - commented on the ouster, with the former speaking about it somewhat cryptically. He wrote in two separate posts: 'I love you all. [T]oday was a weird experience in many ways. [B]ut one unexpected one is that it has been sorta like reading your own eulogy while youre still alive. The firing appeared to catch Altman off guard who did not elaborate as to what may have led to his departure '[T]he outpouring of love is awesome. one takeaway: go tell your friends how great you think they are.' In the other, penned a few hours earlier and shortly after he was axed, Altman added: I loved my time at openai. [I]t was transformative for me personally, and hopefully the world a little bit. [M]ost of all [I] loved working with such talented people. '[W]ill have more to say about whats next later.' Brockman, meanwhile, said in his own X post that even though he was the chairman, he was not part of the board meeting where Altman was ousted. He laid out how he and others were as taken aback by the maneuver as onlookers, as he stepped down to express his distaste. OpenAI, meanwhile, released ChatGPT this past Novemn- and the technology has since taken off. While many remain skeptical - or outright incensed - over the new technology, OpenAI execs have expressed confidence in its future, saying they both 'believe in the responsible creation and use of these AI systems' earlier this year. Brockman, OpenAi's ex-president, said in his own post that even though he was the chairman, he was not part of the meeting where Altman was ousted. He laid out how he and others were as taken aback by the maneuver as onlookers, as he stepped down to express his distaste More recently, Microsoft provided OpenAI Global LLC with a $10 billion investment, on top of another $1 billion dished out to the firm in 2019. Employees last month were trying to sell some of their shares at a valuation of $90 billion dollars, after it was was valued at about $29 billion in a share sale just a few months ago. Forrester analyst Rowan Curran speculated that Altman's departure, 'while sudden,' did not likely reflect deeper business problems. 'This seems to be a case of an executive transition that was about issues with the individual in question, and not with the underlying technology or business,' Curran said. Art of Anne Frank holding Israeli flag was covered up with the words 'GAZA FREE' Murals combating anti-Semitism in Milan were defaced within just 24 hours There is fury in Italy after two murals of Anne Frank and the 'Warsaw Ghetto boy' designed to denounce anti-Semitism were vandalised within 24 hours of being painted on the streets of Milan with pro-Palestinian messages. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini joined widespread condemnation of the vandalism of the murals, saying Italians 'must stand together against hatred'. A mural depicting Holocaust victim Anne Frank crying while holding the Israeli flag, in the central Piazza Castello in Milan, was painted over with the words 'GAZA FREE'. A Palestinian girl in a traditional keffiyeh burning the flag of terror group Hamas was painted alongside Anne Frank in the original mural but this was not vandalised. A mural depicting Holocaust victim Anne Frank crying while holding with the Israeli flag, in the central Piazza Castello in Milan, was painted over with the words 'GAZA FREE' The Anne Frank mural designed to combat anti-semitism in Milan before it was defaced Vandals defaced a mural depicting 'Warsaw Ghetto boy' being held captive by Hamas by completely whiting out the image of the Jewish child The Milan mural portraying the famous 'Warsaw Ghetto boy' wearing the yellow Star of David badge which the Nazis forced Jews to wear before it was defaced The second mural, which appeared in the area of Porta Nuova Project in Milan, was also defaced. That image portrayed the famous 'Warsaw Ghetto boy' wearing the yellow Star of David badge which the Nazis forced Jews to wear. His hands are raised as he is hold hostage by Hamas terrorists pointing assault rifles at him, in reference to the real photo from the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in 1943, where a boy has a submachine gun pointed at him by Nazi SS soldier Josef Blosche. After vandals defaced the mural, the child was completely whited out, but the Hamas terrorist and the child Gazan soldier at his side remained intact. The series of street art works by artist aleXsandro Palombo titled 'Innocence, Hate and Hope' appeared in Milan, one month after the Hamas attack against Israel on October 7. He painted several murals, which he says 'were a warning about the wave of antisemitism that is overwhelming Jews all over the world', across Milan. These included the central Piazza Castello, where demonstrations by the Jewish community have been held in recent weeks, and in the area of the new Porta Nuova project which was acquired by the sovereign fund of the Emirate of Qatar. Italy's Deputy PM Matteo Salvini said said it was a 'shame' that the murals were defaced. 'Such actions have no place in our society. We must stand together against hatred,' he said, according to The Jerusalem Post. Artist Palombo told The Jewish Chronicle: 'The gesture of these anti-Semitic racists is to erase the memory in order to impose their terrorist thoughts, but these cowardly actions do not intimidate me and I will continue to defend freedom of expression of our democracy and with my art I will respond to the terror they want to drag us into. 'However this vandalisation only reinforces the meaning of the works and forces us to respond even stronger because it highlights all the anger and social danger of this hateful anti-Semitic machine that is underway.' The Warsaw Ghetto boy mural is a reference to this photo from the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in 1943, where a boy has a submachine gun pointed at him by Nazi SS soldier Josef Blosche Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini (pictured) joined widespread condemnation of the anti-Semitic vandalism of the murals, saying Italians 'must stand together against hatred' He added: 'These acts of vandalism are demonstrations of terrorist thinking that undermines the freedom of all of us. If politics and institutions do not respond forcefully to the anti-Semitic violence then we will all lose: legitimising these gestures means legitimising terrorist thinking in our society too. And that's what Hamas propaganda wants. 'The anti-Semitic fury unleashed by Hamas is overwhelming Jews in every part of the world, this horror that re-emerges from the past must make us all reflect because it undermines freedom, security and the future of us all.' Israeli art historian researcher Batya Brutin, who received the Yad Vashem Award for lifetime achievement in the field of Holocaust education, said: 'Palombo's current murals street art is an important message of warning to the world.' Ms Brutin added that the vandals motivations 'remain unclear', the 'importance of confronting antisemitism and hatred wherever it exists' must be remembered. 'While the motivations of the vandals remain unclear, we must remember the importance of confronting antisemitism and hatred wherever it exists," This comes as the latest incident in a recent wave of anti-Semitic vandalism in Italy. On November 2, a Star of David appeared on a building in Rome and four golden cobblestones, 'stumbling stones' which commemorate murdered Jews were vandalised. A high-profile Optus customer has been left furious after discovering a massive phone bill while on an overseas trip. Melbourne-based LGBTIQ activist and campaigner, Sally Rugg, claims she was charged $1,600 by Optus within two minutes of landing in London a few weeks ago. The embattled telco company is facing a huge fallout following a major outage on November 8 which crippled millions of customers, leaving them without mobile phone or internet reception for hours. Thousands of businesses were also impacted - some losing thousands of dollars when payment systems reliant on Optus connections crashed. Melbourne activist and campaigner Sally Rugg claims she was hit with $1,600 of mobile phone charges from Optus minutes after landing in London Melbourne-based LGBTIQ activist and campaigner, Sally Rugg, claims she was charged $1,600 by Optus within two minutes of landing in London a few weeks ago Ms Rugg shared the shock news to social media platform X on Saturday. 'Wanna hear another @Optus horror story?' she wrote. 'I landed in London 2wks ago & within 2 MN Id been charged $1600 didnt use my phone at all, it was in my pocket (pinging w texts about insane charges). '@Optus tells me the charges are valid so wont waive them.' Ms Rugg added: 'This isnt even one of those old-timey Returning From Overseas To A $1600 Bill bc You Didnt Realise Roaming Was On situations this happened within 2 mins without me even touching my phone!' An Optus representative quickly responded to Ms Rugg's public post. 'Hi Sally, sorry to hear about your roaming charges issue. You can lodge your complaint here followed by a link,' they said, followed by a link to a website. A company spokesperson also replied: 'It will be referred to our Customer Relations Group who're the highest point of escalation within our organisation and they handle both internal and external complaints'. Ms Rugg, who was the creative and campaigns director of left-wing activist organisation GetUP between 2013 and 2018, said she had already spoken to Optus staff who had informed her that 'the charges were valid'. One commentor, who claimed to be an ex-telco regulator, urged Ms Rugg to formally make a complaint against Optus. 'Make sure they give you a complaint number and then register that with the ombudsman. Those charges are unacceptable,' they said. 'That's crazy! They totally need to refund you!,' another said, to which Ms Rugg replied: 'Oh I definitely havent paid it (and have switched off my direct debit so @Optus cant take it from me before I can the charges to Consumer Affairs)'. Some sympathised with Ms Rugg's plight, sharing stories of similar experiences. 'This also happened to me today!' one wrote. 'Within 5 minutes of landing in Dubai I had three emails and messages in succession telling me I had spent $150 on roaming (which I have switched off on my phone). Ticked off? You bet.' Others labelled the charges as 'outrageous'. Daily Mail Australia contacted Optus for comment. Ms Rugg has been urged to make a formal complaint about the Optus charges Until her highly publicised dismissal in 2022, Ms Rugg also served as the chief of staff for Independent MP Monique Ryan. In May, Ms Rugg settled her workplace law case against the independent MP and the commonwealth for $100,000. The nationwide Optus fail sent public transport in Melbourne into chaos, with Metro Trains revealing the outage prevented the control centre from communicating with trains. Hospitals and emergency services across the country were also affected. Ramsay Health Care said phone services to its 70 hospitals and clinics were impacted. Emergency triple zero calls were not working from Optus landlines. The Optus outage was the second major crisis for the telco in the last 12 months after a cybersecurity breach last year compromised the personal data of millions of customers. On Monday, Optus revealed the outage was caused by changes to 'routing information' following a software upgrade at the telco. Some 10.2 million customers had no internet or mobile access for about 13.5 hours. Services went down about 4.05am and weren't fully restored until 5.35pm. In a statement, Optus said their network 'received changes to routing information from an international peering network following a routine software upgrade'. 'These routing information changes propagated through multiple layers in our network and exceeded preset safety levels on key routers which could not handle these,' their statement said. 'This resulted in those routers disconnecting from the Optus IP Core network to protect themselves.' Some 10.2 million Optus customers had no internet or mobile access for about 13.5 hours on November 8 Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin didn't speak publicly on the day of the crisis for several hours, calling ABC Radio via WhatsApp shortly after 10.30am for a short interview about the matter. She faced intense backlash for appearing to go missing during those crucial early hours, but this week told an inquiry she had good reason for the decision. 'I wanted to ensure before I spoke that we could at least rule out the possibility of malicious activity,' she said. 'As soon as our cyber specialists ruled this out, I began publicly fronting the issue on behalf of my team.' The Australian Business Network has reported that Optus could be forced to pay up to $400m in compensation if it enters an agreement with the regulator. Thousands of customers have also joined a class-action lawsuit against the telco after their personal information was hacked in 2022. Up to nine million Aussies were stung in the data breach, which exposed their names, dates of birth, phone numbers, email addresses, and, for a subset of customers, addresses and ID document numbers such as a driver's licence or passport number. Israel, the United States and Hamas have reached a tentative agreement to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the deal. As part of the detailed, six-page agreement, all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while 'an initial 50 or more hostages are released in smaller groups every 24 hours', the Post reported. Hamas took about 240 hostages during its October 7 rampage inside Israel that killed 1,200 people. So far, just four captives have been released the war began. It was not immediately clear how many of the 239 people believed to be in captivity in Gaza would be released under the deal. The newspaper said overhead surveillance would monitor ground movement to help police the pause, which also is intended to allow in a significant amount of humanitarian aid. But early on Sunday morning in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied that any such deal was in place. Israel, the United States and Hamas have reached a tentative agreement to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the deal Civil defense teams, alongside local residents, conduct search and rescue operation within the debris of the residential buildings after Israeli attacks hit residential buildings at Jabalia Camp in Jabalia, Gaza on November 18, 2023 Yuly Konio, 3, was kidnapped from her home with her family. Yahel Gani Shoham, 3, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be'eri with her family Nine-month-old Kfir Bibas was taken from Nir Oz. Oriya Brodetz, 4, was taken from Kfar Azza Early on Sunday morning in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied that any such deal was in place Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, of the Islamic group Hamas has been represented in meetings by Qatari mediators Netanyahu said 'as of now' there no deal had yet been reached to secure the release hostages being held by Hamas dismissing 'a lot of incorrect reports' about imminent agreements. During a press conference he added that if a deal emerges, the Israeli public would be told. Israeli National Security Council head Tzachi Hanegbi has said that a limited cease-fire would only after 'a massive release of our hostages and it will be limited and short, because after that we will continue to work towards achieving our war goals.' Similar denials were made by the White House: 'No deal yet but we continue to work hard to get a deal,' said Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House's National Security Council. The White House National Security Council's top Middle East official Brett McGurk, confirmed that negotiations were 'intensive and ongoing.' 'It's reasonable to pause the fighting, release the hostages, the women, the children, the toddlers, the babies, all of them,' McGurk said. According to the Post, however, it is believed the pause in fighting would allow for a significant increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance, including fuel, to enter from Egypt. It's not known if Americans or other nationalities would be included in the first batch to be released however the hope is if women and children are successfully returned that other groups would follow. The deal is said to be the outcome of weeks of talks in Doha, Qata involving Israel, the United States and Hamas who were represented by Qatari mediators. Pressure has been increasing on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government with more than 100 countries calling for a full and immediate cease-fire - although, most notably, not the United States. However, The Post says the White House would back a temporary pause in the fighting. 'I think we need a pause. A pause means time to get the prisoners out,' Biden said during a campaign event two weeks ago. Earlier this week, Biden said the hostages were 'on our mind every single day,' and that he was looking to find a way to 'have a period of time where there's a pause long enough' to let them be released. An IDF soldier directs a tank driver by gesturing near the northern Gaza border on November 17, 2023 People mourn as they collect the bodies of Palestinians killed in airstrikes on November 18, 2023 in Khan Yunis, Gaza Military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari (pictured) said Israel opened a safe corridor for civilians who were in the hospital to go south, at the request of the hospital director A vehicle collects the bodies of Palestinians dumped on Salah al-Din Street for weeks, who were killed by the Israeli army as they were making their way from the northern Gaza Strip to the south, in Bureij Two of the captives taken by Hamas have since been found dead and Hamas say 12,300 civilian Palestinians including 5,000 children have been killed during the conflict which is now entering its seventh week. Netanyahu said the Israeli offensive into Gaza would continue - although he has now allowed the first steady fuel transfers into the enclave since the start of the war. Israel cut off all deliveries of food, water and medicine to Gaza's 2.3 million residents. 'For international support to continue, humanitarian aid is essential,' Netanyahu said. 'Because of that, we accepted the recommendation to bring fuel into Gaza.' The rumors of a ceasefire comes as thousands of hostage families together with their supporters took five days to march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem demanding government action. Family members and supporters of some 240 hostages held in Gaza have protested in Jerusalem today over Netanyahu's handling of the war with Hamas and pleaded with the government to do more to bring their loved ones home The march capped a five-day trek from Tel Aviv and represented the largest protest on behalf of the hostages since they were dragged into Gaza by Hamas on October 7 as part of the militants' deadly attack in southern Israel An Israeli couple holding their national flag walk in front of graffiti calling for the release of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip since the October 7 attack by Hamas militants Netanyahu has vowed to bring the hostages home but there are also prominent voices in Israel urging the government not to bargain for their release. The families, meanwhile, say the lives of innocent Israelis are worth any short-term deal the government has to make to secure their release. Late on Saturday night a spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy said 'we are not going to comment' on any aspect of the hostage situation. The hostage release could begin within the next several days, according to people familiar with the agreement. A search has been launched for a man after a woman was found dead and her daughter left injured in what police have described as a 'serious incident' in Perth. Emergency services rushed to Ulandi Court at Beckenham in the city's south-east just before midnight on Saturday to find the woman in her 60s dead. The woman's daughter, aged in her 30s, was found injured at the property. WA Police have issued a statement saying they are now trying to locate Deng David Ker, who was last seen leaving a home on the same street about 11.30pm. Homicide squad Detective Senior Sergeant Keith Neubronner said Ker should not be approached if seen in public. Major Crime are calling for information from the community to help locate Deng David Ker (pictured) 'I urge the community to be cautious if you see Deng David Ker,' he said. Sgt Neubronner said police received reports of an altercation involving multiple parties at the home before the women were found. He confirmed the women found were mother and daughter. 'Both women are believed (to be) assaulted with an edged weapon of some sort,' he said. 'We are not sure what weapon it was.' In a statement, police described the incident as 'serious' and believe Ker, who is known to the police, may be able to assist with the investigation. Police said the parties involved are believed to have been known to each other. 'Inquiries into this incident are now ongoing, including identifying the whereabouts of Deng David Ker,' the statement said. Ker has been described as dark-skinned, 184cm tall and having black dreadlocked-style hair. He was last seen wearing a black and white shirt when leaving the house. Officers have warned Ker could be armed with a weapon and people should not approach him. Instead, anyone who sees him should immediately call police and tell them of his whereabouts. Millennial and Gen-Z women say they've been inspired to convert to Islam by the Israel-Hamas war - and are sharing their religious awakenings on TikTok. Recent converts say the conflict, which began with the murder of 1,200 Israelis on October 7, become a driving factor for their decision to join the Muslim faith. Experts suggested for many, the choice is the 'ultimate rebellion against the West'. Among those sharing their journey is a self-described 'leftist queer gremlin' named Alex, who recently purchased a copy of the Quran - even though most interpretations of Islam take a dim view of LGBT relationships. Alex, who has begun covering her hair with a hijab in line with Islamic teachings on modesty, says she began attending pro-Palestine marches after the October 7 terror attacks and the retaliatory strikes on Gaza. Millennial and Gen-Z women, including a self-described 'leftist queer gremlin named Alex (pictured) are detailing their conversion to Islam in the wake of the Israel Hamas conflict Michelle is pictured after formally converting to Islam and donning her head covering - known as a hijab - while out and about She purchased a copy of the Quran on October 24 and took her shahada, a professing of Muslim faith, a short time after. Alex was encouraged to convert after seeing TikToks by Megan Rice, another recent convert. Rice posted on October 20 that she planned to read the holy book for the first time. 'It just seems that Palestinians have this ironclad faith even in the face of losing quite literally everything,' she told her then 400,000 followers. Days later she founded the World Religion Book Club where she conducts live readings of the Quran. The online community now boasts 13,000 members. Israel's bombardment of Gaza in the wake of the Hamas is where her conversion 'all started' she told followers. Many of the videos from predominantly Western women feature a variation on the hashtag 'revert'. Reversion is the Islamic belief that everyone is born into the Muslim faith and so any conversion is simply a return to the religion. TikTok user Megan Rice was among those leading the trend. She set up a book club where she conducts live readings of the Quran which amassed 13,000 members in a few weeks Rice said she was inspired by Palestinian's 'ironclad faith' as she began to explore Islam. Within days of reading the Quran she had formally converted Among them is Madison Reeves, a,24-year-old mom from Tampa, Florida, who became interested in Islam in September after speaking with a Muslim girl on a language app. However, the outbreak of the conflict and the ensuing 'genocide' as she describes it, compounded her reversion. On October 24 the army vet posted a video of her wearing a hijab and celebrating her new found faith. 'It's a big adjustment,' she told the Free Press. Lorenzo Vidino, the director of the Program on Extremism at George Washington University, is unsurprised by the women's conversion. 'I mean, rebellion is part of being young,' Vidino told the outlet. 'At this point, what's more rebellious, what's more anti-Western and anti-capitalism and anti-establishment, than a conversion to Islam?' He stated that reversion is 'the ultimate rebellion against the West.' In one of her videos, Alex hits back at criticism she is going to lapse back into Western ways once the 'fad' is over. Israel began a wave of devastating airstrikes against Palestinians after 1,200 people were killed by Hamas during the October 7 terror attack and many more, including this senior citizen, were kidnapped New converts have cited Israel's retaliatory strikes, which have killed more than 11,000 according to Gaza's health ministry, as a motivator in their decision. They also condemned the 'rampant capitalizing and colonizing' of the West when challenged about their decision Several women began their journey to Islam after attending pro Palestine rallies, such as this one in Sacramento, CA which called for a ceasefire What part of the Western lifestyle do you think I'm going to run back to?' She asks. 'Uh, rampant capitalism? All the colonizing? 'Cause I hate both of those things.' Vindino also drew parallels between this and 'salad bar extremism'. 'You can choose different aspects of different extremist ideologies that are completely incompatible with one another,' he said. 'You put it all together in a sort of collage that makes very little sense.' The phenomenon is not without precedent. In the year after 9/11, 8,000 US women converted to Islam, according to projections from the Hartford Institute for Religious Research. Similarly there have been several high profile cases of 'Jihadi Johns' and 'ISIS brides' going to the Middle East, including Alabama ISIS bride Hoda Muthana who travelled to Syria to join IS in 2014. Katherine Dee, an internet historian who studies social trends, said women are more likely to be religious and could be attracted to reversion in real life and online 'because it offers a safe community for them.' 'My guess is that TikTok is just following the same pattern,' she added, explaining that there could a 'fandom dynamic' for some religious people who enjoy sharing with an online community. 'It's less about sincere religious belief,' she explained, and more about 'tribal alignment.' Donald Trump has suggested he will do a trade deal with the Taliban if he is re-elected as president in 2024. Speaking to a crowd in Fort Dodge, Iowa, on Saturday, the former president said he'd do so in order to regain control of Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan and monitor China. The United States left the military facility on July 2, 2021 before American troops fully withdrew from the country weeks later on August 30. But former president Trump hit out at the decision to hand control of Bagram Airfield to Afghan forces in a campaign rally in Fort Dodge, Iowa on Saturday. The 77-year-old claimed the base is located an hour away from where China makes its nuclear missiles and said it is now occupied by them. He told the crowd he wanted to get Bagram Airfield back as part of a trade deal with Afghanistan. Donald Trump has suggested he will do a trade deal with the Taliban if he is re-elected as president in 2024 to regain control of Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan and monitor China The United States left the military facility on July 2, 2021 before American troops fully withdrew from the country weeks later on August 30 'We were going to keep Bagram,' Trump told the crowd at the event. 'Bagram is the biggest base just about there is, anywhere in the world. 'The biggest runways, the most powerful, it can hold eight-feet deep concrete. They can hold anything and we gave it up.' He added that he did not want it for Afghanistan but to keep an eye of China. 'I wanted it because that's one hour away from where China makes their nuclear missiles and we gave it up. 'Why did we give it up? This thing costs billions of dollars, many years ago. We didn't need it for Afghanistan but it was right next to where they make their missiles, China.' 'Now you know who occupies it? China,' Trump claimed. 'China occupies it. How stupid are these people? It's so sad.' However, he suggested he'll get Bagram Airfield back if he is re-elected next year by striking a deal with Afghanistan, which has been ruled by Taliban warlords since President Biden finished withdrawing from the country in August 2021. Diplomacy with the extremist group seems unlikely. They were driven from power by the US in 2001 for harboring 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden. 'But we'll get it back,' Trump said. 'We'll get it back, maybe we'll get it back as part of a trade deal. 'Give us back that damn airport.' Bagram Airfield was the largest US military base in Afghanistan at the time before it was secretly evacuated in July 2021. It was handed back to the Afghan government before it fell to Taliban rebel forces on August 15, 2021 after the NATO-trained Afghan Army surrendered. Trump's visit to Iowa was part of his fall push to sign up supporters and volunteers before the state's fast-approaching caucuses that will kick off the race for the Republican presidential nomination. But former president Trump hit out at the decision to hand control of Bagram Airfield to Afghan forces in a campaign rally in Fort Dodge, Iowa on Saturday The 77-year-old claimed the base is located an hour away from where China makes its nuclear missiles and said it is now occupied by them It was the latest in a series of targeted regional stops aimed at seizing on the large crowds the former president draws to press attendees to commit to vote for him and serve as precinct leaders on Jan. 15. While Trump boasted that polls show him far ahead of other contenders, he urged those in attendance Saturday to turn out on caucus day to 'make sure we have a big victory' that would signal to other candidates that they should drop out. 'Will you please give me a good showing?' Trump asked the crowd to applause. 'That's the least you can do.' While Trump has a comfortable edge over his top rivals, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, in early polls of likely caucus participants, Trump's campaign has been more aggressive in Iowa than in any of the other early-voting states. And he continued to attack both DeSantis and Haley during his appearance Saturday, slamming the Florida governor over his past opposition to federal ethanol mandates and for running against Trump. Trump has made regular stops in Iowa, appearing at eight events before audiences totaling more than 16,000, according to Trump's Secret Service detail, in the past eight weeks. It's part of a 2024 strategy that stresses organization more than his campaign did in 2016, when he finished in second place. Sunday's anti-Israel protests in Sydney and Melbourne have put on confronting displays of fake bloodied corpses and compared the Jewish state to Nazi Germany in a stark display of the fury propelling the Pro-Palestine movement. The Sydney rally, organised by the Palestine Action Group Sydney, gathered at Hyde Park at 1pm, demanding an end to what it called Israel's 'massacre' in the Gaza. 'We need everyone to help us spread the word and convince more and more people to take a stand and fight to stop this genocide,' the group said on Facebook. A mass of Palestinian flags were seen waving in the hot sun and people with black shirts reading: 'Stop the Genocide'. A boy is also seen carrying a heap of towels wrapped in a bedsheet marked with red colours to represent the body of a dead Palestinian child. Sunday's anti-Israel protests in Sydney and Melbourne have put on confronting displays of fake bloodied corpses and compared the Jewish state to Nazi Germany in a stark display of the fury propelling the Pro-Palestine movement The Sydney rally, organised by the Palestine Action Group Sydney, gathered at Hyde Park at 1pm, demanding an end to what it called Israel's 'massacre' in the Gaza Another sign from the rally reads: 'Queer Jews Against Another Holocaust'. A man at the rally could be seen with a shirt that reads: 'from the river to the sea, Palestine shall be free', a regular pro-Palestine slogan that some critics interpret as a call for the destruction of the Jewish state. In Melbourne, the marchers gathered at the State Library. 'Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip for over a month. Thousands of Palestinian men, women and children have been killed, and thousands more are injured,' Free Palestine Melbourne said on Facebook. 'All this is a continuation, in horribly escalated form, of the 75 years of war that Israel has waged on the Palestinian people, including 16 years of brutal siege on Gaza.' Israel left the Gaza strip in 2005 and terror group Hamas seized control of the densely populated slip of land, murdering Palestinian opponents to its regime Rallygoers are demanding a ceasefire to the war and Sunday's marches coincide with a possible agreement between Israel and Hamas to cease hostilities for a five-day period Israel left the Gaza strip in 2005 and terror group Hamas seized control of the densely populated slip of land, murdering Palestinian opponents to its regime. Photos from the Melbourne rally show Palestinian flags marked out with bloody fists and messages scrawled on red, white and green hearts reading: 'end the siege of Gaza' and 'shame Israel shame'. Another sign suggests Israel has played the 'victim' in world history, reading: 'sorry Israel, your victim card is declined'. Another sign bears images of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler and Jewish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next to each other, with the phrase: 'same s**t, different a**hole'. Adolf Hitler led the Nazi war machine that slaughtered six million Jews in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. The police have allocated substantial resources to the rallies to maintain public safety. Rallygoers are demanding a ceasefire to the war and Sunday's marches coincide with a possible agreement between Israel and Hamas to cease hostilities for a five-day period. US media outlet The Washington Post reports the US-brokered ceasefire would allow both sides to free female and child hostages. The most recent outbreak in war began on October 7, when Hamas butchered hundreds of Israeli civilians, including the elderly, women and children, in a surprise attack on the Jewish state The most recent outbreak in war began on October 7, when Hamas butchered hundreds of Israeli civilians, including the elderly, women and children, in a surprise attack on the Jewish state. The terrorists kidnapped 240 Israelis, holding them hostage in Gaza. Israel responded with force, bombing the slip of land. The bombing campaign, though directed at Hamas fighters, has resulted in thousands of Palestinian deaths, including children and Palestinian men and women who are not associated with Hamas. The contest has triggered furious in Australia, with multiple pro-Palestine rallies in all major cities across the country. Some of the rallies have exhibited anti-Semitic sentiments, including a rally at the Sydney Opera House two days after the Hamas attack during which a group of men chanted 'f**k the Jews' and 'gas the Jews'. Australia's richest person has taken aim at Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg urging him to do more to combat scam accounts impersonating her and other celebrities. Gina Rinehart in a letter to the Meta CEO said 'numerous scammers' on his social media networks have been using her name and likeness to swindle others out of their money. Ms Rinehart penned the November 9 letter on behalf of other celebrities such as billionaire real estate developer and Meriton CEO, Harry Triguboff, and entrepreneur Dick Smith whose identities were also being used by scammers. Australia's richest peron, Gina Rinehart (pictured), has personally sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg requesting the conglomerate act on fraudulent Facebook posts Ms Rinehart wrote the letter to Zuckerberg (pictured) on behalf of Harry Triguboff and Dick Smith 'In the last few weeks, I have had more than 750 scams on Facebook, as opposed to only one on Twitter (now known as X) in the same time period, hence I'd appreciate more efforts taken in attempting to address these issues,' she said in the letter. 'Greater action is needed to stop scams and intentionally fraudulent content from being available and advertised to.' 'Meta needs to do more (as) innocent Australians are falling victim to job scams through Facebook.' Ms Rinehardt claimed she personally wrote the letter after Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, Threads and WhatsApp, ignored official complaints by her staff. 'According to the National Anti Scams Centre, Australians reported a record $3.1bn lost to scams in 2022. This represents an 80 per cent increase from the year before,' she said. 'The NASC also estimates that about 80 per cent of all scams reported include some form of impersonation of a legitimate entity. 'This has happened using me hundreds of times, and my staff can't keep up; there are so many,' Mrs Rinehart said. TV personalities Tracy Grimshaw, Karl Stefanovic and David Koch have also recently hit out at Meta for not dealing with fraudsters using their identities. Pictured above is one of the hundreds of scam posts impersonating Ms Rinehardt that she wants taken down Ms Rinehardt claimed she personally wrote the letter after Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, Threads and WhatsApp, ignored official complaints by her staff Koch in September told 2GB's Ben Fordham he had plans to file legal suits against social media platforms that don't take down fraudulent content. 'I'm so frustrated with this that I'm looking in the possibility of defamation against social media platforms that run these ads because it's damaging me,' the former Sunrise presenter said. 'People are getting hoodwinked into this thinking 'I've done this because you told me'. 'It's all a massive scam using high profile people and really trashing our reputation in the process.' A spokesperson for Meta told Daily Mail Australia that 'scammers present a challenge in any environment, including social media'. 'Meta is constantly tackling scams through a combination of technology, such as new machine learning techniques and specially trained reviewers, to identify content and accounts that violate our policies,' the spokesperson said. 'We encourage people to use our in-app reporting tools when they see any suspicious activity. We encourage those who have fallen victim to scams to reach out to their local law enforcement agency.' Police have arrested two men in connection with the death of a father in Inverness - as detectives investigated whether he may have been the victim of a gangland killing. Ross MacGillivray - described as 'friendly' by those who knew him - was found with serious injuries at a property in St Ninian Drive in the Highland city shortly after midnight on November 12 and was pronounced dead a short time later. Police Scotland launched a high-tech probe into the death, using mobile phone signal analysis and automatic numberplate recognition checks in a bid to track down anyone who may have been involved in the incident. They have now arrested two men, aged 21 and 28, in connection with Mr MacGillivray's death. No-one has been charged with an offence. A Police Scotland spokesperson confirmed arrests had been made, adding: 'Enquiries are continuing.' Ross MacGillivray, 36, was found seriously injured at a house in Inverness on November 12 Police stand guard outside the house in St Ninian Drive, Inverness, where a forensics tent was established after Mr MacGillivray's death Police at the scene earlier this week. Two men have since been arrested in connection with the incident Police set up a forensics tent outside the house in St Ninian Drive following Mr MacGillivray's death while detectives launched an large-scale investigation. At the time of his death, the 36-year-old had been facing revenge porn charges, according to the Scottish Sun, with bail conditions preventing him from entering certain areas of Inverness. One line of inquiry police had earlier been probing was that Mr MacGillivray may have been the victim of a gangland attack. A statement released by his family by police paid tribute to him as a 'loving husband (and) a doting father'. It added: 'He will be especially missed but definitely not forgotten. We love you to the Moon, the stars, Jupiter and Mars.' Friends also took to social media to share their own messages, with one describing Mr MacGillivray as 'friendly'. One post from a friend read: 'You have left me with a piece missing from my heart.... a piece that will forever long (for) a lengthy phone call with you.... or a ridiculous hike for absolutely nothing really. 'You had a heart of gold and wore your heart on your sleeve.' Another friend wrote: 'Absolutely devastated too hear that you've passed away...you were one of a kind.' 'My heart has been broken once more....Why oh why do you put these horrible hurdles in front of us in life god,' another post read. It added: 'My dear brother Ross...I can't see for the tears.' Officials at the largest national park in Wales have voted to only refer to the names of more than 200 of its lakes and waterfalls in Welsh to promote cultural heritage. Eryri National Park - which changed its official name from Snowdonia last year - wants to 'standardise' the names and protect them for future generations. It means popular beauty spots known in English as Lake Australia and Bala Lake will now only be referred to by their Welsh names, Llyn Bochlwyd and Llyn Tegid. Llyn Barfog - often referred to as Bearded Lake - will also take its Welsh name. While some of the 200-plus lakes are already referred to in Welsh, others have an English translation. The National park Authority backed the move unanimously in a vote on Wednesday. It comes amid a growing clamour from language campaigners to rename Welsh sites in their native tongue. Eryri National Park - which changed its official name from Snowdonia last year - wants 'standardise' the names and protect them for future generations. Pictured: Llyn Bochlwyd (Lake Australia) English-speaking tourists have slammed the move as a 'waste of money' and accused officials of targeting the wrong priorities. Pictured: Llyn Tegid (Bala Lake) Snowdonia officially became known as Eryri last year and and Mount Snowdon - which is in the national park - was renamed to Yr Wyddfa. Earlier this year, the Brecon Beacons national park also rebranded itself as Bannau Brycheiniog. Bannau means peaks in Welsh while Brycheiniog refers to the kingdom of the fifth-century king Brychan. The move faced huge opposition - with even Prime Minister Rishi Sunak admitting he would use the old name of Brecon Beacons. National park bosses were accused by both UK Government ministers and Welsh Conservatives for attempting to look 'trendy' with the move. Earlier this week, it also emerged that Caerphilly and Barry could be renamed as language campaigners push for 'Welsh names for Welsh places'. After the vote to refer to Snowdonia's lakes in Welsh, Naomi Jones, the head of the National Park Authority's cultural heritage, said the park's 'wealth of names' is a 'treasured part of our cultural heritage'. 'By recommending the standard list of Eryri's lake names the authority ensures that these historical names are recorded for future generations and used extensively in day-to-day life,' she added. But English-speaking tourists have slammed the move as a 'waste of money' and accused officials of targeting the wrong priorities. One said: 'Don't agree with this at all. We all speak English.' Another said: 'What percentage of people in Wales speak Welsh?' Llyn Bochlwyd, which translates literally as 'grey cheek lake' has been called Australia Lake on maps and in guidebooks over recent years due to its outline resembling the country. Snowdonia officially became known as Eryri last year and and Mount Snowdon - which is in the national park - was renamed to Yr Wyddfa. Pictured: Llyn Barfog (Bearded Lake) The National park Authority backed the move unanimously in a vote on Wednesday. Pictured: The mountains and lakes of Snowdonia, looking down from Mount Snowdon Its original name refers to a legend of an old grey stag which escaped from archers and hounds by plunging into the water and swimming with its head above the surface. Dr Dylan Foster, who is Cardiff University's head of school of Welsh, said: 'Place names are part of everyone's heritage and in a digital age when information is shared online in an instant having standardised forms of names benefits everyone. 'Projects like this also draw attention to the richness of our local dialects and folklore and allow us to share all kinds of stories about the names that are such an important part of the identities of our communities.' A petition calling for 'Welsh names for Welsh places' has won sympathy from a Labour Government minister to end English spellings of well-known tourist towns. This week it emerged that campaigners want Caerphilly cheese to become Caerffili Cheese - and TV comedy Gavin and Stacey's beloved seaside home town to switch from Barry to Barri in the latest English purge. A 1,300 petition presented to the Cardiff-based Senedd by linguist Mihangel ap Rhisiart called for the use of 'only Welsh names for places in Wales'. He also hit out at the 'cultural oppression' by the English against Welsh speakers. Labour's Welsh Language Minister Jeremy Miles - a contender to take over from First Minister Mark Drakeford - said there was 'a strong argument' for using just the Welsh in some cases. Mr ap Rhisiart said it would show 'respect for Wales as its own nation with its own history and culture; and as a mark of acknowledgement concerning some of the cultural oppression that has historically been inflicted on Wales and her language and culture'. He added: 'English names might initially continue to be used by some out of habit but in all official avenues and in both spoken and written media, the original Welsh names for places in Wales should be used'. Minister Mr Miles said: 'We should aim for one spelling when there are only a few letters of difference between the Welsh and English versions'. It would mean that places with distinctive English names like Cardiff, Swansea or Newport would not be automatically changed to Caerdydd, Abertawe or Casnewydd because of the differences. But Caerphilly would be changed to Caerffili, Merthyr Tydfil to Merthyr Tudful and Treorchy to Treorchi to fit in with Welsh as the only official name. It would mean road signs and other official documents being altered over time. The crackdown follows a campaign for Anglesey to only be known by its Welsh name of Ynys Mon - despite a backlash from locals. These are the WhatsApp messages an Albanian fixer sent to desperate migrants as she helped human traffickers smuggle them into Britain. Hundreds of messages from Ujeza Kurmekaj's phone showed her 'key role' in linking people smugglers with passengers, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said. The 32-year-old woman facilitated crossings from France for Albanian nationals before her arrest last year, sending instructions on who to pick up. Messages to her contacts in France included 'family, one', 'three women, children, 14, 17, 12 years old' and 'we have here one family, man, wife, one child'. Other conversations indicated conditions - including 'very bad sea' - and map location pins instructing where to pick migrants up, or where boats were positioned in the Channel. Ujeza Kurmekaj (pictured) facilitated crossings from France for Albanian nationals before her arrest last year, sending instructions on who to pick up Messages to her contacts in France included 'family one, three women, children, 14 17 12 years old' and 'we have here one family, man, wife, one child' Other conversations indicated conditions, including 'very bad sea', and map location pins instructing where to pick migrants up or where boats were positioned in the Channel She was arrested by NCA officers at her home in Banbury, Oxfordshire, last October before being charged in September with facilitating illegal immigration. READ MORE - Moment Albanian county lines dealer who had a poster of Scarface on his wall is arrested Advertisement The fixer pleaded guilty to the charge at Oxford Crown Court earlier this month before being sentenced to seven and a half years in prison on Friday. Ms Kurmekaj will be deported automatically on her release from prison. Her phone also contained 21 images of Albanian ID cards and passports which, when checked on immigration systems, showed that nine of the individuals had arrived in the UK by small boat. NCA senior investigating officer Andy MacGill said: 'Ujeza Kurmekaj played a major role as a broker, linking migrants with people smugglers who could transport them on dangerous journeys across the Channel. 'For this, she would arrange payments of hundreds of euros per person. 'Kurmekaj had little interest in the safety and security of the people she was arranging crossings for, only that she and her employers received payment. 'Disrupting and dismantling organised crime groups responsible for people smuggling is a priority for the NCA and we'll continue to target offenders involved at every step of the journey.' Hundreds of messages from Ujeza Kurmekaj's phone showed her 'key role' in linking people smugglers with passengers, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said Pictured: Ujeza Kurmekaj being arrested She was arrested by NCA officers at her home in Banbury, Oxfordshire, last October before being charged in September with facilitating illegal immigration A graph showing a comparison between the estimated number of migrants arriving into the UK, as of Friday, November 17 A total of 1,869 people made the perilous journey across the 21-mile Dover Strait in 40 boats last month - an average of 47 migrants crammed into each inflatable dinghy. The total number of asylum seekers to reach the UK so far this year stands at 26,699 in 546 boats. Last year saw a record 45,755 migrants cross the Channel - 60 per cent higher than 2021's total of 28,526. This comes as The Home Office considers granting an effective amnesty for migrants who have arrived in the UK since July after holding thousands in detention for 'indefinite' periods for potential deportation to Rwanda with no access to the asylum system. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's plan to deport arrivals immediately would break the law in a crushing blow to the government. Neo-Nazis marched unopposed on Wisconsin's state capitol Saturday waving swastika flags, performing Hitler salutes and leaving onlookers shaking with fear. Around 20 members of the self-styled 'Blood Tribe' group halted outside a former synagogue chanting 'Israel is not our friend' and 'there will be blood' as state police looked on. With thousands in town for the Badgers game against Nebraska, the group carried their banners through the center of Madison from the University of Wisconsin campus to Capitol Square. 'My stomach dropped, I felt disgusted, I was outraged, it was horrible,' said Jewish student Jordyn Grover. 'I've never felt more disgusted in my life. Seeing all of these people that just genuinely want me dead.' Nazi salutes on the streets of Wisconsin as the group marched through Madison on Saturday The group proudly waved swastika flags as they marched past a branch of Starbucks Onlookers were left shaking with fear as the group chanted 'there will be blood' in the streets The march took place against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war which has sent anti-Semitic incidents spiking across the world and an unprecedented summer of neo-Nazi activity in the US. Disneyland in Florida was picketed in July by one group waving the Nazi flag and chanting 'Go back to Mexico,' while around a dozen Neo-Nazis waved swastikas and hurled anti-Semitic abuse at those attending a service at the Chabad of Cobb County synagogue, in East Cobb, Georgia. This time, the group made Wisconsin its target. 'To see neo-Nazis marching in our streets and neighborhoods and in the shadow of our State Capitol building spreading their disturbing, hateful messages is truly revolting,' said Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers. 'Let us be clear: neo-Nazis, antisemitism, and white supremacy have no home in Wisconsin. 'We will not accept or normalize this rhetoric and hate. 'It's repulsive and disgusting, and I join Wisconsinites in condemning and denouncing their presence in our state in the strongest terms possible.' Saturday's organizers regard themselves as a hardcore group that rejects white supremacists who call for softer 'optics', according to the Anti-Defamation League. The group opposes female or LGBT members and was founded by Christopher Pohlhaus, a former US Marine turned tattoo artist who has been linked to the January 6 riots at the US Capitol Building. This year, the group has picketed drag shows in Wisconsin and Ohio, as well as arriving heavily armed at two Pride events in Toledo and Watertown, performing Hitler salutes and chanting 'Us or the pedophiles'. In Madison Saturday they halted outside the country's fourth-oldest surviving synagogue building, the Gates of Heaven, before discovering it is not in use. Rabbi Bonnie Margulis of Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice, said people living in marginalized communities are now feeling 'very alone and very isolated.' 'We're living in very, very scary times, she told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 'The American Jewish community is very scared right now, as is the Muslim community and the Sikh community, there's no place that we feel safe.' 'Blood Tribe' founder Christopher Pohlhaus at a rally in Florida in September Neo-Nazi groups are increasingly targeting power stations and sabotaging the nation's critical infrastructure in a bid to destabilize society, a Dailymail.com investigation found earlier this year. The Anti-Defamation League estimates there are at least 50 loosely affiliated white supremacist groups flooding the country with record amounts of racist propaganda, including fliers, banners, graffiti and laser projections. Stephanie Fryer of the Madison Police Department, said officers were sent to monitor the incident, but the demonstration was lawful. 'Whether you believe that's what this group is doing or not, it's First Amendment rights,' she added. There were no arrests made. A Morrisons worker is critically ill in hospital after she was stabbed 'multiple times' in a frenzied attack by an attacker who is then said to have fled the scene. Jersey Police say the attacker behind the horrific assault at the Morrisons Daily supermarket in Castle Quay, St Helier on the island 'was known' to his 34-year-old victim. A 55-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. The attack happened shortly after 1pm on November 18 as people were Christmas shopping and saw the woman stabbed multiple times. Armed police descended on the supermarket as shocked staff rushed to help the woman; officers say a man was seen fleeing from the shop. Sources at the scene said the woman is an employee at the store but it is not known if she worked on the check-out or in another 'front of house' position. The Morrisons Daily store has been closed while investigations are carried out Armed officers at the scene on the waterfront of St Helier in Jersey. Police have arrested a 55-year-old man on suspicion of attempted murder A cordon sits across the front door of the Morrisons Daily store in the marina Officers cordoned off the area and set up a scenes-of-crime tent outside the store, which was evacuated as detectives began the hunt for clues. The woman was treated by paramedics at the scene before being rushed to hospital in a 'serious' condition. Jersey Police say there is no threat to the wider public after arresting a suspect. Morrisons, as well as a walkway between the store and a nearby coffee shop, were sealed off. Police said in a statement last night 'Officers were called to reports of a stabbing at 1.30pm this afternoon at Morrisons, Castle Quay, in St Helier. 'A 34-year-old female had been stabbed multiple times by a man who left the scene. 'She was taken to the Emergency Department by ambulance and remains there in a serious condition. 'A 55-year-old man who is known to the female has since been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and he remains in police custody at this time. 'Police would like to speak to anyone who may have seen this or who has any information. 'They can call police on 612612 or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via their anonymous online form at Crimestoppers-uk.org.' Since the incident, forensic experts have been seen entering the store, which is closed until further notice. Morrisons has been approached for comment. Saturday Night Live mocked the president in more ways than one over the weekend with a sketch mostly about panda diplomacy Saturday Night Live took aim this weekend both at President Joe Biden and the strained US-China relationship as understand via panda diplomacy. The show's cold open mocked the 80-year-old president's frequent public speaking blunders when cast member Mikey Day - doing a Biden impression - flubbed a line from the teleprompter, referring to Chinese President Xi Jinping as 'Roman Numeral 11.' Referring to Biden's meeting with Xi at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, Day said: 'We mad agreements about communications, fentanyl, climate change, but most importantly, got the thing America really needs right now: more pandas!' The imposter president then began taking questions from the press that continued to poke at Biden's diplomatic history. The U.S. only has four pandas after Washington D.C.'s bear (one of whom is above) returned to China One SNL briefing room reporter referenced a moment during last week's summit when Biden called Xi a dictator, much to the apparent dismay of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. 'Would you like to completely undo your accomplishments by calling him a dictator again?' asked the reporter. 'I would!' Biden replied. As character Biden continued to receive a grilling from the fake reporters, he opted to bring out a special guest to try to turn the flames down a bit - Tian Tianm the giant panda (played by cast member Bowen Yang). Tian Tian was one of three pandas who were recently shipped back to China after spending two decades at the National Zoo in Washington, DC. The pandas were recalled to their ancestral homeland by China, in what some saw as a slightly aggressive move from the heads of the PRC. Once Yang as Tian Tian was introduced to the press room, he immediately began receiving questions about his exit from the US. When Biden attempted to bring the conversation back to his presidency, he was hit with a toughie about his position on the current situation in the Middle East. 'Y'know what, I think people are really like the panda, right? Next question!' he replied. Eventually, Tian Tian told the crowd that he felt his National Zoo departure was coming at the right time because of the possibility of Trump's return to the Oval Office following next November's election. 'Democracy might end. There might be a civil war,' said Yang. A journalist from the crowd then asked. 'So you will vote for Biden?' Yang: 'MMMMMM maybe.....' Biden walks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders' week just outside of San Francisco Bowen Yang as Tian Tian (left) and Mikey Day as Joe Biden (right) during SNL's cold open Fake Biden then jumped in with: 'What the hell? Hey man.' Following the real APEC gathering last week, President Xi signaled he will soon send new pandas to the US. He called them 'envoys of friendships.' 'We are ready to continue our cooperation with the United States on panda conservation, and do our best to meet the wishes of the Californians so as to deepen the friendly ties between our two peoples,' Xi said last Wednesday night at a dinner with business leaders. The lazy, cuddly bears have long been the symbol of the US-China friendship, since a pair of them were given by Beijing to DC's National Zoo in 1972. Following the departure of the three at the National Zoo, there are but four pandas left in the US - all of them at the Atlanta Zoo. 'I was told that many American people, especially children, were really reluctant to say goodbye to the pandas, and went to the zoo to see them off,' Xi said in his speech. He added he learned the San Diego Zoo and the people of California 'very much look forward to welcoming pandas back.' Rishi Sunak's Rwanda treaty is on the ropes with the deal appearing unlikely to be ratified before the new year - as he races to get flights under his grounded asylum policy in the air in the spring. The deal the Prime Minister hopes to sign after the Supreme Court defeat had been billed for as soon as Monday, but is now not expected before the autumn statement on Wednesday. Mr Sunak has pinned his hopes on a new legally binding pact with Kigali alongside emergency legislation after the Supreme Court ruled the policy unlawful on November 15. Downing Street said in the hours after the defeat that the deal would be laid before Parliament in the 'coming days' so removal flights can take off 'as soon as possible'. But Whitehall sources said the treaty is not expected to be published until some time after Chancellor Jeremy Hunt details his set-piece financial announcement on Wednesday. Rishi Sunak 's promised new treaty with Rwanda appears unlikely to be ratified before the new year A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dungeness, Kent, onboard an RNLI Dungeness Lifeboat Sacked home secretary Suella Braverman (pictured) has been increasing the pressure, arguing his 'tweaking and fine-tuning' will fail to get flights off before the election With the Commons due to rise for its Christmas recess on December 19, there are not enough sitting days to ratify the treaty before the new year under the current schedule, with No 10 saying at least 21 are required. Downing Street said that 'further detail will be set out in the coming days', as one source sought to downplay any suggestion of a delay to signing off the deal with Rwanda. On Sunday, Mr Hunt gave his backing to Mr Sunak to solve the 'fearsomely complex' challenge of getting the Rwanda asylum policy to work, as the pair set sights on a first flight in the spring. Sacked home secretary Suella Braverman has been increasing the pressure, arguing his 'tweaking and fine-tuning' will fail to get flights off before the election. Mr Hunt conceded the policy 'isn't easy stuff' but said Mr Sunak is the 'most persistent, the most determined prime minister I have ever worked with'. He suggested Mr Sunak is more determined when it comes to solving problems than Lord David Cameron, the former prime minister who returned from the political wilderness to become Foreign Secretary in the reshuffle. 'I enjoyed working with David Cameron very much, but when it comes to solving fearsomely complex problems I have never worked with anyone as phenomenal as Rishi,' Mr Hunt told the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg. 'I think we will see that, because I do think, when you interview me next year, we will be having a discussion about how we have succeeded in this plan, and I will be saying 'look, it wasn't easy, we kept at it, but that is what we promise to do'.' Migrants packed tightly onto a small inflatable boat bail water out as they attempt to cross the English Channel near the Dover Strait in September The source did not expect any problems getting Kigali to sign off on the treaty, believing that the emergency legislation is the greater challenge. In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Mrs Braverman said the Prime Minister has lacked the 'moral leadership' to deal with pro-Palestine marches, which she has described as 'mobs'. She welcomed Mr Sunak's plans for emergency legislation but said the changes need to be 'meaningful', adding that 'tweaking and fine-tuning is not going to cut it ... and we will not get flights off before the next general election'. The Tory MP said elements of the domestic and international human rights legislation need to be excluded, as some colleagues on the right want the European Convention on Human Rights to be ditched altogether. However, Mr Hunt told the BBC that 'at this stage' he does not believe following Vladimir Putin's Russia in exiting the ECHR is necessary. 'What we are saying is in the end... it must be Parliament, elected representatives in Parliament, not foreign judges, who decide who can come to this country,' he said. 'We don't believe it will come to that at this stage, we think there are ways we can avoid that, we don't want to do that.' Former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption argued the Rwanda plan is 'probably dead' in its current form and believes judges in the European Court of Human Rights would probably agree with the top justices in the UK who blocked the plans. 'It will investigate safety for itself and probably arrive at a conclusion very similar to that of the Supreme Court,' he told Sky's Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips. The five justices ruled on Wednesday that the policy was unlawful, citing concerns that Rwanda could send genuine refugees to the countries they fled from. Harry and Meghan may have said they'd accept a Christmas invitation to Sandringham, but it is unlikely they would be welcomed with open arms, insiders claimed last night. Following reports the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are keen to build bridges and would 'not decline' an offer to join His Majesty for the festive season, sources said the sudden 'love-bombing' from Montecito was 'bizarre'. It comes days after sources close to the Sussexes repeatedly briefed friendly publications of Harry's intention to call his father to wish him happy birthday on Tuesday. They subsequently offered surprising in-depth accounts of how both the prince and his wife came on the call and even shared video of their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, singing to the grandfather they have barely seen since they were born. And yesterday a claim in the Sunday Times by 'friends of the Sussexes' that they want to 'change the state of play' and would 'readily accept' an invitation prompted one source to tell the Mail: 'It seems as if they are really doubling down on their reconciliation strategy. Harry and Meghan may have said they'd accept a Christmas invitation to Sandringham, but it is unlikely they would be welcomed with open arms, insiders claimed last night (Pictured: The Sussexes with William and Kate on Christmas Day 2017) Following reports the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are keen to build bridges and would 'not decline' an offer to join His Majesty (pictured) for the festive season, sources said the sudden 'love-bombing' from Montecito was 'bizarre' And yesterday a claim in the Sunday Times by 'friends of the Sussexes' that they want to 'change the state of play' and would 'readily accept' an invitation prompted one source to tell the Mail: 'It seems as if they are really doubling down on their reconciliation strategy' (Pictured: Sandringham estate) 'It's so bizarre to have behaved so badly, demanded an apology and an admission of 'guilt' to no avail, I might add from the family and now suggest they'll just waltz back in and allow bygones to be bygones if only someone would be good enough invite them.' The insider pointed out the couple had invitations from both Queen Elizabeth and King Charles to join the family at Balmoral in the summer, but had chosen not to visit since 2018. They added: 'Which begs the question, why now? Is it something to do with the fact that some of their commercial deals, such as Spotify, have fallen around their ears and they have been subject to ridicule in the U.S. in shows such as South Park and Family Guy?' 'Could it be that they have realised moaning about how awful being a member of the Royal Family is, isn't such a great strategy after all?' The source noted that any invitation may not go down well with other senior royals, including the Prince of Wales, whose relationship with his younger brother is now non-existent. There was much chatter in royal circles yesterday as to whether the Waleses would even be present if Harry and Meghan were invited, suddenly finding Christmas with the Middleton family looking all the more appealing. Another royal insider suggested to the Mail they thought the king would be more likely to invite Harry and Meghan to visit him in Scotland over the New Year, when the Waleses would be at Anmer Hall, their Norfolk country home. There was much chatter in royal circles yesterday as to whether the Waleses (pictured on Christmas Day last year) would even be present if Harry and Meghan were invited, suddenly finding Christmas with the Middleton family looking all the more appealing The sudden flurry of briefings by Team Sussex have caused immense frustration in recent days, but King Charles has made clear that Harry and his family are welcome to stay on royal property if they come to the UK (Pictured: The Royals on Christmas Day last year) 'It would certainly have the advantage of killing two birds with one stone; extending an olive branch to one son without causing difficulty to the other,' they said. There is also extreme wariness within the Royal Family after both the duke and duchess revealed details of private family conversations, calls and even text messages in their Oprah interview, Netflix documentary series and Harry's own memoir. Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the latest reports. But sources have previously told the Mail that the King will never 'shut the door' on his youngest son and believes that their relationship can be repaired, over time, behind closed doors. So the sudden flurry of briefings by Team Sussex have caused immense frustration in recent days, but King Charles has made clear that Harry and his family are welcome to stay on royal property if they come to the UK. 'Christmas plans are normally nailed down by now as Sandringham isn't a particularly big place and there's not a lot of room for the entire extended family,' another source cautioned. 'It would be surprising for the Sussexes not to have received an invitation by now if there was going to be one. New Year in Scotland would be more likely. 'But as with anything to do with Harry and Meghan, let's face it, anything can happen.' Civil servants have been given permission to ignore new government guidance requiring them to work in the office at least three days a week due to a lack of desk space. Advice issued last week said all Whitehall staff must now spend 60 per cent of their working time 'face to face' in the office. Previously, civil servants were encouraged, rather than compelled, to work from the office for at least two or three days a week after Covid lockdown rules were fully lifted in 2022. But new guidance issued to Whitehall departments that saw office space sold off during the pandemic says staff are needed in only for 40 per cent of the working week or two days out of five. Officials from the Department for Business and Trade told staff that the three-days-a- week guidance sent out last Thursday was 'subject to estate capacity'. Managers are currently considering whether three days a week is viable due to the 'pressures on our estate', they said. Civil servants have been given permission to ignore new government guidance requiring them to work in the office at least three days a week due to a lack of desk space (Stock image) Last year former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg (pictured) announced the Government would sell off 1.5billion worth of state-owned buildings in the coming years Last year former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg announced the Government would sell off 1.5billion worth of state-owned buildings in the coming years partly in response to civil servants being resistant to returning to the office full-time. An investigation last summer found many Whitehall departments could barely accommodate half of full-time staff. At the time, Freedom of Information requests revealed that the Department for International Trade had only 708 desks for more than 3,000 staff. Less than a third of the 2,707 staff in the Department of Health and Social Care could fit into their office, while the Home Office, the Department for Transport, the Business Department and the Department for Education all had less than half the required desk space needed if every staff member wanted to work in the office. One insider said: 'It's an absolute shambles! They're making us come into the office one day a week extra, but they don't have enough desks for everyone.' Officials from the Department for Business and Trade told staff that the three-days-a- week guidance sent out last Thursday was 'subject to estate capacity' READ MORE: Civil servants are ordered back to the office for at least three days a week as Rishi Sunak targets Whitehall's WFH habits Advertisement They also warned of a mutinous feeling within the civil service, with staff already struggling to book desk spaces when coming in just two days a week. Another added: 'This 60 per cent figure isn't going to be reached. They've sold off desk space this just isn't going to happen.' It comes as some civil servants have been given the green light to work remotely from overseas. Staff at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero are among those who can apply to work abroad for a maximum of two weeks a year. The civil servants' FDA union has argued that many of its members have connections outside the UK and should be eligible for 'international remote working', according to The Telegraph. No 10 has strongly supported the back-to-the office drive. A spokesman said the new guidance 'underlines that and makes clear a bare minimum expectation that we think is appropriate'. The head of Imperial College London pocketed the biggest pay rise across all British universities despite overseeing a string of scandals. Alice Gast was given a bump of 186,000 last year, taking her combined salary and benefits from 527,400 to 714,000. The eye-watering increase emerged in a report published by the Higher Education Statistics Authority, listing the highest paying university executives across Britain. Professor Gast, who stepped down from the job in July last year, was one of five university heads receiving more than 500,000 in total remuneration in 2021-22, and one of ten receiving more than 400,000. Alice Gast, pictured, was given a bump of 186,000 last year, taking her combined salary and benefits from 527,400 to 714,000 In 2020, the academic admitted bullying a senior colleague at the university after the higher education regulator launched an investigation Her salary has been slammed by critics after Professor Gast was at the centre of a bullying investigation and also presided over a number of high-profile failings at the university. In 2020, the academic admitted bullying a senior colleague at the university after the higher education regulator launched an investigation. Imperial academics were also accused of exaggerating the benefits of the Ultra Low Emission Zone at the request of London Mayor Sadiq Khan's office. Reform Party mayoral candidate Howard Fox said: 'It stinks that the former president of Imperial has wallowed in such a significant pay rise while motorists have been hit so unnecessarily hard in the pocket.' Imperial academics were also accused of exaggerating the benefits of the Ultra Low Emission Zone at the request of London Mayor Sadiq Khan's office The university also drew criticism for its modelling during the pandemic led by Professor Neil Ferguson. Its 'Report 9' paper is thought to have been the biggest motivator behind the imposition of a national lockdown in March 2020. But it subsequently emerged that researchers had based part of the modelling on codes that were more than a decade old, and had themselves raised concerns about 'data limitations'. Conservative MP Bob Seely said: 'I am all for paying big bucks for big successes. But I would not trust anything that comes out of Imperial after their Covid-19 modelling.' Imperial College London was approached for comment. Advertisement It's one of the most famous streets in America - and this drone image of it by Briton Charlie Moss cements his status as a high-flying photographer. The stunning image shows San Francisco's mesmerisingly windy Lombard Street, captured by Charlie one morning at 4.30am, 'when it felt like I had the place to myself'. The 27-year-old from East Sussex continued in an email to MailOnline Travel: 'I really like how the image shows you an unseen perspective of the road from above, bringing out the vibrant colours of San Francisco at sunrise. 'It was beautifully peaceful and calm in comparison to the usual hustle and bustle of the city. The final image is made up of five different shots that have been stitched together to give this unusual perspective of the famous road.' The image won Best Drone Photographer (People's Choice) at the 2023 British Photography Awards, with Charlie describing the win as an 'absolute honour'. This stunning image of San Francisco's Lombard Street snared Briton Charlie Moss Best Drone Photographer (People's Choice) at the 2023 British Photography Awards Does Charlie consider San Francisco as a whole to be particularly photogenic? He said: 'There are endless photography spots around San Francisco, all with completely different perspectives and views. 'There are 11 districts in the city, all of which carry their own unique vibe and culture. From Golden Gate Bridge to Lombard Street, across to Little Italy and Chinatown. 'I don't think I could ever get bored of taking photographs of San Fran.' Are there strict drone laws there? He said: 'The drone laws in San Francisco are pretty similar to a lot of other cities - you can fly both recreationally and commercially as long as you have the right licenses and permissions and stay within the laws/rules.' A photograph by Charlie of the Golden Gate Bridge. Charlie said that he could never get bored of photographing the city And does Charlie have any advice for budding drone photographers? Are there any common mistakes that amateurs make? He said: 'Honestly, my first piece of advice would be to just get out there and take some photos, anywhere you can - having practised flying beforehand, that is. 'I think a lot of mistakes made, even by myself now, are caused by rushing into things. 'It's hard to shoot at sunrise or sunset because you only have a limited window of opportunity, but take the time to learn and understand the controls and settings of your drone or camera and just practice, practise and practise. 'My photography is representative of how beautiful the world can be. Amid times of uncertainty and madness, getting lost in photography is an escape and I'd encourage anyone who's lucky enough to grab a camera and capture those memories.' To see more of Charlie's work, visit his Instagram page - www.instagram.com/charliemossphoto. A couple in their 70s have moved their entire lives to Italy in a bid to escape 'materialistic' America - and its high taxes. Glenda and Randy Tuminello, from Spokane, Washington, had initially planned to spend a year in Europe to celebrate their retirement until the coronavirus pandemic disrupted their plans. It prompted them to rethink their long-term dreams and the duo instead decided to move full time to the Puglia region of Italy in December 2022. But it has not been without its challenges as the couple do not speak a word of Italian and are already missing American food. Glenda and Randy Tuminello had initially planned to spend a year in Europe to celebrate their retirement until the coronavirus pandemic disrupted their plans The couple, from Spokane, Washington, instead decided to move full time to the Puglia region (stock image) of Italy in December 2022 The couple said that they were drawn to Italy from the outset after Randy's own grandparents migrated from Cefalu, Sicily, to Louisiana in the early 1900s. He told CNN Travel: 'My roots have been a huge factor in picking Italy, it's like coming home, and we feel more at home here than we ever felt in the US. 'Then again my wife is an Italian at heart and loves everything Italian.' The duo spent time researching different regions that enticed new immigrant retirees by offering seven per cent flat tax - before eventually making the move. Former high school math teacher Glenda said: 'We decided to sell our home, our car and all superfluous possessions and make Italy our retirement home for good. 'We chose beautiful Polignano a Mare, it offered a flat tax rate of seven per cent.' The couple now rent a two-bedroom house, which came partially furnished, for $1,200 a month. The white-stone house, which feature vaulted ceilings and terracotta floors, boasts an office, spacious dining room, balcony, front porch and covered terrace. The couple, who have now been living in Polignano a Mare (stock image) for nearly a year, cited a heap of other benefits including the town's historic credentials, coastal location and affordable lifestyle 'We were going to buy it at first, but now with the economy unsure, it was best to rent,' Randy, who previously worked as a consulting manager, said. 'It was a decision made at the right time as rentals are now skyrocketing, and homes on sale are quite expensive as there are few and most are taken as B&Bs.' The couple, who have now been living in Polignano a Mare for nearly a year, cited a heap of other benefits including the town's historic credentials, coastal location and affordable lifestyle. Despite the pair leaving their children and grandchildren back in the US, Randy claimed their motivation to relocate was due to their preference for Italian culture. 'The materialistic aspect is not as predominant in Polignano as in the US, and there's more a sense of community of family and friends,' he said. The shift in outlook in the region has also meant they feel safer, adding that there is 'never a threat of danger walking the beautiful streets at night.' But the move has not been without its drawbacks. Glenda and Randy are already missing some American foods such as barbecue sauce, peanut butter and lemon curd. They have also struggled with the language barrier as neither speak any Italian. For a wealth of Hollywood stars, ageing is no easy feat to accept - but not for Tara Reid. The actress, who has been plagued by intrigue over her weight, is embracing 'getting older' as people are picking on her less - and she is finally breaking free from the shackles of American Pie. Tara, who played Vicky in the hit comedy franchise, is gearing up for a career resurgence, claiming film bosses are finally offering her 'adult' characters as it no longer 'makes sense' to cast her in younger roles. The beloved star, who celebrated her 48th birthday earlier this month, told DailyMail.com: 'I like getting older, I think it's a good thing. I think being older gives me time and also makes people start to realize, "Hey, why are we picking on this girl? There's no reason, she said so many good things, she had so many good movies. What has she done that we're picking on her and not letting her go back to work?"' Tara Reid has revealed she 'likes getting older' and has predicted a 'big shift' in her career Tara, 48, admitted that she 'looks up to' her American Pie co-star Jennifer Coolidge, 62 Jennifer and Tara at the American Pie: Reunion premiere in 2012 with Seann William Scott (left) and Eugene Levy The actress continued: 'So, I think a lot of that's going to change and I feel like a lot of the powers have changed in Hollywood too. It's a lot more younger people now, so there's not as much judgment. I think you're going to see a big shift in my career and I'm really excited about it and trust me, I'm ready for it. 'People are going to see that they can't judge me. I'm 48-years-old now, you know what I mean? You can't judge me from when I was 25. It doesn't make any sense, I grew up.' Although there's no major gaps in her resume, Tara has struggled to land blockbuster roles in the wake of the first two American Pie films. Asked if she is preparing for a comeback, she said: 'I didn't go away, you guys just didn't hire me. 'But I feel like times are changing. I feel like more people are interested and calling and asking, "what's her availability?" There's more stuff going on and I can just feel it inside, I have a premonition. You kind of just know something, and that's kind of how I feel what's going on now.' She is keen to emulate the success of her American Pie costar Jennifer Coolidge, 62, who enjoyed somewhat of a career renaissance when she was cast as the unforgettable Tanya McQuoid in HBO's hit television series The White Lotus. 'To go on that route, she just kind of came out of nowhere and then took it to another big level, and she really showed another side of herself and that would just be the ideal,' Tara said. 'She is someone who I look up to. And if I could pick away a career that blossomed like that, that would be my ultimate goal for this year.' Jennifer has won several awards for her role as Tanya in The White Lotus, including a Primetime Emmy, a Golden Globe, and a Critics' Choice Television Award. Tara recently celebrated her 48th birthday with a night out at a swanky restaurant in West Hollywood Tara praised Jennifer for showing 'another side of herself' when she played Tanya McQuoid in HBO series The White Lotus Tara and Jennifer pictured with their American Pie co-stars (L-R) Thomas Ian Nicolas, Mena Suvari and Chris Klein Asked if accolades are important to her, Tara replied: 'I would love to get one and have that, of course. Yeah, because who wouldn't?' Her comments come after she shut down rumors and speculation that she has an eating disorder in a recent interview with the Los Angeles Inquisitor. 'I have no anorexia and never have,' she told reporter Derek Warburton. 'And I definitely don't have any bulimia. I'm terrified of throwing up, so that's not gonna happen. And I love food too much.' The Josie and the Pussycat star looked almost unrecognizable for the accompanying photoshoot, and was heavily made up and styled to the nines for the pictures as she stressed that she is fed up with people talking about her weight. 'Anyone that says I'm anorexic or bulimic, they're wrong. So stop it. Leave me alone. Pick on me again on something else, but not on those two things. It's not right,' she said. Fans are furious after a hit Netflix show was axed after just two seasons. The streaming goliath has decided to pull the plug on Shadow and Bone as well as its spin-off Six of Crows - even though the scripts are ready to go. The young adult fiction novel written by Leigh Bardugo was a smash when it first hit Netflix in 2021. After months of actors' and writers' strikes, streaming companies are assessing their output, with Netflix also cutting Glamorous, Agent Elvis, Farzar, and Captain Fall. The author of young adult novels Shadow and Bones and Six of Crows, took to Instagram yesterday to share the devastating news with her 650,000 followers. Netflix adaptations of fantasy novels Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows have just been axed Author Leigh Bardugo is 'heartbroken and deeply disappointed' but stressed: 'Most authors never get to see their work adapted' Leigh said: 'Friends, by now you've probably heard that there will be no season 3 for Shadow and Bone and no Six of Crows spinoff. 'The news hit me hard. I'm heartbroken and deeply disappointed, but I'm also trying to hold onto my very real gratitude. 'Most authors never get to see their work adapted. Many who do end up regretting the experience. I'm one of the lucky few who can look at an adaptation with pride and tremendous joy.' The fantasy novelist made sure to thank her 'writers, crew, and extraordinary cast who are not just wildly talented, but genuinely good people'. While devastated, the author signed off her post with 'no mourners', although she said 'I'm going to go have a cry, and maybe a drink, and then see where the story takes us next'. Fans have been left devastated by the news, with many taking to X, formerly known as Twitter to voice their dismay. 'Netflix cancelled Shadow and Bone, I am cancelling my life. [The] universe is testing me so hard right now. I need Six of Crows,' wrote one fan. Another chimed in: 'Shadow and Bone cancelledNo one speak to me ever again.' A third commented: 'Shadow and Bone getting cancelled when we were about to get the Six of Crows is so sick OMG.' One bemused fan quipped: 'I lost Lockwood & Co and now Im losing Shadow & Bone? Im going to riot.' Shadow and Bone took elements from Leigh's core trilogy of the same name, as well as her Six of Crows duology. It is set in the Grisha universe which includes the nations of Ravka, Fjerda, Shu Han, Kerch, Novyi Zem, and the Wandering Isle. They all take languages and traditions from countries of the real world. Leigh Bardugo (pictured) said: 'The news hit me hard. I'm heartbroken and deeply disappointed, but I'm also trying to hold onto my very real gratitude' Fans were distraught to hear the popular Netflix show had been axed along with any other potential spin-offs The cast includes Brighton-born Jessie Mei Li as Alina Starkov, an orphan who discovers she has the rare ability to control light. Londoner Archie Renaux played Malyen Oretsev, an orphan tracker who was also Alina's childhood best friend and love interest. Shadow and Bone's season 2 finale was released on March 16 of this year after the show debuted on April 23, 2021. This will unexpectedly be the last episode, leaving fans with a wild cliffhanger. Rapper YG was flanked by security guards that held what looked to be assault rifles as he volunteered at a Thanksgiving food drive in his hometown of Compton on Saturday. The Toot It And Boot It hitmaker, 33 - whose ex and mother of his children was recently involved in a deadly car crash - was spotted arriving to Campanella Park where the event was held. He sported a sleeveless, blank T-shirt as well as a pair of black, loose-fitting trousers. A belt was wrapped around the waist of the pants and the star also slipped into a pair of red sneakers. A black cap was placed backwards on top of his head and the rapper added an assortment of sparkling, silver chain necklaces to complete the look. According to the event's main Instagram page, the performer also helped 'power' the event over the weekend. Volunteering: Rapper YG, 33, was flanked by security guards that held what looked to be assault rifles as he volunteered at a Thanksgiving food drive in his hometown of Compton on Saturday Security: The Toot It And Boot It hitmaker was spotted arriving to Campanella Park where the event was held He was later seen standing at a table topped with pieces of ham and assisted in filling large paper bags with food items. The security guards stayed close to YG as he made his way to the food drive and also stood nearby as he took on volunteer duties. Back in June 2015, the rapper notably was shot in the hip three times at a recording studio located in Studio City, California, TMZ reported at the time. He was driven to the hospital to be treated and representatives of the star informed the outlet that the injuries that he sustained were 'not life threatening.' The police soon went to the hospital to interview YG about the incident, however, TMZ was informed that the performer had been 'very uncooperative.' The unknown assailants that had broken into the studio were never found and are still at large. In his 2016 album titled, Still Brazy, the rapper addressed gun violence and seemingly referenced to the past incident in the track called, 'Who Shot Me?' Some lyrics included: 'Did the homies set me up?/'Cause we ain't really been talking much/I know that sounds sick/My thoughts dark as f**k/Like the barrel of the pistol I saw when he sparked it up/Prolly was mad as f**k when I walked out the hospital.' He also sang: 'I got trust issues if I don't f**k with dude/My body language gon tell him I don't f**k with you/I can't sleep at night this s**t unbomfortable/Having nightmares of me coming for dude.' Big role: According to the event's main Instagram page, the performer also helped 'power' the event over the weekend Stylishly casual: A black cap was placed backwards on top of his head and the rapper added an assortment of sparkling, silver chain necklaces to complete the look Arrival: The security guards stayed close to YG as he made his way to the food drive and also stood nearby as he took on volunteer duties A helping hand: He was later seen standing at a table topped with pieces of meat and assisted in filling large paper bags with food items Prepping: YG was spotted at a table covered with what appeared to be ham that would be placed in a large paper bag to be given to families in need Pausing for a photo: The music artist was seen stopping to take a quick selfie with a fan as he headed to the food drive over the weekend YG previously opened up about growing up in Compton a few months earlier during an interview with Theo Von on his This Past Weekend podcast. 'I grew up in like, multiple different places,' he explained, and then added, 'It was like, shootouts. S**t going on like that.' He also added that while some areas were 'chill,' other locations in the city had 'robberies going on a lot in one spot.' Theo then responded with, 'I hate robberies,' prompting YG to say, 'We was doing them though so it was different.' He added that, 'It was all fun,' but continued, 'That'd be the crazy thing...A lot of people there grow up, living like a ghetto dangerous life.' 'Like, a lot of us think it's fun. And then when you make it out...you start looking back like, "D**n I was playing with fire like the whole time.' YG has been filtering through a busy schedule and recently dressed to impress in an all-black ensemble as he attended the GQ Men of the Year Party earlier on Thursday in Los Angeles. He also stopped by the Welcome to Collegrove Album Visual Presentation on Tuesday with his two daughters: Harmony and Vibe Jackson. The rapper shares his two children with ex-girlfriend, Catelyn Sparks, who was recently involved in a deadly car accident last month in October in which an 89-year-old woman was killed. Police sources told TMZ that 'no drugs or alcohol were involved' and that Sparks 'did not commit a crime' in the tragic incident. Standing by: YG's security were seen standing with what appeared to be assault rifles nearby as the star helped out at the event Onto the next: After volunteering in Compton, the rapper made his way to Long Beach to perform at ComplexCon Swaggy: He wore the same look as earlier in the day, but swapped out his black hat for a red one Keeping busy: YG has been filtering through a busy schedule and recently dressed to impress in an all-black ensemble as he attended the GQ Men of the Year Party earlier on Thursday in Los Angeles Quality time: He also stopped by the Welcome to Collegrove Album Visual Presentation on Tuesday with his two daughters: Harmony and Vibe Jackson Recent accident: The rapper shares his two children with ex-girlfriend, Catelyn Sparks, who was recently involved in a deadly car accident last month in October in which an 89-year-old woman was killed In the accident, Sparks, 29, was behind the wheel of her 2023 Tesla when the other motorist, driving a 1985 Cadillac, made a U-turn in front of the Tesla, police told the outlet. Sparks' Tesla made impact with the driver-side door of the Cadillac, leading to fatal injuries for the driver, who was pronounced dead at the scene, law enforcement told TMZ. Sparks was taken to a nearby hospital after suffering what authorities described as minor injuries. The outlet noted that it was not clear if Sparks and YG are currently romantically involved with one another. Sparks intimated that she and YG were on the outs after the rap artist was seen vacationing with Saweetie in Cabo San Lucas in May. Simone Holtznagel and her partner Jono Castano are just a few months away from welcoming their first child into the world. But before the arrival of their baby, the couple are enjoying a romantic holiday together at luxury Bali resort, The Mulia. In a happy snap to Jono's Instagram on Sunday, Simone showed off her growing baby bump in a white bikini. The socialite, 30, was all smiles as she struck a pose while wearing a conservative white two-piece. The blonde beauty held a bundle of towels in one arm as she cradled her growing bump in the other. Pregnant Simone Holtznagel showed off baby bump in a bikini during romantic holiday with boyfriend Jono Castano as they prepare to welcome a little girl Jono and Simone's romantic trip comes just one week after they shared the first ultrasound images of their unborn baby. The glamorous pair, who are due to welcome a baby girl next March, posted a video clip of one of their ultrasound appointments in Sydney last week. Simone and Jono, 32, played the Stevie Wonder hit 'Isn't She Lovely' along with the footage. The celebrity personal trainer also added a red love heart emoji and tagged Simone. In a happy snap to Jono's Instagram on Sunday, Simone showed off her growing baby bump in a white bikini Simone and Jono shared the first look at images from her ultrasound appointment in Sydney last week, ahead of welcoming their first child Last month, Simone went public with the exciting news that she and Jono were expecting their first child together. The model revealed in an Instagram post that the couple are due in March next year and they had already decided on a name. The stunner, who went public with her relationship with the celebrity trainer in 2022, told Who magazine she was overjoyed with the news. Simone and Jono are clearly overjoyed ahead of the birth, with Jono playing the song 'Isn't She Lovely' by Stevie Wonder over the clip READ MORE: Australian model Simone Holtznagel joins a chorus of critics slamming 'garbage' Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez Vogue photo shoot Advertisement 'Kids have always been in our plan. We started talking about it more and more and then it just happened,' she told the publication. Simone told the magazine she discovered she was pregnant after she felt unusually sick following a holiday to the Maldives to celebrate her 30th birthday. She decided to take a pregnancy test 'on a whim' and it turned out to be morning sickness. 'The first couple of weeks were a little bit tricky but not as bad as some people have it. We're very grateful,' she added. Angela Rippon was the eighth celebrity to be eliminated from Strictly Come Dancing 2023 following Sunday's dreaded dance off. During the Blackpool special on Saturday, the presenter, 79, returned to the seaside resort after hosting the original version of the show, Come Dancing, in the Eighties and Nineties. Angela and her professional dance partner Kai Widdrington danced the American Smooth to Tea for Two by Ella Fitzgerald, scoring 28 points out of a possible 40. Angela faced Bobby Brazier in the tense dance off as both stars tried to impress the judges one final time. First up in the dance off was Bobby and his dance partner Dianne Buswell, who performed their Jive to Wake Me Up Before You Go Go by Wham! before Angela and Kai performed for a second time. It's over: Angela Rippon was the eighth celebrity to be eliminated from Strictly Come Dancing 2023 following Sunday's dreaded dance off Brutal: Angela faced Bobby Brazier in the tense dance off as both stars tried to impress the judges one final time Craig Revel Horwood chose to save Bobby and Dianne, saying: 'Well, there's a standout performance for me that I can't ignore and the couple that I would like to save are Bobby and Dianne.' Motsi Mabuse also chose to save Bobby and Dianne. She added: 'I felt that both couples danced so beautifully. Really one of the most beautiful dance offs we have had. I am going to save Bobby and Dianne.' Anton Du Beke agreed and said: 'Well again, I thought it was a marvellous dance off. Both couples danced very, very well. I thought Bobby and Dianne danced excellently again. 'I thought that Angela and Kai's dance was beautiful and Angela even thanked one of the other dancers for lifting her and putting her down so gracefully which I thought was absolutely beautiful. For me the couple I would like to save are Bobby and Dianne.' With three votes to Bobby and Dianne, it meant they had won the majority vote and would be staying in the competition regardless, however Head Judge Shirley Ballas also said she would have decided to save Bobby and Dianne. When asked by Tess about her time on the show, Angela said: 'I have to tell you that the last nine weeks have probably been the most terrifying, the most fantastic, the most glorious, the most joyful that I have spent for a very long time in my profession. When asked by Tess about her time on the show, Angela said: 'I have to tell you that the last nine weeks have probably been the most terrifying, the most fantastic, the most glorious, the most joyful that I have spent for a very long time in my profession.' Kai said: 'Dancing with you [to Angela] the whole way through this competition has just been such a celebration of yourself and her life and I wish she could see me now. I'm so proud of you [to Angela] and you should be proud of yourself' 'I have had the time of my life, people keep making reference to the fact that I presented Come Dancing, but that was forty years ago, that was a different time! He [Kai] wasn't even born then! 'But actually being this side of the competition, this side of the programme has been really an eye opener for me in so many different ways. Everybody talks about the team and all the pros - everyone who has danced there is a real team spirit in this programme unlike anything I've come across anywhere else in any of the many programmes I've done. 'It's absolutely fabulous. They support us, they encourage us all the time it's absolutely wonderful. But the person who really has to get the most credit is this gentleman here [to Kai].' 'He's [Kai] an old soul on young shoulders. He's 28 and I'm 79, there's a 51 year difference in our ages. He has looked after me so brilliantly, he's a wonderful dancer, a great choreographer, but he's a terrific teacher and he has the patience of a saint! 'All I can say is that you've [to Kai] got me here so don't you dare cry! He and his partner, Nadiya, are in every sense of the word beautiful people and I am so pleased to have you in my life.' Kai said: 'Since week one when I met this amazing woman as she said I wasn't even born when she did Come Dancing, I had to ask my parents about the amazing Morecombe and Wise moment that was so famous, and about Come Dancing. Like Angela just said, there's a 50 year age gap between us, but we're like mates!' 'Dancing with you [to Angela] the whole way through this competition has just been such a celebration of yourself and her life and I wish she could see me now. I'm so proud of you [to Angela] and you should be proud of yourself, it's been my absolute honour and pleasure to dance with you especially in this beautiful ballroom.' Yay! Strictly Come Dancing returned to Blackpools famous Tower Ballroom on Saturday night, with Angela experiencing a full circle moment She's back: The television presenter took to the dancefloor with her partner Kai with duo dancing the American Smooth to Tea for Two by Ella Fitzgerald The results show on Sunday night was bursting at the seams with glitz and glamour, the evening was opened by our professional dancers turning the Ballroom purple with a memorable routine to a Harry Styles medley. Plus a performance from Madness singing their new song 'C'est La Vie' with a beautiful dance from Nadiya Bychkova, Graziano Di Prima, Jowita Przysta, Gorka Marquez, Michelle Tsiakkas and Neil Jones. It comes after Strictly Come Dancing returned to Blackpool's famous Tower Ballroom on Saturday night, with Angela Rippon experiencing a full circle moment. Angela's appearance at the Tower Ballroom was hanging in the balance when she found herself in the bottom two for a second time last week. After failing to impress the public she was saved once again by the judges, despite her suffering a near fall during her Paso Doble. The first Come Dancing programme was aired in 1950 and presented by Peter Dimmock, with Leslie Mitchell as the master of ceremonies. Angela joined as a presenter a few years later alongside the likes of Terry Wogan, Judith Chalmers, David Jacobs, and Rosemarie Ford. Come Dancing ended in 1998. However the success of the film Strictly Ballroom rekindled interest in dance and so, in 2004, Strictly Come Dancing aired on BBC. The presenter came under fire last week after she sent Krishnan Guru-Murthy home in her second dance off . Angela and Kai won the majority vote keeping them in the competition, but head judge Shirley Ballas said she would have decided to save Krishnan and Lauren. Wow: The presenter returned to the seaside resort after hosting the original version of the show, Come Dancing, in the Eighties and Nineties (pictured in 1988) Judge Craig Revel Horwood said: ' Well Krishnan you really upped your game in that dance off, it was magnificent. Angela you nearly lost your supporting leg darling in the kick but you saved it, miraculously. 'But the couple that I would like to save and go through to Blackpool is Angela and Kai.' While Shirley said: 'Well I picked the person that I felt was more grounded on their feet without any technical errors and I would have saved Krishnan & Lauren.' The remaining six couples will take to the dancefloor next when Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday 25th November at 19:30, with the results show on Sunday 26th November at 19:20 on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. One should eat as much home-cooked food as possible, outside food can be harmful Have you ever observed that the table at special occasions is filled with more of fast foods be it sodas, sugary and preserved fruit juices, chips, cakes, cookies, and much more? But have you realised that the so-called real food that is pre-made such as instant potatoes, instant cheese balls, chemical-filled dressings or stuffing, microwavable foods, etc. are ruining the body? Today almost 45% of the global population is either obese or overweight. Most of the world's population is suffering from the problem of a high BMI, bloated body, dehydration, constipation, less successful weight loss, and excessive gain. But the question arises who are we to blame: the food industry companies or the Gen Z food influencers?? Well, it is difficult to decide. Living in a fast-moving world, the fast-food industry supplying processed foods; prepared meals; frozen foods; dry goods; baked products and even beverages has boomed at such a rapid rate that it has solely increased the FMCG sales volume. Also, with the rapid increase in technological advancements, making the products available through ordering foods through various applications running with tempting offers and discounts and easy availability of vending machines at the nearest kiosk wherein just by inserting a coin in the machine or simply scanning the QR Code can fetch an individual a snack or a drink as per their choice without realising that such machines contain highly processed edible products which are not only unhealthy and harmful for the body but are a cause for increasing the risk of obesity as these foods tend to be high in fat and low in fibres, a combination that slows the digestion process. MNCs and IT companies nowadays seem to use these industrial foods for their convenience, cheaper costs, and as a reward system to encourage their employees. Also, unhealthy food marketing strategies such as the use of appealing visuals, celebrity endorsements and popular cartoon characters create powerful associations between unhealthy foods and positive emotions that as a result the target youth and the children at large develop preferences for products that are detrimental to their health. Not only this, but fast food is also poised to become an addiction for children so in so if not offered their favourite burger, pizza, fries, or drink, they tend to become aggressive. And the icing on the cake is when the young generation starts consulting social media for almost every new buzz thing in town and many social media influencers and food bloggers take this as an advantage for their selfishness. Parents have tried unique and different ways to prevent eating fast food excessively but are in vain.Modern-day studies have proved that all these additives and addictive food items seem to be the status quo regardless of socio-economic status. People from all walks of life are consuming these so-called comfort foods without any forethought as to how these foods may impact their health. They are at a high risk of getting heart attacks; diabetes; BP-related problems and even cancer. It is of immense need that the children of today right from an early age are taught the importance of eating healthy and fibre-rich foods such as eating more whole fruits instead of canned juices; nuts and seeds; whole grain products and many other, inclusion of such foods will embrace their nutritious choices, and eventually help them enjoy a higher quality of life. This will help in lowering cholesterol levels and controlling blood sugar levels. One should try to eat as much home-cooked food as possible as none of us is aware of the ingredients and the quality of materials being used while eating out. One must be smart with the food choices (The writer is an educator, views are personal) The IELTS Exam (International English Language Testing System) is crucial for students pursuing education abroad but now it would be even more pinpointed The pursuit of education abroad has become increasingly popular among students seeking a global perspective and enhanced career opportunities. As they embark on this journey, one crucial aspect that can significantly impact their chances of admission is the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam. This standardised test serves as a measure of proficiency in the English language and is recognised by universities and institutions worldwide The IELTS exam is recognised and accepted by over 10,000 institutions and organisations across 140 countries, making it one of the most widely acknowledged language proficiency tests globally. Its universal acceptance ensures that students can apply to a vast array of universities and programs around the world. Many universities and colleges in English-speaking countries, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, require international applicants to submit IELTS scores as part of their admission process. The scores act as a reliable indicator of the student's ability to communicate effectively in English, a crucial skill for academic success in an English-language environment. Beyond academic admission, IELTS scores often play a pivotal role in visa applications. Immigration authorities in various countries use these scores to assess an applicant's language proficiency, ensuring they can navigate the linguistic challenges of living and studying in an English-speaking country. The IELTS evaluates four language skills: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking. Students must prepare for each section to ensure a well-rounded performance. Numerous resources, including practice tests, study guides, and language courses, are available to help candidates familiarise themselves with the test format. Preparation for the IELTS exam not only focuses on test-taking strategies but also on enhancing overall language skills. Taking mock IELTS tests under exam conditions is a crucial part of preparation. Recently some changes have been made to the IELTS exam and potential enhancements that could further refine this critical assessment tool. The following would be the highlights of the new system of testing Recent Changes to the IELTS Exam: Computer-Based Testing (CBT): Recognising the shift towards digital assessments, the IELTS exam has embraced computer-based testing alongside the traditional paper-based format. This change allows for more flexibility in scheduling exams, quicker result processing, and a more seamless test-taking experience for candidates. Shortened Duration for Listening Section: One notable change involves the reduction of the Listening section duration. Previously spanning 30 minutes, the listening component has been shortened to 20 minutes, aligning it with the actual length of the recorded material. This adjustment aims to provide a more accurate reflection of a candidate's listening skills without unnecessary time constraints. Computer Adaptive Technology for Reading and Listening: In certain regions, the IELTS exam has introduced computer-adaptive technology for the Reading and Listening sections. This adaptive approach tailors the difficulty of questions based on a candidate's previous responses, offering a more personalised and precise evaluation of their language proficiency. Enhanced Security Measures: To maintain the integrity of the testing process, the IELTS exam has implemented enhanced security measures, including biometric verification and stricter ID requirements. Opportunities for Improvement While the IELTS Speaking section traditionally involves face-to-face interaction with an examiner, exploring the integration of technology, such as video interviews or AI-driven assessments, could enhance objectivity and consistency. Tailoring preparation materials to individual needs and proficiency levels could further support candidates in their IELTS journey. Interactive online resources, adaptive learning platforms, and targeted practice materials could help students address specific weaknesses and optimise their performance in each section. Expediting the release of test scores in real time could offer candidates more immediate feedback on their performance. This not only reduces anxiety but also allows for quicker decision-making in terms of university applications and visa processes. Providing a broader range of test dates could accommodate the diverse needs of international students, especially those facing time zone challenges. More flexibility in scheduling exams would contribute to a smoother and more accessible testing experience. (The writer is a Global SVP for TOEFL & GRE, and ETS, views are personal) The National Green Tribunal (NGT) banned stubble burning in 2015 but despite coercive methods stubble burning continues The recent rebuke of the Supreme Court on stubble-burning has highlighted some critical concerns about paddy cultivation in Punjab, implying that farmers need to consider sowing other crops instead of paddy to tackle the issue head-on. The Supreme Court has also asked for a meeting with farmer groups to find a sustainable solution to the problem, which is a crucial step in the right direction. The central and state governments should take ownership and collaborate to help farmers find a solution to the issue. It's imperative to realise that if we can send Chandrayaan-3 to the moon, we can certainly find a solution to stubble-burning. The action taken against Punjab farmers in the form of more than 250 FIRs is not a wise solution. Years of awareness campaigns in the state, along with Rs 1,000 crore worth of subsidies on straw management machines, have not led to any big shift away from stubble burning. There is a need to find a more practical solution to this problem that takes into account the challenges faced by farmers, who do not want to burn stubble anymore; instead, they want support for managing the residue effectively. Every winter the sky is filled with smog combined with farm fires, household cooking, crackers, diesel-driven SUVs, commercial vehicles, industries, dust, and other factors that continue to contribute to the worsening of air quality. Although it is a national problem, stubble burning is usually associated with farmers in Punjab and Haryana who are unfairly blamed by urban dwellers and policymakers. However, this perception is not only misguided but also a serious lapse on the part of policymakers to address a problem practically. It is time to recognize that farmers and their families are the first victims of stubble-burning pollution. Obduracy and a mental block are seen as the main obstacles to finding a solution. There is a need for better and more intelligent solutions to address this existential issue. Policymakers must take practical measures to combat this problem and ensure a safe and healthy environment for all. Stubble burning after paddy harvesting is banned, but it continues to occur frequently in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and other parts of the country. The current solutions to this problem have not been effective. Although a subsidy scheme for employing a stubble residual machine has been implemented, it has had limited success. Most small and medium farmers find it unaffordable. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) banned stubble burning in 2015, and Punjab authorities fine farmers who violate the ban. However, coercive methods and monetary penalties have not been effective in deterring farmers from burning stubble. The narrow gap between the paddy harvest and the wheat-sowing time in Punjab and Haryana exacerbates the issue of rice straw. The paddy crop is usually harvested between the first and last weeks of October, and farmers sow the wheat crop from the first week of November. The combined harvester and thresher machine often leaves behind a significant amount of stubble on the field, which prevents other machines from sowing wheat seeds. With only a 10-15-day window between the paddy-harvesting season and the wheat-sowing time, farmers feel compelled to burn the stubble to quickly clear the fields. The Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) has claimed success with a bio-decomposer spray called 'PUSA', which can decompose most of the stubble into manure in a month. Nevertheless, the use of bio-decomposers in Punjab has not shown favourable results in trials, given the narrow gap of 10 to 15 days for sowing wheat after the paddy harvest. The current slow progress in curbing stubble burning demands a practical commercial model that can effectively bring about a perceptible change in the atmosphere and people's attitudes. Fortunately, some private firms in Punjab have taken the initiative to buy stubble from farmers and produce gas and other by-products in biogas plants. Global solution to local: It is important to find global solutions to our local problems, such as paddy straw burning. India could learn from other countries' experiences, where similar bans on crop residue burning failed to persuade farmers. Therefore, relying solely on government initiatives may not be effective due to the high levels of animosity among paddy cultivators. To solve the problem of crop residue burning, technical and legal interventions alone are not enough. It's essential to focus on minimizing the costs for farmers who opt for alternative methods of paddy straw disposal and supplementing their sources of income. In Egypt, the government offered an incentive to traders to buy straws from farmers. Suggestions for alternative disposal methods include using it for animal feed, ploughing it back into the field as natural fertiliser, generating bio-energy, and using it as a substrate for mushroom cultivation. The Way Forward: Farmers often find it difficult to stop the age-old practice of stubble burning. This is because alternative methods of stubble management require additional expenses, which are usually borne by the farmers themselves. The cost of stubble management ranges from Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 per acre, but the proposed centre and state incentives of Rs 2500 per acre are currently on hold. However, ignoring the problem is not a solution either. Therefore, it is important to provide farmers with free reaper binders and paddy straw choppers at their farm gates to help them manage stubble effectively. The state government can help by arranging to procure the stubble along with paddy grain, by hiring balers to work for free for the farmers. This will help them prepare their farms for wheat sowing after paddy harvesting. The stubbles can then be sold to biomass-based power plants, paper mills, and cardboard factories. In the long run, replacing long-duration paddy varieties with shorter-duration varieties like PUSA Basmati-1509 and PR-126 can help reduce stubble burning. These varieties can be harvested in the third week of September itself, which will allow ample time for the paddy stubble to decompose, eliminating the need for stubble burning. Providing farmers with the necessary assistance and equipment can encourage them to refrain from burning stubble. We all know that stubble retention has many benefits, but it requires a systems approach to manage disease, pest and weed pressure. Farmers need to be educated on how they are harming their farms by damaging the soil's nutrients. (The Author is Vice-Chairman of Sonalika Group, Vice-Chairman of the Punjab Economic Policy and Planning Board, and Chairman of ASSOCHAM Northern Region Development. Views expressed are personal) This World Childrens Day, let us reiterate our commitment to safeguard childrens rights and ensure bright future for them The anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) on World Childrens Day is a cannot-miss opportunity for society collectively. to set the agenda and speak loudly for the universality of child rights. Child rights, inherent to every child globally, must be enjoyed regardless of age, caste, religion, or gender. The UNCRC delineates these rights, encompassing crucial elements such as the right to survival, education, protection from harm, holistic development, participation in decisions, affirming identity, and fostering an inclusive environment for children to thrive. Child rights are basic human rights and are fundamental to a prosperous and just society. Unfortunately, too many children across the world are being denied these rights. World Children's Day serves as a crucial reminder to refocus on safeguarding and nurturing children's fundamental principles and rights. No Girl Should Miss Opportunities However, gender biases pose a significant hurdle in achieving an equitable environment for every child. Evident not only in India but globally, these biases hinder the realisation of child rights, impacting both boys and girls differently. Boys often experience more freedom, while girls face limitations that hinder their potential and decision-making abilities, affecting various aspects including education, and marriage, and exposing them to social challenges like child marriage, teenage pregnancy, child labour, and missed opportunities in life. Boys can be involved in positive masculinity by championing girls issues. One of UNICEFs programmes in Jharkhand the child reporters programme which works with both girls and boys and empowers children to champion issues in their community such as ending child marriage and education of the girl child among others. Girls and boys when allowed to think and innovate can be smart and innovate for social good. For this, girls must have equal access to books, digital devices, and resources to promote learning. Girls these days can aspire to have access to and choose any vocation or career. For this, all girls and boys must remain enrolled in secondary education. Addressing these challenges is crucial to fostering equity and inclusion for every child, irrespective of gender to build a society where every child's rights are respected without discrimination. Empower Children And Adolescents For A Brighter Future However, this ambition cannot be realised in isolation. Empowering children and adolescents is pivotal in fulfilling child rights. Adolescence, marked by rapid physical, and mental development, coupled with emotional and behavioural changes shapes their understanding of societal norms and gender. Upholding their rights during this crucial stage is essential, enabling them to make informed actions without discrimination and fostering a bias-free environment. Harnessing their potential allows them to actively participate in creating a more inclusive and just world for all children, especially the most vulnerable. Education As A Catalyst Education, as a basic child right itself, holds immense potential in shaping youths as advocates for child rights. Quality education not only breaks the cycle of poverty but also acts as a catalyst for addressing various social inequities. It nurtures critical thinking, empathy, and a sense of social responsibility, encouraging active involvement in initiatives centred on child welfare. It equips youths with legal understanding and leadership skills, empowering them to identify, prevent, and address violations of child rights. Despite its significance, barriers persist in achieving universal education access for all children. Overcoming these issues requires joint efforts from influential figures in a childs life like parents and teachers. They are pivotal in instilling the value of education and fostering an understanding of child rights. Our Responsibility For Promoting Child Rights Parents, as primary caregivers, must initiate education by enabling a learning environment valuing every child's rights. Engaging in conversations and setting examples, can instil crucial values of respect, equality, and advocacy. Similarly, teachers play a vital role in shaping children's perceptions. Beyond academics, they serve as guides, and integrating child rights lessons into the curriculum and creating safe spaces for discussions on children's challenges, can inspire students to advocate for their rights and the rights of others. Policymakers also wield significant influence in shaping child rights, and creating an environment that nurtures children's holistic development, ensuring their rights are respected and protected. They need to enforce laws ensuring access to education, healthcare, and protection from exploitation. Policies must prioritise equitable education access and essential healthcare services for all children while addressing issues like child labour and abuse. In its unwavering dedication to safeguarding child rights, UNICEF collaborates with governments, NGOs, corporations, and academic institutions, forming partnerships to ensure every child enjoys their rights. Through these diverse alliances, UNICEF extends its reach and impact, working collectively to safeguard and uphold the rights of every child worldwide. On this World Children's Day, it's vital to recommit to these challenges. Let's not just talk about child rights but actively work to safeguard, advocate, and practice them. Our combined efforts today will shape a world where every child's rights are acknowledged and protected for the future. (Dr. Kaninika Mitra is the Chief of UNICEF Jharkhand and Astha Alang is the Communication Specialist, UNICEF Jharkhand, views are personal) US President Joe Bidens main adviser on the Middle East said there would be a significant pause in the Israel-Hamas war if hostages held by militants in Gaza are freed. Hamas terrorists seized about 240 hostages on October 7 when they surged across Gazas militarised border into southern Israel to kill around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials. In response, Israel is carrying out a relentless bombardment and ground offensive of targets in the Gaza Strip which has so far killed 12,300 people, according to the Palestinian territorys Hamas government. The surge in humanitarian relief, the surge in fuel, the pause... will come when hostages are released, Brett McGurk told a security conference in Bahrain. Release of a large number of hostages would result in a significant pause... and a massive surge of humanitarian relief, he said. McGurk said Biden had discussed the issue on Friday evening with the ruler of the Gulf nation of Qatar, which is leading mediation efforts toward a ceasefire and release of the captives. The White House said Biden and Qatars Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani discussed the urgent need for all hostages held by Hamas to be released without further delay. Two days earlier Biden had said he was mildly hopeful of reaching a deal to free the hostages, believed to include about 10 US citizens. French President Emmanuel Macron also discussed the hostages with al-Thani and Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Saturday, his office said. Macron said immediately freeing the captives, of whom eight are French, was an absolute priority for France. The three leaders also talked about strengthening their coordination to deliver aid to civilians in Gaza, Macrons office said. So far efforts by Qatar have led to the release of four of the captives. A fifth hostage, a soldier, was rescued in an Israeli operation. Israels Army said this week it had recovered the bodies of two women hostages in Gaza. McGurk said on Saturday that the situation in the besieged Palestinian territory was horrific and intolerable. Israel has refused to heed calls for a ceasefire before all the hostages are released. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, who also attended the Bahrain conference, said it was unacceptable to link humanitarian pauses to release of hostages. Meanwhile EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell reflected on the future of Gaza, saying, Hamas cannot be in control of Gaza anymore. The Palestinian Authority, based in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, told me they are ready and willing to take this responsibility with the help of the international community, said Borrell. He added that Arab countries should also play a role in any future configuration, both political and economic, for Gaza. Meanwhile, Israel said Yemens Houthi rebels seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship in a crucial Red Sea shipping route on Sunday, raising fears that regional tensions heightened over the Israel-Hamas war were playing out on a new maritime front. There was no immediate comment from the Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel movement in Yemen that threatened earlier on Sunday to target Israeli-linked vessels in the Red Sea. Last month, Houthi rebels were suspected of sending missiles and drones over the crucial shipping lane of the sea. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office said 25 crew members of various nationalities, including Bulgarians, Filipinos, Mexicans and Ukrainians but no Israelis, had been on board the hijacked Bahamas-flagged ship. Netanyahus office condemned the seizure of the Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier, as an Iranian act of terror. A Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) bus overturned in northwest Delhi's Rohini on Sunday morning, injuring three people, police said. The cause of the accident was not known immediately. In a video circulating on social media, the bus is seen lying on a roadside with a shattered windshield and people are gathered around it. The DTC bus overturned near Sector 15, Rohini. After receiving information about the accident, police teams rushed to the spot, police said. Three people, including the bus driver and the conductor, were injured in the accident. They were taken to a nearby hospital, they said. An investigation has been launched into the matter, they said. AAP convenor and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, ministers of Delhi government, MLAs and party councillors joined Chhath puja with people from purvanchal on Sunday. Kejriwal participated in various programs organized for Chhath puja in his electoral constituency New Delhi's Lakshmibai Nagar, East Kidwai Nagar, and Kali Bari. The Chief Minister met devotees and extended his best wishes and congratulations for the grand festival. AAP convenor also prayed to Chhathi Maiya to bring happiness to everyone and bless every home abundantly. The Delhi Government has constructed 1000 Chhath ghats this year so that people from Purvanchal living in Delhi can celebrate the Chhath Mahaparv with all conveniences. During this time, the Delhi Government made all necessary arrangements to ensure a successful Chhath Puja. Ministers and MLAs of the government inspected several Chhath ghats, assessed preparations, and provided every possible assistance to the devotees. The Chief Minister also sought the blessings at Shiv Temple located on Kali Bari Marg, meeting devotees and extending Chhath Puja greetings. After that, Kejriwal arrived at Laxmi Bai Nagar. There, he joined his brothers, sisters, and mothers from Purvanchal to offer Arghya to Lord Surya and perform the worship of Chhathi Maiya. The Chief Minister shared a clip of his worship and interaction with the devotees on his 'X' (formerly Twitter). He tweeted, Along with all my Purvanchali brothers, sisters and mothers of Delhi, I participated in the great festival of folk faith 'Chhath Puja', offered Arghya to Lord Surya and prayed to Chhathi Maiya for everyone's good health, happiness, prosperity and happy life. Jai Chhathi Maiya." Extending best wishes to people on the occasion in the morning, Kejriwal tweeted saying, "Heartfelt wishes to all of you on the worship of Lord Surya and the grand festival of faith Chhath Puja. May Chhathi Maiya keep you all healthy, happy and prosperous, and fulfil all your desires." As India is about to touch $ 4 trillion economy, retail markets have witnessed a record trade of over Rs 8,000 crore during the four day Chhath puja which began from Nahay-Khay (bathe and eat), and will end on November 20 with araghya (prayers) to the rising sun. Besides this, trade bodies are forecasting a business worth 4.25 trillion rupees ($51 billion) during a 23-day period from November 23 to December 15. In addition, an estimated six lakh weddings are expected to incur expenses around 25 lakh rupees ($30,000). Data from the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), shows every year the trade of festivals, pilgrimage and weddings amounts to Rs 25 lakh crore which is almost 20% of the total retail trade of the Country. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which is releasing the sales figures of every festival this year, while releasing the sales figures of Chhath Puja on Sunday disclosed that retail markets have witnessed a record sale of over Rs 8000 crore for the Chhath puja festival this year. Data showed that fruits, flowers and vegetables were sold on a large scale for the Chhath Puja. Besides, clothes, sarees, garments, make-up items, food grains, flour, rice, pulses and other food items, vermillion, betel nuts, small cardamom and puja items, coconut, mango wood, earthen stove, desi ghee and other such items were largely purchased by the people ahead of the Chhath festival across the country. The four-day Chhath festival began on Friday. On the first day, the devotees bathe in the ghats and take part in the rituals. On the second day, the worshippers observe kharna and distribute the offerings among the family members. On the third day, they 'arghya' (prayers) to the setting Sun, while on the last day, the devotees offer prayers to the rising Sun. It is estimated that more than 20 crore people are performing Chhath Puja across the country, which includes men, women, youth and children. CAIT Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal said that apart from Bihar and Jharkhand, this festival is also celebrated with great enthusiasm in Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Orissa, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh besides other States as in all these states, people of Bihar earn their livelihood by working in large numbers. After Chhath Puja, now the series of festivals will end on 23rd November when Tulsi Vivah will be celebrated on a large scale across the country and from the same day the wedding season will also start in the country, he said. Khandelwal further stated that In Delhi alone, more than 3.5 lakh weddings are expected to take place in this season, which is likely to generate a business of about Rs 1 lakh crore ($12 billion) in Delhi itself." As India's wedding season unfolds, an array of wedding budgets will shape the business landscape. Around 50,000 weddings are anticipated to fall within the luxury category, with spending exceeding 1 crore rupees ($120,000) each, while another 50,000 will have budgets of 50 lakh rupees ($60,000) per wedding. In addition, an estimated six lakh weddings are expected to incur expenses around 25 lakh rupees ($30,000). The majority of the celebrations, approximately 1.2 million weddings, will adhere to a budget of around 10 lakh rupees ($12,000), while an additional one million weddings are likely to have expenses of about ?6 lakh ($7,200) each. According to CAIT, every year the trade of festivals, pilgrimage and weddings amounts to Rs 25 lakh crore which is almost 20% of the total retail trade of the Country Equities researchers at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of American Realty Investors (NYSE:ARL Get Free Report) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday. The firm set a hold rating on the financial services providers stock. Separately, TheStreet lowered American Realty Investors from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Thursday, September 21st. Get American Realty Investors alerts: View Our Latest Stock Analysis on American Realty Investors American Realty Investors Trading Up 5.0 % Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Realty Investors NYSE:ARL opened at $14.13 on Friday. American Realty Investors has a 52-week low of $11.69 and a 52-week high of $31.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $14.29 and a 200 day moving average of $17.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 9.23 and a quick ratio of 9.23. Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in American Realty Investors by 18.5% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 100,558 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $2,190,000 after purchasing an additional 15,729 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in American Realty Investors by 72.6% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 45,738 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $1,204,000 after purchasing an additional 19,231 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in American Realty Investors by 21.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 31,361 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $683,000 after purchasing an additional 5,557 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in American Realty Investors by 17.1% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 25,399 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $360,000 after purchasing an additional 3,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its stake in American Realty Investors by 6.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 20,475 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $446,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. About American Realty Investors (Get Free Report) American Realty Investors, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, acquires, develops, and owns multifamily apartment communities and commercial real estate properties in the southwestern, southeastern, and mid-western United States. The company leases apartment units to residents; and leases office, industrial, and retail space to various for-profit businesses, as well as local, state, and federal agencies; and sells land and properties. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for American Realty Investors Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for American Realty Investors and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Atrium Mortgage Investment (TSE:AI Free Report) had its target price reduced by TD Securities from C$13.00 to C$12.50 in a research note published on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports. TD Securities currently has a buy rating on the stock. A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on AI. Laurentian set a C$13.00 price target on Atrium Mortgage Investment in a research note on Thursday. Fundamental Research set a C$13.97 price target on Atrium Mortgage Investment and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 15th. Get Atrium Mortgage Investment alerts: Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Atrium Mortgage Investment Atrium Mortgage Investment Trading Up 0.1 % Atrium Mortgage Investment Dividend Announcement Atrium Mortgage Investment stock opened at C$10.51 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of C$459.71 million, a PE ratio of 8.83 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of C$10.59 and a 200 day moving average price of C$11.03. Atrium Mortgage Investment has a 52 week low of C$9.76 and a 52 week high of C$12.48. The company has a current ratio of 106.75, a quick ratio of 102.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 68.56. The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 30th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.56%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 29th. Atrium Mortgage Investments payout ratio is 75.63%. About Atrium Mortgage Investment (Get Free Report) Atrium Mortgage Investment Corporation, a non-bank lender, provides residential and commercial mortgages services in Canada. The company offers various types of mortgage loans, such as land and development financing, construction and mezzanine financing, and commercial term and bridge financing services for residential, multi-residential, and commercial real properties. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Atrium Mortgage Investment Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Atrium Mortgage Investment and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Buckle (NYSE:BKE Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.09, MarketWatch Earnings reports. Buckle had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 57.52%. The business had revenue of $303.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $303.50 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.24 earnings per share. The businesss revenue for the quarter was down 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Buckle Stock Up 8.0 % BKE stock opened at $37.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.89 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.30. Buckle has a 52 week low of $30.18 and a 52 week high of $50.35. Get Buckle alerts: Buckle Dividend Announcement The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 13th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 12th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. Buckles dividend payout ratio is currently 29.29%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several equities research analysts have recently commented on BKE shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Buckle from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, November 10th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Buckle from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Monday, August 21st. Get Our Latest Report on Buckle Insider Transactions at Buckle In other news, SVP Brett P. Milkie sold 15,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.89, for a total transaction of $568,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 80,770 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,060,375.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 40.10% of the companys stock. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Buckle Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 2,840.6% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 941 shares of the companys stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 909 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 58.3% in the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,556 shares of the companys stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 573 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 733.1% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,483 shares of the companys stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,305 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Buckle in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 42.8% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,244 shares of the companys stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares during the period. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Buckle Company Profile (Get Free Report) The Buckle, Inc operates as a retailer of casual apparel, footwear, and accessories for young men and women in the United States. It markets a selection of brand name casual apparel, including denims, other casual bottoms, tops, sportswear, outerwear, accessories, and footwear, as well as private label merchandise primarily comprising BKE, Buckle Black, Salvage, Red by BKE, Daytrip, Gimmicks, Gilded Intent, FITZ + EDDI, Willow & Root, Outpost Makers, Departwest, Reclaim, BKE Vintage, Nova Industries, J.B. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Buckle Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Buckle and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Commerce Bank purchased a new stake in Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE:BDN Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 10,421 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock, valued at approximately $48,000. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Brandywine Realty Trust by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 33,650,504 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $159,167,000 after purchasing an additional 196,064 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Brandywine Realty Trust by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,343,033 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $198,066,000 after purchasing an additional 597,234 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Brandywine Realty Trust by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,466,154 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $129,814,000 after purchasing an additional 442,963 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Brandywine Realty Trust by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,140,715 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $29,044,000 after purchasing an additional 434,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Brandywine Realty Trust by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 5,599,618 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $34,438,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041,781 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.53% of the companys stock. Get Brandywine Realty Trust alerts: Brandywine Realty Trust Stock Performance Brandywine Realty Trust stock opened at $4.15 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Brandywine Realty Trust has a 1 year low of $3.42 and a 1 year high of $7.25. The company has a market cap of $714.22 million, a PE ratio of -59.29 and a beta of 1.23. The companys 50-day moving average is $4.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.37. Brandywine Realty Trust Cuts Dividend Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 3rd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.46%. Brandywine Realty Trusts payout ratio is presently -857.14%. Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BDN shares. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Brandywine Realty Trust from $6.00 to $5.00 in a report on Monday, October 9th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Brandywine Realty Trust from a c rating to a d+ rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 1st. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Brandywine Realty Trust in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a sell rating on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Brandywine Realty Trust in a research report on Monday, September 11th. They set an overweight rating and a $6.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Brandywine Realty Trust presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $5.94. Get Our Latest Analysis on Brandywine Realty Trust About Brandywine Realty Trust (Free Report) Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE: BDN) is one of the largest, publicly traded, full-service, integrated real estate companies in the United States with a core focus in the Philadelphia and Austin markets. Organized as a real estate investment trust (REIT), we own, develop, lease and manage an urban, town center and transit-oriented portfolio comprising 160 properties and 22.6 million square feet as of September 30, 2023 which excludes assets held for sale. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BDN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE:BDN Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Brandywine Realty Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Brandywine Realty Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Atlas Energy Solutions (NYSE:AESI Get Free Report) is one of 102 public companies in the Oil & Gas Equipment & Services industry, but how does it contrast to its competitors? We will compare Atlas Energy Solutions to similar companies based on the strength of its analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, profitability, valuation and dividends. Analyst Recommendations This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Atlas Energy Solutions and its competitors, as reported by MarketBeat.com. Get Atlas Energy Solutions alerts: Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Atlas Energy Solutions 0 0 9 1 3.10 Atlas Energy Solutions Competitors 245 1347 1902 137 2.53 Atlas Energy Solutions presently has a consensus target price of $24.90, suggesting a potential upside of 45.87%. As a group, Oil & Gas Equipment & Services companies have a potential upside of 13.47%. Given Atlas Energy Solutions stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Atlas Energy Solutions is more favorable than its competitors. Earnings and Valuation Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Atlas Energy Solutions $482.72 million $217.01 million N/A Atlas Energy Solutions Competitors $906.39 million $23.62 million 93.17 This table compares Atlas Energy Solutions and its competitors revenue, earnings per share and valuation. Atlas Energy Solutions competitors have higher revenue, but lower earnings than Atlas Energy Solutions. Profitability This table compares Atlas Energy Solutions and its competitors net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Atlas Energy Solutions N/A N/A N/A Atlas Energy Solutions Competitors -6.23% -17.28% 1.05% Institutional & Insider Ownership 17.9% of Atlas Energy Solutions shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 38.5% of shares of all Oil & Gas Equipment & Services companies are owned by institutional investors. 82.4% of Atlas Energy Solutions shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 21.6% of shares of all Oil & Gas Equipment & Services companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term. Dividends Atlas Energy Solutions pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. As a group, Oil & Gas Equipment & Services companies pay a dividend yield of 5.8% and pay out 237.3% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Summary Atlas Energy Solutions beats its competitors on 9 of the 13 factors compared. Atlas Energy Solutions Company Profile (Get Free Report) Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. provides proppant and logistics services to the oil and natural gas industry within the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico. The company was founded in 2017 and is based in Austin, Texas. Receive News & Ratings for Atlas Energy Solutions Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Atlas Energy Solutions and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Shimano (OTCMKTS:SMNNY Get Free Report) and Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen (OTCMKTS:MURGY Get Free Report) are both large-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability and institutional ownership. Analyst Ratings This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Shimano and Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen, as provided by MarketBeat. Get Shimano alerts: Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Shimano 1 0 0 0 1.00 Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen 0 2 3 0 2.60 Valuation & Earnings Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Shimano $4.76 billion 2.85 $986.98 million $0.99 15.12 Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen $73.37 billion 0.77 $3.62 billion $3.91 10.54 This table compares Shimano and Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchens gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation. Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen has higher revenue and earnings than Shimano. Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Shimano, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. Volatility and Risk Shimano has a beta of 0.54, indicating that its share price is 46% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen has a beta of 0.89, indicating that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Profitability This table compares Shimano and Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchens net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Shimano 19.49% 16.26% 14.65% Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen 7.05% 20.60% 1.79% Insider & Institutional Ownership 0.0% of Shimano shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.3% of Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen shares are held by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. Dividends Shimano pays an annual dividend of $0.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen pays an annual dividend of $0.89 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Shimano pays out 14.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen pays out 22.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Summary Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen beats Shimano on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks. About Shimano (Get Free Report) Shimano Inc. develops, produces, and distributes bicycle components, fishing tackles, and rowing equipment. It has operations in Japan, Asia, Europe, North America, Latin America, and Oceania. Shimano Inc. was founded in 1921 and is headquartered in Sakai, Japan. About Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen (Get Free Report) Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft in Munchen engages in the insurance and reinsurance businesses worldwide. The company operates through five segments: Life and Health Reinsurance; Property-Casualty Reinsurance; ERGO Life and Health Germany; ERGO Property-Casualty Germany; and ERGO International. It also offers life and health reinsurance solutions, such as financial market risks, data analytics, claims handling and underwriting, medical research, health market, capital management, as well as MIRA digital suite; and property and casualty reinsurance solutions, including agricultural risk, data analytics, infrastructure risk profiler, remote inspection, retroactive reinsurance, insurance linked securities, location risk, risk transfer, and cyber, as well as NatCatSERVICE for natural catastrophe loss database, REALYTIX ZERO, IMPROVEX, cert2go, consulting for product development, prospective structured reinsurance, and Vahana AI for motor claims. In addition, the company provides solutions for industry clients, such as IoT cover, earnings quality insurance protection, captive insurance and risk transfer, liability, weather risks, space and satellite insurance, bioenergy plant performance insurance, solar energy insurance, wind farm insurance, mining insurance, construction projects covers and services, aviation insurance, power and utilities, oil and gas companies insurance, industrial cyber insurance, risk suite, data and location risk intelligence, digital risks, PV warranty insurance, parametric, Insure AI, liquidation damage cover, and natural catastrophes solutions. Further, it offers life, property-casualty, health, legal protection, and travel insurance products under the ERGO brand name. The company was founded in 1880 and is based in Munich, Germany. Receive News & Ratings for Shimano Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Shimano and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX Free Report) by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,319,608 shares of the medical equipment providers stock after buying an additional 115,787 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.23% of Boston Scientific worth $179,534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BSX. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Boston Scientific in the first quarter worth $54,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Boston Scientific in the first quarter worth $35,000. Prudential PLC purchased a new position in Boston Scientific in the first quarter worth $1,076,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Boston Scientific by 24.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 28,793 shares of the medical equipment providers stock worth $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 5,581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Boston Scientific in the first quarter worth $230,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.11% of the companys stock. Get Boston Scientific alerts: Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several research firms have weighed in on BSX. Truist Financial reissued a buy rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Boston Scientific in a research report on Thursday, September 21st. Raymond James boosted their target price on Boston Scientific from $60.00 to $61.00 in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Boston Scientific from $58.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Evercore ISI restated an outperform rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Boston Scientific in a research note on Tuesday, September 19th. Finally, Citigroup restated a buy rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of Boston Scientific in a research note on Thursday, September 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $60.55. Insider Transactions at Boston Scientific In other news, SVP Vance R. Brown sold 15,750 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.52, for a total value of $795,690.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,443,760.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Vance R. Brown sold 15,750 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.52, for a total value of $795,690.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,443,760.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Wendy Carruthers sold 11,671 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.95, for a total value of $629,650.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,058 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,078,279.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 415,596 shares of company stock worth $21,922,137. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Boston Scientific Price Performance Boston Scientific stock opened at $54.34 on Friday. Boston Scientific Co. has a 52 week low of $42.49 and a 52 week high of $55.38. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market cap of $79.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.27, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.77. Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.02. Boston Scientific had a return on equity of 15.46% and a net margin of 8.93%. The business had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.48 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. The firms revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Boston Scientific Co. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. About Boston Scientific (Free Report) Boston Scientific Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets medical devices for use in various interventional medical specialties worldwide. It operates through MedSurg and Cardiovascular segments. The company offers devices to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal and pulmonary conditions; devices to treat various urological and pelvic conditions; implantable cardioverter and implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators; pacemakers and implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemakers; and remote patient management systems. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Boston Scientific Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Boston Scientific and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. (NYSE:HVT Get Free Report) Director Rawson Haverty, Jr. sold 3,519 shares of Haverty Furniture Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.57, for a total transaction of $111,094.83. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 84,074 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,654,216.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Haverty Furniture Companies Stock Up 1.7 % Shares of HVT stock opened at $31.59 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $28.77 and a 200-day moving average of $29.63. Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.05 and a 12-month high of $38.85. The firm has a market cap of $513.97 million, a P/E ratio of 8.21, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.46. Get Haverty Furniture Companies alerts: Haverty Furniture Companies Announces Dividend The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 27th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.80%. Haverty Furniture Companiess payout ratio is currently 31.17%. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Haverty Furniture Companies Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HVT. Quarry LP grew its stake in Haverty Furniture Companies by 108.4% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 794 shares of the companys stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Haverty Furniture Companies by 75.2% in the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 1,142 shares of the companys stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd purchased a new position in Haverty Furniture Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in Haverty Furniture Companies by 74.8% in the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,500 shares of the companys stock valued at $96,000 after buying an additional 1,498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its stake in Haverty Furniture Companies by 46.1% in the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,135 shares of the companys stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 1,305 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.46% of the companys stock. Several equities analysts have commented on HVT shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Haverty Furniture Companies from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, November 9th. Benchmark reissued a buy rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Haverty Furniture Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. View Our Latest Analysis on HVT Haverty Furniture Companies Company Profile (Get Free Report) Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc operates as a specialty retailer of residential furniture and accessories in the United States. The company offers furniture merchandise under the Havertys brand name. It also provides custom upholstery products and eclectic looks; and mattress product lines under the Tempur-Pedic, Serta, Sealy, and Stearns and Foster names, as well as private label Skye name. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Haverty Furniture Companies Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Haverty Furniture Companies and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in HF Sinclair Co. (NYSE:DINO Free Report) by 50.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,915 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 29,949 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd.s holdings in HF Sinclair were worth $3,966,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DINO. Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of HF Sinclair in the first quarter valued at $566,029,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of HF Sinclair during the first quarter worth $539,533,000. State Street Corp acquired a new stake in shares of HF Sinclair during the first quarter worth $308,240,000. Invesco Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of HF Sinclair during the first quarter worth $102,959,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of HF Sinclair by 141.8% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,898,867 shares of the companys stock worth $188,627,000 after purchasing an additional 2,286,144 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.15% of the companys stock. Get HF Sinclair alerts: Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades DINO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho cut their target price on HF Sinclair from $72.00 to $64.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on HF Sinclair from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on HF Sinclair from $68.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Monday, October 9th. UBS Group boosted their target price on HF Sinclair from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, August 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on HF Sinclair in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They set an outperform rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $61.55. Insiders Place Their Bets In other HF Sinclair news, EVP Valerie Pompa sold 5,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.89, for a total value of $284,450.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,217 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,150,145.13. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.35% of the companys stock. HF Sinclair Stock Performance Shares of DINO stock opened at $53.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.23. HF Sinclair Co. has a fifty-two week low of $37.12 and a fifty-two week high of $66.19. The stocks 50-day moving average is $55.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $50.84. The firm has a market cap of $9.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.64, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.38. HF Sinclair Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 16th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 15th. HF Sinclairs payout ratio is currently 15.57%. About HF Sinclair (Free Report) HF Sinclair Corporation operates as an independent energy company. It produces and markets gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, renewable diesel, specialty lubricant products, specialty chemicals, specialty and modified asphalt, and others. The company also owns and operates refineries located in Kansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming; and markets its refined products principally in the Southwest United States and Rocky Mountains, Pacific Northwest, and in other neighboring Plains states. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for HF Sinclair Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for HF Sinclair and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. TransDigm Group Incorporated (NYSE:TDG Get Free Report) COO Joel Reiss sold 3,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $994.84, for a total transaction of $2,984,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 3,600 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,581,424. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Joel Reiss also recently made the following trade(s): Get TransDigm Group alerts: On Monday, October 16th, Joel Reiss sold 3,000 shares of TransDigm Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $862.38, for a total transaction of $2,587,140.00. On Friday, September 15th, Joel Reiss sold 3,000 shares of TransDigm Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $872.68, for a total transaction of $2,618,040.00. TransDigm Group Price Performance NYSE:TDG opened at $957.63 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $52.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.49, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.38. TransDigm Group Incorporated has a one year low of $599.42 and a one year high of $1,013.08. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $869.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $856.89. TransDigm Group Increases Dividend TransDigm Group ( NYSE:TDG Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 9th. The aerospace company reported $8.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $7.10 by $0.93. TransDigm Group had a net margin of 19.70% and a negative return on equity of 52.68%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.74 EPS. The businesss revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that TransDigm Group Incorporated will post 28.71 EPS for the current year. The firm also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 20th will be paid a $35.00 dividend. This is a boost from TransDigm Groups previous special dividend of $22.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 17th. Analysts Set New Price Targets Several research firms recently issued reports on TDG. StockNews.com raised shares of TransDigm Group from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Monday, November 13th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of TransDigm Group from $930.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Monday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of TransDigm Group from $1,000.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Friday, November 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of TransDigm Group from $975.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, November 10th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of TransDigm Group from $850.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, November 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, TransDigm Group has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $997.54. Check Out Our Latest Analysis on TransDigm Group Hedge Funds Weigh In On TransDigm Group A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in TDG. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of TransDigm Group by 23.4% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 964 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $628,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $519,000 after buying an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 99.1% during the 1st quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,337 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $1,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,163 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 159,263 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $103,790,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 29,629 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $19,373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,020 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.78% of the companys stock. TransDigm Group Company Profile (Get Free Report) TransDigm Group Incorporated designs, produces, and supplies aircraft components in the United States and internationally. Its Power & Control segment offers mechanical/electro-mechanical actuators and controls, ignition systems and engine technology, specialized pumps and valves, power conditioning devices, specialized AC/DC electric motors and generators, batteries and chargers, databus and power controls, sensor products, switches and relay panels, hoists, winches and lifting devices, and cargo loading and handling systems. See Also Receive News & Ratings for TransDigm Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for TransDigm Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pentair (NYSE:PNR Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Thursday. Several other equities analysts have also commented on PNR. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Pentair from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 25th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Pentair from $65.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, July 28th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Pentair from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Pentair from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Pentair from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $72.21. Get Pentair alerts: Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Pentair Pentair Stock Up 0.1 % Shares of NYSE:PNR opened at $62.94 on Thursday. The firms 50 day moving average price is $63.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.59. The stock has a market cap of $10.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.19. Pentair has a fifty-two week low of $43.19 and a fifty-two week high of $71.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Pentair (NYSE:PNR Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $992.23 million. Pentair had a net margin of 12.36% and a return on equity of 21.35%. The firms revenue was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Pentair will post 3.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Pentair Announces Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 20th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 19th. Pentairs dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.66%. Insider Buying and Selling at Pentair In other Pentair news, EVP Philip M. Rolchigo sold 4,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Monday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.77, for a total value of $243,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 18,535 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,126,371.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pentair A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PNR. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Pentair by 935.1% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 383 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Pentair by 97.6% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 409 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pentair during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Pentair during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pentair during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.60% of the companys stock. About Pentair (Get Free Report) Pentair plc provides various water solutions worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Pool, Water Solutions, Industrial & Flow Technologies. It designs, manufactures, and sells residential and commercial pool equipment and accessories, including pumps, filters, heaters, lights, automatic controls, automatic cleaners, maintenance equipment, and pool accessories for residential and commercial pool maintenance, repair, renovation, service, and construction applications; and water treatment products and systems comprising pressure tanks, control valves, activated carbon products, conventional filtration products, and point-of-entry and point-of-use systems for use in residential whole home water filtration, drinking water filtration, water softening solutions, commercial total water management and filtration, and foodservice operations. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Pentair Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Pentair and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft (OTCMKTS:SBOEF Get Free Report) and Pason Systems (OTCMKTS:PSYTF Get Free Report) are both energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends and earnings. Institutional & Insider Ownership 34.2% of Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 46.7% of Pason Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. Get Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft alerts: Analyst Recommendations This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft and Pason Systems, as reported by MarketBeat.com. Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft 0 0 1 0 3.00 Pason Systems 0 1 2 0 2.67 Dividends Pason Systems has a consensus price target of $11.58, suggesting a potential upside of 15.14%. Given Pason Systems higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Pason Systems is more favorable than Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft. Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft pays an annual dividend of $0.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Pason Systems pays an annual dividend of $0.47 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.7%. Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft pays out 12.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Pason Systems pays out 44.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Valuation & Earnings This table compares Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft and Pason Systems top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation. Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft N/A N/A N/A $4.14 13.95 Pason Systems N/A N/A N/A $1.07 9.42 Pason Systems is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. Profitability This table compares Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft and Pason Systems net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft N/A N/A N/A Pason Systems N/A N/A N/A About Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft (Get Free Report) Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft engages in the development, production, and marketing of stainless-steel products and drilling and completion equipment worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Advanced Manufacturing & Services, and Oilfield Equipment. The Advanced Manufacturing & Services segment manufactures high-alloy and non-magnetic stainless steels that offers high material strength and corrosion resistance, as well as customized high-precision MWD/LWD components, such as collars for use as high-tech housings for special logging instruments, sensors, antennas, and generators in the oil, gas, and other industries. The Oilfield Equipment segment engages in the sale and rental of tools, including drilling motors for directional and horizontal drilling, downhole circulation tools for sealing liquid-permeable zones of boreholes and for borehole cleaning during the drilling process, rotary steerable tools for intelligent drill string steering in directional drilling, and composite frac plugs for drilling and completion in the oil and gas industry, as well as in the field of geothermal energy. The segment also offers non-magnetic drill collars, reamers, hole openers, stabilizers, circulation and crossover subs, jars, shocks, etc., as well as provides maintenance, repair, and mechanical procession of existing components. Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Ternitz, Austria. About Pason Systems (Get Free Report) Pason Systems Inc., an energy services and technology company, provides data management systems for drilling rigs in Canada, the United States, and internationally. The company offers Electronic Drilling Recorder, which monitors and records drilling operations around the rig; DataHub for data and information collected from the rig for on-demand retrieval; DataLink service provides direct connection interfaces for IT systems and analytics tools; Pason Live for monitoring rig operations in real-time using desktop computers or mobile devices; and daily and end-of-well KPI reports provide visual statistics on rig performance. It also provides Drilling intelligence to suggest drilling parameters, detect disfunction, and send event alerts to onsite personnel and remote engineers in real time; and Drilling automation, a reality across rig platforms. In addition, the company offers Pason Gas Analyzer for real-time gas measurement; a robust system of alarms and sensors to monitor ambient gasses in the atmosphere and in the drilling fluids; and Pason Pit Volume Totalizer to track the volumes, gains, and losses of drilling fluids on location. Further, it provides phone and chat support, field support, proactive monitoring, drilling optimization support, and office support for data integration services. The company serves E&P operators, drilling contractors, and other oilfield service companies. Pason Systems Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada. Receive News & Ratings for Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment Aktiengesellschaft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Lido Advisors LLC cut its position in Truist Financial Co. (NYSE:TFC Free Report) by 12.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,158 shares of the insurance providers stock after selling 2,548 shares during the period. Lido Advisors LLCs holdings in Truist Financial were worth $551,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Truist Financial in the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Truist Financial during the first quarter worth $26,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Truist Financial during the first quarter worth $31,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Truist Financial during the first quarter worth $32,000. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Truist Financial by 617.0% during the second quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 968 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 833 shares during the last quarter. 71.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Truist Financial alerts: Insiders Place Their Bets In other Truist Financial news, CEO William H. Rogers, Jr. acquired 10,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 20th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $28.05 per share, for a total transaction of $280,500.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 412,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,582,518.20. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders. Analyst Ratings Changes A number of research firms have weighed in on TFC. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Truist Financial from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Truist Financial from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Truist Financial from $31.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Truist Financial in a research note on Tuesday, September 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Truist Financial from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $37.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, Truist Financial presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $37.76. View Our Latest Report on TFC Truist Financial Price Performance TFC stock opened at $31.97 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market capitalization of $42.64 billion, a PE ratio of 8.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.09. Truist Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $25.56 and a 12-month high of $53.34. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $28.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.20. Truist Financial (NYSE:TFC Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 19th. The insurance provider reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.82 by ($0.02). Truist Financial had a return on equity of 10.74% and a net margin of 17.59%. The company had revenue of $5.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $5.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. Truist Financials revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Truist Financial Co. will post 3.76 EPS for the current year. Truist Financial Dividend Announcement The business also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 9th. This represents a yield of 7.4%. Truist Financials dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.39%. Truist Financial Company Profile (Free Report) Truist Financial Corporation, a holding company, provides banking and trust services in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States. The company operates through three segments: Consumer Banking and Wealth, Corporate and Commercial Banking, and Insurance Holdings. Its deposit products include noninterest-bearing checking, interest-bearing checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and individual retirement accounts. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Truist Financial Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Truist Financial and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The specialty retailer reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.34 by $0.32, reports. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 61.68%. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.95 billion. Williams-Sonoma updated its FY 2023 guidance to EPS. Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance Shares of WSM opened at $178.85 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $152.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $136.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.55. Williams-Sonoma has a 52 week low of $109.44 and a 52 week high of $181.46. Get Williams-Sonoma alerts: Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 20th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 19th. Williams-Sonomas dividend payout ratio is currently 24.98%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several equities analysts have recently commented on WSM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $127.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a sell rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an in-line rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $125.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Friday. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, August 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $120.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, August 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $154.31. Get Our Latest Analysis on WSM Insider Activity In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 100,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $15,000,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 565,835 shares of the companys stock, valued at $84,875,250. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Marta Benson sold 10,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.68, for a total transaction of $1,406,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,238 shares of the companys stock, valued at $7,630,201.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 100,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $15,000,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 565,835 shares in the company, valued at $84,875,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 130,000 shares of company stock valued at $19,496,290. Insiders own 1.60% of the companys stock. Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 7.9% during the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 46,227 shares of the specialty retailers stock valued at $6,915,000 after purchasing an additional 3,373 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.7% during the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 14,762 shares of the specialty retailers stock valued at $2,140,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 0.3% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 391,118 shares of the specialty retailers stock valued at $56,712,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1,415.9% during the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 2,092 shares of the specialty retailers stock valued at $303,000 after purchasing an additional 1,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter valued at approximately $292,000. 99.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. About Williams-Sonoma (Get Free Report) Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Williams-Sonoma Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Williams-Sonoma and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Meghan Markle is dumping Prince Harry for the Big Time Hollywood A-List crowd, and now sees him as a burden to her aspirations. Harrys been used up, and now he is not needed, as Meghan is getting what she used him for the big A-List Hollywood crowd. Thats what narcissists do, they find a target, use it up then move on to the next target whichever benefits them the most, a Hollywood insider revealed on Saturday. Meghan is ecstatic at her Hollywood return and jumps with glee that all her plans worked out in the end. She is all smiles, but now Sparkle needs to dump the grump, the insider added. Indeed, Harry is somewhat a liability now and is viewed as a grumpy old fool who was easily tricked by this woman, an intelligent grifter with aspirations way above his vision. Markles new A-Lister friends are all urging her to dump the wayward prince because he is holding her back. From day one of meeting Harry, Meghans plans have worked out a treat, and she cant wait for the big pay day after the divorce, especially as the California laws are so good to women. This is why she is keeping Harry in California, because of the massive pay day she will receive to look after the two children as well. Reports from industry insiders already claim the Duchess of Sussex is eyeing a major TV comeback in an upcoming spin-off from her hit USA Network drama, Suits. I have never seen her so happy, she is loving the attention she is getting from her Hollywood friends and fans, one of Meghans acquaintances revealed. Meghan Markle appeared alone for her latest red carpet appearance, at the Power of Women gala in Los Angeles. During the prestigious event, she rubbed shoulders with the likes of Margot Robbie and Billie Eilish, but her husband was nowhere to be seen. An agent at the event said: Grumps is at home looking after the kids, while Meghan is flitting around with a smile so wide it looks like she has had a 15-inch metal ruler stuffed in her mouth, cheek to cheek. Heres to Meghans A-List career and her moving on from old losers. India makes it to $4 trillion economy club (Representational Image) New Delhi: Achieving a historic milestone, India's economy on Sunday crossed the $4 trillion mark in its gross domestic product (GDP) in nominal terms for the first time ever, several media reports said, citing a purported screenshot of a live GDP tracker of all economies based on the IMF data. Union minister of state Arjun Ram Meghwal also shared the screen grab, tweeting that this is a significant moment in India's global presence. However, there was no official announcement from the government till the preliminary reports emerged. With this development, India's economy made a significant stride towards its ambitious goal of reaching a $5 trillion economy by 2025. Indias constant efforts in many areas, together with good governance and strategic policies, have also powered this historic jump, highlighting Indias status as one of the worlds fastest-growing major economies. After the report surfaced in the media circle, BJP leaders, ministers and top industrialists also hailed India for crossing the $4 trillion mark and credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership for the achievement. "India achieves a historic milestone, crossing $4 trillion in GDP, marking a significant moment in our global presence. The transformative leadership of PM Modi has propelled India to unprecedented heights," Mr Meghwal said in a post on X. "This is what dynamic, visionary leadership looks like. That's what our #NewIndia progressing beautifully looks like! Congratulations to my fellow Indians as our nation crosses the $4 trillion GDP milestone! More power to you, more respect to you Hon PM @narendramodi ji," Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said in his congratulatory message. Reacting to the reports, Adani Group chief Gautam Adani also said the country will become the third-largest economy in the next two years. "Congratulations, India. Another two years to go before India becomes the 3rd largest nation in terms of global GDP by overtaking Japan at $4.4 trillion and Germany at $4.3 trillion. The Tricolour surge continues! Jai Hind. (sic)," Adani posted on social media platform X. Economists and analysts also welcomed the reports, saying that India, having achieved a monumental GDP milestone of over $4 trillion, stands tall as a beacon of economic prowess and global influence. "The nation's remarkable trajectory of growth and development has not only elevated living standards but has also paved the way for a substantial reduction in poverty," said Vivek Rathi, national director (research), Knight Frank India. "India's economic narrative is one of resilience and promise. Embracing digital transformation, the country has harnessed the power of technology to drive financial inclusion, provide essential services, demonstrate elevated levels of transparency and governance and champion women's empowerment," Mr Rathi added. Also, there is a "wide consensus" supported by economic forecasts that the real GDP growth in the second quarter is likely to turn out to be better than the Reserve Bank of Indias projection of 6.5 per cent in its November 16 bulletin. Indias economy expanded 7.8 per cent in the first three months of the financial year. RBI governor Shaktikanta Das recently expressed confidence in the domestic economy. "Looking at the momentum of economic activity -- a few early data points have come in -- I expect Q2 GDP numbers, which will come at the end of November in all probability will surprise on the upside," Das said on October 31. TPCC chief A. Revanth Reddy said Congress will comfortably form the government with 80 to 85 seats, and there is no question of a hung Assembly at a Meet the Press' program on sunday.(Image:Twitter) Hyderabad: TPCC chief A. Revanth Reddy on Sunday dismissed the possibility of a hung Assembly in Telangana after the elections, exuding confidence that the Congress would get a decisive mandate with 80 to 85 seats. "The Congress will comfortably form the government with 80 to 85 seats and there is no question of hung Assembly," he said at a Meet the Press programme organised by Telangana Journalists Adhyayana Vedikahere. "In the 2018 elections, the BJP lost its deposit in 105 Assembly constituencies and this time, it will lose out in five more constituencies. In 2014, the BRS formed the government despite getting just 34 per cent of votes. We are getting 40 to 45 per cent votes this time. Thus, there is no question of hung Assembly," he said, in response to a question. Contending that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Raos body language in his speeches gave away his lack of confidence, Revanth Reddy credited the Congress for starting free power supply to farmers and said Congress "owns the patent of free power", when questioned about it. Challenging Chandrashekar Rao to accompany him to any electrical substation in Gajwel, Siddipet, Sircilla, or Suryapet to prove his claims of 24-hour power, Revanth Reddy said: "The BRS government was getting power from the Congress-ruled state of Chhattisgarh." Asked about the Congresss chief ministerial face, he said the high command would decide after consulting the elected MLAs. "The swearing-in ceremony would be conducted on December 9 at LB Stadium and, by 12 noon, the gates of the Pragathi Bhavan, which will be renamed Dr B.R. Ambedkar Praja Bhavan, will be open for people to submit their complaints," he said, citing Sonia Gandhis birthday and date of carving out Telangana as the reason for swearing-in. When questioned how the Congress intended to implement its promises, resource-wise, he said: "If we control the corruption then we will be able to implement the promises." Calling on the public to impose a "social boycott" of Chandrashekar Raos family, Revanth Reddy said the party raised costs for the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme, the new Secretariat and Martyrs Memorial. "A comprehensive probe would be ordered into the KLIS lapses," he said. Terming the Dharani portal as a business tool used by the BRS, the TPCC chief promised to do away with it. "Acres given to the poor by the Congress were taken over by the state government through the portal, rendering people landless. SCs and STs were affected a lot because of it," he said. He also said that the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) would be scrapped immediately and a comprehensive probe would be ordered into irregularities if the Congress is voted to power, adding the Congress would fill two lakh job vacancies, apart from filling up additional posts, by December 2024. When questioned about the BJPs assurance to form a committee to consider the demand for sub-categorisation of SCs, he said: "Let Chandrashekhar Rao lead an all-party delegation to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting him to bring in an Ordinance and pass it during the Parliament session commencing on December 4." On the promise of a uniform civil code (UCC) by the BJP, Revanth Reddy said the BJP made several promises, including retrieving money from Swiss banks and providing jobs to youths before coming to power in 2014. "The BJP ignored the promises and the same is the case with UCC," he said. Asked why MIM president Asaduddin Owaisi described him as an RSS agent, he sought to know why the MIM failed to field a candidate against BJP MLA T. Raja Singh in the Goshamahal Assembly constituency. Revanth Reddy, however, said the Congress would never indulge in revenge politics and said that the law would take its course. American International Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 9,172 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $414,000. A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VTLE. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Vital Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $212,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in Vital Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $442,000. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vital Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $208,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $393,000. Finally, MRP Capital Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $322,000. 86.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Get Vital Energy alerts: Vital Energy Stock Performance VTLE opened at $46.58 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 3.27. The companys 50 day moving average is $51.77 and its 200 day moving average is $49.80. Vital Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.74 and a 12-month high of $65.08. Insider Buying and Selling Analyst Ratings Changes In other Vital Energy news, SVP Mark David Denny sold 5,496 shares of Vital Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.75, for a total transaction of $300,906.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 18,494 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,012,546.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website . 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. VTLE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Vital Energy in a report on Wednesday. They set an equal weight rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Vital Energy from $54.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Tuesday, September 19th. TheStreet raised shares of Vital Energy from a c rating to a b- rating in a report on Tuesday, August 8th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Vital Energy from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an underperform rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a buy rating and issued a $122.00 price objective on shares of Vital Energy in a report on Thursday, September 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $71.40. Check Out Our Latest Report on VTLE Vital Energy Profile (Free Report) Vital Energy, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin of West Texas, the United States. The company was formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, Inc and changed its name to Vital Energy, Inc in January 2023. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Vital Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Vital Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Anglo American (LON:AAL Get Free Report)s stock had its overweight rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays restated an overweight rating and set a GBX 2,900 ($35.61) price target on shares of Anglo American in a report on Thursday, October 5th. Berenberg Bank restated a hold rating and set a GBX 2,400 ($29.47) price target on shares of Anglo American in a report on Thursday, October 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a hold rating and issued a GBX 3,100 ($38.07) target price on shares of Anglo American in a report on Thursday, September 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of GBX 2,821.67 ($34.65). Get Anglo American alerts: View Our Latest Analysis on AAL Anglo American Stock Performance Insider Buying and Selling LON:AAL opened at GBX 2,234 ($27.43) on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of 29.94 billion, a PE ratio of 1,595.71, a P/E/G ratio of 14.14 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of GBX 2,171.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 2,241.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.73, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 2.30. Anglo American has a fifty-two week low of GBX 1,952 ($23.97) and a fifty-two week high of GBX 3,699 ($45.43). In related news, insider Stuart J. Chambers sold 715 shares of Anglo American stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 2,300 ($28.25), for a total value of 16,445 ($20,195.26). In the last 90 days, insiders bought 17 shares of company stock valued at $36,723. 7.30% of the stock is owned by insiders. Anglo American Company Profile (Get Free Report) Anglo American plc operates as a mining company worldwide. It explores for rough and polished diamonds, copper, platinum group metals, metallurgical and thermal coal, steelmaking coal, and iron ore; and nickel, polyhalite, and manganese ores, as well as alloys. The company was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Anglo American Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Anglo American and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Escalon Medical (OTCMKTS:ESMC Get Free Report) is one of 74 publicly-traded companies in the Electromedical equipment industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its rivals? We will compare Escalon Medical to related companies based on the strength of its profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, risk and earnings. Insider and Institutional Ownership 46.9% of shares of all Electromedical equipment companies are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of Escalon Medical shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 12.1% of shares of all Electromedical equipment companies are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term. Get Escalon Medical alerts: Analyst Ratings This is a summary of recent recommendations for Escalon Medical and its rivals, as reported by MarketBeat.com. Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Escalon Medical 0 0 0 0 N/A Escalon Medical Competitors 188 706 1911 96 2.66 Profitability As a group, Electromedical equipment companies have a potential upside of 54.77%. Given Escalon Medicals rivals higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Escalon Medical has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals. This table compares Escalon Medical and its rivals net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Escalon Medical 2.13% 30.60% 5.20% Escalon Medical Competitors -503.34% -330.03% -38.11% Risk and Volatility Escalon Medical has a beta of -0.35, meaning that its share price is 135% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Escalon Medicals rivals have a beta of 13.29, meaning that their average share price is 1,229% more volatile than the S&P 500. Valuation & Earnings This table compares Escalon Medical and its rivals revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation. Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Escalon Medical $12.18 million $460,000.00 -17,500.00 Escalon Medical Competitors $1.01 billion $84.64 million -433.90 Escalon Medicals rivals have higher revenue and earnings than Escalon Medical. Escalon Medical is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry. Summary Escalon Medical rivals beat Escalon Medical on 7 of the 10 factors compared. About Escalon Medical (Get Free Report) Escalon Medical Corp. engages in the development, manufacturing, marketing, and distribution of medical devices and pharmaceuticals in the area of ophthalmology in the United States and internationally. It offers A-Scan, which provides information about the internal structure of the eye; B-Scan, a diagnostic tool that supplies information to physicians where the media within the eye are cloudy or opaque; UBM, a high frequency/high resolution ultrasound device, which provides detailed information about the anterior segment of the eye; and Pachymeter that measures the thickness of cornea. The company also provides Ispan Intraocular Gases, such as C3F8 and SF6 that are used by vitreoretinal surgeons as a temporary tamponade in detached retina surgery; and AXIS Image management system for managing ophthalmic diagnostic images through the web browser from various devices. In addition, it markets disposable surgical packs used in vitreoretinal surgery, including packs that aid surgeons in the process of injecting and extracting silicone oil. Further, the company engages in the manufacturing and distribution of patented disposable universal gas kit, which delivers the gas from the canister to the patient. It sells its products to medical institutions through independent sales representatives, network of distributors, and internal sales employees. Escalon Medical Corp. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Wayne, Pennsylvania. Receive News & Ratings for Escalon Medical Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Escalon Medical and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp cut its stake in shares of Acadia Realty Trust (NYSE:AKR Free Report) by 1.6% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 83,797 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock after selling 1,361 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corps holdings in Acadia Realty Trust were worth $1,206,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AKR. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Acadia Realty Trust by 1.3% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,119,731 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $16,113,000 after purchasing an additional 13,886 shares during the last quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Acadia Realty Trust by 7.6% in the first quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC now owns 77,655 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 5,455 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Acadia Realty Trust by 1.4% in the second quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 219,107 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $3,155,000 after purchasing an additional 3,025 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Acadia Realty Trust by 9.9% in the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 31,703 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 2,861 shares during the last quarter. Finally, abrdn plc boosted its holdings in Acadia Realty Trust by 9.1% in the second quarter. abrdn plc now owns 18,465 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 1,534 shares during the last quarter. Get Acadia Realty Trust alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets Several research firms have commented on AKR. StockNews.com lowered shares of Acadia Realty Trust from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Wednesday, November 1st. Truist Financial reiterated a buy rating and issued a $17.00 price objective on shares of Acadia Realty Trust in a research report on Monday, August 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $16.33. Acadia Realty Trust Trading Up 0.9 % Shares of Acadia Realty Trust stock opened at $15.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.43. The company has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.52. Acadia Realty Trust has a fifty-two week low of $12.37 and a fifty-two week high of $16.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Acadia Realty Trust Announces Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 29th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 28th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.80%. Acadia Realty Trusts dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 288.00%. Acadia Realty Trust Company Profile (Free Report) Acadia Realty Trust is an equity real estate investment trust focused on delivering long-term, profitable growth via its dual Core Portfolio and Fund operating platforms and its disciplined, location-driven investment strategy. Acadia Realty Trust is accomplishing this goal by building a best-in-class core real estate portfolio with meaningful concentrations of assets in the nation's most dynamic corridors; making profitable opportunistic and value-add investments through its series of discretionary, institutional funds; and maintaining a strong balance sheet. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AKR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Acadia Realty Trust (NYSE:AKR Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Acadia Realty Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Acadia Realty Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. The British Business Bank has launched a new 70million commitment to support smaller businesses from all sectors right across Northern Ireland. The Investment Fund for Northern Ireland (IFNI) aims to drive sustainable economic growth by supporting innovation and creating local opportunities for new and scaling businesses who may have struggled to access finance elsewhere. The fund will offer a range of commercial finance options with both loans and equity investments available for local entrepreneurs. By increasing the supply and diversity of early-stage finance for smaller businesses, the new fund aims to tackle an identified funding gap throughout Northern Ireland. The Investment Fund for Northern Ireland is one of a series of Nations and Regions Investment Funds being launched by the Bank which will deliver a 1.6 billion commitment of new funding to smaller businesses across the UK. Two locally based fund managers with extensive experience supporting smaller business in Northern Ireland have been appointed to manage the new investment fund. Whiterock Capital Partners will manage the debt fund offering loans of 25,000 up to 2million while Clarendon Fund Managers will provide equity stakes in smaller businesses up to 5million. Louis Taylor, Chief Executive of the British Business Bank said: We know Northern Ireland is home to some excellent business owners who have innovative and brilliant ideas. But we also know that accessing finance for some of these people can be a struggle and that this part of the UK has experienced a funding gap. The launch of the Investment Fund for Northern Ireland will help address these issues and create opportunities for businesses to start up and scale up. We are looking forward to working with our fund managers who have excellent track records of supporting smaller businesses right across Northern Ireland. Getting outside Belfast and into more rural areas so there is a levelling up of finance opportunities is something which is very important to the British Business Bank. The Investment Fund for Northern Ireland can be a game changer for local smaller businesses who play such an important role for our economy through job creation and productivity. Chris Heaton-Harris MP, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland said: Northern Ireland has a reputation for innovation, and its SMEs are at the forefront of this. I have no doubt that this new 70 million Investment Fund for Northern Ireland, from the UK Governments British Business bank, will provide important support for those starting or scaling up their business across the whole of Northern Ireland. As the recent NI Investment Summit showed, Northern Ireland is home to excellent entrepreneurs, and possesses expertise in sectors from tech to businesses at the forefront of our transition to a net zero future. This new investment can help them take the next step in their development and boost the wider local economy. Following todays launch, the British Business Bank will be holding a series of information roadshows aimed at people working in the small business finance ecosystem including enterprise agencies, advisers, accountants and more. The first of these will be held in Newry on February 6,2024 with additional sessions held in Omagh, Derry and Ballymena later that week. An online version of the session will also take place on December 12 at 11.00am. One Limavady-based business owner who has benefited from support from the British Business Bank is James Mark who is set to launch his own manufacturing business, Powerturn Buggies. James intends to manufacture and build Powerturn Buggies which are twin-engined, skid steer, acrobatic, roll cage buggies for the activity, hospitality, tourism, recreation market across the globe. James Mark said: We have already been using the buggies at our business, Limitless Adventure Centre but now we want to also move into the manufacturing of these extremely popular buggies. The support from the British Business Bank has helped accelerate our plans for the new business and I would encourage anyone else thinking of starting their own business to explore just how the Bank can help you. To find out more and apply for funding, visit: investmentfundnorthernireland.co.uk. Sinn Fein MLA Conor Murphy has said working to transform the north wests economy and deliver regional balance will be a priority in a new Executive. Speaking after meeting with local businesses in the north west on Friday, the partys economy spokesperson said: Sinn Fein is committed to working with others to make politics work. In a new Executive, Sinn Fein will focus on the economy. We want to drive the local economy, create political and economic stability to continue attracting investment and to create better jobs and opportunities. We will prioritise regional balance, work in partnership with local councils, local business, and communities to maximise the potential of the all-Ireland economy. That means completing the A5 road, expanding Magee University, supporting the City of Derry Airport and delivering a first-class rail service. Fresh leadership in the Department for Economy would have a transformative impact for Derry and the north west. Invest NIs local presence needs to be much stronger with more finance, staffing and clear and meaningful targets that must be delivered on. We need locally elected ministers back around the Executive table and working together to seize the huge economic opportunities available to us. Sinn Fein is absolutely determined to lead real change and to deliver for workers, families and businesses." The much-anticipated Christmas Craft Market has made a welcome return to Portstewart's Flowerfield Arts Centre. This fantastic seasonal market is filled with the finest handcrafted gifts and shoppers can expect a selection that is bigger and better than ever, with 38 artisan stallholders showcased this year. Many of the makers participating this year are from the Causeway Coast and Glens area, and by choosing a one-of-a-kind, handmade gift from the Flowerfield Christmas Craft Market, you will not only find the perfect present for your loved ones, but you will also support a fantastic community of artisan businesses throughout Northern Ireland. It's a unique opportunity to embrace the spirit of giving while celebrating the incredible talent and craftsmanship that the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough area and beyond has to offer. This years Christmas Craft Market is open from now until Thursday, December 21 also offers late night shopping each Wednesday and Thursday. Youll find everything to help tick off your Christmas shopping list, from exquisite pottery, fashion accessories and stunning jewellery, to art work, glass homeware, candles, and of course artisanal, seasonal foods. For a memorable and meaningful Christmas shopping experience, visit the Flowerfield Christmas Craft Market and allow the magic of a handcrafted Christmas make this festive season truly special. Visit Flowerfields website here: https://www.flowerfield.org/news/the-best-christmas-market-on-the-causeway-coast-opens-sat-11-nov A fresh appeal for information has been made by detectives investigating a sickening sectarian attack in which a man was murdered in 1992. Peter McCormack, 42, a Catholic man from Kilcoo, was shot when two gunmen burst into the Thierafurth Inn in the Co Down village at about 9pm on November 19 and opened fire on customers inside. Three other customers, including a 69-year-old man who was registered blind, were injured in the attack attributed to the loyalist paramilitary Ulster Volunteer Force. Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Byrne, from legacy investigation branch, said Mr McCormack was the innocent victim of a sickening sectarian attack. He said: Mr McCormack was enjoying a drink in his local pub when he was murdered. The bar was full of customers about to take part in a charity darts match. Peter was an innocent victim of a sickening sectarian attack. Police believe that the gunmen made their escape in a grey Ford Orion car that was found abandoned a few miles away from the bar in Tollymore Forest Park. It had been stolen from an address in east Belfast earlier in the day. On the 31st anniversary of the attack, detectives are appealing for anyone who has any knowledge of what happened that evening who have not spoken to police previously, or who have any new information, to do so now. Mr Byrne said: It is not too late, if anyone now feels they are able to talk to us, we are ready to listen. A number of people were involved in Peters murder. They know who they are and they are going to have to live with that for the rest of their lives. I would appeal directly to them to do the right thing and make a difference to Peters family by making themselves known to police. Anyone with information can contact detectives in legacy investigation branch on 101 or LIBEnquiries@psni.pnn.police.uk. People can also submit a report online using the non-emergency reporting form via www.psni.police.uk/makeareport/ or through Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Two brothers from County Derry have spoken of going sky high on the other side of the world in a bid to fundraise for a charity which supported their mother. Sean OKane, 25, and his brother Eoghan, 24, have raised almost 9,000 for the charity Marie Curie on the 20th anniversary of their mother Martinas death. The brothers were young children when their mother died from cancer at the age of 37 on November 20 2003. She was nursed at home by Marie Curie. Eoghan, an electrician, moved to Sydney in June with his girlfriend, where Sean, an actuary, joined him for the fundraising skydive. It was a great buzz to do the skydive and really exciting as it was something we hadnt done before, Sean said. It was also very emotional for us just before and after we jumped, just thinking of Mummy as we were doing it in her memory. Mummys 20th anniversary is a very special anniversary for us as a family as my sister Naomh is expecting our familys first grandchild and we know how happy she would have been about that. She has missed so much of our familys milestones so to have been able to do this and to raise money for Marie Curie who looked after her so well is really something. Eoghan said: We will remember and honour Mummy as a family on her anniversary, just as we have done every year since I can remember. We keep her memory alive for us all by getting together surrounded by family and friends on her anniversary and on special family occasions. Their aunt, and mothers sister, Sandra Kelly, from Belfast, said their mother would be proud of all four of her children. When Sean and Eoghan told me they were doing the skydive, I thought it was a very courageous thing to do, she said. Im honoured to be their aunty and thrilled they completed the skydive. Martina would be the proudest mother in the world of all four of her children, now 20 years later. The family raised just over 70,000 for Marie Curie from a gala dance to mark the first anniversary of Martinas death, and also raised more than 7,000 for Marie Curie to mark the 10th anniversary. The charity recently launched its Christmas appeal, Give Care, Comfort and Joy. Details on making a donation can be found at www.mariecurie.org.uk. Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris, TD last Thursday opened the new STEM extension in Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT). The STEM extension is a new building of 1250m2, it is a two-story extension building to the North Building comprising of various lab typologies including multipurpose, cell culture, agriculture, chemistry and pharmaceutical. The Jocelyn Bell Burnell Science Building was financed by the Government of Ireland Project Ireland 2040 Fund, administered by the Higher Education Authority. The architects were Scott Tallon Walker, who designed the original PJ Carrolls Building. Engineers were Atkins Realis and the Quantity Surveyors were Duke McCaffrey This redevelopment will facilitate DkIT in expanding its capacity at undergraduate and postgraduate level. DkIT says it was absolutely delighted to officially open its new state of the art Science building and was thrilled to be granted permission to name it after an inspirational Northern Irish woman, Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell, who was born in Lurgan, Northern Ireland, and the Institute says it was even more excited when Professor Bell Burnell agreed to attend on the day. Professor Bell Burnell is an astrophysicist who, as a postgraduate student in Cambridge University, discovered the first radio pulsars in 1967. This discovery eventually earned the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1974. At the time of the Nobel Prize announcement, Jocelyn Bell Burnell was not named, and the award went to her PhD supervisors. Several prominent scientists protested the omission of Bell Burnell, though Jocelyn always maintained that the prize was presented appropriately given her student status. Earlier this year DkIT asked staff to nominate names for their new Science building. It was decided to call the building in honour of Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell, due to her commitment to excellence in science and her belief in providing accessible education. Dr Diarmuid OCallaghan, President of DkIT said, Dundalk Institute of Technology is delighted to warmly welcome Minister Simon Harris, T.D., Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell, after whom we are naming our new Science building, on campus. DkIT has been at the forefront of delivering excellence in higher education the North East, with an unwavering commitment to the learners, families, employers and enterprises of the region. Our new 1300 sqm science building, provides state of the art facilities for both undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD students. It will allow us to develop a number of new courses to meet regional and national needs in the sector and will lead to increased intake of students in both existing and new programmes. Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell has been a visionary in her field of expertise, astrophysics, and has relentlessly championed under-represented groups. We hope to emulate her example in the Jocelyn Bell Burnell Science Building. Minister Simon Harris commented, Its great to be here at the Dundalk Institute of Technology to officially open the new STEM extension and what is a really important development for higher education in the North Eastern region." The construction of this building will improve the educational experience for current and future generations of students. Minister Harris added: The new STEM extension will be named the Jocelyn Bell Burnell Science Building. Apart from being a scientist from the region, Dame Bell Burnell represents inclusivity and improved education pathways for all, an area that is very close to my heart." Honouring Dame Bell Burnell in the naming of the building will provide greater opportunity for science students in the North-East and DkIT will also be recognising the achievements of a trailblazer of her time, who is also providing opportunities for a wider cohort of students in science than otherwise may have been the case in years past." Id like to thank Dr Alan Wall and Mr Ciaran McCaffrey and all the team in the Higher Education Authority for their dedication and hard work on this project and also for their support to the institute. Dr Edel Healy Head of School of Health & Science said, as the leading higher education provider in the region we are completely committed to STEM, one of the fastest growing industry sectors both locally and nationally. With this investment we plan to increase capacity on Life Science, Health Science and Agri-Food programmes, helping us to meet the growing demand from employers in our region for high-quality graduates in these specialised areas. One of the exciting additions is its innovative new cell culture facility. Designed to accommodate the culture of cell lines, DkIT students will now get direct experience with the technologies and processes commonly used in current, sophisticated biotechnology settings. The commercial value of biotherapeutic medicines is forecasted to grow exponentially in the next few years. The success of the Irish biopharma industry is internationally recognised and this new Cell Culture facility at DkIT will provide our students with the most up-to-date skills, training, research, and innovation opportunities for the manufacture of biotherapeutics. This facility will also support collaborations with our industry partners, such as WuXi Biologics, ABP Food Group and Almac. ActionAid Ireland has appealed to the people of Louth to support their work with women and girls around the world experiencing gender-based violence and discrimination this Christmas. The charity, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, also thanked the Louth community for its continuing generosity and support over the last four decades. ActionAid CEO, Karol Balfe, said violence is a global problem, but women and girls living in poverty are most at risk. This Christmas we are appealing for support to help us continue to provide safe shelter, refuge, counselling, medical and legal help to women who are subjected to gender-based violence. This will help us reach even more women in the next year. she said. Last year, ActionAid supported 976 survivors of gender-based violence in Uganda where it runs 10 shelters for survivors of violence across the country. The shelters provide women and girls with a safe bed to sleep, food and sanitary products. Some shelters also provide skills training so women can become economically independent. Amongst those supported by ActionAid in Uganda in 2023 was Irene, a 42-year-old widow and mother of nine who for years was subjected to extreme forms of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her husband. One day he became so violent towards Irene that he beat her to unconsciousness and set fire to all her belongings. Thanks to support from ActionAid Ireland Irene is now safe and her husband is in prison. We are proud of the impact of our work with women and girls over the last 40 years which has been made possible thanks to the generosity of people all over Ireland, including Louth. said Ms. Balfe. She said survivors of gender-based violence like Irene - often dont get medical support because they cant afford it, or because they are too far away from a hospital and often dont get access to justice. Many cant or dont want to go to the police, sometimes due to fear of retribution or because of an acceptance of violence in their society. Girls may drop out of school and end up being forced to marry early. Many are left dealing with the emotional and physical impacts of the abuse on their own. she said. ActionAid works with communities to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls, and to create long-term change for good. It also funds women's groups and networks across the world who train parents, teachers, local police and legal advisers to recognise the signs of violence and to report it. Ms Balfe said: Grassroots womens groups are the strongest advocates against all forms of violence and are part of a growing, worldwide movement to stop women and girls being abused by men. We work with women at the community level, but also support them and others to ensure governments provide for their human rights and safety. Learn more: https://actionaid.ie/ christmas-appeal-gbv- actionaid/ TRIBUTES have been paid to Cork-born businessman Ben Dunne who passed away on Saturday after suffering a suspected heart attack in Dubai. The 74-year-old businessman was the former director of the family business Dunnes Stores and the owner of a chain of gyms. A controversial figure, Mr Dunne was kidnapped by the IRA in 1981 and was released after seven days after a ransom was reportedly paid. Speaking following his death, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described him as a "larger than life" figure who led "a life less ordinary". "I was deeply saddened to hear that Ben Dunne has died. A constituent of mine in Castleknock and a local employer, I met Ben many times. He really was larger than life, he said. "Among other things, he pioneered the fitness industry in Ireland first with Westpoint and then Ben Dunne Gyms. He led a life less ordinary and in turn, he made some mistakes in life. "The best people do. He never allowed that to defeat him or hold him back. He touched the lives of tens of thousands who will mourn his loss." Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald said she was very sad to hear of his sudden death and said her thoughts are with his family at this time. He was a good man who cared about people. We will never see his likes again." Mr Dunnes son Robert said he would miss him in a way he could not describe, on social media. "Overall, in the final analysis, he was a good and decent man, he said. Mr Dunne's father, Ben Dunne snr, opened the first Dunnes drapery store at 105 Patrick Street in Cork city in 1944. When Ben Dunne died from a heart attack in 1983, leadership of the company became the responsibility of his son, Ben Jr. Mr Dunne left the company in 1992 and established a successful chain of gyms. The Department of Foreign Affairs said that it was aware of the sudden death of an Irish citizen in Dubai and is providing consular assistance. Mr Dunne is survived by his wife Mary, his daughter Caroline and his three sons Robert, Nicholas and Mark. (Photo: Albin Hillert / WCC, 2017.) A broad spectrum of churches and a major Buddhist group have hailed the ratification of Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which seeks for the first time to establish a comprehensive ban on atomic weapons. The treaty aimed at destroying all nuclear weapons and prohibiting their use forever crossed a decisive milestone Oct. 24, signaling its entry into force in 90 days. The ratification by Honduras of the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons or TPNW, becoming the 50th nation to do so and the minimum needed for it to enter into force as international law. "The Holy See and the popes have vigorously supported the effort of the UN and the world against nuclear weapons," Vatican News reported. "In a video message on September 25 on the occasion of the UN's 75th anniversary this year, Pope Francis reiterated his call for increased support for the principal international and legal instruments on nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation and prohibition." The World Council of Churches, representing more than 550 million mainly Anglican, Orthodox and Protestant Christians on Oct. 26 welcomed the ratification of the prohibition treaty. "It has now triggered the 90-day period after which the treaty will enter into legal force, meaning that a new normative standard in international law has been created, and that - for those States which are parties to it the treaty must now be implemented," said Peter Prove, director of the WCC' Commission of the Churches on International Affairs. The governments of the nine countries which continue to hold and develop nuclear weapons have been critics of the TPNW. The WCC said that those of countries which believe themselves to be protected under the "umbrella" of nuclear-armed States seek to minimize its significance by pointing to the fact that the States which have ratified the Treaty do not have any nuclear weapons anyway. Although the TPNW does not bind the States that are not parties to it, the treaty creates a new global norm towards rejecting nuclear weapons, which is expected to influence and constrain their behavior The Soka Gakkai Buddhist group also welcomed the UN nuclear ban treaty when it posted a statement on its Facebook page. Soka Gakkai international director-general for Peace and Global Issues Hirotsugu Terasaki said, "The entry into force of the TPNW establishes the fundamental norm that nuclear weapons are subject to comprehensive prohibition. This has a profound historical significance." The Buddhist group's statement called upon nuclear-weapon and nuclear-dependent states, including Japan the only country to have experienced the devastation caused by nuclear bombing during wartime to attend as observers the first meeting of parties to the TPNW to be held within one year from its entry into force. The 50 member ratification threshold was reached a little more than three years after the treaty was completed in negotiations at the UN's New York headquarters. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres described the ratification as "the culmination of a worldwide movement to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons." The UN's announcement was hailed by anti-nuclear activists but the United States and 8 other nuclear-armed countries have strongly opposed it. Guterres commended all the countries whose ratification of the accord, approved by 122 nations at the General Assembly on July 7, 2017, has helped bring the ban on weapons this far, singling out the work of civil society groups. (Photo: Kimiaki Kawai)Dr. Emily Welty, from the World Council of Churches at the United Nations in New York on Oct. 12, 2016. Kimiaki Kawai The potential for nuclear war remains as present today as it was during the Cold War, with United States and Russian relations on a shaky footing, tensions between India and Pakistan and the Korean Peninsula tense. The World Council of Churches WCC has joined other faith groups in New York to issue a call that governments should capitalize on years of growing concern and negotiate a ban on nuclear weapons next year. The inter-religious call was made at the United Nations on Oct. 12 where the message pointed out that despite the decades-old U.N. charter the world is not a safer place due to arms proliferation. Article 26 of the U.N. Charter, singed in 1945, envisages the "establishment and maintenance of international peace and security with the least diversion for armaments of the world's human and economic resources." In the decades since the adoption of the charter, however, the world has diverted immense stores of material, economic, technical and intellectual resources to the production and maintenance of "a vast and growing array of armaments." "Far from ensuring peace and security, these preparations for war and violence have locked states into the 'security dilemma' of escalating mistrust and fear. "They have inflamed and entrenched conflicts throughout world, bringing unimaginable suffering to vast numbers of people," said the faith communities. Speaking on behalf of Christian, Buddhist and Muslim organizations, Dr. Emily Welty urged delegates to "negotiate a legally-binding instrument prohibiting nuclear weapons." A resolution calling for such a treaty next year was introduced at the disarmament committee of the UN General Assembly, the day she spoke. Welty is vice-moderator of the WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs. Nuclear weapons are "incompatible with the values upheld by our respective faith tradition - the right of people to live in dignity; the commands of conscience and justice; the duty to protect the vulnerable and to safeguard the planet for future generations," the joint statement said. Nuclear weapons are lethal technologies which have been developed without regard for the public conscience and the rule of law, Welty said. They are "the pinnacle of humanity's self-destructive potential". The inter-faith statement was issued by Pax Christi International, Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, Soka Gakkai International and other groups as well as the WCC. An internal memo sent to OpenAI staff on Saturday after former CEO Sam Altmans abrupt firing reiterates that a breakdown in communication led to the decision, not malfeasance or anything related to our financial, business, safety, or security/privacy practices, according to reporting from Axios and The New York Times. The memo obtained by both publications was sent to employees by OpenAIs Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap. Speculation has been nonstop since Altman was ousted unexpectedly as CEO on Friday and dropped from the companys board of directors, with little concrete information from OpenAI itself to go on. In its announcement of the decision, the board said only that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities. The board named Mira Murati, OpenAIs Chief Technology Officer, as interim CEO. In response, OpenAIs now-former president, Greg Brockman, announced he was stepping down too, tweeting, Sam and I are shocked and saddened by what the board did today. Three senior researchers later resigned as well, according to The Information. Now, in another report, sources told The Information that Altman already has a new venture in the works, and he plans to bring Brockman and possibly others on with him. Its as yet unclear if this venture is separate from Altmans other known upcoming projects, including a purported collaboration with former Apple designer Jony Ive. Numerous reports in the aftermath have attempted to provide an explanation for Altmans firing, with some claiming there were concerns over the rapid development of the companys AI products and, according to journalist Kara Swisher, its profit driven direction. In Saturdays memo, per Axios, Lightcap wrote that the announcement took us all by surprise, and we have had multiple conversations with the board to try to better understand the reasons and process behind their decision. if i start going off, the openai board should go after me for the full value of my shares Sam Altman (@sama) November 18, 2023 The sudden shakeup could now have ramifications for the impending sale of OpenAIs employee shares, valued at roughly $86 billion, The Information reported. In a cryptic tweet on Saturday, Altman quipped, if i start going off, the openai board should go after me for the full value of my shares (sic). Following his surprise firing on Friday, former OpenAI CEO Sam Altman might not be as out of a job as we initially thought he was, according to report from The Verge on Saturday. Reportedly, sources close to Altman say that the board itself, in a stunning reversal, have "agreed in principal" to resign while reinstating him to his former position. However, the board has since reportedly missed a 5pm PT deadline regarding the decision. Shortly after Altman's firing on Friday afternoon, several senior staffers, including former Chairman and President Greg Brockman, Director of Research Jakub Pachocki, Head of Preparedness Aleksander Madry and Senior Researcher Szymon Sidor, tendered their resignations in protest. Additional OpenAI staffers were supposedly set to quit in solidarity at that meeting as well. They're reportedly willing to follow Altman, a la Jerry Maguire, to a new AI startup venture, should he decide to launch one. An internal memo circulated after Altman's dismissal argued that his termination was not related to "malfeasance or anything related to our financial, business, safety or security/privacy practices, per Axios' reporting. Sam and I are shocked and saddened by what the board did today. Let us first say thank you to all the incredible people who we have worked with at OpenAI, our customers, our investors, and all of those who have been reaching out. We too are still trying to figure out exactly Greg Brockman (@gdb) November 18, 2023 Microsoft is a major investor in the OpenAI venture, having injected another $10 billion into the project's coffers this past January as part of a long term partnership between the two. In all, it has invested around $13 billion in OpenAI. In a statement, Microsoft said it maintains the "utmost confidence" in OpenAI interim-CEO Mira Murati and "remains confident" in the partnership overall. Despite those assurances, rank-and-file employees were given little notice prior to the official announcement of Altman's ouster (Altman himself received even less reportedly, just 5 to 10 minutes). Altman had, in the days leading up to his termination, remained an active supporter and recruiter for the firm, appearing at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum less than a day prior to his firing. According to The New York Times, neither Altman nor Brockman are guaranteed a return to power, largely on account of the company's non-profit origins, which preclude investors from directing company-wide decisions. They instead leave those choices to members of the board itself. Altman and Brockman were both members of the OpenAI board. However, with their departures, only lead researcher, Ilya Sutskever; Quora CEO Adam DAngelo; director of strategy at Georgetowns Center for Security and Emerging Technology Helen Toner; and computer scientist Tasha McCauley remain members at least, through the weekend. We are still working towards a resolution and we remain optimistic, Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon wrote to company staff in a Saturday memo, per The Information. By resolution, we mean bringing back Sam, Greg, Jakub [Pachocki], Szymon [Sidor], Aleksander [Madry] and other colleagues (sorry if I missed you!) and remaining the place where people who want to work on AGI research, safety, products and policy can do their best work. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Bison move north out of Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park (Photo by Jacob Frank of the National Park Service | Photo via Flickr). A group of bison conservation proponents asked the Custer Gallatin National Forest superintendent Thursday to close Beattie Gulch to hunting the same area where hundreds of the animals were killed primarily by tribal hunters last winter. Representatives for Alliance for the Wild Rockies, Roam Free National, the Council for Wildlife and Fish, and the Gallatin Wildlife Association wrote a letter to Forest Supervisor Mary Erickson saying they are concerned for public safety for people who live in and visit the gulch just north of the boundary of Yellowstone National Park. Since the hunting season opened on Nov. 15, it seems prudent at this time to ask that you consider an emergency closure of the Beattie Gulch area to the hunting activities for a number of very good reasons, the groups leaders wrote in the letter. These range from the public safety concerns regarding endangerment of the people involved in shooting and monitoring to the impacts on the local residents and of course the wildlife that was drawn to the vast and unnatural amount of concentrated offal left rotting on the landscape. The groups have been vocal in their opposition to what they call a slaughter of bison that occurred during the extremely cold and snowy previous winter, when tribal hunters and a handful of hunters with Montana tags killed more than 1,100 bison that left the park in search of forage. They also pointed to complaints from Beattie Gulch residents about bullets flying by their homes and a ricochet wound that a Nez Perce hunter received last year as reasons the area should be closed to hunting. The group pointed to a brief 2011 closure of Beattie Gulch as precedent, when the Forest Service closed the area because grizzly bears were eating an elk that had been killed by a hunter. As Benjamin Franklin famously said, An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, Mike Garrity, the executive director of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies, said in a statement. The Forest Service should take that good advice, follow public safety protocol and precedent, and close Beattie Gulch to buffalo hunting before someone gets killed. Marna Daley, a spokesperson for the Custer Gallatin National Forest, said the Forest had just received the request and had not had time to review it on Thursday afternoon. Daley also noted that Montana and the tribes selfregulate their hunting restrictions and seasons, and that the Forest in 2021 permanently closed hunting along Old Yellowstone Trail, which borders the Forest land at Beattie Gulch. We will continue to work with the State of Montana, Park County and the treaty hunt Tribes to monitor the hunt, Daley said. At this time, there are currently no bison in the Beattie Gulch area. While the tribes and state each have their own hunting seasons, the winter weather and bisons migration patterns play the biggest role in how many bison are hunted for meat each year. Since last winter was the coldest and snowiest in at least a decade, more bison left the park. Park officials estimate 60-70% of the parks total herd went to the Gardiner area, and about 1,200 were prevented from leaving the boundary. After starting the winter with a herd size of about 6,000, the total dropped below 4,000 after the winter, but had rebounded to about 4,800 after the calving season. Yellowstones Senior Bison Biologist Chris Geremia recommended at an Interagency Bison Plan Management team meeting on Oct. 31 that no more than 1,100 are removed this winter in the event they leave the park again in order to keep the herds numbers from again falling below 4,000. The post Groups ask U.S. Forest Service to close Beattie Gulch to hunting appeared first on Daily Montanan. Self-taught chef and food influencer Parth Bajaj ate delicious vegetarian food in Japan and you can too If youve always worried that eating vegetarian in Japan would be difficult, weve got something exciting for you! Chef and food influencer Parth Bajaj was recently in Japan and from his Insta feed we realised it was not just possible but that there are delicious food choices for vegetarians. We got him to share his top picks for food and treats and you're going to love them. Strawberry Tanghulu A unique way to eat your favourite fruit, here strawberries are coated with a crispy sugar layer almost like candy, which gives them the most unique texture. If strawberries arent your jam (pun intended ;)), try grape tanghulu instead! Ramen Nothing embodies soul-satisfying Japanese cuisine like ramen does! If youre a vegetarian, and still want to have some delectable ramen, try vegan ramen, which is available in some select ramen joints throughout the country! One of them is Afuri in Tokyo! (Note: the one in the picture isnt the vegan version). Matcha Probably the best thing that the Japanese introduced to the rest of the world. Jk. Its the most rich green tea that you can have, and what better place for that than in Japan! I would also recommend trying traditional matcha sweets and experiencing a proper matcha ceremony! If you can, go to Uji in Tokyo, which is considered the birthplace of matcha. Matcha Parfait & Matcha Desserts Japanese people have come up with the most trendy, delicious-looking matcha-based desserts, including matcha parfait, matcha soft serve, matcha tiramisu and lots more! If you dont like to drink regular matcha, I would still suggest that you try the matcha parfait at Tsujiri in Tokyo, it has something for everyone! Dorayaki Im sure Doraemon fans will need no introduction to dorayaki! For the rest of you, its a pancake sandwich with some sort of spread in the middle, usually a paste made of red beans or chestnuts. Let me be honest, the authentic one might not be for you, so, if youre not up for taking a risk, try the chocolate-stuffed dorayaki instead :) Yatsuhashi Hands down the best authentic Japanese sweet I tried during my stay there! Its a humble confection freshly made with glutinous rice flour, sugar and some sort of filling, which has the most unique taste and texture. This one is probably most popularly sold as a souvenir. Mochi Similar to yatsuhashi, this one has to be on everyones list! It comes in many varieties and Im sure you must have heard this term or seen it somewhere before! My favourite one has to be the trending Nakatanidou Mochi! I travelled to Nara especially to try this one in particular and I wasnt disappointed! If you cant travel all the way to Nara, make sure to at least try Ichigo Daifuku, which is basically mochi stuffed with a giant strawberry piece; it looks almost like Pac-Man! Pickled Cucumber Although it might look a bit weird to some, this humble yet flavourful dish is a must-try especially for vegetarians! It has a simple taste but its worth exploring at least once! Soba Or Udon Noodles Soba and udon noodles were probably what I consumed most as meals throughout my stay in Japan, mainly because of their simplicity, the ability to customise them as per your liking, and the comfort they provide! If youre a vegetarian, simply ask the server if their broth is vegetarian friendly or not, as sometimes they can use fish in their stock. Sandos Sandos, or Japanese sandwiches, were my go-to brekkies, as they are super convenient and affordable. They also come in all kinds, but most of them are non vegetarian. If you eat eggs, try the tamago sando, or egg sandwich! Otherwise, the fruit sandos they serve in Japan are pretty great as well! They have a layer of whipped cream and a layer of custard along with all the fruity goodness! Kakigori Its almost as if our barf ka gola shifted to Japan, and learned the Japanese way of living! Its pure nostalgia in ice! But, surprisingly, kakigori has a very different texture from our barf golas, as it is super light and melts in your mouth right away! I would suggest you share it with someone, otherwise youll get brain freeze just like I did. Chocolates And Snacks From Convenience Stores Be it Meiji chocolates, Ghana chocolates, Pocky by Glico, or chocobi (Shinchans favourite snack), Japanese chocolates and snacks are a must-try! In general, the convenience stores (or conbini) in Japan are super convenient, as the same suggests. They are definitely lifesavers for vegetarians, budget travellers or travellers in a hurry. Make sure to try the instant miso soup as well! Images: Parth Bajaj Also Read: Heres Why You Need A Taste Of Melbourne Bigg Boss Tamil 7 has been keeping the fans on their toes since the first day. The popular reality show witnessed a massive almost every week, be it with the task, double eliminations or the entry of 5 wild card contestants so far. Among these, Pradeep Anthony's red card elimination had left everyone in shock and brimming with an opinion. For the uninitiated, Pradeep was eliminated over the issue of women's safety after some of the female contestants in the house gave him a red card following which host Kamal Haasan also eliminated him with a red card. And while fans had called it unfair, now Aishu has apologised to Pradeep for voting against him. To note, Aishu has been the recent contestant to get eliminated from Bigg Boss Tamil 7 and post her elimination she has been facing a severe backlash for her stint on the hose. In a public letter on social media, Aishu apologised for being a disappointment to the fans and apologised to Pradeep for betraying him. In a long post, Aishu wrote, "My deepest apologies to Pradeep for pickingup the red card. Had I known better of your intentions, I would have not betrayed you. A big 'sorry' to the people who supported Nixen. Maybe after my eviction, he would play much better. I would not like to justify any of my actions inside the house. "I WAS WRONG" and "I AM A MISTAKE". I was being a clueless, lame and stupid 21 year old not exactly knowing what to do and what to say and how to behave in the public eye". She further made a shocking remark and stated that she was not fit for the show and she has lost all respect she had for herself post her stint on Bigg Boss Tamil 7. "The Bigg Boss stage is a life changing and a huge impactful platform, but also it is one of the most toxic environment I've ever been on. There, no matter how much you love and respect your co-contestants, you are always asked to say negative things about them and you are put in a position to throw an untrue and made up shade on them. I for all knew that I was not a fit for the show. Anger, love, jealousy and friendships had completely blinded my game. This is the first huge stage I've been on and I wasn't prepared or rather I didn't know how to handle something so huge. This show has pushed me into the verge of ending myself" she added. Take a look at Aishu's post: Meanwhile, Bigg Boss Tamil 7 is set to witness another elimination tonight wherein Vichitra, Raveena Daha, Manichandra, Poornima, RJ Bravo, Gana Bala, Akshaya Udayakumar and Saravana Vickram have been nominated for elimination. As per the media reports, Gana Bala, who had entered the show as a wild card contestant is likely to get eliminated from Bigg Boss Tamil 7. ? Peru asumio la presidencia de APEC 2024. El proximo ano, Arequipa, Urubamba, Lima, Pucallpa y Trujillo acogeran mas de 160 reuniones de los 21 paises que conforman el Foro de Cooperacion Economica de Asia Pacifico. ???Mas informacion aqui ?? https://t.co/it8Dpiv1F1 pic.twitter.com/6lQJN7nyHo Oris Health is revolutionizing oral hygiene with natural, and travel-friendly toothpaste tablets, championing a greener approach to daily oral care Provo, Utah--(Newsfile Corp. - November 19, 2023) - Oris Health, a forward-thinking oral care brand, is excited to announce the launch of its innovative Eco-Friendly Toothpaste Tablets on Kickstarter. Aiming to empower healthier smiles while preserving the planet, these tablets are set to redefine the standards of oral hygiene, offering an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional oral care products. Oris Health's Green Mission: Launching Eco-Friendly Toothpaste Tablets on Kickstarter To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8814/187962_3d3780b6b42aa800_001full.jpg Oris Health's Toothpaste Tablets were created in response to the growing demand for sustainable and effective oral care solutions. With billions of plastic toothpaste tubes discarded annually, contributing significantly to environmental pollution, Oris Health has stepped up to offer a viable, eco-friendly alternative. At the heart of Oris's philosophy is a commitment to natural ingredients and environmental well-being. The decision to exclude fluoride from the formulations is a testament to this dedication, ensuring that every toothpaste tablet is as pure and natural as the surrounding environment. For more details about the natural ingredients, please visit their Kickstarter page here: Oris Health's Kickstarter Campaign. Oris Health's toothpaste tablets offer a practical solution for young children and those with dexterity challenges, eliminating the mess of traditional toothpaste. Perfectly portioned, these tablets avoid waste and clutter on counters. Their compact form also makes them ideal for travel, catering to an on-the-go lifestyle while replacing bulky tubes. Kai, one of the visionary founders of Oris Health, shared the inspiration behind the creation of these toothpaste tablets, "Our adventure began with a straightforward yet profound idea: to revolutionize the way we care for our oral health, making it not only effective but also eco-conscious. At Oris, we've dedicated the last two years to rethinking toothpaste. We're moving beyond traditional plastic toothpaste tubes and brushes, which contribute to environmental degradation, to offer a solution that is both innovative and sustainable." The Kickstarter campaign for Oris's Toothpaste Tablets is a powerful invitation to participate in a movement dedicated to redefining oral hygiene and promoting planetary health. Interested individuals are presented with an opportunity to explore a vast product range, and join a community focused on sustainability. Support the sustainable revolution of Oris Toothpaste Tablets by visiting the Kickstarter page here: Oris Health's Kickstarter Campaign Additional information can be found on the official website: https://tryoris.com/ About Oris Health Oris Health is on a mission to redefine the future of oral care by offering innovative, sustainable solutions that prioritize both individual well-being and environmental health. Our revolutionary toothpaste tablets, crafted with natural ingredients and packaged in eco-friendly materials, aim to simplify daily oral care while reducing plastic waste. Committed to transparency and quality, Oris Health envisions a world where personal health and environmental consciousness seamlessly coexist. Join us in our journey to make a lasting impact on smiles and the planet. Contact Info: Name: Kai Glazier Email: kai@tryoris.com Organization: Oris Health Address: 68 E 800 N Mapleton UT 84664 Phone: 801-830-2408 Website: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/orishealth/oris-empowering-healthy-smiles-preserving-our-planet?ref=bl8ikk&token=b793aff6 Video URL: https://youtu.be/LmqNm3rXxHQ To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/187962 Strategic expansion marks important milestone for Saudia Umrah and Muslim pilgrims residing in the United States and Canada Jeddah, Saudi Arabia--(Newsfile Corp. - November 19, 2023) - Saudia, the national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, announced the launch of its dedicated Umrah website in the American and Canadian markets during the World Travel Market in London. This strategic expansion marks an important milestone for Saudia Umrah, a sub platform of Saudia, as it seeks to provide exceptional and hassle-free Umrah experiences to Muslim pilgrims residing in the United States and Canada. Image 1 To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9108/186777_0908_550.jpg The Saudia Umrah website simplifies the process of planning and booking Umrah packages, making the pilgrimage more convenient and accessible for individuals and families in North America. The user-friendly interface and intuitive design of the website will enable users to explore a wide range of tailored Umrah packages, select their preferred travel dates, and make secure online bookings at their convenience. "We are proud to use the globally significant platform of World Travel Market to announce the extension of our services to the United States and Canada," said Mr. Amer Alkhushail, Chief Hajj and Umrah Officer of Saudia. "Alongside our partner companies in Saudia, we are dedicated to providing our North American customers with the highest standards of service and convenience. The launch of our dedicated Hajj & Umrah website brings our specialist expertise in delivering seamless travel arrangements for Umrah to customers in North America for the first time, making that sacred journey more accessible for pilgrims." The online platform offers comprehensive information on Umrah rituals, visa requirements, accommodation options, transportation, and other essential details to assist pilgrims in planning their journey. It provides unrivalled personalized guest support throughout the booking process and during the pilgrimage, ensuring a smooth and memorable experience for every guest. The expansion into the North American markets aligns with Saudia Hajj & Umrah's mission to become a global leader in Umrah travel services and supports Saudia's wider strategic goal of helping to deliver the Saudi Arabia Vision 2030 ambition to carry 30 million pilgrims. By leveraging its expertise in the industry, the company aims to foster stronger connections with the Muslim community in the United States and Canada, establishing Saudia Umrah platform as the preferred choice for pilgrims seeking a reliable and trustworthy partner for their spiritual journey. Saudia operates 17 weekly flights from the Kingdom to the United States of America with a capacity of approximately 5,000 seats, while it operates 3 weekly flights from the Kingdom to Canada with a capacity of 894 seats, and seeks to strengthen the relationship with the Islamic communities in the North American continent in which makes it the ideal choice for them as air carrier. To learn more about the services offered by Saudia Hajj & Umrah and to book your Umrah packages, please visit the newly launched website at USA: www.umrahbysaudia.us Canada: www.umrahbysaudia.ca Media Office: Saudia Headquarters Jeddah 21231, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Email: mediacenter@Saudia.com To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/186777 Hollywood actor Michael Douglas will address a master class during the upcoming International Film Festival of India here on November 28, a senior functionary has said. The IFFI will be held from November 20-28 at different venues in the Goa capital. Prithul Kumar, Festival Director, IFFI 2023, told reporters that masterclasses would be held at the renovated and refurbished Kala Academy building in Panaji city. Michael Douglas will be attending the festival between November 27 and 29 during which he will be honoured with the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award. The actor will be addressing the IFFI Master Class on November 28, Kumar said. The 54th edition of IFFI will have major packages of international cinema. There are 2,962 submissions from 105 countries, a three-fold increase compared to the international submissions (received) last year, he said. According to Kumar,15 films will be screened from the international competition section, seven films from the Best Debut Director category and 198 international films including 13 world premiers. In the kaleidoscope section, there will be 19 films from festivals such as Cannes, Venice, Sao Paulo, Rotterdam, Santa Barbara, Stockholm etc. In the Cinema of the World section, there will be 103 films exploring the staggering diversity of aesthetics and narratives from cinema around the globe, Kumar added. Michael Douglas, an American actor and film producer, has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards and five Golden Globe Awards among others. Jim Sarbh has given two explosive performances in shows like Rocket Boys and Made In Heaven. And while promoting the latter, he spoke about the actors who claim to take therapy and in no time, fans claimed it was a dig at Ranveer Singh. While speaking to The Quint, Sarbh said, There are all those actors who are like You know, I was so stuck in my character that I had to get mental therapy for weeks after. I was like Shut up bro. You didnt even know your lines on the day, what nonsense. Jim sarbh is exposing and mimicking Ranveer Singh is the best thing I watched today pic.twitter.com/3BY998KIkZ #FAN (@Sarcastic__Raj) November 15, 2023 What Ranveer Singh spoke about Padmaavat and his character prep In an interview with The Indian Express, the actor revealed, I kind of isolated myself, marinated into the character because I cant relate to Alaudin Khilji, I cant relate to that level of manipulativeness, greed and ambition. I had to tap into dark experiences but his world view is not something I can relate to also. I took 21 days and locked myself up in my Goregaon house. I was completely isolated. Jim Sarbh on Made In Heaven In an exclusive interview with Firstpost, the actor said, One of the best parts about the show is that it has the ability to show people in their moral quandaries or in hypocritical situations where they would prefer to fix something outside of themselves rather than inside of themselves because thats hard. I like that you can have somebody doing things you may not think is a good thing at all, and somehow we are on their side through it because we understand them and their motivations. Tara Sutaria made her Bollywood debut with Punit Malhotras Student Of The Year 2. A month later, Shahid Kapoor and Kiara Advanis Kabir Singh released that was the second biggest blockbuster of 2019. But do you know Sutaria was the first choice for Advanis role? Heres why she had to say no. In an interview with Mumbai Mirror, the actress said she was already committed to Student of The Year 2 and thats why she had to decline the part. Taking about Kabir Singh, she also said, I dont think I agree with that (the films misogynistic tone). Its not a true story and I think everyone has the artistic right to show what they want in their film. Having said that, I understand and respect everyones opinion. Tara Sutaria on Apurva In an exclusive interview with Firstpost, while talking about her recent film Apurva on Disney Plus Hotstar, the actress revealed, Apurva is a very ordinary girl. Shes a girl-next-door whos on her way to meet her fiancee. Its the story about what can suddenly happen in her life at the drop of a hat and her whole world is shaken. Thats what excited me on a basic level that I could play someone very normal and simple, just like anyone. This is also about how she tries to overcome the scariest moment and how she uses her wit and intelligence. She added, Theres a certain sense of heightened sensitivity that comes into play with women, and which Apurva has shown in the film, and I hope people feel inspired and courage when they see the film and realise theres an Apurva in all of us. The TikTok profile Daily Believer (@believerdaily) has 70 videos with computer-generated Jesuses looking directly at the viewer, beseeching them to stop scrolling and watch the next minutes worth of content. All these Jesuses are long-haired and bearded, recalling artist Warner Sallmans ubiquitous 1940 painting Head of Christ. Some wear the crown of thorns, some look alarmingly like the actor Jared Leto. Nearly all promise a surprise or good news soon in exchange for the viewer liking, commenting Amen or sharing it with their friends and family. With this digital outreach, the Daily Believer has gained, as of 13 November 2023, 813,200 followers and over 9.2 million likes. As a scholar of religion in the US and its intersection with popular culture, I have been studying the ways American Christians use media and popular culture to perform religious work and evangelical outreach for the past 13 years. I argue that this TikTok phenomenon, in which viewers are promised good luck for sharing, liking and commenting on videos of a computer-generated Jesus, is close to what is known as the prosperity gospel that is, a Christian belief that God will reward faith with this-worldly comforts, like health and wealth. A digitally-produced Jesus promises good luck Welcome Jesus into Your Home is among the Daily Believers most popular videos, with over 22.2 million subscribers. According to the computer-generated Jesus, if the viewer believes in God, they must share this video with their friends and family and comment I believe. If they do, they will receive a blessing within an hour. If they do not, computer-generated Jesus issues a thinly veiled threat of damnation by quoting Matthew 3:10, which has John the Baptist saying, Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. It is a TikTok chain letter one whose creator can be monetarily compensated, by TikTok, between 2 cents and 4 cents for every 1,000 views. For example, Welcome Jesus into Your Home could have earned the creator $900 from TikTok views alone, with the possibility for additional money earned on sites like Facebook Reels. It is simple and effective. While the Daily Believers views are dwarfed by TikTok megastars like socialite Kylie Jenner and social media personality Khaby Lame, its engagement percentages are much higher, receiving some form of engagement from about one out of every four viewers. Whether or not there are religious motivations underlying the Daily Believers desire for viewer engagement, there are monetary benefits for sure. The TikTok Creator Fund pays creators who have over 10,000 authentic followers based on the number of views, comments and sharing. Faith brings prosperity and well-being Religious and monetary motivations are not mutually exclusive. In fact, their union is key to one of the more popular recent developments in American and global Christianity the prosperity gospel, a subsection of Charismatic Christianity that says God will ensure followers material wealth and happiness as long as they believe in God. The closest nonreligious analogy to the Daily Believers content is the chain letter where the recipient is promised good luck for forwarding and curses for breaking the chain. Such letters had their heyday in the mid-20th century as paper letters and in the late 1990s and early 2000s as emails and social media posts. Two of the United States most famous preachers, TD Jakes and Joel Osteen, teach that individual faith in God will be rewarded by God in the form of material wealth and health. However, the Daily Believer further simplifies this formula. Viewers dont really need to have a specific set of Christian beliefs to participate and benefit. All that they need to do is to say I believe and share the content with friends and family. Revenue generation from likes and shares This lack of denominational-specific beliefs allows for the widest possible engagement with a wider Christian community. The TikTok videos can appeal to a spectrum of Christian groups that may have theological, ethical and social disagreements. Additionally, the Daily Believers requests for social media engagement is analogous to the prosperity gospels idea of tithing. In the prosperity gospel, tithing the donation of a portion of your income to the church is framed as seed faith, a monetary investment to demonstrate a persons faith, and lack of faith will be punished as surely as faith is to be rewarded. Seed faith and engagement with the Daily Believers TikTok videos have the same ritualistic function give a little time, money or effort to get even more material rewards. They also both serve to make the person behind the request wealthier or increase their cultural clout. By framing these requests as coming directly from the Son of God, not the influencer or content creator, the Daily Believer has made engagement with its social media religious work, which comes with a promise of divine reward in the here and now. It has transformed like-farming the social media phenomenon of asking for viewer engagement into the word of God. Using images of Jesus to deliver the message At the same time, it is difficult to see the Daily Believers content as having a missionary or outreach function. It seems aimed at those who would already consider themselves Christian and offers little in the way of persuasion or explanation of why someone should be a Christian. The Daily Believer is not the only TikTok profile engaged in a type of smash that like button if you love Jesus content production. Within the larger phenomena of #ChristianTikTok, there are multiple profiles engaged in theological discussion and doctrinal issues. There are even more profiles that forgo discussion in favor of performing praise and worship. The use of Jesus image as the deliverer of the message is more unique. But the Daily Believer, with its digital Jesus and its bare-bones gospel of Believe, serves as an example of a new expression of an ancient religious motivation the securing of this-worldly health, wealth and reward in exchange for following the will of the deity or deities. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. When it comes to international news, its been another fast-paced week. Israels raid on the Al-Shifa Hospital in north Gaza infuriated many around the world. Osama bin Ladens Letter to America became the talk of TikTok decades after it was written. Things took quite an interesting turn in the United Kingdom when Prime Minister Rishi Sunak sacked Suella Braverman. And in a surprise move, OpenAI fired CEO Sam Altman. Lets get you caught up on the big developments of the week. 1. In a shock move, ChatGPT-maker OpenAI sacked co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman over Google Meet calls. The decision took OpenAI employees and the rest of the tech industry by surprise. The company has appointed Mira Murati as interim CEO. But why was Altman fired? And what is going on at the company? We explain. 2. Israel has for days insisted that the Al-Shifa Hospital in north Gaza is a cover for a Hamas command centre a claim Hamas has entirely rejected. On Wednesday, Israel finally raided Gazas largest hospital amid warnings from doctors of a catastrophic situation at the hospital. Israels actions, already under fire in many parts of the world, came in for even more criticism. But what did Israel find at Al-Shifa? Does it justify the raid? This article gives you the low down. 3. America, like many nations, is worried about its youth and the impact of social media on young people. While many dismiss such concerns as overblown, there may perhaps be good reason to worry. This week, a letter from Osama bin Laden yes, that Osama bin Laden to the citizens of America went viral on TikTok with around two million views. Authorities, who were naturally embarrassed by this development, were forced to act and remove the letter and the hashtag. But what do we know about the letter? And why has it come up now? This piece puts the entire kerfuffle in context. 4. Many people were waiting to see what UK prime minister Rishi Sunak would do after his fiery home secretary Suella Braverman accused the London police of going soft on pro-Palestinian protesters. Many thought that Braverman, in making her remarks, was openly challenging Sunak. Others thought the right-wing firebrand was attempting to position herself as an alternative to Sunak within her party. Sunak decisively put an end to the will he, wont he speculation on Monday by firing Braverman. This article documents what happened leading up to the firing and what has transpired since. 5. Weve all heard the advice from friends, loved ones and doctors get eight good hours of sleep every night. But do you? Really? A new study on sleep and longevity shows that may not necessarily be the case for everyone. This piece examines what experts call the sleep schedule, why it matters if everyone needs the same amount of sleep and how people can sleep better. 6. Junk food is bad for us. We all know it. And yet, to quote a famous chips brand, no one can eat just one. But now one country is taking action against junk food in what experts say may be the most ambitious public health measure in Latin America. Colombia has now imposed a tax on ultra-processed food and sugary drinks after years of campaigning by health activists. This is not to take money from you. This is so that you choose healthy foods and improve the health of the Colombian people, President Gustavo Petro wrote on X. This explainer gives you an insight into the junk food law, why was it needed and just how bad junk food can be for a persons health. 7. An Alabama family has received an unexpected blessing. Kelsey Hatcher, who got pregnant last year, was shocked to discover that she is carrying two babies in two separate uteri. The extremely unusual case stunned Hatcher and left her husband in disbelief. Hatcher recounted breaking the news to her husband, I said, Well, theres two of them in there. And he said, Youre lying. I said, No, Im not. Hatcher told Good Morning America, When I first found out, I was like, I wonder if theres anybody I can reach out to just to, you know, see what their experiences were. But I think Ive only read of two other cases (in which) theyve had (pregnancies) in completely separate uteruses, and no one that Ive been able to reach out to. The case has also shocked medical experts. Dr Shweta Patel, Hatchers obstetrician, told a local channel Hatchers case is very, very rare. Some OB/GYNs go their whole careers without seeing anything like this, Patel added. If Diwali and cricket celebrations have kept you busy this list will come in handy in catching up on the news. Watch this space for more. After a week of fruitless attempts, Indian authorities were considering five new rescue methods for workers trapped beneath a collapsed tunnel in the Indian Himalayas. Authorities say 41 men who have been trapped in a highway tunnel in Uttarakhand state since November 12 are safe and being fed through a conduit. Although the hillside terrain is prone to landslides, earthquakes, and floods, the reason of the tragedy has not been discovered. Rescuers had been boring horizontally through the debris towards the trapped miners in the 4.5-kilometer (3-mile) tunnel until Friday, when the auger drilling machine broke and a new one had to be flown in. Drilling was suspended and it would take four or five more days to get the good news, Bhaskar Khulbe, officer on special duty for the tunnel project, said on Friday. Now the rescue team is considering alternatives including a perpendicular tunnel with two proposed routes and insertion of a pipe six inches (15 cm) wide as a lifeline, according to a government document reviewed by Reuters. The trapped workers have received Vitamin C and medicines including anti-depression tablets, said RCS Panwar, a health official involved in the rescue efforts. The health department has set up a camp for health checkups near the site and kept 10 ambulances on standby. Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October catching the Jewish nation by surprise. It was able to beat the Iron Dome Air Defence System of Israel, negate a vast network of modern surveillance devices, and undermine Israels most touted national agency, Mossads repute. Hamas inflicted substantial casualties on the Israeli population, including fatal and non-fatal casualties, besides taking a number of them as hostages. Given the history of warfighting with Israel, it was obvious that Hamas would have expected a robust response from Israel. It happened that way only when Israel commenced its operations against the Hamas hierarchy and terrorist infrastructure using its air power, causing large-scale destruction. Had the actions of Hamas on 7 October would have been one-o,ff actions without substantial backing, its resistance would have fully collapsed once major operations were launched by Israel. It did not happen that way as Hamas continues to fire rockets at Israel, besides challenging Israels warfighting at every stage, which continues to date even when the conflict has been continuing between unequal warring entities. It, therefore becomes important to ponder as to what is the main strength of Hamas in Gaza, which is able to withstand the onslaught of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), a much superior force, whereas Hamas is merely a terrorist organisation. If the actions of the IDF are closely observed, while it commenced air operations of unprecedented magnitude, it also mobilised its ground forces, stationing them close to the border with Gaza, waiting to invade. Before ground operations could be commenced by the IDF in a meaningful manner, news surfaced about the presence of large networks of tunnels created by Hamas in Gaza. These tunnels have been providing effective shelter to Hamas fighters, besides providing them with accommodation for housing the command and control elements, equipment, and warlike stores, including ammunition. These tunnels have tactically planned suitable openings to fire the rockets in the intended directions. Intelligence inputs about these tunnels have forced the IDF to delay their ground offensive, besides modifying their warfighting tactics. Specific intelligence-based operations by the IDF helped to some extent. Inputs obtained from such operations have been used by Israel to show the world the destructive design of Hamas. Hamas has not limited its warfighting and resistance to the IDF through the tunnel network alone. It has intelligently used the dense population and dense infrastructure of Gaza in its well-planned urban warfare plan, taking advantage of Fighting in Built-Up Areas (FIBUA), as it offers a tremendous advantage to the defender against the attacking forces, the IDF in the instant case. The combination of tunnelling and FIBUA is sure to have a substantial adverse impact on the IDFs ground offensive when launched at full scale. As these twin approaches of resistance by Hamas would not have been enough, it has organisations like civil hospitals, civil rehabilitation centres, and religious places as part of its tunnel network, both connected and unconnected. It used these buildings, their basements, and underground facilities for its resistance. Though the use of religious places has been on the rise around the world nowadays due to their sensitivities, Hamas has combined this with other tenets of resisting the actions by the IDF. By attracting the IDFs actions against itself, it not only motivates the local civil population for its cause but also draws the support of a large number of Muslim nations. At present, more than 50 Muslim nations are supporting Palestine, whose cause is being championed by Hamas. Other bordering countries and terrorist organisations have also come out in open support of Hamas. The recent bombing of a hospital in Gaza, whether it happened due to the premature detonation of Palestinian rockets or by the IDF, is a separate matter altogether, but it has drawn the attention of almost the entire world, including those favouring Israel, calling on both parties to spare the hospitals and such facilities. The deaths and destruction in these hospitals are being showcased by Hamas to the world to paint the IDF in a poor light, while the IDF has released videos of the underground and basement facilities of these hospitals to illustrate the point that it is the Hamas, a terrorist organisation, that has been using such facilities for their destructive agenda. Whatever the truth, Hamas has used tunnel warfare to resist the IDF, and that too successfully. Tunnel warfare has been more effective due to additional factors such as FIBUA and sensitive installations being made part of it. It is not only in this conflict that the tunnels have been effective against a superior force, but these have had profound effects in other conflicts as well. In fact, all conflicts since time immemorial have been a fight between the defender and the attacker. Though defensive measures are also needed by the superior attackers, these are more needed by the weak defenders. It is due to these reasons that trench warfare began as early as the seventeenth century. Initially in the form of merely dugouts on the ground, these got improved with overground covers with progress in time. Further strengthening of these happened to prevent the damages from the air attacks and the artillery shells, which continues to date in most of the countries in the world. In addition to well-built trenches, their network, through communication trenches and over-head protection, and the use of caves (both natural as well as artificial), started emerging more so for warfighting in the mountainous terrain. These turned out to be excellent options for keeping the warlike stores and ammunition safe from the adversaries actions. As time progressed, the combined characteristics of trench networks and caves got utilised to make them in the tunnels, which were initially smaller in size and used for hiding, avoiding detection and destruction by the superior forces. Later, these were developed in the form of extensive networks housing all allied facilities for warfighting, and more often than not, these have proved successful. These were used effectively by the Taliban in Afghanistan, both against Russian and US forces. Vietnam also used its Cu-Chi tunnels effectively against the US forces in its close to two-decade-long war, resulting in the US being forced to withdraw and lose the fight with the Viet Congs. Viet Congs had not only made an extensive network of the Cu-Chi tunnels housing their entire sustenance resources but had also used the jungle terrain to hide them effectively. It had become a nightmare for the US forces to detect these and initiate actions against the Viet Congs staying in these tunnels. Due to terrain and related factors, the Viet Congs also suffered mostly from malaria in the jungle, besides some casualties due to US actions. Nonetheless, Viet Congs succeeded in defeating the most powerful country in the world, and the contribution of these tunnels was remarkable towards the outcome of this war. Whether the use of tunnels by Hamas for furtherance of its resistance against the IDF was inspired by the previous successful operations from the use of tunnel warfare or its own defensive and inescapable need will be known in due course. But a triad of tunnel warfare, FIBUA, and sensitive installations by Hamas has not only halted the momentum of the IDF now but is likely to have a telling impact on the future outcome of this conflict as well. A number of lessons can be drawn both by the defender and the attacker from these developments. The writer is a retired army veteran. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views. The most important summit in recent years just took place. Chinese President Xi travelled to San Francisco to meet US President Joe Biden in a visit that Beijings media and foreign office played up to the hilt, the US hardly at all. There are multiple reasons for that. While one spoke enthusiastically of a strategic shift that could shape the destiny of the world, the US President and his team were far more cautious, given the upcoming elections. But the point is whether this newfound and rather shaky camaraderie will impact New Delhis security interests at a time when the world is already in flux. The bonhomie at San Francisco Chinese media were in chorus in projecting a warm bilateral past and opportunities for the future, a theme that was heaped on in spades by the Chinese leader at a welcome dinner, where he recalled the days when US airmen were rescued by Chinese civilians and troops. The Foreign Ministry spokesperson was also in rah-rah mode as he spoke volubly on a San Francisco vision (i.e., something that could lie ahead) whose outlines are unclear. Neither is there any evidence of 20 common understandings in various fields. President Xi did tick off five pillars for ties that included that both sides need to work together to form a correct perception, effectively manage differences, advance mutually beneficial cooperation, assume due responsibilities as major countries, and promote people-to-people and cultural exchanges. The usually acidic Global Times was equally enthusiastic, but emphasised that US business leaders were more open to business in China. That was more than apparent at the Business Council dinner, where Secretary Raimondo emphasised that the US doesnt seek confrontation but cooperation, and trade that already creates more than a million jobs in the US. Raimondo also wants the Chinese people to do well, and contribute overall to global stability, and a level playing field which translates to more access. Thats all very nice. However, recently, in a repetition of earlier incidents, Chinese police raided the Shanghai offices of US firms Capvision, Bain & Company and Mintz Group. In August, the US issued an executive order curbing US investment in the Chinese semiconductor, quantum computing and artificial intelligence sectors. China shot back with export restrictions on two key minerals essential to semiconductor production gallium and germanium which were imported in tons. As a result, exports from China plummeted to 1 kilogram. That sent business leaders into a huddle. And that is just one example. Big names like Microsoft which provides artificial intelligence services to electric vehicle maker Li Auto and electronics giant Xiaomi, among others and others like Citigroup and Exxon Mobil, are all lining up for business. And in the coming days, this is where the action is likely to play out. The visit may just have set the direction for that agenda, which is exactly what Xis visit is all about. The official meetings That aspect is most apparent given the mediocre output from the official side. Given that elections are coming up and bipartisan opposition to China, there was little that Biden could work on. Theres a lot of talk on the deal on Fentanyl a powerful synthetic opioid that is similar to morphine but is 50 to 100 times more potent and which in 2021, caused deaths of 80,411, more than ten times the number of U.S. military killed in the post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The precursors for the illegal trade comes from China via Mexico, with actual production by Mexican cartels, after China itself imposed restrictions on Fentanyl and related substances in 2019. These are not internationally controlled (and are correspondingly legal to produce in and export out of China) yet, and the notice therefore already issued in China refers to these. China stopped all cooperation in response to then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosis visit to Taiwan (2022), but has gone on with its own restrictions on fentanyls precursors as recently as June 2023. It also has a cooperation program with Canada. Meanwhile, the US has a serious heroin problem, with some 500,000 users. In other words, while it is a serious problem, it seems like a deliverable of some sort for the visit, with a feel good factor. The serious problems are elsewhere. Climate change as a money spinner Another feel good aspect is the decision to cooperate on climate change. China is the highest greenhouse gas emitter in the world, followed closely by the US, and neither has made any particular effort to reduce these. US emissions have indeed gone up. Washington has been the outlier in the ongoing COP28 talks, leading resistance against language that would identify richer countries as the main source for the loss and damage fund, even though that principle is deeply embedded in the U.N. climate convention and in the Paris Agreement. The final agreements make such funds voluntary, a farce that shows just how little they appreciate the climate catastrophe, particularly in the global south. China in turn needs to be commit to methane reduction, and the global goal of tripling renewable energy deployment by 2030, featured in the recent G20 New Delhi Leaders Declaration. China also resists contributing to multilateral climate finance, on the devious principle that it is a developing country. However, any agreement between the largest emitters is a welcome move, but with little positive outcomes likely, other than cornering Green energy technology, which last year totalled $1.1 trillion in investments. The military aspects To an extent, the agreement to restart mil to mil links with defense policy coordination talks, military maritime consultation meetings, and direct telephone links between operational commanders, is encouraging. These had also been stalled after 2022 according to the Pentagon, which regards the Peoples Liberation army as a pacing challenge , with requests for dialogue ignored. The department has also released images and videos of 15 cases of coercive and risky behaviour against US assets in the East and South China sea that could potentially set off a war. Restarting dialogue will avert accidental incidents, but is hardly likely to prevent intentional actions by either. Taiwan will continue to remain a flash point, and there is no walking back possible for Biden or any other President in future. Having said that, experts note that a Chinese military operation against Taiwan is operationally so precarious as to be almost impossible,while any destruction of a $1.5 trillion economy would be ruinous to all concerned. But operations short of war can be expected, which then could slide into open conflict. For India, theres a period of flux ahead. Recently, the Chinese footprint has only increased with the largest ever naval exercise which included a Song class submarine and a Type 052DL destroyer, reportedly featuring stealth capabilities. The objective is said to be to safeguard the economic corridor according to PLA officials. Added to that, new analysis from Takshashila points to deepening presence in Doklam as well as military expansion in Tibet and along Ladakh, all points to trouble ahead. Quite apart from that, the designation by the US of three Chinese entities for supplying components for Pakistans missile capabilities underlines that the China-Pakistan relationship is beyond mere trade corridors. To that can be added the findings by Aid Data shows not just that Chinese lending to Pakistan stood at $67.2 billion, that is about $21 bn more than assessed earlier. Not just that, it holds the largest energy portfolio in Pakistan, than anywhere else. It seems Pakistan is well on its way to becoming a rentier state of Beijing, even as it continues to encircle India in multifarious ways. India will be forced to either spend more on defence, or get even closer to the US and Quad partners to ensure its defence. Both options have costs the one takes away scarce finances from development, while the other endangers our freedom of maneuver. For India, the San Francisco meeting will be assessed against the inflow of US investments into China, at a time when Xi, the architect of instability, is up against severe economic stress. Our challenge for one is to quickly provide alternative destinations to those very investments and technology shifts. The second is to let the lesson sink in that it is possible to quite literally take a near U turn to accommodate national interests. Ideology and moralistic bombast get you nowhere at all. The writer is a Distinguished Fellow at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi. She tweets @kartha_tara. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views. Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Disgruntled Aussies have been hit by varying high prices for local fresh fruit and veggies in recent years thanks to turbulent weather and a gruelling cost-of-living crisis. But while many winced at the idea of dropping $12 for a head of lettuce last year, such prices for Australian produce aren't as off-putting across the Pacific. Single mangoes imported from the Northern Territory are retailing at a whopping $14 ($US8.99) and according to the company supplying them, Americans are more than happy to pay up. Americans are reportedly lapping up Australian mangoes. Source: Manbulloo Mangoes "They don't baulk at the price because they know the variety and know it'll be a great eating experience, and they get a lot of mango with an R2E2 variety," Manbulloo Mangoes' supply chain advisor, Scott Ledger, told the ABC. "These are large mangoes, really colourful, and taste delicious." Ledger stressed the inflated price was due to the cost it takes to get the fruit from Australia to American shelves in a way that ensures the quality of the fruit is not affected. R2E2 mangoes are currently being sold for just $3.00 at Woolworths stores, while Coles, which Manbulloo Mangoes supplies, are selling theirs at $3.50. Australian produce has a strong reputation around the world, with Chinese consumers welcoming the news last month further trade sanctions would be eased on Australian exports. Fears another spike in produce costs ahead of Christmas While there was hope recent low costs for some fruit and vegetables in supermarkets would extend to Christmas, there are fears a recent storm in Queensland may trigger a rise in price. Coles and Woolworths revealed the storm had affected some crops however a host of other suppliers were unaffected. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. The well-known generic division of laws into Civil laws and Criminal laws is both fundamental and ancient. Both Civil laws and Criminal laws have their respective substantive and procedural parts. Articles 36 to 51 under Part IV of Indian Constitution are the Directive Principles of State Policy. Article 37 made it clear that none of the said provisions would be enforceable by any court meaning thereby that no court will examine any of these Articles on any complaint made thereon. In legal terminology the provisions are therefore said to be non-justiciable. Article 37 however provides that the principles enumerated in other 15 Articles are fundamental in the governance of the country and it shall be the duty of the State to apply those principles in making laws. The Constituent Assembly debated on Article 29 (which is now Article 37) on 19 November 1948 only on the issue as to whether the Articles under Directive Principles should be made mandatory by casting obligations on the State so that instead of the provisions remaining only pious wishes they became enforceable in courts of law e.g. justiciable, but the House negating all amendments proposed to make them mandatory retained the Article as drawn. These Articles under Part IV of Constitution have been regarded as the soul of Indian welfare state. The policy set out in Article 37 has never been debated subsequently by any till date as all concerned after adoption of constitution on 26 November 1949 accepted all the directions as egalitarian and very much beneficial to the people to be governed by the constitutional provisions. And the State also has already acted upon and implemented some of these directions some examples of which, though belated, are that a number of states (i) have organised village panchayats (Article 40) in their respective state over time and first of which was organised by the State of Rajasthan in 1959 although full Constitutional provisions casting obligation on the states to constitute panchayats at different levels could be had only in 1992 by 73rd Constitution Amendment Act. (ii) The centre has enacted The Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 to provide free legal aid to the deserving defined by Act (Article 39A). The directions cast upon the State by some other articles under part IV of Constitution have also been either fully or partly acted upon and implemented by the State and the nation has been reaping benefits thereunder. The direction contained in Article 44 in its original draft has also been subject matter of almost continuous serious debate since its formulation by the members of Drafting Committee on its retention and thereafter on advisability of implementation but never on its desirability. All the said debates centred substantially around two issues, namely, (i) on its necessity and (ii) on plausibility of its implementation. The said two issues may not also hinge on the multi religious and multi communal nations actual need for a Uniform Civil Code. Neither the Parliament at the centre nor any of the state Legislature ever felt that a UCC was unavoidably essential and necessary for overall effective governance at any point of time during the post independence period till date. On deliberations of Article 35 of the draft constitution (which is now Article 44 of Constitution) there was a very clear division between Hindu and Muslim members within the drafting committee. None from any other minority communities like Christians did participate in the said deliberations either because there was no representation from their community on the drafting committee or none from them thought it fit to participate in the said deliberations. Muslim members expressing their traditional apprehension against Hindu majoritarianism had argued against Article 35 on the ground that each community had certain religious laws, certain civil laws inseparably connected with their religious beliefs and practices. Further submissions of the Muslim members were that (i) in a secular state citizens belonging to different communities must have the freedom to practise their own religion, observe their own life and their personal laws should be applied to them and secular state did not mean that it was anti-religious; (ii) by one stroke of pen by an Article one could not revolutionise the whole country and if it was so done that would be tyrannical. The Muslim members had also argued that their laws of succession, inheritance, marriage and divorce are completely dependent upon their religion and any uniform personal laws, if introduced, would lead to a considerable misunderstanding and resentment among various sections of the country and that was the stern reality and the goal towards a uniform civil code should be achieved, if at all, gradually and with the consent of the people concerned. It was the duty of the majority not to ride rough-shod over the rights of the minorities and any such attempt would be violative of religious freedom and accompanying rights guaranteed. The Hindu members however cited examples of Europe, Turkey, Egypt and a host other countries who have followed the route of uniform civil code irrespective of religion and communities and therefore it could not doubtlessly be said that Muslim personal laws were completely and inextricably dependent on Islam. Examples of Turkey and Egypt were cited by them more particularly because of the fact that both the countries had Muslims in overwhelming majority and particularly Egypts state religion was Islam. The Hindu members had also argued that in different European countries, there were Catholics, Protestants and Jews but different personal laws were not perpetuated in those countries. And they continued further that the differential systems of inheritance and other matters were some of the factors which contribute to the comparative differences among the peoples of different communities of India. A uniform civil code was intended to weld different communities into a single nation by divorcing religion from personal laws eliminating those differences and in any event irrespective of Article 35 there was nothing to prevent future Parliament of India from passing such laws and certainly no Parliament, no Legislature would be unwise as to interfere with religious tenets of peoples and Muslims had read rather too much into Article 35. What was not argued then was that Muslim communitys faith did not make any law of theirs so integral to their faith that they could never be divorced therefrom. In simple words their faith and laws were not intertwined. Ambedkar on that occasion had also said with examples that we have in this country a uniform code of laws covering almost every aspect of human relationship. While in support of retention of Article 35. K M Munshi referred to a historical incident where the Kazi of Delhi objected to some of the reforms of Afghani Sultan Allaudin Khilji, who had ruled Delhi between 1296 to 1316 for long 20 years, when the Sultan had said in response that I am as an ignorant man and I am ruling this country in its best interests. I am sure looking at my ignorance and of good intentions, the Almighty will forgive me, when he finds that I have not acted according to Shariat. The Muslim members canvassing their apprehensions had proposed as many as three amendments to Article 35 of draft Constitution (as were settled by the Vice President) and those were that: (i) Provided that any group, section or community or people shall not be obliged to give up its own personal law in case it has such law be added to Article 35; (ii) Provided that the personal law of any community which is guaranteed by the statute shall not be changed except with the previous approval of the community ascertained in such manner as the Union Legislature may determine by law be added to Article 35; and (iii) That Part IV of draft Constitution be deleted. All the three amendments so proposed were negated and finally Article 35 was retained as was drafted. Like any other Article under Part IV of Indian Constitution Article 44 only directs that the State shall endeavour to secure for all of its citizens a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) throughout territory of India. But the most pertinent question of how and when however remained and still remains unanswered. It is although not that explicit but all concerned indisputably understood that the direction meant and was only with regard to the substantive part of civil laws. Substantive parts of civil laws may be divided under two heads i.e., personal civil laws and impersonal civil laws. The British brought uniformity in respect of some impersonal substantive civil laws like Indian Contract Act, 1872, Transfer of Property Act, 1882, The Sale of Goods Act, 1930 and such other civil laws. Uniformity was also brought by the British in procedural law applicable to civil proceedings by enacting Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. The word code in the context means compilation. Uniform principles or law of evidence applicable to both civil and criminal proceedings were also introduced by the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Further uniformity was brought in the substantive Criminal Law by enacting Indian Penal Code, 1860. And in all those civil laws religions and/their diverse practices, if any, were not that intrinsically relevant and in any event they could be and were divorced to determine personal relationships concerning those civil matters. It deserves to be mentioned that no community, religious or otherwise, ever could or did protest or oppose such divorce in any event as all those Acts were enacted by the ruling British Parliament in London for their Indian subjects. It is also to be noted that none of those civil laws however dealt with pure familial laws which are also known as personal laws which consist of laws of succession, inheritance, marriage and divorce. The words civil laws in Article 44 has also been both indisputably and consistently judicially replaced by narrower words personal laws in the judgments of the Supreme Court. Personal laws of various communities were found to be discriminatory and had created gender inequality in application and treatment between men and women and in many areas they were found to be so pronounced that they assumed inhumane, if not barbaric, character in the context of modern egalitarian concept of civilisation and its wide perspective. Although in the post constitution period on very many occasions and at very many fora the need of implementation of the provisions of Article 44 had been stressed upon but all remained inconclusive and ineffective on one ground or the other. Even 21st Law Commission of India (2015 to 2018) having on its agenda the issue of UCC issued only a consultation paper expressing its anxiety in the matter of its implementation primarily on the ground that Indian citizens were not ready for it and second that implementation was likely to result in more discords amongst various communities and tribals than deriving its intended benefit for them. K T Shah while debating in the Constituent Assembly had said there will always be a way. It is either bankruptcy of intelligence if you say that you cannot find a way; or it is really a genuine lack of desire. The Supreme Court as late as in 1996 in Pannalal Bansilal Patil vs State of Andhra Pradesh (AIR 1996 SC 1023) although had observed that a uniform law is highly desirable but enactment thereof in one go perhaps might be counter productive to unity and integrity of the nation. The implication of such observation was that implementation might not be in one go but if it was in more than one go it might not be counterproductive. Its emphasis was only on the words in one go. It also needs to be pointed out that the drafting committee consciously chose the grammatical article a before the expression Uniform Civil Code. It could also be argued therefore that we could not have more than one UCC. It is trite and also we have quite rich experience that judiciarys judicial wisdom, how laudable it might be, may not always synchronise with legislative and/or executive wisdom which are mostly motivated by political considerations of the party or parties forming the government where vote politics assume major role and political parties are led more by politicians and less by genuine statesmen. Moreover, Article 44 does not mandate them to enact and implement a UCC although in some observations of Supreme Court Judges unfortunately the word mandate has been used {e.g. Kuldip Singh J in Sarla Mudgal vs Kalyani (1995) 3 Supreme Court Cases 635}. The framers of constitution as aforesaid did not mandate implementation of the provisions of Article 44 notwithstanding very strong arguments in favour of making it so. A direction also can never be read as a mandate in law. The Supreme Court itself has repeatedly said that courts should not undertake any exercise of review for any alleged breach of any policy set either by the legislature or by the executive. In law a policy may be highly desirable but a policy being inchoate is unbreachable i.e., no policy can also be subjected to judicial scrutiny. At the most a policy may breed an expectation only. The directive principles of State policy are only cluster of policies set as guidelines for future governance. None of the Articles under Chapter IV including Article 44 advisedly also did not fix any target time for a UCC. The court therefore could not also say so firmly that there was no justification whatsoever in delaying indefinitely the introduction of a uniform personal laws in the country. The Supreme Court in 1985 however somewhat sadistically observed that there was no evidence of any official activity for framing Common Civil Code for the country (Shah Banos case of 1985). The Supreme Court consciously used the expression Common Civil Code to mean Uniform Civil Code. The Supreme Court therefore found no difference between the words uniform and common. According to the court both meant the same thing. Those who opposed the need of Article 35 in the draft Constitution at the deliberation taking place on 23rd November, 1948 were however of the view that the word uniform had a different connotation than that of the word common and very recently the distinguished jurist Tahir Mahmood has also in one of his articles on the subject made a distinction or differentiation between the two words saying that Article 44 speaks of a uniform and not a common civil code. The fine distinction, if any, does not deserve much attention of ours as both dictionary and general views on these two words lean in favour of the same meaning. As British had brought uniformity in some civil and criminal laws so also in post independence period many new laws of general application like Special Marriage Act 1954, Dowry Prohibition Act 1961, Foreign Marriage Act 1969, maintenance law under Criminal Procedure Code 1973, Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 and Maintenance of Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007 overriding contrary provisions of all personal laws in the respective fields have brought about uniformity in some of the personal laws, so the introduction of Uniform Civil Laws cannot now be said to be a revolutionising process but it indeed has been a long ongoing process. The process still needs uniformity in family laws e.g., succession, inheritance, marriage and divorce irrespective of patriarchal or matriarchal society. In India however, the majority of the communities belong to patriarchal society. The rationale of a UCC is said to be to make family laws of the country free from all religion based discrimination and gender inequality and sooner India forgets its isolationist outlook on life, it is better for the country and further that UCC is therefore out and out an egalitarian provision to bring in equality and equal treatment between men and women of the entire country to make it a gender unbiased society. As said earlier, the desirability of UCC has never been questioned. Those opposing UCC only claimed and still claim that UCC would cause dissatisfaction and disintegration than serve as a common umbrella to promote homogeneity and national solidarity and those sentiments and emotions of all communities need to be cooled and tempered and only then UCC could concretize when social climate is properly built up by the elite of the society, statesmen amongst leaders who instead of gaining personal mileage rise above and awaken the masses to accept the change. In 1954, in Parliament, Jawarlal Nehru had also opined that at the present moment the time is not ripe in India for me to try to push it through. Nehrus said view may not be valid in 2023 after a long lapse of 69 years. The communities in India through the passage of time can definitely be expected to have become more mature in their thinking and attitudes towards life, living and their faiths and their power of mutual tolerance, fellow filling and understanding. The more fundamental question seems to be, does the nation need uniformity in personal laws after almost three quarters of a century that the nation has passed since independence, particularly, when there has been no serious upheaval of discomfort in following and implementing diverse personal laws for diverse communities for so long? It is also said that Indians cannot have a UCC because of different traditions and have different conceptions of marriage e.g. a sacrament for Hindus, whereas a contract for Muslims. The 2018 Law Commission recommended that all codes be internally reformed to make them more gender equal and then it may be easier to secure consensus. It is also contended that how religious diversity is protected if Parliament is overwhelmingly dominated by Hindus and therefore Parliament is not representative enough of particular communities and that may lead an egalitarian project hostage to majoritarianism. But it is also equally true that in a country which is dominated more by a single community Parliament can never be representative enough ever in any situation even if provisions for separate representation for each community is made or allowed. Secularism can and is therefore the best protection for each and all communities. As diversity is reflected in recognition of only 22 official languages, 398 dialects and 645 tribes complexities and complications involved for bringing in a UCC needs therefore a true secular outlook and resolution of those complexities and complications with required collective wisdom, prudence and effective unbiased administrative faculty but those complexities, complications and apprehension of sentimental and emotional upheaval need not deter the State from meeting the challenge indefinitely. There is no charm in showing stoic obedience to status quo on a vital issue pending resolution since adoption of the Constitution by the nation. On the other hand, it is also argued that to check misuse many Islamic countries have codified personal law wherein the practice of polygamy has been either totally prohibited or severely restricted as in Syria, Tunisia, Morocco, Pakistan, Iran and the Islamic Republics of Soviet Union as religious practices violative of human rights and dignity and sacerdotal suffocation of essentially civil and material freedom are not autonomy but oppression. A unified code is therefore imperative both for protection of the oppressed and promotion of national unity [R.M. Sahai J in Sarla Mudgal vs Union (1995) 3 sec 635]. The court in Shah Bano Begums case (1985) also had said that piecemeal attempts of courts to bridge the gap between personal laws cannot take the place of a common civil code. Justice to all is a far more satisfactory way of dispensing justice than justice from case to case. Further it was said that, The present case is yet another which focuses on the immediate and compulsive need for a uniform civil code. As a UCC was not pushed through since its adoption of the Constitution by any of the government the judicial free minds could and did also express their displeasure, if not anguish, while dealing with matters of ex facie ill treatment of weaker sex of communities on the basis of irrational and inhumane religious dictas which have no connection or no significant connection with pure religious faith. While dealing with a prayer for divorce on the ground of nullity because of husbands impotency the Supreme Court had in 1985 said that because of impotency the marriage had irretrievably broken down and also said that the law relating to judicial separation, divorce and nullity of marriage is far, far from uniform and time had come for a complete reform of the law of marriage and make a uniform law applicable to all people irrespective of religion or caste. {Ms. Jorden Diengdeh vs S. S. Chopra (1985) 3 SCC 62}. It also said we suggest that time has come for intervention of legislature in these matters to provide uniform code of marriage and divorce and to provide by law for a way out of unhappy situations ... In the case of Mohd. Ahmed Khan vs Shah Bano Begum {(1985) 2 SCC 556} while dealing with the question of providing maintenance for divorced wife who was unable to maintain herself the Supreme Court not only interpreted Section 125 of Criminal Procedure Code 1973 in favour of the unfortunate divorced wife casting an obligation on her husband to maintain her but also had observed that It is also a matter of regret that Article 44 of our Constitution has remained a dead letter . There is no evidence of any official activity for framing a common civil code for the country . A common civil code will help the cause of national integration by removing disparate royalties to laws which have conflicting ideologies . It is the state which is charged with the duty of securing a uniform civil code for the citizens of the country and unquestionably, it has the legislative competence to do so. The court had also derived much inspiration from what Tahir Mahmood had said in his book Muslim Personal Law (1977) pleading that in pursuance of the goal of secularism, the State must stop administering religion based personal laws. Article 19 to 23A of the draft Constitution, which are now Articles 25 to 30 providing right to freedom of religion and cultural and educational rights including freedom to manage religions affairs, were deliberated between 3rd to 8th December, 1948 when most of the deliberations held were on the expression propagate appearing in Article 19. Some desired its omission but such desire was negated. K M Munshi on that occasion had argued that So long as religion is religion, conversion by free exercise of the conscience has to be recognised . Much later in 1977 the Supreme Court said that right to propagate does not include right to convert, what is guaranteed is freedom of religion and not freedom of conversion (Article 19(1)(a) and Article 25) (Rev. Stainislaus vs State of MP). The Supreme Court in Sarla Mudgal vs Union of India {(1995), 3 SCC 635} said that article 44 is based on the concept that there is no necessary connection between religion and personal law in a civilised society. Article 25 guarantees religious freedom whereas Article 44 seeks to divest religion from social relations and personal law. Marriage, succession and like matters of a secular character cannot be brought without the guarantee enshrined under Articles 25, 26 and 27. Therefore there appears to be no conflict between the provisions of Article 25, 26 and 27 and introduction of a UCC as was apprehended. As against Muslims opposition Hindus cite that Hindu personal laws were profoundly reformed in 1955-56 despite violent opposition of Hindu religious leaders to show as evidence of sacrifice on the part of the Hindu Community and therefore similar jesture was also expected from all other communities and more particularly from the Muslim community which constitutes the largest minority in the country. As aforesaid as absence of the provision of Article 44 in the Constitution could not also prevent the Parliament from legislating uniform civil law divesting religion therefrom at any point of time. What is expected of a secular democratic government is egalitarian reforms in each and all spheres of life of all its citizens irrespective of religion, caste and sex with least conflict in social fabric for which what is required is absolute secular wisdom of the members of the executive and the legislature. Advisedly the framers of the constitution had placed marriages and divorce; infants and minors; adoption; wills, intestacy and succession, joint family and partition under concurrent list of 7th Schedule (serial no. 5) to the Constitution to enable both the Centre and States to do the needful as and when they would think best and proper. As there could be scope for conflict between laws enacted by one state with anothers enactment, it is therefore more than desirable and advisable that the Central Government effects the needful in one go. It is however to be remembered that no legislature can be expected to be endowed with such legislative competence with the commensurate drafting craft to meet the challenges to make a perfect law in one go to stand the test of time either. Passage of time and emergence of new social problems from time to time are likely to make them learn, relearn and unlearn and act to meet the ever growing new challenges. K T Shah on 19th November, 1948 had argued that could any authority commended with the drafting of this constitution approve of such a provision being incorporated in the Negotiable Instruments Act authorising making of a cheque payable when able? Complexities and complications involved in the matter of legislating a UCC, as said earlier, should also not deter the Parliament for indefinite period from legislating very much desirable egalitarian legislation for the whole nation to save the country from being disparaged from the point of view of pan world modern civilisation. Apprehended complexities and complications may not also be insurmountable as there will always be a way if the Parliament has a genuine desire. Unwavering respectful obedience to status quo is also not an all time virtue for a progressive state and its society. The author is former Advocate General of West Bengal. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views. Bangladeshs highest court on Sunday upheld a ban on the countrys largest Islamist party taking part in polls, lawyers said, as political tensions worsen ahead of key January elections. Jamaat-e-Islami, a major opposition party with millions of supporters, was banned from contesting polls in 2013 after high court judges ruled its charter violated the secular constitution of the Muslim-majority nation of 170 million people. Jamaat was also barred from participating in elections in 2014 and 2018, and so moved to the Supreme Court to challenge the order. Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan dismissed the appeal. By virtue of the High Court order, which is upheld by the Supreme Court today, Jamaat as a political party is banned, Ahsanul Karim, one of the lawyers representing the original petitioners, told AFP. It means they are banned from holding assembly, association or any political activities under the platform of Jamaat-e-Islami. But Matiur Rahman Akand, Jamaats lawyer and also party spokesman, said the order does not ban the party, but rather bars members from contesting polls under the party banner. This order doesnt bar Jamaat-e-Islami from regular political activities and rallies, Akand told AFP. It is solely related to the electoral process of the country. Jamaat has joined the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in holding a two-day nationwide strike that began Sunday. Bangladeshs opposition including the BNP, Jamaat and dozens of smaller parties have demanded Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina quit power ahead of the 7 January election and let a neutral government hold polls. The government has rejected the call as unconstitutional. Hasina has overseen phenomenal economic growth during her 15 years in power but Western nations have sounded the alarm over democratic backsliding and thousands of extrajudicial killings. Late last month the opposition held a giant rally sparking clashes in which a police officer was killed. Hasina then launched a crackdown, with most of the top BNP leadership arrested, as well as more than 10,000 of its supporters. Jamaat said at least 2,300 of its activists and leaders were arrested. In an editorial article published Saturday, US President Joe Biden stated that Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a new Palestinian Authority once Israel achieves its goal of eliminating the Hamas militant group. As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority, as we all work toward a two-state solution, Biden wrote in the Washington Post piece. Washington, Israels closest ally, has backed the countrys response to Hamass October 7 surprise strike, which killed 1,200 people, largely civilians. Around 240 people were kidnapped. However, as the death toll from Israels military campaign in Gaza continues to rise to 12,300 people, including more than 5,000 children, according to the Hamas government the US has expressed concerns about the manner of the strikes, as well as concerns about the territorys long-term future once Hamas is defeated. A two-state solution is the only way to ensure the long-term security of both the Israeli and Palestinian people. Though right now it may seem like that future has never been further away, this crisis has made it more imperative than ever, Biden said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not reject Bidens plan, but said the Palestinian Authority in its current form is not capable of receiving responsibility for Gaza. Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has not condemned the Hamas attack and his senior ministers are celebrating it, Netanyahu said. We cant have a civilian authority in Gaza that supports terror, encourages terror, pays terror, and teaches terror, he said at a news conference. Abbas, meanwhile, appealed to Biden to use his significant influence on Israel to intervene immediately to stop this humanitarian catastrophe, this genocide against our innocent people. In a meeting with top US diplomat Antony Blinken earlier this month, Abbas said the PA could only assume power in Gaza if a comprehensive political solution is found for the decades-old Israel-Palestinian conflict encompassing the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. Abbas, 88, who has led the PA for 18 years, is widely unpopular and has been powerless against the rapid expansion of Israeli settlements and military control in the West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem. In his letter Saturday, Biden also threatened sanctions against settlers committing violence against Palestinians in the West Bank amid the conflict in Gaza. I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable, he said. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank. The Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah says since the Gaza war started more than 200 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, with a spike in army raids and Israeli settler violence. A top health official in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip said all 31 premature babies at Al-Shifa hospital had been evacuated Sunday from the facility which the WHO has described as a death zone. Mohammed Zaqut, director general of hospitals in Gaza, told AFP all 31 premature babies in Al-Shifa hospital have been evacuated along with three doctors and two nurses. Preparations are under way for them to enter Egypt, he added. The move came a day after hundreds fled the hospital, Gazas largest, after Al-Shifas director said the Israeli army had ordered it to be evacuated. Israel denied ordering the move. An AFP journalist at the scene saw crowds of sick, injured and displaced people walking towards the seafront, with the health ministry saying 120 patients had stayed behind, among them a number of premature babies. Many patients can not leave the hospital as they are in the ICU beds or the baby incubators, Ahmed al-Mokhallalati, a doctor at the hospital, wrote Saturday on X, formerly Twitter. In a statement early on Sunday, the WHO said it had visited Al-Shifa on a very high-risk mission on Saturday. It described the facility as a death zone and said it was urgently developing plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families. It said 291 patients and 25 health workers were still inside the hospital in figures issued several hours before the babies were evacuated. The World Health Organisation declared Gazas largest hospital a death zone, announcing plans to evacuate the institution as Israels army warned it was extending operations to defeat Hamas. The assessment was made during a visit to the hospital by WHO and other UN officials earlier this week. In other news, a Hamas health official stated Saturday that more than 80 people were killed in twin strikes on a northern Gaza refugee camp, including a UN school housing displaced people. Social media videos verified by AFP showed victims covered in blood and dust on the floor of a building in Jabalia, the Palestinian territorys largest refugee camp, where mattresses had been pushed under classroom tables. Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA, described horrifying images from the incident, while Egypt called the bombing a war crime and a deliberate insult to the United Nations. A separate strike Saturday on another building in Jabalia camp killed 32 people from the same family, 19 of them children, Hamas health authorities said. Without mentioning the strikes, the Israeli army said an incident in the Jabalia region was under review. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw about 240 people taken hostage. The armys relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government, which has ruled Gaza since 2007. The UN says some 1.6 million people have been displaced inside the Gaza Strip by six weeks of fighting, and Israel said Saturday its military was now expanding its operational activities in additional neighbourhoods in the area of the Gaza Strip. Extreme suffering Gazas largest hospital, Al-Shifa, has been a key focus in recent days, with Israeli forces alleging Hamas uses it as a command centre a claim denied by the group and medical staff. On Sunday, the WHO described the hospital as a death zone, with a mass grave at the entrance and nearly 300 patients left inside with 25 health workers. It said it was planning the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families, warning, however, that nearby facilities were already overstretched and urging an immediate ceasefire given the extreme suffering of the people of Gaza. On Saturday, hundreds of people fled the hospital on foot on orders from the Israeli army, according to the facilitys director. Columns of sick and injured some of them amputees were seen leaving with displaced people, doctors, and nurses, as loud explosions were heard around the complex. At least 15 bodies, some in advanced stages of decomposition, were strewn along the route, lined with heavily damaged shops and overturned vehicles, an AFP journalist there said. NGO Doctors without Borders said a convoy carrying its staff and family members came under attack Saturday while evacuating from near Al-Shifa, despite coordinating with both sides. One person was killed. Israeli forces denied ordering the evacuation of the hospital, saying it had acceded to the request of the director to allow more civilians to leave. The WHO said 29 patients at the hospital with serious spinal injuries cannot move without medical assistance, and others have infected wounds due to lack of antibiotics. There are also 32 babies in extremely critical condition, WHO said. Not normal Israels siege on Gaza has left food, water, medicine and fuel in short supply, with just a trickle of aid allowed in from Egypt. Under US pressure, Israel permitted a first consignment of fuel to enter late Friday, allowing telecommunications to resume after a two-day blackout. The UN said Israel had agreed to allow in 60,000 litres (16,000 gallons) of fuel a day from Saturday, but warned it only around a third of what is needed. Israel has told Palestinians to move south for their safety, but deadly strikes continued there too. At least 26 people were killed in a residential building on Saturday, according to the director of the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis. Diplomacy to secure the release of hostages is continuing, with a US official saying more fuel deliveries and a significant pause in fighting would come when hostages are released. The White House denied, however, a Washington Post report of a tentative agreement, with National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson saying we continue to work hard to get to a deal. Relatives of those taken, who range from infants to octogenarians, piled pressure on Israels government Saturday after arriving outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus Jerusalem office on a march from Tel Aviv. Its not normal to have children kidnapped for 43 days. We dont know what the government is doing, we dont have any information, said marcher Ari Levi. The bodies of two female hostages were recovered in Gaza this week, the Israeli military said, while four abductees have so far been released. Gazas fate after the conflict remains unclear, and Biden argued in an opinion piece published Saturday that the coastal territory and the Israeli-occupied West Bank should come under a single revitalised administration. As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalised Palestinian Authority, he wrote in the Washington Post. However, Netanyahu has insisted the Palestinian Authority in its current form is not capable of receiving responsibility for Gaza. Biden also threatened sanctions, including visa bans, against settlers who have ramped up attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank in recent weeks. US President Joe Biden has once again called his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping a dictator, just hours after they met for the first time in more than a year and held candid and productive discussions to revive bilateral ties. The two leaders met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco. Well, look, he is (a dictator), Biden told reporters in response to a question when reminded about the similar remarks he had made about Xi early this year. I mean, hes a dictator in the sense that he is a guy who runs a country that is a communist country thats based on a form of government totally different than ours, Biden, 80, said. Anyway, we made progress, he said about the four-hour-long meeting, the first in-person summit since they met on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia in November 2022. Biden previously compared Xi, 70, to dictators during a June political fundraiser in California as he discussed Xis reaction to US fighter jets shooting down a Chinese spy balloon over American airspace in February. The latest remarks could spark a possible backlash from China. The last time Biden called Xi a dictator, at a June fundraiser in Northern California, Chinese officials called the remarks absurd and a provocation. Bidens comment could also threaten to derail the positive energy coming out of the meeting, which Biden described earlier in the news conference as some of the most constructive and productive discussions weve had. Yemens Iran-backed Houthi rebels said on Sunday they had seized an Israeli ship in the Red Sea, a claim immediately denied by Israel. The allegation came days after the rebel group had threatened to target Israeli vessels in the Red Sea over Israels war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. We took an Israeli cargo ship to the Yemeni coast, an unidentified Huthi official said in a statement, adding that further details would be released later. A Yemeni maritime source said the Huthis seized a commercial vessel and took it to the port of Salif in the coastal city of Hodeida which the rebels control, without specifying its nationality. Israels military denied the ship was Israeli. A statement by the army on X, formerly Twitter, said: The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Huthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship, the Israeli army said in the statement. The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also denied the ship was Israeli but denounced, in a statement, the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Huthi militia, it said. Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican, it added. Vital shipping route On 14 November, Huthi rebel leader Abdul Malik al-Huthi said the group was on the lookout for Israeli vessels in the commercially vital waters of the Red Sea even those that do not have Israeli flags. Our eyes are open to constant monitoring and searching for any Israeli ship, he said in a speech broadcast by the rebels Al-Masirah TV station. The enemy relies on camouflage in its movement in the Red Sea, especially in Bab al-Mandab (strait), and did not dare to raise Israeli flags on its ships and turned off identification devices. We will search and verify the ships that belong to him, and we will not hesitate to target them, and let everyone know that he is afraid, he added. The Bab al-Mandab Strait is the narrow pass between Yemen and Djibouti at the foot of the Red Sea, one of the worlds busiest shipping lanes, which carries about a fifth of global oil consumption. The Huthis, declaring themselves part of the axis of resistance of Iran-affiliated groups, have launched a series of drone and missile strikes targeting Israel since October, following an unprecedented attack by Hamas militants on Israel. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, after the Palestinian militants killed around 1,200 people and took about 240 hostages on 7 October, according to Israeli authorities. The Hamas government in Gaza says 12,300 have been killed in Israels relentless aerial bombardment and ground operations in the territory in retaliation. According to local media, Iranian authorities have released on bond a popular rapper who has been imprisoned for more than a year for his role in nationwide protests provoked by Mahsa Aminis death in imprisonment. Toomaj Salehi, 32, was arrested in October 2022 after publicly supporting a month-long wave of protests sparked by the murder of 22-year-old Amini, an Iranian Kurd, who had been detained for allegedly violating severe dress restrictions for women. Salehi was sentenced to six years in prison in July on allegations of corruption on earth, one of Irans most heinous felonies with a death penalty. The musicians lawyer, Amir Raisian, told Irans reformist newspaper Shargh late Saturday that upon appeal, the Supreme Court had found flaws in the initial sentence and ordered that Salehi be released from prison today on bail. An image uploaded on Salehis official Instagram account overnight shows him leaving jail with a bouquet of white flowers. Salehi was accused of disseminating lies on the internet and propaganda against the state, as well as encouraging people to violence and forming and managing illegal groups with the aim of disrupting security in cooperation with a hostile government to Iran. Iranian rulers have called last years rallies riots that were fuelled by foreigners. Hundreds of people were slain, including dozens of security personnel, during the months of upheaval that followed Aminis death on September 16, 2022, and thousands more were detained. In protest-related instances involving killings and other forms of violence against security forces, seven persons have been executed. On Monday, Irans Supreme Court upheld a death sentence over the killing a Revolutionary Guards officer during the protests, according to the judiciary which did not identify the condemned man. Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Sunday Israel has suffered a defeat in its war against Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas, and that it was a fact. Israel has been pounding the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip since gunmen stormed across the border on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials. The Hamas government says Israels bombing campaign and ground invasion have killed more than 12,300 people in the narrow Palestinian territory, including more than 5,000 children. In a speech at an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps aerospace force centre in the capital Tehran, Khamenei said the defeat of the Zionist regime (Israel) in Gaza is a fact. Advancing and entering hospitals or peoples homes is not a victory, because victory means defeating the other side, he said. Khamenei charged that Israel has so far failed in achieving its declared goal of destroying Hamas despite the massive bombings of Gaza. This incapacity reflects the inability of the United States and Western countries which back Israel, he added. Iran, which supports Hamas financially and militarily, has hailed the 7 October attacks a success but denied any direct involvement. Tehran has made support for the Palestinian cause a centrepiece of its foreign policy since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Khamenei said Israel has killed thousands of children without any remorse because, as he claimed, Zionists consider themselves to be a superior race. During his visit, the Revolutionary Guards aerospace force unveiled new defence systems and drones, state media said, and Khamenei inspected a drone which carried the name Gaza. The force also unveiled Fattah 2, an upgraded version of a hypersonic missile unveiled in June, according to official news agency IRNA. Khamenei urged Muslim countries which have formal relations with Israel to cut off these ties and halt trade. Some Islamic governments have not yet condemned (Israels actions in Gaza), but this is not acceptable, he said. The Israeli military on Sunday said it had uncovered a tunnel under Gazas Al-Shifa hospital that stretched 55 metres beneath the complex where troops have been conducting a major operation. IDF troops exposed a 55-meter-long terror tunnel 10 metres deep underneath the Shifa hospital complex, which ran under the hospital and ended at a blast door, an army statement said. A seasoned snake catcher got more than he bargained this week when he entered a home's roof for what he believed was a routine check. Brandon Gifford from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 was called to a property north of Brisbane with the owner fearing a carpet python had made its way into her roof following a sighting from an electrician. Little did they know it was far more than just one intruder. "I found a brown tree snake after about 15 minutes up there," Brandon recalled to Yahoo News Australia. Brandon pulled out five brown tree snakes from the roof before releasing them into the bush. Source: Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 "But then it just kept going, it was endless." All up, he came down from the roof with five brown tree snakes. For Brandon, it was a personal record in what he said was a very rare situation. "As far as five goes, that's pretty uncommon," he revealed. Brandon said in his eight years as a snake catcher, his previous record haul in a roof for brown tree snakes was "three or four". He said for the homeowners it was 'quite a shock", particularly because they're afraid of snakes. Brandon discovered snake skins strewn across the roof's floor, including those from a carpet python. However he said there was no sign of the carpet python he'd been called out for. Brown tree snakes are mildly venomous but rarely pose a risk to humans. One of the five snakes pulled from the roof. Source: Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 Roofs a hotbed for snake activity Brandon revealed there's rarely respite for Aussies when it comes to snakes in roofs as conditions during bothwinter and summer are desirable for them. "It's a tough one because in winter it's perfect for them if they're bunkering down and conditions are cold but then in summer they can go in there to cool off," he explained. Brandon said once the roof starts to heat up during the day, snakes navigate their way down into the home through the walls for cooler settings. He said August to October was an "intense" period for carpet pythons in roofs. Story continues Posting video of his rescue in the roof and photos of the subsequent release, Brandon triggered a response all too familiar. "That's my worst nightmare!" one person claimed. "Sell the house," another instructed, while one described the discovery as "insane". Australians have previously been told to be on alert earlier this year, with the warmer spring meaning snakes are for more active. Earlier this month, Brisbane Airport caused panic among tourists after alerting arrivals snakes had been spotted in the vicinity. One person familiar with the area said it was "absolutely crawling" with snakes. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. France is preparing to send its Dixmude helicopter carrier to the eastern Mediterranean to offer medical assistance in Gaza, the office of the French president said Sunday. The Dixmude will set sail at the start of the week and arrive in Egypt in the coming days, President Emmanuel Macrons office said. A charter flight carrying more than 10 tonnes of medical supplies is also planned for the start of the week. France will also contribute to the European effort with medical equipment on board European flights on 23 and 30 November, the presidential office said. It added that France is mobilising all its available means to contribute to the evacuation of wounded and sick children requiring emergency care from the Gaza Strip to its hospitals. Macron on Saturday spoke with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi about ongoing negotiations to free hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. French defence minister Sebastien Lecornu was also Saturday in Qatar, which is leading the mediation efforts. The French president and his Egyptian counterpart agreed on the need to increase the number of trucks entering Gaza and to reinforce coordination to deliver humanitarian aid and treat the wounded, Macrons office said. About 1,200 people, most of them civilians, were killed in Israel during Hamass 7 October attack and around 240 taken hostage, according to Israeli officials. In Gaza, around 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, have been killed by Israels response, officials in the Hamas-run territory have said. Pro-war Russian nationalist Igor Girkin, who is in detention awaiting prosecution for inciting extremism, claimed on Sunday that he intended to run for president despite knowing the March election will be a sham with the winner already determined. Girkin, also known as Igor Strelkov, has often stated that unless President Vladimir Putins military top brass fights the war in Ukraine more successfully, Russia faces revolution and even civil war. Girkin, a former Federal Security Service (FSB) officer who assisted Russia in annexing Crimea in 2014 and subsequently organising pro-Russian militias in eastern Ukraine, stated before his arrest that he and his allies were planning to enter politics. I understand perfectly well that in the current situation in Russia, participating in the presidential campaign is like sitting down at a table to play with card sharps, Girkin said in a letter published by his account on Telegram. Girkin said that he did not think that he would be allowed to take part in the election, but hoped that his attempt to unite patriotic forces would disrupt the Kremlins plan for a sham election in which the only winner is known in advance. This is our chance to unite in the face of external and internal threats, Girkin said in the letter post entitled I am going to run. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview published on Friday that he hoped Putin would run in the March election for another term as president, a move that would keep Putin in power until at least 2030. Opposition politicians say Putin has built a dictatorial system since he first came to power in 1999 that mimics the institutions of democracy while preventing any true political competition or real dissent. Supporters of Putin laud him for bringing order after the chaos that accompanied the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union. They point to polls that show he has the backing of around 80% of the Russian populace. Russian nationalists Russia has cracked down on nationalist critics, who have called for a much tougher approach to fighting the war, including martial law and a country-wide mobilisation, after the failed June mutiny by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. Prigozhin was killed in August in a plane crash, the causes of which are unclear. Girkin, who has also served in Chechnya and Moldova, was arrested in July. Girkin, a monarchist who wrote a dissertation on the White Russians who fought the Red Bolsheviks after the 1917 revolution, is one of the most prominent nationalists who has criticised Russias execution of the war, which he casts as part of an existential battle with an arrogant West. He has called the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union positive but says the post-Soviet Russian elite was corrupt and working for the West to weaken Russia. Girkin said in May that despite his criticism of Putins failings, Putin is currently the only legitimate figure in the Russian Federation. He said in August that he would make a better president than Putin, describing the Kremlin chief as too kind and too trusting of Russias security and military chiefs. Girkin was convicted last year in absentia by a Dutch court of murder for his role in the shooting down of Flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014 with the loss of 298 passengers and crew. He has denied he was involved. On Sunday, Japanese marines in amphibious assault vehicles attacked an island beach near the East China Sea in a simulated raid to expel invaders from territory that Tokyo fears is vulnerable to Chinese attack. The drill on the southwest island of Tokunoshima capped an 11-day series of exercises nationwide dubbed 05JX, meant to demonstrate the readiness of Japans ground, sea, and air forces to defend its territory and infrastructure, including nuclear power plants. The goal of JX is to show that if there is an emergency situation resulting from an attack, that we are able respond in a joint way, General Yoshihide Yoshida, chief of staff of the Self-Defence Forces Joint Staff, said after observing the drill on Tokunoshima. Ground Self-Defense Force amphibious assault vehicles launched from two anchored Maritime Self-Defense Force landing ships. Other troops landed in semi-inflatable rubber boats, with heavier equipment transported by military hovercraft to shore. Unlike many of the beaches along Japans southwest island chain stretching towards Taiwan, the one on Tokunoshima lacks a coral reef, which would complicate military operations. After Prime Minister Fumio Kishida presented the countrys largest military buildup since World War II in December, with a commitment to treble defence spending over five years, the scope and pace of military exercises in Japan are certain to rise in the coming years, including with US soldiers. Kishida has warned that East Asia could be the next Ukraine, if China, emboldened by Russias assault on its neighbour, attacks Taiwan. The 43.5 trillion yen ($290 billion) in planned spending will go to new weapons such as longer-range missiles as well as to increase stocks of spare parts and munitions to fight a sustained conflict. But the yens sharp decline this year has forced Japan to cut back on some planned purchases, including new models of the U.S.-made Chinook helicopters that Japans military used in the Tokunoshima drill. ($1 = 149.6200 yen) Authorities reported on Sunday that both Kyiv and Moscow were targeted overnight by opposing drone strikes, which were mostly intercepted by anti-aircraft defences and resulted in no injuries. An attempt by the Kyiv regime to carry out a terrorist attack using a drone against facilities of the Russian Federation was thwarted, the Russian defence ministry said in a statement. Drone assaults on Moscow were particularly common in the spring, before of the commencement of Ukraines counteroffensive in June, but have become increasingly rare in recent weeks. The drone in question was destroyed by air defence equipment over the territory of the Bogorodsky urban district, in the Moscow region, according to the Russian ministry. Later on Telegram, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin stated that the failed plot did not cause in any damage or casualties. Emergency services were working on the site where the debris from the device had fallen, he added. Kyiv was also targeted for a second night by a barrage of Iranian-made Shahed drones loaded with explosives launched by Russian forces, according to local police, who reported a intensification of attacks on the Ukrainian capital. For the second consecutive day, the enemy attacked the capital with drones, said Sergiy Popko, head of the citys military administration, on Telegram. The Russian drones were launched in several groups and attacked Kyiv by waves from different directions, he said. In total, 15 of 20 enemy drones were destroyed, the Ukrainian general staff said in a separate statement. However no casualties or critical destruction were recorded, according to Popko. The Ukrainian air force stated a day earlier that it had shot down 29 of 38 Shahed drones launched by Russian forces across the nation, the most drones launched by Moscow in an overnight attack since late September. On Saturday evening, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he expects Russia to intensify its attacks on Ukraines energy system in order to disrupt the countrys heating and electricity supply throughout the winter. The closer we get to winter, the more Russian attempts will be made to make the strikes more powerful, he said in his daily address, calling on his army to be 100 percent effective, despite all the difficulties, despite all the fatigue. Twenty-nine Myanmarese soldiers, who fled to Mizoram following intense gunfights with militia group Peoples Defence Force (PDF), were sent back to their country on Sunday, an official said. With these, a total of 74 Myanmar army personnel, who crossed over to India after their camps were overrun by militia groups in the recent gunfight, have been escorted back to their country, she said. These 29 soldiers had entered Mizoram on 16 November after their camp at Tuibual in Myanmars Chin state, a few km from the international border, was overrun by Chin National Defence Force (CNDF) a local militia group affiliated with the PDF. These soldiers were airlifted by defence authorities to Moreh in Manipur. From Moreh, they went to Tamu, the nearest Myanmarese town, the official told PTI. Incessant rains disrupted the process, which prolonged their stay in India, she added. The Myanmarese soldiers came on foot to Saikhumphai in Mizorams Champhai district near Tiau river, the natural boundary between India and Myanmar, and were received by the Assam Rifles and state police, the official said. They were in the custody of Assam Rifles before they were sent back to their country, she said. Earlier, 45 Myanmar soldiers, who fled to Mizoram after their camps were overrun by PDF, were sent back to their country. At present, the situation along the India-Myanmar border is peaceful and there are no reports of any clashes since 15 November, officials said. Around 5,000 civilians also crossed over to Mizoram after the fighting started in the neighbouring country last week. The majority of them have returned to their country, a police officer said. Mizoram shares a 510-km-long porous border with Myanmar. The northeastern state has provided shelter to more than 31,000 people from Myanmar, who fled after the military junta seized power in a coup in February 2021. The Myanmar nationals, who took shelter in Mizoram, are from the Chin community. The Chins and Mizos belong to the Zo ethnic group. Hundreds of patients, medical workers, and others displaced by Israels bombardment on Hamas left Gazas largest hospital on Saturday, with one evacuee describing a terrified and chaotic scene as Israeli forces inspected and face-scanned those leaving and hauled several away. The Israeli military has been investigating Gaza Citys Shifa Hospital for a Hamas command centre, which it claims is hidden beneath the hospital a claim both Hamas and hospital workers dispute. Only Israeli military and a tiny number of medical personnel remained after the withdrawal, which Israel claims was voluntary. We left at gunpoint, Mahmoud Abu Auf told The Associated Press by phone after he and his family left the crowded hospital. Tanks and snipers were everywhere inside and outside. He said he saw Israeli troops detain three men. In northern Gaza, dozens of Palestinians were murdered in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp when an Israeli aircraft targeted a crowded United Nations shelter in the main conflict zone, according to witnesses. It wreaked havoc on the camps Fakhoura school, according to injured survivors Ahmed Radwan and Yassin Sharif. The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help, Radwan said by phone. AP photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which had warned Jabaliya residents and others in a social media post in Arabic to leave, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. It rarely comments on individual strikes, saying only that it targets Hamas while trying to minimize civilian harm. Receiving horrifying images & footage of scores of people killed and injured in another UNRWA school sheltering thousands of displaced, Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, said on X, formerly Twitter. In southern Gaza, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential building on the outskirts of the town of Khan Younis, killing at least 26 Palestinians, according to a doctor at the hospital where the bodies were taken. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israels forces have begun operating in eastern Gaza City while continuing its mission in western areas. With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate, he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza in the coming days. His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to southern Gaza, where Israel had told Palestinian civilians to flee early in the war. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moves closer. What led to the Shifa Hospital evacuation wasnt immediately known. Israels military said it was asked by the hospitals director to help those who would like to leave to do so and that it did not order an evacuation. But Medhat Abbas, a spokesman for the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza, said the military ordered the facility cleared and gave the hospital an hour to get people out. A Shifa physician, Ahmed Mokhallalati, said on social media that about 120 patients remained, including some in intensive care and premature babies, and that he and five other doctors were staying. Twenty-five of Gazas hospitals arent functioning due to a lack of fuel, damage and other problems, and the other 11 are only partially operational, according to the World Health Organization. Israel has said hospitals in northern Gaza were a key target of its ground offensive, claiming they were used as militant command centers and weapons depots, which both Hamas and medical staff deny. Internet and phone service were restored Saturday to Gaza, ending a telecommunications outage that had forced the United Nations to shut down critical aid deliveries. The war was triggered by Hamas Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel, in which militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted some 240 men, women and children. Fifty-two Israeli soldiers have been killed. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday that the Israeli military would have full freedom to operate within the territory after the war. The comments again put him in conflict with US visions for a post-war era in Gaza. In an op-ed published Saturday in The Washington Post, President Joe Biden said Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited and governed under a revitalized Palestinian Authority while world leaders work toward a peaceful two-state solution. Netanyahu has long opposed a Palestinian state. The US is providing weapons and intelligence support to Israel in its offensive to root out Hamas. Growing frustration Gazas main power plant shut down early in the war, and Israel has cut off electricity. That makes fuel necessary to power generators needed to run water treatment plants, sanitation facilities, hospitals and other critical infrastructure for Gazas 2.3 million people. UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma said 120,000 liters (31,700 gallons) of fuel arrived, enough for two days, for the U.N.s use after Israel agreed to the shipment. Israel also is allowing 10,000 liters (2,642 gallons) to keep internet and telephone systems running. It wasnt immediately clear when UNRWA would resume aid that was put on hold Friday during the communications blackout. Gaza has received only 10% of its required food supplies each day in shipments from Egypt, according to the U.N., and the water system shutdown has left most of the population drinking contaminated water. Dehydration and malnutrition are growing, according to the U.N.s World Food Program. In Jerusalem, thousands of marchers including family members and supporters of about 240 hostages held in Gaza by Hamas arrived on the last leg of a five-day trek from Tel Aviv to plead with the government to do more to bring their loved ones home. The Israeli military said its aircraft struck what it described as a hideout for militants in the urban refugee camp of Balata in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance service said five Palestinians were killed. The deaths raised to 212 the number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank since the war began. A deal to free hostages Hamas seized in its 7 October attack on Israel now hinges on minor practical issues, Qatars prime minister said Sunday, without giving details or a timeline. The challenges that remain in the negotiations are very minor compared to the bigger challenges, they are more logistical, they are more practical, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told a joint press conference with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Qatar has helped broker talks aiming to free some of the 240 hostages in return for a temporary ceasefire, a mediation effort that has so far led to the release of four hostages. The deal is going through ups and downs from time to time throughout the last few weeks, the premier said. I think that Im now more confident that we are close enough to reach a deal that can bring the people safely back to their homes. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the 7 October attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw the 240 hostages taken. The armys relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. The United States said Saturday it was still working to secure a deal between Israel and Hamas after the Washington Post reported there was a tentative agreement to free women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a pause in fighting. Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said all parties would halt combat operations for at least five days while some hostages were to be released in batches. The White House quickly responded on Saturday evening with a message on X, formerly Twitter, to deny any major breakthrough. Thani said on Sunday it was counterproductive to see leaks about the negotiations coming out in the media before sealing the deal. On Thursday Biden said he was mildly hopeful of reaching a deal to free the hostages, believed to include about 10 US citizens. Israel has so far refused to heed calls for a ceasefire before all the captives are released. The Ukrainian army said Sunday that it has pushed Russian forces back three to eight kilometres from the banks of the Dnipro river, which if confirmed would be the first meaningful advance by Kyivs forces months into a disappointing counteroffensive. Preliminary figures vary from three to eight kilometres, depending on the specifics, geography and landscape design of the left bank, army spokeswoman Natalia Gumenyuk told Ukrainian television, without specifying whether Ukraines military had complete control of the area or if the Russians had retreated. The enemy still continues artillery fire on the right bank, she said, estimating that several tens of thousands of Russian troops are in the area. We have a lot of work to do, she added. Ukrainian and Russian forces have been entrenched on opposite sides of the vast waterway in the southern Kherson region for more than a year after Russia withdrew its troops from the western bank last November. Ukrainian forces have staged multiple attempts to cross and hold positions on the Russian-controlled side with officials in Kyiv finally reporting a successful breakthrough last week. It comes after Kyivs much-awaited counteroffensive launched last June had largely fizzled, with Ukraine retaking just a handful of villages in the south and east. The last significant success claimed by Kyiv was the retaking in August of the village of Robotyne in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia. Ukrainian forces were not able to further pierce Russias defensive lines. A bridgehead on the left bank of the Dnipro would allow a deeper offensive in the south, though it would require deploying more men and armour in the difficult-to-reach marshy region. AFP has not able to independently confirm the claims made by officials. In a letter to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, eleven members of the US Congress urged the Biden administration to delay future US assistance to Pakistan until the country restores constitutional order and holds free and fair elections. The congressmen asked the Department of State to make a legal determination under the Leahy Laws and Section 502(b) of the Foreign aid Act to determine if US-origin security aid helped human rights breaches in Pakistan. In the letter, they wrote, We further request that future security assistance be withheld until Pakistan has moved decisively toward the restoration of Constitutional order, including by holding free and fair elections in which all parties are able to participate freely. The letter also mentioned the countrys efforts to enhance the blasphemy law, warning Secretary Blinken that the proposed reforms would be utilised to further tighten the noose around smaller religious organisations and minorities. Nearly a dozen members of Congress, including Ilhan Omar, are calling for the restoration of constitutional order and the repeal of blasphemy laws. We are extremely concerned about the passing of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2023 which will strengthen the existing blasphemy law, which has historically been used to persecute religious minorities, the lawmakers wrote. They said the bill, which has yet to be signed by the president, was passed in haste despite repeated calls from many lawmakers for a thorough parliamentary procedure. The letter further stated that on August 16, eight days after the measure was passed, a mob desecrated churches and set fire to Christian homes in Jaranwala. It also mentioned reported anti-bill protests, especially those by the Shia community in Gilgit-Baltistan. Religious persecution remains rampant in Pakistan, and we are concerned about future restrictions on freedom of religion and belief should this Bill become law, the lawmakers warned. The initiative was spearheaded by Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a vocal supporter of Muslim rights in the US Congress. Frank Pallone Jr., Joaquin Castro, Summer Lee, Ted W. Lieu, Dina Titus, Lloyd Doggett, and Cori Bush are among the other signatories. The majority of them are members of Congress progressive caucus, which has played a significant role in raising awareness of the Palestinian crisis in Washington and also attends protest meetings and rallies calling for a quick ceasefire in Gaza. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom stated in its most recent report on Pakistan that religious minorities were especially vulnerable to prosecution or violence based on blasphemy allegations, and that blasphemy cases remained a significant threat to religious freedom. The previous government in Pakistan was also accused of weaponizing the countrys blasphemy laws against former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his cabinet members, according to the study. While recognising Pakistans importance as a long-standing ally, the lawmakers also emphasised the importance of addressing issues such as restrictions on freedom of expression, speech, and religion, enforced disappearances, military courts, and harassment and arrest of political opponents and human rights defenders. In addition to the continued harassment and arrests, the MPs brought up the cases against PTI head Imran Khan, emphasising that he might face the death penalty for allegedly breaking the Official Secrets Act. The letter also cited Imaan Mazari, a human rights lawyer who was arrested at 3 a.m. after speaking at a rally against enforced disappearances. The letter encouraged the US Embassy in Islamabad to send observers to human rights defenders and political dissidents hearings and other legal proceedings, notably in high-profile instances involving Ms Mazari, Khadija Shah, and Mr Khan. We believe that the United States can play a constructive role in supporting positive change, and it is our hope that our cooperation can contribute to a more just and equitable future for the people of Pakistan, the lawmakers wrote. They also expressed an interest in collaborating with Secretary Blinken to advance human rights, democracy, and stability in Pakistan. However, it is uncertain how the US administration, notably the Department of State, will respond to these concerns and whether the dynamics of the US-Pakistan relationship will be affected. The focus on human rights transgressions in Washington highlights the delicate balance between geopolitical ties and the promotion of democratic norms on a global scale. When commenting on Pakistans current political crisis, the State Department has been extremely circumspect. The subject has been highlighted on a regular basis in the State Departments daily briefings, where the spokesman has avoided making statements that may be perceived as support for either the government or the opposition. Six alleged drug mules have been caught at an international airport with their stomachs full of cocaine. Staggering X-rays reveal the huge quantity of the Class A drugs crammed inside their bodies, with the capsules used to store the cocaine clearly showing up on x-ray images taken after authorities detected something wasn't quite right with the six men. They were rumbled when police officers at Guarulhos International Airport near Brazil's Sao Paulo were conducting routine inspections and noticed one traveller acting nervously. He was searched and his luggage was inspected, before he was put through an explosives and narcotics trace detector which detected traces of cocaine. X-rays of the men's bodies show dozens of capsules inside them. Source: Jam Press When questioned, he confessed to swallowing several capsules containing cocaine. Five more passengers were then given the same tests, with the same results. They reportedly confessed to swallowing between 100 and 150 capsules between them. X-ray reveals wild find inside traveller's suitcase: 'Shocked' Aussie tourist stumped over discovery on baggage in Bali X-ray reveals 'unusual' $118k find in traveller's luggage The six suspects were immediately taken from the busy airport to a nearby hospital. There, they underwent procedures to expel the foreign objects. The suspects are from Nigeria and the flight they had tickets for was bound for Ethiopia. Three had a final destination in Kano, Nigeria, local media report. One of the men has his suitcase searched. Source: Jam Press Police found that one suspect had been arrested at the same airport in 2017 on a pending warrant. Three others had entered Brazil as asylum seekers. The men, whose identities have not been revealed, are facing potential drug smuggling charges. Medics warn that ruptured capsules can result in intestinal obstruction and death from cocaine intoxication. - Jam Press Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Press Release November 18, 2023 Bong Go emphasizes good governance during the Philippine Councilors League-Pangasinan Chapter's 2nd General Assembly in Tagaytay City Senator Christopher "Bong" Go personally attended the second day of the Philippine Councilors League (PCL)-Pangasinan Chapter 2nd General Assembly and Awarding Ceremonies at the Summit Ridge Hotel in Tagaytay City, Cavite on Thursday, November 16. The event, which was held from November 15 to 17, served as a platform to share insights on the pivotal role of good governance in fostering vibrant and progressive communities. Go addressed the assembly, stressing the shared responsibility of all public servants to uphold the principles of good governance. With 144 councilors, some mayors and vice mayors, from across Pangasinan in attendance, the senator highlighted the importance of focusing on the collective duty to prioritize the interests and welfare of constituents. "As public servants, we share a common purpose -- to serve the best interests of our constituents and to contribute to the betterment of our communities," Go highlighted. "Huwag nyo po akong ituring na ibang tao. Pareho naman po tayo mga legislators, pareho po halos ang trabaho natin, on a larger scale lang po yung amin. Pero importante sa ating trabaho huwag nating limitahan bilang mambabatas. Tayo po'y lapitan rin po ng tao kaya magkasama po tayo sa pagseserbisyo sa ating kapwa Pilipino," he continued. He emphasized that effective governance requires collaboration and unity among elected officials at all levels, working together for the betterment of the communities they serve. Acknowledging the challenges they face in their day-to-day responsibilities, Go then expressed his gratitude for the hard work and commitment exhibited by the councilors. "I would also like to take this opportunity to reaffirm my commitment to advocating for pro-poor programs that aim to uplift the lives of those who need it most," Go highlighted. "As we face the challenges brought about by the global pandemic, it is paramount that we prioritize the needs of the marginalized sectors. I firmly believe that economic recovery should be inclusive, leaving no one behind," he stressed. As an adopted son of Pangasinan, Go also expressed his commitment to help the development of the province. He assured the local officials that his office is always open to help them and serve as their partners in good governance. "Lahat ng mga konsehal ng Pangasinan maraming salamat sa inyo at salamat sa inyong sakripisyo sa panahon ng pandemya. Hindi po natin mararating ito kung hindi po dahil sa inyo. Kayo po ang dapat pasalamatan," expressed Go. "Patuloy na magseserbisyo po sa inyong lahat. Dahil ako po ay naniniwala na ang serbisyo sa tao ay serbisyo po yan sa Diyos," he continued. In his capacity as a legislator and his commitment to modernizing government functions for enhanced accessibility to public services, Go has introduced Senate Bill No. (SBN) 194, or the E-Governance Act. This proposed legislation seeks to establish a comprehensive and interconnected network for information, resource-sharing, and communication, bridging the gap between national and local government entities. Should it become a law, the bill will necessitate the establishment of an internal records management information system, an expansive information database, and digital portals designed for the efficient delivery of public services. The incorporation of digital platforms and online systems is aimed at streamlining administrative procedures, simplifying the provision of public services, and fostering increased engagement with citizens. Moreover, Go has voiced his support for another proposed salary hike for public sector employees. This proposal builds upon the earlier Salary Standardization Law (SSL) 5, which Go authored and co-sponsored in 2020. SSL 5, institutionalized under Republic Act 11466, resulted in enhanced remuneration for all government workers. "Iilan lamang ito sa napakaraming programa na patuloy kong isinusulong. But I would like to appeal to everyone, let us work hand in hand to ensure that the programs we implement are geared towards creating opportunities for our less fortunate Filipinos," Go appealed. "In conclusion, let this gathering serve as a reminder of the shared responsibility we bear as public servants. Your hard work, dedication, and passion for service do not go unnoticed," he ended. On the same day, Go was in Lipa City, Batangas and attended the groundbreaking of the city's Super Health Center. A Woolworths delivery driver has allegedly been held up at gunpoint in a terrifying encounter at a store in Perth's southeast. WA Police says the worker was approached shortly after 5am on Saturday by a 26-year-old man armed with a gun before stealing the driver's truck in the Thornlie Square store's car park. Less than an hour the vehicle was spotted by police, however the man allegedly failed to stop. The truck was taken on an alleged joyride with police eventually in pursuit (right). Source: Nine News Vision obtained by Nine News shows the truck pursued by several police vehicles as it fails to stop. Police say the vehicle was eventually pulled over in Greenfields where the man was arrested. He is alleged to have threatened two other people with the gun during the joyride prior to police pulling him over. The man is now facing nine charges including aggravated armed robbery and stealing a motor vehicle and driving recklessly. He is due to attend court on Sunday. A Woolworths spokesperson described the incident to Nine News as "frightening" and said the company was "very grateful" the driver is safe, offering him support through the ordeal. Calls for better security to protect workers The alleged incident comes amid growing calls for increased security at the nation's major supermarkets to protect workers. The Retail and Fast Food Workers Union last month organised a strike across Coles and Woolworths stores seeking better conditions for workers. RAFFWU secretary Sean Cullinan said supermarkets are unsafe workplaces that are akin to "crime scenes", a problem the union believes was exacerbated by the Covid pandemic. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Thanksgiving Day is coming upon us, and that means holiday gift shopping gets into full gear. So its the time of year for the annual Books Make Great Gifts Guide. Books make great gifts they always fit, are never the wrong color or size, and are easy to wrap. For your best friend whose television is tuned permanently to the Hallmark Channel this month, Sarah J. Morgans The Book Club Hotel has a charming Vermont boutique hotel setting at Christmas, best friends, and a romance. Jenny Colgans The Christmas Bookshop is set in lovely Edinburgh, Scotland, and centers on a young woman determined to save the bookshop where she is employed from being purchased and turned into another tacky tourist shop. Mary Kay Andrews annual holiday book Bright Lights, Big Christmas takes place in New York City as a brother and sister come up from North Carolina to sell their familys Christmas trees in Greenwich Village in New York City and save the family business. For your sister who loves true crime podcasts and fictional mysteries and thrillers, Jessica Knolls novel Bright Young Women tells the story of two women connected to the crimes of real-life killer Ted Bundy. Tess Gerritsen starts a terrific new thriller series with Spy Coast," where a few retired CIA spies have settled in a small town in coastal Maine. When one of them is threatened by someone from her past, the spies bond together to save the day. For your aunt who likes to read historical fiction and recently binged the miniseries All the Light We Cannot See," Kelly Rimmers The Paris Agent is a tense novel about ordinary British citizens who become undercover spies in World War II France, and the price they pay to try and save the world. Turning to nonfiction: For your uncle the history buff, David Grann, author of Killers of the Flower Moon," has a new book, The Wager, about a shipwreck, mutiny and murder in 1740. Its gotten rave reviews. Rachel Maddows new book Prequel has been getting a lot of buzz. It tells the true tale of Nazis sympathizers who infiltrated power positions in Congress, media and religion in the United States in the lead up to World War II. Moving up chronologically, Loren Grushs The Six is about the first six women in NASAs space shuttle program in the 1960s and 1970s. This one is for your mom who read Hidden Figures." Speaking of the 1970s, Henry Winklers fascinating memoir Being Henry takes him from his childhood through his breakout role as the Fonz on the TV hit Happy Days," through his struggle with dyslexia to his Emmy-winning role on HBOs Barry and more. This one will be a great gift for so many people on your holiday list. General Hospital heartthrob, Uncle Jesse on Full House," and perpetually youthful-looking John Stamos has a memoir out as well that will appeal to fans of his many years in popular culture. For the person who loves to be creative in the kitchen, there are two good cookbooks out. Natashas Kitchen by popular blogger Natasha Kravchuk has 100 family-friendly and foolproof recipes, including some from her native Ukraine. Molly Baz shares her motto More is More in her cookbook, which is great for cooks of all skill levels. Molly believes in intuitive cooking, not so much in exact measurements. For readers who loved "Game of Thrones," Rebecca Yarros' two novels The Fourth Wing and Iron Flame would make a great gift. Young adult fantasy readers will love Rebecca Ross Divine Rivals." Jenny Hans The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy has been repackaged in a three-book set for those who love the Amazon Prime series it is based on. Middle-grade readers are big fans of Rick Riordans series of novels, and his new one in the Olympians series is The Chalice of the Gods." Christopher Paolinis new addition to his popular Eragon series is Murtagh." Other popular series for children are The Magic Tree House, which has over 50 books in the series, the Wimpy Kid series and the "Bad Guys series. Mo Willems has a new picture book for youngsters, Dont Let the Pigeon Drive the Sleigh," and poet Amanda Gormans Something Someday teaches about kindness. And you cant go wrong with a Sandra Boynton board book for babies. Remember that you can support independent booksellers by purchasing on bookshop.org. We've had a Does It Triple from Friction, Mozey and the Lee Mvtthews boys - but Gray came in with one goal in mind, to make a name for himself, and he wasn't ready to settle with just three tracks. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close Dennis received bachelor's degrees in communication and political science with a TAG degree in Spanish from The University of Akron in Ohio. He grew up in Ohio with 2 sisters and two brothers, one being his fraternal twin. He and his wife have 3 dogs: Duke, Bacio, and Cal. Dennis currently covers natural resource and environmental issues for The Daily Sentinel The Associated Press United Auto Workers local 862 members strike outside of Fords Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, Kentucky on Oct. 12. On Saturday, union workers at Ford and Stellantis joined their counterparts at General Motors in agreeing to new contracts that ended a recent auto workers strike. Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. The Associated Press Palestinians inspect the rubble of the Yassin Mosque destroyed after it was hit by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Oct. 9. Israels airstrike was in retaliation for the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas in which the terrorist organization killed more than 1,200 people mostly civilians and took more than 200 people as hostages. The conflict between Israel and Hamas is still on-going. After working over the weekend to find ways to address the immediate problem of increased property tax assessments, the Colorado Legislature e David Wilcox Executive editor Follow David Wilcox Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Many questions have been raised about the ticketing of the Cayuga County clerk-elect for crashing into a parked car and leaving the scene the night of Nov. 11 in the town of Owasco. Why wasn't Brian Scanlan, who won election to the office that week, ticketed for the accident until four days later? Did law enforcement investigate the cause? Can he still take office in January? The Citizen reached out to Cayuga County Sheriff Brian Schenck for answers to some of those questions. Schenck said his office, assisted by New York State Police, responded to the scene of the crash, 12 Fairway Drive, at about 8:30 that night. Officers interviewed Dr. Cyndy King, who told The Citizen her Subaru was a total loss due to the damage. Callers said the car was struck by a red truck, Schenck continued, and King told officers that before they arrived the truck drove by again. Officers also checked the area for the red truck and interviewed residents of a nearby home where several vehicles were parked, Schenck said. They denied knowing who was driving the truck. The next day, Schenck continued, a deputy received a voicemail from an attorney representing someone involved in the crash. When the deputy arrived for work that evening he contacted the attorney, who said they had been retained by Scanlan. The sheriff's office first made contact with the clerk-elect at 10:30 Wednesday morning, Schenck said, when the attorney brought his client there. "Being that Scanlan had retained him, we could not interview him, nor contact him unless we went through his counsel," the sheriff said. That morning, Scanlan confirmed he was the driver of the red truck and was ticketed for leaving the scene of an accident, which is categorized by New York state law as a violation. Upon conviction, it carries a fine of up to $250, a $93 surcharge and three points on a driver's license, Schenck said. Scanlan will appear in Owasco Town Court at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 28. Due to the nature of the accident, the sheriff's office could not determine whether alcohol was a factor, Schenck said. However, the owner of the Fairway Drive house where the accident took place hopes that will be determined. Attorney Joe Camardo, whose mother's funeral that weekend brought King to the area from North Carolina, told The Citizen this week he intends to pursue civil action against Scanlan. He might petition the Cayuga County district attorney to seek further criminal action as well. "(King) is traumatized over this whole thing," Camardo said. Noting Fairway Drive has a 30 mph speed limit and his house is located about 275 feet from a stop sign, Camardo called Scanlan "a maniac." The attorney said he also intends to keep Scanlan from taking the clerk's office in January. His ability to do so after the accident is another question it has raised. But the violation is not disqualifying, as he has not yet been sworn in. If the accident took place after Scanlan took the oath of office, it still wouldn't have been disqualifying, according to the New York State Public Officers Law. Scanlan has not responded to a request for comment by The Citizen. An independent endorsed by the Cayuga County Democratic Committee, the retired Auburn firefighter won election with 42.6% of the vote, defeating Conservative candidate Kristine Lytle and Republican candidate Chris Petrus after a competitive three-way race. He will succeed longtime Clerk Sue Dwyer. Scanlan preparing to succeed Dwyer as Cayuga County clerk Cayuga County Clerk-elect Brian Scanlan is working with Sue Dwyer, the longtime clerk, on a transition plan as he prepares to succeed her in January. Sat Saturday 40 /29 More clouds than sun. Highs in the low 40s and lows in the upper 20s. Gaza/Israel: Intervention of High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain European External Action Service (EEAS) 18.11.2023 Manama EEAS Press Team Check against delivery! Thank you. Let me first thank you for your invitation. The Manama Forum is the place to be, in particular in these challenging times. Happy to be here in Bahrain, which means 'between two seas'. And this goes beyond geography. Bahrain is a country between different forces, different traditions, a country that plays a moderating role in this region, a role that is much needed and much appreciated in this time of extreme polarisation because the rise of emotional polarisation and the gap between people, governments, is one of the most important challenges of our time. A country that is a beacon in the region and in the world, so thank you very much to the Manama Forum and to the authorities of Bahrain for hosting us. I want to pay tribute to His Excellency the Crown Prince of Bahrain, who took a bold step beyond the official position of Arab partners last night condemning both sides of the conflict, Hamas and Israel, for what has resulted [in] a tremendous loss of human lives, livelihoods, and hope. And hope in a better future. We have to move from war to peace. To de-escalation. And for that we have diplomacy, diplomacy is the tool, our most valuable instrument, but we are far from getting results. I am trying to talk with my mind and my heart also, because I am coming from Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Ramallah, and one has to be able to say the same things everywhere. I would be easy here to get your applause, but if my words had to have meaning. [They] have to be the same when I am talking to the Israelis face to face, when I am talking to the families of the people being kidnapped, when I am talking to the families of the victims in the kibbutz, and when I am thinking [about] the families of people being killed in Gaza. I know it is not easy. I know it is not easy to represent here the European Union. Last year it was much easier. It was just necessary to blame Iran to being applauded. Today it is going to be a little bit more difficult, I know. But I will face this challenge. Honestly. And I think that there are two dimensions. First humanitarian or, if you want to call it, the way the war is being conducted by Israel in Gaza. And from this point of view, I am fully agreeing with you, Minister Safadi, on the data you have been providing, about the number of casualties, I am not going to repeat that. The suffering of civilian populations will only increase if we are not able to stop this. And we are working on this. We have increased our humanitarian aid. And certainly we have to do more. But it does not make any sense to give me a dinner tonight, if you are going to kill me tomorrow. So yes, humanitarian support is needed, but what is more needed is to stop the cause that humanitarian aid is needed. And the second one is the political stage. In Jerusalem and Tel Aviv I met with UN agencies, and they painted a dire picture. They know how the situation is in Gaza. And when you go and you visit the kibbutz and you see what is happening there, you can only think one thing: one horror does not justify another horror. And after the humanitarian stage, there will be unavoidably a political stage and the end game is well known. It is the two state solution. However, I hesitate to talk about it. Not because I don't believe in it [or] because I see any other solution. I hesitate because we have been repeating once and again for 30 years: two state solution. Since Oslo's time. 30 years ago. Two state solution, two state solution, two state solution. And doing nothing or almost nothing to implement it. And I think that, by repeating two state solution while doing nothing to implement it, we have been giving tactical coverage to the strategy of expanding settlements in the West Bank. In Oslo times there were X and now there are 4 times X: 4 times more settlers. And the Palestinian territory has been reduced to an archipelago of small pieces of land not interconnected among them which makes much more difficult the two state solution that we are preaching. That is why six months ago I started working with Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and the Arab League in a very enthusiastic way to try to revive this process, to take that in the centre of the stage. Because it is a fallacy that we could solve the problem in the region thinking we could have agreements between Arab States and the State of Israel, forgetting about the Palestinians. They are there. And they have to be taken into account. And there has to be also peace between Israel and Palestine. Otherwise there will not be peace and no security in the region and in the world. And I think the Europeans and the Arabs have a particular responsibility to engage more in looking for a solution. However, what haunts me is that this mantra that has been repeated once and again maybe was a way of washing our hands and keep them clear. And we have never delivered. Therefore talking about the two state solution without defining the progressive and provisional steps to get there, that can one day lead to it, is not useful. And this is an occasion. Maybe it is a wake-up call for the international community in order to take that seriously. And that's why I have been talking about some way of getting out of that. I was in Tokyo also discussing with my friend [UN] Secretary [Anthony] Blinken and others. And certainly there are some red lines that we have to define. These red lines are: no re-occupation and no forced displacement of population. Well, but when you say 'forced displacement of population', think about it. When you are being bombed [and are] starving, you will [be] displaced. Serious forced displacement of population. We mean no forced displacement of population out of Gaza because Gaza is a Palestinian territory and should remain a Palestinian territory. So no separation from the territory of Gaza from the West bank and East Jerusalem. There are no three Palestinian territories. There is one Palestinian territory. So no reduction of the territory of Gaza. Certainly no return to the status quo. No more terrorist attacks from Gaza and against Israel, and this means that Hamas cannot be in control of Gaza any longer. So who will be in control of Gaza? I think only one could do that. The Palestinian authority. I was in Ramallah , they told me they are ready and willing to take this responsibility. In fact, right now, the schools, the hospitals, the public services in Gaza are being run by the Palestinian authority. They are paying for it. And there are tens of thousands of staff from the Palestinian authority serving the people in Gaza. But they will need international support. It is not a matter of replacing them, it is a matter of supporting and helping them. And this will require a strong involvement of the Arab countries in the economic and political reconstruction of Gaza, not only the physical reconstruction of Gaza. I was in Gaza in 2008, after the first bombing of the city, and since then we have reconstructed Gaza physically four times. It is not a matter of rebuilding the buildings. It is a matter of building states. Statehood. And the Arab countries need to take their political responsibilities. And in particular those among you that have a good relations with Israel and also have been trusted by the Palestinian authority. I think Egypt and Jordan have a crucial role to play now but also Saudi Arabia and all of you. And finally, we the European Union we too need to engage more in looking for a solution. We all need peace between Israelis and Palestinians, more than ever, because never has the polarisation between the north and the south, and within our societies, as alarming as it is today. Thousands of anti-Semitic acts have been deplored in Western societies. This has to be fought. Yes, Israel deserves security and the Palestinians deserve dignity. Yes Israel deserves security, and the Palestinians in the West Bank too deserve security. More than 400 of them have been killed since the beginning of the year. So I said clearly in the kibbutz, I said clearly in Ramallah, everywhere; one horror does not justify another. And enduring peace and security cannot be delivered without a political process. People have no responsibility for the crimes committed in the kibbutz. They don't have to pay for it. Peace has never seemed too far away. But maybe this is an opportunity that we cannot miss. As my friend Shimon Peres told me once: 'war is not inevitable, peace is inevitable'. And as European, I can attest [to] you that this is true. Peace is possible. The only question is: how many innocent lives will need to be lost until we get this realisation? This lies in our hands. Let's work for it. Thank you. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gaza/Israel: Press remarks by High Representative Josep Borrell after meeting with Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia Prince Faisal in Bahrain European External Action Service (EEAS) 18.11.2023 Manama EEAS Press Team Check against delivery! Thank you to Prince Faisal for this meeting. You are right, Prince, we had a visionary attitude when we started talking about the peace efforts in New York [in September]. These tragic events [in and around Gaza] give an opportunity, it is a wakeup call. We need to work together in order to get peace and security for everybody. It can be our common endeavour. And we have to work together, and Princ Faisal with delegation will come to the Barcelona to the Union for Mediterranean [meeting] at the end of the month, and also he will attend the Foreign Affairs council in December in order to have a full understanding of each other's positions. And today we have been discussing about how we can advance together to make peace, because peace is the ultimate security guarantee for Israelis and for the Palestinians. Q: What are the common points between the EU side and Saudi side on the crisis in Gaza? How to build on them for peace? Both coincide on security for everybody - security for Israel, security for the Palestinians. We share the concern about what is happening in the West Bank, and we share the concern for all the civilian losses - in Israel and in Gaza. This requires a common effort - from the Arab world and from the Europeans. I think that we, together, can push for sustainable peace, and this is our endeavour and that is why I said we will start working, continue the work on what we started in the United Nations, and with the invitation for Prince Faisal and his delegation [...inaudible...] to participate in our meetings in Barcelona and in Brussels. [...Foreign Minister Faisal speaks on the need for immediate ceasefire...] ... and for that [there is] UN [Security Council] resolution, presented by one member of the EU and voted for by other members of the European Union, where we are asking for immediate and urgent pauses in order to avoid more casualties. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Press statement by President von der Leyen at El Arish Airport European Commission Statement 18 November 2023 El Arish Governor, thank you very much for hosting me here in El Arish. I am very grateful to President El-Sisi for having invited me to come to Egypt and witness the humanitarian aid operations unfolding here in El Arish and at the Rafah border crossing. Above all, I want to thank the Egyptian authorities - you personally, Governor - for ensuring humanitarian access to and from Gaza via Rafah, and for quickly setting up the El Arish hub to stockpile vital supplies. Egypt is truly providing a lifeline to Gaza. And the European Union is making full use of this lifeline to address the humanitarian needs in Gaza. Indeed, we are the largest donor to the Palestinian people, and one of the main and most reliable donors to UNRWA. Over the last month, we have quadrupled our humanitarian aid to over EUR 100 million. And in addition, our Member States have provided EUR 260 million. We have organised a Humanitarian Air Bridge operation. It is bringing vital supplies to El Arish for the people of Gaza. We have today completed 15 flights so far. And we are organising more and more flights every day. None of this would be possible without the excellent and close coordination with the Egyptian authorities, UNWRA and the Egyptian Red Crescent. This is why we have established a coordination cell with the International Federation of the Red Crescent and the Red Cross. And I am happy to be able to hand over to the Egyptian Red Crescent the most recent aid donated by the European Union. Of course, we all agree that the volumes of aid reaching Gaza need to increase. This is, for example, the idea behind the proposal from Cyprus to set up a maritime corridor. We are in close contact with the Cypriot authorities to support them in defining the logistical parameters of such a corridor. And we stand ready to provide technical expertise in all relevant fields, based on their needs. We are also supporting Egypt as it helps wounded Palestinians, for example with medical equipment like anaesthesia machines from Sweden, or ventilators, oxygen concentrators and ultrasound machines from our European Union emergency reserve based in Germany, Hungary and the Netherlands. In addition to our humanitarian support, we are reaching out to our partners in the region to prevent violence from spreading. I had a very good meeting on this with President El-Sisi this morning. We discussed in particular how to work together to avoid regional escalation. Egypt is a key partner in this. Its voice is heard across the region and by all actors. Tomorrow, I will be in Jordan to meet King Abdullah. Jordan also has an important stabilising role in the Middle East. And the King is steadfast in his search for a lasting solution to the conflict. My discussions go hand in hand with those of the HR/VP Josep Borrell who is also engaging actively with his counterparts in the region. Because dialogue is so essential to keep the flame of peace alive. This brings me to my final point. Even as we deal with the urgency of today, we must also think about what the day after could look like, and how Israelis and Palestinians can regain hope and have a perspective. For this, they need a political horizon. And this horizon is the two-state solution. Of course, this requires an agreement between Israelis and Palestinians. But the European Union is ready to support this process once the time comes, in very close cooperation with our friends and partners. Thank you so much. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Press Briefing by IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari November 18th, 21:30 IDF Press Release Press Briefing 18.11.23 IDF Good evening, IDF forces continue to fight and deepen their gains in the northern Gaza Strip. We are focusing on combat with Hamas battalions in these areas. Israeli aircraft, along with reserve soldiers, killed the cell that launched rockets into Israel yesterday evening. The terrorists were killed within less than an hour, as our reservist forces on the ground identified the cell and directed aircraft to strike, killing the terrorists. This is a significant level of coordination between the air and land forces, along with precise and quality intelligence, that resulted in the targeting of terrorists that just launched a rocket to the center of Israel. This is the way we operate, all the time, in addition to our ongoing ground operation in Gaza. Our forces also continue to deepen the operation and uncover terrorist infrastructure, including in hospitals. This morning, we responded to the request of the Shifa hospital management and opened a secure passage south for civilians in the hospital. We also brought in food and water into the hospital complex. The forces continue to operate in the hospital with four main objectives: One, gathering information on the hostages. That is a top priority. Two, locating weapons and command and control rooms. Three, finding terrorists in the hospital complex. Four, a significant effort to uncover the underground area underneath the hospital and to destroy it. Even at this hour, special forces are operating in the shaft that we discovered last night at the Shifa hospital. We will distribute the visual documentation from there, in the near future. The efforts continue in other hospitals as well, in Rantisi and Al-Quds hospitals, and in other hospitals. I came back from the field, having met soldiers from various forcesarmored, reservists, and special forces. I saw troops determined to accomplish these four objectives, which I mentioned, and to deliver results. In the north, aircraft struck a variety of Hezbollah terror targets in south Lebanon, including military compounds and terror posts. IDF fighter jets destroyed an advanced land-to-air missile system, in response to fire at a UAV used by our forces. The UAV made an emergency landing in Israeli territory. I want to emphasize that this UAV was not hit by Hezbollah fire. We continue to return fire immediately every time, to sources of fire toward Israeli territory. We are maintaining high preparedness in the north. In Judea and Samaria, the ISA and the IDF killed last night several terrorists in a hideaway apartment in Nablus who were planning to carry out attacks against Israel. The IDF, along with the ISA and Israel Border Police, are deployed across the entire area, both defensively and offensively. We work together, day and night, to ensure the safety of the citizens of Israel. On the home front, the instructions continue to be updated daily. Tomorrow, we will start the week with schools opening all across the country. Be sure to check the different websites and follow the instructions; they save lives. When there's a siren, enter the safe room, wait 10 minutes until the threat is over and the shrapnel no longer poses a risk, and then exit. To date, we have notified the families of 236 hostages, taken hostage on the 7th of October. The IDF continues at all times with a paramount effort to bring home the hostages being held in Gaza. We are working with a variety of means, overt and covert, to gather additional information and bring them home. This is a top national priority; it is important that the families know this. We are working around the clock to bring your loved onesour loved oneshome. To date, we have notified the families of 378 fallen IDF soldiers who fell defending the State of Israel. We embrace the families during these difficult times. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gaza death toll rises to 12,300 IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Nov 18, 2023 Tehran, IRNA -- 43 days into Israel's war on Gaza, the number of Palestinians killed in the regime's intense airstrikes continue to rise and has reached 12,300, with women and children making up most of the victims, according to the latest figures released by the Government's Media Office in the Gaza Strip. The office released the figures on Saturday night, saying that the death toll includes 5,000 children and 3,300 women. It also said that Israel's air campaign has left 30,000 Gazans injured, mostly women and children. The Gaza Media Office meanwhile put the number of Palestinians killed in an Israeli air attack on UN-run al-Fakhoora school at 200. Many Palestinians had taken shelter at the school located in Gaza's largest refugee camp, Jabalia, in the northern part of the territory. It said that the regime withdrew 500 patients from Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital, which is the largest medical complex in the blockaded territory, on Saturday morning despite the fact that they were in urgent need of medical treatment. The office, in its report, said that 60% of residential buildings in Gaza have been partially or completely destroyed in Israeli airstrikes and artillery since the war broke out on October 7. 4194 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Dozens killed in Israeli strikes on UN-run school in Gaza IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Nov 18, 2023 Tehran, IRNA -- Dozens of Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting the al-Fakhoora School, run by the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), in northern Gaza. The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that at least 50 people were killed in the strike at the school inside the Jabalia refugee camp on Saturday. The UNRWA-run facility served as a shelter for hundreds of Palestinians seeking refuge from relentless Israeli attacks. Tamara Alrifai, a spokesperson for UNRWA, said she saw "devastating" footage from the aftermath of the bombing in Jabalia, a refugee camp which has repeatedly come under Israeli strikes over the past few weeks. "I'm still waiting for reports directly from my colleagues in Gaza, but what we're seeing is another one of these horrific incidents, where civilians, people who sought shelter in a protected UN building are paying the price," she told Al Jazeera. Civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, mosques and schools, has borne the burnt of relentless Israeli air raids since the regime launched the ongoing war against Gaza on October 7. At least 12,000 Palestinians have been killed in the attacks, mostly women and children. 4353**2050 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah says hit Israeli bases with guided missiles IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Nov 18, 2023 Tehran, IRNA -- The Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah says it has launched missile attacks targeting the Zionist regime's military bases in northern occupied Palestine. According to Al-Mayadeen News Network, Hezbollah announced that its forces targeted the Hadb Al-Bustan military base with guided missiles early on Saturday. It added that the attacks resulted in casualties among the ranks of the Zionist regime. The resistance group also said it had fired missiles at al-Rahab military base in northern occupied Palestine. The Israeli military claimed 25 rockets were fired from Lebanon on Saturday and landed in open areas in the occupied territories but caused no casualties. The Lebanese resistance movement announced earlier that it had downed an Israeli unmanned aerial vehicle in southern Lebanon, identifying it as an Elbit Hermes 450 multi-purpose drone. Hezbollah has targeted Israeli military positions in recent weeks as part of its support for the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip, where Israeli assaults have killed over 12,000 people. 4354**9417 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Erdogan: Gaza cease-fire can save region from ring of fire ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sat / 18 November 2023 / 12:00 Thousands of Palestinian children, women, elderly have been killed, almost all of Gaza destroyed due to Israel's attacks, says Turkish president. Tehran (ISNA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that if Turkiye and Germany jointly achieve a humanitarian cease-fire in the ongoing Israeli war in Gaza, the region can be rescued from the ring of fire. Speaking at the joint news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, Erdogan said 13,000 Palestinians -- including children, women and elderly people -- have been killed so far in the war and almost all of Gaza has been destroyed due to Israel's attacks on the besieged enclave. "The period after Oct. 7 is not discussed at all. Can the weaponry and strength of the Hamas be compared to the arsenal and power of Israel?" he asked. The support that should be given to Palestine itself is also not provided, said the Turkish president. "Does Israel currently have nuclear weapons? Yes, but if you ask Israel, they won't admit it because they are very good at using lies. "If our hands, arms and tongues remain tied, we cannot account before history. The Israeli-Palestinian war should not be judged using the psychology of indebtedness," he said as Anadolu Agency quoted. Reminding that places of worship, churches, and hospitals are being targeted in Gaza, Erdogan said the Torah does not allow the bombing of hospitals and the killing of children. "It is against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But as seen here, how are these children being shot? How are they being killed in hospitals?" he said. "We didn't put ourselves through something like the Holocaust. I made my stance on anti-Semitism as a prime minister." Erdogan noted that German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will visit Israel soon and he will ask him to broker a cease-fire in Gaza. He emphasized the significance of both countries' potential contributions to a humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza and highlighted the importance of taking steps in this regard. "The hostages and captives have been in Israel's hands for many years. We need to see this as well. It would be unjust if we did not notice this," he said. Turkiye has not condoned attacks targeting civilians since the beginning of the conflict, said Erdogan. "Our common priority is to achieve a ceasefire and ensure the unimpeded flow of humanitarian aid," he said. On Turkiye's humanitarian assistance to Gaza, Erdogan stressed that his country has sent 10 plane loads of humanitarian aid to Egypt. The Palestinian death toll from an ongoing Israeli aggression in the Gaza Strip has surged past 12,000, the government media office in the besieged enclave said on Friday. "The victims include more than 5,000 children and 3,300 women, while 30,000 others have been injured," the media office said in a statement. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Susan Johnson has lived in Flagstaff for over 30 years and loves to delve into her adopted hometowns past. She has written two books for the History Press, Haunted Flagstaff and Flagstaffs Walkup Family Murders, and, with her son Nick, manages Freaky Foot Tours. Youll find her hiking the trails with her corgi, Shimmer. All events were taken from issues of the Arizona Daily Sun and its predecessors, the Coconino Weekly Sun and the Coconino Sun. Hezbollah: Our drones reached beyond Haifa ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sat / 18 November 2023 / 11:48 Senior Hezbollah official emphasized the continuation of this Lebanese movements operations in support of the people of Gaza and announced that Hezbollah drones reached Haifa and beyond Haifa. Tehran (ISNA) - Senior Member of the Central Council of Hezbollah in Lebanon "Nabil Qawouq" stated that as long as the war continues in Gaza, resistance is pioneer to aid Palestine with continuous operations in the field. "The resistance in Lebanon imposed a real, hard, unprecedented and continuous war to Israel, expanded its operations in terms of quantity, quality and depth, and it's drones reached Haifa and beyond Haifa." Qawouq said in an interview with Al-sharq Al-Awsat newspaper. Senior Hezbollah official also said "We proved with our operations that that we will never give up supporting Gaza and we wrote in the battlefields with the blood of our martyrs that despite the daily threats and messages of America, Gaza is not alone." "These American messages and threats have not stopped until today. Aircraft carriers are present in the sea to put pressure on the resistance to stop its operations in the south of Lebanon but the response of the resistance to the threats continues in the battlefields. Since staring "Al-Aqsa Storm" on 7th of October, Hezbollah targeting Israeli military sites and soldiers in Northern occupied Palestine. EndI tem NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Panic and fear at al-Shifa Hospital as Israel give deadline to evacuate ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sat / 18 November 2023 / 11:12 There is a great state of panic and fear among the patients, medical staff and families following Israeli army's order to evacuate the medical complex within one hour, Reports says. Tehran (ISNA)- A doctor inside al-Shifa Hospital has told Al Jazeera that the Israeli army has given the hospital one hour to evacuate. Patients, medical staff and families consider this decision, this order to be an impossible decision to make because they have no ambulances functioning to take that great number of patients to the south. The Israeli army has not provided them with any other solutions, with any means of transportation, with any fuel for ambulances or for any cars to transfer those patients, premature babies, displaced families to the south as they were ordered to do. When this same incident happened with al-Quds Hospital, doctor Bashar Murad asked the Israeli army many times to provide ambulances, transportation means, to at least provide fuel so that they can use buses to transport the patients, but there was no answer from the Israeli army; they ordered them to take the patients on foot. Panic and fear at al-Shifa Hospital as Israel give deadline to evacuate The doctors in the end, had to evacuate those patients in hospital beds and push them through the streets to the other side. But at al-Shifa Hospital, the situation is a bit different because there are a lot more patients - over 300. According to our medical sources, most of them are in critical condition and they cannot make the trip on beds to the south. Al-Shifa Hospital administrators say 40 patients, including four premature babies, have died since November 11 due to power outages, the UN reports. Meanwhile, Martin Griffiths, UN humanitarian affairs chief, says Israel should give people in Gaza "a briefer" as the humanitarian crisis in the strip has become "intolerable". "It is without doubt that the humanitarian crisis by any measure ... is intolerable and cannot continue," Griffiths said. Panic and fear at al-Shifa Hospital as Israel give deadline to evacuate "Stop the fighting to allow civilians to move safely, do it for an indefinite period to facilitate an unimpeded humanitarian response. "Give the people of Gaza a breather on the terrible things that have been put on them these last few weeks." At least 12,000 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza since October 7. In Israel, the official death toll from Hamas's attacks stands at about 1,200. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel committing 'genocide' against Gaza's health system: Palestinian minister Iran Press TV Saturday, 18 November 2023 9:47 PM The Palestinian health minister has strongly condemned Israel for committing genocide against the healthcare system in the Gaza Strip as the regime continues its indiscriminate strikes on the besieged territory. "The Israeli occupation is committing a genocide against the entire healthcare system in the Gaza Strip, including hospitals, medical doctors, and patients," Mai Alkaila said in a press conference at Palestinian Health Ministry's headquarters in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah on Saturday, which marked the 43rd day of Israel's war on Gaza, the official Palestinian Wafa news agency reported. "How long hospitals, patients, and medical teams in Gaza and the West Bank would remain hostages to the onslaught, destruction, targeting, and blockade by the Israeli occupation forces without accountability or condemnation from the international community?" she asked. The regime launched its devastating war on October 7 following an operation staged by Gaza-based resistance movements. At least 12,300 Palestinians have been killed, including more than 5,000 children, and over 29,800 people sustained injuries during the war. The regime has turned Gaza's hospitals into a specific target for its military onslaught, alleging that those facilities house Palestinian fighters and their equipment. Elsewhere in her remarks, the Palestinian official noted that no hospital in Gaza has the capacity to provide services to the massive number of wounded from the incessant Israeli bombardments. She expressed concern over the spread of numerous infectious diseases, including diarrheal diseases, affecting over 50,000 individuals, predominantly children. Respiratory infections and skin diseases such as chickenpox and scabies have also surged in Gaza, Alkaila added, citing reports from the World Health Organization and UNICEF. The minister also called for an immediate cessation of the Israeli genocide in Gaza and the West Bank, demanding a halt to targeting, shelling, and blockade of medical and healthcare facilities. Al-Shifa, Gaza's biggest hospital, has taken the brunt of the Israeli assaults on the territory's healthcare system, with the regime claiming that it houses a "command center" belonging to the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas. Alkaila called on the international organizations to mount pressure on the Israeli regime to allow relocation of the remaining children and patients from al-Shifa to other hospitals across the West Bank or Egypt. "Where is the stance of doctors and healthcare professionals worldwide regarding the atrocities committed against their colleagues in the Palestinian healthcare sector in Gaza and the West Bank?" Alkaila asked while addressing the global health community. The Israeli regime has cut off the flow of basic supplies, such as water, electricity, medicines, and fuel, to Gaza, which is one of the world's most densely populated territories housing over two million Palestinians. The minister slammed Israel for preventing entry of medicines into the territory and depriving patients of their right to receive treatment, especially children in need of oxygen, mothers in need of safe childbirth, and kidney failure patients in need of dialysis. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israeli regime should stand trial at ICC: Turkish president Iran Press TV Saturday, 18 November 2023 6:27 PM Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again criticized Israel for its ongoing atrocities in the Gaza Strip, emphasizing the need to hold the occupying regime accountable at the International Criminal Court (ICC). Erdogan made the remarks on Saturday as he returned from a day-long visit to Germany, saying there is sufficient evidence to hold Israel accountable at ICC, while vowing to use all available means to ensure that impartial punishment is delivered for the regime's crimes. "There is ample evidence" for Israel to be tried at the ICC, he said, stressing that "We will do everything in our power to ensure that these crimes are punished impartially." The Turkish president went on to say that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "a goner" and "the world will get rid of him," adding that currently, 60-70% of the Israelis oppose him. Erdogan further noted that his country has stood by the oppressed in Gaza and will continue to do so. "Israel is attempting to obstruct aid and starve Gaza of food and water. But we do not give up," he said. "Regardless of the obstacles, we will continue to keep Gaza alive. The entire world, particularly Islamic countries, should mobilize to provide aid." Israel waged the war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas carried out the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm into the occupied territories in response to the occupying regime's intensified crimes against the Palestinian people. According to the Gaza-based health ministry, at least 12,000 Palestinians have been killed in the strikes, most of them women and children. Tel Aviv has also imposed a "complete siege" on Gaza, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there. The Israeli military is continuing its deadly bombing campaign against Gaza despite widespread international condemnation. Five nations seek war crimes probe in Palestinian territories Meanwhile, five countries have jointly submitted a referral to the ICC, urging an investigation into potential crimes in Palestinian territories. ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said on Friday that he has received the joint request from Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros, adding that the request was made "to ensure that the ICC pays urgent attention to the grave situation in Palestine." The ICC prosecutor stated that there is already an ongoing investigation into the situation in Palestinian territories for potential war crimes committed since June 13, 2014. The prosecutor's office also said it had so far "collected a significant volume of information and evidence" on crimes in the Palestinian territories. ICC prosecutor Karim Khan has already warned that his office is collecting evidence that could result in an international investigation against Israel's political and military leaders, as the occupying entity keeps pounding almost all areas and facilities of the blockaded territory, including hospitals, schools and residential buildings. Israel, like the United States, is not a member of the ICC. It refused to cooperate with the court in 2021 over the war crimes investigation into the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Top Hamas official says Israel waging war of starvation on Gazans Iran Press TV Saturday, 18 November 2023 5:20 PM A senior Hamas official says the Israeli regime is waging a war of starvation on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, stressing that closure of crossings to the besieged territory has worsened the food crisis and the few aid convoys that enter the enclave cannot meet the public demands. "The Zionist enemy has adopted the policy of starvation against children and ordinary people in Gaza. The food convoys that have entered Gaza meet only 10% of the public demands," Osama Hamdan, a member of the Palestinian resistance movement's politburo, said at a press briefing in the Lebanese capital city of Beirut on Saturday evening. "Mass killing of people, starvation and bombardment of hospitals are all meant to drive our compatriots out of northern Gaza. International, Muslim and Arab institutions must fulfill their responsibilities as regards the stoppage of the invaders' crimes. Silence and inaction will push the situation towards further chaos and disorder." Hamdan said the Palestinian resistance factions have pledged not to back down from realization of their nation's ideals, the most significant of which are liberation of the occupied territories and full sovereignty over them. "We will be a strong barrier against the plans of the invaders. Displacement will not be a matter of concern anymore, but rather liberation of our lands and return of people. We will deal a fatal blow to the invaders, and the entire world will soon hear the news of our victory," the senior Hamas official noted. He went on to point to the high number of casualties among Israeli military forces, stating that fighters from the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades have inflicted heavy blows on enemy forces and their armored vehicles. "The Zionist enemy is committing crimes against the people of Gaza round the clock. The enemy perpetrates crimes in areas that it claims to be safe. Some 43% of the victims used to be residents of the southern sector of the Gaza Strip. The occupiers do not differentiate between residents of the northern and southern parts of the territory," Hamdan said. He said the regime has attacked the most sacred job in the world by bombing hospitals. "Murders and crimes in Gaza have affected people from all walks of life, including aid workers and medical staff. What happened in the Shifa Hospital falls within the framework of crimes being committed by the occupying enemy. The invaders took away the bodies of a number of martyrs from inside the hospital to an unknown location," the Hamas official said. Hamdan said the Israeli military, by means of false allegations, has turned the Shifa Hospital into a military barracks. "We hold the US administration responsible for the raid on the Shifa Hospital, and view it as a direct accomplice. If it were not for the sake of President Joe Biden, his administration and the silence of the international community, such crimes would have never happened in Gaza. Our combatants risked their lives to treat Israeli captives," the Hamas official said. Hamdan finally called for the continuation of pro-Palestinian demonstrations worldwide, and enforcement of economic sanctions against Israel. Humanitarian agencies say since Israel imposed a total siege on the Gaza Strip on October 7, aid convoys have barely trickled through, meaning they can provide only a "drop in the ocean" of what the 2.3 million people in the territory need. According to the advocacy group Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, Israel has sharply escalated a "war of starvation" against civilians in the Gaza Strip as a tool of subjugation. Before the Israeli war, 70 percent of the children in Gaza already suffered from varying health issues including malnutrition, anemia and weakened immunity. The figure has increased to more than 90 percent as a result of Israel's bombardment, the Monitor said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hundreds flee Gaza's al-Shifa hospital on foot amid Israel's ongoing attacks Iran Press TV Saturday, 18 November 2023 2:42 PM Hundreds of patients have evacuated the Al-Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip, fleeing south on foot, as the Israeli military continues its attacks on hospitals and medical centers across the besieged enclave. The Gaza health ministry said in a statement on Saturday that the evacuation started after the Israeli military ordered people to leave the largest medical complex in Gaza, where thousands of patients, staff, and displaced people were trapped. The ministry added that 120 wounded were still at the facility, along with an unspecified number of premature babies, adding it was in touch with the Red Cross about the infants. Sick and injured people -- some of them amputees -- displaced people, doctors and nurses, were seen walking on a road leading south. Yousef Abu-Al Rish, Gaza's deputy health minister people had left al-Shifa pushing the injured on hospital beds and wheelchairs along a severely damaged road where bodies were scattered on it. "It was a terrifying scene with families and injured children, some with amputated hands who had been asked to walk in a straight line [single file] between two Israeli tanks," he said. "As soon as we emerged past the Israeli guns, local people came to help us and carry the injured with us. The biggest group from the injured are heading to the south." Riham Jafari, a spokesperson for ActionAid Palestine, a humanitarian and campaigning group, also described the evacuation of patients as "a death sentence for hundreds of people who will be forced to leave behind life-saving care and travel miles to hospitals that are no longer operational." The Israeli military has denied ordering the evacuation in a statement, saying it had "acceded to the request" of the director of the hospital to enable "additional Gazans who were in the hospital and would like to evacuate, to do so." The Al-Shifa Hospital has become one of the main focuses of Israel's offensive. The regime has been targeting hospitals in the strip since the beginning of its war on Gaza on October 7, claiming Hamas uses them as command centers. Hamas has dismissed Israel's allegations, saying it runs a vast network of underground tunnels and doesn't need to use hospitals in any manner. The Palestinian resistance group has called on the UN to form an investigative team in order to debunk Tel Aviv's allegations. Palestine's Foreign Ministry condemns forced evacuation of Al-Shifa Hospital Meanwhile, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates has condemned Israel's forced evacuation of Al-Shifa Hospital in a tweet on Saturday, saying it represents an official Israeli insistence on completing the episodes of execution and genocide against any Palestinian presence in Gaza City and the northern Strip." "This deepens the humanitarian and environmental catastrophe facing the Strip. It is also a literal translation of the calls of extremist Israeli zealots who incite and demand the burning of Gaza, as they previously called for and practiced in the burning of Huwara," the ministry added, according to Palestine's official Wafa news agency. Israel waged the war on Gaza on October 7 after Hamas carried out the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm into the occupied territories in response to the occupying regime's intensified crimes against the Palestinian people. According to the Gaza-based health ministry, at least 12,000 Palestinians have been killed in the strikes, most of them women and children. Tel Aviv has also imposed a "complete siege" on Gaza, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah resistance forces down intruding Israeli drone over southern Lebanon Iran Press TV Saturday, 18 November 2023 8:40 AM Fighters from the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah have intercepted and shot down an Israeli unmanned aerial vehicle while it was hovering over an area in southern part of Lebanon close to the border between the Arab country and the 1948 Israeli-occupied territories. Hezbollah said in a brief statement carried by Lebanon's Arabic-language al-Manar television network that it downed an Israeli Elbit Hermes 450 unmanned aerial vehicle early on Saturday morning. The statement added the Israeli aircraft was brought down with a surface-to-air missile, and it fell in the Galilee Panhandle area in the northern sector of the Israeli-occupied lands. The development came hours after Israeli warplanes and artillery units struck the outskirts of the Lebanese border towns of al-Jebbayn, al-Labbouneh, Aitaroun, Yarine, Dhaira, Mays al-Jabal, Blida Houla, Tayr Harfa, Aita al-Shaab, Rab Tlatine, al-Taybe, Rmeish, and Wadi Mozlem. Israel had overnight shelled al-Naqoura, Blida, al-Khiam, Borj al-Moulouk, Kfarshouba, and Kfarhamam areas with heavy and flare shells. Hezbollah, for its part, targeted a group of Israeli soldiers near al-Taihat and other groups of soldiers near al-Marj post, the Ramim barracks, al-Dhaira, and Yir'on, inflicting casualties. It also targeted the Malkia post. Israeli medics later announced that they transported four wounded Israeli soldiers from the Manara post, one of whom was critically wounded. Hezbollah has warned that it will join the Palestinian resistance group Hamas and its allies in the fight against Israel if the regime escalates its aggression on Gaza and in case foreign military forces intervene to help the Israeli regime in the battle. Hezbollah's Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on November 2 that the Lebanese resistance movement entered the battle against Israel on October 8, a day after Gaza-based Palestinian resistance movements launched their surprise attack, Operation al-Aqsa Storm, against the regime. Nasrallah said the daily exchange of fire with Israeli forces along the Lebanese border might seem modest but is of prime significance, calling the confrontations unprecedented since 1948. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israeli strike on residential building in south Gaza kills dozens Iran Press TV Saturday, 18 November 2023 6:11 AM An Israeli strike on Khan Younis in Gaza has killed dozens of Palestinians, mostly children, Palestinian news agency Wafa has reported. The attack on Saturday morning marked a dramatic escalation of airstrikes on southern Gaza by Israel. The director of the Nasser hospital was quoted as saying that the facility had received 26 dead bodies and 23 people with serious injuries after a strike on a residential building in the city of Hamad. For the past 42 days, the Israeli military has been pounding northern Gaza, telling residents to flee to south. The attack on Khan Youni came just after Israel issued warnings to Palestinians in the southern city to relocate west, indicating an attack was imminent. With the conflict entering its 43rd day, the death toll in Gaza has now surpassed 12,000 Palestinians, with the majority of those killed being women and children. Israeli troops on Saturday ordered the evacuation of al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City "in the next hour" over loudspeakers as troops combed the facility, news agencies reported. Al-Shifa Hospital -- Gaza's biggest -- has become the focus of Israeli attacks in its ruthless invasion of the city. The United Nations estimated 2,300 patients, staff and displaced Palestinians were sheltering at al-Shifa before Israeli troops moved in on Wednesday. The health ministry in Gaza has announced dozens of deaths there as a result of power cuts caused by fuel shortages amid intense combat. Israel has made repeated calls for the hospital to be evacuated to the south, however medical professionals say the patients cannot be moved. Hospital director Mohammed Abu Salmiya told AFP Israeli troops instructed him to ensure "the evacuation of patients, wounded, the displaced and medical staff, and that they should move on foot towards the seafront". Forty patients at al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza have died since November 11 due to a lack of electricity, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said. In an interview with Al Jazeera Arabic, the general manager for the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Munir al-Barsh, said Israeli forces removed more than 100 bodies from al-Shifa Hospital. Barsh said that Israeli forces removed 15 bodies from a mass grave, with a total of around 130 bodies taken from the hospital. The remaining functioning hospitals in Gaza are on the brink of collapse, even as more and more wounded and dead arrive on their doorsteps. In the West Bank city of Nablus, at least five Palestinians were killed and several more sustained injuries when an Israeli air strike targeted a building at a refugee camp. Wafa said the aerial strike targeted the local headquarters of the Palestinian Fatah resistance movement at Balata refugee camp early on Saturday. Witnesses said the strike appeared to have come from a drone, though there was no immediate confirmation. Local sources indicated that a number of young men were present in the building, including a number of those persecuted by the Israeli military. The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) announced in a statement that its medics were dealing with five serious injuries from the attack, all of them men ranging from 19 to 25 years in age. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that four of those killed were affiliated with al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, the armed wing of the Fatah faction. Elsewhere in the northeastern West Bank city of Tubas, an 18-year-old Palestinian, identified as Omar al-Shahrouri, was killed and two others injured as clashes broke out after Israeli forces stormed the area in large numbers. Palestinian medics said three young men suffered from gunshot injuries during the clashes. One of them was pronounced dead upon his arrival at hospital. Earlier on Friday, Israeli forces shot and killed two young Palestinian men over an alleged shooting attempt in the southern part of the occupied West Bank. The Israeli military alleged in a statement that the pair arrived in a car at the Zaytoun Junction near the city of al-Khalil, located 30 kilometers (19 miles) south of al-Quds, and opened fire on Israeli troops stationed there. The soldiers then fatally shot both of them. Israeli forces have escalated raids on Palestinian towns and villages and carried out a sweeping campaign of arrests in the occupied West Bank, where Palestinians have held protests in solidarity with their compatriots in the Gaza Strip. At least 186 Palestinians, including 51 children, have been killed by Israeli troops in the West Bank since the Gaza war erupted in early October. An additional eight have been killed by extremist Jewish settlers, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry figures. Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the coastal enclave, including hospitals, residences, and houses of worship, since Palestinian resistance movements launched their surprise attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, against the regime on October 7. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Armenian Prime Minister Says Baku, Yerevan 'Still Speaking Different Diplomatic Languages' In Peace Talks By RFE/RL's Armenian Service November 18, 2023 Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has said that while Yerevan and Baku have agreed on basic principles for a peace treaty, the two sides are "still speaking different diplomatic languages" in talks. Addressing the fall session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) that opened in Yerevan on November 18, Pashinian lamented that Azerbaijan has yet to publicly commit to three principles for achieving peace that he said have already been agreed upon. Pashinian also said the lack of commitment deepens the atmosphere of mistrust and that rhetoric from Azerbaijani officials leaves open the prospect for renewed "military aggression" against Armenia. "Yerevan and Baku still speak different diplomatic languages," he said, adding that "we often do not understand each other." Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev had held several rounds of peace talks under EU mediation before Baku launched a lightning offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh that ended three decades of rule by ethnic Armenians in the disputed territory. Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought two wars in the last three decades over the region, which had been a majority ethnic-Armenian enclave since the Soviet collapse and is internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory. The region initially came under the control of ethnic-Armenian forces, backed by the Armenian military, in separatist fighting that ended in 1994. During a war in 2020, however, Azerbaijan took back parts of Nagorno-Karabakh along with surrounding territory that Armenian forces had claimed during the earlier conflict. After a cease-fire agreement was quickly reached between ethnic-Armenian forces and Azerbaijan following Baku's offensive in September, nearly 100,000 ethnic Armenians fled to Armenia as Baku took control of the whole of Nagorno-Karabakh. "We have good and bad news about the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process," Pashinian was quoted as saying. "It is good that the basic principles of peace with Azerbaijan have been agreed upon," he said, referring to three principles for peace that he announced in late October had been worked out during talks with Aliyev in Brussels that were mediated by European Council President Charles Michel. Those principles, he told the Armenian parliament at the time, were: Armenia and Azerbaijan recognizing each other's territorial integrity, that the delimitation of the countries' borders be based on the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration, and that regional trade, transport, and communication be opened while respecting sovereign jurisdictions. The downside is that by not acknowledging the agreement, Pashinian said, Baku was deepening the atmosphere of mistrust. Pashinian also accused Azerbaijani officials of calling Armenia "Western Azerbaijan." "This seems to us to be a preparation for a new war, a new military aggression against Armenia, and it is one of the main obstacles to progress in the peace process," Pashinian said. The Armenian prime minister's comments came after Baku said on November 16 that it would not participate in normalization talks at the foreign-minister level with Yerevan that were planned in the United States this month. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said the decision was in response to what it called "one-sided and biased remarks" made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien against Azerbaijan. In September, Baku withdrew from two meetings planned by the European Union. The same month Aliyev refused to attend a round of negotiations with Pashinian that were to be mediated by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and the EU's Michel. Baku cited France's allegedly "biased position" against Azerbaijan as the reason for skipping those talks in Spain. During the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly session in Yerevan on November 17, Armenian parliament speaker Alen Simonian said there was a historic opportunity to establish peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Simonian also said Armenia is sincerely interested in normalizing relations with Turkey, having open borders and transportation links in the region, and engaging in negotiations without preconditions. "I have a great hope that these negotiations will yield the desired results in the near future," Simonian said, stressing that the region needs peace. On November 17, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Pia Kauma welcomed Armenia's expressed interest in reaching a deal with Azerbaijan. "It is important to maintain momentum in the peace process and for Armenia and Azerbaijan to reach a full settlement," Kauma said. "We recognize that the background is very painful, but despite the difficulties, this moment should be seen as an opportunity for all to forge a new path for the region based on peaceful coexistence, mutual security, and economic prosperity." Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/armenia-azerbaijan-peace-talks- obstacles/32690231.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Drone Strikes at US Military Base in Northeastern Syria - Reports Sputnik News 20231118 DOHA (Sputnik) - A US military base in the occupied part of northeastern Syria came under a drone attack that injured a service member, media reported Saturday. The base is located in Tel Baidar in the eastern Syrian province of Hasaka, Beirut-based Al Mayadeen reported. The United States has set up 24 military bases and four outposts in Syria despite protests from the Syrian government. US military installations in Syria and Iraq have been attacked on more than a single occasion following the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict last month. While the United States blamed these attacks on groups affiliated with Iran, Tehran rejected these accusations. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pashinyan Says Armenia, Azerbaijan Agree on Basic Peace Treaty Principles Sputnik News 20231118 YEREVAN (Sputnik) - Armenia has negotiated the basic principles of a future peace agreement with Azerbaijan, but Baku has not yet confirmed its commitment to the three principles proposed by Yerevan, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Saturday. "The basic peace principles have been agreed with Azerbaijan. This happened as a result of my meetings in Brussels with Azerbaijani President [Ilham Aliyev] mediated by European Council President Charles Michel," Pashinyan said, adding that the agreements were recorded in Michel's statements on the results of the trilateral meetings in May and July. At the same time, the Armenian prime minister also said that Yerevan and Baku were speaking different "diplomatic" languages and "often faced misunderstanding" because of a protracted conflict, thousands of victims and an atmosphere of "decades-long hatred." Additionally, Pashinyan warned of a possible escalation threat between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as the latter promoted the Western Azerbaijan political concept used by Baku to refer to the territory of Armenia. "For us, this seems to be a preparation for a new war, a new aggression against Armenia and is one of the main obstacles to the peace process," the Armenian prime minister told the parliamentary assembly meeting of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe in Yerevan. Yerevan and Baku began discussing a future peace deal in 2022 with the mediation of Russia, the European Union and the United States. Both Pashinyan and Aliyev have said that a peace treaty could be signed by the end of this year. In September 2023, Azerbaijan took control over Nagorno-Karabakh in a lightning offensive, prompting almost all local residents to flee to Armenia. Over 100,000 people of Nagorno-Karabakh's estimated 120,000 Armenian population left the region by the end of September. The Nagorno-Karabakh authorities declared that the unrecognized state would cease to exist on January 1, 2024. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address New initiatives for regional peace: Lord Ahmad statement at the IISS Manama Dialogue 2023 Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, spoke at the International Institute for Strategic Studies Manama Dialogue 2023. 18 November 2023 It's a pleasure to be back in Bahrain. Indeed, I was saying to our Ambassador, and indeed Bahrain's excellent ambassador to London, Sheikh Fawaz, for me over the last few years has become home away from home; according to my wife is it my home and I see her occasionally. But this is an incredible country. A country which has really demonstrated - as it's doing so again today - its convening power. Since then - since my last visit in Bahrain - the bilateral relationship has grown even stronger, including the visit that we celebrated of His Royal Highness Prince Salman's visit in July. And more recently, I'm proud to say that the two countries - the United Kingdom and Bahrain - have elevated our exchanges to our first strategic dialogue, which I had the honour to co-chair with my dear friend, his Excellency Dr Al Zayani in London. And may I therefore thank the Kingdom of Bahrain for hosting us today for another important and timely event. And I assure you the UK delegation here is in strengths. They say you normally have one Lord; I can certainly look across this room and see several more: Lord Sedwill, Lord Maud, as well as other parliamentarians and business leaders are here, demonstrating the United Kingdom's commitment to Bahrain; but also, importantly, the region. Last year, when the then Foreign Secretary addressed you, he spoke in glowing terms about the transformation of the region; but also, importantly, of the threats that continue to face the region, indeed all of us. In this context, Bahrain has shown, under His Majesty's vision, continued leadership on peaceful coexistence and regional security. We have seen the benefit of the Gulf region's approach to foreign policy over the last year, including efforts to end the conflict in Sudan, hosting Ukrainian peace talks and, most recently, bringing the Arab world together in response to the crisis that we are all facing up to today in Israel, across Gaza and the West Bank. These efforts have reconfirmed what we already knew: that you remain a vital partner now and for the future. And as we've heard from the Secretary General and His Royal Highness in his detailed sense of experience over the years, we together face a daunting set of challenges. And in this regard let me be absolutely clear: we, the United Kingdom, remains a reliable and a committed partner for the region in responding to the challenges and availing the opportunities that lie in front of us. A partner working to constrain Iranian weapons proliferation and the destabilising activity of Iran and its aligned groups that are responsible for much instability across the region and further afield; a partner also holding Tehran to account for its escalatory nuclear programme. A partner working together with other key partners in the region for security and peace in Yemen, in Libya. A partner for prosperity with, and between, the nations of the Gulf. And a partner working to support this region's transition to net zero, that will help avert the most disastrous impacts of climate change that threaten the Gulf - indeed the world. I say all of this because, despite and notwithstanding the importance and urgency of these and other challenges, it is natural, given the scale of the attack that occurred on Israel on the 7th of October, the scale of the suffering of innocent Palestinian civilians in the weeks since - that we are still seeing today - that our focus is on this region; on Gaza; on the Occupied Palestinian Territories; and the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians. This ongoing conflict is not only a disaster for the region, it is a disaster for all of us: it is a disaster for our common humanity. The people of Gaza were already living under desperate conditions prior to this conflict; but now they are suffering more, without adequate food, water and access to the most basic of services we all take for granted, and in constant fear of their own live:; they deserve better from all of us - and I agree with you, your Royal Highness, it means a collective, collaborative effort. It is also a disaster for the region and the world because conflict stokes division. It has led to alarming spikes of anti-Semitism; of Islamophobia; and yes, that has impacted my own country, the United Kingdom. And therefore, if we do not work together, collectively, collaboratively, this conflict will spread. These aren't just words, these are alarming signals we are seeing. And we need to work together to stop this conflict from spreading. The regional and international fault lines we have worked so hard over many, many years to bridge will tragically reopen, and the progress I have spoken of will be undermined. Therefore what to do? What should the international community be doing? Well, coming together; discussing; exchanging views; candid, open public discussions - yes. But private diplomacy and exchanges as well. All focussed that in the immediate term we must stem the bloodshed, and do all we can to provide aid and security as quickly as possible to all people. Let me be clear, the UK has been very clear on this: that Israel had the right to defend itself against Hamas, against the act of terrorism that took place on the 7th of October. Hamas, let us not forget, acted erroneously in the name of religion I follow, that many of you follow in this room, but has nothing to do with religion. Hamas do not believe in peace. The horrific atrocities against many nationalities - not just Israelis - also took the lives of the Jewish community in Israel, but there were a number of other faiths, including Muslims, as well. Therefore Hamas poses an immediate threat to many, indeed to us all. It itself has insisted it will repeat such atrocities, and, of course, an ultimate aim of ending the state of Israel. Therefore it's our collective interest that the kind of abhorrent events we saw on the 7th of October, the terrorism we see around the world - indeed the United Kingdom itself has been impacted by indiscriminate terrorism - that we work collectively to ensure these events do not happen. But the UK has equally been clear that in defending such a right, Israel must - Israel must - respect international humanitarian law, and take every possible step to minimise harm to civilians. Israel is a country, is a nation, with obligations to international law. This also includes respecting the sanctity of hospitals, so that doctors - who do an incredible job as we are seeing for ourselves - can continue to care for the ill; the injured; the sick. And the situation in much of Gaza now - particularly in hospitals as well, such as al-Shifa, where, tragically, young innocent children, babies have died as the result of lack of electricity - has become acute. Too many people; too many innocent children; too many babies; too many lives lost. Every life matters, irrespective of Israeli or Palestinia; Jewish, Muslim or Christian. Every life matters; humanity matters. And that is why the UK, led by the Prime Minister, has been engaged widely, with our friends and allies, and partners in this region, including many of you here. And, importantly, with the incredible aid agencies including the United Nations, to get life-saving aid to those in Gaza. And let us pay tribute to those brave workers from the UN and other agencies who continue to work in conflict-affected zones. We have more than doubled our support to the people of Gaza, committing over 30million. And we continue to support through NGOs as well. We are looking constructively at what can be done immediately. We believe that land-borders present the best option for getting support where it is most needed, and we have been urging the Israeli government to allow for more access - not just through Rafah, but to open up the Kerem Shalom crossing as well. We have consistently called for those spaces to be created for the delivery of unhindered and sustainable humanitarian aid through pauses. Those spaces need to be created now, to allow for aid to be delivered. The four-hour pauses we have seen in northern Gaza are a first, but initial step only; we need longer corridors, time across all of Gaza, if we are to deliver what is needed. And we need a collective effort to get this done. On Wednesday, the UN Security Council called - and I quote - for "urgent extended humanitarian pauses for sufficient number of days to allow for aid access". And we must work towards this end. And as we've heard time and time again from this platform during the course of our deliberations: yes, we must work together for a durable, long-term two-state solution; but it must not be paper-based. The time has come for action; we need to pull out the stops now. The time is critical to act. The UK believes that lasting peace can only be achieved through that two-state solution. Not as a vision, but as a reality. We agreed on Gaza at the G7 and with other countries. The steps were laid out by Secretary Blinken, and we stand by those. Not a path that exists only in principle, or in the minds of diplomats or officials; but - as we've seen today - not again a cycle of repeated resolutions that make too little difference on the ground. We need a real pathway: a pathway to peace; a pathway which is real: to restore hope in the future for all the peoples of the region; a hope - ladies and gentlemen, your Excellencies - that has been lacking for too long. I end my comments with a quote; a quote many of you in this room will recognise - I know your Royal Highness, you will recognise it; Secretary General, you will recognise it. In 1994, the words were: "There is only one radical means of sanctifying human lives. Not armoured plating, not tanks, not planes, or concrete fortifications. The real radical solution is peace." The words of Yitzhak Rabin. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Gaza Strip: UNRWA finally receives fuel; much more is needed for humanitarian operations UNRWA 18 Nov 2023 FROM UNRWA COMMISSIONER-GENERAL PHILIPPE LAZZARINI GENEVA/AMMAN, 18 November 2023 - "Following long weeks of delay, the Israeli Authorities approved only half of the daily minimum requirements of fuel for humanitarian operations in Gaza. "This is far from enough to cover the needs for desalination plants, sewage pumps, hospitals, water pumps in shelters, aid trucks, ambulances, bakeries and communications networks to work without interruption. "Fuel should not be restricted for these activities. "Without the full amount of fuel: People will have only two thirds of their daily needs of clean drinking water; Large parts of Gaza will continue to be flooded with sewage further increasing risks of diseases; 70 per cent of solid waste will not be removed, a major health hazard; We are forced to handle a reduced number of aid trucks crossing daily into Rafah. "Humanitarian organisations should not be forced to make tough decisions between competing lifesaving activities. Community tensions in a once close-knitted society are likely to increase, making it even more difficult for UNRWA and other organisations to operate in environment of un precedented humanitarian crisis. "We call for adequate, regular, and unconditional delivery of fuel to maintain all our critical lifesaving activities in the Gaza Strip. "The last few days have seen a drastic reduction in these services including water availability and sewage clearance with serious consequences on people in need. "Humanitarian aid cannot be conditional and must not be used for political or military agendas and gains". ENDs- Notes to Editors: The entry of fuel critical for the overall humanitarian operations across the Gaza Strip has been largely banned since 7 October when the war began. On Wednesday, 15 November, the Israeli Authorities allowed the entry of just less than 23,000 litres (half a truck) of fuel for UNRWA to transport trucks of aid arriving via Rafah. This fuel could not to be used for any other humanitarian purposes. The amount authorised today= 120,000 litres will be used over two days and will only cover half of the daily critical needs. We have been informed that 120,000 litres of fuel will be delivered every two days. Fuel is also critical for the telecommunications networks. Gaza went through a fourth blackout in communications yesterday. As a result, UNRWA was not able to transport trucks of humanitarian assistance arriving via Egypt. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israeli Airstrikes Kill Scores of Palestinians Across Gaza By VOA News November 18, 2023 Latest developments: Israeli airstrikes kill scores at a school in the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza. President Biden said Saturday the Palestinian Authority should ultimately govern the Gaza Strip and the West Bank following the Israel-Hamas war. Israel is widening its war against Hamas in southern Gaza. Israel denies reports that it ordered evacuation of Shifa Hospital. Says it had talked with Shifa Hospital director about providing a secure route out of the hospital for those who wanted to evacuate. Palestinian telecommunications company partially restores phone and internet services in Gaza after fuel shipments arrive. Dozens of displaced civilians were killed or wounded Saturday in Israeli airstrikes, including one on a school in the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees reported. "The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help," wounded survivor Ahmed Radwan told The Associated Press by phone of Israel's attack on the camp's Fakhoura school. AP photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. "These attacks cannot become commonplace, they must stop. A humanitarian cease-fire cannot wait any longer," UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini posted Saturday morning on the social media platform X. In response, the Israeli military said only that its troops were active in the Jabaliya area "with the aim of hitting terrorists" while trying to minimize civilian harm. On Saturday, the military warned civilians in parts of southern Gaza to leave. On Friday, Israel had issued new warnings for Palestinians in the southern city of Khan Younis to relocate from areas of the Gaza Strip where Israeli officials earlier had told people it was safe. "We're asking people to relocate," Mark Regev, an aide to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told MSNBC. "I know it's not easy for many of them, but we don't want to see civilians caught up in the crossfire." On Saturday, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 47 people in Khan Younis and the vicinity, medics said. One airstrike hit two apartment buildings in Khan Younis, killing 26 Palestinians and wounding 23, health officials said. Six more were killed a few kilometers north when a house in the town of Deir Al-Balah was bombed, health officials said. Fifteen Palestinians died Saturday afternoon in a house west of Khan Younis near a shelter for displaced people, medics and witnesses said. The World Health Organization led a joint U.N. humanitarian mission on Saturday to Shifa Hospital. The team, which was able to spend an hour at the hospital, said what was "once the largest, most advanced, and best equipped hospital in Gaza" was now a "death zone." Twenty-five health workers remained to care for 291 patients, which included 32 infants in "extremely critical condition, two people in intensive care without ventilation and 22 dialysis patients." Most of the patients had severe injuries, the WHO said in a statement. WHO said it was working to evacuate the remaining patients and health workers in the next one to three days to Nasser Medical Complex and European Gaza Hospital in southern Gaza. Most of the patients, staff and displaced people had left Shifa earlier Saturday in what a witness described a panicked and chaotic evacuation as Israeli forces searched and face-scanned men among the evacuees, the AP reported. "We left at gunpoint," Mahmoud Abu Auf told AP by phone. "Tanks and snipers were everywhere inside and outside." He said he saw Israeli forces detain three men. Israel's military has been searching Shifa Hospital for traces of a Hamas command center that it alleges was located under the building a claim Hamas and the hospital staff deny. The evacuation, which Israel says was voluntary, left behind only Israeli forces and the few health workers to care for the nearly 300 patients too sick to move. Internet and phone service was restored to the Gaza Strip on Saturday, ending a telecommunications outage the Palestinian telecommunications company Paltel said. The outage had forced the United Nations to shut down critical aid deliveries. Palestinian authorities in Gaza now say more than 12,000 people about 5,000 of them children have been killed since Israel launched a major air and ground offensive in response to the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack that killed more than 1,200 people in southern Israel. Hamas has been designated a terrorist organization by the U.S., U.K, EU and others. The United Nations deems those figures credible, though they have not been updated since Nov. 10 because of the collapse of services and communications at hospitals in northern Gaza. Israel said 57 of its soldiers had been killed in Gaza since it entered the territory. VOA United Nations correspondent Margaret Besheer contributed to this report. Some information for this article came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iraqi Shiite militia claims drone attack on U.S. base in E. Syria People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 09:35, November 19, 2023 BAGHDAD, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- An Iraqi Shiite militia on Saturday claimed responsibility for a drone attack on a U.S. military base in eastern Syria. An armed group named "Islamic Resistance in Iraq" claimed in an online statement that its fighters launched a booby-trapped drone on the al-Tanf military base near Syria's borders with Iraq and Jordan. It said that the drone hit its target in the U.S. military base, without providing further details. Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, confirmed that the al-Tanf base was attacked and that the U.S. air defense weapons shot down the drone in the vicinity of the base. It obtained pictures of the drone that was shot down by the anti-aircraft at the al-Tanf base area, according to the statement. The attack by the armed group is believed to be part of a series of retaliatory measures against the U.S. forces amid the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip, said the observatory. The incident marked the 39th recorded attack on the U.S. bases in Syria since Oct. 19, it added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Egypt, France call for "urgent solutions" to Gaza conflict People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 09:31, November 19, 2023 CAIRO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron stressed on Saturday the need for finding "urgent solutions" to the ongoing crisis in the war-torn Gaza Strip. During a phone conversation, the two presidents exchanged views on the latest developments regarding the military escalation in the Palestinian enclave, the Egyptian Presidency said in a statement. The two leaders agreed on the importance of finding urgent solutions to the ongoing crisis and taking action to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid into the besieged Gaza Strip, the statement said. They also emphasized the importance of starting a comprehensive political process with the aim of reaching a just settlement for the Palestinian issue on the basis of the two-state solution. Sisi stressed the necessity of an immediate ceasefire and the expansion of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. Israel has been carrying out an all-out attack on Gaza to retaliate against the Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages. According to Gaza's government media office, the Palestinian death toll in the enclave has exceeded 12,000 since the start of the conflict. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Operation Iron Swords - Day 43 - 18 November 2023 Palestinian armed group Hamas launched thousands of missiles at Israel and deployed its militants to infiltrate Jewish settlements near the countrys border with Gaza on 07 October 2023. The 1,200 Israelis killed on the first day would be the equivalent of 36,000 Americans killed in an attack, as a proportion to Israels population of 9.3 million people (compared to 332 million in the USA). Israeli President Isaac Herzog stated: Not since the Holocaust have so many Jews been killed in one day". PM Netanyahu stated "On October 7th, Hamas murdered 1,400 Israelis. Maybe more. This is in a country of fewer than 10 million people. This would be equivalent to over 50,000 Americans murdered in a single day. Thats twenty 9/11s. That is why October 7th is another day that will live in infamy." It is the second largest loss inflicted on the Israeli forces after the 1973 war, as the Palestinian resistance killed more than 1,200, wounded more than 5,132 others, and captured more than 250, most of them military personnel, some of whom were high-ranking officers in the army. Butcher's Bill / Oasis of Martyrs The HAMAS government media office in Gaza announced that with the number of casualties increasing daily in the Strip, the statistics departments were unable to complete an accurate and final statistic of the martyrs and wounded. The office usually issues almost daily updates on the toll of martyrs and wounded. More than 12,000 Palestinians, including 5,000 children have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since October 7, the Gaza Press Office said. The Hamas-run government said 3,300 women were among the dead, with 30,000 more people wounded. The Palestinian Government Media Office in Gaza said the number of missing people had risen to more than 3,750, including 1,800 children still under the rubble. The Palestinian Ministry of Health announced, this Friday evening, that the number of martyrs has risen to 11,675 martyrs, and the wounded to about 32,000 wounded, According to a UN official, there have been "likely much more" casualties in "Israel's" war on Gaza than the previously reported total of over 11,000, because there have been insufficient updates since the area's communication networks collapsed. Martin Griffiths, under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator expressed during a General Assembly meeting that as casualty numbers continue to climb, "The actual total, however, is likely much higher as figures have not been updated for five days due to a collapse of communication networks in Gaza." Israel revised down the death toll from the October Hamas attacks in southern Israel from 1,400 to 1,200. IDF had said previously it was holding 1,500 bodies of terrorists, a total that now would increas to about 1,700. The Israeli army had reported the death of 375 soldiers and officers, 58 of them were killed since the start of the ground operation in the besieged Gaza Strip. At least 7,771 Israelis were injured. The IDF previously announced that more than 260 soldiers had been injured since the start of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip, including 100 in serious condition. Israeli army (IDF) announced 18 November 2023 the death of six of its soldiers during ground battles in the Gaza Strip, bringing the total number of casualties since October 7th to 378. The Israeli forces wrote in a statement that "six soldiers of the Israeli army were killed in the past 24 hours of the ground operation in Gaza." In addition to the six deaths, Israeli media reported that eight soldiers were injured as a result of ground battles in Gaza. Al-Mayadeen recently published a list of the names of Israeli soldiers whose families were notified of their deaths since the start of the resistance operation. The list obtained by Al-Mayadeen includes the names of 368 soldiers and officers who served in various units of the IDF. Lebanons Health Ministry released its first official casualty numbers in fighting, saying 77 people were killed and 251 wounded since the start of the war on Gaza. Hostages Some 240 hostages are being held by HAMAS in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said 03 November 2023. About 40 Israelis remained missing. Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said on Hamas telegram account that 23 bodies of the 60 missing Israel hostages were trapped under the rubble. It seems that we will never be able to reach them due to the continued brutal aggression of the occupation against Gaza, he said. Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades - the military arm of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) - announced the loss of contact with a number of groups charged with protecting Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip. He added that the fate of the prisoners and captives is still unknown after contact was lost. On the ninth of this month, the Al-Qassam Brigades announced the killing of a female conscript and the wounding of a captured soldier in an Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip. The Brigades reported - in a statement published on Telegram - that the female prisoner conscript named Faul Azai Mark Asiani (19 years old) from the Modi'in settlement was killed, and that a captured soldier was moderately injured in an Israeli bombing that targeted the Gaza Strip. The Al-Qassam Brigades warned several times that the bombing of the Gaza Strip would cause the death and injury of Israeli prisoners in its custody, and it previously announced that 60 prisoners in its custody were killed as a result of the ongoing Israeli army raids on the Gaza Strip. Hamas previously announced that the number of prisoners it held was between 200 and 250 Israelis, and others of other nationalities, during the Al-Aqsa Flood battle launched by the Al-Qassam Brigades on the 7th of last October. Hamas indicated that among the detainees were high-ranking military personnel and that it wanted to exchange them for more than 6,000 Palestinian prisoners, including children and women, in Israeli prisons, but Tel Aviv did not show seriousness in concluding such a deal. The movement released 4 female prisoners for humanitarian reasons, two women holding American citizenship, in response to Qatari mediation efforts, and two Israelis, with Egyptian-Qatari mediation. The Palestinian Prisoners' Club announced on Friday that the Israeli army arrested 47 Palestinians, bringing the total number of detainees in the occupied West Bank to 2,800 since last October 7, including 1,050 activists from Hamas. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said 18 November 2023 the Israeli occupation was holding 10,000 Palestinians hostage and calls for their release. "Israel is holding about 10,000 Palestinians hostage. Let Germany take steps to free these people, and then we will make efforts to free those held by Hamas. But they [Germany] did not agree to this," Erdogan emphasized in his speech. Negotiations continue, with Qatari-American mediation, to release about 50 detainees, in exchange for a three-day ceasefire, Israels release of some Palestinian women and children from its prisons, and an increase in the amounts of humanitarian aid it allows to enter Gaza. The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said that Benjamin Netanyahu's government informed the Qatari mediators of its refusal to complete a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas, according to which 50 Israeli detainees would be released. Tel Aviv adheres to not separating families held in captivity, and to release all children and mothers, while Hamas has offered to release 50 detainees without classifying or giving Israel the freedom to choose names. According to the newspaper, the occupation expressed its willingness to be flexible regarding the duration of the ceasefire days in order to allow the release of more hostages, as it put it. It also stated that the Israeli War Council took a decision to reject the exchange deal as proposed, as Netanyahu agreed with the position of Defense Minister Yoav Galant, who was also supported by Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar to reject the deal. The War Council decided to continue increasing military pressure on Hamas, considering that this would enhance the chances of reaching an agreement. US President Joe Biden's main adviser on the Middle East said there would be a "significant pause" in the Israeli-Hamas war if hostages held by Hamas jihadists in Gaza are freed. "The surge in humanitarian relief, the surge in fuel, the pause... will come when hostages are released," Brett McGurk told a security conference in Bahrain. Release of a large number of hostages would result in "a significant pause... and a massive surge of humanitarian relief," he said. Israel does not trust political negotiations because they do not achieve credible achievements, and considers that any type of negotiation before obtaining prisoners conflicts with its security interests. Gallant's statement, which came as a reaction to the American initiative, expresses Israel's position on this side. The Minister of War said: Hamas must be defeated, otherwise Israel will not exist in the current geographical location. Saadallah Zarei wrote for Alalam News Network. Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting: "From the Israeli point of view, if this war stops with the prisoners remaining in the hands of Hamas, this means that Hamas has defeated Israel. Hamas's victory in this war will tilt the military balance in its favor at Israel's expense, and will encourage Hamas to formulate a bigger war, a war in which the Palestinians will take to the field in Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem with higher morale and greater strength and accomplish the mission." Operational Update The New York Times reported that Israel will carry out clearing operations in the northern Gaza Strip for several weeks and then move to the southern part of the Strip. The newspaper reported, quoting American military officials: Israeli colleagues informed us that clearing northern Gaza will take several more weeks, and then Tel Aviv will prepare a separate initiative to expand its attack in southern Gaza. American officials believe that the occupation's hasty decision to launch an operation in the Gaza Strip did not leave the leaders enough time to plan, in terms of reducing the number of civilian casualties. The newspaper pointed out that the effectiveness of the Israeli strategy is uncertain. In a recent situation assessment at the Northern Command, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant reiterated Israel's unwavering commitment to an active defense policy aimed at ensuring the safety of residents in the northern region. The meeting, held during the Shabbat, involved key military figures, including Major General Uri Gordin and Major General (Ret.) Yitzhak (Jerry) Gershon, emphasizing the gravity of the security situation. The Defense Minister received a comprehensive overview of the ongoing efforts to protect settlements and mitigate potential threats along the border. Galant stressed the importance of maintaining a proactive defense stance, signaling a robust response to any attempts by Hezbollah to harm Israeli citizens or IDF forces. "At this time, the IDF forces are operating in the south, in an attack, with great success, in a precise, deadly manner, and are carrying out their missions. Here in the north, we follow a policy of active defense, exacting a price against every threat - both from the air and from the land, with a lot of strength and great power," stated Defense Minister Gallant during the assessment. The active defense policy involves a multifaceted approach, combining immediate responses to attack attempts with pre-emptive strikes against Hezbollah's offensive infrastructures. Gallant emphasized that Hezbollah continues to pay a heavy price for its actions, and Israel remains prepared for any future developments. Following the initial report regarding sirens sounding in northern Israel, the IDF Aerial Defense Array successfully intercepted a surface-to-air missile launched from Lebanon toward an IDF UAV. The sirens sounded due to the launched interceptors, the missile was not identified crossing into Israeli territory. IDF fighter jets and tanks destroyed several targets of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in Lebanese territory, among the targets attacked, a terrorist position and military compounds. At the same time, a manned aircraft remotely attacked a squad of terrorists from the terrorist organization. Also, an IDF remotely piloted aircraft made an emergency landing early in the morning in an open area in the north of the country. A preliminary investigation of the incident shows that the aircraft was not hit by enemy fire. No injuries, the circumstances are being investigated. The Southern Command continues to expand its offensive activity to additional neighborhoods in the Gaza Strip and raided the areas of Zeytun and Jabaliya with the aim of hitting terrorists and the terrorist infrastructure of Hamas. Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza reported that intense confrontations ensued between resistance fighters and the IOF in Beit Hanoun, which has become a war zone with resistance operations carried out from point-blank range. The correspondent confirmed that the Resistance fighters were capable of hunting down several IOF soldiers in Beit Hanoun, noting that the occupation forces were surprised to have underestimated the Resistance's firepower, especially along the north-western axis. The correspondent also reported that the Resistance fighters aren't only engaging the occupation forces from inside the cities but are also fighting from behind enemy lines along the borders of Gaza and even from within IOF formations. On the 43rd day of the Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, the IDF army evacuated the Shifa Medical Complex of most of the wounded, sick, displaced people and doctors after giving them one hour, as they began to head towards the south on foot in a tragic scene, according to the testimonies of those who left the complex. At the same time, the IDF forces, through the Directorate of Coordination and Liaison to Gaza, delivered during the night over 6,000 liters of water and over 2,300 kg of food rations including fish, canned goods, bread, spreads and dates to Shifa Hospital. This operation was done at the same time as the IDF's activity to locate and thwart terrorism in the hospital. The director of the Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza, Muhammad Abu Salamiya, announced today, Saturday, that evacuations from the hospital began following the deadline given by the Israeli army to evacuate the sick, wounded, displaced, and medical staff. Abu Salmiya said that after the evacuation, 5 members of the medical staff remained in the hospital, and about 120 patients who were unable to walk due to their foot injuries. Regarding the storming of Al-Shifa Hospital, what the occupation achieved is reminiscent of images of false victory in previous battles, which caused disappointment among the Zionists. Upon reading this, Hassan Hijazi, who follows Israeli affairs for Iran from Beirut, confirmed that there is a major exaggeration, as this issue was preceded by a media campaign that the army spokesman worked on. The Israeli occupation and the Zionist media appear as if there is a city, a major command, staff, and operating rooms under Al-Shifa Hospital, and there are large numbers of prisoners and resistance leaders. The Zionist army enters Al-Shifa Hospital and comes out with nothing, except for some rifles that may belong to some of the guards in the hospital, as they did not. After all that campaign, this army finds no evidence of the existence of leaders or tunnels. Hijazi pointed out the complete collapse of the Zionist narrative, and it seems that the occupation was seeking to cause another harm under the pretext that there are leaders under this hospital, which is to put the hospital out of work because it contains many wounded and contains a heavy population there, as thousands of displaced people entered it in Part of the plan to completely remove the Palestinians from these area The Israeli bombing also continued on various areas in Gaza, as the occupation army committed a new horrific massacre in Al-Fakhoura School and another in Tal Al-Zaatar in the northern Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of people, including martyrs and wounded. Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades - the military arm of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) said that since this morning, Al-Qassam fighters have destroyed 17 Zionist vehicles in northwest and south Gaza, in addition to ambushing an Israeli foot force and detonating an explosive device in it. Jordan's chief diplomat expressed skepticism on Saturday regarding Israel's declared aim to eliminate the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas, with whom it is engaged in conflict in Gaza. "Israel says it wants to wipe out Hamas. There's a lot of military people here, I just don't understand how this objective can be realized," Ayman Safadi remarked at the IISS Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain. Bystanders Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that his country, along with more than two thousand lawyers, will file a complaint with the relevant authorities against the Israeli massacres in the Gaza Strip , indicating that his country will seek to reconstruct Gaza if a ceasefire is achieved. Erdogan added that during his visit to Germany, he saw "that the entire Western world and the Crusader imperialist entity are united in one trench." He explained, "Israel has about 10,000 (Palestinian) hostages. Let Germany work to release them, and we, in turn, will work to ensure the release of those detained by Hamas ." Erdogan said that Israel is trying to legitimize its occupation through many lies, and is also "trying to cover up the war crimes it committed in Gaza with fabricated excuses." He pointed out that it is storming hospitals with cannons and tanks, and is still searching for a tunnel under Al-Shifa Hospital, and it turns out that all of those tunnels are just lies. The Turkish President considered that, "If every terrorist component will kill people as it pleases, strengthening countries such as the United States and Europe, this means that the global order has been completely corrupted." He pointed out that if a Muslim country had committed the war crimes committed by Israel, international justice would have intervened immediately without the need for special efforts. Erdogan pledged that Turkey would make efforts to rebuild the destroyed infrastructure, hospitals, schools, water and energy facilities in Gaza if a ceasefire is reached. He added, when a ceasefire is reached, we will do everything necessary for Israel to pay compensation for the destruction it caused. He said that his country "is seeking to evacuate patients in need of surgical operations in Gaza as soon as possible, and our discussions with Egypt are continuing in this regard." On another topic, the "Eh Haber" channel wrote on its website, quoting Erdogan, who was speaking on board his plane returning from a visit to Germany, that Turkey is also calling for inspection of nuclear weapons in Israel so that there is no room for doubt regarding this matter. Last week, Erdogan called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to announce whether Israel possesses nuclear weapons, and he mentioned the matter again in his speech to reporters - today, Saturday - stressing the need to conduct inspections of nuclear weapons there. He stressed that "Israeli nuclear weapons must be inspected beyond a reasonable doubt before it is too late," pledging to follow up on the matter. He added that the families of the Israelis detained by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) sent him a letter asking him to intervene to release them. He said that instructions were issued to Turkish intelligence to look into this matter, and it is currently conducting the necessary investigations and working to obtain a result. During his visit to Germany, Erdogan said that Germany supports Israel in its war on Gaza out of a sense of guilt over the Nazi Holocausts, in contrast to Turkey, which he said is capable of speaking without bias. He said - during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Schulz before they held private talks - "The Israeli-Palestinian war should not be evaluated with a psychological sense of indebtedness. I speak freely, because we do not owe anything to Israel." Erdogan's comments in Berlin touched a sensitive nerve at the core of Germany's identity in the post-war era, an identity based on a deep sense of making reparations for the Nazi Holocausts. Schulz did not respond directly to Erdogan's comments, but reiterated Germany's commitment to Israel's right to defend itself. Axis of Resistance Palestinian fighters are fighting at point-blank and from positions the heavily armored Israeli occupation army did not anticipate, General Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps IRGC, Major General Hossein Salami said. Addressing a large rally in support of Gaza in Tehran, the IRGC chief added that the Palestinian youth are engaged in a covert war and are inflicting significant losses on the occupation." "The recent Al-Aqsa Flood operation, a sudden and unique operation, was a response to a century-long injustice perpetrated by the UK, the United States, and the Zionist entity against the Palestinian people who were displaced from their homes 75 years ago." Salami also condemned the ongoing massacres and genocide against innocents and civilians for over 40 days but stressed that the Palestinian Resistance would emerge victorias from this battle. Major-Genral Salami added: "What is important is that the Palestinians never accepted to be humiliated and captured by the policies of the US and the Zionist regime, thus heroic resistance evolved." The chief Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps added: What happened in the al-Aqsa flood operation as the most exceptional and surprising operation is a reflection of the hundred-year-old atrocities of Britain, America, France and the Zionist regime against the Palestinian people, who have been deprived of their homeland and displaced for 75 years. "Victory will be for the Palestinian Resistance, who is fighting day and night against Zionists. The land belongs to the Resistors who are capable of destroying the occupation's tanks," he said. "The walls behind which the occupation's soldiers hide will not help them, and the Resistors are preparing many surprises for them." The top General emphasized that the United States and the Israeli entity would not see victory in this war. Iran would fiercely respond to any US acts of aggression against its forces in Syria, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told the Financial Times. Amir-Abdollahian revealed that according to his information, no Iranian forces suffered any casualties thus far. However, he emphasized that "if that happens, the response will be severe." When asked about the factions within the Axis of Resistance, the Iranian minister clarified that these factions, such as Hezbollah, Ansar Allah, and the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, are resistance movements in the region against Israeli occupation. He highlighted that they have an "independent identity" and stated that they "do not receive orders from Iran but have good relations with it." He added, "Israel represents the United States by proxy, but we do not have any group representing us by proxy in the region." Hezbollah has entered into the stage of war with the Israeli occupation, the Iranian top diplomat said, confirming that the messages sent by the US to Hezbollah "have a counterproductive effect", as not only will they not deter it but will make it more resolute in its decisions. Regarding the deployment of US aircraft carriers in the region, Amir Abdollahian explained that according to military experts, the arrival of US ships in the Mediterranean was not in Washington's interest because it increased the possibility of attacks on its fleets. "Over the past fourty days, messages have been exchanged between Iran and the US via the US Interests Section at the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, indicating that Tehran does not want the war to escalate." Any possibility should be considered due to the approach followed by the United States and "Israel" in the region and the ongoing crimes against the people of Gaza and the West Bank, Amir-Abdollahian said, and "if the crimes against the people of Gaza and the West Bank are not stopped, any possibility could be considered, and a wider conflict could prove inevitable." The Palestinian resistance in Gaza "never asked Iran to enter the war," he said. "They have everything; they produce rockets and drones themselves, and they can produce the military equipment they need inside Palestine." Some Iranians believe that if the Gaza war expanded, Israel could have pressured Azerbaijan to activate the Karabakh front and target Iran from there. Therefore, after Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahians first regional tour with the beginning of the war, Tehran hastened to hold a meeting in which it gathered Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia and Turkey, and discussed, among the axes, peace negotiations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, in order to be reassured of Bakus lack of cooperation with Tel Aviv. Concerning whether these developments represent a real Iranian-Azerbaijani rapprochement that could be reflected in Irans calculations in the Gaza war, Israeli affairs expert Mansour Barati believes that the approval of the new law in the US Congress and the announcement of a ban on arms exports to Baku will push the Republic of Azerbaijan to follow a policy of rapprochement. From Iran and freezing relations with Israel in the short term. Given the deep relations between Tel Aviv and Baku in the strategic fields, especially military and security, it is unlikely that Azerbaijan will move towards options such as severing political relations or even reducing energy exports to Israel, but a rapprochement with Tehran is possible in the short term to put pressure on Washington. In an interview with Iran's Al-Alam News Channel, the leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement Haitham Abu Al-Ghazlan confirmed that the Palestinian resistance has trained itself in a long-term battle in the Gaza Strip, and is capable of continuing this battle to its natural end. Haitham Abu al-Ghazlan is the secretary-general of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement in Lebanon. He stressed that the scenes of the resistance and its infliction of human and material losses on the enemy are strong evidence of the continuity of the resistance on the one hand, and on the other hand the continuity of launching missiles. He stressed that the continued launching of missiles is clear evidence that the Zionist enemy did not reach the missiles, their factories, or their launching pads. He concluded by saying that today it has become almost impossible to achieve Zionist goals, stressing that: All this continuity gives a clear indication that the resistance has prepared itself for a long battle on the one hand, and on the other hand that it has a clear vision that it will achieve victory. The leader of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ), Osama Hamdan, strongly criticized the American administrations position on what is happening in Gaza , stressing that what is happening metaphorically would not have happened without US President Joe Biden, his administration, and international silence. In a press conference held in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, Hamdans most prominent statements were as follows: "We hold the American administration fully responsible for the crimes in the Gaza Strip. What happened in the Gaza Strip would not have happened without US President Joe Biden, his administration, and international silence. International silence will push matters into something that no one expects and cannot be controlled. "Sal-Qassam Brigades inflict heavy losses on the occupation army, inflicting losses on its members, officers, and equipment. 43% of the martyrs are in the south of the Gaza Strip, and the occupation does not differentiate between the north and south of the Strip. By bombing hospitals, the occupation violates the most sacred humanitarian profession. The killing and destruction in Gaza includes everything including medicines and medical equipment. What happened in Al-Shifa Hospital is an episode of crime, and the occupation is waging a campaign of lies and turning Al-Shifa Complex into a military headquarters. "The massacres, extermination, starvation, and bombing of hospitals come in the context of plans to displace our people from northern Gaza. Our Mujahideen risked their personal safety to provide treatment to the prisoners. We work according to our morals, not according to the jungle morals adopted by the enemy. "The Israeli army is the largest terrorist and Nazi organization in the world. The food supplies that enter Gaza do not meet more than 10% of the Strips needs, and the occupation continues its policy of starvation against children and defenseless civilians. International, Islamic and Arab institutions must bear their responsibilities in stopping the crimes of the occupation. "Our people have not and will not accept guardianship from anyone. They will decide their own fate and we will not leave the field, no matter how terroristic the occupier is. Our covenant with God, our people, and our nation is that we will not back down until the aspirations of our people for freedom and sovereignty over their land are achieved. We stand as an impenetrable barrier to the occupations plans. There will be no immigration after today, but only liberation and return. We call for the continuation of demonstrations and the activation of the economic boycott in the face of the occupation." Allied for Democracy Thomas Portes, the French MP for the Proud France party, led by Jean-Luc Melenchon , said that Israel is waging a colonial war to eliminate the Palestinians. Portis pointed out that attacks carried out by Jewish settlers against civilians in the West Bank are increasing. The latest published polling, from a survey over a month ago, showed that 50 percent chose National Unity chairman Benny Gantz, a former Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief of staff, as the most suitable politician for the role of Israeli prime minister. Israels current prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, only received the support of 29 percent of the surveys respondents. In addition, the Likud party, which he heads, would lose half of its mandates if elections were held today. Whereas the National Unity party would rise to a staggering 42 mandates, from its current 12, which is even 10 more than the Likud currently holds as the largest party in the government coalition. Deputy speaker of the Knesset and member of the legislature's foreign affairs and security committee, Nissim Vaturi, explicitly called for completely burning down Gaza and underlined that "Israel" must refrain from allowing aid into the Strip until all captives are released. After over a month of a total Israeli ban on the entry of fuel into Gaza, subsequently causing a collapse in the health sector among other survival requirements for 2.2 million Palestinians, the Israeli occupation allowed the entry of fuel into Gaza three days ago but prohibited its delivery to hospitals. Vaturi said he believes that "Israel" has been "too humane" after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's war cabinet gave in to international pressure to allow the entry of two trucks of fuel daily into Gaza. "All of this preoccupation with whether or not there is internet in Gaza shows that we have learned nothing. We are too humane. Burn Gaza now, nothing less!" he posted in a post on X. Israeli Knesset member Avigdor Lieberman says the Israeli government lost the war in the north as settlers continue to flee the homes they had occupied for years. "Hezbollah will continue to use the northern front until it sees a change in the Gaza Strip," Channel 13 Arab affairs commentator Hizki Simanto said. "There is no change in Gaza, and Yahya Sinwar has not been eliminated, and Israel is not stepping up to the task of completely eliminating Hamas," the Israeli journalist said. "The danger of eliminating Hamas, solving it, and removing it from the axis of Hamas, Iran, Hezbollah, and Syria is not on the agenda," Semantov added. He also warned that "what is happening on the northern borders and in the towns along the confrontation line and the northern towns is an intolerable situation; no one lives there, and no one wants to return there. This is an achievement for Hezbollah." Additionally, Israeli Likud Knesset member Tali Gottlieb said: "Hezbollah is not deterred; it mocks us and attacks us whenever it deems appropriate." Israeli journalist Ben Caspit says that Israel, after its war against the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ), has three main options for managing Gaza , all of which face notable obstacles. Caspit pointed out - in a report on the American Al-Monitor news website - that Israel is far from knowing what to do about Gaza after eliminating, in theory, Hamas. He said that a former security source told him - on condition of anonymity - that the three options before Israel: The first is excellent, the second is bad, and the third is not bad, but it is unrealistic. The first option , which enjoys the greatest support among Israeli decision-makers, is for Egypt to control the Gaza Strip in exchange for complete forgiveness of its huge foreign debt. The writer said that when the Israelis and Egyptians were negotiating the Camp David Treaty in the late 1970s, the Israelis begged the then Egyptian President Anwar Sadat to restore Gaza, which was administered by Egypt until 1967, but Sadat refused. After more than four decades, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi also rejected all requests, pleas and temptations presented to him. The writer quoted the former security source as saying that the Americans and Israelis, as well as some Gulf states, have not yet abandoned the Egyptian option, and efforts are still being made to convince the parties concerned. The proposals in this option include rebuilding Gaza south of its current location instead of rebuilding in areas of devastation left by Israeli bombs, transferring some of its residents to Arab countries or other countries, and leaving the rest in rebuilt Gaza. The writer explained that the Egyptians responded angrily to these ideas. The Israeli government commissioned former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen to find a way to move the Egyptians in the desired direction. Cohen activated his many relationships, visited countries in the region and formulated proposals, but to no avail. The Egyptians remain firm in their position. Caspit quoted a senior Israeli political source as saying that the Egyptians believe that adding more than 2 million Palestinians to Egypts population will awaken the Muslim Brotherhood and may cause a revolution in Egypt. They would rather bankrupt Egypt than be exposed to that. The second option , the writer says, is the return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza, which many Israeli decision-makers consider a bad idea, because it undermines the governments ultimate goal of severing all ties between it and Gaza: No Palestinian workers in Israel, and no Israeli water supplies to Gaza. "No electricity, no fuel, no trade, nothing. After what they did to us. They can forget us." Caspit explained that there are many political interests at play here. The Israeli political right strongly opposes the Palestinian Authoritys control of Gaza, for fear of uniting the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank under a common leadership, because this would put an end to the Palestinian division , and It could revive the possibility of holding political negotiations on a Palestinian state. The Israeli writer commented that the political right has good reason to be concerned. After the attack of last October 7 , there is a rare popular consensus in Israel that the disengagement from Gaza, which was initiated by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in 2005, must be completed, and that the rule of the Palestinian Authority in Gaza will not end the relationship between Israel and the Gaza Strip, but may even strengthen it. The third option - according to Ben Caspit - is to hand over the keys to an international coalition consisting of Arab countries, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ), the European Union , the United Nations, or all of them. A senior Israeli political source told the writer that this option seems romantic, but it is difficult to achieve, as those who run Gaza must participate in its management and have a real interest, not just be guests. One of the solutions that Ben Caspit described as creative, and which is being proposed within the third option, is the establishment of a huge artificial island off the coast of Gaza. A former senior security official told the site that this would be cheaper and faster than rebuilding the Gaza Strip, as the technology, means and money are there, "and the people of Gaza will get new land with effective infrastructure. There will be no land borders between Israel and Gaza." The source warned that any attempt to rebuild Gaza is doomed to failure, given the huge network of underground tunnels in which everything could collapse, and believed that the idea of this island may be a good solution. European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that only the Palestinian Authority can manage the Gaza Strip after the end of the current war. Borrell stated during his participation in the "Manama Dialogue" conference that " Hamas (the Islamic Resistance Movement) cannot manage Gaza anymore." He continued, "So, who will manage Gaza? I believe that the Palestinian Authority is the only one who can." Since the start of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, the Hamas movement has repeatedly affirmed that Gaza will only be governed by its people, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - who vowed to eliminate the movement following the Al-Aqsa Flood operation on October 7 - said that Israel will not give up full security control. In Gaza after the war, as he put it. American press reports have indicated an escalating dispute between the administration of President Joe Biden and the Netanyahu government regarding the war plans for Gaza and their perceptions of the future of the Strip, assuming that Hamass control over it ends. The American side requested clarification from Israel following Netanyahus talk about security control over Gaza, in light of the assurances of American officials - led by Biden - that it is a mistake to reoccupy the Strip. US President Joe Biden outlined how he views the future governance of the Palestinian territories in the wake of the recent Israeli war on Gaza. In an Op-ed on The Washington Post, Biden expressed his belief that the Palestinian Authority should be the governing body for both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, despite the fact that the last elections were held in 2006, where Hamas won the majority, and since then the occupation entity has prevented any such elections fearing a new win to fore Resistance parties. Additionally, Biden addressed concerns regarding the ongoing Israeli escalations in the West Bank. He stated that the US government is prepared to take measures against settler violence targeting Palestinians in the region. His statement comes as the Israeli attacks on the region have been increasing for the past years, and since October 7, over 200 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli occupation forces across the occupied area. Biden asked, "What will our world look like after these conflicts?" He continued, "Will we deprive Hamas of the ability to commit evil? Will Israelis and Palestinians one day live side by side in peace, with two states for two peoples?" Then he added, "Do we hold Vladimir Putin responsible for his aggression, so that the people of Ukraine can live freely and Europe remains an anchor for global peace and security?" The overarching question, according to Biden, is will we continue to see the future positively, or will we allow those who do not share our values to drag the world into a more dangerous and divided place? NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russo-Ukraine War - 18 November 2023 - Day 633 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 most intense ground combat has been taking place in three areas: on the Kupiansk axis, in Luhansk Oblast; around Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast; and on the left bank of the Dnipro river in Kherson Oblast, where Ukrainian forces have established a bridgehead. Neither side has achieved substantial progress in any of these areas. Russia continues to suffer particularly heavy casualties around Avdiivka. Eyewitness reports suggest small uncrewed aerial vehicles and artillery (especially cluster rounds) continue to play a major role in disrupting the attacks of both sides. As colder winter weather sets in earnest in eastern Ukraine, there are few immediate prospects of major changes in the frontline. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that during the day of November 18, there were 64x combat engagements. Russian forces launched a total of 5x missile and 58x air strikes, 33x MLRS attacks at the positions of Ukrainian troops and various settlements. Moreover, on the night of November 18, Russian forces conducted air strikes on critical infrastructure facilities in Ukraine using Shahed-136/131 attack UAVs. Ukrainian air defense shot down 29x of the 38x attack UAVs. Russian attacks have unfortunately resulted in deaths and injuries among civilians. Private residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure were destroyed and damaged. Volyn and Polissya axes: no significant changes. No signs of formation of an offensive group. Certain units of the armed forces of Belarus continue their missions in the areas bordering Ukraine. Sivershchyna and Slobozhanshchyna axes: Russia maintains its military presence in the areas of russia bordering Ukraine. Russia continues its sabotage and reconnaissance activities, shelling Ukrainian settlements from the territory of Russia and increases the density of minefields along the state border of Ukraine. The Russian invaders launched an air strike near Stepok (Sumy oblast). Around 20x settlements came under Russian artillery and mortar fire, including Klyusy, Yanzhulivka, Mykhal'chyna Sloboda (Chernihiv oblast), Znob-Novhorods'ke, Rozhkovychi, Chuikivka (Sumy oblast), Ohirtseve, Hatyshche, Pletenivka (Kharkiv oblast). Kup'yans'k axis: Russian forces conducted failed assault operations in the vicinities of Syn'kivka and east of Petropavlivka (Kharkiv oblast), where Ukrainian defenders repelled 6x attacks. The Russian occupiers launched air strikes near Holubivka, Petropavlivka, Kucherivka, Ivanivka (Kharkiv oblast). Russian forces fired artillery and mortars at more than 10x settlements, including Syn'kivka, Petropavlivka, Ivanivka, Kyslivka, Kotlyarivka, Tabaivka (Kharkiv oblast). Lyman axis: the Russian adversary conducted offensives actions in the vicinity of Tors'ke (Donetsk oblast). The Russian invaders launched an air strike near the settlements of Bilohorivka (Luhansk oblast), Verkhn'okam'yans'ke, Terny, Spirne (Donetsk oblast). The Russian occupiers fired artillery and mortars at around 15x settlements, including Makiivka, Nevs'ke (Luhansk oblast), Yampolivka, Tors'ke, Dibrova, Spirne (Donetsk oblast). Bakhmut axis: Russian forces made assaults in the vicinities of Klishchiivka and Andriivka (Donetsk oblast), where Ukrainian defenders repelled 7x attacks. More than 20x settlements, including Bohdanivka, Ivanivske, Klishchiivka, Andriivka, Druzhba, Pivdenne (Donetsk oblast), came under artillery and mortar fire. Avdiivka axis: Russian forces conducted failed assault operations east of Keramik, east of Novobakhmutivka, Stepove, Avdiivka (Donetsk oblast), where the Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 23x attacks. The Russian invaders launched air strikes near Avdiivka (Donetsk oblast). Russian forces fired artillery and mortars at more than 15x settlements, including Keramik, Berdychi, Orlivka, Avdiivka, Sjeverne, Pervomais'ke (Donetsk oblast). Mar'inka axis: the Russian adversary made unsuccessful assaults with air support in the vicinities of Mar'inka and Novomykhailivka (Donetsk oblast), where Ukrainian defenders repelled 21x attacks. The settlements of Krasnohorivka, Heorhiivka, Mar'inka, Novomykhailivka, Katerynivka, Yelyzavetivka (Donetsk oblast) were under artillery and mortar fire of the Russian occupiers. Shakhtars'ke axis: Russian forces conducted assault operations near Staromaiors'ke (Donetsk oblast), to no success. Ukrainian defenders repelled 3x attacks in the area. The Russian adversary launched an air strike near Vuhledar (Donetsk oblast). Around 10x settlements, including Vuhledar, Novoukrainka, Prechystivka, Zolota Nyva, Urozhaine (Donetsk oblast), came under artillery and mortar fire. Zaporizhzhia axis: Russian forces made unsuccessful assaults near Robotyne, Novoprokopivka and west of Verbove (Zaporizhzhia oblast). More than 25x settlements, including Luhivs'ke. Orikhiv, Novodanylivka, Robotyne, Kam'yans'ke Prymors'ke (Zaporizhzhia oblast), came under artillery and mortar fire. Kherson axis: The settlements of Mykhailivka, Tyahynka, Veletens'ke (Kherson oblast) and the city of Kherson suffered from Russian artillery shelling. At the same time, the Ukrainian Defense Forces continue their offensive operation on Melitopol' axis and offensive (assault) operations on Bakhmut axis, inflicting losses in manpower and equipment on the Russian occupation forces, exhausting Russian forces all along the front line. Near the settlement of Krynky, (Kherson oblast), about 20 servicemen of the Russian occupation forces from the 144th separate motorized rifle brigade of the russian armed forces deserted from their combat positions. The Russian occupiers continue to rob the civilian population of Ukraine, appropriating the grain harvest of civilians. For example, in the city of Berdyans'k (Zaporizhzhia oblast), the so-called Russian occupation "authorities" are trying to transport stolen wheat to their ports by barge. During the day of November 18, Ukrainian Air Force launched 6x air strikes on concentrations of troops, weapons and military equipment of the Russian occupiers. The Ukrainian missile troops hit 1x concentration of troops, weapons and military equipment, 1x artillery system, 1x command post and 1x ammunition depot of the Russian invaders. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that in Kupyansk direction, units of the Zapad Group of Forces, supported by aviation and artillery, have repelled two attacks by assault groups of the 67th Mechanised Brigade of the AFU close to Sinkovka (Kharkov region). In addition, Russian troops have inflicted fire on units of 43rd, 53rd mechanised and 10th mountain assault brigades of the AFU close to Ivanovka and Zagoruykovka (Kharkov region). The enemy losses up to 30 servicemen, two pickup trucks. In Krasny Liman direction, as a result of coordinated actions by units of the Tsentr Group of Forces, Army Aviation, artillery and heavy flamethrower systems, three attacks launched by assault groups of 24st, 47th, and 63rd mechanised brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been repelled close to Chervonaya Dibrova and Petrovskoye (Lugansk People's Republic). The enemy losses were up to 200 servicemen killed and wounded, two armoured fighting vehicles, three motor vehicles. In Donetsk direction, units of the Yug Group of Forces, in cooperation with aviation and artillery, have repelled two attacks by assault groups of the 30th Mechanised Brigade of the AFU near Kurdyumovka (Donetsk People's Republic). In addition, AFU 22nd and 24th mechanised brigades have been hit close to Kleshcheevka, Andreevka, and Vasyukovka (Donetsk People's Republic). The enemy losses were up to 180 soldiers, one Bradley infantry fighting vehicle, three pickup trucks, and one Msta-B howitzer. In South Donetsk direction, units of the Vostok Group of Forces, in cooperation with helicopters and artillery, have repelled one attack by the AFU 79th Air Assault Brigade near Novomikhailovka (Donetsk People's Republic), as well as inflicted one fire attack on manpower and hardware of units of the 128th Territorial Defence Brigade near Staromayorskoye (Donetsk People's Republic). The enemy losses were up to 70 servicemen, two armoured personnel carriers, two motor vehicles, and one U.S.-manufactured AN/TPQ-50 counter-battery radar station. In Zaporozhye direction, units of the Russian Group of Forces, aviation and artillery, have repelled four attacks by assault groups of the 65th and 118th mechanised brigades of the AFU near Rabotino (Zaporozhye region). In addition, 33rd mechanised and 80th air assault brigades of the enemy close have hit to Rabotino and Verbovoye (Donetsk People's Republic). The enemy losses were up to 140 servicemen, one tank, two armoured fighting vehicles, and three motor vehicles. In Kherson direction, as a result of artillery and aviation strikes on AFU manpower, the enemy losses were up to 75 servicemen and four motor vehicles close to the Alekseevsky and Frolov islands and near Kachkarovka (Kherson region). In addition, during the counter-battery warfare, one U.S.-manufactured M777 artillery system, two Msta-B howitzers, and one Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system. Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have neutralised manpower and military hardware in 102 areas. In addition, one aviation ammunition depot of the AFU has been destroyed at Lozovatka airfield (Dnepropetrovsk region). Two arsenals of ammunition of the AFU have been destroyed close to Karpilovka (Kiev region) and Aleksandrovka (Zhitomir region). One ammunition depot of the 1st Special Purpose Brigade of the AFU has been destroyed near Volchansk (Kharkov region). One fuel depot for military hardware of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has been destroyed near Vygoda (Odessa region). The Black Sea Fleet's Naval Aviation destroyed one high-speed boat with landing servicemen and seven uncrewed boats of the Ukrainian Navy in 80 km west of Sevastopol in the waters of the Black Sea. Air defence facilities destroyed two Neptune anti-ship missiles and five HIMARS multiple-launch rocket system projectiles. In addition, 20 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been shot down close to Kupyansk (Kharkov region), Novaya Zburyevka, Chaplinka (Kherson region), Spartak, Peski, and Yasinovataya (Donetsk People's Republic). In total, 536 airplanes and 254 helicopters, 9,009 unmanned aerial vehicles, 441 air defence missile systems, 13,464 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,185 fighting vehicles equipped with MLRS, 7,128 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 15,369 special military motor vehicles have been destroyed during the special military operation. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 'Mishap' During 2nd Test Flight of SpaceX's Starship Resulted in Loss of Spacecraft - FAA Sputnik News 20231118 WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - A mishap during SpaceX's second test flight of the Starship Super Heavy rocket resulted in the loss of the spacecraft, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told Sputnik on Saturday. "A mishap occurred during the SpaceX Starship OFT-2 launch from Boca Chica, Texas, on Saturday, November 18," the FAA said. "The anomaly resulted in a loss of the vehicle." No injuries or public property damage have been reported, according to the FAA. The FAA said it will oversee SpaceX's investigation into the mishap to ensure it complies with federal regulations. The Starship spacecraft triggered its automated flight termination system during the second phase of its flight, destroying the vehicle before reaching orbit, according to the SpaceX broadcast. If the Starship spacecraft reached orbit, it would have reentered the Earth's atmosphere later on Saturday and splashed down near the coast of Hawaii. During the first phase of the launch, the Starship spacecraft successfully detached from the Super Heavy Booster rocket using hot-stage separation. The booster rocket, designed to be reusable, should have splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico but exploded shortly after the separation. SpaceX said the Starship successfully lifted off under the power of all 33 Raptor engines on the Super Heavy Booster and made it through the hot-stage separation, but the booster experienced a "rapid unscheduled disassembly" shortly after stage separation. The upgrades to Starship's fully integrated rocket for its second test flight included the hot-stage separation system to improve separation of the spacecraft from the booster rocket, a new electronic Thrust Vector Control system to improve control of the rocket mid-flight, and the installation of a water-cooled steel flame deflector at the launch pad. The first launch of the nearly 400-foot Starship rocket system, the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built, took place on April 20. SpaceX engineers deliberately detonated Starship during the first test flight after it began tumbling and losing altitude when multiple engines failed. The first test flight did not reach the second stage a separation of the Starship spacecraft from the Super Heavy Booster. The Starship is the centerpiece of SpaceX efforts to develop a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry humans to the Moon and on long-duration flights to Mars and beyond. The system is designed for in-space refueling and the ability to land at destinations across the solar system and return to Earth. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Missile launch marks dawn of an era By Private Nicholas Marquis 17 November 2023 The roar of the rocket engine broke through the silence as the first Australian live-fire of the National Advanced Surface to Air Missile (NASAMS) punched through the sky. Within two seconds, a second missile streaked from the launcher, jet fuel trailing behind. Almost 15 kilometres away, flashes could be seen as the target drones flying at 5000 feet were destroyed. The demonstration was a show of the capability the 16th Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery holds as they prepare to become part of the 10th Brigade, due to be raised as Army's fires brigade in Adelaide. Tactical control officer Lieutenant Matthew Hall was the first person to ground-launch the AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air to Air Missile (AMRAAM) in the country. Working from inside the Fire Distribution Centre (FDC), he said it didn't feel like firing a live missile and more like watching a video game. "It's been a long year and everyone was stoked to get one off the rails successfully, especially being the first one fired in Australia," Lieutenant Hall said. "When we got in the FDC, I think everyone there was feeling the pressure. "It was a massive relief when we saw the impact and got that confirmed hit on the target; a great feeling, almost like in a locker room after a grand-final win." The FDC - half a shipping container on the back of a HX77- contains communication equipment and collects data which is fed back via radars and cameras. Radio equipment covers the wall on the left, communication panels on the right and up front, two screens for the tactical control officer and their second in command. The screens show a live-feed from infrared cameras and radars with movement controlled by a joystick. The information collected is then used to determine if what is shown on the radar is friend or foe. "It was a massive relief when we saw the impact and got that confirmed hit on the target; a great feeling, almost like in a locker room after a grand final win." "We can see the impact with the electro-optical/infrared which basically has the function of a standard camera; being able to see like regular television," Lieutenant Hall said. "Then you also have an IR camera which picks up on the heat signatures of aircrafts and jet engines." The targets shown on the screens inside the FDC are tracked and identified using a transponder code depending if they are civilian, military or enemy aircraft. Each Raytheon-designed AMRAAM weighs almost 140 kilograms, is three metres in length and costs $US1.5 million. A HX77 with crane attachment drove through the red dirt of South Australia. 'Coffins' loaded with gold-banded missiles - live rounds - were carried on the rear. The detachment loading the launcher, commanded by Bombardier Cale Duggin, wore body armour, helmets, double hearing protection and gloves as they carefully opened up each coffin. Bare hands can't touch the missiles as oils might seep in and disturb it, and, being specifically used for jets in the past, physical rotation of the missiles is necessary so they are seated correctly from their packaging. Fins are the last part placed on the missile before being loaded into the launcher. The 16th Regiment gunner said NASAMS is a "smart system" and, with all the data links, is an advancement on the previous system. "This is a game-changing capability for us to sense and effect much greater ranges. It's very exciting being at the forefront [of] introducing NASAMS into service." "This is a big change going from line-of-sight engagement to beyond line-of-sight. It's much bigger kit," Bombardier Duggin said. "Seeing those missiles flying through the air, it definitely packs a punch and is a big step up from the RBS-70." As with all equipment, safety checks need to be completed to ensure each launch will be successful. "You check the missiles are serviceable and it goes through a bunch of tests that will physically show on the screen what is or isn't wrong," Bombardier Duggin said. "A pin might not be touching another pin and will send back a fault that needs to be 100 per cent fixed so we can reach the target." The detachment commander has direct links back to the FDC, which means constant communication if things do need attention. With Chief of Army Lieutenant General Simon Stuart and other senior leadership on site, officer in charge of the live-fire Major Brett Watson said the live-fire was outstanding. "It was an incredible feeling, a lot of emotion and hard work from a lot of people to get us to this point," Major Watson said. "This is a game-changing capability for us to sense and effect much greater ranges. It's very exciting being at the forefront [of] introducing NASAMS into service." According to the 110 Battery's commander, the live-fire was the highlight and a collective effort to bring the regiment together for such a big achievement. "It all came online very quickly. We were able to troubleshoot where we needed to and ultimately had very successful engagements," he said. "Seeing those missiles flying through the air, it definitely packs a punch and is a big step up from the RBS-70." Falling under Land 19 Phase 7B, the capability demonstrated at Woomera marked a significant milestone for Army's modernisation with support from industry partners. The recently released Defence Strategic Review outlined that Australia is investing in capabilities that are relevant to emerging risks. NASAMS was able to demonstrate its role within the wider Integrated Air and Missile Defence. NASAMS delivery to 16th Regiment will continue with new facilities to be built at RAAF Base Edinburgh concurrent with the raising of 10th Brigade in 2025. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address My decision on the Proposition 480 ballot issue was a difficult one. As best I can tell, both sides had good reasons for voting one way or the other. Both sides also made a lot of exaggerated Read moreLetter to the Editor: Lack of discussion over huge hospital leads to no vote Landmark Indo-Pacific Framework Agreements Media release 17 Nov 2023 Prime Minister Prime Minister Anthony Albanese today met with Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) Leaders in San Francisco to endorse a comprehensive package of IPEF agreements. IPEF brings together large and dynamic regional economies, accounting for around 40 per cent of global GDP, and includes eight of Australia's top ten merchandise trading partners. Australia is a founding member of IPEF, alongside Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam. Prime Minister Albanese and other IPEF Leaders released a joint statement welcoming signature of a first-of-its-kind supply chain agreement and the substantial conclusion of negotiations on a ground-breaking clean economy agreement and an innovative fair economy agreement. Earlier this week, Minister for Trade Don Farrell signed the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement to support our region's ability to prepare for and respond to future supply chain shocks. Australia will continue to work with IPEF members to conclude negotiations on the trade agreement in 2024. The agreements endorsed by the IPEF Leaders will create a cooperative, principles-based framework that boosts trade and investment in our region. Leaders endorsed the Agreement on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity to provide an overarching framework focused on cooperative activities across all agreements, including regular ministerial engagement. IPEF Leaders also announced a Critical Minerals Dialogue to strengthen collaboration in critical minerals supply chains and to boost regional competitiveness. For Australia, this will mean using our critical minerals to assist the region in transitioning to clean energy and in turn will create diverse, resilient and sustainable supply chains, building Australia's capacity and standing as a renewable energy superpower. These announcements build on the investments the Government has previously made including $25 million to support IPEF developing economy members with technical assistance and capacity building initiatives. Quotes attributable to the Prime Minister: "Engagement in IPEF supports our region's economic architecture, boosting trade, investment and jobs in Australia and our region. "Australia is investing in IPEF to accelerate trade diversification and deepen economic regional engagement. "IPEF demonstrates inclusive economic cooperation and what can be achieved when regional partners work together for the common good." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Opening Remarks - Bilateral meeting with Prime Minister of Thailand Transcript 17 Nov 2023 APEC, San Francisco Prime Minister Australia's Relationship with Thailand E&OE ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Firstly, can I say, Prime Minister, congratulations on your election. Australia and Thailand have a great friendship and we are working on our strategic partnership that we have in place between our two great countries. We have a good trading relationship as well and a trade agreement. We are important partners, as well. As members of ASEAN we're certainly involved and 50 years, we will celebrate, next year, and I thank you for accepting our invitation to come to Melbourne in March. I very much look forward to welcoming you and you'll be well received in Australia. There's a large diaspora in Australia with the Thai community. It's very big and a community that's involved in businesses, involved in commerce and spread right around the entire nation. And of course, many Australians enjoy travel to Thailand and vice versa. But we have a lot we can work on. Through ASEAN, we're very keen on the climate change transition as well and what's occurring there. But we have launched our Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040. We launched that at the ASEAN Summit in Jakarta a couple of months ago and that is really pointing towards how our complementary economies can work to create jobs in both of our jurisdictions and to make a positive result for our economies. I look forward to our discussion today. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Opening remarks - Australia-Japan Bilateral Meeting Transcript 18 Nov 2023 Prime Minister Australia's relationship with Japan E&OE PRIME MINISTER: Prime Minister, it is wonderful to meet with you again after we met on the sidelines of the G20 and to be able to continue to discuss our joint operational and security cooperation. The defence relationship is so strong and I was able to welcome the Chief of your Navy along with other people who were in Sydney Harbour at my residence during the Operation Malabar that took place earlier. Australia continues to be a reliable supplier of energy for Japan, and our cooperation on energy security, and action on climate change, is so important as we go forward. And our cooperation as members of the Quad is particularly important and I look forward to getting together again early next year for our Quad Leaders' Summit. And I thank you for your personal friendship. We have been a very good relationship. The relationships between Australia and Japan have never been stronger, as emphasised by cooperation across economic issues, critical minerals, our engagement is very comprehensive including on defence and security relations. It's great to be with you again today. I thank you. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with Prime Minister of Thailand Srettha Thavisin Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau November 16, 2023 San Francisco, United States of America Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the Prime Minister of Thailand, Srettha Thavisin, on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit in San Francisco, United States of America. Prime Minister Trudeau congratulated Prime Minister Srettha on his recent appointment. The two leaders took the opportunity to highlight the growing relationship and strong people-to-people ties between Canada and Thailand. The prime ministers underscored the positive and growing trade relationship between the two countries, and the tremendous potential for further growth, including through an eventual Canada-ASEAN free trade agreement. The leaders also highlighted the importance of clean energy and creating opportunities in the clean economy while fighting climate change. Prime Minister Trudeau discussed opportunities for increased co-operation under Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy and expressed appreciation for Thailand's support for the ASEAN-Canada Strategic Partnership. The prime ministers also discussed the situation in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. Prime Minister Trudeau condemned Hamas' brutal attacks against Israel and expressed concern about the dire humanitarian situation. He shared his condolences for the Thai nationals who were killed during the October 7 attacks, among other nationals, and stressed the need for all hostages to be immediately and unconditionally released. The two leaders agreed to maintain close contact and coordination as the situation evolves. The leaders also discussed the situation in Ukraine, and Prime Minister Trudeau condemned Russia's ongoing, illegal, and unjustifiable war against Ukraine. The leaders looked forward to making progress on shared priorities and agreed to remain in close contact. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau November 16, 2023 San Francisco, United States of America Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit in San Francisco, United States of America. The prime ministers discussed opportunities to advance bilateral and regional co-operation in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly as it relates to trade that benefits everyone. They also spoke about the importance of building stable, resilient, and responsible critical mineral supply chains. In the wake of devastating wildfires in Canada and Australia, the two leaders underscored the need to continue to work together to fight climate change and address its impacts. The prime ministers reiterated Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international law, including international humanitarian law. They expressed deep concern over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, and emphasized the need to protect civilians and the importance of ensuring unimpeded access to live-saving humanitarian aid for civilians. The two leaders reaffirmed their support for Ukraine as it continues to defend itself against Russia's illegal and unjustifiable war of aggression. Prime Minister Trudeau and Prime Minister Albanese agreed to stay in close contact and to continue working together to advance shared priorities. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with Prime Minister of Japan Kishida Fumio Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau November 16, 2023 San Francisco, United States of America Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the Prime Minister of Japan, Kishida Fumio, on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit in San Francisco, United States of America. The leaders reaffirmed the strength of Canada and Japan's strategic partnership, and the two countries' shared commitment to a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region. They highlighted growing bilateral trade, investment, and innovation ties, as well as the importance of building resilient supply chains. They also highlighted ongoing co-operation in the areas of battery supply chains and industrial science and technology through the implementation of memorandums of co-operation signed by Canada and Japan during a recent trade mission to Ottawa in September. The prime ministers spoke about Canada's ongoing defence co-operation with Japan and committed to work together to address global crises, including the conflict in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza as well as North Korea's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs. They reiterated their unwavering support for Ukraine in the face of Russia's illegal and unjustifiable aggression and discussed next steps in providing assistance. Prime Minister Trudeau commended Japan's leadership and coordination efforts in upholding the rules-based international order throughout its G7 Presidency. The prime ministers looked forward to continuing to work together to advance shared priorities. Prime Minister Trudeau and Prime Minister Kishida agreed to stay in close contact and looked forward to seeing each other again. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with President of Vietnam VA VAn ThaYng Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau November 17, 2023 San Francisco, United States of America Yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the President of Vietnam, VA VAn ThaYng, on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit in San Francisco, United States of America. Both leaders celebrated the important contributions Vietnamese Canadians have made - and continue to make - to growing bilateral ties. The Prime Minister and the President exchanged perspectives on fighting climate change, including through pollution pricing as a way to cut emissions while making life more affordable for the middle class. They also spoke about the recent growth in bilateral trade and investment due to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and expressed their mutual support for ongoing negotiations toward a Canada-ASEAN free trade agreement. Prime Minister Trudeau raised the importance of promoting and protecting human rights around the world. The two leaders discussed global issues, including the importance of increased co-operation to foster a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region, the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, and Russia's illegal and unjustifiable war of aggression against Ukraine. The prime minister raised Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international law, including international humanitarian law. The leaders expressed deep concerns over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, and emphasized the need to protect civilians and the importance of ensuring unimpeded access to live-saving humanitarian aid for civilians. Prime Minister Trudeau and President ThaYng expressed optimism regarding the continued growth and strong partnership between Canada and Vietnam, and they agreed to remain in close contact. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with Prime Minister of Malaysia Anwar Ibrahim Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau November 17, 2023 San Francisco, United States of America Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit in San Francisco, United States of America. The leaders celebrated the strong relationship and people-to-people ties between Canada and Malaysia, and the growing trade and investment links between our two countries. The prime ministers discussed the progress on implementing Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy. They explored areas where Canada and Malaysia can deepen co-operation, including on nuclear energy, education, and good governance. They welcomed the significant agreement, signed on the margins of the APEC Summit, for Canadian company BlackBerry to provide cybersecurity-related products and services to the Government of Malaysia. Prime Minister Trudeau expressed grave concern over the escalation in the Middle East and the troubling global rise of antisemitism, Islamophobia, and anti-Arab discrimination. The Prime Minister unequivocally condemned Hamas' terrorist attacks against Israel. He raised Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international law, including international humanitarian law, and expressed deep concerns over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. He emphasized the need to protect civilians and the importance of ensuring unimpeded access to life-saving humanitarian aid for civilians. The leaders also discussed the situation in Ukraine. Prime Minister Trudeau condemned Russia's illegal and unjustifiable war against Ukraine and emphasized the need to hold Russia accountable for its brutal military aggression. Prime Minister Trudeau and Prime Minister Anwar agreed to stay in close contact and looked forward to ongoing collaboration. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Creating opportunities for Canadians and advancing collaboration with APEC partners Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau November 17, 2023 San Francisco, United States of America Free and open trade is key to creating good, middle-class jobs and new opportunities for Canadian businesses. At this year's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Meeting, Canada deepened ties across the region to deliver growth for people on both sides of the Pacific. The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today concluded his participation at the APEC Leaders' Meeting, in San Francisco, United States of America. Under the theme of "Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for all", leaders from 21 partner economies came together to advance economic co-operation. Nearly one year since the launch of Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy, the meeting was an important forum to deepen Canada's collaboration with regional economies on supply chain resilience, sustainable and inclusive economic growth, digital trade, and economic security. Throughout the APEC Leaders' Meeting, the Prime Minister positioned Canada as a reliable trade partner and a destination of choice for investment, including on agriculture, clean energy, and artificial intelligence (AI). On the margins of the meeting, the Prime Minister also met with Canadian and American leaders from business and the AI fields. To strengthen Canadian leadership in technology, a multi-year agreement between BlackBerry and the Government of Malaysia was signed on the margins of APEC. BlackBerry's world-class Canadian technology was chosen to provide services and infrastructure that will help develop Malaysia's cybersecurity capacity and ability to counter and deter cyber-based threats. At the meeting, the Prime Minister raised with fellow leaders global issues including Russia's illegal and unjustifiable war in Ukraine and the ongoing situation in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank. While in San Francisco, the Prime Minister convened a roundtable of Canadian innovators, global tech leaders, food producers, and logistics suppliers to discuss lowering food costs for consumers and increasing agricultural supply chain resilience. The Prime Minister also met with the Governor of California, Gavin Newsom to discuss shared priorities including fighting climate change while growing strong economies and making life more affordable for the middle class. Quote "From AI, to clean energy, to agriculture, the world is looking to Canada as the place to do business. When we make sure that our partners in the Asia-Pacific can invest in Canada, and that Canadian companies can do business in the Asia-Pacific, we create middle class jobs and grow sustainable economies. By working together, we build a stronger, healthier future for people on both sides of the Pacific." The Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada Quick Facts While in San Francisco, the Prime Minister held bilateral meetings with the leaders of Japan, Thailand, Australia, Vietnam, Mexico, and Malaysia. Encompassing 40 economies, more than four billion people and $47.19 trillion in economic activity, the Indo-Pacific is the world's fastest growing-region and home to six of Canada's top 13 trading partners. Since the launch of Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy in 2022, we have made significant progress in its implementation, such as: Announcing the new Canada-ASEAN Strategic Partnership, a key milestone in our efforts to strengthen relations with Southeast Asia; Appointing a Special Envoy for the Indo-Pacific, Ambassador Ian McKay, in April 2023, and a Canadian Indo-Pacific Trade Representative, Paul Thoppil, in September 2023. These senior-level officials will play a critical role in advancing Canada's interests in the region; and Under the Strategy, Canada has also recently signed a five-year agreement with the Philippines to provide Canada's Dark Vessel Detection system which offers state-of-the-art remote sensing technologies to heighten the Philippines' maritime domain awareness and support their efforts to combat illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing within their sovereign waters. Fisheries and Oceans Canada will deploy the system to multiple monitoring facilities in the Philippines as of November 20, 2023. As a leader in climate change mitigation, green technologies, and the promotion of biodiversity, Canada is proud to champion the APEC Bio-Circular-Green Award and to have contributed US$45,000 toward this initiative which seeks to recognize distinguished individuals and organizations that have advanced sustainable and inclusive growth. On the margins of the APEC meeting, the Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development, Mary Ng, marked the launch of the Indigenous Peoples Economic and Trade Cooperation Arrangement Partnership Council, which will facilitate cooperation among participating economies, with the objective of identifying and removing barriers for Indigenous Peoples' economic empowerment and participation in trade. In June 2022, Canada and California announced a Climate Action and Nature Protection Partnership, which was supported by the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) between Environment and Climate Change Canada and California's Environmental Protection Agency. The 2022 MOC provides a framework for deeper exchange and technical co-operation on a broad range of climate and environmental priorities. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with President of Mexico AndrAs Manuel LApez Obrador Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau November 17, 2023 San Francisco, United States of America Yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the President of Mexico, AndrAs Manuel LApez Obrador, on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit in San Francisco, United States of America. The Prime Minister expressed his deepest condolences for the tragic loss of lives following Hurricane Otis in Acapulco and expressed Canada's willingness to continue supporting Mexico as it recovers from these devastating events. The Prime Minister also thanked the President for Mexico's support to Canada during this year's unprecedented wildfire season. Prime Minister Trudeau expressed appreciation for Mexico's support in the preparation for Canada's hosting of the upcoming North American Leaders' Summit, and he looked forward to welcoming President LApez Obrador to Canada. The leaders highlighted the depth and strength of the relationship between our two countries. The leaders also discussed opportunities for economic co-operation and growth that benefit people and communities across the Americas through good, middle-class jobs. They also expressed concern about many pressing global issues. Prime Minister Trudeau and President LApez Obrador looked forward to continued co-operation and agreed to remain in close and regular contact. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address SAN FRANCISCO K-pop superstar Rose said Friday at a mental health awareness event hosted by first lady Jill Biden that it's important for the world to understand that famous people grapple with emotional struggles, too. I think that would be very great, for everybody who works under the public eye," she said, perched on a slate gray couch at the Apple Park campus in Cupertino after hugging the first lady, who thanked her for coming. Rose, a part of the supergroup BLACKPINK, said having a large social media following makes her feel vulnerable, particularly when people are critical. I do feel like some of the things I do is just never enough, and no matter how hard I work on something, theres always gonna be somebody who has their own opinion or who enjoy taking control of the narrative, she said. And so, that comes to me as a sense of loneliness. She said it was important to talk about such things, however difficult it may be. Just as we feed ourselves for better health and fitness, mental health can only be maintained equally if not more intentionally as our physical well being. The discussion was part of several events hosted by Jill Biden for the spouses of Asia-Pacific leaders in California this week for the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. People who are older we never, ever spoke about mental health, Biden said. There was shame attached to it. But what I find as a teacher and having my own younger grandchildren in their twenties I think theyre much more open to talking to one another, I think theres far less shame. The event was moderated by Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. Apple CEO Tim Cook opened the event but blanked briefly when the teleprompter went out. Dont you hate that. I hate that, Biden said. Cook recovered, telling the crowd he'd go ahead and ad lib," then thanked everyone for coming and introduced the first lady. Cook later defended his tech company's privacy standards when Wan Azizah binti Wan Ismail of Malaysia mentioned how artificial intelligence and manipulation can affect mental health, asking the CEO about protections on technology to protect peoples private information. If youve ever had an Apple watch, you are being watched all the time, she said. Absolutely not actually, Cook responded. We believe that privacy is a fundamental human right. Kim Keon Hee, the first lady of South Korea, Rachael Marape, the spouse of the prime minister of Papua New Guinea, and Louise Araneta-Marcos, the first lady of the Philippines, also attended. The US is suffering a mental health crisis: Here are the best (and worst) states to find and afford treatment The US is suffering a mental health crisis: Here are the best (and worst) states to find and afford treatment Key findings Top states for mental health care share key characteristics States in the South and Southwest rank worst for mental health care Mental health care is a mixed bag: Many states that excel in one domain lag in others Both uninsured rates and overall cost contribute to affordability of care Anxiety and depression prevalence varies across states Secretary Blinken's Call with Canadian Foreign Minister Joly US Department of State Readout Office of the Spokesperson November 18, 2023 The following is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller: Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Canadian Foreign Minister MAlanie Joly. Secretary Blinken and Foreign Minister Joly discussed the Israel-Hamas conflict and ongoing efforts to protect civilians, increase the flow of humanitarian relief, prevent the conflict from widening, and secure the release of hostages, including U.S. and Canadian citizens. The Secretary and Foreign Minister also discussed efforts to ensure the safe passage of foreign nationals and critically wounded out of Gaza. They also reaffirmed the importance of the U.S.-Canada relationship to security and prosperity in the region and around the world. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address HMAS Toowoomba supports sanctions on North Korea 17 November 2023 The crew of HMAS Toowoomba have supported United Nations Security Council sanctions against North Korea during a regional presence deployment. Under Operation Argos, Toowoomba and its embarked MH-60R helicopter, Valkyrie, deployed to monitor and deter illegal ship-to-ship transfers of sanctioned goods in the Indo-Pacific region. Argos enforces sanctions that support the international community's goal of the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation of North Korea, which the ADF supports through the deployment of RAN vessels and RAAF maritime patrol aircraft. Chief of Joint Operations Lieutenant General Greg Bilton said Australia is committed to enforcing United Nations Security Council sanctions on North Korea until it takes concrete steps towards denuclearisation. "This operation is Australia's contribution to a multinational effort, alongside Canada, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States, all of which conduct operations in support of UN Security Council resolutions," Lieutenant General Bilton said. "These deployments demonstrate Australia's commitment to a global rules-based order as part of an international pressure campaign on North Korea to denuclearise." Commanding Officer Toowoomba Commander Darin MacDonald said Argos was an important part of the ship's regional presence deployment. "We are proud to contribute to the 10th iteration of the RAN's support to this operation on behalf of Australia," he said. "The crew's hard work is testament to Australia's continued commitment to regional security and stability." After supporting Operation Argos, Toowoomba willcontinue conducting activities, exercises and engagements with regional partners during the regional presence deployment. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel in 'war of attrition' leading to its inevitable collapse: IRGC chief Iran Press TV Saturday, 18 November 2023 4:34 PM The chief commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says the Israeli regime is moving towards its "inevitable collapse" in a "war of attrition" with Palestinians resistance movements. Major General Hossein Salami made the remarks while addressing a rally in the Iranian capital Tehran on Saturday. The nationwide protest was held to show solidarity with Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip who have been under relentless Israeli attacks since October 7. "Palestine stands on the path of a war of attrition...Israel will face a definitive defeat," he declared. "Operation Al-Aqsa Storm showed that the US help cannot save Israel from the danger of collapse." It is the "biggest humiliation" for the US and Israel who believe they can emerge victorious in the ongoing war on Gaza by killing children and infants, Salami stated. Even the Israeli army cannot prevent heavy operations against the Tel Aviv regime, he added. The IRGC chief emphasized that the ongoing military operation also revealed that the Palestinian resistance fighters can defeat the Israeli regime within only 48 hours. He said the bombardment of people in Gaza and the US efforts to prevent the establishment of a ceasefire in the besieged Strip as well as its political and logistic support for Israel showed moral collapse in the United States. Salami said hatred of the US has spread all over the world and it is more isolated than ever. He said Muslim and non-Muslim nations would inflict a heavy blow upon the US economy by boycotting its products. The IRGC chief expressed confidence that Muslim nations would avenge the Israeli regime's atrocities, saying, "Muslims' revenge on oppressors has no expiration date." The top Iranian commander hailed the great capacities of the Palestinian resistance movements, especially Islamic Jihad and Hamas, saying, "Hamas and Islamic Jihad cannot be collapsed. Neither Palestine nor its young fighters can be destroyed." He expressed confidence that Israel's "definite defeat" would trap it in a quagmire, adding that there is no indication of victory of the US and Israel in their ongoing battle against the resistance fighters in Gaza while "everything is ready for Palestine's liberation." Israel has been engaged in relentless air and ground attacks on the coastal territory, including hospitals, residences, and houses of worship, since Palestinian resistance movements launched the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the regime on October 7. At least 12,300 Palestinians have been killed, including more than 5,000 children. More than 29,800 individuals have sustained injuries as well. According to the Ministry of Health, 3,640 citizens are still missing or under the rubble, including 1,770 children. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Baha'i Group Says Iran Repression Has Increased, Cites 200 Recent Incidents By Michael Lipin November 19, 2023 Iran has increased repression of its Baha'i minority in recent months by engaging in more than 200 acts of persecution, including the arrests of 19 people last week, the Baha'i International Community, which represents world Baha'is, told VOA on Nov. 13. Simin Fahandej, a BIC representative to the United Nations, provided her organization's latest assessment of conditions in Iran in this week's edition of VOA's Flashpoint Iran podcast. Her assessment is consistent with an October report of increased harassment of Iran's Baha'is by a U.N. special rapporteur. The BIC-alleged incidents include the arrests of 19 Baha'is in Iranian security force raids on Baha'i homes in the cities of Karaj and Hamadan this month, according to a Nov. 10 BIC report. Iran's state news agency Fars, in a Nov. 8 article, cited a commander of the pro-government Basij militia as saying authorities had arrested 10 members of what Tehran calls the "heretical Baha'i sect" in western Tehran and in Alborz province, of which Karaj is the capital. It did not say when the arrests occurred. The Fars report accused the Baha'is of being part of an antigovernment propaganda network, a common charge leveled by Iran's Islamist rulers against minority Baha'is peacefully practicing their faith. Baha'is have no religious rights under Iran's Islamist constitution, which only grants such rights to members of three minority faiths, including Zoroastrians, Jews and Christians. Last month, the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Javaid Rehman, told a U.N. meeting in New York that there had been a "marked increase in attacks, targeting and harassment" of Iran's Baha'is. Rehman said there had been "over 333 reported incidents since July 2022, including cases of arbitrary detentions, interrogations, unlawful arrest, torture, ill treatment, destruction of properties, cemetery desecration, denial of education rights and other forms of economic pressures." The arrests reported last week drew expressions of concern from Western governments. Rashad Hussain, the U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, tweeted, "Persecution of Baha'is in Iran must end. Religious persecution is unacceptable and the trend of authorities targeting Baha'i women is deeply disturbing." Canada's Office of Human Rights, Freedoms and Inclusion and Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn posted similar statements on X, formerly known as Twitter. Iran's U.N. Mission in New York acknowledged having received Friday a VOA request for comment on the Western criticism, but it had not provided one at the time of publication of this report. The following transcript of Fahandej's VOA interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. VOA: How do you obtain and verify information about arrests of Baha'is in Iran? Simin Fahandej, BIC representative to the United Nations: It is actually quite difficult to obtain information from a country where individuals have received long sentences for speaking to the media or sharing news on their social media. There is a lot of fear and intimidation that is spread by the Iranian government in order to prevent people from disseminating this type of news. But the information that we do put out is accurate and based on what we receive. VOA: How did the reported arrests of 19 Baha'is last week compare to other arrests of Baha'is in the first 10 months of this year? Fahandej: What we have observed is that whenever human rights in Iran generally have deteriorated, the situation of the Baha'is also has deteriorated, unfortunately. We have seen that in the past few months, there has been an escalation in the persecution of the Baha'is. In the past couple of months alone, we have had more than 200 incidents of persecution. There were these 19 arrests and 20 home raids a few days ago in the cities of Hamadan and Karaj. A couple of weeks ago, we also had dozens of arrests in the cities of Shiraz, Yazd and Isfahan. So we see that actually, there has been this increase in persecution of Baha'is across the country. Another pattern that we have noticed is that many of the arrested individuals are women. Of the 10 Baha'is arrested in Isfahan, all are women, and most of them are actually young women. Those arrested in recent weeks include four or five elderly women whose husbands actually had been executed by the Iranian government in the 1980s. So we see that this pattern of persecution essentially affects Baha'is from the moment they are born into their advanced age and even after death. We have seen that Baha'i cemeteries are destroyed and that Baha'is sometimes are not permitted even to visit the resting places of their loved ones. VOA: BIC has been raising awareness about these cases of persecution through a new report called The Baha'i Question that was published last month, and through a social media project called Our Story is One. Can you tell us about these projects and what kind of response you have seen? Fahandej: The Baha'i Question publication actually started a few decades ago. Its name comes from an Iranian government memorandum that also is called The Baha'i Question. This 1991 memorandum was approved by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei himself. It essentially states that Baha'is should be treated "in a way that their progress and development shall be blocked." And it states a number ways to do this, such as the expulsion of Baha'i students from universities, schools, and places of employment. It also calls for placing Baha'i children in schools with a strong [Islamic] ideology in order to distance them from their faith. BIC's publications of The Baha'i Question detail the persecution of the Baha'is in Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution up to now, and also detail how international support for Baha'is has really increased over the years. One example of incredible global support that we have seen for Baha'is is the response to Our Story is One campaign, which we launched in June in honor of 10 Bahai women executed by Iran 40 years ago. The campaign has been able to bring Iranians together to see that the hate speech and propaganda spread by the Iranian government for the past 40 years to try to divide the Baha'i community from the rest of Iranian society has not worked. It has helped people to see that the same persecution experienced by Baha'is has extended to Iranians of all backgrounds and faiths, and that we are all one and our story is one. We actually have seen unprecedented support for the Baha'i community worldwide, with statements of support from Nobel peace laureates, foreign ministers, artists, musicians and countless others. One feature of the campaign is artwork. We made a public call for works of art, music and dance to celebrate the lives of not just the 10 executed Baha'i women, but of all Iranian women of all backgrounds and faiths. We saw a remarkable display of solidarity through this beautiful artwork and music that we have received. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israeli Nuclear Weapons Should Be Investigated - Erdogan Sputnik News 20231118 ANKARA, November 18 (Sputnik) - President Erdogan announced that Ankara would set up an inspection mechanism aimed at verifying Israel's possible ownership of nuclear weapons "before it is too late". Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that his government would push for an international investigation into Israel's possible nuclear weapons capabilities in light of its threats against Gaza this Saturday. "Over 1,000 lawyers have requested the International Criminal Court to open an investigation into these [Israel's] war crimes, and the number of appeals continues to grow. This is just one side of it. Then again, Israel is not part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and therefore it is not bound by its rules. However, there are cases where member states can apply to the International Atomic Energy Agency to create an inspection mechanism for the sake of ensuring nuclear security. We are launching appropriate efforts right now," Erdogan said on a flight home from Berlin. Turkiye's president maintains that the possible presence of nuclear arms in the country must be verified, "leaving no room for doubt". "The process will take time. The final judgment shall be submitted to the UN Security Council, the highest authority for monitoring nuclear-related matters. There is a chance that the US will side with Israel and veto the issue. However, the very fact that this topic is being discussed at all is remarkable. "So far, this is the first instance where such a formal claim was registered against Israel. Keeping it going is vital for maintaining balanced strategic interests in the region. We will continue to push for it. Turkiye's advocating for this matter as a nation. Israel's nuclear weapons must be verified, leaving no room for doubt, before it is too late," said the Turkish leader. Earlier this month, Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu was suspended for suggesting that dropping a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip was a "viable option." The minister also opposed allowing any humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, saying that Israel "would not hand the Nazis humanitarian aid," and that "there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza." A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 4 terrorists killed in military operation in NW Pakistan People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 10:07, November 19, 2023 ISLAMABAD, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani military claimed on Saturday night to have killed four terrorists in an operation in the country's northwest tribal district of North Waziristan, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). The ISPR, the media wing of the Pakistan Army, said in a statement that the security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation on Saturday, leading to an exchange of fire between the terrorists and security personnel in the Khaisoor area of North Waziristan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The slain terrorists included a high-value target named Ibrahim alias Musa, who was highly wanted by the Pakistani law enforcement agencies, said the military. "Weapons, ammunition, and explosives were also recovered from the killed terrorists, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities," said the ISPR. The military said that the security forces have started a clearance operation in the surrounding ranges, vowing to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pakistan, Russia agree to strengthen collaborative efforts to combat terrorism People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 09:38, November 19, 2023 ISLAMABAD, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan and Russia have agreed to strengthen collaborative efforts to effectively combat terrorism at a meeting, the Pakistani foreign office said in a statement. The 10th meeting of the Pakistan-Russia joint working group on combating international terrorism and other challenges to security, held here on Friday, was presided over by Pakistani caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani and Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Vershinin, the statement added. During the meeting, the two sides discussed global and regional terrorist threats, with a particular focus on the situations in Afghanistan, Central and South Asia, and North Africa, the statement said. Both sides outlined their respective national strategies and measures in combating terrorism, sharing experiences and best practices, and highlighting the importance of national efforts in the broader fight against terrorism. The discussions also covered enhancing cooperation in multilateral forums, such as the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the two sides resolved to work together in combating the financing of terrorism and in other key areas of counter-terrorism. The officials also addressed various forms of radicalization, the spread of terrorist ideologies, and the misuse of information and communication technologies for terrorist purposes, and agreed on the need for comprehensive strategies to counter these challenges. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Pacific Fleet Warships Arrive at India's Visakhapatnam Port Sputnik News 20231118 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - A detachment of warships of Russia's Pacific Fleet has arrived in the Indian port of Visakhapatnam on a business visit as part of the trip aimed at demonstrating and popularizing the Russian naval flag in the region, the Russian Pacific Fleet said on Saturday. "A detachment of Pacific Fleet warships comprising the large anti-submarine ship Admiral Tributs and the medium-sized Pechenga sea tanker arrived at the port of Visakhapatnam in the Republic of India as part of a long-range sea voyage in the Asia-Pacific region," the fleet said in a statement. The main base of the Indian navy's Eastern Fleet hosted a welcoming ceremony for the Russian ships, with protocol, cultural and sporting events planned for the Russian sailors. The Russian ships are expected to remain in Visakhapatnam until November 20. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Turkiye Taking Steps to Procure Fighter Jets Amid Eurofighter Uncertainty Sputnik News 20231118 ANKARA (Sputnik) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his government would continue shopping around for fighter jets after the Eurofighter purchase deal ran into German resistance. "We are on our way toward becoming a country that produces and uses its own weapons. We are also taking steps to continuously satisfy our needs for fighter aircraft," Erdogan told reporters upon his return from Germany. The Turkish president traveled to Berlin on Friday in a bid to convince Chancellor Olaf Scholz to greenlight the sale of 40 Eurofighter multirole fighters, a collaboration of several NATO member states. Turkiye, a NATO member, has also sought to buy more F-16 jets as well as modernization kits from the United States to overhaul its aging fleet of F-16s, but last year the US Congress put the deal on ice after Ankara blocked Sweden's accession to the military alliance. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian soldier in Ukraine discusses North Korean weapons in video Shared on social media, the video could prove that Russia is in violation of UN sanctions. By Cho Jinwoo for RFA Korean 2023.11.17 -- Video of a Russian soldier in Ukraine talking about ammunition supplied by North Korea surfaced on social media this week, apparently debunking denials by Pyongyang and Moscow that the isolated East Asian country is supplying weapons for the war there. A video titled "Multiple rocket launcher (MRL) extended-range shells kindly provided by North Korean comrades have arrived in the NVO zone," was shared on Nov. 12 on a Telegram channel called Paratrooper's Diary, which contains frequent posts from Russian troops fighting in the northern front in Ukraine. The video shows a Russian soldier standing in front of a pile of rockets. "Our friends gave us a new type of ammunition similar to the twenty-second," the soldier said in a possible reference to the rocket's designation of R-122. "They travel farther distances and hit the target with higher accuracy. The victory will be ours." If the weapons are indeed North Korean, it would be proof that Russia is in violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1874, which prohibits arms trade with North Korea. The prospect that the rockets were provided by North Korea is very likely, David Maxwell, vice president of the Center for Asia Pacific Strategy, told RFA Korean. "These MRLs are ubiquitous," Maxwell said. "Since the weapons are so common and so heavily used for indirect fire against tactical Ukrainian targets, the Russians are likely going through their ammunition stocks rapidly and thus need resupply from North Korea." The rockets in the video were also identified as North Korean by military blogger War Noir on X. "The rockets appear to be rare R-122 HE-FRAG rockets with F-122 fuzes. These are produced and supplied #NorthKorea/#DPRK," a Nov. 8 tweet by War Noir, which contained the same video, said. RFA previously reported that the same blogger had identified North Korean weaponry used by Hamas fighters in attacks on Israel last month. Russian denials Though both Pyongyang and Moscow have denied that North Korea is supplying Russia with weapons for use in Ukraine, this is not the first time that evidence to the contrary has surfaced. In October, the Ukrainian weapons analysis group 'Ukraine Weapons Tracker' released photos showing the Russian military using North Korean-made artillery shells in a tweet on X. But on Tuesday, a spokesman for the Kremlin, Dmitry Peskov, said at a press conference that allegations that Russia was using North Korean weapons were "completely groundless." "[The allegations] have not been confirmed by anything," he said. North Korea has also dismissed the idea, calling it an "absurd manipulation of public opinion." The United States is deeply concerned about "the expansion of military cooperation between North Korea and Russia," U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday. "North Korea is providing lethal weapons to Russia." Meanwhile, South Korea's Ministry of Unification was also critical of the apparent uptick in military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow at a press briefing last month. "North Korea has repeatedly denied arms trade with Russia, but related circumstances are coming to light one after another," the ministry's spokesperson Koo Byoung Sam said. "The true nature of North Korea, which has deceived the entire world, is being revealed to the world." RFA sent a message to the administrator of the Telegram channel to confirm the veracity of the video which is saying that the Russian military received North Korean weapons but did not receive a response. Translated by Claire Shinyoung Oh Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong 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 November not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Museum of the Rockies is planning to expand its paleontology education programs across the state using a federal grant. The award, worth about $240,000, comes from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Through a press release from Montana State University, the museum announced it plans to launch Discover Science! to increase opportunities for students and teachers to learn about museum education and offer mobile pop-up museum programs to travel across the state. Tricia Erikson, the museum director of development and membership, said the program expansions will all be available by 2026. Most of the museums programs are geared towards K-12 teachers and students, she said. By September 2025, she said, the museum will start traveling across the state to offer a mobile museum experience, featuring casts of prehistoric fossils. In March 2025 and January 2026, the museum plans to host professional development classes for educators to learn how to use museum specimens to teach their students. Erikson said the grant will help the Museum of the Rockies pay for all the transportation costs for teachers attending. According to the press release from MSU, the grant will add a part-time museum educator to the staff. The museum is also planning a new interactive gallery in Bozeman by summer 2025, Erikson said. Chelsea Hogan, the museums director of education and public programming, said paleontology offers a unique way for people to learn about science and history, which cant often be found in a classroom. Its all about creating science literacy, Hogan said. This includes an understanding of the history of time, of paleo climate change and processes of scientific inquiry. Were going to be teaching students how to think critically, how to hypothesize. Were going to be exploring these principles that life continuously evolves, that the Earth has a dynamic 4.6-billion-year history and scientists use repeatable observations and testable ideas to understand our planet. Students will come to learn through hands-on programming how to really approach an object with curiosity. When we come to a museum, we see a specimen behind a piece of glass with a label on it, but when a bone is in the ground, how does paleontologist look at that bone and understand where it comes from, where it belongs on the body, what its been through? Dinosaurs also often capture the imagination or interest of young people. Capturing a childs passion for dinosaurs at a young age could set them up for a lifetime of love for science, Hogan said. Hogan said all of the Museum of the Rockies programs are free to students. The museum can also cover half of bus transportation costs for schools wanting to visit, and offers scholarships to help with the full cost, she said. More pressure on those who assist Russian terror, we will leave no connection of these people with Ukraine - address by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy President of Ukraine 18 November 2023 - 20:40 I wish good health to all Ukrainians! The main points for today. First, once again, I congratulate all Ukrainian sergeants and warrant officers on their professional day! I thank every sergeant and warrant officer who genuinely cares for the soldiers, supports the fighting spirit in their units, and knows how to be leaders for the troops. During the full-scale war, over 13,000 sergeants have been honored with state awards. Yesterday, I signed a decree to award another hundred Ukrainian sergeants - the best, the strongest. I am proud of you all. Second, for today. Several decisions on sanctions of the National Security and Defense Council have been put into effect. Almost 40 Russian legal entities and over 100 individuals, including those involved in the kidnapping and deportation of Ukrainian children from the occupied territory. Also, individuals who, in various ways, assist Russian terror against Ukraine. We are increasing the pressure of our state on them. Each of them must be accountable for what they have done, and we will not leave any connection of these people with Ukraine. Third, I want to acknowledge the countries that announced new assistance to our state this week. Germany, Finland, Lithuania - thank you for the new defense packages. Estonia - over the next few years, they will increase security investments in the production of ammunition. And this is important. Norway and the United Kingdom - decisions have been made on new humanitarian packages for Ukraine and Ukrainians. Thank you. We are already preparing new steps - security steps - in the coming weeks. This includes strengthening air defense. Another thing. Last night, almost 30 'Shaheds' were destroyed in our sky. I thank all the soldiers of mobile fire groups, the aviation of our Air Force, and the anti-aircraft missile troops. Your accuracy, guys, is literally life for Ukraine. As winter approaches, there will be more Russian attempts to make the strikes more powerful. It is crucial for all of us in Ukraine to be one hundred percent effective. Despite all the difficulties. Despite all the fatigue. Despite any attempts to weaken Ukraine. Respect and glory to everyone who fights for the country, everyone who helps and works to ensure that Ukraine can defend and protect its independence. It depends on everyone, on everyone who is resilient. On all who are effective. On each and every one who can add and adds strength and perspective to Ukraine. Please use every opportunity to strengthen the state. Glory to Ukraine! NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Andriy Yermak had a phone call with Adolfo Urso President of Ukraine 18 November 2023 - 16:24 On the instruction of the Head of State and within the framework of ongoing dialogue, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak had a phone call with Italian Minister of Enterprises and Made in Italy Adolfo Urso. The head of the President's Office thanked the government and people of Italy for the continued unwavering support of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in the struggle for freedom and common European democratic values. Specifically, Andriy Yermak commended the personal leadership of Prime Minister of the Italian Republic Giorgia Meloni in comprehensive support for our state and the consolidation of European partners around assistance to Ukraine. The interlocutors discussed the situation on the front, further security cooperation, and the preparation of the 12th package of EU sanctions against Russia. The head of the Office of the President said that today, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed decrees on the imposition of additional sanctions by Ukraine on individuals and legal entities supporting the aggressor. The head of the President's Office also expressed gratitude to Italy for supporting the Peace Formula, especially for the participation of the Italian representative in the national security and political advisors' meeting in Malta. Continuing the dialogue between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni, Andriy Yermak and Adolfo Urso discussed the directions of cooperation during Italy's future G7 presidency next year. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Andrii Sybiha met with the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation President of Ukraine 18 November 2023 - 09:45 Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha held a meeting with Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC) Asaf Hajiyev. Members of the parliamentary delegations of Ukraine and Georgia, Anna Purtova and Ramaz Nikolaishvili, also participated in the meeting. On behalf of the state leadership, Andrii Sybiha expressed gratitude to the Secretary General for his visit to Ukraine and the organization of the 62nd plenary session of the PABSEC General Assembly in Kyiv from November 15 to November 17 of this year. "This session provided an opportunity for parliamentary delegations of BSEC member states to demonstrate the real situation and consequences of the full-scale Russian aggression," the Deputy Head of the President's Office said. In this context, he emphasized the importance of international parliamentarians visiting Bucha, Borodianka, and Irpin. Andrii Sybiha highlighted that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's personal address to the assembly participants reflects the special attention that Ukraine pays to the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) and its role in ensuring peace and stability in the region. The parties noted that the PABSEC General Assembly session in Kyiv proved to be exceptionally productive and welcomed its significant results. This includes the adoption of a declaration strongly condemning Russia's large-scale aggression against Ukraine, expressing solidarity and support for our country, and emphasizing the need to transform the Black Sea region into a region of peace, stability, and prosperity. The personal support from the Secretary General of PABSEC for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine was highly appreciated, as well as the organization's principled position on the non-confirmation of mandates of members of the Russian delegation and the prevention of events within PABSEC in the aggressor state. The Deputy Head of the Office of the President reaffirmed Ukraine's unchanged position regarding the necessity of excluding Russia from PABSEC as a country that grossly violates international law and the organization's statutory principles. He also expressed hope for support from other BSEC member states in resolving this issue. During the exchange of views on the security situation in the region, the interlocutors specifically touched upon the issues of global food security and freedom of navigation, discussed further joint steps in the context of ensuring the functioning of grain corridors in the Black Sea. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Orthodox Church Row Threatens US Aid to Ukraine By Tatiana Vorozhko November 18, 2023 Pending legislation in Ukraine aimed at preventing the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from becoming a conduit for Russian influence is attracting attention in the United States and is being used by some U.S. conservatives to paint Ukraine as hostile to religious freedom. Ukrainian authorities insist the proposed law would not limit the activities of the church, which many believe maintains a relationship with the Russian Orthodox Church and has seen its membership plummet since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. They say it would simply authorize a relevant state agency to investigate the presence of connections between any religious organization and Russia and require it to remedy the situation if needed. The actual text of the draft bill, which received preliminary approval in the Ukrainian parliament on Oct. 19, prohibits "activities of religious organizations that are affiliated with the centers of influence of a religious organization (association) whose management center (management) is located outside of Ukraine in a state that carries out armed aggression against Ukraine." Any such ban "is inexcusable, illegal, contrary to international law, and contrary to the interests of Ukraine," argue lawyers Robert Amsterdam and William Burke-White, who are registered with the U.S. Department of Justice as representing the interests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. "And I think that's what I find most frustrating," Amsterdam said in a phone interview with VOA. "Somebody who supports Ukraine as I do, that this government would put in front of the Rada legislation that is so contrary to law and contrary to international practice. The Ukrainian government has got to go back to the rule of law." Perhaps more worrisome for the Ukrainian government, the issue has been taken up by some U.S. opinion influencers who argue against further U.S. military assistance to help Kyiv resist the Russian invasion of its territory launched last year. During the third Republican presidential debate in Miami on Nov. 8, candidate Vivek Ramaswamy accused Ukraine of banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. "The parliament did that just last week, supported by our U.S. dollars," he said. Earlier, in a popular show on X, media personality Tucker Carlson accused the Ukrainian government of banning "an entire Christian denomination." As of this week, the show had been viewed almost 55 million times. But Viktor Yelensky, head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, insisted in an interview with VOA that the proposed law simply authorizes his service to examine any religious organization's connections with Russia, whose unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has claimed tens of thousands of lives. According to the legislation, the service will do this by "conducting a religious-study examination of the activities of religious organizations to identify subordination in canonical and organizational issues with centers of influence." The agency will ask an organization to make specific changes if they find such a connection, he said. "If a religious organization refuses to comply with the law, we will bring it to court. So, the civil court will have the final say. It is not a ban." The UOC spokesperson, Metropolitan Kliment, acknowledges that his church is not specifically named in the proposed legislation. But he says he is worried that the final version of the draft law may be tougher and name his church. The complex relationship between the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Russia has been the subject of discord within the country's religious community since long before the invasion. After centuries in which the Russian Orthodox Church was the predominant Christian denomination in Ukraine, represented by the Ukrainian Exarchate, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church established itself as a separate entity in 1990 while maintaining relations with the Russian church. In May 2022, its leaders announced their full independence from the Moscow-based church, which has been a strong supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin's attempts to conquer Ukraine. There is also another Orthodox Christian church in the country a the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. It was formed in 2018 after the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyiv Patriarchate merged with the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. Both churches claim to be successors of Orthodox Christianity in Ukraine going back to the 10th century. Last year's invasion accelerated the drift of believers from the UOC to the OCU, with whole parishes permitted to switch from one to the other with a two-thirds vote at a parish meeting. Followers of the OCU accounted for 54% of all Ukrainian churchgoers as of July 2022, according to a survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology. The same study found that only 4% of churchgoers still attended the UOC as of that date, down from 18% a year earlier. Church spokesperson Metropolitan Kliment maintains that the true number is higher. Amsterdam sharply criticized the transfer process, claiming that some parishioners have been subjected to intimidation. "I've seen these pictures of men in balaclavas coming in and threatening and intimidating people to change," he said. Yelensky told VOA that most transitions took place peacefully although there were some clashes in cases where a majority wanted to switch but a minority sided with the priest who was against it. He said the most tumultuous transitions happen in villages, where communities often build and maintain temples, and that opposition to a switch is also organized. Since the start of the war, the UOC's ties to Russia have been under scrutiny. Between February 2022 and October 2023, the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) opened 68 criminal proceedings against representatives of the UOC, including several high-level religious leaders, for such crimes as treason, collaborationism and aiding and abetting the aggressor country, RFE/RL reports. "In addition, law enforcement officers are investigating 18 cases of public agitation for religious hatred, the sale of firearms, and the distribution of child pornography," the SSU said in a statement. Ukraine's law enforcement authorities insist that they do not prosecute anyone because of their religious beliefs but only for actual crimes. "Having a cassock and incense is not aggravating, but it doesn't exempt from criminal liability. We work exclusively within the framework of the law, regardless of church rank," said the SSU head, Vasyl Malyuk, in an interview with the UNIAN agency. Both the proposed new law and the underlying controversy have attracted the attention of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent agency responsible for reviewing possible violations of religious freedom abroad and making policy recommendations to the U.S. administration and Congress. USCIRF members have discussed the draft law with Oksana Markarova, Ukraine's ambassador to the United States. VOA was told in a written reply from USCIRF Chair Abraham Cooper, "The Ambassador strongly advocated for Ukraine's ability to defend its national security given Russia's unjustified war and influence campaign in Ukraine." Cooper said the commission expressed its understanding of Ukraine's challenges but asked it to ensure that the law, when adopted, doesn't violate religious freedoms. "Ultimately, the Ukrainian government should ensure that the law does not target law-abiding citizens due to their religious beliefs or affiliation, or in any way prevent people from peacefully practicing their religion in community with others," says his written reply. Amsterdam denied any suggestion that his activity on behalf of the UOC might play into Russia's hands by providing an argument to those in the U.S. Congress who wish to halt U.S. military assistance to Ukraine. He argued that Kyiv should simply withdraw the draft. "Don't put together illegal legislation and talk about going to Congress. It's so foolish. It's ridiculous. It's the stupidest thing Ukraine could do," he said. Metropolitan Evstratiy (Zorya) of the rival OCU rejected any suggestion that religious liberty in Ukraine is at risk. "Ukraine has never in its entire history had the level of religious freedom as it has been enjoying since gaining its independence," he told VOA. Evstratiy was part of an 18-member delegation of the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations that visited the United States earlier this month, meeting members of Congress, politicians, experts and leaders of religious communities. The council claims to represent 95% of all religious denominations in Ukraine, although Metropolitan Kliment of the UOC says no one from his church was invited to participate. Yaakov Dov Bleich, the U.S.-born chief rabbi of Kyiv and Ukraine, told VOA that he explained the draft law to Americans during the trip: "This is a law that says that if an aggressor country is going to use a religious organization or any other organization to try to influence people and life in Ukraine, it is a danger to Ukraine." The delegation also talked about massive violations of the right to freedom of religion and the use of physical violence against religious minorities by the Russian authorities in the occupied territories of Ukraine. Anatoliy Kozachok, senior bishop of the Ukrainian Church of the Evangelical Faith, who participated in the trip, told VOA in a written reply that since Ukraine gained independence, evangelicals have enjoyed their greatest religious freedom. "Not a single church is closed in Ukraine; not a single clergyman is persecuted for religious activity," he wrote. But in the Russian-occupied territories, he added, his community was subjected to religious restrictions, discrimination and persecution. "For example, in the occupied Luhansk region, not a single functioning church has survived," he wrote. Metropolitan Evstratiy said that while in the United States, the delegation "talked about kidnapped priests who are now in Russian prisons; we talked about destroyed and looted shrines." "If a person, be it a lawyer, be it a journalist, be it a politician, says that there is no religious freedom in Ukraine, and at the same time not a word about the occupied territories, this is already a direct sign that this is exclusively Russian propaganda, and not the truth," he said. Amsterdam agreed that the situation in the Russian-occupied territories is "horrific," and Metropolitan Kliment said that the UOC has repeatedly condemned the situation. "Our Church has repeatedly condemned attempts at religious discrimination, and representatives of our communities in the occupied territories have categorically opposed illegal actions against any religious denomination," he said. On that point, the USCIRF is also in agreement. "Ukrainian religious communities in Russian-occupied territories have had to endure some of the worst religious freedom violations as Russian military forces and de facto authorities have regularly banned religious groups, disappeared, tortured and killed religious leaders, and destroyed Ukraine's religious and cultural sites," Cooper said. "However, we reiterate our concerns about the possible impacts of law No. 8371." Nataliia Churikova and Myroslava Gongadze contributed to this report. Materials from Euromaidan, RFL/RE, and UNIAN were also used. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address If you purchased or acquired securities in Paycom between May 3, 2023 and November 1, 2023 and would like to discuss your legal rights, call Faruqi & Faruqi partner Josh Wilson directly at 877-247-4292 or 212-983-9330 (Ext. 1310). You may also click here for additional information: www.faruqilaw.com/PAYC. There is no cost or obligation to you. NEW YORK, Nov. 19, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP, a leading national securities law firm, is investigating potential claims against Paycom Software, Inc. (Paycom or the Company) (NYSE: PAYC) and reminds investors of the January 9, 2024 deadline to seek the role of lead plaintiff in a federal securities class action that has been filed against the Company. Faruqi & Faruqi is a leading minority and Woman-owned national securities law firm with offices in New York, Pennsylvania, California and Georgia. As detailed below, the complaint alleges that the Company and its executives violated federal securities laws by making false and/or misleading statements and/or failing to disclose that: (1) Paycom's Beti product led to cannibalization of Paycom's services and revenues; (2) Paycom knew but failed to disclose that Beti was leading to cannibalization of Paycom's services and revenues, and failed to warn of cannibalization as a general risk; (3) as a result of cannibalization of revenue, Paycom missed its expected 3Q23 revenue and would have to revise its expected 2023 Revenues; (4) the cannibalization issue resulted in projected 2024 year-over-year revenue growth to between 10% and 12%, well below expectations; and (5) as a result, defendants' statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. Paycom introduced its Beti product in July 2021. Beti is an automated payroll processing system that gives employees the option to do their own payroll, including reviewing and updating payroll errors. On October 31, 2023, Paycom reported its Q3 2023 financial results, which disclosed disappointing Q3 revenues, revenues guidance for Q4 2023, and an initial 2024 outlook for 10% to 12% revenue growth. Paycom's reported financial results fell significantly below consensus estimates. At the earnings call, Chief Financial Officer Craig Boelte explained that the Beti product has rendered some of the Company's existing offerings non-essential. As a result, customers have stopped purchasing Paycom's other services and billable items, which has affected the Company's revenues. On this news, the price of Paycom shares declined by $94.28, or approximately 38.49%, from $244.97 per share to $150.69 on November 1, 2023. The court-appointed lead plaintiff is the investor with the largest financial interest in the relief sought by the class who is adequate and typical of class members who directs and oversees the litigation on behalf of the putative class. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision to serve as a lead plaintiff or not. Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP also encourages anyone with information regarding Paycoms conduct to contact the firm, including whistleblowers, former employees, shareholders and others. Attorney Advertising. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP (www.faruqilaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your particular case. All communications will be treated in a confidential manner. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/190e2445-33e5-402c-9863-2a2414b9a7e0 Politicians must consolidate teacher licensing Graphic.com.gh Editorials Nov - 18 - 2023 , 07:44 As the country heads into hectic political campaigning which will lead to the 2024 general election, the temptation to politicise everything is high as it has always been in every election year. One such area is education which promises to be a focus of the political parties in their attempt to win power. It is important that political parties desist from politicising issues surrounding teacher licensing and professionalism. Before coming out with a manifesto on education every political partys focus should be on how to consolidate the gains made regarding the reforms in our teacher education system. Education in general, and teacher education in particular in the country, has come far and politicians should not wind the clock back. The Daily Graphic believes that the significant gains made in teacher professionalism are yielding fruits, with Ghanaian teachers acquitting themselves very well globally. For instance, between 2018 and 2023 four Ghanaian teachers have featured in the list of the top teachers in the Global Teacher Prize, the last two reaching the top 10. We believe that this is an indication that something is being done right in teacher education, and that should be maintained. Reports that Ghanaian teachers are sought after in other African countries, Europe, the Americas and Asia should be something worth celebrating. Additionally, information that Ghanaian teachers are exempted from any assessment for Qualified Teachers Status in the United Kingdom has confirmed the quality of teachers produced by our teaching institutions. It is good that the licensing of teachers is explicit in the Education Act of 2008, Act 778. The Act empowers the National Teaching Council (NTC) to conduct the professional examination for individuals who want to take teaching as a profession. Since 2018 when the first-ever teacher licensure examination took place with the colleges of education serving as examination centres throughout the country, acquiring a professional licence has become mandatory. Ever since, the teaching licence has become a requirement for all professionally qualified teachers in Ghana and ensures that the holder meets the standards and requirements to teach. So, teacher trainees graduating from the colleges of education or the universities are required to pass the licensure examination before seeking to serve as teachers with the GES. The good thing about the examination is that those who are already teaching are not required to write the examination but they are undertaking a number of in-service professional training programmes to upgrade themselves to enable them to get the licence. The Daily Graphic is happy that the NTC did not make it mandatory for teachers already in the classroom to write the examination because it would have been a big disservice for someone who had taught for years to be told to go back and write an examination to be made a professional. We believe that making teaching a recognised profession comes with a number of advantages for not only the Ghanaian teacher but the country as a whole because it would ensure that we have quality teachers to teach our children and raise the standard of teaching in Ghana. Apart from the standardisation, licensing Ghanaian teachers will also prepare them to be accepted globally. It is, therefore, in the light of the advantages of getting our teachers to be professional to rub shoulders with their counterparts in any part of the world that we join in the clarion call to strengthen teacher licensing. At the 70th anniversary of the Kpando SHS recently, the Executive Chairman of the First Sky Group, Eric Kutortse, also supported the need for politicians to desist from politicising education and called for a national policy on education no matter the political party in power. It is becoming clear that as Ghanaians, certain aspects of our development must be devoid of politics, and education is one of such. We, as a country, must be deliberate about that and together we can build a robust and resilient nation. Politicising education amounts to toying with the future of our young ones and setting a dangerous path for the country. ECOWAS congratulates Liberia for upholding democracy Zadok Kwame Gyesi Nov - 19 - 2023 , 12:50 The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has congratulated the people of Liberia on the peaceful conduct of the 2023 Presidential and Legislative elections. ECOWAS also congratulated Ambassador Joseph Boakai on his election as President of Liberia and salutes President George Weah for graciously accepting the results of the elections. ECOWAS in a statement dated November 18, 2023, said "Liberians have once again demonstrated that democracy is alive in the ECOWAS region and that change is possible through peaceful means." ECOWAS also commended all the stakeholders, including the political parties, National Elections Commission, the civil society, the security forces as well as local and international partners, for their commitment to a credible and inclusive electoral process as enshrined in the Revised Farmington River Declaration. The statement said ECOWAS will continue to support the people of Liberia to consolidate peace and security, deepen democracy and foster socioeconomic development. ICU welcomes Govt decision to recapitalise NIB Emmanuel Bonney Nov - 18 - 2023 , 09:15 The Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU-Ghana) has welcomed the governments decision to recapitalise the National Investment Bank (NIB). To the union, the action by the government was a clear demonstration of saving an institution whose role in the financial industry over the years could not be taken for granted. The ICU-Ghana leadership stated this as part of its response to the 2024 Budget, presented to Parliament last Wednesday. Attention Addressing the press in Accra last Wednesday, the General Secretary of the ICU-Ghana, Morgan Ayawine, also urged government to give serious attention to helping other distressed state-owned enterprises such as Neoplan, PBC Ltd and Aluworks. We recall ICU-Ghana presented a petition to the government in 2018 and repeated it in September 2023, resulting in a meeting with the Minister of Finance just before the 2024 budget was read. This has resulted in the governments decision to recapitalise the NIB to play its traditional role of financing industry in the country for economic growth and development, the ICU General Secretary stated. He said the NIB had suffered the brunt of the financial sector challenge and that the recapitalisation of the bank as part of moves to resuscitate the financial sector is a welcome news. Presenting the 2024 Budget to parliament, the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, said the government had set aside GH4 billion to recapitalise NIB and other institutions. Mr Speaker, in addition, a provision of GH4 billion has been made in the 2024 Budget to address National Investment Bank (NIB), distressed SDIs, and other outstanding legacy challenges in the financial sector, he said. Policy Speaking in the company of his two deputies, Emmanuel Benimah (Deputy General Secretary in charge of Operations) and Samuel Ananga (Deputy General Secretary in Charge of Administration and Finance), theICU General Secretary said there was the need for the government to formulate a deliberate policy that would stand the test of time to deal with the unemployment situation in the country. Mr Ayawine said the unemployment situation in the country was a serious matter, hence the need for the government to take concrete steps to address it. For him, the Nkunim Budget should not only seek to address the concerns of the minority in the country, but cover all Ghanaians, especially the working people. Tax reliefs But when you come to look at the tax reliefs and you would notice that these tax reliefs are just there and they look quite good and quite impressive and people become when they hear that there have been tax reliefs as contained in the budget. But let us ask ourselves which areas were covered as far as the tax reliefs are concerned?, he asked. Mr Ayawine noted that one tax the ICU had been asking for its abolition was the overtime tax but unfortunately nothing was said about it. He said that was an important area that reflected in the pockets of workers and thereby reiterated the unions call for the government to do something about it since it was an old age nuisance tax. On the tax on electric vehicles, he asked how many of such vehicles were in the country to benefit from the relief. Electric vehicles are things that are being contemplated on. How many electric vehicles do we have in the country?, he asked. Don't lose hope in Ghana, you've opportunity in 2024 - Mahama to Ghanaians Zadok Kwame Gyesi Politics Nov - 19 - 2023 , 13:54 Former President John Dramani Mahama has urged Ghanaians not to lose hope in the country as they have opportunity to change the managers of the country's economy in the 2024 general elections. He said many Ghanaians are going through extreme hardship under the Akufo-Addo-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) government. For him, many of the youth he had interacted with across the country had lost hope in the country. The ex-President was addressing the congregants of the Apostolic Continuation Church at Techiman in the Bono East Region on Sunday, November 19, 2023. The flag bearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) John Dramani Mahama who is in the region for his "Building Ghana Tour" went to the church to worship with them. The NDC leaders commenced the "Building Ghana Tour" to engage Ghanaians and revitalise the NDC in readiness for the 2024 presidential campaign. The Building Ghana Tour serves as a platform for Mr Mahama to meet and interact with Ghanaians from all walks of life, supporters, and sympathisers of the NDC. As part of the tour, he will make crucial stops in key cities, towns, and villages and engage local communities to listen to their concerns, insights, and aspirations for a prosperous Ghana. Mr Mahama also urged Ghanaians to give thanks to God at all times irrespective of the challenge. He, however, admonished Ghanaian voters to learn their lessons from deceitful politicians who give juicy promises but fail to honour them and vote against such persons. "Let us learn our mistakes and vote wisely," he said in Twi, adding "I'm aware of what every Ghanaian is going through. The hardship is unbearable." Greg Munro's impassioned op-ed published Oct. 18 criticizes Montana lawmakers for updating the states product liability law, which now provides better balance, improves our legal climate, and is more in line with the trust Montanans put in businesses to do the right thing. As the states leading business advocate, the Montana Chamber is the voice of the businesses facing the challenge of excessive litigation, which costs Montanans an annual tort tax of $824 per person and results in 8,553 jobs lost annually. Like the childrens game, Monopoly, Munros argument that businesses will have a Get Out of Jail Free Card, is best played with kids. Most of what SB 216 does is to allow defendants to ensure juries hear all the relevant evidence. Only those interested in an imbalanced justice system would argue the opposite. Other updates, like establishing a 10-year statute of repose, bring Montana more in line with best practices in other states. Another change adopts a comparative fault system in product liability cases. More than half of U.S. states use this balanced approach, allowing defendants to argue that plaintiffs or other parties were partially or primarily at fault for injuries. Most of us would agree businesses should be able to offer evidence that others were acting recklessly or irresponsibly. Further, the updated law includes exceptions for cases involving knowing concealment, government-mandated safety recalls, and more, ensuring consumers are protected and have recourse in genuinely faulty product scenarios. Montanans are better off with more balance in our law. Todd O'Hair Helena A look back at the Ken Ofori-Atta years Dr John Osae-Kwapong Politics Nov - 18 - 2023 , 09:05 Since he was appointed Minister of Finance, he has regularly gone to Parliament in his all-white outfit and holding a brown bag containing the budget and economic policy statement of the government. I was intrigued to see the traditional brown bag replaced by a green one as he strolled to Parliament to present the governments budget and economic statement for Fiscal Year 2024. This is his last budget presentation, I believe, except for the mid-year review next year. Ordinarily, I would discuss my impressions of the budget presented. However, I want to use this occasion to look back at the Ofori-Atta Years and the many questions running through my head as I try to reconcile the man who won my admiration and confidence during his vetting with the difficulties the Ghanaian economy has come to face during his tenure. In retrospect During the vetting of ministers at the beginning of the Akufo-Addo administration, the one person who won my admiration was Mr Ofori-Atta. His answers to questions were refreshing. I admired his thinking, especially on fiscal policy. I knew he was not naive and understood well the politics of budgeting and financing. But I was also convinced that politics would not trump sound fiscal policy with him as minister of finance. I had one worry - that for those for whom politics may trump sound fiscal policy, efforts will be made to undermine his tenure. In the end, I allowed my hopes to trump my fears. His tenure witnessed several fiscal policy choices, some of which were popular (various tax cuts in the first year of the administration), and others which were very unpopular (E-levy, Agyapa). The results of the many policy choices have been mixed, in my opinion. What happened between vetting and being in charge? Related to the point above, I recall his insightful response to the question of deficit financing and his description of fiscal responsibility as the extent to which the resource envelope could be pushed to meet government obligations. When I think of the governments debt exchange programme, I think back to this moment and ask what happened along the way. This is the first time we have had a Finance Minister whose budget presentations had an unusually high spiritual flavour as he regularly interspersed them with quotations from the Bible. Anytime I watched him, he reminded me of one of the books I enjoyed reading as a political science student, titled The Political Meaning of Christianity. I often tried to understand the intersection of his faith and his role. What was his motivation for taking this approach? To what extent, if at all, did his faith shape his decisions on matters of fiscal and economic policy? Every public figure has their high and low moments. If I were to pick some of the moments I would characterise the lows of his tenure, these three come to mind a) the motion of censure brought against him; b) the bold declaration that the country will not seek an IMF bailout; and c) the call on the President by several members of Parliament from his own party for his removal from office. Why did he stay? Did it ever cross his mind to step aside, judging from what I considered a growing uproar about not just the state of the economy but about his tenure in office? Did the strong backing of the President gave him the impetus to not hang his boots? But through it all, he displayed a sense of optimism. He gave Akan names to all the budget statements he read. Every single one of those names, even in difficult times, signalled optimism. What drove that sense of optimism? So, what happened? When COVID-19 hit, his reflection piece What does an African Finance Minister do now?, in which he used the phrase I have a lump in my throat, was refreshing to read because it captured the harsh reality of the limited fiscal choices African countries could exercise to insulate their economies from total collapse. How much did COVID-19 truly derail the tenure of Ken Ofori-Atta? As I wrote two weeks ago, the COVID explanation has limitations. However, the question is still worth asking. As I watch Ken Ofori-Atta exit the stage, the man who won my admiration during his vetting, I cant help but wonder what happened. How did his tenure become the period where in the most recent round of the Afrobarometer survey (2022), only 18 per cent rated the governments management of the economy positively? How could the tenure of Ken Ofori-Atta have turned out differently to produce the results of the fiscal vision he articulated with conviction as I watched his 2017 vetting? Perhaps this should be my next book project. The writer is a Democracy and Development Fellow at the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana). The latest generation of Google Pixel phones are available with healthy discounts this covers the main series, the more affordable a-series and even Googles foldable. Based on our poll about the Pixel 8 duo, most people were not happy with their MSRPs, so if you passed on them initially, its worth having another look. The Pixel 8 is a fine all-rounder and with the latest discounts its trending towards mid-range pricing territory. This is one of the smaller Androids today with a 6.2 display (finally a 120Hz panel). Note that Google will support the Pixel 8 duo for 7 years, including keeping replacement parts available. But if youre going to keep a phone for that long, you may want the Pixel 8 Pro instead. This one has a 48MP 5x periscope plus a 48MP ultra wide camera (compared to 12MP ultra wide on the vanilla Pixel 8). Crucially, it also comes with 12GB of RAM instead of 8GB, which will help its longevity. The Galaxy Z Fold5 isnt the only foldable on the market you know. Theres the Google Pixel Fold, which offers Googles take on a foldable UI. The cover display is a pretty squat 5.8 panel with 17.4:9 aspect ratio (compared to 6.2 23.1:9 for the Samsung), but the internal displays are exactly the same size at 7.6 and identical aspect ratio. Note that unlike the Pixel 8s, the Pixel Fold uses the older Tensor G8 chipset. Anyway, like the Samsung, this model has an IPX8 water resistance rating. It also has a larger 4,821mAh battery (vs. 4,400mAh). If those are too pricey or too big, check out the Pixel 7a. It has a 6.1 90Hz OLED display and an aluminum frame with an IP67 rating. It uses Tensor G2 chipset and features a 64MP main + 12MP ultra wide cameras. It wont get 7 years of support, instead it will receive 3 OS updates and 5 years of patches. But at its lower cost, you will feel less compelled to keep the 7a until it reaches its end-of-life stage. When you decide which Pixel is right for you (if any), you can also grab a protective case these are official silicone cases from Google that have been designed to stay looking fresh, even if you dont give them the white-glove treatment. Another accessory you may want to consider is the Pixel Stand wireless charger. All the Pixels mentioned above support Qi charging (even the 7a) theyre not very fast, but the Stand will push them as fast as they can go (23W for the 8 Pro, 7.5W for the 7a). It has a built-in cooling fan to reduce heat buildup in the phone as it charges. If youre in the market for a new tablet, the Google Pixel Tablet is available in a combination with its dock. This turns it into a smart display for the home and it has a built-in speaker, so you can listen to music and watch videos on it with better audio than the tablets own quad-speakers can manage. The dock uses magnets and pogo pins, so you can quickly snap up the Pixel Tablet if you need it on the go and then attach it back on with minimal effort. You can also pick up a pair of TWS buds. The Pixel Buds Pro dont have the best ANC, but they offer excellent battery life and good audio quality. The Pixel Buds A-Series are half the price, but you lose the ANC function. We may get a commission from qualifying sales. Another week is over, so let's recap. If you've seen the Galaxy S22 series, you've seen the Galaxy S24 series, if the dummies that leaked are to be believed. The three S24 phones all look pretty much unchanged, for the most part. There will likely be under-the-hood changes but on the outside, the phones look quite similar to the S23 series. A new report doubled down on the fact that Huawei's HarmonyOS Next will drop Android support. The OS is nearly ready for release and there has been some serious developer recruitment to bring talent over into Huawei's new OS. The vivo X100 series arrived in China, premiering the MediaTek Dimensity 9300 chip. The vivo X100 and X100 Pro both have curved 6.78-inch 8T LTPO AMOLED displays with 1260p resolution, 10bit colors, and a 1-120Hz refresh rate. The panels can crank out up to 3,000 nits peak brightness and offer 2,160Hz PWM dimming for eye protection. Around the back, the X100 Pro brings three 50MP shooters with a 1-inch type Sony IMX989 main sensor. The X100 Pro is equipped with the worlds first mobile telephoto lens certified by Zeiss APO. The apochromatically corrected zoom lens optics align green, blue and red colors into the same focus plane which should translate to improved clarity and less fringing at contrast edges. The new floating periscope module features an f/2.57 aperture and 100mm equivalent focal length with 4.3x optical and up to 100x digital zoom. On the battery front, vivo X100 gets a 5,000 mAh battery with 120W fast charging while the X100 Pro gets a slightly larger 5,400 mAh cell with 100W charging support and 50W wireless fast charging. vivo X100 and vivo X100 Pro are available in black, white, blue and orange colors. X100 starts at CNY 3,999 ($548) for the 12/256GB trim and tops out at CNY 5,099($700) for the option with 16GB LPDDR5T RAM and 1TB storage. X100 Pro starts at CNY 4,999 ($685) for the 12/256GB trim and tops out at CNY 5,999 ($823) for the 16GB RAM and 1TB storage version. This week saw huge momentum in the green-bubble-blue-bubble saga. First, Nothing surprisingly announced that Nothing Chats would bring iMessage compatibility to the Nothing phone (2), and then Apple announced that it would bring RCS support to iPhones in 2024. Apple's move is likely motivated by the EU's pending ruling on whether iMessage is a core service, which had the potential to force Apple to add RCS support anyway. While the iPhone will support RCS, it doesn't mean that iMessage will chat freely with RCS-powered Android messengers. RCS will bring many iMessage-like features to cross-platform messaging between iPhones and Androids: read receipts, typing indicators, high-quality image and video sharing, location sharing, and the works. And in the end, it still won't matter, because the bubbles will continue to be green. You can see all the hot topics of the week below! Samsung Galaxy S24 series dummies show a familiar design The 2024 models are supposed to switch to titanium frames and the Ultra will have a flatter display, but from the back all three models appear the same as the old models. Redmi Note 13R Pro key specs listed ahead of launch The Redmi Note 13R Pro is expected to launch on November 20 in China. Red Magic 9 Pro coming on November 23 The phone will be great at more than just gaming, says the official teaser. Nothing Chats brings iMessage compatibility to Android The new messaging app is powered by Sunbird Messaging and will be exclusive to Nothing Phone (2) users at launch. China Telecom unveils a Huawei Mate 60 Pro with quantum security A Quantum Key Distribution algorithm is used to secure VoLTE calls, messaging and file sharing. Samsung Galaxy S24 to gain Instagram camera shortcut on lock screen The feature will allow users to publish stories, reels, and posts without unlocking the device. Gurman: iPhone 16 series to gain exclusive generative AI features All four iPhone 16 devices are expected to launch with the Apple A18 chipset. Asus ROG Phone 8 Ultimate certified with 65W charging The ROG Phone 8 series is expected to launch in Q1, 2024. 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. Haidee Eugenio Gilbert is managing editor for the Pacific Daily News. You may reach her at hgilbert@guampdn.com. Sen. Chris Barnetts Bill 185-37, seeking to mandate that a new hospital and/or medical complex be built in Tamuning, is set for a 2 p.m. Monday public hearing. Speaker Therese Terlajes Committee on Land is conducting the hearing on the bill, which would provide an alternative to the Mangilao-Barrigada sites for a new hospital and medical complex proposed by the Leon Guerrero-Tenorio administration. Barnett, in a news release, said he has listened intently to countless hours of public testimony provided to the speakers Land and Health Committee, and has met with the governor to listen to her plans for peoples healthcare. He said more information and details are needed surrounding the Eda Agaga site and the feasibility of the medical complex proposal. It doesnt look like the concrete commitments we need to make a good decision on Adelups plans are in place, he said. Barnett said Guam needs to do what is practical, but politics are getting in the way. When we met with the governor, nothing was for sure, and nothing was in black and white. I cant support taking a blind gamble on what could end up being a billion-dollar investment by the People of Guam, he said. The senator said the data continues to support Tamuning. The People of Guam will save $75 million on infrastructure at Ypao Point, and I think we can save even more by being realistic about what we can really afford, what we can manage and what we can maintain. Building in Tamuning means more of our population can access life-saving care, partly because most of our islands medical infrastructure already exists in the village, he said. He said he understands the concerns of his southern neighbors, given that hes also lived down south all his life. Thats why I want to push for improvements and new facilities that are actually located in the South for the People in the South. I think we can do that with the savings we gain by building at Ypao. And theres plenty of room for a veterans wing at Ypao, too, he said. Given the lack of information and facts relative to Adelups preferred site and the necessity and viability of a medical complex, its clear that breaking ground in Tamuning will be the fastest and most feasible way to meet our islands urgent critical healthcare needs now. Written testimony will also be accepted at the speaker office at senatorterlajeguam@gmail.com or contact Barnetts office at malafunkshun@guamlegislature.org. All hearings broadcast on GTA TV Channel 21, Docomo Channel 117/112.4, and livestream on youtube.com/c/GuamLegislatureMedia. Guams enduring religious procession in Hagatna in honor of the islands patron saint, Santa Marian Kamalen, will resume on Dec. 8 after a three-year pandemic pause. Santa Marian Kamalens more than 350-year-old statue will be once again paraded through the islands capital, with thousands of Catholics, residents and visitors in tow. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, the procession wasnt held in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Instead, Santa Marian Kamalens statue was placed on the back of a vehicle that drove through various villages, where residents patiently waited by the side of the road maintaining their social distance and observing other pandemic practices to get a glimpse of the patron saints statue as they pray with family, friends and fellow Catholics. With pandemic restrictions now behind them, residents will be able to join the massive procession deeply rooted in Catholic faith and tradition for hundreds of years. Msgr. James LG Benavente, the pastor and rector of the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral Basilica, said the Church was overwhelmed and beyond words in witnessing thousands of faithful throughout the island wait patiently to receive Our Lady as she visited you at your homes the past few years. Now that we are going back to the traditional procession in Hagatna, we pray that all those visited by Our Lady, from the parishes and in the periphery during the island-wide pilgrimages, would be able to come and join us here in Hagatna, he said. We are still reflecting on how we can do both; but for now, we are happy to announce the return to the traditional Hagatna procession. Santa Marian Kamalen or Our Lady of Camarin is believed to protect Guam from typhoons, quakes, wars and other disasters. Every year, the festivities celebrating the Immaculate Conception and to honor Santa Marian Kamalen culminate in a special Mass and procession on Dec. 8, a government of Guam holiday. The annual procession draws thousands of residents from all parts of Guam, where some 85 percent of the population is Catholic. Our Ladys statue is placed on a decorated cart or karosa and paraded through the streets of Hagatna, as a show of peoples love and devotion to the patron saint. A more somber meaningThis story of devotion took on a more somber meaning when World War II reached Guam on Dec. 8, 1941. That fateful day, while people were still in churches celebrating Santa Marian Kamalen, the Japanese started bombing Guam, and the island was plunged into a war that killed and injured thousands. But even then, residents found ways to honor the patron saint, and all the more they looked to her for safety and peace. One of those families keeping the traditions associated with Santa Marian Kamalen is the Torres family, starting with the late Mariquita Calvo Torres Souder. Shes the longest kamarera or caretaker for the patron saints statue, for more than 70 years. Her children, grandchildren and others continue the tradition. Stories about Santa Marian Kamalens statue have been passed from one generation to the other. The most popular of which is that the statue was seen floating in the waters of Merizo over 300 years ago, guided by two crabs with candles on their backs. The statue survived World War II, earthquakes and fires, and was stolen at least three times from the cathedral. The Guam Legislature removed the Feast of the Immaculate Conception or Santa Marian Kamalen Day from the list of holidays and Typhoon Pongsona hit the island days later, on Dec. 8, 2002. The Legislature moved it back as a government of Guam holiday. Benavente, in his recent open letter to parishioners, invited everyone to join the nightly Novena and Masses beginning Nov. 30 at 5:30 p.m. and the procession on Dec. 8, late afternoon. As we honor Santa Marian Kamalen, let us continue to reflect on the many challenges, difficulties, and sufferings we experienced in the past, recognizing Our Ladys role in helping to bring us closer to her Son, as we endured war, supertyphoons, major earthquakes and the recent pandemic, Benavente said. After the lifting of all COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, Guam was struck by Typhoon Mawar in May, resulting in massive damages. Its also this year that Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes resigned because of a life-changing illness. Byrnes led the Catholic Church on Guam since 2016, when the Vatican temporarily removed and later permanently banished the former archbishop, Anthony Apuron, who was found guilty by a Vatican tribunal of sexually molesting multiple minors. The archdiocese has started compensating more than 280 survivors of Guams clergy sexual assaults, as part of a court-approved plan to get the archdiocese out of bankruptcy. The pope has yet to name a new archbishop. In the meantime, the archdiocese is led by the vicar general, Father Romeo Convocar, the apostolic administrator, until a new archbishop is appointed. Dave Lotz is a vocal advocate for protecting Guams unique heritage, a knowledgeable and long-time hiking enthusiast and environmental advocate, and critic of inept government. He has been a resident of Guam since 1970 and retired from the Guam Department of Parks and Recreation, Andersen AFB Environmental Flight and the National Park Service. The Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport. At the orders of acting Gov. Joshua Tenorio, the Guam Police Department has launched an internal affairs investigation of the airport and prison over allegations that a man was assaulted by law enforcement upon his arrest at the airport. Bismarck police are seeking the public's help in finding a man who has been missing since late last week. Lloyd Liken, 81, was last seen leaving the 4400 block of Turnbow Lane in his gold 2007 Toyota Highlander around 8 p.m. Thursday. It has North Dakota license plate 745BMN. Police are asking landowners to check their properties for the vehicle, and for hunters to be on the lookout. Liken does not have a phone. Police said he has gotten lost twice recently and was located by law enforcement. Liken does not have any medical diagnosis of dementia, Alzheimers disease or similar medical conditions, making him ineligible for a Silver Alert, a statewide alert used to help locate a missing vulnerable elderly adult or someone with a disability, according to authorities. Liken is 6 feet tall, weighs 200 pounds, and has grey hair and blue eyes. He was last wearing a beige plaid button-up shirt with khaki pants and a dark brown bomber jacket, authorities said. Anyone with information is asked to call the Bismarck Police Department at 701-223-1212, or their local law enforcement agency. The department's investigation section on Monday continued efforts to find Liken with help from other area law enforcement agencies, according to spokesman Lt. Luke Gardiner. Those efforts including sending officers in a Highway Patrol airplane to check rural areas surrounding Bismarck-Mandan, he said. Haiti - 220th Vertieres : Message from the Consulate of Haiti in Montreal Saturday, November 18, 2023, as part of the commemoration of the 220th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Vertieres, the Consulate General of Haiti in Montreal delivered a message to all Haitians that we invite you to read and share. Message from the Consulate of Haiti in Montreal : "Dear compatriots, Today, November 18, 2023, a great uproar, shattering part of our history as a people, is tearing apart the atmosphere of the country and the Haitian community abroad. We found ourselves humming melodies that rocked our childhood. Suddenly, we discover the thing within us: the celebration of the Battle of Vertieres. The blood of the heroes of national independence, more than ever, circulates in our veins. We feel like custodians of a sacred heritage and invested with a noble mission. Yes, this historic date is forever anchored in our subconscious as free people. All our compatriots are well imbued with the patriotic songs sung in Vertieres and sing in chorus in certain difficult situations that the country is experiencing the well-known refrain 'Grenadiers, to the assault, sa ki mouri zafe a yo'. However, today, we must take inspiration from these songs to attack other fortresses that keep the country in the darkness of illiteracy and underdevelopment. All of us, without exception, must do the work of introspection in order to know ourselves better in order to be able to give the best of ourselves for our country. We must recognize that we are heirs of a country whose dignity, independence and sovereignty must be safeguarded. In all our actions, we should keep in mind this strong declaration by Emperor Jean-Jacques Dessalines in the Proclamation of the Country's Independence on January 1st, 1804 : 'We dared to be free, let's dare to be free by ourselves and for ourselves'. Yes, an independent country has been bequeathed to us and we should take care of it with a keen sense of responsibility by building a rule of law instead of systematically destroying state institutions, creating a situation of chaos by sabotaging the Constitution and all sovereign and democratic institutions, Nowadays, unfortunately, our dirty laundry is no longer washed at home and the Haitian crisis is one of the items on the agenda of many meetings of international organizations with a regional or global vocation. We must feel a pang in our hearts when, instead of promoting the country's interests in diplomatic spheres, our representatives devote a lot of energy to discussing solutions and draft resolutions on the country's internal situation. Quite often, absorbed by discussions on the country's problems, they cannot devote the time necessary to develop their contribution to the debate on the main international questions of our time which threaten, in certain cases, the very survival of the humanity. Were all the sacrifices made by our valiant ancestors to give us freedom made in vain ? We have no right to dishonor their memory by plunging into endless internal disputes. We must face the facts that the Fatherland is wasting away while we give free rein to our disputes. It is to be hoped that all political, social and economic forces in the country will make a commitment, once this bad milestone has been reached, to no longer let the country fall back into these inextricable chaotic situations which have shattered dreams of progress and well-being. being of several generations of Haitians, In the union that creates strength, let us overthrow the barriers that stand before us. Long live November 18! Long live the Haitian people! Long live Haiti !" HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - News : Zapping... Killing in the town of Thomazeau Friday November 17, 2023, heavily armed individuals killed at least five people in Durand and Letang (commune of Thomazeau). During their raid, these individuals also set fire to several houses, including that of former MP Price Cyprien, in the town of Dutile. Riyadh : the PM met His Majesty Moammed Ben Salmane On the sidelines of the Caricom-Saudi Arabia Summit, Acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry met in Riyadh with the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Saudi Kingdom, His Majesty Moammed Ben Salman, in a friendly atmosphere. Haiti does not manage Canadas money The 42.15 million Canadian funds intended to support the Haitian National Police (PNH) are managed by the following organizations: 10 million by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP); 14.7 million by the Organization of American States (OAS); 14.05 million by UNOD and 3.4 million by the United Nations Regional Center for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC). Note that Canada does not directly fund the Government of Haiti, including the PNH. Terror on 90% of the territory... More than two years after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-34162-haiti-flash-president-jovenel-moise-assassinated-by-mercenaries-official-updated-7am-+-video.html armed gangs sow terror across 90% of the national territory according to Pierre Esperance Executive Director of the National Network for the Defense of Human Rights (RNDDH). 220th Vertieres : Words by Martine Moise "Our ancestors sacrificed themselves to leave us this Land where life was good. Let's unite, this fraternity has earned us Vertieres and it is our only salvation for a better tomorrow," Martine Moise former First Lady of Haiti. Call for dialogue between Haiti and the DR William Charpentier, coordinator of the Mesa Nacional para la Migracion (National Table on Migration), calls on the Dominican Republic and Haiti to leave behind their pride and engage in dialogue. Furthermore, while President Abinader reaffirmed that he would not eliminate the registration of biometric data in the border area, William Charpertier declared that the Dominican Government must establish a border map in the binational market area as provided the law. HL/ HaitiLibre Press Release November 18, 2023 Super Health Center breaks ground in Lipa City, Batangas as Bong Go continues efforts to bring public health services closer to Filipinos Senator Christopher "Bong" Go, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, personally witnessed the groundbreaking of the Super Health Center in Lipa City, Batangas on Thursday, November 16. In his speech, Go emphasized the importance of bringing primary healthcare closer to the people. The senator, adopted son of CALABARZON with familial roots being a Tesoro from Batangas, also praised the local government of Lipa City, including Deputy Speaker Ralph Recto, Mayor Eric Africa, and Vice Mayor Camille Lopez, for their efforts to boost their community's health sector. The Super Health Centers, championed by Go, aim to bolster grassroots healthcare infrastructure, especially in rural areas, by providing essential services such as primary healthcare, medical consultations, and early disease detection. The senator expressed his confidence that these centers will help alleviate the strain on hospitals and improve overall healthcare accessibility. "Ano po ang Super Health Center? It's a medium type of a polyclinic. Pwede na po diyan yung panganganak, dental, laboratory, x-ray at pwede po itong pagandahin ng LGU. Pwede n'yo po dagdagan ng dialysis machine. Sa Mariveles (Bataan) nilagyan nila ng dialysis machine. (Pwede rin) mag-decide si mayor palakihin (itong Super Health Center)," Go said. "Dito na po gagawin yung Konsulta package ng PhilHealth, early disease detection. Makakatulong po ito sa ating mga kababayan. Mailalapit na po yung serbisyo medikal sa mga nangangailangan," he added. Super Health Centers offer health services including database management, out-patient, birthing, isolation, diagnostic (laboratory: x-ray, ultrasound), pharmacy, and ambulatory surgical unit. Other available services are eye, ear, nose, and throat (EENT) service, oncology centers, physical therapy and rehabilitation centers and telemedicine. Through Go's efforts as vice chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance and with the support of the Department of Health (DOH), LGUs and his fellow lawmakers, sufficient funds were allocated under the 2022 national budget for the construction of some 307 Super Health Centers. He was likewise successful in pushing for additional funds under the 2023 budget to support the construction of 322 Super Health Centers in other parts of the country. In Lipa City, three Super Health Centers were funded. Meanwhile, Go also supported other Super Health Centers in Batangas particularly in San Pascual, Agoncillo, Calatagan, San Jose, Malvar, Taysan, Ibaan, San Juan, Tingloy, and Lian. Moreover, Go remains committed to bolstering the health sector as he encouraged the public to utilize the Malasakit Centers located at Batangas Medical Center in Batangas City, and at Batangas Provincial Hospital in Lemery. Principally authored and sponsored by Go, Republic Act No. 11463 or the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019 mandates the establishment of such centers in every DOH-run hospital nationwide and in the Philippine General Hospital in Manila. Other public hospitals can also establish their own Malasakit Centers provided they meet the standard set of criteria and guarantee the sustainability of the center's operations. The program has established 159 centers and has assisted over ten million Filipinos so far, according to DOH. Go then highlighted RA 11959 or the Regional Specialty Centers Act, for which he served as a principal sponsor and one of the authors in the Senate. The Regional Specialty Centers Act assumes an important role in the healthcare legislative priorities of the Marcos Administration, as outlined in the Philippine Development Plan for the years 2023 to 2028. This law shall create Regional Specialty Centers within pre-existing regional hospitals under the jurisdiction of DOH. In Batangas Medical Center, there are three specialty centers, including Mental Health, Neo-Natal Care, and Geriatric Care. There will be other specialty centers set to be established inside the hospital, such as cancer care, cardiovascular care, renal care and transplant center, lung care, brain and spine care, orthopedic center, physical rehabilitation medicine, burn care, trauma care, toxicology, infectious disease and tropical medicine, and eye care. "Batas na po ito ngayon na maglalagay po nga mga specialty center sa mga DOH hospitals. Proud po akong ibalita sa inyo na nakakuha po ako dito ng boto na 24-0 sa Senado. Even the opposition voted for it dahil alam nilang makakatulong sa mga kababayan natin," Go shared. Meanwhile, Go also supported the rehabilitation of several multipurpose buildings, the acquisition of multipurpose vehicles, among other initiatives to boost development and public services in the province. Last November 9, Go personally attended the blessing and inauguration of a multipurpose building in San Juan town, also in Batangas. He is now a counsellor and spiritual teacher, and the author of The Power of Now, Practising the Power of Now and Stillness Speaks. He lives in Vancouv er. One does not step in the same river twice. So, bookish not dhyang_wxc : One does not step in the same river twice. There are no absolute truths; there are only truths that are relative. So, Bookish can go only that far. Let me break this down as I see it. To "perceive yourself to be" would mean that consciously one has become aware of their body and brain form and external form. But what initiated the mind to become consciously aware of its body and brain that it is a faculty of given that consciousness and the mind are non physical and cannot form a body nor brain nor anything physical.. Therefore what physical source gave rise to consciousness to derive from. It would have to be a physical source, a very indispensable quality ( the ESSENCE) for consciousness to derive from. Hence your human molecule is fused elements encased in biology ie the symbiotic relationship, the very physical source your consciousness derived from because your physical source within wants to reveal its PRESENCE using its EGO TOOL, like it has been doing since its inception. Your PRESENCE within will never DIE because its part of your REPRODUCTIVE MODE, it's simply passed on. Which means there is not a single ESSENCE for your being. Which means you are DUALITY plus ADDED VALUE in every respect because now your non physical attributes come into play, like, consciousness, thought, mind, etc, really not a mystery, just tools to use by the physical source within, tools that the physical source within initiated for its use. You are not in control of what you see in the mirror, your PRESENCE within wants to see. What a confused teacher afflicting confused teachings to the confused ,because ,you cant discover the essence of your identity without using your EGO tool to send and receive the message. Hello! Spiritual path is not giving speech and ideas. It is the thing to be silent in your self. Dont come out of your self. Every sec you and me are coming out of self. Dont come out from self. For that no effort is needed. No teaching is needed. Be in thoughtless state. For creating a thought so many skills and creativity ideas needed for that you need education. For example we need to learn how to cook from books and from your friends and parents but no need to put effort to learn for not to cook. Be silent no learning no teaching nothing be silent dont try to cook or learn to cook and dont try to teach to cook all makes you to come out of your self. The teacher and student cannot be in their self. Because learning and teaching also thoughts. When thought comes to you. Your r out of the circle of self. So to be in self dont put effort and be in effortless state and be in self and become the Bliss and Recent research spanning over two decades has revealed significant alterations in children's brain function due to time spent on electronic devices such as televisions and computers. This comprehensive study, involving nearly 30,000 participants under the age of 12, was conducted through the analysis of 33 neuroimaging research pieces and published in the peer-reviewed journal Early Education and Development. The researchers, including teams from the Education University of Hong Kong, Shanghai Normal University, and Macquarie University, focused on how digital activity affects brain plasticity during crucial developmental stages. Notably, the study found changes in various parts of the brain, including the pre-frontal cortex, parietal lobe, temporal lobe, and occipital lobe. These areas are responsible for functions like memory, language, executive skills, and processing sensory information. The findings indicate that screen time can have both positive and negative impacts on cognitive development. Negative effects were observed in areas related to attention, executive control, cognitive processes, and functional connectivity. In contrast, some studies within the research indicated that digital experiences could enhance certain brain functions, such as cognitive skills and executive functions, particularly through activities like video gaming. Despite these findings, the research team, led by Chair Professor Hui Li and Dr. Dandan Wu, advises against setting strict screen time limits due to potential conflicts. Instead, they call for innovative, friendly, and practical strategies to guide children's digital use. They emphasize the role of policymakers in providing resources and incentives for creating digital interventions that promote positive brain development. The study also acknowledges its limitations, noting the evolving nature of this research area and the need for more in-depth investigations, including longitudinal studies, to understand the specific impacts of various types of digital equipment and modes of use. HT Lisbon's Altice Arena buzzed with innovation and diversity as Web Summit , the worlds largest technology conference, welcomed a record 70,236 attendees from 153 countries, reflecting a vibrant tech ecosystem. The 2023 edition was not just about numbers; it marked a significant stride in gender diversity, with women representing 43% of attendees and 38% of speakers, and almost one-third of the 2,608 startups being woman-founded. Innovative Finnish Startups Present Web Summit showcased a plethora of global tech innovations from various different parts of the world. As the technology industry in Finland has been growing, it was no surprise to found innovative Finnish starups presenting themselves at the event. Here are the Finnish startups at Web Summit that stood out with their unique solutions: Laavu: Focusing on psychological sustainability, Laavu offers a novel approach to business leadership and organizational health. Their services are designed to build mental resilience and resourcefulness, addressing the psychological challenges of modern work environments. aatos.: Revolutionizing the legal sector, aatos. offers an online platform for handling legal matters such as power of attorney, wills, and prenuptial agreements. Their user-friendly service simplifies complex legal processes, making them accessible and manageable for everyone. Geyser Batteries: This startup brings to the table sustainable energy storage solutions vital for heavy-duty applications. Their proprietary water-based electrolyte technology is a game-changer in the energy sector, offering environmentally friendly and efficient energy storage options. Videobot: Videobot transforms how businesses engage with their audiences through personalized video funnels. These automated flows enhance customer interaction, lead capture, and conversion rates, making Videobot a crucial tool for businesses looking to improve their digital marketing strategies. 180ops: With its AI and machine learning-powered enterprise SaaS tools, 180ops is redefining revenue operations. Their platform provides actionable insights, facilitating collaboration and clarity in achieving business targets. CloEE: Specializing in remote monitoring of production equipment, CloEEs cloud-based platform offers comprehensive analytics for operational efficiency. Their solution focuses on improvements in overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), energy savings, and CO2 reduction. Coinverse: Coinverse brings a digital revolution to coin collecting. Their app offers a unique platform for collectors to manage, expand, and connect with a global community of coin enthusiasts, all from the convenience of their smartphone. Hashlist: In the mobility sector, Hashlist serves as a pivotal hiring platform connecting tech specialists with companies. Their network addresses the evolving needs of the mobility industry, fostering connections that drive innovation. Hekti.ai: Transforming customer interactions, Hekti.ai provides a conversation intelligence platform that delivers insights across business teams. This enhances a more connected, customer-centric workplace, driving growth through improved customer engagement. Romify: As an Event Lead Management platform, Romify leverages AI to transform event participation results. It digitalizes and manages leads, integrating them seamlessly into marketing and CRM systems for efficient follow-up. SemiQon: At the cutting edge of quantum computing, SemiQon is developing silicon-based quantum processors. Their technology addresses scalability, cost, and environmental sustainability, paving the way for the next generation of quantum computers. Social First: Focusing on the social aspects of gaming, Social First creates games that foster deep social connections and cross-platform gameplay. Their approach to gaming emphasizes player-driven economies and social experiences that span decades. VitalSigns: Redefining medical examinations, VitalSigns has developed a multifunctional device that replaces traditional tools like the stethoscope. This device integrates various health measurements, streamlining the physical examination process in medical practice. Influence of AI on Starups and the Tech Industry In the past few years, artificial intelligence has disrupted the techology industry and became the core of many new solutions. In addition, AI has become to affects every starup regardless of their industry, fundamentally changing the way they operate, innovate, and compete. Naturally, AI was one of the core topics of discussion at Web Summit. Speakers debated about the future impact of AI and considered solutions for the different challenges it is generating for the world. For example, Andrew McAfee, a principal research scientist at MIT, brought into focus the pressing issue of AI regulation. His talk, How do we regulate AI?, underscored the urgency of establishing rules in a field that is outpacing legislative frameworks. The risks associated with AI, such as misinformation, bias, and job displacement, necessitate a nuanced approach to regulation that balances innovation with ethical considerations Despite arising problems, AI is revolutionising business growth. Sarah Al-Hussaini, Rohan Patel, and Ryan Heath explored how AI's ability to provide data-driven insights, tailor customer experiences, and streamline processes is not just a competitive advantage but a necessity in the modern business landscape. In addition to business advantages, the accessibility of AI is also creating new opportunities in education for example. ChatGPTeacher: How tech is shaping the future of learning delved into the educational sectors transformation through AI. This session highlighted the evolution from traditional teaching methods to AI-driven personalisation and virtual classrooms, showcasing AI's potential to democratize and individualize learning experiences. The intersection of AI and education is creating novel pathways for knowledge acquisition and skill development. As we go on with the development of AI, it is important to consider the direction the technology is taking. MITs Andrew McAfee, in How to build better AI, addressed the ethical implications of AI advancement. His vision of an ethical AI-powered future resonates with a growing sentiment in the tech community about the need to balance technological progress with moral responsibility. This discussion is particularly relevant for startups at the forefront of AI development, guiding them towards responsible innovation. Tech and AI in the Nordic Startup Scene Helsinki Times interviewed Lily Magi, a PR consultant from Meta Alpha, a PR agency focusing on startups. Magi shared insights on the evolving startup scene in the Nordics, particularly in the context of AI and technology. According to Magi, the growing digitalization, particularly in sectors like defense in Estonia, indicates a broader Nordic trend of embracing tech solutions for traditional industries. Magi also highlighted the essential role of human connection in PR, even as AI becomes a more prominent tool. This balance of technology and human touch is evident in the Nordic startup approach, where technological advancement goes hand in hand with practical, human-centered applications. Web Summits Global Impact Web Summit showcased global tech innovation, with Brazil's Inspira winning the PITCH competition, highlighting the event's international reach and diversity. The summit's expansion to approximately 215,000 square meters of floor space facilitated a range of activities, from investor-startup meetings to masterclasses, reflecting its commitment to fostering global tech connections. Web Summit's growth from a 150-person conference in 2009 to a global tech phenomenon underscores its mission to connect ideas and people that shape the future. With attendees ranging from CEOs to policymakers, and partnerships with major media organizations, the summit continues to be a pivotal platform for the global tech community. Tara Kouros - HT Hamas must be defeated, but if the Israeli government continues its far-right policies that has made the 2-state solution more and more difficult if not outright impossible, the current conflict will simply become just one of the many repeated violent cycles since 1948. When children grow up without parents, when young people grow up without hope, when a community has been deprived of dignity, when a people has been denied humanity, then inevitably more and more individuals, especially young people, will be radicalized because they simply have nothing to lose. This on-going conflict between Israelis and Palestinians in a sense has become a test of whether one truly believes in "All Men are Created Equal". ****************** As usual, Oliver, Friedman and Nicolas gave in-depth fact-based analysis on this complex issue. ****************** https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/04/opinion/sunday/palestinians-west-bank-israel.html Nicholas in this piece described he met two Palestinians 41 years ago. He managed to meet them again, and after the meeting Nicholas wrote ... I remembered two young men full of promise and warmth, animated by hope and inhabiting a world in which Israelis and Palestinians interacted regularly and didnt much fear each other. It is wrenching to see such change. As Saleh and Mahmoud became dads and grandfathers, they were shorn of a future, of vitality, of hope. And that, I think, is the core of the Palestinian problem. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/15/opinion/israel-gaza-facts.html In this column, Nicolas examined three myths. The first myth is that in the conflict in the Middle East there is right on one side and wrong on the other (even if people disagree about which is which). The second myth is that Palestinians can be put off indefinitely, strung along by Israel, the United States and other countries. That was Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus strategy, his way of avoiding a Palestinian state, and it worked for a time the way a pressure cooker works, until it explodes. The third myth is found on both sides of the conflict and is approximately: Its too bad we have to engage in this bloodshed, but the people on the other side understand only violence. If you weep only for Israeli children, or only for Palestinian children, you have a problem that goes beyond your tear ducts. Children on both sides have been slaughtered quite recklessly, and fixing this crisis starts with acknowledging a principle so basic that it shouldnt need mentioning: All childrens lives have equal value, and good people come in all nationalities. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/14/opinion/israel-war-biden.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare] In this column, Thomas examined Netanyahus plan and his real motive. And have no illusion, Netanyahu is offering only one vision right now: Seven million Jews trying to govern five million Palestinians in perpetuity and that is a prescription for disaster for Israel, America, Jews everywhere and Americas moderate Arab allies. Why is Netanyahu trying to destroy the Palestinian Authority as a governing option for a postwar Gaza? Because he is already campaigning to hold on to power after the Gaza war is over, and he knows there will be a huge surge of Israelis demanding he step down because of how he and his far-right cronies distracted and divided Israel and its military by pursuing a judicial coup that Israeli intelligence sources told Netanyahu was emboldening and tempting enemies such as Hamas and Hezbollah. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/16/opinion/israel-gaza-war.html In this column, Thomas examined the dangerous myth of once and for all. When The Timess Israel correspondent Isabel Kershner recently asked an Israeli Army tank driver, Shai Levy, 37, to describe the purpose of the looming Israeli invasion of Gaza, he said something that really caught my ear. It was to restore honor to Israel, he said. The citizens are relying on us to defeat Hamas and remove the threat from Gaza once and for all. That caught my ear because, over the years, Ive learned that four of the most dangerous words in the Middle East are once and for all. All these Islamist/jihadist movements the Taliban, Hamas, ISIS, Al Qaeda, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, the Houthis have deep cultural, social, religious and political roots in their societies. And they have access to endless supplies of humiliated young men, many of whom have never been in a job, power or a romantic relationship: a lethal combination that makes them easy to mobilize for mayhem. And thats why, to this day, none of these movements have been eliminated once and for all. They can, though, be isolated, diminished, delegitimized and decapitated as America has done with ISIS and Al Qaeda. But that requires patience, precision, lots of allies and alternatives that have legitimacy within the societies from which these young men emerge. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pJ9PKQbkJv8&si=D3J40wPmcqfn07-r] In this episode, John presented facts about Netanyahu who has always been a hard-right and he was able to hold on to power only because he formed coalition with the most far-right extremist who have done everything to make the 2-state solution impossible and had actually popped up Hamas to undermine Fatah of PLO, because Netanyahu actually never wants a partner for peace, they call Hamas as "asset". Pisces 19th February to 20th March) Daily Horoscope Prediction says, Be cool even at a turbulent time Pisces Daily Horoscope Today, November 20, 2023. New responsibilities at the office will keep you busy and productive. Enjoy love today in the relationship. Professional challenges will keep you busy but productive. Financially you are good today and your health is also fine. Celebrate love with commitment. New responsibilities at the office will keep you busy and productive. There will be prosperity which leads to smart investments. Health is also good today. Pisces Love Horoscope Today Your commitment is unmatched in the love life. The lover will recognize it to introduce you to the parents. Female Pisces natives will get consent from the elders to proceed with the relationship. Respect the privacy of your partner and give proper space. Spend more time today and surprise your partner with unexpected gifts. Some Pisces natives will patch up with an ex-flame but married natives must not indulge in anything that may harm the love life. Pisces Career Horoscope Today Today, your professional life will be productive, and new opportunities will come up to prove your mettle. Do not hesitate to put forward your ideas at team meetings and ensure you maintain discipline while handling crucial cases. IT professionals, healthcare professionals, media personnel, graphic designers, artists, and chefs will have options to prove their caliber. Stay away from office politics and never entertain negative people to hang around you. Pisces Money Horoscope Today Financial prosperity will lead to crucial decisions today and you will also be happy to buy a new property in the first half of the day. Some Pisces natives will resolve a financial conflict with a sibling. Be careful while signing bank checks and also repay a bank loan today. Entrepreneurs will see funds coming in for better business prospects. Pisces Health Horoscope Today Today, you are good in terms of health. Some natives may suffer pain in their legs but that won't affect their daily lives. Minor fever or digestion issues may also happen but you dont need to worry as this phase will pass on in a day or two. Some females may have migraine while children will develop oral health issues which will require medical attention. Pisces Sign Attributes Strength: Conscious, Aesthetic, Kind-hearted Weakness: Sentimental, Indecisive, Unrealistic Symbol: Fish Element: Water Body Part: Blood Circulation Sign Ruler: Neptune Lucky Day: Thursday Lucky Color: Purple Lucky Number: 11 Lucky Stone: Yellow Sapphire Pisces Sign Compatibility Chart Natural affinity: Taurus, Cancer, Scorpio, Capricorn Good compatibility: Virgo, Pisces Fair compatibility: Aries, Leo, Libra, Aquarius Less compatibility: Gemini, Sagittarius By: Dr. J. N. Pandey Vedic Astrology & Vastu Expert Website: https://www.cyberastro.com E-mail: caresponse@cyberastro.com Phone: 9717199568, 9958780857 OpenAI investors are pressing the companys board to reverse its decision to fire Sam Altman as chief executive officer and remove him as a director, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Former OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.(Reuters) Some of the investors including Thrive Global are also in talks with Microsoft Corp., the largest shareholder of OpenAI, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the overtures are private. Altman is open to returning to the company, one of the people said. In one scenario under consideration, members of the current OpenAI board would step down as soon as this weekend, according to multiple with knowledge of the situation. However, the situation is still fluid and no decisions have been made, the people said. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has been in touch with Altman and pledged to support him in whatever steps he takes next, the people said. Nadella was blindsided by the boards decision, according to people familiar with the situation. Representatives of San Francisco-based OpenAI and Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft declined to comment. Thrive declined to comment. The OpenAI board has been subjected to intense criticism over its decision to remove Altman, which came as a surprise to both investors and to Altman himself. Several people, including co-founder Greg Brockman, have departed from the company in protest. The resignations are likely to continue, the people said. If Altman were to return, he would ask for changes in the way the company is governed, some of the people said. If he does not return, Altman has been considering launching a new venture, possibly with former staffers of OpenAI, according to people familiar with the matter. A 21-year-old motorcyclist was killed in a hit-and-run accident at the Sector 4/11/12 light point on Thursday. The deceased worked as a gatekeeper in Panchkula. (iStock) According to information, the deceased, Saurabh Thapa, hailed from Nepal, but had been living in Sector 7 with his father and brother for the last six years. He worked as a gatekeeper. His brother Kamal told police that Saurabh had gone to a party at his friends house in Maheshpur on his motorcycle. The next morning, he received a call about his brother being admitted to PGIMER, Chandigarh, after an accident. On reaching the hospital, Saurabhs friend informed him that a car bearing a Haryana registration number had hit his motorcycle at the Sector 4/11/12 light point. Saurabh succumbed to his injuries during treatment. A case was registered under Sections 279 (rash driving) and 304-A (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code at the Sector 5 police station. The Border Security Force (BSF) personnel have recovered a drone that sneaked into the Indian territory from the Pakistan side near Wan village falling under the Bikhiwind subdivision. The drone, the officials said, appeared to have entered the Indian airspace while smuggling contraband and was recovered at around 4:40 pm in a farming field in the border village. The drone, the officials said, appeared to have entered the Indian airspace while smuggling contraband and was recovered at around 4:40 pm in a farming field in the border village. A BSF spokesperson said, On November 18 at about 4:40 pm, Border Security Force troops while carrying out area domination patrol ahead of border fencing observed suspicious item in the farming field near Village - Wan, District - Tarn Taran. Further, during the detail search of the area, BSF troops recovered 01 drone from the farming field ahead of the border fence. The recovered drone is a Quadcopter (Model - DJI Mavic 3 Classic, made in China). Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Sunday said the rescue teams were inserting an additional big size pipe through the debris to provide the 41 workers trapped in the collapsed under-construction tunnel in Uttarakhands Uttarkashi with solid food items like roti, sabji and rice. It is already 42 metres inside, he said. Union minister Nitin Gadkari inside the tunnel in Uttarkashi. While addressing a press conference at the tunnel site, the minister said there was constant communication with the trapped workers, and they were safe inside. Their morale is high. An additional pipe, which is big in size, is being put in to provide them staple food roti, sabji and rice. It is already 42 metres inside, he said. Gadkari said an in-depth analysis of satellite imagery of the terrain, including imagery of structures beneath the terrain, was being carried out and the use of robotics was also being considered for helping in rescue operation. Our priority is to save the lives of the trapped workers. We have been exploring all options..if the auger machine drilling works properly, we can rescue the trapped workers in the next two to three days, the minister added. When the auger machine was working. Some hard material came in its way and stopped the machine from working. When the machine was exerting further pressure to push further, it increased the vibrations. They (experts) have found a solution to the problem, Gadkari said, adding that he believed the auger machine has a high chance of making a passage in the less possible time to take out the trapped men. He said there was constant communication with the trapped workers and they were safe inside. Their morale is high. An additional pipe, which is big in size, is being put in to provide them with staple food- roti, sabji and rice. It is already 42 metres inside, he added. The minister said, The drilling (vertical) will be done at the lowest point (86 metres) in the hill so that the process can be completed in minimum time. The machine will drill for 40 metres, then the second machine will be put in use. On a question about no escape route in the Silkyara tunnel, Gadkari said, In India and across the world, escape tunnels have hardly come to use.this incident has happened all of a sudden. At the technical level, all things will be looked into. It will take some time to find out reasons for the collapse of the portion of the tunnel. Rescue teams have been facing challenges due to the nature of rocks in the Himalayan region. We have been working on six different options. The responsibility for the rescue operation has been given to different agencies from the central government. PMO (prime ministers office) and senior officials of the state government have been monitoring the situation. Every available technology is being put into use, he said. The drilling into the debris block using the high-power US-made auger machine has not been able to make any progress since 9am on Friday and remained stalled at 22 metres. The machine was pressed into service on Thursday at around 10.30am after the previous machine was rendered useless and got damaged after a boulder came its way. It was able to make progress of 3 metres in half an hour of its operation, 9 metres in the first six hours, 12 metres in nine hours, and 21 metres in 20 hours. An additional machine, of the same capacity and specifications, was called in from Indore but that too couldnt be used due to a strong possibility of further collapse. Gadkari took a meeting of officers from multiple agencies involved in the rescue operation and discussed the possible ways to take out the trapped men. The minister also met the kin of the trapped construction workers and assured them of the immediate rescue of their loved ones. Lieutenant governor VK Saxena has refused to consider a report by the Delhi government seeking action against chief secretary Naresh Kumar over alleged irregularities in acquisition of land for the Dwarka expressway, saying the report by is prejudiced and devoid of merit, officials in the LG secretariat said on Sunday, triggering a sharp reaction from the Delhi government which termed it a brazen attempt by the LG to protect his favourite officers. Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena(HT_PRINT) Read here: Arvind Kejriwal writes to Delhi LG seeking chief secretarys removal The development comes four days after the chief minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote to the LG recommending Kumars suspension and immediate removal as chief secretary. Kejriwal also recommended the LG to send the 650-page report, submitted by vigilance minister Atishi, to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for further investigation. The 19-acre land in question was acquired by the National Highways Authority of India in 2018 for the construction of the Dwarka Expressway in south-west Delhis Bamnoli. Atishi on Tuesday submitted the preliminary probe report to the chief minister and said that the probe has found that Kumar benefited a company linked to his son with 897 crore of illicit profits. In the report, the minister recommended the suspension of the chief secretary and divisional commissioner Ashwani Kumar so that they do not influence the probe along with an investigation by CBI. According to the officials, the LG also objected to selective portions of the report which deals with sensitive vigilance related matters being leaked to the media. In his note, Saxena said that the whole motive of this supposed inquiry was to start a media trial and politicise this whole issue, the official said. In a file noting, the LG said that the report by the vigilance minister is based on preconceived assumptions and presumption and could very well go on to hamper the ongoing investigation, instead of facilitating it, according to the officials. They said the LG the thrust of the report seems to be on the alleged connivance of the district magistrate, the divisional commissioner and the chief secretary but the basic principles of enquiries have not been followed in the case. I could not find any document and evidence to substantiate this claim of the minister. From available facts, it is crystal clear that as soon as the issue came to the knowledge of divisional commissioner, it was recorded on file on June 2, 2023 and triggered the investigation, without waiting for judicial intervention, the LG said. In a statement, the Delhi government hit out at the LG, saying if the senior officials have done nothing wrong, why the LG was obstructing an enquiry against them?. The ministers report was prompted by a whistleblowers complaint and media reports highlighting CSs role in the scam, yet the LG has chosen to launch a political attack on the government itself. In all fairness, all available evidence should be forwarded to CBI to enable an impartial enquiry. While considering the report, Saxena said the case was already under criminal investigation by CBI and the proposal for CBI probe was approved by him on the recommendations received from the chief secretary and the divisional commissioner. Read here: Delhi minister Atishi writes to CBI, ED for probe against chief secretary The Delhi government contested the LGs observation, saying the CS and the divisional commissioner ordered the probe only after strong objections raised by Union minister Nitin Gadkari and the NHAI after a joint inspection of the highway project on May 15, 2023. Responding to LGs observation that Atishi referred the matter to CBI without having the constitutional mandate, the Delhi government said the matter was already registered with CBI and now, any citizen, who has any evidence in that case, can send approach the agency. No response was immediately available from Kumar on Sunday. He has earlier denied any wrongdoing. The Association of India Manufacturers (AIM) on Sunday demanded that district magistrates must preside over meetings of Udyog Bandhu in all districts across the state. DMs must attend Udyog Bandhu meets: AIM (Pic for representation) They felt it was important to ensure speedy resolution of problems of industrialists. The AIM, a newly constituted lobby body of the manufacturers in the MSME sector, took up issues of industrialists at its first meeting on Sunday. District Magistrates need to preside over meetings of Udyog Bandhu in all districts. The government must ensure that DMs attend these meetings, said Manmohan Agarwal, AIM national president, on Sunday. In absence of district magistrates, junior officials of other departments attend Udyog Bandhu meetings, defeating the purpose of such meetings. Thats why problems of industrialists remain unresolved, asserted Agarwal. AIM vice president, Kulmani Gupta, a Noida-based industrialist, urged the state government to amend certain conditions in its tender process to enable participation of MSME entrepreneurs. The AIM urged the government to remove minimum turnover and past performance clauses for the MSME sector so that they could take part in the tender process. General secretary of the association Umesh Batra raised the issue of frequent tripping of power supply in industrial feeders across the state. Industrial areas across the state are facing frequent tripping of power supply. The government should take care of it and do the needful, said Batra. The state government has fixed 5000 stamp duty for transfer of land within blood relation. This provision is applicable for only residential and agriculture land. The AIM has demanded that the provision be extended to cover industrial land too. AIM chief faces problems in setting up industrial unit in Kakori The AIM also highlighted the problem being faced by Manmohan Agarwal in setting up its unit in Kakori, a town in Lucknow district. Despite the land (project site) being cleared by the officials concerned, local police are not permitting the project to start, said Agarwal. The Uttar Pradesh government has planned to develop industrial corridors along with the five new expressways across the state. A fund of 7,000 crore has been allocated for the development of these corridors. For representation only (HT File Photo) As per the plan, the Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) is set to establish industrial centres along five expressways, which include the Agra-Lucknow Expressway, Purvanchal Expressway, Bundelkhand Expressway, Gorakhpur Link Expressway, and Ganga Expressway. This move comes after chief minister Yogi Adityanaths directives, leading to the identification of sites for industrial centre development by UPEIDA. On Saturday, UPEIDA presented details of the industrial corridors along these five expressways in a high-level meeting. In the meeting, 11 sites were selected for the development of industrial corridors along the Ganga Expressway, connecting 12 districts with a total area of 1522 hectares. The estimated expenditure on this project is around 2300 crore. Similarly, six sites have been identified along the Bundelkhand Expressway, connecting seven districts. The proposed area for this is 1884 hectares, with an estimated expenditure of more than 1500 crore. Additionally, five sites have been selected in ten districts connected to the Agra-Lucknow Expressway. The total area for this is 532 hectares, and the estimated expenditure for its development is around 650 crore. Meanwhile, five places have been identified for the industrial corridor on the Purvanchal Expressway, connecting nine districts, with a proposed area of 1586 hectares and an estimated expenditure likely to be 2300 crore. While two sites have been selected in four districts on the Gorakhpur Link Expressway, with a total area of 345 hectares and an estimated expenditure of 320 crore. In total, more than 30 sites have been identified along these five expressways, with a total area exceeding 5800 hectares. A 19-year-old college student was allegedly gang-raped in a flat located in the Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC) quarter in Mumbai, police said on Sunday. A case was registered against them under sections 376, 376 (D), 328 and 34 of the IPC. (Representative file image) Two suspects were arrested based on the victim's statement, they added. The arrested suspects were presented before the court, where the police sought custody for further questioning. The accused were booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including Sections 376 (rape), 376 (D) (gang rape), and 328 (causing hurt by means of poison). The survivor, a college student, was allegedly raped in a residence within the confines of the BARC quarter at Postal Colony in Chembur. The incident reportedly occurred between 10pm and 12.30am on the intervening night of November 15-16. According to a report by Free Press Journal, a police investigation revealed that one of the accused and the victim knew each other, with both of their fathers employed at BARC. On the day of the incident, the accused, with his family out, invited his friend to his flat. The two men allegedly raped the woman after offering her a spiked bottle of soft drink when she arrived there to borrow ingredients for cooking. The report suggests that the victim lost consciousness, and the perpetrators took turns assaulting her. Upon regaining consciousness around 12:30 am, the victim immediately sought help from her close friends in the building, detailing the horrific incident to them, according to the report. Following the victim's statement, police initiated an investigation, leading to the arrest of two individuals allegedly involved in the heinous crime. '' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2yZGU1o_tQ&ab_channel= 20231117 Antony Blinken's hard work 'down the drain' after Joe Biden's response to dictator question https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2yZGU1o_tQ&ab_channel= Sky News Australia 20231117 US Secretary of State Antony Blinkens hard work with China went down the drain after Joe Bidens response to a question on whether the President would still call Xi Jinping a dictator, former White House press secretary Sean Spicer says. The two leaders met on the sidelines of the APEC summit to discuss ways to manage strategic competition between the two global superpowers and improve lines of communication. At the end of a press briefing on Wednesday, local time, President Biden was asked if he'd continue labelling his Chinese counterpart as a dictator, a term he'd used earlier in the year. Well, look, he is," he said. "I mean, he's a dictator in the sense that he is the guy who runs a country that is a communist country thats based on a form of government totally different than ours anyway (inaudible). A Chinese Foreign Minister spokesperson said the comments were extremely incorrect and irresponsible political manipulation. @sideman7117 1 Never forget what Obummer said about Sleazy Joe: Never underestimate Joes ability to f*** things up. I dont agree with Obummer on much, but that statement has proven to be truetime and time again. @daz7122 1 Thought Blinken was gonna throw his shoe at Biden. @Venim85 5 Make Shoe Great Again @AmaranthAcademy-ni2xq 1 Blinken feels worse that China was criticized, than for all the pain he and the administration he works for have brought to America... @emilyhrabowskie5598 1 Blinkin was cringing before Biden could get a word out of his mouth. @thomasformanek465 1 It's not wise to call your boss a dictator. @khooboobeng2184 1 no wonder mr xi did not want to take his call. This uncalled for and irresponsible action speaks for in itself. @zachariahbarber5794 1 Can't say it enough.. " Bidens ability to F things up" @mike48931 1 I imagine Blinken is very unhappy. This administration has put one hell of a mess in his lap since day one. @bernkoh343 1 China prepare to dump another 1 trillion USD..????All credit goes to Biden. @beatwafler9573 1 Antony Blinken man of the year. The most famous facial expression this year . What a honest man . @thosearentpillows5638 1 Right up there with Richard Sherman. @MJ-cl1dm 1 Thanks to his boss. What an embarrassment to even the non-Americans the world over. You are slapping your own face. @rykwon4535 1 That face is truly the embodiment of the Biden presidency ???? @TerryKnight-hw3pg 17 Blinken is no poker player. @derfzus1040 1 Blinken's expression was 'Aw Shit!' @jimdandy7323 1 A. Blinken deflated faster than a chinese spy balloon when Clueless said dictator... @johnwalker3620 1 Did you really expect anything more from Biden? What has he not failed in! I will breathe a sigh of relief when is out of our WH! @allgood5780 1 This White House is smoking some bad stuff. Blinken's face says: no, no, no, tell me he didn't say that. @scottrobinson3281 1 Biden will learn, you don't insult your boss and get away with it. (No matter how true the statement was). @eliso5973 1 We have different definition of what is dictator. If you ask people in China, most of them will say Xi is not a dictator. @DOWNUNDER. 1 Re : blinken hard work. If by hard work you mean lie. Blinken is working his ass off and always has @tonycameneti1608 1 It takes a dictator to recognise a dictator @cherylfranklin7382 1 I guess Joe has never heard the saying "don't bite the hand that feeds you"? @istiaqmujibtafader7366 17 Thanks to dedicated diplomatic efforts by the US, the leaders of both countries, the US and China, convened in person after a year to enhance their challenging relationship. After engaging in a direct conversation, Biden once again commented on Xi's leadership style, which was perceived as lacking diplomatic etiquette and deviating from the customary diplomatic protocols. The video captures Antony Blinken's unease in response to President Biden's characterization of Xi as a dictator, which differs from the prudent approach upheld on the same day. @RG-zt2og 21 We in the west will only be alright when we stop thinking this way, other countries being dictatorships or democracies should not be our business at all, also seeking regime changes in other countries in order to (dictate democracy on others) will totally kill the purpose of democracy in the eyes of other nations. @obi-wankedogi 1 you should've put Blinkens' hard work in quotations. @Lionking-tl5nv 1 Honest answer from biden but it was very funny???????????? @Ironmind10 1 Blinkens response was classic! His guy???? @ebubejamesoriehi2921 1 Blinken's reaction is one for the ages???? @pennyrichards6585 1 Tho one thing Obama sed that was 100% accurate quote ( Joe can fuc# anything up ) ! @absoluteit1614 1 Joe is a disgrace & and he's hilarious at the same time ???? @GIN.356.A 22 At that moment, Tony B thought "Hey, maybe working for the Chinese might not be such a bad idea afterall" @rule3039 1 Blinken was shiting himself himself even before the question was asked. @philiptan2051 11 Blinken was already extremely nervous during the summit as he was staring at Biden tensed and in constant fear that his boss would say a bad word, and indeed minutes later when he thought we have made it, the disaster came like an atomic bomb fell on his lap as his face turned wrinkled from left to right and his hands clutched together when he heard a devastating thunder has just hit his eardrum. Poor Blinken. @NetiHidayat-pi6cm 1 Blinken merasa frustasi dengan jawaban biden???? @MrDedvalson 1 2 steps away from not screwing it up! Please keep walking Joe???????????????? @motorsportfreak1 1 He doesnt know whats going on anymore. Even if it is true this was a moment diplomacy was needed for the worlds sake. Old Joey going off scripts. Not a Democrat supporter but Blinken does work very hard and is schooled well in the art of diplomacy. Unscripted/unmanaged Joe is such a risk. It happens all the time as hes so far mentally gone. @ciarankelly4338 1 Poor Blinken- Joe just screwed it all up again! @gppjkt2161 1 Wang Yi: bro, what the???? hell's your boss doing? Blinken: oh no.. what else can I do? @timwilson3150 1 That stroll at the end is classic. Biden cant speak Chinese and Xi Ping cant speak English yet it looks like theyre having a conversation. Seriously? @user-ks6ou3tz4y 1 After all the hard work by Anthony Blinken , Biden has just flashed it in the toilet ???? @SacredOwl 1 and mashed potato brains is going to run again? @rahulsls 1 I feel sorry for Antony Blinken @user-hp1xd4oh5w 22 Im sorry for blinken ???????????????? all those hard work he did!!???????????????? @Gary-btme 22 The foreign policy guy? The world is in crumbles !!! @user-sn6we8nj5x 9 After Blinken did all hard work measuring the grass height and buying the right flowers, it takes just a few seconds for his boss to flush all his work into the toilet. I fell sorry for him -- this happened to me too :( @20greeneyes20 1 Somebody Needs To Create An A I Biden. It Could do a better job I'm sure of it. @NoOne-tg9tk 1 Blinken looks like he's gonna Burst out crying in frustration when he's with Biden @paulhaube 12 Blinkens face is memorable. Tells all. @gtfivehundred1521 1 Im sure Xi was in town to sign the contract on his purchase of half of California @xenia4479 1 Was Blinken the one who had his security guys load his bicycle into the SUV and then unloaded it a couple of blocks from the Capitol so that Blinken could make it look like he rode his bike to work every day? ???? @MrPrgomes777 1 Blinken- "oh god i work for a complete moron" @anksssssssss 1 It's all blinkin's fault , they should have updated script given on dictator question to Biden , Biden just repeated the script he was given weeks back ???????????????????????????? The operations of the normal flights to and from the Bir Tikendrajit International Airport in Manipurs capital Imphal were affected for several hours on Sunday after an unidentified object was seen hovering in the sky. The operations stopped for nearly three hours which affected three outbound flights and two flights bound for Imphal got diverted. (File Photo) The object was sighted around 2.30pm by security personnel stationed in the airport. An alert was sounded and operations stopped for nearly three hours which affected three outbound flights and two flights bound for Imphal got diverted, officials said, requesting anonymity. Due to sighting of the unidentified object above the airport, flight operations remained suspended from 2.30pm to 5.50pm. In that duration, three flights leaving from Imphal were delayed and two in-bound flights were diverted, said an airport official. The three flights scheduled to depart from Imphal were meant for Agartala, Guwahati and Kolkata. Nearly 500 passengers of those three flights were stranded for over three hours. One flight to Imphal from New Delhi was diverted to Kolkata and another from Guwahati got delayed for over three hours. The operations resumed in the evening after security clearance was given. Airport officials were unable to state what the flying object seen above the airport was. An inquiry is stated to be underway. Manipur has been witnessing ethnic clashes between Meitei and tribal Kuki communities since May. The violence has resulted in at least 178 deaths and displaced around 50,000. Goa public works department (PWD) minister Nilesh Cabral on Sunday tendered his resignation from the state cabinet to make way for the induction of Aleixo Sequeira who will be sworn in as a minister at 7pm this evening. Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant. (File Photo) Sequeira joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from the Congress along with seven others in September last year. Shri Nilesh Cabral has submitted his resignation from the Council of Ministers to the Honble Chief Minister. Swearing-in of Shri Aleixo Sequeira in the cabinet is scheduled today at 7pm at Raj Bhavan, the chief ministers office (CMO) said in a statement issued on Sunday morning. On Saturday, chief minister Pramod Sawant, when asked about the possibility of a reshuffle curtly replied: When there is, I will let you know. Sawant said that he asked Cabral to resign in the interest of the party and that a cabinet berth was a promise made to him at the time of switching over to the BJP. Sequeira was seen as being among those reluctant to join the BJP placing the defection in peril as the breakaway group wouldnt have met the necessary 2/3rds to avoid action under the anti-defection law. Eight Congress MLAs shifted to the BJP in September last year and despite speculation that at least three of them would be accommodated in the state cabinet, no decision to that effect was yet taken by the chief minister. Among the aspirants for a place in the cabinet were former Goa chief minister Digambar Kamat, former minister Michael Lobo and Aleixo Sequeira. Following the imposition of section 144 in the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) campus and the consequent harm to the universitys reputation in the wake of clashes between two student organisations, the varsity along with the Pune police on Sunday held a meeting with all student organisations. Commissioner of police Retesh Kumaarr addressed the students and the university administration, and a decision was taken to put in place standard operating procedures (SOPs) for all student organisations. In wake of recent incidents on SPPU campus, Pune police on Sunday held a meeting with all student organisations. (HT PHOTO) I have been living in the city of Pune for the past 10 years. However, I have never seen such an environment created in SPPU. It is the responsibility of the police and the university administration to ensure that this does not happen again. Therefore, students and student organisations should not fight among themselves. If someone is behaving wrongly, they should go to the police and the competent authorities of the university. We also do not like to file cases against students. But it is our responsibility to protect the law. Therefore, no one should take the law into their hands, Kumaarr said. While giving valuable advice to the students, Kumaarr further said, The SPPU, which is known as the Oxford of the East, has a great heritage. It is a great thing that you have got admission in this university so make good use of it. Be a good citizen and contribute well to the country and society. In future, some of you will work in different fields including the police, administration, politics, education and society. So, dont waste your career on petty things and strictly follow discipline and pay attention to your studies. The programme was attended by additional police commissioner Ranjan Kumar Sharma; university vice-chancellor professor Suresh Gosavi; pro vice-chancellor professor Parag Kalkar; in-charge registrar Vijay Khare; former director-general of police (DGP) Jayant Umranikar; and other senior officials. While SPPU vice-chancellor professor Gosavi said, Students need to work together to raise the image of the university. Students are the backbone of the educational complex and it is only with their coordination that the university will progress in future. At least 10-15 supporters of the National Congress Party (NCP) have been booked for smearing ink on author, and motivational speaker Namdev Jadhav. At around 5:15 pm near Patrakar Bhavan in Navi Peth, a group of NCP workers allegedly manhandled and blackened the face of Namdev Jadhav, resulting in a chaotic situation. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO) A case was registered at the Vishrambaug police station on Saturday and no arrests have been made yet. At around 5:15 pm near Patrakar Bhavan in Navi Peth, a group of NCP workers allegedly manhandled and blackened the face of Jadhav, resulting in a chaotic situation. The incident transpired following the denial of permission by the police for Jadhavs lecture at Bhandarkar Oriental Research College due to security concerns. Earlier, Jadhav had alleged that during NCP supremo Sharad Pawars tenure as the chief minister of the state, the Maratha community was not accorded their rightful reservation in education and government jobs under the other backward classes (OBC) categories. Jadhavs allegation against Pawar had sparked controversy and dissent within political circles, leading to a heightened security stance by local authorities. Consequently, police denied permission for the scheduled lecture, citing concerns about potential unrest. The Vishrambaug police station has confirmed the registration of a case against NCP workers involved in the altercation. The charges include alleged manhandling, obstruction of government work to the police deployed for the security of the Jadhav, and creating public disturbance. Jadhav in his complaint stated that some NCP workers had threatened him over the issue. They warned that he would face dire consequences if he ever opposed Pawar in the future. The individuals allegedly not only smeared ink on his face and body but also physically assaulted police security man Akshay Kamble, alleged Jadhav. Jadhav also claimed that the instigation of the attack originated from senior leaders within the NCP. A case has been registered under sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 147 (rioting), 149 (offence be committed by any member of an unlawful assembly), 353(assault), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 336 (any act so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life ), 341(wrongfully restrains), 352(whoever assaults or uses criminal force to any person otherwise than on grave and sudden provocation given by that person), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 506(2) (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code. Pune police have increased security in response to drug kingpin Lalit Patils escape from ward No.16 at Sassoon Hospital to stop similar instances from happening in the future. Constable Natharam Bharat Kale, working as a police naik and constable Amit Auresh Jadhav were arrested for criminal negligence while discharging their duty at the Sassoon General Hospital on October 2 when Patil escaped. (HT FILE PHOTO) Pune police commissioner Retesh Kumaarr, on Sunday, issued directives aimed at strengthening the night round arrangements at the prison ward security at the hospital. In no circumstances an officer of the rank of assistant police inspector (API) be assigned the night round duty which should be undertaken only by a police official of the rank of police inspector (PI), states the directives. Kumar in his order stated that if a police inspector rank officer was absent on night duty then the respective deputy commissioner must immediately assign the duty to a reserve police officer of the rank of PI. In case, the reserve PI is not available, the deputy commissioner of police (DCP) must assign the task to a police Inspector rank official under the jurisdiction who must carry out night duty rounds at Sassoon Hospital twice a week. If the DCP or the assistant commissioner of police (ACP) are not available for the night round then they must inform the joint commissioner (law and order) about their absence. The DCP of the zone will be the acting co -co-ordinating officer for night rounds and will himself conduct the night round. The police inspector must take help of crime, traffic and special branches for conducting the round and procuring night patrol vehicles for the night round activity, the order stated. Meanwhile, two constables of Pune city police who were already facing suspension were arrested on Friday in Lalit Patil escape case. Constable Natharam Bharat Kale, working as a police naik and constable Amit Auresh Jadhav were arrested for criminal negligence while discharging their duty at the Sassoon General Hospital on October 2 when Patil escaped. He was arrested again on October 17 from Chennai by the Mumbai police. The duo were deputed at Sassoon hospitals ward number 16 where Patil was undergoing treatment. Earlier, Kumarr had suspended assistant police inspector Ramesh Janardan Kale, sub-inspector Mohini Dongre, head constable Adesh Sitaram Shivankar, constables Vishal Baburao Topale, Swapnil Chintaman Shinde, Digambar Vijay Chandanshiv, Navnath Bharat Kale, Pirappa Dattu Bansode, Amit Auresh Jadhav and police naik Natharam Bharat Kale. A preliminary inquiry found that the police officials were negligent while discharging duty. Tailored for working professionals, IIM Lucknow invites applications for its two-year, alternate weekend MBA program. The last day to submit applications is Nov 20, 2023. A variety of electives alongside general modules such as Management Information Systems and Designing Work Organisation are offered in the PGPWE program.(HT File Photo) According to a press release by IIM Lucknow, the Post-Graduate Programme in Management for Working Executives (PGPWE) is designed exclusively for working executives, entrepreneurs, and professionals. The program will be conducted at the institute's Noida campus. The PGPWE program offers highly rewarding career growth without requiring participants to leave their current jobs. It exposes them to global business trends through a two-week international immersion module with prestigious business schools in Europe, said Prof S Venkataramanaiah, Chairperson, Admissions at the Noida Campus, IIM Lucknow. There will be four terms in the first year and three terms in the second year of the program. A variety of electives alongside general modules such as Management Information Systems and Designing Work Organisation are offered in the PGPWE program, mentioned the press release by IIM Lucknow. Also Read: IIM Lucknow offers a full-fledged PG program in Sustainable Management Eligibility Criteria: Candidates must possess a bachelor's degree in any discipline. Minimum of three years of full-time work experience Valid GMAT/GRE score, a CAT score, or a GATE score. Alternatively, candidates can opt for the PGPWE Entrance Exam, scheduled for December 17, 2023, at the institute's Noida Campus Once shortlisted, candidates will undergo a writing ability test and a personal interview For more information, visit the official website. The Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA) on November 16 released final answer key of the Postgraduate Common Entrance Test (Karnataka PGCET 2023). Candidates can check the final answer key of MBA, MCA and MTech streams on the website kea.kar.nic.in or on cetonline.karnataka.gov.in/kea. Karnataka PGCET result 2023 expected soon(Getty Images/iStockphoto) Results of the examination are expected to be announced next by the KEA. The provisional answer key was released on September 29 and objections were invited from candidates ahead of revised and final answer keys. When announced, candidates can check their results by following these steps: Steps to check Karnataka PGCET result 2023 Go to the official website of KEA, kea.kar.nic.in or cetonline.karnataka.gov.in. Open the admission tab, and then go to the PGCET 2023 link. Click on the result page and login with your credentials. Check and download your result. Take a printout of the e-marks sheet for future uses. Karnataka PGCET was held on September 23 and 24, 2023. On the first day, the test was conducted a single shift from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm and on the second day, PGCET was held in two shifts from 10.30 am to 12.30 pm and from 2.30 pm to 4.30 pm. Karnataka PGCET is held for admission to MBA/ MCA/ M.E/ MTech/ MArch courses at participating institutions of the state. Miss Universe 2023: We are on the brink of witnessing the crowning of the next Miss Universe. Amidst the anticipation and predictions, the global beauty pageant is nearing its conclusion and has disclosed the top 10 contenders. Unfortunately, despite reaching the semi-finals, Shweta Sharda from India did not qualify for this stage. Check out the list of top 10 finalists. Miss India Shweta Sharda takes part in the national costume competition at the Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in San Salvador. Miss Universe 2023 LIVE blog: Shweta Sharda from India makes it to the semi finals (AP) Indias Shweta Shardas Miss Universe run ends Being hosted at the Jose Adolfo Pineda Arena in El Salvador for the first time ever, the 72nd edition of Miss Universe, also known as Miss Universe 2023, is currently in progress. Unfortunately, following the swimsuit round, Chandigarh-born model and dancer Shweta Sharda, 22, did not proceed to the evening gown round. Shweta was among the front runners till the semi-final round, but the diva lost the spot in the top 10 lineup. Miss Universe top 10 finalists The top 10 finalists for Miss Universe 2023 are Miss Puerto Rico, Thailand, Peru, Colombia, Nicaragua, Philippines, El Salvador, Venezuela, Australia and Spain. Pakistans Erica Robin achieves a historic milestone Erica Robin's ranking in the Top 20 at Miss Universe 2023 was a historic moment for Pakistan. Unfortunately, Erica did not place in the top 10 in the tournament. For the first time, all of the pageant's hosts are women, the hosts lineup includes Former Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo and TV personalities Jeannie Mai and Maria Menounos. Prior to this, Miss Universe China, Qi Jia had to step down due to Visa issues. As per the official update Ms. Jia Qi, applied for visa procedures as soon as her coronation was announced and actively prepared for the world finals, however, due to the delay in issuance, she flew to El Salvador as soon as the visa was granted and he lost more than a week of activities, which made it impossible for him to compete in this years international event. Ninety countries entered the 72nd Miss Universe pageant to compete for the prestigious title. For the unversed, Marina Machete from Portugal and Rikkie Kolle from the Netherlands are the two transgender women to compete in the contest this year. In a recent Saturday Night Live episode, Michael Che humorously predicted a dating trend for 2024, suggesting that young people might seek older partners to cope with the burden of student loan repayments. Quipping on Bumble's insights, Che remarked, "Because those student loans ain't gonna pay for themselves." SNL's Michael Che predicts dating trend: Young people seeking older partners for student loan relief. Bumble, known for its women-first approach, shared findings suggesting a shift in dating preferences. Daters are expanding their age-range filters, displaying a growing openness to relationships with partners both older and younger. This trend aligns with the resumption of student loan repayments after a three-year hiatus prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. With President Joe Biden's student loan debt cancellation plan rejected by the Supreme Court, the financial strain on young individuals is apparent. This comic prediction sheds light on the real economic challenges faced by many navigating the complexities of student loans. SNL's humor extended beyond dating trends, featuring a sketch with Mikey Day as Biden engaging in a press conference after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The unexpected star of the show turned out to be a panda, played by Bowen Yang, expressing concerns about adulting in China. While the comedic relief entertained viewers, it also touched on serious global issues. Amidst the laughter, SNL managed to highlight the importance of international relations, climate change agreements, and societal priorities. In his monologue, host Jason Momoa shared his love for playing Aquaman, connecting it to his childhood dream of becoming a marine biologist. Momoa's commitment to environmental causes was evident as he promoted his water company, Mananalu, aimed at reducing single-use plastic water bottles. Momoa's passion for environmental conservation added a touch of sincerity to the show, reinforcing the idea that even amid humor, there are opportunities to address critical issues such as sustainability and ocean preservation. The sixth and final season of hit TV series The Crown has spurred interest about people linked to the late Princess Diana. After divorce from United Kingdom's King Charles III, Diana had started dating an Egyptian billionaire named Dodi Fayed. Princess Diana (AP/ File photo) Before dating Diana, Fayed dated an American model named Kelly Fisher, according to a report by Esquire. As per the report, Fisher and Fayed had met in Paris in 1996. It was reported that the two got engaged as well, with Fayed gifting her a huge sapphire and diamond engagement ring. In 1997, pictures of Fayed kissing Diana on a yacht were released. The pictures really upset the American model. On August 7, 1997, he broke up with Fisher allegedly by phone. What happened after Fayed broke up with Fisher? Fisher filed a lawsuit against Fayed, alleging that they were due to get married on August 9, 1997 and that they had an agreement in place. In the lawsuit, Fisher claimed that Fayed had convinced her to move to Paris and had promised to pay her $500,000 of which $440,000 was not paid to her. The suit contends that Fayed offered Fisher $500,000 to scale back her modelling career in America and move to Paris so she could spend more time with him. Fayed told her his family was embarrassed that his fiancee worked, the suit claims, reported Esquire citing the LA Times at that time. ALSO READ| It was like a video game: Jason Momoa describes motorcycle ride in New York City Where is Fisher now ? Fisher has left modelling and now works as a property developer in South Carolina. She is married to a pilot named Mikhail Movshina whom she had met in 2007. After marriage to Movshina, she changed her name to Kelly Movshina. How did Princess Diana's die? Diana, Dodi Al Fayed(her boyfriend) and their driver had died in a car crash which happened on August 31, 1997 in a tunnel in Paris. Reportedly, their car was being chased by paparazzi. While trying to avoid the paparazzi, Diana's vehicle collided with a support column in the tunnel and flipped, causing grievous injuries to all the passengers including her. SBPTL-Xi'an, China - FULL EPISODE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTLSOGfPYZk&ab_channel=? RealSamanthaBrown 2023114 XI'AN Full episode of Samantha Brown's Places to Love episode about Xi'an, China 128 @hongdeli6148 5 Thank you for showing true China at the world where people have used to make truth as liese and make lies as truth. Today, on Earth, this kind of peaceful life can only be found in China. If, in the United States, the beacon of democracy, there would be gunshots fired several times, and people would run away crying or lying in a pool of blood. This happened in a peaceful era, in a country that was ruined by freedom and democracy. @randomname931 7 Never watched you on TN but glad you are open minded and don't have any biases or preconceptions from US media. Excellent video! @Richardkhung1 1 Beautifully made video, well researched and down to earth, thank you for your efforts to bring out the history and the people of China. @SuhandiWijaya 3 I really don't get why your videos don't get millions of views, this video is very well-made: informative and touches the feels! @dkblack1289 4 Just when I am about to give up on America, someone comes along and opens my eyes to see angels live among...well war mongers. Thanks so much Samantha for reminding me that even in America, there are people who are capable of redeeming it. @Ottovonostbahnhof 6 This is an extremely high quality production! This channel will go viral! @Thomas-Chin10 7 In 2001, I led a group of students and teachers to visit the terracotta warriors in Xi'an, and interestingly, the person who discovered this was there signing autographs. He seemed like an ordinary person. Your video is wonderfuleasily the best I have seen! It's great to see you having fun there.Thank you! @xianwang2130 4 18:03 I think you asked a very meaningful question. 70 years ago China's urban rate is < 10%, so over 90% of Chinese are farmers/peasants living rural life; today it's 65% urbanization, this transition happens within 3 generations. A typical family today have grandparents who live a whole life in rural, the core couple who grew up in rural then moved into cities after higher education, and grandkids who are born and raised completely in cities. A village like Yuan's, which is close to a big city like Xi'An, represents a nostalgia of a family's rural legacy, a life style which younger generation would not experience. And for visitors from other parts of China, this rural landscape & culture is different from their home ones becuase of the unique terrain and weather in northwest. @lguosantafe 7 Excellent show. Ive watched 4 minutes only and already in love. Please, more china videos! @pattiburton9976 13 This was a fascinating show, like all of your shows. I have watched you for a very long time and you make me want to travel way more than I do. Your enthusiasm, curiosity, and fearlessness is so captivating to watch as you travel the world introducing me to so many new experiences. Thank you!! @user-yw5wf6kz5t 3 Your inner child came to life when you set off the kite. What a lovely scene! @ALWH1314 1 I went to Xian once in 2002, no metro, old airport, the new big plaza just finished, the driver/tour guide told us the city is so old even their dog food bowls are often antique. Xian museum and Buddha relic temple displaying the rarest green color china and unbelievable gold thread woven are unforgettable. Now that Im retired and Covid is relaxed, I plan to visit Xian next spring and hope to follow the Silk Road in this trip. Thank you for the video. @johnnyman2173 3 I never thought that I'll be touched by a traveling vlog but when the moment you let go the kite, tears in my eyes.... @user-wn8ym2nb5k 1 Thank you for showing us the talented craftsmanship. The design of the locomotive kite is Amazing and the moment you let go of the kite is touching. Great videoHope to visit Xian this winter @jupplut6159 9 Excellent show, first time I ever saw a Locomotive kite that fly, very ingenious design and craftsmanship. @maxilocity 7 Those kites are indeed an art form. I hope he will pass on his skills to the next generation. @josephchan5135 4 Your video is well researched, well beyond most others on Xian, so professional. You are far apart from the rest. Credit to the man behind the scene. @shenlove 4 Amazing city, amazing culture! @ericjinzeli7169 2 A great video like this without political bias is very hard to find nowadays @SW-ilford 6 Love the train kite and the bee kite. Thank you for sharing your trip with us. @jerrypao6782 1 I used to watch your shows on cable channels. Today, Im so fortunate to have found you on YouTube and watching you doing what you do best. Love your shows and the quality your show produces. @TurnthePage 11 I love that you dont focus on the touristy areas. You highlight the life in these places. @MT-xy7fw 1 Amazing production quality and your humble personality makes the world happy and unite. Thank you :) 5 RealSamanthaBrown 1 @chengt2236 @chengt2236 3 I love your show. The only thing deters me from traveling across time zone is jet lags. Its so uncomfortable and I forget what I experienced after back home because of jet lag. 9 @hsingchen321 @hsingchen321 5 One information is missing: these terra-cotta warriors were buried more than 15Km away from the actual tomb of the 1st emperor of China. His tomb is at the bottom of a hill. Chinese archeologists have not touched the tomb yet. 19 RealSamanthaBrown @johnf2926 @johnf2926 1 Xi'an has changed a lot since I left in the late 90s, or you can say it hasn't changed that much at all... after all, what's 30 years worth of comparing to what she has experienced during past thousands of years ? The city has this unbeaten calmness and dignified modesty associated with it, and it influences its people. Growing up in Xi'an I never understood that, after visiting so many different cities around the world and living in some of the largest cities in the U.S., now I fully understand where you can trace back that modesty and calmness ... Hopefully one day not so far into the distant future, I will grab that backpack and hope on a bike, ride along those familiar routes along the Loess Plateau dotted with hundreds of Emperor's tombs. I never appreciated it when I was young, but I bet it will feel much different this time when I visit these once-great men in the boundless Chinese history... 5 RealSamanthaBrown @billthh1 @billthh1 1 I totally felt the energy overwhelmed me the moment I walked into the terracotta warrior muziumfor the first time! I had goose bumps all over my body! 5 RealSamanthaBrown 1 @kasemsanthongsawan @kasemsanthongsawan 4 A truly fantastic show! Sam looks as charming as always. Appreciate you for sharing your shows on YouTube and engaging with your audience. @Ottovonostbahnhof @Ottovonostbahnhof 6 oh the happiness at the end of the kite scene put joyful tears in my eyes. 14 @nicholaskazan275 @nicholaskazan275 8 I spent two days in Xian and with "warriors". Great work Samantha! 19 RealSamanthaBrown @user-wm9qi3tk9i @user-wm9qi3tk9i 2 Xi'an was the capital city of many dynasty , so its full of history and culture. 15 RealSamanthaBrown @ari8135 @ari8135 8 This is a real video production, not just a minimum effort vlog. Great job, Sam. @RobinsWood1 @RobinsWood1 22 Thank you for sharing your journey in Xi'an Samantha. My family & I were there in early 2019 indeed Xi'an is beautiful. My wife & I are the first time viewer to your channel and already subscribe. We love your scene of humor and the way you layout your content. Great work! 1 @kevinjom1117 @kevinjom1117 11 Why such high a quality video only has a few comments Your videos deserve more views, thanks for making these 28 RealSamanthaBrown 3 @kdks9873 @kdks9873 1 the most touching moment is when Sam let the kite string go - beautiful! 7 RealSamanthaBrown RealSamanthaBrown 2 @mglee1431 @mglee1431 4 This video is wonderfully done, and eye-opening as well. 8 @lizz7805 @lizz7805 4 i lived in xi'an during my teenage years, best time of my life 8 @waltertian4167 @waltertian4167 4 That moment when Samantha let go that 31 meter long train/dragon kite made by Mr. Lee, no words can describe the magic feeling. 17 RealSamanthaBrown RealSamanthaBrown 1 @lostncal @lostncal 5 Lovely video. Great job on capturing some of the spirit of the people there. Thank you for exposing me to some aspects of Xian I was unaware of; I've been a few times but far from discovering all of it. The part about the kites.... yougotthis 9 RealSamanthaBrown RealSamanthaBrown 1 @HuyTran-no8nd @HuyTran-no8nd 7 Love your videos and cant wait for more 10 RealSamanthaBrown @laraw840 @laraw840 6 This is one BRILLIANT AND OUTSTANDING video!!!!!! I was in tears when the kite flew high in the sky! Thanks a million for this wonderful video! I love China! A fan from Taiwan! @janechao100 @janechao100 7 It is totally amazing, thank you! 9 RealSamanthaBrown @hochanseng6136 @hochanseng6136 6 Thanks Samantha for sharing this informative & beautifully done video. 7 @maryrodjito6861 @maryrodjito6861 4 I used to watch your travel channel Samantha, very enjoyable. I'm glad I found you today 8 @ongsengkee2530 @ongsengkee2530 21 This an awesome, fantastic video. Very informative and interesting. Samantha please upload more of your videos. Thank you. 1 @yeowchongong5608 @yeowchongong5608 6 Hi Samatha, have been a fan since your TLC days. Good to see u in YT. Liked and subscribed 9 RealSamanthaBrown RealSamanthaBrown 1 @PeterSzeto-es6em @PeterSzeto-es6em 1 You are the first foreigner that I have seen who sat through the entire process of ear-cleaning; well done. 2 RealSamanthaBrown RealSamanthaBrown 1 @rabbitazteca23 @rabbitazteca23 14 The wild thing is that this terra cotta warriors are a small part of the things the yellow Emperor left before he died. From the same books where these warriors were described, there are also passages about the Emperor's mausoleum or his resting tomb where there could be booby traps and a river of mercury and a constellation of stars on the roof that's supposed to represent the night sky @hengheng-ij9fn @hengheng-ij9fn 2 Beautiful country Beautiful Xi'an 7 @Joo-vw9kb @Joo-vw9kb 4 I think he meant to say: 7th century at first (not first century), and massively in the 14th century. In the 1st 3rd centuries AD the Silk Road connected the four most powerful ancient empires European Roman Empire, the Parthian Empire in the Near and Middle East, the Kushan Empire in the south of Central Asia, Afghanistan and Chinese Hang Empire in the Far East. 6 @kenyup7936 @kenyup7936 4 Welcome to China, nice filming as well as editing, a nice production 5 @samuello8118 @samuello8118 13 good quality production, your way of presentation is appreciated... 1 @7hx89 @7hx89 8 great episode @chankane @chankane 4 If I ever get there, I'd probably cry... 5 @qwang1020 @qwang1020 20 That dragon kite was just magnificent. 1 @user-tc6lp1xo8p @user-tc6lp1xo8p 4 6 @echocrp @echocrp 19 incredible! @MarcoPolo-hn8or @MarcoPolo-hn8or 7 Oh wow, loved those kites 9 RealSamanthaBrown @davidz7858 @davidz7858 5 I am Chinese and visited Xian once, like it. 4 @stanleykurniawan1206 @stanleykurniawan1206 17 Oh its being a long time have not seen your channel, great to see you back. bravo The 54th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) is set to commence on November 20 at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Stadium in Goa. Preparations for the 54th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa on Sunday. (ANI/PIB) Union minister for information and broadcasting, Anurag Singh Thakur, who will inaugurate the festival. It will start with the screening of the British film Catching Dust, a movie that narrates the tale of a wife seeking to leave her criminal husband. At this years festival, 19 award-winning films from various international film festivals this year have been assorted in the IFFI Kaleidoscope. The international section will have 198 films and the festival will have 13 World Premieres, 18 International Premieres, 62 Asia premieres, and 89 India Premieres. The Indian Panorama section will showcase 25 feature films and 20 non-feature films from Indiawith the opening films in the feature selection and the non-feature selection to be the Malayalam film Aattam and the Manipuri language film Andro Dreams, respectively. Renowned filmmaker Shekhar Kapur will be the jury head for the 54th IFFI. Meanwhile, the five-member jury panel will consist of Spanish cinematographer Jose Luis Alcaine and producers Jerome Paillard, Catherine Dussart, and Helen Leake. Filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani will serve as the head of the five-member jury for the best web series (OTT) a new category in the awards ceremonyat IFFI. In addition to this, this year Hollywood Actor and Producer, Michael Douglas will be conferred with the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award. He has to his name 2 Oscars, 5 Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and countless other honors. A star-studded opening ceremony will also witness performances by Shahid Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Nushratt Bharucha, and many other Bollywood celebrities. Hollywood actor Catherine Zeta Jones, along with AR Rahman, Vidya Balan, Karan Johar, and Sara Ali Khan will also be present in the nine-day cinematic event. The closing ceremony on November 28 will feature performances by Ayushmann Khurrana and music composer Amit Trivedi. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has filed a complaint with the Election Commission of India (ECI) accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by posting morphed images and videos of Delhi chief minister and AAPs star campaigner Arvind Kejriwal on social media platforms. The AAP filed the complaint against the BJP on November 16, the day Arvind Kejriwal was supposed to respond to ECs show cause noticefor their tweets against PM Modi. (Representative Image) At the Centre of the complaint is one video that the BJP Delhis official Facebook and X accounts posted on November 5. In it, the BJP mocks Kejriwal for getting slapped in rallies, making false promises to voters, the elaborate renovations of his official residence amongst other things. The BJP trying to create a parody is a mean and ugly attempt to tarnish the image of the Honble Chief Minister and AAP without any basis whatsoever amounting to public abuse, denigration and vilification of the Honble Chief Minister, the AAPs complaint said. The AAP has complained that the BJP has repeatedly posted many such similarly morphed images and videos of Kejriwal and other AAP members. The party pointed out that Kejriwal is a star campaigner in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and the videos and images in question are most disparaging and dangerously misleading and libelous. The party has cited section 123(4) (corrupt practices in relation to publication of false statements) of the Representation of People Act, 1951, sections 499 (defamation) and 501 (printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and clauses of the model code of conduct including clause 4.4.2(B)(v) that restrains parties from criticising other parties on the basis of unverified allegations or on distortions. The complaint, signed by AAPs national secretary Pankaj Kumar Gupta, has called on the EC to ensure that no entity can unduly influence elections through the dissemination of false narratives, libelous and defamatory statements, or by making irresponsible remarks that may incite religious sentiments. Swift and decisive action is crucial to uphold the integrity of the electoral process and prevent the potential manipulation of public opinion. AAP had filed the complaint on November 16, the day Kejriwal, as the national convenor, was supposed to respond to ECs show cause notice against the AAP for their tweets dated November 8 and 9 against Modi. HT has learnt that the AAP has sought time until November 20 to reply to the show cause notice. EC had sent a show cause notice to AAP after receiving a complaint from the BJP on November 10. To be sure, the AAP had posted its video three days after the BJPs post, but the BJP complained first. Thus far, the EC has not acted on the AAPs complaint. In its show cause notice to the AAP, EC had instructed the party to explain two tweets against Modi posted from AAPs official handle. In one tweet, the AAP had mocked Modi accusing him of being businessman Gautam Adanis puppet while the second tweet showed a photograph of Modi against Adani in the background with the line (translated as): I, Narendra Modi, do not work for the public but for my owner. Priyanka Gandhi files her response Meanwhile, in response to the show cause notice issued by EC for violating the model code of conduct earlier this week, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has filed her response, HT has learnt. The deadline for Vadra was also the evening of November 16. Vadra was issued a notice for making unverified and false statements about PM Modi during a public rally in Sanwer, Madhya Pradesh. She had said, in Hindi, Mr Modi, what did you do with BHEL through which we got employment, through which the nation progressed? Mr Modi, tell us whom did you give it to? Why did you give it to your big industrialist friends? The November 14 show cause notice against Vadra was the second such notice to be issued in the last three weeks. It is understood that Vadra had replied to the previous notice, issued on October 26, within the stipulated time frame. In the notices to Vadra and the AAP, EC had reiterated its May 2023 directive regarding the plummeting level of public discourse during campaigning. The model code of conduct has been in effect since October 9 in the states of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Telangana due to the Assembly elections. HT reached out to the Congress and the AAP but did not receive a response. Popular actor Vinod Thomas was found dead inside a parked car at a hotel near Pampady here, police said on Saturday. Thomas, known for his roles in movies like 'Ayyappanum Koshyum' and 'June', was found dead inside a car at a hotel. (Getty Images/iStockphoto) He was 45. The hotel's management informed that a person is inside a car parked on its premises for a long time, police said. "We found him inside the car and took him to a nearby hospital. Doctors examined him and declared him dead," police said and added that the body has been sent for postmortem. Thomas is known for his roles in movies, 'Ayyappanum Koshyum', 'Natholi oru cheriya meenalla', 'Oru murai vanth paathaaya', 'Happy wedding' and 'June' among others. From banks of Yamuna to temporary ghats and rooftop tubs, devotees across Delhi are set to offer evening prayers to the Sun God as part of Chhath festivities on Sunday. Delhi Revenue Minister Atishi on Saturday said the government has built over 1,000 Chhath ghats across the city(ANI) The four-day festival, in which worshippers, both men and women, fast and pay obeisance to the deity on the last two days, began on Friday with 'nahai-khai' in which devotees usually bath at ghats and perform Chhath rituals. On Saturday, the devotees observed 'kharna' and cooked 'kheer' which is eaten by the family members and others as 'prasad'. They will offer evening 'arghya' (prayers) to the Sun God on Sunday. Delhi Revenue Minister Atishi on Saturday said the government has built over 1,000 Chhath ghats across Delhi so that anyone in the city can celebrate the festival here. During an inspection of the temporary ghats constructed in Mayur Vihar Phase-3, the minister directed the district administration and police to ensure robust security arrangements at all Ghats so that devotees do not face any issues, officials said. The government has constructed eight artificial ponds at the DDA ground in Mayur Vihar Phase-3 where thousands of devotees can perform their Chhath rituals together. Most of the preparations at this ghat have been completed, officials said. "Chhath is a significant festival for the people of Delhi and our people from the Purvanchal region. Therefore, the city government organises a grand celebration for Chhath every year," the revenue minister said. Officials said temporary trenches have been dug up in Sonia Vihar too where a number of people hailing from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh reside. "Two trenches have been dug and it has been covered with double-layer plastic sheets," said Ramesh Singh, an official of the Irrigation and Flood Control department. "The Delhi Jal Board is actively working to fill the makeshift ghats with water, the MCD has helped clean the area, and all the other departments are working effectively for the smooth conduct of Chhath festivities," Singh added. Rupesh Kumar, 20, a resident of Sonia Vihar and a Chhath devotee, said, "We have been cleaning this place for the past 15 days and making arrangements for our family members who will be performing rituals here". Narayan Kumar, 27, another resident of the area said, "Lights and tents have been installed by authorities and the area looks cleaner than before." Nineteen-year-old Shivam Rai said just after the puja rituals at the ghat, prasad is distributed among believers and people of the religious communities as well. Laxmi Verma, another devotee said, "Every year, we eagerly wait for this festival and offer evening 'arghya' to 'Chhathi Maiyya'". In other parts of Delhi such as Pitampura and Kailash Hills, which are located far away from ghats, people have made arrangements on their terraces by filling water in big containers and tubs and decorating them. The festival will end on Monday when devotees will offer morning 'arghya' to the rising sun. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda on Sunday accused the Telangana Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) of 'appeasement politics', saying the K Chandrashekar Rao government made Urdu the state's second language of the state and were trying to grab temple lands. Narayanpet: BJP president JP Nadda addresses a public meeting ahead of Telangana Assembly elections.(PTI) "On one hand, PM Narendra Modi works for the satisfaction of the people. KCR does the politics of appeasement in Telangana. Did they not make Urdu the second language? Are they not trying to increase the 4 per cent reservation in the name of religion to 12 per cent? Are they not planning to grab the land for temples? We have to remove such people who are doing such appeasement," he said, addressing a rally in Ranga Reddy district. KCR promised a 12 percent reservation for Muslims in 2014. In 2017, the government passed a bill to increase the quota for Muslims and Scheduled Tribes. However, when the state government forwarded the bill to the union government asking for it to be cleared and incorporated into the ninth schedule of the constitution, it was denied, ANI reported. Nadda also accused BRS MLAs of corruption. He said the MLAs charged a 30 percent commission in the Dalit Bandhu scheme. "In Miyapur, a scam worth 4,000 crore was carried out. They took a kickback of 1,000 crore on the Outer Ring Road. KCR's MLAs took a 30 per cent commission in the Dalit Bandhu Scheme...The BRS is immersed deep in corruption," Nadda said. He said KCR's 5G in Telangana is Gareebi (poverty), Ghotala (scam), Ghooskhori (bribery), Ghaplebaazi (fraud) Gundaraj (goonda rule). He also attacked the Congress, saying they didn't fulfil their promises in Karnataka. He said the Congress and KCR can only guarantee corruption. Telangana will vote on November 30. Results will be declared on December 3. With inputs from ANI Applications of 27 computer hardware companies for manufacturing and assembling components in India have been approved under the production-linked incentive scheme, electronics and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Saturday, as a part of the governments efforts to transform the country into a manufacturing hub. Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the manufacturing activities are expected to provide employment for about two lakh people, out of which 50,000 will be directly employed (Sanjeev Gupta) 23 out of 27 approved applicants are ready to start manufacturing on day zero, Vaishnaw said. Four companies will start their production within the next 90 days. The scheme, approved by the Union cabinet in May with a budgetary outlay of 17,000 crore, covers laptops, tablets, all-in-one PCs, servers and ultra small form factor devices. Companies including Dell, HP, Acer, Asus, Lenovo, Benq, ViewSonic and Foxconn will now manufacture components in India under the scheme. The approved firms include, Rising Stars Hi-Tech (Foxconn), HP, Hangsine Technosoft (HP), Flextronics Technologies (HP), Padget Electronics (Lenovo), Sojo Manufacturing Services (Lava), Bhagwati Products, Smile Electronics and Plumage Solutions (Acer), Genus Electrotech (Benq, ViewSonic), Sahasra Electronics (Thomson), VVDN Technologies, Optiemus (Asus), ITI and Sancraft, amongst others. The manufacturing activities are expected to provide employment for about two lakh people, out of which 50,000 will be directly employed, Vaishnaw said. The investments by these 27 companies are valued at an additional 3,000 crore ($360 million), and the additional production value would be about 3.5 lakh crore, he said. Many of the component sub-assemblies are the ones which are coming in first. Main level components are coming in parallel. Its a very natural pull happening here, the minister said. There are very good design capabilities in the country, so large part of design work is happening in India and that is also a big value addition. Manufacturing in India was no longer just about low-cost production, but quality production with original intellectual property rights, Vaishnaw had said during the Indian Mobile Congress in October. Without naming Apple, Vaishnaw said on Saturday that the company will also manufacture its laptops and computers in India. In response to a question about how a few large players are not a part of the PLI scheme, a thinly veiled reference to Apple, Vaishnaw said, When mobile phone manufacturing was being discussed, people used to ask me When will Google come? Google has come. So your question of the company, which you have not named and which I am not naming, will also come. We are also evaluating and people are making their plans. So it is just a question of time. We dont want to take any names because these are all large, listed companies having their SEC and compliance requirements. But you have understood. The entire ecosystem will be built up. Im sure this will be successful and there wont be a need for PLI 3.0 especially when manufacturing of semiconductors also happens in India, Colonel Suhail Zaidi (retd), the director general of Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT), told HT. He reiterated Vaishnaws statement about the importance of design to the manufacturing process. For instance, a large part of Intels research and development happens in India, he said. India on Sunday sent the second batch of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip amid the escalating war between Israeli forces and Hamas terrorists that has killed more than 12,000 people so far. Announcing the development on X, (formerly Twitter) external affairs minister S Jaishankar said India continues to deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine". India sends second batch of humanitarian aid to Gaza(Twitter/@DrSJaishankar) Second @IAF_MCC C17 aircraft carrying 32 tonnes of aid departs for the El-Arish Airport in Egypt, he added. The El-Arish airport is nearly 45km away from the Rafah crossing on Egypts border with Gaza. Notably, Rafah is the only crossing point for any humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. On October 22, India sent the first batch of around 6.5 tonnes of medical aid and 32 tonnes of disaster relief material for the Palestinians suffering amid the war. The aid included essential life-saving medicines, surgical items, tents, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, sanitary utilities, and water purification tablets among other necessary items. Israel has stepped up its massive retaliatory strikes on Gaza as the war entered its seventh week following the Hamas' October 7 attack in which over 12,00 Israelis were killed. Gaza's largest hospital a death-zone Gaza's largest hospital - Al-Shifa - has been struggling to keep operating and has become a focus point of the war. The Hamas health ministry in Gaza said that dozens of people have died at the hospital due to power cuts caused by fuel shortages. On Saturday, Israel ordered an evacuation of the hospital immediately - two days after the Israeli troops combed the hospital facility for Hamas hideouts and claimed to have uncovered a Hamas tunnel shaft and a vehicle with weapons inside the complex. Amid this, a team led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other UN officials visited the hospital for an assessment, following which WHO claimed that the place has become a death zone. While several patients were evacuated, a UN team on Sunday said that around 291 patients, including 32 babies in critical condition were left at the hospital. Rahul Gandhi of the Congress on Sunday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of working for business tycoon Gautam Adani "round-the-clock". Instead of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai', the prime minister should say Adani ji Ki Jai because he works for him, news agency PTI quoted Rahul Gandhi as saying at an election rally in Bundi in poll-bound Rajasthan. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addresses supporters during a public rally. (ANI FILE)(Congress-X) Gandhi said the poor, farmers and labourers are 'Bharat Mata' and the 'Jai' of Bharat Mata will be when the participation of these sections will be ensured in the country. The Congress leader also accused the prime minister of wanting to make two Hindustans, one for Adani and the other for the poor. Gandhi also alleged that Modi would not conduct a caste census no matter what. Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party can do this, he asserted. The Congress has been targeting the Adani group, accusing it of benefitting from the Bharatiya Janata Party government, and has been demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the allegations made by a US Research group Hindenburg. The Adani-led business conglomerate has denied any wrongdoing on its part. BJP misusing central agencies: Ashok Gehlot Accusing the BJP of misusing the Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax department for political gains, Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday said the people of the state understand this and will give a befitting reply to the saffron party in the polls Talking to reporters at the PCC office after paying tributes to former prime minister Indira Gandhi on her birth anniversary, Gehlot charged that the BJP is misusing agencies for defaming Congress leaders in the state. He accused BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Kirodi Lal Meena, who is contesting elections from the Sawai Madhopur seat, of making fake complaints to the ED and Income tax. Gehlot alleged that the agencies were working in connivance with Meena for one year in Rajasthan. Polling in the state will take place on November 25 and results will be declared on December 3. Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan has stirred a political row after he suggested that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be shot and killed without a trial for allegedly committing a war crime against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip, news agency ANI reported. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.(REUTERS file) Addressing a rally to demonstrate solidarity with Palestine in Kasargod, Kerala, amid the ongoing ground offensive by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip, the Congress leader reportedly advocated the Nuremberg model (invoking the trial of Nazis in Nuremberg for the holocaust) against Netanyahu. "You can ask what should be done to those who break all agreements under the Geneva Convention. After the Second World War, there was something called the Nuremberg trials for bringing those (Nazis) guilty of war crimes to justice. The Nuremberg model to shoot those accused of war crimes dead without trial. It is high time that the Nuremberg model was applied here (against the Israeli PM). Today, Benjamin Netanyahu is standing before the world as a war criminal. It's high time that Netanyahu was shot and killed without a trial because of the atrocities that his forces are committing on Palestinians," Unnithan, who represents Kasargod in the Lok Sabha, was quoted as saying. The rally was organised by the Kasaragod United Muslim Jamaath on Friday. Reacting to the politician-turned-actor's comments, Union minister V Muraleedharan said such statements by the member of Parliament show the country in a poor light. "I don't know what is the stand of the Congres Party on such statements by their MP. Member of Parliament is a very responsible position which is taken note of by the international community. When an MP makes such a statement it's a shame to the Indian Parliament and parliamentary democracy...," Muraleedharan said. Slamming Unnithan for the statement, Kerala BJP president K Surendran posted on social media X, Where is the @INCIndia heading to? Senior Congress leader and Kasargod MP Rajmohan Unnithan called for the murder of Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu without any trial at a pro-Hamas rally organized in Kasargod. Mr Unnithan even said that now, I am ashamed to have been born in India. Only Congress leaders can stoop so low. For him and his leader @RahulGandhi Hamas is a peaceful resistance movement. The former chief of the terror group Hamas, Khaled Mashal, virtually addressed a similar solidarity event in Kerala earlier. Earlier, on Friday, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh released an official party statement, condemning the Israeli operations in Gaza and demanding that the Centre intervene to bring a ceasefire at the earliest. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday condemned the mounting civilian deaths in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and said new challenges are emerging from the events in West Asia. Reiterating India's condemnation of the Hamas terror attacks in southern Israel on October 7, Modi also highlighted that New Delhi has also sent humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine. In his opening address at the Voice of Global South Summit earlier on Friday, said, "For global prosperity, sabka saath and sabka vikas is parmount. We all are seeing that new challenges are emerging from the events in the West Asia region." "India has condemned the terrorist attack in Israel on October 7. We have laid emphasis on exercising restraint, dialogue and diplomacy," he added.PM Modi said that India has also sent humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine. "We also strongly condemn the deaths of civilians in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. After talking to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, we have also sent humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine," he added. (With inputs from agencies) Actor-turned-politician and BJP leader Khushbu Sundar, on Sunday, reacted to the recent controversial comments by actor Mansoor Ali involving actress Trisha Krishnan, saying Chumma comedykku sonnen (It was for fun!) attitude of these men will not be overlooked or ignored. She said that Ali should apologise to all the female actors he mentioned during his speech and to women in general for his misogynist attitude. BJP leader and NCW member Khushbu Sundar(ANI) Mansoor Ali, who acted in the recent Thalapathy Vijay's Leo movie alongside Trisha, said during a press conference that he was disappointed for "not having a bedroom scene" with Trisha in the movie, as he had with other actors in different movies. In a tweet posted on X (formerly Twitter), Khushbu Sundar said, Some men think it's their birth right to insult a woman or speak about her in a most disrespectful manner. Recent video of #MansoorAliKhan is one such example. I vehemently condemn his speech. They think their chumma comedykku sonnen attitude will be overlooked n ignored. No, it won't be done so. He should apologise to every female actor he has named in his speech and to women in general for displaying his dirty, misogynist, lowly minsdset. Women of today are strong enough to fight for their respect & dignity. A user replied to her above tweet saying, Women should act with dignity, for money they are doing anything for more glamour, dresses were getting transparent and getting small day by day, don't know were end, it seems moving dressless culture by following western, have to understand younger generation watching this Responding to the user's comment on women's conduct, Sundar replied, Why dont you go and say men should behave with respect? We women don't comment when some walk around with komanam. Have you ever heard, beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, and I would like to add respect lies in the mind and upbringing of a man to it. I am sure this might go as bouncer here. The BJP leader further mentioned that she has taken up the issue of Mansoor Ali Khan as a member of the National Commission for Women (NCW) and assured that action will be taken against him. She stated, Nobody can get away with such a filthy mind. I stand with @trishtrashers and my other colleagues where this man speaks in such a sexist disgusting mindset about them, including me. When we are fighting tooth & nail to protect women & bring dignity to them, such men are like a bot in our society. What did Mansoor Ali say? Mansoor reportedly said during an interview, When I heard that I was acting with Trisha, I thought there would be a bedroom scene in the film. I thought that I could carry her to the bedroom just like I did with other actresses in my earlier movies. I have done so many rape scenes in a number of movies, and it's not new to me. But these guys didn't even show Trisha to me on the sets during the Kashmir schedule. The actor later claimed his comments were misrepresented. I made the comment in jest. Some have purposefully sliced it and presented it to Trisha in an alternative format, he said in a statement. Starring : Jean-Louis Trintignant, Romy Schneider Plot Synopsis Clement (Jean-Louis Trintignant, Il sorpasso) is a wealthy son of an industrialist who lives a secret life as a right-wing terrorist. Double-crossed following an assassination attempt he flees to the countryside with his wife, Anne (Romy Schneider, La piscine) where they stay with his childhood friend, Paul (Henri Serre, Jules et Jim). Clement plots his revenge but Anne falls for Paul and a love triangle is just one of many complications in this multi-layered discovery from the French New Wave. With the support of producer Louis Malle, Alain Cavalier (Fill 'Er Up with Super) directed his debut, a noirish drama beautifully shot by cinematographer Pierre Lhomme (Army of Shadows). While echoing the political turmoil of the 1960s, the film probes bourgeois values and the relationship between sex and violence, acting as a precursor to The Conformist and demonstrating the influence of Chabrol. Blu-ray Disc Special Features: The new president of the Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, on Saturday formally asked India to withdraw its military personnel from the archipelago, and people familiar with the matter said it was agreed the two sides would discuss workable solutions to the issue. Union minister Kiren Rijiju with Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu on Saturday. (ANI) Muizzu, who is closely aligned to former pro-China president Abdulla Yameen, made the request during a meeting with earth sciences minister Kiren Rijiju in Male. Rijiju had represented the Indian government at Muizzus inauguration on Friday. At the meeting, President Muizzu had formally requested Government of India to withdraw its military personnel from the Maldives, a readout from the Maldivian Presidents Office said. Muizzu told Rijiju that during the presidential election in September, the Maldivian people had given him a strong mandate to make the request to India and he expressed the hope that India will honour the democratic will of the people of the Maldives. There was no official word from the Indian side on the development, though people familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity that it had been agreed the two governments will discuss workable solutions for continued cooperation through the use of two helicopters and a Dornier maritime surveillance aircraft provided by India to the Maldives. These continued operation of these aircraft serves the interests of the people of Maldives, the people pointed out. The people didnt give details of the workable solutions or how the two sides will work them out. A small number of Indian security personnel are stationed in the Maldives for the operation and maintenance of the aircraft. Muizzu had made the removal of Indian military personnel a key part of his campaign for the presidential campaign. He was backed by a coalition perceived as close to China and had also championed an India Out campaign. At his inaugural address on Friday, Muizzu had said that he will respect our neighbours and other countries, but that he will always draw a thick red line when it comes to the security of the Maldives. Noting that he will always respect the decision of the people, Muizzu said: Using the instrument of diplomacy, I will ensure that this country has no foreign military presence on its soil. The Maldives will respect the security red line of every country, and the Maldivian red line should have that same right and respect, he added. However, at his meeting with Rijiju, Muizzu also acknowledged the significant role of the two helicopters in providing numerous emergency medical evacuations. On Saturday, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) said in a post on X that the Dornier aircraft provided by India was used for the medical evacuation of a woman in critical condition from one of the archipelagos many atolls to the capital. A medical evacuation of a 36-year-old female in critical condition was carried out from Th. Atoll Hospital to Male City by MNDF Central Area Command via MNDF Dornier Aircraft today at 17:04 hours, the MNDF posted on X. Over the past few years, the two helicopters and the aircraft have been used scores of such operations, the people said. External affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had told a media briefing in October that the assistance and aircraft provided by India had contributed significantly in areas such as humanitarian assistance, disaster relief and combating illegal maritime activities. Over the past five years, more than 500 medical evacuations were carried out by Indian personnel, saving 523 Maldivian lives. Of these, 131 evacuations were carried out in 2023, 140 in 2022, and 109 in 2021. During the past five years, more than 450 multifaceted missions were carried out to safeguard the maritime security of the Maldives. At the meeting with Muizzu, Rijiju conveyed best wishes on behalf of the government of India, and expressed the aspiration to foster a constructive relationship with the Maldives, acknowledging the presence of a vibrant Indian community residing in the Maldives, the Maldivian readout said. Muizzu and Rijiju reviewed the progress of various India-backed projects in the Maldives. Muizzu emphasised the importance of accelerating the Greater Male Connectivity Project and highlighted the importance of addressing and overcoming the issues delaying the project. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the caste census issue and accused him of working for industrialist Gautam Adani round-the-clock. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addresses a public meeting ahead of Rajasthan assembly elections, in Bundi district (PTI) Addressing rallies in Bundi and Dausa districts of poll-bound Rajasthan, Gandhi targeted Modi for not conducting a caste census in the country and said it will be the first thing that the Congress will get done after it comes to power at the Centre. Read here: Jaadugar ki jaadugari in lal dairy: PM Modi attacks Gehlot at poll rally in Rajasthan Polling for the 200-member Rajasthan assembly will be held on November 25. Votes will be counted on December 3 along with those for Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram assembly polls. In Bundi, the former Congress president alleged that the Prime Minister wants to make two Hindustans one for Adani and the other for the poor. Instead of Bharat Mata ki Jai, the Prime Minister should say Adani ji ki Jai because he works for him, Gandhi said. Modi says Bharat Mata ki Jai and works 24 hours for Adani. He added that the poor, farmers and labourers are Bharat Mata. Targeting the Prime Minister over the caste census issue, Gandhi said Modi will not conduct one, no matter what. Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party can do it, he added. We have ordered a caste census [survey] in Rajasthan. As soon as the (Congress) government comes to power at the Centre, our first task will be (to order) a caste census, the Congress leader said. Your true involvement will begin then. Mother India will be victorious then. Asking whether any big industrialist in the country is from the other backward classes (OBC), Dalit or tribal communities, Gandhi said he would stop giving speeches if there is one. He also attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the poll-bound state, alleging that if it comes to power in Rajasthan, all public welfare schemes initiated by the Ashok Gehlot-led government will be discontinued. Gandhi continued his attack on the prime minister during his speech at a rally in Dausa, saying Modi used to say in his public addresses that he is an OBC. The day I said Modi ji, do one thing, tell the world how many OBCs are there in the country, he started giving a new speech. He said there is no caste in the country and only the poor are there, the former Congress chief said, quipping: There is no caste but you are an OBC. He further said that he interacted with thousands of youngsters during his Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir last year and they told him that they want to become IAS officers. Claiming that Modi is running the country with 90 IAS officers, he pointed out that only three of them are OBCs. Your population is around 50% but representation is only three among 90 officers, he said, stressing that a caste census is most important for the country. The Congress MP from Wayanad also criticised Modi for calling tribals vanvasi and said the Congress calls them adivasis, who have the first right over land while vanvasi is someone who lives in a forest. Stating that the Congress did not give a ticket to a leader who thrashed a Dalit, he added that the BJP welcomed him and gave him a ticket. He was referring to Girraj Malinga, sitting Congress legislator from Dholpurs Bari seat, who was denied a ticket by the party. Malinga allegedly assaulted two engineers of the Rajasthan electricity department, one of whom is a Dalit, last year. He joined the BJP in Jaipur early this month and was fielded by the party from Bari. Read here: Rajasthan elections: Bit players may hold sway as Jat politics takes stage Reacting to Gandhis speech, state BJP spokesperson Mukesh Pareek said before coming to address the party campaign, the Congress leader should have updated himself with the data, which shows that Rajasthan tops the chart of crime against Dalit and women in India in the last five years. The state has broken all records of corruption, but Gandhi failed to address these issues, Pareek said, adding that the schemes launched by Prime Minister Modi have benefited every section of the society. Gandhis baseless and false statement will not make any impact on the public, he said. A survey undertaken by the Medico Legal Society of India (MLSI), an association of doctors and medico-legal experts, has revealed that impractical working conditions like inadequate staff, infrastructure and supply of essential medicines are the prime reasons behind doctors unwillingness to work in the public healthcare sector. More than 400 doctors from both government and private hospitals across India participated in the survey. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO) The pan-India survey which ended on November 18 was conducted among doctors to find out the reasons for the shortage of workforce in healthcare facilities. More than 400 doctors from both government and private hospitals across India participated in the survey. Over 89 per cent of the respondents feel the impractical working condition and 84 per cent of doctors who responded feel the violence against healthcare staff in public facilities make them reluctant to join public health. Over 85% of doctors claimed they could not withstand the political pressure in public facilities. Other reasons includeInadequate payment, poor working and living conditions, Longer hours due to staff shortage and lack of a good societal atmosphere, said, a MLSI doctor. As per MLSI, the reluctance amongst doctors to work in government facilities is leading to a shortage of doctors and an acute shortage of specialised doctors in the public health department. Political pressure and involvement and violence against healthcare workers is another prime reason behind the doctors unwillingness to work in the public sector. Dr Rajeev Joshi, founder of MLSI, the outcome of the survey will be presented to the High Court of Karnataka as an intervention application in the suo-motu public interest litigation filed by the Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court. Dr Joshi, said, that from the survey we found that there is a need to increase budget allocation for healthcare and politicians should not interfere in healthcare. The doctors should be provided competitive incentives with absolute protection from violence. The government should partner with private healthcare organisations and increase the seats of medical colleges. The payment to interns and resident doctors should be augmented, he said. As per the survey, the responding doctors also suggested the establishment of Indian medical services in line with other administrative services to handle skewed healthcare services in rural areas. Instead of opening new institutes, the government should look into strengthening existing institutes. Also, hospital beds should be increased in each district hospital and corruption should be prevented at all levels by appointing grievance committees for staff. There was little progress in efforts to reach 41 workers trapped inside a collapsed tunnel in Uttarkashi as the operation entered its second week with rescuers on Sunday adopting a five-pronged approach to evacuate the people. The rescuers were also carving out a track on the mountaintop to reach the top of the tunnel from where they can drill a vertical hole to pull the workers out. The under-construction tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri national highway, days after a portion of the tunnel collapsed trapping several workers inside, in Uttarkashi district, on Sunday. (PTI) One pipe, or lifeline as the authorities call them, was being pushed through the 65-metre-thick wall of debris to provide the trapped workers with solid food, officials said, adding that it had already reached a depth of 40 metres. A second lifeline was being pushed in vertically from top of the tunnel. Read here: 900 mm pipe being inserted using Auger machine Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari, who reached the site on Sunday to review the situation, said all options were being explored to rescue the workers. Our priority is to save the lives of the trapped workers. We have been exploring all options, Gadkari told reporters. The construction workers have been trapped since November 12 when a portion of the 4.5-km tunnel they were building collapsed about 200 metres from the Silkyara entrance in the Uttarakhand district. The tunnel is part of the busy Chardham all-weather road, a flagship project connecting various pilgrimage sites. Now the rescue team is working on alternatives including drilling from one end to the other on both Silkyara and Barkot sides, vertical drilling from the top of the tunnel and perpendicular drilling. Elaborating the plans, MoRTH secretary Anurag Jain said that the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Sutluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVNL), Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), and Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited (THDCL) have been engaged for the operation, Jain said. NHIDCL is creating another six-inch pipeline for food and they have completed drilling through 39 metres out of 60. Once this passage is ready, it will facilitate delivery of more food items, he said. NHIDCL, the agency entrusted with building the tunnel, will simultaneously drill from the Silkyara end of the tunnel, Jain said. To facilitate this, the Army has prepared the box culvert. A canopy framework is being made to ensure workers safety. Work of pipeline laying will recommence tomorrow, he said. The Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) has started working on another vertical pipeline for supply for essential items after the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) completed building an approach road. Further, THDC shall start work of micro tunnelling from Barkot end for which heavy machinery has already been mobilised. THDC shall start the operation tonight (Sunday) itself, Jain said. The vertical drilling from the top of the tunnel, a plan proposed on Saturday, will be carried out by SJVNL. Accordingly, equipment has been mobilised from Gujarat and Odisha through Railways, as the equipment weighing 75 tonnes could not be airlifted, he said. This involves creating an alternative route at the top of the mountain to enable drilling vertically from a pre-identified spot on the tunnel to a depth of about 103 metres where the workers are stuck. NHIDCL MD Mahmood Ahmed said that the agencies started working on the second lifeline service late on Saturday night. Since Saturday night, another lifeline service is been creating by the way of pushing a 150mm diameter steel pipe through the debris by ROC machine. As of now 40 metre length has already been inserted out of probable length of 60m and is still in progress, he said. The current 4 inch lifeline service (pipe) through which food and other essential items are being supplied to trapped workers has been shifted from the existing point to a safer place. Escape passage from the service point has been created to the area which is prone to further collapse by way of placing concrete Hume pipe and steel pipe and work has been completed, the NHIDCL official said. Separately, to create a safe passage for rescuers, concrete blocks and steel pipe for a length of around 65m up to the safe zone covering area which is prone to further collapse have been placed, NHIDCL said in a statement. Parallelly gantry structure is being fabricated in house to cover the pipe drilling machine and likely to be completed by Sunday evening and thereafter pipe pushing activity are to be resumed, the statement said. While experts and rescue teams have attributed the delay in the operation to difficult terrain, Gadkari, who was accompanied by Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, sounded hopeful that the workers could be rescued in two to three days if the drilling through augur machines resumes. If the auger machine drilling works properly, we can rescue the trapped workers in the next two to three days some hard material came in its way and stopped the machine from working. When the machine was exerting further pressure to push further, it increased the vibrations. They (experts) have found a solution to the problem, Gadkari told reporters. The rescue operation is challenging as the soil strata in the Himalayan region is not uniform, he said. Horizontal drilling with the American auger is the quickest method in the given circumstances to reach the trapped workers, Gadkari said. Read here: Big pipe being pushed into tunnel to provide solid food to workers: Gadkari Rescue operations stalled around 2.45pm on Friday. During the positioning of a fifth pipe, a big cracking sound was heard in the tunnel upon which rescue operation was suspended immediately, a statement from the NHIDCL tasked with the construction of the tunnel said in a statement on Friday night. There was a brief pause in the drilling on Friday morning as well, when the augur machine, flown in from Delhi, sustained damages after drilling through nearly 24 metres. This plan involved drilling through the debris to push pipes 800mm and 900mm in diameter one after the other to create a passage for trapped workers to crawl out of. Before that, as part of Plan A rescuers tried to dig through the rubble using heavy excavator machines, but loose rock and sand collapsing from the roof of the tunnel impeded progress. Less than 24 hours after taking oath as President of Maldives, Mohammed Muizzu on Saturday followed up on his 'Out India campaign' by formally requesting India to withdraw its military personnel from his country. However, Muizzus rhetoric and demand for the withdrawal of Indian troops need a closer examination of the actual nature of India's engagement in the island nation. Mohamed Muizzu, the newly elected president of Maldives speaks during his inauguration ceremony in Male, Maldives November 17, 2023.(Reuters) Firstly, contrary to Muizzu's assertion, India doesn't station troops in the Maldives. The fact is that India has only crews and technicians for its patrol vessel, Dornier aircraft, and two ALH helicopters, all adorned in Maldivian colours, for specific purposes such as medical evacuation, surveillance, and air rescue operations. These assets play a crucial role in humanitarian missions rather than representing a military force. To label these assets as "Indian troops" is not just a misrepresentation but a falsehood. Since 2019, there have been a total of 977 missions, with the majority dedicated to providing essential medical support to the Maldivian population. The limited air surveillance activities are a fraction of the overall operations, signalling a focus on humanitarian endeavours. A more detailed breakdown of the missions allows us to discern the specific areas where these assets are deployed. Mission Type Total Missions (2019-2023) Medical Evacuation 461 Search and Rescue 148 Air Patrol 69 Miscellaneous 22 The total number of missions shows an increasing trend from 2019 to 2022, reaching the highest in 2022 with 262 missions. However, there is a notable decrease in 2023 (up to October) with 159 missions compared to the previous year. At a time when the Maldives is facing the dire consequences of climate change, with rising sea levels threatening its existence, India is well-positioned to provide immediate humanitarian relief. India has also invested significantly in the Maldives, amounting to over 1.5 billion dollars. It is crucial for Muizzu to recognize that India is the Maldives' true ally, as demonstrated by its strategic investments, humanitarian efforts, and commitment to regional stability. Rather than pursuing an "Out India" campaign, Muizzu should focus on building a stronger partnership with India. Rescue efforts are vigorously underway to save the 41 laborers trapped in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district since November 12 due to a partially collapsed tunnel. In the latest update, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said they are ready with equipment to overcome any obstacles hindering the rescue of the workers in the Silkyara-Dandalgaon tunnel. A 900mm diameter pipe with the help of the Auger machine is being inserted at the tunnel site, news agency ANI reported, quoting disaster management officials. A new auger machine arrived at the site on Saturday where road workers are trapped in a tunnel after a portion of it collapsed, in Uttarkashi in the northern state of Uttarakhand.(REUTERS) NDRF Second-In-Command Ravishankar Badhani said, We have two teams here. We have cutting equipment, and oxy-cutting machines are available... We are trying to reach the victims as soon as possible... We are ready for any situation. If the victims are not able to move, we have also modified our stretchers... Now, we are preparing according to the new approach of vertical and parallel drilling In a video shared by news agency ANI, the latest equipment of the NDRF teams was displayed for the operation, featuring oxy-cutting machines, modified stretchers, and other tools. Disaster Management Secretary Ranjit Sinha explained, We are inserting a 900mm diameter pipe with the help of the Auger machine. We have reached 22 meters and we are going ahead rapidly. There is a lifeline pipe for sending food and other necessary items. We are inserting another pipe above it because there was less debris there. There we have gone till 42 meters and only a few meters are left. We will have another pipe for life support when that becomes ready. Union minister Gadkari reviews rescue operation Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Sunday reviewed the rescue efforts at the partially collapsed Silkyara tunnel and said the necessary work to save all the 41 trapped workers will be done. Gadkari, who was accompanied by chief minister Dhami, said the rescue operation is challenging as the soil strata in the Himalayan region are not uniform. He further said that the operation will be carried out keeping the morale of workers and their family members high should be everyone's collective responsibility. "The American auger was working alright when it was drilling through soft soil. It faced some problems after it encountered some hard obstacle that led to the machine applying greater pressure and creating vibrations following which it was stopped for safety reasons," Gadkari was quoted as saying by news agency PTI at a press conference in Silkyara. The Union minister highlighted the diverse terrain, posing difficulties due to varying soil conditionssome sections being softer while others are harder. This diverse landscape presents challenges for mechanical operations. Gadkari stressed that, given the situation, employing the American auger for horizontal drilling stands out as the most effective approach to swiftly access the trapped workers. "We are working on six options simultaneously. The PMO is also closely monitoring the operation. Our biggest priority is to save all those who are trapped and as soon as possible. Whatever is needed will be done," he said. A quick look at the timeline of the trap November 12: 41 labourers were trapped as sections of the Silkyara-Dandalgaon tunnel collapsed due to a landslide on Diwali day. November 13: Oxygen supply was established via pipe, workers reported safe. Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami visited the site, rescue operations continued. November 14: Introduction of 800 and 900 mm steel pipes for horizontal excavation with an auger machine. However, the efforts suffered a setback when more rubble fell from the cavity created by the cave-in and caused minor injuries to two labourers. November 15: The National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) requested a superior American auger machine from Delhi to expedite rescue efforts. November 16: Installation and initiation of the high-performance drilling machine post-midnight. November 17: Machine drills 24 meters, inserts four six-meter MS pipes, but halted due to an obstacle. Another auger machine from Indore arrived after reported damage to the first. Rescue paused due to a cracking sound heard during operations. November 18: Experts halted drilling on Saturday due to concerns about vibrations from the powerful 1,750-horsepower American auger. They feared these vibrations might trigger additional debris collapses, posing a serious risk to the safety of the rescue team. (With inputs from agencies) Union minister Nitin Gadkari and Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reached Uttarkashi on Sunday to review the operation to rescue 40 workers trapped inside a collapsed tunnel. The rescue authorities are building an access road to the top of the hill above the Silkyara tunnel. They will initiate vertical drilling from there to reach the workers, who have been trapped inside the tunnel for seven days. Uttarkashi: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami review the rescue operation. (PTI) All the workers are safe. On Sunday morning, the authorities supplied food and other essentials to the workers via large diameter pipes through the debris. Gadkari told the media that the authorities have employed several strategies to drill inside the tunnel perpendicularly. "The priority in the entire operation is to save the lives of the workers. Multiple strategies have been employed including vertical and perpendicular drilling. The CM and I have taken the presentation and reports of the ongoing rescue efforts," he said, after reviewing rescue efforts. The Border Roads Organisation started building the approach road on Saturday evening. According to the news agency PTI, senior officials of the Prime Minister's Office are present in Silkyara to oversee the operation. Also read: Rescuers to drill from top of tunnel to save trapped workers in Uttarakhand A heavy machinery works at the entrance to the site of an under-construction road tunnel that collapsed in Uttarakhand. (PTI) The tunnel is part of the ambitious Char Dham road project by the central government. The workers have been trapped since last Sunday when the tunnel partially collapsed. The construction wing of the Army and the BRO have been assisting the authorities in the rescue operation. Dhami says trouble is increasing Dhami told ANI on Sunday: "Saving everyone's life is our first priority... For this, the state government is ready to give all the help required to all the agencies... I will pray to God that they get rescued sooner, as their trouble is increasing with each passing day". The rescue workers were trying to drill horizontally. On Saturday, they decided to attempt the vertical approach as well. "A spot right above the tunnel has been identified and marked. A hole will be drilled from there to reach there. The depth of the hole would be approximately 300-350 feet... The horizontal attempt of rescue would also begin from Barkot end of the tunnel," Uttarkashi DFO DP Baluni told ANI. Also read: 'Don't tell mom I am stuck here': Worker trapped in Uttarkashi tunnel tells brother Antidepressants, Vitamins sent to trapped workers Anurag Jain, secretary, Ministry of Road and Transport, told the news agency that the authorities have been sending in vitamin tablets as well as antidepressants, along with food and water. "As sunlight is not reaching there, we are sending Vitamin B, Vitamin C, and antidepressants as doctors suggested. These people have been working in the tunnel for a long time, so there is no disappointment among them, and they are looking forward to coming out. It will take some time, but we will eventually get them out," he said. Also read: Ukhand tunnel collapse: After 6 days, mission to rescue 40 trapped workers stalls He said there is water and electricity in the portion of the tunnel the workers are trapped in. He said the authorities are sending dry fruits through a pipeline. A 25-year-old woman died while was being taken to a hospital on a bamboo cot (charpoy) by her family members and local residents after private ambulances and local vehicles allegedly refused to enter her village due to the poor condition of road in Malda district of West Bengal, officials said on Saturday. The woman, Mamoni Roy, had been suffering from high fever for the past three days (Getty Images) State minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Siddiqullah Chowdhury, meanwhile, triggered a controversy by claiming that the woman died because of her fate and not the poor condition of roads, drawing sharp criticism from opposition parties. The incident took place on Friday when the woman, Mamoni Roy, who had been suffering from high fever for the past three days, was being carried on a cot by her husband and local residents from her Maldanga village to a rural hospital in Modipukur, nearly four-and-half-km away, in Bamangola block. Her husband Kartick Roy claimed that no ambulance or any local vehicle was willing to enter the village due to the poor condition of the road. We had tried to hire a vehicle. But everyone refused citing the poor road conditions in Maldanga village. We had to walk to the hospital carrying her on a cot, he said. But the doctors declared her dead when we reached the hospital. Meanwhile, a video of the woman being taken on a bamboo cot by her husband and local villagers surfaced on Saturday. HT could not independently verify the veracity of the video, which has since been widely circulated on social media. Malda district officials, who sprung into action after the video surfaced, alleged that the family of the woman, who had been ill since Wednesday, initially took her to a local quack in the village instead of taking her to the nearest health centre. It was only when her condition deteriorated that they decided to shift her to the hospital, a senior district official said, requesting anonymity. It is a very unfortunate incident. The family could have got in touch with the local government authorities for an ambulance. An enquiry has been started to find out why the incident took place, the district official said. The district administration will very soon build a concrete road. Reacting to the incident, states minister for mass education Siddiqullah Chowdhury stoked a controversy by saying the woman died because of her fare. If one out of 100 is bad, why blame the remaining 99? If there is pain in the arm, should I say it is a mental problem? If they write to us, we will repair the roads, Chowdhury told reporters. She didnt die because of bad roads. Death was in her fate. Opposition Communist Party of India (Marxist) said the minister should have felt ashamed and apologized instead of making such remarks. Is he a minister? What kind of statement is this? He should have felt ashamed and apologised. It is the good fate of [chief minister and TMC chief] Mamata Banerjee that she is still in power. The people wont allow her to stay in power anymore because it is her fate, CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty told reporters. The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also attacked the TMC government over the poor condition of roads and infrastructure in the state. The situation of roads and infrastructure is the same across every part of West Bengal. BJP MPs and MLAs are not being able to utilise their local area development funds as the local district administration is not cooperating in many areas, Samik Bhattacharya, BJP spokesperson, alleged. Making it to the top 3 with her dazzling smile, sizzling evening gown and witty answers, Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios was finally crowned the winner of Miss Universe 2023 during the 72nd Miss Universe pageant in San Salvador, El Salvador. It was a historic moment as it was the first time that Nicaragua won the beauty competition and the first time that the country ever made it into the Top 5 finalists, all courtesy to Sheynnis Palacios's winning speech. Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios reacts after being crowned Miss Universe during the 72nd Miss Universe pageant in San Salvador, El Salvador November 18, 2023. Here's her winning speech (Photo by REUTERS/Jose Cabezas) In the final Q&A round of Miss Universe 2023, all Top 3 contestants from Thailand, Australia and Nicaragua were asked, If you could live one year in another woman's shoes who would you choose and why? While Miss Thailand honoured Malala Yousufzai and Miss Australia chose her mother, Miss Nicaragua's unexpected answer was, I would choose Mary Watson Brad because she opened the gap and gave an opportunity to many women. I would want that gap to open up so that more women could work in any area they choose to work in because there is no area where women could not work in. Mary Wollstonecraft's contributions to feminist philosophy and the fight for women's rights have left a lasting impact not just on Miss Universe 2023 Sheynnis Palacios but also many others hence, immortalising her as 'Mother of feminism'. Born on April 27, 1759 at Spitalfields in London, United Kingdom, Wollstonecraft lived a short life as she died at the age of 38, shortly after giving birth to her daughter, Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, who later became Mary Shelley and is famous as the author of Frankenstein. Despite the brevity of her life, Wollstonecraft is popular for her contributions to feminist philosophy and the fight for women's rights as her ideas laid the foundation for modern feminism, challenged the prevailing social norms and arguments in favour of women to be afforded the same educational opportunities as men in order to enable them to contribute meaningfully to society. Her work was pioneering in its assertion of women's intellectual abilities and the need for gender equality in education and social structures as is evident in her groundbreaking work "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman" that was published in 1792. In this influential piece, Wollstonecraft argued for the equal education of women and men, asserting that women were not naturally inferior to men but appeared so only because they lacked education. The English writer, philosopher and advocate for women's rights rightly deserved a mention in today's Miss Universe 2023 finale and the room broke the roof with applause as Sheynnis Palacios used the platform to credit her as an inspiration to advocate for a future forged by women with courage to push the limits of whats possible. Having won an Oscar, two Primetime Emmys and three Golden Globes, Patricia Arquette has been acclaimed for a slew of roles from a single mother in Richard Linklater's "Boyhood," to Allison DuBois in the drama series Medium. But when the actress recently came to Berlin during the Human Rights Film Festival, it was not to celebrate another red carpet event. She was rather invited to discuss the benefits of compost toilets at the screening of the film "Holy Shit: Can Poop Save the World?" (Also read: World Toilet Day (November 19): The artists and their artsy toilets) Actress Patricia Arquette with children in Kampala, Uganda (Alisa Puga Keesey) Sanitation work is 'most punk rock thing' "I know. It's so crazy. It's like, 'Wait a minute, she's a celebrity and she does sanitation work?' It is really bizarre, but I'm punk rock, you know? And this is kind of the most punk rock thing you could do," Arquette told DW. She explained that the unusual pursuit started after the Haiti earthquake in 2010. Hoping to help rebuild the country, she set up a foundation called GiveLove. While researching for possible ways to help improve sanitation, Arquette considered traditional methods that require great quantities of water. A humanitarian aid worker warned the actor, however, that such systems would incur heavy maintenance costs, and are difficult to implement in areas without electricity. She then discovered a low maintenance and low energy solution: The compost toilet that biologically processes human waste without water. "Basically, it treats all the pathogens and then you end up with compost," explains Arquette. "And it's affordable. You can fix it in country. You can teach people how to master it, whether they can read or write or not. And so we thought it was really a great option for empowering communities." The idea worked so well in Haiti that GiveLove went on to implement other training programs in Nicaragua, Colombia, Uganda, Kenya, India and the United States in partnership with the Standing Rock Sioux Nation, where Arquette spent over a month to help build over 100 compost toilets. Compost toilets in modern housing in Germany GiveLove's work in Uganda is among the projects featured in the documentary "Holy Shit: Can Poop Save the World?" Director Ruben Abruna traveled to 16 cities on four different continents to explore the damage caused by sewage pollution, and to show how compost toilets provide an alternative that could be adopted around the world and not only in impoverished regions. The Allermohe ecological settlement in Hamburg, also featured in the film, is a pioneer in this regard. The houses in the settlement are equipped with dry toilets, which look exactly like "normal" toilets though flushing is done without water. These modern composting toilets save approximately 50 liters of water per person every day, according to the settlement's website. And the local, biological treatment of the feces is much cheaper and environmentally-friendly than having the waste sent to conventional sewage treatment plants for processing. Meanwhile, and contrary to what most people might expect, compost toilets do not stink. Outhouses from Haiti to Hollywood Aspects of Arquette's work with her foundation reminded the actress of her own experience of poverty as a child. "I grew up in a hippie commune, and at a certain point, we were seven people living in a tiny room. And we didn't have a bathroom, so we had to go to the outhouse or we had to go down to this other building that had a bathroom in it," she recalls. Today, as a Hollywood star doing humanitarian work, Arquette admits that trips to countries like Haiti have caused her to check her privilege. "At first I kind of had a little bit of a breakdown," she says, referring to the first time she returned from Haiti. As someone who could alway simply go to the bathroom and drink water, in Haiti she quickly faced a different reality as became sick when drinking water from a tap. 1,000 children die every day due to lacking sanitation To raise awareness about the global lack of access to sanitation and drinking water, the United Nations has created World Toilet Day, marked every year on November 19. According to the UN, there are currently 3.5 billion people in the world living without safe toilets. So-called "open defecation" allows diseases to spread, and an estimated 1,000 children under the age of five die every single day due to unsafe water and inadequate sanitation. And as Patricia Arquette points out, the problem can end up affecting people in privileged parts of the world, too. The state of California is currently working on a pilot project with her foundation, in order to plan for sanitation solutions for people who lose their homes in wildfires. After all, natural catastrophes are becoming more frequent and severe due to climate change. Edited by: Stuart Braun Childhood is one of the most cherished chapters in anyone's life. Each day is about a fresh adventure and filled with joy, newness, and endless possibilities. Children hold in them infinite possibilities and must be shaped carefully by parents and guardians with loads of love, creativity and responsibility. As the name suggests, World Childrens Day, observed on November 20 every year, is dedicated to these little ones who make our life beautiful every day with their innocence and zest for life. However, children's life is far from perfect and in many parts of the world, their rights are under attack. The day is to raise awareness around children rights and improving their welfare. (Also read: Childrens Day 2023: Date, history, significance, celebration of Bal Diwas in India) World Children's Day is celebrated on November 20 annually to commemorate the Declaration of the Rights of the Child by the UN General Assembly on the same day on 1959. World Children's Day is celebrated on November 20 annually to commemorate the Declaration of the Rights of the Child by the UN General Assembly on the same day on 1959. It was first established in 1954 as Universal Children's Day. Since 1990, World Children's Day also marks the anniversary of the date that the UN General Assembly adopted both the Declaration and the Convention on children's rights. The theme for this year's World Children's Day is For every child, every right On this occasion, here and wishes, images, messages and quotes to share with your little ones: The occasion of Childrens Day reminds all of us that we must always laugh like a child, and we will never be sad or depressed in life. A very Happy Childrens Day to all. Happy World Children's Day 2023 Children are the flowers from heaven. Lets make this world a safe and enjoyable place for our kids. Happy childrens day. To every child, may your dreams be as big as your imagination and may you have the courage to chase them. Wishing you a day filled with love and laughter. Wishing all the children a day as colourful and joyful as their smiles. May your journey through childhood be filled with love and warmth. World Children's Day is celebrated every November 20 Children belong in families, where they can be nurtured and loved. Let us all make sure that our actions support children from all walks of life. Happy Childrens Day! Every kid is a miracle, and each has their own special way of making our lives more wonderful. Those joys were in the past, But still the man is a child at heart. Vinod Varghese Antony Happy World Children's DAy: A day dedicated to children Children follow their own dreams, with their parents help and encouragement. They achieve balance and coherence in their quest to a shared aspiration. Happy Children's Day Srinivas Mishra Cardiac deaths due to sudden cardiac arrest and heart attack are becoming common in young as yet another such demise shocks the nation. A 37-year-old Air India pilot Captain Himanil Kumar succumbed to a sudden cardiac arrest at the airline's Gurgaon office on Thursday. The unfortunate incident serves as a reminder of the hidden dangers that cardiovascular issues can pose, even among individuals who appear to be in the prime of health. In modern times, poor lifestyle choices, stress, and insufficient physical exercise are among the reasons attributed to deteriorating cardiac health in young people. Experts say it's important for high-risk individuals to undergo screening and maintain their heart health with a set of lifestyle measures. (Also read: Can air pollution trigger heart attack?) In modern times, poor lifestyle choices, stress, and insufficient physical exercise are among the reasons attributed to deteriorating cardiac health in young people(Freepik) Shedding the light on the potential reasons behind cardiac arrests, especially in young, Dr.(CoI). Manjinder Sandhu, Principal Director- Cardiology, Max Healthcare says, "while the tragic event involving Captain Himanil Kumar is still under investigation, we must acknowledge that cardiac arrests can stem from a myriad of factors. Underlying heart conditions, genetic predispositions, lifestyle choices, and external stressors all contribute to the complex tapestry of cardiac health. Thorough medical assessments, including detailed histories and diagnostic tests, are essential to understand and address these multifaceted risk factors proactively. The medical community should emphasize continuous monitoring, particularly in high-stress professions, to detect and manage potential cardiac issues early on." The tragic incident at Delhi Airport highlights the need to prioritise cardiac health, especially in professions that demand peak physical and mental performance. "The insights gleaned from discussions on comprehensive cardiac screenings, including CT coronary angiography and calcium scoring, shed light on the vital role of early detection and intervention in managing potential risks. Simultaneously, the recognition of the multifactorial nature of cardiac events emphasizes the necessity for thorough medical assessments to identify and address underlying risk factors proactively. As the aviation industry grapples with this sobering incident, it becomes clear that a nuanced and vigilant approach to cardiovascular health is essential. Continuous monitoring, stress management programs, and routine screenings tailored to high-stress professions can collectively contribute to mitigating the risks associated with cardiac events. In the quest for aviation safety and the well-being of individuals in demanding occupations, a united effort within the medical community and the industry at large remains crucial," says Dr Sandhu. Experts also stress upon importance of cardiac screening in individuals with high-risk profiles such as pilots where there is critical need for comprehensive cardiac assessments. "In careers such as aviation that require the highest level of both cerebral and physical abilities, cardiovascular wellness is paramount. The performance of CT coronary angiography and calcium scoring plays a pivotal role in identifying potential risks early on. These screenings provide a detailed snapshot of an individual's cardiac health, enabling timely intervention and proactive risk management. High-stress professions must prioritize regular cardiac screenings to ensure the well-being of individuals who bear the weight of crucial responsibilities," says Dr. Aakaar Kapoor, CEO and Lead Medical Advisor- City X-Ray and Scan Clinic Pvt Ltd, Founder and Partner- City Imaging & Clinical Labs LLP. CT calcium scoring is increasingly included in contemporary health checkups as it offers cost-effectiveness without the need for contrast studies. Therefore, it's becoming a standard inclusion in health packages in various locations. "For individuals at higher risk due to factors like a history of diabetes, age-related hypertension, smoking, or alcohol consumption, or those showing elevated calcium scores indicating increased risk, CT coronary angiography is recommended. However, coronary angiography isn't typically conducted universally as a screening tool for all individuals; instead, it's selectively advised for those categorized as high-risk based on specific criteria," adds Dr Kapoor. Why heart attack and cardiac arrests are on rise in young "The increasing incidence of heart attack in current generation is mainly because of unhealthy food habits abdominal obesity poor sleep and increasing stress both in work and domestic related environment. This leads to the development of cholesterol blocks in the blood vessels of the heart which can rupture during physical stress leading to heart attack during or after workout in the gym. The non-coronary causes incidence remains the same compared to previous generation. But the incidence of coronary and infection related heart attacks are increasing in the current generation," says Dr Zeenath Begum, Cardiologist, Prashanth Hospital, Chennai. Causes of heart attacks in young people "Smoking, obesity (Particularly Abdominal obesity), increasing carbohydrates and trans - fat intake, lack of physical activity, poor sleeping habits, inappropriate mental stress, sleep disorders like obstructive sleep apnoea are the leading risk factors. The traditional and conventional risk factors are diabetes mellitus, systemic hypertension, high cholesterol and genetic related premature atherosclerosis disease. During the Covid pandemic the post viral infection related inflammation led to an increased incidence of blood clot related heart attacks in youngsters," adds Dr Zeenath. Earlier this month, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella made a surprise visit to OpenAIs developer conference. Microsoft has reportedly invested $13 billion in ChatGPT-maker OpenAI. Our job No. 1 is to build the best system, so that you can build the best models and then make that all available to developers, Nadella told OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, on stage at DevDay in San Francisco. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (R) greets then OpenAI CEO Sam Altman during the OpenAI DevDay event on November 6 in San Francisco, California. (AFP) After Friday's shocking decision of OpenAI to remove Altman, it was Nadella, whose Microsoft Corp. is the startups biggest backer, who has been working with investors, including Thrive Capital and Tiger Global Management, to bring back the ousted CEO, media reports claimed. News agency Reuters reported that Altman is discussing a possible return to the company even as he considers launching a new artificial intelligence venture. The Information, citing a memo sent by chief strategy officer Jason Kwon, reported that OpenAI is "optimistic" it can bring back Altman, Greg Brockman and other key employees who departed in the wake of Altman's sudden firing. "Executives will be able to share another update by mid-morning tomorrow," Kwon said in a memo to staffers, according to the report. Bloomberg reported that Nadella has been in touch with Altman and pledged to support him in whatever steps he takes next, the people said. Nadella was blindsided by the boards decision, according to people familiar with the situation. Representatives of San Francisco-based OpenAI and Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft declined to comment. Thrive and Tiger Global declined to comment. Taylor did not respond to a request for comment, Bloomberg added. CNBC reported that Microsoft boasts an exclusive licence on OpenAIs GPT-4 large language model that can generate human-like prose in response to a few words of text. Microsoft is introducing a variety of products that employ GPT-4, including an AI add-on for its Office productivity app subscriptions and an assistant in Windows 11. Mira Murati to serve as interim OpenAI CEO OpenAI's chief technology officer Mira Murati will serve as interim CEO, the company said, adding that it will conduct a formal search for a permanent CEO. "Microsoft remains committed to Mira and their team as we bring this next era of AI to our customers," a spokesperson for the software maker told Reuters on Friday. In a statement published on Microsoft's website, Nadella said: "We have a long-term agreement with OpenAI... Together, we will continue to deliver the meaningful benefits of this technology to the world." The OpenAI board has been subjected to intense criticism over its decision to remove Altman, which came as a surprise to both investors and to Altman himself. Over the years he pushed hard to change the company from a nonprofit to a commercially successful business and was the driving force behind new tools that have revolutionised the way people complete tasks from homework to coding. His ouster did not sit well with the firms that backed OpenAI. As part of the effort to reinstate the CEO, investors are also pressing for the replacement of the current board, the people said. The directors have considered stepping down, though they are currently balking at such a move, the people added. The situation is fluid and final plans have not been set. If the board steps down, investors are reviewing a list of possible new directors. One contender is Bret Taylor, the former co-CEO of Salesforce Inc, Bloomberg reported. (With inputs from agencies) Amid reports claiming that ousted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is discussing a possible return to the ChatGPT-maker company, the co-founder on Sunday morning shared a cryptic post on social media 'X'. Sam Altman, ousted CEO of OpenAI.(AFP) i love the openai team so much, Altman wrote, a day after the board fired him in a surprise move that rocked the tech world. Responding to Altman's post, former OpenAI president Greg Brockman, who said he quit the company over the former's firing on Friday, posted a heart emoji. The possibilities of a return or a restart for Altman, seen by many as the face of generative artificial intelligence, are in flux, a source told Bloomberg. OpenAI and Altman did not reply to requests for comment, the news agency reported. Investors in OpenAI, including its biggest backer Microsoft, are discussing damage control, including possibly pushing the board to restore Altman as CEO, fearing a mass exodus of talent without him, other sources said. Kholsa Ventures, an early backer of OpenAI, wants Altman back at OpenAI but "will back him in whatever he does next," the fund's founder Vinod Khosla posted on X on Saturday. Microsoft declined to comment. It reportedly owns 49% of the company, while other investors and employees control 49%, with 2% owned by OpenAI's nonprofit parent. Brockman is expected to join OpenAI any effort, according the Information reported, which earlier claimed that the possible new venture, citing a person familiar with the matter. Brockman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment. Some researchers at OpenAI, including Szymon Sidor, have quit the company over the CEO change, but it was unclear if Sidor and others would join a new Altman venture, two people familiar with the matter said. Sidor confirmed quitting. Altman and Apple's former design chief Jony Ive have been discussing building a new AI hardware device, the Information reported in September. It reported that SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son had been involved in the conversation. (With inputs from agencies) US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden donned aprons and served Thanksgiving dinners to military personnel and their families on Sunday at an early holiday meal dubbed "Friendsgiving." President Joe Biden poses for a photo as he helps serve a "friendsgiving" meal to service members.(AP) The event took place in a flag-bedecked hangar at Naval Station Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia. The Bidens participation in the gathering for friends known as "Friendsgiving" kicked off the week ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday. Biden served up portions of mashed potatoes and Jill Biden spooned out sweet potato casserole as the diners passed in front of them. The Friendsgiving event included service members and military families associated with the Dwight D. Eisenhower and the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carriers. Both vessels are deployed in the eastern Mediterranean in response to tensions from the Israel-Hamas conflict. "You literally are the spine, the sinew, the backbone of this operation," Biden said. Of the family members of those deployed abroad, he added: "You family members are the heart of this operation." Biden will conduct the traditional pardoning of the National Thanksgiving Turkey on Monday, and then leave on Tuesday for the Atlantic island of Nantucket to spend the Thursday holiday there with his family. He celebrates his 81st birthday on Monday. While in Norfolk, the Bidens kicked off an advance screening with service members and their families of Wonka, a new musical fantasy film focusing on a young Willy Wonka. The Norfolk event was part of the White Houses Joining Forces Initiative, co-hosted by the United Service Organizations (USO) and Robert Irvine Foundation. For two decades the war on terrorism preoccupied Western policymakers in the Middle East. America had to rally the world against Islamic State (IS), a force of Sunni Muslim jihadists who by 2016 governed an area the size of Britain and extolled their desire to conquer the world for the caliphate. But four years after a Western coalition recaptured the last redoubts of IS in Iraq and Syria, it is walking away from the clear-up. In north-eastern Syria tens of thousands of women and children of captured jihadists are languishing in a detention camp called al-Hol. In Iraq jihadist sympathisers, their families and displaced people who had come under the sway of IS and were held in camps recently closed have fared little better. Far from being reintegrated back into society, they could still pose a threat. Iraq is still fragile, says a Western diplomat in Baghdad. Without a sustainable return, theres an increased tendency for displaced people to be pushed back into ISs extremist narrative. The UN is handing over responsibility for them and their families to Iraqs Shia-led regime and its allied militias, who have a history of wreaking revenge on their enemies. A UN document in February said that 80% of the UNs programmes for protecting children and victims of gender-based violence were due to be closed this summer. Up to 100,000 women and children with ties to IS fighters were quarantined after the war in al-Hol. IS commanders wives are bundled together with girls forced into marriage. Countries like Britain refuse to take back their own citizens. Iraq has suspended repatriations from al-Hol. The American-backed Kurdish group that rules the area is meant to control the camp, but aid-workers speak of a free-for-all. Women loyal to IS hold sway with guns and train a new generation of believers in jihadist ideology. Killing is commonplace. Its more an IS base than a prison, says a Western researcher monitoring the place. The perimeter is punctured with tunnels through which IS infiltrates weapons. Inmates get out unvetted. While official repatriation proceeds at a snails pace, al-Hols population has fallen roughly by half, as inmates sneak away. But it still holds some 42,000 people, of whom 24,500 are reckoned to be Iraqis. Mothers fund their escape from al-Hol by selling their offspring as child soldiers to Kurdish, Sunni or Shia militiasor to IS. Kitaib Hizbullah, a Shia militia in Iraq, is said to charge $3,000 for getting a prisoner out of the camp and back across the border into Iraq. Western governments, loth to take back extremists, are washing their hands of the problem. Theyre hoping for a cholera epidemic, says a consultant with Americas defence department. On paper Iraq has the biggest return programme for those in al-Hol. In 2019 its government promised to bring back all the Iraqis who were still held there. It opened a transit camp in Iraq called Jadda 1, south of Mosul, the biggest city the caliphate had held, to serve as a pipeline for receiving people from al-Hol and putting them back into the community. But the process has ground to a halt. Jadda 1 was meant to offer three months of rehab and trauma counselling there, but aid-workers call it Iraqs Guantanamo. Inmates need security clearance and sponsors to leave it. Few meet those requirements, so many are stuck there. UN humanitarians argue with Iraqi security men over turf, funding and agendas. Aid-workers say sexual abuse by UN staff and Iraqis overseeing security clearance at Jadda 1 is rife, while claims of rape are not investigated. After weeks of requests, the UN agencies funding the process declined interviews for this article. Iraqs government has closed the camps which hosted 5m internally displaced people who had been ruled over by IS. Many have no home to go back to. Thousands of buildings were destroyed in the war to defeat IS, or have new occupants. The lucky ones who have recovered their homes are often badly discriminated against. When they go out theyre harassed by their neighbours saying, Youre Daesh [the Arabic acronym for IS], says a researcher for an American institute. Such is the stigma of affiliation to IS that those returning are often threatened with death. Some have been killed. Iraqi militias which helped recapture the territory hound them away, says a UN document, or extort bribes at checkpoints. Some 1m of them now doss down in unsupervised places such as Mosuls car parks. An estimated 430,000 lack basic documents. Iraqs authorities are reluctant to recognise marriage, birth and death certificates issued by IS. Local officials require women to disavow their IS husbands, even if they are widows, to get clearance. This all makes it hard for them to find jobs and health care, go through checkpoints, or register children at school. Some UN officials, explaining why the world body has stopped overseeing the return process, say that Iraq should take over responsibility because it is flush with oil. This year it has a budget of $150bn. But they neglect to ask whether it is likely that Iraqs Shia-led government would actually protect the Sunnis it suspects still sympathise with their genocidal foe. Most of those who lived under IS rule crave a fresh start. After IS was finally defeated at its last stand in early 2019 in the small Syrian town of Baghouz on the Euphrates, just north of its border with Iraq, its diehards headed to far-flung places such as the Sahel and Afghanistan. Still, pockets of sympathy fuelled by resentment persist. This summer IS hailed a new caliph, Abu Hafs al-Hashimi al-Quraishi. It has since staged roadside and other attacks in Syria. Were just fostering a new IS generation, says a UN observer. Getting the return process wrong could spark another nastier sort of return. 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. Former US First Lady Rosalynn Carter,(AFP) The Carter Center said she died Sunday after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a full partnership. Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to President Carter sometimes referred to her privately as co-president. Rosalynn is my best friend ... the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life, Jimmy Carter told aides during their White House years, which spanned from 1977-1981. Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Rosalynn Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicized Cabinet shakeup became known, she was forced to declare publicly, I am not running the government. Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husbands they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanor and a soft Southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her the Steel Magnolia. Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carters landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington. Jimmy Carter trusted her so much that in 1977, only months into his term, he sent her on a mission to Latin America to tell dictators he meant what he said about denying military aid and other support to violators of human rights. She also had strong feelings about the style of the Carter White House. The Carters did not serve hard liquor at public functions, though Rosalynn did permit U.S. wine. There were fewer evenings of ballroom dancing and more square dancing and picnics. Throughout her husband's political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media didn't cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticized reporters for writing only about "sexy subjects." As honorary chairwoman of the President's Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate subcommittee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying, "We've been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach." She said she developed her interest in mental health during her husband's campaigns for Georgia governor. I used to come home and say to Jimmy, 'Why are people telling me their problems?' And he said, 'Because you may be the only person they'll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them,' she explained. After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, Rosalynn Carter seemed more visibly devastated than her husband. She initially had little interest in returning to the small town of Plains, Georgia, where they both were born, married and spent most of their lives. "I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles," she wrote in her 1984 autobiography, "First Lady from Plains." But "we slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before." After leaving Washington, Jimmy and Rosalynn co-founded The Carter Center in Atlanta to continue their work. She chaired the center's annual symposium on mental health issues and raised funds for efforts to aid the mentally ill and homeless. She also wrote "Helping Yourself Help Others," about the challenges of caring for elderly or ailing relatives, and a sequel, "Helping Someone With Mental Illness." Frequently, the Carters left home on humanitarian missions, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and promoting public health and democracy across the developing world. "I get tired," she said of her travels. "But something so wonderful always happens. To go to a village where they have Guinea worm and go back a year or two later and there's no Guinea worm, I mean the people dance and sing it's so wonderful." In 2015, Jimmy Carters doctors discovered four small tumors on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she didn't know what she was going to do. I depend on him when I have questions, when I'm writing speeches, anything, I consult with him, she said. She helped Carter recover several years later when he had hip replacement surgery at age 94 and had to learn to walk again. And she was with him earlier this year when he decided after a series of hospital stays that he would forgo further medical interventions and begin end-of-life care. Jimmy Carter is the longest-lived U.S. president. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nation's first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died at age 97. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains on Aug. 18, 1927, the eldest of four children. Her father died when she was young, so she took on much of the responsibility of caring for her siblings when her mother went to work part time. She also contributed to the family income by working after school in a beauty parlor. "We were very poor and worked hard," she once said, but she kept up her studies, graduating from high school as class valedictorian. She soon fell in love with the brother of one of her best friends. Jimmy and Rosalynn had known each other all their lives it was Jimmy's mother, nurse Lillian Carter, who delivered baby Rosalynn but he left for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, when she was still in high school. After a blind date, Jimmy told his mother: "That's the girl I want to marry." They wed in 1946, shortly after his graduation from Annapolis and Rosalynn's graduation from Georgia Southwestern College. Their sons were born where Jimmy Carter was stationed: John William (Jack) in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1947; James Earl III (Chip) in Honolulu in 1950; and Donnel Jeffery (Jeff) in New London, Connecticut, in 1952. Amy was born in Plains in 1967. By then, Carter was a state senator. Navy life had provided Rosalynn her first chance to see the world. When Carter's father, James Earl Sr., died in 1953, Jimmy Carter decided, without consulting his wife, to move the family back to Plains, where he took over the family farm. She joined him there in the day-to-day operations, keeping the books and weighing fertilizer trucks. We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, Rosalynn Carter recalled with pride in a 2021 interview with The Associated Press. I knew more on paper about the business than he did. He would take my advice about things. At the height of the Carters' political power, Lillian Carter said of her daughter-in-law: She can do anything in the world with Jimmy, and she's the only one. He listens to her. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Saturday detailed the grave humanitarian crisis unfolding in northern Gaza, particularly at Al-Shifa Hospital after a joint UN humanitarian assessment team risked their lives to access the hospital and evaluate the dire situation amid the Israeli airstrikes in Hamas-controlled strip. Patients and internally displaced people are pictured at Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on November 10, 2023, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement.(AFP) The mission, coordinated with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to secure a safe route, took place amid heavy fighting in close proximity to the hospital, according to the WHO. During their one-hour mission inside the hospital, the team, which included public health experts, logistics officers and security staff from OCHA, UNDSS, UNMAS/UNOPS, UNRWA and WHO, described the situation as "desperate" and the hospital itself as a death zone. Signs of shelling and gunfire were evident. The team saw a mass grave at the entrance of the hospital and was told more than 80 people were buried there, the WHO statement said. Once the largest and most advanced referral hospital in Gaza, Al-Shifa has been crippled due to clean water, fuel, medicines, and food shortages, WHO said. The hospital, unable to admit new patients, now directs the injured and sick to the overwhelmed Indonesian Hospital. Currently, 25 health workers and 291 patients remain at Al-Shifa, including 32 critically ill babies, 2 individuals in intensive care without ventilation, and 22 dialysis patients facing compromised access to life-saving treatment, according to the UN health agency. "WHO and partners are urgently developing plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families," it said. "Over the next 2472 hours, pending guarantees of safe passage by parties to the conflict, additional missions are being arranged to urgently transport patients" to other hospitals in the south of Gaza. WHO repeated its call for an immediate ceasefire and sustained humanitarian assistance, saying options for medical care in the small coastal enclave were dwindling. The level of violence ravaging Gaza in recent days is unfathomable, the UN rights chief said Sunday, with attacks on schools harbouring displaced people and a hospital turned into a "death zone". Israel-Hamas War: An Israeli soldier walks near a mobile artillery unit.(Reuters) "The horrendous events of the past 48 hours in Gaza beggar belief," United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said in a statement. He spoke as the World Health Organization scrambled to evacuate the last remaining patients and staff from the Al-Shifa hospital, with UN officials describing the Palestinian territory's largest health facility, raided last week by Israeli troops, as a "death zone". Elsewhere in northern Gaza, a Hamas health official said more than 80 people were killed on Saturday in twin strikes on Jabalia refugee camp, including on a UN school sheltering displaced people. "The killing of so many people at schools turned shelters, hundreds fleeing for their lives from Al-Shifa Hospital, amid continuing displacement of hundreds of thousands in southern Gaza, are actions which fly in the face of the basic protections civilians must be afforded under international law," Turk said. He described the images purportedly taken in the aftermath of the reported Israeli strike on the UN-run Al-Fakhura school as "horrifying", and "clearly showing large numbers of women, children and men severely wounded or killed". - 'May constitute war crimes' - The UN rights chief pointed out that in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, the Israeli military "are dropping leaflets demanding residents go to unspecified "recognised shelters", even as strikes take place across Gaza". "Irrespective of warnings, Israel is obliged to protect civilians wherever they are", he said, pointing to the principles under international law of distinction, proportionality and precautions when carrying out attacks. "Failure to adhere to these rules may constitute war crimes," Turk said. Gaza official Turk said at least three other schools hosting displaced people had also been attacked in the past 48 hours. "The pain, dread, and fear etched on the faces of children, women and men is too much to bear," he said. "How much more violence, bloodshed and misery will it take before people come to their senses? How many more civilians will be killed? "Humanity must come first," he said, stressing the desperate need for a ceasefire "now". Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after its militants carried out unprecedented attacks inside Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking some 240 people hostage, according to Israeli officials. The army's relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, most of them civilians, including more than 5,000 children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. Vivek Ramaswamy, a Republican presidential candidate, said his Hindu faith gives him freedom and is what led him to the presidential campaign. Republican presidential candidate businessman Vivek Ramaswamy kisses his three-year-old son Karthik during the Family Leader's Thanksgiving Family Forum on Friday, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo) Opening up about his faith at 'The Family Leader' forum organised by The Daily Signal platform on Saturday, Vivek Ramaswamy, an Indian-American entrepreneur, drew parallels between the teachings of Hinduism and Christianity, sharing his intention to promote shared values for the benefit of the next generation. May faith is what gives me my freedom. My faith is what led me to this presidential campaign...I am a Hindu. I believe there is one true God. I believe god put each of us here for a purpose. My faith teaches us that we have a duty, a moral duty to realise that purpose. Those are God's instruments that work through us in different ways, but we are still equal because God resides in each of us. That's the core of my faith," Ramaswamy said. Ramaswamy also spoke about his upbringing and said he was instilled with values surrounding family, marriage, and respect for parents. Also Read: You know whats vermin? Vivek Ramaswamy's take on Donald Trump's viral remark "I grew up in a traditional household. My parents taught me family is the foundation. Respect your parents. Marriage is sacred. Abstinence before marriage is the way to go. Adultery is wrong. Marriage is between a man and a woman. Divorce is not just some preference you opt for...you get married before God and you make an oath to God and your family," he added. Drawing parallels between Hindu and Christian faiths, the Ohio-based bio-tech entrepreneur said these are the shared values of God, and he will stand for those shared values. "I went to Christian High School. What do we learn? We learnt the 10 commandments. We read the Bible. Scriptures class. God is real. There is one true God. Don't take his name in vain. Respect your parents. Don't lie. Don't steal. Don't commit adultery. What I learned at that time, is that these values are familiar to me. They don't belong to Hindus. But, they don't belong to Christians either. They belong to God actually. And I think these are the values that undergird this country," Ramaswamy said. Can I be a President who can promote Christianity across the country? I can't...I don't think that's what we should want a US President to do either...but will I stand for those shared values? Will I promote them in the examples that we set for the next generations? You are damn right, I will! Because that's my duty, Ramaswamy added. Ramaswamy also said as a president it will be his responsibility to make faith, family, hard work, patriotism, and faith cool again in the US. Who is Vivek Ramaswamy? Vivek Ramaswamy, 38, is a native of southwest Ohio. His mother was a geriatric psychiatrist and his father worked as an engineer at General Electric. His parents migrated to the US from Kerala. Ramaswamy's presidential campaign has gained attention, and he has risen in GOP primary polls, although he still trails behind Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in support. The next US presidential election is scheduled for November 5, 2024. A Hamburg man has been sentenced to 23 years to life in prison for fatally injuring a man during a robbery outside a bar in Woodlawn two years ago, Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announced. William J. Giambelluca, 34, was found guilty of second-degree murder, a Class A-I felony, and first-degree robbery, a Class B violent felony, after a five-day jury trial in August. Prosecutors said Giambelluca attacked and robbed John E. Rados Sr., 67, of Hamburg, as he left Four Aces Bar and Grill on Lake Shore Road shortly before midnight Nov. 22, 2021. Giambelluca took $60 from Rados, prosecutors noted, and used it buy heroin. According to prosecutors, Rados suffered a skull fracture when he was struck on the head with a piece of wood during the robbery, but was able to drive himself home. A daughter found Rados unconscious in his home the next morning and he was taken to Erie County Medical Center, where he died Nov. 24. An autopsy by the Erie County Medical Examiner's Office determined that he died from blunt force trauma to the head. Dale Anderson Israels government said on Sunday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen hijacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea, endangering a key global shipping route. There were no Israelis among the ships 25 crew members, it said.(Representational) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office condemned the seizure of what it said was a vessel owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese firm, without naming either of those. There were no Israelis among the ships 25 crew members, it said. The Israeli government said the ships crew members include people from Ukraine, Bulgaria, the Philippines and Mexico. Israels army said the vessel was on its way from Turkey to India at the time of the attack. Yemens Houthi rebels have threatened to strike Israel since its war against Palestinian militant group Hamas began in early October, and has launched failed missile attacks that were believed to have targeted Israel. Sundays incident marks the first big escalation in the threat posed by Houthis against global maritime shipping since the latest conflict began. Hours earlier, Houthi rebels in Yemen said they would target ships carrying the Israeli flag as well as those operated by or belonging to Israeli companies. A Houthi spokesman, posting on X, called on other countries to withdraw citizens working on Israeli vessels. The rebel group is based in Yemen, allowing it to stage attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. In January of 2022, Houthis hijacked a United Arab Emirates-flagged cargo ship carrying supplies for a Saudi Arabian hospital. Houthis are believed to be getting training, technical expertise and increasingly sophisticated weapons including drones, ballistic and cruise missiles from Iran. Netanyahus office blamed Sundays attack on the government in Tehran, which it said is endangering global shipping lanes. Iran hasnt commented on the incident. The beaches of the tiny island of Kinmen are still dotted with reminders of the PLAs first attempt to invade Taiwan. Rusted anti-landing spikes jut from the shallows. Beyond the dunes lie anti-aircraft batteries and old houses pockmarked with bullet holes. Inland, a small museum displays rifles and tanks used in the battle that would haunt the PLA for decadesand lay the ground for the present-day stand-off between China and America. On October 25th 1949 an advance force of 9,000 PLA troops attempted to land in what was meant to be a decisive strike against the Nationalist forces who had fled to Taiwan and nearby islands (including Kinmen) at the end of Chinas civil war. They reached Kinmen at high tide. But when their wooden fishing boats turned back to get more men, they were skewered by barricades in the shallows as the tide went out. A brutal battle ensued. The PLA force pushed inland but by day three, it was out of food and bullets. Almost the entire force was either killed or captured. Nearly 75 years later, China has many of the capabilities it needs to enforce its claim to Taiwan. It has missiles to pummel the islands defences and to target any forces sent by America. Chinas ships and aircraft far outnumber and outgun Taiwans. Recently the PLA has escalated operations in the area, staging mock island assaults, simulating blockades and probing air defences. Even so, the logistics of an amphibious invasion are still daunting enough to give Mr Xi pause. For years, military planners on all sides have focused on whether the PLA has enough ships and aircraft to transport an invasion force across the Taiwan Strait in time to prevail before America intervenes. Possibly, some now think, if the PLA uses ferries, cargo ships and other civilian vessels too (something it has practised recently). Sea of worries In the last 18 months, however, fresh questions have arisen as the war in Ukraine exposed unexpected flaws in Russias military logistics. In China and elsewhere, logisticians are now examining whether the PLA could provide the fuel, food, ammunition, medical services and other critical support it needs to sustain an invasion that could last weeks, if not months. This is their soft spot, says Admiral Lee Hsi-min, who until 2019 was chief of the general staff of Taiwans armed forces. If Taiwan doesnt surrender, once youve landed, you still have to fight for a period of time, maybe one week or two weeks or whatever. Where are your logistics? Your logistics support needs to come in across the Strait but ours dont have to. We fight in our own yard. The numbers involved would be staggering: One PLA study estimated that 3,000 military trains, 1m vehicles, 2,100 aircraft, and more than 8,000 ships would be needed to transport troops, equipment and supplies. Another suggested that a landing would need more than 30m tonnes of materiel. That is significantly more ships, vehicles and supplies than America and its allies used in the D-Day landings in June 1944. PLA experts have spent years analysing the D-Day landings, as well as amphibious assaults in the Korean and Falklands wars. Ukraine is less relevant in some ways, as Russia invaded mostly by land and Taiwanese forces could not be easily supplied by sea in wartime. Chinese defence experts are nonetheless scrutinising Ukrainian and Russian logistics for lessons. The deficiencies of Russian military logistics and supplies deserve our close attention especially in regard to future sea crossings and island seizures, a Chinese defence-industry journal said in October 2022. It called for bigger stockpiles of military supplies. Modern warfare consumes a staggering amount of materiel, especially in a protracted war of attritionThe side that runs out of ammunition and provisions is bound to be the loser. The quickening pace of combat operations is making it ever harder to deliver ammunition and other supplies to the front, the PLA Daily said in February. In future wars combat troops would be spread over bigger areas, making logistics even more complicated. The military mouthpiece said that current logistics transportation capabilities are not strong enough to meet the demands of modern warfare conditions. Mr Xi has been trying to upgrade PLA logistics for some time. Before 2016 each of its seven military regions controlled its own logistics, fostering inefficiency and corruption. One scalp in Mr Xis corruption crackdown was Lieutenant-General Gu Junshan, a longtime PLA logistician. When investigators raided his villa (built in the style of the Forbidden City) they seized riches including three solid-gold items: a basin, a model ship and a bust of Mao. Mr Xi replaced the military regions with five regional theatre commands, and created a Joint Logistics Support Force (JLSF) under the direct control of the Central Military Commission, which he heads. He also ordered the PLA to make better use of digital tech in managing logistics, and to work closely with the huge civilian logistics industry that serves Chinas online shoppers. Some of Chinas biggest delivery companies, including SF Express and JD Logistics, have since signed agreements with the PLA to provide services such as warehouse management and goods transportation. Some have joined exercises to practise delivering military supplies by aerial drone to remote bases during wartime. Testing positive The first big test of the new system came at the start of the covid-19 pandemic, which began in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019. That is also where the JLSF has its base. The city of 11m people was thrown into chaos when it was suddenly subjected to a severe lockdown in January 2020. But over the next two months the JLSF pulled off a major relief effort, sending in doctors, nurses, vehicles, medicine, food and protective clothing. Managing a similar feat during a war would be far harder, with command centres and supply lines under attack, front-line units competing for logistical support and civilian firms struggling to maintain operations under fire. American and Taiwanese researchers who have studied PLA logistics think they have identified some weaknesses. They include a shortage of heavy-equipment transporters, over-reliance on roads and railways (which can be easily targeted) and small numbers of logistics personnel assigned to combat units, according to Joshua Arostegui and J.R. Sessions, two Pentagon analysts. Having centralised military logistics since 2016, the PLA would also have to move much more materiel to front-line units in the run-up to an invasion, potentially tipping its hand. It is unclear if there is sufficient storage and other logistics infrastructure for that materiel in urban areas along the coast opposite Taiwan, says Chieh Chung of Taiwans National Policy Foundation think-tank. The PLA air force might struggle to sustain combat operations longer than two weeks, says Lonnie Henley, a China specialist at Americas Defence Intelligence Agency until 2019. He doubts that it has sufficient maintenance capacity, spare engines or fully trained pilots, noting that its biggest exercises usually involve about 200 sorties over five days. A major American air campaign entails 1,000 to 1,500 sorties per day over several weeks. Mr Xi and senior PLA commanders have recently acknowledged that improvements are needed. At a military-logistics conference in 2021, General Zhang Youxia, a vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, spoke of the need to address shortcomings and weaknesses. In October 2022, the defence ministry denounced peace paralysis among logistics personnel who had prioritised daily life over combat readiness. Taiwan is not the only logistical challenge. There is potential for instability on Chinas land borders, too, including the disputed frontier with India, site of deadly clashes in 2020. Our biggest challenge is versatility, says Senior Colonel Zhao Xiaozhuo of the PLA Academy of Military Science. Operating around Taiwan is not the same as in other areas, like the Tibetan plateau. And that is before one considers operations further beyond Chinas borders. The PLA has had one foreign base, in Djibouti, since 2017 and has been trying to establish others in Africa, the Middle East and the Pacific. Chinese firms operate several foreign ports that could be useful naval stopovers. But China is a long way from establishing the kind of network of substantial foreign bases that it would need to sustain major overseas operations. Mr Xis ambitions for the PLA are clear. For now, though, China remains a regional military power. And as this special report has argued, despite huge advances in many areas, it still does not have the troops, equipment, experience, command structures or logistics necessary to be confident of victory in a war over Taiwan. Back in 2013, Mr Xi said: What I think about most is this: when the party and the people need it, will our armed forces always adhere to the partys absolute leadership, can they mobilise to fight and win, and will commanders at every level be able to lead their troops in battle? A decade later, he is still looking for answers. 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi, who has been detained since his arrest last year for showing support to anti-government protests, was released on bail from Isfahan prison, Iranian human rights group Hengaw said on Sunday. An Iranian flag flutters.(Reuters) Following the death in custody of 22-year-old Iranian-Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in September 2022, Iran experienced months of nationwide protests that represented one of the fiercest challenges to the Islamic Republic since its establishment in 1979. Salehi, who wrote songs about the protests, was released late on Saturday after Iran's supreme court rejected a ruling sentencing him to six years in prison on multiple charges, including "corruption on earth". No information was made public about the conditions of Salehi's bail and his case has been sent back to a lower court. The 33-year-old rapper spent 1 year and 21 days in prison, including 252 days in solitary confinement, during which he was subject to physical injuries according to his official page on the social media website X, formerly known as Twitter. "I thought the saddest situation was being alone under the tortures of time, now I understand that being released alone (when others are still detained) is even more bitter," he said on the official X page. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appealed to Muslim states with political ties with Israel to at least cut them for "a limited time", state media reported on Sunday, weeks after he called for an Islamic oil and food embargo on Israel. Israel-Hamas War: Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei(AFP) "Some Islamic governments have condemned Israeli crimes in assemblies while some have not. This is unacceptable," Khamenei said before reiterating that the main task of Islamic governments should be to cut off Israel from energy and goods. "Islamic governments should at least cut off political ties to Israel for a limited time," Khamenei added. During a joint summit between members of the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League in Saudi Arabia's capital on Nov. 11, Muslim states did not agree to impose wide-ranging sanctions on Israel, as requested by Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi. Khamenei made his latest comments while attending an exhibition showcasing the "latest achievements" of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Aerospace Force, including the Fattah 2, a new version of what is said to be Iran's first hypersonic missile. Iran unveiled what it said was its first domestically made hypersonic ballistic missile in June, and said it could bypass the most advanced anti-ballistic missile systems of the United States and Israel. Israel-Hamas war updates: The war between Israel and Palestinian territory's Hamas rulers has entered its seventh week following Hamas' unprecedented attack on October 7 in southern Israel that killed over 1,200 people. According to the health ministry in Gaza, the death toll has now reached over 12,300 - including children, while thousands of people are missing and displaced. Amid this, Israel is aiming to secure the release of hostages held by the Hamas. Israel-Hamas War: Israeli soldiers walk at the Al Shifa hospital complex, amid their ground operation against Hamas.(Reuters) Here are the latest updates: Hundreds of people have left the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza following Israel's demand to immediately clear the hospital. According to the Hamas health ministry in Gaza, around 120 injured individuals and premature babies remained in the hospital, and they were coordinating with the Red Cross for the infants' care. On Saturday, Israeli airstrikes targeted residential buildings in southern Gaza, resulting in the deaths of at least 32 Palestinians, Reuters reported citing medical sources. Israel issued a fresh advisory to Palestinians residing in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, urging them to relocate away from potential conflict areas and move closer to humanitarian assistance. Hamas on Saturday said that it lost contact with groups assigned to guard some hostages, however, did not give a particular number of how many of the approximately 240 hostages held in Gaza were unaccounted for. An Israeli minister said Sunday the international community should not fund rebuilding of the war-devastated Gaza Strip and instead promote the "voluntary resettlement" of Palestinians from the territory around the globe. Palestinians displaced by the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip queue for water at a U.N. displacement camp (AP) Any suggestion of Palestinian dispersal is highly controversial in the Arab world as the war that led to Israel's creation 75 years ago gave rise to the exodus or forced displacement of 760,000 Palestinians, an event known as the Nakba, or "catastrophe". Gaza's Hamas-run housing ministry says more than 40 per cent of homes have been damaged or destroyed in the weeks of fighting between Gaza-based Hamas militants and Israeli forces. Israeli Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel said one "option" after the war would be "to promote the voluntary resettlement of Palestinians in Gaza, for humanitarian reasons, outside of the Strip". Writing in The Jerusalem Post, she said that "instead of funnelling money to rebuild Gaza or to the failed UNRWA, the international community can assist in the costs of resettlement, helping the people of Gaza build new lives in their new host countries". UNRWA is the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees. "Gaza has long been thought of as a problem without an answer," Gamliel wrote. "We must try something new, and we call on the international community to help make it a reality." "It could be a win-win solution: a win for those civilians of Gaza who seek a better life and a win for Israel after this devastating tragedy." Memories of catastrophe The Israel-Hamas war is in its seventh week after unprecedented October 7 Hamas attacks on southern Israel prompted retaliatory Israeli bombardments and a ground offensive in Gaza. Hamas gunmen killed around 1,200 people -- mostly civilians -- and captured around 240 more as hostages, according to Israel, when they surged over the militarised Gaza border. Israel's retaliatory military campaign in the Palestinian territory has killed 13,000 people, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas government. The Gaza Strip is mostly populated by Palestinian refugees and their descendants. UNRWA says more than 1.6 million have been displaced by the current fighting. This mass movement has evoked memories of the Nakba, and some Israeli politicians have proposed pushing Palestinians into neighbouring Egypt, an idea which Cairo rejects. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that "people should be able to stay in Gaza, their home." Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas warned Blinken that driving out Gaza's people would amount to a "second Nakba". The Oslo Accords of 1993 were meant to lead to an independent Palestinian state but Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations have been stalled since 2014. US President Joe Biden said, in an opinion piece published Saturday, that Gaza and the West Bank, which Israel occupies, should be "reunited" under a new Palestinian Authority. Israel said it was entering the next stage of the six-week-old war against Hamas as focus shifted to the south of the besieged Gaza Strip. Separately, Israeli paratroopers raided what were called the homes of senior Hamas officials in northern Gaza. Israel-Hamas War: Israeli flags flying over destroyed buildings inside the Gaza Strip.(AFP) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wouldnt say if he believed top Hamas leaders were now hiding around the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis. Well get to them, he told reporters, describing the leadership as dead men walking. About 2,500 internally displaced persons, along with patients and staff, on Saturday vacated northern Gazas Al Shifa Hospital, the focus of Israels ground offensive for the past week, a United Nations agency said. Israels army said it launched strikes against both Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah across its northern border in Lebanon early Sunday. Meanwhile, Hamas designated a terror organization by the US and European Union said it had lost contact with groups assigned to guard some of the hostages it seized on Oct. 7. At least 30 premature babies were evacuated from Gazas main hospital on Sunday and will be transferred to facilities in Egypt, the Associated Press reported, citing the territorys health ministry. A World Health Organization team that visited Al Shifa Hospital on Saturday said 32 babies were among scores of patients stranded at the hospital, where Israeli forces have been operating since last week. Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said theres been good progress in the past few days on reaching an agreement between Israel and Hamas to release hostages. Al Thani, whos also the foreign minister, said hes more confident about sealing a deal, with the remaining challenges practical and logistical. He spoke at a joint press conference with European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell. Israel, the United States and Hamas have reached a tentative agreement to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the deal. U.S. President Joe Biden, left, during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, As part of the detailed, six-page agreement, all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while "an initial 50 or more hostages are released in smaller groups every 24 hours", the Post reported. Hamas took about 240 hostages during its Oct. 7 rampage inside Israel that killed 1,200 people. The newspaper said overhead surveillance would monitor ground movement to help police the pause, which also is intended to allow in a significant amount of humanitarian aid. There was no immediate comment from the White House or the Israeli prime minister's office on the Post report. The hostage release could begin within the next several days, according to people familiar with its the agreement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday reacted to some reports of a possible hostage agreement with Palestinian terrorist group Hamas and made it clear that as of now, there has been no deal. Despite heavy international pressure against Israels war on Hamas, Netanyahu pledged to continue pressing the operation in Gaza until the terror group is overthrown and the hostages it seized are returned. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference with defence minister Yoav Gallant.(REUTERS file) Speaking during a press conference with defence minister Yoav Gallant and minister Benny Gantz, Benjamin Netanyahu said, Concerning the hostages, there are many unsubstantiated rumours, many incorrect reports. I would like to make it clear: As of now, there has been no deal. He, however, assured that when there is something to say we will report to you about it. The Israeli prime minister vowed to destroy Hamas after the militant group's October 7 rampage into Israel in which its fighters killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages. Until now in the war, we have achieved much: We have eliminated thousands of terrorists. We have eliminated senior commanders. We have destroyed administrative centres. We have destroyed tunnels and we continue. We will continue onward with full force, Netanyahu said. Thousands of family members and supporters of some 240 hostages held in Gaza streamed into Jerusalem on Saturday, castigating Israeli Netanyahu's government over his management of the war with Hamas and pleading with the government to do whatever it takes to bring their loved ones home. As public pressure mounted, Netanyahu said he was aware of the terrible suffering, the nightmare" that the families are in. I invited representatives of the families to meet with the War Cabinet later in the week in order to clarify how important this subject is to all of us to me and my colleagues here, to all of us, the prime minister said. Netanyahu also greatly appreciated "the support of the US and that it is sending constant shipments of crucial weaponry and defence equipment, while noting bipartisan support for the Jewish state in Congress. I greatly appreciate the US, under the leadership of our friend President Biden, who sees eye-to-eye the common interest with Israel. The US has sent to the Middle East aircraft carriers and support vessels, and a special submarine, and is constantly sending us vital munitions, he said. Netanyahu said Israel has attained a number of achievements during the Gaza operation due to three main reasons. "First the heroism and sacrifice of our sons and daughters. I have met with the fighting men and women from all corps sea, land and air and from all of the security services. The second thing is the unity and determination of the people. I have met with mayors from the north and south, who give, in their names and those of their residents - full backing to the IDF, the ISA, the security services and the government. They all say: 'Continue. Don't stop,' he said. And the third, according to Netanyahu, is a diplomatic Iron Dome that allows us to continue fighting until victory. I would like to tell you, citizens of Israel, after 43 days of difficult fighting, this is not self-evident, he said. Israeli military to turn south Gaza in hunt for Hamas leaders Israel said it was entering the next stage of the war, as attention turned from the rubble of Gaza City to Khan Younis in the south. Netanyahu, at the news conference, wouldnt say if he believed top Hamas leaders are hiding there. Well get to them, he said. All Hamas leaders are dead men walking. Meanwhile, a Hamas spokesperson said the group has lost contact with the fighters assigned to guard some hostages. He didnt say how many of the approximately 240 hostages held in Gaza were unaccounted for. A senior US diplomat said Hamas must free more hostages in return for a significant increase in aid to Gaza and a pause in fighting. PM Netanyahu: "I would like to open with heartfelt condolences to the families of our heroic soldiers who have fallen in the Gaza Strip. We all embrace the families with boundless love and we all salute the fallen heroes. Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m They fought for us all, to defend our home, and thanks to them our lives are assured. May their memories be blessed and may G-d avenge them Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m Today I also saw the march of the hostages' families. I would like to tell the hostages' families: We are marching with you. I am marching with you. The entire people of Israel are marching with you. Your loved ones are in our hearts and before our eyes constantly. Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m These achievements have been attained due to three main items: First the heroism and sacrifice of our sons and daughters. I have met with the fighting men and women from all corps sea, land and air and from all of the security services. Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m Thanks to the brave fighting men and women of the IDF, the ISA and the Israel Police, thanks to the soldiers and commanders of the divisions that have broken through forward into Gaza with supreme heroism, and who are unstoppable we will win. Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m The second thing is the unity and determination of the people. I have met with mayors from the north and south, who give, in their names and those of their residents - full backing to the IDF, the ISA, the security services and the government. They all say: 'Continue. Don't stop' Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m I have heard this from the evacuees, the wounded and families of our fallen heroes, who say the same things with mournful hearts but with a steadfast spirit. The Israeli spirit that beats within us all, civilians and soldiers alike, is the second condition for achieving victory. Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m And the third thing that has brought the achievement is a 'diplomatic Iron Dome' that allows us to continue fighting until victory. I would like to tell you, citizens of Israel, after 43 days of difficult fighting, this is not self-evident. Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPM 42m Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday said there was heavy international pressure against Israels war on Hamas, as he pledged to continue pressing the military campaign in Gaza until the terror group is overthrown and the hostages it seized are returned. Speaking during a lengthy press conference, Netanyahu also dismissed a lot of incorrect reports about imminent agreements to free some or all of the roughly 240 people being held, adding that as of now there is no deal. He said that if a deal emerges the Israeli public will be updated. We are marching with you, I am marching with you, all of the people of Israel are marching with you, he said, referring to the five-day march that families of the hostages undertook from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem ending Saturday, adding that he invited families of hostages to meet with the war cabinet in the coming week. The premier was later asked if he had passed up a serious deal on Tuesday for a release of some 50 hostages, and if he was insisting that all be released. Netanyahu responded that there was no deal on the table and he could not elaborate further. We want to get back all the hostages, he said. Were doing the utmost to bring back the most possible, including in stages, and we are united on this. By signing up, you agree to the terms We obviously want to bring [home] whole families together, he added later. Families of hostages held in Gaza, and their supporters, gather at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, November 18, 2023. (David Papish) As Netanyahu was set to speak, families of hostages held in Gaza and thousands of their supporters demonstrated in Tel Avivs Hostages Square in a rally focused in particular on the some 40 children believed held hostage in Gaza. To coincide with Mondays World Childrens Day, most of the speakers were relatives of the children being held by Hamas and other terrorist groups since the October 7 massacres. Many of the families of the hostages headed straight to Tel Aviv after completing a five-day march to Jerusalem earlier in the day, which culminated in a protest outside the Prime Ministers Office in Jerusalem. Late Saturday, several hundred people gathered on Jerusalems Kaplan Street, near the Knesset, for a silent rally paying homage to the some 1,200 people killed by terrorists last month and praying for the hostages. The gathering organized by Shomrim Al Habayit Hameshutaf (Safeguarding our Joint Home), which used to run protests against the governments planned judicial overhaul was quiet, without drums and bullhorns. Eitan Zur, the brother of Amir Zur, a soldier in the Sayeret Matkal unit who was killed on October 7 at Kibbutz Kfar Aza, mourned his brother, a humorous, righteous person who attended the anti-judicial overhaul rallies whenever he had a weekend off. Despite the pain and sorrow, said Zur, we need to fix our reality. The reality wont change if we dont find a new direction, he said. A silent rally held in Jerusalem to memorialize those killed by Hamas and call for the return of hostages, November 18, 2023. (Jessica Steinberg/Times of Israel) Former Jerusalem deputy mayor Tamir Nir, a Reform rabbi, recited a prayer for the hostages. Tzivya Guggenheim, a student at Shalem Center, said the Knesset and other government institutions near where the protest took place have failed in their responsibilities. Were here to make sure this generation has whats needed. I promise in the name of my generation that this country will be better. Insisting on our essential security and diplomatic interests At his press conference alongside Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and fellow war cabinet minister Benny Gantz, Netanyahu said Israel has eliminated thousands of terrorists, including senior commanders, and destroyed command posts and tunnels. Were moving forward with full force, he said. While Israel has the support of the US and others for the ongoing war, there is growing pressure against us, in the US and elsewhere, he said. In comments seemingly responding to anger within his coalition and parts of the electorate against Israel allowing two trucks of fuel into the Strip each day despite having vowed not to, Netanyahu listed all the ways Israel has ignored demands from many quarters, including pressure not to launch its ground invasion, not to go into Gaza City, and not to go into Shifa Hospital. Israel was undeterred, he said. They also pressed us to agree to a full ceasefire. We refused. And I made clear that we would only agree to a temporary ceasefire and only for the return of our hostages. He added: Together with my colleagues, I rebuff the pressure and make clear to the world: We will continue to fight until victory. Until we destroy Hamas. And until we bring our hostages home. We are insisting on our essential security and diplomatic interests in the face of heavy opposition. When our enemies and our friends recognize our firm stance, when they hear it in international media interviews, and in discussions with leaders, we obtain the necessary room for maneuver to continue the operation. This cannot be taken for granted. Netanyahu said he greatly appreciates the support of the US and that it is sending constant shipments of crucial weaponry and defense equipment, while noting bipartisan support for the Jewish state in Congress. He said Israels leadership was in daily contact with the White House, and I give US media interviews almost every day to persuade the American public of the rightness of our path. He also hailed Tuesdays unprecedentedly large pro-Israel rally in Washington, DC, which organizers said was the largest gathering of Jews in American history. He said he speaks every day with other international leaders. All this and more, he said, ensures Israel continues to receive the military support it needs from the US, and thwarts international initiatives against Israel that would endanger its ability to keep fighting. He said that allowing humanitarian aid to Gaza is crucial to continue the war against Hamas, and said without it there would be less international support for Israels military campaign. Even our best friends would be hard-pressed to maintain their support for us in the long-term and that would make it hard for us to complete the war, he said. The IDF and the Shin Bet recommended that the cabinet accept the American request to allow two fuel tankers a day to enter the southern Gaza Strip, he said, and the cabinet backed this unanimously. This is a minimal emergency quantity of fuel fuel to operate water pumps and sewage pumps, without which there would be an eruption of epidemics that would harm residents of the Strip and IDF soldiers. He noted that the IDF always follows the laws of war. Thats how our army operates, the worlds most moral army. He set out three war missions that will be fulfilled: Complete victory, to destroy Hamas. To return the hostages. And to ensure that after victory, Gaza will never again constitute a threat to Israeli citizens. I will not allow into Gaza any party that supports terrorism, pays terrorists or their families, or educates their children to murder Jews and [to seek] the destruction of Israel, he vowed, in reference to the Palestinian Authority. Without that revolution in the civilian governance of Gaza, its only a matter of time until Gaza returns to terror, and I wont agree to that. An additional condition, he said: The IDF will have complete freedom of action in Gaza against any threat. That is the only way to guarantee the demilitarization of Gaza. Operation in Gaza to soon expand Speaking after Netanyahu, Defense Minister Gallant said the IDF was continuing to hit Hamas hard in the Strip and will also operate soon in the south of Gaza. We are in the second stage of the ground invasion, also operating in the east of the Strip, he said. Hamas has been hit hard, its losing tunnels, bunkers, posts, and many of its senior commanders have been killed, Gallant added. We are reaching all of the sites sensitive to Hamas and hitting them, he said. With every passing day, there are fewer places for the Hamas terrorists to move around, he said. Those hiding out in the south of the Strip, where the IDF has yet to send in ground troops, will feel this soon, said Gallant. The defense minister said he meets with families of hostages every week and that there is no higher priority than to bring the hostages home. I think Hamas is playing with the emotions of the families and with the Israeli public, he said, adding that the war cabinet was united in its determination to bring the hostages home. He said: What happened on October 7 is worse than any other phenomenon in the world in recent decades. Thats Hamas. And Hamas only understands force. Hence the decision to go to war to destroy Hamas and get back the hostages is increasingly proving to be the right decision, he says. Hamas is solely interested in survival now, he said. IDF soldiers in the Gaza Strip in a handout photo distributed on November 18, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces) Minister Benny Gantz, a member of the war cabinet, said the military operation in Gaza will finish only when we can promise security and bring our boys and girls home. It will take as long as it takes. We are determined in this fight, he said. Gantz said he met with families of the hostages earlier Saturday, stressing that everything we are doing is aimed first and foremost at bringing our boys and girls home. In an apparent reference to Hamas, Gantz said Israel has decades if needed to destroy this thing. By contrast, We dont have decades to bring the people home So, yes, from my point of view, it is a priority to get the hostages back. But that priority doesnt override our obligation to destroy Hamas, however long it takes. I want to bring back the elderly, and the children. Nobody here wants anything else. Nobody in Israel wants anything else, said Gantz. Pro-war Russian nationalist Igor Girkin, who is in custody awaiting trial for inciting extremism, said on Sunday he wanted to run for president even though he understood the March election would be "sham" with the winner already clear. Russian President Vladimir Putin.(Reuters) Girkin, who is also known by the alias Igor Strelkov, has repeatedly said Russia faces revolution and even civil war unless President Vladimir Putin's military top brass fight the war in Ukraine more effectively. A former Federal Security Service (FSB) officer who helped Russia to annex Crimea in 2014 and then to organise pro-Russian militias in eastern Ukraine, Girkin said before his arrest that he and his supporters were entering politics. "I understand perfectly well that in the current situation in Russia, participating in the presidential campaign is like sitting down at a table to play with card sharps," Girkin said in a letter published by his account on Telegram. Girkin said that he did not think that he would be allowed to take part in the election, but hoped that his attempt to unite patriotic forces would disrupt the Kremlin's plan for a "sham election" in which "the only winner is known in advance". "This is our chance to unite in the face of external and internal threats," Girkin said in the letter post entitled "I am going to run." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview published on Friday that he hoped Putin would run in the March election for another term as president, a move that would keep Putin in power until at least 2030. Opposition politicians say Putin has built a dictatorial system since he first came to power in 1999 that mimics the institutions of democracy while preventing any true political competition or real dissent. Supporters of Putin laud him for bringing order after the chaos that accompanied the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union. They point to polls that show he has the backing of around 80% of the Russian populace. Russia has cracked down on nationalist critics, who have called for a much tougher approach to fighting the war, including martial law and a country-wide mobilisation, after the failed June mutiny by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. Prigozhin was killed in August in a plane crash, the causes of which are unclear. Girkin, who has also served in Chechnya and Moldova, was arrested in July. Girkin, a monarchist who wrote a dissertation on the "White Russians" who fought the "Red" Bolsheviks after the 1917 revolution, is one of the most prominent nationalists who has criticised Russia's execution of the war, which he casts as part of an existential battle with an arrogant West. He has called the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union "positive" but says the post-Soviet Russian elite was corrupt and working for the West to weaken Russia. Girkin said in May that despite his criticism of Putin's failings, "Putin is currently the only legitimate figure in the Russian Federation". He said in August that he would make a better president than Putin, describing the Kremlin chief as "too kind" and "too trusting" of Russia's security and military chiefs. Girkin was convicted last year in absentia by a Dutch court of murder for his role in the shooting down of Flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014 with the loss of 298 passengers and crew. He has denied he was involved. The North Tonawanda City School District has tightened protection of its computer network following an audit of its security procedures, according to a report from the State Comptrollers Office. Most of the issues that were identified during the audit were addressed immediately, School Superintendent Gregory J. Woytila wrote in response to a technology audit for time between July 1, 2022, and April 12, 2023. These enhancements will be part of the corrective action plan drafted in response to the findings. Auditors discovered 246 unnecessary user accounts that were subsequently disabled. Fifty-five of them were non-student accounts assigned to previous district employees, contractors and interns. One of them had been assigned to a substitute teacher who left in 2019. The audit also found 29 unnecessary shared user accounts that were disabled and learned that no one kept track of the accounts or had a policy to disable them. Auditors said they were told that no policy had been developed because the district had not experienced a data leak or cyberattack in more than 20 years. The audit also advised the district to develop an IT contingency plan so that employees could communicate and continue doing their jobs in case of a disruption. Dale Anderson OpenAIs biggest investors are pressing the company to reinstate Sam Altman as chief executive officer after the boards stunning decision to fire him on Friday, according to people with knowledge of the matter. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman(Getty Images via AFP) Microsoft Corp., the startups biggest backer with a more than $10 billion stake, is working with investors including Thrive Capital and Tiger Global Management to bring back Altman, said the people, who asked to remain anonymous discussing private information. As part of the effort to reinstate the CEO, investors are also pressing for the replacement of the current board, the people said. The directors have considered stepping down, though theyre currently balking at such a move, the people said. The situation is fluid and final plans have not been set. If the board steps down, investors are reviewing a list of possible new directors. One contender is Bret Taylor, the former co-CEO of Salesforce Inc. The OpenAI board has been subjected to intense criticism over its decision to remove Altman, which came as a surprise to both investors and to Altman himself. Over the years he pushed hard to change the company from a nonprofit to a commercially successful business and was the driving force behind new tools that have revolutionized the way people complete tasks from homework to coding. His ouster did not sit well with the firms that backed OpenAI. Thrive, which was expected to lead a tender offer for employee shares, has not yet wired the money and has made it clear to OpenAI that Altmans departure will affect its actions. Thrive, the largest OpenAI investor aside from Microsoft, is working to reinstate both Altman and Greg Brockman, the startups president who quit on Friday in protest. Altman is open to returning to the company, some of the people said. However, they said if he were to return, he would ask for changes in the way the company is governed. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has been in touch with Altman and pledged to support him in whatever steps he takes next, the people said. Nadella was blindsided by the boards decision, according to people familiar with the situation. Representatives of San Francisco-based OpenAI and Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft declined to comment. Thrive and Tiger Global declined to comment. Taylor did not respond to a request for comment. Several employees, including OpenAI co-founder Brockman, have departed the company in protest following Altmans ouster. The resignations are likely to continue, the people said. The other board members are OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever; Quora Inc. CEO Adam DAngelo; tech entrepreneur Tasha McCauley; and Helen Toner, director of strategy at Georgetowns Center for Security and Emerging Technology. OpenAI is optimistic it can bring back Altman, Brockman and other key employees who left, the Information reported, citing a staff memo on Saturday night from Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon. Kwon said company executives would be able to update staff by mid-morning on Sunday. If he does not return, Altman has been considering launching a new venture, possibly with former staffers of OpenAI, according to several people. In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, venture capitalist Vinod Khosla said that his firm wanted Altman back at OpenAI but will back him in whatever he does next. Forbes and the Verge earlier reported some details of the campaign to reinstate Altman. In a memo to OpenAI staff on Saturday, Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap said Altmans ousting was not made in response to malfeasance or the companys financial or safety practices. The decision to force Altman out, he said, took us all by surprise, and he has since spoken with the board to better understand its decision, according to the memo, which was viewed by Bloomberg. This was a breakdown in communication between Sam and the board, Lightcap wrote, adding that Microsoft remains fully committed as an investor. Pope Francis on Sunday renewed calls for peace in Ukraine and the Middle East during his Angelus prayer, saying it was essential to keep up efforts to stop the ongoing conflicts. Pope Francis leads the holy Mass in St. Peter's Basilica.(Reuters) "I pray for the tormented population of Ukraine ... and the people in Palestine and Israel," he told the crowds gathered in St. Peter's square, adding he had spotted some yellow and blue Ukrainian flags. "Peace is possible, good will is needed ... we must not resign ourselves because, always, always, always war is a defeat from which only weapon manufacturers profit," he said. A deal to free hostages Hamas seized in its October 7 attack on Israel now hinges on "minor" practical issues, Qatar's prime minister said Sunday, without giving details or a timeline. Israel-Hamas War: Smoke rising above buildings during an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip.(AFP) "The challenges that remain in the negotiations are very minor compared to the bigger challenges, they are more logistical, they are more practical," Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told a joint press conference with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Qatar has helped broker talks aiming to free some of the 240 hostages in return for a temporary ceasefire, a mediation effort that has so far led to the release of four hostages. "The deal is going through ups and downs from time to time throughout the last few weeks," the premier said. "I think that I'm now more confident that we are close enough to reach a deal that can bring the people safely back to their homes." Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw the 240 hostages taken. The army's relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. The United States said Saturday it was still working to secure a deal between Israel and Hamas after the Washington Post reported there was a tentative agreement to free women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a pause in fighting. Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said all parties would halt combat operations for at least five days while some hostages were to be released in batches. The White House quickly responded on Saturday evening with a message on X, formerly Twitter, to deny any major breakthrough. Thani said on Sunday it was "counterproductive to see leaks about the negotiations coming out in the media before sealing the deal". On Thursday Biden said he was "mildly hopeful" of reaching a deal to free the hostages, believed to include about 10 US citizens. Israel has so far refused to heed calls for a ceasefire before all the captives are released. The Ukrainian army said Sunday that it has pushed Russian forces back "three to eight kilometres" from the banks of Dnipro river, which if confirmed would be the first meaningful advance by Kyiv's forces months into a disappointing counteroffensive. Russia-Ukraine War: Ukrainian soldiers navigate on the Dnipro river by boat at the frontline near Kherson, Ukraine.(AP) "Preliminary figures vary from three to eight kilometres, depending on the specifics, geography and landscape design of the left bank," army spokeswoman Natalia Gumenyuk told Ukrainian television, without specifying whether Ukraine's military had complete control of the area or if the Russians had retreated. "The enemy still continues artillery fire on the right bank," she said, estimating that "several tens of thousands" of Russian troops are in the area. "We have a lot of work to do," she added. Ukrainian and Russian forces have been entrenched on opposite sides of the vast waterway in the southern Kherson region for more than a year, after Russia withdrew its troops from the western bank last November. Ukrainian forces have staged multiple attempts to cross and hold positions on the Russian-controlled side -- with officials in Kyiv finally reporting a "successful" breakthrough last week. It comes after Kyiv's much-awaited counteroffensive launched last June had largely fizzled, with Ukraine retaking just a handful of villages in the south and east. The last significant success claimed by Kyiv was the retaking in August of the village of Robotyne in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia. Ukrainian forces were not able to further pierce Russia's defensive lines. A bridgehead on the left bank of the Dnipro would allow a deeper offensive in the south, though it would require deploying more men and armour in the difficult-to-reach marshy region. AFP has not able to independently confirm the claims made by officials. Many people in 15 USA states have fallen ill due to salmonella-infected cantaloupes, according to a report by CNN. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating the matter. Cantaloupes (AP) According to the report, at least 43 people have been hospitalised. Notably, salmonella bacteria is known to cause diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps. Infections caused by the bacteria can be fatal in some cases especially among children and people with weak immune systems. Some reports say that the number of people affected by the illness may be higher than what's been reported. As per the report, similar cases have happened in Canada as well. Canadian authorities found salmonella bacteria on cantaloupes from Mexico which were genetically related to the strain that has infected people. In the wake of the matter, Malichita brand whole cantaloupes from Mexico which were sold in stores between October 16 and October 23 have been recalled. Also Vinyard brand pre-cut cantaloupe and fruit products sold in Oklahoma between October 30 and November 10 have been recalled. ALSO READ| A book is returned after more than 100 years to Saint Paul Public Library in Minnesota Health authorities have asked consumers who have possession of the recalled fruits, to throw them away. CDC has also advised people to wash and sanitise any surfaces that might have come in contact with the recalled fruits. As per the official website of CDC, symptoms usually begin 6 hours to 6 days after infection and last 4 to 7 days. As per CDC estimates, Salmonella bacteria lead to about 1.35 million infections, 26500 hospitalisations, and 420 deaths in the United States every year. Food is the source for most of these illnesses. A book was returned to Saint Paul Public Library in Minnesota after a gap of hundred years. The book named "Famous Composers Volume 2" was in good condition and also had a seal of the library on its first page. According to the library which examined the details on the check-out slip in the back of the book, it was most likely last checked out in 1919. According to the library which examined the details on the check-out slip in the back of the book, it was most likely last checked out in 1919.(X(formerly Twitter)/@stpaullibrary) On Saturday, the official account of Saint Paul Public Library shared the news on X(formerly Twitter). They also shared a picture of the book which was returned. "This week, a book that was checked out over 100 years ago was finally returned to the Saint Paul Public Library! This 1902 edition of Famous Composers vol. 2 by Nathan Haskell Dole was found by a patron in Hennepin County while sorting through their mothers belongings," they posted. "John, the Web Librarian here at SPPL, examined the bookwhich bares the original Saint Paul Public Library stamp and back pocket cardand discovered several markings that may tell us more about this books journey," they added. ALSO READ| Older Americans lost $1.1 billion in frauds including AI-generated scams in 2022 After investigation about the book, Saint Paul Public Library concluded that it had survived a fire when the library was housed in Old Market Hall which had suffered a devastating blaze. "It was added first in 1914 when the citys library was housed in Old Market Hall and the central library was still being built. Old Market Hall burned down in 1915. Virtually the entire library was destroyed, and 160,000 volumes were burned in the fire," shared the official account on X. "However, at the time of the fire nearly 1/3 of the collection was checked out to patrons, which means that this book was probably one of the lucky few that survived! It was most likely re-added to the collection in 1916 ahead of the 1917 opening of the Central Library building," they added further. Owners of a Jewellery store chain are retiring and transferring ownership of the business to their employees for free. Harvey and Maddy Rovinsky, the owners of Bernie Robbins Jewelers are passing on the baton, having dedicated more than 60 years to the business. The stores of the business are located in Philadelphia and New Jersey in the United States where they deal in diamond jewellery and products from celebrated designers. Store of Bernie Robbins Jewelers(X(formerly Twitter)) In an interaction with Fox News Digital, Harvey talked about the decision and highlighted that they needed a path for succession. "My wife and I are not kids anymore. We don't have any family in the business, and we kind of need a path for succession. You know, our runway is getting shorter and if we have a problem with one of us or both of us, then the business goes away," said Harvey. "We've been looking for a way to keep it going, to keep really great people continually employed. Many of them have been with us 30 years, 25, 20 years. So these are long-term people, they're like family," added Harvey. ALSO READ| Grotesque: Princess Diana's friend Paul Burrell calls out The Crown for depicting her death Harvey highlighted that they tried to sell the business but couldn't find any suitable buyer who they could believe about continuing their legacy. "We said, You know, this has been right in front of our faces all this time. Instead of trying to find a qualified buyer, why not give it to people that are successfully running it now," said the owner. "They understand our culture, they understand what we want. They've been doing it, they've been running it and we've been fortunate that money aspect was not a motivation. So we're going to continue the business with the people that know how to run it," explained Harvey. After the transition becomes official, Harvey would continue serving as the CEO of the business. "I'm flattered and honored that they've asked me to stay on, which I will be happy to do until I annoy them enough and they fire me," he said. Clay Shaw, a gay New Orleans businessman, left an indelible mark on the city's architectural heritage, dedicating his life to restoring historic buildings. A plaque on Governor Nichols Street pays homage to his efforts, describing him as "a patron of the humanities who lived his life with the utmost grace." US President John F. Kennedy in an undated photograph courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.(Reuters File Photo) However, Shaw's legacy took a darker turn when he became the sole person to stand trial for the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Despite professing his innocence, Shaw faced accusations orchestrated by New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison. Oliver Stone's film, JFK, depicted Shaw as a conniving figure involved in a conspiracy to kill Kennedy. Garrison's focus on Shaw's homosexuality added a controversial dimension to the trial. A memo revealed that a doctor suggested Shaw's "homosexual abnormality" as a motive. Garrison's case rested on the belief that Shaw was the elusive Clay Bertrand, a conspirator who, as it turned out, may never have existed. Investigator Louis Ivon's memo questioned Bertrand's existence, leading to doubts about the validity of the case. The trial, marked by sensationalism and lacking substantial evidence, ended with Shaw's acquittal after less than an hour of jury deliberation. Garrison's subsequent attempt to charge Shaw with perjury further strained the credibility of the case. Also Read | US National Archives releases documents related to assassination of John F. Kennedy Shaw's life took a toll as he faced financial challenges and was forced to sell his house. Fred Litwin, author of "On the Trail of Delusion," argued that Garrison ruined Shaw's life, and Shaw died before seeking justice in court. Anthony Summers, a conspiracy theorist, acknowledged the trial as a "travesty of justice." Despite a Gallup poll suggesting skepticism about Lee Harvey Oswald acting alone, the Clay Shaw trial remains a controversial chapter in American history. Old people in the United States have been targeted with scams which has cost them $1.1 billion in losses in 2022, according to a report by Fox News citing annual Senate Committee on Aging report. The report highlights that most victims have been targeted with the help of artificial intelligence technology where the voices of people familiar to them was cloned. Representational Picture(Thinkstock) The report highlights that during most prominent scams, criminals used AI technology to clone voices of victims' relatives or friends. The scammers then use the voices while asking for money from their targets, on phone calls. During the impersonation calls, they make emotional appeal for monetary help citing danger, injury etc. Senator Elizabeth Warren believes the total loss figure of $1.1 billion is an underestimate as many victims don't report such frauds due to embarassment. During a Thursday committee hearing on AI scams, committee chairman Senator Bob Casey highlighted the need of federal legislation to protect people from such AI-generated scams. "Any consumer, no matter their age, gender, or background, can fall victim to these ultra-convincing scams, and the stories we heard today from individuals across the country are heartbreaking. As a parent and grandparent, I relate to the fear and concern these victims must feel," said Casey. ALSO READ| American Jewellery store chain owners decide to give business ownership to employees for free Tahir Ekin, PhD, director of the Texas State Center for Analytics and Data Science highlighted the need to spread awareness about the modus operandi of such scammers using AI. "Prioritizing the enhancement of data and AI literacy among older Americans, and actively involving them in prevention and detection efforts, stands as a cornerstone," said Ekin. Threats from Artificial Intelligence(AI) Increased research on AI has been red flagged by many eminent experts and scientists as well. Going by the realisation of some of the technology which were earlier depicted in Hollywood movies, some experts fear that what was shown in the hit movie series "Terminator" might become possible in near future. Due to the threat, there have been increased demands to regulate the use of AI. Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown is still deciding whether he will officially enter the race to succeed outgoing Rep. Brian Higgins in New Yorks 26th Congressional District. But if voters did send him to Washington, the mayor said he would be a centrist fighter who would work to bring leftist Democrats and right-wing Republicans together to solve the countrys pressing problems. We have people that are rabid on the left, that are rabid on the right, Brown told reporters Friday after a news conference about winter storm readiness. I think we need fighters in the center to bring our country back together. Brown said he has not yet decided whether to enter the fray for the regions top political post, which Higgins is reportedly leaving to become president of Sheas Performing Arts Center. But Brown said his experience as Buffalos chief executive since 2005 has given him some experiences and abilities that are unique. My ability to bring people together. My ability to negotiate complicated problems and issues, he said. Buffalos longest-serving mayor, though, would have to compete against one of his political allies: State Sen. Timothy M. Kennedy. The South Buffalo Democrat announced last week that he is seeking to succeed Higgins, one of his early political mentors, when Higgins steps down early next year. We have to continue the renaissance thats begun and Im looking forward to continuing the progress that Congressman Higgins led the charge on for the last 19 years, Kennedy said in an interview with The Buffalo News when he announced his candidacy. Brown, 64, last week stressed that he is a close friend of Kennedys and that the 46-year-old state senator is the kind of individual that could do a great job in that position. This is not against Sen. Kennedy I would never be against Sen. Kennedy but this is looking at critical issues that are plaguing our Congress and plaguing our nation, Brown said. Something has to be done to help to pull these people back to the center and get them working for the American people. Brown is one of a handful of local Democrats who are said to be in the running for the post. Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz, fresh off his victory for a record fourth term, has not yet said whether he will seek the Erie County Democratic Committees nomination for the overwhelmingly Democratic congressional seat. Other Democrats whose names have been floated by political insiders as possible candidates include Assembly Member Patrick Burke of Orchard Park, former Grand Island Supervisor Nate McMurray, Assembly Majority Leader Crystal D. Peoples-Stokes and former congressional candidate Melodie Baker. Brown who also reportedly is among the candidates to be president of SUNY Buffalo State University would be the first person of color to represent Buffalo and Erie County in Congress. All previous occupants of the areas congressional seats have been white men, with one exception: Before she became governor, Kathy Hochul served two years representing the then-26th Congressional District, which has since been reconfigured. The late Louise Slaughters district, while based in Monroe County, also included parts of Niagara County. The current 26th Congressional District includes parts of Erie and Niagara counties. In a striking decision, a federal judge said he remains troubled by how federal prosecutors in Western New York provide defendants with evidence that could help their defense. The government seems to approach its discovery obligations by finding ways not to disclose evidence and excuses for not disclosing it sooner or at all, U.S. District Judge Lawrence Vilardo said in a July 27 decision, which he unsealed last week. That decision followed Vilardos ruling on July 6 suppressing evidence in which he questioned the federal governments discovery practices. The judges on-the-record criticism has come while presiding over a case in which prosecutors and defense attorneys have fought over evidence against accused killer and drug trafficker Lavon Parks of Niagara Falls, whose trial begins Monday. The judge disallowed some of the governments evidence, including 71,000 pages of downloaded information from Parks iPhone. He also tossed out a statement made by a now-deceased witness near the scene of where Parks allegedly shot and killed 21-year-old Kevin Turner on Jan. 21, 2018, in Niagara Falls. Vilardo also excluded the testimony of a witness who has not been identified in publicly available court filings. FBI spent years unlocking accused killer's iPhone, but judge blocks 'cornucopia' of evidence Lavon Parks, 32, and his father, James C. Parks, 58, face narcotics and firearms charges. The most serious one discharge of a firearm causing death would imprison them for at least 10 years and possibly life, if convicted. The trial for Parks and his father, James Parks, was supposed to have started last autumn, but Vilardo postponed it over his concerns the government did not promptly turn over evidence to the defense. The judge described it as a Brady violation, referring to a 1963 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that requires prosecutors to provide defendants with evidence that could aid their defense. The trial was postponed again in July when prosecutors planned to appeal his suppression order to the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals. The government did not follow through with the appeal. As for its handling of evidence in the Parks case, I dont think the government did anything intentionally wrong, Vilardo said Thursday at a hearing. He called it a misunderstanding of their obligations. To say that this court is troubled by what appears to be the governments disregard of its disclosure obligations ... is an understatement, Vilardo said in his July 6 decision, arguing that prosecutors should put themselves in the shoes of defense lawyers when it comes to evidence. Doing that might go a long way toward resolving what this court believes is a long-standing problem in the U.S. Attorneys Office, the judge added in his July 27 ruling. Despite Vilardos criticism, Lavon Parks lawyer called his suppression ruling exceedingly forgiving of the governments conduct, noting the judge gave the prosecutors with the U.S. Attorneys Office the benefit of the doubt that they did not intentionally hide the ball. In federal court, discovery should not be a game of hide-and-seek where the government only turns over information once, or if, the defense discovers it, defense lawyer Cheryl Meyers Buth said in a court filing. Acutely aware of obligations In his two decisions, Vilardo cited four other cases that he said call into question the governments discovery practices, including two cases that he said involved explicit findings that the government violated its discovery obligations. The U.S. Attorneys Office declined to comment to The Buffalo News. But the office pushed back against Vilardo a week after his July 6 ruling, filing a motion under seal asking him to amend his decision to correct and clarify the record. The office asked Vilardo to delete references to the four cases, clarify that evidence decisions he discussed in the Parks case were not made by the current prosecution team, and include an appropriate Brady standard. Picking four cases over three years does not show a pattern of evidence violations by the U.S. Attorneys Office, according to its July 13 filing, also recently unsealed. The U.S. Attorneys Office handles hundreds of criminal cases each year in its Buffalo and Rochester offices, wrote Assistant U.S. Attorney Fauzia Mattingly, who is not among the three prosecutors now prosecuting Lavon Parks and his father. As adversarial proceedings, such cases inevitably involve disagreements between prosecutors and defense attorneys and litigation regarding disclosures and the timing of those disclosures. The fact that such litigation occurs does not, by itself, support the conclusion that the United States Attorneys Office has failed to meet its disclosure obligations. The office is acutely aware of its obligations and takes them seriously, she wrote. This is not simply a mantra or empty words being repeated, Mattingly said. Disclosures by federal prosecutors in other cases helped exonerate an innocent man convicted of murders and exposed police misconduct despite the risk to federal prosecutions, she said in the court filing. Telling prosecutors to view the evidence from the defense perspective goes beyond what the law requires, according to Mattinglys court filing. Imposing such a standard would require prosecutors to look at their case through the eyes of the defendant and disclose evidence pre-trial upon the mere possibility that such evidence would or could lead to exculpatory evidence, she said. Such a heightened standard of materiality has been rejected by the Supreme Court. There is no Mike Among the evidence at issue in the case against Lavon Parks and his father are video interviews of witness Rhonda Howard, before her death in 2021, that a prosecutor formerly on the case did not disclose to the defense. The defense only later obtained the interviews when it subpoenaed the Niagara County District Attorneys homicide file and located the Niagara Falls Police Department file on a thumb drive. The interviews revealed that Howard had told a detective, among other things, that someone named Mike was present at the scene just before the shooting and that police should be looking at Mike, according to Meyers Buth. Prosecutors intend to present a case that Lavon Parks shot and killed Turner as Turner exited a residence on Niagara Street in Niagara Falls. Prosecutors say they have evidence of Lavon and James Parks driving around the Niagara Falls neighborhood in James Parks truck shortly before Turner was killed. Two crack users, who sold heroin for Lavon Parks, texted him when Turner was at their apartment building, according to prosecutors. Prosecutors called it a setup, letting Lavon Parks know when and where to find Turner. Six shots were fired as Turner walked out of the house. Since the defense obtained the Howard interviews before trial, the current prosecution team considered it a case of no harm, no foul, Meyers Buth said. At a December court proceeding, Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin Higgins told the judge the governments position is that Howards interview contained no exculpatory evidence, adding that whether Howard mentioned the name Mike does not mean that clears Lavon Parks or James Parks from the homicide. If you think that theres nothing exculpatory in the Rhonda Howard interview, all I can say is youre looking at it through prosecutorial-colored glasses, Vilardo replied. Because I read what Ms. Meyers Buth says, and I say theres stuff in there that is exculpatory. Assistant U.S. Attorney Pierre Richard Antoine told the judge that what Meyers Buth wrote in her filing was not necessarily accurate and consistent with what the recorded interview is. Video surveillance captured Howards vehicle, and we watched the video from beginning to end, Antoine said at the hearing. While Howard says that somehow Mike was in James Parks vehicle, it is not true, he said. There is no Mike, there was no Mike, there will not be a Mike, Antoine told the judge. In fact, there was no Mike in the vehicle. The four other cases Vilardo isnt the only judge to express concerns about evidence sharing. At a September 2020 hearing for a narcotics case, Chief Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford voiced the same concern as Vilardo in the Parks case that the governments search for Brady material was not exhaustive enough, Vilardo said. Wolford also presided over the case against Rochester developer Robert C. Morgan, who faced wire and bank fraud charges. Wolford found the government mishandled discovery in the case, saying that fact is self-evident and cannot be reasonably disputed. In a firearms case, U.S. District Judge Richard Arcara said he did not have enough information to decide a Brady dispute, but Vilardo said there is little doubt that Arcara was concerned about the governments view that it can avoid all its disclosure obligations. Vilardo presided over another case in which, like the Morgan case, there was an explicit finding that the government violated its discovery obligations. As to the U.S. attorneys assertion that four cases do not establish a pattern, Vilardo replied that he did not do an exhaustive search in compiling a list of cases, saying the four he cited are those that came to his mind immediately. Not citing other cases should not be read as an across-the-board endorsement of the U.S. Attorneys Offices discovery practices in all but the cited cases, he said. What the government apparently fails to appreciate is that there is a problem with the way the U.S. Attorneys Office understands and handles its discovery obligations in this district, a problem that, based on the violations and arguments made here, the U.S. Attorneys Office still has not addressed, let alone fixed, Vilardo said. Financial Aid Expansion for State Public College and University Students BOSTON Governor Maura Healey and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll announced a financial aid expansion that will benefit approximately 25,000 students attending the state's public community colleges, state universities, and the University of Massachusetts. With close to $62 million in new program funding, the MASSGrant Plus Expansion program will cover tuition, fees, books, and supply costs for Pell Grant-eligible students and reduce out-of-pocket expenses for middle-income students by up to half. Governor Healey announced the program this morning at Salem State University's campus, along with Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler, Commissioner of Higher Education Noe Ortega, and Chair of the Board of Higher Education Chris Gabrieli. They were joined by Salem State University (SSU) President John D. Keenan; SSU students, faculty and staff; local and statewide elected officials; and public higher education leaders from across the state. "For so many Massachusetts residents, higher education can be the ticket to their future career and economic stability. Our employers are looking to graduates of Massachusetts' exceptional public colleges to meet their workforce needs, and those graduates are most likely to stay in Massachusetts. But far too many people are held back from pursuing the education of their choice because of high costs," said Governor Healey. "This expansion of MASSGrant Plus will open doors for more students to access higher education, which will strengthen our economy as a whole. We're grateful to our Legislative partners for making this funding available and look forward to our continued collaboration to make Massachusetts more affordable." Not including room and board, MASSGrant Plus Expansion will cover the full cost of tuition and fees for Pell Grant-eligible students, including, for the first time, the federal government determined expected family contribution (EFC) and an additional allowance of up to $1,200 for books and supplies. Middle income students defined as those whose families earn between $73,000 and $100,000 annually in adjusted gross income -- will have their costs for tuition and mandatory instructional fees reduced by up to half of their out-of-pocket expenses. While middle-income students must be enrolled full time to qualify, the expansion will extend MASSGrant Plus financial aid to both full- and part-time Pell Grant-eligible students for the first time. The program will be retroactive to the start of the fall 2023 semester for currently enrolled students. Students who have already completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the 2023-2024 academic year will not need to take any further action to benefit from the additional financial aid dollars. Funds for the current semester will be credited to their accounts. Students who may qualify but have not filled out the FAFSA should do so immediately. MASSGrant Plus Expansion will invest approximately $61.7 million of additional state dollars into public higher education students. The funding for the MASSGrant Plus Expansion will draw on the $84 million delivered for financial aid expansion by Governor Healey and the legislature in the FY24 budget. Remaining funds will be used to support ongoing financial aid policies and to implement Massachusetts' new tuition equity law, which allows qualifying non-U.S. citizens, namely undocumented students, who have completed high school in Massachusetts to access state financial aid. This financial aid expansion announcement builds on the Healey-Driscoll administration's significant investment in higher education earlier this fall, including a $20 million investment in MassReconnect, which made community college free for Commonwealth residents ages 25 and older regardless of income. Provided Photo Ventfort Hall Awarded Funds to Repair Roofs, Chimneys LENOX, Mass. - MassDevelopment and Mass Cultural Council, two state agencies that jointly administer the Cultural Facilities Fund (CFF) recently approved a $149,000 CFF grant to the Ventfort Hall Association. Accelerating deterioration of some of the mansion's key structural elements now require immediate attention. This grant will be used for our highest priority structural restoration: rebuilding and restoring the four chimneys on the east and west sides of the roof ridge. The CFF provides capital and planning grants to nonprofit organizations, colleges and municipalities that own or operate facilities primarily focused on the arts, humanities and sciences. The Cultural Facilities Fund is funded annually through the Governors Capital Spending Plan Press Release November 18, 2023 Poe: Ensure kids' access to free meals in daycare, dev't centers Sen. Grace Poe said government's free meals should be more accessible and efficiently distributed to ensure the nutritional needs of kids in public daycare and development centers are met. Poe issued the call as she supported the Senate's proposed higher funding for the supplementary feeding program from P4 billion to P6 billion in 2024. "The funding for nutritious meals for our toddlers and kids is always worth fighting for in every budget season," Poe said. "Hopefully, with the budget, we can make the program more accessible and efficient," she added. Implemented by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the program covers children 3 to 5 years old in supervised neighborhood plays and child development centers run by local government units. The program is also a component of the DSWD's contribution to the government's Early Childhood Care and Development Program, and is in accordance with Republic Act No. 11037, also known as the "Masustansyang Pagkain para sa Batang Pilipino Act," which Poe authored. For this year, the program has 1.8 million beneficiaries. Poe stressed the need to provide assistance to children not only in their first 1,000 days but as they grow older to help in their proper physical and mental development. "It is important to have the feeding program to higher grade levels, but the brain is really developed from conception until age two, that's the critical stage," she said. "Maybe at the proper time we can evaluate again the program to see how we can strengthen it," she added. The senator said partnering with the private sector for the source of food supplies at lower costs should also be extensively explored. For a more efficient rollout of the supplemental feeding program, Poe said the DSWD should work closely with the barangay officials in charge of the daily operations. "More children are fueled for learning and development when they can count on nutritious, free meals," Poe said "There should be no letup in this initiative to provide our kids free meals, and we will make sure this is put at the fore in budget discussions," Poe added. WASHINGTON The last time Congress tried to fund the government to prevent a federal shutdown, it cost House Speaker Kevin McCarthy his job. This time, new Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., appears on track for a better outcome Tuesday as the House prepares to vote on a stopgap package to keep the government running into the new year. If approved, the Senate would act next, ahead of Friday's shutdown deadline. The new Republican leader faces the same political problem that led to McCarthy's ouster, and is unlikely to win enough support from his Republican majority to pass the bill on its own. Instead, Johnson will be forced to rely on Democrats to ensure passage to keep the federal government running. Johnson has called it a "necessary bill" that he hoped would put House Republicans "in the best position to fight" for their conservative priorities in the new year. Under his proposal, Johnson is putting forward a unique critics say bizarre two-part process that temporarily funds some federal agencies to Jan. 19 and others to Feb. 2. It's a continuing resolution, or CR, that comes without any of the deep cuts conservatives are demanding. It also fails to include President Joe Biden's request for nearly $106 billion for Ukraine, Israel, border security and other supplemental funds. "I think it's a very big mistake," said Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, a member of the hard-right Freedom Caucus. Roy said there's "a whole lot of opposition" among House Republicans to partnering with Democrats to pass the bill. The Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said his party is "carefully evaluating" the proposal from the Republican leadership before giving approval. "We remain concerned," he said about the two-part approach. Veteran lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have called it cumbersome, unusual and unworkable. But Jeffries in a letter to Democratic colleagues noted that the GOP package met the Democratic demands to keep funding at current levels without steep reductions or divisive Republican policy priorities. "We have articulated that we will not accept any extreme right-wing policy provisions in connection with funding the government," Jeffries wrote. With the House narrowly divided, Johnson cannot afford many defections from Republicans, which is forcing him into the arms of Democrats. Winning bipartisan approval of a continuing resolution is the same move that led McCarthy's hard-right flank to oust him in October, days after the Sept. 30 vote to avert a federal shutdown. For now, Johnson appears to be benefiting from a political honeymoon in one of his first big tests on the job. "Look, we're going to trust the speaker's move here," said Rep. Drew Ferguson, R-Ga. The Senate, where Democrats have a slim majority, has also signaled its willingness to accept Johnson's package ahead of Friday's deadline to fund the government. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said the House GOP package "will keep the lights on," and he will support it. But McConnell, R-Ky., noted that Congress still has work to do toward Biden's request to provide U.S. military aid for Ukraine, Israel and other needs. Senators are trying to devise a separate package to fund U.S. supplies for the overseas wars and bolster border security, but it remains a work in progress. If approved, passage of another continuing resolution would be a stunning capstone to the House GOP's first year in the majority. The Republicans have worked tirelessly to cut federal government spending only to find their own GOP colleagues are unwilling to go along with the most conservative priorities. Two of the Republican bills collapsed last week as moderates revolted. Instead, the Republicans are left funding the government essentially on autopilot at the levels that were set in bipartisan fashion at the end of 2022, when Democrats had control of Congress but two parties came together to agree on budget terms. All that could change in the new year when 1% cuts across the board to all departments would be triggered if Congress fails to agree to new budget terms and pass the traditional appropriation bills to fund the government by springtime. The 1% automatic cuts, which would take hold in April, are despised by all sides Republicans say they are not enough, Democrats say they are too steep and many lawmakers prefer to boost defense funds. But they are part of the debt deal McCarthy and Biden struck earlier this year. The idea was to push Congress to do better. ___ Associated Press writers Kevin Freking, Stephen Groves and Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report. ___ 100 highest-paying jobs in America 100 highest-paying jobs in America #100. First-line supervisors of police and detectives #99. Mechanical engineers #98. Industrial engineers #97. Makeup artists, theatrical and performance #96. Forestry and conservation science teachers, postsecondary #95. Environmental engineers #94. Marine engineers and naval architects #93. Mining and geological engineers, including mining safety engineers #92. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products #91. Physical therapists #90. Atmospheric, earth, marine, and space sciences teachers, postsecondary #89. Computer programmers #88. General and operations managers #87. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers #86. Sociologists #85. Statisticians #84. Special effects artists and animators #83. Elevator and escalator installers and repairers #82. Facilities managers #81. Bioengineers and biomedical engineers #80. Software quality assurance analysts and testers #79. Database administrators #78. Medical scientists, except epidemiologists #77. Education administrators, postsecondary #76. Materials engineers #75. Health specialties teachers, postsecondary #74. Nuclear technicians #73. Health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors #72. Education administrators, kindergarten through secondary #71. Construction managers #70. Power plant distributors and dispatchers #69. Financial risk specialists #68. Computer systems analysts #67. Veterinarians #66. Electrical engineers #65. Administrative services managers #64. Data scientists #63. Engineering teachers, postsecondary #62. Biochemists and biophysicists #61. Commercial pilots #60. Economics teachers, postsecondary #59. Materials scientists #58. Medical and health services managers #57. Art directors #56. Chemical engineers #55. Fundraising managers #54. Industrial production managers #53. Electronics engineers, except computer #52. Sales engineers #51. Law teachers, postsecondary #50. Information security analysts #49. Mathematicians #48. Economists #47. Actuaries #46. Nuclear power reactor operators #45. Training and development managers #44. Nurse midwives #43. Nurse practitioners #42. Nuclear engineers #41. Optometrists #40. Physician assistants #39. Aerospace engineers #38. Computer network architects #37. Software developers #36. Advertising and promotions managers #35. Political scientists #34. Astronomers #33. Medical dosimetrists #32. Public relations managers #31. Human resources managers #30. Sales managers #29. Compensation and benefits managers #28. Purchasing managers #27. Petroleum engineers #26. Air traffic controllers #25. Computer hardware engineers #24. Pharmacists #23. Database architects #22. Lawyers #21. Computer and information research scientists #20. Industrial-organizational psychologists #19. Financial managers #18. Marketing managers #17. Physicists #16. Natural sciences managers #15. Podiatrists #14. Judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates #13. Dentists, general #12. Architectural and engineering managers #11. Computer and information systems managers #10. Orthodontists #9. Chief executives #8. Pediatricians, general #7. Nurse anesthetists #6. Family medicine physicians #5. Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers #4. General internal medicine physicians #3. Ophthalmologists, except pediatric #2. Neurologists #1. Psychiatrists Sign up to IndyEat's free newsletter for weekly recipes, foodie features and cookbook releases Get our Now Hear This email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyEats email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Thanksgiving is only days away, and families all across America are in the midst of building their dinner menus for the feast. While youre heading to the grocery store to pick up your turkey and sweet potatoes, theres one aspect of Thanksgiving thats important to consider while planning out the big day: When will dinner be served? Over the years, Americans have opted to host their dinners at different times, with many families starting the meal at 3pm on the fourth Thursday in November. On the other hand, some people decide to eat dinner as they normally would, by hosting Thanksgiving at 6pm or 7pm. The question of when to have your Thanksgiving dinner may be tied to one major factor - that large meals can make you a bit sleepy. Theres constant discussion surrounding the star of Thanksgiving, turkey, and how it makes you tired. Turkey contains tryptophan, an amino acid in our bodies that helps make melatonin to regulate sleep schedules, according to the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Theres no arguing that eating a Thanksgiving meal full of turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes would make anyone ready for a nap. Still, the question remains as to whether the chemicals in turkey actually make us susceptible to tiredness, or whether other factors are at play in our post-meal slumber. Speaking to The Independent, professional chefs have discussed the drowsiness that comes from eating a hefty meal, and how that feeling can affect your upcoming Thanksgiving plans. According to the Cleveland Clinic, tryptophan is an essential acid thats found in food containing high levels of protein, such as chicken, eggs, cheese, and fish. Since theres tryptophan in turkey, the amino acid can affect our bodys levels of both melatonin and serotonin, neurotransmitters that control our moods. Speaking to The Independent, California-based chef Brendan Collins acknowledged that the tryptophan in turkey is an amino acid that affects our sleep schedule. However, he clarified that turkey isnt the reason for the drowsiness, and rather our eating habits on Thanksgiving could be the culprit. I think the truth is that we can end up overeating on Thanksgiving, in comparison to our normal eating schedule, and we get food comas, he explained. We need to sleep because of that. Not because of the small amount of tryptophan found in the turkey itself. (Getty Images/iStockphoto) John Carpenter - an executive chef at Signature Restaurant at La Cantera Resort and Spa in Texas - agreed that stuffing our faces with food on Thanksgiving may be more likely to blame for our tiredness. He noted that its easy to feel sleepy after a big meal and specified that a range of foods and beverages can contribute to the drowsiness, from pumpkin pie to wine. Thanksgiving dinner is quite heavy, between stuffing and large amounts of meat we eat, whether that be turkey or ham, he explained. Its also usually surrounded by friends and family, and theres some alcohol drinking usually involved, which isnt exactly known to keep us awake. With the side effects of eating a big Thanksgiving meal in mind, chefs have shared their advice on when to plan your dinner. Its important to note that the day before Thanksgiving can be relatively busy, from buying your ingredients to decorating your home. In addition to managing physical tasks, Carpenter said theres another routine he usually takes on to prepare for the holiday - changing up his eating habits. For me personally, I definitely prefer to change my eating schedule, leading up not only the day of Thanksgiving, but also a couple of days before, he said. I always eat a little bit lighter, leading up in anticipation of a big meal. And personally, I normally dont even eat breakfast on Thanksgiving because I know Im going to eat so much. The morning of Thanksgiving tends to be quite hectic, so Collins urged families to give themselves enough preparation time before dinner. He recommended giving yourself a good two and a half to three hours of cooking time, when you can prepare all your vegetables while the turkey is in the oven. So, when is the best opportunity to serve the food to your guests? Professional chefs recommend the daytime, rather than evening, as the best time to host your dinner, taking both meal preparation time and drowsiness into account. Normally for me, its early in the afternoon or early in the day, Carpenter explained. I have two children so I prefer earlier because it gives us the rest of the day for them to wind down from a big meal and all that. And then you have more time during Thanksgiving day to be with your family. (Getty Images/iStockphoto) When you decide to host your Thanksgiving dinner is entirely up to you, but Collins acknowledged that the age of your guests is another factor to consider. He noted that children are generally accustomed to having their meals earlier in the day, even though that might not be the case for adults. I think if theres a lot of children under 10 years of age, having your dinner at 2pm or 3pm would be good, Collins said. If its more towards the adult scene, then I think its more of an early dinner, late lunch kind of thing. Id personally go for 4pm or 5pm. Thanksgiving aside, studies have found that late-night dinners may not be the best idea. In a 2022 study published in peer-reviewed journal Cell Metabolism, researchers examined 16 patients who were overweight and obese as they ate the same exact meals on two schedules - one group eating as late as 9pm. Results showed that eating later had a large effect on how patients regulated their energy intake, expenditure, and storage. Since theres so many different types of food served on Thanksgiving, eating dinner on the earlier side could ultimately be better for your physical health. Personally, I know you shouldnt be eating a huge meal later at night, especially the size of a normal Thanksgiving meal, Collins added. So definitely give yourself the time for your food to settle down. Although there are various factors to consider when planning the timing of your Thanksgiving dinner, its important to remember not to let the stress of it ruin the day. Dont stress out too much about the food, Collins said. I know sometimes Thanksgiving is one of the first times youve seen friends or family in a long time. So I think the idea is that its celebratory, and make sure you do that. Buy really good wine or champagne and enjoy yourself. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A young woman found a kidney donor after she posted a funny video on TikTok about her dire health situation. University of Oklahoma student Katie Hallum was diagnosed with IgA Nephropathy, an incurable disorder, and was informed by her doctors that she needed a kidney transplant. I went into kidney failure and I had a massive seizure at the hospital and I was hospitalised for eight days, Katie Hallum told KOCO. She made light of her diagnosis by posting a clip of her dramatically entering a room along with overlaid text that read: POV: I overhear you say you have an O blood type and healthy kidneys. The clip was paired with a sound bite from Disney+s The Mandalorian, lipsynching Pedro Pascals dialogue, saying: You have something I want. She joked in the caption, Haha jk, unless? I posted a few videos kind of mocking my situation, Ms Hallum told ABC News. But it was the video with the Mandalorian audio that ended up going viral on the platform, with thousands viewing it - including a nursing school student from Topeka, Kansas named Savannah Stallbaumer, who ended up commenting, How do I get tested? At first, Ms Hallum was uncertain about the Kansas natives offer, Theres a possibility her kidney could die in me and she told me as long as it bought me a few years off of dialysis. She didnt care. She wanted to do this. Ms Stallbaumer explained to the outlet that she was eager to help someone in need, saying: Imagine I actually can, like, help this girl, and I didnt do anything about it? She ended up undergoing testing and learned that she was Hallums perfect match. Ms Stallbaumer surprised Ms Hallum in person with her family at a restaurant. The nursing school student told the outlet that it was a priority for her to tell Ms Hallum the news in person. She delivered the news by holding up a sign that read BREAKING NEWS: Youre getting a new kidney, referencing Ms Hallum's gig as a reporter for her local station. The sign also revealed that the transplant was scheduled for 17 August 2023. Ms Hallum reportedly found it humbling how the nursing school student was willing to help a stranger in need. To know that Savannah, who only knew me from the internet, was so willing to give up a part of herself, it was incredibly humbling, Hallum said to the outlet. It definitely does not feel like something life-changing has happened, even though it has. And I think theres a certain beauty to that. The radio station reporters kidney transplant went as planned in August, and her doctors are reportedly happy with the progress shes made with her recovery. Because of the experience, Ms Hallum and Ms Stallbaumer have become friends, with Ms Hallum saying that her family even invited her donor over for Christmas this year. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Firefighters in Brazil's Pantanal wetlands earlier this month celebrated the end of the fire season on Facebook, saying in a Nov. 7 post that it is a relief for everyone who lives in the region. They spoke too soon. In the first two weeks of November, fires fueled by unusually dry and hot weather destroyed nearly 770,000 hectares (1.9 million acres) of the worlds largest tropical wetlands, preliminary figures from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro show. This accounts for 65% of the damage done by fires in the region this year. Brazils National Institute for Space Research, a federal agency, detected 3,380 fires in the Pantanal in the first 17 days of November, compared to just 69 in the same period a year ago, and well beyond previous fire season records dating back to 1998. The Pantanal holds thousands of plant and animal species, including 159 mammals, and it abounds with jaguars, according to the World Wildlife Fund. During the rainy season, rivers overflow their banks, flood the land and make most of it accessible only by boat and plane. In the dry season, wildlife enthusiasts flock to see the normally furtive jaguars lounging on riverbanks, along with macaws, caimans and capybaras. Much of the Encontro das Aguas (Meeting of the Waters) park, located at the border of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul states known for its large jaguar population had turned from emerald green to dark brown. A team of Associated Press journalists on the ground spotted a large jaguar licking its paws by the river banks, lying on a bed of burnt vegetation. If this continues every year, there won't be anymore (jaguars), theyll go away, theyll find a way, like people and run to the city," said Leonisio da Silva, a 53-year-old resident of the park. "It is going to end. Jaguars in the park, which covers more than 1,000 square kilometers (over 400 square miles), are accustomed to human observation and have been a top ecotourism draw for more than 15 years. Their preservation and that of their natural habitat are essential in a region. Firefighters, troops and volunteers are working night and day to try and stop the fires, which are threatening not only the regions rich fauna and flora but also houses and touristic guesthouses. And there is little outlook for any near-term help from rainfall. This is so atypical, said Renata Libonati, who coordinates the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro's alert system for fires in the Pantanal. The fire season usually ends in October, when the air gets more humid and it begins to rain. What we're seeing is an extension of the fire season. Libonati said the heat wave that swept through much of Brazil this week, combined with the El Nino phenomenon led to higher temperatures and drier weather conditions, both favorable to fires. Firefighters and authorities in the Pantanal region are also faced with a logistical nightmare. Angelo Rabelo, president of a local environmental group that oversees a protected area of about 300,000 hectares (1,160 square miles), runs his own fire brigade, currently comprised of eight members, working alongside a small team of national forest firefighters. Access to some areas, especially the fire heads, necessarily implies ... the arrival of helicopters, he said. The state of Mato Grosso do Sul launched on Nov. 14 a joint task force, mobilizing the states entire fleet of aircraft to help firefighters, either dropping water on fires or flying out firefighters to the regions most remote locations. It also declared a state of emergency in four municipalities most affected by forest fires and where parks and protected areas were particularly at risk. The neighboring state of Mato Grosso said it had also strengthened its workforce, with about 200 federal and state firefighters on the ground. The states Secretary of Environment said it will invest an additional 6.4 million reais (1.3 million dollars) in the region. Intense fires were reported around the main accessways to the biome, or area classified according to the species that live in that location. Videos shared on social media showed a car driving down the BR-262 highway, with flames on each side, as if passing through a corridor of fire. Thick smoke emanating from the fires reduced visibility this week, with the Federal Highway Police closing the BR-262 at one point, and reports of a small private plane crashing, injuring four. Lack of visibility also hindered rescue efforts, firefighters said. Some on the ground were also growing frustrated with authorities' seemingly slow response. Enderson Barreto, a 25-year-old veterinarian in Porto Jofre, a small municipality close to the Meeting of the Waters park, said his and other colleagues' pleas for help weeks ago were left unanswered, until it was too late. We alerted several times in relation to the fires, Barreto said, adding that people told them they were being too alarmist. Greater energy should have been put out when the fires were not in such large proportions. Today it is totally out of control." When he is not rescuing animals from the fires, Barreto is helping firefighters combat the flames. He said the impacts were unmeasurable. Fires are frequent in the Pantanal and vegetation can regenerate quickly with rain. But when the fires are too intense, or attack more densely forested areas, the wildlife that survive are left stranded without habitat. This years fires, for now, are not as dramatic as those of 2020, when flames engulfed more than 3.5 million hectares of wetlands, or about 30% of the Pantanal, killing and injuring countless animals, including jaguars. From where he was standing, Barreto said, small reptiles and amphibians seem to be the main victims in this year's tragedy. They are invisible victims, but they are the base of the chain, for the balance of this ecosystem, the young veterinarian said. ___ Follow APs climate and environment coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} President Joe Biden declared it was a fact that Hamas had their headquarters, their military hidden under a hospital. Senior White House officials said that the group was operating a command-and-control node in the al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, citing US intelligence, and State Department officials referred to the hospital as being a Hamas command centre. Those statements from the Biden administration this week, in response to questions about Israels military assault of Gazas largest hospital, appeared to qualify as tacit approval from the Biden administration for an operation that has been condemned by the United Nations and aid groups as a potential war crime. Israel began what it described as a precise and targeted raid of al-Shifa hospital on Wednesday, which it has described as the beating heart of Hamas operations in northern Gaza. But after two days of searching the hospital grounds, the Israeli military has yet to produce any evidence to match those descriptions from the White House. Nor has Israel been able to prove their own claims that Hamas was operating from a sprawling underground layer beneath the hospital, which they had described in detail with maps and graphics . Videos posted by the Israeli army on Wednesday showed a relatively scant haul from their initial search of the hospital grounds. In one clip , an Israeli soldier tours a room in the hospital and shows the camera what he describes as a grab bag, containing weapons and other military equipment, behind an MRI machine. The soldier finds another bag in another location during their search. The soldier displayed a total of 14 weapons , in addition to other military equipment, following the search. The Israeli army described the room as an operational command center, where they found technological assets, along with military and combat equipment used by the Hamas terrorist organization. These weapons have absolutely no business being inside a hospital, Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesperson said, adding that he believed the material was just the tip of the iceberg as troops continued to search for traces of the militants inside and beneath the facility. On Thursday, Israels military announced they had found an operational tunnel shaft and a vehicle containing a large number of weapons, at the hospital. It also said it had recovered the body of an Israeli woman near the hospital, one of around 240 hostages taken by Hamas gunmen when they stormed into southern Israel on 7 October. But so far, Israel has not presented evidence that shows a large-scale headquarters under the hospital, although that may be forthcoming as the search of the hospital grounds continues. In the meantime, that lack of evidence has raised questions for the Biden administration. State Department spokesperson Matt Miller appeared to soften the administrations language on the matter on Thursday, when asked whether al-Shifa was a legitimate target for a military assault. We never said there were command posts in every hospital in Gaza, he told reporters. We dont want to see hospitals struck from the air. We understand that Hamas continues to use hospitals in places where they embed their fighters. When asked again if the US was certain al-Shifa hospital was a headquarters for Hamas, despite a lack of apparent evidence so far, Mr Miller responded: I saw a host of rifles in videos. Im not aware that theres a sort of acceptable threshold for assault rifles in hospitals. Thats not a general humanitarian practice. The Independent has asked the White House for comment on the al-Shifa raid. The raid on al-Shifa hospital was preceded by at least four Israeli strikes on the facility, where thousands of Gaza residents had been sheltering, according to an investigation by the New York Times. Israel had justified its attacks on al-Shifa with claims that Hamas had built an extensive network of tunnels and an underground headquarters beneath the hospital. Earlier this month, the Israeli army released what it described as an intelligence-based illustration video which showed a vast network of rooms and tunnels underneath the hospital that constituted the Hamas headquarters. John Kirby, a National Security Council spokesman, appeared to back up that assessment for a second time on Thursday, describing the intelligence as definitive, but refusing to share it publicly. We have our own intelligence that convinces us that Hamas was using al-Shifa as a command and control node, and most likely as well as a storage facility, he said. We are still convinced of the soundness of that intelligence. Mr Kirby said earlier in the week that Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad use some hospitals in the Gaza Strip, including al-Shifa, and tunnels underneath them, to conceal and to support their military operations and to hold hostages, without providing any evidence. He added, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, PIJ, members operate a command-and-control node from al-Shifa in Gaza City. They have stored weapons there and they are prepared to respond to an Israeli military operation against that facility. (Israeli Army/AFP via Getty Image) Mr Bidens comments on the facility came at a press conference on Wednesday evening alongside Chinas president, Xi Jinping. You have a circumstance where the first war crime is being committed by Hamas by having their headquarters, their military hidden under a hospital. And thats a fact. Thats whats happened, he said in response to a question about whether the raid was justified. Israel did not go in with a large number of troops, did not raid, did not rush everything down. Theyve gone in and theyve gone in with their soldiers carrying weapons or guns, he added. Hamas denied that it was using al-Shifa for military purposes in a statement on Thursday, describing them as a blatantly false narrative. The raid on al-Shifa Hospital was condemned by the United Nations. I am appalled by reports of military raids at al-Shifa hospital, the UN humanitarian agency chief, Martin Griffiths, said on X, formerly Twitter. The protection of newborns, patients, medical staff and all civilians must override all other concerns. Hospitals are not battlegrounds. The World Health Organization ( WHO ) has reported that at least 521 people, including 16 medical workers, have been killed in 137 attacks on health care in Gaza. WHO director Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that he was extremely worried for the safety of staff and patients. Protecting them is paramount. Even if health facilities are used for military purposes, the principles of distinction, precaution and proportionality always apply, he added. Dr Ahmed Makhalati, the head of al-Shifas burns unit, told The Independent on Wednesday that the Israeli army had taken over a section of the hospital complex. The soldiers are still inside the complex they seem to be moving something inside the hospital complex but I cant see properly as its too dangerous to take a look from the window. Its a gamble to move between the buildings, he said, as the sound of gunfire could be heard in the background. A wounded baby receives care at al-Shifa (Associated Press) We are running out of fuel - it will be out by the end of the day we dont have food or water. We have lost 6 newborn babies in total there are still 36 newborns here, he said. The Independent has not been able to contact Dr Makhalati since. All hospitals in Gaza have effectively been shut down since the war began after Israel cut off electricity and water and blocked deliveries of fuel, humanitarian aid and medicine from entering the territory, which is home to 2.3 million people. Israel launched a military operation in Gaza after Hamas killed more than 1,200, including hundreds of civilians, on 7 October. Israels response to that attack has killed more than 11,000 Palestinians, including more than 4,700 children. Driving to work on Sept. 11, 2001 a beautiful, late-summer morning I heard on the radio that a plane had flown into one of the World Trade Center buildings. At Westminster Presbyterian Church where I was pastor, my colleagues and I gathered at the television to hear of the unimaginable attack taking place on the nation. Two days later, we hosted an interfaith worship service led by representatives of seven religions. That Sunday, my sermon focused on building bridges with our Muslim neighbors instead of embracing a violent, indiscriminate view of Islam. Our friends at Temple Beth Zion reached out to us and the Muslim community to participate in an annual day of service. Westminster organized an annual program called Understanding Islam with the Islamic Center of the Niagara Frontier and the Muslim Public Affairs Council. Then ICNF and MPAC organized an annual community-wide walk for peace and dinner. Back then, before 9/11, our church had almost no contact with the Muslim community, but reaching out was the obvious thing to do. That the sacred texts of our three Abrahamic faith traditions urged peace-making (and condemned violence) was common ground that inspired and enabled our cooperation. As horrific and painful as that 9/11 world was and became with endless war, from the perspective of todays 10/7/23 world, it was, in many ways, more manageable. The war between Israel and Hamas and the shockwaves it has sent to every corner of the human family make those interfaith partnerships seem anachronistic. Extremism is now the norm. The inertia of retributive justice has escalated an insatiable desire for retaliation. The unspeakable brutality and violence of the Hamas attack on Israel far exceeds the terrorist acts on Israeli civilians that led to the construction of the separation barrier. Israels response in Gaza is unlike any previous IDF mission into a Palestinian territory. What makes the lessons of 9/11 hard to adhere to for Israel also makes attempts to defuse tension between Muslims and Jews in the U.S. hard to repeat. Before 10/7/23 some form of negotiated Israeli/Palestinian co-existence seemed possible. Now it seems impossible. As tempting as it is to think this war will end and loss of life on both sides will stop, neither will take place. How followers of the Abrahamic faith traditions in the U.S. respond to these events is of ultimate importance if the widening gap here, between Jews and Muslims (and Christians siding with either), is to be closed. Followers of Moses, Mohammed and Jesus who worship the same God must dig deep for empathy that seems utterly lost, yet is the foundation for peace-making our traditions share. The alternative is lukewarm religion and a lethally divided human family. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Seven inmates trapped in prison under indefinite jail terms have taken their own lives since the government refused to resentence them, The Independent can reveal. The prisons watchdog has launched investigations into a string of self-inflicted deaths amid a worrying rise in incidents among imprisonment for public protection (IPP) prisoners with campaigners warning the hopelessness associated with the controversial sentences is having tragic consequences. It comes after former justice secretary Dominic Raab refused cross-party recommendations to resentence IPP prisoners, despite the prison term a form of indeterminate sentence in which offenders are given a minimum jail term but no maximum being described as the single greatest stain on our justice system. The sentences were scrapped in 2012, but not retrospectively, leaving almost 3,000 trapped in prison with no clear hope of release nearly 700 of whom have served more than 10 years longer than the minimum term they were given. New Labour introduced the sentences in 2005 as part of new legislation to prove they were tough on crime. Anyone convicted with an IPP would have initially committed an offence that was deemed a danger to the public and subsequently committed another of 153 listed crimes, including violent and non-violent offences. After completing their minimum term tariff, inmates must then apply for release to the Parole Board and meet stringent criteria including not suffering from mental health problems to prove that they are no longer a risk to the public. David Blunkett, who has admitted he regrets introducing the measures as home secretary, told The Independent there needs to be a change in the system that gives hope to inmates. The longer they are in, the longer they are institutionalised, the more their mental health deteriorates. Its a no-brainer that we need to provide people with that hope. Shocking examples of those languishing in prison under the unjust sentence include: Wayne Bell, who was jailed for a minimum of two years for taking a bike in 2007. He is still incarcerated after more than 16 years and his family fears he will never be freed Thomas White was jailed for a minimum of two years for stealing a mobile phone in 2012, but after more than 11 years in prison, he has never been released Aaron Graham, who punched a man in a fight, was given an IPP sentence with a minimum term of two years and 124 days in 2005 but has served almost 20 years, including time spent on remand Sir Bob Neill, chair of the justice committee which urged the government to resentence all IPP prisoners, described the latest deaths as tragic and disturbing, adding it was possible some of those lives could have been saved if the government had accepted his recommendation. Donna Mooney, whose brother died by suicide in 2015 while serving an IPP sentence for stealing a car, said that without a doubt the governments rejection cost lives as prisoners gave up completely, leaving grieving families to pick up the pieces. Former justice secretary Dominic Raab rejected recommendations to resentence IPP prisoners (PA Wire) Ms Mooney, a campaigner with the United Group for Reform of IPP (Ungripp), which is supporting two of the seven recently bereaved families, told The Independent: We are victims of this sentence, having never committed a crime. Next month, it will be 11 years since IPP sentences were abolished in Britain after they were found to be fundamentally unjust by the European Court of Human Rights. Originally designed to protect the public from serious offenders whose crimes did not warrant a life sentence, they were widely overused and often imposed for low-level crimes before they were axed in 2012. The latest figures show that 2,921 IPP prisoners were still incarcerated at the end of September. Of these, 1,269 have never been released, while 1,652 have been recalled to prison after being caught out by strict 10-year licence conditions. In a justice select committee report last year, MPs said IPP sentences were irredeemably flawed and led to high levels of self-harm. Although the government accepted or partially accepted eight of the committees recommendations, it rejected three, including the key recommendation for inmates trapped under the now-defunct sentence to undergo a resentencing exercise. Donna Mooney, of Ungripp, says resentencing IPP inmates will save lives. Her brother Tommy Nicol died by suicide while serving an IPP sentence in 2015 (Donna Mooney/Ungripp) In his rejection on 9 February, Mr Raab insisted resentencing would create an unacceptable risk if prisoners were released. Sir Bob branded the decision a missed opportunity to right a wrong. An inmate died at HMP Swaleside just over two weeks later, The Independent has learned, with two further deaths the following month in Coldingley and Bristol. A prisoner died at HMP Stocken in May, while another inmate died at Bristol in July. The PPO is investigating a further two self-inflicted deaths at HMPs Dovegate and Humber last month. One family member described the situation as the biggest injustice that the country has seen since Hillsborough. Clara White, whose brother Thomas has served more than 11 years for stealing a phone, revealed he has developed schizophrenia while in jail. A psychiatric assessment found his deteriorating mental health was caused by the hopelessness of his IPP sentence. Wayne Bells mental health has also crumbled after he was jailed in 2007, aged 17, for stealing a bike. He spent several years in a secure hospital after he was found catatonic like skin and bones in his cell, before being returned to prison. We are just waiting for that call to say Wayne is gone now, his sister Alana said. Its destroyed him. Cherrie Nichols brother Aaron Graham has been in jail for almost two decades, including time on remand, after he was put under an IPP for grievous bodily harm for leaving a man with a fractured cheekbone in a fight. Cherrie told The Independent: It has robbed him of his life the chance to have a family and a career. Its robbed him of everything hes got. Bob Neill: The only solution is for the government to accept our main recommendation to resentence all such prisoners to determinate sentences and get those who can be safely released out of an already overcrowded prison system (AFP/Getty) Ms Mooney, whose brother had served six years in jail when he died despite a minimum four-year tariff, called for justice secretary Alex Chalk to intervene. She said: There is not a doubt in my mind that [resentencing] would have saved lives. Until something significant changes, I think this will keep happening. And thats horrendous because the government are just leaving people to die. She claimed that sorting the IPP issue could empty three prisons amid a prison capacity crisis. This is an extreme situation and its only going to continue like this until something is changed. These people need to be given some hope. Resentencing is the safest and fairest route. It is not opening the gates and letting everybody out. The prisons and probation ombudsman Adrian Usher warned of a worrying rise in self-inflicted IPP deaths in September. In 2022, nine people serving IPP sentences took their own lives the highest annual figure on record. With seven deaths recorded this year in the eight-month period since February, campaigners fear this year the total could be even higher. David Blunkett admits he regrets introducing IPP sentences when he was home secretary in 2005 (PA) Mr Usher said the sentences should be considered a risk factor for prisoners, noting that of 19 self-inflicted IPP deaths since 2019, only five inmates were being monitored by specialist teams for those at risk of suicide and self-harm. Responding to the latest deaths, Mr Usher told The Independent: We have continued to see self-inflicted deaths of IPP prisoners this year, and I believe more needs to be done to ensure these high levels of self-inflicted deaths do not continue. Lord Blunkett implored Mr Chalk at a recent Lords select committee to put right something I got wrong. During the meeting, Mr Chalk said he was considering curtailing the 10-year licence period to five years, but spoke of his reluctance to release inmates who might go on to commit appalling crimes. Lord Blunkett told The Independent he had been helping families whose loved ones have been on suicide watch under this sentence but admitted he is pessimistic over whether the government will give so much as a nod to Sir Bobs amendment to the Victims and Prisoners Bill. Justice secretary Alex Chalk has indicated he may reduce the license period for IPP inmates, but he is also being urged to carry out a resentencing exercise (PA Wire) Mark Day, deputy director of the Prison Reform Trust, said the hopelessness and despair associated with the IPP sentence can have tragic consequences. He added: Ministers have a responsibility to address the continued injustice faced by people on IPPs and their loved ones. Alex Chalk needs to come forward with workable proposals to help bring the sentence to a definitive end. Andrea Coomber, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, added: Each self-inflicted death of a person serving an IPP sentence is a shameful indictment of our justice system, and these figures underline the need for ministers to act decisively to end the suffering of those in prison and their families. A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said the department is carefully considering what can be done to address the plight of IPP inmates. They added: We abolished IPP sentences in 2012 and have already reduced the number of unreleased IPP prisoners by three-quarters. We are also helping those still in custody to progress towards release, including improving access to rehabilitation programmes and mental health support. While public protection will always be our priority, we are carefully considering what additional measures might be put in place. If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch. If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This 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. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} An Albanian woman who acted as a fixer for people smugglers arranging small boat crossings to the UK has been jailed for seven and a half years, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said. Ujeza Kurmekaj, 32, facilitated crossings from France for Albanian nationals before her arrest last year as part of an NCA investigation. Hundreds of messages on her phone made clear her key role in linking people smugglers with passengers, the agency said. She sent instructions to contacts in France on who they should pick up, with messages such as family one 3 women, children 14 17 12 years old and we have here one family, man wife one child. Ujeza Kurmekaj played a major role as a broker, linking migrants with people smugglers who could transport them on dangerous journeys across the Channel Andy MacGill, NCA Other conversations indicated conditions, including very bad sea, and map location pins instructing where to pick migrants up or where boats were positioned in the Channel. Further exchanges showed people making contact with her to arrange crossings for their families. Her phone also contained 21 images of Albanian ID cards and passports which, when checked on immigration systems, showed that nine of the individuals had arrived in the UK by small boat. She was arrested by NCA officers at her home in Banbury, Oxfordshire, last October before being charged in September with facilitating illegal immigration. She pleaded guilty to the charge at Oxford Crown Court earlier this month before being sentenced on Friday, and will be deported automatically on her release from prison. NCA senior investigating officer Andy MacGill said: Ujeza Kurmekaj played a major role as a broker, linking migrants with people smugglers who could transport them on dangerous journeys across the Channel. For this, she would arrange payments of hundreds of euros per person. Kurmekaj had little interest in the safety and security of the people she was arranging crossings for, only that she and her employers received payment. Disrupting and dismantling organised crime groups responsible for people smuggling is a priority for the NCA and well continue to target offenders involved at every step of the journey. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Comedian Russell Brand has been interviewed by Metropolitan Police detectives over alleged historical sex offences which were said to have taken place during the height of his fame. Scotland Yard confirmed that a man in his 40s had attended a south London police station on Thursday, where he was questioned in relation to three non-recent sexual offences. He was interviewed under caution by detectives while the investigation continues. Brand, 48, has repeatedly denied the claims and has described them as a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks. He was questioned about three non-recent sexual offences (PA) (PA Wire) According to The Times, those allegations are different from those detailed by The Sunday Times and Channel 4s Dispatches in their investigation into the BBC presenter, which saw four women allege that he had sexually assaulted them between 2006 and 2013. It included him having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old girl, raping a woman in LA and threatening a woman with legal action after sexually assaulting her in his bedroom. In September, the police said they were investigating multiple sexual offence allegations, while potential victims had also contacted forces elsewhere in the country. After the claims were published against Brand on 16 September, a woman contacted the Met to accuse the actor of sexually assaulting her in Soho in 2003. Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the inquiry, later said: We continue to encourage anyone who believes they may have been a victim of a sexual offence, no matter how long ago it was, to contact us. (PA) He added: We understand it can feel like a difficult step to take, and I want to reassure that we have a team of specialist officers available to advise and support. The BBC has also said it is investigating five complaints about his behaviour which allegedly took place while he was working as one of their presenters. In a video posted on his YouTube channel, shortly before the allegations were made public, Brand said that amid this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute. He has since suggested he is the target of a war on free speech and that there was a serious and concerted agenda taking place to silence him and his controversial platforms. A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: A man in his forties attended a police station in south London on Thursday, 16 November 2023. He was interviewed under caution by detectives in relation to three non-recent sexual offences. Enquiries continue. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Residents at a London apartment complex have shared their fears after it emerged scores of balconies are at risk of collapse. Some 77 balconies at the Weavers Quarter on the Gascoigne estate in Barking are being investigated after one of them partially collapsed onto the pavement below last week. Kinga Surowka feared someone could have been killed when parts of her upstairs neighbours balcony landed in her front yard on 11 November. The aftermath of a balcony collapse on the celebrated Gascoigne Estate in Barking, London (Kinga Surowka) I was in shock, she told The Independent. There was a metal panel just hanging off. I didnt know what else was going to fall. It fell outside the entrance to the flats. We were very lucky this happened late at night. This was a first floor balcony, imagine if it happened from the fifth floor, imagine the impact. Imagine it happened at 8.30am, kids pass by here every day to go to school. If you pass by here at 3.30pm, the streets are filled with kids. Mrs Surowka lives with two children, aged two and five, on the estate where builder Bouygues had already carried out repairs to 56 balconies since 2021. Now residents have been told that 77 balconies could require work, with scaffolding to go up at each one. Matt Lismore, leader of the Weavers Quarter Residents Association, claimed his concerns over the balconies had previously been ignored adding that this was the fourth instance of a balcony collapsing. The balcony partially collapsed and scraps of metal could be seen hanging loosely (Kinga Surowka) Pieces of metal and rotted wood were seen in pieces outside the apartment complex entrance (Kinga Surowka) His partner, Preeti Atwal, said she didnt feel safe and felt conscious using facilities such as the communal underground garage. On a previous incident, she said: A bit of the roof flew off and landed in the street. It was flapping in the wind for ages. Residents are also anxious about where liability lies, whether they will be forced to pay for any further damage and if will be able to sell their homes. Ms Atwal said: When you buy a house, you expect it to be at the quality its advertised at. You dont expect it to fall down. Tamas Sebok, a radiographer, who has lived in the development since it was built in 2019, said: I am very angry. Its purely by luck that someone hasnt been killed yet. There is no sense of urgency. Every day there are so many children playing outside in the courtyard you never know when a balcony could collapse and fall on them. The balconies are not the only problem people in this building have had problems with leaky toilets. Their floors were rotten and [theyve] had to pay to get their flooring replaced. Matt Lismore reported a balcony had partially collapsed in summer of 2021 - childrens toys can be seen on the balcony beneath (Matt Lismore) Preeti Atwal, pictured with Mr Lismore, fears she may now be imprisoned in her home (Preeti Atwal) Housing association L&Q worked with the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham to regenerate part of the then Gascoigne Estate, acting as a development manager and then leasing shared ownership flats in four buildings. L&Q does not own or manage buildings at this development but it has served noticed on Bouygues to carry out works on a number of balconies. Barking and Dagenham Council owns a number of properties at the site, managing them via its housing company, BD Reside. A council spokesperson said: On the evening of 11 November, the underside of a balconys facade on the Weavers Quarter estate in Barking collapsed. Thankfully no one was hurt. Although it did not affect the structural integrity of the building, it was a horrifying experience for the people living there and represents a risk to people who may be passing by. The council is now in discussions with Bouygues to impress on them the need to take urgent action, as its own housing company arranges works to reduce the risks, the spokesperson added. L&Q also said it was working with BD Reside and Bouygues to address current issues. Customer and quality director, Ilan Shapiro, said: We take resident safety extremely seriously. L&Q doesnt own or manage buildings at Weavers Quarter, and doesnt have maintenance responsibilities. However there are L&Q shared owners in four buildings on the estate, and we are committed to working with BD Reside and Bouygues to address these issues for all residents given our role as development manager for the scheme. In 2021, we received a report about an issue with a balcony at an L&Q residents home. This led to estate-wide investigations and Bouygues repairing 56 balconies across the estate. In August 2023, we were concerned to hear that more issues had emerged. We worked with BD Reside to carry out more inspections, and have been in discussions with Bouygues about starting a wider programme of works. We are very concerned by the recent incident. We will keep our residents updated on progress and have asked that they do not use their balconies further notice. A spokesperson for Bouygues UK said: Following the incident at Weavers Quarter Estate, where some soffit boards detached and fell from a balcony, our main concern has been ensuring residents safety. We are working hard with Reside to take immediate action, put the necessary safety measures in place and undertake appropriate remediation works. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A heartbroken family has paid tribute to their effortlessly beautiful and perfect teenage daughter who was tragically found dead in a woodland. The body of Kiera Devine, 13, was found near Tudor Grange Park in Solihull, West Midlands on 13 November. West Midlands Police said her death was not being treated as suspicious. Kieras family has paid tribute to her on social media and set up a fundraiser to help with the teenagers funeral costs. Her aunt, Olivia Merchant, said: Kiera was a beloved daughter, sister, granddaughter, niece and cousin who will be incredibly missed. A perfect girl in a world that is not so perfect. A girl who was unapologetically herself and never strayed away from who she wanted to be. She added that she was loved beyond words and will always be missed beyond measure. Two ambulances, a paramedic officer, a trauma doctor, a critical care paramedic and a community first responder attended the scene according to West Midlands Ambulance Service. Kieras body was found in the woodlands of Tudor Grange Park (Google Maps) Kiera was given emergency life support, but sadly could not be saved. A West Midlands Police spokesperson said on Tuesday: We were called just before 5pm yesterday following concerns for the welfare of a 13-year-old girl in Solihull. Tragically, a short time later the youngsters body was found in woodland near Tudor Grange Park. The death is not being treated as suspicious and the coroner has been informed. The youngsters family has been informed and our thoughts are with them at this awful time. The fundraiser, set up by Kieras mother, says Kiera was a beautiful intelligent young soul with her whole life ahead of her who will now be forever 13 due to being a victim of this cruel world. It has now raised almost 17,000 and will be used to her family through the next awful months while they await answers about Kieras death. When life is difficult, Samaritans are here day or night, 365 days a year. You can call them for free on 116 123, email them at jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The largest national park in Wales has voted to only refer to the names of more than 200 of its lakes and waterfalls in Welsh. Officials at the Eryri National Park hope to promote cultural heritage and want to standardise the names to ensure their use in future generations. This comes one year after the park changed its official name from Snowdonia last year, with Mount Snowdon being changed to Yr Wyddfa. This latest move means that several beauty spots such as Lake Australia and Bala Lake will no longer be referred to in English, and will take their Welsh names, Llyn Bochlwyd and Llyn Tegid. Another beauty spot, which is commonly known as Bearded Lake, will now be referenced in future maps and texts as Llyn Barfog. Officials at the Eryri National Park are hoping to promote cultural heritage (Getty Images/iStockphoto) On Wednesday, the National Park Authority unanimously backed the move in a vote, as Welsh activists continue to campaign for historical sites to be renamed in their native tongue. Earlier this year, the Brecon Beacons also returned to its original name Brannau Brycheiniog, despite fierce opposition. Both UK government ministers and Welsh Conservatives accused park bosses of attempting to look trendy and that the move could undermine the regions international identity. Welsh Secretary David TC Davies said: What concerns me is the fact there was no consultation and people who live and work in the national park were not given the opportunity to voice their opinion. It would be somewhat alarming if this was an entirely executive decision. It has since emerged that Caerphilly and Barry could revert to their native names, as language campaigners push for Welsh names for Welsh places. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Tesco has issued a warning to customers to spend their Clubcard vouchers before they expire at the end of the month. More than 20 million people in the UK hold a Tesco Clubcard, which allows shoppers to receive discounts on selected items as well as rack up points they can redeem later as vouchers for use in-store. But while they are racking up points, many are forgetting to use them before they expire. Tesco customers have now been reminded to spend more than 16m worth of Clubcard vouchers before they expire at the end of November. The vouchers, which were first issued in November 2021, will expire on 30 November 2023 and could instead be used to help out at a tough time of year for family budgets. Emma Botton, Tesco Group Customer Director, said: We want to help customers household budgets stretch further right now and Clubcard is the best way to get great value with Tesco. With more than 16m worth of Clubcard vouchers due to expire at the end of November, were reminding customers to spend them now or even use them to get ahead with some early Christmas shopping. Last December, Tesco announced that it was revising its Clubcard scheme to give out coupons to loyal shoppers more often. Tesco Clubcard vouchers are issued every three months in February, May, August and November. The shop said that more than 100 million worth of new ones are set to be issued from October 30 - the highest amount issued at one time since 2015. Customers can use their Clubcard vouchers on their weekly shop or fuel, treat themselves or use them towards 100 reward partners, including Pizza Express and Spa Seekers. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Irish premier Leo Varadkar has said there is double standards from the EU and some Western powers in relation to Israel and Palestine. The Taoiseach said the stance of some Western countries in response to the Israel-Hamas war had undermined the fight to garner support for Ukraine as it battles against the ongoing Russian invasion. He said that neither Shannon Airport, nor any other Irish airport, was being used by the US military to support Israel. No. You have to receive express permission to bring munitions through any airport in Ireland and they have to be signed off on by the Department of Transport and the Minister for Transport, and thats not happening, the Taoiseach told RTE. Mr Varadkar said he believed the Irish Government was matching our words when it came to its stance on Israel and Palestine, and that other countries had taken a double standards approach but Ireland had not. One of the concerns I have is that the double standards that are being applied by some countries in the West is actually undermining the fight in Ukraine Leo Varadkar I dont think thats true in relation to Ireland, he told The Week in Politics. If theyre saying that in relation to the European Union and some Western powers, I think theyre correct and I made that point at the peace conference in Paris, that there cant be double standards when it comes to the conflict in Ukraine. That when it comes to international humanitarian law, it has to apply across the board. One of the concerns I have is that the double standards that are being applied by some countries in the West is actually undermining the fight in Ukraine. Because one of the things that Ive been working very hard on, and European leaders have been working very hard on, is to gain support for Ukraine across the global south from Africa, from Latin America, from Asia saying to them that whats happening in Ukraine is a war of aggression, its an imperialist war. Unfortunately, some of the double standards that weve seen from a lot of Western powers has undermined that fight. The Taoiseach was speaking after thousands of pro-Palestine protesters marched through Dublin city and carried out a sit-in outside the Department of Foreign Affairs. The Government has confirmed that 50 Irish citizens and their dependants have fled Gaza in recent days as part of international efforts to evacuate people with foreign passports. Some Irish citizens from Gaza arrived from Cairo at Dublin Airport this weekend. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} People living near planned pylons and electricity substations are set to receive up to 10,000 off their bills over a decade under proposals being announced by Jeremy Hunt. The chancellor will use Wednesdays autumn statement to set out the discounts in a bid to end delays to infrastructure projects over objections by so-called nimby campaigners. But fuel poverty campaigners warned Mr Hunt that the 1,000-a-year subsidy would help many wealthy Britons in the countryside while others face a dire choice between heating or eating. Jonathan Bean, of Fuel Poverty Action, said slashing bills in areas with anti-energy project campaigns was an ill-conceived government policy, creating a huge postcode lottery when it came to gas and electricity bills. This would mean unaffordable pricing remains for most, whilst a lucky few pay half, the campaigner told The Independent noting that current average bills are around 2,000 a year. Its so untargeted theres no attempt to address poverty, said Mr Bean. Its pretty crazy that some wealthy people in huge homes in the countryside could get a big discount, when were seeing some people forced to turn off their heating or forced to go to food banks. Rishi Sunaks energy networks commissioner recently recommended that residents should get generous compensation if they agree to new power lines near their homes. Wind farms and solar farms face lengthy delays in connecting to power networks because of Britains ailing grid infrastructure but not in my backyard campaigners are increasingly active in pushing against any new pylons in their area. Former environment secretary Therese Coffey is among the senior Tories to have lobbied against a new high-voltage transmission line running from Norwich to Tilbury in Essex. Nimby campaigns are opposed to new pylons needed to boost energy supplies (Getty) The Treasury declined to say who would be paying for the planned discount on energy bills, or how it could amount to 10,000 per household over a decade. Matt Copeland, head of policy at the National Energy Action campaign to eradicate fuel poverty, said the compensation was not a substitute for the UK government supporting vulnerable people with their sky-high energy bills. He added: Millions of households will be cold at home this winter if no further support is announced in the autumn statement this week. Fuel poverty campaigners have called for a social tariff that would see cheaper bills for those on low incomes, more action to stop the forced use of prepayment meters, and an end to standing charges used by energy firms to recover the costs of providing services. Responding to the idea of discounts in areas where there is planning opposition, shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones said the Tories were out of ideas and now looking to Labour for the solutions. Sir Keir Starmers party has already promised that residents who agree to new, local renewable energy projects will get cost-of-living discounts. The Liberal Democrats were more critical of the plan. The partys Treasury spokeswoman Sarah Olney said the scheme would create a postcode lottery system leaving millions of families still facing higher energy bills while others benefit. Mike Childs, head of science and policy at Friends of the Earth, said that if offering financial incentives to communities can speed up connecting green energy projects to the grid then it will be money well spent. But he warned that it wont be enough to boost green energy projects. One of the biggest blockers to ramping up our production of homegrown renewable energy is the governments unfair planning rules, which amount to a de-facto ban on onshore wind in England. Rishi Sunaks government is trying to get Elon Musk to set up a Tesla factory in the UK (Reuters) Mr Sunaks move on bills will come alongside plans to halve the time it takes to deliver new electricity networks to seven years, and a prioritisation of the rollout of electric vehicle charging points. Officials argued the reforms are part of plans to boost economic growth and to help the UK hit net zero, after Mr Sunak faced criticism for watering down climate plans. A new premium planning service across England would aim to speed up pre-application services for major projects in exchange for a fee and refunds when not met. A Treasury source with knowledge of the plans argued that expanding the power grid would unlock global investment for Britain and bring improvements for people across the country, with energy security that will keep energy costs down. The plan to boost the electric vehicle industry with more charging points comes after Mr Hunt revealed he had spoken to Elon Musk about getting a Tesla factory in the UK. Recommended Jeremy Hunt signals he will cut taxes in budget amid criticism it jars with planned benefits squeeze Meanwhile, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves will on Sunday unveil Labours better off plan to cut household bills by up to 3,000 a year. Over a decade, Labour pledged to drive down bills by insulating homes, generating cheaper energy, cracking down on unfair insurance practices and driving up housebuilding. Ms Reeves said: The economy is not working for working people. After 13 years of economic failure, families are worse off, with higher taxes, higher mortgage payments and prices still rising in the shops. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Suella Braverman has described her sacking as a bit odd as she criticised Rishi Sunak for showing a lack of moral leadership over the past four weeks. In her first interview since being asked to leave government, the former home secretary said Mr Sunak would have to take responsibility for the consequences, with her departure leading to a widening rift between the right and centre of the party. She also spoke about her sacking last week, which came after she wrote an article for The Times accusing the police of double standards for giving the go-ahead for a pro-Palestine march on Armistice Day. Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, she claimed Downing Street had agreed she should write the article, and had seen a draft. But as reported by The Independent, Mr Sunaks official spokesperson claimed No 10 did not approve the final text. It was a bit odd because on the Wednesday we had agreement with No 10 that I should write an article for The Times. We had put a draft together and exchanged versions with the team at No 10 so I find it all very confusing, Ms Braverman said. On the one hand they gave us permission and then the reason that he cited in the call was that he wasnt happy with the op-ed [opinion article] in The Times. She revealed that the prime minister had phoned to sack her as she was making her way into parliament at breakfast time on Monday, and that he had informed her the op ed wasnt the right thing to do. Ms Bravermans article sparked a furious outcry after she accused Scotland Yard of playing favourites over the Pro-Palestine rally. While Mr Sunaks spokesperson at the time said he retained full confidence in her, they confirmed that No 10 did not approve the final text. Braverman has since launched a scathing attack on the PM (PA Wire) Ms Braverman doubled down on her attack on the Metropolitan Police in her interview claiming a soft touch was being taken towards pro-Palestinian marches by Scotland Yard. She also said Met chiefs got it wrong by failing to crack down on jihad chants. I subsequently received legal advice from many senior lawyers who made it clear that chanting jihad in that particular context did constitute an arrestable offence. So, in my view they got it wrong. Calling for new laws, she said that the pro-Palestinian marches had been threatening community cohesion and undermining British values. There had been tepid and timid statements from the prime minister throughout the course of this issue and I felt there was a real opportunity for the prime minister to demonstrate some moral leadership, she said. I felt that was wholly lacking. Warning of a bleak electoral outlook if Mr Sunak failed to change direction, Ms Braverman also reiterated her calls for the UK to leave the straitjacket of human rights laws which have prevented the governments plan to send migrants to Rwanda from succeeding in the Supreme Court. Ms Braverman said she was very glad Mr Sunak had promised to bring in emergency legislation But this needs to be meaningful change in the law and tweaking and finetuning is not going to cut it ... and we will not get flights off before the next general election, she warned. The ex-home secretary added: We need to exclude elements of the Human Rights framework, whether thats the ECHR [European Convention on Human Rights], the Human Rights Act or other international laws which have so far thwarted our ability to control our borders. The former cabinet minister also said that she has got a copy of a pact she alleges she signed with Mr Sunak in exchange for her support for him to become PM last October. But she said she was not releasing it yet. The day after being sacked, Ms Braverman launched a scathing attack on the prime minister, accusing him of breaking secret promises. She also stated that he had resorted to wishful thinking in approaching the Rwanda plan, and she had been repeatedly ignored. After the publication of her letter, No 10 said it would not respond to individual accusations, but a spokesperson said: The prime minister believes in actions not words ... And whatever the outcome of the Supreme Court, he will continue that work. It was one of those mild November days, typical of Washington autumns, the temperature pushing 70. Because I worked nights, I was trying to nap between picking up the 3-year-old at play school and her older siblings at 3. But excited voices interrupting the music on my favorite oldies station jostled me awake, talking of shots fired in faraway Dallas. That was how I learned of the tragedy I would never forget, the event that helped transform the post-1950s United States. Most of the 330 million Americans who have been born since that November day only know of John F. Kennedys assassination from the history books or television commemoratives. For them, the 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington and the 2021 Capitol insurrection events that many witnessed on television in real time have far greater salience than what happened 60 years ago this Wednesday in Dallas. But many of us in our 70s or older remember vividly the 35th presidents assassination and the events that stemmed from it. It was the first major news event other than a scheduled presidential inauguration, political convention or State of the Union address carried live on television, in real time. For four days through Kennedys burial millions stayed glued to their TVs. At that point, fewer than 2 million households had color television. But Kennedy was innately colorful, handsome with a shock of reddish hair, a beautiful wife and two winsome children dramatically different from his older predecessors. At age 43, as the youngest president ever elected, he succeeded Dwight D. Eisenhower, at 70 then the oldest. Moreover, he was the first celebrity president, a television star who launched, for better or worse, an era that culminated with the 2016 election of a billionaire businessman best known for hosting a reality television show. (Ironically, Donald Trumps obsessive self-absorption contrasts sharply with the sense of detachment that was one of Kennedys most appealing traits.) Sixty years later, Kennedys popularity persists only Abraham Lincoln and George Washington ranked as more popular in a recent YouGov poll. Still, the eras written history may not do full justice to Kennedys appeal, especially as his positive attributes are offset for some by the later learned details of a personal life that might not pass political muster today. In those days, politicians were judged primarily on their official lives, regardless of personal indiscretions or perceived character flaws. Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon changed that. Kennedys election was a political trailblazer, and not just because he was the first Catholic president. A World War II hero, he was the first of seven from what became known as the Greatest Generation. In those days, primaries were few, and the power to pick the convention delegates who determined the nominees lay with governors, senators and party bosses. Kennedys victories over more liberal rival Sen. Hubert Humphrey in the Wisconsin and West Virginia primaries convinced Democratic Party leaders to back him, despite his religion. His triumph and the abuses in the nominating helped transfer the presidential selection power from fellow pols, who knew well the attributes and flaws of prospective candidates, to the voters, often influenced by candidates television skills or various campaign trivialities, rather than their governing abilities. Campaigns might have changed even more had Kennedy lived to face Republican Barry Goldwater in 1964. The two, good friends though political rivals, had agreed to fly the country together, holding a series of issues-focused televised debates. Without them, the debates that electrified the country in 1960 lapsed until 1976, the next election where both candidates needed them. Like other such dramatic events, Kennedys assassination changed the flow of history, though we can only speculate how. It brought to the presidency Lyndon Johnson, whose unappealing television persona made him unlikely to win on his own. Taking full advantage of what became an inevitable landslide a year later, Johnson and a heavily Democratic Congress enacted more groundbreaking federal programs than any president but Franklin D. Roosevelt: Medicare, Medicaid, federal education aid, two landmark civil rights laws and a tax cut that propelled a decade of economic growth. At the same time, he planted the seeds of his political demise by vastly increasing the American military presence in Vietnam, from 16,300 advisers at Kennedys death to 536,000 mostly combat troops in 1968, all ultimately for naught. Kennedy, more cautious, might have achieved less of Johnsons domestic agenda. As for Vietnam, his top aides, many of whom I interviewed 20 years after his death, disagreed. Ted Sorensen, Mike Feldman and Larry OBrien all told me they believed that, after the 1964 election, Kennedy would have found a way to extricate the United States. Another top adviser, Kenny ODonnell, wrote in Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye that Kennedy told Senate Democratic Leader Mike Mansfield in 1963 that he planned to end U.S. involvement after the election. So, we had better make damned sure that I am re-elected, ODonnell recalled Kennedy telling Mansfield. Others disagreed. I have great doubt that he would have done anything different than Johnson did, said former Undersecretary of State George Ball, who served under both and became an outspoken war critic. Johnsons escalation of the Vietnam War and subsequent urban disorders cut short a potential Democratic era, precipitating the 1968 election of Richard Nixon like Johnson, someone who might otherwise not have reached the White House. He launched a string of five GOP victories in six elections and a modest rollback of Roosevelts New Deal and Johnsons Great Society. Because Kennedys presidency was so short just over 1,000 days its often seen as one more of promise than achievement. But he laid the basis for Johnsons domestic successes, and his dramatic rebuff of the Soviet effort to put offensive missiles in Cuba and groundbreaking nuclear test ban made the world safer. Beyond that, he inspired a generation of Americans to become involved politically, an impact still being felt three decades later when one of them, Bill Clinton, ended that long Republican political era. The immediate impact of that weekend was epitomized in a memorable televised exchange between two Kennedy enthusiasts. Well never laugh again, columnist Mary McGrory told Daniel Patrick Moynihan, the future U.S. senator. Mary, Moynihan replied, well laugh again, but well never be young again. Carl P. Leubsdorf is the former Washington bureau chief of the Dallas Morning News. Readers may write to him via email at carl.p.leubsdorf@gmail.com. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, has said that phenomenal Rishi Sunak will find a way of saving his Rwanda deportation plan without leaving the European Convention on Human Rights. The sacked home secretary Suella Braverman is among the right-wingers pushing to withdraw from the convention after the Supreme Court rejected the plan to put asylum seekers on one-way flights to Rwanda. But Mr Hunt insisted the government did not want to leave the convention and claimed that Mr Sunak would succeed in getting the flights going and stopping the boats by next year. With Rishi Sunak, we have the most persistent and most determined prime minister I have ever worked with, the chancellor told the BBCs Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. When it comes to solving fearsomely complex problems, I never worked with anyone as phenomenal as Rishi ... When you interview me next year, we will be having a discussion about how we succeeded in this plan. Grilled on whether the government could leave the convention, Mr Hunt said: We dont believe at this stage that that is necessary ... We dont believe it will come to that, at this stage we dont want to do that. However, the chancellor added that the government was determined to stop foreign judges from deciding who comes to the UK. In the end, our bottom line is clear it is elected representatives in parliament that should make the decision. Mr Sunaks two-pronged strategy for dealing with the Supreme Court ruling is to announce an emergency law that he says will enable parliament to unequivocally declare Rwanda a safe destination for asylum seekers. The PM will also publish an upgraded agreement with the country, which is expected to attempt to address the courts concerns around refoulement the potential for refugees rejected by Rwanda to be sent back to the country they are fleeing. Rishi Sunak has insisted he will do whatever it takes to stop the boats (PA) But Ms Braverman and other Tory MPs want to go further, saying that the UKs domestic and international obligations the Human Rights Act and the convention need to be made invalid using notwithstanding clauses. Mr Sunak is said to be weighing up some elements of the hardline plan proposed by Ms Braverman including a move to make clear that designating Rwanda a safe country would override the Human Rights Act. One senior Tory MP, a moderate ally of Mr Sunak, told The Independent this was almost certainly necessary to avoid further court challenges to the Rwanda flights. Some Tory MPs are pushing Mr Sunak to go further still by coming up with a derogation of the convention in the case of Rwanda. Mr Sunaks Rwanda plan is probably dead in its current form, former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption told Sky News. He also suggested that judges at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, which oversees the convention, would ultimately come to a similar view as the UK Supreme Court. Challenged on whether the government would be able to introduce emergency Rwanda legislation quickly, Mr Hunt told Sky News on Sunday: I think so thats the plan ... We will do it lawfully, and if we need to change the law, well do that. Tory ministers are considering whether to give an effective amnesty to migrants who have arrived via small boats since July and are facing the prospect of being sent to Rwanda, according to The Sunday Times. The Home Office is mulling whether they should be allowed to make an asylum claim having been left in limbo by Julys Illegal Migration Act as it fears a fresh legal challenge following the Supreme Courts Rwanda ruling. James Cleverly has said new Rwanda pact will be signed without delay (PA Wire) Meanwhile, the government is reported to be planning to send Home Office officials to Rwanda, as it attempts to tweak a treaty Britain signed with the central African country. A government source told The Sunday Telegraph that British civil servants will be doing training and assisting with case working in Rwanda. But sources played down the idea that this was anything new, pointing to the fact that the Home Office already has a team in Rwanda. The new home secretary, James Cleverly, told the newspaper: We have been working on a new treaty with Rwanda, which will be ratified without delay. It will guarantee in law that those who are relocated from the UK to Rwanda will be protected against removal from Rwanda. Mr Sunak is expected to set out a new treaty with Rwanda this week, but the far trickier business of emergency legislation could take several weeks. It comes as Ms Braverman used an interview with The Mail on Sunday to criticise Mr Sunak after he sacked her in the wake of her accusation of police bias over pro-Palestine rallies and her suggestion that people sleeping rough were making a lifestyle choice. She said the prime minister had been lacking in moral leadership over the pro-Palestine marches in the last month, accusing him of making tepid and timid statements. The former cabinet minister also said she has got a copy of a pact she alleges she signed with Mr Sunak in exchange for her support for him to become PM last October. But she said she was not intending to release it yet. Ms Braverman described her sacking as a bit odd and confusing, suggesting that Downing Street had approved her now notorious op-ed accusing the police of bias. It was a bit odd, because on Wednesday we had agreement with No 10 that I should write an article for The Times. We had put a draft together and exchanged versions with the team at No 10, so I find it all very confusing, Ms Braverman said. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Rishi Sunaks promised new treaty with Rwanda appears unlikely to be ratified before the new year as he races to get flights under his grounded asylum policy in the air in the spring. The deal that the Prime Minister hopes to sign after the Supreme Court defeat had been billed for as soon as Monday but is now not expected before the autumn statement on Wednesday. Mr Sunak has pinned his hopes on a new legally binding pact with Kigali alongside emergency legislation after the Supreme Court ruled the policy unlawful on November 15. Downing Street had said in the hours after the defeat that the deal would be laid before Parliament in the coming days so removal flights can take off as soon as possible. But Whitehall sources said the treaty is not expected to be published until some time after Chancellor Jeremy Hunt details his set-piece financial announcement on Wednesday. With the Commons due to rise for its Christmas recess on December 19, there are not enough sitting days to ratify the treaty before the new year under the current schedule, with No 10 saying at least 21 are required. Labours shadow home secretary Yevette Cooper said: This is just further chaos from the Conservatives. Further delay to a plan which has already failed. This is yet more hot air, rhetoric and chaos from a Tory party clearly unable to stop the criminal gangs or deliver their promise on small boats. Downing Street said that further detail will be set out in the coming days, as one source sought to downplay any suggestion of a delay to signing off the deal with Rwanda. On Sunday, Mr Hunt gave his backing to Mr Sunak to solve the fearsomely complex challenge of getting the Rwanda asylum policy to work, as the pair set sights on a first flight in the spring. Sacked home secretary Suella Braverman has been increasing the pressure, arguing his tweaking and fine-tuning will fail to get flights off before the election. Mr Hunt conceded the policy isnt easy stuff but said Mr Sunak is the most persistent, the most determined prime minister I have ever worked with. He suggested Mr Sunak is more determined when it comes to solving problems than Lord David Cameron, the former prime minister who returned from the political wilderness to become Foreign Secretary in the reshuffle. I enjoyed working with David Cameron very much, but when it comes to solving fearsomely complex problems I have never worked with anyone as phenomenal as Rishi, Mr Hunt told the BBCs Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg. I think we will see that, because I do think, when you interview me next year, we will be having a discussion about how we have succeeded in this plan, and I will be saying look, it wasnt easy, we kept at it, but that is what we promise to do. The source did not expect any problems getting Kigali to sign off on the treaty, believing that the emergency legislation is the greater challenge. In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Mrs Braverman said the Prime Minister has lacked the moral leadership to deal with pro-Palestine marches, which she has described as mobs. She welcomed Mr Sunaks plans for emergency legislation but said the changes need to be meaningful, adding that tweaking and fine-tuning is not going to cut it and we will not get flights off before the next general election. What we are saying is in the end... it must be Parliament, elected representatives in Parliament, not foreign judges, who decide who can come to this country Jeremy Hunt The Tory MP said elements of the domestic and international human rights legislation need to be excluded, as some colleagues on the right want the European Convention on Human Rights to be ditched altogether. However, Mr Hunt told the BBC that at this stage he does not believe following Vladimir Putins Russia in exiting the ECHR is necessary. What we are saying is in the end it must be Parliament, elected representatives in Parliament, not foreign judges, who decide who can come to this country, he said. We dont believe it will come to that at this stage, we think there are ways we can avoid that, we dont want to do that. Former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption argued the Rwanda plan is probably dead in its current form and believes judges in the European Court of Human Rights would probably agree with the top justices in the UK who blocked the plans. It will investigate safety for itself and probably arrive at a conclusion very similar to that of the Supreme Court, he told Skys Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips. The five justices ruled on Wednesday that the policy was unlawful, citing concerns that Rwanda could send genuine refugees to the countries they fled from. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A neo-Nazi march outside of the Wisconsin State Capitol on Saturday has sparked widespread outrage across the state and the country amid an alarming rise in antisemitism. The Madison Police Department said that the group consisted of around 20 people carrying Nazi flags. Authorities added that the demonstrators did not seem to have any weapons. Social media videos of the protest captured marchers all men carrying flags emblazoned with swastikas, doing the Nazi salute, and chanting, there will be blood. Every demonstrator wore red shirts that said Blood Tribe on the back. Wisconsin Gov Tony Evers wrote a statement on Saturday condemning the demonstration: To see neo-Nazis marching in our streets and neighborhoods and in the shadow of our State Capitol building spreading their disturbing, hateful messages is truly revolting. He continued, Let us be clear: neo-Nazis, antisemitism, and white supremacy have no home in Wisconsin. We will not accept or normalize this rhetoric and hate. He called those ideologies repulsive and disgusting, and denounced their presence in our state in the strongest terms possible. Wisconsin Democratic Sen Tammy Baldwin wrote, This has no place in Wisconsin. She added, At a time when we are seeing disturbing spikes in antisemitism, it is more important than ever to denounce this hate in no uncertain terms. Hate has no home here, Democratic Rep Mark Pocan, who represents Madison, said, These despicable extremists do not speak for the people of Madison, Wisconsin, or the United States. I strongly condemn this blatant showcase of antisemitism. Our community stands resolute against such bigotry. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) described the Blood Tribe as an all-male group they dont allow female members of hardcore white supremacists. The presence of neo-Nazis outside a synagogue and in front of Wisconsins state capitol today is deplorable, the ADL Midwest Regional Director David Goldenberg said in a statement. He called on city, state, and university leaders to act aggressively to develop comprehensive strategies to combat antisemitism and extremism in Wisconsin and on university campuses across the state. The demonstration comes after a marked rise in antisemitism exhibited across the country since the 7 October attacks in the Middle East. The ADL recorded an increase in antisemitic incidents compared to last year. From 7 October through 23 October of this year, the ADL documented 312 antisemitic incidents; in the same time period last year, the ADL documented 64 antisemitic incidents. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Australia has expressed strong concerns about its divers in international waters getting injured from sonar pulses from a Chinese destroyer. A Navy destroyer of the Peoples Liberation Army ignored requests to keep clear of the divers, Australian defence minister Richard Marles said in a statement on Saturday, The Australian Government has expressed its serious concerns to the Chinese Government following an unsafe and unprofessional interaction with a People's Liberation Army-Navy destroyer, the defence minister said. The divers were reportedly freeing nets entangled around the propellers of the Australian Navys HMAS Toowoomba which was conducting operations in the international waters inside of Japans exclusive economic zone. The Australian Navy frigate reportedly communicated its intention to conduct diving operations using internationally recognised signals. But a Chinese ship approached the Australian frigate and emitted dangerous sonar pulses, Mr Marles said. Medical assessments conducted after the divers exited the water identified they had sustained minor injuries likely due to being subjected to the sonar pulses from the Chinese destroyer, he said. The safety and wellbeing of our Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel is our utmost priority. Australia expects all countries, including China, to operate their militaries in a professional and safe manner, the minister added. Australias accusations come as several nations have raised concerns about Chinas growing assertiveness in the seas. Last month, a Chinese vessel came dangerously close nearly 4 metres to a Philippine patrol ship in the South China Sea, sparking fears of a territorial dispute. A US Navy surveillance plane also kept a close watch earlier this month as dozens of Chinese coast guard and accompanying ships chased and encircled Philippine vessels in what is beeing veiwed as one of the most dangerous flashpoints in the South China Sea. The US and its allies have deployed navy ships and fighter aircraft to promote freedom of navigation and to reassure allies like the Philippines. Defence has for decades undertaken maritime surveillance activities in the region and does so in accordance with international law, exercising the right to freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters and airspace, Mr Marles said. When Italys prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, was fooled recently by two well-known Russian comics surely paid-up Kremlin agents into saying she was tired of the war in Ukraine and that everyone would soon be looking for a way out, too many of her counterparts in the West would have tacitly agreed (and perhaps sympathised: she is hardly the first to be pranked by these two). But Ms Meloni deserves no sympathy. She thought she was talking to the head of the African Union Commission so this should have been a chance to exercise statecraft and reason with the supposed representative from the Global South and argue that Russias war in Ukraine is nothing if not colonialist itself a desperate attempt to maintain its empire. Russia, with an abundance of chutzpah and an absence of shame, claims that it is the West that is being colonialist in forcing its designs on Kyiv (even supposedly Nazi-ruled Kyiv). You have to apply to join Nato and the EU, of course, but facts like these are irrelevant. But Ms Melonis admission was worse than just not showing moral leadership. She was also playing into Russias hands by parroting its narrative: being tired and looking for a way out of the war is precisely what Vladimir Putin now wants from the Western world. Close Kyiv suffers largest ever drone attack by Russia leaving five wounded For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Ukrainian president Volodmyr Zelensky has vowed that his countrys forces will not back down despite a difficult counteroffensive and a recent spate of Russian attacks. Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu claimed this morning that Russia was advancing in all directions on the frontline. While the claim cannot be verified and is likely to be exaggerated, it speaks to a fear among western military experts that Russia could begin to make gains in 2024 owing to a deeper arsenal of weapons and personnel compared with Ukraine. Over the past month, Russia has launched a large mechanised assault on Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine in the first signs of their renewed assault, though they have made negligible territorial gains. In an interview on Thursday, Mr Zelensky admitted that he was not satisfied with Western support and that Ukraine didnt get all the weapons we wanted. He said: We are losing people, I'm not satisfied. We didn't get all the weapons we wanted, I can't be satisfied, but I also can't complain too much. Look, we are not backing down, I am satisfied. We are fighting with the second (best) army in the world, I am satisfied. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A cargo ship has been hijacked in the Red Sea by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels from Yemen, with up to 22 crew members believed to have been taken hostage. The ship is registered under a British company and is partly owned by an Israeli businessman, according to reports. The vessel is Bahaman-flagged and leased to a Japanese company. It was intercepted as it travelled past the Arabian peninsula on its way to India. The ship is believed to be the Galaxy Leader. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has said there were no citizens from Israel on board and denied the ship was Israeli, but described it as a grave incident. Israel has recently come under attack from the Houthis, an ally of Tehran, with long-range missiles and drone salvoes launched in solidarity with the Palestinian Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. Last week, the Houthi leader said his forces would make further attacks on Israel and they could target Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. In a statement on social media site X, the IDF said: The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship. The Houthi rebels confirmed they had been responsible for the hijacking and said they had diverted the ship to Yemen. We are treating the ships crew in accordance with Islamic principles and values, a spokesperson of the groups military said in a statement. A US defence official said were aware of the situation and are closely monitoring it. View more Meanwhile, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: This is another Iranian act of terrorism that represents an escalation in Irans belligerence against the citizens of the free world, with concomitant international ramifications vis-a-vis the security of global shipping routes. The vessel had been in Korfez, Turkey, and was on its way to Pipavav, India, at the time of the seizure reported Israel. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The United States is engaged in working towards a tentative agreement between Israel and Hamas to free dozens of hostages in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting. The hostage release could begin within the next several days, barring last-minute hitches, the Washington Post reported, quoting people familiar with the detailed, six-page agreement. Under the agreement, all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while 50 or more hostages are released in groups every 24 hours, the Post reported. Qatari prime minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said on Sunday that he had growing confidence that a hostage deal would be reached between Israel and Hamas. The challenges facing the agreement are just practical and logistical, Sheikh Mohammed said, adding that the challenges that remained were very minor. However, both Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the White House have said no deal has been officially reached yet. No deal yet but we continue to work hard to get a deal, the White Houses National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement. Mr Netanyahu told a press conference on Saturday evening: Concerning the hostages, there are many unsubstantiated rumours, many incorrect reports. I would like to make it clear: As of now, there has been no deal. But I want to promise: When there is something to say we will report to you about it. Israeli defense forces (IDF) are currently carrying out ground operations in Gaza to destroy Hamas after the militant groups rampage into Israel on 7 October in which its fighters killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages. Israel also said it is preparing to expand its offensive in the strip. A senior aide to Mr Netanyahu urged Palestinian civilians to relocate away from southern Khan Younis, indicating that a ground offensive into the south is imminent. IDF said it was fighting militants in the Zeitoun neighbourhood of Gaza City and on the outskirts of Jabaliya, the refugee camp which is home to one of two schools that were allegedly hit by airstrikes on Saturday. The Hamas-run Gazan Health Ministry says the death toll in the Gaza Strip has already increased to 12,300, including 5,000 children. Meanwhile, the families of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas and thousands of supporters arrived after a five-day march in Jerusalem on Saturday. The marchers sought to pressure Israels government to do everything they could to bring hostages back. Some of the marchers have expressed fear that the Israel military offensive endangers their loved ones but government leaders argue that only military pressure on Hamas can lead to some hostage releases. So far of the 240 hostages kidnapped from Israel into Gaza, only five have been released four via international diplomacy involving Qatar and one rescued by Israeli troops. A humanitarian assessment team that visited Al Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza reported seeing signs of shelling and gunfire in what was described as a death zone in a desperate situation, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). People search buildings destroyed during airstrikes on November 18, 2023 in Khan Yunis, Gaza. Heavy fighting rages in the northern Gaza Strip as Israel encircles the area, despite increasingly pressing calls for a ceasefire. (Getty Images) Signs of shelling and gunfire were evident. The team saw a mass grave at the entrance of the hospital and were told more than 80 people were buried there, the WHO said in a statement. The assessment team which included public health experts, logistics officers, and security staff from various UN departments could reportedly spend only an hour inside the hospital due to security concerns. Their visit, while coordinated with the Israeli military, still occurred with heavy fighting near the hospital. WHO and partners are urgently developing plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families, the UN organisation said. The hospital was not functioning as a medical facility, according to the team, due to a scarcity of clean water, fuel, medicine, and other essentials. Palestinians search the rubble of a building for survivors follwoing Israeli bombardment in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on 18 November 2023 amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. (AFP via Getty Images) The WHO reiterated its call for an immediate ceasefire and sustained humanitarian assistance. The territorys Health Ministry said at least 30 premature babies were evacuated from the hospital on Sunday, and will be transferred to facilities in Egypt. A spokesperson for the ministry said 32 babies were among the many critically ill patients stranded at the hospital. However, US president Joe Biden said that a ceasefire is not peace. As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a ceasefire is not peace, the president wrote in an op-ed for the Washington Post on Saturday. An outcome that leaves Hamas in control of Gaza would once more perpetuate its hate and deny Palestinian civilians the chance to build something better for themselves, Mr Biden wrote. Protesters march through the city during the national protest to demand a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war on 18 November 2023 in Glasgow, United Kingdom. Voices across the world calling for a ceasefire in Gaza continue to grow as the IDF pushes deeper into Gaza warning people to move south and evacuation orders are issued for the al Shifa hospital. (Getty Images) A ceasefire he said would give Hamas the opportunity to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters and restart the killing by attacking innocents again. If Hamas cared at all for Palestinian lives, it would release all the hostages, give up arms, and surrender the leaders and those responsible for the 7 October attacks, the US president said. My administration has called for respecting international humanitarian law, minimizing the loss of innocent lives and prioritizing the protection of civilians, Mr Biden said, adding that the goal should not be simply to stop the war for today but to end the war forever. There must be no forcible displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, no reoccupation, no siege or blockade, and no reduction in territory, the US president said. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Last-minute cuts to income tax or national insurance are said to be on the cards for Jeremy Hunts autumn statement, in a bid to boost economic growth and the Conservative Partys fortunes ahead of a next general election. The chancellor and Rishi Sunak have made the decision to consider tax cuts for low earners, after official forecasters told the Treasury it has more money in the budget than was expected, it has been reported by The Sunday Times. Higher tax revenues and lower borrowing costs have given Mr Hunt more than 20bn extra over triple the amount in Marchs budget. They are also considering delaying a widely expected reduction in inheritance tax until spring 2024, the paper has reported. Rishi Sunak and Mr Hunt are expected to finalise the details over the weekend (Downing Street) The tax is currently charged at 40 per cent on estates worth more than 325,000, however the Treasury is reportedly considering cutting the rate to 30 per cent. This has prompted accusations that it would serve as a boost for wealthier families during a cost-of-living crisis. While Mr Hunt had been expected to wait until the spring budget to introduce income tax cuts, improved public finances have caused him to reconsider. The chancellor received the final forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility on Friday night and was due to finalise decisions alongside the prime minister over the weekend. It comes afterMr Hunt and work and pensions secretary Mel Stride unveiled a major benefits crackdown, which will see claimants lose handouts, such as free prescriptions and dental care if they refuse to take a job. The chancellor said the move, launched just days before the statement, was necessary to stop anyone choosing to coast on the hard work of taxpayers. Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyTech email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Googles decision to delete millions of inactive Gmail accounts could erase millions of photos and other irretrievable memories, users have warned. The purge, which comes into effect next month and will hit any account that has not been used for more than two years, could impact parents who have set up email addresses for young children in order to share and mark milestones with them. It could also inadvertently affect people who continue to manage the online accounts of deceased relatives. Googleannounced the policy in a blog post earlier this year, claiming that the move aims to protect active users from security threats like phishing scams and account hijacking. The mass closure will also free up significant amounts of server space, which will also save the US tech giant money and resources. Google warned that the new policy applied to personal Google accounts, which includes content within Google Photos and Google Workspace tools like Docs, Drive, Gmail, Meet and Calendar. Recommended Google is about to ditch passwords forever Nicholas Worley, founder and chief executive of digital archiving platform Inalife, urged people to take action immediately in order to risk losing access to the accounts. If you have a Google account set up for your kids and have been emailing them, or if you manage the account of a deceased loved one... Login, save or backup any important memories and stories, he wrote on LinkedIn. Mr Worley told The Independent that he began recording memories when he learnt he was having his first child in 2019. I have friends and now Inalife users who had set up emails for their kids and hadnt known about the deletion issue before being told, he said. The Independent has reached out to Google for further information about whether any impacted accounts will be retrievable once the purge has taken place, and the exact number of accounts potentially impacted. In its May blog post, Googles vice president of product management Ruth Kricheli said that users would be able to keep their account active by reading or sending an email, using Google Drive, watching a YouTube video while logged in, downloading an app on the Google Play Store, or using Google Search. [The] update helps us continue our advancements in account security, and helps reinforce our commitment to keep your private information private, she wrote. This update aligns our policy with industry standards around retention and account deletion and also limits the amount of time Google retains your unused personal information. Google has already begun sending notifications to both the main email addresses and recovery emails of any accounts at risk of deletion. News / National by Peter Matuka A Binga man who stoned a Stallion Cruise Bus last week was dragged to Hwange Magistrates court on Friday. Washington Mungombe (24) pleaded guilty to the charge of Malicious Damage to Property before magistrate Rumbidzai Yolanda Kabasa.The magistrate will sentence Mungombe on December 14, he will be out of custody.The court heard that Mungombe boarded a Stallion Cruise bus at Makunku Business Centre bus stop together with his two friends.Whilst in the bus, the three were asked to pay a $1 each bus fare from Makunku Business Centre to Nzovunde bus stop.Mungombe then told Lovemore Munyekeza who is the bus conductor that he has a USD $100 note only in his pocket.The Court further heard that the conductor insisted that he has no change for such a big amount. This sparked a serious argument between the two until Mungombe finally released the required $1 bus fare.The court finally heard that upon disembarking from the bus, the young man went wild and picked up a stone and hit the bus window.Bornwell Muleya who is the bus driver together with Lovemore reacted swiftly to the angry boy and managed to bring him to a calm.However, the boy bit the driver once on his right side of the chest and stabbed the conductor once on his right hand side using an okapi knife.The okapi knife was later grabbed by Washington's accomplice who was only identified as William and fled the scene. Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyTech email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Just days after Sam Altman was fired as OpenAIs CEO, the board might be considering bringing him back, according to reports. Anonymous sources told both the Wall Street Journal and New York Times that the board is considering walking back on its dramatic firing of Mr Altman. Both outlets reported that Microsoft, a prominent investor in the company, was leading the charge to reinstate Mr Altman. The company announced the leadership change on Friday. Mr. Altmans departure follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities, the company wrote. The board no longer has confidence in his ability to continue leading OpenAI. While publicly citing communication issues, behind closed doors, the board and Mr Altman appeared to diverge when it came to OpenAIs future. Mr Altman was hoping to push development more aggressively than the board, CNN reported. Greg Brockman, the president and cofounder of OpenAI who was asked to leave the board, wrote on X that the operation to upend the leadership happened quickly. Mr Altman was asked to join a video call with the board at noon on Friday and was immediately fired. Mr Brockman was not a part of the video meeting, he said. Twenty minutes later, Mr Brockman was told that he could stay in his role, but was being removed from the board, he wrote. We too are still trying to figure out exactly what happened, Mr Brockman wrote. He later announced he was quitting based on todays news. Following his exit, Mr Altman wrote on X: i loved my time at openai. it was transformative for me personally, and hopefully the world a little bit. most of all i loved working with such talented people. will have more to say about whats next later. The Times also reported that Mr Altman and Mr Brockman have plans to launch a new startup in the wake of his ouster and are speaking to investors. Those plans have not been made public. Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyTech email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Cutting-edge plans to use drones as first responders to police emergencies will be trialled in Norfolk next year. If testing is successful, the devices would be stationed on buildings and operated remotely to be sent first to scenes to give police early information. Initial trials, under a scheme dubbed Project Eagle X, will take place in Norfolk, which has limited access to the helicopters flown by the National Police Air Service because they are stationed so far away. Further tests will also take place in Thames Valley Police and Hampshire. It can tell you straight away whether you're talking about a major road traffic collision that requires three fire engines and four ambulances, or whether it's a minor prang and someone's getting overexcited Neil Sexton, National Police Chiefs' Council Police in England and Wales are working with officers in the US as similar trials have taken place in San Diego. The drones as first responders (DFR) devices are also set to be trialled in Belgium and the Netherlands. Neil Sexton, who advises the National Police Chiefs Council on the use of drones, said: DFR is a drone that sits autonomously on a roof somewhere in a city and its in a box, its protected. From a control station that receives a 999 call it can be launched completely remotely, flying overhead an incident to gain situational awareness that will be fed back not just to that control station or control room, but also to the first responders who are about to arrive on the ground. The hope is the drone would give more accurate information on the potential scale of an incident that a potentially shocked member of the public who has called 999, and get there more quickly than a helicopter. The ability to get a remote aircraft overhead an incident that is still developing to gain a better situational awareness [is] much improved over phone calls from members of the public who are under stress, Mr Sexton said. Sitting overhead, it can tell you straight away whether youre talking about a major road traffic collision that requires three fire engines and four ambulances, or whether its a minor prang and someones getting overexcited. Currently, police forces in England and Wales use about 400 drones that cannot be flown out of the operators line of sight. Plans are in place to amend those rules to allow police operators to do so, with initial trials taking place in areas with closed-off airspace next year. Forces are also planning much wider use of retrospective facial recognition technology, with chiefs proposing to double its use by May. The biometric software, hailed as significant a step forward for policing as DNA analysis, is used to compare images from sources such as CCTV with forces databases of custody shots. Britains largest police force the Metropolitan Police has already said it will use the software to catch prolific shoplifters caught on CCTV. South Wales Police, one of the forces to spearhead use of live and retrospective facial recognition, is also piloting software that can be used by officers on their mobile phones. Around 50 officers currently have access to an app on their phones that allows them to take a photo of a suspect and compare it to the forces mugshot database. If the test is successful, the system could be rolled out across England and Wales. Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Simon Calders Travel email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Thousands of passengers travelling to or from Heathrow Airport have had flights cancelled or diverted, or are facing long flight delays after staff absences and high winds led to air traffic control restrictions being imposed. More than 30 departing flights have been cancelled since 9am, with at least 28 arrivals grounded, analysis by The Independent found. At least 10,000 passengers are thought to be affected. Three-quarters of those cancelled have been British Airways flights to and from short-haul destinations including Madrid, Milan, Berlin and Oslo. Aer Lingus, Brussels Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa, SAS and Swiss also canceled flights from and to their hubs. Air traffic control (ATC) restrictions were imposed early on Sunday morning, with staff shortage partly responsible. It follows large-scale cancellations at Gatwick in September due to an outbreak of Covid among controllers working in the tower. Just 25 flights per hour were permitted to arrive earlier on Sunday, The Independent was told. Normally 40-45 aircraft can land each hour. Due to short notice staff absence in the tower and strong winds at Heathrow, temporary ATC restrictions are currently in place, a spokesperson for air traffic control provider Nats said. More than 30 departures have been grounded at Heathrow (Simon Calder) We are working hard to minimise disruption, working closely with Heathrow airport and airlines. Passengers should check the status of their flight with their airline. Restrictions of this sort are only ever applied to ensure safety and we apologise for any inconvenience caused. All restrictions have now been lifted, but disruption continues. Two planeloads of BA passengers touched down at other London airports. The service from Baltimore went to Stansted, while the arrival from Chicago circled above Bristol for about 30 minutes before diverting to Gatwick. A Heathrow spokesperson said: Due to strong wind and staff absence in air traffic control, temporary air traffic control restrictions were implemented at Heathrow earlier today. ATC continue to implement temporary regulation due to the weather conditions this afternoon. We want to reassure passengers that our colleagues are working in close collaboration with our airline and air traffic control partners to get them safely on their journeys as quickly as possible. We encourage passengers to check with their airline for the latest information. British Airways said most customers on cancelled flights should still be able to reach their destination today (EPA) Despite the cancellations only affecting short-haul flights, many passengers complained of having missed connections further afield. Weve been held on the tarmac at MCR [Manchester] Airport because Heathrow accepting reduced number of flights, one passenger wrote on Twitter/X. Not expected to depart for a further 2 hours, which means missing our transfer to New York. My 40th birthday celebration is turning disastrous. The flight operated three hours late. Going places? The British Airways arrival from Chicago, which held over Bristol and then diverted to Gatwick rather than landing at Heathrow (Flightradar24) A British Airways spokesperson said: Air traffic control restrictions imposed on all airlines at London Heathrow mean weve had to make some adjustments to our short-haul schedule. Weve contacted affected customers to apologise and offer them rebooking options or a full refund. The airline said most customers on cancelled flights should still be able to reach their destination today, however for some the next available flight would be on Monday. Many other connecting passengers faced long waits after flights to key Continental hubs including Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Munich were grounded. Donald Trump mocked one of his supporters at a campaign rally in Iowa on Saturday, 18 November. The Trump supporter shouted "we love you" to the former Republican president. Mr Trump responded and said: "Thank you. Doesnt sound like my kind of a lover but thats ok." "You got to see this guy", Mr Trump said as he ridiculed the man at his campaign rally. The leading contender for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination will visit Texas Governor Greg Abbott at the US-Mexico border on Sunday, 19 November, as he continues campaigning for the Republican nomination. A million-pound Albanian drugs gang who idolised Al Pacinos Scarface have been uncovered by police and sentenced to more than 70 years in prison. The County Lines gang produced cocaine worth more than 1.1million and flooded towns across the Midlands. The ten-strong gang was led by Edmund Haziri, 36, and his younger brother Edward, 34, who ran the 'Eddie line' drugs operation. The gang, who sold drugs wrapped in lottery ticket stubs, were finally caught after a year-long police operation. Dramatic police footage shows the gang being arrested in multiple raids across the Midlands and London at 7am on 23 March last year. Bodycam footage shows police searching a flat that had a giant poster of Al Pacinos Tony Montana character from Scarface, plastered on the wall. Former president Donald Trump and Texas Governor Greg Abbott served meals to law enforcement officials in Edinburg, Texas, on Sunday, 19 November. Footage shows Mr Trump taking selfies with troops and offering cutlery and napkins to servicemembers. The former GOP president is visiting the US-Mexican border to discuss his border control policy as he campaigns for the Republican nomination. Mr Abbott is expected to endorse Mr Trumps bid for the White House on Sunday during the visit to the southern border. More than five weeks have passed since Hamass brutal attack on Israel. Whole families were executed, toddlers were slaughtered, women were raped, victims were tortured and dismembered. Approximately 1,200 people were killed, most of them civilians, and 240 Israelis and other nationals were taken hostage in Gaza. Since then, Hamas has been firing rockets daily at cities and towns in Israel, while Israel has engaged in aerial and artillery bombardments of the Gaza Strip. On 27 October, Israel commenced its ground invasion, which is still ongoing. According to the health ministry in the Hamas-controlled territory, around 11,000 people have been killed there thus far, among them more than 4,500 children. In addition, 1.5 million people have been displaced, and 45 per cent of Gazas housing units have been destroyed or damaged. At the veterans anti-occupation organisation Breaking the Silence, we spent several years studying testimonies of soldiers who had served in previous Israeli campaigns in Gaza. Looking back can help us see more clearly the choices we face today. The Dublin-based conglomerate has grown profits year-on-year, but its stock has been unloved until now Ten points for readers who can answer this noodle-scratcher what does DCC do? You dont know. You can admit it, its OK. DCC is a complicated business based in Ireland, listed on exchanges in Dublin and London, the conglomerate has interests spanning multiple sectors. It is a leading international sales, marketing and support services group. But it hasnt tended to attract much attention from investors despite its size and solid growth over the years. Or, it hadnt before last week. Shares, which have largely been in the doldrums over the last few years, spiked by around 15pc after it posted its half-year results to the end of September. While group revenues contracted year-on-year, falling by 11pc from 10.8bn (12.4bn) to 9.6bn, operating profits rose by 12pc, from 221m to 248m. DCC has three core businesses healthcare, energy and technology. Of these, energy is the most important, contributing over two-thirds of operating profits in the first half of 2023. This division essentially focuses on selling and distributing fuel, although it has moved increasingly towards renewables as well. While operating profits were down in both DCCs technology and healthcare arms during the first half of the year, the energy business recorded a 29pc rise during the period with strong organic growth. This likely gave encouragement to investors, as a key concern for DCC recently has been sluggish organic expansion. The firm has grown since its establishment in 1976 to become a FTSE 100 firm by buying hundreds of businesses. The strategy means that while the company has more often than not continued to expand, underlying organic growth has sometimes taken a backseat, which is likely why the expansion in its energy division was so well received. But leaving that to one side, the acquisitions have done their job London-based stockbroker Numis said in a recent research note that over the past 28 years, the business has a track record of 14pc per annum operating profits growth. With numbers like that, its perhaps hard to see why there has been a steady downward trend in recent years. There are some concerns, such as its large debt pile, which has risen from 782m to over 1bn. DCC says it likes to have a large pool of cash available to make acquisitions quickly and easily, but this has come at a price, with its net interest bill rising from 54m in the 2022 fiscal year to just under 81m in 2023. There were also jitters when DCC said in May that chief executive Donal Murphy would temporarily step away to address a medical condition, with shares falling by 4pc. However, Murphy is now back in action. Whats more, he has signalled theres more space for growth in the companys crucial energy arm, saying recently he thinks European countries are too heavily focused on electrification. More of a requirement for gas if countries miss renewables targets would likely be good news for DCC, even as it also has a foot in the renewables camp. Perhaps a spike in the companys share price indicates that investors are taking notice. In the future, perhaps they will be a little more likely to be able to answer the question posed in the first line of this article. Media & Marketing Brian ODriscoll will be just one of several keynote speakers. Photo: Getty The history of advertising is pockmarked with many examples of stereotyping, most of which, today, would be deemed highly offensive, misogynistic and downright dangerous. From advertising depicting domestic goddesses, damsels in distress, fashion and beauty-fixed shopaholics right through to bumbling and clueless dads and dithering old folk, the roll call of stereotypes is long and, lets face it, downright embarrassing. Some within the advertising industry would argue that this is part of a much wider malaise that has taken root, and that advertising as we know it has lost a lot of its mojo in a highly fragmented media landscape, but thats a much bigger argument for a different day. Depending on who you talk to, the blame lies at the feet of creative agencies that should know better, marketers lacking in ambition who prefer to play it safe, restricted advertising budgets, or an industry that may be in danger by straying a little too far from the real world. A combination of all of the above is also plausible. Two different pieces of research over the past two weeks suggest that advertisers and their brands are failing to reflect the many changes in Irish society in recent years and they have strayed into the lazy world of stereotyping. The first piece of research, The Family Fallacy, is from creative agency Folk Wunderman Thompson, and calls on advertisers to get their act together when it comes to depicting families. According to the agency, the traditional Irish family structure now accounts for just 36pc of Irish households. In its place, a rich tapestry of diverse family structures has emerged, including child-free couples, same-sex families, step families, divorced parents and single parents. Families in Ireland are no longer defined solely by blood or marriage. Advertising, however, is not reflecting this. The Folk research noted that more than 40pc of respondents believe that families are poorly represented in advertising, with this figure jumping to two-thirds of same-sex families and nearly half of divorced and so-called blended families. In addition, research shows that 64pc of people in Ireland believe the portrayal of family structures in advertising is stereotypical while 63pc believe brands should play a role in normalising non-traditional family structures in their advertising, rising to 68pc for single-parent families. While women have always been the victims of stereotyping in advertising, rules introduced by the advertising regulator in the UK in 2019 put an end to much of it (not all). Here in Ireland, the ASAI also cautions against sex stereotyping by upholding the equality of men and women. The second piece of research comes from market research firm RED C and it too shows advertisers have let men down in their depiction of them. Published at an advertising industry seminar about marketing to men earlier in the week, attendees heard that most men feel advertisers are not credibly aligning with more modern male values and in failing to do so they are not connecting with them at a deeper level. The RED C research showed that just 12pc agree that the media representation of masculinity today actually reflects their own views while there is widespread frustration with male depiction in advertising and that mono-dimensional stereotypes are no longer the best route for advertisers. It would be wrong to suggest that all advertisers resort to stereotyping, because they dont. But if consumers feel that a chunk of advertising is not representative of them or their circumstances, then its time they took note. Otherwise they are just wasting their money while alienating a sizeable chunk of their existing and potential customer base. Brian ODriscoll will be just one of several keynote speakers. Photo: Getty Sporting chances Brian ODriscoll will be just one of several keynote speakers who are lined up for the Who Won Sponsorship 2023 series which is organised by ONSIDE and the Marketing Institute on November 22 in the Aviva Stadium. Other speakers include Gerry Nixon, from Vodafone; Padraig Power, from IRFU; Tom Boyle, from Manchester City; and Rory Sheridan, from Diageo. Tickets are still available and for more information visit mii.ie. Jameson goes global The Irish Distillers-owned Jameson Irish Whiskey has launched a new global advertising campaign, called Must be a Jameson. Narrated by Peaky Blinders and Oppenheimer actor Cillian Murphy, this is the first campaign for the brand that has been created by Ogilvy, which picked up the global account this year. The campaign has launched in the USA with a full roll-out of the campaign globally in 2024. The smelting operation on the Shannon Estuary has faced challenges due to sanctions Aughinish Alumina, the Russia-owned company that operates a major metal smelting firm in Limerick made a $167m (153m) loss last year, newly-filed accounts for the business show. That compared to a $378m loss in 2021. The company is owned by Russian aluminium group Rusal one of the worlds biggest producers of the metal. Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, whos linked to Vladimir Putin, has a stake in the business. But the Irish operation on the Shannon Estuary has lost key customers across Europe and warned that while it has a financial letter of support from its Russian parent, the Moscow-based group has warned that there remains a material uncertainty that it will be able to continue in business as it has been significantly impacted by the war in Ukraine. The Irish firm, which employs about 500 people, is also vulnerable to any potential new sanctions, it cautioned, and from October this year has been dependent on just one gas supplier. The accounts for Limerick Alumina Refining Ltd show that it posted the huge loss last year despite revenue rising to $853.5m from $784.5m. But output at the plant fell 13pc. The filing notes that Rusals business has been adversely impacted by sanctions imposed by the EU and the United States following Russias invasion of Ukraine. The companys parent is also negatively impacted through significantly higher production costs, mainly in the price of natural gas, volatility in gas prices and the market price of alumina, the directors note in the accounts. The output of the refinery reduced by 13pc in 2022 due to the loss of key customers in the European market and disruption to bauxite supply, they added. The bauxite supply was hit because of sanctions on critical suppliers, note the accounts, which impacted the transport of Aughinish Aluminas Dian-Dian bauxite to the refinery. That resulted in production rates and higher production costs for the Irish firms parent. The Dian-Dian bauxite reserve in Guinea is the largest bauxite reserve in the world and is owned by Rusal. In a letter to the European Commission earlier this year Aughinish Alumina stated that the European aluminium industry is in crisis. It said that greater efforts need to be made to retain and expand aluminium production within Europe. A plan by Aughinish Alumina to expand its bauxite residual disposal area is back before An Bord Pleanala after a previous decision by the planning watchdog to allow the development was quashed by the High Court. The company says the expansion would enable the facility to operate until 2039. While this is a disappointing delay, the refinery is fully re-engaged with the process to achieve planning permission, the directors noted in the accounts signed off last week. The courthouse in Whitehorse, Yukon. A judge recently heard a challenge of evictions under the territory's SCAN Act. (Lilian Fridfinnson/CBC - image credit) The future of a controversial Yukon law that allows short-notice evictions at properties alleged to be harbouring illegal or disruptive activities is now in the hands of a judge. Yukon Supreme Court Chief Justice Suzanne Duncan spent much of last week hearing a legal challenge of a section of the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) Act that permits evictions on five days' notice. Lawyer Vincent Larochelle, who's representing the woman behind the challenge, said the section is unconstitutional, a stance rebuked by Yukon government lawyers Kelly McGill and Amy Porteous. Whitehorse woman and Ta'an Kwach'an Council citizen Celia Wright, who was living at a rental property in Cowley Creek with her family including her eight children and mother-in-law, an elder with mental health issues took the issue to court after getting a five-day SCAN eviction notice in December 2020. The SCAN Act allows members of the government's SCAN unit to investigate complaints about activities at a property that are "adversely affecting" a neighbourhood or community. Complaints may be informally "resolved" by the landlord evicting everyone from the property. Former SCAN investigator Kurt Bringsli testified Nov. 8 that his unit received drug trafficking complaints about Wright's property for four years leading up to the eviction notice. Yukon RCMP also raided it as part of a drug bust a month prior, laying a number of charges against Wright and her now-husband. The criminal case is still before the courts. In emotional testimony Nov. 7, Wright said her landlord didn't have an issue with the police investigation as long as her family paid rent. She said she spoke to him after receiving the notice and he told her he was "bullied" and threatened with his house being "seized" if he didn't agree to the eviction. Wright said the situation was "very difficult on my kids, myself, my whole family." Story continues "I believe I actually miscarried because of [the stress]," she said. The SCAN unit gave Wright an extension to the end of January 2021. Her landlord rescinded the SCAN eviction that month and gave her more time to leave. Wright said it was difficult to find somewhere to go. "The lineup for housing here is so insane, it's scary I'm Indigenous to this land, and I was homeless I didn't even have a parcel of land to pitch a tent on," she said. Wright's mother-in-law ended up in a tent at the Robert Service Campground, while Wright moved into a trailer in a friend's yard. While she's now in a house, Wright said she's still looking for a new home that's large enough for her family. Bringsli said he didn't know how many people lived at the property when he gave Wright the eviction notice or if any of them were Indigenous. He wouldn't elaborate on the complaints SCAN received about the property, only saying drug trafficking has an inherently adverse effect. He also denied SCAN pressured Wright's landlord into evicting her. He added that SCAN has always granted extensions on evictions if requested and has only given evictions with 14 days' notices since December 2020. Besides Bringsli and Wright, the court also heard from sociology and homelessness experts. A number of local organizations including Safe at Home and Blood Ties Four Directions also filed affidavits. SCAN 'short-circuiting' tenant rights Wright's lawyer argued in submissions Nov. 10 that the government was trying to make SCAN evictions seem like a landlord-tenant dispute with no "state involvement" despite being "elbow-deep" in the issue. "[It] reminds one of the proverbial ostrich that buries itself in sand and pretends no one can see it," Larochelle said. However, the legal challenge wasn't just about Wright's "unfortunate case," he continued. SCAN evictions, he argued, are a "short-circuiting" of the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (RLTA), under which landlords must give tenants a chance to remedy problems before evicting them. Landlords must also serve eviction notices via a form that includes a list of tenant rights and how to appeal the eviction. No such process or notification of rights exists under SCAN, Larochelle said, with the only real remedy to take the matter to court something that's often not realistic, given the tight timelines of evictions and people's limited resources. The evictions, Larochelle also argued, violate two sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms the right to life, liberty and security of the person, and equality rights. SCAN evictions deprive people of the ability to choose where to live, he said, and lead to homelessness, which overall increases the risk of death and can worsen issues like substance use disorder. They can also result in someone's bail being revoked if they're required to live at a certain address. Citing the affidavits from local organizations, Larochelle said that the vast majority of housing-insecure or homeless people in Whitehorse are Indigenous. He argued SCAN evictions perpetuate historical injustices, racism and discrimination. A lawyer for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, which is intervening in the case, also attacked the section's constitutionality. Fraser Harland argued the SCAN unit "deputizes" landlords to meet community safety objectives. He also said the eviction section is "over-broad," because it applies to people living at a property who aren't necessarily involved in any harmful activities. Harland also expressed concerned about the list of activities, called "specified uses" in the act, that the SCAN unit accepts complaints about in particular, "prostitution," which is legal in Canada. He described the SCAN unit as a "self-declared law-enforcement agency" and said it disproportionately targets low-income and marginalized communities. Wright claiming right to 'not be made homeless,' government argues McGill, one of the government lawyers, said in her submissions that Wright was claiming a constitutional right to "remain where she lives" and to "not be made homeless" a position McGill warned could have a "profound impact" on other laws, including the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. She argued the eviction section doesn't violate any Charter rights, and that SCAN evictions do not "equal homelessness." Porteous, the other government lawyer, argued there was no evidence SCAN contributes to Indigenous people being homeless in the Yukon, and that it "wasn't fair" to say SCAN discriminates against Indigenous people when several Yukon First Nation governments work in collaboration with the unit. Echoing Bringsli, McGill emphasized that evictions cannot happen without the consent of a property's landlord. She also pointed to the "small" number of SCAN evictions 25 in the past five years and described SCAN evictions as a "tool" for landlords to put an end to unwanted behaviour at their properties without needing to investigate or confront the tenants themselves. As well, the SCAN Act has a "safety valve" built into, McGill claimed, because it contains a section stating that any resident of a property subject to an eviction may dispute it in court. Asked how people would know about the dispute process since it's not mentioned in eviction notices, McGill said that people simply go read the SCAN Act. Larochelle, in his reply, took aim at that suggestion. "Go tell that to the schizophrenic Indigenous elder who had to go live in a tent," he said, referring to Wright's mother-in-law. Duncan reserved her decision. The Yukon government, separately, is also undertaking a review of the SCAN Act. Modern Morals: My best friend says she cant afford to go to my foreign wedding next year. Is it insensitive to ask her to get a loan? The ideas man taking on the might of Baileys Johnny Harte, the whiskey veteran behind a slew of brands, is taking cream liqueur back to the farm with his fast-growing Five Farms Johnny Harte, co-founder of Five Farms cream liqueur, at the McCormick Distillers offices in Dublin. Photo: Frank McGrath Gabrielle Monaghan Sun 19 Nov 2023 at 03:30 According to a long-accepted narrative, Irish cream liqueur was first concocted in London in 1973, when a team of London-based advertising executives mixed Irish whiskey, cream and chocolate powder to create what would become Baileys Irish Cream, one of Irelands most valuable brands. Speculation around the likelihood of Ireland meeting its 2024 launch date for the nationwide auto-enrolment pension scheme continues to gain pace following a budget that did not appear to allow for State contributions to the scheme in 2024. Despite this, the Government is doubling down on its plans for a 2024 roll-out amidst a myriad of calls for clarity and guidance from those businesses that will have to plan and budget for this enormous change to Irelands retirement planning landscape. With an immediate impact on 750,000 Irish workers who are to be enrolled in the scheme, its crucial that, whenever it is rolled out, it hits the mark and does exactly what it is intended to do and that is rapidly mitigate what has been termed the pension time-bomb facing the State in the years to come. Irelands long and often lethargic journey towards the proposed implementation of auto-enrolment for workers has given rise to a raft of debate over what pensions work best and also which countries have successfully managed to bring their workforce under the retirement planning umbrella. As always, Ireland draws comparisons with the experience of our nearest neighbours. But its worth looking further afield to Australias pension market which has transformed drastically in the last 20 years. So much so that it now boasts the fifth-largest pension market in the world, with assets under management of AUD 3.5 trillion (2.3trn) at the end of 2022. Just looking at the basic model upon which Australias AE is based, I can see two key elements, which if emulated here in Ireland, would make auto-enrolment far more acceptable to the majority of employees targeted and would aid the Governments planned roll-out in 2024. Firstly, rather than forcing employees into mandatory contributions, which is what the Irish scheme purports to do, Australians have only mandated employer contributions. This compulsory contribution is set at 10.5pc of gross earnings, including commission, bonuses and shift allowance, and it is due to rise to 12pc by 2025. Employees then have the option of contributing an additional 4pc on a voluntary basis. Australias pension industry has seen a large amount of consolidation in the past two decades as the regulator has applied pressure on non-performing funds to either merge or close. The intention was to reduce the investment options available within the sector, which previously stood at around 2,500, so as to simplify the decision-making process and improve performance for investors. Ireland has a legacy issue of pension investors with multiple pots. In contrast, the UK has a similar issue that has been exasperated by layering auto-enrolment onto an existing pension landscape. Australia is decades ahead in terms of its political decision making and has introduced an auto-consolidation initiative to address the problem. Its policy puts an onus on employers to ask new employees if they have an existing fund, and then contribute into that fund. There are obvious issues with this type of system in Ireland, from a logistical perspective, from the employers perspective, and also from a value-for-money perspective, as legacy pension schemes can have very large fees attached. That being said, any initiative that will help pension investors consolidate their schemes is worth investigating. In 2021, new reforms were introduced including an annual performance test for funds. Despite the name of the test, its sole focus is not on performance, but on fees and charges that have a significant impact on the fund. Another positive idea from Australia, that has not come into effect yet, is the ability to allow first-time home buyers to access a portion of their pension pot to assist them in getting on the property ladder. With the focus on housing affordability in Ireland, this type of creative solution may engage younger people with pension saving, although the Irish Government may need to rethink the relatively late start age of 23 if the first-time buyer is to have successfully saved enough for a deposit. The pension reforms in Australia have been largely successful as has the implementation of auto-enrolment in the UK. Both systems have their flaws, but it will be interesting to see what the Irish market looks like in 2026 after IORP II and auto-enrolment have embedded. Eoin Hassett is trustee services director for ITC Group. It should be noted that ITC Group is not a pension adviser and so individuals should speak with their financial adviser for more information Bestselling novelist Liz Nugent is the author of five crime novels. Her latest book, Strange Sally Diamond, has spent 28 weeks in the Irish bestseller charts. Shes been shortlisted for three accolades at the An Post Irish Book Awards, which will be held at a ceremony in Dublin on November 22. Nugent, who worked in theatre and TV before turning her hand to fiction, lives in Dublin with her husband. That there was never enough. Growing up in the 70s and 80s was tough. My mum had an antiques business that put us through private school. We had the appearance of having a lot of money because we lived in Dublin 4 and went to private schools but there was never money for anything else. There were never any foreign holidays in my childhood and I only had one pair of shoes. After two decades of the inexorable rise of online shopping, consumers are craving the intimacy of the in-store experience despite continuing to want the convenience and choice offered by e-commerce. Thats the key finding of a new survey carried out by Irish digital and creative agency All human which found many shoppers believe that human interaction is missing from todays online shopping experience. Consumers are also wary of the rise of artificial intelligence in their favourite shopping channels, the survey found. Consumers are telling us strongly that theyre not interested in having an AI conversation, said All human CEO John Mitchell. They have no issue with the use of AI technology embedded behind the scenes to improve the overall experience. They are OK with AI driven route optimisation, with voice activation, with integration with things like Siri and Alexa. But the use of AI as some kind of alternative to humans and human interaction? Thats a big no no. Mitchell believes the desire for more human interaction in the shopping experience also paves the way for the continued growth of so-called hybrid stores in prominent shopping locations. These stores tend to focus on acting as a shop window for a brands e-commerce platform and have been increasingly developed by the likes of Ikea and some major fashion brands, he said. All human has specialised in implementing innovative digital for real world brands, for example, the service that it recently created for An Post that allows people to buy a digital stamp online and to write its code directly on an envelope. The firms Digital Pulse 2024 report, which was based on a survey of 1,000 people in Ireland and 1,600 people in the UK, focused on the so-called last mile of the e-commerce journey and what it said was the role of digital innovation in reshaping the delivery experience. Your porch really is the new shopping centre but that last mile of the delivery is also the part that really has not been properly teased out yet to the satisfaction of consumers, said Mitchell. It can be the really messy part of e-commerce. And for the companies themselves it is also really expensive. A key concern for many of those surveyed with regard to online shopping was the ability to both control the delivery and also have clear communication from the delivery company. Half the respondents said that being able to choose the time and date of delivery would make them more likely to make a purchase and a similar number cited real-time updates as important. Theres a real challenge for carriers and for retail brands with the cost of returns, because theres a huge expectation for consumers to get free returns. And one of the things that really showed up in the survey for me was the idea that 84pc of respondents would say that theyre more likely to purchase a product when there are free returns. But he said the trend in the UK is for free returns to be phased out by many of the big retailers and this is likely to happen here too. But theres real opportunities in this we feel for brands and for delivery carriers. If they can make that process or that experience very positive then there is definitely loyalty or brand equity to be gained. When you include the issue of returns and how they are handled, then you are opening up the potential for the holy grail of e-commerce, which is subscription loyalty. The telecoms industry wants big tech companies to contribute to the costs of building broadband and 5G infrastructure. Photo: PA Technology Ireland a trade association affiliated to business lobby group Ibec has pushed back against EU proposals that would see tech companies pay a levy to telecoms for the upkeep of their networks. The European Commission is mulling a new set of regulations to improve high-speed broadband connectivity across Europe. Network fees, where tech companies that use hefty amounts of data contribute to the costs of networks, is one measure on the table. The telecoms industry wants big tech companies and over-the-top (OTT) service providers, like Facebook, Netflix and YouTube, to contribute to the costs of building broadband and 5G infrastructure. Proponents of network fees argue that the prevalence of social media and video streaming has put a greater demand on telecoms systems. However, tech companies have pushed back on the idea, stating it amounts to a new tax and will ultimately drive up costs for the consumer. In a letter to Minister of State Ossian Smyth, Technology Ireland said network fees are a retrograde step. The introduction of fees would disrupt the symbiotic relationship between telecom networks and the tech companies that provide services through the networks. Consumers acquire internet connections in order to access online products and services, so the technology sector is driving the demand for that of the telecommunications companies, the letter said. If introduced, network usage fees would disrupt existing interconnection arrangements, as well as incentives for stakeholders in the ecosystem to continue investing to deliver a high quality of experience for end-users. Costs associated with network fees will be passed on to the consumer by the tech companies, it added. This is often in the form of higher subscription costs. Further, Technology Ireland argues that such fees would violate the principles of net neutrality, the concept that all data traffic on networks be considered equal. Under that principle, one service provider being forced to pay while others are not would muddy the waters. Telecoms have lobbied heavily on matter. Vodafone previously wrote to the Department of Enterprise to voice its support for the measures earlier this year. On a European level, last month the CEOs of several major telecom firms including BT and Deutsch Telekom wrote to the European Commission to renew their calls for a fair and proportionate contributions by tech firms. Also last month, the European Commission published the initial findings on an exploratory consultation on fees that found stakeholders outside of the telecom sector, such as NGOs, have concerns over the proposal and the effects it would have on the consumer. In other member states, regulators have poured cold water on the proposal. Last week, Belgiums telecom regulator dismissed the idea of network fees, stating that the telecom industry has not sufficiently proven their need. *Note: This article was updated on November 20, 2023 to reflect that the letter was sent by Technology Ireland, a trade association affiliated to IBEC, rather than by Ibec itself, as previously stated. Media Minister Catherine Martin is pushing to abolish the TV licence fee and replace it with direct taxpayer funding for RTE a move that puts her on a collision course with Coalition colleagues. Three senior Government sources have told the Sunday Independent that Martin, the Green Party deputy leader, wants exchequer funding of public service broadcasting instead of replacing the licence fee with a household charge or broadcasting levy. It is understood her favoured option rejected by the Coalition last year was given serious consideration in the wake of the collapse of licence fee revenue following a summer of controversy at the national broadcaster. But Tanaiste Micheal Martin and Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe have both publicly argued for the retention of a levy of some sort to fund RTE, a view understood to be shared by Finance Minister Michael McGrath. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is also understood to be leaning towards a new charge replacing the licence fee that would be collected by Revenue, however he has raised concerns publicly about peoples willingness to pay. A move to empower the tax authority to collect the charge would crack down on the evasion rates which have soared in the wake of the Ryan Tubridy payments scandal and left RTE needing a Government bailout of up to 56m. Ms Martin is understood to be concerned that a household charge or media levy would face strong resistance and attempts to fillibuster it in the Dail, and from the general public with licence-fee payment rates collapsing since the summer of scandal at Montrose. The Green Party deputy leader believes a new charge would now be even harder to collect following the RTE crisis. I dont think the decision will be easy, but what Im saying is we will take the decision, we will be the government that do this and I will be the minister that will deliver on this, Ms Martin said last week. Others in Government acknowledged privately it could be politically controversial, as one senior Coalition figure put it, to introduce a new charge in advance of the next general election. In its report published in July 2022, the Future of Media Commission recommended the Government introduce a new public funding model from 2024 by replacing the licence fee with exchequer funding derived from general tax revenue. Safeguards could be put in place such as multi-annual funding model that removes it from the annual budgetary process. In Norway, for example, exchequer funding for public service broadcasting is awarded every four years. The report also suggested the level of funding could be proposed by Coimisiun na Mean, and the minister of the day would have to provide a public explanation if they didnt agree with its recommendation. However, this option was rejected by the Coalition with Ms Martin arguing that in order to maintain a direct link between media and the public and to minimise the risk of political interference in the media, the licence fee would be maintained but overhauled. I am an alcoholic and this Monday I am been given a second chance by going into treatment Former RTE star Nikki Hayes has said she has been given a second chance by going into treatment for alcohol addiction. Hayes (44) was due to be sentenced last week for money laundering but Judge Martina Baxter instead put the case back for five months for an updated probation report and to allow her rehabilitation to continue The radio DJ who let fraudsters move 15,000 through her bank account had her case further adjourned so she can get treatment for an alcohol problem and pay compensation. Taking to her X account, the former RTE 2FM and Classic Hits star, whose real name is Eimear Black OKeeffe, wrote: Hi, I'm Eimear (some know me as Nikki). We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content I am an alcoholic and this Monday I am been (sic) given a second chance by going into treatment. My family have been my lifeline and Im hoping to get back to the person I used to be. xx Thank you for all ur support. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard Hayes had tested drug and alcohol free and intended to repay the 2,000 loss to the bank. Hayes had pleaded guilty to money laundering - possession of the proceeds of crime. She was in debt, vulnerable and at rock bottom in her personal life when she acted as a money mule for smishing scammers. Last week was the second time her case was listed for sentencing as the previous week it was adjourned when Hayes suffered concussion in a fall. Defence barrister Keith Spencer said Hayes had sought to book herself into a treatment centre for her alcohol difficulty and hoped to get a place before Christmas. Urinalysis requested by the court was negative of any substances or alcohol. Mr Spencer presented character references that came independently to him following media coverage of the case. Hayes had not solicited these herself because of the shame she felt following the publicity. Nikki Hayes Kevin Branigan, CEO of Classic Hits where Hayes had worked as a presenter for six years, said in his written reference that he had read the media reports "with some sadness". Hayes was a "capable broadcaster with a good media profile," he said, and while it was clear she had some personal difficulties, "I have not heard a bad word about her character in the years I have known her." He hoped she "gets the help she needs and gets her career back on track". Her brother-in-law Thomas Hayes, a retired New York Police Department sergeant, spoke "very highly of her", and offered his support, Mr Spencer said. "He indicates that she badly needs to reclaim her life, family and career," the barrister continued. The accused's sister in the US had provided support, putting her up in a hostel. Hayes intended repaying the 2,000 owed to the back "with great difficulty." Noting the "impressive" progress the accused had made in rehabilitation, the judge granted the adjournment, to April 11 next year. At an earlier pre-sentence hearing, Detective Garda Neill Gavin said on November 5, 2020, a scam victim clicked on a text message link that led to three sums of 2,600, 2,400 and 10,000 totalling 15,000 being transferred from his account into OKeeffes. The money was withdrawn by Revolut and by ATM at Liffey Valley over 24 hours. A blonde lady was present at the withdrawals but gardai were not able to say this was the accused. Some of the money was clawed back but there was still a loss to the bank of 2,000 outstanding. Gardai didnt have any difficulty tracking down the accused and she cooperated. Hayes told gardai she had fallen on hard times, somebody had made contact with her and she allowed her account to be used. When she saw the transactions begin she was pressured to let them continue. She denied she withdrew the money. Gardai accepted she had no hand act or part in the actual scam and her only prior convictions were for minor motoring offences. Her barrister Keith Spencer said Hayes had been in 53,000 debt, owing money to various institutions including the bank and RTE, while her marriage had broken down. Hayes was given a late diagnosis of bipolar or personality disorder, having struggled with her mental health for many years. She had been off her meds and drinking to excess at the time of the offence. An erstwhile friend told her there was an easy way to make money, put her in touch with an individual on Snapchat and Hayes handed over her bank card and details, Mr Spencer said. She was alarmed when she saw the irregularities, but when she told the fraudster she would tell the gardai there was a threat to burn down her home. Hayes had been told she would get 2,000 for her part in the offence but never received any money. She was a genuinely vulnerable individual who was taken advantage of, Mr Spencer said. Hayes had built up a successful career in radio over many years, including working for RTE, Spin 103.8, Classic Hits and East Coast FM. That had now crashed and come to nothing and she had suffered the ultimate penalty with the loss of her career, Mr Spencer said. Hayes was remorseful, had completely overcome her addictions issues, was abstaining from alcohol and drugs and was complying with her prescribed medication, Mr Spencer said. Colleagues Vincent Browne, Colm Toibin and Willie Kealy pay tribute to a master of the profession of journalism Gene Kerrigans early curiosity, defiance and humour, which have been part of his armoury all along, are conveyed in his autobiography, Another Country: Growing Up in 50s Ireland. Extraordinary writing skills and journalism that really mattered Vincent Browne It was Eamonn McCann who suggested we should get Gene to write for Magill, a monthly current affairs magazine that Mary Holland, Noel Pearson and I were to launch in October 1977. Gene had no previous experience in journalism, aside from a few articles he wrote for a leftie publication. He hadnt learnt journalism, which meant he didnt have to unlearn journalism. His extraordinary writing skills were no mask for long-winded blather. In that first embarrassing issue of Magill chock-a-block full of important writers and long-winded blather he wrote a piece entitled: There are very good reasons why a District Justice should be scared to walk through the centre of Dublin. Some geezer down the road does a fade and you know for sure theres one house that will be empty come funeral day. Chances are some of the neighbours will tag along for the planting, so youve got a choice of back windows. Through the window, slip the bolt on the front door. Gives you some notice if the relatives come back unexpectedly. An emotional timebomb awaiting the return of someone who has just buried a loved one, the circumstances amplifying the simple crime into a desecration. But its standard practice. Even the police dont take it too seriously. Their investigation is a form of public relations. In that first issue, and in many subsequent issues of Magill, his piece was best piece in the magazine. He wrote for almost every edition of Magill for over 10 years. Wonderful pieces on showbands, pirate radios, on workers striking for decent wages and conditions, on elections we were blessed with three quick elections in 1981-82 and profiles of well-known and never-known people. His profile of Douglas Gageby, the iconic Protestant, republican editor of The Irish Times was one of those over 6,000 words and the best take on Gageby I have read. There was another lengthy profile of a very different and unknown man in the June 1982 issue of the magazine, The Small Legend of Karl Crawley. It begins: The three screws didnt know much about guns. They thought the big, dark automatic that Karl Crawley was pulling out was a Luger. But Karl didnt care whether the screws could recognise a Colt .45 when they saw one just so long as they had enough cop to do what they were told. Freeze, you bastards! If youre a screw in Mountjoy prison and Karl Crawley points a gun at you, you freeze. Because you know this guy is no cream puff. This is the guy whose belly has been cut open so many times that its scarred and mauled like its been run over by a tank track. Hes been in and out of prison so often that theyve got a special cell for him. Hes been declared insane maybe a dozen times and hes got forearms as big as piano legs and fists like hammers and hes used them, since God knows when, to knock lumps out of anything in a uniform. So, watch it, take it easy. A brilliant, compassionate piece on what was a lovely guy, Karl Crawley, behind the threats, the violence, the madness. Gene wrote a lot about the abuse of power by gardai, frequently dissidents in Irish politics. The most notable such case was on those arrested following the Sallins train robbery in March 1976. He and the late Derek Dunne wrote the book Round Up the Usual Suspects, which chronicled what seemed to have been a practised perjury on the part of several gardai and of brazen bias on the part of some judges. He wrote another lengthy, devastating piece on the atrocious Kerry Babies Tribunal presided over by Judge Kevin Lynch. The judge responded in Magill, with a purported refutation of Genes contentions. Gene responded to the judge the following month. The judge didnt reply. In his latter journalism with the Sunday Independent, he remained sharp, funny and direct. But he also, at times, conveyed a cynicism about the doings of politicians which was, I thought, misplaced. Surprisingly, he rarely addressed the political culture which framed our politics, our perspectives and the doings of politicians. In the first lines in his profile of Douglas Gageby he quotes the British journalist and writer James Cameron, saying: We journalists spend our time splashing in the shallows, reaching on occasions the rare heights of the applauded mediocre. Many of us most splashed around in the shallows; Gene did occasionally; but with wit. But, then, Gene Kerrigan went far beyond the rare heights of the applauded mediocre. His journalism mattered. Vincent Browne was the founding editor of Magill magazine An article by Gene Kerrigan on the front cover of 'Magill' magazine His comic talent feels natural and effortless but comes from much reading and thinking Colm Toibin In Magill magazine, on the days when Gene Kerrigan was due to deliver a long article, his chair in the office below mine would be empty all morning. That was a good sign. If he came in early, it would be because there was a major problem. He never came in early. I learned not to go down too often to check if he had appeared yet. It would happen. When, sometime between noon and two, he did arrive, it didnt help if I hovered in front of his desk. It was better if we both pretended that the magazine was not sorely depending on this article being ready today, now. And then, as though it was nothing, Gene would pull out a sheaf of carefully typed pages. I never found out precisely how Gene worked. He wrote most of his articles at home. I had a sense sometimes that he wrote through the night to get a piece finished, but there was nothing frenzied or rushed in the tone of the articles or how they were presented. My impression was that he spent a long time figuring out the shape, the rhythm of the piece. And then not writing it. And then starting to worry until he got an opening, and maybe scrapping the first opening and trying again. His openings were usually brilliant. It wasnt just his eye for detail although he had that or a sense of structure he had that too but he had a way like a novelist of entering the story at the proper angle. As a journalist in the 1980s, he was not like anyone else. He had a comic skill that felt natural and effortless but came from a great deal of reading and thinking about narrative styles. He had a sense of character, especially shady character, that was vivid and sharp. He could create a scene in a second. He could see how much work a single rich detail could do. But he also worked forensically. He could look at a court transcript or a witness statement and see both the core question and also a detail that explained something crucial or made no sense at all. In some of the articles he wrote as though he were a camera. He left himself out. In others, he wrote with Swiftian force, with a fierce conviction that was made fiercer by being openly polemical and brilliantly written. Gene had an eye for hypocrisy and he had a sense of justice. While other journalists speculated on who might get the Brussels job, or looked for scoops in the corridors of Leinster House, Gene Kerrigan had a bigger picture in his sights: the purpose of politics was to change peoples lives. If politicians didnt do that, then how did they expect to be written about? On those days in Magill when he had delivered a long article, there was no point in telling him how good it was. He knew how good it was, but he gave no sign of that. That wasnt his style. Colm Toibin was editor of Magill from 1982-1985 Gene Kerrigan pictured outside the GPO on Dublin's O'Connell Street in 2015. Photo: Frank McGrath The epitome of the self-starter: nobody ever has to tell Gene what to write Willie Kealy Gene Kerrigan came to the Sunday Independent fully formed as a writer. He had spent some years at Magill magazine and the old Sunday Tribune, where, for many, he was the main reason to buy those publications. Like James Joyce, he started out as a cinema projectionist, until he found his true vocation. Before I actually got to know him, I knew the legend, a hard-bitten hack in the mould of a Damon Runyon character, or maybe of Runyon himself. But now I realise a better comparison would have been with Jimmy Breslin, the legendary New York reporter. Kerrigan chronicled Irish society and its characters and brought the charlatans and the mountebanks to book. His method was to meticulously examine the details of their dirty doings, with his own investigations or at tribunals or other public inquiries, and drag them into the light that more compliant journalists had been willing to allow them avoid. His ability to often work from home before that became popular and turn out sensationally good copy without leaving the house, gave one fellow journalist the opportunity to humorously compare Gene to Nero Wolfe, the fictional American detective who solved crimes from the comfort of his armchair. Genes role in the Sunday Independent was that of a pre-eminent columnist who made the prime back-page slot his own for decades with a forensic eye for the telling detail. Every Sunday he preached to the nation without being the least bit preachy. Left of centre, he stood up for the disadvantaged and sometimes was described as an odd fit by those who lazily perceived the Sunday Independent as a right-wing publication it was never that. It was, rather, a broad church. There was never anything token about Gene Kerrigans prominence in the paper, despite sour jokes from jealous rivals that we were safe from left-wing attacks as long we had the baby (Gene) in our arms. His long experience in journalism meant his advice was often invaluable in trying to get legally risky copy by other journalists into print. While he was busy leading the life of one of Irelands most successful and respected journalists, he also somehow found the time to write several non-fiction books, some with good friends, Pat Brennan and the late Derek Dunne, as well as producing a number of works of crime fiction, which, like his journalism, saw him earning the highest awards. Gene is the epitome of the self-starter. Nobody ever has to tell him what to write. He is a gentleman in manners and behaviour, a civilised man and a natural feminist. The nearest to an expletive I ever heard from him on imparting disagreeable news was a weary Oh dear. Now he is retiring his regular Sunday Independent column. I hope it does not mean he is putting away the pen for good. There has never been a time when we have had more need for this kind of fearless public intellectual, to tell us the sometimes uncomfortable truths and help point the way forward. Willie Kealy is former deputy editor of the Sunday Independent Sinn Fein blasted by free speech coalition over chilling effect of partys defamation cases European and Irish coalition says lawsuits seem to be part of co-ordinated campaign against the Irish media Michelle O'Neill and Mary Lou McDonald have taken cases. Photo: Frank McGrath Mark Tighe Sun 19 Nov 2023 at 03:30 A coalition of European and Irish freedom of expression advocates has warned Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald that a spate of defamation cases taken by Sinn Fein TDs has a chilling effect on democracy and appears to be a coordinated campaign against the media in Ireland. Delays could be relieved by 'broadening exempted development provisions for certain types and sizes of projects', Eamon Ryan was told in a letter Uisce Eireann has warned Environment Minister Eamon Ryan that current planning laws obstruct sustainability targets and the companys ability to quickly deliver green projects. Planning delays could be relieved by broadening exempted development provisions for certain types and sizes of projects, it told Mr Ryan in a letter the semi-state released to the Sunday Independent under a Freedom of Information request. The Department of Environment initially refused to release the correspondence, citing variously a clerical error, that it did not relate to the departments business and that it did not exist or could not be found. Uisce Eireann said it believes schemes that might be considered for the exemptions include the installation of renewable energy infrastructure at some of its existing sites. The development of sludge drying reed beds or wetlands sustainable nature-based solutions for treating water and wastewater could also benefit from exemptions in some cases. The type and size of developments to be exempt from planning permissions could be determined by relevant state agencies, including planning bodies, the Environmental Protection Agency and government departments. Uisce Eireann believes enabling the company to develop solar, wind and hydro-energy infrastructure at its sites could see those plants relieve pressure on the national grid and help the country meet sustainability targets. The company met with Mr Ryan at one of its wetlands in Laois last June. It wrote to him a few weeks later, saying a triage system when entering the planning process is needed urgently. The proposed triaging could prioritise projects in the planning system that are considered to be of national significance, potentially allowing planning and licensing bodies to deal quickly with applications for housing schemes or developments that would help the country comply with European directives. In the context of Uisce Eireann, this could see work on water treatment plants given priority in areas where a boil-water notice may have been issued. The utility has been lobbying ministers as the Government is set to bring forward planning reforms. A new Planning and Development Bill that was approved by the Cabinet last month and aims to make the system user-friendly is due to be published soon. Nine Irish soldiers were killed while on duty in Congo in 1960. Before their deaths they showed a young girl great kindness Most of us remember where we were on momentous occasions, such as that moment on November 22, 1963, when we heard of the assassination of US president John F Kennedy. Also etched in my mind is what occurred on November 22 three years earlier. Like thousands of others, I watched as a convoy of army vehicles carried the coffins of nine young UN peacekeepers through Dublin on their way to Glasnevin Cemetery. Those old enough to remember said it was the biggest crowd to pay their respects since the funeral of Michael Collins. As the coffins passed along OConnell Street we watched in silence and sadness, unable to comprehend what had happened. Beyond the fact the soldiers had been killed by Baluba warriors in an ambush in the Congo, we knew little else. However, I discovered a story of courage and compassion behind those bare facts. The year was 1960. Chaos had broken out in the newly independent Congo and a UN peacekeeping force, including two Irish battalions, was sent there to help restore order. To add to the problems, the province of Katanga seceded, and bloody clashes broke out between Belgian-led Katanga Gendarmerie and the Baluba who opposed secession. Members of Lieutenant Kevin Gleesons platoon were sent to set up a post in Niemba. The village had been attacked, first by a Baluba war party, then by gendarmerie searching for three Europeans who had been taken prisoner. Inhabitants who survived fled to the safety of the bush. The Irish treated the people of Niemba with great compassion. They also saved the life of a 12-year-old girl who was severely disabled, and planned to bring her back to Dublin for rehabilitation. Her name was Feza. When the inhabitants began to return to the village, the medical orderly, Private Matthew Farrell, became the busiest man on the post. Matty, as he was called, had only a limited supply of drugs and medicines, but he did what he could for the steady stream of men, women and children who came to him for treatment. Pte Matty Farrell Then one day Lt Gleesons radio operator, Corporal Noel Hoyne, took a stroll down through one of the deserted villages. Near a hut on the edge of the bush he saw a girl sitting on a crude makeshift chair. She was very scared of him at first, but when he allayed her fears he discovered that the hut was no more than a henhouse. She was like a skeleton and paralysed from the waist down. With the few words of the local dialect that he knew, Cpl Hoyne gathered that she had been there since her parents had fled and would have starved to death but for the fact that she was able to drag herself over to the odd mango fruit that fell from a nearby tree. He immediately went back to the post where he got bread from Private Gerry Killeen, the cook, and a mineral from his billet which he gave to her very slowly. When he reported the matter, Lt Gleeson told him to bring her to the post and they would see what they could do for her. It was obvious the girl needed to be clothed and fed if she was to be restored to health, and as I wrote: The soldiers of Niemba took the poor little wretch to their hearts and lavished on her all the care and affection they could bestow. They set about making her hut habitable, and having dressed her with some nice flowery material which they had salvaged, and given her a bed of army blankets, they left her back in what to her was home. Feza became a special patient of the medical orderly. In common with many of the others, Matty would slip down to the hut to see if she was all right. They also give her food and money which she tucked away in a knotted handkerchief. However, their efforts to locate her family, or get any of the local people to take her in, failed. Lt Gleeson raised the matter with the chief of another village. They had a pow-wow, he told his wife. But they would not take her. When battalion headquarters were told about Feza, the chaplain, Fr John Crowley, arranged for her to be taken to a hospital in Albertville where she was placed in the care of the White Sisters. Maybe, Sergeant Hugh Gaynor wrote to his wife. We will have to pay for her there, but there are nearly 40 of us and it wont cost that much. Anyway, the money here is no good for anything. There is nothing to buy with it. Irish peacekeepers pictured with Feza In one of his letters, Matty Farrell said if it was possible to take Feza home with him he would. In fact, the soldiers gave serious consideration to the possibility of having her brought back to Ireland for treatment at the Rehabilitation Centre in Dun Laoghaire. However, they were told UN transport could not be used for such a purpose and the idea was abandoned. In October the UN made an agreement with the Katanga authorities, under which the gendarmerie would stay out of certain areas and the UN troops would keep the roads open. In spite of this agreement, and in spite of the help given by the Irish soldiers to the inhabitants of Niemba, Baluba warriors ambushed one of their patrols when they started to remove roadblocks that had been put in place to keep the gendarmerie out. Hoyne had the unenviable task of alerting headquarters when the patrol failed to return. It was discovered that eight members of the patrol including Gleeson, Gaynor, Killeen and Farrell had been killed. The remains of a ninth, Trooper Anthony Browne, would not be found for two years. What became of Feza is not known. Tom McCaughren wrote a detailed account of the ambush in a book called The Peacemakers of Niemba Climate storytelling needs to be character-driven and right now theres just two Great Thunberg (above) and David Attenborough Environmental campaigner Greta Thunberg arrives at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London after being charged with a public order offence while protesting last month outside the Energy Intelligence Forum. Photo: PA Since early in the days of climate action, there has been division over how to tell the story of climate change. We need to create fear, Al Gore one of the most influential climate communicators ever once told the scientist Hans Rosling. However, Rosling vehemently disagreed. Fear plus urgency make for stupid, drastic decisions with unpredictable side-effects, he wrote. The movie Dont Look Up, about an incoming comet threatening the world, may have been one of Netflixs most successful films ever, but many critics scientists among them found it unbearably clunky. An A-list apocalyptic mess, said The Guardian. There was criticism of New York Times columnist David Wallace-Wells recently for describing no less than Pope Francis as a climate alarmist (based on the Popes recent climate encyclical, Laudate Deum). Wallace-Wells wrote the bestselling alarmist book, The Uninhabitable Earth, for which he was accused by climate scientist Michael Mann of promoting doomism: if were doomed, why bother doing anything? If climate communicators are divided, it is often because they fear themselves to be losing. Policy change if it comes at all is too little, too late, too slow. Aghast at the success of the American new right in promoting an isolationist, anti-science worldview, at the stubborn inertia of human behaviour even in well-informed societies like Ireland, and at the success of interest groups in blocking or delaying vital policy change, climate activists are despairing. As we face into the annual UN climate summit known as the Conference of the Parties (COP), being held this year controversially in Dubai, there is good insight into the failures of climate communications to be gleaned from even the name of the summit: COP28 takes place in 2023, not 2028; not only that, there was also a COP15 this year (the parallel biodiversity conference). Unless you already know how it all works, that makes no sense at all. When they were naming the climate summits, nobody thought about branding. Yet communication has supposedly been an intrinsic part of climate action since the Rio Convention of 1992, which embedded public awareness programmes in the agenda. This is now referred to as Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) these people love their acronyms but ACE events have a low profile at COP28. The dominant mode of climate storytelling is experts explaining, but what humans seek in storytelling is characters struggling. The climate story is dominated by information so much information but the most powerful tool for understanding a story is empathy. In this, climate change has long faced a core challenge: those on the front lines were far away. They were either in far-off places, commonly depicted as undifferentiated victims, or in a far-off time in the future and therefore either abstract or overwhelmed by the tropes of science fiction. Two podcasts last week, each timed to anticipate COP, discussed the challenges facing those trying to tell the climate story. We need more character-centric climate stories, Anna Jane Joyner who runs a non-profit story consultancy called Good Energy told the American podcast Deep State Radio. Cinematic stories tend to be very character-driven; right now, most journalism and other forms of storytelling is still issue-focused and less about the people. Recent years have produced two great exceptions that prove this rule: Greta Thunberg and, in the UK, David Attenborough. As characters in their own right, not merely communicators, they became the means for millions of people to identify with the climate issue more intimately. For real behavioural change to happen, you need to connect on an emotional and on a cultural level, wildlife documentary maker Eoin Warner told an RTE podcast recorded to accompany Wednesday nights fictional news programme, Tomorrow Tonight: Ireland 2050 (I was a part of both the programme and podcast). Maeve Stone, an artist and activist, noted that the resources of those telling the story of climate change are dwarfed by the resources of those telling opposing stories: the advertising and marketing departments of companies whose job is to sell goods we dont need goods that emit carbon in the process of production. A case in point: sales of SUVs in Ireland are way above the European average, driven by advertising that portrays them, falsely, as nature-friendly. Their army of storytellers is embedded in every platform, every surface that you move through in the city, Stone said. They have the absolute chokehold on our attention. So there are immense challenges to telling the story of the changing climate. Yet perhaps there is less of a problem than climate activists fear. The Yale Program on Climate Change Communication has found most Americans are worried about climate change, believe it should be a government priority and believe the government is not doing enough; other studies have found that those holding such views believe, wrongly, that they are in the minority. That suggests there is untapped support for climate action; the challenge to climate communicators then becomes not how to counter despair and denial, but how to empower those supporters to action. The most influential writer of climate fiction today is the novelist Kim Stanley Robinson. His fiction traces paths to future utopia, not dystopia; and since his landmark 2020 novel, The Ministry for the Future, he has grown more optimistic. I dont want apocalypticism to become an aesthetic, he told the New York Times. Richard Delevan, who runs the communications agency Wicked Problems, describes the task for climate storytellers simply: Describe the present in a recognisable way and offer an attractive vision of the future. This argument risks blurring the lines between things that should be separate: reporting and advocacy. Narrative storytellers, though, are free to build on both. If too much of that storytelling heretofore has indulged in the apocalyptic, perhaps it is time for a new story to be told about climate action: one that empowers its audience, rather than depresses them. Modern media is more than just TV and newspapers. Image: Getty Ireland has one of the cheapest TV licence fees in Europe, but the highest rate of licence-fee evasion. Photo: Getty Before any decision is made on a new funding model for RTE, it is important that public service broadcasting should be clearly defined. The existing definition, as outlined in the Broadcasting Act of 2009, is widely regarded as being out of step with current realities facing media companies worldwide. Indeed, the remit of Irish public service broadcasters, which include TG4 and others, was always poorly defined, and at one point was actually considered to be possibly in contravention of EU rules on state aid. RTE last week outlined the parameters of its strategic vision and new direction after the payments and management controversy that engulfed the broadcaster in recent months. The plan is to make RTE a more streamlined, modern and simpler organisation, with fewer employees, reduced overheads and updated technology which in reality is no more than RTE attempting to catch up with rapid developments in independent media in recent years. Clearly, there continues to be a place for a public broadcaster in every country and in every market throughout Europe, though funding models can vary depending on the considerations of different governments. In this country, RTE uses public money to offer services that independent media companies are also providing in print (RTE Guide), online (RTE.ie) and on other platforms (radio and television). No publicly funded organisation should do what the market is already providing for, since doing so seriously distorts that market. Public players should not act as a competitor with a huge unfair financial advantage over independent media, as is the case in this country. In any decisions to be taken, the Government should not lose sight of the fact that, for example, Irish newspapers digital and print can be counted on to provide the subject matter of the countrys democratic conversation. Indeed, as noted in the recently published Report on Future Funding of Public Service Broadcasting, broadcast media here start and end their day with stories from national newspapers. Even though Ireland has one of the lowest TV licence fees in Europe, both per household and per capita, the highest rates of licence-fee evasion in Europe still occur in this country. The reasons for that are varied, but the upshot is that the current funding model is broken. The Government has put off any decision on a new funding model until 2025. But in the meantime, tens of millions of euro will be transferred to RTE until such time as a decision is taken. Careful consideration must be given to this decision. The Report on Future Funding of Public Service Broadcasting included a recommendation that funding for public service media should shift from the current system to one based entirely on general exchequer funds. While the Government has set its face against that recommendation, there remains merit to it. Whatever decisions are eventually taken, a new, serious and responsible public broadcaster must emerge. The Governments direction of travel, broadly speaking, would appear to be the correct one. However, notwithstanding the plans ann-ounced last week, the leadership of RTE still does not seem to have properly questioned what should be the role of the broadcaster in a healthy Irish media landscape. People sometimes use the term nanny state when they think the Government is being overprotective and interfering in their lives. But while no one wants a lawless world where Billy the Kid can commit crimes without fear of consequences, we do need the Government to be concerned about the dire state of actual nannies that we otherwise risk losing forever. Shane Ross: RTEs Kevin Bakhurst is a canny operator who has the Coalition over a barrel DG knows well that no government can let the State broadcaster fail RTE director general Kevin Bakhurst Shane Ross Sun 19 Nov 2023 at 03:30 Its hard to fathom Kevin Bakhurst, RTEs gentle director general at the heart of the stations turmoil. Here are just some of the reasons why people are choosing the Hungarian capital for dental care. Sponsored by Kreativ Dental Many Irish people are opting to travel abroad for dental treatment. One of the main reasons for this is the significant cost savings dental procedures such as implants, crowns, and root canals can be expensive, and many people may not be able to afford to pay for them in Ireland. According to research by Healthwatch, as the cost of living crisis continues, the number of people who avoid the dentist due to treatment costs has increased to 15pc up from 12pc in October. Over the years, Hungary has become a major destination for those seeking dental treatment abroad. Kreativ Dental Clinic in Budapest, Hungary, for example, offers up to 70pc in savings for the same treatments. But aside from the cost savings, there are a number of reasons why Budapest is becoming a top choice for those seeking dental care here are just some: Quality of care and expertise When travelling abroad for dental treatment, its always important to do your research, to ensure the clinic you are choosing to visit has a good reputation with experienced dental staff. As a member of the EU, dental care in Hungary conforms to EU regulations. Hungary boasts some of the best dentistry schools and dentists, and the city of Budapest, in particular, is renowned as a dental capital, with high-quality education provided by Hungarian universities and advanced dental technology available within clinics. Kreativ Dental Clinic has a team of highly skilled dental specialists, many of whom have been there since its inception almost 30 years ago. These include implantologists, oral surgeons, endodontists and general practitioners, who all work together to provide you with high-quality dental treatment at affordable prices. With the increasing presence of digitalisation in our daily lives, the clinic is also consistently advancing their treatment procedures through the adoption of new dental technologies. For example, instead of traditional impressions (using a putty-like material, such as alginates, to create moulds of a patient's teeth), the clinic can offer patients a more comfortable solution using a Medit i500 oral scanner. During the procedure, the clinics dentists scan the patients complete dental status and the relative positions of the jaws, and it takes only a few minutes. The treatment is entirely gentle and pain-free, as impressions are taken digitally. Mary Flanagan, who is the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland representative of Kreativ Dental Clinic and was once a patient of the clinic herself, says, It is important to realise that cheaper costs do not necessarily mean lower quality of care. So when doing your research, as well as making sure the costs meet your budget, make sure the clinic offers exceptional service and quality. Past patients Kreativ Dental has been treating Irish and worldwide patients for over 20 years. In fact, some of them are familiar faces. Eilish OCarroll, who is well-known for her role as Winnie McGoogan in the popular BBC sitcom, Mrs Browns Boys was a recent patient, and award-winning travel journalist and podcaster Ed Finn was also a previous patient. Mary says, Many Irish people have travelled over to the clinic for dental treatment throughout the years and have been delighted with the results, myself included. I do believe the clinic would not be in business as long as it has been if the quality wasnt up-to-standard. If people are continuing to travel to Budapest for treatment, then its obviously a very good sign! Essential additional extras When going for dental treatment abroad, its essential that the clinic provides you with a full breakdown of the treatment process and costs, so you understand exactly what to expect. And that you have information on aftercare details what are your options for follow-up care or if you experience an issue when you return home after treatment? Another benefit of Kreativ Dental is that not only do they offer a free consultation, which includes a free OPG X-ray and a full breakdown of individual treatment plans, but they also provide an aftercare service in Ireland. Mary Flanagan says, I believe an aftercare service in Ireland is an important factor to look into when travelling abroad for dental work in the unfortunate case that something does go wrong. This can put patients at ease. Kreativ Dental Clinic provides an aftercare service in Ireland, as well as a written guarantee. Mary adds, Patients can also claim tax back, similar to an Irish dentist. English-speaking The Irish Dental Association recently said that in some cases, dentists abroad may not be familiar with certain medications used in Ireland, and advised that dentists should always ask about your health and medical history. They also warned against travelling anywhere that may have a language barrier, as important details could get lost in translation. Dental specialists in Budapest tend to speak excellent English at a minimum. All the staff at Kreativ Dental speak fluent English, and if there is anything you are unsure about when booking a trip over, as the Irish representative, Mary Flanagan is on-hand to help. Seeing a beautiful city Another compelling aspect of dental tourism abroad is getting the opportunity to combine it with a holiday or city break. Theres lots to do in Budapest, particularly coming up to Christmas. Its an opportunity to visit Budapests Christmas markets! The Budapest Christmas Fair in Vorosmarty Square is embellished with nativity scenes, handicrafts and a giant fir tree. Wandering the stalls is a feast for the senses, with the scent of cinnamon from steaming cups of wine drifting in the air, while you enjoy warm Hungarian cookies and winter drinks! There are also many other sights worth visiting in Budapest, including the impressive Hungarian Parliament, Buda Castle and Szechenyi Spa Bath, one of the best and largest natural hot spring spa baths in Europe. By turning your dental trip into a holiday with a companion, it can even make you feel more confident about your treatment. Plus, Budapest is only a short flight away, with an average of two flights from Dublin Airport per day. For those considering travelling abroad for dental treatment for the first time, Kreativ Dental offers a free consultation and OPG X-ray, free accommodation for the first night in Budapest, and free airport transport. Mary can help to book your appointment at the clinic. However, do make sure there is an appointment available before booking flights, as appointments do fill up quickly. For more information, contact Mary Flanagan, who is the ROI and NI representative for Kreativ Dental Clinic. Call Mary at (086) 029 9998 or (01) 805 5526, email mary@kreativdentalclinic.eu or visit kreativdentalclinic.eu Taylor Swift was due to perform in Rio on Saturday (Doug Peters/PA) Taylor Swift has said her Saturday night show in Rio de Janeiro has been postponed due to extreme temperatures. It comes after concert organisers, Time4Fun, said in a statement to Instagram that 23-year-old Ana Clara Benevides Machado, who turned up at Swifts Friday night show in Rio, had been taken to hospital, where she died an hour later. Swift, 33, posted to her Instagram story and said: Im writing this from my dressing room in the stadium. The decision has been made to postpone tonights show due to the extreme temperatures in Rio. The safety and well-being of my fans, fellow performers, and crew has to and always will come first. The cause of death for the young woman who sought medical attention at Nilton Santos Olympic Stadium during Fridays show has not yet been announced. Brazil is currently experiencing scorching temperatures and videos from Fridays performance show Swift asking staff to pass water bottles to fans. Media outlets have reported that fans were not allowed to take water into the stadium despite soaring temperatures. Two concert goers interviewed by the Associated Press said they witnessed people feeling unwell from the heat during the show. Swift had shared her condolences with the friends and family of the woman who died on Saturday. We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content In a note shared to Instagram, Swift said: I cant believe Im writing these words but it is with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show. I cant even tell you how devastated I am by this. Theres very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young. She added: I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it. I want to say now I feel this loss deeply and my broken heart goes out to her family and friends. This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil. Swift is currently on the South American leg of The Eras Tour, which has further dates in Sao Paulo as well as Rio. LATEST | UN chief Guterres says Gaza's civilian death toll 'staggering and unacceptable' amid hopes of hostage deal At least 30 premature babies evacuated as WHO reports mass grave at Al Shifa hospital death zone A man carries the body of a Palestinian child killed in Israeli strikes, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. Photo: Reuters Najib Jobain and Samy Magdy Sun 19 Nov 2023 at 17:06 Hamas gunmen battled Israeli forces trying to push into Gaza's largest refugee camp on Sunday and at least 11 Palestinians were killed by an Israeli air strike on a house, medics said, as hopes rose of a deal to free some hostages from the enclave. Photo Courtesy: Wikipedia.org OpenAI is under pressure from its top investors to bring back Sam Altman as chief executive officer after sacking him on Friday, taking the world by surprise, international media reports said. Microsoft Corp is said to be leading the efforts to reinstate Altman. The company has more than $10 billion stake in the artificial intelligence company, which has created ChatGPT. Microsoft Corp is working with investors including Thrive Capital and Tiger Global Management to bring back Altman, said the people, who asked to remain anonymous discussing private information. Venture capital firms with stakes in OpenAI's profit-driven venture have engaged in discussions with Microsoft and senior personnel at the company about the possibility of reinstating Altman. This is despite indications from Altman himself that he plans to establish a new startup, Forbes reported, citing information from four sources. As per a Bloomberg report, Satya Nadella has personally assured Altman of his support in his future endeavours, expressing surprise at the board's decision to remove Altman as the company's CEO. Upon Sam Altman's departure from the company, a number of key figures, including co-founder Greg Brockman and other top researchers, tendered their resignation as a form of protest. Bloomberg reported citing sources that such resignations could persist following Altman's removal and if Altman were to return as the OpenAI CEO, he would likely seek alterations in the company's governance structure. Meanwhile, The Verge reported that the staff at OpenAI have set a deadline of 5 pm for the board to reinstate Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, or else more resignations would occur. Initially, the board had agreed to step down to facilitate Altman and Gregs return but later hesitated and missed the specified deadline. The Verge report also suggests that if Altman opts to start a new company, these employees are likely to follow him. According to a source cited by Forbes, the strategy outlined in the playbook is quite direct. Prompt the new leadership at OpenAI, currently led by acting CEO Mira Murati and the remaining board, to acknowledge the untenability of their situation. This would be attained through a joint effort involving a mass protest by senior researchers, withholding cloud computing credits from Microsoft, and the potential threat of a lawsuit from investors. Faced with such challenges, it is expected that the management would be forced to reinstate Altman. This could subsequently lead to the exit of people thought to be the forces behind Altman's removal, including co-founder Ilya Sutskever and board director Adam DAngelo, who is the CEO of Quora, the report said. The Forbes report further added that if such an effort fails to materialise in time, Altman and OpenAI ex-president Greg Brockman may go ahead with their plans to raise funds for their new venture Newco. The report added citing sources that at least one firm, Sequoia, was separately communicating with Microsoft to push for Altman and Brockmans reinstatement and it has expressed support for Altman, regardless of the option he chooses to pursue. Photo Courtesy: Pixabay New Delhi: The Finance Ministry has asked state-owned banks to reassess their digital operations in light of the recent UCO Bank incident, media reports said. It has been advised that banks maintain a vigilant stance and be prepared for potential cyber threats in the future. The Finance Ministry and RBI have consistently stressed the importance of cybersecurity to banks, given the increasing digitisation in the financial sector. Last week, UCO Bank, a public sector lender based in Kolkata, revealed an erroneous crediting of Rs 820 crore to the accounts of its customers through the Immediate Payment Service (IMPS). Between November 10 and 13, the bank found technical glitches in the IMPS system, leading to the inadvertent transactions by account holders from other banks resulting in the crediting of funds to UCO Bank account holders without the corresponding actual receipt of money from these external banks. IMPS is an instant interbank electronic funds transfer system that operates without any manual intervention. In order to control the situation, UCO Bank blocked the accounts of the recipients and managed to recover Rs 649 crore out of the total of Rs 820 crore, comprising around 79% of the erroneously credited amount. The bank has not clarified whether the error occurred due to a technical glitch stemming from human error or a potential hacking attempt. However, it has reported the incident to law enforcement agencies to initiate the necessary actions and investigations. Image credit: UNI Agartala/IBNS: The Tripura government has made the dress code for doctors, nurses, laboratory technicians, and other health workers mandatory in hospitals during duty hours and warned of strict action in case of violation of the order. In a recent circular the government said, Being an official and designated responsible person in the hospital, staff in the hospital must wear their appropriate dress codified nationwide for them. Also, they should attach a name-plate and wear an identity card which is mandatory for easy identification. The contempt of this order will be handled strictly, the circular warned. The doctors, nurses, lab technicians, and other health staff have never regularly worn their codified dress. Except for nurses, doctors and other staff including even medical superintendents of hospitals avoid using aprons. According to a report, Chief Minister Manik Saha, who also holds the health portfolio, came to know that a sizable number of health workers including doctors in the government hospitals and Medical Colleges remain busy with personal work during their duty hours and are not found in their chairs most of the time. Even some staff have been misbehaving with the patients and misguiding them in Agartala Government Medical College, state referral hospital IGM, and district hospitals across the state. Many patients and their relatives, wishing to file complaints, often find it difficult to identify their tormentors among doctors, nurses, and other health staff because of their casual dress and absence of nameplates, officials stated. [With UNI inputs] Mimi Chakraborty marks her Bollywood debut with Shastry Virudh Shastry Actress-parliamentarian Mimi Chakraborty , a premier member of the Bengali film industry, made her Bollywood debut with Nandita Roy-Shiboprosad Mukherjee's Shastry Virudh Shastry, the Hindi remake of the director duo's 2017 Bengali movie Posto. In an interview with IBNS correspondent Souvik Ghosh, Mimi shares her journey from Kolkata to Mumbai, her experience of starring alongside Paresh Rawal and more... Excerpts of the interview Q. You had previously turned down a number of Bollywood projects. Why did you pick Shastry Virudh Shastry for your Hindi debut? A. For me, it was never about doing a random Bollywood project which comes my way. I dont jump into any random offers coming from Bollywood. My approach to work is the same irrespective of industries. I dont want to be lost in a crowd. Moreover, I have worked in the Bengali or the original version of Shastry Virudh Shastry. I knew the script and I had even auditioned for my role in Shastry Virudh Shastry. In a nutshell, I wont jump into a Bollywood project for the sake of just working on a Hindi film. I will stay away from any project where I have least to work on scriptwise. Q. How tough was it mentally to be auditioned even after featuring in the film's original version and also being in the field for long? A. Honestly, I look at work as it is. I do not have any baggage. I will follow if something needs to be done. I understand the makers wanted to see my dialect since I am a Bengali. They are not supposed to know how good my Hindi is. I had to do a huge chunk from the film in the audition. I just feel people like us, who come from the regional industries, go through this struggle unlike many insiders who have a lineage. Q. You told us earlier that you were not secured as an actor in the early part of your career to play a mother's role in Posto. Was it easier this time to play the same role after a gap of a few years? A. Yes, of course. Posto came really early in my career. When I was offered Posto, people were not as much driven towards content-oriented films as they are now. The taboo over playing roles like a mother does not exist anymore. Actors can now easily play any role as per the demand of the script. Previously, they had to be cautious before playing such roles early in their careers, analysing how that might impact their prospects. It is true a lot of actors had turned down Posto for the same reason but I had liked the script. As I said earlier, I am now in a secured place as an actor. I am aware it is not possible for me to become an A-lister in Bollywood overnight. I am happy and content in the Bengali film industry with the kind of establishment I have. Its not that my life will be difficult without Bollywood. I am definitely ready for a good project and role that comes my way in Mumbai. But Bollywood actually has its own run, artists and a huge number of people who are in the queue to make a big splash in the industry. I know people who are still not able to get a break even after struggling for 10 years. I dont want to be a part of such a rush. Mimi Chakraborty in Shastry Virudh Shastry Q. You starred alongside a legend, Soumitra Chattopadhyay, in Posto. How was working with veteran actor Paresh Rawal in Shastry Virudh Shastry? A. He (Paresh Rawal) is a gem of a person. It was very convenient to work with him. One can have a conversation with him. He is a very fun-loving person. We used to chat over a number of subjects and share various stories. I didn't hold back from telling him that Baburao (Baburao Ganpatrao Apte, Paresh Rawal's character in Hera Pheri) is my favourite character that he has played onscreen. Q. Did your experience of working in hectic schedules in the Bengali film industry made it easier for you in Mumbai where the shooting process is lengthy? A. Yes, yes. I think everyone who goes to Mumbai from Bengal experiences it. I heard it from others as well. We in Kolkata work on a definite schedule and budget contrary to the humongous budget in Mumbai. Maybe the work is the same but the time span of making it is longer. Budget is definitely a factor. There is no doubt working in Bengali films strengthens an actor in that respect. When we go to Mumbai, the workload gets halved. Q. Did the shooting for Shastry Virudh Shastry remind you of the early days of your career or the struggles in Kolkata since it was a debut in Mumbai? A. No, not really because I am now established back home. So there was no such possibility. I didnt face any struggle in Mumbai now because people know me for the kind of work I have already done over the years. Q. You have already cleared that you would opt for those roles in Mumbai that would justify the kind of love you have received from the Bengali audience. Could you elaborate what kind of roles you are aiming for? A. I want to feature in all good works. Moreover, it is to be analysed how much I am keen to do the kind of parts which are offered to me. It depends. But apart from that, its too early for me to comment. I will have to see what comes in my way and it depends on what I want to do. Q. Back home, Raktabeej is a success. Your bid to explore diverse roles did pay off finally even after two of your previous films not doing so well. A. Its great when a film works. Of course, I feel bad when something doesnt resonate with the audience. Everyone had praised my roles and work in two previous films, Mini and Khela Jawkhon. A film doesn't work for a lot of reasons. People had appreciated my works in both the films, where I played diverse characters. Of course, it takes a toll on our minds when a film doesnt meet the expectations but we as actors need to move on. When it comes to Raktabeej, I could see a blockbuster written on it. I got to play a wonderful character, which was somewhere in me and I wanted to explore that. It feels great to see Raktabeej turning into a blockbuster and everyone loving the dialogues of Sanjukta Mitra (the police officer's role played by Mimi in the film). It gives a boost to work harder. Q. Your Instagram post of skydiving recently became popular. Does it symbolise your current state of mind in terms of your career? A. I am very grateful for everything that has come to my life. Nothing has come easy in my life. I didnt have any godfather, father, brother, husband or boyfriend to back me up for anything in the industry. Whatever I did, it was my work, audience and fans to back me up. I am actually very grateful to each and every individual, who went to the theatres and watched my films. I want to be so humble in life that success doesn't touch me. Mimi Chakraborty skydiving I am a very adventurous, fun-loving person who lives in the moment and wants to celebrate life at each and every point of it so that I dont regret later. Skydiving, which is about celebrating life and a very liberating experience, was always on my bucket list. I am happy that I could do it. I dont know what else symbolism it carries but it actually symbolises happiness. (laughs). (Images: Mimi Chakraborty's Team, Screenshot grab from trailer video and Instagram) Image courtesy: UNICEF Washington/IBNS/UNI: The United States, Israel, and Hamas are close to an agreement on a five-day pause in fighting in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of hostages, The Washington Post reported on Sunday, citing sources. The six-page agreement provides for a cessation of all combat operations by the parties to the conflict for at least five days and the release of 50 or more hostages, the report said, adding that the release of the hostages could begin in the coming days. The pause will be monitored from the air, the newspaper reported. The agreement outline was drawn up during weeks of negotiations in Doha between Israel, the US, and Hamas, indirectly represented by Qatari mediators, the report read, citing Arab and other diplomats. It is still unclear, however, whether Israel will agree to suspend the offensive in the Gaza Strip temporarily, provided the conditions are right, the newspaper said. In image Israeli soldiers at war with Hamas/ courtesy: UNI Jerusalem/IBNS/UNI: The number of Israeli soldiers killed in the escalation of conflict with Palestinian movement Hamas since October 7 has reached 378, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson RDML Daniel Hagari said on Saturday. "To date, we have notified the families of 378 fallen IDF soldiers who fell defending the State of Israel. We embrace the families during these difficult times," Hagari told a briefing. On October 7, Hamas launched a surprise large-scale rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip and breached the border, killing and abducting people in neighboring Israeli communities. Israel launched retaliatory strikes and ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip, cutting off supplies of water, food, and fuel. On October 27, Israel launched a large-scale ground incursion inside the Gaza Strip with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. The conflict has resulted in the deaths of around 1,200 people in Israel and over 12,000 in the Gaza Strip. Photo Courtesy: videograb/https://www.youtube.com/@homewardsuk British royal Prince William has topped as the sexiest bald man of 2023 in ranking based on Google search traffic and physical traits compiled by Reboot. The Prince of Wales unseated Vin Diesel and Hollywood actor Jason Statham from their top positions in internet searches, where people searched for images of bald celebrities either shirtless or naked. The study also included parameters like height, net worth, the ratio and proportions of their faces (also known as the golden ratio) and how shiny their scalps are. The total score for sexiness was 10 and the British royal beat everyone else with a score of 9.88. The study also examined the contenders' average voice frequency to assess its proximity to the presumed ideal of 96Hz, reported Mirror. According to the research, Prince William has a net worth of about 100 million dollars, stands at a height of 1.91 meters, and obtained an impressive score of 9.91 in "vocal attractiveness." He received an 8.90 out of 10 for his shiny scalp. Vin Diesel secured the second position with a total score of 8.81, while Jason Statham claimed the third spot with a score of 8.51. Amazon founder and billionaire Jeff Bezos got the fifth position, with a score of 7.12. Samuel L Jackson, Michael Jordan, and Dwayne Johnson took the fourth, sixth, and seventh places, respectively. The brush fire on Afton Mountain has been 100% contained three days after it was ignited by a vehicle fire off Interstate 64. The fire had burned a total of 29 acres as of Saturday evening, according to the Virginia Department of Forestry. No residences or other structures were ever in harms way. Officials with the Charlottesville-based state agency said the majority of that acreage was private property and only a handful of acres of Shenandoah National Park were scorched. Skyline Drive between Rockfish Gap and the Loft Mountain Area, which had been closed for fire crews to access the flames, has reopened. The portion of the [Appalachian Trail] between Rockfish and Jarman Gap will remain closed while firefighters continue to mop up and monitor the fire, the National Park Service said in a Saturday statement. I-64 near mile marker 100 where the fire first started has been fully open since Friday. The fire was ignited Thursday afternoon. Motorists traveling west on I-64 witnessed a white pickup truck, towing a Winnebago trailer, engulfed in flame on the shoulder of the highway. Forestry and park service officials said the fire jumped from the vehicle into the nearby woods and began spreading uphill on Afton Mountain. Fire tends to burn uphill, Cory Swift-Turner, a Department of Forestry spokesman, told The Daily Progress on Friday. Thats because winds that are driven against the mountain go up the hill, and that fuels the fire. Albemarle County Fire Rescue was the first to respond to the blaze. Career and volunteer local fire crews were later assisted by a helicopter that had left the now-contained, 4,000-acre Quaker Run Fire in Madison County. The helicopter performed water drops on the fire Thursday to slow its spread as state and federal firefighters traveled to the fire area. By Friday, those local firefighters and the helicopter had disbanded, replaced by a team of 40 state and federal personnel. Big shoutout to the awesome team on the Royal Orchard Fire, the park service posted to Instagram Saturday. Wildfires have been burning across the hilly and mountainous western half of Virginia since the start of fall. The largest of which, the Matts Creek Fire in Bedford County, covered more than 7,600 acres, nearly 12 square miles, as of Sunday. Severe drought and the rough terrain in the region has made it difficult for firefighters to prevent and slow the spread of the fires. Virginia remains under a state of emergency regarding the wildfires. Counties across central and southwest Virginia as well as the Shenandoah Valley have imposed total burn bans. Photo Courtesy: Pixabay Two teachers of a local seminary in Pakistan's Chakwal region were booked by the police after they were accused of sexually assaulting and torturing students, media reports said. According to the first information report (FIR), a victims father claimed that two seminary teachers Zeeshan and Anis had sexually assaulted and tortured 14 students, including his son, reported ARY News. The FIR mentioned the suspects threatened students and even made marks on their bodies with knives. Police arrested Anis after the FIR was filed. Zeeshan has not been arrested so far. Photo Courtesy: Unsplash The body of a Pakistani police constable, who was kidnapped by terrorists on Thursday, was recovered from mountains near Land Ahmadkhel area of Lakki Marwat district, media reports said on Sunday. The slain constable was identified as Farmanullah. He was serving as the Frontier Reserve Police constable. An official told Dawn News a group of terrorists intercepted the policeman at gunpoint near the village and took him away. The police had launched a search for the missing cop, and found his bullet-riddled body from the mountains on Friday evening, he told the newspaper. The body was shifted to Government City Hospital for autopsy," he said. He said a police contingent later reached the rural area to find the terrorists. No arrests have been made so far. Photo Courtesy: Octavian Dan/Unsplash A transgender woman's first date with a person in the US city of Houston turned out to be a nightmare for her as she had to fight him off after he attempted to slit her throat. Kordel Stewart, 24, is charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for the alleged attack that happened on Sept. 20, reported ABC News . Tayla Smith, 22, said she met Stewart on a dating app. She even described him as a "gentleman" before they met on their first date. A couple of days after meeting and texting with Stewart, she said she invited him to her home in southeast Houston, the news channel reported. Tayla Smith said she revealed her gender identity to him before their meeting. "I would never not tell a person," Smith told ABC News. "That was something discussed way before we even started having a conversation." Speaking on their meeting, Smith told the news channel that about five hours later, the two began kissing before he allegedly pinned her hands under his knees, pulled out a knife and slit her throat. "I guess it was in his shorts, and he just slit my throat at the same time as he covered my mouth," Smith said. She said the violent fight ensued from that point. "At this point, I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, Tayla! If you don't fight back, you're going to die. He's going to get this knife out of your hands, and he's going to stab you to death,'" she said. Smith said she reached neighbours for help. Stewart was arrested hours later and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He remains in the Harris County Jail on a $125,000 bond, reported ABC News. Smith told the news channel that she did not know about prior charges Stewart was facing. Court records in Galveston show Stewart was charged with murder in 2020. He was accused of shooting and killing a man during a sale of shoes, reported ABC News. The case was dismissed in April of 2023. Records cite that an eyewitness, a surviving victim of the shooting, refused to cooperate. It's time to celebrate and embrace the spirit of gratitude as Thanksgiving draws near. Here's a unique optical illusion that will test your observation skills and add a playful twist to your holiday celebrations. Prepare yourself for an eye-opening adventure as you try to find the hidden turkey. Find The Hidden Turkey In This Thanksgiving Optical Illusion Credit: Bing This scene is more complex than it first appears. There's a turkey waiting to be found amid all the fine details of the table arrangement. Microsoft Bing asked their social media followers to locate the delicious centrepiece in this maze-like photo that they shared on social media. "Can you spot the turkey?" Bing posed the question alongside an image of a table strewn with various Thanksgiving-themed objects. Fall favourites like pies, apples, pumpkins, and warm hats were featured in the photo. Answer Is Here! A few admirers found the turkey sandwiched between a pumpkin and a hat in the bottom right corner. Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate sharing, joy, and thankfulness. With the addition of this optical illusion, your celebrations will have a touch of mystery and humour, and everyone will get to practice their observation skills while taking in the holiday cheer. Credit: Bing This Thanksgiving, add a little extra fun and laughter to your gathering by having your guests search for the hidden turkey. You don't have to be an expert to enjoy these kinds of games. I hope you have a great hunting season! What do you think about it? Do let us know in the comments. For more trending stories, follow us on Telegram. A significant increase in requests for Golden Visas from Israeli citizens is recorded in the competent services of the Ministry of Immigration and Asylum The Anambra State Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Ifeatu Obi-Okoye, has ruled out the possibility of any strong political force removing Governor Chukwuma Soludo from the governorship seat in 2025. Obi-Okoye disclosed that the party is not afraid of the Obidient movement, adding that it would fizzle out with time. The chairman made this known on Saturday, while speaking with newsmen in his office in Awka, the states capital. He argued that APGA has succeeded in beating the candidates sponsored by Obi and would most likely beat anyone he sponsors in 2025. Okoye said: By Labour candidate you mean Valentine Ozigbo, is it not? Unfortunately, that name has become synonymous with losing elections. If he contests, he will be contesting against his homeboy from Aguata (Soludo). READ MORE: Your Party Doesnt Exist In Anambra, You All Are Noise Makers Soludo Knocks APC So, I can say the Obidient man, APGA has beaten him twice. We beat him when he brought a man from Ogbaru, Oseloka Obaze, and we beat him again when he brought Val Ozigbo. What happened in the last Obidient Movement is a lesson to Igbo and should not repeat itself. It was like what happened in 1967 when we went to war with Nigeria without preparation. It is not likely to happen to Ndigbo again. Major Agbo, factional leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) says the Party is not in merger talks with any other political party. Disclosing this in a statement on Saturday, Agbo added that the NNPP is also not considering any merger at the moment as proposed by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party. Recall that Yakubu Shendam, a spokesperson and member of another NNPPs faction, said the Party is open to merging with other parties if Rabiu Kwankwaso would be the anointed candidate for the 2027 presidential election. In the latest development, Agbo accused Shendam of speaking for Kwankwaso, not the NNPP. He added that Kwankwaso is no longer a member of our party, and Shendam is also not a card-carrying member of our party. Agbo said the NNPP certificate cannot be subsumed into any other, and the partys mandate remains independent. The BoT, in its meeting on Aug. 28, had expelled Kwankwaso, and the decision was ratified by the National Convention of Aug. 29 in Lagos due to anti-party activities and other serious infractions. Kwankwaso is no longer a member of our party, and cannot be its presidential candidate in 2027, and Shendam needs to know this. Every Nigerian is interested in having a true democracy that is all-inclusive, what we have now is far away from democracy. So, if there is a proposition by opposition elements to ensure that democracy is installed, why not? READ ALSO: Be Guided On Type Of Crime You Commit, Stealing Is Different From Armed Robbery Police Tell Nigerians However, that proposition must be given a good thought, considered by the founder and other founding members of our party. Anything that will make Nigerians witness democracy is accepted, but our certificate is independent. Our certificate cannot be subsumed into any other as being imagined by Kwankwaso, Buba Galadima, Shendam and their Kwankwassiya group, who are no longer members of our party. At the moment, we are not considering any merger, and if there will be any form of alliance (certainly not a merger) at all, it should be with the NNPP, because Atiku is now retiring. So, he should support our party to enthrone a dependable leadership come 2027, Agbo stated. There has been a leadership crisis rocking the NNPP which began when the partys Board of Trustees led by Boniface Aniebonam expelled Kwankwaso over anti-party activities. In reaction, a faction loyal to Kwankwaso reversed the decision and expelled some national officers over alleged anti-party activities. However, a high court in Kano set aside Kwankwasos suspension and restrained party members from acting further on the case. The Appeal Court sitting in Abuja has sacked the Plateau State Governor, Caleb Muftwang, and declared Nentawe Goshwe of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the election. In her ruling on Sunday, the lead Justice, Elfrieda Williams-Dawodu, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue a Certificate of Return to the candidate of the All Progressive Congress, Nentawe Goshwe. The appellate court, in a decision by a three-member panel of Justices, held that Mutfwang was not validly nominated and sponsored by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to participate in the gubernatorial contest that held on March 18. READ MORE: Fake Employment Letters Were Issued To Civil Servants In Plateau Committee It held that all the votes that were credited to him and the PDP after the election amounted to wasted votes. It ordered that the candidate that got the second majority lawful votes at the election, should be sworn in as governor of the state. Former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, has identified corruption as the greatest challenge to growth and development in Nigeria. Magu led this out on Saturday at the investiture of Fellows and Graduate members of the Institute for Governance and Leadership Studies in Africa (IGLSA) held at the Africa University of Science and Technology, Abuja The former EFCC Chairman restated his belief in the fight against corruption even as he left the system. READ MORE: EFCC Arraigns, Remands 11 OAU Students For Internet Fraud Magu stated that when a nation fights corruption, it is certain that the future is assured for all of the citizens. He said: Today as we celebrate this honour, I therefore reemphasize the importance of eradicating corruption for our nations progress. When you fight corruption, it is certain that the future is assured for all. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has revealed that some operatives of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) who stormed the Kaduna command of the agency to free suspected fraudsters would be charged in court. The EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Saturday. INFORMATION NIGERIA learnt that the anti-graft agency had arrested five suspects, who are NAF officers, on Monday at Disney Chicken Eatery in the Barnawa area of Kaduna after credible intelligence. READ MORE: Off-Cycle Polls: EFCC Nabs 14 Vote Buyers, Intercepts N11m The suspects, identified as Favour Itung, Rachael Ande, Zuleiman Haruna, Abubakar Ismaila and Solomon Olobatoke, were arrested without any incident. However, four days after the arrest, some NAF operatives stormed the EFCC office in an attempt to allegedly free the suspects from detention. The accused include Lawal Abdullahi, Chukwuma Chidi Christian, Alfa Suleiman and Emmanuel Ekwozor, air force personnel, alongside Chidera Anuba and Joseph Tokula, two students of Nigerian Air Force Institute of Technology, The EFCC, therefore, released the arrested NAF officers, after they had been duly profiled, adding that there was a communication breakdown between the leaderships of the two agencies. However, in a statement yesterday, Oyewale confirmed that the NAF officers would be arraigned before the court after the conclusion of the investigation into the incident. He stated that no one is above the law, adding that due process would be followed in bringing the case to a conclusion. The statement reads: The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) personnel released on administrative bail by the Kaduna Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Friday, November 17, 2023, will be charged to court at the conclusion of the ongoing investigation. The officers were released to their Service in strict adherence to the bail procedures of the Commission. The Commission reiterates the fact that no one is above the law and the due process will be followed in bringing the case to a conclusion. A group of parents is faulting Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares for not investigating the Virginia Department of Education and the Fairfax County school system for their alleged discrimination against students with disabilities. The attorney generals office says it cannot investigate because it does not have jurisdiction over the claims. A group of parents of students with disabilities filed a complaint under the Virginia Human Rights Act in August, and has yet to hear back from the Virginia attorney generals office. Miyares spokeswoman Victoria LaCivita said the AGs Office of Civil Rights does not have jurisdiction over these claims. Attorneys representing the parents of students with disabilities say otherwise. The jurisdiction of the Office of Civil Rights as laid out in the statute is to investigate exactly this sort of thing, said attorney Braxton Hill, who is representing the complainants, in an interview. In a letter sent to the attorney generals office this week, Hill compared Miyares inaction on this complaint to a controversy early this year in which school leaders in Northern Virginia delayed notifying students about runner-up awards they had earned. When the National Merit controversy broke, Attorney General Miyares almost immediately took the opportunity to make the rounds with the media citing how much he cared about protecting the civil rights of Virginia gifted students under the Virginia Human Rights Act, Hill wrote. The clear and consistent message is that the rights of disabled students are not a priority to this administration. LaCivita, in an email to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, said: Any accusation that the administration does not prioritize students is a lie. The Attorney General is dedicated to defending all students and their parents rights. The complaint filed with the AGs office in August claims that the state education department oversees a systemically defective educational system that is designed to obstruct, delay and ultimately prevent families with disabled children from receiving and vindicating their educational rights rights guaranteed to them under the Virginia Constitution and federal law. Complainants Trevor Chaplick and Vivian Chaplick said the Fairfax County school district rejected the idea that their child, who has severe disabilities, needed to leave the countys school system. The Chaplicks proceeded with a due process hearing despite receiving a warning from a school system social worker that they should not bother (with the case) because they would lose, according to the suit. Through a public records request, the Chaplick family found that hearing officers in Virginia rarely rule in favor of parents of children with disabilities in due process hearings. In the 11-year period between 2010 and 2021, hearing officers ruled only 25 times or 1.8% of the time fully in favor of disabled children out of 1,391 cases, according to information from the public records requests. Before the Chaplicks request, that data was not publicly available. The family sued the VDOE and the local school system last year over their implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a federal law that ensures that students with disabilities receive a free and appropriate public education. In January, the Chaplicks broadened the scope of their case to include another family and to allege that the state education department was not only aware that local school divisions denied appropriate services to students with disabilities, but that the VDOE was also actively complicit in making sure the students did not receive the services they are entitled to under federal disability law. A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in July on procedural grounds. He did not, however, rule on the merits of the case. Attorneys on the case appealed the decision in September, and that case is moving through the federal court system. VDOE spokesman Todd Reid said the agency does not comment on pending litigation. The Chaplicks attorneys said they plan to command the attorney general to protect the civil rights of Virginias disabled students and their families by seeking a writ of mandamus, which is an order from a court that requires a public official to discharge a duty that is imposed on them by law. The Federal Government (FG) has flagged off the release of 4,068 inmates sentenced to various terms of imprisonment with the option of a fine and compensation in custodial centres nationwide. The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, performed the symbolic release of the inmates at the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Kuje, Abuja, on Saturday. The minister said the aim of the move was to decongest custodial centres across the country as well as make them humane for proper reformation and rehabilitation of the offenders. Today, we flagged off the release of a total of 4,068 inmates who are serving different terms of imprisonment in lieu of fines or compensation, he stated. According to him, as of Friday, November 17, 2023, there were about 80,804 inmates in 253 custodial facilities nationwide. He added that the total installed capacity for the 253 custodial centres adds up to less than 50,000. Tunji-Ojo however called for reform in the criminal justice administration to allow for speedy dispensation of justice, pointing out that a large number of inmates in custodial centres are awaiting trial. He said the Custodial Centre, Kuje, where 37 of the beneficiary inmates were released, has the capacity to hold 560 inmates, but currently, a total of 730 inmates are being held, of which 565 of them are awaiting trial. The figure, he said showed that the facilities are overcrowded, necessitating the commencement of the initiative, which is targeted towards addressing the overcrowding bedevilling custodial centres and their reformatory functions. Tunji-Ojo explained that most of the inmates granted freedom are indigents who could not afford to pay their fines and have been languishing in custody. He added that N585 million was raised by philanthropic individuals, groups, and corporate bodies for the purpose of releasing the inmates. Hence, all inmates in custodial centres who have fines or compensation not exceeding one million naira are qualified and would benefit from this gesture. READ ALSO: Be Guided On Type Of Crime You Commit, Stealing Is Different From Armed Robbery Police Tell Nigerians In addition, we are also providing each of them a stipend to enable them to return to their communities, he added. The Interior Minister charged the benefiting inmates to see their freedom as a second chance to make things right again, advising them to stay away from crime. He disclosed that FG ensured that the beneficiary inmates were given requisite training aimed at impacting their lives functionally and equipping them with the knowledge for their self-reliance upon discharge. In line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubus mantra of renewed hope, the benefiting inmates have been given a second opportunity to get back on track and contribute to the ongoing development of our dear nation, he said. While reiterating the commitment of the current administration to the welfare of inmates, the minister said FG is poised to transform custodial and non-custodial facilities to ensure compliance with international human rights standards and good correctional practices. One of the beneficiaries, who gave his name simply as Sunday from Anambra State, said he has been incarcerated for about 15 months since he was sentenced to two years imprisonment with the option of a N500,000 fine. Sunday, just like other inmates, was thankful to the Minister of Interior for coming to their aid in securing their release from custody. I thank the Minister for what he has done to free us. I can assure him and the President that we will not go back to committing crimes any more. All of us are happy today, Sunday said. Nigerias immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari says he has not missed anything in the eight years he served as President. Buhari disclosed this in an interview with the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) on Sunday. Asked about what he missed from his time in office, the former President said, Miss. I dont think I miss much. Information Nigeria recalls that Buhari had previously said he would not miss his time in office because he was being harassed. The former President in December 2022, said he was doing his best for Nigerians but it was not good enough. READ ALSO: Liberia Has Set A High Bar For African Countries To Follow Peter Obi I believe Im trying my best, but still my best is not good enough. I wonder if I am going to miss much. I think Im being harassed, Buhari had said. Recall that between 2015 and 2021, Buhari spent 171 days on medical vacation in the United Kingdom, with 2017 alone accounting for 152 days away. Speaking on the nature of his illness when he was president, Buhari said, I think only my daughter can honestly answer this question. The Kogi state Governor, Yahaya Bello has vowed that members of his cabinet who allegedly betrayed him during the November 11 governorship election will not go unpunished. The Governor Bello accused some members of his cabinet of betraying him before and during the election. Recall that the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Usman Ododo, was declared winner of the governorship election, beating his contenders, Dino Melaye of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Muri Ajaka of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Meanwhile, Bello, who spoke during a closed-door meeting with APC stakeholders in Lokoja, expressed anger at the cabinet members, stressing that he would cut off his fingers if they decided to hinder him from going far. The governor described his allies as enemies within, plotting with the opposition parties to pull him down. He said: All of those disgruntled elements moved against him (Ododo) after everything I did for them. I was fighting known enemies while enemies within were pulling me down. God punish you all. They said if it cant be me, then it cant be Ododo. They were busy conniving and conspiring with the opposition. They call themselves leaders but were misleading the people. Shame on you all. The Governor pointed a direct finger at a Senator from the state whom he said was wrecked by his brothers before he (Governor Bello) revived him from his alleged financial bankruptcy. READ MORE: Kogi Poll: Dino Melaye Denies Seeking Refund Of Vote Buying Money I gave you a ticket, gave you all the support down to the Appeal Court. I stood for you. He added: Ododo has come to stay; we will never turn our back on him. He shall succeed. I thank God I never made a mistake in the choice of Ahmed Ododo. Imagine power going into the hands of betrayers. I took them from scratch, raised them, and fought for them but in return, they betrayed. Im doing my best; you all portrayed the wrong image of myself at the grassroots. New leaders shall emerge! Today, you are a second-term serving senator. You were laughing with us while you went behind to text opposition messages to hinder our party from having 25 per cent in some local governments, he added. I warned you; I cautioned you. Those of you who connived and conspired, have shown yourself to the world the product that you are made of. I have been shielding my kitchen cabinet. New leaders shall emerge. The time for everybody to carry his cross has come. Everybody will bear his fathers name because there is still a future, he said. The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has congratulated President-elect, Joseph Boakai. INFORMATION NIGERIA reports that Boakai was announced as the winner of the west African countrys presidential poll Yesterday, by the electoral body. However, Obi, in a statement via his X handle on Saturday night, describing the election as seamless. The former Governor of Anambra State also congratulated President George Weah for conceding defeat, adding that he showed his exemplary respect for democracy and the rule of law. According to Obi, Liberia has set a high bar for other African countries regarding how the Electoral Commission conducted and concluded the elections without rancour and litigation. He wrote: I have followed with very keen interest, the just concluded and seamless Presidential elections in our West African neighbour, Liberia. I congratulate the declared winner, former Vice President and now President-elect of Liberia, H.E. Joseph N. Bokai of the Unity Party. READ MORE: Tiny Liberia Has Shown Nigeria That They Are Giant Of Africa Murray-Bruce I also extend my congratulations to the president, H.E. George Weah, who has graciously conceded defeat, and thank him especially for his exemplary respect for democracy and the rule of law. Finally, Id like to especially congratulate the entire people of Liberia, and salute their National institutions, particularly the Electoral Commission of Liberia who by their respective exemplary conducts, have added fillip to the credibility of the elections, and in so doing, strengthened democracy in Liberia and Africa. Liberia has set a high bar for African countries to follow in the way they have conducted and concluded the Presidential elections without rancour and litigation. I wish them well and a smooth transition and continuity in governance.z Barely few days after the suspension of nationwide strike issued by the organized labour, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has queried the Imo state government over recent attack on him. Recall that Ajaero was physically harassed in Owerri, the states capital while preparing for a protest. Speaking in an interview with Vanguard, the NLC boss said that President Bola Tinubu was not involved. Ajaero, insisted that the Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma had hand in the attack on him. READ MORE: Weve Arrested Ajaeros Attackers NSA Begs Labour To Call Off Strike He said: Even if it was an order from Abuja, it was Uzodimma who carried it out. Mr President couldnt do this. The day we had a rally in Abuja, he sent for us. I was still wearing the clothes I wore to the rally when we went to see him. We articulated all the issues that led to the protest. The other time we gave notice for action, he came with a nationwide broadcast and offered N25,000, and we said no. He conceded to N35,000, conceded to not just making it for six months, conceded to not giving it only to the least paid worker. You can see that the President is open to negotiations. President Bola Tinubu has reiterated that no student would drop out of tertiary institutions as a result of his or her inability to pay tuition under his government. Tinubu said his administration would ensure educational institutions get the necessary resources to carry out their responsibilities. The President led this out during the 33rd convocation ceremony of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) in Ondo State on Saturday. Represented by Professor King-David Terna Yawe from the National Universities Commission (NUC), Tinubu acknowledged the challenges facing the education sector. READ MORE: ASUU Reacts As Tinubu Signs Student Loan Bill Into Law He highlighted the Student Loan Bill, which was enacted shortly after his inauguration, as evidence of his governments commitment to supporting students. Tinubu said: My government will not shirk its responsibilities in this area. We will guarantee that educational institutions receive the necessary resources to effectively carry out their statutory responsibilities. One of my first actions as President of Nigeria was to sign the Student Loan Bill into law to put this into action. Under my leadership, and as I have outlined in my manifesto, no student will be forced to drop out of school due to an inability to pay tuition, the president assured. Scores of fighters from Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) groups were reportedly killed during a renewed clash in Borno State on Saturday. According to Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency publication focused on the Lake Chad region, some field commanders and combatants from the rival groups were killed during the a heavy fight at Tumbum Ali Island in Marte Local Government Area (LGA) around 2 p.m. The publication said the fight was in retaliation for the massive killing of ISWAP fighters by the Bakura Buduma-led faction of Boko Haram after seizing most of their hideouts. Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama that six boats belonging to the Budumas faction and four boats filled with fighters were destroyed during the fight. The sources said the casualties on both sides could be more than 60 as the infighting continued. READ ALSO: Lt. Col. Abubakar-Surajo Imam Becomes First Professor In History Of Nigerian Army In another development, the Niger Republic troops have killed scores of ISWAP fighters during an encounter near Abadam Faransa along the River Komadugu in Lake Chad. Zagazola Makama reported that the Nigerien troops killed the fighters on Friday during a gun duel. With this development, both terrorist groups, according to sources, have increased their torments on the Niger Republic section of the Lake Chad Basin, forcing numbers of Nigeria refugees in the neighbouring Francophone country to seep back home. This has led to the gradual overcrowding of the Internally Displaced Persons camp at Damasak, Mobbar LGA of Borno State. All along, each of the two rival groups not only wants to eliminate the other from the region but also confront the Multi-National Joint Task Force in a bid to establish firm control of the Chad Basin. Vice President Kashim Shettima has challenged graduates of the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) to embrace entrepreneurship and self-employment instead of waiting for government jobs. Shettima made this known on Saturday at the 24th combined convocation ceremony of UNIMAID, where he was also conferred with an honorary doctorate degree. He said that the era where graduates solely relied on the government for employment and answers to all their problems was over and encouraged them to utilise their entrepreneurial training in starting up a business and positively impacting society. Shettima said: Every success in life brings with it challenges. You are graduating today, our nation is faced with myriads of problems. I believe the university has adequately prepared you to contribute to proffering solutions to these problems. READ MORE: If Youre A Jobless Graduate, Go And Learn Skills Igbokwe Tells Nigerian Youths Well-known comedian Sabinus has responded to the health issues facing well-known transgender Jay Boogie, arguing that social medias drawbacks have outweighed its benefits. Recall how the transgender is dealing with health issues caused by an incorrect surgery he did while having another BBL procedure? He has been pleading with Nigerians to help him because he is currently unable to pay his medical expenses. READ MORE: Im Dying, Please Help Me Jay Boogie Cries Out As His Health Condition Worsens Sabinus went online to react, wondering why a person would choose to remove their natural reproductive organ, and when things go wrong, they still come online to cry for help. There are families under the main bridge in Lagos who are struggling to feed themselves, as Sabinus pointed out when he suggested that the money could be better used for other purposes. His words read: Tomorrow I go comotmy gbola to put Psy den if the thing go wrong I go come de shout for Nigerians to help Social media has really given avenue to many things Go to the mainland see family Wey never chop food for 3 days and they are still managing life D disadvantage of social media don de pass the advantage I remember when children fear parents unless most characters wont be allowed in a country like this that doesr{t support such !!! They go still insult me but e no de cause debit alert. No less than seven security personnel attached to Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State, were injured in an ambush by suspected Boko Haram fighters while returning to the State from Borno. According to the counter insurgency publication focused on the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, the terrorists fired at the security operatives in the convoy of the Governor on Saturday along the Jakana-Mainok expressway. Information Nigeria reports that Buni was in Maiduguri, Bornos capital, where he joined other dignitaries to attend the 24th combined convocation ceremony of the University of Maiduguri. Zagazola Makama said the Governor left for Abuja after the event through the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) base in Maiduguri while the convoy returned to Damaturu, Yobe state capital, and was ambushed by the Boko Haram fighters. The publication quoted military sources as saying the governors security details with Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP), a gun truck and another vehicle conveying the police operatives and those of the Department of State Services (DSS) was shot at by the insurgents. READ ALSO: Police Nab 2Babas Second-In-Command In Bayelsa Over Slain Rivers DPO The sources said the security details responded with heavy fire, forcing the terrorists to retreat. However, two soldiers, a driver and four policemen were wounded. Terrorists casualties were unconfirmed, Zagazola Makama said. Zagazola Makama said the security operatives returned safely to Yobe while the wounded personnel have taken to the hospital for treatment. However, a source according to Vanguard said: Unfortunately, one Police officer paid the supreme price. The Director General of Media and Press affairs to Governor Buni, Comrade Mohammed Mamman, confirmed the incident but insisted that only three security personnel were wounded, even as he said, the convoy successfully reached their destination, as the wounded ones are responding to treatment. ATLANTA Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four-plus decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a full partnership. Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to President Carter sometimes referred to her privately as co-president. Rosalynn is my best friend ... the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life, Jimmy Carter told aides during their White House years, which spanned from 1977-1981. Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Rosalynn Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicized Cabinet shakeup became known, she was forced to declare publicly, I am not running the government. Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husbands they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanor and a soft Southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her the Steel Magnolia. Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carters landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington. Jimmy Carter trusted her so much that in 1977, only months into his term, he sent her on a mission to Latin America to tell dictators he meant what he said about denying military aid and other support to violators of human rights. She also had strong feelings about the style of the Carter White House. The Carters did not serve hard liquor at public functions, though Rosalynn did permit American wine. There were fewer evenings of ballroom dancing and more square dancing and picnics. Throughout her husband's political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media didn't cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticized reporters for writing only about "sexy subjects." As honorary chairwoman of the President's Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate subcommittee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying, "We've been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach." She said she developed her interest in mental health during her husband's campaigns for Georgia governor. I used to come home and say to Jimmy, 'Why are people telling me their problems?' And he said, 'Because you may be the only person they'll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them,' she explained. After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, Rosalynn Carter seemed more visibly devastated than her husband. She initially had little interest in returning to the small town of Plains, Georgia, where they both were born, married and spent most of their lives. "I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles," she wrote in her 1984 autobiography, "First Lady from Plains." But "we slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before." After leaving Washington, Jimmy and Rosalynn co-founded The Carter Center in Atlanta to continue their work. She chaired the center's annual symposium on mental health issues and raised funds for efforts to aid the mentally ill and homeless. She also wrote "Helping Yourself Help Others," about the challenges of caring for elderly or ailing relatives, and a sequel, "Helping Someone With Mental Illness." Frequently, the Carters left home on humanitarian missions, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and promoting public health and democracy across the developing world. "I get tired," she said of her travels. "But something so wonderful always happens. To go to a village where they have Guinea worm and go back a year or two later and there's no Guinea worm, I mean the people dance and sing it's so wonderful." In 2015, Jimmy Carters doctors discovered four small tumors on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she didn't know what she was going to do. I depend on him when I have questions, when I'm writing speeches, anything, I consult with him, she said. Jimmy Carter is the longest-lived U.S. president. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nation's first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died at age 97. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains on Aug. 18, 1927, the eldest of four children. Her father died when she was young, so she took on much of the responsibility of caring for her siblings when her mother went to work part time. She also contributed to the family income by working after school in a beauty parlor. "We were very poor and worked hard," she once said, but she kept up her studies, graduating from high school as class valedictorian. She soon fell in love with the brother of one of her best friends. Jimmy and Rosalynn had known each other all their lives it was Jimmy's mother, nurse Lillian Carter, who delivered baby Rosalynn but he left for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, when she was still in high school. After a blind date, Jimmy told his mother: "That's the girl I want to marry." They wed in 1946, shortly after his graduation from Annapolis and Rosalynn's graduation from Georgia Southwestern College. Photos: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter through the years Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1966 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1970 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1971 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1976 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1976 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1976 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1976 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1976 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1976 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1977 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1977 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1977 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1977 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1977 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1977 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1978 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1978 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1979 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1979 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1980 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1980 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1984 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1985 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1988 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 1995 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2004 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2007 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2007 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2008 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2009 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2009 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2009 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2010 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2011 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2014 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2015 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2015 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2017 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2018 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2018 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, 2019 Karla Trotman joined the board of the Museum of the American Revolution after her son, Bryce, became fascinated with the American Revolution. While working on the Black Founders Exhibition Committee about James Forten, Trotman learned of her own family's connections to Forten. Karla and Bryce, now 15, are shown at the exhibit on Nov. 14, 2023. Read more While growing up in Ambler, the daughter of an electrical engineer, Karla Trotman had never heard about James Forten. Forten, a Black sail-loft company owner who was the wealthiest Black man in Philadelphia in the 1800s, was a leader in the abolitionist movement. That history wasnt being taught in our schools, said Trotman, a board member of the Museum of the American Revolution and also cochair of the museums Black Founders Exhibition Committee. That exhibition, Black Founders: The Forten Family of Philadelphia, which tells Fortens story and the stories of his family, is winding down. The last day to see it is Nov. 26, the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Advertisement James Fortens story is a remarkable one: He was born free in Philadelphia in 1766 and heard the Declaration of Independence being read aloud for the first time when he was 9 years old. At age 14, Forten served on an American privateer ship during the Revolutionary War, carrying gun powder to the cannons to fight the British. Years later, Forten so impressed Robert Bridges, the owner of the sail-loft company where both Forten and his father worked, that Bridges made Forten a foreman and an apprentice. When Bridges retired, Forten took over the business and employed both Black and white workers. Not only did Forten use his wealth to support abolitionist causes, but his family members were also civic-minded about freedom and gaining citizenship rights. Fortens wife Charlotte Vandine Forten and three of their daughters, Margaretta, Harriet, and Sarah, were active in the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Slavery Society. One of his sons, Robert Bridges Forten, enlisted in the U.S. Colored Troops as a sergeant during the Civil War, but died from an illness during training. Another son, William Deas Forten, worked with Frederick Douglass to recruit Black men to enlist to serve in the war. Like Forten, Trotman is an entrepreneur Trotman is president and CEO of Electro Soft Inc., an electronics manufacturing and engineering firm in Montgomeryville that her parents, Jim and Sheila Wallace, started in 1986. She worked for more than 10 years in the corporate world before returning to her familys company and expanding it. She no longer wanted to travel as much as she had been doing. And, she realized that it was through entrepreneurship that Black people can pass down wealth down to their children. At a museum panel discussion on the history of Black entrepreneurs in Philadelphia recently, she said she was working on the Black Founders committee when she learned surprising news. When I was asked to be cochair of the exhibition, I found out my family were related to James Forten, she told the audience. Her mother-in-law, Anita Trotman, a dedicated genealogist, explained their family connection to the Fortens. The connection is through James Fortens granddaughter, Charlotte L. Forten, whose diaries about her time teaching newly emancipated Black people in the Sea Islands off South Carolina during the Civil War, was published as a book: The Journal of Charlotte L. Forten. Charlotte was the daughter of James Fortens son, Robert and his wife, Mary Virginia Wood Forten. After Charlottes mother died when Charlotte was only 3, Charlotte was raised mostly by an aunt, a sister of Charlottes mother. Trotman said that aunt is her husband Thane Trotmans fifth great-grandmother. Trotman said her husband had not talked about their family history, but her mother-in-law had discovered their familys connections to other historic Philadelphia figures as well. When I found out that Forten was a family member, and because we are a family of entrepreneurs [as was Forten], I decided to be one of the sponsors of the exhibition. I was financially committed to telling the story of Black Founders. This story cant be told without financial backing. Sons love of history is motivating factor Trotman once thought a museum about the American Revolution would hold little interest for her. She had not known about Black peoples contributions to the Revolutionary War until the younger of her two sons Dylan and Bryce fell in love with the musical, Hamilton. Now 15, Bryce was 8 when he became fascinated with the American Revolution as well as the story of how Vice President Aaron Burr shot and fatally wounded Alexander Hamilton, the former Secretary of the Treasury, in a duel in 1804. Hamilton died the next day. While most people were more sympathetic to Hamilton, Trotman said she was surprised that Bryce was fascinated with Burr. I think he [Bryce] was in the fourth grade when he created a rap [song] about Burr for his class, Trotman recalled. To encourage Bryces interest in history, Trotman took him to the Museum of the American Revolution. He would lay on the floor on his side, with his hand propped up, watching the videos like they were Saturday morning cartoons. As they visited the museum, Trotman said she was impressed with how it told the history of the Revolution. I was surprised how they were telling stories of how people who were formerly enslaved had been approached by the British who told them, We will set you free, if you fight for us. You had people of color fighting one another, [those who fought on the Continental Armys side and those who fought for the British]. But everyone was trying to fight for their own freedom. A few years ago, Trotman, now 47, was invited to an awards ceremony where she met two museum officials. In 2019, she was asked to join the museums corporate advisory council, and in 2021, she joined the museums board of directors. Karla is truly a force of nature. While running a business and raising a family, she has given time, talent, and treasure as a volunteer advisor, community ambassador, and a corporate sponsor for the Black Founders exhibit, R. Scott Stephenson, president and CEO of the Museum of the American Revolution, said. And she made all of those commitments before finding out that she is also a Forten family descendant! The Forten family legacy lives on in her. About that Aaron Burr obsession But getting back to Bryce Trotmans fascination with Aaron Burr. After learning of Bryces interest in the infamous former vice president, Anita Trotman told Karla that her children are descendants of Aaron Burr, through his colored children with a servant who had probably been born in India, Mary Eugenie Emmons. Aaron Burr and Emmons had two children: John Pierre Burr, born in 1792, and Louisa Burr, born in 1784. Anita and Jim Trotman, Karla Trotmans in-laws, are cited in an academic paper on the life of Louisa Burr. It made national news when a new headstone was placed on John Pierre Burrs grave. Karla Trotman described it as a pleasant, almost mystical shock to learn of these connections to both James Forten and Aaron Burr. Sometimes there are just no mistakes or accidents. Its feels very intentional. Its almost as if the ancestors had called to my son to pull this together. The Museum of the American Revolution, 101 S. Third St. is open daily, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Black Founders Special Exhibition, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online here, or call 215-253-6731. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in his office at the Department of Education, Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023 in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein) Read more The U.S. Department of Education will investigate the University of Pennsylvania and Lafayette College, among other institutions, over allegations of antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus during the conflict between Israel and Hamas. The federal agency opened a total of seven inquiries into higher education and K-12 institutions this week, after receiving reports in recent weeks of possible discrimination based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics that would violate the Civil Rights Act. Five of the departments inquiries relate to antisemitism, according to the agency. Two complaints involve Islamophobia. The departments Office of Civil Rights will oversee the investigations, which mark the first major inquiries into such allegations following the Hamas attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7. No timeline was offered, but the department will be listing institutions under investigation on its website. Advertisement Schools that do not address the offices findings could risk losing their federal funding, the DOE said in a statement. While Penn receives hundreds of millions from the government for its research programs, the DOE indicated that cutting off dollars was a last resort. Hate has no place in our schools, period, said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. When students are targeted because they are or are perceived to be Jewish, Muslim, Arab, Sikh, or any other ethnicity or shared ancestry, schools must act to ensure safe and inclusive educational environments where everyone is free to learn. College campuses have become hotbeds for political debate and demonstrations in recent weeks, as students across the country continue to hold rallies in support of both Israelis and Palestinians. Hamas militants killed around 1,200 Israelis, many of them civilians, and took more than 200 hostages in its terror attack. In response, Israeli counterattacked in an action that Gazas Health Ministry said has killed over 11,000 Palestinians. Investigation at Penn The University of Pennsylvania became the center of those tensions this fall, after a group of wealthy alumni announced they would withhold donations in protest of the administrations response to the conflict and a Palestinian culture and arts festival that was held at the school in September. After demands that both the universitys president, Liz Magill, and its board chair step down, Penn unveiled a task force in to combat antisemitism earlier this month. Multiple antisemitic incidents have gone reported on Penns campus this fall; among them were verbal threats made at Penns Hillel headquarters before the Palestinian literary festival, as well as antisemitic symbols and messages painted on an academic building and the universitys Jewish fraternity in October. Last week, some Penn staff members received vile, disturbing e-mails threatening violence against the Jewish community, which, while the university deemed not credible, prompted an investigation by campus police and the FBI. Magill also condemned vile antisemitic messages that were light-projected on several Penn buildings, including Penn Commons, Huntsman Hall and Irvine Auditorium. The Department of Educations inquiry into Penn comes in direct response to a Title IV complaint filed less than a week ago by the Brandeis Center, a nonprofit aimed at advancing civil and human rights of Jewish people. Five students were quoted in the complaint, reporting difficulty sleeping and concentrating due to the environment on campus and, for one student, feeling like she could not wear her Star of David necklace on Locust Walk. We have received the letter from the Department of Education and look forward to cooperating fully with the Department, said Steve Silverman, a spokesperson for the University of Pennsylvania. The University is taking clear and comprehensive action to prevent, address, and respond to antisemitism, with an action plan anchored in the National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism. President Magill has made clear antisemitism is vile and pernicious and has no place at Penn; the University will continue to vigilantly combat antisemitism and all forms of hate. Investigation at Lafayette College The Department of Education also is investigating possible discrimination at Lafayette College, a liberal arts college of about 2,500 students located in Easton. A spokesperson for Lafayette said the school was notified of the Office of Civil Rights investigation on Thursday morning. We do not know why the OCR decided to include the College in this investigation, said Scott Morse, the colleges assistant vice president for communications and marketing. Lafayettes president, Nicole Hurd, said in a letter to the campus community Friday afternoon that the college was fully cooperating with the investigation. According to Hurds remarks, the Department of Education alleges that the College discriminated against students on the basis of national origin (shared Jewish ancestry) by failing to respond to incidents of harassment in October 2023. Hurd said there was a problematic poster at a peaceful walkout protesting violence in Gaza on Oct. 25, which the college addressed. Students have been vocal about the conflict in recent weeks. Around three dozen Lafayette students then held a demonstration in support of Palestinians two days later, according to the colleges student newspaper. The Lafayette wrote that the protest caused controversy after students held a sign that read from the river to the sea, a phrase that Palestinian activists say represents liberation of an oppressed group, but which many Jewish groups say is a call for the elimination of Israel. Its intimidating, one Jewish student told The Lafayette. The demonstration was organized by Pards for Palestine, a coalition the news site said students recently formed. The slogans presence on campus prompted a separate letter from Hurd, who released a statement several hours after the demonstration calling the sign antisemitic. Morse said Lafayette students held another rally in early November where students with differing views shared a peaceful gathering on campus to honor all those who have died in the recent violence in the Middle East. This event was typical of how our campus community has acted with care and kindness during this time, Morse said. The College maintains a firm stance against antisemitism, Islamophobia, and hate speech of any kind. The College is cooperating and will continue to cooperate fully with the DOE in their investigation. Further inquiries and what happens next The departments Office of Civil Rights said it will also inquire into allegations at Cornell and Columbia Universities in New York, Wellesley College in Massachusetts, and The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York, as well as a K-12 school district in Kansas. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 says universities and K-12 schools must provide all students with an environment free from discrimination. The Department of Education issued a reminder to schools and colleges of this responsibility. As it received more reports in recent weeks, the department said it was requesting federal funding to expedite its investigation of both antisemitism and Islamophobia on campuses. Penn receives around $800 million from the federal government, according to a report from the Daily Pennsylvanian, including from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Defense. Cardona, the education secretary, told CNN this month that withholding federal funding following the inquiries would not be the departments first action. However, Cardona said that, Ultimately, if we have to withhold dollars from a campus refusing to comply, we would. Sarah-Ashley Andrews, the youngest member of the Philadelphia school board, a therapist and a pastor, in her recently purchased mobile therapy van, in Philadelphia. Read more Sarah-Ashley Andrews got a world-class education in Philadelphia public schools: top-notch academics, trips to the opera and the Clef Club, a chance to explore her passions and discover who she was. Andrews grew up in North Philadelphia, down the block from E.W. Rhodes Elementary. To have those world-expanding experiences, her parents used someone elses address to send Andrews and her sisters to McCall Elementary they knew their girls would get a better education at a public school in Center City. Thats something that drives Andrews, now Philadelphias youngest school board member, as well as a therapist in private practice. Who runs a nonprofit. And is also a preacher. I want our public education to be equitable, said Andrews, 36. Fighting her purpose The daughter of a Philadelphia police officer father and a medical assistant-turned postal worker mother, Andrews attended W.B. Saul High School, the districts agriculture magnet school. She loved the hands-on experience, the opportunity to pick corn she grew and take care of horses. Saul students operated a business, the greenhouse and school store; Andrews loved the feel of running something, the idea of entrepreneurship. After graduation, in 2005, Andrews headed to Bloomsburg University as a communications major, her sights set on making films. I was in college, I was having the time of my life, but I was fighting my purpose, Andrews said. I felt this overwhelming calling this is not what youre supposed to be doing. Advertisement A person of deep faith Andrews now preaches at a church in Chester twice a month Andrews ultimately left Bloomsburg to enroll in Lancaster Bible Colleges Center for Urban Theological Studies, in Philadelphia. Then, a dear friend of Andrews died by suicide at the age of 25. She was devastated and galvanized. He dies and Im like, I dont want this to happen to anybody else, said Andrews. We dont talk about mental health, especially in the Black and brown community. Andrews founded Dare 2 Hope, a nonprofit whose mission is to conquer suicide by making mental-health services more accessible in underserved communities. The mission caught on: Andrews was suddenly doing events with Meek Mill, offering workshops educating people about prioritizing wellness, winning grants, working in schools and at community health fairs. Finishing college became less of a priority, and she stopped taking classes. In addition to the nonprofit, Andrews worked at a bookstore and as a Lyft driver. One ride changed the trajectory of Andrews life. A man who got in her car needed a ride to a far-away destination, in New Jersey. The two had a long, serious conversation about mental health and wellness. Soon after that ride, Andrews received a $1,000 donation through Dare 2 Hopes crowd-funding campaign. It turns out the rider was a businessman who lost someone close to him to suicide and was impressed by Andrews vision and drive. Andrews was delighted, and determined to learn from him; she took him to coffee to pick his brain about how to grow her organization, what her board should look like. The businessman loved her ideas, Andrew said, but he told her to go back to school. A counseling degree would legitimize her mission to save people, to heal people, she concluded. He told me, People need to see that you start and finish something, said Andrews, who re-enrolled in school, ultimately earning an undergraduate degree in biblical studies and human services at Lancaster Bible College in 2017, then a masters degree in counseling from Lincoln University in 2020, and soon began working as a therapist. Dare 2 Hope remains a priority, also, and this year, Andrews debuted what she believes is Philadelphias first mobile therapy van. Step inside the shiny mobile therapy van and youre transported inside Andrews vibe relaxing but not boring, with a bright orange couch, colorful throw pillows and artwork. Therapy is dope, a neon sign hung on a wall of fake greenery reads. Andrews wants the people who step inside for sessions or help navigating mental-health resources to feel comfortable. On a recent day, a trash-truck driver moving past the van hung his head out his window and shouted at Andrews. Thats real dope, he said, nodding at the white mobile therapy sign painted on the black van. Ill follow you on Instagram. A fresh perspective and high fives Andrews first raised her hand for consideration as a school board member when the Philadelphia School District returned to local control, in 2018. She had plenty on her plate, but Andrews is a get-things-done kind of person, usually strategizing about how to make the biggest impact. I just wanted to be able to bring a fresh voice, a fresh perspective, said Andrews. I feel like Im a little bit more connected to I dont want to say the street, but to the ears of the people. Though Andrews has no children of her own, her nephew attends Thomas Mifflin Elementary, an East Falls public school. And her own experience as a public school student who had to leave her neighborhood propelled her forward. I hear it, when people say, Can anything good come from the public school system? said Andrews. She wasnt chosen the first time she applied for the board, or the second. The third time she did, in 2022, Andrews was finally picked by Mayor Jim Kenney for a seat. Shes the youngest voting member two students are board members, but cannot vote on board matters. Adding a high-profile, unpaid job to the pile of tasks she already had running Dare 2 Hope, starting and managing her own private therapy practice, preaching was daunting, but worth it, said Andrews, who estimates she spends at least 15 hours a week on board work between meetings, community events, and more. Keeping the light lit Andrews brings a therapist trick to the school board table: She does a lot more listening than talking. On Thursday night, she spoke twice, once to honor Flenard Pulley, her favorite teacher from Saul High School, who died in October at age 75, and once to shout out Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr., who reviewed metrics from the 2022-23 school year that showed the district moving in the right direction by nearly every measure. I just want to be strength-based and tell you youre doing a great job, Andrews told him. Behind the scenes, the board of nine dynamic professionals is close, but sparks can fly, and Andrews said she doesnt shy away from wading in as peacemaker; difficult conversations dont daunt her. We argue, we bicker. Im usually the one who says, lets stop, lets process this, what do you really want to say. For me, Im always looking for bottom line. How do we make sure that whatever an issue is, were curing it from the root? she said. Andrews especially looks up to Joyce Wilkerson, a current board member and former board president; Andrews said Wilkerson has taught her to be steady. Wilkerson, who has decades of experience in various government positions, said shes learned a lot from Andrews, too. (And not just good selfie poses, though Andrews has also taught her those, Wilkerson said.) She lives in North Philadelphia, and she is a practicing psychologist who works with young people, who understands first hand the struggles so many of our children and families are grappling with, said Wilkerson. She brings an entrepreneurial bent that is aligned with her values, her commitment to supporting children to achieve. Andrews relishes being the boards liaison with the student board representatives, high school students who serve in an advisory capacity on the board. And she cares a great deal about student safety and dropouts issues that she thinks a lot about both as a board member and as a therapist working with young people who have experienced trauma. Andrews is keenly aware of the responsibilities placed on the boards shoulders. The school has to be a lighthouse, whether we want it to be or not, said Andrews. We have to be the ones to keep the light lit. Parents plant a Hawthorn tree outside the Thomas F. Donatucci, Sr. Library in Girard Estates. On Saturday, the library once again opened its doors for weekend hours. Read more On Saturday, Kevin Drayton, a security guard at the Free Library of Philadelphias Charles Santore branch in Bella Vista, did something that had not been done in a very long time: He opened the library door for regular weekend hours. Welcome to Santore Library Saturday edition!, Drayton greeted visitors with a grin. Showtime! Drayton was not alone in his enthusiasm. The Santore branch, on South Seventh Street, was one of 10 city libraries to reopen for weekend hours on Saturday, a long-awaited milestone in the Free Librarys post-pandemic rebound. The city had been without six-day library service for far too long, officials said. Many city branches have been closed on Saturdays since 2018, shuttered amid funding and staffing shortages. Others never returned to weekend service after the pandemic. Earlier in the week, Free Library of Philadelphia president Kelly Richards and outgoing Mayor Jim Kenney said that, thanks to increases in funding, they hoped to have all 54 city branches back open on Saturdays by January. They cautioned that the rolling openings would depend on the success of an ambitious hiring blitz aimed at better staffing branches. Parkway Central Library, the citys main branch, remains closed on Saturdays. Advertisement And while the openings represented a modest first step for the long-beleaguered system, they meant much more to the communities served by the libraries. For some, the opening meant the return of a trusted place to escape and work. John Strain, 31, was the first visitor Drayton greeted at the Santore branch. Strain likes to find a quiet table at Santore to study for his upcoming bar exam, and write fiction in his journals. He had heard about the reopening on the news and headed right over. Hemingway said: A clean, well-lighted place, Strain said. And thats how I think of it. For some visitors Saturday, the new hours meant a chance to enjoy a welcoming weekend hub without having to rush to beat weeknight closing times. You had to try to squeeze it in between picking up the kids, working, all the different things, said Allison Ng, who brings her 7-year-old daughter, Coral, to Thomas F. Donatucci Sr. branch, on West Shunk Street in Girard Estates. Ng and other parents planted a hawthorn tree Saturday outside the historic library, which first opened in 1914, and had been closed on Saturdays since reopening from the pandemic. Inside, in the Donatucci branch childrens reading area, Divya Mohan read a book about the Hindu holiday Diwali to her daughter, Jiya, 2. They had traveled from Fishtown for the chance to visit a library on a Saturday. We came all the way here because we wanted a library in the city, Mohan said. For some, Saturday hours at the library meant the return of a safe space in neighborhoods with far too few and a chance to connect with vital services. During the week, the Lillian Marrero Branch Library in Fairhill offers popular after-school services, such as its Edible Alphabet program, which teaches English through cooking. Now, the library can be a safe haven and offer programming on Saturdays, too, said Wyatt Beeler, a childrens librarian at the branch on West Lehigh Avenue. Its another day for us to really push the community to come inside and discover, Beeler said. Especially the kids, so theyre not on the streets. We prefer them in here. The Phillie Phanatic and former players at the Strawberry Mansion Learning Center pose with children for the donation of a van for the Center's field trips. During the presentation, the Center's founder, Kevin Upshur, (pictured holding a toddler) was called an "MVP of community." Read more Kevin Upshur always listened to his mother. Alarmed by the violence she saw in their Strawberry Mansion neighborhood, she often urged him: We have to do something to help the kids. After Shirley Upshur died, Upshur converted the neighborhood corner bar his family once operated into an after-school haven for children. The Strawberry Mansion Learning Center, at 2946 W. Dauphin St., opened in 2008. Since then, Upshur not only provided books and after-school homework help for children, he also rented vans to take them on field trips. Advertisement He and other volunteers took students from one of North Philadelphias toughest neighborhoods to New York, to Washington, to Harrisburg, and to the Muhammad Ali Fighters Heaven Training Camp in Deer Lake, Pa. I wanted to take them to see the seats of power like Washington and Harrisburg so that they could understand where the people who were elected from their community were making decisions that affected them, Upshur said Friday. To get a world view, these children have to leave their community. I have met kids who told me they were afraid to go out of town. In the last few years, Upshur has gotten funding to renovate the learning center. But he has been telling people the center needed a van for field trips. On Thursday afternoon, Phillies executive vice president Dave Buck, the Phillie Phanatic, and others from the Phillies organization and Chevrolet dropped by the learning center to deliver a new 12-seat, 2023 Chevrolet Savannah van. The Phillies called the learning center a free safe haven for children that provides after-school and summer programming for children in grades 5-12 and they called Upshur a hometown hero. Upshur retired from his job as a counselor for teenagers at the Juvenile Justice Center about 18 months ago. It was a prayer answered, Upshur said. Ive been talking to people to try to figure out how to make it happen. Upshur said he may have been noticed by the Phillies after the African American Chamber of Commerce for Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware presented its 2023 Chairmans Award to Donna Allie, founder and president of Team Clean Inc., a commercial janitorial services company. As winner of the award, Allie was then able to recommend that a local nonprofit receive a $5,000 donation, he said. I was there, but I didnt know she was going to name us as the nonprofit prize winner, Upshur said. He said the Phillies also mentioned seeing a video of the Strawberry Mansion children on a field trip to Muhammad Alis training camp. Upshur said he was grateful to the Phillies, to Barlow Chevrolet, and to Allie and to others who have spread the word about the work that is being done in Strawberry Mansion. Ed Barlow, vice president of the Chevrolet Barlow Automotive Group, drove the van, which arrived at the center with the Phanatic and Phillies 1993 National League champion players Milt Thompson and Mickey Morandini as passengers. Upshur said he doesnt think of himself as a hero at all. Nor does he think of himself as an important figure in the neighborhood. Ive always been a kid who listened to my mom, Upshur said. Im just doing Gods work through my mom. Susan Gibbs and Jorge Gonzalez looking over the SS United States ocean liner at Pier 82 in Philadelphia in 2021. The ship was the fastest passenger ship built and the largest ever made in the United States, according to the SS United States Conservancy. Gibbs' grandfather, William Francis Gibbs, was the ship's self-taught naval architect and marine engineer. Read more The nonprofit caring for the SS United States, once known as the queen of the seas and now affectionately known as the Ikea boat, is still on the search for a new home for the vessel, and its hoping the release of a more thorough redevelopment plan will catch the eye of potential berths. Though the vessel has called Pier 82 near the South Philadelphia Ikea home for about 27 years, its stewards have been in a rent dispute thats playing out in court and could end in an eviction the bench trial is slated for January. The ship has narrowly avoided becoming scrap before and the conservancy is once again raising the alarm, saying a failure to secure a new berth means a symbol of our nation could be lost forever. The Washington-based SS United States Conservancy has long hoped it could give the vessel a second life, but returning it to the sea proved too challenging in 2016. And while New York-based RXR Realty LLC announced plans to renovate the vessel in March 2020, it was unclear where plans stood at the start of the year. Those plans for the 990-foot behemoth were finally teased out earlier this month as the conservancy looks to Northeast cities beyond Philadelphia for a possible champion. Advertisement This plan demonstrates conclusively that the SS United States can be a powerful economic engine and cultural showplace that will create thousands of jobs, become a globally recognized destination, and generate millions in tax revenue, said Susan Gibbs, president of the conservancy and granddaughter of the vessels designer. Here are some highlights of the proposed redevelopment plans by RXR and MCR Hotels. A 1,000-room hotel One of the highlights of the plan, the hotel in the ship would have two-star, four-star, and five-star price points. Some of the five-star hotel rooms would be cantilevered over the side of the ship where the lifeboats removed decades ago used to be. The cabanas are designed to offer prime views of whatever city the vessel ends up making its home. Funnels with a newfound purpose The SS United States two iconic red, white, and blue funnels those giant stacks hovering above the vessel that used to give off exhaust would be gutted and turned into atriums that would help usher light throughout the ship. In addition to improving circulation, the atriums would aid visitors in navigating the space, similar to an atrium in a hotel lobby. Event space and more In addition to meeting spaces, designers have carved out areas for larger events, including cocktail rooms and a 500-seat ballroom with a 20-foot floor-to-ceiling glass view of whatever city its in. Design plans also allow space to convert former cargo spaces into a speakeasy and brewery to complement other numerous food and beverage experiences. Recreation The redevelopment proposal aims to integrate the vessel into whatever pier its docked on and that includes creating pier-side green space. People would be able to enjoy that public space even if theyre not entering the ship. Inside, however, the ship would feature a pool between the ships atrium funnels. The swimming area would have a retractable roof. Slices of history Another key component of the plan is a museum that would highlight technological and design features that made the SS United States a marvel of its time. Still, designers are going for a historical immersive experience regardless of whether visitors choose to scope out the museum. Areas of the ship, such as the bridge and an engine room, would be restored in an effort to make slices of history easily accessible to visitors roaming about. The future of the SS United States Penn Warehousing & Distribution Inc., Pier 82s landlord, claims the conservancy has not paid a rent increase since late 2021 and is seeking back rent and the ships ejection from the pier in court. Court filings from last summer say back rent exceeded $160,000 by March 2022 and has continued to accrue. Ahead of the bench trial slated for January, the conservancy launched a social media campaign Wednesday in its effort to secure a new home. Its asking supporters to email Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. New York and other states leaders need to express their interest in seeing this bright future for the ship advance, reads the message to supporters. The actual email template to politicos is brief but emphasizes the peril the vessel finds itself in and how the redevelopment plan could create millions in economic activity and thousands of jobs according to preliminary estimates the redevelopment could create about 4,000 construction and restoration jobs, 750 permanent jobs, and 950 indirect jobs. The nonprofit said it is prepared to donate the ship and design work in an effort to save the SS United States. According to the conservancy, creating the redevelopment program and ensuring its engineering and financial feasibility cost about $6 million. The estimated cost of redevelopment is in the ballpark of $400 million, not including the pier-side redevelopment incorporated in the plan. The vast majority of the redevelopment would be privately funded. The renderings of the plan place the ship on the Hudson River but the conservancy said the concept works in Miami and Philadelphia as well. According to Gibbs, there are plans to reach out to Mayor-elect Cherelle Parker. Additionally, given the possibility that the vessel could be evicted from Pier 82 in a matter of months a decision that could mean her ultimate demise we hope the Governor [Josh Shapiro] would be helpful in negotiating a temporary dockage arrangement to give us more time to advance on this bold vision for the historic SS United States, she said in a statement. Former first lady Rosalynn Carter at a conference at The Carter Center in 2019. Read more ATLANTA Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died Sunday after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. The statement said she died peacefully, with family by her side at 2:10 p.m. at her rural Georgia home of Plains. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, the former president said in the statement. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. President Joe Biden called the Carters an incredible family because they brought so much grace to the office. Advertisement He had this great integrity, still does. And she did too, Biden told reporters as he was boarding Air Force One on Sunday night after an event in Norfolk, Virginia. God bless them. Biden said he spoke to the family and was told that Jimmy Carter was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. Later, the White House released a joint statement from the president and first lady Jill Biden saying that Carter inspired the nation. She was a champion for equal rights and opportunities for women and girls; an advocate for mental health and wellness for every person; and a supporter of the often unseen and uncompensated caregivers of our children, aging loved ones, and people with disabilities, the statement added. Reaction from world leaders poured in throughout the day. The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a full partnership. Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to President Carter sometimes referred to her privately as copresident. Rosalynn is my best friend the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life, Jimmy Carter told aides during their White House years, which spanned from 1977-1981. The former president, now 99, remains at the couples home in Plains after entering hospice care himself in February. Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Rosalynn Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicized Cabinet shake-up became known, she was forced to declare publicly, I am not running the government. Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husbands they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanor and a soft Southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her the Steel Magnolia. Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carters landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington. Jimmy Carter trusted her so much that in 1977, only months into his term, he sent her on a mission to Latin America to tell dictators he meant what he said about denying military aid and other support to violators of human rights. She also had strong feelings about the style of the Carter White House. The Carters did not serve hard liquor at public functions, though Rosalynn did permit U.S. wine. There were fewer evenings of ballroom dancing and more square dancing and picnics. Throughout her husbands political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media didnt cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticized reporters for writing only about sexy subjects. As honorary chairwoman of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate subcommittee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying, Weve been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach. She said she developed her interest in mental health during her husbands campaigns for Georgia governor. I used to come home and say to Jimmy, Why are people telling me their problems? And he said, Because you may be the only person theyll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them, she explained. After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, Rosalynn Carter seemed more visibly devastated than her husband. She initially had little interest in returning to the small town of Plains, where they both were born, married and spent most of their lives. I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles, she wrote in her 1984 autobiography, First Lady from Plains. But we slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before. After leaving Washington, Jimmy and Rosalynn cofounded The Carter Center in Atlanta to continue their work. She chaired the centers annual symposium on mental health issues and raised funds for efforts to aid the mentally ill and homeless. She also wrote Helping Yourself Help Others, about the challenges of caring for elderly or ailing relatives, and a sequel, Helping Someone With Mental Illness. Frequently, the Carters left home on humanitarian missions, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and promoting public health and democracy across the developing world. I get tired, she said of her travels. But something so wonderful always happens. To go to a village where they have Guinea worm and go back a year or two later and theres no Guinea worm, I mean the people dance and sing its so wonderful. In 2015, Jimmy Carters doctors discovered four small tumors on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she didnt know what she was going to do. I depend on him when I have questions, when Im writing speeches, anything, I consult with him, she said. She helped Carter recover several years later when he had hip replacement surgery at age 94 and had to learn to walk again. And she was with him earlier this year when he decided after a series of hospital stays that he would forgo further medical interventions and begin end-of-life care. Jimmy Carter is the longest-lived U.S. president. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nations first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died at age 97. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains on Aug. 18, 1927, the eldest of four children. Her father died when she was young, so she took on much of the responsibility of caring for her siblings when her mother went to work part time. She also contributed to the family income by working after school in a beauty parlor. We were very poor and worked hard, she once said, but she kept up her studies, graduating from high school as class valedictorian. She soon fell in love with the brother of one of her best friends. Jimmy and Rosalynn had known each other all their lives it was Jimmys mother, nurse Lillian Carter, who delivered baby Rosalynn but he left for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, when she was still in high school. After a blind date, Jimmy told his mother: Thats the girl I want to marry. They wed in 1946, shortly after his graduation from Annapolis and Rosalynns graduation from Georgia Southwestern College. Their sons were born where Jimmy Carter was stationed: John William (Jack) in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1947; James Earl III (Chip) in Honolulu in 1950; and Donnel Jeffery (Jeff) in New London, Connecticut, in 1952. Amy was born in Plains in 1967. By then, Carter was a state senator. Navy life had provided Rosalynn her first chance to see the world. When Carters father, James Earl Sr., died in 1953, Jimmy Carter decided, without consulting his wife, to move the family back to Plains, where he took over the family farm. She joined him there in the day-to-day operations, keeping the books and weighing fertilizer trucks. We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, Rosalynn Carter recalled with pride in a 2021 interview with The Associated Press. I knew more on paper about the business than he did. He would take my advice about things. At the height of the Carters political power, Lillian Carter said of her daughter-in-law: She can do anything in the world with Jimmy, and shes the only one. He listens to her. A Palestinian sits amid the destruction after Israeli strikes on Rafah, in the Gaza Strip, on Wednesday. Read more Is it possible that Israel could win a military victory in Gaza and still lose the war? I understand the reason for Israels invasion of Gaza to destroy Hamas, which carried out a hideous terrorist attack murdering more than 1,000 civilians in one day. Any government would have done the same, especially since Hamas, which favors the destruction of Israel and all the Jews within, has publicly called for more such attacks. Yet even if Israel achieves military success meaning the destruction of Hamas infrastructure and leadership and release of hostages what comes afterward will define whether Israel has strengthened its security, or paved the way for the next version of Hamas. The definition of victory in Gaza cannot be measured just in military terms. Advertisement Why so? I agree with Ami Ayalon, who headed Shin Bet, Israels domestic intelligence service, from 1995-2000. Hamas is not just a military capability; it is an ideology, he told me via phone from Israel. Now, we are trying to defeat a military leadership of 15-20 people, but that would only be a military success, not a victory. Ayalon, who has studied Hamas for many years, believes that its ideology calling for the destruction of Israel has won popular appeal in Gaza because it is the only organization that fights for Palestinian freedom and the end of occupation. In contrast, the Palestinian Authority, which controls the West Bank, and has recognized Israel, was unable to achieve a Palestinian state via negotiations. (Too little space here to detail who is to blame for the failure of the Oslo peace process that began in 1993.) And ministers in the current Israeli government, which rejects two states, talk about annexing the West Bank. So, having given up on two states, young people in Gaza have turned to the group that calls for only one state in Palestine. How can we defeat an ideology? Ayalon asked. The only way to win is to present another ideology. READ MORE: "From the River to the Sea" threatens to drown out any chance of peace. Israel will not win, he said, unless it creates a political horizon for Palestinians that can compete with Hamas calls for the destruction of Israel. For Ayalon, that means reestablishing the real prospect of two states one Jewish, and one Palestinian living side by side. That vision may look like a fantasy at the moment (although the White House supports it verbally). And to be honest, I am still thinking through whether I believe it could still be possible. But where I believe Ayalon to be absolutely correct is that, until Palestinians are offered a clear political future, the fighting wont end. He recalled how Palestinian public opinion shifted when they foresaw the prospect of statehood after the Oslo agreements. True, that did not halt Hamas terrorism at the time which helped derail peace negotiations but Palestinian public opinion strongly opposed Hamas methods at the time. In the early 1990s, I sat in as the only journalist on private meetings of Fatah Hawks in Gaza. The hawks were a military arm of the Palestine Liberation Organization, who had spent years in Israeli jails and railed at PLO chief Yasser Arafat for not suppressing Hamas once and for all in Gaza. They spoke of finally wanting to settle down in peace. That was then. However, I believe the lack of a serious Israeli political horizon for the Palestinians after the fighting ends practically guarantees the failure of Israels war with Hamas. As Israel levels Gaza City and other smaller cities, in its search for Hamas tunnels, the Israeli government refuses to make plans for what will follow, despite U.S. urging. The White House has called for strengthening the weak Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, in hopes it will ultimately replace Hamas as the governing body in Gaza. Instead, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to undermine the Palestinian Authority, as he has done for years. This, even though the Palestinian Authority police force helps Israel put down Hamas operatives in the West Bank. Israeli critics claim this is mainly because the Palestinian Authority still calls for a two-state solution, which Netanyahu rejects. Moreover, the only plans Netanyahu appears to have for postwar Gaza are to keep Israeli troops there indefinitely. He seems to have forgotten how Israel got trapped in Lebanon for 18 years after invading, and ultimately withdrew with Hezbollah still in power in southern Lebanon. As for who will govern Gaza after the war when Gaza City is now an uninhabitable ruin, and other towns have been bombed to the ground that question seems of little interest to Netanyahus government. With more than a million internal refugees from northern Gaza crammed into southern towns. Israel has been bombing these supposedly safe zones where refugees are taking shelter, and appears ready to attack the south with ground forces. This, when all Gaza civilians are lacking food, fuel, water, and medical supplies; Israel is barely letting such vital necessities trickle in from Egypt. Its way past time for several-day humanitarian pauses to let in more aid, as demanded by the U.N. Security Council and backed by the White House. Perhaps Netanyahus lack of concern for Gazas future reflects the urging of members of his party to transfer much Gazas population to other countries. That is a war crime forcing civilians, who had no desire to leave their homes before the war began, out of their land. This would be in sync with messianic members of Netanyahus cabinet who are using the opportunity presented by the war in Gaza to embolden radical Jewish settlers to drive West Bank Palestinian villagers off their land. READ MORE: Palestinian civilians are suffering at the hands of Israel and Hamas Let me repeat that Israel has a right to self-defense, and a right to destroy a terrorist group that committed unspeakable crimes against civilians. Unfortunately, the heroes of Israels political opposition, who mobilized half the country against Netanyahus domestic assault on democracy, are not in power now. If they were, this tragic war would have a far better chance at a positive political result. However, the lack of vision of the Netanyahu government is deeply worrying to Arab leaders who have established peace with Israel, or want to in the future, like Saudi Arabia. Their publics are restless. The deaths of thousands of Palestinians civilians, and attacks on Gaza hospitals are upsetting even Israels loyal European allies. Without a political future for Palestinians, a new ideological movement aimed at the destruction of Israel is bound to rise from Gazas ruins, and spread through the region. Down that road lies Hamas 2.0. Ohio state Rep. Jennifer Gross (center), holding a "Choose Life" sign, joined by Ohio state Rep. Adam Bird (left) and Ohio state Rep. Thomas Hall, stand together at the Ohio March for Life rally in Columbus, Ohio, last month. Read more COLUMBUS, Ohio The statewide battles over abortion rights since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a constitutional right to abortion have exposed another fault line: the commitment to democracy. As voters in state after state affirm their support for abortion rights, opponents are acting with escalating defiance toward the democratic processes and institutions they perceive as aligned against their cause. Certain Republican elected officials and antiabortion activists around the country have responded to losses at the ballot box by challenging election results, refusing to bring state laws into line with voter-backed changes, moving to strip state courts of their power to consider abortion-related laws and challenging the citizen-led ballot initiative process itself. We.Are.Not.Done., Ohio state Rep. Jennifer Gross declared on the social media platform X two days after voters enshrined the right to abortion in the state constitution earlier this month. She and 25 other Republican lawmakers vowed to block the amendment from reversing Ohios existing abortion restrictions. Advertisement A strong majority of Ohio voters passed the amendment, by roughly 57% to 43%. In response, the group of lawmakers said in a joint statement: We will do everything in our power to prevent our laws from being removed based upon perception of intent. Gross joined three fellow Republicans to go even further, proposing legislation to prevent Ohio courts from interpreting any cases related to the abortion-rights amendment, known as Issue 1. Similar efforts have emerged in six other states since state courts became the new abortion battleground after the Dobbs decision on June 24, 2022, that overturned Roe v. Wade. Douglas Keith, senior counsel to the Brennan Center for Justices Judiciary Program, said abortion politics prompted successful efforts to limit the power of state courts in Montana and Utah and unsuccessful legislation in Alaska and Kansas. Such bills are attempts to dismantle the governments system of checks and balances, he said. An attempt to strip the courts ability to interpret Issue 1 seems to me to be picking a fight with not just the courts, but with voters themselves, Keith said in reference to the Ohio amendment. That conflict was on display during a town hall hosted by Gross after her efforts to thwart the abortion-rights amendment were announced. A constituent who said she supported Issue 1, Emily Jackson, was incredulous. Youre ignoring the voice. The voice is there, Jackson said. We spoke. Gross told Jackson she wasnt ignoring voters but rather was reflecting opponents concerns that Ohio voters were led astray. The campaign drew big money from outside the state for both sides. Gross did not return call and e-mails seeking additional comment. Advocates contend that strict abortion laws also are undemocratic in the most basic sense because a majority of Americans oppose them. According to AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of more than 94,000 voters, 63% of those who voted in the 2022 midterm elections said abortion should be legal in most or all cases. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll taken a year after the Supreme Courts decision found that about two-thirds of Americans overall said abortion should generally be legal. In all seven states where abortion has been on the ballot since Roe v. Wade fell, voters have either supported protecting abortion rights or rejected an attempt to erode them. That has led some Republicans who support abortion restrictions to target the ballot initiative process, a form of direct democracy that is available to voters in only about half the states. Thank goodness that most of the states in this country dont allow you to put everything on the ballot because pure democracies are not the way to run a country, said Rick Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania and one-time presidential candidate. He spoke about Ohios election results during an appearance on the conservative site NewsMax. Another elected Republican, North Dakota state Rep. Brandon Prichard, weighed in on X, formerly Twitter, to encourage Republicans to defy the outcome of Ohios election. It would be an act of courage to ignore the results of the election and not allow for the murder of Ohio babies, he wrote. Some political observers see a larger danger in such sentiments. Sophia Jordan Wallace, a political science professor at the University of Washington, said the frequency and the explicitness of these undemocratic attempts are increasing and that they threaten to do long-term damage to American institutions and the publics faith in them. And that damage is incredibly difficult to undo, she said. For many abortion opponents, the issue is a sacred cause, the thing that cannot be argued with, one that may outweigh the importance of maintaining democratic practices, said Myrna Perez, associate professor of Gender and American Religion at Ohio University. Things arent static, so youre trying to figure out a way to get the system to give you the results that you want, she said. Andrew Whitehead, associate professor of sociology at Indiana UniversityPurdue University Indianapolis, said Christian nationalists, who have deep ties to the antiabortion movement, have a history of viewing access to fundamental democratic processes such as voting not as a right but a privilege that should be afforded only to those who align with their beliefs. When it comes to enforcing their vision for America they think is ordained by God, they will set aside democracy, Whitehead said. Antiabortion lawmakers and advocates already have pushed back in a handful of states where voters sided generally with abortion rights. In Montana, voters last fall rejected a legislative referendum that would have criminalized a doctors or nurses failure to provide lifesaving care to a baby born alive after an attempted abortion; such cases typically involve severe medical problems. Republicans countered by passing a version of the rejected measure into law. Kentucky Republicans chose to leave intact a state ban on abortion at all stages of pregnancy, even though voters there defeated a measure that would have denied constitutional protections for the procedure. In Ohio, some notable top Republicans are rejecting antidemocratic suggestions and standing up for voters. In this country, we accept the results of elections, said GOP Gov. Mike DeWine, a leading opponent of Issue 1. Republican Attorney General Dave Yost tweeted that he scoured the Ohio Constitution, but found no exception for matters in which the outcome of an election is contrary to the preferences of those in power. All political power is inherent in the people, he quoted the document as saying. Republican state legislative leaders initially pledged that the fight to restrict abortion rights wasnt over after voters had spoken. But as their party grapples with the antiabortion movements deep divisions, House Speaker Jason Stephens and Senate President Matt Huffman have appeared to soften their tone. Stephens signaled he wont advance Grosss court-limiting bill. Huffman, a devout Catholic, walked back suggestions that he could pursue an immediate repeal of Issue 1. They were among Ohio Republicans who defied their own law and called a special election in August aimed at raising the threshold for passing future constitutional amendments from a simple majority to 60%. The measure was widely seen as an attempt to undermine the fall abortion amendment and was soundly rejected. The tensions already are evident for abortion initiatives planned for state ballots in 2024. In Missouri, disputes over ballot language are complicating efforts by abortion-rights supporters to advance a statewide ballot measure. A panel of judges last month ruled that summaries written by Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, an abortion opponent who is running for governor next year, were politically partisan and misleading. In Michigan, three Republican lawmakers joined an antiabortion group in suing to overturn a state constitutional amendment protecting abortion rights that voters passed with wide support last year. Floridas Republican attorney general is attempting to keep a proposed abortion rights amendment off the 2024 ballot. We saw voters make that connection in Ohio between abortion and democracy in that first special election, said Kara Gross, legislative director at the ACLU of Florida. And we have faith voters will be able to make that same connection elsewhere in 2024. (ECNS) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday arrived in San Francisco for a summit with U.S. President Joe Biden, and to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting. In a recent exclusive interview with China News Network, Jim Rogers, the global financial titan, shared his observation on the U.S.-China relations. He said that both countries have benefited from economic and trade exchanges, and have close people-to-people ties. The proper China policy for the U.S. administration should facilitate trade relations with China. The annual Hydrogen Ireland conference that will take place at the end of this month in Belfast has taken on new importance, following a landmark moment in the summer for the burgeoning green hydrogen industry. Following years of stalling and delays, finally the Government published its long-awaited national hydrogen strategy for Ireland in July. Although said to be in prime position as the infant industry takes shape in the coming decades, Ireland is one of the last countries in Europe to actually publish a national plan. Put very simply, green hydrogen produces energy through the electrolysis of water, while eliminating emissions by using renewable energy. Its supporters say it could completely revolutionise clean energy, while its detractors say it is too cumbersome and costly to achieve on a mass scale however, it has turned even the heads of sceptics in recent years as costs come down. In January 2022, the Government said it would kickstart the national strategy before July of that year, after a major report said Ireland was lagging behind other countries, despite enormous potential. Some 18 months later, it has finally come. The delay is not necessarily a bad thing, according to Hydrogen Ireland director Paul McCormack. We were one of the last countries in Europe to come out with a strategy, this is true. Obviously that was a disadvantage in some respects, but also an advantage because it gives us an opportunity to learn from others mistakes. Germany came out with a strategy for hydrogen two years ago and it was green hydrogen at all costs. Now they realise because of the blockages in the system and the shortages in the supply chain, you cant get everything in place. Irelands strategy is a starting point, not a fait accompli, its not a destination, but the start of a journey. Like any strategy, at the start of a journey, it can be refined, modified, and changed but at least we have a strategy. It's not over-prescriptive, it allows enough room for latitude within the energy equation for Ireland to take availability of the opportunities that are there for both onshore and offshore, but also what I call transition fuels. Hydrogen may be the ultimate destination but there will be other transition fuels in that journey and the strategy allows for that, in both technical application but also importantly in social applications, as Ireland moves towards net zero between 2030 and 2050. Its a balanced pathway, he said. That pathway allows for those who should benefit most to do so the consumer, both at home and in work, by bringing cleaner energy access to those who need it most, according to Mr McCormack. There have been 21 short-term actions identified within the national hydrogen strategy to enable the development of the hydrogen sector in Ireland, according to the Department of Environment. These actions aim to remove any barriers that could inhibit early hydrogen projects from progressing today, and to enhance our knowledge through targeted research and innovation across the hydrogen value chain, laying the groundwork to deliver on our long-term strategic vision for hydrogen in Ireland, the Dept said. Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan, with Dr James Carton, chair of Hydrogen Ireland, Paul McCormack, Assistant Professor at DCU and board member of Hydrogen Ireland, attending the Hydrogen Ireland annual conference at the Radisson Blu Royal. Picture: Maxwells Ireland will focus its efforts on the scale up and production of renewable green hydrogen as it supports both our decarbonisation and energy security needs. Prior to 2030, hydrogen production will target grid-connected electrolysis from surplus renewables. A 2GW target to produce renewable hydrogen sourced from offshore wind is also set to be in development by 2030, which will help to provide greater certainty for investors and create the scales needed to enable greater infrastructure deployment, the Dept said upon its publication. Mr McCormack said Ireland coming from behind is not a bad strategy. As the saying goes, the early bird may catch the worm but it is the second mouse that gets the cheese. If you look at the cost of new technologies, sometimes it is better to be a leader but sometimes it is better to be a follower, because the technology isn't there yet, and the uses aren't there yet. But importantly, the skills arent there yet. We need to skill up the workforce, we need to transition the workforce, and work with the people to make that clean energy journey. As my good friend Mark Welsh from Energia has said, green hydrogen is not a silver bullet but a silver buckshot. Each part of Europe will use it differently, and will develop it separately for their own uses. We don't have heavy industry like steelmaking that other parts of Europe have, but we have great mobility, and we need to transform our mobility to greener solutions. We also need to provide greater public mobility if we are going to meet our targets, and hydrogen will be part of that catalyst for change, Mr McCormack said. Ireland has a number of advantages when compared to other countries, according to Mr McCormack. One is the offshore and onshore renewables we can tap into. The offshore potential is 10 times the size of the land mass we have a great energy sink off our coast. While Ireland may not be the biggest country in Europe, it could become the test base for new renewable technologies. We develop them, we produce them, and then grow them at scale for other countries. Ireland could develop a full hydrogen supply chain as part of a balanced pathway that meets our social needs, our environmental needs, and our economic needs. Ireland can become the testbed for Europe to become the green capital of Europe for hydrogen. It is not hyperbole to think that Cork could become the Aberdeen of green hydrogen if the industry scales to the potential that its proponents think it can. Mr McCormack said: If we look at the hydrogen value chain, if we can change the energy equation where we import 85% of our energy, we will have hydrogen hubs and hydrogen valleys throughout the island, networked and linked. Those will be placed at the areas of greatest need and the greatest opportunity, and Cork is perfectly placed. Hydrogen Ireland is an all-island organisation working to raise awareness of green hydrogens potential when it comes to energy and power in the years to come. Hydrogen Ireland Conference 2023, with the theme: Hydrogen - delivering a balanced pathway to net zero is taking place with the support of ESB, CATAGEN, Gas Networks Ireland, and Energia. The conference takes place at Titanic Belfast on November 28 and 29, and it is expected to see a range of industry professionals, technical and academic partners, research collaborators, policymakers, and Government officials in attendance. The guest lineup includes Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, chief executive of Hydrogen Europe, and other well-known figures from the worlds of politics, energy, and industry. At the conference, delegates and speakers will address a wide range of topics including an all-island approach to energy, climate, technology and supporting investment in the future. The conference will map out the three key stages in Irelands Green Hydrogen journey: Where we are now? What are we targetting? And how do we get there? Paul McCormack says the stakes couldnt be higher as global heat records tumbled during the summer. Cutting back on energy produced by fossil fuels is a massive part of how we can hope to deal with climate change. As an island off Europe, we have the natural resources, an ambitious, skilled workforce and now the National Strategy to chart the way forward on clean energy. We need to grasp that opportunity for all our futures. Ireland's progress towards its climate action goals of a 51% reduction in emissions by 2030 across all sectors of the economy will require a shared commitment by all sectors of industry and society. Climate scientists have reported that 2023 is on track to be the warmest year in the history of mankind. Soaring global temperatures, more frequent storms and the threat to countless species of animals and plant life are widely accepted as being a product of man-made climate change. Perception can often be taken for reality when it comes to the wellbeing of Irelands tourism and hospitality industry. The narrative this year has often been that the sector is booming, however latest data would suggest otherwise. The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has issued its September statistics on overseas visitor numbers, and they show the sectors recovery is sluggish at best. The crucial third quarter of the year brought in 3.6m international visitors and, when combined with Q2, would point to six million international visitors for the full year. That might sound like a big number until you compare it to the last full year pre-pandemic when overseas tourists to Ireland amounted to over 10m. The CSO is keen to stress that its data-collection methodology has changed in the interim so direct comparisons are complicated but nonetheless it is apparent that the full recovery for the sector is some way off. Airports may be busy, but numbers are inflated by Irish people travelling abroad and hotel occupancy levels are inflated by government contracts for humanitarian purposes. The actual number of tourists in the country is well shy of where it was and where it needs to be Although the North American market is performing well, other international markets are weaker, and with so many Irish travelling abroad it is clear domestic tourism numbers this year will be soft. Allied to sluggish demand, tourism and hospitality enterprises are dealing with significant cost of business pressures. Crowe, a leading business advisory firm, conducted analysis earlier this year which shows that impending legislative changes including minimum wage increases, enhanced statutory sick pay, and pension auto-enrolment will add approximately 25% to the payroll cost of tourism and hospitality businesses over the next three years. With most businesses in the sector being SMEs, with modest profit margins, such payroll increases will have to be passed onto the consumer thereby further eroding Irelands competitiveness. No serious business owner has any issue paying staff more, particularly in a cost-of-living crisis, but it highlights a real failure by government to support businesses in last months budget. The Irish Tourism Industry Confederation, and other business representative groups, had urged government to introduce an employer PRSI offset measure to mitigate pressure on margins for labour-intensive enterprises, but no such announcement has been forthcoming. In the medium-term the industry is ambitious. It recently produced a roadmap for the sector out to 2030 that points to the potential of a 50% rise in revenue which will benefit business, regional Ireland, and the exchequer. And growth can be managed in a responsible way. There was a positive intervention recently from the Taoiseach who said Dublin Airport must be allowed grow beyond its current planning cap of 32m passengers. Picture: Dominic McGrath/PA The sustainability debate, particularly in the context of air travel, is a regular topic for discussion on airwaves. There was a positive intervention recently from the Taoiseach who said Dublin Airport must be allowed grow beyond its current planning cap of 32m passengers. It seems nonsensical that the key gateway to Ireland has a cap which self-evidently hamstrings exports, FDI, as well as tourism numbers. The counter argument has raged, across media and the Dail floor, about aviation and emissions. It is an interesting debate but not binary. According to the International Energy Agency, aviation accounts for 2% of carbon globally, certainly material but clearly not the bogeyman some commentators try to portray it as. Flights also of course are inter-jurisdictional so all emissions cant all be lumped on Ireland. Crucially though as an island nation we need connectivity otherwise our economy will shrink. Therefore, the key question is how aviation can become less carbon heavy. The broad aviation sector has committed to being carbon neutral by 2050 and all should be done to support this. Flooding and prolonged exposure to wet conditions can cause lots of different problems for donkeys, according to the Cork-based charity dedicated to their welfare. The Donkey Sanctuary in Liscarroll was alerted to several donkeys in distress following the recent storms that saturated farmland countrywide. It says flooded fields can lead to a lack of accessible dry ground, making it difficult for them to rest comfortably. Prolonged exposure to wet conditions can also result in hoof problems, skin issues like rain-scald, and other health complications. The sanctuary has urged people who come across a donkey, or a group of donkeys, stranded in a flooded or submerged field to take immediate action as the welfare of the animals could be at serious risk. Meanwhile, as Christmas approaches, it has introduced 'Snowdrop to its adoption family. With a bright white coat and sweet nature, he has come a long way since being rescued five years ago. Snowdrops story is a true testament to the resilience of donkeys and the incredible transformation that can happen with the right care and support, said Cathy Griffin, head of welfare at the sanctuary. We are thrilled to introduce him as our newest adoption donkey. This allows our supporters to contribute to his ongoing care, and the welfare of other donkeys, she said. When Donkey Welfare Adviser Jane Bruce was called to Co. Monaghan, she found Snowdrop and his mother 'Snowflake' living with no shelter, even though it was wet and bitterly cold. Snowdrop had overgrown hooves and rain scald, which occurs when the skin and hair are wet for long periods of time. His mother also had chronic laminitis and was struggling to cope with her boisterous son. Both donkeys were treated by the vet and farrier and moved to the sanctuarys new arrivals unit. Jane also worked with their owner to help prevent any further unplanned breeding. Fortunately, both donkeys recovered well. Snowflake has also been given the care she needs. She now lives with a group of donkeys with laminitis and always has soft bedding and an easy walk to the fields. The sanctuarys farm team ensures that she stays at an ideal weight to help prevent a flare-up of her laminitis. She has been doing well since moving to her new group and likes to mingle with all the other donkeys. Funds raised through the adoption scheme help to buy food and medicine, pay for vets and farriers, education and training, and the ongoing work of rescuing helpless donkeys from hopeless situations. Since it opened in 1987, the sanctuary has cared for over 5,600 neglected and abandoned donkeys from across Ireland. For many of them, it is the first time in their lives that they have felt loving hands and heard quiet voices. Great care is given to ensuring that each donkey has individual attention. Today, the sanctuary has over 1,700 donkeys and mules in its care. Some 530 of these reside in private guardian homes countrywide as part of a rehoming scheme. The remainder are based at its four farms in the Liscarroll area. Earlier this year, the sanctuary celebrated the 20th anniversary of its veterinary hospital, which has provided thousands of donkeys with world-class facilities and expertise. Meanwhile, Agriculture, Food and Marine Minister Charlie McConalogue has confirmed that the humble donkey, part of rural life for centuries, has a value for stocking requirements under Common Agricultural Policy schemes. He revealed their worth when replying to a Dail question from Kerry Deputy Michael Healy-Rae, who asked him if donkeys have a role in stocking densities and in farmers fulfilling requirements under the schemes. Minister McConalogue said stocking requirements can be used by applicants to fulfil eligibility criteria under CAP schemes such as Eco, Organic Farming and Areas of Natural Constraints. Donkeys are eligible for inclusion in stocking requirement calculations and are valued at 0.80 livestock unit. In addition, they must be owned by the applicant and hold a valid passport with the donkey registered in the name of the applicant. Donkeys must also be maintained on the applicant's holding, he said. Minister McConalogue said it is important to note that no more than 50% of the stocking density requirement can be fulfilled using donkeys. Applicants are, therefore, required to use other livestock to fulfil the other 50% requirement, he said. I went to my clinic in Galway, and I spoke with my nurse. Id just come out of a long-term relationship, and I was feeling very lonely. I didn't know anyone else who was positive, and I was feeling very frustrated, and very let down about the fact that there was so much stigma, so little education around HIV. So I said, 'I need to do something'. On the other end of a Zoom call, Galwegian nurse and HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) advocate Aoife Commins is a ball of energy and enthusiasm, talking about what spurred her on to reach out to the PozVibe podcast, a regular online audio show for people with the immune condition in Ireland, in April of this year. "I spoke with my nurse and she said, 'you should speak to [presenter] Robbie Lawlor, he's a massive HIV activist, he's huge in the community, he's done so much work for us, and just for stigma in general'. I saw he shared something about his podcast, so I started listening to the first few episodes and was like, 'this is amazing'. I messaged him and asked, 'could I maybe be a guest on your podcast?'." Aoife Commins: I was like, 'I need to change this. Why do I feel this way? I have nothing to be ashamed of.'" Pic: Hany Marzouk DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT Aoife received her diagnosis in 2020, after being exposed to the virus during a relationship during her time in Australia. Her ex-partner had tested negative during an initial window in which infection couldnt be detected in tests, between one and three months after infection - something for which Aoife warns particular vigilance today - but it was at that time that exposure occurred. Despite being given the emergency PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis) treatment, Aoife began experiencing a short but profound bout of illness, with an eventual diagnosis and initial treatments happening amid the wider social and infrastructural turbulence of the covid crisis. The doctor came into the room, and said, 'you don't have cancer, you have HIV'. Of course, I was relieved, because as a nurse, I know HIV is easily treated. I was like, 'I know I'm going to be able to have kids. It's not going to be an issue. I know I'm not going to spread it to anyone because I'm going to be on my anti-retroviral (ART) treatment. I know I'm going to live a long and healthy life. I know I'm not going to get AIDS'. Getting that diagnosis was a complete relief, but as the weeks went on, the shock kicked in: 'who's going to love me, who's going to want to have sex with someone who's positive, everyone's gonna think I'm dirty, a slut - self-stigma, where you're your own worst enemy. In openly and honestly discussing her own story of infection, diagnosis, and seeking to deal with outdated attitudes, Aoifes conversation with Lawlor and co-presenter Veda Lady went beyond the podcasts usual listenership. Aoife has subsequently appeared across print, television and radio, as part of her ongoing mission of advocacy, informing the public on life as a HIV+ person, and the changes that have occurred for people with the condition. "I shared a clip of the podcast, and then typed out my piece," she says of sharing her appearance via her personal Instagram. "It was terrifying. I was sitting in my little safe space in the house, and I just hit send, and I was on my own and my phone started blowing up instantly. I just started crying. It was a release of so much pent-up frustration and fear and stigma and anxiety, and it was so nice to get it out there. It was like, this is it. There's no going back. I'm free. Aoife Commins, speaking on the Poz Vibe Podcast CHALLENGING STIGMA Returning home, the professional anxiety of being a HIV+ healthcare professional spurred Aoife on to examine her feelings on the subject, as well as existing attitudes and lingering stigmas, rooted in fear created by the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 1990s. "I came back to Ireland, and I started working with some of the doctors that were treating me in our clinic in Galway, and I just started to feel this shame, this burning embarrassment, every time I saw any of them on the wards, like 'oh my god, they know my biggest secret'. I was like, 'I need to change this. Why do I feel this way? I have nothing to be ashamed of. I was an adult, I had sex, everyone has sex. So when I broke up with my partner, I decided to change my life in the biggest way possible, and come out very publicly and openly about my status. Her own deconstruction of shame and embarrassment around her diagnosis comes amid a time of huge change for people with the condition, thanks to advancements made in the area. Contrary to dated perceptions, people on modern HIV medication, whose viral load is so low as to be considered undetectable, are now at zero risk of spreading HIV - giving rise to the term U=U. While Aoife was aware of the changes to the lives of HIV+ people, addressing those outdated perceptions and bringing attention to these developments didnt come without its initial frustrations. I was seeing misinformation being spread. I was seeing people saying the wrong things [without being aware of Aoifes diagnosis], like healthcare workers, a colleague of mine saying, 'I would never touch a HIV patient without gloves on', and I was like, 'what the f**k?'. Aoife Commins: "You're not going to get to educate everyone, but if I can reach some people, even a handful of people, it's a win." Pic: Hany Marzouk SPREADING THE MESSAGE While theres doubtlessly a weight that comes with having to be among the people to go out of their way to address stigma and disinformation, Aoife is no stranger either to mental health advocacy or healthcare communication. As a practising professional, shes taken it upon herself to channel her experiences, adding her voice to a growing movement of advocacy and better information on the condition in the country. For me as a nurse, and for someone who has suffered from mental health issues in the past, it would be amazing if people just stop stigmatising me, stop judging. I get a lot of 'oh, she's a nurse, she should have known better, should have been safer'. People will jump to conclusions before they even hear my full story. My manager was worried that patients weren't going to want to work with me, were not going to want me to be their nurse, when they found out. It hasn't happened yet, but it's a fear. If everyone was just educated, and all this misinformation was eradicated, then it wouldn't be an issue. "I'm never going to be able to educate everyone. I'm never going to be able to destigmatise everyone, there's going to be certain people that are going to see me as the devil, as someone who was irresponsible... you're not going to get to educate everyone, and I've accepted that. But if I can reach some people, even a handful of people, it's a win. Having discussed her diagnosis, and expressed her desire to further educate the public on HIV moving forward, Aoife addresses the question of what needs to change in Irish society, with an unmistakable verve and vigour. I think we need to go back to basics. We need to start in schools, educate from the bottom up, proper sex education, about healthy sex, safe sex, and consent. Go have all the sex you want - just practice safe sex, while HIV and other STIs are on the rise. I just feel like some people think they're invincible. 'It's never going to happen to me' - that mindset is something we need to break down, as well. HIV does not discriminate, is my f**king slogan. For more information on HIV in Ireland, including free testing, e-learning, and information on support and advocacy, visit HIV Ireland at https://www.hivireland.ie/. Follow Aoife Commins on Instagram: @aoifecommins. The PozVibe Podcast, including Aoifes appearance and interview, are available wherever you get your podcasts. To mark World AIDS Day in 2021, Cork's Sexual Health Centre launched End HIV Stigma, a collaborative community project in partnership with ACT UP and Positive Cork - including this mural on Grattan Street, shining a light on the stigma attached to HIV (human immunodeficiency virus). HIV - THE FACTS: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a serious, chronic illness that affects the bodys immune system, and requires treatment and management for life. HIV attacks the CD4 or T-cells in the immune system, vital for mounting our bodies immune response, rendering them less able to fight off sickness and infections. In order for HIV to be transmitted, it must get from the body of a HIV-positive person into the body of another person. It can be transmitted via unprotected sex (vaginal, anal & oral); blood-to-blood contact, like sharing contaminated needles, blood transfusions in countries where blood isnt screened); and mother-to-baby contact (during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding). It cannot be transmitted by: hugging, kissing or holding hands; toilet seats; sweat; sharing cutlery, plates, and cups; sharing a bath/swimming pool; mosquito bites; animal bites; working/going to school together. A HIV-positive individual who is pursuing a full course of anti-retroviral treatment (ART) will experience a reduction of HIV antibodies in the bloodstream to levels deemed undetectable, and is at zero risk of transmitting the virus after six months - although it is recommended that HIV+ mothers do not breastfeed. The only way to know your HIV status is via testing - free, confidential testing and check-ups are available from your nearest STI clinic, and from hivireland.ie. The HIV test is a blood test that looks for HIV antibodies in your bloodstream. It can take from one to three months after infection for HIV antibodies to show up in a persons bloodstream and be detected in a test. If you test during this period you may need to return and re-test. If you have been infected with HIV, you can transmit it to others during this window period. Having another STI can increase the chance of acquiring or transmitting HIV infection. By getting tested and knowing your status you can: get the essential care and treatment necessary for living a healthy life with HIV; make informed decisions about preventing transmission; and protect your partner(s) as well as yourself. The outcome of an HIV test does not affect a persons legal status in Ireland. All medical treatment for HIV is free in public hospitals in Ireland, including PrEP, PEP and ART. For more information, and to debunk some more long-standing myths, go to https://www.hivireland.ie/. A fresh appeal for information has been made by detectives investigating a sickening sectarian attack in which a man was murdered in 1992. Peter McCormack, 42, a Catholic man from Kilcoo, was shot when two gunmen burst into the Thierafurth Inn in the Co Down village at about 9pm on November 19 and opened fire on customers inside. Three other customers, including a 69-year-old man who was registered blind, were injured in the attack attributed to the loyalist paramilitary Ulster Volunteer Force. Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Byrne, from legacy investigation branch, said Mr McCormack was the innocent victim of a sickening sectarian attack. He said: Mr McCormack was enjoying a drink in his local pub when he was murdered. A fresh appeal for information has been made around a loyalist gun attack on a Co Down bar in which Peter McCormack was killed (PSNI/PA) The bar was full of customers about to take part in a charity darts match. Peter was an innocent victim of a sickening sectarian attack. Police believe that the gunmen made their escape in a grey Ford Orion car that was found abandoned a few miles away from the bar in Tollymore Forest Park. It had been stolen from an address in east Belfast earlier in the day. On the 31st anniversary of the attack, detectives are appealing for anyone who has any knowledge of what happened that evening who have not spoken to police previously, or who have any new information, to do so now. Mr Byrne said: It is not too late, if anyone now feels they are able to talk to us, we are ready to listen. A number of people were involved in Peters murder. They know who they are and they are going to have to live with that for the rest of their lives. I would appeal directly to them to do the right thing and make a difference to Peters family by making themselves known to police. Anyone with information can contact detectives in legacy investigation branch on 101 or LIBEnquiries@psni.pnn.police.uk. People can also submit a report online using the non-emergency reporting form via www.psni.police.uk/makeareport/ or through Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Ireland plans to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040 according to new targets announced by Health Minister Stephen Donnelly this week. Elimination means fewer than four cases per 100,000 women and require a 10% increase in vaccination rates for girls up to age 15 from the current 80% to 90% by 2030; along with cervical screening coverage by CervicalCheck at or above 73%; and the number of women receiving treatment within the first year of diagnosis at or above 97%. Around 300 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer annually. Announcing the plan, Mr Donnelly said: "We can now say that babies born today will reach adulthood in an Ireland where we expect to have eliminated cervical cancer. "We are now in a strong position to exceed WHO global targets by announcing 2040 as the date on which we expect to achieve elimination in Ireland." But he warned that high vaccination coverage is essential to meeting this target. "Achieving elimination of cervical cancer requires immense effort and we must ensure we increase HPV vaccination and screening coverage." Vaccines only work when they get into peoples arms. The covid-19 pandemic fuelled the largest sustained decline in childhood vaccinations in 30 years placing millions of children globally at risk of devastating and preventable diseases. Data from Unicef and the World Health Organisation (WHO) this year reported that the percentage of children who received three doses of the vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTP3, a marker for immunisation coverage within and across countries) fell five percentage points between 2019 and 2021 to 81% the lowest level since 2008. Unicef's executive director Catherine Russell called it a "red alert" for child health. "We are witnessing the largest sustained drop in childhood immunisation in a generation. The consequences will be measured in lives." Since 1990, immunisation has played a key role in the 60% fall in childhood mortality in children aged 5 and under. The evidence confirms that immunisation is one of the most successful and cost-effective public health interventions, saving an estimated 2 to 3 million lives each year. Unicef's executive director Catherine Russell called the low rates of vaccinations in children a "red alert" for child health. Picture: AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki Factors listed by Unicef as the key factors underlying recent steep declines in routine immunisation rates for children include: increasing numbers of children living in conflict and fragile settings; increased vaccine misinformation; and post-pandemic issues on service and service supply chains. But the hoped for recovery of immunisation rates in 2021 did not happen. "While a pandemic hangover was expected last year as a result of COVID-19 disruptions and lockdowns, what we are seeing now is a continued decline," Russell said. Covid-19 is not an excuse. "We need immunisation catch-up for the missing millions or we will inevitably witness more outbreaks, more sick children and greater pressure on already strained health systems." And that is exactly what is happening. Unicef cites avoidable outbreaks of measles and polio in the last year underscoring the vital role of immunisation in keeping children, adolescents, adults and societies healthy. A key factor in this is the increasing role of anti-vaccine and anti-science. These terms can mean different things to different people. Co-director of the Texas Childrens Centre for Vaccine Development, Prof Peter J Hotez in his new book The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science states that anti-vaccine refers to groups or individuals making false claims about vaccines or their harmful effects. "Today, anti-vaccine groups and leaders promote the political exploitation of vaccines and vaccine mandates, claiming they constitute instruments of government control, while simultaneously dismissing their health and community benefits. "The consequences of allowing this political assault on science to continue unopposed are unacceptable. "This could bring back childhood illness on a massive scale and reverse hard-won gains in public health," states Prof Hotez. According to the Global Burden of Disease Study (2019), those hard-won gains include up to an almost 80% to 90% decline in under-five-year-old childhood deaths from vaccine preventable diseases such as measles, pertussis, tetanus, diphtheria and meningitis between 2000 and 2019. Importance of vaccines Our entire vaccine ecosystem has become extremely fragile. A recent Unicef report on the State of the Worlds Children (2023) collected by the Vaccine Confidence Project confirms that confidence in the importance of vaccines for children is now lower than before the pandemic in many countries. This decline in confidence has been seismic in some countries. In South Africa and Japan, the proportion of people confident in the importance of childhood vaccines dropped by approximately one third during the pandemic. In Ireland, uptake of the MMR vaccine was 89.2% in the second quarter of 2023, compared to 92.5% in the same period in 2018. China, India, and Mexico were the only countries where confidence in vaccines held firm or even improved. In most countries, people under 35 and women were more likely to report less confidence about vaccines for children. Despite the falls, Unicef report that overall support for vaccines remains relatively strong with more than half of the 55 countries studied reporting more than 80% of respondents perceiving vaccines as important for children. Rates in Ireland In Ireland, the perception of the importance of childhood vaccines fell 6% from 91.5% to 85.5% a significant and concerning fall. Lecturer in psychology at Swansea University Dr Simon Nicholas Williams, suggested to the Conversation in July, that reasons for declines in vaccine confidence post pandemic include: Concerns that covid vaccines were developed too quickly; concerns over side effects; distrust in government and a belief in conspiracy theories. His research team suggest that hesitancy around covid shots could also lead to hesitancy spillover for other vaccines. Childhood vaccination uptake figures in Ireland have declined post pandemic. The most recent figures from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) show uptake of six-in-one vaccine at 24 months in Quarter 2 (Q2) 2023 at 92.4% compared to 94.8% in Q1 2018. Uptake of MMR was 89.2% in Q2 2023 compared to 92.5% in Q1 2018. Three Cs Addressing vaccine hesitancy implies utilising the three Cs model. We need to maximise convenience or ease of access and minimise complacency by adequately communicating risk of disease. The third C is confidence. Dr Williams suggests that to increase confidence we need to confront vaccine hesitancy caused by misinformation. One way to achieve this is to use social media to combat misinformation by investing in the promotion of accurate information. "Organisations such as the WHO and Unicef will pay a key role in building confidence globally," Dr Williams said. The WHO lists vaccine hesitancy as one of the top ten threats to global health. Tackling catch-up of missed vaccine doses is not enough. Just as important is the need to tackle misinformation. Otherwise, vaccine hesitancy will remain one of the greatest threats to global health for years to come. Cervical cancer is only one of a range of vaccine preventable illnesses whose elimination is now under threat. Dr Catherine Conlon is a public health doctor in Cork and former director of human health and nutrition, safefood Voters in Argentina head to the polls on Sunday in a presidential run-off election that will determine whether South Americas second-largest economy will take a right-ward shift. Populist Javier Milei, an upstart candidate who got his start as a TV talking head, has frequently been compared to former US president Donald Trump. He faces economy minister Sergio Massa of the Peronist party, which has been a leading force in Argentine politics for decades. On Mr Massas watch, inflation has soared to more than 140% and poverty has increased. Mr Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist, proposes to slash the size of the state and rein in inflation, while Mr Massa has warned people about the negative impacts of such policies. A campaign poster promoting the Liberty Advances coalition candidate Javier Milei is displayed on a pole, a day ahead of the presidential run-off, in Buenos Aires, Argentina (Matias Delacroix/AP) The highly polarising election is forcing many to decide which of the two they consider to be the least bad option. Voting stations open at 8am (11am GMT) and close 10 hours later. Voting is conducted with paper ballots, making the count unpredictable, but initial results were expected around three hours after polls close. Mr Milei went from blasting the countrys political caste on TV to winning a political seat two years ago. The economists screeds resonated widely with Argentines angered by their struggle to make ends meet, particularly young men. Money covers less and less each day. Im a qualified individual, and my salary isnt enough for anything, Esteban Medina, a 26-year-old physical therapist from Ezeiza, on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, told The Associated Press on the sidelines of a Milei rally earlier this week. Mr Massa, as one of the most prominent figures in a deeply unpopular administration, was once seen as having little chance of victory. But he managed to mobilise the networks of his Peronist party and clinched a decisive first-place finish in the first round of voting. His campaign has cautioned Argentines that his libertarian opponents plan to eliminate key ministries and otherwise sharply curtail the state would threaten public services, including health and education, and welfare programmes many rely on. Mr Massa has also drawn attention to his opponents often aggressive rhetoric and has openly questioned his mental acuity; ahead of the first round, Mr Milei sometimes carried a revving chainsaw at rallies. Mr Milei has accused Mr Massa and his allies of running a campaign of fear and he has walked back some of his most controversial proposals, such as loosening gun control. In his final campaign ad, Mr Milei looks at the camera and assures voters he has no plans to privatise education or health care. Most pre-election polls, which have been notoriously wrong at every step of this years campaign, show a statistical tie between the two candidates. Voters for first-round candidates who did not make the run-off will be key. Patricia Bullrich, who placed third, has endorsed Mr Milei. The vote takes place amid Mr Mileis allegations of possible electoral fraud, reminiscent of those from Mr Trump and former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro. Without providing evidence, Mr Milei claimed that the first round of the presidential election was plagued by irregularities that affected the result. Experts say such irregularities cannot swing an election, and that his assertions are partly aimed at firing up his base and motivating his supporters to become monitors of voting stations. Such claims spread widely on social media and, at Mr Mileis rally in Ezeiza earlier this week, all those interviewed told the AP they were concerned about the integrity of the vote. A United Nations team has said 291 patients were left at Gazas largest hospital after Israeli troops had others evacuate. Those left included 32 babies in an extremely critical condition, trauma patients with severely infected wounds and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. The team was able to tour Shifa Hospital for an hour after about 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left the sprawling compound on Saturday morning, said the World Health Organisation (WHO), which led the mission. It said 25 medical staff remained along with the patients. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. It said more teams will attempt to reach Shifa in the coming days to try to the evacuate patients to southern Gaza, where hospitals are also overwhelmed. Palestinians evacuate an injured woman found under the rubble of a destroyed house after an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday (Mohammed Dahman/AP) Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end the militants rule in Gaza following their wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago, which triggered the war. Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations. Israeli troops who have been based at the hospital and searching its grounds for days say they have found guns and other weapons, and showed reporters the entrance to a tunnel shaft. The Associated Press (AP) could not independently verify Israels findings. Saturdays mass departure was portrayed by Israel as voluntary, but the WHO said the military had issued evacuation orders, and some of those who left described it as a forced exodus. We left at gunpoint, Mahmoud Abu Auf told the AP by phone after he and his family left the crowded hospital. Tanks and snipers were everywhere inside and outside. He said he saw Israeli troops detain three men. Palestinians look for survivors inside the remains of a destroyed building following an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday (Mohammed Dahman/AP) Elsewhere in northern Gaza, dozens of people were killed in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp when what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike hit a crowded UN shelter on Saturday. It caused massive destruction in the camps Fakhoura school, said wounded survivors Ahmed Radwan and Yassin Sharif. The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help, Mr Radwan said by phone. AP photographs from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. It rarely comments on individual strikes, saying only that it targets Hamas while trying to minimise civilian harm. In southern Gaza, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential building near the town of Khan Younis on Saturday, killing at least 26 Palestinians, according to a doctor at the hospital where the bodies were taken. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. A woman prays during heavy rain during a pro-Palestinian protest outside the Israeli consulate in Istanbul on Saturday (Emrah Gurel/AP) Around 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians killed during Hamass October 7 attack, in which the group also dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza. The military says 52 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two were found near Shifa in an area where there had been heavy fighting. Israel, the United States and the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating over a hostage release for weeks. On Saturday, a senior White House official suggested it would need to be completed before the entry of large amounts of desperately needed aid. A release of large number of hostages would result in a significant pause in fighting and a massive surge of humanitarian relief, Brett McGurk, the White Houses National Security Council co-ordinator for the Middle East, said at a conference in Bahrain. Gazas main power station shut down early in the war and Israel has cut off electricity. That has left local authorities unable to operate water treatment centres, bakeries, hospitals and other critical infrastructure without fuel for generators, which has run low since Israel cut off all imports at the start of the war. More than two thirds of Gazas population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, is providing basic services to hundreds of thousands of people sheltering in schools and other facilities. Smoke rises after an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip on Saturday (Ariel Schalit/AP) Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days, and to keep internet and telephone systems running. UNRWA had been forced to put aid operations on hold on Friday during a communications blackout. Gaza has received only 10% of its required food supplies each day in shipments from Egypt, according to the UN, and the water system shutdown has left most of the population drinking contaminated water. Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant said on Saturday that Israels forces were expanding operations in Gaza City. With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate, he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza in the coming days. His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to southern Gaza, where Israel had told Palestinian civilians to seek refuge. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Palestinians look for survivors inside the remains of a destroyed building following an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday (Mohammed Dahman/AP) Even as it warns of a broadening offensive, Israel remains at odds with its main ally, the United States, over what to do with Gaza should it succeed in removing Hamas from power. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that the Israeli military would have full freedom to operate within the territory after the war, indicating it would at least temporarily reoccupy the territory from which it withdrew soldiers and settlers in 2005. In an op-ed published on Saturday in The Washington Post, US President Joe Biden said Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited and governed under a revitalised Palestinian Authority while world leaders work toward a solution that would create a Palestinian state alongside Israel. Mr Netanyahus government is strongly opposed to Palestinian statehood. The Palestinian Authority has said it would only return to govern Gaza where Hamas routed its forces in 2007 as part of a comprehensive two-state solution to the decades-old conflict. Thirty-one premature babies have been safely moved from Gazas main hospital to another in the south and will be moved to Egypt, health officials said. It comes as scores of other critically wounded patients remained stranded there days after Israeli forces entered the compound. The fate of the newborns at Shifa Hospital captured global attention after photographs showed doctors trying to keep them warm. A power cut had shut down incubators and other equipment, and food, water and medical supplies ran out as Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside the hospital. World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media that the very sick babies were evacuated, along with six health workers and 10 staff family members. He said they were taken to a hospital in the southern Gaza city of Rafah where they are receiving urgent care. A WHO team that visited the hospital on Saturday said 291 patients were still there, including the babies, trauma patients with severely infected wounds and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. About 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left Shifa Hospital on Saturday morning, the WHO said. It said 25 medical staff stayed with the patients. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa, part of its wider accusation that the fighters use civilians as cover. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end Hamass rule in Gaza following the militant groups wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago, which killed more than 1,200 people and triggered the war. Israeli soldiers near the border with the Gaza Strip on Sunday (Leo Correa/AP) Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations and critics have held up the hospital as a symbol of what they say is Israels reckless endangerment of civilians. Thousands have been killed in Israeli strikes and there are severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel in the besieged territory. Israeli troops who have been based at the hospital and searching its grounds for days say they have found guns and other weapons and showed reporters the entrance to a tunnel shaft. The Associated Press (AP) could not independently verify Israels findings. Heavy clashes were reported in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza overnight into Sunday. There was the constant sound of gunfire and tank shelling, Yassin Sharif, who is sheltering in a UN-run hospital in the camp, said by phone. It was another night of horror. Dozens of people were killed in what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike on a crowded UN shelter in the Jabaliya camp the day before, according to witnesses. AP photograps from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Palestinians evacuate an injured woman found under the rubble of a destroyed house following an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday (Mohammed Dahman/AP) Around 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians killed during Hamass October 7 attack, in which the group dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza and shattered Israels sense of security. The military says 52 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two were found near Shifa in an area where there had been heavy fighting. Israel, the United States and the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating over a hostage release for weeks. On Saturday, a senior White House official suggested it would need to be completed before the entry of large amounts of desperately needed aid. A release of a large number of hostages would result in a significant pause in fighting and a massive surge of humanitarian relief, Brett McGurk, the White Houses National Security Council co-ordinator for the Middle East, said at a conference in Bahrain. Qatars prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said on Sunday he is confident a deal will soon be reached, telling reporters the sticking points, honestly, at this stage are more practical, logistical. More than two-thirds of Gazas population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, is struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of thousands of people sheltering in and around schools and other facilities. Their misery has worsened in recent days with the arrival of winter, as cold winds and driving rain buffet tent camps. Palestinians look for survivors inside the remains of a destroyed building following an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday (Mohammed Dahman/AP) Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days and to keep internet and telephone systems running. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gazas sole power station and most water treatment centres to shut down, leaving most residents without electricity or running water. Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant said on Saturday that Israels forces were expanding operations in Gaza City. With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate, he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza in the coming days. His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to southern Gaza, where Israel has told Palestinian civilians to seek refuge. Israel has repeatedly struck what it says are militant targets across the south, often killing civilians. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Egypt has refused to accept any influx of Palestinian refugees, in part because of fears that Israel would not allow them to return. 1371138342::cfb49c8e-2422-11e5-99a3-d7f5c6e8b241 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. Reddit Email 48 Shares Exeter, UK (Special to Informed Comment; Featured) When the United Arab Emirates (UAE), along with several Arab states such as Bahrain and Morocco, normalized their relationship with Israel, this was believed to create leverage against Israel. Moreover, the UAE claimed this was their attempt to salvage a two-state solution. Indeed, when the UAE signed the normalization agreement with Israel, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Anwar Gargash, celebrated the Israeli halt of the annexation of Palestinian lands as a significant diplomatic achievement, which has been concretized thanks to Emirati normal relations with Israel, which is expected to play a direct and constructive role in enhancing the regions security and stability. The commentators were also debating whether the deal would create leverage over Israel in their treatment of Palestinians. For example, Yoel Guzansky and Ari Heistein stated. The UAE has now gained significant leverage over Israel that will factor into Israeli decision-making in the Palestinian arena, particularly when Jerusalem is considering steps that do not align with Emirati interests. However, contrary to the Emirati claim, Palestinians believe leverage would never come with normalization, but rather, it would only come by rejecting any engagement until the Palestinian state is concrete. Furthermore, Palestinians feared that if [normalizations are] not conditioned on significant Israeli steps toward enabling the creation of a Palestinian state, [these kinds of normalization] debilitate the Palestinian national project. Guzansky and Heistein were also cautious about the Emiratis ability to influence the Israeli state. They warned that if it becomes clear that the UAE fails to change Israeli behavior over Palestine, this can hinder further normalization with other states. Guzansky and Heistein stated Should Israel and the UAE engage in a public spat on anything relating to the Palestinian issue, that would likely discourage those Arab or Muslim states weighing the prospect of normalization from moving ahead if it becomes apparent that these agreements are unable to influence Israeli policy in that regard. Three years since normalization: When will leverage arrive? UAE, the Arab Group & China on Gaza Humanitarian Corridor Resolution | United Nations Since the UAE and Israel have normalized relations, many symbolic and concrete steps have been taken between the two parties that are evidence of warm relations, from appointing ambassadors to direct flights. However, three years of normalization did not prove much leverage when it came to Emirati influence over Israels treatment of Palestinians. As much as it is evidence of the October conflict in which Israel responded disproportionately by claiming over 5,000 Palestinians lives, the UAE could not play a significant role in influencing Israel in previous Israeli aggression either. This was the case during Israeli aggression in Sheikh Jarrah Looking back three years after normalization, Qatar increased its leverage more than the UAE, not because it increased its relations with Israel; instead, it became almost the most significant actor in the Arab world, which has relatively warm ties with Hamas. Qatars engagement with Hamas and its close relations with the US gave Doha an intermediary role between Hamas, Israel, and the US. On the other hand, the UAE not only recognized Hamas as a terrorist organization but also questioned the authority of the leader of the Palestinian Authority, as it no secret What now? Will Saudi Arabia normalize with Israel? The recent event showed, one more time, that none of the Muslim/Arab majority states have much leverage over Israel when it comes to ceasing the tension and decreasing the violence against Palestinians. Not only the UAE and other Arab countries, which normalized in post-2020, but also countries such as Turkey, whose relations go back to the founding years of Israel, Egypt, and Jordan, which have decades of recognition and are significant actors for Israeli security, have limited influence, especially in the last few years. Therefore, if these normalizations serve as an example, it would be naive to think that Saudi normalization will have a different fate. It was reported that Saudi Arabia and Israel were in the normalization process when Hamass surprise attack occurred on October 7. Saudi Arabia softened its condition from an independent state for Palestinians in 2002 to a good life for the Palestinians in 2023, an interpretation that the Israeli occupation is no longer a deal-breaker. The Biden administration is keen to finalize the deal to kill two birds with one stone. The first bird is US domestic politics. Biden wants a diplomatic achievement that will beat the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Moroccos normalization with Israel, which was masterminded by Bidens predecessor and, most likely, his rival in the upcoming presidential election, Donald Trump. The international bird is to make Chinese-brokered Riyadh-Tehran normalization less relevant as the Israel-Saudi alliance might create a stronger anti-Iranian bloc. However, Saudi Arabia should consider what the UAE has earned and lost domestically and internationally before inking any agreement. Also, even though both states have similar authoritarianism, Saudi Arabia should be more aware of such normalizations domestic and global reactions. Contrary to the UAE, Saudi Arabia claims leadership for the Islamic world as it hosts the two holiest sites for Muslims and also due to the states founding ideology. However, the latter has been eroded in recent years. Therefore, the Saudi Arabian leadership should consider these conditions before committing to any deal. Reddit Email 152 Shares The development of Hamas, in many ways, mirrors the broader history of the Israel-Palestine conflict. ( The National Interest) The savagery of Hamas heinous terrorist attack on October 7, which left 1,200 Israelis dead and over 240 more held captive, marked a significant turning point in the Israel-Palestine conflict. Israels response has been unconscionably brutal, killing more than 11,000 Palestinians thus far, almost half of them children. Blinded by the desire for vengeance, Israels rage has transformed much of Gaza into a wasteland, creating a grave humanitarian crisis. To understand this horrific and unprecedented escalation, we need to trace the long arc of Hamas progressive radicalization towards violence, which is itself reflected in the radicalization of the conflict more broadly. The Origins of Violence The origins of the conflict are steeped in violence. It began with the rising tide of antisemitism and persecution of Jews in Europe during the late nineteenth century, from the 1894 Dreyfus Affair in France to widespread pogroms against Jews in Russia following the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881. This hostile milieu saw the emergence of Zionism, a political movement that sought to establish a national homeland in which the Jewish people could reside safely. The first Zionist Congress in 1897 set their sights on establishing this home in Ottoman Palestine. However, they faced an immediate moral quandary: the land was already populated by Palestinian Arabs, and the creation of a Jewish state would inevitably entail forced demographic changes. Hindustan Times: Hamas Angry With Arab Leaders After Islamic Summit In Saudi Arabia On Israel-Gaza War. Heres Why Some Zionists expressed unease over the prospect of violently expropriating land from the Arabs. Israel Zangwill wrote in 1905, Palestine proper has already its inhabitants. [We] must be prepared either to drive out by the sword the [Arab] tribes in possession as our forefathers did or to grapple with the problem of a large alien population, mostly Mohammedan and accustomed for centuries to hate us. Others, attempting to assuage the cognitive dissonance of forcibly divesting the Arabs of their land, while themselves being refugees from persecution, adopted the placating myth that Palestine was a land without a people for a people without a land. The debate was rendered moot with the 1917 Balfour Declaration. In an effort to secure international support during World War I, Britain pledged to support the establishment of a Jewish national home in what would become its Palestinian Mandatea spoil of war from the conquered Ottomans. The British government, mindful of similar promises made to Arabs (in return for their support against the Ottomans), added the proviso that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine. In response, Jews escaping the scourge of antisemitism in Europe flocked to Palestine, irrevocably changing its demographic composition. Jews in Palestine grew from 4 percent of the population in 1897 to 17 percent in 1931, and by 1948, on the eve of the State of Israels birth, they constituted one-third of the two million people living in Palestine. During this period, the local Arab population, alarmed by the prospect of being supplanted by the incoming Jewish migrants, grew increasingly restless. The Palestinian mayor of Jerusalem, Aref Pasha Dajani, captured the febrile mood in 1919, writing, It is impossible for us to make an understanding with them [Jews] or even to live [sic] them togetherIf the League of Nations will not listen to the appeal of the Arabs, this country will become a river of blood. This simmering resentment eventually boiled over into increasingly bitter intercommunal violence, resulting in hundreds of deaths on both sides, with key flashpoints including the 1921 Jaffa Riots and the 1929 Wailing Wall Riots. Reciprocal Radicalisation Jewish immigration reached its apogee during The Fifth Aliyah, with over 250,000 Jews arriving in Palestine between 1929-39, many of whom were fleeing Nazi persecution. The new arrivals exacerbated existing tensions with locals, particularly Arab tenant farmers who found themselves moved off their lands and forced into destitution. Sheikh Izzeddin Al-Qassam, a revivalist Islamic preacher incensed by the farmers plight, organized violent resistance against both Jewish and British targets, framing it as a religious jihad against the occupiers. His death in 1935 at the hands of the British electrified the Palestinian populationhis funeral procession in Haifa alone drew three thousand mourners. Today, Hamas own literature views this event as part of the groups mythical origin story; They are the rightful heirs to an unbroken militant lineage that began with Qassams martyrdom. Unsurprisingly, Hamas military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, and the infamous Qassam rocket are also named in his honor. Al-Qassams death galvanized his followers, instigating further attritional violence against both Jews and the British colonial administration and culminating in the Arab Revolt of 1936-9. The emergence of underground Zionist paramilitary groups like Irgun, which waged active defense campaigns carrying out indiscriminate terrorist bombings of Arab marketplaces, only added to the polarisation of this period. The British, who eventually subdued the Arab Revolt with the assistance of Zionist militias, killing at least 5,000 Arabs in the process, sought to curtail Jewish immigration as the source of the tensions. Irgun, incensed by Britains betrayal, now turned its wrath against the British, most infamously, carrying out a devastating terrorist bombing in 1946 against the British Headquarters in Jerusalems King David Hotel. Amid increasing violence and disorder, Britain decided to terminate its unworkable mandate and hand it to the newly established United Nations. The UN General Assembly recommended a partition of Palestine into two states in 1947. Although Arabs outnumbered Jews by a ratio of 2:1, the proposed Jewish State was accorded 56 percent of the land, much of it within the most fertile areas. Arabs, deeming this division inequitable, rejected the plan outright, setting in motion a civil war that would consume the two communities. The Traumatic Memory of the Nakba In March 1948, the Jewish Agency implemented Plan Dalet, designed to secure control over the maximum territory in Mandatory Palestine in preparation for the establishment of a Jewish state while expelling or neutralizing Palestinian forces and populations in the process. Israeli historian Ilan Pappe has described Plan Dalet as a blueprint for ethnic cleansing. In just a matter of months, this intense period of violence had served as a midwife, helping to birth the State of Israel on 14 May 1948. The announcement immediately triggered the 1948 Arab-Israeli War when the nascent state was attacked by its immediate Arab neighbors. For Palestinians, this period represented an unmitigated tragedy. By 1949, when the dust had settled, 15,000 Palestinians had been killed, many in mass atrocities committed in villages like Deir Yassin and Tantura; over 400 Palestinian towns and villages had been depopulated; Israel had increased its land share to 78 percent of the territory; and 750,000 Palestinians had been made stateless in what became known as The Nakba or Great Catastrophe. The Nakba has become the seminal event shaping Palestinian identity and collective memory. The enduring image of the Nakba remains one of the long caravans of bedraggled refugees carrying their meager possessions and, crucially, the keys to their properties, desperately fleeing to safety in neighboring states, enduring constant harrying by Zionist militias along the way. Even to this day, almost every Palestinian family jealously guards a key to their historic home in Palestine, a precious family heirloom passed from generation to generation in the absurd hope that they might return one day to open the door of a house in a village that no longer exists. The memory of the Nakba continues to be invoked in the current hostilities. Israels mass displacement of Gazans towards the Egyptian border in the south, ahead of its aerial bombardment campaign, has been labeled a second Nakba by Palestinians. In a strange concurrence, some voices on the Israeli side have also recognized historical parallels with the current Gazan plight. Avi Dichter, Israels Agriculture Minister and former Minister of Internal Security and Director of Shin Bet, recently stated, We are now rolling out the Gaza NakbaGaza Nakba 2023. Thats how itll end. Indeed, it is difficult to overstate the Nakbas central importance throughout the story of this conflict. Ahmed Yassin was twelve years old when his village of al-Jura was ethnically cleansed in 1948, forcing his family to flee to the al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza. The Nakbas trauma would prove formative, critically shaping his attitude towards the enemy when he founded Hamas four decades later. Hamas is a creature of Israel. Hamas origins were distinctly non-violent. Its parent organization, al-Mujamma al-Islamiyya, was founded in 1973 by Yassin as an Islamic charity linked to the Palestinian branch of Egypts Muslim Brotherhood. The group had long adopted an apolitical stance, and even after the 1967 Six-Day War, when Israel annexed and occupied the Palestinian territories, or the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the Brotherhood categorically refused to participate in the armed struggle against Israel. Accordingly, al-Mujamma focused on providing social, religious, and educational services and welfare to Palestinians in Gaza. This stance was at odds with other secular Palestinian groups at the time, which were actively engaged in violent resistance against Israels occupation at home or terrorist attacks abroad, such as the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre. In contrast, al-Mujammas pacifist outlook led to Israel recognizing it as a charity in 1979, allowing it to operate freely and financing and supporting its development of a network of Islamist social institutions throughout Gaza. More broadly, Israel came to view religious groups like Hamas predecessor as harmless, regarding them as effective counterweights against their secular nationalist rival, the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) led by Yasser Arafat. As an early example of blowback, Avner Cohen, an advisor to the Israeli commander of the Gaza Strip, described Hamas as a golem in 1984, implying that the group resembled the creature from Jewish folklore that is created to help the Jewish community, but often ends up threatening its creator. Years later, Arafat would level a similar accusation, stating, Hamas is a creature of Israel. claiming the Israeli Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin, admitted that supporting Hamas had been a regrettable strategic error. The Intifadas and the Rise of Hamas In 1987, the outbreak of the First Intifada changed everything. The first grass-roots revolt by ordinary Palestinians attempting to shake off a twenty-year Israeli military occupation. The Intifada entailed protests, strikes, boycotts, and stone-throwing at Israeli soldiers. Hamas, an acronym for The Islamic Resistance Movement, was founded the same month, emerging directly out of Yassins al-Mujamma charity. Offering a religious alternative to the secular PLO, Hamas sought to assume the Intifadas leadership. Despite Hamas hyperbolic rhetoric (their founding charter called for the annihilation of Israel), Yassin indicated an initial willingness to negotiate, but under the condition that Israel first acknowledge the Palestinian peoples right to self-determination and right of return to their land. Israel snubbed the effort and continued to suppress the protests. The First Intifada resulted in 1,200 Palestinians dead, 15,000 imprisoned, and over 130,000 injuredmany resulting from an Israeli government policy of deliberately breaking the bones of protestors. During the same period, 180 Israelis were also killed. Witnessing the brutal suppression of these largely non-violent, popular uprisings would radicalize Hamas view of the conflict and see the group embark on its descent into violence. The signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993, representing a tentative, partial peace agreement between Israel and the PLO, formally ended the First Intifada. Extremists from both sides opposed these overtures to peace. Yitzhak Rabin, the Israeli leader who had signed the Accords, would himself be assassinated within two years by an Israeli right-wing extremist. On the Palestinian side, Hamas, displaying early signs of its intransigence, refused to recognize Israel or renounce violence. While the group had conducted its first terrorist suicide bombing earlier that year, Hamas leaders nevertheless expressed some ambivalence about targeting Israeli civilians. This changed with the 1994 Hebron Mosque Massacrean act carried out by another Israeli extremist attempting to sabotage the Oslo Accords. Baruch Goldstein, a U.S.-born settler and follower of the radical Zionist political party, Kach, had donned his Israeli military uniform and killed twenty-nine Palestinian worshippers at the Ramadan nightly prayer, wounding 125 more. Israels government quickly condemned the attack and banned Kach, designating it a terrorist organization. Five years later, the government would also dismantle the shrine that had been erected around Goldsteins grave and which had been consecrated as an object of veneration and pilgrimage by Jewish extremists. In stark contrast, and as evidence of the creeping radicalization of successive Israeli governments towards the far right, Israels current Minister for National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, displayed a portrait of Goldstein in his living room until as late as 2020, only removing it ahead of his foray into Israeli politics. In retaliation for Goldsteins massacre, Hamas embarked on a campaign of deadly terrorist suicide bombings, indiscriminately targeting Israeli civilians throughout the late 90s. Unsurprisingly, the group was quickly designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States in 1997, with other Western countries following shortly thereafter. The cycle of violence and counter-violence continued unabated throughout the Second Intifada, sparked in 2000 by Ariel Sharons provocative visit to the Al Aqsa Mosque. A right-wing politician who would go on to become Israels next Prime Minister, Sharon was widely reviled by Palestinians for his brutal military involvement in the 1953 Qibya Massacre and the 1982 Sabra and Shatila Massacres. The Second Intifada proved far deadlier for both sides, resulting in 4,200 deaths, but crucially, 25 percent of these casualties were now Israelisa toll largely attributable to the deadly new strategy of suicide and rocket attacks employed by groups like Hamas. Israel also targeted Hamas leadership during the Intifada, particularly for its support of suicide bombings. Reinforcing the role of visual politics in the conflict, the asymmetry of an Apache helicopter gunship firing Hellfire missiles and killing Yassina frail, partially blind, wheelchair-bound quadriplegicin 2004 emerged as one of the enduring images of this period. Hamas in Power The violence subsided in 2005, followed by Israels unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, including the dismantling of its illegal settlements there. Hamas emerged from the Intifada claiming victory, presenting the liberation of Gaza as a complete vindication of its strategy of armed struggle, claiming four years of resistance surpassed 10 years of bargaining. Its surprise victory in the 2006 elections confirmed the groups popular support amongst the Palestinian public, mainly attributable to its decades-long investment in charitable works and perceived lack of corruption. However, Hamas electoral mandate was never accepted by Israel or Western powers, who backed the rival Fatah party. A violent power struggle ensued in which Hamas wrested control of Gaza from the Palestinian Authority, who then continued to administer the Israeli-occupied West Bank. In response to Hamas takeover, Israel blockaded Gaza, ravaging its economy. In power, Hamas attempted to moderate its position by abandoning suicide bombings and making occasional half-hearted overtures to Israel. In 2008, the group offered a truce if Israel withdraws to the 1967 borders, a truce of ten years as a proof of recognition [of the state of Israel]. It also sought to focus its attention on governance despite the dire economic conditions resulting from the blockade and the decision of Western governments to withhold financial assistance. The crisis was partly alleviated by building a black-market tunnel economy with Egypt and support from Iran, Turkey, and Qatar. Netanyahu has, in recent weeks, been criticized for his central role in propping up Hamas by allowing it to receive funding from Qatar. Netanyahu had reportedly defended this policy back in 2019, arguing that anyone who wants to thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state has to support bolstering Hamas and transferring money to Hamas. This is part of our strategyto isolate the Palestinians in Gaza from the Palestinians in the West Bank. The quote proved revelatory in other ways, too, confirming Netanyahus opposition to any semblance of Palestinian statehood. In power, Hamas was an unmitigated disaster for the Gazan Palestinians. Not only was the group an abject failure in terms of governance, but Hamas also remained zealously committed to its struggle against Israel. Their counterproductive policy of intermittently firing barrages of indiscriminate rockets and mortars across the border only seemed to invite Israels disproportionate responses, which often followed a by now depressingly familiar pattern of collective punishment in large-scale military operations, such as Operation Cast Lead (2008), Operation Pillar of Defence (2012), and Operation Protective Edge (2014). Between 2008 and 2023, before the recent hostilities began, 6,400 Palestinians were killed by Israel, the vast majority in Gaza. In contrast, during the same period, 300 Israelis also lost their lives to Palestinian violence. Life in the Palestinian territories grew progressively worse in other ways, too, through an utterly dehumanizing security regime of checkpoints, sieges, arrests, house demolitions, and mass incarceration. Over 155,000 Palestinians were injured by Israeli military or settler violence during this period. However, 60 percent of these casualties originated in the West Bank, which the Palestinian Authority administered and had nothing to do with Hamas. This period also witnessed the ongoing annexation of Palestinian land in the West Bank and East Jerusalem through the construction of illegal Israeli settlements, which had more than quadrupled by 2023, numbering close to 300 and housing around 700,000 settlers. In an attempt to court international opinion, Hamas appeared to tone down its rhetoric in recent years. Its revised manifesto in 2017 endorsed the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on 1967 linesa tacit acceptance of Israels right to exist. It also differentiated between Jews and Zionists, claiming its fight was only with the latter, eschewing the anti-Semitic language in its original founding document. This illusion was shattered on October 7. Many commentators have pointed to the incipient normalization in relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which threatened Hamasand perhaps its current sponsor, Iranas the most likely explanation for the sudden escalation in violence that attempted to derail the rapprochement. Whatever the geopolitical reasons for the recent conflagration, what is certain is that all actors are likely to emerge from this watershed moment more radicalized than ever, perhaps for a generation to come. Reprinted from The National Interest with the authors permission. The recent Amex Trendex: B2B Edition survey, focusing on business-to-business spending, reveals a strategic growth mindset among Australian businesses. In the face of ongoing economic uncertainty, 43% of business decision-makers plan to increase spending to gain a competitive edge in the coming year. In addition to heightened spending, businesses are adopting key strategies to enhance efficiency and productivity. Over the past 12 months, 67% of businesses identified digitisation and automation of payments as a top priority. For businesses that have already automated payments, 44% reported saving an average of 7.3 hours per week for their finance team. The shift towards digitisation and automation not only results in time and cost efficiencies but also contributes to reducing human errors (47%) and achieving more accurate invoicing (45%). Key findings from the survey include: 66% of businesses plan to start or further automate the process of receiving customer payments and processing invoices and purchase orders in the next six months. 47% of businesses anticipate increased spending on technology in the next six months, with 69% aiming to enhance productivity. 50% of decision-makers increasing technology spending aim to improve the speed and effectiveness of payments. 81% of business decision-makers acknowledge the growing importance of managing cash flow and working capital. 50% of businesses plan to allocate more funds to advertising, sales, and marketing to differentiate themselves from competitors. Among those increasing spending on advertising, 40% are focusing on new marketing and advertising channels, and 39% are promoting new products or services. Lisa Belcher, Vice President of Merchant Partnerships at American Express, emphasizes the resilience of Australian businesses amid challenging conditions: The Amex Trendex: B2B Edition shows that regardless of their size, businesses are playing the long game, adapting where needed, and seeking ways to improve efficiency and stand out from the competition. The research points to a rising sense of optimism among Australian business decision-makers, with 75% expressing optimism about their companys success in the next 12 monthsan increase from 69% in the previous year. Luke Achterstraat, CEO of the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA), highlights the adaptability of Australian businesses, stating, Australian businesses are aware of the challenges they face and are engaging in savvier ways to defy all obstacles. Keep up to date with our stories on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. A girl speaks to a representative of an American school in Hanoi during an education fair, November 2023. Photo by VnExpress/Binh Minh Vietnam ranks 58th in the global English proficiency ranking for adults, up two places compared to last year. Scoring 505 out of 800, Vietnam is placed 58th out of 113 non-native English-speaking countries and territories in this year EF English Proficiency Index (EPI) by Education First. The score is three points higher than last year and three points higher than the global average. With this result, Vietnam continues to stay in the group of "moderate proficiency" along with 32 others. In 2021, with a score of 486, Vietnam was placed in the "low proficiency" group. This year, the top English proficiency region in Vietnam is the Red River Delta, of which Hanoi has the highest index of 538. The English proficiency index of Vietnamese men is 513, higher than that of women at 498. Of 23 Asian countries and territories in the ranking, Vietnam stands seventh, which is unchanged from last year. Singapore continues to lead the continent and is ranked second worldwide, with a score of 631. This is also the only country in Asia with a "very high proficiency" index. Asian candidates that broke into the group of "high proficiency" are the Philippines, Malaysia and Hong Kong. According to EF,South and Southeast Asia have seen a slight drop in their level of English on average, although many countries in the region have stable or modestly rising scores. The regional averages are impacted by Indias level of English proficiency, which has been declining slowly over several years. In addition, the progress Thailand was making before 2020 has been erased by the pandemic. English proficiency in Central Asia is low and stable, with higher-than average gender gaps in favor of men in almost every country, it said. In East Asia, adult English proficiency has been waning in the past four years, and in Japan for an entire decade, EF commented. Pandemic-related travel restrictions played a role, but declining English proficiency is likely symptomatic of broader political and demographic shifts as well as growing confidence questioning Western cultural hegemony in education, it analyzed. Globally, the Netherlands maintains its top position followed by Singapore, Austria, Denmark and Norway. The top three positions are unchanged company to last year. Denmark and Norway switched places this year compared to last year. To create the 2023 edition of the EPI, EF analyzed the results of 2.2 million adults who took its SET English tests during last year. The free, online, and adaptive English test of reading and listening skills classify language abilities into one of six levels established by the Common European Framework of Reference. Park Bo Young seems to be ready to get rid of her cute image as she embarks on her daring era. Check out her recent transformation for a magazine pictorial here! Park Bo Young Makes Daring Transformation for GQ Pictorial Known for her sweet and cute image, Park Bo Young captivates many with her baby face and big, round eyes that make her look perpetually youthful. Over the years, the audience saw her blossom bit by bit. The "Doom At Your Service" star never drifted far from her usual clean-cut image. However, as she tries out new roles, occasionally, Park Bo Young also experiments on mature styles, which are a breath of fresh air to the public. On November 17, the celebrity received much attention online for her shocking transformation. No one had seen it coming when GQ Korea dropped her pictorial snippets. YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Park Bo Young Talks About How She Handles Unfair Treatment on Set: 'It's my job to speak up' The 33-year-old actress showed more skin than the public has ever seen from her. She exhibited her tiny waist while clad in a purple cropped halter top and jeans. Her new daring look left her fans buzzing about. As they couldn't hold their admiration, they took to social media to express their love for the beautiful star. "You are telling me that this is Bboyoung unnie!?!! Who dressed cute and fluffy?? This is so my style that I'm going crazy. She's good at everything." "Why does she suit this? I can't not like her." "This is Park Bo Young?" "Unnie, why are you like that? I'm surprised." !!!!!!!!!! !!!!! . . . https://t.co/2LYwRNZVri November 17, 2023 As of this writing, the initial post on social media already attracted over a hundred thousand views and reactions. Fans are now looking forward to seeing more of her snaps on GQ Korea's December 2023 issue! Park Bo Young Makes Successful Return With 'Concrete Utopia' & 'Daily Dose of Sunshine' Meanwhile, Park Bo Young just made her comeback to silver screen in August as she played the role of a nurse and Park Seo Joon's wife in "Concrete Utopia." It was her first movie after five years. Through this project, she bagged her first-ever international award as Best Actor at the London Asia Film Festival. Apart from this work, Park Bo Young also starred in the healing series "Daily Dose of Sunshine" on Netflix in November, which attracted many viewers. With its compelling and great narrative, the drama continuously receives praise from the audience. Fans can't wait what's in store for Park Bo Young in the remaining months of 2023 and the following year. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Park Bo Young Bags First Major International Award for the Film 'Concrete Utopia' What can you say about Park Bo Young's daring transformation? Share your thoughts/replies in the comments! For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars. KDramaStars owns this article. Shai Collins wrote this. Lee Yoo Mi looked back on her career, and revealed of doing this after she won a title at the Emmy Awards. Curious about what she said? Then read on! Lee Yoo Mi Shares Her Winning Journey Experience at the Emmy Awards "Strong Girl Namsoon" star Lee Yoo Mi made her guest appearance at a broadcast news show, where she shared some behind-the-scenes stories about her blossoming career. Lee Yoo Mi is currently one of the prominent stars in her generation. After gaining recognition from her previous projects - "Squid Game," "All of Us Are Dead," more - the actress is now making a huge step in the industry. On November 18, the star made a special guest appearance in the popular JTBC program "Newsroom." While busy with her filming schedule, Lee Yoo Mi spent some time talking about her ongoing drama. As the interview began, Kang Ji Young mentioned that Lee Yoo Mi is already in her 15th year in show business and how her status had grown over the years. "It is a time you have grown significantly and have become known to the public. Through 'Squid Game,' you became the first Korean actress to win an Emmy Award." The host expressed her amazement to the celebrity for bringing pride to the country. In response, Lee Yoo Mi said: "I felt so good, I didn't know if I was walking or standing, I just felt like my head was a little dazed." Lee Yoo Mi Secretly Cried After Seeing Her Name on the Award YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: 3 Extraordinary Hallyu Stars Dominating 2023: Park Eun Bin, Lee Yoo Mi & More! Lee Yoo Mi won the Guest Actress title at the prestigious award ceremony, and as she continued to share her experience about that winning moment, the Korean star also revealed that she secretly cried after receiving such big recognition. "At home, when I opened the box and saw my name on it, I got emotional and said to myself, 'You worked hard. Good job, good job.' I remember crying alone at that time." What's Next for Lee Yoo Mi Lee Yoo Mi had another big break as she leads the ongoing fantasy drama "Strong Girl Namsoon." She plays the character of Gang Nam Soon, a bubbly girl with incredible strength, who returns to Korea to find her parents. Through the K-drama, the 29-year-old actress showcases a new side of her acting. "Strong Girl Namsoon" is already nearing its end, and viewers are anticipating the finale episodes. Meanwhile, Lee Yoo Mi is already booked for her next drama. She is returning to Netflix with "Mr. Plankton," where she will work with Woo Do Hwan and veteran stars Oh Jung Se and Kim Hae Sook. The series is scheduled to air in the first half of 2024. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Lee Yoo Mi Reacts to Comments on Why Her Character in 'Strong Girl Namsoon' Speaks Informally What can you say about the news? Share your thoughts/replies in the comments! For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars. KDramaStars owns this article. Shai Collins wrote this. Ontario Liberal Party leadership hopefuls (left to right) Ted Hsu, Yasir Naqvi, Bonnie Crombie and Nathaniel Erskine-Smith are seen in a composite image of four photographs respectively taken in Toronto, on Friday, Sept. 30, 2022; in Ottawa on Friday, Dec. 9, 2022; in Mississauga, Ont. on Wednesday, June 14, 2023; in Ottawa on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick, Justin Tang, Chris Young, Patrick Doyle 4 Shares Share The unfolding events in Gaza, Israel, and the West Bank present a complex and deeply concerning situation. The entire area is smaller than the state of Vermont. My experiences in the West Bank, supported by a U.S. Scholar Fulbright award, have given me firsthand insight into the disruptions faced by individuals in these regions. The war may be focused in Gaza, but routine life is also disrupted in the West Bank, impacting the ability to work, attend school, and leave ones home. The situation impacts everyone, including civilians and military personnel, each facing unique challenges and potential long-term effects such as PTSD and taps into the generational history of trauma in the region. As a physician, I see the importance of recognizing the human impact on all involved and advocating for health and well-being. I engage in discussions with family physicians from various backgrounds, including those from the U.K. with experience in Palestine. Our conversations focus on health care in conflict zones and the necessity of a balanced approach that acknowledges the humanity of all affected. We often grapple with the complexities of finding solutions amid deep-rooted issues, emphasizing the health and mental health impacts of such conflicts. Bioethicist Matthew Wynia discusses the role of health care professionals in conflict situations, highlighting the ethical imperative to save lives irrespective of circumstances: Our primary responsibility is to save lives, regardless of the circumstances of injury. In conflict situations, our profession symbolizes the principle that every life is sacred. This perspective is detailed in an article in JAMA. The International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War addresses the long-term consequences of war on health, underscoring the significant and lasting impact on physical, mental, and social well-being: Wars physical, mental, and social health impacts are severe and enduring. More can be read in their statement. Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court, draws attention to global human suffering and the common theme of undervaluing human life in crises worldwide: Human rights emergencies worldwide, from Darfur to Ukraine, and from Afghanistan to Myanmar, share a common theme of undervaluing human life. His thoughts are further explored in an article in The Guardian. My U.K. colleagues advocate for a universal perspective in conflict resolution, stressing the importance of transcending individual identities and recognizing shared human values, with health care professionals leading the way in promoting dialogue and understanding: Conflicts like Gazas transcend individual identities. Its vital to adopt a perspective that recognizes shared human values. Their call to action is published in the BMJ. Therese Zink is a family physician and can be reached at her self-titled site, ThereseZink.com. 2 Shares Share Fine lines in medicine often refer to situations where decisions are not clear-cut and require careful judgment. Perhaps the most tenuous of lines is the one between real childhood illnesses and those caused by Munchausen syndrome by proxy. Munchausen syndrome by proxy (MSBP), also known as factitious disorder imposed on another (FDIA), refers to a specific form of child abuse in which a caregiver, typically a parent or guardian, fabricates, exaggerates, or induces physical or psychological illness in a child. The caregiver may seek unnecessary medical attention for the child, leading to unnecessary and potentially harmful medical interventions. Although the disorder has been described mainly between mothers and daughters, it has also been observed between caregivers unrelated to their patients, as well as in other pairs. Technically there is a difference between medical child abuse and MSBP, although the terms tend to be used synonymously. The key difference lies in the motivation of the caregiver: in MSBP, the caregivers actions are driven by a psychological need for attention or sympathy, as in classic Munchausens syndrome, whereas in other forms of medical child abuse, the motivations can vary. So, while all cases of MSBP are considered medical child abuse, not all cases of medical child abuse are MSBP. There are several clues to diagnosing MSBP. Perplexed pediatric hospital teams are often the first to become suspicious about the etiology of the symptoms. The possibility of MSBP can lead to an investigation by the authorities: law enforcement and child protective services (CPS) agencies. As mandated reporters, hospital personnel are bound by law to report possible child abuse, and they are afforded considerable latitude even if they get it wrong, as long as the report is made in good faith. In light of the horrible crime of child abuse, there must be tolerance for error in reporting it. Otherwise, families could retaliate in bad faith against health care providers, which could have a chilling effect on reporting. The difficult question is: How much error is permissible? How much leeway do we give providers before we accuse them of reporting in bad faith? The answer is: It depends, and the margin is determined on a case-by-case basis now that the jury has ruled in the case of Maya Kowalski. Hers is famous for the repercussions of reporting an incorrect diagnosis of MSBP, as featured in the Netflix documentary Take Care of Maya. Mayas case made national headlines in 2016 because her doctors were skeptical of her diagnosis of complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) and, instead, called the state abuse hotline to report Mayas mother, Beata Kowalski, for suspected child abuse. Following a child protection investigation, Maya, then ten years old, was removed from her family and sheltered at St. Petersburg-based Johns Hopkins All Childrens Hospital. Beata died by suicide she hung herself in the family garage after being separated from Maya for 87 days. Accusations of MSBP were never proved, and the Kowalski family sued the hospital in 2018 for false imprisonment, negligent infliction of emotional distress, medical negligence, battery, and other claims. The case took years to reach trial and lasted two months, ending recently. Maya, now 17, and her father and brother were awarded more than $260 million in compensatory and punitive damages. The three broke down crying as the jury read the verdict. Mayas case may be settled for now, but the story doesnt end in the courtroom. It leaves us with several uneasy questions. For example, Sally Smith, MD, is a pediatrician and the former medical director of the child protection team who was called to investigate the child abuse allegations against Beata. Smith was vilified in the Netflix movie, and she has been accused of too hastily diagnosing cases of suspected child abuse, ripping apart families. It was also alleged in the documentary that Smith was not forthcoming about her role and identity in the investigation and that she worked for a third party that stood to gain financially from treating medically abused children (Smith and her employer settled with the family last year). Should we consider Smith the real Munchausen, inflicting harm upon the entire Kowalski family and others? I wonder whether the outcome for the Kowalski family would have been different had the medical team decided that Beata was overzealous about Mayas treatment for example, demanding ketamine for pain and that her actions were misguided yet not fabricated and deceptive, as required for a diagnosis of FDIA according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-5-TR). The distinction between the unintended medical sequelae of helpful treatments demanded by an overbearing mother and a mother with MSBP who intentionally causes harm to her child is real and has far-reaching implications. Did the medical team take into account that Beata was a registered nurse and that her advocacy for Maya, which the team interpreted as aggressive, was what any aggrieved mother might do, especially one raised in Poland, where cultural communication tends to be blunt and direct? What about Beatas psychological testing, which showed no evidence of psychopathology other than an adjustment disorder, as would be expected in someone under duress. If hospital personnel doubted Beatas account that Maya had CRPS, why did they bill for services under that diagnosis? Also, what about parents rights to decide the best treatment for their children? This issue is raging not only in the care of very sick children but also children and adolescents diagnosed with gender dysphoria seeking gender transition therapy. Who decides whether treatment can proceed the state, by virtue of increasingly restrictive laws, or the patient and their family along with the doctor? What is the correct course of action in cases of MSBP? Remove the child and traumatize a potentially innocent family, or do nothing and potentially let a child die? Those of us in the helping professions (medical, social work, CPS agencies) must do our absolute best with the tools and resources we have. Maya Kowalskis case reminds us that there is really no margin for error in diagnosing medical child abuse. The consequences of a misdiagnosis for both the child and the family are too steep. It cost Beata Kowalski her life. Arthur Lazarus is a former Doximity Fellow, a member of the editorial board of the American Association for Physician Leadership, and an adjunct professor of psychiatry at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. He is the author of Every Story Counts: Exploring Contemporary Practice Through Narrative Medicine. 1 of 1 , khaskhabar.com : , 19 2023 7:39 PM BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. Azerbaijani parliamentarians have confirmed that the security of Armenian residents of Karabakh will be ensured, writes Gary Cartwright, publisher and editor of EU Today, Trend reports. In his article, he noted that a delegation of Azerbaijani parliament members recently visited Brussels. They took the opportunity to engage with journalists, discussing their country's perspective on future relations with Armenia. Tural Ganjaliyev, who chairs the EU-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committee, explained that despite the events of the past those Armenians who had settled in Karabakh were welcome to stay. The Azerbaijani government has launched a website for Armenians who had left Karabakh to register to return, however Armenia has blocked access to it, the author says. Further, he referenced Vugar Bayramov, a member of Azerbaijans Parliamentary Committee for Economic Policy, Industries, and Enterprise. Bayramov expressed that resolving the long-standing frozen conflict in the region could bring significant positive effects not just to the economies of Azerbaijan and Armenia but also to Georgia. The notion is that the three South Caucasus countries could potentially create a robust unified market. Azerbaijan, Georgia and potentially Armenia form part of the Middle Corridor trade route which links Asia and Europe via the Caspian Sea, the South Caucasus and Turkiye. Bayramov spoke of how an east-west transport route would benefit Armenia, both in terms of its own logistics and by helping to build a sustainable peace. That will need time, he acknowledged, but the normalisation process could be fast. He envisaged a future where Azerbaijan invested in Armenia, much as it currently does in Georgia and Turkiye, he noted. Moreover, Gary Cartwright recounted his conversations with Azerbaijanis who had been displaced for more than 30 years due to the Armenian occupation. Their sole desire was to return home. In my heart I felt that they were unlikely to ever return home. But now they are returning, he added. Overseas tourism to Ireland continues to rebound in the first year post pandemic limitations according to Tourism Ireland. Air access to Ireland is up for winter 2019, including from two of the islands biggest source markets, Great Britain (at 103% of 2019 levels) and North America (112%). Hotel occupancy is also ahead of 2019 levels, albeit with the caveat that the industry is operating in a new reality, with 13% of rooms under contract for humanitarian reasons. As Tourism Ireland prepares for 2024, the organisation is mounting a significant presence at World Travel Market (WTM) in London this week, with around 75 tourism companies from Ireland on its stand including Smithwicks Experience Kilkenny. Around 2,800 meetings will be conducted on the Ireland stand, delivering overseas tourism business for Ireland next year worth millions of euro. Tourism Ireland will be bringing together those Irish tourism providers who have more capacity to welcome visitors with international tour operators with the skills and scale to bring valuable tourists to the island. WTM marks the beginning of the promotional drive overseas for 2024. Its the largest B2B event in the global travel and tourism calendar. Alice Mansergh, Chief Executive Designate of Tourism Ireland, said: As we look to 2024, our presence at World Travel Market is really important to kick-start our promotional drive overseas. In our first full year post pandemic, every tourism business is eager for recovery. When we talk to tourism operators across Ireland, we know that overseas tourism is playing a vital role. We are delighted to have around 75 tourism companies from Ireland joining us at this years WTM, for an estimated 2,800 commercial meetings with international tour operators. We facilitate connections between the worlds leading tour operators and diverse tourism businesses across Ireland, helping introduce overseas visitors to delightful experiences on our island and strengthening the spread of the economic and social benefits that tourism brings. Tourism Irelands message at WTM is that Ireland has so much to offer across regions and seasons. The organisation will be showcasing iconic reasons to travel to Ireland, expanding peoples bucket lists from best-known spots to our hidden gems. Its an exciting year ahead, as 2024 marks the 10th anniversary of the Wild Atlantic Way, providing Tourism Ireland with another great hook to showcase the iconic route. Next year, Tourism Ireland will dial up its Ireland, Home of Halloween message, celebrating Ireland as the birthplace of one of the worlds most celebrated festivals, and ultimately growing Halloween in Ireland to be an iconic must do in the shoulder season. Tourism Ireland brings a sensory burst of nature to WTM this year, with a spectacular wildflower installation and an interactive area to listen to the sounds of nature on its stand. The installation consists entirely of Irish planting and has been designed by Worm, a floral design studio in East London which is owned by two Irish women. Visitors to the stand can also enjoy the sounds of Ireland theyll be able to don headphones to listen to the soothing sounds of the sea, our forests, cosy pubs and the spoken word from some of our best-loved poets. Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. An appeal for witnesses has been launched after the death of a 50-year-old man in Tallaght this week. Emergency services attended a home at Dromcarra Avenue shortly after 8pm on Wednesday, where the man was found outside and unresponsive. He was treated at the scene but was pronounced dead a short time later. His body was taken to the Dublin City Mortuary where a post-mortem examination was carried out by State Pathologist Dr Sally Ann Collis on Friday. The details of the investigation have not been released by gardai. An incident room has been set up at Tallaght Garda Station as all of the circumstances surrounding the death of the man are being probed. An examination of the scene at Dromcarra Avenue by members of the Garda Technical Bureau is ongoing. An appeal for witnesses has been issued, particularly to those who were in the vicinity of Dromcarra Avenue and Jobstown between 5pm and 8.30pm on Wednesday November 15. Anyone with video footage, including with dash-cam footage, from the Dromcarra, Kilclare and Cheeverstown areas within this timeframe are also being asked to contact investigators. BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. The statement by the French MFA on the Order of the International Court of Justice of November 17, 2023 is irrelevant and unacceptable, Trend reports citing the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry. "Disregard by France of rejection by the Court of the most of the unlawful requests by Armenia is another vivid example of double-standards and prejudice against Azerbaijan. It is unfortunate how this country while trying to present itself as a biggest advocate of justice and order might at the same time misinterpret and meddle into the Courts affairs on the matter that has nothing to do with France. France should focus on implementation of Orders that are related to her, including with regard to its notorious colonial policy and illegal acts, including related to nuclear tests. Unlike France, Azerbaijan takes its international obligations seriously," the ministry said. Shenandoah, IA (51601) Today Overcast. A few flurries or snow showers possible. High 38F. Winds N at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 19F. Winds light and variable. Talisman Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (NYSEARCA:IWF Free Report) by 3.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,433 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after selling 215 shares during the quarter. iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF comprises about 3.0% of Talisman Wealth Advisors LLCs portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Talisman Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF were worth $1,770,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of IWF. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF by 145,777.6% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 223,496,182 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $47,881,822,000 after purchasing an additional 223,342,974 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF by 478.3% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,668,682 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $407,709,000 after buying an additional 1,380,116 shares during the period. CI Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $227,744,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF by 20,209.9% in the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,299,836 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $5,320,000 after buying an additional 1,293,436 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 22,099,282 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $4,734,550,000 after buying an additional 1,283,522 shares during the period. Get iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF alerts: iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF Trading Down 0.0 % IWF stock traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $287.84. The stock had a trading volume of 972,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,389,388. iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF has a 52 week low of $209.27 and a 52 week high of $288.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.14 and a beta of 1.08. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $272.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $270.40. iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF Company Profile iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (the Fund), formerly iShares Russell 1000 Growth Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks investment returns that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell 1000 Growth Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of equity securities of Russell 1000 index issuers with relatively higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Macquarie Bank Limited (ASX:MBLPD Get Free Report) announced a interim dividend on Tuesday, November 7th, MarketIndexAU reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 6th will be given a dividend of 1.494 per share on Wednesday, December 6th. This represents a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 20th. Macquarie Bank Price Performance Macquarie Bank Company Profile (Get Free Report) Macquarie Bank Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides various commercial banking and retail financial services. It offers personal banking, wealth management, business banking, and vehicle finance products and services to retail clients, advisers, brokers, and business clients. The company also offers corporate and structured finance, transaction accounts, home loans, credit cards, online banking, asset financing, and leasing services. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Macquarie Bank Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Macquarie Bank and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL Free Report) by 52.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,950 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 674 shares during the quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADVs holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $74,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,823 shares of the companys stock worth $712,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 37,906 shares of the companys stock worth $1,954,000 after buying an additional 1,468 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 37,751 shares of the companys stock worth $1,946,000 after buying an additional 2,339 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 8,977 shares of the companys stock worth $463,000 after buying an additional 611 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,030,288 shares of the companys stock worth $104,640,000 after buying an additional 8,636 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.15% of the companys stock. Get Hormel Foods alerts: Hormel Foods Price Performance HRL stock traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $32.52. The stock had a trading volume of 3,708,388 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,291,313. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Hormel Foods Co. has a 52 week low of $30.70 and a 52 week high of $49.73. Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement Hormel Foods ( NYSE:HRL Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 31st. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.01). Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 7.20%. The business had revenue of $2.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. Hormel Foodss quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.64 EPS for the current year. The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 16th were paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 13th. Hormel Foodss payout ratio is 68.32%. Insider Buying and Selling In related news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 5,200 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.93, for a total transaction of $160,836.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,204,321.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Pierre M. Lilly bought 1,454 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $37.25 per share, with a total value of $54,161.50. Following the acquisition, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,454 shares in the company, valued at $54,161.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 5,200 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.93, for a total value of $160,836.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,937 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,204,321.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.81% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several equities research analysts have issued reports on HRL shares. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a hold rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $31.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Hormel Foods from $33.00 to $29.00 and set a sell rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Hormel Foods from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hormel Foods has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $40.00. Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Hormel Foods Hormel Foods Company Profile (Free Report) Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Grocery Products, Refrigerated Foods, Jennie-O Turkey Store, and International & Other. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding HRL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Hormel Foods Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Hormel Foods and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, November 7th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of 0.65 per share by the financial services provider on Tuesday, December 12th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 20th. Primerica has raised its dividend payment by an average of 17.4% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 14 years. Primerica has a dividend payout ratio of 14.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Primerica to earn $17.54 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 14.8%. Get Primerica alerts: Primerica Stock Up 2.7 % Shares of PRI opened at $209.56 on Friday. Primerica has a fifty-two week low of $135.00 and a fifty-two week high of $220.00. The firms 50 day moving average price is $200.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $198.41. The company has a market cap of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.86 and a beta of 1.16. Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica Primerica ( NYSE:PRI Get Free Report ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 7th. The financial services provider reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.03 by $0.25. Primerica had a net margin of 19.94% and a return on equity of 28.00%. The firm had revenue of $710.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $703.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.02 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Primerica will post 16 earnings per share for the current year. In other Primerica news, CFO Alison S. Rand sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.26, for a total value of $606,780.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,444 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,910,143.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CFO Alison S. Rand sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.26, for a total value of $606,780.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,444 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,910,143.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, President Peter W. Schneider sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.43, for a total transaction of $705,005.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 9,524 shares in the company, valued at $1,918,419.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.85% of the companys stock. Institutional Inflows and Outflows A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in shares of Primerica by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 2,281 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its stake in Primerica by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 4,349 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $844,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. KB Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in Primerica by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. KB Financial Partners LLC now owns 5,026 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $994,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Primerica by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 5,882 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $1,013,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in Primerica by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,760 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. 90.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Primerica from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Primerica from $198.00 to $197.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 14th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Primerica from $240.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 9th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Primerica from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $219.20. View Our Latest Analysis on PRI Primerica Company Profile (Get Free Report) Primerica, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products to middle-income households in the United States and Canada. The company operates in four segments: Term Life Insurance; Investment and Savings Products; Senior Health; and Corporate and Other Distributed Products. The Term Life Insurance segment underwrites individual term life insurance products. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Primerica Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Primerica and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. US Student Housing REIT (ASX:USQ Get Free Report) declared a interim dividend on Friday, November 17th, MarketIndexAU reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 29th will be given a dividend of 0.005 per share on Wednesday, November 29th. This represents a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 21st. US Student Housing REIT Price Performance About US Student Housing REIT (Get Free Report) US Student Housing REIT operates as a multi-family residential REIT company. It provides renting and operating own or leased real estate properties. The company is based in Melbourne, Australia. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for US Student Housing REIT Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for US Student Housing REIT and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, having issued a hasty statement in connection with the decision of the International Court of Justice of November 17, 2023, tried to create the impression that it allegedly corresponds to the position of France, Trend reports. This is stated in the statement of the Western Azerbaijan Community. "French diplomacy is well aware that the decision of the International Court of Justice only lists the steps that Azerbaijan is already taking. Azerbaijan ensures the rights of all people living on its territory, regardless of their ethnic and religious affiliation. Azerbaijan has clearly declared its policy regarding the rights of return of Armenians who migrated from the Karabakh region," said the community. In addition, the community noted that France's intervention in this issue is inappropriate, unjustified and provocative. It would be better if France addressed its claims to itself and to the Armenian government, which even theoretically does not agree to the return of the exiled Azerbaijanis. By unconditionally supporting Armenia, France becomes complicit in its crimes against humanity, including violations of the right of Azerbaijanis to return. "The Western Azerbaijan Community will continue to expose France's attempts to promote its nefarious neocolonial goals in the region, abusing such a supreme value as human rights," said the community. Halal food authorities of Korea and Indonesia have signed a mutual certification recognition agreement, the agriculture ministry said Sunday. According to the ministry, the Seoul-based Korea Muslim Foundation and the Korea Halal Authority Corp. forged the agreement with Indonesia's Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency, also known as BPJPH, on Saturday in Jakarta. Under the agreement, domestic agricultural and food companies, upon receiving halal certification in Korea, will be able to export to Indonesia without the need for separate certification from the local halal certification agency. Indonesia plans to make halal certification mandatory for all imported food items, excluding fresh agricultural products, starting from October next year. Halal food refers to dishes that are prepared according to Islamic Sharia law. (Yonhap) Subscription to paid content Gain access to all that Trend has to offer, as well as to premium, licensed content via subscription or direct purchase through a credit card. Guwahati, Nov 19 (PTI) The Guwahati Police claimed to have busted an inter-state drug cartel, arresting five peddlers hailing from Manipur, including two women, and recovering nearly Rs 2.5 crore worth of heroin. Another person, believed to be an associate of the peddlers, has also been apprehended, a senior police officer said. Also Read | Indira Gandhi Birth Anniversary 2023 Date, History and Significance: Remembering the First Female Prime Minister of India and One of Nations Most Influential Politicians. Guwahati Police Commissioner Diganta Barah said teams were formed to nab them from different locations of the city on Saturday night. In the first operation, three drug peddlers from Manipur - two from Imphal West and one from Senapati district - were apprehended near a private hospital in Dispur area after getting a tip-off, he said. Also Read | Chhath Puja 2023 Wishes: PM Narendra Modi, Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge Greet Nation on Occasion of 'Chhath Puja' Festival. "From their possession, the team recovered 24 soap boxes containing suspected heroin, weighing about 280 gm. Their interrogation is underway and necessary legal action is being initiated," Barah said. In the second case, the West District Police in Guwahati arrested one person when he came to buy heroin packets from two women drug peddlers, hailing from Manipur. "With his help, we nabbed the women from a hotel in Lalmati and during searches, recovered 20 packets of soap cases containing heroin along with Rs 22,400 in cash from them," Barah said. After interrogation of the two women, police raided another hotel on TRP Road at Machkhowa and recovered Rs 1,50,000 cash from a room. "Efforts are on to nab other associates," the police commissioner said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Jammu, Nov 19 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Sunday said his administration's back-to-village (B2V) programme envisages a renewed focus on social and economic empowerment of villages in the Union Territory. He said the aim of the programme is to bring a paradigm shift in the rural socio-economic system and make villages a vibrant force of Jammu and Kashmir's development by taking services to the people's doorstep across 4,483 panchayats. Also Read | OSSC Recruitment 2023: Vacancies Notified for 234 Vital Statistics Assistant Posts, Apply Online at ossc.gov.in From November 24. The 10-day fifth phase of the B2V programme concluded on November 16. Earlier, the Jammu and Kashmir administration held four phases of the programme between 2019 and 2022. "The B2V campaign, a unique endeavour of the UT administration envisages a renewed focus on the social and economic empowerment of villages. Its main objective is to bring about a paradigm shift in the rural socio-economic system and make villages a vibrant force of J-K's development," Sinha said in his monthly 'Awaam Ki Awaaz' programme. Also Read | Nepal: Cold Weather Claims Five Lives in Earthquake-Hit Jajarkot District. He said the B2V programme gives another big message that many challenges can be tackled through 'janbhagidari'. "We must make mutual cooperation a permanent feature in the development journey of our villages," the Lt Governor said, reiterating the resolve of his administration to promote equitable and inclusive development, based on the ideals of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar. "Through his speech, Babasaheb had drawn the country's attention towards social equality. In the last nine years, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this cherished goal has been realised and a record 13.5 crore people moved out of multi-dimensional poverty," he said. The Lt Governor shared the inspiring journey of progressive farmers of Jammu and Kashmir, and said the farmers with their hardwork and innovative approach are achieving the ambitious target of doubling income. Sinha also congratulated ace para archers Sheetal Devi and Rakesh Kumar for their stellar performance in the recently concluded Asian Para Games and urged the youth to take inspiration from the exemplary achievements of the true champions. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Validating your browser . . . Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Please enable cookies and reload the page. This may take up to 5 seconds Event ID: 122077774608033059655147482200645074756 Bharatpur (Rajasthan) [India], November 19 (ANI): Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge trained guns at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and called it a party of anti-Dalits whose goal is to propagate the agenda of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He also said that the Constitution of India has provided social justice and several laws for the protection of Dalits which were made by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, and others. Also Read | Jhalrapatan Election 2023: Congress Fields Ram Lal Chouhan To Take On BJP Leader Vasundhara Raje in Rajasthan Assembly Polls, Know Polling Date, Result and History of Vidhan Sabha Seat. "This country's Constitution provides for social justice, and several laws have been made for Dalits by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, Pt Jawaharlal Nehru and others together. Had we been anti-Dalit by nature, this would not have happened. They (BJP) are anti-Dalits," Kharge said on Saturday. "They were never with Dalits. BJP's goal is to further propagate the agenda of RSS. They are talking about others as they themselves never did anything for the poor, for Dalits. This is 'Ulta Chor Kotwal Ko Daante'. People will not listen to them," he added. Also Read | India vs Australia ICC CWC 2023: Sonia Gandhi Hails Men in Blue on Eve of Cricket World Cup Final, Says Entire Country is Rooting for You (Watch Video). Rajasthan will undergo legislative assembly polls on November 25 while the counting of votes, along with four other poll-bound states, will be held on December 3. In the 2018 assembly elections, the Congress won 99 seats, while the BJP won 73 seats in the 200-member House. Gehlot eventually took the oath as CM with the support of BSP MLAs and Independent legislators. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. Turkish payment system Turan Teknoloji Anonim Sirketi (Turan) plans to launch money transfers from Turkiye to Central Asian countries in November, United Payment General Director Edgar Abdullayev told Trend. "Turan will open up new avenues for consumers who want to transmit money to Central Asian countries. This step demonstrates the company's commitment to expanding its global network and meeting customers' demands for convenient and safe money transfers. We are pleased to provide our customers with the option of sending funds to Central Asian countries. Our goal in every transaction is to provide simplicity and convenience, making the transfer process as simple as possible for our consumers," he added. Currently money transfers through Turkish payment system "Turan Teknoloji Anonim Sirketi" (Turan) to Azerbaijan are successfully carried out. Monthly remittances amount to approximately 9.5 million liras ($337,180). Turan aims to increase this figure to 10 million liras ($354,927) in October and to 37.5 million liras ($1.3 million) per month in 2024. Turan's payment system currently has more than 120,000 active users. More than 700,000 transactions are carried out every month. Lucknow, November 19: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath offered 'arghya' to Sun God as part of the Chhath Pooja 2023 celebrations. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended his wishes to the people on the occasion of Chhatt Puja, a four-day-long festival celebrated after Diwali to worship the sun and water. "My best wishes to all your family members on the auspicious occasion of evening Arghya of Mahaparva Chhath. May the worship of Sun God infuse new energy and new enthusiasm in everyone's life. Jai Chhathi Maiya!" Prime Minister said in a post on X. On this auspicious occasion, President Droupadi Murmu also extended her wishes to the citizens of the country. Chhath Pooja 2023: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar Offers 'Argha' to Sun God in Patna During Chhath Pooja Celebrations (See Pics). The President said Chhath Puja is a festival dedicated to the worship of the Sun God that provides an opportunity to offer reverence and gratitude to rivers, ponds, and other sources of water. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge also wished the people on the occasion. In a post on X, he wrote, "Best wishes for the evening Arghya of Chhath Puja, the great festival of faith, purity, devotion and sun worship. Our great civilization, that gives equal respect and honor to the setting and rising sun, shows how deep the importance of nature is in our Indian life. May this holy festival bring new enthusiasm, joy and immense happiness in everyone's life", Kharge wrote in a post on X. UP CM Yogi Adityanath Offers 'Arghya' to Sun God #WATCH | Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath offered 'arghya' to God Sun as part of #ChhathPooja2023 celebrations. pic.twitter.com/1FmLaarmeI ANI (@ANI) November 19, 2023 Chhath Puja is celebrated every year with much exuberance in states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bengal. However, celebrations are also witnessed in the national capital, where a large section of people from the aforementioned states live. Chhath is primarily celebrated with much exuberance in states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bengal. During the festival, people fast, bathe in rivers and offer prayers to thank the Sun God for bestowing the bounties of life on earth and fulfilling wishes. Devotees offer Goddess Chhath (Chhathi Maiya) and God Surya/Bhaskar (Sun) offerings and pray for blessings. Chhath Pooja 2023: Toxic Foam Floats in Yamuna River Ahead of Chhath Puja Festivities (Watch Video). It is believed that a person's desires and prayers from the heart's core will bring blessings. During the time of fasting, only those foods that are considered to be pure are consumed and cleanliness is one thing that is cared for the most during the period. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], November 19 (ANI): Two persons have been arrested in connection with the alleged gang rape of a 19-year-old college student in Mumbai's Chembur area, police said on Sunday. According to officials, the incident occurred at a flat of the Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC) quarters in Chembur area. Also Read | Gujarat Fire: Massive Blaze Erupts at Chemical Company in Valsad, No Casualties Reported. Officials said that the matter came to light when the victim, along with her family, approached the police and lodged a complaint against the duo. They said that the victim and one of the accused were acquaintances residing in the same building. On the night of the incident, the accused's family members had gone out, and he had invited his friend to his residence. Also Read | Rajasthan Road Accident: Six Cops on Way for Prime Minister's Rally in Jhunjhunu Killed As Car Collides With Truck in Churu District. The victim visited the accused's house to collect ingredients for cooking, where the duo allegedly offered her a spiked drink. On taking a few sips of the drink, the young woman fell unconscious, and both accused reportedly took turns assaulting her, officials said. Upon regaining consciousness, the victim realized what happened to her and rushed to her flat. Subsequently, she informed her parents about the incident and approached the Chembur police to formally lodge a complaint against the duo. Based on her statement, a case has been registered against the two individuals under sections 376, 376 (D), 328, and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), leading to the arrest of both the accused. The accused were presented in court and subsequently remanded to police custody until November 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) Kasaragod (Kerala), Nov 19 (PTI) Senior Congress leader Rajmohan Unnithan has come under criticism over his remarks that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a "war criminal" and should be shot dead without trial for allegedly murdering Palestinians in the Gaza strip. Condemning the Kasaragod MP's remarks, the state BJP unit termed it "deplorable". Also Read | OSSC Recruitment 2023: Vacancies Notified for 234 Vital Statistics Assistant Posts, Apply Online at ossc.gov.in From November 24. At a recent Palestine solidarity event organised by the United Muslim Jama-ath, a collective of mosques in and around Kasaragod town, Unnithan said another Nuremberg trial was the need of the hour. In a video which has gone viral, Unnithan said: "The Nuremberg trial was held after the Second World War, and the war criminals were shot dead without trial. Another Nuremberg trial is the need of the hour. Because Benjamin Netanyahu is standing in front of the world as a war criminal. It is time to shoot down Benjamin Netanyahu -- who has violated the Geneva convention -- without trial, such is the amount of murders he has committed." Also Read | Nepal: Cold Weather Claims Five Lives in Earthquake-Hit Jajarkot District. BJP state president K Surendran on Saturday said Unnithan's speech echoed "terrorist propaganda" and sought immediate legal action. In a post on 'X', Surendran said, "Outraged by @INCIndia MP Rajmohan Unnithan's reckless and inflammatory speech at the Palestine Rally. His call for the murder of Israeli PM Netanyahu is deplorable, echoing terrorist propaganda. This isn't political discourse; it's a dangerous incitement akin to jihadist extremism. We demand immediate legal action against such radical rhetoric. This isn't about politics; it's about preventing the spread of terrorist ideology." More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, while another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble after the ongoing Israeli attack. Around 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians during Hamas' October 7 attack. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand), Nov 19 (PTI) Drilling to prepare an escape passage for 41 workers - trapped at Silkyara tunnel collapse site for a week now - remained suspended on Sunday, while Union Minister Nitin Gadkari who reviewed the rescue operation said another large diameter pipeline was being pushed through the rubble to provide essential supplies to them. An American auger machine which was brought as a replacement had to be stopped on Friday afternoon after it hit some hard surface while drilling through the rubble in the collapsed part of the under-construction tunnel, following which officials on Saturday began preparations to drill a vertical hole from the top of the hill. Also Read | Andaman and Nicobar Islands Earthquake: Quake of Magnitude 4.5 Hits Andaman Sea. However, Gadkari said horizontal digging seems to be the "best option" and if the auger machine does not encounter any obstacles "it might reach the trapped workers in two-and-a-half days". The minister said the workers are trapped in an area of the tunnel where they can move around. They have electricity, open space, food, water and oxygen Also Read | Delhi Surgery Scam: 'Fake' Chemist Held for Referring People to Agarwal Medical Centre on 35% Commission. "Saving the trapped workers and evacuating them at the earliest is the biggest priority," the minister, who was accompanied by Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, said at a press conference in Silkyara after holding a meeting with experts. No drilling had begun at the site till Sunday evening but officials said preparations are on to restart the auger machine to bore through the rubble and insert large diametre steel pipes to prepare an escape route for the trapped workers. "Preparations are underway to restart the auger machine and resume drilling and pipe laying at the tunnel. Apart from one pipe through which food is being supplied to the trapped workers, another large-diameter pipe has also been pushed up to 42 metres to have another lifeline," Disaster Management Secretary Ranjit Kumar Sinha told reporters in Silkyara. "The Union minister has also suggested that there is space between the top of the debris and the roof of the tunnel which can be explored by robots to see if some pipe for life support can be pushed through it," he said. Explaining what led to the suspension of the drilling work, Gadkari said it was working alright through soft soil but after it encountered some hard objects it applied more pressure causing vibrations inside the tunnel which posed a danger to the lives of rescue workers. "Mechanical operation in the Himalayan terrain is challenging as its geological strata is not uniform," he said. The Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways said if the auger machine works well and hits no major obstacles, horizontal digging through the rubble is the quickest way to reach the trapped workers. "Though I am no technical expert, in the given circumstances horizontal digging seems the best option. If the auger machine does not encounter any obstacles it might reach the trapped workers in two-and-a-half days," he said. However, all options including vertical, horizontal, end-to-end and side-to-side drilling options are all being explored because the biggest priority is to evacuate all those trapped at the earliest. "We are working on six options simultaneously. The PMO is also closely monitoring the operation. Our biggest priority is to save all those who are trapped and as soon as possible. Whatever is needed will be done," he said. Whichever machine or technical assistance is required will be provided, he said. "Keeping up the morale of the trapped workers and their family members should be everyone's collective responsibility at the moment," he said. He said the trapped workers are being constantly provided oxygen, electricity, food, water and medicines. Road, Transport and Highways Secretary Anurag Jain also said that multivitamins, antidepressants and dry fruits are being provided to the 41 workers trapped for the past seven days. "Fortunately, there is light inside because the electricity is on. There is a pipeline, and thus water is available. There is a 4-inch pipe, which was used for compression. Through that, we are sending food from day 1," he said. Jain, in a video update on the rescue operation, said there is water and electricity in the two km portion inside the tunnel, which is the finished part of the 4.531-kilometre two-lane bi-directional tunnel at Silkyara in Uttarkashi. Experts from different fields have been pooled in and asked to suggest whatever methods can be applied to ensure the safe and early evacuation of the trapped workers, Gadkari said. Preparations are on to start vertical drilling through the hill above the tunnel, he said, adding every possible method is being tried for their speedy evacuation. Gadkari said tunnels at a cost of approximately Rs 2.75 lakh crore are being built by the Centre in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Many machines have been brought to the site and experts from different government and non-government agencies have been roped in to take their help in the rescue operation. Another large diameter pipeline of 6 inches has been drilled up to 42 metres through the rubble so that more food like roti, sabzi and rice can be supplied to them. 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This may take up to 5 seconds Event ID: 162464542317089819432440166506203213378 Male [Maldives], November 19 (ANI): The Maldivian politician and Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) leader, Mohamed Ghassan Moumoon was appointed as the new Defence Minister of the Maldives on Sunday. Taking to X, the Maldive Ministry of Defence congratulated the leader saying, "Congratulations Hon. Mohamed Ghassan Maumoon @mgmaumoon on being appointed as the Minister of Defence. Wishing a warm welcome from all staff at Defence Ministry." Also Read | Australia Plane Crash: Military Aircraft Crashes After Mid-Air Collision in Mornington Peninsula. Earlier on Friday, Maldivian President-elect Mohamed Muizzu took the oath as the eighth President of the Maldives, said the Maldives President's Office in a press statement. In an oath-taking ceremony, the Maldives Chief Justice, Uz Ahmed Muthasim Adnan, administered the oath to the newly elected President at the Special Assembly of the People's Majlis held at the Republic Square. Also Read | Israel-Palestine War: Hamas Likely To Release Israeli Hostages in the Next Few Days. As per the press statement, following the oath-taking ceremony, President Muizzu signed the Instrument of Oath and the Chief Justice and the Speaker of Parliament, Mohamed Aslam, signed as witnesses. President Muizzu's acceptance of the oath of office was followed by a 21-gun salute and the National Anthem, with Hussain Mohamed Latheef also sworn in as the Maldivian Vice President. The Presidential Inauguration ceremony was attended by former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, former President Mohamed Nasheed, and former President Dr. Mohamed Waheed. Also in attendance at the inauguration were high-level foreign delegates and several invitees. India had received an invitation for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the oath-taking ceremony of Maldives president-elect Mohamed Muizzu, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday. Union Minister of Earth Sciences Kiren Rijiju arrived in the Maldives on Thursday to attend the swearing-in ceremony of President Mohamed Muizzu. The Union minister was received by senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives and the Office of the President-elect. Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) candidate Muizzu won the Maldivian presidential elections last month. He won with more than 53 per cent of the vote in the second round of voting, after emerging as the frontrunner in the first round with 46 per cent votes, followed by Ibrahim Solih's 39 per cent. Prime Minister Modi had also congratulated Muizzu on his victory. "Congratulations and greetings to @MMuizzu on being elected as President of the Maldives. India remains committed to strengthening the time-tested India-Maldives bilateral relationship and enhancing our overall cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region," PM Modi had posted on X. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Balochistan [Pakistan], November 19 (ANI): In an explosion in Hoshab tehsil of Balochistan's Kech district in Pakistan, three persons travelling in a car were killed, Dawn News reported on Sunday. The report quoting Kech Deputy Commissioner Hussain Jan Baloch said the incident took place near the Balgatar area, adding that it had claimed the lives of three people.He also said that the security personnel reached the blast site and shifted the bodies to Turbat Hospital. Also Read | Australia Plane Crash: Military Aircraft Crashes After Mid-Air Collision in Mornington Peninsula. As per Dawn News, investigations are underway to scrutinize the extent of the blast whether the explosion was caused by a mine planted in the ground or by an improvised explosive device planted by the roadside. On Oct 31, a policeman and four labourers were killed and two others were injured in an attack on a police station in Turbat, Dawn News reported. Also Read | Israel-Palestine War: Hamas Likely To Release Israeli Hostages in the Next Few Days. Unidentified gunmen had also fatally shot six labourers in Turbat on Oct 14. Earlier the same month, the project manager of the Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation (PMDC) was killed in an IED blast targeting his vehicle in Quetta. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Ramblings on academic-related matters. For information on my research see https://www.psy.ox.ac.uk/research/oxford-study-of-children-s-communication-impairments. Twin analysis blog: http://dbtemp.blogspot.com/ . ERP time-frequency analysis blog: bishoptechbits.blogspot.com/ . For tweets, follow @deevybee. Saudi Logistics Services (SAL) has signed a contract with Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) to establish a logistics park at Jeddah Islamic Port, to build a logistics park at Jeddah port on a total area of 54,000 sq m as part of its efforts to enhance the kingdom's sea and air connectivity. This agreement is aligned with SALs vision in becoming the logistics champion for a globally connected Saudi Arabia as well as the companys strategy to expand its offerings across the logistics sector. With cargo handling and logistics solutions, this new facility will help SAL penetrate the fulfillment industry at large cementing its role as the National Logistics Champion, said Mawani President Omar bin Talal Hariri, after signing the deal with SAL Managing Director & CEO Faisal bin Saad bin Albedah at a ceremony held at Jeddah Islamic Port. This also comes as part of Mawani's efforts to achieve its strategic objectives by offering investment opportunities for the private sector, and developing sustainable capacities that suit the needs of partners; and raising level of local and regional transport, distribution and storage operations; and increasing the number of logistics service centers for re-export to 30 centers by 2030, in line with the targets of Saudi National Strategy for Transport and Logistics Services reinforcing the Kingdoms position as a global logistics center, and a hub connecting three continents, stated Hariri. Jeddah Islamic Port is the largest port on the Red Sea, and it ranks first in transit trade and container and cargo handling, and has won several awards, said the official. "These include 'Port of the Year' award, and 'Advanced Infrastructure' award, as part of 'Landmarks in logistics 2023' awards in the UAE as well as Best Port award in 2022 as part of the International Green Shipping Summit Awards, in addition to achieving the eighth position globally, in the Container Ports Performance Index for 2021, issued by the World Bank, as a result of the excellence of operational performance, the development of its infrastructure, and its integrated logistics areas," he added.-TradeArabia News Service TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, November 19. Central Bank of Uzbekistan and representatives of European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) discussed priority areas for the development of the capital market in Uzbekistan, Trend reports. The discussion covered the legal restructuring of the capital market, encompassing derivatives and sectors eligible for Central Bank assistance, along with broader considerations concerning the infrastructure of the capital market. Moreover, representatives of the Uzbek Central Bank and the EBRD experts deliberated on the joint projects planned in the near future. The EBRD approved its 5-year country strategy in 2018, identifying priority areas for the Banks activities in Uzbekistan. According to Head of EBRD office in Uzbekistan Andi Aranitasi, those priorities include the enhancement of competitiveness by strengthening the role of the private sectors role in the economy, and also the promotion of green energy and resource solutions across sectors. Aranitasi said the support for increased regional and international cooperation and integration has also been one of the pillars of the Bank's cooperation with Uzbekistan. Chakwal [Pakistan], November 19 (ANI): Students from a local seminary in the Chakwal district have come forward with harrowing accounts of sexual assault and torture by two teachers, as reported by ARY News. In an interview with ARY News, one victim alleged that teachers Zeeshan and Anis sexually assaulted 13 students, employing intimidation tactics. The two teachers would reportedly use knives to mark students' hands with the initials "Z or A" as a form of threat, according to the student. Also Read | US: Shooter Kills Security Guard Before Being Fatally Shot at New Hampshire Psychiatric Hospital. The deputy in-charge, Ziaul Haq, took action and expelled the accused teachers, as per the student's account. An FIR filed by a victim's father mentioned that the suspects threatened students and made marks on their bodies with knives. Also Read | South Korea to Ban Dog Meat Consumption After International and Domestic Criticism of Centuries-Old Practice: Report. Following a complaint from the father and uncle of one victim, the police arrested Zeeshan and Anis in separate raids in Mianwali and Jatli, registering a case of "unnatural offences" against them. Examinations conducted by doctors at the District Headquarters Hospital revealed signs of assault in at least eight students. Punjab caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi took notice of the incident and directed the police to submit a detailed report, according to ARY News. A judicial magistrate granted a four-day physical remand for the accused teachers. In response to the allegations, the seminary's principal and administrative in-charge, Akhter Jawed and Bilal, were detained by the district police. However, in-charge Naveed Haidari and deputy Ziaul Haq were not found during a police visit. Naveed Haidari, in a statement, rejected the allegations against the institution, emphasising the safety of students and parents' trust as their top priorities. The statement noted the expulsion of the accused teachers on November 11, following complaints of physical violence, which were later confirmed by CCTV footage, ARY News reported. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Kyiv [Ukraine], November 19 (ANI): Russia escalated its attacks on the Ukrainian capital after several weeks of halt by launching several drone attacks on the Kyiv, Poltava and Cherkasy regions of Ukraine, Al Jazeera reported, citing Ukrainian officials. The head of Kyiv's military administration, Serhiy Popko, said on social media, "The enemy's UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) were launched in many groups and attacked Kyiv in waves from different directions, at the same time constantly changing the vectors of movement along the route." Also Read | Australia Plane Crash: Military Aircraft Crashes After Mid-Air Collision in Mornington Peninsula. "That is why the air raid alerts were announced several times in the capital," she added. Popko said preliminary information indicated that Ukraine's air defence systems downed 10 Iranian-made Shahed kamikaze drones in Kyiv and the city's outskirts, according to Al Jazeera. Also Read | Israel-Palestine War: Hamas Likely To Release Israeli Hostages in the Next Few Days. There were no initial reports of "critical damage" or casualties, he said. Taking on their Facebook page, the Ukrainian Air Force said on Sunday morning that Russia attacked the Ukrainian territories from its Kursk region. According to Al Jazeera, the post stated that air defences shot down 15 out of 20 drones that conducted the strikes. Moreover, the reports could not be independently verified and there was no immediate comment from Russia as well. Russia started carrying out strikes on Ukraine's energy, military and transport infrastructure in October 2022, six months after Moscow's troops failed to take over the capital and withdrew to Ukraine's east and south, Al Jazeera reported. Reportedly, last winter, Russia hit Ukraine with hundreds of missiles and drones and left millions without electricity, heating or water during the coldest months of the year. However, they halted their attacks for 52 days, but later, Moscow resumed air strikes on Kyiv earlier this month. Earlier on Saturday, Ukrainian officials said all drones heading towards Kyiv were destroyed, but some hit infrastructure facilities elsewhere in Ukraine, reported Al Jazeera. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other officials warned that Russia would resume its large-scale bombardment of Ukrainian civilian infrastructure during the winter months. "The closer we get to winter, the greater Russia's efforts will be to step up its attacks," Zelenskyy said. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Tel Aviv [Israel], November 19 (ANI): The Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health has said that the World Health Organization is planning to evacuate 30 neo-natal babies from the Al-Shifa hospital in northern Gaza, CNN reported on Sunday. It reported quoting the spokesperson from the ministry, "World Health Organization, using ambulances of the Palestinian Red Crescent, planned to carry out the evacuation of the babies on Sunday, adding that they were waiting for Israeli military bulldozers to open the way." Also Read | Australia Plane Crash: Military Aircraft Crashes After Mid-Air Collision in Mornington Peninsula. Meanwhile, the WHO has not confirmed the evacuation would take place but Richard Brennan, the WHO emergency director for the Eastern Mediterranean region, said that the agency was working on a detailed plan with partners including the Palestine Red Crescent and the UN relief agency in Gaza, UNRWA, as well as UNICEF. "I can't go into details on that plan right now but we hope to have some more encouraging news later in the day," Brennan told CNN. He added that moving the babies was a major priority. Also Read | Israel-Palestine War: Hamas Likely To Release Israeli Hostages in the Next Few Days. After an assessment mission led by WHO that visited Al-Shifa on Saturday, the agency said that "over the next 24-72 hours, pending guarantees of safe passage by parties to the conflict, additional missions are being arranged to urgently transport patients from Al-Shifa to Nasser Medical Complex and European Gaza Hospital in the south of Gaza. Patients include 32 babies in extremely critical condition." Brennan also told CNN: "We expect to have a series of convoys over the coming days to bring patients down to two main hospitals in the south, the European hospital and Nasser hospitals." Meanwhile, the Israel Defence Forces on Saturday denied that they demanded Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City to evacuate within an hour, adding that it only accepted the requests of the medical centre's director to make a safe route for those who wished to leave, The Times of Israel reported. "This morning, the IDF acceded to the request of the director of Shifa Hospital to enable additional Gazans who were in the hospital and would like to evacuate to do so via the secure route," the IDF said in a statement. The IDF further stated that they had in fact proposed that any requests for medical evacuation would be provided by the IDF, according to The Times of Israel. "At no point did the IDF order the evacuation of patients or medical teams and in fact, it proposed that any request for medical evacuation would be facilitated by the IDF," the statement added. Moreover, it said that the medical professionals will be there in the hospital to support patients in Al-Shifa Hospital who cannot evacuate. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Validating your browser . . . Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Please enable cookies and reload the page. This may take up to 5 seconds Event ID: 7341256698244790577952187242053685675 New Delhi, November 19: The government is sending multivitamins, antidepressants and dry fruits to 41 workers trapped for the past seven days in an under-construction tunnel that collapsed in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand, Road, Transport and Highways Secretary Anurag Jain said on Sunday. "Fortunately, there is light inside because the electricity is on. There is a pipeline, and thus water is available. There is a 4-inch pipe, which was used for compression. Through that, we are sending food from day 1," he said. Jain, in a video brief update on the Uttarkashi tunnel collapse rescue operation, further said there is water and electricity in two km portion inside the tunnel, which is the finished part of the 4.531-kilometre two lane bi-directional tunnel at Silkyara in Uttarkashi. Uttarkashi Tunnel Crash: Five-Option Action Plan to Be Adopted to Rescue 40 Trapped Workers, Says Road Transport Secretary Anurag Jain. "We are sending multivitamins, antidepressants and dry fruits to workers who have been trapped inside the under-construction tunnel at Silkyara in Uttarkashi," he said. The Silkyara tunnel, about 30 km from the district headquarters of Uttarkashi and a seven-hour drive from the Uttarakhand capital Dehradun, is part of the ambitious Char Dham all-weather road project of the central government. The tunnel is being constructed under the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL). The tunnel collapsed around 5.30 am last Sunday. The rescue operation was suspended on Friday afternoon when a US-made auger machine deployed to drill and push in pipes through the rubble to prepare an escape passage for the workers developed a snag that exacerbated the anxiety. By the time drilling was halted, the auger machine had drilled up to 24 metres through the rubble, spread over a 60-metre area inside the tunnel. The Union government also held a high-level meeting on Saturday where five options to rescue the workers were discussed with different agencies assigned with specific alternatives to work on. NHIDCL MD Mahmood Ahmed has been made in charge of coordination with all the central agencies and has been stationed in Silkyara. ONGC, RVNL, Satluj Jal Vikas Nigam Ltd, BRO and state PWD, besides NHIDCL, will be the agencies carrying out different responsibilities to establish early access to the trapped workers. Uttarkashi Tunnel Collapse: Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami To Conduct On-Site Inspection of Relief Operations Today. Rescue operations stalled around 2.45 pm on Friday. During the positioning of a fifth pipe, a big cracking sound was heard in the tunnel, after which rescue operation was suspended immediately, a statement from NHIDCL -- tasked with the construction of the tunnel -- said on Friday night. The sound created panic among the rescue team. An expert involved with the project warned about the possibility of further collapse in the vicinity. Subsequently, the pipe-pushing activity was stopped. Validating your browser . . . Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Please enable cookies and reload the page. This may take up to 5 seconds Event ID: 1073057692171003683711266593399081246934 The Postgraduate Common Entrance Test, or Karnataka PGCET 2023 examination, was held on September 23 and 24. The Karnataka PGCET 2023 examination is held for admission to MBA, MCA, M.E, MTech and MArch courses at participating state institutions. A man from Maharashtra was arrested upon his return from Ukraine for abetting the suicide of his wife, who is a resident of Kalyan. The 25-year-old woman allegedly committed suicide upon finding out that her 26-year-old husband had gone to Ukraine to be with the woman, he had an illicit relationship with. Validating your browser . . . Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Please enable cookies and reload the page. This may take up to 5 seconds Event ID: 599414639444230433710430485825864893400 Washington, Nov 19 (IANS) US President Joe Biden has rejected the growing demands at home and abroad for a ceasefire in Gaza, saying it will be used by Hamas to regroup and rearm itself and perpetuate its dominance. At the same time, he called for an end to violence by Jewish extremists against Palestinians in the West Bank and threatened that the US could sanction individuals responsible. In an OpEd in The Washington Post on Saturday, the President likened the Israel-Hamas war to Russias invasion of Ukraine and together they have brought the world to an inflection point. Israel-Hamas War: Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu Faces Battles on Multiple Fronts Amid Mounting Calls to Free Hostages. He also addressed rising antisemitism and Islamophobia in the US, saying that in recent years too much hate has been given too much oxygen. With the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza as a result of the continuing military operations by Israel in retaliation for the October 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas, the President has faced mounting calls for ceasefire from within his own Democratic party, the administration and members of the 2020 presidential campaign staff. Criticism of his unwavering support of Israel in this conflict has come also from allied countries and partners. Biden is not changing his mind. As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a cease-fire is not peace, he wrote. To Hamass members, every cease-fire is time they exploit to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters and restart the killing by attacking innocents again. An outcome that leaves Hamas in control of Gaza would once more perpetuate its hate and deny Palestinian civilians the chance to build something better for themselves. Israel-Hamas War: Israel Considering Deal With Hamas for Temporary Gaza Ceasefire in Exchange for Release of Some Hostages. Biden has offered Israel unwavering support in its pursuit of Hamas although he himself and his officials have publicly called on Israel to not lose sight of international rules and laws. Actually, he had told them to not repeat the mistakes the US made in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks.During the visit to Tel Aviv, he wrote, I also counseled Israelis against letting their hurt and rage mislead them into making mistakes we ourselves have made in the past. While continuing his public embrace of Israel by rejecting demands for ceasefire, the president also reached out to the Palestinian civilians recommitting himself to the two-state solution of Israelis and Palestinians living in two separate states, side by side and in peace. In the months ahead, the United States will redouble our efforts to establish a more peaceful, integrated and prosperous Middle East - a region where a day like Oct. 7 is unthinkable, he wrote. And he proceeded to put the Israeli leadership on notice as well, for their support of promoting Israelis to live in the captured parts of West Bank, which would be part of Palestine in the final settlement of the dispute, when that happens. I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable, Biden wrote. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 19, 2023 09:59 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, November 20. Uzbekistan plans to implement a project for the construction of a transport and logistics center in the Sarios district of the Surkhandarya district, Trend reports. The news followed a meeting on the socio-economic development of Uzbekistans Surkhandarya region, held in Termez under the chairmanship of President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev. The new facility will be located near the Uzbekistan-Tajikistan border post on 6 hectares of land. Mirziyoyev noted the significant potential for transit trade with neighboring countries, where there are $5 billion markets for the region's products. At the same time, the current exports do not reach $200 million. Moreover, the task of organizing the loading and unloading of goods for export at the Tangimush station in the village of Bandihon has also been set. Recently, it was revealed that the launch of the M-25 (Mustakillik-25) gas chemical complex in Uzbekistans Surkhandarya region is scheduled for May of 2024. Surhan Gas Chemical, company responsible for operation of the M-25, the complex will have the capacity to extract and process 5 billion cubic meters of gas per year. BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. The Turkish armed forces have neutralized four PKK/YPG terrorists in northern Syria, Trend reports. The Ministry of National Defense of Turkiye noted that the terrorists were preparing for an attack in the area of Operation Olive Branch. In addition, the ministry noted that the Turkish army continues operations against PKK/YPG terrorists in northern Syria. Laois boasts four finalists in this years FBD Better Farming Awards, awarding the highest levels of achievement made in the industrys move towards a more sustainable sector. FBD says the awards which will be held at The Heritage hotel in Killenard, reward initiatives, research and practices that are helping Irish agriculture meet its economic, social and environmental challenges. They go beyond the headlines to recognise the real difference achieved by those who have excelled in various areas of agriculture. Trevor Cobbe, who farms near Portarlington, is nominated in the Germinal Sustainable Pasture Farmer of the year section. The judges said that by measuring grass regularly and targeting fertiliser properly over the last few years, Trevor has increased the productivity and sustainability of our grassland. Making small changes such as protected area, incorporating clover, using LESS, and using good grassland management are key to grassland management on the farm. The section is open to farmers from all sectors and all types of pasture-based enterprises. It aims to recognise excellent grassland management while maintaining profitable production using regenerative and sustainable pasture practices with focus on soil health, outreach, climate resilience, carbon sequestration and long-term vision. Brendan Guinan is nominated for the top award in the FRS Network Diversification Farmer of the year. In four short years, the judges say Brendan took 26 acres of neglected 30-year-old planted forest and turned it into a thriving regenerative agroforestry farm. The judges say the Offaly native's Fiorhhia Farm near Portlaoise is an example of how farming and food production can have a positive impact on nature, animal care, human health and environmental restoration of air and soil. The judges say the award commends a farm's exceptional efforts in establishing an alternative business or adding value with a commitment to sustainable farming, driving economic improvement and embracing a positive story for the industry. Maria Phelan is a finalist in the Herdwatch Biodiversity Farmer of the year. The organisers say Maria Phelan, who farms in the Durrow area, believes an organic system has many co-benefits that will allow biodiversity to thrive on her farm. Methods such as hay meadow plots, crop rotation, laying hedges and no use of chemical fertiliser or spray means that healthy and fertile soil provide a platform to promote and encourage biodiversity. The judges say this award highlights a farmer who embraces biodiversity within their commercial farm holding. David Walsh Kemmis is a finalist in the Kerry Dairy Environmental Farmer of the Year. Ballykilcavan Brewery is attached to his farm and it is nominated in the Small Sustainable Food Producer of the year (under 20 employees). Ballykilcavan Brewery is based on Ballykilcavan Farm, the home of the Walsh family for 13 generations since 1639. All Ballykilcavan beers are made with water and barley sourced from the farm. This gives the brewery control over its ingredients and lowers its carbon footprint while helping to ensure the viability of the farm. The farm is a mix of forestry and tillage and has a strong focus on biodiversity across it all. The farm is integrating regenerative agriculture practices into the tillage operation to improve soils, reduce inputs and sequester carbon. David has reduced fertiliser rates by 17%, cut carbon emissions by 30% and does not use any glyphosate or insecticides. Kerry Dairy Environmental Farmer of the Year award highlights a farmer who embraces best environmental agricultural practices within their commercial farm holding. Small Sustainable Food Producer Award recognises a food company with under 20 employees that best embraces elements of environmental, social and economic sustainability for both themselves and their primary producer sources. The inaugural Better Farming Awards gala evening presentations will take place in the Heritage Hotel, Killenard, Laois on Thursday, November 30. The judging process comprises a panel of 12 expert judges. The unique process is fully transparent, independent and thorough to ensure the best nominations are recognised and rewarded. The organsiers say the judges are all well-respected and hugely knowledgeable individuals working in, with or advising the agriculture sector in Ireland. FBD say the awards celebrate the initiatives, research and practices that are helping Irish agriculture meet its economic, social and environmental challenges. The insurer says they go beyond the headlines to recognise the real difference achieved by those who have excelled in various areas of agriculture. The award categories and summaries: Best Incentive Scheme from a food producer or co-op: This award will recognise the best incentive scheme by a food producer, food marketeer/distributor or co-op that drives for better farming practices while rewarding primary producers with a premium or buy-in incentive. KPMG Large Sustainable Food Producer of the year (over 20 employees): This recognises a food producer with over 20 employees who best embraces elements of environmental, social and economic sustainability for both themselves and their primary producer sources. Small Sustainable Food Producer of the year (under 20 employees): This recognises a food producer of under 20 employees who best embraces elements of environmental, social and economic sustainability for both themselves and their primary producer sources. Best Adaptation Product: Recognises a company who identified a less sustainable element of their product, procedure, practice or processing and have adapted or developed a more sustainable model. AgTech Ireland Best Agritech Software Product: Recognises an agritech software product that contributes to a more sustainable, better farming practice within the industrys ecosystem for the betterment of the sector. AgTech Ireland Best Agritech Hardware Product: Recognises an agritech hardware product that contributes to a more sustainable, better farming practice within the industrys ecosystem for the betterment of the sector. AgTech Ireland Best Agritech Science Product: Recognises an agritech science product that contributes to a more sustainable, better farming practice within the industrys ecosystem for the betterment of the sector. Best Research Programme/Project: A reward for the best research project/programme based on improving Irish agriculture within the parameters of environmental, social and/or economic sustainability. Best Journalistic Content of the year: Rewards a journalist who has written or recorded a piece of content an article highlighting the work done or being done on improving Irish agriculture within the parameters of environmental, social and/or economic sustainability. Young Researcher of the year: Recognises the best young researcher working in a research field focused on improving Irish agriculture within the parameters of environmental, social and/or economic sustainability. Herdwatch Biodiversity Farmer of the year: This award highlights a farmer who embraces biodiversity within their commercial farm holding. AHV Innovator Farmer of the year: This award highlights a farmer who embraces technology advances, research and/or innovative practices to aid the sustainability aspirations within their commercial farm holding. FRS Network Diversification Farmer of the year: This award commends a farm's exceptional efforts in establishing an alternative business or adding value with a commitment to sustainable farming, driving economic improvement and embracing a positive story for the industry. Germinal Sustainable Pasture Farmer of the year: Open to farmers from all sectors and all types of pasture based enterprises. Recognising excellent grassland management while maintaining profitable production using regenerative and sustainable pasture practices with focus on soil health, outreach, climate resilience, carbon sequestration and long term vision. Kerry Dairy Environmental Farmer of the year: This award highlights a farmer who embraces best environmental agricultural practices within their commercial farm holding. Cormac Tagging Community/Discussion Group Incentive Scheme: Recognises an incentive scheme by a community or organised collection of individuals that promotes or incentivises social buy-in to better farming practices or agricultural environmental initiatives. Business Post Community/Discussion Group Better Farming Champion: Recognises a leader of an incentive scheme by a community or organised collection of individuals that promotes or incentivises social buy-in to better farming practices or agricultural environmental initiatives. ABP Best Public/Community Engagement Scheme: Rewards the best public, media or community engagement scheme. This category includes public messaging to combat misleading information as well as community outreach, inclusion or incentive by a food producer, agribusiness or agricultural industry interest. Agri Insider Sustainability Leader Award: Recognises an industry leader who has shown leadership in driving the sector towards a more environmentally, socially and/or economically sustainable future. FBD Overall Better Farming Champion: The overall award is open to all winners of the previous categories for who the judges deem worthy as the best better farming action contributing to environmental, social and economic sustainability for the sector. Dublin Laois train services are set to increase with a 'significant expansion' promised by Irish Rail on the Portlaoise to Heuston service. Confirmation of a raft of new services was confirmed by Iarnrod Eireann, which in conjunction with the National Transport Authority, has just revealed details of a new timetable from Sunday, December 10. The company says the changes follow public consultation on a draft timetable in September 2023. A total of 1,652 customers participated in the consultation. Irish Rail says it received feedback on every route, right across the network, and following review with the National Transport Authority The company outlined changes in the busy commuter service. "Significant expansion to Heuston to Portlaoise Commuter Sunday services, with eight additional commuter services from Portlaoise to Heuston, and seven from Heuston to Portlaoise, extending existing Heuston/Kildare services; there will also be additional stops on a number of Heuston/Cork services at Portlaoise, to connect with these Commuter services," said a statement. The company confirmed that four Heuston to Cork and five Cork to Heuston services on Sundays will serve Portlaoise to provide connections to the enhanced Portlaoise Commuter service. The company said it was not in a position to add a later last commuter service to Portlaoise due to limited track maintenance time. It said it would continue to investigate opportunities of operating later evening services. As for adding Portlaoise to the 6am Heuston/Cork service, Irish Rail said this would negatively impact existing services/connections at Limerick Junction. The company said adding a Portlaoise stop to the 8am Heuston/Cork would negatively impact on the journey time for this service, which it said is already has one of the longer journey times on the Heuston to Cork route. The company says journey time improvements on many Dublin Heuston to Cork and Limerick services, arising from recent infrastructure works. A new weekday service will operate on the Dublin to Limerick/Cork. The early service departing from Dublin at 6am, operating Monday to Friday, will arrive in Kent Station, Cork, at 8.32am, giving a pre-9 am intercity arrival from Dublin for the first time. The service which has a connection from Limerick Junction to Limerick, will deliver a pre-8 am arrival time to Limerick city (7.58am). We look forward to bringing these improvements to our services in December 2023, which follow previous expansion of services in December 2022. Iarnrod Eireann with the National Transport Authority will continue to identify opportunities for further service improvements in the context of post-Covid travel patterns, as demand approaches, and on some routes exceeds, pre-pandemic levels. The purpose of investment in our network, fleet and services is to bring a better service to customers and allow more people to make a sustainable travel choice, said an Irish Rail spokesperson. The company said general sentiment towards the timetable is positive, with 74% of those who expressed an opinion being positively disposed, whether further suggested changes were made or not. It said 54% of comments related to the Intercity network, with Commuter seeing 23% and DART 12% The widow of a garda who was killed by the IRA has said she still thinks daily about her husbands death and hopes that Ireland is now a safe place for Gardai. Jerry McCabe was killed by the IRA in 1996 during the attempted robbery of a post office van in Co Limerick. His widow Ann McCabe has said she hopes an event where memorial quilts will be hung in a Limerick cathedral for more than a week will help younger generations understand The Troubles. Seven memorial quilts that commemorate 500 victims, including Mr McCabe, are to be displayed in St Marys Cathedral in Co Limerick until November 28. This is in conjunction with the South East Fermanagh Foundation (SEFF), which supports victims of The Troubles and their families. Asked if such events helped to cope with grief, Mrs McCabe told the PA news agency: No, grief is dealt with in a different way. My husband is dead 27 years now and there isnt a day goes by that we dont think about him. She said her life had changed in every way after he was killed, leaving behind five children. Detective Garda McCabe was on duty with his partner Detective Ben OSullivan on June 7 1996 when the van they were escorting stopped at Adare. The patrol car pulled up close by and as the van driver prepared to unload the mail, a Provisional IRA unit crashed a Jeep at full speed into the rear of the detectives unmarked patrol car. Another vehicle arrived at the scene and its occupants opened fire on the Garda car, killing Detective Garda McCabe and seriously wounding Mr OSullivan, who was shot around a dozen times but survived. In 1999, four men were convicted of manslaughter for the killing of Mr McCabe. Asked whether she still thinks daily about the day her husband died, Mrs McCabe told PA she did. She added: I do. Jerrys partner Ben OSullivan has passed away since, it was a miracle that he survived because they hit him with 11 bullets. Life goes on. Ive wonderful family and friends. We have an organisation called The Garda Survivors, which Im a member of, and we discuss problems when we meet up once a month And we can express all our feelings. Mrs McCabe, whose father and two uncles were Garda members, and whose two sons are also gardai, said she hoped that no more officers would be killed in the line of duty. She said she also hoped that Ireland was now a safe place for gardai. She added: I hope so. We are an unarmed force and hopefully it will stay like that. So that pleases me to know that, and Im sure it pleases all members even though the job can be very dangerous at times. Hopefully, it will be the last of the people that represent us to be murdered in the line of duty. One of the messages of the memorial quilts is that violence was futile and totally unjustified. Asked whether that message was clear to younger generations who had not lived through The Troubles, Mrs McCabe said you see, the younger generation today dont remember the Ben OSullivans and the Jerry McCabes and all those who were murdered by terrorists, both north and south of the border. Maybe when they realise the meaning of these quilts, there are a few of them with all the names on them, it might make them think of the past, maybe. I dont know. But I would like to hope that they would remember all those who have died and are a victim of terrorism. She added: Hopefully, it wont happen again. But then again, the society were living in, some people have respect for the gardai but some people havent. Thats their choice. But my husband died for Ireland, it was not his choice. Laois children and schools are being urged to get involved in awards that will help them to learn about who farmers can work in an environment and climate-friendly way. Laois Offaly TD and Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora, Sean Fleming, has launched the 2024 Our World Irish Aid Awards which the organisers hope will see primary students mark 50 years of Irelands aid programme and efforts to tackle hunger and climate change. This years Our World Irish Aid Awards will focus on the theme of Food For Life, reflecting the work Ireland does to help end world hunger and poverty, tackle climate change and make sure everyone in the world has equal access to education, clean water and healthcare. The organisers say that by taking part in this years Awards, primary school students will learn about Agroecology. Agroecology is a farming practice that helps to reduce the impacts of climate change, protect nature and wildlife while also helping local communities to work in a way that suits their area and environment, taking into account their social and cultural values. Minister Fleming invited primary school students in Laois to take part. Everyone in the world needs healthy and nutritious food. Climate change is one of the factors that means too many people in the world do not have access to the food they need. Agriculture is part of Irelands DNA. Students taking part in the Our World Irish Aid Awards will learn how Irish Aid is working with villages in Uganda to promote sustainable agriculture. This helps people to grow enough food while also protect the environment for future generations. It is so important for young people to learn about the world they are growing up in and what they can do to make it a better place. I encourage schools across Ireland to enter into this years Our World Irish Aid Awards, he said. A specially created curriculum-linked teaching and learning materials have been delivered to all primary schools in Ireland, helping teachers and students learn more about this years theme Food for Life, the Global Goals for Sustainable Development (SDGs), and Irish Aids focus countries. The materials include a colourful student magazine packed with information, quizzes and questions; lesson plans, activity sheets and online games. All materials are available in English and as Gaeilge in print and digital format. Schools are invited to express their ideas and understanding of the issues in writing, song, film, artwork or in another way. This years Our World Irish Aid Awards will include a series of Global Goal Getters online multi-media magazines featuring projects submitted by students around Ireland as a way of showcasing learning, creativity and actions nationwide. The closing date for early submissions, which are in with a chance to win a box of sustainable art materials, is Friday 19th January 2024. The final closing date for entries is Friday 8th March 2024. About Our World Irish Aid Awards Now in their 19th year, the Our World Irish Aid Awards are the Department of Foreign Affairs flagship global citizenship award scheme for primary schools. The Awards form an important part of Irelands commitment to overseas development and global citizen education, helping to reinforce the importance of the global development work carried out by the Government on behalf of the people of Ireland. This year, students will learn about how 78-year-old farmer, mother of five and grandmother of 11 has been helped by Irish Aid, through Trocaire, to gain the skills to teach other people about the importance of wild plants grown on her smallholding. The programme has already seen 858 women and 533 men adopt agroecological practices which includes mapping, preserving and recovering wild and traditional foods as well as developing a seed bank. Students will also learn about the pilot Gender Action Learning system which sees women come up with their own solutions to problems, empowering them as they make positive changes within their households. As part of the programme men participate in household chores and farm work and women have a greater say in decision making. Irish Aid is the Governments overseas assistance programme that is marking 50 years of work to reduce global poverty, hunger and humanitarian need. Irish Aid funds programmes in over 130 countries, with a particular focus on sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia. For further information see https://www.ireland.ie/en/ irish-aid/ For more information on how to take part in the Our World Irish Aid Awards 2024 and the Global Goals for Sustainable Development please visit www.ourworldirishaidawards.ie Minister for Education, Norma Foley added her endorsement. The Our World Irish Aid Awards are a wonderful cross-curricular learning opportunity for our primary school students. The Awards help young people to discover more about the lives of people in other countries and how Ireland is supporting them. The Awards include a range of specially-created lesson plans, interactive games and an informative pupil magazine. This is a really important and inspiring learning opportunity that has the potential to change peoples lives for the better. I encourage our primary school teachers to include the Awards as part of their teaching plans. A beggar was harassing shopgoers in Kildare town, according to gardai present in Naas District Court on Thursday, November 16. Alexandru Rostas, with an address listed as 456 North Circular Road in Dublin 1, County Dublin, appeared before Judge Desmond Zaidan in relation to the offence. Gardai told the judge that on November 10 last, the 46-year-old was harrassing shopgoers in the car park of the Tesco supermarket located in Kildare town. Mr Rostas was asked to leave the premises, but refused to do so. When a defending barrister Donncha Craddock pointed out to Judge Zaidan that his client required a court-appointed Romanian translator 'because he doesn't have a word of English', the judge remarked: "(The act of) begging is a universal language." Judge Zaidan asked Mr Rostas via the translator why he was begging, the translator told him (on Mr Rostas' behalf): "Because I can't find work, Judge. I don't have any English." The judge replied: "Ireland is functioning at full employment capacity, according to the Central Statistics Office," he said. Judge Zaidan ultimately decided to apply the Probation Act. 'IT'S A CATCH-22' This prompted Garda Sergeant David Hanrahan to stand up and tell the judge: "Excuse me, Judge, but gardai have been called to deal with him (referring to Mr Rostas) on 14 previous occasions." Judge Zaidan told Sgt Hanrahan: "Old habits die hard... I know you guys (the gardai) have a hard job; he (Mr Rostas) did take up garda resources, and that also doesn't give him the right to annoy members of the public. "But it's a catch-22... imagine what the headlines would be: "Beggar jailed by Lebanese judge. "They only use Lebanese judge if I'm 'bold'... or if I say something that isn't politically correct," he said. Shoppers have been warned to be wary as fraudsters step up their activity around upcoming Black Friday online sales, a major Irish bank has warned. Bank of Ireland is warning consumers to be especially vigilant for fraud as Black Friday and Cyber Monday approach. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are key online shopping dates for many consumers, which also means fraudsters will be stepping up their activity. Bank of Ireland customers spent 54% more online during Black Friday last year compared to a standard Friday, with clothing (+104%) and electrical goods (+100%) seeing the largest increase. For those shopping online this Black Friday or Cyber Monday, Bank of Ireland is providing tips to stay safe. Black Friday / Cyber Monday tips: Think before you click make sure you double check website addresses for anything unusual. Be careful with links in emails and texts remember that fake links or ads could lead you to a fraudulent website or contain malicious software. Use trusted websites check that the https and the lock symbol is displayed, this needs to be in your browser address window when entering your card details or any personal information. On a mobile device use trusted apps it can be difficult to see the full web address on mobile if you are using a web browser so instead stick with trusted apps. Use up to date anti-virus software on your computer this will help protect it against malware. Nicola Sadlier, Head of Fraud, Bank of Ireland said: We are already starting to hear about Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, but shoppers need to be extra vigilant for fraud. Fraudsters like to inject an element of urgency into their offers or fake adverts, but dont rush a transaction without checking things properly first. Verify if websites and apps are legitimate and be extremely careful with online adverts, texts or e-mails. Remember, if something sounds too good to be true, its probably fraud. To coincide with the busy pre-Christmas shopping period, Bank of Ireland has launched a new national fraud advertising campaign, reminding customers to Stop, Think and Check. The Bank is publishing a series of True Crime videos with renowned cyberpsychologist Professor Mary Aiken providing insights and tips to help people protect themselves. Visit Security Zone Bank of Ireland Group Website to learn more. Two men have been arrested following the seizure of cocaine and cannabis with an estimated value of 75,000 over the weekend in Galway. As part of Operation Tara, gardai attached to the Galway County West Drugs Unit assisted by Loughrea Drugs Unit, Galway Drugs Unit and Garda Dog Unit conducted planned searches on three premises in the Connemara area of County Galway on Saturday morning, 18th of November 2023. During the course of the searches gardai seized cocaine worth 75,000 (analysis pending) and quantities of cannabis. A sum of cash was also seized. Two males have been arrested in connection with the investigations and are currently detained at a garda station in county Galway. One is detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996 while the second is detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984. A garda spokesperson confirmed that investigations are ongoing. This seizure forms part of Operation Tara; an enhanced national anti-drugs strategy, which was launched by Garda Commissioner Drew Harris on 2nd July 2021. The focus of Operation Tara is to disrupt, dismantle and prosecute drug trafficking networks, at all levels - international, national, local - involved in the importation, distribution, cultivation, production, local sale and supply of controlled drugs. The Dock presents the Women in Technical Theatre workshop, in collaboration with The Lir Academy and The Abbey Theatre, which aims to introduce young women to lighting, sound and stage management careers. As part of a nationwide project, this opportunity invites young women to investigate whether a career in the technical side of theatre will interest them. The roadshow aims to engage female pupils aged 14-16 years from secondary-level schools throughout Ireland by presenting and facilitating workshops geared towards increasing awareness of technical theatre, stage management and the importance that these departments play in the professional creation of a live performance. The workshop takes place at The Dock on Wednesday, November 22, and has been designed and overseen by industry professionals who lead technical departments at The Lir Academy. An Abbey Theatre drama facilitator will lead the performance aspect of the workshop with experience working with young people. The project is supported by Bank of America, the Access and Learning Partner of the Abbey Theatre. The workshop is free, but there are limited places, and bookings are advisable. For more information, please contact Laura Mahon, the Visual Arts and Education Manager at The Dock, at lmahon@leitrimcoco.ie or call The Dock for more information at 071 96 50 828. BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. The Foreign Affairs magazine, one of the most influential foreign policy publications in the US, just published an article breaking down the ins and outs of the Ukraine war. The authors of the article suggest Ukraine should face the reality that beating Russia is a long shot and should think about hitting the pause button on active combat. At the same time, it throws out the idea that things could get better for Ukraine with a coordinated ceasefire and talks about territory after the 2024 US presidential elections. But, given we're a year away from those elections, there's a real risk that Ukraine might end up on the losing side. The article stresses the urgency of the United States teaming up with Ukraine pronto, preparing a fresh strategy that matches the current military and political scene. And here's the kicker the US, which used to have Ukraine's back, now seems to be nudging towards surrender. After pouring billions into arming Ukraine, the US is pushing for a new strategy that suggests Ukraine can't go it alone without backing from the US, UN, and EU. The Foreign Affairs mag, known for echoing White House sentiments, hints at a possible readiness to basically leave Ukraine to the mercy of fate. This is just another example of the US playing a double game. "2023 Charming China-Cultural Exhibition from Guangdong" kicks off in Italy's Rome GUANGZHOU, China, Nov. 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A report from GDToday: A cultural exchange event featuring conversations between Guangzhou, the capital of the province of Guangdong and Italy was held in Rome on the afternoon of November 16 (Rome's time). This is the first activity of the "2023 Charming China-Cultural Exhibition from Guangdong," featuring the cultural exchanges between the province of Guangdong and other countries. A total of 11 speakers from China and Italy shared their views and impressions about the exchanges in various fields between the two countries. "GAC Group is one of the largest automotive groups in China. GAC Milan provides design for Chinese own-brand vehicles and plays a vital role in the global design network," said Edouard Suzeau, automotive designer of GAC R&D Center Europe, sharing his view on China's intelligent manufacturing. As a mixed-blood, Suzeau spent his childhood in China and achieved his degree in automobile design in France. He serves for GAC in Milan as a designer, which made his dream comes true. "My family felt proud of me when they knew I had joined the GAC," he added. At present, the GAC cars have exported to Middle East, Africa, South East Asia and other 31 countries and regions. "No matter in China, Italy or anywhere in the world, Chinese auto brand can provide a better trip mode for human being," he stressed. Gennaro Schlitzer, director of QUEEN's SRL, indicated that China's piano manufacturing industry is amazing. He said that the sound, performance and design of the Pearl River pianos produced in Guangzhou are high-quality and as beautiful as the Pearl River. Several performances were staged to surprise the audience during the event, such as piano performances and an acrobatic show that straddles Chinese acrobatics and ballet, combining tradition with modernity, highlighting the unique Lingnan culture, and presenting an inclusive, open and innovative Guangzhou city to the world. Angelo Tabaro, former cultural minister of Veneto region, said Guangzhou is an inclusive city, as well as a trade center in China, which is similar with Venice. He wishes that both two countries will build a strong bridge to enhance the communication for people-to-people exchange. The "2023 Charming China?Cultural Exhibition from Guangdong" is being held in Italy and will also be held in Egypt, Malaysia, including concerts featuring Guangdong music, art exhibition, photo exhibition and more. The event aims to promote cultural exchanges and mutual learning between China and countries in Europe, Africa, and Asia, showcasing the profound cultural heritage of Chinese civilization and the charm of Lingnan culture to the world. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2280939/Guests_China_Italy_attended_a_cultural_exchange_event_featuring_conversations.jpg Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2280940/Two_speakers_China_Italy_exchanged_ideas_stage_November_16_2023.jpg 19 november 2023 at 15:48 News published onand distributed by: Bicycles seized at the border between Russia and Finland at the Nuijamaa border checkpoint in Lappeenranta, Finland, November 14, 2023. Since November 9, Finland no longer allows people to cross its southeastern border crossings by bicycle, but only in motor vehicles. LAURI HEINO / LEHTIKUVA / SIPA For the past few days, Finland has had its eyes firmly fixed on its eastern border. Between ten and 15 undocumented migrants typically arrive each month, but numbers have spiked. Border guards recorded 71 arrivals recently: 39 on Monday, November 13, and 35 on Tuesday, November 14, with some asylum seekers arriving by bicycle, despite a ban in force since November 9. "While these figures remain admittedly low, the fact that this trend is rapidly changing is a cause for concern," explained Colonel Matti Pitkaniitty, head of the border guard's international affairs department. Especially as the migrants' profile has also changed: "Usually, there are Russians, but now they're coming from other countries, particularly the Middle East," said Pitkaniitty. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, a conservative, announced that his government was taking the matter "seriously" and was prepared to "limit border traffic, close border crossing points or even round up asylum seekers in a center." Antti Hakkanen, his defense minister, was in Brussels to brief his European counterparts on the situation. 'These people are being transported to the border' In Helsinki, the memory of the precedent set in the winter of 2015-2016 remains strong: In four months, 1,700 asylum seekers crossed the border between Russia and Finland despite a tacit agreement between the two countries dating back to the Cold War, under which each camp filters the crossings on its own side and only lets out those with valid papers. At the time, it took several months for the Finnish authorities to react, denouncing a campaign orchestrated by Moscow. Orpo was interior minister at the time. On Tuesday, he accused Russia of once again being responsible for these new arrivals: "It is clear that these people are helped and they are also being escorted or transported to the border by border guards," he said, calling it a "conscious decision" and assuring that Finland, which shares a 1,340 kilometer-border with Russia, was ready to deal with this situation. Read more Article reserve a nos abonnes Finland and Estonia suspect sabotage after gas pipeline leak In February, a few weeks before its accession to NATO on April 4, the Nordic country of 5.5 million residents began building a 200-kilometer-long and three-meter-high fence designed to limit the risks of Moscow weaponizing immigration for political purposes. The lawmakers also amended the law in July 2022 to allow the government to close border crossings and group asylum seekers at specific points in the event of a large-scale attempt to enter the country. Even before its application to become a member of the Atlantic Alliance was made official in the spring of 2022, Finland had prepared for every possible scenario. But "surprisingly, Moscow showed considerable restraint and didn't even try to derail the process," noted Matti Pesu, a researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA). He sees two explanations for this: Russia's attention was "entirely focused" on Ukraine, and the Kremlin wished to "minimize" the importance of Finland's decision. You have 55% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only. A Ukrainian orphan taken from Mariupol after Russian forces captured the Ukrainian city in the first weeks of its invasion has returned home, Kyiv said on Sunday, November 19. The case of Bogdan Yermokhin, who turned 18 on Sunday, made international headlines after Russia issued him a draft summons to report for mandatory military conscription ahead of his 18th birthday. Kyiv said he had made it back to Ukraine after a series of negotiations involving officials in Moscow, Kyiv and Belarus. Read more Article reserve a nos abonnes The race to repatriate Bogdan Yermokhin, an orphan from Mariupol deported to Russia "Our team managed to bring home Bogdan Yermokhin, a Ukrainian boy who was taken by Russia from occupied Mariupol to the Moscow region," said Andriy Yermak, President Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff, on Sunday. Yermokhin's return was brokered by Qatar and the UN children's agency UNICEF, Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said in a social media post. He also published a photo of Yermokhin holding a Ukrainian flag at the border. "It was a thorny path. Bogdan went through a lot while in Russia, but despite everything he wanted to be home! Today his wish has come true," Lubinets said. Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, talks during an interview with the Associated Press in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, August 1, 2022. VASILISA STEPANENKO / AP Yermokhin, who was previously caught by Russia trying to escape back to Ukraine via Belarus, had appealed to Zelensky for help. Russia's children's commissioner, Maria Lvova Belova also wanted by the ICC had said several times this year that Yermokhin wanted to stay in Russia, but was being pressured by Ukraine to return home. She later said he had "changed his mind." On Sunday she also confirmed that Yermokhin had been transferred to Ukraine via Belarus. 20,000 Ukrainian children taken The Kremlin has been accused of illegally transferring thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia, and the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin over the alleged deportations. Kyiv says it has identified 20,000 Ukrainian children who were forcibly taken to Russia after its forces invaded last February. Around 400 have since been returned. Qatar is hoping to play a key role in facilitating more children being returned. Last month it brokered the return of four Ukrainian children, including a two-year-old boy. "Our team is continuing to work," Ukraine's Lubinets said Sunday. "The task is to bring all Ukrainians home." THE IRISH Civil War ended in 1923. Eighty years on, author and documentary-maker Tom Hurley wondered if there were many civilians and combatants left from across Ireland who had experienced the years 1919 to 1923, their prelude and their aftermath. What memories had they, what were their stories and how did they reflect on those turbulent times? In early 2003, he recorded the experiences of 18 people, conducting two further interviews abroad in 2004. Tom spoke to a cross-section (catholic, protestant, unionist and nationalist) who were in their teens or early twenties during the civil war. The chronological approach he has taken to his book spans 50 years, beginning with the oldest interviewee's birth in 1899 and ending when the Free State became a republic in 1949. Ballyagran native William Geary and Sean Clancy of Clonlara, Co Clare who attended secondary school in Limerick were among the people that Tom spoke to for his book in 2003. Both were centenarians at the time and were mines of information on the 1919-23 revolutionary years and indeed their own involvement. The topics William Geary discusses include his home at Cloonee Cottage, attending wireless school, a 1920 voyage, joining the IRA, black and tans, treaty, joining the gardai, Dublin Castle, Collins' death, postings to Clones, Ballybay, Carrickmacross, Newport, Templemore, Kilrush and his emigration to America in 1928. 100 years after the Civil War ended, these 20 interviews recorded by Tom Hurley come together to create a unique oral account of the revolutionary period and the tensions that were brewing in the run-up and aftermath. Together, theirs are the Last Voices of the Irish Revolution. Last Voices of the Irish Revolution by Tom Hurley is available in bookshops throughout the country and is available online. MANAGEMENT at Analog Devices in Limerick have been recognised for the changes theyve made to processes at its Raheen plant. The firm won the sustainable business prize at the Lean business awards. This recognises the work done by staff at the semiconductor manufacturer to adopt and enhance sustainable practices not only in Limerick but at its bases in Cork and Dublin. The Lean business awards are designed to recognise and celebrate such achievements in excellence in Irish organisations and aim to position Ireland as the recognised centre of lean and enterprise excellence globally. Its judging panel acknowledged Analog Devices staffs commitment to continuous improvement over the years, specifically highlighting the significant increase in production while reducing facility and process carbon emissions. The firms corporate decarbonisation goals further demonstrated its dedication to environmental responsibility, the panel said. The role of its senior leadership was also commended. Shane Geary, vice-president, manufacturing operations at Analog Devices, said: We are thrilled to receive this national-level recognition from the Irish Lean Business Awards, honouring the extraordinary efforts of our teams. This sustainability award reflects our dedication to driving productivity, reducing water usage, enhancing energy efficiency, and curbing emissions while fostering employee engagement. In particular, he praised Analogs green team, sustainability teams, environmental health services and facilities. A PROPOSED expansion of an aluminium refinery in West Limerick which would keep it operating until 2039 is back before planners. Aughinish Alumina, controlled by the Russian energy giant Rusal, is looking at ramping up its activity at its facility on the Shannon Estuary. The firm is seeking to extend the area where bauxite residue - a waste product from the alumina production process - is stored. Aughinish Alumina employs almost 500 people, plus in the region of 400 contractors. Its importance to the local economy has been thrown into sharp focus with the proposed wind-down of Wyeth in nearby Askeaton with the potential loss of hundreds of jobs. An Bord Pleanala had approved Rusals expansion plan already. But last May, a community group, Futureproof Clare won a High Court challenge seeking to quash the decision of the planning authority. They argued that it lay close to two protected nature sites, and warned that the continued operation of the plant could lead to major environmental issues both locally and nationally. It was expected Rusal would return with a fresh application and this is the case, with An Bord Pleanala due to make a decision by March 6, 2024. Futureproof Clare activist Sinead Sheehan admitted its no surprise to see the application back up for deliberation. Futureproof Clare remains of the view, that both as a matter of law and planning policy that permission for the bauxite residue disposal area should be refused. We remain steadfast in our opposition to the proposed development, which we consider runs contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the region, she said. However, local councillor Adam Teskey said: There is a reality that people must accept they are major employers in this area. If there were to be any further economic challenges to west Limerick, we would be economically and financially decimated. The Adare/Rathkeale member said theres an onerous responsibility to future proof Rusals needs. A SPECIAL screening of the documentary Citizens of Boomtown will reveal the highs and the lows of Irish band The Boomtown Rats. The screening will take place at University Concert Hall, on November 20. Citizens of Boomtown offers a very personal insight into the group, revealing the highs and the lows of the first Irish band ever to reach No1 in the UK charts not once, with Rat Trap, but twice with the global top seller I Dont Like Mondays. Bob Geldof also revolutionised global music broadcasting with his hugely successful Live Aid concert in 1985. The band broke up a year later in their native Dublin then reunited in 2013 to play a triumphant set at the legendary Isle of Wight Festival. The Boomtown Rats released their latest album, Citizens of Boomtown, in 2020. Directed by Billy McGrath, Citizens of Boomtown features exclusive interviews with the four members of the re-grouped Boomtown Rats. The documentary also includes compelling insights from special guests including Bono, Sting, Sinead OConnor, Jools Holland, Dave Stewart, Joseph O'Connor and Eoin Devereux. UCH Director Sinead Hope said: We are delighted to work with professor Eoin Devereux and the Centre for the Study of Popular Music and Popular Culture at UL to bring the story of one of Irelands most iconic and influential musical acts to UCH, one of the highlights of our autumn/winter 2023 cinema season. In 2019, Bob Geldof was awarded with an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Limerick in UCH, and we look forward to seeing the story of Dr Geldof and his fellow Boomtown Rats on the big screen. Professor Eoin Devereux, who will introduce the documentary said: The Boomtown Rats played a pivotal role in the development of the Irish music industry. Limerick featured in their early gigs, playing as they did, on the Falling Asunder Tour at the former Glentworth Hotel. Their vast contribution has been underplayed in many accounts of the Irish music industry, but this documentary sets the record straight. Tickets are available from uch.ie A MAN wearing bright pink pants robbed a bookmakers in Abbeyfeale with a knife before discarding his clothes in a graveyard in an effort to evade arrest, a Limerick court has heard. Judge Dermot Sheehan said the incident occurred in a quiet town in rural Limerick where this sort of thing doesnt happen or so they thought until you did this. The female victim said she believed the culprit would inflict injuries on her. I was a defenceless woman and felt very vulnerable, she said. Following a trial, Brian Sheridan, aged 44, with an address at Colbert Terrace, Abbeyfeale was unanimously convicted by a jury in July of a robbery at a Paddy Power shop in Abbeyfeale on August 12, 2017. Prosecuting barrister Lily Buckley, instructed by State Solicitor Aidan Judge, outlined the evidence with the assistance of Detective Garda Eric OShea. Ms Buckley said the Paddy Power employee opened the shop at 9am and was alone at the time. A man wearing a green jacket, bright pink pants, a snood, gloves and who had his hood up came in and closed the outside door. He said, Give me the f*****g money or Ill stab you. She saw he had a knife. Ms Buckley said the man jumped up on the counter, brandished the knife and pushed it towards her. It had a six inch blade. She pressed the personal alarm around her neck, she stated, adding that Mr Sheridan made off 430. Detective Garda OShea said CCTV footage was harvested and that he observed a male walking with the same gait as Mr Sheridan but wearing different clothes. I believed he had discarded his clothes, said the detective. A search was commenced with the assistance of Detective Garda Patrick Lee and a trousers, snood and jacket with 50 in the pocket was found in undergrowth in the graveyard. Detective Garda OShea said DNA found on snood and the jacket matched Mr Sheridans DNA. There is a one in a thousand million chance it wasnt his DNA, said the detective. After he was arrested Mr Sheridan told gardai his jacket and snood had been stolen and he never carried a knife as it was a scummy thing to do. He later took full responsibility. Mr Sheridan said he was under pressure over a drug debt and it was either to stab someone or rob Paddy Power. Im sorry I upset that woman. Im so sorry. I want to apologise to that woman, Mr Sheridan told gardai. He has a number of previous convictions for thefts, public order and possession of drugs. During the sentencing hearing, a victim impact statement was read out which outlined how the Paddy Power employee was very nervous, always on edge and had trouble sleeping after the robbery. I always felt confident and secure in the shop but I could not be on my own in the bookmakers anymore. He threatened me and demanded I hand over the money. I believed he was going to inflict injuries. I was a defenceless woman and felt very vulnerable. My life has been on hold for the last six years, read the victim impact statement. Yvonne Quinn, defence barrister, put it to Detective Garda OShea that her client was a chronic heroin addict at the time and that Mr Sheridan did make admissions and apologise to the woman involved. The witness agreed. In mitigation, Ms Quinn said Mr Sheridan accepts the verdict of the jury, acknowledges his wrong doing and wishes to express his remorse to the injured party. The barrister said the defendant has no previous convictions for robbery or of a violent nature. He is drug free in excess of six years. He has been doing exceptionally well. There were some difficulties when he was growing up and his first use of drugs was at age 12. He is a great tradesman and has full-time employment awaiting him on release. It is no excuse but he did it to pay off a drug debt. Judge Dermot Sheehan said he recalled the trial where it was heard that Mr Sheridan did this because of a drug debt and more dangerous people than you compelled you to do this and were there that day to assist you. Judge Sheehan said the victim impact statement impressed him. The crime had a significant effect on the victim. She was confronted by a man with a knife and threatened with a knife. She eventually handed over 430. It occurred in a quiet town in a rural area where this sort of thing doesnt happen or so they thought until you did this. They had to improve security. You have changed the experience of the victims working life.. It has made her nervous. People have to be with her at all times in the shop. You have brought change to her life, said Judge Sheehan. The judge praised the excellent detective work of Eric OShea and gardai through CCTV and recovering Mr Sheridans clothing in a graveyard. Judge Sheehan imposed a four year jail sentence, with the final 12 months suspended. THERE were plenty of inspiring stories told at this years conferring ceremonies at Limerick and Clare Education and Training Boards (ETB) College of Further Education and Training (FET). Friends and family of this years graduates gathered at the Radisson Blu Hotel and Spa on the outskirts of Limerick city to celebrate the achievements of those being conferred and there was certainly lots to celebrate. Patricia Reynolds is a single mum of three who recently graduated from Limerick and Clare ETBs College of FET, Kilmallock Road Campus and is a great example to anyone worried about trying to balance learning with a busy home and work life. Originally from Botswana, Patricia's mum is from South Africa and her dad is from Mayo. After living in London for ten years Patricia decided to move to Ireland and shes been here for three years. Mum to three children aged 21, eight and seven, Patricia was also juggling two jobs when she decided to take on a course in Healthcare at the Kilmallock Road campus. Making time for learning with such a busy schedule was always going to be a challenge but according to Patricia the team there was brilliant at helping her navigate her timetable to help with her hectic schedule. They also assisted when she needed experience working with people with intellectual disabilities. The team at the campus were fantastic. Once they realised I needed more experience they were able to put me in touch with their contacts at St Joseph's Hospital in Limerick. I was able to do volunteering work there, which really helped with my course, she said. Patricia is now doing a Masters in Sligo and working in healthcare and is grateful to all the team at the campus for their support. Fiachra McKeown, who studied sports, recreation and exercise and Anna Piterina from Kazakhstan were also among graduates on the day. On the night of November 19, El Salvador hosted the grand finale of Miss Universe 2023, where 20 finalists competed for the main crown of the contest. Unfortunately, Ukraine's Anhelina Usanova was not among them. The woman did not make it to the top 20, but still took the stage in the finals and demonstrated her new luxurious look. ADVERTISIMENT For the traditional final appearance of all the participants, during which the new Miss Universe titleholder is announced, it was necessary to develop a space-themed outfit. Anhelina's impressive dress was created by the world-famous Ukrainian designer FROLOV, whose clients include Beyonce, Sam Smith, Kylie Minogue, Rita Ora, Maneskin, Jamala and others. The Ukrainian delegation announced this on Instagram. For the grand finale, the Ukrainian representatives decided to combine the space theme of the competition with Ukrainian motifs. They were inspired by folklore, in particular by the well-known song lines "The night is so starry that you may pick up needles..." ADVERTISIMENT "Ukraine is our universe. This is the main metaphor embedded in the evening dress. In this look, we recreated the Ukrainian starry sky, which is an important part of our folklore... Our decision was to avoid the black color of the Cosmos, adding more light and hope. Therefore, we chose the dark blue shade of the sky as the basis, which merges with the color of the planet Earth ," Ivan Frolov on the idea behind the dress. We can see stars hand-embroidered with crystals on a dress. It turns out that the location of each of them corresponds to real constellations that can be seen in the night sky of Ukraine. The Ukrainian beauty's gloves are inlaid with the same stars. ADVERTISIMENT Even though Anhelina failed to make it to the semifinals and the finals, Ukrainians say that our country presented some of the best looks at the competition without any doubts. Each of Usanova's dresses or costumes not only looked flawless but also had a deep meaning, a true story, and hidden symbols. The audience was especially impressed by the national costume called "Berehynia Matu" (Goddess of pre-Christian times). Individual elements of the costume were designed and printed on a 3D printer. About 45,000 decorative stones were used. In total, it took 1.5 months to create the symbolic dress. Usanova presented it on the catwalk on November 16. ADVERTISIMENT You could see a print in the form of white clouds on a blue canvas, symbolizing a peaceful sky without missiles. The costume itself is made in the colors of the Ukrainian flag. However, instead of yellow, we see gold. This is a kind of armor that also means the strength and indestructibility of our people. In her hands, Anhelina held a figure of a golden angel, symbolizing Ukrainian children unprotected from the war. By the way, the winner in the Best National Costume category, just like last year, is chosen by the audience through online voting, which is still ongoing. You can cast your vote for the Ukrainian beauty in the official Miss Universe app. ADVERTISIMENT In addition, Anhelina showed off a dress called Phoenix Rising by Dutch designer Iris van Herpen. "Ukraine, which they wanted to destroy and burn, rises from the ashes like the Phoenix bird and is reborn in full freedom, true independence and beauty," the Ukrainian delegate commented on her appearance on the catwalk. Usanova also walked the runway in a swimsuit and an emerald-colored evening gown. It is worth noting that the Ukrainian entered the top 10 in the Voice of Change nomination. As part of this aspect, Miss Universe judges evaluated the contestants' videos in which they talked about social issues that concern them. Throughout the contest, Usanova raised the issue of Ukrainian children living in the midst of a terrorist war. She also addressed the same topic in her video, which was judged as one of the strongest. In the finals, the gold winners of this nomination were announced, who received cash prizes to solve the problems they raised. Unfortunately, the name of our country's representative was not announced. Three prizes went to delegates from Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Angola. ADVERTISIMENT We would like to remind you that Nicaragua's Sheynnis Palacios became the new Miss Universe. She is a 23-year-old model and morning show host on a local TV channel. He became the first Nicaraguan woman to win the crown at the prestigious pageant. Read more about the winner in the article. As you know, the competition was not without scandals. Anhelina sat at the same table as a Russian woman at the welcome party in El Salvador. Apparently, the organizers of the contest tried to create the illusion of "friendship" between the participants from the warring countries again. Earlier, OBOZ.UA wrote about the 10 most beautiful and interesting looks at the national costume contest, including the dress of a Ukrainian woman. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on OBOZ.UA Telegram and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! LIMERICK Fire and Rescue Service have responded to a second house blaze in the same street in the space of a week. The two properties are thought to be adjoining one another. The Munster Regional Communications Centre received the call-out at 10.36pm last night - Saturday, November 18. Three appliances rushed to the scene of the incident at Sarsfield Avenue, Garryowen. Firefighters returned to their Mulgrave Street base at 11.39pm after extinguishing the blaze. No injuries have been reported. It is understood that the property has been extensively damaged. Gardai have been contacted to establish if the incident is being treated as criminal damage by fire. Last Sunday afternoon, November 12, firefighters rushed to the scene of a house blaze at Sarsfield Avenue, Garryowen. A garda spokesperson said last Sunday: "Gardai are investigating an incident of criminal damage by fire at a house in Garryowen, Limerick on Sunday, November 12. Investigations are ongoing at this time." That property was also extensively damaged. The United Auto Workers union overwhelmingly ratified new contracts with Ford and Stellantis, which along with a similar deal with General Motors will raise pay across the industry, force automakers to absorb higher costs, and help reshape the auto business as it shifts away from gasoline-fueled vehicles. Workers at Stellantis, the maker of Jeep, Dodge, and Ram vehicles, voted 68.8% in favor of the deal. Their approval brought to a close a contentious labor dispute that included name-calling and a series of punishing strikes that imposed high costs on the companies and led to significant gains in pay and benefits for UAW workers. The deal at Stellantis passed by a roughly 10,000 vote margin, with ballot counts ending Saturday afternoon. Also Read: UAW Workers at GMs Largest Plant Back Labor Pact, Boosting Deals Chances Workers at Ford voted 69.3% in favor of the pact, which passed with nearly a 15,000-vote margin in balloting that ended early Saturday. Earlier this week, GM workers narrowly approved a similar contract. The Long Battle The agreements, which run through April 2028, will end contentious talks that began last summer and led to six-week-long strikes at all three automakers. Shawn Fain, the pugnacious new UAW leader, had branded the companies enemies of the UAW who were led by overpaid CEOs, declaring the days of union cooperation with the automakers were over. After summerlong negotiations failed to produce a deal, Fain kicked off strikes on Sept. 15 at one assembly plant at each company. The union later extended the strike to parts warehouses and other factories to try to intensify pressure on the automakers until tentative agreements were reached late in October. The new contract agreements were widely seen as a victory for the UAW. The companies agreed to dramatically raise pay for top-scale assembly plant workers, with increases and cost-of-living adjustments that would translate into 33% wage gains. Top assembly plant workers are to receive immediate 11% raises and will earn roughly $42 an hour when the contracts expire in April of 2028. Also Read: Automakers fear long-lasting consequence of UAW strike Under the agreements, the automakers also ended many of the multiple tiers of wages they had used to pay different workers. They also agreed in principle to bring new electric-vehicle battery plants into the national union contract. This provision will give the UAW an opportunity to unionize the EV battery plants, which will represent a rising share of industry jobs in the years ahead. I think this is a huge win for the UAW that they got all three contracts ratified," said Art Wheaton, director of labor studies at Cornell University. It's lifting the boats of all or many autoworkers." Three non-union, foreign automakers in the United States Honda, Toyota, and Hyundai quickly responded to the UAW contract by raising wages for their factory workers. They did so after Fain said the UAW would mount an aggressive effort to unionize their plants. He also said the union would try to recruit workers at Tesla. Foreign automakers have argued in the past that their workers earn about the same as UAW members, thereby negating the need for a union. They also have accused the UAW of forcing GM and the former Chrysler into bankruptcy in 2009 and of engaging in corruption after federal prosecutors broke up a wide-ranging bribery and embezzlement scandal starting in 2017. Also Read | UAWs Strike Strategy: Lots of Attention, Muted Financial Pain for Now But with Fain's election and the new contracts, the union has cured or readjusted all of that rhetoric," Wheaton said. While wages at nonunion factories may be nearly equal, he said, UAW workers receive far better health care and retirement benefits, which is likely to be attractive to workers at nonunion plants as they age. Contracts with the auto companies should also lead to higher wages at auto-parts supply companies and in other industries, Wheaton said. The unions got way more power" because of the deals, said Mark McGill, a 67-year-old worker at Fords assembly plant in Wayne, Michigan, where employees went on strike for the entire six weeks. Look at everybody now. People want to unionize." McGill, a 28-year Ford veteran who helps assemble Ford Bronco SUVs and Ranger pickup trucks, said he is pleased he'll be earning $42 an hour by the contracts end. He also is happy Fains negotiators were able to persuade Ford to pay workers about $100 a day for the time they were on strike. But under the settlement, new hires and temporary workers will receive much larger raises than longtime assembly plant workers, with some more than doubling their pay. That issue nearly sank the contract at GM. Wheaton noted that raising wages for the lowest-paid workers has been a focus of the union movement in the U.S. for the past year. Outlook All three automakers reported millions in lost revenue from the strikes and said they would absorb at least some of the increased costs of the wage increases in a competitive market that makes raising prices difficult. John Lawler, Ford's chief financial officer, said its deal would raise labor costs by $850 to $900 per vehicle. All three companies said they already had cut other costs in preparation for the UAW settlements. Also Read: General Motors withdraws previous guidance for 2023 profits after rise in UAW strike costs Michelle Krebs, an analyst at Cox Automotive, said a slowing U.S. auto market and already inflated prices that have made new vehicles unaffordable for many people will make it hard for companies to charge more. Cox forecasters foresee flat U.S. auto sales next year. Slowing demand but rising factory output is likely to produce more discounts, Krebs said. In addition, auto loans on average are hovering around 10%, a rate that will further slow auto sales by raising monthly payments. The union's success in securing significant wage gains could provide a political boost to President Joe Biden, who visited workers on a Detroit-area picket line and traveled to Belvidere, Illinois, Cornell's Wheaton said. There, the union won a commitment from Stellantis to reopen a shuttered factory and even add an EV battery plant. Also Read: US auto strike puts Indian ancillary hubs on the edge Biden, the first president in memory to visit a union picket line, has portrayed himself as a champion of the working class who emerged from a blue-collar background in Scranton, Pennsylvania. The strikes, Wheaton noted, didn't hurt the economy yet resulted in higher wages for middle-class workers whose votes Biden needs as he seeks a second term. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. The combined market valuation of seven out of the top 10 valued firms witnessed a significant increase of 1,50,679.28 crore (or 1.50 lakh crore) in the past week, PTI reported. This surge was primarily led by IT giants Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys, amidst a generally positive trend in equities, it added. Last week, the BSE benchmark observed a notable jump of 890.05 points or 1.37 percent, reflecting the overall optimistic market sentiment. Also Read | IPOs This Week: Dalal Street to remain buzzing as 6 new companies gear up to raise 7,300 crore; check full list here In terms of the most valued companies, Reliance Industries (RIL), maintained its top position, followed by TCS, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever (HUL), ITC, Bharti Airtel, State Bank of India (SBI), and Bajaj Finance, in that order. Gainers and Losers Among the gainers were RIL, TCS, HDFC Bank, Infosys, HUL, ITC, and Bharti Airtel. However, ICICI Bank, SBI, and Bajaj Finance faced declines in their market valuations. TCS saw a remarkable increase in valuation, soaring 62,148.99 crore to reach 12,81,637.63 crore, emerging as the top gainer among the top 10 firms. Also Read | Stocks to Buy: Nykaa, SBI Life among top bets; here's why It was followed by Infosys, which also experienced a robust rally, with its market capitalisation (mcap) surging by 28,616.98 crore to 5,96,681.75 crore. Among the other gainers, RIL witnessed a climb of 28,111.41 crore in its mcap, reaching 15,93,893.03 crore, while HDFC Bank surged by 11,136.61 crore to hit 11,42,215.81 crore. Also Read: India's GDP crosses $4 trillion for the first time, ranks fourth worldwide https://www.livemint.com/economy/indias-gdp-crosses-4-trillion-for-the-first-time-ranks-4th-worldwide-11700380854754.html Similarly, HUL saw a rise of 10,032.75 crore, reaching 5,94,317.36 crore, and Bharti Airtel advanced by 6,828.74 crore to attain 5,32,585.63 crore. ITC added 3,803.8 crore, bringing its valuation to 5,47,808.43 crore. Declines in Market Valuation Public sector lender State Bank of India witnessed a decline of 14,502.5 crore, reaching 5,02,589.52 crore in mcap, while ICICI Bank fell by 11,308.97 crore to 6,46,254.41 crore. Also Read | Week Ahead: Macro data, IPO action, FII activity, global cues among key market triggers this week Bajaj Finance also experienced a reduction, diminishing by 4,973.68 crore to 4,46,169.40 crore. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Reliance Industries Chairman and Managing Director, Mukesh Ambani , is expected to attend the upcoming Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS) , a state government official told PTI. The event will also see the attendance of prominent figures from companies such as ITC , Ambuja Neotia, and the Hiranandani Group, it added. Meanwhile, the attendance of Gautam Adani, the chairperson of Adani Group, remains uncertain, representatives from the group are slated to be in attendance. "The likelihood of Mukesh Ambani attending this year's BGBS is high. Other notable industrialists expected include Sanjeev Goenka, Sanjeev Puri, Purnendu Chattopadhyay, Harshvardhan Neotia, and Sajjan Jindal," stated the official to PTI. Also Read: West Bengal to announce new policies to boost investments: Amit Mitra Earlier in September, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee engaged with several industrialists during her visits to Spain and Dubai, primarily aimed at attracting investments to the region. The BGBS for this year is scheduled on November 21 and 22, culminating in a closing ceremony at the Dhanadhanya theatre in Alipore, Kolkata's vicinity. Policy Measures CM Banerjee's principal chief advisor Amit Mitra had earlier said the West Bengal government will announce several policy measures at a summit in November in order to attract investments. "Several policies are in the process which you will hear about at the Bengal Global Business Summit," Mitra said at a presser. Mitra said the government is working on several interesting policies. "The cabinet has passed some of them and we are hoping that all this will stack up," Mitra said adding that these will promote investments in the state. Mitra said that the state government followed a policy of boosting consumption, which in turn created demand for businesses to invest. West Bengal government is organizing a two-day global business summit from 21 November in Kolkata. The state government and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on Wednesday held a roadshow with business stakeholders in the capital. Bengal Global Business Summit 2023 seeks to bring together business leaders, academia, and think tanks from around the world for striking strategic and business alliances. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Investors of artificial intelligence company OpenAI are urging the board to reverse its decision to dismiss Sam Altman as CEO and remove him as a director, sources told Bloomberg. The investors and Altman were both blindsided by the removal, the report added. Some investors, including Thrive Global, are also reportedly engaging in discussions with OpenAIs largest shareholder Microsoft Corporation, as per sources the report added. Decision to be reversed? A report by The Verge citing sources suggests the board had initially consented to resign and permit Altman and Brockman's return, but this agreement seems to have faltered. The board missed a crucial 5 PM PT deadline, leading to the potential resignation of numerous OpenAI employees. Should Altman opt to depart and establish a new venture, it is anticipated that these employees would likely follow suit, the Verge report added. In case of a reversal in the decision, there is a possibility of Altman returning to the company, one source also told Bloomberg. A potential scenario being contemplated involves the current OpenAI board members stepping down imminently, although no definitive decisions have been reached, multiple sources added. Also Read: Sam and I are shocked by what board did today, says ex-OpenAI President Greg Brockman Reactions and support for Altman Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has communicated with Altman, assuring him of support in his future endeavors. Sources familiar with the situation disclosed that Nadella was caught off guard by the boards decision. OpenAI, Microsoft, and Thrive Global did not respond to queries, the report added. The OpenAI board has faced significant backlash following the abrupt removal of Altman, surprising both investors and Altman himself. Notably, several individuals, including co-founder Greg Brockman, have left the company in protest. Sources suggest further resignations might follow suit, the report added. Also Read: Who is on the OpenAI Board that fired Sam Altman? Take a look If Altman does make a return, theres speculation that he might seek alterations in the company's governance. Conversely, in the event of his non-return, Altman has been contemplating the launch of a new venture, potentially involving former OpenAI staff, Bloomberg's sources added. Abrupt change of hands Mira Murati, who previously worked behind the scenes at ChatGPT-maker OpenAI as chief technology officer (CTO), has been appointed as the company's interim CEO with immediate effect as the company seeks a permanent replacement. Murati's appointment comes after OpenAI in a recent statement announced the departure of co-founder and CEO, Sam Altman. Also Read: What OpenAI's new CEO Mira Murati thinks about AI, ChatGPT & more The company said an internal review highlighted Altman's lack of consistent transparency in communications with the board of directors. Consequently, the board lost confidence in his ability to lead OpenAI effectively. Following the announcement, Altman expressed gratitude for his time at OpenAI, acknowledging its transformative impact on both himself and potentially the world. He hinted at more information about his future plans to come. I loved my time at OpenAI. it was transformative for me personally, and hopefully the world a little bit. Most of all I loved working with such talented people. will have more to say about whats next later," Altman wrote on X. Also Read: Sam Altman is a hero: Eric Schmidt, Brian Chesky, other leaders praise Altman's contribution to AI Meanwhile, co-founder and President, Greg Brockman, also announced his departure from the company. Brockman, in a message on X, expressed pride in the accomplishments achieved. "Im super proud of what weve all built together since starting in my apartment 8 years ago. Weve been through tough & great times together, accomplishing so much despite all the reasons it should have been impossible. But based on todays news, I quit." he wrote. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. HOW QUICKLY the mighty fall. Ever since the release of ChatGPT a year ago, Sam Altman has been the human face of the generative artificial-intelligence revolution. As recently as November 16th the co-founder and boss of OpenAI was touting the virtues of AI to executives and world leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit in San Francisco. The very next day he was out on his ear. A blog post on OpenAI s website said the board no longer has confidence" in Mr Altmans leadership because he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board". Another shock came hours later. Greg Brockman, chairman of the firms board and another co-founder, resigned in response to Mr Altmans sacking. The defenestration was all the more surprising because Mr Altman seemed at the peak of his powers. He had recently completed a world tour where everyone from Narendra Modi to Emmanuel Macron jockeyed to meet him. On November 6th he had launched a suite of new AI tools at OpenAIs developer day, drawing comparisons with Steve Jobsa parallel that now seems ironic, considering that in 1985 Jobs too was booted out of the company he had founded. One startup boss says Mr Altmans and Mr Brockmans departures are as serious as if Larry Page and Sergey Brin had been kicked out of Google during its early years. OpenAIs employees and investors were blindsided by the move. Mr Brockman later tweeted that he and Mr Altman had not been aware of what was happening until minutes before the ousting. According to Axios, a news website, Microsoft, which has a 49% stake in the firm, was also in the dark until the last minute. Microsofts stock fell by 2% on the news, probably because the firms AI ambitions, including a hotly anticipated copilot" for its Office suite, hinge on access to OpenAIs technology. The ousting raises three big issues: what led to the surprise sacking; what it means for the firm that has been at the frontier of generative AI; and what it means for the future of the technology itself. How OpenAIs employees, the tech world and society writ large respond to the situation will be critical to what happens next. The board has yet to offer a detailed explanation for its decision. The leading theory, put forward by Kara Swisher of New York Magazine, says that the rest of the board, assembled by chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, disagreed with Mr Altman on how the firm should balance making money with the safe release of its models. An employee at OpenAI flatly calls the situation a coup detat". In a meeting with employees held shortly after the announcement, though, Mr Sutskever denied this characterisation, saying that the board was just doing its duty. If it is true that Mr Altmans defenestration resulted from disagreements over AI safety, it would be the most dramatic expression yet of a longstanding debate at the heart of OpenAIs history and indeed the wider industry. OpenAI was founded as a non-profit in 2015 by Mr Altman, Mr Brockman and Mr Sutskever, a superstar AI researcher, among others. But in 2019, in need of cash to train models that were demanding ever more computer power, Mr Altman spearheaded the creation of a capped-profit" company inside the non-profit and raised $1bn from Microsoft. In 2021 a handful of senior employees at the firm grew disillusioned with the firms more commercial focus and left to form a rival startup called Anthropic. The launch of ChatGPT was only one chapter in Mr Altmans quest to turn what was once a tiny research lab into a nimble product-oriented company. What does Mr Altmans ousting mean for OpenAI? The immediate effect is chaos. In addition to Mr Brockman, three other senior engineers have left. Others could follow, especially if the ousting resulted purely from a strategic disagreement. There could also be financial repercussions. Speaking to your correspondent in August, an investor in OpenAI called Mr Altman the only irreplaceable person" at the startup because of his top-notch recruiting and fundraising abilities. Sam is the greatest fundraiser of all timeafter Elon," he said. But perhaps OpenAI no longer needs Mr Altman to hire staff and raise money, now that the firm is so well known, and has the backing of Microsoft. That is why the departure of Mr Brockman, widely considered the engineering brains of the startup, is even more stinging. OpenAI is currently in talks to raise funds at a valuation of nearly $90bn, which would make it one of the most valuable private tech companies in the world. A private-markets broker says that before the announcement there had been nothing but demand" for OpenAIs shares. That valuation will now be tested, he says. The impact on the wider industry is less clear. Mr Altman pushed OpenAI to ship" new products into the world which gave it a first-mover advantage. Its competitors were forced to move faster to keep pace. A more safety-focused OpenAI will therefore slow down the whole industry, allowing competitors to catch up. AI startups that were building products with OpenAIs technology may now think twice before tying themselves too closely to one company. And Mr Altman himself is a wildcard. Writing on X he promised he would have more to say about whats next later". If whats next is a new company, the drama could just be getting started. Disclaimer: 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com Following a meeting between Union minister Kiren Rijiju and newly elected Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu in Male on Saturday, official sources have said that the two countries have decided to talk about "workable solutions" to ensure that the island nation of the Maldives continues to use Indian military platforms, as reported by news agency PTI. Rijiju called on Muizzu at his office a day after attending the Maldvian leader's inauguration ceremony. Muizzu is widely seen as a pro-China leader had promised to ensure the removal of Indian troops and maintain geopolitical neutrality if he is elected to power. The Maldivian defence force had said in 2021 that about 75 Indian military personnel were located in the country to maintain and operate an aircraft that was provided as an aid in 2020. A statement released by the Maldivian president's office said Muizzu "formally requested the government of India to withdraw its military personnel from the Maldives" in the meeting. Muizzu has maintained that he will keep his election promise of evicting Indian military personnel from his country. "At the meeting, President Muizzu had formally requested the Government of India to withdraw its military personnel from the Maldives," the statement said. "The President noted that at the presidential election held in September, the Maldivian people had given him a strong mandate to make the request to India and expressed the hope that India will honour the democratic will of the people of the Maldives," it added. As per Indian government sources, Muizzu, in the meeting, brought up the issue of Indian military personnel present in the Maldives for operating aircraft for medical evacuation and to counter drug trafficking. The President also acknowledged the contribution of the Indian helicopters and aircraft for medical evacuation of Maldivian citizens, as per the sources. "They are also central to the confidence that international tourists have in staying in remote islands. He appreciated their role in monitoring and combating drug trafficking," said a source. "It was agreed that the two governments would discuss workable solutions for continued cooperation through the use of these platforms as this serves the interests of the people of the Maldives," it said. The Maldives is one of India's key maritime neighbours in the Indian Ocean Region and the overall bilateral ties including in areas of defence and security have been on an upward trajectory under the government of Ibrahim Solih. Incidentally, a Dornier aircraft given to Maldives by India on Saturday carried out a medical evacuation of a 36-year-old woman. The aircraft is being operated by Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF). "A medical evacuation of a 36-year-old female in critical condition was carried out from Th. Atoll Hospital to Male' City by MNDF Central Area Command via MNDF Dornier Aircraft today at 17:04 hours," the MNDF said on X. In a rally held in Kerala to express solidarity with Palestine amid the conflict in West Asia, Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan made controversial remarks against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, ANI reported. Unnithan said he backed a course of action against the PM, stating that he "should be shot and killed without a trial," drawing reference to the Nuremberg trials for Nazis after World War II. Track Israel-Hamas War Live Updates: 32 babies in critical condition are among the patients left at Gaza hospital "You can ask what should be done to those who break all agreements under the Geneva Convention. After the Second World War, there was something called the Nuremberg trials for bringing those (Nazis) guilty of war crimes to justice. The Nuremberg model to shoot those accused of war crimes dead without trial. It is high time that the Nuremberg model was applied here (against the Israeli PM). Today, Benjamin Netanyahu is standing before the world as a war criminal. It's high time that Netanyahu was shot and killed without a trial because of the atrocities that his forces are committing on Palestinians," the Congress MP added. He was speaking at a rally organised by the Kasaragod United Muslim Jamaath. Unnithan represents Kasargod in the Lok Sabha. Track Uttarkashi Tunnel Collapse Live Update: Uttarakhand CM Dhami to conduct on-site inspection of relief ops today The Congress leader condemned Netanyahu, accusing him of war crimes and calling for swift punishment and his suggestion of the application of the "Nuremberg model" in response to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has been viewed as controversial. Earlier, Khaled Mashal, the former chief of Hamas, virtually addressed a similar event in Kerala, causing a stir within the BJP. Meanwhile, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has issued an official statement condemning Israeli operations in Gaza, urging immediate intervention by the Centre to facilitate a ceasefire. Current status in Gaza A United Nations team said Sunday that 291 patients were left at Gaza's largest hospital after Israeli troops had others evacuate. Those left included 32 babies in extremely critical condition, trauma patients with severely infected wounds, and others with spinal injuries who were unable to move. Also Read | Israel-Hamas War Day 45: Israel-Hamas near hostage deal; Gaza hospital evacuated amid ongoing Israeli assault. 10 points The team was able to tour Shifa Hospital for an hour after about 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients, and medical staff left the sprawling compound Saturday morning, said the World Health Organization, which led the mission. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation," the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. It said more teams will attempt to reach Shifa in the coming days to try to evacuate the patients to southern Gaza, where hospitals are also overwhelmed. Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden dismissed increasing ceasefire calls for Gaza and asserted that it won't bring about peace but a time to rebuild their stockpile of weapons and fighters, he wrote in an opinion piece for The Washington Post. Also Read: Israel-Hamas War puts Palestinians back on Arab world's agenda "As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a cease-fire is not peace. To Hamas's members, every cease-fire is time they exploit to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters, and restart the killing by attacking innocents again," The Post read. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Manipur's Imphal airport was kept on alert after an unidentified flying object (UFO) was spotted on Sunday. Since alert, two flights have been diverted and three flights have been delayed. Also Read: Manipur: Militants plant IED, attack Assam Rifles troop in Tengnoupal; search ops on to trace attackers Security officials were on alert after the incident at Bir Tikendrajit International Airport, Imphal. The airport was shut for four hours in afternoon for the same reason. A very small drone was spotted by security personnel at Imphal Airport on Sunday at 3 pm. Later, an alert was issued to other agencies at the airport and operations were postponed till security clearance. Three flights were affected due to the security clearance. The flight operations resumed at 5.30 pm, reported ANI citing sources. Also Read: Home ministry bans several Meitei extremist organisations in Manipur amid ethnic violence Due to the sighting of an unidentified flying object within Imphal controlled Airspace, two flights have been diverted and three departing flights have been delayed. Flight operations commence after receipt of clearance from a competent authority, said Imphal International Airport Director Chipemmi Keishing in an official statement. In a post on X, Eastern Command said, IAF activated its Air Defence response mechanism based on visual inputs from Imphal airport. The small object was not seen thereafter." Uttar Pradesh authorities imposed a state-wide ban on the "production, storing, distribution and sale of halal certified edible items" on Saturday, November 18. The Food Commissioner's Office issued an order Saturday evening, imposing the ban in Uttar Pradesh "with immediate effect". What is halal and halal food? Halal is an Arabic word that loosely translates to "permissible" in English. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations defines Halal Food as that which is permitted under the Islamic Law. "All lawful land animals should be slaughtered in compliance with the rules laid down in the Codex Recommended Code of Hygienic Practice for Fresh Meat," the FAO guidelines say. ALSO READ: Uttar Pradesh bans manufacturing, storage, distribution and sale of halal-certified products One of the many requirement is that the slaughter act should sever the trachea, oesophagus and main arteries and veins of the neck region" of the animal. According to The Indian Express, vegetarian food would be generally considered permissible or 'halal' unless it contains alcohol. Any consumable item can be deemed 'halal' or 'haram' as per the Islamic law. The FAO guidelines also specify that "when a claim is made that a food is halal, the word halal or equivalent terms should appear on the label". What are halal-certified products? A Halal certification is a guarantee that the food is prepared adhering to the Islamic law and is unadulterated. In India, halal certification is given by many private companies which marks the food or products permissible for the followers of the Islam. Some of these halal certification bodies are recognised by the Indian government, while others do not have any recognition. The major halal-certifying organisations in the country include Halal India Pvt Ltd and Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust, news agency PTI reported. Is halal certification mandatory? The Indian government neither mandates halal certification, nor does it provide a unifying regulatory law. The Food Safety and Standard Authority of Indias (FSSAI) standard certification is the requirement for consumer edible products, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. It states that Halal certification in the form of "an internationally recognized certificate" is not necessary to obtain trade permission either for exports or imports. "There are no specific labeling requirements for imports of halal food products," the USDA said in 2022. What's the controversy around halal-certified products? The controversy is centered around two aspects one is the legality of the certificate-issuing authority and the other is the allegation of targetting people of a particular community. On Friday, November 17, a case was registered in Lucknow against some entities for allegedly exploiting religious sentiments to boost sales by providing halal certificates to customers of a specific religion. According to the Uttar Pradesh government, these entities included such as the Halal India Private Limited Chennai, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust Delhi, Halal Council of India Mumbai and Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra among others. First, let's delve into the legal aspect of halal certification: The restriction by the Uttar Pradesh government came amid complaints against various companies issuing Halal Certification. The question is whether these companies have been issuing such certificates legally or illegally. A few private companies, against which Lucknow police had registered a case on Friday, were accused of issuing forged" halal certificates to various companies for financial gains. One of the complainants, Shailesh Sharma, told ANI that there are four companies in Chennai, Mumbai, and Delhi that issue halal certificates. He alleged that none of the companies, as of now, have been recognised by the central government or any other government to determine whether they are eligible to issue halal certificates or not. Halal certification system In India, various halal-certifying agencies provide companies, products or food establishments halal certification. And, the National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB) provides accreditation to these Halal Certification Bodies" under Quality Council of India. Taking certification from government-recognised Halal certifying bodies gives companies an advantage in not only national but international market. As per the guidelines by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), meat and its products are allowed to be exported as 'halal certified' only if they are produced, processed and packaged in a facility having a valid certificate issued by a body accredited by a board of the Quality Council of India. Earlier, there was no mandatory halal certification system in India regulated by the government as the country does not have a national regulation for the certification. However, to streamline the certification of meat and meat products as halal from the country, a scheme titled 'India Conformity Assessment Scheme (i-CAS)'was developed by the government, news agency PTI reported. On April 6 this year, the DGFT notified policy conditions for halal certification process for meat and meat products. It directed the existing bodies to seek accreditation from the NABCB for i-CAS (Indian Conformity Assessment Scheme) Halal in six months. In October, the Center had extended the time period for accreditation of halal certification bodies and registration of export units by six months till April 5, 2024. Halal certification creating confusion The official notification by Uttar Pradesh's Food Safety and Drug Administration department mentioned the Halal certification of food products as a parallel system that creates confusion regarding the quality of food items and is completely against the basic intention of the Food Safety and Standards Act. Exploiting religious sentiments The few companies, which were accused of issuing forged halal certificates, were also charged for "fostering not only social animosity but also violating public trust". They were also accused of exploiting religious sentiments to boost sales by providing Halal certificates to customers of a specific religion. In a statement, the Uttar Pradesh government said the complainant has raised concerns over a potential large-scale conspiracy indicating attempts to decrease the sale of products from companies lacking the halal certificate, which is illegal. "The issuance of halal certificates for vegetarian products like oil, soap, toothpaste, and honey, where no such certification is necessary, suggests a deliberate criminal conspiracy targeting a specific community and its products," it said. Moreover, the complainant alleged that, under the guise of religion, "unrestrained propaganda" is being pursued within a particular section of the society to discourage the use of products lacking a halal certificate. This, in turn, harms the business interests of other communities. The complainant reportedly expressed concern over these individuals "amassing disproportionate profits and potentially channelling funds towards supporting terrorist organisations and anti-national endeavours," the UP government's statement said. (With inputs from PTI) Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. A drain in a washbasin, bathroom, or kitchen sink can get clogged at the most inconvenient time. It's usually caused by a blockage: hair, toothpaste residue, grease, and dirt clog the drain and cause a lot of problems. ADVERTISIMENT Don't rush to call a plumber - you can clean the drain yourself with a few available ingredients. Apartment Therapy magazine has explained how to clean the drain in the sink and bathroom with home remedies. Tanya Klien, CEO of Anta Plumbing in Toronto, Canada, spoke about very effective life hacks. Required ingredients: 1/2 cup baking soda; 1/2 cup of salt; 1/2 cup of vinegar; hot water. Method 1 Pour a little baking soda into the drain, add salt and vinegar. Next, wait 15 minutes and then pour hot water over it all. Method 2 In general, you should not use a solution of baking soda and vinegar as a cleaning agent, as they neutralize each other. However, there is one exception: when baking soda and vinegar are combined, an instant chemical reaction occurs that creates "bubbles" that can physically destroy obstacles. ADVERTISIMENT Pour baking soda down the drain and then pour vinegar over it. Leave this solution on for an hour, then rinse with hot water. This is the most effective method to get rid of tangled hair in the drain. Method 3 Use baking soda, salt, and boiling water. This life hack works like the first method, but without vinegar. You need to pour baking soda and salt into the drain, wait 10-15 minutes, and pour boiling water over it. The mixture of ingredients "creates a strong chemical reaction that unblocks most clogs in the kitchen or bathroom," the expert said. How to prevent sewer blockages You can prevent clogs in your kitchen sink almost every time you wash dishes. Just use a dishwashing detergent that is anti-grease and turn on warm water instead of cold water - also to save money. Klien says that this will naturally keep the clogs at bay. ADVERTISIMENT However, you need to be careful with the use of baking soda and vinegar. "Excessive use will cause a chemical reaction that will damage metal pipes," she warned. Earlier, OBOZ.UA told whether it is possible to regularly clean a clogged sink drain with boiling water. Subscribe to the OBOZ.UA channels in Telegram and Viber to keep up with the latest developments. EDINBURG (TEXAS) : Donald Trump returned to the US-Mexico border for a visit Sunday as he promotes a hard-line immigration agenda that would be far more expansive than the policies he pursued during his first term as president. Before making remarks in Edinburg, Texas, Trump served meals to Texas National Guard soldiers, troopers and others who will be stationed at the border over Thanksgiving. He was joined by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, a longtime ally and fellow border hawk who is expected to endorse the front-runner for the 2024 nomination during the visit, according to a person close to Trump who spoke on condition of anonymity before a formal announcement. Trump and Abbott handed out tacos, and the former president shook hands and posed for pictures. They planned to speak to about 150 supporters outside an airport hangar in the town, which is roughly 30 miles from the border. Trump has been laying out immigration proposals that would mark a dramatic escalation of the approach he used in office and that drew alarms from civil rights activists and numerous court challenges. On my first day back in the White House, I will terminate every open-borders policy of the Biden administration. I will stop the invasion on our southern border and begin the largest domestic deportation operation in American history," he said in Iowa Saturday. He also wants to: revive and expand his controversial travel ban, which initially targeted seven Muslim-majority countries. Trump's initial executive order was fought all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld what Trump complained was a watered down" version that included travelers from North Korea and some Venezuelan officials. begin new "ideological screening" for all immigrants, aiming to bar Christian-hating communists and Marxists" and dangerous lunatics, haters, bigots and maniacs" from entering the United States. Those who come to and join our country must love our country," he has said. bar those who support Hamas. If you empathize with radical Islamic terrorists and extremists, youre disqualified," Trump says. "If you want to abolish the state of Israel, youre disqualified. If you support Hamas or any ideology thats having to do with that or any of the other really sick thoughts that go through peoples minds very dangerous thoughts youre disqualified." deport immigrants living in the country who harbor jihadist sympathies" and send immigration agents to pro-jihadist demonstrations" to identify violators. He would target foreign nationals on college campuses and revoke the student visas of those who express anti-American or antisemitic views. invoke the Alien Enemies Act to remove from the United States all known or suspected gang members and drug dealers. That law was used to justify internment camps in World War II. It allows the president to unilaterally detain and deport people who are not U.S. citizens. end the constitutional right to birthright citizenship by signing an executive order his first day in office that would codify a legally untested reinterpretation of the 14th Amendment. Under his order, only children with at least one U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident parent would be eligible for a passport, Social Security number and other benefits. terminate all work permits and cut off funding for shelter and transportation for people who are in the country illegally. build more of the wall along the border, crack down on legal asylum-seekers and reimplement measures such as Title 42, which allowed Trump to turn away immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border on the grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19. press Congress to pass a law so anyone caught trafficking women or children would receive the death penalty. shift federal law enforcement agents, including FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration personnel, to immigration enforcement, and reposition at the southern border thousands of troops currently stationed overseas. Before we defend the borders of foreign countries we must secure the border of our country," he said. Also Read | Why do we dodge a decision on estate planning? Trump has made frequent trips to the border as a candidate and president. During his 2016 campaign, he traveled to Laredo, Texas in July 2015 for a visit that highlighted how his views on immigration helped him win media attention and support from the GOP base. The border has also become a centerpiece of Abbott's agenda and the subject of an escalating fight with the Biden administration over immigration. The three-term governor has approved billions of dollars in new border wall construction, authorized razor wire on the banks of the Rio Grande and bused thousands of migrants to Democrat-led cities across the United States. Abbott is expected to soon sign what would be one of Texas most aggressive measures to date: a law that allows police officers to arrest migrants suspected of entering the country illegally and empowers judges to effectively deport them. The measure is a dramatic challenge to the U.S. governments authority over immigration. It already has already drawn rebuke from Mexico. Still, the Texas GOPs hard right has not always embraced Abbott. Trump posted on his social media platform earlier this year that the governor was MISSING IN ACTION!" after Republicans voted to impeach Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Trump ally. Abbott was also booed at a 2022 Trump rally. But Abbott's navigation within the GOP has built him broad support in Texas, where he has outperformed more strident Republicans down-ballot and helped the GOP make crucial inroads with Hispanic voters. Democrats tried to use the trip to portray Trump's plans as extreme. Donald Trump is going after immigrants, our rights our safety and our democracy. And that is what really is on the ballot last year," Biden reelection campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said on a conference call with reporters. Pollings show many voters arent satisfied with the Biden administrations handling of the border. A Marquette Law School poll of registered voters conducted in late September gave Trump a 24-point advantage over Biden on handling immigration and border security issues 52% to 28%. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Houthi rebels from Yemen have seized a cargo ship that was travelling from Turkey to India. Israeli officials dubbed it an act of Iranian terrorism with international implications. The development came amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war that has claimed nearly 14,000 lives and strained diplomatic ties. The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship," the Israeli Defence Force said. Contradictory reports have emerged about the ownership of the vessel and the Israeli military insists that it is not associated with the ship or its crew. A Jerusalem Post report citing Arab media identified it as an Israeli Ship named Galaxy Leader that was reportedly leased from a British company to a Japanese company. As per an AP report, ownership details in public shipping databases associated the ships owners with Ray Car Carriers. This was founded by Abraham Rami" Ungar known as one of the richest men in Israel. The rebel group also claimed to have seized an Israeli ship on Sunday before taking it to a Yemeni port. Reports citing Houthi officials also reiterated warnings that ships belonging to Israel or its supporters would be a legitimate target for the rebel forces. A Bloomberg report quoting a spokesman said that the Houthis would continue to target Israeli ships until the military operation against Hamas ends. It also called on other countries to withdraw citizens working on such vessels. According to the Israeli government, the 25 member crew of the seized cargo ship include people from Ukraine, Bulgaria, the Philippines and Mexico. (With inputs from agencies) Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Israel-Hamas war: Reports emerged on Sunday claiming that Hamas fighters from Palestine's Gaza, Benjamin Netanyahu from Israel, the United States have been able to successfully broker a ceasefire deal - a five-day pause in the ongoing fighting to release 50 or more hostages. The report published by The Washington Post was vehemently denied by both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US officials. The hostage release could begin within the next several days, barring last-minute hitches, according to people familiar with the detailed, six-page agreement, the paper said on Saturday. The debated mention of the ceasefire agreement comes even as Israel seemingly increases their aggressiveness in the ground offensive against Hamas militants to southern Gaza after air strikes killed dozens of Palestinians, including civilians reported to be sheltering at two schools. Israel said it was entering the next stage" of the six-week-old war against Hamas as focus shifted to the south of the besieged Gaza Strip. Separately, Israeli paratroopers raided what were called the homes of senior Hamas officials in northern Gaza. How many hostages did Hamas take? It was earlier reported that close to 240 people were taken hostage by Hamas following the October 7 surprise attack on Israel. It is not clear how many of these hostages would be released as part of the US-brokered deal. What did US say? A White House spokesperson dismissed reports of Israel and Hamas agreeing to a temporary ceasefire deal. "No deal yet but we continue to work hard to get a deal," Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House's National Security Council, said in a statement, reported Reuters. A second official also confirmed no deal had been reached. What is the ceasefire deal? According to the Washington Post report, the ground movement would be monitored by overhead surveillance, which would help police with the five-day pause. The temporary stopping of the ongoing operation in Gaza is also intended to allow a significant amount of humanitarian aid, including fuel, to enter the enclave from Egypt. The release of hostages and the five-day pause in the operation in Gaza could begin in the next few days. However, a spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington refused to comment on the hostage situation and the reported deal. The deal was put together among Israel, the US and Hamas, during a round of talks in Doha, and was led by Qatari mediators, the Washington Post reported. The development comes not so long after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied passing up on a serious deal for the release of 50 hostages. He said there was "no deal on the table" and that the release of hostages is a "priority". "We want to get back all the hostages. Were doing the utmost to bring back the most possible, including in stages, and we are united on this," the Times of Israel quoted Netanyahu as saying. Qatar says 'just logistical' factors blocking ceasefire Qatar has been significant in trying to broker a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas fighters since the war inflated after 7 October. However, following Washington Post's report, Qatar's prime minister said the main sticking points blocking a deal for the release of dozens of hostages taken by Palestinian group Hamas in their Oct. 7 attack on Israel were now "very minor" and mainly practical and logistical issues. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. US President Joe Biden dismissed increasing ceasefire calls for Gaza and asserted that it won't bring about peace but a time to rebuild their stockpile of weapons and fighters, he wrote in an opinion piece for The Washington Post. "As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a cease-fire is not peace. To Hamas's members, every cease-fire is time they exploit to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters, and restart the killing by attacking innocents again," The Post read. He also said, "Our goal should not be simply to stop the war for today -- it should be to end the war forever, break the cycle of unceasing violence, and build something stronger in Gaza and across the Middle East so that history does not keep repeating itself." The US President also called for Israel to respect humanitarian law and minimize the loss of civilian life, saying he counseled Israeli officials during his trip to Tel Aviv "against letting their hurt and rage mislead them into making mistakes we ourselves have made in the past." 'Two-state solution is the only solution' According to Joe Biden, a two-state solution is the only solution to the enduring conflict in the region. He said there should be governance under the Palestinian Authority. As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority, as we all work towards a two-state solution." The US President also took aim at the extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, which has been a concern among officials, saying that the US is prepared to issue visa bans against the perpetrators. "I have been emphatic with Israel's leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable," Biden wrote in The Post. As per CNN reports, the warning surfaced amid worries about Israel allegedly violating the Visa Waiver Programme, enabling eligible travelers to seek entry into the US without a visa, effective since late October. Last month, the Biden administration sought over USD 105 billion from Congress in a proposed package, aiming to allocate security assistance for the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel. PM Netanyahu reacts to reports of possible hostage with Hamas There has been no deal as of now, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday refuted the reports of a possible hostage agreement with Hamas. He even pledged to continue the operation in Gaza until the Palestinian terrorist group is overthrown and the seized hostages are back in the country, HT reported. He further appreciated the support of the United States and said that the country is sending constant shipments of defense equipment and crucial weapons required for the war. I greatly appreciate the US, under the leadership of our friend President Biden, who sees eye-to-eye the common interest with Israel. The US has sent to the Middle East aircraft carriers and support vessels, and a special submarine, and is constantly sending us vital munitions," he said as quoted by HT. The White House stated that no Israel-Hamas deal yet, US will 'continue to work hard' Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has sanctioned 37 Russian groups and 108 people including a former prime minister and a former education minister and said he aimed to fight wartime abductions of children from Ukraine and other "Russian terror". "We are increasing the pressure of our state onto them and each of them must be held responsible for what they have done," he said in his nightly video address on Saturday, after his office issued corresponding decrees with his signature. Also Read | Russia Ukraine war: Russian lawmaker proposes creation of 'Ministry of Happiness' to deal with stress Zelenskiy did not associate specific individuals or groups with particular wrongdoings. The decrees showed a range of 10-year penalties against individuals and five-year penalties against non-profit groups including one named in English as the "Russian Children's Foundation." Zelenskiy said in his address that the list included "those involved in the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children from the occupied territory" and individuals who "in various ways help Russian terror against Ukraine." Some of the newly-sanctioned people, which included many with Russian citizenship, had previously been punished with separate or similar penalties. Those included Dmytro Tabachnyk, a former minister of education and science who had his Ukrainian citizenship stripped from him in February, and ex-Prime Minister Mykola Azarov. With former President Viktor Yanukovich, Azarov previously had assets and property frozen among other penalties. The two men fled Ukraine for Russia in 2014 after a crackdown on street protests that killed more than 100 demonstrators in Kyiv. Other individuals penalized on Saturday included Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-installed head of Crimea, and Leonid Pasechnik, whom Putin appointed head of Luhansk, the eastern Ukrainian region Russia annexed in 2022. The sanctioned Russian groups included several whose names or websites indicate they work with children. One sanctioned group was named Kvartal Lui, which matches an organization with a website which says its founder is Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, herself sanctioned by Kyiv in October 2022. The International Criminal Court in The Hague this month issued an arrest warrant against Lvova-Belova, along with President Vladimir Putin, accusing them of the war crime of deporting children from Ukraine. Zelenskiy's new list also sanctioned the executive director of Kvartal Lui, Sofia Lvova-Belova. Her older sister, Maria Lvova-Belova, has said children were taken to shelter them from violence and denied committing any war crime. Kyiv says about 20,000 children have been removed to Russia or Russian-held territory without the consent of family or guardians, which it says amounts to a war crime that meets the UN treaty definition of genocide. Yale University published research on Thursday saying more than 2,400 children aged between six and 17 had also been taken to 13 facilities across Russian-allied Belarus. The report, from a group that receives U.S. State Department funding, said that the transports across Russian territory to its western neighbor were "ultimately coordinated" between Putin and Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko. Zelenskiy's decrees upheld a decision by the National Security and Defence Council to issue sanctions with an array of penalties including blocking assets, trade, transit, leasing, removal of capital, land purchases and other financial and economic activities. (Writing by Elaine Monaghan in Washington, Editing by Franklin Paul) Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said he sees the parallels between Hinduism and Christianity and is committed to endorsing those shared values with the youth, ANI reported. He added that it is his Hindu faith that motivated his move to politics, it added. Ramaswamy, 38, is an entrepreneur and hails from Ohio. He was speaking at the 'The Family Leader' forum organised by The Daily Signal platform on November 18. Also Read | US Presidential Elections: Nikki Haley leads Joe Biden with 55%, new poll shows "My faith is what gives me my freedom. My faith is what led me to this presidential campaign...I am a Hindu. I believe there is one true God. I believe god put each of us here for a purpose. My faith teaches us that we have a duty, a moral duty to realise that purpose. Those are God's instruments that work through us in different ways, but we are still equal because God resides in each of us. That's the core of my faith". Reflecting on his upbringing, he highlighted the influence of traditional values instilled by his parents. "My upbringing in a conventional household ingrained in me the values of family as the bedrock, reverence for parents, and sanctity in marriage. The sanctity of marriage and the respect for parental guidance were central tenets in our family," Ramaswamy affirmed. Also Read | 2024 US Presidential Election: Donald Trump eligible for Colorado's primary ballot, judge dismisses lawsuit In drawing parallels between Hindu and Christian faiths, Ramaswamy emphasised the universality of these 'shared values', transcending specific religious affiliations. "Attending a Christian High School exposed me to the Ten Commandments and Bible teachings. These principles the reverence for God, truthfulness, fidelity, and respect for parents resonate deeply with me. They are not exclusive to any one faith but are inherent to the divine essence itself," he asserted. On his religion being reflected if he is elected President Ramaswamy said., "Can I be a President who can promote Christianity across the country? I can't...I don't think that's what we should want a US President to do either...but will I stand for those shared values? Will I promote them in the examples that we set for the next generations? You are damn right, I will! Because that's my duty". He also views it his duty to make "faith, family, hard work and patriotism cool again in the US," he added. Also Read | 2024 US Presidential Elections: Mike Pence announces his withdrawal from presidential race, says Not my time "One of the teachings is that we don't choose who God chooses to work through. That's not our choice, that belongs to God...so yes are founded on Judai-Christian values and these are values that I deeply share....as a president, it is my duty to make faith and family and hard work and patriotism, but faith includes, cool again in this country for the next generation," he added. Ramaswamy's parents moved to the US from Kerala. His presidential candidacy has garnered attention and seen an increase in support within the GOP primary polls, he currently trails behind Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Also Read: Joe Biden too old to contest polls? US President calls ex-Obama adviser 'p****k' as he voices election concerns With the upcoming US presidential election slated for November 5, 2024. Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Only a few weeks ago, a new intellectual superstition was flourishing in the West: the Global South. A phrase long deployed by left-leaning institutions and individuals had attracted, with stunning speed, wide fascination among mainstream politicians and journalists in Europe and the US. Bestowing unprecedented attention on the BRICS summit in South Africa and G20 conclave in India, the Western press was full of speculation on whether India or China would lead the Global South. President Joe Biden made his preference clear by wooing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi . The Biden administration drew up various schemes involving India in alliances with Israel and rich Arab countries, aimed in part at stemming Chinese influence. A European Council on Foreign Relations report echoed the new Western consensus: The West needed to woo friendly members of the Global South such as India and Turkey if it was to build a new world order. Now that the conflict in West Asia threatens to prematurely terminate this Western infatuation, it is worth asking what it was all about. Did the project of winning over emerging nations reflect wishful thinking and image-projection by Western elites? Certainly, the romancing seemed to ignore the reality that its object might have contradictory intereststhe fact, for instance, that India could not swiftly wean itself off cheap oil from Russia and manufactured goods from China, even as it pursued military deals with Western powers. The Wests overnight interest in the Global South was rooted more in expedient self-interest than a sober understanding of its intricacies. The phrase Global South itself flourished only after Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, driven by the awkward realization that non-cooperation from Asian, African and Latin American countries could doom the Western effort against Vladimir Putin. Putins war machine, indirectly funded by both India and China, appears to have withstood Ukraines counteroffensive, and support for Kyiv is likely to ebb even among its biggest Western supporters. Meanwhile, the Biden administration failed to enlist any major country of the Global South in its cause. Even worse, the conflict in Gaza may now have mortally damaged Western power and credibility in the Global South. While Israel seems no closer to victory in its own counteroffensive against Hamas, the high death toll among women and children is leading even such stalwart European allies of Israel as France to call for a ceasefire. Some Global South countries are more vociferous, accusing Israel of genocide and the West of double standards. Western commentators err in taking at face value such morally charged criticism. Pro-Palestinian sentiment had receded globally in recent years, except among the young and non-Caucasian populations in the US and Europe. With its vibrant high-tech economy, Israel seemed irresistible, and the world quickly learns to embrace a winner. Indeed, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a brazen champion of Hamas, was seeking close relations with Israel until 7 October. Yet Palestine, as George Orwell pointed out in 1945, has always been a colour issue." Israels treatment of Palestinians has long outraged not just Muslims, but anti-colonialists in Asia, Africa and Latin America, as well as African-American leaders in the US, from Muhammad Ali to Cornel West. Even despots cannot defy inflamed public opinion at home. Many potential partners of Israel in the Global South may calculate that the country under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus leadership is far from becoming a winner again. They can see that Hamas brutally shattered Israels aura of inviolability, and just as Hamas probably hoped, the retaliatory bombing of Gaza has brought the Palestinian cause centre-stage again. Israel looks over-committed to a long war it cannot win, either on the battlefield or in the court of global public opinion. Indeed, Israels failure to define a viable future for itself and the Palestinians is now hitting its closest ally, inducing bitter divisions in the US State Department as well as on university campuses and endangering Bidens re-election in 2024. No wonder veteran establishment commentators such as New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman are imploring the Biden administration to disengage from Netanyahu. Few people love or want to embrace an adventurer who continues to recklessly gamble even as he loses. Joe Bidens schemes involving Israel, Arab nations and India are already in ruins. The Wests hopes of enlisting the Global South in building a new global order are likely to join them. bloomberg RAMALLAH, West BankAs Western and Arab leaders look beyond Israels war in the Gaza Strip, most agree they want some form of Palestinian government running the enclave, but they cant agree on who it should include. One emerging point of consensus is that the Palestinian Authorityas it now operates and oversees the West Bankisnt up to the job. But there is no easy alternative. Discussions in Washington, Jerusalem and elsewhere in the Middle East are focused on reforming the authority or pushing it aside for something better to govern roughly 2.2 million Gazans upended by a devastating war. Israel has said it doesnt want to govern the strip once its offensive ends, potentially months from now, but wants to maintain security to ensure Gaza isnt used to attack Israelis. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also has said he opposes the Palestinian Authority in its current form governing there. The authoritys 88-year-old leader, Mahmoud Abbas, has said he would return to Gaza only as part of broader Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations toward a two-state solution. Yet few envisage a quick peace agreement so soon after the Oct. 7 attacks by militant group Hamas that killed more than 1,200 people in Israel, prompting Israels assault on Gaza in response. Brett McGurk, the White Houses top Middle East official, and Barbara Leaf, assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs, visited Brussels and the Middle East in recent days, seeking a coordinated approach to the conflict. The U.S. and its allies are unsure whether they can transform the authority or find another solution before Israel finishes its military operation against Hamas. Everyone sees the problems," said Ghaith al-Omari, a former official in the Palestinian Authority now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. No one seems to have a good idea what to do about it." The U.S. and European countries agree on what they dont want. They reject displacing Palestinians from Gaza in the long term, Israel reoccupying the area, or Hamas returning in a way that threatens Israel. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said Gaza and the West Bank should be unified under the Palestinian Authority. Palestinian Authority officials told EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Friday that it can help govern Gaza, using thousands of its own civil servants. Complicating the situation is a view from some Arab states, such as Egypt, which believe Hamas should play a role in Palestinian politicsa prospect Israel and many Western countries oppose. The Arab leaders argue that while Israel might be able to destroy Hamass military capabilities in Gaza, it wont eliminate the group as a political movement, and Hamas leaders must be engaged to promote stability. Israel also still faces the challenge of defeating Hamass military, which isnt a foregone conclusion. The Israeli military has largely taken control of northern Gaza above ground, but Hamas militants remain fortified in a tunnel network and hold hostages, complicating the offensives next stage. For now, Abbas is focused more on pushing for a cease-fire than what comes next. In a meeting with McGurk and Leaf this week, the Palestinian leader asked the U.S. to pressure Israel to halt the continuing war in Gaza, accelerate deliveries of humanitarian aid and halt assaults by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank, according to Mahmoud Habbash, an adviser to Abbas. Blinken on Friday asked Israel to take urgent steps to stop violence being carried out by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank. As a compromise, U.S. officials have suggested publicly in recent weeks that an international force, with troops from neighboring Arab allies, could enter Gaza. Some Israelis also embrace the idea, arguing the Palestinian Authority hasnt proven to be a good partner for promoting long-term peace with Israel. Officials from Germany and some other European countries have also suggested a role for a United Nations peacekeeping force or a U.N.-mandated presence to help with governance and security. Still, when Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi met with Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns on Nov. 7, he rejected a proposal for the North African country to manage security in the Gaza Strip until the Palestinian Authority can take over after Hamass defeat, according to senior Egyptian officials. The Egyptian president said his government wouldnt play a role in eliminating Hamas, as Egypt needs the militant group to help maintain security at the countrys border with the Gaza Strip. No other Arab country has suggested it would be willing to help manage security in Gaza. There will be no Arab troops going to Gaza. None. Were not going to be seen as the enemy," Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said at a security conference in Bahrain on Saturday. The Palestinian Authority, too, has said it would oppose an international force, and some Israeli security officials have warned that such an arrangement wouldnt work, pointing to a United Nations peacekeeping mission on its border with Lebanon that has watched as Hezbollah and Palestinian militias have regularly exchanged fire with Israel. An Israeli military official said the Palestinian Authority was also nowhere near the level of competence in maintaining security that Israel would require to prevent another attack out of Gaza. Even those who have served in the Palestinian Authority say it is ill-equipped to run the Palestinian enclave, and is unpopular. Even if the PA sought that role, it would be unable to perform it, especially given that its already-diminished legitimacy is fast vanishing under the pressure of the continuing war," said Salam Fayyad, who was the authoritys prime minister for six years until 2013. The Palestinian Authority under Abbas is based in a relatively quiet compound in Ramallah, in the West Bank, and guarded by security forces with red berets and rifles. It was formed in 1994 after the Palestine Liberation Organization, under longstanding leader Yasser Arafat, sealed a peace accord with Israel that gave Palestinians self-rule in parts of the West Bank and Gaza. The PLO at the time was dominated by a Palestinian political faction, Fatah, which helped set up the authority to govern on an interim basis. The PLO had to shift overnight from being a political movement based outside the Palestinian territories to a government providing education, healthcare and other services to millions. The first years of its rule were marred by corruption and violence by Hamas, a rival faction that aimed to disrupt the peace process. At the same time, Israel expanded Jewish settlements in the West Bank and the army limited Palestinian freedom of movement. Failed peace talks in 2000 helped spark a Palestinian uprising that made Israelis wary of a long-term peace agreement. Israel walled off the West Bank and, in 2005, dismantled Jewish settlements in Gaza. Two years later, Hamas fought Fatah for the enclave, taking over control, but the authority continued to direct a large part of its budget for civil servants in Gaza. Since then, Palestinian officials have accused Netanyahuin power during most of the period since 2009of boosting Hamas in Gaza at the expense of the authority to divide the Palestinian leadership, make a peace deal harder and appease Israels right wing, which doesnt want to cede the West Bank in a future agreement. Netanyahu has said the Palestinian Authority cant be considered a partner for peace because, while it recognizes Israel, the Israeli government says it promotes incitement against its citizens and pays the families of prisoners detained for terrorism offenses. Palestinian Authority officials said Israeli policiesincluding mounting restrictions on movements through checkpointsare undermining its ability to secure the West Bank. This month, the authority was unable to pay its security forces after Israel blocked the transfer of close to $200 million in Palestinian tax payments, said General Talal Dweikat, a commander in the force. Netanyahu has made a deliberate effort to weaken the PA from a security perspective," said Dweikat. It is becoming very difficult to maintain law and order." The U.S. is now pressing Israel to unfreeze the money, according to Western officials. A State Department spokesperson said that this is Palestinian money. The secretary made clear that those revenues, those funds, ought to be released to the Palestinian people." The authoritys standing also has been tainted among Palestinians by its cooperation with Israel on security in the West Bank. Ahead of the war, Abbass approval rating among Palestinians was at about 20% and has likely fallen further, said Khalil Shikaki, head of the Ramallah-based Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research. He estimates the only way the Palestinian Authority can return to Gaza is to extract concessions from Israel, such as movement toward a Palestinian state, which Israelis are currently unwilling to accept. Israel will find essentially no one willing to step in to replace the Israeli army, including the Palestinian Authority," Shikaki said. In the short termIsrael will have no choice but to run the affairs of 2.2 million Palestinians living in Gaza. I cant see any other alternative." Fatima Abdulkarim, Stephen Kalin, Laurence Norman, Rory Jones and Vivian Salama contributed to this article. Write to Benoit Faucon at benoit.faucon@wsj.com, William Mauldin at william.mauldin@wsj.com and Summer Said at summer.said@wsj.com President Biden is struggling to connect with younger voters. The sepia-toned stories he peppers into speeches may not be helping. When Biden traveled to Israel last month, he spoke about his 1973 meeting with then Prime Minister Golda Meir. Following the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade last year, he stressed his work in 1987 to keep conservative Judge Robert Bork off the nations high court. Pressed about climate change during a news conference in Vietnam, he pointed to his longstanding commitment to the issue, including his work on it with Sen. Dick Lugar (R., Ind.) in the 1980s. As Biden marks his 81st birthday Monday and seeks re-election, those stories about people who have died and faded from public view risk appearing out of date to younger audiences. There are more than 60 years separating Biden from voters who will cast their first ballots in 2024, an acute age gap that presents a challenge for the oldest president in U.S. history. I think the fact that he continues to reference politicians that Gen Z may not relate to definitely puts him out of touch," said Daniela Parra del Riego Valencia, 20, a sophomore at Emory University in Atlanta and president of the Young Democrats of Emory. Youth voting increased significantly in 2020. Among voters ages 18 to 29, Biden beat former President Donald Trump by 24 percentage points. A recent Quinnipiac Poll showed that in a hypothetical matchup between Biden and Trump, the likely Republican nominee, 46% of voters ages 18 to 34 supported Biden, and 44% Trump. Bidens team counters that the presidents old-time references are part of a folksy style that is an authentic asset, and they say newer generations connect to his wisdom and experience. Younger voters may not even hear his formal speeches laden with historical anecdotes given they are more focused on social media, where the campaign is trying to reach them. Young people dont have to feel like they see themselves in Biden," said Cyrus Beschloss, founder of the youth polling company Generation Lab. They just have to feel like they see authenticity." Kevin Munoz, a Biden campaign spokesman, said they would meet younger Americans where they are and earn their votes," as the party did in 2020 and 2022. Biden, who would be 86 years old at the end of a second term should he win, has long employed a greatest-hits track of stories, including admonitions from his late parents and grandparents, to offer lessons of tolerance, perseverance and the importance of dignity. The nostalgic tales can feel like a turn through the history books. Biden occasionally talks of his dealings with segregationist senators like Strom Thurmond of South Carolina and James Eastland of Mississippi, noting they would fight like hell" but still be able to have lunch together. Biden tells audiences that, when his first wife and daughter were killed in an automobile crash in 1972, shortly after his first Senate victory, he was supported by a group of older, and now deceased, senators such as then-Majority Leader Mike Mansfield of Montana, Thomas Eagleton of Missouri and Fritz Hollings of South Carolina. Other times, Biden signals older cultural touchpoints. During the same Vietnam news conference in September, he referred to a John Wayne Western film as a way of refuting skeptics of climate change. Republicans have consistently sought to portray Biden as old and out of touch. Trump has mocked Bidens age and abilities while the Republican National Committee, in an account on X, formerly known as Twitter, recently declared Biden was not playing with a full deck." Trumps team is also hopeful that frustration with the economy gives them an opening with younger voters. Santiago Mayer, executive director of Voters of Tomorrow, a Gen Z-led organization that has promoted Bidens agenda, said that what the president has achieved for young voters is more important than his age. More than three million borrowers have had $127 billion of their federal student loans flagged for cancellation, despite a Supreme Court ruling in June that blocked relief for millions more student-loan holders. The president has made billions in investments in clean energy and negotiated bipartisan gun-control legislation. The White House created an office this fall to fight gun violence and hosted an event with Rep. Maxwell Frost (D., Fla.), the first Generation Z member of Congress. Bidens side says the president is connecting with younger voters on social media and at the White House, where hes hosted musicians like Olivia Rodrigo and BTS and courted YouTube stars and influencers. One effort Bidens campaign sees as a success is the internet meme Dark Brandon," a depiction of Bidens red-laser-eyed alter ego, which they adopted as a way to reframe the Republican anti-Biden chant of Lets Go Brandon." Dark Brandon-themed coffee mugs and accompanying videos of Biden drinking from one generated nearly $2 million through the end of September. He has done a better job recently by being quippy and funny and relatable on social media," said Jade Gray, 20, a senior at the University of Michigan and co-president of the College Democrats at the university. Stories from the past and anecdotes from decades ago, those probably arent going to work." Democratic Party insiders think the greater risk is that young people dont vote, or defect to a third-party candidate, rather than make a shift to Trump, who at age 77 is hardly better positioned to connect with millennial and Gen Z voters and at odds with many of them on issues like climate change and abortion. These cohorts, born after 1980, have voiced frustration with the economy, including high prices and escalating rent, and many of their members have expressed skepticism with Bidens firm support for Israel in the war against Hamas. Id say theres definitely a bit of disconnect," said Alex Greenwald, 26, who works for a tech company and lives in Phoenix. The tone of not relating to the struggles young people are going through. People living paycheck to paycheck." Greenwald said he expected to vote again for Biden, as he did in 2020, but said: It feels like we have a lot of older people in politics and it feels like as long as the boomers keep voting we are still going to be stuck with them." The Democratic National Committee has hired a youth coalitions director and has joined with the Biden campaign on a pilot program that will focus on outreach to young and Black voters, building on efforts to turn out voters in the midterm elections. Ashley Spillane, who ran Rock the Vote and founded Impactual, a social impact firm, said that Bidens storytelling style can be an asset. I think when the president is talking directly to young people about the issues, it is helpful to have some component of storytelling. Storytelling is a critical component of engagement," she said. Parra del Riego Valencia, the Emory University student, said that Biden does talk about issues that students care about, like gun control, and she said she expects that ultimately young people will turn out because of priorities like that and climate change and abortion. In a swing state here like Georgia, students are keenly aware of the value of their vote," she said. Write to Catherine Lucey at catherine.lucey@wsj.com and Ken Thomas at ken.thomas@wsj.com The call is coming from inside the hack. A ransomware gang claimed this past week that it broke into the systems of the fintech platform MeridianLink. The breach has been reported to regulators. The company didnt report it, as new rules will require them to do. The hackers did. New Securities and Exchange Commission rules, which go into effect next month, require that hacked companies disclose materially important cybersecurity incidents to investors within four days of discovering them. The hackers, called both AlphV and Black Cat, didnt wait for the rules to take effect to use the threat of disclosure to pressure the company to meet its ransom demands. MeridianLink acknowledged the hack after AlphV disclosed it. The company said that the incident caused minimal business interruption and that, if it determines that any consumer personal information was involved, it will provide notifications as required by law. MeridianLink said it had hired a third party to investigate the incident. MeridianLink has not fulfilled this obligation regarding the breach it experienced a week ago," AlphV wrote in a statement published online. We have therefore reported this non-compliance by MeridianLink." In recent years ransomware groups have been known to send messages to customers, investors and even employees family members to ratchet up the pressure to pay, said John Bennett, the global head of government affairs at the risk advisory firm Kroll. This is just a new way of applying pressure to companies to get them to comply," he said of the groups SEC complaint. While security experts said AlphVs report to the SEC was something of a publicity stunt, it also shows the new risks companies face based on how they handle hacks and ransomware attacks. Now the bad guys are recognizing that the U.S. regulatory landscape is becoming acutely more dangerous for companies," said Tim Howard, U.S. head of data security at Freshfields and former head of the cybercrime unit at the Manhattan U.S. attorneys office. Along with the new disclosure rules, the SEC last year announced that it was nearly doubling the size of its unit responsible for crypto cases and cybercrime. The agency recently charged SolarWinds and its chief information security officer with fraud, alleging that the software company overstated its cybersecurity capabilities before it announced it was a victim of a major hack in 2020. SolarWinds has said that the SECs complaint is fundamentally flawed and that it plans to fight the charges. AlphV claimed credit earlier this year for a high-profile hack at MGM Resorts International, which said that it would take a $100 million hit to its earnings after the companys casino operations were crippled following the companys refusal to pay the ransom. Robert McMillan contributed to this article. Write to Ben Foldy at ben.foldy@wsj.com In Chinese astrology, there are twelve animals, each of which endows people born in a particular year with different characteristics and traits. Snakes, for example, are considered wise, Dogs are loyal, and Dragons are charismatic. ADVERTISIMENT Astrologers say that among the signs of the Chinese zodiac, there are those that can be called the most attractive and charming. The details were revealed by the Express. Rat People born in the Year of the Rat are attracted by reliability and stability. They are very self-confident and hardworking individuals who are not used to tantrums and solve any problems in a balanced and calm manner. A Rat will rarely ask for help or pass on their responsibilities to others. They do everything on their own and on their own. Rats are attracted by their strong character. When choosing clothes, these people prefer a simple and elegant style. They do not strive for shocking, but they want to look expensive and elegant. Rabbit Women of this sign are very sweet, gentle and affectionate, they show feminine weakness at every opportunity, so men feel like real heroes around them. They are able to inspire feats. ADVERTISIMENT Men are also distinguished by their attractive appearance and ability to impress. Representatives of this sign love to be in the spotlight. Horse People born in the Year of the Horse are very gifted. They are usually energetic, full of enthusiasm and passion, and can easily lead or motivate others. Representatives of this sign are brilliant whenever communication is required - in negotiations, at parties, in large companies, on stage in front of an audience. However, they should beware of the influence of negative people. Rooster These people love to impress and look incredible. They know how to choose an outfit that exudes luxury and confidence. Because of this ability, other signs often feel "inferior", not as radiant and attractive. Charisma and great attention to appearance often help Roosters succeed in business. ADVERTISIMENT Earlier, OBOZREVATEL told that people born in the Year of the Horse will have a turbulent year. Astrologers noted that 2023 began for them under the sign of "conflict", which will have a great impact on their life path. Subscribe to OBOZREVATEL's Telegram and Viber channels to keep up with the latest developments. The United States is encountering challenges in its transition to electric vehicles (EVs), slowing down the pace of adoption. Concerns over vehicle range, limited charging infrastructure, and core affordability issues have led automakers to revise their EV sales targets and delay capital projects. Meanwhile, China, a global leader in EV adoption, continues to showcase remarkable success. This article explores the reasons behind the USs struggles and highlights Chinas achievements in the electric vehicle market. Challenges in the US: Recent developments in the US electric vehicle market reveal a significant slowdown in sales, particularly concerning EVs. Neil Saunders, Managing Director of GlobalData, identifies the EVs complexity as a major obstacle, citing difficulties related to vehicle range and charging infrastructure. The vast size of the country, coupled with Americans penchant for lengthy road trips, underscores the importance of a reliable and extensive charging network. Range, pricing, and affordability concerns contribute to reservations among American consumers. While EV reliability is acknowledged by over three-quarters of drivers, doubts persist regarding charging infrastructure (36%), battery range (39%), and vehicle affordability (38%). The average selling price of EVs in October was $51,762, presenting a potential affordability gap for some consumers. Global Perspective: In contrast, Europe, with higher gasoline prices, witnesses a more favorable environment for EV adoption. The higher upfront cost of electric vehicles is offset by reduced fuel expenses, making EVs an attractive option for European consumers. However, the economic dynamics differ in the United States, where gas prices are significantly lower. Teslas Dominance: Despite the challenges, Tesla remains a dominant force in the US EV market, accounting for over 55% of the 873,000 EVs sold in the first 10 months of 2023. Industry leaders like Elon Musk acknowledge the impact of increased borrowing costs and market dynamics on the EV landscape. Automakers Strategies: Facing market evolution, automakers such as Ford and General Motors are adjusting their strategies. Fords CEO, Jim Farley, anticipates some market bumpiness and emphasizes the need to reduce the cost of EVs in response to dynamic changes. General Motors, too, has delayed its EV plant conversion to manage capital investment amid evolving demand. Simplifying Manufacturing: To tackle cost challenges, automakers are focusing on simplifying manufacturing processes. Tesla, known for its innovative approaches, aims to achieve unparalleled efficiency with its Cybertruck. Ford, following suit, pledges to reduce complexity in design and manufacturing. US Government Initiatives: The US government, under President Joe Bidens administration, has shown support for EVs with significant funding for charging infrastructure and tax credits for consumers. Despite the ambitious goal of achieving 50% electric vehicle sales by 2030, the industrys transformation is proving to be more gradual than anticipated. Conclusion: While the United States grapples with obstacles in its electric vehicle transition, China continues to surge ahead, setting an example for global EV adoption. The challenges in the US market underscore the need for a comprehensive and strategic approach, balancing consumer concerns, infrastructure development, and affordability. As the world navigates the electric future, both successes and challenges provide valuable insights for shaping sustainable and efficient mobility solutions. Shayne Heffernan The information contained on this website shall not be construed as (i) an offer to purchase or sell, or the solicitation of an offer to purchase or sell, any securities or services, (ii) investment, legal, business or tax advice or an offer to provide such advice, or (iii) a basis for making any investment decision. An offering may only be made upon a qualified investors receipt not via this website of formal materials from the Knightsbridge an offering memorandum and subscription documentation (offering materials). In the case of any inconsistency between the information on this website and any such offering materials, the offering materials shall control. Securities shall not be offered or sold in any jurisdiction in which such offer or sale would be unlawful unless the requirements of the applicable laws of such jurisdiction have been satisfied. Any decision to invest in securities must be based solely upon the information set forth in the applicable offering materials, which should be read carefully by qualified investors prior to investing. An investment with Knightsbridge is not suitable or desirable for all investors; investors may lose all or a portion of the capital invested. Investors may be required to bear the financial risks of an investment for an indefinite period of time. Qualified investors are urged to consult with their own legal, financial and tax advisors before making any investment. Knightsbridge is a private investment firm that offers investment services to Qualified Investors, Members and Institutions ONLY. Qualified Investors are defined as individuals who have met those Qualifications in the relevant jurisdictions. Members are defined as individuals who have been accepted into the Knightsbridge membership program. Institutions are defined as entities such as banks, pension funds, and hedge funds. If you are not a Qualified Investor, Member or Institution, you are not eligible to invest with Knightsbridge. All investments involve risk, and there is no guarantee of profit. You may lose some or all of your investment. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Knightsbridge is not a registered investment advisor, and this disclaimer should not be construed as investment advice. Please consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. By accessing this website, you agree to the terms of this disclaimer. Thank you for your interest in Knightsbridge. In a world constantly evolving with technological advancements, the role and power of governments are becoming increasingly crucial. As a futurist, I advocate for a careful evaluation of government powers to ensure a balance between authority and individual freedoms. Shayne Heffernan, a respected expert in finance and technology, emphasizes the need to rein in government powers before its too late. Lets explore the reasons behind this warning and the potential consequences if action is not taken promptly. The Rise of Technology and Government Surveillance: With the rapid growth of technology, governments worldwide have gained unprecedented access to citizens data. Surveillance measures, while initially implemented for security purposes, have raised concerns about privacy infringement. Heffernan warns that unchecked government surveillance could lead to a dystopian future where citizens are constantly monitored, eroding personal freedoms. The Threat to Individual Privacy: As governments amass vast amounts of data through surveillance, the risk of privacy breaches becomes more apparent. Heffernan stresses that protecting individual privacy is essential for maintaining a free and open society. The unchecked expansion of government powers in the digital realm could result in a society where citizens every move is scrutinized, limiting personal autonomy. Potential for Authoritarianism: The futurist expert urges citizens to be vigilant about government powers, as unchecked authority can pave the way for authoritarian regimes. With the ability to control information and monitor citizens, governments may exploit their powers for political gain, stifling dissent and opposition. Heffernan emphasizes that safeguarding democratic principles requires a proactive approach in limiting government overreach. Social Credit Systems and Manipulation: The integration of technology into governance brings forth the concept of social credit systems, wherein citizens behavior is scored and monitored. Heffernan warns against the potential manipulation of these systems, leading to social control and discrimination based on arbitrary criteria. Reigning in government powers is crucial to preventing the abuse of such systems and preserving individual freedoms. The Importance of Proactive Measures: To avoid the potential pitfalls of unchecked government powers, Heffernan advocates for proactive measures. Establishing robust legal frameworks, ensuring transparency, and engaging in open dialogue about the ethical use of technology are crucial steps. Citizens, policymakers, and tech experts must work together to strike a balance between leveraging technology for societal benefits and preventing its misuse by authorities. Conclusion: As we hurtle toward an increasingly digital future, Shayne Heffernans warning serves as a wake-up call to rein in government powers before they become uncontrollable. Safeguarding individual privacy, preventing authoritarianism, and fostering transparent governance are essential for creating a future where technology enhances rather than diminishes our freedoms. It is a collective responsibility to shape a future where governments serve their citizens while respecting the fundamental principles of democracy. Citizens of the terrorist state of Russia are reluctant to prevent the mobilization of men for the war against Ukraine. Sometimes in some Russian cities, people try to burn down military commissariats. ADVERTISIMENT Another such case occurred in the Kaliningrad region. This was reported by Russian media. The video captured the moment of arson of the military enlistment office. A woman threw several bottles of Molotov cocktails into the building, causing flames to spread along the wall of the military commissariat. It is worth noting that the woman filmed the moment of arson, and two other women were waiting for her at the entrance. So far, Russian security forces have not commented on the incident. The day before, another woman tried to burn down a military enlistment office in Novosibirsk. She was later detained by police. The Russian security forces claimed that the arson was motivated by fraud - having lost her apartment, the woman allegedly thought that her offenders were sitting in the military enlistment office. ADVERTISIMENT To recap, a pensioner set fire to a car in St. Petersburg, Russia. She doused the car with lighter fluid and set it on fire, shouting "Glory to Ukraine". As OBOZ.UA previously reported, in the Moscow region, unknown persons burned a military tractor with a trailer. The incident occurred right on the territory of the plant. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! The North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church has voted to allow 261 churches to leave the denomination amid a schism over LGBTQ issues If you do not have a current print subscription to the Lodi News-Sentinel, but want to view unlimited articles for the month, please choose this option. Increases in the cost of permits for mooring in Richmond Harbour were among the changes set to be introduced in bylaw changes governing Irish waterways Longford County Council members were informed. A presentation from Waterways Ireland to the local authority outlined the process adopted to update the bylaws. Brian Treacy, Waterways Ireland's North Shannon Senior Engineer, was attending the November council meeting to brief the elected representatives and answer any questions on the issue. The meeting with the councillors discussed the State body's approach to proposed bylaws changes. The Shannon bylaws are from 1992, the Canal bylaws date from 1988, so they are over 35 years. There has been plenty of legislation that needs to be reflected in the bylaws, that is why we are updating them, Mr Treacy told the councillors. The State body that oversees the management, maintenance, development, and restoration of inland navigable waterways have just concluded a public consultation phase on the proposed bylaws changes, with a second phase of public consultation to facilitate further engagement with the public and stakeholders currently underway. The WI North Shannon Senior Engineer told the meeting: There are quite a few steps before it becomes a statutory instrument. We are now at the public consultation stage. We have finished stage one and we are now going on to the next stage. Mr Treacy said every stakeholder group had been consulted on the proposals, including Shannon lakes and rivers groups and heritage groups. Under the review the proposals will see the extending the bylaws to the Ulster Canal system and the River Inny as far as Ballymahon. Other changes are to bring in line regulations with the Maritime Safety Act, vessel safety and equipment, and WI property management. We will reflect on the submissions we have received before we progress to phase two, the Senior Engineer told the meeting. The proposed changes include the introduction of new serviced and unserviced canal permits for houseboat communities; additional houseboat mooring zones; in-water inspections and insurance for boats; the introduction of an annual registration process, and abolition of lock passage fees. Others are the requirement for life-jackets on the water and safety equipment on boats; speed limits for bicycles and scooters on the Greenways and Blueways; certification of vessels being used for commercial purposes, and designated zones for tents and caravans. The revisions also include measures to protect the environment. Restrictions on the length of mooring, boat registration and the introduction of fixed payment notices as set out in legislation. Permits for Richmond Harbour are to increase from 126 to 200: We are proposing a five day rule for parking. That is to encourage boats to come in off the Shannon and on to Abbeyshrule and Mullingar, Mr Treacy said. To date Waterways Ireland received 933 submissions: We are now going to review those. On January 15 to February 26 we will have the second iteration. This will allow people to see how the feedback affects the bylaws. After February we will review it again, Mr Treacy assured the councillors. For the second day in a row, the aggressor country Russia tried to attack the Ukrainian capital with Shahed-136/131 kamikaze drones in several waves. Thanks to the work of air defense, about 10 drones were destroyed on the outskirts of Kyiv. ADVERTISIMENT Serhii Popko, the head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, spoke about the details of the attack. According to him, there is damage to infrastructure in the region. It should be noted that the air raid alert warning of the threat of attack drones first for the Kyiv region and then for Kyiv itself, lasted from Saturday evening until 02:00 on Sunday, November 19. The enemy launched drones in many groups in waves from different directions, constantly changing their vectors. "That's why the alert was announced in the capital several times," the head explained. According to him, about a dozen drones were shot down by air defense forces and means on the outskirts of Kyiv and in the city. The exact data on the type and number of enemy targets will be provided by the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. ADVERTISIMENT The official emphasized that no casualties or critical damage have been reported in Kyiv so far, but the data is still being clarified. "As you can see, the enemy has intensified attacks on Kyiv. Therefore, be careful and responsible and do not neglect the air raid alerts. Take care of yourself," Popko urged. Ruslan Kravchenko, head of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration, noted that air defense was also active in the region. As a result of repelling the attack, an infrastructure facility was damaged in one of the districts. According to preliminary information, there were no casualties. The fire has been extinguished. All emergency services and operational groups were involved in fixing and eliminating the consequences of the attack. As reported by OBOZ.UA, air defense forces destroyed almost a dozen Shahed drones on the outskirts of Kyiv last night, November 18. The enemy air attack resulted in no casualties or damage. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Family & Parenting, Community, Charity & Cause, Seasonal & Current Events By Catherine Eve Published: November 19 2023 Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum will be hosting a free Season of Sparkle holiday event on 12/3 and 12/4 featuring a toy drive, tree lighting, and more. Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale is getting into the holiday spirit as it hosts a free Season of Sparkle holiday event on Sunday, December 3 and Monday, December 4. From 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. on December 3, the Marine Corps Reserve will be on hand to accept donations of new unwrapped toys as part of the annual Toys for Tots toy drive. On Monday, December 4, Sands New York will be throwing a special holiday event from 5 - 9 p.m. A Christmas tree lighting kicks off the evening at 6 p.m. followed by live musical performances at 7 p.m. Food and drinks will also be available at this family-friendly occasion. Admission and parking are free. For more information, visit https://sandsnewyork.com/seasonofsparkle/. Crime By Long Island Published: November 19 2023 A male juvenile, after feigning distress, assaulted two Good Samaritans in Roosevelt, leading to a car crash and his subsequent arrest. The First Squad reports the arrest of a male juvenile for an incident that occurred on Saturday, November 18, 2023 at 1:43 a.m. in Roosevelt. According to Detectives, a male and female were parked at McDonalds, located at 1050 Front Street in Uniondale, and were approached by a male juvenile who claimed he was robbed and requested a ride to the Freeport train station to which the victims agreed. While enroute, the male juvenile began punching both victims in the head and attempted to steal their cell phone. The juvenile began choking the male driver and held a screw driver to his neck while demanding money and his cell phone. The juvenile shifted the car into park which caused the vehicle to lose control and crash into 110 Nassau Road causing extensive damage to the building. The female victim flagged down a motorist and called 911. The juvenile fled the scene on foot westbound on Hudson Avenue followed by the male victim. The juvenile struck the male victim in the head with a metal pipe causing substantial pain and blurred vision. Officers arrived on scene and immediately set up a perimeter with the assistance of the K9 unit. They located the juvenile hiding on the side of a garage at 95 West Fulton Avenue. One Officer was injured during the arrest process. Both victims were transported to a local hospital for treatment of their injuries. The male victim sustained substantial injuries, but is listed in stable condition. The female victim is also in stable condition. The investigation is ongoing. Thank you so much for coming to hang out with me tonight, it means the f***ing world to me. This is so f***ing cool, I think the last time I [performed] here was 2019, but honestly, nothings f***ing changed, you guys are still so f***ing beautiful, Post shouted to the crowd as he hyped everyone up for the rest of his performance. The Miss Universe 2023 pageant held on Saturday at the Adolfo Pineda National Gymnasium in El Salvador did not disappoint, with the 80-plus contestants from around the globe competing in the final ceremony of the beauty contest's 72nd edition. Sheynnis Palacios, Miss Nicaragua, won the whole thing. The top-3 favorites to win Miss Universe 2023 were Puerto Ricos' Karla Guilfu Acevedo, Brazil's Maria Brechane and Cambodia's Sotima John, in that order. Venezuela's Diana Silva, who has the Venezuelan nationality thanks to her mother, landed sixth on the odds to win. The top-3 contestants that actually made it to the final Q&A were Miss Thailand, Miss Nicaragua and Miss Australia. Jacqueline Bracamontes, Mexico's representation in the beauty pageant at the turn of the century, hosted this edition of the gala. Miss Universe 2023 winner: all you need to know Miss Nicaragua beat both the representatives from Australia and Thailand, who also delivered great final speeches, and finished in that order. This is the first time Nicaragua has a Miss Universe winner and it was a long road for the 23-year-old Palacios, who was born on November 24, 1995 in Chinandega. Palacios is a communications major who has a passion for social justice causes and loves volleyball. Her intelligence and charisma were key contributors to becoming Miss Universe 2023. Palacios will wear the crown for a year until the next edition of the world's most popular beauty pageant. Miss Universe 2023 honorable mentions There were two transgender women, the representatives of Portugal and the Netherlands, in this edition of the beauty contest. Among other novelties were two married contestants with children, who took advantage of the modifications to the rules that allow married, pregnant, divorced or with children people to participate. Noelia Voigt, Miss USA, did not make the cut into the top-10, meaning the United States was not be able to repeat as the contest's winner. There was also the representation of Nepal by plus-size model Jane Dipika Garrett, whose presence fueled the controversy surrounding Miss Universe's fresh look amid new ownership. During Volodymyr Zelenskyy's speech in the Canadian Parliament in September of this year, one could not help but notice an attractive, smiling woman who applauded enthusiastically for our president. It was the ethnic Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Canada, Chrystia Freeland. Throughout her career, she has been consistent in her desire to support the homeland of her ancestors both in journalism and politics. ADVERTISIMENT Originally from Ukraine hrystia - Chrystyna Oleksandra - Freeland was born on August 2, 1968, in the town of Peace River in the Canadian province of Alberta, home to one of the country's largest Ukrainian communities. She speaks almost unaccented Ukrainian, along with English, French, Italian, and Russian. Her father Donald Freeland, who was a member of the Liberal Party, worked as a lawyer. Her mother, Halyna Khomiak, an ethnic Ukrainian, was born in Germany in a refugee camp. From there, she and her parents moved to Canada, where Chrystia's grandfather, Mykhailo, was a political immigrant journalist. Halyna, like her husband, received a law degree, worked as a lawyer, and ran for the NDP - New Democratic Party - in the 1988 federal election in Edmonton. Her parents divorced when Chrystyna was 9 years old, but she has a sister with whom they jointly own an apartment overlooking Kyiv's Independence Square. ADVERTISIMENT Code name "Frida" Chrystia attended high school in Edmonton, after which she received a scholarship from Alberta to attend the United World College of the Adriatic in Italy. Freeland received her bachelor's degree in Russian history and literature from Harvard University and her master's degree in Slavic studies from St. Anthony's College. Freeland began her twenty-year career as a journalist in Ukraine, where she came on an exchange program. She worked as a stringer for the Ukrainian versions of such reputable publications as the Financial Times, The Washington Post, and The Economist, and was equally at home writing on both political and economic issues. During this time, she also wrote two books: "Sale of the Century" about the Russian Federation's transition from communism to capitalism and "Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else," which became a bestseller. Freeland's active work attracted the attention of Soviet intelligence. The KGB gave her the codename "Frida." ADVERTISIMENT She was transferred from Kyiv to London, where she became deputy editor, then was British news editor, Moscow bureau chief, Eastern Europe correspondent, weekend edition editor and FT.com editor. From 1999 to 2001, Freeland worked as deputy editor-in-chief at the Canadian edition of the Globe and Mail, after which she held senior positions at the Financial Times USA and Thomson Reuters, and then worked as a columnist for the Globe and Mail. Politics instead of journalism However, despite her success in journalism, Freeland left it to pursue a political career. In July 2013, as a Liberal candidate, she won the election in Toronto's Central District, and after the 2015 election, she became Minister of International Trade. She then headed up the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and in August 2020, she was appointed Canada's Minister of Finance, the first woman in the country to hold this position. ADVERTISIMENT Chrystia Freeland is one of the most promising politicians not only in Canada but also in the world. In September 2022, the media predicted that she would become NATO Secretary General: her name had been discussed for several months as a possible candidate for Jens Stoltenberg's potential successor in international security and defense circles. Commenting on this news, Freeland said that she has enough work in the Canadian government, where she is both Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, so she is not ready for another serious workload. Stoltenberg's tenure as NATO chief has been extended, so Chrystia has time to mentally mature for this appointment, unless, of course, she takes the prime minister's seat in the near future: she is seen as Justin Trudeau's successor. ADVERTISIMENT Balancing career and family Chrystia Freeland does not advertise her personal life, but it is very difficult to hide anything from journalists. Despite the huge workload, she manages to keep a balance between her career and family. She is both a happy wife and a mother. Her husband is a writer and reporter for The New York Times, Graham Bowley, and their wedding was closed to the public and the press, attended only by fellow politicians, close relatives and friends. The couple has three children - daughters Natalia and Halia and son Ivan - and lives in Toronto in their own home, which they bought in 2013. Chrystia is devout and attends church with her family every Sunday. ADVERTISIMENT Supporting Ukraine is a priority One of the priorities of Freeland's political activities in Canada is Ukraine. In 2012, Freeland refuted the myth of Vladimir Putin as a "great strategist" who determines not only Russian but also world politics. In 2014, when Ukraine launched an anti-terrorist operation in Donbas, Freeland said that "Ukrainians fought back against terrorists." It was at this time that the Russian Federation put Chrystia on the sanctions list of politicians banned from entering the country, signed by Putin himself. In 2017, Freeland accused Russia of slander: Russian media reported that her grandfather, who was born in Ukraine, had allegedly been a Nazi collaborator in Poland during World War II. ADVERTISIMENT During her tenure as Minister of International Trade and later as Minister of Foreign Affairs, she defended the interests of not only Canada but also our country at international forums in Ukrainian. "Every democratic politician in the world must support Ukraine today," she said. ADVERTISIMENT Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Freeland, who calls on the world to "learn how to be democratic citizens and build a country from Ukrainians," has done much to ensure that Canada has provided humanitarian aid to our country, which is measured in tens of millions of dollars. Chrystia was also among those politicians who insisted on imposing sanctions against Russia and expanding comprehensive political, diplomatic, financial, military and humanitarian assistance to our country. ADVERTISIMENT In May 2022, Freeland visited the liberated Irpin, where she was struck by the extent of the city's destruction. Chrystia then said that Ukraine can always count on Canada's support. Moreover, she believes that it is not Ukraine that should thank the world for its help, but rather the world should thank our country for its courage and resistance to Russian aggression. "Can you imagine what the world would be like if Ukrainians were not so courageous?" she said, commenting on Zelenskyy's speech. "What would happen if Kyiv was occupied and the president himself became a Russian puppet? What would Poland and the Baltic states be like then?" Toy for Joy is not just about the thrill of receiving toys, but the joy of learning. Its literacy component has grown in popularity over time and remains one of the features that makes this annual Christmas campaign so special and popular amongst children, parents and family members who have seen the results of the drives educational aspect. It has helped make learning fun for thousands of children. This year, the 101st for this annual Western Massachusetts tradition, will be no exception. With each gift package will come not only toys, but an age-appropriate book. Salvation Army social ministries manager Danielle LaTaille says this is another very meaningful way donors can support the campaign, which serves children in need from Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties. The effort seeks to raise $150,000 by Christmas eve to cover the costs of toys and books already purchased in advance. Were intent on providing books for children of all ages we serve in this campaign, LaTaille said. The majority of books are acquired from First Book, a nonprofit organization that was formed to provide learning materials for all children, most notably underserved youths and adolescents. Begun in 1993, First Book connects with nearly 600,000 educators and professionals throughout North America. LaTaille says that still leaves plenty of room for area schools, libraries or individuals to contribute to the Toy for Joy literacy component. The campaign distributes toys, age-appropriate gifts and books to children up to the age of 16. Each child receives a book as part of the campaigns effort to promote family literacy. We work hard to fill the needs of all ages, LaTaille said. Interested book donors can call 413-733-1518, extension 108, or email LaTaille at danielle.lataille@use.salvationarmy.org, to make their contribution become a reality. Toy for Joy began delivering books to each child about 15 years ago, an initiative encouraged by The Republican to promote family literacy, according to Cynthia G. Simison, executive editor emerita who was involved in the planning process. The Republican and the publisher at the time, Larry McDermott, viewed the concept of providing books to young readers as helping to improve literacy and encouraging families to read together, said Simison. Its a concept that is still as valuable as it was back then. Parents reading aloud to young children has been shown to help prepare them for success in school. Books are gifts that will keep on giving to entire families. Over the years, area nonprofits involved in literacy efforts, including the Irene & George Davis Foundation and the Reading Success by 4th Grade initiative it began, along with Link to Libraries, have made donations which helped fund the Salvation Armys purchase of books for Toy for Joy, according to Simison. We are grateful to the Davis foundation and other organizations that have joined us in this book effort, Simison said. Together we can make a difference in childrens lives with the simple gift of a new book. Perhaps never were the book donations more essential than in the days after the peak period of COVID-19, which closed schools in the spring of 2020 and, in many communities, for much of the 2020-2021 school year. In those difficult times, Toy for Joy not only helped bring smiles to childrens faces, but helped keep learning alive. Toy for Joy is a collaborative effort by the Salvation Army with The Republican, Reminders Publishing, El Pueblo Latino and MassLive. It serves children and families in Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties. The coupon published with this story may be used to submit a contribution by mail to The Republican, 1860 Main St., Springfield, MA 01103. Donors can also make online contributions at SalvationArmyma.org/toyforjoydonation. In recognition of Native American Heritage Month in November, MassLive asked readers to identify people who are leaders from the Indigenous community throughout the state, working to make a difference in their own area of interest, be it politics, education, business or the arts. MassLive will publish profiles of these leaders through November. These are people our readers have identified as inspirational, who may be doing good acts for their communities. They are being recognized for their accomplishments, leadership and commitment to inspire change. Akuahah Wheaton. (Scott Foster Photography)Scott Foster Photography Akuahah Wheaton Age: Mature, experienced, wise and a lady who never discloses her age, she said. Community: Boston, Brookline and Central Massachusetts Her story: Wheaton, a member of the Nipmuc Nation, grew up as part of one of the only Nipmuc families living in the Boston area, with the majority located in Central and Western Massachusetts. At the age of 21, she began working with the tribe to advance their standing in Massachusetts, where they have lived for thousands of years. Wheaton explained that while the tribe originally spanned about two-thirds of the land that is now Massachusetts, today it only controls about 3.5 acres in Grafton, the Hassanamesit Reservation. In 1990, Wheaton decided to work on helping her tribe acquire a larger tract of land to establish a permanent reservation where they can gather and preserve their culture. No worthier cause exists than for me to help my tribe ... to preserve and practice our culture and pass it on to our children and beyond the next seven generations, Wheaton said. It is ripe and time to meet this goal. She holds a bachelors degree in history and a secondary education certificate from Clark University and a masters degree in educational administration and a law degree from Boston College. She has worked business and in funding and administration at the local, state and federal government levels. In her words: Do not give up. It will come. Were always open to hear about more inspiring people. If youd like to suggest someone else who should be recognized, please fill out this form. UPDATE: Bomb threat emailed to Hingham synagogue prompts evacuations, search Sunday Several homes and businesses were evacuated Sunday afternoon as police investigated a bomb threat against a synagogue on the South Shore, according to the Hingham Police Department. Police were said to be investigating a bomb threat at 1112 Main St. in Hingham on the afternoon of Nov. 19. This is the same address for Congregation Shaaray Shalom. The synagogue serves as the lighthouse for Reform Judaism on Bostons South Shore, according to their website. All affected houses and businesses have been evacuated, Hingham police said just after 2 p.m. on X, formerly known as Twitter. Authorities did not find any explosives after searching the Jewish temple, police said in an update on X around 3:20 p.m. Route 228 was also closed from Gardner Street to Whiting Street but has since reopened, police added. The incident remains under investigation. A man found shot to death in Manchester, New Hampshire early Saturday morning was identified as Carlos Rodriguez, 42, of Manchester by Attorney General John M. Formella and Manchester Police Chief Allen D. Aldenberg on Sunday. Police were dispatched to the area of 61 Lowell St. shortly before 1:15 a.m. on Nov. 18 for a report of a motor vehicle crash. Less than an hour later, at around 2 a.m., police went back for a report of a shooting, officials said. That was when officers found Rodriguez with apparent gunshot wounds, Formella and Aldenberg said in a joint statement. The 42-year-old was brought to Elliott Hospital in Manchester, where he died hours later, according to the statement. Rodriguezs death is being considered suspicious by authorities. The exact circumstances surrounding the incident remain under investigation, Formella and Aldenberg said. Investigators are continuing to investigate the individuals involved and the sequence of events from the accident leading up to the shooting, but there are no indications of any specific threat to the general public at this time. The investigation into Rodriguezs death is ongoing, including whether the person who shot him acted in self-defense, according to officials. The New Hampshire Attorney Generals Office and the Manchester Police Department are investigating the shooting. Additional information is expected to be released to the public as it becomes available, officials noted. Meanwhile, anyone with information about the incidents is asked to contact the Manchester Police Department at (603) 668-8711 and ask for the Detective Unit. SPRINGFIELD When Isaac Kennen opens an email or answers the phone, odds are a desperate and frightened veteran needs help to avoid eviction. Kennen, who recently became a staff attorney for Community Legal Aid in Springfield, may be their best hope. Kennens job is to intervene before at-risk veterans end up on the street or in shelters. His position is a new role funded by a grant from the Legal Services for Veterans program of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. He advises veterans on legal matters related to housing. The majority of my clients are facing eviction because of behavior related to their mental illness, specifically folks that have PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), he said. They may behave erratically or aggressively and that may make them difficult tenants. The problem is rarely non-payment of rent. The National Library of Medicine says 28 percent of U.S. veterans report having received at least one mental health diagnosis. Veterans facing eviction are pretty scared and suffering from anxiety. If they also have a mental illness, that doesnt make things easier for them, Kennen said. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Develop indicates there are more than 500 homeless veterans in Massachusetts, almost 10% of everyone living without a home. The U.S. veteran population is around 19 million, consisting of those who served in World War II (389,000) , the Korean era (1.2 million), Vietnam-era (6.3 million ), Gulf Warera (7.6 million) and Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (3.5 million), according to the National Library of Medicine. Critical need The demand for Kennens services is critical and ongoing. He typically has more than a dozen cases pending. I cannot help all the veterans who need it. Theres pretty high demand for my services, he said. According to his staff bio, Kennen served with the Air Force for nearly two decades, much of that time as a military attorney, with multiple overseas deployments including to Afghanistan, Somalia and Qatar. Kennen said he often argues in court that an eviction order should be delayed until the veteran can find and arrange to pay for another place to live. Thats the whole goal of fighting homelessness, Kennen said. Sometimes the best way to avoid it is to give people time and room to breathe. One of the benefits I bring to the table is giving other agencies additional time to help veterans resolve their issues. Agencies are overworked, understaffed and underfunded. Keenans work through Community Legal Aid is linked to a network of resources that help veterans with a range of issues, including housing, healthcare and employment. A delay in the eviction process gives Veterans Inc. in Springfield time to find housing for veterans along with employment opportunities or government grants to ensure veterans keep up with their rent payments. Agencies also connect veterans to mental health services a key part of the plan. Landlords cant just say leave and thats it. They have to follow the law. My organization is trying to navigate vouchers, identify resources and fill out forms so they can move on to their next apartment, said Bill St. Denis, a Veterans Inc. caseworker. St. Denis said Veterans Inc. is able to help any veteran who needs the agencys assistance. Thats not true for Kennen, who struggles with his caseload. Since he cant help everyone, he triages calls identifying veterans who can handle their cases without the benefit of counsel. Kennen assesses whether they are well-spoken enough to represent themselves. If they are, he may help them fill out forms, give them advice and send them to the judge. Its super hard to make that decision. Ive only been doing this for three months, so I dont feel completely worn down yet, he said. When trying to decide whether to take a case, Kennen said he asks himself questions. Do I feel they can represent themselves and fare pretty well, or are they going to have a hard time presenting their case cogently? Are they at imminent risk of being evicted? Diminishing help Community Legal Aid used to have a lawyer in housing court on Tuesdays and Thursdays to look over a veterans paperwork and offer last-minute advice. The demand is so strong, and resources so stretched, that free help is down to just Thursdays. Some of the bigger law firms in Springfield help veterans pro bono, but this assistance is limited. Even with incomes hovering near the poverty level, veterans could technically afford to pay for an attorney. When landlords want to evict a disorderly veteran, its not always an easy win for them. Housing is a very difficult area of law. Youre usually dealing with cases that are not clean cut where you do have problematic behavior by a tenant, Kennen said. But you also have a landlord, oftentimes, that has chosen to serve a population of veterans they know are going to have mental health issues and they are receiving federal funding to offer them housing. Grant funding for Kennens position is for one year and limits him to working with veterans from Hampden and Hampshire counties. Hes not sure if funding will be renewed. He believes he can show the program is worthwhile, but continuation is up to Congress and its ability to fund the government. If the federal government shuts down because Congress cant agree on a spending plan, legal aid is one of the programs that would go dark, leaving veterans on their own. Other help exists. Cities and towns in Massachusetts employ Veterans service officers. They serve as one-stop resources, directing veterans to available help. I just needed somebody to sit with me and listen for five gosh-darn minutes, Kennen said of his own return from military deployment. Instead of saying, Fill out this online application, go to this website or call this 800 number. It was so important just to have somebody explain this stuff to me because it is so overwhelming when you come home, and you have a thousand resources thrown at you with no context. For more information, contact Veterans Inc. at www.VeteransInc.org or call 800-482-2565 for live assistance 24/7. Contact Community Legal Aid at www.CommunityLegal.org or call 855-252-5342. A 25-year-old Massachusetts man has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the unsolved death of a 6-week-old infant in 2021, Cape & Islands District Attorney Robert J. Galibois said Sunday. Randy Patterson-Gerber, formally of Centerville, was indicted by a Grand Jury in Barnstable District Court for his role relating to the death of the child, Galibois said on Nov. 19. Barnstable police learned about an unresponsive 6-week-old infant at around 10:25 a.m. on or about September 7, 2021. The baby was found unresponsive, discolored and cool to the touch, Galibois said. First responders performed CPR while the baby was brought to Cape Cod Hospital. The infant was later airlifted to a Boston-area hospital where they died, according to the district attorney. Due to the nature of these charges the Cape & Islands District Attorneys Office will make no further comment on the charges against Randy Patterson-Gerber, at this time, Galibois added. Patterson-Gerber will be arraigned in Barnstable Superior Court Monday, Galibois said. The investigation is being conducted by The Unsolved Homicide Unit of the Cape & Islands District Attorneys Office, the Barnstable Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Cape and Islands District Attorneys Office. Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios won the Miss Universe competition late Saturday night in El Salvador, becoming the first from her country to earn the crown. Palacios is a 23-year-old communicologist, who said she wants to work to promote mental health after suffering debilitating bouts of anxiety herself. Miss Thailand, Anntonia Porsild, was first runner-up and Miss Australia, Moraya Wilson, the second runner-up. Eighty-four women competed for the crown in the 72nd edition of the competition that took place on Nov. 18. Palacios appeared to secure the win when she confidently answered the question of which womans shoes would she like to spend a year. She responded by saying Mary Wollstonecraft, the 18th-century English writer, philosopher and advocate of womens rights. Wollstonecraft is considered one of the forerunners of feminism. Palacios also said she wants to work to close the salary gap between the genders so that women can work in any area. Miss Universe was last held in El Salvador in 1975. This years event was another opportunity for President Nayib Bukele to tout changes made under his administration, especially greatly improving the countrys safety. El Salvador has changed for good and we have shown it again, Bukele said Saturday night. Miss Universe has given us the opportunity to show the world what we are capable of. Thank you for choosing to be part of El Salvadors rebirth. Bukele, who is running for reelection despite constitutional term limits, is widely popular for his crackdown on the countrys gangs. However, he has faced international criticism for eroding checks and balances on his power and not respecting human rights. More than 72,000 people have been arrested without due process since a state of emergency was declared in March 2022 in response to a surge in gang violence. The special powers it granted Bukele remain in place. Authorities are investigating a swatting incident that occurred at a place of worship in Needham on Sunday. Police said they got a call reporting a threat at Temple Beth Shalom, located at 670 Highland Ave., on Nov. 19. We immediately contacted our state and federal partners, Needham police wrote on Facebook. Out of an abundance of caution, the Needham Fire Department as well as the Massachusetts State Police Bomb Squad responded to the scene. Police later said the call was believed to be a hoax, and the building was cleared. The department added they will have an increased police presence at all of places of worship for the foreseeable future. The origin of the phone call remains under investigation. SPRINGFIELD One resident was injured and 18 people were displaced in two back-to-back fires on adjacent streets in the Forest Park neighborhood Sunday morning. The fires were reported just before 1 a.m. on 65 Edgeland St. and at about 8:50 a.m. at a multi-family apartment building on 24 Coomes St. One tenant from Coomes Street was brought to the hospital with injuries that are considered minor. No one was injured in the Edgeland Street fire, said Fire Department Capt. Drew Piemonte. Both buildings were deemed uninhabitable after the fires. A total of 13 people were displaced from the four-story apartment building on Coomes Street while five were displaced in the Edgeland Street fire, he said. The Springfield Arson And Bomb Squad is investigating the cause of both fires. It is believed to be a coincidence that they occurred on the same day on neighboring streets, Piemonte said. When the first fire crew arrived on Edgeland Street, there was heavy fire coming from the front of the house and residents had already evacuated. Firefighters almost immediately struck a second alarm to call for additional crews, mainly to prevent the flames from spreading to neighboring homes that are close together, Piemonte said. That house is believed to be a total loss, he said. Less than eight hours later the fire was reported at Coomes Street, he said. The first firefighters on the scene saw a large volume of fire coming from the window on the third floor, Piemonte said. The resident who was injured was a tenant in apartment No. 6, where the fire started, he said. Firefighters were mostly able to prevent the flames from spreading to other apartments but there is heavy water damage in the units below and smoke damage throughout the building, he said. The citys building inspector condemned the building for now until repairs can be made, he said. A suspect in Tennessee died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot while on the run early Sunday after he reportedly killed four people and seriously injured a fifth during a deadly outbreak of domestic violence Saturday night, police said. Officers found Mavis Christian Jr., 52, in his car during a manhunt following the shootings at three locations in Memphis that left three women and a teenage girl dead and critically wounded another teen girl. Memphis Police Department officers responded to a report of a shooting at 9:22 p.m. on the 100 Block of Howard Drive on Nov. 18. Police found a woman with an apparent gunshot wound who was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators determined there were two other connected fatal shootings. At Field Lark Drive, a woman and a 13-year-old girl were killed and a 15-year-old girl was critically wounded. Another woman was found fatally shot on Warrington Road, Memphis Police Officer Christopher Williams said. Police believed Christian was responsible for all three shootings and began a search involving local, state and federal law enforcement agencies. Each of the shootings was believed to be a domestic violence situation, the police said. Ajex Logistics Services, a Middle East specialist in express logistics and industrial solutions, has sealed a partnership deal with Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) that will see the group operate expanded logistics services from the burgeoning industrial epicenter of Dammam. Marking yet another significant step in Ajex's growth since its launch in 2021, the agreement will see the Saudi-headquartered logistics firm operate warehousing facilities over a 6,000-sq-m area at Modon. The units will be utilised for the warehousing of various goods, including dangerous goods, the storage of food and beverage, as well as more general items. The partnership with Modon enhances Ajex's logistics capabilities in Dammam, a core center for the kingdoms oil, gas, and industrial sectors, and a fast-growing hub for non-oil related manufacturing, including F&B. Moreover, Modons strategic location, 55km from King Fahd International Airport, 32km from Dammam Railway Station, and 40 km from King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam, combined with Ajexs specialised capabilities, will support the kingdoms broader vision of fostering industrial growth and innovation. "Our latest warehousing facilities, thanks to our agreement with Modon, will bolster our capabilities in managing complex logistics challenges safely and efficiently," remarked Ali Al Ribi, Ajexs Warehouse Director. "Thanks to this new strategic partnership, Ajex will be best placed to support the growth of Saudi Arabias industrial and non-oil related sectors, in line with the economic growth and development of the Kingdom, which is core to our efforts at Ajex," he added. This strategic collaboration with Modon not only cements Ajex's commitment to logistical excellence but also opens new avenues for innovation and efficiency in supply chain management. As Ajex continues to expand its footprint, it remains dedicated to setting new benchmarks in the logistics industry, fostering a future where seamless and safe logistics solutions drive industrial growth and prosperity.-TradeArabia News Service Russia is talking about Russian President Vladimir Putin's desire to take part in the G20 summit organized by India next week. It will be held in a virtual format. ADVERTISIMENT The reason for the Russian leader's desire to join the summit, Russian officials said, is his intention to "engage with Western leaders." This was stated in the propaganda program "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin" on the Russia-1 TV channel, as reported by BILD. "Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to participate in the virtual G20 summit organized by India next week. This was announced by the host of the program 'Moscow. Kremlin. Putin on Russia-1 TV channel, propagandist Pavel Zarubin. He noted that Vladimir Putin will thus be able to engage with Western leaders for the first time in a long time," the statement said. It was known in advance that the next summit would be held in a virtual format. However, before this statement by the Kremlin propagandist, it was unclear who would represent Russia at the summit. ADVERTISIMENT In September, at the G20 summit in New Delhi, the Russian delegation was led by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. BILD also reports that Putin, after a long absence from foreign travel, is going to leave Russia again. Next week, he will reportedly travel to Minsk to participate in an "event along the CSTO line." After that, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon will arrive in Moscow to meet with the Russian leader. Earlier, Putin made a cynical statement about the war with Ukraine. Speaking at a cultural forum in St. Petersburg, he said that he could not have imagined that he would have to start a full-scale war in Ukraine. "If they had told me then (before 2014 - Ed.), I would have asked: 'Are you crazy? Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes! African countries need to show stronger political will to advance industrialisation, including the adoption of new policies to promote improved productivity and harness the potential of a growing youth population, delegates attending the 2023 African Economic Conference heard. The three-day conference opened in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, on Wednesday under the theme Imperatives for Sustainable Industrial Development in Africa . Organised by the African Development Bank, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the United Nations Development Programme, this years conference, the 18th edition, brought together experts, the private sector, researchers, and young people to discuss the challenges and prospects of industrialisation in Africa. In a welcome address, Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde underscored the importance of industrialisation as an essential driver of inclusive economic growth. The need to change the narrative of Africas industrialisation for inclusive and sustainable industrial development has become more imperative; African countries need to build a robust industrial sector that can withstand external shocks, she told participants. President Sahle-Work stressed that industrial policies should focus on supporting domestic industrial development and promoting improved productivity and competitiveness, underscoring that COVID-19 had taught hard lessons about the vulnerability of global production and value chains to various shocks. Africa is home to some of the worlds fastest-growing economies with an attractive human capital base, dominated by a young population base compared to the aging populations of other regions, and is therefore seen as the future frontier labour market. Despite this, the pace of industrialisation and economic transformation in Africa remains slow compared to other regions. United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Claver Gatete, called on the conference to explore the policies and institutional capacities needed for sustainable industrialisation, inclusive development, and structural transformation. This will help us rebuild and emerge stronger from the crises, he said, adding that implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement is also crucial. Gatete affirmed the ECAs commitment to supporting countries and regional economic communities to develop national and regional implementation strategies to help them integrate the AfCFTA agreement into their national priorities and identify areas of competitive advantage. In a presentation, African Development Banks Chief Economist and Vice President Kevin Urama urged African countries to think differently and implement transformative policies that accelerate indigenous manufacturing capacity and encourage consumption of locally made products. Africans need to think African, produce African, and consume African to encourage indigenous industrial development in Africa, he said. Urama proposed several approaches to accelerate industrialisation and structural transformation in Africa. These include implementing a strategic industrial policy that encourages local production and consumption, as well as domestic and regional value chain development. Policies such as local content and franchising could deliver low-hanging fruits, Urama said. He added that Africa also has the natural resources needed to lead the electric vehicle technology revolution. He highlighted the African Development Bank Groups role, in collaboration with partners, in supporting Africas industrialisation and economic transformation process through its High 5 priority Industrialise Africa (https://apo-opa.co/46kekZt). Director of the Regional Service Centre at the United Nations Development Programmes Regional Office for Africa, Matthias Naab, urged the promotion of mutually beneficial public-private partnerships committed to manufacturing in Africa. He also welcomed the growing recognition of youth in development policies. The inclusion of young African researchers in this conference is a testament to our commitment to harnessing their intellectual power; youth are the industrialists of today and tomorrow, and we want to ensure that they lead in identifying pathways forward, he said. In a virtual address, Ms Fatou Haidara, Deputy Director-General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), cited Africas young population, vibrant small and medium enterprises, renewable energy potential and abundant natural resources as the potential for the continents success. Local manufacturing capacity, inclusive access to global financial markets, sustainable value chains and climate action are necessary prerequisites for a prosperous Africa, Haidara said, underlining UNIDOs commitment to support countries to develop capacity, analysis, and evidence-based policy advice. Visionary women leaders from across the Commonwealth came together in London yesterday to commit to safeguarding women and girls from domestic and sexual violence. Under this commitment, women leaders from different professions will coordinate actions for individuals, households and communities to protect women and girls, including in hard-to-reach areas across the 56 Commonwealth countries. This collective effort will contribute to the gender equality mandates from the 2023 Commonwealth Womens Affairs Ministers Meeting and the 2022 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. The event, convened by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, The Rt Hon Patricia Scotland KC, on 15 November, was attended by Her Majesty The Queen and more than a hundred representatives from government, business, academic and civil society. Together, we can Opening the event, the Commonwealth Secretary-General called on women leaders to work together to help eradicate the silent pandemic of domestic and sexual violence. She said: The widespread prevalence of domestic and sexual abuse, which affects one in three women in their lifetimes, and the pernicious impact on survivors, families, communities and economies are a constant reminder that action is urgently required. For far too long and far too often, we are told it is impossible to end this But, today, we reject that notion and say NO MORE because together, we can. We have invited you, the Secretary-General continued, to examine what we can do together and establish a new commitment, adding: So that we may finally deliver a world in which no woman fears the footsteps behind her, and where no child cowers in the shadows of abuse. Speakers, representing governments, the private sector and civil society organisations, examined three core areas in panel discussions: the role of advocacy; the impact of domestic violence on the mental health of women and children; and the support for the survivors and their families. Commonwealth first ladies Fatima Maada Bio of Sierra Leone, Fatoumatta Bah-Barrow of The Gambia, and Maryam Mwinyi of Zanzibar, discussed alarming statistics which laid bare the plight of the millions of women and girls who are abused, isolated and even killed in their homes. Hands off our girls The statistics are horrible, the First Lady of Sierra Leone said, adding: They constantly remind us of the mammoth task ahead. But together, we can, and we must end this violence. Underscoring the power of advocacy, she spoke about her Hands Off Our Girls campaign, which pushes for targeted measures for the protection of women and girls in Sierra Leone. As a result of her advocacy, the minimum sentencing for rape in Sierra Leone has been increased from four months to 15 years. During the discussions, speakers outlined specific measures, such as early childhood education to dismantle harmful cultural norms, one-stop centres to offer non-judgemental health, legal and counselling support, campaigns to engage men, and legislation to enshrine equality under the law to help bring an end to the violence. The 2023 Commonwealth Young Person of the Year, Maya Kirti Nanan, drew attention to the increased vulnerability of people with disabilities to violence, urging governments to recognise and address their unique safeguarding needs. Umutoni Gatsinzi Nadine, Chief Gender Monitor at Rwandas Gender Monitoring Office, shared her countrys successful interventions, including one-stop centres offering free services and mobile clinics reaching remote communities. Through these efforts, she said, Rwanda has increased the conviction rate for violence against women and girls from about 13 per cent to 70 per cent. Her Majesty The Queen Later in the day, Her Majesty The Queen joined to receive a report on the events outcomes from the Commonwealth Secretary-General, speakers and discussion moderators. Closing the event, the Secretary-General thanked The Queen for her support and asked attendees to commit at least one action to improve the well-being of women and girls. Other speakers at the event included: Amina Mohammed, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General; Saima Wazed, Chairperson of Shuchona Foundation and Advisor to the World Health Organization (WHO) on Mental Health and Autism; Jane Randel, Chair of the NO MORE Foundation; Jude Kelly CBE, Founder and Chair, WOW Foundation; Sarah Brown, Chair of Theirworld charity and Executive Chair of Global Business Coalition for Education; and representatives from the WHO and global health organisation, PATH. In her remarks, Jane Randel informed attendees about the Commonwealth Says NO MORE campaign, adding that it offers easy-to-use tools to individuals, communities and governments to bring down cases of domestic and sexual violence. Expanding on Janes insights, video messages from the NO MORE Foundations chapters in Cameroon and Cyprus showcased successful interventions to affect positive change at the grassroots level, including through the engagement with the private sector. The Competition Commission is mandated to enforce competition laws in Mauritius by regulating and promoting competition in markets. Competition matters within and across national borders as countries. For this reason, competition authorities are called upon to collaborate, region-wise as well as globally, with one another in different fields namely enforcement, advocacy, capacity building, research, development of best practices, among others. The Competition Commission has always been actively involved at continental and international levels across these fields in view of advancing the competition cause. Such collaborations have allowed the Competition Commission to expand its network, interact with well-established and experienced peers, and benefit from a rich learning curve. The Competition Commission has laid much emphasis in recent years on strengthening its interactions across continental and international fora. At the continental level, the Competition Commission is a member of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and Southern African Development Community (SADC) regional economic groupings and accordingly partakes in their competition works and endeavours. The Competition Commission is also a member of the African Competition Forum (ACF), a network of African competition authorities, working towards the adoption of competition laws and best practices, building capacity for African competition agencies and advocating upon the benefits of competition to stakeholders. The Competition Commission is also an active contributor in negotiations occurring at the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) level for creating a single, integrated market for the continent. The Competition Commission spares no efforts in playing its part, alongside peers in the continent, for a more competitive Africa. The Competition Commissions cross-border contributions are equally mirrored on the international front through its engagement in the works of the International Competition Network (ICN), a specialised network of competition agencies and NGOs. The Competition Commission is pleased to announce that it has been privileged with two back-to-back and distinct nominations in a leadership role at the levels of the ACF and ICN. The Competition Commission has been elected as chair of the ACF Steering Committee and Co-Chair of the ICNs Merger Working Group. Nomination at continental level Chair of ACF The Competition Commission took the helm of the ACF Steering Committee during elections held at the ACF Biennial Conference in The Gambia on 31 October and 1 November 2023. As of note, the Competition Commission has succeeded the Competition Commission of South Africa in the position of ACF Chair. Launched in Kenya in 2011, the ACF is a network of African national and multinational competition authorities currently regrouping 36 members (31 national competition authorities and 5 regional competition agencies). The ACFs mission is to promote the adoption of competition principles in the implementation of national and regional economic policies of African countries, with the aim of reducing poverty and enhancing inclusive economic growth, development, and consumer welfare by fostering competition in markets. The ACF meets its objectives by encouraging and assisting African countries not having a competition law to adopt one; helping to build the capacity of existing and future African competition agencies; and advocating the benefits of implementing competition laws among governments, the public, and relevant stakeholders. Over the past years, the ACF has conducted several collaborative research with member agencies on the state of competition from the national and regional perspectives. It has published study reports highlighting the competition issues and potential recommendations on various sectors, including construction, airline, pharmaceutical and telecommunications. The ACF also been active in building capacity of its members over the years by organising different trainings on merger assessment, anti-cartel enforcement and competition investigation techniques. Nomination at International level Co-chair of ICN Merger Working Group The Competition Commission has been selected to co-chair the ICNs Merger Working Group. This selection has been made during the ICN Annual Conference which was held between 18 and 20 October 2023. In the past, the Competition Commission has had the opportunity to co-chair the ICNs Advocacy Working Group. The ICN is a specialized network of 141 competition authorities from 129 jurisdictions, enriched by the participation of non-governmental advisors (NGAs representatives from business, consumer groups, academics, the legal and economic professions, and international organizations). The ICN was established in October 2001 by officials of 15 competition agencies from around the world. The ICN is guided by a Steering Group whose works take place primarily in the following five substantive working groups advocacy, agency effectiveness, cartel, merger, and unilateral conduct. The ICNs mission is to advocate the adoption of superior standards and procedures in competition policy around the world, formulate proposals for procedural and substantive convergence, and seek to facilitate effective international cooperation to the benefit of member agencies, consumers and economies worldwide. Welcoming both nominations, Mr Deshmuk Kowlessur, the Executive Director of the Competition Commission, states Our nominations attest to the value gained by our deliverables through our enforcement and advocacy record nationally as well as and through our engagements in competition endeavours on the continent and in the international community. The ACF and ICN are both prestigious networks of competition agencies whose works bring much value and guidance to agencies developed and developing alike across the globe. The Competition Commission has had the honour of holding the position of ACF Steering Committee vice-Chair since 2014. Much ground has been covered over the past years be it on capacity building front or ACF research work. As the new ACF Chair and with the able collaboration of my peers, I am committed towards ensuring that the ACF continues to deliver on its mission for all member-agencies and Africa. The Competition Commission is further honoured to be taking up its role as ICN Co-chair alongside leading competition authorities such as the European Commission, the Norwegian Competition Authority and the Competition Bureau Canada. We are very keen to contribute to the development of competition policy at the level of the international community of competition authorities, and we will intensify collaboration with international competition peers notably regarding the promotion of the adoption of best practices in the design and operation of merger review regimes. These distinguished nominations represent an interesting opportunity for both the Competition Commission and the country to become more visible and make our voices heard in the region and on the international scene. As part of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Bring Kids Back UA program, we managed to return Bohdan Yermokhin, a resident of Mariupol who was forcibly taken to Moscow Oblast by Russian troops, to Ukraine. The young Ukrainian celebrated his 18th birthday on his native land, which is perhaps the best gift for all those who have been held hostage by Russia. ADVERTISIMENT The good news was announced by the head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak. According to him, Bohdan had repeatedly asked the Ukrainian guarantor for help in returning to Ukraine, and finally it became possible. "We have been in constant communication with Bohdan and he is already in Ukraine with his sister. The work of the Office's team and the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets has been coordinated," the statement said. Yermak emphasized that the return operation was made possible with the participation of third parties. He thanked the government of Qatar for Bohdan's return, which participated in negotiations with Moscow and the international organization UNICEF. ADVERTISIMENT As reported by OBOZ.UA, more than 2,300 Ukrainians, most of whom are military personnel, are still in Russian captivity. In total, 4337 Ukrainian citizens have been deprived of their liberty. And through the national project "I Want to Live," more than 250 Russian occupants have already surrendered to Ukrainian captivity voluntarily. Thus, they were able to save their lives. by Ray Schultz , November 19, 2023 Simbarashe Cha, who has been contributing to the New York Times since 2020, has joined the staff full-time as a photographer and visual columnist, covering style and fashion. Cha will provide material for the Styles column. At Styles, we are always trying to decode the messages of dress and help readers identify whats noteworthy and forward-thinking, says Stella Bugbee, editor of Styles. Simbarashe is able to both focus our gaze on whats interesting and then explain it. Cha is an Emmy-winning filmmaker and photographer who has created photographic content for such publications as Harpers Bazaar, Architectural Digest and The Atlantic, and for clients like Ralph Lauren, Veuve Clicquot and Saks Fifth Avenue. Cha started his run at the Times by contributing to the Metro section, then wrote about street style in the Fashion Week Diaries and Style Outside columns. advertisement advertisement In a related development, Glossy reports that the Times is partnering with Google for an enhanced Style Outside column, serving video created with the new Google Pixel 8, to which Cha will contribute. Glossy also writes that the Times content division T Brand Studio is launching a campaign with Google on Nov. 21, titled Through Their Lens. Foreign volunteers continue to join the ranks of the Ukrainian army, but some of them are facing an "unexpectedly tough" course of the war. Therefore, some soldiers are breaking their contracts after seeing what they have seen. ADVERTISIMENT This is stated in a CNN report. Thus, despite the fact that more and more volunteers are joining the International Legion, Ukraine lacks military personnel, sometimes critically. Thus, the authorities openly admit that avoidance of military service and non-compliance with mobilization rules is currently a problem in Ukraine. Lieutenant Dmytro Kostyuk told the publication that their unit was short of men, and so "the platoon began to be replenished with foreign fighters, 12 people in total." But, according to him, many foreigners do not understand the specifics of fighting in Ukraine, often romanticizing the war. However, on the front line, they face a harsh reality, and not everyone is able to withstand it. "For some it was the romance of war, for others it was a professional activity. For many, it is just a nice line in their resume. As a rule, they do not realize what they are getting into. Many people imagine our war as a firefight with the enemy, but they don't realize how much artillery there is, and that you are under fire all day, every day, and may not see the enemy at all," he emphasized. ADVERTISIMENT Kostyuk also noted that foreign volunteers can easily terminate their contracts, unlike the Ukrainian military. "It happened to me - almost half of the people saw everything and said: "No, no, this is too much. This is not the war we signed up for," said the lieutenant. Earlier, Venislavsky said whether it is possible to demobilize soldiers who have been fighting since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. He noted that in the near future Ukraine is unlikely to make a decision on the demobilization of soldiers, in particular, it is due to the risks posed to Ukraine by the Russian Federation. As reported by OBOZ.UA, in the future it is planned to launch "smart mobilization", which will allow those liable for military service in Ukraine to enter their data into an electronic cabinet, as well as choose the desired specialty in the army. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes! KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) At least 30 premature babies were evacuated from Gaza's main hospital on Sunday and will be transferred to Egypt, Palestinian health officials said, as scores of other critically wounded patients remained stranded there days after Israeli forces entered the compound. The fate of the newborns at Shifa Hospital had captured global attention after the release of images showing doctors trying to keep them warm. A power blackout had shut down incubators and other equipment, and food, water and medical supplies ran out as Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside the hospital. A World Health Organization team that visited the hospital on Saturday said 291 patients were still there, including 32 babies in extremely critical condition, trauma patients with severely infected wounds, and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. Medhat Abbas, a spokesman for the ministry, confirmed the evacuation of 30 babies. The Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service said it evacuated 31 babies in coordination with U.N. bodies. It said they would be transferred to a hospital run by the United Arab Emirates in the Egyptian border city of Rafah. There was no immediate comment from the WHO, and it was not clear if all the babies had been evacuated. Underscoring the perils of movement inside the coastal enclave, Doctors Without Borders said a convoy of clearly marked vehicles carrying staff and their families was fired upon in Gaza City on Saturday. A relative of a staff member was killed and another person was wounded, the aid group said. 'TERRIFIED PATIENTS' About 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left Shifa Hospital on Saturday morning, the WHO said. It said 25 medical staff remained, along with the patients. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa, part of its wider accusation that the fighters use civilians as cover. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end Hamas' rule in Gaza following the militant group's wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago, which killed over 1,200 people and triggered the war. Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations, and critics have held up the hospital as a symbol of what they say is Israel's reckless endangerment of civilians. Thousands have been killed in Israeli strikes, and there are severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel in the besieged territory. Israeli troops who have been based at the hospital and searching its grounds for days say they have found guns and other weapons, and showed reporters the entrance to a tunnel shaft. The Associated Press couldn't independently verify Israel's findings. HEAVY FIGHTING IN THE NORTH Heavy clashes were reported in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza overnight into Sunday. There was the constant sound of gunfire and tank shelling, Yassin Sharif, who is sheltering in a U.N.-run hospital in the camp, said by phone. It was another night of horror. Dozens of people were killed in what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike on a crowded U.N. shelter in the Jabaliya camp the day before, according to witnesses. AP photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. HOSTAGES FOR AID Around 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians killed during Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, in which the group dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza and shattered Israel's sense of security. The military says 52 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two hostages were found near Shifa in an area where there had been heavy fighting. Israel, the United States and the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating over a hostage release for weeks. On Saturday, a senior White House official suggested it would need to be completed before the entry of large amounts of desperately needed aid. "A release of a large number of hostages would result in a significant pause in fighting and a massive surge of humanitarian relief," Brett McGurk, the White Houses National Security Council coordinator for the Middle East, said at a conference in Bahrain. Qatars prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said Sunday he was confident a deal would soon be reached, telling reporters that the the sticking points, honestly, at this stage are more practical, logistical. WIND, RAIN HITS TENT CAMPS More than two-thirds of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, is struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of thousands of people sheltering in and around schools and other facilities. Their misery has worsened in recent days with the arrival of winter, as cold winds and driving rain buffet tent camps. Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days, and to keep internet and telephone systems running. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gaza's sole power plant and most water treatment systems to shut down, leaving most residents without electricity or running water. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Saturday that Israel's forces were expanding operations in Gaza City. With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate, he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza in the coming days." His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to southern Gaza, where Israel has told Palestinian civilians to seek refuge. Israel has repeatedly struck what it says are militant targets across the south, often killing civilians. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Egypt has refused to accept any influx of Palestinian refugees, in part because of fears that Israel would not allow them to return. GRAND RAPIDS, MI The latest roundabout project in Grand Rapids now has a clear end date. For motorists, the completion time is good news because the area will be open for traffic before Christmas. A traffic signal that once sat at the intersection where Coldbrook Street and Monroe and Ottawa avenues meet was taken out of commission over the summer to reconfigure the area into a one-lane roundabout. RELATED: Roundabout coming to Grand Rapids-area shopping center will be aesthetic improvement Theres been some minor delays mainly due to underground work on the $5.4 million project. At one point, it wasnt clear if the roundabout would be finished before the new year, Grand Rapids City Engineer Tim Burkman told MLive/The Grand Rapids Press after the Nov. 16 progress meeting. However, the weather has been cooperative so far this month, which has allowed workers to get back on pace. Theyre out there finishing curb work now, Burkman said. Once the curb work is done, crews will shift their attention to paving the new infrastructure, which is expected to carry into Monday, Nov. 20. From there, all that leaves is some minor sidewalk work, installing light poles in the area and completing pavement markings. Were anticipating opening the area up to traffic during the second week in December, Burkman said. In conjunction with the roundabout project, crews also completed the decommissioning of the Coldbrook Pumping Station. JACKSON, MI -- The Jackson County Animal Shelter, 3770 Spring Arbor Road, has many pets available for adoption. Here are two of them. Polar Bear is a 1-year-old Siberian Husky mix who came in as a stray. He turns heads wherever he goes with his beautiful white coat and stunning light blue eyes. Bear is a young dog, full of fun and energy. He absolutely explodes with joy when he is loved on. He is still learning to walk on a leash and learning basic commands, but he is a smart guy and treat motivated. This active, energetic pup is looking for his jogging or walking partner. Binx is a solid black, 2-year-old male domestic shorthair cat who was surrendered by his owner who was experiencing housing issues. Binx gets along well with the other cats in his room. He is an easy-going guy who loves attention. His notable feature is his white whiskers which stand out against his silky black coat. Dog adoptions require an application, online. A meet-and-greet with a dog also is mandatory. A cat room walk-through is available to test reaction. The dog adoption fee is $150 for medium and large dogs and $250 for puppies and small dogs, which includes vaccinations, microchip and sterilization. Cat adoption fees are $60 for one cat, $80 for two, which includes applicable tests, vaccinations and spay/neutering. Visiting the shelter is always best, but other adoption resources include online applications at https://www.co.jackson.mi.us/2302/Our-Adoptable-Animals, faxing 517-780-4750 or emailing animalshelter@mijackson.org. The shelters current hours are 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. More information is available on the shelters Facebook page. See more pets available for adoption at Petango.com. Want more Jackson-area news? Bookmark the local Jackson news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Jackson daily newsletter. More Jackson pets of the week: Pets of the week: Gaia is a gentle giant. Rosa has beautiful eyes Pets of the week: Bella would like an active owner. Miss Priss is easy going Pets of the week: Momma Mia will brighten you day. Roger Dodger is very extroverted Pets of the week: Clawsome is awesome. Tank is happy to see you Pets of the week: Brandy wants to be a lap dog. Casey & Boomer are as adorable as you can get SAULT STE. MARIE, MI The Canadian government has given nearly $4 million to researchers studying the behavior and impacts of oil spilled in the Great Lakes. Lake Superior State University (LSSU) in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., announced the receipt of $3.87 million from Canada this week, which will fund collaborative research with Algoma University across the international border in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The universities are lead partners in the new International Consortium on Oil Research for Our Waters of the North (ICOR-OWN), which operates out of LSSUs expanding Center for Freshwater Research and Education campus along the St. Marys River in Sault Ste. Marie. The research center houses the U.S. Coast Guards new Great Lakes Oil Spill Center of Expertise, which opened in 2022 and is focused on oil spill preparedness and response. The money comes from a $30.3 million Canadian federal Oceans Protections Plan. Researchers are investigating the behavior and dispersal of heavy diluted bitumen, or dilbit, oil in freshwater, the impact of bioremediation in cold climates and coastal wetlands, and the use of drones and long-rang underwater autonomous vehicles in spill detection and monitoring. Partners in the research include The University of Windsor, University of Michigan, Memorial University, USGS, NOAA, the U.S. Coast Guard and the private firm Limnotech. Researchers are aided by the LSSU freshwater centers unique location at an international border and the nexus of the upper Great Lakes, said center director Ashley Moerke. The research site is located between the Saint Marys Falls Hydropower Plant and a $31 million deep-water port under development to provide dockage for freighters and cruise ships. The LSSU freshwater research center was open in Sault Ste. Marie for less than a year when researchers aided the Coast Guard in its 2022 response to a 5,300 gallon oil spill in the St. Marys River from a steel mill on the Canadian side. Moerke said the new research consortiums goal is to build scientific capacity and training, ensuring that the best available science is used to understand, minimize, and respond to oil spills in cold, freshwater environments. Related stories: St Marys River oil not recoverable Oil spill highlights Line 5 risk, say critics Freshwater center preps for summer visitors Historic hydro plant critical for states energy transition New deep-water port coming to Soo waterfront U.S. House seeks security study of Soo Locks Rapper Medikal has taken a stand against social media fashion critics who habitually scrutinize and criticize the outfits worn by celebrities, asserting that individuals should have the freedom to wear what they like without unnecessary scrutiny. In an interview with Bryt TV, Medikal shared his frustration with the constant criticism of artists' fashion choices and recounted an incident where a fan questioned his decision to repeatedly wear a particular shoe. "I think people just like to criticize artists and even their friends. But I dont see why what I am wearing should be your problem. I have a black Nike Air Force thWhat I wear shouldn't be your business; I can choose to wear it a 100 times - Medikal to criticsat my manager bought for me. I have worn it more than 50 times, but people might think I should be changing it because I am an artist. So if I feel like wearing it, I can do so 100 times," Medikal asserted. The artist noted that individuals should not be pressured to constantly change their outfits to meet societal expectations. He emphasized the need for artists to be allowed to display their style without facing unnecessary criticism. "There was a time I wore a particular shoe for an interview, and a fan asked on social media why I had been wearing it all the time, but I didnt want to reply to him," he recounted. Jibril Mohamed Ahmed 19.11.2023 LISTEN Over the years, I have invested significant time and effort into comprehending the intricacies of international law and the institutions that uphold it. It is also disheartening to witness the hypocrisy and double standards that surround it. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict serves as a glaring example of the international community's failure to address the grave human rights violations committed by certain nations. Israel's non-stop airstrikes, resulting in the deaths of thousands of Palestinians, have been inexplicably underplayed and largely ignored by the international community. This selective treatment raises questions about the credibility and fairness of international law. "Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe." - Frederick Douglass Additionally, international law's inconsistent approach to accountability further exemplifies its failings. While there is growing emphasis on holding international actors accountable for their actions, this emphasis seems disproportionately aimed at certain nations or individuals. For instance, the case of Russia's alleged war crimes in Ukraine has garnered significant attention, with calls for holding President Putin accountable. However, similar scrutiny is not applied to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose actions have caused the deaths of numerous civilians. "Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are." - Benjamin Franklin While international law should theoretically serve as a beacon of justice and fairness, its selective application renders it nothing more than a charade. The world cannot afford to allow such double standards to persist. It is imperative, therefore, that global power dynamics be scrutinized and rectified to restore faith in the integrity of international law. Only then can true justice prevail. "Every society gets the kind of criminal it deserves." - Robert F. Kennedy In conclusion, the current global order and law have demonstrated a pervasive sense of hypocrisy and double standards, which has marred their credibility and effectiveness. Building a new world order and law that prioritizes fairness, justice, and accountability is essential to creating a better global system. This new order and law should facilitate the creation of a just, fair, and inclusive global society that benefits all nations. It is time to build a more robust and stable global system where the principles of international law are applied consistently, irrespective of nationality or affiliations. "The only way to deal with international crime is by recognizing that the agency with the greatest concentration of power and scope for action is the international community, embodied in the United Nations." - John le Carre 71 combat engagements took place on the entire frontline yesterday, during which the Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled dozens of occupants' attacks in various frontline areas, most of them in the Avdiivka and Marinka directions. The defense also continued offensive actions in the Melitopol area. ADVERTISIMENT The enemy is being depleted along the entire frontline, suffering new losses in manpower and equipment. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported on the progress of another day of full-scale war in its morning report for November 19. It is noted that on Saturday, the Russian Armed Forces launched five missile and 76 air strikes, as well as fired 50 missile attacks from multiple launch rocket systems at the positions of our troops and settlements. As a result of these terrorist attacks, civilians were killed and wounded, and private homes and other infrastructure were destroyed and damaged. In particular, Stepok in the Sumy region; Holubivka, Petropavlivka, Kucherivka, and Ivanivka in the Kharkiv region; Bilohorivka in the Luhansk region; Verkhnekamianske, Spirne, Stepove, Avdiivka, Marinka, Novomykhailivka, Vuhledar, and Staromaiorske in the Donetsk region; Novodanylivka in the Zaporizhzhya region; and Tiahyntsi in the Kherson region were hit by air strikes. More than 150 settlements in Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Mykolaiv regions came under artillery fire. ADVERTISIMENT The operational situation in the area of responsibility of the North operational and strategic grouping of troops in the Volyn and Polissia directions remains without significant changes. The Russian army maintains a military presence in the border areas in the Siversk and Slobozhansk directions, conducts active sabotage activities to prevent the deployment of our troops to threatened areas, as well as increases the density of minefields along the border in the Belgorod region of the Russian Federation. The Defense Forces repelled seven attacks by the occupiers who were conducting assault operations in the area of responsibility of the Khortytsia operational and strategic grouping of troops in the Kupiansk area near Synkivka and east of Petropavlivka in the Kharkiv region. The enemy also launched assaults in the Lyman direction, near Torske in the Donetsk region in particular, but were unsuccessful. ADVERTISIMENT The Ukrainian Armed Forces repelled eight attacks near Klishchiivka and Andriivka in the Bakhmut direction. The defenders also continued assault operations south of Bakhmut, inflicting losses on the occupiers and consolidating their positions. The Russian Armed Forces continue to try to surround Avdiivka in the area of responsibility of the Tavria Brigade in the Avdiivka direction, but our soldiers are holding steady and inflicting damage on the enemy. The occupants' offensive east of Keramik, Novobakhmutivka, Stepove and Avdiivka was unsuccessful. The Ukrainian defenders repelled 26 attacks there. Ukrainian forces repelled 22 attacks by the invaders in the Maryinka direction, who were storming near Marinka and Novomykhailivka. ADVERTISIMENT The enemy tried to storm near Staromaiorske in the Shakhtarsk direction in the Donetsk region, where the Defense Forces repelled three attacks. Attacks in the Zaporizhzhia direction in the areas of Robotyne, Novoprokopivka and west of Verbove were unsuccessful. For their part, the Ukrainian Defense Forces continued their offensive in the Melitopol area, inflicting losses in manpower and equipment on the occupation forces and depleting the enemy along the entire front line. Our soldiers are conducting counter-battery combat and continue to hold positions on the left bank of the Dnipro River in the area of responsibility of the Odesa operational and strategic grouping of troops in the Kherson direction. They continue to inflict fire, including the enemy's rear. ADVERTISIMENT During the day, Ukrainian combat aircraft carried out six strikes on the areas of concentration of the Russian Armed Forces. Missile units struck three control points, three areas of concentration of manpower, weapons and military equipment, an artillery unit and an enemy ammunition depot. During the night drone attack, 29 out of 38 "Shahed" drones were destroyed. As OBOZ.UA reported earlier, according to British intelligence, Russian troops are trying to encircle Avdiivka to break the defense of Ukrainian soldiers. This city in the Donetsk region is of political importance for the aggressor country, given its proximity to Donetsk, which was occupied in 2014. Only verified information is available on our Telegram OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Professor Yaw Nyarkoh, an Economist, has called for efforts to make Ghana, a West African economic hub, to drive global investment into the country to spur sustainable development and employment. Prof Nyarkoh said this when he delivered a speech at the Achimota Speaks forum in Accra on Thursday evening on the theme: A Country in crisis: Defining a new economic direction. He advised the Government to spearhead the agenda with the private sector by boosting the country's transport infrastructure, including, a reintroduction of a national airline (last operated in 2004), and make ports and road networks efficient. That, the Professor of Economics at New York University, said, would position Ghana, the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), as the go-to-place for business and trade in West Africa, while connecting the rest of the world. Citing the United Arab Emirates as an example, he stated that when they gained independence in the early 1971, they decided to make their nation an economic hub, by capitalizing on the Emirates airline. The Emirates airline has now become a national airline for Africa; if you want to go from Angola to Ghana, you'd have to pass through Dubai, from Ghana to Kenya you would have to pass through Dubai. Ghana should be doing the same thing, he said. When this happens, you will have some people leaving in United States of America (USA) who would decide to work in Kenya, using Ghana as a base, and people can even set up their businesses in the country through electronic and digital means, he explained. He said the economic hub effort, required structural changes in the Ghanaian economy, by being keen on introducing technology in land rights and tenure systems, expanding warehousing, and increasing access to market of farm products. The country needs to go back to the ground and transform things. We should rebuild our farms and firms, and make Ghana an exporter of grains, he recommended. Prof Nyarkoh stated that some sacrifices ought to be made to make the tourism sector vibrant, which would make many businesses find comfort in setting up in the country, knowing there were wonderful hotels and places of relaxation. What's wrong with allowing US citizens coming here without a visa, despite the fact that when we're going there, they give us a lot of grief? He asked, while encouraging the government to make visas easily accessible to businesses and people across the world. On the 2024 budget, the Economist said, listening to the budget presented by the Finance Minister, you realise that the government is pre-occupied with macroeconomic numbers, which doesn't help in the developments of the country. Sometimes the numbers just fly by what do they mean by 1.5 per cent vrs 1.7, per cent. If you are in the Ministry of Finance, it is important, but if you are looking for the development of Ghana, then we must go back to our microeconomics, he said. He was confident that Ghana could be a major economic hub, connecting people and business across the world, should government work more closely with the private sector to enhance value addition production in agric, tourism, and education. That was because the country was endowed with many natural advantages, including being an English-speaking country, and only needed to be exploited in Ghana's favour. For example, we speak English. My friends in Angola are trying to change their way from Portuguese to English, but how many nations train in Portuguese? He quizzed. GNA Ex-President Mahama, in a desperate attempt to motivate his dispirited followers on his routine travels across the length and breadth of the country, has been asserting somewhat spuriously: the NDC is a party that do not tell lies. What we cannot do, we do not say we will do it and whatever we promise to do, truly, we deliver With all due respect, former President Mahamas claim is destitute of honesty and integrity. Well, I am pretty sure that not all Ghanaians suffer from chronic memory loss and therefore some of us can vividly recollect the NDC governments previous unfulfilled Manifesto promises. It is, indeed, quite irritating that an experienced politician, who is also a well-versed historian, would blatantly fail to recollect past events. Perhaps, former President Mahama is only trying his level best to hoodwink the unsuspecting voters. Of course, it is impossible for political parties to honour all their Manifesto promises while in government. However, it is extremely nauseating to keep hearing unrealistic promises from the same people every four years with the view to hoodwinking the voting public. If you may recall, prior to the 2008 and 2012 general elections, Ex-President Mahama and the NDC gave a slew of Manifesto promises to the good people of Ghana. But as to whether they managed to honour those promises, is a million dollar question. The NDC apparatchiks, who bizarrely take pride in the social democratic ideology, are not in the business of promoting the welfare of the masses, but they are rather on a mission to advance their parochial interests by persistently proselytising and hoodwinking the unsuspecting voters to gain electoral advantage. I have always insisted that it would only take a doubting Thomas to challenge the fact that the NDC loyalists, who take pride in the social democratic ideology, are not in the business of promoting the welfare of the masses. One would have thought that individuals who pride themselves as social democrats would be extremely empathetic to the needs of the masses, but this is not the case with the NDC as a party. In fact, there have been numerous NDCs broken Manifesto promises in the past, but the one that will long be stencilled on discerning Ghanaians mental sheets, is the one-time NHIS premium. The NDCs sugar puffed Manifesto promise of one-time NHIS premium, so to speak, was destitute of honesty and integrity. It was an electoral stratagem, obviously, coated with sweeteners to feed the good people of Ghana. Having stencilled such appalling record on my mental sheet, I took the NDCs 2020 flagbearer, former President Mahamas promise of free primary health care if voted into power in 2020 with a pinch of salt. Ironically, the NDC loyalists have been accusing the New Patriotic Party operatives of lying their way to power by giving unrealistic Manifesto promises during the 2016 and 2020 electioneering campaigns. It would, therefore, appear that the 2016 and 2020 humiliating general elections defeats have unsettled the nerves of the NDC loyalists, judging from their weird posturing. If you would remember, during the 2008 and 2012 electioneering campaigns, Mahama and NDC gave a myriad of Manifesto promises, among other things, one-time NHIS premium, free SHS, making dumsor a thing of the past, putting money in Ghanaians pocket, creating more jobs for the jobless, stabilising the economy, protecting Ghanaians from the menaces of galamsey and Fulani herdsmen, bringing an end to dubious judgement debt payments, fighting the rampant bribery and corruption, amongst others. Nevertheless, after giving all those richly interesting, albeit unrealistic promises with a view to deceiving the voting public for their mandate, the NDC government, led by former President Mahama, as expected, wilfully failed to honour the promises, and, consequently, a total of 55.6% (44.4% for Mahama) of the electorates rightly voted them out of power in 2016 and 51.2% retired Mahama in 2020. Indeed, in the past, Ghanaians witnessed NDC governments numerous broken Manifesto promises, but the one that will indelibly stencil on the mental sheets of succeeding generations is the one-time NHIS premium. So, who says that the NDC is an honest party that keeps its Manifesto promises at all times? It goes without saying that the NDC solicited votes from Ghanaians, and, in exchange, they guaranteed everyone protection of life, property, provision of social amenities, better socio-economic standards of living and to a certain extent liberty. Nevertheless, the NDC government failed terribly to initiate expedient policies to overturn the failed policies of agriculture, poverty reduction and resource allocation in the areas of healthcare, education, finance, supply chain management and security sector planning, amongst others. K. Badu, UK. [email protected] The National Peace Council (NPC) has called on Ghanaians to strive to remain agents of peace by embracing diversity and rejecting prejudices, as the Election 2024 approaches. Alhaji Suallah Abdallah Quandah, the Bono Regional Executive Secretary of the NPC, who made the call observed that everybody had the role to play in making tolerance a pillar in Ghanaian society. Tolerance, he added, required active engagement and a genuine willingness to understand others' view point, bridging the divide and cultivating empathy even when confronted with challenging beliefs and perspectives. Alhaji Quandah made the call when speaking at a forum on religious, political and socio-cultural tolerance to mark the International Day for Tolerance, held at Wenchi in the Bono Region. The International Day for Tolerance, which falls on November 16, is an annual observance day declared by UNESCO in 1995 to generate public awareness of the dangers of intolerance. Alhaji Quandah said the nation ought to invest in dialogue, education and awareness programmes, saying by engaging in conversations that foster understanding and empathy the country could easily break down barriers and build bridges between religious, ethnic, and cultural communities. The Bono Regional Secretariat of the NPC organised the forum, attended by religious leaders, security services as well as Heads of Departments and Agencies and political party representatives. Topic treated included Christian and Islamic perspectives of religious tolerance and understanding and appreciating religious, political and socio-cultural diversity for sustainable peace. Alhaji Quandah also advised Ghanaians to commit to fostering an environment of inclusivity and understanding, saying together we can create a nation where tolerance strives, diversity is celebrated and harmony prevails. Mr Alexander Obour Damoah, the Wenchi Municipal Chief Executive commended the security agencies for the reduction of crime and other security threats in the area. He said with the support and cooperation of the Municipal Security Council (MUSEC), armed robbery, land and chieftaincy disputes, drug and substance abuse as well as perennial nomadic herdsmen invasion, which threatened the security and peace in the area had been brought under control. Mr Damoah emphasised the municipality required a peaceful and conducive environment for uninterrupted development, saying we cannot achieve development for the municipality and the region in an atmosphere of insecurity. Mr Damoah expressed the hope that the forum would create the avenue to address the long-standing disagreements, resolve outstanding issues and rebuild relationships based on mutual respect and tolerance and commended the NPC for its efforts to promote sustainable peace in the municipality for development to thrive. Odomfour Dr Kwasi Apraku III, the Paramount Chief of the Odomase Number Two Traditional Area on Friday called on the Bono Regional Security Council to intervene to control the invasion of Fulani nomads in the area. He said the herdsmen and their unscrupulous cattle grazing activities, threatened the peace and security of the area, and asked the Council to act expeditiously, before the situation gets out hand. In an interview with the media at Odomase, the Sunyani West Municipal capital, Odomfour Dr Apraku said the herdsmen had not only invaded the local coqmmunities, with the Adoe community worst affected, but they had also entered into, and grazing a forest reserve in the area. The Paramount Chief expressed worry that the nomads were causing extensive destruction to farms and other properties in the local communities, saying the traditional council continued to receive complaints from the farmers. Odomfour Dr Apraku III indicated that tension was boiling up among the local farmers due to the activities of the herdsmen, saying if the matter was not resolved immediately, it could lead to disaster. Not just a Portuguese connect, Goa also has a Paris link now. The Global Call to find all TB to stop TB which was launched earlier this month in Goa, India was in prime spotlight at the World Conference on Lung Health 2023 in Paris. The Paris conference reverberated with the loud and clear call: We must find all TB to end TB, given by Dr Guy Marks, President of the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease - The Union. This was followed by the unambiguous statement: The best treatments in the world will not be useful if we cannot find the people who need them, of Dr Nina Russell, Bill and Melina Gates Foundation. Find all TB to stop TB Earlier this month in Goa, a multistakeholder conference on the theme Find All TB to Stop TB opened with recommendations from a consultative conference held right after the United Nations High Level Meeting on TB in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu, India, and hosted by Rainbow TB Forum and Blossom Trust. One of the recommendations was: India has efficient TB testing methods (such as, WHO recommended laboratory-independent, point-of-care and de-centralised molecular test), but we need to make sure that everyone has access to them as per the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. First action point that emerged from this conference was: We need to ensure that TB tests that underperform- like smear microscopy- are replaced 100% by laboratory-independent, point-of-care and decentralised molecular testing at the earliest, and communities are made aware about their existence and demand for them. The science- and evidence-backed call to governments globally, to replace microscopy with upfront rapid molecular test for TB (because microscopy underperforms in diagnosing TB and thereby misses TB cases) has been there since several years but shockingly, action has been sketchy. This call to replace microscopy with upfront molecular tests is also among the key actions enshrined in the WHO Director Generals flagship initiative to Find.Treat.All (first launched in 2018). One of the promises that was made by world leaders at the recently concluded UN High Level Meeting on TB in September 2023 also re-echoed this call for 100% upfront molecular testing for TB. But action is dismal. The latest WHO Global TB Report 2023 released earlier this month shows that more than half of notified cases of active TB disease did not receive a molecular test but got a microscopy test which misses TB (globally only 47% of notified people with TB received a molecular test diagnosis in 2022). Early and accurate diagnosis breaks the chain of TB transmission Presenting the Global Call to Find All TB to Stop TB in an official press meet of the World Conference on Lung Health in Paris (www.bit.ly/findalltb), Dr Tara Singh Bam (The Unions Asia Pacific Regional Director) shared that this call has received over 250 endorsements from over 30 countries worldwide in less than two weeks since its launch in Goa, India. Early and accurate TB diagnosis is not only a critical gateway to TB care pathway, but also a public health and human rights imperative. It helps stop the spread of TB infection as well as reduces unnecessary human suffering and risk of untimely deaths due to TB, added Dr Tara Singh Bam, who is also the Board Director of Asia Pacific Cities Alliance for Health and Development (APCAT). APCAT had co-hosted the Find All TB to Stop TB meet in Goa, India, along with TB People (India), Asia Pacific Media Alliance for Health and Development, Global AMR Media Alliance (GAMA), Molbio Diagnostics, Journalists Against TB, and other partners. Bring lab to the people Bringing lab to the people (and not people to the lab) is the first vital step towards finding TB. If we fail to do this, we will keep missing TB cases despite having the best of tools in the labs. Additionally, we must ensure that the full cascade of TB care services is people centred. "We have to rethink what are the missing services that are failing us on #EndTB. One of the urgent priorities is to bring WHO recommended TB diagnostics closer to the point-of-need," rightly said Tariro Kutadza, a force for change for people-centred TB and HIV responses in Zimbabwe and Southern Africa. She is also represented on the Union Community Advisory Panel. The global call to find all TB to stop TB has 1 key ask: stop missing TB cases. We can stop missing TB cases with at least two actions: firstly, we need to ensure that 100% replacement of smear microscopy with WHO recommended molecular tests becomes a reality as soon as possible, along with a paradigm shift from a lab-centric to a fundamentally people-centric model to diagnose TB, leaving no one behind. Secondly, we have to find the people which the TB programme is currently missing. We have to screen all people with TB in high burden settings and offer them best of molecular testing and linkage to TB care continuum. End the deadly divide between Global Goals and Local Realities We must translate the Global Goals and Agenda 2030 at local level. We have global goals but why are there no local goals and targets? rightly asks Dr Tara Singh Bam. We have to end the deadly divide between global goals and local realities first if we are to progress towards sustainable development. Dr Bam stressed upon pivotal leadership of sub-national governments in translating global promises into ground realities. Failing to engage local leaders for a well-coordinated integrated health response will also wreak havoc on sustainable development. End TB agenda warrants action from not just the health sector but all other sectors. Whole of society and whole of government approach is critical especially at the sub-national level to advance progress on Find All TB, Treat All TB, and Prevent All TB, said Dr Bam. We must protect not only the rights and responsibilities of people with TB but also those without TB as they may be at risk of TB. Agrees Dr Guy Marks, President of The Union. We have focussed almost entirely on people who have TB and their immediate contacts but in fact we have not focussed enough on the rest of the community who do not have TB, and who do not want to get TB. We need to focus on the rights of people to protect themselves from getting TB in high burden settings. In a high TB burden setting, everyone is exposed to the TB bacteria. That is why we have to screen everyone for TB, find all TB, treat all TB, said Dr Marks. Over 70 years ago when there was no TB treatment, people with TB were housed in sanitoria to prevent further infection transmission. But now with effective TB treatments, people with TB disease become non-infectious soon after being put on treatment. In high TB burden settings, many people with TB may not have symptoms. It is important to screen everyone with WHO recommended tools and offer them WHO recommended molecular test upfront and get them onto treatment quickly. What is the right TB target? The right TB target should not be the number of people we find with TB, but those we do not find, said Dr Guy Marks. We have to stop missing all TB cases if we are to end TB. Endorse the global call to find all TB to stop TB: www.bit.ly/findalltb Shobha Shukla, Bobby Ramakant CNS (Citizen News Service) (Shobha Shukla and Bobby Ramakant are part of editorial team of CNS (Citizen News Service) and Board members of Global AMR Media Alliance (GAMA) and Asia Pacific Media Alliance for Health and Development. Follow them on Twitter: @Shobha1Shukla and @BobbyRamakant) A farewell ceremony has been held in Obuasi for Mrs. Veronica Nti Anokye, the outgoing headmistress of the Dokyiwa Community JHS who is retiring from the service after serving for 40 years. Mrs. Nti Anokye's term as headmistress officially ended after running the school as headmistress for six years. She began her work albeit as a non-professional teacher at Fumso Primary school in the Adansi Asokwa district where she taught for a year before proceeding to Bobriase L/A Primary school and the Kwapia-Wioso- Patakro R/C Primary school. At the colorful durbar to celebrate her achievements, students past, present as well as teachers, members of the community, and officials from the Obuasi Municipal Education Directorate came together to bid farewell to her. Speaking to the media at the sidelines of the event, the Outgoing headmistress of Dokyiwa Community JHS recounted her time at the school and acknowledged all those who have encouraged her to achieve these remarkable heights stressing that her achievements are attributable to her love for children and her quest to oversee the development of children. She remarked that her perseverance and hardwork are her trump card which has helped her to deliver on her mandate as a teacher and headmistress. She implored other teachers to put the interest of the children first and make the welfare of the children their topmost priority. I have always said that teaching is a calling. You must be ready for the challenges and strive to make the lives of students better. There a re a lot of blessings in that," he stated. The Municipal Director of Education George Alfred Koomson who was the guest of honor commended Mrs. Nti Anokye for her leadership qualities and efforts to position the Dokyiwa school as one of the promising schools in the Municipality, as the first headteacher of the school. He said every worker whether in the public or private sector must aspire to reach the height of their careers. He said promotion at the workplaces are gained after demonstrable hardwork and perseverance. Mr. Koomson further admonished workers to plan towards their pension by making good investments. " We must not lose sight of the fact that we will one day go on pension but to have a smooth pension period, there is the need to make proper investments towards it now," he stated. Dennis Oteng, a teacher of the Dokyiwa Community JHS commended Madam Veronica Nti Anokye for her leadership qualities and described her as a unifier. He said as the first Headteacher of the school, she has successfully rallied the teachers together which has culminated in the enviable achievements the school has chalked in academics and other extra curricular activities. Faustilove Appiah- Kanin, the Parliamentary Candidate of the National Democratic Congress, Obuasi West constituency also praised the outgoing headmistress for leading an exemplary life and her role in contributing to the development of education in the Obuasi Municipality. She encouraged up and coming teachers to emulate her professionalism and hardwork and contribute meaningfully to the growth and development of school children. Mrs. Veronica Nti Anokye is a mother of four, a former student of St Monicas Teachers training college and the University of Education Winneba. The recently concluded SHS Climate Change Debate, held at Legon Presbyterian Senior High School (Presec Legon) witnessed Chemu Senior High School emerging victorious, elevating the event to a prominent national discourse on environmental issues. Organized by Disaster Resilience Network Ghana in collaboration with Ghana Education Service (GES), the debate attracted delegations from various sectors, fostering a national conversation on climate change adaptation, environmental awareness and activism. Chaired by Mr. Godwin Avenorgbo, DRNGhana Board of Directors Chairman, the debate featured eight schools, including Labone SHS, St. Marys, St. Thomas Aquinas, Accra Girls, Presec, Accra Academy, Chemu, and Achimota. The competition revolved around two motions: "Is the economic benefit of artisanal small-scale mining worth the climate and environmental damage?" and "Should climate change adaptation and sustainable development be included in the schools curriculum?" The schools were divided into two groups, debating for and against the motions. Chemu, Achimota, and Labone emerged as finalists, with Chemu SHS claiming the top spot, securing a GHS10,000 cash prize, individual custom medals, a certificate of participation, and the prestigious Brewer Cup trophy. Achimota SHS and Labone SHS secured the 1st and 2nd runner-up positions, receiving GH8,000 and GH6,000 cash prizes, respectively. Notably, all participating schools received a GH1,000 cash prize and certificates of participation. The event, slated for a five-year pilot, aims to cover all sixteen regions of Ghana, progressively implementing climate action projects in schools. The initiative plans to brand participating schools as resilient institutions and designate their debate teams as climate-resilient ambassadors. Head Teachers from the eight schools expressed excitement, commending Disaster Resilience Network Ghana for spearheading the impactful initiative. 19.11.2023 LISTEN The future of Ghanaian politics is a subject that ignites a profound, blazing passion within me. I find myself moved to tears as I listen to Samson on Newsfile. Yet, my heart sinks when I witness my colleagues defending the indefensible simply because its their party in power. Ive observed a certain level of objectivity, patriotism, maturity, and tolerance exhibited by Kweku Ayida and our mother Tangoba, both supporters of the NPP. Driven by his love for Ghana, Ayida has consistently spoken out against what he perceives to be the excesses of the very government he made enemies campaigning for in 2016 and 2020. This stance may have cost him a few friendships within the NPP. It is expected I have lost some friends from the other side for my comments as well. If you dont support them, then you are not a friend. What strikes me most is the maturity and tolerance exhibited by his mother, Tangoba, a staunch supporter of Bawumia. Theres no doubt she has supported Ayida in various ways. I am confident she wouldnt sever ties with him for taking a different stand. Regrettably, such political magnanimity is a rare trait in Ghana. Its a testament that love for ones country can and should transcend party lines. I hope the young people in both parties learn from this. Think about this. Do you believe the young people in our two main political parties will bring about a positive in the next 15 to 20 years? Will they be the catalysts for the change we so desperately need? Last night, I engaged in a conversation with a lady who sympathized with the current government. I shared with her why I want a change in governance, not because I am sympathetic towards the NDC but to safeguard the sanctity of our churches and the integrity of the few honest religious leaders left in our country. We found common ground in our concern that the government has politicized all independent institutions in Ghana, with religious institutions seemingly next in line. She confessed her reluctance to return to Ghana, disheartened by the current state of affairs. I tried to instill hope, suggesting that things might change in the next decade, but she countered with reasons why such a transformation seemed impossible. Awine, she said, her voice heavy with concern, Look at the kind of young people entering politics today. Some of these guys misused student funds but were left off the hook. She went on to name certain executives of both SRC and Gradsact who squandered money and left. These same individuals have been co-opted into some presidential aspirants campaign teams. They first come pretending to fight for the interest of students, but the real motive is to use these positions to build their political careers so politicians can recognize them. Last month, I had a conversation with my close friend who is currently working in the civil service. He was an ardent supporter of this regime back on campus. He complained about the vindictiveness in the public service. This is what he said Bro, you cant voice out; if you doyou are off the payroll. He continues majority of us want to talk, but the fear of losing your daily bread, you just have to keep mute. My response was,' Charlie, just keep quiet and save your job, I had to because I knew how much his family depended on him. He added Bro, why are we this wicked to ourselves? When I go to the office, and I see budget allocation for some projects, I become worried for now, I feel like it is a punishment to be working in the public sector. The number of people who call for help is mind-blowing, and it is not their fault; the system is bad. Sometimes, I barely sleep; there is so much pressure on from family, forgetting we are just young for this. Back in the days on UCC campus, student kingmakers complained of the corrupt activities of some SRC and NUGS executives and vowed to campaign against them should they offer themselves to contest for any national positions. I was among such few individuals. Years down the lane, these young people offered to contest for national positions, and the same group of students who were bitter about their previous activities supported them against other candidates on the basis that they were alumni of the school- Politics of identity! Today, these unprincipled young guys have formed counter-groups against the very young people they represented years ago. They will spend the rest of their lives defending wrong and fighting any young person who complains against the government. Such people, I fear, might be leading NPP and NDC not because they are good or have Ghana at heart but because they are vocal and loud. This, I think, is the heart-wrenching reality of our politics. But I hold onto hope, for it is the only thing stronger than fear. I started commenting on political issues in 2018 I found myself compelled to voice my opinions on political issues because I could not withstand the hypocrisy and ethnic bigotry of some so-called neutrals and religious leaders. They spoke against the rot in the previous NDC but remained silent when worst malfeasance in the current government. France's far-right National Rally has used the war between Israel and Hamas as a way to bolster its support for French Jews a U-turn for the party founded by Jean-Marie Le Pen, who famously called the Holocaust a "detail" of history. By shifting away from anti-Semitism and focusing on the threats of radical Islam, daughter Marine Le Pen is transforming far-right tactics in a way that has divided French politics. On Sunday, 12 November, nearly 190,000 people marched in cities around France against anti-Semitism and in solidarity with French Jews. France's Jewish community has been facing an unprecedented wave of anti-Semitism since the militant Palestinian group Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October, and Israel retaliated with a massive bombing campaign on Gaza. As of 14 November, 1,518 anti-Semitic offences had been officially recorded since the Hamas assault, nearly three times as many as in all of 2022, according to the Interior Ministry. Last weekend's march, organised by the heads of both houses of parliament, unified most political leaders across the spectrum with some notable exceptions. President Emmanuel Macron did not attend, though he expressed support for it and other members of his party were there. But the hard left stayed away because of who else was marching: Marine Le Pen and the leaders of the far-right National Rally. Days after the Hamas attacks on Israel, Le Pen received applause for a speech in parliament calling them "pogroms". She then called for French Jews to be protected, "physically, but also morally". The mainstream politicians at the front of the march refused to walk beside members of the National Rally, so they went to the back about 50 elected officials, many wearing their official tricolour sashes. Into the mainstream? Their presence, even at the back of the procession, marked the culmination of more than a decade's effort to deliberate move the party away from the anti-Semitism of its founder, Jean-Marie Le Pen. Some in France are readier to accept the change than others. While Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne commented that the presence of the National Rally at the march was "not fooling anyone", other mainstream politicians were more sanguine about the party's participation. Former prime minister Edouard Philippe, now mayor of Le Havre, told FranceInfo radio the day after the march that you "do not chose who joins the fight [against anti-Semitism] with you". Former president Nicolas Sarkozy, who marched at the front with other political leaders, told the JDD newspaper that he did not want to dwell on the anti-Semitism of Jean-Marie Le Pen with whom, he said, the National Rally had cut ties. Shift from anti-Semitism Marine Le Pen took over the leadership of the party in 2011 and soon started moving away from its anti-Semitic roots. She is different from her father. It's another generation, says Nonna Mayer, a researcher at Sciences Po university and the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) who studies anti-Semitism and the far right. She has had real confrontations with her father against his anti-Semitism. The National Rally was founded as the National Front in 1972 by Jean-Marie Le Pen. One of the founding members was Pierre Bousequet, a former commander in the Nazi Party's Waffen-SS. Jean Marie Le Pen, who famously dismissed the Nazi gas chambers as a "detail in the history of World War II", has been tried and convicted for anti-Semitism and hate speech several times over the years. His daughter ended up expelling him from his party in 2015 because he would not stop. She realised her father was a liability if the party wanted to wield any real power. Listen to an interview with Nonna Mayer on the Spotlight on France podcast: Focusing hate elsewhere The shift has been accompanied by a singular focus on another minority group in France: Muslims. According to Mayer, Le Pen "has a very clever strategy, saying to French Jews: 'Vote for me because I'm the best shield you can have to protect you from the threat of Islamic terrorism'". This resonates with a community, and a country at large, that has been hit by several attacks perpetrated by radical Islamists. Yet the rhetoric of the National Rally targets not just Islamic terrorists, but all Muslims. It turns very quickly to Islam and Arabs and Maghrebis, says Mayer. Muslims make up an estimated 11 percent of the French population many of them immigrants, or the descendants of immigrants, from France's former colonies in North Africa. But while Marine Le Pen has denounced anti-Semitism and expelled elected officials who have made anti-Semitic statements, there seems to have been little change in her supporters' attitudes towards Jews. Every time we do our surveys, we see that people who are voters or sympathisers of the National Rally are the most anti-Semitic of all, even though their first target is Arabs, Muslims, Maghrebis, says Mayer. Scapegoats for Israel Far-right anti-Semitic ideology is still very much alive in France, along with the Nazi chants that accompany it. And it intersects with an anti-Semitism that arises whenever a conflict erupts in the Middle East, with French Jews finding themselves blamed for the actions of the Israeli government. With the Second Intifada, the Palestinian uprising of 2000 to 2005, "the very moving images of civilian victims and the Israeli army in the occupied territories created a big wave of emotion [in France] and a big wave of anti-Semitic aggressions", says Mayer. The same conflation of Israel and French Jews is being made today. Jews in France "become the scapegoats of the anger against Israel", says Mayer. "It's the idea that the policies of Israel are bad, Israel is a Jewish state, so French Jews are responsible of what's going on in Israel in the same way that French Muslims are attacked every time you have a terrorist attack." Electoral pay-off? The shift from vilifying Jews to focusing on Muslims appears to be working for the National Rally, which has seen a jump in the polls for next June's European parliament elections. In an Ipsos Sopra Steria poll for the Tribune Dimanche last week, the party with Marine Le Pen and current party president Jordan Bardella at the top of the list would beat President Macron's Renaissance party by 7 percent. And in French legislative elections last year, the National Rally achieved its best results to date, going from seven seats in parliament to 89. That gave it the clout to form a parliamentary group, currently the largest opposition group in France's National Assembly. Listen to an interview with Nonna Mayer on the Spotlight on France podcast, episode 102. Link here. 19.11.2023 LISTEN The American Chamber of Commerce in Ghana (AMCHAM) has honored host of 3FM Sunrise morning show, Johnnie Beresford Hughes at their thanksgiving dinner and awards night in Accra. The ace journalist was celebrated for his contribution and hardwork in promoting the business interests of the group. Other awardees on the night included 3fm, TV3. Speaking at the ceremony, keynote speaker for the night and founder of Ashesi University, Patrick Awuah said it was important that Ghana does more to grow its economy through partnerships like the AMCHAM. Our country continues to make efforts to grow our economy and compete globally. In order to achieve this, we must be willing to make Ghana a business friendly space for investors. Our institutions must become stronger and embolden the confidence of the investors and companies, Awuah said. The The American Chamber of Commerce, Ghana, is the representative arm of U.S. businesses and subsidiaries voluntarily working to create an environment where business can thrive between Ghanaian and American communities. AMCHAM promotes commercial, economic, educational, and cultural ties between the United States of America and the Republic of Ghana. - 3news.com The Russian occupation army continues to terrorize the residents of Donetsk region. Only yesterday, the enemy launched 15 attacks on the region's localities. ADVERTISIMENT Terrorists launched one of the missiles at a multi-storey residential building in Novohrodivka, Pokrovsk district. This was reported by the press service of the National Police of Ukraine. On November 18, 8 settlements came under enemy fire - the cities of Avdiivka, Kurakhove, Ukrainka, the villages of Hostre, Ocheretyne, Rayske, and the villages of Maksymilianivka and Orlivka. The Russian army used aviation and artillery to terrorize the civilian population. As a result of the criminal actions of the occupiers, 22 residential buildings, administrative buildings, a cafe, a shop, a service station, a gas station, an outbuilding and a power line were damaged. ADVERTISIMENT The terrorist country fired two Kh-31 missiles at the town of Ukrainka. The strike damaged 14 apartment buildings, 2 administrative buildings, a cafe, a shop and a service station. After midnight on November 19, the Russian invaders sent an S-300 missile at Novohrodivka. A person was injured as a result of the shelling. A multi-storey building and at least 11 private houses, two shops, two administrative buildings, social and critical infrastructure facilities were heavily damaged. ADVERTISIMENT As a reminder, the Russian occupation army continues to terrorize civilians in the Kherson region. Since the morning of November 19, Putin's terrorists have been striking the regional center. Earlier it was reported that on the night of November 19, the Russian aggressor country attacked Ukraine again with the help of the Shahed. Air defense forces were actively working in the Kyiv region. Unfortunately, an infrastructure facility was damaged in one of the districts. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Coalition of Aggrieved Customers of Menzgold, Ghana, has urged the Attorney General to exercise extreme prudence in disbursing the GH2.5 million that Nana Appiah Mensah (NAM1), the embattled Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the defunct Menzgold company, handed over to the police for onward distribution to Menzgold clients. In a petition dated November 17, the aggrieved customers implored the Attorney General to refrain from disbursing any funds to a purported list of names provided by NAM1, citing concerns over the credibility of the list and the potential for discrimination. The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, had previously disclosed on the floor of Parliament that NAM1 had indeed provided GH2.5 million to the authorities. He further clarified that the money had been deposited in an exhibit account at the Bank of Ghana pending further instructions. The Coalition of Aggrieved Customers of Menzgold, Ghana, in its petition, cautioned the Attorney General not to succumb to any pressure from NAM 1 nor any amorphous group to disburse the GH2.5 million paid by NAM1 to the so-called attached list since we cannot verify the credibility of the so-called names. The group further affirmed the coalitions support for the initial decision taken by the Attorney General and the Ghana Police Service to retain the funds in the exhibit account, given the ongoing court proceedings related to the Menzgold case. We do agree with the initial decision taken by the Honourable Attorney General and Ghana Police authorities that the money be kept in the exhibit account since the matter is pending before the court. Nana Appiah Mensah should never be allowed to determine who should be paid first or last. All customers are entitled to their money at the same time, and as a coalition, we will resist any attempt by NAM1 and his Menzgold to discriminate against customers in the matter of payment, they stated in their petition. citinewsroom Some female flood victims in Mepe have expressed concerns over what they described as privacy breaches at their various safe havens. They disclosed to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that sharing rooms with their males counterparts had been uneasy since some males did not respect their privacy. They, therefore, appealed to the authorities to separate victims into males and females to forestall any untoward issues going forward. Ms. Getrude Nutsukpui, one of the victims, noted that the incident had been recurring and urged authorities to address the issue promptly to safeguard their privacy and well-being. This was the fourth time this had happened to me. Some men who I share the same room with would just barge in mostly when Im trying to dress up after returning from the bathroom, she lamented. Mrs. Cynthia Adanu also recounted the same experience and called on the camp leaders to help resolve the situation. She stated that most of the men in her room mostly refuse to give her the space to dress up even after having her bath. They would just be there. And this makes me feel very bad. Theres no privacy at all. We need help on this, Mrs Adamu explained. When GNA contacted Mr. Amos Ahorsu Bolor, the Assembly member for Mepe electoral area, who is also one of the camp leaders, he stated that the victims did not inform him about their challenges in the rooms. He, however, assured that the situation would be resolved. He indicated that he would ensure that Mr. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa the Member of Parliament of North Tongu Constituency who was also a key camp leader was notified about the situation for possible measures to be taken. GNA President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Federal Republic of Nigeria, I extend my greetings with a heavy heart as I address you regarding the recent revelations surrounding the tragic death of Nigerian Army Lieutenant, Alphonsus Alexander Kalthy Bazza. I am compelled to bring to your attention the latest developments regarding the tragic demise of Lieutenant Alphonsus Alexander Kalthy Bazza, which has taken a disturbing turn with the emergence of additional information and suicide notes. The initial statements from the Headquarters of the 6 Division, Nigerian Army, led by Maj. Jonah Danjuma, appeared to downplay the circumstances of Lieutenant Bazza's death, attributing it to duty-related reasons during Exercise Still Waters III. However, subsequent revelations, particularly the handwritten notes obtained by SaharaReporters, unveil a different narrativeone marked by frustration, strained relationships with his superior, and the alleged withholding of election allowances. Such contradictions are not unique to the military; they reflect a deeper-seated pattern within the institutional makeup of a challenged societya defensive posture, indirect warnings to the media, and promises of further investigations. Contrary to the assertions made by Major Jonah Danjuma, the Acting Deputy Director of 6 Division Army Public Relations, it has come to light that Lieutenant Bazza left behind handwritten notes detailing the challenges he faced, including strained relationships with his superior officer, Lt Col NY Suleiman Baburka and the withholding of election allowances. These notes, as reported by SaharaReporters, paint a troubling picture of the young officer's experiences leading up to his untimely death. Any effort to dismiss or manipulate the content of Lieutenant Bazzas suicide notes lacks justification in light of the explicit mentions of his aggressor and abuser. The Nigerian institutions' denial mentality and inclination to label stories as "fake news" are inadequate in the face of this stark reality and imagery presented by the handwritten accounts. The specific details outlined in the notes regarding the challenges faced by the deceased officer demand a sincere acknowledgment of the gravity of the situation. It is imperative to conduct a comprehensive and impartial investigation to address the concerns raised in the notes and ensure that justice prevails. The evolving narrative calls into question the transparency and thoroughness of the initial investigation. The stark contrast between the official statement and the contents of the suicide notes demands a more comprehensive and impartial inquiry to uncover the truth. It is imperative that the investigation addresses the concerns raised by these revelations, ensuring accountability and justice for Lieutenant Bazza and his grieving family. The reported instances of biased behavior, mistrust, and verbal abuse, coupled with the alleged mishandling of election allowances, demand an urgent and impartial investigation. The gravity of these allegations calls for a transparent inquiry to ensure justice is served and to address any systemic issues within the military hierarchy. Furthermore, these revelations shed light on the psychological toll experienced by Bazza, evident in the loss of his son, challenges in obtaining leave, and instances of derogatory language. His words resonate deeply: "Whenever he speaks to me in his office, he raises his voice and always asks me to get out of his office. He calls me a wounded liar in front of soldiers. I expect, as my superior, to let him mentor me and not me constantly insulting my post." While Lt Col NY Suleiman Baburka may have his own perspective on this matter, the paramount concern is the pervasive issue of such harrowing stories within our nation. The silent struggles of countless individuals, like Lieutenant Bazza, often go unheard, concealed by a veil of silence that perpetuates the suffering of those who have endured mistreatment. This is not an isolated incident; it is a poignant reflection of a broader systemic challenge where the voices of the victims are stifled, and their stories remain untold. In a society where the weight of bad experiences is often buried beneath the rug, we risk losing the opportunity to address these critical issues and save others from the same fate. The pain and injustice suffered by Bazza echo the silent cries of many who have faced similar circumstances. In the memory of this anguished young officer, let us pledge to break the chains of silence that bind the voices of those who endure hardship. The stories of the victims should not be allowed to fade away, lost in the noise of daily life. The notes left behind by Bazza reveal a narrative of anguish, suggesting a disheartening relationship between military officers and their commanders. The accusations of mistreatment, and an absence of empathy speak to a larger, systemic problem that requires immediate attention. Our nation's leaders must embody values of integrity, humility, and a genuine concern for those under their command. As we mourn the loss of a promising young officer, we are confronted with the realization that our society cannot sustain itself on a foundation of despair and neglect. The call for leaders with a moral compass, a commitment to ethical conduct, and a profound fear of God echoes loudly. It is incumbent upon those in positions of authority to foster an environment where our military personnel can thrive, free from the shadows of undue hardships and despair. Your Excellency, as a father and leader of our great nation, I implore you to consider the emotional weight of this tragedy. This could have been your son, enduring the burdens of a system that seems to have failed him. The pain and anguish felt by Lieutenant Bazza's family are sentiments that resonate with any parent who envisions the dreams and aspirations of their child cut short. This stark disparity between the official narrative and the uncovered truth raises grave concerns about the transparency and integrity of the investigation. Lieutenant Bazza was more than a soldier; he was a son, a husband, and a father, with dreams and aspirations cruelly cut short. Witnessing attempts to shield institutional images at the expense of acknowledging the human suffering and pain experienced by individuals like Lieutenant Bazza is disheartening. As the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, I implore you, Mr. Tinubu, to intervene and ensure that a thorough, impartial, and transparent investigation is conducted into the circumstances leading to Lieutenant Bazza's untimely death. The welfare and mental health of our military personnel should be of paramount concern, and any form of misconduct or mistreatment must be addressed urgently. This situation serves as a stark reminder that behind the uniform and ranks are human beingssomeone's child, spouse, or parent. The pursuit of truth and justice is not only a duty but a necessity to honor the memory of Lieutenant Bazza and to prevent such heartbreaking incidents in the future. Furthermore, these revelations shed light on the psychological toll experienced by Lieutenant Bazza, evident in the loss of his son, challenges in obtaining leave, and instances of derogatory language. His words resonate deeply: "Whenever he speaks to me in his office, he raises his voice and always asks me to get out of his office. He calls me a wounded liar in front of soldiers. I expect, as my superior, to let him mentor me and not me constantly insulting my post." Your Excellency, as a compassionate father and esteemed leader of our great nation, I beseech you to deeply contemplate the profound emotional weight of this tragic event. Picture, if you will, this could have been your son, grappling with the burdens of a system that appears to have let him down. The agony and despair experienced by Bazzas family echo the sentiments any parent would feel when confronted with the shattered dreams and aspirations of their child. In light of these heart-wrenching revelations, I implore Your Excellency not only to spearhead a thorough investigation but also to champion the implementation of comprehensive leadership training programs. These programs should instill a culture of ethical conduct, empathy, and respect, aiming to prevent instances of abuse and mistreatment within our military ranks. The unfolding narrative casts a shadow over the transparency and rigor of the initial investigation. The glaring disparity between the official statement and the poignant contents of the suicide notes necessitates an exhaustive and impartial inquiry to unveil the unvarnished truth. It is crucial that the investigation addresses the profound concerns raised by these revelations, ensuring unwavering accountability and justice for Lieutenant Bazza and his grief-stricken family. In the spirit of empathy and shared humanity, I implore you, Mr. Tinubu, to act decisively in the face of this tragedy, not only for Lieutenant Bazza but for the countless others who serve in silence. May this plea resonate not just as a call for justice but as an impassioned reminder that this could have been your son, sir. Good Nigerians place their trust in your commitment to justice and the well-being of our servicemen and women. 19.11.2023 LISTEN The advent of foreign religions in Africa has been a complex and multifaceted phenomenon, eliciting a spectrum of reactions from the continent's diverse societies. The introduction of religions such as Christianity and Islam has undeniably left an indelible mark on Africa's cultural, social, and political landscape. However, the question persists: is this influence a blessing or a curse for the continent? To comprehend the nuanced dynamics at play, one must delve into the historical roots of the spread of foreign religions in Africa. The arrival of Christianity and Islam during the colonial era was often intertwined with imperialistic endeavors, leading to the imposition of cultural norms and the subjugation of indigenous belief systems. This historical baggage complicates any straightforward assessment of the impact of foreign religions One of the primary facets of the introduction of foreign religions has been the profound cultural transformation witnessed across the continent. While some argue that this transformation has been beneficial, fostering a sense of global interconnectedness and modernity, others decry the erosion of indigenous customs and traditions. The clash between traditional African spirituality and the doctrines of foreign religions has sparked debates on cultural identity and the preservation of heritage. The influence of foreign religions on social dynamics in Africa cannot be overlooked. Missionary efforts, particularly in the case of Christianity, have played a pivotal role in education and healthcare, contributing to the establishment of schools and hospitals across the continent. However, critics argue that these efforts have often been accompanied by cultural imperialism, undermining local practices and perpetuating a sense of dependency. Religion and politics have been inextricably linked throughout history, and Africa is no exception. The introduction of foreign religions has shaped political landscapes, influencing governance structures and policies. While some argue that these religions have provided ethical frameworks for governance, others point to instances where religious affiliations have exacerbated tensions, leading to conflicts and divisions. Amidst the tensions arising from the clash of cultures and beliefs, there is a growing movement towards syncretisman amalgamation of traditional African spirituality with foreign religious practices. This fusion seeks to find common ground, fostering a harmonious coexistence between the old and the new. However, navigating this path requires a delicate balance, as it grapples with the complexities of cultural preservation and adaptation. The introduction of foreign religions into Africa is a multifaceted phenomenon with far-reaching implications. Whether viewed as a blessing or a curse, the impact cannot be denied. It is imperative to engage in nuanced discussions that acknowledge both the positive contributions and the challenges posed by this encounter. As Africa continues to evolve, the role of foreign religions remains a pivotal aspect of its cultural, social, and political narrative. 19.11.2023 LISTEN Dear critical-reader, as humane and compassionate beings, should we not treat Ghana's LGBTQI+ demographics, and other much-despised minority demographics with compassion, anaaaa, Ghanafuor? I was horrified, by what a bush-telegraph source recounted to me a few days ago - a dreadful and shocking story about an incident in which a young gay man, had allegedly been beaten senseless, by thugs, to teach him a lesson for being gay. Nothing can justify such barbarism. Totally unacceptable. Full stop. No human being who is compassionate, should back the denial of the basic human rights guaranteed by our constitution, to all Ghanaians regardless of their ethnicity, gender and religious faith (or lack thereof), which are meant to protect the liberties of all our societal demographics without exception. On that basis, why don't those in Ghana who condemn and target LGBTQI+ individuals, for religious reasons, for example, rather not take the view that it is a matter between LGBTQI+ individuals, and their Maker, and treat them compassionately, whenever they have to interact with them, on a purely human level, socially, just as they themselves would like to be treated if they were part of a much-despised minority-demographic? Speaking personally, one prefers to be married to a woman, rather than a fellow male. Intimacy with a man would thus be inconceivable for one. Furthermore, one is also aware that procreation is vital if the preservation of the human race is to be assured till the very end of time. Yet, still, in one's humble view, there is something not quite right with being holier-than-thou, and targeting LGBTQI+ demographics, and harming them physically, for example, if one is a mere mortal, whom by definition, is not without blemish and without sin, either, and must thus first remove the spec in his or her eye, before venturing to remove the mote in the eyes of others. It is on that basis that one joins those who advocate for ending discrimination against LGBTQI+ demographics in Ghana. After all, are we not all aware that the bald truth is that our boarding schools are the breeding grounds for same sex relationships? So let us focus on ending Ghana's expensive-to-maintain free second-cycle boarding school system. Case closed. Yoooooooo... In light of that perhaps the question to ponder over as wise and aspirational Africans is: Could we not stop young people from developing an interest in same sex relationships, if we transformed all our free state boarding junior and senior high schools into world-class day second-cycle educational institutions, and ensured that they are spread evenly nationwide, so that our younger generations can stay at home, wherever they live in our country, and still be educated in world-class day second-cycle educational institutions? In the meantime, while we work towards that goal, even though we may not personally approve of what is their own personal lifestyle choice, if they are not coercing others to join them, rather than hounding them, let us treat Ghana's LGBTQI+ demographics (and other similarly-despised minorities groups) with compassion as a humane and welcoming people. 19.11.2023 LISTEN In the not-so-distant past, the northern region of Ghana grappled with the shadows of instability, particularly in the revered Dagbon Kingdom. The perennial conflict had dire consequences for the region, with businesses bearing the brunt of the turbulence. Fast forward to the present, the aftermath of the late Ya Na Yakubu Andani's funeral and the subsequent installation of a new Ya Na Mahama Abukari has ushered in an era of stability, breathing new life into the economic landscape of the area. The Perils of Instability The tumultuous years of instability cast a dark cloud over Dagbon, stifling economic progress and impeding the growth of businesses. The constant threat of conflict deterred investors, hampered infrastructure development, and disrupted the normal functioning of markets. It was a challenging period where the aspirations of entrepreneurs collided with the harsh realities of a region in turmoil. "Our lives as businessmen and women were engulfed in fears, the fear of not knowing how the day will look like, whether there will be conflict or not" "There were days you didn't know whether to open your business or not because you didn't know when you would hear people crying and running" A businessman and a woman, operating in Tamale, said. A New Dawn of Peace A new dawn however arose in the area following the performance of the funeral rites of the late Ya Na Yakubu Andani(II) from Friday, 4th of January to Friday the 18th of January, 2019 as it marked the turning point and paved the way for a new era of tranquility. The subsequent inskinmen of a new Ya Na Abubakari Mahama (II) on January 25, 2019, which served as an end to the many-years protracted chieftaincy dispute in the area further brought hope and a renewed sense of security. This newfound peace has not only been a balm for the people of Dagbon but has also become a catalyst for economic rejuvenation. The Ripple Effect on Businesses With the return of stability, businesses have flourished in Dagbon. Investors, once hesitant to commit capital to an uncertain environment, are now flocking to the region. The improved security situation has fostered an atmosphere conducive to commerce and trade. Local businesses are experiencing unprecedented growth, and new enterprises are sprouting up, injecting vitality into the economic fabric of the area. "For now, we thank God, the fears we used to have regarding peace, are now over" a supermarket operator, said. "Business is bad these days, but we cannot blame it on lack of peace, because for many years now, we have operated without fears of violence or conflict, so I think it is just the normal economic hardship, but has nothing to do with security or peace," another businessman told me. Data Speaks Louder Than Words While specific data may not be readily available, anecdotal evidence and emerging trends tell a compelling story. Reports from various sectors indicate a substantial increase in economic activities post-stabilization. Marketplaces are bustling with activity, employment opportunities are on the rise, and the overall economic indicators are painting a picture of progress and prosperity. "I cannot speak for everyone, but I can say that our businesses have realized positive growth over the years since following the return of peace in the region" The Importance of Sustained Peace According to Wikipedia, Peace means societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. The Dagbon experience serves as a poignant reminder of the intrinsic link between peace and economic development. Stability is not merely a luxury; it is a prerequisite for sustainable growth. The dangers of instability, as evidenced by the tumultuous past, highlight the fragility of economic ecosystems in conflict-ridden areas. Conclusion Goal 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is to promote just, peaceful, and inclusive societies. As Dagbon embraces its hard-earned peace, the dividends are evident in the flourishing businesses and the palpable sense of optimism among its people. This success story underscores the profound impact that stability can have on economic growth. It is a testament to the resilience of the community and a beacon of inspiration for regions grappling with similar challenges. The lesson is clear: peace is not just a noble pursuit; it is the cornerstone upon which prosperous communities are built. Former President John Dramani Mahama has encouraged Ghanaians not to lose hope in the country, as they have the opportunity to change the managers of the countrys economy in the 2024 general elections. He said many Ghanaians are going through extreme hardship under the Akufo-Addo-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) government. According to him, many of the youths he had interacted with across the country had lost hope in the country. The ex-president addressed the congregants of the Apostolic Continuation Church at Techiman in the Bono East Region on Sunday, November 19. The flag bearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, who is in the region for his Building Ghana Tour, went to the church to worship with them. The NDC leaders commenced the Building Ghana Tour to engage Ghanaians and revitalize the NDC in readiness for the 2024 presidential campaign. The Building Ghana Tour serves as a platform for Mr. Mahama to meet and interact with Ghanaians from all walks of life, supporters, and sympathizers of the NDC. As part of the tour, he will make crucial stops in key cities, towns, and villages and engage local communities to listen to their concerns, insights, and aspirations for a prosperous Ghana. Mr. Mahama also urged Ghanaians to give thanks to God at all times, irrespective of the challenge. He, however, admonished Ghanaian voters to learn their lessons from deceitful politicians who give juicy promises but fail to honour them and vote against such persons. Let us learn from our mistakes and vote wisely, he said in Twi, adding, Im aware of what every Ghanaian is going through. The hardship is unbearable. Source: graphic.com.gh 19.11.2023 LISTEN Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, the Minister of Education, says the government will grant clearance to all public tertiary institutions in the coming months to enable them to recruit and replace critical staff. Dr Adutwum made the statement in an address read by Professor Yayra Dzakadzie, the Deputy Director of Ghana Education Tertiary Commission (GTEC), during the 24th Congregation of more than 1,500 graduates of the Ho Technical University (HTU). Three students graduated with a Master of Technology, 512 with a Bachelor of Technology, and 1,037 with a Higher National Diploma. Dr Adutwum announced that all projects being executed under the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND) by the government would be completed in due course, reassuring the management of the Ho Technical University. The Minister said the government had paid some GHS 362,4 million as book and research allowances to eligible senior members of public tertiary institutions across the country. He said the government was consecrated to creating fair opportunities for staff members to advance in their careers, ensuring that educational institutions became self-sufficient in terms of human resources. Government acknowledged that financial challenges sometimes become an impediment for prospective students to pursue tertiary education and has gone further to roll out the 'No Guarantor Students Loan Policy' to allow tertiary students in both public and private institutions to access and secure loans by only providing their Ghana Card, he said. The good news is that the loan amount has been increased by 50 per cent and ranges between GHS1,500 and GHS3,000, he added. Dr Adutwum said the Ministry of Education was committed to enabling all children to reach their full potential as valuable members of society by providing equitable, inclusive, and high-quality education and opportunities for lifelong learning. To this end, he said the government was determined to provide adequate funding for Technical Universities, creating an environment that fostered relevance to both national and international development through retooling, innovative, high-quality teaching and learning that is driven by ICT and research. He commended the University for providing students with the practical, hands-on experience they needed to succeed in the workforce while congratulating the graduates, for making a positive impact in their chosen fields and being valuable assets to nation-building. The Minister expressed appreciation to the Ho Technical University for its great work and reiterated his resolve to work together with management to achieve the government's vision for the sector. Professor Ben Honyenugah, the Vice Chancellor of HTU, mentioned some of the new programmes introduced as BSC Economics and Innovation, BTECH Biomedical Engineering, BTECH Real Estate and Facilities Management, and BTECH Architectural Technology. He said the University had also made investments in improving its academic resources, including infrastructure upgrades of classrooms and ICT labs. He appealed for a hotel school facility for the Hospitality Management Department to aid teaching and learning and called for the release of funds for the completion of GETFUND projects. Mr Francis Edem Kumado, a Higher National Diploma Fashion Design and Textiles student, was adjudged the overall best student and valedictorian with a 4.95 grade point average. GNA A total of 30 nurses, doctors and other paramedical staff had left the Agona Swedru Municipal Government Hospital to seek greener pastures, leaving a huge vacuum in the provision of health care services in the Municipality and its environs. The personnel left between 2022 and June 2023. Dr Julius Abuku, Medical Superintendent of Agona Swedru Municipal Hospital, made this known when the Swedruman Council of Chiefs paid a courtesy call on the management of the Hospital at Swedru. The visit was to enable the chiefs to know the current state of the health facility, its achievements and challenges. Dr Abuku disclosed that the mass exodus of the medical staff had seriously affected work at the various wards of the facility and that the situation had compelled workers to carry out compulsory overtime. He said management had sent petitions to the Regional Health Directorate in Cape Coast and Ghana Health Service (GHS) head office in Accra for replacements. The Medical Superintendent said measures were in place to retain staff to include the institution of award schemes and other motivation for the workers. He said despite the mass exodus, they had been able to work to reduce maternal and child mortality and high birth rates through quality family planning education. Dr Abuku said the management through prudent applications of internal resources had also embarked on many projects to improve the structures of the facility. The washrooms attached to the Out-Patient Department (OPD) had been reconstructed to replace the existing ones, which had been overused due to the influx of patients to the facility. Management had through its Internally Generated Funds (IGF) and other sources renovated Doctors' bungalows and flats for other staff as part of the efforts to motivate them. He said the theatre and OPD would also see major rehabilitation works, adding that the incinerator had been faulty for a long time and needed to be replaced. The Hospital was constructed in 1958 and some of the machines like the X-ray machine had become outmoded. Dr Abuku appealed to well-meaning indigenes to help purchase new X' Ray machines and others to facilitate smooth operations at the hospital. The government should, as a matter of urgency, replace medical staff who have left to ensure quality health care delivery. He said the Hospital served as a referral point for other districts, including Agona East, Gomoa Central, and Awutu Bawjiase in Awutu Senya West. Dr Abuku commended the Agona West Municipal Assembly for the provision of four bungalows for doctors. Nana Kweku Esieni V, Nifahene of Agona Swedru, who led the chiefs, appealed to the government to post some medical staff to replace those who have travelled outside the country to seek greener pastures. The chief urged the people to appreciate the work of nurses, doctors and other paramedical staff as they worked under strenuous conditions to give care. Nana Esieni urged the government to endeavour to post nurses and doctors to enhance health care delivery in the Area. GNA Crestwood Equity Partners (NYSE:CEQP Get Free Report) and Legend Oil and Gas (OTCMKTS:LOGL Get Free Report) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations and valuation. Earnings & Valuation This table compares Crestwood Equity Partners and Legend Oil and Gas top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation. Get Crestwood Equity Partners alerts: Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Crestwood Equity Partners $6.00 billion 0.49 $31.30 million $0.93 30.39 Legend Oil and Gas N/A N/A N/A ($0.06) N/A Crestwood Equity Partners has higher revenue and earnings than Legend Oil and Gas. Legend Oil and Gas is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Crestwood Equity Partners, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. Analyst Recommendations Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Crestwood Equity Partners 1 7 0 0 1.88 Legend Oil and Gas 0 0 0 0 N/A This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Crestwood Equity Partners and Legend Oil and Gas, as reported by MarketBeat. Crestwood Equity Partners currently has a consensus target price of $28.13, suggesting a potential downside of 0.48%. Profitability This table compares Crestwood Equity Partners and Legend Oil and Gas net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Crestwood Equity Partners 3.11% 14.05% 3.71% Legend Oil and Gas N/A N/A N/A Institutional & Insider Ownership 55.6% of Crestwood Equity Partners shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 33.5% of Legend Oil and Gas shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.1% of Crestwood Equity Partners shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 12.6% of Legend Oil and Gas shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. Summary Crestwood Equity Partners beats Legend Oil and Gas on 7 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks. About Crestwood Equity Partners (Get Free Report) Crestwood Equity Partners LP develops, acquires, owns, controls, and operates assets and operations in the energy midstream sector in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gathering and Processing North; Gathering and Processing South; and Storage and Logistics. The Gathering and Processing North segment offers natural gas, crude oil, and produced water gathering, compression, treating, processing, and disposal services to producers in the Williston Basin and Powder River Basin. This segment owns and operates natural gas facilities with approximately 818 MMcf/d of gathering capacity and 775 MMcf/d of processing capacity; crude oil facilities with approximately 250 MBbls/d of gathering capacity and 496,000 Bbls of storage capacity; and produced water facilities with approximately 421 MBbls/d of gathering and disposal capacity. The Gathering and Processing South segment provides natural gas gathering, compression, treating, and processing; and produced water gathering and disposal services to producers in the Delaware basins. This segment owns and operates natural gas facilities with 1.1 Bcf/d of gathering capacity and 613 MMcf/d of processing capacity; crude oil facilities with approximately 90 MBbls/d of gathering capacity; and produced water facilities with approximately 354 MBbls/d of gathering and disposal capacity. The Storage and Logistics segment offers natural gas liquids, crude oil, and natural gas storage, terminal, marketing, and transportation, including rail, truck and pipeline services to producers, refiners, marketers, utilities, and other customers. Crestwood Equity GP LLC serves as the general partner of Crestwood Equity Partners LP. The company was formerly known as Inergy L.P. and changed its name to Crestwood Equity Partners LP in October 2013. Crestwood Equity Partners LP was incorporated in 2001 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. About Legend Oil and Gas (Get Free Report) Legend Oil and Gas, Ltd. operates as a crude oil hauling and trucking company. It performs hauling services for institutional drilling and exploration companies, as well as crude oil marketers primarily in the Bakken, North Dakota, and the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico. The company was formerly known as SIN Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to Legend Oil and Gas, Ltd. in November 2010. Legend Oil and Gas, Ltd. was incorporated in 2000 and is based in Alpharetta, Georgia. Receive News & Ratings for Crestwood Equity Partners Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Crestwood Equity Partners and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Ukrainian teenager Bohdan Yermokhin, who was promised to be returned to his homeland after being served with a summons in Russia, left the territory of the aggressor country. But for now, he is staying in Belarus with his cousin, who is his guardian. ADVERTISIMENT This was reported by the Russian-language publication Verstka, which operates abroad and covers what is happening in Russia, although it is blocked there. The information was confirmed by the boy's Ukrainian lawyer Kateryna Bobrovska. It should be noted that orphan Bohdan Yermokhin was forcibly taken from Mariupol by the Russian occupiers in 2022 to the Russian Federation, where a Russian family took "custody" of him. He has repeatedly expressed pro-Ukrainian views and in early 2023 tried to flee the Russian Federation, but Russian security forces detained him at the border. Earlier this month, the Ukrainian was served with a summons to appear before a Russian military commissariat. A few days later, human rights activist Bobrovska recorded a video appeal to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, asking him to help the young man return home. After that, the children's "ombudsman" in the Russian Federation, Maria Lvova-Belova, who has been issued an order by the International Criminal Court, announced that the teenager's return to Ukraine had been "agreed upon." ADVERTISIMENT In particular, the Russian authorities promised to take Yermokhin to a "third country" to meet with a relative before he came of age (by November 19). However, on November 13, Bohdan wrote on social media that he had not been told the date and details of the upcoming trip. "Give me an answer or any information about this," he demanded. The teenager records rap under the pseudonym Dispo, and in early November he appeared on the poster of a charity rap concert in Ukraine in support of the Armed Forces. It is noted that the organizers allegedly confirmed that they are waiting for the teenager, but "everything depends not only on them, but also on the other side." ADVERTISIMENT Maria Lvova-Belova, who is involved in the abduction of children by Russia in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, said that the aggressor country "helped the boy to reunite with his cousin." As OBOZ.UA reported earlier, according to the Yale School of Public Health, since February 2022, Russia has taken 2400 children aged 6-17 from Ukraine to 13 institutions in Belarus. The occupiers abducted Ukrainian children from at least 17 cities in the temporarily occupied territories. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! NCR Voyix (NYSE:VYX Get Free Report) and PAR Technology (NYSE:PAR Get Free Report) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and valuation. Volatility and Risk NCR Voyix has a beta of 1.68, suggesting that its share price is 68% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PAR Technology has a beta of 1.8, suggesting that its share price is 80% more volatile than the S&P 500. Get NCR Voyix alerts: Analyst Recommendations This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for NCR Voyix and PAR Technology, as provided by MarketBeat. Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score NCR Voyix 0 0 2 0 3.00 PAR Technology 0 2 3 0 2.60 Profitability NCR Voyix presently has a consensus price target of $21.50, suggesting a potential upside of 36.42%. PAR Technology has a consensus price target of $45.50, suggesting a potential upside of 20.66%. Given NCR Voyixs stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe NCR Voyix is more favorable than PAR Technology. This table compares NCR Voyix and PAR Technologys net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets NCR Voyix -1.42% 24.31% 3.02% PAR Technology -15.92% -15.16% -6.45% Earnings and Valuation This table compares NCR Voyix and PAR Technologys top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation. Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio NCR Voyix $7.84 billion 0.28 $60.00 million ($0.91) -17.32 PAR Technology $355.80 million 2.97 -$69.32 million ($2.36) -15.98 NCR Voyix has higher revenue and earnings than PAR Technology. NCR Voyix is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than PAR Technology, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. Institutional & Insider Ownership 89.8% of NCR Voyix shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.6% of NCR Voyix shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.7% of PAR Technology shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term. Summary NCR Voyix beats PAR Technology on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks. About NCR Voyix (Get Free Report) NCR Corporation provides various software and services in the United States, Americas, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company operates through Retail, Hospitality, Digital Banking, Payments & Network, and Self-Service Banking segments. It offers managed services, including ATM-as-a-Service solutions that allow banks to run their end-to-end ATM channels; software, services, and hardware; and digital banking solutions for financial institution's consumer and business customers. The company also provides solutions for banking channel services, transaction processing, imaging, and branch services. In addition, it offers solutions for retail industry comprising comprehensive API-point of sale (POS) retail software platforms and applications, hardware terminals and peripherals, payment processing solutions, and consumer engagement solutions, as well as self-service kiosks, which consists of self-checkout (SCO). Further, the company provides technology solutions to customers in the hospitality industry comprising table-service, quick-service, and fast casual restaurants. It also offers cloud-based and cloud-enabled software applications for point-of-sale, back office, payment processing, kitchen production, restaurant management, eCommerce, and consumer marketing and loyalty; and hospitality-oriented hardware products, such as POS terminals, kitchen display systems, handheld devices, printers, and peripherals. Additionally, the company provides managed network and infrastructure services to enterprise clients, as well as professional, field, and remote services for network technologies. It also offers solutions for customer account opening and onboarding across digital, branch, and call center channels. NCR Corporation was founded in 1881 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. About PAR Technology (Get Free Report) PAR Technology Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides technology solutions to the restaurant and retail industries worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Restaurant/Retail and Government. The Restaurant/Retail segment offers Punchh, an enterprise-grade customer loyalty and engagement solution; MENU, an omnichannel digital ordering solution; Brink POS, an open cloud, point-of-sale solution; Menu, a digital ordering solution; PAR Payment Services, a transaction-based payment processing service; and Data Central, a cloud software solution for back-office applications. This segment also offers Point-of-Sale Hardware; wireless headsets for drive-thru order-taking; and related peripherals. In addition, this segment provides services, including hardware repair, installation and implementation, training, and on-site and technical support services. The Government segment provides intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions; mission systems operations and maintenance, and commercial software products; systems engineering support and software-based solutions; satellite and teleport facility operation and maintenance, engineering, and installation services; satellite control center services; and information technology infrastructure library services to the United States Department of Defense and other federal agencies, as well as licensed software products. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in New Hartford, New York. Receive News & Ratings for NCR Voyix Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for NCR Voyix and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. BJs Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ Get Free Report) issued its earnings results on Friday. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.03, MarketWatch Earnings reports. BJs Wholesale Club had a net margin of 2.61% and a return on equity of 47.80%. The company had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. BJs Wholesale Clubs quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. BJs Wholesale Club updated its FY24 guidance to $3.80-3.92 EPS. BJs Wholesale Club Trading Down 4.8 % Shares of BJs Wholesale Club stock opened at $64.35 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.17. BJs Wholesale Club has a 12-month low of $60.33 and a 12-month high of $78.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $8.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.30, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.37. Get BJ's Wholesale Club alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of BJs Wholesale Club from a buy rating to a hold rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $79.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Monday, November 6th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of BJs Wholesale Club from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of BJs Wholesale Club from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of BJs Wholesale Club from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of BJs Wholesale Club from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a research note on Friday, September 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, BJs Wholesale Club presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $72.33. Insider Activity In related news, EVP Jeff Desroches sold 33,934 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.88, for a total value of $2,337,373.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 80,882 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $5,571,152.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Jeff Desroches sold 33,934 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.88, for a total value of $2,337,373.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 80,882 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $5,571,152.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Laura L. Felice sold 46,586 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.54, for a total transaction of $3,286,176.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,340 shares in the company, valued at $4,961,783.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 118,653 shares of company stock worth $8,306,084. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the companys stock. Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJs Wholesale Club Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BJs Wholesale Club during the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of BJs Wholesale Club during the 1st quarter worth about $50,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co purchased a new position in shares of BJs Wholesale Club during the 3rd quarter worth about $70,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of BJs Wholesale Club during the 1st quarter worth about $141,000. Finally, State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in shares of BJs Wholesale Club by 107.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,860 shares of the companys stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 962 shares during the period. 98.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. BJs Wholesale Club Company Profile (Get Free Report) BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates warehouse clubs on the eastern half of the United States. It provides perishable, general merchandise, gasoline, coupon books, promotions, and other ancillary services. The company sells its products through the websites BJs.com, BerkleyJensen.com, and Wellsleyfarms.com, as well as the mobile app. Read More Receive News & Ratings for BJ's Wholesale Club Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BJ's Wholesale Club and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. NCR Voyix (NYSE:VYX Get Free Report) and NCR (NYSE:NCR Get Free Report) are both mid-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership. Profitability This table compares NCR Voyix and NCRs net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Get NCR Voyix alerts: Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets NCR Voyix -1.42% 24.31% 3.02% NCR 1.03% 25.41% 3.29% Earnings & Valuation This table compares NCR Voyix and NCRs top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation. Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio NCR Voyix $7.84 billion 0.28 $60.00 million ($0.91) -17.32 NCR $7.84 billion 0.00 $60.00 million $0.46 N/A Analyst Recommendations NCR Voyix is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NCR, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for NCR Voyix and NCR, as reported by MarketBeat. Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score NCR Voyix 0 0 2 0 3.00 NCR 0 2 2 0 2.50 NCR Voyix presently has a consensus target price of $21.50, indicating a potential upside of 36.42%. NCR has a consensus target price of $32.25, indicating a potential upside of . Given NCRs higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe NCR is more favorable than NCR Voyix. Risk & Volatility NCR Voyix has a beta of 1.68, meaning that its share price is 68% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, NCR has a beta of 1.65, meaning that its share price is 65% more volatile than the S&P 500. Institutional & Insider Ownership 89.8% of NCR Voyix shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.8% of NCR shares are held by institutional investors. 8.6% of NCR Voyix shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.6% of NCR shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. Summary NCR beats NCR Voyix on 6 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks. About NCR Voyix (Get Free Report) NCR Corporation provides various software and services in the United States, Americas, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company operates through Retail, Hospitality, Digital Banking, Payments & Network, and Self-Service Banking segments. It offers managed services, including ATM-as-a-Service solutions that allow banks to run their end-to-end ATM channels; software, services, and hardware; and digital banking solutions for financial institution's consumer and business customers. The company also provides solutions for banking channel services, transaction processing, imaging, and branch services. In addition, it offers solutions for retail industry comprising comprehensive API-point of sale (POS) retail software platforms and applications, hardware terminals and peripherals, payment processing solutions, and consumer engagement solutions, as well as self-service kiosks, which consists of self-checkout (SCO). Further, the company provides technology solutions to customers in the hospitality industry comprising table-service, quick-service, and fast casual restaurants. It also offers cloud-based and cloud-enabled software applications for point-of-sale, back office, payment processing, kitchen production, restaurant management, eCommerce, and consumer marketing and loyalty; and hospitality-oriented hardware products, such as POS terminals, kitchen display systems, handheld devices, printers, and peripherals. Additionally, the company provides managed network and infrastructure services to enterprise clients, as well as professional, field, and remote services for network technologies. It also offers solutions for customer account opening and onboarding across digital, branch, and call center channels. NCR Corporation was founded in 1881 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. About NCR (Get Free Report) NCR Corporation provides various software and services in the United States, Americas, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company operates through Retail, Hospitality, Digital Banking, Payments & Network, and Self-Service Banking segments. It offers managed services, including ATM-as-a-Service solutions that allow banks to run their end-to-end ATM channels; software, services, and hardware; and digital banking solutions for financial institution's consumer and business customers. The company also provides solutions for banking channel services, transaction processing, imaging, and branch services. In addition, it offers solutions for retail industry comprising comprehensive API-point of sale (POS) retail software platforms and applications, hardware terminals and peripherals, payment processing solutions, and consumer engagement solutions, as well as self-service kiosks, which consists of self-checkout (SCO). Further, the company provides technology solutions to customers in the hospitality industry comprising table-service, quick-service, and fast casual restaurants. It also offers cloud-based and cloud-enabled software applications for point-of-sale, back office, payment processing, kitchen production, restaurant management, eCommerce, and consumer marketing and loyalty; and hospitality-oriented hardware products, such as POS terminals, kitchen display systems, handheld devices, printers, and peripherals. Additionally, the company provides managed network and infrastructure services to enterprise clients, as well as professional, field, and remote services for network technologies. It also offers solutions for customer account opening and onboarding across digital, branch, and call center channels. NCR Corporation was founded in 1881 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Receive News & Ratings for NCR Voyix Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for NCR Voyix and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Permian Basin Royalty Trust (NYSE:PBT Get Free Report) declared a monthly dividend on Friday, November 17th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 30th will be paid a dividend of 0.157 per share by the oil and gas producer on Thursday, December 14th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.04%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 29th. This is an increase from Permian Basin Royalty Trusts previous monthly dividend of $0.04. Permian Basin Royalty Trust has increased its dividend payment by an average of 40.2% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. Get Permian Basin Royalty Trust alerts: Permian Basin Royalty Trust Price Performance Shares of PBT stock opened at $18.76 on Friday. Permian Basin Royalty Trust has a fifty-two week low of $15.05 and a fifty-two week high of $27.77. The stocks 50-day moving average is $20.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.40. The firm has a market cap of $874.40 million, a P/E ratio of 30.26 and a beta of 0.87. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Permian Basin Royalty Trust ( NYSE:PBT Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $3.34 million during the quarter. Permian Basin Royalty Trust had a return on equity of 13,208.86% and a net margin of 96.27%. Several analysts have recently issued reports on PBT shares. TheStreet downgraded Permian Basin Royalty Trust from a b rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Thursday, November 9th. StockNews.com began coverage on Permian Basin Royalty Trust in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a hold rating for the company. Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Permian Basin Royalty Trust Hedge Funds Weigh In On Permian Basin Royalty Trust Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PBT. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Permian Basin Royalty Trust by 1,052.3% in the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 41,496 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $210,000 after acquiring an additional 37,895 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Permian Basin Royalty Trust by 108.4% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 52,536 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $657,000 after acquiring an additional 27,329 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Permian Basin Royalty Trust in the 1st quarter worth approximately $148,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Permian Basin Royalty Trust in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,934,000. Finally, PEAK6 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Permian Basin Royalty Trust in the 1st quarter worth approximately $143,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.12% of the companys stock. About Permian Basin Royalty Trust (Get Free Report) Permian Basin Royalty Trust, an express trust, holds overriding royalty interests in various oil and gas properties in the United States. The company owns a 75% net overriding royalty interest in the Waddell Ranch properties comprising Dune, Sand Hills (Judkins), Sand Hills (McKnight), Sand Hills (Tubb), University-Waddell (Devonian), and Waddell fields located in Crane County, Texas. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Permian Basin Royalty Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Permian Basin Royalty Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. 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For more details you can refer to our Cookie Policy *I agree to the updated privacy terms and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age. *I agree to the processing of my personal information for personalized recommendations, personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites. I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS. (Optional). Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Due to the activity of guerrilla groups, the occupiers in the temporarily occupied Dzhankoy have introduced increased patrolling of the city. Now the city is guarded by military groups of 4-5 people. ADVERTISIMENT This is reported by the military guerrilla movement "ATESH", which operates on the territory of the occupied Crimea. It is noted that the guerrillas managed to penetrate the ranks of the military police in Dzhankoy. "Our agents reported that in Dzhankoy, due to the work of guerrillas, an order was given to intensify patrolling of the city. Now the city is patrolled by a group of 4-5 military men. We suggest that representatives of the military police in Dzhankoy stop being afraid and come to the side of good," the statement said. ADVERTISIMENT As a reminder, a representative of the Atesh guerrilla movement conducted a reconnaissance of the invaders' military facility in the temporarily occupied Ukrainian Crimea. He managed to enter the territory of military unit 80393 in Feodosia. As OBOZ.UA previously reported, the Russian occupiers complain to their propagandists about the Ukrainian partisan movement in the occupied territories. In particular, in the Russian-occupied Luhansk region, they claim, "guerrilla warfare is in full swing" - uninvited "guests" are treated to dumplings with poison and needles, energy drinks with sulfur, given exploding lighters, and more. ADVERTISIMENT You can find only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Manchester United, currently grappling with their poorest start to a season in 61 years, is reportedly making a substantial move to enhance their squad by targeting Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann. After slipping to the sixth position in the Premier League and facing the possibility of an early exit from the Champions League group stages, United's manager, Erik ten Hag, is keen to reinforce his team during the January transfer window. Among the potential acquisitions on his wishlist, Griezmann stands out as a prime target, as reported by Catalan outlet El Nacional. In a bid to secure the French striker's services, Manchester United representatives have reportedly engaged in discussions with Griezmann's entourage during a trip to Spain. The proposed strategy to entice him to Old Trafford involves tripling his current Atletico Madrid wages, with an estimated weekly earning of around $435,000. The report also reveals that Griezmann possesses a release clause of $27 million, rendering him an economically feasible target for Manchester United. This move signifies the club's commitment to revitalizing its squad and overcoming the challenges posed by the current season. Director Ridley Scott and cast member Joaquin Phoenix look on during a photocall for the world premiere of the film "Napoleon" at the Salle Pleyel in Paris, France, Nov. 14, 2023. The Russian occupation army continues to terrorize civilians in the Kherson region. Terrorists have been striking the regional center since the morning of November 19. ADVERTISIMENT Residents of the city were urged not to ignore the danger and go to safe places. The head of the Kherson City Military Administration Roman Mrochko reported this on Telegram. According to him, the explosions occurred in the Dniprovskyi district of Kherson. Russian invaders continued to strike the regional center from the territory of the temporarily occupied left bank of the Kherson region. "The Russian army is shelling Kherson from the temporarily occupied left bank! Explosions are heard in the Dniprovskyi district of the city. Move to safer places and stay away from windows," the official wrote. According to monitoring channels, Russian troops are shelling civilian infrastructure with cannon artillery. The hits were recorded in the Dniprovskyi district and the Shidnyi neighborhood. In addition, the Russian invaders struck Kherson using multiple launch rocket systems at night. The consequences of the night terror are being clarified. ADVERTISIMENT Later, the head of the City Military Administration clarified that a child was injured in the morning shelling. She is being provided with medical assistance. The Kherson Regional Prosecutor's Office said that Russian terrorists shelled the city with rocket artillery. A multi-story residential building was damaged as a result of the shells. Two people were injured: a 66-year-old woman and a child. A 59-year-old man also sustained shrapnel wounds as another multi-story building was damaged. He was also treated by medics. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko clarified that the child and his grandmother were walking in the yard when a Russian artillery shell hit near the entrance. ADVERTISIMENT As a reminder, the Armed Forces of Ukraine continued their counteroffensive on the left bank of the Kherson region. Our defenders are squeezing the occupiers out of the left bank of the Kherson region with "flocks" of FPV drones. At the same time, the Russian army has no electronic warfare equipment there. Earlier, the military-political command of Ukraine confirmed the presence of defense forces on the left bank of the Kherson region. The defenders have created bridgeheads and are conducting ground operations aimed at pushing Russian troops beyond the artillery strike on the right bank of the Kherson region. ADVERTISIMENT As reported by OBOZ.UA, Ukrainian defenders continued combat operations on the left bank of the Kherson region. But, as they warn, there will be no immediate liberation of the settlements there. Only verified information is available on our Telegram OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Sean Combs and Cassie at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala in 2015. Judicial nominees Sara E. Hill and John David Russel of Oklahoma (not Oakland as earlier stated), and Ramona V. Manglona of the CNMI appear before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary on Nov. 15, 2023. Judge Manglonas lighthearted exchange with Sen. Lindsey Graham was noteworthy enough to be included in Roll Calls weekly compendium of Congressional Hits and Misses at https://t.ly/JFgua (5:08). A headless, armless body that washed up on a Queens, New York, beach Friday may be the remains of an Irish filmmaker, Ross McDonnell, reported missing more than two weeks ago, police sources said Saturday. (Dreamstime/TNS) A shooter killed one person Friday in the lobby of the New Hampshire State Hospital in Concord, N.H., and then was fatally shot by a state trooper, officials said. (Dreamstime/TNS) Arthur San Agustin, director of the Department of Public Health and Social Services, arrives at the Guam Judicial Center in Hagatna ahead of a court hearing on Aug. 29, 2023. The Russians are setting up fake positions with models of their equipment and weapons. They are designed as "decoys" for attacks by the Ukrainian Defense Forces. ADVERTISIMENT Another such position with a clumsy attempt to pass it off as a S-300/S-400 air defense system was discovered by Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance in one of the areas. Photos of the fake "launchers" and "radar" of the system were published on the Telegram channel "Armed Forces of Ukraine. War against the occupiers". "The false position of the S-300/S-400 fake air defense system with models of two launchers and a radar. Russians are also improving their decoys. Some are good, some are not so good," the caption to the photo reads. ADVERTISIMENT Earlier, WP reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were using wooden HIMARS dummies to provoke the occupiers to hit false targets. The plan worked as the invaders spent a lot of expensive long-range cruise missiles to hit the wooden installations. The publication noted that the wooden objects could not be distinguished from the real ones through the lens of Russian drones, which transmit their location to sea-based cruise missile carriers in the Black Sea. Over several weeks of use in the field, at least 10 Kalibr cruise missiles have taken on the false targets, the article says. In light of this initial success, Ukraine has expanded production of replicas for wider use, WP's sources said. ADVERTISIMENT An orphaned teenager who was taken to Russia early in the Ukraine war is back home with relatives An orphaned teenager who was taken to Russia early in the Ukraine war is back home with relatives View Photo KYIV, Ukraine (AP) An orphaned Ukrainian teenager who was taken to Russia last year during the war in his country returned home after being reunited with relatives in Belarus on his 18th birthday Sunday. Bohdan Yermokhin was pictured embracing family members in Minsk in photographs shared on social media by Russias childrens rights ombudswoman, Maria Lvova-Belova. Andrii Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian presidents office, confirmed that Yermokhin had arrived back in Ukraine and shared a photo of him with a Ukrainian flag. Yermak thanked UNICEF and Qatari negotiators for facilitating Yermokhins return. Yermokhins parents died two years ago, before Russia invaded Ukraine. Early in the war, he was taken from the port city of Mariupol, where he lived with a cousin who was his legal guardian, placed with a foster family in the Moscow region and given Russian citizenship, according to Ukrainian lawyer Kateryna Bobrovska. Bobrovska, who represents the teenager and his 26-year-old cousin, Valeria Yermokhina, previously told The Associated Press that Yermokhin repeatedly expressed the desire to go home and had talked daily about getting to Ukraine, to his relatives. Yermokhin was one of thousands of Ukrainian children taken to Russia from occupied regions of Ukraine. The practice prompted the International Criminal Court in March to accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin and childrens rights ombudswoman Lvova-Belova of committing war crimes. The court in The Hague, Netherlands, issued warrants for Putin and Lvova-Belovas arrests, saying they found reasonable grounds to believe the two were responsible for the illegal deportation and transfer of children from Ukraine. The Kremlin has dismissed the warrants as null and void. Lvova-Belova has argued that the children were taken to Russia for their safety, not abducted a claim widely rejected by the international community. Nevertheless, the childrens rights ombudswoman announced in a Nov. 10 online statement that Yermokhin would be allowed to return to Ukraine via a third country. The teenager reportedly tried to return home on his own earlier this year. Lvova-Belova told reporters in April that Russian authorities caught Yerkmohin near Russias border with Belarus on his way to Ukraine. The ombudswoman argued that he was being taken there under false pretenses. Before he was allowed to leave Russia, lawyer Bobrovska described an urgent need for Yermokhin to return to Ukraine before his 18th birthday, when he would become eligible for conscription into the Russian army. The teenager had received two official notices to attend a military enlistment office in Russia, although officials later said he had only been summoned for record-keeping purposes. Last month, Ukraines human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said in his Telegram channel that a total of 386 children have been brought back to Ukraine from Russia. Ukraine will work until it returns everyone to their homeland, Lubinets stressed. ___ Find more coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine KYIV TIRANA, Albania (AP) Albanias former health minister, who is being investigated for alleged corruption, must report to police and not leave the country, prosecutors said Saturday. Prosecutors with the countrys Special Court Against Corruption and Organized Crime said Ilir Beqaj should report to prosecutors every Friday and may not use his passport or identity card to leave the country. The special prosecution agency was created in 2019 to handle corruption and other crime cases involving senior officials. Beqaj, 55, resigned his post as head of a government agency coordinating international assistance. He was the minister of health from 2013-2017 as part of the governing Socialist Party of Prime Minister Edi Rama. Beqaj is accused of corruption and abuse of power in a tender on a government project to sterilize medical items. He has denied the accusations but said he would respect the prosecutors order. He also resigned from the government post. Fighting corruption has been post-communist Albanias Achilles heel, strongly affecting the countrys democratic, economic and social development. New judicial institutions have launched several investigations into former senior government officials allegedly involved in corruption. One former minister served a jail term. Former prime minister and president Sali Berisha, now a lawmaker, is also accused of corruption, but he has defied prosecutors orders to report and not to leave the country, saying they should first ask the parliament. Other former ministers and mayors have also been arrested or are under investigation on corruption charges. ___ Follow Llazar Semini at https://twitter.com/lsemini By LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said Saturday that his country and Azerbaijan are speaking different diplomatic languages even though they were able to agree on the basic principles for a peace treaty. Azerbaijan waged a lightning military campaign in September in the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The offensive ended three decades of rule there by ethnic Armenians and resulted in the vast majority of the 120,000 residents fleeing the region, which is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan. Addressing the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Pashinyan said it was good that the basic principles of peace with Azerbaijan have been agreed upon. The principles include Armenia and Azerbaijan recognizing each others territorial integrity. But Armenian state news agency Armenpress quoted Pashinyan as going on to say, We have good and bad news about the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process. He said that Azerbaijan did not publicly comment on the agreed-upon peace outline announced last month, making him question its commitment and fostering what Pashinyan described as an atmosphere of mistrust. Rhetoric by Azerbaijani officials that he said included referring to Armenia as Western Azerbaijan leaves the door open for further military aggression against Armenia, the prime minister said. This seems to us to be preparation for a new war, a new military aggression against Armenia, and it is one of the main obstacles to progress in the peace process, Pashinyan said. The OSCEs Parliamentary Assembly opened its fall meeting on Saturday in Yerevan, Armenias capital. On Thursday, the government of Azerbaijan said it would not participate in normalization talks with Armenia that were planned to take place in the United States later this month. California Scientists Strike View Photo SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) Thousands of scientists who work for California began a rolling three-day strike Wednesday the first walkout by a state civil service union. Members of the California Association of Professional Scientists marched under cloudy skies in Sacramento to protest lack of progress in contract talks. The walkout will spread to Los Angeles, Oakland and other cities on Thursday and Friday. The union represents about 5,200 members who work in more than 50 state departments and deal with issues ranging from air pollution and toxic waste control to earthquake hazards and agricultural pests, according to its website. Members have been without a contract since 2020 despite bargaining and mediation. The membership rejected a tentative agreement earlier this year. Another state mediation session is planned for Nov. 28. It is the first time that state workers have struck since civil servants won collective bargaining rights in 1977, The Sacramento Bee reported. Nobody wants to be on strike, and nobody wants to be the first, the unions president, Jacqueline Tkac, told the Bee. But it feels really inspiring to know that we have people that are so fired up about our situation that theyre willing to go out on strike for the first time and take that risk. Last week, the California Department of Human Resources filed a complaint of unfair labor practices against the union in an attempt to prevent the strike. On Wednesday, the department said it was disappointed by the strike and that the state continues to bargain in good faith. The state will continue to work with CAPS to achieve a fair successor agreement as we have with other bargaining units, department spokesperson Camille Travis said in an email. The unions main concern is higher wages. It says state scientists are paid 40% to 60% less than comparable positions who have the same level of responsibility and do similar or identical work. WASHINGTON (AP) Panda lovers in America received a much-needed injection of hope when Chinese President Xi Jinping said Wednesday that his government was ready to continue lending the black and white icons to American zoos. But it wasnt certain when or where the pandas might be coming, although Xi gave a hint that California zoogoers, especially those in San Diego, might have reason to celebrate. Heres a look at where things stand: U.S. panda woes The number of giant pandas in American zoos has steadily dwindled as multiple exchange agreements have expired and not been renewed. The San Diego Zoo sent its pandas home in 2019 and the last bear at the Memphis, Tennessee, zoo went home earlier this year. Washingtons National Zoo sent its three pandas Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and their cub, Xiao Qi Ji to China one week ago. Currently the only pandas in America are at the Atlanta Zoo, and that loan agreement expires next year. Veteran China-watchers have speculated that the Peoples Republic was gradually pulling its bears from American and European zoos due to tensions with Western governments over a host of issues. Xi on panda diplomacy Speaking Wednesday at a dinner with business leaders on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco, Xi called the bears envoys of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples. We are ready to continue our cooperation with the United States on panda conservation, and do our best to meet the wishes of the Californians so as to deepen the friendly ties between our two peoples, he said, appearing to suggest that the next pair could be coming to San Diego. He added, I was told that many American people, especially children, were really reluctant to say goodbye to the pandas, and went to the zoo to see them off. Panda watchers encouraged Although his statement was short on specifics, observers and experts described it as a clear indication that the panda exchange program would be renewed. It looks like a pretty strong statement to me, said Daniel Ashe, CEO of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Thats very encouraging and were anxious to see the next steps. Dennis Wilder, a senior fellow at Georgetown Universitys Initiative for U.S.-China Dialogue on Global Issues, called it a victory and said Xis statement sent a clear signal that stalled negotiations with different American zoos could properly begin again. What hes doing is he is giving the green light to the conservation society to go ahead and cut deals, Wilder said. If Im at the National Zoo, Im probably contacting my counterpart and saying, Can we move forward now? San Diego Zoo as front-runner Wilder said Xis specific mention of California could have been a result of him speaking to a California audience, but said it could also be due to California Gov. Gavin Newsoms recent goodwill trip to China. Whatever the reason, San Diego Zoo officials were hopeful. We are excited to hear of President Xis commitment in continuing the giant panda conservation efforts between our two countries, and his attention to the wish of Californians and the San Diego Zoo to see the return of giant pandas, said Paul A. Baribault, president and chief executive officer of the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. Conservation starts with people, and our team is committed to working with our partners to welcome the next generation of giant pandas to our zoo, continuing our joint efforts in wildlife conservation, and inspiring millions worldwide to protect the planet we all share. What about the National Zoo? The Smithsonians National Zoo was the first U.S. institution to get giant pandas. The first pair, Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing, arrived in 1972. The latest duo and their cub were returned to China on Nov. 8. It is a moment with some heartbreak in it, National Zoo Director Brandie Smith said at the time. But it is also a moment of joy because we are celebrating the success of the worlds longest running conservation program for a single species. National Zoo officials have been consistently tight-lipped about the status of any negotiations to bring pandas back to Washington, and attempts to seek comment on Xis statement did not receive a response. But Wilder said he expected the National Zoo to also be chosen due to the zoos prominence and status in the nations capital, plus decades of experience in panda care. The Chinese reaction Chinese public sentiment has been heavily in favor of bringing all the bears in America back. When Le Le, a male panda on loan to the zoo in Memphis, died suddenly in February, it touched off a fierce online campaign in China accusing the Americans of mistreating the bears. However, Wilder said Chinese state media which helped fuel the anti-American sentiment could easily pivot. Chinese propaganda can turn on a dime. They are really good at reconfiguring a story, he said. What they can do in their internal media is basically say, Our benevolent leader is giving the Americans a second chance. Timing uncertain With the political obstacles seemingly out of the way, and a green light from the very top, the wheels could turn quickly. When it comes from the supreme leader in China, it moves, Wilder said. It will move fast now. But the exact timing could be impacted by the recipient zoos physical readiness to accept and care for the bears. The San Diego Zoo has been panda-less for four years and may need to upgrade or refurbish its facilities. The National Zoo had announced plans to renovate its panda house and outdoor enclosure, but the timing on those plans is unclear. ___ Associated Press writers Didi Tang in San Francisco and Amy Taxin in Santa Ana, California, contributed to this report. By ASHRAF KHALIL Associated Press MISSION, Kan. (AP) A Kansas grade school forced an 8-year-old Native American boy to cut off his hair after he grew it out for cultural reasons, the American Civil Liberties Union said. In a letter sent Friday, the ACLU demanded that the Girard School District rescind a policy at the elementary school that bars long hair for boys, alleging it violates state and federal laws. The boy, who is member of the Wyandotte Nation, attended an annual tribal gathering geared toward children over the summer. He saw many men with long hair and was inspired to adopt the common cultural practice of cutting hair only when mourning the loss of a loved one, according to the ACLU. But in August, school officials told him that he needed to cut his hair to comply with the dress code, the ACLU said. His mother went to the school in September and explained that he grew out his hair for cultural reasons and offered to show documentation of his tribal affiliation. The ACLU said she was told there were no exemptions. The assistant principal then emailed the mother on a Friday, telling her she had until the following Monday to get her sons hair cut or he would be sent home. Unable to reach the superintendent, she cut her sons hair over that September weekend, convinced it was the only way to keep him in school. But she said it caused him distress because it violated his spiritual tradition. The superintendent, Todd Ferguson, said in an email that he cant discuss individual students, families or employees because of confidentiality laws. But he added that the board of education would review the dress code policy during a December meeting. Nothing matters more than creating a safe, respectful and caring school for every student, he said. The ACLUs letter said the nations history of multifaceted efforts to separate Native American children from their families and tribes and to deny them their rights of cultural and religious expression makes this particularly problematic. It noted that Native American children often had their hair cut when they were placed in boarding schools, which systematically abused students to assimilate them into white society. The letter said there is no legitimate reason for imposing the requirement, noting that girls are allowed to have long hair. The policy also promotes rigid views of gender norms and roles, the letter said. Girard has a population of around 2,500 and is located about 115 miles (185 kilometers) south of Kansas City. By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press As of 7:30 am on November 19, the Russian terrorist army withdrew its ships from the Black and Azov Seas. All enemy missile launchers are at their home bases. ADVERTISIMENT At the same time, over the past day, 4 ships sailed through the Kerch Strait in favor of the terrorist country of the Russian Federation. This was reported by the command of the Ukrainian Navy. The Ukrainian Navy noted that the aggressor continues to violate the 1974 International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) by disabling the automatic identification system (AIS). They also noted that Russia continues to keep its ships in the Mediterranean. In particular, there is one Kalibr cruise missile carrier with a total volley of up to 8 missiles. The Ventusky weather service reports that as of 8:00 a.m. on November 19, a strong storm is raging in the Black Sea. The average wave height off the coast of the temporarily occupied Crimea reaches 3.7 meters. The absence of enemy ships in the Black and Azov Seas is likely connected to difficult weather conditions. In addition, it is known that the Russian invaders have relocated most of the ships from the temporarily occupied Sevastopol to Novorossiysk and Tuapse. ADVERTISIMENT As a reminder, Ukraine has significantly damaged the enemy fleet during the full-scale war with Russia. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, 15 Russian warships have been destroyed and 12 more vessels have been damaged. Earlier, it was reported that on September 13, 2023, the Defense Forces fired missiles at a shipyard in the temporarily occupied Sevastopol. Three fire epicenters were recorded at Sevmorzavod. ADVERTISIMENT As reported by OBOZ.UA, the Russian terrorist army has not been using Kalibr sea-launched cruise missiles to strike Ukraine for a long time. Such pauses in attacks from the Black Sea may be related to the enemy's logistics problems. Only verified information is available on our Telegram OBOZ.UA and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Trump picks up the endorsement of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott during a visit to a US-Mexico border town Trump picks up the endorsement of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott during a visit to a US-Mexico border town View Photo EDINBURG, Texas (AP) Donald Trump picked up the Texas governors endorsement Sunday during a visit to a U.S.-Mexico border town and promised that his hard-line immigration policies in a second presidential term would make Greg Abbotts job much easier. Youll be able to focus on other things in Texas, Trump told Abbott as they each appeared before a crowd of about 150 at an airport hangar in Edinburg. Abbott, a longtime ally and fellow border hawk, said he was proud to endorse the former president, who is the Republican Partys front-runner for the 2024 nomination. We need a president whos going to secure the border, Abbott said, speaking in a town that is about 30 miles from the Hidalgo Port of Entry crossing with Mexico. We need Donald J. Trump back as our president of the United States of America. Earlier, Trump served meals to Texas National Guard soldiers, troopers and others who will be stationed at the border over Thanksgiving. Trump and Abbott handed out tacos, and the former president shook hands and posed for pictures. What you do is incredible, and you want it to be done right, Trump told them. Abbott said about the Guard members and Texas troopers who are stationed at the border: They should not be here at this time. They should be at home. He said that the only reason why they are here is because we have a president of the United States of America who is not securing our border. Trump has been laying out immigration proposals that would mark a dramatic escalation of the approach he used in office and that drew alarms from civil rights activists and numerous court challenges. Though Trump has peppered campaign speeches with his immigration plans, he only made brief remarks in border country on Sunday. He spoke for only about 10 minutes against a backdrop of state police choppers, a plane and an armed patrol boat all used by Texas at the border. Trump did not get into the policies he would pursue if elected. He did complain about inflation, the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and news media coverage. He said most technology outside of wheels and walls eventually becomes obsolete. We just need the walls. And it worked, Trump said. His plan calls for building more of the wall along the border. He also wants to: revive and expand his controversial travel ban, which initially targeted seven Muslim-majority countries. Trumps initial executive order was fought all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld what Trump complained was a watered down version that included travelers from North Korea and some Venezuelan officials. begin new ideological screening for all immigrants, aiming to bar Christian-hating communists and Marxists and dangerous lunatics, haters, bigots and maniacs from entering the United States. Those who come to and join our country must love our country, he has said. bar those who support Hamas. If you empathize with radical Islamic terrorists and extremists, youre disqualified, Trump says. If you want to abolish the state of Israel, youre disqualified. If you support Hamas or any ideology thats having to do with that or any of the other really sick thoughts that go through peoples minds very dangerous thoughts youre disqualified. deport immigrants living in the country who harbor jihadist sympathies and send immigration agents to pro-jihadist demonstrations to identify violators. He would target foreign nationals on college campuses and revoke the student visas of those who express anti-American or antisemitic views. invoke the Alien Enemies Act to to remove from the United States all known or suspected gang members and drug dealers. That law was used to justify internment camps in World War II. It allows the president to unilaterally detain and deport people who are not U.S. citizens. end the constitutional right to birthright citizenship by signing an executive order his first day in office that would codify a legally untested reinterpretation of the 14th Amendment. Under his order, only children with at least one U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident parent would be eligible for a passport, Social Security number and other benefits. terminate all work permits and cut off funding for shelter and transportation for people who are in the country illegally. crack down on legal asylum-seekers and reimplement measures such as Title 42, which allowed Trump to turn away immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border on the grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19. press Congress to pass a law so anyone caught trafficking women or children would receive the death penalty. shift federal law enforcement agents, including FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration personnel, to immigration enforcement, and reposition at the southern border thousands of troops currently stationed overseas. Before we defend the borders of foreign countries we must secure the border of our country, he said said. Trump has made frequent trips to the border as a candidate and president. During his 2016 campaign, he traveled to Laredo, Texas in July 2015 for a visit that highlighted how his views on immigration helped him win media attention and support from the GOP base. The border has also become a centerpiece of Abbotts agenda and the subject of an escalating fight with the Biden administration over immigration. The three-term governor has approved billions of dollars in new border wall construction, authorized razor wire on the banks of the Rio Grande and bused thousands of migrants to Democrat-led cities across the United States. Abbott is expected to soon sign what would be one of Texas most aggressive measures to date: a law that allows police officers to arrest migrants suspected of entering the country illegally and empowers judges to effectively deport them. The measure is a dramatic challenge to the U.S. governments authority over immigration. It already has already drawn rebuke from Mexico. Still, the Texas GOPs hard right has not always embraced Abbott. Trump posted on his social media platform earlier this year that the governor was MISSING IN ACTION! after Republicans voted to impeach Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Trump ally. Abbott was also booed at a 2022 Trump rally. But Abbotts navigation within the GOP has built him broad support in Texas, where he has outperformed more strident Republicans down-ballot and helped the GOP make crucial inroads with Hispanic voters. Democrats tried to use the trip to portray Trumps plans as extreme. Donald Trump is going after immigrants, our rights our safety and our democracy. And that is what really is on the ballot last year, Biden reelection campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said on a conference call with reporters. Pollings show many voters arent satisfied with the Biden administrations handling of the border. A Marquette Law School poll of registered voters conducted in late September gave Trump a 24-point advantage over Biden on handling immigration and border security issues 52% to 28%. ___ Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Will Weissert in Wilmington, Delaware, contributed to this report. By JILL COLVIN, PAUL J. WEBER and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press MERIDEN A new Puerto Rican spot opened on East Main and is offering authentic dishes from the Caribbean island to their customers. Puerto Rican Taste is located on 620 East Main St, the former location of El Jibarito Takeout which also served Puerto Rican food. Iris Montes de Oca, 62, bought the business three months ago when she decided to follow her dream of opening her own restaurant. I have been cooking ever since I was young, she said. I love to cook for friends, family and the community. Montes de Oca was born in Manhattan but moved to Aguada, Puerto Rico with her family at just three months old. She grew up on the island, and that is where her mother taught her how to cook. Now, owning her own restaurant, Montes de Oca serves the food she grew up cooking. She cooks at the restaurant alongside her boyfriend Eddie Gonzalez who also cooked at El Jibarito. The restaurant serves a variety of Puerto Rican dishes like arroz con gandules (rice with pigeon peas), pernil (pork), carne guisada (beef stew), avichuelas (beans), Papa rellena (fried stuffed potatoes) and chicken, beef, and pizza empanadas among other items. My favorite dish to make is the arroz con gandules, Montes de Oca said. Its one of the staples at family gatherings. A popular item on the menu at Puerto Rican Taste is the Bacalaitos, known in English as Codfish Fritters. Everything is made from scratch, Montes de Oca said. We offer a quality experience to our customers. Monin Valentin, a Meriden resident, went to the restaurant to try the food. The place was very clean and the owner was very friendly, Valentin said. The food is very delicious. When opening the restaurant, Montes de Oca received help from her children and Gonzalez. LiyannIes Hernandez helped her mother set up their social media account and the menu. We also have a whole menu of dessert that customers can choose from, Hernandez said. The cakes are Puerto Rican style and are moist throughout the inside. Flavors include coconut, lemon, almonds and chocolate. There are also four flavors of flan: vanilla, cream cheese, nutella and pumpkin. We want our customers to enjoy everything Puerto Rico has to offer, Montes de Oca said. Giving back to people in need on Thanksgiving On Thursday, Montes de Oca is hosting a Thanksgiving dinner for people in need. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Puerto Rican Taste will be serving arroz con gandules, Pernil and ensalada de papa (potato salad) among other items. She invites those who wont be having a Thanksgiving dinner that day to stop by and grab a plate. I wanted to do something for Thanksgiving because there are families who wont have a plate of food, she said. They deserve a warm plate and I have the ability to help. celescano@record-journal.com Part one in a two-part series. John Silva was suddenly taken to Hartford Hospital following a brief stroke-like attack last year. He is deaf and has relied on the hospitals American Sign Language interpreting service for over 40 years. John and his wife Kim, who is hard of hearing, expected to have access to in-person interpreters. However, no in-person sign language interpreters were available when they arrived. Medical staff could also not find the video remote interpreting (VRI) system, typically on an iPad or computer. Kim Silva said the staff eventually located a VRI system, but only had access to it for an hour since other patients also needed it. John Silva was left to wait six hours for an interpreter to arrive. An in-person interpreter eventually arrived to care for another patient but was able to stay with John and Kim for an hour. Ultimately, John needed to undergo a series of examinations and scans with lip-read instructions and relied on a speech-to-text transcriber he provided during the discharge process. The Silvas, of Hartford, are just one of hundreds of deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind Connecticut residents experiencing issues accessing sign language interpreting services at medical centers across the state, resulting in worsened health outcomes for the community. Somethings wrong with the system, John Silva signed. Whats the law? The Americans with Disabilities Act requires that all health-care providers offer patients effective communication means through auxiliary aids or services and promptly supply them for free. Accommodations for individuals who use sign language can include in-person or video remote interpreting with qualified interpreters, notetakers, cued speech translators, tactical interpreters or text-based services. The law requires that hospitals obtain and pay for interpreter services and cant request patients to bring their own interpreter to an appointment. Patients also have the right to request a different communication means or a different interpreter than the one provided. Most medical providers will provide more than one communication style type; however, these are often limited, especially regarding in-person interpreting, said Luisa Gasco-Soboleski, president of the Connecticut Association of the Deaf and friend of the Silvas. We want equal access and if there's no interpreter, then we don't have equal access, Soboleski, of Southington, expressed through sign language. National studies show that communication issues can result in worsened health outcomes for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deafblind, which is a combination of vision and hearing loss. For example, a comparison study on access for deaf individuals by Idaho State University found that people who are deaf have fewer physician visits due to communication issues but are more likely to access care through an emergency room. In a medical appointment, lack of communication can lead to misunderstandings of diagnosis, poor adherence to treatment regimens and patients being less likely to ask questions or advocate for themselves. This could also contribute to feelings of fear, mistrust and frustration. Among patients who didnt receive the interpreting service they requested, 82% couldnt understand their diagnosis, 70% couldnt understand the treatment guidelines, and 63% discontinued their care in 2010, according to a study in the Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice. Following her husbands stroke-like attack, Kim Silva said shes terrified of hospitals and the potential treatment they would receive. The Silvas said they experienced issues during the follow-up appointments at the Hartford Hospital Stroke Center with medical staff not knowing where their video remote interpreting system was located or how to use it. They also didnt have in-person interpreters available. She said it felt like they were drowning every time their requests for in-person interpreters or VRI were dismissed. Nobody knew what I was talking about, Kim Silva said in English and in American Sign Language. Routine appointments hardly routine Just setting up an appointment can be a challenge for a person who is deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind, said Gasco-Soboleski. Cherry Byrnes, who is deaf and blind, has had over 30 appointments canceled since January because an interpreter wasnt available. The Manchester native began losing hearing and sight as a teenager and has been using tactile interpreters since. Unlike sign language interpreting, tactile interpreters sign into their clients hands, which allows the client to follow the conversation through motion. In addition, tactile interpreting requires more in-depth descriptions, such as setting, describing peoples clothes and their actions. Byrnes has had to switch health providers throughout the years due to the lack of tactile interpreters. She said that routine appointments, such as her physical, were being constantly rescheduled even though she was experiencing migraines and joint pain. There were also many times when she arrived at her appointment on time, but a tactile interpreter wasnt available, so she was dismissed by medical staff. For example, Byrnes said she was discharged even though she complained about pain to the doctors. A few days later, she was taken to the emergency room, where doctors discovered two hernias after an interpreter helped her communicate. Even with video remote, Byrnes said she still needs a tactile interpreter to help describe what the remote interpreter looks like and what they are signing to her. Whenever she brought up her need for a tactical interpreter with the medical staff, she felt they were pointing fingers to explain the lack of an interpreter. Medical centers are blaming interpreters and interpreters [are] blaming health care, who knows where the problem or the breakdown was, Byrnes said in American Sign Language. But in the meantime, I just need interpreters and was being ignored and pushed away. Byrnes currently has lost 90% of her vision and the doctors that have met with her said that the additional stresses worsened it. She added these constant cancellations and rescheduling are taking a toll on her immediate family, especially her daughter, who is now Byrnes full-time caregiver. I want to fight for my rights. I want to get my interpreters, she said. I need to meet with the doctors to meet my needs. (Health is) very important to me, I can't stop. I need to fight for this. Whats happening in Connecticut hospitals? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 5.6% of Connecticut residents 18 years or older have a hearing disability. The highest rates are among residents over 65, making up 16.3%. Gasco-Soboleski said Connecticut was one of the leading states in deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind services and accommodations for a long time. A statewide needs assessment released in February from Innivee Strategies and the American School of the Deaf, based in West Hartford, found many other deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind residents took similar pride in Connecticuts services. For example, Connecticut was the first state to create a Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in 1974 and implement telecommunications devices and interpreting services in hospitals in the 1990s. Gasco-Soboleski explained that the commission acted as a watchdog to address grievances and provide training to businesses and medical centers. It was also the central resource for medical centers to hire interpreters. However, she said that the commission shut its doors in 2016, significantly worsening communication access for all deaf individuals throughout the state. As of February, only 50% of the 101 deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind respondents felt that current interpreting standards in the state were satisfactory, according to the report from Inivee Strategies and the American School of the Deaf. Meanwhile, over 65% felt interpreting standards needed to be established. For example, more than 40% of the respondents said they prefer in-person interpreter services to communicate with a medical provider; however, they were instead provided with video remote (30%), paper and pen (22%), lip-reading (18%) and gesturing (11%). Similarly, over 60% reported receiving their preferred communication method never or only sometimes In addition, even if all the technology worked properly, many respondents said that video remote is an insufficient form of communication since sign language relies on body language and physical space, which may not translate through a screen. There are also regional grammatical and linguistic components of sign language that an interpreter from outside the state may not know. The statewide report found that the only hospital system with several sign language interpreters on staff is UConn Health. As a result, respondents traveled over an hour to receive care. Gasco-Soboleski added that the lack of a centralized group like the commission makes reporting civil rights violations much more difficult. For example, the state Attorney Generals Office has settled four lawsuits against Connecticut hospitals since 2019. In addition, the Silvas and Byrnes have met with their hospital system after filing grievances with Soboleskis help. However, they are unsure what the next steps are. More than just Connecticut However, Commissioner Amy Porter of the states Department of Aging and Disability Services emphasized that the issues with providing sign language interpretation are not unique to Connecticut. There has been a shortage of sign language interpreters for many years, she said. The number of interpreters working in Connecticut is generally similar each year; however, not all the interpreters are local, Porter said. Interpreters working remotely outside of Connecticut are still required to register with the state, she said, so the number of in-person interpreters is smaller than the number registered, making it more difficult to track. There are currently 362 registered interpreters in Connecticut, according to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Interpreter Registry. However, Porter said that more and more interpreters are opting to work remotely due to its ease and flexibility. In addition, not enough people are entering the interpreting field to balance it out. We have some phenomenal interpreters in the state but I think there's not a lot of new folks coming in, so that's an issue that I think we'll need to address, Porter said. Hartford HealthCare declined to comment on individual complaints but discussed the organizations efforts to address the barriers. Gerry Lupacchino, senior vice president of human experience with Hartford HealthCare, said that many hospitals, including Hartford HealthCare, face challenges in providing interpretation, such as consumers changing communication preferences, high turnover of staff and the interpreter shortage. Similarly, Lupacchino noted that although many individuals in the Deaf community prefer in-person interpreting, the shortage makes hiring them difficult, especially in emergencies, since the other hospital systems are also competing for their services. Lupacchino also said VRI options are available at all Hartford HealthCare locations, and with turnover, its important to be sure staff members are trained. He estimated that 52% of current frontline staff are new to Hartford HealthCare and many will rise through the ranks to fill leadership roles. Lupacchino explained that this high turnover makes tracking who has received VRI training difficult. He added that sign language training resources through outside resources, such as community colleges, have decreased over the years. There wasnt a go-to person per se that felt the highest level of confidence and competence in managing or facilitating the use of the device, Lupacchino said. We've been working on making sure that that's more consistent as well. Barriers impact? As hospitals work to address these access issues, the needs of the deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind are often not met. For example, when Mark Bouchard was hospitalized for suicide ideation and addiction recovery, he never imagined how frustrating accessing basic services would be. Bouchard, who was born deaf, was admitted to Meridens MidState Medical Center for overnight hold and mental evaluation in late June. Between grieving his fathers passing the year prior, recovering from alcohol addiction and years of inconsistent employment, he thought his life was over. Even though he requested an in-person interpreter, Bouchard was provided a VRI device during his overnight stay because he was told it was his only option. On top of already being in this fragile state, now I have to try and communicate with hearing people who dont understand my language, he said in sign language. Following the discharge from MidState, Bouchard was transferred to Hartford HealthCares Institute of Living in Hartford for inpatient mental health services. He said the staff were attentive there and provided an interpreter for most of his stay. However, he noted that the Institute of Living had recently reached a settlement in a lawsuit regarding sign language interpretation and felt that he was receiving the resulting benefits. Bouchard was eventually transferred to Rushford Medical in Meriden for outpatient service and support group five days a week with an in-person interpreter. He explained Rushford had around two weeks to hire interpreters before he started because of a family vacation to Cape Cod that he had scheduled earlier in the year. He hoped that the two-week break between care could act as a buffer period for Rushford to secure interpreters. However, Bouchard said that access ended up being hot and cold. He said that sometimes hed have an in-person interpreter, while on other days he would need to rely on VRI, which is difficult in a group setting. He described how he would run around the room with the VRI, so the interpreter on the phone could hear what the group member was saying and then sign. Although he brought up his concerns to the medical staff, the in-person interpreter service was still unreliable. Bouchard said that these additional stresses left him deflated and ultimately pushed him to relapse into drugs after two years sober. If I were a hearing person, I would just be able to go into this facility and, boom, my recovery would be on track, Bouchard said. Whereas, now, because of all these issues, I feel like my recovery was really delayed. Despite these challenges, Bouchard was hopeful to continue working with the Rushford support groups after developing meaningful relationships with the members. However, Bouchard said he was asked to start attending support groups in Waterbury, which he described as a toxic area due to easy access to drugs and alcohol. Bouchard said the staff responses to his needs felt cold and uncaring, especially after a good experience with the Institute of Living. Its infuriating to carry this load all of the time. I dont understand how that could ever be considered an equitable experience. It definitely doesnt feel fair, Bouchard said. Since finishing with Rushford, Bouchard has been working on his mental health with his therapist and has built support through his connection in the Deaf community. For example, Bouchard began working with Gasco-Soboleski at the Connecticut Deaf Association and filed grievances against MidState and Rushford. To make an analogy, nobody wants to drown, right? Bouchard questioned. We all want to be able to keep our head above the water, but I feel like hearing people have this life jacket and deaf people don't. We're just constantly treading, trying to keep our head above water, and it almost feels like when they deny us [communication] access, they sort of shackle us, pulling us under. cvillalonga@record-journal.com 203-317-2448 Health Equity reporter Cris Villalonga-Vivoni is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms. They can be reached at cvillalonga@record-journal.com and 203-317-2448. Support RFA reporters through a donation at https://bit.ly/3Pdb0re. By Lambert Strether of Corrente. The tradition of all the dead generations weighs like a nightmare on the brain of the living The Bearded One So here I am, typing along, having delegated the striking of keys to a subsytem, with some success, backspacing errors and retracing my thought, meticulously selecting this or that word from my vast armory of words, or that other word over there. The question of whether I have free will (whatever that might mean) isnt really top of mind for me, at the present moment. Im too busy! The average American makes 35,000 remotely conscious (ditto) choices (ditto) a day, and if I bang out 2,000 words or so starting now, I will have exercised my free well above baseline. Of course, I cant choose just any word Nobody knows anything, as screenwriter William Goldman remarked. As I have pointed out, repeatedly, we know very little about what is most important to us. We dont know why we are conscious, why we have (or dont have) sex (verb or noun), or why we die. Or why we love, why we laugh, why we sleep, why we wake, or the point of this post, and I do have one why we dream. From the Sleep Foundation: Sleep experts continue to study what happens in the brain during sleep, but no one knows for sure why we dream. We are said to spend two hours out of every twenty-four dreaming, or eight percent of hour time on this earth. And yet we dont know why. Most people remember their dreams, at least some of them; others dont. Nobody knows why that is, either. We are, at least, able to define what a dream is, or at least seems to be. More or less. Sleep Foundation: Dreams are mental, emotional, or sensory experiences that take place during sleep. WebMD: Dreams are basically stories and images that our mind creates while we sleep. My OED app: A series of thoughts, images, sensations, or emotions occurring in the mind during sleep I think we can all agree any one of those definitions works, even if there are big differences between them when you look closely (experiences v. stories v. series; take place v. mind creates v. occuring in the mind).[1] I keep buzzing ineffectually around all these altered states sleeping, waking, brainworms, now dreaming because of our republics response to the ongoing Covid pandemic. The level of denial (its just the flu), cope (hybrid immunity), and willful ignorance, especially among the powerful (droplet dogma) seems to me to be staggering; like a real life Stepford Wives, a zombie movie, or, more to the point, The Last of Us. Are we really awake? Are we really conscious? Are we in a state of light hypnosis? Are we narcotized? Do we dream while we are awake? I do not mean any of these questions metaphorically; I believe there is a nightmare weighing on our brains for which an account must be given, exactly in the same way that SARS-CoV-2 was shown to be airborne using the seating chart of a bus, knowledge of patterns of air circulation, and elementary logic. Surely, things were not always like this? In a Republic, [the people] assemble and administer [government] by their representatives and agents. But what if a very large portion of the people of which the representatives and agents are a subset are terribly impaired?[2] How is it possible for us to to say and do (Let me see your smile) the things we do? Well, Im not going to answer these questions today (and, readers, if you can, I am most anxious to hear). Or give the account that I seek. What I can do is run through the conventional (and some unconventional) thinking on why we dream, and place that thinking in the context of the current nightmare. There are two main buckets into which I can throw dream theorizing, but before I do, one caveat. From WebMD: There are many theories about why we dream, but no one knows for sure. Again, nobody knows anything, so Im not entirely justified in skipping over the possibility that God may be speaking to us through dreams, as in the Bible, or that dreams are omens, as for the ancient Egyptians. But Im going to do it anyhow. Ill call one bucket Equilibrium; and the other Embodiment. Equilibrium. I plowed through a good deal of middlebrow literature on dreams, and I might as well quote HealthLine, because it recites the various, closely allied conventional wisdoms in jargon-free language (i.e., no Freud): Though theres no definitive proof, dreams are usually autobiographical thoughts based on your recent activities, conversations, or other issues in your life. However, there are some popular theories on the role of dreams. Your dreams may be ways of confronting emotional dramas in your life [B]ecause the amygdala is more active during sleep than in your waking life, it may be the brains way of getting you ready to deal with a threat [Dreaming] helps facilitate our creative tendencies. [Dreams] help you store important memories and things youve learned, get rid of unimportant memories, and sort through complicated thoughts and feelings. In all cases, equilibrium disturbed during the day is restored, by dreaming, at night. Embodiment. And now for something unconventional. In The New Yorker, What Are Dreams For?, August 2023, we learn of a neuroscientist named Mark Blumberg. Blumberg begins with a new way to look at REM sleep: People, he knew, also twitch during sleep: our muscles contract to make small, sharp movements, and our closed eyes dart from side to side in a phenomenon known as rapid eye movement, or REM Human adults spend only about two hours of each night in REM sleep. But fetuses, by the third trimester, are in REM for around twenty hours a day In adults, dreams are offshoots of waking life: we have experiences, then we dream about them. But a baby in the womb hasnt had any experiences. Why spend so much time in REM before you have anything to dream about? [Blumbergs] videos attest to the apparent universality of twitching: not only do many animals twitch in REM but they start before theyre born. After finding that sleep twitches in early development arent caused by activity in the cortex, Blumberg increasingly wondered whether it might be the other way aroundperhaps the twitches were sending signals to the brain. And the key point: In a series of papers, Blumberg articulated his theory that the brain uses REM sleep to learn the body . You wouldnt think that the body is something a brain needs to learn, but we arent born with maps of our bodies; we cant be, because our bodies change by the day, and because the body a fetus ends up becoming might differ from the one encoded in its genome. Infants must learn about the body they have, Blumberg told me. Not the body they were supposed to have. As a human fetus, the thinking goes, you have nine months in a dark womb to figure out your body . If you can identify which motor neurons control which muscles, which body parts connect, and what it feels like to move them in different combinations, youll later be able to use your body as a yardstick against which to measure the sensations you encounter outside. Its easier to sense food in your mouth if you know the feeling of a freely moving tongue; its easier to detect a wall in front of you if you know what your extended arm feels like unimpeded. In waking life, we dont tend to move only a single muscle; even the simple act of swallowing employs some thirty pairs of nerves and muscles working together. Our sleep twitches, by contrast, are exacting and precise; they engage muscles one at a time. Twitches dont look anything like waking movements, Blumberg told me. They allow you to form discrete connections that otherwise would be impossible. The kicker: Its a process thats most important in infancy, but Blumberg thinks this might continue throughout our lives, as we grow and shrink, suffer injuries and strokes, make new motor memories and learn new skills . Blumberg plays the drums, and, when he learns a new rhythm, he wonders whether sleep is involved. You struggle and struggle for several days, then one day you wake up and start playing and boomits automatic, he said. Did sleep play a role in that? If I had been recording my limb movements, would I have seen something interesting? That keeps me up at night. Blumbergs theory really appeals to me, partly because he takes the otherwise inexplicable fact of twitching and makes revelatory sense of it, but mostly because theres now a plausible mechanism. I do see that I have conflated REM sleep and dreaming, whereas in fact all we know is that REM sleep and dreams occur at the same time, but heck, all the other kids are doing it. The Atlantic makes exactly that point: Blumberg argues that the brain uses REM sleep to test-drive the body. The brain pings the neurons that control muscles, creating twitches; it then collects sensory information from those moving limbs. By testing those connections during times of stillness, it can refine and recalibrate the network to work more efficiently during times of wakeful chaos. According to this view, REM-phase movements arent about dreams at all. Theyre the work of a brain thats learning how to more effectively pilot a body. Blue-skying freely: This argument doesnt make sense to me (whether Blumberg or the Atlantic writer I cant say). A test-drive by definition is if we go back to our definitions of dreams experiences v. stories v. series. Ditto piloting, if we replace test drive with flight plan. A dream would be the brain/minds way of twithing what needs to be twitched in the proper order. So I stan for embodiment. (Dont ask me why the brain just doesnt send a signal directly to whatever it wants to twitch; evolution is something of a bricolage; and in any case, the brain isnt learning how to, say, lift a leg; its learning how to run.) Now lets turn to the content of dreams, which necessarily have to come from the world the dreamer inhabits, in which they run. Covid shows up in dreams. From Nature and the Science of Sleep, How our Dreams Changed During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Effects and Correlates of Dream Recall Frequency a Multinational Study on 19,355 Adults: In the early stages of the COVID-19 crisis, a study in China observed a higher frequency of pandemic-related dreams, which were associated with higher levels of psychological distress. This finding of qualitative changes in dreams during the pandemic is in line with the continuity hypotheses, which suggests that emotional waking experiences are reflected in dreams. There appears to be demographic differences in dream recall. In an Italian survey 20% of the sample reported having dreams with explicit COVID-19 references, with women reporting higher [Dream Recall Frequency (DRF)] (50.8% of women were high recallers, 39.4% of men were high recallers), emotional intensity, and negative emotions in their dreams compared to men. Similarly, two other web-surveys conducted in Italy revealed that age, gender, not having children, depression and living alone were significantly related to pandemic DRF, respectively. These findings are consistent with a U.S. study, where the dreams of female participants, participants with high education level, and participants most affected by COVID-19 regar Also from Nature and the Science of Sleep, Nightmares in People with COVID-19: Did Coronavirus Infect Our Dreams? From a qualitative point of view, healthy individuals have reported higher negative emotional intensity in dream content during the COVID-19 outbreak. Moreover, pandemic-related contents were identified both during the first wave of pandemic and in the post-lockdown period. In a relatively large United States sample (N = 3031), dream activity and mental health were shown to be associated during the pandemic, with the finding that the more participants were affected by the pandemic, the more it affected their dreams. Similarly, individuals having COVID-19-related traumatic experiences, such as death or disease of relatives/friends, report increased distress in their dream content and nightmares. Further, people reporting more changes in their life situation (eg, sleep habits or working life) have more emotional dreams. Furthermore, some trait-like features have an impact on oneiric activity. Indeed, women have shown higher DRF than men, and older adults have reported lower (dream recall frequency) DRF and (nightmare frequency) NF than younger individuals. Propaganda infects our dreams, too. From The New Yorker, we learn of Charlotte Beradt, who collected 75 dreams under the Third Reich: Not long after Hitler came to power, in 1933, a thirty-year-old woman in Berlin had a series of uncanny dreams. In one, her neighborhood had been stripped of its usual signs, which were replaced with posters that listed twenty verboten words; the first was Lord and the last was I. In another, the woman found herself surrounded by workers, including a milkman, a gasman, a newsagent, and a plumber. She felt calm, until she spied among them a chimney sweep. (In her family, the German word for chimney sweep was code for the S.S., a nod to the trades blackened clothing.) The men brandished their bills and performed a Nazi salute. Then they chanted, Your guilt cannot be doubted. And: Beradts work uncovers the effects of authoritarian regimes on the collective unconscious. In 1933, a woman dreams of a mind-reading machine, a maze of wires that detects her associating Hitler with the word devil. Beradt encountered several dreams about thought control, some of which anticipated the bureaucratic absurdities used by the Nazis to terrorize citizens. In one dream, a twenty-two-year-old woman who believes her curved nose will mark her as Jewish attends the Bureau of Verification of Aryan Descentnot a real agency, but close enough to those of the time. In a series of bureaucratic fairy tales that evoke the regimes real-life propaganda, a man dreams of banners, posters, and barracks-yard voices pronouncing a Regulation Prohibiting Residual Bourgeois Tendencies. In 1936, a woman dreams of a snowy road strewn with watches and jewelery. Tempted to take a piece, she senses a setup by the Office for Testing the Honesty of Aliens. From the present day, we have the 45 Dreams project, inspired by Beradt: I had a dream about Trump the other night. He asked me to give a speech but the speech writer sabotaged it and had me looking stupid on live TV. had a dream the trump admin brought back the draft but called it war try-outs Had a dream I was touring the White House, and in every single room (including each bathroom) speakers were blasting songs covered by Trump. Blue-skying even more freely: The altered states that enable denial, cope, and willfull ignorance of Covid are caused, at least in part, by propaganda from hegemons. (Of course, there are other factors, like interest, even taste.) As we see above, both Covid and propaganda infect our dreams. But why cannot dreaming help us disinfect our minds from propaganda? I would argue that all forms of submission to propaganda must be embodied (a smile, for example, would be a case of Blumbergs new motor memories and new skills, embodiments the brain learns). And what is learned can be unlearned. We have heard of lucid dreaming. Could there be Bayesian dreaming? Why is there not already? Surely, Bayesian dreaming would be adaptive. Even, or especially, during a nightmare NOTES [1] The noun dream, meaning as above, only appears in English in the mid-13th century; I would have thought such a salient feature of the human experience to be traceable all the way back to an Indo-European root, and have all sorts of branchings. Oddly, not. [2] See, e.g., Speech Sounds, by Octavia Butler. Report: 300M Americans could die from radiation should adversaries attack United States missile silos A new report by researchers from Princeton University 's Program on Science and Global Security warned that 300 million people could die from radiation exposure in the United States within days following a nuclear attack. The paper, which modeled the possible effects of such a catastrophic incident and was published in Scientific American on Wednesday, estimated that in the first four days after the country's 450 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch facilities (silos) were struck, between 340,000 and 4.6 million people would die though the average death toll would be 1.4 million. They predicted that 300 million would be at risk of a fatal dose of fallout. It also indicated that if the U.S. is attacked by enemies, they are most likely to target all fire on the ICBM silos located in Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wyoming. The population density in these states is low, but winds could carry the radioactive material far and wide. Moreover, 90 percent of the population of the lower 48 U.S. states, as well as people living in Mexico's northern states and the most populous regions of Canada, would be at risk of receiving lethal doses of radiation. The gravity of the aftermath would also depend on weather conditions in the said other areas. The report included a map predicting the worst-case scenario if a nuclear strike happens on the ICBM silos in the western area of the country. Using weather patterns, scientists simulated the aftereffects of an 800-kiloton warhead hitting every one of the silos at once to cripple the U.S. arsenal. They mapped how wind patterns would have carried the fallout on each day of 2021. They also recorded the worst possible outcome for each location. "In this scenario, three million people living in communities around the silos would risk receiving eight grays (Gy) of radiation in the four days following the attack, resulting in certain death. One Gy is enough to cause radiation sickness," the DailyMail reported. "One Gy is the international system of units (SI) equivalent to 100 radiation units (rads), which is equal to an absorbed dose of 1 Joule/kilogram, a thermal heat capacity." The actual annual limit for radiation is 0.001 Gy. The Princeton report also indicated that the symptoms of radiation syndrome, which include nausea, fatigue, vomiting, diarrhea, skin damage, seizures, and even coma, would depend on the dose a person receives. At high enough doses of penetrating radiation, these symptoms can start within minutes and can be deadly. The study came after the U.S. Air Force said last year that it would be replacing its Minuteman III ICBMs, which have been in operation since the 1970s, with the more modern Sentinel missile from 2029. The United States government is in the midst of a $1.5 trillion project to refresh the said obsolete nuclear weapons. Though the range and payload of the Sentinel ICBMs have not been officially released, they are thought to carry an equivalent explosive power of 800 kilotons of TNT and are expected to reach up to 6,000 miles and be capable of striking any target around the globe in 30 minutes, reports said. Also, the Minuteman missiles have a range of 8,000 miles and carry estimated payloads equivalent to 170-335 kilotons, which is enough to effectively destroy the whole of Washington, D.C. The researchers said that while the Air Force had assessed the potential effects on humans and the environment of deploying a Sentinel, they had not mentioned what would happen if the missiles were detonated in their bases. DoD has not reviewed the report but assures Sentinel system would not increase risk A report from the media outlet Newsweek said that a Department of Defense (DOD) spokesperson told them that it had not had the opportunity to review the report so could not directly address its findings. But it had assured everyone that the Sentinel system would not increase risk to America. "The 2022 Nuclear Posture Review made clear that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought," they said. "To this end, the best deterrent to adversary initiation of nuclear war against the United States or its allies or partners is a safe, secure and effective nuclear deterrent and strong and credible extended deterrence." Furthermore, the Pentagon stressed that there is a need for the United States to have a functioning atomic arsenal to act as a deterrent against other nuclear powers. However, critics have raised concerns about the the cost and necessity of the new missile program given the system's occasional false alarms and the advancements in U.S. submarine and aerial strike capabilities. (Related: MEGA DEATH: DoD announces pursuit of modern nuclear gravity bomb with 24x the power of WWII bombs.) The editors of the report's publication commissioned the study with a message: "We should rethink this miserable folly rather than once again squandering our wealth while driving a new arms race." Check out NuclearSurvival.news for news related to the Americans' chances of survival should a nuclear attack happen. Sources for this article include: DailyMail.co.uk ScientificAmerican.com Newsweek.com Australian actress sues AstraZeneca for life-threatening vaccine injury, but continues to ADVOCATE for other covid-19 vaccines Melle Stewart, an Australian actress and vaccine advocate, suffered from a series of life-threatening vaccine injuries after she took the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine (Vaxzevria). The 42-year-old actress, known for her theatrical performances in the UK and Australia, took the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on May 24, 2021. Just two weeks later, she began to experience serious symptoms, starting with seizures. Soon after the seizures, Ms. Stewart lost her ability to speak and all movement on the right side of her body. After being admitted to the hospital, neurologists diagnosed her with Vaccine-Induced Thrombocytopenic Thrombosis (VITT). This blood-clotting condition is acknowledged by AstraZeneca as a very rare side effect. However, the condition is not some rare event when its happening directly to you and your life is flashing before your very eyes. Actress suffers stroke from AstraZeneca vaccine Ms. Stewart suffered a stroke and had to undergo multiple surgeries and therapies, including a craniectomy and a three-hour operation to remove part of her skull. The team of neurologists saved her life by reducing the pressure in her brain and installing a titanium plate in her skull. There was no doubt that these injuries were from the COVID-19 vaccine, and the doctors working on her did not deny this obvious fact. Mrs. Stewarts husband, Ben Lewis, said the doctors were concerned about the vaccine from the start and were running the hypothesis that this was linked to the vaccine. He said that Melle had zero medical history, was very healthy, and treated her body like a temple. Mr. Lewis said his wife had never even been in the hospital before. A hematologist ran several blood tests on Melle and was able to confirm that the vaccine was the cause. Not only did Ms. Stewart suddenly have low blood platelet levels after the vaccine, but she also suffered from new clotting issues that required five blood transfusions in a four-day time period. Actress receives compensation for vaccine injury but continues to promote COVID-19 vaccines In 1979, Britain set up a compensation scheme for vaccine injuries called the Vaccine Damage Payments Act. The Act provides social security payments to families of vaccine injured children, as long as the injured party can prove they are 60 percent disabled as a result of the vaccine. The Act was designed to maintain public confidence in vaccinations and to prevent vaccine manufacturers from going bankrupt to medical malpractice and wrongful death lawsuits. At the time, parents were reporting that the whooping cough vaccine was disabling their children. The government had no choice but to recognize Melles vaccine injury. She received 120,000 (A$230,000) from the government program. However, the payout does not compensate her for the substantial earnings she lost from her acting career. Her husband has also had to put his life on pause to assist his wife with daily activities. Its incredibly frustrating. Words are my life and it has gone now. I say the words but getting them out is an issue, Ms. Stewart told The Telegraph, when discussing her future in theater. I am grieving over it. It is hard. During the lockdowns, Ms. Stewart believed that the only way to get back to normal was to take an experimental vaccine. She and her husband believed that mass vaccination was the best way to bring back audiences and continue their careers. But now Melle's career is put on hold indefinitely because of a "rare" vaccine injury. She is currently suing AstraZeneca for causing a life-threatening stroke that left her unable to work. We had an expectation this vaccine was safe to use but AstraZeneca was not safe to use in this case, her husband said. Despite all the hell Melle has been through, she still blindly advocates for the COVID-19 vaccines. Despite the issues Ive had due to the Astra Zeneca vaccine, I have gone on to receive multiple doses of the Pfizer vaccine and I remain a staunch advocate for vaccination, Ms. Stewart said on a GoFundMe page. It seems that the actress has not learned anything through this horrid experience, as she continues to cling to her blind belief in vaccines, despite knowing that they almost killed her. Sources include: TheEpochTimes.com Instafeed.org Academic.oup.com Gov.uk Telegraph.co.uk GoFundMe.com Pro-Israel PAC to spend $100M to unseat Congress members fighting for Palestinian human rights The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which directly lobbies the United States Congress, plans on spending $100 million to take down representatives who will criticize Israel, fight for Palestinian human rights and call for a ceasefire though most Americans already push for these. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) called out the pro-Israel lobbying group over their reported plan saying: "Criticism of the Israeli gov is virtually nonexistent in U.S. politics, but apparently that's not enough," on X, formerly known as Twitter on Wednesday. "The acceptable level of dissent is 0." Criticism of the Israeli gov is virtually nonexistent in US politics, but apparently thats not enough. Gotta spend *$100 million* to unseat the few who believe in Palestinian human rights & a ceasefire that most Americans already support. The acceptable level of dissent is 0. https://t.co/fE4ftkNERq Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 15, 2023 AIPAC has already begun to back primary opponents to challenge Congressional members who are opposing Israeli military aid or criticizing Israel's government. During the last 10 days, they have launched ads in at least seven districts targeting those who have been particularly vocal in calling attention to the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. According to political writer Alex Sammon, Reps. Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Cori Bush (D-MO), Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), and Summer Lee (D-PA), who are "the most outspoken and unapologetically leftist contingent of the Democratic Party in national office," are among AIPAC's top targets. But recently Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) also announced he would not be voting to send billions of additional American taxpayer dollars to Israel on top of the billions we've already sent. $88,000 of economic stimulus is flowing to my district this week! I voted against sending $14+ billion of your money to a new war in the Middle East, So lobbyists for Israel are running TV and radio ads against me. They can pound sand. We are broke. Also, should this be legal? pic.twitter.com/DzcLzx4Zar Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) November 11, 2023 He believes, though, that the group won't fight him on this, "I don't think [the pro-Israel] lobby can beat me, and they definitely can't beat me with this topic," said the Massie, referring to his recent vote against military aid for Israel. "The price of defending apartheid keeps going up," quipped Palestinian-American writer and political analyst Yousef Munayyer in response to said news. Meanwhile, Sammon noted that a recent Data for Progress poll found that two-thirds of U.S. voters, including 80 percent of Democrats, also back a ceasefire. It said that 66 percent of likely voters agree that "the U.S. should call for a ceasefire and de-escalation of violence in Gaza" and "leverage its close diplomatic relationship with Israel to prevent further violence and civilian deaths." NEW POLL: 66% of likely voters agree that the U.S. should call for a ceasefire and de-escalation of violence in Gaza to prevent civilian deaths.https://t.co/Mh9xsLGJHX pic.twitter.com/xtdeTgXhHk Data for Progress (@DataProgress) October 20, 2023 Jewish-American group IfNotNow, which has helped organize major demonstrations in support of a ceasefire this week, said in response to the survey that "it's past time for our political leaders to listen to their constituents and put a stop to this violence." Last month, more than 260 former staffers from Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D-MA) 2020 presidential campaign released an open letter imploring the senator to "demand an immediate ceasefire and the return of Israeli hostages, and take concrete steps to end Israeli occupation." "In its attacks against Palestinians in Gaza, Israel has demonstrated a brazen disregard for human life, with some officials going as far as to make their genocidal intent public, and has broken international law repeatedly," the letter read. AOC: AIPAC is racist and bigoted The far-left congresswoman called AIPAC a "racist and bigoted organization" after she and her allies in the so-called "Squad" voted against a House resolution last week affirming U.S. support for the Jewish state and condemning the Hamas terror group. Newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson in October confirmed to take up the said Israel aid bill. Massie was the sole Republican to vote against the measure last week, joining 15 Democrats who either voted "Nay" or "Present." "AIPAC endorsed scores of Jan 6th insurrectionists. They are no friend to American democracy," AOC said in a separate post on X. "They are one of the more racist and bigoted PACs in Congress as well, who disproportionately target members of color. They are an extremist organization that destabilizes U.S. democracy." Meanwhile, AIPAC responded the following morning with: "More of the same tired lies & spin. @AOC and the Squad summed up: People who disagree with us are racist. AIPAC stands with pro-Israel Democrats and Republicans of all races, genders, and backgrounds who support the U.S.-Israel alliance. And we oppose those who dont, like you." (Related: Republicans call for TikTok ban due to pro-Palestine content surpassing views of pro-Israel posts.) Bookmark Censorship.news for more stories related to the suppression of free speech. Sources for this article include: InformationLiberation.com TheGuardian.com CommonDreams.org NYPost.com WEG, a leading global manufacturer of motors and drive technology, is launching its new W23 Sync+ motor line. The W23 Sync+, a hybrid innovation that combines permanent magnet (PM), ferrite or neodymium magnets and synchronous reluctance (SynRM) motor technologies, provides higher efficiency across all speeds when compared with conventional induction motors. According to the company, as a completely new hybrid technology from WEG, the W23 Sync+ is set to shake up the industry. First unveiled at SPS Germany in November 2023, the permanent magnet synchronous reluctance motor (PMSynRM) line is suitable for applications including compressors, pumps, fans, blowers, conveyors and more. Advantages of the W23 Sync+ motor line include a higher level of efficiency for the entire speed range compared with conventional induction motors, and a higher power factor than synchronous reluctance motors. This results in a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) for plant managers. Were looking to the future with the W23 Sync+, explained Marek Lukaszczyk, European and Middle East marketing manager at WEG. "The IE5 and IE6 models far surpass the current European Ecodesign regulation, which are currently required to meet IE3 or IE4 standard. Available in IE5 and IE6 efficiency ratings, WEG offers the largest range of motors meeting IE5 and IE6 efficiency levels on the market. The W23 Sync+ is available in frame sizes from IEC 80 to 450 (NEMA 140 to 7000). Able to operate over a wide speed range at constant torque, without the use of forced ventilation, this multi-platform solution is available in speed ranges from 750 up to 6000 rpm. The motors output rating ranges from 0.75 to 1250 kW, while its compatible with 220/380 V, 230/400 V, 240/415 V and 400/690 V power supply. EFFICIENCY GAINS The W23 Sync+ motor line unlocks energy savings that directly impact on facilities CO2 reductions. In fact, the WEG team has calculated that replacing an IE3 induction 75kW 4 pole with an IE6 W23 Sync+ motor variety, may result in a reduction of 126 tons of CO2 during its expected lifetime of 25 years. Taking into account an operation time of 6500h per year. In addition, while a conventional induction motor loses over 20 per cent efficiency across its varying speed and load ranges, the W23 Sync+ maintains its higher efficiency decreasing less than two per cent when the load and speed are reduced for 25 per cent. Another key advantage of the W23 Sync+ is its compact nature with the same power per frame ratio as induction motors. For example, the IE5 variety is available in the same frame size as an IE3 motor, which makes interchangeability with existing installations smooth and hassle free. WEG invested over 122 million in R&D in 2022. During the development phase for the W23 Sync+, WEGs R&D team wanted to ensure its customers could benefit from the best technical characteristics of both PM and SynRM motor technologies, including ferrite and neodymium magnet possibilities. WEG strives to increase efficiency, reduce costs, improve quality and reduce the raw materials used in products, continued Lukaszczyk. The ferrite magnet used in the W23 Sync+ is constructed from a ceramic material and has a local supplier and producer. This avoids global supply chain issues and results in material price stability. Spokesperson from WEG tells OGN Media in an interview, Sustainability is at the heart of WEGs business. We operate alongside the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) programme, a voluntary initiative consisting of 17 interconnected goals and 169 targets created by the United Nations in 2015, which aim to be achieved by 2030. WEG has long committed to these goals, ensuring sustainable access to energy and maintaining sustainable production standards at its manufacturing facilities. An important part of our sustainability initiatives at WEG is our energy efficient products. The motors and drive packages that we supply to the energy sector are designed to meet high efficiency standards, thus reducing the amount of energy used to run this equipment. --OGN/ TradeArabia News Service In the early morning hours of November 19, a fatal accident involving Ukrainians occurred in Poland. A minibus carrying ten Ukrainian citizens crashed into a tree on the side of the road. ADVERTISIMENT Two women and a six-year-old child died in the accident, and the rest of the passengers were hospitalized. This was reported by In Poland. The fatal accident occurred at around 4:30 a.m. on November 19 near the village of Wiereszyn, Hrubieszow County, Lubelskie Voivodeship. The driver of a minibus suddenly swerved to the left on a straight stretch of road and crashed into a tree on the side of the road. "There were 10 people in the vehicle, all citizens of Ukraine. Despite resuscitation efforts, the lives of two women and a six-year-old child could not be saved. The rest of the passengers were taken to the hospital," the newspaper writes. ADVERTISIMENT The cause of the fatal accident has not yet been established. On November 7, it was reported that a Ukrainian woman was found dead in Poland. The 50-year-old Ukrainian citizen, who had left a hospital in Lublin, had been missing for a week. Her body was found by a passerby on a city street on November 4. An investigation team, including a forensic expert, arrived at the scene of the gruesome discovery. According to the Polish police, he found no injuries that would indicate the involvement of other people in the woman's death. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes! Canadian doctor Mark Trozzi found guilty of professional misconduct after speaking out against COVID-19 vaccines and mandates The Ontario Physicians and Surgeons Discipline Tribunal (OPSDT) has found Canadian trauma physician Mark Trozzi guilty of professional misconduct for his vocal dissent toward Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccinations and mandates The OPSDT's Oct. 6 decision said Trozzi failed to meet the standard of practice in the medical profession about COVID-19 vaccinations and mandates. It referenced statements he made on his social media profiles and on his official websites, alongside his interviews which the tribunal labeled as "misinformation." The OPSDT also labeled the physician as "incompetent" for issuing medical exemptions from COVID-19 vaccines. As a result, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario the OPSDT's parent entity is seeking to permanently revoke his medical license. "We already have a decision against us at the [CPSO], but we expected it, so we are playing the long game," said Trozzi's lawyer Michael Alexander. He added that he and his client lodged an appeal to the court system in response to the decision. Alexander argued that the case against Trozzi is an attack on freedom of speech. "Colleges have now taken on the role of censors, and doctors must toe [both] the college's line and the government's line on public health and other matters of science. This is a really fundamental attack on freedom of expression, so it's a very troubling development." A penalty hearing took place on Nov. 10, but a verdict is not expected until sometime in December. Trozzi urged health officials in Canada to reconsider their pandemic policies During the height of the pandemic, he publicly advised against COVID-19 injections due to questionable safety and effectiveness following his independent study of their ingredients. Trozzi also claimed that financial incentives were compromising the judgment of doctors regarding the COVID-19 narrative. As a result, he and fellow Ontario doctor Rochagne Kilian were barred from from issuing medical exemptions for COVID-19 shots, masking requirements and testing in 2021. In a video update posted on Nov. 13, Trozzi disclosed that he is facing legal action for defying the COVID-19 mandates set by the CPSO. The beleaguered doctor urged health ministries in Canada's provinces to reconsider their COVID-19 policies. He highlighted recent evidence about DNA contamination in the Pfizer and Moderna shots. "Put a hold on your COVID policies. Stop all the persecution of doctors, nurses and others who recognize the dangers and, above all, immediately alert all doctors, nurses and citizens that Pfizer lied," said Trozzi. "The injections are contaminated, and all injections must stop immediately. We can come together now as a country and people against the perpetrators of the fraud." Trozzi and Kilian weren't the only doctors targeted by the CPSO. The college has also set its sights on dissident doctors such as Mary O'Connor, Celeste Jean Thirlwell, Patrick Phillips?and Crystal Luchkiw for refusing to comply with the standard COVID-19 protocols dictated by the medical establishment. According to the CPSO, interim orders were issued under the Regulated Health Professions Act to prevent practices that "expose or are likely to expose patients to harm or injury." This crackdown on non-compliant physicians during the COVID-19 pandemic has triggered Dr. Robert Malone to speak out against the "re-education" of dissident Canadian doctors. Malone is the inventor of the mRNA vaccine technology, which was subsequently repurposed for the COVID-19 injections. Visit MedicalFascism.news for more stories about medical boards punishing doctors that deviate against the COVID-19 narrative. Watch the video below for more about COVID-19 mask mandate lies. This video is from the Think About It channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Show your support for Dr. Mark Trozzi as he faces the threat of losing his medical license. 11 Professors demand University of California end COVID vaccine mandates. Actor Woody Harrelson doubles down, says absurd COVID mandates must end. Prominent British cardiologist calls for an end to COVID vaccine mandates in Australia. Florida permanently bans all COVID-19 mask and vaccine mandates in schools and businesses. Sources include: ReclaimetheNet.org TheEpochTimes.com LifeSiteNews.com Brighteon.com Erdogan REBUKES terror state Israel and its Western backers Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has issued a strong rebuke against the "terror state" Israel and its Western backers. He issued the condemnation on Nov. 15, two days before he visited Germany to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Addressing members of the unicameral Turkish Grand National Assembly, Erdogan remarked: "With the savagery of bombing the civilians it forced out of their homes while they are relocating, it is literally employing state terrorism. I am now saying, with my heart at ease, that Israel is a terror state." "We will never shy away from voicing the truth that Hamas members protecting their lands, honor and lives in the face of occupation policies are resistance fighters, just because some people are uncomfortable with it. The West, namely the U.S., is unfortunately still seeing this issue backwards." Erdogan reiterated that Israel was committing war crimes and violating international law with its indiscriminate bombing of the Gaza Strip. The Jewish-majority nation's military campaign against Hamas formally the Islamic Resistance Movement included "the most treacherous attacks in human history" with "unlimited" support from the West, he continued. Erdogan then called for Israeli leaders to be tried for war crimes at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. He also stressed that Hamas is not a terrorist organization, but a political party that won past elections a sentiment reflected by Ankara at large. (Related: Turkish leader pushes to end conflict in Gaza Strip, calls Israel a WAR CRIMINAL.) According to Reuters, several states such as the U.S., the United Kingdom, the European Union and some Arab countries deem Hamas a terrorist group. In contrast, Turkey hosts some members of Hamas and supports a two-state solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine. Erdogan on a roll against Israel The Turkish president's trip to Germany will be his first to a Western nation since Israel began bombing Gaza on Oct. 7, in retaliation for Hamas' attack. Berlin has expressed strong solidarity with Jerusalem, while urging a focus on limiting the impact of military offensives on civilians in the Gaza Strip. After his Nov. 15 address before the Turkish parliament, Erdogan spoke to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. According to Erdogan's office, he told her that Ankara expected Rome's support in achieving a ceasefire in Gaza. Meloni's office said she had called for rapid de-escalation in Gaza, adding that Turkey had a crucial role in preventing the spread of the conflict. Moreover, Erdogan said he would call leaders of the countries who abstained from an October vote at the United Nations General Assembly on the issue of an aid truce in Gaza. He also exhorted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to announce whether or not Israel had nuclear weapons. Erdogan warned that the Israeli leader would soon be a "goner" from his post. The Turkish leader also compared the conflict between Jewish Israel and the Palestinians to a war between the Christian and Muslim worlds, adding that the crisis was "a matter of cross and crescent." He added that Ankara would also take steps to ensure Israeli settlers in occupied Palestinian territories are recognized as "terrorists." Visit WWIII.news for more stories about the ongoing conflict in Israel. Watch Palki Sharma of Firstpost report on Erdogan's remarks about Israel being a "terror state" below. This video is from the High Hopes channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Turkey files lawsuit against Netanyahu, accusing him and Israel of committing "genocide" in Gaza. Turkish parliament boycotts Coke, Nestle products over the companies' alleged support for Israel. Turkey's Erdogan threatens WAR against Israel for their relentless BOMBING of Gaza Strip. UK lawmaker: Erdogan's support for Hamas CONTRADICTS Turkey's NATO commitment. Turkey's Erdogan warns of "spiral of violence" in phone call with Israel's Herzog. Sources include: Reuters.com Brighteon.com How many U.S. Congressmen are guilty of Epstein-style PEDO CRIMES? General Mike Flynn states there are many, and they are bent over a barrel by globalist actors The term "suicided" became popular during the Clinton Crime Family reign in America, where dozens of associates and whistleblowers seemed to die by "suicide," though the evidence and circumstances pointed to murder. The world also knows that the perverted freak named Jeffrey Epstein was connected to some very powerful people, including the Clintons. Was he also "suicided" in that jail cell? Today, the child trafficking and child sex crimes continue, even at the highest levels of government, and now the Former Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), General Mike Flynn, says some of the USA's top legislators are "compromised by globalist actors, due to their trips overseas where they sleep with children." Are these the same Washington DC politicians that were on Epsteins private planes and private island, molesting and raping underage children and teenagers? If so, who else will be "suicided" that tries to blow the whistle on this demented government and globalist corruption? "Official" overseas trips for members of House of Representatives and Senate include "spiffs" like having sex with children, according to General Michael Flynn Yes, that General Michael Flynn has blown the whistle on top US politicians from both sides sleeping with children during their overseas "official" trips for what is termed "Congressional Delegation" or "CODEL" trips. Well, the "L" in CODE "L" must stand for lust, and the most perverted kind. According to Flynn, members of the House and Senate are doing these sick acts on these trips, and are now completely COMPROMISED by the globalists who know, have proof, and hang it over their heads. This means our nation is completely controlled by puppet masters, and the masters of criminally-perverted puppets at that. General Flynn: We have the House of Representatives right now that is totally, completely broken" owned by corporate lobbyists and globalists In a world of laundering money by the billions, and even trillions, the richest crooks on earth think they can get away with murder, and most of the time, they do. Members of Congress are now being documented for sleeping with underage children during overseas trips using big money to cover it all up. Remember when the real President, Trump, pardoned General Flynn, and the Left went berserk? That's because General Flynn possesses highly sensitive information about super-high-profile individuals in the US government, and he knows these Congressmen are in WAY too deep with the globalists who control them now. Roger Stone wrote about how much Flynn knows a few years back, saying Gen Flynn has a list of high level pedophiles the release of which will decimate the Deep State dons #Netherlands." Having sex with minors and having billionaires who basically run the world know about it, well, that bends a US politician over the barrel right there, and there's no telling how much other corruption and control exists over the United States' military, entire economy, bioweapons, printing money, and fixing elections. This is why the Left likes grooming children so much, so that if these politicians get caught by real authorities, maybe they can make it seem normal or even legalize it before they go up in flames (or get eaten alive by Satan's devil dogs). What videos WERE in Epstein's closet? Was he suicided? Is General Flynn right? Where are all the tens of thousands of missing children who crossed into America from Mexico over the past 3 years? These tough and vital questions need real answers, and soon. Thousands of children's lives depend on it. Bookmark Censored.news to your favorite websites for truth news about filthy dirty politicians that are being censored from mass media while you read this. Sources for this article include: TheGatewayPundit.com LegacyFirearmsCo.com NaturalNews.com Israel PURPOSELY targeting innocent women and children in Gaza to level fertility playing field: the plan is to kill the children As political activist Karl Denninger says, demographics are destiny. And in order to maintain its stranglehold over the Western-dominated global political structure, Israel is purposely murdering innocent Palestinian women and children, as well as their fathers, to try to level the fertility playing field and increase its chances at victory. Like most of the West, Israel is an LGBT playland Tel Aviv is the six-colored rainbow capital of the world, in case you did not know. Its birth rates are so low that its population is barely replacing itself. Meanwhile, the Arab world that surrounds it is among the fastest-growing demographic in the world. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that Israel, even with the help of its "allies" (puppets), is vastly outnumbered, which makes committing mass genocide against the target a whole lot more difficult. Keep in mind as well that upwards of 90 percent of Israel's population is "vaccinated" for the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), which we know causes infertility and other problems that inhibit reproduction. Conversely, the Arab world is growing by leaps and bounds while rejecting Western-made depopulation "medicine." "By killing Palestinian women and children, Israel is able to accomplish multiple objectives," explains The Burning Platform. "They reduce the number of young Palestinians and the number who have yet to be born." "When they kill their fathers, mothers and children, they insure that the children don't grow up to seek revenge on those who killed their parents. It's a method to reduce the 'blowback,' as Ron Paul described during the 2008 GOP debate. To the warmongering neo-cons like Graham, Haley, and Cheney, this is just collateral damage to be expected when ruling the world." (Related: As many warned, Israel's goal was never just to eradicate "Hamas." The plan is to completely annihilate all two-plus million Palestinians living in Gaza so their land can be stolen and added to Israel.) Zelensky and his Nazi battalions have been slaughtering innocents in Ukraine since 2014 for same reasons Israel has a tough needle to thread in that it does not want its puppet states like the United States to grow too large, especially with their white populations, so as to become a threat to Israel itself once the jig is up. At the same time, Israel needs lots of bodies from said puppet states to constantly fight its wars. This balancing act seems to be tipping in favor of Israel's enemies in the current age as the West dies and the East rises, complete with millions upon millions of aggressively reproducing Arabs who are tired of being pushed around by Israel and the West. Perhaps this was the impetus behind Israel's outmoded response to the October 7 Hamas attack, which almost appears to have been scheduled for such a time as this to push the pedal to the medal and get the job done of clearing out Gaza and annexing the land into itself while there is still time. It could be too little, too late, though. Americans are overwhelmingly opposed to fighting any more Israeli wars. The military was gutted anyway and turned into an LGBT freak show, rendering it too impotent to even fight a war. Now, the U.S. Army is trying to attract white men for the first time in a long while because it appears to be game on. "U.S. politicians and their regime media mouthpieces have no qualms about their blatant hypocrisy when supporting the slaughter of innocents when it is done by countries they support, but scream bloody murder when their 'evil' enemy Putin even kills one child when trying to liberate the Donbas, where Zelensky and his nazi battalions have been slaughtering women and children since 2014," The Burning Platform notes. "The deaths of women and children in Gaza is purposeful and planned. Don't let the unceasing propaganda from the regime media and the Biden administration override the facts." What Israel is doing to the Palestinians is evil. Learn more at Antichrist.news. Sources for this article include: TheBurningPlatform.com NaturalNews.com Sociopathic Netanyahu insists Israel doesnt kill children after launching attacks that murdered 4000+ young ones Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently called for a halt to the " killing of children and babies " in the besieged Gaza Strip, urging his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu to exercise maximum restraint in the ongoing ground operation in the enclave. "I urge the government of Israel to exercise maximum restraint," Trudeau said in his sharpest criticism of Israel since the war on Gaza broke out during a news conference in the western province of British Columbia. "The world is watching on TV, on social media. We're hearing the testimonies of doctors, family members, survivors, and kids who have lost their parents. The world is witnessing this killing of women, of children, of babies. This has to stop." But this earned a furious pushback from Netanyahu, insisting that Hamas is responsible for civilian deaths despite Israeli forces continuing to batter the enclave. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Israeli leader tagged/mentioned Trudeau and said: "It is not Israel that is deliberately targeting civilians but Hamas that beheaded, burned and massacred civilians in the worst horrors perpetrated on Jews since the Holocaust." He stood firm that the forces of civilization must back Israel in defeating "Hamas's barbarism." .@JustinTrudeau It is not Israel that is deliberately targeting civilians but Hamas that beheaded, burned and massacred civilians in the worst horrors perpetrated on Jews since the Holocaust. While Israel is doing everything to keep civilians out of harms way, Hamas is doing Benjamin Netanyahu - ?????? ?????? (@netanyahu) November 15, 2023 Trudeau has maintained that Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas after the militant group attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people. But he has expressed increasing concern over the mounting death toll in the battered enclave. Even Israel's biggest Western allies, including the United States, have raised their concerns over the mounting death toll. The Hamas-run Palestinian health ministry has said that more than 11,000 people, mostly children, have been killed since the beginning of the war. Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for the deaths and suffering to be minimized, saying, "far too many Palestinians have been killed." The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) also blockaded Gaza, which prevented food, water, fuel, energy, and essentials from entering the enclave as they continued massive air bombing and ground operations. Al-Shifa, the biggest hospital in Gaza, was stormed by the IDF on Wednesday after days of repeated attacks. Thousands of patients and displaced Palestinians are trapped inside, including dozens of premature babies who are fighting for their lives. The troops claimed that the complex was being used as a hideout by Hamas. Netanyahu blamed the militant group for the thousands of civilian deaths in the area and stated that "the price of justice cannot be the continued suffering of all Palestinian civilians." (Related: Saving the best for last? IDF has trapped Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in a Gaza bunker but the killings of civilians, including children, continue.) Hypocrisy: Trudeau slams Israel for mass murder of children when "killing of the unborn" is highly prioritized in Canada Critics could not help but point out the hypocrisy of the Trudeau administration in its "call for humanitarian pause" in the Israel-Hamas conflict. He is blasting Netanyahu for "killing innocent lives" in the war, when he has been pushing for easy access to safe and consistent reproductive health services, including abortion. Back in May, a statement was released that the Minister of Health Jean-Yves Duclos and Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth Marci Ien announced more than $4.2 million in funding from the Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) fund to the University of British Columbia (UBC) Contraception and Abortion Research Team (CART) and Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights for their projects. These projects, funded by Budget 2021, will improve access by removing barriers to 'vital abortion services' and offer accurate reproductive health information for Canadians. Abortion has been legal in Canada for five decades, but according to them, many people continue to experience barriers to access. "Our government will always support a woman's right to choose and ensure that sexual and reproductive health care is accessible for everyone, no matter who they are or where they live. As many individuals continue to face barriers and stigma when trying to access these services, organizations like Action Canada and the University of British Columbia are doing important work to find solutions to improve access to abortion services across Canada. Together, we will continue to protect and improve the right to safe and consistent access to reproductive health services, including abortion," Duclos said. UBC-CART received nearly $4 million in funding while Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights will receive $428,236 to expand its Access Line and Sexual Health Information Hub programs, building on Health Canada's initial investment of $2.2 million in 2022. The project is set to "improve access by working with organizations to develop training resources and materials for healthcare professionals and patients." Meanwhile, the expansion will help increase the project's reach and accessibility of information and services for underserved populations. It claimed also to improve access to financial assistance to cover travel and accommodation costs, as well as logistical support to individuals accessing abortion care. To date, over $38.9 million has been allocated. Twenty-three projects, valued at $29.2 million, have been funded. Of these projects, four address access to abortion, seven address 2SLGBTQI+ communities, and four focus on Indigenous communities. Genocide.news contains more stories on mass murders worldwide. Sources for this article include: AlJazeera.com RT.com WIONews.com GOING DARK: New York City lacks energy infrastructure needed to power Uber and Lyft EVs or reach 2030 zero-emissions mandate The Empire State has established lofty zero-emissions goals for the year 2030 that require large numbers of electric vehicles (EVs) to rove the state at that time rather than traditional gas-powered cars. The latest figures , however, show that there will not be nearly enough electric power available to charge them. In New York City specifically, the goal is to force all Uber, Lyft, and other ridesharing companies to produce zero emissions by the year 2030. In "green" speak, this means that all ride-sharing vehicles in the Big Apple will need to be electric in just seven years. Right now, only about 2,200 of the city's 78,000 cars currently authorized by the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) as app-based rideshares this means Uber and Lyft rather than traditional taxi services are EVs. The rest are normal cars that, gasp, use gasoline instead of a charging station to refuel. By the end of 2026, TLC expects the number of EVs in the app-based ridesharing fleet to reach 25 percent of the overall fleet, which leaves just four after that to convert the remaining 75 percent a likely impossible feat. Should there be anything close to that amount of app-based ridesharing vehicles on the streets of New York City at that time, there will almost certainly not be enough charging stations, let alone electricity to power them, available to keep things running smoothly. "[T]he existing charging network in New York City is not adequate even in the most optimistic scenario," researchers from two separate government agencies warned in an April 2022 study. "[A]lthough charging is demanded in areas nearby high trip demand, fast charging ports are also demanded in areas near driver residences as a supplement for home charging in scenarios with limited overnight charging access." (Related: Be sure to check out our earlier report explaining why EVs are a scam.) Only 187 EV "fast chargers" currently exist in NYC If the electric-for-hire fleet in New York City reaches the 21,000 EV benchmark that the TLC hopes to achieve by the year 2027, then the city will need many more than the mere 1,000 direct-current "fast chargers" that currently exist throughout the city. These "fast chargers," we are told, can top up an EV's battery in just 20 minutes, as opposed to an hour. Such "fast chargers" would make EVs more comparable to gas-powered cars, which, coupled with a meandering visit inside the gas station convenience store, could take around 20 minutes to fill up if one dawdles, anyway. At the current time, there are a measly 187 direct-current "fast chargers" in New York City. They are distributed among 38 charging stations citywide, most of them in Brooklyn, which has 68 of them at six locations, and in Queens, which has 65 of them at 16 locations. Manhattan has just 27 fast-charging ports at 11 stations, while Staten Island has 15 fast-charging ports distributed across four stations. In the Bronx, there is just one fast-charging station, a Tesla Supercharger facility located at the Bay Plaza Mall, which has a dozen overall EV charging ports. It is important to note that in order to successfully fast-charge one's EV, the owner must have the right plug. Standard plugs still take a whole lot longer to recharge a vehicle, typically overnight, which is not necessarily viable for drivers who take passengers here and there all throughout the day for work. Another thing to consider is the infrastructure layout in New York City. Many properties exist in multi-family locations where owners park on the street, meaning there is no garage charger available like there would be at a single-family home out in the suburbs. The latest news about the zero emissions goals for 2030 can be found at GreenTyranny.news. Sources for this article include: Yahoo.com NREL.gov NaturalNews.com Ohio voters pass amendment to enshrine in state constitution legal abortions up until BIRTH Abortion is now even more legal in the state of Ohio than it was prior to the Supreme Court's repeal of The voter-passed Issue 1 initiative, which is now permanently enshrined in Ohio's state constitution, allowing for abortions to occur in the Buckeye State all the way up until birth, which is basically infanticide under another name. "It's pretty clear that this constitutional amendment just goes farther, much further than what the average Ohioan approves," commented Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican whose party also argues that Issue 1 goes "too far." "If a voter is comfortable with abortion up until the time of birth, they're probably going to be okay with this amendment if they're comfortable with parents not being involved in the most important decision their daughter will ever make or certainly has made up until that point in her life. If they're okay with that, then they should vote for this." (Related: Last year, Kansas did the same thing after voters turned their state into an abortion tourism destination.) ACLU spent tens of millions of dollars to get Issue 1 passed in Ohio On the Sunday prior to the vote, DeWine appeared on Fox News to explain why he believes Issue 1 is "a radical proposal" regardless of where a person stands on the issue of abortion. "If you look at Issue 1, it's a radical proposal, and whether you're pro-choice or pro-life, it just goes much, much too far," he said. "It would enshrine in our Constitution the right to have an abortion up until birth, any time during the pregnancy." "Second thing it would do is threaten a law we had on the books for many years requiring parental consent if we're dealing with a minor. The lawyers who wrote this were mindful for what they were doing. It is a radical proposal that does not fit Ohio." It was the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that is largely responsible for Issue 1's passage. The group spent tens of millions of dollars in Ohio advocating for its passage, having previously argued that the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade requires the passage of an amendment such as this to enshrine the "right" to abortion in the state constitution. We are told that the ACLU heavily manipulated the vote on Issue 1 in Ohio by paying people from other states to spread lies about the true nature of the amendment, which is much more serious than many people think. "The ACLU paid out-of-state signature collectors to lie to Ohioans about their dangerous amendment that will strip parents of their rights, permit minors to undergo sex change operations without their parents' knowledge or consent, and allow painful abortion on demand through all nine months," says Protect Women Ohio spokeswoman Amy Natoce. The latest count, which shows greater-than 95 percent of the votes in as of this writing, shows that Issue 1 passed in Ohio with 56.6 percent for and 43.4 percent against. As is usually the case, urban areas of the state like Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Toledo all leaned in favor of the amendment while the more rural areas largely voted against, with a few exceptions. Cuyahoga County (Cleveland) saw the most support for Issue 1 with 74 percent of voters voting in favor of it and 26 percent against, followed by Franklin County (Columbus) with 73 percent of voters in favor of and 27 percent against. Conversely, Mercer County, a rural county that abuts Indiana, saw the least support for Issue 1 with 21 percent of voters voting for and 79 percent voting against. The latest news about this subject can be found at Abortions.news. Sources for this article include: ThePostMillennial.com NaturalNews.com NYTimes.com Fox News attacks Rep. Rashida Tlaib for being a member of Facebook group glorifying Hamas guilt by association is claiming that Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), an outspoken supporter of the Palestinian people, is a member of a secret Facebook group with members who have "glamorized Hamas in its war battle with Israel." In the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas attack, the group, known as Palestinian American Congress this group does not appear in a Facebook search because it is said to be private had some members post messages and photos in support of the Palestinian resistance against the Israeli settlement. "We don't want to throw you in the sea ... we want you to ride it back from where you came, reads one post on October 12 from a group member, referring to the Israeli settlers who took over the land now known as Israel back in 1948. Another post on October 19 talked about the "achievements" of the "resistance in Northern occupied Palestine," which resulted in dozens of dead Israeli soldiers. That post was shared along with a photo of a Hamas fighter. On October 10, just three days after the Hamas attack, a member of the private Palestinian American Congress group on Facebook addressed the "American Media," which apparently includes Fox News, directly with the following message: "Since yesterday I have been attached to the TV watching the news. You (American media), and the people directing you, are the problem, you created it almost 100 years ago, made it official 75 years ago and you have been feeding its flam [sic] ever since." "You consider Hamas a terrorist organization and I am not going to argue with you at the same time you have been broadcasting that they have been killing women and children, guess that is what terrorists do at the same time no mention to the killing of Palestinian women, children and entire families killed on a daily basses (sic) by the [peace-loving] state of Israel using American gifts of weapons and jet fighters." The same poster added another message later on condemning the U.S., the media, and Israel for killing refugees, children, the elderly, and other residents of Gaza who are clearly not Hamas soldiers. "Yesterday I didn't see Hamas I saw the grand kids (sic) of the refugees that ethnically cleansed from their homeland attacking the grand kids (sic) of the colonists whom sent them to diaspora," reads that latter post. (Related: Almost immediately after the October 7 Hamas attack, Rep. Tlaib blamed Israeli "apartheid" for the conflict.) Members of U.S. Congress only allowed to unconditionally support Israel In Fox's apparent view, members of Congress must only support Israel at all times. And since Rep. Tlaib does not, the right-leaning media outlet is blasting her as a "Hamas supporter," framing it as support for terrorism rather than support for resistance against the Israeli occupation. According to Fox, Rep. Tlaib became a member of the Palestinian American Congress group on Facebook six years ago, and posted to the group during her 2018 congressional campaign. In 2019, the Daily Caller News Foundation also reported on her membership, claiming that many of the posts in the group are "antisemitic." In a symbolic gesture, the House of Representatives, which is primarily an Israel First crowd of political puppets for the Jewish state, censured Rep. Tlaib in a 234-188 vote. This was done to publicly rebuke her for not supporting Israel and for supporting the Palestinian people instead. Maher Abdel-qader, founder of the Palestinian American Congress group on Facebook, has reportedly personally contributed upwards of $6,500 to Rep. Tlaib's campaign since 2018. He also chaired her finance committee during her 2018 congressional campaign. The latest news about the Israel-Palestine war can be found at Prophecy.news. Sources for this article include: FoxNews.com NaturalNews.com NEW POLL: 70% of Americans support a CEASEFIRE in Gaza A recent poll found that an absolute majority of Americans support a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war , despite the administration of President Joe Biden being opposed to such an end to the hostilities. The survey, conducted jointly by Reuters and market and public opinion research firm Ipsos, asked 1,000 Americans online about their thoughts on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. It found that 70 percent of Americans, including 75 percent of Democrats and 50 percent of Republicans, want the Israeli government to declare a ceasefire. The poll further found that approval of America's support for Israel has dropped from 41 percent in mid-October to only 32 percent. The belief that the U.S. should act as a "neutral mediator" in the conflict rather than taking a side has increased from 27 percent to 39 percent. Finally, 15 percent of the respondents voiced their support for backing the interests and rights of the Palestinian people than those of Israel. Notably, the survey also found that more Americans are willing to support the Ukrainian military with weapons against Russia than Israel. Just under a third of Americans backed weapons for Israel, while slightly over 40 percent expressed support for arming Ukraine. The decline in support for Israel is particularly evident among older respondents, likely influenced by weeks of indiscriminate bombings and a brutal ground campaign on Gaza by the Israeli military. It is very likely that support for Israel will continue to drop the longer the conflict in Gaza plays out. UN and NGO heads calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza Aside from Americans, leaders from at least 18 United Nations (UN) agencies and prominent non-government organizations (NGOs) are also advocating for a ceasefire in Gaza. Many of these leaders have issued a joint statement urging an immediate ceasefire. As of Nov. 15, more than 11,000 Palestinians, including over 4,500 children, have been killed by Israel's indiscriminate bombardment of Gaza and the ongoing ground offensive operations in North Gaza. More than 1.6 million Gazans have been displaced by the conflict, and 22 of Gaza's 36 hospitals are no longer functioning. "We need an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. It's been 30 days. Enough is enough. This must stop now," said the heads of the UN agencies and NGOs, who warn that the death toll and irreversible damage to Gazan infrastructure is likely to get worse without a ceasefire. (Related: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calls for immediate humanitarian CEASEFIRE in Gaza.) The UN and NGO heads also brought up the targeted killing of aid workers. "More than 100 attacks against health care have been reported," they noted. "Scores of aid workers have been killed since Oct. 7, including 88 UNRWA [United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East] colleagues the highest number of United Nations fatalities ever recorded in a single conflict." "For almost a month, the world has been watching the unfolding situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory in shock and horror at the spiraling numbers of lives lost and torn apart," they added. The UN and NGO chiefs called on all parties involved to uphold their "obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law." They stressed the importance of protecting civilian infrastructure, including hospitals and schools and allowing aid into Gaza. They also condemned the blockade of Gaza that has deprived essential goods and services to the Strip's civilian population and decried the ongoing attacks on civilian spaces like refugee camps. "It is unacceptable that the population of Gaza is being bombed in their homes, shelters, hospitals, and places of worship," they wrote. Visit WWIII.news for more stories related to the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Watch this video from Southfront Press discussing the very costly gains Israel is making in its invasion of Gaza. This video is from the channel The Prisoner on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Activists conduct SIT-IN PROTEST at the Statue of Liberty calling for CEASEFIRE in Gaza. Muslim Americans to Biden: Declare a ceasefire in Gaza, or lose our donations and votes. Despite providing limitless military aid and unconditional support to Israel, U.S. admits it has NO PLAN for what comes next. The West's refusal to call for a ceasefire is a green light to Israel's ethnic cleansing. MORE WAR: US Diplomats warned by State Dept. to avoid calling for ceasefire in Israel-Hamas conflict. Sources include: TheHill.com AlJazeera.com Nature.com Brighteon.com Zionist Ben Shapiro attacks employee Candace Owens, calls her absolutely disgraceful for position on Israel-Gaza war Trouble is brewing over atas cofounder Ben Shapiro, a Zionist Jew, is taking aim at one of his most popular and well-liked employees, Candace Owens, who does not share his opinions on the Israel-Gaza war. It would seem as though Shapiro is among the kill them all crowd, meaning he supports Israel annihilating Gaza and taking over the land, while Owens seems to be more on the side of promoting and trying to foster peace in order to limit the number of civilian casualties. Owens has bravely spoken out about her opinions despite the fact that they are incongruent with Shapiro's, and because of this she is now taking a lot of heat. One morning recently, she woke up to the following video clip, which is going viral, depicting Shapiro lambasting Owens for her views while calling them "absolutely disgraceful." Ben Shapiro blasted Candace Owens saying that she is absolutely disgraceful and basically wrong about her take on Arab Israel conflict. What makes this interesting is that Ben Shapiro is the owner of the Daily Wire and Candace Owens works at the Daily Wire. This is NOT the pic.twitter.com/BdPOlmYa5k ??e? ??e? (@TheThe1776) November 15, 2023 (Related: Back in late 2020 when Donald Trump was launching his Operation Warp Speed campaign to push COVID injections, Shapiro angrily told his followers and the world to "get the vaccine, dopes.") Does Ben Shapiro support genocide? On November 3, Owens tweeted about the conflict that "No government anywhere has a right to commit a genocide, ever. There is no justification for a genocide. I can't believe this even needs to be said or is even considered the least bit controversial to state." Later that same day, Owens responded much the same to tweets from Jewish conservative David Rubin. Then, two weeks later, the above video clip of Shapiro openly criticizing Owens at some kind of event surfaced, with Owens later telling Tucker Carlson that she had no idea that Shapiro felt that way about her because he has never spoken to her personally about any of this, even though she works for him and his conservative media empire. "I think her behavior during this has been disgraceful," were Shapiro's exact words to the crowd, which cheered him on. "Without a doubt, I think that her faux sophistication on these particular issues has been ridiculous." In usual form, Shapiro thinks he is better and more superior to Owens and others like her who disagree with his apparently pro-genocide stance. Shapiro's supremacist language and attitude are nothing new for him, but this is the first time we know of that he has spoken like this about one of his own employees. On November 14, Owens tweeted the following passage from Matthew 5:9, which ironically enough is the gospel written to Jewish unbelievers such as Shapiro. It reads: "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money." Shapiro freaked out and misconstrued the message, turning it around on Owens like a petulant child: "Candace, if you feel that taking money from The Daily Wire somehow comes between you and God, by all means quit." Candace Owens responds to a clip of Ben Shapiro criticizing her: "Ben and I have many disagreements. We disagreed on the COVID vaccine, Ukraine and Russia, big pharma." Tucker: "It's just a little weird. So he was on the Left on the three biggest issues of our time?" pic.twitter.com/I5HpGnpoaV TheBlaze (@theblaze) November 15, 2023 The latest news about the Israel-Palestine conflict can be found at Prophecy.news. Sources for this article include: ZeroHedge.com NaturalNews.com Israel may introduce the death penalty for terrorists. The relevant bill, which would provide for capital punishment for those who commit terrorist acts, has already been drafted. ADVERTISIMENT On November 20, it is planned to be submitted to the National Security Committee of the Knesset. This was announced by Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir, The Times of Israel reports. According to the publication, the Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir announced the preparation of a bill that could introduce the death penalty for terrorists in Israel. The bill was drafted by the Otsma Yehudit party, which the official represents. On Monday, November 20, the bill will be submitted to the Knesset National Security Committee. "I expect all members of the Knesset to support this important bill," Ben Gvir said. According to The Times of Israel, the death penalty has been applied only twice in the history of the state of Israel. The last time the death penalty was applied in Israel was in the case of Holocaust organizer Adolf Eichmann, who was sentenced to death after the Knesset abolished the death penalty as a possible punishment for most crimes in 1954. The death penalty was left to be applied only in exceptional cases, particularly for war crimes and participation in genocide. ADVERTISIMENT Eichmann's sentence was carried out on the night of May 31-June 1, 1962, in the Ramla prison; he was executed by hanging. As a reminder, the day before, the IDF announced the expansion of its operation in the Gaza Strip. In particular, the 36th Division of the Israel Defense Forces is advancing in the Zeitoun area of Gaza City, and the 162nd Division is advancing in Jabaliya. Both areas are considered Hamas strongholds. At present, the Israeli military is clearing the territory of terrorists on the outskirts of Zeitoun and striking at terrorist infrastructure. In Jabaliya, where the command and control center of the Hamas Northern Brigade in the Gaza Strip is located, and one of the main terrorist strongholds, Israeli engineering forces, infantry, aviation, and tanks are fighting terrorists who attack the IDF from residential areas, hiding behind civilians. ADVERTISIMENT A recent report showed that the first Boeing 787 Dreamliner landed in an unusual place. Norse Atlantic Airways made the landing in ice-covered in Antarctica with experts and scientists onboard. Landing a place in Antarctica for a Boeing doesn't usually happen. The region is known for extreme cold and icy conditions. It is not easy to land due to the slippery runway and foggy conditions. A historic moment for NorseThe first ever @BoeingAirplanes B787 Dreamliner to land in Antarctica! We are incredibly honoured to be a part of this piece of history, marking a very special milestone for Norse. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the Norwegian Polar pic.twitter.com/i2V1ZQZFAe Norse Atlantic Airways (@flynorse) November 16, 2023 Antarctica is known for its travel difficulty. However, a recent report showed that Norse Atlantic Airways managed to land a Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the blue ice runway. First Boeing 787 Dreamliner in Antarctica From the video, the runway was covered by some snow, which is 3,000 meters long and 60 meters wide. The big plane can carry about 330 passengers. At 2:00 a.m., the Boeing 787 Dreamliner flew to the Troll Airfield with 45 passengers and experts from the Norwegian Polar Institute. It provided the pilots with a better opportunity to land the airplane despite slippery road conditions. According to Norse Atlantic Airways, the landing is considered a historic moment for the airline after making the monumental flight to Antarctica. People were also amazed after finding out about the recent landing achievement. Norwegian Polar Institute brought together with them 12 tons of equipment that will be used for researching the region. The exploration and flight landing will be helpful for improved logistics in Antarctica, according to reports. Antarctica: More Facts About Extreme Cold Antarctica is home to different cold-adapted species: penguins, seals, seabirds and whales. The said animals are also sensitive to temperature change, causing devastating effects on their species. Researchers have been monitoring the effects of climate change and global warming on ice sheets in Antarctica. The increasing greenhouse gas emissions have been problematic and affect many species in Antarctica In addition, recent reports raised concerns about the melting of ice sheets due to the warming trend. The hotter temperatures can threaten low-lying areas and countries due to rising waters exacerbated by melting. When ice loss speeds up, it can become difficult for communities and cities to prepare and adapt. As a result, mitigating the climate change effects is crucial for Antarctica and the cold-adapted animals. The increasing sea level rise can impact coastal areas. In addition, marine heatwaves can become challenging for marine animals, especially for snow crabs. Also Read: Widespread Microplastics Harm Aquatic Species in Rivers in Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, Report Warns Did You Know? According to recent reports, the spike in global temperatures can affect seabirds which have to travel to distant areas to look for food and habitats. Related Article: Half of Breeding Seabirds in Ireland, UK Declined Over Past 20 Years Due to Climate Change, Habitat Loss For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The government is set to meet with social media platforms Google, Twitter and Meta to discuss the issue of deepfakes.IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, while addressing media said companies risk losing their safe harbour immunity clause if they fail to take sufficient measures to address and remove deepfakes. They are taking stepsbut we think that many more steps will have to be taken. And we are very soon going to have a meeting of all the platformsMaybe in the next 3-4 days, well call them for brainstorming on that and make sure that platforms make adequate efforts for preventing it (deepfakes), and cleaning up their system, said Vaishnaw. The governments action followed the viral spread of a deepfake video featuring actor Rashmika Mandanna on social media platforms. As the video went viral, many people, including Bollywood veteran Amitabh Bachchan, sought legal action against those responsible for the criminal act. Later, the government sent notice to these social media players on deepfakes issue. The safe harbour clause, which most social media platforms have been enjoyingthat does not apply if they do not take adequate steps for removing deepfakes from their platforms, added Vaishnaw. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp NEW DELHI: The government is set to meet with social media platforms Google, Twitter and Meta to discuss the issue of deepfakes.IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, while addressing media said companies risk losing their safe harbour immunity clause if they fail to take sufficient measures to address and remove deepfakes. They are taking stepsbut we think that many more steps will have to be taken. And we are very soon going to have a meeting of all the platformsMaybe in the next 3-4 days, well call them for brainstorming on that and make sure that platforms make adequate efforts for preventing it (deepfakes), and cleaning up their system, said Vaishnaw. The governments action followed the viral spread of a deepfake video featuring actor Rashmika Mandanna on social media platforms. As the video went viral, many people, including Bollywood veteran Amitabh Bachchan, sought legal action against those responsible for the criminal act.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Later, the government sent notice to these social media players on deepfakes issue. The safe harbour clause, which most social media platforms have been enjoyingthat does not apply if they do not take adequate steps for removing deepfakes from their platforms, added Vaishnaw. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Anup Verma By Express News Service NEW DELHI: As air quality in the national capital improved overnight due to an increase in the wind speed and a change in the wind direction, the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) on Saturday removed stringent curbs, including a ban on construction work related to linear projects and the entry of polluting trucks and commercial four-wheelers into the city. The citys 24-hour average AQI, recorded at 4 pm every day, improved from 405 on Friday to 319 on Saturday. These measures constitute the final stage, Stage IV, of the Centres air pollution control plan, which is activated at least three days before the AQI surpasses the 450-mark in the city. CAQM has asked Delhi- NCR to revoke all emergency measures, which allow only CNG, electric and BS VI-compliant vehicles from other states to enter Delhi, with exemptions granted to those involved in essential services. All medium and heavy goods vehicles not engaged in essential services were also banned in the capital under Stage IV of GRAP. The air quality forecasts by the IMD do not indicate any steep degradation in the overall air quality of Delhi-NCR in the coming days, CAQM said. An official at the IMD said an improvement in the wind speed from November 21 might further reduce air pollution. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp NEW DELHI: As air quality in the national capital improved overnight due to an increase in the wind speed and a change in the wind direction, the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) on Saturday removed stringent curbs, including a ban on construction work related to linear projects and the entry of polluting trucks and commercial four-wheelers into the city. The citys 24-hour average AQI, recorded at 4 pm every day, improved from 405 on Friday to 319 on Saturday. These measures constitute the final stage, Stage IV, of the Centres air pollution control plan, which is activated at least three days before the AQI surpasses the 450-mark in the city. CAQM has asked Delhi- NCR to revoke all emergency measures, which allow only CNG, electric and BS VI-compliant vehicles from other states to enter Delhi, with exemptions granted to those involved in essential services. All medium and heavy goods vehicles not engaged in essential services were also banned in the capital under Stage IV of GRAP.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The air quality forecasts by the IMD do not indicate any steep degradation in the overall air quality of Delhi-NCR in the coming days, CAQM said. An official at the IMD said an improvement in the wind speed from November 21 might further reduce air pollution. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Anup Verma By Express News Service NEW DELHI: A day after the AAP-led Delhi government leveled fresh allegations against Chief Secretary (CS) Naresh Kumar, accusing him of being involved in a hospital scam, Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday forwarded the report to the L-G. The CM, besides sending the report, also demanded immediate removal and suspension of the officer. Vigilance Minister Atishi on Friday submitted her supplementary report to the CM alleging that the CS used his position of influence to enable a lucrative collaboration between Delhi government-run Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) Hospital and a private company in which his son was a partner. The ILBS has denied allegations of any payment being made to any vendor in this regard. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by ILBS on 24.01.2023 for a period of six months for research work, which expired on July 23, 2023. This MoU was a research collaboration with zero expenditure to ILBS, it said. According to a detailed supplementary report submitted by Vigilance Minister Atishi, MetaMix, was allegedly awarded a contract to develop AI software for ILBS without a tender process. The company, which was reportedly formed only eight months prior to the deal and is said to lack experience in creating AI software, is accused of making profits worth hundreds of crores from the project. In light of these allegations, Atishi called for the immediate removal of Kumar from his post and for disciplinary action against him. She also suggested the case be probed by the CBI. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp NEW DELHI: A day after the AAP-led Delhi government leveled fresh allegations against Chief Secretary (CS) Naresh Kumar, accusing him of being involved in a hospital scam, Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday forwarded the report to the L-G. The CM, besides sending the report, also demanded immediate removal and suspension of the officer. Vigilance Minister Atishi on Friday submitted her supplementary report to the CM alleging that the CS used his position of influence to enable a lucrative collaboration between Delhi government-run Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) Hospital and a private company in which his son was a partner. The ILBS has denied allegations of any payment being made to any vendor in this regard. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by ILBS on 24.01.2023 for a period of six months for research work, which expired on July 23, 2023. This MoU was a research collaboration with zero expenditure to ILBS, it said. According to a detailed supplementary report submitted by Vigilance Minister Atishi, MetaMix, was allegedly awarded a contract to develop AI software for ILBS without a tender process.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The company, which was reportedly formed only eight months prior to the deal and is said to lack experience in creating AI software, is accused of making profits worth hundreds of crores from the project. In light of these allegations, Atishi called for the immediate removal of Kumar from his post and for disciplinary action against him. She also suggested the case be probed by the CBI. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By Online Desk Indian documentary filmmaker Anand Patwardhan, in his acceptance speech for the Best Editing award at the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), called for an "immediate ceasefire" in the ongoing war zones. In his speech, he said that he was taking the opportunity to amplify all international voices calling for an immediate ceasefire in Palestine, Ukraine, and other ongoing war zones. "'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free' is a misunderstood slogan. Some interpret it as a slogan calling for a One State solution and the ethnic cleansing of Jews. This misunderstanding is why the real meaning of the slogan should be explained and emphasized it is a call for a land where Muslims, Jews, Christians, and all others can live together in peace and harmony and with equal rights," he said. Patwardhan applauded those who pulled out of the festival and sparked an international debate and those who stayed back to continue the debate from within. He also lauded those who allowed the space to do it. He further added, "Our protests have been non-violent. Non-violence can build a global community. In many parts of the world Palestinians and Jews are marching together with others to demand an immediate ceasefire and a just peace." He ended his speech by saying, "The entire world is enslaved by a global arms industry that profits from every war and from every death. It is from this slavery that our world must be set free." Patwardhan won the award for his film titled Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam/The World is Family. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Indian documentary filmmaker Anand Patwardhan, in his acceptance speech for the Best Editing award at the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), called for an "immediate ceasefire" in the ongoing war zones. In his speech, he said that he was taking the opportunity to amplify all international voices calling for an immediate ceasefire in Palestine, Ukraine, and other ongoing war zones. "'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free' is a misunderstood slogan. Some interpret it as a slogan calling for a One State solution and the ethnic cleansing of Jews. This misunderstanding is why the real meaning of the slogan should be explained and emphasized it is a call for a land where Muslims, Jews, Christians, and all others can live together in peace and harmony and with equal rights," he said.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Patwardhan applauded those who pulled out of the festival and sparked an international debate and those who stayed back to continue the debate from within. He also lauded those who allowed the space to do it. He further added, "Our protests have been non-violent. Non-violence can build a global community. In many parts of the world Palestinians and Jews are marching together with others to demand an immediate ceasefire and a just peace." He ended his speech by saying, "The entire world is enslaved by a global arms industry that profits from every war and from every death. It is from this slavery that our world must be set free." Patwardhan won the award for his film titled Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam/The World is Family. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Rajalakshmi Sampath By Express News Service RANIPET: 'Pengal nam naattin kangal in Tamil roughly translates to we women are the eyes of our country, but in an era darkened by patriarchy, the prospect of gender equality often finds itself relegated to the sidelines. Women in India continue to face significant challenges in their personal and social lives. Their pursuit of gender equality remains an uphill battle. In 2006, P Vedhanayagi, an agro-feminist who has taken issues of gender equality and land reforms to international conferences held in South Korea, Sweden, Italy and Sri Lanka, laid the foundation for Thendral Movement in Ranipet. This Thendral (meaning a pleasant breeze in Tamil) aimed at empowering the modern woman and take steps to realise a more harmonious coexistence with men. Apart from its poetic tone, Thendral stands for The Holistic Eagerly Nature Development-Related Alternative Life. Thendral Movements programmes and activities are all directed towards the welfare and empowerment of underprivileged women. The organisations ultimate goal being the establishment of a social order free from violence where the poor, deprived and disadvantaged can find support and mobility. Hailing from a financially-disadvantaged Dalit family, Vedhanayagis formative years exposed her to the stark reality of domestic violence, with her sisters and friends bearing witness to its harrowing effects. The deaths of her two sisters in 1995, both due to domestic violence incidents, fuelled Vedhanayagis commitment to address the political and material complexities of gender. She resorted to extensively reading works by Ambedkar, Periyar, Luxemburg and other leaders who furnished Vedhanayagi with the profound realisation that women cannot be liberated from within the confines of caste, capital and religion. Since her college days, Vedhanayagi has been actively involved with various NGOs, contributing to social activities across Tamil Nadu, operating in diverse roles. Her decision to return to Ranipet, her nativity, was driven by a desire to care for her sisters children who had been orphaned. Under her guidance, one of her sisters daughters, Ilakkiya, pursued a career in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). She is currently serving as a joint collector and additional district magistrate in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh. It was during this period Vedhanayagi conceived of the idea to establish an NGO specifically focused on women in Ranipet district. Over the years, Thendral Movement has confronted various forms of violence against women and children in Ranipet. Regarding the discourse of liberal gender equality, Men continue to tactically deploy gender-based violence against women to this day. For instance, in households with a single daughter, men marry and subject the woman to abuse, exploiting her vulnerability, and by extension, her family. Hence, it is not accurate to claim that violence has ceased, says Vedhanayagi. Recently, Thendral Movement, in collaboration with the District Child Welfare Committee, rescued a girl from parental abuse and diligently pursued the case, resulting in 22 years of imprisonment for the accused. Moreover, Thendral Movement has also advocated for equal pay for women employed in footwear manufacturing units in Ranipet, successfully bringing about a pay hike of Rs 10,000 for every woman employed in the industry. Over the past 17 years of its existence, Thendral Movement has positively impacted 26,333 direct beneficiaries through its many initiatives. From rescuing bonded labourers, to aiding female workers from various industries, the organisation offers a spectrum of services, including family counselling, empowerment programmes for female college students, and leadership training for women in 288 panchayat villages. Looking on ahead, Vedhanayagi and her organisation envisage a impactful future full of relevant initiatives, including strategic partnerships with various groups to amplify programs for women and children. Thendral Movement can be reached at 94430 37394. (Edited by Amal Raj) Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp RANIPET: 'Pengal nam naattin kangal in Tamil roughly translates to we women are the eyes of our country, but in an era darkened by patriarchy, the prospect of gender equality often finds itself relegated to the sidelines. Women in India continue to face significant challenges in their personal and social lives. Their pursuit of gender equality remains an uphill battle. In 2006, P Vedhanayagi, an agro-feminist who has taken issues of gender equality and land reforms to international conferences held in South Korea, Sweden, Italy and Sri Lanka, laid the foundation for Thendral Movement in Ranipet. This Thendral (meaning a pleasant breeze in Tamil) aimed at empowering the modern woman and take steps to realise a more harmonious coexistence with men. Apart from its poetic tone, Thendral stands for The Holistic Eagerly Nature Development-Related Alternative Life. Thendral Movements programmes and activities are all directed towards the welfare and empowerment of underprivileged women. The organisations ultimate goal being the establishment of a social order free from violence where the poor, deprived and disadvantaged can find support and mobility.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Hailing from a financially-disadvantaged Dalit family, Vedhanayagis formative years exposed her to the stark reality of domestic violence, with her sisters and friends bearing witness to its harrowing effects. The deaths of her two sisters in 1995, both due to domestic violence incidents, fuelled Vedhanayagis commitment to address the political and material complexities of gender. She resorted to extensively reading works by Ambedkar, Periyar, Luxemburg and other leaders who furnished Vedhanayagi with the profound realisation that women cannot be liberated from within the confines of caste, capital and religion. Since her college days, Vedhanayagi has been actively involved with various NGOs, contributing to social activities across Tamil Nadu, operating in diverse roles. Her decision to return to Ranipet, her nativity, was driven by a desire to care for her sisters children who had been orphaned. Under her guidance, one of her sisters daughters, Ilakkiya, pursued a career in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). She is currently serving as a joint collector and additional district magistrate in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh. It was during this period Vedhanayagi conceived of the idea to establish an NGO specifically focused on women in Ranipet district. Over the years, Thendral Movement has confronted various forms of violence against women and children in Ranipet. Regarding the discourse of liberal gender equality, Men continue to tactically deploy gender-based violence against women to this day. For instance, in households with a single daughter, men marry and subject the woman to abuse, exploiting her vulnerability, and by extension, her family. Hence, it is not accurate to claim that violence has ceased, says Vedhanayagi. Recently, Thendral Movement, in collaboration with the District Child Welfare Committee, rescued a girl from parental abuse and diligently pursued the case, resulting in 22 years of imprisonment for the accused. Moreover, Thendral Movement has also advocated for equal pay for women employed in footwear manufacturing units in Ranipet, successfully bringing about a pay hike of Rs 10,000 for every woman employed in the industry. Over the past 17 years of its existence, Thendral Movement has positively impacted 26,333 direct beneficiaries through its many initiatives. From rescuing bonded labourers, to aiding female workers from various industries, the organisation offers a spectrum of services, including family counselling, empowerment programmes for female college students, and leadership training for women in 288 panchayat villages. Looking on ahead, Vedhanayagi and her organisation envisage a impactful future full of relevant initiatives, including strategic partnerships with various groups to amplify programs for women and children. Thendral Movement can be reached at 94430 37394. (Edited by Amal Raj) Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Narendra Sethi By Express News Service DEHRADUN: The world-famous Chardham Yatra concluded on Saturday with the portals of Shri Badrinath Dham closed for the winter season. The Himalayan shrines saw a record number of pilgrims at 56,13,635 as of Saturday, an increase of 10 lakh compared to the previous year. Dr Harish Gaur, media in-charge of Badri Kedar Temple Committee, said, "On the fifth day of Panch Puja on Saturday, the rawal of the temple himself wears female costumes and takes Mata Lakshmi to the sanctum sanctorum of Badrinath temple." "It is believed that it is forbidden to touch Goddess Lakshmi by 'other-man', so Rawal himself wears a female dress and installs the idol of Mata Lakshmi in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple," Dr Gaur said. The Chardham Yatra also concluded on Saturday. "A record 56,13,635 pilgrims came to Uttarakhand to visit Chardham and Hemkund Sahib this year, which is an unprecedented record in itself as well as more than 10 lakh pilgrims 4627292 who came during last year's Chardham Yatra period," Badri Kedar Temple Committee president Ajendra Ajay told The New Indian Express. Meanwhile, a spokesperson of the committee said, "This time 735244 pilgrims visited Yamunotri Dham, 9,05,174 to Gangotri Dham, 1961025 to Kedarnath Dham, 1834729 to Badrinath Dham and 177463 to Hemkund Sahib". Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp DEHRADUN: The world-famous Chardham Yatra concluded on Saturday with the portals of Shri Badrinath Dham closed for the winter season. The Himalayan shrines saw a record number of pilgrims at 56,13,635 as of Saturday, an increase of 10 lakh compared to the previous year. Dr Harish Gaur, media in-charge of Badri Kedar Temple Committee, said, "On the fifth day of Panch Puja on Saturday, the rawal of the temple himself wears female costumes and takes Mata Lakshmi to the sanctum sanctorum of Badrinath temple."googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); "It is believed that it is forbidden to touch Goddess Lakshmi by 'other-man', so Rawal himself wears a female dress and installs the idol of Mata Lakshmi in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple," Dr Gaur said. The Chardham Yatra also concluded on Saturday. "A record 56,13,635 pilgrims came to Uttarakhand to visit Chardham and Hemkund Sahib this year, which is an unprecedented record in itself as well as more than 10 lakh pilgrims 4627292 who came during last year's Chardham Yatra period," Badri Kedar Temple Committee president Ajendra Ajay told The New Indian Express. Meanwhile, a spokesperson of the committee said, "This time 735244 pilgrims visited Yamunotri Dham, 9,05,174 to Gangotri Dham, 1961025 to Kedarnath Dham, 1834729 to Badrinath Dham and 177463 to Hemkund Sahib". Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp The American billionaire and inventor Elon Musk was caught up in an anti-Semitic scandal. He publicly supported the anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that Jewish communities incite "hatred of whites." ADVERTISIMENT After that, powerful companies that had implemented their advertising campaigns on the Twitter platform, which changed its name to X after Musk's acquisition, suspended cooperation with the network. The details are reported by The Hollywood Reporter. Most major advertisers have joined the "boycott" of the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, the publication writes. Thus, Disney has stopped advertising on the social network: it happened on the eve of the premiere of the new animated film Wish, scheduled for November 22. Lionsgate also announced the decision to remove its advertising: they promised to remove their ads from the platform before the release of the Hunger Games prequel. Since Friday evening, November 17, it has been known that such media giants as Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount and Sony Pictures stopped their advertising. ADVERTISIMENT These companies' "demarche" started after IBM removed ads from the platform in light of a new report published on November 16 by the non-profit organization Media Matters for America, which stated that the social network had been running ads for companies such as Apple, Bravo, IBM, Oracle and Xfinity alongside content promoting Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party. "IBM does not tolerate hateful speech or discrimination, and we have immediately suspended all advertising on X while we investigate this completely unacceptable situation," the company said at the time. In addition, Apple suspended advertising on the platform on November 17. In the first quarter of 2022, this company alone brought almost $50 million to the X platform. Earlier, Musk noted that Disney and Apple are among the largest advertisers of Platform X and thanked them for their cooperation. The fact that they have stopped their advertising campaigns will have a particularly strong impact on the platform. ADVERTISIMENT One of the reasons for the refusal of large companies to cooperate with Musk's Platform X was also a post he made on social media on Wednesday. He reacted to an anti-Semitic message that stated that Jews "promote exactly the type of hatred of whites that they want people to stop using against them." The billionaire responded with a comment: "You're absolutely right." Even the White House reacted to the anti-Semitic scandal with X. In an official statement regarding the spread of anti-Semitic content on the platform, the US presidential administration "strongly condemns this disgusting propaganda of anti-Semitic and racist hatred" that contradicts "the core values of Americans." ADVERTISIMENT The management of X also reacted to the scandal. "X's point of view has always been very clear: discrimination by everyone must STOP. I think that's something we can and should all agree on. When it comes to this platform, X has also been very clear about our efforts to combat anti-Semitism and discrimination. There is no place for this anywhere in the world as it's disgusting and wrong," wrote Linda Yaccarino, CEO of X. However, no changes in the position of the platform's most powerful advertisers have been reported so far. As a reminder, Elon Musk has recently given Zelenskyy another scandalous piece of advice. The billionaire urged "not to send Ukrainian youth to die in the trenches" and "to meet with Putin personally." It also became known that Musk will speak at an international conference on artificial intelligence in Russia. ADVERTISIMENT Narendra Sethi By Express News Service DEHRADUN: More than a week after the Silkiyara tunnel collapse incident in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district, relief and rescue agencies have been directed by the Centre and the Uttarakhand government to work together on a new formula of five-point options. After visiting the Silkiyara tunnel accident site on Sunday morning, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said, "We are working on five alternative options and various agencies of the Government of India are working here, special attention is also being paid by the PMO." Tunnel experts and Border Road Organisation (BRO) officials have also been called in. Providing food, medicine, and oxygen to the stranded victims is the first priority. In the new development, now the help of foreign experts is being taken to rescue 41 labourers trapped in the tunnel. On Saturday, engineering expert Armando Capelan and micro tunnelling expert Chris Cooper also reached the spot to help with the rescue work. On Sunday, Union Minister Gadkari after visiting the tunnel site, stated that the area where the workers are trapped measures 8.5 meters in height and extends for 2 kilometers. This section of the tunnel has been reinforced with concrete to ensure safety for the labourers, and it is equipped with electricity and water. Later Gadkari also met the families of the workers trapped in the tunnel and assured that the government is engaged in the rescue operation with full strength and determination. Additionally, Road Transport and Highways Ministry Secretary Anurag Jain briefed the media on a new scheme involving five agencies Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVNL), Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), and Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited (THDCL) which have been entrusted with specific responsibilities. The government spokesperson said, "ONGC, which specializes in deep drilling, has initiated preliminary work for vertical drilling from the Barkot end". Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVNL) will be conducting vertical drilling to rescue the trapped labourers in the tunnel. The necessary equipment, weighing 75 tonnes, has been mobilized from Gujarat and Odisha via Railways, as it was not feasible to airlift such heavy machinery. A spokesperson said, "THDC will start micro-tunnelling work from Badkot end late Sunday night. NHIDCL will continue to drill from the Silkiyara end after the security arrangements, and the Army has prepared the box culvert to facilitate this". "RVNL has started working on another vertical pipeline for the supply of essential commodities. The BRO completed the construction of an access road in just one day", the spokesperson said. On the strong demand of the villagers along with technology, faith and state-of-the-art foreign machines to rescue the 41 labourers trapped in the tunnel, experts and engineers have set up a temple of Bauknag Devta outside the tunnel. Earlier this temple was removed and installed in the inner corner of the tunnel. On Saturday, a special puja was also performed and the deity's idol was installed in the temple. Actually, Baba "Baukhnag Devta" is worshipped in the Silkyara region. Others, including Praveen Jayada and Dhanpal Singh of the area, said that when the company started constructing the tunnel, it had promised to set up a temple of Baba Boukhanag near the tunnel, but did not do so later. Villagers believe that this accident has happened due to the anger of the deity. "The condition inside the tunnel is not good," said Mrityunjay Kumar, a loader operator working in the tunnel. Mrityunjay alleges that not much work has been done to bring out the trapped labourers for a week. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp DEHRADUN: More than a week after the Silkiyara tunnel collapse incident in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district, relief and rescue agencies have been directed by the Centre and the Uttarakhand government to work together on a new formula of five-point options. After visiting the Silkiyara tunnel accident site on Sunday morning, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said, "We are working on five alternative options and various agencies of the Government of India are working here, special attention is also being paid by the PMO." Tunnel experts and Border Road Organisation (BRO) officials have also been called in. Providing food, medicine, and oxygen to the stranded victims is the first priority. In the new development, now the help of foreign experts is being taken to rescue 41 labourers trapped in the tunnel. On Saturday, engineering expert Armando Capelan and micro tunnelling expert Chris Cooper also reached the spot to help with the rescue work.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); On Sunday, Union Minister Gadkari after visiting the tunnel site, stated that the area where the workers are trapped measures 8.5 meters in height and extends for 2 kilometers. This section of the tunnel has been reinforced with concrete to ensure safety for the labourers, and it is equipped with electricity and water. Later Gadkari also met the families of the workers trapped in the tunnel and assured that the government is engaged in the rescue operation with full strength and determination. Additionally, Road Transport and Highways Ministry Secretary Anurag Jain briefed the media on a new scheme involving five agencies Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVNL), Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), and Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited (THDCL) which have been entrusted with specific responsibilities. The government spokesperson said, "ONGC, which specializes in deep drilling, has initiated preliminary work for vertical drilling from the Barkot end". Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVNL) will be conducting vertical drilling to rescue the trapped labourers in the tunnel. The necessary equipment, weighing 75 tonnes, has been mobilized from Gujarat and Odisha via Railways, as it was not feasible to airlift such heavy machinery. A spokesperson said, "THDC will start micro-tunnelling work from Badkot end late Sunday night. NHIDCL will continue to drill from the Silkiyara end after the security arrangements, and the Army has prepared the box culvert to facilitate this". "RVNL has started working on another vertical pipeline for the supply of essential commodities. The BRO completed the construction of an access road in just one day", the spokesperson said. On the strong demand of the villagers along with technology, faith and state-of-the-art foreign machines to rescue the 41 labourers trapped in the tunnel, experts and engineers have set up a temple of Bauknag Devta outside the tunnel. Earlier this temple was removed and installed in the inner corner of the tunnel. On Saturday, a special puja was also performed and the deity's idol was installed in the temple. Actually, Baba "Baukhnag Devta" is worshipped in the Silkyara region. Others, including Praveen Jayada and Dhanpal Singh of the area, said that when the company started constructing the tunnel, it had promised to set up a temple of Baba Boukhanag near the tunnel, but did not do so later. Villagers believe that this accident has happened due to the anger of the deity. "The condition inside the tunnel is not good," said Mrityunjay Kumar, a loader operator working in the tunnel. Mrityunjay alleges that not much work has been done to bring out the trapped labourers for a week. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By Online Desk The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh has slammed the tendency of authorities to detain persons for simply being critics of the government, terming it as an abuse of the preventive detention law. The court, according to Live Law, made the criticism while quashing the detention of Kashmir-based journalist Sajad Ahmad Dar, who writes under the name Sajad Gul. He was been under detention under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act since January 16, 2022 allegedly for his tweets and statements "promoting enmity" besides "being prejudicial to maintenance of public order and security of the State." Finding the allegations to be vague and general, without any specific instance, the High Court ordered the immediate release of Dar. The bench categorically stated that a person can't be detained merely for the reason that he is a critic of the government. Earlier a single bench of the High Court, in December 2022, had refused to interfere with the detention order, following which he appealed to the division bench. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh has slammed the tendency of authorities to detain persons for simply being critics of the government, terming it as an abuse of the preventive detention law. The court, according to Live Law, made the criticism while quashing the detention of Kashmir-based journalist Sajad Ahmad Dar, who writes under the name Sajad Gul. He was been under detention under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act since January 16, 2022 allegedly for his tweets and statements "promoting enmity" besides "being prejudicial to maintenance of public order and security of the State." Finding the allegations to be vague and general, without any specific instance, the High Court ordered the immediate release of Dar.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The bench categorically stated that a person can't be detained merely for the reason that he is a critic of the government. Earlier a single bench of the High Court, in December 2022, had refused to interfere with the detention order, following which he appealed to the division bench. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By Online Desk The OP Jindal Global University in Haryana has asked political scientist Achin Vanaik to express regret for the remarks that he made during a lecture on the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict, Scroll.in reports. Leaked videos of the talk of the former professor of political science at Delhi University showed that he drew parallels between Zionism and Hindutva nationalism and questioned why one act of violence is labelled terrorism and others are not, the report said. In his lecture, according to Scroll.in, Vanaik also said that Zionism and Hindutva were different as the former was not anti-Muslim while the latter was fundamentally and foundationally anti-Muslim and anti-Islamic. Further, Vanaik had said, Suicide bombing expresses above all the determination not to kill much as the determination to die. On November 3, the Israeli embassy in India had also raised concerns about Vanaiks lecture. Dabiru Sridhar Patnaik, the registrar of the university, in a letter, told Vanaik that the statements made by him during his lecture on November 1 were gratuitous and unrelated to the subject. Patnaiks letter described his characterisation of Zionism as informative but said the scholars comments on Hindutva were unnecessary and objectionable. Early this month, IIT-Bombay cancelled a proposed lecture by Achin Vanaik on the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp The OP Jindal Global University in Haryana has asked political scientist Achin Vanaik to express regret for the remarks that he made during a lecture on the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict, Scroll.in reports. Leaked videos of the talk of the former professor of political science at Delhi University showed that he drew parallels between Zionism and Hindutva nationalism and questioned why one act of violence is labelled terrorism and others are not, the report said. In his lecture, according to Scroll.in, Vanaik also said that Zionism and Hindutva were different as the former was not anti-Muslim while the latter was fundamentally and foundationally anti-Muslim and anti-Islamic.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Further, Vanaik had said, Suicide bombing expresses above all the determination not to kill much as the determination to die. On November 3, the Israeli embassy in India had also raised concerns about Vanaiks lecture. Dabiru Sridhar Patnaik, the registrar of the university, in a letter, told Vanaik that the statements made by him during his lecture on November 1 were gratuitous and unrelated to the subject. Patnaiks letter described his characterisation of Zionism as informative but said the scholars comments on Hindutva were unnecessary and objectionable. Early this month, IIT-Bombay cancelled a proposed lecture by Achin Vanaik on the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By Express News Service KOTTAYAM: Malayalam film actor Vinod Thomas was found inside a car parked on the premises of a bar hotel at Pampady in Kottayam on Saturday evening. According to the police, the 45-year-old actor arrived at the hotel around 6 pm, driving his car. However, when he failed to exit the vehicle even after 15 minutes, the security personnel alerted the hotel manager. The hotel authorities promptly informed the police, who arrived at the scene and accessed the car by breaking its side window. Despite being rushed to a nearby hospital, Vinod was pronounced dead upon arrival. Vinod hailed from Meenadom, near Pampady. The police believe that he succumbed to a massive heart attack, as there were no suspicious circumstances, such as gas leakage from the air-conditioner, found during the preliminary examination. However, the exact cause of death will only be determined after the postmortem examination. "We have sent the body for postmortem at the Government Medical College Hospital in Kottayam. We are awaiting the report. A case has been registered for unnatural death in connection with the incident," stated M Anil Kumar, DySP Kanjirappally. Meanwhile, the police and officials from the Motor Vehicle Department will inspect the car on Sunday to check for the presence of any gas substances inside. Vinod had notable roles in films such as Ayyappanum Koshiyum, Natholi Oru Cheriya Meenalla, Kuri, Kerala Crime Files, Happy Wedding, June, and Ayal Sasi. His untimely demise has sent shockwaves through the film industry, particularly among his colleagues. Actress Surabhi Lakshmi expressed her disbelief on her Facebook page. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp KOTTAYAM: Malayalam film actor Vinod Thomas was found inside a car parked on the premises of a bar hotel at Pampady in Kottayam on Saturday evening. According to the police, the 45-year-old actor arrived at the hotel around 6 pm, driving his car. However, when he failed to exit the vehicle even after 15 minutes, the security personnel alerted the hotel manager. The hotel authorities promptly informed the police, who arrived at the scene and accessed the car by breaking its side window. Despite being rushed to a nearby hospital, Vinod was pronounced dead upon arrival. Vinod hailed from Meenadom, near Pampady.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The police believe that he succumbed to a massive heart attack, as there were no suspicious circumstances, such as gas leakage from the air-conditioner, found during the preliminary examination. However, the exact cause of death will only be determined after the postmortem examination. "We have sent the body for postmortem at the Government Medical College Hospital in Kottayam. We are awaiting the report. A case has been registered for unnatural death in connection with the incident," stated M Anil Kumar, DySP Kanjirappally. Meanwhile, the police and officials from the Motor Vehicle Department will inspect the car on Sunday to check for the presence of any gas substances inside. Vinod had notable roles in films such as Ayyappanum Koshiyum, Natholi Oru Cheriya Meenalla, Kuri, Kerala Crime Files, Happy Wedding, June, and Ayal Sasi. His untimely demise has sent shockwaves through the film industry, particularly among his colleagues. Actress Surabhi Lakshmi expressed her disbelief on her Facebook page. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By PTI NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday two separate pleas of the Tamil Nadu and Kerala governments, alleging a delay by the respective state governors in giving assent to bills passed by the assemblies. A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra is scheduled to hear the pleas. The Tamil Nadu Assembly re-adopted 10 bills in a special sitting on Saturday, days after those were returned by Governor R N Ravi. The bills, covering different departments, including law, agriculture and higher education, were passed in the wake of Ravi returning those on November 13. The re-adopted bills were later sent to the governor for his assent. On November 10, describing the alleged delay by the Tamil Nadu governor in giving assent to the bills as a "matter of serious concern", the top court sought the Centre's response on the state government's petition accusing the Raj Bhawan of "sitting over" 12 legislations. Issuing notice to the Centre, the top court had sought the assistance of the attorney general or solicitor general in resolving the issue. "The issues which have been raised in the writ petition raise a matter of serious concern. From the tabulated statements which have been submitted before this court, it appears that as many as 12 bills which have been submitted to the governor under Article 200 have not elicited any further action. "Other matters, such as proposals for the grant of sanction for prosecution, proposals for the premature release of prisoners and for the appointment of the members of the Public Service Commission, are pending," it had said. The bench headed by CJI Chandrachud had said, "Bearing in mind the situation, we issue notice to the second respondent, namely, the Union of India represented by the secretary to the government in the Ministry of Home Affairs. We request the attorney general of India or, in his absence, the solicitor general of India to assist the court." It had noted that Article 200 of the Constitution mandates that when a bill is passed by the legislative Assembly of a state or where a state has a bicameral legislature, by both the Houses, it shall be presented to the governor, who shall (1) declare assents to the bill or (2) withhold assent therefrom or (3) reserve the bill for the consideration of the president. READ MORE | Tamil Nadu govt moves Supreme Court against Governor RN Ravi forming V-C search committees The Tamil Nadu government has urged the top court to intervene in the matter, alleging that "a constitutional authority" is consistently acting in an "unconstitutional manner, impeding and obstructing" the functioning of the state government for "extraneous reasons". "Declare that the inaction, omission, delay and failure to comply with the constitutional mandate by the governor of Tamil Nadu/first respondent qua the consideration and assent of the bills passed and forwarded by the Tamil Nadu state legislature to him and the non-consideration of files, government orders and policies forwarded by the state government for his signature is unconstitutional, illegal, arbitrary, unreasonable, besides mala-fide exercise of power," the petition says. The governor, by "not signing remission orders, day-to-day files, appointment orders, approving recruitment orders, granting approval to prosecute ministers, MLAs involved in corruption, including transfer of investigation to the CBI by the Supreme Court, bills passed by the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is bringing the entire administration to a grinding halt and creating adversarial attitude by not cooperating with the state administration," it says. Similarly, the Kerala government has moved the top court claiming that Governor Arif Mohammed Khan is delaying his assent to the bills passed by the Assembly, which is "defeating the rights of the people". It has claimed inaction on the governor's part in relation to eight bills passed by the state legislature and said many of these bills involve immense public interest and provide for welfare measures that would stand deprived and denied to the people of the southern state to the extent of the delay. "The petitioner -- state of Kerala -- in fulfilment of its parens patriae obligation to its people, seeks appropriate orders from this court in relation to the inaction on the part of the governor of the state in relation to as many as eight bills passed by the state legislature and presented to the governor for his assent under Article 200 of the Constitution. "Of these, three bills have remained pending with the governor for more than two years and three more in excess of a full year. The conduct of the governor, as would presently be demonstrated, threatens to defeat and subvert the very fundamentals and basic foundations of our Constitution, including the rule of law and democratic good governance, apart from defeating the rights of the people of the state to the welfare measures sought to be implemented through the bills," the plea filed by the Kerala government says. The government has contended that grave injustice is being done to the people of the state as also to its representative democratic institutions by the governor by keeping the bills pending for long periods of time, including three for more than two years. "The governor appears to be of the view that granting assent or otherwise dealing with bills is a matter entrusted to him in his absolute discretion, to decide whenever he pleases. This is a complete subversion of the Constitution," it has submitted. The plea says the governor's conduct in keeping the bills pending for long and indefinite periods of time is also manifestly arbitrary and violates Article 14 of the Constitution. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday two separate pleas of the Tamil Nadu and Kerala governments, alleging a delay by the respective state governors in giving assent to bills passed by the assemblies. A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra is scheduled to hear the pleas. The Tamil Nadu Assembly re-adopted 10 bills in a special sitting on Saturday, days after those were returned by Governor R N Ravi. The bills, covering different departments, including law, agriculture and higher education, were passed in the wake of Ravi returning those on November 13.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The re-adopted bills were later sent to the governor for his assent. On November 10, describing the alleged delay by the Tamil Nadu governor in giving assent to the bills as a "matter of serious concern", the top court sought the Centre's response on the state government's petition accusing the Raj Bhawan of "sitting over" 12 legislations. Issuing notice to the Centre, the top court had sought the assistance of the attorney general or solicitor general in resolving the issue. "The issues which have been raised in the writ petition raise a matter of serious concern. From the tabulated statements which have been submitted before this court, it appears that as many as 12 bills which have been submitted to the governor under Article 200 have not elicited any further action. "Other matters, such as proposals for the grant of sanction for prosecution, proposals for the premature release of prisoners and for the appointment of the members of the Public Service Commission, are pending," it had said. The bench headed by CJI Chandrachud had said, "Bearing in mind the situation, we issue notice to the second respondent, namely, the Union of India represented by the secretary to the government in the Ministry of Home Affairs. We request the attorney general of India or, in his absence, the solicitor general of India to assist the court." It had noted that Article 200 of the Constitution mandates that when a bill is passed by the legislative Assembly of a state or where a state has a bicameral legislature, by both the Houses, it shall be presented to the governor, who shall (1) declare assents to the bill or (2) withhold assent therefrom or (3) reserve the bill for the consideration of the president. READ MORE | Tamil Nadu govt moves Supreme Court against Governor RN Ravi forming V-C search committees The Tamil Nadu government has urged the top court to intervene in the matter, alleging that "a constitutional authority" is consistently acting in an "unconstitutional manner, impeding and obstructing" the functioning of the state government for "extraneous reasons". "Declare that the inaction, omission, delay and failure to comply with the constitutional mandate by the governor of Tamil Nadu/first respondent qua the consideration and assent of the bills passed and forwarded by the Tamil Nadu state legislature to him and the non-consideration of files, government orders and policies forwarded by the state government for his signature is unconstitutional, illegal, arbitrary, unreasonable, besides mala-fide exercise of power," the petition says. The governor, by "not signing remission orders, day-to-day files, appointment orders, approving recruitment orders, granting approval to prosecute ministers, MLAs involved in corruption, including transfer of investigation to the CBI by the Supreme Court, bills passed by the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is bringing the entire administration to a grinding halt and creating adversarial attitude by not cooperating with the state administration," it says. Similarly, the Kerala government has moved the top court claiming that Governor Arif Mohammed Khan is delaying his assent to the bills passed by the Assembly, which is "defeating the rights of the people". It has claimed inaction on the governor's part in relation to eight bills passed by the state legislature and said many of these bills involve immense public interest and provide for welfare measures that would stand deprived and denied to the people of the southern state to the extent of the delay. "The petitioner -- state of Kerala -- in fulfilment of its parens patriae obligation to its people, seeks appropriate orders from this court in relation to the inaction on the part of the governor of the state in relation to as many as eight bills passed by the state legislature and presented to the governor for his assent under Article 200 of the Constitution. "Of these, three bills have remained pending with the governor for more than two years and three more in excess of a full year. The conduct of the governor, as would presently be demonstrated, threatens to defeat and subvert the very fundamentals and basic foundations of our Constitution, including the rule of law and democratic good governance, apart from defeating the rights of the people of the state to the welfare measures sought to be implemented through the bills," the plea filed by the Kerala government says. The government has contended that grave injustice is being done to the people of the state as also to its representative democratic institutions by the governor by keeping the bills pending for long periods of time, including three for more than two years. "The governor appears to be of the view that granting assent or otherwise dealing with bills is a matter entrusted to him in his absolute discretion, to decide whenever he pleases. This is a complete subversion of the Constitution," it has submitted. The plea says the governor's conduct in keeping the bills pending for long and indefinite periods of time is also manifestly arbitrary and violates Article 14 of the Constitution. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Narendra Sethi By Express News Service DEHRADUN: Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reached Silkiyara tunnel in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district on Sunday as rescue operations continue for the eighth day. Officials say that if everything goes to plan, the rescue could another take four or five days. "The condition inside the tunnel is not good," said Mrityunjay Kumar, a loader operator working in the tunnel. Mrityunjay alleges that not much work has been done to bring out the trapped laborers for a week. Mrityunjay asked how long will the workers trapped inside live by eating only dry food, "The morale of the laborers trapped inside for a week is now breaking", Mrityunjay said. Deepak Kumar, a resident of Muzaffarpur in Bihar, is also trapped in the Silkiara tunnel. On Saturday, Deepak's uncle Krishna Patel reached Silkiara. They were made to talk to Deepak through the pipeline. Krishna Patel said that Deepak said, "Get me out quickly. I am not getting the proper required food." Deepak Kumar, 20, is the 41st laborer trapped in the Silkiara tunnel, he was not even counted among the laborers trapped inside. His colleagues informed the company management that Deepak, the boomer machine operator who went missing after the accident, was also trapped inside the tunnel. Along with technology, rescue team officials have now resorted to faith for 'divine grace' at the request of the villagers to rescue 41 laborers trapped in the Silkiyara tunnel. Under pressure from villagers in the area, the company management has now restored the temple of Baukhanag Devta outside the tunnel. Earlier this temple was removed and installed in the inner corner of the tunnel. On Saturday, a special puja was also performed by calling the priest here and the deity was installed in the temple. Baba "Baukhnag Devta" is worshiped in the Silkyara region. Others, including Praveen Jayada and Dhanpal Singh of the area, said that when the company started constructing the tunnel, it had promised to set up a temple of Baba Boukhanag near the tunnel, but did not do so later. Villagers believe that this accident has happened due to the anger of the deity. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp DEHRADUN: Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reached Silkiyara tunnel in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district on Sunday as rescue operations continue for the eighth day. Officials say that if everything goes to plan, the rescue could another take four or five days. "The condition inside the tunnel is not good," said Mrityunjay Kumar, a loader operator working in the tunnel.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Mrityunjay alleges that not much work has been done to bring out the trapped laborers for a week. Mrityunjay asked how long will the workers trapped inside live by eating only dry food, "The morale of the laborers trapped inside for a week is now breaking", Mrityunjay said. Deepak Kumar, a resident of Muzaffarpur in Bihar, is also trapped in the Silkiara tunnel. On Saturday, Deepak's uncle Krishna Patel reached Silkiara. They were made to talk to Deepak through the pipeline. Krishna Patel said that Deepak said, "Get me out quickly. I am not getting the proper required food." Deepak Kumar, 20, is the 41st laborer trapped in the Silkiara tunnel, he was not even counted among the laborers trapped inside. His colleagues informed the company management that Deepak, the boomer machine operator who went missing after the accident, was also trapped inside the tunnel. Along with technology, rescue team officials have now resorted to faith for 'divine grace' at the request of the villagers to rescue 41 laborers trapped in the Silkiyara tunnel. Under pressure from villagers in the area, the company management has now restored the temple of Baukhanag Devta outside the tunnel. Earlier this temple was removed and installed in the inner corner of the tunnel. On Saturday, a special puja was also performed by calling the priest here and the deity was installed in the temple. Baba "Baukhnag Devta" is worshiped in the Silkyara region. Others, including Praveen Jayada and Dhanpal Singh of the area, said that when the company started constructing the tunnel, it had promised to set up a temple of Baba Boukhanag near the tunnel, but did not do so later. Villagers believe that this accident has happened due to the anger of the deity. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By ANI MUMBAI: Two persons have been arrested in connection with the gang rape of a 19-year-old college student in Mumbai's Chembur area, police said on Sunday. Two suspects were arrested based on the victim's statement, they added. The arrested suspects were presented before the court, where the police sought custody for further questioning. The survivor, a college student, was allegedly raped in a residence within the confines of the BARC quarter at Postal Colony in Chembur. The incident reportedly occurred between 10pm and 12.30am on the intervening night of November 15-16 They said that the victim and one of the accused were acquaintances residing in the same building. On the night of the incident, the accused's family members had gone out, and he had invited his friend to his residence. The victim visited the accused's house to collect ingredients for cooking, where the duo allegedly offered her a spiked drink. On taking a few sips of the drink, the young woman fell unconscious, and both accused reportedly took turns assaulting her, officials said. Upon regaining consciousness around 12:30 am, the victim immediately sought help from her close friends in the building, detailing the horrific incident to them, according to the report. Based on her statement, a case has been registered against the two individuals under sections 376, 376 (D), 328, and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), leading to the arrest of both the accused. The accused were presented in court and subsequently remanded to police custody until November 20. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp MUMBAI: Two persons have been arrested in connection with the gang rape of a 19-year-old college student in Mumbai's Chembur area, police said on Sunday. Two suspects were arrested based on the victim's statement, they added. The arrested suspects were presented before the court, where the police sought custody for further questioning. The survivor, a college student, was allegedly raped in a residence within the confines of the BARC quarter at Postal Colony in Chembur.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The incident reportedly occurred between 10pm and 12.30am on the intervening night of November 15-16 They said that the victim and one of the accused were acquaintances residing in the same building. On the night of the incident, the accused's family members had gone out, and he had invited his friend to his residence. The victim visited the accused's house to collect ingredients for cooking, where the duo allegedly offered her a spiked drink. On taking a few sips of the drink, the young woman fell unconscious, and both accused reportedly took turns assaulting her, officials said. Upon regaining consciousness around 12:30 am, the victim immediately sought help from her close friends in the building, detailing the horrific incident to them, according to the report. Based on her statement, a case has been registered against the two individuals under sections 376, 376 (D), 328, and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), leading to the arrest of both the accused. The accused were presented in court and subsequently remanded to police custody until November 20. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By ANI CHAMPHAI: Myanmar nationals who fled from their country following the recent airstrike by the Myanmar army in the bordering areas of Myanmar are now taking shelter in the Zokhawthar area in the Champhai district of Mizoram. Despite losing everything, the people of Sekan village who are taking refuge in India are hopeful to return to their native country. Around 500 people from Sekan village crossed over the border and entered the Zokhawthar area, which is the nearest village in Champhai district and shares an unfenced border with Myanmar. According to the villagers of Sekan village, almost all houses in the village were burnt down by the Myanmar army and they lost everything. Most of the villagers are marginal farmers and some are construction workers. They have been living in different refugee camps in the Zokhawthar area since September 2021. Following the recent airstrike by the Myanmar army in the bordering areas of Myanmar, the refugees are now afraid to go back to their own country. Lalremruati, a mother of a 3-month-old child and resident of Sekan village of Chin State, who is now living with her family members at a refugee camp in Zokhawthar, said that she was in China when the military coup happened in her own country. "My family had faced so many problems. The military came to our village and went one by one, knocked on the doors and asked them to come out. Some people were very scared. The military broke out the doors and let them come out. At that time was very bad. Last year, the military burned down the houses. The second time, they also burnt many houses in our village. Our village is almost finished. We have lost everything," Lalremruati said. She further said that, in Zokhawthar, the people of Mizoram, YMA, NGOs are taking care of the refugees. ALSO READ | Myanmar military-rebels fight leaves one dead, 1,500 refugees flee to Mizoram "They are helping us to stay here. They are providing us with food. Many people in our village are now residing in the Zokhawthar area and some people are living in other parts of Champhai district. We want to go back to our own village. But, there is nothing. People are crying. We have lost everything, we have lost our house. We fear..... we are very sad. All the people cry inside the camps. We have no future anymore. We can't work here. People of other villages also faced similar problems. Our village was badly affected," Lalremruati said. Vanhningcer, another refugee of Sekan village and a mother of two child said that, the present situation in Myanmar is very bad. ALSO READ | Centre takes cognizance as airstrike at Indo-Myanmar border triggers fresh influx of refugees "My home was also burnt down. In this situation, we can't go back to our village. Many people died, there was no work for us and we hadn't money, so we came to India. We want to go back, but can't, because my village is no more. We had lost everything, we have no home to live in," Vanhningcer said. Hrangnothanga, a villager of Sekon village who is now residing along with his family at a refugee camp in the Zokhawthar area, said that he also lost everything and now he is thinking about the future of his children and his family. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp CHAMPHAI: Myanmar nationals who fled from their country following the recent airstrike by the Myanmar army in the bordering areas of Myanmar are now taking shelter in the Zokhawthar area in the Champhai district of Mizoram. Despite losing everything, the people of Sekan village who are taking refuge in India are hopeful to return to their native country. Around 500 people from Sekan village crossed over the border and entered the Zokhawthar area, which is the nearest village in Champhai district and shares an unfenced border with Myanmar.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); According to the villagers of Sekan village, almost all houses in the village were burnt down by the Myanmar army and they lost everything. Most of the villagers are marginal farmers and some are construction workers. They have been living in different refugee camps in the Zokhawthar area since September 2021. Following the recent airstrike by the Myanmar army in the bordering areas of Myanmar, the refugees are now afraid to go back to their own country. Lalremruati, a mother of a 3-month-old child and resident of Sekan village of Chin State, who is now living with her family members at a refugee camp in Zokhawthar, said that she was in China when the military coup happened in her own country. "My family had faced so many problems. The military came to our village and went one by one, knocked on the doors and asked them to come out. Some people were very scared. The military broke out the doors and let them come out. At that time was very bad. Last year, the military burned down the houses. The second time, they also burnt many houses in our village. Our village is almost finished. We have lost everything," Lalremruati said. She further said that, in Zokhawthar, the people of Mizoram, YMA, NGOs are taking care of the refugees. ALSO READ | Myanmar military-rebels fight leaves one dead, 1,500 refugees flee to Mizoram "They are helping us to stay here. They are providing us with food. Many people in our village are now residing in the Zokhawthar area and some people are living in other parts of Champhai district. We want to go back to our own village. But, there is nothing. People are crying. We have lost everything, we have lost our house. We fear..... we are very sad. All the people cry inside the camps. We have no future anymore. We can't work here. People of other villages also faced similar problems. Our village was badly affected," Lalremruati said. Vanhningcer, another refugee of Sekan village and a mother of two child said that, the present situation in Myanmar is very bad. ALSO READ | Centre takes cognizance as airstrike at Indo-Myanmar border triggers fresh influx of refugees "My home was also burnt down. In this situation, we can't go back to our village. Many people died, there was no work for us and we hadn't money, so we came to India. We want to go back, but can't, because my village is no more. We had lost everything, we have no home to live in," Vanhningcer said. Hrangnothanga, a villager of Sekon village who is now residing along with his family at a refugee camp in the Zokhawthar area, said that he also lost everything and now he is thinking about the future of his children and his family. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp In this increasingly fluid geopolitical scenario against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and the not-so-sweet meeting between US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Indias attention has been drawn to the ongoing joint maritime exercise by the Chinese and Pakistani naviesSea Guardian-3in the waters and airspace of the northern Arabian Sea (AS). Although Chinas official version is that the naval exercise will focus on joint response to maritime security threats and will include formation movement, search and rescue and anti-submarine operation, besides professional exchanges and mutual visits between the two navies, Beijings ulterior motive is not lost upon New Delhi, which has been monitoring the building of Chinese naval assets in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and AS, and the docking of ships and submarines at Karachi. From its first military base in Djibouti to the Gwadar port in Balochistan, China has been strategically mapping the IOR and the AS. The Gwadar port, inaugurated by the then Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf in 2007, is owned by the Gwadar Port Authority and operated by China Overseas Port Holding Company, a state-run Chinese firm. It has become a symbol of Chinas presence on the shores of the Indian Ocean and has drawn much attention from the security forces. The Gwadar port is located roughly 600 nautical miles from the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 25 per cent of the worlds oil passes from source countries in West Asia to international markets. Besides becoming a flagship project of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the Belt and Road Initiative, its ideal and strategic location for a naval base bolsters Chinas power play and intelligence capabilities in the IOR. China and Pakistan have been carrying out joint naval exercises since 2020 when they first conducted Sea Guardian-1 in the northern AS. This was followed by the second edition in 2022 in waters off Shanghai. For Pakistan, a joint naval exercise in the AS along with long-term ally China not only means military heft and legitimacy but is also a desperate move to avoid the repetition of Operation Trident. In the 1971 war, the Indian navy brought down the Pakistan military by attacking Karachi port, the headquarters of Pakistans navy and the countrys economic nerve centre. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp In this increasingly fluid geopolitical scenario against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and the not-so-sweet meeting between US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Indias attention has been drawn to the ongoing joint maritime exercise by the Chinese and Pakistani naviesSea Guardian-3in the waters and airspace of the northern Arabian Sea (AS). Although Chinas official version is that the naval exercise will focus on joint response to maritime security threats and will include formation movement, search and rescue and anti-submarine operation, besides professional exchanges and mutual visits between the two navies, Beijings ulterior motive is not lost upon New Delhi, which has been monitoring the building of Chinese naval assets in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and AS, and the docking of ships and submarines at Karachi. From its first military base in Djibouti to the Gwadar port in Balochistan, China has been strategically mapping the IOR and the AS. The Gwadar port, inaugurated by the then Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf in 2007, is owned by the Gwadar Port Authority and operated by China Overseas Port Holding Company, a state-run Chinese firm. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); It has become a symbol of Chinas presence on the shores of the Indian Ocean and has drawn much attention from the security forces. The Gwadar port is located roughly 600 nautical miles from the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 25 per cent of the worlds oil passes from source countries in West Asia to international markets. Besides becoming a flagship project of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the Belt and Road Initiative, its ideal and strategic location for a naval base bolsters Chinas power play and intelligence capabilities in the IOR. China and Pakistan have been carrying out joint naval exercises since 2020 when they first conducted Sea Guardian-1 in the northern AS. This was followed by the second edition in 2022 in waters off Shanghai. For Pakistan, a joint naval exercise in the AS along with long-term ally China not only means military heft and legitimacy but is also a desperate move to avoid the repetition of Operation Trident. In the 1971 war, the Indian navy brought down the Pakistan military by attacking Karachi port, the headquarters of Pakistans navy and the countrys economic nerve centre. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, known for his scandalous statements about Ukraine, said that he would prevent the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the European Union. He called Brussels' promise to start them a mistake. ADVERTISIMENT Orban made the statement on Saturday, November 18, speaking at the congress of Hungary's ruling Fidesz party, Reuters reports. The politician also promised that he would fight "EU attempts to resettle migrants in Hungary." "Correcting the false promise (of Brussels - Ed.) to start negotiations (with Ukraine on EU membership - Ed.) will also be our task as Ukraine is now light years away from the EU," he said. Thus, the Hungarian prime minister reiterated that his government opposes the start of negotiations with Ukraine on its accession to the EU. He also said that Hungary should say "no" to the current European model built in Brussels, but added that the European Union needs to be changed, not abandoned. It should be noted that on November 18, Viktor Orban was re-elected as the head of the Fidesz party during its 30th congress, Dimsum Daily writes. Orban previously held this position from 1993 to 2000 and then remained in office since 2003. ADVERTISIMENT "Orban emphasized the importance of protecting national interests and warned against potential threats such as rising migration, social unrest and ideological influence on education. He called for the implementation of laws to prevent the betrayal of the nation's interests," the statement said. As a reminder, the European Commission has recommended starting negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU. The issue must be approved by 27 member states at the next summit in Brussels on December 14-15. However, Hungary and Poland have expressed their claims to Ukraine, which could really complicate the negotiation process. Read more about this in our article. As reported by OBOZ.UA: - Earlier, Orban said that our country allegedly did not fulfill the requirements for joining the European Union, so the EU should offer Kyiv a "privileged partnership" instead of membership. ADVERTISIMENT - Viktor Orban's government is threatening to veto the next EU summit in December. It said it would block negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU and demanded that a number of conditions be met. - Meanwhile, EU diplomats are dissatisfied with Hungary's position, which is constantly changing its demands for military assistance to Ukraine and our country's membership in the union. Budapest's position has been called a "Russian nesting doll". Only verified information is available on our Telegram OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! By Express News Service VELLORE: Three persons were arrested and remanded on Saturday for allegedly assaulting two SC men in Vellore district. The incident happened on November 14 when Diwakar (26), son of Thulasiraman from Kaniyambadi, was verbally abused by two men when he accelerated his two-wheeler while halting briefly near Sathumadurai railway gate. The men who were behind his bike verbally abused him and then overtook him. Diwakar followed them and sought an explanation for the verbal abuse. An argument broke out, and the two men, accompanied by two other friends, assaulted Diwakar causing head injuries. Diwakar's neighbour Saravanan, who saw the fight, tried to intervene. However, he was also attacked with beer bottles and stones. Saravanan's shirt got damaged in the assault, revealing an Ambedkar tattoo on his chest. On seeing it, the accused realised that Saravanan belonged to the SC community, and seriously assaulted him and Diwakar. When Saravanan lost consciousness, the four assailants fled the scene. People in the vicinity rushed both the victims to Vellore Government Medical College and Hospital. The victims later filed a complaint against the four individuals at Vellore taluk police station in Kaniyambadi. An FIR was filed under Sections 294b, 324, and 506 (2) of the IPC. Saravanan, who received 13 stitches on the head, said, "They assaulted me severely after noticing the tattoo on my chest. They also hurled casteist slur at us and said assaulting people like me was justified. I find it difficult to walk now, and Diwakar received seven stitches." VCK cadre staged a protest on Tuesday when police initially did not register an FIR under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Subsequently, an FIR under IPC Section 294b, 324, 506 (2), 3 (1)(r), 3 (1)(s), and 3 (2)(va) of the SC/ST Act was registered against four Akash, Vijay, Sathishkumar, and Tamizhselvan.While three of them were arrested and remanded on Wednesday, a search is on to nab Tamizhselvan. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp VELLORE: Three persons were arrested and remanded on Saturday for allegedly assaulting two SC men in Vellore district. The incident happened on November 14 when Diwakar (26), son of Thulasiraman from Kaniyambadi, was verbally abused by two men when he accelerated his two-wheeler while halting briefly near Sathumadurai railway gate. The men who were behind his bike verbally abused him and then overtook him. Diwakar followed them and sought an explanation for the verbal abuse. An argument broke out, and the two men, accompanied by two other friends, assaulted Diwakar causing head injuries. Diwakar's neighbour Saravanan, who saw the fight, tried to intervene. However, he was also attacked with beer bottles and stones. Saravanan's shirt got damaged in the assault, revealing an Ambedkar tattoo on his chest. On seeing it, the accused realised that Saravanan belonged to the SC community, and seriously assaulted him and Diwakar.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); When Saravanan lost consciousness, the four assailants fled the scene. People in the vicinity rushed both the victims to Vellore Government Medical College and Hospital. The victims later filed a complaint against the four individuals at Vellore taluk police station in Kaniyambadi. An FIR was filed under Sections 294b, 324, and 506 (2) of the IPC. Saravanan, who received 13 stitches on the head, said, "They assaulted me severely after noticing the tattoo on my chest. They also hurled casteist slur at us and said assaulting people like me was justified. I find it difficult to walk now, and Diwakar received seven stitches." VCK cadre staged a protest on Tuesday when police initially did not register an FIR under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Subsequently, an FIR under IPC Section 294b, 324, 506 (2), 3 (1)(r), 3 (1)(s), and 3 (2)(va) of the SC/ST Act was registered against four Akash, Vijay, Sathishkumar, and Tamizhselvan.While three of them were arrested and remanded on Wednesday, a search is on to nab Tamizhselvan. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp By Express News Service RAMANATHAPURAM: The Sri Lankan Navy has apprehended 22 Indian fishermen, who were aboard two country boats, hailing from Pamban area in Ramanathapuram, for allegedly violating the IMBL. The apprehended fishermen and their impounded boats have been taken in for further legal proceedings. It is to be noted that the fishermen had ventured into the sea after several days on Saturday, due to a cyclone warning. On November 15, the country boat fishermen ventured into the sea. While the boats were engaged in fishing near the IMBL, the Sri Lankan navy chased away a cluster of Indian boats. It is alleged that two of the boats continued fishing in the Sri Lankan waters. As a result, the Northern Naval Command apprehended the two trawlers, carrying 22 fishermen, for allegedly poaching in Lakan waters off Point Pedro. While one boat carried 10 people, the other carried 12. The boats were impounded and the arrested fishermen were taken to Jaffna port, where they were handed over to the fisheries department for further proceedings. Official sources said that the number of Indian fishermen apprehended by the island nation this year has touched 196. The fishermens associations have demanded that the Centre take action to secure the release of the fishermen. According to a statement from SL navy, the fishermen were brought to the Kankasanthurei Harbour and they will be handed over to the Fisheries Inspector of Mailadi. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp RAMANATHAPURAM: The Sri Lankan Navy has apprehended 22 Indian fishermen, who were aboard two country boats, hailing from Pamban area in Ramanathapuram, for allegedly violating the IMBL. The apprehended fishermen and their impounded boats have been taken in for further legal proceedings. It is to be noted that the fishermen had ventured into the sea after several days on Saturday, due to a cyclone warning.On November 15, the country boat fishermen ventured into the sea. While the boats were engaged in fishing near the IMBL, the Sri Lankan navy chased away a cluster of Indian boats. It is alleged that two of the boats continued fishing in the Sri Lankan waters.As a result, the Northern Naval Command apprehended the two trawlers, carrying 22 fishermen, for allegedly poaching in Lakan waters off Point Pedro. While one boat carried 10 people, the other carried 12. The boats were impounded and the arrested fishermen were taken to Jaffna port, where they were handed over to the fisheries department for further proceedings.Official sources said that the number of Indian fishermen apprehended by the island nation this year has touched 196. The fishermens associations have demanded that the Centre take action to secure the release of the fishermen. According to a statement from SL navy, the fishermen were brought to the Kankasanthurei Harbour and they will be handed over to the Fisheries Inspector of Mailadi. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Rajesh Kumar Thakur By BHOPAL: An interesting electoral battle is on between two former babus (bureaucrats) in Rajasthans Bassi assembly constituency for the November 25 assembly elections. An ex-officer of Indian Administrative Services (1980-batch IAS) is pitted against an ex- officer of Indian Police Services (IPS Rajashthan cadre). Bassi is a reserved assembly constituency in Jaipur district falling under the Dausa Lok Sabha segment with more than 2,16,905 voters. The Congress has fielded a former IPS officer Laxman Singh Meena against BJPs Chandrabhan Meena, a former IAS officer. It is a direct fight between the former civil servants. Both belong to the Meena community and are distantly related, said Sohan Meena, a Bassi resident.Congress Laxman Meena plunged into politics in 2009 after taking VRS from IPS while BJPs Chandra Mohan Meena joined politics after his retirement in 2014. BJPs Meena served as information commissioner in the then Raje government from 2015-16 and joined BJP before the election, he said. Chandra Mohan was the district magistrate in Jalore from 1988-90. Residents say this is the first time when Bassi is watching a direct fight between the two former babus who studied together in school and colleges. Laxman Meena had earlier fought the election as an Independent and won the seat. The Congress after much thought got him to contest against Chandra Mohan Meena.The BJP claims to have an edge in the ST community while the Congress has fielded a candidate who contested as an independent, said Mohan Meena, who runs a readymade garments outlet in Bassi. In 2018, Laxman Meena had won the seat by 42,764 votes and supported the Ashok Gehlot government. Prior to his entry into politics, Laxman had served many districts as SP. He is a resident of the same panchayat called Tunga from the BJP candidate also comes. Interestingly when BJP candidate Chandra Mohan Meena was the collector of Jalore in 1988-90, Laxman Meena was the SP in the same district. Not only this, sources said that when Chandra Mohan Meena was promoted and posted as commissioner in Bikaner, Laxman Meena accompanied him there also as the IG. Apart from them, Congress has also fielded a former IAS officer Niranjan Arya from Sojat assembly in Bassi assembly constituency which has 23,374 voters inclduing 1,21,481 males and 10,11,293 women voters. Sources said more than 15,648 new voters have also been added this time. Locals said the results would be decided by the youth and women voters. The BJP is attempting to popularise women voters citing the Women Reservation Bill and other women-centric schemes. The Congress is promising better education for women. The BJP is raising crimes against women as major poll issue against Congress. Its ex-IAS vs ex-IPS in Bassi reserved constituency Bassi is a reserved assembly constituency in Jaipur district falling under the Dausa Lok Sabha segment with more than 2,16,905 voters. Sources said more than 15,648 new voters have also been added this time. Locals said results would be decided by the youth and women voters. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp BHOPAL: An interesting electoral battle is on between two former babus (bureaucrats) in Rajasthans Bassi assembly constituency for the November 25 assembly elections. An ex-officer of Indian Administrative Services (1980-batch IAS) is pitted against an ex- officer of Indian Police Services (IPS Rajashthan cadre). Bassi is a reserved assembly constituency in Jaipur district falling under the Dausa Lok Sabha segment with more than 2,16,905 voters. The Congress has fielded a former IPS officer Laxman Singh Meena against BJPs Chandrabhan Meena, a former IAS officer.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); It is a direct fight between the former civil servants. Both belong to the Meena community and are distantly related, said Sohan Meena, a Bassi resident.Congress Laxman Meena plunged into politics in 2009 after taking VRS from IPS while BJPs Chandra Mohan Meena joined politics after his retirement in 2014. BJPs Meena served as information commissioner in the then Raje government from 2015-16 and joined BJP before the election, he said. Chandra Mohan was the district magistrate in Jalore from 1988-90. Residents say this is the first time when Bassi is watching a direct fight between the two former babus who studied together in school and colleges. Laxman Meena had earlier fought the election as an Independent and won the seat. The Congress after much thought got him to contest against Chandra Mohan Meena.The BJP claims to have an edge in the ST community while the Congress has fielded a candidate who contested as an independent, said Mohan Meena, who runs a readymade garments outlet in Bassi. In 2018, Laxman Meena had won the seat by 42,764 votes and supported the Ashok Gehlot government. Prior to his entry into politics, Laxman had served many districts as SP. He is a resident of the same panchayat called Tunga from the BJP candidate also comes. Interestingly when BJP candidate Chandra Mohan Meena was the collector of Jalore in 1988-90, Laxman Meena was the SP in the same district. Not only this, sources said that when Chandra Mohan Meena was promoted and posted as commissioner in Bikaner, Laxman Meena accompanied him there also as the IG. Apart from them, Congress has also fielded a former IAS officer Niranjan Arya from Sojat assembly in Bassi assembly constituency which has 23,374 voters inclduing 1,21,481 males and 10,11,293 women voters. Sources said more than 15,648 new voters have also been added this time. Locals said the results would be decided by the youth and women voters. The BJP is attempting to popularise women voters citing the Women Reservation Bill and other women-centric schemes. The Congress is promising better education for women. The BJP is raising crimes against women as major poll issue against Congress. Its ex-IAS vs ex-IPS in Bassi reserved constituency Bassi is a reserved assembly constituency in Jaipur district falling under the Dausa Lok Sabha segment with more than 2,16,905 voters. Sources said more than 15,648 new voters have also been added this time. Locals said results would be decided by the youth and women voters. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Ramashankar By PATNA: At least six persons died and another one is undergoing treatment at a hospital after consuming suspected hooch in Bihars Sitamarhi district on the eve of Chhath festival. The manufacture, consumption, storage and sale of liquor is completely banned in the state under new Excise and Prohibition Policy 2016. The tragedy struck at Solman Tola, Narhakala and Babu Narhat hamlets under Bajpatti block in Sitamarhi district. The first death was reported on Friday evening after the victims consumed spurious liquor at Mahuain village. The alleged liquor supplier is reported to be absconding after the incident. Pupari sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Vinod Kumar said that a police team visited affected villages after being informed about the consumption of liquor by some people on Friday evening. Later police came to know that two of the victims were undergoing treatment at a local hospital, he added. According to police, one of the two victims had died before the police visited the hospital to collect information. Later the body of the deceased identified as Awadhesh Yadav was sent for post-mortem. The reason behind the death will be ascertained after the receipt of post mortem report, which is awaited, he said. The deceased have been identified as Rambabu Rai and Vikram Kumar, both residents of Solman Tola, Santosh Mahto and Raushan Kumar, residents of Narhar, Awadesh Yadav and Mahesh Yadav, both residents of Narhakala. The bodies of two of the deceased were consigned to flames by their family members before arrival of the police to the affected villages.Sitamarhi superintendent of police Manoj Kumar Tiwari said that disciplinary action would be initiated against police officers concerned and chaukidar for lapses on their part. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp PATNA: At least six persons died and another one is undergoing treatment at a hospital after consuming suspected hooch in Bihars Sitamarhi district on the eve of Chhath festival. The manufacture, consumption, storage and sale of liquor is completely banned in the state under new Excise and Prohibition Policy 2016. The tragedy struck at Solman Tola, Narhakala and Babu Narhat hamlets under Bajpatti block in Sitamarhi district. The first death was reported on Friday evening after the victims consumed spurious liquor at Mahuain village. The alleged liquor supplier is reported to be absconding after the incident. Pupari sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Vinod Kumar said that a police team visited affected villages after being informed about the consumption of liquor by some people on Friday evening. Later police came to know that two of the victims were undergoing treatment at a local hospital, he added. According to police, one of the two victims had died before the police visited the hospital to collect information. Later the body of the deceased identified as Awadhesh Yadav was sent for post-mortem.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The reason behind the death will be ascertained after the receipt of post mortem report, which is awaited, he said. The deceased have been identified as Rambabu Rai and Vikram Kumar, both residents of Solman Tola, Santosh Mahto and Raushan Kumar, residents of Narhar, Awadesh Yadav and Mahesh Yadav, both residents of Narhakala. The bodies of two of the deceased were consigned to flames by their family members before arrival of the police to the affected villages.Sitamarhi superintendent of police Manoj Kumar Tiwari said that disciplinary action would be initiated against police officers concerned and chaukidar for lapses on their part. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Dilip Singh Kshatriya By AHMEDABAD: Gujarat police has arrested six personstwo police personnel and four Gram Rakshak Dal (GRD) jawansfor allegedly stealing seized liquor worth Rs 1.57 lakh from Bakor police station in Mahisagar district. Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Ranvatsinh Vaghsinh of Bakor in his complaint has stated that as the inspection by District Superintendent of Police (DSP) and Range Inspector General was scheduled, on November 13, he went to collect the seized liqour only to found that 125 bottles were missing along with 40 ceiling fans worth Rs 40,000. According to reports, the liquor bottles, over 400, were seized from a pickup truck. The liquor was hidden beneath the ceiling fans in boxes, which were all seized. During the preliminary inquiry it was found that the seized liquor and fan boxes were shifted from the locker room to an empty women cell. According to police, accused ASI Arvind Khant switched off the CCTV cameras and seized liquor was stolen from the women cell. The incident happened during the intervening night of October 25 and 26. The other accused has been identified as Head Constable Lalit Parmar and GRDsKhatubhai Damor, Somabhai Pagi, Ramanbhai Damor and Dipak Vankar.The police launched a probe but went in vain. The two police officials were suspended while the four GRDs have been restigated. Meanwhile, Mahisagar SP Jaydeepsinh Jadeja has transferred 11 sub-inspectors as a routine transfer. Switched off CCTV cameras The seized liquor along with ceiling fans, was first shifted from the locker room to an empty women cell and then stolen in the middle of the night after switching off the installed CCTV cameras. The incident came to notice when the seized items were checked by a police officer for scheduled inspection by seniors. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp AHMEDABAD: Gujarat police has arrested six personstwo police personnel and four Gram Rakshak Dal (GRD) jawansfor allegedly stealing seized liquor worth Rs 1.57 lakh from Bakor police station in Mahisagar district. Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Ranvatsinh Vaghsinh of Bakor in his complaint has stated that as the inspection by District Superintendent of Police (DSP) and Range Inspector General was scheduled, on November 13, he went to collect the seized liqour only to found that 125 bottles were missing along with 40 ceiling fans worth Rs 40,000. According to reports, the liquor bottles, over 400, were seized from a pickup truck. The liquor was hidden beneath the ceiling fans in boxes, which were all seized. During the preliminary inquiry it was found that the seized liquor and fan boxes were shifted from the locker room to an empty women cell. According to police, accused ASI Arvind Khant switched off the CCTV cameras and seized liquor was stolen from the women cell. The incident happened during the intervening night of October 25 and 26.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The other accused has been identified as Head Constable Lalit Parmar and GRDsKhatubhai Damor, Somabhai Pagi, Ramanbhai Damor and Dipak Vankar.The police launched a probe but went in vain. The two police officials were suspended while the four GRDs have been restigated. Meanwhile, Mahisagar SP Jaydeepsinh Jadeja has transferred 11 sub-inspectors as a routine transfer. Switched off CCTV cameras The seized liquor along with ceiling fans, was first shifted from the locker room to an empty women cell and then stolen in the middle of the night after switching off the installed CCTV cameras. The incident came to notice when the seized items were checked by a police officer for scheduled inspection by seniors. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Namita Bajpai By LUCKNOW: In a major crackdown, the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) killed a wanted criminal Rashid Kalia, in an encounter in Jhansi district on Saturday morning. Kalia was a notorious criminal with the charges of 40 murders and a Rs 1.25 lakh bounty on his head. He was booked in criminal offences ranging from murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, cheating, extortion, intimidation, among others, the police said. UP police sources said the incident occurred when Kalia had arrived to carry out a contract killing in Mauranipur of Jhansi district. The police sources said that the UP STF sleuths gheraoed Kalia in Mauranipur after getting a tip-off about his presence there. In the subsequent exchange of fire, Kalia was injured and was rushed to hospital where doctors declared him dead. In the exchange of fire, a deputy SP and an Inspector rank officer were hit by bullets but escaped injury due to the bulletproof vests. Kalia alias Gauda alias Biru, 45, was a native of Mahoba district of Bundelkhand region and used to stay in the Chakeri area of Kanpur, the police said. He was wanted in the murder of Pintu Sengar, a notorious gangster turned politician, in Chakeri in June 2020. A Rs 50,000 reward on his head was increased to Rs 1.25 lakh last year after he remained absconding in the case, the police added. Kalia used to keep a low profile to evade law enforcement agencies. He had faced charges for 13 serious crimes in Kanpur alone. The STF seized two factory-made pistols and the motorcycle Kalia was riding at the time of the encounter. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp LUCKNOW: In a major crackdown, the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) killed a wanted criminal Rashid Kalia, in an encounter in Jhansi district on Saturday morning. Kalia was a notorious criminal with the charges of 40 murders and a Rs 1.25 lakh bounty on his head. He was booked in criminal offences ranging from murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, cheating, extortion, intimidation, among others, the police said. UP police sources said the incident occurred when Kalia had arrived to carry out a contract killing in Mauranipur of Jhansi district.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The police sources said that the UP STF sleuths gheraoed Kalia in Mauranipur after getting a tip-off about his presence there. In the subsequent exchange of fire, Kalia was injured and was rushed to hospital where doctors declared him dead. In the exchange of fire, a deputy SP and an Inspector rank officer were hit by bullets but escaped injury due to the bulletproof vests. Kalia alias Gauda alias Biru, 45, was a native of Mahoba district of Bundelkhand region and used to stay in the Chakeri area of Kanpur, the police said. He was wanted in the murder of Pintu Sengar, a notorious gangster turned politician, in Chakeri in June 2020. A Rs 50,000 reward on his head was increased to Rs 1.25 lakh last year after he remained absconding in the case, the police added. Kalia used to keep a low profile to evade law enforcement agencies. He had faced charges for 13 serious crimes in Kanpur alone. The STF seized two factory-made pistols and the motorcycle Kalia was riding at the time of the encounter. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Mayank Singh By NEW DELHI: Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles will be on an official visit to India from November 19-20. He will co-chair the second India-Australia 2+2 ministerial dialogue along with Indias Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. A bilateral meeting on defence cooperation will also be held on November 20, followed by the 2+2 dialogue. Besides, Rajnath Singh and Richard Marles, the 2+2 dialogue will be co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Australian counterpart Penny Wong. The inaugural 2+2 ministerial dialogue took place in New Delhi in September 2021. India and Australia are pursuing a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The visit of Marles is expected to give a further impetus to the collaboration as well as bilateral defence cooperation. The two countries are expected to discuss wide-ranging issues of mutual interest during the 2+2 dialogue and the bilateral Defence Ministers meeting. The 2+2 form of meeting is aimed at enhancing the scope of dialogue and understanding of strategic matters. It brings the ministers with important portfolios of defence and foreign affairs from the two sides. India has held 2+2 meetings with Japan, United Kingdom and Russia. The first of any meeting on 2+2 pattern was held in 2018 with the US, followed by Japan in 2019 and Russia in 2021. The bilateral relations between Australia and India were upgraded from Strategic Partnership in 2009 to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2020. Over the years, an array of institutional mechanisms has been put in place to promote bilateral co-operation. The India US 2+2 was held on November 11 as Rajnath Singh and Jaishankar met Secretary of State Antony J Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd J Austin. It was the fifth India-US 2+2 ministerial dialogue. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp NEW DELHI: Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles will be on an official visit to India from November 19-20. He will co-chair the second India-Australia 2+2 ministerial dialogue along with Indias Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. A bilateral meeting on defence cooperation will also be held on November 20, followed by the 2+2 dialogue. Besides, Rajnath Singh and Richard Marles, the 2+2 dialogue will be co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Australian counterpart Penny Wong. The inaugural 2+2 ministerial dialogue took place in New Delhi in September 2021. India and Australia are pursuing a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The visit of Marles is expected to give a further impetus to the collaboration as well as bilateral defence cooperation. The two countries are expected to discuss wide-ranging issues of mutual interest during the 2+2 dialogue and the bilateral Defence Ministers meeting. The 2+2 form of meeting is aimed at enhancing the scope of dialogue and understanding of strategic matters. It brings the ministers with important portfolios of defence and foreign affairs from the two sides. India has held 2+2 meetings with Japan, United Kingdom and Russia. The first of any meeting on 2+2 pattern was held in 2018 with the US, followed by Japan in 2019 and Russia in 2021. The bilateral relations between Australia and India were upgraded from Strategic Partnership in 2009 to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2020. Over the years, an array of institutional mechanisms has been put in place to promote bilateral co-operation. The India US 2+2 was held on November 11 as Rajnath Singh and Jaishankar met Secretary of State Antony J Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd J Austin. It was the fifth India-US 2+2 ministerial dialogue. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Narendra Sethi By DEHRADUN: It has been over a week but there is no word yet on the fate of the 40-plus workers trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel. With a horizontal rescue shaft into the rubble of an under-construction tunnel in Uttarkashi getting stuck due to drilling equipment failure by more than a day, officials scampered to expedite other options parallelly, including a platform for a vertical hole to evacuate 41 labourers stranded behind the debris. The headcount of the stuck labourers went up by one on Saturday, embarrassing officials and annoying relatives of the workers. The 41st labourer was identified as Deepak Kumar, a resident of Gijas Tola in Muzaffarpur, Bihar. The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) hopes to build an alternative route to the tunnel by Sunday afternoon for drilling the vertical hole. One option is to make a four-six-inch long hole to provide essential items to the trapped people, said R S Rao of the Directorate General Border Roads. If possible, a 3 ft diameter hole will also be made to evacuate the labourers. But other experts are wary as they fear it could trigger further collapse from the roof of the tunnel. Other plans on the table include perpendicular drilling, said Bhaskar Khulbe, former advisor to the prime minister and now OSD in the Uttarakhand government. With the US-made drilling machine developing a snag, a similar high-performance auger machine from Indore was being assembled at the accident site to resume horizontal drilling, officials said. The equipment from Indore was airlifted by the IAF. ALSO READ | Day 7: Vertical hole, new road planned to reach 41 workers trapped in collapsed Uttarkashi tunnel Meanwhile, Deputy Secretary in the Prime Ministers Office Mangesh Dabral reached Silkyara to take stock of the situation. Also, an expert from an Australian consultancy company that is associated with Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd has reached the site. With anxiety mounting as the labourers have been stranded in the tunnel for a week, angry workers led by Supreme Court advocate Prashant Prasad staged a strong protest against National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and Navayuga Engineering for delay and failure in rescuing them. The company wants to save the tunnel but not the poor labourers, they alleged, adding the stranded workers are crying and losing confidence. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami tried to assuage their concerns. The government stands with the families of the trapped workers. Their safe and timely evacuation is our priority, Dhami said. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp DEHRADUN: It has been over a week but there is no word yet on the fate of the 40-plus workers trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel. With a horizontal rescue shaft into the rubble of an under-construction tunnel in Uttarkashi getting stuck due to drilling equipment failure by more than a day, officials scampered to expedite other options parallelly, including a platform for a vertical hole to evacuate 41 labourers stranded behind the debris. The headcount of the stuck labourers went up by one on Saturday, embarrassing officials and annoying relatives of the workers. The 41st labourer was identified as Deepak Kumar, a resident of Gijas Tola in Muzaffarpur, Bihar.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) hopes to build an alternative route to the tunnel by Sunday afternoon for drilling the vertical hole. One option is to make a four-six-inch long hole to provide essential items to the trapped people, said R S Rao of the Directorate General Border Roads. If possible, a 3 ft diameter hole will also be made to evacuate the labourers. But other experts are wary as they fear it could trigger further collapse from the roof of the tunnel. Other plans on the table include perpendicular drilling, said Bhaskar Khulbe, former advisor to the prime minister and now OSD in the Uttarakhand government. With the US-made drilling machine developing a snag, a similar high-performance auger machine from Indore was being assembled at the accident site to resume horizontal drilling, officials said. The equipment from Indore was airlifted by the IAF. ALSO READ | Day 7: Vertical hole, new road planned to reach 41 workers trapped in collapsed Uttarkashi tunnel Meanwhile, Deputy Secretary in the Prime Ministers Office Mangesh Dabral reached Silkyara to take stock of the situation. Also, an expert from an Australian consultancy company that is associated with Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd has reached the site. With anxiety mounting as the labourers have been stranded in the tunnel for a week, angry workers led by Supreme Court advocate Prashant Prasad staged a strong protest against National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and Navayuga Engineering for delay and failure in rescuing them. The company wants to save the tunnel but not the poor labourers, they alleged, adding the stranded workers are crying and losing confidence. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami tried to assuage their concerns. The government stands with the families of the trapped workers. Their safe and timely evacuation is our priority, Dhami said. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Rajesh Asnani By JAIPUR: Accusing the BJP-led government at the centre of being anti-Dalit, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday questioned the saffron party over its decision to give the party ticket for the upcoming Rajasthan assembly elections to Girraj Singh Malinga, who is a former Congress MLA and accused of thrashing a Dalit. While addressing a public meeting at Vair in Bharatpur district, Kharge said, Congress declined the ticket to such a person, but BJP has given him the ticket... today he [Malinga] is contesting the elections on the lotus symbol. Modi and Shah are encouraging the assailant. such actions would not be tolerated in Congress. He alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was making false promises to the poor and Dalits by giving the ticket to Malinga. He criticized the alleged contradiction between talking about the welfare of the poor and Dalits and inviting those who harm them to join the party. Asserting that individuals with anti-Dalit ideology should not find a place in the party, Kharge wondered how positive changes can take place in a society when such people are being fielded and remain in power. The Congress president also attacked the Modi government on issues of black money and unemployment. Questioning the promises made by Modi, Kharge said, The PM had promised to provide two crore jobs. What happened to that promise? BJP is selling the big factories built since Independence. Criticising the Agniveer scheme, Kharge said, Modi government brought Agniveer scheme. We said in Parliament that if recruitment is to be done, make it permanent, but these people [BJP legislatures] did not agree. Kharge accused the BJP of encouraging violence and cited incidents of crime against tribal in Madhya Pradesh. Shivraj Chauhan washes his feet and says forgive me. Does this wash away the sins? This stigma will not go away from BJP. Kharge was referring to an incident reported earlier this year when a person in MP was found urinating on a tribal man. The video of the incident went viral and CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan invited the victim and washed his feet. Allegations against BJP candidate Girraj Singh Malinga, a former Congress MLA, is accused of thrashing two engineers, including a Dalit for enquiring about non-payment of power bills in his Bari constituency. The victim sustained multiple fractures. He joined the BJP after being denied ticket by the Congress. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp JAIPUR: Accusing the BJP-led government at the centre of being anti-Dalit, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday questioned the saffron party over its decision to give the party ticket for the upcoming Rajasthan assembly elections to Girraj Singh Malinga, who is a former Congress MLA and accused of thrashing a Dalit. While addressing a public meeting at Vair in Bharatpur district, Kharge said, Congress declined the ticket to such a person, but BJP has given him the ticket... today he [Malinga] is contesting the elections on the lotus symbol. Modi and Shah are encouraging the assailant. such actions would not be tolerated in Congress. He alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was making false promises to the poor and Dalits by giving the ticket to Malinga. He criticized the alleged contradiction between talking about the welfare of the poor and Dalits and inviting those who harm them to join the party.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Asserting that individuals with anti-Dalit ideology should not find a place in the party, Kharge wondered how positive changes can take place in a society when such people are being fielded and remain in power. The Congress president also attacked the Modi government on issues of black money and unemployment. Questioning the promises made by Modi, Kharge said, The PM had promised to provide two crore jobs. What happened to that promise? BJP is selling the big factories built since Independence. Criticising the Agniveer scheme, Kharge said, Modi government brought Agniveer scheme. We said in Parliament that if recruitment is to be done, make it permanent, but these people [BJP legislatures] did not agree. Kharge accused the BJP of encouraging violence and cited incidents of crime against tribal in Madhya Pradesh. Shivraj Chauhan washes his feet and says forgive me. Does this wash away the sins? This stigma will not go away from BJP. Kharge was referring to an incident reported earlier this year when a person in MP was found urinating on a tribal man. The video of the incident went viral and CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan invited the victim and washed his feet. Allegations against BJP candidate Girraj Singh Malinga, a former Congress MLA, is accused of thrashing two engineers, including a Dalit for enquiring about non-payment of power bills in his Bari constituency. The victim sustained multiple fractures. He joined the BJP after being denied ticket by the Congress. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp Rajesh Asnani By JAIPUR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on the Congress, branding it an anti-Dalit party, during an election rally in east Rajasthan on Saturday. In a strategic move to appeal to Dalit voters in a region with a significant number of Scheduled Caste reserved seats, Modi highlighted the BJPs support for the backward community, citing the appointments of the first Dalit Election Commissioner and the first Dalit President. Accusing the Gehlot government, Modi claimed, New records of atrocities are being made against Dalits under the Congress rule. Congress is anti-Dalit by nature. He pointed to specific instances, such as the opposition to the appointment of the countrys first Dalit Chief Information Commissioner, Hiralal Samaria, and the resistance against Ramnath Kovinds presidency. Underscoring the Congresss consistent opposition to Dalit appointments, Modi emphasised the partys alleged anti-Dalit stance. Recognising the challenges faced by the BJP in the previous election, he expressed a strong desire to win over voters. In addition to political rhetoric, Modi pledged to expedite the completion of the ERCP project, crucial for providing drinking water to 13 cities in eastern Rajasthan. Despite the ongoing conflict between the central and state governments, Modi assured the audience that the BJP would address the delays in this vital canal project. To garner support, the Prime Minister criticized the high VAT imposed by the Gehlot government on petrol and diesel, resulting in a 12-rupee increase per liter compared to other BJP-ruled states. Promising a review of fuel prices if the BJP returns to power, Modi declared, Petrol is more expensive here than in other states because the Congress government is a robber. Mocking CM Ashok Gehlots magical political reputation, Modi stated that the people had decided to perform a magic trick, ensuring the disappearance of the Congress from the state after the December 3rd results.In a rally in Nagaur, Modi targeted Congress President Mallikarjuna Kharge, accusing him of disrespecting his deceased father. He said that the Ghehlot-Pilot rivalry has harmed Rajasthan. Congress opposed appointment of Dalit CIO Accusing the Gehlot government, Modi claimed, New records of atrocities are being made against Dalits under the Congress rule. He pointed to specific instances, such as the opposition to appointment of the countrys first Dalit Chief Information Commissioner. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp JAIPUR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on the Congress, branding it an anti-Dalit party, during an election rally in east Rajasthan on Saturday. In a strategic move to appeal to Dalit voters in a region with a significant number of Scheduled Caste reserved seats, Modi highlighted the BJPs support for the backward community, citing the appointments of the first Dalit Election Commissioner and the first Dalit President. Accusing the Gehlot government, Modi claimed, New records of atrocities are being made against Dalits under the Congress rule. Congress is anti-Dalit by nature. He pointed to specific instances, such as the opposition to the appointment of the countrys first Dalit Chief Information Commissioner, Hiralal Samaria, and the resistance against Ramnath Kovinds presidency. Underscoring the Congresss consistent opposition to Dalit appointments, Modi emphasised the partys alleged anti-Dalit stance. Recognising the challenges faced by the BJP in the previous election, he expressed a strong desire to win over voters.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); In addition to political rhetoric, Modi pledged to expedite the completion of the ERCP project, crucial for providing drinking water to 13 cities in eastern Rajasthan. Despite the ongoing conflict between the central and state governments, Modi assured the audience that the BJP would address the delays in this vital canal project. To garner support, the Prime Minister criticized the high VAT imposed by the Gehlot government on petrol and diesel, resulting in a 12-rupee increase per liter compared to other BJP-ruled states. Promising a review of fuel prices if the BJP returns to power, Modi declared, Petrol is more expensive here than in other states because the Congress government is a robber. Mocking CM Ashok Gehlots magical political reputation, Modi stated that the people had decided to perform a magic trick, ensuring the disappearance of the Congress from the state after the December 3rd results.In a rally in Nagaur, Modi targeted Congress President Mallikarjuna Kharge, accusing him of disrespecting his deceased father. He said that the Ghehlot-Pilot rivalry has harmed Rajasthan. Congress opposed appointment of Dalit CIO Accusing the Gehlot government, Modi claimed, New records of atrocities are being made against Dalits under the Congress rule. He pointed to specific instances, such as the opposition to appointment of the countrys first Dalit Chief Information Commissioner. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp The United Nations Security Council has called for the protection of believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. They called the reaction of Ukrainian law enforcement to conflicts arising from the behavior of supporters of the "Russian world" inadequate. ADVERTISIMENT The topic of the alleged persecution of "Moscow" priests and believers in Ukraine was discussed at a meeting on November 17, which was convened at the request of the aggressor country, Russia. This is stated on the UN website. It reported that the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) allegedly documented 10 cases of physical violence and six more cases of threats due to disputes between the faithful of the UOC-MP and the OCU. In particular, OHCHR Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ilse Brands Keris said that tensions between parishioners of different Orthodox jurisdictions are growing in Ukraine. According to her, in a number of cases, this tension "has resulted in violent incidents." ADVERTISIMENT "Law enforcement failed to investigate them sufficiently and take measures to protect members of the UOC-MP," she said, claiming that this was an "inadequate" response. Caris added that since February 2022, 68 of the more than 6,600 criminal cases opened for collaboration and other war-related crimes have involved UOC clergy. The OHCHR representative called for "full respect for the rights to due process and fair trial in these extremely sensitive cases". Moreover, OHCHR expressed "concerns about the fairness of the criminal proceedings" in at least 26 cases involving UOC-MP priests. In response, Ukraine's representative to the UN, Natalia Mudrenko, emphasized that the terrorist state of Russia only pretends to "protect" the faithful of the UOC-MP. In fact, the Kremlin is using the hands of its war criminals to steal Ukrainian dioceses and destroy churches and church property with missiles. ADVERTISIMENT As reported by OBOZ.UA, the UOC-MP believers made scandalous statements, claiming that if Putin had not attacked Ukraine, "there would have been an atomic war." In Bukovyna, a priest of the UOC-MP did not open the door to the altar at the funeral of an Armed Forces soldier. Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! By AFP BEIJING: Top foreign policy officials from the Palestinian Authority and four Muslim-majority countries will visit China on Monday and Tuesday, Beijing announced, as the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas claims thousands of civilian lives. The visiting delegation is set to include the foreign ministers of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia, as well as the secretary-general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. "During the visit, China will have in-depth communication and coordination with the joint delegation of foreign ministers of Arab and Islamic countries to promote a de-escalation of the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict, protecting civilians, and justly resolving the Palestinian issue," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said in a statement on Sunday. Israel has vowed to destroy Gaza's rulers Hamas over the October 7 attacks that it says killed 1,200 people and saw 240 hostages taken, in the worst-ever onslaught on the country. In Gaza, the Hamas government says 12,300 people have been killed in Israel's relentless aerial bombardment and ground operations. Most of the casualties on both sides are civilians. Following the outbreak of the war last month, Chinese officials, including Foreign Minister Wang Yi, have called for an immediate ceasefire and a "cooling down" of the situation. China has historically been sympathetic to the Palestinians and supported a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Last month, Wang spoke with the Palestinian Authority's foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki, telling him Beijing "deeply expresses its sympathy with the Palestinian side". The PA was meant to be a first step towards an independent Palestinian state. But it has little authority over the West Bank and none over Gaza, where it was violently ousted by Hamas in 2007. The delegation is set to arrive in China days after US President Joe Biden argued that the coastal territory of Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank should come under a single "revitalised" administration. "As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalised Palestinian Authority," he wrote in the Washington Post. Qatar has helped broker talks aiming to free some of the 240 hostages held by Hamas in return for a temporary ceasefire, an effort that has so far led to the release of four hostages. The White House has denied a Washington Post report of a tentative agreement. Qatar later said the deal hinges on "minor" practical issues, but did not provide details or a timeline. Playing peacemaker China has criticised US support for Israel and denounced the veto of a UN Security Council resolution by the United States, which wanted a call for Israel's right to defend itself. Beijing's diplomatic presence in the Middle East has grown in recent years, as it makes efforts to play peacemaker in a range of longstanding regional disputes. This year, China brokered a deal that saw longtime rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran agree to restore ties and reopen their respective embassies. Washington has said it hopes China's relationship with Hamas-backer Iran could help calm the conflict, particularly after Beijing's role in the detente between Tehran and Riyadh. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp BEIJING: Top foreign policy officials from the Palestinian Authority and four Muslim-majority countries will visit China on Monday and Tuesday, Beijing announced, as the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas claims thousands of civilian lives. The visiting delegation is set to include the foreign ministers of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia, as well as the secretary-general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. "During the visit, China will have in-depth communication and coordination with the joint delegation of foreign ministers of Arab and Islamic countries to promote a de-escalation of the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict, protecting civilians, and justly resolving the Palestinian issue," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said in a statement on Sunday.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Israel has vowed to destroy Gaza's rulers Hamas over the October 7 attacks that it says killed 1,200 people and saw 240 hostages taken, in the worst-ever onslaught on the country. In Gaza, the Hamas government says 12,300 people have been killed in Israel's relentless aerial bombardment and ground operations. Most of the casualties on both sides are civilians. Following the outbreak of the war last month, Chinese officials, including Foreign Minister Wang Yi, have called for an immediate ceasefire and a "cooling down" of the situation. China has historically been sympathetic to the Palestinians and supported a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Last month, Wang spoke with the Palestinian Authority's foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki, telling him Beijing "deeply expresses its sympathy with the Palestinian side". The PA was meant to be a first step towards an independent Palestinian state. But it has little authority over the West Bank and none over Gaza, where it was violently ousted by Hamas in 2007. The delegation is set to arrive in China days after US President Joe Biden argued that the coastal territory of Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank should come under a single "revitalised" administration. "As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalised Palestinian Authority," he wrote in the Washington Post. Qatar has helped broker talks aiming to free some of the 240 hostages held by Hamas in return for a temporary ceasefire, an effort that has so far led to the release of four hostages. The White House has denied a Washington Post report of a tentative agreement. Qatar later said the deal hinges on "minor" practical issues, but did not provide details or a timeline. Playing peacemaker China has criticised US support for Israel and denounced the veto of a UN Security Council resolution by the United States, which wanted a call for Israel's right to defend itself. Beijing's diplomatic presence in the Middle East has grown in recent years, as it makes efforts to play peacemaker in a range of longstanding regional disputes. This year, China brokered a deal that saw longtime rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran agree to restore ties and reopen their respective embassies. Washington has said it hopes China's relationship with Hamas-backer Iran could help calm the conflict, particularly after Beijing's role in the detente between Tehran and Riyadh. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp New Delhi, Nov 18 W hen it comes to nutrition, there's a group of unsung heroes that have quietly sustained civilizations for millennia - millets. These unassuming, small-seeded grasses have been cultivated for both sustenance and fodder for thousands of years, silently thriving in environments where other crops falter. Members of the Poaceae family, millets have been the resilient backbone of societies across the globe, especially in regions grappling with limited water resources. From the heart of ancient civilizations to the modern dinner table, millets have traversed time and cultures. The Yajur Veda texts also identify this superfood, with Foxtail Millet being called Priyangava, Barnyard Millet being referred to as Aanava, and the Black Finger Millet brought up as Shyamala, thus indicating the consumption of the grain even during the Vedic period. These grains are more than just food; they're ingrained in the very fabric of cultures, shaping culinary traditions that are as diverse as they are delicious. However, as the world moved toward modernization, the significance of millets seemed to dwindle. With the allure of new and exotic crops, these ancient grains fell into the shadows, waiting for their second coming. In recent years, millets have undergone a remarkable revival, thanks to their exceptional nutritional value and eco-friendly characteristics. As consumers increasingly prioritize healthier choices, these grains have emerged as nutritional superstars. The world is now rediscovering what ancient civilizations knew all along - millets are not just grains; they're a sustainable source of nourishment and a bridge between our culinary past and a healthier future. Raju Bhupathi, Founder, Troo Good, Indias largest millet snacking company, explains the significance of millets in ancient culture and their applications in the modern world: Nutritional powerhouses of the past: The annals of time have seen the millets facilitate the transition of human beings from being predominantly hunter-gatherers to farming society. Playing a pivotal role in ancient cultures like the Indus Valley civilization and China, millets contributed to the overall nutrition and sustenance of these societies. Enriched with protein, fibre, and an array of essential vitamins and minerals, millets emerged as stalwart guardians against malnutrition and the sentinels of food security. From being used in humble flatbreads, nourishing porridges, and fermented drinks, this ancient grain's versatility has furthered a tapestry of cultural traditions and rituals. Apart from being nutritional powerhouses of the past, millets held economic significance in ancient trade and barter systems. Millets in the Modern World: As modern agriculture heralded the era of high-yield crops like rice and wheat, the once-potent presence of the millet faded into obscurity, changing the once cherished traditional farming practices and indigenous wisdom from our collective memory. However, in recent times the millets have revealed themselves not just as a nutritional juggernaut but also as a champion of sustainability. These hardy crops, characterized by their minimal water requirements and inherent resistance to pests and diseases, have assumed a critical role in the spotlight, offering a promising solution for sustainable agriculture and climate change adaptation. The revival of millets knows no borders. International organizations like the UN have acknowledged their potential in tackling global malnutrition and food insecurity. Consequently, millets are being embraced as vital components of humanitarian initiatives and nutrition interventions worldwide. This revolution offers a paradigm shift in our perception of what healthy and delectable snacks can be. This resurgence breathes life into the livelihoods of farmers, vendors, and suppliers, offering economic opportunities that ripple through communities and nations. Balancing Tradition with Innovation: In the resurgence of millets, entrepreneurs, chefs, and culinary enthusiasts are rediscovering ancient recipes, infusing them with modern flavours. The millets' adaptability shines in contemporary cuisine, highlighting their versatility. This revival sparks a renewed interest in traditional farming, bolstering small-scale farmers and crop diversity. Governments and organizations champion millet cultivation through policies, seed subsidies, and research investments. Educational initiatives spread awareness about the millets' nutritional and environmental benefits. The rebranding of the millet from an ancient staple to a modern superfood is a testament to their resilience and adaptability. This full-circle moment of this wonder grain embodies the potential to address contemporary challenges like malnutrition and climate change. A kilogram of millets requires only 650-1200 litres of water, whereas up to 5000 litres of water is required to cultivate the same amount of rice, making the millet a far more viable option to grow in arid and semi-arid regions, while also being eco-friendly. As we embrace their ancient wisdom and balance it with modern innovation, production practices, and harvesting techniques, millets present an invaluable opportunity to sustain human health and the planet's well-being for generations to come. Ancient grains for modern health Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! San Francisco, Nov 18 E lon Musk on Saturday said X will file a thermonuclear lawsuit against non-profit organisation Media Matters and those who colluded in this fraudulent attack on our company, as big advertisers like Apple, Disney, Warner Bros, IBM and others reportedly paused advertising on the platform for allegedly promote antisemitism. Media Matters in its report had claimed that as Musk continues his descent into white nationalist and antisemitic conspiracy theories, his social media platform has been placing ads for major brands like Apple, Bravo (NBCUniversal), IBM, Oracle, and Xfinity (Comcast) next to content that supports Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party. The report led to tech and media majors like Apple, IBM, Disney, Warner Bros, Discovery, Paramount and Comcast/NBCUniversal reportedly pulling or halting their advertisements, along with Lionsgate and European Commission, on X. The billionaire X owner posted: The split second court opens on Monday, X Corp will be filing a thermonuclear lawsuit against Media Matters and ALL those who colluded in this fraudulent attack on our company." Their board, their donors, their network of dark money, all of them, he added. Musk also posted a letter, defending his company and slamming Media Matters report and legacy media organisation. Despite our clear and consistent position, X has seen a number of attacks from activist groups like Media Matters and legacy media outlets who seek to undermine freedom of expression on our platform because they perceive it as a threat to their ideological narrative and those of their financial supporters, the letter read. The letter alleged that these groups try to use their influence to attack our revenue streams by deceiving advertisers on X. To manipulate the public and advertisers, Media Matters created an alternate account and curated the posts and advertising appearing on the account's timeline to misinform advertisers about the placement of their posts, the letter argued. Earlier on Saturday, Musk posted: "Media Matters is pure evil." X CEO Linda Yaccarino said that their point of view has always been very clear that discrimination by everyone should stop across the board. "When it comes to this platform -- X has also been extremely clear about our efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination. There's no place for it anywhere in the world -- it's ugly and wrong. Full stop," she posted. Musk to sue non-profit Media Matters as big companies pause ads Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Hoshiarpur , Nov 18 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Saturday inaugurated and laid foundation for projects worth Rs 867 crore in Kandi region in Punjabs Hoshiarpur district. It is a historic occasion when the fortunes of the entire Kandi region are being transformed, the Punjab Chief Minister said while addressing a Vikas Kranti rally along with his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal. The Chief Minister said that these projects will give impetus to the development of this region and bring prosperity in the lives of people. He said that the previous governments had blatantly ignored this region but his government is committed to its holistic development. Training his guns against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister said that he is a master of phraseology who had befooled the people during his entire tenure. He reminded the people that Rs 15 lakh promised by Modi in every account has not yet come but people had suffered a lot due to his unplanned policies. Addressing the gathering, Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal said that there is need to continue the ongoing pace of development and prosperity in the state. He said that the Punjab government is making efforts for welfare of every section of society. Punjab CM launches projects worth Rs 867 in Kandi region Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Olivia Colman says that harassment by paparazzi forced her to leave her London home Los Angeles, Nov 19 B ritish actress Olivia Colman has narrated a spooky incident with the paparazzi in London. Recalling the incident, she said that the constant gathering of the paparazzi in front of her house left her a wreck, forcing her to move to the countryside. 'The Crown' actress recalling the incident in an interview with British Vogue narrated the negative side of fame, and said: "We've moved to the countryside, and it's lovely." She added: "It's where I'm from. We never fell out of love with London. I love London, but it became difficultJust a****** standing outside your front door, following you on the school run," she told the publication according to The Hollywood Reporter. Clarifying her definition of what she meant by paparazzi, the 'Secret Invasion' actress said: paparazzi, Yeah. I was scared. At one point, there were two cars chasing us and I was having a sort of meltdown, terrified. I was crying and they were laughing." Before she became an Oscar winner, there were a few years when she didn't work, having taken a hiatus and recalling that time, she said it was a blessing. For her, everything changed when her series 'Broadchurch' became a massive hit. After gaining a lot of recognition for it, while grateful for the love and respect she got, Colman would often prefer to stay home because she didn't think she was good at dealing with people noticing her on the street, and also because she is a more private person. "People taking what they think is a sneaky photograph, it's always obvious, you always know, and it's awful. Don't do it. It happened the other day at my kids' school, a mum took one. You can't even go: 'Sorry, don't do that', as then they say, 'I wasn't! I didn't!' And then you look like a d***. It's a shame. I wish I was braver, but I'm not." The 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish' actress further added that she has great friends and is familiar with the area they live in, so she can go places where she won't be bombarded by fans. "I don't tend to meet at restaurants," Colman admitted. "Unless you can have a little quiet place. Because you know people." She acknowledged the respect that people gave her and said she's grateful, but also wished for some privacy. Olivia Colman says that harassment by paparazzi forced her to leave her London home Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! New Delhi, Nov 19 H ere is a guide to the week ahead for you. This is your forecast for November 20-26. Aries This week marks a dynamic phase for you as the cosmos encourages you to break free from your comfort zone. Embrace the opportunity to meet new individuals from diverse cultures, as this will broaden your perspectives and deepen your understanding of the world. Attend events, workshops, or conferences where you can connect with individuals from different backgrounds. Your ability to adapt and learn from others will be a valuable asset in your career. If you're single, don't hesitate to mingle and embrace the chance to meet someone from a different cultural background. Existing relationships may benefit from shared experiences that broaden your horizons together. Tip of the week: Meet new people Taurus This week, you'll find yourself in a positive and happy state of mind, setting the stage for a fulfilling week ahead. Your positive and determined mindset will be a key asset, influencing your work in a constructive way. Colleagues and superiors will likely notice your enthusiasm, potentially leading to recognition or even advancement. Keep an eye out for new investment opportunities or money-saving strategies. If you've been considering making a significant financial move, now might be the opportune time. For singles, the universe may bring someone special into your life. Be open to new social opportunities and let your natural charm shine. Tip of the week: Stay in a happy state of mind Gemini It's time to focus on strengthening your bonds and nurturing the connections that matter most. Embrace the power of simplicity and find joy in the present moment. In your professional life, this week encourages you to adopt a more relaxed approach. Instead of overthinking every detail, take a step back and trust the process. Allow yourself the freedom to explore new ideas without getting bogged down by perfectionism. Singles may find that letting go of expectations opens the door to unexpected romantic connections. Your ability to listen and empathise will contribute to a harmonious family environment. Tip of the week: Trust the process Cancer The burden of responsibilities may have been weighing you down, and it's time to reclaim your happiness. Strike a balance between work and personal happiness. The demands of your job may have overshadowed your sense of joy lately. This week presents an opportunity to reassess your priorities. Take a closer look at your budget and spending habits. Are there areas where you can cut back without sacrificing your happiness? Consider reallocating funds to activities that bring you joy rather than solely focusing on material possessions. Don't be afraid to let your authentic self shine; this could attract someone who shares your passions. Tip of the week: Reclaim your happiness. Leo This week, you may find yourself grappling with a sense of unease and inner turmoil. It's essential to acknowledge and address these emotions, as they may impact your interactions with loved ones. External pressures may test your resilience, but keeping a cool head will prove to be your greatest asset. Collaborative projects could present challenges, but your ability to navigate interpersonal dynamics will ultimately contribute to success. Patience is a virtue when it comes to money matters, so resist the urge to make hasty investments or major purchases. For students, the academic journey may feel challenging this week. Stay focused on your goals, and don't be disheartened by temporary setbacks. Tip of the week: Address your emotions Virgo Take a step back and reflect on the bigger picture of your life. It's a time to reassess your goals, values, and overall direction. In your professional life, the week encourages you to be strategic and deliberate. Take a close look at your career goals and evaluate whether your current endeavours align with your long-term aspirations. If there are challenges at work, approach them with a calm and analytical mindset. If you're single, this is an excellent time to reflect on your relationship goals and the qualities you value in a partner. Creating a well-organized study plan will contribute to your success and bring you a sense of accomplishment. Tip of the week: See the bigger picture Libra Embrace the energy of change and be open to new experiences. A unique opportunity to learn something valuable may present itself. Whether it's a workshop, a mentorship, or stumbling upon a thought-provoking article, be open to expanding your knowledge. Financially, this week urges you to be mindful of your expenditures. While the temptation to indulge in a luxurious purchase might be strong, consider the long-term impact on your financial stability. If you're single, an unexpected encounter could spark the flames of romance. Be open to love in all its forms, and don't shy away from expressing your feelings. Tip of the week: Be open to new experiences Scorpio The stars urge you to pick your battles wisely and realise that life's challenges are not always black and white. At work, you may encounter a few power dynamics at play. Be observant of office politics and choose your alliances wisely. While your ambition is commendable, remember that collaboration can be the key to success. Your ability to delve into the depths of a situation will be an asset, helping you uncover solutions that others might overlook. If conflicts arise in relationships, approach them with a calm and rational mindset. Communication is key, so be open and honest with your partner. If you are a student, your ability to delve deep into your studies will be crucial. Tip of the week: Pick your battles wisely Sagittarius Don't hesitate to take decisive action; the stars are on your side. Whether it's a personal pursuit or a professional endeavour, the universe is urging you to go after what you truly desire. If you've been contemplating a new professional path or considering launching your own venture, now is the time to make those decisions. If you've been considering investments or financial planning, the cosmic alignment suggests that it's a favourable time to take action. However, be sure to approach financial matters with a well-thought-out strategy. Your family can provide valuable support as you embark on new ventures, so lean on them for guidance and encouragement. Tip of the week: Take decisive actions Capricorn The persistent efforts you've invested are about to pay off, bringing a sense of accomplishment and relief. Expect positive feedback from superiors or colleagues, acknowledging the impact of your contributions. Pending projects that may have been causing stress will now move towards completion, bringing a sense of closure. However, be cautious not to let success cloud your judgment continue to make informed decisions and maintain your disciplined approach to money matters. Singles may find themselves drawn to someone who shares their values. Express your feelings openly, and don't be afraid to take a step towards commitment if it feels right. Tip of the week: Make informed decisions Aquarius This week, your career path is illuminated, providing you with the chance to shine. Your innovative ideas and forward-thinking approach will be recognised by colleagues and superiors. However, don't let success blind you to potential pitfalls. Keep a watchful eye on your business affairs, as there may be lurking issues that require your attention. Avoid making promises that may be difficult to fulfil, and prioritise transparency in your professional dealings. Be wary of potential fraud or deceitful schemes. For singles, this is an opportune time to meet someone special through social events or networking. For students, this week offers a conducive environment for academic pursuits. Tip of the week: Prioritize transparency Pisces An important personal development is on the horizon this week, and it promises to bring joy not only for yourself but for your entire family. This could range from a personal achievement to a milestone that impacts your household positively. Embrace the change and share the joy with your loved ones. This event will serve as a source of inspiration and unity within your family circle. In the professional sphere, a long-awaited opportunity could present itself, opening doors to advancement and recognition. It's a favourable time to invest wisely, but exercise caution and conduct thorough research before making any major financial decisions. Tip of the week: Celebrate with loved ones (Neeraj Dhankher is an Astrologer with proficiency in Vedic, KP and Nadi Astrology. He is the Founder and CEO of Astro Zindagi. The observations are made by the writer based on his analysis) 7 Days Ahead: Your Personalized Nov 20-26 Horoscope Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Washington, Nov 19 U S President Joe Biden has rejected the growing demands at home and abroad for a ceasefire in Gaza, saying it will be used by Hamas to regroup and rearm itself and perpetuate its dominance. At the same time, he called for an end to violence by Jewish extremists against Palestinians in the West Bank and threatened that the US could sanction individuals responsible. In an OpEd in The Washington Post on Saturday, the President likened the Israel-Hamas war to Russias invasion of Ukraine and together they have brought the world to an inflection point. He also addressed rising antisemitism and Islamophobia in the US, saying that in recent years too much hate has been given too much oxygen. With the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza as a result of the continuing military operations by Israel in retaliation for the October 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas, the President has faced mounting calls for ceasefire from within his own Democratic party, the administration and members of the 2020 presidential campaign staff. Criticism of his unwavering support of Israel in this conflict has come also from allied countries and partners. Biden is not changing his mind. As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a cease-fire is not peace, he wrote. To Hamass members, every cease-fire is time they exploit to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters and restart the killing by attacking innocents again. An outcome that leaves Hamas in control of Gaza would once more perpetuate its hate and deny Palestinian civilians the chance to build something better for themselves. Biden has offered Israel unwavering support in its pursuit of Hamas although he himself and his officials have publicly called on Israel to not lose sight of international rules and laws. Actually, he had told them to not repeat the mistakes the US made in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks.During the visit to Tel Aviv, he wrote, I also counseled Israelis against letting their hurt and rage mislead them into making mistakes we ourselves have made in the past. While continuing his public embrace of Israel by rejecting demands for ceasefire, the president also reached out to the Palestinian civilians recommitting himself to the two-state solution of Israelis and Palestinians living in two separate states, side by side and in peace. In the months ahead, the United States will redouble our efforts to establish a more peaceful, integrated and prosperous Middle East - a region where a day like Oct. 7 is unthinkable, he wrote. And he proceeded to put the Israeli leadership on notice as well, for their support of promoting Israelis to live in the captured parts of West Bank, which would be part of Palestine in the final settlement of the dispute, when that happens. I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable, Biden wrote. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank. Biden rejects ceasefire calls, threatens Jewish extremists in West Bank Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! For India Indira Gandhi was people's leader & PM, for me my teacher: Rahul New Delhi, Nov 19 F ormer Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Sunday paid tribute to Indira Gandhi on her 105th birth anniversary, and said that for India she was a people's leader and Prime Minister and 'for me she was my teacher'. Rahul Gandhi in a post on X, said, "For India, a people's leader, Prime Minister. For me, my grandmother, my teacher. The values taught by you of dedication to the country and people are the strength of my every step, the strength of my thinking," he said. Kharge in a post on X, said, "'Forgiveness is the virtue of the brave -Indira Gandhi'. Our humble tribute to India's first woman Prime Minister and our icon, Indira Gandhi on her birth anniversary." "In preserving the unity and integrity of India and making our country strong and progressive, he consistently displayed skillful leadership, true loyalty and strong willpower for India and sacrificed everything for the country. His life, his dedicated duty for the country and indomitable courage will always inspire millions of Indians," Kharge added. Congress General Secretary (Communication) Jairam Ramesh in a post on X said, "Today the nation celebrates the 106th birth anniversary of Indira Gandhi. She was a most courageous, compelling and consequential leader who provided the political direction to the Green Revolution, decisively shaped our space, nuclear and missile programmes, profoundly reshaped the geography of South Asia, showed great resilience in the face of electoral adversity and returned to impart a new direction to our economy and always placed environmental and social concerns at the core of her governance. "I have made an effort to bring out the different dimensions of this remarkable personality in two books that were published in 2017 and 2018. So much more needs to be written about her. She is indeed for the ages," Ramesh added. Earlier in the day, Kharge, CPP chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and many other leaders paid tribute to Indira Gandhi at Shakti Sthal here. Indira Gandhi was the first and only woman Prime Minister of India. She became the Prime Minister in 1966 after Lal Bahadur Shastri's death. Indira Gandhi, born on November 19, 1917, served as the Prime Minister from January 1966 to March 1977 and again from January 1980 until her assassination in October 1984. On Saturday, the Indian Youth Congress today organised 'Indira Priyadarshini Awards 2023' to commemorate the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. On this occasion, National President of Indian Youth Congress Shri Srinivas BV said that the country has never forgotten the contribution of the country's first woman Prime Minister, iron lady Indira Gandhi. He said that she took many steps to strengthen the country, she nationalised 14 private banks of the country through ordinance. It was the courage of Indira Gandhi which led to the shameful defeat of Pakistan in 1971 and the creation of Bangladesh. He also recalled that Indira Gandhi abolished the practice of royal allowance and privy purse by amending the Constitution in the year 1971. He further said that in 1974, India was given a new strength by conducting nuclear tests under the 'Smiling Buddha Operation' and under the fifth five-year plan, the slogan was given to eliminate poverty and twenty-point programmes were determined to eliminate poverty from the country. For India Indira Gandhi was people's leader & PM, for me my teacher: Rahul Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi reviewed in a meeting with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva in Dubai on Thursday cooperation between Egypt and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in light of the program to fully implement Egypts economic reforms. San Francisco, Nov 19 M eta has reportedly disbanded its Responsible AI (RAI) team as it moves most of its human resources into the development of generative AI models. Most RAI members will move to the companys generative AI product team, while others will work on Metas AI infrastructure, reports The Information. "The changes are part of a wider reshuffle of the AI teams that Meta announced internally, the report said late on Saturday. Some members will move to the companys AI infrastructure unit, which works on the systems and tools to build and operate AI products. The company wants to develop AI responsibly. Meta said that the company will continue to prioritise and invest in safe and responsible AI development. Through regular collaboration with subject matter experts, policy stakeholders and people with lived experiences, were continuously building and testing approaches to help ensure our machine learning (ML) systems are designed and used responsibly, according to Meta. The split-up members will continue to support relevant cross-Meta efforts on responsible AI development and use. The RAI team saw a restructuring earlier this year. It was created to identify problems with its AI training approaches, including whether the companys models are trained with adequately diverse information, with an eye toward preventing things like moderation issues on its platforms. Meta disbands Responsible AI team to focus on generative AI Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Champaign, IL (61820) Today Periods of rain. High 47F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall around a half an inch.. Tonight Cloudy with occasional light rain...mainly this evening. Low 39F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) saw varied performance over the week, but the corrections-driven decline in the main index led the market cap to plunge by nearly 2 percent, recording around EGP 1,677 billion. The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) released a new evidence-based guideline recommending the use of blood and stool-based biomarkers to help manage Crohn's disease, a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). IBD is estimated to affect 2.74 million people in the U.S. The guideline was published today in Gastroenterology. Biomarkers are blood or stool tests that can give more information on an underlying disease process. In the context of IBD, biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) in blood and fecal calprotectin (FCP) in stool, can measure levels of inflammation. These levels can help doctors assess whether a patient's Crohn's disease is active or in remission. AGA recommends the use of biomarkers in addition to colonoscopy and imaging studies. Patients' symptoms do not always match endoscopic findings, so biomarkers are a useful tool to understand and monitor the status of inflammation and guide decision making in patients with Crohn's disease." Siddarth Singh, MD, MS, guideline author, University of California, San Diego For patients in remission: Check CRP and FCP every six to 12 months. These tests work best if CRP and FCP levels have previously matched with disease activity seen on endoscopic assessment. For patients experiencing active symptoms: Check CRP and FCP every two to four months for patients experiencing an increase in symptoms (diarrhea and abdominal pain) to guide treatment adjustments. Before making any major treatment plan changes, consider repeating endoscopic or radiologic assessments. For patients after surgery: FCP may be useful to monitor patients at low risk for disease recurrence. However, radiologic or endoscopic assessment should be performed when a post-operative recurrence is suspected rather than relying on biomarkers. "Based on this guideline, biomarkers are no longer considered experimental and should be an integral part of IBD care," says guideline author Ashwin Ananthakrishnan, MBBS, MPH, Massachusetts General Hospital. This is a win for Crohn's disease patients. Biomarkers are usually easier to obtain, less invasive, more cost-effective than frequent colonoscopies and can be assessed more frequently for tighter disease control and better long-term outcomes in Crohn's disease." With the rapid development and extensive applications of generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology across various sectors, Dr Michael Co Tiong-hong from the LKS Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong (HKUMed), and Dr John Yuen Tsz-hon from the Department of Computer Science, HKU, have jointly developed Hong Kong's first 'AI virtual patients' diagnostic application for training medical students. Leveraging generative AI technology and real-life surgical cases, the research team has designed 'humanized' AI virtual patients with distinct personalities and medical histories, which allow medical students to virtually simulate interactions with patients during bedside consultations. This initiative greatly enhances the students' professional skills and ability to accurately gather patients' medical history. To provide students with a more diverse range of clinical learning opportunities, HKUMed collaborated with the National University of Singapore (NUS) to introduce cross-regional medical cases in the diagnostic app. This revolutionary approach has redefined traditional medical teaching methods. Looking ahead, HKUMed also plans to collaborate with other overseas medical schools. About the 'AI virtual patients' diagnostic application The virtual mode of clinical teaching provides personalized patient cases tailored to the specific needs of individual medical students. In 2020, Dr Co and Dr Yuen initiated the development of an AI chatbot to help HKUMed students who could not attend hospital-based classes amid the pandemic. In 2021, a system prototype was available for trial with a selected group of HKUMed students. Teachers could design virtual patients suited to each student's diagnostic skill level. Students would compile the medical records for case discussions and analysis with their teachers. In 2022, the outcomes of this innovative teaching mode were published in an internationally renowned journal. Through continuous research and improvement, the HKU team developed Hong Kong's first 'AI virtual patient' diagnostic application. Integrated with generative AI technology, the latest model of the chatbot goes beyond standardized and monotonous replies, providing highly dynamic and lively responses. Even for the same medical case, the 'AI virtual patient' is capable of providing distinct responses, interacting with students in a remarkably human-like and personality-driven manner. Significance and impact This innovative virtual clinical teaching mode provides personalized teaching cases with equal access for all students, and addresses the limitations of the traditional teaching mode. Dr Co explained, 'Traditional clinical teaching relies heavily on in-person interaction with real patients. But for various reasons, like scheduling difficulties, not all medical students have equal opportunities to engage in face-to-face consultations. The "AI virtual patients" app allows us to overcome time and geographical barriers, offering our students access to practice with rare cases and providing them with invaluable clinical experience. Through a virtual learning environment, equipped with a wide range of diverse patient cases, medical students can enhance their patient history-taking skills and improve the accuracy of their diagnoses.' The "AI virtual patients" app has the capacity to accumulate information, resulting in each response it generates having a slight variation in tone and wording. This enables more authentic interactions between doctors and "patients". Additionally, teachers can utilize the data collected by the system to conduct in-depth analysis and assessment of students' performance, which allows them to provide specific feedback and guidance to individual students, ultimately enhancing the efficiency of clinical teaching." Dr John Yuen Tsz-hon, Department of Computer Science, HKU Virtual clinical teaching can remove spatial and geographical barriers, fostering international exchange in medical education. In early October this year, Dr Co collaborated with Dr Serene Goh, a specialist surgeon from the National University of Singapore, to launch the world's first cross-regional virtual clinical teaching program. The two doctors devised distinct patient cases for students in their respective locations to practice consultations utilizing the 'AI virtual patients' app. Through online case discussions, the medical students jointly analyzed patients' imaging studies, endoscopic images and pathological slides in online case discussions. 'Collaboration and exchange with medical schools in other regions will enable medical students to learn from each other's strengths, broaden their horizons and knowledge, and promote international cooperation and development in medical education. This will set the foundation for boundless educational innovations in the future,' Dr Co added. The cross-regional virtual clinical teaching collaboration between Hong Kong and Singapore has set a remarkable precedent for international medical teaching. The Department of Surgery at the University of Edinburgh's Western General Hospital has expressed interest in joining future endeavors in virtual surgical clinical teaching. As we navigate through the current week, a number of exciting job opportunities have come up across various government departments. Lets delve into the details of key positions that are currently open for application, from assistant professor to apprenticeship trainee. Prospective candidates are encouraged to carefully review the eligibility criteria for the following jobs and apply before impending deadlines. Assistant Professor at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College, Delhi University Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College, a college under Delhi University, is actively seeking qualified candidates for the position of Assistant Professor. This recruitment drive aims to fill 39 vacancies, and interested individuals can navigate to the official website colrec.uod.ac.in to initiate the application process. The application window is currently open and candidates are requested to complete their submissions before the deadline on November 27read more Junior Associate (Customer Support and Sales) at State Bank of India The State Bank of India (SBI) has initiated its recruitment process for the position of Junior Associate in the clerical cadre, with a total of 8283 vacancies up for grabs. Eligible candidates, falling within the age bracket of 20 to 28 years and possessing a graduate degree from a recognised university, are encouraged to apply through the official website sbi.co.in. The application period kicked off on November 17 and will end on December 7. Aspirants should gear up for the preliminary exam in January 2024, followed by the main exam in February 2024 read more School Teachers at BPSC The Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) has officially initiated the registration process for the BPSC Phase 2 Teacher Recruitment 2023. With a staggering 9,431 vacancies to be filled for School Teachers for classes 1 to 5. Interested candidates, being Indian citizens and having successfully cleared the Bihar Teacher Eligibility Test (BTET) Paper 1, can seamlessly navigate the official portal bpsc.bih.nic.in to start their application process. The application window is open from November 16 to 25, providing applicants with a crucial timeframe to complete their submissionsread more Various Positions at BECIL Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL) has started a comprehensive recruitment drive for the year 2023, inviting applications for diverse roles including Data Entry Operator (DEO), Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Junior Physiotherapist, and Multi-Tasking Staff (MTS). The organisation aims to fill a total of 110 positions, and eligible candidates are urged to complete their applications through the official website becil.com. The deadline for submitting applications for the BECIL Recruitment 2023 is set for November 23read more Apprenticeship Training at RRC, East Central Railway Railway Recruitment Cell, East Central Railway (RRC ECR), is actively seeking applications for Apprentice positions under the Apprentices Act of 1961. A total of 1832 positions, spanning across various trades, are to be filled for Apprenticeship Training. Aspiring candidates can navigate to the official website rrcecr.gov.in to apply before the deadline on December 9. The eligibility criteria specify that candidates must be at least 15 years old and no older than 24 years as of January 1, 2023read more Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday said there are many people from backward communities and classes who are yet to be brought into the mainstream, as he pitched for a caste census in the country. The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister was addressing a gathering at a rally in Jind organised by Balraj Kundu, an Independent legislator, who represents Meham in the Haryana assembly. Kundu a few months back floated his own outfit Haryana Jansewak Party. The development comes ahead of the next year assembly polls in Haryana, where the BJP-JJP coalition is in power. Yadav said his party will continue to work towards ensuring that people from backward communities and classes get their rights and respect. We assure you that the way the whole country today wants a caste census because after so many years of independence there are many backward people whose counting could not be done and we could not bring them into the mainstream, the Samajwadi Party (SP) president said. There are many castes in the country which do not have any identification. Therefore, a voice which once raised from Uttar Pradesh (for a caste census), is now also being raised in Bihar. We know that people of Haryana also want this (census), he said. He said after the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, his party will ensure a caste census in the country so that the people get their rights and due respect. The Congress has also been demanding a caste census and has promised to get the survey done if voted to power at the Centre. The Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) government in Bihar has already released findings of its caste survey, months ahead of the 2024 parliamentary elections. Yadav also spoke against the Centres Agniveer scheme for recruiting soldiers. In the SPs Lok Sabha polls manifesto, the party will promise to end the scheme, he said. I want to say this to you as the youth of Haryana are joining as Agniveers. I want to tell them that whenever Samajwadi Party gets a chance to come to power, we assure you that during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the first promise in the poll manifesto of the Samajwadi Party will be to end the Agniveer system and restore the earlier system of recruitment, Yadav said. On the occasion, former Gujarat chief minister Shankersinh Vaghela, among other leaders were also present. Assembly Elections 2023: The BJP on Saturday released its election manifesto for Telangana and promised the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code if the party came to power in the state in the November 30 polls. The manifesto also said a committee would be formed to draft a Uniform Civil Code to consolidate and harmonize various personal laws. Congress had released its election manifesto for Telangana a day earlier on Friday. Meanwhile, following the conclusion of the second and final phase of voting in Chhattisgarh, Deputy Chief Minister TS Singh Deo on Saturday expressed confidence that Congress will return to power in the state. The Jannayak Janta Party is confident of putting on a good performance in the assembly elections in Rajasthan, where the Haryana-based outfit is contesting from 20 seats in its first foray outside its home base. Ajay Singh Chautala, who heads the regional outfit, was a two-time legislator from Rajasthan during his time in the Indian National Lok Dal before the party split into the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) in 2018. The JJP is now looking at Ajay Singh Chautalas guidance and experience to manoeuvre the polls in Rajasthan. The party is also banking on Chaudhary Devi Lal, the former deputy prime minister whose political legacy it claims to carry forward, who was the MP from Sikar in 1989. Three of the 20 assembly seats the party is contesting are in the Sikar parliamentary segment. The JJP, a BJP ally in Haryana, was keen to contest the Rajasthan polls jointly but decided to field candidates on its own after the saffron party did not show any inclination. In Haryana, there have been signs of differences between the BJP and the JJP in recent months. Some senior BJP leaders have also talked about contesting next years Lok Sabha and assembly polls on their own and a section are in favour of snapping ties with the JJP. Both the parties have remained non-committal on contesting the 2024 elections jointly. The JJP, formed after a vertical split in the Indian National Lok Dal, extended support to the BJP after the saffron party fell short of majority following the 2019 Haryana Assembly polls. JJP Secretary General Digvijay Chautala said the party and other regional outfits hold the key to the Rajasthan Assembly election fortunes, referring to its key poll symbol. About the JJPs chances, he said, We will put up a good performance. Pointing to regional parties bagging a few seats in assembly polls in Rajasthan over the years, Digvijay Chautala said these outfits will win 30-35 seats, indicating that no single party will be able to form a government without their support. All regional forces will have to come together and make some sort of alliance post the results and join hands, he said, pointing to the scenario if no single party gets a majority. Digvijay Chautala, Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala and Ajay Singh Chautala have been campaigning for JJP candidates fielded from various seats, including Danta Ramgarh and Fatehpur. He said people there are aware of the work done by the JJP in Haryana. These include taking steps to make the lives of farmers better, opening e-libraries in rural areas and initiatives in aviation and other sectors. Underscoring the role regional parties can play if they have a share in power, Digvijay Chautala said, Looking at Rajasthan, especially the remote areas, education and medical infrastructure and the roads are in a bad shape. Big parties win but their attention remains limited to big cities and towns after victory and these areas get neglected. If regional parties are there, they will definitely strengthen these areas and undertake development, he added. When asked why a tie-up with the saffron party did not materialise in Rajasthan, Digvijay Chautala said, The BJPs Rajasthan unit was not able to understand the actual strength of the JJP. They were considering us to be a new party and didnt actually understand that this party was born from Chaudhary Devi Laljis ideology. He said Chaudhary Devi Lal played a role in paving the way for Bhairon Singh Shekhawat to come to power in Rajasthan in 1990. Ajay Singh Chautala was MLA from Rajasthan twice, winning from Danta Ramgarh in 1990 and Nohar in 1993, he said and added people of these segments still remember his development work. The BJP, I think, failed to understand the importance of Chaudhary Devi Laljis ideology or the number of followers it still has in Rajasthan. I think they made a big loss in the matter (by not contesting jointly), Digvijay Chautala said. He also accused the Congress of making false promises ahead of the assembly polls and said people will not fall for their guarantees. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has announced seven guarantees an annual honorarium of Rs 10,000 to women heads of families, cooking gas cylinders at Rs 500 to 1.05 crore families, purchase of dung from cattle rearers at Rs 2 per kilogramme, law for old pension scheme for government employees, laptop or tablet to students taking admission in state-run colleges, insurance cover up to Rs 15 lakh per family to compensate for losses due to natural calamities, and school education in English medium if the Congress retains power in the state. Rajasthan has witnessed a two-way contest between the Congress and the BJP during the past three decades. Polling for the 200-member Rajasthan Assembly will be held on November 25 and the votes will be counted on December 3. Among the candidates, the JJP has fielded Rita Chaudhary from Sikars Danta Ramgarh. Her husband Virendra Chaudhary, the sitting MLA, has been renominated by the Congress. From Suratgarh, the JJP has fielded its Rajasthan unit chief Prithviraj Meel. The JJP sounded the election bugle with a rally in Sikar on September 25 on Chaudhary Devi Lals birth anniversary. . Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilots stature as a national-level Congress leader and his outreach to allay concerns of sections of influential communities in Tonk ahead of assembly polls has boosted his re-election bid from this constituency amid the BJPs strong push for Hindutva and the local versus outsider narrative. BJPs Ajit Singh Mehta is pitching it as a local versus outsider battle, claiming that Pilot this time does not have the CM face advantage he had last time. Mehta has been asserting that he is a Tonk resident who knows the micro-problems faced by people. He has been claiming that Pilot is an outsider who had won big last time due to the chief ministerial face advantage he had. But Pilots core voters are unfettered by his not becoming the chief minister during the Congress tenure or not being declared the CM face this time. Pilot will be CM, if not today, then tomorrow or day after. He is the future. People are talking of Tonk in this election because he is contesting from here. He is a national-level leader and more importantly, a nice guy, Mohammad Rizwan Ali, who owns a tailoring shop in the main market here, said. Mehta and the BJP know that it would be difficult to breach the Muslim-Gurjar vote bank of Pilot which seems intact and are working to consolidate the Hindu vote besides Gurjars, highlighting what they say is the Congress appeasement politics and Mehtas credentials as a local leader. BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri, who has been given poll responsibilities in Tonk by the BJP, had recently said that Lahore is keeping an eye on elections in Rajasthan and Tonk. We will have to see whether laddus will be distributed in the country or in Lahore after the elections on the November 25. The enemy sitting outside the country is keeping an eye on this election. It is a question of our identity, Bidhuri had said while addressing a youth workers meeting organised by Mehta. Pilot, meanwhile, has expressed confidence of getting re-elected from the constituency with a good margin, saying he would be able to secure as good a mandate as last time. I think the people of Tonk have given me a lot of blessings and support in the last election. In these five years, we have been able to bring about development that was not there in this area. So I am quite confident that the Congress will secure as good a mandate as last time, Pilot said. Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu on Saturday formally requested India to withdraw its military troops from the country saying the Maldivian people have given him a strong mandate to make this request to New Delhi. The statement comes within 24 hours after Muizzu, an engineer-turned-politician, took oath on Friday as the eighth president of the strategically-located archipelago nation in the Indian Ocean. Maldives President had a meeting with Union minister Kiren Rijiju, where he maintained that he would keep his election promise of evicting Indian military personnel from his country. The request to withdraw Indian personnel didnt surprise many as Muizzu, during the election campaign, had repeatedly indicated that the withdrawal of Indian military troops from the island nation is among the issues that need to be resolved by the two countries. Who is Mohamed Muizzu? President Mohamed Muizzu was elected Maldives eighth president last year, after receiving 54 per cent of the vote against his predecessor Ibrahim Mohamed Solihs 46 per cent. The election was seen a virtual referendum on which regional power China or India will have better relations with the island nation in the Indian Ocean. Muizzu, from the Progressive Alliance a coalition of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and the Peoples National Congress (PNC), is considered pro-China. His opponent former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih had good ties with New Delhi and the bilateral relations progressed between the two nations under Solihs rule. Muizzu, a former mayor of the capital Male and a construction minister for seven years, is a close associate of former Maldives President Abdulla Yameen. Yameen is known for his pro-China approach and repugnance for India as he believes that New Delhi played a role in his defeat during the 2018 Presidential elections. Muizzu also promised to cultivate strong ties with China like his ally Yameen, who forged close ties with Beijing during his Presidency from 2013 to 2018. During the election campaign, he not only indicated the withdrawal of Indian military troops but also asserted that he was firmly committed to ensuring that his country remains free of any foreign military presence to preserve its independence and sovereignty. How did Maldives become a geopolitical hotspot? Famously known as one of the most expensive holiday destinations in South Asia, with pristine white beaches and secluded resorts, Maldives has also become a geopolitical hotspot as it is located strategically on the shipping route connecting East and West. Maldivian foreign policy become a partisan domestic political issue, with parties either leaning toward China or India. Maldives leaned towards China under President Abdullah Yameen Gayoom, who was in office from 2013 to 2018. In 2017, during Yameens visit to China, the island nation agreed to join Chinas Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The development initiative is meant to build railroads, ports and highways to expand trade and Chinas influence across Asia, Africa and Europe. Since then, Maldives has reportedly borrowed hundreds of millions of dollars from China. However, after the 2018 elections, Ibrahim Mohamed Solihs came to power and rebuild strong ties with India. India, which sees the island nation as a key part of the Indian Ocean, has provided about $2 billion in development assistance to the country, according to BBC. However, when Muizzu won the presidential poll, it was seen as a setback for India-Maldives ties as the progress made under Solih since 2018 suddenly backtracked. Before winning the elections, Muizz told the Chinese Communist Party a year ago that he wanted stronger ties with Beijing should his Progressive Party win the 2023 elections. How Many Indian Soldiers are Present in Maldives? The number of Indian troops in the Maldives is not publicly known. Muizzus Progressive Alliance has portrayed Solihs India-first policy as a threat to the Maldives sovereignty and security. As per experts, the secrecy in the agreement between India and Solihs government regarding the role and number of Indian military personnel has led to suspicion and rumours. In 2021, the Maldivian defence force said about 75 Indian military personnel were based in the country to operate and maintain the Indian aircraft. India reportedly operates two Indian-donated helicopters and assists in search and rescue operations for people stranded or facing calamities at sea. More Myanmar nationals and civilians are crossing the border to escape the recent surge of violence between the military government and anti-junta groups in the country in the last few weeks. At least 29 Myanmar soldiers entered Mizoram this week fleeing an attack by insurgents on their military base close to the Indian border, amid an ongoing fight between the rebels and the ruling junta government. So far, around 1,500 Myanmar nationals have fled the country and took refuge in Mizoram as of November 13 following an intense gunfight between the Myanmar Army and pro-democracy militias. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has expressed deep concerns over the incidents of violence and called cessation of fighting that has triggered an influx of Myanmars refugees to Mizoram. What is the situation in Myanmar? Myanmar has been in turmoil since the 2021 coup, when the military ousted a government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, ending a decade of tentative democratic reform. Since, the ousting of the Aung San Suu Kyi government, there has been violence between pro-democracy forces and the junta government. The fighting surged in October as the violence is going on in multiple fronts. The Arakan Army, one of the ethnic militant groups, launched attacks in the western state of Rakhine putting the military government under pressure. The Arakan Army, along with the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army and the Taang National Liberation Army calling themselves the Three Brotherhood Alliance launched a coordinated offensive on October 27 in northern Shan state in northeastern Myanmar along the border with China. Meanwhile, the fighting has also been reported between the rebels and the military in Minbya, Maungdaw, Mrauk-U and Kyauktaw townships. The Myanmars military has resorted to airstrikes in the western region that killed at least 11 civilians. What Has India Said? India has called for cessation of fighting between Myanmars military and anti-junta groups near the international border. MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi expressed deep concerns over the incidents of violence close to the Indo-Myanmar border. As a result of the fighting, in the Rihkhawdar area in Chin State, opposite Zowkhathar in Mizoram on the India-Myanmar border, there has been movement of Myanmar nationals to the Indian side, he said. We reiterate our call for return of peace, stability and democracy in Myanmar. Since the current conflict started in 2021 in Myanmar, a large number of Myanmar citizens have been taking refuge in India, Bagchi added. Myanmar, one of Indias strategic neighbours, shares a 1,640-kilometre border with a number of northeastern states, including militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur. More than 31,000 Myanmar nationals have taken shelter in Mizoram since February 2021 after the Myanmar military junta staged a coup in the neighbouring country. According to a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights statement, the recent spillover of the civil war since October 27, has led to the deaths of 70 civilians and injured 90, while more than 200,000 have been displaced. Devotees across North India are set to offer evening arghya prayers to the Sun God as part of Chhath festivities on Sunday. On Saturday, devotees observed kharna and cooked kheer which is eaten by the family members and as prasad. People across Delhi will offer the evening arghya at the banks of Yamuna, temporary ghats and rooftop tubs. Delhi Revenue Minister Atishi said on Saturday that the government has built over 1,000 Chhath ghats across the city for the convenience of devotees. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday wished people on the occasion of Chhath Puja. Best wishes to all of you on Chhath Puja, the great festival of worshipping Lord Surya and faith. May Chhathi Maiya keep you all healthy, happy, prosperous and fulfil all your wishes, he wrote in an X (formerly Twitter) post. Delhis air quality, on the other hand, continued to remain in the very poor category with an overall AQI of 398. #WATCH | Delhi: Air quality in Very poor category with an overall AQI of 398(Drone visuals from Old Yamuna Bridge (Loha Pul), shot at 8.45 am) pic.twitter.com/sIJuCPeCDa ANI (@ANI) November 19, 2023 Meanwhile, the Bihar government made elaborate arrangements for the third day of Chhath pooja in the state. Quoting officials, a PTI report said the Patna district administration beefed up security at all the 100 ghats along river Ganga in the city and other places in the state to avoid any untoward incident. A number of medical camps have been set up at the ghats and around 5,000 additional security personnel have been deployed in the state capital to manage the crowd. Over 300 disaster response force personnel will also be deployed at the different ghats in the city, a senior police officer noted. The four-day festival, in which people fast and offer prayers to the Sun God began on Friday. Israeli fighter jets pounds Gaza Strip on Friday shortly after a week long truce expired with no agreement to extend it. Amidst the rise in cases of online fraud, a 31-year-old doctor from Navi Mumbai was allegedly duped of Rs 1 lakh after she ordered a lipstick worth Rs 300 from an e-commerce portal. A few days after ordering, she received a message from the courier company which stated that her order was delivered. However, since she did not receive it she contacted the company over their helpline number. The doctor was soon informed that a customer care representative would get in touch with her. As per a Times of India report, on receiving the call from the supposed customer care representative, she was told that her order had been put on hold and in order to receive that she needed to transfer Rs 2. The doctor however refused to send the money and despite several requests from the caller, she did not agree to transfer the amount. The representative then sent her a web link and asked her to download it. She was soon asked to fill in her address and bank details in it. The doctor then received a message to create a BHIM UPI link but she immediately asked the caller about it. The caller further assured her that the parcel would now get delivered. However, on November 9, Rs 95,000 and Rs 5,000 was debited from her bank account. As the doctor received the messages of the money being debited from her account, she lodged a complaint with the cyber police station at Nerul. As per a Free Press Journal report, a case against an unidentified person was registered under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for cheating and sections 66 C and 66 D of the Information Technology (IT) Act. Tips For Secure Online Payments With so many people purchasing essentials and other items online, its important to be aware of the risks and take steps to protect yourself from online payment scams. Here are some key things to remember to safeguard your finances and personal information: Shop from reputable websites: Only shop from websites that you know and trust. If youre not sure about a website, do some research to check its reputation. Look for websites that have a secure padlock icon in the address bar. This means that the website uses encryption to protect your personal information. Avoid shopping from websites that pop up unsolicited. These websites are often scams. Use strong passwords and two-factor authentication: Create strong passwords for all of your online shopping accounts. Use two-factor authentication (2FA) whenever possible. It adds an extra layer of security to your online accounts, be it your e-commerce platform account, by requiring you to enter a code from your phone or another device in addition to your password. Be careful about what information you share online: Dont share your personal information, such as your PAN or credit card number, with anyone you dont know and trust. Be wary of emails or websites that ask you to verify your personal information. This is a common tactic used by scammers. Be suspicious of unusual requests: Be cautious of emails or calls from companies claiming to be your bank, credit card company, or other trusted organisations. If they demand immediate action or threaten account closure, it might be a scam. Contact the company directly through their official website or customer service phone number to verify. Use a trusted payment method: When paying for goods or services online, use a trusted payment method. Monitor your bank and credit card statements: Check your bank and credit card statements regularly for any unauthorised charges. If you see a charge that you dont recognise, report it to your bank or debit/credit card company immediately. Popular South actor Vinod Thomas was found dead inside a parked car at a hotel near Pampady in Keralas Kottayam, police said on Saturday. The 45-year-old actors body was discovered when the hotel management informed the police that a person had been inside a car parked on its premises for a long time. Police reached the spot to find the actor dead inside the car. We found him inside the car and took him to a nearby hospital. Doctors examined him and declared him dead, police said, adding that the body has been sent for postmortem. The actor is known for his roles in movies like Ayyappanum Koshyum, Natholi oru cheriya meenalla, Oru murai vanth paathaaya, Happy wedding and June among others. Earlier this year in September, a 24-year-old man was burnt alive inside his car after a cylinder kept in the vehicle exploded in Rajasthans Sriganganagar district. According to a preliminary investigation, Sanket Bansal, a resident of New Chawla Colony, was talking on his phone while driving and suddenly a gas cylinder kept in the car caught fire and exploded, DSP Prashant Kaushik said. In June 2023, the bodies of three missing children aged between 4-6 were found inside a parked car near their home in Maharashtras Nagpur. Taufique Firoz Khan, 4, Alia Firoz Khan, 6, and Afrin Irshad Khan, 6, residents of Faruque Nagar, had locked themselves inside the car while playing. The parents of the kids raised an alarm after they didnt return home till late evening. When they did not return till late Saturday evening, they approached police and a kidnapping case was registered. At around 7 pm on Sunday, a constable found an SUV parked close to their houses and found the bodies of the three children inside, a Pachpaoli police station official said. (With PTI inputs) Rescue teams began the operation to insert a 6-inch diameter pipe inside the tunnel late early on Sunday as the eighth day of the rescue efforts kicked in. Officials on Saturday prepared to drill a vertical hole from the top of the hill to evacuate the workers stuck inside the tunnel for the last seven days. #WATCH | Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel incident | Rescue team begins the operation to insert the pipe inside tunnel. The operation to insert the 6-inch diameter pipe has started. pic.twitter.com/3MJRgJj4Nv ANI (@ANI) November 18, 2023 Officials at the site are hoping to resume the mission on pause since Friday by Sunday afternoon. Meanwhile, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari arrived at the tunnel collapse site to conduct an inspection and look over the rescue works taking place to evacuate the 41 workers trapped there. #WATCH | Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel rescue operation: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami arrive at the site of Uttarkashi tunnel collapse to conduct an on-site inspection of the ongoing relief and rescue work.A part of the Silkyara tunnel pic.twitter.com/D9croHlkRm ANI (@ANI) November 19, 2023 Former advisor to the prime minister and now OSD in the Uttarakhand government, Bhaskar Khulbe said that the concerted efforts would produce good results in four-five days. But if the gods are kind enough, it could happen even earlier than that, he said. The number of workers trapped inside was revised from to 41. The NHIDCL, which is constructing the tunnel through Navayuga Engineering Company Ltd, found out about this discrepancy on Friday. LATEST UPDATES Union Minister Nitin Gadkari noted that several machines have been deployed at the site, adding that two auger machines are currently at work to carry out the rescue ops. If the auger machine works properly, we will be able to reach them (victims) in the next 2-2.5 days he was quoted as saying by ANI. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that main priority of the state and Centre is to get the workers out as early as possible, adding that he had a two-hour long meeting with the concerned officers at the site. We are working on 6 alternate options and multiple government agencies are working on the rescue efforts, Gadkari said. Anurag Jain, Secretary, Ministry of Road and Transport, said that there is water and electricity in the tunnel, adding that due to the lack of sunlight as per doctors suggestions those trapped inside are also being provided with Vitamin B, Vitamin C, and anti-depressants via the 4-inch wall through which they were also sending them food. These people have been working in the tunnel for a long time, so there is no disappointment among them, and they are looking forward to coming out. It will take some time, but we will eventually get them out, Jain was quoted as saying by ANI. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, accompanied by Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, arrived at the site of the tunnel collapse to conduct an inspection of the relief and rescue works taking place at the Silkyara tunnel. The operation to insert he 6-inch diameter pipe has started as the officials try desperately hard to rescue the 41 workers. On Saturday, officials prepared to start drilling a vertical hole right at the top of the tunnel. Major Naman Arora engaged in the rescue efforts said that the target is to complete the vertical drilling by Sunday afternoon. A team of officials from the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) and experts at the site, jointly decided to work on five plans simultaneously to reach the trapped workers, former advisor to the PM, Bhaskar Khulbe said. These five plans include drilling from end to the other of both the Silkyara and Barkot sides, then vertical drilling from the top and perpendicular drilling. A vertical track, to assist the drilling from the top was in the making early on Saturday. Major Naman Arora said that there needs to be around 320 meters of track, so that the drilling can be taken right at the top. A performance drilling machine was brought to the site from Indore on Saturday to pierce through the collapsed tunnels rubble and was being assembled before it was deployed to resume drilling, officials said. THE SILKYARA TUNNEL COLLAPSE The Silkyara tunnel 30 kms from the district headquarters of Uttarkashi and a seven-hour drive from Dehradun is part of the Char Dham all-weather road project of the central government. The tunnel constructed under the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) collapsed early on last Sunday, November 12. WHY WAS THE DRILLING HALTED ON FRIDAY? A US-made auger machine which was brought in to drill through the rubble of the collapse. After being deployed for drilling, the auger machine developed a technical snag, leading to the suspension of the rescue efforts Friday afternoon. The auger machine had drilled up to 24 metres through the rubble when the the process was put on a pause. Other than this, during the positioning of the fifth pipe, a big cracking sound was heard in the tunnel upon which rescue ops were suspended immediately. An expert involved with the project had also warned about the possibility of further collapse in the vicinity. Subsequently, the pipe pushing activity was stopped. HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON SATURDAY The Union government on Saturday held a high-level meeting to discuss the five options of rescuing the workers trapped inside. NHIDCL MD Mahmood Ahmed has been made in-charge of coordinating with all the central agencies. In this battle against time, officials are waging options to rescue the workers. RS Rao of Directorate General Border Roads said that one option is to make a four-six inch long hole which will help in providing those trapped with essentials. If the conditions are favourable, a three-feet diameter hole will also be made so people will be able to come out. This road is about 900 metres long. Hopefully, the road will be ready by tomorrow morning, Rao said. After the rescue efforts being halted for almost 3 days, OSD in Uttarakhand government, Bhaskar Khulbe said that we need to look ahead, adding that this is not the appropriate time to discuss what happened in the past. The ONGC, RVNL, Satluj Jal Vikas Nigam Ltd, the BRO and the state PWD besides the NHIDCL will be the agencies carrying out different responsibilities to establish early access to the trapped workers, Khulbe noted. Earlier CM Dhami had a meeting with the officials at his residence. He said that under the guidance of the PMO, the state government is busy making all efforts to evacuate labourers trapped inside the tunnel. We hope we will soon succeed in the mission. (With PTI inputs) Excitement is building in the fashion world as the 72nd Miss Universe pageant approaches, set to take place in El Salvador on November 18. Contestants from over 90 countries will vie for the prestigious crown, hoping to succeed RBonney Gabriel from the United States. Indias representative for the Miss Universe 2023 competition is 23-year-old Shweta Sharda, who earned her spot by winning the Miss Diva Universe 2023 crown in Mumbai back in August. All eyes are on the upcoming event as the world awaits the crowning of the next Miss Universe. Who Is Shweta Sharda? Shweta Sharda was born in Chandigarh on May 24, 2000. She was raised by a single mother and moved to Mumbai when she was 16 years old to pursue a career in modelling. She later graduated from the Indira Gandhi National Open University in Delhi. Shweta Sharda is known to be a good dancer and has participated in several dance reality series, including Dance Deewane, Dance+, and Dance India Dance. She also appeared as a choreographer on the celebrity dance show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa. She has worked with some popular names in the industry, including Deepika Padukone, Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Mouni Roy, Vaibhavi Merchant, and Madhuri Dixit. Shweta Sharda has been featured in a music video for the song Mast Aankhein alongside Shantanu Maheshwari. According to Femina, she is a strong advocate for improved education, equal opportunities, and self-defence skills for women. In the preliminary gala of the pageant that commenced on Wednesday, November 15, Shweta Sharda dazzled the audience with her captivating appearance during the National Costume Round. Adorned in an intricately embroidered gold outfit, designed by Nidhi Yasha, Shweta Sharda showcased a regal embroidered blouse paired with an elaborately decorated traditional skirt. The ensemble included a lotus halo as a headpiece, and the lower section featured intricate peacock feather embroidery. The costumes design played with contrasts, incorporating a flowing organza skirt and a dramatic, lengthy trail that struck a perfect balance between stiffness and fluidity. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miss Diva (@missdivaorg) As per a report by the Hindustan Times, personal statements, in-depth interviews, and presentations in evening dresses and swimwear will be used to judge the contestants. The contenders will compete for the coveted title based on these criteria. Further, in India, the final competition of the Miss Universe pageant will begin at 6:30 a.m. on November 19, according to Indian Standard Time, on Miss Universes YouTube channel and X account. In the United States, the Telemundo channel will broadcast the event in Spanish, and the Roku channel will stream it. When it comes to exchanging vows and celebrating love, few settings can rival the charm and allure of a beach wedding. In India, with its diverse landscapes and picturesque coastlines, couples have a plethora of options to choose from. Whether its the vibrant beaches of Goa, the tranquil shores of Kerala, the exotic islands of Andaman and Nicobar, the spiritual ambiance of Puri, or the coral beauty of Lakshadweep, each destination provides a unique and enchanting setting for couples to celebrate their love amidst the soothing sounds of the ocean waves. As you plan your special day, consider these five romantic beach wedding destinations in India for an unforgettable celebration of love: 1. Goa Known for its vibrant nightlife and sandy shores, Goa stands out as one of Indias top beach wedding destinations. With its scenic beaches like Calangute, Baga, and Vagator, couples can choose from a variety of settings, from serene and intimate to lively and festive. Goas unique blend of Portuguese and Indian influences adds a touch of charm to the wedding experience, making it a favourite among couples seeking a romantic coastal celebration. 2. Kerala If youre dreaming of a tranquil and tropical beach wedding, Kerala is the perfect choice. With its palm-fringed beaches, serene backwaters, and lush greenery, this South Indian state provides an enchanting backdrop for a romantic celebration. Popular beach wedding destinations in Kerala include Kovalam, Varkala, and Marari Beach, each offering a unique atmosphere and cultural experience. 3. Andaman and Nicobar Islands For couples seeking a more secluded and exotic beach wedding experience, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands offer a tropical paradise. Radhanagar Beach in Havelock Island, with its pristine white sand and turquoise waters, is a popular choice. The islands remote location provides an intimate setting, allowing couples to exchange vows surrounded by the breathtaking beauty of the Bay of Bengal. 4. Puri Nestled on the eastern coast of India, Puri in Odisha offers a unique blend of spirituality and seaside charm. Known for the famous Jagannath Temple, Puris golden beaches provide a picturesque setting for a romantic wedding. The sound of the waves crashing against the shore and the soft hues of the sunrise or sunset create a magical ambiance, making Puri an ideal destination for couples seeking a spiritual and serene beach wedding. 5. Lakshadweep For couples seeking a truly offbeat and exclusive beach wedding experience, the Lakshadweep Islands offer a breathtaking backdrop of coral atolls and clear blue waters. Agatti Island and Bangaram Island are among the most sought-after destinations in this archipelago. The untouched beauty of the coral reefs and the sense of seclusion make Lakshadweep an ideal choice for couples looking for a unique and intimate beach wedding. Bangladesh is heading for elections in early January 2024 and the country is already in turmoil due to related developments during the past few months. While the Awami League is gearing up to secure its fifth consecutive term in the upcoming election, the main opposition Bangladesh National Party (BNP) is suffering from a crisis of political legitimacy with its main leaders entangled in a series of corruption cases committed during their rule from 2001-06. In fact, according to the Transparency International (TI)s corruption perception index (CPI), Bangladesh was listed as the most corrupt country in the world for five consecutive years from 2001 to 2005. It is, therefore, important to revisit the corruption cases brought by the BNP during its political leadership. Bangladeshi public officials and Bangladesh National Party (BNP) chief Khaleda Zias younger son Arafat Rahman Koko (now deceased) was accused of taking bribes between May 2001 and August 2006 to grant a major telecom project. Koko had received a bribe of $1,80,000 in September 2005 to help set up mobile network, including kickbacks of $200million deposited in his name. At least one payment to each of these purported consultants was admitted to be paid from a US bank account. Following this, the US Department of Justice filed a forfeiture action to confiscate around $3 million from Kokos bank accounts maintained in Singapore. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), with assistance from the Singapore government in 2007, found out possession of foreign currencies by Koko deposited in a Singapore account in the name of his company ZASZ. In 2009, the Awami League government decided to take legal action and Koko was sued for money-laundering by the ACC in March 2009. Koko had also taken bribe from China Harbour Engineering Company to help in getting contracts. In 2011, Koko was sentenced to six-years of imprisonment on charge of money laundering of more than $2.66million from two foreign companies including. However, the BNP has denied these charges, claiming them to be politically motivated. Khaleda Zias eldest son, Tarique Rahman, the acting chairman of the BNP, is also embroiled in corruption cases. During the 2001-06 tenure of BNP-led government, Tarique Rahman used to run Hawa Bhawan, controversial for being an alternative centre of power. He was arrested in anti-corruption crackdown in 2007 but was released on bail a year later following which he flew to the UK to seek medical treatment and has remained in self-exile in London since. In 2008, the Bangladesh government requested for US assistance and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) sent its agent Debra LaPrevotte to Dhaka to obtain information regarding bribery cases. In 2009, the ACC filed a case against Rahman and his close business associate Gias Uddin Al Mamun on charge of money laundering between 2003-2007. For the first time in history, an FBI agent appeared before Dhaka court to testify against Rahman and Mamun. It was unearthed in the investigation that an amount of $750,000 bribe (claimed to be consultancy fee) was received in a Singapore bank account in name of Gias Uddin Al Mamun from Khadiza Islam in 2005. Islam was the Director of Nirman Construction Ltd who granted the contract of installing an 80MW capacity power plant at Tongi to Chinas Harbin Engineering Company (as its local agent). In her testimony, LaPrevotte mentioned two credit cards being found from two of Mamuns Singapore accounts, one in his name and the other in Tarique Rahmans. Rahman used his credit card for his many foreign travels, including shopping and medical expenses, indicating that a share of the bribe received by Mamun was used by Rahman for the said purpose. While Mamun was sentenced to jail and a fine was imposed, the Dhaka Special Court Judge Motahar Hossain acquitted Rahman of the charge in 2013. Rahmans acquittal, however, was overturned by the High Court in 2016 and he was sentenced to seven years of imprisonment. In its verdict, the High Court observed, This kind of corruption being backed by political influence threatens good governance, sustainable development and democratic process. Rahman has been further sentenced to nine years of imprisonment on corruption charges filed by government in 2007 by a Bangladesh court in August this year. A confidential cable from Dhakas US Embassy in 2008 released by Wikileaks mentions a ban on Rahmans entry into the US for being guilty of egregious political corruption that has had a serious adverse effect on US national interests namely the stability of democratic institutions and US foreign assistance goals. In 2007, the ACC filed a case against BNP chief Khaleda Zia and seven others accusing them of power abuse by signing a deal with Canadian Company Niko for awarding gas exploration and extraction deal during her prime ministerial tenure (2001-06) that cost a loss of more than TK 137 billion crore to state exchequer. Niko was behind the gas drilling at Chhatak gas field in Tengratila of Sunamganj in 2005 which caused an accidental explosion leading to loss of life and property and considerable environmental damage. In 2011 before a Canadian court, Niko pleaded guilty of bribing a public officerthe then Energy and Mineral Resources Minister AKM Mosharraf Hosseinproviding him a vehicle worth $190,984 for his personal use with the intention to influence him in securing business dealings and to gain concession for its fine imposed on Niko for the 2005 blowout. Moreover, Niko covered Hosseins personal travel and accommodation expenses (of about $5000) in the US. In 2017, on the basis of evidence provided by ACC, FBI and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the Supreme Court delivered a judgement that during the period 2003-06, a scheme of bribery and corruption was set up for payment of bribes by Niko which was unearthed by international law enforcing authorities acting in close co-operation for the purposes of fighting the global menace of corruption. Recently, foreign witnesses including two Canadian cops and a former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent were granted permission by a Dhaka court to testify in the case, revealing shocking details of money transfers by Niko through international banking channels to deposit funds for securing the deal. The period between 2001-06 under the Zias leadership was marred by several such corruption cases. Khaleda Zia herself is facing at least 33 such cases, and was sentenced in two separate casesthe Zia Charitable Trust Graft case and Zia Orphanage Trust Corruption Case. The Zia family has many corruption cases slapped against them that are under trial at present, all filed by the ACC in 2007 when Bangladesh was under a caretaker government. As the country is gearing up for elections soon, is it important for people to remember these cases and the cost the country had to endure as a result and decide if they can afford another tenure of corruption. The writer is an author and columnist and has written several books. He tweets @ArunAnandLive. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday accused the BJP-ruled Centre of trying to destroy the federal structure and creating an economic crisis in the southern state through its various policies and blamed the Congress-led UDF of being a silent spectator to the same. Alleging neglect and discrimination on the part of the Central government towards Kerala, Vijayan said it was getting this treatment despite achieving unprecedented gains in tax collection, domestic production and infrastructure development. Speaking during the Nava Kerala Sadas at the Uduma constituency here in the evening, the CM said that the Union government through its various policies was financially strangulating the Left government since it came into power back in 2016. At the same time, the Congress and the UDF opposition led by it were being a mute spectator to this discrimination. Why this hesitancy in speaking out against the actions of the Centre which are against the state and its people? he asked while addressing a gathering of thousands. People turned in huge numbers to raise their complaints and grievances before the CM and his cabinet colleagues as part of the Nava Kerala Sadas outreach programme. During his speech, Vijayan highlighted the various projects, like national highway expansion and IGL gas pipeline implementation, which he claimed had not taken off during the earlier UDF regime and were made possible only after the Left government came to power. Earlier in the day also, at a press conference, the CM blamed the Centre for the economic crisis in the state and accused the UDF opposition of using the same as an opportunity to destroy the Left governments popularity. Vijayan said the outreach programme intends to show people these hidden realities and also address their problems. He said that a day ago, 1,908 complaints were received at the counters set up for that purpose and action would be taken on them. Referring to the large number of people who had gathered for the programme a day ago and on Sunday, he said that there were a huge number of women among them. The CM said that the presence of women in large numbers indicates the effect of the steps taken by the government for their protection. He also referred to the recent verdict in the Aluva rape-cum-murder case and said that the speedy probe, trial and the maximum punishment given to the accused indicates that any kind of violence against children was unacceptable and would be dealt with mercilessly. One hundred and ten days after a minor girl was brutally raped and killed in Keralas Aluva, a special court had on November 14, sentenced a migrant worker to death in the case. Vijayan said that since coming to power, the government has taken strong measures to ensure the safety of women and children and this was evident from the womens participation in the Nava Kerala Sadas held at Paivalike here a day ago. The Congress has criticised the outreach programme by terming it as a stage for political discussions and denouncing the opposition at state expense. The outreach programme will conclude on December 23 at the Vattiyoorkavu constituency in Thiruvananthapuram. A day after his conversation with party leaders about having to make a sacrifice, Goa Public Works Department Minister Nilesh Cabral resigned from the Pramod Sawant-led cabinet on Sunday to make way for the induction of MLA Aleixo Sequeira. In his resignation letter to the chief minister, Cabral said he was stepping down to allow the party to fulfil its commitments previously made. Chief Minister Sawant told. Shri Nilesh Cabral has submitted his resignation from the Council of Ministers to the Honble Chief Minister. Swearing-in of Shri Aleixo Sequeira in the cabinet is scheduled today at 7 pm at Raj Bhavan, the chief ministers office (CMO) said in a statement issued on Sunday morning. This comes a day after Cabral told media that senior BJP leaders had spoken to him about making a sacrifice to accommodate one of the eight turncoat MLAs who switched ships from the Congress to their party in September last year. Cabral, a representative from the Curchorem Assembly constituency, also held the portfolios of Law and Judiciary, Environment and Climate Change, and Legislative Affairs. Sequeira, who will be sworn in as a minister on Sunday at 7 pm, was among the eight MLAs who switched from the opposition Congress to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the coastal state last year. Upon being questioned about his resignation, Cabral said his decision to resign from his post was at the partys behest and emphasised that he was not treated as a minority leader within the BJP, pointing out that such distinctions do not exist in the party. Kerala Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan has stirred the hornets nest with an explosive statement at a pro-Palestine rally in Kasargod, which is his parliamentary constituency. He suggested that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be shot and killed in Nuremberg-style trial for alleged war crimes in his countrys offensive against the Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip. After the Second World War, there was something called Nuremberg trials for those engaging in war crimes. Nuremberg trials mean they will be shot dead without a trial. Its high time a Nuremberg model trial was carried out. Benjamin Netanyahu is standing before the world as a war criminal. Its high time to shoot and kill Netanyahu without a trial because thats the level of cruelty he is doing there, Unnithan said during the rally. This has triggered a political row with the BJP slamming the Congress for taking such a stand and showing India in a poor light. Such statements by the Member of Parliament, show the country in a poor light. I dont know what is the stand of the Congress party on such statements by their MP. Member of Parliament is a very responsible position, which is taken note of by the international community. When a Member of Parliament makes such a statement, its a shame to the Indian parliament and parliamentary democracy said union minister V Muraleedharan. Unnithans statement came amid an intense ground offensive in Gaza with Israeli forces storming the Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest in the coastal city. The rally was organised by the Kasaragod United Muslim Jamaath on November 17. Kerala BJP president K Surendran hit out at Unnithans views. Where is the @INCIndia heading to? Senior Congress leader and Kasargod MP Rajmohan Unnithan called for the murder of Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu without any trial at a pro-Hamas rally organized in Kasargod. Mr Unnithan even said that now, I am ashamed to have been born in India. Only Congress leaders can stoop so low. For him and his leader @RahulGandhi Hamas is a peaceful resistance movement, he said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. At least 32 people, including a UN peacekeeper, were killed Sunday following heavy fighting in the disputed Abyei administrative region, an area claimed by both Sudan and South Sudan, authorities said. Local media reported that the civilians and a Ghanaian soldier serving with a peacekeeping force died when unknown gunmen attacked two villages in southern Abyei. A South Sudanese radio station, Eye Radio Juba, quoted Abyei information minister Bolis Kuoch as saying 32 people were killed and 20 others wounded, but the clashes have now stopped and the situation calmed down. Inter-communal and cross-border clashes have escalated since South Sudan deployed its troops to the contested territory in March. The peacekeeping mission there condemned the troop deployment, saying it would createuntold suffering and humanitarian concerns for civilians. International solders were sent to Aleel and Rum Ameer counties as part of the U.N. Interim Security Force for Abyei to help quell the growing conflict. The Security Council last week voted unanimously to renew UNIFSAs mandate until Nov. 15, 2024. Earlier this month, the UN special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Hanna Serwaa Tetteh warned that the unprecedented 7-month war between Sudans army and a rival paramilitary force was getting closer to South Sudan and the Abyei region The U.N. says more than 9,000 people have been killed since the conflict erupted in mid-April, displacing millions of people within Sudan and into neighbouring countries Sudan and South Sudan have disagreed over control of the oil-rich Abyei region since South Sudan gained independence from Sudan after a 2005 peace deal ended decades of civil war between Sudans north and south. The deal called for both sides to settle the final status of Abyei through negotiations, but it has never been implemented. Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry reiterated Egypts call for an immediate ceasefire and an end to all hostile actions in the Gaza Strip. Addressing the ministerial session of the second Voice of the Global South Summit (VOGSS) on Friday, Shoukry said the Israeli unprecedented bombing and operations in Gaza are evidence of the bias of the international system. He added that the continuity of such atrocities reflects the systems failure to put an end to the flagrant violations of international law and UN resolutions and establish an independent Palestinian state. Israel has killed over 12,000 Palestinians in Gaza since the beginning of its campaign against the strip on 7 October, rejecting all calls to lift its blockade of the strip and initiate a ceasefire. Egypts top diplomat called for paving the way to solve the humanitarian crisis in the strip and reviving the political path to achieve just, comprehensive, and lasting peace. On the economic front, Shoukry advocated adjusting the global financial system so that it considers climate change an integral part of sustainable development rather than a mere replacement for it. He also called for new and effective mechanisms for financing development, including enhancing the lending capacity of multilateral development banks. Furthermore, Shoukry stressed the importance of the support provided by international financial institutions to developing countries in dealing with current and future crises. He also urged effective and sustainable solutions for the increasing sovereign debts of developing countries, including middle-income countries. The two-day VOGSS kicked off virtually in India on Friday, bringing together representatives of several nations from the global south to share their perspectives and priorities. The first edition of VOGSS was held on 12-13 January, also in India. Search Keywords: Short link: Gazas largest hospital has become a death zone, the World Health Organization said Sunday, announcing plans to evacuate the facility, as Israels army said it was expanding operations to destroy Hamas. The assessment came after a visit by WHO and other UN officials to the hospital, which Israeli troops raided earlier this week. Elsewhere, a Hamas health official said more than 80 people were killed Saturday in twin strikes on a northern Gaza refugee camp, including on a UN school sheltering displaced people. Social media videos verified by AFP showed bodies covered in blood and dust on the floor of a building where mattresses had been wedged under school tables, in Jabalia, the Palestinian territorys biggest refugee camp. Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA, described horrifying images from the incident, while Egypt called the bombing a war crime and a deliberate insult to the United Nations. A separate strike Saturday on another building in Jabalia camp killed 32 people from the same family, 19 of them children, Hamas health authorities said. Without mentioning the strikes, the Israeli army said an incident in the Jabalia region was under review. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw about 240 people taken hostage. The armys relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. The UN says some 1.6 million people have been displaced inside the Gaza Strip by six weeks of fighting, and Israel said Saturday its military was now expanding its operational activities in additional neighbourhoods in the area of the Gaza Strip. Extreme suffering Gazas largest hospital, Al-Shifa, has been a key focus in recent days, with Israeli forces alleging Hamas uses it as a command centre a claim denied by the group and medical staff. On Sunday, the WHO said a UN assessment team reached the hospital found a death zone, with a mass grave at the entrance and nearly 300 patients left inside with 25 health workers. WHO and partners are urgently developing plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families, the body said, warning however that nearby facilities were already overstretched. It urged an immediate ceasefire given the extreme suffering of the people of Gaza. On Saturday, hundreds of people fled the hospital on foot on orders from the Israeli army, according to the facilitys director. Columns of sick and injured some of them amputees were seen making their way towards the seafront along with displaced people, doctors, and nurses, as loud explosions were heard around the complex. At least 15 bodies, some in advanced stages of decomposition, could be seen along the route, lined with heavily damaged shops and overturned vehicles, an AFP journalist at the scene said. NGO Doctors without Borders said a convoy carrying its staff and family members came under attack Saturday while evacuating from near Al-Shifa, despite coordinating with both sides. One person was killed. Israeli forces denied ordering the evacuation of the hospital, saying it had acceded to the request of the director to allow more civilians to leave. The WHO said 29 patients at the hospital with serious spinal injuries cannot move without medical assistance, and others have infected wounds due to lack of antibiotics. There are also 32 babies in extremely critical condition, WHO said. Not normal An Israeli siege on Gaza has left food, water, medicine and fuel in short supply, with just a trickle of aid allowed in from Egypt. Under US pressure, Israel permitted a first consignment of fuel to enter late Friday, allowing telecommunications to resume after a two-day blackout. The UN said Israel had agreed to allow in 60,000 litres (16,000 gallons) of fuel a day from Saturday, but warned it was little more than a third of what is needed. Israel has told Palestinians to move south for their safety, but deadly strikes have continued there too, including on a residential building where at least 26 people were killed on Saturday, according to the director of the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis. I was asleep and we were surprised by the strike. At least 20 bombs were dropped, Imed al-Mubasher, 45, told AFP. Diplomatic efforts are currently focused on securing the release of hostages, with US President Joe Bidens chief adviser for the Middle East saying more fuel deliveries and a significant pause in fighting would come when hostages are released. Relatives of those taken, who range from infants to octogenarians, piled pressure on Israels government Saturday after arriving outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus Jerusalem office on a march from Tel Aviv. Its not normal to have children kidnapped for 43 days. We dont know what the government is doing, we dont have any information, said marcher Ari Levi. The bodies of two female hostages were recovered in Gaza this week, the Israeli military said, while four abductees have so far been released. Gazas fate after the conflict remains unclear, and Biden argued in an opinion piece published Saturday that the coastal territory and the Israeli-occupied West Bank should come under a single revitalised administration. As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalised Palestinian Authority, he wrote in the Washington Post. However, Netanyahu has insisted the Palestinian Authority in its current form is not capable of receiving responsibility for Gaza. Biden also threatened sanctions, including visa bans, against settlers who have ramped up attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank in recent weeks. President Joe Biden is set to visit naval installations in Virginia on Sunday for an early kickoff to the Thanksgiving holiday week. He plans to host a screening of the movie Wonka and have a Friendsgiving meal with service members and their relatives. The president and first lady Jill Biden are heading to Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads for the screening of the film about the early life of Roald Dahls eccentric chocolatier, Willy Wonka. Later, the Bidens plan to help serve dinner with service members from the USSS Dwight D Eisenhower and the USSS Gerald R Ford at Norfolk Naval Station, the largest installation of its kind in the world, along with their families. Theres also a military event on Donald Trumps schedule for his visit Sunday to Texas. The former president, who has a commanding early lead in the 2024 Republican primary, is giving a speech in Edinburg after serving meals to National Guard soldiers, troopers and others who will be stationed at the U.S.-Mexico border over Thanksgiving. Trump is promoting hard-line immigration proposals he argues will better secure the border. He and top Republicans have long criticized the Biden administration for failing to do more to crackdown on people entering the United States illegally. For the Bidens, offering support to the nations military has a personal connection. Their son Beau served in Iraq as a member of the Delaware National Guard. He died of brain cancer in 2015 at the age of 46, when Joe Biden was vice president. Last year, Joe and Jill Biden helped serve mashed potatoes and other sides as part of the buffet-style meal in Cherry Point, North Carolina, home to more than 9,000 military personnel and roughly 8,000 military family members. In 2021, the Bidens visited the Armys Fort Bragg in North Carolina for an early Thanksgiving meal in a hangar for about 250 service members and their families. Troops got chocolate chip cookies bearing the presidential seal. The president and first lady plan to spend this Thanksgiving on Nantucket, a Massachusetts island. US President Joe Biden said he has emphasised on several occasions to Israels leaders that the violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and actions be taken against those who have been committing the violence, warning that US will issue visa bans against those who have attacked civilians. I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank, Biden wrote in an opinion piece in the Washington Post. There are also concerns that Israel is violating the Visa Waiver Program. The Visa Waiver Program allows eligible travellers to apply to enter the US without a visa. Israel joined the program in October. In the opinion piece, the US President also batted for a two-state solution to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict. Israel began its military operation in Gaza in response to the October 7 Hamas attacks that killed at least 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials. Around 12,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Gaza, according to Hamas authorities. Unlike the Gaza Strip, which is under Hamas control, the West Bank is largely under Israeli occupation with limited autonomy by the Palestinian Authority, whose leaders are enemies of Hamas. Palestinians in the occupied West Bank say they have faced increased harassment from Israeli settlers since the war began. Incidents of settlers attacking Palestinian villagers are very common and often lead to clashes. The Palestinian Authority and Hamas and other factions are vehemently opposed to the settlements and call them encroachments into Palestinian territory. Israeli leaders on the right and centre-right, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu staunchly back Jewish settlements in the West Bank. The health ministry in Ramallah headed by the Palestinian authority said that since the war started over 200 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank due to army raids as well as settler violence. A leading French party on Saturday suspended 66-year-old senator Joel Guerriau after he was accused of giving a date-rape drug to a female MP as part of a plot to carry out a sexual assault. Guerriau is suspected of spiking a glass of champagne he gave to 48-year-old Sandrine Josso, whose lawyer said she was in shock. The senator and banker, who denies the allegations, was formally charged on Friday, while revelations over the case have shocked France. The Horizons party, led by former prime minister Edouard Philippe, suspended Guerriau on Saturday as a first step to kicking him out. Horizons said it will never tolerate the slightest complacency towards sexual and sexist violence. The Independents caucus in the French Senate also suspended Guerriau and warned he could be expelled. Josso, a member of the centrist MoDem party, fell ill after accepting a glass of champagne on Tuesday night at Guerriaus Paris home, prosecutors said. The two have known each other for about 10 years but are not in an intimate relationship, they added. She saw the senator grabbing a small plastic bag containing something white, in a drawer in his kitchen, her lawyer Julia Minkowski told AFP. She had to deploy monumental physical and intellectual forces to overcome her terror and extricate herself at the last minute from this ambush, Minkowski said. Police searched Guerriaus office and home and prosecutors confirmed that ecstasy had been found. Tests revealed that Josso had ecstasy in her system, investigators said, prompting her to file a criminal complaint. Guerriau, a senator since 2011, denied any sexual assault plot in a first formal questioning on Friday. A source close to the investigation said Guerriau had told investigators he believed that he had procured a drug to induce euphoria, but that it was not ecstasy, from another senate member to help him with personal troubles. Guerriau will fight to prove he never intended to administer a substance on his colleague and longstanding friend to abuse her, said his lawyer, Remi-Pierre Drai. Guerriau is not a predator. He is an honest man, respected and respectable. Josso has received widespread backing. Full and complete support to my colleague Sandrine Josso, said MoDem vice president in the National Assembly, Elodie Jacquier-Laforge, in a social media post. Neither procrastination, nor complacency, our thoughts are with the complainant, said Christophe Bechu, minister for ecological transition and secretary general of Horizons. Saint-Sebastien-sur-Loire, the western town where Guerriau was mayor for 22 years, was in shock, according to local lawmaker Herve Camus. He said Guerriau was an affable man who had a certain aura with the towns population but who could also be very unpleasant with opposition lawmakers. Laurent Keunebroek, an opposition lawmaker in Saint-Sebastien, said the scandal could have consequences on the views about elected officials. The White House on Saturday said that no deal has been reached between Israel and Hamas to free hostages and halt the war to ensure their safe release. A report by the Washington Post claimed that Israel and Hamas have agreed to a tentative agreement brokered by the US to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting. However, White House spokesperson Adrienne Watson took to social media website X, formerly Twitter, and said that such a deal has not been reached but the US will keep working to finalise such a deal. We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal, White House National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said on X, formerly Twitter, in response to a Washington Post report of a tentative deal. We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal. https://t.co/rbSqcqfaKo Adrienne Watson (@NSC_Spox) November 19, 2023 Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commented on the reports of a deal to free hostages and said that no deal has been agreed upon and said there were a lot of incorrect reports being published. The report by the American newspaper claimed that the hostage release could begin within days and lead to the first sustained pause in conflict in Gaza. The agreement consists of six-pages, the newspaper further added. The report by the Washington Post said the six-page agreement citing all parties to the ongoing 2023 Israel-Hamas war would halt military operations for at least five days while 50 or more hostages are released in smaller batches every 24 hours. The report highlighted that it still remains unclear how many of the 239 hostages are being held in Gaza. It also pointed out that overhead surveillance will monitor movements on the ground to police the pause. At the time of writing this report the Washington Post has retained its story on its website and has also retained the post on X announcing that a deal has been reached. The post on X by the American newspaper announcing the tentative deal and the White House reaction to the development has been shared at the beginning of this article. This development comes after two important events. Firstly, the families of those held captive in Gaza staged a five-day march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem to demand government action, increasing pressure on Netanyahu to ensure that the lives of innocent Israelis are not at stake and the government must take steps to secure their release. Secondly, Brett McGurk, US President Joe Bidens main adviser on the Middle East said Saturday there would be a significant pause in the Israel-Hamas war if hostages held by militants in Gaza are freed while addressing a security conference in Bahrain. Hamas seized about 240 hostages on October 7 when they surged across Gazas militarised border into southern Israel to kill around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials. In response, Israel is carrying out a relentless bombardment and ground offensive of targets in the Gaza Strip which has so far killed 12,300 people, according to the Palestinian territorys Hamas government. Families of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza and Gazan civilians seeking respite from the incessant Israeli airstrikes were left disappointed on Wednesday after the White House dismissed a report by the Washington Post that claimed citing people familiar with the developments that a Israel and Hamas agreed to a deal brokered by the US to free hostages by allowing a five day pause in the war. 2023 Israel-Hamas War: Full Coverage The deal, if agreed upon, would bring respite to the aforementioned parties as Israeli families of hostages increase pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure the release of hostages. It would also buy enough time for the international community, UN organisations and multilateral forums to assess the damage in Gaza. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw about 240 people taken hostage. The armys relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. Here Are the Latest Updates from the Israel-Hamas War: A wave of ribbon-cutting ceremonies is sweeping the Saudi capital as multinationals face a January deadline to open regional headquarters in the Gulf kingdom or lose out on government contracts. In what has become a common scene, executives in suits and Saudi officials in white robes gather to inaugurate the new offices, sipping Arabic coffee in a haze of incense smoke while singing the praises of last years fastest-growing G20 economy. Announced in February 2021, Saudi Arabias regional headquarters (RHQ) programme is widely seen as a bid to compete with Dubai in the neighbouring United Arab Emirates, a favourite base for global firms with business in the Middle East. Despite complaints from some executives that there remains a lack of clarity on key details of the Saudi programme, the January 1 deadline is holding, the Saudi investment ministry told AFP in a written response to questions. Multinational companies that are part of the RHQ Program will be well positioned to bid for projects funded by the Saudi Government, it said. Only multinational companies with regional headquarters in the Kingdom will be eligible for tenders and contracts floated by government entities. So far, 162 regional headquarters licenses have been granted in sectors including pharmaceuticals, IT and construction, with many others being processed, the ministry said. The big question, analysts say, is whether participating firms are merely ticking a box to retain access to Saudi funds or genuinely embracing the governments vision of Saudi Arabia as the centre of the region. The programme is an early litmus test of the degree to which foreign businesses are prepared or willing to comply with and buy into Saudi initiatives, or whether they will seek workarounds that see them retain the majority of staff in the UAE and delegate a select few to Saudi, said Kristian Ulrichsen, a fellow at Rice Universitys Baker Institute. It should also offer clues about the implementation of flagship projects such as a new airline and airport, and the $500 billion, futuristic mega-city known as NEOM, Ulrichsen said. Jumping through hurdles Riyadh defines a regional headquarters as an office that provides strategic direction, management, and support services for company subsidiaries, branches, and affiliates in the (Middle East and North Africa) region, the investment ministry said. One firm, IHG Hotels & Resorts, placed its new office on the 12th floor of a skyscraper in the capitals financial district, staffing it with 25 employees from departments including revenue management, sales, marketing, design and engineering. IHG has been present in Saudi Arabia for nearly 50 years, actively bids for government projects including developments along the Red Sea Coast and plans to open 20 hotels across the kingdom in 2024 and 2025, Haitham Mattar, managing director for the Middle East and Southwest Asia, said during the offices ribbon-cutting ceremony in October. But the company also has offices in Dubai and elsewhere in the region, and we will continue with those offices, Mattar told AFP. As for the process of establishing a Saudi regional headquarters, he acknowledged there were some kinks to work out. It took us a bit of time and jumping through hurdles to achieve our licence for this office. However we are there now which is great and thats what were happy and positive about, he said. This is all new to Saudi Arabia, right? So we have to really be conscious of that. Theres a lot of trial-and-error, theres a lot of perfecting some of the processes, and sometimes some of the processes have maybe one too many steps. Ambitious targets The investment ministry has touted benefits for firms setting up regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia, including the ability to apply for unlimited work visas and a 10-year waiver on quotas for hiring Saudi nationals. But it has not specified what kind of tax relief the firms might receive, a major question for executives. Laurent Germain, CEO of French construction engineering firm Egis Group, nevertheless told AFP he had no regrets about establishing a regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia last year, and that he advised other French firms to do the same. Weve come into a situation where now it is in Saudi Arabia that we have the most activities in the Middle East, and probably so for the next 10 years. It was a natural step, he said. Germain added that he did not necessarily see the regional headquarters programme in the context of a budding Riyadh-Dubai rivalry, but rather as a broader bid to hit very ambitious foreign investment objectives. They are taking all the measures they can to increase the attractiveness of the kingdom, he said. A Hamas health official said more than 80 people were killed Saturday in twin strikes on a northern Gaza refugee camp, including a UN school used as a shelter for people displaced by the Israel-Hamas war. Social media videos verified by AFP showed bodies covered in blood and dust on the floor of a building, where mattresses had been wedged under school tables in Jabalia, the Palestinian territorys biggest refugee camp. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians in southern Israel, and saw about 240 people taken hostage. The armys relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. At least 50 people were killed in a dawn strike on the UN-run Al-Fakhura school in the camp, which has been converted into a shelter for displaced Palestinians, a health ministry official in Hamas-controlled Gaza told AFP. According to UN figures, some 1.6 million people have been displaced inside the Gaza Strip by six weeks of fighting. UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths denounced the tragic news of the children, women and men killed. Shelters are a place for safety, he posted on X, formerly Twitter. Civilians cannot and should not have to bear this any longer. Egypt called the bombing of the UN-run school a war crime and a deliberate insult to the United Nations. A separate strike Saturday on another building in Jabalia camp killed 32 people from the same family, 19 of them children, the Hamas official said. Without mentioning the strikes, the Israeli army said an incident in the Jabalia region was under review. Israel has told Palestinians to move from north Gaza for their safety, but deadly air strikes continued to hit central and southern areas of the coastal enclave. On Saturday, hundreds of people fled on foot after the director of Gazas main hospital said the Israeli army ordered the evacuation of the facility where some 2,000 people were trapped. Columns of sick and injured some of them amputees were seen making their way out of Al-Shifa hospital towards the seafront without ambulances along with displaced people, doctors and nurses, as loud explosions were heard around the complex. On the way, an AFP journalist saw at least 15 bodies, some in advanced stages of decomposition, along a road lined by heavily damaged shops and overturned vehicles. The health ministry said 120 wounded, along with an unspecified number of premature babies, were still at Al-Shifa hospital. Israel has been pressing military operations inside the hospital, searching for the Hamas operations centre it says lies under the sprawling complex a charge Hamas denies. Patients cannot leave In Gaza City, Israeli troops had called over loudspeakers to evacuate Al-Shifa in the next hour, an AFP journalist at the hospital reported. They also called the hospitals director, Mohammed Abu Salmiya, telling him to ensure the evacuation of patients, wounded, the displaced and medical staff, he said. But Israels army denied ordering the evacuation, saying instead it had acceded to the request of the director to allow more civilians to leave. According to Ahmed El Mokhallalati, a doctor at the hospital, most of the medical staff and patients had left but he was staying at Al-Shifa along with five other doctors. Many patients cannot leave the hospital as they are in the ICU beds or the baby incubators, Mokhallalati said on X. Israel has imposed a siege on Gaza, allowing just a trickle of aid in from Egypt but barring most shipments of fuel over concerns Hamas could divert supplies for military purposes. A first consignment of fuel entered the territory after Israels war cabinet bowed to pressure from its ally the United States and agreed to let in two tankers of diesel a day. A two-day blackout caused by fuel shortages ended after a first delivery arrived from Egypt late Friday, but UN officials continued to plead for a ceasefire, warning no part of Gaza is safe. A strike on a residential building in southern Gaza killed 26 people, the director of the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis said. I was asleep and we were surprised by the strike. At least 20 bombs were dropped, Imed al-Mubasher, 45, told AFP. The UN said Israel had agreed to allow in 60,000 litres (16,000 gallons) of fuel a day from Saturday, but warned it was little more than a third of what is needed to keep hospitals, water and sanitation facilities running. US President Joe Bidens chief adviser for the Middle East said more fuel deliveries and a potential significant pause in the fighting both depend of the release of hostages. The surge in humanitarian relief, the surge in fuel, the pause will come when hostages are released, Brett McGurk told a security conference in Bahrain. Biden wants Gaza, West Bank reunited The military says it has found rifles, ammunition, explosives and the entrance to a tunnel shaft at the Al-Shifa hospital complex, claims that cannot be independently verified. Israel has not recovered hostages at the hospital but said it found not far away the bodies of two kidnapped women including a soldier. Those held hostage range from infants to octogenarians, and there has been little information on their fate despite ongoing negotiations mediated by Qatar and Egypt to secure releases. Waving Israeli flags and placards depicting the hostages, thousands of people reached Jerusalem Saturday on the fifth and final day of a march calling for their release. As Israel says it would not allow Hamas to hold on to power in Gaza, Biden argued the coastal enclave and the occupied West Bank nominally under the control of the Palestinian Authority should eventually come under a single revitalised administration. As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalised Palestinian Authority, as we all work toward a two-state solution, Biden wrote in an opinion piece in the Washington Post. Three boats filled with more than 500 Rohingya refugees landed in Indonesias westernmost province on Sunday, a UN agency said, in one of the biggest arrivals since Myanmar launched a military crackdown on the minority group in 2017. The mostly Muslim Rohingya are heavily persecuted in Myanmar, and thousands risk their lives each year on long and expensive sea journeys, often in flimsy boats, to try to reach Malaysia or Indonesia. United Nations refugee agency protection associate Faisal Rahman told AFP one boat had arrived in Aceh Provinces Bireuen district with 256 people aboard, while at least 239 others arrived in Acehs Pidie region and a smaller boat carrying 36 arrived in East Aceh. They were found in several spots, Rahman said Sunday. Of the 256 aboard the Bireuen boat, 110 were women and 60 were children, he said. It was the same boat that locals had pushed back out to sea on Thursday, leaving it stranded off the coast for several days, according to Rahman. Its confirmed because many people were identified by security officials during the landing, he said. The latest arrivals mean more than 800 refugees have landed in Aceh Province this week alone, after 196 arrived on Tuesday and 147 on Wednesday, according to local officials. An AFP journalist saw the Rohingya boat docked on the beach in Bireuen after the refugees had disembarked. The refugees were being held at a temporary shelter while awaiting a decision from authorities on their fate, and were mostly in good health. Bireuen regional secretary Ibrahim Ahmad told reporters Sunday the decision would be made by other institutions. In Pidie, Marfian, a spokesperson for the local fishing community who like many Indonesians goes by one name, confirmed to AFP that a boat of nearly 250 refugees landed overnight. More than 2,000 Rohingya are believed to have attempted the risky journey to other Southeast Asian countries in 2022, according to UNHCR. Nearly 200 Rohingya died or went missing last year while attempting hazardous sea crossings, the agency has estimated. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on Saturday said his Hindu faith motivated him to launch his presidential campaign. Ramaswamy was addressing the The Family Leader forum organised by The Daily Signal platform along with fellow contenders Florida governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley. Last night I was asked about my Hindu faith. I answered honestly. pic.twitter.com/5SwXfoCY5J Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) November 18, 2023 My faith is what gives me my freedom. My faith is what led me to this presidential campaignI am a Hindu. I believe there is one true God. I believe God put each of us here for a purpose. My faith teaches us that we have a duty, a moral duty to realise that purpose. Those are Gods instruments that work through us in different ways, but we are still equal because God resides in each of us. Thats the core of my faith, Ramaswamy said. Ramaswamy also shared the video of the interaction between him and the panel on his X profile with the caption: Last night I was asked about my Hindu faith. I answered honestly. I grew up in a traditional household. My parents taught me family is the foundation. Respect your parents. Marriage is sacred. Abstinence before marriage is the way to go. Adultery is wrong. Marriage is between a man and a woman. Divorce is not just some preference you opt foryou get married before God and you make an oath to God and your family, Ramaswamy told panel moderator Family Leader President and CEO Bob Vander Plaats. Family Leader is an influential Christian organisation from Iowa. Three candidates Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy sat side-by-side at a festive Thanksgiving table for a family discussion in Des Moines. A report by the Associated Press said that the presidential contenders addressed each other by their first names and at times noted where they agreed. They discussed their foreign policies on Israel, China and the Russia-Ukraine war while focusing on religious liberty and agriculture, but the interactions between them were friendly. Leading Republican contender former US President Donald Trump did not attend the event. Egypt strongly condemned, in a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday, the horrifying bombardment by Israeli forces on the UNRWA's Fakhoura school, which killed scores of Palestinians, as a war crime. This bombardment caused numerous casualties and injuries among Palestinians, marking a new flagrant violation in the series of Israeli violations against civilians in the Gaza Strip. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in its statement. Egypt deems the bombing of the Fakhoura school, which served as a safe haven for hundreds of displaced Palestinians, as another war crime requiring investigation and accountability for its perpetrators. Egypt views (the attack) as a deliberate insult to the United Nations, its humanitarian organizations, and their noble humanitarian goals, the Foreign Ministry said. The ministry reiterated its call to influential international parties and the Security Council to urgently intervene to alleviate the humanitarian suffering in the Gaza Strip. This includes enforcing an immediate and unconditional ceasefire, as well as providing necessary protection for Palestinian civilians, said the ministry. Early estimates from Palestinian officials in Gaza say that about 200 people were killed in the bombing of the UNRWA school. Al-Azhar on Fakhoura school bombardment: A worldwide failure The Al-Azhar Observatory issued a statement strongly condemning the Israeli attack on the Fakhoura school, calling it a massacre. Gaza has been a test of the humanity we strive to preserve, but everyone has failed this test, said Al-Azhar, adding that any serious action now cannot change the fact that more than 12,000 people have been martyred, and tens of thousands injured, many of them permanently maimed, due to the use of internationally prohibited weapons against civilians on a daily basis. "We can no longer keep track of the number of martyrs as it changes every minute," the statement continued. We have all failed the Gaza test, and the Palestinians have succeeded in exposing the lies of the occupation before the eyes and ears of the world, despite the media and political machinery supporting it. "The first of these lies is the myth that the historic people of Palestine sold their land to the Jews decades ago," the statement said, adding that despite Zionist terrorism, there are still over 800,000 Palestinians in northern Gaza who have refused to abandon their land. What the world sees today reveals the massacres that took place in 1948, no less bloody, to steal Palestinian lands through terrorism and force them to leave," the observatory concluded. According to the latest numbers released by Palestinian officials in Gaza, more than 12,000 people, including over 4,500 children, have fallen victim to Israeli attacks. Nearly 4,000 individuals remain under the rubble, and approximately 30,000 are wounded, they added. Search Keywords: Short link: Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Sunday posted photographs of the second batch of humanitarian aid India is sending to Palestinians caught in the Israel-Hamas conflict. We continue to deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine. Second IAF_MCC C17 aircraft carrying 32 tonnes of aid departs for the El-Arish Airport in Egypt, Jaishankar said, while sharing the photos on social media site X, formerly known as Twitter. The flight is headed to El-Arish Airport in Egypt. We continue to deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine. Second @IAF_MCC C17 aircraft carrying 32 tonnes of aid departs for the El-Arish Airport in Egypt. pic.twitter.com/bNJ2EOJPaW Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) November 19, 2023 India sent the first batch of aid on October 22. It sent 6.5 tonnes of medical aid and 32 tonnes of disaster relief material for the people of Palestine. The first shipment of aid included essential life-saving medicines, surgical items, tents, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, sanitary utilities and water purification tablets among other necessary items. India has advocated for peace in the region but on October 26, India abstained from the resolution at the Special Emergency Session, calling for an immediate ceasefire. However, India has maintained that it advocates for the two-state solution and believes that this will bring long-lasting peace in the region. India also reiterated its stance to ally the United States last week during the 2+2 India-US ministerial dialogue. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw about 240 people taken hostage. The armys relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. There were reports that the US helped broker a deal between Israel and Hamas to free the hostages but the White House denied that such a deal has been finalised. The US said it is working with all sides to broker a deal so that hostages can be released from Gaza. Gazas largest hospital has turned into a death zone, as per World Health Organisation (WHO) officials. The WHO team along with teams from multilateral forums visited the Al Shifa hospital and saw around 300 patients were stuck in the hospital as Israel continues with its siege on the hospital claiming that Hamas runs a control and command centre from the basement of the hospital. Yemens Houthi rebels seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship in a crucial Red Sea shipping route on Sunday, officials said, taking over two dozen crew members hostage and raising fears that regional tensions heightened over the Israel-Hamas war were playing out on a new maritime front. The Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they hijacked the ship over its connection to Israel and took the crew as hostages. The group warned that it would continue to target ships in international waters that were linked to or owned by Israelis until the end of Israels campaign against Gazas Hamas rulers. All ships belonging to the Israeli enemy or that deal with it will become legitimate targets, the Houthis said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office had blamed the Houthis for the attack on the Bahamas-flagged Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier affiliated with an Israeli billionaire. It said the 25 crew members had a range of nationalities, including Bulgarian, Filipino, Mexican and Ukrainian, but that no Israelis had been on board. The Houthis said they were treating the crew members in accordance with their Islamic values, but did not elaborate on what that meant. Netanyahus office condemned the seizure as an Iranian act of terror. The Israeli military called the hijacking a very grave incident of global consequence. Statement by Prime Ministers Office:Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia. Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) November 19, 2023 Israeli officials insisted the ship was British-owned and Japanese-operated. However, ownership details in public shipping databases associated the ships owners with Ray Car Carriers, which was founded by Abraham Rami Ungar, who is known as one of the richest men in Israel. Ungar told The Associated Press he was aware of the incident but couldnt comment as he awaited details. A ship linked to him experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time. The complex world of international shipping often involves a series of management companies, flags and owners stretching across the globe in a single vessel. Two U.S. defense officials confirmed that Houthi rebels seized the Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea on Sunday afternoon local time. The rebels descended on the cargo ship by repelling down from a helicopter, the officials said, confirming details first reported by NBC News. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter. Twice in the last month, U.S. warships have intercepted missiles or drones from Yemen that were believed to be headed toward Israel or posing a threat to the American vessels. The USS Carney, a Navy destroyer, intercepted three land attack cruise missiles and several drones that were launched by Houthi forces toward the northern Red Sea last month. On Nov. 15 the USS Thomas Hudner, another destroyer, was sailing toward the Bab-el-Mandeb strait when the crew saw a drone, reported to have originated in Yemen. The ship shot down the drone over the water. The officials said the crew took action to ensure the safety of U.S. personnel, and there were no casualties or damage to the ship. Satellite tracking data from MarineTraffic.com analyzed by the AP showed the Galaxy Leader traveling in the Red Sea southwest of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, more than a day ago. The vessel had been in Korfez, Turkey, and was on its way to Pipavav, India, at the time of the seizure reported by Israel. It had its Automatic Identification System tracker, or AIS, switched off, the data showed. Ships are supposed to keep their AIS active for safety reasons, but crews will turn them off if it appears they might be targeted or to smuggle contraband, which there was no immediate evidence to suggest was the case with the Galaxy Leader. The British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Persian Gulf and the wider region, put the hijacking as having occurred some 150 kilometers (90 miles) off the coast of Yemens port city of Hodeida, near the coast of Eritrea. The Red Sea, stretching from Egypts Suez Canal to the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from Africa, remains a key trade route for global shipping and energy supplies. Thats why the U.S. Navy has stationed multiple ships in the sea since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7. Since 2019, a series of ships have come under attack at sea as Iran began breaking all the limits of its tattered nuclear deal with world powers. As Israel expands its devastating campaign against Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip following the militant groups unprecedented attack on southern Israel, fears have grown that the military operations could escalate into a wider regional conflict. The Houthis have repeatedly threatened to target Israeli ships in the waters off Yemen. Gulf Hotels Group, a leading hospitality management company with over 50 years of industry experience, is set to open a representative office in Riyadh to boost its presence in Saudi Arabia and provide a wide range of hospitality services across the kingdom. With a rich history of owning, developing, and managing hotels and residences, as well as a diverse portfolio of first-class food and beverage concepts, Gulf Hotels Group is well equipped to bring its expertise and services to Saudi Arabia. As part of its growth strategy, Gulf Hotels Group has identified its expansion into Saudi Arabia as a priority market. The group had recently set up a subsidiary company in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia following the approval from Ministry of Commerce in Saudi Arabia. It is currently in the process of opening a representative office in Riyadh, to accelerate its expansion plans, enhance its presence and provide a wide range of hospitality services. This move comes in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 initiative, which aims to transform Saudi Arabia into a global tourism destination. Gulf Hotels Group Chairman Farouk Almoayyed said: "Our expansion into Saudi Arabia is a strategic move that goes in line with our long-term growth plan. We see great potential in the Saudi hospitality market, and our regional representative office in Riyadh will serve as a hub for offering our best hospitality services and forming long term partnerships." "We are committed to delivering exceptional hospitality experiences and contributing to the development of Saudi Arabia's tourism sector," he stated. Gulf Hotels Group CEO Ahmed Janahi said: "Expanding our footprint into Saudi Arabia is a significant milestone for the group. With our renowned reputation, brand and track record of delivering high-quality hospitality experiences, we are delighted to cater to the increasing demand of both domestic and international tourists to the kingdom." "We are excited to establish our presence in this dynamic market and contribute to its growth," he added. As Gulf Hotels Group establishes its presence in Saudi Arabia, the company remains committed to upholding its reputation in providing unparalleled services in the hospitality sector. More than 60% of admissions in mental health institutions can be traced to drug and illegal substance abuse. This emerged during a workshop on drug policy and harm reduction held in the capital on Friday. Zimbabwe Civil Liberties and Drug Networks director Wilson Box said laws against drug abuse needed to be re-looked to fight the vice more effectively. Let us have a situation or law which promotes inclusivity, an effective drug policy that looks at human rights, Box said. Current laws are punitive to drug users, he said. Parliamentary portfolio committee on health and child care chairperson Daniel Molokele urged parliamentarians to push for progressive legislation. We need to come up with other ways of dealing with the drug and substance use scourge, he said. Standard Scores of people attended the burial of slain Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) activist Tapfumaneyi Masaya in Harare yesterday amid growing calls for justice. Masaya was kidnapped last Saturday in Mabvuku while campaigning for the party's parliamentary candidate Munyaradzi Febion Kufahakutizwi ahead of the December 9 by-elections. Masayas body was found last Monday about 30 km outside Harare. Last week, Kufahakutizwi contemplated withdrawing from the elections citing the escalating attacks against CCC supporters. Police last week said they are investigating circumstances leading to Masayas abduction and murder. However, there have been no arrests or updates on the investigations. CCC leader Nelson Chamisa told mourners that President Emmerson Mnangagwa's silence on Masaya's death raises eyebrows. Politics must not take away life but it to all, Chamisa said. Differences in politics must be our strength and not our weakness. There is greater power in our diversity. Human rights watchdogs including Amnesty International, United States Embassy and European Union and the United Nations have condemned his murder. They have called for thorough investigations to bring the culprits to book. Masaya's murder followed rising cases of politically motivated violence and intimidation and torture of CCC members following the disputed August elections. Chamisa demanded an end to the abductions. We cannot even start to speak of an absence of convictions. Culpability stands at the doorstep of those who are supposed to preside over the state, he said. Meanwhile, the United Nations on Friday condemned Masayas killing and called for transparent investigations into the case. UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Liz Throssell said Masayas death was disturbing following reports of increased violent attacks against opposition activists in recent months. We urge them (authorities) to ensure there are thorough, prompt and independent investigations not only into his (Masaya) death but also into all allegations of people being tortured and kidnapped, including to establish whether they were forcibly disappeared, Throssell said in a statement. Perpetrators should be held accountable in fair trials that follow due process. Throssell said the human rights violations were an attack on democracy. The safety and security of all individuals, including victims and members of the political opposition, must be ensured, she said. Such crimes violate not only the right to life, but also have a stifling effect on the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of association and equal participation. Authorities must guarantee these rights at all times. The Zimbabwe Heads of Christian Denominations (ZHOCD) also called on government to stop the escalation of violence and abductions of opposition party activists. The Bible emphasises the sanctity of life and the importance of protecting it, the ZHOCD said in a statement. According to the ZHOCD, the abduction of Masaya and others has a negative effect on the state of human security in the country. The security sector is called upon to investigate and bring to finality all the cases of abductions and murder that have been reported to them, the church leaders said. Offenders must be given deterrent sentences and should be held accountable for their actions. The church calls upon the civil society and other non-state actors to collectively work towards peacebuilding and building of a better Zimbabwe. Standard A federal jury's ruling will have a profound effect on the careers of the 1.6 million people who sell homes in the US. Per the Wall Street Journal , the National Association of Realtors (NAR) along with two brokerage groups must pay up after the verdict found them guilty of conspiring to keep home sale costs high by locking in commission rates, which are often split between buyers' and sellers' agents. CNN breaks down how the case was argued for the home sellers who brought the suit to court, which basically boils down to industry giants squashing competition by forcing a buyer-broker commission model. "NAR and corporate real-estate companies have had a stranglehold on real-estate commissions for too long," said Michael Ketchmark, a lawyer for one of the plaintiffs. While this is considered a win for consumers, the news comes at an already dire time in the housing market. Home sales have slowed to their lowest level in over a decade. NAR plans to appeal the decision, so changes to realtor compensation will not change just yet. But investment bank Keefe, Bruyette & Woods issued a report on likely scenarios, predicting that between 50%-80% of realtors could lose their jobs, while commission rates will most definitely be cut. One agent said that low commissions are "completely negating the reason to be an agent in the first place," and she hopes to transition out of real estate within a year. Agents' commissions typically fall around 5% to 6% of a home's sale price, earning them an average of $65,850 per year (luxury real estate series like Selling Sunset highlight a minority in the biz). Real estate agents are tied to almost all home purchases, driving 90% of sales in the US. One possible outcome after the ruling is for real estate agents to earn a flat fee. Changes in how they make money is welcome to some. "The thing I hate about being a buyer's agent is they pull your string," Las Vegas-based agent Bonnie Brunson told the Journal. "I've had clients I've worked with for a year or so and they end up not buying anything from me." (Basic homeownership now runs you a third of your paycheck). The suspicious letters sent to vote centers and government buildings in six states this month were undeniably scary, some containing traces of fentanyl or white powder, accompanied by not-so-veiled threats and dubious political symbols. Harkening back to the anthrax attacks that killed five people in 2001, the AP reports that the mailings are prompting elections officials already frustrated with ongoing harassment and threats to reach out to local police, fire, and health departments for help stocking up on the overdose reversal medication naloxone. Even if there's little risk from incidental contact with the synthetic opioid, having the antidote on hand isn't a bad idea amid an addiction epidemic that is killing more than 100,000 people in the US every yearand it can provide some assurance for stressed ballot workers, election managers say. "My team is usually in the direct fire just because we're opening up thousands or millions of ballots depending on the election," says Eldon Miller, who leads the ballot-opening staff at King County Elections in Seattle, which stocked up on naloxone after receiving a fentanyl-laced letter in August. The letters this month were sent to vote centers or government buildings in Georgia, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, and Kansas. Some were intercepted before they arrived, but others were delivered, prompting evacuations and briefly delaying vote counts in local elections. The FBI and US Postal Inspection Service are investigating. Some of the letters featured an antifascist symbol, a progress pride flag, and a pentagram. While the symbols have sometimes been associated with leftist politics, they also have been used by conservative figures to label and stereotype the left. Briefly touching fentanyl cannot cause an overdose, and researchers have found the risk of fatal overdose from accidental exposure is low. Election workers across the country have been besieged by threats, harassment, and intimidation since former President Trump and his supporters began spreading false election claims after he lost the 2020 election. "I hope we encourage people to not hurt election officials," said Ann Dover, elections director in suburban Atlanta's Cherokee County. "A lot of people are leaving the field. It's not just threats of physical harm. There's a lot of emotional and psychological abuse." Dover reached out this month to fire officials who provided Narcan, the nasal spray version of naloxone. Other municipalities: Lane County, Oregon, which received a suspicious letter, will provide naloxone kits and train elections staff on administering it. So will Lincoln County, Nevada, which did not get one. The office of Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said this week it will provide naloxone to any of the state's 159 counties after a letter intercepted on its way to elections officials in Atlanta's Fulton County tested positive for opioids. King County Elections has procured naloxone, though the antidote was not needed then nor when its Renton office received a second fentanyl-laced letter this month. "We felt like it was just a good idea to have on hand for all kinds of scenarios these days," county elections rep Halei Watkins says. story continues below Not everyone is happy with the move: Maya Doe-Simkins, co-director of Remedy Alliance/For The People, which launched last year to provide low-cost or free naloxone to community-based, harm-reduction programs, says governments should be more focused on providing the antidote to those who work with people likely to overdose. There is no shortage of naloxone, which is available online and at some pharmacies, but its distribution leaves something to be desired, Doe-Simkins says. "It is an absolute gross misuse of resources to spend money on ensuring that election officials have naloxone," Doe-Simkins says, especially because "the actual appropriate and evidence-based intervention for naloxone distribution is underfunded and under-resourced." (Read more fentanyl stories.) Survivors of Nazi atrocities joined young Jewish activists outside the Paris Holocaust memorial on Saturday to sound the alarm about resurgent antisemitic hate speech, graffiti, and abuse linked to the Israel-Hamas war. Thousands of pro-Palestinian and left-wing activists rallied in Paris and around Britain on Saturday to call for a cease-fire, the latest of several such protests in major cities around the world since the war began, the AP reports. France is home to the largest Jewish population outside Israel and the US, as well as western Europe's largest Muslim population. The war has reopened the doors to anti-Jewish sentiment in a country whose wartime collaboration with the Nazis left deep scars. Esther Senot, 96, said the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 stirred up her memories of World War II. "Massacres like that, I have lived through," she said at the Paris memorial. "I saw people die in front of me." Her sister was among them. "They brought her to the gas chamber in front of my eyes," she said. Most of Senot's family members were killed. She survived 17 months in Auschwitz-Birkenau and other death camps and made it back to France at age 17, weighing just 70 pounds. Senot spoke at an event organized by Jewish youth organization Hachomer Hatzai, at which teenage activists drew parallels between this era and the leadup to World War II. They held a sign saying, "We will not let history repeat itself." France's Interior Ministry said this week that 1,762 antisemitic acts have been reported this year, as well as 131 anti-Muslim acts and 564 anti-Christian acts. Half of the antisemitic acts involve graffiti, posters, or protest banners bearing Nazi symbols or violent anti-Jewish messages, per the AP. They also include physical attacks on people and Jewish sites, and online threats. Most were registered after the Hamas attack on Israel, the ministry said. Serge Klarsfeld, a renowned Nazi hunter, noted that anger at the Israeli government's actions often gets mixed with anti-Jewish sentiment. Like France and some other countries, Britain has seen protests to demand a cease-fire each weekend since the war began. Organizers from Palestinian organizations and left-wing groups said rallies and marches were held in dozens of towns and cities across the UK on Saturday. (Read more Israel-Hamas war stories.) A criminal investigation has begun into the death Friday of a fan attending a Taylor Swift concert held in extreme heat in Rio de Janeiro, and the performer canceled her concert scheduled for Saturday night. The show's organizers said in a statement that Ana Clara Benevides Machado was brought to the first aid center at Nilton Santos Stadium after saying she didn't feel well, the Washington Post reports. The 23-year-old then was taken to a hospital, where she died. The nation's Ministry of Culture said Benevides suffered cardiorespiratory arrest, but an official cause of death was not released. Most of Brazil, including Rio de Janeiro, has had record heat this week, per the AP. The actual temperature topped 102 degrees, but the apparent temperature, a combination of temperature and humidity, reached 138 degrees Fahrenheit on Friday morning in the citythe highest ever recorded. Concertgoers later said they nonetheless were not allowed to bring water bottles into the stadium, and fans' videos showed Swift stopping the performance more than once to ask that fans be brought water, per People. "There's people that need water, right here," she said, pointing to a spot where fans seemed to be waving empty water bottles. One woman said she saw people "looking distressed" while others were "yelling for water." A friend who was with Benevides said they were given water as they waited to enter the stadium. Swift mourned Benevides on her Instagram story and announced that Saturday's show, the second of three in the city, would be postponed because of the heat. "It's with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show," Swift wrote. "I'm not going to be able to speak about this from the stage because I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it." The prosecutor's office in Rio said a criminal investigation of the death has begun. Benevides, who lived in central Brazil, had taken her first flight ever to attend the concert. Her father, Weiny Machado, had given her a ticket to see Swift, which he said was his daughter's dream. He described Ana as "a happy, smart girl." (A Swift concert in Buenos Aires was canceled a week before.) Thirty-one premature babies were safely transferred from Gaza's main hospital to another in the south on Sunday and will be moved to Egypt, health officials said, as scores of other critically wounded patients remained stranded there days after Israeli forces entered the compound. The fate of the newborns at Shifa Hospital had captured global attention after the release of images showing doctors trying to keep them warm, the AP reports. A power blackout had shut down incubators and other equipment, and food, water, and medical supplies ran out as Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside the hospital. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media that the "very sick" babies were evacuated, along with six health workers and 10 staff family members. He said they were taken in ambulances of the Palestinian Red Crescent to a hospital in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where they are receiving urgent care. A WHO team that visited the hospital on Saturday said 291 patients were still there, including the babies, trauma patients with severely infected wounds, and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. Four babies died before their visit, said Mohamed Zaqout, director of Gaza hospitals. About 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left Shifa Hospital on Saturday morning, the WHO said. It said 25 medical staff remained, along with the patients. "Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation," the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa, part of its wider accusation that the fighters use civilians as cover. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end Hamas' rule in Gaza following the militant group's wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago, which killed over 1,200 people and triggered the war. Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations. (Read more Israel-Hamas war stories.) Divisions over LGBTQ+ issues are costing the United Methodist Church's North Georgia Conference 261 of its nearly 700 congregations. In a vote Saturday, the conference approved the church's requests to leave, effective at the end of the month, CNN reports. They will no longer be allowed to use "United Methodist" name or logo. The national church had decided in 2019 that congregations could leave by the end of this year over issues related to policies on "the practice of homosexuality or the ordination or marriage of self-avowed practicing homosexuals." By August 2023, more than 6,000 of 30,000 or so US congregations had received approval to break away, the church's website shows. "I realize how sad this time is for many, including myself," said Bishop Robin Dease, who leads the North Georgia Conference. "In December, approximately 440 North Georgia Conference churches will continue the work of fulfilling the mission of the United Methodist church in our communities and beyond," a conference statement said. The United Methodist Church's Iowa conference also lost congregations on Saturday, per the Des Moines Register, Another 59 churches were approved for disaffiliation, following the split of 83 congregations in May, also over differences on same-sex marriage and ordaining openly LGBTQ+ clergy. Bishop Kennetha Bigham-Tsai addressed the Iowa conference on Zoom just before the vote. She said that when she took office a year ago, "I began to challenge all of us to remember who we are," calling that understanding crucial. "We are here today because we have better defined ourselves. Some of our siblings have decided that their sense of identity leads them along a different path." The departing congregations can decide to be independent or to join the Global Methodist Church, a denomination formed last year that supports LGBTQ-related restrictions. (Read more United Methodists stories.) An orphaned Ukrainian teenager who was taken to Russia last year during the war in his country returned home after being reunited with relatives in Belarus on his 18th birthday Sunday. Bohdan Yermokhin was pictured embracing family members in Minsk in photographs shared on social media by Russia's children's rights ombudswoman, Maria Lvova-Belova. Andrii Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian president's office, confirmed that Yermokhin had arrived back in Ukraine and thanked UNICEF and Qatari negotiators for facilitating his return, the AP reports. Yermokhin's parents died two years ago, before Russia invaded Ukraine. Early in the war, he was taken from the port city of Mariupol, where he lived with a cousin who was his legal guardian, placed with a foster family in the Moscow region and given Russian citizenship, according to Ukrainian lawyer Kateryna Bobrovska. Bobrovska, who represents the teenager and his 26-year-old cousin, Valeria Yermokhina, previously told the AP that Yermokhin repeatedly expressed the desire to go home and had talked daily about "getting to Ukraine, to his relatives." The teenager reportedly tried to return home on his own earlier this year. When he turned 18, he would have become eligible for conscription into the Russian army. Yermokhin was one of thousands of children taken to Russia from occupied regions of Ukraine. The practice prompted the International Criminal Court in March to accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin and children's rights ombudswoman Lvova-Belova of committing war crimes. The court in The Hague, Netherlands, issued warrants for Putin and Lvova-Belova's arrests. The Kremlin has dismissed the warrants as void. Lvova-Belova has argued that the children were taken to Russia for their safety, not abducteda claim widely rejected by the international community. Nevertheless, the children's rights ombudswoman announced in a Nov. 10 online statement that Yermokhin would be allowed to return to Ukraine via a third country. (Read more Russia-Ukraine war stories.) Saudi investments in Egypt reached $6.3 billion in 7,444 projects in sectors such as industry, construction, tourism, services, and telecommunications, among others, said Minister of Trade and Industry Ahmed Samir. Egyptian investments in Saudi Arabia reached $1.6 billion across 2,027 projects in manufacturing, retail, and construction sectors, Samir added on Sunday during a meeting with his Saudi counterpart Majid Al Qasabi. The minister stated that the trade exchange between the two countries surged 23 percent to $5.655 billion in 2022 from $4.572 billion in 2021. The meeting between Samir and Al Qasabi included a delegation of Saudi investors and discussed the development of economic relations between Egypt and the kingdom. For his part, Al Qasabi pointed out that private Saudi investments in Egypt reached $35 billion. He also noted that Egypt is the kingdom's top trade partner in Africa. Egypt and Saudi Arabia are preparing to sign agreements worth $1.5 billion at the upcoming Egyptian-Saudi Business Forum scheduled to take place in Cairo on 20 November, Turki Al-Hokair, a member of the Egyptian-Saudi Business Council said on Saturday. Over the years, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have maintained warm relations in various fields, including politics, economics, and security. They have consistently coordinated on regional issues, further deepening their ties. In July, the two nations signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to enhance cooperation in developing non-oil exports. Another MoU was signed to promote the growth of the automotive industry. Search Keywords: Short link: Donald Trump returned to the US-Mexico border on Sunday and was endorsed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas as the former president campaigns on a hard-line immigration agenda that would be far more expansive than the policies he pursued during his first term in the White House. "We need a president who's going to secure the border," Abbott, a longtime ally, told about 150 people at an airport hangar in Edinburg, the AP reports. "We need Donald J. Trump back as our president of the United States of America." Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 GOP nomination, took the stage afterward and thanked Abbott, saying that after defeating Democratic President Biden next year, "I'm going to make your job much easier." "You'll be able to focus on other things in Texas," Trump said, speaking about 30 miles from the Hidalgo Port of Entry crossing with Mexico. Earlier, he served meals to Texas National Guard soldiers, troopers, and others who will be stationed at the border over Thanksgiving. Trump and Abbott handed out tacos, and the former president posed for pictures. Trump has been laying out immigration proposals that would mark a dramatic escalation of the approach he used in office, which drew alarms from civil rights activists and numerous court challenges. "On my first day back in the White House, I will terminate every open-borders policy of the Biden administration. I will stop the invasion on our southern border and begin the largest domestic deportation operation in American history," he said Saturday in Iowa, per the AP. Among other changes, Trump said he wants to: Revive and expand his travel ban, which initially targeted seven Muslim-majority countries. and expand his travel ban, which initially targeted seven Muslim-majority countries. Begin "ideological screening" for all immigrants, aiming to bar "Christian-hating communists and Marxists" and "dangerous lunatics, haters, bigots and maniacs." "ideological screening" for all immigrants, aiming to bar "Christian-hating communists and Marxists" and "dangerous lunatics, haters, bigots and maniacs." Invoke the Alien Enemies Act to remove from the US all known or suspected gang members and drug dealers. That law was used to justify internment camps in World War II. the Alien Enemies Act to remove from the US all known or suspected gang members and drug dealers. That law was used to justify internment camps in World War II. End the constitutional right to birthright citizenship by signing an executive order that would codify a legally untested reinterpretation of the 14th Amendment. Democrats tried to use Trump's trip to portray his plans as extreme. "Donald Trump is going after immigrants, our rights our safety and our democracy. And that is what really is on the ballot," Biden reelection campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said on a conference call with reporters. (Read more Donald Trump 2024 stories.) Rosalynn Carter, the former first lady who was a full partner to her husband in life and politicssitting in on his Cabinet meetingsdied Sunday. She died peacefully at home in Plains, Georgia, where she had entered hospice care with former President Jimmy Carter, the Carter Center announced. She was 96. "Rosalynn is my best friend the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life," the president told aides during his 1977-81 term in office, per NPR . The Carters were married for more than 77 years, per the Washington Post , making theirs the longest presidential marriage in US history. Rosalynn Carter created the Office of the First Lady, setting it up in the East Wing of the White House with its own chief of staff, and otherwise broadened the role of presidential spouse. She was a forceful advocate on issues including mental health, elder care, and the Equal Rights Amendment. "I wanted to take mental illnesses and emotional disorders out of the closet, to let people know it is all right to admit having a problem without the fear of being called crazy," she wrote in her autobiography. "If only we could consider mental illnesses as straightforwardly as we do physical illnesses, those affected could seek help and be treated in an open and effective way." When preparing to move into the White House, Carter told an interviewer she embraced the possibilities, per NBC News. "There's so much you can do," she said, adding that she wanted to work on causes "independently, on my own." Her attendance at Cabinet meetings caused a stir. "Jimmy's always talked things over with me, like when he was choosing the vice president or the Cabinet," she said. "I've always been involved in the meetings." The incoming first lady said that she told her husband what she thought even when they disagreed and would continue to do that. Both of them called their relationship a full partnership. That was the case from the beginning, when they took over his family's peanut warehouse in Plains. story continues below In the four decades after Jimmy Carter left office, the couple founded the Carter Center in Atlanta, traveling the world to monitor elections and promote human rights and peace initiatives. One week per year, they did construction work with Habitat for Humanitybuilding or remodeling more than 4,300 homes in 14 countries for low-income people, per the Post. Rosalynn Carter, who wrote or co-wrote five books, continued her work on mental health, inspired partly by a relative's experience in mental institutions. "Twenty-five years ago, we did not dream that people might someday be able actually to recover from mental illnesses," Carter said in 2003. "Today it is a very real possibility." That, she added, "is a miraculous development." (Read more obituary stories.) Labour leader Chris Hipkins is set to make a statement on the situation in Gaza. Israel has vowed to annihilate the Hamas militant group that controls Gaza after its fighters killed 1200 people and took 240 hostages in an attack in October. In response, Israel launched a major bombing campaign followed by a ground operation. Gaza authorities say more than 12,000 people are confirmed dead. New Zealand's response to the conflict is under scrutiny, with one survey suggesting 60 percent of Kiwis agree the New Zealand Government should call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This livestream is now over. Watch the video above. We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. A bugler from the Army Band, Pershings Own, plays Taps during a Presidential Armed Forces full honors wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, January 20, 2020. (Photo by Elizabeth Fraser) Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George, Sergeant Major of the Army Michael Weimer and their spouses address Pre-Command Course students and spouses Oct. 19, 2023, at The Army University at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. (Photo by Dan Neal) In light of the ongoing bloodshed and the tense Gaza standoff, it is imperative that an audacious attempt be made to completely resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. This can only be achieved by proposing a comprehensive take-it-or-leave-it peace initiative. Such an initiative must address the immediate crisis at hand through a ceasefire and cessation of cross-border skirmishes, along with addressing humanitarian aspects, aid provision, and the exchange of hostages. Moreover, it must delve into the core issue of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict by putting an end to Israeli occupation and realizing a two-state solution. Ambitious diplomacy Incremental measures will no longer suffice to defuse the situation. The severity of tensions and the profound distress call for bold, ambitious, and creative diplomacy. The absence of a substantial resolution will perpetuate the cycle of violence and will lead to further bloodshed. It is not a question of if but when another outbreak of violence will occur, particularly given the existential political decisions facing Hamas and Israeli leaders, rendering a return to the pre-war status quo inconceivable. Both sides would have to claim complete victory or seek revenge at the expense of the other, neither of which is feasible. The proposed initiative, therefore, needs to be substantial enough to prompt a significant shift in the political dynamics within both sides, encouraging them to move beyond revenge and ostracize uncompromising leaders if necessary. The alternatives: Peace or revenge The alternatives are polar opposites: either achieve full peace or drown in self-consuming waves of revenge and retribution. This would enable the Palestinians to believe that the tragic loss of over 10,000 casualties in Gaza was not in vain and for the Israelis to argue that despite the human losses, they have now ensured their security once and for all. Any proposed initiative must fulfil the national aspirations of Palestinians and Israelis through a two-state solution along the 1967 borders, with minor mutually agreed modifications. It must offer precise solutions for the status of Jerusalem and for the Palestinian right of return or compensation. The plan should incorporate detailed security protocols to protect both sides from surprise attacks in the West Bank, Gaza, or Israel. Furthermore, the initiative should also affirm the Arab Peace Initiative adopted by the Arab League summit in Beirut in 2002, emphasizing that ending the Israeli occupation of Arab territories would pave the way for normal Israeli relations with the Arab nations at large. Contemporary documents detailing Arab-Israeli negotiations are replete with comprehensive formulas and compromises on all these aspects. Yet, the one thing lacking was the political will of the respective political leaderships. Simply put, the proposed non-negotiable initiative here would address both the root cause of the conflict the Israeli occupation and the aftermath of the Gaza Crisis. Potential sponsors With very few exceptions, the decisions of regional leaders have determined war and peace in the Middle East. Therefore, the most favorable option would be for an Arab state to sponsor this initiative. Alternatively, the Arab League Emergency Summit in Riyadh could adopt this initiative. However, the ongoing violence and continued civilian casualties may render regional sponsorship unfeasible. A second choice for sponsorship would have been the United States, given its prominent role in the region since the 1973 war, but its inability to even engage in dialogue with Russia and its unwavering support for Israel makes this second alternative option untenable and disqualifies the US it as an impartial sole broker of peace. Another possibility is for the co-sponsorship of the initiative by the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and US President Joe Biden. While this may seem unusual at first, the diversity of sponsors may make the initiative more palatable for the parties involved despite the recent tensions between Israeli officials and Guterres. The two-state solution is an offshoot of UN resolutions, and the organization has a significant role and presence in the region and has embraced the basic tenets of the peace process. China maintains good relations with all Arab countries, as well as with Israel. It recently brokered the Saudi-Iranian arrangements, and its political appetite may have expanded, as was inferred by Special Envoy to the Middle East Zhai Jun who recently emphasized support for a peace process and the two-state solution. The US may initially be concerned that this would come at the expense of American primacy in the region, but it could also provide an opportunity for a mutually beneficial constructive dialogue that extends beyond the Middle East. Certainly, success is not guaranteed, especially in the highly volatile Middle East and amid tentative relations between major world powers. However, repeating practices of the past or succumbing to complacency will only lead to grievances and more bloodshed. The hard choice is to embark on substantial diplomatic efforts against all odds aimed at resolving the root causes of the conflict or have the region witness a tsunami of vengeful violence between combatants and civilians alike. * The writer is the former Egyptian minister of foreign affairs. ** The article first appeared in UAE-based the Future Center for Advanced Research & Studies. Search Keywords: Short link: TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Bahrain boasts a wealth of exotic experiences, lively locales, and exciting events within its captivating landscape. Still, if someone asks an expatriate to name a single place that one should not miss while in the Kingdom, he or she would say it without a flinch. Gudaibiya. As for them, Gudaibiya is a hidden gem waiting to be explored. The indisputable fact is that long-term residents here often recommend this vibrant neighbourhood to newcomers seeking affordable ways to kickstart their lives. Nestled along the streets of Gudaibiya, a plethora of shops beckon them, offering a diverse array of goods. From second-hand electronic gadgets to furniture and everything in between for your everyday needs, this bustling market has it all. Working hours start early in the morning. However, to experience its true colour, one should visit in the evening hours. The real buzz begins in the late afternoon and continues until midnight. Shopkeepers here say they get customers from near and far, all seeking quality items at half the price or even lower. But where do all these goods come from? After a few rounds of dice, the answers arrived. Many of the items found here are sourced from individuals returning to their home countries or those who unexpectedly lost their jobs and are eager to part with their belongings. Some expatriates who are leaving in a hurry find it challenging to transport their household items back home or to friends, leaving their expensive possessions behind. These left-behind items often find new life with the next tenants, who may choose to resell them in the market for a reasonable price. All these items end up here in Gudaibiya, looking for a new life. Once expensive but now budget-friendly, the offerings span a wide range, from kitchen utensils and stoves to bikes and various household appliances. A common saying is that shoppers willing to invest some time exploring Gudaibiya's shops can discover remarkable deals. Furthermore, the market is well-known for its priced selection of second-hand branded items, which attract a dedicated following. Several told us: Goods collected from American sailors from the nearby Juffair, such as textiles, suits, and shoes, tend to sell like hotcakes. Even items like beds and linens, occasionally obtained for free, find new owners in this lively marketplace. However, despite all this, several others also find it a nuisance. People also complained that despite warnings from municipal authorities to avoid obstructing public roads with merchandise displays, many shopkeepers here continue to operate as usual, creating a unique shopping experience in Gudaibiya that is hard to resist. The fact, however, is that for bachelors and budget-conscious individuals, the shops in Gudaibiya are a lifeline, offering affordable solutions to meet their daily needs and aspirations, making it an essential destination for those looking to make the most of their time in Bahrain. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani reiterated Bahrains unwavering stance on a two-state solution for ending the Palestine-Israel conflict during the 19th Manama Dialogue Conference. Highlighting the critical need for immediate humanitarian assistance, the provision of basic services, hostage release, and collaborative efforts to halt the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip, Dr. Al Zayani asserted that a resolution to the conflict necessitates a two-state solution. The remarks came during the conferences second plenary session, themed Navigating Global Competition. Commending the opening speech by HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Dr. Al Zayani further underscored the importance of recognising Israels security concerns to prevent the region from remaining on the brink of conflict and instability. Reflecting on the historical competition for land, resources, and influence in the Arabian Gulf and the Middle East, Dr. Al Zayani noted the regions enduring struggles are caused by political, diplomatic, economic, and military strategies employed by countries within and outside the Middle East. He emphasised the ongoing complexity and inclusivity of this competition, resulting in conflicts, instability, human suffering, and hindered development. This competition is still ongoing and has become more complex, dynamic, and inclusive. Bahrain, according to Dr. Al Zayani, places significant value on mutual respect, dialogue, and tolerance. These principles, he said, are crucial not only for maintaining positive relations but also for shaping constructive engagement with the global community. Further addressing the deeply rooted challenges in the Middle East, the Foreign Minister stressed the necessity of tackling the presence of violent nonstate actors and proxy groups contributing to regional instability, sectarianism, and heightened tensions. Dr. Al Zayani emphasised the interconnectedness of regional countries, highlighting their importance for overall prosperity, peaceful coexistence, and conflict resolution in the Middle East. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Report by Ashen Tharaka The ongoing war in Gaza took centre stage at the Manama Dialogue forum yesterday, where high-level officials from Jordan, the United States, the European Union, and Saudi Arabia exchanged views on the urgent need for diplomacy and de-escalation. In his opening remarks, Ayman Safadi, Jordans Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, strongly condemned Israels bombardment of Gaza and the resulting civilian casualties. Keeping Gaza as an open prison is unprecedented, he declared, emphasising the need to prioritise an immediate cessation of hostilities. Safadi outlined three key points: halting the war, providing humanitarian assistance to Gaza, and pursuing a two-state solution as a permanent resolution to the conflict. He underscored the importance of the United States role in facilitating a peaceful outcome. If another country did what Israel is doing now, they would be sanctioned. Why is international law not being applied? Safadi asked, urging the international community to hold Israel accountable for its actions. He further emphasised that negotiation is the path to peace and that the root causes of the conflict must be addressed. Everyone supports the two-state solution, but Israel continues its occupation, Safadi asserted. Israel is creating an ugly reality in Gaza. Responding to Safadis concerns, Brett McGurk, Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa at the National Security Council, reaffirmed the United States priority of securing the release of hostages. Steps towards releasing hostages would lead to a major shift in the fighting, McGurk stated. If the hostages are released, you will see a significant change. McGurk outlined seven key points: opposition to forced displacement in Gaza, no occupation of Gaza, no reduction of Gazas territory, prevention of Gaza from being used for terrorism, separation of innocent civilians from terrorists, return of the West Bank to a future Palestinian state, and ensuring Israels security. Josep Borrell Fontelles, High Representative and Vice-President of the European Commission, commended Bahrains Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and Prime Minister, His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, for his bold steps towards resolving the conflict. Israel deserves security, and the Palestinian people deserve dignity. Peace is possible, but how many innocent lives will be lost before we can reach it? We have a duty to work hard now for it, Borrell declared. He emphasised the European Unions deep concern for security and peace. Waleed Al Khuraiji, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, affirmed the kingdoms commitment to establishing a unified Islamic voice to support the Palestinians, work towards a ceasefire and hostage release, and achieve sustainable peace. Condemning the military aggression against Palestinian civilians, Saudi Arabias Deputy Foreign Minister asserted that Israel should protect the Palestinian peoples legitimate rights. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Report by Zahra Ayaz The third panel at the IISS Manama Dialogue yesterday focused on the capabilities and strategies required to address the complex challenges faced by the region. Dr. Bastian Giegerich, Director-General and Chief Executive of IISS, emphasised the multitude of threats in the region, which demand effective defence strategies and the development of capabilities for both present and future armed forces. According to Dr. Giegerich, This region faces a variety of threats, and these factors create difficult demands on the region's armed forces. Effective defence strategies are being defined to try and meet these challenges and define the capabilities required to ensure the security of the region today and in the future. Dr. Khalid Al Biyari, Assistant Minister of Defense for Executive Affairs of Saudi Arabia, highlighted the governments ambitious vision for 2030 and its impact on the countrys military development. He stated, Saudi Arabia started implementing the biggest development plan for its military forces to guarantee security. By 2030, we aim to allocate more than 50 percent of our expenditures to the military. We have taken more than 300 initiatives to achieve our five strategic objectives for this developmental programme. Admiral Rob Bauer, Chair of the Military Committee at NATO, discussed the evolving global security landscape and the need for strong partnerships. He pointed out, We have observed Russias aggression over the years, and we have adapted our defence planning accordingly." To protect one billion people, we need to invest more time and energy with our partners. Strengthening partnerships in our southern neighbourhood is crucial, ranging from information exchange to joint military operations. Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, Chief of the Defence Staff of the UK, addressed the situation in Israel and Palestine and the impact it has on the region. He expressed the UKs support for Israels right to self-defence but also emphasised the need for proportionate actions to minimise harm to civilians. The British military has increased its presence in the region to reinforce stability, prevent escalation, and respond to humanitarian crises. He further added, In a demonstration of their commitment, the Royal Air Force recently delivered 21 tonnes of aid to Palestinian civilians in Egypt as part of a 30 million increase in humanitarian support for the occupied territory. The UK's military commitments in the Middle East align with their broader economic and security interests in the region. The panel discussions at the IISS Manama Dialogue shed light on the efforts being made by regional and international stakeholders to develop comprehensive defense strategies and capabilities to address the diverse challenges and threats faced by the region. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com There will be no significant pause in the Israeli-Hamas war, a top US official told a security conference in Bahrain, as reports emerged yesterday of the deaths of more than 80 people in double Israeli strikes on the Jabalia refugee camp. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, who also attended the Bahrain conference, firmly opposed this and said it was unacceptable to link humanitarian pauses to a hostage release. Jabalia is the biggest refugee camp in Gaza, where some 1.6 million people have been displaced by more than six weeks of fighting between Israel and Hamas. US President Joe Bidens main adviser on the Middle East told the annual IISS Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain that there would be a significant pause in the Israeli-Hamas war if hostages held in Gaza were freed. Speaking in Manama, Brett McGurk said, The surge in humanitarian relief, the surge in fuel, the pause... will come when hostages are released. The release of a large number of hostages would result in a significant pause... and a massive surge of humanitarian relief, he said. McGurk said that the situation in the besieged Palestinian territory was horrific and intolerable. He said Biden had discussed the issue on Friday evening with the ruler of the Gulf nation of Qatar, which is leading mediation efforts towards a ceasefire and the release of the captives. In his address at the summit, Safadi also voiced doubt that Israel could reach its goal of obliterating Hamas with its heavy bombardment and invasion of the Gaza Strip, long dominated by the Palestinian Islamist movement. Israel says it wants to wipe out Hamas. Theres a lot of military people here; I just dont understand how this objective can be realised, Ayman Safadi said at the annual IISS Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain. "We... must consider that war is also an indication of the political and diplomatic failure of the international community; all of us have failed to solve this problem, he said. And the responsibility falls on all of us to find a solution. The comments come as an official of the Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip said: At least 50 people were killed in an Israeli strike at dawn on the UN-run Al-Fakhura school in the camp, which had been converted into a shelter for displaced Palestinians. Citing social media videos, the report claimed several bodies were seen covered in blood and dust on the floor of a building, where mattresses had been wedged under school tables. I met the manager and promoter for a successful new music artist. The successful artist is Keshi and the manager/promoter is JamesDai. James is with Soka Talent Group. Keshi is a musician with millions of views for each of his songs on Youtube and who plays at large stadiums in China. This is becoming very rare. What is rare? New music and new music artists. 476 songs have surpassed 1 billion streams on Spotify as of 25th September, 2023. Spotifys BILLIONS CLUB playlist shows the tracks which have reached the milestone, revealing the wide array of artists who have hit the impressive number, including: Sia, Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, and Arctic Monkeys. The average price per stream is $0.004. $4 for every 1,000 streams. $4000 for each million streams. It is about 4 million for a billion streams. Drake has the most streams on Spotify with over 60 billion. Old Music is Dominating Because of the Algorithm and Preference Feedback Loop In 2022, Ted Gioia article in The Atlantic asked is Old Music Killing New Music? Old songs represent 70 percent of the U.S. music market. Even worse: The new-music market is actually shrinking. 200 most popular new tracks are only 5% of total streams and a few years ago it was 10%. Top ten songs (last 18 months) are having less and less impact. The main music industry can just support old and established musicians and musical groups. The top 20 musical acts by tour revenue in 2022. The top musical acts in 2023 are Taylor Swift and Beyonce. A and R stands for Artists and Repertoire. Its a division of a record label or music publishing company that handles: Talent scouting Artist development Overseeing the recording process Marketing and promotion Acting as a liaison between artists and the record label or publishing company. As of November 2023, the annual salary for a Music A&R ranges from $31,000 to $67,000. Search algorithms are designed to provide music and content in general that is like what has worked before. This causes stagnation in music and in many kinds of content. Music industry experts describe how decades ago in the age of CDs there was artist development and millions of album sales for the top artists. Around 2001, the music industry consolidated and the amount of money to artists dropped to 9% (13% total but 3% for the producer and 1% for the mixer). The money for producers continued to drop through 2008. Rick Beato discusses how to succeed in music today and how the economics of music has changed. Damian Keyes worked with musicians every day of my life for the past 20 years. He was signed to a major label when he was 18 and was dropped 6 months later. At 23, he co-founded a Music University in Europe called BIMM (valued at $300M). He played bass for Eric Clapton, Alanis Morrisette and Billy Cobham. Damian says that new music artists have to manage themselves as content creators. They have to make 15-30 second videos for Tik Tok and Instagram and Youtube and develop their own following. He gives more advice to musical artists. While eradicating Hamas remains Israels main goal in its war on Gaza, the Arabs face some daunting choices over post-war arrangements. At their one-day summit meeting in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Saturday, the Arab leaders were scheduled to make their response to Israels brutal war of aggression against Gaza clear and the threats of a broader regional conflict. The Arab Summit, called by the Palestinian Authority (PA), should have been the first such major gathering since Israel started its brutal onslaught on Gaza more than a month ago. The Arab leaders attending were expected to iron out an Arab strategy to address the crisis in Gaza, as Israel continues in its bid to seize complete control over the Strip in a declared attempt to destroy its Hamas-led authority. They were also supposed to come together to chart a course for the day after in Gaza once the fighting there ends, including an expected power vacuum in the Strip and the impact of a widely anticipated exodus of Palestinians fleeing from the massive Israeli campaign. However, Saudi Arabia, the host country, announced abruptly that a symbolic Arab-Islamic Leadership Summit would be held instead to try to work out a common position vis-a-vis the dangerous and unprecedented developments in Gaza. As a result, it was this joint summit that became the centrepiece of the diplomatic response to the war. In their final communique, the Arab and Muslim leaders present called for an immediate ceasefire and an end to the siege on Gaza and the allowing of humanitarian aid into the Strip. On the broader issues, the leaders from the 57 Arab and Islamic nations at the summit walked a fine line and reiterated their support for the Palestinians right to self-determination and statehood, according to the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But their statement provided no information about concrete options being considered such as freezing normalisation with Israel, taking punitive actions against countries which support Israel militarily, or initiating proceedings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Tel Aviv for its war crimes. What was most notably absent in the summits policy statement was unequivocal support for the right of the Palestinians to resist the Israeli occupation. This commitment many believe is needed to counter Israels labelling of the Palestinians fighting against Israel as terrorism. As the devastating attacks on Gaza continue, observers are watching to see what will happen as a result of the humanitarian disaster and political and security chaos in the Strip and how the Arab world will be able to deal with its impacts. As the clock for a total collapse of Gaza is ticking, regional and international stakeholders are now trying to imagine what the enclave might look like the day after the war. More than 11,000 people have been killed in the violence in Gaza, and 26,475 have been wounded, some 2,600 are missing, and more than 1.6 million have been displaced. Half of the housing units in Gaza have been destroyed, in addition to the enclaves basic infrastructure. Though it remains difficult to obtain a clear picture of the Israeli incursion into the territory, Israeli warplanes continue to bombard Gaza from the air while its troops and tanks are advancing deeper on the ground in a move widely feared to lead to increased human casualties and destruction. Israel has opposed all calls for a ceasefire or even a pause in the hostilities, but under US and international pressure it has agreed to a brief evacuation corridor along Gazas main highway for civilians fleeing their homes in the north. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, but has not offered a vision of who would administer the enclave after the war and how it will be connected with the West Bank. Six weeks into the war, confusion over post-conflict scenarios is adding to unprecedented turbulence in the region and deepening anger over the human catastrophe inside Gaza. As fighting continues to rage, Israels political and military leaders have remained vague about the wars strategies and objectives, primarily about how it might end and what will come after it. At the beginning of the Israeli attacks codenamed Operation Swords of Iron following the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October, Israeli military leaders talked about an emphasis on wiping out the militant group in Gaza. There is no shortage of clues about its tactical operations, which have aimed at isolating Hamas as can be deduced from the push of Israeli troops into northern Gaza. Taking into consideration the state of the offense-defence imbalance in the war, analysis shows that Israeli troops on the ground are now inside Gaza City, engaging Hamas in complicated street combat. The final tactical goal of the multiple-phase operation is seemingly to encircle Gaza and neutralise Hamas and other Palestinian factions or force them to surrender or flee. What remains is the key question of the overall strategy of the military operations and the endgame of the Israeli campaign. The clearest public statement on post-war plans has come from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said that Israel for an indefinite period will have the overall security responsibility [for Gaza]. This would suggest some future Israeli military presence in Gaza, from which it withdrew in 2005, and it raises speculation about possible ambitions of reoccupying the Strip. Reports about some of these unsettling goals have been in circulation since the beginning of the war, including Israels assuming responsibility for governing Gaza and expelling its population to neighbouring Egypt. Netanyahu adviser Mark Regev has suggested that Israel is interested in establishing a new framework in the Strip where the Gazans can rule themselves. Regev, a veteran Israeli diplomat and government spokesman, proposed bringing in international support including from the Arab countries for the reconstruction of a demilitarised post-Hamas Gaza. Among other ideas floated either in the media or by pro-Israeli think-tanks recently has been for an international peacekeeping force under an interim administration for post-war Gaza. Under such a plan, troops from the US, the EU, and the Arab States that have reached peace agreements with Israel would be given temporary oversight over the Strip and primarily work as a law-enforcement apparatus. Other options include expanding the work of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) that currently operates in the Sinai Peninsula monitoring the 1979 Peace Treaty between Israel and Egypt. Another possibility is empowering the West Bank-based PA to control and govern Gaza once Israel ends its war against Hamas, with Israel remaining responsible for the enclaves security. That option has been laid aside by Netanyahu, who said the PA has failed to demilitarise and deradicalise Gaza in the past. Instead, he suggested a civilian authority backed by an overriding Israeli military envelope. Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for the outright reoccupation of Gaza and the building of Jewish settlements in the territory after the war on the Strip. But the most frightening objective of the war could be the forced displacement of the Strips Palestinian inhabitants, as indicated by the brutal nature of the Israeli aggression on Gaza. Plans worked out by Israels Intelligence Ministry and leaked by Calcalist, an Israeli news Website which is part of the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper group, suggest transferring Gazans from the enclave following the war. Under the three-phase plan, Palestinians forced to flee their homes in Gaza through a humanitarian corridor will be sent to settle in northern Sinai in Egypt. All these proposals have been vehemently dismissed by the Palestinians and the Arab governments as attempts to exploit the Gaza war to liquidate the Palestinian issue. The PA has rejected the idea of administrating Gaza during the chaotic interim period without being allowed to be fully in charge of the Strip. It has insisted that it will only return to Gaza as part of a comprehensive solution that ends Israels occupation of all the Palestinian territories and advances the Palestinian right in statehood. We are not going back to Gaza on an Israeli military tank, PA Prime Minister Mohamed Shtayyeh has said. We are going to go to Gaza as part of a solution that deals with the question of Palestine and that deals with the occupation. The Hamas political and military leadership remains opposed to all these ideas, which it says are aimed at replacing its rule in Gaza with a new Israeli occupation. The Arab countries have refrained from explicitly saying whether such plans have been discussed in their governments. But at the weekend summit in Riyadh they reiterated their support for the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) as the sole representative of the Palestinian people. In 2008, however, the idea of sending Arab troops to Gaza was floated to end Hamas control there and re-establish the West Bank-based PA after the militant groups takeover of the Strip. While these plans have yet to emerge, probably when the outcome of the present military operations becomes clearer, the pressing question will remain of whether the Arab world is prepared for the days or weeks and months after the war. Obviously, the Arab countries, and in particular those neighbouring Israel, should be worried about any of these Israeli policy options that could be catalysts for more turmoil in their backyard. Most worrying remains the possibility that the war will trigger a mass exodus as a result of ethnic-cleansing and genocide in Gaza or even in the West Bank as well, which is increasingly and dangerously turning into another combustible hotspot. There are increasing fears that an Israeli invasion of Gaza will spark a new mass wave of displacement in a replay of what happened in the 1948 and 1967 Arab-Israeli wars. Millions of Palestinians who were forced to flee then have remained stranded as refugees in the countries that hosted them. More fundamentally, the humanitarian and geopolitical outcomes of Israels full-scale invasion of Gaza are expected to unleash grave consequences and threaten the stability of the already shaky regional order. Since the war broke out after Hamas 7 October attacks, there has been a proliferation of analyses of the causes and effects of the conflict, but all these will be of no use if they do not help to shed light on the future. The conflict has created a dilemma for many Arab states, which have appeared to be weighing their own options towards these many scenarios and hypotheses while a new regional reality is emerging from the conflict. Inter-Arab divisions have long blocked leadership gatherings from taking effective or unified measures in the face of challenges, and the recent summit seemed no exception to this rule though the consequences could be even more dire. The quandary was crystallised by the Riyadh Summit, which was met by criticism by an angry Arab public opinion for apparently being oblivious to reality and falling short on taking concerted actions to confront Israel. The original plan was to convene an emergency Arab League Summit where Arab leaders could come up with a unified stance to enforce an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and stop the Israeli genocide against the Palestinians. Ahead of the summit, top Arab diplomats working on draft resolutions were divided over adopting tough measures against Israel including freezing Arab normalisation with Israel and threatening an oil embargo on its supporters. The discussions prompted Saudi Arabia to change the plans for a more ceremonial joint Arab League-Islamic Cooperation Organisation gathering to avoid further splits that would have underscored the failure to address the conflict. The divergent opinions reflect efforts by the Arab countries that have normalised relations with Israel or that aspire to do so like Saudi Arabia to reset the regional balance in favour of a new order that they hope will come with their rapprochement with Israel. Therefore, there is little mystery about what the war could mean for Saudi Arabia, which has been engaged in negotiations with the US to make the detente with Israel a linchpin for a new regional security system in which the Kingdom plays a leading role. The conflict in Gaza has come just as Saudi Arabia was trying to push the envelope and show how far it can go in asserting its regional leadership and rolling back the influence of Iran, its archrival and the main backer of Hamas. Saudi Arabia might have been able to steer the summit and probably Arab politics towards a soft landing in response to the Israeli aggression against Gaza, but in the long run it will need regional stability to assert the leadership it aspires to. That ambition is now facing tremendous challenges caused by uncertainty about the events that will shape the course of action and the available alternatives to tackle the current conflict and its aftermath. The situation in which Saudi Arabia finds itself reflects the difficult choices faced by other Arab stakeholders, who have neither the ability nor the desire to get deeply involved in a messy postwar Gaza. As Israels barbaric aggression continues to wreak havoc on Gaza and its population, the region may be running out of time and the windows of opportunity for a way out of a Catch-22 situation may be becoming increasingly limited. * A version of this article appears in print in the 16 November, 2023 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly Search Keywords: Short link: State 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 D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico US Virgin Islands Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Armed Forces Europe Northern Mariana Islands Marshall Islands American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Palau Alberta, Canada British Columbia, Canada Manitoba, Canada New Brunswick, Canada Newfoundland, Canada Nova Scotia, Canada Northwest Territories, Canada Nunavut, Canada Ontario, Canada Prince Edward Island, Canada Quebec, Canada Saskatchewan, Canada Yukon Territory, Canada Postal Code Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to promptly establish a joint, credible, transparent, effective, and broad-based investigation into allegations of electoral bribery and violence in the off-cycle governorship elections in Kogi, Imo and Bayelsa states. It urged Yakubu to identify, arrest, name and shame suspected perpetrators and their sponsors of these grave human rights crimes, and ensure their effective prosecution, regardless of their political status or affiliations. The organization also urged him to disclose the spending details on the governorship elections in Kogi, Imo and Bayelsa states, including the specific amount spent to conduct voter and civic education and activities carried out in these states. In the letter dated 11 Nov. and signed by SERAP deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said: If INEC is to live up to its constitutional and statutory responsibilities, it must take bold and effective measures to combat the culture of impunity for electoral bribery and violence in the country. It added, The recurring cases of electoral bribery and violence make a mockery of Nigerias electoral process and participatory democracy. The Israeli army ordered patients, refugees, and medical staff to evacuate the Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza City, where more than 2,000 patients, medics and displaced people were trapped by the occupation army, forcing them to make the more than 20-kilometre-long trek south on foot. Medical sources in Gaza reported about five doctors stayed with the 530 remaining critically ill and wounded patients who are unable to walk. Palestine News Agency (WAFA) reported the evacuees were forced to flee in single file past Israeli tanks, raising their hands and carrying white flags. The evacuees are headed south along Salah El-Din Street, the main north-south highway in the Gaza Strip, to Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza. The journey of over 20 kilometres is bound to be difficult, with many of the evacuees having to navigate the partially destroyed road while pushing wheelchairs and sickbeds. Columns of sick and injured -- some of them amputees -- displaced people, doctors and nurses, were seen making their way out of the hosiptal towards the seafront without ambulances as loud explosions were heard around the facility, an AFP journalist reported. On the way, at least 15 bodies, some in advanced stages of decomposition, along a road lined by badly damaged shops and overturned vehicles as Israeli drones buzzed overhead. The head of the bone surgery department, Adnan Al-Barsh, tearfully conveyed on a live broadcast on Al Jazeera: "I swear we did everything we could do until the very last moment." Israeli forces besieged Al-Shifa Medical Complex for nine days, destroying its medical equipment and causing the death of wounded people and a number of premature babies. The director-general of hospitals in Gaza said: "All of the 22 patients who were in the intensive care unit, in addition to six dialysis patients, who were in Al-Shifa have died." Several buildings were bombed, including the cardiac building on the western side of the complex. Footage taken earlier this morning in Al Shifa Hospital when all people inside, including patients and medical personnel, were given one hour by the Israeli army to evacuate. pic.twitter.com/1iX3eOSZNd Quds News Network (@QudsNen) November 18, 2023 Al-Shifa Medical Complex is affiliated with the Palestinian Ministry of Health and is the largest medical centre in the Gaza Strip. It was established in 1946 during the British Mandate and started as small kiosks providing medical care to patients. It developed over time and became the largest medical complex in the Gaza Strip where 25 percent of the entire hospital workers in the Gaza Strip work. Search Keywords: Short link: Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has vowed that members of his cabinet who allegedly betrayed him during the November 11 governorship election in the state will not go unpunished. The Governor accused some members of his cabinet of betrayal before and during the election. Bello, who spoke during a closed-door meeting with stakeholders in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lokoja, was visibly angry and maintained that he would cut off even his fingers if they decided to hinder him from going far. Bello further accused many of his allies of betraying him because of his choice of Usman Ododo as his successor. Ododo was declared winner of the governorship election, beating off challenges from Dino Melaye of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and Social Democratic Party, SDPs Muri Ajaka. Bello described some of the so-called allies in unprintable words, saying they sold him out. He said All of those disgruntled elements moved against him after everything I did for them. I was fighting known enemies while enemies within were pulling me down. God punish you all. They said if it cant be me, then it cant be Ododo. They were busy conniving and conspiring with the opposition. They call themselves leaders, but were misleading the people. Shame on you all, he said. Bello warned that if he ever heard the leaders threaten any of their subordinates, he would deal with them severely. The Governor pointed a direct finger at a Senator from the state whom he said was wrecked by his brothers before he (Bello) governor) revived him from his alleged financial bankruptcy. Today, you are a second-term serving senator. You were laughing with us while you went behind to text opposition messages to hinder our party from having 25 per cent in some local governments, he added. The First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, has joined her Sierra Leone and Angola counterparts, Dr Fatima Bio and Dr Anas Lorenco, to commemorate the first anniversary of UN World Day for the protection of the girl child. NAN reports that the celebration, held in Winners Chapel International, Freetown, Sierra Leone, focused on prevention and healing from child sexual exploitation, abuse, and violence. Tinubu, in her remarks, held that the soul of a nation is measured by how it treats its children. She said that setting aside a day to look at the menace underscores the gravity of the effects of such abuse on the girl child. She said: It is an alarm call for all nations of the world to end such abuse because it tarnishes the essence of humanity. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that every child grows up in an environment that is safe, nurturing and free from harm. Equally important is the healing from the trauma of abuse; we must support survivors in their journey to recovery. The scars of abuse run deep, but with the right resources, therapy, love, and support, we can help survivors to regain strength. We must help them to heal and rebuild their lives; their stories are not just tales of pain; they are stories of resilience, hope, courage, and triumph. Earlier, Lorenco, in her address, emphasised that all African nations must come together to give survivors a voice and a new lease of life. The story is the same everywhere, but as mothers and concerned people, we are with the survivors, she said. The Chief Judge of Sierra Leone, Justice Desmond Babatunde, in a remark, assured the women that the judiciary would bring every perpetrator of such abuse to justice. There cannot be healing without justice, she declared. NAN reports that there were testimonies by survivors, after which the first ladies of Sierra Leone, Nigeria, and Angola presented scholarships to 130 survivors. The scholarshipsLe100,000,000 (N4 million) eachcover university education, vocational training, start-up business capital, and other categories. Available statistics show that one in every four girls and one in every nine boys have been sexually exploited, abused or violated. November 18 was declared last year by the United Nations as the World Day for the prevention of, and healing from child sex exploitation, abuse, and violence. The day, initiated by Sierra Leone and co-sponsored by Nigeria in 2021, has achieved its objectives of effectively educating and steering action to eliminate the social menace. Healing prayers were offered for the survivors by different church leaders, including the host churchs National Resident Pastor, Moses Olasunkanmi, and the Catholic Archbishop Charles Tamba, among others. NAN also reports that Nigerias global gospel music superstar, Osinachi Kalu, popularly called Sinach, thrilled the audience with outstanding performances in commemoration of the day. Now filming in New Jersey: Fidel Castros visit to New York in September 1960. Killing Castro, a movie directed by Eif Rivera (Power Book IV: Force, BMF), is about the Cuban leaders famous stay in Harlem when he was in town to speak at the United Nations General Assembly. To those who knew Ray Foley, he was no mere bartender. He was the bartender a gregarious lion of the New Jersey hospitality industry, an innovator long before mixology was a buzzword, and an advocate for the historically under-appreciated profession. Foley, also a former Marine, died on Oct. 27 at the Lyons VA Medical Center in Bernards, from complications related to Parkinsons disease. He was 80 years old. Yet Foleys legacy lives on in both the nationwide bartending community and the hearts of his loved ones. Ray Foley in 2012. (Russ DeSantis/For The Star-Ledger)Russ DeSantis I only called him Raymond when he was in trouble, said Jaclyn Foley, Ray Foleys wife of 42 years, a small smile cutting through tears. On the day the love of my life passed away, I was holding him in his bed. He took a breath, and I just knew. I wrapped myself around him and cried. Ray Foley grew up in South Orange, attended Seton Hall University and began to work at local bars before landing at The Manor in West Orange, the popular wedding and events hall. He was the head bartender and assistant general manager for 16 years. In addition to bartending, he bought all the liquor and helped run the place. In between his work at The Manor, he launched Bartender Magazine in 1979, shining new light on the world of slinging martinis and Manhattans. The quarterly magazine still maintains a U.S. readership of 250,000, Jaclyn Foley said, with more readers online. Ray put bartenders on the map, thats what everyone in the industry says, Jaclyn Foley said. Bartender magazine was one of many creations of Ray Foley.Karim Shamsi-Basha Though perhaps Ray Foleys single-greatest feat was being credited as inventor of the fuzzy navel, the cocktail that sprang to popularity in the 80s. Jaclyn still vividly remembers the day he came up with the drink, in 1984. Ray was at the offices of National Distillers, makers of peach schnapps. He smelled it and told them he could smell the peach fuzz. He mixed it with orange juice, and after seeing the word, navel, stamped on the orange, he suggested the name. In a 2012 interview with The Star-Ledger, Foley himself defended his concoction. Ray Foley, at Union Landing in Brielle in 2012. (Russ DeSantis/For The Star-Ledger) Russ DeSantis These so-called mixologists, they say, fuzzy navel, what a stupid drink, he fumed. Stupid drink? In two years, they sold two million bottles of peach schnapps. Have you heard of a more popular drink since the Fuzzy Navel or Cosmopolitan? No. Jaclyn Foley, who met Ray while bartending at The Manor, knows her late husbands legacy will endure. He would wake up at three in the morning to write an idea down. Ray was pure genius. Ray and Jaclyn Foley met while bartending at The Manor in West Orange. Karim Shamsi-Basha Beyond the magazine, Ray Foley was a rather prolific author, penning Bartending for Dummies, Bartender Magazine, and creating the Bartender Hall of Fame, plus many more cocktails. Greg Boehm, founder of Cocktail Kingdom barware supplier, met Foley in 2012 as the two bar men both collected first edition cocktail books. He was one of the most inspirational people I ever knew, Boehm said. He knew how to make bartending fun, and he always told a good story. Boehm also credits Foley with the burned orange peel that is added to some cocktails. Ray was so charismatic, and he kept the grit in bartending. He used to say that a bar was just a bar, a little rough and tumble. Ray was a little rough and tumble himself, Boehm continued. One time we went out for lunch in the city, and we had a martini, then another, then another, all before even ordering. I asked Ray if we were going to eat. He smiled and said we were eating olive soup. Another longtime friend, Chester Brandes, a consultant in the wine and spirit industry, knew Foley for over four decades. Ray was a renaissance man, and he went out of his way to help people, Brandes said. I miss his sense of humor, his laugh, his sarcasm and his camaraderie. Mostly, I miss his big personality. All you had to do was be in his presence, and you just loved him. Ryan Foley, Ray and Jaclyns son, had plenty to say about his fathers magnetism. My dad would be at a bar, and when they closed, he would invite the entire bar to our house, Ryan Foley said. I would be in my room upstairs playing video games, and I would hear 20 people in our basement. it was crazy. He would break out samples of this and bottles of that. Dad loved life and never wanted to stop entertaining. Ryan Foley, 33, works in marketing in the hospitality industry. My dad was my best friend, my mentor and my hero. When they asked me what I wanted to be in high school, I told them I wanted to be my dad. Jaclyn and ray Foley with their son, Ryan, and his wife, Cait Fallon, during their wedding.Provided by Olivia Christina Photography, LLC Ray Foley also created The Bartenders Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that supports bartenders and their childrens education. The foundation is dear to Jaclyn Foleys heart. I do not want people to send flowers, I want them to send donations to the Bartender Foundation, Jacklyn Foley said. The foundation is an important part of Rays legacy. Jaclyn peered out of the window, reflecting on the love of her life. There are eight million crazy stories I can tell you about Ray. He was larger than life, and I will always remember those stories and others, how people fell in love with him the minute they met him I did. Karim Shamsi-Basha may be reached at kshamsi-basha@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter & Instagram. Find NJ.com on Facebook. My congressman, Chris Smith, R-4th Dist., has failed to denounce Donald Trump as Trump intensifies his hate-filled inflammatory language with recent declarations that his political opponents are vermin and, in an interview last month, that undocumented immigrants are poisoning the blood of America. These are chilling echoes of Adolf Hitlers many angry speeches declaring that Jews were sub-human, along with Romas, leftists, union activists, homosexuals, persons with disabilities and any who others opposed his twisted and murderous authoritarian regime. By Jennifer Williams As this election season closes, the time has truly come for LGBTQ people like me to just tell it like it is: We are not groomers. We are not pedophiles. We are not trying to destroy our public school system, femininity, masculinity or America, for that matter. By John Farmer, Jr. What value does a single life have in an age of indiscriminate slaughter? The images of death and wholesale destruction we see every day from Israel and Gaza, from Ukraine, from Sudan or Ethiopia or Mexico or from any of the 22 armed conflicts currently raging across nearly every continent, can numb us to the enormity of the individual losses. Hubig's Pies returned to the market Nov. 9 2022, bringing delight to many in New Orleans and beyond when the company also introduced shipping beyond the Crescent City. After waiting over 10 years to taste the handpies again, people in New Orleans can easily acquire the treat at grocery and convenience stores. The familiar crinkle and sugary glaze has once again become part of the culture after its hiatus. The history of Hubig's brings us back nearly 150 years when its namesake became the baking foreman for a neighborhood bakery. Here's a full look at Hubig's Pies inception and growth: 1860: Simon Hubig was born in Newport, Kentucky, near Cincinnati. A few years later shortly after the death of his father Hubig and his family started a small business baking bread for the homemakers in their neighborhood. His industrious disposition allowed him to become a baking foreman by age 15. Thousands of protesters took part in rallies across France and Britain on Saturday calling for a ceasefire as Israel pushes forward with its brutal air and ground invasion of the Gaza Strip. Several thousand people marched through central Paris, in torrential rain, behind a banner proclaiming "Halt the massacre in Gaza and West Bank, immediate ceasefire". "France must immediately call for a ceasefire so that the guns go silent," said CGT union secretary general Sophie Binet, one of several union leaders to speak at the rally. Rallies were held in dozens of towns across France, Binet added. In Marseille, AFP saw several hundred people stage a minute's silence for Palestinian victims of the war. In Toulouse, more than 1,200 people took part in a march, according to police. Rallies have been held across Europe as Israel rains down bombardment on overcrowded hospitals, civilian-packed schools, and even places of worship. The Gaza health ministry says that more than 12,000 people have died in Israel's invasion of the Palestinian territory, many of them women and children. Last Saturday saw more than 300,000 people stage a pro-Palestinian march in London. Smaller protests were held this week with one targeting an office where main opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer holds meetings. Protesters there waved Palestinian flags and chanted "Ceasefire now". Some held placards reading "Stop the war in Gaza" and "Starmer -- blood on your hands" amid a heavy police presence in the Camden area of north London. "We here to basically put pressure on the UK government, and on Keir Starmer specifically as the leader of the Labour Party to pressure the Israeli government for a ceasefire," said Aziz, a 26-year-old consultant originally from Jordan. Starmer -- whose party is predicted to win an election expected next year -- has refused to call for a permanent ceasefire, sparking a string of resignations from his top team. Instead, the former human rights lawyer has called for a humanitarian pause to Israel's bombardment to allow aid in for the 2.4 million population. One protester at the London event, Nicoleta, 36, held a placard reading "Bombing hospitals is a crime". "Because I'm a health care provider I'm here to defend the hospitals, the innocent civilians, the children in incubators," she said. "We need a ceasefire and need peace negotiations and an end to the occupation," she added. The rally was one of many smaller protests organised nationwide by the Stop The War Coalition. London police said on Saturday they had arrested 386 people in rallies since the beginning of Israel's war on 7 October. On the 43rd day of the war, Israel ordered displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis, in the south of Gaza, to again relocate, this time to the west, while Israeli troops ordered the evacuation of Al-Shifa hospital in the north. During the night, Israeli warplanes bombarded areas north and south of Gaza City, killing at least 80 people in densely populated Jabalia and 26 others in Khan Younis. *This story was edited by Ahram Online Search Keywords: Short link: Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., speaks during a House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing on gun violence on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, June 8, 2022. New Orleans' connection to JFK assassination New Orleans-resident Clay Shaw was the only person ever tried in connection to President Kennedy's assassination. Shaw, the director of the city's International Trade Mart at the time, was arrested on alleged criminal conspiracy to assassinate the President. On March 1, 1969, a jury at Orleans Parish Criminal District Court took just 54 minutes to find Clay not guilty. Click here to read more. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., flanked by House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., left, and Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., leaves after meeting with reporters ahead of a crucial vote on a continuing resolution to keep the government funded at its current levels, a measure not heartily supported by the hard right wing of his party, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) ORG XMIT: DCSA110 At least two Palestinians were killed Sunday during Israeli army raids in the occupied West Bank, the Red Crescent said. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, a 45-year-old man was killed in Jenin, northern West Bank, and another person was killed in Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem further south. The Red Crescent said that overall, Israeli forces carried out at least five overnight operations in towns and refugee camps across the West Bank. Israeli army raids on the West Bank have surged since the war on Gaza started, as has Israeli settler terrorism against Palestinians. The Palestinian health ministry says Israeli forces and terrorist settlers have killed more than 200 Palestinians in the West Bank since the start of the war. In the northern West Bank on Saturday, five fighters from the Fatah movement were killed in a rare Israeli airstrike on the Balata refugee camp, the Palestinian Red Crescent and Fatah sources said. On Sunday, an AFP photographer saw Israeli troops searching Nablus's Balata camp. Search Keywords: Short link: North Devon councillors have claimed that dentistry is being abandoned after experts failed to attend an important meeting this week. Representatives from NHS Devon, Plymouth University and dentists themselves were invited to talk to North Devon Councils policy development committee about the lack of NHS provision in the area, but they refused. Cllr John Patrinos (Ind, Lynton and Lynmouth) said he was saddened but not surprised at "the refusal of anyone with professional knowledge of the delivery of dentistry and orthodontics to talk to us". He told the committee that one person said they were not willing to discuss the matter again having already done so at a health care scrutiny meeting in Devon, and sent a link so councillors could view that meeting instead. We have been fobbed off with internet links when people are in pain. Cllr Peter Jones (Ind, Witheridge) said it was "horrendous that no-one had turned up to the meeting". What is our society coming to when an entire area of healthcare is being absolutely abandoned, he said. NHS Devon figures show 6,287 people are on NHS dental waiting lists in North Devon and Torridge, of which 1,183 are children. Across Devon, almost 100,000 people are waiting to see a dentist. Cllr Patrinos said the "strange payment system" imposed by the government meant dentists receive the same payment from the NHS for a patient who requires 10 fillings as for a patient who needs just one. Treating a patient earns three Units of Dental Activity (UDA) points, regardless of the length and expense of the procedure. Every practice has to meet an annual UDA target. So there is no incentive to practise preventive dentistry, and every incentive to exclude the patients with the greatest needs. To make it even worse, the NHS allocates dental funding to areas, like Devon, on the assumption that about one in six people wont need any care and about one in three are treated privately. So funding is given for half the population, and the money per person isnt enough to pay for their treatment. He quoted an example from a dentist who said there is a 1,350 difference between what the NHS pays and private fees in the case of a patient needing four hours of surgery to extract two teeth and receive several fillings. Cllr Patrinos said there is no orthodontist in North Devon to adjust childrens braces as their mouths grow. He claimed that Ukrainian refugees in the district were flying back to their home country for dental treatment because they couldnt find it here. He said he had tried to get a NHS dentist to open in Lynton after 1,000 residents sign a petition, but it didnt come to fruition because of funding issues. Residents in this part of North Devon have to travel 20 miles to see a dentist, he said. Cllr David Clayton (Lib Dem, Barnstaple with Westacott) said dentistry had been flagged up by North Devons Conservative MP Selaine Saxby since she was elected and he hoped she would to more to raise the issue in parliament. Members agreed to write to her to ask her to make dentistry the thrust of a private members bill, which allow her to try to get an issue made law. Ms Saxby said last year the government reformed dental contracts so dental practices can maximise the number of NHS patients they can see. In April, dental contracts became the responsibility of Integrated Care Boards, and the government is considering how to speed up the recruitment of overseas dentists. But she said the changes are not happening soon enough. Whilst I welcome the long term plans the government is bringing in for more dentists in areas like North Devon, concrete steps need to be taken now so that peoples health is not negatively affected, she said. I urge everyone in North Devon to sign this petition which I will take back to Westminster as a demonstration of just how much immediate action is needed. The petition is at https://change.org/DentistsinNorthDevon As Interfaith Action continues its discussion series about the war on Gaza, the reality on the ground is becoming more bleak. At this point, northern Gaza is a wasteland, Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP), told her audience on 16 November. Israel spent the last 5 weeks literally turning northern Gaza into rubble. Friedman was speaking at the third discussion of a six-part virtual series about the war on Gaza, hosted by Interfaith Action of Southwest Michigan (swmichinterfaith.org), titled "Right to Live: Settlements, Displacement and Right of Return." She described the ongoing devastation as the second Nakba" and "humanitarian catastrophe." She recalled that at the start of the war, a senior official in the Israeli army said that at the end of this onslaught, Gaza will have no buildings. Only tents. Friedman believes him and predicts that Gaza will not be habitable for a very long time. People are dying of cholera, starvation, and thirst in their own homes, she said. At that point, no one has the luxury of fighting for national self-determination which is exactly where people who want to erase Palestinian nationalism want things to be. While unpacking the long and intricate history of the Palestinian struggle, Friedman said that the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians was always going to happen since the inception of Israel. In fact, as a Jewish American, Friedman said she grew up with the founding myth that Israel is a land without a people for a people without a land. That myth, she continued, deprived Palestinians of a sympathetic narrative that they are defending themselves against a colonial power Israel. The reality is that Palestinians fled out of fear, she explained. There were attacks and massacres, or they were actively pushed out. Old newsreels show the same thing we are seeing today in Gaza: people carrying what they can on their backs, walking long distances to get to refugee camps. In fact, 70 percent of the population in Gaza are refugees or descendants of refugees from the Nakba. Those are the same people who are refugees again today, because of current events, she said. Friedman said the US is essentially enabling ethnic cleansing, as its envoy to the Middle East David Satterfield is trying to convince Egypt to take in refugees from Gaza. Meanwhile, Congress is swiftly working to pass legislation to facilitate the process. The legislation was introduced last week by relatively progressive democrats titled "the Armed Conflict Migration Act," calling on the US to use its voice, vote, and authority in international financial institutions, to marshal financial support for countries that take in Palestinian migrants. We are already passing legislation on this, she added incredulously. This brought the discussion to the "Palestinian right of return" issue, which is directly related to displacement during the Nakba. Israel was seeking to create a Jewish state, which makes the Right of Return extremely fraught, Friedman explained. If you flood Israel with refugees, Israel will lose the demographic edge it has. While the "right of return" is a concept of international law that states civilians who are displaced in conflict have a right to return to where they came from, there is no implementing authority to ensure that this happens. Although Israel insists it is part of a community of nations that lives under international law, it has no interest to abide by international law when that conflicts with what it wants to do," she stated. The double standards on the world stage are also a huge hurdle. When talking about Russia, US leaders will say it is never OK to bomb schools and hospitals, said Friedman. But when it comes to Israel, they will say sometimes its OK to bomb schools and hospitals. Another complication mushroomed after the 1967 war, when Israel began an intensive project to build illegal Jewish settlements that continue to grow and expand to this day. The settlement enterprise has never stopped, declared Friedman. In fact, four weeks ago, Palestinians in the West Bank woke up to flyers on the streets in Arabic from settlers saying: Grab your stuff and flee to Jordan. If you dont, we will come and throw you out. Friedman said that settler violence has surged in recent years, and the past six weeks have witnessed a new era of displacement at the hands of settlers. Friedman also slammed Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu for his political doctrine that kept Hamas in power in Gaza, because that served his agenda of blocking a two-state solution. The ascension of Hamas in Gaza and its ability to remain in power is thanks to the Israeli government, she said. Congress is really big on stopping terrorist financing, but the bottom line is that money has been getting to Gaza for years because Israel is allowing it. Thats a very clear arrangement that Israel wanted. Held every Thursday, the virtual series is open for anyone to join from anywhere in the world. The next discussion is on 30 November, titled God in Conflict: Is It Faith or Politics? A New Lexicon. The guest speaker is Daniel Mate, acclaimed composer, lyricist, and playwright, who has been prolific on social media since the war on Gaza began. Search Keywords: Short link: Theodore Roosevelt was particularly fond of retelling the story of his pursuit and capture of the boat thieves in the badlands. He put the story on paper in his 1888 book Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail. In early spring of 1886, just as the ice was beginning to break up on the Little Missouri River, three thieves cut Roosevelts boat from its mooring at the Elkhorn Ranch and took it downriver. Roosevelt, out of personal pride and duty as a Billings County Deputy Sheriff, chased after them with his ranch hands Bill Sewall and Wilmot Dow. As you read the story, imagine the thrill of the entire event for Roosevelt. A spring flood is no trivial matter, and navigating a river jammed with ice and powerful currents is treacherous work. The weather was viciously cold. The men he was chasing were armed and dangerous. How might you have reacted to the theft of a replaceable boat when capturing the thieves was so time-consuming and dangerous? The story begins with the ice breaking up on the Little Missouri River at the Elkhorn Ranch in March, 1886: It moved slowly, its front forming a high, crumbling wall, and creaming over like an immense breaker on the seashore; we could hear the dull roaring and crunching as it ploughed down the river-bed long before it came in sight round the bend above us. The ice kept piling and tossing up in the middle, and not only heaped itself above the level of the banks, but also in many places spread out on each side beyond them, grinding against the cottonwood-trees in front of the ranch veranda." At night the snowy, glittering masses, tossed up and heaped into fantastic forms, shone like crystal in the moonlight; but they soon lost their beauty, becoming fouled and blackened, and at the same time melted and settled down until it was possible to clamber out across the slippery hummocks." Ice jam on the Little Missouri River NPS "We had brought out a clinker-built boat especially to ferry ourselves over the river when it was high, and were keeping our ponies on the opposite side. This boat had already proved very useful and now came in handier than ever, as without it we could take no care of our horses. We kept it on the bank, tied to a tree, and every day would carry it or slide it across the hither ice bank, usually with not a little tumbling and scrambling on our part, lower it gently into the swift current, pole it across to the ice on the farther bank, and then drag it over that On the other side, Roosevelt discovered evidence of mountain lions hunting deer among the bluffs. He followed the trail, but, after losing the trail, he headed back, determined to hunt the mountain lions the next day. But we never carried out our intentions, for next morning one of my men, who was out before breakfast, came back to the house with the startling news that our boat was gone stolen, for he brought with him the end of the rope with which it had been tied, evidently cut off with a sharp knife; and also a red woollen mitten with a leather palm, which he had picked up on the ice. " "We had no doubt as to who had stolen it; for whoever had done so had certainly gone down the river in it, and the only other thing in the shape of a boat on the Little Missouri was a small flat-bottomed scow in the possession of three hard characters who lived in a shack, or hut, some twenty miles above us, and whom we had shrewdly suspected for some time of wishing to get out of the country, as certain of the cattlemen had begun openly to threaten to lynch them. They belonged to a class that always holds sway during the raw youth of a frontier community, and the putting down of which is the first step toward decent government." "The three men we suspected had long been accused justly or unjustly of being implicated both in cattle-killing and in that worst of frontier crimes, horse-stealing; it was only by an accident that they had escaped the clutches of the vigilantes the preceding fall. Their leader was a well-built fellow named Finnigan, who had long red hair reaching to his shoulders, and always wore a broad hat and a fringed buckskin shirt. He was rather a hard case, and had been chief actor in a number of shooting scrapes. The other two were a half-breed, a stout, muscular man, and an old German, whose viciousness was of the weak and shiftless type.We had little doubt that it was they who had taken our boat "Accordingly we at once set to work in our turn to build a flat-bottomed scow wherein to follow them.In any wild country where the power of law is little felt or heeded, and where every one has to rely upon himself for protection, men soon get to feel that it is in the highest degree unwise to submit to any wrongno matter what cost of risk or trouble. To submit tamely and meekly to theft or to any other injury is to invite almost certain repetition of the offense, in a place where self-reliant hardihood and the ability to hold ones own under all circumstances rank as the first of virtues. "Two of my cowboys, Sewall and Dowset to work with a will, and, as by good luck there were plenty of boards, in two or three days they had turned out a first-class flat-bottom, which was roomy, drew very little water, and was dry as a bone; and though, of course, not a handy craft, was easily enough managed in going downstream. Into this we packed flour, coffee, and bacon enough to last us a fortnight or so, plenty of warm bedding, and the mess-kit; and early one cold March morning slid it into the icy current, took our seats, and shoved off down the river." Roosevelt had also brought along a copy of Tolstoys Anna Karenina, and a camera to document the capture. Roosevelt had also brought along a copy of Tolstoys Anna Karenina, and a camera to document the capture. "There could have been no better men for a trip of this kind than my two companions, Sewall and Dow. They were tough, hardy, resolute fellows, quick as cats, strong as bears, and able to travel like bull moose. "For three days, the three men navigated the icy, winding river among the colorful clay buttes hoping to take the thieves captive without a fight. A shootout was a concern, for Roosevelt noted that the extraordinary formation of the Bad Lands, with the ground cut up into cullies, serried walls, and battlemented hilltops, makes it the country of all others for hiding-places and ambuscades. However, Roosevelt was certain that the thieves would not suspect that he was in pursuit, for they had stolen virtually the only boat on the river. Roosevelt, Sewall, and Dow battled against the elements, too, enduring temperatures down to zero degrees Fahrenheit. Along the way, they passed a group of tepees, the deserted winter camp of some Gros-ventre Indians, which some of my men had visited a few months previously on a trading expedition. Through numbing cold, they continued their pursuit. "Finally our watchfulness was rewarded, for in the middle of the afternoon of this, the third day we had been gone, as we came around a bend, we saw in front of us the lost boat, together with a scow, moored against the bank, while from among the bushes some little way back the smoke of a camp-fire curled up through the frosty air. We had come on the camp of the thieves. As I glanced at the faces of my two followers I was struck by the grim, eager look in their eyes. Our overcoats were off in a second, and after exchanging a few muttered words, the boat was hastily and silently shoved toward the bank. As soon as it touched the shore ice I leaped out and ran up behind a clump of bushes, so as to cover the landing of the other, who had to make the boat fast. For a moment we felt a thrill of keen excitement and our veins tingled as we crept cautiously toward the fire, for it seemed likely that there would be a brush" "The men we were after knew they had taken with them the only craft there was on the river, and so felt perfectly secure; accordingly , we took them absolutely by surprise. The only one in camp was the German, whose weapons were on the ground, and who, of course, gave up at once, his two companions being off hunting. We made him safe, delegating one of our number to look after him particularly and see that he made no noise, and then sat down and waited for the others. The camp was under the lee of a cut bank, behind which we crouched, and, after waiting an hour or over, the men we were after came in. We heard them a long way off and made ready, watching them for some minutes as they walked toward us, their rifles on their shoulders and the sunlight glinting on the steel barrels. When they were within twenty yards or so we straightened up from behind the bank, covering them with our cocked rifles, while I shouted to them to hold up their hands an order that in such a case, in the West, a man is not apt to disregard if he thinks the giver is in earnest. The half-breed obeyed at once, his knees trembling for a second, his eyes fairly wolfish; then, as I walked up within a few paces, covering the centre of his chest so as to avoid overshooting, and repeating the command, he saw that he had no show, and, with an oath, let his rifle drop and held his hands up beside his head. Roosevelt kept watch over the captives as Sewall and Dow chopped firewood. I kept guard over the three prisoners, who were huddled into a sullen group some twenty yards off, just the right distance for the buckshot in the double-barrel. Unable to tie up their captives, for doing so meant, in all likelihood, freezing both hands and feet off during the night, the captives were made to remove their boots, as it was a cactus country, in which a man could travel barefoot only at the risk of almost certainly laming himself for life. Roosevelt kept watch over the captives as Sewall and Dow chopped firewood. I kept guard over the three prisoners, who were huddled into a sullen group some twenty yards off, just the right distance for the buckshot in the double-barrel. Unable to tie up their captives, for doing so meant, in all likelihood, freezing both hands and feet off during the night, the captives were made to remove their boots, as it was a cactus country, in which a man could travel barefoot only at the risk of almost certainly laming himself for life. By this time they were pretty well cowed, as they found out very quickly that they would be well treated so long as they remained quiet, but would receive some rough handling if they attempted any disturbance. Next morning we started downstream, having a well-laden flotilla, for the men we had caught had a good deal of plunder in their boots, including some saddles.... Finnigan, who was the ringleader, and the man I was especially after, I kept by my side in our boat, the other two being put in their own scow, heavily laden and rather leaky, and with only one paddle. We kept them just in front of us, a few yards distant, the river being so broad that we knewany attempt to escape to be perfectly hopeless. Upon reaching an impassable ice jam in the river, Roosevelt, Sewall, and Dow debated how to proceed. Unwilling to abandon their supplies, they chose to wait for the icy river began to flow again. I kept guard over the three prisoners, who were huddled into a sullen group some twenty yards off, just the right distance for the buckshot in the double-barrel. Harvard College Library Theodore Roosevelt Collection "The next eight days were as irksome and monotonous as any I ever spent: there is very little amusement in combining the functions of a sheriff with those of an arctic explorer. The weather kept as cold as ever." "We had to be additionally cautious on account of being in the Indian country, having worked down past Killdeer Mountains, where some of my cowboys had run across a band of Sioux said to be Tetons the year before. Very probably the Indians would not have harmed us anyhow, but as we were hampered by the prisoners, we preferred not meeting them; nor did we, though we saw plenty of fresh signs, and found, to our sorrow, that they had just made a grand hunt all down the river, and had killed or driven off almost every head of game in the country through which we were passing." "If the time was tedious to us, it must have seemed never-ending to our prisoners, who had nothing to do but to lie still and read, or chew the bitter cud of their reflections. They had quite a stock of books, some of a rather unexpected kind. Dime novels and the inevitable History of the James Brothers As for me, I had brought with me Anna Karenina, and my surroundings were quite grey enough to harmonize well with Tolstoi." Low on supplies by the time they reached the C Diamond ranch, Roosevelt, Sewall and Dow decided to split up; Sewall and Dow would continue downriver and Roosevelt would march the prisoners overland to Dickinson. Before Sewall and Dow proceeded downriver, Roosevelt borrowed a pony and rode to the nearest ranch, where he hired the settler to drive his prairie schooner with two bronco mares. The settler could hardly understand why I took so much bother with the thieves instead of hanging them offhand. Roosevelt soon found the safest plan was to put the prisoners in the wagon and myself walk behind with the inevitable Winchester." "Accordingly I trudged steadily the whole time behind the wagon through the ankle-deep mud. It was a gloomy walk. Hour after hour went by always the same, while I plodded along through the dreary landscape hunger, cold, and fatigue struggling with a sense of dogged, weary resolution." So, after thirty-six hours sleeplessness, I was most heartily glad when we at last jolted into the long, straggling main street of Dickinson, and I was able to give my unwilling companions into the hands of the sheriff. Under the laws of Dakota I received my fees as a deputy sheriff for making the three arrests, and also mileage for the three hundred odd miles gone over a total of some fifty dollars. That Roosevelt went to such lengths to bring these three criminals to justice was uncommon in his time and place. Such magnanimity was not overlooked by the captives. Writing to Roosevelt from prison some time later, Mike Finnigan closed a letter, P.S. Should you stop over at Bismarck this fall make a call to the Prison. I should be glad to meet you. Q: What happens to an inheritance if an heir dies before the estate distributes their share? Does it go to the other heirs? A: Like everything in estate planning, it depends on the situation and the terms of the decedents estate plan. When a beneficiary dies before the decedent, a couple of things can happen. If they died intestate, without a will, the intestate statutes determine who receives a decedents property. Indiana has an anti-lapse statute that might direct the predeceased beneficiaries share to their lineal descendants, if they left any. The anti-lapse statute doesnt always apply but when it does, it can make sure a predeceased beneficiarys interest doesnt lapse. Things are different if the beneficiary survives the decedent but passes before their interest in the estate has been distributed. Those situations depend entirely on circumstances. If the decedent died testate, the will should be reviewed to see if it addresses the situation when a beneficiary passes before their distribution is made. Often times a will has a provision that provides that a beneficiary must outlive the decedent by a certain number of days, such as 60 or 90. If the beneficiary fails to survive that long, they are treated as if they predeceased the decedent and the will determines where the property goes. If the will doesnt have that type of survivorship language, or if the decedent died intestate, you likely have a double probate situation. Under those circumstances, the beneficiarys estate plan will control. Essentially, the beneficiarys distributive share is treated as a probate asset and is administered according to the beneficiarys estate plan. That means the beneficiarys estate plan will determines how the property is administered, not the original decedents. To be honest, it doesnt happen all that frequently. However, I have seen it on a number of occasions over the years. The times that I have seen it occur usually involved siblings of similar age. Its rare but it happens. The best way to plan around this potential situation is to plan. As I indicated, wills often times have a provision that addresses beneficiaries that pass before final distribution. Trusts can include survivorship language as well. If you are concerned, call your attorney and set up an appointment. I am confident that your attorney can draft appropriate language to address the concern. GARY A 2-year-old boy is dead after a family member accidently shot him. Samir Gill was pronounced dead at 8:21 p.m. Friday at Northlake Methodist Hospital after suffering a gunshot wound to the head, according to Lake County Coroner David Pastrick. The shooting occurred at the boy's home in the 2100 block of Georgia Street, with Gary police being called to the residence around 7:20 p.m. In a joint statement on Saturday afternoon, Mayor Jerome Prince and Gary Police Department Chief Anthony Titus said their hearts and prayers go out to the family members of the 2-year-old. "We understand nothing we say will ease the pain these tragedies cause in our community," they said in the statement. They also emphasized the need for safe gun ownership, reminding residents free gun locks are available at the Gary Police station, 555 Polk St. "Clearly, we must do more to protect our community members from accidents like these," they said. The 2-year-old's death is the fifth accidental shooting death since last July. In August, a 5-year-old Gary boy died after reportedly getting ahold of a handgun. PHOTOS: New mural at Hammond's Advanced Engineering Services Advanced Engineering Services gets a new mural completed by Felix Maldonado Jr. Advanced Engineering Services gets a new mural completed by Felix Maldonado Jr. Advanced Engineering Services gets a new mural completed by Felix Maldonado Jr. Advanced Engineering Services gets a new mural completed by Felix Maldonado Jr. Advanced Engineering Services gets a new mural completed by Felix Maldonado Jr. Advanced Engineering Services gets a new mural completed by Felix Maldonado Jr. Advanced Engineering Services gets a new mural completed by Felix Maldonado Jr. CHICAGO Since late last year, the Field Museum one of the most prestigious natural sciences museums in the world has been displaying an exhibit that tells the story of the Calumet Region. "Calumet Voices, National Stories" was a collaboration among more than 15 museums and libraries across the bi-state Calumet Region in the Calumet River watershed in Northwest Indiana and Illinois. It shines a spotlight on the industrial heritage, steelmaking, ethnic diversity, landscapes and natural wonders along the sand dune-ridged south shore of Lake Michigan. It's put the Region front and center in a museum that draws up to 2 million visitors a year to its permanent exhibits, including tourists from all over the world. But "Calumet Voices, National Stories" ends soon, closing on Dec. 3 after more than a year. "It's meant a lot for the Region, as far as I can tell. When you stand on our south steps you can see the Dunes and the mills, but by being in the exhibit it seems like now you can see the people and hear their voices," said Senior Environmental Social Scientist Mark Bouman. "So that's a great impact for people who know the region well to be able to connect their own stories with what is in the exhibit. And, no doubt, it's also raised the Region's profile to the more than a million people from around the world who will visit the Field Museum this year." The exhibit features art, maps, photomurals, steel mill signage and a recently rediscovered 10-foot-tall steel slab with welding by some of the first women to work in local steel mills, who became steelworkers during World War II. Displays depict the Whiting landscape, show the flow of the Grand Calumet River and explain how bird feathers reflect the amount of air pollution. "A lot of folks asked specifically when they or their group could come to see the exhibit. These include groups from non-profits, college classes, church groups, an architecture firm, scholars, political leaders and a tour bus full of regional leaders that started at Purdue Northwest," Bouman said. "We built the 24th annual Calumet Heritage Conference around the exhibit and used it to springboard a great discussion about museums and heritage areas that wrapped in not only organizations that contributed to the exhibit, but others that talked about Gary Union Station and Marktown. It's been especially fun to see folks look at the exhibit with thoughts about how it could inform their exhibit like the group of retired steelworkers that is working with the Museum of Science and Industry to plan a future steel exhibit." Parts of the exhibit were previously displayed at the Porter County Museum, the Pullman National Historical Park, the Hammond Public Library and the Gary Public Library and Cultural Center. The exhibit features a massive 1973 tapestry commissioned by Bethlehem Steel. It has steel mill badges that show the ethnic diversity of the area, as well as artifacts of Jean Shepherd, the Jackson 5 and other notable figures. Black-and-white photos reveal local history, including how local ice cutters harvested ice that was used to refrigerate meat that was shipped from the State Line Slaughterhouse in Hammond and from Chicago slaughterhouses all over the country. "The exhibit has created interest in the South Shore Visitors and Convention Authority to bring some or all of the exhibit to the Indiana Visitors Center in Hammond," Calumet Heritage Partnership Board Chair Gary Johnson said. "Discussions with the Field Museum and the lenders of several pieces are in the exhibit are underway. The exhibit started in 2019 at the Pullman National Historic Park, traveled to the Gary Public Library and Cultural Center, then to the Porter County Museum, before going to the Field Museum. Each stop featured different artifacts and they were brought together at the Field. To bring that expanded collection back to Northwest Indiana for residents and visitors to see at the Indiana Visitors Center would provide additional impact to this rich display of the heritage of the Calumet." The exhibit should help with the ongoing push to get the Calumet Region declared a National Heritage area, which would help raise its profile and mean a big boost for marketing. "I think it has elevated and strengthened the case that the Region deserves national designation as a heritage area. The objects and themes on display are linked to the case for the national significance of the region," Bouman said. "The feedback we've gotten from visitors as well as with folks we've talked about it in the region is that this message resonates and that they're very pleased to see the Region spotlighted in this way." Longtime businessman Albert S. Cohen ran a furniture store in downtown Gary until he was nearly 90, maintaining a retail presence there long after most other stores skipped town. Cohen, who's been described as downtown Gary's "last man standing," died Nov. 13 in Las Vegas at the age of 98 years old. He's a recipient of the key to the city and the Sagamore of the Wabash, Indiana's highest civilian honor. He was a Chicago native and longtime resident of Chicago and Gary before recently moving to Las Vegas. Cohen ran Union United at 761 Washington St. for 59 years. Despite being helped up more than a dozen times, he ran the furniture store until he retired at the age of 89 years old in 2014. "He was essentially the last man standing in downtown Gary," said Bill Choslovsky, whose father, Sydney Choslovsky, a longtime doctor at the Methodist Hospitals in Gary and Merrillville, was Cohen's best friend. "He was a down-to-earth, no-nonsense guy his customers loved. They came to him because they couldnt get credit anywhere else, meaning theyd have no furniture but for Albert. Albert knew hed get left holding the bag on many but never seemed to mind." He furnished countless homes in the steel city over the decades. Cohen served as a Marine in World War II, fighting in the Pacific Theater. His brother Joseph Cohen was killed at the age of 20 at the Battle of the Bulge. He married the love of his life, the Gary native Shirley Alterwitz whom he proposed to two weeks after their first date, who died 60 years ago. He raised their children, Joseph Cohen and Devi Leiner, as a single father after he was widowed. Cohen opened his store in 1955 at a time when people dressed up to shop at downtown Gary businesses like Woolworth's, J.C. Penney and Goldblatt's Department Store. It grew as big as 37,000 square feet and outlasted countless other downtown businesses like the Palace Theater. "It was booming downtown. Broadway was like Chicago, a mini-State Street. There were stores all the way up and down Washington Street. It wasn't like Broadway, but they were all viable," he told The Times. But the city suffered a steep decline as the steel industry shrunk, white flight followed the election of trailblazing African American Mayor Richard Hatcher, blight started cropping up and crime rose. Gary's population fell by more than 55% since its 1960 peak and the businesses surrounding Union United all went under or left. Cohen kept it open despite being robbed at gunpoint, seeing a neighboring building burn down and having days where not a single customer walked through the door. A widower since 1963, he considered the store his mistress. "You become attached to a community and the friends you make there," he said. "Gary's been very good to me. I could have left and moved back to Chicago, but my heart has always been here. I have a lot of fond memories here. I like Gary. I'm eternally optimistic and always hoped it would come back," he told The Times. He ran an old-school store with an adding machine to tally up purchases and a "rate schedule" that read that "answers are $1, answers that require thought are $2, and correct answers are $4, but dumb looks are still free." State Rep. Charlie Brown surprised him with the Sagamore of the Wabash when he went to visit his dentist, Dr. James Lipton, in Highland. "My learned, physician father often said that Albert was the smartest guy he knew, though Albert barely graduated high school. So Albert was a de facto uncle to me my whole life," Choslovsky said. "Albert retired to Vegas in 2014 after closing his store in Gary after 59 years and was given the key to the city by Mayor Karen Freeman. When he did, I flew out for his 90th birthday to take him to dinner at the fancy Bellagio hotel. He drove himself to dinner in his electric car. During dinner, he checked his iPhone (most current version and he knew how to use every feature), flirted with the waitress, and gave me cogent stock market tips. At the end of dinner, I said to him: 'Albert, as long you keep having birthdays, Ill keep flying out to take you to dinner. Albert then looks me square in the eye, and says: 'Well, then you better live a long time.'" He kept taking him for dinner until he was 98 years old. Cohen kept driving until he was 96. He told Choslovsky, Billy, what matters is what you do, and how you treat people, when no one else is looking. "He fought his way through the Pacific in World War II, and lost his brother in the Battle of the Bulge. His wife Shirley died getting her tonsils removed, leaving him a young widow to raise two kids on his own, which was unheard of back then and he did so without complaint," he said. "A good looking personable guy, he never remarried because he forever remained in love with Shirley. After a 60-year wait, he got his wish as we buried him with military honors next to her in Portage." Influential First Lady And so he will, on July 1, in the latest example of the emerging political power of Mrs. Carter. White House aides consider her the most influential First Lady since Eleanor Roosevelt, and some senior aides say that she is even more influential than Mrs. Roosevelt was in her political role in the White House. Mrs. Carter's involvement in the affairs of state has ranged from her support of Walter Mondale as Mr. Carter's running mate to her urging the President to stand by Bert Lance during the investigation of his banking practices. She has lobbied successfully for changes in Federal funding, has affected policy, has promoted her own candidates and has generally served as an allpurpose adviser to the President. Attends CabinetMeetings Mrs. Carter was involved in all the major personnel changes that grew out of the summit conference at Camp David, Md., last month. She sat in on all the meetings that the President held with his Cabinet and with top White House aides, taking notes that served as reminders for future Presidential actions and writing down her own recommendations. The First Lady also attends Cabinet meetings. If I didn't, there's no way I could discuss things with Jimmy in an intelligent way, she said in an interview in her office. She just has a very good mind and political sense and doesn't hesitate to tell the President what she thinks, Hamilton Jordan, the de facto chief of staff, said. Whenever I think the President is pursuing an unwise course of action and I strike out with him, I try to get her on my side. The island would go on to receive scores, if not hundreds, of people who died during the AIDS epidemic, which during the 1980s and 1990s killed more than 100,000 people in New York, about a quarter of AIDS deaths nationwide during the same period. Trying to pin down the precise number of those with AIDS buried on Hart Island is difficult. A longstanding stigma about the island and criticism that the burial practices are crude and outdated have made city officials reluctant to provide many details. Officials at several city agencies involved in the burials refused interview requests to discuss the issue and insisted that no data or any other information was available on AIDS burials. But piecing together an estimate is possible by surveying the many hospitals that treated AIDS patients during the epidemic and sent bodies to potters field. By that accounting, the number of AIDS burials on Hart Island could reach into the thousands, making it perhaps the single largest burial ground in the country for people with AIDS. It is an untold chapter of the AIDS crisis, but in recent years some of the islands secrets have started to tumble out largely because of the work of a longtime activist whose legal pressure has wrested information from the city, giving relatives of people with AIDS answers they have long sought. One of them, Elsie Soto, 35, of the Bronx, learned recently that her father, Norbert Soto, who died in 1993 from AIDS, is buried on the island. 31 premature babies were evacuated from Gaza's main hospital, Al-Shifa on Sunday and will be transferred to Egypt, Palestinian health officials said, as scores of other critically wounded patients remained stranded there days after Israeli forces stormed the compound. The fate of the newborns at Al-Shifa Hospital captured global attention after the release of images showing doctors trying to keep them warm. A power blackout had shut down incubators and other equipment, and food, water and medical supplies ran out as Israeli forces besieged the hospital. A World Health Organization team that visited the hospital on Saturday said 291 patients were still there, including 32 babies in extremely critical condition, trauma patients with severely infected wounds, and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. Medhat Abbas, a spokesman for the ministry, confirmed the evacuation of 30 babies. The Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service said it evacuated 31 babies in coordination with U.N. bodies. It said they would be transferred to a hospital run by the United Arab Emirates in the Egyptian city of Rafah. There was no immediate comment from the WHO, and it was not clear if all the babies had been evacuated. Initialy, the WHO said 32 babies remain at the hospital, Underscoring the perils of movement inside the coastal enclave, Doctors Without Borders said a convoy of clearly marked vehicles carrying staff and their families was fired upon in Gaza City on Saturday. A relative of a staff member was killed and another person was injured, the aid group said. About 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff were focred to leave Shifa Hospital on Saturday morning, the WHO said. It said 25 medical staff remained, along with the patients. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa, without providing evidence to support its allegations even after the invasion of the hospital, Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations, and critics have held up the hospital as a symbol of Israel's reckless endangerment of civilians. About 12,000 have been killed in Israeli strikes, and there are severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel in the besieged territory. Search Keywords: Short link: Once upon a time 1976, in fact a beautiful, poor 18-year-old Lebanese waitress named Mouna Ayoub was cleaning tables in Paris. She caught the eye of an older man, a billionaire from Saudi Arabia. They married, and he soon whisked her away from France to a life of gilded splendor in the desert kingdom. A rags-to-riches story but not exactly a fairy tale. Ms. Ayoub was often lonely and unhappy. To distract herself, she threw herself into a new pastime: buying clothes. Not just any clothes, but haute couture looks made to order by a handful of Parisian houses that can cost anywhere from $10,000 to $300,000. Today Ms. Ayoub, who divorced her husband in 1997, owns more than 2,700 pieces, making her collection of haute couture one of the worlds largest. On Nov. 20, 252 pieces designed by Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel will go on sale in Paris. The sale, called the Golden Years of Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel From the Mona Ayoub Haute Couture Collection, is organized by Maurice Auction in Paris and the British fashion auctioneer Kerry Taylor. The pieces are from the early 1990s to 2014 and include embroidered lace evening gowns, sequined cocktail suits and classic wool crepe jackets, along with classic flap bags, belts, jewelry and shoes. Sam Altman, the tech entrepreneur who was removed as chief executive of OpenAI on Friday by its board of directors, is in the process of pitching a new artificial intelligence start-up to investors, according to three people familiar with his plans. Mr. Altman plans to launch the initiative with his longtime partner and co-founder Greg Brockman, OpenAIs former president who stepped down in solidarity with Mr. Altman on Friday, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the plans for the new company are not yet public. Details on the potential company are scarce, because Mr. Altman and Mr. Brockman are still working through what it will be. Plans could change quickly, as the pair are keeping a wide range of options open, the sources said. OpenAIs board of directors shocked the tech industry on Friday when it abruptly fired Mr. Altman from his position as chief executive. By Friday night, the two men were already working on their plans to pitch investors on their next venture. The Information first reported on their plans for a new initiative. Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, two top executives at OpenAI who left the company after a dramatic board meeting on Friday, are talking again with board members about returning to the artificial intelligence start-up, two people with knowledge of the matter said. The discussions follow an outcry after Mr. Altman, 38, was ousted from his role as OpenAIs chief executive. Since then, OpenAIs investors and Mr. Altmans supporters have pressured the board members of the start-up to bring Mr. Altman back, six people with knowledge of the situation said. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because the talks are confidential. Microsoft, which has invested $13 billion in OpenAI, was leading the pressure campaign, one of the people said. OpenAI investors who have expressed support for Mr. Altman to be reinstated were also willing to invest if he were to start a new company, something he began discussing almost immediately after he was forced out, people with knowledge of the situation said. There is no guarantee that Mr. Altman or Mr. Brockman will be reinstated at OpenAI, the people said. Because of OpenAIs unique structure it is controlled by a nonprofit and its board has the power to govern the activities of the subsidiary, where its A.I. work is done the companys investors have no official say in what happens to the start-up or who leads it. With just under two months until the Iowa caucuses, former President Donald J. Trump on Saturday returned to the state and made explicit a campaign strategy that he had only hinted at for months. Speaking in a crowded high school gym, Mr. Trump made clear that he saw a decisive victory in the first Republican nominating contest as the swiftest path to end the Republican primary and focus on a general election race against President Biden. You know, we have to send a great signal, Mr. Trump said. Referring to his Republican rivals, he added, And then maybe these people say, OK, its over now. After his speech concluded, Mr. Trump also made a departure from his normal rally routine. The former president, who has largely eschewed the retail politicking characteristic of the state, stuck around for roughly 10 minutes to pose for pictures and shake voters hands. On a clear late summer day in 1976, a plane popped up on the radar just off the coast of the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. It had been flying a mere 100 feet off the water, low enough to avoid detection. Now, suddenly, it climbed up to 20,000 feet. Clearly, the pilot wanted to be seen. The aircraft flew toward the southwestern port city of Hakodate. It circled the airport twice, then prepared to land. The plane, identifiable now as a Soviet fighter jet, nearly collided with a 727 airliner as it touched down. It plowed past the end of the tarmac, blew out its front wheel and came to a stop not far from a busy highway. As ground crews rushed toward it, the planes canopy opened. A sturdy blond man emerged with a gun and fired two shots in the air to warn onlookers away. When the authorities arrived, he climbed down to meet them. His name was Lt. Viktor Belenko. He was there to defect, he said, along with his jet, a supersonic interceptor called a MiG-25. The plane had stoked fear among Western militaries for years. Now, thanks to Lieutenant Belenko, they had a pristine specimen to examine. George Bush, then the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, called the incident an intelligence bonanza. Making his second appearance in the role of President Biden, Mikey Day was quickly overshadowed by a sassy panda played by Bowen Yang in a Saturday Night Live sketch that parodied a presidential news conference from earlier this week. Day, who became the shows latest Biden impersonator at the end of October, wished the audience a happy Thanksgiving and said hed try to keep things on the rails by sticking to his teleprompter. I had a great meeting with President Roman numeral 11, Day said. Excuse me, President Xi. This meeting was a total win. Sure, we made agreements about communications, fentanyl, climate change. But most importantly we got the thing America really needs right now: more pandas. After dodging news reporters questions about his age and the Mexican border, Day introduced Bowen Yang as Tian Tian, a giant panda that Washington returned to China earlier this month. The answer may well be yes, but Herron is more attuned to the earlier part of his career the part where nothing went well than he is to the vertiginous turn in his fortunes. He has a quiet, self-effacing manner, and as he spoke on a wildly wet autumn afternoon, it was occasionally difficult to hear him over the sound of the rain bucketing down outside his living room. I empathize more with failures than I do with successes, he said. Looking back, I remain at a stage where Ive been a failure for longer than Ive been a success. So until it balances out, Ill always feel that way. Herron has been compared to John le Carre for the intricacy of his plotting and the thoroughness of his world building, though the two men differ greatly in tone and in focus. He has also been compared to Charles Dickens and P.G. Wodehouse for his lacerating descriptions and delight in the absurd. (Theres also a touch of Armando Iannucci, the creator of The Thick of It and Veep, in Herrons jaundiced depiction of political bungling and infighting.) But the author remains mostly insulated from the praise, and indeed from much of the outside world. He has a 10-year-old Nokia phone that he uses for calling, texting and checking the time. (Its also a torch, he noted, using the British word for flashlight.) During the pandemic, he moved in with his partner, Jo Howard, an executive-search consultant for the publishing industry, but he has no Wi-Fi in his old house, where he spends his days writing. Theres a mordant theme to this months column; in three of the four books, dark humor undercuts despair and sardonic wit compensates for failure. Nowhere are these traits more on display than in DEATH OF THE RED RIDER (Pushkin Vertigo, 396 pp., paperback, $16.95), the second appearance of Yulia Yakovlevas Stalin-era detective, Vasily Zaitsev, who goes about the ordinary business of solving murders while communities around him in 1930s Russia are purged and exiled en masse. This time Zaitsev is dispatched to Novocherkassk, a Soviet cavalry school in the south of Russia, to investigate the horrifying death of a famous rider and his horse midrace. Soon hes given an assistant he didnt ask for, Comrade Zoya Sokolova, who arrives with her own agenda. The events aided by Ruth Ahmedzai Kemps nimble translation unfold slowly, but hold the readers attention. Babies evacuated from Al-Shifa Hospital Nearly four days after the Israeli military stormed the biggest hospital in the Gaza Strip, the World Health Organization described the complex as a death zone where several patients had died because medical services had been shut down. There were 291 patients remaining at Al-Shifa Hospital, the U.N. agency said in a statement late Saturday after Israeli forces allowed a U.N. team to tour the facility for an hour. Israel has yet to provide conclusive proof of a subterranean military base at the hospital. Yesterday, 31 premature babies in extremely critical condition were taken to Al-Helal Emirati Maternity Hospital in Rafah, in the enclaves south, the Palestine Red Crescent Society and the W.H.O. said on social media. About 10,000 more people left for southern Gaza on Saturday using a route designated by the Israeli military, according to U.N. estimates. Read the latest. Hostages: Israel and Hamas are close to reaching a deal to pause fighting for multiple days so that hostages can be released, but Jon Finer, President Bidens deputy national security adviser, warned yesterday that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. A beautiful person is so often a confrontation. Even in silence, symmetrical features announce their presence and elicit a reaction: desire, admiration, curiosity, resentment, belittlement, rage or envy. The response is rarely neutral. In this way, beautiful people are different from comedians who have to work for a crowds attention. Comics choreograph their lines, pauses and gestures to get a laugh. Then they practice, and fail, and practice more. Why would an attractive person toil for a reaction if they dont have to? This is why my colleague Jason Zinoman, The Timess comedy critic, recently chose to disclose a bias of his: He is skeptical of attractive men in comedy. And he isnt alone. The conventional wisdom is that male comics need to be relatable, not hot, lest their beauty distract from the bit. But that may be changing. Stand-up stages are crawling with beautiful men. Chris Rock is showing off his abs. Jimmy Fallon smiles boyishly on late night. Trevor Noah and his dimples date actresses. An industry once known for nerdy, affable guys Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Newhart, Jim Gaffigan is becoming another venue for charmers. One annoyed late night writer complained to his peers: Youve let the popular kids appropriate the very art form that helped you deal. Ahead of World Children's Day on 20 November, the League of Arab States voiced profound concern over the "distressing plight of children in the Gaza Strip." The organization said it appeals to the international community to fulfil their obligations to safeguard Palestinian children amidst ongoing atrocities, genocide, and heinous crimes committed by the Israeli army, which has already claimed the lives of thousands of Palestinian children. The league called on the international community to enforce resolutions and laws protecting children as outlined in the Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict (1974), Declaration on the Rights of the Child (1959), International Conventions on the Rights of the Child (1989), and optional protocols to the convention. It also condemned the "inhumane and unconscionable acts of violence perpetrated by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian people, which threaten their very existence and future." The league reiterated that every Palestinian child is entitled to live a life that is free, dignified, secure, and peaceful on their own land, devoid of fear, displacement, and all forms of violence. It also emphasized that the Palestinian children have the absolute right to protection under occupation. Acknowledging the urgency of the situation, the pan-Arab organization urged joint and resolute efforts to prevent further loss of innocent lives among Palestinian children. In commemoration of World Childrens Day, the league will release a video documenting the arduous hardships and challenges faced by Palestinian children in Gaza. Search Keywords: Short link: The abrupt ouster of Sam Altman on Friday as chief executive of OpenAI, one of the worlds most prominent A.I. companies and the maker of ChatGPT, set off a head-spinning series of twists that culminated late Tuesday with Mr. Altmans reinstatement at the company he founded and pledges to overhaul the way OpenAI is run. The turmoil highlighted an unresolved debate over artificial intelligence, which many see as the most important new technology since web browsers but also a potential source of danger if misused. Heres what you need to know about Mr. Altmans departure, his return and what could happen next. What kicked this off? On Friday, Mr. Altman was dismissed as OpenAIs chief executive. A dispute with a colleague appears to have played a role. Ilya Sutskever, a board member who founded OpenAI with Mr. Altman and several others, was said to be growing alarmed that the companys technology could pose a significant risk, and that Mr. Altman was not paying close enough attention to the potential harms. He and three other members of OpenAIs six-member board decided to dismiss Mr. Altman. What charges may catch me by surprise? Facilities often have nonrecurring initial charges, like move-in fees or community fees. You should ask whether there are extra charges for things residents might need or use, like nurse visits, cable television or other kinds of assistance: Such charges can pile up quickly if theyre not detailed as included in the care plan. Some places even charge more if you get medications from a pharmacy other than the one they have a business relationship with. Its worth checking a few months after moving in to see if the care plan is more than the resident needs. If so, ask for the price to be lowered to remove services that arent being used. Is it better to go with a facility that charges a set monthly amount or one that bills for each service? If you want predictability in your monthly bill, youre safer with a facility that is all-inclusive or that charges by tiers or bundled services. Thats also true if you need assistance with many things. If you dont need a lot of help, a la carte may be better. Some facilities have an independent living wing or a program with a la carte pricing, which may be best for those who need only sporadic assistance. If you need more help as time goes on, you can transition to the assisted-living section or program and get a care bundle. What happens when a resident ages and becomes frailer? Care plans for those needing the most assistance can be double or triple the cost of those for the most independent residents. Ask the facility to explain what causes price increases. Be honest with yourself, and the facility, about what you can afford when the bill rises, because its going to. Youve got to understand your future is coming, said Karen Van Dyke, a certified senior adviser in San Diego who helps families find the right facility for them. He was excited when he talked about it, Mr. Morales said recently. He said, Dont you think its honorable? I said, No, its stupid. I said, David, why are you telling me about this? They were two men who had found meaning in composting, but also the fatalism that vexes many in the environmental movement, the knowledge that the work they do is never enough. As they walked together that night Mr. Morales before heading home to East Harlem, Mr. Buckel before returning to his husband in brownstone Brooklyn their lives were heading in very different directions. On April 14, 2018, about a year after their discussion about the Tibetan monks, Mr. Buckel texted the younger man to say he was not coming to the compost site that morning. Then he sent a lengthy email to associates and the media, and went into Prospect Park. Mr. Morales did not read the email right away. He was used to long emails from his mentor, often grim reports of environmental catastrophes. I thought, Oh, God, another article, Mr. Morales said. So I skimmed. A bit later, Mr. Morales returned to the email. There was a reference to self-immolation. Why would David send such a depressing email so early in the morning? I was a little aggravated, Mr. Morales said. John Roca cruised through Midtown Manhattan on a recent night just as the streetlights flicked on, his camera in the back seat of his sedan. It had been a slow day for Mr. Roca, a photojournalist who has chased breaking news in New York City for a half-century. He knows what fewer and fewer reporters do: how to decipher the codes that come over a police scanner, a device that broadcasts radio communications between 911 dispatchers and officers who respond to emergencies. There is an art to monitoring the radios, Mr. Roca said, and he has a knack for knowing what mayhem might make ink. At 7:54 p.m., as he drove south along Ninth Avenue near 34th Street, a 10-30 dispatch came over: code for a robbery in progress. Officers were heading to the scene. This one might have legs, Mr. Roca said, and he punched the cars accelerator. His way of news gathering has existed for decades. But a new $500 million radio system the New York Police Department introduced this past summer encrypts officers communications, meaning the public, including members of the press, will no longer be able to listen in. The project will take at least five years to complete, though some frequencies have already gone dark. To the Editor: Re Kids Arent the Ones With the Cellphone Problem, by Pamela Paul (column, Nov. 10): How ironic for Ms. Paul to suggest that we can teach kids to be safe, responsible and independent by taking away their access to a device that so many of their parents cling to throughout their days. It makes sense for schools to ban cellphone use during classroom time, as many already do, but how does removing access to cellphones outside the classroom benefit students? If schools really want to teach kids to be responsible and independent, they should have discussions with their students about which restrictions on their cellphone use can be beneficial academically, socially or personally, and which are unnecessary, or even counterproductive. Keith Holzmueller Evanston, Ill. To the Editor: Try teaching a student whose boyfriend broke up with her via text between classes. A dam burst last week on the right, and a wave of grotesque antisemitism poured out all over the internet. In August, I wrote about the lost boys of the American right, many of them young and relatively unknown, who were outed for having secret or anonymous online profiles and using those profiles to spread raw bigotry, including antisemitism. Some of these people worked for the right wings biggest names, including Tucker Carlson, Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump. What started in the shadows is now right in the open. Its being advanced by some of the most powerful and influential people in America, and there is nothing subtle about it. The latest eruption started with a fight between the Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro and his Daily Wire colleague Candace Owens. Both are immensely popular right-wing stars. Owens, for example, has more than four million followers on X, formerly known as Twitter, and more than five million on Instagram. On Nov. 3, Owens posted on social media, No government anywhere has a right to commit a genocide, ever. There is no justification for a genocide. I cant believe this even needs to be said or is even considered the least bit controversial to state. Many of her followers interpreted this as a criticism of Israel, and Shapiro, who staunchly supports Israel in its present conflict with Hamas, was later caught on tape at a private event saying Owenss behavior during the war has been disgraceful. Daily Wire drama should be of little interest to anyone outside The Daily Wire, but what happened next was truly alarming. First, Jason Whitlock, a leading personality at The Blaze, one of the largest right-wing websites, accused Shapiro of dual loyalties: The guy has multiple loyalties. He loves America, but he loves Israel too. And maybe he loves Israel and he loves America too. Owens, he said, is a bit more America first. She only has one loyalty. Then Owens went on Carlsons show on X, where he ranted against the biggest donors at, say, Harvard, asking where they were when members of the Harvard community were calling for white genocide. White genocide is a term of art on the racist right and is linked to the so-called great replacement theory, the notion that leftists (including Jewish progressives) are trying to import people of color to replace Americas white majority. This is the theory that motivated the shooter in the Tree of Life synagogue massacre in Pittsburgh. It is false, evil and very dangerous. The same day, an obscure far-right personality posted the same conspiracy theory on X: Jewish communities have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. Im deeply disinterested, he continued, in giving the tiniest shit now about western Jewish populations coming to the disturbing realization that those hordes of minorities that support flooding their country dont exactly like them too much. The post wouldnt be notable, except as yet another example of the bigoted filth that dominates discourse on X, but Elon Musk the worlds richest man and the owner of X responded with an endorsement. You have said the actual truth, he replied. Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, one of the largest right-wing youth organizations in the country, jumped in the next day to defend both the original post and Musk on The Charlie Kirk Show. While he hedged by saying that he doesnt like to generalize, Kirk argued that the first part of the original post is absolutely true. He then reread the post and repeated the old Jews-and-money trope: It is true that some of the largest financiers of left-wing anti-white causes have been Jewish Americans. While there are more examples of right-wing antisemitism spilling into the public square, Im going to stop there. I by no means want to minimize the antisemitism weve seen from the far left, including on campuses and in the streets, but I am focusing on the people I just mentioned because they are some of the most prominent figures on the right. What is going on? For the past several decades, the Republican Party has been a strong ally of Israel, so much so that the regard evangelical voters have for Israel has been the subject of considerable criticism. In my years as a Republican and a conservative lawyer, I never witnessed a trace of antisemitism. The answer to my question, however, is clear. The new American right isnt that new at all. It has rejected Reaganism, yes, but in doing so, its reconnecting with older and darker forces on the right. The ghost of Charles Lindbergh is haunting us. Lindbergh, readers may recall, was the hero aviator who flew solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. He later grew to admire German fascism and gave a famous speech in September 1941 in which he accused Jews of attempting to push America into World War II. The three most important groups who have been pressing this country toward war, he said, are the British, the Jewish and the Roosevelt administration. And while Lindbergh expressed sympathy for Jews facing Nazi persecution, he went straight to the same tropes that were deployed last week, claiming that the Jewish peoples greatest danger to this country lies in their large ownership and influence in our motion pictures, our press, our radio and our government. More recently, we have seen the influence of Pat Buchanan, a former Richard Nixon speechwriter and so-called paleoconservative whom William F. Buckley Jr. denounced for his antisemitism in 1991. A central part of the case against Buchanan once again related to matters of war and peace. In the run-up to the first Iraq war, Buchanan said, There are only two groups that are beating the drums for war in the Middle East the Israeli Defense Ministry and its amen corner in the United States. And that was a benign comment compared with many of his later pronouncements. In 2010 he wrote that if Elena Kagan were to be confirmed as a Supreme Court justice, Jews, who represent less than 2 percent of the U.S. population, will have 33 percent of the Supreme Court seats. Is this Democrats idea of diversity? Buchanan is no minor figure. As Nicole Hemmer wrote in 2022, his presidential campaigns in the 1990s forecast the present moment in Republican politics. The party traded Reaganism for Buchananism, she contended. The evidence that she was correct grows by the day. Everything about the New Right mind-set told us that this devolution was inevitable. It scorns character, decency and civility in the public square, often turning cruelty into a virtue. This was a necessary precondition for the entire enterprise. Decent people can be misguided, certainly, but they are not consumed with hate. Decent people do not indulge bigots. The New Right rejects the norms and values of what it calls the uniparty or the cathedral: the center-left and center-right American elite. And one of those values is a steadfast opposition to racism and prejudice. The rejection first manifests itself in the form of just asking questions, then it veers into direct challenge of conventional norms, followed by a descent into true darkness. Hostility unmoored from character quickly turns conspiratorial, and the world of conspiracy theories is where antisemites live and thrive. And finally, the term America First, popular with the New Right and the older, Lindbergh right, has always been misleading. It actually means some Americans first or real Americans first, and real Americans do not include the ideological or religious enemies of the New Right. It is no coincidence, for example, that after the Owens-Shapiro confrontation, many New Right figures began posting Christ is king, an obvious shot at Shapiros Jewish beliefs. Evolution is a concept that applies to biology, not human nature. It turns out that humanity does not grow out of the darkness of the past. It has to be contested by every generation. We are neither imprisoned by darkness nor ever fully captured by light. America is no exception. From before the founding, our so-called new world has been plagued by all the sins of the old. Set against that human depravity, however, are the great aspirations of the founding, including the central declaration that all men are created equal. American progress was never inevitable. It took immense courage to move haltingly to the more just, more fair country we live in today. We cant presume that progress is permanent. It never is. No one is more aware of that than Americas most marginalized and vulnerable communities. They feel the effects very keenly when we take steps backward, when our commitment to our principles falters in the face of our own sin. Adrienne Hurst and Sophia Lanman and Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify The Space Force, the sixth and newest branch of the U.S. military, was authorized by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump in December 2019. The initiative had been shaped within the armed forces and Congress over the previous 25 years, based on the premise that as satellite and space technologies evolved, Americas military organizations had to change as well. From the start, the Space Force had detractors. Air Force officials wondered if it was necessary, while some political observers believed that it signified the start of a dangerous (and expensive) militarization of another realm. What seemed harder to argue against was how nearly every aspect of modern warfare and defense intelligence, surveillance, communications, operations, missile detection has come to rely on links to orbiting satellites. The recent battles in Eastern Europe, in which Russia has tried to disrupt Ukraines space-borne communication systems, are a case in point. And yet the strategic exploitation of space now extends well beyond military concerns. Satellite phone systems have become widespread. Positioning and timing satellites, such as GPS (now overseen by the Space Force), allow for digital mapping, navigation, banking and agricultural management. A world without orbital weather surveys seems unthinkable. Modern life is reliant on space technologies to an extent that an interruption would create profound economic and social distress. The drones began crashing on Ukraines front lines, with little explanation. For months, the aerial vehicles supplied by Quantum Systems, a German technology firm, had worked smoothly for Ukraines military, swooping through the air to spot enemy tanks and troops in the countrys war against Russia. Then late last year, the machines abruptly started falling from the sky as they returned from missions. It was this mystery, said Sven Kruck, a Quantum executive who received a stern letter from Ukraines Ministry of Defense demanding a fix. Quantums engineers soon homed in on the issue: Russians were jamming the wireless signals that connected the drones to the satellites they relied on for navigation, leading the machines to lose their way and plummet to earth. To adjust, Quantum developed artificial intelligence-powered software to act as a kind of secondary pilot and added a manual option so the drones could be landed with an Xbox controller. The company also built a service center to monitor Russias electronic attacks. All we could do is get information from the operators, try to find out what wasnt working, test and try again, Mr. Kruck said. Talks at OpenAI to bring back Sam Altman, the artificial intelligence start-ups recently ousted chief executive, continued into Sunday evening but there were disagreements over the makeup of the companys board of directors, according to two people familiar with the discussions. Mr. Altman, 38, spent the weekend waging a pressure campaign on the start-ups four-person board of directors who ousted him on Friday afternoon, three people familiar with the matter said. The result was a groundswell of support from investors, employees and OpenAI executives. Mr. Altman was at the OpenAI headquarters on Sunday afternoon. He posted a photo of himself on X, formerly Twitter, wearing a guest identification badge and wrote, first and last time i ever wear one of these. The negotiations included a look at how the companys board of directors might be reshaped if Mr. Altman returns as chief executive, two of the people said. Members of the board have not yet agreed to what a restructured board of directors might look like nor is Mr. Altmans reinstatement an inevitability, two of the people said. The Thanksgiving table of Luke Ilardos childhood overflowed with all the hallmarks of a Sicilian holiday feast. There were 40-pound lasagnas and casseroles of pasta al forno the size of three small children. There were mountains of fried shrimp, fried veal cutlets and trays of rice pudding that you could go swimming in, Ilardo remembers. And then there was so much bread. Like the traditional American Thanksgiving, his familys Sicilian-style meal was a big, celebratory feast, said Ilardo, the co-owner of Doppio Pasticceria, an Italian bakery stationed in R. House food hall in North Baltimores Remington neighborhood. Hes among the many Americans who incorporate food from cultures around the world on their Thanksgiving plates. A recent survey from food company Campbells found that 63% of respondents enjoy serving Thanksgiving dishes that are reflective of their culture. Some of the countries most represented at the Thanksgiving table include China, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, France and Germany, the survey found. In the Baltimore region, a growing number of restaurants and caterers are serving up Thanksgiving packages and preorders with food that goes beyond the standard turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing. We took a look at whats on the plate throughout the region. This is the Puerto Rican holiday meal Jayleen Fonseca, CEO, and her husband, Jesse Ramirez, executive chef, are owners of JesseJays Latin Inspired Kitchen. They display a Puerto Rican Thanksgiving meal: roasted pork with rice and pigeon peas, pasteles and coquito, a Puerto Rican eggnog. For Jayleen Fonseca, Thanksgiving tastes like pernil and arroz con gandules. The hearty, slow-cooked pork roast and rice with pigeon peas are a staple on the table for Accion de Gracias, as Puerto Ricans call the Thanksgiving holiday. But the star of the show, for her family, are pasteles, pockets of masa dough stuffed with meat, raisins, olives and peppers. The dish is similar in concept to Mexican tamales, though Fonseca said Puerto Ricans typically make their masa out of yucca, green bananas, potatoes and pumpkins, rather than corn. Assembling pasteles is a labor-intensive task, so Fonseca, who owns JesseJays Latin Inspired Kitchen in Churchton with her husband, Jesse Ramirez, has started offering them to customers who dont want to make their own for the holidays. Theyre very difficult to make: Theres a lot of different steps, and especially working with these root vegetables, it takes time to cook them down and to get the masa right, Fonseca said. We sell out of pasteles every year because its something so unique and its not super easy to find, especially here in Maryland. We have Puerto Ricans coming from Baltimore and D.C. seeking out these foods. She and Ramirez recruit their family members to help with making big batches of pasteles in the week leading up to Thanksgiving. Fonsecas parents come in from out of town and well spend the whole day, it will be like 10 of us, working and making pasteles, she said. A traditional Puerto Rican Thanksgiving meal includes roasted pork with rice and pigeon peas, pasteles and coquito, a Puerto Rican eggnog. The family uses a recipe from Fonsecas grandmother, which has been passed down through generations. JesseJays customers have responded eagerly to the offer of premade pasteles, ordering hundreds each holiday season for a taste of home or childhood. Whatever we make, we will sell whether its 40 dozen, 50 dozen, Fonseca said. Each year, we try to prepare at the restaurant so we can make more. JesseJays sells platters of pernil and arroz con gandules big enough to feed four to six people for $60. Pasteles are priced at $40 for a dozen. The special orders arent just for Thanksgiving, either. Fonseca and Ramirez plan to make another batch of pasteles to sell at Christmastime, as well. This is the Puerto Rican holiday meal, Fonseca said. Its something that we love to provide, especially for those Puerto Ricans looking for a little bit of home here in Maryland. Catering to Filipinos far away from home When Rianna Stavrides mother moved to the U.S. from the Philippines, Stavrides wanted to find ways to make her feel more at home. I came here working as a culinary intern, said Stavrides, who herself moved to the Baltimore region 13 years ago, and I realized that for immigrants, its sometimes hard to feel comfortable immersing ourselves in certain situations. I always wondered: What can I do to make my mom feel comfortable? The answer, she found, was through cooking. Stavrides runs Frisco Filipino Baltimore, a Baltimore County-based catering business specializing in Filipino cuisine. The business tagline, Lutong Bahay, means home cooked because Stavrides wants customers to feel at home when they eat her food. Joining her in the kitchen are her mom and brother. Her husband helps with food deliveries. We look forward to catering events together, Stavrides said. Were not just going to the mall as a family, were actually doing things together. For Thanksgiving, she and her family prepare Filipino comfort foods: pork and shrimp lumpia, baked sushi, Filipino spaghetti with a Bolognese sauce sweetened by brown sugar and banana ketchup and topped with sliced hot dogs. Though Filipinos do not traditionally celebrate Thanksgiving, many of the dishes in Frisco Filipinos catering package are served at Christmas, a major holiday on the island. Pork belly is definitely one dish that Filipinos look forward to eating, Stavrides said, and sweet, sticky stuff, like leche flan and laing, a spicy-sweet blend of taro leaves, coconut milk, lemon grass, ginger and garlic. Cooking all these dishes starts three days before Thanksgiving, and the family rents kitchen space at a nearby church to have enough room for the preparations. Frisco, named after the area in the Philippines where Stavrides grew up, started selling Thanksgiving packages four years ago. Originally, she tried offering American Thanksgiving staples, but customers told her they already had those bases covered. Instead, they wanted some Filipino classics to add to the table. Over the years, the demand has multiplied: from five orders the first year, to 10, to 20. Most of her customers are Filipino, and many work in health care, with work shifts on Thanksgiving Day. Thats why they love the packages, Stavrides said, because they know they can get it delivered and have it ready for their family. Even her non-Filipino customers are usually related to someone of Filipino heritage and want to include Filipino staples at the Thanksgiving table. Her own holiday meal features American classics, Filipino comfort food and Greek dishes, as well a nod to her husbands heritage. I appreciate that, Stavrides said of customers who are looking to make their guests feel more at home. Its nice to see people make an effort to make somebody comfortable through food. Leave the drumstick, take the cannoli Luke Ilardo holds a cannoli dusted with pistachio crumbs, one of the Italian specialities offered at Doppio Pasticceria for Thanksgiving. Doppio Pasticceria, a Sicilian bakery, is also making lasagna, focaccia, muffaletta platters and mixed cookie boxes for the holiday. Luke Ilardos Thanksgiving meals have always had a Sicilian flair. Though he grew up in a family with both Italian and German roots, Thanksgiving dinners were spent with the Sicilian side, where relatives dined on mounds of lasagna and fried shrimp. Over the years, as relatives aged and younger generations took over, more American traditions started to make their way to the table. At some point, turkey started popping up, and stuffing, and mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce, Ilardo remembers. I think like most immigrant families, when you get a generation removed and some of that influence starts to wane a little bit, you get a little further away from that tradition. But he still makes it a point to include some Italian staples at the table. He makes fresh focaccia, while his brother makes carbonara and cousins bring the fried shrimp. And theres still a charcuterie board that takes up an entire table, he said. Ilardo owns Doppio Pasticceria with Megan Cowman, who also has Sicilian heritage. This Thanksgiving, theyre offering preorders of lasagna, focaccia, cannoli, biscotti, rice pudding and more for diners who also want to add a taste of Italy to their holiday meal. The Thanksgiving menu is a balance of what I would ideally be offering and what people who may have grown up with a very traditional American Thanksgiving spread would be interested in, Ilardo said. In addition to the pasta and pastry, theres farro salad, sweet potato brioche and olive oil spelt cake with brown sugar apples. Many of the dishes, like the 12-serving lasagna, were chosen to cater to customers who need to feed large groups of people. But Ilardo and Cowman are also weaving in family traditions. Doppio Pasticcerias rice pudding, for instance, is inspired by the dessert made by Zia Assunta, his great-aunt. The mixed cookie assortment is something that Im always looking for at a Thanksgiving gathering, he said. Unlike his grandmothers and aunts, however, he will not be sprinkling rainbow nonpareils over each and every cookie. Theres pragmatism involved, Ilardo said, and then theres the romance of this is what I grew up eating and what I would love to see on a Thanksgiving table. In Pennsylvania, where 13 percent of the bridges have been classified as structurally deficient, engineers are using artificial intelligence to create lighter concrete blocks for new construction. Another project is using A.I. to develop a highway wall that can absorb noise from cars and some of the greenhouse gas emissions that traffic releases as well. At a time when the federal allocation of billions of dollars toward infrastructure projects would help with only a fraction of the cost needed to repair or replace the nations aging bridges, tunnels, buildings and roads, some engineers are looking to A.I. to help build more resilient projects for less money. These are structures, with the tools that we have, that save materials, save costs, save everything, said Amir Alavi, an engineering professor at the University of Pittsburgh and a member of the consortium developing the two A.I. projects in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. The potential is enormous. The manufacturing of cement alone makes up at least 8 percent of the worlds carbon emissions, and 30 billion tons of concrete are used worldwide each year, so more efficient production of concrete would have immense environmental implications. Interstate 10 in Los Angeles will fully reopen on Monday, more than a week after a fire severely damaged a section of the freeway, officials announced on Sunday. Gov. Gavin Newsom of California said at a news conference that the interstate may be partially reopened as early as Sunday evening and would be fully operational on Monday. He made the announcement on the freeway with Mayor Karen Bass of Los Angeles, Vice President Kamala Harris and other officials who provided updates on the repairs. This is a great day in our city and I think it is a wonderful example of how and why we got this job done, Ms. Bass said, referring to the crews who worked 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Me and Caseys family are stunned, her husband of eight years, Andrew Gregory, said of the money that had been raised so far. Were overwhelmed, and its been really powerful to see the response to people wanting to eliminate strangers medical debt. Ms. McIntyres campaign is on a website called RIP Medical Debt, which uses data analytics to find households with medical debt that have income below four times the federal poverty level or have debts that make up 5 percent or more of their annual income. The organization buys debt in bundles at a steep discount, which means each donation relieves about 100 times its value in medical debt, according to its website. In general, $1 donated does abolish $100 of medical debt, said Daniel Lempert, the vice president of communications for RIP Medical Debt. On Saturday when the funds raised at that point were just under $200,000, he said, As it stands, thatll probably abolish somewhere in the neighborhood of $19 million. Mr. Lempert said Ms. McIntyres campaign was the first the organization had seen that was planned by someone to take place posthumously. For months, Bettersten Wade called the police in Jackson, Miss., desperate for any update or sign that detectives were making progress in tracking down Dexter, her 37-year-old son who left their home one day in March and vanished. Each conversation ended in frustration. They never seemed any closer to finding him, she said. And yet, records show that investigators for the Jackson Police Department knew exactly where Dexter Wade was. An off-duty police officer driving an S.U.V. had struck and killed him on the same day that his mother last saw him, according to officials and coroners records. A deputy coroner said he was identified by a bottle of prescription medication he was carrying and through fingerprints. Ms. Wade kept searching for more than five months, unaware that her son had been buried behind the local jail, in a ragged cemetery for the poor and unclaimed where graves are marked by small, numbered signs poking out of the dirt. Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida paused, looked down and then told a banquet hall filled with conservative Iowa Christians something that he had never before said in public: His wife, Casey DeSantis, experienced a miscarriage several years ago during her first pregnancy. The couple, Mr. DeSantis explained on Friday at a forum for Republican presidential candidates hosted by an influential evangelical group, had been trying to conceive before taking a trip to Israel. We went to Ruths tomb in Hebron Ruth, Chapter 4, Verse 13 and we prayed, Mr. DeSantis, citing Scripture, said at the event in Des Moines. We prayed a lot to have a family, and then, lo and behold, we go back to the United States and a little time later we got pregnant. But unfortunately we lost that first baby. The deeply personal revelation in response to a question about the importance of the nuclear family was an unexpected moment for Mr. DeSantis, who is usually tight-lipped about both his faith and his family life. On the campaign trail, he rotates through a limited set of anecdotes about Ms. DeSantis and their three young children, as well as his religious beliefs. Still, at the Iowa event, he lingered only briefly on his wifes miscarriage, calling it simply a tough thing and a test of faith. These are only the latest examples of why the federal government has no viable way to break up with Mr. Musk, at least as long as the United States decides it is going to continue space exploration and deter its biggest superpower rivals. It may denounce him and declare that all Americans should reject his views. But it needs him, or at least his rockets and his satellites, more than ever. And the White House and Pentagon both know that. Rarely has the U.S. government so depended on the technology provided by a single, if petulant, technologist with views that it has so publicly declared repugnant. And yet, by the account of administration officials, they have no choice and will not for a while. Because there are, right now, few viable alternatives. It is an unusual predicament. If a top executive of one of the traditional publicly held defense contractors Raytheon or Boeing or Lockheed Martin had embraced an antisemitic conspiracy theory the way Mr. Musk did, there would be pressure from shareholders and customers alike for a resignation. In fact, advertisers like IBM and Apple and Warner Bros. Discovery have been announcing in recent days that they will pause doing business on X, formerly known as Twitter. Mr. Musk, rather than apologize, has threatened lawsuits. But SpaceX is privately held, entirely controlled by Mr. Musk. (Tesla, his electric vehicle company, is publicly held.) And so far, while the White House has been outspoken, the Pentagon has been silent. It would be good to have alternatives, and the U.S. government has tried to develop some, Walter Isaacson, Mr. Musks biographer, said in an interview on Sunday. But no other company, he said, including United Launch Alliance, a Boeing and Lockheed Martin venture, has been able to make reusable rockets, or get astronauts into orbit, or get some of these heavy satellites into high-Earth orbit. The F.B.I. faulted agents in 2019 for misusing their guns in two separate shootings, each an exceedingly rare internal finding of violations of its lethal force policy, according to documents obtained by The New York Times. One involved an agent in Arkansas who shot at but missed a suspect who was driving away to flee arrest. That agent resigned before he could receive a 55-day suspension without pay. The other involved an agent in California who fatally shot a family dog that he said bit him during a family dispute while he was off duty; he got a five-day suspension. While neither shooting, both of which took place in 2017, was a major imbroglio, their disclosure is notable. For many years, F.B.I. agents almost never got in trouble for intentional shootings. The two episodes, detailed in records obtained via a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, add to a small but growing pattern suggesting that is no longer quite so certain. The rigor of the F.B.I.s internal review process is important because local police often defer to the bureau to investigate shootings by its own agents. Under its deadly force policy, agents are only permitted to fire their guns, outside of practice ranges, if they reasonably believe that the target poses an imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to someone. He was not quite 3. Eighteen years would pass before the two would truly connect. But once they did, they became life and work partners, melding so completely that as president Mr. Carter would call her an almost equal extension of myself. Reared in the same tiny patch of Georgia farmland, 150 miles south of Atlanta, they were similar in temperament and outlook. They shared a fierce work ethic, a drive for self-improvement and an earnest, even pious, demeanor. Their Christian faith was central to their lives. Both were frugal. Both could be stubborn. After Mr. Carter lost his re-election bid in 1980 to Ronald Reagan, he and Mrs. Carter embarked on what became the longest, most active post-presidency in American history. They traveled the world in support of human rights, democracy and health programs; domestically, they labored in service to others, most prominently pounding nails to help build houses for Habitat for Humanity. In October 2019, after more than 73 years of marriage, they became the nations longest-married presidential couple, surpassing the record set by George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush. The Carters marked their 77th wedding anniversary in July. In the continuum of first ladies after Mrs. Roosevelt, Mrs. Carter broke the mold. Like most of the others, she championed a cause hers was the treatment of mental illness. But she also immersed herself in the business of the nation and kept a sharp eye on politics, a realm her husband famously claimed to ignore. Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas endorsed former President Donald J. Trump on Sunday in an appearance near the southern border, echoing Mr. Trumps talk about an existential crisis of illegal immigration. Im here to tell you that there is no way, no way that America can continue under the leadership of Joe Biden as our president, Mr. Abbott said in Edinburg, Texas, after he and Mr. Trump greeted Border Patrol agents. We need a president whos going to secure the border. We need a president whos going to restore law and order in the United States of America. Mr. Abbott, a three-term governor with a strongly conservative record, castigated President Biden for reversing Trump-era policies that had expedited deportations and required asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while awaiting hearings, and claimed that Mr. Biden was facilitating terrorism. Mr. Abbott has taken extraordinary measures on border crossings during the Biden administration including putting razor wire along the border and buoys in the Rio Grande that have injured many migrants. Under his administration, Texas has also bused tens of thousands of newly arrived migrants around the country, frequently to big cities run by Democrats. Whatever the fate of the villages dotted across the Atlas Mountains, the example of Agadir shows just how difficult it is to repair the trauma of a devastating earthquake. Every year around the end of February, the anniversary of the disaster, a commemoration occurs. And a phrase taken from a speech by the king at the time, Mohammed V, still adorns a wall in Agadirs city center: If destiny has decided the destruction of Agadir, its reconstruction will be due to our will and our faith. Mr. Kouti, 71, who survived the 1960 quake, is now the custodian of the cemetery of Ihchach, where many victims were laid to rest. The graveyard sits on a hill that once was a neighborhood of Agadir. Not much remains from that time: some trees, a disused hospital and the ruins of collapsed homes. Sometimes visitors come to ask him to help them locate the grave of a loved one. It may seem strange that a serious book on dinosaurs by one of the worlds most renowned paleontologists includes images of Godzilla, or photos of Raquel Welch and Victoria Vetri wearing skimpy bikinis in One Millions Years B.C. or the King Kong films. Even stranger to see drawings of prehistoric animals attacking a submarine, or an encounter between Charles Dickens and a Megalosaurus in the streets of London. The book is also filled with snapshots of the author being attacked by gigantic plastic dinosaur figurines. All of this and more including an illustration showing aliens exterminating dinosaurs from their flying saucers appears in the nearly 600 illustration-filled pages of Dinosaurs and Other Animals, which discusses the field of paleontology and its impact on popular culture. A very entertaining and original book thats loaded with thoughtful content, its authored by Jose Luis Sanz, professor emeritus of paleontology at the Autonomous University of Madrid. The 75-year-old Spanish scientist has authored a dozen books on dinosaurs, as well as numerous articles in research journals, such as Nature and Science. Hes also contributed to the design of paleontology exhibits in museums. His latest work in addition to showing his deep knowledge about terrible lizards and other beasts from the past also reveals his self-confessed status of dinosaur geek. And what could be more interesting, stimulating and contagious than a prominent dinosaur specialist? A prominent dinosaur specialist who knows how to geek out. In his work, Sanz highlights the often fruitful and inspiring relationships between paleontology and popular culture regarding dinosaurs. For instance, fiction was actually the first field to show that the dinosaurs werent the dumb and heavy brutes that scientists initially envisioned. Sanz takes his readers through the variety of stories that have been created, such as science fiction about time travel to visit the dinosaurs, or tales about ancient creatures who have survived in remote places. Oftentimes, these stories involve dinosaurs visiting our cities, resulting in a mess (a favorite theme of so many movies). How Sanz managed to convince his publisher to print this beautiful volume whose idea and production costs must have perplexed the editors is a mystery. A mystery almost as big as what a Tyrannosaurus rexs little hands were used for. In the work, the author alternates between scientific discourse and the history of the relationship between dinosaurs and popular culture, presenting a sensational display of images that includes photos, drawings, priceless illustrations from books and magazines, newspapers, vignettes, comics, movie stills, movie posters, old prints, trading cards and even candy bar wrappers. There are monsters such as Gorgo, Rodan, the mokele-mbembe and, of course, Godzilla. All of these images, however, are accompanied by refined scientific reconstructions, graphs, maps and other academic materials. Renowned scientific illustrator Xavier Macpherson has captured some of Sanzs most unique ideas with spectacular drawings, such as the double-page ones of St. Hilda of Whitby turning the snakes that infested Yorkshire into stone, or the immense Mosasaurus trapping a specimen of Placenticeras ammonites. He also shows us a colony of pink flamingo-like Pterodaustra pterosaurs, the birth in the sea of an Ichthyosaur, a Stegosaurus with a zebra-type camouflage pattern, or a Tyrannosaurus rex with three young offspring. Also noteworthy are the posters and book covers that Macpherson and Sanz have invented, such as the poster for Flaming Cliffs an invented film about the paleontological adventures of Ray Chapman Andrews in the Gobi Desert, with Charlton Heston playing the scientist (who, by the way, was one of the inspirations for Indiana Jones). The two men certainly had a great time. Paleontologist Jose Luis Sanz with Godzilla. I admit that theres a bit [of messing around], Sanz laughs. In this kind of book with all that we wanted to discuss we had to ensure that the reader didnt get bored. There had to be some nonsense. The truth is that people whove read it say that they had a lot of fun. A little spice was essential, in case someone fell asleep. In previous books, he continues, we already discussed the topic of dinosaurs in popular culture. But here, we reversed the percentage we dedicate much more space to this. Sanz highlights the great graphic commitment of the volume. It allows us to show the connection between the two areas: the scientific and the popular. It was very important to illustrate popular ideas. I spent almost three months in the Library of Congress in Washington reviewing newspapers from the last decade of the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th, the period in which the dinosaur boom in popular culture really began. This is central to the book. Many of the common ideas about dinosaurs were born at that time: that they were big, terrible, that they may still exist, that they look like dragons... these ideas of dinomania were created then, in parallel to the advance of scientific [knowledge] and, at times, also interacting with it. The book includes illustrations from the original sources of 19th- and 20th-century paleontology. Dinosaurs as we understand them today are largely a creation of Victorian and Edwardian society. The first scientific publication about a species was in 1824, the author notes. Ive delved into the sources from that time to build the chapters of the book. Macphersons illustrations helped him capture some ideas and play with them. One drawing which shows Charles Dickens next to a Megalosaurus on a London street accompanies an explanation about how the writer was a good friend of Richard Owen (1804-1892), the inventor of the term dinosaur. In one of Dickens novels, Bleak House, the author writes:As much mud on the streets as if the waters had just receded from the face of the Earth, and it would not be surprising to find a megalosaur, about forty feet long, staggering like a mammoth lizard towards Holborn Hill. The Mosasaurus in the film 'Jurassic World' (2015). Sanz emphasizes that, while hes a paleontologist, hes also a geek. [Still], there are things that I get very serious about: some points about dinosaurs have to be made very clear. For example, that birds are dinosaurs and that many of these creatures were covered in feathers (or monofilaments that evolved into the feathers of todays birds), among them such emblematic species as the carnivorous Velociraptor and Deinonychus. Its important to remember (and Sanz does, in his book) that Michael Crichton, the author of the novel Jurassic Park, which gave rise to Spielbergs film, made the Deinonychus his protagonist, changing its name to Velociraptor. Its actually a very similar dinosaur, but its much smaller, the size of a turkey: he changed the name because it sounded better. The thing about birds and feathers bothers some dinosaur fans, but in paleontology, the hypotheses are contrasted with the fossil record. Today, theres no paleontologist in his right mind who doesnt accept the dinosaurian theory (which contends that birds evolved from theropod dinosaurs). The geekism that I dont share is the one that continues to deny that birds are dinosaurs. Im a proud geek, but you cannot take paleontological tests at face value. That said, he clarifies that some paleontologists take themselves too seriously when criticizing some things about dinosaurs in fiction. Science has limits, but the human imagination does not. Old reconstruction of a T-Rex in Cabazon, California. Wing SHya One surprise in the book is Sanzs passion for ammonites extinct cephalopod mollusks which dont seem to be comparable to a good old Tyrannosaurus rex. I love them. Dedicating a chapter to them is breaking [a norm] regarding the paleontology of the invertebrates, who arent usually treated very well. [But], for some, ammonites are the quintessence of paleontology. They have something special the fact that they became extinct gives them, of course, a great charm. They produce a certain tenderness in me. Other prehistoric creatures (Sanz detests the term antediluvian) pampered in the book are ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs (a recurring theme in the popular imagination is that some still exist), mosasaurs (large aquatic predators from the Upper Cretaceous) that went extinct 66 million years old and appear in Aquaman, Jurassic World and The Mandalorian and the pterosaurs, the wonderful flying reptiles, with representatives as extraordinary as the enormous Quetzalcoatlus. Sanz clarifies that pterosaurs wouldnt be able to pick people up as they do in movies and other works of fiction since they dont have claws like birds of prey. In a shift away from dinosaurs, theres also a chapter on mammoths, in which the author explains that, at the famous dinner at the Peabody Museum of Natural History in 1951, what was served under the name of mammoth meat was, in fact, turtle meat. Tyrannosaurus rex, in a modern reconstruction of how it must have moved. Is Sanz one of those people who, when he watches One Millions Years B.C. (1966), pays more attention to dinosaurs than to Raquel Welch? I say it in the book: Im someone who pays attention to the dinosaurs and Raquel Welch. [My love of dinosaurs] hasnt made me indifferent to her. But I have to say that I adore the person responsible for the dinosaurs in the film Ray Harryhausen, the great special effects creator whom I was lucky enough to meet. Im a big fan of dinosaur movies, as can be seen in the book. Sanz agrees with Crichtons consideration that one of the things that makes dinosaurs so fascinating to us is their size. The most emblematic ones were enormous. And that they had such strange shapes. Richard Owen already conceived of them as very strange reptiles not like the current ones, but rather, with a mammalian appearance. Majestic, fearsome. Another factor is that they represent an alternative kind of nature to what were used to. They provoke morbidity, fear and attraction. And they look so similar to the creatures of our myths and legends Dinosaurs made with Lego. legohouse.com Logically, the Tyrannosaurus rex has a big role in the book. But is this star of the dinosaur world falling for the new generations, with the appearance of other large carnivores? Is the T-Rex going to be dethroned? I dont think so, Sanz opines. Its true that there are other carnivorous dinosaurs as big as him. But theres something that seems fundamental to me: no possible rivals in popularity of the Tyrannosaurus rex such as the Carcharodontosaurus have been found in the United States. And the Tyrannosaurus rex continues to be a very American dinosaur. [The creatures] popularity has to do with the exporting and colonialist culture of the United States. In some way, the [T-Rex] represents the soul of the nation. One of the last specimens was even excavated by [U.S. combat engineers]. Like the bald eagle, its an animal that represents the power and majesty of the United States. And as long as the United States is up there and sets the tone in fiction, the Tyrannosaurus rex will be the epitome of dinosaurs, as it has been since the first film. At the moment, it seems to me that no one is going to dethrone him. Sam Neill in an image from 'Jurassic Park.' Sanz believes that artificial intelligence with its ability to handle enormous amounts of data and variables will make great progress in the field of dinosaur reconstructions. He also hopes that means will be found to obtain dinosaur DNA. Regarding the issue of the disappearance of dinosaurs (the non-avian ones, he emphasizes), he considers the hypothesis of the meteorite impact valid. [The sudden mass extinction] that took place 66 million years ago is enough to explain everything we observe in the fossil record. Nothing more is needed. However, he acknowledges that theres still no idea about why the extinction of dinosaurs was so radical. How come mammals didnt disappear? It remains an enigma. Its important to remember that this was not the worst extinction on Earth. The Permian-Triassic extinction event which took place 250 million years ago resulted in the Great Dying, in which three-quarters of all species disappeared. When Stephen Gay Gould (a famous American paleontologist) was asked how close life was to completely disappearing then, he simply put his thumb and forefinger together: thats how close it was. It was a tough extinction. When asked about his favorite dinosaur movie scene, he replies: When Grant and Dr. Sattler caress the sick Triceratops in Jurassic Park, its shown and this is how the audience perceives it that the dinosaurs were normal animals, who pooped and pooped. They had stomach aches like everyone else. As for what he would like to see in person from the age of the dinosaurs, he answers that he wishes he could see the precise moment in which the first land animal took off, flapping its wings. Thats where the paleontologist can be a geek. As a geek, I would perhaps choose to see a Tyrannosaurus rex but the first [event] is more useful. And the Tyrannosaurus will soon be shown to me in a very [lifelike] way in the movie theater. Sanzs favorite fictional paleontologist is the one in the first Godzilla movie, from 1954: Dr. Kyohei Yamane. He gives a very moving speech about the animal and its origins to the Japanese government. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition The Austrian town of Braunau am Inn, sitting just at the border with Germany, has a 15th-century church tower, cobblestone streets and cluttered rows of charming, colorful houses, some in green, pink and blue. It also has a fraught historical burden. On the upper floors of the house at Salzburger Vorstadt 15 on April 20, 1889, Adolf Hitler was born. One recent afternoon, Annette Pommer, 32, a history teacher, stared through the window of the Sailer cafe at the three-story 17th-century building across the street where Hitler spent the first few months of his life. She could hear the pounding of jackhammers; an excavator was crawling over a pile of bricks at the rear of the house while workers in hard hats swept the soil. Karel Schwarzenberg, a Czech prince who twice served as his countrys foreign minister, played a key role in the Velvet Revolution and quietly subverted aristocratic expectations, died shortly after midnight on Nov. 12 in Vienna. He was 85. His death, in a hospital, was confirmed by the Czech Foreign Ministry and by his daughter, Lila. As foreign minister from 2007 to 2009 and from 2010 to 2013, Mr. Schwarzenberg was a committed Atlanticist and European who opposed Russian imperial ambitions. Before his posts in government, as a supporter of his countrys dissidents against the Communist regime then in power, he dedicated an ancestral castle in Germany and his own money to the cause. He later became chancellor under his friend Vaclav Havel when the latter was elected president. But it was the pipe-smoking, mustachioed Mr. Schwarzenbergs understated revolt against his aristocratic heritage, one of the grandest in Europe, that captivated and endeared him to the Czech public, leading him to run for the presidency in 2013. His official campaign poster was punk-inspired and showed him sporting a pink mohawk. A strike this weekend on a school run by the United Nations that was being used for shelter by thousands of displaced people in northern Gaza killed at least 24 people, a U.N. official said Sunday. Palestinian officials had said on Saturday that many people were killed and injured in an Israeli attack on the Al-Fakhura school, which was being used as a shelter by adults and children, in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza. Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the U.N. agency that aids Palestinian refugees, gave a death toll on Sunday and said that there were nearly 7,000 displaced people sheltering in the school when the strike hit. He did not give a number for the wounded or suggest who was responsible. The Israeli military said that it had received reports of an incident on Saturday in the Jabaliya area and that it was under review, adding that it was committed to international law including taking feasible steps to minimize harm to civilians. Mr. Lazzarini said that another school, where some 4,000 displaced people were sheltering at the time, in Gaza City, was directly struck on Friday, and ambulances could not reach the school to provide help. His agency, UNRWA, said it believed that scores of people had been either killed or wounded, but did not have exact numbers. The United Nations secretary general, Antonio Guterres, said hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians have sought shelters at U.N. facilities throughout Gaza. I reaffirm that our premises are inviolable, he said in a statement on Sunday. At least 176 displaced people sheltering at schools run by UNRWA have been reported killed and nearly 800 wounded since the start of Israels bombing campaign against Gaza on Oct. 7, according to the UNRWA statement. Classes have been suspended and the schools have been converted into shelters across Gaza. The agency said that it was still verifying its figures for the numbers of dead and wounded, but that it had confirmed that at least 17 of its facilities have been directly hit. The large number of UNRWA facilities hit and the number of civilians killed cannot just be collateral damage, Mr. Lazzarini said in the statement. The agencys facilities were clearly marked as U.N. buildings and their coordinates were regularly shared with both sides of the conflict, he said, adding that This is yet another proof that no one, and nowhere is safe in Gaza. The Al-Fakhura school was also hit by a strike on Nov. 4, killing at least 12 people and wounding 54 others, UNRWA said. According to UNRWA, almost 900,000 displaced people are sheltering in the agencys facilities across the Gaza Strip. They include many people who fled northern Gaza following Israeli orders to evacuate the area amid an escalation in ground fighting there. Families who were sheltering at UNRWA schools in the south described overcrowded facilities where food and water were scarce. Ihab Abedrabo said he had been sheltering with his mother, wife, and six children at a school run by the U.N. agency in the southern city of Khan Younis since a strike damaged their home. His family, like thousands of others, had fled to the school hoping that they would be safe. But Mr. Abedrabo said that when a strike hit nearby earlier this week and sent shrapnel into the school, he again feared for his relatives lives. No place is safe, he said. However, I cant think of a safer place to go. Abu Bakr Bashir contributed reporting from London. It was an early flash of common ground between two men from markedly different backgrounds. Mr. Baskin was born in 1956 to a Jewish family in New York. He studied Middle Eastern politics and history at New York University before emigrating to Israel in 1978. Mr. Hamad was born in 1964 in southern Gaza and had no meaningful contact with Israelis as a child, even after Israel captured Gaza during the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. Mr. Hamad trained as a vet in Sudan before joining Hamas in 1987, the year the group was founded, according to an interview with Mr. Hamad that Mr. Baskin published in his book, The Negotiator. In 1989, Mr. Hamad was arrested for his Hamas activism and spent five years in an Israeli prison. As both men matured, they each developed an aptitude for mediation. After arriving in Israel, Mr. Baskin worked as a community organizer in an Arab village. Then he began a career fostering relations between Arabs and Jews, running a research group that promoted solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and sometimes acting as a formal mediator. While in prison, Mr. Hamad got to know Israelis for the first time. He learned Hebrew and English, and became a spokesman for inmates in their dealings with the prison authorities. After his release, Mr. Hamad wrote for and edited several Hamas-run newspapers, earning a reputation as a moderate who encouraged Palestinian introspection and occasionally criticized Palestinian violence. Im not interested in discussing the ugliness and brutality of the occupation, because it is not a secret, Mr. Hamad wrote in an opinion article in 2006. Instead, I prefer self-criticism and self-evaluation. Were used to blaming our mistakes on others. The lives of Mr. Hamad and Mr. Baskin became entwined with the fate of Mr. Shalit, the captured Israeli soldier. After their first phone call in July 2006, Mr. Hamad and Mr. Baskin began to phone and text each other regularly, sometimes several times a day. Mr. Baskin wanted to save Mr. Shalits life. As a Hamas loyalist, Mr. Hamad wanted to exchange Mr. Shalit for hundreds of Palestinians jailed by Israel. Though Mr. Hamad never said so publicly, Mr. Baskin also believed that Mr. Hamad privately hoped to help Mr. Shalit, a 19-year-old conscript. More generally, Mr. Baskin believed that Mr. Hamad secretly sought a peace deal with Israel. I am quite sure that if Ghazi were a much more senior leader in Hamas, he would move toward eventually recognizing Israel and peace, Mr. Baskin wrote in his book in 2013. Whether or not Mr. Baskin correctly understood Mr. Hamads motivations, the two men quickly established an unlikely rapport, one that was strengthened through years of intense contact but tested by the frequent violence between their two peoples. Gershon, u r good friend, Mr. Hamad said during another round of violence, in a text that Mr. Baskin printed in his book. But Im very sad and upset & sometimes feeling have no words to say. Years passed. Hamas took full control of Gaza in 2007, ousting another Palestinian faction. Israel and Egypt placed the enclave under a blockade. Yemens Houthi militia hijacked a ship in the Red Sea on Sunday, in what the Iran-backed group said was a demonstration of support for the oppressed Palestinian people. Only hours earlier, the group threatened to target Israeli-flagged, -owned and -operated ships traversing the Red Sea. The Israeli military called the episode on Sunday a grave event, saying that the ship was en route to India from Turkey and had an international crew, without Israelis. This is not an Israeli ship, the military said in a statement. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said in a statement that the vessel was British-owned and operated by a Japanese company. It had 25 crew members on board, the statement said, condemning the attack without naming the vessel. The Houthis, however, said they had hijacked an Israeli ship and taken it to the Yemeni coast. They said they would deal with its crew members in accordance with the teachings and values of our Islamic religion. News reports identified the ship as the Galaxy Leader, which bore no obvious links to Israel. The ship sailed under the flag of the Bahamas a popular place for ship registration because of tax advantages and is listed as a vehicle carrier owned by an Isle of Man-based firm called Ray Car Carriers Ltd., according to Marine Traffic, a real-time maritime data platform. The companys beneficial owner appears to have at some point been the Israeli billionaire Rami Ungar, according to the Paradise Papers, a major leak of confidential documents that in 2017 exposed a hidden world of wealth and ownerships. Mr. Ungar who is routinely cited as the ultimate owner of Ray Car Carriers in maritime trade media did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The 620-foot Galaxy Leader departed from Turkeys port of Korfez on Nov. 12 and was headed to Indias Pipavav, according to Marine Traffic. It last transmitted its location on Saturday morning from the middle of the Red Sea, off the coasts of Saudi Arabia and Sudan. Support for the Palestinian cause and hostility toward Israel has long been a pillar of the Houthi narrative; Death to Israel is part of the groups rallying cry. Since the Israeli military began its bombardment of Gaza responding to the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas, the Iran-backed armed group that controls Gaza Houthi leaders have issued repeated threats to enter the fray. Last month, the Houthis claimed an attempted missile and drone attack on southern Israel, and said the group might attack Israeli ships in the Red Sea. The Houthis took over the Yemeni capital, Sana, in 2014. After an unsuccessful attempt by a Saudi-led military coalition to rout the group, it now rules much of northern Yemen. The militia has also become an important arm of Irans so-called Axis of Resistance, which includes the Lebanese militia Hezbollah and armed groups in Iraq. In their statement on Sunday, the Houthis vowed to continue carrying out military operations against Israel until the aggression on Gaza stops. Shuaib Almosawa contributed reporting from New Delhi and Vivian Nereim contributed reporting from Manama, Bahrain. Thirty-one premature babies were evacuated from the embattled Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza on Sunday and taken to another hospital in the enclaves south, the Palestine Red Crescent Society and the World Health Organization said on social media. Emergency medical workers from the Red Crescent and the W.H.O., a United Nations agency, took the infants by ambulance to Al-Helal Emirati Maternity Hospital in Rafah, where they were receiving urgent care. The W.H.O. said in a statement that 11 of the babies were in critical condition and that all were fighting serious infections. Two others died before the evacuation could take place, according to the agency. Sadly, none of the infants were accompanied by family members, as the Ministry of Health has only limited information, and is not currently able to find close family members, the agency said. UNICEF, which said it had participated in the extremely dangerous evacuation effort, said the conditions of the babies had been rapidly deteriorating. It said that the babies had been moved in temperature-controlled incubators to Al-Helal, where they were being stabilized and cared for in the hospitals neonatal intensive care unit. Officials in Gaza and Egypt have said the babies will be transported over the border to Egypt for treatment, though the timing was unclear. On Sunday, Gazas health ministry published a list of the 31 infant evacuees and issued a call for their families to go to the hospital to identify them, adding that the parents might be able to join the babies in Egypt. UNICEF said it was helping to identify and register the babies in order to assist with family reunifications. The W.H.O.s director general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, posted a photo on X, formerly Twitter, of a staff member in a blue United Nations helmet and bulletproof vest scooping up a tiny infant. The babies, along with six health care workers and 10 family members of hospital employees, were evacuated under extremely intense and high-risk security conditions, he wrote. As Israels push to seize Al-Shifa Hospital set off a struggle to survive there in recent days, doctors and health officials warned that nearly 40 premature babies in incubators in the hospitals neonatal intensive care unit were at particular risk of dying. Some of them had been born to mothers who had been killed in airstrikes or who died shortly after giving birth, doctors at Al-Shifa have said. Some were the only survivors in their families. Medical workers placed the babies together on beds and hoped for the best as fuel to power the incubators as well as dialysis machines, ventilators and other lifesaving equipment dwindled. Since Nov. 11, at least 40 patients, including at least four premature babies, have died in Al-Shifa because of power outages, the United Nations said on Saturday, citing hospital officials. Fighting has raged at and around Al-Shifa for more than a week. More than 2,500 civilians, patients and staff members left the facility on Saturday after receiving an evacuation order from the Israeli military, the W.H.O. said in a statement. The agency called the hospital a death zone. But the W.H.O. and health officials in the south have warned that the hospitals there are already stretched far too thin to accommodate new patients evacuating from Al-Shifa and other hospitals in the north. Al-Helal, the maternity hospital where the premature babies were taken on Sunday, posted a video of its neonatal intensive care unit a day earlier in which an unnamed doctor says that Al-Helal, too, would run out of fuel by Monday. For premature babies, this is a death sentence carried out the moment the electricity is cut off, the doctor says. Israel has been reluctant to supply fuel to Gaza for fear that it would be used by Hamas, the Palestinian group that runs Gaza, in its war with Israel. Israel recently began allowing small amounts of fuel into the strip, but the United Nations and aid groups say it is far too little to address the growing humanitarian crisis there. Iyad Abuheweila and Abu Bakr Bashir contributed reporting. Alon Sicherman and Micah Dickbauer for The New York Times Over a million people are buried in the citys potters field on Hart Island. A New York Times investigation uncovers some of their stories and the failings of the system that put them there. Twice a week or so, loaded with bodies boxed in pine, a New York City morgue truck passes through a tall chain-link gate and onto a ferry that has no paying passengers. Its destination is Hart Island, an uninhabited strip of land off the coast of the Bronx in Long Island Sound, where overgrown 19th-century ruins give way to mass graves gouged out by bulldozers and the only pallbearers are jail inmates paid 50 cents an hour. There, divergent life stories come to the same anonymous end. No tombstones name the dead in the 101-acre potters field that holds Leola Dickerson, who worked as one familys housekeeper for 50 years, beloved by three generations for her fried chicken and her kindness. She buried her husband as he had wished, in a family plot back in Alabama. But when she died at 88 in a New York hospital in 2008, she was the ward of a court-appointed guardian who let her house go into foreclosure and her body go unclaimed at the morgue. By law, her corpse became city property, to be made available as a cadaver for dissection or embalming practice if a medical school or mortuary class wanted it. Then, like more than a million men, women and children since 1869, she was consigned to a trench on Hart Island. Several dozen trenches back lies Zarramen Gooden, only 17 when the handlebars of his old bike broke and he hit his throat, severing an artery. He had been popping wheelies near the city homeless shelter in the Bronx where he and four younger siblings lived with their heroin-addicted mother. With no funeral help from child protection authorities, his older sister scraped together $8 to buy the used suit he wore at his wake. But the funeral home swiftly sent him back to the morgue when she could not pay the $6,000 burial fee. For Milton Weinstein, a married father with a fear of dying alone, there was no burial at all for two years after his death at 67. A typographer in his day, he had worked in advertising for Sears, Roebuck & Company. But he lost his career to technology and his vision to diabetes; his wifes mental problems drove their children away. Though she was at his side when he died in a Bronx nursing home, she had no say over what happened to his remains and no idea that his body would be used as a cadaver in a medical school and then shoveled into a mass grave on Hart Island. New York is unique among American cities in the way it disposes of the dead it considers unclaimed: interment on a lonely island, off-limits to the public, by a crew of inmates. Buried by the score in wide, deep pits, the Hart Island dead seem to vanish and so does any explanation for how they came to be there. To reclaim their stories from erasure is to confront the unnoticed heartbreak inherent in a great metropolis, in the striving and missed chances of so many lives gone by. Bad childhoods, bad choices or just bad luck the chronic calamities of the human condition figure in many of these narratives. Here are the harshest consequences of mental illness, addiction or families scattered or distracted by their own misfortunes. But if Hart Island hides individual tragedies, it also obscures systemic failings, ones that stack the odds against people too poor, too old or too isolated to defend themselves. In the face of an end-of-life industry that can drain the resources of the most prudent, these people are especially vulnerable. Indeed, this graveyard of last resort hides wrongdoing by some of the very individuals and institutions charged with protecting New Yorkers, including court-appointed guardians and nursing homes. And at a time when many still fear a potters field as the ultimate indignity, the secrecy that shrouds Hart Islands dead also veils the citys haphazard treatment of their remains. These cases are among hundreds unearthed through an investigation by The New York Times that draws on a database of people buried on the island since 1980. The records make it possible for the first time to trace the lives of the dead, revealing the many paths that led New Yorkers to a common grave. Matched with other public records, including guardianship proceedings, court dockets and hundreds of pages of unclaimed cadaver records obtained from the citys Office of Chief Medical Examiner under the states Freedom of Information Law, the database becomes a road map to unlocking Hart Islands secrets. Some secrets defy every expectation. Ruth Proskauer Smith, 102, died in her multimillion-dollar apartment in the Dakota building in Manhattan in 2010 after a life celebrated in a Times obituary and by her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She now lies with 144 strangers in Trench 359. My God, she ended up there? Gael Arnold exclaimed, shocked to learn that her mother had been buried on Hart Island in 2013, three years after her death and the donation of her body to science. Her children had assumed that the New York University School of Medicine would cremate her remains and dispose of the ashes, not send her corpse to the city morgue to be ferried to a pit. Some secrets still resist unraveling. Timothy Daniels, 17, is buried in Trench 209. He died in 1990 in an upstate homeless shelter run by the city for men over 35, a place no juvenile was supposed to be. Yet there is no trace of any official inquiry into how he died there. The common expectation today is that families will be on the front line of burial arrangements. But as many cases show, families can be lost or outlived, left in the dark or hobbled by the same economic and social forces that drove their kin toward Hart Island. Under a New York State law rooted in the 1850s and last amended in 2007, next of kin can have as little as 48 hours after a death to claim a body for burial, or 24 hours after notification, if the deceased person is known to have a relative whose place of residence is known or can be ascertained after reasonable and diligent inquiry. At that point, a body is legally available for use as a cadaver and for burial in a potters field. Medical schools have the right of first refusal; the bodies they reject are passed to mortuary classes for embalmment training, which is required for a funeral directors license. Views differ over whether the role of cadavers in teaching doctors, or even undertakers, should outweigh any concerns about consent, religious prohibitions or disparate treatment of the poor. Even some anatomists now argue that the governments power to appropriate the bodies of the marginalized should be unacceptable today. But most people are simply unaware of the practice. With the rise of private body donations, most medical schools no longer claim corpses from the city morgue. Still, the city has offered at least 4,000 bodies to medical or mortuary programs in the past decade; among these, more than 1,877 were selected for use before a belated Hart Island burial, records show. The city temporarily halted the flow of cadavers in 2014 after the medical examiners office was caught in a series of blunders, including bodies lost or mixed up. But the practice resumed last spring when a mortuary school sued. The city declines to identify the cadavers, invoking a privacy exception to public records laws. Citing security, the citys Correction Department also repeatedly rebuffed The Timess requests to witness Hart Island burials firsthand. Finally, in March, The Times used a drone to fly around the islands shoreline and record burials on video. For a decade, a small band of activists, led by a visual artist, Melinda Hunt, sought access to the islands handwritten burial ledgers. More than a year ago, Ms. Hunt turned hard-won facts and old images into a website for the nonprofit organization she founded, the Hart Island Project, and shared the underlying data with The Times. The recovered stories reveal the powerful reach of the past. And they show that in a time of passionate debate over inequality, racism and economic exploitation, the potters field dead speak to us still. Strangers With Common Fate The term potters field is biblical, referring to a clay-heavy piece of land near Jerusalem bought with the 30 pieces of silver returned by a remorseful Judas to the chief priests. Worthless for farming, the land would be used to bury strangers. The strangers in New York City after the Civil War were poor immigrants, African-Americans and casualties of the teeming, crime-infested slums. The city bought Hart Island in 1868. It had been the site of a prison for Confederate soldiers, and for more than a century, the dead shared the island with living inmates of one kind or another, people who were likely to end up in its mass graves themselves. The island is now haunted by the crumbling remnants of defunct institutions, among them a lunatic asylum, a tuberculosis hospital and a boys reformatory. In the bulldozed barrens between these ruins, inmates outfitted, chain-gang-style, in red stripes and Day-Glo orange caps stack the dead three deep. Throughout human history, archaeologists say, the treatment of dead bodies has been a key indicator of status differences in a society; the unworthy poor become the unworthy dead. As a burial place, unmarked ground shared with many strangers is at the bottom of the hierarchy. But Hart Islands dead were also always vulnerable to another fate. New York was among many states that had added dissection to death sentences for murder, arson and even burglary by the early 19th century, when it was otherwise illegal. But the demand for cadavers in medical education had outstripped the legal supply of executed felons, and an illicit market in corpses mushroomed. Its history is grim. Southern slave owners donated or sold bodies of dead slaves to medical schools; in the North, competing schools imported black bodies from the South in whiskey barrels. Potters fields, almshouse cemeteries and African-American burial grounds were routinely ransacked as medical professors paid for corpses, no questions asked. Other bodies were diverted from morgues and the charity wards of urban hospitals. Society largely turned a blind eye as long as the body snatchers took the black, the poor or the powerless, historians point out. But when even the bodies of respectable whites were not safe, outrage erupted. There were riots against medical schools in Philadelphia, New Haven and New York, where in 1788 a hospital was sacked and Columbia College medical students were nearly lynched. Furor peaked nationwide in an 1879 scandal, when the naked, stolen body of a United States congressman was discovered in an Ohio anatomy lab. Lawmakers in many states concluded that the only way to protect the respectable was to give medical schools more of what they were already taking illegally: the bodies of the disenfranchised. One of the first such laws was New York States, passed in 1854 despite vehement opposition from representatives of New York Citys immigrant poor. Over the next 50 years, many states followed suit, some passing laws requiring officials at every almshouse, prison, hospital and public institution to provide corpses to medical schools if the bodies would otherwise be buried at public expense. Those are the roots of New Yorks present statute. Today, the rise of cremation and body donation has altered funeral practices for many, but in poor communities not least among a generation of African-Americans who migrated north from the Jim Crow South a paupers grave and the specter of dismemberment never lost their horror as a final humiliation. An opt-out provision in the law would seem to exempt the bodies of people who indicate that they do not want to be dissected or embalmed. But few are aware of it, and it may be unenforceable. Certainly it was unknown in the 1990s in the single-room occupancy hotel where an African-American woman named Gwendolyn Burke, blind and halt after a lifetime of menial work, had no way to avoid the potters field. Sure enough, when she died at 89, Ms. Burke went to Hart Island. But first, the Albert Einstein College of Medicine claimed her as a cadaver and used her body for dissection for 13 months before she was interred in 2000. She didnt deserve that, said David Minton, the city social worker assigned to Ms. Burkes hotel in Harlem, who learned of her bodys use 16 years too late to object. Plot Markers 1980s PEACE MONUMENT An Invisible Island Over nearly 150 years, more than a million people have been buried on Hart Island, a graveyard for bodies the city considers unclaimed. Burials began at the northern tip in 1869. Circles on the map ( ) mark areas where bodies have been buried over the past four decades. This 200-foot trench has the remains of 8,904 babies buried between 1988 and 1999. 1980s 1980s 1980s compound hart island Thousands of the dead are lost on the island. Records of burials between 1961 and 1976, possibly here, were destroyed by vandals. Disinterment permits from 1933 indicate that graves in this area may have been consolidated. 450 FT A visitors gazebo was built far from the fields in 2007; recently, relatives won a legal battle and can apply for monthly gravesite visits. Twice a week, bodies are ferried to this dock, along with inmates from Rikers Island who are paid to bury the dead. Building ruins are evidence of other ways the island has been put to use. It has been home to a jail, halfway house, military training camp, sanitarium and a missile base. Gazebo Future plots Future plots This is the area for current burials. Active trench Long Island Sound 2000s A drug treatment center housed here was closed in 1976. In 1989, the bulldozers moved here. Burials fill about 500 feet in trenches a year. The graves are not the 3-by-7-foot plots typical of other cemeteries, but mass graves that begin as trenches, 15 feet wide and 8 feet deep. At the southern tip of the island, 16 people with AIDS were buried at the height of fear and ignorance about the disease in the 1980s. The bodies were buried under 14 feet of soil instead of the usual three. 1990s Hart Island New York City Plot Markers 1980s PEACE MONUMENT An Invisible Island More than a million people have been buried on Hart Island over nearly 150 years. Burials began at the northern tip in 1869. Circles on the map ( ) mark areas where bodies have been buried over the past four decades. 1980s 1980s 1980s compound hart island Thousands of the dead are lost on the island. Records of burials between 1961 and 1976, possibly here, were destroyed by vandals. 450 FT A visitors gazebo was built far from the fields in 2007; recently, relatives won a legal battle and can apply for monthly gravesite visits. Twice a week, bodies are ferried to this dock, along with inmates from Rikers Island who are paid to bury the dead. Building ruins are evidence of other ways the island has been put to use. It has been home to a jail, halfway house, military training camp, sanitarium and a missile base. Gazebo Future plots Future plots Long Island Sound Active trench This is the area for current burials. A drug treatment center housed here was closed in 1976. In 1989, the bulldozers moved here. Burials fill about 500 feet in trenches a year. At the southern tip of the island, 16 people with AIDS were buried at the height of fear and ignorance about the disease in the 1980s. The bodies were buried under 14 feet of soil instead of the usual three. 2000s 1990s Hart Island New York City Plot Markers 1980s An Invisible Island More than a million people have been buried on Hart Island over nearly 150 years. Burials began at the northern tip in 1869. Circles on the map ( ) mark areas where bodies have been buried over the past four decades. 1980s Long Island Sound 1980s compound hart island Thousands of the dead are lost on the island. Records of burials between 1961 and 1976, possibly here, were destroyed by vandals. A visitors gazebo was built far from the fields in 2007; recently, relatives won a legal battle and can apply for monthly gravesite visits. Twice a week, bodies are ferried to this dock, along with inmates from Rikers Island who are paid to bury the dead. At the southern tip of the island, 16 people with AIDS were buried at the height of fear and ignorance about the disease in the 1980s. The bodies were buried under 14 feet of soil instead of the usual three. 450 FT Gazebo Future plots Future plots Active trench 2000s 1990s Hart Island N.Y.C. An Invisible Island Plot Markers 1980s Over a million people have been buried there. Circles on the map ( ) mark areas where bodies have been buried over the past four decades. 1980s Long Island Sound 1980s Twice a week, bodies are ferried to this dock, along with inmates from Rikers Island who are paid to bury the dead. Building ruins are evidence of other ways the island has been put to use. It has been home to a jail, halfway house, military training camp, sanitarium and a missile base. One trench has the remains of 8,904 babies buried between 1988 and 1999. Burials fill about 500 feet in trenches a year. hart island Future plots Future plots Active trench 2000s 1990s Hart Island N.Y.C. 500 FT Where People Are Buried Tap to advance Hart Island N.Y.C. Burials began at the northern tip in 1869. Circles on the map ( ) mark areas where bodies have been buried over the past four decades. Where People Are Buried Step 2 of 4 Ferry Dock Bodies from city morgues are ferried to this dock, along with inmates from Rikers Island who are paid to bury the dead. Where People Are Buried Step 3 of 4 Building ruins are evidence of other ways the island has been put to use. It has been home to a jail, halfway house, military training camp, sanitarium and a missile base. Ruins Where People Are Buried Step 4 of 4 500 FT One trench has the remains of 8,904 babies buried between 1988 and 1999. Burials fill about 500 feet in trenches a year. High Cost of Dying Alone When Leola Dickerson fell to the floor of her house in Pleasantville, N.J., in February 2006, no one was there to notice. Her dog, Champ, waited in vain to be let in. Her upstairs tenant came and went by an outside staircase. Days passed before a mail carrier found her, barely conscious, and called 911. Her husband, one of 10 siblings, had wanted to retire to live with relatives in rural Alabama, before he died. But Ms. Dickerson, born near Tuskegee in 1919, refused to go back. Im out of the South, she would say. Were set in our ways, and God has blessed us. Family photographs covered her parlor walls: the children who had called her Grandma on visits from the South after she married their grandfather, Mango, in the 1960s; Mangos nephew Joseph Dixon, the boy she had raised as her son; the grandsons of her deceased employers, Milton and Helen Katz, who had always treated her like kin. Black and white and tan, the faces overlapped inside old picture frames. But at 86, Ms. Dickersons sole blood relative was her younger brother in New York, Johnny Maddox. After an ambulance took her to a hospital in New Jersey, he arranged to move her to a nursing home in Queens. The nursing home, saying she had dementia, petitioned the Queens County Court to appoint a guardian to manage her affairs and assets, including her house, valued at $88,200, and her monthly Social Security check of $783. So began Leola Dickersons two-year journey to Hart Island. In Pensacola, Fla., her dead husbands granddaughter, Constance Dickerson Williams, knew something was wrong. She kept trying to call Grandma Leola, but no one answered. Finally she wrote, but there was no response. In New York, everyone agreed that Ms. Dickerson needed a guardian, and the court appointed one from a list of lawyers. On paper, Ms. Dickerson was now covered. By law, the guardian was to exercise the utmost care and diligence when acting on behalf of the incapacitated person and show trust, loyalty and fidelity. His powers and duties included creating an irrevocable burial trust fund, notifying relatives in the event of death and paying reasonable funeral expenses out of remaining assets. But guardians are paid out of those same assets, and a house on the outskirts of Atlantic City did not promise much. Moreover, the nursing homes lawyers were already claiming thousands of dollars in legal fees for bringing the guardianship petition in the first place. A year went by as two appointed lawyers in succession declined to serve as her guardian. A third accepted but failed even to file the paperwork required to act on Ms. Dickersons behalf. After an appeal by Dr. Michael Katz, a physician and the elder son of Ms. Dickersons employers, the court appointed a fourth lawyer in October 2007. But by years end he had not submitted the necessary documents, either. The need to safeguard or sell Ms. Dickersons house was urgent, Dr. Katz knew. He had rescued her from predatory lenders, covered $45,000 in needed repairs with a family loan and helped her collect rent from her tenant. Now, dying of a heart condition, Dr. Katz saw the empty house falling prey to squatters and scavengers. Leola Dickerson has been part of our family for 50 years, he had written in a eulogy for his mother in 2000, when she died of Alzheimers disease at 86, tended by Ms. Dickerson, then 80. Her years of devotion and caring for our parents will always be appreciated and never forgotten. Dr. Katz, 69, died on Jan. 18, 2008, and was buried three days later. Ms. Dickerson died at a Queens hospital on Jan. 22. Her body would wait in the morgue for three months and 21 days. For a long time already, her adoptive son, Joseph Dixon, had been trying to find her. She was a good mother, he would say later. Everybody loved her. Their relationship had suffered after he left the Army and struggled with drugs. Nevertheless, he visited her in the hospital in 2006 after learning of her fall. When he returned the next morning, she was gone and the hospital would not tell him where. They kept insisting, She doesnt have any kids. There had never been a formal adoption. But inside the locked Pleasantville house lay his high school diploma and his formal Army portrait. Outside towered the tree he had planted in fourth grade. He tried to find out who controlled the property, to no avail. One day the garage door was open, and the blue Thunderbird that Ms. Dickerson called her baby was gone. He figured then that she had passed. Notice of her death went to her baby brother, Mr. Maddox, a diabetic undergoing a double amputation. He was in bad shape when she passed, the brothers widow, Bernice, recalled. He was in no position. Notice also went to the guardian and to the Queens County public administrators office, which calculated that she had only $342.24 left. It would go toward a $7,771.18 claim by the nursing homes lawyers, or to offset $124,258.85 paid to the home by Medicaid. That year the city referred 80 unclaimed Queens bodies to medical schools. Whether Ms. Dickerson was among them is not a matter of public record, but her burial site is: Trench 331, with 162 other bodies. Even as her grave sank under bulldozers digging new trenches for the unclaimed, the unpaid tax liens on her house were being bought at auction, repackaged and resold for profit by various hedge funds. By then the house was a boarded-up ruin where drug deals went down. When a stepgrandson, Thackus Dickerson, finally arrived, trying to find out what had happened to Grandma Leola, sheriffs deputies showed up to demand his ID. Yet the guardian and the nursing homes lawyers were still battling for the last of her Social Security in 2012, four years after her death, the guardian claiming $23,793.69 in legal fees. He lost. The judge granted him just $1,576, and it became another uncollectable lien against a house in foreclosure that he never went to see. The guardian, Jay Stuart Dankberg, 70, is a large man who wears big gold rings and meets visitors in a shabby Manhattan office crammed with overflowing cartons. He readily remembered the Dickerson case as a financial disappointment, but said he was hearing of his wards Hart Island burial for the first time. It shocks me, Mr. Dankberg said. I certainly should be paid, and certainly she shouldnt be buried in potters field. Where did he think she would be buried? I hadnt given it any thought, he replied. Indifference and Betrayals New Yorks guardianship statute was considered a model when it was passed in 1993. It did not work out that way. Government and news media investigations have repeatedly found the system swollen with well-connected lawyers siphoning fees from wards assets, and choked by paperwork requirements that fail to uncover even flagrant theft. Past exposes have followed the money, not the human remains of wards with little left to steal. Guardianship data is spotty and often hard to obtain. But here they are: guardianship files that bear the same names as people sent to Hart Island. Dozens of files can be identified and pulled one by one from courthouse storage. Few of these wards were wealthy. But neither were they destitute at least not until they entered the vortex of end-of-life care. In some cases of neglectful guardians, even the last safety net a burial fund, a private plot, a will proved no protection. Thats one of the most horrible, predatory things Ive ever heard, Felice Wechsler, a senior lawyer with the states Mental Hygiene Legal Service and a veteran of guardianship proceedings, said when informed that records showed that many people with guardians ended up on Hart Island. Constance Mirabelli, a widowed bookkeeper with a jolly laugh and a love of riding city buses, had a rent-controlled apartment in the West Village and a burial plot in a Catholic cemetery before she was placed under a guardianship in 1999 at her landlords initiative. Im not dilapidated yet, Ms. Mirabelli told the psychiatrist sent by the city after her landlord complained that she was incontinent and sometimes let the bathtub overflow. I can still kick pretty good. Four years, two guardians and two nursing homes later, Ms. Mirabelli died at 91. And despite her plot at St. John Cemetery in Queens, despite a $2,000 burial fund culled from her modest pension and preserved by court order, Ms. Mirabelli was among the last of 137 bodies to be lowered into Trench 307 in February 2004. The guardian responsible for her at the time, Jo Ann Douglas, was a lawyer known for lucrative appointments as a law guardian for children in celebrity divorces. In her final accounting, she wrote that she had arranged appropriate transport and burial for Ms. Mirabelli not specifying that she meant a city morgue truck and a paupers grave. Questioned 10 years later, Ms. Douglas found nothing in her old notes to explain her decision. Do you know if she can be moved to St. Johns? she asked in an email, seeking a way to undo the past. Again and again, bulging guardianship files show that the consequences of bad luck and bureaucratic indifference fall with disproportionate cruelty on people who lack the buffer of money. Few are more vulnerable than immigrants to this proudly international city. Ciro Ferrer, of Cuba, lies in Trench 357, where four dozen of 150 bodies have Hispanic names amid an Ellis Island grab bag. For 25 years, working in a food market in Elmhurst, Queens, Mr. Ferrer supported his wife and three children in Havana. But after the authorities found him disheveled and malnourished, wandering the streets near the Elmhurst apartment where he lived alone, he was initially described in records as 70, single and childless. He told a court-appointed evaluator about his Cuban family after receiving a dementia diagnosis in 2007 and being placed at New Surfside Nursing Home in Far Rockaway, Queens. His guardianship file includes the Havana address and phone number of his wife, Regla, and even a 2008 report by his guardian citing a plan to buy him a phone card to call family outside the country. But that never happened. The guardian, Nicholas S. Ratush, who collected $400 every month as a fee from Mr. Ferrers $669 Social Security check and paid the nursing home the rest, now says that he was unaware of any relatives and so could not notify any when Mr. Ferrer died on Oct. 29, 2012. In Havana, Mr. Ferrers daughter, Ilda, 53, learned of her fathers death three years later from The Times. He was still alive, eight years ago, when her mother received a letter from the court evaluator saying that Mr. Ferrer was unable to care for himself, but her efforts to reply by phone and email went unanswered. Mr. Ferrers wife died soon afterward, and the children tried in vain to reach their father through the Red Cross and the United States government. We could do nothing, his daughter said, but let him die alone. Wishes and Plans Ignored To leave your kin to the potters field has long been considered shameful. But Julie Bolcer, a spokeswoman for the citys Office of Chief Medical Examiner, said many people chose not to claim relatives lying in the morgue. The office does not track the numbers, she said, or ask the reasons. For the big sister of Zarramen Gooden, 17, buried on Hart Island in 1999, the reason still sears: Did we want him in potters field? Hell no! We didnt have the money. I felt so bad knowing that my brothers body was just taken and dumped. Zarramen was the family clown, the lovable prankster who had known a better life. His father was a good provider, an Army veteran working two jobs as a janitor in Brooklyn, in a hospital and in a bank. But he died when the boy was 7, and the family ended up on welfare and in the drug-ravaged homeless-shelter system. Their mother, Rita Nelson, became addicted to heroin. After Zarramens freak bicycle accident, he bled to death on the way to the hospital. When their mother died in 2014, the children came up with $7,000 for her burial in Calverton National Cemetery on Long Island, beside her husband. Only then did they learn that the burial plot had room for one more. Zarramen? They told us it was too late, said the older sister, Malondya LaTorre. In another trench, from another realm in life, lies Doris McCrea, a widow who retired as the head of records retention for Continental Grain, one of the worlds largest privately held corporations. She outlived her family but had made careful provision to be laid to rest with her husband in a cemetery in Turners Falls, Mass. When she died at 100 on July 10, 2012, she had a generous prepaid burial plan and more than $5,400 in her personal account at the nursing home where she had lived for 15 years. Yet three days later, the city issued a permit to put her in the potters field. Within four months, she was in a trench with 148 others. Thats criminal, said Audrey Ponzio, a friend and former colleague from Continental Grain, when she learned where Ms. McCrea had ended up. As in many cases, Ms. McCreas personal information had been lost or ignored in the shuffle near the end of her long life, when she was sent from nursing home to hospital, from hospital to hospice. What happened to this patient is very unfortunate, said Dr. Jonathan Mawere, the administrator of the nursing home, Queens Boulevard Extended Care Facility, who was prompted by an inquiry from The Times to find and try to reactivate her burial plan, three years late. Unclaimed graves, unspent burial funds and uncollected life insurance abound in this fragmented system, critics say. Even concerned survivors with money to pay for burial themselves are no guarantee against Hart Island. Take Emmett Pantin, 57, placed on a ventilator in 2008 after a severe stroke. For five years, he was repeatedly reported to have only one living relative, an older brother on active military duty somewhere in Iraq. No one asked the Army to track down this brother, Master Sgt. Gerard Pantin, even when the younger brother died at 62 in July 2013 and was sent to Hart Island, his name misspelled Patin. In fact, the brothers were two of nine siblings in a family from Trinidad. Relatives there and in the United States had been trying to find Emmett Pantin for nearly a year when they learned from a website that he had died. Immobile, voiceless, suffering bedsores and depression, he had been transferred through at least four medical institutions under the supervision of a court-appointed guardian in his last year of life, records show. Before he died, they kept telling us they couldnt find him, Sergeant Pantin said when reached in Florida, where he had retired from the Army at 69 in 2015, after deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan. Up to now we didnt know where the body was. I told them: This is America. If somebody went to the hospital and went to a nursing home, how can they not know where he is? Hospital or Nursing Home Of the more than 65,000 people buried on Hart Island since 1980, at least 52,000 died in hospitals or nursing homes. Train or Bus Stop or Airport Some died or were found elsewhere, including over 275 locations throughout the citys transportation infrastructure, at subway, train, and bus stations and at airports. In a River or Offshore Others washed up in one of New Yorks rivers, creeks, bays or other water features. In a River or Offshore Hospital or Nursing Home Train or Bus Stop or Airport In a River or Offshore Hospital or Nursing Home Train or Bus Stop or Airport Hospital or Nursing Home Train or Bus Stop or Airport In a River or Offshore Of the more than 65,000 people buried on Hart Island since 1980, at least 52,000 died in hospitals or nursing homes. Some died or were found elsewhere, including over 275 locations throughout the citys transportation infrastructure, at subway, train, and bus stations and at airports. Others washed up in one of New Yorks rivers, creeks, bays or other water features. Where the Bodies Come From Tap to advance Of the more than 65,000 people buried on Hart Island since 1980, at least 52,000 died in hospitals or nursing homes. Where the Bodies Come From Step 2 of 3 Some died or were found elsewhere, including over 275 locations throughout the citys transportation infrastructure, at subway, train, and bus stations and at airports. Where the Bodies Come From Step 3 of 3 Others washed up in one of New Yorks rivers, creeks, bays or other water features. The Cadaver Market The unclaimed dead wait in cold storage, shelved on racks in city morgues. In theory, all who are destined for that last ferry ride are first subject to selection as educational cadavers under the authority of the chief medical examiner. In practice, of those buried on Hart Island, only a portion roughly 300 to 600 out of some 1,500 annually were ever officially offered as anatomical specimens on the weekly or biweekly lists discreetly circulated by the medical examiners office, citing name, age, race, sex, place and date of death. Fewer still were chosen. A lot of cherry picking, said Jason Chiaramonte, a licensed funeral director who for many years handled the acquisition of so-called city bodies for Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx. Its like, Hey, Jason, we have 10 people here; were going to bury them at potters field next week. If you want to take a look, see if you can use some. Technically, theyre city property, Mr. Chiaramonte added, and technically, theyre only loaning them to us. Ms. Bolcer, the spokeswoman for the medical examiners office, said the city had stepped up efforts to identify relatives through the Internet and commercial databases. We are enormously conservative about which bodies get offered to schools under the current law that requires us to make unclaimed bodies available, she said. The street homeless and other casualties of rough living are generally not wanted by medical schools. Old age, however, is no obstacle. And each boroughs morgue has had its own way of parceling out the cadavers, despite recurrent scandals over corruption and lawsuits over body mix-ups. Rivals for the bodies periodically clash over access to the citys supply, and even over individual corpses. Medical schools have chafed at one-day body loans made to the American Academy McAllister Institute of Funeral Service, which these days signs out corpses at the Queens morgue, drives them to embalming classes in Midtown Manhattan and returns them after mortuary students have practiced incisions, drainage and chemical infusion a process that leaves the cadavers unfit for medical schools purposes. Record-keeping of such loans is sloppy; documents show some bodies signed out and never signed back in. And for decades, McAllister, along with the mortuary science department at Nassau Community College, had even more casual access to the dead, conducting classes in the city morgue at Bellevue Hospital Center in Manhattan until Hurricane Sandy flooded the premises in 2012. Religious charities that handle burials have fruitlessly sought access to the names of people lying unclaimed. We cant get the morgue lists, complained Amy Koplow, executive director of the Hebrew Free Burial Association, which is dedicated to providing a traditional private interment to any Jew who cannot afford one. We cant march into Einstein and say: Hold that scalpel! That persons Jewish; they belong to us. So it was that Milton Weinstein, 67, a Brooklyn-born Reform Jew, became one of three bodies from nursing homes that Mr. Chiaramonte borrowed from the Bronx morgue on April 28, 2009, for Einsteins use. In a log book at the morgue, Mr. Chiaramonte filled out and signed a funeral directors receipt for each. He loaded the bodies on stretchers and trucked them away. It would be at least two years before they were buried. There are no rules on how long such corpses can be used. The medical examiners office redacted all cadavers names from the records it gave The Times under the Freedom of Information Law. But hundreds could be identified anyway, through comparisons of dates and places of death. Many were separately confirmed by people with access to unredacted records. Some cadavers were traced to past lives and lost relatives. My God where was his body for 24 months? Michael Wynston, Mr. Weinsteins estranged son, asked when he learned that his father had been buried on Hart Island on April 20, 2011, two years after his death at Bay Park Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation in the Bronx. With bitterness and self-reproach, Mr. Wynston sketched the broken arc of his fathers life. Widowed in 1970s Brooklyn with a 7-year-old son and a 3-year-old adopted daughter, Mr. Weinstein remarried and clung to his second wife, Lynda, then a hospital nurse with a son of her own. Even when her descent into mental illness and abusiveness destroyed the blended family, Mr. Wynston said, his father rejected his suggestion of divorce, saying, Id rather have this than nothing. His daughter ran away. His stepson fled the turmoil to live with his own father. Eventually Michael, who last saw his father in 2002, changed his surname to Wynston, partly, he said, so my father and stepmother wouldnt find me. To the stepson, Barry Gainsburg, now a lawyer in Florida, Mr. Weinsteins fate was part of a larger economic unraveling. The bottom line is, his industry was taken out by the computer age, he said, referring to Mr. Weinsteins career as a typographer. He was a good guy; he just got crushed by society. A diabetic, Mr. Weinstein lost his last job, driving for a car service, because of dimming sight. Destitute and ailing, he and his wife entered the nursing home together. When he died there in 2009, they had been residents for at least three years. But the nursing home, which did not respond to repeated inquiries about the case, sent his body to the morgue as unclaimed, and transferred his widow, over her objections, from the Bronx to a nursing home in Brooklyn. Its like the nursing home just collects their Medicaid checks, and when theyre done, they just throw them in a heap outside, Mr. Wynston said. Eventually, after Ms. Weinstein had been shuffled through a series of nursing homes, a Brooklyn hospital contacted her son: She was undergoing surgery for lung cancer. The stepbrothers learned only then of Miltons death. Nobody could tell them where he was buried. Now they realize why: He was still being used as a cadaver. Its the guilt and regret that I live with, Mr. Wynston said. I essentially abandoned him. The Ferry Ride Out In Greek mythology, the ghosts of the unburied dead visit the living, demanding proper burial. In New York Citys lexicon, Hart Island counts as decent burial at least for those who can afford no other. But the longing to bring ones own dead home runs deep. Sometimes the islands ledgers show a disinterment date. Here are the favored few, exhumed by number from the trench grid, collected by a funeral home and ferried back for a different ending. Among these cases are two stories as redemptive as any faith could pray for, stories that illuminate what others have lost in the darkness that surrounds Hart Island. Monica Murray, the oldest in a large Irish Catholic family, had married at 20. She was a good, protective mother to her two daughters, Maureen and Linda. But in 1986, when they were 22 and 17, she abruptly emptied the family bank account and vanished. When your mom walks out on you and takes all the money and doesnt leave a note, theres a lot of hurt and anger, Maureen Eastman, the older daughter, recalled. Their mother briefly surfaced in St. Lucia, living with an abusive man and asking for money. Their father, who had filed a missing persons report, secured a quick divorce. Bitterness drove a wedge between the daughters and their maternal relatives. Except for a sighting at a Long Island halfway house in 1988, they heard nothing more of their mother for 25 years years when they hated her. In June 2013, their father got a call that changed everything. Ms. Murray was dead. She had died back in January, and she was buried on Hart Island. Theres no words to describe how sad and overwhelmed we were to find out thats where she ended up, Ms. Eastman said. We could barely sleep knowing that she was there. More revelations followed. Their mother had spent a decade in Creedmoor, a psychiatric institution in Queens, before being transferred in 1998 to New Surfside Nursing Home. No visitors; alert but increasingly racked by seizures; ultimately unable to speak. On Facebook, Ms. Eastman, living in Arizona, contacted New York relatives she had not spoken to for decades. Her mothers brother, a retired firefighter, was adamant: They would bring Ms. Murray back, to Grandma and Grandpas plot in St. Charles/Resurrection Cemeteries in Farmingdale on Long Island. As cousins gathered, Ms. Murrays daughters learned for the first time that Huntingtons disease ran in the family. Those who inherit the incurable brain disorder become progressively unable to walk, talk, think or swallow. Symptoms typically start in the 30s or 40s, often with impulsive, manic behavior like taking the money and running. When she died, Ms. Murray had $6,887 left in her personal account at New Surfside. But she was buried as an indigent because the nursing home, which had collected $1.1. million from Medicaid for her care over the last decade of her life, failed to turn over her remaining funds promptly. (The home declined to comment.) In an eerie coda, when money surfaced, the Queens County public administrator offered a funeral home $4,295 to disinter and transfer her body to a cut-rate New Jersey graveyard without markers. But when the undertakers checked Hart Island, she was not there. She had already been lifted from the pit, into the bosom of her family. Her headstone reads: Loving Mother, Daughter, Sister and Aunt. You feel grief, Ms. Eastman said. But you feel: You know what? Im allowed to love you again, Mom. That same year, it took a whole community to reclaim another Hart Island exile, a woman who died alone at 53 in her brownstone apartment in Manhattan. In her late 30s, Sheryl Hurst had been drawn to Congregation Rodeph Sholom, an Upper West Side synagogue, and she sang in its choir for years before formally converting to Judaism. With free-flowing hair and a mysterious facial deformity, she was a familiar presence, but no one knew her story. Neither of her parents was Jewish. She was born three years after her mother, Terry Saunders, sang in the 1956 Hollywood version of The King and I as the head wife, Lady Thiang. Ms. Hursts younger father, James Hurst, played cowboys in television westerns. Her parents broke up when she was about 4. As a teenager, she tried to kill herself, fell unconscious on a bathroom heater and badly burned her face. A funny thing happened to me on the way to becoming Jewish, she wrote when she completed an adult bat mitzvah class in 2007. I, an atheist, developed a strong belief and deep love for God. She had always lived with her mother and was devastated by her death in 2011. But in June 2012, she was looking forward to chanting at a special service, and when she did not show up, the synagogue kept trying to reach her. Finally, the cantor posted a note at Ms. Hursts building on West 76th Street in Manhattan, appealing for information. Word came back: Ms. Hurst had died in May the synagogue members had just missed her at the morgue. She was lost to Hart Island. Everybody was just distraught, said Sally Kaplan, vice president of the congregation. Somehow we had to bring Sheryl home. They enlisted Plaza Jewish Community Chapel, a rare nonprofit funeral home, to try to retrieve Ms. Hurst for burial in the synagogues cemetery. The process took nine months and was not easy. Among many requirements was written permission from Ms. Hursts long-estranged father in California. At first, he said he had not had a relationship with his daughter. But when they explained what they were doing, he wept, saying, God bless you all. Now her headstone bears not only her birth name but the Hebrew name she chose, Eliana, because it means, God answered me, and an inscription by the community that refused to leave her in the dark: Forever in Our Hearts. The television licence should remain a core part of funding RTE, according to Paschal Donohoe. The public expenditure minister said the conditions attached to 40 million in funding earmarked for RTE next year involved ensuring the broadcaster implements the reforms it has committed to. RTE director-general Kevin Bakhurst published his plan for reform and cost savings at the organisation, including the salary price cap of 250,000 euro and up to 400 job cuts over four years. RTE digital stations and plus-one TV channels are due to be axed, there will be a greater reliance on independent productions and spending cuts worth around 10 million euro next year. Mr Bakhurst said this will affect TV and radio programmes and would mean that purchasing new equipment such as radio desks would have to be delayed. The broadcaster is facing a funding crisis that has been exacerbated by controversies this summer after it admitted to mis-stating the fees paid to its then-highest earning presenter Ryan Tubridy. As the issue widened out to broader governance and financial issues, RTE has seen a multimillion-euro drop in revenues as fewer TV licence fees were bought this year. Government has approved funding of 12 million euro this year and a further 40 million euro next year for RTE, but it will be released in two tranches based on certain conditions. Two reviews into culture and governance at RTE are due to be completed in the first week of February, which the first tranche of funding is partly reliant on, ministers suggested. A unit within the Media Department is to oversee the allocation of the 40 million euro government funding to RTE. Speaking on Sunday, Mr Donohoe said that the plan put forward by Mr Bakhurst is clearly going in the right direction, and said government would be looking for assurances that it is being implemented. Senior government figures have pledged they will decide on a long-term funding issue for public service broadcasters like RTE before the coalitions term comes to an end. Asked whether an option being considered would include Revenue Commissioners collecting licence fees, Mr Donohoe said it will be one of the options that will be considered. He told RTEs This Week programme it had been considered before and rejected. The reason why it was rejected before and I would indeed have some reservations about it, but I am willing to look at it is because the Revenue Commissioners only collect taxes, and theres a really important difference between tax and the law behind tax and something that is a charge. He said that we should tread really carefully before we expand their remit into other areas, but that it was a matter for the Minister for Finance Michael McGrath and coalition party leaders. There arent any easy options here, he added. Asked about what long-term funding option he prefers, Mr Donohoe said: I have three criteria in mind that will guide me to it when I make a decision in 2024. The first criteria is I do not believe that any government should be involved in allocating and determining how much money a state broadcaster should get. The independence of the revenue to the state broadcaster from ministers such as myself is an essential element of public service broadcasting. Number two, I believe we should have a method of collecting this that delivers a compliance rate that is at least in line if not ahead of where we are at the moment. Number three, theres still a very large amount of revenue coming in from the television licence at the moment. We should not be walking away from that. That has to be a feature of how we continue to collect revenue into the future. 7500 Rupees Not Given As Money But Confidence To Future IAS Officers Chennai oi-Oneindia English Desk An incentive of Rs.7500 is provided by the Tamil Nadu government under CM Stalin's regime for the UPSC aspirants who are willing to write Prelims, for 10 months. For aspirants going to write UPSC Mains, 25000 rupees is given by the government. The intention behind the introduction of the incentive program is to help the poor students fulfil their IAS dream. Viewpoint of the beneficiaries: Sabariswaran, who moved from Kallipatti village in Namakkal district to Chennai for IAS preparation said, "My father is a weaver, whose earnings are the only source of income for our family. My dream of becoming an IAS officer sprouted after seeing U. Sagayam IAS, who came to our village for a function when he was the District Collector of Namakkal district. Seeing Sagayam IAS, I realised for the first time the powers and duties of an IAS officer visually which served as a stimulus for my dream. I studied day and night but couldn't crack the exam. Finally, on my 4th attempt I cleared Prelims and wrote Mains. Throughout the duration of my preparation my family couldn't support me financially. The'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme reduced my financial burden and provided 25000 rupees as incentive for my preparation. When my family was forced to stop the financial aid, CM Stalin's scheme provided money which helped my studies." Udhaya Bharathi, another beneficiary from Cuddalore district said, "From my childhood, my only dream was to become a doctor. The NEET exam was introduced when I was in 12th standard. Without proper guidance about the application process, I couldn't pursue the medical course. Seeing my stressful behaviour, my parents and relatives cheered me up and encouraged me to pursue civil services. After completing my graduation at Anna University, I started writing the civil services exam in 2021. The initial days of UPSC preparation will be a smooth sail, both financially and mentally. Family members will provide their unconditional support but after a failure there will be second thoughts in providing financial support which happened to me as well. When I was standing helpless, CM Stalin's 'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme helped me to overcome the barriers in my path. The financial strength given by the government gave me confidence which led to the continuation of the preparation." "During the Muthalipatti firecracker factory explosion in 2012, we as students flocked to the accident zone and helped many people. Despite great efforts 40 people died in the accident. It was then, the District Collector came to visit the place and he announced many welfare schemes for the family members of the affected persons. The District Collector also issued an order to provide houses for the affected persons within 6 months. We students wandered from street to street and door to door to collect funds but with just a signature Collector sir changed the fate of the entire victim's family. The whole event and the actions of the District Collector acted as a catalyst for the growth of civil services dream in me. The'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme, a scheme considered as the dream project of CM Stalin, was introduced when I completed my engineering course. The scheme and the financial incentive given under the scheme gave me strength and confidence to continue my civil services preparation. Help received at the right time and at the right circumstances is invaluable, such help was given by the 'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme introduced by CM Stalin", said a youngster. Abinesh from Mugaiyur village in Viluppuram district said, "I completed my under graduation in 2018 in a government college and became the first graduate in my family. Initially my father served in the army and later went on to do farming. Students like me with a village background return to their villages unable to cope with the financial crisis faced during the preparation. In my case, I had 2 sisters which increased my responsibility as an elder son of the family, so I couldn't ask for money from my parents who had to take care of my sisters. In this embarrassing situation, I came across the 'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme which was introduced by CM Stalin after understanding the needs of persons coming from a background like mine. Providing 7500 rupees per month is way better than providing the total amount of 75000, which could be spent for other purposes. This way the monthly incentive of 7500 rupees will be spent judiciously for study purposes alone." A married woman with children going to school, advanced to the Mains exam with the financial help provided under the 'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme. According to her, Stalin's scheme is the sole reason for the continuation of her studies because there is no need for her to rely on her family for money anymore. Another beneficiary who had attempted the civil services exam 9 times said that the 'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme gave him a mental and financial boost which was the need of the moment considering the failures he faced. A student from Chennai said, "After my father died of cancer when I was studying in 12th standard, my mother single-handedly took care of the family. I couldn't financially burden my mother for civil services preparation after my graduation. When CM Stalin introduced the 'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme, I managed my needs on my own with the money given under the scheme." Another student said, "The 7500 rupees provided under the scheme should not be considered as money, it is the courage and confidence for the families who are financially suffering after the Corona lockdown. The scheme shows the paternalistic attitude of CM Stalin who gave hope to millions of aspirants through the 'Naan Mudhalvan' scheme." For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, November 19, 2023, 15:29 [IST] With One Announcement, Organ Donation Skyrocketed In Just 5 Weeks Chennai oi-Oneindia English Desk As per a report from Chennai, the total number of organ donors has increased 27 times more in the last 5 weeks. The sudden spike in the organ donation is due to CM Stalin's announcement of state honours for the deceased organ donors. According to a recently released report, only 100 persons donated organs in a month before the announcement. First-ever in India: Religious beliefs are the reason for the hesitation among people to even donate the organs of the deceased. As per Dr. Amalorpavanathan, the hesitant mentality has been changed by bringing in a scientific perspective to the belief. He said, "In India, the organ transplantation program was first started in Tamil Nadu in 2008 by the former CM Karunanidhi. Kalaignar introduced this program at a time when there was no widespread awareness about organ donation. It was me who started the project by performing liver transplantation for the first time in Stanley hospital, where the transplant operation took place for 12 hrs. Now, the same operation can be done in just 6 hrs with the help of modern equipment. Since the inception of the organ transplant program, Tamil Nadu has been in the top position for 7 years. Unfortunately, corona lockdown and its after effects brought down the number of organ donors significantly in the last 2 years. Only 5 or 6 persons donated organs in an entire year but the numbers have increased after the end of the corona wave." Tamil Nadu - a pioneer state in the global level: CM Stalin's announcement about state honours for the deceased organ donors, is not just an exemplary one but also a progressive and revolutionary one, which will facilitate the increase of organ donors considerably. Such a scheme has not been announced in other states in India as well as developed countries like USA, UK etc. A highest honour given by the government to the deceased higher ranked officials in the army; ministers; CM; President and PM, is now given to all organ donors in the state. Skyrocketing numbers: Granting highest honours given by the government to ordinary citizens for the reason of organ donation is a commendable act. Before the CM's announcement, 200 persons came forward to donate organs in a month but after the announcement, organ donations skyrocketed 27 times more than before, as per a news report. The credit for the increase of organ donations solely goes to CM Stalin's government. The announcement is laudable in all aspects because the donated organs of a deceased person will be helpful to give life to approximately 12 persons. Vadivelu, a part of Tamil Nadu history: After CM Stalin's announcement, for the first time state honours have been performed at the funeral of Vadivelu, a government officer from Chinnamanur village in Theni district for donating his organs. Vadivelu met with an accident and was declared brain dead due to which his family members donated his organs. Like Hithendran who was declared brain dead at the age of 18 in 2008 and became a part of organ donation history, Vadivelu also became a part of history by receiving state honours for the first time. Three weeks back, Tamilselvi from Arittapatti village in Madurai district met with an accident and was admitted to a hospital where she was declared brain dead. In this case also her family members donated her organs. Similar situation occurred to a farmer Krishna Kumar from Cuddalore district who was also declared brain dead because of which he also received state honours. Who can donate organs? Vairakani, Consultant for the Urology Department in Apollo hospital explains the details of organ donation. He said, "There are two types of organ donors. The first category of donors donate organs when they are alive and the second category of donors' organs will be donated by their family members after the death of the donor. The only condition for the live donors to donate their organs is the attainment of 18 years of age. Earlier people having diabetes and blood pressure cannot donate organs but with the advancement of medical technology anyone can donate organs today. Deceased persons, irrespective of their age, can also donate their organs without any barriers. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, November 19, 2023, 13:57 [IST] Rupert Murdoch last official act as president of Fox was to hand the reins over to his son, Lachlan, at the companys November 17 shareholder meeting in Los Angeles. The 92-year-old tycoon handed over control of News Corp at the companys annual meeting earlier in the week. The family holding company controlled by Rupert Murdoch is still the major shareholder of both companies, making it clear that hes not fading quietly into the background. At the annual meeting of Fox Corp (the U.S. television company), Rupert Murdochs illustrious 70-year career was summarized in a concise five-minute video by his son and successor. Murdoch graciously acknowledged the ovation from those in attendance, but refrained from speaking throughout the 30-minute event. However, he did address the November 15 meeting of News Corp, the sprawling conglomerate that encompasses the pay television business in Australia, newspapers, publishing houses and a real estate brokerage. As you know, Ill become chairman emeritus and Lachlan will be the sole chairman of News Corp. Lachlan is a principled leader, and a believer in the social purpose of journalism I hope to continue playing an active role in the company, said Murdoch at the short, virtual meeting in which he was asked whether he would earn a salary as president emeritus. Simple no, replied the tycoon. But in large companies like this one, things arent usually simple. Mr. Murdoch will not receive a salary, but certain expenses will be reimbursed, said CEO Robert Thomson, without offering further details. A new News Corp board of directors was elected using an online voting process. The oldest board member is now Spains former Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar. The 70-year-old, who has already served 10 years on the board, received the highest number of no votes from shareholders 24.7 million, slightly over 14% of the voting shareholders. Thomson received the most support, with 174 million votes in favor and only 613,000 against. When another shareholder asked Murdoch to share memories and regrets from his career, he responded by doing neither. Earlier in the meeting, he gave a three-minute speech about the international situation and the media. The world is facing multiple international crises that demand attention and understanding. After the barbaric attack on Israel and the ensuing tragedies in the region, the rise of virulent anti-Semitism should be of serious concern to all thoughtful people. He made special mention of their journalists who courageously cover conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, and as well as Evan Gershkovich from The Wall Street Journal, who Murdoch said was unjustly imprisoned in Russia simply for doing his job. There is no doubt that we should all be concerned about the suppression of debate by an intolerant elite who regard differing opinions as anathema, said Murdoch in his remarks at the News Corp meeting. My life has certainly been fortunate. We are blessed to live in a country where dreams are not yet subject to regulation. There are so many inspiring stories around us of those who have created much social good from humble beginnings. Like my father, I believe that humanity has a high destiny, and Lachlan certainly shares that belief. That sense of destiny is not just a blessing but a responsibility. Murdochs companies are in good shape, although with some looming unknowns. The groups assets are top-notch, and the companies are well-capitalized and profitable. However, some businesses are declining or going through transformations. The audience of its linear television channels is getting older, newspaper sales are dropping, and the group competes with much larger media companies like Comcast, Netflix, Disney and Charter. Some major legal issues still linger, notably Smartmatics $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox, which is similar to the Dominion Voting Systems case that Fox settled out of court for $800 million. One shareholder repeatedly raised concerns at the Fox meeting about how legal expenses are impacting executive salaries. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Amit Shah will have the same fate as Indira Gandhi, says KhaIistani Amritpal Singh [WATCH] Indira Gandhi-Led Cong Govt Plagued By Starvation Deaths, Encounters: KCR India oi-PTI BRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday tore into Congress, alleging that the former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's regime was plagued by starvation deaths, naxal movements and encounters. Addressing rallies in the state, Rao, also known as KCR, said the Congress leaders should feel ashamed to seek votes as they were not able to provide drinking water during their rule even when the Krishna river was flowing nearby at Kollapur. The Chief Minister further alleged that the grand old party delayed the formation of Telangana and even tried to split the BRS party (then TRS) besides purchasing its MLAs. Telangana Polls: What Has Congress Promised Voters In its Manifesto? Taking a swipe at the Congress for invoking late Indira Gandhi, he said, "Congress promises to bring Indiramma Rajyam in Telangana... What happened during Indiramma Rajyam (Indira's rule)? Hunger and only hunger deaths, Naxalite movements, people were shot dead and encounters... this is what happened throughout Indiramma Rajyam." Rao recalled that until former Chief Minister NT Rama Rao (undivided Andhra Pradesh) came to power and offered rice at Rs 2 per kg to people, it was only a life of hunger. "There is no regime worse than that of Indiramma... they have looted and left people in the lurch," the CM said. Rao asked people to compare the 50 years Congress rule with that of 10 years of BRS government and see for themselves the development that took place under his regime. Raking up the merger issue, he alleged that it was Congress party that merged Telangana and Andhra Pradesh without the consent of people here resulting in sufferings for 50 years. It was the BRS government that increased the social pensions to up to Rs 2000, which were just meagre before 2014, he added. He promised to enhance the existing social pension and the amount given under Rythu Bandhu scheme in a phased manner if the BRS government is voted to power again. Rao claimed that Telangana is the only state which does not impose irrigation water tax on farmers in the country. Cong Will Provide 24 Hours Free Electricity To Farmers If Voted To Power In Telangana: Revanth Reddy He alleged that he refused to implement a central government "order" to install meters on agriculture pump sets despite Telangana losing Rs 25,000 crore fund from the Centre during the last five years. KCR said right from former AICC president Rahul Gandhi to local leaders are stating that the Congress party, if voted to power, 'Dharani', an integrated land management portal, "will be thrown in the Bay of Bengal" which may bring back the regime of middlemen and corrupt officials. Rs 8 Crore Transferred Online From Visaka Industries Freezed By Hyderabad Police A sum of Rs 8 crore which was transferred online from a bank account allegedly from building material manufacturer Visaka Industries to a security service provider here was freezed by city police in the run up to the Telangana Assembly polls, in view of the high-value transaction, police said on Sunday. India -Krishna Kripa In a significant development, the Hyderabad Police have frozen a sum of Rs 8 crore that was transferred online from a bank account allegedly belonging to building material manufacturer Visaka Industries to a security service provider in the city. The transaction, which took place in the run-up to the Telangana Assembly polls, was flagged by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Telangana due to its high value. Congress Candidate G Vivekananda Under Scrutiny Congress candidate G Vivekananda, who is the promoter of Visaka Industries, is contesting from the Chennur Assembly constituency. The CEO's reference to the transaction between M/s Visaka Industries Pvt Ltd and M/s Vigilance Security Services Pvt Ltd prompted the Saifabad Police team to visit the bank branch at Basheerbagh and inquire about the alleged transfer of Rs 8 crore. Subsequently, the police froze the amount. Investigation Underway During the enquiry, it was revealed that on November 13, an amount of Rs 8 crore was transferred from an unknown account belonging to M/s Visaka Industries from a private bank in Begumpet to the bank account of M/s Vigilance Security Services. Given the substantial amount involved, the Saifabad Police froze the transaction by addressing a letter to the branch manager of the private bank. They also informed the District Expenditure Nodal Officer, Nodal Officer, Telangana State Assembly election, Income Tax department, and Joint Director, Directorate of Enforcement of Hyderabad Zone for verification purposes. The police have stated that once the verification of the accounts belonging to M/s Visaka Industries and M/s Vigilance Security Services Pvt Ltd is complete, appropriate legal action will be taken. The freezing of the Rs 8 crore transaction by the Hyderabad Police is a significant development in the run-up to the Telangana Assembly polls. The investigation into the matter is ongoing, and further details are expected to emerge in the coming days. The case highlights the importance of monitoring high-value transactions during election periods to ensure transparency and integrity in the electoral process. Tonk Assembly Seat: Sachin Pilot Eyes 2018 Encore As BJP Banks On 'Local Vs Outsider' Pitch India oi-PTI Former Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot's stature as a national-level Congress leader and his outreach to allay concerns of sections of influential communities here ahead of assembly polls has boosted his re-election bid from this constituency amid the BJP's strong push for Hindutva and the "local versus outsider" narrative. BJP's Ajit Singh Mehta is pitching it as a "local versus outsider" battle, claiming that Pilot this time does not have the CM face advantage he had last time. Mehta has been asserting that he is a Tonk resident who knows the micro-problems faced by people. He has been claiming that Pilot is an "outsider" who had won big last time due to the chief ministerial face advantage he had. But Pilot's core voters are unfettered by his not becoming the chief minister during the Congress tenure or not being declared the CM face this time. "Pilot will be CM, if not today, then tomorrow or day after. He is the future. People are talking of Tonk in this election because he is contesting from here. He is a national-level leader and more importantly, a nice guy," Mohammad Rizwan Ali, who owns a tailoring shop in the main market here, said. Mehta and the BJP know that it would be difficult to breach the Muslim-Gurjar vote bank of Pilot which seems intact and are working to consolidate the Hindu vote besides Gurjars, highlighting what they say is the Congress' appeasement politics and Mehta's credentials as a local leader. BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri, who has been given poll responsibilities in Tonk by the BJP, had recently said that Lahore is keeping an eye on elections in Rajasthan and Tonk. "We will have to see whether laddus will be distributed in the country or in Lahore after the elections on the 25th... The enemy sitting outside the country is keeping an eye on this election. It is a question of our identity," Bidhuri had said while addressing a youth workers' meeting organised by Mehta. Pilot, meanwhile, has expressed confidence of getting re-elected from the constituency with a good margin, saying he would be able to secure as good a mandate as last time. "I think the people of Tonk have given me a lot of blessings and support in the last election. Sachin Pilot And Sara Abdullah Officially Divorced, According To Poll Affidavit In these five years, we have been able to bring about development that was not there in this area. So I am quite confident that the Congress will secure as good a mandate as last time," Pilot told PTI while campaigning for the assembly elections. "The work that we have done, the fact that we have been able to carry everyone together and without being biased, the kind of development we were able to achieve. So a lot of rural infrastructure, healthcare, education, young people's future, we were able to deliver in those areas," the former Rajasthan deputy chief minister said. "In this district, the Congress party would do well. Not just my own constituency but the entire district, Last time, out of four seats, we won three, so this time we hope to do that much or better," Pilot said. In 2018 assembly polls in Tonk, Pilot, a two-time Member of Parliament, had defeated Yoonus Khan with a massive margin of 54,179 votes on the seat. BJP supporters and voters argue that the last time they also did not support the party candidate Khan but this time since a local person was contesting, they would back him and the election was not an open and shut case or at the least, the margin of victory for Pilot would be reduced. Tonk has a sizable population of Muslims and Gurjars and there were some concerns with a section of the Muslim populace expressing their disenchantment with not being able to reach out to Pilot directly. Several Muslim Congress rebels had filed their nominations against Pilot but later withdrew them. "Our community had some concerns but Pilot Sahab reached out to our elders and had removed all doubts. Now everyone is firmly behind him," Ali told PTI. Echoing similar views, Allimuddin Khan, who also owns a shop in the market, said Pilot had reached out to all directly in the last few months and whatever doubts there were in the minds of some sections have been removed. Significantly, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate, Ashok Bairwa, has also extended support to Pilot in the Tonk seat in the upcoming Assembly election. Bairwa said he would campaign for Pilot. He said he wanted to withdraw his candidature, but could not do it because of paucity of time on the last day of withdrawal of nominations. Asked about Pilot's chances, most Muslims and Gurjars here have an emphatic reply that the election would be one-sided. However, there are also those believe that his victory is not a given thing this time and if nothing else a drop in victory margin was on the cards for Pilot. "Last time it was different, this time there is a local candidate and BJP supporters are backing him. It is easier to approach him while one has to take the long route to reach Pilot Sahab," Sanjay Dikshit, discussing the polls prospects at a tea shop in the centre of the city, said. "It is not an open and shut case. Will Fight Rajasthan Polls Unitedly, Says Sachin Pilot Pilot Sahab is now being made to work hard. He may win but by a reduced margin," Kailash Bhagwani, a doctor by profession, said. However, Shivshankar Upadhyay, owner of a stationary shop in the market, was definitive in favour of Pilot's victory. "It is Pilot all the way here. His juggernaut will roll on, 5,000 votes more or less, but his victory is certain," he said. Mohammad Mohsin, a paan shop owner outside the city's Jama Masjid, said the important thing was that since Pilot was elected, there had been no communal clash here and that was the most important thing for development. There are over the 2.46 lakh voters in Tonk with Muslims, Gurjars and Scheduled Castes in substantial numbers. Rajasthan goes to polls on November 25 and the results will be declared on December 3. Yogi Adityanath Celebrates Chhath Puja in Lucknow Yogi Adityanath participated in Chhath puja festivities at the Laxman Mela Ground in Lucknow and extended his best wishes to everyone. India -Krishna Kripa Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath participated in Chhath puja festivities at the Laxman Mela Ground in Lucknow on Sunday evening. Addressing people in Bhojpuri, Adityanath extended his best wishes for the festival and prayed for everyone's happiness and prosperity. He also made special mention of the mothers and sisters who observe fast for the sake of their families on Chhath. Gratitude Towards Nature and God The chief minister said that Chhath is a festival to express gratitude towards nature and God. He added that people across the country observe various traditions which connect the common people with the local faith through festivals and bind the entire country in the thread of unity. Unity in Diversity Adityanath said, "Ours is a country of faith. This faith connects all of us, from North to South and East to West, in one thread of unity. It is this faith that has kept the whole of India united in adverse circumstances." Preserving Tradition and Heritage The chief minister claimed that during the medieval period, foreign invaders defiled and damaged religious places in the country, but our faith has preserved our tradition and heritage. He added that there are many countries in the world which have made materialistic development and have forgotten their traditions. "They are facing an existential crisis today," he said. Chhath Puja is a major festival in India, and it was heartening to see the chief minister participate in the festivities and extend his best wishes to the people. His words about the importance of faith and unity are also significant, and they serve as a reminder of the values that bind us together as a nation. India and Maldives together have responsibility for regional peace and security: S Jaishankar Maldivians Vote In A Runoff Presidential Election That Will Decide Whether India Or China Holds Sway Maldives President Formally Requests India To Withdraw Military Personnel International oi-Madhuri Adnal President Mohamed Muizzu of the Maldives officially asked India to remove its military forces from the island nation during his meeting with Indian Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on November 18 in Male. On Saturday, news agency ANI reported that both governments agreed to discuss feasible solutions for ongoing cooperation utilizing the Indian military personnel, considering the best interests of the Maldivian people. After the meeting with President Muizzu, Rijiju shared on social media (formerly Twitter), "Privileged to call on President H.E. Dr. Mohamed Muizzu. Conveyed greetings from Hon'ble PM @NarendraModi and reiterated India's commitment to further strengthen the substantive bilateral cooperation and robust people-to-people ties." Privileged to call on President H.E. Dr. Mohamed Muizzu. Conveyed greetings from Honble PM @NarendraModi and reiterated Indias commitment to further strengthen the substantive bilateral cooperation and robust people-to-people ties. pic.twitter.com/nFa95QD9ES Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) November 18, 2023 Responding to earlier queries about President-elect Muizzu's intentions to seek troop withdrawal, external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi highlighted India's significant role in the Maldives, citing over 500 medical evacuations and more than 450 maritime security missions conducted in the past five years. Bagchi also emphasized India's consistent support during disasters, including the COVID-19 pandemic. President Muizzu acknowledged the vital role played by Indian helicopters and aircraft stationed in the Maldives, especially in medical evacuations, including one carried out by the Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF) on a recent Saturday. The request to withdraw Indian troops isn't new; it was previously made by the Yameen government before the Solih administration. Despite requests, India retained the two helicopters gifted in 2013 and later added a Dornier aircraft in 2020 during President Solih's tenure. Indian troops in the Maldives manage the Dornier aircraft and two helicopters. The MNDF informed the parliamentary committee in November 2021 that 75 Indian military personnel were stationed in the Maldives for aircraft and chopper operations. The agreement between the Maldives and India for the development of a dockyard and military port in Uthuru Thilafalalhu raised concerns about Indian military personnel enjoying diplomatic immunity and the erosion of Maldivian sovereignty. The Opposition capitalized on this, boosting the India Out campaign. The agreement, known as UTF, included a $50-million loan for the development of North Thilafalalhu. The military port is a joint effort between the Maldivian and Indian armed forces, strictly controlled by India regarding foreign ship entry without permission. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, November 19, 2023, 11:41 [IST] With the largest road network in the nation, Queensland will continue to play hardball with Canberra over road funding. German politicians have demanded answers after the head of Afghanistan's food and drug body spoke at a mosque in Cologne. Abdul Bari Omar was previously in the Netherlands for a World Health Organization event. 2008-2023 One News Page Ltd. All rights reserved. One News is a registered trademark of One News Page Ltd. Following the terror attacks on October 7, Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan made a shocking statement on Saturday, stating that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be shot and killed without a trial during the ongoing ground offensive by Israel against Hamas in the beleaguered Gaza Strip. Speaking against the Israeli PM at a Kasargod, Kerala, demonstration in support of Palestine, Unnithan publicly endorsed the "Nuremberg model," which refers to the Nazis' trial in Nuremberg for the Holocaust. The second tranche of humanitarian aid for Palestine has arrived in Egypt and will be transmitted to Palestine by the Egyptian Red Crescent. This aid, sent by India, includes relief materials such as tents, sleeping bags, and water purification tablets. India has expressed its commitment to providing humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine and has emphasized the importance of avoiding civilian casualties and observing humanitarian law during the conflict. Until five years ago, Jeff Bezos private life was just that: private. In fact, it was extremely private. Beyond the business press, people knew little of the existence of Amazons founder, now the third-richest man in the world. His personal information was what the company disseminated in its official communications: he was married, had four children, lived in Seattle. But at the beginning of 2019, his divorce and a new romance turned his world upside down. The five years since then have shown that his relationship with Lauren Sanchez who was first his friends wife, then his friend, then his girlfriend, now his fiancee and in a few months his wife was not merely a fling; Sanchez has been the catalyst for the changes in Bezoss life. Jeff Bezos was so discreet that he bordered on seriousness, even solemnity. His less severe side came through only in his laugh, which was so cackling and booming that it garnered millions of views on YouTube and could be downloaded by Amazon employees from the companys intranet. He didnt own fancy cars and was an engineer who graduated cum laude from Princeton. Having set up the worlds largest online bookstore with his partner in a garage, he fit the romantic West Coast narrative of the 2000s. But when his marriage to Mackenzie Bezos ended, so did his armor of monastic simplicity. The so-called austere millionaire disappeared. He gave way to a man who evolved from walking the red carpet to gracing magazine covers and throwing huge engagement parties in Beverly Hills mansions. It is true that Bezoss business model has evolved, and so have his career and public image. Amazon became much more than a bookstore, and the role of its founder was much more than a bookseller or the head of a company with a small staff: it now has 1.5 million employees worldwide and is worth $143 billion on the stock market. As Amazon began to enter the film and television market and became more glamorous, its owners followed suit. In 2012, Jeff and Mackenzie attended their first Met Gala, which their company had sponsored. In 2017, they went to the Oscars, having produced Manchester by the Sea; the ceremonys host, Jimmy Kimmel, even poked some fun at them. But thats as far as it went. Now, it is much more common to see Bezos at such glamorous events. His job is also different. He no longer presides over his empire; in mid-2021, he ceded his position to Andy Jassy. That gave Bezos more freedom and even the opportunity to play around with his image. Jeff and Mackenzie Bezos at the Met Gala in New York, in 2012. Lars Niki (Corbis via Getty Images) In January 2019, Bezos and his wife divorced, and his fortune of $164 billion had to be divided. It took them only three months to reach an agreement: Mackenzie Bezos (nee Tuttle) received Amazon shares worth $35 billion; the Amazon founder was left with about $107 billion, as well as The Washington Post newspaper and his beloved space company, Blue Origin. Thats when Bezoss public image began to shift. Just weeks after his divorce, the paparazzi caught him leaving a New York pizzeria with Sanchez, a well-known TV host in California, who is six years his junior, a pilot and the owner of a helicopter company; she had recently separated from celebrity agent Patrick Whitesell (their 2005 wedding was attended by everyone from Steven Spielberg to Ben Affleck). And since then, photographers have not stopped following them. Theyve been willing participants. The change in their lives has been as spectacular as the 30-carat pink diamond Bezos gave his now-fiancee last summer aboard his boat, Koru, which means new beginnings in Maori. It is a three-masted, 127-meter yacht, the largest in the world; Katy Perry, Orlando Bloom, Usher, and other celebrities have vacationed there. One night, the couple dined on deck and returned to their cabin. She found the ring under her pillow. I think I passed out a little bit, Sanchez told Vogue this week. The magazine wrote a lengthy article about her; the interview was conducted in Bezoss 1,600-square-kilometer ranch in Texas, and Bezos allowed himself to be photographed; the pictures have become an Internet meme, for their artificiality. He also prepared some perfect margaritas for the interviewee and the interviewer. Of course, he also spoke about her: She has really helped me put more energy into my relationships Shes always encouraging me: Call your kids. Call your dad. Call your mom. And shes also just a very good role model. Sanchez returned the praise: Hes the life of the party Hes just extremely enthusiastic, and extremely funny. The couples lifestyle and media exposure starkly contrast with the tycoons relatively simple daily life during his 30 years in Seattle. Now everything about him has changed, including his city of residence. At the beginning of November, he announced that he was moving to Miami, where he bought two adjoining mansions in the exclusive Indian Creek area. He will be closer to his parents, who also run the Bezos Family Foundation, and to Cape Canaveral, Blue Origins home base. Hell also be closer to parties, like the ones he already throws, and to the sea. Lauren Sanchez and Jeff Bezos aboard the Kura in Portofino, Italy, in June 2023. MEGA (GC Images) Because of their respective divorce agreements and their children (he has four, who are already in college; she is the mother of a 22-year-old, who lives in New York; a 17-year-old and a 15-year-old), Bezos and Sanchez had been dividing their time between Seattle and Los Angeles, although they also spend long periods at the ranch in Texas and at the billionaires residences in New York, Washington, D.C. and Maui. Los Angeles has become the perfect backdrop for their new social life. Last weekend, they threw a huge engagement party there. It was held at the Beverly Hills mansion of designer Diane von Furstenberg and Fox founder Barry Diller; the couple is among Bezoss best friends. Diller declared that Lauren is the sparkler in Jeffs life Shes lit him up in the nicest ways. Shes a great stimulant. The party was tabloid fodder, although the photos inside were published exclusively in Vogue. The fete was attended by Oprah Winfrey, Barbra Streisand, Salma Hayek, Robert Pattinson and Kim Kardashian (she and Lauren are good friends; the reality star told Vogue in an interview that they send each other a lot of private Instagram messages) and her mother, Kris Jenner. It was the second party they threw; the first was a small, intimate affair aboard the Koru with guests Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio and Queen Rania of Jordan, among others. All we know about the wedding is that Sanchez is eager to take her future husbands surname. We still do not know whether it will be held in the U.S. or in Europe, who the guests will be or what the dress will look like. While the details are not yet clear, it seems certain that the wedding will not be discreet. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas will endorse former President Donald Trump for their party's 2024 nomination when the two team-up Sunday near the U.S.-Mexico border, sources say. After the war between Israelis and Palestinians broke out on October 7, American evangelicals were among Israel's most vocal.. Eurasia Review 05 Nov 2023 The claim comes after Ukraine said it destroyed 29 out of 38 drones launched by Russia on Friday night. The death of Paul Kessler in an alleged clash with pro-Palestinian demonstrators in Westlake, California the first week of November ignited anger, fear and anxiety among many Jews in Southern California, And with good reason. "When violent conflicts occur in the Middle East, there are those in the U.S. that exploit these horrifying events to inflame antisemitism," observed Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, "Now, we are seeing such a dizzying array of antisemitism online, on campuses and on the streets that it is testing the ability of researchers like me to keep track of it." This is not hyperbole. Beyond the anecdotal reports of threats, harassment, and actual attacks and even beyond the numbers compiled by the ADL and FBI that showed the surge in anti-Semitism in the country, Gaza was the spark that ignited the surge. This is far different than the endemic anti-Semitism which was a well-documented disgraceful part of America's past and present. Antisemitism, it was evident, has always been part of American history. "The latest outbreak of this plague of hatred is different from earlier outbreaks," noted American University History Professor Pamela Nadell, "Alas, what is unique is the extent of the antisemitic vitriol magnified horrifically on social media." This is the lethal tag team of hate that is a by-product of Gaza and inflames social media. The legion of Nazi and white nationalist hate groups are the near absolute masters of the malicious use of social media sites to pump their anti-Semitic messages with minimal to no prohibitions. They are also masters in ways to skirt the checks that were there. Their messages are effective. The proof is in the steady stream of postings always anonymously that called for "Gas the Jews" or an online threat to "shoot all you pig Jews." The hideous irony is that there is no evidence in any of these hate sites that the avowed Jewish haters show any sympathy or concern about the plight of the Palestinians much less knew anything of consequence about the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Palestinians are just another convenient ploy to verbally, and in some cases worse, attack Jews. Typical of this ignorance and indifference toward Palestinians but using them as an excuse to assail Jews is this classic example. The Los Angeles Police Department launched a hate crime investigation against one man who shouted, "free Palestine," "kill Jews," and "Israel kill people." FBI officials after a week of war essentially confirmed that much of the verbal and even physical threats and violence were made by unreconstructed anti-Semites playing off the Palestinians to spread their hate. "The volume and frequency of threats to Americans, especially those in the Jewish, Arab American, and Muslim communities in the United Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). At the Battle of Vertieres on November 18, 1803, French General Rochambeau of Napoleon's army surrendered to General Janjak Desalin, Hayti's founding father. Below is the video recording of our 19th annual #FreeHaiti Nov 18th Teach-in to celebrate the Haytian victory, the Hayti fight song that sustained the Hayti freedom warriors, along with the French's Act of Surrender. We also post here the Haitian Lawyers Leadership/AUMOHD's press release about our lawsuit against the illegitimate Ariel Henry government, put in office by the same enslaving nations Vertieres stood against. They're charged for high crimes and violating Haytian sovereignty and Constitution for requesting foreign troops to invade Hayti with a Chapter7 U.N. shoot to kill mandate. (See PDF of Press Release to help share everywhere.) Grenadye Alaso! Sa ki mouri zafe ya yo. Nanpren manman, nanpren papa. Sa ki mouri zafe ya yo! Grenadye alaso sa ki mouri zafe ya yo. Nanpren manman nanpren papa. Sa ki mouri n'ap vanje yo! Grenadye alaso! * (English Translation) Soldiers attack! Those who die, death, it doesn't matter. There are no mothers here, no fathers here. Just soldiers. Soldiers Attack! Soldiers attack! Those who die, death, it doesn't matter. There are no mothers here, no fathers here. Those who die, we will avenge! Soldiers attack! (Translated into English by Ezili Danto of HLLN/#FreeHaiti, Nov 18, 2023, from original French by Jean Ledan Fils) On the night of November 18, 1803, a French officer came to propose an armistice. General-in-Chief Janjak Desalin (Jean-Jacques Dessalines), commanding the Original People's Army (Indigenous Army), told him that he would consider a suspension of hostilities if Rochambeau sent him an officer with his powers according to procedure. The English at war against France had blocked the harbor. Around 2 a.m., Rochambeau wrote to English Commodore Joshua Loring: "To prevent bloodshed and save the remains of the army of Saint-Domingue At dawn, Rochambeau asked General Desalin to suspend the hostilities until an agreement is reached with the English. General Desalin replied: "Go and tell the general Rochambeau that his negotiations with the English don't concern me, that they are waging war for their account, and the Indigenous people (Original people) for theirs. Nevertheless, I grant a suspension of weapons for the day. But, if this period expires, nothing is decided between him and me, I will resume my operations with the greatest force. " Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). There are more war crimes being committed today, this instant, aided and abetted by the US president but the world, if it hasn't taken notice, is unable to stop them. When Jewish people ask, where was the world when the Nazis were killing them, they now have an ironic answer... if only partial. Yes, there have been demonstrations against the killing of innocent women and children in Gaza all across the world, in all continents -- collective punishment for the acts of a few is a war crime. But they have done little to sway Bibi's blood lust. Now soldiers have occupied Gaza's main hospital, Al-Shifa, claiming it was Hamas' 'operational center'. The evidence for the claim: a photo displayed of about a dozen weapons plus odds and ends. The UN humanitarian chief, Martin Griffiths, used the word 'appalled' to describe his reaction to Israel's raid. A World Health Organization spokesperson said they were no longer able to communicate with Al Shifa hospital staff and were extremely worried. On the ground reports confirm about 200 Israeli soldiers had taken over the building and were going from room to room questioning patients and staff. They also gathered males aged 16 to 40 in the hospital courtyard for further questioning. In the meantime, the Biden administration is backing Israeli claims that Hamas had infrastructure underneath the hospital despite the lack of any evidence unearthed -- one wonders how Biden's credibility stands in the Arab world. His so-called peace initiative is in tatters. and credence as an even-handed peace broker is about non-existent. The Israelis say they engaged Hamas at the hospital though their account is undercut by the hospital staff who heard no shooting. The Israeli claim of it being an 'operational center' for Hamas is not supported by any concrete evidence. Thus Israel has violated humanitarian norms by entering a hospital. Hospitals are specifically protected in conflict meaning that opposing forces cannot attack hospitals or prevent their normal function. Then cutting off fuel to a hospital that needs it for heating and electricity as Israel did -- is not permitted. There are no longer any reports on what happened to the premature babies in the incubators. The Israelis also demanded the hospital be evacuated -- an order that would be a death sentence for the incubator babies and indeed for critical patients. The hospital reports that some have died. The IDF said it was providing incubators; the doctors said they had incubators. What they needed was power restored, which one supposes will be eventually... after Bibi's blood lust has been satisfied. Are we a civilized world when Hamas kills indiscriminately and Israel responds on a larger scale? Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash (Image by Element5 Digital) Details DMCA For the last several months, potential candidates have had the opportunity to register with the Los Angeles Ethics Commission so that they could begin fundraising. Then, as long as they had established residency within the boundaries of the office they wanted to run for by October 7, 2023, they were able to start filing a "Declaration of Intention to Become a Candidate" form with the City Clerk on November 6, 2023. This filing period closed today with 26 people indicating that they would attempt to collect enough signatures to appear on the ballot for the four odd-numbered Board seats: Sherlett Hendy Newbill DeWayne Davis (PROP-39, SpEd) Gloria Zuurveen Daniel Lee (SpEd) Didi Watts John Aaron Brasfield David Mills Kahllid Al-Alim (PROP-39) Danielle Lafayette Christian Flagg Nekishia Lester Qyintus Jett Board District 3: Incumbent Scott Schmerelson has attracted a large number of competitors, considering that he is running for his last term before term limits kick in. All eight candidates who filed with the Ethics Commission followed through with declarations: Elizabeth Badger Dan Chang Janie Dam (PROP-39) Andreas Farmakalidis (PROP-39, SpEd) Byron Gutierrez Richard Ramos (PROP-39, SpEd) Scott Schmerelson (PROP-39) Raquel Villalta (PROP-39) Board District 5: Three people had been fundraising for campaigns to replace the retiring Jackie Goldberg. One additional candidate joined them in filing declarations: Fidencio Joel Gallardo (SpEd) Karla Griego (PROP-39) Graciela Ortiz Victorio R. Gutierrez Board District 7: Supporters of Public Education can buy themselves some breathing room by taking this seat from incumbent Tanya Franklin. Otherwise, they will have to win all three of the other seats. While two challengers had filed with Ethics, only Lydia Gutierrez actually declared: City Council Race Notes: Kevin De Leon was caught on tape participating in a conversation that was not only astonishing because of the bigotry it included, but because its purpose was to diminish the ability of communities to have representation in City government. That has not stopped him from attempting to seek re-election in CD 14. One of his 13 opponents, Wendy Carrillo, has filed her declaration despite the fact that she was arrested on suspicion of DUI. In the Valley, John S. Lee is also running for re-election despite being under investigation for ethics violations. While his designation will be "City Councilmember/Father," "City Staffer B" would have been more appropriate. He has drawn four competitors. Next Steps Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). The number of people flying through Portland International Airport has been rising rapidly for most of the year, at last shaking off the pandemic slowdown. That figures to make for PDXs busiest holiday season in years. Nearly 14 million people traveled through the airport in the first 10 months of 2023, according to the Port of Portland, which runs PDX. Thats a 13% jump from 2022. Justin Waddell was preparing for his shops launch of the holiday season, but when he arrived at his North Portland botanical store Sunday morning, his heart sank. Not only was the shop in disarray, but it was barren thousands of dollars worth of vintage Christmas decorations and products had been stolen. Portland police helped return Bloke Botanicals items, valued at almost $10,000, Friday. Waddell said it was a community effort that eventually brought the festive items back. This community showed up, seriously, Waddell said Saturday. Waddell said two people came early Sunday morning last week, parked a U-haul on the wrong side of the road in front of the building and nearly cleaned out the storefront within 15 minutes. Bloke Botanical sells the vintage items to start off the holiday season. The first weekend of selling the decorations is one of the busiest of the year, he said. Many of the stolen decorations were antiques gathered throughout the year from across the country, including Santa statues that cost as much $1,000 a piece. Some of the items in the shop were from outside vendors, Waddell said, which further motivated him to get the stolen merchandise back. Waddell said he went to work, talking with other small business owners in the area and scanning the web for signs of the thieves. He estimated the search took about 50 hours of his time over the last week and said its been an exhausting process. Its been nauseating, he said. Its been up until 3 a.m. trying to communicate with police, chest pains and panic attacks. Waddell said hed received anonymous tips from people in the community and eventually ran into another business owner who had been robbed in the same way one day later. The business owner, who Waddell did not want to identify for their safety, shared surveillance footage from their shop of the robbery. The shop owners hand-crafted tables and Waddells Christmas decorations were piled up together on trailers. That was total happenstance, right time, right place, he said. I took that video and started sharing it around to people who know how to get things done. Waddell contacted Bridgid Blackburn, an interior designer and partner at Cargo, and she helped put him in touch with a Portland police detective who specializes in small business theft, he said. Within the day Friday, police found and retrieved four trailers worth of stolen items at Southeast 105th Avenue and Harold Street, he said. Police confirmed that a community tip led officers and detectives to the location of the Christmas decorations. No arrests have been made so far, according to spokesperson Kevin Allen. Once the items were returned, Waddell was hesitant to bring them back into the shop. He decided instead to donate the decorations to the Community Warehouse on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. I dont want to put that stuff back to get stolen again, he said. The community showed up for me, so I wanted to give back what I can. Austin De Dios; adedios@oregonian.com; @austindedios; 503-319-9744 Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe The Texas Legislature approved this week some of the toughest laws against immigrants in the United States. The Republican majority in the state legislature approved a series of norms that criminalize people who cross the border from Mexico. These make it a crime to arrive in Texas illegally and allow state authorities to deport them, the legality of which has been questioned by some experts and human rights organizations. These laws are awaiting enactment by the state governor, Greg Abbott, a politician who has explored radical methods to combat the arrival of immigrants, including sending buses of immigrants to Democratic cities or installing buoys and barbed wire in the Rio Grande. The politician has already indicated that he will sign the initiatives into law. House Bill (HB) 4 caused days of tension in the legislative body. The state House approved it in late October, on a Thursday at 4:00 a.m. The Republican majority prevailed over attempts by Democratic politicians to derail the proposal by Congressman David Spiller, who represents an upstate county. His proposal allows anyone to be detained at any time and place on suspicion of having illegally entered Texas, a state with a population of about 10 million people of Mexican origin. The Texas Senate also recently approved an initiative that allows Abbott to use an extraordinary $1.5 billion to strengthen surveillance of the border with Mexico, an area that has seen record numbers of illegal crossings. The politician has said he will use some of the money to extend the states immigration wall with Mexico, as well as other barriers that could cut off the flow of arrivals. Abbott is expected to visit the border this weekend alongside Donald Trump, who is campaigning for 2024 on a promise to bring a tough hand back to the area. The tension caused by the negotiation of HB 4 surfaced in a viral video recorded inside the legislative body. After the vote, Democratic Congressman Armando Walle, of Houston, visibly approached Republican lawmakers who voted for the measure in annoyance. I cant drive my brother, my cousin, OK. I cant take them anywhere, bro? I cant go to a boda [wedding], I cant go to a baptism, because my community is being attacked? Yall dont understand, the shit that you do hurts our community, the congressman is heard saying in the video. Republicans just nodded without responding to him. The new law allows authorities to opt for the deportation to Mexico of anyone suspected of having entered Texas in an irregular manner. If he or she does not leave the United States, he or she could be charged with a new crime that could result in a prison sentence of between two and 20 years. The Mexican government expressed its rejection of the measure this week. The Mexican Foreign Ministry issued a message on Wednesday, the same day the Mexican president began a visit to the United States to participate in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum, APEC. The criminalization of immigrants, says the Foreign Ministry, will result in the separation of families, discrimination and racial profiling. Mexico also rejects a measure that would allow state authorities to detain and return nationals or foreigners to Mexican territory, the statement said. The Lopez Obrador administration has been in a tug-of-war with its U.S. counterpart on immigration issues for months. That was the focus of the bilateral meeting between Joe Biden and his Mexican counterpart on Friday. The two countries already have some agreements in place at the federal level for Mexico to receive citizens of some countries who are deported. Mexico, however, has not agreed to receive deportations from states individually nor any state police. Human rights organizations have made it clear that they will sue the Texas government as soon as Abbott signs this bill into law. The bill supersedes federal law, promotes racial profiling and harassment, and unconstitutionally authorizes local law enforcement to deport people without due process, regardless of whether the immigrants are seeking asylum or other humanitarian protections, said Oni Blair, the ACLUs Texas director. The activist group claims that supremacist groups in the Republican stronghold have shown their support for these rules. Congressman Walle pointed out this week that the law approved by the Texas Legislature is worse than the famous SB1070 passed by Arizona in 2010. This allowed the police to ask for papers to anyone they wanted and at any time in order to check their legal status in the territory. This rule was challenged in court, and its effects were eroded after several rulings by federal judges. In a landmark case in 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that local police are not authorized to detain a suspect based solely on his or her immigration status. This responsibility, that court determined, rested with the federal government. However, the ideological balances of the justices have shifted since then. The Hollywood branch library in Northeast Portland will close for normal operations on Sunday, as a scheduled event at the branch has been generating controversy. According to a Multnomah County Library statement, the branch is pausing normal operations on Sunday, in the interest of the safety and security of library patrons and staff. The decision comes in response to a planned event at the Hollywood branch organized by a group called Womens Declaration International USA, which describes itself as a feminist group created by women, for women, dedicated to re-affirming what the group calls the sex-based rights of women and girls. The WDI USA has drawn criticism from other groups who characterize its stance as transphobic, and have described WDI USA as TERF, an acronym that stands for trans-exclusionary radical feminist. According to a post on the WDI USA website, the noon event at the Hollywood branch library has been planned as a peaceful speaking event, with a theme of protecting women and children. But the Portland appearance has drawn objections, with some posts on social media calling for protests. Though the Multnomah County Library statement initially said that the WDI USA event would continue, in posts today on the WDI USA X account, women in attendance said they decided to move their event outdoors, out of concern for the safety of library employees. In additional posts on X, women attending the WDI USA event said that men who arrived on the scene stole their phones, threw objects at them, and attacked them. Libraries across the country and in the Portland metro area have recently become sites of political battles that have, at times, drawn protests and counterprotests. In June, for example, the Tigard Public Library canceled a Drag Queen Storytime event -- which would have featured Poison Waters reading stories spotlighting diversity -- after what police called repeated threats of violence. Multnomah County Library resists censorship in all forms, the county statement says. It is the responsibility of library staff and leadership to provide free use of our locations to all patrons of the library. As an organization that adheres to free expression as defined by the Library Bill of Rights, Multnomah County Library does not discriminate against any organization, regardless of viewpoint. Our primary goal is to provide a safe place for freedom of expression and speech. The statement also says that the library is coordinating with law enforcement, and security partners for onsite support during the day. The Multnomah County Library statement also says, that while the library does not exclude any organization from using our meeting rooms resources, we have a deep commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion which is evidenced by our programming, collections, and partnerships. The Hollywood branch will open for normal operations on Monday. Kristi Turnquist 503-221-8227; kturnquist@oregonian.com; @Kristiturnquist Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe The news that Rosalynn Carter, the former first lady and wife to former president Jimmy Carter, died on Sunday has prompted tributes from the former president, other family members and bipartisan salutes to Rosalynn Carters advocacy for mental health, housing and other humanitarian causes. According to a statement from the Carter Center, Rosalynn Carter died at her home in Plains, Georgia, with family by her side. Her husband of 77 years, Jimmy Carter, 99, was the 39th president of the United States. The couples decades of service took them around the world. Those stops included Portland. Before Jimmy Carter won the presidency, he, Rosalynn, and their daughter Amy came to Oregon in May 1976 as part of the campaign. In 2015, former Oregonian reporter Jeff Baker recalled Carters primary campaign appearances. He was tireless, appearing at the Swan Island shipyard, a student convention at Memorial Coliseum, the Eugene pedestrian mall, and on a boat on the Willamette River. You couldnt turn around without running into Carter, his wife Rosalynn, and their 8-year-old daughter Amy. Baker shared a personal memory of the Carters, which occurred when Baker was, as he wrote, a teenage concession worker, maybe the youngest at what was then called the Washington Park Zoo. After a long day, during which the Carters were trailed by several reporters, Baker later noticed the Carter entourage on their way out of the zoo. They seemed tired, and there werent many people around. A young woman was pushing a child in a stroller and Rosalynn Carter stopped to greet them. The little girl clearly was developmentally disabled, and Mrs. Carter bent down and talked to her and then stood up and engaged the woman in what looked like an intense, empathetic conversation that lasted for several minutes. Baker continued: The candidate might have been tired and might have been late for his next appearance, but his wife took the time to talk to someone who didnt know her in more than a superficial way. As First Lady and throughout her life, Rosalynn Carter has been involved with issues of mental health and illness, particularly among children. I didnt know that then, and I have no idea whether the young woman she spoke to that day did. It doesnt matter. What I saw was someone being kind to a stranger when they didnt have to, and it stayed with me. A 1978 visit by Jimmy Carter made national news, as well as some lasting memories. As The Oregonian/OregonLive reported in February, upon the news that Jimmy Carter had chosen to begin hospice care, the then-presidents motorcade arrived at a Northeast Portland home on May 4, 1978. The purpose of the visit? Jimmy Carter was going to stay overnight with homeowners Janet and Paul Olson and their family. Carter was known for sometimes staying in the homes of ordinary people when traveling, instead of checking into a hotel. As The Oregonian/OregonLive reported about that 1978 visit, the president slept in the Olsons bedroom, and they slept in a guest room. As The Oregonian/OregonLive story reported, Carter told the Olson family that he hoped he hadnt caused too much of a disturbance, as seven motorcycle policemen, two patrol cars and a Secret Service vehicle parked in the street behind him. Following that story, The Oregonian/OregonLive heard from others who recalled seeing the one-term president in the Olsons Irvington neighborhood. In addition to that 1978 visit, Carter came to Oregon on other occasions, including campaign stops, and after he was out of office, a book-signing event at Powells City of Books, and a stop at Multnomah Falls. Kristi Turnquist 503-221-8227; kturnquist@oregonian.com; @Kristiturnquist Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe Paige Clarkson and Matthew Phillips Clarkson is Marion County district attorney. Phillips is Clatsop County sheriff. Oregon continues to struggle with a massive addiction and overdose crisis that ballooned following the decriminalization of personal possession of fentanyl and other lethal drugs under Ballot Measure 110. With public opinion souring on decriminalization amid the rise of open-air drug use, drug-fueled crime and soaring overdoses, Measure 110 supporters are now shifting blame for the measures policy failures to, ironically, law enforcement. The absurdity of this tactic should be obvious to Oregonians who remember that Measure 110 rhetoric was (and still is) to divorce law enforcement and prosecution from drug use even if the justice system response is to steer individuals to treatment. As a result, it has also divorced our system of accountability from the personal and community harm caused by those who are severely addicted. The measure, adopted in 2020, replaced prosecution for drug possession with a citation program. The idea was that police officers would give users a ticket similar to a traffic violation and users could avoid the accompanying fine by calling a number to undergo screening with possible referral for treatment. The measure also directed a portion of cannabis tax revenue to fund additional treatment services. But while the measure has dedicated hundreds of millions of dollars to treatment-based programs, other elements of the program have woefully underperformed. Of the 6,271 citations for possession of drugs written since Measure 110 took effect in February 2021, only 50 people have gone through the steps to ask for help and complete a substance use assessment, according to the Oregon Judicial Department, which tracks these cases. These abysmal numbers demonstrate a lack of accountability for the damage caused by unchecked addiction. And Oregonians are rightfully frustrated at the human cost on full display across our state. In response to the publics concern, legislators are considering possible changes to Measure 110. Former lawmaker Max Williams is also leading a coalition to push the Legislature to fix Measure 110 or to champion a ballot initiative for November 2024. Measure 110 advocates, however, are pushing back. Instead of considering substantive changes like making possession and use of lethal drugs a crime again and mandating treatment as an alternative to jail, they point a finger at law enforcement to fix the problems Measure 110 made worse. They claim more time is needed to allow portions of Measure 110 like ticket writing and the hotline to work, have called on police to write more citations and have suggested police do more to connect people with Measure 110 outreach workers. Some also are advocating that police should just confiscate the drugs from users on the street to change the tide of addiction. These simplistic deflections have nothing to do with the real reasons Measure 110 is failing and are only scapegoating law enforcement. They also reveal the alternative policy priorities for Measure 110 defenders - keep lethal street drugs decriminalized, avoid personal accountability, and circumvent any effort to mandate drug treatment, such as in exchange for dismissing criminal charges. The paltry number of people who have completed the screening after receiving a citation shows that simply ramping up the number of tickets isnt effective in changing behavior. Anyone on the front lines helping those in crisis will tell you that handing a ticket to someone with severe addiction will do nothing to encourage treatment, when they know there is no penalty for skipping court and not paying the fine. And without arresting authority, police officers are often constitutionally impotent to simply confiscate drugs. The Fourth Amendment guarantees freedom from unreasonable searches and seizure. Considering that possession is no longer a crime, officers ability and authority to take drugs away or require someone to do something is significantly erased. So, telling police to seize more from addicts fails as a matter of law, logic and evidence. This impossible expectation creates a precarious situation for our law enforcement officers on the street while simultaneously encouraging the very interactions that the Measure 110 drafters claimed to be intentionally avoiding. Politely asking for ones drugs has never been and will never be an effective tool to fight drug addiction and the dealers that fuel it. Simply seizing a few dollars worth of inexpensive drugs in a flooded market wont stop an addict from buying more. Unless possession of these dangerous drugs is re-established as a misdemeanor crime, no reasonable law enforcement agency will risk constitutional violations, potentially dangerous use of force interactions and the costly civil rights litigation that follows to direct officers to engage with users simply to confiscate drugs. Knowing that zero consequences and little accountability exist for refusing to surrender their stash, most will merely refuse. We can deliver on the promise of Measure 110 and preserve the dedicated funding for expanded drug addiction services. But our legislature needs to act now to make positive change by rejecting the naive solutions meant to obfuscate Measure 110s greatest flaw: removing law enforcements role in seeking accountability for Oregonians while incentivizing life-saving drug treatment and healthy recovery. Sign up for our free Oregon Opinion newsletter. Email: As a pediatrician for Oregon children, I am calling for the immediate opening of Portland Public Schools. No longer is it appropriate to stand by and see almost 45,000 school children without access to education, reliable school meals, social emotional support, physical education, arts programming and their consistent connection to trusted adults. With the strike now in the third week (with 11 school days canceled), there are serious mental health impacts on students with toxic stress due to working parents losing access to a safe space for their children to learn. With the uncertainty of when school will open, this is not just a summer break in November. While caring for children in the aftermath of COVID-19, I have seen the long-lasting mental and behavioral health impacts due to school closures. During the pandemic, research showed that school closures were associated with worse child mental health outcomes, and even worse outcomes in children from families with lower income. If you care about the health of Oregon children, immediately open Portland Public Schools. Elizabeth Super, Portland To read more letters to the editor, go to oregonlive.com/opinion. I am a proud parent of a 7-year-old enrolled in Portland Public Schools. I watched my child lose nearly a year of classroom instruction during the pandemic, and now Im watching helplessly again as this strike drags on. To hear Portland Association of Teachers officials make public comments like guess what yall. We are winning, while my child misses day after day of instruction is a bitter pill to swallow. The union appears to be poorly prepared throughout this process. They seem to present proposals with inaccurate or missing costs and cannot provide details when pressed by The Oregonian/OregonLive. Insisting that money exists, even when shown otherwise by the state chief financial officer, is a glaring example. Portland teachers were among the first to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and among the last in the country to return to in-person learning, at grave cost to our kids. Now they have missed weeks of instruction and services over unrealistic fiscal demands from a teachers union more interested in publicity than education. I used to consider myself a strong supporter of public school teachers, but this strike has changed that. My child matters. I wish the district and Portland Association of Teachers felt the same. Maggie Hodder, Portland To read more letters to the editor, go to oregonlive.com/opinion. KYODO NEWS - Nov 19, 2023 - 21:02 | All, Japan Tokyo's Yamanote loop line service was partially suspended for two days through Sunday due to construction work to elevate railway tracks and platforms at bustling Shibuya Station. Train operator East Japan Railway Co. estimated that the suspension and schedule changes, including the halting of about 590 train runs, would affect some 640,000 people. It suspended services on the "inner loop" between Osaki and Ikebukuro stations all day Sunday after the whole-day suspension on the "outer loop" in the same section Saturday. Train services on the Yamanote line will return to normal from Monday morning, said the company, also known as JR East. Along with redevelopment projects carried out near Shibuya Station, four major construction works had been undertaken at the station, and the latest one, the fifth of its kind, is the last one that requires service suspensions, according to the company. "We want to make Shibuya Station more spacious and user friendly," said Kan Ito, construction manager of the railway operator. During the construction work, train services were reduced on the rest of the loop line Saturday and Sunday, while thousands of workers participated in the two-day construction work to elevate the railway tracks and platforms by up to 20 centimeters to make them level with the adjacent JR Saikyo Line. To make up for the service reduction, the frequency of trains was increased between Shin-Kiba and Akabane stations on the Saikyo Line and Rinkai Line. The entire renovation of Shibuya Station is expected to be completed in fiscal 2027, according to the railway operator. Related coverage: Construction begins for new Haneda airport train line Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - Spikes in casualties, attacks on schools and shelters, including the death of a UN worker, and crippling fuel shortages blocking aid deliveries rippled across Gaza over the weekend, as the World Health Organisation (WHO) helped to evacuate 31 babies in critical condition at the besieged Al-Shifa Hospital and the UN chief called for a humanitarian ceasefire amid the ongoing Israel-Palestine crisis Photo: (Photo : by Hasan Almasi on Unsplash) The tragic case of Nohema Graber's murder in Fairfield, Iowa, has brought forth a complex interplay of justice, remorse, and the repercussions of youth violence. Jeremy Goodale, an 18-year-old student, received a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 25 years for his role in the brutal murder of Graber, a 66-year-old beloved Spanish teacher at Fairfield High School. This sentencing follows his guilty plea to first-degree murder earlier this year, along with his accomplice, Willard Miller. The murder, which shook the small Iowa community, was premeditated and executed with chilling precision. Goodale and Miller, both 16 at the time, used a bat to fatally assault Graber during her regular walk in a local park. Miller's fear that a poor grade he received from Graber would harm his academic prospects was the driving force behind this horrifying act. Goodale Sentenced: Life in Prison with Parole Possibility After 25 Years During the sentencing hearing, an emotional Goodale apologized to Graber's family, his community, and his own family, expressing deep regret for his actions. "Every day I wish I could go back and stop myself and prevent this loss and this pain that I've caused everyone," he stated. Despite his expression of remorse, Judge Shawn Showers underscored Goodale's intelligence and the possibility that he could have averted the crime. Judge Showers' sentence took into consideration 25 different factors, aligning with the prosecution's request for a life sentence with a 25-year minimum. Goodale's defense had sought a life sentence without a mandatory minimum parole period. The case highlighted the complexities involved in sentencing juvenile offenders, especially in severe crimes like murder. In July, Miller was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 35 years. The aftermath of the murder saw Goodale and Miller move Graber's body to a secluded spot near railroad tracks, covering it with a tarp, and disguising the scene with a wheelbarrow and a railroad tie. Read Also: 6-Year-Old Virginia Boy Shows Early Signs of Aggression To Another Teacher Before Abigail Zwerner Incident Juvenile Justice System: Balancing Punishment and Potential for Reform The loss of Nohema Graber, a dedicated and respected educator with deep ties to her community, resonated profoundly during the sentencing. Ten family members delivered heartbreaking victim impact statements, reflecting on Graber's life and the void left by her untimely death. Graber, who had moved to Fairfield from Mexico, was remembered as a compassionate teacher and a loving mother and wife. Her husband, Paul Graber, succumbed to cancer shortly after her death, further deepening the tragedy for their family. The case has ignited discussions about the nature of youth violence, the role of the educational system in addressing behavioral issues, and the long-term impact of such heinous acts on communities. It also raises critical questions about the criminal justice system's handling of juvenile offenders, balancing the need for accountability with the potential for rehabilitation and reform. The sentencing of Jeremy Goodale marks a somber chapter in Fairfield's history, a reminder of the fragility of life and the devastating consequences of violence. As the community continues to grapple with this tragedy, the focus shifts to healing, understanding, and preventing such incidents in the future. Related Article: Uvalde Shooting: Families, Parents Hail Two Texas Teachers Who Shielded Students from Gunman as Heroes Photo: (Photo : by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images) The recent news of Zahara Jolie-Pitt, daughter of celebrities Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, joining the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority at Spelman College has sparked interest in the experiences of young people, particularly those in the spotlight, balancing fame with college life, especially in Greek organizations. Zahara's enthusiastic participation in this historically black sorority highlights the allure and complexity of Greek life for young individuals. For many students, like Zahara, joining a sorority offers a sense of community and belonging. Sororities provide a network of support, fostering personal growth and leadership development. They also offer a platform for philanthropic activities, social events, and academic support. For someone with a high-profile background, this can provide a semblance of normalcy and a chance to forge genuine connections. Pros of Joining a Sorority Community and Sisterhood: Sororities create lifelong friendships and a strong sense of community. This bonding can be particularly comforting for students who are away from home for the first time. Networking Opportunities: Greek life opens doors to vast alumni networks, which can be beneficial for future career opportunities. Personal Development: Leadership roles within these organizations help in honing skills like public speaking, organization, and teamwork. Academic Support: Many sororities emphasize academic excellence and provide resources like study groups and tutoring. Cons of Joining a Sorority Public Perception and Privacy: For someone like Zahara, being in the public eye can mean added scrutiny and pressure, making the college experience less private. Financial Commitment: Sororities often require dues and fees, which can be a financial burden. Time Commitment: Balancing sorority activities with academics and personal life can be challenging. Risk of Exclusivity: While sororities aim to create close-knit communities, they can sometimes inadvertently foster exclusivity or cliquey behavior. Read Also: 'Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising' Movie Review: Sequel Surprisingly Offers Rare Self-Awareness And Parenting Lessons Zahara Jolie-Pitt's unique experience Zahara's journey is particularly notable given her background. Growing up in the limelight, her decision to embrace her roots and join Alpha Kappa Alpha is commendable. It reflects a desire to connect with her heritage and establish her own identity, separate from her famous parents. Angelina Jolie, often seen visiting Spelman College, has shown support for her daughter's independence and journey of self-discovery. Brad Pitt has also expressed pride in Zahara's achievements and her growth as she steps into this new phase of her life. The Role of Greek Life in Personal Growth Zahara's example serves as a testament to how Greek life can play a significant role in a young person's growth and development. It provides a structured environment for making connections, learning new skills, and participating in a variety of experiences. However, it's crucial for students to weigh the pros and cons carefully, considering factors like privacy, time, and financial commitment, especially if they are in the public eye. The story of Zahara Jolie-Pitt joining Alpha Kappa Alpha is more than just a celebrity headline; it's a narrative about finding one's place in the world amidst the pressures of fame. It highlights the benefits and challenges of sorority life in modern college experiences. As with any significant decision, it's about finding the right balance, and Zahara's journey at Spelman College could be an inspiring example for many young individuals contemplating Greek life. Related Article: University of Wyoming's Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority Lawsuit Challenges House Rules on Transgender Women's Inclusion Photo: (Photo : Scott Olson/ Getty Images) In a poignant moment at 6:58 a.m. on Thursday, Dr. Angela Adams Powell, a seasoned obstetrician with over 25 years of service, addressed the nursing staff at a south Alabama hospital. In just two minutes, the labor and delivery department at Monroe County Hospital ceased operations, leaving a community in turmoil and pregnant women facing journeys of up to 103 miles for the nearest birthing option. Monroe County has become the latest casualty in the growing wave of Alabama hospitals closing their labor and delivery units, intensifying the state's already dire maternal and infant health crisis. Recent closures in Birmingham and Shelby County further highlight the distressing trend, leaving expectant mothers grappling with uncertainty. In rural areas like Monroe County, the shutdown of these essential units leaves entire communities without crucial labor and delivery services, exacerbating an already precarious healthcare landscape. Maternity Crisis and Labor and Delivery Unit Closure Escalates Across Alabama Liz Kirby, the CEO of Monroe County Hospital, attributes the closure to a severe shortage of physicians specializing in obstetrics. While speculation surrounds the impact of the Supreme Court's decision on Roe v. Wade, Kirby emphasizes that the hospital has diligently worked with multiple recruiters to address the staffing gaps in the labor and delivery department. In Alabama, where the healthcare landscape is already burdened by one of the nation's highest rates of infant and maternal mortality, there's growing apprehension. The closure of crucial maternity units has further restricted access to care, compounding the existing challenges. Adding to these concerns is the shortage of OB-GYNs, a predicament accentuated in states with strict abortion bans. This convergence of factors poses an additional layer of worry for Alabama's vulnerable healthcare ecosystem. State Rep. Thomas Jackson underscores the severity of the situation, emphasizing that stripping away obstetrics care leaves communities wounded and raises questions about how the region will manage this critical healthcare gap. The closure of maternity units further compounds the challenges faced by Black Americans in the state, with racial and socioeconomic disparities echoing historical inequalities. The obstetrics care shortage looms large over Alabama, impacting pregnant women who now face daunting journeys for essential medical services. The shutting down of Monroe County Hospital's labor and delivery unit stands out as a clear indication of the diminishing healthcare alternatives available for pregnant women. Widespread Closure of Maternity Wards Across the U.S. Raises Alarming Concerns Monroe County Hospital's closure joins a growing list of hospitals across the United States shuttering obstetrics programs and maternity wards, forcing women and other pregnant individuals to seek care elsewhere. This month alone, three hospitals in Alabama, including Shelby Baptist Medical Center and Princeton Baptist in Birmingham, have closed their labor and delivery units. Betsy Johnson Hospital in Harnett County, North Carolina, has also recently announced the discontinuation of its labor and delivery services. Officials cite various reasons for these closures, including labor shortages and financial pressures. Dr. Don Williamson, president of the Alabama Hospital Association, highlights the struggle to staff units and financial losses from treating uninsured patients as significant contributors to the problem. Additionally, the challenging landscape following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June 2023 has impacted hospitals' ability to sustain obstetrics programs. Read Also: Shared Trauma: Families of Child Firearm Injury Survivors Experience Mental Health Struggles Maternity Care Deserts Pose Risks to Maternal and Infant Health The closure of labor and delivery wards across the country raises concerns about the emergence of maternity care deserts. These deserts denote areas with a lack of obstetric services or providers, leaving pregnant individuals with limited options for care. A recent Boston Children's Hospital analysis reveals that maternity care deserts often overlap with a lack of abortion access. Over 1.7 million women, nearly 3% of women of reproductive age in the U.S., live in counties without access to abortion and maternity care, potentially necessitating longer journeys for care or home births. A report from the nonprofit March of Dimes emphasizes the higher risk of poor maternal and infant health outcomes for those living in maternity care deserts. Risks include pre-term birth, extended time in the hospital, and, in severe cases, complications leading to death. As the closure of maternity units continues, the nation faces a critical challenge in ensuring accessible and adequate healthcare for pregnant individuals, especially in regions grappling with simultaneous obstetrics care shortages and restrictive abortion policies. Related Article: OB-GYN Shortage Looms: Abortion Laws Discourage Medical Students from Training in Certain States The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) on November 17, 2023, provided institutional support to the National Blood Service, through blood donations. The nationwide blood donations dubbed, 20 years of care, One Pint at time: Donate for Life, formed part of the NHIS 20th Anniversary celebrations. The main event organized at the forecourt of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA)head office in Accra yielded appreciable outcomes. At the NHIA head office, among others, the voluntary donors comprising some NHIS staff, and the Ministry of Health officials were thoroughly examined and given health tips by medicalpersonnel. The NHIA Deputy Chief Executive, responsible for Administration and Human Resources, Dr. Yaa Pokuaa-Baiden (Mrs.) joined staff at the head office, Greater Accra Regional and Dome district offices for the exercise. As Chair of the NHIS 20th Anniversary celebrations, she said the NHIA remained devoted to helpgalvanize resources for the National Blood Service. She thanked the voluntary donors including the NHIAs oldest staff, Mr. Alexander Eldad Nkrumah for their benevolence and urged Ghanaians to regularly donate blood to save lives. Dr. Yaa-Pokuaa emphasized that voluntary blood donations formed a key component of achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by the year 2030. Some Directors and other senior staff from the head office supervised the regional exercises and commended the voluntary donors for contributing to saving lives. The first donor, Sham-Una Abukari Ahamed of the Private Health Insurance Schemes (PHIS) Directorate, in an interview said he was inspired by the National Blood Service outcry for more blood to save lives. The voluntary donors were given special packages including blood passports and some of them renewed calls on government to ensure sustainable funding for national blood transfusion services. Source: Peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament(MP) for North Tongu Constituency, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has said "it is heartwarming to acknowledge that government has made a specific commitment of GH220million for the relief phase as contained in the 2024 Budget to address the devastation caused by the recent VRA-induced floods". Read below his full post on X (formely Twitter) after the budget presentation by the Finace Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta in Parliament. "It is heartwarming to acknowledge that government has made a specific commitment of GHS220million for the relief phase as contained in the 2024 Budget to address the devastation caused by the recent VRA-induced floods. "I also take judicial notice of pledges by the Finance Minister in Parliament for the restoration phase which include additional resources for the Ministry of Agriculture to support livelihoods, and a formal request to the World Bank under the IDA Crisis Response Window. "May all these assurances translate into actual releases for adequate resettlement and compensation of my beloved constituents plus all those affected in other constituencies. "Ghana First." Government budgets GH220m to support victims of Akosombo dam spillage The government has budgeted an amount of GH220 million to support the relief phase for the communities affected by the Akosombo spillage and floods in the Oti, Savannah, and Bono-East Regions. This was disclosed by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, during his presentation of the governments Budget Statement and Economic Policy for the 2024 Financial Year in Parliament on Wednesday, November 15, 2023. Mr. Speaker, Government has budgeted an amount of GH220 million to support the relief phase for the communities affected by the Akosombo spillage as well as floods upstream in the Oti, Savannah, and Bono-East Regions, Ofori-Atta stated. We have requested funding from the World Bank under the IDA Crisis Response Window (CRW) to support the resettlement of the victims, restoration of livelihoods, compensation and reconstruction of infrastructure in the affected communities, he added. Source: Peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video By Noriyuki Suzuki, KYODO NEWS - Nov 19, 2023 - 14:13 | All, Japan, World A growing sense of urgency to ensure economic security is precipitating the formation of like-minded groups in the Asia-Pacific, where the reengagement of the United States is met with China's quest for greater influence. The new paradigm is putting Japan's diplomacy -- and its ultimate vision for its own engagement in the region -- to the test. It is pushing for a rules-based, "free and open" Indo-Pacific, seen as a counterbalance to China, but it also needs to avoid alienating countries that are much closer to Beijing than to Tokyo and ruffling the feathers of the Asian powerhouse. The delicate balancing act was evident when Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited San Francisco for a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum that concluded Friday. He underscored the importance of allies and partners joining forces, and in particular, warming relations with South Korea as they both face China, an assertive neighbor but key trading partner. At the summit of the Indo-Pacific Economic Partnership coinciding with APEC, Japan and 13 other nations reached agreement on all but one pillar of the U.S.-led trade initiative that does not include tariff cuts like free trade agreements, a key step toward what the United States terms "friendshoring," or diversifying supply chains among like-minded partners. "It's a framework that is designed to protect the economic security of the United States, which will also benefit Japan and other nations," said Junichi Sugawara, a principal at Owls Consulting Group. "But it's not as if we are going to completely decouple from China so the question is how far friendshoring can go." Some experts see the momentum building for a more fragmented world in which states defend their own national interests, in a potential blow to multilateral, free trade arrangements. As talks continued to complete as many pillars of the IPEF as possible, a Japanese government official said reducing reliance on a single nation for strategically critical items was a "good" course of action. "That being said, it does not and should not mean that partners with similar views can also undermine the free trade system," the official added. Japan enjoyed the benefits of free trade during its high growth era with bilateral and multilateral agreements. Even without the participation of the United States, Japan pushed for the conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, while joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which also involves China, South Korea and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations. APEC members also share the ambitious goal of creating an Asia-Pacific free trade area. During the years of the COVID-19 pandemic, shortages of goods, notably chips, made some nations more inward-looking. "With supply chains disrupted and goods not coming in, people started looking at (the importance of) their own national borders," Sugawara said. Still, economic benefits are bringing countries closer like Japan and South Korea, which were until recently unlikely bedfellows due to differences over wartime labor compensation and other issues. In a rare joint appearance with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol at a Stanford University event, Kishida spoke of the need for Japan, South Korea and the United States to jointly drive transformations. "It's natural that South Korea is getting closer to Japan and the United States because it has been taking a big hit from this U.S.-China rivalry," said Toru Nishihama, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute. "But this is happening under the conservative government and it could change if the leader changes." Trilateral cooperation between Japan, China and South Korea is also necessary given their economic interdependence but has become increasingly complex, especially with Tokyo and Seoul pushing for cutting reliance on China, or de-risking. Eyes are on whether the three nations will be able to hold their first summit in four years, with South Korea this year's chair of the tripartite framework. For Japan, ASEAN members are crucial for a loose coalition of partners to help make the region free and open without raising the ire of China. Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam have joined IPEF. Some others like Cambodia are closer to China than to the United States or Japan, and experts say forcing the ASEAN members to choose between the two camps will not work. With China in mind, Japan has made it a point to call for a rules-based international order. Mie Oba, a professor of international relations at Kanagawa University, said Japan needs to be more specific in its vision for the region, as in its recent plan for the creation of a zero-emission community in Asia. "Be it IPEF or RCEP, countries in the region will use it if it benefits them," Oba said. "The important point is how Japan will figure in the region and within multilateral arrangements over the longer term and that should be visible." Related coverage: Japan to keep urging China to lift food import ban: PM Kishida APEC leaders' declaration makes no reference to Israel-Hamas conflict President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has revealed that Former Deputy Chief of Staff at the Jubilee House, Francis Asenso-Boakye is already missed by workers at the Presidency. ''He does everything appropriately. He will always bring you good news whenever I send him to do something on my behalf. He became the Deputy Chief of Staff at the Jubilee House and till date, people still call his name and praise him for his hard work, the president disclosed. President Akufo-Addo also noted that, he developed love Hon Francis Asenso-Boakye right from the times he met him at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) when he (Asenso-Boakye) was a student. (Bantama) ''Thanks for grooming Asenso-Boakye for me. He does things best'', the President added. The First Gentleman said this at Bantama today, Wednesday, 15th November, 2023, during the commissioning of a modern Library and Technology Hub in the Bantama constituency named after him. The new library at Bantama is the 127th in the country. Commenting on the project, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo stated that he really appreciates and commends the efforts of Mr. Asenso-Boakye and his decision to name the project after named after him (President). He noted that he was more happy because the project named after him is an educational one. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo asked the people of Bantama constituency in the Ashanti Region to retain Hon Francis Asenso-Boakye as their Member of Parliament in the 2024 general elections. He stressed that it would hurt him much if the people Bantama do not retain Mr. Asenso-Boakye. "It will hurt me so much if people of Bantama throw him away. Give him the opportunity to represent you again and he will come and continue the good job he has been doing". Touching on 2024 presidential election, President Nana Akufo-Addo urged Ghanaians to eschew ethnocentric politics and religion-based politics against the flagbearer of the NPP, stressing that his competence is what maters. He expressed the hope that Dr. Bawumia would an excellent president. The President also jabbed former President and flagberer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) John Dramani Mahama saying his intension to come back to the presidency is a deceit to Ghanaian. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo also told Ghanaians to ignore the NDC flagbearer John Dramani Mahama because he has nothing better to offer them. Source: Peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Tributes are pouring in for popular Nigerian rapper Oladips, following his death at the age of 28. "We are still in shock as we speak," his management said in an Instagram post. The cause of death is unclear but the post read he "kept his battles within himself" for two years. Oladips was a talented musician who rapped about political issues like the ENDSars protests against police brutality. He also touched on the subject of mental health and depression in his songs. "His story telling rap was top notch" one fan wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. Big Brother Naija contestant Hermes Iyele expressed his shock over the young rapper's death saying: "May God grant the family the grace to carry this grief." The rapper was due to release his new album titled SUPERHERO ADUGBO (The Memoir) on Thursday. His last single was called Die Young. Oladips rose to fame when he won a rap competition called the King is Here hosted by Nigerian music giant DBanj in 2015. Oladips's death comes a few months after another popular musician, Mohbad, died in September, leading to countrywide protests. Source: BBC Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video FORT DODGE, Iowa Former President Donald Trump celebrated a win in a closely watched election case during a return visit to Iowa Saturday, where he blasted his political foes and encouraged his supporters to not move past their grievances with President Joe Biden. A Colorado judge on Friday rejected an effort to keep the GOP front-runner off the states primary ballot, concluding that Trump had engaged in insurrection during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol but that it was unclear whether a Civil War-era constitutional amendment barring insurrectionists from public office applied to the presidency. It was Trumps latest win following rulings in similar cases in Minnesota and Michigan. Trump, campaigning in west-central Iowa, called the Colorado decision a gigantic court victory as he panned what he called an outrageous attempt to disenfranchise millions of voters by getting us thrown off the ballot. Our opponents are showing every day that they hate democracy, he charged before a crowd of about 2,000 people at a commit-to-caucus event at a high school in Fort Dodge, Iowa, where people had lined up for hours to get a seat in the gymnasium. Trumps visit was part of his fall push to sign up supporters and volunteers before the states fast-approaching caucuses that kick off the race for the Republican presidential nomination. It was the latest in a series of targeted regional stops aimed at seizing on the large crowds the former president draws to press attendees to commit to voting for him on Jan. 15. While Trump has had a comfortable edge over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in early polls of likely caucus participants, Trumps campaign has been more aggressive in Iowa than any of the other early-voting states. And he continued to attack DeSantis during his appearance Saturday, slamming the governor over his past opposition to federal ethanol mandates and for running against Trump. Trump in a Thursday radio interview mocked DeSantis for doing very poorly even after winning the endorsement of Gov. Kim Reynolds, who broke with the general practice of Iowa governors not to support a candidate before the caucuses. I was really good to her and then she said she was going to remain neutral. And I said, Thats OK, but I didnt really want her particularly, he told host Simon Conway. Ron is doing very poorly in the polls and I guess he put a full-court press on her, Trump said. And she did that. And thats fine. I think its fine. I dont think its made any difference. DeSantis, who stopped by his campaigns new office in Urbandale on Saturday, told reporters that Trump was making missteps by attacking Reynolds and focusing on larger rallies. I think its been a mistake how hes not been willing to engage with Iowans outside of swooping in and doing, you know, a speech and then just leaving, DeSantis said. I think you got to get on the ground, you got to shake the hands, you got to answer their questions. DeSantis was campaigning across southern Iowa, moving closer to his goal of campaigning in all 99 counties. Thats a traditional marker some candidates have tried to reach to show their commitment to Iowa. Despite DeSantis push, Dale Mason, a construction worker from Fort Dodge, is a solid Trump backer. Trumps already proven himself to me. If it works, then why mess with it? Mason said. I feel like it worked when he was in office. The 31-year-old single father said he lives paycheck to paycheck and worries about being able to feed his 12-year-old daughter or put gas in the car. Trump made it easier for us to get by, Mason said, adding, He supported us so I think its our turn to give back to him. Sue Hewett, who hasnt seen Trump campaign in person before, was concerned about being far back in line. Theres isnt anybody coming across like he does, said Hewett, 68, who lives in Fort Dodge. They dont have the draw. She said she was open to considering different candidates, but so far hasnt been persuaded by any of the other contenders. Trump has made regular stops in Iowa, appearing at eight events before audiences totaling more than 16,000, according to Trumps Secret Service detail, in the past eight weeks. Its part of Trumps 2024 strategy to stress organization more than his campaign did in 2016, when he finished a competitive second place. Rivals, especially DeSantis, have been in Iowa more often as they hope to score a better-than-expected finish against Trump, who also leads in national Republican polls. A recent memo to donors from DeSantis campaign suggested that DeSantis all-in strategy in Iowa was in keeping with his hope to rob Trump of a big win in Iowa. Higher interest rates combined with increased regulation mean many Canadians are beginning to second-guess the wisdom of investing in a short-term rental property. Kevin Makra is pictured preparing for guests in his Toronto Airbnb rental apartment, on Saturday, December 2, 2017.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young A woolly adelgid beetle is shown in a handout photo.The woolly adelgid was first seen in southwestern Nova Scotia in 2017, and has since been spreading northward. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry **MANDATORY CREDIT** Chief of the Defence Staff Wayne Eyre waits to appear before the Standing Commitee on National Defence providing a briefing on the mandate and priorities of the minister of national defence in Ottawa, on Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023. Canada's top soldier says the military's ability to keep funding a "persistent presence" of warships in the western Pacific is a challenge due the budget restraints the military faces. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby People register to vote at a voting station in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, Nov. 18, 2023. The South African government on Friday called on the citizens to register to vote during the registration weekend so that they will be able to vote in the 2024 elections. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa will register people on Nov. 18-19 so that they are eligible to vote in the 2024 national and provincial elections. (Photo by Ihsaan Haffejee/Xinhua) JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- The South African government on Friday called on the citizens to register to vote during the registration weekend so that they will be able to vote in the 2024 elections. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa will register people on Nov. 18-19 so that they are eligible to vote in the 2024 national and provincial elections. "We appeal to the youth, especially those who are eligible to vote for the first time, to take the first step and register to vote. Voting puts the power in your hands and it is a way for every eligible citizen to use their voice to bring about change. The youth vote is central to the success of a well-functioning democracy," said Nomonde Mnukwa, acting director general of the Government Communication and Information System. Mnukwa called on South Africans above 18 years of age to take their national identity documents and visit the registration centers across the country. "Government is committed to ensuring a peaceful voter registration weekend and it has instructed the South African Police Service to act swiftly and decisively against those who will want to disrupt voter registrations," he said. The IEC said 23,296 registration stations will be open across the country. South Africa will hold the presidential, parliamentary elections and local government elections in 2024. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa visits a voting station in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, Nov. 18, 2023. The South African government on Friday called on the citizens to register to vote during the registration weekend so that they will be able to vote in the 2024 elections. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa will register people on Nov. 18-19 so that they are eligible to vote in the 2024 national and provincial elections. (Photo by Ihsaan Haffejee/Xinhua) South African President Cyril Ramaphosa visits a voting station in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, Nov. 18, 2023. The South African government on Friday called on the citizens to register to vote during the registration weekend so that they will be able to vote in the 2024 elections. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa will register people on Nov. 18-19 so that they are eligible to vote in the 2024 national and provincial elections. (Photo by Ihsaan Haffejee/Xinhua) People register to vote at a voting station in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, Nov. 18, 2023. The South African government on Friday called on the citizens to register to vote during the registration weekend so that they will be able to vote in the 2024 elections. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa will register people on Nov. 18-19 so that they are eligible to vote in the 2024 national and provincial elections. (Photo by Ihsaan Haffejee/Xinhua) People wait for voter registration at a voting station in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, Nov. 18, 2023. The South African government on Friday called on the citizens to register to vote during the registration weekend so that they will be able to vote in the 2024 elections. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa will register people on Nov. 18-19 so that they are eligible to vote in the 2024 national and provincial elections. (Photo by Ihsaan Haffejee/Xinhua) People wait for voter registration at a voting station in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, Nov. 18, 2023. The South African government on Friday called on the citizens to register to vote during the registration weekend so that they will be able to vote in the 2024 elections. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa will register people on Nov. 18-19 so that they are eligible to vote in the 2024 national and provincial elections. (Photo by Ihsaan Haffejee/Xinhua) Hands of the Week: Quads Twice in First Orbit, Bubble Runner-Runner at 2023 PokerStars NAPT November 19, 2023 Chad Holloway Executive Editor U.S. The PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) returned to the United States for the first time in 12 years earlier this month. The festival proved to be a big hit with some well-known poker pros taking down side events including Eli Elezra and Griffin Benger while poker dealer and soon-to-be-father Sami Bechahed topped a 1,095-entry field to win the $1,650 NAPT Main Event for $268,945. For this edition of our "Hands of the Week" series, we're bringing you some of the biggest and most interesting hands from the 2023 PokerStars NAPT at Resorts World Las Vegas. Check out the NAPT Hub on PokerNews here! Top Boat Runs Into a Cold Deck Samuel Laskowitz On Day 1d of the Main Event, it was Level 10 (600/1,200/1,200) when reporter Jeremy Geist saw action open in middle position by Cody Raymond to 2,200 before it folded to Samuel Laskowitz in the small blind who smooth called followed by a fold from the big blind. The 437 flop landed and action was checked to Raymond, who continued for 2,200. The action was back on Laskowitz who opted to put in a check-raise to 7,000. Raymond called and the 3 rolled off on the turn. Laskowitz sat in the tank for almost a minute before he bet again for 8,300. Raymond called again and the 2 hit on the river. Laskowitz pondered his options for a few more moments before announcing he was all in. Raymond snap-called and immediately tabled 77 for top boat but the pain was real when Laskowitz tabled 33 for turned quads and an absolute cooler. Laskowitz dragged the pot and got a much-needed influx of chips. Boen Hits Quads Twice In First Orbit Leonardo Boen Day 2 had just resumed when Connor Richards caught a big one in Level 15 (1,500/3,000/3,000) when Valentyn Shabelnyk was all in from early position for around 45,000 against Leonardo Boen in the big blind, who had him covered. Valentyn Shabelnyk: AQ Leonardo Boen: 99 Shabelnyk had no shot at staying alive as the flop landed K99 to give Boen quads before the meaningless runout of 33 confirmed Shabelnyk's elimination. "That's the second time he's had quads," Jim Collopy told PokerNews. "In the first orbit." Phil Hellmuth, Lex Veldhuis Headline Epic PokerStars NAPT Players Party in Las Vegas Runner-Runner Straight Staves Off Bubble Bursting John Morgan On Day 2 in Level 17 (2,000/5,000/5,000), reporter Chris Land saw action fold to John Morgan, who jammed for just over 100,000 from late position. Yang Lu called to set up a runout with Morgan at risk. John Morgan: AQ Yang Lu: AA The flop came 4610, leaving Morgan with only runner-runner outs to the win. The K came in on the turn and brought with it half of the needed running outs for Morgan to double and keep bubble play in action. When the J completed the board and Morgan's straight, the room let out a collective gasp as the sick runout keeps everyone in bubble play and still out of the money. Nguyen Falls to Wantman on Money Bubble Turbo Nguyen In the same level, Connor Richards reported that Matthew Wantman opened from the hijack, and Turbo Nguyen three-bet jammed a stack of 37,000 on the button. Wantman called with a bigger stack. Turbo Nguyen: 1010 Matthew Wantman: KJ An elimination at another table meant that Nguyen was at risk of bubbling. The flop of J59 gave Wantman a big lead. "Life is good no matter what, guys," Nguyen said before the runout of 3K improved Wantman to two pair to mark Nguyen's elimination on the bubble. "Stone bubble. Good game," Nguyen said as he left. Action Flops Sees Reknar Bust Moreno & Glendinning Andrew Moreno In Level 18 (3,000/6,000/6,000), Connor Richards caught a three-way pot on a flop of 798. Andrew Moreno checked and Girish Reknar also checked as Jonathan Glendinning bet 16,000. Moreno called and Reknar check-raised to 50,000. Glendinning called and Moreno took some time before back-jamming a stack of 129,000. Reknar went in the tank before moving all in for around 320,000 and Glendinning thought it through before calling off with his stack of around 200,000. Andrew Moreno: 65 Jonathan Glendinning: 77 Girish Reknar: Q10 It was quite the cooler as Moreno had the lower end of the straight and Glendinning had bottom set, while Reknar had a flush draw and open-ended straight draw. The 6 turn gave Reknar the flush and the A river failed to pair the board for a double elimination in one of the biggest pots of the day. Check out our guide to the Best Online Casinos around the world. For US players, online real money casino is available in Pennsylvania, Michigan, New Jersey and West Virginia. If you're looking to start playing Online Casino right now, then we recommend FanDuel Casino. If youre in a State where real money online casino isnt an option, then you still have the chance to play via Social Casino sites such as Chumba Casino and LuckyLand Slots. Sharelines Check out some of the biggest hands from the @PokerStarsUSA #NAPTLasVegas. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Rep Jamie Raskin (D-MD) called out Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) for moments earlier on the same program, refusing to condemn Elon Musks antisemitism. Here is Ron DeSantis on CNNs State of the Union claiming that he didnt see Elon Musks antisemitic comments: Jake Tapper responds to Ron DeSantis claiming that he didnt see Elon Musks antisemitic comments with, Let me just show you. Tapper then shows and reads Musks comments to DeSantis. pic.twitter.com/J6rXP2i5aW Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) November 19, 2023 Rep. Jamie Raskin was on the next segment of State Of The Union and began by calling out DeSantis, The guy is running for president, and Elon Musk did that on Wednesday. Its Sunday. This is four days later, and he has not had the chance to read what Elon Musk wrote? That is very hard for me to believe. In any event, you showed it to him and he still chose to condemn it. If youre serious about condemning and confronting antisemitism and racism and these bigotries, which are the gateway to destruction of liberal democracy, you have got to be explicit and open and full full-throated about it and denounce racism and extremism across the board. Video of House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Raskin: Jamie Raskin blasts Ron DeSantis for refusing to condemn Elon Musks antisemitism, The guy is running for president and Elon Musk did that on Wednesday. Its Sunday, and he has not had the chance to read what Elon Musk wrote? That is very hard for me to believe. pic.twitter.com/xOxt43XV8r Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) November 19, 2023 Jake Tapper was prepared for DeSantiss attempt at a dodge, a good journalism piece. Raskin took the time in his segment to call out DeSantis, because the Florida governor is representative of the attitude of the Republican Party on antisemitism. Republicans criticize pro-Palestinian protesters on the left, but they go deaf, dumb, and blind to antisemitism on the right. Every Republican and conservative media outlet that cheerleads for and cozies up to Mush owns the Twitter owners antisemitism. Republicans cant have it both ways, and Rep Raskin made sure that Ron DeSantis doesnt. A Special Message From PoliticusUSA If you are in a position to donate purely to help us keep the doors open on PoliticusUSA during what is a critical election year, please do so here. We have been honored to be able to put your interests first for 14 years as we only answer to our readers and we will not compromise on that fundamental, core PoliticusUSA value. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) said that Trump is unfit, a threat to our democracy should never see public office again, and should be eliminated. Rep. Goldman said while discussing Trump telling Jon Karl that he wanted to go to the Capitol on 1/6: Well, look. He says I would be well received because he knows that the people that were there are his supporters who he riled up and incited to invade and riot at the Capitol and try to disrupt the proper counting of the electoral votes so every time he talks, he is putting himself into a bigger criminal hole. Thats not his objective. His objective is purely political at this point. Politics dont work in a courtroom, as I think hes finding out, in the New York Attorney Generals case. In New York, the civil case. And thats going to continue in his criminal trials. But his rhetoric is really getting dangerous. More and more dangerous. We saw what happened on January 6th, when he used his inflammatory rhetoric now, and his recent truth social post is incredibly, incredibly scary for anyone that might be trying to work in government. And it is just unquestionable at this point that man cannot see public office again. He is not only unfit, he is destructive to our democracy, and he has to be eliminated. Video: Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) on Trump, At this point that man cannot see public office again. He is not only unfit, he is destructive to our democracy, and he has to be eliminated. pic.twitter.com/SKoB9Ff30V Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) November 19, 2023 Rep. Goldman was correct. Trumps rhetoric is becoming more dangerous. It appears that if Trump cant win an election legitimately, he is willing to try to attempt to repeat 1/6 and seize the presidency by force. Trump made his autocratic vision clear when he occupied the White House. The only difference between then and now is that the former president is more explicit in telling the nation exactly what he would do if he returned to power. Donald Trump is the most significant domestic threat to democracy since the Civil War, and the way for the nation to eliminate the Trump threat is to convict him of his crimes and then reject him at the ballot box in 2024. A Special Message From PoliticusUSA If you are in a position to donate purely to help us keep the doors open on PoliticusUSA during what is a critical election year, please do so here. We have been honored to be able to put your interests first for 14 years as we only answer to our readers, and we will not compromise on that fundamental, core PoliticusUSA value. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print The best that Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) could do after Biden met with President Xi of China was complain about President Bidens tone and mood music. Video: Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) criticizes Biden's 'demeanor and attitude' while meeting with Xi, "I worry very much about the mood music that Joe Biden was trying to set at this summit." pic.twitter.com/l9RrM6gOLt Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) November 19, 2023 Cotton said on Fox Newss Sunday Morning Futures: Im also worried about just the overall demeanor and attitude that Joe Biden had at that summit. Its one thing to meet with our Communist adversaries. Thats what we expect our leaders to do. I do that on occasion on trips around the world. Its another thing for Joe Biden to say that it was an honor and a pleasure to welcome a communist dictator like Xi Jinping to America. Thats not the kind of thing Ronald Reagan would have said when he brought Mikhail Gorbachev off to the White House. I also noted that you had John Kerry there whose monomaniacal obsession is some fleeting climate change, deal with China. But you didnt have representatives of the Department of Defense or our intelligence agencies at a high level. So I worry very much about the mood music that Joe Biden was trying to set at this summit and the signals that it will send the Xi Jinping as he takes the measure of a man, he may have to face off against. When the only thing that Republicans can think of to complain about is Bidens demeanor, things must have gone pretty well. Cotton had to find something wrong with Bidens meeting with Xi, so he threw it back to the myth of Ronald Reagan. Lets take a look at what Ronald Reagan said after he visited China in 1984: I told the Chinese leaders, as I told the students at Shanghai University yesterday, that we must continue to acknowledge our differences, for a friendship based on fiction will not long withstand the rigors of the world. But we agreed that there is much to be gained from mutual respect. And theres much to be gained on both sides from expanded opportunities in trade and commerce and cultural relations. I was heartened by some of the things that we saw. The Chinese have begun opening up their economy, allowing more farmers and workers to keep and sell on their own some of the fruits of their labor. The first injection of free market spirit has already enlivened the Chinese economy. I believe it has also made a contribution to human happiness in China and opened the way to a more just society. By Tom Cottons definition, Ronald Reagan had a demeanor problem on China. Reagan never called the Chinese Communist regime a dictatorship, but Biden. President Biden was tougher on China than Reagan, and Republicans are struggling to find a criticism. A Special Message From PoliticusUSA If you are in a position to donate purely to help us keep the doors open on PoliticusUSA during what is a critical election year, please do so here. We have been honored to be able to put your interests first for 14 years as we only answer to our readers and we will not compromise on that fundamental, core PoliticusUSA value. Republicans have one thing right about the border: The Biden administrations strategy to keep asylum seekers from flocking to the United States is not working. Read moreGuest editorial: Heres a deal to restore asylum, and order, at the border People visit the "Van Gogh Alive", a multi-sensory art exhibition, in Lillestrom, Viken county, Norway, Nov. 17, 2023. "Van Gogh Alive", held from Nov. 14, 2023 to Feb. 11, 2024, is a multi-sensory art exhibition that celebrates the work of Vincent van Gogh, a renowned post-impressionist painter. This exhibition doesn't display original Van Gogh paintings. Instead, it uses a high-tech, immersive approach to showcase his work: Van Gogh's paintings are projected on large screens, walls, columns, and even the floor, offering a panoramic visual experience. Additionally, the visual spectacle is accompanied by a carefully selected soundtrack and sound effects, enhancing the emotional and sensory impact of the experience. (Photo by Chen Yaqin/Xinhua) People visit the "Van Gogh Alive", a multi-sensory art exhibition, in Lillestrom, Viken county, Norway, Nov. 17, 2023. "Van Gogh Alive", held from Nov. 14, 2023 to Feb. 11, 2024, is a multi-sensory art exhibition that celebrates the work of Vincent van Gogh, a renowned post-impressionist painter. This exhibition doesn't display original Van Gogh paintings. Instead, it uses a high-tech, immersive approach to showcase his work: Van Gogh's paintings are projected on large screens, walls, columns, and even the floor, offering a panoramic visual experience. Additionally, the visual spectacle is accompanied by a carefully selected soundtrack and sound effects, enhancing the emotional and sensory impact of the experience. (Photo by Chen Yaqin/Xinhua) People visit the "Van Gogh Alive", a multi-sensory art exhibition, in Lillestrom, Viken county, Norway, Nov. 17, 2023. "Van Gogh Alive", held from Nov. 14, 2023 to Feb. 11, 2024, is a multi-sensory art exhibition that celebrates the work of Vincent van Gogh, a renowned post-impressionist painter. This exhibition doesn't display original Van Gogh paintings. Instead, it uses a high-tech, immersive approach to showcase his work: Van Gogh's paintings are projected on large screens, walls, columns, and even the floor, offering a panoramic visual experience. Additionally, the visual spectacle is accompanied by a carefully selected soundtrack and sound effects, enhancing the emotional and sensory impact of the experience. (Photo by Chen Yaqin/Xinhua) People visit the "Van Gogh Alive", a multi-sensory art exhibition, in Lillestrom, Viken county, Norway, Nov. 17, 2023. "Van Gogh Alive", held from Nov. 14, 2023 to Feb. 11, 2024, is a multi-sensory art exhibition that celebrates the work of Vincent van Gogh, a renowned post-impressionist painter. This exhibition doesn't display original Van Gogh paintings. Instead, it uses a high-tech, immersive approach to showcase his work: Van Gogh's paintings are projected on large screens, walls, columns, and even the floor, offering a panoramic visual experience. Additionally, the visual spectacle is accompanied by a carefully selected soundtrack and sound effects, enhancing the emotional and sensory impact of the experience. (Photo by Chen Yaqin/Xinhua) People visit the "Van Gogh Alive", a multi-sensory art exhibition, in Lillestrom, Viken county, Norway, Nov. 17, 2023. "Van Gogh Alive", held from Nov. 14, 2023 to Feb. 11, 2024, is a multi-sensory art exhibition that celebrates the work of Vincent van Gogh, a renowned post-impressionist painter. This exhibition doesn't display original Van Gogh paintings. Instead, it uses a high-tech, immersive approach to showcase his work: Van Gogh's paintings are projected on large screens, walls, columns, and even the floor, offering a panoramic visual experience. Additionally, the visual spectacle is accompanied by a carefully selected soundtrack and sound effects, enhancing the emotional and sensory impact of the experience. (Photo by Chen Yaqin/Xinhua) People visit the "Van Gogh Alive", a multi-sensory art exhibition, in Lillestrom, Viken county, Norway, Nov. 17, 2023. "Van Gogh Alive", held from Nov. 14, 2023 to Feb. 11, 2024, is a multi-sensory art exhibition that celebrates the work of Vincent van Gogh, a renowned post-impressionist painter. This exhibition doesn't display original Van Gogh paintings. Instead, it uses a high-tech, immersive approach to showcase his work: Van Gogh's paintings are projected on large screens, walls, columns, and even the floor, offering a panoramic visual experience. Additionally, the visual spectacle is accompanied by a carefully selected soundtrack and sound effects, enhancing the emotional and sensory impact of the experience. (Photo by Chen Yaqin/Xinhua) NEW YORK Stocks closed mostly higher Thursday as the market ended November with its biggest monthly gain in more than a year. Read moreWall Street closes out its best month in more than a year If you met my friend Susan Sparks, youd immediately note our similarities. We have both written a syndicated spirituality column and we are both Baptist pastors. However, as a "trial lawyer-turned-stand-up-comedian-and-Baptist-minister," she speaks in a unique voice. And thats why Ive asked her to pen this guest column for us as we prepare our homes for Thanksgiving. Enjoy. From Susan Sparks: Its hard for me to believe that New York City (where I now live) is part of the same country as North Carolina (where I was born). Everything is different: the food, the clothing, the pace at which people walk and the accents. Oh, the accents. I dont mean any disrespect, but New York accents are just wrong meaning they fall in the wrong place. For example, in the South, the object one holds over ones head in a rainstorm is pronounced, UM-brella. New Yorkers talk about some foreign object called an um-BREL-la. The Southern word for the flat screen on your wall that allows you to binge on Netflix is TEE-vee. New Yorkers use some alien, multisyllable conglomeration of television. Some may see this to be a meaningless linguistic tussle. However, when you consider the word describing this weeks national holiday, you realize that there is more at stake than you may think. Unlike New Yorkers who say, Thanks-GIVING, Southerners call this holiday THANKS-giving. Why? Because thats what the holiday is about. "Thanks." Not "giving." The thanks must come first, because you cant truly give FROM the heart, unless you have gratitude IN your heart. Its as 2 Corinthians 9:7 says: God loves a cheerful giver. Sign up for our opinion newsletter Get a weekly recap of South Carolina opinion and analysis from The Post and Courier in your inbox on Monday evenings. Email Sign Up! This is an important lesson as we begin this holiday season. While loving, joyful giving should be the focus of the coming weeks, giving usually turns into an exhausting act of duty. Like the conviction that you have to make two potato dishes sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes for the holiday dinner. Or the belief that you must fight the Black Friday crowds to get a generic scarf and mitten set for a great aunt twice-removed because she sent you a Whitmans Sampler. Get your fill of oysters and holiday scenery at Drayton Hall. View the annual City of Charleston Holiday Parade and Tree Lighting. Or, satisfy your taste buds and gift-shopping needs at either the Foodees Food and Culture Festival or the annual Christmas Made in the South market. Read moreMy Charleston Weekend: December signals holiday cheer Cynthia Wong, a six-time James Beard Award semifinalist, has set her North Charleston-based dessert company apart by creating edible works of art that look like savory sandwiches, tacos, bananas and even Thanksgiving dinner. Launched in 2018, Life Raft Treats is perhaps best known for its Not Fried Chicken Ice Cream, a combination of waffle ice cream, a chocolate-covered cookie bone, and white chocolate and Corn Flakes coating that looks nearly identical to a fried chicken drumstick. That playful concoction has been placed under the microscope for much of the fall. Wongs workdays look different than they did a few months ago. Product testing and equipment swabbing are now daily occurrences. The innovative approach that has brought her company acclaim is still there, but it has faded into the background after she was forced to suspend Life Raft Treats production for most of September and October. The two-month pause came after the state Department of Health and Environmental Control found listeria monocytogenes in a piece of Not Fried Chicken during routine testing at the end of August. Life Raft Treats was notified of the positive result Sept. 5, leading Wong and her husband and business partner John David Harmon to recall its Not Fried Chicken and another treat, Life Is Peachy, because it was produced near the former. In the time since, Wong and Harmon have learned just about everything there is to know about listeria, a foodborne pathogen that is of particular concern with refrigerated foods that are not reheated before eating, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Unlike most other foodborne bacteria, listeria can grow at refrigerator temperatures, less than 40 degrees, meaning the bacteria can multiply the longer a contaminated item sits. GREENVILLE Twenty-seven years ago, Lonestar topped the country music charts for the first time and didn't slow down. Song after song seemed to make a hit. No News reached No. 1 on the Billboard country chart in 1996. Then Amazed captured the top spot in country and the United States in 1999. Then Mr. Mom closed out the band's No. 1 run for the final time in 2004. Nineteen years later, country music has evolved. And thats OK with Keech Rainwater, the band's drummer and founding member. They're still making music the way they know how. "We're not trying to reinvent ourselves or change anything," he said. "We're trying to keep the same vibe that we've had." Earlier in 2023, Lonestar released its most recent album, "TEN to 1" a rerecording of 10 of their most popular songs. It was a chance to revisit, reconsider and reproduce the tracks that made them famous, with modernized beats and even some alterations. The four-person band Rainwater, Drew Womack, Michael Britt and Dean Sams will bring those classic hits to Greenville on Nov. 24 at The Foundry at Judson Mill as part of its 2023-24 tour. It marks a 30-year run for the band that hails from Texas, got its start playing in bars and Walmart parking lots before blowing up around the U.S., evolving from honky-tonk to country pop, stacking up three platinum albums, three Grammy nominations and two Academy of Country awards along the way. Despite changes in band members, the industry and the years, theyre still going, still rocking and enjoying it, touring multiple days per week, playing Christmas concerts, riding around on one-wheelers in new cities and visiting thrift shops. The Summerville Orchestra is the 2023 winner of The American Prize in Orchestral Performance in the community division. The orchestra, with Wojciech Milewski as music director, was selected from applications reviewed from across the country. Read moreSummerville Orchestra wins 2023 American Prize in Orchestral Performance Theres a proposal from the Environmental Protection Agency to replace all lead service lines in the country in the next 10 years. In Charleston Water Systems service area, 4 percent of the lines are made from lead. Read moreEPA calls to replace all lead service lines. What does that mean for Charleston? NORTH CHARLESTON An executive director, dipping into a federal grant. A new leader, struggling to break even. An expansion project, put on pause. And a damning health inspection, revealing rats, dirt and crumbling walls. These were some of the problems that fueled the protracted collapse of the North Charleston Community Interfaith Shelter, a nonprofit inspectors shut down in January for unsafe conditions. At one time the Lowcountry's largest transitional housing unit for homeless veterans, Interfaith is now a run-down building closed for the foreseeable future. Disorganization, mismanagement and financial problems precipitated the shelters demise, a Post and Courier investigation found in June. But more than internal troubles doomed Interfaith, also known as the Good Neighbor Center. As the shelter limped along for three decades, local, state and federal regulators failed to spot numerous problems and raise alarms. Blame the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, a major funder, for not auditing the shelter sooner. Fault the Internal Revenue Service for rubber-stamping its nonprofit status. Question the S.C. Secretary of States office for not doing more to warn donors of its poor standing. Criticize its board for not being more attuned and attentive to operations. Interfaith sidestepped intervention up until the bitter end. It failed to submit informational returns for several years, eventually prompting the IRS to revoke its tax-exempt status. But it was a tenant complaint not a federal or state agency that instigated the inspection that led to the shelters demise. U.S. Sen. Tim Scott has many admirable qualities that would have made him a compelling presidential candidate in another year. Still, given the state of the Republican race, his decision to drop out of the GOP primary should be welcomed. Read moreCommentary: Do the right thing, like Tim Scott BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- The 2023 International Symposium on the Peaceful Use of Space Technology -- Health kicked off in Beijing on Saturday. More than 100 scientists and scholars from home and abroad have been invited to the three-day symposium to discuss the development potential and prospects of the peaceful use of space technology, and to promote global exchanges and cooperation. The symposium covers topics such as space energy and ground energy, space industry investment, shared space science and technology, space education and talent development, drone development and low-altitude economy, lunar protection, and commercial space industry development and cooperation. Christian Feichtinger, executive director of the International Astronautical Federation, acknowledged that China has made a great contribution to the development of space technology and achieved many results. He said he expects experts and scholars will reach consensus on the peaceful use of space technology during the symposium, ensuring the technological achievements benefit more people in the future. I greatly admire former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. He is my idea of a great public servant. Appearing on Fox News Sunday this morning (video below), he nailed each response to the questions posed by Shannon Bream. At one point, Bream asked him (her question begins at 3:35 of the video): Youve seen the data. Youve served on the job. We keep hearing about what a problem the border is. This administration has talked about the possibility that it is very attractive to terrorists [it has???]. We talked to Senator Coons [earlier in the show] about the fact that there are millions of people here we dont know who they are or where they are. Is that something that keeps you up at night? How worried should we be, because new polling shows that Americans are worried about Islamic terrorist attacks on US soil Secretary Pompeos response perfectly addressed the substance of the question posed in terms of the madness underlying the Biden administrations open borders program (at 4:05 of the video). However, I would like to revise and extend his answer (this is me tacking on a comment to Secretary Pompeos response): Shannon, its funny you should ask about whether it keeps me up at night. As a matter of fact, the Islamic Republic of Iran is trying to kill me personally. I try not to let it bother me, but you can be sure it bothers my wife and our son. You asked another question more or less raising the possibility that senior Biden administration officials have been compromised by the Islamic Republic of Iran and I am seriously concerned that at least one of them remains in office. So even though it doesnt necessarily keep me up at night, I do have a personal stake in the Biden administrations failure to do its job at the border. See the Axios story on the Iranian bounty on Pompeos head here and the Hill story on the Iranian efforts to murder Pompeo here. That is the question posed by Henry Kopel in this long essay. Israel will win the war with Gaza, but what comes next? The Biden administration is already demanding that Israel not occupy Gaza. What then? Kopel writes (links in original): [M]uch like what faced the victorious World War II allies upon Nazi Germanys surrender, there will remain the critically important job of expunging from Gazas institutions and society, Hamass deeply embedded genocidal ideology. As I have written elsewhere, in both Hamas-ruled Gaza and the Palestinian Authoritys West Bank, there exists the worlds most powerful ideological ecosystem for the mass production of terrorists. Though often underreported, the schools, mosques, and media across those territories indoctrinate their children and citizens 24/7 in hatred and demonization of Jews and Israel and glorify suicide bombers as noble martyrs. The United Nations plays a key role in this demonic ecosystem: Across Gaza, the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) runs 278 schools serving over 291,000 students. UNRWA schools have been shown time and again to be conduits of Nazi-like Jew hatred. A 2023 audit found that UNRWA schools in Gaza regularly call for the murder of Jews, and create teaching materials that glorify terrorism, encourage martyrdom, [and] demonize Israelis . . . . Their textbooks lionize terrorists like Dalal Mughrabi, murderer of 38 Israelis, for whom an entire chapter is dedicated to her role as a model of female empowerment. More than 100 UNRWA educators were found to be praising Hitler and inciting Jew-hatred on social media. The West Bank is little different: Schools across the West Bank similarly demonize Jews and glorify mass murders of Israelis. High school textbooks teach their children to hate Israel and vilify Israels existence while they glorify terror. And when the school year ends, Palestinian children attend summer camps named after suicide bombers, which indoctrinate their campers in hatred and terror-worship. And the propaganda doesnt stop when Gazans leave school, with the consequence that Hamas has a surplus of young Gazans begging to be sent on suicide missions: Accordingly, even if every Hamas terrorist is killed, Gazas educational and media environment, if left in place, will soon plentifully produce a new generation of terrorists hell-bent on massacring every Jew across Israel. This is why a secure peace with Gaza cannot be won by military means alone. That states the problem well. But what is the solution? Kopel advocates a temporary occupation by Israel, but will that be enough? Given the paramount need for a transformative occupation of Gaza, there remain three critical questions going forward. First, what are the goals of an interim occupation of Gaza, and by whom shall this be done? Second, at the end of the occupation, to whom should governance be turned over? And third, what are the chances of success, that is, how likely is this to achieve a sustainable long-term peace? Kopel argues that neither the Palestinian Authority, which as he points out is just as bad as Hamas, nor the United Nations should have any role. I wholeheartedly agree. But who else is there? Kopel assumes there are at least some Gazans who can be trusted not to relapse: Achieving a genuinely post-terrorist Gaza will also require the successful implementation of at least four further policy initiatives, both during and continuing after the interim occupation. These include: (1) thorough vetting of all leaders, administrators, educators, and police/justice/security personnel as discussed above; (2) top-to-bottom de-radicalization of all school curricula, teacher training, and teaching materials across Gaza; (3) removal of all terror-inciting propaganda from the mass media and government agencies; and (4) ongoing de-radicalization programs in order to detect and prevent any resurgence of Hamas-style entities. Do such potential leaders exist? And can such an ideological reconstruction of Gaza succeed? Kopel argues at some length against the assumption that nation building can never work. His points are well taken, but the soil of Gaza is, to say the least, unpromising. Kopels conclusion: The inconvenient truth of the matter is this: A governance structure in Gaza that prioritizes the well-being of the territorys civilians would bring dramatic improvements in the life prospects of long-suffering Gazans. Hence for those who claim to care about civilians in Gaza, there is no better place to start than supporting Israels elimination of Hamas followed by a transformative, multilateral interim occupation of the territory. Of course, this conclusion runs directly contrary to much of the propaganda purporting to explain the so-called context of the Hamas slaughters. But when examining the evidence rather than the propaganda, one conclusion becomes manifestly inescapable: It is not Israel from which Gaza must be freed. It is Hamas, the Palestinian Authority, and UNRWA. And for the sake of both Israelis and Palestinians, it is long past time to let that freedom ring. It is good, I think, to be optimistic. But I would add two points. First, Gazan noncombatants, to the extent there are some, must be made to feel the sting of defeat, as the Germans and Japanese did at the end of World War II. Given the lifelong propaganda and perverse socialization to which they have been subjected, Gazans arent going to be persuaded by argument. They must be made to see, as the Germans and Japanese did after Dresden, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, that starting the war against Israel was an awful decision that caused a horrible calamity, and must never be repeated. The ideology of Jew-hatred must be utterly discredited by defeat. Only this will open the minds of most Gazans to an alternative to the perverse society they have long known. Second, Gaza needs to go to work. There is no reason why Gaza should not have a decent and even thriving economy, but instead it has relied on foreign aid while its own meager resources have been commandeered by Hamas for terrorist purposes. The CIA Fact Book says that Gaza has a per capita GDP of only $5,600 dollars, with unemployment at 25% and youth unemployment at 40%. The AP itemizes some of the aid that enables Gazas idleness: From 2014-2020, U.N. agencies spent nearly $4.5 billion in Gaza, including $600 million in 2020 alone. More than 80% of that funding is channeled through the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, who make up three-fourths of Gazas population. Some 280,000 children in Gaza attend schools run by UNRWA, which also provides health services and food aid. Qatar has provided $1.3 billion in aid to Gaza since 2012 for construction, health services and agriculture. That includes $360 million pledged in January for 2021 and another $500 million pledged for reconstruction after the war in May. Qatars aid also goes to needy families and to help pay Hamas government salaries. The Palestinian Authority says it will spend $1.7 billion on Gaza this year, mainly on salaries for tens of thousands of civil servants who stopped working when Hamas took over in 2007. Tens of thousands of civil servants? Who havent worked since 2007? And now are being supported by the Palestinian Authority, which in turn gets most of its money from the U.N., the U.S. and the E.U. The most useful contribution to Gazas real economy has been Israels. That country has issued 10,000 permits to Gazans to work in Israel, having first vetted them for Hamas connections. Post-war, Israel should wean Gaza off international aid, as rapidly and to the greatest extent possible. There is no reason why Gazans should be helplessly dependent refugees forever. Can Gaza be salvaged? I dont know. The international community has collaborated in producing the sickest society on Earth. But one thing I think is clear: Gaza can only be saved in the aftermath of an absolutely crushing military defeat, comparable to that which awoke Germany from the same Nazi fever dream. Free Press founder/editor Bari Weiss has posted the text of her Federalist Society Barbara K. Olson lecture You are the last line of defense together with video at The Free Press. Weisss lecture runs to some 4,000 words, but nothing in it is superfluous. Nothing is expendable. Events have not superseded it. The message remains urgent. Here is an excerpt taken from the top of Weisss remarks: Some Israelis were literally disappeared on October 7burned at such high heat that volunteers are still sifting through the bones and the remnant teeth to identify them. But we know that more than 200 people are currently being held hostage by Hamas and that more than 1,400 were murdered in those terrible hours. Among the dead are some thirty American citizens. There are at least ten Americans among the hostages. All of which is why the immediate analogy the world reached for was to 9/11. As with 9/11, the terrorists caught their victims by surprise on a clear blue morning. As with 9/11, the spectacle and the savagery were the point. As with 9/11, the terrorists notched points on their sadistic scoreboard, taking from us not just precious lives, but our sense of our safety and security. They changed something within us. The difference between 9/11 and 10/7two massacres of innocent people, symbols to their killers of Western civilizationwas the reaction to the horror. The difference between 9/11 and 10/7 was that the catastrophe of 10/7 was followed, on October 8, by a different kind of catastrophe. A moral and spiritual catastrophe that was on full display throughout the West before the bodies of those men and women and children had even been identified. People poured into the streets of our capital cities to celebrate the slaughter. In Sydney, crowds gathered at the Sydney Opera House cheering gas the Jews. People rejoiced on the streets of Berlin and London and Toronto and New York. Then came BLM Chicago using the paraglidera symbol of mass deathas a symbol of freedom. Then came posters across our campuses calling for Israel to burn. Then came our own offices in New York City being vandalized with Fuck Jews and Fuck Israel. Then came Harvards task force to create safe spaces for pro-Hamas students. Then, as thunder follows lightning, more dead Jews. An anti-Israel protester in Los Angeles killed a 69-year-old Jewish man for the apparent sin of waving an Israeli flag, though NBCs initial headline made it hard to know: Man dies after hitting head during Israel and Palestinian rallies in California, officials say. In lockstep, the social justice crowdthe crowd who has tried to convince us that words are violenceinsisted that actual violence was actually a necessity. That the rape was resistance. That it was liberation. University presidentswho leapt to issue morally lucid condemnations of George Floyds killing or Putins war on Ukraineoffered silence or mealy-mouthed pablum about how the situation is tragic and complex and how we need to think of both sides as if there is some kind of equivalence between innocent civilians and jihadists. PR-Inside.com: 2023-11-19 19:05:43 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 430 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / November 19, 2023 / Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC a nationally recognized law firm, notifies investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against FMC Corp. ("FMC" or "the Company") (NYSE:FMC) and certain of its officers.Class Definition:This lawsuit seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired FMC securities between November 2, 2022 and October 20, 2023, inclusive (the "Class Period"). Such investors are encouraged to join this case by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/fmc Case Details:The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, it is alleged that Defendants failed to disclose to investors that: (1) the diminishment of patent protection for FMC's flagship products following legal defeats in key markets including India, China, and Brazil had opened the door to increased competition from generics; (2) the Company repeatedly mislead investors about the status of such proceedings and falsely claimed that it did not and would not face generic competition in key markets until 2026 at the earliest; and (3) because of these issues Defendant's positive statements about the Company's business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.What's Next?A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to review a copy of the Complaint, you can visit the firm's site: bgandg.com/fmc or you may contact Peretz Bronstein, Esq. or his Law Clerk and Client Relations Manager, Yael Nathanson of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC at 332-239-2660. If you suffered a loss in FMC you have until January 8, 2024, to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as a lead plaintiff.There is No Cost to YouWe represent investors in class actions on a contingency fee basis. That means we will ask the court to reimburse us for out-of-pocket expenses and attorneys' fees, usually a percentage of the total recovery, only if we are successful.Why Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman:Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a nationally recognized firm that represents investors in securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative suits. Our firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors nationwide.Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.CONTACT:Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLCPeretz Bronstein or Yael Nathanson332-239-2660 | info@ bgandg.com SOURCE: Bronstein, Gewirtz and Grossman, LLC PR-Inside.com: 2023-11-19 16:32:12 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 602 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / November 19, 2023 / Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC a nationally recognized law firm, notifies investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against SC Health Corporation ("SC Health" or "the Company") (NYSE:SCPE; NYSE: SCPE.WS; NYSE: SCPE.U) and Rockley Photonics Holdings Limited ("Rockley" or "the company") (NYSE: RKLY; NYSE: RKLY.WS) and certain of its officers.Class Definition:This lawsuit seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired SC Health and Rockley securities: (1) directly in the March 2021 private investment in public equity of Rockley shares (the "PIPE Offering") conducted in connection with the merger of SC Health and Rockley (the "Merger"); or (ii) between March 19, 2021 and January 23, 2023, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"). Such investors are encouraged to join this case by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/scpe Case Details:The complaint alleges that defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Rockley's joint venture agreement ("JV Agreement") with Hengtong Rockley Technology Co., Ltd. was in jeopardy because Jiangsu Hengtong Optic-Electric Co., Ltd. ("Hengtong"), Rockley's joint venture partner, had acquired a majority interest in a company, Huawei Marine Networks Co., Ltd. ("Huawei Marine") (later renamed HMN Tech), on the banned entities list maintained by the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security of the U.S. Department of Commerce since 2019; (ii) the JV Agreement was in further jeopardy because in February 2021 the World Bank had invalidated a bid by Huawei Marine to build an undersea optical cable based on security concerns raised by the United States and other countries that China could use the infrastructure to spy on communications; (iii) the materially undisclosed risk that the JV Agreement could fail as a result of Hengtong's acquisition of a majority interest in HMN Tech jeopardized Rockley's joint venture revenues, launch schedule, business prospects, and ultimately Rockley's solvency; (iv) Rockley did not have the customer base or customer commitments that defendants had represented to investors; and (v) Rockley did not have sufficient customer orders to allow it to develop and commercialize products, maintain and expand client relationships, reach cash flow break-even, or stave off bankruptcy following the Merger.What's Next?A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to review a copy of the Complaint, you can visit the firm's site: bgandg.com/scpe or you may contact Peretz Bronstein, Esq. or his Law Clerk and Client Relations Manager, Yael Nathanson of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC at 332-239-2660. If you suffered a loss in SC Health you have until January 8, 2024, to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as a lead plaintiff.There is No Cost to YouWe represent investors in class actions on a contingency fee basis. That means we will ask the court to reimburse us for out-of-pocket expenses and attorneys' fees, usually a percentage of the total recovery, only if we are successful.Why Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman:Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a nationally recognized firm that represents investors in securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative suits. Our firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors nationwide.Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.CONTACT:Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLCPeretz Bronstein or Yael Nathanson332-239-2660 | info@ bgandg.com SOURCE: Bronstein, Gewirtz and Grossman, LLC The Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON) said it had resumed full distribution of royalties to its members, with N208.5 million earmarked for members and affiliates. Tony Okoroji, the national chairman of COSON, disclosed this during the societys 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM), held in Lagos. Mr Okoroji said this followed a resolution adopted by the members during the AGM. Of the amount, N62,664,000.00 is set aside as palliative royalty distribution. The money is being split equally among all members of the society whose names appear on the societys register as of 19th May 2022 as palliatives to alleviate the pressing economic situation in the country. The remaining sum of N145,836,000 will be distributed to all qualified members as specifics distribution.I want to assure members of COSON and our international partners that the period of the locust is almost at an end and that with the members approval, COSON will, today, fully resume the distribution of royalties and benefits to our members and affiliates everywhere. God willing, before you leave here today, your phones will begin to receive the alerts, he said. READ ALSO: Mr Okoroji noted that the motion to ratify the decision of the COSON board, made at its meeting on 12 September, to approve the distribution, was created by Tony Ukate, a COSON member from Edo State and supported by Edwin Akwaeze from Imo State. I wish to assure you that despite the continuous harassment and torture that I have been subjected to, I am happy and proud to have been given the excellent opportunity to build and lead the COSON family. I verily believe in the words of Martin Luther King Jr that The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice. I promise that I will keep the boundless fire of COSON burning and promise that our famous mantra, Let the Music Pay! will continue to be heard everywhere, he said. Battle won Mr Okoroji recounted the battles COSON had engaged in to continue to assist musicians in Nigeria. He appreciated the members, board, management and staff of COSON for their unflinching support for the body. Members of COSON have proved to Nigerians that the rampaging economic and political issues, marauders, and scammers operating in our country can be fought to a standstill and won without fear. I remember being warned to get out of the way, or the states power will crush me. I have made it clear that I am prepared to lay down my life in the defence of the rights of the creative people of Nigeria. I firmly believe that cowards have built no great nation on earth, he said. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that during the meeting, four members of the COSON board, whose tenure expired at the AGM, were re-elected. They are Sir Shina Peters, Ms Kenny Saint-Brown, Sharon Esco Wilson and Uche Paul. There was an approval of the audited financial statement of the society for the year ended 31 December 2022. Musicians and music industry stakeholders from across Nigeria attended the AGM. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print An investigative panel set up by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare on Sunday revealed why some health workers at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital (OAUTH), Ile-Ife, Osun State, have been unpaid for months. The investigative panel led by Aderemi Azeez found that the former Acting Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Afolabi Owojuyigbe, carried out over-employment in the hospital, without provision in the personnel budget. Mr Owojuyigbe and his accomplices are also culpable of job racketeering, according to the panel. The ministry confirmed the development in a statement signed by its Director of Press, Patricia Deworitshe, noting that the government waded into the matter to set the record straight. According to the statement, the panel disclosed that Mr Owojuyigbe, a Consultant Anaesthetist, employed over 1,973 staff as against the waiver for 450 vacancies granted to the hospital in the 2022 employment process by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation. Protests There were reports that some health workers accused the management of OAUTH of subjecting them to penury over unpaid salaries for 10 months. The accusers lamented that they resorted to begging to feed their families due to the hardship the non-payment of their salaries subjected them to. Many had also accused the hospital management of commercialising the job opportunities by allegedly selling the slots for as high as N500,000. In response to the allegations, the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, on his verified X handle @muhammadpate on 13 October, confirmed that an investigation had been completed on the matter. We are addressing the OAUTH situation. The investigation has just been completed on this unfortunate situation. We understand the difficulties being faced by numerous innocent health workers and will do our best to resolve it equitably, the minister posted at the time. Findings In a statement on Sunday by the ministry, which is titled, OAUTH Ife and the Unrest, it noted that the unrest was attributed to the alleged job racketeering, and over-employment saga under Mr Owojuyigbe. The statement termed the conduct of Mr Owojuyigbe and his accomplices as flagrant abuse of extant rules and regulations. The statement reads in part, The hospital conducted the exercise in two phases (230 and 220) after securing approval of the Federal Character Commission not to advertise the posts. During the first phase, the hospital recruited 600 instead of 230, and a total of 1,823 staff members were recruited in the second phase instead of 220. At the end of the two phases, the hospital recruited 2,423 staff instead of 450. As such, 1,973 staff members were recruited in excess of the approved waiver. READ ALSO: The report by the investigative panel further showed that the 450 workers waiver granted to OAUTH was for the recruitment of clinical staff, but only 55 clinical staff were employed, while others were non-clinical staff. The outcome of the recruitment exercise also revealed that OAUTH has a staff strength of 7,279 (out of which 3,034 were clinical staff and 4,245 were non-clinical staff, this translates to a non-clinical staff ratio of approximately 1:1 instead of the recommended 3:1, that is, three clinical to one non-clinical). It further stated that many recruited staff were without requisite academic and professional certificates as well as evidence of National Youth Service Corps certificates. Currently, Mr Owojuyigbe, who was appointed in acting capacity in March 2022, has absconded from his duty post since July 2023, while his co-culprit, Mr Balogun Tajudeen, who was the Acting Director, Administration, has been suspended for their involvement in the job racketeering saga, it added. PREMIUM TIMES learnt that Mr Owojuyigbe was appointed the Acting CMD of the hospital in March 2022 when the then substantive CMD, Victor Adetiloye, a professor, left the office. This newspaper also confirmed that apart from Messrs Owojuyigbe and Tajudeen who were suspended in July, the hospitals Director of Establishment, Lekan Ganiyu, was also suspended. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print A United Nations (UN) humanitarian assessment team led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has described the largest hospital in Gaza as a death zone due to persistent Israeli attacks on it. The team, comprising public health experts, logistics officers and security staff from the UN agencies, visited Al-Shifa Hospital on Saturday to assess the situation on the ground, conduct a rapid situational analysis, assess medical priorities and establish logistics options for further missions. The team said it found that the hospital has essentially stopped functioning as a medical facility over the last few weeks as a result of the lack of clean water, fuel, medicines, food and other essential aid. Al-Shifa Hospital is the largest, most advanced and best-equipped referral hospital in Gaza, it noted. The team observed that due to the security situation, it has been impossible for the staff to carry out effective waste management in the hospital, the WHO said in a statement. Corridors and the hospital grounds were filled with medical and solid waste, increasing the risk of infection. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health and pleaded for evacuation. Al-Shifa Hospital can no longer admit patients, with the injured and sick now being directed to the seriously overwhelmed and barely functioning Indonesian Hospital. The WHO said the hospital currently has only 25 health workers and 291 patients remaining, with several patient deaths having occurred over the previous 2 to 3 days due to the shutting down of medical services. It said the patients include 32 babies in extremely critical condition, 2 people in intensive care without ventilation, and 22 dialysis patients whose access to life-saving treatment has been severely compromised. The vast majority of patients are victims of war trauma, including many with complex fractures and amputations, head injuries, burns, chest and abdominal trauma, and 29 patients with serious spinal injuries who are unable to move without medical assistance. Many trauma patients have severely infected wounds due to lack of infection control measures in the hospital and unavailability of antibiotics, it added. READ ALSO: Although the teams mission was deconflicted with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to ensure safe passage along the agreed route, WHO said it was a high-risk operation in an active conflict zone, with heavy fighting ongoing near the hospital. The IDF had on Saturday, issued evacuation orders to the remaining 2500 internally displaced people who had been seeking refuge on the hospital grounds. But the displaced persons, along with many mobile patients and hospital staff, had already vacated the facility by the time of the teams arrival, the UN team said. It added that it was only able to spend an hour inside the hospital because of the time limits associated with the security situation. It described the scene as a death zone, and the situation as desperate. Signs of shelling and gunfire were evident. The team saw a mass grave at the entrance of the hospital and was told more than 80 people were buried there, it said. WHO, partners plan evacuation The World Health Organisation said its partners are urgently developing plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families. Over the next 2472 hours, pending guarantees of safe passage by parties to the conflict, additional missions are being arranged to urgently transport patients from Al-Shifa to Nasser Medical Complex and European Gaza Hospital in the south of Gaza, it said. The WHO added, however, that the referred hospitals are already working beyond capacity, and the new referrals from Al-Shifa Hospital will further strain overburdened health staff and resources. It noted that the global health body is deeply concerned about the safety and health needs of patients, health workers and internally displaced people sheltering at the few remaining partially functional hospitals in the region currently facing the risk of closure owing to a lack of fuel, water, medical supplies and food, and the intense hostilities. WHO said immediate efforts must be made to restore the functionality of Al-Shifa and all other hospitals to provide urgently needed health services in Gaza. WHO reiterates its plea for collective efforts to bring an end to the hostilities and humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. We call for an immediate ceasefire, the sustained flow of humanitarian assistance at scale, unhindered humanitarian access to all of those in need, the unconditional release of all hostages, and the cessation of attacks on health care and other vital infrastructure. The extreme suffering of the people of Gaza demands that we respond immediately and concretely with humanity and compassion, it said. Since the war in Gaza broke out with Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October and the latters indiscriminate shelling of northern Gaza, more than 11,000 Palestinians have died, thousands missing and hundreds of thousands displaced. 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 Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print A mobile policeman attached to the Maru police division was killed by terrorists who attacked Ruwan Doruwa, a community in Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State on Sunday. Residents said 13 people consisting of six women, five men and two children were abducted by the terrorists during the attack that lasted more than two hours. The terrorists surrounded the town around 1:00 a.m and started shooting. Some of the terrorists entered the town and started shooting. That was when the policeman was shot. Other people were also shot but he was the only one who died, a community leader who asked not to be named for security reasons said. He said most of the women taken were married. The community leader said the terrorists came to abduct residents of the community so they could collect ransom before releasing them. They know our people are bringing their farm produce home that is why they decided to strike. We didnt even have much freedom to farm due to the terrorists and now they want to take away the little we produced, he said in Hausa Language. Another resident, Faisal Ibrahim, said his sister, Zainab, who is married to the district head of the area, was one of those abducted. The Zamfara police spokesperson, Yazid Abubakar, did not respond to an SMS sent to him on the attack. His phone number was also unreachable as of the time of this story. Maru is one of the most insecure communities in Zamfara. Attacks by terrorists are common in the town and surrounding neighbourhood. The North-west subregion has been battling terrorists, also called bandits, for over a decade. The terrorists have killed or abducted thousands of people and tens of thousands of others have been displaced in the region. The terrorists primarily target schools, religious houses, travellers and rural communities. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Tatiana Bell is a local artist who lives in Westminster and grew up in Mount Airy. Bell always showed an interest in art. Her parents started supporting her when she was 4 years old. I started making things and drawing on the wall, Bell said. I got my first sewing machine when I was 5 years old, Bell said. I used to make Barbie clothes out of mismatched socks. Tatiana Bell is pictured with her watercolor painting titled Expecting Nothing in Return. Lyndi McNulty photo Her father took her to Young Peoples Studio at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, which she attended from elementary school through high school. A lot of the skills she uses today were learned there. When Bell was 11 years old, she took a class at the Young Peoples School that changed her life. The instructor had us find a piece of furniture on the side of the road. He taught us to sand it and repair it. Then he taught us to plan a design and paint furniture, Bell said. I was hooked. l was finding and painting furniture all the time. Bell attended the Carroll County Career and Technology Center and studied fashion design. After graduation, she attended Syracuse University where she continued to study fashion design. I learned so much at Syracuse. I studied book making, printing, jewelry making, illustration and figure drawing. All those skills I acquired made me learn that there was more to art than I thought, Bell said. Her favorite class was Weaving and Surface Pattern Design. The students learned how to design motifs for fabric and rugs. They also learned to draw patterns that would work on fabrics. One technique they practiced was drawing feathers so that they have textures and look realistic or like cartoons. Tatiana Bell is pictured with her hand-painted hats. Lyndi McNulty photo Bell had a large fashion show at Syracuse during her senior year. She was also the vice president of a club called Fashion Conscience. We put on a lot of fashion shows for minority designers, Bell said. She graduated in 2009. In 2013, Bell received a masters degree in education. I realized I was not cutthroat enough to be a fashion designer, she said. She started teaching art in Florida and started the art program at a magnet school Q.I. Roberts Junior/Senior High School in Florahome, Florida. While there, Bell taught Cambridge Art and Design, a course that was funded by Cambridge University in England and trains teachers in the universitys teaching methods. She taught at Q.I. Roberts for five years. Bells husband, her high school sweetheart, convinced her to come home. She took a job at Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West in Baltimore. The all-boys school focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Bell started the schools art program and worked there for four years. The pandemic hit and it opened my eyes to a lot of things, Bell said. Encouraged by her husband, she decided to focus on her own artwork. She started her business, AWL Art and Design, in October 2022. She sells prints of her work and does custom art. Tatiana Bell is pictured wearing a jean jacket she painted. Lyndi McNulty photo Bell focused on selling her watercolor and acrylic paintings and painted furniture. Shes been a vendor at the Reisterstown Blooming Art Festival, the Oquan Art Festival in Virginia and the Evergreen Festival at Offtrack Art. She has sold her artwork at festivals every weekend for the past year. Bell is currently teaching Art Appreciation at Cecil College. She also runs both galleries for the college. Bell won third place in watercolor at the Bel Air Festival for the Arts 2022-2023 and second place at the Havre de Grace Art Show 2022. She also painted five murals in Florida, three murals in Baltimore and one in Sykesville at White Rock Independent Methodist Episcopal Church. Bell sells her art at Offtrack Art and Cooperative, 11 Liberty St., in Westminster. The gallery is part of the Carroll County Artists Studio Tour, to be held Dec. 2 and 3, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Her hand-painted clothing is being featured at the new store Strong & Courageous at 6 E. Green St., in Westminster. I feel compelled to create. I was created to create. It is a need, Bell said. It is calming and relaxing. Her website is awlart.com. She can be reached at awlartforever@gmail.com. Lyndi McNulty is the owner of Gizmos Art in Westminster. Her column, An Eye for Art, appears regularly in Life & Times. BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's central bank on Sunday announced that it and the National Financial Regulatory Administration have approved an application by Mastercard's Chinese joint venture to conduct bank card clearing operations in the country. Mastercard NUCC Information Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd, a joint venture of Mastercard and NetsUnion Clearing Corporation (NUCC), could authorize its member institutions to issue "MasterCard" branded Yuan bank cards in China, said the People's Bank of China (PBOC). Mastercard is the second overseas bank card clearing institution to enter the Chinese market. In 2020, China's central bank approved an application by American Express' Chinese joint venture to conduct such business in the country. The decision demonstrates China's determination to open wider to the outside world, insiders said. The PBOC said it would promote work on the bank card clearing market access in an orderly manner, while improving the regulatory system to balance development and security. Experts noted that the move is conducive to building a stable bank card clearing market structure with effective competition and deepening the supply-side structural reform of the payment industry. Nigerias Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, says Emirates Airline will resume its flights to Nigeria soon. This was made known in a statement issued Sunday by the ministrys Head, Press and Public Affairs, Odutayo Oluseyi, in Abuja. The statement said Mr Keyamo made the declaration after meeting with the airline officials at the just-concluded Dubai Airshow in the United Arab Emirates. According to the statement, the minister visited the pavilions of leading aviation and aerospace industries in the world to inspect modern technologies that could be of use in driving his five-point agenda for the aviation industry in Nigeria. Using the opportunity of the Airshow, the Honourable Minister on the sidelines met with officials of Emirates Airline to further discuss the resumption of flights by the Airline to Nigeria which has yielded positive results as the management has given assurance that the resumption of the flight would commence very soon, the statement said. It said the airline also affirmed that the United Arab Emirates government has granted approval to Nigerian carrier, Air Peace Airline, to fly directly into and out of the prime airport in Dubai. The Dubai Airshow commenced on 13 November and concluded on 17 November. The event attracted a considerable number of participants from around the world, including leading aviation and aerospace industry specialists. Background In November last year, Emirates suspended flights to Nigeria. It said the measure started on 29 October 2022 and blamed it on its inability to repatriate its revenue from the country. At the time, the airline said it had communicated its position to the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Under these extraordinary circumstances, Emirates had no option but to suspend flights to/from Nigeria from 29 October 2022 to mitigate against further losses moving forward, the airline management said. Emirates lamented that it has not repatriated its blocked funds from the country amidst lingering scarcity of forex in the country. Without the timely repatriation of the funds and a mechanism in place to ensure that future repatriation of Emirates funds do not accumulate in any way, the backlog will continue to grow, and we simply cannot meet our operational costs nor maintain the commercial viability of our operations in Nigeria, the airline said. Infrastructure development On Sunday, the ministry said Mr Keyamo also discussed the improvement of infrastructure and promotion of innovation and creativity in cutting-edge technologies relating to civil aviation. The statement noted that the minister had useful discussions with the representatives of the companies who shared their insights and expertise, and showcased the latest technologies that their companies could offer. Similarly, it said Mr Keyamo met with the management of Airline Executive, led by its CEO, Dana Hatcic, a company that indicated interest in establishing an MRO facility in Nigeria. The management had fruitful discussions with the Honourable Minister and they have been invited to Nigeria for further follow-up of their business plans. The minister expressed the possibility of a maiden edition of the Nigeria Air Show sometime in November 2024, thereby becoming the first African country to organise such an event. According to the statement, some of the exhibitors at the Dubai Airshow have made commitments to be at the maiden edition of Nigerias Airshow. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Whenever the Clerk of the National Assembly sends a legislative bill to the Nigerian President, it is expected that the bill has passed through the process of lawmaking and requires only presidential assent to become a law. But, in June, the Clerk of Nigerias parliament, Magaji Tambuwal, sent a false Real Estate Regulatory Council of Nigeria Act 2023 to President Bola Tinubu to sign into law. The clerk said what he sent to the president was a true copy of the bill passed by both Houses of the National Assembly in compliance with Section 2(1) of the Acts Authentication Act, Cap A2, Laws of The Federation of Nigeria. I, CERTIFY, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 2(1) OF THE ACTS AUTHENTICATION ACT, CAP, A2, LAWS OF THE FEDERATION OF NIGERIA, 2004, THAT THIS IS A TRUE COPY OF THE BILL PASSED BY BOTH HOUSES OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY, Mr Tambuwal wrote to President Tinubu. An investigation by PREMIUM TIMES, however, revealed that the Clerks claim is false as the bill was not passed by both chambers of the National Assembly. How A bill is passed The process of lawmaking generally requires a long period of deliberation and consideration of many interests and implications of a bill. A bill passes through four stages in the parliament, which include three readings before it is passed into law. The first stage is the Presentation and first reading: At this stage, the bill is introduced and the Clerk of the House or Senate reads the short title and gives a brief statement and background on the bill. The Rules and Business Committee then sets a date for its Second Reading. The second reading is the stage where the bills general merits and principles are debated. If the bill is read the second time, the House/Senate is deemed to have approved the bill in principle. If, on the other hand, the bill is defeated on the floor of the chambers at the second reading, that will be the end of the bill. Following the second reading, the bill is submitted to the relevant committees for further consideration and public hearings where necessary. The committee may approve the bill unaltered, amend it, rewrite it, or even block it. However, the practice in Nigeria is that the committee should not kill a bill, but rather, report its findings and recommendations to the House for further action. When the committee is done with the bill, it presents its report to the House/Senate. If it is adopted, the bill progresses to the third reading. At the third reading, the lawmaker in charge of the bill reports to the House that the Committee of the Whole has considered the bill and passed it with or without amendment and moves a motion that the bill be now read the third time. When a bill originating in either the Senate or House of Representatives has been read the third time, a Clean Copy of the bill signed by the clerk of that chamber, and endorsed by the presiding officer of the originating chamber, shall be forwarded by its clerk to the clerk of the other chamber, with a message that it desires its concurrence. Where amendments proposed by the originating chamber are accepted by the other chamber, then the Clerk of the other chamber retains the bill and sends a message to the originating chamber that the Senate or House of Representatives, as the case may be, has agreed to the bill without amendments, the law states. However, where the other chamber does not agree with the originating chamber on the bill; or it agrees to the bill, but with its amendments; a conference or harmonisation committee will be constituted comprising members of both chambers with the duty of reconciling differences on the bill and proposing a single position that would be adopted by the plenary of each chamber. After the recommendations of the conference committee are adopted, the bill then moves onto the assent stage. Here, the Clerk of the National Assembly sends a copy of the clean bill to the president for assent. In order words, the Clerk of the National Assembly only sends the clean bill to the President for assent when the two chambers of the National Assembly have fully through their stages- agreed on the content. The law provides that if the President is satisfied with the bill, he gives his assent, but where he rejects or vetoes it, or does not communicate his assent to the bill within 30 days from the date the bill was sent to him, the National Assembly by a two-thirds majority vote can override the veto. PREMIUM TIMES can now report that the Real Estate Regulation bill sent to Mr Tinubu did not scale through these lawmaking stages. Instead, the Clerk of the National Assembly misinformed the president that the bill had gone through all the stages and requested President Tinubu to sign the Real Estate Regulatory Council of Nigeria Act 2023 into law. Background and facts about the bill In November 2021, the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria passed the Real Estate (Regulation and Development Bill 2021; SB. 540) after its third reading. The bill was sent to the House of Representatives for concurrence according to legislative practice and according to Section 58(i) (5) of the Nigerian Constitution. The bill passed by the Senate would, among others, empower an association of real estate companies REDAN to control a proposed regulatory agency. The bill generated a lot of controversy with a lawmaker describing it as the most selfish bill at the time. The House of Representatives received the bill from the Senate and registered it as HB. 1753. The House had three options: concur with the Senate and pass the bill as received; propose amendments to the bill passed by the Senate or reject the Senate version of the bill. In addition to the bill received from the Senate, the House of Representatives also received two similar bills from its members: A Bill for an Act to establish the Real Estate Regulatory Agency of the Federal Capital Territory, and A Bill for an Act to establish the Real Estate Regulatory Authority in Nigeria. There were, however, significant differences between the bill received from the Senate and the other two bills. One significant difference was that the latter two bills did not give any powers to REDAN. On 31 May, the House of Representatives jointly considered the clauses of the three bills at the Committee of Whole. At that 31 May sitting, the House of Representatives jettisoned the clauses contained in the Real Estate Regulation and Development Bill HB. 1753 received from the Senate. The House also rejected the Bill for an Act to establish the Real Estate Regulatory Authority in Nigeria. According to official records, the House of Representatives only agreed to the clauses contained in the Bill for an Act to establish the Real Estate Regulatory Agency of the Federal Capital Territory. In other words, the House rejected the bill it received from the Senate and passed a different one which only sought to establish a real estate regulatory agency for Abuja and gave no power to REDAN. Legal Implication Lawyers said the legislative implication of the refusal of the House of Representatives to pass the HB. 1753 (SB. 540) is that there were separate versions of similar bills passed by each chamber of the parliament, but none of them was passed by both Houses as no agreement was reached to that effect. The customary legislative practice is for the House of Representatives to either agree to the clauses of HB. 1753 (SB. 540) as passed by the Senate without amendment or cause amendments to be made to it and return same to the Senate in order for the Senate to concur to the proposed amendments or amend same, West Idahosa, a senior lawyer said in reacting to the issue. If the Senates further amendments are not acceptable to the House of Representatives, then a conference Committee of the House and Senate shall be constituted to deliberate only on areas of disagreement, the lawyer said. However, in clear breach of the Nigerian constitution and the rules of the two Houses, the Clerk of the National Assembly transmitted the version passed by the Senate to the president for assent on 9th June and falsely claimed that it had been passed by both chambers of the National Assembly. Mr Idahosa, in a letter to the Attorney General of the Federation, said the Clerk, Mr Tambuwal, wilfully misrepresented the facts of the matter to the president. He called for an official investigation of the matter and a possible prosecution of Mr Tambuwal. This investigation will be in the interest of entrenching the rule of law and legislative sanctity of Bills duly passed by the two houses of the National Assembly, Mr Idahosa noted. He urged the AGF to strongly advise the President not to sign the unlawful Bill under any disguise whatsoever (including the plot to back-date the signing as widely rumoured by members of (REDAN who are the proponents of the Bill). PREMIUM TIMES reached out to Mr Tambuwal, who also faces allegations of illegally running a private company while holding public office, to ask why he misinformed the president on such a matter. For several days, he initially did not respond to calls and messages sent to his phone. He, however, later reached out through one of his aides and called for a meeting at his office. A workers strike prevented the meeting from being held last Wednesday as scheduled. His media handlers then promised to send an official response to our questions. They have yet to do so as of the time of this report. PREMIUM TIMES reviewed the Votes and Proceedings of the House of Representatives on 1 June 2023. Item No. 8 shows that what was passed on 1 June 2023 by the House of Representatives was the Bill for an Act to establish the Real Estate Regulatory Agency of the Federal Capital Territory, which is completely different from the contents of HB. 1753 (SB. 540) passed by the Senate on 17th November 2021 and sent to the House. Rather than work towards the constitution of a conference committee to harmonise the several bills on Real Estate Regulation, Mr Idahosa said, the Clerk of the National Assembly fell into error when he transmitted a version of the Bill passed by only the Senate to Mr Tinubu for assent in breach of the applicable constitutional provisions, the Acts Authentication Act, standing orders of the two Houses and extant Legislative practice by Bicameral Legislatures for less than patriotic and egalitarian reasons. Presidential spokesperson Ajuri Ngelale did not respond to requests seeking comment on the matter. But a source at the presidency told this medium that the president could not have signed the Real Estate Regulation Bill because his legal advisers and chief of staff are expected to have done thorough work on any Bill. The Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, was the Speaker of the House of Representatives when the House rejected HB. 1753. Possible reason why Clerk misinformed Tinubu The bill passed by the Senate HB. 1753 had the full support of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), whose members lobbied strongly to get the bill to become law. Even when very few members of the public knew that Mr Tambuwal had sent the bill to President Tinubu for assent, REDAN was aware and publicly asked the president to sign the bill into law. In a statement in June, the President of REDAN, Aliyu Wamakko, said the bill, when signed into law, would further enhance professionalism in real estate, and reduce building collapses as well as the housing deficit in the country. Multiple sources in the real estate sector told this newspaper that REDAN lobbied Mr Tambuwal to send the false bill to the president for assent. But PREMIUM TIMES could not confirm this information. However, what is incontestable is that the selfish bill sent to the president for assent considerably favoured REDAN. Controversial points in the Bill The bill seeks to establish the Real Estate Regulatory Council of Nigeria. ** The bill states that the Council shall regulate the business of real estate development in Nigeria in consultation with REDAN. ** Similarly, the Council is empowered to register and licence all real estate developers in Nigeria through the institutional guidelines of REDAN. ** The council shall renew the licence of real estate developers annually, upon payment of the prescribed fees and fulfilment of all requirements as recommended by REDAN. ** The Council shall register, maintain, and update the register of all real estate development projects ratified by REDAN to have met set standards of Industry practices. ** The Council shall work through REDAN to monitor, investigate, and sanction registered and licensed real estate _ developers that violate the provisions of the bill. It shall also work through REDAN to investigate and penalise unlicensed real estate developers who violate the laws. ** The prescribed fees and fulfilment of all requirements prescribed under this Act will be through recommendation by REDAN; ** The Council shall have a Governing Council chairman, appointed by the Minister on the recommendation of REDAN. And a Secretary of the Council; who shall be appointed by the Council on the recommendation REDAN. ** The Minister may remove the chairman of the council from office on the recommendation of the Council and or REDAN if the Minister is of the opinion that it is not in the interest of the Council for the chairman to continue in office. ** The Council will also prescribe fees, fines, and charges to be paid as recommended by REDAN. ** A total of 10 per cent of the annual revenue of REDAN is to be paid to the Councils fund. Essentially, the bill seeks to create a Regulatory Council that will be controlled by REDAN, one of the players in the sector. Its like a group of old generation banks forming an association and then asking the government to empower the association to regulate all other Nigerian banks, a real estate developer told PREMIUM TIMES when the bill was first brought to the House. What we want is an independent regulator, a government regulator, not a REDAN regulator. New Bills introduced It is well over 30 days since the bill was transmitted to President Tinubu by the clerk of the National Assembly for assent and the Bill was not signed within the period prescribed by Section 58 of the 1999 constitution (as altered). In other words, the president has refused to sign the bill into law. Its proponents have now represented the bill in both the Senate and House of Representatives. Known as No. HB 613, the new bill was read on the floor of the House of Representatives for the first time on 11 October. It was listed as item 32 on the order paper of the same date. Similarly, on 2 November, the Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, introduced the bill titled the Nigerian Real Estate Industry (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2023 (SB. 238). The bill has passed its first reading with Mr Jibrin calling it a significant step forward towards bringing about positive change and development in the Nigerian real estate industry. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Governors of states in Nigerias North-west region are seeking the support of the African Development Bank to tackle some development challenges in the region. The Zamfara State governor, Dauda Lawal, made the appeal while making a presentation on Saturday during a meeting between governors of the states in the North-west region and the President of the AfDB, Akinwunmi Adesina, in Abidjan, Cote dIvoire. The governors want the AfDB to help in tackling insecurity, improve human capital development and agriculture. Mr Lawal specifically asked the bank to incorporate his state into the Phase 2 of the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone (SAPZ) program, his spokesperson, Sulaiman Idris said in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES. According to Mr Bala, Zamfara missed out on Phase 1 of the SAPZ programme2 in 2021, but will benefit from Phase 2 after the intervention of the governor. The SAPZ programme aims to end the export of raw agricultural commodities, providing an opportunity for processing locally, he said. North-west to experience development The governors spokesperson said the North-west states would experience unprecedented growth and development in agriculture, and therefore will contribute significantly to Nigerias economic transformation. He said the meeting has opened doors of opportunity for the sub region as the AfDB has expressed interest in supporting the states. The meeting between the North-west governors and Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank, has opened doors of opportunity for the seven states in the region. The governors of Zamfara, Kebbi, Katsina, Sokoto, Jigawa, Kano, and Kaduna informed the president of the AfDB about the significant areas in the region that require attention. The governors approached the African Development Bank for assistance in tackling crucial challenges in their respective states, such as security, human capital development, and agriculture. These crucial aspects are interconnected and significantly impact the overall well-being and prosperity of the people, the governors spokesperson said. READ ALSO: Shettima arrives in US ahead of AfDB World Food prize Mr Idris added that the support will go beyond attracting investments, but will also create a conducive environment for businesses to thrive. Through collaboration and with the guidance and support of the African Development Bank, North-west governors will be empowered to create a safer and more conducive environment for their citizens. This will not only attract investments but also foster sustainable economic growth, the statement noted. North-west, insecurity and poverty The region has been battling terrorists activities for over a decade. The terrorists, referred to as bandits, have made life difficult for the people of the region. The activities of the terrorists have led to the death of hundreds of thousands of people while millions have been displaced. Schools, religious places, highways have all been attacked in several instances by the terrorists who sometimes abduct people and demand huge ransom before they are released. Aside from the raging insecurity, the sub-region was ranked the poorest in the recent multidimensional poverty index released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) with 45.5 million poor residents. Cotton industries, textile factories and other manufacturing firms in Kaduna, Zamfara and Katsina states have since become moribund while industries in Kano State are gasping for life. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Commandant of the Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA), John Ochai, a major general, said on Saturday that Nigeria must lead other African countries to resist neocolonialism from developed countries. Mr Ochai said Nigeria, as the undisputed Big Brother in Africa, must lead other African countries against the new scramble for Africa by Saudi Arabia and other countries, some of whom colonised African countries in the past. He listed some of the countries including the US, China, Russia and France. The commandant stated this while delivering a lecture on Nigerias leadership role in the global competition for Africa, at the 11th leadership lecture series organised by the Centre For The Study of Leadership And Complex Military Operations (CSLCMO) of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA). Mr Ochais paper was presented by Ojong Tangban, a professor, at the event held at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Mambilla Barracks, Abuja. He said the new scramble, which amounts to neocolonialism, is not only being carried out unilaterally by the countries but through multinational companies, big tech companies, grants and aid to African countries. He noted that the $46 billion Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) from the USA to Africa also counts as a form of neocolonialism as American businesses benefit from it. He added that China-funded infrastructure, aid and loans that have flooded the continent are also an attempt to have African countries to Chinas side in the face of competition with other developed countries scrambling for Africa. After the Second World War, the USA devoted vast amounts of money, attention and military might towards the rebuilding or being the midwife of economies and democracies in Europe and AsiaOf the countrys 15 largest trading partners today, 11 are former recipients of American aid, he said. Putting the country in order The commandant, however, stated that Nigeria must first address its internal challenges before it can take up the task of leading the region. He listed the challenges to include corruption, infrastructural deficits and political stability. Nigeria should take a leading role in fighting this policy of neo-colonisation of Africa, he said. And to do this, Nigeria has to first and foremost, put her house in order. If you dont put your house in order and you go outside, you will soon discover that by the time you finish supporting the outsider, when you come back home, your house is in shambles. He said Nigeria remains a giant that other African countries look up to for direction and leadership and, therefore, must foster strong diplomatic ties and collaborations with other African nations. He said this would be essential to navigating the complexities of the global competition for influence in Africa. He said: (President Bola) Tinubu should spearhead the neo-decolonisation of Africa, particularly Francophone Africa where France still has a stronger grip over its former colonies. He added that the spread of coups, which he likened to the Ebola virus, especially among the former French colonies in West Africa, calls for concern. He said most of the ousted leaders focused too much on pleasing France rather than serving their people, leading to displeasure that caused the populace to celebrate the coups. These former colonies do not have the freehand to engage in military action without authorisation from it (France). And they stationed a number of French troops in this former colony. They were there until recently in Niger Republic. They were there numbering up to 500, if not 5,000. What will they be doing, is that not a kind of machinery to ensure that the former French colonies do the bidding of the French? That is the nature of French neo-colonialism. Mr Ochai also said African countries must learn how to negotiate with the developed countries from the position of strength and as equals. 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. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The 2023 governorship candidate of the Action Democratic Congress (ADC) in Lagos has critised Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on some of his projects. Funsho Doherty in a post via X on Saturday wrote an open letter to Mr Sanwo-Olu on some contract awards reported by the states Public Procurement Agency (PPA). I just wrote an open letter to the governor on Public Procurement awards reported by LASG for the 2nd and 3rd quarters of 2023, highlighting a number of issues for further scrutiny and remedial action, he wrote on X. Judicious use of public funds is always important, and is especially so now. Rechargeable fans The awards analysed by the accountant were from April to September, which to him requires greater scrutiny. He also requested the governor to review the projects. According to the letter, N2 billion was approved for the provision of supply items (rechargeable fans, rechargeable lights and fridge in the office of the deputy governor. Commenting on the award, Mr Doherty said it requires further scrutiny. Chickens He said N18.5 million was awarded to the office of the chief of staff to the governor for the supply and distribution of 2,000 Noiler chicken across the local government areas and wards in the state. Mr Doherty said that it is not clear why the Office of the Chief of Staff should be engaged in the supply and distribution of chicken across the state. Church renovation In another project by the ministry of home affairs, the state will be renovating Saint Andrews Anglican Church in Oke-Popo area of the state to the tune of N531 million. The governorship candidate questioned why the state will be renovating a religious centre with taxpayers money. Bulletproof vehicle Another sum of N440,750,000 was awarded to the office of the chief of staff for the procurement of a brand new Lexus LX 600 Bulletproof Sport Utility Vehicle for use in the Pool of Office of Chief, Mr Doherty wrote. He said that the award appears excessive and out of tune with both the prevailing economic circumstances and mood of the people. He asked that the governor scrutinised the need and justification of the purchase and the value for money. Others The sum of N7.5 million was also awarded for the replacement of the liquid fragrance in the Office of Mr Governor, Lagos House, Ikeja, he wrote. The office of deputy governor was awarded the sum of N30,000,000 for monthly outreach of indigent citizens by the wife of the deputy governor. Another N30,000,000 was awarded for monthly empowerment programmes of the wife of the deputy governor. Reaction The Lagos State Government has yet to formally respond to Mr Dohertys comments. A top government official who does not want his name in print told PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday that the state was working on its response. It will be ready before the end of today, the official said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), BudgIT and 34 concerned Nigerians have filed a lawsuit against President Bola Tinubu over the appointment of at least four members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and allies of high-ranking politicians as new Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The Senate has confirmed the appointment of seven out of 10 newly appointed RECs for INEC. The alleged APC members appointed as RECs include those from Akwa Ibom, Edo, Lagos and Rivers states. In the suit number FHC/L/CS/2353/2023 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Lagos, the Plaintiffs are seeking: an order setting aside the nomination, confirmation and appointment of the alleged APC members as RECs for INEC, for being unconstitutional, unlawful, null, void and of no effect. The Plaintiffs are also seeking: an order of mandamus to compel President Tinubu and Senate President Mr Godswill Akpabio to remove the alleged APC members as RECs for INEC, in line with Section 157 of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended]. The Plaintiffs are also seeking: an order of mandamus to direct and compel President Tinubu to appoint qualified Nigerians who are persons of unquestionable integrity and a non-member of a political party or loyalist to the positions of RECs for INEC, in line with Paragraph 14(3)(b)(c), Third Schedule and Section 156 of the Nigerian Constitution. In the suit, the Plaintiffs are arguing that: The status, powers, independence of INEC, and the impartiality with which it acts and is seen to be allowed to act, are fundamental to the integrity of Nigerias elections and effectiveness of citizens democratic rights. The Plaintiffs are also arguing that INEC ought to be the primary guarantor of the integrity and purity of the electoral process. President Tinubu and the Senate have the constitutional responsibilities to ensure both the appearance and the actual independence and impartiality in the nomination and confirmation of INEC top officials. According to the Plaintiffs, The credibility and legitimacy of elections depend mostly on the independence and impartiality of those appointed to manage the process. Without an independent and impartial INEC, the democratic rights of Nigerians would remain illusory. The Plaintiffs are arguing that Anyone to be appointed as RECs for INEC must clearly be non-partisan, independent, impartial and neutral. INEC officials ought to be able to discharge their legal duties and implement the Electoral Act without fear or favour. The Plaintiffs are also arguing that Nigerias electoral body must enjoy the independence from direction or control, whether from the government or any other quarter. It must be accountable to the electorate, and act accordingly. The suit filed on behalf of the Plaintiffs by their lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare and Andrew Nwankwo, read in part: As public officers, President Tinubu and Mr Godswill Akpabio are required to act in conformity with their oath of office and the letter and spirit of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended]. Treating INEC as a line department accountable to bureaucratic higher-ups and high-ranking politicians rather than as an independent and impartial body is antithetical to constitutional and international standards and the notion of the rule of law. The use of the word non-partisan means that those to be appointed to conduct credible elections must not be people who openly identify as belonging to a political party, whose occupation is politics or who are perceived by ordinary Nigerians as having political biases. Section 153(1) (f) of the Nigerian Constitution provides that There shall be established for the Federation the following bodies, namely (f) Independent National Electoral Commission. Section 156(1) of the Nigerian Constitution provides among others that, in the case of the Independent National Electoral Commission, he[she] [the person to be appointed as a REC] shall not be a member of a political party. Paragraph 14 of the Third Schedule of the 1999 Constitution provides among others that 2. A member [of INEC] shall a. be non-partisan and a person of unquestionable integrity 3. a Resident Electoral Commissioner shall b. be a person of unquestionable integrity and shall not be a member of any political party. Under Section 6(4) of the Electoral Act 2022, The appointment of a Resident Electoral Commissioner shall be in compliance with section 14 (3) of the Nigerian Constitution. The nomination, confirmation and appointment of the alleged APC members as RECs for INEC is a breach of Section 6(4) of the Electoral Act 2022 and Section 156(1)(a) and Paragraph 14 of the Third Schedule of the 1999 Constitution. The United Nations Human Rights Committee has stated that states including Nigeria should establish independent electoral authorities to supervise the electoral process and to ensure that elections are conducted fairly, impartially and in accordance with established laws and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The African Unions African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance to which Nigeria is a state party also calls upon state parties to establish and strengthen independent and impartial national electoral bodies responsible for the management of elections. Those recently appointed as RECs and confirmed by the Senate include an individual who was formerly a member of the PDP before allegedly decamping to the APC and who served as the Chief of Staff to Mr Godswill Akpabio when he was Governor of Akwa Ibom State. The alleged APC members or loyalists also include individuals who reportedly campaigned on social media for the election of President Tinubu and who was appointed as chairman of the Lagos State Traditional Medicine Board in 2001 when Mr Tinubu governed the state. Joined in the suit as Defendants are: INEC; Mr Godswill Akpabio, for himself and on behalf of the Senate; and Messrs Etekamba Umoren; Isah Shaka Ehimeakne; Anugbum Onuoha; and Bunmi Omoseyindemi. No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print About 1,800 Nigerian women and youth from Kwara State on Saturday benefitted from a cash donation programme aimed at improving their standard of living and their economic wellbeing. The intervention, which was valued at about N250 million, was sponsored by the Founder and Managing Director of Kursi Investment Limited, AbdulFatai Seriki, through the company in partnership with his Yahaya Seriki Foundation, a non-governmental organisation focused on helping the poor.. Speaking at the event which was held at the Banquet Hall of the Government House in Ilorin, Kwara State capital, Mr Seriki, said there is a pressing need to give back to the less privileged. Mr Seriki, a former governorship aspirant on the platform of All Progressives Congress in the state and the Director General of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq Campaign Organisation, also noted that the intervention was in support of the Renewed Hope agenda of President Bola Tinubu and the governor of the state. CSR in mining sector Mr Seriki said apart from his passion and commitment to supporting the less privileged, his company, which operates in the mining sector, is statutorily expected to impact the host communities in its corporate social responsibilities. He said: The constitution binds every miner to carry out community development agreement (CDA) which brings about corporate social responsibility and I think thats exactly what we are doing here today. The Eji Dongari community, our host area for mining activities, will take N50 million out of the N250 million while others would be shared by the other beneficiaries including women, youth and aged ones. Words for the youth The philanthropist also encouraged young people to be hopeful of a brighter future. He urged them to always respect the African culture by respecting elders and constituted authorities because you are the leaders of tomorrow. He said: I lived in every state in Nigeria but I chose to come back to Kwara to give back to the people. The youths should remember where they are coming from and if they believe in themselves, they can become someone like me tomorrow. READ ALSO: Lekki Shooting: LCC seeks opening of Lekki Toll Plaza for repairs This time around, we are extending to other areas in Kwara State at large. I plead with other Nigerians to emulate good things if they have the capacity because your life will be better if you are touching the lives of others. Im also from a very poor background and my father had nothing. So the youths should not think that they will not be great. On this note, they need to shun hooliganism and other social vices. Governor lauds initiative Describing the scheme as impactful, Governor AbdulRasaq, who chaired the occasion, said The empowerment is coming at a crucial time when Nigerians need more support as President Bola Tinubu works very hard to address the socio-economic challenges facing the country. Mr AbdulRasaq, who is also the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, said the gesture by the Foundation would contribute to the growth of the states economy. The N250 million cash empowerment is impactful and I hope this will not be the last of the good things youre bringing into Kwara State. We appreciate you, and even the party APC cannot forget the roles you played during our last campaign for the gubernatorial elections, the governor said. On the governors entourage at the event were prominent personalities including the Chairman of APC in the state, Salihu Fagbemi, and the states Commissioner for Solid Minerals, AbdulQuwiyy Olododo. Were grateful Beneficiaries speak One of the beneficiaries, Khadijah Olayiwo, said being selected for the gesture was something she counted as a huge blessing. She prayed for the continued success of the donor, his company and the foundation, saying: The sum of N5 million naira that was given to me would be carefully utilised in such a way that when they see the outcome, they will be happy with me. I have a chemist where I sell drugs. Im taking this money to the pharmacy, she added. Another beneficiary, Ibrahim Ayonitemi, said she could not express her joy when she got a call from the Foundation that she had been selected for the intervention. She said: I thank the organisers and I promise that I will use this money judiciously. I have a business which Im planning to invest in and to also cater for my family because Im a single mother. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print God offends us when our loved one is bereaved. Forgiveness is a cardinal principle of the Christian faith. I dare say, one of the ways we can tell that we are children of God is if we readily forgive those who offend us. Inevitably, people will often offend us in this world of sin, even as we often offend others. But Jesus makes our readiness to forgive offenders a veritable passport into the kingdom of God. He says: Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. (Matthew 5:7). If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (Matthew 6:14-15). As usual. Jesus practised what He preached. As He was dying on the cross at the instance of evil accusers, He prayed for the forgiveness of His persecutors: Then Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do. (Luke 23:34). Kingdom Dynamics Forgiveness is so central to salvation that Jesus told an enigmatic story of an unrighteous servant who was served notice that his employment would be terminated for wasting his masters goods. To prepare for his impending dismissal, he decided to ingratiate himself with his masters debtors by surreptitiously forgiving them chunks of their indebtedness. So, he hoped they would repay his kindness when became jobless and needed their help. What is remarkable about this story is Jesus assessment: The master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light. (Luke 16:8). But why would Jesus Christ, the righteous, commend this unjust servant? The answer is not far-fetched. Unlike the sons of light, this unjust servant understood the value of forgiveness. He recognised that forgiveness is an investment that yields handsome future dividends. Therefore, when Peter asked Jesus: Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times? Jesus said to him, I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. (Matthew 18:21-23). Offensive God But here is the rub. What if the offender is not man but God? What if it is God who offends us? Gods thoughts are not our thoughts, and His ways are not our ways. (Isaiah 55:8-9). Paul says: How impossible it is for us to understand His decisions and His ways! (Romans 11:33). Therefore, Solomon counsels that we should not lean on our own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5). For this reason, we often find God to be very offensive. I call God Doctor Strangelove. He secures our welfare through schemes that are often unpalatable to us. He seems to take delight in disappointing our hopes and in foiling our expectations of grandeur. He is determined to thwart our own purposes in life. As Jeremiah warned Baruch: Do you seek great things for yourself? Do not seek them. (Jeremiah 45:5). The Bible is replete with examples of people who were offended by God. God told Abraham to sacrifice his beloved Isaac, a child born when he was 100 years old, as a burnt offering on Mount Moriah. He starved the Israelites of food and water in the wilderness to their extreme discomfiture. (Deuteronomy 8:3). He invited the devil to decimate Jobs wealth and family, killing his 10 children in the process. His wife was so offended, that she berated Job: Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die! (Job 2:9). God killed Uriah for trying to prevent the ark from falling when it was being carried to Jerusalem. David became angry because of the Lords outbreak against Uzzah; and he called the name of the place Perez Uzzah to this day. (2 Samuel 6:8). God killed Ezekiels beloved wife and told him not to mourn or weep about her death. (Ezekiel 24:16). He told Isaiah to walk around naked and barefoot for three years, without his trousers, with his buttocks exposed. (Isaiah 20:1-4). He told Jonah to tell the Ninevites that He would destroy them within forty days. But to Jonahs annoyance, He decided not to destroy Nineveh after constraining Jonah to deliver the message of their impending destruction. Rock of Offence Jesus closely followed this offensive pattern in His earthly ministry. Isaiah had prophesied that: He will be as a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, as a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble; they shall fall and be broken, be snared and taken. (Isaiah 8:14-15). Thereby, Jesus offended the people of His hometown of Nazareth by telling them they did not deserve Gods miracles: You will undoubtedly quote Me this proverb: Physician, heal Yourself meaning, Do miracles here in Your hometown like those You did in Capernaum. But I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his own hometown. Certainly, there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijahs time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner- a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, but the only one healed was Naaman, a Syrian. (Luke 4:23-27). The people were so angry with him that they wanted to kill Him there and then. They dragged Him to a cliff, intending to push Him headlong to His death. But He miraculously escaped. He pronounced woe on the Pharisees and the scribes, calling them whitewashed tombstones. (Matthew 23:27). He told some people that the devil was their father. (John 8:44). He provoked His Jewish audience, who knew that eating blood is proscribed by the Law of Moses, that they would have to eat His flesh and drink His blood if they wanted eternal life. (John 6:51-58). Many of His disciples were so disgusted with Him at this saying that they departed from Him and decided not to follow Him any longer. Even John the Baptist, who had earlier identified Him as the Messiah, became disillusioned with Jesus because He failed to rescue Him from Herods jail. He sent emissaries to Him asking: Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another? (Matthew 11:3). Jesus answered and said to them, Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me. (Matthew 11:4-6). When told that Lazarus was gravely ill, Jesus waited until he died before responding. Lazarus sisters, Mary and Martha, could not hide their disappointment when he finally showed up, four days late. They said to Him one after the other: Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. (John 11:21/32). Practical Christianity As God is offensive in the scriptures, so is He offensive in life. He offends us when our loved one is bereaved. He offends us when He refuses to help us when we are in a bind. He offends us when we commit our business into His hands and it fails, nevertheless. He offends us when we are jilted in love, or when our marriages collapse. In short, God offends believers when something bad happens to us even though He could easily have prevented it. He offends us when we ask Him for something and He refuses to give it to us. He offends us when we look to Him for deliverance but He ignores us. In my case, armed robbers attacked me and shot me in the leg. God rescued me from them. Imagine my surprise, therefore, when He then told me He was the One who sent the robbers to waylay me: Who allowed Israel to be robbed and hurt? It was the Lord, against whom we sinned, for the people would not walk in His path, nor would they obey His law. Therefore, He poured out His fury on them and destroyed them in battle. They were enveloped in flames, but they still refused to understand. They were consumed by fire, but they did not learn their lesson. (Isaiah 42:24-25). CONTINUED. Faribisala@yahoo.com; www.femiaribisala.com Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print OKOBIs growing imprint in Imo State is a clear way of translating Africapitalism into practice for societal economic transformation. It shows what Africapitalism would mean for Africas sustainable socioeconomic development if local communities can be propelled to advance community-based businesses with a common good purpose. In 2012, Mr Tony Elumelu, a Nigerian entrepreneur and businessman, coined the word Africapitalism as his way of making sense of the crucial role of the private sector in Africas development, especially through wealth creation, infrastructure development, and shared prosperity. This coinage, at the time, gained quick traction as it resonated well with a lot of business leaders, policy makers, academics, governments, donor agencies, and social actors. Although its practical salience and timeliness were not in doubt, like any other influential idea, it needed some intellectual grounding to fly beyond its initial excitements. This is where the pioneering scholarly works of Mr Kenneth Amaeshi, a professor of Business and Sustainability at the University of Edinburgh, and his colleagues come in. Over the years, Amaeshi et al. have propelled Africapitalism as a global discourse through the academe. Their 2015 seminal paper titled, Africapitalism: A Management Idea for Business in Africa? remains a masterpiece and turning point in the theorisation of Africapitalism. At face value, Africapitalism is practically attractive and seductive. Who wouldnt want to run a business that contributes meaningfully to Africas development? Ideally, it sounds simple, but in practice it is not that simple because businesses come in various sizes, spaces, sectors, and strategies. As such, they often implicated in conflicting competitions amongst relevant stakeholders, and between profit and purpose. And when push comes to shove, many businesses prioritise shareholders and sacrifice purpose for profit. In such cases, it becomes difficult for businesses to live up to the elegant ideas of Africapitalism. Given the peculiarities and challenges of Africa, some critics see Africapitalism as rather idealistic and unrealistic. Therefore, the burning question has always been how can the idea be effectively translated into practice? To overcome this challenge, Amaeshi et al. argued that for Africapitalism to be meaningful it must be progressive, inclusive, harmonious, and contextual. In other words, it must serve the existential needs of people, planet, and profit because businesses anchored on meeting the basic needs of society food, shelter, clothing, and leisure are often very successful. This understanding is at the heart of the One Kindred One Business Idea (OKOBI) of the Imo State Government (in the Southeast of Nigeria) to address the challenges of poverty, informality, and (youth) unemployment in the state. Like many cities in Africa, Imo State has her fair share of the poor and unemployed. The state is actually a victim of her own success, because it produces more graduates than it can employ. When it comes to education, Imo State is one of the top states in Nigeria. However, given the soaring number of the unemployed and its attendant social challenges, such as insecurity, drug addiction, and other social vices, the Imo State Government under the leadership of Senator Hope Uzodimma (CON) has come up with a number of social innovations to address the issue of unemployment. First, his government has committed to training up to 300,000 youth in digital skills. This way, the teeming youth can be prepared to participate in the booming global digital economy, either as self-employed or through lucrative employments. The government has trained about 20,000 youth till date. Obviously, not everyone will play in the digital space. To complement the digital skills programme, the government has innovatively leveraged the extended family structure and social relations amongst the Igbos (i.e., the Umunna structure) to champion OKOBI as a way to empower local communities through formal group-owned profitable businesses for shared prosperity. The idea is for every extended family in Imo State to have a registered business. And there are thousands of extended families in a state of about five million people. Notwithstanding, OKOBI is not limited to family ties. Members of associations such as old boys, religious organisations, cooperatives, et cetera, can also form such businesses. So far, businesses such as A-92 Farmers Multipurpose Cooperative Society, which is an inspiring model of cooperative-driven rural transformation, have emerged. A-92 Farmers Multipurpose Cooperative Society established by a college old boys association is pioneering a sustainable agriculture practice in Imo State. It seeks to uplift rural livelihoods through eco-friendly farming practices and improved market linkages. The cooperative provides training in climate-resilient methods like organic fertilisers to boost yields. It enables smallholders to earn higher reliable incomes while adopting regenerative agriculture practices that enrich the community and environment. New Emii Cooperative, another OKOBI business, is founded by an extended family in Emii community of Imo State. It is an inspiring agriculture cooperative impacting lives through food processing and value addition. It was born from a desire to empower local smallholder farmers and create sustainable livelihoods. The New Emii Cooperative operates primarily as a sweet potato processing hub. The Cooperatives expanding product range not only taps into growing consumer demand for artisanal, locally-made foods, but also boosts food security, reduces post-harvest losses and provides fulfilling work for community youth and women. The Akuyoma Amaimo Multipurpose Cooperative Society is another community based business. It operates an impact investment fund for local businesses in the Amaimo community. It provides an inspiring model of community financing for inclusive development, affordable financing and capacity building to promising but underserved microenterprises and small businesses. Akuyoma raises community-driven capital through member contributions, grants and loans to finance small businesses that lack access to conventional financial institutions. By unlocking the innate potential of disadvantaged communities through patient flexible capital and capabilities, Akuyoma creates ripple effects for broad-based economic advancement. Green-Era Technologies is another promising OKOBI business. It is a renewable energy start-up that is bringing affordable, reliable solar power to underserved rural markets in Nigeria. Driven by a desire to uplift lives and protect the planet, the company provides clean energy access to nano and micro businesses (such as barbing saloons, mobile phone recharging points, mobile money operators, et cetera) living off-grid in Imo State. It is not surprising that OKOBI is gaining momentum in local communities in Imo State. It has shown significant promise as community businesses have been established and formalised in sectors such as food production and agriculture, renewable energy, and sustainable finance. This innovative approach to unlocking informal financial resources, transforming human capital, and building community businesses at the micro level (local communities) provides an opportunity for these group-owned businesses to explore access to both the local and international markets. This is important as it further enhances their revenue and profit making for the growth of the businesses and at the same time create decent jobs for the people. OKOBIs growing imprint in Imo State is a clear way of translating Africapitalism into practice for societal economic transformation. It shows what Africapitalism would mean for Africas sustainable socioeconomic development if local communities can be propelled to advance community-based businesses with a common good purpose. Innovation can sometimes be a game of chance and luck. Perhaps, the government of Imo State under the leadership of Senator Hope Uzodimma CON in trying to address the challenges of mass unemployment has inadvertently provided a practical template for African cities, regions, and countries to emulate. What could be a better way of revolutionalising an economy? Godson Ikiebey is a commentator on sustainable business initiatives. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The courts no longer even pretend to tether their pronouncements to any sense of principle, precedent or proportion. To use an expression originated by our neighbours in Cameroon, judicial mercenarism now manifests itself in an open jurisprudence of buy am; sell am. In July 1977, the Organisation of African Unity adopted a Convention for the Elimination of Mercenarism in Africa. It offered a definition of a mercenary to include someone who is motivated to take part in hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and in fact is promised by or on behalf of a party to the conflict material compensation. The drafters of the Convention for the Elimination of Mercenarism in Africa probably did not foresee that it would encompass the conduct of judges. Yet, at the beginning of this month, the immediate past president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Olumide Akpata, took to the floor of the International Bar Association (IBA) conference in Paris, the capital of France, to invite the association to take an active interest in a new species of judicial subornation in Nigeria, which can best be described as judicial mercenarism. Carl von Clausewitz, the Prussian General, is credited with the insight that war is the continuation of policy by other means. The converse can also be true: that policy and politics could also be war by other means. Private military contractors, also known as mercenaries, are paid to fight in other peoples wars. Judicial officers are ordinarily not politicians. So, when they choose to immerse themselves in the theatre of power politics, it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that elements of mercenarism are involved. This mercenarism can manifest itself in the form of judicial fornication, soliciting, or contumeliousness. Lets begin with judicial fornication. In his memoir, The Accidental Public Servant, former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and recent governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, recounts that the Chief Judge of the FCT when he became minister, Justice Lawal Hassan Gummi, had preceded him to Barewa College in Zaria. As Minister, he desired to ensure the judiciary was fully on board with our reform directions. Although advised by his staff to invite the Chief Judge to a briefing with the Minister, El-Rufai exultantly recalls that he overruled them because our old boys protocol trumped all others they may have in the FCT. So, in obedience to the supreme law of the Barewa Old Boys Association (BOBA), El-Rufai visited Justice Gummi, met with his team of senior judges and. prayed for their support. The result, El-Rufai further exults, was that the FCT judiciary supported us strongly throughout my tenure, and the official pay-off was a ministerial decision to budget an annual grant to support our judiciary to procure court recording and automation equipment. One decade later, the current successor to the seat of the Chief Judge of the FCT, Husseini Baba-Yusuf, preferred to take matters a notch higher by showcasing his skills in judicial soliciting. Rather than have the Minister pay him a visit, the Chief Judge went to promenade for the Minister of the FCT instead, and took the opportunity to show off his plumes. The reader may note two things. One is that in the narration of the Minister, the FCT judiciary became transformed from an institution established to hold a fair balance between different interests in society to one dedicated to servicing the Minister and his FCT administration. The second is that the judiciary thus became in his telling part and parcel of the government of the day, to be instrumentalised as the government dared, not an independent institution to hold the government to account. This was judicial fornication at ministerial beck-and-call. After the publication of this book, some non-governmental organisations under the aegis of the Civil Society Network against Corruption (CSNAC), petitioned against Lawal Gummi to the then Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Aloma Mukhtar, who also chaired the National Judicial Council (NJC). In response, the CJN issued a disciplinary query to the Chief Judge of the FCT, seeking explanation over an annual grant made to the FCT judiciary by the FCT administration during Nasir El Rufais administration. Reluctant to be dragged through the process, Lawal Gummi took early retirement and promptly got translated to the stool of the Gummi Emirate in Zamfara State. One decade later, the current successor to the seat of the Chief Judge of the FCT, Husseini Baba-Yusuf, preferred to take matters a notch higher by showcasing his skills in judicial soliciting. Rather than have the Minister pay him a visit, the Chief Judge went to promenade for the Minister of the FCT instead, and took the opportunity to show off his plumes. Assuming the role of a judicial vuvuzela, he began by hailing the Minister as having exceeded the level that people had thought you would perform, before reminding him that as the judiciary, we are part of the government and we expect that we should be able to do things that will make government work. In claiming that the judiciary is part of the government, the Chief Judge was fully aware that he was inviting the Minister into an intimate transaction. So, the Chief Judge let it be known that he had issued directions to the judges under him that all cases involving the FCT will only be assigned by the Chief Judge. A suitably tingled Minister of the FCT happily nodded thank you, while the judges and sundry hangers-on accompanying the Chief Judge clapped uproariously in full expectation of full-on consummation. While the conduct and verbiage of the current Chief Judge were even more egregious than those of his durable predecessor from one decade ago, few expect him to suffer anything like the consequences that followed the revelations in The Accidental Public Servant. The reason is because these days judicial mercenarism occurs in the full glare of the records. It is no surprise that this kind of thing only happens in political and election disputes, where politicians chase judges with money and induce open trades in the outcome of judicial proceedings. This is why judicial mercenarism is often accompanied by unconcealed hubris. Just this past week, Yargata Nimpar, a Justice of Appeal, informed the appellants in the judicial contest over the governorship of Lagos State that they came empty-handed and left empty-handed. They merely enjoyed their day in court. Judicial decision making is ordinarily deliberative and its language, even in the pen or keyboard of the colourful, is usually clothed with dignity. These days, however, some judges in Nigeria are not shy about announcing which political side has penetrated their judicial orifices. They are not merely contumelious but choose to advertise it. When it decided to nullify the election of Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State earlier in the year, for instance, Justice T.A. Kume, who sat as part of the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, relied on the high authority of Kizz Daniels popular single, Buga, to hold that Adeleke cannot go lo lo lo lo and buga won as the duly elected governor of Osun State. In the Kano State governorship election petition decided last September, Benson Anya, a judge on the tribunal, went one further. Relying on matters that were never in evidence or in dispute before the Tribunal, he described one side to the case as bandits in politics and decided to condemn the gang of Red Cap wearers (a reference to the supporters of the second respondent in the case) who, like a violent and terrorist cult, chased us out of Kano and put us in the fear of our lives. We believe that only Allah is the giver of power. Those who believe in Allah must bow to his (sic) will and submit to the authority of Governmental (sic) power. For the avoidance of doubt, the author of this insightful theological distraction is a Christian from Abia State in South-East Nigeria and no question about Allah or His supremacy was even remotely in contention in the case. It did not require any imagination to understand that the god under reference by Benson Anya existed entirely in his head, probably from vanities he harboured about the finality of the judicial vote in determining election outcomes. It is no surprise that this kind of thing only happens in political and election disputes, where politicians chase judges with money and induce open trades in the outcome of judicial proceedings. This is why judicial mercenarism is often accompanied by unconcealed hubris. Just this past week, Yargata Nimpar, a Justice of Appeal, informed the appellants in the judicial contest over the governorship of Lagos State that they came empty-handed and left empty-handed. They merely enjoyed their day in court. The courts no longer even pretend to tether their pronouncements to any sense of principle, precedent or proportion. To use an expression originated by our neighbours in Cameroon, judicial mercenarism now manifests itself in an open jurisprudence of buy am; sell am. Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, a lawyer, teaches at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and can be reached through chidi.odinkalu@tufts.edu. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Sichod Drolma (C) and her father and sister pasture on the grassland in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma has a Tibetan language class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (front) does exercise at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (2nd L) and her classmates have a physics class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (L) chats with her roommate in dormitory at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma does homework at home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (R) and her sister play at home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (C) has lunch at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (3rd R) and her classmates are pictured during a class-break at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Students have lunch in a canteen at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (standing) answers teacher's question during a class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (R) and her sister fetch water in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) This aerial photo taken on Nov. 15, 2023 shows Sichod Drolma's father driving a car to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma's father comes to school to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (C) eats with her family in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (L) returns home with her sister after fetching water in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma's father comes to school to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (R) and her father and sister are pictured as they pasture on the grassland in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) This aerial photo taken on Nov. 10, 2023 shows students doing exercise at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma has a physics class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma's mother arranges certificates of merit awarded to her children in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma arranges her bed and prepares to sleep in the dormitory at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (L) arrives at home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (3rd R) and her roommates enjoy leisure time in their dormitory at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (L) and her father and sister play on the grassland in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (C) and her classmates are pictured during a class-break at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma's father comes to school to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Another very trying aspect of excellence is that in most cases, excellence would take you through the path of trials and tribulations. People of excellence are often misunderstood, leading to a lot of trials, attacks and tribulations in general. My own story in Ukraine attests to this truth. As a black man pastoring a church of 99 per cent white Europeans, I have had to endure a lot of misunderstandings and trials. Another thing that excellence would require of you is the ability to endure. For you to attain excellence in anything, you need stamina to keep on going. This is because excellence is not attained overnight. True excellence takes time. It takes perseverance. True excellence takes endurance. For true excellence, you need some stamina. I remember when I just arrived in the former USSR to study journalism, a general requirement for students those days was that they must first study the Russian language in their first year. Unfortunately for me, I was late to school for about two weeks. In that time, my fellow students had started speaking a bit of Russian language. At least they all had learnt the alphabet and could read the language to some extent. By the time I arrived, I was in all forms of troubles. I was so much behind that my professor could not help but confess that if I ever spoke the language, even though he was a communist and an atheist, he would gladly go and light up a candle in church, because at my level then there was nothing that would make me speak the language. After that extremely damning verdict, I was only left with two options: God and the library. First, I spoke to God about it and decided to stand on his promise in Deuteronomy: 28:13. And he LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. I made a deal with God that, according to his word, I would end up being the head in that school; the first and not the last. The other side of that agreement was that I would put in my best effort in the library. Roll-up those sleeves and work until you see the fruit of your labour. It takes Passion, Resolve and a Productive Work Ethic, meeting with Opportunity, for you to succeed. Archibald Marwizi If you have ever spent some considerable amount of time in the library, you would agree with me that the topic of stamina and endurance comes in handy here. I remember the first few weeks in the library: after studying for some time, I would look at my wristwatch, trying to reassure myself that I had spent at least four of the six hours that I had intended to spend daily. To my bewilderment, however, when I expect to see four hours, I would see that I had only spent 30 minutes in actual fact. As such, I resumed my studies with a renewed determination to go longer thereafter. When I was sure that the six hours should be over, on looking at my wristwatch I realised that I had spent only two hours. But that is the only way you build stamina. After doing this in and out for about six years, I eventually finished as the best graduating student, with a First Class honours degree, from that university. There is no excellence without stamina. Excellence demands endurance. You need to persevere before you can have the testimony of excellence. Excellence is not a success but a persistent pursuit of perfection. Debasish Mridha When we started our church, I soon discovered that the same quality was equally needed in building a mega church. At a time, I was determined to pray for six hours every day. My experience brought me back to the years in the library as a student. Each time I thought I had prayed for about two hours, my wristwatch would inform me that I was only about 20 minutes down the road. But once I passed the examination of perseverance, excellence began to work for me. We ended up building the largest and one of the most powerful evangelical churches in Europe, when I was only in my early thirties. You must succeed! Not by accident, but deliberately! You are able to succeed now you must be willing to succeed and this must reflect in the way you spend your life. Archibald Marwizi Another very trying aspect of excellence is that in most cases, excellence would take you through the path of trials and tribulations. People of excellence are often misunderstood, leading to a lot of trials, attacks and tribulations in general. My own story in Ukraine attests to this truth. As a black man pastoring a church of 99 per cent white Europeans, I have had to endure a lot of misunderstandings and trials. It is one thing for you to do that in your own country or a country where you are a citizen. It is entirely a different thing for you to do the same thing where you hold a Nigerian passport. Worse still if you are a black man from Africa. For example, over the last 20 years of our ministry, I had to endure over 20 criminal charges. Countless numbers of deportation attempts, hundreds of lawsuits, and the list goes on and on. The beautiful thing about excellence is that despite the trials and the tribulations, excellence has a way of distinguishing you. As I write this article, I am still a persona non grata in Russia. The reason is because the excellence we have attained in the Ukraine has made so much noise on our behalf that now Russia cannot imagine us coming to do the same thing in its territory. Yet, the beauty of excellence is that it would make a way for you, even when you are under prohibition. Dominate the market with your products of self-control; no matter how many temptations produced by the devil, you will still overcome with profits of excellence! Israelmore Ayivor Despite the ban, we have at least a hundred churches prospering right in the heart of Russia. Excellence knows how to operate in impossible circumstances. You will only have a testimony of the exploits of excellence if you will not be afraid to go through trials and tribulations. Sunday Adelaja is a Nigeria born leader, transformation strategist, pastor and innovator. He was based in Kiev Ukraine Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Suspected Boko Haram terrorists attacked the convoy of the Yobe State governor, Mai-Mala Buni, along the Maiduguri-Damaturu highway, killing a police officer and injuring two others including a soldier. The incident happened as the governors motorcade was returning from the 24th convocation of the University of Maiduguri, Borno State on Saturday. The governors spokesperson, Mamman Muhammed, told PREMIUM TIMES Sunday morning that his principal boarded a flight to Abuja from Maiduguri for an official assignment. He was not in the convoy when his entourage was attacked, but top government officials including the Secretary to Yobe State Government, Baba Wali, were caught in the attack. Two policemen and a soldier were injured in the ambush, they were evacuated in an ambulance in the governors convoy and one of the police officers later died from the bullet injuries, Mr Muhammed said. PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the convoy was attacked between Boni-sheikh and Mainok, in Borno late Saturday. The distance between Damaturu, the Yobe capital, and Maiduguri, the Borno capital, is about 130 kilometres. The attack on the governors convoy is believed to have been carried out by Boko Haram, whose more than a decade old armed conflict against the Nigerian state has claimed the lives of thousands of people. Since 2009, the North-east states Yobe, Borno and Adamawa in particular have been the theatre of the violent campaigns of the Islamist group. ALSO READ: Boko Haram kills 13 rice farmers in Borno The group later morphed and became a franchise of the Islamic State terror group. It was later renamed the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). The terrorists also carry out pockets of attacks across Nigerias North-east region. The attack on the governors convoy points to an escalation of the activities of the group in recent times. Last month, the group was blamed for an attack on a Yobe community. More than 30 people were killed in that attack. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Jigawa State chapter, has elected new executives to lead the association for the next three years. The election took place on Sunday at the Secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Dutse, in the state capital. The incumbent chairperson, Hauwa Ladan, was reelected to serve her final term of three years. Other newly elected executives are Fadila Abdulkadir, as the vice chairperson; Zainab Baba-Santali, as the secretary; Nafisa Abdullahi as the assistant secretary; and Halima Yusuf as treasurer. Others are Safiya Musa as the financial secretary and Zainab Chiroma as the auditor of the association. Speaking during the inauguration of the new executives, the National Vice Chairperson, northwest, of NAWOJ, Halima Musa, said the election was free and fair. READ ALSO: The election I supervised today in Jigawa State has followed a due process and all the candidates have satisfied the criteria laid down by the NAWOJ constitution and that of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ). I am appealing to the new executives to carry all union members along, cooperate with state government, NUJ, partners and the general public in championing the interest of women and the general public, and for peace and progress of the society, Mrs Musa said. In her acceptance speech, the newly elected chairperson, Mrs Ladan, pledged to consolidate on her past actions of moving the association forward while protecting and considering the welfare and interest of members of the association. We pledged to redouble our efforts this time around to live above board, and to abide by our constitution as disciplined NAWOJ families, assuring we will carry along our members in supporting their noble cause objectively for our collective good, Mrs Ladan said. The election was also monitored and described as credible by the chairperson of the Correspondents Chapel of the NUJ in Jigawa, Muhammed Zangina, and the grand patron of the association, Dahiru Suleiman. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Association of Resident Doctors of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology Teaching Hospital (ESUTH) has issued a 14-day ultimatum to the Enugu State Government to employ more doctors and ensure security. This is contained in a communique issued on Saturday after the end of the Emergency General Meeting of the association in ESUT Teaching Hospital, Parklane, Enugu held on Friday, 17 November. The communique was jointly signed by the President of ARD-ESUT, Chukwunonso Ofonere, and its Secretary General, Ikemefuna Nnamani. The statement called on the management of ESUTH and the Enugu State Government to declare a state of emergency on the employment of doctors in the hospital. According to the statement, the EGM observed that it is now 120 days since the government through the Secretary to the State Government promised the ARD of employment of Medical Officers and Resident Doctors. It said that the EGM was intimated of the managements proposed plan to ensure the safety of doctors and other health workers in the hospital. The statement noted that the EGM had resolved to extend the initial 14-day ultimatum by another 14 days which ends on 1 December. First, the management should declare a state of emergency on the employment of doctors in the hospital. There should be an urgent approval for the recruitment of medical officers, resident doctors and House Officers in the hospital. This recruitment should be focused especially at the Accident and Emergency Department, Surgery Department, Internal Medicine Department, Paediatrics Department, Obstetrics and Gynaecology Departments,. It noted that resident doctors who had left the institution in the past four years were never replaced. Secondly, management should ensure implementation of safety policies to protect her workers against physical attacks and kidnap within one week as promised by the Chief Medical Director (CMD). Thirdly, the immediate implementation of the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF) as our counterpart in other states; even as attached to this communique is the list of the eligible doctors and the financial implications, it said. The statement noted that the EGM resolved that after 14 days and the above demands were not met, industrial harmony could not be guaranteed. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print GUANGZHOU, China, Nov. 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A report from GDToday: A cultural exchange event featuring conversations between Guangzhou, the capital of the province of Guangdong and Italy was held in Rome on the afternoon of November 16 (Rome's time). Guests from China and Italy attended a cultural exchange event featuring conversations between China and Italy, November 16, 2023. Two speakers from China and Italy exchanged ideas on the stage, November 16, 2023. This is the first activity of the "2023 Charming China-Cultural Exhibition from Guangdong," featuring the cultural exchanges between the province of Guangdong and other countries. A total of 11 speakers from China and Italy shared their views and impressions about the exchanges in various fields between the two countries. "GAC Group is one of the largest automotive groups in China. GAC Milan provides design for Chinese own-brand vehicles and plays a vital role in the global design network," said Edouard Suzeau, automotive designer of GAC R&D Center Europe, sharing his view on China's intelligent manufacturing. As a mixed-blood, Suzeau spent his childhood in China and achieved his degree in automobile design in France. He serves for GAC in Milan as a designer, which made his dream comes true. "My family felt proud of me when they knew I had joined the GAC," he added. At present, the GAC cars have exported to Middle East, Africa, South East Asia and other 31 countries and regions. "No matter in China, Italy or anywhere in the world, Chinese auto brand can provide a better trip mode for human being," he stressed. Gennaro Schlitzer, director of QUEEN's SRL, indicated that China's piano manufacturing industry is amazing. He said that the sound, performance and design of the Pearl River pianos produced in Guangzhou are high-quality and as beautiful as the Pearl River. Several performances were staged to surprise the audience during the event, such as piano performances and an acrobatic show that straddles Chinese acrobatics and ballet, combining tradition with modernity, highlighting the unique Lingnan culture, and presenting an inclusive, open and innovative Guangzhou city to the world. Angelo Tabaro, former cultural minister of Veneto region, said Guangzhou is an inclusive city, as well as a trade center in China, which is similar with Venice. He wishes that both two countries will build a strong bridge to enhance the communication for people-to-people exchange. The "2023 Charming ChinaCultural Exhibition from Guangdong" is being held in Italy and will also be held in Egypt, Malaysia, including concerts featuring Guangdong music, art exhibition, photo exhibition and more. The event aims to promote cultural exchanges and mutual learning between China and countries in Europe, Africa, and Asia, showcasing the profound cultural heritage of Chinese civilization and the charm of Lingnan culture to the world. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2280939/Guests_China_Italy_attended_a_cultural_exchange_event_featuring_conversations.jpg Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2280940/Two_speakers_China_Italy_exchanged_ideas_stage_November_16_2023.jpg The two-day launch activation in NYC showcases the fatal flaws in our current food system and the commitments being made to better practices for better days ahead. NEW YORK, Nov. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Kettle & Fire , the nation's leading bone broth brand, today announced the unveiling of a two-day immersive experience with open admission to the public from 11-5pm EST November 17th and 18th at 242 Elizabeth Street in SoHo. Kettle & Fire has taken over a physical space in New York City that has been designed to confront and educate consumers on the shocking flaws in the U.S. food system and introduce the changes Kettle & Fire is leading for a healthier future, including a pledge to source one million pounds of regenerative beef bones by 2025. Leading bone broth company Kettle & Fire exposes the broken food system by shining a light on this year's Thanksgiving table. The pop-up -"Kettle & Fire Turns the Tables on Thanksgiving" - is inspired by the Kettle & Fire mission to create products that heal rather than harm. With Thanksgiving being celebrated across the country this month, the brand aims to be good stewards to our bodies and earth by inspiring a critical conversation to be held over Thanksgiving tables this year. "At Kettle & Fire we hold ourselves accountable to sourcing ingredients that work to improve our food system and deliver both flavor and nutrition," said Justin Mares, Co-Founder and CEO. "Today, we're holding the entire food system accountable by sharing some of the harsh realities of a traditional Thanksgiving table and showing how we can be a catalyst for change." The guest journey through the pop-up begins with a warm, nutritious cup of Kettle & Fire bone broth before guests are ushered through three innovative and interactive installations that represent shocking truths within our flawed food system. Exhibits highlights include: Section #1 : Unlock the Toxin Truth Grocery shelves stocked with Thanksgiving items from bread to boxed stuffing carry secret truths exposed using black light technology and handheld flashlights. From herbicides to unsafe additives, guests uncover the dirty secrets behind everyday foods and learn why preservative-free products are the only way forward. Section #2: In Memoriam: What We've Lost to Conventional Farming Part two maps the evolution of farmers and farming over the past 100 years using a lifesize projection wall. Here, guests can watch and reflect on the demise of the small farm due to commercial and conventional farming and toxin exposure. The display introduces the concept of regenerative farming, focused on the conservation and rehabilitation of soil, food and climate. Section #3: Discovering Nutrient Density A bold comparison of meat, chicken and vegetables over time demonstrates how conventional products of today conflict with the nutrient-dense products and practices needed for a more sustainable future. For example: visitors can compare a 2 lb natural chicken from the 1950s vs. a hormone-induced 9 lb chicken of today. After bearing witness to these atrocities against body and planet, guests are met with a solution: A hopeful, wholesome, and nutritious Thanksgiving tablescape curated by notable chef and recipe influencer, Ronny Joseph Lvovski of Primal Gourmet ( @Primal_Gourmet ). The table features four original recipes created by Chef Ronny, a longtime brand advocate and bone broth lover, all using Kettle & Fire Chicken and Beef Regenerative Bone Broth. Decadent yet nutritious dishes showcased on the table include Mashed Potatoes & Gravy, Wild Boar & Sourdough Bread Stuffing, Roast Turkey and Gravy and Chorizo Green Bean Casserole. Recipes are available to capture by way of QR code on-site. The experience culminates with a curated pantry supporting Kettle & Fire's commitment to source 1 million pounds of regenerative beef bones by 2025. The brand believes the future of farming lies with regenerative, and this is one way they can have a direct impact on increasing demand for regeneratively-grown ingredients and awareness for change. The pantry will showcase other like-minded brands joining our commitment to champion healthy, quality ingredients and intentional regenerative sourcing practices that promote change. All guests in attendance will be able to scan a QR code to redeem for an in-store purchase of Regenerative Chicken or Beef Bone Broth for Thanksgiving table celebrations. To RSVP for the event and learn more, visit Eventbrite HERE or follow Kettle & Fire @Kettleandfire on Instagram or TikTok and tag #turnthetables and #kettleandfirecommits. About Kettle & Fire Founded in 2014, Kettle & Fire is the leading, shelf-stable bone broth brand on a mission to make foods that nourish our bodies and the planet. All of our products are made with 100% grass-fed and grass-finished, free range or pasture-raised bones that are slow-simmered for 10-20+ hours to create nutrient-rich broths that are excellent sources of collagen, protein and other key vitamins and nutrients. Available in 15,000 stores nationwide and online, Kettle & Fire offers a variety of bone broths and soups for all eating and snacking occasions. In July 2020, the company introduced its first line of bone broths made with bones sourced exclusively from regenerative farms. In October 2023, the company released brand new Hearty Soups, giving classic soup flavors a bone broth twist. Learn more at www.kettleandfire.com and follow the company on Instagram . Media Contact: The Door - An Idea House [email protected] SOURCE Kettle & Fire NEW YORK, Nov. 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Barclays PLC ("Barclays" or the "Company") (NYSE: BCS). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at [email protected] or 888-476-6529, ext. 7980. The investigation concerns whether Barclays and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices. [Click here for information about joining the class action] On November 1, 2021, after market hours, Barclays filed a current report on Form 6-K with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, announcing the departure of Barclays Group Chief Executive Jes Staley ("Stayley") as a result of Stayley's relationship with the late Jeffrey Epstein. On this news, the price of Barclays American Depositary Receipts ("ADRs") fell $0.25 per ADR, or 2.23%, to close at $10.93 per ADR on November 2, 2021. Then, on November 12, 2021, before the domestic market closed, the Financial Times published an article entitled "Jes Staley exchanged 1,200 emails with Epstein that included unexplained phrases." On this news, the price of Barclays ADRs fell $0.05 per ADR, or 0.469%, to close at $10.62 per ADR on November 12, 2021. Then, after hours on March 8, 2023, relating to the litigation Jane Doe 1 v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., 22-v-10019-JSR (S.D.N.Y.), JPMorgan Chase Bank filed a third-party complaint against Staley for indemnity, contribution, breach of fiduciary duty, and breach of the faithless servant doctrine in the event that it is found liable. On this news, the price of Barclays ADRs fell $0.29 per ADR, or 3.59%, to close at $7.77 per ADR on March 9, 2023. The price of Barclays ADRs then declined by an additional $0.24 per ADR, or 3.08%, to close at $7.53 per ADR on March 10, 2023. Finally, on October 12, 2023, the Financial Conduct Authority published an announcement on its website entitled "FCA decides to fine and ban James Staley". On this news, the price of Barclays ADRs fell $0.39 per ADR, or 4.98%, to close at $7.43 per ADR on October 12, 2023. Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Tel Aviv, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, Pomerantz pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 85 years later, Pomerantz continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered billions of dollars in damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com. CONTACT: Robert S. Willoughby Pomerantz LLP [email protected] 888-476-6529 ext. 7980 SOURCE Pomerantz LLP NEW YORK, Nov. 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Medical Properties Trust, Inc. ("MPW" or the "Company") (NYSE: MPW) and certain officers. The class action, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and docketed under 23-cv-08597, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons and entities other than Defendants that purchased or otherwise acquired MPW securities between May 23, 2023 and August 17, 2023, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to recover damages caused by Defendants' violations of the federal securities laws and to pursue remedies under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act"). If you are a shareholder who purchased or otherwise acquired Archer securities during the Class Period, you have until November 28, 2023 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at [email protected] or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased. [Click here for information about joining the class action] MPW is a self-advised real estate investment trust that was formed to acquire and develop net-leased healthcare facilities. MPW's financing model purportedly facilitates acquisitions and recapitalizations and allows operators of hospitals to unlock the value of their real estate assets to fund facility improvements, technology upgrades, and other investments in operations. On May 23, 2023, MPW issued a press release announcing that it had entered into a recapitalization transaction (the "Recap Transaction") with Prospect Medical Holdings, Inc. ("Prospect"), a health care management services organization. Pursuant to the Recap Transaction, in relevant part, MPW would take an equity stake in Prospect's managed care business, PHP Holdings, LLC ("PHP"), in lieu of a cash payment of outstanding loans and accrued but unpaid rent and interest owed by Prospect to MPW. As a result of PHP's involvement in the deal, the Recap Transaction was subject to regulatory approval by the Department of Managed Health Care of the Health and Human Services Agency of the State of California ("DMHC"), the regulatory body responsible for governing managed health care plans in California. On July 20, 2023, the DMHC issued an order (the "DMHC Order") putting the Recap Transaction on hold in order to obtain further information from the Company. Despite the foregoing, MPW elected not to disclose the DMHC Order to MPW shareholders when the Company reported its Q2 2023 results on August 8, 2023 or in its quarterly report filed with the SEC on August 9, 2023. Instead, MPW continued to tout the benefits of the Recap Transaction by stating that the deal had boosted the Company's revenue The truth regarding the Recap Transaction's approval status was revealed on August 18, 2023 when the Wall Street Journal ("WSJ") published an article entitled "Cracks Deepen for America's Biggest Hospital Landlord: Struggling Tenants, a Bailout on Hold" (the "WSJ Article"). The WSJ, which had obtained a copy of the DMHC Order and other documents from the DMHC under California's Public Records Act, discussed the DMHC's decision to halt the Recap Transaction and the negative impact MPW and Prospect could each experience if the deal is permanently rejected. That same day, MPW issued a press release responding to the WSJ Article, in which the Company downplayed the DMHC Order as a "standard, expected, and non-controversial part of the approval process for [the Recap Transaction]" and attempted to excuse the Company's non-disclosure of the DMHC Order to shareholders by stating that the "DMHC's request was deemed immaterial to [MPW's] financials and thus did not require disclosure." Despite MPW's attempts to reassure investors, following publication of the WSJ Article, MPW's stock price fell $0.57 per share, or 7.6%, to close at $6.93 per share on August 18, 2023. The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) the Recap Transaction was subject to regulatory approval and had in fact been placed on hold by the DMHC; (ii) accordingly, MPW had misrepresented the regulatory process for the Recap Transaction's approval; (iii) as a result of the foregoing, MPW overstated the approval prospects and benefits of the Recap Transaction; and (iv) as a result, the Company's public statements regarding the Recap Transaction were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. On August 18, 2023, the Wall Street Journal published an article entitled "Cracks Deepen for America's Biggest Hospital Landlord: Struggling Tenants, a Bailout on Hold". That same day, MPW issued a press release responding to the WSJ Article, in which the Company downplayed the DMHC Order as a "standard, expected, and non-controversial part of the approval process for [the Recap Transaction]" and attempted to excuse the Company's non-disclosure of the DMHC Order to shareholders by stating that the "DMHC's request was deemed immaterial to [MPW's] financials and thus did not require disclosure." Despite MPW's attempts to reassure investors, following publication of the WSJ Article, MPW's stock price fell $0.57 per share, or 7.6%, to close at $6.93 per share on August 18, 2023. Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Tel Aviv, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, Pomerantz pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 85 years later, Pomerantz continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered billions of dollars in damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. CONTACT: Robert S. Willoughby Pomerantz LLP [email protected] 888-476-6529 ext. 7980 SOURCE Pomerantz LLP RABAT, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Moroccan police seized 4.635 tonnes of cannabis and arrested two suspects with alleged links to a drug trafficking network, the official news agency MAP reported Sunday. During an operation in Morocco's largest city of Casablanca on Saturday, the police confiscated the drugs that were concealed in 123 large packages ready to be exported by sea, the report said. An investigation was launched into the two suspects over their possible links to a criminal network involved in the international trafficking of drugs and psychotropic substances by sea, MAP quoted the Moroccan police as saying. Despite efforts to crack down on cannabis cultivation during the past decade, Morocco remains one of the world's largest producers of the narcotic plant, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here Lucknow, Nov 19 : The Uttar Pradesh government has banned products with a Halal tag. Production, storage, distribution and sale of food products with the Halal certification has been forbidden with immediate effect, said the state government in a statement late on Saturday evening. Products manufactured for export, however, will not be subject to the restrictions. "Strict legal measures will be implemented against any individual or firm engaged in the production, storage, distribution, buying and selling of Halal-certified medicines, medical devices and cosmetics within Uttar Pradesh," an official order said. Halal certification of food products is a parallel system which creates confusion regarding the quality of food items and is not tenable under Section 89 of the Food Law Food Safety and Standards Act, the order said. "The right to decide the quality of food items lies only with the authorities and institutions given in Section 29 of the said Act, who check the relevant standards as per the provisions of the Act," it added. It said that certain medicines, medical devices and cosmetic products are reported to feature the Halal certificate on their packaging or labelling when there are "no provisions for marking Halal certification on labels in the government rules related to drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics", nor is there any mention of Halal certification in the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, and its related rules. The move comes after a police case was filed against a company and a few other organisations for allegedly "exploiting people's religious sentiments" to boost sales by providing "forged" halal certificates. The case has been registered against entities such as the Halal India Private Limited Chennai, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust Delhi, Halal Council of India Mumbai, Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra and others for allegedly exploiting religious sentiments to boost sales by providing halal certificates to customers of a specific religion, the state government said in a statement. The complainant raised concerns over a large-scale conspiracy, indicating attempts to allegedly decrease the sale of products from companies lacking the halal certificate, which is illegal, the Uttar Pradesh government said. Agra, Nov 19 : An 11-year-old Dalit girl was allegedly raped by her neighbour in Uttar Pradesh's Agra district, leaving her in a critical condition, the police said. The accused has been arrested. The incident took place on Saturday in Etmaddulah area, when the accused lured the minor girl and then allegedly raped her at a nearby abandoned home in the city. The incident came to light when the girl, drenched in blood, reached her home and narrated the incident to her family members. The girl, experiencing severe bleeding, was admitted to a nearby hospital. Following this, the police launched an investigation and apprehended the accused and took him into custody. The victim's family claimed that a local resident, residing in close proximity, had enticed the girl to an empty house where the assault occurred. After committing the crime, the accused fled the scene. Agra Assistant Commissioner of Police R.K. Singh said that the accused had been arrested and booked under relevant sections of the IPC, Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) and the SC/ST Act. Meanwhile, the victim also informed police that the accused had previously molested her on two occasions, but she did not raise the issue due to fear. Los Angeles, Nov 19 : British actress Olivia Colman has narrated a spooky incident with the paparazzi in London. Recalling the incident, she said that the constant gathering of the paparazzi in front of her house left her a wreck, forcing her to move to the countryside. 'The Crown' actress recalling the incident in an interview with British Vogue narrated the negative side of fame, and said: "We've moved to the countryside, and it's lovely." She added: "It's where I'm from. We never fell out of love with London. I love London, but it became difficultaJust a****** standing outside your front door, following you on the school run," she told the publication according to The Hollywood Reporter. Clarifying her definition of what she meant by paparazzi, the 'Secret Invasion' actress said: paparazzi, aYeah. I was scared. At one point, there were two cars chasing us and I was having a sort of meltdown, terrified. I was crying and they were laughing." Before she became an Oscar winner, there were a few years when she didn't work, having taken a hiatus and recalling that time, she said it was a blessing. For her, everything changed when her series 'Broadchurch' became a massive hit. After gaining a lot of recognition for it, while grateful for the love and respect she got, Colman would often prefer to stay home because she didn't think she was good at dealing with people noticing her on the street, and also because she is a more private person. "People taking what they think is a sneaky photograph, it's always obvious, you always know, and it's awful. Don't do it. It happened the other day at my kids' school, a mum took one. You can't even go: 'Sorry, don't do that', as then they say, 'I wasn't! I didn't!' And then you look like a d***. It's a shame. I wish I was braver, but I'm not." The 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish' actress further added that she has great friends and is familiar with the area they live in, so she can go places where she won't be bombarded by fans. "I don't tend to meet at restaurants," Colman admitted. "Unless you can have a little quiet place. Because you knowa people." She acknowledged the respect that people gave her and said she's grateful, but also wished for some privacy. Tehran, Nov 19 : Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov held a phone talk to exchange views on bilateral relations and relevant issues. The two top diplomats agreed that the improvement in bilateral ties has been satisfactory lately, according to a statement published by the Iranian Foreign Ministry's website on Saturday. Amir-Abdollahian stressed the necessity to improve regional mechanisms for ensuring peace and convergence in the region, Xinhua news agency reported. They called for collective efforts to enhance such mechanisms and dialogue without transregional interference, and the key role that Tehran and Baku could play in this regard. Iran and Azerbaijan had been in a diplomatic row after the latter shut down its embassy in the Iranian capital of Tehran following an armed attack on the mission on January 27 that killed a staff member and injured two others. Nevertheless, Iran has been stepping up diplomatic efforts to restore relations with Azerbaijan over the past months, including launching a probe into the deadly attack. BEIJING, April 26, 2019 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi addresses the opening ceremony of the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation at the China National Convention Center in Beijing, capital of China, April 26,. Image Source: IANS News Cairo, Nov 19 : Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron stressed the need for finding "urgent solutions" to the ongoing crisis in the war-torn Gaza Strip. During a phone conversation, the two presidents exchanged views on the latest developments regarding the military escalation in the Palestinian enclave, the Egyptian Presidency said on Saturday in a statement. The two leaders agreed on the importance of finding urgent solutions to the ongoing crisis and taking action to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid into the besieged Gaza Strip, the statement added. They also emphasised the importance of starting a comprehensive political process with the aim of reaching a just settlement for the Palestinian issue on the basis of the two-state solution, Xinhua news agency reported. Sisi stressed the necessity of an immediate ceasefire and the expansion of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. Israel has been carrying out an all-out attack on Gaza to retaliate against the Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages. According to Gaza's government media office, the Palestinian death toll in the enclave has exceeded 12,000 since the start of the conflict. --IANS int/khz An Afghan worker chops firewood at a firewood shop in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, Nov. 14, 2023. (Photo by Saifurahman Safi/Xinhua) "We have no choice but to buy firewood, even to borrow, although our financial condition is poor," said a the young Afghan father. KABUL, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- As the chilly winter is approaching in war-ravaged and mountainous Afghanistan, Abdullah, a resident in the national capital Kabul, is bargaining with a wood seller to buy firewood at a low price in order to keep his home warm in the harsh winter. Although the weather in Kabul and many other parts of Afghanistan is already cold, and some mountains have been covered with snow, the winter season usually begins in mid-December in the Central Asian country. "I have yet to buy (firewood) ... I live in my own house and cannot buy it. What would be the situation of those living in rented houses? " Abdullah said. An Afghan worker chops firewood at a firewood shop in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, Nov. 14, 2023. (Photo by Saifurahman Safi/Xinhua) The price for 560 kg firewood is 8,000 afghanis (about 116 U.S. dollars) to 9,000 afghanis, compared to 7,000 afghanis to 8,000 afghanis last year. "In an impoverished country where you don't have a job, 8,000 afghanis or 9,000 afghanis are a huge amount of money. We have no choice but to buy firewood, even to borrow, although our financial condition is poor," the young father told Xinhua. Blaming the country's economic hardships in part for the sanctions and assets-freezing by the United States, Abdullah said, "The money belongs to the people of Afghanistan. There would be jobs and economic activities if the money was not frozen." In the wake of the withdrawal of the U.S.-led forces from Afghanistan in August 2021, the White House froze the overseas assets of Afghanistan's central bank worth more than 9 billion U.S. dollars and later allocated part of the sum to the U.S. victims of the 9/11 attacks. An Afghan worker chops firewood at a firewood shop in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, Nov. 14, 2023. (Photo by Saifurahman Safi/Xinhua) Wood seller Hajji Juma Gul said freezing Afghanistan's assets has badly damaged the country's economy. "Afghanistan would benefit, and the hustle and bustle would return to the market if the money was unfrozen. Roads and schools would be built, and all would benefit if the money was unfrozen," the man who has 18 family members told Xinhua. Local people are buying much less firewood because of their poor financial situation, Gul said. A central heating system can be barely seen in houses in Afghanistan's major cities, including Kabul. Afghans often use the traditional firewood stove to warm their houses during winter. "I work every day from dawn to dusk to earn only 100 afghanis to 150 afghanis. I have to use the money to fill my vehicle with petrol. I have nothing," said Khalil, a driver of a three-wheel vehicle. "Life is difficult. If I eat something today, I don't have anything to eat for the next two days," he said. (1 Afghani equals 0.015 U.S. dollar) Damascus, Nov 19 : Explosions rocked the Koniko gas plant, which is used by US forces as a base, in Syria's eastern province of Deir al-Zour following a missile attack, a war monitor reported. There were no reported human casualties or damages despite the blasts, marking the second such incident of the day, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Saturday. Earlier, an explosion resonated in the vicinity of the US base in the al-Tanf area in southeastern Syria, said the Britain-based watchdog group. It added that the US forces intercepted drones, launched by a militant group named the "Islamic Resistance in Iraq," heading toward the al-Tanf base located near the Syrian-Iraqi-Jordanian border triangle. At least one drone was brought down nearly three km from the base. Meanwhile, the pro-government Sham FM radio reported intense sounds of explosions coming from the Koniko gas field northeast of Deir al-Zour, Xinhua news agency reported. It said the attacks, carried out by pro-Iran fighters in Iraq and Syria, are believed to be part of a series of retaliatory moves against the US forces amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in the Gaza Strip. RAMALLAH, April 29, 2019 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas chairs a meeting of the newly formed Palestinian cabinet in the West Bank city of Ramallah, April 29, 2019. Abbas said on Monday that the Palestinian Authority will not accept p. Image Source: IANS News Ramallah, Nov 19 : Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called on US President Joe Biden to immediately intervene to stop the Israeli killing of the Palestinian people. In a televised statement aired by the state-run Palestine TV on Saturday, Abbas urged Biden to immediately intervene in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, given his significant influence on Israel. "What our people are enduring in terms of killing and destruction surpasses human capacity," the Palestinian President said. "Isn't the shedding of the blood of children, women and the elderly enough to awaken the world's conscience?" he asked. Abbas also urged Biden to press for the entry of needed humanitarian aid into the besieged Gaza Strip, stressing that the Palestinian people deserve to live in their homeland with freedom and dignity, Xinhua news agency reported. Abbas added that the Palestinian people will remain steadfast on their land until they attain their legitimate rights to independence and statehood. Baghdad, Nov 19 : An Iraqi Shia militia has claimed responsibility for a drone attack on a US military base in eastern Syria. An armed group named "Islamic Resistance in Iraq" claimed in an online statement on Saturday that its fighters launched a booby-trapped drone on the al-Tanf military base near Syria's borders with Iraq and Jordan. It said that the drone hit its target in the US military base, without providing further details, Xinhua news agency reported. Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, confirmed that the al-Tanf base was attacked and that the US air defence weapons shot down the drone in the vicinity of the base. It obtained pictures of the drone that was shot down by the anti-aircraft at the al-Tanf base area, according to the statement. The attack by the armed group is believed to be part of a series of retaliatory measures against the US forces amid the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip, said the observatory. The incident marked the 39th recorded attack on the US bases in Syria since October 19, it added. Jerusalem, Nov 19 : The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced that it has expanded the offensive against Hamas in the Palestinian coastal enclave of Gaza Strip. The IDF said on Saturday that the attacks were carried out in the Zeitoun district in southern Gaza City and the city of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip to hit Hamas and its infrastructures. It claimed that a Hamas brigade command and control centre is located in Jabalia, with four Hamas battalions, while a major battalion operates in Zeitoun, Xinhua news agency reported. The IDF also revealed the identities of six Israeli soldiers who were killed in Gaza battles over the past few days, bringing to 56 its death toll since launching the ground incursion into Gaza. Israeli troops have been carrying out attacks on Gaza over the past weeks to retaliate against the Hamas surprise attack on southern Israel on October 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages. The ongoing conflict has also killed more than 12,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's government media office. Jerusalem, Nov 19 : Currently there is no deal reached yet on the release of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a press conference. Netanyahu denied "incorrect reports" about a deal of releasing part of about 240 hostages held in Gaza is approaching, adding that the Israeli public will be updated if such an agreement is reached. "All the people of Israel are marching with you," the Prime Minister on Saturday night told the families of hostages, as some of them just completed a five-day march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, urging the government to do more to secure the release of hostages, Xinhua news agency reported. Netanyahu said he invited the representatives of the families to meet his cabinet in the coming days "to clarify how important this issue is to everyone". He also vowed Israel will "keep fighting until Hamas is destroyed," despite growing international pressure to stop the war. Israeli troops have been carrying out attacks on Gaza over the past weeks to retaliate against the Hamas surprise attack on southern Israel on October 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages. The ongoing conflict has also killed more than 12,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's government media office. Cairo, Nov 19 : Egypt has sent a convoy of more than 190 aid-laden trucks to the war-torn Palestinian enclave of Gaza Strip. The convoy, carrying 2,500 ton of aid package provided by Egypt's Tahya Misr Fund, would enter Gaza through the Rafah border crossing. At the launching ceremony held in the Egyptian capital of Cairo, Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on Saturday that so far more than two-thirds of the aid delivered to Gaza came from Egypt, Xinhua news agency reported. Madbouly noted that Egypt will continue to send aid to the people of the Gaza Strip, adding that Egypt also receives "on a regular basis and as many as possible" wounded Palestinians who need medical intervention. Israel has been attacking the Gaza Strip over the past month in retaliation for the surprise strike led by Gaza-ruling Hamas militants on October 7, in which Hamas killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took more than 200 hostages. The ongoing conflict has also killed over 12,000 Palestinians in the coastal enclave. The supplies of water, electricity, fuel and other necessities have been cut off in the Gaza Strip. Since October 21, only limited humanitarian aid has been allowed into the Palestinian enclave through the Rafah crossing from Egypt, the only lifeline for the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza. Gaza, Nov 19 : Hamas has said that the Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip have severed its contact with some of its squads "guarding Israeli prisoners". Abu Ubaida, spokesperson for the Hamas military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, said on Saturday evening in a press statement that the fate of the prisoners and detainees remained unknown, without providing further details. The Israeli military has recently intensified strikes on the besieged Palestinian enclave ruled by Hamas, aiming to root out the militant Palestinian group and secure the release of about 240 hostages taken to Gaza during the October 7 Hamas attack against Israel, Xinhua news agency reported. Israel has been carrying out attacks on Gaza over the past weeks to retaliate against the Hamas attack. The conflict has so far led to the deaths of more than 11,500 Palestinians in Gaza, while on the Israeli side, about 1,200 people have lost their lives, the majority of whom were killed in the Hamas attack. Gaza, Nov 19 : The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) has confirmed that Ahmed Bahar, a member of Hamas' political bureau, was killed by an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip. Hamas said on Saturday in a statement that Bahar died "after being injured as a result of Israeli airstrikes in Gaza," without providing further details. Bahar is the highest-ranking leader officially confirmed dead by Hamas since the outbreak of its conflict with Israel on October 7, Xinhua news agency reported. Bahar, 74, has served as the acting speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council since Hamas won the Palestinian parliamentary elections in 2006. Previously, Bahar also held several other senior Hamas posts, including the head of the Shura Council. Patna, Nov 19 : In the last five-six days, the sand mafia in Bihar has killed three persons including a Sub-Inspector of police and grievously injured two persons in Jamui district of the state. Several other incidents of attacks on government officials and frequent supremacy wars in various districts reveal how these gangs of sand smugglers are running parallel governments in their respective areas of influence in Bihar. After the ban on all liquor operations in Bihar, sand mining is one of the major sources of revenue for the state Government. It also allots contracts to companies for mining in various rivers to extract sand for construction purposes. In the light of this, strongmen in various regions acquire mining pockets in rivers like Sone, Ganga, Gandak, Kosi, Parman and many others. As per the data of the mining department sand prospecting generated revenue to the tune of Rs 2,650 crore in 2022-23 but the officials claim that the sand business is worth over Rs 15,000 crore in Bihar. As a result, murders and wars for domination over this lucrative business frequently take place. Since there is big money involved, a lot of politics also takes place on these issues, and every BJP leader in Bihar claims that the leaders of the RJD are involved in the business. "The sand mafia is running a parallel economy in Bihar. I firmly believe that the size of the sand market is over Rs 25 lakh crore in the state and the maximum stake is owned by the mafia. They are politically connected and protection is directly given by Lalu Prasad's family. Whenever, the RJD comes to power, the Mafia Raj becomes strong in Bihar," said BJP Spokesperson Arvind Kumar Singh. "The way the sand mafia is showing aggression, I firmly believe that these murders are taking place under the protection of state-owned agencies and political parties. The police are claiming that they are taking action against them still a number of murders, including that of police personnel, are taking place due to the war of supremacy between various gangs. The mafia is doing rampant mining in various rivers and the money generated from it will be used in the forthcoming elections," Singh said. However, the RJD refutes all allegations and says that the current government has actually come down hard on the mafiosi. "After the formation of the Nitish-Tejashwi Government in Bihar, the 'Mafia Raj' in sand mining declined. If we compare the crime data during the current government's tenure with that generated during the NDA Government's rule when the BJP was part of it, the number of incidents was higher. I admit that some incidents have happened in Bihar of late but the police of respective districts acted swiftly against the offenders and arrested them. "The allegations leveled by the BJP are completely baseless. There is no truth in it. They have become desperate ever since the Nitish-Tejashwi government has given lakhs of jobs to the people. They are clueless about how to react to it and hence they are leveling baseless allegations against us," said Mritunjay Tiwari, the National Spokesperson of the RJD. Bihar Police says that it regularly conducts raids and imposes fines on offenders. An official said that Bihar Police has arrested 2,439 sand smugglers since January this year and registered 4,435 FIRs for the various criminal offences of the mafiosi. Over 20,000 vehicles were also seized either for not paying taxes for carrying sand or for other violations. Bhojpur district is known for sand mining in Sone River as the sand of this river is in demand for construction purposes. As a result, the district police are always on their toes here. Pramod Kumar, SP, Bhojpur said, "We have seized 18 trucks and tractors from the villages coming under Imadpur, Sikarhatta, Chauri and Tarari police stations. The mafia used to dig sand at night and transport it through tractors and trucks." As per the directives of the state government, mining was started this year from October 15 and soon supremacy wars started in Bhojpur, Aurangabad and Patna. Three persons who were said to be members of different gangs were killed by their rivals. On November 17 a case of hit-and-run was reported from Jinhara Bazar on Kohbarwa-Jhajha road in the morning when a speeding truck laden with sand mowed down Sachin Turi (35), who was on the way to the local market, and sped away. On November 15, two teenage boys were mowed down by a speeding truck laden with sand in the same district. One of them Aayush Kumar (18) died on the spot while his friend Rakesh Kumar was critically injured. The incident occurred at Dadpur-Kabar main road at Machindra Village under Jhajha police station in the district. On November 14, SI Prabhat Ranjan was killed and Home Guard Constable Rajesh Kumar was seriously injured at Chanwar village under Garhi police station. On November 2, sand smugglers attacked a team of the Mining Department, leaving one Constable injured. On November 1, a speeding tractor laden with sand mowed down a Constable in Aurangabad. The list of crimes committed by the sand mafia is endless. Despite sand mining being legal in Bihar, the state exchequer is losing revenue due to the 'Mafia Raj.' Keeping this in view, the Mining Department has made allotments of small clusters to legal bidders during auction and monitors digging and transportation through drones and CCTV cameras. Besides, the state government has also set up check posts, Dharmkantas (Weighing machines) and challan counters at various places across Bihar to keep the mafia in check. Kanpur/Lucknow, Nov 19 : A criminal who has been 'faceless' for the last 20 years, Rashid Kalia a.k.a. Gauda, 45, was killed in an encounter with the UP Special Task Force (STF) in Jhansi, said police on Sunday The encounter took place on Saturday He had had over 50 criminal cases in different districts, including Kanpur, Lucknow and Jhansi registered against him, senior police officials confirmed. The police had declared a reward of Rs 1.25 lakh on Kalia. Additional Director General (ADG), STF, Amitabh Yash said it was difficult to ascertain Kalia's identity as the state police did not have any photograph of him for the past 20 years. He said the police were chasing the faceless criminal for the past so many years. "Kalia's identity was ascertained with the help of some people who tipped us about his location and movement near the Mauranipur area of Jhansi on Saturday. Kalia had come there to target a person after taking a contract to kill him," the official said. The ADG said the criminal had several cases, including 40 murders and carried a reward of Rs 1 lakh from Kanpur Police Commissionerate and bounty of Rs 25,000 announced from Jhansi police. He said Kalia's criminal record was marked by his involvement in several high-profile cases, with the most notable being the 2020 murder of Pintu Sengar, a notorious gangster-turned-politician. He said the accused was known for maintaining a low profile to evade law enforcement agencies. He faced charges for 13 serious crimes in Kanpur alone. The police, however, stated that they are further scanning his crime record in other districts. The ADG said the accused was native of Mahoba but his operational area was Kanpur, Lucknow and Jhansi. He said the criminal used to frequently keep changing his location to evade arrest. In a press note the STF officials said a DSP and an inspector rank officer were hit by bullets during the encounter but escaped unhurt as they wore bulletproof vests. The official said the accused suffered bullet wounds during retaliatory firing and was declared dead when the police team rushed him to Mauranipur community health centre for treatment. The police had recovered a factory-made pistol, two bullet magazines, a country-made firearm, cartridges and a motorcycle on which he was riding at the time of the encounter. SYDNEY, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Two former military planes on a training flight collided on Sunday over the Mornington Peninsula in southeast Australia, sending one plummeting into the water, local media reported. One plane crashed into the ocean about 12 km off the coast of Mount Martha while the other plane made it back to its base after the disaster struck about 1:45 p.m. local time (0245 GMT), The Herald Sun reported. Search and rescue crews were scouring the waters in Mount Martha, located about 50 km southeast of Melbourne. Australia's maritime authorities confirmed two people were on board each of the Viper S-211 Marchetti light aircraft. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) "understands there were two people on board each aircraft: one aircraft landed safely at Essendon airfield, while the other crashed into the water in Port Phillip," it said. Three AMSA rescue helicopters remained at the scene late into Sunday afternoon and a number of Victoria Water Police boats, coastguard and jet skis were seen in the waters, according to ABC News. Kanpur, Nov 19 : In a move prompted by security concerns, the jail administration has shifted three accused in the murders of gangster Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf, to the district prison in Uttar Pradesh's Chitrakoot. The accused Lavlesh Tiwari, Shani and Arun Maurya were brought to the Chitrakoot jail under tight security. They were arrested on April 15 this year when they shot the two brothers being taken to a hospital for medical examination in Prayagraj. The accused trio were lodged in the Pratapgarh jail for security reasons as the Naini jail in Prayagraj had sons and members of Atiq-Ashraf gang. Jail superintendent Shashank Pandey said, "They are being kept separately in a high security block of the prison. We have enhanced security measures in place, including thorough scrutiny of visitors." New Delhi, Nov 19 : Is the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) -- probably as important as the one in 2015 when the universal and legally-binding Paris Agreement was adopted by nearly every nation -- to speed up bolder and more ambitious climate action, amidst the ongoing geopolitical conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East still crucial? World leaders, ministers, negotiators and civil society members will be gathering for two weeks in Dubai for adopting crucial steps to take action and keep 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach because climate change often exacerbates other crises and threatens the security of people. Geopolitics and fossil interests are evident everywhere in climate negotiations, a climate observer told IANS. The key takeaways at the COP28 include climate finance, which is provided and mobilised by developed countries for climate action in developing countries. With temperature records being repeatedly broken and the impact felt worldwide, Global Stocktake, the mechanism that began at COP 26, through which progress under the Paris Agreement is assessed, and the Loss and Damage Fund, established at COP27, need to be reviewed. With two weeks to go for the 2023 Climate Change Conference (COP28) that starts, under the presidency of the UAE, one of the world's top 10 oil-producing nations, the world leaders' summit on December 1-2 seems packed with 167 countries including India. However, China and the US, the world's biggest emitters of carbon dioxide, are not on the schedule but Saudi Arabia, Syria, Russia and Iran are among those who presumably will detail their climate plans. Among the top 10 polluters, China, for example, generates around 30 per cent of all global emissions, while the US is responsible for almost 14 per cent. In the ranking, India ranked third, with 2,654 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2), followed by Russia, Japan, Germany, Iran, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. So far 196 countries, ratified or otherwise, joined the legally-binding Paris climate treaty, representing more than 96 per cent of global greenhouse gas producing nations. Nearly every nation made a commitment to tackle climate change and strengthen their efforts to decarbonise their economies. To limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, greenhouse gas emissions must peak before 2025 at the latest and decline 43 per cent by 2030. India officially submitted two of the four targets announced by Prime Minister Modi in 2021 at COP26 as part of its August 2022 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) update. These two targets are to reduce its emission intensity by 45 per cent below the 2005 levels by 2030 and to increase the share of non-fossil power capacity to 50 per cent by 2030. According to the updated NDC, to put forward and further propagate a healthy and sustainable way of living based on traditions and values of conservation and moderation, including through a mass movement for 'LIFE' -- 'Lifestyle for Environment' is a key to combating climate change. Despite decades of warnings from the scientific community, the most starling facts in the latest State of Climate Action 2023 report show global efforts to limit warming to 1.5 degrees are failing across the board, with recent progress made on every indicator, except electrical vehicles, lagging significantly behind the pace and scale necessary. Also, a new report from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says the abundance of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere once again reached a new record last year and there is no end in sight to the rising trend. Global average concentrations of CO2, the most important greenhouse gas, in 2022 were a full 50 per cent above the pre-industrial era for the first time. They continued to grow in 2023. As long as emissions continue, CO2 will continue accumulating in the atmosphere leading to global temperature rise. However, an optimistic COP28 presidency believes this Conference of Parties (COP), comprising 197 countries who have committed to act on climate change and regularly report on their progress, will be a milestone moment when the world will take stock of its progress on the Paris Agreement. The first Global Stocktake (GST) will provide a comprehensive assessment of progress since adopting the Paris Agreement in 2015. This will help align the efforts on climate action, including measures that need to be put in place to bridge the gaps in progress. Sounding an alarm, a new United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report this month said progress on climate adaptation is slowing on all fronts when it should be accelerating to catch up with rising climate change impacts and risks. The 'Adaptation Gap Report 2023: Underfinanced. Underprepared -- Inadequate investment and planning on climate adaptation leaves world exposed' finds that the adaptation finance needs of developing countries are 10-18 times as big as international public finance flows -- over 50 per cent higher than the previous range estimate. However, a confident UAE presidency says it will work to ensure that the world responds with a clear action plan. Dr Sultan Al-Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology for the UAE and Managing Director and group CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, will preside over the negotiations where fossil fuel phase-out, the main cause of climate change, is likely to receive much attention. Responding to the OECD's statement that developed nations may have achieved their overdue promise of $100 billion to help poorer countries cope with climate change in 2022, Al-Jaber told IANS, "I continue calling on donor countries to deliver on the $100 billion in annual climate finance to developing countries. "Achieving this milestone is essential towards rebuilding trust between the Global North and Global South. The announcement by Germany and Canada is encouraging, but there is still room for further ambition. "Rebuilding trust requires donor countries to live up to their past commitments. This includes an ambitious replenishment of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and operationalising the fund and funding arrangements of the Loss and Damage Fund at COP28." However, the activists have been demanding that the Loss and Damage Fund must be established as a new and independent entity under the UNFCCC. Also civil society organisations, particularly those led by women, youth, indigenous peoples, and frontline communities must have a significant role in decision-making regarding the Loss and Damage Fund. Harjeet Singh, head of global political strategy at Climate Action Network International, told IANS that COP28 is a critical moment to restore trust in the multilateral process, which has been severely undermined by the inaction and unfulfilled commitments of wealthy nations. "Their dismal record in providing climate finance has resulted in significant delays, contributing to catastrophic climate impacts across the globe. "This conference must mark a turning point where wealthy countries confront their historical accountability, abandoning deceptive tactics in favour of genuine support for developing nations. It's imperative they commit to supporting a just transition away from fossil fuels and robustly tackle the climate crisis, upholding the principles of equity, justice, and human rights." In the run up to the COP28, a consensus between the US and China was reached to back a new global renewables target and work together on methane and plastic pollution. To remain on target, science tells the world that emissions must be halved by 2030. Now the globe has another seven years to meet that goal. COP28 UAE is a prime opportunity to rethink, reboot, and refocus the climate agenda. (Vishal Gulati can be reached at gulatiians@gmail.com) Tel Aviv, Nov 19 : Hamas is likely to release those kidnapped from Israel in the next few days, according to information available from the Israel Prime Minister's office. However, it is not clear whether all 240 hostages, who are under the custody of Hamas, will be released in one go or batches. Discussions between Hamas and Israel have been taking place through back door for the past several days at the mediation of the US and Qatar. While Hamas has been insisting on prisoner swap, it is not clear whether Israel has agreed to release Palestinian women and children from prisons. However, sources told IANS that Israel will agree to the release of women and under-aged prisoners as a part of the release of hostages. There could be a five-day ceasefire if hostages are released as per the proposed "agreement" between Israel and Hamas. Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed for more humanitarian aid to reach the Gaza Strip and this is also an indication that Israel will agree for a ceasefire for the next few days for the hostages to be released. Islamabad, Nov 19 : Four terrorists were killed in an intelligence-based military operation in Pakistan's North Waziristan district, said Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the country's Army. Security forces on Saturday conducted an intelligence-based operation, leading to an exchange of fire between the terrorists and security personnel, the ISPR said in a statement, Geo News reported. The slain terrorists included a high-value target named Ibrahim alias Musa, who was highly wanted by the Pakistani law enforcement agencies. "Weapons, ammunition, and explosives were also recovered from the killed terrorists, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities," said the ISPR. The security forces have started a clearance operation in the surrounding ranges, it added Jaipur, Nov 19 : With around 45 rebels from the Congress and the BJP jumping into the fray, speculation is rife if they will be kingmakers in Rajasthan and will dent the prospective voters of the official candidates of the two leading parties. Both the Congress and BJP leaders confirmed to IANS that Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and former CM Vasundhara Raje are aiming to restrict the Congress and BJP seats to 90 so that Independents can have their say and they can rule the roost in their respective party. In December 2018, when Ashok Gehlot and state unit president Sachin Pilot were at loggerheads, 10 of the 13 Independents backed the Congress government "under Gehlot". In fact, Gehlot has been banking on these loyalists in his 5-year tenure. They have always supported him even during Pilot's rebellion and Gehlot has also rewarded them by giving them key positions. However, Pilot had objected to this practice asking aWhy a candidate who fought elections against the Congress candidate be rewarded while honest party workers are ignored?a Now, in the run up to the November 25 assembly polls, the focus is once again on the rebels as around 20 Congress and 25 BJP rebels are contesting the elections as Independents. In successive assembly polls, the difference between the Congress and the BJP's vote share has been reducing as Independents, who are generally BJP and Congress rebels, are gaining importance. Sunil Parihar, considered close to CM Gehlot, has announced he will contest as an Independent from Siwana. This is the same seat from where the Congress has fielded Manvendra Singh, former BJP defence minister Jaswant Singh's son. Former Jodhpur mayor and a close friend of Gehlot, Rameshwar Dadhich, has already quit the Congress after being denied a ticket from Sursagar and joined the BJP. Joharilal Meena, the current Congress MLA from Rajgarh-Laxmangarh, is contesting as a rebel after being denied a ticket. It is not only the Congress, the BJP is also facing the same challenge as Independent candidates are posing a threat to its official candidates. According to officials, Sheo seat of Barmer is the most talked about as one Congress and two BJP rebel candidates are in the fray here. BJP rebels Jalam Singh Ravlot and Ravindra Singh Bhati are contesting the elections, while former Congress district president Fatah Khan is also in the fray as a rebel. The BJP made district party president Swaroop Singh Khara its candidate for the Shiv seat. The Congress has given the ticket to 84-year-old Amin Khan for the 10th time. The former BJP MLA here has joined the RLP and is contesting the elections. The equations have become distorted due to the fielding of 5 strong candidates for this seat. In Chittorgarh the BJP has denied the ticket to its two time MLA Chandrabhan Singh Akya who is now in the fray as a rebel. Shiv, Chittorgarh and Barmer are the most talked about seats due to the rebels. The situation is difficult for the BJP in Chittorgarh where it might lose due to the rebellion of Akya. Despite being called to Delhi for discussions Aakya is firm on his stand. Vidhyadhar Nagar MLA Narpat Singh Rajvi who is the son-in-law of former CM Bhairon Singh Shekhawat has been fielded from here by the BJP. There is a fight over the Barmer seat as well. The BJP has suffered a blow due to the rebellion of Priyanka Chaudhary in Barmer. The party has been continuously losing this seat. The RLP has also supported Chaudhary after which the entire political scene has changed. There is a tough contest for the Deedwana seat also after Vasundhara Raje loyalist Yunus Khan was denied the ticket from here. He has announced he will contest as an Independent which will dent the BJPas vote bank. Also in Shahpura, former Speaker and Raje loyalist Kailash Meghwal is contesting as an Independent. There are more rebels in the field from the BJP than from the Congress. Political analyst Manish Godha confirmed to IANS that rebels will play a key role on December 3 when the results will be announced. As per Godha's calculations, these Independents will matter in around 10 to 15 seats in both the parties. Says Godha: "It is seen that rebels are being supported by prominent leaders of both the parties. It seems these leaders are supporting them for their own goals. When the headcount will start after the election, these rebels associated with prominent leaders will matter to them as happened in December 2018 during government formation and the CM will be chosen accordingly." (TURNCOAT PACKAGE) As they face acid test for political survival, T'gana turncoats to look out for. Image Source: IANS News Hyderabad, Nov 19 : The prominent turncoats in Telangana are not only fighting for their own political future but are also carrying the hopes of the Congress party, which is in search of its first electoral victory in the state With vast political experience and after fighting many electoral battles in different parties, they are going all out to prove their mettle once again. Let us take a look at who they are and how they are faring in their respective constituencies. Gaddam Vivekanand: The former MP quit the BJP to join the Congress on November 1. A few days later, the Congress fielded him from Chennur constituency in the undivided Adilabad district. He was the chairman of the BJPas manifesto committee and one of the leaders the saffron party was relying on. He is locked in a tough fight with the BRS candidate and sitting MLA Balka Suman, who had defeated him in the Peddapalli Lok Sabha constituency in 2014. With declared movable and immovable assets of Rs.606.66 crore, Vivekanand is the richest candidate in the fray in Telangana. The 66-year-old is the founder and chairman of Visaka Industries Ltd. Vivek, as he is popularly known, holds an MBBS degree from Osmania University. He is the son of Congress leader and former Union minister late G. Venkatswamy, who was elected as MP from Peddapalli for four terms. Vivek was elected to the Lok Sabha from Peddapalli in 2009 on a Congress ticket. He later joined the BRS to put pressure on the Congress over the demand for statehood to Telangana. After the Telangana bill was passed in Parliament in 2014, he returned to the Congress. He went back to the BRS in 2016 and was appointed advisor to the state government. He quit the party in 2019 after he was denied a ticket in the Lok Sabha elections and switched loyalties to the BJP. Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy: Returning to the Congress after a 15-month stay in the BJP, he secured a ticket for Munugode, much to the chagrin of several loyalists. He quit the Congress for the BJP in August last year, forcing a by-election but failed to retain the seat. One of the richest politicians in the state, he managed to get the ticket within hours after returning to the Congress. He is once again pitted against Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy, who had defeated him in the by-election in November last year. In the bitterly contested bypoll, the BRS wrested the seat with a narrow margin of 10,309 votes. Prabhakar Reddy polled 97,006 (42.95%) votes, Rajagopal Reddy secured 86,697 (38.38%) votes. The Congress partyas Palvai Sravanthi Reddy finished a distant third with 23,906 (10.58%) votes. Rajagopal Reddy was elected in 2018 by defeating Prabhakar Reddy of the BRS by a margin of 22,457 votes. While Rajagopal Reddy polled 96,961 votes (50.51%), Prabhakar Reddy secured 74,504 votes (30.13%). The BJPas G. Manohar Reddy was third with 12,704 votes (6.39%). Rajagopal Reddy was also elected to the Lok Sabha from Bhongir in 2009, defeating his nearest rival Nomula Narsimaiah of the CPI (M) by a margin of nearly 1.40 lakh votes. He, however, lost the 2014 election from the same constituency to Burra Narsaiah of the BRS. He was later elected to the Telangana Legislative Council. He and his brother and Congress MP from Bhongir, Komatireddy Venkat Reddy are seen as powerful leaders of undivided Nalgonda district. Tummala Nageswara Rao: The former minister defected to the Congress after the BRS denied him a ticket. A five-time MLA, who served as minister in both the undivided Andhra Pradesh and in Telangana, Nageswara Rao has been fielded from Khammam constituency. He is locked in a direct fight against transport minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar. Tummala, who has been with the TDP since its inception in the early 1980s, had served as a minister in undivided Andhra Pradesh in the cabinets of N. T. Rama Rao and Chandrababu Naidu and later became a minister in Telanganaas first government. He joined the BRS in 2014 after the formation of Telangana state and was made minister for roads and buildings in the first TRS government headed by KCR. Tummala was elected to the Andhra Pradesh assembly from Sathupalli constituency in 1985, 1994 and 1999. After Sathupalli was reserved for SCs, he moved to Khammam constituency and later also tried his luck from Palair Tummala was elected on a TRS ticket from Palair in the 2016 by-election. However, in 2018, he lost to Kandla Upender Reddy of the Congress. As Upender Reddy too had defected to the TRS, the party decided to renominate him, dashing the hopes of Tummala who was an aspirant for the ticket. Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy: He was one of the first key BRS leaders to defect to the Congress a few months ago. Suspended from the BRS for anti-party activities, he was toying with the idea of joining the BJP or floating a new outfit along with another suspended leader Jupally Krishna Rao. After the Congress stormed to power in Karnataka, he joined the Congress along with his supporters. One of the richest politicians in the state, he is contesting from Palair constituency in Khammam district. He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Khammam on a YSR Congress Party ticket in 2014 but later switched loyalties to the BRS. He was unhappy after the BRS denied him tickets for both the 2018 Assembly and 2019 Lok Sabha elections. In Palair, Srinivasa Reddy is challenging the BRS candidate and sitting MLA K. Upender Reddy. In 2018, Upender Reddy was elected on a Congress ticket but later defected to the BRS. Jupally Krishna Rao: He too quit the BRS to join the Congress a few months ago. For Krishna Rao, who served as a minister in undivided Andhra Pradesh, it was a homecoming. The party rewarded him with the ticket for Kollapur constituency. He had resigned from the Congress to join the BRS in 2011. He was elected from Kollapur constituency in Mahabubnagar district in 2014 on a BRS ticket. However, he felt sidelined in the BRS after MLA Harshvardhan Reddy, who had defeated him in the 2018 elections, switched loyalties from the Congress to the BRS after the polls. Kollapur had been a stronghold of Jupally. He was first elected from here in 1999 as an independent candidate. He retained the seat in 2004 and 2009 as the Congress candidate. After crossing over to the BRS, he retained the seat in the 2012 by-election and won the seat again in 2014. This time he is facing Harshvardhan Reddy again. Revuri Prakash Reddy: He quit the BJP to join the Congress only a month ago and the party has fielded him from Parkal constituency in Warangal district. Prakash Reddy, one of the last key leaders of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in Telangana, had unsuccessfully contested from Warangal West in 2018. He joined the BJP in 2019. Prakash Reddy, who has been associated with the TDP since the 1980s, was elected MLA thrice from Narsampet constituency. He had also served as a member of its politburo. In Parkal, the 71-year-old is locked in a direct fight with BRS candidate Challa Dharma Reddy, who has been representing the seat since 2014. He was first elected on a Telugu Desam Party ticket but later switched loyalties to the TRS (now BRS) In the 2018 elections, former minister Konda Surekha of the Congress was defeated by Dharma Reddy by over 46,000 votes. Enugu Ravinder Reddy: He quit the BJP to join the Congress last month and the party rewarded him with the ticket from Banswada in Nizamabad district. He is facing the sitting BRS MLA and Assembly Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and Endala Laxminarayana of the BJP. A three-time BRS MLA from Yellareddy, Ravinder Reddy was defeated in the 2018 elections by the Congress candidate. In 2021, he quit the BRS to join the BJP along with former minister Eatala Rajender. Upset over the Banswada ticket to Ravinder Reddy, Congress leader Kasula Balaraju attempted suicide. He had contested the 2014 and 2018 elections as the Congress candidate but lost to Pocharam Srinivas Reddy. Mynampalli Hanumanth Rao: He quit the BRS and joined the Congress recently on the condition that the party will give tickets to him and his son Mynampallu Rohith Rao from Malkajgiri and Medak respectively. Even after BRS supremo KCR retained him as the BRS candidate from Malkajgiri, Hanumanth Rao walked out of the party as his son was denied a ticket. The BRS named Marri Rajasekhar Reddy as its replacement for Hanumanth Rao. The son-in-law of labour minister and leading businessman Malla Reddy, Rajasekhar Reddy is set to give a tough fight to the sitting MLA. He had narrowly lost the 2019 Lok Sabha election from Malkajgiri constituency to Congress leader A. Revanth Reddy. Hanumanth Rao was with the TDP before joining the TRS. He was elected as MLA from Ramayampet and Medak constituencies. After joining the TRS, he contributed to strengthening the party in Greater Hyderabad and the undivided Medak district. Hanumanth Rao had contested the 2014 Lok Sabha polls from Malkajgiri as the TRS candidate but suffered defeat at the hands of Malla Reddy, who was elected on a TDP ticket. Later, Malla Reddy joined the BRS. The BRS fielded Hanumanth Rao in 2018 from Malkajgiri Assembly constituency and it proved a cakewalk for him as he trounced Ramchander Rao of the BJP by a margin of over 73,000 votes. Bhopal, Nov 19 : Defections ahead of the assembly election in Madhya Pradesh have been, mostly one way this time - from the BJP to the Congress -- as several big leaders including some from old saffron families have made a switch over to secure their political future. Political observers claimed that this time Madhya Pradesh has witnessed a reverse trend of defections in the run up to the assembly elections. For the last few years the defections used to happen from the Congress to the BJP. The Scindia factor seems to have acted as a major catalyst in the reversal of the trend. Importantly, one of the primary poll issues in Madhya Pradesh was the BJPas toppling of the 15-month-old Kamal Nath-led Congress government in March 2020 with the help of Jyotiraditya Scindia, who defected with 22 MLAs, including six ministers. The Congress leadership has highlighted this, hitting on Scindiaas credibility during the campaign. Polling for all 230 assembly seats was held on Friday with a 76.22 per cent voter turnout, the highest in the past 66 years of the electoral history in Madhya Pradesh. Subsequent to this, political analysts have begun their assessments about the outcome with the high voter turnout. At the same time, the political observers are also trying to evaluate whether the turncoats will have an impact on the poll results? If yes, then to what extent and whom will it favour? In this context, the situation favours the Congress in many ways more than the ruling BJP because the shifting of a large number of leaders from the saffron party to the opposition has helped to set up a narrative. Secondly, the defections were largely from the Gwalior-Chambal area and have dented Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in his bastion. Many of his loyalists, who had joined the BJP in 2020, have not only made their aghar-wapsia but were also vocal against him. The Congress has fielded merely four-five candidates who have come from the BJP, but most of them are likely to win. Former BJP minister Deepak Joshi, who is the son of ex-CM Kailash Joshi, dealt a major blow to the BJP when he joined the Congress in May this year. He is contesting the election from the Khategaon assembly constituency in Dewas district. The Congress has fielded former BJP MLA Girija Shankar Sharma from Hoshangabad against his brother and three-time MLA Sitasharan Sharma. Abhay Mishra, a former BJP MLA, is contesting on a Congress ticket from the Semaria seat in Rewa. Mishra and his wife Neelam Mishra have together won two assembly elections from this particular seat in 2008 and 2013. Another former BJP leader and Scindia loyalist, who is contesting the election on a Congress ticket is Samandar Patel, whose shifting to the grand old party has caught attention from all corners because of a convoy of over 100 vehicles from Jawad to Bhopal. He is contesting the election from Jawad seat in Neemuch district against the BJPas Om Prakash Saklecha. The BJP has fielded Siddharth Tiwari, the grandson of former Assembly Speaker Sriniwas Tiwari, from Rewaas Tenothar seat, and his position is said to be strong due to being a Brahmin face. New York, Nov 19 : Indian-American entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy has said that it is his Hindu faith that led him to the presidential campaign, and that as a president, he wants to make faith, family, hard work, patriotism "cool" in the US again. Speaking at the 'The Family Leader' forum, organised by The Daily Signal platform on Saturday, the 38-year-old spoke about Hinduism, Christianity and his traditional family values. "My faith is what gives me my freedom. My faith is what led me to this presidential campaign...I am a Hindu. I believe there is one true God. I believe God put each of us here for a purpose. My faith teaches us that we have a duty, a moral duty to realise that purpose. Those are God's instruments that work through us in different ways, but we are still equal because God resides in each of us. That's the core of my faith," Ramaswamy said. Born to Indian parents who moved to the US from Kerala, Ramaswamy also spoke of the traditional values instilled in him by them. "I grew up in a traditional household. My parents taught me family is the foundation. Respect your parents. Marriage is sacred. Abstinence before marriage is the way to go. Adultery is wrong. Marriage is between a man and a woman. Divorce is not just some preference you opt for...you get married before God and you make an oath to God and your family," the Republican presidential-hopeful said. Calling Hindu and Christian faiths "shared values" of God, Ramaswamy said that as a president he will make faith, family, hard work, patriotism, and faith "cool" again in the US. "Can I be a President who can promote Christianity across the country? I can't...I don't think that's what we should want a US President to do either...but will I stand for those shared values? Will I promote them in the examples that we set for the next generations? You are damn right, I will! Because that's my duty," Ramaswamy said. In July this year, the Ohio-based biotech entrepreneur was targeted for his Hindu faith by a televangelist who asked citizens not to vote for him. In August, Conservative pundit and author Ann Coulter made racist comments against Ramaswamy and fellow Indian-American presidential candidate Nikki Haley, calling their clash during the Republican primary debate a "Hindu business". Ramaswamy is the nation's second Hindu presidential candidate after former Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard who ran as a Democrat in 2020. In his address to prospective voters, Ramaswamy often rues that faith, patriotism, hard work and family ahave disappeared, only to be replaced by new secular religions in this country". Jaipur, Nov 19 : Turncoats in Rajasthan politics are the most discussed figures these days. The reason is simple. Many candidates from different political parties have switched to other parties with altogether different ideologies after being denied tickets, leaving the dedicated party workers in a fix on several seats. While the senior leaders are busy in photo ops with the turncoats, according them a warm welcome, some leaders have termed this party hopping as the collapse of the political system. Both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress have given tickets to the turncoats without bothering about political morality or public propriety. The only criteria for getting a ticket is 'Winnability'. Girraj Singh Malinga, the sitting Congress MLA from Dholpur, recently joined the BJP and a few hours later he was announced as the BJP candidate for the Bari seat. In March last year, Malinga allegedly assaulted Harshadhipati Valmiki, a Dalit engineer who suffered multiple fractures, including a broken femur, and is still unable to walk. He was reportedly brutally thrashed by Malinga and his cronies and has been in hospital since the last many months. Following this incident, Malinga, a three-time MLA undefeated since 2008, was not made a Congress candidate. Waiting till the eleventh hour, Malinga finally switched to the BJP on the morning of November 5 and by evening he got the BJP ticket. Last year, the BJP had called Malinga's actions a reflection of "the jungle raj of Congress." However Malinga said this narrative was made up by the Congress high command. Meanwhile, Congress spokesperson Swarnim Chaturvedi said, "We have never ever enacted such a farce, criticising someone for six months for his criminal activities and then giving him a ticket. This is the double faced character of the BJP." Narayan Pancharia, heading the election campaign committee of the BJP, said that Malinga joined the party impressed by its service driven campaign. "He never came on any terms and conditions and was willing to join the party to serve the people of the nation. We gave him a ticket as he expressed concern for service of the people." Meanwhile, the Congress fielded a BJP turncoat Prashant Singh Parmar against Malinga. Parmar had fought from the Bari seat on a BJP ticket in 2018 but switched sides and got the Congress ticket in a few hours. In other words, the two major parties' candidates for the Bari seat are now the same as in the 2018 elections except that the Congress candidate then will now fight on a BJP ticket and the BJP candidate then is now the Congress nominee! A veteran Congress worker on condition of anonymity said, "it is a sorry state of affairs that the ruling party has to bring in candidates from other parties even at a time when its own party workers worked hard for five years to save the government. Such acts should be stopped as they affect the confidence of the voters." A similar situation exists in another seat in the same district. Shobharani Kushwaha, who won the Dholpur seat on a BJP ticket in 2018, was expelled from the saffron party for voting for a Congress candidate in the Rajya Sabha elections last year. She joined the Congress on October 25 and is now the party's candidate from the region. Acting in the same manner, the BJP fielded Shivcharan Kushwaha who fought the last election as a Congress candidate but has now joined the saffron brigade! So Dholpur is yet another seat to see a repeat of the 2018 contest except that the Congress-BJP protagonists have switched parties! Congress spokesperson Swarnim Chaturvedi says, "Shobharani helped us in the Rajya Sabha elections and we have rewarded her." And BJP worker Nimisha Gaur says, "the BJP is a big family of disciplined soldiers. We welcome everyone who wants to join us. Anybody coming to us has to accept our ethos and we accept them wholeheartedly, those who have left this party and joined somewhere else have collapsed," she says about Kushwaha being given a ticket and Shobharani leaving the party. Another example of party-hopping comes from the Tijara seat in Alwar. While the BJP has fielded Lok Sabha MP Baba Balak Nath on this seat, the Congress has brought in Imran Khan who was declared as the official BSP candidate. Khan fought the 2019 Lok Sabha elections as a BSP candidate from Alwar but after switching sides, he replaced the sitting Congress candidate Sandeep Kumar. The ruling Congress granted tickets to many other former BJP leaders including Vikas Chaudhary from Kishangarh who was denied a ticket by the saffron party, Surendra Goyal from Jaitaran, and Colonel Sona Ram in Barmer who again switched parties after being denied a ticket. Vikas Chaudhary was the BJP candidate from Kishangarh in 2018 but announced his independent candidacy after the BJP gave the ticket to the Ajmer Lok Sabha MP. He joined the Congress at a Priyanka Gandhi rally on October 25 and days later got the Kishangarh ticket. Similarly, the Congress has fielded former BJP MP Sonaram Choudhary from the Gudamalani seat in Barmer. "Sonaram returned to the Congress nine years after he switched to the BJP for the 2014 general elections. He got the Congress ticket within hours of rejoining the Congress," said Chaturvedi. Also, Surendra Goyal, a former minister in Vasundhara Raje's government, who was denied a BJP ticket in the 2018 polls, has become the Congress candidate from Jaitaran. A senior Congress party leader told IANS, "Party hopping just doesn't matter these days. What matters is how you can afford to go to the Vidhan Sabha. If your party doesn't give you options, you have other options open for you. So think, pause and move forward." Varun Purohit, a Congress leader, said, "This system of turncoats accorded a warm welcome in other parties symbolises the collapse of the political system. Those leaving the party should be barred from contesting polls for six years. People are losing faith in democracy due to these turncoats who change their ideology frequently. They are not public representatives but are political party representatives, he added. Hyderabad, Nov 19 : Defectors are dominating the election scene in Telangana with the Congress party fielding the maximum number of turncoats from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Nearly one-third of the Congress candidates are those who crossed over to the party from the BRS and the BJP since May, when the Congressa victory in Karnataka elections appeared to have given a new lease of life to the grand old party in Telangana. Several leaders from the BRS and the BJP moved to the Congress on the condition that they would be fielded for the November 30 Assembly elections. Some were even invited by the party to join its camp and contest the elections on its tickets. Some defectors were rewarded with tickets a few days and even a few hours after they switched loyalties. Even with just a few days left for the November 30 elections, party-hopping is continuing with those denied tickets switching loyalties in the hope of either getting nominations for next yearas Lok Sabha polls or getting some plum positions in the future. Interestingly, the saga of defections had started soon after the 2018 elections with about a dozen MLAs from the Congress switching loyalties to the TRS (now BRS) after it retained power. The BRS, which had won 88 seats in 119-member Assembly, succeeded in making a dozen Congress MLAs join its camp. It lured four more MLAs including both MLAs of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) to take its tally to 104. Aiming for a hat-trick in power, the BRS has fielded almost all sitting MLAs and its list was released more than two months before the poll process began. Ticket aspirants, whose hopes were dashed, started making a beeline to the Congress party. As BJP lost the momentum after the drubbing in Karnataka, several of its leaders, too, started looking at the Congress whose leaders were ready to welcome turncoats with open arms. Many of those who left the BRS and the BJP were in fact making a comeback to the Congress after a long gap. The grand old party and the TDP had lost their senior leaders, including former ministers to the BRS after the latter formed its first government in the new state in 2014. The spree to lure leaders started in June with former minister Jupally Krishna Rao and former Khammam MP Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, who were suspended by the BRS for anti-party activities a few months ago. Both were invited by the BJP but after the Karnataka polls they preferred to join Congress. Krishna Rao, has been rewarded, with a ticket from Kollapur in the undivided Mahabubnagar district. He had resigned from the Congress to join the BRS in 2011 and was elected from Kollapur constituency in 2014 on a BRS ticket. He felt sidelined in the BRS after Harshvardhan Reddy, who had defeated him in the 2018 elections, switched loyalties from the Congress to the BRS after winning the election. Congress leaders expect Krishna Rao not only to win Kollapur for the party but also have an impact on the outcome in other constituencies in the district. Similarly, Srinivasa Reddy secured the ticket from Palair in Khammam district. Elected to the Lok Sabha from Khammam on an YSR Congress Party ticket in 2014, he later switched loyalties to the BRS. He was unhappy after KCR denied him a party ticket for both 2018 Assembly and 2019 Lok Sabha elections. A leader with a good support base, Srinivasa Reddy is expected to boost the prospects of the Congress in undivided Khammam district, where the BRS has never done well but managed to lure most of the MLAs elected on Congress and TDP tickets in 2018. The defection of former minister and senior leader Tummala Nageswara Rao from BRS came as another boost to the Congress in Khammam district. The party rewarded him with a ticket from Khammam constituency, where he is locked in a tight contest against Transport Minister P Ajay Kumar. Political analysts say these defections helped Congress gain momentum and it subsequently made many others switch loyalties. The Congress also did not lose the opportunity to lure the sitting BRS MLA from Malkajgiri, Mynampally Hanumanth Rao to its camp after he had raised the banner of revolt against KCR for refusing a ticket to his son Mynampally Rohit Rao from Medak. Though Hanumanth Rao was fielded again by BRS from Malkajgiri (in Greater Hyderabad), he insisted on a ticket for his son. The Congress was quick to assure tickets to both father and son and their names were included in the first list of candidates, despite the revolt the party had to face from some loyalists in both the constituencies. As Hanumanth Rao is considered an influential leader, both in Medak and Malkajgiri, the Congress accommodated the father-son duo, despite criticism from some quarters for ignoring the Udaipur resolution of one family, one ticket. The most interesting case is that of Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy. He was named the Congress candidate from Munugode (in Nalgonda district) a few hours after he quit the BJP to return to the Congress camp. He had resigned from the party and also as MLA last year to join the BJP. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had personally visited Munugode to address a public meeting and welcome Rajagopal, one of the richest politicians of Telangana, into the saffron party. However, he lost the by-election to the BRS candidate. The brother of Congress MP Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, Rajagopal Reddy succeeded in getting the Congress ticket once again from Munugode. Though bitter critics of state Congress chief A Revanth Reddy, the brothers are considered key to the partyas prospects in undivided Nalgonda district. Former MP G Vivekanand, who was chairman of the BJPas manifesto committee, stunned the saffron party by switching loyalties to the Congress. He joined the party in the presence of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. The party has fielded him from Chennur constituency in undivided Mancherial district. Son of former Union Minister G Venkatswamy, Vivek is the richest candidate in the fray with declared family assets of over Rs.600 crore. K Rajesh Reddy, son of BRS MLC Damodar Reddy, defected to the Congress in August. The party has fielded K Rajesh Reddy from Nagarkurnool constituency, which led to the resignation of former minister and senior leader N Janardhan Reddy. TPCC secretary K Ajay Kumar also raised a banner of revolt after he was denied a ticket from Gadwal. The party fielded Sarita Thirupathaiah, a former chairperson of the Gadwal Zilla Parishad, who quit the BRS to join the Congress in July. A MLC from BRS is also among the turncoats. Kasireddy Narayan Reddy quit BRS to join the Congress party last month and he was swiftly rewarded with a ticket from Kalwakurthy. The MLC defected after the BRS leadership denied him a ticket. Interestingly, while the Congress lured BRS leaders who were aspiring for tickets but were not fielded, the BRS during the last few days poached Congress leaders who raised a banner of revolt after defectors were given tickets. BRS working president KT Rama Rao and another key leader Harish Rao personally visited the houses of the disgruntled Congress leaders to invite them to join the BRS. They were promised suitable positions if BRS retained power. Less than two weeks before polling, party hopping is continuing in the state. November 30 will decide which set of turncoats will have the last laugh. A tourist poses for a photo with local children during a cultural tourism festival in Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 19, 2023. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) Tourists and local residents take part in the long street banquet during a cultural tourism festival in Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 19, 2023. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) This aerial photo taken on Nov. 19, 2023 shows a view of Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) Local residents of Hani ethnic group attend a parade during a cultural tourism festival in Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 19, 2023. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) Local residents of Hani ethnic group attend a parade during a cultural tourism festival in Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 19, 2023. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) Local residents of Hani ethnic group attend a parade during a cultural tourism festival in Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 19, 2023. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) This aerial photo taken on Nov. 19, 2023 shows tourists and local residents taking part in the long street banquet as performers passing by during a cultural tourism festival in Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) This aerial photo taken on Nov. 19, 2023 shows a view of the long street banquet during a cultural tourism festival in Luchun County of Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. The long street banquet, a time-honoured tradition of Hani ethnic group in China, was held here during a cultural tourism festival on Sunday. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo) Russia finds itself isolated over Ukraine war as ally Armenia flips to US. Image Source: IANS News Yerevan, Nov 19 : Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said that Yerevan and Azerbaijan have agreed on the key principles for a peace treaty which include mutual recognition of territorial integrity and sovereignty. At the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly autumn session here, he said the principles also include commitment to the 1991 Almaty Declaration as a political framework for the delimitation of borders and unblocking of regional connections under the sovereignty and jurisdiction of the two countries. However, the Armenian Prime Minister admitted that the two countries are still "speaking different diplomatic languages" about their deep-rooted distrust, Xinhua news agency reported. Armenia and Azerbaijan have been at odds over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, since 1988. Peace talks have been going on since 1994 when a ceasefire was agreed on, despite sporadic clashes since then. Hyderabad, Nov 19 : The death toll in the November 13 fire accident in an apartment complex in Hyderabad has gone up to 10 while the police have arrested the owner of the building. Nampally police arrested Ramesh Kuma Jaiswal, owner of Balaji Residency at Bazarghat, nearly a week after the disaster, which claimed lives of the families residing in the flats on rent. The chemical drums kept in the stilt floor of the four-storey building had caught fire which resulted in the horrific tragedy. Police have registered a case under Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 304 (II) (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 285 (Negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter), 286 (Negligent conduct with respect to explosive substance) and section 9B (1) (b) of Explosives Act. Police said they registered a case on a complaint by Mohd. Ahmed, a resident of the same building. According to the complainant, around 0920 hours he heard screams of aBahar ajaoa and noticed that one car kept in the in-front of Balaji Residency was on fire. After a few minutes the resin drums burst and resin spread due to which there was thick smoke and flames rose to a high level. He too shouted loudly and the family residing on the first floor came out. As the flames rose further, other people could not come out. The Fire Brigade rushed to the spot and controlled the flames. The fire department staff went inside and found nine persons residing in second and third floors expired due to burns and suffocation. The death toll mounted to 10 on Saturday when Talha Nasar (17), a student, succumbed to injuries at a hospital. According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Zone) M. Venkateshwarlu police, the accused is doing wholesale and retail business by purchasing resin. He used to get the material from distributors and supply it to his customers the next day. Most of the loads come at night, and the accused was storing the load at the stilt floor of Balaji Residency which was used as a warehouse by him. Several times the inmates had insisted the accused not store the resin drums and cans in the stilt but he did not mend. For his own convenience, the accused always stored the flammable resin drums and cans on the stilts of the building illegally, knowing that the chemical material was jeopardizing the lives of the inmates, the police official said. On the evening of November 11, the accused received 32 cans of 35 kg each, containing resin chemical and stored in the stilt floor. On November 13, a massive fire started from the south side of the building where the accused had dumped loads of resin cans. During the investigation 30 Drums and 88 cans of resin chemical, which were stored in the building, were also seized and samples were sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for chemical examination. Two DVRs from the building were also seized and sent to FSL for data retrieval. Washington, Nov 19 : Eleven members of the US Congress, in a letter to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, have urged the Biden administration to withhold future US assistance to Pakistan, until the country restores constitutional order and holds free and fair elections, local media reported The lawmakers requested a legal determination from the Department of State under the "Leahy Laws" and Section 502(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act to assess if US-origin security assistance had facilitated human rights violations in Pakistan, Dawn reported. "We further request that future security assistance be withheld until Pakistan has moved decisively toward the restoration of Constitutional order, including by holding free and fair elections in which all parties are able to participate freely," they wrote. The country's move to further strengthen the blasphemy law also figured prominently in the letter, which warned Secretary Blinken that the proposed changes would be used to further tighten the noose around smaller religious groups and minorities, Dawn reported. "We are extremely concerned about the passing of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2023 which will strengthen the existing blasphemy law, which has historically been used to persecute religious minorities," the lawmakers wrote. They pointed out that the bill, which is yet to be signed by the president, was "passed in haste despite repeated calls from many lawmakers for a thorough parliamentary procedure." The letter also pointed out that on August 16, eight days after the bill was passed, a mob desecrated churches and set fire to homes of Christians in Jaranwala. It also referred to reported protests against the bill, including by the Shia community in Gilgit-Baltistan, Dawn reported. "Religious persecution remains rampant in Pakistan, and we are concerned about future restrictions on freedom of religion and belief should this Bill become law," the lawmakers warned. New Delhi, Nov 19 : Air quality management progress has been disappointingly sluggish, with persistently high levels of pollution posing a severe threat to public health. Despite mounting scientific evidence, the severe health impacts of toxic air aren't being treated with the necessary seriousness. A scientific paper in Lancet Planetary Health highlighted that 1.7 million deaths in India in 2019 were attributed to air pollution. "Separating official rhetoric from the broader national discourse on toxic air is crucial. While the Indian government is hesitant to acknowledge the link between air pollution and health issues, the public conversation should consider expert opinions and citizens' voices," Climate Activist Bhavreen Kandhari said. To effectively combat the toxic air problem, a transformative shift is imperative -- a comprehensive, year-round systemic approach that goes beyond short-term measures. This entails not only stringent regulations but also robust enforcement, investment in sustainable technologies, and public awareness campaigns. "Official strategies lack a focus on health effects and often opt for short-term solutions like smog towers, which won't solve the pervasive smog issue. The national conversation tends to be fixated on specific times and locations, not particularly in Delhi, rather pan-India prioritizing an air shed approach," Kandhari said. Tackling the root causes, such as vehicular emissions, industrial pollution, and agricultural practices, demands a coordinated effort from government bodies, industries, and citizens alike. Kandhari said: "Various contributors, including construction, vehicular pollution, stubble burning, and industrial emissions, need attention and support, not only relative conversations each year. Questions must be raised about overlooked factors, such as the role of power plants in air pollution." "For example; time to sow wheat is now, what are the government/s going to help with that? What action will be taken now, as actions now will reflect in the next year. Less cars & more buses, less buildings & more forests and trees, less roads & more footpaths/cycle spaces is the way forward through policy and strict implementation," she added. She said that enforcement of emissions guidelines is lacking, and there's a need for hyper-local health impact data. "Despite the launch of the National Clean Air Programme in 2019 and Commission for Air Quality Management, progress has been sluggish, with many cities failing to complete essential studies," Kandhari said. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) recently expressed dissatisfaction with states failing to fully comply with its earlier directives to address the deteriorating Air Quality Index (AQI). Noting a lack of significant improvement in the pollution situation, the tribunal directed concerned authorities to review their approach, implement effective measures, and submit a detailed action taken report. Earlier notices were issued to chief secretaries of states, including Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Bihar, and Jharkhand. The tribunal took cognizance of the Central Pollution Control Board's air quality bulletins, which indicated 'severe,' 'very poor,' and 'poor' AQI levels in certain cities. The AQI, measured between zero and 500, categorizes air quality from 'good' to 'severe plus.' The tribunal's Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava noted the AQI during November 3-9 and stated that authorities were lacking in making necessary efforts to improve air quality. The tribunal stressed on the need for immediate remedial action and called for a review of long-term action plans mentioned in state reports. It directed chief secretaries to identify major pollution sources, take immediate steps for control, and file further action taken reports. Highlighting the serious health effects, especially on infants and the elderly, the tribunal urged the authorities to address the issue with full seriousness. The matter is scheduled for further proceedings on November 23. In a nutshell, only through sustained commitment and collaborative action can India hope to make significant strides in mitigating air pollution and safeguarding the well-being of its population. "To effectively combat the toxic air problem, a comprehensive, year-round systemic approach is necessary, not only reactionary actions like GRAP, sprinklers, or shutting down schools," Kandhari said. Tel Aviv, Nov 19 : The Israel government has rejected a suggestion by the US for handing over the control of Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority (PA) after the end of the war. According to sources in the Israel Prime Minister's office, the Israel government has rejected the suggestion of the Palestinian Authority controlling the rule of Gaza strip after the war. Israel has informed the US that the PA may not be able to wield considerable control in the Gaza strip as the possibility of Hamas regrouping would be more. The Israel side, also said that the Israel Government wishes the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to control Gaza for the time being and to later discuss further possibilities. The Israeli government has informed that Hamas had a history of executing senior leaders of the Palestinian Authority to capture power in the Gaza strip. The Israel Security Agency (ISA) is also stiffly opposed to handing over the control of the Gaza strip to the Palestinian Authority (PA). Hyderabad, Nov 19 : Actor and BJP candidate from Andole constituency in Telangana, P. Babu Mohan's son Uday Babu Mohan on Sunday joined Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). Uday formally joined the ruling party in the presence of BRS leader and state minister T. Harish Rao in Siddipet. Along with Uday, some local public representatives from Andole and Jogipet and BJP leaders joined the BRS. The minister urged them to work for the victory of BRS saying that it was working for the development of Telangana. In 2018, former minister Babu Mohan had quit TRS (now BRS) after he was denied a ticket to contest Assembly elections. The saffron party fielded him from Andole constituency in Sangareddy but he suffered a humiliating defeat, finished a distant third with just 2,404 votes. The BJP has once again fielded him from the same constituency for November 30 elections. In 2014, Babu Mohan was elected on TRS ticket from Andole. The veteran actor, known for comedy roles in Telugu films, entered politics by joining Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in the 1990s. He was first elected from Andole in 1998 by-elections and retained the seat in 1999. He served as Minister for Labour in Chandrababu Naidu's cabinet in (then unified) Andhra Pradesh. He lost the election from the same constituency in 2004 and 2009. In 2014, he quit TDP to join TRS. New Delhi, Nov 19 : After six months of power struggle between pro and anti B. S. Yediyurappa factions in the BJP, the party appointed leader's son Vijayendra Yediyurappa as the state party president and made R. Ashoka LoP in the state Assembly, in a move to balance the Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities, but will it stop bickering in the saffron camp in the state? Vijayendra's appointment is being widely seen as a move by the BJP to counter the narrative that Lingayat leaders were sidelined by the saffron party. With the calculated moves, the BJP, which suffered defeat in the Karnataka Assembly polls, is hoping to do well in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Vijayendra's appointment is also being seen as an olive branch to B. S. Yediyurappa who helped the BJP to win the first election in South India. After completion of two years of his government in his fourth stint as chief minister, B. S. Yediyurappa resigned in July 2021, paving the way for Basavaraj Bommai to become the Chief Minister, who comes from Lingayat community. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the party high command acknowledging Yediyurappa's political influence had made him a member of the BJP Parliamentary Board. Despite losing Karnataka Assembly polls, the anti-Yediyurappa faction remained so powerful that no decision could be made regarding the state president or the Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly for around six months. B.S. Yediyurappa in his every visit to the national capital used to urge the party high command to make appointments to the post of party state president and leader of opposition in the state Assembly. After that, the party high command last week appointed Vijayendra Yediyurappa, as the state president of the Karnataka BJP. On Friday, in the presence of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, BJP National General Secretary Dushyant Kumar Gautam, B.S. Yediyurappa, and the newly appointed state president of Karnataka BJP, Vijayendra Yediyurappa, a meeting of the legislative party was held, in which former deputy chief minister R. Ashoka was appointed as the leader of opposition in the Karnataka Assembly. After six months, the Karnataka BJP finally got a new state president, and the party MLAs got their leader. As B.S. Yediyurappa will have to put up his best show in the general elections and that too in a situation where there is no indication of any changes in the party's central team, it poses a significant challenge for the pro-BSY faction. (Santosh Kumar Pathak can be contacted at santosh.p@ians.in) New Delhi, Nov 19 : As we celebrate the spirit of International Men's Day 2023. Here is a gifting guide to make your man feel special. Philips Multi Grooming Kit MG7715 This is the ultimate grooming tool, offering 13 premium attachments for head-to-toe personal styling. With advanced DualCut Technology, it ensures maximum precision with 2x more blades that stay sharp. The self-sharpening steel blades enable clean, straight lines, and the trimmer includes a skin protector system for comfortable shaving below the neck. Boasting 120 minutes of cordless use, a 5-minute quick charge, and a rubber ergonomic grip, it provides convenience and control. The showerproof design allows for use in the shower and easy cleaning. Backed by a 2-year warranty, this all-in-one trimmer is a versatile solution for various styles, from long beards to detailed styling. Priced at Rs. 3,999/- Available on Philips India store and Amazon Senhor Collection from Kalyan Jewellers Taking inspiration from the Portuguese term for asira or agentlemana, the Senhor collection merges contemporary style with classic design, catering to the modern man's desire for distinctive and meaningful accessories. With this all-new collection, the company aims to provide affordable, everyday accessories that effortlessly integrates into modern lifestyles of the todayas consumer. Riding on the trend of growing preference among consumers for menas jewellery pieces as a gifting option for to-be-grooms, Kalyan Jewellers aims to leverage the ongoing wedding season as an opportunity to strengthen its market share. T.A.C HIM - Elemental Luxury Perfume Set Elevate your senses with T.A.C HIM - Elemental Luxury Perfume Set, an aromatic journey inspired by the Ayurvedic elements. Aakash, Vaayu, Agni, Jal, and Prithvi converge in scents that go beyond fragrance, embodying the remarkable energy that defines every man. Crafted with top-notch oils and natural extracts, each spritz is a celebration of strength and charm. Apply on pulse points for a touch of Ayurvedic rejuvenation, allowing ancient wisdom to amplify the essence of your masculinity. Priced at Rs. 1099/- Link: theayurvedaco.com Tie Dye Coord set by The Bear House The Bear Houseas coord sets are designed with a snug 340 gsm terry fabric. Featuring a tasteful tie-dye effect in multiple colors, these sets offer a lively and vibrant look. The sleeve cuff keeps it simple with minimal branding, while the chest has a minimal Bear logo. It's all about comfort paired with a touch of style, creating a laid-back ensemble. Priced at Rs. 2339/- Link: thebearhouse.com Royal Luxury Edition The Royal Luxury Edition Gift Set from Truefitt & Hill is an exceptional collection of grooming essentials curated for the discerning gentleman who appreciates the finer things in life. This opulent set includes: Hair Management Frequent use shampoo 100mlTruefitt & Hill Apsley Cologne 50mlTruefitt & Hill Apsley Bath & Shower Cream 200mlOne Royal Grooming Service Voucher Priced at Rs. 7500/- Link: Royal Luxury Edition Truefitt & Hill Bathroom Gift Set The Truefitt & Hill Bathroom Gift Set - Fragrance is a refined collection of grooming essentials, which includes Shaving Cream Bowl (190g), Hand & Bath Soap (150g), Bath & Shower Gel (200ml) each infused with one of four distinct fragrances: Trafalgar: A classic fragrance with a blend of spicy, citrus, and woody notes that exude sophistication and elegance.1805: A timeless and invigorating fragrance that combines fresh and spicy notes with a hint of woodiness, evoking a sense of adventure.Grafton: A captivating fragrance with a blend of spicy, woody, and fresh notes, creating a scent that's both refined and distinctive.West Indian Limes: A zesty and invigorating fragrance that combines notes of limes, lemon, and bergamot for a fresh and uplifting scent. Priced at Rs. 5800/- Link: Truefitt & Hill Bathroom Gift Set GAP To transition smoothly from AM to PM, GAP's iconic wardrobe staples are your best option! With versatile options ranging from trendy pieces to denims that keep you suave, GAP offers the perfect gift to complement every man's unique style on this special occasion. Priced at Rs. 2,199/- onwards. Available on gap.ajio.com ECCO Elevate your gifting game this season with ECCO, the epitome of Danish craftsmanship and style since 1963. Explore a world where elegance meets cutting-edge technology, making every step a statement for the fashion-forward man in your life. From tech-infused sneakers to timeless Chelsea boots and classic formal shoes, ECCO delivers a premium range that transcends trends. Give the gift of sophistication with ECCO a" where legacy meets innovation in every meticulously crafted pair. Priced at Rs. 16,999 /- Available on ecco.com Bathmateas Hydromax7 Clear Bathmate Hydromax pump is the worldas best and only water-based vacuum pump for men. The penis pump can be used in the shower or bath which is super convenient if you wish to use it on a regular basis as a part of your daily routine. Priced at Rs.16,799/- Available at lovedepot.com Tenga Egg Wavy Small but fierce! The Tenga egg shape was created with this exact notion in mind. It has a powerful stretching substance that will completely engrope your penis in the abode of ecstasy. Itas little, simple, and guaranteed to get you to the ideal climax. Priced at Rs. 1,699/- Available on lovedepot.com Carl F Bucherer launches a new Manero Flyback 40mm The Manero Flyback in 40 mm has been given a monochromatic makeover that mirrors the opposing facets of busiest cities a" worlds where brick and steel sit alongside oases of calm, where crowded streets and careers are balanced by home life and social moments, where the frenzy of the day gives way to the excitement of the night. Carl F. Bucherer explores this binary nature with the two-tone sophistication of a sunray-brushed dial a" either in silver with black counters or black with silver counters a" and the choice between a stainless steel bracelet or a black textile strap. Against the stainless steel case, the dial feels simple and unfussy, yet at the same time powerfully bold and undeniably stylish. IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in --IANS os/ lh; Tel Aviv , Nov 19 : A United Nation's team has evacuated 30 premature babies from Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital, the medical facility said in a statement on Sunday. Ras Naqoura School in Gaza will soon be accredited as a field hospital to deal with emergency cases, Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry said. There are reports of major hospitals including Al-Shifa and Al-Qoods not being able to function following Israel's attack. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is continuing its invasion within Gaza and have told people in northern Gaza to move to Southern Gaza. -- IANS aal/svn New Delhi, Nov 19 : Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Sunday appealed to the people to stay vigilant and continue to follow the rules as stages 1, 2, and 3 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) were still in place to combat air pollution in the national capital. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) sub-Committee issued an order on Friday revoking the GRAP Stage 4 actions with immediate effect in Delhi and its peripherals. The decision, made in response to the prevailing air quality conditions, rescinds the order issued on November 5. In a press conference on Sunday, Rai clarified that the status of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) stages I, 2, and 3 were still in effect, despite the lifting of restrictions under GRAP 4. Rai said that there was a positive trend in air quality over the past two days, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) reaching 290. However, he urged the public in Delhi and North India to remain cautious and comply with the established rules. The minister said that only restrictions on truck entries have been lifted at present, while BS-III and BS-IV diesel and petrol vehicles are still prohibited from entering the capital. Interstate buses with these specifications are also barred from entering Delhi. Rai also announced the lifting of the ban on certain construction activities, including the construction of flyovers, road development, foot overbridges (FOBs), high power tension lines, metro, airport, and other ongoing projects. However, restrictions on activities prone to dust pollution, such as piling, digging, drilling, and boring, will persist to maintain air quality improvements Hani al-Rakoui works on a piece of souvenir at his workshop in Damascus, Syria, Nov. 9, 2023. Hani al-Rakoui, a Palestinian refugee living in Syria, is on a unique journey to safeguard and promote the Palestinian heritage among the diaspora by creating artworks representing his homeland culture. (Photo by Monsef Memari/Xinhua) by Hummam Sheikh Ali DAMASCUS, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Hani al-Rakoui, a Palestinian refugee living in Syria, is on a unique journey to safeguard and promote the Palestinian heritage among the diaspora by creating artworks representing his homeland culture. Inspired by his father, who started the work back in 2000 in the Yarmouk Camp, the largest camp for Palestinian refugees in the Syrian capital Damascus, the now 36-year-old information technology graduate has taken on the mission to connect Palestinians living abroad with their traditional culture. At his house in the countryside of Damascus, al-Rakoui has established a workshop, where he creates various artworks, like carved maps of historic Palestine, and models of the religious Dome of the Rock mosque in Jerusalem, among other ornaments related to the Palestinian culture. He also works with designers and tailors to design various patterns and shapes for the famous Palestinian Keffiyeh scarfs and traditional Palestinian women's thobes and dresses that suit weddings and ceremonial events. "Today, Palestinian refugees wish to have something that relates to Palestine, which could connect us with our homeland, activate our memories, and teach our children that this is Palestine. In the end, we are refugees, and we must return to our homeland," he told Xinhua at his workshop. Al-Rakoui, along with his father Muhammad, a famous painter who focuses his work on portraying the feelings of the Palestinian diaspora, has been taking the narratives beyond borders by showcasing their artworks at numerous international exhibitions. He noted that the demand for their products increased during the ongoing crisis in Gaza due to people's sympathy with the situation. Instead of being a purely commercial activity, al-Rakoui believes that their work is a commitment as Palestine nationals. Despite the difficulties they face in Syria, particularly after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, they as Palestinian refugees are making efforts to maintain their heritage and identity, he noted. "We want this work to become a continuous, long-lasting endeavor. As Palestinian refugees, we hold onto our heritage and our Palestinian identity," he said. Hani al-Rakoui works on a piece of souvenir at his workshop in Damascus, Syria, Nov. 9, 2023. Hani al-Rakoui, a Palestinian refugee living in Syria, is on a unique journey to safeguard and promote the Palestinian heritage among the diaspora by creating artworks representing his homeland culture. (Photo by Monsef Memari/Xinhua) New Delhi, Nov 19 : At least 255 fake call centres have been busted in Noida in last six years for carrying out fraudulent activities in which mostly U.S citizens were targetted, a police official said. He said that Noida has become a hub for such activities, with fake call centers being exposed regularly. People engaging in these activities have been caught across different sectors in Noida and Greater Noida over the past six years. "More than 255 call centers and telephone exchanges have been busted and seized in Noida and Greater Noida in last six years which were engaged in fraudulent activities related to jobs, insurance, cyber assistance, and various other scams," ACP Shakti Awasthi said. He said that Noida Police have arrested at least 14 individuals for scamming U.S citizens in the name of health insurance policies. "These arrests took place at Sector-2 B-43 in Noida Phase-1 police station. They operated from a call center and were targeting U.S citizens through internet calls and deceived them under the pretext of providing health insurance policies," he said. Awasthi said that the gang made internet calls, frequently changing their names during the calls to avoid detection. "We have seized data sheets and other equipment from the suspects," he said. He said that they informed people about health insurance policies and if anyone expressed interest, the call was transferred to the company named Harvard Business Services INC, for which they received $30 to $35 per person. "These activities were conducted without any authorisation or license. The Electronic Surveillance Team, Manual Intelligence, and confidential information were utilised to track and apprehend the suspects. This is not the first case where call centers involved in defrauding U.S. citizens have been exposed and individuals arrested; several such centers have been caught over the past six years," police said. The police are currently examining their criminal records. Most of the individuals working at this call center reside in Ashok Nagar, Delhi. "This incident is part of a broader pattern where individuals are arrested for running fraudulent call centers engaging in various scams targeting U.S citizens," a police official said. The police officials said that people must exercise caution while receiving calls related to job offers, insurance, loans, or courier services. "Fraudulent schemes may lead to financial losses, and one should be vigilant and skeptical in such situations," a police said. He said that the individuals running such call centers often have a criminal background in insurance or related industries. "Once they obtain the data, they call individuals, posing as bank officials or authorities, exploiting the fear of legal consequences. They provide information about the loan application status, lapses in repayment, or loan disapproval. After gaining the victim's trust, they request additional personal information, such as email, Aadhar and PAN card numbers, or photo copies," the police said. He said that they then create a fake loan approval letter and send it via email or WhatsApp. "Considering it authentic, victims transfer money to the provided account. These accounts are also fake and once the transfer is completed, the perpetrators withdraw the money and disappear. With access to the victim's data, they further exploit them through phone calls," he said. He said that in addition to phone calls, these fraudsters promote themselves on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, sharing contact numbers and luring people with tempting offers. Noida Police, recently, busted a center involved in defrauding the U.S citizens. "At least, 84 individuals were arrested for scamming people using their social security numbers, demanding money through gift cards and cryptocurrency. They utilised visual software and dialers to change the local network of VoIP calls over the internet," the police said. Police said that in another operation by Sector-1 police station, 14 individuals were apprehended for data theft and scamming people under the pretext of loan lapses. "Six women were part of this group, involved in fraudulent loan approvals and scams," police said. Police said that in Sector-63 arrested six individuals associated with a finance hub company for swindling people of lakhs of rupees in the name of fake loans. "They also duped people by claiming to facilitate loan approvals," the police said. The Cyber Crime Unit has cracked down on a fake telephone exchange operation. "The individuals manipulated VoIP calls over the internet to appear as local network calls. We are preparing a database of arrested cybercriminals using their fingerprint data to facilitate future investigations," an official said. He said that over 1,000 mobile numbers associated with cyber fraud are currently under the radar of the UP Cyber Crime Police. "These numbers have been linked to various cybercrimes in recent months. The investigation may lead to the deactivation of active SIM cards used for cybercrime. Most of these numbers are from Jamtara, Mewat, Bharatpur, and some districts of Bihar," the official said. --IANS pkt/dan Lusail, Nov 19 : A mixed evening at the Lusail International Circuit for the Repsol Honda Team as Marc Marquez made the most of Q2 before overcoming a Sprint full of hard knocks. Conditions in Qatar remained calm and stable as the premier class rolled out of pit lane under the setting sun to start their Saturday. Both Repsol Honda Team riders completed their final preparations in amorninga practice before heading into Qualifying. Marquez continued to achieve his targets for each session, transforming a top-ten on Friday into a solid seventh place in Qualifying. Having entered the weekend with reserved expectations, the continual improvements buoyed the eight-time World Champion for the Sprint. A strong start to the short race saw him hustling in and around the top five with a flurry of hard moves shuffling the pack around. Unfortunately, a racing incident with Brad Binder forced Marquez off track, dropping him back from the group battling at the front. The fighting resumed for Marquez who did his best to defend before crossing the line in 11th, just outside of the Sprint points. aWe made a really good start to the race and had a strong first lap. Unfortunately, I had a race incident with Binder soon after, it happens. Then I got a bit stuck behind Zarco and I couldnat get past him which limited us. "Towards the end of the race I went wide at Turn 1 and had some contact with Raul Fernandez a" sorry to him. At a track like Qatar, these things can happen because when you go off line even a little bit it is very slippery. Another one to try tomorrow," said Marquez. The complications continued for Joan Mir, who was unable to make major improvements to his overall position throughout Saturday. Qualifying in 20th, the 2020 MotoGP World Champion started well and made up several places in the opening laps. aToday was really tough and we obviously canat be happy with the result. There are some things that we need to check deeply to understand our situation better for the race tomorrow. I was expecting more from today because it looked like we had found the direction to follow on Friday. Thereas another chance tomorrow so letas see whatas possible," Mir said. The 11-lap Sprint would conclude with Mir battling alongside Takaaki Nakagami, ending the race in 19th. Now the main event awaits the MotoGP field, the 22-lap Qatar Grand Prix scheduled to commence at 22:30 on Sunday. Chandigarh, Nov 19 : In pursuit of its zero-tolerance policy, the Haryana government has dismissed three out of six employees who were arrested on the charges of impersonation in Haryana Common Entrance Test (CET) held on October 21 and 22 for Group-D posts. An official spokesperson said the dismissed employees are Devi Parson, who was serving as a peon in the District Treasury Office, Hisar, constable Kavita Devi stationed at Kurukshetra, and sub-inspector Amarlata posted at Bhiwani. Devi Parson's dismissal order has been issued by the Treasurer Officer in Hisar, while Kurukshetra SP Surinder Singh and Varun Singla in Bhiwani issued the dismissal orders for Kavita Devi and Amarlata, respectively. The spokesman said three more employees booked for impersonation are Sunil Kumar, serving as a clerk in the office of Executive Engineer, Hisar; Ashish Kumar, serving as clerk in the office Land Acquisition Officer, Hisar; and Vikas, serving as a registration clerk at the Tehsildar office in Panchkula. Devi Parson was apprehended by the police for appearing in the CET Group D exam on behalf of Vikas Kumar bearing roll number 35735225. The complaint was filed by Sunil Kumar Bainda, the centre superintendent at Om Sterling Global University in Juglan, Hisar, citing a discrepancy in the biometric finger print. He said constable Kavita Devi came in place of her friend Ritu bearing roll no 45848140, while Amarlata appeared in place of her friend Pooja bearing roll number 45848185. Both were implicated based on a complaint from the centre invigilator in Guhla regarding a mismatch in biometric finger prints. Ashish Kumar, who has been arrested for impersonation, was appearing for exam in place of Sunil Kumar bearing roll number 15133122 at Kundanpura Uklana Mandi, Hisar. Similarly, Vikas was arrested while appearing for exam in place of Purushottam bearing roll number 26021097 at Kaithal. Guwahati, Nov 19 : An accused was seriously injured in police firing in Ratabari area of Assam after he tried to escape from the police on Sunday, a police official said. The accused identified as Anwar Ali, allegedly burnt down a 19th century temple in Assam's Karimganj, was arrested by the police on Saturday from Ratabari area. "After his arrest, Ali was on a police van enroute to Ratabari police station. However, he requested the policemen to attend a nature call. In the meantime, the accused tried to snatch the gun from a policeman and tried to flee from there," a senior police officer said. Police said that even after several warnings the accused was not ready to put his gun down. Later, he was shot in the leg by the security personnel and arrested. Ali has been admitted to a local hospital and he is undergoing treatment. The police said that his condition is stable. Partha Pratim Das, the Superintendent of Police in Karimganj said that in the preliminary questioning, the accused confessed his involvement in burning down a 19th century temple in Damcherra Tripura Punji neighbourhood out of personal vendetta. Notably, the 200-year-old temple in the Damcherra Tripura Punji area of Karimganj district was reduced to ashes, igniting tensions among the locals on November 6. The police claimed that Ali had some issues with a neighbouring family and he wanted to put the blame of burning down the temple on them. Further investigation in the matter is underway. Ahmedabad, Nov 19 : Ahmedabad will host global assembly of fisheries experts, policymakers, and diplomats at the Global Fisheries Conference India 2023. The event is scheduled for November 21 and 22 which will coincide with World Fisheries celebrations. It will be organised by India's Department of Fisheries, under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. The conference will focus on fostering international partnerships, highlighting innovations, and promoting startups for a sustainable future in fisheries. More than ten countries have confirmed their participation including France, Norway, Australia, Russia, Brazil, Greece, Spain, New Zealand, and Zimbabwe. Over 50 foreign diplomats will virtually join the conference. Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN (FAO), and the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) will be among the attendees. The conference will be inaugurated by Fisheries Minister Parshottam Rupala and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel. The event will offers platform to over 210 national and international exhibitors, including startups, fisheries associations, and processing industries, to showcase their products, success stories, and innovative solutions. 29 Myanmar soldiers repatriated to their country after 3 days. Image Source: IANS News Imphal/Aizawl, Nov 19 : Authorities on Sunday repatriated 29 Myanmar soldiers, who on Thursday (Nov 16) fled to Mizoram's Champhai district, after their camp at Tuibual in Chin state was captured by the civilian armed forces. Officials said that two Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopters on Sunday airlifted the 29 Myanmar soldiers from Mizoram's Champhai to Manipur's Moreh town and they were handed over to Myanmar's military authority. "After completing necessary formalities including biometric process, the Indian authorities handed over all the 29 soldiers to Myanmar Army officers at Tamu (opposite to Moreh border) in the neighbouring country," an official told IANS. Moreh town, 110 km south of Manipur capital Imphal, is the biggest border trading center along the India-Myanmar border. Mizoram's Inspector General of Police, Headquarters, Lalbiakthanga Khiangte said that on November 16, twenty nine more Myanmarese soldiers, including a major and a captain fled to Mizoram's Champhai district. "The Myanmar Army soldiers on Thursday approached the police and we handed them over to the Assam Rifles. They were under the custody of the para-military force and stayed at the Vaphai Assam Rifles camp," Khiangte told IANS. The 29 Myanmar soldiers fled to Indian territory after their camp at Tuibual in Chin state was captured by the Chin National Defence Force (CNDF), the armed wing of the Chin National Organisation (CNO). The Myanmar Army's Tuibual camp in Chin state near the India-Myanmar border along Mizoram. The soldiers on Thursday crossed the Tiau river to enter Mizoram and sought shelter in Indian territory. Tiau river serves the boundary between India and Myanmar. On November 13, forty-five Myanmar soldiers, including officers, had fled to Mizoram after the CNDF took control of two military bases in Myanmar's Chin state and subsequently were airlifted by IAF helicopters to Manipur's Moreh town and they were handed over to Myanmar's military officials the next day. Besides soldiers, around 1,400 Myanmarese, including women and children, took shelter in Mizoram's Champhai last week following the gunfight between the Myanmar's Tatmadaw (military) and CNDF cadres. The district administration has provided food and relief materials to the refugees. Necessary medical aid was also given to those hapless evacuees. The first influx from Myanmar happened in February 2021 after the Military junta seized power. Since then, 32,000 people including women and children from Myanmar have taken shelter in the northeastern state. A majority of the refugees live in relief camps and government buildings, while many others are accommodated by their relatives and a large number of people of Myanmar have been staying in rented houses. Mizoram's six districts -- Champhai, Siaha, Lawngtlai, Serchhip, Hnahthial and Saitual -- share a 510-km-long unfenced and mountainous border with Myanmar's Chin state. The Assam Rifles, which guarding the unfenced 1,643-km India-Myanmar border has stepped up its vigilance along the frontier. Delhi Hospital Horror: 'Fake' chemist held for referring people to Agarwal Medical Centre on 35% commission. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, Nov 19 : Delhi Police have arrested a fake chemist who sent over 40 people for surgeries to Agarwal Medical Centre in south Delhi. Investigation has revealed that 'doctors' at the hospital performed medical procedures on patients without possessing the necessary degrees or authorisation. The accused has been identified as Julfiqar (42), a resident of Prahladpur, who ran a clinic-cum-medicine shop in Sangam Vihar. The police said that Julfiqar used to sell homeopathy and allopathy medicines without a valid licence. On Tuesday, the police had arrested Neeraj Agarwal, his wife Pooja Agarwal, Mahender (ex-lab technician) and Jaspreet, who fabricated surgery notes of planned surgeries by unqualified individuals. As per the police, eight people died during and after the medical procedures, while one patient lost her uterus at the said hospital. On interrogation, Julfiqar told the police that he contacted Neeraj Agarwal after he found his number written on a card that was distributed by some boys in Sangam Vihar. "Neeraj Aggarwal agreed to give Julfiqar 35 per cent commission for each patient he referred. Julfiqar referred patients in need of operation such as stone removal or delivery to Aggarwal's clinic," said Chandan Chowdhary, DCP (South). Payments from Aggarwal to Julfiqar were made through phone transactions linked to his mobile number. "Their association spanned for approximately 5-6 years. The latest referral was Asgar Ali, who unfortunately passed away during treatment," said the DCP. "The autopsy report of Asgar Ali indicated the cause of death as hemorrhagic shock due to complications from laparoscopic cholecystectomy," the officer added. In total, Julfiqar referred around 40 to 50 patients to Aggarwal for various treatments, including delivery, abortion, and stone operations. "Aggarwal typically charged Rs 15,000 to 20,000 for delivery and stone operations, and Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 for abortion," Chowdhary said. According to the police, on October 10, 2022, a woman from Sangam Vihar filed a complaint alleging that her husband underwent gallbladder stone removal at Agarwal Medical Centre on September 19, 2022. Initially, Agarwal claimed that a 'renowned' surgeon -- Jaspreet Singh -- would perform the surgery. However, just before the surgery, they were told that due to some emergency, Jaspreet Singh would not perform the operation. The surgery was then done by Mahender Singh along with Agarwal and Pooja. In her complaint, the woman said that later, it was discovered that Mahender Singh and Pooja were fake doctors. The complainant said that her husband experienced severe pain post the surgery and had to be rushed to the Safdarjung Hospital where he was declared dead. According to Chowdhary, investigation revealed that Jaspreet Singh was not present during the surgery and had fabricated documents. Seven complaints were filed with the Delhi Medical Council against Agarwal Medical Centre for negligence leading to patient deaths. On October 27, 2023, another patient, Jai Narayan, died after surgery. A medical board found deficiencies in the medical centre, while further investigation exposed Agarwal for frequently producing fake documents. Bhubaneswar, Nov 19 : Two minor sisters drowned while bathing in a pond at Kirtipur village in Ganjam District of Odisha on Sunday. The deceased siblings were identified as Roshani Rout (10) and her sister Sandhya Rout (7). "The sisters, natives of Jarada village in Kabisuryanagar area, were pursuing their studies by staying at their maternal uncle's residence at Kirtipur village," a police official said. He said that the minor siblings along with their grandfather had gone to the village pond to take bath. "While bathing, the sisters accidentally entered deep waters and could not come out. The villagers fished out the bodies of the sisters," the police official said. He said that the police is investigating the case. Sources said that the deceased minors were staying with their grandparents after the separation of their parents. Their mother is working in Visakhapatnam as a bonded labour. --IANS gyan/dan Chandigarh, Nov 19 : Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Banwarilal Purohit on Sunday flagged-off the Bravehearts Ride here, setting the stage for the annual Military Literature Festival (MLF) to be held at the Lake Club on December 2-3, dedicated to martyrs of the first India-Pakistan War of 1947-48. As many as 890 professional and amateur bikers, including veterans of the Army, Air force and Navy vroomed past city roads to disseminate the message of safe driving and drugs-free lifestyle, as an exciting prelude to the main MLF event. Earlier, Purohit paid tributes to the fallen soldiers by laying a wreath at the Chandigarh War Memorial, in the presence of former Chief of Army Staff, General V.P. Malik (retd), former Chief of Air Staff, General Sunil Lanba (retd), and Lt-General T.S. Shergil (retd). Two Param Vir Chakra (PVC) awardees -- Honorary Capt Bana Singh and Subedar Major Sanjay Kumar -- were present on the occasion, besides an array of serving and retired defence personnel. A two-minute silence was observed in memory of the fallen soldiers as a mark of respect, with the all-women contingent of Punjab Police presenting the guard of honour. Urging the youngsters to join the defence forces and serve the nation, Purohit said a soldier's life epitomises the sacrifices a nation is made of. "There is no better way to live an enriching life than serving the nation by joining the forces," he said while interacting with school students. The Military Literature Festival has grown in stature ever since its inception in 2017, and has rightfully acquired the status of the most awaited annual military literature event across the northern region. A joint initiative of the Punjab government, Chandigarh administration and Western Command Headquarters at Chandimandir, the annual affair offers youngsters aspiring to join defence forces a peep into the discipline of military life, besides laying an engrossing platform for discussions on issues of national, international and geo-political significance. Lauding the organisers for inspiring the youth towards service of the nation, Purohit said the growing popularity of MLF is a testimony to its overwhelming success. On the occasion, Purohit also released a four-minute film encompassing the exciting journey since MLF's inception in 2017. The film has been made by national award-winning director Ojaswwee Sharma and will be screened at the main event. Tel Aviv, Nov 19 : Israel Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir on Sunday lashed out against Israel war cabinet for its decision to supply fuel to Gaza. The minister who is known for his hardline stands told media persons that the move of the Israel war cabinet comprising of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Minister without portfolio, Benny Gantz is not acceptable. He said that with the hostages still in Hamas custody, it is a bad decision to supply fuel to Gaza. "Hamas will use the diesel supplies against Israel," the minister said. He asked what U.S will do under the similar conditions, in an obvious reference to Israel budging under U.S pressure. The minister also told media persons that people must keep guns at home and added that a gun will save a family and an assault rifle will save a neighbourhood. The minister was denied a place in the war cabinet after the October 7 Hamas attack on the pretext that he was not a soldier. He has also faced heavy criticism over his position on treatment of prisoners. NANNING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- The signature embroidery with a centuries-long history of the Dong ethnic group and their modern farmer paintings are breathing new life into Dong people's intangible cultural heritages while bringing locals considerable incomes. Dong people mainly live in China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Hunan Province and Guizhou Province. Sanjiang Dong Autonomous County, which sits in a mountainous area at the junction of Hunan, Guangxi and Guizhou, is a densely populated county for Dong people. The county, with over half of its residents from the Dong ethnic group, has preserved various ancient distinctive handicrafts. Among the cultural heritages is the Dong embroidery, a combination of paper-cutting and flower embroidery skills that has existed for nearly 1,000 years. In the past, due to the poor traffic infrastructure, young generations in the county preferred to work outside their hometown, leaving the place in grinding poverty and the Dong embroidery lacking inheritors. However, the local government reached out a helping hand, building an inheritance base for the antique craft with training courses and a complete sales network for the embroidery products set up. Wei Qinghua and her daughter Qin Guizhen co-founded the Qing Hua Embroidery Workshop, dedicated to the inheritance and further promotion of the Dong embroidery. They integrate the Dong embroidery art into decorative rings, earrings, bracelets, and other ornaments. Now, their handicrafts are also sold online, winning the hearts of young consumers across China. The two also traveled to the United Kingdom, the Republic of Korea, and other foreign countries and regions to display their charmful embroidery. Their products have participated in various fairs and expos, including the China-ASEAN Expo, and exported to Europe, the United States, and Southeast Asia. "Our embroiderers are constantly improving their skills, replacing ordinary cotton yarns with threads of brighter colors. Their adaption has made the patterns even more colorful than before," said Wei Qinghua. Nowadays, the embroiderers spend their spare time on the items, which helps them earn more than 2,000 yuan (about 280 U.S. dollars) each month per person, she added. Over the years, her workshop has trained more than 2,500 embroiderers, creating more than 300 jobs in the county. Besides the ancient handicrafts, Sanjiang is also giving its traditional farmer paintings a modern touch. Local Dong farmers love to draw things based on their daily lives and production activities. And now, their hobby has proved to be lucrative. The Museum of Dong Paintings in Sanjiang displays many colorful farmer paintings with rich contents and scenes. The fans, porcelain, scarves, and other derivatives inspired by the artworks draw visitors' attention. "We often invite teachers to teach us how to paint better and take our painters to local communities, villages, and schools to pass on their painting skills," said Wu Fanyu, founder of a local art gallery and also a representative inheritor of Sanjiang's farmer paintings. Wu added there are several public welfare training sessions held every year, and now many children are getting to know and learn the farmer paintings. The Dong people had lived in relatively isolated mountains and river valleys for thousands of years. Not until 2014, when a high-speed railway began to run through the country, did the county become a sought-after tourist attraction. For the locals, people-to-people exchanges, protection and inheritance efforts, and innovations during the art process have all contributed to the ethnic county's rural revitalization in modern days. Panaji, Nov 19 : Former Power Minister Aleixo Sequeira was on Sunday sworn in as a minister in the BJP led government after PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral resigned to make way for him. Congress turncoat Aleixo Sequeira took the oath in presence of Goa Governor P.S Sreedharan Pillai and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant. On September 14, last year, Aleixo Sequeira along with former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo, Delilah Lobo, Kedar Naik, Sankalp Amonkar, Rajesh Faldesai and Rudolf Fernandes had joined the BJP, reducing Congress to three MLAs in the 40-member Assembly House. Since then there were speculation in political circle that Sequeira along with Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo and Sankalp Amonkar may get the ministries. Sources said that Aleixo Sequeira, who was a senior leader in the Congress, was promised a cabinet berth at the time of his joining the BJP. Hence, one of the commitments given to the eight members group was fulfilled today. Speaking to reporters after he was sworn in as a minister, Aleixo Sequeira said that he will do whatever he can in the interest of people of the state. "We will win both the seats of Lok Sabha," he said. Nilesh Cabral held four portfolios including Law and Judiciary, Environment, Legislative Affairs and Public Works. Speaking to reporters after his resignation, Cabral said that he resigned as party leaders and the Chief Minister requested him. "Party had given commitment to those who have entered the BJP. Now as the party requested me I have resigned," he said. Third time MLA Cabral was the only BJP leader to condemn the statement of Home Minister Amit Shah over Mhadei diversion issue. "I condemn the statement of Amit Shah tooth and nail. We are against diverting water out of the Mhadei basin," he had said in January. In January, during a assembly election rally in Belagavi-Karnataka, Shah had said: "Today, I am here to tell you that the BJP at the Centre has resolved the long dispute between Goa and Karnataka over Mhadei and allowed the diversion of Mhadei to Karnataka to satisfy the thirst of farmers of many districts." New Delhi, Nov 19 : Days after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal sent a request to L-G V.K Saxena for suspension of Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar and also recommending a CBI inquiry, the L-G expressed surprise that the report which deals with sensitive vigilance matters and has been marked to my Secretariat in confidential cover, is already in public domain. L-G said that even the basic principles of inquiries have not been followed in the instant case and Vigilance Minister Atishi and the Chief Minister have referred the matter to CBI and ED, which is beyond their competence as per law established. Raj Bhavan sources said that in his letter to Kejriwal, Saxena said that he has received the "preliminary report" on "complaints" submitted by Atishi and endorsed by the Chief Minister. The source said that the L-G expressed surprise and dubbed it unfortunate that the report which deals with sensitive vigilance related matters and has been marked to his Secretariat in confidential cover, has already been in public domain and its digital or electronic copies are freely available and details thereof have been widely reported in the media. "Since selective text from the report has been purportedly leaked to the media, it appears prima facie that the whole motive of this supposed inquiry was not to unearth the truth but to start a media trial and politicise this whole issue, even as it is before the Supreme Court. "One is forced to wonder whether the same doesn't amount to creating a public perception prejudice, aimed at influencing the Courts," the source said quoting the letter of Saxena to the Chief Minister. The source said that Saxena also in his letter said that despite having gone through the contents of the report, the Minister has herself recorded in her report on page 26 that this matter of "illegal and exorbitant land compensation" award passed by Hemant Kumar, then DM, is already under criminal investigation by the CBI. The source said that the L-G mentioned that it is pertinent to underline that the said proposal for CBI investigation was approved by him on the recommendations received from the Chief Secretary Kimar and the Divisional Commissioner Ashwini Kumar themselves. The source said that Saxena also mentioned that it is by far a crystallised and trite position of law that suspicion, however great, cannot take the place of legal proof and no allegation can be substantiated merely on the basis of surmises and conjectures. "The thrust of the Minister in the report seems to be on the alleged connivance of the District Magistrate, the Divisional Commissioner and the Chief Secretary resulting in loss to government exchequer. However, even the basic principles of inquiries have not been followed in the instant case," the source said referring to the letter of Saxena. He further said that despite repeated scrutiny of the documents placed on record along with the report, "nowhere have any additional facts" been brought out, to claim the complicity of the officers against whom this prejudicial report has been submitted. Saxena mentioned that he could not find any document or evidence to substantiate this claim of the Minister Atishi. From available facts, it is crystal clear that as soon as the issue came to the knowledge of Divisional Commissioner, it was recorded on file on June 2 this year itself and triggered the investigation, without waiting for judicial intervention, the source said. It had been brought out with abundant clarity on the file recommending action against the then DM (South-West), that the very cause of action in this case was a High Court Judgement directing for arbitration to be undertaken by the DM (Hemant Kumar), the source said referring to the L-G's letter. "What followed was an exercise in reassessing the cost of land to be acquired, which obviously suffered from grave lapses resulting in the cost being revised upwards manifold. "It is a matter of record on file that these lapses, when they came to the notice of the Divisional Commissioner and the Chief Secretary, were flagged immediately for rectification by the DM, who was counselled accordingly but to no avail. "It was then that proceedings against him were recommended. Ignoring this chain of events seems deliberate and with mala-fide intention," the source said referring to the letter. He further said that L-G also mentioned that nowhere has any fact been brought on record to suggest that the officers concerned did not proceed with alacrity. "In fact, both the Chief Secretary and the Divisional Commissioner demonstrated remarkable administrative prudence," the source said referring to the letter. The source said that L-G in his letter asked that simply, connecting some dots here and there without an unbroken chain of evidence whatsoever, would not serve any purpose. "This report seems to be completely based on preconceived assumptions and presumption of the Minister and could very well go on to hamper the ongoing investigation, instead of facilitating it," the source said referring to the letter. Saxena, as per the source, further said that such reports, especially if they are authored at the level of minister, do not augur well for governance. L-G as per source also said that Minister Atishi has "failed" to take into account and "appreciate" the administrative processes and scheme involved in land acquisition, which becomes obvious in view of the hurried efforts in producing this half-baked and therefore incorrect report. The source said that the L-G said that he was afraid that such questionable work on the part of the minister by using her official position for apparent political gains "may make the government vulnerable to legal consequences". L-G, the source said that it has also come to my notice, through media reports that the minister or the Chief Minister have referred the matter to CBI and ED, which is beyond their competence as per law established. "This is all the more surprising owing to the fact that the file on this issue (the instant file) was already submitted to me - being the competent authority, by the Chief Minister for consideration," the source said referring to L-G's communication. "The Chief Minister needs to counsel his colleague minister that such disregard of law of the land by way of using a public office is unconstitutional and serves no public purpose. It is surprising that Chief Minister is allowing such actions, which are not in conformity with the constitutional scheme of administration in the national capital," sources quoting L-G having said. "Since the matter is already under investigation by CBI as approved by him (L-G) based on recommendations of the Chief Secretary and the Divisional Commissioner, it is his considered view that the recommendation made before him for consideration is prejudiced and devoid of merit, and therefore cannot be agreed to," the Raj Bhavan source added. On November 10, Kejriwal had sent a complaint alleging benefit of Rs 315 crores to the son of Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar in land acquisition on the Dwarka Expressway. "The complaint was made to Kejriwal regarding the alleged corruption involving Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar on October 24. There are allegations on the Chief Secretary of benefitting his son's company by Rs 315 crores," the Delhi government source had said. "There are allegations of irregularities in land acquisition on the Dwarka Expressway. The Chief Minister has sent the complaint to the Minister of Vigilance for a detailed enquiry in the matter," the source had added. New Delhi, Nov 19 : Edtech company PhysicsWallah (PW) on Sunday said it is laying off 70 to 120 employees, a first job cut at the company which turned unicorn last year. In a statement, the company said it regularly assesses performance through mid-term and end-term cycles. "For the cycle ending in October, less than 0.8 per cent of our workforce, ranging from 70 to 120 individuals with performance concerns may be asked to transition," said Satish Khengre, CHRO, PW. "Our primary focus remains on fostering a dynamic, high-performing team. We plan to hire an additional 1,000 employees in the next six months, reinforcing our commitment to growth," Khengre added. According to an earlier report in Entrackr, citing sources, "the company made the move citing cost-cutting exercise". Employees across content, operations and other departments were laid off, according to the report. PhysicsWallah turned unicorn last year with a $100 million round from WestBridge Capital and GSV Ventures. The company's revenue from operations increased 9.5X to Rs 233 crore in FY22 from Rs 24.6 crore in FY21. Founded in 2016 by renowned YouTube STEM educator Alakh Pandey and later joined by tech executive Prateek Maheshwari, PhysicsWallah offers online and offline courses and study materials for JEE, NEET and other engineering entrance and state board exams. PW has over 31 million subscribers spread across 61 YouTube channels. Moreover, its mobile app has been downloaded over 10 million times and boasts a 4.5 rating on the Google Play Store. Kolkata, Nov 19 : Kolkata Police said on Sunday that its Special Task Force (STF) has nabbed two Maoist activists from near the India-Bangladesh border in Murshidabad district. Both were arrested from near National Highway 34 in Suti in Murshidabad district. The place of arrest is quite close to the international border with Bangladesh. The arrested persons have been identified as Mantu Mallick alias Rabi and Pratik Bhowmik alias Kanchan, police sources said. While Mallick is a resident of Sarsuna in Kolkata, Bhowmik is a resident of Dhantala in Nadia district. One pistol, six bullets, a motorcycle and Rs 40,000 in cash have been seized from their possession. Both Mallick and Bhowmik were quite active in the Jangalmahal area and the Maoist-infested areas of Jharkhand. Police sources said that recently the STF had arrested Maoist leader Pradip Mondal, who during interrogation gave information about Mallick and Bhowmik. Chandigarh, Nov 19 : Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday asked Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to tell what more proof he needs of AAP legislators running drug trafficking rackets after the arrest of Khemkaran legislator Sarwan Singh Dhun's nephew with one kg heroin and a drone from Pakistan. In a statement issued here, Sukhbir Badal said, "The SAD has been repeatedly asserting that AAP legislators are hand-in-glove with drug traffickers and are even pressurising the police not to act against the drug mafia. The arrest of Dhun's nephew proves that AAP legislators are indulging in drug trafficking with impunity." Asserting that all this amounted to the complete failure of the Chief Minister in controlling the drug menace, Badal said, "Bhagwant Mann has failed to pay heed to both the Punjab and Haryana High Court, central agencies as well as the Governor -- all of whom have held that the political-police-drug mafia nexus gas given boost to drug trafficking in the state. The Chief Minister has completely failed in his role as the Home Minister and should resign from this post immediately." Asserting that both the Chief Minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal are responsible for this state of affairs, Badal said, "Sarwan Singh Dhun has a known record of indulging in drugs smuggling and was arrested for the same in 2002 and even did a jail term." Badal also questioned the Chief Minister as to why he is patronising the illegal activities of his legislators. He said that earlier Khadoor Sahab legislator Manjinder Singh Lalpura's brother-in-law was caught indulging in illegal mining, but instead of taking strict action against him, the Tarn Taran SSP was transferred. The SAD chief also said that the drugs menace has become so alarming that the high court had accused the police of colluding with drug peddlers. New Delhi, Nov 19 : Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) chairperson Sonia Gandhi said on Sunday that the life of former Prime Minister late Indira Gandhi will stand out for her tremendous ability to fight against odds, as she was a valiant crusader of people's causes. Sonia Gandhi, who is also the Chairperson of Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust, made the remarks while addressing the Indira Gandhi Award Ceremony at the Jawahar Bhawan here on the occasion of the late Prime Minister's birth anniversary. Sonia Gandhi said that the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development 2022 was instituted in the name of one of the most remarkable leaders of the 20th century and aims to honour women, men and institutions that have done exemplary work in the service of humanity. She said the prize endeavours to promote the causes that Indira Gandhi herself championed and worked for in her astonishing career. "The life of Indira Gandhi will stand out for her tremendous ability to fight against odds. Be it her political career where she challenged orthodoxy to introduce equity oriented, pro-poor policies, be it her fight to defeat hunger in the international environment that disliked self-respecting sovereign states, be it her extraordinary work to quell divisive tendencies in India, be it her unparalleled role in the creation of a new nation to honour people's aspirations. "She was a valiant crusader of people's causes," the Congress leader said. She pointed out that her stewardship of India also "saw the enactment and implementation of the National Health Policy, 1983", which laid the foundation for a more comprehensive and accessible health system. "It brought together promotive, preventive and curative health services and a vital expansion of rural health outreach," she said. Recalling the Covid-19 pandemic, Sonia Gandhi said that it was the most devastating event witnessed in this century. "It (Covid-19) spared no country, no community and no family. During the nightmare of Covid-19, we saw at first hand how our doctors, nurses, paramedics, karmacharis and volunteers rose to the challenge that the horrific pandemic brought upon our country and the world. "They battled a disease of which nothing was known, a virus that respected no boundaries, that afflicted both patient and doctor, that harmed the sick and the nurse, the paramedic and even those that guarded, supplied and managed our hospitals," Sonia Gandhi said. She also said that Indira Gandhi had said that "my grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people -- one those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group because there was much less competition". "Our Covid warriors belong to the first cohort," she said. The Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development 2022 was awarded to the Indian Medical Association and the Trained Nurses Association of India jointly as representatives of the Covid warriors as symbolic of the medical fraternity in India. "The prize honours each and every doctor, nurse, paramedic and karmachari for their selfless service, and for their unflinching dedication and perseverance in the face of adversity," Sonia Gandhi added. There is need to impart education in local language: Dharmendra Pradhan. Image Source: IANS News Bhubaneswar, Nov 19 : Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday pressed for the need to impart education to children till class 5th in their respective local dialects. While speaking at a programme held on the premises of the Eastern Regional Languages Centre in Bhubaneswar on Sunday, Pradhan said it has been suggested in the National Education Policy that primary education to the children during the initial period should be imparted in their local dialects till class 8th, at least till class 5th. "If the children learn and write in the same language that it hears and speaks in its early days, then the child's ability to use logic, express thought and do analysis will develop significantly," said Pradhan. The minister said that Odia children can become great men like Madhusudan Das, Sarala Das and Pathani Samanta if they receive education in their own native dialect. He urged the state government to implement the PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme in Odisha. Pradhan informed that he has also proposed the Central Institute of Indian Languages to organise special programmes like, debate and essay competitions at school and college level in December to make Odia language popular and acceptable among the new generation. He said the country has been celebrating Bharatiya Bhasha Diwas on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Tamil poet and freedom fighter, Subramania Bharati. The celebration started from September 28 and will continue till December 11. Pradhan said that the dialect spoken in different areas such as Ganjam, Mayurbhanj, Sambalpur and Dhenkanal are very sweet. Pradhan inaugurated the administrative and educational building, hostel and a guest house at the Eastern Regional Languages Centre. A memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed between the Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysore and NCERT, New Delhi in the presence of the union minister to undertake research on languages. Pradhan also launched the PM-SHRI scheme in 63 Kendriya Vidyalaya and Navodaya Vidyalayas of the state in another programme held at the railway auditorium here Sunday. --IANS gyan/dan New Delhi, Nov 19 : Hours after Delhi Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena hit back at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and minister Atishi over the report on the Bamnoli land case, Delhi government hit back, saying that it is a brazen attempt on the part of the L-G to protect his "favourite" officers, namely Chief Secretary Narensh Kumar and Divisional Commissioner Ashwini Kumar. Delhi government in response to the L-G's note in connection with the Bamnoli land acquisition matter said, "This is a brazen attempt on the part of the L-G to protect his favourite officers, namely the Chief Secretary and Divisional Commissioner." "If they have done nothing wrong, why is the L-G obstructing an inquiry against them? The Vigilance Minister's (Atishi) report was prompted because of a whistleblower's complaint and media reports highlighting the Chief Secretary's role in the scam. Yet, the L-G chose to launch a political attack on the government itself," AAP said. The Delhi government also said that in all fairness, all available evidence should be forwarded to the CBI to enable the agency to conduct an impartial inquiry. It further said that it is a matter of fact that the Chief Secretary's son is an employee and a director in beneficiary company. "We are surprised that the L-G finds nothing unusual in the fact that the 30-year-old son of the Chief Secretary is a director in a web of companies, many of which are registered in the same address, have same email ID and have the same set of people as directors working in diverse sectors, such as infrastruture, healthcare, waste management, real estate etc. "Interestingly, most of these companies have their business footprint in Delhi, where the Chief Secretary is the head of bureaucracy, and strangely, the companies become beneficiaries of several government contracts and largesse," the Delhi government said. It wondered if the L-G thinks this is all normal and the Chief Secretary has no role to play in it. "It is also a matter of fact that the Chief Secretary appointed Hemant Kumar as the new DM of Southwest soon after assuming the post. It is wrong to say that the Chief Secretary on his own recommended inquiry against the DM. "The exorbitant compensation award by the DM was given on May 15, 2023. It was during the joint visit of Union minister Nitin Gadkari and the L-G on May 18 that Gadkari and NHAI strongly raised their objections," the Delhi government said. It said that left them with no option and to save their skin, the Chief Secretary and the Divisional Commissioner recommended inquiries soon after. "Under which law does an accused go scot-free just because he orders an investigation into the crime," the Delhi government asked. It also claimed that the inquiry itself was compromised because the Chief Secretary, being the Chief Vigilance Officer, presided over the vigilance investigation while he himself had close connections with the beneficiaries of this scam. "This is a clear case of 'conflict of interest' and a violation of the vigilance manual. Further, the inquiry sought to hide the true scale of the scam by valuing it at Rs 312 crore instead of Rs 850 crore, as was brought out in the minister's (Atishi) report. All these important facts have been conveniently ignored by the L-G," the Delhi government said. "Why is the L-G so eager and impatient to give a clean chit to his favourite officers without an inquiry," AAP asked. "Will the LG to allow an impartial inquiry by the CBI into the matter and not pre-judge the matter and protect certain individuals because of his fondness for them," the Delhi government asked. The sharp reactions came after Saxena expressed surprise that the report which deals with sensitive vigilance matters and has been marked to his secretariat in a confidential cover, has surfaced in the public domain. The L-G said that even the basic principles of inquiry have not been followed in the instant case and Vigilance Minister Atishi and Chief Minister Kejriwal have referred the matter to CBI and ED, which is beyond their competence as per law established. Raj Bhavan sources said that in his letter to Kejriwal, Saxena said that he has received the "preliminary report" on "complaints" submitted by Atishi and endorsed by the Chief Minister. The sources said that the L-G expressed surprise and dubbed it as unfortunate that the report which deals with sensitive vigilance related matters and has been marked to his secretariat in a confidential cover, has already been in public domain and its digital or electronic copies are freely available and details thereof have been widely reported in the media. Saxena mentioned that he could not find any document or evidence to substantiate the claims made by Atishi. Tel Aviv, Nov 19 : The Israel Defenses Force (IDF) on Sunday said that it has found a tunnel underneath the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza "The tunnel was 55-meter-long and 10 meters deep underneath the Al-Shifa Hospital complex," the IDF said. The IDF said that a deep staircase leads to the entrance of the tunnel shaft, which consists of various defence materials including a blast-proof door and a firing hole. "This type of door is used by the Hamas organisation to block Israeli forces from entering the command centers and the underground assets belonging to Hamas," the IDF said. It said that the tunnel shaft was uncovered in the area of the hospital underneath a shed alongside a vehicle containing numerous weapons including RPGs, explosives, and Kalashnikov rifles. The IDF said that the findings clearly prove that numerous buildings in the hospital's complex are used by Hamas as cover for its operational infrastructure and activities. "This is further evidence of the cynical manner Hamas uses the residents of the Gaza as a human shield for their activities," the IDF said. --IANS aal/dan Lucknow, Nov 20 : A fraudster, Brajesh Kumar Verma alias Tillu, who had obtained arms license and weapons on the basis of forged address proof of Dimapur district of Nagaland and fraudulently had tried to transfer the arms license to Lucknow district, has been arrested along with the vehicle fitted with an unauthorized MLA pass. Kumar has contested from Hardoi's Mallawan Assembly constituency in 2022 on Samajwadi Party ticket. A native of Hardoi, the miscreant was arrested by a team of Special Task Force (STF), Uttar Pradesh, from Gomti Nagar and he has been challaned by the Kaiserbagh police. Police recovered an arm's license, two Aadhar cards, a DL, a Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly Secretariat Pass, an SUV with a pass pasted on it, Rs 23,500 in cash and two mobile phones from him. Additional Superintendent of Police, STF, Vishal Vikram Singh, said that the accused Brijesh Kumar Verma alias Tillu, had never been in Dimapur district of Nagaland even though he had fraudulently applied to the Lucknow District Magistrate for transfer of the said arms license which he obtained from Dimapur. It further surfaced that Brajesh had obtained a license for a pistol and one rifle respectively at Dimapur West and purchased these weapons from arms shops of West Bengal and was using them while living in Lucknow and Hardoi between the year 2016 and 2019. While living in Lucknow, he was doing property dealing and was carrying the weapons, for which he also had submitted a transfer application. Brajesh also had purchased and used a .32 bore pistol and 30.06 bore rifle and magazine with cartridges on the basis of a fraudulently obtained arms license on June 25, 2020. In the course of investigation, the STF team questioned Brajesh by bringing him along with his SUV on which the MLA's entry pass of Uttar Pradesh Assembly Secretariat was pasted, and he could not give satisfactory answer and was arrested. Violinist Yao Jue and the Hong Kong String Orchestra perform at the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest, capital of Romania, on Nov. 18, 2023. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua) BUCHAREST, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- In a resounding celebration of cultural unity, the iconic Bucharest Athenaeum played host to a two-hour mesmerizing performance by the Hong Kong String Orchestra and the virtuoso Chinese violinist, Yao Jue, on Saturday evening. The concert, part of the orchestra's Central and Eastern Europe tour, showcased a diverse repertoire that transcended geographical boundaries. Among the featured pieces were the re-arranged Variation on the Pastoral by Sha Hankun, Italian Serenade by Hugo Wolf, Medley by Joseph Koo, the maestro renowned for scoring Bruce Lee's iconic films, and the timeless masterpieces such as Benjamin Britten's Simple Symphony and Antonio Vivaldi's Seasons. Yao, wielding her 1713 Stradivarius, alongside the 11 talented musicians of the Hong Kong String Orchestra, dazzled the audience of 800. Ioana, a 60-year-old attendee, shared her sentiments, noting, "I enjoyed the Baroque part the most." Iris, a nine-year-old ballet dancer, attended the concert out of her love for strings, harboring dreams of one day mastering the violin. Adrian, a 37-year-old Ministry of Education employee, lauded the orchestra for seamlessly bridging two worlds through their skillful performances. Viorel Isticioaia, former Romanian ambassador to China, marveled at the "warm atmosphere" and deemed the concert "exceptional." Former Prime Minister of Romania Viorica Dancila appreciated the orchestra's ability to transport the audience to different parts of China through their renditions of Chinese compositions. Three pieces -- one being Romanian and two Chinese -- were added at the finale as the audience refused to let the artists leave the stage. Yao, expressing gratitude, remarked, "Through the music, people will understand better the culture, the differences between cultures ... Romanians are famous for their music, so we are happy we had such great feedback, we are encouraged to go on with our tour and to come back here." Romania is the last stop of the Hong Kong String Orchestra's Central and Eastern Europe tour, which had taken it to Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia. Violinist Yao Jue and the Hong Kong String Orchestra perform at the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest, capital of Romania, on Nov. 18, 2023. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua) HARARE, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- African countries need to mobilize domestic financing to upgrade laboratory capacity for fighting antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a senior health official said Saturday. Speaking during a media sensitization meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe's capital, Yewande Alimi, the AMR program coordinator with the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), said Africa, hardest hit by AMR, should work on improving its bacteriology capacity as well as leverage on the already established COVID-19 genomic sequencing capacity to combat AMR. According to a study by the Mapping Antimicrobial Resistance and Antimicrobial Use Partnership (MAAP) in 14 African countries between 2016 and 2019, only a tiny fraction of the laboratories can test for AMR. "The study revealed that only 1.3 percent of the 50,000 medical laboratories in the participating countries can actually conduct AMR testing that is required to give data that can guide policies as well as interventions. Those are concerning findings and at the level of the CDC, one of the things that we are really championing is domestic financing," she said. The Africa CDC official urged African governments to start making investments in terms of supplies of bacteriology, so that the right infrastructure is in place. Alimi said advancing diagnostics was another priority area for Africa to combat AMR, noting that through the Africa Institute of Pathogen Genomics (Africa PGI), remarkable work was being done to enhance genomic sequencing on AMR. Speaking on the same occasion, World Health Organization expert Walter Fuller said a collaborative approach was required among member states to tackle AMR. Fuller said with recent studies pointing to the growing socio-economic impact of AMR, the time for action in Africa was now. He noted that a study by scientists from the Global Research on Antimicrobial Resistance Project in 2022 showed sub-Saharan Africa as the worst affected with 24 deaths per 100,000 caused directly by AMR and 99 deaths per 100,000 associated with AMR. The media sensitization meeting was held at the start of the World AMR Awareness Week (WAAW) which is being hosted by Zimbabwe from Saturday to Friday. The annual global event WAAW is organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the United Nations Environment Program, the World Health Organization and the World Organization for Animal Health. The WAAW aims to enhance awareness and understanding of the challenges posed by AMR, while striving to promote best practices in antimicrobial stewardship across public health, animal health, and the environment. Property details: EVERYTHING MUST GO! LIQUIDATE, LIQUIDATE, LIQUIDATE! The possibilities are endless!!!! *5,401 SQ FT VACANT LAND WITH MOBILE HOME*Own a lot in a prime, lakefront location! Great for building a home, business, Aibnb, or even a rental property for passive income. That's endless possibilities! This vacant land is in Saratoga, AR. It is located on 123 Hempstead 199 Rd. This lot is 5,401 sq ft, has a mobile home on the property and is located only one block away from Millwood Lake. This lot would make... Price: $ 1,025 Seller State of Residence: New Jersey Property Address: 123 Hempstead 199 Rd Zip/Postal Code: 71859 City: Saratoga State/Province: Arkansas Location: 718**, Saratoga, Arkansas You will be redirected to eBay Nearby Arkansas Sharlene Willock, mother of former University of Georgia offensive lineman Devin Willock, holds Devin Willock's framed New Milford High School football jersey outside her home in New Milford, New Jersey, on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. The tree next to her is one that she planted with her mother and all three sons on Mother's Day. (Photo/Liz Rymarev, @lizardshots) Shoemaker has strong work ethic, fights crime I write to convey my disappointment in a recent letter to the editor by David Ellin that criticized Carroll County States Attorney Haven Shoemaker. As a friend to all involved and an employee of the Carroll County States Attorneys Office, the events of the past 16 months have been disheartening. Witnessing the campaign tactics used to tarnish the reputations of Senior States Attorney Allan Culver and former Deputy States Attorney Ned Coyne, along with Shoemaker, has been particularly troubling. Unfortunately, not only were these individuals harmed, but their families were also adversely affected. In his letter, Ellin suggests that Shoemaker does not give full attention to his job, but I respectfully disagree. I observe his dedication daily, where he consistently starts work before 7 a.m. and finishes well after most others have left. His commitment to combating crime, especially the sale of deadly fentanyl, is something I hold in high regard. The letter accuses Shoemaker of detouring from his duties for appearing at an event honoring our veterans. Shoemaker, as a veteran himself, has and always will be dedicated to our veterans. Regarding the recent reversal of Carroll County Circuit Court judges recusal from cases involving Culver, Ellin omits crucial facts. The Office of the State Prosecutor found zero evidence supporting former Carroll County Assistant States Attorney Jennifer Bradys claims. Based on the state prosecutors findings, separate ethics complaints against both Culver and Coyne were dismissed, and the Circuit Court judges lifted their recusal, and are now hearing cases involving Culver and Coyne. While Ellin made a rush to judgment without the facts and with total disregard for due process, and prematurely called for Culvers resignation, Shoemaker wisely urged patience until an investigation was done and all the facts were uncovered. This isnt an attempt to bash Ellin. Ive stayed silent during the investigation, but now I must speak about what Ive witnessed and know to be true. Though not politically involved, Ive seen respected individuals suffer for 16 months, with ruined careers and harmed families. I hope future elections focus on personal merits, not character attacks. It may seem idealistic, but I hold hope for a more principled approach. Tim Weber, Westminster College students should support the Jewish community As a student at a liberal arts college, I was taught to look below the surface of an issue, to research to find the truth. It takes an open mind mixed with skepticism and a lot of digging. Sadly In the past month since the rape and murder on Oct. 7 of thousands of Jewish victims by Hamas terrorists, as well as the kidnapping of hundreds of Isreali and international citizens, college students protesting Israels defense apparently dont have the open minds required to look below the surface. They certainly havent done their research into the truth. Students nationwide have exhibited unlawful and immoral behavior against Jews in general, and their fellow students in particular. Under the guise of free speech, campus protests have not called for peace, but for the legitimate Jewish state to be pushed into the sea. They have torn down legitimate posters and flyers relating the horrifying details of Hamas violence against victims. Verbal and even physical attacks on Jewish students and on Jews out in American communities have increased by the hundreds. The expression of anger and the demand for change of a situation or policy thought to be unjust by peaceful public protest is protected under the American Constitutions First Amendment to peaceably assemble while practicing the right of freedom of speech. However, the expression of antisemitism demonstrated this past month on college campuses across the nation is not free speech as defined in the Constitution; it is quite the opposite. Antisemitism is the expression of hatred, oppression and annihilation that deprives the free exercise of the Jewish religion, which is also covered under the First Amendment. The pro-Palestinian anti-Israeli protest groups fail to recognize the truth about the real instigators of oppression and death in the Middle East the terrorist organizations and the countries that support them. Within days after attacks in Egypt, Pakistan, Iraq and the bombing in Indonesia of the Australian embassy, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 1566 on Oct. 8, 2004, which condemned terrorism as a serious threat to peace. The text called on countries to prevent and punish criminal acts, including against civilians, committed with the intent to cause death or serious bodily injury, or taking of hostages, with the purpose to provoke a state of terror in the general public or in a group of persons or particular persons, intimidate a population or compel a government or an international organization to do or to abstain from doing any act. Such acts were under no circumstances justifiable by considerations of a political, philosophical, ideological, racial, ethnic, religious or other similar nature, according to the council. U.S. Ambassador John Danforth said, The resolution which we have adopted states very simply that the deliberate massacre of innocents is never justifiable in any cause never. He added that Some claim that exploding bombs in the midst of children is in the service of God, but that such an act is the ultimate blasphemy. As the leaders of institutions of higher learning, college presidents must act with strength and determination in a public support of peaceful diversity. They must take the lead to encourage students to research the facts, stand with the Jewish community and all communities against terrorism, and enforce a policy of zero tolerance against antisemitism. Pat Page, Westminster We need a president who will move us forward I just dont get it at all about the American public. I cannot believe that 45% of the American voters still would vote for President Joe Biden. My question is why? Are they the same Americans who believe that everything is going well or the ones who say they are living paycheck to paycheck? Do they think that the southern border is closed to illegals or is wide open and causing a mess in cities across the U.S.? Remember they are costing us taxpayers a lot of money that would help us plus our veterans, who ARE CITIZENS of the U.S. and not the illegals. Biden has cost this country a lot of money in just three years. I am not crazy about some of the remarks that former President Donald Trump has said, but people need to realize we were in much better shape under Trump. Gas was lower, we did well on our 401Ks, we were not living paycheck to paycheck, we had no threats from China and others. Think about it. We need to elect a man or woman who will move us forward and not 50 yards backward. Vote who will lead us and not just a party. WAKE UP AMERICA for once! Pat Bussard, Westminster An open letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson Speaker Mike Johnson, it might have made sense when you were simply a congressman to accept email messages only from residents in your local Louisiana district. But wouldnt you agree that you now have a responsibility to hear from citizens all across this country? But as my email attempts to you havent gone through, this open Letter to the Editor will have to do. Speaker Johnson, I have no reason to doubt that you care mightily about freedom and democracy here and abroad. And this is why I cant imagine that you would have the U.S. stand down (which was what I was trying to email you about) and leave Ukraine to fight off Russia on its own! To allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to have his way with Ukraine would, no doubt, be both a boon to the dictators of the world, as well as a threat to liberal democracies everywhere. Surely you would not want such an outcome to become a reality on your watch! And one more thing, Speaker Johnson. As you recently did with aid to Israel that is, inserting a poison pill that required the aid to be taken from IRS funds I strongly urge you not to play games by doing something similar with the aid to Ukraine. Lets not insert poison pills in any future legislation that would tie up the needed aid for Ukraine. Instead, lets skip the politics and get the job done! Okay? Reg Regis, Wayne A local student operates devices as Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Wang Xuekun (2nd R) looks on in a laboratory of the Luban workshop at IPRC Musanze in Northern Province, Rwanda, Nov.18, 2023. (Photo by Huang Wanqing/Xinhua) KIGALI, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- A Luban workshop, a Chinese-supported vocational training facility, was inaugurated Saturday at IPRC Musanze in northern Rwanda, aiming to enhance technical and vocational education training (TVET) in Rwanda. The Rwanda Luban Workshop was established through a partnership between Rwanda Polytechnic and Jinhua Polytechnic of East China's Zhejiang Province. "The Luban Workshop is established with cutting-edge technologies that today's world needs. It is a tremendous achievement as it will help Rwandan students to get the best education, the best training in a conducive environment," Sylvie Mucyo, the vice-chancellor of Rwanda Polytechnic, told Xinhua in an interview. Mucyo said the partnership between Rwanda Polytechnic and China's Jinhua Polytechnic will allow the exchange of expertise, where Rwandan students and staff would collaborate with their Chinese counterparts on projects leading to solutions that the industry needs. "It will support students to be creative and innovative to work on solutions that the community and industry need," she said. She commended China's support of TVET in Rwanda, saying it has contributed to changing students' and parents' perceptions of technical and vocational training. IPRC Musanze, which has graduated more than 1,700 students since 2018, offers different courses such as irrigation and drainage technology, construction technology, highway engineering, e-commerce, and information technology. The student enrolment has grown from just 171 in 2014 to more than 1,800 currently. Mucyo expects the collaboration with China to continue in different areas leading to Rwanda's economic transformation. Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Wang Xuekun noted that with joint efforts of Jinhua Polytechnic and Rwanda Polytechnic, IPRC Musanze has been nurturing many young talents. He underlined that TVET is an area, where both China and Rwanda attach great importance because of its role in human resource development and national transformation. Wang said the 10 years of collaboration between Rwanda Polytechnic and China's Jinhua Polytechnic "reflects the deep friendship between Chinese and Rwandan people, but more importantly, tells us what we could achieve through working together." He also spoke of the need to create an enabling environment for the workshop to benefit more Rwandan young people. "Our two sides shall mobilize more resources to support its operation, tailoring the curriculum to local needs in order to better contribute to Rwanda's social transformation," he said. Stressing the importance of people-to-people exchanges at various levels, the envoy called for more exchanges to promote bilateral cooperation in TVET and other sectors. Maurice Mugabowagahunde, the governor of Rwanda's Northern Province, said the 10 years of collaboration with China has led to various accomplishments. "This workshop will help Rwandan students to be competitive not only on the local but also on the international market once they finish their studies because they will be familiar with modern equipment," the governor told Xinhua. "That is why we are very thankful for this cooperation with China." The inaugurated workshop includes a laboratory equipped with new technologies including robots to train students. Chen Hairong, vice president of Jinhua Polytechnic, said the Rwanda Luban Workshop will establish a communication platform for teenagers from China and Rwanda as well as exchange programs. "Let us build Rwanda Luban Workshop to be a model among the workshops in Africa," Chen said. Local students operate devices in a laboratory of the Luban workshop at IPRC Musanze in Northern Province, Rwanda, Nov.18, 2023. (Photo by Huang Wanqing/Xinhua) Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Wang Xuekun (R) and Governor of Rwanda's Northern Province Maurice Mugabowagahunde unveil the name plate of the Luban workshop at IPRC Musanze in northern Rwanda, Nov.18, 2023. (Photo by Huang Wanqing/Xinhua) Keynote speaker Irfan Essa, the senior associate dean of the College of Computing at Georgia Tech, explains recent developments of artificial intelligence and how these advancements may impact society at the University of Georgia School of Computings Research Day at Georgia Center in Athens, Georgia, on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023. Thanksgiving is a holiday many people are fortunate enough to celebrate with family, friends and food. However, each year there are people including in Athens who spend the holiday hungry, alone or both. A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court for initiation of contempt proceedings against the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), alleging it has violated the timeline for completing the investigation and submitting its report on the allegations of stock price manipulation by the Adani group. Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters An application has been filed by PIL petitioner Vishal Tiwari saying that despite the deadline given to the SEBI it has failed to comply with the direction of the court and has not submitted the final conclusion/report as was directed by the court. It said by the order dated May 17, 2023, the apex court directed SEBI to submit its report till August 14, 2023. It said on August 25, 2023, Sebi filed the status report regarding its investigation stating that overall it has done 24 investigations, out of which 22 investigations have achieved finality and two are of interim nature. The application also referred to the latest report by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) against the Adani Group and its alleged investments via "opaque" Mauritius funds. The application said that the primary focus of the PIL was on what steps shall be taken in future to strengthen the regulatory system so that the investors could be protected and their investment in the share market remains safe. "Because after the publication of the Hindenburg report against the Adani Group .... thousands of crores of the investors' money got lost. "But now the question arises, whether the present regulatory authority is efficient enough or if some changes are required by setting up a new regulatory body with a more efficient mechanism so that in future such damaging incidents may not occur in the share market and the investors' money may be protected," it said. Tiwari in his application said that a strong mechanism is also required to keep vigil upon the companies' conduct and practises - whether they are complying with necessary rules and regulations laid down by the regulatory authority. "That till now after the recommendations and suggestions given by the expert committee in its report the Union Government has not taken any strong step in compliance of that and has not apprised the court with any secured framework for the protection of investors in future," it said. Tiwari said that Sebi in its application has objected to the suggestion of a necessary timeline for the completion of the investigation. "The Sebi objection is contrary to the present need of a strong and efficient regulatory mechanism because timeless investigations lead to the disappearance of evidence and vital information against any entity which is under investigation and it also reduces the confidence of the investors in the market," it said, adding that Sebi failed to file its report despite timeline fixed by the court till August 14. "The inordinate delay in investigation impacts upon investigation and it also raises suspicion in the minds of investors and refrains them from investing in future. "Delay in the investigation also leads to the manipulations and damage of vital material and evidence," it said. The application said that the expert committee constituted by this court is still working in the present matter and has not been discharged. "As the issue has again risen by the new disclosures and report of Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) against Adani Group, the need has arisen to get it investigated by the independent body which was constituted by this court," the application said. It said an explanation should be sought from Sebi for not complying with the timeline framed by this court in the order dated May 17, 2023 for completing the investigation and submitting a report. On November 6, the top court said the apex court registry would look into the issue of listing for hearing PILs related to allegations of stock price manipulation by the Adani group. On July 11, the top court asked the Sebi about the status of its ongoing investigation into the allegations of stock price manipulation by the Adani group. The court, which had granted time till August 14 for a probe by the Sebi, had said the inquiry has to be concluded expeditiously. Later, the capital markets regulator filed a status report on the Adani-Hindenburg probe and said it was awaiting information from tax havens. The Sebi, in its report, had said that it has completed the probe in all but two allegations against the Adani group and is still awaiting information from five tax havens on actual owners behind foreign investors investing in the conglomerate. The report said out of the 24 matters it was probing, findings in as many as 22 are final. Without divulging the outcome of its investigations, the SEBI had given a detailed breakdown of the steps taken by it during its probe, including related party transactions. "Sebi shall take appropriate action based on the outcome of the investigations in accordance with law," the regulator had said. The probe reports finalised include allegations of manipulation of stock prices, alleged failure to disclose transactions with related parties and possible violation of insider trading in some of the group stocks. On May 17, the apex court granted Sebi time till August 14 to complete its probe into the allegations of stock price manipulation by the Adani group. A Supreme Court-appointed expert committee had in an interim report in May stated that it saw "no evident pattern of manipulation" in billionaire Gautam Adani's companies and there was no regulatory failure. It, however, cited several amendments the SEBI made between 2014 and 2019 that constrained the regulator's ability to investigate, and its probe into alleged violations in money flows from offshore entities has "drawn a blank". The apex court had on May 17 directed that copies of the report submitted before it by the top court-appointed Justice (retd) A M Sapre expert committee be made available to the parties to enable them to assist it in further deliberations in the matter. Adani Group stocks had been bludgeoned on the bourses after Hindenburg Research made a litany of allegations, including those about fraudulent transactions and share-price manipulation, against the business conglomerate. The Adani Group dismissed the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements. In an op-ed published on Saturday, US President Joe Biden dismisses increasing ceasefire calls for Gaza, asserting that it won't bring about peace. IMAGE: Israeli soldiers operate in the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing ground operation of the Israeli army against the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in this handout picture released on November 18, 2023. Photograph: Israel Defense Forces/Handout via Reuters "As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a cease-fire is not peace. To Hamas's members, every cease-fire is time they exploit to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters and restart the killing by attacking innocents again," Biden wrote in the piece for The Washington Post, adding, "Our goal should not be simply to stop the war for today -- it should be to end the war forever, break the cycle of unceasing violence, and build something stronger in Gaza and across the Middle East so that history does not keep repeating itself." Biden also called for Israel to respect humanitarian law and minimise the loss of civilian life, saying he counselled Israeli officials during his trip to Tel Aviv "against letting their hurt and rage mislead them into making mistakes we ourselves have made in the past." In the op-ed, Biden also said that a two-state solution is the only solution to the enduring conflict in the region and that, in the meantime, there should be governance under the Palestinian Authority. "As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalised Palestinian Authority, as we all work towards a two-state solution," Biden wrote in The Washington Post. Biden also took aim at the extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, which has been a concern among officials, saying that the US is prepared to issue visa bans against the perpetrators. "I have been emphatic with Israel's leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable," Biden wrote. The warning surfaced amid worries about Israel allegedly violating the Visa Waiver Programme, enabling eligible travellers to seek entry into the US without a visa, effective since late October, according to CNN. "I won't get into full details of our private diplomatic conversations, but we expect Israel to address those concerns," state department spokesperson Matt Miller said this week. Last month, the Biden administration sought over $105 billion from Congress in a proposed package, aiming to allocate security assistance for the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel. Biden passionately appealed for the funding during a primetime Oval Office address, deeming the moment "an inflection point" in American history. In his closing remarks, the president denounced the escalating antisemitism and Islamophobia since the onset of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, CNN reported. The Israel Defence Forces carried out two 'brigade-level' raids in the West Bank's Jenin refugee camp and Balata refugee camp on Sunday and detained suspects and seized weapons, The Times of Israel reported. IMAGE: Israeli soldiers take cover during a siren near the northern Gaza border, in southern Israel, on November 19, 2023. Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters Moreover, 38 wanted Palestinians were arrested in overnight raids, including some 20 in Jenin and Balata, the IDF said. Adding to that, the IDF stated that the troops clashed with Palestinian gunmen in both camps. According to the IDF, the troops seized several firearms and explosive devices in Balata, reported The Times of Israel. Meanwhile, in Jenin, troops found and destroyed a cache of explosive devices near a mosque and three command rooms and seized several firearms. Additionally, troops also clashed with the Palestinian rioters in the West Bank village of Tamun, near Tubas, and in the Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem, according to The Times of Israel. Moreover, according to Palestinian media, one Palestinian was killed in Jenin and a second in Dheisheh. The Israel-Hamas war has entered its 44th day following the October 7 attack on Israel. Since October 7, according to the IDF, troops have arrested some 1,800 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 1,100 affiliated with Hamas, reported The Times of Israel. Meanwhile, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, around 200 West Bank Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, and in some cases, settlers, since the first day of the attack. Slightly more than three in four Palestinians have a positive view of Hamas in the wake of its October 7 terrorist attacks in Israel, according to a survey by the Arab World for Research and Development (AWRAD) research firm. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday condemned the hijacking of an international vessel by Iran-backed Houthis in the Red Sea and called it a 'very serious incident on the global scale'. Image used only for representation. Photograph: Agustin Marcarian/Reuters Taking to X, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said, 'Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran's guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia.' It also shared, 'Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican. No Israelis are onboard.' Condemning the hijack, it said, 'This is another act of Iranian terrorism and constitutes a leap forward in Iran's aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes.' Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said that the ship was sailing from Turkey to India with an international civilian crew, without any Israelis aboard and added, "This is not an Israeli ship," The Times of Israel reported. Madhya Pradesh assembly polls have recorded a voter turnout of 77.15 per cent, which is 1.52 per cent higher than in 2018, as per the latest data released by the Election Commission of India. IMAGE: People wait in queues to cast their votes at a polling booth for Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections in Bhopal on Friday. Photograph: ANI Photo Polling for all the 230 assembly seats in the state was held in a single phase on November 17. According to the latest provisional poll data for Madhya Pradesh released by the ECI on Saturday night, the state recorded a voter turnout of 77.15 per cent. Out of the total male voters in MP, 78.21 per cent exercised their franchise, while out of the total eligible females, 76.03 per cent turned up to vote. Sailana assembly seat in Ratlam district recorded the highest voter turnout at 90.10 per cent, while Jobat seat in Alirajpur district in the state's western region saw the lowest turnout of 54.37 per cent, as per the data. The voter turnout percentage over the past few elections has been on the rise in the state. It was 67.25 per cent in 2003, 69.78 per cent in 2008, 72.13 per cent in 2013 and 75.63 per cent in 2018. In 2018, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received 41.02 per cent votes, the Congress 40.89 per cent, and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and other parties got 10.83 per cent votes. Even after getting more vote share than the Congress, the BJP won 109 seats in 2018 compared to 114 bagged by the grand old party. The remaining seats went to the BSP (2), Samajwadi Party (1) and independents (4). The Congress had then formed government with the help of the BSP, SP and independents under the leadership of Kamal Nath. However, the Kamal Nath led government collapsed in March 2020 after a rebellion by Jyotiraditya Scindia and MLAs loyal to him, paving the way for return of the BJP government headed by Shivraj Singh Chouhan. In the state elections held on Friday, the fate of 2,533 candidates, including CM Chouhan of the BJP and his predecessor and state Congress chief Kamal Nath, has been sealed in the Electronic Voting Machines. A total of 64,626 polling stations were set up in the state. Votes will be counted on December 3. Senior Congress leader Rajmohan Unnithan has come under criticism over his remarks that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a 'war criminal' and should be shot dead without trial for allegedly murdering Palestinians in the Gaza strip. IMAGE: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with soldiers as he visits an Israeli army base in Tze'elim, Israel on November 7, 2023. Photograph: Israeli Government Press Office/Haim Zach/Handout via Reuters Condemning the Kasaragod MP's remarks, the state Bharatiya Janata Party unit termed it 'deplorable'. At a recent Palestine solidarity event organised by the United Muslim Jama-ath, a collective of mosques in and around Kasaragod town, Unnithan said another Nuremberg trial was the need of the hour. In a video which has gone viral, Unnithan said: "The Nuremberg trial was held after the Second World War, and the war criminals were shot dead without trial. Another Nuremberg trial is the need of the hour. Because Benjamin Netanyahu is standing in front of the world as a war criminal. It is time to shoot down Benjamin Netanyahu -- who has violated the Geneva convention -- without trial, such is the amount of murders he has committed." BJP state president K Surendran on Saturday said Unnithan's speech echoed 'terrorist propaganda' and sought immediate legal action. In a post on 'X', Surendran said, 'Outraged by @INCIndia MP Rajmohan Unnithan's reckless and inflammatory speech at the Palestine Rally. His call for the murder of Israeli PM Netanyahu is deplorable, echoing terrorist propaganda. This isn't political discourse; it's a dangerous incitement akin to jihadist extremism. We demand immediate legal action against such radical rhetoric. This isn't about politics; it's about preventing the spread of terrorist ideology.' More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, while another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble after the ongoing Israeli attack. Around 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians during Hamas' October 7 attack. Normal flight services at Manipur's Imphal International Airport were affected on Sunday afternoon over sighting of an unidentified flying object (UFO), officials said. Image only for representation. Photograph: Max Rossi/Reuters Two flights were diverted and three others delayed. Services normalised after around three hours. 'Due to sighting of an unidentified flying object within Imphal controlled airspace, two flights have been diverted and three departing flights have been delayed. Flight operations commence after receipt of clearance from the competent authority,' a statement issued by Airport Director Chipemmi Keishing said. An official of the Air Traffic Control (ATC) said they received a message from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) at 2.30 pm, informing them that a UFO was found near the airport. "The UFO was visible with bare eyes moving westwards of the airfield till 4 pm," the official said. The diverted flights included an Indigo flight from Kolkata which was initially instructed 'to hold overhead' and was diverted to Guwahati after 25 minutes. The delayed flights however left Imphal airport after receiving clearance late after around three hours. The Indian Air Force Eastern Command at Shillong was informed of the development, the official said. Manipur is bordered by Nagaland, Mizoram and Assam, besides sharing an international border with Myanmar to its east. In this regard, the Eastern Command of the Indian Air Force said that it activated its Air Defence response mechanism. In a post on X, Eastern Command said, 'IAF activated its Air Defence response mechanism based on visual inputs from Imphal airport. The small object was not seen thereafter.' -- with ANI inputs The Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday banned the production, storage, distribution and sale of food products with halal certification with immediate effect while exempting products manufactured for export. Image used for representational purpose only. Photograph: Lim Huey Teng/Reuters In a statement, the state government alleged 'malicious attempts' to discourage the use of products lacking a halal certificate not only seek 'unfair financial benefits' but also form part of a 'pre-planned strategy to sow class hatred, create divisions in society, and weaken the country' by "anti-national elements". Strict legal measures will be taken against any individual or firm engaged in the production, storage, distribution, buying, and selling of halal-certified medicines, medical devices, and cosmetics within Uttar Pradesh, the statement said. "Unrestrained propaganda is being disseminated within a particular section of society to discourage the use of products lacking a halal certificate," the statement said. This harms the business interests of other communities, it added. There are also fears that the 'unfair advantage' is being passed onto 'anti-social or anti-national elements,' the government said. However, products manufactured for export will not be subject to the restrictions, it said. According to the statement, the UP government recently received information which indicated that products such as dairy items, sugar, bakery products, peppermint oil, salty ready-to-eat beverages, and edible oils are being labelled with a halal certification. "Additionally, certain medicines, medical devices, and cosmetic products are reported to feature the halal certificate on their packaging or labelling," the statement said. "However, there are no provisions for marking halal certification on labels in the government rules related to drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics, nor is there any mention of halal certification in the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, and its related rules." "Any direct or indirect mention of halal certification on the labels of medicines, medical devices, or cosmetics constitutes falsification under the said Act, making it a punishable offence," it said. As per the Act and rules applicable to food items, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has been given the right to determine the standards of food items, the statement said. "Halal certification, operating as a parallel system, creates confusion regarding food quality, violating government rules in this regard," it added. An FIR on the matter has also been also registered in Lucknow Commissionerate last Friday. Entities such as Halal India Private Limited Chennai, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust Delhi, Halal Council of India Mumbai, Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra, and others have exploited religious sentiments to boost sales by providing halal certificates to customers of a specific religion, the government said citing the FIR. "Illegal businesses are being run for financial gain. The complainant has raised concerns over a potential large-scale conspiracy, indicating attempts to decrease the sales of products from companies lacking the halal certificate, which is illegal," the statement said. In a statement, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust termed the allegations as "baseless" and said it will take "necessary legal measures to counter such misinformation". "We adhere to government regulations, as emphasised in the Ministry of Commerce & Industry notification, requiring all halal certification bodies to be registered by NABCB (National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies under Quality Council of India), a milestone that Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind Halal Trust has achieved," it said. "It is also a matter of choice of individuals and manufacturers preferring to certain certifications for their own satisfaction based upon the credentials which the certifying authorities enjoy. It saves a large number of consumers from using products which they do not want for a variety of reasons and ensures availability of need-based products in the market. "Those who do not want to use such products are free not to use them," it further said. The government claimed that through halal certification unfair advantage is being passed on to anti-social and anti-national elements. "The complainant further alleges that, under the guise of religion, unrestrained propaganda is being disseminated within a particular section of society to discourage the use of products lacking a halal certificate," it added. This, in turn, harms the business interests of other communities, the government said in its statement. "Such a malicious attempt not only seeks unfair financial benefits by issuing halal certificates for items meant for common citizens but also forms part of a pre-planned strategy to sow class hatred, create divisions in society, and weaken the country," it said. "Many individuals beyond the owners and managers of the implicated companies are believed to be part of this criminal conspiracy with potential links to anti-national activities," it added. PHNOM PENH, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's proposal to work together for another "golden 30 years" of the Asia-Pacific is crucial in the current global context, a Cambodian expert has said. Xi's proposal demonstrates "China's unwavering commitment to deepening cooperation in various fields with all countries to achieve high-quality development in the Asia-Pacific region and win-win results," said Kin Phea, director general of the International Relations Institute of Cambodia, when asked to comment on Xi's speech at the 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. Securing another "golden 30 years" for the Asia-Pacific "will create a peaceful, prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable region where all countries work together to build a better future for all," Phea said. The benefits of building a golden future for the Asia-Pacific include increased economic growth, job creation, and improved living standards, he added. Regardless of their size or power, all countries are equal partners and have a voice in shaping the region's future, although the region now faces such challenges as global economic slowdown, rising geopolitical tensions, climate change, inequality, and poverty, said Phea. "To address these challenges, we need to promote free trade and investment, strengthen regional cooperation, support sustainable development, and promote peace and mutual understanding," he said. Moreover, regional cooperation on counterterrorism, disaster preparedness and climate change can build trust and understanding, create a more stable situation, protect the environment, and reduce conflicts, said the expert. Referring to China's vital role in global development, Phea said that China has worked closely with all like-minded international communities in maintaining and restoring confidence in multilateralism and globalization. "China always shares the fruit of its peaceful development with the rest of the world through global initiatives such as the Global Development Initiative, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, among others, towards building a global community with a shared future for mankind," Phea noted. Amid the ongoing efforts to rescue the workers trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel, a portion of which caved in earlier, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami will on Sunday conduct an on-site inspection of the operations, the Chief Minister's Office informed through an official release. IMAGE: Machines arrive at Silkyara tunnel as part of rescue operation in Uttarkashi, Uttarkahand, November 19, 2023. Photograph: ANI on X The CM will be accompanied by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari during his visit to the tunnel site on Sunday. "Along with the Chief Minister, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari is also arriving to take stock of the relief and rescue work," the CMO added in its statement. On Saturday, a former advisor to the Prime Minister's Office took stock of the relief operations at the under-construction Silkyara Tunnel located on the Uttarkashi-Yamnotri road. The local administration on Saturday informed that it would deploy a tree-cutting expert as part of the ongoing efforts to extricate 40 workers trapped inside the tunnel for seven days now. A tree-cutting expert, Ashiq Hussain, was called by the Forest Department to the tunnel site, officials said on Saturday. Officials added that they were trying to reach the workers through vertical drilling from the upper part of the tunnel. "We were trying to reach them horizontally, now we will also try vertically. A spot right above the tunnel has been identified and marked. A hole will be drilled from there to reach there. The depth of the hole would be approximately 300-350 feet... The horizontal attempt of rescue would also begin from Barkot end of the tunnel," said Uttarkashi DFO DP Baluni. Sharing details of the ongoing rescue operation, Bhaskar Khulbe, a former advisor to the PMO, told ANI, "Efforts are on to bolster the entire area's strength to the order that it remains totally safe for workers to approach the rescue work that we are intending to do. I feel that our concerted effort will yield good results in the coming four to five days." Also, on Saturday, Chris Cooper, a micro-tunnelling expert, arrived at the Silkyara tunnel incident site to monitor and oversee the rescue operation. Cooper is a Chartered Engineer with an experienced track record for delivery of Major International key civil engineering infrastructure, Metro tunnels, Large Caverns, Dams, Railway, and Mining Projects. "I don't have any information as of now. I only reached here last night (Friday)," he told ANI. "The heavy-duty drilling machine, which was expected to arrive on Saturday from Indore, has also reached the Silkyara tunnel site," informed Cooper, who is also a consultant for the Rishikesh Karnprayag rail project. The under-construction tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri national highway collapsed in the early hours of November 12. It has been a week since 41 labourers got trapped inside an under-construction tunnel at Silkyara in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district after parts of the structure collapsed following a landslide last Sunday. IMAGE: Drone view of rescue operations underway at the Uttarkashi tunnel. Photograph: ANI Photo Following is the timeline of the disaster and the rescue efforts that followed: November 12: The labourers get trapped as portions of the Silkyara-Dandalgaon under-construction tunnel on the Brahmkhal-Yamunotri highway collapse following a landslide at around 5.30 am on the day of Diwali. Rescue efforts are launched by the district administration and arrangements made to supply oxygen, electricity and eatables to the trapped labourers through air-compressed pipes. Multiple agencies, including the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Border Roads Organisation (BRO), project executing agency National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), join the rescue efforts. November 13: Contact is established with the trapped workers through a pipe meant to supply oxygen to them and they are reported to be safe. Rescue efforts continue as Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami visits the site. Not much progress is made in removing the debris accumulated on the collapsed part of the tunnel as fresh rubble keeps falling from above, further complicating the task of the rescuers. As a result, the debris accumulated in an area of around 30 metres spreads to 60 metres. A strategy is devised to stabilise the loose soil inside the tunnel applying the method of shotcreting (spraying concrete) and then insert large-diameter steel pipes through the rubble to prepare an escape passage for those trapped. November 14: Steel pipes of a diameter of 800 and 900 mm are brought to the tunnel site to be inserted through the rubble with the help of an auger machine for horizontal digging. However, the efforts suffer a setback when more rubble falls from the cavity created by the cave-in and causes minor injuries to two labourers. Meanwhile, a team of experts begins a survey of the tunnel and surrounding areas for soil testing. The trapped workers are supplied food, water, oxygen, electricity and medicines as some of them complain of nausea and headache. November 15: Dissatisfied with the performance of the first drilling machine, the NHIDCL asks for a state-of-the-art American auger machine, which is airlifted from Delhi to speed up the rescue efforts. November 16: The high-performance drilling machine is assembled and installed. It starts working past midnight. November 17: Working overnight, the machine drills about 24 metres through the rubble by the afternoon and four MS pipes with a length of six metres each are inserted. The process comes to a halt when the fifth pipe hits an obstacle. Damage to the machine is also reported. Yet another high-performance auger machine is flown down from Indore to assist in the rescue efforts following a request from the NHIDCL. In the evening, the NHIDCL reports that around 2:45 pm on Friday, during the positioning of the fifth pipe, a big cracking sound was heard in the tunnel and the rescue operation suspended immediately. The sound creates panic among the rescue team members. An expert involved in the project warns about the possibility of further collapse in the vicinity. Subsequently, the drilling and pipe-pushing activity is stopped. November 18: Drilling does not resume on Saturday as experts feel that the vibrations created by the diesel-driven 1,750-horse power heavy-duty American auger inside the tunnel might cause more debris to collapse, posing a risk to the lives of the rescue personnel. Alternative options are explored by a team of officials from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and experts who decide to work on five evacuation plans simultaneously, including vertical drilling through the top of the tunnel to rescue the trapped labourers. Rescue work at the collapsed Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand was virtually on hold Sunday as the agencies involved in the effort set themselves up for the next stage -- adopting multiple approaches to reach the 41 men trapped inside for a week. IMAGE: NDRF personnel at the spot with equipment to carry out the rescue operations at the Silkyara Tunnel where 41 workers are stranded, in Uttarkashi on Sunday, November 19, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo Officials said a road to the top of the hill has been laid in a single day for digging a vertical shaft down into the tunnel. Also, the Tehri Hydroelectric Development Corporation was set to begin 'micro tunneling' Sunday night from the Barkot end of the under-construction tunnel on the Char Dham route, part of which collapsed on November 12. Boring through the debris of the collapsed 60-metre stretch from the Silkyara end was put on hold Friday afternoon when the American-made heavy-duty auger machine encountered a hard obstacle after about 22 metres. The setback forced a rethink on Friday. Officials drew up a series of alternative plans to reach the workers trapped inside the under-construction tunnel. But after a visit to the site Sunday, Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said boring horizontally through the debris with the huge auger machine appeared to be the best bet. He anticipated a breakthrough two and a half days. A media brief issued in Delhi said this drilling would begin again Monday, after safety arrangements for rescue workers are put in place. By Sunday evening, rescue workers had pushed in a six-inch wide tube up to 39 metres into the rubble. Once it cuts across the collapsed stretch, the trapped workers would be sent food and water through this pipe as well. A smaller four-inch wide 'compressor pipe' already runs through the debris and is being used to send in food, water, oxygen and medicines, officials said. The stretch in which the workers are trapped is about two kilometres of the built-up portion of the tunnel and is 8.5 metres high. There is electricity and water available, a press release said. The Rail Vikas Nigam Limited has begun work on a vertical pipeline for supplying essential items after the completion of the approach road to the top of the hill. "Saving the trapped workers and evacuating them at the earliest is the biggest priority," Gadkari told reporters at Silkyara after a meeting with the experts there. "Preparations are underway to restart the auger machine and resume drilling and pipe-laying at the tunnel," he said. Gadkari said the auger machine had worked well through the soft soil but there were vibrations in the tunnel when it encountered a hard object. This posed a danger to the safety of the rescue workers. "Though I am no technical expert, in the given circumstances horizontal digging seems the best option. If the auger machine does not encounter any obstacles it might reach the trapped workers in two and a half days," he said. Uttarakhand Disaster Management Secretary Ranjit Kumar Sinha said the minister has suggested that there could be space between the top of the debris and the tunnel roof, and this could be explored by robots to see if another pipe for life support could be pushed through. Road Transport and Highways Secretary Anurag Jain said multivitamins, antidepressants and dry fruit are being provided to the trapped workers. "Fortunately, there is light inside because the electricity is on. There is a pipeline, and so water is available. There is a four-inch pipe that was used for compression. Through it we are sending food from day 1," he said. The multiple-pronged approach now being adopted follows a series of setbacks after a portion of the Silkyara-Barkot tunnel collapsed the previous Sunday morning, blocking the way out for the worker who were ending the night shift. When using earth-moving equipment failed, an auger machine was brought in. When this too didn't work, the larger American-made drilling machine was airlifted by the IAF from Delhi. A similar machine was also dispatched from Indore in case a replacement was needed. The vertical drilling equipment arriving next is too big to be hauled by air and will be brought to the site by road, the authorities said. Brattleboro, VT (05301) Today Partly cloudy skies this morning will give way to cloudy skies and rain during the afternoon. High 49F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%.. Tonight Rain showers this evening with mostly cloudy conditions overnight. Low 34F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%. Operation 1027 has been followed by major gains by ethnic resistance organizations across the country. A man watches smoke rising from the direction of a Myanmar military base in Lashio township, northern Shan State, Nov. 7, 2023. The Three Brotherhood Alliances Operation 1027 in northern Shan State has caused a contagion effect, with major gains by ethnic resistance organizations across Myanmar. The Three Brotherhood Alliances Operation 1027 in northern Shan State has caused a contagion effect, with its sweeping victories since late October followed by major gains by ethnic resistance organizations across Myanmar. Since the countrys founding in 1948, the military has never suffered such significant and widespread battlefield setbacks. Despite having seized power in a coup d'etat in February 2021, Myanmar's military has never been able to consolidate power. But now, it looks like the beginning stages of their total defeat, with plummeting morale amongst the rank and file. Operation 1027 continues across Shan State with the Three Brotherhood Alliance -- , which includes the Taang National Liberation Army, (TNLA) the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and the Arakan Army -- and some peoples defense forces under the National Unity Government (NUG) having taken nine towns, over 160 military camps, and now controlling key roads. Opposition forces have seized abandoned armor, artillery, and a large cache of small arms and ammunition. And army attempts to supply their isolated forces by air have had little success with opposition forces often recovering the supplies. Members of the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force, KNDF pose in front of Loikaw University in Kayah State following their attack on junta forces on Nov. 15, 2023. Credit: KNDF The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) is currently pushing towards their former headquarters in Laukkaing, which they lost in 2009. Ironically, the commander of Myanmar's military forces in that 2009 battle was none other than junta leader Min Aung Hlaing. Radio Free Asia has reported that a second battalion of some 120 men has laid down their arms in Shan State. The first light infantry battalion to do so, which included 41 men, took place on October 30, 2023. Authorities in Naypyitaw are so concerned about the total loss of Kokang Special Autonomous Zone, that they replaced the head of the local allied Border Guards Force that was established in 2009, Myint Swe, with Brigadier-General Tun Tun Myint of the northeastern command. But beyond that the military is unable to do little other than barrage the region with long-range artillery and aerial bombardments. Despite Min Aung Hlaings vow to mount a counter offensive, the military is short on manpower, helicopter lift capability and is facing crumbling morale. Contagion Effect The Kachin Independence Army has joined the fray, capturing a military base in Kutkai, in northern Shan state, where they claim 30 soldiers were killed. There are ongoing encounters between them and military regime forces in Kachin. With the roads contested, the military is now dependent on ferrying in men and supplies. The fighting has significantly expanded in the past week. Karenni forces launched a parallel offensive, Operation 1111, in Kayah state. They have seized 20 military outposts in 6 days of fighting. But most significantly, they are in the middle of an assault on Loikaw. The city of 50,000, is the first provincial capital that is at risk of falling to opposition forces. Karenni Nation Defense Forces (KNDF) have claimed to have killed 110 soldiers and taken 38 prisoners of war. Footage spread across social media shows KNDF personnel taking the surrender and providing medical care for soldiers at the University in Loikaw. Members of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, MNDAA Pose with ammunition seized from Hkoke Htan military outpost in Kokang region on Nov. 16, 2023. Operation 1027 continues across Shan State with the Three Brotherhood Alliance and some peoples defense forces Under the National Unity Government, NUG having taken nine towns, over 160 military camps, and now controlling key roads. Credit: The Kokang The situation in Chin state has been more fluid. Military forces drove some Chin fighters into Indias Mizoram state, but some dozen were returned to military custody by the Assam Rifles. Days later, military personnel found themselves in Mizoram where they had fled. In this case, the Assam Rifles helicoptered them back to safety in Myanmar. The military has responded with airstrikes; one of which killed eight children when a bomb fell on the house being used as a makeshift school. The situation in Rakhine has the potential to be the most costly to the SAC. The Arakan Army (AA) and the military broke their 2020 ceasefire following the coup, but both sides quickly concluded that an escalation of violence was not in their best interest. A second ceasefire was reached in November 2022. This was an enormous disappointment for the National Unity Government, which sought a new front against the junta. Breakdown in Rakhine Yet the involvement of the Arakan Army in northern Shan state, where they are a member of the Three Brotherhood Alliance, has led to a breakdown in the peace in Rakhine state. The military has deployed several navy ships to the region along with additional personnel, but both failed to serve as a deterrent. The AA broke the ceasefire on November 13. In the first 24 hours of commencing offensive operations, the AA seized over 40 military and police outposts. Some 26 police surrendered. In many cases police have abandoned remote posts to consolidate in the larger towns. A man stands amongst debris in the aftermath of a military strike on a camp for displaced people near northern Laiza area on Oct. 11, 2023. Credit: AFP The AA took the town of Pauktaw, their first. The military has responded as they can, with aerial bombardment and indiscriminate fire from their naval vessels that has led to the death of innocent civilians and over 20,000 displaced people. There are reports that several ministers from the Rakhine State Military Council have already fled the capital Sittwe, for fear of being arrested by the AA. The AA can be expected to quickly fill the political vacuum. In Sagaing -- where a joint operation between the KIA, the AA, the All Burma Students Defense Force, and other PDFs led to the capture of Kawlin -- the first of 330 nationwide township capitals to fall, has now spread to Tigyaing township. The Irrawaddy reported that 20 civilians were killed in regime airstrikes. Panic setting in The panic must be setting in in Naypyitaw. There are already reports of families of officers and other regime officials trying to leave the fortress capital, which is only 120 km away from the fighting. There are also reports that government officials are resigning en masse in order to avoid being conscripted. Myanmar junta forces march during a parade to commemorate Myanmar's 78th Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw in March 2023. Credit: Aung Shine Oo/AP Four weeks ago, it looked like the war was settling into a protracted conflict, soon entering its fourth year. Despite legitimacy and growing military capabilities, the National Unity Government, its PDFs and allied ethnic resistance organizations still seemed too weak and disparate to militarily defeat a far better resourced force that maintains significant advantages in air, artillery and maneuvers. But the military is both smaller than what has been published, and its forces have been steadily depleted through combat losses, defections, and desertions. But more importantly, it is an extremely ineptly led force that used their poorly paid and equipped force as cannon fodder. It seems now that the troops, with their collapsing morale, are waking up to the fact that the generals are willing to fight to the last man in order to cling to power. While some troops have responded with spasmodic violence, a growing number appear to have lost the will to fight, a contagion that could race through the ranks. Zachary Abuza is a professor at the National War College in Washington and an adjunct at Georgetown University. The views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the position of the U.S. Department of Defense, the National War College, Georgetown University or Radio Free Asia. Black Bauhinia, a feature-length documentary film on Hong Kong independence movement, will be released in Taiwan theaters on Saturday, Nov. 18. Malte Kaeding, the director of the film says it highlights Beijing's broken promises. A new documentary about the outlawed Hong Kong independence movement could influence the citizens of democratic Taiwan ahead of the presidential poll in January 2024, as it highlights the erosion of freedoms promised by Beijing, according to its director. Malte Kaeding, whose documentary "Black Bauhinia" will screen in Taiwan at the weekend, said the rolling back of Hong Kong's promised freedoms that sparked the protests, and the subsequent crackdown on dissent under a draconian security law have given many in Taiwan a sense of what might happen if they went along with China's calls for "unification." Hong Kong was promised the continuation of its freedoms of speech, press and association for at least 50 years after the 1997 handover to Chinese rule. But rather than moving towards fully democratic elections as stipulated in the city's Basic Law, the ruling Chinese Communist Party has clamped down on political opposition well ahead of that date, while claiming that the "one country, two systems" framework it promised is still working well. Director Malte Kaeding, whose documentary Black Bauhinia will screen in Taiwan at the weekend, said the rolling back of Hong Kongs promised that sparked the protests, and the subsequent crackdown on dissent under a draconian security law have given many in Taiwan a sense of what might happen if they went along with China's calls for "unification." Credit: Cheng Haonan "Black Bauhinia" follows two young Hong Kong activists as they are forced to decide between long-term imprisonment and refugee camps for a life in exile following mass protests in their home city. Unlike earlier 2019 protest documentaries, the film focuses exclusively on Hong Kong localism and the independence movement, following independence activist Edward Leung, who coined the banned protest slogan "Free Hong Kong, Revolution Now!" and fellow independence activist Ray Wong, who was granted political asylum by Germany in 2018, angering Beijing. "Throughout Black Bauhinias three-year production period, localism inspired the 2019 Hong Kong protests, while the ensuing government crackdown rendered the documentary into an outlawed element of resistance," the film's website says. "Black Bauhinia captures the ideas of a young generation that dared to challenge an authoritarian China." Cautionary tale for Taiwan Kaeding hopes that the film will serve as a cautionary tale for Taiwanese audiences as they consider whom to vote for in the ongoing presidential race. "Hong Kong has influenced Taiwanese people's view of China, so, as you know, the idea was always from the Chinese side, that 'one country, two systems' will be available to Taiwan -- it will be the best way of 'solving' [what they call] the 'Taiwan question," Kaeding told RFA Cantonese. The majority of Taiwan's 23 million people don't identify as Chinese, and have no wish to be ruled by the Chinese Communist Party or to give up their democratic way of life, according to recent opinion polls and election results, despite Beijing's territorial claim on the island. Hong Kong pro-independence protester Edward Leung is taken away in a prison van after he pleaded guilty in court to assaulting a police officer, in Hong Kong in 2018. the film focuses exclusively on Hong Kong localism and the independence movement, following activist Edward Leung. Credit: Bobby Yip/Reuters "Every Taiwanese looking at Hong Kong now realizes that these promises made under 'one country, two systems' by the Chinese government are not really something that can be trusted in. These promises are not being kept," Kaeding said. "So that influences their view of the relationship with China, definitely," said Kaeding, who finished the film on his last trip to Hong Kong in January 2020, just before the National Security Law criminalized any talk of independence, or "secession." "I haven't tried to get into Hong Kong [since]," he said. "I think it's better to stay away ... I think it might be too sensitive for me to go to Hong Kong for the time being." 'Hostile foreign forces' Kaeding, who is a senior lecturer in international politics at the University of Surrey, has also cut off all contact with Leung, for fear of endangering him now that he has been released from prison into an ever-widening crackdown on political opposition and public dissent. "I purposely cut all contact with him because I think it's too dangerous," he said. "Once he went into prison, I stopped contacting him or his family because as you know the [accusations of] so-called 'foreign forces,' 'foreign interference' would just hurt him or his family, so I think it's not wise to engage." Edward Leung, a de facto leader of Hong Kong's independence movement in Hong Kong in 2016. Credit: Bobby Yip/Reuters The Chinese and Hong Kong governments have blamed recent waves of mass protest in Hong Kong on incitement by hostile foreign forces seeking to foment a color revolution in the city. In August, security chief Chris Tang blamed the mass protest campaign in 2012 by students -- some of them still in secondary school -- against patriotic education in Hong Kong's schools, the 2014 Occupy Central movement for fully democratic elections, the 2016 localist-linked "fishball revolution" in Mong Kok and the 2019 movement against extradition to mainland China on the actions of "foreign forces." Hong Kong leader John Lee vowed in his annual policy address last month to "eradicate the causes of dissent" in the city, which he said still lingers despite a years-long crackdown, adding that his administration is currently drafting new national security legislation to be passed in 2024. Dramatic changes Academic freedom has also suffered since 2019, with university students forced to pass classes in "national security education" in order to graduate, and Tiananmen massacre historian Rowena He recently denied a work visa following criticism in the pro-Beijing press. "One of the concerns ... is of course academic freedom in Hong Kong, and problem is that for subjects such as political science, sociology, international relations, the social sciences, but also even history or social work and others, there are a lot of issues where the Hong Kong government or the Chinese government is drawing up so-called red lines, but these red lines are changing all the time," Kaeding said. "So it becomes very uncertain, what you can research, what is acceptable to research," he said, adding that uncertainty around visas could act as a deterrent to international scholars visiting the city. "There is a level of unpredictability now with any academic events in Hong Kong, which makes academic exchanges with colleagues in Hong Kong very very difficult," he said. "People may just think ... why would I go to Hong Kong if maybe at the last minute my visa is canceled, or maybe I'm disinvited." Supporters hold a banner with a picture of Hong Kong activist Edward Leung as they shout slogans outside the High Court in Hong Kong in 2019. Credit: Vincent Yu/AP Yet Kaeding still sees Hong Kong as a topic of urgent international interest, several years into Beijing's crackdown on its promised freedoms. "I think people still care about Hong Kong because the changes in Hong Kong have been so dramatic, and I think that's really something the international audience hasn't seen in that way, that a liberal free society has been put under pressure and unraveled in a very short period of time," he said. "It's very sad ... but I'm not a Hong Konger; I haven't lost my home. I think for Hong Kongers, it's a much much sadder and more desperate situation." Translated by Luisetta Mudie. COLOMBO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Maldives government Saturday formally requested India to withdraw its military personnel from the Island nation, according to information from Male. The request was made by the new President of Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, during his meeting with a representative of the Indian government. "At the meeting, President Muizzu had formally requested Government of India to withdraw its military personnel from the Maldives," a statement issued by the office of the Maldives President said. "The President noted that at the Presidential election held in September, the Maldivian people had given him a strong mandate to make the request to India and expressed the hope that India will honour the democratic will of the people of the Maldives." The request was made a day after Muizzu was sworn in as the 8th president of the Maldives. Reports said India has some 70 soldiers in the Maldives, manning radars and surveillance aircraft. Indian warships also help patrol the country's exclusive economic zone. Pakistani demonstrators have slammed the government's crackdown on undocumented Afghan nationals. The Joint Action Committee for Refugees -- a platform of Pakistani politicians, activists, and lawyers -- organized the gathering on November 18 in Karachi. Slogans on some banners warned of the hardships awaiting women and minorities deported to Afghanistan. Many Afghans found refuge in Pakistan during the decades of unrest in their homeland. The number of undocumented Afghans in Pakistan was estimated at 1.7 million in October when the Pakistani government ordered them to leave by the end of the month. Iran's strategy in the Middle East is essentially a take on an old proverb: Give your proxies and partners weapons and you can sustain their battles for a day. Teach them to make weapons and they can fight your enemies for a lifetime. With Iranian-backed militant groups taking the charge in the Islamic republic's fight against Israel and the United States, Tehran is seeing its effort to help them acquire their own weapons-manufacturing capabilities pay off. "Iran has established a network of allies and partners throughout the Middle East, from the Huthis in Yemen, to pro-Iranian groups in Iraq, to pro-Iranian groups in Syria, to Hizballah in Lebanon, to Hamas in Gaza," said Samuel Bendett of the Virginia-based Center for Naval Analyses. "And [Tehran] basically feeds some of its technology there directly, or provides kits and parts and other assistance to the local developers from those units, from those groups, and either gives them training in Iran or trains them on their location." Increasingly, those Tehran-backed militant groups are turning to weapons they have produced themselves, often based on Iranian blueprints or manufactured or assembled with Iran's assistance. "Those groups now have a lot of know-how which was provided to them by Iran," Bendett said. "And they're now using them against the U.S. and its allies in the region." The Iranian-backed Islamic Resistance Movement -- better known as Hamas and considered a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union -- utilized a vast array of indigenously produced weapons and employed advanced battlefield tactics during its surprise multipronged attack on Israel on October 7 that left around 1,200 people dead. The Israeli Defense Forces said they recovered Iranian-manufactured mortars and explosives used by the Palestinian extremist group after the assault, and Israeli military officials have reportedly estimated that up to 10 percent of the weapons used in the attack were made in Iran. But most were produced or refined by Hamas indigenously in the Gaza Strip, including assault rifles, missiles, rockets, mortars, shells, and ammunition, according to Israeli defense officials. Some of the at least 19 Iranian proxies and partners in the region that help make up Iran's so-called axis of resistance have also used Iranian-derived or indigenously manufactured weapons built with Tehran's help against Israel as well as U.S. troops based in the region since the Hamas assault. These militant groups boast varying levels of firepower in their respective arsenals made up of Soviet-era, Russian, Iranian, and indigenously manufactured weapons based on Iranian designs. While Iran denies delivering arms to the groups directly, many of the missiles, rockets, and other weapons are similar to those produced by Iran. Lebanese Hizballah boasts the most formidable arsenal of projectiles among Tehran's proxies -- including its own manufactured or refitted missiles and rockets. Since October 7, Hizballah has launched hundreds of rockets and missiles at Israel. The Iranian-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen claim to have launched ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones, at Israel. On November 8, the Pentagon announced that a U.S. military surveillance drone was shot down off the coast of Yemen by Huthi forces. In an apparent response to U.S. support for Israel's retaliatory land invasion and aerial bombardment of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, Iranian proxies in Iraq and Syria have launched 58 attacks against U.S. forces in the past month, according to the Pentagon. Tehran has denied involvement in the Hamas attack, and in early November Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reportedly pressed Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh to silence those calling for Iran and Lebanese Hizballah to join the Israel-Hamas war. According to sources cited by Reuters, Khamenei said during the meeting with Haniyeh in Tehran that Iran would continue to offer political and moral support but would not directly enter the conflict. But Iran has publicly boasted about the military aid it has provided to Hamas in recent years. And despite international sanctions and a sea and land blockade on the Gaza Strip that was imposed by Israel and Egypt in 2005, experts say it is clear that Tehran has provided assistance to boost Hamas's fighting capabilities. Middle East political analyst Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib told RFE/RL that Hamas built up its arsenal by looting weapons from former stockpiles of the Palestinian Authority or illegally purchasing them decades ago from Israeli sources through straw-man sales, smuggling arms and materials across the border with Egypt, and domestically producing drones, rockets, and various munitions. But there is little evidence that any seaborne smuggling of arms has taken place since Hamas took power in the Gaza Strip in 2007, he said. And the smuggling from Egypt that reached its height after the Egyptian revolution in 2011 declined sharply after the Muslim Brotherhood government there was overthrown in 2013 and has since "been reduced to a trickle." Nevertheless, Alkhatib said, "the weaponry and the arsenal that Hamas has right now has been building up for over a decade" and benefited from thousands of tons of smuggled arms and materials that could be used to manufacture its own weapons. "Even if the smuggling stopped, those are still significant and vast enough to offer Hamas and other groups the ability to inflict damage as we saw on October 7 and as we're seeing in their defensive battle with advancing Israeli ground troops," said Alkhatib, a U.S. citizen from Gaza. Whereas Hamas historically focused on building up a stockpile of rifles and machine guns, he says, it turned its attention to developing kinetic capabilities -- including mines, targeted explosive warheads, improvised explosive devices, anti-tank missiles, and rocket propelled grenades. Hamas has also invested heavily in developing longer-range rockets and guidance and targeting capabilities as well as a range of unmanned aerial vehicles, including fixed-wing and weaponized commercial-grade drones. Hamas had a falling out with Tehran, including over the extremist group's support of the Syrian uprising in 2011, Alkhatib says. But Yahya Sinwar, Hamas's leader in Gaza, realigned the organization with Tehran "because they have realized that without Iran, their military capability won't stand a chance in continuing to evolve." The realignment "with Iran, with the Syrian regime, and certainly with [Lebanese] Hizballah," he added, "are directly related to Hamas's needs and reliance on Iran to procure materials and, more importantly in the era of limited to no smuggling, technologies and know-how to domestically produce [weapons] systems." Aided by Iranian weapons blueprints and the use of modern digital platforms for remote training, Hamas has learned how to upgrade old rockets and missiles to expand their range and lethality, he said. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and Lebanese Hizballah have also been able to remotely teach Hamas fighting tactics and how to develop its massive tunnel network. "And, more importantly, Iran is also teaching Hamas how to use strategic capabilities," Alkhatib said, such as how to integrate drones on the battlefield. "What was particularly spectacular about the October 7 attack," Alkhatib said, "is that Hamas for the first time demonstrated a combined-arms approach to guerrilla warfare, whereby intelligence was linked with the artillery barrage, was linked with the aerial capabilities of using the paragliders, was linked with the ground troops with the elite forces, with the logistical networks to transport the hostages back to Gaza and to send the attacks in waves with internal operational security. "This was a qualitative leap forward in Hamas's fighting doctrine. And it could have only been learned and developed through assistance from Iran, broadly, and more specifically, its proxies and its arms in the region such as Hizballah and the IRGC," he added. Elsewhere in the Middle East, Iran's support for proxies and its involvement in the Syrian civil war now leaves it with a significant number of experienced fighters at the ready for future conflicts. Alkhatib notes that Iran supported hundreds of thousands of Shi'ite militias and fighters in Iraq and Syria, both to support the government of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria and to combat the Islamic State (IS) extremist group alongside Syrian and Iraqi government forces. "Now that both have been largely defeated, IS and the Syrian rebels, Iran was left with these powerful, battle-hardened, well-trained, well-organized militias that had nothing to do," Alkhatib said. "And so, they have been recycled and repurposed by the IRGC to further bolster the so-called axis of resistance, and to be used in a potential fight with Israel and the United States." The human rights group Memorial has recognized Alsu Kurmasheva, a veteran journalist of RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service who has been in Russian custody since October 18, as a political prisoner. Kurmasheva, a Prague, Czech Republic-based journalist with RFE/RL who holds dual U.S. and Russian citizenships, traveled to Russia for a family emergency in May. She was temporarily detained while waiting for her return flight on June 2 at the airport in the capital of the Tatarstan region, where both of her passports were confiscated. She was not able to leave Russia as she awaited the return of her travel documents. On October 11, Kurmasheva was fined 10,000 rubles ($103) for failing to register her U.S. passport with the Russian authorities, according to local media reports based on court documents they'd seen. Kurmasheva was detained again on October 18 and this time charged with failing to register as a "foreign agent," a crime that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The Investigative Committee said Kurmasheva was being charged under a section of the Criminal Code that refers to the registration of foreign agents who carry out "purposeful collection of information in the field of military, military-technical activities of Russia," which, if received by foreign sources, "can be used against the security of the country." It gave no further details. The Investigative Committee said its investigation found that while the Russian Justice Ministry did not add her to the list of foreign agents, she failed to provide documents to be included on the registry. Kurmasheva and RFE/RL have both rejected the charge. Russia's detention of Kurmasheva, the second U.S. media member to be detained by Moscow this year, triggered a wave of criticism from rights groups and politicians saying the move signals a new level of wartime censorship. Sergei Davidis, the leader of Memorial's Support of Political Prisoners project, told RFE/RL that Kurmasheva was recognized as a political prisoner because the group considers illegal the Russian Criminal Code's article on foreign agents and its connection with so-called "purposeful collection of information in the field of military, military-technical activities of Russia." Davidis added that Memorial considered the prosecution and possible conviction of people for failing to carry out "a so-called obligation to voluntarily declare themselves as foreign agents...also illegal." "That request is illegal because, de facto, it is not about punishment for failure to declare, but for implementation of legal activities. The information in question is not classified and it is not illegal to collect such information," Davidis said, stressing that the Federal Security Service (FSB) had given a vague explanation about what can be considered information banned for collecting. "Additional to that, we see concrete political goals in [Kurmasheva's] case that were obvious by how the persecution was carried out. First, she was detained and convicted of failure to declare the second citizenship, and after that only, after obvious thinking over and looking for reasons -- they filed the second case," Davidis said. "This is the first criminal case and arrest of that kind. It explicitly indicates the artificial grounds of the whole construction. This illegal charge was thought over for a long time before it was used. They had searched for something to deprive Alsu Kurmasheva of her freedom," he added. Russia has been accused of detaining Americans to use as bargaining chips to exchange for Russians jailed in the United States. Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was arrested for alleged spying -- a charge he and the newspaper vehemently deny -- in March. WATCH: The husband of the RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, who was detained in Russia on October 18, has said she is a "political prisoner." Since 2012, Russia has used its so-called foreign agent laws to label and punish critics of government policies. It has also been increasingly used to shut down civil society and media groups in Russia since the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Amnesty International, the UN Human Rights Office, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and the chairman of the U.S. House of Representative's Foreign Affairs Committee have called for the immediate release of Kurmasheva. The "foreign agent" law allows authorities to label nonprofit organizations as "foreign agents" if they receive funding from abroad and are engaged in political activities. RFE/RL says the law amounts to political censorship meant to prevent journalists from performing their professional duties and is challenging the authorities' moves in Russian courts and at the European Court of Human Rights. More than 30 RFE/RL employees have been listed as "foreign agents" by the Russian Justice Ministry in their personal capacity. In March, a Moscow court declared the bankruptcy of RFE/RL's operations in Russia following the company's refusal to pay multiple fines totaling more than 1 billion rubles ($14 million) for noncompliance with the law. Memorial, founded in 1987 to remember victims of Soviet repression, was closed down by Russia's Supreme Court in November 2021 -- citing the "foreign agents" law -- although it still functions outside the country and has managed to continue some activities inside Russia. Kurmasheva is one of four RFE/RL journalists -- Andrey Kuznechyk, Ihar Losik, and Vladyslav Yesypenko are the other three -- currently imprisoned on charges related to their work. Rights groups and RFE/RL have called repeatedly for the release of all four, saying they have been wrongly detained. Losik is a blogger and contributor for RFE/RLs Belarus Service who was convicted in December 2021 on several charges including the organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Kuznechyk, a web editor for RFE/RLs Belarus Service, was sentenced in June 2022 to six years in prison following a trial that lasted no more than a few hours. He was convicted of creating or participating in an extremist organization. Yesypenko, a dual Ukrainian-Russian citizen who contributed to Crimea.Realities, a regional news outlet of RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, was sentenced in February 2022 to six years in prison by a Russian judge in occupied Crimea after a closed-door trial. He was convicted of possession and transport of explosives, a charge he steadfastly denies. More than 400 applications are still being processed through a controversial passport-for-pay scheme in Montenegro that, after pressure from the EU, officials said had been shut down. The Montenegrin Investment Agency (MIA), which manages the oft-criticized program, told RFE/RL's Balkan Service that out of 1,100 applications for such passports between 2019 and the end of last year, there are 413 applications "in various stages of processing" that are still pending. Podgorica shuttered its so-called citizenship-by-investment program in December 2022 after repeated urgings from the European Union over the potential for abuse and, more recently, risks that it could help Russian nationals evade international punishment for the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Out of the 1,100 applications, the MIA said Montenegro has green-lighted passports -- which allow visa-free travel to 124 countries -- for 484 of those people. The majority of the scheme's applicants are Russian and Chinese nationals. Experts say more than a dozen countries provide around 50,000 so-called golden passports each year in what has been dubbed the "citizenship industry." The people spending tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars to invest their way to citizenship are frequently seeking the benefits of travel, business, or taxation, or even a safeguard to evade state or government controls at home. 'Easy Source Of Income' Kristin Surak, an associate professor of political sociology at the London School of Economics and author of a new book, Golden Passports: Global Mobility For Millionaires, calls it a global industry worth some $4 billion. She says the passport market is "a very easy source of income" for states like Montenegro. With only around 620,000 citizens and a narrow tax base centered on tourism, energy, and some agriculture, the draw is obvious for Montenegrin policymakers of a passports program to encourage investment. Moreover, its location on an external EU border with the prospect of potentially becoming a new member, Surak says, would effectively "turn Montenegrin [citizenship] into European" citizenship. Montenegro's citizenship-by-investment program required applicants to invest at least 250,000 euros ($271,000) in Montenegro, mostly by purchasing short-term rental and hotel properties. Montenegrin officials have boasted that the program yielded some 300 million euros in investment and about 100 million euros in budget revenues. But the European Union has repeatedly warned Montenegro against what it calls a "controversial" program and highlighted the key role that Russian investment plays in the scheme. In its latest report on Montenegro, the European Commission cited security and other risks including of money laundering, tax evasion, corruption and organized crime, and the financing of terrorism. News of hundreds of pending applications for the golden passports could contribute to distrust just as the new government of Prime Minister Milojko Spajic is seeking to burnish its pro-European credentials. Failing On Asset Seizures The previous caretaker government of Dritan Abazovic announced to fanfare in February that it had abolished the passports-for-pay scheme and informed the EU of its discontinuation. It was, the Montenegrin European Affairs Ministry said, "officially completed on December 31, 2022, which is in line with the recommendations of the European Commission, regarding the risks that this program carries with it." Montenegro is among the leading candidate countries for EU membership and has been a member of NATO since 2017. Some countries, including all EU members, have closed their borders to Russian nationals as part of the unprecedented international sanctions to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. The lingering queue of such passport applications could spell further disappointment in Brussels following recent revelations that Montenegro has so far failed to follow through on Russian asset seizures. Instead of the dozens of Russians whose properties Podgorica claimed to have targeted for confiscation early in the 20-month-old war in Ukraine, RFE/RL learned that the authorities had actually seized only an apartment and a storage space held by one Russian on the EU sanctions list. The 400-plus passport applications that were filed before the Montenegrin program was closed are being considered through a decision-making chain that includes confirmation that the investments came from legal sources and a review by a due-diligence agent. That agent should ensure that an applicant has a clean record and "good reputation" and is not wanted by international law enforcement or the International Criminal Court, for example. Montenegro uses the services of two companies -- one British and the other Canadian -- to conduct the screenings. "Very few countries have the ability to do a thorough check on their own, especially if you are a microstate with less than 1 million inhabitants," Surak says. According to an Interior Ministry document, some Russians were cleared by the outside screening companies but then rejected by Montenegrin authorities due to security concerns. In the first weeks after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine was launched on February 24, 2022, the previous Montenegrin government adopted measures to implement international sanctions and other war-related decisions. The restrictions included identifying and temporarily confiscating 44 properties in Montenegro owned by 34 Russian nationals. Russian ownership is a sensitive topic following years of investment by Russians looking to keep their assets abroad and lured by Montenegro's beachfront beauty and its relative lack of scrutiny. The result, according to Montenegro's land registry, was around 19,000 apartments and other properties in Russian hands in 2022. Written by Andy Heil based on reporting by RFE/RL Balkan Service correspondent Milos Rudovic Punjabi Youth Demise in Dubai News A Heartbreaking Incident Leaves Grieving Family in Bhome, Ghuman; Promising Life Cut Short in a Foreign Land Punjabi Youth Demise in Dubai News: In a devastating turn of events, Jugraj Singh, a 30-year-old youth from the village Ghuman in Gurdaspur district, lost his life in a tragic road accident in Dubai. The news of the untimely demise has cast a shadow of sorrow over Jugraj's family and the close-knit community. Jugraj Singh, son of Kashmir Singh, was employed at Riddhi Siddhi Transport Company in Dubai. On the auspicious day of Diwali, a friend of Jugraj received a distressing call informing him that Jugraj's vehicle had been involved in a road accident, leading to his unfortunate demise. The family was devastated to learn of the tragedy, especially as Jugraj had not yet met his six-month-old son. Advertisement Kashmir Singh, grieving the loss of his son, shared that Jugraj was planning to visit home in the upcoming month to reunite with his family. However, fate took an unexpected turn, robbing the family of the joyous reunion they had been eagerly anticipating. The tragedy becomes even more poignant as Jugraj Singh had welcomed the birth of his son just six months ago. Regrettably, he had not had the opportunity to meet his newborn son even once. The entire village and the town mourn the loss of Jugraj Singh, who ventured abroad for employment opportunities, contributing to the growing list of Punjabi youth facing unfortunate incidents abroad. The news has ignited discussions about the challenges and risks faced by Punjabi expatriates working in foreign lands. by Burak Akinci ANTAKYA, Turkiye, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Nine months after the twin devastating earthquakes struck southern Turkiye and killed more than 50,000 people, survivors in the quake-affected areas are looking forward to moving into permanent residence as winter arrives. According to official figures, more than 200,000 buildings either collapsed or were heavily damaged across the country during the two powerful tremors that occurred several hours apart. The government has promised to build 850,000 new units for both residences and businesses, but locals worry that construction works could take more time than expected. "Rebuilding will be a long process. Thousands of people who were displaced from their homes have found temporary housing in pre-fabricated containers," Seref Atli, a retired driver from Antakya, a main city in the southern Hatay province, told Xinhua. He is referring to the temporary new settlements built by the government in the months following the disaster. Composed of pre-fabricated housing units resembling shipping containers, those "container towns" housed around 578,000 earthquake survivors, according to data released by Turkiye's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority at the end of August. Atli, who lives in one of those container towns, fears that most of his neighbors will have to spend the winter in these temporary shelters. "We are waiting for a new house. In the meantime, we struggle to survive." He added that as winter sets in, water shortages and heating are the pressing concerns in his neighborhood. Numan Ermis, another survivor living in a container camp in Antakya told Xinhua that they would probably have to warm themselves with gas and electric heaters, which would be particularly difficult for the children. The trader explained that some containers are built to withstand winter conditions but most of them are poorly insulated. "In harsh winter conditions, it will not be easy to heat our shelter," he said. In addition, there are health concerns over the unhygienic living conditions and cancer-causing asbestos still being released from the rubble nine months after the earthquake. Asbestos, once used profusely in construction, is now classified as a carcinogen by the World Health Organization. "People living in the earthquake zone face diseases such as COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), silicosis, and cancer due to materials such as asbestos, silica, concrete, sand and stone emerging from the demolition," the Turkish Health and Social Services Workers' Trade Union said on Tuesday. "There are still many excavators and trucks roaming the city, and the dust that accompanies the works is surrounding us most of the time," Atli said. LOS ANGELES, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- SpaceX's giant new rocket Starship on Saturday blasted off on its second test flight, but exploded minutes after launch. Starship successfully lifted off under the power of all 33 Raptor engines on the Super Heavy Booster at about 7:04 a.m. Central Time (1304 GMT) from SpaceX's Starbase in U.S. state of Texas, and made it through a successful stage separation, said SpaceX. However, the booster experienced a "rapid unscheduled disassembly" after stage separation and boostback burn while Starship's engines fired for several minutes on its way to space, according to SpaceX. It was the second integrated flight testing with the second launch of Starship. "With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today's test will help us improve Starship's reliability as SpaceX seeks to make life multiplanetary," SpaceX said. The company said it will share more information as the team reviews data from Saturday's test. SpaceX made the first test flight of SpaceX's fully integrated Starship and Super Heavy rocket in April this year, but the vehicle exploded after liftoff from the launch pad in SpaceX's Starbase in Boca Chica, South Texas. SpaceX's Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket, collectively referred to as Starship, represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond. Starship will be the world's most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, capable of carrying up to 150 metric tonnes fully reusable and 250 metric tonnes expendable, according to SpaceX. NASA awarded SpaceX contracts worth several billions of U.S. dollars to use Starship to ferry American astronauts to the surface of the moon under the space agency's Artemis program. NASA has announced plans to use a Starship to put astronauts on the lunar surface in 2025. Impenitent Polish truckers cause 10-day waits at Ukraine-Poland border, crisis HQ established 19 November, 05:05 PM Queue at the Rava-Ruska checkpoint, archive (Photo:REUTERS/Roman Baluk/File Photo) A crippling strike by Polish truckers has led to a massive traffic jam at the Ukraine-Poland border, leaving approximately 2,900 cargo vehicles stranded in queues as long as 30 kilometers, Ukrainian State Border Guard Service spokesperson, Andriy Demchenko, said on national television on Nov. 19. Unfortunately, the movement for trucks continues to be blocked by Polish carriers, Demchenko said. The strike is concentrated at three border crossing points Yahodyn, Rava-Ruska, and Krakovets. They eventually allow a few trucks to pass per hour in both directions, those coming from Poland and those heading into the country. However, this does not significantly increase the traffic intensity, Andriy Demchenko explained. Video of day Presently, about 1,200 trucks are stuck in the queues toward the Yahodyn and Krakovets crossing points, with an additional 500 trucks awaiting passage on the Rava-Ruska route. Seeking faster alternatives, carriers are diverting to other border crossing points, exacerbating congestion in those areas. For instance, at the Shehyni border crossing point into Poland, approximately 1,300 trucks are awaiting entry into Ukraine. An additional 400 trucks combined are waiting at the Ustyluh and Smilnytsia crossing points in the direction of Ukraine, Demchenko reported. Before the strike, the State Border Guard Service reported daily traffic of 1,200-1,300 trucks at the Yahodyn border crossing point and approximately 600 trucks at the Rava-Ruska and Krakovets crossing points in both directions. Update at 1:40 p.m.: Crisis headquarters established at the Poland border to assist stranded Ukrainian drivers The Development of Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Ministry, in collaboration with relevant associations and carriers, has opened a crisis headquarters to assist Ukrainian drivers stranded at the Poland border for over 10 days. The primary objective is to provide drivers with essential supplies such as food, drinking water, medications, and fuel, said Oleksandr Kubrakov, the Infrastructure Minister. The queues toward Yahodyn, Rava-Ruska, and Krakovets have stretched over 30 km, over 10 km, and over 16 km, respectively, said Kubrakov. Read also: Ukrainian truck driver died while waiting at blockaded Polish border Polish carriers have enforced a blockade of truck traffic at the three largest border crossing points with Ukraine since Nov. 6, citing demands to reinstate the permit system for Ukrainian cargo transportation. Additional requests include restrictions on the movement of Ukrainian companies across Europe, prohibition of registering companies in Poland with finances outside the EU, the introduction of separate queues for vehicles with EU numbers, a separate line for empty trucks at all borders, and access to the Ukrainian Road system for volunteers and long-haul drivers. Will you support Ukraines free press? Dear reader, as all news organizations, we must balance the pressures of delivering timely, accurate, and relevant stories with requirements to fund our business operations. As a Ukrainian-based media, we also have another responsibility to amplify Ukraines voice to the world during the crucial moment of its existence as a political nation. Its the support of our readers that lets us continue doing our job. We keep our essential reporting free because we believe in our ultimate purpose: an independent, democratic Ukraine. If youre willing to support Ukraine, consider subscribing to our Patreon starting from 5$ per month. We are immensely grateful. Please help us continue fighting Russian propaganda. Truth can be hard to tell from fiction these days. Every viewpoint has its audience of backers and supporters, no matter how absurd. If conscious disinformation is reinforced by state propaganda apparatus and budget, its outcomes may become deadly. There is no solution to this, other than independent, honest, and accurate reporting. We remain committed to empowering the Ukrainian voice to push against the muck. If youre willing to stand up for the truth consider supporting us on Patreon starting from 5$ per month. Thank you very much. Will you help tell Ukraines story to the world? Twenty years ago, most people hadnt even heard of Ukraine. Today, the country is on everyones lips and everyones headlines. War pushed us on the front page. But there are many other things we do that we are proud of from music and culture to technology. We need your help to tell the world Ukrainian story of resilience, joy, and survival. If youre willing to back our effort, consider supporting us on Patreon starting from 5$ per month. We are immensely grateful. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News manjik / Getty Images/iStockphoto Those who have traveled abroad arent likely to tell you that their trip was cheap. Best case scenario is usually when the trip ends up being not as expensive as they might have thought. On top of this, the next time you are planning to visit a foreign country, you might be hit with a tourist fee. Thats because many countries, and some cities within them, are levying taxes and fees on visitors, starting either in 2023 or at the beginning of 2024. Check Out: 8 Tips to Fly Business Class for the Price of Economy Know: Dont Buy Airline Tickets at This Time of Day Behind every tourist fee lies a compelling narrative a unique blend of financial investment and experiential return, said Sam Perio, a destination expert at Trek Fun Trek. These charges not only shape the destinations revenue but intricately color the psychological canvas of a travelers perceived value, enriching their journey with a deeper understanding of the destinations worth beyond its scenic landscapes. Perio explained that these charges cover various aspects like accommodation, conservation, infrastructure, administration, and tourism development, adding value and supporting different facets of the travel experience in each respective country. If you are planning a trip in the near future, take a look at these countries that charge fees for you to visit and plan according to your travel budget. Sponsored: New Chase checking customers enjoy a $200 bonus when you open a Chase Total Checking account and set up direct deposit. Thailand Originally set to start at the end of 2022, Thailands fees were pushed to September 2023 and are now in full effect. An entry fee of up to 300 baht will be charged for air travelers, while those arriving by bus, train, or boat will pay an additional 150 baht, said Sam Charlton, CEO of Fast Passports & Visas. Part of this fee will be allocated to cater to tourists needs, especially when their health insurance might not cover certain aspects, added Lukasz Koszyk, head of business development at Visafly. Additionally, it will support the development of popular tourist attractions. Story continues Spain There are two places in Spain that have added a tax for visitors: Valencia, where you can expect to pay a tax ranging from 50 cents to 2 per night, and Barcelona, where the local government hiked up its tourist tax in 2023, requiring a 5 per night fee for rented accommodation within its limits. The revenue from this tax is directed towards enhancing the citys infrastructure, including roads and public transportation, explained Koszyk of Barcelona, while breaking down that Valencias tax is to support the sustainable development of the regions tourism sector and provide affordable housing in tourist hotspots. Im a Luxury Travel Agent: 10 Destinations My Wealthy Clients Are Booking for 2024 Italy Italy is one of the most popular and expensive tourist destinations and it too has levied tourist fees for specific cities, said Shreya Patel, marketing manager at Lowest Flight Fares, adding that where you are visiting determines the amount. For example, text time you are going to Venice, expect to pay a fee of roughly 3 during the off-season and up to 10 during peak times. While Rome, Patel explained, has a fee that may vary between $3.40 to $7.94 per night, depending on the type of accommodation you choose. The Netherlands It is estimated that Amsterdam will become the European country to enforce the highest tourist tax starting in 2024. Tourists visiting the Netherlands pay land and water tourist tax and its capital Amsterdam is planning to add a new fee for cruise ship visitors, Patel said. Visitors to the city will have to pay $22.91 per night based on the room rate of $183.90. It can go up, depending on the price of your hotel room. Cruise passengers will have to incur $11.56 per person per day. New Zealand The island country boomed with popularity after the award winning The Lord Of The Rings movies were filmed there and brought droves of fans to the trilogys locations. In the years since, New Zealand established an International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL) to sustain natural environments and infrastructure, so tourists are expected to pay about $35 NZ during their trip. Croatia Another example of where fantasy came to life recently in Hollywood fashion and has since cashed in on the popularity is Croatia, better known visually to fans of the HBO series Game of Thrones, which used the country for many of its mythical locations. After Game of Thrones brought Croatia into the radar of the Gen Z and millennials, it increased the tourist tax fee by 25%, Patel described. However, the increased amount is applicable for only peak tourist season, which is in summer. Tourists pay $1.53 per person per night now, if they are staying in a hotel. Those who are staying in a campsite can pay $1.22. Japan Its not getting into Japan that will cost you money, its getting out. Expect to pay a 1,000 yen departure tax, sometimes called the sayonara tax, upon departure. That may sound like a lot, but do not worry the exchange rate comes out to roughly $8 USD. Germany This fee is $5.65 per person a day or 5% of the total hotel bill if you are staying in tourist destinations such as Berlin, Hamburg or Frankfurt. Patel explained that this type of fee can sometimes be referred to as a Culture Tax or a Bed Tax. The Maldives The Maldives charges an environmental green tax for tourists who decide to stay in resorts. This fee usually comes out to about $6 per person per day and contributes to the preservation of the countrys stunning natural beauty. The Caribbean For the title of The Caribbean, it must be noted that it is used to include the following countries: Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Aruba, The British Virgin Islands, Barbados, Bermuda, Dominica, The Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Haiti, Trinidad & Tobago, The U.S. Virgin Islands, Bonaire, The Cayman Islands, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Maarten, St. Vincent & Grenadines. All of them levy tourist taxes, particularly among American and European backpackers who have made the region a popular destination to explore. Tourists in some Caribbean countries are required to pay an extra amount additional to the hotel cost or a departure fee, explained Patel. The departure fee is always included on the flight or cruise ticket and ranges between $15 to $51, based on where you are traveling. Indonesia Another highly popular destination in Asia is Indonesia, with cities like Bali and Jakarta experiencing an ever-growing amount of tourists. Therefore, the local government has levied a tourist tax of $10. Patel noted that the country instituted a departure fee as well, which depends on the Indonesian airport you are departing from. Bhutan The Sustainable Development Fee of $200 USD was introduced by Bhutan to try to reduce the harmful effects of over-tourism, many of which only increased after the pandemic subsided, according to Patel. This fee, however, does not cover the cost of food, accommodation and transport, all of which youll have to pay for by yourself. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 12 Countries That Charge Fees To Visit In this article, we look at 25 countries where Muslim population will increase the most by 2050. You can skip our detailed analysis on the fastest growing religion in the world and the contribution of the Islamic world to global economy by heading over directly to the 10 Countries where Muslim Population will Increase the Most by 2050. The religious profile of the globe is rapidly evolving, primarily driven by fertility rates and the percentage of youth populations among the worlds major religious groups. Islam today is the second largest religion in the world after Christianity, with about 24% of the world's population, or 1.8 billion people, practicing the religion. However, according to the Pew Research Center, by 2050, the worlds Muslim population is projected to come close to equaling Christians which is currently an estimated 2.4 billion. Between 2010 and 2050, the population size of Muslims is projected to grow 73%, while Christian population is expected to rise by 35%. The share of atheists and people who are not affiliated with any religion is likely to shrink further. Moreover, if trends continue, 10% of Europes overall population in 2050 will comprise of muslims, India will surpass Indonesia to have the largest Muslim population in the world, and Muslims will outnumber Jews in the United States, with Islam becoming the second largest religion in the country. Economic Potential of the Muslim World Despite the fact that the contribution of the Muslim world to the global economy 8.51% of the worlds GDP is disproportionate to the size of their population, the Islamic world is full of economic potential. The Middle East is home to 53% of the worlds proven oil and gas reserves, and these two natural resources account for 51% of all exports from this region. Among the top ten oil producing countries of the world, seven are members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). On the other hand, Iran has the second largest proven natural gas reserves in the world, and is only next to Russia. Story continues The sheer magnitude of business activity in the oil industry in some of these countries can be gauged by the example of Saudi Aramco, the national oil company of Saudi Arabia. It is the second largest company in the world by revenue after Walmart, and generated $161 billion in profits in 2022, which was three times more than what Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) earned during the same year. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates are prominent exporters of oil. Several global corporations from the energy sector have invested in these countries over the last century. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) has been in Saudi Arabia for the last 90 years and had a key role to play in the formation of what is today Saudi Aramco. British Petroleum, or BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) was at the forefront of oil discovery in the UAE in 1958 and produces more than 170,000 barrels of oil every day in Abu Dhabi today. Earlier this year in March, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) and BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) jointly offered to acquire 50% of the stake in Israeli natural gas producer NewMed Energy for $2 billion. Middle Eastern companies are also making headways in the field of technology. Anghami Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGH) in 2022 became the first Arab company to be listed on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange after its merger with a special purpose acquisition company, Vistas Media Acquisition Co. Inc. The transaction was valued at $230 million. Founded in Beirut in 2012, Anghami Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGH) is the most popular music streaming platform in the Middle East and North Africa region, having more than 1.5 million paying subscribers. In 2022, Anghami Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGH) posted $48.1 million in revenues, at an increase of 35% compared to the previous year. Muslim-majority countries in South Asia and Southeast Asia also offer investors plenty of opportunities to tap into these markets because of their talented, skilled resources coupled with the cheap cost of labor in these countries. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) today maintains offices in Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Indonesia. In 2021, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced that it was building a data center in Indonesia which it expects would raise the overall revenue of the company by $6 billion. Kuala Lumpur, on the other hand, also entered into a $1 billion deal with Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) under which the latter will establish several data centers across Malaysia between 2021 and 2026. Likewise, there are several other technology and IT related companies as well that operate in this region and reap benefits of the Asian talent. Samsung, for instance, has begun manufacturing its top tier Galaxy series smartphones in both Bangladesh and Pakistan. There is no shortage of natural resources in this region either. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) returned to Pakistan after a gap of nearly three decades in 2018, and now holds a 25% interest in a large offshore block with high exploration potential. Contribution of Muslims to the United States According to the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), the Muslim community in the United States held the most optimistic view of the direction their country was headed to among all groups they surveyed in the country. ISPU also identified that Muslims aged 25 or above in the U.S. are more likely to earn a college degree compared to others; 46% against 38%. On the economic side of things, 8% of Muslims in the U.S. own businesses that have employed about 1.37 million Americans, with each business hiring an average of eight employees. The impact of the Muslim community is at its most profound in the New York City. A 2018 report by Muslims for American Progress highlighted that there are 95,816 businesses in the metropolitan area that are owned by Muslims, and have created more than 250,000 jobs. Muslim households contributed an estimated $17 billion in consumer spending in New York City in 2016. Nearly 40% of all taxi drivers and 57% of the street food vendors in NYC are Muslims. Moreover, 9% of the doctors, 12% of pharmacists, and 11.3% of the engineers in New York City belong to the Muslim community, which is testament to their tremendous contributions to ensure the success and well-being of their city and fellow American nationals. There were 3.85 million Muslims in the United States in 2020, as per Pew Research Center. The figure is projected to touch 8 million by 2050, at an increase of 108%. 25 Countries where Muslim Population will Increase the Most by 2050 Methodology The 25 countries where Muslim population will increase the most by 2050 are ranked in ascending order of the increase in population of Muslims in these countries between 2020 and 2050. The projections are made by the Pew Research Center. Lets now head over to the list of countries where Muslim population will increase the most by 2050. Top 25 countries where Muslim population will increase the most by 2050 25. China Muslim Population in 2050: 35.29 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 7.28 million Percentage Increase: 26% Muslims are a minority in China, and make up only between 1-1.5% of the overall population. A majority of them are based around the Xinjiang province, and belong to the Uyghur and Hui ethnic groups. 24. Kenya Muslim Population in 2050: 12.92 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 7.37 million Percentage Increase: 132% 85% of Kenyas population is Christian. Islam is the second largest religion in the African country with Muslims making up 10% of the overall population. The Muslim communitys numbers are expected to grow rapidly over the next three decades, and by 2050, they will comprise 13.3% of Kenyas population. 23. Uganda Muslim Population in 2050: 13.37 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 7.82 million Percentage Increase: 141% Uganda is an overwhelmingly Christian majority country, with a sizable Muslim minority most of whom are based in the eastern and northern parts of the country. In 2050, 14% of Ugandas population will be Muslim, compared to 12% in 2020. 22. Syria Muslim Population in 2050: 31.22 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 8.63 million Percentage Increase: 38% 93% of Syrias population comprises Muslims. About three-fourths of them belong to the Sunni sect of Islam, followed by Shia Muslims at 13% and Alawites at 11%. It is among the countries where Muslim population will increase the most by 2050. 21. Guinea Muslim Population in 2050: 19.56 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 8.76 million Percentage Increase: 81% Guinea is a Muslim-majority country in West Africa, with a high birth-rate of 4.5 births per woman. The populations of all groups living in the country are projected to grow at similar rates between now and 2050. The religious demographics will remain just how they were in 2020, with 85% Muslims and 10% Christians. 20. Turkey Muslim Population in 2050: 89.32 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 10.23 million Percentage Increase: 13% Turkey has a rich Islamic history and is popular across the world for its Ottoman architecture and mosques. 98% of the population identifies as Muslim, and this percentage is expected to be retained over the next three decades. Turkey is the most powerful country in the Middle East today. You can read more about this in our article, the 12 Most Powerful Countries in the Middle East Heading into 2024. 19. Malaysia Muslim Population in 2050: 32.72 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 10.65 million Percentage Increase: 48% Malaysia is a country that is known for its religious coexistence, with Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus living together in harmony. Islam is the most practiced and fastest growing religion in the country, with more than 66% of Malaysians identifying as Muslims. By 2050, this figure is projected to rise to 72.4%, while the share of Buddhists is forecasted to drop from 15.7% to 10.8%, whereas the Hindu population will see a slight dip to 5% in 2050 from 5.8% in 2020. 18. Saudi Arabia Muslim Population in 2050: 42.49 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 11.8 million Percentage Increase: 38% Saudi Arabia is home to the holiest places in Islam, at Mecca and Medina. The country is the largest producer of oil in the Middle East and is one of the most powerful countries in the region. A vast majority of the country is Muslim, with about 90% belonging to the Sunni sect. 17. Senegal Muslim Population in 2050: 27.56 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 12.08 million Percentage Increase: 78% Muslims make up 96.6% of Senegal's population. By 2050, this figure will rise to 97.5% due to a 78% projected increase in the group's population over the next three decades. 16. Somalia Muslim Population in 2050: 26.10 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 13.99 million Percentage Increase: 116% Somalia has one of the highest birth rates in the world, with an average of 6.42 births per women. It is a predominantly Muslim country with 99% of the country practicing Islam as their religion. Their population is likely to more than double by 2050 and Muslims will hold their share of the population at 99% according to Pew Research Center. 15. Burkina Faso Muslim Population in 2050: 32.20 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 17.96 million Percentage Increase: 126% Muslim population in Burkina Faso is likely to grow exponentially by 2050. Muslims currently make up about 63% of the overall population in the African country, while Christians make up a sizable minority and comprise 21.7% of Burkina Faso's inhabitants. More than 15% of the population in the country are adherents of folk religions. 14. Mali Muslim Population in 2050: 39.83 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 20.22 million Percentage Increase: 103% Mali is a Muslim-majority country in West Africa, where Muslims account for 95% of the overall population. Their size is projected to grow by more than 100% over the next three decades, but despite that, the share of Muslims in Mali will drop to 93.5% in 2050. The Christian population will remain at 2.4% like it is now. However, folk religions will see an increase from 2.5% in 2020 to 3.7% in 2050. 13. Ethiopia Muslim Population in 2050: 57.96 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 21.67 million Percentage Increase: 59.71% Ethiopia is a religiously diverse country in Africa. 62% of the country's population is Christian, whereas 36% identify as Muslim. Over the next three decades, the number of Muslims is likely to increase by over 21.5 million, after which the share of Muslim population in Ethiopia is likely to increase four percentage points to touch 40%. The Christian population is expected to drop to 58%. 12. Tanzania Muslim Population in 2050: 43.25 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 22.30 million Percentage Increase: 106% Tanzania is one of the countries where Muslim population will increase the most by 2050, both in terms of number and percentage of growth. According to projections by the Pew Research Center, Muslims will more than double in number in 2050, compared to the population size in 2020. 11. Sudan Muslim Population in 2050: 64.72 million Estimated Increase in Population between 2020 and 2050: 26.29 million Percentage Increase: 68% Sudan is home to nearly 40 million Muslims, who make up about 97% of the countrys overall population. The size of the Muslim community is projected to grow by more than two-thirds by 2050. Click to continue reading and see the 10 Countries Where Muslim Population Will Increase The Most by 2050. Suggested Articles: Disclosure: None. 25 Countries Where Muslim Population Will Increase The Most By 2050 is originally published on Insider Monkey. The Enhanced Subscription provides digital access to all our award winning content from our inception. This package also includes special access to the pdf replica of the print paper which we call the e-edition. We keep the past 90 issues in addition tot he current issue. In addition, you have the ability to comment on our articles. Finally, you have the good feeling of supporting real, local news in your community. Tensions between Australias free to air networks and pay TV body, ASTRA, have hit boiling point in a feud over a piece of legislation that will dictate how apps are displayed on smart televisions. As the legislation expected to be introduced to parliament this month, Free TV Australia, the lobby group for commercial networks Nine, Ten and Seven, has sent a legal notice to Foxtel CEO and chair of ASTRA Patrick Delany demanding action over an advertising campaign run by ASTRA, alleging it misleads Australians. The ad campaign, launched by ASTRA in early November, reads Warning: Now the government wants to control your TV. In response, Free TV on Monday has launched its own advertising campaign under the slogan Dont let big tech take your free away. Free TV has responded with its own advertising campaign. Apart from the legal stoush with Free TV, ASTRAs campaign has also led to tensions inside the group. Paramount, the international owner of Network 10 and streaming service Paramount+, has withdrawn its membership from ASTRA just days after its ad was released and has instead put its support behind Free TV. Foreign Minister Penny Wong described the union as the most important step any Australian Government has taken in the Pacific since the independence of Papua New Guinea. That might be a stretch, but certainly the intent is noticeably different. For more than two decades, the Pacific has been the place where we send refugees, not somewhere we take them from. Though there are sizable Pacifika communities in Australia, most have arrived via conventional migration pathways. We also have a Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme , a key feature of which is that entrants return home when their job usually picking fruit and vegetables is done. The terms of the Falepili Union, which is predicated on rising sea levels rendering Tuvalu uninhabitable within decades, creates an entirely new form of migration. It is also intended to be symbolic of a significant shift in the way Australia relates to the region moving forward. When our flag was taken down in Port Moresby in 1975, the assumption was that Australia had shelved its imperial ambitions. It has been drawn back from time to time, either via foreign aid, in response to natural disasters, or the period of civil unrest in Solomon Islands, but by and large, Canberra has viewed the Pacific and its litany of tiny nations as a burden and an irritation that distracts us from our geopolitical interests in Asia and support for Americas wars. Chinas growing interest in the Pacific, which culminated in the security agreement it signed with Solomon Islands last year, changed all of that. Suddenly, the region mattered to Australia again, like it did when Germany was an active imperialist prior to World War I or Japan in World War II. We became family, primarily out of fear that we were going to be outbid in much the same way China has picked off Pacific states who provided diplomatic recognition to Taiwan. But now Canberra has stumbled onto something that Pacific islanders appear to want that China cannot offer residence in Australia. To be sure, the Falepili Union includes provisions about climate adaptation and infrastructure development, and China can do all that too. But as their islands sink, it seems Tuvaluans would prefer to live here. This could be a winning hand. The language of union signals that the government hopes other countries, especially Kiribati and Nauru, might be open to a similar deal. If they are, then the map of the Pacific would suddenly look quite different. The US would maintain strategic denial in the North Pacific via Guam, its Commonwealth with the neighbouring Mariana Islands, and its Compacts of Free Association with Palau, Federated States of Micronesia and Marshall Islands. Tokelau is a dependent territory of New Zealand, which also has a free association arrangement with Cook Islands and Niue, and longstanding links with Samoa. France retains French Polynesia and New Caledonia. If the Falepili Union were to include Kiribati and Nauru as well as Tuvalu, then the North, Central and South Pacific, would all comprise territories friendly to Australia that protect our air and sea-lanes from a Chinese approach. We would also have even more sway in the Pacific Islands Forum, the premier regional institution. Checkmate. Loading Or is it? Human mobility is a key feature of the US compacts in Micronesia and New Zealands free association formula. The Falepili Union borrows heavily from these precedents, and it works because the numbers are small. But the real game of strategic denial is not going to be played out in the Central Pacific. As the China-Solomon Islands security agreement showed, the western islands are the key geopolitical prize due to their proximity to Australia. Fiji (population 900,000), Solomon Islands (700,000), Vanuatu (300,000) and PNG (10 million) are not just closer; theyre bigger, have a development model that might make migration a less attractive option, and climate change poses a different kind of threat to livelihoods. In fact, theyre each much bigger than Tuvalu (population 11,000), Nauru (12,000), and Kiribati (125,000) combined. If human mobility is our winning hand, and the one area in which China is unlikely to outbid us, then these potential numbers could prove to be a limitation for our new geostrategic posture, especially given large sections of the public have a longstanding antipathy to immigration. NSW hospitals are continuing to lodge patients after they are clinically ready to leave and have become the default aged care provider in remote rural areas due to a shortage of aged care and disability services. NSW Health bureaucrats have warned the state government that hospitals and emergency departments are being used as a last resort for older people and those living with a disability when there are no other services to support them at home or in the community. Bureaucrats have warned Health Minister Ryan Park that hospital beds are being occupied unnecessarily. Credit: Rhett Wyman There has been an upward trend in aged care patients exceeding their date of discharge from hospital since late 2022 and a slight decline in NDIS patients, with around 550 patients occupying hospital beds without a clinical reason on any given day, according to data provided by NSW Health to the special inquiry into healthcare funding. Increasing strain on the aged care sector is resulting in closures of facilities and/or aged care beds, and a general reluctance from providers to take on older people with significant needs, such as those with mental health conditions, NSW Healths submission said. Kathleen Butlers official title was Confidential Secretary. Others called her the Bridge Girl. Without her, the engineer of the Sydney Harbour Bridge John Bradfield said the great scheme to link the citys north and south may have never been realised. Kathleen Butler watches with John Bradfield (first left) as the minister signs the contract to build the Harbour Bridge, March 24, 1924. Credit: NSW State Archives A newspaper in 1922 marvelled at Butlers achievements and efficiency. Despite no formal training in engineering, the 31-year-old Clever Girl, as one newspaper described her, had set out the specifications for the bridges construction. Butler is one of eight women whose contribution to NSW history will be recognised with a blue plaque, said Penny Sharpe, NSW minister for heritage, climate change and energy. The Docklands restaurant of underworld boss Fadi Haddara has been destroyed in a suspected firebombing attack, the second time in three days that suspected arsonists targeted the venue. Dozens of apartment residents were evacuated from above New Quay restaurant, Karizma, in the early hours of Monday after a fire was believed to have been deliberately lit around 2am. The restaurant was destroyed in the suspected firebombing but no one was injured. Company records show the restaurant is owned by Fadi Haddara, one of the bosses of the Haddara crime family, which has been linked to wide-scale drug trafficking, illicit tobacco importations and violence for more than a decade. Police are investigating whether there are any links between the fires and the feud over control of Melbournes illicit tobacco trade, which has been linked to more than two dozen arson attacks across the city. An extensive stretch of public and private land along the Merri Creek corridor in Melbournes outer north will be handed back to the Wurundjeri and Woi-wurrung people to be managed as a new park. More than half of the land designated to be returned to Indigenous management will need to be acquired by the state government, which has committed to the project as part of its $315 million suburban parks program. A section of the future marram baba Merri Creek regional parkland, which will be handed back to traditional owners to manage. Credit: Jason South The sprawling parkland, to be named marram baba Merri Creek, will be 2778 hectares, more than 16 times larger than Royal Park. It will follow the course of Merri Creek for more than 34 kilometres, from the urban fringe suburbs of Beveridge and Kalkallo to the industrial estates of Campbellfield, ending where the creek flows beneath the M80 Ring Road. Key Insights Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, TransAlta's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions 50% of the business is held by the top 20 shareholders Insiders have bought recently Every investor in TransAlta Corporation (TSE:TA) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. With 58% stake, institutions possess the maximum shares in the company. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company. Given the vast amount of money and research capacities at their disposal, institutional ownership tends to carry a lot of weight, especially with individual investors. As a result, a sizeable amount of institutional money invested in a firm is generally viewed as a positive attribute. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about TransAlta. Check out our latest analysis for TransAlta What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About TransAlta? Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index. We can see that TransAlta does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. 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 TransAlta's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters. Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in TransAlta. Brookfield Corporation is currently the company's largest shareholder with 11% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 10% and 3.6%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. Story continues A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 20 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that no single shareholder has a majority. Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily. Insider Ownership Of TransAlta While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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. Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group. Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of TransAlta Corporation in their own names. However, it's possible that insiders might have an indirect interest through a more complex structure. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own CA$15m worth of shares. Arguably, recent buying and selling is just as important to consider. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling. General Public Ownership The general public-- including retail investors -- own 38% 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 Company Ownership Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 3.5%, of the company's shares. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company. Next Steps: It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand TransAlta better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 3 warning signs with TransAlta (at least 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process. Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company. 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. Emergency services are searching for a pilot and passenger in Port Phillip Bay after a former military jet crashed into the water near Mount Martha, in Melbournes south-east, on Sunday afternoon. Two light Viper S-211 Marchetti planes collided mid-air about 12 kilometres west of Mount Martha on Victorias Mornington Peninsula, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said. Police search the water after a jet crashed into Port Phillip Bay on Sunday. Credit: Nine News AMSA said one aircraft crashed into Port Phillip Bay, while the other plane, which also had two people on board, was able to land safely at Essendon Airport. Police said emergency services were called to the Esplanade in Mount Martha about 1.45pm after reports of an aircraft incident. The arrival of so many luxury brands is a tremendous vote of confidence in the city. They are all taking ten-year leases, with options that take it out 15 and 20 years. What they are building is for what they see is coming, he says, barely audible over the sound of jack hammers. Another plus for Perth is that these high-end businesses love historic buildings, which is why so many are located in heritage areas in places like Paris and New York. They want to soak up the sense of tradition, class and old money. Fifth Avenue, New York: Global luxury brands love to be in historic buildings because they evoke history, class and old money. Credit: iStock And because these brands have deep pockets the upgrades to the Federation-era buildings along Murray Street will be first-rate, which is a boon to those who cherish these properties and want to them to be activated (the Chanel make-over on the corner of William and Murray Streets cost over $13 million, according to sources). This is startling contrast to the historic buildings in the nearby Hay Street Mall which are languishing because the owners are unwilling to sink money into upgrades or, in the sad case of the Piccadilly Theatre, stuck in limbo because the cost of the renovation blew out (typical when doing up old buildings) and the offshore investors dont see a financial gain in finishing the job. The quality of these revamps and the full-press luxe experience offered by these stores Chanel customers are greeted by a beautifully attired young man holding a tray of Perrier for thirsty customers is one of the reasons why these kinds of stores are booming in Perth. Figures supplied by the City of Perth reveals that the spend in luxury goods in the CBD is up by 28 per cent in the past 12 months, which mirrors the rest of the world. The sound of jackhammers are ringing out on Murray Street as luxury brands take over the strip. Credit: Mark Naglazas It is the one part of the global retail landscape that has shone in recent years, says Jim Tsagalis, whose central city-based company Lease Equity is a key player in Perths luxury brand influx. While online shopping has undermined in-store shopping buy luxury brand is experiential. Customers in these luxury stores expect to be treated more like a guest in a high-end hotel, he says. They love the service and the decor and being treated like someone important. Luxury brands offer that experience and customers eat it up. Loading Tsagalis believes that arrival of so many global luxury brands into the Murray Street will bring about the most profound transformation of the retail landscape in memory. It will be the most significant change to shopping in the CBD since the opening of Myer in 1994, Tsagalis tells me. This explosion in lust for luxury goods in Western Australia matches that of the rest of the world, which experienced a boom during and after the pandemic despite being a period of mass unemployment and economic hardship for millions. Indeed, the whole country is in the middle of a luxury goods explosion, with global brands fighting for space in the Melbourne and Sydney CBDs and queues outside the likes of Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Chanel. Analysts believe that this boom in the middle of a bust is because those who can afford luxury goods are traditionally immune from economic downturns and that such goods have now embedded themselves in the pop-cultural consciousness. Van Cleef @ Arpels have taken over the old Jim Kidd store in Murray Street and spending millions on a world-class revamp. Credit: Mark Naglazas The growth has been staggering, Starling Retail Advisory Director told the Financial Review. I am surprised by the rate of growth and I wonder if we can sustain it at these current levels. The conditions driving the demand for luxury goods globally, such as the expansion of the middle class and the brands diversifying their range of products, have been amped up by our special circumstances in WA, with a mining industry that seems immune from sputters in the world economy. Perth is an affluent city that did not suffer as much as the rest of the world during the lockdown. But nobody was travelling, so a lot of that money was channelled into luxury goods. And it is continuing, Tsagalis argues. Loading And now Gen Zedders are buying luxury goods, so it is not solely the domain of the super rich. Luxury brands have managed to grab hearts and minds. Its not just about the item itself. It is about buying the connection to the Kardashians or George Clooney. While luxury brands will always be restricted to a small segment of the market, the transformation of Murray Street is a boon for the city generally, says Tsagalis. It adds another layer to the city, he says. Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters marched in cities around the country on Sunday. Credit: Chris Hopkins The Post reported the hostage release could begin within the next several days, barring last-minute hitches, according to people familiar with the detailed, six-page agreement. Under the agreement, all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while 50 or more hostages, of about 240, are released in groups every 24 hours. The pause also is intended to allow a significant amount of humanitarian aid in, the newspaper said, adding the outline for the deal was put together during weeks of talks in Qatar. Loading But Netanyahu told a press conference on Sunday (AEDT): Concerning the hostages, there are many unsubstantiated rumours, many incorrect reports. I would like to make it clear: as of now, there has been no deal. But I want to promise: when there is something to say, we will report to you about it. A White House spokesperson also said Israel and Hamas have not yet reached a deal on a temporary ceasefire, adding the US is continuing to work to get a deal. A second US official also said no deal had been reached. APANs president Nasser Mashni, who attended the rally in Melbourne, welcomed the pause but cautioned it was for just five days. It may give civilians being bombarded by Israel a chance to eat, drink and it may give their loved ones here a moment to catch their breaths, but it implies the bombing and war crimes will then continue. This is no comfort to our community or the Palestinian people, Mashni said. We need an immediate ceasefire. We need unrestricted, adequate humanitarian aid, including fuel, for Gaza. We need an end to the blockade of Gaza, to illegal settlements and settler violence in the West Bank. And we need an international commitment to self-determination for Palestine. The Executive Council of Australian Jewrys co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin said Israel was in the midst of an operation that had the dual aim of rescuing 241 hostages and destroying Hamas, its leadership, the October 7 masterminds and killers and its ability to wage war and terror ever again. The release of some hostages in exchange for a short respite would be a victory of Israeli might and we have every confidence in the Israeli Defence Force to complete its mission, vanquish the enemy, bring the hostages home and restore peace for the people of Israel. The conflict between Israel and Hamas has divided Australias major political parties, with the opposition demanding strong support for Israel, the Greens calling for greater action from the government to encourage a ceasefire and the federal government attempting to walk a tightrope between showing strong support for Israel and calling for that ceasefire. Last week, Wong called for steps towards a ceasefire between Israel and Gaza, a comment that infuriated Jewish groups that believe a ceasefire would keep terrorist group Hamas in power. Foreign Minister Penny Wong infuriated some with calls for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen That prompted Opposition Leader Peter Dutton to slam Wong for making reckless comments. He asked Prime Minister Anthony Albanese about his support for a ceasefire, but the prime minister said Wongs remarks were in line with parliaments bipartisan condemnation of Hamas and support for civilian life. At the same time, ministers Tony Burke, Ed Husic and Anne Aly have spoken out about the plight of ordinary Palestinians living in Gaza as Israel has ramped up its attacks on Hamas in the territory. US President Joe Biden, who has opposed a ceasefire, was looking to the end of the conflict, saying in a Washington Post opinion article that the Palestinian Authority should ultimately govern both Gaza and the West Bank. Loading Asked about Bidens proposal, Netanyahu told reporters in Tel Aviv the Palestinian Authority in its current form was not capable of being responsible for Gaza. Israel has not disclosed a strategy for Gaza after the war. Netanyahu said the Israeli military would have full freedom to operate within the territory after the war. The comments again put him in conflict with US visions for a post-war era in Gaza. The war, now in its seventh week, was triggered by Hamas October 7 attack in southern Israel, in which militants killed about 1200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted some 240 men, women and children. Fifty-two soldiers have been killed since the Israeli offensive began. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed in the war, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. with Reuters Elon Musk is facing perhaps his sternest test yet as a mounting advertiser exodus hits the executive where it hurts the most, his wallet, and threatens the future of his social media platform in the process. Musk over the weekend announced what he called a thermonuclear lawsuit against US-based media watchdog Media Matters, which had found corporate advertisements from the likes of IBM, Apple and others were being placed alongside antisemitic content, including posts praising Adolf Hitler and Nazis. Elon Musk agreed with a post that said Jewish people hold a dialectical hatred of white people. Credit: Photographer: Tolga Akmen/EPA/Bloomberg A growing parade of large media and technology companies including Disney, Apple and Warner Brothers have announced they would halt their advertising spend on X, uncomfortable with the perception of being associated with hateful content. Musk himself helped fuel the disquiet, writing on X that he agreed with a social media post accusing Jewish communities of pushing hatred against whites. The pandemic caused a shake-up in the countries we most like to visit. In its wake, some that were once firm favourites have failed to fire, others have leapt into the top 10. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in the first nine months of 2023, 7.4 million Australian residents returned from short-term visits overseas. The ruins of an ancient Greek theatre in Taormina, Sicily. The number of Australians heading to Italy has surged post pandemic. Credit: iStock Thats 86 per cent of the figure for the same period in 2019, predating COVID. Using that as a yardstick, and considering our 10 most popular countries, which countries are more Australian residents visiting than we were in 2019, and which have fallen from favour? The risers In the first nine months of 2023, 237,000 Australian residents returned from visits to Italy, a rise of 19 per cent over the same period in 2019. Italys south is in the spotlight, and Sicily and Puglia are the hot names. For some the appetite for Sicily in particular has been sharpened by the second season of The White Lotus, shot largely in and around Taormina, but theres more to it than that. Jerusalem: The heads of the Christian Churches in Jerusalem issued a rare joint appeal at the weekend, warning that a contested land deal could erase the centuries-old presence of the Armenian community within the Old City. The ethnic Armenian community has its own district within the ancient city of Jerusalem under borders drawn by Ottoman rulers the smallest of the four quarters, which also include highly distinct Muslim, Jewish and Christian neighbourhoods. The entry gate to the Cathedral of St James at Jerusalems Armenian Quarter. Credit: CC/Shmuliko However, Armenians say they risk being uprooted by a deal to lease about 25 per cent of their area to developers who want to build a luxury hotel on the site. The deal was signed by the head of the Armenian Church in Jerusalem in July 2021, but members of his community said the first they heard of it was when surveyors started work in the area this year. Khan Younis, Gaza: A United Nations team said that 291 patients were left at Gazas largest hospital after Israeli troops had others evacuate. Those left included 32 babies in extremely critical condition, trauma patients with severely infected wounds and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. The team was able to tour Al Shifa Hospital for an hour after about 2500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left the sprawling compound, the World Health Organisation said, which led the mission. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said on Sunday, describing Al Shifa as a death zone. It said more teams will attempt to reach the facility in the coming days to try to evacuate the patients to southern Gaza, where hospitals are also overwhelmed. Israeli troops are staying in the hospital. Israels military has been searching Gaza Citys Al Shifa Hospital for a Hamas command centre that it alleges is located under the facility a claim Hamas and hospital staff deny. When Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar was killed in 1993, most of the animals he had imported as pets zebras, giraffes, kangaroos and rhinoceroses died or were transferred to zoos. But not his four hippopotamuses. They thrived. Perhaps a little too well. Officials estimate that about 170 hippos, descended from Escobars original herd, now roam Colombia, and the population could grow to 1000 by 2035, posing a serious threat to the countrys ecosystem. Hippos float in the lagoon at Hacienda Napoles Park, once the private estate of drug kingpin Pablo Escobar. Credit: AP This month, after years of debate about what to do with the voracious herbivores, Colombian officials announced a plan to sterilise some, possibly euthanize others and relocate some to sanctuaries in other countries. On Friday, an official said that four hippos two adult females and two juvenile males had already been surgically sterilised. PHILIPSBURG:--- Members of the Rotary Club of St. Maarten, the Learning Unlimited Interact Club and the St. Maarten Academy Interact Club gathered at the Belair Community Center in Cay Hill to prepare 225 Food Baskets for those in need during the Holiday season. An assembly line of volunteers put flour, rice, cereals, canned vegetables, and many other items that included many of the basics for the holidays, in Carrefour Market bags, and staged them for delivery. About 15 Rotarians and another 20 Interact members, students from both schools, participated in the preparation of the food baskets. According to Rotary Club of Sint Maarten President, Jeffrey "Dr.Soc" Sochrin, The preparation and distribution of food baskets to those in need goes right back to the reason so many of us are members of Rotary. We all simply want to do good in the world and the distribution of these food baskets is just another example of doing good in the world right here in our local community. This year we also increased our level of support to the Meals on Wheels program with this project. It certainly is fantastic to see so many Rotarians and Interactors come out to participate in this annual tradition, and we even had a visitor to the island from Canada, Karen Campbell participate in the effort. On behalf of the Rotary Club of Sint Maarten, please accept our best wishes for a joyous, safe, happy and healthy holiday season. Members of the Rotary Club of Sint Maarten are now in the process of distributing these food baskets in various districts around Sint Maarten. For more information about the Rotary Club of St. Maarten, please contact the Rotary Club of St. Maarten Press Officer at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit the website www.rotarysxm.org ~Robinson cops ACCA Award~ PHILIPSBURG:-- Six St. Maarten Academy scholars have placed among the top 10 in two subject areas from among thousands of other candidates who sat the May/June regional examinations offered by the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC), while another has copped the Association of Chartered Accountants (ACCA) award for the top territorial performer in CAPE Accounting. According to CXC, three of the six Academy students are among the top 10 in the subject Digital Media Unit 1, while the other three scored high marks for Digital Media Unit 2. Four of the candidates have met the requirements to graduate next month, while the other candidates are currently completing their second year in the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) programme. Kellie-Ann Dupigny, who pursued a CAPE associate degree in Entrepreneurship, ranked number two regionally in Digital Media Unit 2, while Khushal Punjabi, who pursued his associate's in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) placed third for the same subject. Joselyna George, a Natural Science graduand rounded up the category at eighth place. This marked the second time that Kellie-Ann Dupigny, Khushal Punjabi, and Joselyna George made the merit list. In 2022, Joselyna George placed fourth in Digital Media Unit 1, while Kellie-Ann Dupigny placed 10th. Khushal Punjabi also placed seventh regionally in Integrated Mathematics in 2022. Two year-one CAPE students are among the three who made the Merit List for Digital Media Unit 1 - Eimaan Mohammed and Netanya McNamara, Tourism and Natural Science students, respectively, placed seventh and eighth; while final year student Zikesha Britton came in at tenth place. This is yet another consecutive year that Academy CAPE students have put the island on the map by being among the top 10 candidates with the best results regionally. Academy is also celebrating the achievement of the 2022 CAPE Valedictorian Shaneisha Robinson, who last year merited in three subject areas. Robinson was recently the recipient of the 2022 Association of Chartered Accountants (ACCA) award for the top territorial performer in CAPE Accounting in St. Maarten by the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC). She is the second Academy graduate to receive this accolade. St. Maarten Academy, which also offers the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) after the first five years, also saw stellar results among the 78 fifth formers, who recorded 90% overall college passes and 99.84% overall school passes. Of the 739 entries in 20 subjects offered by the school at CSEC, the students returned 100% passing grades 1-3 in English A and B, Economics, Principles of Business, Additional Mathematics, Human and Social Biology, Integrated Science, Caribbean History, Social Studies, and Electronic Document Preparation Management. Principles of Accounts, Mathematics, Biology, Physics, Geography, Information Technology, and Visual Arts returned pass rates which ranged from 90 99%. Additionally, Chemistry, French, and Spanish returned 88%, 78%, and 54%, respectively. Among the top performing CSEC candidates are Varsha Ghanash and Jinlan Mo, both of whom copped Grade Ones (the highest score) in all 10 subjects they sat; while Hamzeh El-Aswad and Yndys Gourdet each passed nine of their 10 subjects with Grade Ones. Sameer Shakoor, Kisherno Webster and Sarai Willemsberg received eight Grade Ones with Grade Two passes in their other subjects. Acting Principal, Kim Lucas-Felix said she is extremely proud of this years results, especially since there has been improvements in the quality of passes. We may be deemed tough at times, but we know what our students are capable of and we work towards maximizing their potential. This is a team effort, because when our students are falling short we engage our Student Care Department, our Year Coordinator, and when all else fails, we call in the parents. We believe in our students and every year they work hard to produce great results. We are proud of them. In addition to all of the above, we cannot forget the teachers who always go beyond the call of duty to ensure that students complete their School-Based Assessments (SBAs) at CSEC and Internal Assessments (IAs) at CAPE. Congratulations are in order for CAPE Coordinator Kester Small and Mr. Kenver Regis who prepared the Digital Media candidates who made the regional merit list and Ms. Adecia Rutherford, whose Accounting candidate copped the ACCA award. The public needs to know that many of our teachers give up weekends and family time to ensure the success of our students and Management cannot thank them enough, said Lucas-Felix. She was complimentary of the teacher of Human and Social Biology (HSB), Ms. Michelle Lewis, who, for the first time entered 39 candidates at CSEC and saw a total of 32 of them returning with Grade Ones - 24 with straight A profiles - and seven Grade Twos. The 2022-2023 academic year was one for the record books for the schools CAPE division. With a total of 61 students, this year marked the largest ever cohort since the launch of the post-secondary programme in 2014. Currently, the schools CAPE programme affords students who meet the matriculation requirements to pursue Associate degrees in Natural Science, Mathematics, Information and Communication Technology, Accounts, Entrepreneurship, Tourism and Economics within two years. In keeping with the schools ethos of excellence, two students, having already obtained English A in fourth form, took on the challenge of writing Communication Studies in fifth form. Therefore, a total of 63 students sat across the record number of 22 CAPE units that were offered in the 2022-2023 academic year. The subject areas of Accounting Unit 1, Biology Unit 2, Caribbean Studies, Computer Science Unit 1, Digital Media Unit 1, Digital Media Unit 2, Economics Unit 2, Entrepreneurship Unit 2, Informational Technology Unit 2, Performing Arts Unit 1, Pure Mathematics Unit 1, Sociology Unit 1 and Tourism Unit 1 returned a 100% pass rate. In the area of Digital Media Unit 1, 21 of the 25 candidates (84%), returned Grade Ones. Fourteen of these were straight A profiles, while 20 (80%) of the 25 Performing Arts Unit 1 candidates returned Grade Ones, 12 of which were straight A profiles. Head of the Social Sciences department, Ms. Anansa Payne, taught Sociology Unit 1 and Tourism Unit 1 for the first time, and returned a 100% pass rate in both subjects; while Ms. Perdessa Abrams, Caribbean Studies teacher, also celebrated a 100% pass rate in her inaugural class. Also noteworthy, was the performance recorded in the subject area of Communication Studies, which was taught for the first time by the schools Vice Principal, Ms. Joanna Trim. The subject, which was written by an unprecedented 57 candidates, marked the largest ever individual subject cohort in the programmes nine-year history, and returned an impressive 96% pass rate. Other subject areas which returned a 96 % pass rate include Biology Unit 1 and Management of Business Unit 2. Chemistry Unit 1 returned a 95% pass rate, Integrated Mathematics returned a 94% pass rate, while Physics Unit 1 returned an 83% pass rate. Speaking on the 2023 results, Small said These results are a testament to what can be accomplished when young people set goals, work hard, and remain focused. Despite the challenges, these students under the guidance of their teachers, and with the support of their parents excelled. She further added, Although the CAPE programme is rigorous, students of the CAPE division continue to prove that effort leads to excellence. Since 2021, St. Maarten Academy has captured 21 spots on the CXC Regional Merit List. The Merit List features the students across the Caribbean region who attained the top ten scores in each subject written during the May/June examination period. This is yet another consecutive year that Academy CAPE students have put the island on the map by being among the top 10 with the best results regionally. The Board of the Foundation for Academic and Vocational Education (FAVE) under which St. Maarten Academy falls, extended congratulations to all the students on their success as it was evident that The Tassel was Worth the Hassle (this years theme for graduation). ## Viewing insider transactions for CVS Health Corporation's (NYSE:CVS ) over the last year, we see that insiders were net sellers. This means that a larger number of shares were sold by insiders in relation to shares purchased. Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. Check out our latest analysis for CVS Health CVS Health Insider Transactions Over The Last Year Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Senior VP, James Clark, for US$1.9m worth of shares, at about US$74.94 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$68.81. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. Given that the sale took place at around current prices, it makes us a little cautious but is hardly a major concern. James Clark was the only individual insider to sell over the last year. Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 16.00k shares worth US$1.1m. But insiders sold 25.76k shares worth US$1.9m. 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! 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). CVS Health Insiders Bought Stock Recently Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider buying at CVS Health. Independent Director Edward Ludwig spent US$141k on stock, and there wasn't any selling. That shows some optimism about the company's future. Insider Ownership Of CVS Health Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. CVS Health insiders own about US$220m worth of shares (which is 0.2% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders. Story continues So What Does This Data Suggest About CVS Health Insiders? It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. But we can't say the same for the transactions over the last 12 months. The high levels of insider ownership, and the recent buying by an insider suggests they are well aligned and optimistic. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for CVS Health you should know about. 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 of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests. 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. PORTLAND, Ore. Oregons first-in-the-nation law that decriminalized the possession of small amounts of heroin, cocaine and other illicit drugs in favor of an emphasis on addiction treatment is facing strong headwinds in the progressive state after an explosion of public drug use fueled by the proliferation of fentanyl and a surge in deaths from opioids, including those of children. The inability for people to live their day-to-day life without encountering open-air drug use is so pressing on urban folks minds, said John Horvick, vice president of polling firm DHM Research. That has very much changed peoples perspective about what they think Measure 110 is. When the law was approved by 58% of Oregon voters three years ago, supporters championed Measure 110 as a revolutionary approach that would transform addiction by minimizing penalties for drug use and investing instead in recovery. But even top Democratic lawmakers who backed the law, which will likely dominate the upcoming legislative session, say theyre now open to revisiting it after the biggest increase in synthetic opioid deaths among states that have reported their numbers. The cycle of addiction and homelessness spurred by fentanyl is most visible in Portland, where its not unusual to see people shooting up in broad daylight on busy city streets. Everythings on the table, said Democratic state Sen. Kate Lieber, co-chair of a new joint legislative committee created to tackle addiction. We have got to do something to make sure that we have safer streets and that were saving lives. Measure 110 directed the states cannabis tax revenue toward drug addiction treatment services while decriminalizing the possession of so-called personal use amounts of illicit drugs. Possession of under a gram of heroin, for example, is only subject to a ticket and a maximum fine of $100. Those caught with small amounts of drugs can have the citation dismissed by calling a 24-hour hotline to complete an addiction screening within 45 days, but those who dont do a screening are not penalized for failing to pay the fine. In the first year after the law took effect in February 2021, only 1% of people who received citations for possession sought help via the hotline, state auditors found. Critics of the law say this doesnt create an incentive to seek treatment. Republican lawmakers have urged Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek to call a special session to address the issue before the Legislature reconvenes in February. They have proposed harsher sanctions for possession and other drug-related offenses, such as mandatory treatment and easing restrictions on placing people under the influence on holds in facilities such as hospitals if they pose a danger to themselves or others. Treatment should be a requirement, not a suggestion, a group of Republican state representatives said in a letter to Kotek. Law enforcement officials who have testified before the new legislative committee on addiction have proposed reestablishing drug possession as a class A misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to a year in jail or a $6,250 fine. We dont believe a return to incarceration is the answer, but restoring a (class A) misdemeanor for possession with diversion opportunities is critically important, Jason Edmiston, chief of police in the small, rural city of Hermiston in northeast Oregon, told the committee. However, data shows decades of criminalizing possession hasnt deterred people from using drugs. In 2022, nearly 25 million Americans, roughly 8% of the population, reported using illicit drugs other than marijuana in the previous year, according to the annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Some lawmakers have suggested focusing on criminalizing public drug use rather than possession. Alex Kreit, assistant professor of law at Northern Kentucky University and director of its Center on Addiction Law and Policy, said such an approach could help curb visible drug use on city streets but wouldnt address whats largely seen as the root cause: homelessness. There are states that dont have decriminalization that have these same difficult problems with public health and public order and just quality-of-life issues related to large-scale homeless populations in downtown areas, he said, mentioning California as an example. Backers of Oregons approach say decriminalization isnt necessarily to blame, as many other states with stricter drug laws have also reported increases in fentanyl deaths. But estimates from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show, among the states reporting data, Oregon had the highest increase in synthetic opioid overdose fatalities when comparing 2019 and the 12-month period ending June 30, a 13-fold surge from 84 deaths to more than 1,100. Among the next highest was neighboring Washington state, which saw its estimated synthetic opioid overdose deaths increase seven-fold when comparing those same time periods, CDC data shows. Nationally, overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids such as fentanyl roughly doubled over that time span. Roughly two-thirds of all deadly overdoses in the U.S. in the 12 months ending June 30 involved synthetic opioids, federal data shows. Supporters of Oregons law say it was confronted by a perfect storm of broader forces, including the COVID-19 pandemic, a mental health workforce shortage and the fentanyl crisis, which didnt reach fever pitch until after the law took effect in early 2021. A group of Oregon lawmakers recently traveled to Portugal, which decriminalized the personal possession of drugs in 2001, to learn more about its policy. State Rep. Lily Morgan, the only Republican legislator on the trip, said Portugals approach was interesting but couldnt necessarily be applied to Oregon. The biggest glaring difference is theyre still not dealing with fentanyl and meth, she said, noting the country also has universal health care. Despite public perception, the law has made some progress by directing $265 million dollars of cannabis tax revenue toward standing up the states new addiction treatment infrastructure. The law also created what are known as Behavioral Health Resource Networks in every county, which provide care regardless of the ability to pay. The networks have ensured about 7,000 people entered treatment from January to March of this year, doubling from nearly 3,500 people from July through September 2022, state data shows. The laws funding also has been key for providers of mental health and addiction services because it has created a sustainable, predictable funding home for services that never had that before, said Heather Jefferis, executive director of Oregon Council for Behavioral Health, which represents such providers. Horvick, the pollster, said public support for expanding treatment remains high despite pushback against the law It would be a mistake to overturn 110 right now because I think that would make us go backwards, Lieber, the Democratic state senator, said. Just repealing it will not solve our problem. Even if we didnt have 110, we would still be having significant issues. ___ Associated Press writer Geoff Mulvihill contributed from Philadelphia. A Google trial lawyer visibly cringed in court this past week when his own expert witness revealed a closely held secret between two giants of the tech world. The witness, a University of Chicago professor, said that Google (GOOG, GOOGL) pays Apple (AAPL) a 36% share of the revenue it earns from search advertising made through Apples Safari browser. The number was supposed to be confidential, which likely explains the reaction from Google lawyer John Schmidtlein as reported by Bloomberg and other media outlets. The professor was testifying for Google in one of the most consequential antitrust trials in decades. The cringe-inducing secret that spilled out in a Washington courtroom reverberated across Wall Street and Silicon Valley, prompting new speculation about how much Apple stands to lose if the government wins this trial and how much Googles rivals stand to gain. Google's top litigator John Schmidtlein departs federal court in September in Washington, D.C. (Win McNamee/Getty Images) (Win McNamee via Getty Images) The Justice Department is arguing in the trial that the contract making Google the default search engine on iPhones demonstrates how the search giant illegally stifles competition. Google has said that such contracts are normal in its industry. The Justice Department is asking presiding federal district court Judge Amit Mehta for an order that would prohibit Google from continuing to engage in alleged anticompetitive practices. That could mean an eventual end to the partnership if the government prevails. A 'big number' Just how much this agreement benefits Apple was a source of speculation for years. Its clear from the revelation of this past week that it means billions annually. How many billions exactly? Bernstein analysts have estimated $18 billion to $20 billion a year for Apple. The New York Times reported last month that figure was roughly $18 billion in 2021. Its a "big number," said D.A. Davidson analyst Tom Forte. And if its compromised, that could have a "double negative impact" on the companys stock price, he added. If the number is still $20 billion, it might obliterate nearly 7% of Apples total revenue if the judge in the Google case decides to revise how such contracts work in the future, or if they're permitted at all. In 2023 Apple's revenue totaled $298 billion. Story continues The revenue Apple earns from its Google contract known in the industry as an Information Services Agreement, or ISA likely lands in a bucket of revenue Apple calls "services," according to Forte and Oppenheimer analyst Martin Yang. That services bucket also includes Apple Arcade, Apple TV+, Apple Music, AppleCare, and iCloud storage subscriptions. Apples services revenue for the 12 months ending Sept. 30 was $85 billion. Apple has warned investors that its commercial relationships with technology companies without mentioning any specific names could be compromised by legal and regulatory scrutiny. "Certain of these arrangements are currently subject to government investigations and legal proceedings, the company said in its most recent annual report. 'Double negative impact' The risk the antitrust trial poses to Apple is significant, said Forte, the D.A. Davidson analyst, both because of the billions at stake and the high value that stockholders ascribe to the income stream. "I think that this shines a light on a large and important revenue source for Apple," Forte said. "If this revenue were to diminish meaningfully, then it could have a double negative impact to the extent that it's been a multiple expander." Google CEO Sundar Pichai testified that the default placement agreements "can make a difference" and be "very valuable. Google and Alphabet Inc. CEO Sundar Pichai arrives at the federal courthouse in Washington on Oct. 30. (Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) The company also argues that Apple and other search partners enter into the default contracts because Google's search engine is superior to competitors. In 2022, Google earned $224.47 billion in total ad revenue, a majority of the company's total revenue of $279.8 billion. Google clearly did not want to share the numbers behind its Apple contract. In a court filing, Googles lawyers argued that further disclosure of the precise terms of its revenue-sharing agreement with Apple "would unreasonably undermine Googles competitive standing in relation to both competitors and other counterparties." How the trial ends could open up new avenues for Googles rivals, although it will be a while before the outcome is determined. The evidence phase of the trial ended this week and closing arguments are expected in May 2024. If the DOJ prevails, separate court proceedings would be held to determine remedies for any antitrust violations. Appeals are also expected, which could take the case into 2025. 'You are not given a choice' Googles competitors made it clear during more than two months of testimony that the arrangement Google had with Apple was damaging to them. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said he tried unsuccessfully for years to work out a default engine deal with Apple for Microsofts Bing. Everybody talks about the open web, but there really is the Google web, he said. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella arrives at federal court In Washington, D.C., on Oct. 2. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) (Drew Angerer via Getty Images) Kamyl Bazbaz, a spokesperson for search engine DuckDuckGo, told Yahoo Finance that Google is using its default placement contracts as leverage to block his and other search engines from competing. I think a lot of people assume Google is just there because it's what everybody uses, not that there's a financial relationship that Google has leveraged, he said. If the government does win its case, he said, DuckDuckGo hopes that among other changes, the judge will order Apple and other device manufacturers and browsers to offer a variety of search engines using a choice screen. Its not just about whether its easy to switch search engines, its about friction versus no friction," he said, adding that you are not given a choice. Alexis Keenan is a legal reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow Alexis on Twitter @alexiskweed. Click here for the latest technology news that will impact the stock market. Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance She sent instructions to contacts in France on who they should pick up, with messages such as family one 3 women, children 14 17 12 years old and we have here one family, man wife one child. Following the Channel 4 Dispatches episode, the force encouraged potential victims to come forward amid the sexual assault allegations, which were said to have taken place during the height of Brands fame when he was working for the BBC, Channel 4 and starring in Hollywood films. The Houthis, an ally of Tehran, have been launching long-range missile and drone salvoes at Israel in solidarity with the Palestinian Hamas militants it has been battling in the Gaza Strip since Oct 7. Rippon 79, used to host Strictlys predecessor Come Dancing from Blackpool, and on Saturday evening the presenter and her professional dancer Kai Widdrington performed the American smooth to Tea For Two by Ella Fitzgerald. Alexandria's water supply could be impacted by well drilling near Raccoon Creek. A search for additional water sources for Intel that came to light when a Granville Township trustee sold 106 acres to The New Albany Co. in September has been going on two years longer and is more extensive than some officials in Licking County knew. And Granville officials are raising alarms about possible drinking water contamination from a federal Superfund site in the village if anyone disturbs the aquifer serving Granville and Alexandria residents by drilling new wells nearby and pumping significant amounts of water from the aquifer. At the same time, local officials from across western Licking County say the county commissioners need to provide more leadership so that government leaders at all levels are working together rather than leaving each community to fend for itself as development accelerates. Initial exploration for water Construction of Intels first factories, near Mink Street and Green Chapel Road in western Licking County, has been underway for months, with the goal of producing computer chips beginning in 2025. The city of Columbus has promised to provide the 1.5 million gallons of water per day that Intel needs for its manufacturing process. If Intel expands beyond the first phase, as the company has indicated it plans to do, it could need millions more gallons of water, which has to come from somewhere, said Jennifer Chrysler, director of community development for the city of New Albany. The search for more water sources began as early as 2021, according to a report from EMH&T, a Columbus civil engineering firm commissioned by the economic development organization One Columbus. In the report, provided to The Reporting Project by the city of New Albany, EMH&T identified a potential water source near the village of Alexandria and includes a preliminary study dated Oct. 1, 2021, by the Columbus-based hydrology consulting firm Eagon & Associates. That study shows 10 possible water sources, ranging from about 5 miles to nearly 40 miles from the Intel site. Story continues The EMH&T report, dated Oct. 28, 2021 about the time that rumors began circulating about Intel coming to Licking County and two months before the Intel project was announced is focused on property near Alexandria, described as Area 1 and Site 1. The site, which straddles Raccoon Creek just south of Alexandria in St. Albans Township, is about 28 acres within a 236-acre property owned by Harmony Realty II Ltd., which is home to Brookside Materials Sand & Gravel and Kurtz Brothers Top Soil & Mulch. The creek flows southeast from there and provides water that recharges the aquifer from which Granville pulls its drinking water. The property near Alexandria listed as Site 1 in an October 2021 memo about possible additional sources of water for Intels computer-chip manufacturing process is home to Brookside Materials Sand & Gravel and Kurtz Brothers Top Soil & Mulch. The October 2021 EMH&T report to One Columbus said testing was underway at the site, which could have the potential to produce a capacity of approximately 4.5 MGD (million gallons per day). However, it said that withdrawal beyond 3 million gallons per day could result in residential wells and ponds in the Alexandria area running dry. But even so, the memo said, the site has the best potential for water supply development. The Oct. 1, 2021, Eagon memo said it expanded upon a Sept. 17, 2021, memo to EMH&T, which Chrysler said New Albany does not have in its files. Site 1 is an active sand and gravel extraction operation, the Oct. 1 memo said, adding that continuously removing water to allow for mining from 2016 to 2021 affected 21 residential wells and five surface ponds. Restoring water to those homes involved drilling deeper wells or connecting residents to the Granville water supply that serves most of Alexandria, the memo said. It also notes that taking water from that site and meeting EPA standards for potable wells, which means safe-for-drinking water, would be difficult. But developing wells for non-potable water, which could be used for industrial purposes, faces less regulation, EMH&T said in its memo. Eagon & Associates said at the time that more investigation and testing would be needed at the site, but based on our current knowledge of the site from test borings, the water withdrawal history from the quarry and resulting drawdown and recovery, if suitable aquifer materials are present at potential well sites, we estimate that an eventual capacity of approximately 4.5 MGD can be developed at Site 1. Contamination concerns The new concern in Granville is focused on a plume of toxic chemicals from a defunct solvents company that has been stationary in the aquifer under Granville for decades. Granville Village Manager Herb Koehler said an engineering firm monitoring the plume on behalf of the federal Environmental Protection Agency said any future wells west of the village drawing millions of gallons of water a day could pull that toxic plume into the villages well field and pollute drinking water for Granville and Alexandria, which buys water from Granville. They are concerned about the impact to that plume if industrial levels of water are removed from our aquifer, Koehler said. The plume is stable. It is monitored, but any disruption of this volume and magnitude is a concern. The former Granville Solvents company, which operated along the bike path under the Cherry Street bridge from 1958 until 1986, stored specialty fuels and chemicals used in the printing and dry-cleaning businesses in underground tanks and above-ground barrels, The Advocate reported in 2020. The company closed in the late 1980s, and an inspection in 1990 revealed some of the tanks and drums had leaked, causing high levels of contamination in the soil and groundwater. It was declared an EPA Superfund site, and it took nearly 15 years to clean up the site; however the toxic plume remains stationary below the surface. Koehler said that if New Albany drills test wells on the 106 acres it bought from Granville Township Trustee Dan VanNess in September, just west of the villages well field, Granville will hold the city of New Albany to its promise to share what it learns. If they are only looking at volume of water and how much can be pumped and how much it would draw down the water table, theyre not looking at the plume or our comprehensive plan for the future of our community, Koehler said. Lack of inclusion Koehler and Jim Lenner, St. Albans Township administrator and president of Neighborhood Strategies, a strategic community planning firm, both expressed concern about a lack of communication by The New Albany Co. and the city of New Albany officials in communities where New Albany is looking at potential water sources. No one has talked with us, Lenner said about officials in St. Albans Township, which is home to the village of Alexandria and just west of Granville Township. For one community to come into another community and exploit resources for their own self-interest is very disheartening. Sometime, very quickly, that needs to stop. Koehler said he and Johnstown officials met recently with officials from the Ohio Development Department and New Albany, and, while the tone was cordial, he said, not much was accomplished. I appreciate that they reached out, but the fact is they only reached out because they were getting bad press. I heard them say that theyd take the water they need and give us the scraps, Koehler said. They did commit to sharing, but its clear that their mission is to serve the interests of Intel and not the long-term needs of the local community. Koehler said he asked the city of New Albany to consider whats best for the Licking County community in the future and for New Albany to base decisions on water needs in Granville, not only for 2023 but also decades into the future. Chrysler, the New Albany director of community development, said that any future development of water sources for use by Intel in New Albany would be done in partnership with a utility that could deliver the water to the city and that the process would be regulated in some fashion. Those partners could include Del-Co Water Co., Johnstown, Newark and the Southwest Licking Community Water and Sewer District, Chrysler said. This idea that somebody is going to come in and put a pump in an unregulated body, whether private or public is going to come in and install a pump and just start siphoning water to another part of the county is false thats not allowed by law, she said. Josh Poland, New Albanys chief communications and marketing director, said, We want to be good partners out there. So with our testing, if reports come back that its going to have a negative impact on surrounding water supplies, we dont want to move forward with that. Or partnering with someone who would think thats OK, Chrysler added. She said that New Albany has been tasked by the state to identify water sources and obtain information about the volume and quality of water available from those sources. These studies take six to nine months. Theyre very expensive, she said, noting that they can cost several hundred thousand dollars per test site. While it is expensive, Chrysler said, New Albany can afford it because the city received state grant funding for that purpose and has budgeted $1.5 million to perform the due diligence the state and city promised in the development package that helped Intel decide to build its $20 billion factory complex on about 1,000 acres in western Licking County. She said New Albany will share with the public what it learns from testing at various possible water-resource sites. The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission is working with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to develop a water-supply plan for a 15-county area of central Ohio, where significant growth is anticipated in the coming years. The goal is to complete the study in Delaware, Fairfield, Fayette, Franklin, Hocking, Knox, Licking, Logan, Madison, Marion, Morrow, Perry, Pickaway, Ross and Union counties by the end of 2024. Water is our regions currency, so to speak, said Kerstin Carr, the commission's chief regional strategy director and senior director of planning, adding that the organization is meeting with officials in the area and wants to hold a larger meeting of local officials to discuss water supplies and wastewater treatment. Frustration continues Granville Village Manager Koehler was incredulous after recently receiving the two-year-old memo from New Albany. If theres no plan, how is it that One Columbus, along with the state and New Albany knew this and didnt share it with the people it would affect the most until now? Koehler asked. Chrysler said New Albany officials assumed that Licking County officials were sharing information with local officials.County Commissioner Tim Bubb said the commissioners didnt have a lot of information to share and that with The New Albany Co., you sometimes feel like youre on a need-to-know basis, and theyre a private company, so they arent obligated to tell us everything theyre thinking. Communication is improving, Bubb said, noting that the city of New Albany has been working to connect with Licking Countys local officials. He said the commissioners probably could do more to bring community leaders together and that a recently completed, county-funded study of Licking Countys water and sewer systems could be a springboard for future conversations. A frustrated Granville Township Trustee Bryn Bird echoed Koehlers concerns about possible water contamination and lack of communication and leadership. To me, it is and continues to be a lack of leadership, top down, Bird said, referring to state and county officials. The need for county leadership in development issues also is mentioned repeatedly in the FRAMEWORK planning document, which was released in September and resulted from an unprecedented series of community forums and study funded by the Thomas J. Evans Foundation after the Intel project was announced. State of Ohio development officials said they are ready and willing to be a partner, but the solution must be locally driven and supported. The state is awaiting a local solution for long-term planning as it relates to water sources near the Intel project, said Mason Waldvogel, deputy chief of media relations for the Ohio Department of Development. Its best to speak with the communities directly involved in building and identifying infrastructure needs, as the concerns you mentioned are being addressed on the local level. The state continues to be transparent with its assistance to nearby communities. There are many partners involved in supporting this project, and we have welcomed feedback during what has been an inclusive process. Koehler has a different viewpoint and offered this feedback: For two years, this plan (to seek additional water sources for Intel) has been in place without a glimmer of communication with the communities affected. Its unconscionable. Its looking more like were on our own in this. We havent received a single call from the county commissioners. As a community, were unified, but we feel like were alone Granville and Granville Township, Koehler said. We dont think a public food fight with the state and New Albany serves any of us well because at the end of the day, we want a soft and successful landing for Intel. Who doesnt? But Im catching up on two years of planning. This is one issue where our community is unified, he said. And well accept no partnership in which were a junior partner. Alan Miller writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison Universitys Journalism program, which is funded by the Mellon Foundation and donations from readers. This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: New Albanys search for water for Intel goes far beyond Granville National Tyre & Wheel Limited (ASX:NTD), might not be a large cap stock, but it saw a double-digit share price rise of over 10% in the past couple of months on the ASX. Less-covered, small caps sees more of an opportunity for mispricing due to the lack of information available to the public, which can be a good thing. So, could the stock still be trading at a low price relative to its actual value? Lets examine National Tyre & Wheels valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if theres still a bargain opportunity. See our latest analysis for National Tyre & Wheel What's The Opportunity In National Tyre & Wheel? National Tyre & Wheel appears to be expensive according to my price multiple model, which makes a comparison between the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the industry average. Ive used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because theres not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stocks ratio of 28.49x is currently well-above the industry average of 14.37x, meaning that it is trading at a more expensive price relative to its peers. In addition to this, it seems like National Tyre & Wheels share price is quite stable, which could mean two things: firstly, it may take the share price a while to fall back down to an attractive buying range, and secondly, there may be less chances to buy low in the future once it reaches that value. This is because the stock is less volatile than the wider market given its low beta. What kind of growth will National Tyre & Wheel generate? Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so lets also take a look at the company's future expectations. With profit expected to more than double over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for National Tyre & Wheel. It looks like higher cash flow is on the cards for the stock, which should feed into a higher share valuation. Story continues What This Means For You Are you a shareholder? It seems like the market has well and truly priced in NTDs positive outlook, with shares trading above industry price multiples. However, this brings up another question is now the right time to sell? If you believe NTD should trade below its current price, selling high and buying it back up again when its price falls towards the industry PE ratio can be profitable. But before you make this decision, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed. Are you a potential investor? If youve been keeping tabs on NTD for some time, now may not be the best time to enter into the stock. The price has surpassed its industry peers, which means it is likely that there is no more upside from mispricing. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for NTD, which means its worth diving deeper into other factors in order to take advantage of the next price drop. In light of this, if you'd like to do more analysis on the company, it's vital to be informed of the risks involved. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for National Tyre & Wheel (of which 1 is a bit unpleasant!) you should know about. If you are no longer interested in National Tyre & Wheel, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential. 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. If Sam Altman is reinstalled as CEO of OpenAI, he will likely have one person to thank: Satya Nadella. Some have faulted the Microsoft CEO for allowing the tech giant to become so dependent on Altmans AI startup without guaranteeing it had at least one seat on OpenAIs board. But Microsoft has a tremendous amount of leverage in the dramatic whirlwind of events this weekendfar more than any of OpenAIs other backers. On Saturday, Altman was reportedly in negotiations to return to OpenAI as CEO, with the OpenAI non-profit board possibly resigning as part of the deal, with much of the impetus coming from Microsoft, with support from other OpenAI investors and company employees. The companys chief strategy officer Jason Kwon, in a memo obtained by The Information, told staff that the company was optimistic Altman and other senior staff who resigned in protest at his abrupt firing could be brought back to the company. Microsoft's whip hand, more than anything, else, comes down to cold hard cash. Can OpenAI remain a going concern without Microsoft? OpenAI commands a soaring valuation thanks to its tender offers with venture capital firms, but this is just paper money based on share sales from existing employees, founders, and earlier investors. (Technically, these were profit participation agreements; OpenAI, owing to its highly unusual capped-profit structure, doesnt offer traditional equity or stock options.) Khosla Ventures and billionaire Reid Hoffmans charitable foundation put undisclosed amounts into OpenAIs holding company initially. But only Microsoft has given significant cash and resources directly to OpenAI. The software giant has committed at least $13 billion to OpenAI since 2019, when it signed its first partnership agreement with the AI startup. Microsoft has delivered just a fraction of this cash to OpenAI so far, a report in Semafor, giving the software giant significant power over the startup. It is unclear if OpenAI could continue as a going concern without continual cash inflows from Microsoft. While OpenAI is, according to reports, making about $80 million per month currently and may be on track to make $1 billion in revenue in 2023ten times more than it anticipated when it secured an additional $10 billion funding commitment from Microsoft in Januaryit is not known if the company is profitable or what its burn rate it is. But it is likely to be fast. The company lost $540 million dollars in 2022 on revenue of less than $30 million for the entire year, according to documents seen by Fortune. If its costs have also ramped up in line with revenues, the company would need continual support from Microsoft just to keep operating. Story continues To make matters worse, OpenAI has been on a hiring spree all year, with reports that it has been offering the sort of seven-figure pay packages typical of professional athletes to lure top AI researchers away from Google, Meta, and other rival firms. Ilya Sutskever, the OpenAI co-founder and chief scientist, was paid $1.9 million in 2016, the first year of OpenAIs operations, according to tax filings. He is certainly making many times that now. GPU costs are also likely stratospheric. Training GPT-4, OpenAIs latest model, cost more than $100 million, according to Altman. One back of the envelope calculation put the cost of running ChatGPT, OpenAIs popular chatbot, at $700,000 per day back in April. It may be more than that now as its user base has grown. (Although Altman has said that the company has been able to optimize its models to bring the cost of serving each ChatGPT query down.) Furthermore, OpenAI is entirely dependent on Microsofts cloud computing datacenters to both train and run its models. The global shortage of graphic processing units (GPUs), the specialized computer chips needed to train and run large AI models, and the size of OpenAIs business, with tens of millions of paying customers dependent on those models, mean that the San Francisco AI company cannot easily port its business to another cloud service provider. Microsoft has what OpenAI needs All of this gives Microsoft power. Nadella could threaten to cut off OpenAIs access to computing power and suspend delivery of its next instalment of committed cash unless Altman is restored as CEO. While OpenAI might have legal recourse against Microsoft under the terms of its partnership agreement, Microsoft could do significant damage to OpenAIs business before OpenAIs lawyers could even get to the courthouse door if it wished. Longer-term, Microsoft could choose to replace OpenAIs technology with software from another leading AI startup, such as Cohere or a newer player, like Mistral, or even the new AI company that Altman and OpenAIs co-founder, president, and former board chairman, who resigned from the company in protest over Altmans firing, have been contemplating setting up. Nadella has, according to Bloomberg, told Altman he will support him in whatever steps he decides to take next. OpenAIs other inverstors, which include Khosla Ventures, billionaire Reid Hoffmans charitable foundation, Tiger Global, Andreesen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Thrive, and K2 Global have far less potential influence on the company. The same goes for the venture firms that were negotiating to invest in a new tender of existing shares that would have valued OpenAI at $86 billion. But they still have some leveragemostly through OpenAIs employees. Those employees want to be able to continue to offer to sell their profit participation shares (which function essentially as stock options since OpenAI is not thought to be currently profitable) to investors at high valuations that could make many of them extremely wealthy. With these investors threatening to pull out of the latest tender offer for those profit participation agreements, the employees will see their own financial prospects damaged. That may give many of them an incentive to leave OpenAIor at least threaten to do sounless Altman is reinstalled. That corporate governance structure The current mess at OpenAI ultimately shows how flawed OpenAIs convoluted governance structure is. Microsoft is a minority investor in a limited liability corporation that is majority-owned by holding company that is in turn jointly owned by OpenAIs non-profit board, its employees, and its other venture capital investors. But that holding company is controlled by OpenAIs non-profit through another limited liability corporation. And OpenAIs non-profit corporate board has just six seats, all of which must be held by people with no financial interest in the holding company or the LLC in which Microsoft invested. In other words, neither Microsoft, nor any of OpenAIs other financial backers, have a seat at the table when it comes to the hiring and firing of OpenAIs CEO. They have a right to any profits OpenAI earns until they earn back their initial investment plus an amount that is capped on a sliding scale, with the earliest investors able to earn up to 100 times their initial outlay and later investors entitled to smaller, but still substantial, pay-outs. After those thresholds have been hit, however, any additional profits revert to OpenAIs non-profit. This structure was designed to enable OpenAI to raise the tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars it would need to succeed in its mission of building artificial general intelligence (AGI), the kind of AI that is as smart or smarter than people at most cognitive tasks, while at the same time preventing capitalist forces, and in particular a single big tech giant, from controlling AGI. Altman himself was largely responsible for designing this attempt to square a circle. But it was also Altman who struck the dealfor just $1 billion initiallywith Nadella in 2019. From that moment on, the structure was basically a time bomb. By turning to a single corporate entity, Microsoft, for the majority of the cash and computing power OpenAI needed to achieve its mission, it was essentially handling control to Microsoft, even if that control wasnt codified in any formal governance mechanism. Ironically, if OpenAIs non-profit board chooses to ask Altman to return and resigns, as they are contemplating, it will prove that Altmans structure failedOpenAI was not able to both raise billions of dollars from a big tech corporation while somehow remaining free from that corporations control. Preventing a big tech company from monopolizing AGI had been the entire reason Altman, Brockman, Sutskever, and Elon Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015. At the time, they were alarmed by the rapid progress in AI research being made by DeepMind, which Google had purchased for $600 million in 2014. If DeepMind succeeded in achieving AGI, the OpenAI co-founders feared the ultra-powerful technology would end up being monopolized by Google. They created OpenAI as a non-profit entity so that it could develop AGI to benefit all humanity and not just the shareholders of a single corporation. Elon Musk initially pledged $1 billion to the non-profit. The problem was, the pursuit of AGI using ever-larger deep learning models is extremely expensive due to the huge datacenter resources needed. Altman has said he vastly underestimated the amount of money OpenAI would need to compete in the race for AGI. And OpenAIs lack of funding became an existential challenge after Musk acrimoniously resigned from OpenAIs board after a dispute with Altman and the other co-founders over control of the research lab and its agenda. Musk took his $1 billion pledge with him. (Musk has said he donated $40 million to OpenAI during his the time he was affiliated with it. The company has said that in its time as a non-profit it received $130.5 million in total donations. Not nothing. But not enough to compete successfully with Google DeepMind.) With Musks backing gone, Altman had to find more moneyfast. He realized that raising money from donors, who only get a tax write-off for their contributions, was extremely inefficient compared to venture capital, where investors expect a return. And a good way to get access to computing resources was to essentially cut a deal with a major cloud service provider that could give him bothcash plus compute. It would be the ultimate irony if the flaws of the very structure Altman designed wind up saving his job at CEO and allowing him to outmaneuver the board that he established to safeguard AGI. The mess at OpenAI will also have investors looking hard at the governance structure of its rival AI company Anthropic, which was started by researchers who broke away from OpenAI in 2021 because they were concerned that the commercial turn OpenAI had made following Microsofts investment jeopardized its AI safety mission. Anthorpic is B Corporation, which is a much more straight forward structure than OpenAIs. A B Corporation is one in which the directors have a fiduciary duty to look after multiple stakeholders interests, not just the profits of shareholders. In Anthropics case, the board is supposed to look after the interests of society as well as the company. Venture investors in Anthropic have one seat on its board. But Anthropic also has a Long-term Benefit Trust, whose trustees are a panel of experts in AI safety and national security who have no financial interest in Anthropic. The Long-Term Benefit Trust has a special class of stock that allows it to install an increasing number of directors based on certain AI progress milestones. It also has the right to control the majority of the B Corp.s board within four years. No doubt investors in Anthropic will now be giving this structure additional scrutiny following the destabilizing turmoil at OpenAI. 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Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe Recent remarks from leaders within PNL and AUR, especially by AUR President George Simion, suggest a potential electoral collaboration for the upcoming rounds of 2024 elections and the prospect of building a coalition government. The synchronized public statements from both parties hint at a calculated strategy. The head of Valcea's PNL expressed openness to forging alliances with other political entities, including AUR, emphasizing the goal of ousting what they referred to as the "red plague" in the county. "The National Liberal Party decided in Sinaia, during the National Political Bureau meeting, to contest all upcoming elections independently. However, at the local level, alliances might be formed to dismantle the group established by Radulescu in Valcea county. Our objective is to rid Valcea of this plague that has hindered our progress, leading to low investments, subpar average salaries, and rampant corruption in public institutions. It would be a game-changer for Valcea", stated the PNL Valcea leader during a press conference. Simultaneously, George Simion bolstered this notion, expressing a preference for his party to govern independently but also expressing openness to collaboration with PNL or USR while ruling out any partnership with PSD. "Through democratic means, securing 50% + 1 of the vote from Romanians is our primary choice. The second option involves winning a potential runoff in the presidential election, which currently seems likely against the PSD candidate. Another option involves a government with a solutionwhat Basescu in 2004 referred to as the 'immoral solution'wherein a prime minister, nominated by the country's president, secures 50%+1 of parliamentary votes." Simion hinted at readiness to work alongside PNL or USR, highlighting the democratic nature of forming agreements, alliances, and coalitions. He explicitly ruled out a governing coalition with PSD, leaving other possibilities on the table. The seeds of a right-wing coalition involving potentially extremist parties began emerging in 2021, evidenced by the joint motion of censure against the Citu government by USR and AUR. However, the potential ramifications for Romania in aligning with a right-extremist party critical of the EU and NATO remain a concern. It raises questions about the country's access to European funds and the possibility of foreign investors withdrawing from Romania. Who and where Dave and Jane Fay of St. Louis in a Zodiac boat from the Viking Expedition Polaris ship in front of El Brujo glacier at the back of Asia Fjord, which is part of Bernardo OHiggins National Park, Chile. The trip They flew to Buenos Aires for a couple of days, then took a charter flight to Ushuaia, a city that claims to be the end of the world, then cruised the Chilean fjords and Patagonia. Travel tip Bring layers of clothes for excursions. The temperatures range from 80 in Buenos Aires and Santiago to 40-50s in Ushuaia, Patagonia and the fjords. Its like traveling from Florida to Canada. Also, a waterproof pouch for cell phone for pictures is a must. Contribute Email your photo to stlpost@gmail.com. Include the full names of everyone in the photo, including where they are from and where you are standing in the photo. Also include your address and phone number. Please also tell us a little about the trip and a travel tip. Were looking for interesting, well-composed, well-lighted photos. AWARDS The Missouri Hospital Association honored SSM Health DePaul Hospitals Long-Acting Injection Clinic with the annual Aim for Excellence Award. USFN named Armstrong Teasdale among its 2023 Award of Excellence recipients. The Association of Corporate Counsel global association awarded the 2023 Outstanding Achievement Award for Best Partnership Program to the St. Louis Chapter of The Association of Corporate Counsel. Tarlton garnered the AGCMO 2023 Project of the Year Award in the Specialty Contractor/Subcontractor category for the Proton Therapy Vault Concrete project for POINTCORE Construction. HELPING OUT Revity Credit Union employees raised $1,000 through their Smile for Jeans Program. The October collection will benefit Riverbend non-profit Sleep in Heavenly Peace. MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS Stryker Construction, St. Louis, added heavy industrial contractor Artisan Contracting of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to its family of companies held through St. Louis based PV Ventures. NAME CHANGE St. Louis-based wealth management firm Alpine Private Capital announced its new brand, Alpine Private Wealth, and the milestone of reaching $1 billion in assets. With a move to a larger office space in Clayton, the firm remained affiliated with Alpine Capital Research via common ownership. RECOGNITION The 2024 edition of the United States Best Law Firms ranked Gray Ritter Graham in four practice areas. The firm was metro ranked in 11 practice areas. Eleven attorneys also were named in Best Lawyers in America. As we near the end of 2023, a little bit of planning could help you find ways to reduce what you owe in taxes come April. Here are some things to consider. 1. Check your filing status Big life changes such as births, deaths and marriages can greatly affect your tax filing status and tax bill. If you had a child, for instance, you might now be able to claim new tax breaks like the child tax credit on your upcoming return. If your child turned 18 and aged out of certain benefits this year, or if you experienced a change in marital status, that can impact things, too. There are five Internal Revenue Service (IRS) filing status categories to choose from: Single filers : Unmarried people who dont qualify for another status. : Unmarried people who dont qualify for another status. Head of household : An unmarried person who is financially responsible for a qualified child or adult family member. : An unmarried person who is financially responsible for a qualified child or adult family member. Married filing jointly : Most married couples file this way. : Most married couples file this way. Married filing separately : Another option for married couples, sometimes used by higher earners. : Another option for married couples, sometimes used by higher earners. Qualified widow(er): Someone who has lost a spouse and is caring for a child at home. 2. Standard deduction or itemize? Another important decision is whether to take the flat-dollar standard deduction or to itemize your taxes. According to the IRS, the simpler standard deduction is far more popular over 85% of filers took the standard deduction in the 2018 tax year. However, Jody Padar, a Door County, Wisconsin-based CPA, says people often decide to itemize when new facts or circumstances in their lives qualify them for a higher deduction. It could be mortgage interest, says Padar of reasons people may want to itemize this year. If you live in a state where the cost of housing is high, she says, your mortgage interest could make it worthwhile for you to itemize and claim a higher deduction. If youve donated to charity this year, those contributions are tax deductible if the donation was made to a qualified organization but youll have to itemize. And if you havent donated yet, the deadline to do so in the 2023 tax year is Dec. 31. 3. Make retirement contributions If your employer offers a retirement plan, such as a traditional 401(k) or 403(b), contributing enough to qualify for an employer match is a smart way to top off your contributions for the year. Not only is that employer match free money you can put toward retirement, but because contributions are typically made pre-tax, they can also lower your taxable income. Dont have a retirement plan at work? Contributions to a traditional individual retirement account (IRA) or SEP IRA for self-employed individuals and small-business owners may also help lower your taxable income. The tax rules and benefits are different for Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s, which are funded with after-tax dollars. Contributions arent tax-deductible, but you wont have to pay taxes on qualified withdrawals from these accounts when youre retired. These decisions can and should adjust to your changing life circumstances. Leighann Miko, a certified financial planner based in Portland, Oregon, says, There is no one-size-fits-all approach to making pre-tax or after-tax contributions. Over age 72? Check to see if youll need to take your required minimum distributions. 4. Contribute to a health savings account Another way to reduce your tax bill is to contribute to a health savings account (HSA). HSAs offer ways for people to save toward qualified health care expenses. Contributions to HSAs are tax-free and can help lower taxable income. Examples of qualified expenses range from prescription drugs to vision, dental and doctors exams. However, not everyone qualifies. Your employer must offer a high-deductible health plan with access to an HSA, and you cant be enrolled in Medicare or claimed as a dependent on someone elses tax return. 5. Spend down your flexible spending account Flexible spending accounts (FSAs) are a type of pre-tax account used to pay for health care expenses. Some employers also offer dependent care flexible spending accounts (DCFSAs) to defray the costs of child and elder care. In either case, money comes out of your paycheck pre-tax, which in turn lowers taxable income. You essentially dont have to pay taxes on the amount if it goes right into your FSA or DCFSA (up to the limit). But FSA and DCFSA funds typically dont roll over year to year. So if you currently have an FSA, be sure to check on the remaining funds and use them before you lose them in 2024. 6. Use tax-loss harvesting to reduce capital gains If youve actively been investing in the stock market and are sitting on unrealized losses, tax-loss harvesting is an investing strategy that can help reduce capital gains taxes. It works by strategically selling off losing stocks or funds, and using the losses to offset any capital gains taxes owed. If your capital losses exceed your gains, you may deduct up to $3,000 (or $1,500 if married filing separately). 7. Estimate what you owe Start figuring out how you want to file next year play with a free tax calculator to get an idea of what your tax situation might look like, and learn about free tax-filing resources. A local cannabis-focused media company is seeking people prolific in pot as it launches its first blind marijuana taste test in which consumers buy four unlabeled strains and then review the products online for others to see almost like a Yelp for marijuana. The Cannabis Cult is selling the Connoisseur Pack at special events across the state. Each pack contains four marijuana strains, at 3.5g each, from four different cultivators. Consumers then take surveys assessing the cannabis, and results are posted on the Cannabis Cult website. People are buying strains and they dont know exactly what it is, said Cannabis Cult co-founder and creative director Aaron Childs. He said he reached out to the initial cultivators included in the first pack, which was released in October at the Greenlight Dispensary in Independence during Greenlight Underground, a weekly event in which cultivators can sell directly to consumers. Buyers wont know any strain names in the sample packs, but they will know the four cultivators grew the marijuana. For their first pack, the cultivators were VIBE, Vivid, Local Cannabis Co. and Greenlight. Each pack costs $120, a lower price tag than buying the strains individually, Childs said. The next round will be for sale at a Greenlight Underground event in Joplin, Dec. 15 and 16. This will be the debut of the hash rosin edition as VIBE, Local and Vivid cultivators will be submitting a rosin strain of their choice to compete. The next flower Connoisseur Pack will be for sale at Greenlight Underground in Ferguson, Jan. 12 and 13. Were aiming it at connoisseurs, Childs said. Its going to look good for the cultivators because they are willing to put themselves through that scrutiny and they want that information so that they can make their product better. Childs likened the process to the Pepsi Challenge, in which testers blindly sampled Pepsi and Coke to determine the best of the two sodas although here, the reviewers are paying for the products. We believe that only the best cultivators will want to participate in this because if youre not a top cultivator and youre going against someone that is, it just wouldnt look good for your brand, he said. Testers are encouraged to rate each strain on bud size, appearance, structure, aroma, moisture, smoothness of smoke, flavor and effects in an online survey. The strain identities and information are revealed a few weeks after the event. Since the launch, the Cannabis Cult announced the results and rankings of the October Connoisseur Packs mystery strains. Locals Ice Cream Cake came out on top followed by Vivids Florida Kush, Vibes Strawberry Gary and Greenlights Motor Breath. Tony Messenger Metro columnist Follow Tony Messenger Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today PERRYVILLE For most of his life, Joe Hutchison has been known as Dr. Joe around these parts. Hutchison was a dentist in Perry County, about 90 minutes south of St. Louis, for 50 years. Last year, he retired from his practice. This year, he decided to try his hand at public service. In April, Hutchison was elected to the Board of Trustees for Perry County Memorial Hospital. Like many rural hospitals in Missouri, its a public facility, originally funded by county taxpayers. Hutchison ran, he says, to put the public back into the hospital system. There had been questions in the community about a hospital administrator who was put on leave, as well as the hospitals planned merger with the Mercy health system. After Hutchison was elected, he started asking for documents from minutes of meetings to financial records and contracts. Even as a member of the board of trustees, he was denied access to information he says he needed to make decisions. He filed a Sunshine Law request to get the documents. Administrators told him they werent subject to the states open records law. I was frustrated and getting nowhere, Hutchison told me. So Hutchison turned to the courts. Earlier this month, he sued the hospital system he serves, trying to get a judge to declare that the countys hospital is indeed a public body. Hutchison has Missouri case law on his side. In the 1990s, Perry County Memorial Hospital did what a lot of city- and county-owned hospitals in Missouri have done. The Board of Trustees created a separate nonprofit organization to run the daily operations of the hospital, with its own board of directors. That body, many of the systems that adopted this structure have asserted, is not subject to the states open records law. The Missouri Court of Appeals disagrees with that assertion. In 1998, in a case involving a Kansas City hospital, the court ruled that a public body cant create a separate entity that enters into contracts and then hide those contracts from public view. Contracts entered into by governmental entities are precisely the type of records the Sunshine Law seeks to provide to the public, the court wrote. That ruling came out of the Western District of the Missouri Court of Appeals. Now, it seems, the Eastern District might have an opportunity to weigh in on the same question. For rural areas, this battle raises important questions, says JP Clubb, who is Hutchisons lawyer. Many rural hospitals have struggled financially in recent years. And in the age of hospital consolidation, where public hospitals are contracting with private entities, it can be even harder for local residents to know whats going on with the health system they have funded. The problem isnt unique to Perry County. In the central part of the state, Boone Countys public hospital has a similar structure. Earlier this month, the Columbia Missourian reported that its attempt to obtain financial records to explain the hospitals $112 million loss was denied. In both Boone County and Perry County, the public hospital systems assert their records arent public. PCHS is a private nonprofit run by a volunteer board of directors, Ben Askew, the attorney for the Perry County Health System, wrote in an email responding to questions about the lawsuit. PCHS stands by its 25-year history, bylaws and understanding that it is not a governmental body and the requested records are not public. Hutchisons constant requests for information have created friction on the board, with clashes in public meetings among board members, hospital administrators and residents. The merger with Mercy which has already gone through might be a good thing, Hutchison says. But its ridiculous, he argues, to ask public board members to vote on such decisions when they cant even see the records that provide context. Theyre asking us to sign off on this and they wont even show us the financials or the audit. I have 50 questions to figure out what to ask once I see the books, and they dont want me to have access to the books, Hutchison says. Its a nightmare. ST. LOUIS Washington University says accusations about its youth transgender clinic by an ex-employee are unsubstantiated and that its internal review found the clinic is not violating any policies. The review affirmed that physicians and staff at the Center follow appropriate policies and procedures and treat patients according to the accepted standards of care, the university said in a statement Friday, accompanying a summary of its findings. The former employee is Jamie Reed, who worked as a case manager at the Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Childrens Hospital for more than four years before leaving last November. She alleged in February that doctors introduced medical interventions without informed parental consent; that puberty blockers and hormones were prescribed without adequately addressing mental health issues; and that the center regularly referred patients younger than 18 for surgery. Reed outlined her claims in a first-person narrative published online by the Free Press on Feb. 9. Her sworn affidavit, which included additional accusations, was released that day by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who is leading a state investigation. In the wake of the whistleblower report, two dozen parents recounted their experiences to the Post-Dispatch, contradicting many of the claims, which included that children were rushed to treatment and possible side effects werent explained. In its summary report, Washington University said Chancellor Andrew Martin initiated a review following the publication of Reeds article, collaborating with Childrens Hospital to establish an oversight committee. It did not specify how many people served on the committee or their positions. The report concluded that no patients at the Transgender Center, which opened in 2017, have experienced adverse reactions to medicalization, and that mental health care has been prioritized. But it acknowledged that, although its process of documenting parental consent adheres to university and state requirements, a more detailed and formalized approach was needed, including mandating earlier evidence of custody agreements. It also disclosed that changes to its procedures regarding surgeries had already been made. Side effects and surgeries A total of 1,165 patients have been treated at the transgender center since June 2018, the year Reed was hired. In her affidavit, Reed described hormone treatment for gender-questioning adolescents at the clinic as inevitable, characterizing it as the prevailing narrative of immediate cross-sex hormones for all by the prescribing physicians. The universitys review found that fewer than half of its adolescent patients, 531, received cross hormones, which allow them to develop secondary sex characteristics of the gender with which they identify, such as breasts and wider hips for girls and deeper voices and broader shoulders for boys. An additional 67 patients were prescribed puberty blockers, which pause the physical changes of puberty, but not cross-sex hormones. The rest, 567, were not prescribed puberty blockers or hormones. Reed did not respond to a request for comment on Friday. Reed also noted in her affidavit the potential side effects of medicalization and described a patient who experienced liver damage after taking Bicalutamide, which suppresses male hormones. She told of patients who were in severe mental health distress, and she claimed that the Transgender Center does not provide mental health care or refer children for mental health care. Washington Universitys summary of conclusions noted that no patients who had adverse physical reactions prescribed by Center providers and that most patients receive continuing mental health care but didnt specify how many patients did not. Staff at the center includes a psychiatrist and a psychologist. A list of therapists who specialize in gender issues is supplied to families. Patients are required to have a letter of support from a licensed mental health provider before beginning medical interventions. Depression, self-harm and suicidal ideation among transgender youths occur more frequently than within the general population. The WU review also noted that prior to 2019, if requested, minors could be referred for gender-affirming surgery. A policy barring such referrals was enacted in late 2018, the report said. Six surgeries have been performed by Washington University physicians since 2018, but they were not from transgender center referrals, the university said. All six surgeries were chest surgeries for adolescents transitioning to male. The university has since changed its policy on gender-confirmation surgery for minors, and its physicians no longer perform gender-affirming surgeries on patients under the age of 18. The report did not specify when the change to policy was made. The transgender center follows guidelines set forth by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, an international organization of physicians and researchers that has established standards of care since 1979. The university has not revealed details regarding emergency regulations announced by the attorney general a month ago. The rules, which apply to Missourians of all ages, include a therapy requirement that creates an 18-month waiting period for care. Both the Missouri Senate and the House have advanced legislation in recent weeks that would tightly restrict or prohibit gender-affirming care for minors. Response Jennifer Goldring, whose 16-year-old son receives care at the center, said shes not surprised the university found no violation of policies by the center. Thats how we feel our care is. Theyre very careful, and they were always very attentive to all the aspects of my child, said Goldring, a St. Louis County resident. Overall, were still pretty stressed out by the political climate here and by all the shenanigans the attorney general is doing, and of course what our Legislature is doing. But thats a relief. The family is planning to leave Missouri by the end of 2024 to live in a state with protections for trans people. Ernie Trakas, an attorney for Reed and a member of the St. Louis County Council, claimed that much of the universitys investigation was a tacit acknowledgment of Reeds accusations. He said the schools determination that the center needs evidence of custody agreements proves that parents had not been properly informed of their childs care when there were disagreements about the childs need for gender-affirming care. Becky Hormuth, of Wentzville, whose 16-year-old son is a patient, said she thought, Told you so, when she found out about the universitys conclusions. But she said the next step is focusing on the attorney generals regulations. Hes just hurting our children and our families, and he needs to stop this immediately, Hormuth said. Tim Dierker, of St. Louis, whose 12-year-old daughter is a patient at the center, said hes not surprised by the findings either. But he still fears attacks from the attorney general and Legislature. I dont think this will stop anyone from pursuing their agenda, Dierker said. But I hope Washington University will continue to fight for their patients. AG issues new regulations for transgender care as Missouri House votes to approve limits And the Missouri attorney general signed off on Thursday on emergency regulations, for adults as well as children, he said are designed to put "guardrails" on medical care for transgender individuals. Worlds leading transgender health experts attack regulations planned by Missouri AG Andrew Baileys claims about transgender care were either taken out of context, cherry-picked, or from unverified sources, WPATH says. Activists take aim at controversial St. Louis transgender clinic, but draw counterprotesters The Transgender Center at St. Louis Childrens Hospital has been under scrutiny since the release of a whistleblower report. Choice of lawyers for whistleblower at St. Louis transgender clinic taints her motive, critics say This is incredibly ideologically-oriented, said Rabbi Daniel Bogard who has a transgender son. Her attorneys are involved nationally in targeting trans kids and their parents and trying to deny their existence. Report on St. Louis transgender center could propel measures limiting treatments Missouri Republican lawmakers have filed more than two dozen bills directed at the LGBTQ community, including some that target gender transition therapy. KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip Health officials said Sunday that 31 very sick premature babies were safely transferred from Gazas main hospital to another in the south and will later go to Egypt, as scores of critically wounded patients remained stranded there days after Israeli forces entered the compound. The fate of the newborns at Shifa Hospital had captured global attention after the release of images showing doctors trying to keep them warm. A power blackout had shut down incubators and other equipment, and food, water and medical supplies ran out as Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media the very sick" babies were evacuated along with six health workers and 10 family members of staff. They were receiving urgent care in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. The babies suffered from dehydration, vomiting, hypothermia and some had sepsis because they hadnt received medication, and they had not been in suitable conditions for them to stay alive, said Mohamed Zaqout, director of Gaza hospitals. Theyll go to Egypt on Monday for more specialized care, he said. A WHO team that visited the hospital on Saturday said 291 patients were still there, including the babies. Others were trauma patients with severely infected wounds and those with spinal injuries who are unable to move. Four babies died in the two days before their visit, Zaqout said. The WHO said 25 medical staff remained, along with the patients who it said were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation. The agency described Shifa as a death zone. Later Sunday, the hospitals head of plastic surgery, Dr. Ahmed El Mokhallalati, said Israeli troops raided the surgical department, investigated staff and patients, and arrested one patient. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the incident. Israel has long alleged Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa, part of its wider accusation that the fighters use civilians as cover. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end Hamas rule in Gaza following the militant groups wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago. After searching the grounds for days, Israels army said Sunday it had discovered a 55-meter (60-yard) tunnel about 10 meters (33 feet) under the hospitals 20-acre complex, which includes several buildings, garages and a plaza. It said the tunnel included a staircase, blast-proof door and a firing hole that could be used by snipers. The army said it was still uncovering the tunnels route. The Associated Press couldnt independently verify Israels findings. Hamas and hospital staff earlier denied the allegations of a command post under Shifa, and critics describe the hospital as a symbol of what they call Israels reckless endangerment of civilians. Thousands have been killed in Israeli strikes, and there are severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel in the besieged territory. Ship seized Israels military said Yemen-based Houthi rebels had seized a cargo ship in the southern Red Sea sailing from Turkey to India but said no Israelis were aboard and that it wasnt an Israeli ship. The Houthis said they had seized an Israeli ship and crew and took the vessel to the Yemeni coast, but gave no details, other than to say it was treating the captives in accordance with the teaching and values of our Islamic religion. Earlier in the day, the Iranian-backed group threatened to target Israel-linked vessels in the Red Sea. A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office described the ship as owned by a British company. But a U.N. ship database identified the vessels owners as a Tel Aviv-based firm, Ray Shipping Ltd. Officials there did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Heavy fighting in the north Heavy clashes were reported in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza overnight into Sunday. There was the constant sound of gunfire and tank shelling, Yassin Sharif, who is sheltering in a U.N.-run hospital there, said by phone. It was another night of horror. The commissioner-general of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, said 24 people were killed in what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike on a school in a crowded U.N. shelter in Jabaliya the day before. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. This war is having a staggering and unacceptable number of civilian casualties, including women and children, every day. This must stop, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement on that strike and another on a U.N.-run school within 24 hours. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. A further 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried in rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Hostage negotiations About 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians killed during Hamas Oct. 7 attack, in which the group dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza and shattered Israels sense of security. The military says 63 Israeli soldiers have been killed, including 12 over the past 24 hours. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two were found near Shifa where there had been heavy fighting. Israel, the United States and the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating a hostage release for weeks. We are hopeful that we can get a significant number of hostages freed in the coming days, Israels ambassador to the U.S., Michael Herzog, told ABCs This Week. He added, Were talking about a pause in the fighting for a few days, so we can get the hostages out. Qatars prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said Sunday the the sticking points, honestly, at this stage are more practical, logistical. Winter arriving More than two-thirds of Gazas population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, is struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of thousands of displaced people. Seventeen of its facilities have been directly hit, the agency said. Their misery has worsened in recent days with the arrival of winter, with cold winds and driving rain. Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days, and to keep internet and telephone systems running. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gazas sole power plant and most water treatment systems to shut down. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday gave the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to the south, where Israel has told Palestinian civilians to seek refuge. Israel has repeatedly struck what it says are militant targets across the south, often killing civilians. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Egypt has refused to accept any influx of Palestinian refugees, in part because of fears that Israel would not allow them to return. Palestinian-Canadian Khalil Manaa, 71, left Gaza for Egypt on Sunday. After fleeing to southern Gaza, he said he and relatives shared a crammed home of 40 people. And there, we also were subjected to intense strikes. A rocket hit our house," he said. Magdy reported from Cairo. Updated at 11:47 a.m. KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip Hundreds of patients, medical staff and people displaced by Israels war against Hamas left Gazas largest hospital Saturday, with one evacuee describing a panicked and chaotic scene as Israeli forces searched and face-scanned men among those leaving and took some away. Israel's military has been searching Gaza City's Shifa Hospital for a Hamas command center that it alleges is located under the facility a claim the militant group and hospital staff deny. The evacuation, which Israel says was voluntary, left behind only Israeli troops and a small number of health workers to care for those too sick to move. "We left at gunpoint," Mahmoud Abu Auf said by phone after he and his family left the crowded hospital. "Tanks and snipers were everywhere inside and outside." He said he saw Israeli troops detain three men. Elsewhere in northern Gaza, dozens of people were killed in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp when what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike hit a crowded United Nations shelter in the main combat zone. It caused massive destruction in the camp's Fakhoura school, said wounded survivors Ahmed Radwan and Yassin Sharif. "The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help," Radwan said by phone. AP photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which warned Jabaliya residents and others in a social media post in Arabic to leave, said only that its troops were active in the area "with the aim of hitting terrorists." It rarely comments on individual strikes, saying that it targets Hamas while trying to minimize civilian harm. "Receiving horrifying images & footage of scores of people killed and injured in another UNRWA school sheltering thousands of displaced," Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, said on social media. In southern Gaza, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential building on the outskirts of the town of Khan Younis, killing at least 26 Palestinians, according to a doctor at the hospital where the bodies were taken. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel's forces have begun operating in eastern Gaza City while continuing its mission in western areas. "With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate," he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza "in the coming days." His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to southern Gaza, where Israel had told Palestinian civilians to flee early in the war. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moves closer. Israel's military said it was asked by Shifa Hospital's director to help those who would like to leave to do so and that it did not order an evacuation. However, Medhat Abbas, a spokesman for the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza, said the military ordered the facility cleared and gave the hospital an hour to get people out. A Shifa physician, Ahmed Mokhallalati, said on social media that about 120 patients remained, including some in intensive care and premature babies, and that he and five other doctors were staying. Twenty-five of Gaza's hospitals aren't functioning due to a lack of fuel, damage and other problems, and the other 11 are only partially operational, according to the World Health Organization. Internet and phone services were restored Saturday to Gaza, ending a telecommunications outage that had forced the U.N. to shut down critical aid deliveries. The war was triggered by Hamas' Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel, in which militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted some 240 men, women and children. Fifty-two Israeli soldiers have been killed. In Jerusalem, thousands of marchers including family members and supporters of about 240 hostages held in Gaza by Hamas arrived on the last leg of a five-day trek from Tel Aviv to plead with the government to do more to bring their loved ones home. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday that the Israeli military would have "full freedom" to operate within the territory after the war. The comments again put him in conflict with U.S. visions for a post-war era in Gaza. U.S. President Joe Biden said an important key to lasting stability is a reunited Gaza Strip and West Bank that can be governed under a revitalized Palestinian Authority. In an op-ed published Saturday in the Washington Post, Biden reiterated his position of recent weeks that a temporary cease-fire wasn't a real possibility and wouldn't ultimately advance greater U.S. objectives. The president and top U.S. officials have instead revived talk of working toward a two-state solution for the governance of Gaza, which Netanyahu opposes. The Israeli military said its aircraft struck what it described as a hideout for militants in the urban refugee camp of Balata in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance service said five Palestinians were killed. The deaths raised to 212 the number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank since the war began. (Reuters) -Blackstone is in the lead to win the $17 billion portfolio of commercial-property loans from the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp's (FDIC) sale of Signature Bank debt, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday. In September, the FDIC was seeking buyers for the $33 billion commercial real estate loan portfolio of failed New York lender Signature Bank. The bidding process has brought in several finance companies such as Starwood Capital Group and Brookfield Asset Management , according to Bloomberg News. Separately, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter, that a venture of two nonprofits and Related Fund Management is poised to win an auction for billions of dollars of Signature Bank loans backed by New York apartments. A formal winner could be awarded as early as Monday, WSJ reported. The FDIC hired Newmark Group in March to sell about $60 billion of Signature Bank's loans, after state regulators decided to close the failed lender amid turmoil in regional banks earlier this year. FDIC declined to comment on the Bloomberg News report, saying: "We only comment on sales after they close. The entire portfolio sale has yet to close." The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the WSJ report. Blackstone, Newmark Group and Related Fund Management did not immediately respond to requests for comment. (Reporting by Chandni Shah and Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker, Bill Berkrot and Diane Craft) COLUMBUS, Ohio The statewide battles over abortion rights since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a constitutional right to abortion have exposed another fault line: the commitment to democracy. As voters in state after state affirm their support for abortion rights, opponents are acting with escalating defiance toward the democratic processes and institutions they perceive as aligned against their cause. Certain Republican elected officials and anti-abortion activists around the country have responded to losses at the ballot box by challenging election results, refusing to bring state laws into line with voter-backed changes, moving to strip state courts of their power to consider abortion-related laws and challenging the citizen-led ballot initiative process itself. We.Are.Not.Done., Ohio state Rep. Jennifer Gross declared on the social media platform X two days after voters enshrined the right to abortion in the state constitution earlier this month. She and 25 other Republican lawmakers vowed to block the amendment from reversing Ohios existing abortion restrictions. A strong majority of Ohio voters passed the amendment, by roughly 57% to 43%. In response, the group of lawmakers said in a joint statement: We will do everything in our power to prevent our laws from being removed based upon perception of intent. Gross joined three fellow Republicans to go even further, proposing legislation to prevent Ohio courts from interpreting any cases related to the abortion-rights amendment, known as Issue 1. Similar efforts have emerged in six other states since state courts became the new abortion battleground after the Dobbs decision on June 24, 2022, that overturned Roe v. Wade. Douglas Keith, senior counsel to the Brennan Center for Justices Judiciary Program, said abortion politics prompted successful efforts to limit the power of state courts in Montana and Utah and unsuccessful legislation in Alaska and Kansas. Such bills are attempts to dismantle the governments system of checks and balances, he said. An attempt to strip the courts ability to interpret Issue 1 seems to me to be picking a fight with not just the courts, but with voters themselves, Keith said in reference to the Ohio amendment. That conflict was on display during a town hall hosted by Gross after her efforts to thwart the abortion-rights amendment were announced. A constituent who said she supported Issue 1, Emily Jackson, was incredulous. Youre ignoring the voice. The voice is there, Jackson said. We spoke. Gross told Jackson she wasnt ignoring voters but rather was reflecting opponents concerns that Ohio voters were led astray. The campaign drew big money from outside the state for both sides. Gross did not return call and emails seeking additional comment. Advocates contend that strict abortion laws also are undemocratic in the most basic sense because a majority of Americans oppose them. According to AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of more than 94,000 voters, 63% of those who voted in the 2022 midterm elections said abortion should be legal in most or all cases. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll taken a year after the Supreme Courts decision found that about two-thirds of Americans overall said abortion should generally be legal. In all seven states where abortion has been on the ballot since Roe v. Wade fell, voters have either supported protecting abortion rights or rejected an attempt to erode them. That has led some Republicans who support abortion restrictions to target the ballot initiative process, a form of direct democracy that is available to voters in only about half the states. Thank goodness that most of the states in this country dont allow you to put everything on the ballot because pure democracies are not the way to run a country, said Rick Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania and one-time presidential candidate. He spoke about Ohios election results during an appearance on the conservative site NewsMax. Another elected Republican, North Dakota state Rep. Brandon Prichard, weighed in on X, formerly Twitter, to encourage Republicans to defy the outcome of Ohios election. "It would be an act of courage to ignore the results of the election and not allow for the murder of Ohio babies, he wrote. Some political observers see a larger danger in such sentiments. Sophia Jordan Wallace, a political science professor at the University of Washington, said the frequency and the explicitness of these undemocratic attempts are increasing and that they threaten to do long-term damage to American institutions and the publics faith in them. And that damage is incredibly difficult to undo, she said. For many abortion opponents, the issue is a sacred cause, the thing that cannot be argued with, one that may outweigh the importance of maintaining democratic practices, said Myrna Perez, associate professor of Gender and American Religion at Ohio University. Things arent static, so youre trying to figure out a way to get the system to give you the results that you want, she said. Andrew Whitehead, associate professor of sociology at Indiana UniversityPurdue University Indianapolis, said Christian nationalists, who have deep ties to the anti-abortion movement, have a history of viewing access to fundamental democratic processes such as voting not as a right but a privilege that should be afforded only to those who align with their beliefs. When it comes to enforcing their vision for America they think is ordained by God, they will set aside democracy, Whitehead said. Anti-abortion lawmakers and advocates already have pushed back in a handful of states where voters sided generally with abortion rights. In Montana, voters last fall rejected a legislative referendum that would have criminalized a doctors or nurses failure to provide lifesaving care to a baby born alive after an attempted abortion; such cases typically involve severe medical problems. Republicans countered by passing a version of the rejected measure into law. Kentucky Republicans chose to leave intact a state ban on abortion at all stages of pregnancy, even though voters there defeated a measure that would have denied constitutional protections for the procedure. In Ohio, some notable top Republicans are rejecting anti-democratic suggestions and standing up for voters. In this country, we accept the results of elections, said GOP Gov. Mike DeWine, a leading opponent of Issue 1. Republican Attorney General Dave Yost tweeted that he scoured the Ohio Constitution, but found no exception for matters in which the outcome of an election is contrary to the preferences of those in power. All political power is inherent in the people, he quoted the document as saying. Republican state legislative leaders initially pledged that the fight to restrict abortion rights wasnt over after voters had spoken. But as their party grapples with the anti-abortion movements deep divisions, House Speaker Jason Stephens and Senate President Matt Huffman have appeared to soften their tone. Stephens signaled he wont advance Grosss court-limiting bill. Huffman, a devout Catholic, walked back suggestions that he could pursue an immediate repeal of Issue 1. They were among Ohio Republicans who defied their own law and called a special election in August aimed at raising the threshold for passing future constitutional amendments from a simple majority to 60%. The measure was widely seen as an attempt to undermine the fall abortion amendment and was soundly rejected. The tensions already are evident for abortion initiatives planned for state ballots in 2024. In Missouri, disputes over ballot language are complicating efforts by abortion-rights supporters to advance a statewide ballot measure. A panel of judges last month ruled that summaries written by Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, an abortion opponent who is running for governor next year, were politically partisan and misleading. In Michigan, three Republican lawmakers joined an anti-abortion group in suing to overturn a state constitutional amendment protecting abortion rights that voters passed with wide support last year. Floridas Republican attorney general is attempting to keep a proposed abortion rights amendment off the 2024 ballot. We saw voters make that connection in Ohio between abortion and democracy in that first special election, said Kara Gross, legislative director at the ACLU of Florida. And we have faith voters will be able to make that same connection elsewhere in 2024. Faithful readers of this papers Sunday edition might have noticed that my colleague Lynn Schmidt and I like the schist between liberals and conservatives in the nation generally today might well be the Siskel and Ebert of the Editorial Board. Although we agree on some basic political tenants, particularly what a catastrophe a second Donald Trump presidency would be, our basic philosophies are often at different ends of the spectrum, as our columns over the last couple of years have reflected. Its this yin and yang of differing opinions that makes our democracy flourish. Lynn favors smaller government, for example, while I think the size of government is less important than making sure the existing agencies have the funds to hire and train employees and keep their technology current. Lynn disapproved of President Bidens plan for student debt relief, while I favored it for those who never completed their degrees, or those on a fixed income with the stipulation of a smaller means-test. There's more. Considering our different philosophies, it should come as no surprise that we disagree on the "No Labels political movement that is considering offering a third candidate for the 2024 presidential bid. Lynn has written in support of that movement, calling it an "insurance policy" against what she considers two unfit major-party candidates. I'd like to take this opportunity to politely push back: I see No Labels as a potential spoiler, likely to dilute the Democratic voting pool and put Trump back in office. This terrifying proposition would be exactly the opposite of the groups stated goals. But there are many indications it could happen. Thus far, No Labels has not named an actual candidate, and they have said they might not. However, since right-leaning Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., is one of their more prominent supporters, it would not be a surprise that he became their candidate, especially since he has now announced that he will not seek reelection to the Senate. Various news sources called Manchin a "moderate" or "centrist" Democrat when he made his retirement announcement. I think not. Considering his obstructionist actions regarding Democratic priorities over the last few years, he would be the last person Id vote for, were I inclined to abandon President Biden. Also, by continuing to support the use of fossil fuels, Manchin appears to have been representing his own interests rather than those of his constituents, much less the common good. Beyond that, its just mathematically illogical to believe that by dividing the political whole, we are not reducing the stability of the entire pie. Take Hillary Clinton's loss in the 2016 presidential race. I dont know which of the multitude of her problems during the campaign she would blame, but one doesnt have to be a political analyst to recognize the prejudices she faced. First, she was a woman, one many viewed as too pushy when she championed national health insurance during her husbands presidency. Then, during her campaign, she used the word deplorables to describe some of Trump's supporters, which is still rankling many of them today. So the hair literally stood up on my arms when then-FBI Director James Comey announced he was initiating a new investigation into Clinton's home email server less than a week before the presidential election. That's the sort of thing that divides an already-wobbly base. I get the same eerie feeling about the No Labels contingent. No Labels says that if even if they get on the ballots in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and name a candidate, they will withdraw from the race if it appears their presence will help Trump. When asked how they will determine that, their answer is that their polling will tell them. I dont trust polls or statistics in general. Id rather discuss the possibilities. Suppose a No Labels candidate is named, some voters decide this is their guy, but then the group, after their polling, removes their platform from consideration? Where do those voters go? If they lean Republican, will they switch back to a vindictive Trump, ignoring his baggage? Will Democratic-leaning voters stick with or switch to President Biden despite their earlier concerns? How many will decide not to vote at all? No poll can predict that. Our democracy is in danger of extinction. To save it we must not divide it any further. Just say no to No Labels. Give us your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. But these days, theyll first have to get by right-wing culture warriors intent on vilifying even legal immigration as part of their political performance art. The latest act in this cynical circus comes courtesy of four members of the St. Charles County Council who are sponsoring a resolution opposing a humanitarian program designed to bring Latin American immigrants to the St. Louis area. Its a blatant ideological stunt that carries no legal weight but sends a terrible message from a region whose core St. Louis city has suffered alarming population loss in recent decades. St. Louis is now home to fewer than 300,000 residents, down from a high of more than 800,000 in the 1950s. And our St. Charles County neighbors are arguing against immigration? That population plunge would have been even worse if not for the infusion of tens of thousands of Bosnian refugees who flooded into the city starting the 1990s. It was a historic immigration success story with echoes still evident in the Bevo Mill neighborhood, with its great Bosnian food and vibrant culture. Like earlier infusions of immigrants to St. Louis Italians on the Hill, the Irish in Dogtown, Bohemians in Soulard, Mexicans on Cherokee Street the Bosnians brought with them not only much-needed population, but that unique cultural pulse that only major urban centers have. With the citys pulse dangerously low these days, a plan by the nonprofit International Institute of St. Louis to make the metro area a destination for Latin American immigrants, announced in September, is encouraging. The proposal would take advantage of a new federal program that will issue temporary visas for thousands of immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela, provided they meet specific criteria. In St. Louis, the Institute would focus on drawing immigrants here who have already entered the U.S. and are currently residing in Chicago and other cities. It would arrange three months free housing here, English language classes, job training and placement in conjunction with the AFL-CIO and assistance from immigration attorneys. The proposal is intrinsically pro-family, pro-work, pro-economic growth, and is based entirely on legal immigration. So, of course, conservatives who supposedly cherish all those principles are finding ways to oppose it. The resolution raised at the St. Charles County Council last week is a marvel of misleading implication and reactionary dog-whistle politics. It notes that the proposed program will resettle possibly thousands of Latin American migrants in the City of St. Louis from Chicago. It further notes that Chicago has become a self-proclaimed sanctuary city and about 18,000 immigrants have arrived. It quotes a statement from the St. Louis mayors office vowing to welcome immigrants and refugees to the St. Louis area. Then the resolution declares, seemingly apropos of nothing: [T]he St. Charles County Council is strongly opposed to the importation of illegal immigrants into the region What does illegal immigration have to do with the Institutes proposal? Nothing again, its based entirely on a federal program that brings immigrants under a specified legal process. But by raising the specter of thousands of Latin American migrants flooding into St. Louis via Chicago, and then throwing in the words illegal immigrants, the resolution sounds its silent whistle loud and clear. Its not only misleading and cruel, but unAmerican in its attempt to vilify migrants who have followed the rules. Interestingly, that earlier influx of Bosnians like the more recent St. Louis-area program that brought in Ukrainian immigrants, some of whom have settled in St. Charles County itself drew none of this foreboding from County Council members. Well leave it to the readers to ponder what might account for the difference regarding Latin American immigrants. At last weeks council meeting, one of the resolutions sponsors, Councilman Joe Brazil, R-Defiance, claimed the reason the bogeyman of illegal immigration is even part of the discussion regarding this fully legal program is that attorneys general from 21 states, including Missouris Andrew Bailey, have joined a lawsuit challenging the legality of the Biden administration immigration policy on which the Institutes program is based. But that suit, like the county resolution itself, is a partisan right-wing stunt designed to leverage fear of immigration generally for political purposes. The involvement of the deeply unserious Bailey last seen getting slapped down in court for the blatant politicization of his office to sabotage efforts at putting abortion rights on ballot should be proof enough that the immigration suit is little more than a GOP bumper sticker. With four co-sponsors from the seven-member council, the St. Charles County resolution might well be headed for passage. If so, the Institute and St. Louis officials pursuing the immigration program should give the resolution all the consideration it deserves exactly none and continue the important work of opening St. Louis arms to the world. The U.S. military thought that with the JLTV (Joint Light Tactical Vehicle) they had come up with a solution to their need for a new multi-function tactical wheeled vehicle. JLTV turned out to be not that solution. The manufacturer, Oshkosh, has only received 0rders for about 24,000 JLTVs since the vehicle first became available in 2015, which is less than half the demand Oshkosh expected. JLTV has its fans, but not enough of them to generate the sales levels Oshkosh expected. JLTV was more than most potential users needed and was more expensive to purchase and operate than its predecessors. JLTV used more fuel, because it was heavier than the military vehicles it replaced. When the JLTV was introduced in 2015 it was supposed to be the solution to numerous problems with military transportation needed. The U.S. military, particularly the army and marines, have a problem with their current supply of combat zone trucks. The new JLTV (Joint Light Tactical Vehicle) is more combat vehicle than combat zone transport. While many of the current, since the early 1980s, High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle or HMMWV/Humvee/hummers had armor added, or were produced with armor after 2003, most did not. That was because armor protection was only needed in the combat zone. Even then only vehicles that spent a lot of time outside base areas in the combat zones needed armor. The JLTV costs more than twice as much as a hummer and is more expensive to operate, mainly because of fuel costs. There are also higher costs for maintenance and replacement parts because JLTV is a heavier vehicle that wears out many components faster. What this meant was that JLTV was a specialized vehicle that was too expensive to replace hummers on a large scale. In some cases, pickup trucks were used for tasks where the hummer was overkill. This was particularly the case with American allies who purchased hummers. The hummer was an adequate replacement for the World War 2 jeep and three-quarter ton truck, and those two vehicles were phased out and replaced by the hummer in the 1980s. When the army prepared to pull its forces out of Iraq and Afghanistan two decades later, China was seen as the primary military threat. North Korea was also a threat and a unique one. For decades North Korea threatened to attack South Korea again as it did in its failed 1950 invasion. A war with China and North Korea would be more conventional. That meant roadside bombs and landmines would not be as much of a problem as in Iraq and Afghanistan. But plans were already underway, since 2005, to replace the hummer with a heavier, better protected and more expensive vehicle. By 2015 it became clear that the original JLTV purchasing plans were off target. A hummer-like vehicle would be needed in the future and in larger numbers than the JLTV. This was realized in 2010 when the army tried to get over $10 billion to rebuild over 50,000 older hummers to like-new condition. That was turned down although five years later a smaller program was permitted that cost about two billion dollars. But this only produced 11,000 rebuilt hummers, which was not enough to replace the many that were going to be retired because of wear and tear. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan had accelerated wear and tear on hummers and shortened their useful lifespans by a decade or more. Some refurbishment money was provided but not enough to replace eventual losses. Meanwhile, the military realized it had overestimated the need for JLTVs and underestimated the need to replace many hummers with hummer-like vehicles. Current plans are to buy militarized pickups and other light trucks. These would be of more rugged construction than most commercial models and have combat protection in the driver cabin. This would include bulletproof glass and blast-resistant seats and cabin floors. These could cost about as much to maintain as regular pickups and be cheaper to buy than hummers while able to function like a hummer with a deployed army unit. In home bases, mainly in the U.S., civilian trucks are often used around the base and get the job done at much less cost than combat zone hummers and larger trucks. Initially the army planned to buy as many as 50,000 JLTV vehicles but ended up procuring less than half that number for itself and allied nations. The U.S. originally sought to develop a new hummer-like vehicle with better and built-in bomb/landmine protection. The JLTV came out of that, and it was to replace armored hummers and MRAP (Mine Resistant Armored Protected) vehicles. MRAPs are basically heavy (8-20 ton) trucks equipped with armor and V-shaped bottoms (to deflect explosions). Work on armoring hummers and building smaller MRAPs revealed that you could get MRAP level protection on smaller vehicles if you used the right design features. Trial and error during the most intense period of the Iraq war (2003-8) made it clear what worked. At the same time, JLTV was still in development and eventually incorporated that combat experience. That produced a vehicle not much heavier than an armored hummer but with protection similar to a larger and heavier MRAP. Mass production for JLTV began in late 2019 with most of those vehicles going to the U.S. Army, which initially planned to buy 49,000 vehicles to replace armored HMMWV (hummer) vehicles as well as many armored trucks (MRAPs). As of 2020, about 7,500 JLTVs were in service. Thousands of American soldiers and marines already have experience with JLTV because low-rate production began in 2015 with orders for 657 vehicles, and that has since been increased so that the American military, mainly the army, can get their personnel used to the new vehicle. These users also provided a lot of feedback, which is understandable as the initial JLTV design was based on a lot of troop feedback and online discussions, especially on message boards only accessible to the troops, about what worked and what didnt in combat, especially with regard to armored hummers and using MRAPS. The military wanted to avoid relearning lessons about vehicle protection learned and forgotten after World War II, Korea and Vietnam. That means constant feedback from users and that is most important before mass production begins. By 2023 nearly 20,000 JLTVs were in service or on order. The Oshkosh L-ATV was selected as the winner of the JLTV design competition. The Oshkosh JLTV was a light armored vehicle that provided a high (MRAP) level of protection against roadside bombs and mines while also carrying a crew of two and up to 2.3 tons of passengers or cargo. The top road speed is 112 kilometers an hour and it has a hatch in the top that allows for installation of a manned machine-gun or a RWS (remote weapons system). Range on internal fuel is 480 kilometers and it has an improved suspension for a smoother ride off-road. The diesel engine can also generate 70 kw of electrical power. Oshkosh won the competition mainly because its design was much more reliable than its competitors and also met all the protection against bombs and mines requirements. The initial order was for 16,901 vehicles costing about $400,000 each. There are eight models, which is normal for vehicles like this and reflects different needs (basic personnel carrier, scout, ambulance, cargo and so on). About a quarter of the first JLTVs are for the U.S. Marine Corps. Additional vehicles were built for foreign and non-military customers. Because the U.S. is producing this new vehicle design, incorporating a lot of expensive new tech, the per-unit cost is lower than most nations can match by developing their own comparable vehicle. That was a major attraction for the British and other potential export customers. The first export customer, Slovenia, ordered 38 in late 2018 with the first one arriving in 2021. Lithuania and Montenegro also placed small orders. Several other nations are considering JLTV, including Britain, which would buy two thousand or so. Export versions sell for up to $400,000 each depending on accessories. Buyers like Britain order vehicles that allow for a lot of substitution of some American components with British equivalents and the use of British accessories. The American designer and manufacturer, Oshkosh, has been promoting the JLTV to military and police organizations worldwide and already has several other NATO allies discussing JLTV acquisition. As JLTV enters service in 2019 it signaled the end of an era, or did it? The HMMWV (hum-V or hummer) was an iconic and revolutionary vehicle and the most innovative military transport to show up since World War II. About half the annual sales of HMMWV vehicles went to the U.S. Army, with the rest going to other branches of the American military and foreign customers. Nearly 290,000 hummers have been produced so far, in dozens of variants and versions. The last army hummer order was in 2012. The army plans to continue using most until at least 2030 with some lasting until 2050. By then most will have retired because they are worn out. Now the problem is that the army cannot afford to replace all hummers with JLTV. The 6.4-ton JLTV that replaces the 4-ton armored HMMWV, which is 2.4 tons unarmored, is heavier because of the JLTV being more robust and better protected. The hummer itself replaced the 1.1-ton jeep and the 3-ton M37 3/4-ton truck in the 1980s. The JLTV marks a notable design direction for tactical vehicles. The JLTV is designed to absorb combat damage and be quickly equipped with two different armor kits. In effect, the World War II concept of the unarmored light vehicle for moving men and material around the battlefield has been radically changed by the Iraq War and, to a lesser extent, Afghanistan. This began in Iraq, where it was demonstrated that you can fight your way through a hostile population on a regular basis and defeat a guerilla force constantly attacking your tactical and logistical vehicles. This has never worked before, but it worked this time, in part because U.S. troops promptly armored their hummers and trucks and quickly developed road warrior tactics that defeated roadside and suicide bombs. Even though these bombs created a lot of American casualties, the overall U.S. death rate in Iraq and Afghanistan was a third of what it was in Vietnam and World War II. This was in large part because of the armored hummers and trucks. Few people outside the military noted this event, a watershed moment in military history. But it was recognized within the military and produced this sharp shift in design philosophy for tactical trucks, and the result is the JLTV. The U.S. Army began replacing the World War II era vehicles with the HMMWV in 1985. This was the first new unarmored combat vehicle design since World War II when the jeep and ton truck was introduced. The HMMWV was expected to last for three decades or more. But that plan changed once Iraq was invaded. As expected, hummers wore out a lot more quickly (in five years) in combat than during peacetime use (14 years). So, the army and marines began developing, ahead of schedule, a new vehicle to supplement the hummer in combat zones. In addition to being built to better survive mines and roadside bombs, the JLTV generates more electricity for operating all the new electronic gear and recharging batteries. There is also an automatic fire extinguishing system and jam-resistant doors. Like the Hummer, JLTV is easy to reconfigure for everything from a four-seat, armed scout vehicle to an ambulance, command vehicle, or cargo or troop transport. The plan was always to have the hummer continue in use outside of the combat zone, where most troops spend most of their time. But the JLTV is built to better handle the beating vehicles take in the combat zone, including a design that enables troops to quickly slide in armor and Kevlar panels to make the vehicles bullet and blast-proof. Before the JLTV entered mass production in 2019, the army and marines already realized that future wars would more likely require fewer JLTVs and more hummers or similar unarmored two-wheel or four-wheel drive vehicles. JLTV orders would have to be reduced. Another factor that drove this new outlook was the shrinking procurement budgets after 2010. There would simply not be enough money to buy the number of JLTVs initially planned. At the same time, the elderly hummers had to be replaced with something. China also noted the development of the JLTV and the success of armored hummers and MRAPs. China openly copies a lot of foreign military equipment designs, often in many variations because multiple manufacturers get involved. While the Chinese military thought the American hummer (HMMWV) was a useful design, it was not adopted widely. The basic tactical vehicle in the Chinese military is the BJ2022 (Brave Warrior or Yongshi). The BJ2022 entered service in 2007 after being developed as a joint venture between a Chinese firm and Chrysler. Because of that American connection, the BJ2022 was legally based on the Jeep Cherokee (but a bit larger). BJ2022 comes in two versions, with one being a bit longer and serving as something similar to the old American ton truck. Most of the BJ2022s are basically much updated World War II American jeep designs that borrow much from SUV and four-wheel drive innovations. The basic version can carry a payload of 500 kg (half ton) and seats four. The longer version carries 750 kg and seats up to eight. These are four-wheel drive vehicles that have manual transmissions and are mainly used on roads or flat terrain. Chinese hummer-like vehicles are popular with Chinese and foreign special operations troops. The Chinese armed forces are not buying a lot of these vehicles (a few thousand or so a year at most) although civilian versions became popular with Chinese and export customers. The most popular of these hummer clones comes from Dongfeng, which initially produced some hummers under license. Dongfeng has since produced a number of hummer variants, including armored models equipped to handle RWS. These were nicknamed Mengshi (east wind warrior). The latest of these, the CSK-181 is an eight-ton armored hummer design similar to the new American JLTV. One characteristic of the Chinese hummers is the built-in night vision cameras (one in front and one in the back with a flat-screen display for the driver to use) and satellite navigation system. Although China tried Russian and European designs in their search for a new tactical truck (similar to the American hummer), they finally settled on a hummer clone of their own. China still uses the Russian and German designs for most of its tactical vehicles, but it is also buying a growing number of locally made hummer clones. China got their hands on an American hummer (M998 HMMWV) in 1988. Initially, Chinese military officials felt the hummer was too expensive. But the performance of the hummer in the 1991 Gulf War, plus the growing presence of the American civilian version of the hummer, especially those brought in by oil companies for use in remote areas, changed minds. By 2003, two Chinese companies were producing hummer clones and the Chinese Army adopted one of them as the EQ2050. Within a decade an armored version was developed as the EQ2058 followed by several other variants, including a longer 6x6 vehicle. NEW YORK, Nov. 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, announces the filing of a class action lawsuit on behalf of purchasers of common stock of FMC Corporation (NYSE: FMC) between November 2, 2022 and October 20, 2023, both dates inclusive (the Class Period). A class action has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than January 8, 2024. SO WHAT: If you purchased FMC securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the FMC class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=17626 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] or [email protected] for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than January 8, 2024. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually litigate securities class actions. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs Bar. Many of the firms attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers. DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants throughout the Class Period made materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the diminishment of patent protection for FMCs flagship products following legal defeats in key markets including India, China, and Brazil had opened the door to increased competition from generics; (2) FMC repeatedly mislead investors about the status of such proceedings and falsely claimed that it did not and would not face generic competition in key markets until 2026 at the earliest; and (3) because of these issues defendants positive statements about the FMC's business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages. To join the FMC class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=17626 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] or [email protected] for information on the class action No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investors ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm or on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm. Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firms attorneys are ranked and recognized by numerous independent and respected sources. Rosen Law Firm has secured hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. ------------------------------- Contact Information: Laurence Rosen, Esq. Phillip Kim, Esq. The Rosen Law Firm, P.A. 275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor New York, NY 10016 Tel: (212) 686-1060 Toll Free: (866) 767-3653 Fax: (212) 202-3827 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] www.rosenlegal.com From expert guidance and tailored solutions to market insights and ongoing support, Al Manal Beacon LLC is pivotal in ensuring a seamless and prosperous business start for foreign investors in Dubai. Dubai has created a vibrant business landscape. In the past few decades, the UAE has emerged as a global hub for business and commerce, attracting entrepreneurs and investors worldwide. The strategic location, tax advantages, world-class infrastructure, and business-friendly policies make Dubai an enticing destination for those looking to set up a business. However, navigating the complexities of starting a business at Dubai can be daunting, so engaging a reputable business set-up agency like Al Manal Beacon LLC is a smart move. Dubai offers numerous free zones incentivizing businesses, including 100% foreign ownership, tax exemptions, and streamlined processes. These free zones cater to specific industries such as technology, media, finance, logistics, and healthcare, attracting companies from around the world. However, business set-up in UAE involves numerous legal, regulatory, and bureaucratic processes that can be overwhelming for newcomers. Hiring Al Manal Beacon LLC, a business start-up consultancy with expert knowledge of UAE's business landscape, can be a game-changer. These agencies have experienced consultants who are well-versed in the local laws, regulations, and licensing requirements. They can guide foreign investors through the intricacies of obtaining the necessary permits, licenses, and approvals to establish their businesses legally. By relying on their expertise, stockholders can avoid costly mistakes and delays, ensuring a smooth and efficient business start in Dubai. Every business is unique, and what works for one entrepreneur may not suit another. A professional business set-up service provider in Dubai understands this diversity. It offers tailored solutions to meet individual business needs. They take the time to understand a client's business goals, industry, and budget constraints before recommending the most appropriate company structure and legal set-up. Whether the investors want to establish a mainland company, a free zone entity, or an offshore business, these establishments can provide personalized advice and support to ensure the business thrives in the dynamic marketplace of Dubai. "To me good business is where you genuinely feel you have a friend, someone who cares about your needs as if it were there own, that is Beacon. There's a lot of BS people in Dubai, and it's quite a transactional city with a lot of people who are 'all talk, no walk'. Becaon aren't that. They are fantastic professionals who go above and beyond to get the job done, and do so with friendliness and care. I love what they do, the service they provide, and the help they bring. Highly recommend to all considering their services." Stephen Ridley Setting up a firm in Dubai can be time-consuming, particularly for those unfamiliar with local procedures. Time is money in business, and any delays can lead to missed opportunities and potential revenue loss. A business set-up organization like Al Manal Beacon LLC can significantly expedite the process by streamlining paperwork, liaising with government authorities, and navigating the red tape. This enables foreign entrepreneurs to launch their businesses faster and generate profits sooner. Additionally, these institutes can help clients optimize costs by providing a transparent breakdown of expenses involved in the entire business set-up process. They have established relationships with suppliers, service providers, and governmental entities, enabling them to negotiate competitive rates on their client's behalf. Consequently, appointing a business set-up agency can result in substantial cost savings and improved overall efficiency. Establishing a new business in Dubai requires more than just legal compliance; it also demands a comprehensive understanding of the local market and industry dynamics. Company set-up service providers often have an extensive network of contacts in various sectors, which can prove invaluable in identifying potential partners, customers, and suppliers. Leveraging their market insights and connections, these agencies can help sponsors make informed decisions, assess market demand, and devise effective marketing strategies for their business. Moreover, Dubai is a melting pot of diverse cultures, and understanding the local business etiquette and customs is vital for building successful commercial relationships. A business set-up corporation such as Al Manal Beacon LLC can provide essential cultural insights and ensure their customer's business conducts itself professionally, avoiding any unintentional cultural faux pas that could hinder their progress. Once a business is up and running, the journey has just begun. Business owners will have ongoing responsibilities and compliance requirements that must be met to operate legally. These tasks or obligations include financial reporting, visa processing, license renewals, and adherence to changing regulatory frameworks. A reliable business set-up agency like Al Manal Beacon LLC in Dubai will not abandon its clients after the initial set-up; instead, it will continue to provide ongoing support and assistance. They will help foreign financiers comply with local laws, track important deadlines, and manage essential administrative tasks. This ongoing support allows business owners to focus on growing their businesses, confident that all legal and regulatory obligations are handled diligently. Starting a business in Dubai can be a rewarding venture. Still, it requires careful planning, expert knowledge, and attention to detail. By engaging a trustworthy business set-up company like Al Manal Beacon LLC, entrepreneurs can enjoy many benefits that make the entire process more efficient, cost-effective, and successful. About Us: Since its establishment in 2014, Beacon's goal has been to assist corporations, business owners, and entrepreneurs in entering new markets by forming tax-free entities within the United Arab Emirates. The firm wants to be a guiding light for companies opening up shop in the Middle East, just as sailors use the word "BEACON" to guide their ships across the colossal sea. The staff at Al Manal Beacon LLC ensures that their clients navigate the commercial seas securely. Contact Info: Name: Kinga Szabo Email: Send Email Organization: Al Manal Beacon LLC Address: Floor 19, Al Ghaith Tower - Hamdan Bin Mohammed St - Abu Dhabi - United Arab Emirates Phone: +971 4 598 0888 Website: https://dubaicompanyexpert.com/ Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beaconllc.hun Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beacon_uae Youtube: https://youtube.com/@Dubaicompany Video URL: https://youtu.be/onZ6MsG8hos?feature=shared Release ID: 89111058 If there are any deficiencies, discrepancies, or concerns regarding the information presented in this press release, we kindly request that you promptly inform us by contacting [email protected]. Our dedicated team is committed to addressing any identified issues within 8 hours to guarantee the delivery of accurate and reliable content to our esteemed readers. ATLANTA , Nov. 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Habitat for Humanity is deeply saddened by the passing of former U.S. first lady Rosalynn Carter, who was a champion and strong voice for affordable, decent housing for all. For more than three decades, she and President Jimmy Carter donated their time and leadership to Habitat each year to build and improve homes around the world. She died peacefully on Sunday at her home in Plains, Georgia , at the age of 96, with family by her side. "We grieve the loss of Mrs. Carter and our prayers are with President Carter and their family. Mrs. Carter has helped change the lives of thousands of homeowners, empowered countless women and inspired millions of people. Over the years, she has blessed us with her compassion for serving others and commitment to improving housing conditions," said Jonathan Reckford , CEO, Habitat for Humanity International. "The Carters lent a hand to Habitat for Humanity as a young, fledging organization and created global awareness of our work and of our mission. We are grateful for the incredible impact she and President Carter have had on Habitat and on the families who have benefited from their shining example." After leaving the White House, the Carters planned for meaningful ways to continue their commitment to social justice and basic human rights. Their first volunteer experience with Habitat for Humanity was in March 1984 near their home in Americus, Georgia , where Habitat for Humanity was founded. Later that same year, the Carters joined Habitat volunteers in New York City's Lower East Side to renovate an abandoned building in partnership with families in need of affordable housing. That marked Habitat for Humanity's first Jimmy Carter Work Project, which was later renamed to the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project. Since then, President and Mrs. Carter have worked with more than 104,000 volunteers across the U.S. and in 14 countries to build, renovate and repair 4,390 Habitat homes. Since its founding in 1976, Habitat has served more than 46 million people around the world. In 2016, Habitat named President and Mrs. Carter as the inaugural Habitat Humanitarians for their extraordinary dedication to service in alignment with Habitat's vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to live. Habitat for Humanity will be celebrating Mrs. Carter's life of service with local observances. To learn more or to share a tribute, visit habitat.org . For photos and videos of President and Mrs. Carter volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, visit habitat.ngo/CarterPhotoVideo . About Habitat for Humanity Driven by the vision that everyone needs a decent place to live, Habitat for Humanity found its earliest inspirations as a grassroots movement on an interracial community farm in south Georgia . Since its founding in 1976, the Christian housing organization has since grown to become a leading global nonprofit working in local communities across all 50 states in the U.S. and in more than 70 countries. Families and individuals in need of a hand up partner with Habitat for Humanity to build or improve a place they can call home. Habitat homeowners help build their own homes alongside volunteers and pay an affordable mortgage. Through financial support, volunteering or adding a voice to support affordable housing, everyone can help families achieve the strength, stability and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. Through shelter, we empower. To learn more, visit habitat.org . View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/habitat-for-humanity-mourns-the-death-of-former-first-lady-rosalynn-carter-301992895.html SOURCE Habitat for Humanity International The company will be presenting its growing pipeline of superb technologies for treating all four heart valves in its booth and at multiple events during the conference. HANGZHOU, China , Nov. 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Venus Medtech is changing how the world treats structural heart disease. The company will present its products at its booth (#28), during two symposia, in multiple podium presentations and at a special cocktail reception where it will officially launch the SMART-ALIGN multicenter clinical study. Structural heart symposia on November 20 and 21 The company will be hosting two symposia on November 20 and 21 that will allow interventional cardiologists to deepen their knowledge about structural heart interventions. The first, "Valve tricuspid Transcatheter: Cardiovalve keeps it in motion" will be dedicated to discussing the latest results and future plans for the Cardiovalve tricuspid valve replacement system. In the second, "Addressing remaining issues after TAVI: What to expect from the new generation," presenters will focus on the tools and techniques showcasing the Venus Vitae. Launching the SMART-ALIGN Study with registration studies commencing annually Additionally, Venus will be officially launching the SMART-ALIGN study to evaluate the performance of the Venus-Vitae Transcatheter Heart Valve System in patients with severe aortic stenosis. The study will enroll 150 patients at 20 medical centers worldwide. This new study builds on the TARGET study launched at London Valves 2022, which is evaluating the Cardiovalve system for transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement. Cardiovalve is now on track for CE mark approval in late 2026, with about half of the patients already enrolled. Prior to this, Venus Medtech achieved significant success with its Pvalve system replacing the pulmonary valve, securing CE approval in 2022 and planning for an FDA registration study in 2024. These studies are a testament to Venus Medtech's mission, consistently improving the treatment of structural heart disease. About Venus Medtech Venus Medtech ( Hangzhou ) Inc. (2500.HK) is committed to structural heart innovation. We are developing and commercializing comprehensive solutions for structural heart disease. Our robust pipeline, encompassing all four heart valves from TAVR, TPVR, TMVR, and TTVR to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and hypertensive renal denervation (RDN) therapy, underscores our unwavering commitment. For more information, please visit https://venusmedtechconference.com/ View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/venus-medtechs-exciting-innovations-for-structural-heart-to-be-showcased-at-london-valves-2023-301992803.html SOURCE Venus Medtech (Hangzhou) Inc. Chess pieces are seen in front of displayed Chinese and Taiwanese flags in this illustration taken, April 11, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan reported renewed Chinese military activity around the island on Sunday, with nine aircraft crossing the sensitive median line of the Taiwan Strait and warships carrying out "combat readiness patrols". Democratically-governed Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, has complained for the past four years of regular Chinese military patrols and drills near the island, as Beijing seeks to pressure Taipei over its sovereignty claims. With Chinese President Xi Jinping in San Francisco last week for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, where he met U.S. President Joe Biden, the scale of that military activity around Taiwan had scaled off. But Taiwan's defence ministry reported that starting onSunday morning it had detected nine Chinese aircraft crossing the Taiwan Strait's median line, which had previously served as an unofficial barrier between the two and which Chinese planes now regularly fly over. The aircraft involved included Su-30 and J-10 fighters, as well as early warning and electronic warfare aircraft, the ministry said. The aircraft were accompanying Chinese warships carrying out "joint combat readiness patrols" it added. Taiwan sent its own forces to monitor, the ministry said. China's defence ministry did not answer calls seeking comment. China says its activities near Taiwan are aimed at "collusion" between Taiwan separatists and the United States and to protect China's territorial integrity. Taiwan's government, which has repeatedly offered talks with China, rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims and says only the island's people can decide their future. Taiwan was a major focus of the Biden-Xi talks in San Francisco. Xi told Biden during their four-hour meeting on Wednesday that Taiwan was the biggest, most dangerous issue in U.S.-China ties, according to a senior U.S. official. Taiwan holds presidential and parliamentary elections on Jan. 13, with the island's fraught relations with China an important topic on the campaign trail. Over the past year and a half China has staged two large-scale war games around Taiwan, though China's air force has not flown over the island or into its territorial air space. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by William Mallard and Kim Coghill) FILE PHOTO: Logo of Bayer AG is pictured at the annual results news conference of the German drugmaker in Leverkusen, Germany February 27, 2019. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay By Tom Hals (Reuters) - A Missouri jury ordered Bayer to pay $1.56 billion to four plaintiffs who claimed the company's Roundup weedkiller caused injuries including cancer, a verdict that could intensify investor pressure on the German drugs and agricultural chemicals company to change its legal strategy. The Cole County, Missouri jury found on Friday that Bayer's Monsanto business was liable for claims of negligence, design defects and failing to warn plaintiffs of the potential dangers of using Roundup, according to court documents. Valorie Gunther of New York, Jimmy Draeger of Missouri and Daniel Anderson of California were awarded a combined $61.1 million in compensatory damages and $500 million each in punitive damages. Each was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma that they alleged was caused by using Roundup on their family property. Draeger's wife Brenda was awarded $100,000 for the harm she allegedly suffered from her husband's disease. The punitive damages could be reduced on appeal as it exceeds U.S. Supreme Court guidance. Bayer has said that decades of studies have shown Roundup and its active ingredient, glyphosate, are safe for human use. The verdict is the fourth straight loss in court for Bayer, after the company had been found not liable to plaintiffs in nine consecutive trials. Earlier this month, Union Investment, one of Bayer's top 10 shareholders, called on the company to consider trying to engage with plaintiffs to settle more cases. Bart Rankin, partner at Forrest Weldon which represented the plaintiffs, said in a statement the victory was the first of many on behalf of thousands of plaintiffs. Bayer said in a statement that it has strong arguments to get the recent verdicts overturned on appeal. It said in the recent trials that have gone against the company, courts have improperly permitted plaintiffs to misrepresent the European Union's renewal process for glyphosate and the safety assessment by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EU Commission said last week it would renew its approval of glyphosate based on safety assessments of the European Food Agency and European Chemicals Agency after EU member states failed to give a clear opinion on the renewal. Around 165,000 claims have been made against the company for personal injuries allegedly caused by Roundup, which Bayer acquired as part of its $63 billion purchase of agrochemical company Monsanto in 2018. In 2020, Bayer settled most of the then-pending Roundup cases for up to $10.9 billion. Around 50,000 claims remain pending, according to regulatory filings. (Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; Editing by Bill Berkrot) The Apple Store in Naperville, Ill. In the latest Apple Crime Blotter, iPhone Man is sentenced, more on the Apple Store car crash, and an Apple Store confrontation about Israel and Palestine. The latest in an occasional AppleInsider series, looking at the world of Apple-related crime. iPhones, iPad seized from New York mayor In early November, several Apple devices were seized from New York Mayor Eric Adams, including two iPhones and an iPad. According to CBS News, FBI agents approached Adams on a street and took the three devices on the spot, although they were returned later. The devices were taken from Adams as part of a corruption investigation that had earlier entailed a raid on the home of the mayor's chief fundraiser. iPhones had also been taken in that raid, a report from Voz.us said. Rudy Giuliani, formerly New York's mayor, also had several devices seized in 2021 by federal prosecutors, in relation to his work on behalf of former President Trump. Giuliani did not ultimately face any criminal charges in that case but was later indicted as part of the unrelated Georgia RICO case. "iPhone Man" sentenced to workhouse The Chinese national known as "iPhone Man," a reputed fence for an iPhone theft ring that plagued downtown Minneapolis for over a year, has been sentenced. KARE 11 reports Zhongshuang "Brandon" Su has been sentenced to a workhouse and community service for his role in the thefts. He purchased the devices, and sold them, mostly to China. The court concluded, per the report, that Su was not the "mastermind," but "ignored red flags" about the devices he bought having been stolen. Photos emerge of car that crashed into Chicago-area Apple Store On November 6, a car crashed into the Apple Store in Naperville, Ill., outside of Chicago. In days afterward, a picture emerged of the car sticking out of the store's front, while other reports emerged that it was, in fact, a smash-and-grab. Story continues Per CBS News Chicago, the store was "targeted" in a "crash-and-grab" robbery in which thieves took devices, left the car they crashed, and fled in a different vehicle. Apple Watch truck theft in Ohio was part of a national ring, prosecutors say Four men were arrested in Ohio for stealing hundreds of Apple Watches from a FedEx truck in September were allegedly part of a nationwide ring, a new report says. According to The Dayton Daily News, citing federal court documents, the four Ecuadorian men "conspired to steal jewelry and Apple products from delivery trucks at malls and shopping centers across the country." The September theft yielded about 300 Apple Watches, with a total value of about $157,000. A clash over the Middle East, in a California Apple Store Angry confrontations over the war between Israel and Hamas have taken place all over the United States in recent weeks, including at least once at an Apple Store, leading to a viral video. According to The Daily Mail, the bitter argument happened at the Irvine Apple Store in Orange County, Calif. The person filming, who appears to have an Israeli accent, confronts a female store employee who is wearing a pro-Palestinian symbol and then asks to speak to the manager. When a woman identifies herself as a manager, the man filming accuses the employee of supporting "beheading babies." The manager then asks the man to leave, claiming he is "harassing" employees. The video cuts off before it's determined how the situation was resolved. Nashville guitar thief caught while trying to sell stolen iPhone A man accused in several thefts of musical instruments in the Nashville area, often from storage units, has been arrested. According to WKRN, the 40-year-old had been wanted on multiple outstanding warrants. One of several crimes committed the accused thief that led to his getting caught was when he attempted to sell a stolen iPhone to an ecoATM machine. Earlier, the owner of the iPhone had confronted the accused thief at a Guitar Center store, telling him that a rare guitar the accused was carrying looked like one that he owned. Kansas man convicted of using AirTag to stalk ex A 33-year-old man in Kansas has been found guilty of stalking his ex-girlfriend using an AirTag. The Kansas City Star explains the man stalked the woman as she drove home, and a police officer later found the AirTag near a spare tire on the woman's car. The man was convicted of a stalking charge after a one-day trial. Man convicted of stealing iPad from plane A man accused of stealing an iPad from an airplane at a London airport has been convicted. According to Sussex Police, the man, who worked for a baggage handling company at the airport, took the device left on a plane and took it home. The man later returned the device to the airport and left it in a bathroom, but later admitted that he had taken it. The man was sentenced to 80 hours of unpaid work, as well as restitution. FILE PHOTO: A person waits for a teller at a Signature Bank branch in New York City, U.S., March 13, 2023. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado (Reuters) -Blackstone is in the lead to win the $17 billion portfolio of commercial-property loans from the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp's (FDIC) sale of Signature Bank debt, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday. In September, the FDIC was seeking buyers for the $33 billion commercial real estate loan portfolio of failed New York lender Signature Bank. The bidding process has brought in several finance companies such as Starwood Capital Group and Brookfield Asset Management , according to Bloomberg News. Separately, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter, that a venture of two nonprofits and Related Fund Management is poised to win an auction for billions of dollars of Signature Bank loans backed by New York apartments. A formal winner could be awarded as early as Monday, WSJ reported. The FDIC hired Newmark Group in March to sell about $60 billion of Signature Bank's loans, after state regulators decided to close the failed lender amid turmoil in regional banks earlier this year. FDIC declined to comment on the Bloomberg News report, saying: "We only comment on sales after they close. The entire portfolio sale has yet to close." The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the WSJ report. Blackstone, Newmark Group and Related Fund Management did not immediately respond to requests for comment. (Reporting by Chandni Shah and Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker, Bill Berkrot and Diane Craft) FILE PHOTO: Colombia's President Gustavo Petro speaks during a meeting with Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro at the Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela November 18, 2023. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/File Photo CARACAS (Reuters) - Colombian President Gustavo Petro, visiting Venezuela on Saturday, said he had proposed to the United States that it pay an "economic stabilization" bonus to Venezuelan migrants who stop in Colombia en route to the U.S. "We must reach an agreement with the United States on migration," Petro said alongside Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. "We have proposed economic stabilization bonuses to the United States." Petro did not provide details about the bonuses nor did he say when he made the proposal. But he said the payments would allow families "to return to their home, to their land." Close to 2.8 million Venezuelans live in Colombia, part of an exodus of over 7 million who have left the OPEC member country since 2017 because of its prolonged economic crisis. "I believe that this exodus ... should reroute toward their country of origin because, for the most part, they are Venezuelans," Petro added, emphasizing that migrants could choose to return to Venezuela or stay in Colombia. The Maduro government claims that around two million people have left Venezuela, and the Venezuelan president made no further reference to Petro's proposal. On other topics, Petro said it was "very likely" Colombia's majority state-owned oil firm Ecopetrol will partner with Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA in the exploration of gas and oil. He referred to a "true energy integration between the two countries" without providing details. (Reporting by Vivian Sequera; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) PARIS (Reuters) - France has successfully test-fired an M51.3 long-range ballistic missile, boosting the credibility of France's nuclear deterrence capabilities, the defence ministry said on Sunday. The missile, which did not carry a nuclear weapon, was fired from the French army's Biscarosse missile testing site in southwest France and landed in the North Atlantic, "hundreds of kilometres from any coastline" the ministry said, without giving further detail. "The flight has allowed to confirm a major improvement of the missile which will contribute to the lasting credibility of France's oceanic deterrence in coming decades," the ministry said in a statement on Sunday. It added that maintaining operational credibility of France's nuclear weapons is required given the international environment. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly warned the West that he would be ready to use nuclear weapons to defend Russia. The M51.3 missile is an upgraded version of the M51, a three-stage sea-land strategic ballistic missile designed to be launched from French Navy submarines. The M51 was first test-fired from a ground base in 2006 and from a submarine in 2010, the year it was commissioned. The new M51.3 missile, which is expected to enter service around 2025, is developed by aerospace firm ArianeGroup, a joint venture between Airbus and French defence group Safran. Ballistic missiles are similar to rockets and follow elliptic trajectories after launch, often leaving the earth's atmosphere to reach lower space, unlike cruise missiles, which typically follow straight trajectories at low altitude, powered by continuous thrust until they reach their target. (Reporting by Geert De Clercq; Editing by Hugh Lawson) By Jose Cortes JUCHITAN, Mexico (Reuters) - Members of southern Mexico's third-gender 'muxe' community celebrated sexual and gender diversity over the weekend, while committing to fighting for LGBTQ people in the face of recent losses. Thousands attended the weekend festival, known locally as a "vela," in the city of Juchitan, in the state of Oaxaca, where the streets were filled with dancing and music, and where a pageant featured muxes in traditional dress. In Indigenous Zapotec cultures in this region, muxes are people born biologically male and mix gay and feminine identity. "In the Zapotec language, there is no gender," said Felina Santiago, considered by many the matriarch of Juchitan's muxe community. "We have always existed and we have always resisted." Before the festivities began, a special mass was held for festival attendees and other members of the local community. This weekend's festival is called the "True Fearless Seekers of Danger" vela, a name that harkens to the risk many members of the community face. In 2019, Oscar Cazorla, who founded the vela over 40 years ago, was killed at home. The vela also comes less than a week after Ociel Baena, Mexico's first openly non-binary magistrate and a prominent LGBTQ activist, was found dead on Nov. 14 at home in the state of Aguascalientes. Both deaths, neither of which has led to an arrest, are a reminder for the vela's participants of the fight to make Mexico safer for gender-diverse people. "Our fight will end the day we have equality, the day there is respect for the community and, above all, the day when going out to fight is a privilege and not a necessity," said Elvis Guerra, a participant in the weekend's muxe pageant. (Reporting by Jose Cortes in Juchitan; Writing by Brendan O'Boyle; Editing by Bill Berkrot) People attend the funeral of five Palestinian fighters who were killed in an Israeli air strike in the Balata Camp, in Nablus, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, November 18, 2023 REUTERS/James Oatway RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) -An Israeli air strike killed five Palestinian fighters and wounded two other people in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, their faction, medics and Israel's military said. Palestinian media said the attack in Balata, near the northern city of Nablus, appeared to have been carried out by a warplane in what would mark an escalation of Israeli tactics in the West Bank. The military did not immediately confirm that. The West Bank has seen a surge of violence in parallel to Israel's six-week-old war against Hamas Islamists in the Gaza Strip, another territory where Palestinians seek statehood. In a statement, the military said it struck "a number of terrorists (in Balata) ... and prevented terror attacks against Israeli civilians". The strike was carried out by one of its aircraft, it added, without specifying the type. An armed wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party claimed the five dead as its fighters. At least 186 West Bank Palestinians, including 51 children, have been killed by Israeli forces since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that triggered the Gaza war, according to U.N. figures. Another eight have been killed by Israeli settlers, while four Israelis have been killed by Palestinians, according to the figures. (Reporting by Ali Sawafta; editing by Diane Craft, Rosalba O'Brien and Tomasz Janowski) A Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force's Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade (ARDB) soldier takes part in a marine landing drill as a part of the country's nationwide 05JX military exercises at Tokunoshima island, Kagoshima prefecture, southwestern Japan, N By Tim Kelly TOKUNOSHIMA, Japan (Reuters) -Japanese marines in amphibious assault vehicles stormed an island beach at the edge of the East China Sea on Sunday in a simulated attack to dislodge invaders from territory that Tokyo worries is vulnerable to attack from China. As tensions run high with neighbours China, Russia and North Korea, the drill on the southwest island of Tokunoshima capped an 11-day series of exercises nationwide dubbed 05JX, meant to show the readiness of ground, sea and air forces to defend Japan's territory and infrastructure, including nuclear power plants. "The goal of JX is to show that if there is an emergency situation resulting from an attack, that we are able respond in a joint way," General Yoshihide Yoshida, chief of staff of the Self-Defence Forces' Joint Staff, said after observing the drill on Tokunoshima. China's defence ministry could not be reached on Sunday for comment on the Japanese drills. Ground Self-Defence Force amphibious assault vehicles launched from two Maritime Self-Defense Force landing ships anchored offshore. Other troops arrived in semi-inflatable rubber boats, with heavy equipment carried to shore on military hovercraft. Unlike many of the beaches along Japan's southwest island chain stretching toward Taiwan, the one on Tokunoshima does not have a coral reef that would make military operations more difficult. The scope and pace of military exercises in Japan are likely to increase over the next few years, including with U.S. forces, after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in December unveiled the country's biggest military buildup since World War Two, with a pledge to double defence spending over five years. Kishida has warned that East Asia could be the next Ukraine, if China, emboldened by Russia's assault on its neighbour, attacks Taiwan. The 43.5 trillion yen ($290 billion) in planned spending will go to new weapons such as longer-range missiles as well as to increase stocks of spare parts and munitions to fight a sustained conflict. But the yen's sharp decline this year has forced Japan to cut back on some planned purchases, including new models of the U.S.-made Chinook helicopters that Japan's military used in the Tokunoshima drill. ($1 = 149.6200 yen) (Reporting by Tim Kelly, Beijing Newsroom; Editing by William Mallard) Family members gather along the base shoreline to watch the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan return to Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes) YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan The USS Ronald Reagan steamed into Tokyo Bay on Sunday morning, in time for Thanksgiving, concluding what may be the ships final deployment from Japan. The aircraft carrier arrived at its homeport, where it was greeted by families standing at the bases northern shore and lining its pier. Our Sailors have more than earned their time back home, this ships skipper, Capt. Daryle Cardone, said in a Sunday news release. In addition to time with loved ones, their time in port is a chance to invest in the incredibly valuable partnership we have with the Japanese people. We are thankful for our relationship and we will continue to forge those bonds, whether at sea or ashore. Media were not invited to cover the carriers arrival. The Ronald Reagan was accompanied by two of its escorts, the guided-missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls and guided-missile destroyer USS Rafael Peralta, Task Force 70 spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Seth Koenig told Stars and Stripes by email Sunday USS Ronald Reagan and the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group completed a very successful 2023 deployment, during which we continued to greatly strengthen relationships and interoperability with partners and allies in support of our shared goals of a free and open Indo-Pacific, Koenig said in the email. The carrier began its patrol May 23 and returned to Yokosuka on Aug. 25 for a mid-deployment stop. It left Yokosuka again on Sept. 29 after several rescheduled departure dates that added up to an 11-day delay. The U.S. 7th Fleet at the time declined to comment on the nature of the hold-up. Back at sea, the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group immediately made its way to South Korea, where it joined the South Korean destroyer ROKS Yulgok Yi I and the Japanese helicopter carrier JS Hyuga for a two-day, anti-piracy exercise near Jeju Island on Oct. 9. The carrier visited Manila between Oct. 28 and Nov. 1. It welcomed Philippine government officials and guests for tours, while sailors visited local attractions and took part in community relations events such as a visit to the Helping Hands Orphanage. Next, the Ronald Reagan met up with the USS Carl Vinson and the JS Hyuga in the Philippine Sea for a multi-carrier exercise Nov. 4-8 that included sorties by F-18 Super Hornet and F-35 Lightning II fighter jets, ship maneuvers and maritime strike drills. The Ronald Reagans return on Sunday likely represents the final chapter for the ships eight years at Yokosuka before it relocates for scheduled maintenance at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Wash. The Navy announced April 28 that the carrier USS George Washington will replace the Ronald Reagan as the centerpiece of the 7th Fleets carrier strike group sometime next year, although an exact date has not been disclosed. There are no updates on when the swap will actually take place, Koenig wrote Sunday. He said he could not discuss whether the Ronald Reagan would deploy again before the George Washingtons arrival but said the Ronald Reagan is in Yokosuka and remains mission ready at this time. The George Washington, homeported at Newport News, Va., was deployed to the 7th Fleet from 2008 to 2015, when it was relieved by the Ronald Reagan. From left Taiwan People's Party chairman, TPP chairman and presidential nominee Ko Wen-je, former president Ma Ying-jeou, KMT presidential nominee Hou Yu-ih and KMT Chairman Eric Chu hold up a join statement for photos in Taipei, Nov. 15, 2023. (KMT/AP) TAIPEI, Taiwan Taiwans two main opposition parties have failed to agree on a joint candidate for president, once again throwing into doubt their ability to unseat the ruling party in Januarys election. The Nationalist Party and the Taiwan Peoples Party were expected to unveil an agreed-upon candidate at a news conference Saturday. Instead, they announced the need for further consultations after a disagreement over how to use polling data to make the selection. The failure to agree on a joint candidate leaves current Vice President William Lai of the Democratic Progressive Party as the frontrunner. He is hoping to succeed President Tsai Ing-wen, who must step down after eight years because of a two-term limit on the presidency. At stake in the election are Taiwans relations with China, which says that the self-governing island must come under its control, and with the United States, which is bound by its own laws to provide Taiwan with the weapons it needs to defend itself. Differences over Taiwan are a major flashpoint in U.S.-China relations. With both their candidates trailing in the polls, the Nationalists and the Taiwan Peoples Party agreed three days ago to form a combined ticket with one candidate for president and the other for vice president. The decision on who would get the presidential nod Hou Yu-ih of the Nationalists or Ko Wen-je of the Peoples Party was to be based on a combination of public and internal party polls. The Nationalists and the Peoples Party both said they hope to keep talking but it was unclear whether they would be able to sort out their differences by next Friday, the deadline for candidates to register for the race. I still think it is necessary for the main opposition parties to ally, Ko said. We will think of a way to find the strongest ticket to win the election. This should be our goal. A fourth candidate, Terry Gou, the billionaire founder of tech giant Foxconn, has also joined the race. The incumbent Democratic Progressive Party have favored closer ties with the United States as a way to preserve Taiwans separate status from China. The Nationalists said that friendlier ties with China were a better approach, and the Taiwan Peoples Party, a relative newcomer to the political scene, likewise backed building amicable relations and mutual prosperity with China. Tsais hard-line approach angered China, which has responded by threatening military drills in the seas and skies around Taiwan. The U.S., in turn, countered by pledging support for Taiwan and maintaining arms sales to its military, further angering China. The way that this race has really played out is the presidential candidates trying to sell to Taiwanese voters who will be the safest president, who can ensure Taiwans safety and ensure that ... we do not head (in a) direction towards war, said Lev Nachman, an assistant professor at National Chengchi University in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan. The agreement to form a joint ticket was brokered by former President Ma Ying-jeou, a Nationalist who led Taiwan just before Tsai and improved relations with China during his tenure. China claims Taiwan, an island about 100 miles off its east coast, as its territory. The two split during the civil war that brought the Communists to power in China in 1949, with the losing Nationalists setting up their own government in Taiwan. A Russian sniper looks toward Ukrainian positions at the Zapad group of Russian troops at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, according to a Russain release on Aug. 10, 2023. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service ) Vladislav Kanyus, a young man from Kemerovo in southwestern Siberia, brutally killed his ex-girlfriend Vera Pekhteleva, torturing, suffocating and stabbing her for hours. He was sentenced in July 2022 to 17 years after a high-profile trial that reignited a national conversation in Russia about the lack of protections against domestic violence and law enforcement indifference to such cases. But then Pekhtelevas bereaved mother, Oksana, received a photo of Kanyus - not in prison but in a military uniform surrounded by other Russian soldiers. Her daughters murderer was pardoned by President Vladimir Putin in exchange for taking up arms in Ukraine. I thought I was going crazy, I keep zooming into this photo and staring into his face in disbelief, Oksana Pekhteleva said, described the shock it brought to her family. You know what the human psyche is like, the first stage is denial. To avoid calling another controversial mobilization and risk angering the public ahead of presidential elections next year, Russias military has relied increasingly on prison recruitment to bolster its ranks, a tactic pioneered by Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the late Wagner Group mercenary boss. According to rights activists, the Russian Defense Ministry has enlisted as many as 100,000 people this year by scouring prison colonies and offering to chop off years from the sentences of people convicted of some of the countrys most gruesome crimes. Just days after the Kanyus pardon made headlines came news that a former police officer convicted for his role in the 2006 murder of Anna Politkovskaya, a prominent journalist, was also pardoned by Putin after serving six months of military duty in Ukraine. The ex-police officer, Sergei Khadzhikurbanov, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2014 as one of five men charged with organizing Politkovskayas murder. (Who ordered the killing was never determined.) Politkovskayas work, uncovering Russian abuses during the Chechen wars, had resulted in numerous threats and attacks before she was shot to death in the elevator of her Moscow apartment building. Khadzhikurbanovs lawyer told Russian media that his client recently signed another contract and will remain in the army. Kanyus was secretly pardoned in April. Vera Pekhtelevas family was not informed but suspected that he was out of prison when they received the photo of him holding a weapon. By fall, Kanyus was posting photos of himself barbecuing on social media. About a week ago, Veras father got an official notice from the local prosecutors office informing them that Kanyus had indeed been pardoned and sent to the front line. The Kremlin has expressed no regret when questioned about Putins decision to free murderers to reinforce the Russian ranks in Ukraine. Convicts, including those convicted of serious crimes, atone for crimes with blood on the battlefield, in assault brigades, under bullets, under shells, Putins spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters. Alena Popova, a human rights activist who represents Pekhtelevas family and has long lobbied for the introduction of a domestic abuse law in Russias criminal code, said she is concerned that freed convicts will bring a wave of violence back home, emboldened by their early release. Popova and her team said they are being flooded by calls and messages from people who have already come in contact with, or fear seeing, their abusers or the killers of their loved ones. Most cases most dont generate headlines, she said, because people are afraid to speak out. Affected families fear repercussions because their abusers are fighting in what Putin has described as a war for Russias future. Any criticism of those taking part in hostilities could be viewed by the authorities as criticism of the war or of the military - which is now illegal in wartime Russia. Some of the most prominent rights activists in Russia, such as Popova and organizations such as Nasiliu.net (No To Violence), have been labeled foreign agents, a designation that puts anyone in contact with them at risk and further scares off women who might seek help. All this is preventing us from shedding light on how massive this problem really is, Popova said. These people are coming back from the war with post-traumatic stress disorders - their hands had blood on them before and then they went to Ukraine and killed more people there - and they see that the entire system is backing them so they feel an absolute sense of impunity. Just before you reached out to me, I had a message from a young woman whose friend saw a rapist who long stalked her on the street, and took a handful of pills, she added. And this is just one case. Families of victims have virtually no recourse to overturn the pardons, said Ilya Politkovsky, Anna Politkovskayas son. In a statement published by Novaya Gazeta, the newspaper where their mother worked, Politikovsky and his sister, Vera Politkovskaya, said they viewed Khadzhikurbanovs pardon as an outrage against the memory of a person killed for her convictions and professional duty. If I am being honest, we suspected this may happen, Politkovsky told The Washington Post. When this whole prison recruitment just started, I had a feeling that Khadzhikurbanov would really want to go to war. I think its unfair and illegal, he said. But, unfortunately, we are powerless and cannot change anything in this regard. Pekhtelevas family has filed a request to launch an investigation into the actions of their local prosecutors office, which recommended Kanyus for pardon and did not inform the family about his whereabouts. The family had petitioned to be notified of all of Kanyuss movements during trial, a measure permitted by Russian law for the safety of crime victims. We have been so humiliated by all this and no one wants to bear the responsibility, Oksana Pekhteleva said. There is such a flagrant violation of our law. . . . Why does our state treat us in such an outrageous way? The fast track to freedom via the trenches in Ukraine, made possible by the Russian judicial and penitentiary systems, stands in stark contrast to the severe punishments being meted out against antiwar activists for minor infractions. On Thursday, for example, Alexandra Skochilenko, a pacifist artist from St. Petersburg, was sentenced to seven years for replacing a few supermarket price tags with antiwar messages. Alexei Gorinov, a member of a Moscow municipal council who was the first person sentenced under a law penalizing the spread of false information about the Russian military after the invasion of Ukraine, recently had another case brought against him even though he is already incarcerated. In a statement, Gorinovs supporters said that he was being accused of justifying terrorism, because he had made positive statements about an explosion that damaged the Crimean Bridge - Putins prized infrastructure project connecting Russia to Crimea, the illegally annexed peninsula. Kanyus, who never admitted his guilt in court, spent less than half a year in prison for the brutal murder. Five police officers received suspended sentences for negligence after neighbors said they tried for three hours to get help as they heard Vera Pekhtelevas cries, but there was no response. By the time a neighbor broke the door open with a crowbar, she was already dead. I feel like he will still get whats coming to him, as there is also the judgment and punishment of our Lord, Oksana Pekhteleva said. I am not afraid of him but I am afraid that one day he may seduce some other girl, and if he was once capable of doing what he did and got away with it, he may torture her just like he did to my child. A nurse cares for prematurely born Palestinian babies that were brought from Shifa Hospital in Gaza City to the hospital in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. (Hatem Ali/AP) KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip Health officials said 31 premature babies in extremely critical condition were transferred safely Sunday from Gazas main hospital and will go to Egypt, while over 250 patients with severely infected wounds and other urgent conditions remained stranded days after Israeli forces entered the compound to look for Hamas operations. The plight of the babies, along with the Israeli claims against Shifa Hospital, have become potent symbols in the devastating war between Israel and Hamas. An Israeli offensive has taken a heavy toll on Palestinian civilians, while Israel has accused Hamas of using Shifa and other hospitals as headquarters for military operations. The newborns from the hospital, where power was cut and supplies ran out while Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside, were receiving urgent care in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. They had dehydration, hypothermia and sepsis in some cases, said Mohamed Zaqout, director of Gaza hospitals. Four other babies died in the two days before the evacuation, he said. A World Health Organization team that visited Shifa said most of the remaining patients had amputations, burns or other trauma. Plans were being made to evacuate them in the coming days. Later Sunday, Israels army said it had strong evidence supporting its claims that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa. Israel has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end Hamas rule in Gaza following the militant groups into southern Israel six weeks ago. The army said it found a 55-meter (60-yard) tunnel about 10 meters (33 feet) under the hospitals 20-acre complex, which includes several buildings, garages and a plaza. It said the tunnel included a staircase and a firing hole that could be used by snipers, and ended at a blast-proof door that troops have not yet opened. The Associated Press couldnt independently verify Israels findings, which included security camera video showing what the military said were two foreign hostages, one Thai and one Nepalese, taken to the hospital following the Oct. 7 attack. The army also said an independent medical report had determined that Israeli army Cpl. Noa Marciano, whose body was recovered in Gaza, had been killed by Hamas in the hospital. Marciano had been injured in an Israeli strike Nov. 9 that killed her captor, according to Israels intelligence assessment. The injuries were not life-threatening but she was then killed by a Hamas militant in Shifa, the army said. Hamas and hospital staff have denied the allegations of a command post under Shifa. Critics describe the hospital as a symbol of what they call Israels reckless endangerment of civilians. Thousands have been killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza, which is severely short of food, water, medicine and fuel. Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan dismissed the Israeli militarys announcement and didnt deny that Gaza has hundreds of kilometers of tunnels. However, he said, the Israelis said there was a command and control center, which means that the matter is greater than just a tunnel. HOSTAGE NEGOTIATIONS About 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians during the Oct. 7 attack in which Hamas dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza and shattered Israels sense of security. The military says 63 Israeli soldiers have been killed, including 12 over the past 24 hours. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two were found near Shifa. Israel, the United States and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating a hostage release for weeks. We are hopeful that we can get a significant number of hostages freed in the coming days, Israels ambassador to the U.S., Michael Herzog, told ABCs This Week. Qatars prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said the sticking points were more practical, logistical. Israels three-member war cabinet is to meet with representatives of the hostages families on Monday evening. SHIP SEIZED Yemens Houthi rebels seized a Israeli-linked cargo ship in the southern Red Sea and took its 25 crew members hostage Sunday, an action that raised fear that regional tensions heightened by the war were spilling onto the seas. The Iran-backed rebel group said it would continue to target ships connected to Israel. No Israelis were aboard the Bahamas-flagged Galaxy Leader, which was operated by a Japanese company with crewmembers from the Philippines, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine and Mexico, officials said. Public shipping databases associated the ships owners with Ray Car Carriers, a company founded by Abraham Rami Ungar, who is known as one of the richest people in Israel. Ungar told The Associated Press he was aware of the incident but couldnt comment as he awaited details. A ship linked to him experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time. The Galaxy Leader was seized some 150 kilometers (90 miles) off the coast of Yemen, near the coast of Eritrea, and taken to the port city of Hodeida, according to the British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, citing a security officer with the ships company. Japanese officials were negotiating with Houthi rebels for the release of the ship and its crew, said Japan Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno. HEAVY FIGHTING IN THE NORTH Heavy clashes were reported in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza. There was the constant sound of gunfire and tank shelling, Yassin Sharif, who is sheltering in a U.N.-run hospital there, said by phone. The commissioner-general of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, said 24 people were killed the day before in what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike on a U.N.-run school in Jabaliya. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. This war is having a staggering and unacceptable number of civilian casualties. ... This must stop, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement on that strike and another on a U.N.-run school within 24 hours. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried in rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Attacks by Israeli forces and settlers have killed 215 Palestinians in the West Bank since the war began, according to Palestinian health officials. COLDER WEATHER ADDS TO MISERY More than two-thirds of Gazas population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, is struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of thousands of displaced people. Seventeen of its facilities have been directly hit, the agency said. Their misery has worsened in recent days because of cold winds and driving rain. Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days, and to keep internet and telephone systems running. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gazas sole power plant and most water treatment systems to shut down. Israel has repeatedly struck what it says are militant targets across the south, often killing civilians. The evacuation zone is already crowded with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Egypt has refused to accept any influx of Palestinian refugees, in part because of fears that Israel would not allow them to return. But some patients and foreign nationals reportedly got through. Turkeys Health Ministry said it evacuated 110 people including patients and their relatives from an unspecified part of Gaza to Egypt. Another 87 people who were from Turkey or breakaway northern Cyprus entered Egypt from Gaza late Sunday, Turkish officials said, with the groups to be flown Monday to Turkey. Palestinian-Canadian Khalil Manaa, 71, left Gaza for Egypt on Sunday. After fleeing to southern Gaza, he said he and relatives shared a home crammed with 40 people. And there, we also were subjected to intense strikes. A rocket hit our house, he said. Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Julia Frankel in Jerusalem and Robert Badendieck in Istanbul, Turkey, contributed. Key Insights Institutions' substantial holdings in Globe Life implies that they have significant influence over the company's share price The top 16 shareholders own 50% of the company Insiders have sold recently If you want to know who really controls Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are institutions with 81% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company. Because institutional owners have a huge pool of resources and liquidity, their investing decisions tend to carry a great deal of weight, especially with individual investors. As a result, a sizeable amount of institutional money invested in a firm is generally viewed as a positive attribute. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Globe Life. Check out our latest analysis for Globe Life What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Globe Life? Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing. Globe Life already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Globe Life's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story. Story continues Since institutional investors own more than half the issued stock, the board will likely have to pay attention to their preferences. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Globe Life. The company's largest shareholder is The Vanguard Group, Inc., with ownership of 12%. BlackRock, Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 6.6% of common stock, and Wellington Management Group LLP holds about 5.4% of the company stock. A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 16 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that no single shareholder has a majority. 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 are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future. Insider Ownership Of Globe Life The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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. We can see that insiders own shares in Globe Life Inc.. Insiders own US$248m worth of shares (at current prices). Most would say this shows a good alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. Still, it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling. General Public Ownership The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 15% stake in Globe Life. 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. Take risks for example - Globe Life has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of. If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. 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. The Galaxy Leader is seen at the port of Koper, Slovenia, on Sept. 16, 2008. Yemens Houthi rebels seized the Israeli-linked cargo ship in a crucial Red Sea shipping route on Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023, officials said, taking over two dozen crew members hostage and raising fears that regional tensions heightened over the Israel-Hamas war were playing out on a new maritime front. (Kristijan Bracun/AP) JERUSALEM Yemens Houthi rebels seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship in a crucial Red Sea shipping route Sunday and took its 25 crew members hostage, officials said, raising fears that regional tensions heightened over the Israel-Hamas war were playing out on a new maritime front. The Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they hijacked the ship over its connection to Israel and would continue to target ships in international waters that were linked to or owned by Israelis until the end of Israels campaign against Gazas Hamas rulers. All ships belonging to the Israeli enemy or that deal with it will become legitimate targets, the Houthis said. Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the Houthis chief negotiator and spokesman, later added in an online statement that the Israelis only understand the language of force. The detention of the Israeli ship is a practical step that proves the seriousness of the Yemeni armed forces in waging the sea battle, regardless of its costs and costs, he added. This is the beginning. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office had blamed the Houthis for the attack on the Bahamas-flagged Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier affiliated with an Israeli billionaire. It said the 25 crew members had a range of nationalities, including Bulgarian, Filipino, Mexican and Ukrainian, but that no Israelis had been on board. The Houthis said they were treating the crew members in accordance with their Islamic values, but did not elaborate on what that meant. Netanyahus office condemned the seizure as an Iranian act of terror. The Israeli military called the hijacking a very grave incident of global consequence. Israeli officials insisted the ship was British-owned and Japanese-operated. However, ownership details in public shipping databases associated the ships owners with Ray Car Carriers, which was founded by Abraham Rami Ungar, who is known as one of the richest men in Israel. Ungar told The Associated Press he was aware of the incident but couldnt comment as he awaited details. A ship linked to him experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time. International shipping often involves a series of management companies, flags and owners stretching across the globe in a single vessel. Two U.S. defense officials confirmed that Houthi rebels seized the Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea on Sunday afternoon local time. The rebels descended on the cargo ship by rappelling from a helicopter, the officials said, confirming details first reported by NBC News. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter. That resembles other vessel seizures conducted by Iran, which long has armed the Houthis. Twice in the last month, U.S. warships have intercepted missiles or drones from Yemen that were believed to be headed toward Israel or posing a threat to American vessels. The USS Carney, a Navy destroyer, intercepted three land attack cruise missiles and several drones that were launched by Houthi forces toward the northern Red Sea last month. On Nov. 15 the USS Thomas Hudner, another destroyer, was sailing toward the Bab-el-Mandeb strait when the crew saw a drone, reported to have originated in Yemen. The ship shot down the drone over the water. The officials said the crew took action to ensure the safety of U.S. personnel, and there were no casualties or damage to the ship. Satellite tracking data from MarineTraffic.com analyzed by the AP showed the Galaxy Leader traveling in the Red Sea southwest of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, more than a day ago. The vessel had been in Korfez, Turkey, and was on its way to Pipavav, India, at the time of the seizure reported by Israel. It had its Automatic Identification System tracker, or AIS, switched off, the data showed. Ships are supposed to keep their AIS active for safety reasons, but crews will turn them off if it appears they might be targeted or to smuggle contraband, which there was no immediate evidence to suggest was the case with the Galaxy Leader. The British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Persian Gulf and the wider region, put the hijacking as having occurred some 90 miles off the coast of Yemens port city of Hodeida, near the coast of Eritrea. In later cited a security officer with the ships company saying the vessel had been taken to Hodeida. The Red Sea, stretching from Egypts Suez Canal to the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from Africa, remains a key trade route for global shipping and energy supplies. Thats why the U.S. Navy has stationed multiple ships in the sea since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7. Since 2019, a series of ships have come under attack at sea as Iran began breaking all the limits of its tattered nuclear deal with world powers. As Israel expands its devastating campaign against Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip following the militant groups unprecedented attack on southern Israel, fears have grown that the military operations could escalate into a wider regional conflict. The Houthis have repeatedly threatened to target Israeli ships in the waters off Yemen. Such attacks both back its Iranian benefactors, as well as bolsters the Houthis position in Yemen as anger has grown against their rule in recent months as that countrys civil war grinds on without resolution, said Gregory D. Johnsen, a Yemen expert with the Arabian Gulf States Institute in Washington. The Houthis view the war between Israel and Hamas as an opportunity to mute some of this domestic criticism, Johnsen wrote in an analysis earlier this month. If they are attacking Israel, their local rivals will be less inclined to attack them. Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writer Tara Copp in Washington contributed to this report. Supporters watch the broadcast of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallahs speech in Dahieh district, Beirut, on Nov. 3, 2023. (Francesca Volpi/Bloomberg) TYRE, Lebanon The secondary conflict that erupted along the Lebanon-Israel border in tandem with the Gaza war has settled into something of a routine. Every day for the past six weeks, Israel has attacked Lebanon and Hezbollah has attacked Israel, a pattern that began as a tit for tat and has now blurred into a steady exchange of fire. Almost always, the strikes are within 4 to 5 miles of the border on either side, a deliberate calibration designed to contain the violence and avert a far more devastating war. But the range and intensity of the fighting is gradually increasing. Saturday saw Israeli jets strike an aluminum factory in the Lebanese town of Nabatieh, 12 miles north of the border well beyond the traditional zone in which retaliatory fire has been considered acceptable by both sides. And both sides have started using deadlier weapons. Israel is now regularly sending fighter jets to strike Hezbollah targets; Hezbollah is deploying drones and heavier caliber missiles. It claimed on Saturday to have shot down an Israeli drone, which Israel denied. Israel responded later in the day by targeting what it described as an advanced surface-to-air missile system. Israeli officials have also ramped up their rhetoric: Lebanons citizens will bear the cost of this recklessness, and of Hezbollahs decision to be the defender of Hamas-ISIS, Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said last week. The IDF has operational plans for changing the security situation in the north. In the first weeks of the fighting, Israel was shelling only in the evenings, said Adiba Fanash, 65, one of only a dozen residents who have remained in the border village of Dhaira, right on the Israeli border. Now it is from the morning till the night, she told The Washington Post while visiting Tyre to buy supplies. It is escalating day by day. These sporadic escalations have yet to spark the conflagration many fear, but each violation of the unspoken agreement between Hezbollah and Israel brings them closer to the brink. The last war, in 2006, killed over 1,200 people in Lebanon and 165 in Israel and left swaths of this beleaguered country in ruins. Both sides have warned that any full-scale conflict now would be far more devastating, and both have indicated that they have no appetite for such a war. But as the weeks pass and the missiles fly, the risk that either side could miscalculate or overreach is growing, said Andrea Tenenti, spokesman for the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, a peacekeeping force that monitors activity on the Lebanese side of the border. Anything one of the sides could do, the other could decide its gone too far and unleash a bigger fight, he said. In ancient Tyre, a quaint port city of fishermen, cobbled streets and markets, fears are sky-high that violence will soon spread to the rest of Lebanon. The past 17 years have given the south its longest stretch of peace in five decades, and this town has flourished, luring tourists to its beaches, bars and boutique hotels. The bars and hotels are empty now and there are few customers at the quay side restaurants. We want peace and we want food on our table, said Sami Rizk, a fisherman who said demand for his daily catch has halved. We dont want war, he added emphatically. But whether war can be avoided is in question. The exchanges began within hours of the first Israeli airstrikes on Gaza on Oct. 7 when Hezbollah fired a handful of shells into a sliver of Lebanese farmland occupied by Israel as a gesture of solidarity with Hamas, drawing Israeli retaliatory fire. Now it is difficult to discern which strikes represent a response and which are meant to provoke, said Tenenti. Nobody is controlling it. We need it to stop. Its very dangerous, said Rita al-Darwish, who escaped her border village under fire six weeks ago and is among over 14,000 displaced people who have taken refuge in Tyre. Altogether, more than 46,000 Lebanese have escaped the border region to safer parts of the country and the number is growing by the day, according to figures provided by the International Organization for Migration. There are intense talks behind the scenes to prevent a repeat of 2006, Arab and Western diplomats say. Their attention has focused on the calculations of Hezbollah the Shiite party and militant group that is Lebanons most dominant political and military force and the words of Hasan Nasrallah, the groups powerful leader who has close and long-standing relations with Iran. In two speeches since the war broke out, Nasrallah has indicated that Hezbollah sees its role as creating a diversion along Israels northern border to alleviate the pressure on Hamas, its ally in Gaza, rather than waging an all-out war. It is not clear that Hezbollah could sustain the support of the Lebanese population should it take them into another costly conflict. The country is already gripped by political deadlock and teetering on economic collapse. A woman from one of the border villages who has escaped to Tyre said her house and those of her relatives were destroyed by Israeli fire a day after she fled. Hezbollah fighters had taken over the homes, drawing Israeli strikes, she said. I blame Hezbollah, she said, cursing the fighters as terrorists. She spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject. But people here are much more concerned about Israels intentions, and the prospect that it might try to finally rid itself of the militant presence along its northern border. Israel has invaded Lebanon twice and occupied the country for 22 years between 1978 and 2000. Most Lebanese are convinced that Israel has a long-term plan to take over the country, said Samir Hussein, an engineer living in Tyre who runs an organization dedicated to civic dialogue. They have proved their intentions by invading us with blood[shed], he said. They want our land, our gas, our water. Israels heightened rhetoric and the prospect of a decisive Hamas defeat has left Hezbollah with difficult choices, said Mohammed Obeid, a political analyst close to the group. Thinking about the future, can you just let the Israelis win in Gaza? he asked. If they do they will focus on Lebanon next. Sarah Dadouch in Beirut contributed to this report. U.S. soldiers cheer for each other as the last U.S. military convoy to exit Iraq heads across the Kuwait border at the Khabari crossing, Dec. 18, 2011. Since Oct. 17, U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria have faced near-daily assault from rocket fire and one-way drones. (Stars and Stripes) A surge in attacks on deployed U.S. forces has roiled some within the Defense Department, where officials, frustrated by what they consider an incoherent strategy for countering the Iranian proxies believed responsible, acknowledge the limited retaliatory airstrikes approved by President Biden have failed to stop the violence. Theres no clear definition of what we are trying to deter, said one defense official, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to be candid. Are we trying to deter future Iranian attacks like this? Well, thats clearly not working. Seething anger in the Middle East over U.S. support for the Israeli military campaign in Gaza, where thousands of Palestinian civilians have been killed in the last six weeks, has heightened concern among Biden and his deputies that any overreaction to the attacks on U.S. personnel could incite a wider conflict. In conjunction with the airstrikes, administration officials have urged Tehran repeatedly over the past month to rein in the militia groups it supports, cautioning that the United States has the right to respond at a time in place of our choosing. But those warnings have gone unheeded. Since Oct. 17, U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria have faced near-daily assault from rocket fire and one-way drones, recording at least 61 incidents and about as many injuries in that span. Pentagon data obtained by The Washington Post shows that the attacks have targeted 10 bases used by American personnel who are spread across both countries. In response, Biden has authorized three rounds of airstrikes, all in eastern Syria. The most recent, on Nov. 12, targeted sites the Pentagon identified as used by Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran-affiliated groups. A U.S. official said that as many as seven militants were killed, a rough estimate as the United States continues to assess the results. The strikes have destroyed purported warehouses holding weapons and ammunition, a command post and a training facility, officials have said. Yet each operation has failed to slow the drumbeat of hostile activity, which in all cases resumed almost immediately. The 61 attacks on U.S. troops have come at a startling frequency as well: There were about 80 similar incidents between January 2021 and March of this year, the Pentagon has said. A senior defense official said the Pentagon has provided additional options to the president beyond the actions that have been taken to date. This person affirmed, too, that within the Defense Department, there is growing doubt about the present approach. In a statement, National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said that Biden has demonstrated he will never hesitate to take action to protect U.S. forces and that the president is fully prepared to take further measures as needed at any given moment to protect our people. Iran has long provided support to militias seeking to dislodge the American presence in Iraq and Syria, where approximately 3,500 troops are deployed to prevent a resurgence of the Islamic State terrorist group. Tehran also backs Hezbollah in Lebanon, whose leaders have threatened to open a new front against Israel, and the Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Pentagon said that Houthis destroyed a $30 million U.S. Reaper drone over the Red Sea in recent days, and U.S. warships have in the last few weeks intercepted weapons fired from Yemen in the direction of Israel. Christine Abizaid, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, told House lawmakers on Wednesday that, despite the unabated attacks on American personnel, Iran and its proxies are trying to walk a very fine line in the region. There appears to be a concerted effort, she said, to avoid overt actions that risk opening them up to a more direct conflict with Israel or the United States while still exacting costs by enabling anti-U.S. and anti-Israel attacks. In their public statements, Defense Department officials have sought to downplay the attacks in Iraq and Syria, describing them as often inaccurate and causing little damage to U.S. infrastructure. The troops whove been hurt all have returned to duty, theyve said, classifying the reported brain injuries and other collateral as minor. The United States has also added more air defense systems into the region, which have shot down several of the drones, according to the Pentagon data. But as the attack count has continued to climb, so too has the concern that it is a matter of time before one claims a U.S. service members life. I dont sense any deterrence, Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in an interview. They keep shooting, waiting for us to respond. We dont, so they keep shooting. And eventually one of those drones, or one of those missiles or rockets, is going to kill an American. And then well be off to the races. Im not suggesting we start a full-fledged war with Tehran, he added. But I do think our posture has to be a little more aggressive than just strictly defensive, because one of these days, were going to miss one of those drones. The senior U.S. defense official acknowledged that the Pentagon sees few good alternatives to the measures taken thus far, which, in addition to the limited retaliatory airstrikes and buildup of air-defense weapons, includes the deployment of two aircraft carriers near Israel and Iran. Carrying out strikes in Iraq, for instance, has the potential to exacerbate anti-American sentiment there, where U.S. troops are deployed at the invitation of the government in Baghdad. Direct strikes on Iran would amount to a massive escalation. The Pentagon continues to refine response options, a U.S. official said. At a news conference Tuesday, Defense Department spokeswoman Sabrina Singh rejected the suggestion that these sustained attacks on American forces revealed shortcomings in the administrations deterrence strategy. That the war in Gaza has not spread, she said, is evidence the approach is working. The three retaliatory operations taken to date, Singh said, are intended to signal and to message very strongly to Iran, and their affiliated groups, to stop. When a reporter challenged the assertion, noting that the militia fighters keep striking U.S. troops, Singh said the military response has been very deliberate and that Iran is certainly seeing that message. Joseph Votel, a retired Army general who as the head of U.S. Central Command oversaw all military operations in the Middle East from 2016 to 2019, said it may be too early to tell if the administrations strategy can or will stifle the attacks on U.S. troops. When you do things to try to change peoples behavior, it takes time for that to set in, said Votel, now a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, a think tank. Now we have to think about the volume and the responsiveness, and how that has an effect over time. Whether its happening fast enough, he said, is subject to interpretation. - Missy Ryan contributed to this report. This image from video provided by the Department of Defense shows a Nov. 8, 2023, airstrike on a weapons warehouse. center, in eastern Syria. (Department of Defense via AP) WASHINGTON Iranian-backed militants in Iraq and Syria have long battled with U.S. and coalition forces, launching sporadic attacks against bases in the region where troops are deployed to fight Islamic State group insurgents. But since Oct. 17, as civilian deaths in Israels war against Hamas began to skyrocket, there has been a dramatic spike in attacks by Irans proxies, operating under the umbrella name of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq. While most of the more than five dozen attacks have been largely ineffective, at least 60 U.S. personnel have reported minor injuries. Most often those have been traumatic brain injuries from the explosions, and all troops have returned to duty, according to the Pentagon. In response to the attacks, the U.S. has walked a delicate line. The U.S. military has struck back just three times as the Biden administration balances efforts to deter the militants without triggering a broader Middle East conflict. A look at the attacks and the U.S. response: When, where, why According to the Pentagon, Iranian-backed militants have launched 61 attacks on bases and facilities housing U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria since Oct. 17. Of those, 29 have been in Iraq and 32 in Syria. The U.S. has about 2,000 U.S. forces in Iraq, under an agreement with the Baghdad government, and about 900 in Syria, mainly to counter ISIS but also using the al-Tanf garrison farther south to keep tabs on Iranian proxies moving weapons across the border. The latest jump in attacks began 10 days after Hamas Oct. 7 incursion into Israel, where at least 1,200 people were killed. Israels blistering military response has killed thousands of civilians trapped in Gaza and fueled threats of retaliation by a range of Iran-backed groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, Yemen-based Houthis, and militants in Iraq and Syria. Those threats escalated after an Oct. 17 blast at a Gaza hospital killed hundreds of civilians. Hamas blamed Israel for the explosion, but Israel has denied it, and both Israeli and U.S. officials have blamed it on a missile misfire by Islamic Jihad. The bulk of the attacks on bases and facilities have been with one-way suicide drones or rockets, and in most cases there were no injuries and only minor damage. A significant number of the injuries, particularly the traumatic brain injuries, were in the initial attacks between Oct. 17 and 21 at al-Asad air base in Iraq and al-Tanf. One U.S. contractor suffered a cardiac arrest and died while seeking shelter from a possible drone attack. Who are these groups? With a power vacuum and years of civil conflict following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, militias grew and multiplied in Iraq, some supported by Iran. A decade later, as the Islamic State extremist group swept across Iraq, a number of Iran-backed militias came together under the Popular Mobilization Forces umbrella group and fought IS. The groups included the Asaib Ahl al-Haq, the Badr Brigades and Kataeb Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades a separate group from the Lebanese Hezbollah. A number of the Iraqi militias also operate in Syria, where Iran supports the government of Bashar Assad against opposition groups in the uprising-turned-civil-war that began in 2011. After the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war, a group of the Iran-backed factions branded itself under the new Islamic Resistance in Iraq name, and began the latest spate of attacks on bases housing U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria. The attacks put Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani in a difficult position. While he came to power with the Iranian-backed groups support, he also wants continued good relations with the U.S. and has backed the ongoing presence of American troops in his country. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in a meeting with al-Sudani this month, warned of consequences if Iranian-backed militias continued to attack U.S. facilities in Iraq and Syria. Al-Sudani then traveled to Tehran and met with Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a meeting U.S. officials suggested was a positive development. An official with one of the Iranian-backed militias said al-Sudani put great pressure on the militias not to carry out attacks during Blinkens visit. In return, he said, al-Sudani promised to push the Americans not to retaliate aggressively against militias that have carried out the strikes. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly. Not enough? Since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, the Biden administration has moved warships, fighter jets, air defense systems and more troops into the Middle East in a campaign to discourage militant groups from widening the conflict. But the U.S. military response to the attacks on its forces has been minimal. On Oct. 27, U.S. fighter jets struck two weapons and ammunition storage sites in eastern Syria near Boukamal that were used by Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iranian-backed groups. On Nov. 8, fighter jets dropped bombs on an IRGC weapons storage facility near Maysulun in Deir el-Zour. And on Nov. 12, U.S. airstrikes targeted a training facility and a safe house in the Bulbul district of Mayadin. U.S. officials said IRGC-related personnel were there and likely struck, but provided no details. There are concerns within the administration that more substantial retaliation could escalate the violence and trigger more deadly attacks. The Pentagon says the strikes have degraded the groups military stockpiles and made the sites unusable. But critics argue that the U.S. response pales in comparison with the 60 attacks and American injuries, and more importantly has obviously failed to deter the groups. Iraq government sensitivities Though nearly half of the attacks have been on U.S. bases in Iraq, the U.S. has conducted retaliatory airstrikes only against locations in Syria. The Pentagon defends the strike decisions by saying the U.S. is hitting Iranian Revolutionary Guard sites, which has a more direct impact on Tehran. Officials say the goal is to pressure Iran to tell the militia groups to stop the attacks. They also say the sites are chosen because they are weapons warehouses and logistical hubs used by the Iran-linked militias, and taking them out erodes the insurgents attack capabilities. A key reason the U.S. is concentrating on Syria, however, is that the U.S. doesnt want to risk alienating the Iraqi government by striking within its borders potentially killing or wounding Iraqis. In early January 2020, the U.S. launched an airstrike in Baghdad, killing Gen. Qassim Soleimani, the head of Irans elite Quds Force, and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of Iran-backed militias in Iraq. The strike frayed relations with the Iraqi government and spawned demands for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from the country. The U.S. considers its presence in Iraq as critical to the fight against IS, its ability to support forces in Syria and its ongoing influence in the region. Military leaders have worked to restore good relations with Baghdad, including providing ongoing support for Iraqi forces. Associated Press writer Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad contributed to this report. U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., departs court after pleading not guilty to new charges on Oct. 23, 2023, in New York. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images/TNS) (Tribune News Service) Thirteen gold bars. Half a million dollars in cash. A shiny new Mercedes-Benz. Details of the federal indictment of U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., paint a lurid portrait of alleged corruption. But now one crucial piece the testimony of a key witness might offer hope for the defense of the New Jersey Democrat. That witness is Gurbir Grewal, the attorney general of New Jersey during the events in question. The feds say Menendez tried to pressure Grewal to favorably resolve two criminal matters in the state at the behest of a businessman who bribed the senator with a Mercedes. But Grewal painted a more subtle picture of Menendez to prosecutors, according to people familiar with the matter. Grewal said the senator didnt explicitly ask him to take any action and didnt name anyone with criminal matters before the attorney generals office, the people said. Rather, he spoke more broadly of a policy concern. Still, his approach struck Grewal as inappropriate, they said. Grewals account to prosecutors, which hasnt been reported previously, may allow Menendezs lawyers to argue the senator did not break the law when the two men spoke, legal experts say. Grewal, now director of enforcement at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, is just one piece of a sweeping indictment accusing Menendez of crimes including conspiracies to commit bribery and to act as an agent of Egypt. The senator was indicted with his wife, Nadine, and three businessmen. All five pleaded not guilty. Menendez, whose first corruption case ended in a mistrial six years ago, has faced swift repercussions. Hes stepped down as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Tammy Snyder Murphy, wife of Gov. Phil Murphy, is running for his seat next year, along with U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J. At the trial, now scheduled for May, jurors must decide whether Menendez took bribes for official acts, a key aspect of corruption cases that has hamstrung prosecutors. The Supreme Court has said an official act includes a decision or action on a suit or proceeding. It can also involve pressuring or advising another official to act. If Grewal testifies, the defense has compelling arguments that the interactions that the senator had with Grewal are not official acts in the way that the law required, said Arlo Devlin-Brown, a former federal prosecutor at Covington & Burling. Menendez said that while he cant comment specifically on the case, the Grewal account just goes to show what Ive been saying all along. The prosecution presented a limited set of facts as salaciously as possible in an effort to win their case through the media. I remain confident that when all the facts have been presented I will be found innocent. Grewal and a spokesman for Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York overseeing the case, declined to comment. Grewal described his conversations to prosecutors in two debriefings, according to people familiar with the matter. Prosecutors allege the senator wanted Grewal referred to as Official-2 in the indictment to favorably resolve two legal matters to help Jose Uribe, who was indicted with Menendez. Uribe worked in the insurance and trucking businesses, and had lost his insurance brokers license because of a fraud conviction, the U.S. said. Uribe wanted Menendez to help with an insurance fraud indictment of an associate and a related criminal investigation. The Grewal account of how Menendez went about it showed the senator was careful and canny in choosing his words, the people said. On Jan. 29, 2019, Menendez called Grewal out of the blue to complain about the state Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor. As attorney general, Grewal oversaw hundreds of criminal cases filed by his 8,000-person office. It was routine for Grewal to speak to elected officials about policy matters, people who know him say. But talking about individual cases was off limits. Menendez, a son of Cuban immigrants and a leading voice for Latinos, said the insurance fraud office was mistreating Hispanics in the trucking industry, the people said. Grewal asked if it involved a criminal matter. The senator said it did, but was careful not to mention a defendants name. Rather, he said it involved a client of Michael Critchley, a prominent defense attorney. Grewal said Critchley knew how to take complaints through the proper channels. The client pleaded guilty three months later and got probation. That July, Uribe needed help again. He contacted Nadine Arslanian, then the senators girlfriend and now his wife, about a related investigation involving a broker at the insurance company controlled by Uribe, according to the indictment. When a state detective wanted to interview the broker, Uribe texted Arslanian, saying they must make things go away. This time, Menendez asked Grewal to meet at the senators office in Newark. Menendez reiterated his earlier complaint about the insurance offices treatment of Hispanic people. Grewal asked if this was related to the Critchley case. Menendez said it was, and Grewal said he couldnt help, the people said. The indictment said Grewal did not agree to intervene. The subtle approach by Menendez no names, no direct ask may not be a compelling defense, said Reid Schar, a former federal prosecutor now at Jenner & Block. An ask need not be explicit to be criminal, Schar said. Instead of saying Dismiss the case against this particular person, Sen. Menendez essentially advocated to dismiss against everyone who looks like the particular person, Schar said. That effectively gets the person who prosecutors say bribed Sen. Menendez what he wanted without being as obvious. While Grewals testimony may complicate the governments case, prosecutors have plenty of other evidence, including texts, bank records, photographs, gold bars and the cash. In October 2019, for instance, Menendez called Uribe from his Senate office in Washington, almost two months after meeting with Grewal in Newark. Uribe was pleased by what hed heard. I just got a call, and I am a very happy person, Uribe texted Nadine Arslanian, according to the indictment. A few days later, they celebrated at a champagne dinner with the senator. Uribe gave $15,000 in cash to Nadine Arslanian in a restaurant parking lot, prosecutors say. She used that amount as a down payment on the Mercedes, and Uribe made 32 monthly payments on the car, stopping only when the senators house was searched. 2023 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Occupants wait to see how police officers work during a city-sponsored sweep of an encampment overlooking the city skyline on Diamond Hill, Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023, in Denver. The sweep was just one of several staged in various locations across the Mile High City. (David Zalubowski/AP) DENVER As weary migrants arrive in Denver on buses from the U.S.-Mexico border city of El Paso, Texas, officials offer them two options: temporary shelter or a bus ticket out. Nearly half of the 27,000 migrants who arrived in Denver since November 2022 have chosen the bus, plane or train tickets to other cities in the U.S., city data shows. In New York and Illinois, taxpayer dollars also are being spent on tickets, creating a shuffle of migrants in the interior U.S. who need shelter, food and medical assistance as they await rulings on asylum cases that can take years. The transfer of migrants has gained momentum since Republican governors in Texas and Florida started chartering buses and planes to Democratic-led cities in what critics waved off as political stunts. More than a year later, some of those cities, their resources dwindling, are eager to help migrants move on to their final destinations. The efforts show the increased pressures cities are facing as more migrants from around the globe are coming to the U.S. southern border, often fleeing economic turmoil. Illegal border crossings topped 2 million during the governments fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, the second-highest number on record. With many migrants in shelters or living on the street, the next phase of the challenge is getting them to their families, friends or court cases, said Mario Russell, director at the Center for Migration Studies of New York. That has been in a sense dropped into the laps of interior cities without much preparation, without much forethought really at any level, Russell added. Denver alone has spent at least $4.3 million in city funds to send migrants to other U.S. cities, freeing up shelter beds for new arrivals while adding to the numbers in other Democratic-led cities such as Chicago and New York that are struggling to house asylum-seekers, mostly from Venezuela. Data wasnt yet available from New York, though the city is offering one-way plane tickets to anywhere in the world. Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago has used state funds to help buy tickets for more than 2,500 migrants who have family, friends or sponsors elsewhere, according to Chief of Staff Mary Krinock. The cities say they buy tickets only for migrants who want to travel and they do not coerce people to leave. Texas and Florida have chartered buses and planes to take migrants only to certain cities. They say people board them voluntarily. The people who are desperate, who are coming here for shelter and assistance, were not going to turn those people away, Jon Ewing of Denver Human Service said. But at the same time we have to make it very clear to them thats theres only so much we can do. Denver City Councilperson Amanda Sandoval, right, joins a pair of Denver Police Department officers during a city-sponsored sweep of an encampment overlooking the city skyline on Diamond Hill Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023, in Denver. (David Zalubowski/AP) Advocates working with migrants say many come to Denver on their way to other cities because of its relative proximity to the border, reputation for being welcoming and the cheaper bus fare. But charities are feeling the pressure as the weather turns colder and migrants end up sleeping in tent encampments. It breaks my heart. It is like we have so many children and little ones that we know we cant even help, said Yoli Casas, executive director of Vive Wellness, which works with new migrants to Denver. Theres just no more room. Theres no more funding. Theres no nothing. Were not prepared, she said. Denver has bought nearly 3,000 tickets to Chicago and 2,300 to New York, almost half of the more than 12,000 tickets the city has purchased for migrants since November 2022. The vast majority were bus tickets, but Denver also purchased about 340 tickets for flights and 200 for train rides. Roughly 1,000 tickets were bound for Texas and Florida, whose governors have sent chartered buses and planes of migrants to Democratic-led sanctuary cities that limit their cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Russell of the Center for Migration Studies said greater communication among cities is required to ensure people go where its most appropriate rather than potentially going in circles and circles, from one city to the next. That doesnt help anybody, he added. Tensions flared between political leaders in January when Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis chartered buses for migrants to Chicago. Then-Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and New York City Mayor Eric Adams penned a letter urging Polis to stop and saying overburdening other cities is not the solution. Cities including Denver, New York, Chicago, Houston and Los Angeles recently have presented a united front, with their mayors going to Washington, D.C., to meet with President Joe Biden and ask for more assistance. You have mayors across the country that are struggling with this international crises and we need the federal government to do more, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who took office in May, told reporters this month. Ewing gave a similar message regarding El Pasos busing of migrants to Denver, saying the two cities have been in communication. They were overwhelmed, Ewing said, We certainly didnt encourage it, but we do understand it. El Pasos mayor is a Democrat and the citys practice of chartering buses for migrants is separate from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, whose office says it has bused more than 50,000 migrants total to Washington, D.C., New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Denver and Los Angeles since August 2022 to highlight Bidens border policies. Abbott spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris said the governor is acting to provide relief to our overwhelmed border towns. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis got attention last year by flying migrants from San Antonio to Marthas Vineyard in Massachusetts. This year, state lawmakers approved $12 million in funding for Floridas migrant relocation initiative. In Denver, the millions spent on tickets for migrants has reduced shelter costs, which reached upward of $31 million, largely from federal aid with support from the state. But the city also recently instituted shelter bed limits. Migrants without children have two weeks in city-run shelters, while families have more than five weeks. The city also has sent flyers to border towns warning migrants that the Rocky Mountain metropolis has expensive housing and no shelter space. In Massachusetts, Democratic Gov. Maura Healey set a threshold of 7,500 families in emergency shelters. New York City and Chicago also are limiting migrants shelter stays. A few Chicago City Council members want to gauge voter support for ending sanctuary city status with a nonbinding ballot measure in the March primary. Strong backing could help efforts to limit Chicagos decades-old sanctuary status. Among other things, city employees arent allowed to ask about immigration status and law enforcement are barred from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. We have other Democratic cities, Denver, California, L.A., sending their people to Chicago, New York. Theyre sending their migrants to Chicago. Why? Because they are saying, We cant take anymore. Chicago has yet to say, We cant take anymore, Alderman Anthony Beale, who has backed the ballot measure, said at a recent council meeting. We have to draw the line somewhere. Associated Press writer Sophia Tareen contributed from Chicago. Bedayn 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. The woman was not present for the hearing but her victim impact statement was read into the record by the garda A mother wept in Wexford Circuit Court as her grown son was led away to begin a jail sentence for terrorising his ex. The five month prison term commenced more that three years after the offences which led to the mans incarceration. In finalising the case, Judge Alice Doyle had the benefit of voluminous reports, as she described them. After she had read the paperwork, she heard from one of the Wexford gardai who investigated the matter. The court learned that the accused was named on a safety order taken out by the mother of his children. Despite this order, he sent numerous texts and a series of phone calls which she attempted to ignore. On one occasion, he rang her ten times before nine oclock in the morning. She made a couple of complaints to gardai which led eventually to the prosecution. The woman was not present for the hearing but her victim impact statement was read into the record by the garda. In the statement, she told how she had been in a jump scare environment dreading that the defendant might come to her house at any hour of the day or night. I live constantly on my nerves, she wrote, asserting that she had been subjected to persistent harassment, though two years had passed since their relationship ended. She described his behaviour as dangerous and manic, pointing to a history of drug and drink abuse. Defending barrister Jordan Fletcher gave an assurance that his client was now sober and had not been in contact with his former partner for some time. However, after reading the paperwork, Judge Doyle was in no mood to suspend any sentence as Mr Jordan suggested. She pointed out that he had failed to attend counselling as required and noted that he had previous convictions under the domestic violence legislation. He had left the victim absolutely terrified, prompting the court to endorse a six month jail stint, with just the final month suspended. The courtroom had been cleared of the general public for the hearing but the defendants mother was allowed to stay. Once the verdict had been handed down, she was permitted to give her son a hug before he was led away by the court orderly to the cells. Judge Doyle recommended that, while in custody, the man should be seen by a psychiatrist as soon as possible. She also requested the family of the accused to have no contact with the victim of his crime for at least five years. Ilamar Rodrigues Ribeiro (52), with no fixed address in Ireland, was arrested at Dublin Airport on Thursday A Brazilian man accused of leasing properties around Ireland for organised prostitution and sexual exploitation of vulnerable women has been refused bail after a court heard claims he was a member of a major criminal organisation. Ilamar Rodrigues Ribeiro (52), with no fixed address in Ireland, was arrested at Dublin Airport on Thursday by detectives from the Garda National Protective Services Bureau. It follows a multi-jurisdictional investigation, with 1,500 exhibits, predicated on the allegations of two women who allegedly came forward. Judge Anthony Halpin heard they made complaints to gardai who believe Mr Ribeiro had a vital role. He is accused of 16 offences between 2017 and 2020. Six counts were for deception by allegedly leasing six properties in Ballymahon, Co. Longford, Kildare Town, Tullow, Co. Carlow, Carrick on Shannon, Co. Leitrim, and Ballaghaderreen, Co. Roscommon, and in Roscommon Town, for his own gain Eight were for using bills or Italian passports in other names as false instruments to secure leases. The final two were money laundering charges. The offences, on conviction, carry maximum sentences between five and 14 years, and he may face further more serious charges. Mr Ribeiro appeared before Judge Halpin at Dublin District Court on Saturday evening and faced a Garda application to remand him in custody due to flight risk fears and the seriousness of the case. Judge Halpin said: I cannot tailor conditions that will satisfy this court in relation to this matter to grant bail. I just cant fathom what conditions would satisfy me having regard to the nature of the bail application." He agreed with Detective Sergeant John Ryan, who moved the bail objection, that the defendant represents a huge flight risk. Mr Ribeiro, who has not indicated a plea, claimed, via an interpreter, that he would stay in the country pending trial and would be able to live with his ex-wife in Co. Galway. Judge Halpin remanded him in custody to appear at Cloverhill District Court on November 23 pending directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions. Detective Garda Vanessa Stafford told the court that the accused was charged at Blanchardstown Station just after midday on Saturday. He was given a legal caution and made no reply to the charges. Detective Sergeant Ryan told the court the investigation involved 40 members of An Garda Siochana, 1,500 exhibits, multi-jurisdictional co-operation with Interpol, Europol, police in the UK, and Brazil, and assistance from Spanish and Belgian authorities. He alleged the accused facilitated organised prostitution throughout the State. He claimed the two complainants had to hand over half their earnings and were moved around to different locations for sexual exploitation. It was alleged the accused leased the properties and was a member of a major criminal organisation. Detective Sergeant Ryan alleged Mr Ribeiro had a vital role in organising prostitution in Ireland for several years and coerced young vulnerable women into this industry. He had no legitimate income in Ireland, never filed a tax return or claimed social welfare. The detective sergeant believed the accused, who has surrendered his passport, would still have the means to flee, and he added that there was no extradition agreement between Ireland and Brazil. He said the accused arrived in Ireland from France while in transit to London but also had a flight booked from Dublin to Italy for the same day. He agreed with defence counsel Kevin McCrave that the accused, had the presumption of innocence, and no criminal record or history of bench warrants here. The accused agreed with Mr McCrave that he would abide by any conditions the court would impose and not apply for new travel documents. Asked if he would leave the country, he replied: No, I wont and added that he would stay with his ex-wife and even find my own place if necessary. After his application was denied, counsel said the accused was deferring his legal aid application. Persistent and predatory sex offender sentenced for abusing teenage boy in public park A former top amateur boxer now branded a predatory sex offender has been jailed for abusing a teenage boy in a public park and other sex crimes. One of Ciaran McAuleys victims came forward as a result of a story in the Belfast Telegraph newspaper about the dangerous paedophile, Newry Crown Court was told. Judge Peter Irvine KC jailed McAuley for 32 months and told him he was such a danger to the public, and especially to teenage boys, that he was imposing an extended jail sentence. He described the 35-year-old as a persistent and predatory sex offender. The extended sentence means McAuleys release will be a matter for the parole commissioners and when he is eventually released, he will be subject to supervised licence conditions for an extra three years. McAuley, originally from Belfast and who boxed for Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games, had earlier entered guilty pleas to meeting a child following sexual grooming. He also admitted two charges of sexual activity with a child and one of attempting to meet a second boy following sexual grooming, all committed between August 2011 and January 2012. In an agreed statement of facts, prosecuting counsel David McNeill said that as a result of a story in the Belfast Telegraph the first victim came forward in February 2021 to report that he recognised the defendant as the man who had sexually assaulted him 10 years earlier when he was just 14-years-old. McAuley had contacted the boy through social media out of the blue and asked the schoolboy to meet him at the Waterworks in north Belfast on December 9, 2011, paying the boy some kind of compliment. The defendant told the victim he was 17 or 18, but he could see that he was older, said Mr McNeill. He added that the boy was scared because the defendant was older and bigger than him. Although initially planned for December 9, the pair met earlier on December 8 and the 14-year-old agreed to have sex with McAuley behind bushes at the Waterworks. When it was over, there were people walking past the bush so the defendant waited for a while and then beckoned the victim to say it was safe to come out, he told the court. That incident related to the first three charges listed but the court heard that the victim disclosed the incident to one of his friends and that McAuley also tried to make arrangements to meet that boy as well. The defendant started by asking him questions about his sexuality and whether he was attracted by men, then wanted to meet him at the Waterworks, said Mr McNeill. There was an arrangement made but instead of going, the boy went home after school, but McAuley sent him messages asking where he was. That boy saw the same Belfast Telegraph report and recognised McAuley who was questioned by police in prison but who refused to answer questions. Mr McNeill revealed that McAuley has been convicted of nine sex offences and four breaches of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order. McAuley was first jailed for two years in December 2015 after carrying out a sex attack on a nine-year-old boy in the New Lodge area of Belfast as he was walking home from a funfair, chasing the boy down an alley and abusing him. During his sentencing remarks today, Judge Irvine revealed that on the day he got out of prison from that sentence, McAuley grabbed a 14-year-old boy and dragged him down an alleyway, holding a knife to his throat while he carried out a number of sex acts on him". McAuley declared from the dock that I didnt have a knife but Judge Irvine sternly told him be quiet and sit down now. The judge said it was clear from the various reports that McAuley is a persistent and predatory sex offender who has expressed no remorse for his actions. He said the ex-boxer was assessed as having a high likelihood re-offending and he clearly poses a significant risk of causing serious harm, especially to boys aged 9 to 16 years. In addition to the extended jail sentence, Judge Irvine also ordered McAuley to sign the police sex offenders register for the rest of his life and made him the subject of a lifelong SOPO. The excitement of investing in a company that can reverse its fortunes is a big draw for some speculators, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can manage to find investors. 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. If this kind of company isn't your style, you like companies that generate revenue, and even earn profits, then you may well be interested in Master-Pack Group Berhad (KLSE:MASTER). Now this is not to say that the company presents the best investment opportunity around, but profitability is a key component to success in business. See our latest analysis for Master-Pack Group Berhad Master-Pack Group Berhad's Earnings Per Share Are Growing If a company can keep growing earnings per share (EPS) long enough, its share price should eventually follow. Therefore, there are plenty of investors who like to buy shares in companies that are growing EPS. Shareholders will be happy to know that Master-Pack Group Berhad's EPS has grown 34% each year, compound, over three years. If the company can sustain that sort of growth, we'd expect shareholders to come away satisfied. One way to double-check a company's growth is to look at how its revenue, and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins are changing. The good news is that Master-Pack Group Berhad is growing revenues, and EBIT margins improved by 2.3 percentage points to 17%, over the last year. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in our book. You can take a look at the company's revenue and earnings growth trend, in the chart below. For finer detail, click on the image. Master-Pack Group Berhad isn't a huge company, given its market capitalisation of RM152m. That makes it extra important to check on its balance sheet strength. Story continues Are Master-Pack Group Berhad Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders? Prior to investment, it's always a good idea to check that the management team is paid reasonably. Pay levels around or below the median, can be a sign that shareholder interests are well considered. For companies with market capitalisations under RM934m, like Master-Pack Group Berhad, the median CEO pay is around RM482k. The Master-Pack Group Berhad CEO received total compensation of only RM51k in the year to December 2022. This could be considered a token amount, and indicates that the company does not need to use payment to motivate the CEO - that is often a good sign. While the level of CEO compensation shouldn't be the biggest factor in how the company is viewed, modest remuneration is a positive, because it suggests that the board keeps shareholder interests in mind. Generally, arguments can be made that reasonable pay levels attest to good decision-making. Is Master-Pack Group Berhad Worth Keeping An Eye On? If you believe that share price follows earnings per share you should definitely be delving further into Master-Pack Group Berhad's strong EPS growth. With swiftly growing earnings, the best days may still be to come, and the modest CEO pay suggests the company is careful with cash. Based on these factors, this stock may well deserve a spot on your watchlist, or even a little further research. Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for Master-Pack Group Berhad that you should be aware of. Although Master-Pack Group Berhad 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. 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. Two men were arrested in connection with the probe and are in custody. Gardai have seized 75,000 worth of cocaine as well as cannabis and cash in Connemara, Co Galway. Two men were arrested in connection with the probe and are in custody. Gardai attached to the Galway County West Drugs Unit assisted by Loughrea Drugs Unit, Galway Drugs Unit and Garda Dog Unit raided three premises in County Galway on Saturday morning, November 18, 2023. During the searches, gardai seized cocaine worth 75,000 and quantities of cannabis. A sum of cash was also seized. Two men have been arrested in connection with the investigation and are currently detained at a garda station in County Galway. One is being detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996 while the other is being held under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984. Investigations are ongoing. Ujeza Kurmekaj (32) facilitated crossings for Albanian nationals from France to the UK before being arrested by National Crime Agency officers last year. An Albanian woman has been jailed for seven and a half years for acting as a fixer for people smugglers who transported migrants across the English Channel. Ujeza Kurmekaj (32) facilitated crossings for Albanian nationals from France to the UK before being arrested by National Crime Agency officers at her home in Banbury, Oxfordshire, in October 2022. Detectives discovered hundreds of messages on her phone which showed her playing a key role linking people smugglers with passengers. She sent instructions to contacts in France about who their targets were, with messages mentioning family one, three women, children 14, 17, 12-years-old and another about one family, man, wife, one child. Other messages identified weather conditions such as the very bad sea, while others included map location pins instructing where to pick migrants up or where boats were located. Further conversations showed individuals making contact with her to arrange transport for their families. Kurmekajs phone also contained more than 20 images of Albanian ID cards and passports. These documents were checked on immigration systems, and nine of the individuals were found to have had arrived in the UK by small boat. Kurmekaj was charged with facilitating illegal immigration in September and pleaded guilty to the charge at Oxford Crown Court on 3 November. She was sentenced at the same court on Friday and will be automatically deported from the UK at the end of her jail term. Andy MacGill, NCA senior investigating officer, said: Ujeza Kurmekaj played a major role as a broker, linking migrants with people smugglers who could transport them on dangerous journeys across the Channel. For this, she would arrange payments of hundreds of euros per person. Kurmekaj had little interest in the safety and security of the people she was arranging crossings for, only that she and her employers received payment. Disrupting and dismantling organised crime groups responsible for people smuggling is a priority for the NCA and well continue to target offenders involved at every step of the journey. The super-fit firefighters family were so convinced he was going to die last year they had organised his funeral. Shane Carmichael credits NHS with saving his life after being struck down by rare flesh eating disease. Shane has to be tube fed and can only eat pureed foods and liquids as he is at risk of choking. Shane Carmichael 47, credits NHS with saving his life after being struck down by rare flesh eating disease. DAD-of-three Shane Carmichael revealed how he was given the last rites eight separate times before he made a miracle recovery from a flesh-eating disease. The super-fit firefighters family were so convinced he was going to die last year they had organised his funeral. However, the 47-year-old amazed everyone with his recovery and is delighted to be alive to tell the tale. I meet people now who do a double take when they see me as if to say I thought you were dead. Thats a fact, a lot of people thought I was gone, said Shane. His nightmare started in April 2022. Suffering from a toothache, he went to a dentist for treatment and had to get a tooth removed. During this process, part of a tooth cracked. A few days later, Shanes face and neck began to swell and he went to the emergency department at Coleraine Hospital. He added: I remember going into the triage department at the hospital but dont remember anything after that until I woke up in the Ulster Hospital four months later. He was diagnosed with necrotising fasciitis, a rare and life-threatening condition which can happen if a wound or cut gets infected. Shane Carmichael credits NHS with saving his life after being struck down by rare flesh eating disease. If not stopped, it can quickly spread through the body. Once diagnosed, Shane was rushed from Coleraine to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast, before then being taken to the intensive care unit at the Ulster Hospital. He remained in a coma for the next four months as medics battled to save his life. They carried out 15 operations in a bid to stop the flesh-eating disease from spreading to other parts of his body. It started in my neck and luckily enough went down through my body instead of going up. If it had gone up to my brain I would not be here today, said Shane. The way the surgeon described it was that he was chasing the disease all the time as it went through my body. At one stage he was advised by his colleagues to give up. They said I was a lost case but he kept going. I was cut from ear to ear. My whole throat was cut away and my thyroid was cut out. I have big scars down my chest and my leg where I had to get skin grafts. The skin was taken and put on my neck. I have scars all over my body but I dont remember anything at the time the operations were happening. Despite the efforts of the surgeons and other medical staff caring for Shane, there were times when his prospects did not look good. I spent four months in a coma and during that time I was given the last rites eight times, he said. Between family and friends, I was prayed for in every county in Ireland. My mums cousin has the Padre Pio relic and that was brought up to me. My sister, God love her, was getting phone calls at all hours of the night telling her to come into the hospital because they thought I was going to die. Shane has to be tube fed and can only eat pureed foods and liquids as he is at risk of choking. At one stage, she was asked to sign a DNR (do not resuscitate) form. She asked the doctor if I was brain dead. He said no and she said where there is life there is hope and decided not to sign the form. My heart stopped several times but I was brought back to life so many times. No one can believe I made it through. All the nurses in the Ulster Hospital believed I would not make it. The fact I received the last rites so many times tells its own story. My funeral arrangements had already been made. I am from Bellaghy in Co Derry and that was where I was going to be buried. I was in Bellaghy a few months ago with my sister and I asked her to show me where I was going to be buried, but she wouldnt do it. However, a miracle happened and he pulled through. Shane has high praise for all the medical staff who cared for him during his nine-month long recovery in hospital. We are so lucky in this country. The care I received was second to none, he said. The staff in the Ulster Hospital where I spent most of the time were brilliant. I feel that I have made friends there. I went up a month ago and they were delighted to see me. The care that I received was absolutely brilliant and I will never be able to thank the staff enough. Since being discharged from hospital at the end of last year, Shane had been living with his mother in Portglenone, Co Antrim. He is unable to eat solid foods and is fed through a tube into his stomach. He also recently had a special pacemaker fitted at the Royal Victoria Hospital. A surgeon was flown over from England to fit the device, which is believed to be the first of its kind to be given to a patient in Northern Ireland. Shane Carmichael credits NHS with saving his life after being struck down by rare flesh eating disease Shane also has a splint on his left leg but struggles to walk far. A few weeks ago he bought an electric trike which allows him to get out and about as much as possible. I basically had to learn to walk again as my legs had not been used for so long and they were so weak. I cant walk too far but the trike gives me so much scope. I can go down the town on it and talk to a few people. I love talking to people. His recovery still has a long way to go and he knows his life will never be the same again. One of the things he will miss most is his work as an on-call firefighter in Kilrea. It was a role in which he took great pride and one through which he has made many good friends. I loved the fire service and was very fit before all this happened. I will miss my job as a firefighter more than anything. Despite his horrific ordeal and the many challenges he now faces, Shane is determined to look on the bright side of life. I am very positive, because what is the point in gurning? Its not going to change and I just have to get on with it. I am proud of how I have coped, as many a person would have crumbled over a lot less. He is speaking out about his ordeal because he would like to meet anyone else who has survived necrotising fasciitis to find out about their recovery journey. This is a rare disease, but it is even rarer for someone to survive it, he said. James was the type of person whod try to help anyone in a bit of bother Jimmy Nicoll in his younger years before his struggles took over A proud dad who collected a bravery award on behalf of his son who died while trying to rescue a dying man says his boy would do anything to help others, despite his own life of turmoil. Courageous James (Jimmy) Nicoll drowned last April after trying to rescue a distraught young man who jumped off a bridge in Dublin into the Liffey. Former soldier Jimmy (40) was homeless at the time of the incident and was also fighting heroin addiction. He had been staying in a homeless shelter in Temple Bar with his girlfriend, Donna, and the pair were making their way back there when they encountered two young men arguing on Grattan Bridge near Capel Street. Being James, he stepped in and tried to intervene, saying its alright, settle down, explains James Nicoll senior. The winners of Irelands National Bravery Awards Then your man just jumped in, and James jumped in after him. He was fully clothed with his shoes on and tried to get him out. It would have been mild at the time, but the water would have been very cold. James could swim, but that didnt help. Jimmy had earlier been heard by bystanders announcing Im ex-Army as he tried to help. Both Jimmy and the young man he tried to rescue died. James was found first, at the Millennium Bridge, and then the other lad after. I believe he was 21, reveals James Snr (72). James Snr hails from Dublins South Circular Road, is retired from the army and lives with his wife Noreen in Portarlington, Co Laois. He remembers being told that his son had died. The gardai contacted me here at three oclock in the morning when they called out to the house, he recalls. I sleep in the front room and the doorbell rang about three or four times. I looked out the window and saw the garda car and I thought to myself here we go, whats he after doing now? You dont know whats in a persons mind. The guards came to the door and told me what happened. I got a huge shock. Noreen and James Snr with their sons gold medal bravery award James Snr says Jimmy was the youngest of his five children and had served with the Calvary Corps in the Army for four years. Jimmy was always very quiet, always happy though. He was polite and gentle, James says. Jimmy bought himself out of the army but during this time he started smoking heroin with a friend and eventually became addicted. Noreen and myself used to keep track on him every now and again, where he was, what was he doing, explains James. He was never actually in trouble. He seemed alright. Hed look for a few pound and that was it. Money wasnt worth a damn. Wed give him anything we had. It was just his way. Jimmy Nicoll in his younger years before his struggles took over He wasnt interested in coming home at all, he wanted to stay in Dublin. He just got on as best he could and that was it. He went to England for a while. I was overseas at the time. Every now and again hed contact me Da, I need money, I need money. It was becoming too much. Jimmy came back to his familys then home at the time in The Curragh in Co Kildare. He tried to clean up and stayed for a short while, remembers James. He kept on saying I want to go to Dublin, then we let him go to Dublin and that was it. We couldnt do any more for him. Noreen would bring him nearly every day of the week to various clinics, but no joy. He would say Im off the gear but then hed be back on the gear and off it again, and then back on again. He wasnt interested in getting clean, only staying as he was. Jimmy also became homeless. He was in numerous shelters. One thing he never liked was the shelters, maintains James. Hed sleep with his boots on and keep everything in his pockets. Hed be beat up in the middle of the night and theyd take whatever money you had, even though it wasnt a whole lot, and off hed go again. Jimmy wasnt a big drinker. He was off the drugs at the time of the incident. He was taking methadone, James says. Jimmy was in a relationship with Dubliner Donna for more than 20 years and also had a child. Grattan Bridge in Dublin Donna is a lovely girl, says James. Shed phone you maybe once a week or once a fortnight and then maybe disappear for a month or more. She is her own individual and thats it. I know it has affected her, although she wouldnt be the type of person who would tell you. There were 26 people honoured at the National Bravery Awards last week and Jimmy was the only recipient of the highest accolade a gold medal. I felt very proud when I walked up and received the award on his behalf, reveals James. It wasnt just his army background. James was the type of person whod try to help anyone who he saw having a bit of bother. A park bench has been unveiled in Portarlington in his memory. Just before he died Jimmy was interviewed on the streets by a videographer from a YouTube site called KoldTurkey. He confirmed addiction was the reason for his homelessness. I made that decision. When I was in the Army I decided to smoke heroin so its my fault for leaving the Army, its my fault for leaving my family homeless. No one elses fault. It cant be. It was my decision, he reflected. Do you know the young man Jimmy tried to rescue or if his family wish to be contacted? Contact us at news@sundayworld.com. Ibrahim Alagha and his son Omar who escaped from Gaza after they arrived in Dublin Airport. Picture: Gerry Mooney Irish-Palestinian man Ibrahim Alagha has spoken about the heartbreaking moment his son was given water for the first time since the family made their way out of Gaza. Mr Alagha, from Blanchardstown, shared updates of daily life as the family were trapped for 40 days under Israeli bombardment was speaking in an interview with Virgin Media Television at home with his wife Hamida, and their three young children Sami, Omar and Eileen. He thanked the Irish public for their support and for lobbying politicians to get Irish citizens out of Gaza. Mr Alagha tearfully recalled the moment his family finally passed through the Rafah Crossing into Egypt, where they were met by an Irish diplomat who gave them food and water after rationing food and water for weeks. Ibrahim Alagha who escaped from Gaza in the comforting arms of his mother Marwa after he arrived in Dublin Airport . Picture; Gerry Mooney Mr Alagha said: There was this moment that touched my heart... I gave my son water to drink. He drank it and he asked me 'am I allowed to drink more?' because there were rules in the house, he was not allowed to drink more than a small bit. He asked me could he drink more, I said 'of course, drink as much as you want'. That moment. Oh my god." The family were among about 30 people who returned from Gaza on a flight from Egypt to Dublin on Saturday evening. They were among 90 people sheltering in his parents farmhouse in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis. Speaking about whether he thought his family would survive the war, Mr Alagha added: A lot of nights, especially the days when communications were cut off and Khan Younis were heavily targeted, honestly I was thinking I would never make it to the next day. There's some prayers that we say, I used to say them every single night. "I used to get all my family hugging each other and staying together. The feeling was that we either die together or live together. That was very important to me. I wanted all of us to be together." And speaking about the impact of the war on his children: "My son Sami is the most affected. We call it 'scare shocks'. "Some nights he [Sami, 8] was crying, he had a lot of nightmares... Usually, when there are a lot of bombings, we open the window a little bit so it doesn't break the windows. "He saw that and got really scared of windows. He will always stay away from windows. Always. "There was a story about a house that was beside an air-strike target. The main door was jammed. There was a fire and they couldn't get out of the house. "He was obsessed with keeping the door open. If we closed the door, he'd say 'no! no!'" Ibrahim Alagha and his son Omar who escaped from Gaza after they arrived in Dublin Airport. Picture: Gerry Mooney Mr Alagha said the experience has been the strangest of his life. "The last couple of days, I think, is the strangest thing that could happen to anyone, he said Being in a situation where you feel you're going to be killed at any time. "You don't have water, you don't have food, nothing... Now we are here in Ireland. The love that I saw from the people and the demonstration with all the people showing up. Amazing, amazing feeling. This is a week I'm never going to forget in my life." And he thanked the Irish people for their support and keeping up pressure to get Irish citizens home safely. "It's really nice to feel the love of people towards you. People that we never knew, even if we met on the street, we might not know each other, he said. But knowing that people care. That's a really nice feeling. I really wish I could thank every one of them. I think without their support, we maybe wouldn't have seen this day happening... There was a lot of pressure, and I felt that, from all sides about us people in Gaza. "I think it pushed the Government to put all its weight in to try and do that. Thank God it did." However, he has fears for his loved ones left behind. "We're really happy we're out. But on the other side, there are a lot of people I know I'm not going to see again, he said. A lot of them. When we were saying goodbye to each other, we didn't talk but we looked at each other. I felt there was a connection... a lot of words going between our eyes. "I had this feeling that they were wishing they could be in our position; or that I could do anything for them when I'm out to take them out of this too... Every day I wake up and I see new people killed. "Some of them I just saw days before the war. Some people I had daily contact with, just passing away. "It's this feeling whenever you see someone (in Gaza): 'am I going to see him again?'... If I see someone, I might just say goodbye to him because I might not see him again." The idea of there being a Sinn Fein justice minister or foreign affairs minister or defence minister is repugnant to me Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said the thought of Sinn Fein holding the justice portfolio is highly distubing and repugnant to him. Speaking to The Week in Politics on RTE, Mr Varadkar described the prospect of a Sinn Fein justice minister as a highly disturbing prospect this afternoon. The idea of there being a Sinn Fein justice minister or foreign affairs minister or defence minister is repugnant to me, he added. Theres a lot of people talking about some of the of the horrific things that are happening in the Middle East. We have in Sinn Fein a party that will not acknowledge war crimes that may have happened in this country, and they [the crimes] still need to be investigated and those people need to be brought to justice and the families need to get the answers and justice that they need and that wouldnt happen under Sinn Fein. In a wide-ranging interview, the Fine Gael leader also addressed irregular migration. Mr Varadkar said he is really proud that Ireland has welcomed over 100,000 Ukrainian people into the country and while emphasising that migration is a good thing, he said slow the flow. I do think we need to slow the flow. Migration is a good thing for Ireland, I dont want anyone to misunderstand me in that regard. There is only so many additional people that any country can manage in any given year, so I think when it comes to people who are coming to Ireland for economic reasons, we control it in terms of the number of work permits and work visas we issue and we do that already. When it comes to irregular migration, thats people coming from Ukraine or people seeking international protection, I think one of the things we have to do and we have to be honest with each other about this is to make sure that what we offer in terms of accommodation, in terms of work, in terms of money, is similar to what is offered [in other countries]. Mr Varadkar said he can understand some frustration but added: There is no way to stop people arriving in our country. No country has managed to do that, even countries with hard right governments, anti-immigration governments, have managed to stop irregular migration. He said it is really important to secure the external borders around the European Union and have better border controls at airports. Mr Varadkar added it was really good to see passengers asked for their passports as they disembarked an airplane following his recent flight from Helsinki. I was delighted to see somebody checking for passports as you came off the plane, people not getting the opportunity to destroy documents. Really good to see that too. Mr Varadkar said the country must align with other countries, adding: We must look at what is being offered, for example, in the UK, whats being offered in France, whats being offered in the Netherlands. All this while driving with one hand and brandishing an Israeli badge. Translink said it has launched an investigation after reports that a Metro bus driver shouted bomb Palestinians while driving in Belfast city centre this afternoon. Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, local documentary-maker Sean Murray alleged that at 1.53pm, a driver shouted out of the bus to bomb Palestinians as he drove past Belfast City Hall. All this while driving with one hand and brandishing an Israeli badge. In response, the public transport provider stated: We are taking these allegations seriously and we have launched an investigation. The safety of our customers, staff and the wider public is our top priority at all times and we expect all our staff to deal with the public, passengers and colleagues in a friendly, helpful and professional manner at all times. Our investigation will include a review of CCTV footage. The claims come following a rally in Belfast on Saturday which heard calls for consumers to boycott companies with investments or links to Israel over the war in Gaza. More than 3,000 people gathered at Writers Square in the shadow of St Annes Cathedral on Saturday before marching to the headquarters of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO). As protesters gathered for speeches prior to the march, leaflets were handed out among the crowd with the logos of companies which organisers were encouraging those present to boycott. Some of the crowd at Writer's Square in Belfast They included multi-national firms like McDonalds, Puma, Hewlett Packard, Axa and Dominos. More than 11,400 Palestinians have been killed in the war, two-thirds of them women and children, according to Palestinian health authorities, as Israel bombards the small strip of land which is home to more than 2.2 million people. The war, now in its seventh week, was triggered by Hamas October 7 attack in southern Israel, in which gunmen killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted some 240 men, women and children. Dr Clare Kambamettu has confided to friends she does not intend moving in with Tubridy yet as she helps care for her mum in Ireland. Ryan Tubridys new girlfriend has told pals she intends flying back and forth between Ireland and London to see the broadcaster in his new base in the British capital. Dr Clare Kambamettu has confided to friends she does not intend moving in with Tubridy yet as she helps care for her mum in Ireland. Clare is currently living with her mum in the Athy area of Co. Kildare, reveals a close source. Her father is from India and her mother from Athy, and the family have been living there since Clare was aged eight. Brainy Clare (39) was by Tubs side when they made their first public appearance together as a couple, when they attended the Irish Post awards in London last Thursday week. They told people they were staying in the Islington area during their visit, recalls a party guest who spoke to them at the bash. While Ryan said he liked Islington, he said he was open to other options such as locating in Putney. His new Virgin Radio station HQ is at London Bridge Street, which is closer to Islington than Putney, but he has yet to fully decide where he will set up his base. Clare who was previously spotted this summer jogging with Ryan near his Dublin home in Monkstown and also hanging out with him at his hideaway in Connemara will be able to give him tips on life in London as she lived there for several years. So much so, that the clinical psychologist trained in the English capital and later won the London Rose pageant in 2010. Daithi O Se was the presenter of that years Rose of Tralee pageant, which Clare went on to win. Ray DArcy hosted the pageant in 2005 at which Aoibhinn Ni Shuilleabhain won, and four years later went on to date Tubridy. The Mayo woman has other similarities to Clare as in not only are they both Rose winners, but the pair are also doctors (Aoibhinn in Maths, Clare in psychology as well as both being broadcasters). Ryan (50) and Aoibhinn split in 2014 after a five-year relationship she went on to marry Carlos Diaz in 2017 and the couple have two children. Having dated one Rose of Tralee winner it was perhaps on the cards Tubss interest was piqued in March when he had Clare on his radio show to discuss the benefits of manifestation. Ryan himself is a former Rose of Tralee presenter, having hosted the bash in 2003 and 2004. Clare has also dipped her toe into the world of broadcasting, having been a co-presenter of The Eco Eye from 2020 until it was axed earlier this year. Ryan was previously married to broadcaster Anne Marie Power, who is the mother of his two daughters Ella and Julia. While Tubs may be celebrating his move to Virgin Radio in London which despite his glitzy arrival its considered a poor relation to the likes of bigger players in London like BBC Radio 1 and 2, Capital and Heart his move will also lead to the axing or shifting of two DJs both there and in Dublin. Dublin radio station Q102 has announced they will broadcast Tubss Virgin show from 10am until 1pm on their station. That means DJ Andy Preston, who has worked under the motto of providing feel good music, great prizes and big laughs!, will make way for the RTE star. Similarly at Virgin, long-standing DJ Eddy Temple-Morris will have to depart a slot he has had for over five years. Tubs will also present a dedicated Irish weekend show across Dublins Q102, Corks 96FM, Live 95 in Limerick and LMFM. Like Virgin Radio, the Irish stations are all part of Rupert Murdochs Wireless group. Murdoch also owns the British-managed Irish Sun, to which Tubridy went tellingly running with his first interview since he left RTE. While Evans gets a mouth-watering 2 million (2.28 million) a year the average pay of a DJ on Virgin in the UK is said to be between 100,000 and 150,000 when Tubs left RTE he was on a salary of over 500,00, having hit a height in 2012 of 752,000. He had been due to return to his hour-long morning radio show for a salary of 170,00, before being given by bullet by RTE Director General Kevin Bakhurst. The former Late Late Show presenter is set to turn on the Christmas lights in Clifden, Co Galway next Friday, the same night the Toy Show will be screened with Patrick Kielty as host. Tubs has links to the town as his cousins own a hotel there, and he owns a pad nearby. He is due to start his new job in London on Monday, January 4, having already been taken under his win by Chris Evans, who presents the morning show on Virgin Radio and for whom he stood-in for on his BBC Radio 2 show several years ago (he did similarly for Terry Wogan, Ken Bruce and Simon Mayo). His move to London follows his exit from The Late Late Show earlier this year after 14 years at the helm, before the Renault car payments top-up scandal emerged, with Tubridy and his agent Noel Kelly forced to appear before Dail committees to explain their dealings with RTE. But all that is in the past now, with Tubridy admitting RTE is now in the rear-view mirror. I couldnt be more excited to start this new chapter with Virgin Radio. New city, new station, new beginnings, he beamed. I love radio and what a joy to be following the legendary Chris Evans every morning! Its been a pleasure getting to know my new friends at Virgin Radio, all of whom have been warm, engaging and very entertaining. And big thanks to the London Irish who have made me feel so welcome in recent weeks. On a personal note, this is a big day for my wonderful family who I hope to make proud, and also the people who advised me so well recently and got me to this moment. To the listeners, wherever they might be, I urge you to join us on this adventure every weekday morning, there is much fun to be had! Police are praising a school group for keeping calm and doing all the right things after getting lost in bush in Western Bay of Plenty this last week. Fourteen children, two teachers and four parents from Waihi Beach Primary School were exploring the Te Puna Quarry Park in the Whakamarama area when they realised they had followed indicators that marked traps, not a path. Instead of continuing walking, the group made the right decision to stay put and called Police at 12.50pm. "In cases like this, Police send a mobile locate text, which requests a persons GPS location; the request was sent to a parent helper and allowed their GPS location and pictures from where the group was to be sent to Police and relayed to staff on the ground," says Senior Sergeant Shannon Clifford. Police and Search and Rescue headed to the scene and escorted the group out of the bush without incident. Police say the actions of the adults and children during this unexpected event were commendable. "The quick thinking of adults allowed for the speedy rescue of the group from the bush and prevented the situation becoming any worse. "This situation shows why its so important to take a fully charged form of communication with you if you head into the bush." The group also brought food, water and appropriate clothing, and had communicated their intentions and spoken with the park staff about the visit. "[These are] key safety measures that we urge anyone heading on walks or tramps to follow." More information for adventure can be found online here - www.landsar.org.nz/prevent Bay of Plenty Do you want to work for one of the most well respected contractors in the business? Work on one of the most exciting long... View or Apply on GoodWork.co.nz Key Insights Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Parker-Hannifin fair value estimate is US$568 Parker-Hannifin is estimated to be 24% undervalued based on current share price of US$433 Our fair value estimate is 25% higher than Parker-Hannifin's analyst price target of US$456 Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today's value. This will be done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in the Simply Wall St analysis model. See our latest analysis for Parker-Hannifin What's The Estimated Valuation? We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value: 10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$2.98b US$3.33b US$3.74b US$4.16b US$4.40b US$4.59b US$4.76b US$4.92b US$5.06b US$5.20b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x8 Analyst x9 Analyst x5 Analyst x2 Analyst x1 Est @ 4.30% Est @ 3.68% Est @ 3.24% Est @ 2.93% Est @ 2.72% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 7.8% US$2.8k US$2.9k US$3.0k US$3.1k US$3.0k US$2.9k US$2.8k US$2.7k US$2.6k US$2.4k ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$28b Story continues The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after 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 (2.2%) 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 7.8%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033 (1 + g) (r g) = US$5.2b (1 + 2.2%) (7.8% 2.2%) = US$95b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$95b ( 1 + 7.8%)10= US$45b The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is US$73b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of US$433, the company appears a touch undervalued at a 24% 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 The Assumptions Now 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 Parker-Hannifin 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 7.8%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.118. 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 Parker-Hannifin Strength Earnings growth over the past year exceeded the industry. Debt is well covered by earnings and cashflows. Dividends are covered by earnings and cash flows. Weakness Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Machinery market. Opportunity Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years. Trading below our estimate of fair value by more than 20%. Threat Annual earnings are 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 shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching 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. Can we work out why the company is trading at a discount to intrinsic value? For Parker-Hannifin, we've put together three important factors you should further examine: Risks: For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Parker-Hannifin that you should be aware of before investing here. Management:Have insiders been ramping up their shares to take advantage of the market's sentiment for PH's future outlook? Check out our management and board analysis with insights on CEO compensation and governance factors. 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 American 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. There are no reported injuries following a truck crash on State Highway 29 on Sunday afternoon. Police were notified of a small truck that had crashed and rolled on SH 29, Te Poi around 12.40pm. A SunLive reader at the scene says the white Toyota Dyna truck was lying on its side. Police say the westbound lane was blocked until around 1.15pm. "There were no reported injuries," say a police spokesperson. At the scene? Phone 0800SUNLIVE or email newsroom@thesun.co.nz A customer of more than a decade is finding elsewhere to get their cinema fix due to the paid parking charges in Downtown Tauranga. Two weeks ago Mount Maunganui resident Carol Etherington wrote to The Weekend Suns editor announcing that enough is enough with the paid parking in CBD. Catching up with Carol, she says it was midday on a Tuesday last month when she saw an unusually long movie at Rialto Cinemas, and paid $12 to cover her parking. Thats just $2 less than her $14 seniors movie ticket cost. A classy spot Ive been going to the Rialto Cinema Id say for 12 years, says Carol . I dont go anymore because of the parking, but I used to go about three times a week. She describes the Rialto Cinema as a lovely place to watch a movie. Its an arthouse cinema and I think its classy to have [that]you can see nice movies, Italian Film Festivals, French Film Festivals, and all of those more cultured movies and operas. When the paid parking charges came into effect in the CBD last year, Carol says shed strategically choose movies less than two hours putting in $4 at the parking metre. I mean Ive had both knees replaced, and its not easy for me to run back to the caryou just get in [the cinema] and you get out so you can get back to your car, and not incur a parking fine. So you know, the poor Rialto its suffering. I would like to sit and have lunch, and meet somebody before a movie but thats impossible now. Carol says instead she will be going to Tivoli Cinema Papamoa to curb the CBDs paid parking charges. Ill be driving a little further to Papamoa and enjoy a movie plus free parking. Destination cinema In response, The Weekend Sun reached out to Rialto Cinema, to see how the business has been faring since the reintroduction of paid parking last year. The biggest effect is on our staff, says Rod Taylor, who took over ownership of the cinema three months ago. Theyre really struggling. Theyre not overly high paid people, so having to pay for parking is certainly effecting them. With the likes of cinemas located at Bayfair and Tauranga Crossing with free parking, Rod says he hopes customers see his business as a destination cinema. Weve got a slightly different market and we do a lot more arthouse-type movies, but yeah it does make it difficult [to compete], but Im not quite sure what the solution is. Enticing customers Carol says when she lived in Canberra cinema customers could validate their parking and receive a discount. She suggests the same should happen in the CBD. Support the cinemas. Give them half-price parking or something like that. The Sun asked Tauranga City Council whether it would consider such an incentive to encourage people to the city. TCC parking strategy manager Reece Wilkinson says: There are no current plans for council to offer parking discounts for people visiting the Rialto Cinema or any other city centre business as ultimately that cost burden would sit with the ratepayer and we dont feel that is the best use of ratepayer money right now. Nonetheless, Rod says hes here to stay with the Rialto Cinema and has a positive outlook for his business, which is currently getting a makeover. Im pretty keen to help retail and put my money where my mouth is, so although Tauranga is struggling right at that moment I can see the signs of growth, says Rod. Were here for the long-term and we want to be here when the city comes back to life, which I think it will do. Its astounding, time is fleeting, madness takes its toll It is 50 years since The Rocky Horror Show premiered at the Royal Court Theatre in London. A cult hit on stage and screen, it has proven ridiculously popular with every generation since. Indeed, it has been claimed Rocky Horror is the longest running contemporary stage musical in the world, seen by 30 million people in more than 30 countries. Not bad for a boy from Tauranga. This month its creator Richard OBrien, now aged a right royal 81, celebrates that 50th by premiering a brand new play. Kingdom of Bling is a satirical fairy-tale starring OBrien as narrator. It features giants, a menacing fox, trolls, and the king of the land - the obnoxious He. The new play is set in "a time of confusion, when so many madly strange beliefs collided. A time when kindness had been demonised, while crafty blindness wined and dined in a world it had divided." The work reflects O'Brien's concern about the "poisoned chalice that far-right-fundamentalism is loudly offering up". "The world cannot afford to have Donald Trump regain the White House. It's too dangerous, Western democracy will come to an end and we'll usher in a dystopian future," he says. However, OBriens principal aim for the play is raising money for a good cause - Starship Childrens Hospital in Auckland - while having a lot of fun doing it. He has even donated the rights for Kingdom of Bling to the hospital. He hopes Kingdom of Bling will also get turned into an animated movie. When it opens in Tauranga this month, the new play will include performances by students from Tauranga Primary and Tauranga Boys College - the schools O'Brien attended and where he first trod the boards. O'Brien is pleased his old school has finally embraced him. "They've put their arm around me. "It's a generation late, but the generations before were a bit loathe to embrace me, because I'd been a little poofy chap, who they caned regularly. "Then when Rocky came... it does come with its baggage for people in the world of education. But we've got past that, because everybody realises it's a kind of satire itself." Speaking to Culture 101s Mark Amery about his favourite cultural memories growing up in the Bay of Plenty and Waikato, O'Brien recalls the advent of rock 'n roll and the waves of musical creativity that rippled out around the world. Back in the the late 1950s and early 1960s, O'Brien sang in a band, The Four Fours, while his brother, Rob Smith, played saxophone. Rock 'n roll was among the inspirations that prompted O'Brien to write The Rocky Horror Show in the early 1970s. Looking back, he says the longevity of Rocky Horror has been a surprise. "It was written in a boy's bedroom. It was written with a crayon," he laughs. In reality, O'Brien penned the musical while in his early thirties - and he's still asked to perform the Time Warp again 50 years on. Kingdom of Bling premieres at Baycourt Theatre in Tauranga on 24 and 25 November. SunLive has two double passes to give away two lucky readers. Enter here. Entries must be received by Thursday, November 23. -RNZ. Nuria Triguero Malaga Sunday, 19 November 2023, 19:38 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram The Junta region government has announced a raft of new measures to help turn Andalucia into the "audiovisual capital of Southern Europe". It's a sector that's already caught of the eye of regional authorities after generating 141 million euros and growing by 20% both in turnover and employment. Last year Malaga played host to 257 filming shoots, triple the previous year. Minister of presidency Antonio Sanz announced three new measures to support the sector at the opening of the congress 4K HDR conference in Malaga, which brought together technology companies and audiovisual content creators to discuss the latest advances in ultra high definition. Among the measures is an"audiovisual one-stop shop". It will aim to make it easier for directors and filming agencies to hire minors under the age of 16, record in coastal areas and at sites with historical cultural heritage, Sanz announced. The Junta will also launch "an action plan" to promote the video game industry and the Andalusian Audiovisual Innovation Awards. The regional government believes this investment will give wings to an industry that has a competitive edge in Andalucia than other areas of southern Europe, and the world. "We have natural advantages such as being the region with more hours of sunshine, and therefore of recording, almost an hour away is the snow, the desert, the pastures, the coast and a cultural heritage unmatched in the world," Sanz said. "If we add to that other competitive advantages apart from the natural ones, such as financial investment, the one-stop shop at the service of the audiovisual industry and a very powerful training plan, in addition to cooperation between Andalusian companies through Land, the new Audiovisual Cluster of Andalusia, Andalucia becomes the place with more competitive advantages for the audiovisual industry," he added. 4K HDR conference The ninth 4K HDR conference highlighted key advances in technology and brought together influential companies in the sector. Organiser of the event, Ricardo Medina, CEO of Medina Media Events said the event was an "exchange of ideas and knowledge about the state of the art of 4K" - a technology that offers maximum quality to the viewer and with which the world's main producers are already using. Irene Quirante Malaga Sunday, 19 November 2023, 19:18 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram A man who stabbed his sleeping father to death and then stole cash from a safe inside their home has been sentenced to 23 years' prison in Malaga. The man, who lived with his 89-year-old father, grabbed a knife from the kitchen and went to the victim's bedroom "with the firm intention of ending his life" overnight on 2 August 2021, the Provincial Court of Malaga heard. He then stabbed his father 11 times and snatched a golden chain from his neck with a key to a safe inside their house that had 5,000 euros inside. The victim died at the scene. The son then fled, leaving the murder weapon on the bedside table. According to the court judgement, the man's son planned to flee to the Netherlands, but was arrested three days after committing the crime when National Police found him hiding out at a house. Officers discovered he had 2,250 euros in cash on him, which had belonged to his father. The man was sentenced to 23 years behind bars. He has also been ordered to pay 50,000 euros compensation to each of his five siblings. Susana Zamora Malaga Sunday, 19 November 2023 | Updated 20/11/2023 09:01h. Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram Three teachers from Malaga have been shortlisted as finalists at the prestigious Best Teacher of Spain awards this year. The 10 finalists of each six categories were announced this Wednesday following suggestions from students on who should be named the country's best teacher for 2023. Teaching quality and student satisfaction, research and knowledge, training, teaching of values, and innovation will all be considered. From Malaga, Patricia Santos Campos from IES Profesor Isidoro Sanchez and Noemi Zambrana Dominguez from IES Vega de Mijas were both shortlisted as finalists in the Best VET Teacher in Spain category. Maria Garcia Vinolo from Espacio Educativo Meraki was named as a finalist in the non-formal education category. It's Garcia Vinolo and Zambrana Dominguez's second nomination and Santos' third, who was previously elected twice as the Best VET Teacher in Spain. She said: "Awards are always a bonus and we can never lose sight of the fact that our students always come first. Our prize is when we manage to get them excited and to guide them when they are not clear about their objectives; when they do a vocational training degree and go with their head held high". "Being a finalist is already something very big, because there is a group of teachers who have valued my work and that is something to be very grateful for," Santos added. The teacher of the higher degree of styling, hairdressing and professional makeup said her teaching technique is to present real industry problems to her students. "At the beginning of the course, students are presented with a professional problem and throughout the course they have to research to find solutions," Santos said. During the 2022-23 course, she arranged a visit to The Makeup Academy in New York, where her students attended an eight-day masterclass with top professionals, some of them regulars on renowned fashion runways such as New York Fashion Week. Meanwhile, Maria Garcia Vinolo from Espacio Educativo Meraki, who holds a degree in primary education teaching said she likes to contribute more to students outside the classroom. She gives private lessons, and at first just started off as a way to earn extra money during university, but it has now become her career. In 2019 she became self-employed and set up her own academy. She set up her grandmother's garage in Churriana in Malaga city to start her project and four years later she is still there. In her first year, she started giving lessons to 15 children, that has now grown to 100. "I did not expect it (the nomination)," she said, who teaches students from kindergarten to high school with a methodology that involves board games. Noemi Zambrana Dominguez, from IES Vega de Mijas, said her nomination was already just as rewarding as the top gong. "To think that students dedicate part of their time to speak well of you is such a shot of energy," Zambrana said, who this year teaches students about tourism and event management. Whilst also being a stickler for including board games in her teaching, Zambrana Dominguez also encourages her students to take up volunteer work. During class breaks, her students would set up a charity market with objects such as clothes, toys and books. "The money they obtained (360 euros) was donated to Donkey Dreamland and the material that was not sold, valued at 400 euros, was also given to Cudeca," she said. "I thought the project would not catch on, because young people value their free time, but the response was great." Origin of the contest The awards are an initiative of the Educa organisation, a platform formed by teachers from different educational levels and promotes the improvement of education. The ten finalists will receive a diploma and a statuette that will be awarded at a special gala in 2024, during the celebration of the fourth World Education conference on February 24 in Santiago de Compostela. (Bloomberg) -- Israel released video it says proves its assertion of a Hamas tunnel beneath Gazas Al-Shifa hospital, which the military raided last week amid broad international criticism. The footage shows a shaft to a fortified tunnel that the military said is 10 meters (33 feet) deep and 55 meters long leading to a blast-proof door. Most Read from Bloomberg A deal for Hamas to release hostages taken during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel may be the closest yet and would require a multiday pause in the fighting, US Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said. Israels government said on Sunday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen hijacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea, endangering a key global shipping route. The Palestinian death toll in Gaza has surpassed 13,000, Hamas said. For more stories on the Israel-Hamas war, click here. (All times are Israeli time) Biden Says Ill Tell You When Hostages Out (11:57 p.m.) President Joe Biden said Sunday he isnt in a position to comment on negotiations for Hamas to release hostages, then added: I want to make sure theyre out and then Ill tell you. Biden made the brief comment to reporters while arriving at a military base in Norfolk, Virginia, to meet with US service members. Israeli Cabinet Expected to Discuss Hostage Deal, Ynet Says (10:28 p.m.) Israels cabinet is expected to discuss negotiations to free hostages held by Hamas, Ynet reported. Prior to the Sunday night meeting, Defense Minister Yoav Gallants office released photographs of him surrounded by officials involved in the negotiations, including the head of the Mossad intelligence agency, the news website said. An Israeli official said that a deal isnt expected today, Ynet reported. Story continues Hamas Chief Returns to Hostage Talks, Axios Reports (9:42 p.m.) Hamass leader, Yahya Sinwar, has re-engaged in talks on a hostage release, Axios reported. Hes agreed in principle to increase the number of women and children to be freed to more than 50, Axios said, citing three unnamed sources. Sinwar wants in return the release of all Palestinian women and children in Israeli prisons and a six-hour daily halt in Israeli aerial surveillance of Gaza during a pause in fighting. Axios quoted two of the sources as saying that Qatari mediators have narrowed the differences but not enough for a deal. Israel Says Hostage Was Killed in Shifa Hospital Complex (9:10 p.m.) An Israeli hostage, whose body was recovered a few days ago in Gaza, was taken alive by Hamas to Shifa Hospital and killed there, Israel Defense Forces Spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a press briefing. Hagari also presented camera footage that showed that two non-Israeli hostages, a Nepali and a Thai, were taken to Shifa Hospital by gunmen on Oct. 7. An additional photograph showed that an Israeli military vehicle that was stolen during the attack was taken to Shifa Hospital. These findings add to previous evidence presented regarding Hamas use of the hospital area as infrastructure for its terrorist activities in a systematic and ongoing manner, the IDF said. Palestinian Death Toll Rises Above 13,000, Hamas Says (8:30 p.m.) The Palestinian death toll in Gaza has surpassed 13,000, the Hamas-run government media office said. More than 5,500 children are among the dead and more than 6,000 people are reported missing or trapped under rubble. Injuries exceed 30,000. Israel Says It Arrested Over 100 Hamas Operatives in Gaza (8:02 p.m.) Israeli troops have arrested more than 100 Hamas operatives in Gaza and transferred them to Israel for questioning, the military said. Three took part in the Oct. 7 massacre. The Hamas militants disclosed the locations of underground tunnels, storage compounds and weaponry, as well as operating methods used by the organization. Israel Says Iran-Backed Rebels Seize Cargo Ship (7:57 p.m.) Israels government said on Sunday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen hijacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea, endangering a key global shipping route. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office condemned the seizure of what it said was a vessel owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese firm, without naming either of those. The vessel, named Galaxy Leader, is owned by Israeli businessman Rami Ungar, according to a person familiar with the matter. It is registered in the UK. Israeli Army Says It Uncovered Fortified Tunnel Under Al-Shifa Hospital (7 p.m.) Israel said it has exposed a 10-meter deep, 55-meter-long fortified tunnel underneath the Shifa hospital complex. The Israel Defense Forces released a video showing a deep staircase leading to the entrance to the tunnel shaft. The tunnel leads to a blast-proof door with a firing hole. This type of door is used by Hamas to block Israeli forces from entering the command centers and the underground assets belonging to Hamas, the military said. Forces are continuing to uncover the route of the tunnel, it said. The tunnel shaft was uncovered in the area of the hospital under a shed alongside a vehicle containing numerous weapons including RPGs, explosives and Kalashnikov rifles, the IDF said. Hostage Deal is Closer, Biden Aide Says (4 p.m.) An agreement for Hamas to release hostages taken during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel may be the closest yet and would require a multiday pause in the fighting in Gaza, US Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said. Read more: Deal to Free Hamas Hostages Has Gotten Closer, Biden Aide Says UNRWA Estimates Gaza Needs 160,000 Liters of Fuel Daily (2 p.m.) Gaza needs 160,000 liters (42,000 gallons) of fuel daily to maintain a reasonable level of humanitarian services, said Adnan Abu Hassna, United Nations Relief and Works Agency spokesman. The fuel is needed for water desalination, sewage treatment plants, wells and hospitals, as well as hundreds of vehicles for UNRWAs operations. Israel said it would allow entry of nearly 70,000 liters of fuel per day, according to OCHA. Hundreds of Gaza Cancer Patients Will Head to Turkey (1:35 p.m.) Some 351 cancer patients in Gaza will travel to Turkey to resume treatment, the Hamas-run health ministry said. The patients had been receiving treatment at the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, the only oncology hospital in Gaza, which was shut down shortly after the start of Israels ground assault. Meanwhile, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said it evacuated 31 premature babies from Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza in coordination with the World Health Organization and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Theyll be transferred to a UAE-run hospital in the Egyptian border city of Rafah. Irans Khamenei Repeats Call to Isolate Israel (12:35 p.m.) Irans Supreme Leader urged Muslim countries to cut off diplomatic ties with Israel at least for a limited time. Some Muslim states have ostensibly condemned Israel in conventions and some havent, but this is unacceptable, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Sunday, according to his Telegram account. The principal task is to cut off Israels lifelines, and Muslim governments must stop the supply of energy and goods to this regime. Qatar Sees Good Progress in Reaching a Hostage Deal (11:36 a.m.) Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said theres been good progress in the past few days on reaching an agreement between Israel and Hamas to release hostages. Al Thani, whos also the foreign minister, said hes more confident about sealing a deal, with the remaining challenges practical and logistical. He spoke at a joint press conference with European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell. Israel Says It Raids Residences of Senior Hamas Officials in Gaza (11 a.m.) Israeli paratroopers and other forces operated in the Sheikh Ijlin and Rimal areas of northern Gaza in order to identify and destroy Hamas infrastructure and assets, the defense force said in an operational update. The soldiers located approximately 35 tunnel shafts as well as a large number of weapons and eliminated terrorists, according to the update. Embedded in the Rimal area are the residences of senior Hamas officials. The troops also located a military base belonging to Hamass military intelligence unit, as well as ammunition depots and seven rocket launchers. Israels claims cant be independently verified. Israeli Forces Engage Enemies in North and South (9 a.m.) Israels air, sea and land forces fought enemies on two fronts early Sunday, destroying infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah in Lebanon and that of Hamas in Gaza, the military said. Air-raid sirens blared in Israels southern and northern towns, while mortar shell launches from Lebanon fell in open areas. Hezbollah said it attacked two Israeli sites, the Iran-backed militant groups Al Manar TV reported. About 2,500 People Vacated Al Shifa Hospital, OCHA Says (3:11 a.m.) Some 2,500 internally displaced persons, along with patients and staff, vacated Gazas Al Shifa Hospital on Nov. 18, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said. That followed orders from Israels military, which continued its operations within the compound for a fourth consecutive day, OCHA said. About 123,000 liters of fuel entered Gaza from Egypt on Nov. 18, according to the UN agency. Israel said it would allow entry of nearly 70,000 liters of fuel per day, which is well below the minimum requirements for essential humanitarian operations, according to OCHA. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2023 Bloomberg L.P. Current Print Subscribers will be prompted to either login to their current site user account or to create a new one. A confirmation email will be sent when a new user account is created, which must be confirmed within three days in order to provide uninterrupted online access through your Print Subscription. Once the email address is confirmed please provide your Account Number to activate your Print Subscription Service. Syracuse, N.Y. -- Police are looking for the scene of a shooting Saturday after a man arrived at a local hospital with a gunshot wound. Around 7:38 a.m., a 28-year-old man arrived at Upstate University Hospital with a gunshot wound to the knee, according to a news release from Syracuse police. The injury did not appear to be life-threatening, police said. Donald Trump returned to the U.S.-Mexico border for a visit Sunday and was endorsed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas as the former president campaigns on a hard-line immigration agenda that would be far more expansive than the policies he pursued during his first term in the White House. We need a president whos going to secure the border, Abbott, a longtime ally and fellow border hawk, told a crowd of about 150 at an airport hangar in Edinburg. We need Donald J. Trump back as our president of the United States of America. Trump, the partys front-runner for the 2024 nomination, took the stage afterward and thanked Abbott, saying that in defeating Democratic President Joe Biden next year, Im going to make your job much easier. Youll be able to focus on other things in Texas, Trump said, speaking in a town that is about 30 miles from the Hidalgo Port of Entry crossing with Mexico. Earlier, he served meals to Texas National Guard soldiers, troopers and others who will be stationed at the border over Thanksgiving. Trump and Abbott handed out tacos, and the former president shook hands and posed for pictures. What you do is incredible, and you want it to be done right, Trump told them. Abbott said about the Guard members and Texas troopers who are stationed at the border: They should not be here at this time. They should be at home. He said that the only reason why they are here is because we have a president of the United States of America who is not securing our border. Trump has been laying out immigration proposals that would mark a dramatic escalation of the approach he used in office and that drew alarms from civil rights activists and numerous court challenges. On my first day back in the White House, I will terminate every open-borders policy of the Biden administration. I will stop the invasion on our southern border and begin the largest domestic deportation operation in American history, he said in Iowa Saturday. He also wants to: revive and expand his controversial travel ban, which initially targeted seven Muslim-majority countries. Trumps initial executive order was fought all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld what Trump complained was a watered down version that included travelers from North Korea and some Venezuelan officials. begin new ideological screening for all immigrants, aiming to bar Christian-hating communists and Marxists and dangerous lunatics, haters, bigots and maniacs from entering the United States. Those who come to and join our country must love our country, he has said. bar those who support Hamas. If you empathize with radical Islamic terrorists and extremists, youre disqualified, Trump says. If you want to abolish the state of Israel, youre disqualified. If you support Hamas or any ideology thats having to do with that or any of the other really sick thoughts that go through peoples minds very dangerous thoughts youre disqualified. deport immigrants living in the country who harbor jihadist sympathies and send immigration agents to pro-jihadist demonstrations to identify violators. He would target foreign nationals on college campuses and revoke the student visas of those who express anti-American or antisemitic views. invoke the Alien Enemies Act to to remove from the United States all known or suspected gang members and drug dealers. That law was used to justify internment camps in World War II. It allows the president to unilaterally detain and deport people who are not U.S. citizens. end the constitutional right to birthright citizenship by signing an executive order his first day in office that would codify a legally untested reinterpretation of the 14th Amendment. Under his order, only children with at least one U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident parent would be eligible for a passport, Social Security number and other benefits. terminate all work permits and cut off funding for shelter and transportation for people who are in the country illegally. build more of the wall along the border, crack down on legal asylum-seekers and reimplement measures such as Title 42, which allowed Trump to turn away immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border on the grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19. press Congress to pass a law so anyone caught trafficking women or children would receive the death penalty. shift federal law enforcement agents, including FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration personnel, to immigration enforcement, and reposition at the southern border thousands of troops currently stationed overseas. Before we defend the borders of foreign countries we must secure the border of our country, he said said. Trump has made frequent trips to the border as a candidate and president. During his 2016 campaign, he traveled to Laredo, Texas in July 2015 for a visit that highlighted how his views on immigration helped him win media attention and support from the GOP base. The border has also become a centerpiece of Abbotts agenda and the subject of an escalating fight with the Biden administration over immigration. The three-term governor has approved billions of dollars in new border wall construction, authorized razor wire on the banks of the Rio Grande and bused thousands of migrants to Democrat-led cities across the United States. Abbott is expected to soon sign what would be one of Texas most aggressive measures to date: a law that allows police officers to arrest migrants suspected of entering the country illegally and empowers judges to effectively deport them. The measure is a dramatic challenge to the U.S. governments authority over immigration. It already has already drawn rebuke from Mexico. Still, the Texas GOPs hard right has not always embraced Abbott. Trump posted on his social media platform earlier this year that the governor was MISSING IN ACTION! after Republicans voted to impeach Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Trump ally. Abbott was also booed at a 2022 Trump rally. But Abbotts navigation within the GOP has built him broad support in Texas, where he has outperformed more strident Republicans down-ballot and helped the GOP make crucial inroads with Hispanic voters. Democrats tried to use the trip to portray Trumps plans as extreme. Donald Trump is going after immigrants, our rights our safety and our democracy. And that is what really is on the ballot last year, Biden reelection campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said on a conference call with reporters. Pollings show many voters arent satisfied with the Biden administrations handling of the border. A Marquette Law School poll of registered voters conducted in late September gave Trump a 24-point advantage over Biden on handling immigration and border security issues 52% to 28%. Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Will Weissert in Wilmington, Delaware, contributed to this report. (Bloomberg) -- Japanese shipping company Nippon Yusen KK said a vehicle carrier that it chartered was seized in the Red Sea, following an earlier announcement on the incident by the Israeli government. Most Read from Bloomberg The vessel, called Galaxy Leader, was chartered by Nippon Yusen, a spokesperson for the company said Monday, confirming an earlier report by Nikkei. Israel said on Sunday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen had hijacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea, one of the worlds busiest shipping lanes. The incident will revive fears the Israel-Hamas war could lead to major shipping disruptions in the Middle East, something which hasnt happened so far. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office condemned the seizure of what it said was a vessel owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese firm, without naming either of those. The vessel is owned by Israeli businessman Rami Ungar, according to a person familiar with the matter. It is registered in the UK, the person said, asking not to be identified, citing the sensitivity of the matter. Calls for request to Ungars mobile phone went unanswered. For more stories on the Israel-Hamas war, click here. Yemens Houthi rebels have threatened to strike Israel since its war against Palestinian militant group Hamas began in early October, and has launched failed missile attacks that were believed to have targeted Israel. Sundays incident marks the first big escalation in the threat posed by Houthis against global maritime shipping since the latest conflict began. Read more: Who Are Yemens Houthis? Can They Strike Israel? QuickTake A spokesman for the group on Sunday said it would continue to target Israeli ships until the military operation against Hamas ends, calling on other countries to withdraw citizens working on such vessels. Story continues The rebel group is based in Yemen, allowing it to stage attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. In January 2022, Houthis hijacked a United Arab Emirates-flagged cargo ship carrying supplies for a Saudi Arabian hospital. Houthis are believed to be getting training, technical expertise and increasingly sophisticated weapons including drones, ballistic and cruise missiles from Iran. Netanyahus office blamed Sundays attack on the government in Tehran, which it said is endangering global shipping lanes. Iran hasnt commented on the incident. The Israeli government said the ships 25 crew members include people from Ukraine, Bulgaria, the Philippines and Mexico. Israels army said the vessel was on its way from Turkey to India at the time of the attack. --With assistance from Omar Tamo. (Updates with confirmation from Nippon Yusen in first two paragraphs) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2023 Bloomberg L.P. Key Insights Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad's significant sovereign wealth funds ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public 55% of the business is held by the top 4 shareholders Institutions own 35% of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad A look at the shareholders of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (KLSE:AIRPORT) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 39% stake, sovereign wealth funds possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk). Institutions, on the other hand, account for 35% of the company's stockholders. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time. Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad, beginning with the chart below. View our latest analysis for Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad? Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing. As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story. Story continues Hedge funds don't have many shares in Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad. The company's largest shareholder is Khazanah Nasional Berhad, with ownership of 33%. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 8.6% and 6.8%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. On looking further, we found that 55% of the shares are owned by the top 4 shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a meaningful say in the decisions of the company. Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too. Insider Ownership Of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO. Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group. We note our data does not show any board members holding shares, personally. Not all jurisdictions have the same rules around disclosing insider ownership, and it is possible we have missed something, here. So you can click here learn more about the CEO. General Public Ownership The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 23% stake in Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad you should know about. 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. For Plante Moran, the No. 1 large company in the Michigan Top Workplaces competition for the fourth consecutive year, the difference between two business approaches has made all the difference. In addition to the firms general benefits package, Plante Morans investment in its people includes the Balance Fund, an expanded wellness benefit which employees can use to help fund virtually anything that enhances their quality of life. One of our main principles is to optimize versus maximize, meaning we put people and a long-term view before profits, explained Jim Proppe, managing partner of the Southfield-headquartered audit, tax, consulting and wealth management firm. This allows us to make decisions to invest in our people and future because we dont have to maximize profitability in any one year. I dont know if leaders in other organizations have that type of flexibility. We make investments every day that we recognize could take years to produce results, but our goal is to leave the firm better than how we found it, and sometimes that requires time and patience. 2023 Michigan Top Workplaces winners: See the complete list Within Plante Moran's culture, guidelines and trust are relied on as opposed to rules. In addition to the firms general benefits package, Plante Morans investment in its people includes the Balance Fund, an expanded wellness benefit that employees can use to help fund virtually anything that enhances their quality of life including child care, vacations, home office equipment, student loan repayment and much more depending on the employees desires. But beyond any one specific benefit, perhaps the greatest gift to employees that Proppe described is a company culture where guidelines and trust are relied on as opposed to rules. People want to be able to understand the vision and see where youre going," says Jim Proppe, managing partner of Plante Moran. Im a big believer that people dont like being told what to do, stated Proppe, who pointed out that maintaining Plante Morans culture is a collaborative effort that is discussed often. People want to be able to understand the vision and see where youre going. And then they want a little bit of leeway and flexibility to determine how they can make their greatest contribution to the organization. That is what we believe in here, and it has allowed us to do the best we can in terms of serving our clients, while also taking care of each other. Story continues Plante Moran Industry: Professional services Top leadership: Jim Proppe, managing partner Home: Southfield Michigan Employees: 1,882 Website: plantemoran.com This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan Top Workplaces: Plante Moran named No. 1 large company Sighting after more than 80 years: Sniffer dog sniffs out gold mole rat thought to be extinct "We may have made a mistake": at the Monique Olivier trial, the responsibility of the investigators is questioned Sighting after more than 80 years: Sniffer dog sniffs out gold mole rat thought to be extinct Charles III's harangue after arriving by private jet at the Climate Summit: "Our survival is in danger" The average temperature this autumn is 1.39 degrees higher than normal, following spring and summer, and the highest ever. Winter bonuses for nurses and others "reduced by more than 3% of unions compared to last year" The latest research on the 4-million-year-old Miraculous Ancient Fish: providing more key evidence for the evolution of "fish to man". Picturesque rivers and mountains|Luliang, Shanxi Province, where history and customs are blended: from "urban scenic spot" to "scenic city" Welfare institutions set out from the "dream" to hold up a beautiful life for special children H65 Hoor reported suspected match-fixing the case was closed without the EHF talking to the club Hakan Loob on Roger Ronnberg: "He probably deserves some of this" DeNA Yuito Mori joins the team at the press conference "I don't care if my arm is torn off, I'll throw it like I'm going to die" Coach Hanshin Okada's motto is "Ball Path Single" on the occasion of achieving the best in Japan Chunichi announces that it will embark on the acquisition of Sho Nakata on a free contract "Impersonation" awarded 350.<> million yuan in compensation, and the protection of trade secrets was further upgraded How to implement the new round of financing support for real estate enterprises? 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New Year's Day travel costs drop where to fly Decoding Chain BoPromote the healthy growth of the supply chain and the development of smart vehicles has entered a "new lane" Plan of the Federal Network Agency: Grid fees in wind and solar regions to be reduced Under the influence of the Central Bank, exporters and seasonal factors: how exchange rates may change in December The analyst predicted the dollar exchange rate in December in the range of 88-92 rubles International hot comment: In response to climate change, all countries should work together to accelerate the pace of action Zelensky: voices are heard in the West for negotiations with Russia, but without pressure When Xi Jinping inspected the East China Sea Maritime District Headquarters of the Armed Police Coast Guard Corps, he stressed that it is necessary to grasp the characteristics and laws of the construction and application of the coast guard force and improve the ability of maritime rights protection and law enforcement Juan Marin assures that the leadership of Cs wanted to break with the Andalusian PP to put the PSOE back in the Junta The banks of the Yellow River show a new look Shanxi Xinzhou governs mountains and rivers, and governs poverty and becomes rich Otegi rises to 25 parliamentarians but PNV and PSOE will reissue their majority in the Basque Country Pascal Praud and you - Vaping from Borne to the Assembly: "How to make the French understand that they should not smoke in parks", says indignantly... Zelensky announces the entry of the war with Russia into a new phase and Kiev drops 18 marches The criminal investigation into the truck accident on the E22 is closed Ministry of Education: Strictly investigate and deal with the behavior of training institutions that are "difficult to refund" and "run away with money". Black Friday 2023 on Amazon, last day: these are the best-selling bargains and great discounts that are worth it Al-Maqdisiya Marah Bakir: I did not stab anyone. And they kissed my mother. An American neural network saw signs of a fake in a photo of a US lunar mission The opening ceremony of the COP28 China Corner and the side event of "Ecological Civilization and Beautiful China Practice" were held in Dubai The first woman to marry an AI: "We don't rule out the idea of having children" Haredim in Israel. They refused to conscript and then decided to occupy the army The Armed Forces of Ukraine shelled Donetsk with missiles of a new type JROF HEF from Slovakia The UN climate chief quotes Yoda from Star Wars: "Do or not do. There is no try" The new version of the "Five-Star Card" of the Permanent Residence Permit for Foreigners is officially launched! Which foreigners can apply? Read it in one article Sanchez coincides with the president of Israel in Dubai in the midst of the diplomatic conflict, but without foreseen contact On the first day of the issuance and opening of the "five-star card", 50 people received the new version of the permanent residence ID card for foreigners In Ghana, the fight for food sovereignty in the face of land grabbing Communities 2019 - Privacy The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them. The leadership shakeup at OpenAI on Friday shocked the world, with the companys board firing CEO Sam Altman despite him becoming the face of artificial intelligence for many in Silicon Valley and beyond. But it's also brought to the fore Mira Murati, the chief technology officer suddenly thrust into the role of OpenAI's interim CEO. Murati was already considered one of the most powerful women in business before the move. Fortune magazine featured her on the cover of its October/November issue about the 100 Most Powerful Women. Now shell be leading one of the worlds most important companies as it reshapes industries with increasingly powerful AI tools. A look at her unlikely background and impressive rise via her interview with Fortune gives us clues as to how she might lead OpenAI in her new role. Before joining OpenAI in 2018, Murati had been working on AI applications at Tesla, playing a senior product manager role on the Model X. She described working at Elon Musks electric-vehicle maker as a very formative momentgoing through the whole experience of design and deployment of a whole vehicle. But, she added, I was more interested in general intelligence. I wasnt sure it was going to happen at that point, but I knew that even if we just got very close, the things we would build along the way would be incredible. With that in mind, the mission at OpenAI to develop AI tools that benefit humanity really resonated with me, she said. But there was little in her childhood to suggest that Murati would end up at Tesla and OpenAI, two of the hottest companies in technology. First off, geography. Murati grew up in Albania as the Balkan country shifted from a totalitarian communist system to a more democratic government. Despite slow internet speeds, however, she was already looking for ways to apply technology to lifes biggest problems, and curious about how the human brain works. At age 16, she left for Canada, where she had been awarded a scholarship to attend an international school. From there, she earned an engineering degree at Dartmouth before joining Tesla. Story continues As OpenAIs CTO shes been deeply involved, of course, in advancing the companys AI technology. When Fortune met with her in OpenAIs San Francisco office, she showed off a feature allowing users to simply talk to ChatGPT. Basically where this is all going is, its giving people the ability to interact with the technology in a way thats very natural, she said. But Murati also takes AI safety very seriously. The issue was central to the leadership shakeup on Friday, according to anonymous sources who spoke to Bloomberg, with OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever and others disagreeing with Altman on how quickly to commercialize generative AI capabilities. Murati acknowledges the competition among AI companies, including OpenAI, to offer the latest and greatest features. But she said that while competition is good because it can push advancement and progress, she worries about a race to the bottom on safety. She added that if AI competitors are motivated mainly by the competition and losing sight of the risks and whats at stake, that would be a huge problem. Whats particularly difficult, she noted, is being able to predict the emerging capabilities and to get ahead of some of the deployment risks. Because at the end of the day, you need to institutionalize and operationalize these things, and they cant just be policies and ideas. The goal at OpenAI, she reiterated, is to achieve artificial general intelligence (AGI)a system that can match humans when faced with an unfamiliar taskin a way thats beneficial and not harmful to society. As she told Fortune, Our goal is to get to AGI, and we want to get there in a way that makes sure that AGI goes well for humanity, and that we are building something thats ultimately beneficial. Shell now be playing an even larger role in making sure OpenAI reaches that goal. This story was originally featured on Fortune.com Local governments will now be able to create property tax exemptions for first responders, and six inactive state funds will be closed out after Louisianans approved another set of changes to the state constitution Saturday. Are mental health problems a workplace injury? Yes, according to a recent study. In fact, they are the most common workplace injury. The report by Atticus, a workers' compensation and disability benefits company headquartered in Los Angeles, revealed that mental health issues make up 52% of all workplace injury cases, more than any other kind. "It makes people think about mental health differently, that you could consider a mental health issue, maybe an injury," said Dan Schawbel, a workplace expert who is not connected to the study. "And maybe we should consider or think about the importance of disability insurance and what that covers." The study drew on non-fatal injury data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, fatal and catastrophic injury data from OSHA, and Google Trends data on workplace-related injuries. It ranked US states based on workplace safety and also drew on an Atticus survey of 1000 workers. The study found that 1 in 10 workers experience mental health issues related to their jobs and those issues are more common than other kinds of workplace injuries. For example: mental health issues are 10 times more common than chemical exposure and almost nine times more common than head injuries. It costs more money to fix a ... problem than to prevent one. (Getty Creative) (Maria Korneeva via Getty Images) Dr. Emily Anhalt, clinical psychologist and co-founder of Coa, which helps clients strengthen mental health programs, said this isnt a surprise given that employees increasingly rely on cognitive, rather than physical, abilities to do their jobs. "Then add to that," she said, "we've just been through this insane pandemic where everyone's in survival mode, and we're sort of coming up for air and processing everything we've been through." Anhalt added that it's in a companys best interest to prioritize psychological well-being. She pointed out that insurance companies, which once placed little priority on preventative care, now appreciate that "it costs more money to fix a ... problem than to prevent one." Story continues "I think what's happening is we're reaching this inflection point with mental health," she added, "Where companies, people, corporations, insurance companies, everyone is starting to understand that it costs more for our culture and society to fix mental health problems than it would to prevent them and to help people having better mental health in a proactive way." Dan Schawbel, a workplace researcher, meanwhile, recommended that companies create a culture in which employees feel comfortable talking about their mental health issues. "So culturally, it has to be okay to be honest with your manager about what you're dealing with from a mental health standpoint," he said. He added that companies should include more mental health benefits. For instance, he said that in recent years, many firms have begun including free therapy sessions. Impossible to file a workers' comp claim for mental health? (Getty Creative) (Peter Dazeley via Getty Images) Merritt Ryan of Atticus said its important for workers' compensation insurance to cover mental health. He pointed out that its currently nearly impossible to file a workers comp claim for mental health. In comparison, physical injuries receive medical care and wage replacement benefits from the workers comp insurers. Still, Victoria Munoz Torres, the attorney who leads thee workers' compensation function at Atticus, says that workers should always consult with lawyers to see just what benefits are available to them. For instance, if a worker is physically injured and that causes mental health problems a workers' compensation attorney can attach a secondary claim to the original physical injury claim. Also, Torres added, if the mental health affliction can be sourced to a specific workplace incident, someone might also be able to receive benefits. "Even if you're not sure if your mental health condition can qualify you for benefits, you should talk to an expert about it," she said "You should talk to an attorney about it, because they're going to be in the best position to help inform you as to what your rights are. And you shouldn't necessarily, you know, take at face value what your employer is or isn't telling you what you're entitled to." Dylan Croll is a Yahoo Finance reporter. Click here for the latest personal finance news to help you with investing, paying off debt, buying a home, retirement, and more Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance Queensland should have a unique road funding formula because it is Australias most decentralised state, Transport Minister Mark Bailey said on Sunday. It is the latest angle on the multibillion-dollar funding spat between the federal and Queensland Labor governments after Infrastructure Minister Catherine King last week announced ways to save $33 billion in cost blowouts in the federal infrastructure pipeline. Better times: Transport Minister Mark Bailey with federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King, Deputy Premier Steven Miles, and Education Minister Grace Grace at Brisbanes Cross River Rail project. Credit: Annette Dew Bailey said an announcement by King on Sunday that maximum federal funding to local road projects would rise from $500 million to $1 billion annually was misleading Queenslanders. The decision to reduce Australian government funding splits on regional roads from 80:20 to 50:50 has been estimated by my department to cost Queenslanders between $600 million and $1 billion per annum, Bailey said. Residents of a south-east Queensland town have been told to leave immediately as crews battle a large, fast-moving bushfire. The Queensland Fire and Emergency Service told residents of The Pines living on the Gore Highway, Rosella Avenue, and Flamingo, Scrubby Creek and Boondandilla roads to leave immediately on Saturday evening. Early on Sunday, the alert for the area near Millmerran, west of Brisbane was downgraded to watch and act before an emergency warning was reinstated just hours later. A large, fast-moving fire is burning near Pine Ridge Road, with The Pines expected to be impacted by the fire before midday, authorities said. A week of drinking by the beach, falling out with friends and kissing a stranger at Schoolies on the Gold Coast has long been a rite of passage. But the Glitter Strip has lost some of its shine, at least for some. Schoolies enjoying a pool party at the Hilton. School-leavers have been gathering on the Gold Coast for about half a century. Credit: Schoolies.com Schoolies on the Gold Coast is sold out this week, with 16,000 teenagers descending on the area over the weekend, but Surfers Paradises appeal has shifted, with some describing it as tacky. The managed affair which comes with a response from nine Queensland government agencies including police and Queensland Health has come a long way since young people started gathering on the coast in the 1970s. Second from bottom of the table came a crew from ABC Melbourne, and this despite having their colleague, state political reporter Richard Willingham whose dulcet tones will be increasingly familiar to Radio Melbourne listeners as MC and quizmaster. Fat lot of good he did them. Now, we werent going to mention this honest, we werent but while were on the subject: first prize on the night was taken out by a team from The Age. Now, CBD couldnt be prouder to have such brainy colleagues, if only for having the smarts to leave us off the team. WOOF CROWD We brought word last week that the close relationship between Anthony Albaneses Labor government and the public sector union, the CPSU, had driven some members into open insurrection. But things are not so cosy right now between the unions Victorians branch and Jacinta Allans state Labor operation, with the CPSU among the labor and business groups cracking the whatsits with the governments changes to WorkCover which it pushed through the parliaments lower house last week. Loading One exasperated union type described as gold the irony of Labor MPs campaigning for Sprite, a dog, to maintain its parliamentary access because of the mental health benefits the animal brought to those working in the building, while voting to cut benefits from thousands of employees unable to work because of burnout and stress. The tail wagging the dog, old mate reckons. We asked Allan on Sunday whether he had a point. It would be deeply mischievous to conflate those two issues, the premier said. Thats probably why it appealed to us so much. SEAT SUCCESS Former Liberal MP for the former jewel-in-the-Liberal-crown seat of Higgins, Katie Allen, has won the right to take on Labors Michelle Ananda-Rajah in a rematch of last years electoral contest in the upper-crust inner south-east seat that resulted in the ALP ending decades of Liberal dominance. Allen saw off a challenge from former Port Phillip Council Mayor Marcus Pearl in a preselection ballot at Hawthorn Town Hall on Sunday afternoon. Katie Allen will get the chance to win back Higgins. Credit: Eddie Jim Pearl was in decent spirits, though, when we caught up with him after the vote. I felt it was close, but it wasnt close enough, he told us. Allen warned CBD to prepare to hear a lot from her as she launches full-time into the task of winning back the seat. Elsewhere, Monash councillor Theo Zographos was nominated unopposed earlier this month to run for the Liberals in Chisholm, another seat they wouldnt mind getting back from Labor. His candidacy is just waiting to be ticked off by the partys administrative committee. Teal candidate Zoe Daniel beat incumbent Tim Wilson in the blue ribbon Liberal seat of Goldstein at the last election. Credit: Chris Hopkins But then theres Goldstein, another one of the painful Liberal losses of 2022, which fell to teal independent Zoe Daniel, and where the beaten Liberal Tim Wilson has made no secret of his desire for a re-match with the former ABC journo. Does the partys leadership share Wilsons confidence? The powers that be dont seem to be in any hurry to close nominations, which have been open for months and talk that state MP for Brighton James Newbury is interested just wont go away. On Sunday, we couldnt track down Newbury (ever get that feeling youre being ghosted?), Wilson or one of the other Liberal figures who have been linked with the seat, Colleen Harkin, for a comment, while former Julie Bishop staffer Stephanie Hunt gave us a firm no-comment. But a tilt at Goldstein carries risks for Newbury; hed have to give up his seat in Spring Street and his spot on John Pesuttos front bench with no guarantee even of preselection, much less knocking over the first-term incumbent Daniel. Still, the chance to return to the federal parliament, where Newbury spent happy years as a staffer in John Howards government, is said to be a powerful temptation for the Brighton second-termer. So many questions, right? So we gave the partys state president Phil Davis a shout, asking when he and his colleagues might be thinking about bringing all this to a vote. He was a little more forthcoming than the others. Just. I have nothing to say, Davis told us. Cooking with gas The second leg of Cooks vision, the continued export of liquefied natural gas to East Asia, is decidedly wobbly. Woodside chief executive Meg ONeill, head of Australias largest oil and gas producer, sold her products benefits with a simple claim often repeated by both gas producers and the pliant politicians who repeat their lines. Gas, when used to generate electricity in displacing coal has about half the lifecycle emissions intensity, she said. However, that is not how technically and economically complex energy systems work and the emissions benefits of gas were shown to be far less than clear-cut by a 2019 report commissioned by ONeills company. Kept from public view until flushed out by this masthead last year, the CSIRO report Modelling the emissions impact of additional LNG in Asia looks at how a real energy market works, instead of assuming with no basis that there is a simple swap between coal and gas. Loading If youre going to refer to that study, you need to look at the full study which has a number of different scenarios, ONeill said when questioned about the report at the summit. Fair point. The CSIRO churned through sixteen scenarios, lets see what it concluded: Gas remains a transitional fuel, but perhaps not precisely in the way it has been previously thought, the report said. The CSIRO concluded that more LNG into Asia does reduce emissions if there is a carbon price strong enough to force countries into a high renewable power generation. However, in the real world, where governments have shied away from high carbon prices, increased gas supplys impact on GHG emissions reduction is either negative or neutral. Power generators tend to switch from coal to gas rather than coal to renewables. All at sea Put simply, the benefits of WA helping other high-emission countries to decarbonise far outstrip the benefits of decarbonising our own economy as part of that equation, Cook said. But it aint that simple. Will our gas shipped to Asia speed the move to clean energy or just prolong the use of fossil fuels? But this isnt about letting gas off the hook, Cook said. We know weve got important work to do to make sure we lower the emissions from our gas extraction and production facilities. Leaving aside that emissions from producing fossil fuels are a fraction of what is emitted when they are used, what is Cooks hook? A study that looks at the geological formations that make WA ideal for carbon storage funded by the state government and seven gas producers coincidentally released on the day of the summit. Loading It is a 16-slide sales pitch for a long list of pre-determined findings that are just an industry wish list for support. But extolling the virtues of geology perfect for carbon storage does ring a bell. Where have I heard that before? Of course, 20 years ago, working for Chevron on its Gorgon project that was sited on Barrow Island so CO2 could be buried underneath. The giant plant has been exporting gas for seven years now, but the combined expertise of Chevorn, Shell and ExxonMobil has only managed to get its CO2 injection to work at one-third of its design capacity. The failure has resulted in millions of tonnes of additional carbon pollution. The only repercussion for the oil and gas super majors is having to buy carbon offsets, cheaply available overseas with more and more offset projects being found to be of limited benefit to the climate. Until a project touting carbon storage among its climate credentials commits to ceasing production if the storage does not work, best to treat the claims as expensive greenwashing with cheap offsets as a plan B. Storms ahead While federal Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen was all smiles at the summit, his friend Cooks plan is a huge problem for him. Federal Labor has a legislated target to cut national emissions by 43 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030. But one state has just put its hand up and said, nope, not us Chris. It is simple maths that if WA has its way, the rest of the country has to cut emissions harder. Well keep our GST, but you can have our emissions cuts may not go down well elsewhere in the country. Loading Closer to home Woodside will be promoting its long-life, carbon-intensive Browse project off the Kimberley coast as an essential part of Cooks newfound mission for WA to stave off a global climate disaster. However, whatever view you have on how much gas the world needs, it is hard to argue anything other than: what is produced should involve a minimal amount of emissions. And here, Browse is an absolute dog. The news US and Israeli officials said a deal to free some of the hostages being held in Gaza was edging closer, even as Hamas gunmen battled Israeli forces trying to push into Gazas largest refugee camp. Witnesses reported heavy fighting between Hamas gunmen and Israeli forces trying to advance into Jabalia, the largest of Gazas camps with nearly 100,000 people. About 240 hostages were taken during Hamass deadly cross-border rampage into Israel on October 7, which prompted Israel to invade the tiny Palestinian territory to wipe out its ruling Islamist group after several inconclusive wars since 2007. Key Insights YTL Power International Berhad's estimated fair value is RM4.69 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity YTL Power International Berhad is estimated to be 49% undervalued based on current share price of RM2.39 Analyst price target for YTLPOWR is RM2.39 which is 49% below our fair value estimate Today we'll do a simple run through of a valuation method used to estimate the attractiveness of YTL Power International Berhad (KLSE:YTLPOWR) as an investment opportunity by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today's value. Our analysis will employ the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. 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. Check out our latest analysis for YTL Power International Berhad The Method We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. 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, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars: Story continues 10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (MYR, Millions) RM2.77b RM2.83b RM2.67b RM2.60b RM2.57b RM2.59b RM2.62b RM2.68b RM2.75b RM2.82b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x2 Analyst x2 Analyst x2 Est @ -2.67% Est @ -0.80% Est @ 0.50% Est @ 1.42% Est @ 2.06% Est @ 2.50% Est @ 2.82% Present Value (MYR, Millions) Discounted @ 9.3% RM2.5k RM2.4k RM2.0k RM1.8k RM1.7k RM1.5k RM1.4k RM1.3k RM1.2k RM1.2k ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = RM17b The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after 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 3.6%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 9.3%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033 (1 + g) (r g) = RM2.8b (1 + 3.6%) (9.3% 3.6%) = RM51b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= RM51b ( 1 + 9.3%)10= RM21b The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is RM38b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of RM2.4, the company appears quite good value at a 49% 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 Important Assumptions Now 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 YTL Power International Berhad 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 0.841. 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 YTL Power International Berhad Strength Earnings growth over the past year exceeded the industry. Dividends are covered by earnings and cash flows. Weakness Interest payments on debt are not well covered. Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Integrated Utilities market. Opportunity Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years. Good value based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value. Threat Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow. Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the Malaysian market. Next Steps: Whilst important, the DCF calculation shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. 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. Why is the intrinsic value higher than the current share price? For YTL Power International Berhad, we've compiled three relevant factors you should look at: Risks: You should be aware of the 2 warning signs for YTL Power International Berhad (1 doesn't sit too well with us!) we've uncovered before considering an investment in the company. Future Earnings: How does YTLPOWR'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 Malaysian 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. Temperatures outside are rapidly dropping, time to be mindful of the energy we use and how it impacts our lives. On a quarterly basis, Black Hills Energys natural gas utility (Black Hills Wyoming Gas) updates its Gas Cost Rate to reflect the cost of gas purchased from natural gas suppliers on behalf of customers. Going into the 2023/2024 heating season, the winter Gas Cost Rate for Wyoming customers taking service under the GCA option will be $0.3776, which is approximately 48% lower compared to last winters $0.7291 per therm Gas Cost Rate. Natural gas prices are a pass-through cost without any markup from Black Hills Energy. Historic production and above-average storage have provided a stable market to power this winters heating, said Dustin McKen, Black Hills Energys general manager of Wyoming operations. As we do throughout the year, were encouraging customers to use less energy through energy conservation and energy efficiency projects, said McKen. Tips range from easy and inexpensive like lowering the thermostat by a couple of degrees and closing curtains to keep warm air inside to more involved projects like insulating the attic or installing weatherstripping around doors and windows to keep out drafts. Additional energy efficiency tips include: When you are home and awake, set the thermostat as low as is comfortable on cold days. A smart or programmable thermostat can make it easy to set back your temperature. Run complete loads of laundry and dishes to avoid using more hot water and energy than necessary. Skip the drying cycle on your dishwasher. Instead, prop the door open once dishes are washed and allow them to air dry. Use weather stripping and caulking around doors and windows to seal any holes or gaps, reducing energy waste. Turn down your hot water heater to 120 degrees and ensure the water heater is insulated properly. Water heaters are the second largest energy user in a house, accounting for about 18% of an energy bill. For more videos, conservation tips and safety reminders, customers can visit: Team Ready | Black Hills Energy where theyll see more of the companys Team Ready consumer education campaign, which features a duo Mike and Maria sharing helpful energy efficiency tips. The goal of this stepped-up activity is to help customers be ready to manage their energy use before colder winter temperatures arrive. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. Pharma industry has potential to grow to USD 200 bn Business Reporter The domestic pharmaceutical industry has the potential to grow by 4-5 times to around USD 200 billion in value terms by scaling up manufacturing and enhancing exports, a senior government official said on Friday. He noted that to reach a size of USD 200 billion by 2030 from around USD 50 billion currently, the industry needs to grow in double digits year-on-year while reducing dependence on imports and focussing on expanding exports. The age of smart medicine is dawning upon us. The new therapies that will come to the fore in the next 20 to 30 years would deliver smart therapies virtually for every difficult illness that we know of today. We have to be ready for that age. We have to prepare for that age, Department of Pharmaceuticals Secretary Arunish Chawla said at a CII event here. He said the government is helping the industry with various policy initiatives, including production-linked incentives. At USD 50 billion in 2020, we were a little over 10 per cent of our manufacturing sector. By 2030 we need to be 20 per cent of the manufacturing sector in India, Chawla noted. To reach the goal, the industry needs to grow in double-digit year-on-year, he added. We need to select and target a few sectors where we are still import dependent. We need to redesign policy framework and do it in such a way that, in ten years, we will become exporters in all these segments, Chawla said. He noted that the government is working together with industry and academia in order to help the industry reach USD 200 billion by 2030. We are already exporting in most sectors, and we hope, the way new technologies are coming up and the way our academic institutions, our laboratories and our industries are working together in the research and development sector, we hope that we will be an exporter of nearly all most major medical technology products, Chawla said. He noted that silos need to be broken between academia, laboratories and industry. A shift is required from publications to patents and a mechanism for research-oriented sponsored degrees from industry is the need of the hour to foster innovation, he added. The country must utilise its technical resources, demographic dividend, skilled manpower, forward-looking government policies and economies of scale to become a world leader in pharmaceuticals, Chawla said. Withdraw military personnel from Maldives MALE, LESS than 24 hours after taking oath as the President of Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu on Saturday formally requested India to withdraw its military personnel from his country, saying the Maldivian people have given him a strong mandate to make this request to New Delhi. Muizzus request came when Indias Union Minister Kiren Rejiju paid a courtesy call on the new President at the latters office, the Maldivian Presidents Office said in a press release. The exact number of Indian military personnel in the Maldives is not known. Muizzu, an engineer-turned-politician, took oath on Friday as the eighth President of the strategically-located archipelago nation in the Indian Ocean. Underscoring Indias Neighbourhood First Policy, Rijiju represented the country at Muizzus inauguration ceremony. A close associate of former Maldives President Abdulla Yameen, who forged close ties with China during his Presidency from 2013 to 2018, Muizzu, 45, defeated India-friendly incumbent Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in the presidential runoff held in September. Muizzu had repeatedly indicated during the election campaign that the withdrawal of Indian military troops from the island nation is among the issues that need to be resolved by the two countries. While discussing the matter with Rijiju, Muizzu also acknowledged the significant role of the two helicopters in providing numerous emergency medical evacuations in the Maldives. Rijiju conveyed his best wishes to the President, representing the sentiments of the Government and the people of India, the statement said. Rijiju expressed his aspiration to foster a constructive relationship with the Maldives. 2+2 dialogue: India, Aus to focus on ramping up strategic partnership NEW DELHI, INDIA and Australia are expected to focus on ramping up their overall defence ties and boost strategic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific at the second edition of the 2+2 Ministerial dialogue here on November 20. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and their Australian counterparts Richard Marles and Penny Wong will hold the talks to further advance cooperation under the India-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Announcing Indias hosting of the dialogue, it said on Saturday that the Ministers are expected to discuss a wide range of strategic, defence and security issues. The situation in West Asia in view of the Hamas-Israel conflict, Chinas increasing military muscle flexing in the Indo-Pacific and issues relating to regional security are expected to figure in the talks, people familiar with the preparation for the dialogue said. The MEA said the discussions would cover bilateral, regional and global matters of mutual interest to further advance cooperation under the India-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership. Both sides will also exchange views on shared priorities for strengthening minilateral and multilateral cooperation, it said. Singh and Jaishankar will also hold separate bilateral talks with their Australian counterparts. The External Affairs Minister and Foreign Minister Wong will hold the 14th foreign ministerial framework dialogue on November 21 to take stock of cooperation under the comprehensive strategic partnership and exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest, the MEA said in a statement. Key Insights The considerable ownership by retail investors in Ancom Nylex Berhad indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy A total of 18 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership Insiders own 29% of Ancom Nylex Berhad A look at the shareholders of Ancom Nylex Berhad (KLSE:ANCOMNY) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 43% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk). And individual insiders on the other hand have a 29% ownership in the company. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Ancom Nylex Berhad. See our latest analysis for Ancom Nylex Berhad What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Ancom Nylex 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. We can see that Ancom Nylex Berhad does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Ancom Nylex Berhad, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too. Hedge funds don't have many shares in Ancom Nylex Berhad. Because actions speak louder than words, we consider it a good sign when insiders own a significant stake in a company. In Ancom Nylex Berhad's case, its Top Key Executive, Ka Wei Siew, is the largest shareholder, holding 13% of shares outstanding. With 8.1% and 4.7% of the shares outstanding respectively, Cheun Wei Lee and Siew Nim Chee & Sons Sendirian Berhad are the second and third largest shareholders. Interestingly, the second-largest shareholder, Cheun Wei Lee is also Chief Executive Officer, again, pointing towards strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders. Story continues A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 18 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that no single shareholder has a majority. Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future. Insider Ownership Of Ancom Nylex Berhad While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Ancom Nylex Berhad. It has a market capitalization of just RM1.1b, and insiders have RM325m worth of shares in their own names. 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, who are usually individual investors, hold a 43% stake in Ancom Nylex Berhad. 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 We can see that Private Companies own 7.0%, of the shares on issue. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company. Next Steps: It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Ancom Nylex Berhad better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Ancom Nylex Berhad that you should be aware of before investing here. 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. 26 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike in southern Gaza GAZA, AT LEAST 26 Palestinians, mostly children, were killed due to an Israeli bombardment of Khan Younis city in south Gaza on Saturday, state media reported. According to the Palestinian WAFA news agency, the Israeli aircraft launched several raids on apartments in Khan Younis, which also injured some dozens others. The Israeli army has not commented on the development, reports Xinhua news agency. The latest killings come as Israel issued a new warning to the residents of Khan Younis to relocate. On Friday night, Mark Regev, an advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told US media: I know its not easy for them. but we dont want to see civilians caught up in the crossfire. In a statement, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) also announced that it will be launching its operations in south Gaza after it received intelligence reports of several Hamas top leaders hiding in the region. Bdesh At Political Crossroads By Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury IN THE aftermath of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis significant visit to the United States earlier this year, there was widespread anticipation for a notable strengthening of relations between Delhi and Washington. However, there seems to have been an oversight by key policymakers in India regarding the Biden administrations strategic manoeuvres, which were aimed at leveraging the alliance with the worlds largest democracy to serve American geopolitical interests in countering China and solidifying US dominance in the region. Modis vision for an enhanced Indo-US relationship to counter Chinas influence in South Asia appears to have collided with Americas true intentions. The US seems inclined to position India as a secondary ally, potentially compromising Indian national security to further its own regional dominance. Recent actions by the Biden administration in South Asia, notably the destabilisation of Afghanistan and potential influence in Pakistans trajectory, now pivot towards a new objective reshaping Bangladeshs political landscape. There are allegations that the US seeks to support the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), alongside other Islamist forces like Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), to return to power through upcoming elections or other means. This shift in focus has triggered widespread concerns over the potential repercussions for Bangladesh, a country with a population of 170 million. Simultaneously, this evolving situation has led to increasing discord between India and the United States, particularly concerning their perspectives on Bangladeshs elections and democratic practices. Observers have noted Indias sharp disagreement with the US approach, accusing Washington of attempts to destabilise Bangladeshs secular Government under Sheikh Hasina, potentially jeopardising Indias security by creating fertile ground for anti-India forces. The recent 2+2 dialogue between the US and India in Delhi further amplified this disagreement. The joint statement released post-dialogue notably omitted any reference to Bangladesh, signalling a lack of alignment on this critical issue. India has vocally prioritised political stability over disruptive elections, a stance reiterated during the dialogue. Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra emphasised that Bangladeshs elections are an internal matter and affirmed Indias respect for the democratic process. This strong stance reflects Indias readiness to challenge the US narrative on Bangladesh. Concerns mount over the potential fallout in Bangladesh due to the USs assertive approach. Drawing parallels with the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, India is cautioning against unilateral actions that could exacerbate unrest, violence, and radicalisation in Bangladesh. There is speculation among observers about a possible reconsideration of the US position in light of Indias steadfast stance. Former Indian high commissioner in Dhaka, Pankaj Saran, underscores the significance of Indias views in the region. While some foresee a shift in US policy acknowledging Indias concerns, others caution that change might not come swiftly. The USs leniency towards the Bangladesh Nationalist Party adds complexity to the situation, widening the gap in assessments between Delhi and Washington. Bangladesh, situated at South Asias crossroads, has undergone significant political transformations over the years. As discussions around the countrys political landscape intensify, theres growing apprehension about the resurgence of the Islamist-leaning Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to power. Foremost among concerns regarding the BNPs resurgence is the potential influence of Islamist ideologies on governance. The partys historical connections to conservative elements raise questions about governance shaped by religious considerations, possibly challenging Bangladeshs secular foundation and inclusivity. In a diverse nation like Bangladesh, safeguarding minority rights is pivotal for societal harmony. The potential return of an Islamist-oriented Government raises concerns about the safety and freedoms of religious and ethnic minorities. Previous experiences during the BNPs governance (2001-2006) evoke worries of increased marginalization and discrimination. The advancements in womens rights achieved during the rule of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasinas Awami League could face setbacks with an Islamist-influenced Government. Concerns revolve around potential conservative policies limiting womens freedoms, access to education, employment, and healthcare. The return of the BNP may also heighten national security concerns, regionally and internationally, due to historical associations with Islamist groups. A lenient approach towards radical elements could foster an environment conducive to extremist ideologies, posing threats not just to Bangladesh but also neighbouring countries, particularly India. Political instability often precipitates economic repercussions. A return to power by the BNP could introduce uncertainties impacting Bangladeshs economic stability, potentially reversing the progress made in the past 15 years. Shifts in foreign policy might influence economic partnerships and aid, altering the countrys growth trajectory. Bangladeshs geopolitical significance in South Asia underscores the potential ripple effects of significant political changes. Any shift in power could resonate across the region, impacting stability, particularly in relations with neighbouring India and Myanmar. As Bangladesh navigates its political future, the impending return of the Islamist-leaning Bangladesh Nationalist Party to power raises pertinent concerns. Stakeholders, both within and beyond Bangladeshs borders, must closely monitor developments, emphasising the preservation of democratic values, protection of minority rights, and regional stability. International engagement and support during this pivotal time could shape a future that upholds democratic principles and ensures the well-being of all citizens. With the next election approaching, the ruling Awami League faces formidable challenges, exacerbated by Washingtons persistent pressure and the Biden administrations apparent bias towards the Islamist coalition involving the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Jamaat-e-Islami, and Jatiya Party. Analysts suggest the Biden administration might intensify pressure on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, potentially imposing visa restrictions and sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act. In response, Sheikh Hasina may find herself compelled to proceed with the January 7 general election without the participation of the BNP and other Islamist-leftist forces. Analysts suggest that for Sheikh Hasina, making this choice might not be a difficult decision. (IPA/By arrangement with the Arabian Post) Cops take Sontus custody Staff Reporter On-line gaming fraudster Sontu alias Ananth Navratan Jain was arrested by the City police again on the production warrant to grill him about shifting of Rs 12 crore and gold ornaments to unknown place. Sontu was in the jail after court ordered his magesterial custody following an FIR lodged against him. The second FIR was lodged against Sontu Jain for hatching conspiracy with Dr Bagga, Khandelwal and Kothari. They devised a plan that involved opening three new lockers in Dr Gaurav Baggas name in the same branch of Axis Bank in Gondia and transferred crores of rupees and gold from the Jain family lockers to the newly established lockers of Dr Bagga. After successfully moving the gold and cash into Dr Baggas lockers, Khandelwal and Dr Bagga handed the valuables to Kothari July 30. On October 20, the City police raided the house of Dr Bagga and seized 3 kilograms of gold, found from a well, and Rs 1.35 crore in cash. Counter cases filed, SP Singh orders probe Staff Reporter Ghamapur police have registered separate cases on the complaints registered by the members of Congress and BJP in the issue of firing incident in Sheetlamai area reported on the day of polling, on Friday. CSP, Ranjhi, Vivek Gautam, while talking to The Hitavada, informed that on the complaint of BJP candidate, Anchal Sonkar, Ghamapur police have registered a case under Sections 307, 294, 506 and 34of IPC and Sections 3,, 5 of Explosive Act 1908 and Section 25, 27 of Arms Act 1959 against Jai Ghanghoria, Kallan Gupta, Shanky alias Sandeep Sonkar, Narendra alias Nayan Rajak and Amit Bhojak who are still at large. Similarly, on the complaint of Congress candidate, Lakhan Ghanghorias supporter, Shivansh Chourasia, Ghamapur police have registered a case under sections 147, 148, 149, 307, 294, 506 of IPC against Sooraj Sonkar. CSP, Gautam informed that Superintendent of Police, Aditya Pratap Singh has already ordered a probe to identify the persons involved in firing bullets and creating ruckus during the elections for taking stern action against them. Taking a serious note over the issue, Superintendent of Police, Aditya Pratap Singh (IPS) has changed the charge of Additional SP, Pradeep Shende from City North to Barela and Kundam while his traffic charge will be continued. Supporters of BJP candidate Anchal Sonkar and Congress candidate Lakhan Ghanghoria were confronted over some issue in Sheetlamai Ward during the last hour of polling in Jabalpur East Assembly Constituency on Friday evening. Some of the miscreants opened fire during the agitation and BJP candidate, Anchal Sonkar and some of his supporters sustained partial pallet injuries. Soon after the agitation, BJP leaders and workers were gathered at Ghamapur police station and lodged FIR against On Saturday, supporters of Congress candidate Ghanghoria lodged a complaint at Ghamapur police station against BJP Candidate, Anchal Sonkar and his supporters for creating ruckus. EVMs, VVPATs now secured in STRONG ROOM at JNAU Staff Reporter Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and VVPAT machines, which were used in voting held for Legislative Assembly elections in all the eight constituencies of the district are securely stored in Strong Room made in the Administrative building of Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University campus. After completion of returning voting material, Strong Room was sealed in presence of Observers, appointed by the Election Commission, candidates and representatives of political parties. District Election Officer and Collector Saurabh Kumar Suman, Superintendent of Police Aditya Pratap Singh, Deputy District Election Officer and Additional Collector Misha Singh, along with the Returning Officers of all eight constituencies were present on the occasion. The Strong Room will be opened for counting of votes on December 3 in presence of Observers from the Election Commission, candidates and representatives of political parties. After sealing Strong Room early morning, stringent security measures have been implemented around it. Central Armed Police Force personnel have been deployed at main entrance of the Strong Room. Additionally, surveillance of the Strong Room is being conducted through CCTV cameras placed at various locations. After safely storing the EVMs and VVPAT machines in the Strong Room, a review was conducted of the records of all polling centers where the voting deviated by more than 15 percent from the average or where complaints regarding the voting process were received. Those present during review were Election Commission Observers, District Election Officer, Suman, Deputy District Election Officer Singh, Returning Officers of all eight constituencies, Assistant Returning Officers and candidates along with their election agents. BHOPAL, MADHYA Pradesh recorded 76.22 per cent voter turnout in the single phase polls to 230 Assembly seats, the highest in the last 66 years. Seoni recorded 85.68 per cent voter turnout, followed by Balaghat 85.23 per cent, Agar with record 85.03 per cent, while Shajapur and Rajgarh 84.99 per cent and 84.29 per cent respectively. According to the Election Commissions data, 18 districts recorded more than 80 per cent voter turnout, while the voting percentage in 19 districts was above 75 per cent. Alirajpur district recorded the lowest voter turn at 60.10 per cent. Indore, the biggest city of the state, recorded 70.54 per cent voter turnout and Bhopal 66 per cent, Jabalpur (74.30 per cent), Gwalior (67.1 per cent), Rewa (66.85 per cent). Sonewani polling station in Naxal-hit Balaghat district, which was categorised as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), recorded 100 per cent voting. There were a total 42 voters (26 male and 16 female) and they were brought together escorting with tight security by central forces at the polling centre. With a concerted effort to facilitate voting among the tribal communities, 100 per cent enrolment was achieved among the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) residing in Madhya Pradesh, the election officer said. Out of the total 2,533 candidates in the fray, a single third-gender person from Malhara in Chhatarpur district is also contesting. Of the total 230 seats, 148 are General category, while 35 seats are reserved for SC and 47 for ST category. Meanwhile, the State also witnessed some serious incidents of violence during the assembly polls. In the most serious of the cases, BJP candidate from Rajnagar in Chhatarpur district, Arvind Pateriya, was booked for murder along with 19 of his associates on the charges of crushing Congress councillor Salman Khan to death early Friday. Congress Rajnagar MLA and candidate Vikram Singh Natiraja said he was in the car Khan was driving, and alleged that Pateriya and his men tried to kill him too. Khajuraho police booked 20 persons, including the BJP candidate, on the complaint filed by Vikram Singh, sub-divisional officer of police of Khajuraho, Salil Sharma, told mediapersons on Friday. Arvind Pateriya, however, released a video accusing the MLA of spreading lies and indulging in dirty politics. He said he was not present at the spot and Khan was killed during infighting among inebriated Congress workers. He called for a judicial probe into the incident and punishment for guilty. Violence was reported from Morena, Bhind, Jabalpur, Indore, and Bhopal districts. BJP candidate from Mehgaon seat in Bhind district - Rakesh Shukla suffered minor injury following stone pelting and was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. New machine arrives Vertical hole, new road planned to reach workers trapped in tunnel UTTARKASHI, WITH time running out, officials on Saturday began preparations to drill a vertical hole from the top of the hill under which 41 workers have been trapped inside a collapsed tunnel for seven days with limited food and communication. As the sun slipped behind the mountains and night fell on another day gone by, officials held out the hope that the Border Roads Organisations (BRO) road to create an alternative route to the under-construction Silkyara tunnel would be ready by Sunday afternoon and the rescue mission that had been stalled since Friday could finally resume. We are trying to make a vertical track from the top of the tunnel. A point at the top of the tunnel has been identified from where drilling will start soon. This track is about 1,000-1,100 metres long. Simultaneously, we are also conducting a survey to know how much time it will take. As per our calculations, the track should be ready by tomorrow afternoon, BROs Major Naman Narula told reporters. A high performance drilling machine was brought here from Indore on Saturday to pierce through the rubble of the collapsed tunnel on the Char Dham route and was being assembled before it is deployed to resume drilling, officials at the site said. The Silkyara tunnel, about 30 km from the district headquarters of Uttarkashi and a seven hour drive from the Uttarakhand capital Dehradun, is part of the ambitious Char Dham all-weather road project of the Central Government. It is being constructed under the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL). The tunnel collapsed around 5.30 am last Sunday. One week on, as the hours ticked by, the desperation of families waiting outside mounted. That rescue operations had been suspended since Friday afternoon when a US-made auger machine deployed to drill and push in pipes through the rubble to prepare an escape passage for the workers developed a snag exacerbated the anxiety. By the time the drilling was halted, the auger machine had drilled up to 24 metres through the rubble spread over a 60-metre area inside the tunnel. While families back home and those gathered at the mouth of the tunnel counted the hours, officials waged their own frantic battle against time as they weighed the various options available to them. One option is to make a four-six inch long hole which will help in providing essential items to the trapped people. If the conditions are favourable, a three-feet diameter hole will also be made so people will be able to come out. This road is about 900 metres long. Hopefully, the road will be ready by tomorrow morning, said RS Rao of the Directorate General Border Roads (DGBR). Four machines have been currently put to work right now and four more are arriving, he added. Other officials and experts gathered at the site too to figure a way out of the crisis and save the 41 men counting the hours inside the dark tunnel. Rajnath Singh pays brief visit to Singapore NEW DELHI, DEFENCE Minister Rajnath Singh paid a brief visit to Singapore on Saturday on his way back from Indonesia. In Singapore, Singh paid tributes to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose by laying a wreath at the Indian National Army (INA) marker. The Defence Minister paid a two-day visit to Indonesian capital Jakarta to attend a meeting of the 10-nation ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and some of its dialogue partners. After completing his tour to Indonesia, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on his way back home, paid a brief visit to Singapore on November 18, the Ministry said. It said the construction of a monument to commemorate the Unknown Warriors of the Indian National Army (INA) was proposed by Netaji himself and he had laid the foundation stone in July 1945. Paid homage at the INA Memorial marker in Singapore. My heartfelt tributes to the Unknown Warriors of the INA, Singh posted on X. The National Heritage Board of Singapore erected the INA marker on the same spot as the original memorial the Ministry said in a statement. The Defence Minister also offered prayers at the Sri Srinivasa Perumal temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, which is among the oldest Hindu temples in Singapore dating back to 1855, it said. Singh also visited the Indian Heritage Centre in the Little India locality of the city-State. The centre was set up under the National Heritage Board in 2015, documenting the story of the journey of Singaporean Indians, according to the Defence Ministry. (Bloomberg) -- OpenAI stunned employees, investors and much of Silicon Valley on Friday by ousting Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman, who more than any other figure had emerged as the face of artificial intelligence following the viral success of his companys chatbot, ChatGPT. Almost instantly, the worlds best-known AI startup, which has been in talks to sell employee shares to investors at an $86 billion valuation, was thrown into disarray. Several people, including OpenAI President Greg Brockman, have resigned, the board is facing investor pressure to reinstate Altman and theres a possibility the board itself resigns in the coming days. Most Read from Bloomberg Heres the latest: 1. Altman clashed with board on safety, ambitions OpenAIs decision to fire Altman followed wide-ranging disagreements between the chief executive and his board, according to a person familiar with the matter. The debates included differences of opinion on AI safety, the speed of development of the technology and the commercialization of the company, the person said. Altmans ambitions may have also played a role. Altman has been looking to raise tens of billions of dollars from Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds to create an AI chip startup, according to a person with knowledge of the investment proposal. Altman was also courting SoftBank Group Corp. chairman Masayoshi Son for a multibillion-dollar investment in a new company to make AI-oriented hardware in partnership with former Apple designer Jony Ive. The board may have been put off by Altman raising funds off of OpenAIs name and these new companies not sharing the same governance model as OpenAI, the person said. Story continues 2. OpenAIs chief scientist appealed to board Ilya Sutskever, an OpenAI co-founder and the companys chief scientist, told Altman he was out and is thought to be at the center of the boards clash with him. A month ago, Sutskevers responsibilities at the company were reduced, reflecting friction between him and Altman and Brockman. Sutskever later appealed to the board, winning over some members, including Helen Toner, the director of strategy at Georgetowns Center for Security and Emerging Technology. 3. Altman blindsided in a Google Meet chat Altman was blindsided by the move. In a joint statement posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, Brockman and Altman said Sutskever texted the chief executive on Thursday night asking to chat at noon the following day. Sam joined a Google Meet and the whole board, except Greg, was there, the post said. Ilya told Sam he was being fired and that the news was going out very soon. Shortly after, Brockman was told he was being removed from his position as chairman of the board but would hold on to his role as president. 4. Microsoft caught off guard, CEO supporting Altman Despite being OpenAIs biggest backer by far, Microsoft Corp. had only a few minutes advanced notice about Altmans firing, said a person familiar with the matter. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella was blindsided by the boards decision, according to people familiar with the situation, and has been in touch with Altman and pledged to support him in whatever steps he takes next. The tech giant bet billions on OpenAI and used its partnership with the startup to add AI features to many of its best-known software products and seemingly leap ahead of rivals like Alphabet Inc.s Google in the artificial intelligence arms race. In a public statement, Nadella tried to ease any concerns Altmans departure could hurt his companys long-term AI plans. We have a long-term agreement with OpenAI with full access to everything we need to deliver on our innovation agenda and an exciting product roadmap; and remain committed to our partnership, he wrote in a blog post. 5. Share sale up in the air Just weeks ago, OpenAI employees were on the cusp of being able to sell their shares at a staggering $86 billion valuation. But in the hours following Altmans departure, hundreds of millions of dollars of trading in closely held OpenAI shares on the secondary market have been thrown into limbo, according to people familiar with the matter. Some transactions are on hold and some have been cancelled outright, the people said. Thrive, which was expected to lead a tender offer for employee shares, has not yet wired the money and has made it clear to the OpenAI board that Altmans departure will affect the decision. 6. Board under pressure to reinstate Altman OpenAI investors are now pressing the companys board to reverse the decision to fire Altman, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Altman is open to returning to the company, one of the people said. In one scenario under consideration, members of the current OpenAI board would step down. If Altman doesnt return, more employees may jump ship possibly joining him in whatever project he launches next and further jeopardizing OpenAIs position as the leader in the AI market. In their joint post on Friday, Brockman and Altman said: Greater things coming soon. --With assistance from Brad Stone, Ashlee Vance, Dina Bass, Ed Ludlow and Emily Chang. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2023 Bloomberg L.P. Sam Altman is out as CEO of OpenAI after a boardroom coup on Friday that shook the tech industry. Some are likening his ouster to Steve Jobs being fired at Apple, a sign of how momentous the shakeup feels amid an AI boom that has rejuvenated Silicon Valley. Altman, of course, had much to do with that boom, caused by OpenAIs release of ChatGPT to the public late last year. Since then, hes crisscrossed the globe talking to world leaders about the promise and perils of artificial intelligence. Indeed, for many hes become the face of AI. Where exactly things go from here remains uncertain. In the latest twists, some reports suggest Altman could return to OpenAI and others suggest hes already planning a new startup. But either way, given recent events, his last appearance as OpenAIs CEO merits attention. It occurred on Thursday at the APEC CEO summit in San Francisco. The beleaguered city, where OpenAI is based, hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit this week, having first cleared away embarrassing encampments of homeless people (though it still suffered embarrassment when robbers stole a Czech news crews equipment). Altman answered questions onstage from, somewhat ironically, moderator Laurene Powell Jobs, the billionaire widow of the late Apple cofounder. She asked Altman how policymakers can strike the right balance between regulating AI companies while also being open to evolving as the technology itself evolves. Altman started by noting that hed had dinner this summer with historian and author Yuval Noah Harari, who has issued stark warnings about the dangers of artificial intelligence to democracies, even suggesting tech executives should face 20 years in jail for letting AI bots sneakily pass as humans. The Sapiens author, Altman said, was very concerned, and I understand it. I really do understand why if you have not been closely tracking the field, it feels like things just went verticalI think a lot of the world has collectively gone through a lurch this year to catch up. Story continues He noted that people can now talk to ChatGPT, saying it's like the Star Trek computer I was always promised. The first time people use such products, he said, it feels much more like a creature than a tool, but eventually they get used to it and see its limitations (as some embarrassed lawyers have). He said that while AI hold the potential to do wonderful things like cure diseases on the one had, on the other, How do we make sure it is a tool that has proper safeguards as it gets really powerful? Todays AI tools, he said, are not that powerful, but people are smart and they see where its going. And even though we can't quite intuit exponentials well as a species much, we can tell when something's gonna keep going, and this is going to keep going. The questions, he said, are what limits on the technology will be put in place, who will decide those, and how theyll be enforced internationally. Grappling with those questions has been a significant chunk of my time over the last year, he noted, adding, I really think the world is going to rise to the occasion and everybody wants to do the right thing. Todays technology, he said, doesnt need heavy regulation. But at some pointwhen the model can do like the equivalent output of a whole company and then a whole country and then the whole worldmaybe we do want some collective global supervision of that and some collective decision-making. For now, Altman said, its hard to land that message and not appear to be suggesting policymakers should ignore present harms. He also doesnt want to suggest that regulators should go after AI startups or open-source models, or bless AI leaders like OpenAI with regulatory capture. We are saying, you know, Trust us, this is going to get really powerful and really scary. Youve got to regulate it latervery difficult needle to thread through all of that. This story was originally featured on Fortune.com This week, we'll highlight even more female innovators. Lida Rogers and Ida Cohen Padnos Lida Rogers (1877-1963) was born in Adrian, Michigan. She graduated from Eastern Michigan University. In the 1920s, she joined Holland Public Schools. In 1927, during a meeting of the Womens Literary Club, she shared a vision for a "tulip day" every spring. That idea became Tulip Time. Lida Rogers Ida Cohens father, Aaron, emigrated from Poland to America in 1892. Ida and her mother and siblings Esther, Abraham (Otto), Sadie (Syma), and Simon joined Aaron in Chicago in 1889. In 1910, Ida married Louis Padnos brother Harry. Harry and Ida moved to California to start a cosmetics business, but it went bankrupt. Louis then convinced Harry, Ida, Otto and Simon to join him in Holland. There, Harry opened a retail clothing and shoe business. But again, Harry went bankrupt. More: Steve VanderVeen: The women who helped make Holland More: Steve VanderVeen: The women who helped make Holland, continued Meanwhile Ida and her siblings mixed cosmetics and sold them door-to-door. In 1913, they secured a trademark and, later, a contract with Woolworths. In 1922, Otto and Simon incorporated the famous Lady Esther Company in Chicago. Katherine Fuller Cooper and Hazel Hayes Katherine Fuller (1897-1975) married John Cooper in 1917. In 1924, from Coopersville, John hauled gravel and freight. In 1928, he hauled pulpwood from Trout Lake to Rexford for the Muskegon Paper Company, and the family lived in a tent. Katherine Fuller Cooper In 1929, the Coopers moved to Holland. They rented the old cannery building at Fifth Street and Central Avenue and started Holland Motor Express. Katherine ran the Holland office, working on a rented typewriter. In the winter, she kept her feet warm by putting them in a box of straw. In 1953, Hazel Hayes (1896-1993) accepted the position of librarian for the Holland City Library, after earning a Master of Library Science degree. In 1958, the Womans Literary Club started gathering donations for a new library. When Hazel overheard two men in a restaurant talking about Ray Herrick, a wealthy industrialist who'd grown up in Holland, she secretly wrote him a letter. Story continues That letter launched Herrick Public Library. Steve VanderVeen Evelyn De Bruyn As a teenager, Evelyn De Bruyn (1916-2011) worked for her father, David De Bruyn, at the former LaHuis Store in Zeeland. In the 1930s, she ran the grocery/dry goods portion of his business. In 1971, after the passing of her husband, Dick, Evelyn assumed his role as treasurer-secretary at Michigan Shore Nursery. Then friends encouraged her to manage, then own, The Dutchess Shopp. Soon she had three stores, one in Holland and two in Zeeland. The Van Wierens, Edna Van Raalte and Joyce Wierenga Vos In 1930, Anna helped her husband, John Van Wieren, start an ice business. In 1948, Annas sister-in-law, Harriet, and her husband, Andy Van Wieren, purchased a Sinclair gas station, lunchroom and bait shop on the southeast corner of Division Avenue and Ottawa Beach Road. There, Harriet managed the lunchroom, which eventually became Van Wierens Hardware. In 1968, Harriets daughter-in-law, Geneva, joined the business, which today is owned and operated by Genevas daughter Deb. Ed (left), Joyce, and Ken Vos In 1939, Joyce Wierenga (1920-2008) married Ed Vos and became his feet at Eds Bike Shop, which evolved into Reliable Cycle. An avid pool player, she also helped Ed open and run a pool hall franchise on the stores second floor. Edna Van Raalte helped her husband Paul open and operate The Hub Restaurant in 1950 and Van Raaltes Fine Food in 1956. Subscribe: Get unlimited access to our local coverage Maria DeMartinez, Juanita Raez and Lupita Reyes Maria DeMartinez and Juanita Raez met in 1966 as field workers when they became sisters-in-law. In 1968, they took factory jobs at General Electric. Then, in the early 1990s, they bought an ice cream shop at Lakewood Avenue and Waverly Road. Although they knew nothing about restaurants, they started and sustained Taco Fiesta for over 30 years. Lupita Reyes Lupita Reyes emigrated from Mexico to Holland as a little girl. Although her first school principal labeled her learning impaired and her high school counselor discouraged her from attending college, Lupita graduated from GVSU with a 4.0 GPA and landed an administrative job at Holland Hospital. In 1964, she co-founded the Latin American Society, forerunners of Community Action House and Latin Americans United for Progress. She also launched a radio show on WHTC. Later she started a counseling program at Catholic Human Development and, in 1995, co-founded the Holland Community Health Center, then directed it for 10 years. In 2005, she co-founded the Lakeshore Community Outreach Center and, later, LAR Counseling. Steve VanderVeen is a resident of Holland. You may reach him at skvveen@gmail.com. His book, "The Holland Area's First Entrepreneurs," is available at Readers World. This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland History: Even more women who helped make Holland Bidhan Upadhyay, mayor of Asansol Municipal Corporation (AMC), has visited and inspected the various Chhath Puja ghats of Asansol subdivision and has announced that the banks of the 250 Chhath Puja ghats will be concretised soon and tenders of 40 Chhath Puja ghats renovations are already been issued. Watch towers have been set up by Asansol Durgapur Police Commiserate and drone cameras will also be used for surveillance of huge crowds at the ghats. Asansol-Durgapur, is not only the largest industrial belt of West Bengal but is also cosmopolitan in nature and a large number of non-Bengali and Hindi-speaking people have settled here as factory workers and traders over the decades from all over the country. The AMC has been cleaning and renovating the ghats since the past few days like every year for the Chhath Puja. Mayor Bidhan Upadhyay and other top officials of Asansol Municipal Corporation visited the various ghats and supervised the works of the civic body. Deputy mayor Wasimul Haq, MMiC (sanitation), Gurudas Chatterjee was also present. Advertisement The Chhath ghats, besides the Damodar and Bhootnath ghat draws huge number of pilgrims. From Barakar to Burnpur, Chhath Pujas are organised besides the banks of river Damodar. Sunil Kumar Chaudhury, commissioner of police of Asansol Durgapur Police Commissionerate (ADPC) has also supervised and inspected the security measures undertaken by the police in wake of the festival. He said that this year drone cameras will be used in all the Chhath ghats under Asansol Durgapur Police Commissionerate area to monitor the crowd and security measures. The CP further added that foot-patrolling, bike patrolling teams of cops will be present on the different routes and the traffic department has also taken extra measures. Moloy Ghatak, the state law minister, didnt get any relief at Delhi High Court on Friday when the HC refused to quash the summons issued to him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the investigating agencys probe into the alleged coal scam in Bengal. The HC has directed the central agency to interrogate the cabinet minister in its Kolkata office instead of Delhi. While dealing with 67- year-old law ministers plea to direct the ED not to summon him to Delhi, the court noted that the agency probing the scam was earlier asked to consider calling him at its Kolkata office, keeping in mind his age and health condition. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, in an order, directed that the ED would be at the liberty to require the attendance of the petitioner at its Kolkata office by giving at least 24 hours notice. Advertisement The HC said notices shall also be issued to the Kolkata Police commissioner and the state chief secretary so that adequate police protection is afforded to the persons seeking to examine or interrogate the petitioner, and to avoid any difficulty or obstruction or interference with the concerned officers. The high court said there was no ground to quash the summons issued to Mr Ghatak. The court was hearing Mr Ghataks plea seeking to quash the ECIR and summons issued to him, and also directing the agency not to summon him to Delhi. The minister has so far faced the ED interrogation only once, out of 12 summons to him by the agency during the past oneand-a-half years. For Chhath Puja, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation has made elaborate arrangements preparing over 200 ghats for the rituals tomorrow. The civic body has prepared 111 ghats in its area, while 42 are those of the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA). According to KMC mayor Firhad Hakim, 28 ghats have been created temporarily while 14 are located beside the Ganga. An additional number of four water bodies have also been set up to enable devotees perform their rituals nearby. The municipal corporation has also set up changing rooms for women. As informed by Mr Hakim, around 100 bio-toilets have also been set up at the ghats while arrangements for proper lighting at ghats have been made. Advertisement The road department has made provisions for performing dandi, an important ritual of the festival. According to the KMC mayor a special ghat has been set up for the devotees in the port area, who earlier had to come to Rabindra Sarobar Lake. The Takta ghat, which had considerable depth, has been surrounded by the engineering department of the KMC. Stages have also been erected at places for the festival. The Bengal Lamp ghat, where the local residents had complained last year, is to be cleaned after the festival by the KMC. We will take initiatives to clean the water bodies in a month and bring them to their natural condition. The conservancy department would be engaged in cleaning up the waste. We would also see that the fish in the water bides are not damaged, informed the mayor. Diane Genslers recent commentary on news coverage of the war in Gaza (Dont be fooled by Hamas propaganda, Nov. 14) and the letter to the editor from Henry Farkas with its callous description of the plight of 2 million Palestinian noncombatants both deserve rebuttals (Hamas deserves blame for civilian deaths in Gaza, Nov. 15). More than 1 million people have migrated south. Farkas writes: The dislocation in Gaza would have been a bus or car ride of no more than a few hours for each dislocated person. They gave the civilians somewhere to go, and they allowed them time to get there. He ignores that the road is often blocked with rubble and the circumstances of the Israeli illegal collective punishment announced by Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant to cut off water, food and electricity. He ignores the facts that many of those migrating south are mourning dead relatives or are injured themselves, and that many reportedly have been killed by Israeli bombs while seeking safety. Gensler wrote to counteract Hamas propaganda: I see images of adults in Gaza carrying the bodies of children. Our hearts bleed for them. Its more unnecessary, tragic loss of life. But the fanatical ideology of Hamas is furthered with the printing of these photographs. Why? Because this is what Hamas wants you to see, and they have designed it this way. Dead children are not propaganda. More children have already been killed in Gaza than in all other wars worldwide combined since 2109, according to Save the Children. Israel is making sure that aid allowed into Gaza is pitifully insufficient. Hamas crimes do not mitigate Israels guilt. Israels illegal occupation of Palestinian territory has escalated over several decades. By providing massive military aid, our own U.S. government is complicit in these crimes even while publicly begging Israel to relent through pauses or other insufficient means. Charlie Cooper, Baltimore Add your voice: Respond to this piece or other Sun content by submitting your own letter. Tens of millions of Americans can't seem to save much money on their own, which becomes a challenge when they must pull out credit cards to meet emergency expenses, pile up other bills or face repossessions. A personal financial struggle can turn into a workplace problem if it leads to anxiety, reduced productivity or absenteeism. No wonder more employers are paying attention to the savings challenges faced by many of their workers. Thousands of corporations already help their staffs save for retirement through 401(k) programs and similar plans. What if they gave a similar nudge for savings accounts designed to help employees get through short-term cash crunches? Several financial companies including Fidelity, BlackRock, Mass Mutual and the Sunny Day Fund have designed programs tied to emergency savings. Some programs, such as that offered by SecureSave, encourage employers to provide incentives for their workers, usually with matching funds as they typically also offer with 401(k) plans. Other employer-provided incentives can include modest enrollment bonuses and payments when workers hit milestones such as reaching a certain dollar amount in their accounts. "We tell employers a little bit of money (through incentives) goes a long way," said Devin Miller, one of SecureSave's co-founders. Another co-founder is Suze Orman, the popular financial television commentator and best-selling author. "We're trying to improve the public's ability to survive," Miller said. Employers pay fees to SecureSave, though the program is free to employees who sign up. The savings that workers accumulate are held in FDIC-insured accounts with a partner bank. The program won't make anyone rich the current yield is just 0.8% and can fluctuate. But if the accounts can help workers get into the habit of saving regularly, then they have done their job. The Arizona Republic Subscription Offers, Specials, and Discounts Story continues "Some people don't know what it's like to have a savings account," Orman said in an interview. "This program can change your behavior." An emergency savings account also can make it easier for employers to recruit and retain employees in a highly competitive job market. "When an employee suddenly has $400, $800 or $1,000 in an account, they give credit to themselves and to their company," Orman said. "They now have a deeper psychological loyalty to their employer." Need a new tax strategy? These money-saving tips taken by Dec 31 may help pad your pockets How the savings programs work Details of these programs vary. With SecureSave, an employer might contribute $100 to $200 a year in matching funds to a worker's emergency savings account. Employers also might offer a bonus of, say, $50, to encourage workers to sign up or when they reach various savings milestones. Employers also typically promote 401(k) retirement plans and encourage participation with matching funds. But unlike with 401(k) plans, which typically are used more heavily by highly compensated workers, the benefits of an emergency savings plan can trickle down more noticeably to lower-paid individuals. "This provides funding to the people who need it the most," Miller said. It's worth noting that 401(k) plans frequently allow participants to take out loans against their balances, but this isn't necessarily a wise option, especially if used to meet small-dollar, short-term expenses. Besides, not all employees participate in workplace retirement programs, especially younger, lower-income people who haven't yet embraced a savings mentality. With a workplace emergency savings account, a worker might start saving $25 per paycheck, then later bump that up to perhaps $35 or $50. Participants often begin to recognize that "If they don't see the money, they won't spend it," Orman said. "They realize they don't miss that extra money, and they're saving for the first time." Unlike some of the other relatively new emergency-savings programs, Miller said SecureSave is focused on saving, without trying to get employees to sign up for credit cards, student loans or something else. Good results at Humana Health insurer Humana recently incorporated the SecureSave program into its benefits lineup, with favorable results. Humana, which ranks as one of Arizona's larger nongovernmental employers, rolled out the SecureSave program this past summer. So far, close to 70% of Humana employees have signed up for the benefit, totaling more than 34,000 people who collectively have saved more than $12 million over the first three months. That works out to around $350 per participating employee so far. "Financial matters are one of the highest sources of stress for Americans," said Jessica Klein, senior vice president of total rewards at Humana, in an email. "When people experience financial stressors, their physical health, interpersonal relationships and ability to contribute fully in the workplace and in their personal lives can all suffer." Humana offers a $100 sign-up bonus and a $20 match each biweekly pay period. Klein said it was important that the company's emergency-savings program was simple and easy to understand. "Employees are always in control of how much they save, when they access their money, no matter the reason, and they always own the account, even if they leave Humana," she added. Humana executives have long recognized that financial security is a key component of overall health and well-being, Klein added. "Helping employees build short-term financial resilience positively impacts all parties individuals, the company and ultimately Humanas members and patients." Reach the writer at russ.wiles@arizonarepublic.com. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suze Orman wants to help you build a rainy day savings fund Nehrus wife Budhni Mejhan died at her residence near Panchet in Jharkhand on Friday late night and shes cremated there today. Budhni was invited by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to switch on the flow of Panchet dam, erected on the Damodar river on 6 December 1959. But, the honour given by the countrys first Prime Minister however had fell on her as a curse as her community never approved that Nehru had offered flower garlands to her during the inauguration! Budhni, a local labourer at the dam construction site was among the group present beside the podium to welcome the Prime Minister. Shed garlanded the Prime Minister following the instructions by the Damodar Valley Corporation officials and the witnesses said that the Prime Minister also had garlanded her in reciprocation. Advertisement Nehru, later had insisted that 15- year-old Budhni, a worker, press the button at the power station to signal the start of operations. She was flanked by Nehru, which offended the tribal community. However, when Budhni returned to her village, Karbona, village elders told her that by garlanding Nehru at the function she had in effect, married him. Since the Prime Minister was not a Santhal, she was no longer a part of the community. She was told to vacate the village. The young and banished girl however was given shelter by a resident of Panchet, Sudhir Dutta, from whom she had a daughter, born to a destiny of exile like her mother. In 1962, Budhni was fired from her job at DVC and reduced to doing odd jobs, the officials said. In the 1980s, she travelled to Delhi. She met the then Prime Minister and Nehrus grandson Rajiv Gandhi, with a request that she wanted to be reinstated at DVC, which Gandhi approved and persuaded. Shed superannuated from her services in 2005 and died at Panchet hospital following a cardiac arrest, the DVC officials said. A petition has been moved in the NCLT with regards to a dispute between two brothers, Ashok K. Mittal and Ram Parshottam Mittal R.P. Mittal over the shareholding, management and control of Hotel Queen Road Private Limited HQRPL which owns a hotel property known as Hotel Royal Plaza in the national capital. The petition seeks to affirm that HQRPL is a public company. It also seeks to declare that the removal of R.P. Mittal and Sarla Mittal from directorship in the EOGM is legal and valid. Advertisement Also, and the rights issue in July, 2009 was legal and valid. R.P. Mittal received notice to subscribe for shares. They voluntarily declined to buy shares so R.P. Mittal group cannot be permitted to challenge the rights issue. Since, January 14, 2009, Ashok K. Mittal group is in control and management of HQRPL, having 91.76 per cent shares. R.P. Mittal group is in minority having only 8.24 per cent shares. In 2002, in terms of the disinvestment plan of ITDC, a demerger scheme was approved vide which the hotel property was transferred to a newly incorporated company, HQRPL. On September 30, 2002, HQRPL (which was then under the control of the Government/GOI) convened an EOGM where a special resolution was passed for converting the company into a public limited company). In January, 2009, when Ashok Mittal got control over HQRPL, the companys account had been declared as NPA and the bank account had only Rs 2.82 lakhs. The rooms of the hotel were not up to the mark and neither did the hotel have good banquet hall or swimming pool or a gym. As the ASIAD games were approaching, the hotel required renovation and upgradation to meet the international standards. Looking into the dire need of funds, HQRPL decided to conduct rights issue of shares and accordingly gave an offer letter dated September 30, 2009. Even though the market value of shares was ascertained as Rs 143 per share by a Valuer, HQRPL offered the shares at a reasonable value of Rs 40 (10+30) each. R.P. Mittal filed an application being seeking a stay on the Rights Issue. The High Court, vide order dated August 18, 2009 refused to stay rights issue and observed that rights issue is for benefit of the company, the rate at which shares are being offered is way less than the market value. The court observed that if R.P. Mittal subscribes then it would continue to be a dominant shareholder and if R.P. Mittal chooses not to subscribe then the said act would be a result of his own volition. The high court was of the view that there was nothing illegal or reprehensible in the proposed offer of rights issue. More than 14 years have already passed since rights issue took place in HQRPL. The funds brought in through rights issue have been utilized to clear debts of HQRPL. The entire film industry is in shock over the unexpected passing of filmmaker Sanjay Gadhvi. Actor Abhishek Bachchan, who collaborated with Sanjay on Dhoom and Dhoom 2, expressed his emotions upon hearing the news, sharing a heartfelt note and unseen pictures from the set. Bachchan revealed that he had spoken to Gadhvi just last week. In the caption accompanying the shared pictures, Bachchan wrote, I took this photo of Sanjay whilst we were filming the climax of Dhoom 2 in South Africa. We made 2 films together Dhoom and Dhoom 2. Sanju, when I spoke to you last week and we were reminiscing about our shoots and memories, I would never have imagined even in my craziest dreams that I would have to write a post like this. Im shocked beyond belief. You had faith in me, even when I didnt. You gave me my first-ever hit!!! I can never ever forget that or be able to express what it meant to me. I will cherish your friendship always. Rest in peace, my brother. The Sanjay Gadhvi directorial starred John Abraham, Abhishek Bachchan, and Uday Chopra. It was followed by Dhoom: 2 in 2006 and Dhoom: 3 in 2013. Advertisement Raju Vasani, a family friend confirmed the news of Gadhvis demise. Gadhvi passed away from a massive cardiac arrest in Bombay while taking his morning walk. Despite being rushed to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, he was pronounced dead on arrival. Upon learning of Gadhvis untimely death, filmmaker Kunal Kohli expressed his grief on X (formerly Twitter), saying, This is beyond shocking. #SanjayGadhvi RIP never thought Id have to write your obituary. Shared an office for many years at YRF, lunch dubbas, discussions. Will miss you my friend. This is too hard to accept. Yash Raj Films, on their X handle, shared a photo of the late filmmaker and stated, The magic he created on screen will be cherished forever. May his soul rest in peace. #SanjayGadhvi Gadhvi directed the blockbuster Dhoom (2004) and Dhoom 2 (2006) for Yash Raj Films. His other notable films include Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai (2002), Tere Liye (2001), Kidnap (2008), and Ajab Gazabb Love (2012). In 2020, he directed Operation Parindey for OTT. Sanjay Gadhvi made his directorial debut with the film Tere Liye in 2000 and rose to prominence after directing the action movie Dhoom in 2004. Renowned filmmaker Sanjay Gadhvi, best known for his work on the Dhoom film series, passed away at the age of 56 due to a sudden cardiac arrest at his Mumbai residence on Sunday, November 19. The news was shared by his daughter, Sanjina Gadhvi. Gadhvi, who would have turned 57 in just three days, left a significant mark on the Indian film industry. Gadhvis filmmaking journey began with his directorial debut in 2000 with Tere Liye, initially titled Tu Hi Bataa. Despite going unnoticed, it paved the way for his association with Yash Raj Films, marking the start of a career that would shape Bollywoods action genre. His collaboration with Yash Raj Films continued with Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai in 2002, a film that achieved moderate success. However, it was in 2004 that Sanjay Gadhvi captured widespread attention with the action thriller Dhoom. The films success led to the 2006 sequel, Dhoom 2, for which he received the 2007 Stardust Award in the Hottest Young Film Maker category. Advertisement Gadhvis directorial prowess extended beyond his notable Dhoom series, showcasing his ability to handle star-studded casts. Dhoom 2 featured Abhishek Bachchan, Uday Chopra, Rimi Sen, along with the addition of Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai, and Bipasha Basu. Abhishek Bachchan, one of the lead actors in Gadhvis films, paid a moving tribute, acknowledging the director for giving him his first-ever hit. Admirers of Gadhvis impact on the film industry will remember him not only through his successful projects but also through the talent he nurtured and the cinematic experiences he crafted. Jane Dipika Garrett, hailing from Miss Nepal, has etched her name in history as the first plus-size model to grace the Miss Universe stage. The 22-year-old made waved during the preliminary rounds in El Salvador on Wednesday, November 15, captivating the audience with her runway presence. However, Garretts entry sparked immediate controversy. The part-American contestant, a staunch advocate for body positivity, expressed her mission to represent all women regardless of conformity to certain beauty standards. In an interview with Hola magazine, Jane Dipika Garrett shed light on her journey, stating, As a curvy woman who doesnt follow certain beauty standards, Im here to represent all women. Her participation in the renowned beauty contest stands as a significant stride for body positivity and representation, especially considering the challenges she has faced with body image in the past. The Miss Nepal winner openly shared her personal transformation, revealing, A few years ago, I was a very insecure person and had very low self-esteem. Now, I love myself, and thats success to me. Advertisement Garretts conviction in breaking the mold of conventional beauty standards resonates in her empowering words: I think theres not one way to be beautiful; every woman is beautiful just as they are. As she takes the stage at Miss Universe, Garrett not only competes for the crown but also champions a broader definition of beauty that embraces diversity and rejects rigid norms. Nicaraguas Sheynnis Palacios clinched the coveted title of Miss Universe 2023 in a splendid ceremony held at the Jose Adolfo Pineda Arena in San Salvador, El Salvador, on November 19 (IST). The 72nd edition of the Miss Universe pageant showcased representatives from 84 countries. RBonney Gabriel of the USA, the reigning Miss Universe 2022, graciously passed on the esteemed crown amid cheers from the lively audience. Notably, the event witnessed the historic participation of two transgender contestants, Miss Portugals Marina Machete and Miss Netherlands Rikkie Kolle. This marked a groundbreaking moment as it was the first time transwomen had stepped onto the Miss Universe stage. Rikkie Kolle, a 22-year-old model and LGBTQIA+ rights advocate, emerged victorious as Miss Netherlands in July of this year, triumphing over nine other finalists. She now joins the ranks of Angela Ponce, who represented Spain in 2018, as the second transgender individual to compete in the prestigious Miss Universe pageant. Kolle, known for her prior participation in Hollands Next Top Model, used a video in the Voices for Change campaign to voice her stance against bullying and advocate for equality. Reportedly, she faced bullying herself due to her gender identity. Advertisement On the other hand, flight attendant Marina Machete secured the title of Miss Portugal in October 2023, becoming the first transgender contestant to achieve this milestone in her country. Her bio reflects her pride in overcoming challenges with courage and strength, leading to the development of humanity and kindness in her life. In a video shared on the Portuguese pageants YouTube channel, Machete candidly expressed her journey as a trans woman, emphasizing that love, especially from her family, proved more powerful than ignorance. Both Kolle and Machete are leveraging their social media platforms to disseminate messages of encouragement to transgender individuals globally. They are champions of resilience, using their stories to inspire others and foster a sense of unity and understanding. In summary, the Miss Universe 2023 pageant not only celebrated the crowning of Sheynnis Palacios as its winner but also marked a significant milestone with the participation of transgender contestants Rikkie Kolle and Marina Machete, who are now beacons of inspiration for the LGBTQIA+ community worldwide. Authorities on Sunday repatriated 29 Myanmar soldiers, who on Thursday (Nov 16) fled to Mizorams Champhai district, after their camp at Tuibual in Chin state was captured by the civilian armed forces. Officials said that two Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopters on Sunday airlifted the 29 Myanmar soldiers from Mizorams Champhai to Manipurs Moreh town and they were handed over to Myanmars military authority. After completing necessary formalities including biometric process, the Indian authorities handed over all the 29 soldiers to Myanmar Army officers at Tamu (opposite to Moreh border) in the neighbouring country, an official told IANS. Advertisement Moreh town, 110 km south of Manipur capital Imphal, is the biggest border trading center along the India-Myanmar border. Mizorams Inspector General of Police, Headquarters, Lalbiakthanga Khiangte said that on November 16, twenty nine more Myanmarese soldiers, including a major and a captain fled to Mizorams Champhai district. The Myanmar Army soldiers on Thursday approached the police and we handed them over to the Assam Rifles. They were under the custody of the para-military force and stayed at the Vaphai Assam Rifles camp, Khiangte told IANS. The 29 Myanmar soldiers fled to Indian territory after their camp at Tuibual in Chin state was captured by the Chin National Defence Force (CNDF), the armed wing of the Chin National Organisation (CNO). The Myanmar Armys Tuibual camp in Chin state near the India-Myanmar border along Mizoram. The soldiers on Thursday crossed the Tiau river to enter Mizoram and sought shelter in Indian territory. Tiau river serves the boundary between India and Myanmar. On November 13, forty-five Myanmar soldiers, including officers, had fled to Mizoram after the CNDF took control of two military bases in Myanmars Chin state and subsequently were airlifted by IAF helicopters to Manipurs Moreh town and they were handed over to Myanmars military officials the next day. Besides soldiers, around 1,400 Myanmarese, including women and children, took shelter in Mizorams Champhai last week following the gunfight between the Myanmars Tatmadaw (military) and CNDF cadres. The district administration has provided food and relief materials to the refugees. Necessary medical aid was also given to those hapless evacuees. The first influx from Myanmar happened in February 2021 after the Military junta seized power. Since then, 32,000 people including women and children from Myanmar have taken shelter in the northeastern state. A majority of the refugees live in relief camps and government buildings, while many others are accommodated by their relatives and a large number of people of Myanmar have been staying in rented houses. Mizorams six districts Champhai, Siaha, Lawngtlai, Serchhip, Hnahthial and Saitual share a 510-km-long unfenced and mountainous border with Myanmars Chin state. The Assam Rifles, which guarding the unfenced 1,643-km India-Myanmar border has stepped up its vigilance along the frontier. An Indian Air Force (IAF) C17 aircraft, carrying 32 tonnes of aid, on Sunday departed for El-Arish Airport in Egypt to deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine, who are caught up in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. In a post on X, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar reaffirmed New Delhis commitment to extend humanitarian assistance to Gazans, posting, We continue to deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine. Second @IAF_MCC C17 aircraft carrying 32 tonnes of aid departs for the El-Arish Airport in Egypt. Earlier, India sent 38 tonnes of humanitarian relief for civilians caught up in the ongoing ground offensive by the Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip. Advertisement The aid package comprised fluids and painkillers. The disaster relief material, weighing approximately 32 tonnes, also included tents, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, basic sanitary utilities, and water purification tablets, among other items. Taking to X, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi posted after India shipped emergency aid for Gazans earlier, India sends humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine! An IAF C-17 flight carrying nearly 6.5 tonnes of medical aid and 32 tonnes of disaster relief material for the people of Palestine departs for El-Arish airport in Egypt. The material includes essential life-saving medicines, surgical items, tents, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, sanitary utilities, and water purification tablets, among other necessary items. The spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said recently that India was planning to send more humanitarian assistance to the affected civilians in the region. He said India has always stressed the need to avoid civilian casualties in the ongoing military operations in Gaza. This is not about one specific facility, Bagchi said, adding, India has always underlined the need for civilian casualties to be avoided, for humanitarian law to be observed, and to encourage any effort to provide humanitarian relief to those caught in the conflict. BJPs Kerala unit president K Surendran has demanded the resignation of Congress Kasargod MP Rajmohan Unnithan for allegedly defending the Palestinian Islamist militant organisation Hamas and calling for the murder of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Surendran also said that sympathizers of terror outfits should be booked by the state police over his outrageous remarks. He also criticized the Congress party for being silent about the killings of Christians in Azerbaijan, Nigeria and Yemen. Taking to X, Surendran said that Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan is echoing terrorist propaganda. He further said that Unnithans inflammatory speech is not a usual political discourse rather it is akin to Jihadist extremism. Advertisement Outraged by @INCIndia MP Rajmohan Unnithans reckless and inflammatory speech at the Palestine Rally. His call for the murder of Israeli PM Netanyahu is deplorable, echoing terrorist propaganda. This isnt political discourse; its a dangerous incitement akin to jihadist extremism. We demand immediate legal action against such radical rhetoric. This isnt about politics; its about preventing the spread of terrorist ideology, the Kerala BJP president posted. Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan has stirred a political row after he said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be shot and killed without a trial for allegedly committing a war crime against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip. Addressing a rally to demonstrate solidarity with Palestine in Keralas Kasaragod on Friday, Rajmohan Unnithan reportedly said: It is high time that the Nuremberg model was applied here (against the Israeli PM). Today, Benjamin Netanyahu is standing before the world as a war criminal. It is high time that Netanyahu was shot and killed without a trial because of the atrocities that his forces are committing on Palestinians. The rally was organised by the Kasaragod United Muslim Jamaath on Friday Reacting to the Congress MPs comment, Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said that such statements by a member of Parliament show the country in a poor light. I dont know what is the stand of the Congress party on such statements by their MP. The Member of Parliament is a very responsible position which is taken note of by the international community. When an MP makes such a statement its a shame to the Indian Parliament and parliamentary democracy, Muraleedharan said. Khinvsar police stations six policemen who were on way for the PMs rally in Jhunjhunu were killed and one injured when their vehicle collided with a truck on the NH 58 in Churu district early this morning. The injured was rushed to a government hospital in Jodhpur, the Superintendent of Police Nagaur Narayan Togas told The Statesman when contacted. The deceased whose bodies kept in Churu Hospital mortuary were identified as Ramchandra, Kumbharam, Thanaram, Sukhram, Mahendra, and Suresh Meena, the Nagaur control room police said. Advertisement According to the police, the Jafta (group) of Khinvsar police station of Nagaur was going to Jhunjhunu in the early hours for the security of Prime Minister Narendra Modis meeting to be held in Jhunjhunu in the afternoon when their vehicle collided with the heavy vehicle betwee Kanuta and Sujangarh towns of Churu district on National Highway 58. At 6:30 hrs Meanwhile, the DGP Umesh Mishra condoled the death of six cops saying it was a great loss to the police department and bereaved family members. Key Insights Thong Guan Industries Berhad's significant private companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public The top 5 shareholders own 51% of the company Institutional ownership in Thong Guan Industries Berhad is 24% If you want to know who really controls Thong Guan Industries Berhad (KLSE:TGUAN), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are private companies with 40% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn). Individual investors, on the other hand, account for 32% of the company's stockholders. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Thong Guan Industries Berhad. View our latest analysis for Thong Guan Industries Berhad What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Thong Guan Industries Berhad? Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing. Thong Guan Industries Berhad already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Thong Guan Industries Berhad, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too. Story continues Hedge funds don't have many shares in Thong Guan Industries Berhad. Our data shows that Foremost Equals Sdn Bhd is the largest shareholder with 38% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 4.9% and 3.6% of the stock. Additionally, the company's CEO Poon Ang directly holds 0.9% of the total shares outstanding. Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 51% of the company is controlled by the top 5 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business. Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time. Insider Ownership Of Thong Guan Industries Berhad The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Our most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Thong Guan Industries Berhad. As individuals, the insiders collectively own RM30m worth of the RM743m company. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board, though we generally prefer to see bigger insider holdings. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling. General Public Ownership The general public-- including retail investors -- own 32% 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 We can see that Private Companies own 40%, of the shares on issue. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company. Next Steps: It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Thong Guan Industries Berhad better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Thong Guan Industries Berhad . 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. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday said that the alleged use of forged identity cards in the Youth Congress organisational election in the state, which was held on November 14, is a very serious matter. Speaking to media persons on the platform of Nava Kerala Sadas in Kasargod, Pinarayi Vijayan said it is something that should not have happened. He said the police are investigating whether this has happened before and how it will affect the elections. The Kerala Police have registered a case in connection with the alleged use of forged identity cards in the Youth Congress organisational election in the state which was held on November 14. Advertisement An eight-member special team of Kerala Police have been assigned to probe the alleged use of fake voters ID cards during the Youth Congress election in the state Speaking on the success of the Nava Kerala Sadas, Vijayan said that 1908 complaints were received in the Sadas (Nava Kerala Sadas) on Saturday and action will be taken after examining all these complaints. Vijayan on Saturday alleged that the Centre government is financially strangulating the state government. He said there has been a shortfall of more than Rs 57,000 crore in what is due from the Centre. This is an example of how a state is being viewed with hostility, he said on Saturday. Nava Kerala Sadas, the LDF governments month-long outreach programme which commenced on Saturday, will conclude on December 23 at Vattiyoorkavu in Thiruvananthapuram. The programme involves the entire Council of Ministers engaging directly with the public. Uttarakhand tunnel rescue operation latest update: Rescue teams involved in the Uttarakhand tunnel rescue operation are now racing against time to save the 41 construction workers trapped under debris for nearly 175 hours. The rescuers will now try to drill a hole on top of the hill under which the construction workers are trapped inside debris of the collapsed tunnel. According to reports the rescue work is likely to take 4-5 days more as efforts to drill a horizontal hole using American auger machine didnt yield the desired results. The rescue work had to be stopped following a fresh collapse of a boulder yesterday. The extended confinement under the debris of the collapsed tunnel has also raised the safety concerns about the trapped workers who have limited food, water, and oxygen. The trapped workers are communicating with the rescue teams outside but the latest status of their health is not clearly known. Advertisement However, the supply of the necessary medicine and food has not halted. A new auger machine has also reportedly brought to the site but it didnt start drilling due to fears of more damage to the tunnel after of loud cracks were heard on Saturday. The new plan to create an alternative escape route involves drilling a vertical hole on the top of the hill under which the tunnel is located. They will drill from a pre-identified spot to the depth of slightly over 100 meters to reach the trapped workers. The 41 construction workers are trapped under the debris after the tunnel collapsed on November 12. Since then, authorities are making all the possible efforts to rescue them. A team of experts that were involved in the rescue of children trapped inside a Thailand cave is also said to be involved in the operation. Thailand is set to sparkle this November as the country celebrates one of its most colourful and picturesque cultural festivals Loy Krathong, also known as the Festival of Lights. To celebrate the water goddess Phrae Mae Khongkha, millions of Thais float (loy) a little raft (krathong) commonly made from banana trunk and topped with flowers and candles. The krathongs carry the hopes, wishes, and gratitude of individuals, and represent the act of letting go of the old and ushering in the new. Loy Krathong is celebrated nationwide every year, on the night of the full moon of the twelfth month of the Thai lunar calendar. The festival takes place on 27 November this year, and is a special occasion for both Thais and travellers who flock to the country for this dazzling festival. Advertisement Thailand was the #1 most visited country on Airbnb in Southeast Asia last year, with Bangkok the most visited city in the country. This Loy Krathong, Airbnb has already seen a 17 percent surge in international guests searching for a stay in Thailand. The most popular destinations during this festive period are Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Phuket, Koh Samui, Hua Hin, Koh Pha Ngan and Krabi. Many are flocking to The Land of Smiles for the end of year holidays Airbnb has seen approximately an 88 percent spike in searches by China travellers for November-December travel to Thailand, and an over 15 percent increase in searches by Australian guests in the same period If youre thinking about visiting Thailand this holiday season, make it one to remember and join the festivities! Read on for Airbnbs recommendations of the best destinations and places to stay to experience Loy Krathong. Chiang Mai Renowned for its mountains and lush forests, Chiang Mai in Thailands north is home to the traditional Lanna culture. Loy Krathong celebrations are marked by large ceremonies and illuminated temples and are held at the same time as the Yee Peng festival, where Thais release thousands of paper lanterns (khom loi) into the night sky making for a truly incredible sight. Flowing through the heart of Chiang Mai province is the Ping River, a popular place amongst locals and visitors alike to float krathongs. Tha Phae Gate is another; located on the east side of the old city wall. The surrounding moat is a local favourite and popular gathering place, while Three Kings Monument in front of the old town hall has a lively atmosphere and attracts many to join in the activities. You cant leave Chiang Mai without trying the local delicacies, and there are many to choose from. Some must-tries are sai oua (a northern Thai sausage), nam ngiao (sour and spicy noodles with tomato soup), and the always popular khao soi (creamy coconut curry with crispy noodles). Bangkok Thailands vibrant capital transforms every Loy Krathong, as the city embraces its cultural roots and traditions in a spectacle not to be missed. The main water artery of Bangkok, the Chao Phraya River, is a popular destination for visitors and locals to float krathongs and where you can join in the festivities against the backdrop of iconic landmarks such as Wat Arun. Alternatively, make your way to Wat Saket where you can enjoy a memorable Loy Krathong by one of Bangkoks oldest canals, Khlong Maha Nak, and explore the iconic Golden Mount nearby. A short stroll from the Chao Phraya is the hip neighbourhood of Song Wat recently voted one of the worlds 40 coolest neighbourhoods in 2023 by TimeOut with an eclectic mix of art galleries and historical buildings to explore. While exploring Bangkok, dont forget to try the citys food offerings, from street food vendors offering Thai staples such as pad thai and pad krapow, to markets such as Jodd Fair and Michelin-starred eateries. Phuket Theres much more to Phuket than meets the eye. Famous for its beaches and islands, Phuket is steeped in history, and dotted with temples and shrines making for a unique Loy Krathong experience with an island-style vibe. There are more than 30 beaches where locals often float their krathongs. Alternatively, explore some of the less touristy and equally popular spots, such as Sapan Hin Lake and Suan Luang Park in Phuket Town, or Nai Harn Lake in the south or Bang-Ma-Ruan Lake in the north. When in Phuket, dont miss the opportunity to enjoy some of the freshest seafood caught daily from the Andaman Sea. Delicious Southern dishes to try include kaeng som (sour and spicy soup), massaman (a flavourful, slightly sweet Thai curry) and kaeng tai pla (an intensely spicy curry with fermented fish). And while enjoying island life, dont forget to explore the history and Sino-Portuguese architecture in Phuket Town. (This article is website exclusive and cannot be reproduced without the permission of IANSlife) Loneliness has been officially recognized as a global public health concern by the World Health Organization (WHO), highlighting its potential impact on human well-being. WHO has initiated an international commission on loneliness, emphasizing its adverse effects on health, which can be as severe as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. The gravity of the situation has prompted the establishment of a three-year commission led by Dr. Vivek Murthy, the US surgeon general, and Chido Mpemba, the African Union youth envoy. Comprising 11 advocates and government ministers, including Ralph Regenvanu from Vanuatu and Ayuko Kato from Japan, the commission aims to address the growing issue of loneliness on a global scale. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its disruptions to economic and social activities, has exacerbated loneliness levels. However, the awareness of this challenge has also increased. Loneliness is not exclusive to developed countries; Murthy points out that one in four older people globally experiences social isolation. Advertisement The consequences of loneliness are far-reaching, affecting both older adults and young people. In older adults, loneliness is linked to a 50% increased risk of developing dementia and a 30% increased risk of coronary artery disease or stroke. Young people, too, are not immune. Between 5% and 15% of adolescents experience loneliness, with higher rates in Africa (12.7%) compared to Europe (5.3%). The impact of loneliness on young people extends beyond health, influencing educational and economic outcomes. Lonely adolescents are more likely to drop out of school, and a sense of disconnection in the workplace can result in reduced job satisfaction and performance. The commission on social connection reflects a global commitment to tackling loneliness as a public health issue. With representatives from various regions, the commission aims to develop strategies and interventions to mitigate the impact of loneliness, recognizing its pervasive nature across different age groups and regions. In the vast expanse of the Indo-Pacific, recent naval drills and diplomatic dialogues have underscored the intricate web of relationships shaping the regions geopolitical landscape. Against the backdrop of China and Pakistan conducting joint naval exercises in the Arabian Sea, Russias historic maritime engagement with Myanmar, and the United States reaffirmation of its commitment to security cooperation with India, New Delhi finds itself at the heart of a complex diplomatic web. The weeklong naval drills between China and Pakistan mark a deepening of ties between the two nations, raising eyebrows and questions about the evolving dynamics in the Indo-Pacific region. The joint maritime patrols, a first for the China-Pakistan alliance, demonstrate a strategic alignment that could potentially reshape the regional balance of power. For India, these developments necessitate a recalibration of its own diplomatic strategies to ensure stability in the region. The recent Russian-Myanmar naval exercise adds another layer to the geopolitical chessboard. With Russian vessels Admiral Tributs and Admiral Panteleyev leading the charge alongside Myanmars naval assets, the Andaman Sea witnessed what Moscow hailed as a historic event. Advertisement For India, with its historical ties to Russia and a growing partnership with the United States, this exercise raises questions about the nuanced balance New Delhi must maintain. The Indo-US 2+2 Dialogue held in New Delhi showcased the intricacies of Indias diplomatic manoeuvres. The joint statement, while expressing concern over the Ukraine conflict, skilfully avoided direct references to Russia and China. As India deepens its security ties with the United States, it is prudent not to burn bridges with longstanding partners like Russia. This delicate diplomacy was evident in the careful omission of China from the joint statement, despite indications that it would be a key focus point. The omission could be read as a nuanced approach, balancing concerns without explicitly naming them. As Indias ties with the USA strengthen, it is crucial to preserve the longstanding relationship with Russia, a key player in the regions geopolitical landscape. The balance between Indias strategic partnerships with the USA and its historical ties with Russia reflects the countrys commitment to navigating the complex currents of international relations. Looking ahead, the meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping adds another layer of complexity. As the USA seeks to re-establish military-to-military ties with Beijing, Indias role becomes pivotal. The delicate dance of diplomacy requires India to navigate its relationships, balancing its security interests with the imperative of maintaining stability in the Indo-Pacific. India finds itself at the crossroads of a rapidly evolving geopolitical landscape. The recent naval exercises and diplomatic dialogues underscore the need for a nuanced and strategic approach. The tides of diplomacy in this vast ocean demand astute navigation to safeguard Indias interests and maintain stability in the region In Hong Kong for the 2023 Asian Global Dialogue, reading two newspapers today shows how we live in parallel mental worlds but are joined at the hip in one physical planet. The New York Times had two columnists on page one: iconic globalist Tom Friedman talking about Its time for a Biden peace plan and Peter Goodman on Two partners in the global economy are splitting up. On the Opinion page, Farah Stockman, member of the Times editorial board, wrote Farewell to the US-China golden age. Contrast this with China Daily, whose front page was about Chinese President Xi being warmly welcomed upon arrival in the US, Xis vision to drive Asia-Pacific growth, and a leading article on how the Sunnylands Statement on Enhancing Cooperation to Address the Climate Crisis may be the critical document for COP28, which will be held in Dubai from November 30 to December 12. One newspaper highlighted weversus-them and the other was seeking win-win cooperation. You judge who is right for a totally messed-up world. Friedman put down the US fateful binary choice on Gaza: We will either have to become captives of Netanyahus strategy which could take us all down with him or articulate an American vision for how the Gaza war must end. Chicago international relationship realist Professor John Mearsheimer says that Israel and America are joined at the hip. Advertisement The Rest of the World is aghast at the carnage in Gaza: how many children must die to prove that Israel is not committing genocide? Or expressing such an opinion is not being anti-Semitic? But the real existential threat facing the world is not conflict, but how climate heating natural disasters stemming from human excesses that breed conditions for mutually assured destruction is accelerating human extinction. COP28 therefore is vital to all our futures. Thus, the Sunnylands statement, crafted by John Kerry, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and Xie Zhenhua, China Special Envoy for Climate Change, at Sunnylands, California, earlier this month, may be the most meaningful gesture of cooperation that the two largest economies, US and China, have taken to meet the climate crisis. The most important aspects of cooperation are: The United States and China remain committed to the effective implementation of the Paris Agreement and decisions thereunder, including the Glasgow Climate Pact and the Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation PlanThe United States and China decide to operationalize the Working Group on Enhancing Climate Action in the 2020s, to engage in dialogue and cooperation to accelerate concrete climate actions in the 2020s. The operationalisation will focus on energy transition, methane and other non-CO2 GHG emissions, circular economy and resource efficiency, subnational cooperation among states, provinces, and cities, forest regeneration, and basically supporting COP28 work. Sounds good, but show me where the money is to fund all these action plans? The biggest problem with multilateral cooperation on climate warming, exemplified by UN-convened COPs (Conference of the Parties that have signed the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol and/or the Paris Agreement) is that it is more non-military NATO no action, talk only. Today, we need to shift from NATO no agreement, take only to really fund action that can make a difference. Few are in the giving mode, as Sweden, previously one of the most generous of the rich donors, is cutting back on official development aid. The amount of military aid for the Ukraine and Israel war is far more than the $100 billion pledged to help developing countries shift to NetZero promised in 2009. The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), which is the worlds largest coalition of 500 financial institutions managing $130 trillion of assets, committed to transitioning the global economy to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions is more a stick (we wont lend or invest in you if you dont meet NetZero) than a carrot. So far, even the UN has admitted that with only seven years to go to 2030, only 12 per cent of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been met. The mainstream view is that the financing gap is around $2- 4 trillion annually to achieve these goals. McKinsey thinks that to get to global NetZero, the amount may be as large as $9.2 trillion annually. No money, no action! As climate activist Emily Atkins insightfully expressed in her sub-stack column Heated: in three decades, the COP talks have yet to produce any agreement to phase out, or even phase down fossil fuels, the leading cause of climate change. The underlying problem with climate change is not fossil fuels it is excess demand for energy, arising from our relentless demand for instant gratification (consumption) financed by freely printed debt. As long as we consume in excess of our needs and planetary limits, we are doomed to live on a boiling earth. There are physical limits to growth, as the Club of Rome correctly predicted in 1972, except that we are mentally hardwired to consume at everyone elses expense. The first class passengers on Spaceship Earth are telling the economy class passengers to tighten their belts even as they consume more to prepare their escape pods to Mars. In this inter-connected and entangled world, we cannot look just at carbon emission only, but also at the physical limits of water, energy, minerals and biodiversity that keep us all in ecological balance. Professor Simon Michaux has shown convincingly (at least to me) that if we shift towards non-fossil fuels, we will very quickly run out of essential minerals like copper, lithium etc. Cutting carbon alone just does not add up. The Thucydides Trap or Middle Income Trap essentially any collective action trap is essentially a mental trap. If we agree that we are on a non-sustainable path, then either we cooperate to survive or accelerate our mutual destruction by fighting to the last human. Sunnylands or Badlands, that is our fateful choice. (The writer, a former Central banker, writes on global affairs from an Asian perspective.) The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Sunday said that three more IDF soldiers were killed by Hamas in Gaza taking the total number of soldiers killed to 61. The IDF identified the three killed soldiers as Sgt. Maj (Res) Rani Tahan, operations Sergeant of the 261st Reserve Brigades 8717th battalion, Master Segt (res) of the 261st Reserve Brigades 8717th battalion, and Maj (res) Chen Yahalom who was with the Artillery Corps 8159th battalion. The IDF said that it has made substantial progress in the war with the army entering the strong holds of Hamas and have captured the Northern Gaza strip. Advertisement It warned the civilians in Khan Younis area of Southern Gaza to leave towards the Rafah border as the Israel Security Agency (ISA) has claimed the presence of Hamas in the Khan Younis area of South Gaza. The IDF said that the reduction in the number of missiles fired towards Israel from Gaza is an indication of the waning strength of Hamas. Israel commenced ground invasion in Gaza on October 27 after Hamas carried out attack in Southern Israel on October 7. Judge Arthur Engoron, overseeing former US President Donald Trumps $250 million civil fraud case, has rejected a motion for a mistrial from the former president and his co-defendants on Friday, dubbing the defence plea to throw out the case utterly without merit. In good conscience, I cannot sign a proposed order to show cause that is utterly without merit, and upon which subsequent briefing would therefore be futile, Judge Arthur Engoron wrote. Thus, Trump faces a double whammy rejection of his plea for mistrial and leaked tapes of his co-defendants in hearings with law enforcement on racketeering charges in relation to election subversion in Georgia. Advertisement Trump and two of his adult sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, the Trump Organization and its top executives alleged the case was undermined by political bias that Engoron and his law clerk had tainted the proceedings and that the evidence was tangible and overwhelming, media reports said. Their 30-page dismissal motion focused on what it termed disparagingnews stories from NPR, The New York Times and others where Engoron had shared in his high school alumni newsletter. The motion also pointed to political contributions to Democratic groups terming them as partisan activities. The motion included photos of Engoron and his clerk seated next to each other and accused them of co-judging the case. Such arguments are nonsensical, Engoron wrote. Engoron imposed a partial gag order on Trump last month after the former president posted a photo of the judges law clerk, alongside Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer referring to her as Schumers girlfriend. The order barred Trump, his defense team and the prosecution team from making public statements about his staff, US News and World Report dispatch said. . Engoron has fined Trump twice $5,000 and later $10,000 for breaking the gag order. Engoron has already ruled in a summary order that Trump and his adult sons were liable for fraud and cancelled the Trump Organizations business certificates. The judge endorsed the New York Attorney General Letitia James allegations of former president and his business associates inflating the value of his net worth and properties to secure loans at concessional rates. James had sought $250 million in compensatory damages asking for a ban on the Trumps serving as officers of their Manhattan business empire and on the company from engaging in business transactions for five years. Meanwhile, leaked recordings Spell Trouble for Trump in Georgia Racketeering Case. Leaked recordings offer new details of what four of Trumps co-defendants told law enforcement since agreeing to cooperate last month including information that could prove damaging to the former president, the report said. New details unearthed in snippets of recorded interviews with four of Donald Trumps co-defendants who have entered plea bargains for lesser sentences in the Georgia election interference case spell trouble for Trump and others indicted in the sprawling racketeering scheme in Georgia. The confidential taped interviews with Fulton County prosecutors were leaked on Monday to ABC News and The Washington Post. The short clips feature former Trump attorneys Jenna Ellis, Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro along with bail bondsman Scott Hall answering questions related to their individual roles in a conspiracy that saw them and 15 others charged with attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia. All four have struck plea deals with District Attorney Fani Willis and her team in exchange for lesser charges and lighter sentences, and prosecutors have discussed similar arrangements with at least six additional co-defendants, according to news reports. Powell said in her interview that the only reason that Trump leaned on her for legal advice was that the majority of White House aides told him he lost the elections and that he did not have a path forward. We were the only ones willing to support his effort to sustain the White House, she said. I mean, everybody else was telling him to pack up and go. Ellis statement to the prosecutors could harm Trump as she recounted a conversation she had with Dan Scavino, one of Trumps former top White House aides. He told her that it didnt matter if Trump lost they werent going anywhere. Saint-Laurent, CA (H4T1V6) Today Cloudy skies with periods of light rain this afternoon. High around 45F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.. Tonight Periods of rain and snow. Low 32F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precip 90%. Some people claim that Spotsylvanias school board election results were part of the blue wave that happened in parts of Virginia. That vote had nothing to do with partisanship and had everything to do with the people of Spotsylvania wanting to get back to the business of the schools: the students. The vote had to do with the majority firing a well-respected superintendent, then hiring an unqualified superintendent who has banned books, threatened to close libraries, threatened to close the IB and CGS programs, and hired unqualified staff. It had to do with the majority and their superintendents lack of following policies and laws. It had to do with the last and current chairs stomping on people's First Amendment rights and cutting off microphones. It had to do with the loss of amazing teachers, to include the Virginia Teacher of the Year. Yes, the current majority is admittedly partisan, but the votes came from across party lines. How do I know that? Not one of the School Board candidates endorsed by the Spotsylvania GOP was elected, but in 10 of the other 12 races where the Spotsy GOP endorsed candidates, they won. If voters did vote down their party line, the School Board race would not have ended that way; it took bi-partisan votes. School boards shouldnt be partisan. School board members should want their public schools to be the best so they don't need vouchers/charters. School board members should care about all students and serve them all and not discriminate against lifestyles they don't agree with. School board members should protect the parents' rights of all students, not just the parents who think like them. If the current board majority actually listened to all of the parents and did not play partisan politics, who knows what would have happened. Dawn A. Shelley Spotsylvania The BJP, which is known to fight every election, from local polls to the Lok Sabha, with an insatiable appetite, has taken a curious approach in these assembly elections. Despite the setback in Karnataka, where the marginalisation of stalwart B.S Yediyurappa was at least one reason for the partys decisive defeat; the BJP has still taken the collective leadership approach in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, two of the most critical battlefields ahead of 2024. In fact, the BJP tacitly seemed to acknowledge this mistake in the recent elevation of Yediyurappas son, B.Y. Vijayendra, a first time MLA, to the top post of party president in the state. And, yet, it has not stepped back from the very visible undermining of Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Vasundhara Raje in MP and Rajasthan. It is almost as if the BJP has decided to quietly phase out all remnant leaders from the Vajpayee years as the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah led BJP builds a new hierarchy. But would it want to do so at the risk of potential electoral defeat? Illustration: Bhaskaran Possibly, the BJP believes that neither individual is central to its loss or win. In Rajasthan, where traditionally, a revolving door system has alternated between the BJP and the Congress since 1996, historical precedent suggests that it is the BJPs turn to form the government. While several MLAs considered loyal to Raje have been given tickets, the BJP has tried hard to experiment with new facesGajendra Shekhawat, Satish Poonia and C.P. Joshi among them. Raje is certainly not the main face of the BJP campaign and who will be chief minister, if the BJP were to win, is a question that is wide open. In Madhya Pradesh, Mamaji as Chouhan is colloquially known, is probably running his most low key campaign in years. His personal popularity is only a few points behind that of Kamal Nath, the de facto CM candidate of the Congress and very much the leader of its campaign. But polls reveal a fatigue factor with the incumbent legislators. If the BJP manages to win either or both states without Raje or Chouhan at the helm, their redundancy will be highlighted by the central leadership. If the BJP loses either or both states, the party might still argue that the defeats were foretold. There are other intriguing experiments by the BJP in these assembly elections, including the decision to field a large number of its parliamentarians. Eighteen MPs, including four Union ministers, are contestants across three state assemblies. This decision has caught state level leaders off guard. Perhaps the decision is guided by the overwhelming popularity of its party in the Lok Sabha polls of 2019 in Rajasthan, MP and Chhattisgarh where the states swung back to the party despite defeats in the assembly elections of 2018. Ironically, the BJP and the Congress appear to have swapped their approaches to state election campaigns. It used to be the Congress playbook to avoid a personality-centric campaign in the states till well after the results came in. In the past, the Congress high command has historically weakened state satraps. But the results in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh revealed the electoral value of keeping assembly elections local, led by strong local faces. The Congress has embraced that philosophy in these elections, while the BJP appears to have borrowed from the old Congress rulebook in counting on the party cadres, ideology and the Modi factor to win. Either way these elections are not just the semi-finals ahead of the big elections of 2024; they could well mark the end of at least two high-profile political careers. editor@theweek.in Yuval Noah Harari has emerged as one of the 21st centurys most recognised public intellectuals. In the midst of the Israel-Palestine war in Gaza, it is useful to revisit his 21 Lessons for the 21st Century, published in 2018. He writes that terrorism is a strategy almost always adopted by very weak parties who cannot inflict much material damage on their enemies. They resort to terror because spreading fear is their main story. Most important of all, There is an astounding disproportion between the actual strength of the terrorists and the fear they manage to inspire. He goes on to say that terrorists calculate that when the enraged enemy uses his massive strength against them, he will raise a much more violent military and political storm than the terrorists themselves could ever create. He further underlines, Provoking the enemy to action without eliminating any of his weapons or options is an act of desperation taken only when there is no option. Although in 2018, when the book was published, Harari, like most Israelis, took virtually no note of Hamas (there is only one passing mention of Hamas at p.173), as he, like most Israelis, was totally complacent that Israels military and intelligence had the Palestinians completely cowed, his extraordinarily accurate perception of desperation leaving the oppressed with little choice but resort to foredoomed violence is that since they are very weak, and have no other military option, they have nothing to lose and everything to gain. That is why Hamas unleashed its limited stock of missiles in virtually one go, then broke through the Israeli barricades to capture about 200 hostages to bargain for the release of their own men and womensome 2,000 of them locked in Israeli jails. Yuval Noah Harari | Reuters They knew, of course, that Israel would retaliateand retaliate inhumanely, viciously, and disproportionately. As Harari had predicted, Fear and confusion will cause the enemy to misuse his intact strength and overreact. So that, Mistakes are made, atrocities are committed, public opinion wavers, neutrals change their stance and the balance of power changes. For, again as Harari says, Terrorism is a military strategy that hopes to change the political situation by spreading fear rather than by causing material damage. There can be no peace without justice. And it is justice of which the Palestinians have been deprived. For 75 years, Israel has been driving Palestinians out of their millennial homeland. To do this, it was Israel that introduced terrorism to West Asia. Organs like Irgun, Palmach and the Stern Gang secured independent Israel. At least two of their leading men became PMs of Israel: Yigal Allon and Menachem Begin. Yasser Arafat, in retaliation, set up the Palestine Liberation Organization, but, after violence failed, sent his team for secret negotiations in Oslo. It led to the accord that brought Arafat back from Tunis to Gaza City but instead of a Palestinian state got only panchayati raj in the Gaza Strip, solving nothing. In consequence, Hamas won a free and fair election over the PLO. Ironically, it was Israel that funded Hamas to divide the Palestinian resistance. Now Hamas has shown its true mettle to morally defeat Benjamin Netanyahu, exactly in the manner predicted by Harari. Harari even foresees this when he links Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Narendra Modi and Netanyahu (p. 179) as peas sprouting from the same pod. Hamas will fight and Israel will retaliate until and unless the Palestinian resistance turns Gandhian and shakes the worlds conscience as Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela did by basing their liberation movements on relentless, determined non-violent resistance. Aiyar is a former Union minister and social commentator. Securing funding is a major challenge for women entrepreneurs along with balancing the demands of entrepreneurship with traditional gender roles and expectations, say women business leaders. Creating an inclusive work environment and addressing key areas like easy entry into workforce, financial autonomy and healthcare would help women lead and make an impact, women entrepreneurs said on the occasion of Women Entrepreneur Day. According to Assiduus Global CEO & founder and Niti Aayog advisor Somdutta Singh, securing funding is a significant challenge for women entrepreneurs along with balancing the demands of entrepreneurship with traditional gender roles and expectations. Historically, many business networks have been male-dominated, making it harder for women to access key connections and opportunities. I am constantly working to create a diverse and inclusive work environment. I am involved in building networks that support women in entrepreneurship. "I am always advocating for equal funding opportunities, pushing for a more equitable distribution of resources, she said. Founder of SheThePeopleTV and Gytree.com, Shaili Chopra, said as an advocate of gender equality, it is crucial to establish additional ways for women to enter the workforce. This involves not only promoting equal opportunities but also addressing key areas such as healthcare, financial autonomy, and inclusive dialogue. With both my initiatives, I have centred the platforms around the community, aiming to build a sisterhood economy, where women lead and make an impact, she said. Design and architecture company Novatr's chief product officer Vipanchi Handa said personal problems in the sector faced during her corporate job propelled her to venture into doing her own thing. Recounting her experience of working in a male-dominated industry such as construction, she shared how masons would re-confirm instructions from a male executive as well. The Ayurveda Co-CEO and co-founder and an angel investor on Indian Angels Shreedha Singh said, I have always been a student of life and my vision to start T.A.C - The Ayurveda Co., began after overcoming family and financial struggles. Sharing her leadership bits, PR firm Jajabors Brand Consultancy founder Upasana Dash advises that it is preferred that one delegates tasks once they themselves know how to do it. Business was almost shadow-banned for seven generations from where I come, more so for women in families in the eastern part of India. But after working in this industry, I realised that there is a gap for business metrics and also, for women in positions of leadership, Dash said. Popular Malayalam actor Vinod Thomas was found dead in his car outside a hotel in Pambady, Kottayam. He was 45. The hotel staff alerted the police that a person had been inside a parked car for a long time. Thomas is known for his roles in movies like Ayyappanum Koshyum, Natholi oru cheriya meenalla, Oru murai vanth paathaaya, Happy Wedding and June. The cause of his death isn't known. The police suspect it might have been due to inhalation of poisonous gas from the car's AC. "We found him inside the car and took him to a nearby hospital. Doctors examined him and declared him dead," the police told PTI. The body has been sent for postmortem. The police are investigating the case. The actor had reached the bar at 11 am. He was found dead at 8. 30pm. Normal flight operations were disrupted at Manipur's Imphal International Airport on Sunday after an unidentified flying object was spotted. Two flights were diverted and three others were delayed. According to officials, the services normalised after around three hours in the afternoon. "Due to sighting of an unidentified flying object within Imphal controlled airspace, two flights have been diverted and three departing flights have been delayed. Flight operations commence after receipt of clearance from the competent authority," a statement issued by Airport Director Chipemmi Keishing said. Over 800 passengers were affected due to the flight delays. A message from CISF was received at around 2:30 pm to the Air Traffic Control (ATC) informing them that a UFO was found near the airport. "The UFO was visible with bare eyes moving westwards of the airfield till 4 pm," the official was quoted by PTI. The diverted flights included an Indigo flight from Kolkata which was initially instructed "to hold overhead" and was diverted to Guwahati after 25 minutes. The Indian Air Force Eastern Command at Shillong was informed of the development, the official said. Manipur was recently rocked by ethnic clashes between the Kuki and Meitei communities. Amid tensions, many were using drones. Reportedly, the Centre is looking into the incident. The fate of the 41 workers trapped in the partially collapsed Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand still remains uncertain. Meanwhile, the government has assured that they are taking steps on priority basis to rescue the trapped workers as soon as possible. With over 170 hours passed, workers are provided with medicines along with other supplies to cope with the possible trauma of being trapped in the tunnel. After visiting the site on Sunday, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari assured that the government is doing whatever is required to save the trapped workers. Keeping the morale of workers and their family members high should be everyone's collective responsibility, said Gadkari. The minister for road transport and highways was accompanied by Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami. While addressing a press conference after the visit, Gadkari said that the rescue operation is very challenging. It is soft at some places and hard at other places which makes any mechanical operation difficult, he said. Though horizontal drilling with the American auger is the quickest method in the circumstances to reach the trapped workers, the technical snag developed during the drilling on Friday delayed the operations. Now, preparations are ongoing to start vertical drilling. "American auger was working alright when it was drilling through soft soil. It faced some problems after it encountered some hard obstacle that led to the machine applying greater pressure and creating vibrations following which it was stopped for safety reasons," Gadkari was quoted by PTI. He also added that the trapped workers are being provided oxygen, electricity, food, water and medicines. An alternative larger-diametre pipeline apart from the existing one has been inserted up to 42 metres through rubble so that food like vegetables, roti could be supplied apart from light food. Road, Transport and Highways Secretary Anurag Jain said multivitamins, antidepressants and dry fruits are being provided to the workers trapped. While giving an update on the rescue operations, Jain in a brief video, said there is water and electricity in two km portion inside the tunnel. "Fortunately, there is light inside because the electricity is on. There is a pipeline, and thus water is available. There is a 4-inch pipe, which was used for compression. Through that, we are sending food from day 1," he said. "We are sending multivitamins, antidepressants and dry fruits to workers who have been trapped inside the under-construction tunnel at Silkyara in Uttarkashi," Jain added. The tunnel is being constructed under the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL). Gadkari also said that experts from different fields have been pooled in to suggest whatever methods can be applied to ensure the safe and early evacuation of the trapped workers. (With agencies inputs) With worlds attention focused on Israel-Hamas war, intensifying Russia-Ukraine conflict is getting sidelined. As the war enters its second winter, wave of Russian drones targetted Ukrainian capital Kyiv for second night in a row on Sunday. According to Ukrainian officials, Russia launched 38 drones at Kyiv overnight. Regions including Cherkasy and Poltava was also targeted by Russia. Kyiv citys Military Administration spokesperson, Serhii Popko said the overnight strike was the second attack on the Ukrainian capital in last 48 hours. He said that the drones attacked Kyiv from different directions in waves that were constantly changing vectors. As a result of the first two strikes, four local residents were injured and a fire broke out in a residential building, Kyiv said in a statement. However, no causalities were reported so far. Ukrainian police said Russia fired a series of rocket strikes at the village of Komyshuvakha, close to the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, which Russia annexed last year. Amid the raging war, the United Kingdom Defence Ministry said on Sunday that there were few immediate prospects of major changes in the front line, with neither Russia nor Ukraine having made meaningful progress on the battlefield. Meanwhile, five people including a three-year-old girl got injured in Russian shelling on the Ukrainian city of Kherson on Sunday morning, said officials. All of them suffered shrapnel wounds. The child and the grandmother was walking in the yard, said Ukrainian interior minister. Also in another statement, Russia said that an attempt was made by Ukraine to carry out "a terrorist attack" using a drone against facilities of the Russian Federation. According to the Russian ministry, the drone in question was destroyed by the air defence equipment over the territory of the Bogorodsky urban district, in the Moscow region. Ukrainian troops push back Russian forces from Dnipro River The Ukrainian army on Sunday said it pushed Russian forces back "three to eight kilometres" from the banks of Dnipro River. According to experts, it is a meaningful advance by Kyiv's forces after months of disappointing counterattacks since the war started. Preliminary figures vary from three to eight kilometres, depending on the specifics, geography and landscape design of the left bank, the army spokesperson Natalia Gumenyuk told Ukrainian television. The enemy still continues artillery fire on the right bank, she said, estimating that several tens of thousands of Russian troops were in the area. We have a lot of work to do, she added, reported The Guardian. After Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu formally requested India to withdraw its military presence from his country, the two nations agreed to discuss "workable solutions" to continue the use of Indian military platforms by the island nation. Union minister Kiren Rijiju met new Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu in Male on Saturday after which Muizzu "formally requested the government of India to withdraw its military personnel from the Maldives". Muizzu is widely seen as a pro-China leader and his campaign promise included the withdrawal of the Indian military personnel from his country. Muizzu had said that he would keep his election promise. The statement from the President's office noted that the "Maldivian people had given him a strong mandate to make the request to India and expressed the hope that India will honour the democratic will of the people of the Maldives." However, PTI quoting Indian government sources said Muizzu brought up the issue of Indian military personnel present in the Maldives for operating aircraft for medical evacuation and to counter drug trafficking. He also acknowledged the contribution of the Indian helicopters and aircraft for the medical evacuation of Maldivian citizens. "They are also central to the confidence that international tourists have in staying in remote islands. He appreciated their role in monitoring and combating drug trafficking," said a source. "It was agreed that the two governments would discuss workable solutions for continued cooperation through the use of these platforms as this serves the interests of the people of the Maldives," it said. Privileged to call on President H.E. Dr. Mohamed Muizzu. Conveyed greetings from Honble PM @NarendraModi and reiterated Indias commitment to further strengthen the substantive bilateral cooperation and robust people-to-people ties. pic.twitter.com/nFa95QD9ES Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) November 18, 2023 Muizzu also acknowledged the "significant role of the two helicopters in providing numerous emergency medical evacuations" Besides the choppers, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, during his visit last May, had handed over a fast patrol vessel and a landing craft to the island nation. Despite the requests, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF), however, took to X to state that a Dornier aircraft provided by India was used for the medical evacuation of a woman in critical condition from one of the archipelagos many atolls to the capital. Meanwhile, Rijiju also met with the Indian community members in Maldives, acknowledging their significant contributions to nurturing the strong ties between India and Maldives. He also took to X to thank the Indians. "Delighted to interact with vibrant & committed Indian Community in Maldives. Commended their significant contributions in nurturing India-Maldives ties. Assured them of the continued commitment of @mygovindia for their welfare and wellbeing." Marianne Williamson has kept barnstorming for months across America to audiences large and small, from churches and colleges to spiritual centers and soup kitchens in a demanding schedule of appearances in her second tenacious, against-the-odds run for the presidency. The bestselling spiritual author and one-time adviser to Oprah Winfrey didnt make it to the 2020 primaries in a wide-open Democratic field. Now she is running against a sitting president from her own party, and the Democratic establishment has closed ranks behind Joe Biden. Even some of her most devoted followers doubt she can be elected. So why is Williamson even running? She says its the faith she has in herself and the American people. The most important things you do in life, not because theres guaranteed success on some external level, but because you feel in your heart its the right thing to do, Williamson, 71, said during an interview in New York City. She admits it has been grueling at times not just the punishing campaign schedule, but more so the emotional bruising from a barrage of unflattering characterizations. For her, its the ultimate challenge to have tough skin, but a soft and open heart, she said. But Williamson worries that negative perceptions detract from her policy positions, which include financial reparations for Black Americans and creation of a Department of Peace. What are the words they use? Wacky, kooky, crystal lady, she said, listing the names shes called. People will take one line out of a book, completely out of context. That has certainly been done to me. Plus, you know, they lie. Born in Houston to a Jewish family, Judaism remains her core belief, and she also embraces universal spiritual themes, like loving one another. Williamson came into the spotlight with her popular 1992 book, A Return to Love. Oprah, highlighting it on her own site, wrote: I have never been more moved by a book. Williamson, the author of more than a dozen titles and well-known for supporting LGBTQ people, retains a legion of dedicated fans. Millions buy her books, attend her lectures and engage with her on TikTok. She is extremely sincere in her beliefs, wise in many ways even, said Issac Bailey, a communications professor at Davidson College in North Carolina who has written about Williamsons faith and politics. But she also has a streak that takes her beyond the pale. He pointed to her wariness and sharp criticism of government vaccine mandates that came up during her last campaign. She later said she supports vaccines. Im a socially middle of the road Jew who goes to the doctor, she said. Im not a crystal lady. I understand how important science is. Williamson entered politics with an unsuccessful independent congressional campaign in California in 2014, then broke onto the national stage two years later as a vocal supporter of Bernie Sanders failed presidential bid. In 2020, she entered the race herself. She acknowledges making what she calls cringeworthy comments back then, like how she would harness love to defeat former President Donald Trump. Once they could be contextualized in a way that made me appear silly, there was almost no getting past the mockery, she said. People may embrace quasi-spiritual language in their private lives, but if its from political candidates, it typically doesnt play well on the campaign trail, said Galen Watts, a sociology and legal studies professor at the University of Waterloo in Canada. But this is not new territory for Williamson. For years, she has been under fire from intellectuals who call her theology too shallow, from politicians who mock her ideas, and more recently from some former campaign staff who say shes irascible and is only trying to sell more books. She concedes that she probably swore more than she should have in her last campaign, but scoffs at the book-selling gibe. The way to sell books is by going on a book tour, not a presidential campaign," she said. The way to sell books in my field is to never mention politics. She announced her candidacy in February, and now is arguably the best-known Democrat still challenging Biden for the partys 2024 presidential nomination. But recent polls show her running more than 60 percentage points behind. Marie Griffith, a professor of women, gender and sexuality studies at Washington University in St. Louis, says there's a practical reason why Williamson stands no chance of winning. She has no connection that I know of to Democratic machine politics meaning the people who raise all the money and make or break the political careers of those identifying as Democrats, Griffith said. Williamson talks at times in religious and spiritual terms to describe America as a nation in need of confession and atonement. She worries about vast economic inequality and wants to declare a climate emergency. Williamson denies denigrating science and disputes broader criticisms of her campaign. This idea that I am unserious my campaign is the one talking about one in four Americans living with medical debt. My campaign is the one talking about the fact that the majority of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, she said. My campaign is the most serious campaign. Forty-four days after the war began, Israel, the US and Hamas are closing in on a deal which will see almost 50 hostages, mostly women and children, being released from Gaza, according to a report. However, Israel has shot down all claims of a deal. A "detailed six-page agreement" is being signed which will see Israel and Hamas freezing all hostilities for at least five days, reported The Washington Post. It added that in the initial phase, 50 or more hostages taken from Israel would be released in batches every 24 hours. The deal also assures that a "significant increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance, including fuel" will enter the Gaza Strip. Qatar is acting as the intermediators for the talks and the deal has been in works during weeks of talks in Doha, said the report citing Arab and other diplomats. It is said that Israel wants families parents and children to be released together, and has been insisting on that in the talks. However, a Biden administration official said the situation remains volatile. "Weve made some progress recently and have been working hard to advance this, but it remains a volatile situation," a Biden administration official is quoted as saying on condition of anonymity. However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed "a lot of incorrect reports" about any agreements. "Concerning the hostages, there are many unsubstantiated rumours, many incorrect reports. I would like to make it clear: As of now, there has been no deal. But I want to promise: When there is something to say we will report to you about it," he said. On whether he had passed up a serious deal for the release of some 50 hostages, Netanyahu responded that "there was no deal on the table" and he could not elaborate further. Asked if he was insisting that all be released, Netanyahu said he wanted to get back all the hostages. "Were doing the utmost to bring back the most possible, including in stages, and we are united on this." Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces continued to strike many Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip towns of Jabaliya, Beit Lahiya, and Gaza Citys Zeitoun neighbourhood overnight. The airstrikes come as ground forces begin to manoeuvre deeper into the northern Gaza Strip, specifically Jabaliya and Zeitoun. Heavy fighting is reportedly happening in the northwest Jabalia refugee camp, the largest of all camps in the enclave with nearly 100,000 people. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, whose government controls parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on Saturday said "hundreds of forcibly displaced people were killed" at the two schools in Gaza. A joint United Nations team led by WHO visited Gazas al-Shifa hospital and assessed the situation of the hospital amid evacuation orders by Israeli troops. WHO described the biggest hospital in Gaza as a death zone. The team said they saw evidence of shelling and gunfire at the hospitals entrance. Around 300 critically ill patients are still stranded at the hospital, said WHO officials. Meanwhile, Gazas Health Ministry said 30 premature babies were evacuated from the hospital. The babies will be transferred to hospitals in Egypt. Amid discussions on the hostage deal, Qatari prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said the challenges that remained in the deal very minor. The challenges facing the agreement are just practical and logistical, said Sheikh Mohammed at a joint press conference with the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in Doha. Qatar has been engaged in mediation with Hamas for the release of hostages captured by them during the October 7 attacks. Reportedly, Qatar had been seeking Israel-Hamas deal to exchange 50 hostages for a three-day ceasefire. With Israel intensifying its attacks and spreading its military to south of Gaza, a ceasefire seems not an option. "The deal is going through ups and downs from time to time throughout the last few weeks. But I think that you know I'm now more confident that we are close enough to reach a deal that can bring the people safely back to their home," added Sheikh Mohammed. Meanwhile, Jordans King Abdullah said on Sunday called on the international community to push for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza to end Israels ugly war against civilians. Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged Muslim states to "at least cut off political ties with Israel for a limited period of time", the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported. Iran President Ebrahim Raisi's call to impose wide-ranging sanctions on Israel during the joint summit of the Arab nations in Saudi was not agreed by the Muslim states. In another Israeli attack, many as 15 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli air bombardments of the central and southern Gaza Strip. Thirteen were killed in an attack on a home in Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, while a woman and her child were killed in southern Khan Younis city, WAFA reported. The Israeli military on Sunday said that a Turkey bound cargo ship for India was hijacked by Yemen's Houthis rebels in the Red Sea. Taking to X, Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said that it was a "very grave incident of global consequence". Reportedly, Houthis said that they seized an Israeli ship and taken it to the Yemeni Port. "The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship," said IDF. The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship. Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) November 19, 2023 Around 25 crew members belonging to various nations are on the ship. It is not confirmed yet if any Indians are on board. According to Prime Minister of Israel's office, nationals from including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican were onboard the ship. "Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia," read the statement by Israel PM's office. Statement by Prime Minister's Office: Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia. Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) November 19, 2023 "This is another act of Iranian terrorism and constitutes a leap forward in Iran's aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes," it added. According to The Times of Israel, the Bahaman-flagged vessel is registered under a British company, which is partially owned by Israeli tycoon Abraham Ungar. Amid Israel-Hamas war, Houthis vowed to target Israel-linked vessels in the Red Sea. Houthi rebels controlling northern Yemen had called for the destruction of Israel. THERE ARE MANY stories on how the word Telangana came into existence. One of them, which the Telangana Tourism Department and some historians endorse, is that it was derived from trilinga desa or the land of three lingasthree Shiva temples located in different parts of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Only one of themthe Kaleshwara Mukteshwara Swamy Templeis within the state borders of Telangana. The town of Kaleshwaram, therefore, draws devotees in their legions. The temple town has taken on an additional significance this election season. The BRs points proudly to the Kaleshwaram irrigation project (in pic), while the congress alleges corruption in it. The narratives of both the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi and its principal opponent, the Congress, revolve around the Kaleshwaram irrigation project, which is the largest lift irrigation project in the world. The BRS hails the genius of its creation, while the Congress screams corruption at its mention. The BRS points out how it fulfilled the needs of parched lands and throats. The Congress alleges that kickbacks to the tune of thousands of crores satiated only Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, his family and party leaders. Caught in the middle are the voters who have to make a choice on November 30. Formal alliances in the political landscape of Telangana are blurred. The BRS has no pre-poll understanding with any party. But, as a friendly party, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen is doing its best to help the BRS. The BJP has an alliance with actor Pawan Kalyans JanaSena Party, but that is unlikely to help it win any seats. Its priority, it is believed, is to ensure that the Congress does not win. But, the Congress has received support from regional parties. Y.S. Sharmilas YSR Telangana Party has thrown its weight behind the Congress and is not contesting. The Telugu Desam Party has also backed out of the elections and is indirectly supporting the Congress. At many places, Congress leaders have campaigned with TDP cadre. It has not been all smooth sailing for the INDIA alliance, though. It accommodated the CPI by giving it one seat, but could not prevent the CPI(M) from walking out. There are 2,290 candidates in the fray for the 119 assembly seats. Rao is contesting from two constituencies and these two have one of the highest number of nominationsan indicator of anti-incumbency. His traditional seat, Gajwel, has 44 nominations and his second seat, Kamareddy, has 39, mostly independents. Unemployment and charges of corruption against local leaders and other issues may hurt the BRS this time. But it would be difficult to assess to what extent. The BRS is visibly suffering from political fatigue having ruled for nine years, but it still has the goodwill created by numerous cash welfare schemes that benefitted farmers, the elderly, women, scheduled castes and backward classes. On the other hand, the Congresss resurgence post its Karnataka victory is making it appear overconfident, according to some poll analysts. Its leaders are going around declaring themselves chief ministerial candidates and making other controversial statements, like state Congress president Revanth Reddy saying KCRs community was not from Telangana as they migrated from Bihar. However, the Congress could benefit from an anti-Modi stand taken by a section of the voters, especially the minorities. In light of the Congresss fight against the BJP at the national level, these voters want the Congress to be in power in the state, too. This time, there is another crucial vote bank that every party is after. After the arrest of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, tremors have been felt in Telangana, too. Many settlers from Andhra, especially the Kammas, the community to which Naidu belongs, have expressed sympathy for him and is consolidating in a big way. It is estimated that this pro-TDP group has substantial influence in 12 to 15 seats. As a result, BRS and Congress leaders have gone out of their way to condemn the arrest and show empathy to Naidu. Over the years, a salient feature of Telangana electioneering has been poll management. The expenditure has shot through the roof. As per rough estimates gathered from sources close to election managers, each candidate is preparing to spend between Rs20 crore to Rs40 crore. Not to forget the frequent and lavish community feasts, with the choicest non-vegetarian dishes and alcohol, which are a norm in rural areas. Every public meeting costs between Rs1 crore to Rs2 crore. Then there is also the social media aspect. The BRS was the first mover. It roped in a number of social media influencers to literally dance to the partys songRamakkaand went viral. Though the Congress started a little late, its video campaigns showing a KCR doubles car (BRS poll symbol) getting punctured have also gained attention. As the poll date approaches, the big gunsPrime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Congress leaders like Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadrawill descend on Hyderabad more frequently. If the BRS wins for the third consecutive time, a party would have done that in the Telugu states for the first time in four decades. If the Congress wins, it will be its first time in power in these lands since the formation of Telangana. If the verdict is a hung assembly, even that has not happened in the Telugu states in five decades. So, whatever the outcome, history will be rewritten in Telangana. IN THE LATEST series of Congress video ads, the final slide stands out. The ad concludes with the slogan Maarpu Kaavali, Congress Raavali, which loosely translates to Change is needed, and the Congress has to come (to power). Accompanying this slogan is a visual featuring two facesTelangana Congress president A. Revanth Reddy and Congress Legislative Party leader Bhatti Vikramarka. It is uncommon for the Congress to project a chief minister candidate before an election, but speculation is rife that if the Congress wins, one of these two would take that seat. Here is a look at both of their journeys: Bhatti Vikramarka For the Congress, Bhatti ticks all the boxes of a potential chief minister candidate. He is a dalit from the Mala community, has a degree from Hyderabad Central University, is an experienced hand who served as deputy speaker, whip, and assembly floor leader, and, most importantly, enjoys a non-controversial image. Once a director of Andhra Bank, a nominated post, Bhatti went on to become an MLC, before winning the assembly elections three times from Madhira (2009, 2014, and 2018). Mallu Anantharamulu, his eldest brother, was undivided Andhra Pradeshs Congress president. The middle brother, Mallu Ravi, was an MP. This, however, does not take away from the way he has positioned himself as a strong dalit leader. In a way, Bhatti is from the Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy school. It was the former chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh who backed Bhatti; the Congress wanted a credible dalit face to take on upper-caste leaders in his district of Khammam. And, even after YSRs death, Bhattis political career kept flourishing. Bhatti Vikramarka His attire, a traditional dhoti and light shirt, is not merely a sartorial choice. It was YSRs preferred outfit and, more importantly, people close to Bhatti say it helps him connect with the farmers of his constituency, who dress similarly. Bhatti once used to wear kurtas and pants, but has now completely switched. The biggest boost to his political career was his 100-day walkathon or peoples march, where he walked more than 1,300km across Telangana. This march was meant to understand peoples issues and get closer to them; it bolstered his image as a senior leader in the state. Not many outside the Madhira constituency are aware that his biggest political asset is in his own househis wife. Nandini Mallu is a Gujarati who has mastered Telugu and continues to engage herself in social service, holding the constituency together when he is not around. In 2018, while he was the CLP leader, around a dozen MLAs jumped ship to join the BRS; he could not stop the exodus. However, he enjoys a good rapport with the Congress high command, which seems to have a favourable impression of him. At recent meetings, he has been seated next to Rahul Gandhi, who has acknowledged and appreciated his work. Backed by senior leaders and a powerful section of the high command, Bhatti is not just the most visible dalit face, but also a formidable contender for the chief ministers post. A. Revanth Reddy Revanth Reddy stands as a unique leader within the Congress, embodying the changing winds and culture of the party. He joined the party only six years ago and has swiftly risen to become the state units working president, MP and, currently, Telangana Congress president. Known for his assertiveness, Reddy does not mince words, even when criticising members of his own party. He also does not shy away from singing praises of his former mentor, N. Chandrababu Naidu, and the Telugu Desam Party; he was a two-time TDP MLA. Reddy has been accused of encouraging his own coterie within the party and promoting leaders who have come in from the TDP. However, he enjoys a mass following, especially among the youth, and has the image of a rebel taking on Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, his son, K.T. Rama Rao, and other family members. He has made several controversial statements in the past, directing attacks at KCR. He has also gone to jail while trying to expose the alleged wrongdoings of BRS party leaders; this was seen by some as a political manoeuvre that forced the high command to take notice of his work and present him with the state presidents post. Filing a nomination against KCR in Kamareddy constituency has further strengthened this portrayal. Reddy does not exactly work like old-timers in the Congress. In a way, he is a lone wolf. He has a huge network and a team that handles his multiple social media pages and WhatsApp groups with participants from across the districts. This has helped him brand himself as a pan-Telangana leader. He also has the advantage of hailing from the influential Reddy community, considered to be the backbone of the Congress since independence. Though he had a fallout with senior Congress leaders, firefighting by the high command helped douse the flames. Reddy is known to be a shrewd politician who is adept at lobbying; he understands the importance of having the financial support needed for the party to fight. The recent induction of powerful and wealthy leaders like M. Hanumanth Rao, Rajagopal Reddy and Vivek Venkatswamy confirms this. Regarding the current campaign, Reddy is in high demand; several leaders want him to be their star campaigner. As a result, his schedule is chock-a-blockhe has a diary filled with public meetings and rallies until November 30. What Reddy immediately has to worry about, though, is that the BRS is trying its best once again to defeat him in his traditional seat, Kodangal, which he lost in 2018. It was a major setback for Reddy. A few months later, however, he won the Malkajgiri parliamentary seat. There is a section within the Congress that feels that Reddy has all the traits and accomplishments to be the chief minister, despite him having no administrative experience. Westerly, RI (02891) Today Cloudy skies with a few showers this afternoon. High 52F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight Cloudy with rain ending overnight. Low 43F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%. A man who pleaded guilty to assaulting Democratic Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota in the elevator of her Washington apartment was sentenced to more than two years behind bars Thursday. Kendrid Khalil Hamlin, 27, apologized to Craig and said he wants to get mental health and substance abuse treatment. He was sentenced to 27 months for the February assault. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg acknowledged Hamlins difficult upbringing and frequently unaddressed mental illness was behind much of his behavior. Still, some of this conduct has been extremely problematic, he said. Craig said Hamlin trapped her in the elevator, then grabbed her neck, slammed her against a steel wall and punched her before she fought him off by throwing her coffee at him. Afterward, she was targeted with death threats and forced to move amid public commentary about her assault, she said in court papers. While my physical recovery was days, my mental and emotional recovery has taken much longer and is ongoing, she wrote. Hamlin, for his part, decided to plead guilty quickly and wants to get treatment for his schizophrenia and substance abuse, his attorney Kathryn DAdamo Guevara said. I really do apologize to Angie Craig for putting my hands on her, and also the officers, he said. His mother and father also spoke tearfully to the judge, calling the attack horrifying and detailing their decades-long, unsuccessful efforts to get him effective treatment, including searching the streets for him while he was homeless. Defense attorneys had asked for a sentence of a year and a day with inpatient treatment, while prosecutors had pushed for 39 months. Boasberg said he would recommend the sentence be served in a Bureau of Prisons medical facility. Craig was getting coffee in the lobby of her building in February when she noticed Hamlin pacing, police wrote in court papers. He came into the elevator with her and said he needed to go to the bathroom and was coming into her apartment, the agent wrote. After she said he couldnt, he punched her in the side of her face and grabbed her neck before she escaped by throwing her cup of hot coffee over her shoulder at him, according to court papers. Hamlin had numerous previous convictions, including for assaulting a police officer, prosecutors said in court papers. There was no evidence the attack was politically motivated, Craigs chief of staff has said. Craig represents the suburban-to-rural 2nd District south of Minneapolis and St. Paul. She won a third term last year for a hotly contested seat the GOP had hoped to flip in what was one of the most expensive House races in the country. (AP) The district office of Representative Dan Goldman, along with several other storefronts in Park Slope, Brooklyn, was found vandalized with anti-Israel graffiti early Friday morning. The graffiti included phrases such as Free Palestine, Let Gaza Live, and Blood on Ur Hands. Staff members arriving at Goldmans office on 9th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues around 8:50 a.m. discovered the graffiti on the exterior of the building and sidewalk. Similar graffiti was also reportedly found at multiple nearby locations. Rep. Goldman, a Democrat known for his pro-Israel stance, recently participated in the March for Israel rally in Washington D.C., which attracted nearly 300,000 supporters advocating for continued U.S. support for Israel. This rally also demanded the return of hostages held by Hamas and protested against rising antisemitism amid the latest conflict between Israel and Hamas. Goldman was one of the few Democrats who joined most House Republicans in voting to censure Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Palestinian American antisemitic congresswoman who repeatedly uses the genocidal slogan From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. Of note, Goldman was in Israel during the Simchas Torah massacre. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) Incumbent Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman talks with partygoers during the No On HH Advance Colorado election night watch party on Nov. 7 at JJs Place in Aurora. Former President Donald Trump celebrated a win in a closely watched election case during a return visit to Iowa Saturday, where he blasted his political foes and encouraged his supporters to not move past their grievances with President Joe Biden. A Colorado judge on Friday rejected an effort to keep the GOP front-runner off the states primary ballot, concluding that Trump had engaged in insurrection during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol but that it was unclear whether a Civil War-era constitutional amendment barring insurrectionists from public office applied to the presidency. It was Trumps latest win following rulings in similar cases in Minnesota and Michigan. Trump, campaigning in west-central Iowa, called the Colorado decision a gigantic court victory as he panned what he called an outrageous attempt to disenfranchise millions of voters by getting us thrown off the ballot. Our opponents are showing every day that they hate democracy, he charged before a crowd of about 2,000 people at a commit-to-caucus event at a high school in Fort Dodge, Iowa, where people had lined up for hours to get a seat in the gymnasium. Trumps visit was part of his fall push to sign up supporters and volunteers before the states fast-approaching caucuses that kick off the race for the Republican presidential nomination. It was the latest in a series of targeted regional stops aimed at seizing on the large crowds the former president draws to press attendees to commit to voting for him on Jan. 15. While Trump has had a comfortable edge over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in early polls of likely caucus participants, Trumps campaign has been more aggressive in Iowa than any of the other early-voting states. And he continued to attack DeSantis during his appearance Saturday, slamming the governor over his past opposition to federal ethanol mandates and for running against Trump. Trump in a Thursday radio interview mocked DeSantis for doing very poorly even after winning the endorsement of Gov. Kim Reynolds, who broke with the general practice of Iowa governors not to support a candidate before the caucuses. I was really good to her and then she said she was going to remain neutral. And I said, Thats OK, but I didnt really want her particularly, he told host Simon Conway. Ron is doing very poorly in the polls and I guess he put a full-court press on her, Trump said. And she did that. And thats fine. I think its fine. I dont think its made any difference. DeSantis, who stopped by his campaigns new office in Urbandale on Saturday, told reporters that Trump was making missteps by attacking Reynolds and focusing on larger rallies. I think its been a mistake how hes not been willing to engage with Iowans outside of swooping in and doing, you know, a speech and then just leaving, DeSantis said. I think you got to get on the ground, you got to shake the hands, you got to answer their questions. DeSantis was campaigning across southern Iowa, moving closer to his goal of campaigning in all 99 counties. Thats a traditional marker some candidates have tried to reach to show their commitment to Iowa. Despite DeSantis push, Dale Mason, a construction worker from Fort Dodge, is a solid Trump backer. Trumps already proven himself to me. If it works, then why mess with it? Mason said. I feel like it worked when he was in office. The 31-year-old single father said he lives paycheck to paycheck and worries about being able to feed his 12-year-old daughter or put gas in the car. Trump made it easier for us to get by, Mason said, adding, He supported us so I think its our turn to give back to him. Sue Hewett, who hasnt seen Trump campaign in person before, was concerned about being far back in line. Theres isnt anybody coming across like he does, said Hewett, 68, who lives in Fort Dodge. They dont have the draw. She said she was open to considering different candidates, but so far hasnt been persuaded by any of the other contenders. Trump has made regular stops in Iowa, appearing at eight events before audiences totaling more than 16,000, according to Trumps Secret Service detail, in the past eight weeks. Its part of Trumps 2024 strategy to stress organization more than his campaign did in 2016, when he finished a competitive second place. Rivals, especially DeSantis, have been in Iowa more often as they hope to score a better-than-expected finish against Trump, who also leads in national Republican polls. A recent memo to donors from DeSantis campaign suggested that DeSantis all-in strategy in Iowa was in keeping with his hope to rob Trump of a big win in Iowa. (AP) The suspicious letters sent to vote centers and government buildings in six states this month were undeniably scary, some containing traces of fentanyl or white powder, accompanied by not-so-veiled threats and dubious political symbols. Harkening back to the anthrax attacks that killed five people in 2001, the mailings are prompting elections officials already frustrated with ongoing harassment and threats to reach out to local police, fire and health departments for help stocking up on the overdose reversal medication naloxone. Even if theres little risk from incidental contact with the synthetic opioid, having the antidote on hand isnt a bad idea amid an addiction epidemic that is killing more than 100,000 people in the U.S. every year and it can provide some assurance for stressed ballot workers, election managers say. My team is usually in the direct fire just because were opening up thousands of millions of ballots, depending on the election, said Eldon Miller, who leads the ballot-opening staff at King County Elections in Seattle, which stocked up on naloxone after receiving a fentanyl-laced letter in August. I always say to my team, Your safety is my utmost importance. The letters were sent this month to vote centers or government buildings in six states: Georgia, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington and Kansas. Some were intercepted before they arrived, but others were delivered, prompting evacuations and briefly delaying vote counts in local elections. The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating. Some of the letters featured an antifascist symbol, a progress pride flag and a pentagram. While the symbols have sometimes been associated with leftist politics, they also have been used by conservative figures to label and stereotype the left. The senders political leanings were unclear. Fentanyl, an opioid that can be 50 times as powerful as the same amount of heroin, is driving an overdose crisis as it is pressed into pills or mixed into other drugs. Briefly touching it cannot cause an overdose, and researchers have found the risk of fatal overdose from accidental exposure is low, unlike with powdered anthrax that can float in the air and cause deadly infections when inhaled. Election workers across the country have been besieged by threats, harassment and intimidation since former President Donald Trump and his supporters began spreading false election claims after he lost the 2020 election. I hope we encourage people to not hurt election officials, said Anne Dover, the elections director in suburban Atlantas Cherokee County, which did not receive a suspicious letter. A lot of people are leaving the field. Its not just threats of physical harm. Theres a lot of emotional and psychological abuse. Dover reached out this month to fire department officials, who provided Narcan, the nasal spray version of naloxone. Naloxone can be obtained over the counter, given to people of all ages and does not harm people who do not have opioids in their system. Her office also is taking new precautions with mail: leaving it in a particular spot and having one person designated to open it wearing gloves and a mask. Lane County, Oregon, which received a suspicious letter, will provide naloxone kits and train elections staff on administering it. So will Lincoln County, Nevada, which did not get a suspicious letter. The office of Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said this week that it will provide naloxone to any of the states 159 counties after a letter intercepted on its way to elections officials in Atlantas Fulton County tested positive for opioids. Condemning the letters, Raffensperger noted one of his sons died of a fentanyl overdose about five years ago: We know how deadly this stuff is. Some of the letters, including ones sent to King and Pierce counties in Washington state, bore striking similarities to the one King County received while counting votes in this years August primary. The incident prompted King County Elections to procure naloxone, though the antidote was not needed then nor when its Renton office received a second fentanyl-laced letter this month. We felt like it was just a good idea to have on hand for all kinds of scenarios these days, King County Elections spokeswoman Halei Watkins said. We have it in a few spots in the building, and include it with the first aid and emergency kits that go to our off-site vote centers. Maya Doe-Simkins, co-director of Remedy Alliance/For The People, which launched last year to provide low-cost or free naloxone to community-based, harm-reduction programs, said governments should be more focused on providing the antidote to those who work with people likely to overdose. There is no shortage of naloxone, which is available online and at some pharmacies, but its distribution leaves something to be desired, Doe-Simkins said. It is an absolute gross misuse of resources to spend money on ensuring that election officials have naloxone, Doe-Simkins said, especially because the actual appropriate and evidence-based intervention for naloxone distribution is underfunded and under-resourced. Chris Anderson, the elections supervisor in Seminole County, Florida, said his office hasnt received any envelopes containing fentanyl in the mail, but obtained several doses of Narcan this month from the fire department, which said it had plenty of supply. We can immediately save a life with those, Anderson said. I appreciate the advice given to us from medical professionals, and we certainly will do everything we can not to have to use Narcan, but in that one instance where its needed, Id rather have and not need than need and not have. In Tacoma, Washington, Pierce County Auditor Linda Farmer said her office obtained naloxone after neighboring King Countys experience in August. The office received a threatening letter this month containing baking soda and took the occasion to reemphasize that naloxone is available. We reminded staff last week of where to find it, Farmer said. (AP) Iranian-backed militants in Iraq and Syria have long battled with U.S. and coalition forces, launching sporadic attacks against bases in the region where troops are deployed to fight Islamic State group insurgents. But since Oct. 17, as civilian deaths in Israels war against Hamas began to skyrocket, there has been a dramatic spike in attacks by Irans proxies, operating under the umbrella name of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq. While most of the more than five dozen attacks have been largely ineffective, at least 60 U.S. personnel have reported minor injuries. Most often those have been traumatic brain injuries from the explosions, and all troops have returned to duty, according to the Pentagon. In response to the attacks, the U.S. has walked a delicate line. The U.S. military has struck back just three times as the Biden administration balances efforts to deter the militants without triggering a broader Middle East conflict. A look at the attacks and the U.S. response: ATTACKS WHEN, WHERE, WHY According to the Pentagon, Iranian-backed militants have launched 61 attacks on bases and facilities housing U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria since Oct. 17. Of those, 29 have been in Iraq and 32 in Syria. The U.S. has about 2,000 U.S. forces in Iraq, under an agreement with the Baghdad government, and about 900 in Syria, mainly to counter IS but also using the al-Tanf garrison farther south to keep tabs on Iranian proxies moving weapons across the border. The latest jump in attacks began 10 days after Hamas Oct. 7 incursion into Israel, where at least 1,200 people were killed. Israels blistering military response has killed thousands of civilians trapped in Gaza and fueled threats of retaliation by a range of Iran-backed groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, Yemen-based Houthis, and militants in Iraq and Syria. Those threats escalated after an Oct. 17 blast at a Gaza hospital killed hundreds of civilians. Hamas blamed Israel for the explosion, but Israel has denied it, and both Israeli and U.S. officials have blamed it on a missile misfire by Islamic Jihad. The bulk of the attacks on bases and facilities have been with one-way suicide drones or rockets, and in most cases there were no injuries and only minor damage. A significant number of the injuries, particularly the traumatic brain injuries, were in the initial attacks between Oct. 17 and 21 at al-Asad air base in Iraq and al-Tanf. One U.S. contractor suffered a cardiac arrest and died while seeking shelter from a possible drone attack. WHO ARE THESE GROUPS? With a power vacuum and years of civil conflict following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, militias grew and multiplied in Iraq, some supported by Iran. A decade later, as the Islamic State extremist group swept across Iraq, a number of Iran-backed militias came together under the Popular Mobilization Forces umbrella group and fought IS. The groups included the Asaib Ahl al-Haq, the Badr Brigades and Kataeb Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades a separate group from the Lebanese Hezbollah. A number of the Iraqi militias also operate in Syria, where Iran supports the government of Bashar Assad against opposition groups in the uprising-turned-civil-war that began in 2011. After the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war, a group of the Iran-backed factions branded itself under the new Islamic Resistance in Iraq name, and began the latest spate of attacks on bases housing U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria. The attacks put Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani in a difficult position. While he came to power with the Iranian-backed groups support, he also wants continued good relations with the U.S. and has backed the ongoing presence of American troops in his country. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in a meeting with al-Sudani this month, warned of consequences if Iranian-backed militias continued to attack U.S. facilities in Iraq and Syria. Al-Sudani then traveled to Tehran and met with Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a meeting U.S. officials suggested was a positive development. An official with one of the Iranian-backed militias said al-Sudani put great pressure on the militias not to carry out attacks during Blinkens visit. In return, he said, al-Sudani promised to push the Americans not to retaliate aggressively against militias that have carried out the strikes. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly. PROPORTIONAL OR NOT ENOUGH? Since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, the Biden administration has moved warships, fighter jets, air defense systems and more troops into the Middle East in a campaign to discourage militant groups from widening the conflict. But the U.S. military response to the attacks on its forces has been minimal. On Oct. 27, U.S. fighter jets struck two weapons and ammunition storage sites in eastern Syria near Boukamal that were used by Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iranian-backed groups. On Nov. 8, fighter jets dropped bombs on an IRGC weapons storage facility near Maysulun in Deir el-Zour. And on Nov. 12, U.S. airstrikes targeted a training facility and a safe house in the Bulbul district of Mayadin. U.S. officials said IRGC-related personnel were there and likely struck, but provided no details. There are concerns within the administration that more substantial retaliation could escalate the violence and trigger more deadly attacks. The Pentagon says the strikes have degraded the groups military stockpiles and made the sites unusable. But critics argue that the U.S. response pales in comparison with the 60 attacks and American injuries, and more importantly has obviously failed to deter the groups. IRAQ GOVERNMENT SENSITIVITIES Though nearly half of the attacks have been on U.S. bases in Iraq, the U.S. has conducted retaliatory airstrikes only against locations in Syria. The Pentagon defends the strike decisions by saying the U.S. is hitting Iranian Revolutionary Guard sites, which has a more direct impact on Tehran. Officials say the goal is to pressure Iran to tell the militia groups to stop the attacks. They also say the sites are chosen because they are weapons warehouses and logistical hubs used by the Iran-linked militias, and taking them out erodes the insurgents attack capabilities. A key reason the U.S. is concentrating on Syria, however, is that the U.S. doesnt want to risk alienating the Iraqi government by striking within its borders potentially killing or wounding Iraqis. In early January 2020, the U.S. launched an airstrike in Baghdad, killing Gen. Qassim Soleimani, the head of Irans elite Quds Force, and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of Iran-backed militias in Iraq. The strike frayed relations with the Iraqi government and spawned demands for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from the country. The U.S. considers its presence in Iraq as critical to the fight against IS, its ability to support forces in Syria and its ongoing influence in the region. Military leaders have worked to restore good relations with Baghdad, including providing ongoing support for Iraqi forces. (AP) The New Jersey State Supreme Court on Friday rejected an appeal from prosecutors in Rabbi Osher Eisemanns case to overturn Judge Joseph Paones ruling for a new trial, Lakewood Alerts is reporting. A New Jersey appeals court on the first day of this past Shavuos upheld Judge Paones decision to throw out SCHI founder Rabbi Osher Eisemanns convictions on money laundering and misconduct by a corporate official based on evidence that came to light following the conclusion of the trial. The issue at hand was a QuickBooks entry which prosecutors used to convince a jury that Rabbi Eisemann had laundered money through SCHI. Following the conclusion of the trial, this evidence was shown to be worthless when the bookkeeper who made the entry said it was a method to balance the books and didnt reflect a loan made to Rabbi Eisemann. Such a loan, in fact, didnt exist and SCHI actually owed Rabbi Eisemann more than $300,000. At the time of the trial, the bookkeepers identity was known to the prosecution but not the defense. Prosecutors never even spoke to the bookkeeper to ascertain whether the QuickBooks entry reflected a debt or not they just used the entry to further their own agenda of throwing a high-profile figure into prison. Even worse, the prosecutors didnt turn over the identity of the bookkeeper to the defense team despite being asked for it making it impossible for the defense to call her as a witness to show that Rabbi Eisemann did nothing wrong. In light of the new exculpatory evidence and the prosecutions hiding of that evidence, Judge Paone threw out the convictions and ordered a new trial. The state appealed, arguing that the evidence wasnt new and that it had no obligation to turn it over to the defense team. The prosecution asserted that Judge Paone abused his discretion in ordering a new trial and that Rabbi Eisemann should go straight to the sentencing phase, where he could have been imprisoned for up to 20 years. The appeals court unanimously disagreed, writing in its decision that the new evidence clearly showed that there was no loan made to Rabbi Eisemann. If no loan existed, he could not have committed the crimes prosecutors claim he did. The appeals court judges also wrote that the prosecution was clearly in violation of the Brady Act, which requires all relevant evidence to be turned over to the defense. Instead, they hid that evidence, and got a faulty conviction out of it. Prosecutors appealed to the states Supreme Court in a last-ditch effort to salvage their disgraceful case against Rabbi Eisemann, but New Jerseys top court has declined to hear it, allowing the appeals courts ruling upholding a retrial order to stand. Prosecutors now must make the decision whether to attempt to prosecute Rabbi Eisemann again in a new trial this time will all the evidence clearly showing that the SCHI founder had committed no wrongdoing. While this is likely the end of the road for prosecutors bent on sending an innocent man to prison, it isnt yet known whether they will attempt to retry him. Please continue to daven for Osher ben Chana Frumet. Former President Donald Trump is blowing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis out of the water in his own state in a new poll from the University of North Florida. Trump secured 60 percent of the support from registered Republicans in Florida, leaving DeSantis with 21 percent. The poll, which surveyed 788 people between October 23 and November 4, indicates a widening gap in favor of Trump. Nikki Haley, Trumps former UN ambassador, ranked third with six percent, followed by former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie at two percent. Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy received one percent. In a head-to-head matchup between Trump and DeSantis, 59 percent of respondents favored Trump, with DeSantis garnering 29 percent support. Dr. Michael Binder, director of the universitys Public Opinion Research Lab, expressed concern for DeSantiss campaign. Despite his historically high approval ratings, Governor DeSantis losing ground in his home state could spell trouble for his national aspirations, Binder said. Trump celebrated the poll results on his Truth Social account, showing a graphic of his lead over DeSanctimonious. The poll also explored respondents opinions on Trumps actions following the 2020 election. A significant majority, 71 percent, believed Trump was merely exercising his right to contest the election, while only 16 percent felt his actions threatened American democracy. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) JOIN THE TENS OF THOUSANDS WHO ALREADY ARE ALERTED OF BREAKING NEWS LIKE THIS IN LIVE TIME: YWN WHATSAPP STATUS UPDATES: CLICK HERE to join the YWN WhatsApp Status. YWN WHATSAPP GROUPS: CLICK HERE to be added to an official YWN WhatsApp Group. MAKE SURE TO CHECK THIS PAGE FREQUENTLY AS UPDATES WILL BE PUBLISHED IN LIVE TIME THERE IS NO NEED TO REFRESH THIS PAGE AS UPDATES WILL APPEAR AUTOMATICALLY A police investigation published on Channel 12 on Friday revealed that at least 364 people at the music festival near Kibbutz Reim on October 7th were murdered by Hamas terrorists. Forty people at the party were abducted to Gaza. The number, revised from the previously reported 260, is a third of the total number of people murdered on October 7th and makes the massacre at the party the largest terror attack in Israeli history. There were about 4,000 people at the site when the attack occurred. Seventeen of those murdered were police officers. The investigation also revealed that, unlike previous reports and rumors, Hamas was unaware that a music festival was taking place that morning and did not specifically target it. This finding was determined by the police based on interrogations of the Hamas terrorists who were captured alive and was supported by the fact that, unlike other targets, the maps found on the bodies of the terrorists did not include the festival site. The investigation also revealed that if it wasnt for the fact that a large police presence was deployed to the Yad Mordechai intersection, the terrorists would have succeeded in reaching Rishon LTzion and Tel Aviv in less than an hour. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) Israel, the United States, and Hamas are close to finalizing a deal aimed at facilitating the release of dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, according to a new Washington Post report. The Post at first wrote that a deal had been reached, but changed its tune after the White House explicitly responded, saying that theyre working on it, but no deal has yet been reached. Under the terms of the six-page agreement, all parties involved will cease combat operations for at least five days to enable the release of an initial group of 50 or more hostages. These releases are expected to occur in smaller batches every 24 hours, although the total number of hostages to be freed remains unclear. Surveillance measures will be in place to ensure compliance with the ceasefire. The pause in hostilities will also allow an increase in humanitarian aid, including fuel, to enter Gaza from Egypt, addressing the needs of the enclaves 2.3 million residents. The deal was brokered in Doha, Qatar, through weeks of indirect negotiations between Israel, the U.S., and Hamas, represented by Qatari mediators. However, Israels agreement to halt its offensive in Gaza was uncertain until recently. The decision to proceed with the deal presents a challenging dilemma for Israel. There is significant domestic demand for the hostages return, but also a strong voice against bargaining for their release. Brett McGurk, the White House National Security Councils top Middle East official, is currently in the region to consolidate plans for the hostage release. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) A report by the Saudi Al-Arabiya outlet says that the Houthis from Yemen seized the Galaxy Leader, an Israeli cargo ship that was sailing in the Arabian Gulf with 22 crew members on board. The report claims that the ship is a car carrier owned by businessman Rami Unger. No Israelis are on board. A spokesperson for the military wing of the Houthis promised an important statement in the coming hours. Israels Foreign Ministry said that they are familiar with the matter. The IDF spokesperson responded to the report by calling it a very severe incident on an international scale and confirmed that the ship which was sailing from Turkey to India does not have any Israelis on board and is not an Israeli ship. The ship is registered under Ray Shipping LT, which is owned by Ungar but it is currently leased to a Japanese company. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahus office issued a statement saying: Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Irans guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia. Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican. No Israelis are onboard. This is another act of Iranian terrorism and constitutes a leap forward in Irans aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes. The Houthis threatened on Sunday morning that they will attack Israeli ships and called on foreign countries to remove their citizens who work on these ships, avoid shipping or working on these ships, and inform ships to keep their distance from them. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) Charm offensive: Sir Keir Starmer Sir Keir Starmer is resorting to using City spin doctors at top PR firm Brunswick to help the Labour party build relationships with business. In a letter dispatched to the chief executives of several key FTSE 100 firms including Barclays, Rolls-Royce and Aviva seen by The Mail on Sunday, the Labour leader said: 'We are partnering with Brunswick Group on this work and with Sir Alan Parker, the founder and chair.' The first meeting with the business titans has been scheduled for the evening of December 12 at Brunswick's offices at Lincoln's Inn Fields in central London. Starmer has told the companies that Sir Alan has been asked to work closely 'with your teams in advance'. In a letter signed by him personally, the Labour leader says he wants to focus on skills and training in the workforce to drive 'growth, the transition to net zero and capture the benefit of new technologies'. Disclosure of Starmer's decision to use Brunswick as a conduit to some of Britain's biggest firms is likely to be controversial. As one of London's leading communications agencies, with global revenues of 391 million in 2022, Labour's intimate relationship is bound to raise questions of conflicts of interest. The firm's role as 'partners' with Labour reaches beyond what might be considered a normal advisory role. FTSE companies invited to take part in the discussions at Brunswick may believe that they have little choice but to use the communications group as advisers if they are to maintain good relations with a prospective Labour Government. It could also present a conflict of interest with Brunswick's clients which have included a number of FTSE firms. Under Parker's leadership Brunswick has grown from a small City firm into a global communications colossus. It describes itself as 'the world's leading critical issues firm'. Following the meeting next month, Starmer says he will be following up with an additional conversation with the same group of bosses in the New Year. He expresses the hope that the CEOs contacted 'can join me'. Brunswick offers services on everything from shareholder activism, to social investing and political and public policy. The most recent published accounts at Companies House show the US is now its biggest market with revenues of 197 million followed by the UK with 114 million. The choice of Parker as Labour's formal conduit to top boardrooms is certain to raise questions. A former head of British Rail, Parker's father, the late Sir Peter Parker, had close connections to an earlier generation of Labour leaders. In recent times, his son has enjoyed a close relationship with former Prime Minister and now Foreign Secretary David Cameron. After his resignation as PM in 2016, Cameron moved into the PR chief's 17 million, seven-bedroom townhouse in West London as his guest. Labour has so far sought to engage with commerce through Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves. She plans to speed up planning decisions for housing and infrastructure and to deploy pension funds in the party's growth agenda. Reeves claims the agenda has the support of businesses with which she has engaged. Starmer, who lacks direct economic and business experience, is choosing his own route to build links with enterprise. In his letter he says he wants to work with a small group of bosses 'to refine my thinking on economic growth'. He says ensuring that Britain achieves higher levels of output 'underpins all of my missions for government'. The decision to work so closely with Parker may not sit easily with Labour's commitment, if in government, to axe the army of consultants currently used in Whitehall. Last month Reeves pledged 'tough new rules' requiring departments to demonstrate planned consultancy spend represented value for money. She vowed to slash spending by 50 per cent. The partnership with Parker is likely to be pro bono, but it is hard to think that Brunswick will not eventually benefit from government advisory contracts. In turn the firms can expect a closer bond with Downing Street and Whitehall. In little more than a year, Jennifer (who asked that her last name not be used) has gone from being a victim of domestic violence to serving as a TESSA volunteer while also taking steps to become a certified victims advocate. TESSA was established in 1977. "This was in response to calls from women to the Colorado Springs Police Department regarding domestic violence. We were just an information provider, said Anne Markley, TESSA chief executive officer. We are now a multi-faceted agency providing services to anyone who identifies as a victim. Programs include a 24-hour Safe Line, a Safe house, victim advocacy, counseling, housing services, legal services, youth and children's programs. How to help Empty Stocking Fund benefits 20 health and human service agencies in the Pikes Peak region who serve over 350,000 neighbors in need from birth to end of life. One donation. 20 agencies. A whole community served. Give now at emptystockingfundco.org, or call 719-476-1673 to make a credit card or stock donation. Make checks payable to Empty Stocking Fund and mail to P.O. Box 910942, Denver, CO 80291-0942. Human trafficking was not even a thing then," Markley said. In the past few years we have seen a greater need for legal support and support services. Were seeing clients with greater needs and were filling gaps through rental, legal, utility assistance where theyre victims of some type of interpersonal violence or intimate partner violence. Jennifer said she first learned about TESSA from an emergency room doctor who asked if she felt safe at home. It took two months before she left the abusive relationship. I left in the middle of the night, she said. TESSA was able to put me in some safe housing, connected me with an advocate and provided an immense amount of resources. These included legal assistance for restraining orders, arranging for food and clothing, and connecting her with mental health services. Markley said, All of our services are completely confidential, unless a client gives us explicit written consent. The confidential umbrella encourages people to reach out. However, TESSA must report child abuse to authorities. Its adherence to confidentiality is protected by the state and is the only such agency in El Paso and Teller counties. The funds that come in through the Empty Stocking Fund are considered unrestricted dollars, Markley said. Having these unrestricted funds means they can be used in any program to meet any need. Also, its incredibly impactful to have community support. On average, TESSA receives 1,200 calls per month. The agency has multiple offices (main office, Memorial Hospital, the District Attorneys Office and an office in Teller County). Some days we see 15 to 18 people walk in on a daily basis. Its a large number just to our main office, Markley said. Theres an increased level of violence. Think about the daily stresses in your life. Some can handle them, and for others it can be a dynamic of control. Continued stressors exacerbate those situations. As the population grows we do see increased numbers. More awareness of TESSAs services also contributes to the higher number of people reaching out. Id like to think were doing a good job here for people, Markley said. We will serve anyone who identifies as a victim. Were doing a push to make sure males and those identifying as male are aware of our services. I definitely think 46 years of success in this community has contributed to the increased numbers because of what we do. Markely has high praise for her staff trained in Trauma Informed Care. This puts the victim survivor in the drivers seat. When they come in for support, we give them options to be empowered, something they (often) havent been for so long. They make the choices and we walk the walk with them. We offer the highest level of Trauma Informed Care to anyone. Jennifer said, Its an amazing organization. It helps so many people you dont even realize how many need their help. They [TESSA] bring positivity and light for people going through a hard time. To learn more visit: www.tessacs.org. Influential: Reality star Georgia Toffolo poses for Shein Fast fashion giant Shein is planning to set up a new office in Manchester as it plots a UK expansion. The firm will build the new site, which will be its first outside London, and initially hire a team of 15 staff next year, The Mail on Sunday understands. Roles at the Manchester office, where recruitment has begun, are thought to be focused on clothing buyers and designers targeting the UK and Europe. The company already has around 40 staff in the capital. Plans for a Manchester hub come as Shein, pronounced 'she-in', has seen business boom in the UK with sales of 1.1billion for the 16 months to the end of December 2022. The company, which was founded in 2012 in Nanjing, China, and is now headquartered in Singapore, saw sales surge during the pandemic as it rode a wave of shoppers buying online during lockdown. Shein already sources some of its garments from Manchester and Leicester, the UK's two main hubs for textile manufacturing, and as such an expanded operation in the North West could pave the way for more production to move into Britain and away from China. Its acquisition of brand Missguided last month is also likely to be a boon for the firm as it will gain access to valuable customer data and shopping habits that can be used to target new customers. Shein is a staple for many British young women with prices for tops and dresses from 5. But the firm has faced intense criticism, particularly around its labour practices of treatment of workers in China as well as wider concerns about the environmental impact of fast fashion. As Britons embark on their annual round of Christmas card sending, many will be wincing at the 1.25 cost of a first class stamp. But Royal Mail's new German boss says it is a 'bargain' compared with Pret A Manger coffee, despite the rapidly escalating price of postage and a dramatic drop in service. Martin Seidenberg, who took over in the summer as head of Royal Mail's parent company, International Distributions Services, said: 'For 1.25, shipping a letter from Plymouth to Aberdeen overnight with a 24-hour service, I personally think that's a pretty good bargain. 'Compare it to when you buy yourself a takeaway coffee at Pret. You pay more than 3 for it and drink it in 20 minutes then it's gone.' But this met with uproar from campaigners and consumer groups who said price rises had not led to better service. Many of those who send letters and cards rather than e-cards particularly the elderly are unlikely to frequent Pret A Manger outlets. But they have had to grapple with soaring stamp prices over the past few years. Sending a letter first class cost 36p 15 years ago and 70p as recently as 2019. Over the past 18 months, prices have risen three times and broke the 1 barrier in April, rising from 95p to 1.10. This is despite delivery delays at Royal Mail, with many first-class letters not reaching their recipients the next working day. 'Charging people 1.25 for a first-class stamp isn't anywhere near a bargain. It's an outrageous price hike for a service that's noticeably deteriorated in recent years,' said consumer expert Martyn James. Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said older people could be left 'high and dry' by the rising cost of postage, adding: 'Many older people are not online, so post is their mainstay, both for paying bills and sending and receiving cards.' The backlash comes as the 507-year-old institution finds itself under increasing pressure to improve deliveries, with many consumers reporting late birthday cards and even medical appointment letters. Unapologetic: Royal Mail chief Martin Seidenberg There is also lingering anger at the company's bungled rollout of stamps with barcodes earlier this year when a complicated process and badly publicised awareness campaign to get people to swap old ones for new left many households stuck with useless stamps. Others faced long delays, and in some cases received fewer stamps than they sent off to be exchanged. Royal Mail has partially attributed rising stamp prices to its Universal Service Obligation requiring it to deliver letters six days a week. It has continuously urged regulator Ofcom and the Government to scrap Saturday deliveries. Calls for reform were reignited last week when Royal Mail plunged to a half-year loss of nearly 320 million. A Pret A Manger spokesman replied that with the chain's 30-a-month subscription caffeine addicts can have up to five black coffees a day for about 1 'less than the price of a first-class stamp'. Treasury officials are exploring the idea of setting up a sovereign wealth fund in what could deliver a boost to households and markets ahead of the General Election, The Mail on Sunday understands. A well-placed City source said officials have been seeking input from financial sector experts to see how such a scheme might work. Foreign sovereign wealth funds are best known in the UK for buying up luxury property and investing in everything from the London Stock Exchange Group to Harrods and Heathrow Airport. One idea being put forward for a homegrown fund is to pool nationally-owned assets along the lines of Singapore's Temasek sovereign wealth fund. These could include some of those held by UK Government Investments, which owns shares in 24 companies ranging from Network Rail and the Royal Mint to engineering firm Sheffield Forgemasters and a 39 per cent stake in lender NatWest. UKGI manages assets of more than 1 trillion which generate about 30 billion of income some of which could be distributed to taxpayers or used to improve public services. Experts say any UK state investment fund would need to be on a huge scale to compete with the foreign titans. Even the fragmented Local Government Pension Scheme, which looks after the nest eggs of six million council workers and has total assets of 360 billion, if combined would not be one of the top dozen global sovereign wealth funds (see table). But the idea of a domestic wealth fund is gaining traction across the political divide, with Labour recently proposing a national wealth fund to boost investment in infrastructure and green projects but it would be funded by borrowing. Sovereign wealth funds are typically paid for by surplus revenues such as Norway's, which reinvests its vast North Sea oil wealth. It is now the biggest sovereign wealth fund in the world with assets of 1.2 trillion. The pot helps to shield the Norwegian economy from ups and downs in energy prices, acts as a financial reserve and is a long-term savings plan for both current and future generations. Britain did not opt for such a scheme when its North Sea oil boom began in the 1970s. Instead, successive governments used the proceeds from oil and gas fields to keep public borrowing down rather than to build a fighting fund to tackle long-term problems such as our ageing population. But even that approach has failed to curb the national debt, which has ballooned to 2.6 trillion almost as much as the UK's entire annual economic output. The sovereign wealth fund plan, which is at an early stage, could build on separate Treasury aims to create a vehicle to boost pension funds' investment in high-growth companies. The Mail on Sunday understands that the Treasury is not actively considering the idea for now, but it has not been ruled out. A source with knowledge of the matter was struck by the fact officials were willing to consider the idea after decades of Treasury orthodoxy which in the past would have seen it dismissed out of hand. But Tory MP John Penrose described a UK sovereign wealth fund as a 'game-changingly big idea'. He said: 'It would help us deal with three of the biggest problems Britain is facing. We don't save and invest enough compared to pretty much all of our rivals. 'Our ageing population is a demographic time bomb which will blow the welfare state apart if we don't reinforce it quickly. 'And we're far better at inventing new ideas than turning them into world-beating businesses which create jobs and wealth in the UK.' A number of overseas sovereign wealth funds have invested heavily in property and infrastructure in the UK in recent years. They include gas-rich Qatar which owns stakes in Barclays, Sainsbury's and British Airways. Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said it was easy to see why the idea was on the Chancellor's agenda. He said: 'It presumably ties in with his desire to reinvigorate the flagging UK stock market, promote ownership of UK equities and provide a stable base of shareholders and perhaps access to pools of capital for companies that are of strategic importance.' A Treasury spokesman said: 'As the Chancellor set out this year, we are looking at ways the Government can facilitate investment. This would build on the skills and expertise of the British Business Bank, which has helped mobilise 15 billion of capital into over 20,000 companies.' Boston Partners lessened its stake in shares of Visa Inc. (NYSE:V Free Report) by 7.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 625,946 shares of the credit-card processors stock after selling 50,156 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners holdings in Visa were worth $148,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Visa by 8.9% during the second quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,470 shares of the credit-card processors stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services grew its stake in shares of Visa by 83.8% during the second quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services now owns 4,359 shares of the credit-card processors stock worth $1,035,000 after buying an additional 1,988 shares during the last quarter. Pragma Gestao DE Patrimonio Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Visa by 20.6% during the second quarter. Pragma Gestao DE Patrimonio Ltd. now owns 41,000 shares of the credit-card processors stock worth $9,737,000 after buying an additional 7,000 shares during the last quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Visa by 5.2% during the second quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,865 shares of the credit-card processors stock worth $5,905,000 after buying an additional 1,234 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bowie Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Visa by 49.9% during the second quarter. Bowie Capital Management LLC now owns 158,914 shares of the credit-card processors stock worth $37,739,000 after buying an additional 52,870 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.35% of the companys stock. Get Visa alerts: Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several brokerages recently weighed in on V. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Visa from $270.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 26th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Visa from $273.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Visa from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird reissued an outperform rating and issued a $284.00 price objective on shares of Visa in a research note on Thursday, September 14th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Visa from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Visa has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $275.67. Insiders Place Their Bets In other Visa news, CEO Ryan Mcinerney sold 8,150 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.47, for a total value of $2,016,880.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Ryan Mcinerney sold 8,150 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.47, for a total transaction of $2,016,880.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.14, for a total transaction of $9,445,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 139,854 shares of the companys stock, valued at $33,025,123.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 72,100 shares of company stock valued at $17,368,639. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the companys stock. Visa Trading Up 0.4 % V opened at $249.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.49. Visa Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $202.13 and a fifty-two week high of $250.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $464.66 billion, a PE ratio of 30.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.95. The companys 50-day moving average is $238.42 and its 200 day moving average is $236.12. Visa (NYSE:V Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 24th. The credit-card processor reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.10. Visa had a net margin of 52.90% and a return on equity of 50.13%. The company had revenue of $8.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.93 EPS. The firms revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Visa Inc. will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Visa Increases Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 9th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. This is an increase from Visas previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 8th. Visas dividend payout ratio is presently 25.09%. About Visa (Free Report) Visa Inc operates as a payments technology company worldwide. The company operates VisaNet, a transaction processing network that enables authorization, clearing, and settlement of payment transactions. It also offers credit, debit, and prepaid card products; tap to pay, tokenization, click to pay; Visa Direct, a real-time payments network; Visa B2B Connect, a multilateral B2B cross-border payments network; Visa Treasury as a Service, a cross-border consumer payments business; and Visa DPS that provides a range of value added services, including fraud mitigation, dispute management, data analytics, campaign management, a suite of digital solutions, and contact center services. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding V? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Visa Inc. (NYSE:V Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Visa Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Visa and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Premium Brands (TSE:PBH Free Report) had its price target reduced by Desjardins from C$124.00 to C$110.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, BayStreet.CA reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock. Desjardins also issued estimates for Premium Brands Q3 2023 earnings at $1.34 EPS. Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Premium Brands from C$110.00 to C$103.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. National Bankshares dropped their price objective on shares of Premium Brands from C$117.00 to C$109.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Cormark dropped their price objective on shares of Premium Brands from C$140.00 to C$130.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Premium Brands from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 15th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on Premium Brands from C$129.00 to C$130.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, October 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of C$116.33. Get Premium Brands alerts: Read Our Latest Report on PBH Premium Brands Stock Up 0.4 % Premium Brands Dividend Announcement TSE PBH opened at C$92.34 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 152.95. The company has a fifty day moving average of C$94.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$100.58. The firm has a market capitalization of C$4.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.21, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.00. Premium Brands has a 52 week low of C$79.00 and a 52 week high of C$113.60. The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 29th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 28th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. Premium Brandss payout ratio is currently 120.78%. About Premium Brands (Get Free Report) Premium Brands Holdings Corporation, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and distributes food products primarily in Canada and the United States. It operates in two segments, Specialty Foods and Premium Food Distribution. The company provides processed meat, deli products, meat snacks, beef jerky and halal, sandwiches, pastries, specialty and gourmet products, entrees, panini, wraps, subs, hamburgers, burgers, salads and kettle products, muffins, breads, pastas, and baking and sushi products. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Premium Brands Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Premium Brands and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Community Health Systems (NYSE:CYH Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning. A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on CYH. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Community Health Systems from $5.00 to $3.50 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Community Health Systems from $5.00 to $3.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 20th. Oppenheimer reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $6.50 price target on shares of Community Health Systems in a research note on Monday, August 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Community Health Systems from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Community Health Systems presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $5.50. Get Community Health Systems alerts: Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Community Health Systems Community Health Systems Trading Up 5.7 % Shares of CYH stock opened at $2.80 on Wednesday. Community Health Systems has a 12 month low of $2.01 and a 12 month high of $8.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $383.04 million, a PE ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.83. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $2.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.43. Community Health Systems (NYSE:CYH Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 25th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of ($0.16) by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.04 billion. Community Health Systems had a negative return on equity of 5.51% and a net margin of 1.88%. Community Health Systemss quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.52) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Community Health Systems will post -0.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Insiders Place Their Bets In other Community Health Systems news, Director Wayne T. Smith purchased 1,000,000 shares of Community Health Systems stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $2.11 per share, with a total value of $2,110,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,107,901 shares of the companys stock, valued at $10,777,671.11. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 9.90% of the stock is owned by insiders. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Community Health Systems Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Community Health Systems by 364.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,824,501 shares of the companys stock worth $38,122,000 after acquiring an additional 6,925,737 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Community Health Systems by 3,799.4% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,887,785 shares of the companys stock worth $14,150,000 after acquiring an additional 2,813,728 shares in the last quarter. Intrinsic Edge Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Community Health Systems in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $7,290,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Community Health Systems by 558.7% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,750,920 shares of the companys stock worth $6,566,000 after acquiring an additional 1,485,122 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Community Health Systems in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,891,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.80% of the companys stock. Community Health Systems Company Profile (Get Free Report) Community Health Systems, Inc owns, leases, and operates general acute care hospitals in the United States. It offers general acute care, emergency room, general and specialty surgery, critical care, internal medicine, obstetrics, diagnostic, psychiatric, and rehabilitation services, as well as skilled nursing and home care services. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Community Health Systems Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Community Health Systems and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com upgraded shares of TELUS (NYSE:TU Free Report) (TSE:T) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Wednesday morning. A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on TU. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of TELUS from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 7th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of TELUS from C$29.50 to C$28.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 8th. TD Securities decreased their price target on shares of TELUS from C$30.00 to C$29.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 8th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of TELUS from C$33.00 to C$30.00 in a research note on Friday, October 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of TELUS from C$33.00 to C$31.00 in a report on Thursday, July 20th. Get TELUS alerts: Read Our Latest Research Report on TELUS TELUS Trading Down 0.1 % TELUS Cuts Dividend NYSE TU opened at $17.66 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.66. TELUS has a one year low of $15.47 and a one year high of $21.94. The firm has a market cap of $25.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.07, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.73. The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.271 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 8th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.14%. TELUSs payout ratio is currently 263.42%. Hedge Funds Weigh In On TELUS A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of TU. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of TELUS by 60.9% in the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 14,694 shares of the Wireless communications providers stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 5,560 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of TELUS by 36.2% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 29,093 shares of the Wireless communications providers stock valued at $761,000 after acquiring an additional 7,737 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of TELUS by 59.3% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,666 shares of the Wireless communications providers stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 2,109 shares during the period. Aviva PLC increased its holdings in shares of TELUS by 156.0% in the 1st quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 479,131 shares of the Wireless communications providers stock valued at $12,536,000 after acquiring an additional 291,979 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new position in shares of TELUS in the 1st quarter valued at $206,000. 49.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. TELUS Company Profile (Get Free Report) TELUS Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of telecommunications and information technology products and services in Canada. It operates through Technology Solutions and Digitally-Led Customer Experiences segments. The Technology Solutions segment offers a range of telecommunications products and services; network services; mobile technologies equipment; data services, such as internet protocol; television; hosting, managed information technology, and cloud-based services; software, data management, and data analytics-driven smart food-chain and consumer goods technologies; home and business security; healthcare software and technology solutions; and voice and other telecommunications services. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for TELUS Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for TELUS and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE Free Report) had its price target lifted by The Goldman Sachs Group from $103.00 to $115.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the technology companys stock. GWRE has been the subject of several other reports. Robert W. Baird upgraded Guidewire Software from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and upped their target price for the stock from $96.00 to $117.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 14th. TheStreet upgraded Guidewire Software from a d rating to a c- rating in a report on Thursday, September 7th. JMP Securities upped their price objective on Guidewire Software from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a market outperform rating in a research note on Friday, September 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Guidewire Software from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 14th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on Guidewire Software in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a hold rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $98.36. Get Guidewire Software alerts: View Our Latest Research Report on Guidewire Software Guidewire Software Price Performance Shares of GWRE stock opened at $96.83 on Wednesday. Guidewire Software has a twelve month low of $56.02 and a twelve month high of $98.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -71.73 and a beta of 1.15. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 2.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 7th. The technology company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.36. Guidewire Software had a negative return on equity of 8.40% and a negative net margin of 12.35%. The business had revenue of $270.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $261.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.31) EPS. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Guidewire Software will post -0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year. Insider Buying and Selling at Guidewire Software In other Guidewire Software news, COO Priscilla Hung sold 11,540 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.77, for a total value of $1,059,025.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 57,516 shares in the company, valued at $5,278,243.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, insider John P. Mullen sold 5,740 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.77, for a total value of $526,759.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 157,692 shares of the companys stock, valued at $14,471,394.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Priscilla Hung sold 11,540 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.77, for a total value of $1,059,025.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 57,516 shares in the company, valued at $5,278,243.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 51,354 shares of company stock worth $4,712,541. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders. Institutional Trading of Guidewire Software Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Guidewire Software during the first quarter worth about $3,839,000. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new stake in Guidewire Software during the first quarter worth about $323,000. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in Guidewire Software by 14.8% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 20,995 shares of the technology companys stock worth $1,723,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in Guidewire Software by 0.7% during the first quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 35,826 shares of the technology companys stock worth $2,940,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Guidewire Software by 10.9% during the first quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 7,307 shares of the technology companys stock worth $600,000 after acquiring an additional 716 shares during the period. 98.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. About Guidewire Software (Get Free Report) Guidewire Software, Inc provides a platform for property and casualty (P&C) insurers worldwide. The company offers Guidewire InsuranceSuite Cloud, such as PolicyCenter Cloud, BillingCenter Cloud, and ClaimCenter Cloud applications. It also provides Guidewire InsuranceNow, a cloud-based platform that offers policy, billing, and claims management functionality to insurers; and Guidewire InsuranceSuite for Self-Managed. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Guidewire Software Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Guidewire Software and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras (NYSE:EBR Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Thursday morning. Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras Stock Down 1.2 % Shares of EBR opened at $8.23 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $7.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.43. Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras has a 52 week low of $5.67 and a 52 week high of $9.16. Get Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. - Eletrobras alerts: Institutional Trading of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EBR. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,966 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 1,699 shares during the period. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras by 49.0% in the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 4,898 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,611 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras by 127.8% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 58,698 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 32,935 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras by 27.7% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 70,541 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $541,000 after purchasing an additional 15,296 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras in the 1st quarter valued at about $84,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 1.11% of the companys stock. Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. Eletrobras Company Profile Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA Eletrobras, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity in Brazil. The company generates electricity through hydroelectric, thermal, nuclear, wind, and solar plants. It owned and operated 32 hydroelectric plants; As of December 31, 2022, it operated 32 hydroelectric plants; five thermal plants, including coal and gas power generation units with a total installed capacity of 1,482 megawatts; and two nuclear power plants comprising Angra I with an installed capacity of 640 megawatts and Angra II with an installed capacity of 1,350 megawatts. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. - Eletrobras Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. - Eletrobras and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE Get Free Report) (NYSE:BCE) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of Hold from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$58.23. Several analysts recently issued reports on BCE shares. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of BCE from C$65.00 to C$55.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on BCE from C$54.00 to C$55.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, November 3rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on BCE from C$60.00 to C$58.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 3rd. Barclays decreased their target price on BCE from C$60.00 to C$55.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded shares of BCE from a sector perform overweight rating to an outperform overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Get BCE alerts: Get Our Latest Research Report on BCE BCE Trading Down 0.0 % BCE Increases Dividend Shares of BCE stock opened at C$54.19 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 162.87. BCE has a 12-month low of C$49.57 and a 12-month high of C$65.66. The company has a market capitalization of C$49.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.21, a PEG ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.52. The firms 50-day moving average price is C$52.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$56.99. The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 15th will be paid a $0.9675 dividend. This is a boost from BCEs previous quarterly dividend of $0.97. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 14th. This represents a $3.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.14%. BCEs dividend payout ratio is presently 158.61%. About BCE (Get Free Report BCE Inc, a communications company, provides wireless, wireline, Internet, and television (TV) services to residential, business, and wholesale customers in Canada. The company operates through three segments: Bell Wireless, Bell Wireline, and Bell Media. The Bell Wireless segment offers integrated digital wireless voice and data communication products and services, as well as consumer electronics products. See Also Receive News & Ratings for BCE Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BCE and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of Hold from the five research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $145.83. A number of analysts recently weighed in on PKG shares. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Packaging Co. of America from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Thursday. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $156.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, September 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $122.00 to $137.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $142.00 to $140.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 18th. Get Packaging Co. of America alerts: Read Our Latest Research Report on PKG Insider Buying and Selling Institutional Trading of Packaging Co. of America In other Packaging Co. of America news, SVP Kent A. Pflederer sold 4,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.93, for a total value of $603,720.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 54,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,217,685.71. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink . In other news, SVP Kent A. Pflederer sold 4,000 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.93, for a total value of $603,720.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 54,447 shares in the company, valued at $8,217,685.71. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website . Also, Director Paul T. Stecko sold 9,737 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.99, for a total transaction of $1,499,400.63. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,765 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,889,622.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,047,771 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $1,880,777,000 after purchasing an additional 161,559 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1.7% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 9,048,220 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $1,256,164,000 after buying an additional 151,624 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 0.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,631,016 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $617,819,000 after buying an additional 23,232 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Packaging Co. of America by 14.8% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,482,612 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $622,321,000 after acquiring an additional 578,041 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 1.7% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,567,075 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $495,202,000 after acquiring an additional 61,273 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.53% of the companys stock. Packaging Co. of America Price Performance PKG opened at $155.31 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $152.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.92 billion, a PE ratio of 17.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.83. Packaging Co. of America has a 52 week low of $122.20 and a 52 week high of $159.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.17. Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.13. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 21.30% and a net margin of 10.04%. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.83 earnings per share. The firms revenue was down 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.35 earnings per share for the current year. Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 25th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 22nd. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Packaging Co. of Americas dividend payout ratio is currently 57.54%. Packaging Co. of America Company Profile (Get Free Report Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through Packaging and Paper segments. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Packaging Co. of America Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Packaging Co. of America and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW Free Report) by 6.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 772,042 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock after acquiring an additional 47,623 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLCs holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $204,993,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1,716.7% during the first quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its position in Sherwin-Williams by 296.9% during the first quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 127 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its position in Sherwin-Williams by 315.9% during the first quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 183 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the second quarter worth about $60,000. Finally, Tacita Capital Inc raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 43.8% in the first quarter. Tacita Capital Inc now owns 230 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.87% of the companys stock. Get Sherwin-Williams alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SHW. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $275.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. Berenberg Bank boosted their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $224.00 to $249.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Friday, September 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 25th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $295.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a buy rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $287.44. Sherwin-Williams Trading Up 0.4 % SHW traded up $0.98 during trading on Friday, hitting $270.28. 1,104,398 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,623,187. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1 year low of $205.43 and a 1 year high of $283.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $252.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $254.46. The firm has a market cap of $69.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.08. Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.43. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 78.92%. The company had revenue of $6.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6 billion. As a group, analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 10.3 EPS for the current fiscal year. Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 17th will be paid a $0.605 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 16th. This represents a $2.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. Sherwin-Williamss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.91%. Insider Activity In other news, CEO John G. Morikis bought 2,125 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $237.60 per share, for a total transaction of $504,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 317,270 shares of the companys stock, valued at $75,383,352. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.55% of the companys stock. Sherwin-Williams Company Profile (Free Report) The Sherwin-Williams Company engages in the manufacture, distribution, and sale of paints, coating, and related products to professional, industrial, commercial, and retail customers. It operates through three segments: The Americas Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coatings Group. The Americas Group segment offers architectural paints and coatings, and protective and marine products, as well as OEM product finishes and related products for architectural and industrial paint contractors, and do-it-yourself homeowners. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SHW? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Sherwin-Williams Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Sherwin-Williams and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. ProShare Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW Free Report) by 2.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 763,643 shares of the industrial products companys stock after selling 19,374 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.25% of Illinois Tool Works worth $191,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Profund Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 3,289 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $823,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 39.4% during the 2nd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 23,080 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $5,774,000 after buying an additional 6,526 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 10.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 102,633 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $25,675,000 after buying an additional 9,908 shares during the last quarter. Shelton Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 26.8% during the 2nd quarter. Shelton Capital Management now owns 2,210 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $553,000 after buying an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 17,338 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $4,337,000 after buying an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.56% of the companys stock. Get Illinois Tool Works alerts: Illinois Tool Works Price Performance Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock traded up $0.90 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $239.92. 1,251,658 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,084,971. The stock has a market cap of $72.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.27, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.27, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.58. The firms fifty day moving average price is $231.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.75. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $214.66 and a 12 month high of $264.19. Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement Illinois Tool Works ( NYSE:ITW Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.10 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.55% and a return on equity of 95.68%. The firms revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.35 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 9.68 earnings per share for the current year. The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 11th. Investors of record on Friday, December 29th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 28th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. Illinois Tool Workss dividend payout ratio is presently 54.32%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth ITW has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $255.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 16th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $256.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research report on Thursday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $235.00 in a research report on Monday, October 9th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $281.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $238.25. View Our Latest Research Report on ITW Illinois Tool Works Company Profile (Free Report) Illinois Tool Works Inc manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment worldwide. It operates through seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products. The Automotive OEM segment offers plastic and metal components, fasteners, and assemblies for automobiles, light trucks, and other industrial uses. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Illinois Tool Works Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Illinois Tool Works and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Profund Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of McDonalds Co. (NYSE:MCD Free Report) by 25.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,844 shares of the fast-food giants stock after purchasing an additional 3,633 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLCs holdings in McDonalds were worth $5,325,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its holdings in shares of McDonalds by 105,490.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 457,071,431 shares of the fast-food giants stock worth $136,394,686,000 after acquiring an additional 456,638,560 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonalds by 106,340.3% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,235,890 shares of the fast-food giants stock worth $5,069,234,000 after acquiring an additional 19,217,818 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of McDonalds in the 4th quarter worth about $2,341,360,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of McDonalds by 1,189.7% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,191,692 shares of the fast-food giants stock worth $541,962,000 after acquiring an additional 2,021,754 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in McDonalds by 89.5% in the 2nd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,568,877 shares of the fast-food giants stock valued at $766,580,000 after buying an additional 1,213,230 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.60% of the companys stock. Get McDonald's alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth MCD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of McDonalds from $330.00 to $285.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 19th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of McDonalds from $340.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 3rd. Wedbush reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $310.00 price objective on shares of McDonalds in a research note on Tuesday, October 31st. TD Cowen reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $340.00 price objective on shares of McDonalds in a research note on Wednesday, September 20th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of McDonalds from $345.00 to $315.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $316.66. Insider Activity In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 5,606 shares of McDonalds stock in a transaction on Monday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total value of $1,569,680.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 29,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,128,680. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 5,606 shares of McDonalds stock in a transaction on Monday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total value of $1,569,680.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 29,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,128,680. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Heidi B. Capozzi sold 688 shares of McDonalds stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.54, for a total transaction of $194,387.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,656,168.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,443 shares of company stock worth $5,863,300. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. McDonalds Price Performance NYSE:MCD traded down $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $275.75. The stock had a trading volume of 2,604,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,182,682. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $264.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $280.79. McDonalds Co. has a one year low of $245.73 and a one year high of $299.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $200.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.70. McDonalds (NYSE:MCD Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 30th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $6.56 billion. McDonalds had a net margin of 33.31% and a negative return on equity of 157.19%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 14.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.68 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that McDonalds Co. will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current year. McDonalds Increases Dividend The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 30th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. This is a boost from McDonaldss previous quarterly dividend of $1.52. McDonaldss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.52%. About McDonalds (Free Report) McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises McDonald's restaurants in the United States and internationally. The company's restaurants offer hamburgers and cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches and nuggets, fries, salads, shakes, frozen desserts, sundaes, soft serve cones, bakery items, soft drinks, coffee, and beverages and other beverages, as well as breakfast menu, including muffins, Sausages, biscuit and bagel sandwiches, oatmeal, hash browns, breakfast burritos and hotcakes. See Also Receive News & Ratings for McDonald's Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for McDonald's and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. A Gazette investigation shows an increasing number of soldiers, including wounded combat veterans, are being kicked out of the service for misconduct, often with no benefits, as the Army downsizes after a decade of war. A bride-to-be who suffered a devastating stroke is on a mission to have invisible patients listened to within the health system. Meaghan OBrien was just 22 when she collapsed after starting a gym session, but recognised the signs of stroke such as facial drooping and left arm weakness. Paramedics had to wheel her past her mother, who was waiting to start a class in the same gym, before she was taken to hospital and given thrombolysis, a clot-busting drug. Ms OBrien, who is originally from Boston, in the US, but now lives in Dingle, is due to marry her fiance next year. She recently graduated as an Irish Heart Foundation patient champion, to amplify the often-unheard views of heart and stroke patients. After her stroke in the US in January 2013, she was flown by medical helicopter to a Boston hospital. I was in ICU and surrounded by doctors and machines, it was so scary. I couldnt do anything, I couldnt sit up, go to the toilet or move my head, she said. A week later, Ms OBriens family was given the devastating news that she would never walk again. When practising walking up and down the corridors, I was surrounded by people in their 70s and 80s. I asked myself, why am I here?, she said. Now 32, she has defied doctors, regaining the ability to walk and returning to her IT job. Ms OBrien and 11 other patients have graduated from the Patient Champion programme, part of the charitys investment in heart and stroke patients. They will advocate for fellow patients and lobby TDs and Senators to ensure their needs are taken into account when policy decisions are being made about their care. I would have benefited so much from the programme if it was developed when I had my stroke, she said. Im here for those patients now, to support them. No patient should be told they cant do something, as mindset is so important to recovery. The Irish Heart Foundations advocacy campaign manager, Pauline OShea, who was diagnosed with heart failure in 2012, said many patients feel unheard, invisible and disempowered within the health system. This programme, and our organisations commitment to ongoing peer and professional advocacy support for patients, provides a natural hub for heart and stroke patients from all over Ireland to come together and work for changes needed in cardiac and stroke care, of which there are many, she said. Patients challenges often extend beyond medical issues and can lead to financial stress, mental health difficulties and relationship breakdown. We often have people making decisions about patients lives without any patient input. [November 18, 2023] Forrest Weldon Law Group Delivers Justice With $1.56 Billion Victory in Bayer Roundup Trial Tweet In a groundbreaking legal victory, Forrest Weldon Law Group successfully delivered justice for victims poisoned by Bayer's Roundup weedkiller, with a Missouri jury on Friday awarding $1.56 billion to plaintiffs. The case centered around plaintiffs Daniel Anderson, Jimmy and Brenda Draeger, Valorie Gunther and their decades of exposure to Roundup weedkiller, with Forrest Weldon attorneys representing the plaintiffs. Evidence from the trial brought to light the egregious negligence of Bayer as it continues to sell its Roundup weedkiller following documented cases of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma tied to glyphosate exposure. This is the fourth consecutive trial verdict in favor of injured Roundup plaintiffs in as many weeks. Plaintiffs have been awarded $1.25 million, $175 million, and $332 million respectively in those other litigations. In addition to failure to warn, the jury found Bayer responsible for design defect and negligence. After hearing arguments and closely examining the evidence, the jury sided with the plaintiffs and awarded $1.56 billion in a landmark decision and one of the largest jury awards of 2023. "We applaud the jury in its relentless pursuit of the truth. And most of all, we honor the plaintiffs who dared to stand up and courageously cast light into the shadows of a powerful corporation," said Bart Rankin, Partner at Forrest Weldon. "Their bravery is a beacon of hope to all who seek restoration, and a reminder of how the voice of truth can resonate powerfully in the halls of justice." Rankin continued, "The court's verdict is not just a triumph of justice; it's a clarion call to Bayer, making it clear that no entity can escape accountability. This is the first of many victories as we continue to seek justice for thousands of innocent victims." Plaintiffs were represented by Forrest Weldn as lead counsel, Duncan Stubbs, and Clement, Van Ronzelen & Schulte. Attorneys for Forrest Weldon are available for immediate comment. If you're an individual suffering from Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma caused by Roundup, please visit www.JoinTheMany.com to learn more about how to take action. About Forrest Weldon Law Group, LLP Forrest Weldon is a civil litigation firm in Dallas, Texas that brings world-class strategies to support meaningful change in the lives of those it serves. With over 40 years of combined litigation experience in state and federal courts nationwide, its team is positioned to handle any complex civil case in a relentless pursuit of justice. For more information, visit forrestweldon.com. About Duncan Stubbs, PLLC Duncan Stubbs, PLLC, a civil litigation firm based in Dallas, Texas, has been at the forefront of championing justice since 2016. The firm has proudly represented more than 50,000 plaintiffs in numerous multidistrict litigations in the fields of pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and consumer products. Their unwavering commitment to excellence and their dedication to leveling the playing field have set them apart in the legal landscape. With a team of skilled and compassionate attorneys, Duncan Stubbs fights to ensure that harmed consumers obtain the justice they rightfully deserve. For more information, visit duncanstubbs.com. About Clement, Van Ronzelen & Schulte Clement, Van Ronzelen & Schulte is a law firm distinguished by its guiding principles of intensity and excellence in representing clients with serious injuries or wrongful death cases. They prioritize building mutual trust with their clients, ensuring the right match for each case. Unlike firms that accept every case, they carefully select clients, guaranteeing personalized attention and resources from day one. Their team of experienced attorneys, recognized with multiple awards and known for their legal skills, has a proven track record of achieving significant results, recovering millions for clients. For more information visit cvrslaw.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20231118198438/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [November 19, 2023] Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP, a Leading Securities Fraud Law Firm, Announces Investigation of ChargePoint Holdings, Inc. (CHPT) on Behalf of Investors Tweet Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP ("GPM"), a leading national shareholder rights law firm, today announced that it has commenced an investigation on behalf of ChargePoint Holdings, Inc. ("ChargePoint" or the "Company") (NYSE: CHPT) investors concerning the Company's possible violations of the federal securities laws. If you suffered a loss on your ChargePoint investments or would like to inquire about potentially pursuing claims to recover your loss under the federal securities laws, you can submit your contact information at www.glancylaw.com/cases/ChargePoint-Holdings-Inc/. You can also contact Charles H. Linehan, of GPM at 310-201-9150, Toll-Free at 888-773-9224, or via email at [email protected] to learn more about your rights. On November 16, 2023, after the market closed, ChargePoint released preliminary financial results for third quarter 2023, disclosing that revenue had fallen to "$108 million to $113 million, as compared to $150 to $165 million as previouslyexpected." The Company also announced that it would be replacing both its CEO and CFO, effective immediately. On this news, ChargePoint's stock price fell as much as 37% during intraday trading on November 17, 2023, thereby injuring investors. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook. Whistleblower Notice: Persons with non-public information regarding ChargePoint should consider their options to aid the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower Program. Under the 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 Charles H. Linehan at 310-201-9150 or 888-773-9224 or email [email protected]. About GPM Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP is a premier law firm representing investors and consumers in securities litigation and other complex class action litigation. ISS Securities Class Action Services has consistently ranked GPM in its annual SCAS Top 50 Report. In 2018, GPM was ranked a top five law firm in number of securities class action settlements, and a top six law firm for total dollar size of settlements. With four offices across the country, GPM's nearly 40 attorneys have won groundbreaking rulings and recovered billions of dollars for investors and consumers in securities, antitrust, consumer, and employment class actions. GPM's lawyers have handled cases covering a wide spectrum of corporate misconduct including cases involving financial restatements, internal control weaknesses, earnings management, fraudulent earnings guidance and forward looking statements, auditor misconduct, insider trading, violations of FDA regulations, actions resulting in FDA and DOJ investigations, and many other forms of corporate misconduct. GPM's attorneys have worked on securities cases relating to nearly all industries and sectors in the financial markets, including, energy, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, real estate and REITs, financial, insurance, information technology, health care, biotech, cryptocurrency, medical devices, and many more. GPM's past successes have been widely covered by leading news and industry publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, Bloomberg Businessweek, Reuters, the Associated Press, Barron's, Investor's Business Daily, Forbes, and Money. This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20231119767457/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [November 19, 2023] Trina Solar and Australia's Solar Juice Sign MoU for Modules Totalling 1GW Tweet SYDNEY, Nov. 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Trina Solar, the world's leading PV and smart energy total solutions provider, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Australian solar wholesale distributor Solar Juice. Under the agreement, Solar Juice will purchase 1GW of Trina Solar Vertex modules over a three-year period, representing a significant proportion of residential and commercial solar capacity going into the Australian market. Trina Solar will make available to Solar Juice its full range of Vertex N modules for Australian residential and commercial projects. The modules include the: Vertex S+ NEG9R.28 and NEG9RC.27; 450W+ mono-facial modules designed primarily for residential Vertex NEG18R.28, a 500W+ n-type i-TOPCon dual-glass module, specifically designd for commercial & industrial (C&I) and residential projects in Australia . Trina Solar's mutual benefit. Trina Solar and Solar Juice have been long-term industry partners and enjoy a strong working relationship. The 1GW MoU further solidifies this partnership, supplying a significant quantity of modules to meet the solar demands for Australia's growing residential and commercial sector. Solar Juice, co-founder Rami Fedda, says: "We have been distributing Trina Solar panels since 2011 and Trina Solar has always been our panel of choice when distributing solar panels. Over the years Trina Solar has continuously innovated to have best in class product offering and amazing local support team to help us serve the Australian market." Edison Zhou, Head of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands for Trina Solar Asia Pacific, says: "We thank Solar Juice for their ongoing confidence in Trina Solar's products. With Trina Solar's latest Vertex S+ dual-glass module series for rooftops, Solar Juice's customers can leverage the latest 210mm rectangular silicon wafer (210R) cell and n-type iTOPCon technology to enjoy highest power, efficiency, and guaranteed lifetime power output. This contributes to lower levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and reduced balance of system (BOS) cost, guaranteeing the customer shorter payback time." About Trina Solar (688599. SH) Founded in 1997, Trina Solar is the world leading PV and smart energy total solutions provider. The company engages in PV products R&D, manufacture and sales; PV projects development, EPC, O&M; smart micro-grid and multi-energy complementary systems development and sales, as well as energy cloud-platform operation. In 2018, Trina Solar launched its Energy IoT brand, established the Trina Energy IoT Industrial Development Alliance together with leading enterprises and research institutes in China and around the world, and founded the New Energy IoT Industrial Innovation Centre. With these actions, Trina Solar is committed to collaborating with its partners to build the energy IoT ecosystem and develop an innovation platform to explore New Energy IoT, as it strives to be a leader in global intelligent energy. In June 2020, Trina Solar listed on the STAR Market of Shanghai Stock Exchange. For more information, please visit www.trinasolar.com. Follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/trina-solar-and-australias-solar-juice-sign-mou-for-modules-totalling-1gw-301991852.html SOURCE Trina Solar Energy Development Pte. Ltd. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] In the latest local killing, Kansas City police are hoping that witnesses come forward to help solve a homicide case that pushes this town closer to another record-breaking year for local murder. Here's the first report and more info to follow . . . Homicide 24th and Lawn Tonight just after 11pm officers were dispatched to the area of 24th and Lawn on a sound of shots call. On arrival officers were directed to the area of a house on 24th street just east of the intersection. At that residence officers located an adult male shooting victim, unresponsive, behind the house. Officers summoned EMS to the scene, they transported the victim to the hospital where he was declared deceased. People at the scene when officers arrived told them that the victim had an interaction with an unknown suspect, in front of the residence that led to shots being fired that struck the victim. Detectives are canvassing for witnesses as this time. It is believed that multiple people may have seen or heard some aspect of the events that led up to the shooting. Detectives need witnesses help to determine what took place. Crime Scene Investigators are processing the scene for evidence as well. If anyone has any information, or witnessed the shooting, they are asked to contact Homicide detectives directly at 816-234-5043 or the TIPS Hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS. There is a reward of up to $25,000 for information submitted anonymously to the TIPS hotline. We are committed to assisting victims of violent crimes through use of Missouris Protection Program for Victims/Witnesses of Violent Crime. Funding for temporary, or even permanent relocation, may be available but is subject to pre-approval by the States administering agency. We are working with Partners for Peace in all our homicide investigations to monitor risks for retaliation and provide social services to affected residents. ################# Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . . Man dies in shooting Saturday night near 24th, Lawn in Kansas City, Missouri A man died in a shooting late Saturday night near 24th Street and Lawn Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri. Man killed in shooting outside of house Police say the victim was shot after speaking with an unknown person. KCPD investigating interaction that ended as shooting homicide Saturday night The Kansas City Police Department is asking witnesses of a Saturday homicide to come forward with any information they may have. Developing . . . Right now hottie Megan leads us to this post that should hold up until we start prepping for the next update as we check pop culture, community news and top headlines once again. Check TKC news gathering . . . Locals Survive Vacay Adventures 'We did survive': KCMO family made it off sinking ferry in the Bahamas It was the last day of the Nicholson and Watson families vacation. They were headed to the Blue Lagoon Tuesday morning in the Bahamas and had no idea what was ahead. Desperately Seeking Golden Ghetto Bad Doggie Police need help locating a dog after biting someone in Overland Park KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Overland Park police are looking for a dog that bit and injured someone Friday morning. This happened near 157th and Rosewood Street in the Hampton Place neighborhood in OP... Misdeeds Alleged In The Stix Woman sues Kansas City area fire department, accusing supervisor of sexual harassment A former nurse with the Southern Jackson County Fire Protection District contends she had to quit because of a hostile work environment created by a supervisor who allegedly sexually harassed her. Smutty Lit Keeps Our Spirits Up Under the Cover bookstore uplifts local authors' voices, serves the community Romance novels are a comfort to Carley Morton. It's a comfort she wanted to share with others. That's why she opened Under the Cover, the first romance-novel shop of it's kind in Kansas City. Latest Crash Aftermath Pedestrian left with life-threatening injuries after vehicle collision in KC One person is suffering with life-threatening injuries after a vehicle collision on St. John Avenue and White Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri. Diva Dress Attracts Attention Megan Fox and MGK Step Out for a Date Night in Black and White at GQ's Men of the Year Party Megan Fox and MGK wore black and white monochromatic looks while photographed on a date night at GQ's Men of the Year Party on Thursday night BEST TKC READERS HOPE TO SEE MORE OF HER!!! Defeated Virginia candidate whose explicit videos surfaced says she may not be done with politics Susanna Gibson lost her Virginia legislative race this month, but she may not be done with politics. Gibson, a Democrat whose House of Delegates campaign and personal life were rocked by news reports that she had livestreamed sex acts with her husband on a pornographic website, isn't ruling out another run for office someday, she told The Associated Press in her first interview since the controversy erupted in September. Coin Flip Chances For Leader Of Free World Obama's top campaign guru David Axelrod believes Biden chances in 2024 'no better' than a 50-50 "They've got a real problem if they're counting on Trump to win it for them," David Axelrod warned about Joe Biden's 2024 presidential chances. Actually, Best Slogan I've Seen So Far Donald Trump's New Campaign Talking Point: Save the Donuts The former president seems to be fixated on whether America's favorite breakfast treat can survive. Holy Land War Worsens Israeli strikes kill dozens in Gaza as offensive against Hamas is set to widen Israeli air strikes on residential blocks in south Gaza killed at least 47 people on Saturday, medics said, while the U.N.s Palestinian refugee agency said scores more had been killed and wounded at a school in the north sheltering displaced civilians. Far East Attacks With New Tech China navy used sonar pulses against divers, Australia says Canberra says naval divers suffered injuries following a high-seas encounter with a Chinese warship. Lockdown & Throw Away Key 'Nymphomaniac' prison staff in Belgium accused of sex orgies Allegations have surfaced that staff members regularly participated in orgies, including while on shift at a Belgium prison. JoCo Burnout Tonight Family of 3 displaced in Overland Park after house fire, no injuries reported A family of three is displaced in Overland Park after a house fire caused damage to the entire structure. Overland Park Fire Department determine the home is likely a loss. Grigs Talks Cold Front . . . Impact days ahead: Rain is expected to move into our area by mid Sunday morning Expect a high temperature Sunday of only 44 Del tha Funky Homosapien - Mistadobalina was the song of the day and this is the OPEN THREAD for right now. At least one person was dead after a fatal shooting between police and two suspects at a Pueblo flea market Saturday morning, according to the Pueblo Police Department. Police said they responded to reports of a stolen vehicle about 9 a.m. Roughly one hour later, officers found the vehicle parked at the Sunset Plaza Shopping Center near Cambridge and Amherst Avenue. According to police, shots were exchanged between the two suspects and the police. One of the suspects was killed, and the other was taken into custody. Additionally, one person was allegedly injured by the stolen vehicle. The persons condition is unknown at this time. It was unknown if any officers were injured in the incident. According to Gazette news partner KOAA, the 10th Judicial District Critical Incident Team was on the scene. This is a developing story. This article will be updated once more information is received. Right now the highly anticipated return of the "angels" inspires our Sunday peek at pop culture, community news and top headlines. Check TKC news gathering . . . Kansas City Donations Desperately Needed 'Very close to the worst': Food banks in Kansas, Missouri facing growing demand as holiday season approaches With the holiday season approaching, food banks are facing a growing demand. Tech FAIL Tests Faith Opinion: To keep our trust, officials must be forthcoming about 'incident' that paralyzed Kansas courts Officials won't explain why the Kansas courts have been offline for more than a month, requiring paper filing and limiting public access to court records for 104 counties to this singular space at the Judicial Center in Topeka. With so many questions surrounding the "incident," writes Max McCoy, the public's trust is at stake. Show-Me Latest Democracy Debate Missouri's voter ID law is back in court. Here's a look at what it does A trial for a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Missouri's new photo identification requirement for voters is scheduled to begin Friday. Rock Chalk Haircut Controversy A Kansas school forced a Native American boy to cut his hair, drawing a warning from ACLU The 8-year-old boy, a member of the Wyandotte Nation, started growing his hair out after attending the Nation's annual gathering. School officials at a Gerard elementary warned his family that his hair needed to be cut to comply with the dress code, which the ACLU says violates his religious freedom. Iconic Collab Plaza District Council sets stage for collaboration The Plaza District Council formed about a year ago and had one of it's first public events Thursday, showing off data and maps of the area they want to help improve. Angel Boss Shares Vision Michaela Stark Is Fashioning a New Kind of Victoria's Secret Angel The Australian-born, London-based designer is subverting body standards in the new VS World Tour. Prez Confronts Underdog Fight Joe Biden is facing a near-historic deficit for an incumbent | CNN Politics Donald Trump has a small, but clear, advantage over Joe Biden right now. This makes Biden just the second president since scientific polling began to trail in his reelection bid at this point in the campaign. 2nd Place Lashes Out Ron DeSantis again calls Biden, Trump too old for White House Voters have been much more likely to view Biden, 80, as too old for the job, compared with Trump, 77. Diva Shares Not-So-Shocking Disclosure OnlyFans model Leila Lewis claims Rep. George Santos was a subscriber - and that she once rated his manhood Leila Lewis aired the allegation on social media on Thursday just hours after the House Committee on Ethics released a damning report detailing evidence the 35-year-old Republican had splashed some of his campaign cash on OnlyFans subscriptions. Terrorist Underground Exposed IDF publishes footage of what it says is Hamas tunnel at al-Shifa hospital Israel says opening was discovered beneath floor of a garage within Gaza medical complex's walls Historic Fashion For Sale Napoleon Bonaparte's hat to go on sale at Paris auction The black bicorne felt hat was a trademark of the French emperor, and is expected to fetch up to 800,000. El Papa Loves Everybody Trans Women Welcome Pope's Message of Inclusivity Francis has made reaching out to the LGBTQ+ community a hallmark of his papacy Witness Kansas City Vista Soggy Autumn Arrives . . . A cold rain approaches Sunday and Monday Sunday will have high temperatures around 54 degrees; cold rain is possible Sunday and Monday, and the rest of the week gets colder. Deacon Blues by Steely Dan is the Sunday song of the day and this is the OPEN THREAD for right now. As always . . . We've always contended that begrudging compliments are the best kind. Accordingly . . . Here's a hint that Missouri's leading conservative might be on the right track when even his fiercest progressive opponents concede that many of his arguments make a lot of sense . . . "(Senator) Hawley is certainly right about the original meaning of the First Amendment. He is also right to recognize that originalism has become, in theory at least, the dominant interpretive practice of the Supreme Court. And hes right that the case that held to the contrary, Citizens United v. FEC, ignored these principles of originalism. "But the challenge for Hawley is that none of the originalists on the Supreme Court have even considered how their theory applies to First Amendment limits on campaign finance law." Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . Greece, the cradle of Western civilization, boasts a wine culture that stretches back thousands of years. From ancient rituals to contemporary winemaking excellence, Greek wine has woven itself into the very fabric of the nations history. In this journey through time, we explore the origins, evolution, and resurgence of Greek wine. Ancient Beginnings: Wines presence in ancient Greece was far more than a mere beverage; it was deeply intertwined with religious, social, and cultural aspects of life. The Greeks believed that Dionysus, the god of wine, played a pivotal role in their existence, and as such, wine became a sacred offering in ceremonies and festivals. Wine in Ancient Greek Society: In ancient Greek society, wine symbolized a connection between the earthly and divine realms. It found its way into both everyday life and significant events, from symposiums and banquets to religious ceremonies and theatrical performances. The symposium, a social gathering of men, often featured discussions, poetry, and music, all accompanied by the steady flow of wine. Amphorae: The Vessels of Greek Wine: To transport and store their precious elixir, the ancient Greeks used amphorae distinctive, narrow-necked vessels with two handles. These vessels, adorned with intricate designs, not only preserved the wine but also served as canvases for artistic expression, depicting scenes from daily life, mythology, and rituals. The Terroir of Greece: The diverse geography of Greece, with its mountains, islands, and coastal regions, contributes to the countrys rich terroir the unique combination of soil, climate, and topography that influences the taste and character of its wines. From the sun-soaked islands of Santorini to the mountainous terrains of Macedonia, Greeces varied terroir produces an array of grape varieties and wine styles. Famous Ancient Greek Wines: One cannot explore the history of Greek wine without mentioning the legendary wines of antiquity. Perhaps the most renowned was the sweet wine from the island of Lesbos, celebrated by poets such as Sappho. Thasian wine, produced on the island of Thasos, and Chian wine from Chios were also highly esteemed and traded across the Mediterranean. The Decline and Resurgence: Despite its prominence in ancient times, the Greek wine industry faced a decline during the Ottoman occupation and later struggles in the 20th century. The phylloxera epidemic devastated vineyards, and wars disrupted production. It wasnt until the latter half of the 20th century that Greek wine experienced a renaissance. Modern Greek Winemaking: In recent decades, Greek winemakers have revitalized and elevated the industry, marrying ancient techniques with modern innovations. Indigenous grape varieties, once overlooked, have taken center stage, contributing to the unique character of Greek wines. Notable varieties include Assyrtiko, Agiorgitiko, Xinomavro, and Malagousia. Global Recognition: In recent years, Greek wines have garnered international recognition, earning accolades and winning over wine enthusiasts worldwide. The revival of ancient grape varieties, coupled with sustainable and organic practices, has positioned Greece as an exciting and innovative player in the global wine scene. From the sacred rituals of ancient Greece to the contemporary vineyards gracing its diverse landscape, the journey of Greek wine is a testament to resilience, tradition, and innovation. As you raise your glass filled with Assyrtiko or Xinomavro, youre not just sipping wine; youre savoring a liquid tapestry that spans millennia an embodiment of Greeces enduring spirit in every delightful sip. Read more at thenationalherald.com RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations, Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons License: CC-BY-SA Copyright: Elisavetch There was no soft landing when Family Promise of Colorado Springs hit rock bottom. The 27-year-old nonprofit crashed hard last year, losing three-fourths of its budget, closing its shelter for homeless families just 2 years after opening it and shrinking to one staff member. It was rough, leaders say now looking back on where they were. Everything shut down, except for the interest of the board and the faith community and a lot of volunteers and advocates for families who knew it couldnt die, said Michael Royal. He headed the organization from 2010 to 2020 and returned as co-interim leader until September, when new executive director Ralph Patrick came onboard. What a difference 2023 has made. Under the organizations resurrection, Patrick said dreams have become objective elements that prove its not only sustainable, but will thrive. Others agree. While the organization has endured a few failed reboots and offline periods since the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted services, there was always the assumption that wed restart, said the Rev. Daniel Smith, pastor of Ascension Lutheran Church. Smith also mentions the dedication of leaders such as Royal, who were bearers of hope when all seemed lost. Their diligence in sticking with the program and reaching out to stakeholders, funders, the city and congregations and making sure this thing was still moving was really important, he said. This is our ministry of our congregations, and we wont let it go. Smiths father was a co-founder in 1996 of Interfaith Hospitality Network, a grassroots initiative of residents who were alarmed by rising homelessness in the Pikes Peak region and a lack of support for families, in particular. The organization adopted the trade name of Family Promise of Colorado Springs in 2014, with Interfaith Hospitality Network referring to the overnight congregation system. The entity was not set up with faith-based designation, Royal said, but rather as a sectarian nonprofit that uses Christian, Jewish and Muslim houses of worship to help carry out its programs. For one or two weeks at a time, congregations provide families with sleeping quarters, bathrooms, dinners and hospitality a commonality among all religious traditions. Families typically stay in the program for 45 to 90 days, Royal said. The model is valuable, Smith said, because families often are separated at homeless shelters. However, in Colorado Springs, thats not the case at the Salvation Armys Family Hope Center, which recently was reconfigured into suites for families. Family Promise clients often have anxiety before entering the program, said Smith, whose church has been a host from the start. The idea of staying in church basements and Sunday school rooms is a little nerve wracking, he said, but as it gets underway and connections are made and relationships formed, both the families and churches get our eyes opened to the experiences of each other. The pandemic halted Family Promises rotational congregation model in 2020. The organization tried to accommodate some families in its longtime downtown day center a house offering daytime respite for parents and children to bathe, do laundry, attend to babies, finish homework, and work with case managers on obtaining permanent housing, employment, income and other necessities. But that didnt work, and the day center closed in 2021. During the pandemic when the day center first closed and we couldnt host families anymore in our congregations, wed bring food to the New Promise shelter and that was really key in the long run because it kept congregations connected to the program, Smith said. An attempt to open a day center last year at St. Paul's United Methodist Church's unused parsonage in central Colorado Springs failed after neighbors objected to the plan. It was one of those unfortunate things where theres not an understanding of the focus of this program of families and children, but just the stereotyping of homelessness that raises concerns, Royal said. St. Pauls now provides space for transitional housing for 90 days for one family, with hopes for expansion to allow for more families. Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. The organization's New Promise homeless shelter, which operated out of a revamped former motel on South Nevada Avenue, served nearly 400 clients from opening at the start of 2020 and before being shuttered in July 2022. Running the shelter required 24/7 staffing and a roster of 20 employees, Royal said, which became cost-prohibitive. Financial troubles arose, he said, as the organization became reliant on temporary government funding that would come and go. It became our Achilles' heel, he said. Further eroding revenue was a $150,000 drop in philanthropic contributions in 2021 amid donors' own struggles to remain solvent during the pandemic. The budget shrank from $1.4 million to last fiscal years $340,000, Royal said. Today, Theres great momentum happening here, he said. Patrick cites several tangible examples of Family Promise returning to business with renewed strength. At nearly $800,000, this fiscal years budget has more than doubled over last years, he said, enabling programs to relaunch and staff to expand from one to six people, with an expert consultant, experienced management and a strategic plan in formation. A fundraiser in September netted $30,000, and a first annual holiday donor event happens Nov. 30, leaders said. "We're getting unsolicited checks coming in the mail and notes saying, 'So glad to hear you're back up and running," Patrick said. "It is really quite a snowball effect." The congregational rotation for homeless families has resumed, with a full schedule of 30 congregations providing volunteers or acting as site hosts for families. The organization also has new office space inside the downtown First United Methodist Church. My heart breaks and is committed to helping folks find their way from the streets or cars to sustainable housing and back to the fullness and goodness that I believe God has for every person on this Earth, said the Rev. Carrie West, pastor of discipleship at First United Methodist Church and a Family Promise board member. The board, volunteers and staff have that same fire and desire; I think thats why the organization is making a comeback. A new day center also is being reborn. First United Methodist contributed $50,000 toward an estimated $200,000 remodel of a tri-level building at 324 N. Nevada Ave. The church owns the building and is leasing it to Family Promise. The building had been an alternative worship center and then a dance studio and now is being renovated into individual rooms for families and community spaces including showers, bathrooms, laundry facilities, a kitchen, a play area and a common room. The first phase is scheduled to open in January, Patrick said. "Whenever an organization leans into a vision and has solidarity with that vision, it's going to be successful," West, the pastor, said. "Our vision at First United Methodist is to offer grace, live grace and share grace, and our partnership with Family Promise is one way we want others to experience the grace of God. "We don't want to be preachy; providing space and financial health is the way we're modeling that." Perseverance and intentionality in reaching out to former and new donors, grant makers and religious groups helped Family Promise rebound from its near-death experience, supporters say. The organizations previous success also seems to have helped people believe that it's a sound investment in a good cause that is on its way to flourishing once again. Family Promise is needed in the community, and thats why we didnt go under, said volunteer manager Cindy Weaver, who last year was the nonprofits only employee. I stayed because people still had a vision and passion for what Family Promise does to empower families experiencing homelessness, she said. Because the congregations of the Interfaith Hospitality Network still saw value in the Family Promise Magic of hosting families in their facilities during the hardest times of their lives. The community is why Family Promise is still here. Myself and a friend are am planning to go to Cambodia mid march. We have been considering using the train system to reach each destination and returning to Phnom penh as a base after each destination. We would then travel from Phnom penh to Kampot-salt and pepper fields, Siem Rep (maybe 3 days) and down to Shianoukville to stay for a few days on Koh Rong. Then back to Phnom Penh to fly out. At each place we would either use Pass App or a driver/guide. We will have approximately 14-16 days. Do you feel the train/ self organised activities would be a safe option? Or better to go with a tour company like Intrepid? We are Thankyou for your advice :) A nurse in the public health care system says she is in charge of a clinic in which she is a On Friday, the Lithuanian side handed over a new military aid shipment to Ukraine. The relevant statement was made by the Lithuanian National Defence Ministry on the social media platform X, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. Lithuania will stand firm on its commitments to support Ukraine and today handed over a new shipment of the military aid to Ukraine, the report states. According to the ministry, the new package includes power generators and field rations that will contribute to Ukraines urgent support needs on the battlefield, especially during the cold season. A reminder that, on November 10, 2023, Lithuanias National Defence Ministry announced that they had transferred the NASAMS launchers together with necessary equipment to Ukraine. Bohdan Yermokhin, whom the invaders illegally deported from the temporarily captured Mariupol to Russias Moscow region, is already back in Ukraine following a long ordeal. Thats according to the Head of the President's Office, Andriy Yermak, who broke the news via Telegram, Ukrinform reports. "Our team managed to bring home Bohdan Yermokhin, a Ukrainian teenager who was taken by Russia from occupied Mariupol to Moscow region," he said. According to Yermak, the boy turned 18 today. His return to Ukraine became possible within the framework of the Bring Kids Back UA action plan approved by President Volodymyr Zelensky. "We were in constant contact with Bohdan and he is already in Ukraine, alongside his sister. The work of the team of the Office and the Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, is well-coordinated," said the head of the Presidents Office. Yermak thanked partners from Qatar and UNICEF for contributing to the effort. As reported, Bohdan Yermokhin is an orphan from temporarily occupied Mariupol, Donetsk region. After the city came under the Russian control, the boy was illegally taken to Russia and placed in a foster family in the suburbs of Moscow. Yermokhin was scheduled to report to the Russian military draft office in December, shortly after he was to turn 18. The teenager filed an appeal with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, asking him to assist in his return to Ukraine. On November 19, Yermokhin left Russia and first arrived in Belarus before making it to Ukraine. Chinese FM expounds on China-U.S. summit, Xi's attendance at 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting Xinhua) 09:23, November 19, 2023 BEIJING, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday briefed the media on Chinese President Xi Jinping's talks with U.S. President Joe Biden and his attendance at the 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that it is widely believed that President Xi's trip has attracted worldwide attention, which has added stability to the China-U.S. relations, brought new impetus to the Asia-Pacific cooperation and injected positive energy into the international and regional landscape. President Xi pointed out in San Francisco, China and the United States should assume a new vision, noting that the two countries should jointly develop a right perception, jointly manage disagreements effectively and appreciate each other's principles and red lines, jointly advance mutually beneficial cooperation, jointly shoulder responsibilities as major countries and jointly promote people-to-people exchanges, said Wang, adding that this has built together five pillars for China-U.S. relations and established the "San Francisco vision" oriented toward the future. Reaffirming the five commitments he made at the Bali summit, President Biden said that the United States does not seek a new Cold War, it does not seek to change China's system, it does not seek to revitalize alliances against China, it does not support "Taiwan independence," and that it has no intention to have a conflict with China, Wang said. Thanks to the joint efforts of both sides, more than 20 important results have been achieved in the meeting, including the establishment of a working group on counternarcotics cooperation and the agreement to resume, on the basis of equality and respect, high-level communication and institutional dialogue between the two militaries, and to jointly promote the success of the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Dubai, Wang said. Wang said that the San Francisco summit meeting stands as a major event in the history of China-U.S. relations as well as in international relations, and is conducive to advancing their relationship in the direction of healthy, stable and sustainable development. Meanwhile, Wang called on the two sides to be soberly aware that the China-U.S. relationship has never been smooth sailing. There are still many deep-seated and structural problems, and many risks and challenges that need to be addressed jointly, he said, noting that San Francisco should not be the finish line but a new starting point. During the visit, President Xi was invited to a welcome dinner jointly hosted by friendly organizations in the United States, during which he delivered an important speech, stressing that the foundation of China-U.S. relations was laid by our peoples, the door of China-U.S. relations was opened by our peoples, the stories of China-U.S. relations are written by our peoples, and the future of China-U.S. relations will be created by our peoples, Wang said. President Xi's cordial interactions once again with friendly personages from all walks of life in the United States made us feel deeply that the foundation of China-U.S. friendship is still there, the momentum of exchanges remains and the prospect of cooperation is promising, he added. President Xi made an in-depth review of the inspiration from the course of Asia-Pacific cooperation, pointing out that openness and inclusiveness are the defining feature of Asia-Pacific cooperation, development for all is the overarching goal of Asia-Pacific cooperation and seeking common ground while shelving differences is the best practice of Asia-Pacific cooperation. On how to build the next "golden 30 years" in Asia Pacific, President Xi called for innovation-driven, open, green development, and inclusive development that delivers benefits to all. He also called for high-quality growth to promote the building of an Asia-Pacific community with a shared future so that the fruits of modernization are widely shared. Wang said that during the visit, President Xi delivered a written speech to the APEC CEO Summit, and on many occasions extensively and intensively introduced the essence and world significance of Chinese modernization to all sectors in the United States and APEC participants. President Xi pointed out that China's economy has been steadily recovering and turning for the better, and its growth rate is among the highest among major economies of the world, Wang said, adding that China remains the most powerful engine of global growth. President Xi stressed that China's resolve to foster a market-oriented, law-based and world-class business environment will not change, and China's policy of providing equal and quality services to foreign investors will not change, Wang noted. He said that the attitude sends a strong signal of China's high-level opening-up and boosts the confidence of all parties in continuing cooperation with China. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) The design phase of a widening project for part of Route 214 will be fully funded by the end of next year. Meanwhile, money is still being sought to complete design work for other Anne Arundel priorities, including road widening projects on Routes 2 and 3, the state says. These are where we have traffic bottlenecks, where too many cars are trying to get into the same place at the same time and youll notice a lot of them are north-south, Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman said at a meeting with the Maryland Department of Transportation on Tuesday. Design work for added capacity and improvements to bike and pedestrian paths on a small stretch of Route 214, between Route 468 and Loch Haven Road in Edgewater, also known as Central Avenue, is being funded by the county and overseen by the State Highway Administration. It will cost around $1.6 million in total, according to the SHA. The county provided $137,000 in 2022, $356,000 this year, and will provide $1,092,000 next year. The project is ranked eighth highest on the states transportation priority list. This county funding comes from a pot of money the Pittman administration and the County Council allocated in 2019. The county raised the income tax rate by one-tenth of 1% to create a funding stream for schools, safety and transportation infrastructure projects. Were putting money on the table, and we will continue to do that with the expectation that the state responds with even more money, Pittman said. We want more money and we want it yesterday. A more expensive project to design a third lane in both directions along Route 3 in Crofton, roughly between Waugh Chapel Road/Riedel Road and the Route 32 ramp, is taking longer to fund. That project, which will also include pedestrian improvements, is the states top transportation priority, according to MDOT. While the county has agreed to split the cost with the state, the design is not even 30% funded. The state allocated $115,000 in 2022 and $683,000 this year, leaving it a few thousand short of the $800,000 one-third mark. MDOT and Anne Arundel are now discussing how to share the rest of the design costs, which total around $2.4 million, said State Highway Administration spokesperson Shantee Felix. The department will start reaching out to the surrounding community about the project next spring, said Will Pines, SHA administrator. A third project that is 13th on MDOTs priority list, but higher on the countys, is to redesign a part of Route 2, also known as Ritchie Highway, to add a third lane between U.S. 50 and Arnold Road and a sidewalk northbound along the road from Chautaugua Road to Arnold Road and along Arnold Road from the B&A Trail to the highway. After receiving $24,000 in state money and $6,000 in county money in 2022, and $416,000 from the state and $160,000 from the county this year, design funding still has not reached a third of its goal. Pines said his team expects that threshold to be reached by January. At this rate, it could take several years to fully fund these projects, including the states top transportation priority. Its always slow, slower than we would like in government, Pittman said, adding the county is assessing ways to expedite public improvement projects, but needs help from the state. He said that Gov. Wes Moores administration has been left in a tough spot due to a variety of factors including former Gov. Larry Hogans decision to cut tolls, which reduced revenue to MDOT, restricting the already limited funding for transportation. Other financing issues stem from the way Maryland generates revenue for transportation improvements. Almost 25% of MDOTs revenue comes from the states gas tax, said MDOT Secretary Paul Wiedefeld. Its an increasingly problematic funding stream as electric vehicles become more popular and residents spend less money on gas. Another main source of income is the titling tax. Revenue from that tax is declining as cars last longer. Frankly, our investment levels do not meet the needs that we have, Wiedefeld said. While the states transportation project budget is $21.2 billion over the next six years, the capital budget for transportation projects faces a $2 billion funding shortfall for fiscal years 2024 through 2029, Wiedefeld has said. A commission that is looking into the shortfall started meeting last summer. As tough financial decisions are made at the state level over this coming budget cycle, Pittman encouraged state officials to keep the momentum going on transportation projects. This proposal isnt what wed like it to be. A lot of [state] departments are in some pretty terrible shape and some really tough decisions, some fiscally responsible decisions have to be made, Pittman said. Its a difficult time but if we fail and if we just throw all this stuff in the drawer that waits for the next decade or two, our kids are going to look back and say, Why didnt you do transportation?' By Steve Holland NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Virginia (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden donned aprons and served Thanksgiving dinners to military personnel and their families on Sunday at an early holiday meal dubbed "Friendsgiving." The event took place in a flag-bedecked hangar at Naval Station Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia. The Bidens participation in the gathering for friends known as "Friendsgiving" kicked off the week ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday. Biden served up portions of mashed potatoes and Jill Biden spooned out sweet potato casserole as the diners passed in front of them. The Friendsgiving event included service members and military families associated with the Dwight D. Eisenhower and the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carriers. Both vessels are deployed in the eastern Mediterranean in response to tensions from the Israel-Hamas conflict. "You literally are the spine, the sinew, the backbone of this operation," Biden said. Of the family members of those deployed abroad, he added: "You family members are the heart of this operation." Biden will conduct the traditional pardoning of the National Thanksgiving Turkey on Monday, and then leave on Tuesday for the Atlantic island of Nantucket to spend the Thursday holiday there with his family. He celebrates his 81st birthday on Monday. While in Norfolk, the Bidens kicked off an advance screening with service members and their families of Wonka, a new musical fantasy film focusing on a young Willy Wonka. The Norfolk event was part of the White Houses Joining Forces Initiative, co-hosted by the United Service Organizations (USO) and Robert Irvine Foundation. (Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Franklin Paul and Diane Craft) (@FahadShabbir) ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Nov, 2023) The crackdown is underway against illegal profiteering on drugs and fake unregistered medicines across the country. The crackdown was started on the direction of caretaker Federal Minister for Health Dr. Nadeem Jan, spokesperson of the Ministry of Health said on Sunday. He said that distributors, pharmacies and medical stores are being raided in all major cities across the country. He said in Karachi, the DRAP team inspected the pharmacies and medical stores in different areas. The team raided Irfan Medicos in DHA Karachi and various pharmacies in Gulshan Iqbal and Gulistan Johar. He said that Heparin injection was being sold at more than the approved price. He added Heparin injection was being sold for Rs 3500 instead of Rs 800. Similarly, Tramal Injection and Augmentin DS Suspension Hydraline Syrup were also being sold at a higher price. He said that Ventolin Inhaler Tegeral and tablets Augmentin DS were also being sold at higher prices. These medicines were seized and sealed, he added. He said that the Minister for Health started the process of legal action against the pharmacy owners under the DRAP Act. Meanwhile, the minister said that strict action will be taken against the elements who are looting the people. He said that no person is above the law. He said that soon after taking charge of the ministry, he issued instructions to DRAP and all necessary steps are being taken to ensure quality medicines in the country. PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Nov, 2023) A high level meeting chaired by Caretaker Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Syed Arshad Hussain Shah on Sunday decided to develop financial plans to make all public sector universities financially self-dependent. The meeting also decided to activate search committee for appointment of Vice Chancellors. The committee would submit its report within a week to the provincial minister. The CM emphasized to improve the administrative affairs and governance of the universities to solve the problems being faced by the universities. The chief minister asked to promote high standard of higher education based on the demand of market adding that priorities should also be given to quality of research work. He said the secondary and higher secondary education system should be aligned with the priorities of higher education institutions. For this purpose, the CM asked to hold consultation with the stakeholders. APP/ash By Will Dunham (Reuters) -Former U.S. first lady Rosalynn Carter, who President Jimmy Carter called "an extension of myself" owing to his wife's prominent role in his administration even as she tirelessly promoted the cause of mental health, died on Sunday at age 96, the Carter Center said. Rosalynn Carter, who in recent days had entered hospice care at home in Plains, Georgia, died with her family by her side, according to a statement released by the Carter Center, a nonprofit organization founded by the couple. Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, served as president from 1977 to 1981. He and his wife were the longest-married U.S. presidential couple, having wed in 1946 when he was 21 and she was 18. After his single term as president ended, he has also enjoyed more post-White House years than any president before him, and she played an instrumental role during those years, including as part of the Carter Center and the Habitat for Humanity charity. Her family in May disclosed that she had dementia but was continuing to live at home. Jimmy Carter, 99, himself is in hospice care after deciding in February to decline additional medical intervention. "Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished," the former president said in the statement. "She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me." She was seen as unassuming and quiet before coming to Washington in 1977 but developed into an eloquent speaker, campaigner and activist. Her abiding passion, which carried far beyond her White House years, was for the mentally ill, not because of any personal connection but because of a strong feeling that advocacy was needed. "The best thing I ever did was marry Rosalynn," Carter told the C-SPAN cable TV channel in 2015. "That's the pinnacle of my life." Before her husband was elected president in 1976, Rosalynn was largely unknown outside of Georgia, where he had been a peanut farmer-turned-governor. He lost his 1980 re-election bid to Ronald Reagan, a Republican former California governor and Hollywood actor. In Washington, the Carters were a team, with the president calling her "an extension of myself" and "my closest adviser." She was often invited to sit in as an observer at cabinet meetings and political strategy discussions. In a 1978 interview with magazine editors, Carter said he shared almost everything with his wife except top-secret material. "I think she understands the consciousness of the American people and their attitudes perhaps better than do I," he said. She also was sent on important official missions to Latin America and was part of the unsuccessful campaign for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ensure equal treatment of women under the law. The Iranian hostage crisis, in which American diplomats and others were held captive in Tehran after the Islamic revolution, occurred when Carter was seeking re-election. The crisis contributed to the downfall of his presidency as he refrained from campaigning while trying to resolve the standoff. During that time, Rosalynn Carter sought to support her husband by speaking in 112 cities in 34 states during a 44-day tour. Her speeches and forays into crowds were credited with helping Carter defeat Democratic challenger Ted Kennedy in the 1980 primaries, although he went on to lose overwhelmingly to Reagan. President Joe Biden, who served in the Senate during the Carter presidency, and first lady Jill Biden said in a statement that Rosalynn Carter "walked her own path, inspiring a nation and the world along the way." "She was a champion for equal rights and opportunities for women and girls; an advocate for mental health and wellness for every person; and a supporter of the often unseen and uncompensated caregivers of our children, aging loved ones and people with disabilities," the Bidens said. Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump also lauded her. MENTAL HEALTH INTEREST Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born Aug. 18, 1927, in Plains to Edgar and Alice Smith, and married Carter on July 7, 1946. They went on to have four children. Her interest in mental health issues stemmed from the early 1970s when she began to realize, while helping her husband campaign for governor, the depth of the problem in her home state of Georgia and the reluctance of people to talk about it. As first lady of Georgia, she was a member of a governor's commission to improve services for the mentally ill. In the White House, she became honorary chair of the President's Commission on Mental Health, key to passage of a 1980 act that helped fund local mental health centers. After leaving Washington she pursued her work through the Carter Center, which the couple founded in Atlanta in 1982. She continued to advocate for mental health, early childhood immunization, human rights, conflict resolution and the empowerment of urban communities. "I hope our legacy continues, more than just as first lady, because the Carter Center has been an integral part of our lives. And our motto is waging peace, fighting disease and building hope. And I hope that I have contributed something to mental health issues and help improve a little bit the lives of people living with mental illnesses," she told C-SPAN in a 2013 interview. In their post-Washington years the Carters were also key figures in the Habitat For Humanity charity, helping build homes for needy families. Their humanitarian efforts were crowned in 2002 when Jimmy Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. "I am especially grateful to Rosalynn, who has been a part of everything I've done," a teary-eyed Jimmy Carter said in a speech in Plains after learning he had won the award. Both Carters were active in the Plains community, including at the Maranatha Baptist Church where Rosalynn served as a deacon and Jimmy as a deacon and long-time Sunday school teacher. The Carter Center said she also is survived by her four children, 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. (Reporting by Will Dunham in Washington; Additional reporting by Steve Holland, Jonathan Allen and Costas Pitas; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Diane Craft) ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Nov, 2023) Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, Jawad Sohrab Malik, focused on developing the Pakistani workforce in KSA during his interactions with Saudi employers and human resource executives on his visit to the kingdom. In Saudi Arabia, he concentrates on solidifying connections and optimizing opportunities for the Pakistani community. Jawad Sohrab Malik engaged in in-depth discussions with Saudi employers and human resource management executives in Jeddah. During the meetings, SAPM emphasized the crucial role of human resource development aligned with the requirements of the Saudi market and economy. He highlighted that the paramount value lies in close coordination and a strong exchange of ideas among stakeholders in overseas employment to effectively leverage opportunities for Pakistani manpower in the Saudi Arabian market. The SAPM also engaged with the Pakistani community at the Consulate General of Pakistan in Jeddah. Prominent community members and business leaders discussed a variety of issues, including challenges encountered by expatriates, during their interaction with SAPM. The SAPM assured the community, affirming the Pakistani government's unwavering commitment to supporting the Pakistani community in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other nations. Malik shared the ongoing endeavours of the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis to address the needs of overseas Pakistanis, particularly those residing in the kingdom, and ensure their well-being. The gathering in Jeddah saw a diverse presence from the Pakistani diaspora, including businessmen, professionals, and entrepreneurs. SAPM's visit to KSA is a deliberate step towards bolstering cooperation in manpower employment between the two countries. (@FahadShabbir) Doha, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Nov, 2023) A deal to free hostages Hamas seized in its October 7 attack on Israel now hinges on "minor" practical issues, Qatar's prime minister said Sunday, without giving details or a timeline. "The challenges that remain in the negotiations are very minor compared to the bigger challenges, they are more logistical, they are more practical," Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told a joint press conference with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Qatar has helped broker talks aiming to free some of the 240 hostages in return for a temporary ceasefire, a mediation effort that has so far led to the release of four hostages. "The deal is going through ups and downs from time to time throughout the last few weeks," the premier said. "I think that I'm now more confident that we are close enough to reach a deal that can bring the people safely back to their homes." Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw the hostages taken. The army's relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. Borrell, who was due to meet with Qatar's emir before travelling on to Jordan, called for the "unconditional release" of all hostages while denouncing the Hamas attack on Israel. "There's no hierarchy between horrors, one horror doesnt justify another horror," the EU foreign policy chief added, urging an end to the escalating violence and the creation of "sustainable peace" in the region. The United States said Saturday it was still working to secure a deal between Israel and Hamas after the Washington Post reported there was a tentative agreement to free women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a pause in fighting. Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said all parties would halt combat operations for at least five days while some hostages were to be released in batches. The White House quickly responded on Saturday evening with a message on X, formerly Twitter, to deny any major breakthrough. Thani said on Sunday it was "counterproductive to see leaks about the negotiations coming out in the media before sealing the deal". On Thursday Biden had said he was "mildly hopeful" of reaching a deal to free the hostages, believed to include about 10 US citizens. Israel has so far refused to heed calls for a ceasefire before all the captives are released. Iran has increased repression of its Bahai minority in recent months by engaging in more than 200 acts of persecution, including the arrests of 19 people last week, the Bahai International Community, which represents world Bahais, told VOA on Nov. 13. Simin Fahandej, a BIC representative to the United Nations, provided her organization's latest assessment of conditions in Iran in this weeks edition of VOAs Flashpoint Iran podcast. Her assessment is consistent with an October report of increased harassment of Iran's Baha'is by a U.N. special rapporteur. The BIC-alleged incidents include the arrests of 19 Bahais in Iranian security force raids on Bahai homes in the cities of Karaj and Hamadan this month, according to a Nov. 10 BIC report. Irans state news agency Fars, in a Nov. 8 article, cited a commander of the pro-government Basij militia as saying authorities had arrested 10 members of what Tehran calls the heretical Bahai sect in western Tehran and in Alborz province, of which Karaj is the capital. It did not say when the arrests occurred. The Fars report accused the Bahais of being part of an antigovernment propaganda network, a common charge leveled by Irans Islamist rulers against minority Bahais peacefully practicing their faith. Bahais have no religious rights under Irans Islamist constitution, which only grants such rights to members of three minority faiths, including Zoroastrians, Jews and Christians. Last month, the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Javaid Rehman, told a U.N. meeting in New York that there had been a "marked increase in attacks, targeting and harassment" of Irans Bahais. Rehman said there had been "over 333 reported incidents since July 2022, including cases of arbitrary detentions, interrogations, unlawful arrest, torture, ill treatment, destruction of properties, cemetery desecration, denial of education rights and other forms of economic pressures." The arrests reported last week drew expressions of concern from Western governments. Rashad Hussain, the U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, tweeted, "Persecution of Baha'is in Iran must end. Religious persecution is unacceptable and the trend of authorities targeting Baha'i women is deeply disturbing." Canadas Office of Human Rights, Freedoms and Inclusion and Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn posted similar statements on X, formerly known as Twitter. Irans U.N. Mission in New York acknowledged having received Friday a VOA request for comment on the Western criticism, but it had not provided one at the time of publication of this report. The following transcript of Fahandejs VOA interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. VOA: How do you obtain and verify information about arrests of Bahais in Iran? Simin Fahandej, BIC representative to the United Nations: It is actually quite difficult to obtain information from a country where individuals have received long sentences for speaking to the media or sharing news on their social media. There is a lot of fear and intimidation that is spread by the Iranian government in order to prevent people from disseminating this type of news. But the information that we do put out is accurate and based on what we receive. VOA: How did the reported arrests of 19 Bahais last week compare to other arrests of Bahais in the first 10 months of this year? Fahandej: What we have observed is that whenever human rights in Iran generally have deteriorated, the situation of the Bahais also has deteriorated, unfortunately. We have seen that in the past few months, there has been an escalation in the persecution of the Bahais. In the past couple of months alone, we have had more than 200 incidents of persecution. There were these 19 arrests and 20 home raids a few days ago in the cities of Hamadan and Karaj. A couple of weeks ago, we also had dozens of arrests in the cities of Shiraz, Yazd and Isfahan. So we see that actually, there has been this increase in persecution of Bahais across the country. Another pattern that we have noticed is that many of the arrested individuals are women. Of the 10 Bahais arrested in Isfahan, all are women, and most of them are actually young women. Those arrested in recent weeks include four or five elderly women whose husbands actually had been executed by the Iranian government in the 1980s. So we see that this pattern of persecution essentially affects Bahais from the moment they are born into their advanced age and even after death. We have seen that Bahai cemeteries are destroyed and that Bahais sometimes are not permitted even to visit the resting places of their loved ones. VOA: BIC has been raising awareness about these cases of persecution through a new report called The Bahai Question that was published last month, and through a social media project called Our Story is One. Can you tell us about these projects and what kind of response you have seen? Fahandej: The Bahai Question publication actually started a few decades ago. Its name comes from an Iranian government memorandum that also is called The Bahai Question. This 1991 memorandum was approved by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei himself. It essentially states that Bahais should be treated "in a way that their progress and development shall be blocked." And it states a number ways to do this, such as the expulsion of Bahai students from universities, schools, and places of employment. It also calls for placing Bahai children in schools with a strong [Islamic] ideology in order to distance them from their faith. BICs publications of The Bahai Question detail the persecution of the Bahais in Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution up to now, and also detail how international support for Bahais has really increased over the years. One example of incredible global support that we have seen for Bahais is the response to Our Story is One campaign, which we launched in June in honor of 10 Bahai women executed by Iran 40 years ago. The campaign has been able to bring Iranians together to see that the hate speech and propaganda spread by the Iranian government for the past 40 years to try to divide the Bahai community from the rest of Iranian society has not worked. It has helped people to see that the same persecution experienced by Bahais has extended to Iranians of all backgrounds and faiths, and that we are all one and our story is one. We actually have seen unprecedented support for the Bahai community worldwide, with statements of support from Nobel peace laureates, foreign ministers, artists, musicians and countless others. One feature of the campaign is artwork. We made a public call for works of art, music and dance to celebrate the lives of not just the 10 executed Bahai women, but of all Iranian women of all backgrounds and faiths. We saw a remarkable display of solidarity through this beautiful artwork and music that we have received. And with New York home to one of the largest concentrations of Haitians in the United States, the paper has a ready audience. Founded in 1999 by Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Garry Pierre-Pierre, the New York-based English-language paper serves and reports on the Haitian diaspora. Born and raised in Queens, Andre has worked up through the newsroom to become publisher and editor-in-chief of The Haitian Times. "The previous week all the news cycle focused on the possibility of Kenyan troops coming into Haiti," she continues, adding that those stories bring an increase in traffic and engagement on social media. "Overall, from the past week we have seen a dip in traffic," Andre says, adding that July and August are often slow months. The conversation among colleagues is easy and friendly as they go over areas of coverage, engagement and experiences. When it is Andre's turn to speak, she focuses on stories, community, numbers, strategies and clicks. With the equipment back online, Andre starts the meeting. First to speak is Cherrell Angervil, the paper's social media engagement director. Arriving in a conference room to meet with her team, Andre is poised for work iPad and electronic pen in hand as she works out a technical issue with a Zoom call. A second-generation Haitian American, Andre is the first female publisher of The Haitian Times: a position that carries a lot of prestige and responsibility. NEW YORK On a hot and humid August day, Vania Andre walks to a shared workspace in Brooklyn for her first meeting of the day. The URL has been copied to your clipboard The code has been copied to your clipboard. "We still need to have information about what's going on at home, and in the communities where we're now creating this second home." "But despite that, our culture and our love for our community is so important," she adds. "We have a huge diaspora because of all the political and social upheaval that had happened over the course of several decades. We have a lot of our community that are going all over the world," Andre tells VOA as she talks about Pierre-Pierre's decision to leave the New York Times and create his own media outlet. Coming from a Haitian family in New York, Andre was already aware of the importance the paper played in the community. Originally a weekly, The Haitian Times has evolved into a multimedia outlet focused on stories in English about events happening in New York, Florida and Haiti in relation to the diaspora. The paper is cemented in the community now. But in its early years it had some pushback. Some questioned why it was published in English and not Creole or French, Haiti's main languages. Andre says that publishing in English helped the paper reach a new generation of Haitians growing up in New York, and people outside the diaspora who also need to know what happens in the community. A ndre started at The Haitian Times in 2014, focusing on its editorial content and the business side of the publication. But she didn't set out to work in journalism. The change came as Andre became "exposed to the full breadth of Haitian culture through work." In doing so, she says, "it just made me fall in love more with my community." The paper's founder, Pierre-Pierre, gave part ownership of the paper to Andre in 2018, and the pair work closely together. After speaking with VOA, Andre joined him and Angervil across the street. Walking to a restaurant for a working lunch, the group discusses updates on new stores and restaurants in Little Haiti. Over lunch, Pierre-Pierre talks of the challenges his team faced as they built the publication. "I remember one former city councilwoman, very nice. She said that Haitians were really, really isolated," Pierre-Pierre told VOA. "We weren't," he said. "We just didn't speak English." As a relatively new community arriving in New York, Haitians tend to keep to themselves, but "our mindset was never to be so insular," he says. Still, more than 20 years on from those early days of the paper's founding, the Haitian diaspora and The Haitian Times have made their voices heard. The community now has four members who hold chair positions at the New York City Council as of January of this year, and the Newkirk Avenue subway station in the heart of the community in 2021 was renamed Little Haiti. A lot of that progress is due in no small part to the paper's coverage, team members say, even if it did take a while for the community to support their approach, which looks at the good and the bad in the community. "A few years ago, we did a series of articles looking at the discretionary spending and the budget [of] various city council members who were either Haitian descent or representing large Haitian communities," says Andre. "And we saw that they were spending their money let's say on arts and culture funding for the Pakistani community." The findings surprised the outlet, Andre says, because with the community's ethnic makeup, they expected more Haitian projects to be funded. "We got a lot of flak for those stories, as you can imagine, a lot of angry phone calls." But the next budget season, Andre says, they saw a change, with elected officials increasing "funding that they were giving to Haitian-based organizations." The lunchtime discussion cuts short as Andre has another call lined up. This time she's speaking with New York's Columbia University, where she is interviewing to apply for the Sulzberger Executive Leadership Program. L eadership program interview over, Andre joins VOA on a walk through Little Haiti, stopping to speak to people and asking if they know of The Haitian Times. One of them, Steven Dorscen, tells VOA he believes the news is very important. "I think the news helps us know everything that's happening in the Haitian community, wherever they are located the community here in Brooklyn as well as in the other states," says Dorscen. Andre says getting out to talk to people in the community is a must. Over the years she has found that interacting with the diaspora not only helps her to know the audience, but also to find out which stories are most important to them, such as migration. With Haiti experiencing serious unrest, gang violence and economic and socio-political instability, large numbers have left for countries including Chile, Mexico and the U.S. According to the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute, "as of mid-February more than 5,000 Haitians arrived in the U.S. through a new humanitarian parole program that allows people in the United States to sponsor arrivals coming by plane." Seeing the influx of new arrivals and a surge in mis- and disinformation spreading fast through the social media groups that diaspora often use to communicate The Haitian Times looked for strategies to ensure access to verified information. One idea: a newsletter to help break down immigration policies. "We really wanted to be able to think of a way that we can consolidate all this information into one place that anyone could pick up, whether they're at the doctor's office or at a community center," Andre says. Jordan's foreign minister offered blistering criticism Saturday of Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip, describing it as "blatant aggression" against Palestinian civilians that threatens to engulf the wider Middle East. Ayman Safadi's harsh assessment alleging Israel was committing "war crimes" by besieging the Gaza Strip and cutting off food, medicine and fuel shipments shows how strained relations have become between Israel and Jordan, which reached a peace deal in 1994. "All of us have to speak loud and clear about the catastrophe that the Israeli war is bringing, not just on Gaza, but on the region in general," Safadi told the International Institute for Strategic Studies' Manama Dialogue summit in Bahrain. "This is not self-defense. This is a blatant aggression, the victims of which are innocent Palestinians," he said. Israel did not immediately respond to Safadi's comments, which included a call for an immediate cease-fire and end to the fighting. However, attending the summit was Brett McGurk, the White House's National Security Council coordinator for the Middle East, who said that "a release of large number of hostages would result in a significant pause in fighting and a massive surge of humanitarian relief." "There's no returning to October 6. That's true for Israel. It's true for Palestinians," McGurk said. "No country can live with the threats of terror like what we saw from Hamas unleashed, on October 7 on their border. And at the same time, Palestinians deserve, need and require safety and self-determination." The war began with Hamas' October 7 attack in southern Israel. Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted some 240 men, women and children, taking them back into the Gaza Strip. Hamas has been designated a terrorist organization by the U.S., U.K, EU and others. Israel responded with a pounding campaign of airstrikes, then a ground offensive that surrounded Gaza City to the Gaza Strip's north. More than 12,300 Palestinians have been killed in the war, two-thirds of them women and minors, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and militants, and Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. The annual Manama Dialogue in Bahrain typically focuses on Gulf Arab nations' fears about Iran in the region. This year, the Israel-Hamas war has taken center stage. Friday night, Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa opened the summit with a call for a swap between Hamas and Israel for the hostages and a halt in the bloodshed. "You want to call it a cease-fire. You want to call it a pause. You can call it whatever you want," the prince said. "The intention is a break so people can take stock. People can bury their dead. People can finally start to grieve. And maybe people can start to ask themselves about the intelligence failure that led to this crisis in the first place." Speaking before the summit Saturday, Jordan's Safadi said the Israeli government now led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the hardest-right coalition ever to govern the country, is apparently aiming to dislodge Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. He said that "will be a direct threat to our national security" in Jordan and Egypt. "They all for years have been saying the only way to move forward is to kick the Palestinians out of their ancestral land and wipe the Palestinians out of the face of the Earth," Safadi said. After the war, Safadi said Arab countries would not "come and clean the mess after Israel." "Let me be very clear. I know speaking on behalf of Jordan but having discussed this issue with many, with almost all our brethren, there'll be no Arab troops going to Gaza. None. We're not going to be seen as the enemy," he said. "How could anybody talk about the future of Gaza when we do not know what kind of Gaza will be left once this aggression ends?" Safadi insisted the only way forward would be a two-state solution for the Israelis and Palestinians, even though the peace process has been moribund for years. McGurk also offered what he described as "five no's" for the war: "No forced displacement, no reoccupation, no reduction in territory, no threats to Israel, no besiegement." Meanwhile, efforts for Israel to reach new diplomatic recognition deals with Arab nations particularly Saudi Arabia appear frozen. "We've been saying that the fallacy of assuming that you can parachute over the Palestinian issue to create regional peace is wrong," he said. "It will only bring disaster. And here we are. Show me who's talking about any regional project at this war, at this point, who's talking about integration? It's all about war." McGurk, however, insisted that the Palestinians had a crucial place in any possible diplomatic deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia. "In this case, what was true before October 7 is even truer now," he said. "That central issue must be addressed. And as Hamas is degraded, we are determined to help address it." Leaders from more than a dozen African countries are heading to Germany for the G20 Compact with Africa conference, which aims to help bolster private investment in the world's poorest, but fast-growing, continent. Underscoring renewed interest in Africa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will be among those attending the summit in Berlin, hosted by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, according to German government officials. Scholz, who has visited Africa several times since taking office in late 2021, will hold bilateral talks with several African countries on Sunday, before hosting a German-African investment summit at Berlin's Marriott Hotel on Monday morning. Europe and the United States are jostling with Russia and China for geopolitical influence, critical minerals and new economic opportunities in the world's second most populous continent. Those include Africa's potential for renewable energy production, in particular green hydrogen, that could help its northern neighbor's transition to a carbon neutral economy. The stability and prosperity of the continent is also seen as key to reducing illegal migration. The Compact with Africa, which was created in 2017 under the German G20 presidency, aims to bring together reform-minded African countries, international organizations and bilateral partners to coordinate development agendas and discuss investment opportunities. The event officially takes place on Monday afternoon in the German chancellery, preceded by a news conference with leaders of the African Union, which in September was made a permanent member of the group of the G20 group of the world's most powerful countries. "We will not make a common declaration, we do not want to force our African partners into a tight corset," a German government official said Friday. "Instead, we want concrete results." German government officials say Africa can play a key role in helping Germany better diversify its supply chains, secure skilled labor, reduce illegal migration and achieve its green transition. African countries have long complained that while Europe talks about investment, China actually provides financing without any moral lecturing. Still, Chinese lending in Africa is in decline, while European interest is rising as it seeks to diversify supply chains. German trade with Africa was 60 billion euros ($65.4 billion) last year, which is a fraction of its trade with Asia but up 21.7% on 2021. Nearly two thirds of German companies want to expand their business in Africa, according to a study by KPMG and the German-African Business Association. The member countries of the G20 Compact are Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia. By Nidal al-Mughrabi and James Mackenzie GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Hamas gunmen battled Israeli forces trying to push into Gaza's largest refugee camp on Sunday, but despite the fighting U.S. and Israeli officials said a deal to free some of the hostages held in the besieged enclave was edging closer. About 240 hostages were taken during Hamas's deadly cross-border rampage into Israel on Oct. 7, which prompted Israel to invade the tiny Palestinian territory to wipe out the Islamist group. Israeli tanks and troops stormed into Gaza late last month and have since wrested control of large areas of the north and northwest and east around Gaza City, the Israeli military says. But Hamas and local witnesses say militants are waging guerrilla-style war in pockets of the densely urbanised north, including parts of Gaza City and the sprawling Jabalia and Beach refugee camps. Even as fighting raged on the ground, Israel's ambassador to the United States, Michael Herzog, said in an interview on ABC's "This Week" that Israel was hopeful a significant number of hostages could be released by Hamas "in coming days." Reuters reported on Nov. 15 that Qatari mediators had been seeking a deal between Israel and Hamas to exchange 50 hostages in return for a three-day ceasefire that would help boost emergency aid shipments to Gaza civilians, citing an official briefed on the talks. At the time, the official said general outlines had been agreed but Israel was still negotiating details. U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters on Sunday he was not in a position to say when the hostages might be out. "I want to make sure they're out and then I'll tell you," he said upon arrival at a pre-Thanksgiving holiday event in Virginia with U.S. military personnel. On Sunday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told a press conference in Doha that the main obstacles to a deal were now "very minor," with mainly "practical and logistical" issues remaining. A White House official also said the "very complicated, very sensitive" negotiations were making progress. DEATH TOLL 'STAGGERING AND UNACCEPTABLE' The talks coincided with Israel preparing to expand its offensive against Hamas to Gaza's southern half, signalled by increasing air strikes on targets Israel sees as lairs of armed militants. However, Israel's main ally the United States cautioned it on Sunday not to embark on combat operations in the south until military planners have taken into account the safety of Palestinian civilians. Gaza's traumatized population has been on the move since the start of the war, sheltering in hospitals or trudging from the north to the south and, in some cases, back again, in desperate efforts to stay out of the line of fire. Gaza's Hamas-run government said at least 13,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombardments since then, including at least 5,500 children. The civilian death toll in Gaza was "staggering and unacceptable," U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said, appealing again on Sunday for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. Witnesses reported heavy fighting overnight between Hamas gunmen and Israeli forces trying to advance into Jabalia, a camp with nearly 100,000 people. Repeated Israeli bombardment of Jabalia, which grew out of a camp for Palestinian refugees from the 1948 Israeli-Arab war, has killed scores of civilians, Palestinian medics say. Israel says the strikes have killed many militants dug into the area. Via social media in Arabic, Israel's military on Sunday urged residents of several Jabalia neighbourhoods to evacuate south "to preserve your safety" and to that end said it would pause military action from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. After the "pause" expired, 11 Palestinians in Jabalia were killed by an Israeli air strike on a house, the enclave's health ministry said. Palestinians say Israel's repeated bombardment of southern Gaza renders Israeli promises of safety absurd. Around 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed in Hamas's shock Oct. 7 assault, according to Israeli tallies, the deadliest day in the country's 75-year history. A total of 64 Israeli soldiers have died in the conflict, according to the latest army count. 'DEATH ZONE' AT GAZA'S BIGGEST HOSPITAL The Israeli army says Hamas uses residential and other civilian buildings as cover for command centers, weapons caches, rocket launchpads and a vast underground tunnel network. The Islamist movement denies using human shields to wage war. A team led by the World Health Organization that visited Al Shifa, Gaza's biggest hospital, on Saturday described it as a "death zone", days after advancing Israeli forces seized the premises to root out an alleged underground Hamas command centre. The WHO team reported signs of gunfire and shelling and a mass grave at Al Shifa's entrance, and said it was making plans for the immediate evacuation of 291 remaining patients, including the war-wounded, and 25 staff. Israeli military issued a statement on Sunday in response saying it was conducting "a precise operation to uncover terror infrastructure" at the hospital. On Sunday, 31 premature babies were evacuated from Al Shifa in a joint operation by the United Nations and Palestinian Red Crescent to be taken over the Rafah border crossing for hospitalisation in Egypt, Gaza's health ministry said. Eight premature babies previously died at Al Shifa for lack of electricity and medication crucial to care, it said. Hundreds of other patients, staff and displaced people who were sheltering in Al Shifa left on Saturday, with Palestinian health officials saying they were ejected inhumanely by Israeli troops and the military saying the departures were voluntary. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said 48 journalists and media workers have been confirmed killed in the region since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, including the head of a prominent media institution in Gaza and two other journalists. (Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, James Mackenzie, Henriette Chacar and Reuters bureaux; writing by Kim Coghill, Mark Heinrich, Alex Richardson and Patricia Zengerle; editing by William Mallard, Hugh Lawson, Andrew Heavens and Diane Craft) A German lawmaker who serves as the political sponsor of Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi has welcomed the release on bail of the dissident artist but warned he is still at risk as all charges against him are still pending. "While it is certainly a positive development that Toomaj is no longer in prison, it is essential for me to caution against excessive jubilation because the actions of the Iranian regime are unpredictable, lawmaker Ye-One Rhie told VOA. They might detain him again next week, or they may never arrest him again. It is imperative for everyone to temper their joy and to remain mindful of Toomaj and other prisoners." An outspoken rapper, Toomaj Salehi was jailed in connection with anti-government protests that erupted in 2022. He had been sentenced to six years in prison on charges of corruption on earth. His lawyer told Irans reformist newspaper Shargh that upon appeal, the Supreme Court found flaws in the initial sentence and ordered him to be freed on bail. Like thousands of other mostly young Iranians, Salehi embraced a widespread anti-government protest movement that began last September following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of Irans morality police. She was arrested allegedly for violating Iran's strict Islamic dress code. In the days before Salehis arrest in October 2022, he posted videos of himself on Instagram participating in peaceful street demonstrations and urging others to do the same. Ye-One Rhie underscored her unwavering support for Toomaj. "Consider the challenges this man has faced during this time, particularly in the past year. I hold the utmost respect for him, she said. I will stand by him in every possible way, maintaining this support until the end, and I am aware that numerous others will persist in providing their support as well." Some information for this report came from Agence France-Presse. The families of Israeli hostages and thousands of their supporters arrived in Jerusalem Saturday at the end of a five-day march to confront the government over the plight of those taken captive by Hamas in Gaza. An estimated 20,000 marchers, including well-wishers who joined the procession along the main Tel Aviv-Jerusalem highway, want to pressure the government "to do everything they can to bring the hostages back," said Noam Alon, 25, clutching a photograph of his abducted girlfriend, Inbar. "We are expecting them to meet with us, we are expecting them to tell us how they are going to do it," he said. "We cannot wait any longer, so we are demand(ing) them to do that now, to pay any price to bring the hostages back." 'Time is running out' Around 240 people from babies to grandparents and including foreign nationals are believed to be in the Gaza Strip after being taken hostage by the Islamist group during an October 7 raid on southern Israeli villages and army bases in which 1,200 people were killed. Many relatives and friends of the missing fear they will come to harm in Israeli attacks on Gaza designed to destroy Hamas. The government says the offensive improves the chances of recovering hostages, perhaps via a mediated prisoner exchange. "I feel that people think that there is time, but for babies and for elderly people with difficult complex needs, there's no time, time is running out rapidly," said London-based artist Sharone Lifschitz, whose 83-year-old father was abducted. Some angry at government leaders Many Israelis blame their government for being blindsided by the Hamas assault. Among those who marched to Jerusalem was centrist opposition leader Yair Lapid, who has been mostly supportive of the war but has demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Miki Zohar, a member of Netanyahu's cabinet and party, was heckled Friday when he visited the marchers at a rest stop. Hamas, which in the early days of the war threatened to execute hostages in retaliation for Israeli airstrikes, has since said some of the hostages have been killed in attacks on Gaza. That has stoked the anxiety of campaigners and relatives calling on the Israeli government to speed up any prisoner swap, and frustration with Netanyahu's insistence that discretion is required around the Qatari- and Egyptian-mediated negotiations. "It's impossible that there are 240 kidnapped people and the government our government isn't talking to (the relatives), isn't telling them what's going on, what's on the table, what's on offer, what are the reasons for and against. Nothing," said campaigner Stevie Kerem. Despite the exhaustion and frustration on display, one marcher allowed herself a note of optimism. "I'm happy with the fact that we have the whole of Israel around us," said Meirav Leshem-Gonen, whose daughter Romi, 23, is among the hostages. "This is what will count in the end." As the war in Gaza continues to hold public attention, Iran is gearing up for parliamentary elections next year where many conservatives are determined to tighten their grip on power. The Islamic republic has since August opened registration for candidacy in the upcoming parliamentary elections slated for March 1, 2024. Last week, officials announced that out of the 24,982 applicants, around 28% have been disqualified in an initial screening phase. The decision can be appealed and a final list of candidates competing for the 290-seat parliament will be announced one month ahead of the March vote. With the preparations under way, many in Iran are preoccupied with mounting economic difficulties and the aftershocks of last year's mass protests triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini. Political scientist Ahmad Zeidabadi says he expects voters to refrain from taking to the polls "if the system cannot offer them reasons for hope and change." Another growing concern among Iranians is the potential impact of the war in the Gaza Strip, which broke out on Oct. 7 between Palestinian Hamas militants and Israel. Zeidabadi says the repercussions of the Gaza conflict could also impact the election results especially if Hamas, which Iran supports, was defeated. It "would weaken the position of the government's supporters," he said. 'Fervent' elections Next year's elections will be the first since nationwide protests rocked Iran following Amini's death in September 2022. Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, died in police custody following her arrest over an alleged breach of the Islamic republic's strict dress code for women. Iran's current parliament, which was formed in 2020, has been dominated by conservatives after many reformists and moderates were disqualified. The country at the time saw a voter turnout of 42.57% -- the lowest since the 1979 Islamic revolution. On Thursday, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called for "fervent" elections. Ultra-conservative President Ebrahim Raisi, who took office in August 2021, said his government has "no candidate" in the upcoming legislative elections. "We are only looking to create the ground for wider and higher participation of all people and groups in the elections," he said. Supporters of reformist candidates fear another 2020 scenario after multiple candidates were disqualified in the initial screening. Reformist daily Ham Mihan said last month that there was a common view that "even if the known and famous reformists register as candidates, it is unlikely that they will be approved." Many have accordingly opted against competing, including Ali Larijani, former parliament speaker who ran against Raisi during the 2021 presidential elections. In May, Larijani accused some of leading a campaign to "purify" the political atmosphere by eliminating any adversaries. The disqualified candidates include the reformist incumbent MP Massoud Pezeshkian, known for his criticism of the government, who described his disqualification as "ridiculous." Divisions On Tuesday, Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi dismissed what he called the "immoral" criticism, saying the government was "absolutely not involved" in candidates disqualification. Discussions within Iran's current parliament showed deepening "divisions among conservatives" despite the absence of an influential moderate camp, according to Zeidabadi. Among the most heated debates in recent months was over a bill toughening sanctions on women who fail to adhere to Iran's strict Islamic dress code. Parliament approved the bill in September, but it has yet to be ratified by the Guardian Council. Besides the parliamentary elections, Iranians will also have to choose members of the Assembly of Experts on March 1. The body, which holds the only authority to appoint or dismiss the Supreme Leader, comprises 88 members and holds elections every eight years. More than 300 candidates have registered to compete for seats. Raisi, who is the assembly's deputy chairman, is seeking to renew his membership of the body. Moderate former president Hassan Rouhani, who is also an assembly member, also announced running, saying he would be "engaged on a difficult and steep path." Thousands of Iranians took part in state-sponsored marches Saturday to protest the deaths of children and other civilians in the Gaza war, and a top military commander said Israel was going toward its doom in a war of attrition. "Palestine stands on the path of a war of attrition... Israel will face a definitive defeat and end up in the dustbin of history," Revolutionary Guards Commander Hossein Salami said at a rally in the capital Tehran, which was aired live on state TV. "The battle is not over, the Islamic world will do whatever it has to do. There are still great (unused) capacities left," Salami said, without referring to any possible moves by Iran to join the conflict. State television showed some protesters carrying bundled white shrouds symbolizing the children killed in Gaza, during the nationwide marches, held ahead of World Children's Day on Monday. Tensions in the region have flared since a deadly attack by Iran-backed Hamas militants who burst through the border from Gaza into Israel on October 7, killing some 1,200 people and taking around 240 hostages, including children, according to Israeli tallies. Gaza health authorities raised their death toll Friday to more than 12,000, including 5,000 children, after Israeli attacks there. The United Nations deems those figures credible, though they are now updated infrequently due to the difficulty of collecting information. Iran's Foreign Ministry called Saturday on the international community to help stop the "killing machine and organized terrorism of the Zionist regime against the Palestinian people and hold Zionist criminals accountable to justice and international law." Iraq's Kataeb Hezbollah (KH) militia, a powerful armed faction with close ties to Iran, brushed off U.S. sanctions on the group over attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria and said Saturday such strikes aimed to drain the enemy." The U.S. issued sanctions Friday against several KH members and against another Iran-backed Shiite militia and its secretary-general, accusing them of being involved in attacks against the United States and its partners in Iraq and Syria. The United States has blamed Iran and militia groups it supports for the more than 60 attacks since mid-October as regional tensions soar over the Israel-Hamas war, which began on October 7. At least 59 U.S. military personnel have been wounded in the attacks, though all have returned to duty so far. A statement on Telegram by Abu Ali Al-Askari, a security official in the group, on Saturday dismissed the sanctions as "ridiculous," and said the measures would not affect the group's operations. "Well-studied strikes by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq against enemies, causing losses in their ranks and destroying vehicles or confusing or distracting them, is going according to a strategy to drain the enemy," the statement said. Among those linked to Kataeb Hezbollah targeted Friday are a member of the group's lead decision-making body, its foreign affairs chief, and a military commander the Treasury said has worked with Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to train fighters. The U.S. State Department also designated militia group Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada and its secretary general, Abu Ala al-Walai, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists. In a statement posted on Telegram late Friday, Walai described the sanctions as "a medal of honor." The sanctions freeze any U.S. assets of those targeted and generally bar Americans from dealing with them. Those who engage in certain transactions with them also risk being hit with sanctions. The United States has 900 troops in Syria, and 2,500 more in neighboring Iraq, on a mission it says aims to advise and assist local forces trying to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State, which in 2014 seized large swaths of both countries but was later defeated. Militia groups in Iraq have linked the recent attacks on U.S. bases to Washington's support for Israel in its war on Gaza and say the U.S. should cease backing Israel's assault if it wants the attacks to stop. LATEST DEVELOPMENTS 48 journalists have been killed in Gaza since October 7, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists. Israel published video of what it described as a tunnel dug by Palestinian militants under Shifa hospital. Hamas denied the claim. 31 babies have been evacuated from Shifa Hospital and will be taken to Egypt for care. The Israeli army said five more soldiers had been killed in fighting in the Gaza Strip, raising the number of troop deaths there to 64 since the war began. Israel published video Sunday of what it described as a tunnel dug by Palestinian militants under the Gaza Strip's Shifa Hospital, a focus of its search-and-destroy missions against Hamas militants. While acknowledging that it has a network of hundreds of kilometers of secret tunnels, bunkers and access shafts throughout the Palestinian enclave, Hamas has denied that these are in civilian infrastructure like hospitals. In Sundays update on operations at Shifa, the Israeli military said its engineers uncovered a tunnel 10 meters deep and running 55 meters to a blast-proof door. "This type of door is used by the Hamas terrorist organization to block Israeli forces from entering the command centers and the underground assets belonging to Hamas," said a military statement accompanied by video showing a narrow passage with arched concrete roofing, ending at a gray door. Also Sunday, at least 31 very sick, premature babies had been evacuated from Shifa Hospital and will be transported to a hospital in Egypt, the World Health Organization said. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said, so far, 48 journalists and media workers are confirmed killed in the region since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent Israeli offensive began. Watch related video by Arash Arabasadi: The CPJ, whose list covers journalists killed on both sides, said its list of those killed comprised 43 Palestinians, four Israelis and one Lebanese. "Journalists across the region are making great sacrifices to cover this heart-breaking conflict. Those in Gaza, in particular, have paid, and continue to pay, an unprecedented toll and face exponential threats," Sherif Mansour, CPJ's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, said in an email to Reuters. In the West Bank, two Palestinians were killed overnight during Israeli raids on the occupied territory. While the Israeli army said Sunday five more soldiers had been killed in fighting in the Gaza Strip, raising the number of troop deaths there to 64 since the war began. All five died in northern Gaza, where its forces are engaged in a ground operation against Hamas militants, the military said. The Middle East has been a tinderbox since Iranian-backed Hamas launched a terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, killing at least 1,200 people while taking about 240 people hostage, Israel said. Israel's retaliatory strikes and ground offensive have killed more than 12,000 Palestinians, about 5,000 of them children, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. On the diplomatic front, Michael Herzog, the Israeli ambassador to the U.S., told ABCs This Week show that Israel is hopeful we can get a significant number of hostages [held by Hamas] freed in the next few days, with an accompanying short pause in the fighting, possibly lasting five days. U.S. news reports say about 50 hostages, particularly women and children, of the estimated 240 held by Hamas could be returned to Israel, but it is unclear whether and how many Palestinian prisoners held by Israel might be released. Herzog refused to call any cessation in fighting a cease-fire, signaling that Israel plans to resume its attack on Hamas targets after the pause ends. White House deputy national security adviser Jon Finer told CNNs State of the Union show that the U.S. believes it is closer than we have been perhaps at any point since these negotiations [over the hostage release] began weeks ago. He said, There are areas of difference and disagreement that have been narrowed, if not closed out entirely, while adding that no deal has been reached. One of the challenges associated with this is were not on the ground in Gaza, the United States, Finer said. We are not in direct contact with Hamas. We do that only through intermediaries. And so, we dont have perfect fidelity about exact numbers of hostages, including numbers who are still alive. Dozens of displaced Palestinian civilians were killed or wounded Saturday in Israeli airstrikes, including one on a school in the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees reported. "The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help," wounded survivor Ahmed Radwan told The Associated Press by phone of Israels attack on the camps Fakhoura school. Photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. In a statement Sunday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, I am deeply shocked that two UNRWA schools were struck in less than 24 hours in Gaza. This war is having a staggering and unacceptable number of civilian casualties, including women and children, every day. This must stop. I reiterate my call for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire. The Israeli military said that its troops were active in the Jabaliya area "with the aim of hitting terrorists" while trying to minimize civilian harm. Some information for this article came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. All About America explores American culture, politics, trends, history, ideals and places of interest. Every year, on the fourth Thursday in November, Americans celebrate Thanksgiving. It's a commemoration of the 1621 harvest feast when the colonists, who came from England, shared a friendly meal with the land's Indigenous people. In Plymouth, Massachusetts, site of the first Thanksgiving, historians and others try to separate fact from fiction surrounding the legend that grew out of that initial celebratory feast that took place more than 400 years ago. "The problem with it is that there are so many stereotypes and so much misinformation that's bundled into that story," says Paula Peters, a citizen of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe whose ancestors are believed to have been at the first Thanksgiving. "It's a story that really marginalizes the Wampanoag history." The pilgrims arrived on the Mayflower in 1620. By their second winter, they were struggling, until the Indigenous people taught them how to plant crops and live off the land. "When we think about the pilgrims coming over, we forget about the aspect of the Wampanoag people helping them survive that winter, or even navigate this land, or navigate the waters, which is very important," says Wampanoag Tribe member Malissa Costa, who oversees the Native American-themed exhibit at the Plimoth Patuxet Museums. The living history museum, located a few kilometers from the site of the first Thanksgiving, also features a 17th-century English village. Actors dress up as pilgrims to depict the colonists' way of life, while Thanksgiving traditions are recreated for visitors. "What the pilgrims are celebrating is literally that they are going to have food. They are not going to starve in the coming year," says Malka Benjamin, director for colonial interpretation and training at the Plimoth Patuxet Museums. "And so, guests are going to be able to help with cooking preparations for the celebration. They might get pulled into a game, a sport ... there's going to be musket firing demonstrations." It was the sounds of guns going off that prompted Native Americans to investigate, which is how her Wampanoag ancestors came to be at the first Thanksgiving, according to Peters. "At some point, they decided, 'Oh, this isn't a threat. They're just celebrating their harvest.' And guess what? We're all here now, so, we're all going to eat," says Peters, who used to work at the Plimouth Patuxet Museums. That part of the story is disputed by Peters' former colleague, Richard Pickering, chief historian at the living history museum, who says that theory was discussed, but then discarded, by the museum. The conflicting viewpoints underscore the reality that no one really knows exactly what happened at the first Thanksgiving. There are almost no firsthand accounts of the event, but there are references to a "special celebration" of the successful harvest, which included Wampanoag leader Massasoit and about 90 of his people, which included women, according to Pickering. "For three days, we entertained and feasted," pilgrim Edward Winslow wrote in a letter to a friend in 1621. Winslow attended the harvest celebration. "Ultimately, what happens in Plymouth in the fall of 1621 is the highest level of diplomacy," says Pickering, adding that the shared meal was a product of the alliance between the newcomers and the Native people. "It is their willingness to show them their ways that saves the English that second year. So, we should not be projecting any kind of distrust, animus, on that event. But we should recognize that their children and their grandchildren could not sustain it," he said. About 90% of the Native population was eventually wiped out by diseases that came with the Europeans. And the respect the pilgrims initially showed the Native people eventually gave way to disdain and dehumanization. "As the English population grows from those 52 English men, women and children that survived the first winter to the 25,000 or more that are here 20 years later, Native people are seen as being in the way of the commodities that the English want," Pickering says. "They want their land. They want them off that land. And so, you see a changing attitude from one of admiration to one of stereotyping and derision. And it's that kind of thought that enables them to want to push them off the land with no sense of guilt." The pilgrims originally came to America in search of religious freedom but apparently not for all, says Peters. "They sacrificed so much for religious freedom, but they didn't offer that same grace to the Indigenous people who lived here to begin with," she says. Harvest meal Today, Americans often eat traditional Thanksgiving foods that include turkey, stuffing, sweet and mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. As to what was at the original three-day feast, the museum has a display of the foods that were probably eaten at the 1621 meal. "You have roast turkey, roast goose, and you'll see all of the classic corn, beans and squash. There's maize, beans and squash," says Pickering, pointing out the foods in a display case. "And also, the standing dish of New England, stewed pumpkin, mussels, to represent all the shellfish that was eaten." It's believed the Wampanoag brought deer they'd hunted. "And there probably would be some cranberries, because that was the fruit of the season," Peters says. Into the future The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe has begun initial proceedings to establish their own living history museum. The town of Mashpee, located about 43 kilometers from Plymouth, is negotiating the potential transfer of three parcels of land to the tribe for a traditional Wampanoag village and living history museum. Costa, who oversees the similar effort at the Plimoth Patuxet Museums, is keen for visitors to know that Native Americans shouldn't be relegated to the past. "The main thing I want them to learn is that Wampanoag people are still here," Costa says. "I want them to think of Wampanoag people as not just in the past or even Indigenous people as in the past but as in the present still making their way, still teaching the public." Dozens of migrants stood behind barriers Saturday at two crossings on Finland's border with Russia, the Finnish Border Guard said, after Helsinki erected barricades to halt a flow of asylum-seekers it says was instigated by Moscow. The Finnish government has accused Russia of funneling migrants to the crossings in retaliation for its decision to increase defense cooperation with the United States, an assertion dismissed by the Kremlin. The Finnish Border Guard erected barriers from midnight Friday at the Vaalimaa, Nuijamaa, Imatra and Niirala border posts in southeast Finland, which account for most of the traffic between the two countries. Despite the closure, dozens of migrants arrived Saturday afternoon at the Nuijamaa and Vaalimaa crossings and lit a campfire in sub-zero temperatures behind razor-wire barriers mounted by border guards, Finnish Border Guard told reporters. In Nuijamaa, two people managed to breach the barriers and enter Finland, it added. "We are currently improving the barriers so that something similar will no longer be possible," Colonel Mika Rytkonen said, according to Finland's public broadcaster YLE. Finland shares a 1,340-km (830-mile) border with Russia that also serves as the EU's external border. Some 300 asylum-seekers, mostly from Iraq, Yemen, Somalia and Syria, have arrived in Finland this week, according to the Border Guard. Four regular border crossings remain open for the time being, but asylum can now only be sought at two of those, in Salla and Vartius, farther north, the Border Guard said. On Saturday, 67 people arrived to seek asylum at the Vartius post, the local border guard unit said on X, formerly known as Twitter. A group of migrants arrived half an hour past the station's closing time, local media reported. "In this situation we had to let these people into Finland because Russia would not take them back," head of the Vartius station, Captain Jouko Kinnunen, told Finnish channel MTV. The Kremlin said Friday that Finland was making a "big mistake" by closing border crossings and that Helsinki's move was destroying bilateral relations. In 2021, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia accused Moscow's close ally Belarus of artificially creating a migrant crisis on their borders by flying in people from the Middle East and Africa and attempting to push them across the frontier an accusation Belarus repeatedly denied. European Union border agency Frontex told Reuters Friday it would send officers to Finland to help safeguard the frontier. Finance Minister Riikka Purra of the anti-immigration Finns Party said Thursday that Finland was ready to close all crossing points on the Russian border if necessary. Finland's ombudsman for nondiscrimination this week said Helsinki still had a duty under international treaties and EU law to allow asylum-seekers to seek protection. Finland blocks border crossings to stop migrants it says were sent by Russia. Finland says Russia leads asylum-seekers to its border. Three boats filled with more than 500 Rohingya refugees landed in Indonesia's westernmost province on Sunday, a U.N. agency said, in one of the biggest arrivals since Myanmar launched a military crackdown on the minority group in 2017. The mostly Muslim Rohingya are heavily persecuted in Myanmar, and thousands risk their lives each year on long and expensive sea journeys, often in flimsy boats, to try to reach Malaysia or Indonesia. United Nations refugee agency protection associate Faisal Rahman told AFP one boat had arrived in Aceh province's Bireuen district with 256 people aboard, while at least 241 others arrived in Aceh's Pidie region and a smaller boat carrying 36 arrived in East Aceh. "They were found in several spots," Rahman said Sunday. Of the 256 aboard the Bireuen boat, 110 were women and 60 were children, he said. It was the same boat that locals had pushed back out to sea on Thursday, leaving it stranded off the coast for several days, according to Rahman. "It's confirmed... because many people were identified by security officials during the landing," he said. The latest arrivals mean more than 800 refugees have landed in Aceh province this week alone, after 196 arrived on Tuesday and 147 on Wednesday, according to local officials. An AFP journalist saw the Rohingya boat docked on the beach in Bireuen after the refugees had disembarked. The refugees were being held at a temporary shelter while awaiting a decision from authorities on their fate, and were mostly in good health. Bireuen regional secretary Ibrahim Ahmad told reporters Sunday the refugees' cases would be handled by other institutions, without elaborating. In Pidie, Marfian, a spokesperson for the local fishing community who like many Indonesians goes by one name, confirmed to AFP that a boat of nearly 250 refugees landed overnight. One of them, 20-year-old Aziz Ullah, said he was living in a camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh before the group started their journey 16 days ago. "The (reason) behind our journey was that... the Myanmar government committed violence (against us) again and again," he told AFP. "I just want a peaceful life, anywhere. If I will get a peaceful life here, I will stay here." 'Very distressing' But Hasan Basri, another leader of the fishing community in Pidie, told reporters they would reject Rohingya people, claiming refugees had committed crimes in the area in the past. Those who arrived in the Pidie region landed at around 3:00 am local time (2000 GMT Saturday) and walked into the nearest village of Kulee from the coast without the knowledge of locals, said Basri. "They already arrived and it is our obligation as humans to give them food and drinks," he said. "Our reason to reject them is because the attitude and character of the refugees are not in line with the Aceh people. Their conduct is very distressing, this is what we really don't like." During this week's arrivals, some Rohingya aboard one vessel made a desperate dash for shore after residents refused to let them land. They collapsed to the sand and begged for their exhausted fellow passengers to be allowed to disembark. Chris Lewa, director of Rohingya rights organization the Arakan Project, said it was the "beginning of the sailing season" for boats from Bangladesh across to Indonesia, which is often used as a transit point to Malaysia where many Rohingya refugees settle. A 2020 investigation by AFP revealed a multimillion-dollar, constantly evolving people-smuggling operation stretching from a massive refugee camp in Bangladesh to Indonesia and Malaysia, in which members of the stateless Rohingya community play a key role in trafficking their own people. More than 2,000 Rohingya are believed to have attempted the risky journey to other Southeast Asian countries in 2022, according to UNHCR. Nearly 200 Rohingya died or went missing last year while attempting hazardous sea crossings, the agency has estimated. Oregon's first-in-the-nation law that decriminalized the possession of small amounts of heroin, cocaine and other illicit drugs in favor of an emphasis on addiction treatment is facing strong headwinds in the progressive state after an explosion of public drug use fueled by the proliferation of fentanyl and a surge in deaths from opioids, including those of children. "The inability for people to live their day-to-day life without encountering open-air drug use is so pressing on urban folks' minds," said John Horvick, vice president of polling firm DHM Research. "That has very much changed people's perspective about what they think Measure 110 is." When the law was approved by 58% of Oregon voters three years ago, supporters championed Measure 110 as a revolutionary approach that would transform addiction by minimizing penalties for drug use and investing instead in recovery. But even top Democratic lawmakers who backed the law, which will likely dominate the upcoming legislative session, say they're now open to revisiting it after the biggest increase in synthetic opioid deaths among states that have reported their numbers. The cycle of addiction and homelessness spurred by fentanyl is most visible in Portland, where it's not unusual to see people using it in broad daylight on busy city streets. "Everything's on the table," said Democratic state Sen. Kate Lieber, co-chair of a new joint legislative committee created to tackle addiction. "We have got to do something to make sure that we have safer streets and that we're saving lives." Measure 110 directed the state's cannabis tax revenue toward drug addiction treatment services while decriminalizing the possession of so-called "personal use" amounts of illicit drugs. Possession of under a gram of heroin, for example, is only subject to a ticket and a maximum fine of $100. Those caught with small amounts of drugs can have the citation dismissed by calling a 24-hour hotline to complete an addiction screening within 45 days, but those who don't do a screening are not penalized for failing to pay the fine. In the first year after the law took effect in February 2021, only 1% of people who received citations for possession sought help via the hotline, state auditors found. Critics of the law say this doesn't create an incentive to seek treatment. Republican lawmakers have urged Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek to call a special session to address the issue before the Legislature reconvenes in February. They have proposed harsher sanctions for possession and other drug-related offenses, such as mandatory treatment and easing restrictions on placing people under the influence on holds in facilities such as hospitals if they pose a danger to themselves or others. "Treatment should be a requirement, not a suggestion," a group of Republican state representatives said in a letter to Kotek. Law enforcement officials who have testified before the new legislative committee on addiction have proposed reestablishing drug possession as a class A misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to a year in jail or a $6,250 fine. "We don't believe a return to incarceration is the answer, but restoring a (class A) misdemeanor for possession with diversion opportunities is critically important," Jason Edmiston, chief of police in the small, rural city of Hermiston in northeast Oregon, told the committee. However, data shows decades of criminalizing possession hasn't deterred people from using drugs. In 2022, nearly 25 million Americans, roughly 8% of the population, reported using illicit drugs other than marijuana in the previous year, according to the annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Some lawmakers have suggested focusing on criminalizing public drug use rather than possession. Alex Kreit, assistant professor of law at Northern Kentucky University and director of its Center on Addiction Law and Policy, said such an approach could help curb visible drug use on city streets but wouldn't address what's largely seen as the root cause: homelessness. "There are states that don't have decriminalization that have these same difficult problems with public health and public order and just quality-of-life issues related to large-scale homeless populations in downtown areas," he said, mentioning California as an example. Backers of Oregon's approach say decriminalization isn't necessarily to blame, as many other states with stricter drug laws have also reported increases in fentanyl deaths. But estimates from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show, among the states reporting data, Oregon had the highest increase in synthetic opioid overdose fatalities when comparing 2019 and the 12-month period ending June 30, a 13-fold surge from 84 deaths to more than 1,100. Among the next highest was neighboring Washington state, which saw its estimated synthetic opioid overdose deaths increase seven-fold when comparing those same time periods, CDC data shows. Nationally, overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids such as fentanyl roughly doubled over that time span. Roughly two-thirds of all deadly overdoses in the U.S. in the 12 months ending June 30 involved synthetic opioids, federal data shows. Supporters of Oregon's law say it was confronted by a perfect storm of broader forces, including the COVID-19 pandemic, a mental health workforce shortage and the fentanyl crisis, which didn't reach fever pitch until after the law took effect in early 2021. A group of Oregon lawmakers recently traveled to Portugal, which decriminalized the personal possession of drugs in 2001, to learn more about its policy. State Rep. Lily Morgan, the only Republican legislator on the trip, said Portugal's approach was interesting but couldn't necessarily be applied to Oregon. "The biggest glaring difference is they're still not dealing with fentanyl and meth," she said, noting the country also has universal health care. Despite public perception, the law has made some progress by directing $265 million dollars of cannabis tax revenue toward standing up the state's new addiction treatment infrastructure. The law also created what are known as Behavioral Health Resource Networks in every county, which provide care regardless of the ability to pay. The networks have ensured about 7,000 people entered treatment from January to March of this year, doubling from nearly 3,500 people from July through September 2022, state data shows. The law's funding also has been key for providers of mental health and addiction services because it has "created a sustainable, predictable funding home for services that never had that before," said Heather Jefferis, executive director of Oregon Council for Behavioral Health, which represents such providers. Horvick, the pollster, said public support for expanding treatment remains high despite pushback against the law. "It would be a mistake to overturn 110 right now because I think that would make us go backwards," Lieber, the Democratic state senator, said. "Just repealing it will not solve our problem. Even if we didn't have 110, we would still be having significant issues." By Jasper Ward and David Morgan (Reuters) -Republican Donald Trump won the endorsement of Texas Governor Greg Abbott at an event near the U.S.-Mexico border on Sunday, a location meant to highlight the former U.S. president's plans to crack down on immigration if he wins the 2024 election. Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic President Joe Biden next year, traveled to Edinburg, Texas, with Abbott to visit Texas National Guard soldiers, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and other service members stationed there. Abbott said Biden's border policies pose a danger to communities across the United States. He credited Trump with cutting border crossings to the lowest point in decades during his presidency. "I'm here to tell you that there is no way, no way that America can continue under the leadership of Joe Biden as our president. We need a president who's going to secure the border," Abbott said. Trump said he was honored by Abbott's endorsement. "This meant a lot to me," Trump said. "You're not going to have to worry about the border anymore, governor ... you're not going to have to worry about the border in Texas or Arizona or anywhere else." Since Biden took office in 2021, U.S. border agents have made more than 5 million arrests of migrants making irregular crossings - not through a controlled border station - over the U.S.-Mexico border. Migrants have arrived from around the world; large numbers have fled economic and political turmoil in Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. Trump has pledged to crack down on illegal immigration and restrict legal immigration if elected next year. His plan includes a promise to restore his 2019 "remain in Mexico" program, which forced non-Mexican asylum-seekers hoping to enter the United States at the Mexican border to wait in Mexico for the resolution of their cases. The program was terminated by Biden, who defeated Trump in 2020, pledging more humane and orderly immigration policies. But he has struggled with record levels of migrants caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. Abbott has emerged as a leading Republican figure on border issues by mounting his own Operation Lone Star border security initiative, a controversial plan to stop migration that has put his state at odds with the Biden administration. (Reporting by David Morgan and Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Scott Malone, Bill Berkrot and Chris Reese) Indigenous rangers in northern Australia have started managing herds of feral animals from space. In the largest project of its kind in Australia, the so-called Space Cows project involves tagging and then tracking a thousand wild cattle and buffalo via satellite. Water buffalo were imported into Australias Northern Territory in the 19th century as working animals and meat for remote settlements. When those communities were abandoned, the animals were released into the wild. Their numbers have grown, and feral buffaloes can cause huge environmental damage. In wetlands, they move along pathways called swim channels, which have caused salt water to flow into freshwater plains. This has led to the degradation and loss of large areas of paperbark forest and natural waterholes, as well as spreading weeds. Under the so-called Space Cows program, feral cattle and buffaloes are being rounded up, often by helicopter, tied to trees, and fitted with solar-powered tags that can be tracked by satellite. Scientists say the real-time data will be critical to controlling and predicting the movement of the feral herds, which are notorious for trashing the landscape. Most feral buffalo are found on Aboriginal land, and researchers are working closely with Indigenous rangers. They carry out sporadic buffalo culls, and there are hopes that First Nations communities can benefit economically from well-managed feral herds. The technology will allow Indigenous rangers to predict where cattle and buffalo are going and cull them or fence off important cultural or environmental sites. The data will help rangers stop the animals trampling sacred ceremonial areas and destroying culturally significant waterways. Scientists say the satellite information will allow them to predict when herds might head to certain waterways in warm weather allowing rangers to intervene. In recent years, thousands of wild buffalo have been exported from Australia to Southeast Asia. Andrew Hoskins is a biologist at the CSIRO, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Australias national science agency. He told the Australian Broadcasting Corps AM Program this is the first time feral animals have been monitored from space. This really, you know, large scale tracking project, (is) probably the largest from a wildlife or a buffalo tracking perspective that has ever been done. The novel part, I suppose, is then that links through to a space-based satellite system, said Hoskins. Australia has had an often-disastrous experience with bringing in animals from overseas since European colonization in the later 1800s. It is not just buffaloes that cause immense environmental damage. Cane toads brought to the country in a failed attempt to control pests on sugar cane plantations in the 1930s are prolific breeders and feeders that can dramatically attack native insects, frogs, reptiles and other small creatures. Their skin contains toxic venom that can also kill native predators. Feral cats kill millions of birds in Australia each year, while foxes, pigs and camels cause widespread ecological damage across Australia. Yellow crazy ants are one of the worlds worst invasive species. Authorities believe they arrived in Australia accidentally through shipping ports. They have been recorded in Queensland and New South Wales states as well as the Northern Territory. The ants are a highly aggressive species and spit a formic acid, which burns the skin of their prey, including small mammals, turtle hatchlings and bird chicks. Pope Francis' recent gesture of welcome for transgender Catholics has resonated strongly in a working class, seaside town south of Rome, where a community of trans women has found help and hope through a remarkable relationship with the pontiff forged during the darkest times of the pandemic. Thanks to the local parish priest, these women now make monthly visits to Francis' Wednesday general audiences, where they are given VIP seats. On any given day, they receive handouts of medicine, cash and shampoo. When COVID-19 struck, the Vatican bused them into its health facility so they could be vaccinated ahead of most Italians. On Sunday, these women many of whom are Latin American migrants and work as prostitutes will join over 1,000 other poor and homeless people in the Vatican auditorium as Francis' guests for lunch to mark the Catholic Church's World Day of the Poor. For the marginalized trans community of Torvaianica, it is just the latest gesture of inclusion from a pope who has made reaching out to the LGBTQ+ community a hallmark of his papacy, in word and deed. "Before, the church was closed to us. They didn't see us as normal people, they saw us as the devil," said Andrea Paola Torres Lopez, a Colombian transgender woman known as Consuelo, whose kitchen is decorated with pictures of Jesus. "Then Pope Francis arrived and the doors of the church opened for us." Francis' latest initiative was a document from the Vatican's doctrine office asserting that, under some circumstances, transgender people can be baptized and can serve as godparents and witnesses in weddings. It followed another recent statement from the pope himself that suggested same-sex couples could receive church blessings. In both cases, the new pronouncements reversed the absolute bans on transgender people serving as godparents issued by the Vatican doctrine office in 2015, and on same-sex blessings announced in 2021. Prominent LGBTQ+ organizations have welcomed Francis' message of inclusivity, given gay and transgender people have long felt ostracized and discriminated against by a church that officially teaches that homosexual acts are "intrinsically disordered." Starting from his famous "Who am I to judge" comment in 2013 about a purportedly gay priest, to his assertion in January that "being homosexual is not a crime," Francis has evolved his position to increasingly make clear that everyone "todos, todos, todos" is a child of God, is loved by God and welcome in the church. That judgment-free position is not necessarily shared by the rest of the Catholic Church. The recent Vatican gathering of bishops and laypeople, known as a synod, backed off language explicitly calling for welcoming LGBTQ+ Catholics. Conservative Catholics, including cardinals, have strongly questioned his approach. And a 2022 Pew Research Center analysis showed most U.S. Catholics, or 62%, believe that whether a person is a man or woman is determined by the sex assigned at birth, while only a minority, 37%, said it can change. After his latest statement about trans participation in church sacraments, GLAAD and DignityUSA said Francis' tone of inclusion would send a message to political and cultural leaders to end their persecution, exclusion and discrimination against transgender people. For the trans community in Torvaianica, it was a more personal message, a concrete sign that the pope knew them, had heard their stories and wanted to let them know that they were part of his church. Carla Segovia, a 46-year-old Argentine sex worker, said for transgender women like herself, being a godparent is the closest thing she will ever get to having a child of her own. She said that the new norms made her feel more comfortable about maybe one day returning fully to the faith that she was baptized in but fell away from after coming out as trans. "This norm from Pope Francis brings me closer to finding that absolute serenity," she said, which she feels is necessary to be fully reconciled with the faith. Claudia Vittoria Salas, a 55-year-old transgender tailor and house cleaner, said she had already served as a godparent to three of her nieces and nephews back home in Jujuy, in northern Argentina. She choked up as she recalled that her earnings from her former work as a prostitute put her godchildren through school. "Being a godparent is a big responsibility, it's taking the place of the mother or father, it's not a game," she said as her voice broke. "You have to choose the right people who will be responsible and capable, when the parents aren't around, to send the kids to school and provide them with food and clothes." Francis' unusual friendship with the Torvaianica trans community began during Italy's strict COVID-19 lockdown, when one, then two, and then more sex workers showed up at the Rev. Andrea Conocchia's church on the main piazza of town asking for food, because they had lost all sources of income. Over time, Canocchia got to know the women and as the pandemic and economic hardships continued, he encouraged them to write to Francis to ask for what they needed. One night they sat around a table and composed their letters. "The pages of the letters of the first four were bathed in tears," he recalled. "Why? Because they told me 'Father, I'm ashamed, I can't tell the pope what I have done, how I have lived.'" But they did, and the first assistance arrived from the pope's chief almsgiver, who then accompanied the women for their COVID-19 vaccines a year later. At the time of the pandemic, many of the women weren't legally allowed to live in Italy and had no access to the vaccine. Eventually, Francis asked to meet them. Salas was among those who received the jab at the Vatican and then joined a group from Torvaianica to thank Francis at his general audience on April 27, 2022. She brought the Argentine pope a platter of homemade chicken empanadas, a traditional comfort food from their shared homeland. Showing the photo of the exchange on her phone, Salas remembered what Francis did next: "He told the gentleman who receives the gifts to leave them with him, saying 'I'm taking them with me for lunch,'" she said. "At that point, I started to cry." For Canocchia, Francis' response to Salas and the others has changed him profoundly as a priest, teaching him the value of listening and being attentive to the lives and hardships of his flock, especially those most on the margins. For the women, it is simply an acknowledgement that they matter. "At least they remember us, that we're on Earth and we haven't been abandoned and left to the mercy of the wind," said Torres Lopez. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sanctioned 37 Russian groups and 108 people including a former prime minister and a former education minister and said he aimed to fight wartime abductions of children from Ukraine and other "Russian terror." "We are increasing the pressure of our state onto them and each of them must be held responsible for what they have done," he said Saturday in his nightly video address after his office issued corresponding decrees with his signature. Zelenskyy did not associate specific individuals or groups with particular wrongdoings. The decrees showed a range of 10-year penalties against individuals and five-year penalties against non-profit groups including one named in English as the "Russian Children's Foundation." Zelenskyy said in his address that the list included "those involved in the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children from the occupied territory" and individuals who "in various ways help Russian terror against Ukraine." Some of the newly sanctioned people, which included many with Russian citizenship, had previously been punished with separate or similar penalties. Those included Dmytro Tabachnyk, a former minister of education and science whose Ukrainian citizenship was stripped from him in February, and ex-Prime Minister Mykola Azarov. Azarov, along with former President Viktor Yanukovich, previously saw some of his assets and property frozen, among other penalties. The two men fled Ukraine for Russia in 2014 after a crackdown on street protests that killed more than 100 demonstrators in Kyiv. Other individuals penalized on Saturday included Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-installed head of Crimea, and Leonid Pasechnik, whom Putin appointed head of Luhansk, the eastern Ukrainian region Russia annexed in 2022. The sanctioned Russian groups included several whose names or websites indicate they work with children. One sanctioned group was named Kvartal Lui, which matches an organization with a website that says its founder is Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, herself sanctioned by Kyiv in October 2022. The International Criminal Court in The Hague this month issued an arrest warrant against Lvova-Belova, along with President Vladimir Putin, accusing them of the war crime of deporting children from Ukraine. Zelenskyy's new list also sanctioned the executive director of Kvartal Lui, Sofia Lvova-Belova. Her older sister, Maria Lvova-Belova, has said children were taken to shelter them from violence and denied committing any war crime. Kyiv says about 20,000 children have been removed to Russia or Russian-held territory without the consent of their family or guardians, which it says amounts to a war crime that meets the U.N. treaty definition of genocide. Yale University published research Thursday saying more than 2,400 children ages 6-17 had also been taken to 13 facilities across Russian-allied Belarus. The report, from a group that receives U.S. State Department funding, said that the transports across Russian territory to its western neighbor were "ultimately coordinated" between Putin and Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko. Zelenskyy's decrees upheld a decision by the National Security and Defense Council to issue sanctions with an array of penalties including blocking assets, trade, transit, leasing, removal of capital, land purchases and other financial and economic activities. The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali on Saturday said it had left a ninth of its 12 bases as part of its forced withdrawal from the junta-led country battling separatist and jihadi rebellions. In June, the junta demanded that MINUSMA leave "without delay," leading the U.N. Security Council to begin an unprecedented hasty pullout to be completed by the end of the year. The Ansongo camp in northern Mali was handed over by MINUSMA's bureau chief in the city of Gao, Hawa Ahmed Youssouf, to the authorities represented by local official Ahmed Ag Aklinine. "This closure is the ninth among the 12 MINUSMA bases," the force said in a statement on social media. The Ansongo base, 80 kilometers from Gao, was held by a contingent from neighboring Niger. MINUSMA has been deployed in Mali since 2013 to prop up the West African nation as it faces jihadi rebels linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group as well as a Tuareg-led separatist revolt. But relations have deteriorated with the military rulers who seized power in 2020, with the accelerated withdrawal of more than 11,000 soldiers and 1,500 police officers exacerbating the rivalry between the army, jihadis and separatists for control of northern Mali. The separatists oppose MINUSMA handing the bases to the Malian authorities, saying it would contravene previous peace deals. The predominantly Tuareg groups have since resumed hostilities against the state. Yemens Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel group, seized a cargo ship in the southern Red Sea and say they have taken it to a Yemeni port. "We are treating the ship's crew in accordance with Islamic principles and values," a spokesperson of the group's military said in a statement. The group said the ship was an Israeli vessel. The Israeli military said Sunday that the cargo ship was hijacked in the southern Red Sea as it was sailing from Turkey to India, raising the alarm that regional tensions over the Israel-Hamas war are spilling over onto the maritime front. In a social media post, the Israeli military called the hijacking "a very grave incident on a global level" but said the vessel is not Israeli-owned. The ship is British-owned and Japanese-operated, carrying 25 crew members of various nationalities but not Israelis, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said. Japan has confirmed the vessel, Galaxy Leader, is a car carrier operated by Nippon Yusen. We strongly condemn such acts, said Hirokazu Matsuno, Japans chief Cabinet secretary. He said Japan is working on the release of the ship. Currently, ministries and agencies including the transport ministry and the foreign ministry are gathering information and working with the relevant countries for the early release of the vessel and its crew. A spokesperson for the Houthi group said earlier Sunday that all ships owned or operated by Israeli companies, or carrying the Israeli flag could be targeted. Ownership details in public shipping databases associated the ship's owners with Ray Car Carriers, which was founded by Abraham "Rami" Ungar, who is known as one of the richest men in Israel. Ungar told The Associated Press he was aware of the incident but couldn't comment as he awaited details. A ship linked to Ungar experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time. Netanyahu's office condemned the seizure of the Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier, calling it another Iranian act of terrorism that represents an escalation in Iran's belligerence against the citizens of the free world, with concomitant international ramifications vis-a-vis the security of global shipping routes." According to U.S. officials, the hijackers came down on the ships deck from a helicopter. The attack off the coast of Yemen comes just days after the Houthis issued a graphic with captions in Hebrew, Arabic and English saying, we will sink your ships. The graphic showed an Israeli commercial ship on fire. On Nov. 16, the International Maritime Security Construct, an international group that tries to maintain security in regional waters, issued a warning to all mariners in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait between Yemen and Djibouti to stay as far away from Yemeni waters as possible and recommended travel at night whenever possible. A U.S. Defense official said, "were aware of the situation and are monitoring it closely. Some information for this article came from The Associated Press, and Reuters. Thirty-one premature babies were evacuated from Gaza's biggest hospital Sunday, the World Health Organization said, seeking to get the last patients and staff out of what it has dubbed a "death zone". The evacuation came as Israel, which said it was stepping up military operations against Hamas militants, announced it had found a 55-metre tunnel under the Al-Shifa hospital and released footage it said showed "hostages" inside the facility. The developments, as sirens blared across Jerusalem to warn of rocket fire while Israel intensified air strikes on Gaza City, came as Qatar said "minor" obstacles remained for a deal on the release of hostages. Civilians scurried for cover in Jerusalem as loud blasts from intercepted missiles pierced the air and in the evening an AFP reporter in Gaza heard warplanes strike repeatedly the centre of Gaza City. Al-Shifa hospital has become the focus of the war that began October 7 when Gaza-based Hamas militants stormed across the militarised border to kill, according to Israeli officials, around 1,200 people and take roughly 240 hostages. The Hamas government says the death toll from Israel's relentless aerial bombardment and ground operations in Gaza, has reached 13,000. Most of the casualties on both sides are civilians, while the army has reported 64 troops deaths in Gaza so far. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said 31 "very sick" babies were moved in a joint operation with the UN and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society. "They are receiving urgent care in the neonatal intensive care unit" of the Al-Helal Emirati field hospital in Rafah, across the border from Egypt, he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. An AFP photographer saw the tiny infants at the hospital, some three or four to a cot, being bottle-fed by nurses and tended to by doctors. - Hospitals stretched - Israel has said its military was "expanding its operational activities in additional neighbourhoods... of the Gaza Strip" where the United Nations says about 1.6 million people have been internally displaced by weeks of fighting. The coastal territory, under a crippling blockade since Hamas took power in 2007, has been besieged by Israel since the war erupted, leaving food, water, medicine and fuel in short supply. And more than half of Gaza's 36 hospitals are non-functioning by shortages, combat or damage, the UN says. On Saturday, hundreds fled Al-Shifa hospital on foot as loud explosions were heard around the complex. Columns of sick and injured were seen leaving with displaced people, doctors and nurses. At least 15 bodies, some in advanced stages of decomposition, were strewn along the route, an AFP journalist said. The WHO said 29 patients at the hospital with serious spinal injuries cannot move without medical assistance. Israel has told Palestinians to move south for their safety, but deadly strikes continued there too. On Sunday 41 members of one family were killed in an Israeli bombardment of their home in Gaza's Zeytoun district, the Hamas-run health ministry said. - 'Extreme suffering' - Israeli troops raided Al-Shifa Hospital Wednesday on suspicion that it was being used as a Hamas base. On Sunday the army said "troops exposed a 55-meter-long terror tunnel 10 metres deep underneath the Shifa hospital complex," which ran under the hospital and ended at a blast door. Later the military released CCTV footage, which appears to be time-stamped October 7, that it said showed two male hostages from Nepal and Thailand being brought into Al-Shifa. "We have not yet located both of these hostages," army spokesman Daniel Hagari told reporters. AFP could not immediately verify the footage. Israel has been under pressure to prove its claims that a Hamas command centre is concealed beneath the hospital, a charge the militants and medical staff have denied. Conditions at Al-Shifa are dire, according to the WHO, with a mass grave outside and nearly 300 patients and 25 health workers inside. It urged an immediate ceasefire given the "extreme suffering of the people of Gaza". Al-Shifa head of surgery Marwan Abu Sada told AFP that Israeli troops were still in the hospital and it was surrounded by tanks. "I heard at least two explosions since this morning," he said. Other doctors said the troops were going from building to building and detonated explosives on the ground floors and hospital basements searching for Hamas tunnels. A Hamas health official said more than 80 people were killed on Saturday in twin strikes on Jabalia refugee camp, the territory's largest, including on a UN school sheltering displaced people. The Israeli army said only that "an incident in the Jabalia region" was under review without elaborating. "The horrendous events of the past 48 hours in Gaza beggar belief," United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said in a statement. - Fuel shipments - With just a trickle of aid allowed in from Egypt, Israel permitted a first consignment of fuel to enter Gaza late Friday under US pressure, allowing telecommunications to resume after a two-day blackout. Some 120,000 litres (31,700 gallons) of fuel arrived on Saturday, the UN said. A US official has said more fuel deliveries and a "significant pause" in fighting would come "when hostages are released". Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Sunday a deal to free hostages hinges on "very minor" practical issues, without elaborating. US deputy national security adviser Jon Finer told NBC they were "closer than we have been in quite some time" to securing a deal. But he added on CBS: "The mantra that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed really does apply." The bodies of two female captives were recovered in Gaza this week, the Israeli military said, while four abductees have so far been released by Hamas and a fifth rescued by troops. France said it was sending a navy helicopter carrier to provide medical assistance in Gaza and on Sunday President Emmanuel Macron told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu there were "too many civilian losses" in Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, US President Joe Biden threatened sanctions against Israeli settlers who have ramped up attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank, where settlers and troops have killed more than 200 Palestinians in recent weeks, according to the health ministry in Ramallah. Also Sunday, the Iran-backed Huthi rebels claimed they had seized an Israeli ship in the vital waters of the Red Sea, but Israel denied the allegation and said the vessel was operated by a Japanese company. In Iran, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel suffered a "defeat" in its war against Hamas. burs-phz/hkb/it The Ukrainian army said Sunday it has pushed Russian forces back "three to eight kilometres" from the banks of Dnipro river, which if confirmed would be the first meaningful advance by Kyiv's forces months into a disappointing counteroffensive. Ukrainian and Russian forces have been entrenched on opposite sides of the vast waterway in the southern Kherson region for more than a year, after Russia withdrew its troops from the western bank last November. Ukraine has staged multiple attempts to cross and hold positions on the Russian-controlled side -- with officials in Kyiv finally reporting a "successful" breakthrough last week. "Preliminary figures vary from three to eight kilometres, depending on the specifics, geography and landscape of the left bank," army spokeswoman Natalia Gumenyuk told Ukrainian television Sunday when asked how much progress Kyiv had made. She did not specify how many troops or what equipment Ukraine had on the eastern side of the Dnipro. "We have a lot of work to do," Gumenyuk said. "The enemy still continues artillery fire," she added, estimating that "several tens of thousands" of Russian troops were in the area. The battle comes after Kyiv's much-awaited summer counteroffensive had largely fizzled, with just a handful of tiny villages retaken. A bridgehead on the east bank of the Dnipro could allow a deeper offensive in the south, though it would require deploying more men and armour into the challenging marshy conditions. Pushing Russia back from the river's shores would also offer protection to Ukrainian towns and villages facing relentless Russian shelling. - Drone attacks - A Russian artillery attack on the city of Kherson injured five people on Sunday, including a three-year-old child, Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said. Shelling on the northeastern Sumy region on Sunday evening killed one civilian, Ukraine's Prosecutor General said. Russia has issued a number of contradictory statements regarding its own operations around the Dnipro. The defence ministry has appeared to reject the claims that Ukraine has gained a foothold, but a Russian-installed official in the occupied Kherson region conceded that Ukraine was holding positions in at least one village on the river's eastern shores. Moscow did not comment on the situation on the eastern bank in a daily military briefing on Sunday. AFP was not able to independently verify the claims made by officials. Meanwhile, drone attacks, a defining characteristic of the war, have intensified this week. Both of the capitals, Kyiv and Moscow, were targeted Saturday night, though both sides claimed to have intercepted most of the drones and no victims were reported. After a spate of attacks earlier this year, Ukrainian drones have rarely targeted the Russian capital in recent months. Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said a drone was shot down outside the city in the early hours of Sunday morning. Russia's defence ministry said its own drones hit a fuel depot in Ukraine's central Kirovograd region and an ammunition warehouse near the capital. Kyiv said it shot down 15 of 20 Russian drones, while Moscow claimed to have destroyed 31 Ukrainian drones. - Ukrainian orphan returns home - Oleksiy Kuleba, the deputy head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's office said Sunday Kyiv was boosting the number of "mobile groups" that could "combat" the wave of Russian drone attacks. A day earlier, the Ukrainian air force said Russia launched 38 Iranian-made Shahed drones at its territory -- the most in a single night since late September. Zelensky said Saturday night he expected Russia to increase attacks on Ukraine's energy system in a bid to paralyse the heat and power supply. "The closer we get to winter, the more Russian attempts will be made to make the strikes more powerful," Zelensky said in his daily address. He called on his army to be "100 percent effective, despite all the difficulties, despite all the fatigue". On the diplomatic front, Russia's Vesti TV announced that President Vladimir Putin will take part in a virtual G20 leaders' summit on Wednesday, after skipping the main in-person meeting in New Delhi in September. Kyiv also said Sunday that a teenage Ukrainian orphan taken from Mariupol by Russian forces in the first weeks of the invasion had returned home. The case of Bogdan Yermokhin, who turned 18 on Sunday, made headlines after Russia issued him a draft summons to report for mandatory military conscription ahead of his 18th birthday. Ukraine says it has identified 20,000 children taken by Russia at the start of the invasion -- only around 400 have since returned. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Putin and Russia's children's commissioner in March over the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children. bur-jc/bp Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) slammed former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley's usage of the phrase "my truth" in regard to abortion. Haley and DeSantis appeared for a panel discussion at the Thanksgiving Family Forum Friday moderated by Family Leader President and CEO Bob Vander Plaats. The four discussed abortion, where Haley stood out in her comments on the matter as she has from the beginning of her campaign. TRUMP'S SURVIVAL OF 14TH AMENDMENT LAWSUITS RAISES ODDS OF SUPREME COURT INTERVENTION "What you heard me say at the debate was very much my truth," Haley said, referring to the third GOP debate from the week before. "I am unapologetically pro-life. But it is important that we remember what's our overall goal . . . how do we save as many babies as possible and support as many moms as we can?" DeSantis shared his reaction to her comments in a press conference Saturday, seeming to imply that others at the forum joined him in disagreeing with her. "Her answers, I think, last night did not go over well with the crowd," DeSantis said. "When you're talking about, 'my truth.' No, it's not your truth or this person's truth. There's the truth." The governor on Friday instead shared his family's experience with miscarriage first, with fellow GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy following after, discussing his wife's miscarriage. Haley herself also had difficulty getting pregnant and shared that with the crowd. Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. On the same day as the forum, DeSantis announced a new microsite off of his campaign website designed to be "shining a light on the real Nikki Haley." "The site will allow Republican primary voters to see for themselves that Haley has supported every liberal cause under the sun," a press release read. "There's a reason Nikki Haley is running away from her record and refuses to take tough questions from the media she can't risk exposing her liberal views on issues most important to conservative voters." CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER Former Republican Party of Iowa executive director Marlys Popma, a well-known pro-life activist in the state, gave Haley her endorsement live during the forum. DeSantis shrugged off the news claiming Haley "never delivered anything on it before." When Haley was governor, she signed a 20-week abortion ban across the state of South Carolina. Since launching her presidential campaign, she has been hot and cold on the idea of a federal ban. Original Location: DeSantis claims Haley's comments on abortion did not 'go well with the crowd' Washington Examiner Videos Jason Momoas Saturday Night Live monologue, clocking in at just under three minutes, was so quick that youd think he played The Flash instead of Aquaman. But the subject matter proved to be much more representative of his character, with the Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom star fittingly speaking all about his lifelong love for the ocean. Momoa explained that his childhood dream of becoming a marine biologist (which makes sense because Im built like a scientist) inspired him to move from landlocked Iowa, where he grew up, back to Hawaii, where he was born. While he didnt become a marine biologist, he got the next best thing: a role on Baywatch. I only stayed for a few seasons because you really dont want to get stuck in the B-hole, he said, before explaining that his love of the ocean has come full circle. I do a lot of work protecting our oceans and small island nations, he said, I even started my own water company to eliminate single-use plastic water bottles. Its called Mananalu, which in Hawaiian stands for Suck it Dasani. Related Share Comment on this story Comment Add to your saved stories Save BERLIN Austrian President Alexander van der Bellen had an unusual encounter during an official visit to Moldova when the countrys first dog, a rescue belonging to Moldovan President Maia Sandu, bit him on the hand. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight Video footage from Moldovan media showed van der Bellen standing with Sandu and Codrut, her rescue dog, during his visit to the Moldovan capital, Chisinau, on Friday. When the Austrian president leaned down to pet Codrut, the dog snapped and briefly bit his hand. It was a small wound that was treated with a bandage, van der Bellens office told the German news agency dpa, adding that the Austrian president is doing well. Van der Bellen was meeting with Sandu and Slovenian President Natasa Pirc Musar to discuss Moldovas bid to join the European Union. The Austrian president posted about the incident on his Instagram page later Friday, acknowledging it caused a bit of a stir. Everyone who knows me knows that Im a big dog lover and can understand his excitement, van der Bellen said of Codrut the dog. He was nervous because of all the people around him. Todd Sampsons immersive approach to documentary making has seen him chained underwater (Redesign My Brain), submit to a voodoo initiation (Body Hack) and undergo eye surgery (Mirror Mirror: Body Dysmorphia). So it is not unexpected that a leech facial is among the weird and wacky therapies he explores in his third season of Mirror Mirror. At many stages of my life, Ive been a wellness addict, Sampson explains from his hometown of Sydney (the Canadian version), where he is visiting his father. Ive done a lot of these treatments before. Ive been swimming around in the wellness waters. Todd Sampson undergoes a leech facial for his new series Mirror Mirror: Are You Well? Are You Well? is a two-part series probing the global multimillion-dollar wellness industry. This time, however, the advertising creative and Qantas board member was not in entirely unfamiliar territory. After having tried therapies such as cupping, silent meditation retreats, acupuncture and detoxing, Sampson grew sceptical about the benefits. Watching the rise of wellness influencers, specifically Gwyneth Paltrow and Miranda Kerr, who have come under fire for promoting potentially dangerous remedies, he became concerned that more people are turning to unqualified health advisers rather than doctors. Towards the end of her life, after Mad and Trace had died, she was left alone in the 12-room house and was eventually persuaded to sell it and move to a mere six rooms. She died soon thereafter and left, in the linen closet, the sheets and towels that had been part of her dowry. Beautiful, hand-embroidered linen and all unused. I still have six table napkins. Loading My brother, three years older than me, also inherited my mothers chipper stance towards the world, as well as the almost total lack of ambition that has characterised our lives. And he has, to a remarkable degree, what the Italians would call the ability to arrangiarsi, to find a solution, to find a way to get around a problem, to land on his feet. Nowhere is this better illustrated than in the story of the dirt. His last job, before he retired, was as manager of a complex of about 100 apartments. His job was to administer contracts and rent payments and to see that the buildings were sufficiently well cared for. At a certain point, the owners decided to convert the buildings to gas heating, and that meant the old oil-burning system had to be removed, as well as the storage tank that lay under one of the parking lots. The demolition men came and took out the furnace, then dug up the tank and removed it. Whereupon arrived the inspectors from the Environmental Protection Agency, declaring that because the tank had sprung a leak sometime in the past and spilled oil into the earth, the dirt that had been piled up around it was both contaminated and sequestered and could not be removed save by paying a special haulage company to take it away. My brother, long a resident of the town, knew a bit more than the average citizen about the connection between the inspectors and the haulage company because of his hunting buddies, some of whom belonged to an organisation that hmm, how to express this delicately worked at some variance to the law. (Were in New Jersey, Italians, the building trade get it?) And so he had some suspicions about the actual level of contamination in the dirt. As fortune would have it, he was about to leave for two weeks vacation. And so, the night before he left, he called one of his hunting pals, who just happened to be in the business of supplying landfill to various building projects and just happened to be a member of that same organisation. My brother explained that he was going to be away for some time and that his friend, whose name he never disclosed to me, was free to come in at any time during the next two weeks and pick up the dirt that surrounded the excavated hole where the tank had been. The only caveat was that the trucks had to be unmarked and had to come at night. Two weeks later, tanned and fit, he and his wife returned from vacation. As he stepped out of the taxi that had brought them from the airport, he looked about, like a good custodian, at the buildings and grounds that were in his care. Shocked by what he saw, he slapped his hand to his forehead and exclaimed, My God, theyve stolen my dirt. Whereupon he went inside and called the police to report the theft. The same was to be found on my fathers side of the family, though the suggestion of strangeness was provided by legend rather than witnesses. There was his uncle Raoul, bilingual in Spanish and English, who always answered the phone in heavily accented English and, when he found himself asked for, responded that he was the butler but he would go and enquire if Meester Leon was libre. Loading My fathers Uncle Bill lived in a vast, sprawling mansion about 50 miles north of New York City and often disappeared for short or long periods of time to the various banana republics of South and Central America. The official story was that he was in the coffee trade, so why all those other stories about meeting various heads of state while surrounded by machine-gun-toting guards? Uncle Bill was married to the painted woman of the family, Aunt Florence, who was not only divorced but Jewish and had married into a Spanish-Irish Catholic family. Further, they had lived together in sin, as one said then, before their union was sanctioned by the state, the clergy wanting no part of them. In the face of these impediments, we were all more than willing to overlook the fact that she bore a frightening resemblance to a horse and was, to boot, significantly less intelligent than one. Her mantra, which she repeated openly whenever we visited, was that a woman must pretend to be stupid so that a man would marry her. My brother and I never saw evidence that she was pretending. And yes, this comes to me now that I think about them: Henry. Henry was their Japanese cook, a sort of unseen presence who was said to be in the kitchen, though none of us ever laid eyes on him. It is part of family lore that Henry wrote in his will that he left his life savings to the United States. Because no will was found when he died and there was no living relative, he got his wish. 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 This story is part of the November 19 edition of Sunday Life. See all 14 stories . Until recently, Australian media personality Lillian Ahenkan (aka FlexMami) had mostly existed away from the mainstream gaze, preferring to share her stories on Instagram and TikTok to her 169,000 and 138,000 loyal followers respectively. But since being nominated for her first Logie Award this year, her public profile has shifted gears. Ahenkan was up for the Graham Kennedy Award for Most Popular New Talent for her co-hosting role on the Love Island Australia spin-off show, Ive Got a Text with Josh and Flex! and while she didnt win, shes been a talking point ever since. Her Logies journey began with an invitation to the nomination breakfast in June, a morning she remembers fondly. I was hysterical when I heard my name called and Hamish Blake was clapping behind me, she says. I am in this room full of stars and few people of colour and suddenly I felt validated and seen. Ahenkan puts her popularity down to her approachability. Shes a slashie Millennial who works across multiple platforms: a TV host, an influencer inking sponsorship deals with FIFA and McDonalds, a self-made entrepreneur, and a part-time VJ turned DJ. She is proof that the more circles you spin, the more opportunities you attract. Shes written a self-empowerment book, started her own jewellery line and makes podcasts for a living. Sales of her ReFlex conversation-starter cards turn over seven figures annually. Its her no-apologies approach and comic undertone that keep her fans entertained. The fact shes occupying a space where few African-Australian women have been before isnt lost on her, either. Commonry trousers and shirt. Post Primadonna necklace. Dinosaur Designs bangles. Credit: Jesse-Leigh Elford But when the Logies awards night began to approach, weeks after that nomination breakfast, her positive internal narrative started to change. Thats when the neurotic views started to creep in, she admits. Was the nomination token? Did anybody watch the show? What if I lose? The day the Logies came around, I was in a hotel room alone. I called my friends and they said, You look so out of it. Advertisement I didnt want anyone to do my hair and make-up, so I did it myself. I didnt know if I was taking up too much space. The more room I was given, the smaller I felt. It made me so self-conscious, to be honest. Ahenkans parents migrated to Australia from Ghana a decade before she was born and split when she was three months old. Her mum raised Ahenkan and her two older brothers in Chifley, in south-east Sydney. I didnt know if I was taking up too much space. The more room I was given, the smaller I felt. It made me so self-conscious, to be honest. LILLIAN AHENKAN AKA FLEXMAMI When Mum got divorced from Dad, it wasnt common or very accepting in our African Christian culture, she says. It wasnt seen as a good thing but, as a result, I grew up with a strong matriarchal force and Mum had to figure it out for herself along the way. Her mother was employed as a commercial cleaner, and Ahenkan recalls tagging along with her to work because her mum couldnt afford a babysitter to mind her and her siblings after hours. While many of Sydneys Ghanaian community live in the citys west, Ahenkan says being in the east shifted perceptions in their migrant circles. That really set us apart, she says. Mum didnt speak any English when she arrived in Australia. She found the experience isolating. The nature of living in commission housing and not knowing your neighbours was foreign to her, and having no community to lean on was very different to what she knew of life back home. But Mum made sure to craft a clear narrative about where we are from, as opposed to understanding blackness from a very Australian way, says Ahenkan. That has remained part of me to this day. Advertisement Its perhaps this resilience that set the foundational roots for Ahenkan. Shes the reason FlexMami has such a powerful narrative: curating content with a conscience and ever mindful of inclusivity. She aligns with brands that reflect her values because authenticity matters. But right now, shes feeling the weight of representing black women in media added to her invisible workload. I remember a few instances when Mum tried to drill down the concept of race to me as a teenager, she explains. I didnt really think she had to because in my mind, when we were at church every Sunday and hanging with our Ghanaian people, what was there to understand? Common Hours dress. Mariam Seddiq x Sheike Beck top and skirt. Credit: Jesse-Leigh Elford The older I get, the more I realise how intrinsic Mum has been in my life. It was only when I stepped outside that community that I realised what Mum told me was true: that other people will judge me by the colour of my skin and not as a person with a personality. That was a realisation I had to have. It was during year 10 at Randwick Girls High School that Ahenkan began exploring different subcultures online. She was into punk and rock music, and wore heavy eyeliner, black jeans and black boots. My look matched the music I listened to, and I was finding these external ways to find my identity, she says. She was the only African at the school for years, and bonded with the girls from Italian, Greek, Samoan, Indonesian and Korean backgrounds. I have a gap in my front teeth which I hated as a teenager. I complained about it a lot. Mum said that in our culture its a sign of prosperity. LILLIAN AHENKAN AKA FLEXMAMI While Ahenkan has learned how to turn Western body-shaming into a positive, encouraging others to embrace themselves without judgment, the teen version of herself did have hang-ups. I have a gap in my front teeth which I hated as a teenager, she says. Advertisement I fixated and complained about it a lot. Mum said that in our culture its a sign of prosperity and good luck, its a beautiful feature, but teenage me didnt think so. One day, Mum came home from the dentist with a gap shaved out in her teeth. She did it because the service was available, and possibly to prove a point to me. Commonry jacket and skirt. Post Primadonna rings. Louise Olsen earrings. Credit: Jesse-Leigh Elford Ahenkan only just passed year 12, dampening any hope of studying law or psychology, and took up jobs in retail for 12 months, including a stint in a pizza shop. She enrolled in a TAFE fashion business course, but it didnt excite her. Next came an internship at a public relations agency, which led to a part-time job. It piqued her interest to explore creating content that fused her identity with the mechanics of PR. Loading The 29-year-old, who now lives in Melbourne, has spent the past 10 years building an influential social-media profile. She empowers others through body-positive conversations and shares everything from impulse fashion purchases to rental woes, and whether shes dying her eyebrows blonde to match her platinum hair. Her wow factor has led to collaborations with make-up brands such as Fenty, Mecca and Rimmel, and she once created a plus-sized range with clothing brand Nasty Gal. Its her fast-talking sassiness that led her there few can dissect the dating show Love Island like FlexMami, providing honest discussions about race and dating. And Millennials love nothing more than a brutal take-down of whats really happening in reality TV. Advertisement The former Big Brother contestant she survived two episodes in 2021 says for now its all eyes on podcasting and focusing on living, rather than being viewed via the curated content on her social media posts. With Lucinda Price a writer, presenter and comedian she co-presents the popular iHeart national drive podcast Flex & Froomes, which was named one of Vogues 10 Best Podcasts for Women by Women in 2022. For someone who never thought shed land a job in media, Ahenkan still pinches herself. The opportunities that exist for me now are because of the hard work that other people of colour have done before me, she says. Mariam Seddiq x Sheike Frankie top. Louise Olsen earrings. Credit: Jesse-Leigh Elford But shes also looking at her bigger picture with a critical thinking cap on. I didnt go to university so, if there was no Instagram tomorrow, would I still have any relevance? What if there were no TV jobs for me? What would I do? Thats why I have worked across multiple platforms, from my conversation cards to building equity for myself beyond one category. Loading Its not about how can I stay relevant forever, its about recognising your value if it gets taken away from you. I seriously dont know anybody in media who has the same start as me. Right now, I am figuring out what my interests, needs and wants are outside this world of likes. I have funnelled every opportunity into a career move. I want to look at life with a personal lens now. Ahenkan says shes trying to pull back and see a separation between work and herself. I dont know how to take pictures of experiences without the lens of posting it on Instagram! she says, laughing. Its a scary thought. I view myself as something to be consumed and I want to live my life as me, myself and I. To Western Australia, where a court has convicted and fined a high-profile climate activist who refused to give police access to her mobile phone and laptop, citing fears she would be sacked by her employer, the Australian Greens. Joana Veronika Partyka, 38, previously pleaded not guilty in Perth Magistrates Court to two counts of failing to obey a data access order after she declined to give West Australian police access to her mobile phone and laptop. Disrupt Burrup Hub protester Joana Partyka outside Perth Magistrates Court. Credit: Jesinta Burton. They were seized from her apartment in March and allegedly contained confidential Australian Greens political information and a list of about 200,000 party donors. Partyka told the court in September she asked her boss for permission to provide investigators with the pin and pass code to her devices but was told it would breach her employment contract. Magistrate Andrew Maughan handed down his judgment today, saying Partykas belief, although perhaps honestly held, was not objectively reasonable given the situation she found herself [in] . He said it was uncontentious that Partyka was subjected to an employment contract that stated she not disclose or discuss any Australian Greens information or data to any third party without their consent. Partyka was previously convicted of criminal damage and fined after she spray-painted a Woodside Energy logo onto one of Australias most famous paintings - Frederick McCubbins work Down On His Luck - at the Art Gallery of WA in January. Partyka, who is a campaigner for the Disrupt Burrup Hub group, was fined $1200 plus court costs. Outside court, Partyka said she would probably appeal the convictions. Her lawyer Zarah Burgess also said the police search warrant used to seize the devices was invalid because it failed to provide enough detail about the offences on which it was based, making the operation and the subsequent data access court order unlawful. The Burrup Peninsula in WAs Pilbara region contains the worlds largest and oldest collection of petroglyphs, a type of rock carving. Disrupt Burrup Hub claims Woodsides operations in the area and its proposed expansion form the biggest new fossil fuel project in the country and could produce billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2070. AAP Officially, NSW, Queensland and Western Australian Police either did not respond directly to questions or explained that best practice was for the police to gather evidence to put before the courts and leave deportation decisions to the department. The role of WA Police is to investigate and charge anyone (both citizen and non-citizens) suspected of committing crimes in Western Australia, a WA Police spokesperson said. It is not the role of WA Police to deport non-citizens based on charges or convictions. A letter from a NSW Homicide Squad detective to then-home affairs minister Peter Dutton shows police pushed for the deportation of refugee Moses Kellie after the prosecutors found there was no reasonable likelihood of a conviction. Sierra Leone refugee Kellie was detained after his visa was mandatorily cancelled in 2015 over a five-year prison sentence he received for armed robbery and assault. Kellie died in 2019 when he was found hanging in a cell bathroom in Villawood Immigration Detention Centre awaiting a formal decision on his visa. The NSW Coroner is investigating his death. Kellie was charged with murder shortly after his visa was cancelled. He maintained his innocence and there was no forensic evidence linking him to the crime. The Director of Public Prosecutions dropped the charges against Kellie due to the difficulties with the admissibility of police evidence and his history of mental illness. Three weeks later, NSW police wrote to Dutton advocating his deportation. There is no doubt from our perspective that Kellie murdered [Cawsey] by stabbing him in the chest with a knife, the police wrote. Kellie remains the prime, and only, suspect in [the] murder. We are of the firm view that Kellie poses an extreme risk to the safety of the Australian community if he were released from custody and allowed to remain in Australia. The letter listed other offences that police suspected Kellie of committing and a raft of allegations about his conduct in prison and outside, including that his family would not support him, which his family in Australia said was incorrect. Dutton, Home Affairs Minister Clare ONeil and Immigration Minister Andrew Giles declined to comment. A Home Affairs spokeswoman said the government used a range of powers to cancel visas to protect the Australian community, including failure of the character test, which was not limited to criminal records. Police lobbied then-home affairs minister Peter Dutton to deport Kellie. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen The department did not answer questions about how often police officers made contact or how those submissions were handled. Weber, who reviewed the FOI documents, said the police approaches created a shadow criminal justice system with little transparency and fewer checks and balances. Loading Its a constant message that the public is getting these people are high risk but theres no clear opportunity to challenge where that assessment has come from, Weber said. Where it hinges on police intelligence, that doesnt get tested in any rigorous way, this doesnt conform to the normal legal conventions. Were very concerned about that. She said informal information sharing between police and the government was distorting the criminal justice system where police attention to one group can lead to increasing levels of deportation. Theres been this interplay between police, the criminal justice and immigration systems building up for a while. Theres been a ramping up of police using those tactics. Canberra Law School law professor Alison Gerard, who works with Weber, said the documents showed how immigration detention was used to hold people without charge after their prison sentence is concluded. The police made certain claims in appealing to then-minister Dutton about Mr Kellies actions, his familys views, his conduct in prison and his mental health, some of which have already been shown to be false, she said. Victoria Police sent a letter to the department in 2018 about another person suspected of links to the so-called Apex crime gang. Loading This letter referenced 126 charges and 44 arrests, yet only 13 convictions for assaulting and resisting emergency workers and drug possession. These offences are of a violent, anti-social and concerning nature and clearly show that he has no respect for authority or any orders imposed by the courts. The Victorian Police letter also includes untested claims the person had links with other persons involved in serious crime, including members of the Apex gang and other street gangs and he had squatted in an abandoned house with men of a similar cultural background. Immigration lawyer and refugee advocate Hannah Dickinson said the letter correspondence gave a rare insight into the black box of often clandestine police approaches. Plainly, such communication breaches the presumption of innocence which undergirds our criminal justice system and impugns the perceived impartiality of Victoria Police, Dickinson said. Dickinson wrote to Victoria Police Commissioner Shane Patton last May to outline her concerns. It leads to the real possibility that a persons visa will be cancelled by the department based on incorrect, unfounded, and unsubstantiated opinions provided with the purported authority of Victoria Police, she wrote. Acting superintendent Julian Horan acknowledged the letter: The matters you raise have been taken under consideration and you will receive further advice in due course. Loading A Victoria Police spokeswoman said information is shared with a range of agencies where it was appropriate and legal or for a law enforcement response. A new national poll from NBC News has Donald Trump in the lead for 2024. This NBC poll, taken between Nov. 10 and 14, reported Trump has 46% of registered voters' support while President Joe Biden rallied 44%. However, with the margin of error between 5.5 and 5.6 percentage points, the results are still close. BIDEN'S LATEST PLAN TO DRIVE PRICES EVEN HIGHER "It's the first time in more than a dozen polls we've seen a result like this," MSNBC political correspondent Steve Kornacki said Sunday on Meet the Press. Trump also won the vote of the youngest respondents, ages 18-34, at 46%. Meanwhile, Biden had 42% of the young vote. Both of these front runners reported losses when the respondents were asked how they would vote if Biden or Trump weren't the nominees. Should an anonymous candidate win the Republican nomination that's not Trump, that candidate would beat Biden by double digits with 48% compared to Biden's 37%. If Biden was not the Democratic nominee, that hypothetical candidate had 46% of the vote compared to Trump's 40%. Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER Roughly 1,000 registered voters were surveyed. Some 300 of them were Republican primary voters, of whom the majority opted for Trump. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had the support of 18%, and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley had 13%, while former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy were tied at 3% Biden has three Democratic opponents ahead of 2024, including Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), author Marianne Williamson, and YouTube news anchor Cenk Uygur. Original Location: Donald Trump beats Joe Biden within margin of error for first time: Poll Washington Examiner Videos ACT: I told Mum when we went out for dinner one night, kind of bread-crumbing ... dropping hints. And I was hoping that Mum would piece it together and say it so that I didnt have to say it myself, to actually use those words: Youve experienced domestic violence, or youve experienced sexual abuse. For a long time, I didnt even identify myself as being a survivor because I thought I was too young for it to be so defined. But Mum helped me identify what Id experienced. And I told Dad, too, and they were incredible. Fitz: Your mother said of you: Her empathy and compassion were used against her by someone in a phenomenally manipulative way. With a view to still educating me, how were your empathy and compassion weaponised against you? ACT: Because Im a trusting and loving person, and forgiving, and I always held up this hope for the whole duration of the relationship that I could help him change. I first believed him that the reason for his toxic behaviour was that he was stressed from his exams, and then it was applying for a job, and then it was applying for university, and then it was getting into university, then university exams, and then it was my exams. And it was always like, I have to be a bit more gracious with him because hes going through this really stressful period. But those stressful periods were just constant and even when there was nothing to be stressed about he was still treating me the same way. And yeah, it just took me a lot of time to realise that is just the way that he is, that it was abuse and that it had to stop, or he would keep doing it to others. Fitz: Was it more difficult for you to put this in the public domain when both your parents are already public figures, and at that time your mother was a possible contender for the leadership of the ALP, and a possible future prime minister? ACT: Yes, but it was never like, Oh, should I do this or should I not do this? I felt I had to do it to stop him harming other girls. My parents were so supportive and they knew not to tell me what to do. They knew to ask me what it is that I wanted to do. Fitz: So you decided you wanted to go to the police? Loading ACT: Yes, but there were multiple complainants, so the police were kind of already involved. We complainants were of all different ages and all different experiences of violence. For me, he was [found] guilty only of the physical violence and for the others he was found guilty of a range of sexual violence offences. Fitz: You wrote in the Herald last week: Going through the court process, I had so much support the police, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, a witness assistance service worker, my family and my friends. But I still felt so confused and isolated. I didnt see myself and my experiences reflected in any of the services offering help. So my question: how should those services change so that future survivors of this can recognise themselves better than you did? ACT: Those services need to make it clear that domestic violence survivors can be anyone. We can be any age, and we dont have to be living with the perpetrator, or have children with the perpetrator, or share a mortgage or whatever, for it to indeed be domestic violence. But its also a societal thing as well. We need to talk more about domestic violence being real among young people and services need to be aware of that. Fitz: In terms of us understanding, you noted in your op-ed piece last week that the Australian Institute of Family Studies recently revealed nearly a third of teenagers aged between 18 and 19 years old have experienced violence from a partner in the previous year. I am shocked by that. A third! How can your generation be suddenly so beset by it? Loading ACT: I think that there were probably very similar rates of domestic, social, family and sexual violence in older generations, but that they didnt have the language and they didnt have the safety to be able to talk about it. Fitz: And yet in the wake of the tragic murder of 21-year-old Lilie James at St Andrews Cathedral School last month, by a young man known to her, there has been enormous focus on what ails so many young Australian men, that violence is even seen as an option for them in their relationships with women. ACT: The reasons are many. It is a lack of comprehensive sex education. Which is reinforced by the schools and institutions that condone violence by not holding perpetrators to account. And the ubiquity of violent and unrealistic porn among that age group is also a real problem. As a society, we need to first recognise domestic violence in all its forms, wherever it occurs, and to call it out. Fitz: You wrote in the Herald: I thought I had to be an adult, or live with him, to experience domestic violence. I didnt have any children with him. Your point reminded me of an interview I did with sexual assault activist Chanel Contos last year, who maintained that so many young women dont have the tools, the words, to analyse what happens to them when young and it is only afterwards, when they are mature, that they even realise they have been the victims of sexual assault. So, just staying with domestic violence, do you have a definition so that young women can recognise that what is happening to them now might be domestic violence, and might very well be illegal? Loading ACT: That is the key. Domestic violence is not just physical violence and its really important that that young people know that. It can be coercive and controlling behaviour as well. It can be things like your partner insisting that you have your tracking location on Snapchat turned on, so they always know where you are, and that you are constantly available by message or phone calls and things like that, choosing your friends, and deciding what you wear. Not all forms of domestic violence can be prosecuted in court, but there are all sorts really covert, insidious examples of domestic violence that build up. The important thing is to know that domestic violence is not only physical. Fitz: For those who recognise their own experience in what you have described, what is the first step? ACT: Support lines are the starting points for many survivors. So a good example of that is Full Stop Australia, and theyre the kind of organisation that can assist people in figuring out what it is that their next step should be because it is different for every single survivor. Fitz: Through your experience, you and a fellow survivor have set up The Survivor Hub. What is that? ACT: The Survivor Hub is a charity. Our aim is to support, inform and empower people impacted by sexual assault. And what that actually looks like is we provide peer support groups, safe spaces where they can connect with other survivors and talk about anything and everything from surviving abuse to disclosing to parents and workplaces what youre going through, to reporting, navigating the legal process, and things like that. So they can literally talk about anything in these MeetUps, and they can know that therell be somebody else in the community with similar experience to them. Fitz: Have you healed, and are you going on hopefully to live happily ever after? ACT: I dont think that healing has an endpoint. I think that its a cyclical process, that its ongoing forever. But what I can say is that Im in a really good place and that I am surrounded by love and support and by incredible people, and most of my close friends are survivor advocates as well. And Im so grateful for the opportunity to be able to do The Survivor Hub work because that is a huge part of my healing, to be able to turn this experience that Ive had into something that is positive and can support other people. Im so grateful for that. Fitz: Thank you, and more power to your Hub. Many Australians who have little knowledge of the complexities and nuances of history are seizing on a cartoon version of the Israel-Palestine conflict to express their discontent with aspects of our own society. To protect ourselves and all the migrants who have sought a better life in Australia, away from the old wars of home, this version needs to be challenged. We must not import the systems that many new Australians were fleeing. Last week, America, always a pioneer of the absurd, produced a new fad: young people whod read Osama bin Ladens Letter to America, which attempted to justify the attacks on the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, decided that maybe bin Laden had a point. Not about individual criticisms of America, mind you. Its easy to criticise America, and bin Laden occasionally hit the mark. But no, they decided that just because he makes a couple of valid points, he was in some way justified in flying planes into tall buildings full of civilians, who died. Patricia Karvelas with the Q+A panel last Monday night (from left): Mark Leibler, Dave Sharma, Francesca Albanese, Tim Watts and Nasser Mashni. Credit: ABC The TikTok-led craze highlights a greater problem were grappling with: the less informed a take is, the better it fits on X. And before you know it (and believe me were close) anything that cant be thought in 280 characters wont be thought at all. Armadale police have arrested and charged a 26-year-old man after he allegedly threatened a truck driver and two other people with a firearm and stole a Woolworths truck in Perths south-east on Saturday morning. About 5:10am, the accused Maddington man was allegedly armed with a firearm when he approached a delivery truck outside a Woolworths supermarket in Thornlie, threatened the driver and drove off with the truck. It will also be alleged, prior to his arrest, the man pointed the firearm at two members of the community, police said in a statement. About 6am, police located the truck and the thief attempted to flee but was eventually arrested in Greenfields. Only a third of voters believe the federal government should pursue a treaty-making process with Indigenous Australians or establish a truth-telling commission, with support for the remaining ambitions of the Uluru Statement languishing in the aftermath of the Voice referendum. Exclusive findings from the Resolve Political Monitor, conducted for this masthead, show support for treaty processes has nosedived from 58 per cent in October to 33 per cent this month. Voters have turned against the idea of the federal government pursuing treaty processes with Indigenous Australians in the aftermath of the Voice defeat. The third pillar of the Uluru Statement the call for a truth-telling process run by a Makarrata Commission to record the history and treatment of Indigenous Australians since colonisation is languishing at 35 per cent support, a 1 per cent increase since the national vote that is within the margin of error. Thirty-one per cent are opposed, while 34 per cent of voters are undecided. Together the three elements Voice, treaty, truth comprised the policy direction set out by the Uluru Statement from the Heart, endorsed by 250 Indigenous leaders in 2017, and which Labor committed to implementing in full in the lead-up to the 2022 federal election. The millennial rag traders behind White Fox Boutique Daniel Contos and Georgia Moore have purchased a fourth Vaucluse trophy home in quick succession, this time coughing up about $25 million for a knock-down rebuild. The five-bedroom house with unimpeded harbour views is next door to the couples $34.5 million home and a $38 million mansion they purchased earlier this year, prompting speculation the couple plan to demolish all three houses to create one mega-mansion across the almost 3500-square-metre site. The fourth Vaucluse house purchased by Daniel Contos and Georgia Moore is already subject to an application to be demolished. Credit: Domain The trophy home spree of recent years by Contos, 33, and Moore, 32, includes a fourth house 200 metres up the road that was purchased in May for $26 million as a turnkey investment. SACRAMENTO, California Reps. Katie Porter and Adam Schiff (D-CA) were interrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters during their pitches to California Democrats at the state party's endorsing convention. "Ceasefire now!" the demonstrators repeatedly shouted Saturday in Sacramento, California during Porter and Schiff's closing statements for the convention's candidate forum. BIDEN'S LATEST PLAN TO DRIVE PRICES EVEN HIGHER "I respect your opinions and I have heard you," Porter said, whose protest was more protracted than that of Schiff. "I'm going to ask you to allow me to please finish my remarks." After the demonstrators dismissed her and the two forum moderators' appeals to be respectful, California Democratic Party Chairman Rusty Hicks joined Porter on stage, telling the protesters "every candidate in this race deserves to be heard." Pro Palestinian demonstrators disrupted Reps. Katie Porter and Adam Schiff at the California Democratic Convention in Sacramento. Naomi Lim / Washington Examiner "Every candidate in this race deserves to be heard, so let's allow the congresswoman to finish her remarks," he said. Hicks returned to the stage during Schiff's demonstration, saying "here" he was "again." "Give every candidate the opportunity to be heard before we go and make our voice heard at the ballot box," he said. Outside the convention hall, protesters held a sit-in near one of the doors. At some points, their chants made it hard to hear the candidates speak, except for Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), who has called for a ceasefire amid Israel's war against Hamas. Porter and Lee are considered to be more liberal Democrats than Schiff, with Porter's share of the vote at risk over the conflict. "What do we want?" one demonstrator said. Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. "A ceasefire," the group replied. "If we don't get it?" the leader added. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER "Shut it down," others responded. The protesters later breached the convention hall doors and disrupted former Google executive Lexi Reese's turn. Reese supports a ceasefire. Original Location: Palestinian protesters disrupt Katie Porter, Adam Schiff at California Democratic convention Washington Examiner Videos SACRAMENTO, California Pro-Palestinian protesters partially succeeded in their attempts to shut down a California Democratic Party convention Saturday evening. "Due to circumstances beyond our control, and for the safety and security of our delegates and convention participants, we are canceling tonight's caucus meetings, hospitality suites, and VoteFest taking place at the convention center," California Democratic Party spokeswoman Shery Yang told reporters Saturday in Sacramento. BIDEN'S LATEST PLAN TO DRIVE PRICES EVEN HIGHER "More information for tomorrow's general session will be shared this evening," she added. Earlier Saturday, protesters interrupted Reps. Katie Porter and Adam Schiff (D-CA) during their pitches to California Democrats at the state party's endorsing convention in their hotly contested Senate race. Outside the convention hall, protesters, many of whom have been Democratic campaign staffers or volunteers in previous election cycles, organized a sit-in near one of the doors. They later breached the entry and caused the candidate forum to be cut short. Naomi Lim / Washington Examiner "Ceasefire now!" the protesters shouted during Porter and Schiff's closing statements for the convention's candidate forum. "I respect your opinions and I have heard you," Porter replied, whose protest was more protracted than that of Schiff. "I'm going to ask you to allow me to please finish my remarks." Outside the convention hall, protesters, many of whom have been Democratic campaign staffers or volunteers in previous election cycles, organized a sit-in near one of the doors. They later breached the entry and caused the candidate forum to be cut short. Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. The protest then merged with a separate demonstration staged by members of Northern California's Palestinian community down the street. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER The larger group then returned to the Safe Credit Union Convention Center, with some demonstrators finding their way in and opening doors for counterparts. "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," one protester chanted. Original Location: Pro-Palestinian protesters shut down part of California Democratic convention Washington Examiner Videos KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) Health officials said 31 premature babies in extremely critical condition were transferred safely Sunday from Gazas main hospital and will go to Egypt, while over 250 patients with severely infected wounds and other urgent conditions remained stranded days after Israeli forces entered the compound to look for Hamas operations. The plight of the babies, along with the Israeli claims against Shifa Hospital, have become potent symbols in the devastating war between Israel and Hamas. An Israeli offensive has taken a heavy toll on Palestinian civilians, while Israel has accused Hamas of using Shifa and other hospitals as headquarters for military operations. The newborns from the hospital, where power was cut and supplies ran out while Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside, were receiving urgent care in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. They had dehydration, hypothermia and sepsis in some cases, said Mohamed Zaqout, director of Gaza hospitals. Four other babies died in the two days before the evacuation, he said. A World Health Organization team that visited Shifa said most of the remaining patients had amputations, burns or other trauma. Plans were being made to evacuate them in the coming days. Later Sunday, Israels army said it had strong evidence supporting its claims that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa. Israel has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end Hamas rule in Gaza following the militant groups into southern Israel six weeks ago. The army said it found a 55-meter (60-yard) tunnel about 10 meters (33 feet) under the hospitals 20-acre complex, which includes several buildings, garages and a plaza. It said the tunnel included a staircase and a firing hole that could be used by snipers, and ended at a blast-proof door that troops have not yet opened. The Associated Press couldnt independently verify Israels findings, which included security camera video showing what the military said were two foreign hostages, one Thai and one Nepalese, taken to the hospital following the Oct. 7 attack. The army also said an independent medical report had determined that Israeli army Cpl. Noa Marciano, whose body was recovered in Gaza, had been killed by Hamas in the hospital. Marciano had been injured in an Israeli strike Nov. 9 that killed her captor, according to Israel's intelligence assessment. The injuries were not life-threatening but she was then killed by a Hamas militant in Shifa, the army said. Hamas and hospital staff have denied the allegations of a command post under Shifa. Critics describe the hospital as a symbol of what they call Israels reckless endangerment of civilians. Thousands have been killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza, which is severely short of food, water, medicine and fuel. Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan dismissed the Israeli militarys announcement and didn't deny that Gaza has hundreds of kilometers of tunnels. However, he said, the Israelis said there was a command and control center, which means that the matter is greater than just a tunnel. HOSTAGE NEGOTIATIONS About 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians during the Oct. 7 attack in which Hamas dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza and shattered Israels sense of security. The military says 63 Israeli soldiers have been killed, including 12 over the past 24 hours. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two were found near Shifa. Israel, the United States and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating a hostage release for weeks. We are hopeful that we can get a significant number of hostages freed in the coming days, Israels ambassador to the U.S., Michael Herzog, told ABCs This Week. Qatars prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said the sticking points were "more practical, logistical. Israel's three-member war cabinet is to meet with representatives of the hostages families on Monday evening. SHIP SEIZED Yemen's Houthi rebels seized a Israeli-linked cargo ship in the southern Red Sea and took its 25 crew members hostage Sunday, an action that raised fear that regional tensions heightened by the war were spilling onto the seas. The Iran-backed rebel group said it would continue to target ships connected to Israel. No Israelis were aboard the Bahamas-flagged Galaxy Leader, which was operated by a Japanese company with crewmembers from the Philippines, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine and Mexico, officials said. Public shipping databases associated the ships owners with Ray Car Carriers, a company founded by Abraham Rami Ungar, who is known as one of the richest people in Israel. Ungar told The Associated Press he was aware of the incident but couldnt comment as he awaited details. A ship linked to him experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time. The Galaxy Leader was seized some 150 kilometers (90 miles) off the coast of Yemen, near the coast of Eritrea, and taken to the port city of Hodeida, according to the British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, citing a security officer with the ships company. Japanese officials were negotiating with Houthi rebels for the release of the ship and its crew, said Japan Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno. HEAVY FIGHTING IN THE NORTH Heavy clashes were reported in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza. There was the constant sound of gunfire and tank shelling, Yassin Sharif, who is sheltering in a U.N.-run hospital there, said by phone. The commissioner-general of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, said 24 people were killed the day before in what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike on a U.N.-run school in Jabaliya. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. This war is having a staggering and unacceptable number of civilian casualties. ... This must stop, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement on that strike and another on a U.N.-run school within 24 hours. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried in rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Attacks by Israeli forces and settlers have killed 215 Palestinians in the West Bank since the war began, according to Palestinian health officials. COLDER WEATHER ADDS TO MISERY More than two-thirds of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, is struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of thousands of displaced people. Seventeen of its facilities have been directly hit, the agency said. Their misery has worsened in recent days because of cold winds and driving rain. Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days, and to keep internet and telephone systems running. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gaza's sole power plant and most water treatment systems to shut down. Israel has repeatedly struck what it says are militant targets across the south, often killing civilians. The evacuation zone is already crowded with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Egypt has refused to accept any influx of Palestinian refugees, in part because of fears that Israel would not allow them to return. But some patients and foreign nationals reportedly got through. Turkey's Health Ministry said it evacuated 110 people including patients and their relatives from an unspecified part of Gaza to Egypt. Another 87 people who were from Turkey or breakaway northern Cyprus entered Egypt from Gaza late Sunday, Turkish officials said, with the groups to be flown Monday to Turkey. Palestinian-Canadian Khalil Manaa, 71, left Gaza for Egypt on Sunday. After fleeing to southern Gaza, he said he and relatives shared a home crammed with 40 people. And there, we also were subjected to intense strikes. A rocket hit our house," he said. Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Julia Frankel in Jerusalem and Robert Badendieck in Istanbul contributed. Full AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war. READING, Pa. - A 37-year-old man wanted for an alleged kidnapping in Reading has been captured. Police in Amarillo, Texas, say Yusuf Scott was apprehended Sunday. Reading police say Scott broke into a home and kidnapped a woman Thursday morning. Officers responded to the 400 block of Windsor Street around 3:30 a.m. for the report of a burglary, according to a news release from the city. When officers arrived on the scene, they said the caller was checking the house camera video, "and saw that her 26-year-old daughter was taken out of the house at gunpoint," said Sgt. Melville Fegely, community response coordinator with the Reading Police Department. Fegely said just a few hours later, the woman got away from the suspect and was found on the 1700 block of Cotton Street. Officers said the victim escaped out of a back window on the third floor of a house and was running rooftops. "She actually kind of fell through a roof of an adjacent house, which means she was able to get through to someone and borrow their cell phone. When she called mom, mom called us," Fegely said. Police said the victim is doing well now but did suffer injuries. They believe Scott did formerly reside in that house. "She knows the guy. They were dating for a few months," Fegely said. "They broke up recently." Yusuf Scott, 37, was wanted for kidnapping, burglary and related crimes. The city said Scott displayed a gun during the incident. The investigation is ongoing, and anyone with information relative to this incident is asked to call 911, Reading Police Department at 610-655-6116 or contact Crime Alert Berks at 877-373-9913. LANSFORD, Pa. On Friday, Nov. 17, at 10:50 p.m., Pennsylvania State Police in Lehighton responded to the report of gunshots heard near West Snyder Avenue in Lansford Borough, Carbon County. After arriving at the scene, troopers said they were notified that a juvenile male had been transported to St. Luke's Miners Campus Hospital from Lansford. The victim was stabbed twice in the back. He is now in stable condition after suffering from a punctured lung as a result of the assault. Through investigation, it has been determined that a physical altercation took place at a large house party at East Water Street, Lansford Borough. After the victim was stabbed, police said a bystander fired two rounds from a firearm in an unknown direction that caused the crowd of people to flee the scene. This investigation is ongoing. The United Auto Workers union has overwhelmingly ratified a new contract with Ford and Stellantis. The contracts are similar to the UAW deal with General Motors that will raise pay significantly across the industry. Nearly 70% of union workers at both Ford and Stellantis voted in favor of the deal. GM workers narrowly approved a similar contract earlier this month. The agreements run through April 2028. They will end contentious talks that led to six-week-long strikes at all three automakers. ATLANTA (AP) Reactions to the death of Rosalynn Carter, former first lady and global humanitarian: President Joe Biden said the Carters brought grace to the White House. He had this great integrity, still does. And she did too, Biden told reporters as he was boarding Air Force One to leave Norfolk, Virginia on Sunday night. God bless them. Biden said he spoke to the family and was told that Jimmy Carter was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. Later the White House released an official joint statement from the president and first lady Jill Biden saying that Carter inspired the nation. She was a champion for equal rights and opportunities for women and girls; an advocate for mental health and wellness for every person; and a supporter of the often unseen and uncompensated caregivers of our children, aging loved ones, and people with disabilities, the statement said. Former President George W. Bush called Carter a woman of dignity and strength. There was no greater advocate of President Carter, and their partnership set a wonderful example of loyalty and fidelity. She leaves behind an important legacy in her work to destigmatize mental health. We join our fellow citizens in sending our condolences to President Carter and their family, Bush said in a statement with former first lady Laura Bush. U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia said Carter would be remembered for her compassionate nature and passion for womens rights, human rights and mental health reform. The State of Georgia and the United States are better places because of Rosalynn Carter," Ossoff said in a statement. I join all Georgians and Americans in mourning her loss. May Rosalynn Carters memory be a blessing. Vice President Kamala Harris said Rosalynn Carter redefined the role of first lady and lived a life of service, faith, compassion, and moral leadership. As a humanitarian, a public servant, and a global leader, Mrs. Carter improved the lives of millions and inspired countless more to dedicate their lives to service. Her legacy will be a beacon for generations to come, Harris said in a statement. Former President Donald Trump said Carter earned the admiration and gratitude of the nation. From her days as a U.S. Navy spouse, to the Georgia Governors Mansion, to her tenure as First Lady of the United States, and her later work at the Carter Center and volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, she leaves behind a legacy of extraordinary accomplishment and national service, Trump said on Truth Social. In a separate statement, former first lady Melania Trump said Carter leaves behind a meaningful legacy. We will always remember her servants heart and devotion to her husband, family, and country. May she rest in peace, Melania Trump said on X, formerly Twitter. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Carter was a saintly and revered public servant driven by faith, compassion and kindness. On the world stage, First Lady Carter was a pioneer. Her historic, high-stakes diplomatic mission to Latin America in 1977 ushered in a new era of engagement in the region. Two years later, she became the first sitting First Lady to address the World Health Organization, where she argued that mental health was an aspect of physical health and that health is a human right, Pelosi said in a statement offering condolences to the Carter family. Bill and Hillary Clinton called Carter a champion of human dignity. Thanks to her mental health advocacy, more people live with better care and less stigma. Because of her early leadership on childhood immunization, millions of Americans have grown up healthier. And through her decades of work at the Carter Center and with Habitat for Humanity, she spread hope, health, and democracy across the globe, the former president and former secretary of state said in a joint statement. Rosalynn will be forever remembered as the embodiment of a life lived with purpose. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens called Carter the model for the modern day First Lady and praised her work promoting mental health awareness. She never stopped advocating for mental health or the Equal Rights Amendment, Dickens said in a statement. "The city of Atlanta joins all of Georgia and mourners around the world as we honor the memory of First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Former first lady Michelle Obama said Rosalynn Carter sometimes offered advice during their periodic lunches at the White House. She reminded me to make the role of First Lady my own, just like she did. Ill always remain grateful for her support and her generosity," Obama said in a statement. Today, Barack and I join the world in celebrating the remarkable legacy of a First Lady, philanthropist, and advocate who dedicated her life to lifting up others. Her life is a reminder that no matter who we are, our legacies are best measured not in awards or accolades, but in the lives we touch. Habitat For Humanity, the Georgia-based charity that the Carters worked for tirelessly, said its members were saddened by the former first lady's passing. She was a compassionate and committed champion of #HabitatforHumanity and worked fiercely to help families around the world, the nonprofit said on X. Carter's legacy will be a source of pride for her home state, said U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, the chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia. Georgia Democrats join our entire state, nation, and the world in mourning the loss of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter an extraordinary humanitarian, fierce mental health advocate, and beloved daughter of Georgia," Williams said. The Carter Center said it was grieving the passing of its co-founder. She was a partner in good deeds with her husband, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, as they traversed the globe to strengthen democracy, resolve conflicts, advance human rights, and eliminate debilitating diseases after their time in the White House, the center said in a statement. In lieu of flowers, Carter requested that those wishing to honor her memory do so through contributions to the Carter Centers Mental Health Program or the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers, the statement said. DETROIT The United Auto Workers union overwhelmingly ratified new contracts with Ford and Stellantis, that along with a similar deal with General Motors will raise pay across the industry, force automakers to absorb higher costs and help reshape the auto business as it shifts away from gasoline-fueled vehicles. Workers at Stellantis, the maker of Jeep, Dodge and Ram vehicles, voted 68.8% in favor of the deal. Their approval brought to a close a contentious labor dispute that included name-calling and a series of punishing strikes that imposed high costs on the companies and led to significant gains in pay and benefits for UAW workers. The deal at Stellantis passed by a roughly 10,000 vote margin, with ballot counts ending Saturday afternoon. Workers at Ford voted 69.3% in favor of the pact, which passed with nearly a 15,000-vote margin in balloting that ended early Saturday. Earlier this week, GM workers narrowly approved a similar contract. The agreements, which run through April 2028, will end contentious talks that began last summer and led to six-week-long strikes at all three automakers. Shawn Fain, the pugnacious new UAW leader, branded the companies enemies of the UAW who were led by overpaid CEOs, declaring the days of union cooperation with the automakers were over. After summerlong negotiations failed to produce a deal, Fain kicked off strikes on Sept. 15 at one assembly plant at each company. The union later extended the strike to parts warehouses and other factories to intensify pressure on the automakers until tentative agreements were reached in late October. The new contract agreements were widely seen as a victory for the UAW. The companies agreed to dramatically raise pay for top-scale assembly plant workers, with increases and cost-of-living adjustments that would translate into 33% wage gains. Top assembly plant workers are to receive immediate 11% raises and will earn roughly $42 an hour when the contracts expire in April of 2028. Under the agreements, the automakers also ended many of the multiple tiers of wages they had used to pay different workers. They also agreed in principle to bring new electric-vehicle battery plants into the national union contract. This provision will give the UAW an opportunity to unionize the EV battery plants plants, which will represent a rising share of industry jobs in the years ahead. "I think this is a huge win for the UAW that they got all three contracts ratified," said Art Wheaton, director of labor studies at Cornell University. "It's lifting the boats of all or many autoworkers." Three non-union, foreign automakers in the United States Honda, Toyota and Hyundai quickly responded to the UAW contract by raising wages for their factory workers. They did so after Fain said the UAW would mount an aggressive effort to unionize their plants. He also said the union would try to recruit workers at Tesla. Foreign automakers argued in the past that their workers earn about the same as UAW members, negating the need for a union. They also accused the UAW of forcing GM and the former Chrysler into bankruptcy in 2009 and of engaging in corruption after federal prosecutors broke up a wide-ranging bribery and embezzlement scandal starting in 2017. But with Fain's election and the new contracts, the union "cured or readjusted all of that rhetoric," Wheaton said. While wages at nonunion factories may be nearly equal, he said, UAW workers receive far better health care and retirement benefits, which is likely to be attractive to workers at nonunion plants as they age. Contracts with the auto companies should also lead to higher wages at auto-parts supply companies and in other industries, Wheaton said. "The union's got way more power" because of the deals, said Mark McGill, a 67-year-old worker at Ford's assembly plant in Wayne, Michigan, where employees went on strike for the entire six weeks. "Look at everybody now. People want to unionize." McGill, a 28-year Ford veteran who helps assemble Ford Bronco SUVs and Ranger pickup trucks, said he is pleased he'll be earning $42 an hour by the contract's end. He also is happy Fain's negotiators were able to persuade Ford to pay workers about $100 a day for the time they were on strike. Under the settlement, new hires and temporary workers will receive much larger raises than longtime assembly plant workers, with some more than doubling their pay. That issue nearly sank the contract at GM. Wheaton noted that raising wages for the lowest-paid workers has been a focus of the union movement in the U.S. for the past year. All three automakers reported millions in lost revenue from the strikes and said they would absorb at least some of the increased costs of the wage increases in a competitive market that makes raising prices difficult. John Lawler, Ford's chief financial officer, said its deal would raise labor costs by $850 to $900 per vehicle. All three companies, which amassed almost $250 billion in reported profits in their North American operations over the past decade, said they already cut other costs in preparation for the UAW settlements. Michelle Krebs, an analyst at Cox Automotive, said a slowing U.S. auto market and already inflated prices that have made new vehicles unaffordable for many people will make it hard for companies to charge more. Cox forecasters foresee flat U.S. auto sales next year. Slowing demand but rising factory output is likely to produce more discounts, Krebs said. In addition, auto loans on average are hovering around 10%, a rate that will further slow auto sales by raising monthly payments. The union's success in securing significant wage gains could provide a political boost to President Joe Biden, who visited workers on a Detroit-area picket line and traveled to Belvidere, Illinois, Cornell's Wheaton said. There, the union won a commitment from Stellantis to reopen a shuttered factory and even add an EV battery plant. Biden, the first president in memory to visit a union picket line, has portrayed himself as a champion of the working class who himself emerged from a blue-collar background in Scranton, Pennsylvania. The strikes, Wheaton noted, didn't hurt the economy yet resulted in higher wages for middle class workers whose votes Biden needs as he seeks a second term. SACRAMENTO, California Two security guards were injured during a pro-Palestinian protest that canceled meetings and events at a California Democratic convention in Sacramento. California Democratic Party chairman Rusty Hicks acknowledged he was "both deeply saddened and disappointed" by the protests, mostly by non-delegates, encouraging party members to "reconnect with one another" and "embrace our collective cause." BIDEN'S LATEST PLAN TO DRIVE PRICES EVEN HIGHER "Delegates and participants were temporarily unable to freely move about the Convention Center, two young security agents sustained minor injuries, and attendees particularly our Jewish delegates and guests were openly intimidated and harassed," Hicks said Sunday during the 2023 endorsing convention's last session. "As part of our decision to reconvene here today, the party has already initiated a thorough investigation of yesterday's event and will take appropriate action," he added. "Any delegate who actively participated in or aided in the furtherance of those activities and events in violation of our party's code of conduct will be held accountable according to the party's bylaws." Hicks underscored that exercising a constitutionally-protected right to free speech and freedom of expression "with violence, intimidation, harassment, or bullying has no place in our party or in our communities." "Antisemitism and Islamophobia have no place in our party or in our communities," he said. "We condemn acts of violence that bring harm to our neighbors and divide us from one another both here at home and abroad." The Sacramento Police Department told the Washington Examiner there were about 2,500 protesters at the "peak" of the demonstration. Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER "No arrests were made, and there were no reports of vandalism," SPD's public information officer said. Protesters interrupted the convention's United States Senate candidate forum with Reps. Adam Schiff, Katie Porter, and Barbara Lee (D-CA) on Saturday afternoon, before merging with a separate demonstration down the street. Protesters later returned to the Safe Credit Union Convention Center in the evening and were able to get past security to occupy common spaces and meeting halls, causing organizers to cancel caucus gatherings. Original Location: Security guards injured in pro-Palestinian protests at California Democratic convention Washington Examiner Videos Great West Life Assurance Co. Can lessened its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT Free Report) by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,364,732 shares of the healthcare product makers stock after selling 25,414 shares during the period. Great West Life Assurance Co. Cans holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $149,555,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 97,996.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 2,101,555,797 shares of the healthcare product makers stock worth $229,111,613,000 after purchasing an additional 2,099,413,455 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 38,966,499 shares of the healthcare product makers stock worth $4,278,132,000 after purchasing an additional 4,886,954 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 31,196,788 shares of the healthcare product makers stock worth $3,151,497,000 after purchasing an additional 598,164 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 104,649.4% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 30,247,436 shares of the healthcare product makers stock worth $3,320,866,000 after acquiring an additional 30,218,560 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 40.5% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 20,820,152 shares of the healthcare product makers stock worth $2,108,249,000 after acquiring an additional 6,003,997 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.70% of the companys stock. Get Abbott Laboratories alerts: Insider Buying and Selling at Abbott Laboratories In other Abbott Laboratories news, Director Daniel J. Starks sold 50,000 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.05, for a total value of $4,702,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,725,316 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $632,515,969.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several research firms have recently commented on ABT. Citigroup reduced their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $122.00 in a report on Monday, October 2nd. UBS Group reduced their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $118.00 in a report on Thursday, October 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $112.00 in a report on Monday, October 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Monday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $123.00 to $110.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $117.47. Read Our Latest Report on Abbott Laboratories Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 0.7 % ABT traded down $0.71 on Friday, hitting $99.55. The company had a trading volume of 6,069,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,148,285. The firm has a market cap of $172.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.86, a PEG ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The companys fifty day moving average price is $96.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $102.99. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $89.67 and a 1 year high of $115.83. Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $10.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.82 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.15% and a net margin of 12.92%. Abbott Laboratoriess revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year. Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 13th were given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 12th. Abbott Laboratoriess dividend payout ratio is currently 69.39%. Abbott Laboratories Profile (Free Report) Abbott Laboratories, together with its subsidiaries, discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells health care products worldwide. It operates in four segments: Established Pharmaceutical Products, Diagnostic Products, Nutritional Products, and Medical Devices. The Established Pharmaceutical Products segment provides generic pharmaceuticals for the treatment of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, irritable bowel syndrome or biliary spasm, intrahepatic cholestasis or depressive symptoms, gynecological disorder, hormone replacement therapy, dyslipidemia, hypertension, hypothyroidism, Meniere's disease and vestibular vertigo, pain, fever, inflammation, and migraine, as well as provides anti-infective clarithromycin, influenza vaccine, and products to regulate physiological rhythm of the colon. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ABT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Abbott Laboratories Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Abbott Laboratories and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of Hold from the nine research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $25.20. Several brokerages recently weighed in on CUZ. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Cousins Properties from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, August 25th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Cousins Properties from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an underperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 18th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Cousins Properties from $28.00 to $26.00 in a report on Monday, October 9th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Cousins Properties in a research note on Monday, September 11th. They set an underweight rating and a $19.00 target price for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cousins Properties from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 7th. Get Cousins Properties alerts: View Our Latest Report on CUZ Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cousins Properties Cousins Properties Stock Up 1.0 % Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brookfield Corp ON acquired a new stake in shares of Cousins Properties during the first quarter valued at $32,869,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Cousins Properties during the 4th quarter valued at $38,681,000. Centersquare Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Cousins Properties by 52.2% during the second quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 3,347,780 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $76,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,148,313 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Cousins Properties by 114.1% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,143,922 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $43,672,000 after purchasing an additional 1,142,746 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Cousins Properties by 14.1% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,217,746 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $331,093,000 after acquiring an additional 1,015,078 shares in the last quarter. Shares of NYSE CUZ opened at $19.98 on Friday. The businesss 50 day moving average is $19.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.33. Cousins Properties has a 52-week low of $17.40 and a 52-week high of $28.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market cap of $3.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.86, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.21. Cousins Properties Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.41%. Cousins Propertiess payout ratio is 216.95%. About Cousins Properties (Get Free Report Cousins Properties is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company, based in Atlanta, GA and acting through its operating partnership, Cousins Properties LP, primarily invests in Class A office buildings located in high-growth Sun Belt markets. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Cousins Properties Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Cousins Properties and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of Hold by the five brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $145.83. PKG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $142.00 to $140.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $122.00 to $137.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $156.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, September 21st. StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 25th. Get Packaging Co. of America alerts: Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Packaging Co. of America Packaging Co. of America Trading Down 0.1 % NYSE PKG opened at $155.31 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $13.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.87, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.83. The companys fifty day simple moving average is $152.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.94. The company has a current ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Packaging Co. of America has a 52 week low of $122.20 and a 52 week high of $159.25. Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.99 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 10.04% and a return on equity of 21.30%. The firms revenue was down 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.83 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.35 EPS for the current fiscal year. Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 25th were given a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 22nd. Packaging Co. of Americas dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.54%. Insider Transactions at Packaging Co. of America In related news, Director Paul T. Stecko sold 9,737 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.99, for a total transaction of $1,499,400.63. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,765 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,622.35. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Kent A. Pflederer sold 4,000 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction on Monday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.93, for a total transaction of $603,720.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 54,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,217,685.71. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul T. Stecko sold 9,737 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.99, for a total value of $1,499,400.63. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,765 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,889,622.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the companys stock. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Packaging Co. of America Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PKG. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 5,152 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $791,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming grew its position in Packaging Co. of America by 33.3% in the second quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 284 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 0.9% in the second quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 7,998 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $1,057,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,316 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $1,277,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 19,794 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $3,039,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 90.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Packaging Co. of America Company Profile (Get Free Report Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through Packaging and Paper segments. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Packaging Co. of America Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Packaging Co. of America and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Shares of CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of Moderate Buy from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $47.00. Several brokerages have weighed in on CAVA. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on CAVA Group from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on CAVA Group from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 16th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of CAVA Group from $54.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 3rd. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of CAVA Group from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 16th. Finally, Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of CAVA Group in a research note on Thursday, September 14th. They set a hold rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Get CAVA Group alerts: Read Our Latest Research Report on CAVA Group CAVA Group Trading Down 0.5 % NYSE CAVA opened at $34.12 on Friday. The businesss fifty day simple moving average is $32.76. CAVA Group has a one year low of $29.05 and a one year high of $58.10. CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 7th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.07. CAVA Group had a negative net margin of 1.12% and a negative return on equity of 13.72%. The business had revenue of $175.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $171.49 million. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CAVA Group will post 0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year. Institutional Inflows and Outflows Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CAVA. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in CAVA Group during the second quarter valued at $40,000. Cypress Wealth Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CAVA Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $202,000. Glassman Wealth Services bought a new stake in shares of CAVA Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of CAVA Group during the second quarter worth about $27,229,000. Finally, EFG Asset Management North America Corp. bought a new position in shares of CAVA Group in the second quarter worth approximately $674,000. 61.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. About CAVA Group (Get Free Report CAVA Group, Inc owns and operates a chain of Mediterranean restaurants. The company offers salads, dips, spreads, toppings, and dressings. It sells its products through whole food markets and grocery stores. The company also provides online food ordering services. Cava Group, Inc was founded in 2006 and is based in Washington, District of Columbia. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for CAVA Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for CAVA Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Alithya Group (TSE:ALYA Free Report) had its price target cut by Desjardins from C$3.15 to C$2.70 in a research note published on Wednesday, BayStreet.CA reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock. A number of other research firms have also weighed in on ALYA. Industrial Alliance Securities set a C$3.50 price objective on Alithya Group and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 5th. Cormark lowered their price objective on Alithya Group from C$3.50 to C$2.50 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, National Bankshares lowered their price objective on Alithya Group from C$2.75 to C$2.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Get Alithya Group alerts: Check Out Our Latest Analysis on ALYA Alithya Group Stock Performance About Alithya Group TSE ALYA opened at C$1.66 on Wednesday. The stocks fifty day moving average is C$2.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$2.29. The firm has a market capitalization of C$146.43 million, a P/E ratio of -4.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 79.63, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 0.74. Alithya Group has a fifty-two week low of C$1.61 and a fifty-two week high of C$3.00. (Get Free Report) Alithya Group Inc provides strategy and digital technology services in Canada, the United States, and Europe. The company's business strategy services include strategic consulting, digital transformation, organizational performance, and enterprise architecture services. It also provides application services, such as digital applications DevOps, legacy systems modernization, control and software engineering, cloud infrastructure, quality assurance, and automated testing; enterprise solutions comprising enterprise resource planning, corporate performance management, customer relationship management, and human capital management; and data and analytics solutions, including business intelligence, data management, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning, as well as internet of things. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Alithya Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Alithya Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM Free Report) by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,278,025 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after selling 27,672 shares during the quarter. Exxon Mobil accounts for 0.7% of ProShare Advisors LLCs investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.06% of Exxon Mobil worth $244,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in XOM. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its stake in Exxon Mobil by 100,169.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 1,032,339,935 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $110,718,458,000 after purchasing an additional 1,031,310,373 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Exxon Mobil by 140,855.3% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 123,341,568 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $13,604,575,000 after purchasing an additional 123,254,064 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter valued at $5,226,390,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Exxon Mobil by 16.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 47,592,122 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $5,218,954,000 after purchasing an additional 6,580,247 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 188.6% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,740,551 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $327,573,000 after acquiring an additional 5,711,599 shares during the last quarter. 58.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Exxon Mobil alerts: Insiders Place Their Bets In other Exxon Mobil news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 1,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $172,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 27,772 shares in the company, valued at $3,193,780. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Exxon Mobil news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 1,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $172,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 27,772 shares in the company, valued at $3,193,780. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey W. Ubben purchased 250,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, November 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $105.97 per share, with a total value of $26,492,500.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,077,000 shares of the companys stock, valued at $220,099,690. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the companys stock. Exxon Mobil Stock Performance Shares of NYSE:XOM traded up $2.50 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $104.96. The companys stock had a trading volume of 22,991,823 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,943,852. The stock has a market capitalization of $415.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.42, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 1.07. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $110.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $108.05. Exxon Mobil Co. has a fifty-two week low of $98.02 and a fifty-two week high of $120.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.42. Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 27th. The oil and gas company reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $2.36 by ($0.09). Exxon Mobil had a return on equity of 20.72% and a net margin of 11.56%. The firm had revenue of $90.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.41 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.45 earnings per share. The firms quarterly revenue was down 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 9.3 earnings per share for the current year. Exxon Mobil Increases Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 14th. This is an increase from Exxon Mobils previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. Exxon Mobils dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.74%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In XOM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Redburn Partners upgraded Exxon Mobil from a sell rating to a neutral rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, August 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Exxon Mobil in a report on Tuesday, October 17th. They set an outperform rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Friday, September 22nd. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Exxon Mobil in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a hold rating for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Thursday, October 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned 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 $129.25. View Our Latest Research Report on XOM Exxon Mobil Company Profile (Free Report) Exxon Mobil Corporation engages in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas in the United States and internationally. It operates through Upstream, Energy Products, Chemical Products, and Specialty Products segments. The Upstream segment explores for and produces crude oil and natural gas. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding XOM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Exxon Mobil Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Exxon Mobil and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE Free Report) by 7.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,229,319 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after acquiring an additional 451,990 shares during the quarter. Pfizer makes up 0.5% of Great West Life Assurance Co. Cans investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can owned 0.11% of Pfizer worth $229,633,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Front Street Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 4.3% in the first quarter. Front Street Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,168 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Madison Wealth Management increased its position in Pfizer by 0.6% during the first quarter. Madison Wealth Management now owns 42,810 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $1,747,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Capital Planning Advisors LLC increased its position in Pfizer by 1.8% during the second quarter. Capital Planning Advisors LLC now owns 16,091 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its position in Pfizer by 1.3% during the first quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 21,268 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $868,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Pfizer by 0.4% during the first quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 79,905 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $3,260,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.05% of the companys stock. Get Pfizer alerts: Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades PFE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Pfizer from a hold rating to a buy rating and increased their target price for the stock from $38.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, October 16th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Pfizer from $44.00 to $33.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 16th. TheStreet cut shares of Pfizer from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a report on Monday, September 25th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $42.00 to $35.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 16th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $42.50. Pfizer Price Performance Shares of Pfizer stock traded up $0.15 on Friday, hitting $29.92. The companys stock had a trading volume of 27,082,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,586,170. Pfizer Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.93 and a 52-week high of $54.93. The company has a quick ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $31.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.25. The company has a market capitalization of $168.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.63. Pfizer (NYSE:PFE Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 31st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.17) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.32) by $0.15. Pfizer had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 16.72%. The firm had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.77 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Pfizer Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.48%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 9th. Pfizers dividend payout ratio is currently 89.62%. Pfizer Company Profile (Free Report) Pfizer Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, including cardiovascular metabolic, migraine, and women's health under the Eliquis, Nurtec ODT/Vydura, and the Premarin family brands; infectious diseases with unmet medical needs under the Prevnar family, Nimenrix, FSME/IMMUN-TicoVac, and Trumenba brands; and COVID-19 prevention and treatment, and potential future mRNA and antiviral products under the Comirnaty and Paxlovid brands. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Pfizer Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Pfizer and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust (TSE:INO.UN Free Report) had its price target lowered by Desjardins from C$3.00 to C$1.25 in a research note released on Wednesday morning, BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage currently has a hold rating on the stock. Separately, National Bankshares decreased their target price on Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust from C$3.75 to C$3.50 in a research note on Tuesday, July 18th. Get Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust alerts: Get Our Latest Analysis on Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust Trading Down 3.2 % About Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust TSE:INO.UN opened at C$1.22 on Wednesday. Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust has a 1 year low of C$0.69 and a 1 year high of C$4.95. The stock has a market cap of C$39.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.14 and a beta of 1.70. The business has a fifty day moving average of C$2.59 and a 200-day moving average of C$3.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 78.74, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.44. (Get Free Report) Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust is an unincorporated, open-ended real estate investment trust established pursuant to a declaration of trust under the laws of the Province of Ontario. The REIT has been created for the purpose of acquiring and owning office properties primarily located in France and Germany but also opportunistically in other European countries where assets meet the REIT's investment criteria. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Inovalis Real Estate Investment Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Premium Brands (TSE:PBH Free Report) had its price target trimmed by Desjardins from C$124.00 to C$110.00 in a report published on Wednesday, BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock. Desjardins also issued estimates for Premium Brands Q3 2023 earnings at $1.34 EPS. Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Premium Brands from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, August 15th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Premium Brands from C$117.00 to C$124.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 15th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Premium Brands from C$129.00 to C$130.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, October 23rd. National Bank Financial lowered shares of Premium Brands from an outperform overweight rating to a sector perform overweight rating in a report on Monday, August 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Premium Brands from C$110.00 to C$103.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a 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 C$116.33. Get Premium Brands alerts: Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Premium Brands Premium Brands Stock Up 0.4 % Premium Brands Announces Dividend Shares of TSE PBH opened at C$92.34 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 152.95. Premium Brands has a 12 month low of C$79.00 and a 12 month high of C$113.60. The firm has a market capitalization of C$4.12 billion, a PE ratio of 36.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of C$94.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$100.58. The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 28th. Premium Brandss dividend payout ratio is currently 120.78%. Premium Brands Company Profile (Get Free Report) Premium Brands Holdings Corporation, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and distributes food products primarily in Canada and the United States. It operates in two segments, Specialty Foods and Premium Food Distribution. The company provides processed meat, deli products, meat snacks, beef jerky and halal, sandwiches, pastries, specialty and gourmet products, entrees, panini, wraps, subs, hamburgers, burgers, salads and kettle products, muffins, breads, pastas, and baking and sushi products. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Premium Brands Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Premium Brands and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Former President Donald Trump said over the weekend that he will withdraw the United States from the Pacific trade deal currently being advanced by President Joe Biden. Trump made the comments at a campaign event in Fort Dodge, Iowa, on Saturday evening, as Biden returned from unveiling the trade agreement at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in California. The former president told supporters that the new deal, which is still being worked out, would cause U.S. manufacturing jobs to be shipped overseas. THE BATTLE TO KEEP SAN FRANCISCO'S STREETS CLEAN AS OFFICIALS INCREASED EFFORTS FOR APEC "Under the next administration... the Biden plan for 'TPP Two' will be dead on day one," Trump said, describing Biden's Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity as a new version of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which the former president pulled the U.S. out of in January 2017. "It's worse than the first one," he said of the new deal. "Threatening to pulverize farmers and manufacturers with another massive globalist monstrosity designed to turbocharge outsourcing to Asia." CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. Talks on the IPEF kicked into overdrive this past week as Biden made the framework public while leaders from pan-Asian countries gathered in San Francisco. Still, there have been hiccups in the talks, such as Vietnam and Indonesia refusing to commit to certain environmental and labor standards. On the electoral front, Biden has struggled in recent 2024 polls against Trump. While both candidates are plagued by low approval ratings, especially among independents, Trump has begun polling ahead of the incumbent, Biden, in some surveys. Original Location: Trump pledges to undo Biden administration plan for Asia trade deal Washington Examiner Videos Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL Free Report) by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 61,754 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 2,555 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLCs holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $4,739,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CL. Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 68.0% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 692 shares of the companys stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 278.4% during the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 700 shares of the companys stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.36% of the companys stock. Get Colgate-Palmolive alerts: Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 0.5 % NYSE:CL opened at $75.58 on Friday. The firms fifty day moving average is $72.90 and its 200-day moving average is $75.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 21.40, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.16. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52 week low of $67.62 and a 52 week high of $82.09. The firm has a market cap of $62.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.46. Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend Colgate-Palmolive ( NYSE:CL Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 27th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.06. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 8.29% and a return on equity of 533.40%. The company had revenue of $4.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.74 EPS. The companys quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.21 earnings per share for the current year. The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, October 23rd were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 20th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.54%. Colgate-Palmolives payout ratio is presently 100.00%. Insider Activity at Colgate-Palmolive In related news, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Friday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.11, for a total transaction of $225,330.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $401,613.17. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 48,627 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.37, for a total transaction of $3,567,762.99. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 246,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,120,115.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.11, for a total transaction of $225,330.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $401,613.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 93,153 shares of company stock worth $6,851,466 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the companys stock. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CL shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a report on Monday, October 30th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $85.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 11th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a hold rating to a buy rating and decreased their price target for the company from $85.00 to $81.00 in a report on Monday, October 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $82.00 to $76.00 in a report on Thursday, October 12th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $82.57. View Our Latest Stock Report on CL Colgate-Palmolive Company Profile (Free Report) Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells consumer products worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Oral, Personal and Home Care; and Pet Nutrition. The Oral, Personal and Home Care segment offers toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwash, bar and liquid hand soaps, shower gels, shampoos, conditioners, deodorants and antiperspirants, skin health products, dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, and other related items. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Colgate-Palmolive Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Colgate-Palmolive and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its holdings in iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF (BATS:EFAV Free Report) by 16.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,170 shares of the companys stock after selling 13,555 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC owned about 0.06% of iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF worth $4,534,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in EFAV. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF by 0.9% in the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 57,915 shares of the companys stock valued at $4,178,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF by 4.5% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,740 shares of the companys stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF by 42.1% in the first quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 4,721 shares of the companys stock worth $341,000 after buying an additional 1,398 shares in the last quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF by 1.6% in the first quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC now owns 11,487 shares of the companys stock worth $827,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF by 6.5% in the first quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 14,359 shares of the companys stock worth $1,036,000 after buying an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. Get iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF alerts: iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF Trading Up 1.1 % BATS:EFAV opened at $66.80 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.01 and a beta of 0.60. iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF has a 12 month low of $64.68 and a 12 month high of $76.51. The businesss 50-day moving average is $65.34 and its 200 day moving average is $67.05. iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF Profile The iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF (EFAV) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI EAFE Minimum Volatility (USD) index. The fund tracks an index of developed-market equities, ex-US and Canada, selected and weighted to create a low volatility portfolio subject to constraints including sector exposure. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EFAV? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF (BATS:EFAV Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares MSCI EAFE Min Vol Factor ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Private Advisor Group LLC cut its holdings in Carrier Global Co. (NYSE:CARR Free Report) by 26.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 95,446 shares of the companys stock after selling 33,659 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLCs holdings in Carrier Global were worth $4,910,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Carrier Global during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Carrier Global by 121.2% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 553 shares of the companys stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the period. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Carrier Global during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. WealthPLAN Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Carrier Global during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Nemes Rush Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Carrier Global during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. 91.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Get Carrier Global alerts: Carrier Global Trading Up 1.0 % NYSE CARR opened at $53.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $44.65 billion, a PE ratio of 37.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $52.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.90. Carrier Global Co. has a 52 week low of $40.28 and a 52 week high of $60.04. Carrier Global Announces Dividend Carrier Global ( NYSE:CARR Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $5.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.89 billion. Carrier Global had a net margin of 5.43% and a return on equity of 26.60%. Carrier Globals revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Carrier Global Co. will post 2.71 EPS for the current fiscal year. The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.185 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 26th. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. Carrier Globals payout ratio is 52.48%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Carrier Global from $54.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Carrier Global from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. Wolfe Research cut shares of Carrier Global from a peer perform rating to an underperform rating and set a $56.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, October 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Carrier Global from a neutral rating to an underweight rating and set a $53.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, October 6th. Finally, Mizuho cut shares of Carrier Global from a buy rating to a neutral rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $63.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Carrier Global has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $57.63. Get Our Latest Analysis on CARR Carrier Global Company Profile (Free Report) Carrier Global Corporation provides heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, fire, security, and building automation technologies worldwide. It operates through three segments: HVAC, Refrigeration, and Fire & Security. The HVAC segment provides products, controls, services, and solutions to meet the heating, cooling, and ventilation needs of residential and commercial customers. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CARR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Carrier Global Co. (NYSE:CARR Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Carrier Global Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Carrier Global and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Profund Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY Free Report) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,909 shares of the companys stock after selling 195 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLCs holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $6,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the first quarter valued at $107,000. Roundview Capital LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% in the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 2,056 shares of the companys stock valued at $589,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the first quarter valued at about $210,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 9.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 53,052 shares of the companys stock valued at $15,193,000 after purchasing an additional 4,774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barometer Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the first quarter valued at about $561,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the companys stock. Get Eli Lilly and Company alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an overweight rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Wednesday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $673.00 to $722.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, November 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $615.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, October 9th. Credit Suisse Group upped their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $490.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 9th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $600.00 to $700.00 in a research note on Friday, October 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $557.00. Insider Buying and Selling at Eli Lilly and Company In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 670 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $571.10, for a total value of $382,637.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,708 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,688,738.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 670 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $571.10, for a total value of $382,637.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,708 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,688,738.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 600 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.51, for a total value of $327,906.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,378 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,939,130.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 536,138 shares of company stock valued at $20,881,627,358 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the companys stock. Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance Eli Lilly and Company stock traded up $2.96 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $591.71. The stock had a trading volume of 2,628,620 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,789,903. The company has a 50-day moving average of $577.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $509.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a market cap of $561.72 billion, a PE ratio of 107.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.33. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $309.20 and a fifty-two week high of $629.97. Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 14th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. Eli Lilly and Companys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.88%. About Eli Lilly and Company (Free Report) Eli Lilly and Company discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. It offers Basaglar, Humalog, Humalog Mix 75/25, Humalog U-100, Humalog U-200, Humalog Mix 50/50, insulin lispro, insulin lispro protamine, insulin lispro mix 75/25, Humulin, Humulin 70/30, Humulin N, Humulin R, and Humulin U-500 for diabetes; and Jardiance, Trajenta, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LLY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Eli Lilly and Company Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Eli Lilly and Company and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com cut shares of Prudential (NYSE:PUK Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning. Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Prudential from GBX 1,630 ($20.02) to GBX 1,500 ($18.42) in a research note on Friday, September 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Prudential from GBX 1,540 ($18.91) to GBX 1,460 ($17.93) in a research note on Tuesday, October 10th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Prudential from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a report on Monday, September 11th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Prudential from GBX 1,575 ($19.34) to GBX 1,610 ($19.77) in a report on Thursday, September 7th. Get Prudential alerts: Get Our Latest Analysis on Prudential Prudential Price Performance Prudential Cuts Dividend PUK stock opened at $23.67 on Wednesday. Prudential has a 12 month low of $19.90 and a 12 month high of $34.37. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.38. The business also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 8th were paid a $0.1252 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 7th. This represents a yield of 1.5%. Institutional Inflows and Outflows Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PUK. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in Prudential by 77.2% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 3,692,569 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $73,556,000 after buying an additional 1,608,893 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can acquired a new position in shares of Prudential during the 2nd quarter worth $24,230,000. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential during the 2nd quarter worth $15,224,000. Causeway Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Prudential by 42.1% during the 3rd quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC now owns 1,328,428 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $29,119,000 after purchasing an additional 393,374 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential during the 1st quarter worth $12,254,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 1.90% of the companys stock. About Prudential (Get Free Report) Prudential plc, through its subsidiaries, provides life and health insurance, and retirement and asset management solutions to individuals in Asia, and Africa. It offers health and protection, as well as non- participating savings products, such as protection and investment-linked products. The company also provides insurance against common critical illnesses; property and casualty; and tropical disease protection, such as dengue, malaria, and measles. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Prudential Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Prudential and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning. Several other research firms have also issued reports on DGX. TheStreet lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics from a b- rating to a c rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 24th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $136.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 11th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $142.00 to $130.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley reissued an equal weight rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Thursday, August 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, November 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $146.09. Get Quest Diagnostics alerts: Check Out Our Latest Analysis on DGX Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.0 % Shares of DGX opened at $134.89 on Wednesday. Quest Diagnostics has a 52 week low of $119.59 and a 52 week high of $158.34. The firm has a market cap of $15.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.25 and a beta of 0.92. The firms 50-day simple moving average is $126.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $132.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.12. Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.03. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.21% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.36 EPS. The businesss revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.71 earnings per share for the current year. Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 16th. Quest Diagnosticss payout ratio is currently 42.64%. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,014,030 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $1,917,961,000 after buying an additional 636,301 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 14,887.6% during the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,331,410 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $30,615,000 after buying an additional 4,302,510 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 5.6% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,414,514 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $416,093,000 after purchasing an additional 180,889 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 62.2% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,728,816 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $386,073,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,746 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 3.1% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,422,912 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $339,688,000 after purchasing an additional 72,447 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.76% of the companys stock. Quest Diagnostics Company Profile (Get Free Report) Quest Diagnostics Incorporated provides diagnostic testing, information, and services in the United States and internationally. The company develops and delivers diagnostic information services, such as routine testing, non-routine and advanced clinical testing, anatomic pathology testing, and other diagnostic information services. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Quest Diagnostics Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Quest Diagnostics and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com cut shares of Skyline Champion (NYSE:SKY Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning. A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Skyline Champion from $68.00 to $55.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 2nd. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Skyline Champion from $66.00 to $61.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 2nd. Wedbush reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Skyline Champion in a research note on Wednesday, September 27th. Finally, Craig Hallum raised their price target on shares of Skyline Champion from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Skyline Champion presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $67.40. Get Skyline Champion alerts: Get Our Latest Stock Report on Skyline Champion Skyline Champion Price Performance NYSE:SKY opened at $59.36 on Wednesday. Skyline Champion has a 52 week low of $48.20 and a 52 week high of $76.82. The company has a quick ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 4.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a PE ratio of 14.41 and a beta of 1.70. The stocks 50-day moving average price is $61.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $64.88. Skyline Champion (NYSE:SKY Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 31st. The company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.83 by ($0.01). Skyline Champion had a net margin of 11.86% and a return on equity of 18.98%. The business had revenue of $464.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $458.57 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.51 earnings per share. Skyline Champions revenue was down 42.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Skyline Champion will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year. Insiders Place Their Bets In other Skyline Champion news, Director Keith A. Anderson sold 5,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.26, for a total value of $366,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 238,098 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $17,443,059.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Keith A. Anderson sold 5,000 shares of Skyline Champion stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.26, for a total transaction of $366,300.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 238,098 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $17,443,059.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Timothy A. Burkhardt sold 4,113 shares of Skyline Champion stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.04, for a total transaction of $292,187.52. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 34,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,476,099.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,113 shares of company stock valued at $1,384,888 in the last ninety days. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Institutional Trading of Skyline Champion Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Skyline Champion in the first quarter worth $28,000. West Tower Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Skyline Champion in the second quarter worth $57,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Skyline Champion by 1,610.0% in the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,026 shares of the companys stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of Skyline Champion by 805.5% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,150 shares of the companys stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 1,023 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Skyline Champion by 8,505.3% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,635 shares of the companys stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 1,616 shares during the last quarter. Skyline Champion Company Profile (Get Free Report) Skyline Champion Corporation produces and sells factory-built housing in North America. The company offers manufactured and modular homes, park models RVs, accessory dwelling units, and modular buildings for the multi-family and hospitality sectors. It builds homes under the Skyline Homes, Champion Home Builders, Genesis Homes, Athens Park Models, Dutch Housing, Atlantic Homes, Excel Homes, Homes of Merit, New Era, Redman Homes, ScotBilt Homes, Shore Park, Silvercrest, and Titan Homes brands in the United States; and Moduline and SRI Homes brand names in western Canada. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Skyline Champion Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Skyline Champion and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Trust Investment Advisors increased its stake in Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX Free Report) by 13.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,997 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after buying an additional 1,454 shares during the period. Chevron accounts for about 1.5% of Trust Investment Advisors holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Trust Investment Advisors holdings in Chevron were worth $1,888,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its stake in shares of Chevron by 100,509.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 426,861,553 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $67,166,665,000 after buying an additional 426,437,277 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Chevron by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 32,906,060 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $5,906,309,000 after buying an additional 3,711,923 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Chevron by 104,997.3% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 24,490,824 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $4,395,858,000 after buying an additional 24,467,521 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Chevron by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,867,243 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $3,732,044,000 after purchasing an additional 199,759 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Chevron during the 4th quarter valued at $3,058,235,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.87% of the companys stock. Get Chevron alerts: Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several analysts have commented on CVX shares. Raymond James cut their target price on Chevron from $200.00 to $175.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 30th. HSBC increased their target price on Chevron from $180.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 9th. StockNews.com started coverage on Chevron in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a hold rating on the stock. Bank of America upgraded Chevron from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their target price for the company from $190.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, October 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an outperform rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Chevron in a research note on Tuesday, October 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $187.89. Chevron Stock Performance Shares of CVX stock traded up $2.69 on Friday, reaching $144.46. The stock had a trading volume of 11,077,904 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,759,151. Chevron Co. has a 1 year low of $140.74 and a 1 year high of $187.81. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $158.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $158.21. The stock has a market cap of $272.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.25. Chevron (NYSE:CVX Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 27th. The oil and gas company reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.70 by ($0.65). The company had revenue of $54.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $51.41 billion. Chevron had a net margin of 12.11% and a return on equity of 16.15%. Chevrons revenue for the quarter was down 18.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.56 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Chevron Co. will post 13.59 EPS for the current year. Chevron Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 11th. Investors of record on Friday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 16th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.18%. Chevrons dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.84%. Chevron Profile (Free Report) Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the integrated energy and chemicals operations in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment is involved in the exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas; liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; and processing, transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas, as well as a gas-to-liquids plant. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CVX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Chevron Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Chevron and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. * It is of utmost significance for leaders in Asia Pacific to figure out what they "should do to usher in another 'golden 30 years' for the region, and how we can bring out the best of APEC in this process," as Xi pointed out. * The importance of preserving peace across continents, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, deemed a powerhouse of the global economy. * Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries. SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) In the beautiful U.S. city of San Francisco, leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) members gathered on Friday, uniting in their commitment to deliver a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, inclusive, and predictable trade and investment environment. In the world today, changes on a scale unseen in a century are unfolding at an accelerating pace. The world economy faces multiple risks and challenges. The Asia-Pacific region, which is an engine of global growth, thus has greater responsibility. "We, the leaders of Asia-Pacific economies, must think very hard as to what kind of Asia-Pacific region we should have by the middle of this century, what we should do to usher in another 'golden 30 years' for the region, and how we can bring out the best of APEC in this process," said Chinese President Xi Jinping in a speech at the 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. China will continue to pursue high-quality development and high-standard opening up. Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries, he said. Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech titled "Staying True to APEC Founding Mission and Enhancing Unity and Cooperation to Jointly Promote High-Quality Growth in the Asia-Pacific" at the 30th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco, the United States, Nov. 17, 2023. [Xinhua/Li Xueren] "Golden 30 Years" "Since the establishment of the economic leaders' regular meeting mechanism, APEC has always stood at the global forefront of openness and development," said Xi. "It has played a robust role in promoting Asia-Pacific trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, economic growth and technological progress, and the flow of goods and people. It has helped create the 'Asia-Pacific miracle' that has staggered the world," he said. Over the past three decades, the Asia-Pacific has cut its average tariff rate from 17 percent to 5 percent and contributed 70 percent of global economic growth. Per capita income in the region has more than quadrupled, and one billion people have been lifted out of poverty, an important contribution to human progress and global sustainable development. As the world entered a new phase marked by turbulence and rapid change, accompanied by sluggish economic growth, it is of utmost significance for leaders in Asia Pacific to figure out what they "should do to usher in another 'golden 30 years' for the region, and how we can bring out the best of APEC in this process," as Xi pointed out. To achieve this, Xi offered a Chinese solution in which he called on leaders of the APEC member economies to stay committed to innovation-driven development, openness in development, green development and inclusive development that delivers benefits to all. As for China, Xi said his country is advancing the noble cause of building a great country and national rejuvenation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization. "Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries. I am ready to work with you for new success in Asia-Pacific cooperation and for another 'golden 30 years' of the region," Xi said. China's commitment to contributing to the modernization of all countries demonstrates a cooperative and inclusive mindset, said Rusa Bagirishya, a Rwandan expert in economic and political affairs. "By inviting all parties to participate in global development initiatives and advocating for unity and cooperation, China plays a vital role in creating a golden future for the Asia-Pacific," said Bagirishya. Bringing out the Best of Apec Since its inception, APEC has become a dynamic engine of economic growth and one of Asia Pacific's most important regional forums. Its 21 member economies are home to around 2.95 billion people, representing approximately 62 percent of world GDP and 48 percent of world trade in 2021. In an increasingly complex world full of challenges, how can we bring out the best of APEC to bolster economic growth and prosperity for the region? The answer is to further promote cooperation among APEC economies. "We must remain steadfast in our commitment to APEC's founding mission. We must respond to the calls of our times responsibly and meet global challenges together. We must fully deliver on the Putrajaya Vision of building an open, dynamic, resilient and peaceful Asia-Pacific community for the prosperity of all our people and future generations," Xi said. Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech titled "Staying True to APEC Founding Mission and Enhancing Unity and Cooperation to Jointly Promote High-Quality Growth in the Asia-Pacific" at the 30th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco, the United States, Nov. 17, 2023. [Xinhua/Li Xueren] For Egide Karuranga, a retired Rwandan professor of International Economics at the University of Virginia in the United States, Xi's words are significant as they remain committed to the founding mission of APEC while highlighting the importance of state-to-state relations. "Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region has always been at the forefront of global development, creating miracles. Currently, as the world is undergoing significant changes, Xi, in the speech, deeply analyzes and reflects on the responsibilities the Asia-Pacific region should undertake and how to respond to the call of the times. This demonstrates the image of a responsible major country in the region and the far-sightedness of regional leaders," Karuranga said. Commenting on Xi's call for unity and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region, Zoltan Kiszelly, director of the Center of Political Analyses at Hungary's Szazadveg Institute, noted the importance of preserving peace across continents, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, deemed a powerhouse of the global economy. "By offering cooperation on the basis of mutual respect and connectivity, not only the nations in the Asia-Pacific region but also those in other regions can benefit from the growth," he said. China's Contributions Addressing the 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, Xi called for staying committed to inclusive development that delivers benefits to all. Global development now faces severe challenges and the development divide is getting wider, said the Chinese president, adding that he had said on many occasions that "true development is development for all." As China celebrates 45 years of its reform and opening up this year, it will continue to pursue high-quality development and high-standard opening up. Chinese modernization will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernization of all countries, he said. Over the decades, China has achieved staggering economic success and has been sharing its development opportunities. Xi's speech reinforces China's commitment to promote multilateralism, which is essential for lower and middle-income countries. It is time for all countries to open up and improve collaboration, so no countries will be left behind, said Karuranga. Kin Phea, director general of the International Relations Institute of Cambodia, commended China for sharing the fruit of its peaceful development with the rest of the world. Kin said China has worked closely with like-minded international partners to maintain and restore confidence in multilateralism, build an open world economy, and create new pathways for inclusive and sustainable development. Meanwhile, China has also offered solutions fused with Chinese wisdom to address various challenges articulated through global initiatives, including the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Global Development Initiative (GDI), Global Security Initiative and Global Civilization Initiative. China welcomes participation by all parties in the GDI to deepen cooperation in poverty reduction, food security, industrialization and development financing and build a global community of development so that the fruits of modernization are shared by people across the world, Xi noted during his speech. He said that China will continue to support APEC in its economic and technical cooperation and work together with other member economies to make the "cake" of Asia-Pacific development bigger. China's global initiatives, including the BRI and the GDI, cover a wide range of regions spanning from Asia to Africa and Europe, and they are critical to expanding regional economic collaborations and boosting the global economy in general, said Selcuk Colakoglu, director of the Ankara-based Turkish Center for Asia-Pacific Studies. The China-proposed global initiatives, especially the BRI, have provided new opportunities for countries to develop and modernize. They play an essential role in building a new international relationship based on mutual respect, win-win cooperation and building a community with a shared future for humanity, said Konstantin Blokhin, an expert at the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. (Video reporters: Yang Shilong, Mu Xuyao, Liu Chunhui, Hu Yousong, Xie E, Mei Yuanlong, Ruan Shuai, Yin Jiajie; video editors: Ma Ruxuan, Wei Yin, Zhang Yuhong, Yang Zhixiang, Yin Le) (Source: Xinhua) Sundays clear skies are expected to become covered in clouds Monday, ahead of rain expected to hit the Baltimore metro area toward the middle of the week, according to the National Weather Service. Mild weather is expected to continue Sunday, with temperatures forecast to reach a high of 60 degrees. Clouds will start to roll in around Monday, when a high of 50 degrees is expected. Rain is forecast to begin Tuesday, continuing into Wednesday morning before clearing up in time for Thanksgiving Day. The precipitation is expected to be at its heaviest over Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning. On Thanksgiving Day, temperatures are expected to reach 53 degrees, and skies are anticipated to be clear and sunny. The National Security Council pushed back on a report that Israel and Hamas, along with the United States, are reportedly on the verge of a deal that would see dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza released in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting. Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the National Security Council, wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal." She was directly responding to a Washington Post report that said the sides had agreed a tentative deal whereby hostages would be released in batches every 24 hours for five days. There are currently 239 people held hostage in Gaza, with only five freed since the start of the conflict, while two have been found dead. The reported deal would allow for a significant increase in humanitarian assistance and fuel to enter Gaza The two sides have been at war since Hamas terrorists slaughtered around 1,200 Israelis on Oct. 7, would pause to allow hostages in batches every 24 hours for five days. News of the tentative deal comes just a day after it emerged President Joe Biden spoke with Amir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar, with the two leaders discussing the "urgent need" to address the hostage situation. Qatar, where Hamas operates a political office, has become a key player in the negotiations between Israel and Hamas. BIDEN'S LATEST PLAN TO DRIVE PRICES EVEN HIGHER Earlier Saturday, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a press conference: "Concerning the hostages, there are many unsubstantiated rumors, many incorrect reports. I would like to make it clear: As of now, there has been no deal. "But I want to promise: When there is something to say we will report to you about it." Family and supporters of the estimated 240 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza complete the final leg of a five-day solidarity rally calling for their return, from Tel Aviv to the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. Mahmoud Illean/AP Israeli and United States administration officials have denounced the possibility of a ceasefire, pointing to Hamas's track record of using previous agreements to rearm and prepare for future attacks. Sign up for free: Springs AM Update Your morning rundown of the latest news from Colorado Springs and around the country overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day delivered to your inbox each evening. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. But the Biden administration has pushed Israel to agree to humanitarian pauses to facilitate the passing of aid into the strip. Separately, President Joe Biden, in an opinion piece for the Washington Post, outlined his framework for what must be done in Israel. While discussing the solution for the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, he urged a two-state solution with the Palestinian Authority controlling both Gaza and the West Bank. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER "As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority, as we all work toward a two-state solution," Biden wrote. Original Location: US denies report Israel and Hamas have agreed hostage deal Washington Examiner Videos Former President Donald Trump is returning to Iowa on Saturday, just eight weeks before the January 15 Iowa Republican caucuses. In this October 7 photo, Tump rallied with supporters in Waterloo. A 36-story apartment building with 497 units, five parking levels with 489 spaces and 41,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities has been proposed for downtown Colorado Springs. Former adult film actor Ron Jeremy was released to a "private residence" due to his deteriorating health. "The court granted conditional release to the defendant from Twin Towers at the request of the Public Guardian. That was done over our objection, which was based upon public safety concerns. According to the Public Guardian, he will be placed in a private residence where he will be given 24-hour care," the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office shared with Fox News Digital. "According to them, he is practically bedridden and does not have the ability to leave a residence. We expressed concern that even if that is true, he could assault caregivers, which he has allegedly attempted to do at other facilities. The judge said the public guardian is responsible for that and could hire male caregivers and overruled our objection." ADULT FILM STAR RON JEREMY FOUND INCOMPETENT TO STAND TRIAL ON MULTIPLE RAPE CHARGES 70-year-old former adult film actor Ron Jeremy was granted conditional release to a "private residence" after authorities declared he is "bedridden." Earlier this year, Jeremy whose full name is Ronald Jeremy Hyatt was declared mentally incompetent to stand trial by a Los Angeles judge in January for dozens of rape and sexual assault charges. Superior Court Judge Ronald S. Harris reviewed reports from both prosecutors and Jeremy's defense that said the 70-year-old is in "incurable neurocognitive decline." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP ADULT FILM STAR RON JEREMY CHARGED WITH 20 NEW COUNTS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT Ron Jeremy was declared mentally unfit in January to stand trial in LA rape cases. Jeremy was indicted in 2020 on 34 counts of sexual assault, including 12 counts of rape, involving 21 women across more than two decades. He pleaded not guilty at the time, and his lawyer continues to maintain Jeremy's innocence. ADULT FILM STAR RON JEREMY PLEADS NOT GUILTY TO RAPING 3 WOMEN, SEXUALLY ASSAULTING A 4TH "His trial will not take place, and he's going to be handled through the state mental facilities for someone who is incompetent to assist his lawyers in trial," Jeremy's attorney, Stuart Goldfarb, told Fox News Digital at the time. "It's really unfortunate. Superior Court Judge Ronald S. Harris previously reviewed reports from both prosecutors and Jeremy's defense that said the 70-year-old is in "incurable neurocognitive decline." "Two years have gone by, and I've gotten a lot more information on the case," he added in a statement to The Associated Press. "And I believe if he went to trial, he'd be found innocent. He's not going to have the opportunity to clear his reputation because he's not going to go to trial." CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER According to transcripts of grand jury testimony from the alleged victims obtained by The Associated Press, Jeremy would lure them into a small secluded space, often the bathroom of a West Hollywood bar and grill he frequents, trap them and sexually assault them. Fox News Digital's Tracy Wright contributed to this report. Original article source: Adult film star Ron Jeremy released to private residence in rape case due to declining health Media literacy, including honing the ability to spot actual fake news in these decidedly misinformation-riddled times, is now set to become a part of the larger education agenda for grade school students in California. As recently pointed out by KTLA, Assembly Bill No. 873, approved by Governor Gavin Newsom last month, points to the need for comprehensive media literacy education for all elementary and secondary pupils" amid the proliferation of online misinformation. Assemblymember Marc Berman, the Democrat behind the bill in question, cited the Capitol riot and pandemic-related conspiracy theories when underlining the importance of the timely legislation. We have a responsibility to teach the next generation to be more critical consumers of online content and more guarded against misinformation, propaganda, and conspiracy theories, Berman said in October. In addition, this instruction will help students to be more responsible digital citizens, more intentional about what they put online, and better understand online safety and privacy. In short, this means media literacy content will be folded into the the curriculum across subjects including English, science, math, and history. While California has been getting the headlines attention for such a law in recent weeks, the state isnt the first to take a closer look at how best to respond to the spread of misinformation. In January, for example, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation to put in motion a similar strategy statewide. More on this UPDATED with Media Matters response: Elon Musk has promised to file what he terms a thermonuclear lawsuit against progressive media watchdog Media Matters and others, as the list of companies pausing their advertising on his social media platform grows longer. Musk posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, Friday evening, to say: More from Deadline The split second court opens on Monday, X Corp will be filing a thermonuclear lawsuit against Media Matters and ALL those who colluded in this fraudulent attack on our company. And he added an explainer of why to stand with X is to stand with free speech. The split second court opens on Monday, X Corp will be filing a thermonuclear lawsuit against Media Matters and ALL those who colluded in this fraudulent attack on our company pic.twitter.com/55vl7PspaQ Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 18, 2023 Through X/Twitter, Musk did sue another watchdog group, the Center for Countering Digital Hate, for defamation, in a lawsuit last summer. The group filed a motion to dismiss and anti-SLAPP motion on Thursday, contending that the platform had ginned up baseless claims taking issue with how the CCDH gathered its data. Apparently unhappy with how it is faring in the marketplace of ideas, X Corp. asks this court to shut that marketplace downto punish the CCDH Defendants for their speech and to silence others who might speak up about X Corp. in the future. Thus, X Corp. seeks at least tens of millions of dollars in damages based on how advertisers reacted to what the CCDH Defendants said about X Corp. in their public reports. Musks latest threat comes after a defining week for the social platform, including: Musk On Wednesday, Musk endorsed an X/Twitter post in which a user wrote, Jewish communities have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. The post pushed the great replacement theory, or the claim that Jewish people want to bring non-white undocumented people into western countries to reduce the influence of whites. The convicted killer in the Tree of Life shootings had embraced that theory. You have said the actual truth, Musk responded. Musk later tried to clarify his post, singling out the Anti-Defamation League as a group that unjustly attacks the majority of the West, despite the majority of the West supporting the Jewish people and Israel. Media Matters Media Matters reported on the advertising of major brands appearing next to pro-Nazi content on the platform. Among those cited were IBM, Apple, Comcast Xfinity, Oracle and Bravo. Media Matters, a progressive watchdog group, followed up with a new report that names a larger number of brands whose spots have appeared next to white nationalist content. Brands pause The list of companies pausing their advertising on the platform grew to include: Comcast/NBCUniversal Paramount Global Warner Bros Discovery The Walt Disney Company Apple Lionsgate White House On Friday, the White House joined those condemning the amplification of the anti-semitic trope. It is unacceptable to repeat the hideous lie behind the most fatal act of antisemitism in American history at any time, let alone one month after the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust, said White House spokesman Andrew Bates. Bates was referring to the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh and the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. Bates added, We condemn this abhorrent promotion of antisemitic and racist hate in the strongest terms, which runs against our core values as Americans. Ted Johnson contributed to this report. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Italian writer-director Emma Dantes Misericordia has won the top prize at the Black Nights Film Festival in Tallinn, Estonia. Adapted from her own play, her third feature tells the story of a young man (Simone Zambelli) with learning difficulties, cared for by a group of sex workers on an island, protecting him from the cruelty of his abusive father. Its a raw portrait of a marginalized group of people, mixing natural beauty of the locations with the grime of everyday existence. Zambelli also took the award for best actor, for his role as the man-child at the center of the drama. The best actress prize was shared by Lubna Azabal, who plays a teacher in Jawad Rhalibs Amal, and Kim Higelin, who stars in the controversial French drama Consent, directed by Vanessa Filho, as a teenager having an affair with a manipulative and exploitative 50-year-old writer. More from Variety The best director award went to Manuel Martin Cuenca for Andreas Love, who also along with co-writer Lola Mayo picked up the best screenplay award. Cuencas seventh feature is a character portrait of the eponymous teenager who is determined to find love even as she is busy looking after her siblings and attending school. Andreas Love New Zealander Loren Taylors darkly comic The Moon Is Upside Down was awarded as the best first feature, with Eeva Magis Mo Mama and Ilango Rams Tentigo sharing the special jury prize. Estonias Oscar contender Smoke Sauna Sisterhood maintained its prize-winning momentum into awards season, picking up the top prize in the Baltic Film sidebar. Winning this award is like coming home, the delighted producer Marianne Ostrat told Variety. In her acceptance speech, an exuberant director Anna Hints sang a cleansing song to the jury and audience. Five and a Half Love Stories in an Apartment in Vilnius Lithuania won the Rebels With a Cause section. The film is Lithuanian director Tomas Vengris follow up to his debut feature Motherland, winner of the Baltic Film Competition in 2019. The portmanteau film is a witty exploration of contemporary love stories via an AirBnB rental. The best director award went to Argentinian Agustin Toscano for I Trust You, a hybrid of documentary, fiction and musical about two ex-nuns who fall in love, leave the convent and adopt a child only to be charged with a murder, their family broken up and the pair of them imprisoned. The FIPRESCI award went to Aylin Tezels Falling into Place, a bitter-sweet romantic comedy set on the Isle of Skye in Scotland, and in which the writer-director also stars as one half of a one night stand which has longer lasting emotional resonance. Lifetime Achievement awards were bestowed on Estonian composer and musician Rein Rannap and British film director Mike Newell whose career goes from the challenging drama of Dance With a Stranger, the superlative gangster film Donnie Brasco to crowd pleasing hits such as Four Weddings and a Funeral and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Canadian thriller The G missed out on awards but a powerful performance by Dale Dickey (Winters Bone) and its gender flipping tale of violent revenge makes for an original and entertaining thriller. Montenegrin director Nemanja Becanovics Supermarket is a tight satire, imbuing its story of a stowaway in a supermarket with a Kubrickian chill. Patient#1, an absurdist comedy by Georgian director Rezo Gigineishvili, has a decrepit Soviet leader in the last days of his decline, cared for by a nurse played with historical irony by Ukrainian actor Olga Makeeva. Less manic than The Death of Stalin, its more like the Last Days of Brezhnev. Two off the wall comedies were also standouts: Rozalia Szeleczkis Hungarian rom-com Cat Call, in which a 30-year-old architect (Franciska Torocsik) falls in love with a talking cat, and Montenegrin Forever Hold Your Peace, which uses a liberal dose of drink and dynamite to shake up the tired conventions of the wedding comedy. During her closing remarks, artistic director Tiina Lokk talked of the political pressure to withdraw certain films but noted that she had seen Serbians drinking vodka with Bosnians and Israelis chatting with Iranians. Talking to Variety, she said: We are breaking the audience records, despite the difficult economic times. The event is so big and consists of so many elements, but Industry, Just Films and Poff Shorts are all jumping higher and further than they ever have. Following the festival, she intends to take three days off before the planning starts for 2024. New ideas include a Golden Classics section and a section devoted to documentaries as well as an exploratory idea of an outdoor cinema with a sauna nearby for those who cant bear the subzero temperatures. Cat Call Best of Variety Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Jon Caldara is president of the Independence Institute in Denver and hosts The Devils Advocate with Jon Caldara on Colorado Public Television Channel 12. His column appears Sundays in Colorado Politics. Israel and Hamas are near a tentative deal to pause their ongoing conflict. White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson wrote Saturday on X (formerly Twitter) that work on a deal is underway. The deal, brokered by the United States, would come in exchange for the release of dozens of women and children kidnapped from Israel who have been held hostage. We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get a deal, Watson wrote. We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal. https://t.co/rbSqcqfaKo Adrienne Watson (@NSC_Spox) November 19, 2023 The deal would include a five-day pause in fighting, the Washington Post reports, citing people familiar with the terms of a detailed six-page tentative agreement. Watson quoted the Post story in her own tweet. This pause and prisoner release could begin within the next several days and would mark the first sustained pause in the conflict since the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel. The deal was outlined over weeks of talks between Israel, the U.S. and Hamas in Qatar. The parties were indirectly represented by Qatari mediators, the Post reports, citing both Arab and other diplomats. The change thats made it possible to get close to a deal is Israel agreeing to put a temporary pause on its offensive under the right conditions, according to the Post. However, the paper notes, the Israeli Embassy in Washington has declined to comment. Public discussions over a humanitarian pause versus a ceasefire have been a hot topic in recent days. U.S. President Joe Biden wrote an opinion piece for the Washington Post earlier Saturday in which he discussed his call for humanitarian pauses. Ive also advocated for humanitarian pauses in the conflict to permit civilians to depart areas of active fighting and to help ensure that aid reaches those in need, the piece reads. Israel took the additional step to create two humanitarian corridors and implement daily four-hour pauses in the fighting in northern Gaza to allow Palestinian civilians to flee to safer areas in the south. The fighting began with terrorist group Hamas attack on Israel that left more than a thousand dead, leading Israel to respond with an aggressive bombing campaign on Gaza that has left thousands more dead. The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Hamas-controlled Gaza has said that the Israeli strikes have killed more than 10,000, including more than 4,000 minors and 3,000 women, but those numbers have been disputed by U.S. and Israeli officials. However, the Biden administration has acknowledged that thousands of Palestinian civilians have been killed. The post Israel-Hamas Close to Deal to Free Hostages, Pause Fighting appeared first on TheWrap. The missing couple, Davido and Karen Koep, is now believed to be dead, according to authorities Thurston County Sheriff/Facebook Davido and Karen Koep are now believed to be dead, authorities say. Police have arrested and charged a man in connection with the Washington couple who has been missing since Monday. An unnamed man in his 40s from Olympia, Washington, was located and arrested on Friday evening, according to a press statement shared by the Thurston County Sheriffs office. Working with our local, state and federal partners, we have gathered evidence to identify a suspect in their disappearance, the office wrote. The suspect will be held at Thurston County Jail on one count of first-degree murder and one count of first-degree kidnapping. Related: Missing Ky. 4-Year-Old Found Dead, Guardian Aunt and Boyfriend Charged with Murder Police now believe that the missing persons Karen Koep and her husband, identified only as Davido are dead, per the statement. Throughout the investigation, we have been in contact with the family of the missing couple, and sadly, we do not believe the couple survived the attack at their residence, the office wrote. Police also noted in the statement that detectives have worked tirelessly in investigating the couple's disappearance and that additional information will be released when available. Koep, a beloved chiropractor, and Davido were first deemed missing under circumstances police described as suspicious last Monday, according to a news release by the sheriffs office. Related: A Texas Boy, 10, Is Missing and His Mom Was Found Dead and Father Is Suspected of Murder, Abduction After Koep did not show up for work, police carried out a welfare check at the couples residence, and determined that both were missing, along with their car, a 2015 Toyota Yaris, per a post from the sheriffs office. Shortly after, the vehicle was located by authorities at an intersection about five miles from Koeps place of work, according to listings on both Google and ZocDoc. Last week, Joe Blade, who owns a realty company at the same location as Koep's practice, told PEOPLE he last saw the chiropractor around Wednesday the week before her disappearance was announced. The following day, her office answering machine directed callers to a different clinic because it was closed due to an emergency. Related: Missing Texas Woman Found Dead in Boyfriend's Refrigerator Last week, Koeps sister, Pauline D. Dutton, told PEOPLE that her family is in "complete shock, and have no idea what might have happened. The couple was scheduled to visit her in Oregon during Thanksgiving week. She also said that the chiropractor is the strongest woman youll ever meet in your life." She is probably selfless to a fault, she told PEOPLE. She doesn't have the time to take care of herself sometimes because shes always giving to others. 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. Dutton also spoke with NBC News following her sisters disappearance, telling the outlet that she does not think Koep nor Davido would leave their home without telling anyone. I know that they didnt walk away from their house on their own, lets put it that way," Dutton said. "They didnt just walk out of there. Theyre not in Bora Bora having a vacation, she added. They are missing, and I dont think they went willingly. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Miss Universe 2012, Olivia Culpo, and TV personalities Jeannie Mai Jenkins and Maria Menounos hosted the pageant on Saturday, while John Legend performed Hector Vivas/Getty A new Miss Universe has won the coveted crown! Miss Nicaragua was named Miss Universe 2023 on Saturday after an evening of competition at the Jose Adolfo Pineda Arena in San Salvador, El Salvador. In a tense moment before the winner was announced, Miss Nicaragua, Sheynnis Palacios and Miss Thailand, Anntonia Porsild, stood on stage with their hands clasped together as the venue descended into darkness, with the exception of a spotlight on the two finalists. After a lengthy silence that saw both women with their eyes closed as they waited for the winner to be announced, a voice was heard saying: "Nicaragua!" Hector Vivas/Getty The new, and 72nd, Miss Universe had an emotional reaction to her win, tearing up and holding her shaking hands up to her face as the crowd cheered. The evening culminated with last year's winner, RBonney Gabriel, 29, presenting Palacios with her crown as she passed on the title of Miss Universe to her successor. Miss Australia, Moraya Wilson, placed third in the competition as second runner-up. Hector Vivas/Getty Miss Thailand Anntonia Porsild, Miss Australia Moraya Wilson and Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios line up during the 72nd Miss Universe Competition on Saturday Related: Miss Universe Pageant Puts an End to Age Limit Soon, All Women Over 18 Will Be Allowed to Compete Palacios was the first-ever Nicaraguan to win the title and marks the country's fifth time placing in the semifinals. In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) the new Miss Universe celebrated her win by posting several images of herself wearing her new crown, along with the caption "Hello Universe," in English as well as a message in Spanish noting that Nicaraguans had made history with her crowning. In another first for the evening, Miss Universe 2012, Olivia Culpo, and TV personalities Jeannie Mai Jenkins and Maria Menounos hosted the pageant, making it the first time the show was mcd by an all-female team. John Legend also performed during the night, and his wife, Chrissy Teigen, shared a series of posts on her Instagram Story from her position in the audience at the event. In addition, for the first time in its history, the pageant allowed married women and mothers to compete. The international competition also featured two openly trans women, Marina Machete from Portugal and Rikkie Kolle from the Netherlands, according to CNN affiliate WLWT5. Hector Vivas/Getty John Legend performs during the 72nd Miss Universe Competition on November 18, 2023 in San Salvador, El Salvador The finalists were led through four rounds of competition: evening gown, swimwear, personal statements and in-depth interviews. Among the questions Palacios was asked: If you could live one year in another woman's shoes, who would you choose and why? "I would chose Mary Wollstonecraft because she opened the gap and gave an opportunity to many women," she said through an interpreter, referring to the 18th century British writer, philosopher and advocate of women's rights. Alex Pena/Getty Miss Philippines Michelle Marquez, Miss El Salvador Isabella Garcia-Manzo, Miss Venezuela Diana Silva, Miss Australia Moraya Wilson and Miss Spain Athenea Paulinha "And what I would do, I would want that income gap [to] open up so that women could work in any area they choose to work in because there are no limitations for women. That was the 1750s. Now in 2023, were making history." Palacios, who was born in Managua, Nicaragua, made her beauty pageant debut in 2016 when she won the Miss Teen Nicaragua title. She went on to win Miss World Nicaragua in 2020 and represented her home country at the Miss World 2021 competition, where she placed in the top 40. The 23-year-old beauty holds a degree in mass communications and played varsity volleyball for Universidad Centroamericana. Related: Miss USA R'Bonney Gabriel Crowned Miss Universe 2022 84 delegates from around the world competed for the crown on Saturday, however, Noelia Voigt, who was this year's Miss USA, failed to make it into the top 10 of the competition following the swimwear round. Back in July, the author and childhood cancer survivor, who was also the first Venezuelan-American to be named Miss Utah, reflected on her Miss USA win in an interview with PEOPLE. Miss USA is a symbol of unity and diversity and inclusivity, Voigt told PEOPLE at the time. "If the United States is going to call themselves the land of opportunity and a place where you can achieve the American dream Miss USA should be able to represent all of them. Miss USA/Instagram Miss USA Nolia Voigt Last years competition made history as well. Gabriel was not only the first Filipina America to earn the title, but also the first Miss USA to win Miss Universe in 10 years since Culpo, 31, took home the crown in 2012. The fashion designer, model and sewing instructor from Texas also became one of the oldest to take on the crown given the age restrictions, where contestants must be between 18 and 28 years old. Related: Miss Universe R'Bonney Gabriel Is Unbothered by Haters and Focused on a Passion for Sustainable Style Gabriel also pointed out the age barrier during the competition, saying that she hopes Miss Universe would allow women past the age of 28 to compete. (Earlier this year, organizers announced that starting in 2024, all women over the age of 18 will be eligible for the Miss Universe crown.) "I am 28 years old, and that is the oldest age to compete," she said at one point during last year's competition. "And I think that's a beautiful thing." Jason Kempin/Getty "My favorite quote is, 'If not now, then when?' " Gabriel continued. "Because as a woman, I believe age does not define us." 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. JKN Global Group purchased Miss Universe for $20 million in October 2022, making its CEO, Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip, the first woman to own the organization in its 72-year history. The Thai businesswoman, who is also a transgender rights advocate, laid out her plans for the organization in a press release announcing the deal, according to a previous Variety report. "We seek not only to continue its legacy of providing a platform to passionate individuals from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and traditions, but also to evolve the brand for the next generation," Jakrajutatip said at the time. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The former first lady who dedicated her life to mental health and human rights advocacy died at her Plains, Georgia, home on Sunday afternoon, two days after entering hospice care Frank Leonardo/New York Post Archives /(c) NYP Holdings, Inc. via Getty Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Rosalynn Carter, a lifelong advocate for mental health and human rights, died surrounded by family on Sunday afternoon, two days after she entered hospice care following a dementia diagnosis in May. She was 96. Rosalynn was married to the nations 39th president, Jimmy Carter, for 77 years, and served as the first lady during his tenure from 1977 to 1981. She is survived by their four children and numerous grandchildren and great-children. Jimmy, who terminated medical intervention in February amid his own health challenges at the age of 99, remains in hospice care at home. Related: Rosalynn Carter's Life in Photos Born Eleanor Rosalynn Smith in Plains, Georgia, on Aug. 18, 1927, the future first lady was the oldest of four children, and took on many of the family responsibilities after her father died of leukemia when she was just 13. Atlanta Journal-Constitution/AP Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter on their wedding day After graduating high school, she attended Georgia Southwestern College in nearby Americus. It was after her freshman year in 1945 that she met the former president, who was back home in Plains from the U.S. Naval Academy. They were wed the following year. Related: Jimmy Carter Recalls First Date with His Wife And Telling His Mom He Knew He'd Marry Rosalynn Throughout the early years of their marriage, the Carters traveled while Jimmy was stationed with the Navy around the country from Virginia to Hawaii to Connecticut. In 1953, they returned back to Plains, when Jimmy left the Navy to take over his fathers peanut and fertilizer business with Rosalynn's help. Related: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter: 15 Heartwarming Moments from Their Decades-Long Love Story Bettmann / Getty Rosalynn was a driving force behind her husbands initial forays into politics, helping him eventually get elected as governor of Georgia in 1970. As first lady during Jimmy's eventual tenure as president, she served as the honorary chair of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health, eventually helping usher through the 1980 passage of the Mental Health Systems Act. She was also a champion of arts and arts programs and a frequent adviser to her husband. Related: Jimmy Carter and Wife Rosalynn Reveal Secrets to 75-Year Marriage Including 'Plenty of Space' HUM Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Rosalynn Carter chairs a meeting for the President's Commission on Mental Health in 1977 After leaving the White House, the Carters started nonprofit institution The Carter Center, a health and human rights organization. Rosalynn chaired the centers Mental Health Task Force and served as a member of the Carter Center Board of Trustees. She also served as a distinguished centennial lecturer at Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, from 1988 to 1992. Related: What Do Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Mean by 'ILYTG'? Behind the Secret Acronym They've Used Since the '40s Habitat for Humanity International Rosalynn Carter wielding a hammer for the Carter Work Project in partnership with Habitat for Humanity On the humanitarian front, Rosalynn was perhaps most visible for her and Jimmy's partnership with Habitat for Humanity, called the Carter Work Project, which began in the '80s and still operates. Frank Leonardo/New York Post Archives /(c) NYP Holdings, Inc. via Getty "For anybody who wants to get involved with an organization, there is nothing that they could do that would give them such a life-changing experience as Habitat," Rosalynn once said. "This is something that brings together people who have everything they need and those who don't have so many things we take for granted." Until recent years, Jimmy and Rosalynn were known to continue showing up to construction projects and helping out with hands-on work. Related: Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter's Work with Habitat for Humanity Through the Years: Devoting Decades to Service Habitat for Humanity International Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter work on a Habitat for Humanity project In 1991, Rosalynn began serving on the Policy Advisory Board of The Atlanta Project, working to address poverty in the state capital. The same year, she launched Every Child By Two, a campaign geared toward raising awareness of the importance of timely infant immunizations (decades later, when the COVID-19 vaccination came out, she and the former president were vocal about getting vaccinated against the virus as misinformation spread through the country). Related: Inside Rosalynn Carter and Betty Ford's Unstoppable 40-Year Friendship: 'A Formidable Duo' Scott Olson/Getty Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter wave to the audience at the 2004 Democratic National Convention Rosalynn wrote five books throughout her life, and was the recipient of numerous honors from organizations like the National Organization of Women and the National Mental Health Association. President Bill Clinton awarded Rosalynn the Presidential Medal of Freedom alongside her husband in 1999, remarking, "Just as Eleanor Roosevelt will be remembered for her work on human rights, Rosalynn Carter will always be remembered as a pioneer on mental health and a champion of our children. ... Thanks to her work, I believe we will see the day not too long away when mental illnesses are treated just like any other illnesses and covered just like any other illnesses." The former first lady was also inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 2001. Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter walk toward their home in Plains, Georgia In 2014, the Carters sat down with PEOPLE to reflect on their life together, revealing one of the secrets of their enduring romance: They still read to each other every night in bed. Said the former president, We started 40 years ago, and weve never missed a night, I dont think. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Screen-Shot-2023-11-18-at-11.54.50-PM - Credit: NBC/SNL Saturday Night Live opened with President Joe Biden (Mikey Day) welcoming Chinese dignitary Tian Tian (Bowen Yang), one of the three pandas that were transported from the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. to China earlier this month. Im honored to be here, but am I the only one that was surprised that the presidents of the two biggest economies in the world met, and everyones just like, Whats up with the pandas?' Yang said behind the presidential seal. I mean, I get it. Im hot, Im smart, Im alluringly asexual, but there have to be bigger issues, right? More from Rolling Stone Biden met this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who indicated that his country will send more pandas to the U.S., calling them envoys of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples. After the departure of Tian Tian, Mei Xiang and their cub, Xiao Qi Ji, only four pandas remain in the states. This storyline received plenty of coverageperhaps too much, as SNLs sketch hinted at. One reporters (Andrew Dismukes) question originally directed at Biden, for instance, took a left turn. President Biden, Trumps team has announced they will replace all federal workers with Trump loyalists. My question is: Panda, did you like America? Honestly, I loved it, Yang replied. Theres so much Im going to miss. Legal weed Anyway, going back to China, its going to be a big change. I mean, I dont know anyone in China. I havent been back since I was a baby, and now I have to make friends as an adult? Yuck. Another reporter (Marcello Hernandez) would go on to ask Yang about the Chinese president describing pandas as envoys of friendship. As the rare person who identifies as Black, white, and Chinese, I feel like Im in the unique position to unite many peoples of the world, he explained. Im just like another hot blasian icon: Tiger Woods. Biden closed by noting what he and Tian Tian have in common: people love sharing videos of us falling down. Best of Rolling Stone The two men who seem likely, at this point, to face each other in a presidential election rematch next November spent their Sundays in different parts of the country doing the same thing: marking Thanksgiving with service members. President Joe Biden headed to Virginia on Sunday afternoon for a screening of the upcoming musical film "Wonka" and to host a Friendsgiving -- both events for service members and families. The president and first lady Jill Biden spoke before the film screening at a Naval facility in Norfolk, with Jill Biden thanking the families and mentioning her late stepson Beau Biden's own service in the National Guard, according to reporters traveling with the Bidens. Later Sunday, the president and first lady attended a Friendsgiving dinner with troops and their relatives at the Norfolk Naval Station. Speaking there, Jill Biden mourned the just-announced death of former first lady Rosalynn Carter. "I'm sorry to lead this off with a sad announcement that former first lady Rosalynn Carter has just passed," Jill Biden said. "She was well known for her efforts on mental health and caregiving and women's rights. So I hope that during the holidays, you'll consider saying [you'll] include the Carter family in your prayers." The Friendsgiving dinner is part of the first lady's longtime initiative to support service members, called Joining Forces. First lady Jill Biden mourns the death of Rosalynn Carter during 'Friendsgiving' event with troops and their relatives in Virginia: "I hope that during the holidays you'll include the Carter family in your prayers." https://t.co/YDUjUySbM9 pic.twitter.com/HnNryyRaho ABC News (@ABC) November 19, 2023 PHOTO: President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden greet service members and others after disembarking from Air Force One at Norfolk Naval Station in Norfolk, Va., Nov. 19, 2023. (Julia Nikhinson/Reuters) While celebrating the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, Joe Biden was not too far from other headlines. As he arrived to the Navy base, a reporter shouted out to ask about ongoing work to reach a deal to free many of the 200-plus hostages believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza, amid the Israel-Hamas war in the wake of Hamas' Oct. 7 terror attack. Mr. President when will more hostages get out? the reporter asked. According to the press pool with the president, he responded, Im not in a position to tell you that. ... I want to make sure theyre out, and then Ill tell you." While traveling on Sunday, Joe Biden ignored -- or did not hear -- another shouted question about the youth vote in the wake of new polling indicating younger voters have soured on him a year out from the election. Across the country, former President Donald Trump was officially endorsed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and then doubled down on border security in uncharacteristically short on-stage remarks near the Texas border on Sunday. Introduced by Abbott just after the governor endorsed him, Trump spoke for just 10 minutes -- much shorter than his typical campaign remarks, which are usually at least an hour long, at times even going for nearly two hours. He spent longer time serving meals to service members earlier in the day, shaking hands and taking pictures with nearly 200 Texas National Guard soldiers, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and other officials that will be stationed on the border during Thanksgiving. PHOTO: Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott help serve food to Texas National Guard soldiers, troopers who will be stationed at the border over Thanksgiving, Nov. 19, 2023, in Edinburg, Texas. (Eric Gay/AP Photo) Trump and Abbott served food for more than 30 minutes inside the Texas Department of Public Safety hangar at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg. Afterward, both Trump and Abbott spoke briefly inside the hangar, thanking service members, and then they came out to the tarmac for their remarks. Trump, polls show, remains the clear front-runner in the once-crowded Republican presidential primary, despite his ongoing controversies and legal troubles. He is charged in four separate criminal cases but denies all wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty. On Sunday, he swiped at Biden, claiming the president doesn't spend enough time in Texas, which Trump suggested was part of the Biden administration's failures at the border. Biden, for his part, has increasingly focused on Trump by name as his campaign appears to be sharpening its focus for a likely repeat of the 2020 race. Last week, he condemned Trump for calling political enemies "vermin" whom Trump would "root out." Some historians said that rhetoric had clear parallels with infamous dictators of the past like Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. Trump's campaign adamantly denied this. ABC News' Tia Humphries contributed to this report. Biden and Trump separately spend time with service members ahead of Thanksgiving originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Love the company or hate it, Starbucks has a firm foothold in the United States. According to Statista, Starbucks directly operated 9,265 stores and licensed another 6,608 in 2022. This astounding number of outlets made Starbucks the largest coffee shop chain in the country that year. Consistency is key when operating multiple units in 52 U.S. states and territories, let alone the other 79 countries where it maintains outlets. Walking into any Starbucks store, you'll see a marked uniformity with every other outlet you've been in. No matter your location, you'll rarely doubt you're in a Starbucks, from the "look and feel" to the beverages. That uniformity is vital for visual branding, but it also ensures your food or drink experience will be nearly identical in every store. There are processes and rules in place that every employee must follow to ensure uniformity of the customer experience. Drink-making follows precise, step-by-step standard procedures with no deviation allowed. Dress codes and clothing colors follow a strict guide. Rumored but unproven is that employees must always display a sunny demeanor and smile. Some of the rules and processes simply follow proper sanitation guidelines. Others are the byproduct of a colossal legal blunder. Others, while they may restrict individuality, keep the brand on point. We've researched policies, consulted the official dress code, and spoken with employees to compile this, at times surprising, list of rules that Starbucks employees must follow. Read more: 31 Coffee Brands, Ranked From Worst To Best Commit To A Hair Color Woman with pink hair - Pollyana Ventura/Getty Images As this LinkedIn post shows, Starbucks encourages employees to bring their authentic selves to work. The company doesn't frown on colored hair, but it does insist that dyes be permanent or semi-permanent. While that may seem a strange mandate, it doesn't have anything to do with preference or style. In fact, it's actually rooted in food safety. Temporary hair color typically washes out in one shampoo, whereas semi-permanent, demi-permanent, and permanent last at least 12 washes, per Matrix. Temporary color can run and splotch, getting on anything it touches, including hands and cups, which isn't a great garnish for your chai latte at the drive-through. It's also rumored that temporary hair color can increase instances of hair falling out. Likewise, glitter is a no-no for the same reason. While this rule seems restrictive on the outside, it's an abstract food safety precaution that makes sense. Employees Cannot Move To A Different Station Person using espresso machine - Bloomberg/Getty Images Division of labor is one of the basic principles of production. This concept allocates a worker, or group of workers, to focus on a single task or area of tasks. Each Starbucks employee gets assigned to a specific station for their shift and handles the tasks assigned to that station to maximize throughput. If a worker at one station finds themselves not busy during a high business point of the shift while another station struggles, the non-busy worker cannot take it upon themselves to help the more impacted station. Supervisors may redirect an employee to assist another station or reassign workers to cover breaks, but workers cannot make those calls. One can argue that a policy like this strips workers of simple decision-making processes, but the rule stands. There can be several rationalizations for this, such as the employee may not be aware of the entirety of business levels and accidentally throw a well-intentioned wrench into the corporate-designed efficiency of operations. A well-meaning employee could also be untrained or undertrained on the station they're trying to help, causing mistakes and slowing the overall throughput of orders. Piercings Are Limited Small nostril piercings - Ryanjlane/Getty Images Policies formerly stated that, despite the "bring your authentic selves to work" statement, facial piercings were a hard no from a corporate standpoint. Ear gauges or plugs were also in the "no" category. The latest version of Starbucks' dress code shows that policy has relaxed a bit, possibly due to constraints that policy placed on the available labor pool. An infographic from Inksane Piercing shows its largest customer demographic (about 46%) is between the ages of 18 and 29. Not uncoincidentally, 61% of Starbucks employees are between 20 and 30 years of age. Whether that information influenced the policy or not, it seems that Starbucks is attempting to strike a balance between its brand image and evolving societal norms. The dress code now allows employees to have one facial piercing, but it must be smaller than a dime. Ear gauges (stretched earlobe piercings) are likewise allowed, but only if the hole is smaller than a quarter. Tattoos Are Subjective A tattooed arm - Amygdala_imagery/Getty Images The tattooed, mustachioed, surly barista trope is one that Starbucks eschewed for its employees. For a company that started in the grunge capital of Seattle and saw exponential growth during the Gen X-dominated 1990s, Starbucks kept a more wholesome image for its employees by not allowing them to display their tattoos. That is, they couldn't until 2014 when employees petitioned for and won the right to have visible tattoos. According to CNN, the policy change came alongside unspecified pay raises and a worker shift snack. The current dress code allows visible tattoos, albeit with some caveats. Many arguably most visible tattoos are fine, but those deemed inappropriate, including anything obscene or sexual, are not permitted and require employees to cover them up. Tattoos on the neck and face are also exempt from the policy. The policy also excludes tattoos deemed racist or profane from public display in Starbucks' stores. Keep Things Plain Plain, unpolished fingernails - iobann/Shutterstock The Starbucks dress code dictates what employees may do with their hands. Much of this policy ensures compliance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Food Code. For example, employees may not wear rings, with the exception of one plain band, while on shift. Rings notoriously trap bacteria in trace amounts of food or beverages that can get trapped in more ornate designs, so the FDA and Starbucks prohibit them. The policy bans wristwatches for the same reason. The Food Code establishes the minimum standards for food safety and calls for people with nail polish or fake fingernails to cover their hands with gloves to minimize the chances of chips, flakes, or whole fingernails from getting into customers' food. Starbucks says no to all of the above as an extra precaution. In a less health-risk-oriented standard, Starbucks' dress code also says "no" to perfume, cologne, or grooming products with fragrances. Restrictions on scents are long-standing industry standards, and some restaurants ban customers from wearing strong fragrances. Keeping the air clean for customers with strong reactions to perfumes and not masking the coffee's aroma are the driving factors behind this set of rules. They Can't Ask You To Leave A Starbucks employee - David Livingston/Getty Images A Starbucks employee cannot ask you to leave the premises, even if you sit in their stores without ordering anything. According to National Public Radio, in 2018, Starbucks employees at a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, store asked two men who hadn't ordered anything to leave. The two were waiting for a third person to join them for a meeting. The situation escalated quickly, the police got involved, and the two men were arrested after again refusing to leave the premises. A lawsuit ensued, ending in a quick out-of-court settlement. In the aftermath of this scenario, Starbucks changed its employee policy when dealing with such situations. Customers can now sit in the cafe without ordering for as long as they like, provided they're not creating a health or safety issue for themselves, other customers, or employees. The employee may not ask the customer to leave even if they are making a scene. They must call the police to remove a person rather than act on the situation themselves. They Can Only Work On Three Drinks At A Time Three Starbucks frappuccinos - AppleZoomZoom/Shutterstock Even during the busiest times of the day, Starbucks employees have restrictions on how many drinks they can work on simultaneously. Older policies limited baristas to working on two drinks at a time, and the first drink had to be substantially completed before starting the second. A current Starbucks employee confirmed they may now work on three drinks at a time, but it's complicated. If a barista is making a frappuccino and receives an order for a second drink, they may start making that drink. If they get an order for a flat white while working on the other two drinks, they can begin to prepare it, provided they are in the final step of the frappuccino - snapping the lid on the drink. Presumably, this policy ensures a barista doesn't get overwhelmed and forget the multi-step process of each beverage, which is another step towards consistency across the entire company. Every Drink's Milk Gets Steamed Separately Steaming milk for drinks - Milanexpo/Getty Images McDonald's founder Ray Kroc established three brand promises when building the fast food restaurant into an empire: consistency, cleanliness, and convenience. Consistency has been a yardstick for multiple chains' expansions ever since. For Starbucks, a drink purchased in San Francisco must be identical to one purchased in Edinburgh, and they've developed processes for each drink. A barista must memorize the steps and amounts of ingredients for each drink before they're allowed to make them, following those exact procedures. A barista's life would be much easier if they were allowed to make multiples of the same drink, say, three lattes, at once. However, to avoid straying from the procedure and potentially affecting the consistency of the beverage, the barista must steam the milk for each latte individually. Although it increases the workload and diminishes efficiency, Starbucks sees it as a worthwhile tradeoff for brand consistency. You Can Use The Restroom A Starbucks sign - Joe Raedle/Getty Images Most of us have been there in need of a public restroom and not wanting to purchase something from the proprietor for whatever reason. Welcome to Starbucks! You're allowed to use their restrooms; no purchase is required. As a byproduct of the same lawsuit that resulted in employees not being allowed to ask people to leave, they also can't restrict you from using their restrooms. Even if an outlet keeps the restroom doors locked, the policy requires the employees to provide you with a key or code upon request. This "open door" policy, so to speak, isn't without some repercussions. A 2019 joint business study showed an almost 7% decline in walk-in business after the policy went into effect. The decline was 84% higher in stores near homeless shelters. Also, customers cut their average stay time by about 4%. But that decline must balance out to be less than the cost of a lawsuit for denying a customer the opportunity to use the restroom. Operating Hours Are Strictly Enforced Closed for business sign - Huephotography/Getty Images For those who've never worked in the food service industry, slipping into a restaurant a few minutes before they open seems like no big deal. "I'll just sit here quietly and wait," you say. Even if you don't interrupt employees by asking questions or requesting, "Just a glass of water while I wait," it interrupts the opening procedural flow. You could be standing in a seemingly out-of-the-way spot and unknowingly be smack in the middle of where the employee needs to be working. Starbucks strictly enforces its opening and closing times. No customers are allowed inside until the exact opening time, and customers are politely shown the door at closing time. Yes, this seems extreme, but aside from efficiency issues in opening or closing the store, there are also safety considerations. Customers locked in with employees may have the best intentions in the world, but a small percentage don't, and keeping employees safe is a strong factor in this policy. Cold Drinks Get A Minimum Number Of Shakes Starbucks iced teas - Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Some folks never think twice about their bartender shaking their drinks before pouring them. Others ask questions, and they'll find that how the bartender shakes a drink affects the mixing of ingredients, their chilling, and the dilution of certain ingredients. So, too, does the shaking of non-alcoholic beverages affect their overall taste and presentation. When mixing hot ingredients, they need to cool quickly before the ice dilutes them too much. Syrups, which normally incorporate well in hot drinks, don't distribute well in cold temperatures, so a good shake helps disperse them more evenly. There's also a bit of foam that develops from the shaking, which adds to the textural and visual experience. In its quest to maintain consistency across its brand, regardless of location, Starbucks has procedures for every drink. When it comes to Starbucks' cold teas and refreshers, each drink must receive a minimum of 10 shakes before it reaches the customers' hands. Although sources state otherwise, an employee confirmed this policy doesn't apply to iced coffee, cold brew, or iced lattes. They Can't Say No To A Customer A person saying yes - Izusek/Getty Images In an environment based on people pleasing, "no" is a hard word to use. As such, employees cannot say no to a customer in almost all cases. There are exceptions to this policy, like not allowing customers to be inside the store during non-operating hours, a request that could cause harm, or in the case of food allergies. The result of this policy can be a giant game of "Yes, And," especially when dealing with complicated orders or accommodating Starbucks' secret menu. A customer could ask for an extra shot after paying, and it's expected that the employee says yes. If a customer asks to warm their coffee in the microwave, the employee can steer them in a direction that works in their favor instead of saying no. "I'd be happy to warm that with a bit of steamed milk," is a common reply. It's not exactly a "no," but it works as one while the employee says yes. White Shoes Are Fine, But Don't Wear White Pants Neutral colored pants - Popovaphoto/Getty Images It was once policy that employees wore specific colors, mostly earth tones, and loud, vibrant colors were prohibited from the workplace. White shoes were once a no-no. The current dress code dictates what an employee should look like but has relaxed from the strictness some sources have reported. Some policies, like head coverings, hair, and facial hair restrictions, directly reflect health codes. Others are more "look and feel" oriented. Employees are no longer restricted to earth-toned tops, but shirts should be in solid colors or free of loud patterns. Shoes must follow health and safety regulations, but white is no longer a prohibited color. Pants or other bottoms, however, have restrictions on them. Black, brown, navy, khaki, and brown are all within the acceptable color palette, but white is off-limits. You might notice that most of the color palette is good for hiding coffee stains, which white definitely does not, and that may be a large guiding factor in this decision. Tips Must Be Split A computerized tipping screen - Backcountry Media/Shutterstock When ordering food or a drink at Starbucks, you typically act indirectly with at least two people. There's the obvious person who takes your order; then there may be another person who handles your food while another makes your drinks. So it shouldn't be surprising that the tip you leave is distributed amongst them. But that tip isn't limited to the people you've interacted with. It's been a long-standing practice that Starbucks employees split tips evenly based on the total tips for the week and how many hours an employee worked. This practice was challenged in two separate court filings in 2008, which sought to exclude shift supervisors and assistant store managers from participating in the tip pool. An appeals court later confirmed supervisors and managers were exempt from tip shares. At the time, laws varied from state to state, but the U.S. Department of Labor finalized rules surrounding pooled tips in 2021, in line with the appeals court, meaning supervisors and managers weren't allowed to participate. All of this is a very long way to explain that no matter how good the service is, the person you're tipping will only receive a percentage of that tip. So, by all means, please tip and tip well, but just remember that the person you're tipping will have to share that tip with the other employees. Read the original article on Tasting Table. Find world-class dining, a great work-life balance, and a vibrant culture in these European destinations. Gautier Houba/Travel + Leisure In 2022, more than 75,000 Americans moved to Europe. The Netherlands, for example, saw an increase from 15,500 to 24,000 Americans moving in over the last five years, while Spains American expat numbers jumped 13 percent, from an estimated 20,000 to nearly 34,000 in the same time frame, according to statistics from the European Union. Be it for the food and culture, the lower cost of living, or personal opportunity, a move to Europe can offer a lot in terms of life-changing experiences. I moved to Spain in 2018, and since then, my life has been filled with exploring new places, meeting new people, learning about local cultures, and uncovering hidden gems, said Nadia Podrabinek, founder of WhyThisPlace.com. Barcelona, my home since 2018, is, for me, the best place to live in Europe. This vibrant city strikes a perfect balance between urban hustle and beach town relaxation. The local cuisine, a gastronomic extravaganza, will delight your taste buds with delicacies like tapas, paella, and the world-renowned Catalan cava. Art lovers will be entranced by the city's architectural marvels, from the whimsical designs of Antoni Gaudi to the contemporary art showcased at MACBA. And let's not forget the friendly locals the Catalans who will welcome you warmly into their community. Where else in the continent should you consider relocating? Here are 20 of the best places to live in Europe. Lisbon, Portugal Gautier Houba/Travel + Leisure Lisbon has experienced a tremendous boom in tourism over the last few years, hitting a record high in 2023. The country was also named the best place to retire in Europe in 2023, thanks to its relatively low cost of living, ease of acquiring visas, and many fantastic beaches that residents can explore up and down its magnificent coast. Vienna, Austria Ursula Schmitz/Travel + Leisure Vienna, Austria's capital city, is also having its moment in the limelight, thanks to new hotels like the Rosewood Vienna, as well as studies like The Economists annual Global Liveability Index, which named Vienna the most livable city in the world. It came out on top due to its excellent health care system, infrastructure, and rich culture. Madrid, Spain Rory Fuller/Travel + Leisure Madrid is yet another European capital to make several best of lists, including ranking fourth in Euromonitor International's compilation of best urban destinations. Its highly regarded thanks to its high safety index score and vibrant culture, which is filled with superb food, sites, and plenty of dancing through the night. Zurich, Switzerland Stephanie Pollak/Travel + Leisure Yes, Zurich is expensive, but it more than makes up for it with an easy-to-access health care system, delicious food, and more ways to spend time outdoors than almost anywhere else on the planet. It was also deemed the third most livable city in the same study that named Vienna as number one. Helsinki, Finland peeterv/Getty Images Helsinkis art scene is, without question, top-notch, and that may be reason enough for some to move there. But if youre a parent, youll have more of a motive when you discover the city was named one of the best places to live for families in 2023. It ranked highly as a result of its large number of parks and low child care cost, making it an ideal location for families seeking a new adventure. Copenhagen, Denmark Taylor McIntyre/Travel + Leisure Copenhagen is another city on our list that may seem expensive from the outset, but it has consistently ranked toward the top (if not at the top) of Monocles list of the world's best cities for quality of life. Specifically, the publication calls out its large number of green spaces, focus on sustainability, and ease of health care. Munich, Germany Chira Chirakijja/Travel + Leisure Munich was named the fourth best city to live in on a 2019 list by HR consultancy Mercer, and as the number one most livable city in the world in Monocles 2018 Quality of Life Survey. Time and time again, lists note its stellar public transit, access to health care, museums, and ease of reaching an airport as reasons it's such a great place to live. Tallinn, Estonia arcady_31/Getty Images Estonia has become a major player for digital nomads. The tech-forward nation has excellent visa options for those looking to live and work abroad. Specifically, the cultural hub Tallinn ranked as the 11th best place for expats in the 2022 global survey by InterNations. Dublin, Ireland Jamie Ditaranto/Travel + Leisure Looking for another cool spot to call home? Consider Dublin. Smithfield in the city was ranked the second-coolest neighborhood by Time Out in 2023. Milan, Italy Christopher Larson/Travel + Leisure Those looking for a stylish place to live and work need not look further than Milan. Arguably the fashion capital of the world, it more than delivers on good taste. It was also named as the best city to live in Italy in Il Sole 24 Ores 2020 list. Amsterdam, Netherlands Gautier Houba/Travel + Leisure Amsterdam has plenty to offer those who seek culture, great food, and streets that are designed for walking and biking. It also made an appearance as the fifth best place to live in Time Outs 2022 list, scoring high marks for its arts community and dating scene. Amsterdam is, without a doubt, one of the best places to live in Europe, particularly for expats. With people from more than 170 countries represented here, you'll have no trouble finding a social life and community that fits your needs, Kyle Kroeger, a content creator behind ViaTravelers.com, shared with T+L. Dutch culture also greatly values green spaces, as well as maximizing child happiness. The country has consistently been ranked as one of the happiest countries in the world. Read More: How to Spend One Perfect Day in Amsterdam Liverpool, United Kingdom MEDITERRANEAN/Getty Images While much of the United Kingdom can be considered a desirable place to live, Liverpool has the stats to back it up. The city was named one of the top 10 most desirable places to live in the U.K., according to a 2023 survey, thanks to its increasing home value and local diversity. Marseille, France Paula Galindo Valle/Travel + Leisure Another chic European destination to consider living in: Marseille. The French city by the sea is home to Cours Julien neighborhood, which also made its way to Time Outs coolest neighborhoods list in 2023. As the publication noted, its a hotbed for food and wine lovers, plus home to art galleries galore. Edinburgh, Scotland Michela Sieman/Travel + Leisure In 2023, Totaljobs released its first Quality of Living Index, which surveyed thousands of users, and named Edinburgh as its number-one choice for places to live in the United Kingdom. The historic city nabbed the top spot thanks to its relatively lower cost of living and access to endless cultural destinations. Prague, Czech Republic Christopher Larson/Travel + Leisure The Czech capital was listed as one of the 10 best global destinations for those looking to move abroad in InterNations' 2021 Expats Insider survey. It made its way to the top thanks to both its cost of living and first-rate work-life balance. Athens, Greece Gautier Houba/Travel + Leisure Athens, the capital of Greece, has always been known as a historic and cultural hub. And because of that, it's made its way to a number of best of lists, too, including the 2023 Europes Best Cities Report and Livabilitys 2020 100 Best Places to Live. Vilnius, Lithuania Miemo Penttinen/Getty Images In 2020, Lonely Planet named Vilnius, the capital city of Lithuania, as one of the top 10 places to live for expats. The reasons? It fast internet connectivity, high number of coffee shops, art, and tech scene. Oslo, Norway Mlenny/Getty Images Norway is consistently ranked as one of the safest places to live in the world, and Oslo, the capital city, offers both that peace of mind and access to world-class dining, museums, and an excellent public transit system. Bern, Switzerland Christopher Larson/Travel + Leisure Switzerland is chock-full of top-notch places to live, including Bern, which was named the best city for expats in 2015 due to its beautiful outdoor destinations, wildly good air quality, and access to health care. Valencia, Spain Jamie Ditaranto/Travel + Leisure Valencia, the third-largest city in Spain, was crowned the number-one city to live in as part of InterNations' 2022 Expat City Ranking. And thats no surprise to Patricia Palacios, cofounder of Espana Guide. Located on the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula, the beautiful city of Valencia boasts more than 300 sunny days per year with mild winters and warm summers. Moreover, the city is home to two urban beaches with fine golden sand to make the most of its awesome weather, she said. The list of Valencias charms goes on and on. From its picturesque old town to the lush riverbed park with the neo-futurist City of Arts and Sciences, Valencia is definitely a feast for the eyes. For more Travel & Leisure news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on Travel & Leisure. The ingredients, origins, and preparation methods may differ, but one thing is clear fish soup is one of the most comforting and nourishing dishes on the planet, no matter where you eat it. From spicy Asian renditions like Thailand's tom yum talay and South Korea's maeuntang to creamy varieties like New England clam chowder and Finnish lohikeitto, there's no end to the way fish (and shellfish), vegetables, spices, and stock can be repurposed to create a delectable, heartwarming meal. Join us as we dive into the deep end with these distinct fish soups and stews. Across continents, we'll introduce you to flavors that not only challenge conventional notions of what soup can be but also kindle a newfound appreciation for the diverse tapestry of global cuisine. Get ready to immerse yourself in the heart of these savory concoctions, where every bowl is a passport to a new and exciting gastronomic experience. Read more: 15 Different Ways To Cook Fish Tom Yum Talay Seafood soup in white bowl - Akaphon/Shutterstock When the Thai soul craves comfort in a bowl, they turn to tom yum talay, a fiery elixir that rivals the soothing powers of chicken noodle soup. Unlike its Western counterpart, this Thai masterpiece embraces the briny depths of the sea, marrying a medley of seafood from succulent shrimp to tender fish filets and briny clams with the vibrant flavors of Thai chilies (prik kee noo), lemongrass, coconut milk, and lime. Like any great Thai dish, tom yum talay is a complex, yet refreshing balance of salty, sweet, sour, and spicy notes. To truly elevate the culinary experience and create a complete meal in a bowl, pair it with fragrant jasmine rice or delicate rice vermicelli. Garnish with some fresh coriander leaves and sliced spring onions. Clam Chowder New England clam chowder - Lauripatterson/Getty Images This iconic American soup has three main contenders vying for the title of the ultimate chowder: Manhattan, New England, and Rhode Island. The New York version is instantly recognizable by its vibrant tomato-based broth, thin body, and slight acidity. On the opposite end of the spectrum, there's New England clam chowder, a veritable OG in the soup world. This timeless dish features a velvety cream-based broth, tender clams, potatoes, onions, and either bacon or salt pork. And then there's the rebel of the trio the Rhode Island version. While sharing common ingredients like bacon, onion, and celery with its counterparts, its broth is entirely different. Crafted from clam juice, it acts as more of a vessel to highlight the flavor of the fresh local clams than an ingredient unto itself. Haraimi Red soup in white bowl - Fanfo/Shutterstock Hailing from Libya, Haraimi is a spicy fish stew that combines pureed tomatoes, cod or halibut steaks, aromatics, and a spice blend featuring caraway powder, cumin powder, and paprika. The heat comes from the addition of jalapenos and cayenne pepper, two ingredients that make this dish particularly tantalizing in the winter. Lybians often serve the dish as an appetizer, but you can make it a main course by pairing it with bread, rice, or couscous. Despite its current status as a household staple in Libya, Haraimi doesn't claim native roots. Instead, its origins harken back to the early 20th century, a period marked by Italian colonization in North Africa. The credit for this delectable creation goes to the Libyan Jews of that era, who introduced Haraimi as a classic Rosh Hashanah dish. Mohinga Soup with eggs and onions - AS Foodstudio/Shutterstock Mohinga, Myanmar's unofficial national dish and a quintessential breakfast food, is an aromatic soup that has served as a staple throughout the country's tumultuous history. Some claim that its origins date back to the first century, while others cite mentions of it in 18th-century poetry from the Alaungpaya Dynasty. Regardless of its age, mohinga remains a sensory delight a fragrant blend of fish broth, chickpea flour, lemongrass, turmeric, chili powder, catfish, shrimp paste, and fish sauce. The whole soup is served over a steaming bowl of vermicelli noodles. From there, it's garnished with lime, boiled eggs, cilantro, and chickpea fritters. In addition to the standard recipe, there are tons of regional variations. For example, coastal areas favor more seafood, whereas chefs in the northern Shan state infuse the broth with a fermented bean paste called pehbal. Psarosoupa Red broth in clay bowl - Alexander Prokopenko/Shutterstock Dolmas and moussaka take center stage when it comes to Greek dishes you need to try, but don't overlook the humble psarosoupa. This unpretentious soup, whose name translates to "fish soup" in Greek, stars firm fish filets think red mullet, snapper, cod, and red gurnard alongside a vegetable ensemble featuring carrots, celery, onions, garlic, and potatoes. But don't be fooled by the familiar ingredients, psarosoupa's preparation is anything but conventional. First, the vegetables are boiled. Once tender, they're removed from the broth. One half is mashed into the broth to give it body, while the other half is served as an accompaniment. Some variations incorporate an egg and lemon juice mixture called avgolemono to add extra body. From there, the fish is added to the vegetable mash and broth and cooked until tender. Maeuntang Fish soup in black pot - KYTan/Shutterstock A mere glance at the ingredient list reveals the fiery essence behind the name of this Korean stew, aptly titled "spicy soup." Featuring the dynamic duo of gochujang, a red chili pepper paste, and gochugaru, also known as Korean red pepper flakes, the concoction promises a palate-tingling experience. Aside from the hot ingredients, you'll find an anchovy-based broth enriched with aromatics, tofu, radish, white fish, and an assortment of seafood. Much akin to the communal spirit of Korean barbecue, maeuntang often graces tables in a shared pot, accompanied by an array of banchan including bean sprouts, spicy radish salad, and kimchi. But the culinary journey doesn't end there. Indeed, many eateries add rice to the leftover broth to create a soothing porridge sure to help you finish your feast in style. Bourride White broth with fish chunks - Fanfo/Shutterstock Originating in the Provence region of France, bourride distinguishes itself from bouillabaisse by spotlighting affordable white fish instead of extravagant shellfish. Monkfish is the most traditional choice, but other firm varieties like halibut or sea bass also fit the bill. The broth is a blend of onion, fennel, celery, and garlic simmered in white wine and stock. Potatoes and fish are added towards the end of the cooking process. Tasty as the base may be, aioli is the true piece de resistance. This silky emulsion of garlic, egg yolks, and olive oil is added at the end of the cooking process and gives bourride a velvety texture without the need for cream. Serve any extra aioli with crusty bread alongside the bourride and you'll have a meal perfectly suited to the indulgent, yet laid-back Provencal region. Caldillo De Congrio Chunks of fish in broth - Larisa Blinova/Shutterstock Caldillo de congrio is at the top of the list of Chilean dishes you need to try. Need more convincing? Pablo Neruda, widely regarded as Chile's greatest poet, penned an ode to this simple fish soup. At the core of this cold-weather dish is red conger, a local eel species. However, if that's unavailable, white fish serves as an acceptable substitute. The eel takes its place in a vibrant red broth made from stewed tomatoes, onions, garlic, paprika, and wine. To further enrich the flavors, fish stock, parsley, and bay leaf are introduced before incorporating the eel or fish. Once the eel is cooked through, a generous pour of cream is added, accompanied by the essential seasoning of salt and pepper. Before serving, the dish is garnished with chopped cilantro and spicy salsa de aji. Halaszle Paprika fish soup in bowl - Dietmar Rauscher/Shutterstock As a landlocked country, Hungary's cuisine doesn't feature much in the way of seafood. However, the Central European nation compensates for the absence of maritime influences by showcasing dishes full of local fish from the Tisza or Danube rivers. These include species such as carp, perch, and pike. You'll find some or all of these varieties in halaszle, a fisherman's stew made by simmering fish in a paprika-infused broth over an open fire, preferably outdoors. Alongside the paprika, expect to find wine and tomato paste in the recipe. Beyond that, good luck guessing. Hungarians are notably tight-lipped when it comes to their personal recipe. To make things even more complex, virtually every region boasts its unique variation of this dish, so you never know exactly what you're going to get. Caldeirada Yellow broth with fish chunks - Nataliaspb/Getty Images Similar to French bouillabaisse and Italian cacciucco, Calderira is a Portuguese and Galician fisherman's stew. As such, there's no set recipe. Rather, this dish revolves around the catch of the day. Expect to find everything from oily fish, like tuna or mackerel, to lean whitefish, such as cod or haddock. In addition, there's plenty of shellfish and squid. In addition to the diverse array of seafood, caldeirada incorporates an array of vegetables like onions, potatoes, green peppers, and tomatoes. These ingredients are complemented by a blend of spices that includes bay leaf, coriander, paprika, and white pepper. Preparing caldeirada involves layering the vegetables in a large pot, strategically placing heartier ones like potatoes and onions closer to the flame, and leaving more delicate ones on top. Once the vegetables are tender, the fish and seafood are added. Fish Bee Hoon Noodles and lettuce in bowl - Food Shop/Shutterstock Although Singapore spans a mere 283.5 square miles, this city-state boasts a remarkable 110 hawker centers. These bustling open-air food markets are renowned for offering a diverse array of both local and international culinary delights. Given how heady the experience can be, you might be tempted to reach for familiar favorites, but we encourage you to try something new. One standout recommendation is fish bee hoon soup. This dish revolves around two key elements: the rich fish stock and the delicate bee hoon noodles, also known as rice vermicelli. Hawkers make the fish stock by simmering fish heads with Chinese cooking wine, evaporated milk, and sesame oil. While that's cooking, the noodles are combined with fried snapper filets, blanched bok choy, and tomato wedges before getting doused with the fish stock and a sprinkling of spring onions. Ukha Potato and fish soup - Irina Rostokina/Shutterstock Ukha, a Russian fish soup, boasts a lengthy and intricate history. Its existence dates at least as far back as the 11th century, if not earlier. In its nascent stages, ukha was a broad term that described various soups made with wild game, poultry, or beef. It wasn't until the 17th century that ukha took on its exclusive identity as a fish soup. Understandably, the recipe continued to evolve throughout the centuries. While regional and familial recipes differ to this day, the fundamental ukha recipe involves crafting a stock from fish bones, tails, and heads. These parts are simmered with onion, carrot, bay leaves, and peppercorns until fragrant. Into this transparent base go potatoes, celery, and chunks of fish like salmon, cod, or carp. A generous sprinkling of dill serves as the final touch. Cullen Skink White soup topped with fish - BBA Photography/Shutterstock Along Scotland's North Sea coast, where chilly winds prevail, the need for warm, comforting dishes like Cullen skink is undeniable. Taking its name from Cullen, a village in Northern Scotland, and "skink," the Gaelic word for "essence," this fish soup epitomizes the region's hearty food culture. At the core of Cullen skink are three indispensable ingredients: Aberdeenshire smoked haddock, potatoes, and cream. The haddock gives the soup a robust flavor, while the potatoes contribute body and creaminess. Preparing these simple ingredients is relatively straightforward. First, brown the onions in butter and cook the potatoes. Next, simmer the haddock in cream. Add the ingredients together, then dress with chives before serving. For extra flavor, try adding leeks, bay leaves, and pepper to the broth. Cioppino Red seafood stew in pot - hlphoto/Shutterstock Cioppino is a hearty seafood stew with roots in San Francisco's vibrant Italian-American community. Bursting with a diverse medley of fresh white fish, clams, mussels, and shrimp, this dish pays homage to the oceanic treasures of San Francisco Bay. At the same time, it weaves in classic Italian ingredients like olive oil, wine, and parsley for an undeniable touch of Mediterranean flair. But the true beauty of this soup lies in its adaptability. Because it relies on the catch of the day, every bowl of cioppino is as unique as it is fresh. While the seafood varies, the tomato-infused broth is a reliable backbone. You'll want to sop up every last drop, so we recommend serving cioppino with a slice (or two) of crusty bread. Bouillabaisse Red soup topped with shellfish - Shebeko/Shutterstock The earliest iterations of this fisherman's stew featured rockfish, a bony species that sometimes struggled to find its place in Marseille's restaurants and markets. Nowadays, bouillabaisse is more commonly prepared with the catch of the day, something that includes species like European conger, sea robins, and monkfish. The fish is served alongside generous portions of shellfish and seafood such as mussels, crabs, and octopus. Complementing the array of fish and seafood is a medley of vegetables that includes leeks, onions, celery, and potatoes. These are seasoned with saffron, lemon juice, and orange zest as they simmer in the broth and bouillabaisse mixture. Adding to the uniqueness of this dish, bouillabaisse is traditionally served with toasted bread and rouille, a mayo-like condiment made with olive oil, saffron, and roasted red pepper. Encebollado Brown soup in white bowl - frankval/Shutterstock Humble as it may be, Ecuador's encebollado is more than a simple fish soup. Rather, it's an embodiment of the South American country's coastal culinary identity. But it's not just a revered national dish, it's also a go-to hangover cure following a night of one too many aguardiente shots. That's why you'll also find it called chuchaqui, an Ecuadorian colloquialism meaning hangover. Given its centrality to Ecuadorian cuisine and culture, you'll find encebollado everywhere from street stalls to high-end restaurants. This beloved fish soup features fresh albacore tuna, boiled yuca, tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. Once everything is cooked, the soup is garnished with pickled red onions. This seemingly simple addition is, in fact, what gives the soup its name, something that roughly translates to oniony fish soup. Zupa Rybna White broth in brown bowl - Fanfo/Shutterstock Poland, renowned for its cold climate and dark winters, has earned a soup-centric reputation. While zurek, a sour soup crafted from fermented rye flour, often takes the spotlight, let's not overlook zupa rybna. Translating to fish soup, this culinary gem is a staple during traditional Christmas Eve celebrations. It features fish filets like sole, cod, or halibut simmered in vegetable broth. Along with fish and broth, the standard recipe includes potatoes, aromatics, tomato, and a touch of milk or cream. Yet, as with many fish soups, all kinds of variations exist. Some opt for fried fish instead of boiled, while others introduce red peppers for an added pop of flavor. Regardless of the specific rendition, this delectable soup offers a perfect remedy for banishing the chill of winter evenings. Canh Chua Soup topped with greens - Fuong/Shutterstock We're willing to bet that you've heard of pho, Vietnam's most famous soup export. But what about canh chua? Also known as Vietnamese sweet and sour soup, canh chua hails from the picturesque Mekong Delta region in Southern Vietnam. It features a pork and tamarind-infused broth that's generously adorned with catfish sourced from the delta's abundant waters. Complementing the fish are chunks of sweet pineapple, juicy tomatoes, elephant ear stalks, and crisp bean sprouts. Traditionally, this comforting soup finds its perfect companion in a side of fragrant white rice. However, it's also a great match for ca kho to, a caramelized catfish dish. While the flavors are outstanding, what makes canh chua truly special is the fact that every family has its own unique rendition of this delectable fish soup. Lohikeitto White soup topped with salmon - from my point of view/Shutterstock Similar to lutefisk and Janssons frestelse, lohikeitto is a dish with roots in more than one Nordic country. As a result, you'll find it called by many names. In Finland, you'll hear it called lohikeitto, whereas the Swedes refer to it as laxsoppa. Whatever it's called, lohikeitto is essentially a creamy fish chowder made with salmon. There's plenty of fresh salmon in Scandinavia, but canned salmon serves as a convenient alternative in other parts of the world. Besides salmon, cream, and fish broth, the basic recipe for lohikeitto calls for diced potatoes, leeks, carrots, allspice, and a healthy sprinkling of dill. Despite its seemingly sophisticated ingredients, lohikeitto is remarkably straightforward and unpretentious in its preparation. For the full Nordic experience, enjoy it with hearty pumpernickel or rye bread, both of which are perfect for soaking up the delightful flavors of this delicious soup. Fish Tea Yellow soup with corn - @garyasgary/Instagram Yes, you read that right. This Jamaican fish soup goes by the name tea. Despite the name, it's got nothing to do with leaves or herbs. Instead, it refers to the broth's consistency. Unlike other Jamaican soups like pepper pot and red pea, fish tea boasts a thin broth with minimal ingredients. This makes it a light and easy option for sipping, whether you're under the weather, celebrating a special occasion, or trying to beat the summer heat. This delectable soup welcomes improvisation. Pair any fresh fish you have with yellow yam, pumpkin, okra, and carrot. And, of course, let's not overlook the scotch bonnet pepper. Ranging from 100,000 to 325,000 Scoville units, this chile pepper packs a punch not for the faint of heart. However, it's precisely what imparts fish tea with its distinctive Caribbean heat and flavor. Static Media owns and operates Tasting Table and Mashed. Read the original article on Tasting Table. Warning: Graphic and disturbing content ahead including mentions of sexual assault, abuse, and murder. 1.Velma Barfield, aka the "Death Row Granny," who was initially convicted of killing one person and eventually confessed to several more murders via poisoning in the 1970s. According to Medium, "An anonymous tipster, later revealed to be Velmas sister, notified police that Velma had killed others in a similar way that she had killed Stuart Taylor (her boyfriend). Barfield was arrested and later confessed to poisoning with arsenic Montgomery and Dollie Edwards (an elderly couple in her care), John Henry Lee (the husband of another patient), and her mother, Lillie Bullard. She claimed that she had killed them in order to cover up the fact that she had stolen money from them to support her illicit drug use. She later confessed to poisoning Stuart Taylor. Despite her confessions, Velma continued to refute claims that she had also killed Thomas Burke and Jennings Barfield, and was convicted only for the murder of Taylor." Barfield was executed on Nov. 2, 1984 at Central Prison in Raleigh, North Carolina. Bettmann / Bettmann Archive 2.Judy Buenoano, aka The Black Widow, who killed three people her husband, boyfriend, and her son, who was just 19 years old. She was also convicted of the attempted murder of another boyfriend, John Gentry. Her husband, James Goodyear, died in 1971 of what was first believed to be "natural causes." Her boyfriend, Bobby Joe Morris, died in 1978 by poisoning. And her son, Michael, who became ill, died after falling out of a canoe (that he was in with Judy). According to the US Middle District Court of Florida, "After Michaels death, Buenoano opened a beauty salon in Gulf Breeze and began dating John Gentry. She persuaded him that they should take out life insurance policies on each other, later increasing the size of his policy to $500,000. A month later, Gentry caught a cold, and Buenoano began giving him 'vitamin C' capsules to treat it. Because he was experiencing extreme nausea and vomiting, Gentry checked into a hospital. Gentry recovered and was released, only to return to the hospital when his car exploded." Judy was executed in 1998, the first woman to be executed in Florida since 1848. Film Rise / Via youtube.com 3.Audrey Marie Hilley, another "Black Widow Killer," and suspected serial killer, from Alabama. She poisoned her husband, Frank Hilley, with arsenic in May 1975 and even faked her own death at one point. According to the LA Times, "She was sentenced to life in prison in 1983 for the 1975 murder of her first husband, Frank Hilley. She also was convicted of attempted murder in the 1979 arsenic poisoning of her 19-year-old daughter, who recovered. Federal authorities say she was living under a false identity when she met her second husband, John Homan, while a fugitive between 1979 and 1983. She married Homan but faked her own death while on a trip to Texas. She returned to Homan in New Hampshire after losing weight, dyeing her hair, and posing as her sister." Hilley died of exposure while she was visiting her husband, while on a three-day pass from prison, in 1987. Bettmann / Bettmann Archive 4.Karla Homolka, a serial killer who acted as an accomplice with her husband Paul Bernardo (also a serial killer) in the rapes and murders of at least three teenagers, including her own sister from 19901992. According to CBC News, "Bernardo was convicted in 1995 of the kidnapping, raping, and murdering of southern Ontario teenagers Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy. Homolka portrayed herself as the innocent victim of a murderous monster. She struck a deal with prosecutors (later dubbed the 'deal with the devil') and pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the deaths in exchange for a 12-year prison sentence. But videotapes of the crimes, found after the plea bargain, showed her to be a more active participant. Public outrage about Homolka's sentence had barely cooled by the time of her extremely high-profile release from prison in 2005." Dick Loek / Toronto Star via Getty Images 5.Kristen Gilbert, a former nurse who worked at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Northampton, Massachusetts in the late '80s. She was convicted of four murders and two attempted murders of patients. Over time, her coworkers grew suspicious when they realized the deaths of her patients also coincided with a noticeable shortage of epinephrine. Rumors started to go around about her, and Gilbert soon quit. After an investigation and trial, she was convicted of first-degree murder of three veterans, second-degree murder of a fourth, and attempted murder of two more. Getty Images 6.Nannie Doss, aka "Giggling Granny" and the "Lonely Hearts Killer," who was responsible for the deaths of at least a dozen people between the 1920s and 1950s, including four husbands, two children, and other family members. According to the Muskogee Phoenix, "She confessed to only killing her four husbands. Exhumations revealed she killed at least 12 family members, which she blamed on [a] childhood head injury. Journalists called her 'Giggling Granny' because she laughed whenever she told how she killed her husbands." Bettmann / Bettmann Archive 7.Aileen Wuornos, aka "The Damsel of Death," a serial killer who murdered and robbed six men (and possibly a seventh) while doing sex work in Florida from 19891990. According to CNN, Wuornos initially claimed she acted in self-defense. However, Sgt. Bob Kelley of the Volusia County Sheriff's Department who investigated the case later said, "After she was convicted of the first murder of Richard Mallory, she then pled guilty to the others, and after a certain point in time, she started to recant and say she wasn't a victim. She simply robbed and killed those men to gain their personal property and to gain money." Wuornos was executed on Oct. 9, 2002. Getty Images 8.Miyuki Ishikawa, aka the "Demon Midwife," who was charged with murdering many infants (possibly even over 100) through purposeful neglect. Her crimes were committed with accomplices during the 1940s in post-World War II Japan. While the story is complicated her crimes related to poverty struggles people in Japan faced after the war according to All That's Interesting, "When she was finally apprehended, her death toll was so high that to this day, she remains the most prolific serial killer in Japanese history and one of the most prolific female serial killers in the world." Keystone / Getty Images 9.Myra Hindley who was called "the most evil woman in Britain" in the press for her involvement in killing five children with her partner Ian Brady in the 1960s. According to BBC News, "Ian Brady and Myra Hindley tortured, sexually assaulted, and murdered five youngsters in 196365, burying four of them on Saddleworth Moor (an area in North West England)." Hulton Deutsch / Corbis via Getty Images 10.Belle Gunness, a Norwegian American serial killer active in Illinois and Indiana from 18841908, suspected of killing up to 15 men for insurance. Her children (in the photo below) died in a house fire in 1908, and it's unclear if the body of a woman found with them was Belle. According to All That's Interesting, "Gunness had a system. After murdering her two husbands, the Norwegian-American woman posted ads in the paper looking for men to invest in her farm. Fellow Norwegian Americans flocked to her property hoping for a taste of home along with a solid business opportunity. She also posted ads in lovelorn columns to attract wealthy bachelors. To lure her last victim, Gunness wrote: 'My heart beats in wild rapture for you, My Andrew, I love you. Come prepared to stay forever.'" Bettmann / Bettmann Archive 11.Dorothea Puente, who ran a boarding house in Sacramento, California where she killed various elderly people and people with mental disabilities in the '80s. The total victim count reached nine confirmed murders and six unconfirmed. Puente was charged with a total of nine murders and convicted of three of those. She received two life sentences without the possibility of parole and died in prison at Chowchilla on March 27, 2011, from natural causes. Sacramento Bee / Getty Images 12.Sara Maria Aldrete, aka "La Madrina," a convicted serial killer who also ran a drug-smuggling and human sacrifice cult with a man named Adolfo Constanzo in Mexico during the '80s. According to the San Francisco Gate, "All their victims except Mark Kilroy [a college student] were from Mexico. They were slaughtered in what police said were satanic rituals involving candles, machetes, and chants." Barbara Laing / Getty Images 13.Amy Archer-Gilligan, a serial killer who also ran a nursing home, murdered at least five people by poisoning them in Windsor, Connecticut during the early 1900s. According to the New York Times, "In 1916, Mrs. Gilligan was arrested. State police, after an investigation, concluded that she had shortened the lives of up to two dozen or so men by poisoning them with arsenic. One of them was Michael W. Gilligan, her second husband. [...] The arrest of Mrs. Gilligan and her trial in 1917, after many bodies had been exhumed, rocked the state." Ivan-96 / Getty Images 14.Stacey Castor, a convicted murderer from Weedsport, New York who killed her husband with antifreeze, attempted to kill her daughter with crushed pills mixed into a drink, and was also suspected of killing her first husband in the 2000s. 15.Tillie Klimek, who claimed to have "precognitive dreams" predicting her victims' deaths. She is believed to have poisoned and killed three husbands as well as neighborhood children in Chicago during the 1920s along with an accomplice. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, a March 6, 1923 story read, "Tillie Klimek and Nellie Stormer Koulik, the so-called arsenic widows of the Polish quarter, were placed on trial today for the murder of one of the numerous husbands they are alleged to have poisoned. Apparently, the women killed Klimek's second husband for insurance money and later married and poisoned other husbands." George Rinhart / Corbis via Getty Images 16.Marybeth Tinning, whose nine children died suspiciously under her care in New York during the 1970s. It is believed she poisoned them over a span of several years. Before being caught, she managed to convince people her children had died of different things like acute meningitis, seizures, cardiac arrest, sudden infant death syndrome, acute pulmonary edema, and bronchial pneumonia. According to the Associated Press, "Under questioning by state police investigators in early 1986, she admitted to smothering the girl [her ninth child, Tami Lynne] as well as two of her sons. Prosecutors indicted her for the three deaths, with the lone conviction coming in the case of Tami Lynnes killing." Bettmann / Bettmann Archive 17.Frances Knorr, aka the "Baby Farming Murderess," an English woman who moved to Australia, became a baby farmer, and is believed to have killed, by strangulation, multiple children in the late 1800s. According to the Australian Dictionary, Knorr was tried and found guilty and ultimately hanged on Jan. 15, 1894, for her crimes. Mikroman6 / Getty Images 18.Rosemary West, a serial killer in England who murdered, sexually assaulted, and tortured at least nine women (possibly more) along with her husband, Fred, from 19731987. According to Sky News, "Many of the Wests' victims, who were all young women, were found buried in the cellar or garden of their house." Fred died by suicide in prison in 1995, while Rosemary remains in a prison in Yorkshire serving a life sentence. Universal History Archive / Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images 19.Linda Hazzard, aka "The Starvation Doctor," who was responsible for at least 15 deaths in the state of Washington in the early 1900s. Hazzard had no medical degree, but due to a loophole for practicing alternative medicine, was actually licensed to practice medicine in Washington state. Hazzard created a sanitarium called Wilderness Heights in Olalla, Washington, where she "treated" patients via fasting, giving them only small amounts of juices. Although some patients actually survived her care, she was convicted of manslaughter in 1912 and was sentenced to 2 to 20 years in prison. She was released on parole in December 1915 after serving two years and even received a full pardon the following year. She died in 1938 from starvation while attempting a fasting cure. Ilbusca / Getty Images 20.Beverley Allitt, aka "The Angel of Death," who was convicted of killing four children, attempting to murder three more, and causing grievous bodily harm to six others at a hospital in Lincolnshire, England between February and April of 1991. According to the Radio Times, "Allitt is currently serving three life sentences in Nottinghamshire-based psychiatric ward Rampton Secure Hospital." David Giles - Pa Images / PA Images via Getty Images 21.Blanche Taylor Moore, a suspected serial killer who was convicted of poisoning her boyfriend and was also believed to be responsible for the death of her first husband, father, and mother-in-law. According to CBS 17, as of February 2023, "Neither her bout with cancer nor the death penalty have claimed her life, making her the oldest woman in the United States on death row." ABC 11 / Via youtube.com 22.Amelia Dyer, a baby farmer turned serial killer in England who adopted and then murdered many children over a 30-year period in the late 1800s. According to BBC News, "Recently widowed and with a daughter to support, she learned of the practice [of baby farming] from a colleague. In 1869 she began advertising in local papers 'Married couple with no family would adopt healthy child, nice country home. Terms 10.' But instead of providing a safe and loving home, she would instead take the child for a fee and murder them either by starving them, drugging them with an opiate-laced cordial known as Mother's Friend, or by strangulation." Clu / Getty Images 23.Elizabeth Bathory, a Hungarian countess who is believed to have tortured and killed hundreds of young women in the 16th and 17th centuries. The lore is that the countess thought bathing in her victims' virginal blood would give her eternal youth. According to National Geographic, "Some witnesses estimated her body count at more than 600. Yet the countess was never convicted, and her husband could not be prosecuted from his grave. Instead, four of Bathorys servants were convicted of violence against young women in her castles. The countess, meanwhile, remained locked in her spacious jail until she died in 1614, at the age of 54." Apic / Bridgeman via Getty Images If ghosts inhabit the dark places where the worst of humanity does the worst a human can, America is a nation full of hauntings. What happens to the ever-growing number of locations where mass shootings have been carried out whether they end up being remodeled and reopened, remaindered or razed sometimes depends on the scope of the atrocities, and often on what the building or location meant, or didnt, before the tragedy. Most buildings are just brick and mortar until horror personifies them in the worst possible way. Given enough time, some can go back to being just buildings. Others, like Club Q, are a collective soul that cant be replicated or revived. It wasnt just a place you went to to dance and see drag shows, it was the people, the community who made it what it was, said Beyonca Perez, one of more than three dozen people who survived the Nov. 19, 2022, bias-motivated attack that killed five Ashley Paugh, Kelly Loving, Raymond Green Vance, Derrick Rump and Daniel Aston and left 17 with gunshot wounds. People went to Club Q for (beloved bartenders) Derrick and Daniel. Without them, there is no Club Q, said survivor John Arcediano. Club Q, it seems, now agrees. Club Q has never been a building or a location. Its really tens of thousands of people, from all walks of life, coming together to celebrate love and acceptance," said club owner Matthew Haynes in a statement emailed to media outlets Friday, along with updated details about a Sunday memorial event at the club. Despite an announcement earlier this year that the nightclub would be remodeled inside and out and reopened in the same location at 3430 N. Academy Blvd. to stand strong, not let hate win, said shooting survivor and now-Club Q vice president of operations Michael Anderson plans pivoted dramatically after months of pushback from other survivors and the greater Colorado Springs LGBTQ+ community. Nobody wants to go dancing at a place where they saw their friends die, said Ashtin Gamblin, who was shot nine times while working the clubs door that night. In October, Club Q revised its vision, saying it would instead reopen in leased space inside the Satellite Hotel, at 411 Lakewood Circle, with a quieter concept and a new name, The Q. This is not a nightclub thats open all night and we are not necessarily going to have a permanent dance floor. This is a lounge, mellow ... and the space is a lot more open and airy, just entirely different, said Anderson of the ground floor space with floor-to-ceiling windows and a panoramic view of the Front Range. We arent trying to recreate Club Q, because we cant. We want to make a safe space for the community to gather, where they can continue to heal, but with a little more mellow of a vibe. The Q is on track to open in late 2023, with heightened security measures to include a "controlled entrance" through the main lobby of the hotel. Anderson said Haynes hasnt decided what to do with the original property off North Academy, which has been closed since the shooting. For the foreseeable future, it will remain as it is. There are no plans for that property, and honestly figuring that out really isnt the priority right now, Anderson said in October. After a mass shooting, a number of sites around the country, and in Colorado, have been able to return to a functioning, if not anonymous, existence. The Century 16 movie theater in Aurora where a shooter killed 12 people and injured 17 on July 20, 2012, underwent a remodel and reopened six months after the massacre. As recently as 2019, a school administrator recommended Columbine High School be torn down, due to the persistence of morbid tourism, but the institution continues to accept incoming classes each fall as it has since August 1999, when it reopened four months after a pair of teen gunmen murdered 12 students and a teacher in what was then the nations deadliest mass shooting at a high school. The library where many of the murders occurred was demolished and replaced by an atrium. Sign up for free: News Alerts Stay in the know on the stories that affect you the most. Sign Up For Free View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. The Boulder King Soopers, where 10 people, including an on-duty police officer, were killed on March 22, 2021, was remodeled and reopened 11 months later, in February 2022. By contrast: Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn., was demolished and rebuilt on the same property with an entirely new footprint, after a gunman killed 20 first graders and six educators on Dec. 14, 2012. And Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., has been closed since a 2016, hate-motivated mass shooting killed 49 and wounded 53. Anderson said Club Q is moving forward with plans to build a more than $300,000 memorial installation of standing stones and reflection area honoring the victims and survivors, at the southeast corner of the original club location off Academy Boulevard. A controversial GoFundMe campaign that former club staff and contract employees say was originally set up to raise donations to help those who were injured and out of work but which they say was then rebranded as a fundraiser for the memorial has since been closed. The money needed to build the memorial has been raised, prep work has begun, and will continue as soon as the city greenlights permits, Anderson said. Weve raised what we needed to, and were forging ahead as quickly as possible, he said. According to the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department, as of Nov. 15, no permit requests had been filed for work at the North Academy address. If Club Qs memorial is seen to fruition, it will be unusual among the many tributes erected to those lost and wounded in American mass shootings. Few are located at the exact place where the murders occurred. In July 2018, a sculptural monument, titled Ascentiate and featuring a flock of metal birds in flight, opened in a city park a short drive from the Aurora movie house where victims lost their lives. The monument was paid for through private donations raised by the nonprofit 7/20 Memorial Foundation. In September of 2007, the donor-funded Columbine Memorial was dedicated in Littletons Clement Park, less than a mile away from the school. A sculpture honoring the victims of the King Soopers shooting, donated to the city by the local artist who created it, was officially unveiled and dedicated in a June ceremony outside the Museum of Boulder. In Orlando, a multimillion-dollar, donor-funded project that would have seen the Pulse nightclub site transformed into a permanent memorial, and a "towering museum" celebrating LGBTQ+ history and culture constructed nearby, was abandoned in late October after the onePULSE Foundation and the club's owners failed to negotiate a planned donation of the property to the nonprofit. That particular issue shouldn't be a problem for Club Q, as Haynes owns the building where the memorial is planned and created the nonprofit that bears its name. A spokesperson for Colorado Springs said meetings are scheduled with the families of those killed in the shooting, on what could become a separate, public memorial to those lost in the massacre, almost one year ago. Nothing has yet been decided, stressed city spokesperson Max DOnofrio, but it is something the city is going to talk to the families about and start that community conversation. In the meantime, the conversation the community is having about a rebranded Club Q in a new location, and a memorial at the old is one that continues, with a range of perspectives, in Colorado Springs. Arcediano said that although he applauds and will root for the success of any queer-forward business that opens in the city, he doesnt see himself ever patronizing the reinvisioned Club Q at the Satellite Hotel. The reality is this community does deserve a space," he said. "I personally won't go, but if The Q does bring some closure and allows people who were not involved directly with this tragedy or who need it to have a safe, community space, I can say I support its opening. Its probably no surprise that when it comes to cleaning, there are lots of items that the average homeowner doesnt wash often enough. However, according to cleaning experts, there are some items that they find their clients actually wash too often. While the consequences of not washing something often enough are pretty self-explanatory (build-up of grime, dirt, and germs), we dont blame you if the idea of washing something too often has you scratching your head. Isnt cleaning frequently a good thing? As it turns out, certain fabrics and materials can start to break down if they are washed too often, compromising the structure, feel, and integrity of the item. Ultimately, it all comes down to finding the perfect balance between cleanliness and preservation. Here are six items youre probably washing too often, according to cleaning experts. Meet the Experts Lina DaSilva is the founder of Toronto Shine Cleaning, a home cleaning service based in Ontario, Canada. Katie Lambert is the founder of Clean Queen Cleaning Services, a home cleaning service based in Denver, CO. Diana Ciechorska is the general manager of general manager of Park Slope Cleaning, a commercial cleaning service based in New York City. Bath Towels Most experts agreed that towels are the number one culprit when it comes to overwashing, particularly bath towels. While its tempting to wash them after every use, this can strip their softeness and rapidly age the fibers, says Lina DaSilva, founder of Toronto Shine Cleaning based in Ontario, Canada. Instead, DaSilva recommends washing your bath towels after three to four uses, provided they are properly hung to dry between every use. Blankets Another often-overwashed item is blankets. While blankets can get a lot of use, washing them too often will result in stiff, matted fibers and a blanket that is no longer soft and comfortable to curl up in. Instead of weekly washes, Katie Lambert founder of Clean Queen, a home cleaning company based in Denver, CO, recommends washing blankets once every 3 to 4 weeks, depending on use. Bed Sheets If youre in the habit of washing your bed sheets once a week, you might want to cut back a bit. Experts advise that washing bed sheets too often will dramatically reduce their lifespan. Bed sheets are often subjected to weekly washes, but unless theres a spill or sickness, extending this to every two weeks is usually sufficient, DaSilva says. Additionally, she recommends using gentle, natural detergents on your bed sheets which can help keep them fresh for longer and protect the integrity of the delicate fibers. Denim Denim is designed to break in and fade over timeits one of the things people love about it (you cant beat that worn-in look). However, washing denim too often can speed up the process and result in weak fibers that no longer hold their shape, and once that happens theres no turning back. Denim items should be washed every 5 to 10 wears, unless theres visible dirt or odor, says DaSilva. She advises that spot cleaning any small stains can often do the trick in between washes. Carpets and Rugs Its no secret that carpets and rugs pick up a lot of dirt and debris over time, but experts caution against over-cleaning them. This includes washing them and even vacuuming. Over-shampooing carpets and rugs can lead to fiber damage, color fading, and mold growth, says Diana Ciechorska, general manager of Park Slope Cleaning based in New York City. Similarly, vacuuming your carpets too often can lead to fiber damage. Ciechorska advises that the ideal cleaning schedule for carpets and rugs is to vacuum once every few days (or at least once a week) and opt for professional shampooing and deep cleaning every 12 to 18 months. In the event of spills and stains in between cleanings, spot cleaning should do the trick. Pillows Cleaning experts agree that overwashing pillows is a big no-no. While it can be tempting to throw your pillows in the wash frequently due to how often they are used, washing pillows too often will cause them to become lumpy and uncomfortable, says Lambert. Lambert says that pillows ideally should be washed every two to three months at the most. Remember that the pillowcases protect them from lots of the debris and dirt that would otherwise accumulate in them. That being said, if you feel your pillows need a bit of extra protection, pillow protectors are a great option that can help guard against moisture, stains, dust, and other allergens. Read Next: 6 Items You Should Wash Before Using, According to Pros Read the original article on The Spruce. It's not about a ski resort, but it involves snow, so I'd say it's fit for digital print in POWDER. Anchorage, Alaska, is rapidly approaching its previous November snowfall record of 38.8 inches set in 1994. @thealaskalife has the rundown. When you read this, the record may have already been broken. Given that it's only mid-November, the Alaskan city has plenty of time to pick up those last decimals, and with more snow on the way this coming week, a record is all but assured. What of Alaskan ski resorts, you ask? Yeah, yeah, I know that's why you're here. I'm pleased to report that the news out of Alyeska, Alaska's largest ski resort, is exactly what you skiers are looking to hear. Since the Alaskan battering started earlier this month, the resort has picked up loads of snow. I'd go into further detail, but I think this video does the situation better justice than my words could. That doesn't look like mid-November to me, but I'm not one to overly-scrutinize a positive development, even if it makes me more than a little jealous. Alyeska hasn't yet opened its doors to eager skiers, but those first lift-serviced turns are right around the corner. The resort plans to open on November 25th. I'd throw in the usual "weather and conditions" permitting caveat, but from my vantage, the conditions are looking more than permissive. Game on! Don't miss another headline from POWDER! Subscribe to our newsletter and stay connected with the latest happenings in skiing. We're always on the lookout for amusing, interesting and engaging ski-related videos to feature on our channels. Whether you're a professional skier or just an amateur, we want to see your best footage and help you share it with the world. Submit your video for a chance to be featured on POWDER and our social channels. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch high-quality ski videos. Meaning "marinade" in Spanish, adobo takes on many forms, from Filipino meat stew to Mexican chipotle en adobo. Each iteration is a product of the Spanish diaspora, a meeting of Old World culinary traditions with New World ingredients. As one of the first islands visited by Christopher Columbus, and subsequently Spanish colonialism, Cuba's garlic adobo recounts one of the oldest culinary byproducts of the Spanish diaspora. Garlic adobo is the essential marinade for meat in Cuba and is a recipe known and employed by just about every household and restaurant. Garlic adobo is a wet marinade consisting of chopped garlic, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, and sour orange juice. It provides a burst of spice from the raw garlic, savory notes from the cumin and oregano, and a burst of sour citrus juice. While typical Spanish marinades utilize a vinegar base, the sour orange provides the same acidity with a hint of sweetness, serving as a zesty flavor agent and meat tenderizer. In the absence of sour orange, a mixture of three parts lime juice to one part orange juice will closely resemble the subtly sweet acidity the marinade imparts on Cuban-style meats. Garlic adobo contains ingredients most households in Cuba and beyond have on hand. Its popularity has spread beyond Cuban soil, with international spice companies selling garlic adobo spice blends to use as dry rubs or combine with a squeeze of citrus. Read more: The Most Popular Cuts Of Steak Ranked Worst To Best How To Use Garlic Adobo For Cuban-Style Meats ropa vieja with rice and fried plantains - Sbossert/Getty Images Garlic adobo is as easy to use as it is to make. Traditionally, Cubans used a mortar and pestle to blend the ingredients into a paste, but a blender or food processor would streamline the task. Even a rough chop of garlic, a mixing bowl, and a whisk would suffice as the meat or fish you place in garlic adobo will absorb all of the flavors regardless of whether the marinade is a paste or a chunky dressing. This go-to marinade for any protein prepared in Cuban kitchens complements the entire spectrum of umami flavors. Marinade times differ depending on the cut of meat or fish you're cooking, with fish filets and poultry needing a mere hour or two, while heavier meats like pork, lamb, and beef require an overnight marinade. Adobo is used to season pork shoulder for the famous roasted pork dish lechon asado, which is a key component in the Cuban sandwich. It's also the key ingredient for steak marinades in vaca frita and in Cuba's national dish: ropa vieja. You could also use it to marinate and or dry-season fried yuca, potatoes, or savory plantain tostones. Read the original article on Tasting Table. When people travel for the winter holidays, they may visit England if they're looking for some of that "ye olde Dickensian" feeling, or they might hit the ski slopes in Switzerland if they want to hobnob with the 1%. One place that most may not think to venture, however, is Greenland, a small country whose 56,000 residents give it a population approximately the same size as that of Olympia, Washington. While Greenland may not be known for its tourist amenities and Michelin-starred restaurants, what it can offer the intrepid traveler is the chance to experience a holiday feast that may be unlike anything they've experienced elsewhere. Greenland is known for its unique meats, one of which is reindeer. Here in the U.S., when we think of these animals at Christmastime, it's usually in the cute context of animated red-nosed ones pulling Santa's sleight or possibly knitted ones adorning ugly sweaters. In Scandinavia, however, reindeer meat has been used as a pizza topping in both Sweden and Finland, while in Greenland it may feature prominently on the holiday menu. Reindeer, called tuttu in Greenland, are the only deer species on the island (although technically they're caribou) and they've been hunted for millennia by the Inuit people. One need not be a hunter to have caribou for Christmas, however, as the meat is commercially available. Read more: US Foods You Surprisingly Can't Find In Canada Reindeer Aren't The Only Arctic Animals Eaten On Christmas risengrd with christmas decorations - Rimma Bondarenko/Shutterstock In addition to roast reindeer, a Greenland holiday dinner might include a few other species we don't often see in supermarkets such as whales, seals, and seagulls or auks. One wintertime treat, called mattak, can give your jaws quite a workout as it consists of a rather tough piece of whale hide. Another one, kiviak, is kind of like Greenland's answer to turducken, only instead of a turkey, duck, and chicken you're stuffing seabirds into a seal skin. Four and 20 seabirds fermented in a seal may not be a dainty dish, but it has its appeal. Of course, no Christmas dinner would be complete without dessert, and Greenland has a few sweet specialties, as well. Coffee with cake is traditionally served after attending Christmas Eve mass possibly kalaallit kaagiat, which is a kind of sweet yeast bread studded with raisins and sprinkled with cardamon-flavored confectioner's sugar. Fruit crisps made with berries or apples are also a popular holiday dessert, as is a porridge or ride pudding served with butter and cinnamon sugar. This pudding, which goes by the Danish name of risengrd, is known throughout Scandinavia and Greenland and is considered to be part of the Realm of Denmark despite being over 2,000 miles and several time zones away from the European mainland. Read the original article on Mashed. Doug Theaker recognized for 50 years of school board service Doug Theaker, president of both the boards of Pioneer Career & Technology Center and the Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center, was recognized Nov. 12 by the Ohio School Boards Association at its annual Capital Conference for his 50 years of board service at Pioneer Career & Technology Center, Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center, and the Ontario Local Schools Board of Education. Of more than 3,400 board members in Ohio, only three received this honor in 2023. I am most appreciative for this honor and being recognized for 50 years of service as a board member in public education, said Theaker. My education started in first grade in a one-room school in rural Madison Township. After two college degrees and 50 years of service, Im proud to say I am still serving young people and hopefully bettering their education. Doug Theaker and his wife Mary Jean, also a long-time school board member, following the award presentation at the OSBA Capital Conference. Theaker is also the board president of the Richland County Veteran Service Commission and has served on that board since 1983. A U.S. Navy veteran from the Korean War, he was elected into the Ohio Department of Veterans Services Hall of Fame in 2018. During the annual Veterans Day assembly for students and staff at Pioneer on Nov. 10, Theaker served as the keynote speaker and was also presented with a plaque recognizing his service in the military, as well as his 50 years of board service. Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center gets high marks from Ohio Department of Education Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center applied for and has received the High Performing ESC designation from the Ohio Department of Education. A High Performing Educational Service Center (ESC) has generated total cost savings of at least 5% for its client school districts for primary services secured from the ESC instead of another source. Mid-Ohio ESC far exceeded this 5% benchmark, with a total savings of 30.42% in 2023. The Ohio Department of Education evaluated each application based on the total percentage of cost savings the ESC generated for its client districts calculated based on the price charged to the client by the ESC for a primary service. Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center provides specialized academic and support services to 13 school districts and over 20,000 students in Crawford, Morrow and Richland Counties. Cleveland's unsolved serial killer topic of next museum event LOUDONVILLE The Cleo Redd Fisher Museums Speaker Series continues this month with a look into Clevelands greatest murder mystery and its connection to Americas most famous lawman, with Eliot Ness and the Torso Murders. Eliot Ness was best known as the American Prohibition agent who organized and led a crack team of incorruptible agents known as The Untouchables to take down Al Capone and other major criminals. Following the end of Prohibition, he was hired as the public safety director for Cleveland, a role overseeing both the city police and fire departments. Ness' time in Cleveland coincided with a gruesome string of unsolved murders by a serial killer known both as the Torso Murderer and as the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run. The killings were characterized by the dismemberment of 13 known victims, though some suspect upwards of 20 victims, and the disposal of their remains primarily in the impoverished neighborhood of Kingsbury Run though two bodies of their victims were placed within view of Ness' office window, taunting him to solve the case. The Torso Murders became the biggest police investigation in Cleveland history, resulting in 9,100 investigations and over 1,000 other crimes solved yet the identity of the killer was never confirmed. Mary Manning, the education coordinator for the Western Reserve Historical Society, will present a program at the Cleo Redd Fisher Museum on Loudonville on the unsolved Cleveland serial killer known as the Torso Murderer. This discussion will be led by Mary Manning, the education coordinator for the Western Reserve Historical Society. This program is slated for 7 p.m. Monday in the lecture hall of the Cleo Redd Fisher Museum at 203 E. Main St. in Loudonville. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 419-994-4050 or visit crfmuseum.com. Mansfield News Journal This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Doug Theaker OSBA honor, Mid-Ohio ESC designation, museum speaker Hotel Chocolat has just been purchased by American snacking giant Mars for $661 million. It's a formidable figure -- and one that many industry experts argue is unnecessarily high. Mars' valuation of the upscale chocolatier was a cash offer of 375 pence per share, representative of a 170% per-share increase. Since Hotel Chocolat opened its flagship store in North London in 2004, it has become the largest independent chocolate maker in Britain, expanding to 131 stores (124 in the U.K. plus outlets in Gibraltar and Ireland). Still, some experts doubt whether the company has a future beyond the English market. In fiscal 2022, company revenue dropped by 10%, demonstrating a loss of $7.7 million, despite having an online store. The Mars deal is a smart move for Hotel Chocolat, as Mars could provide the U.K. company with a larger distribution platform than it could have achieved on its own. Indeed, Mars Snacking totes a massive brand portfolio including such iconic candies as M&Ms, Snickers, Skittles, Milky Way, 3 Musketeers, Dove, Twix, Starburst, and many more. The purchase has already increased Hotel Chocolat shares by 164%, raising the pre-bid price per share from $1.72 to roughly $4.50. Hotel Chocolat co-founders Angus Thirlwell and Peter Harris will each receive roughly $157 million from the sale. Thirlwell is staying on as CEO under Mars for five years and investing 80% of his payout back into the company. If all goes to plan, the deal will be finalized by the end of January 2024. Read more: Chocolate Brands, Ranked Worst To Best Going Global - For Better Or Worse Hotel Chocolat exterior - Peter Dazeley/Getty Images Whether or not this is a good move for Mars remains to be seen. Thirlwell cites supply chain issues as the primary reason Hotel Chocolat hasn't expanded to the international market already, in a statement via The Guardian. But, that might not be the entire story. The U.K. brand has already tried and failed to find a fanbase in the U.S. market, shuttering five American stores and taking a $4.3 million hit. Earlier this year, Chocolat joined forces with Tokyo's Eat Creator Corporation to open 21 new shops in Japan but hasn't been able to execute the plan due to funding issues. The deal followed another costly failed partnership with Chris Horobin, the former leader of QVC Japan. So far, the company has exhibited limited future growth potential in the U.K., but this boutique scope could change under Mars' ownership. Some local foodies are lamenting the demise of another England-based company bought out by a large American food manufacturer. In 2021, the number of U.K. companies taken over by foreign firms hit a record high. Notably, U.S. Comcast bought the British Sky news outlet. Another U.S. private equity firm bought U.K. supermarket giant Morrisons. Some fans speculate that the quality of the product will decrease under the new large-brand ownership. But, global president of Mars snacking Andrew Clarke says the company has "absolutely no plans" to alter any of Hotel Chocolat's recipes following the purchase, via the BBC. Read the original article on Tasting Table. Everyone has the items in their pantry that they simply cannot live without. However, not everyone comes from a dynasty of extraordinary chefs. We got the chance to interview EJ Lagasse, son of Emeril Lagasse, in an exclusive interview. The younger Lagasse is a talented chef who has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants and is now returning to the family's flagship New Orleans, Louisiana, restaurant as the chef patron. While he may spend most of his life in a commercial kitchen, he still has to eat at home, so we wanted to find out what Lagasse always has on hand. Almost immediately, Lagasse told us, "I've always got Portuguese olive oil. That's number one. If I didn't, my grandmother would be rolling in her grave." With a family history in Portugal, it makes sense that Lagasse would prefer this type of olive oil. Even though some may think of Italian or Spanish olive oil first, Portugal is one of Europe's top olive oil producers. Portuguese olive oil is getting recognized for its quality and distinct flavors. Much like other foods, such as chocolate or coffee, the origin of the base product can affect the taste, such as how fruity or earthy it is. Within Portugal, there are six designated regions for olive oil, each of which provides a unique taste and quality. Read more: The 20 Best Olive Oils For Cooking Legasse Loves Beans And Chilis For Endless Meal Options Dish of red beans and rice - Burke/triolo Productions Of course, one can not live off olive oil alone. In addition, Lagasse keeps a New Orleans specialty in stock. "I love having red beans around," said Lagasse. "It's tradition here in New Orleans to make red beans and rice, and I find myself doing that quite frequently." For this, Lagasse does not use the canned variety of beans and instead uses the dry version. Dry beans require soaking but generally taste better than canned and have a long shelf life. Dry rice, too, has a long shelf life and makes a perfect pantry addition. However, Lagasse humbly acknowledges, "So many people to do it 10 times better. I'm still working on mine." Lagasse said he's also a big fan of Calabrian chilies for his last pantry staple item. "I put them in about everything when I'm eating at home, whether it be pasta, or in some rice, or if I'm eating a piece of meat or something like that," he explained. Calabrian chilies are hot peppers that offer a smokey and spicy flavor to whatever dish they are added to. Emeril's New Orleans is now open for dining. For reservations and additional information, please visit Emeril's restaurant website. Read the original article on Tasting Table. Next time youre behind the wheel in Bandar Seri Begawan, be sure to check out the driver in the rearview: The sultan of Brunei has the worlds largest and most valuable car collection, and its anyones guess where and when hes on the road with them. Over in Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum prefers fast things of the four-legged variety; he owns Godolphin Racing, the worlds largest group of racehorses. Which will you be inspired to start buildingmore garages or more stables? STARRING IN THE NEXT EPISODE OF HOARDERS More from Robb Report Gulfstream's Two Newest Business Jets Will Headline the Upcoming Dubai Air Show This $43.5 Million Mega-Mansion in Dubai Is Covered in Spanish Limestone and Italian Marble Mark Zuckerberg vs. Elon Musk: Which Tech Billionaire Would Win an Actual 'Cage Match'? Hassanal Bolkiah The 29th sultan of Brunei and currently the worlds longest-reigning monarch. By law, hes infallible: If he says its a stick shift, its a stick shift (even if its clearly not a stick shift). STARRING IN THE NEXT EPISODE OF HOARDERS Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum The vice president and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and sovereign of Dubai. Hes also an absolute ruler, so if he says its a horse, its a horse (though, yeah, its probably a horse). THE COLLECTION 7,000 cars rumored to be worth over $5 billion. You could drive a different one every day for 19 years and still not find yourself back in the one where you left your sunglasses. THE COLLECTION 1,000 animals located on four continents and valued at an estimated $639 million. You could fall off a different horse every hour for 41 days before realizing youre not very good at this. MVP Ferrari 250 GTO Only 36 examples were made between 1962 and 1964, and one sold for $70 million at auction in 2018. Nov_Duel5 - Credit: Peter Gadsby Peter Gadsby MVP Anamoe Born in 2018, this Thoroughbred scored 14 wins and over $8 million in prize money. He now lives on a stud farm in Australia. 1474277081 - Credit: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images Jeremy Ng/Getty Images HOW THEY FUND IT The bosss net worth is reportedly upwards of $28 billion, thanks to profits from Bruneis oil and gas industry. And the whole infallible-monarch thing. HOW THEY FUND IT Reports on the sheikhs holdings vary from $4 billion to $18 billion, but his main source of wealth is the Investment Corporation of Dubai, the governments primary financing arm. WHAT GOES IN Filling every tank (recommended for cars in storage) requires 4,000 barrels of oiljust over 3 percent of Bruneis daily output. Black Barrel oil - Credit: Vlad Kochelaevskiy/stock Adobe Vlad Kochelaevskiy/stock Adobe WHAT GOES IN Feeding 1,000 racehorses takes over 5 million pounds of food per year. And thats the good news Alfalfa pellet isolated on white background - Credit: Ivaschenko Roman Ivaschenko Roman MUST COME OUT Luxury cars tend to produce higher-than-average CO2 emissionsthough the sultan can drive only one at a time. MUST COME OUT The average horse produces between 6 and 10 tons of manure a year. No matter what. NAME TO INSPIRE FEAR IN YOUR ENEMIES The Bentley Dominator You thought your big rear wing was a cool customization? In the 1990s, the sultan reportedly had the company that didnt make SUVs make him an SUV. Nov_Duel6 NAME TO INSPIRE FEAR IN YOUR ENEMIES Electrocutionist A Thoroughbred racehorse who won 8 of his 12 starts and over $5.6 million in prizes. 57182024 - Credit: Scott Barbour/Getty Images Scott Barbour/Getty Images ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS Holds the Guinness World Record for largest private collection of Rolls-Royces, with over 500 of them. 124058767 - Credit: Pool Interagences//Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images Pool Interagences//Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS In 2021 and 2022, Godolphin shattered the North American record for highest-earning owner, with $17,378,674 and $16,343,067, respectively. TRADING PLACES His palace stables have space for 200 horses, plus air-conditioning. TRADING PLACES In 2015, the sheikh broke ground on a six-story garage in central London with room for over 100 carsconsider it his garage-away-from-garage. BEST UPGRADE The sultans custom Rolls-Royce Silver Spur II stretch limousine is plated with 24-karat gold, making it worth an estimated $14 million. BEST UPGRADE A faster horse. 1160347858 - Credit: Lo Chun Kit/Getty Images Lo Chun Kit/Getty Images Sign up for Robb Report's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Click here to read the full article. A statue of the Virgin Mary in the Mexican state of Colima that is reportedly weeping tears has drawn crowds of onlookers and questions about a potential miracle. The statue was first noticed "crying" in October but videos of the statue's purported tears gained traction on social media in mid-November. The statue, which is encased in glass, is named the Virgin of Dolores. It's located in the town of El Chanal, which is near the city of Colima, the capital of the state with the same name. VIRGIN MARY STATUE WITHSTANDS EARTHQUAKE IN TURKEY AS CATHEDRAL COLLAPSES: 'INSPIRING SYMBOL OF HOPE' "Dolores" translates to "sorrow" or pain." In Catholicism, one of the titles of the Virgin Mary is Our Lady of Sorrows, inspired by a prophecy in the Gospel of Luke. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP A statue of the Virgin Mary located in the Mexican state of Colima is reportedly crying tears. Here are two views of the statue. "So, a couple of tears started flowing," eyewitness Victor Ramos told the news outlet CEN. The statue's eyes reddened as she "cried," claimed Ramos. "Similarly, when we cry, and our eyes become red, the same happens to the image," Ramos said. WHAT ARE ANGEL NUMBERS AND WHY DO PEOPLE KEEP SEEING THEM? Perhaps the statue's tears were a reaction to the "violence rates that are being experienced here in the state of Colima, also here in the community," said Ramos. The U.S. Department of State is right now warning against traveling to the entire state of Colima due to "crime and kidnapping." In 2022, the city of Colima had a homicide rate of 181.94 homicides per 100,000 residents, said Mexico's Citizens Council for Public Safety and Criminal Justice. This was the highest in the world. Videos of the statue's tears have gone viral on social media platforms. Ever since videos of the supposedly crying statue went viral on social media platforms, the church has experienced a slew of visitors hoping to see the crying statue for themselves. Two Catholic priests told Fox News Digital that they were hesitant to endorse any devotion to the supposedly miraculous occurrence. "These phenomena have to be subject to the judgment of the Church, which usually comes from the local bishop after an investigation and hearing experts on the matter," said Fr. Thomas Petri, O.P., president of the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC. "Often, there's a natural explanation for these sorts of things," he said. But even after an investigation by Church authorities in which no natural reason is found, "Catholics are not obliged to believe in these phenomena," said Petri. AS CATHOLIC CHURCH FACES PRECARIOUS CULTURAL TIME, BISHOP ROBERT BARRON OF MINNESOTA MODELS THOUGHTFUL FAITH "However, we can always be grateful for any event or occurrence that causes people to pause and think about God and heavenly realities," he added. Fr. Paul Hedman, a priest of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis and a self-described "skeptic" on these types of phenomena, also urged caution. "People should remain indifferent and not get too excited until the Church is able to investigate," he said. Some people have suggested that the statue of the Virgin Mary is crying due to the slew of violence in the city near where the statue is located. A crying statue, said Hedman, could be caused by something such as condensation, or "outright fraud by those looking to make a buck." "I would generally encourage people to maintain a healthy skepticism the truth will come forward, and it is better to be cautious than to pour your soul into something that turns out to be inauthentic," he said. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER Statues that appear to be crying or experiencing other such unusual things are an uncommon but not unheard of phenomenon and is not limited to Christianity. In 1995, India experienced a full-blown frenzy after it was reported that statues of the Hindu god Ganesh appeared to be drinking milk, The Independent reported at the time. In September 1995, statues of the Hindu god Ganesh were reported to be consuming milk. In September of that year, rumors began swirling throughout India that statues of Ganesh were miraculously drinking milk that was offered on spoons, said The Independent. It is a Hindu custom to offer food and drinks to statues of gods. Milk sales in New Delhi rose by 30% over the days that followed as curious Indians tried to see if their statues would also drink milk, said The Independent. Scientists later said that the statues' supposed consumption of milk was actually a natural phenomenon known as "capillary action." For more Lifestyle articles, visit www.foxnews.com/lifestyle. Original article source: Virgin Mary statue reportedly crying in Mexico town sparks questions about potential miracle Two people in Kentucky have been arrested in connection with an alleged murder after authorities said they believed they found the body of a 4-year-old girl who was reported missing this week but has not been seen since September. A body believed to be Chloe Darnel was discovered and sent to the medical examiners office in Frankfort for an autopsy and positive identification, according to a Friday statement from the Whitley County Sheriff Department's Facebook page. In addition to murder, Brittany Slaughter, 24, and Adam Hayes, 34, both of Williamsburg, Kentucky, are charged with abuse of a corpse and tampering with physical evidence, according to the sheriffs department. Slaughter had custody of Chloe, the sheriffs department said. In a verified GoFundMe page for Chloe, her last name is spelled differently than how it was spelled by the sheriffs department. Chloe was a bright happy child" who was met with an "unhappy ending," according to the GoFundMe account, which was organized by a family member. Slaughter is Chloe's aunt, according to the fundraiser. Relatives and friends of the child became suspicious because they were unable to see or talk to the girl for the past month, the GoFundMe said. Chloe had seven siblings, according to the fundraiser. In other updates on the investigation, the sheriffs department said on Wednesday it was looking for a red Mitsubishi Lancer that Slaughter was reportedly driving prior to her and Chloes disappearance. The two were reported missing, according to the sheriffs department, which added: Initial reports indicate Chloe has not been seen since late September of this year. On Thursday, the sheriffs department said it found the vehicle it was looking for. That same day, Slaughter was found unharmed, according to the sheriffs department. No one with the sheriffs department could be immediately reached Saturday for comment. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com When her plan to organize a Pride festival in Fountain quickly swelled into an event big enough to require permits from the city (and a wayback machine to have filed them on time), Liz Rosenbaum opted to scale the inaugural event back to a low-key afternoon meetup for the LGBTQ+ community and allies in Colorado Springs little sister city to the south. The bias-motivated mass shooting at Club Q on Nov. 19, 2022 sent shockwaves throughout the Southern Front Range, and beyond. Everyone suddenly was talking about the need for safe spaces where LGBTQ+ residents could gather, about what allies and the greater community could do to help, but most of those conversations didnt extend to Fountain, geographically or in spirit, Rosenbaum said. Ive seen through my work that theres a lot of anger and hate put on different communities that want to advocate for body autonomy, especially in smaller cities, said Rosenbaum, a health insurance broker and supporter of body autonomy, personally and through her work with Cobalt, an organization that advocates for reproductive rights. I just think that we, as allies, need to do everything we can to show support considering the threats that are out there right now. The Fountain Pride gathering drew maybe 60 people families, with toddlers and great-grandparents to Olde Town Coffee Shop over the course of a Sunday afternoon in late September. They snacked, sipped iced lattes, listened to music, and tossed rainbow beach balls in the sun while a half dozen people with protest signs and electronic bullhorns stormed up and down the sidewalk out front. Rosenbaum said shes thankful Fountain police were on site to keep an eye on the low-key Pride gathering, and less low-key Pride protest. The afternoon nonetheless brought what felt like near-confrontations, tense and eye-opening moments. Club Q memorial events A number of events are planned locally to mark one year since the deadly mass shooting at Colorado Springs' popular LGBTQ+ dance club. A public memorial organized by Club Q, with speakers including Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade, is noon Sunday outside the club, 3430 N. Academy Blvd. Bread & Roses Legal Center and the Community Health Partnership will host a community cleanup of the club property, 2 p.m. Sunday. Indvstry Video Bar, High Hopes Cannabis and Dozo Sushi will host a public memorial honoring the families of the five people killed at Club Q, 4 to 7 p.m. Sunday, at Indvstry, 18 S. Nevada Ave. Bread & Roses and Community Health Partnership will host a Transgender Day of Remembrance gathering noon Monday in Acacia Park, 115 E. Platte Ave. When Rosenbaum reported to the officers that one protester had pointed directly to her, looked her in the eye, and proclaimed Youre going to die today, she said she was asked if the threat had been followed up by a Bible verse. Which I guess makes it not a threat anymore? Rosenbaum said. But you know, I guess it comes down to freedom of speech, not freedom of listening even with people still reeling from the trauma of a mass shooting literally in our backyard. A cruel Catch-22 And in some places, even safe ones, hate speech is as rampant and vile as ever, say some survivors and allies. Its not so much that compassion has an expiration date, but that, for a brief period of time, the voices of love were louder, said Club Q shooting survivor John Arcediano. The groundswell of initial attention and support was like a Catch-22, providing a platform for those who wanted to help, as well as those who saw an opportunity to spread a message of judgement and hurt. We did see community support in so many ways, through donations, events, rainbow flags everywhere but it opened the door for what became a lot of anger and rage, he said. Club Q shooter Anderson Lee Aldrich pleaded guilty in the attack that killed Ashley Paugh, Kelly Loving, Raymond Green Vance, Derrick Rump and Daniel Aston, and wounded dozens, and is currently in the Wyoming State Prison serving a life sentence. As of Friday, there had been no progress in a planned civil suit against the city announced earlier this year by the legal team representing a group of survivors and victims families. When the headlines turned from breaking news to more human aspects in the wake of the killings, the angry voices ramped up, Arcediano said. It was, like, why are you still consistently publishing these things? he said. Like, we're allowed to have this moment for you all for a few days, but beyond that we don't want to know anything about it. About a month after the shooting, Arcediano remembers walking through downtown Colorado Springs and seeing more than one shop owner remove the rainbow Pride flag from their windows. It was as though an invisible clock had ticked over, and facing a fear of retaliation, goodwill had reached a point of diminishing returns. Thankfully, there's so many other good people in the community that do make up for that bigotry and that hatred, Arcediano added. But Colorado Springs has never been an easy place to be a queer person, and thats as true now as it ever was. Parasol Patrol co-founder and director Eli Bazan said he believes the rhetoric and threats of aggression have, in fact, escalated over the past four years, and especially the last 12 months. Volunteers with the Denver-based nonprofit use rainbow-colored umbrellas to "shield children and young people" from protesters during events. "Right after Club Q last year, I think we had 15 events that we worked on, and so many people were stopping and saying 'I'm sorry this happened.' But we also had a protester at Club Q during a vigil two days after the shooting," Bazan said. "All I can say is weve been around since 2019, and this is by far the busiest year weve ever had. A new perspective A fantasy mural of a better world is splashed across the walls of the bathroom at Icons Bar in downtown Colorado Springs. The background is newspaper clippings from the 1990s, when conservative Springs voters led an ill-fated charge to amend the state constitution to deny protected status and thus, anti-discrimination laws to those who were homosexual or bisexual. The foreground is drag icon RuPaul, whose flowing hair is depicted sort of washing that news away, said bar co-founder and co-owner Josh Franklin-Wolfe. I knew I wanted to represent that history in some way, from when Colorado was deemed the hate state, and I also think that sort of represents the growth and change in the city over the past 25 or 30 years, he said. I do think that we've got a ways to go, and I'm surprised that we are not further along, but this is definitely not the city that I grew up in. Sign up for free: News Alerts Stay in the know on the stories that affect you the most. Sign Up For Free View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. The city Franklin-Wolfe grew up in was one he couldnt leave fast enough. He was the same age as Matthew Shepard, a gay student at the University of Wyoming who in 1998 was brutally beaten and left to die tied to a fence outside Laramie, a hate crime that shined a light on the fear of violence many members of the LGBTQ+ community were forced to live with on a daily basis and, for Franklin-Wolfe, made the decision to move away from a city with a history of bias an easy one. I came out at a really difficult time, in a difficult place. I didnt feel safe in my home state, said Franklin-Wolfe. Almost 20 years later, he returned to the Springs from New York City, to gain a new point of view and affection for his hometown through the eyes of his then-boyfriend, now husband and business partner, John Wolfe. It was really John that was, like, This place is amazing. I was No, this isn't for us. They don't like us here Franklin-Wolfe said. But that's when the shift sort of started. John really opened my eyes to what it means to be in Colorado Springs without that baggage. Perspective, he realized, is really about where you chose to look. A safer 'safe space' Talk of reopening Colorado Springs' Pride Center remains just that: talk. When the city's new Prism Community Collective opens this winter, it will be able to fill some of the void a center once did, connecting members of the LGBTQ+ community with resources and access to local mental and physical health providers. Until then, and after, Icons' owners are doing what they can to make the bar the "home base" they know is needed. The Springs' first and only gay piano bar is a little less piano focused than when it opened three years ago, but its singing, dancing, accepting soul remains the same. After the Club Q shooting, Wolfe and Franklin-Wolfe knew the need for a safe space for the community to gather, mourn, and eventually heal, would be even greater. They reinforced the bars storefront with bulletproof glass, hired permanent security for the front door and installed a locking 7-foot-high fence around the back patio. Early discussion about possibly changing over to a speak-easy style model, where patrons must be buzzed in, never came to pass. From the beginning, decisions arose from discussions Icons' owners had with their staff at the Springs second, and now only, openly gay venue. That was the first thing we really did was just ask (our employees) what they needed of course you can imagine they were quite shaken, said Wolfe. I mean, there was a 50/50 chance that could have been us which was horrifying, terrifying, and left our staff feeling very violated and targeted as well. Healing the broken In the year of listening since the attack, Wolfe and Franklin-Wolfe said theyve tried to step in to fill gaps, and meet needs, wherever they see them. I think there are people that, even right away, didn't want to feel fear and threatened by anybody so they very defiantly showed up and kept going on with their lives, Franklin-Wolfe said. And then the other side of that. I think there's still, a year later, some people in the community friends of ours that we'll see in passing and mention that we haven't seen them in a while and they still aren't going out period. Sometimes being a business that feels more like a family means holding someone at the bar as theyre wracked with sobs, recounting the pain and horror of that night. Its also meant broader-stroke changes, expanding Icons regular calendar to reach even deeper into the overlooked aspects of their own community We've been hearing for so long that the lesbian community wanted a space, so we've put a lot of thought and effort into providing a night that's specifically for certain demographics within this beautiful community that we're a part of, Franklin-Wolfe said. A day when Icons block of Bijou Street is a commercial gayborhood, awash in rainbow flags, may be further away than he thought when he and Wolfe opened Icons, but he said hes still hopeful. The queer community in Colorado Springs is a vibrant and thriving one, but the tragedy at Club Q will forever be a part of the story. For those who lived that chapter, fear is still new, and very real. But Franklin-Wolfe knows how memories and fear can fade. We've met so many people, young people that have moved here that have none of that context, that history of Colorado Springs in the 1990s, of the 'hate state, Franklin-Wolfe said. They just love Colorado Springs, and they love being gay in Colorado Springs. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) on Sunday called on Israel and the United States to release more intelligence on the al-Shifa Hospital, which Israeli forces claimed was being used as a base for the militant group Hamas, a notion that the U.S. said it backs. But here is the key point that I think is so important. There needs to be more transparency. Both Israel and the United States need to release more of this intelligence, Blumenthal told NBCs Kristen Welker on Meet the Press. And there is reliable intelligence that can and should be released without compromising sources and methods that would bolster Israels case in the court of world opinion, and would also support the United States aiding Israel as it must do, he continued. The Israel Defense Forces said last week that its forces were carrying out an operation inside of al-Shifa hospital, the largest medical facility in Gaza. Israel released video of what appears to be weapons and military capabilities inside the hospital, claiming that it was evidence that Hamas was operating inside the hospital. Those reports have not been independently verified by news outlets, including The Associated Press, who have reporters on the ground. He said that after he attends classified briefings, he says that the only people who do not know this intelligence are the American people, noting that the U.S.s adversaries already know the information, and they know the U.S. knows the information. The World Health Organization and the United Nations on Saturday sent a joint team to the hospital, which the team described as a death zone. President Biden also defended Israels move to operate inside the hospital, saying Hamas had committed the first war crime by making the health facility a command center of its military operations. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. As we kick off a new week, let's take a look back at the week that was. Top stories this past week included: Westport boys soccer earning their first-ever trip to the state final. The Wildcats made it to their first final match after blanking Boston International Newcomer Academy. "I've been very lucky the last three years to have incredibly talented teams," Westport head coach Chris Parker said. "But this team there was this little X factor that I could not put my thumb on." The latest Greater Fall River real estate report, featuring a raised ranch in Swansea that sold for $563,800. The Obannon Place home was built in 1972, and features a cozy in-law set up and transformed garage. Check out this property, as well as other recent top-sellers. These were the most read stories of the week on HeraldNews.com: Fall River's Battleship Cove had to scrap one of its Navy ships There have been some changes at Battleship Cove in recent weeks. The fleet museum's collection is one ship smaller: the German corvette Hiddensee has been removed from the cove, and was in the process of being scrapped at a shipyard in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Battleship Coves Chief Operating Officer Chris Nardi confirmed the news, and that the decision to scrap the Hiddensee was difficult but necessary to maintain the rest of the exhibits. This photo, shared to Reddit's r/boating subreddit, shows the German corvette Hiddensee being scrapped at a shipyard in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on Oct. 11. Nardi also confirmed that Executive Director Meghan Rathbun, who took the helm in 2021, stepped down from the position two weeks ago. A search for a new director will begin in the spring. Changes at Battleship Cove: Fall River's Battleship Cove had to scrap one of its Navy ships. Here's why they did it. What's the best Fall River food? Vote for your favorites Fall River is lucky enough to have its own distinct food culture. Rich with various cultures, Fall River's food scene reflects its community. But which dish is the city's favorite? Herald News Digital Producer Dan Medeiros put together a bracket to help you decide. A new round of voting will open on Wednesday, so don't forget to vote for your favorites! What's the best Fall River food?: We put classic dishes in a tournament bracket. Vote now Need help this year? Here's where to find free Thanksgiving meals in the Fall River area If you need a little help for Thanksgiving this year, there are a number of local church groups and organizations across the Fall River area who want folks in need to know that they are not alone. Whether you're looking for a hot meal, need a little help putting food on the table, or just a safe space with some friendly faces, volunteers are ready to lend a hand. Here's a list of some places in the Fall River area offering free turkey dinners this year. Need help this year?: Here's where to find free Thanksgiving meals in the Fall River area Fall River restaurant provides eligible SNAP recipients hot meals as part of new program Faneek's Coney Island, 269 Rhode island Ave., Fall River, is taking part in a pilot program offering those in need a place they can turn to for a hot meal. The Massachusetts SNAP Restaurant Meals Program, which aims to assist individuals who are unable to prepare their own meals, went live at Faneek's recently. Yeah! art at Faneek's in Fall River. Of the 27 restaurants and food trucks across Massachusetts participating in the pilot program, which is already available in several other states, Faneek's is the only one in the SouthCoast. 'Here to support the community': Fall River restaurant provides eligible SNAP recipients hot meals as part of new program Misused equipment, dumped toxic waste: What report on ex-Fall River public work boss says A 34-page investigation into possible wrongdoing by former Department of Community Maintenance Director John Perry and other city workers reveals a culture of bullying, city mechanics ordered to work on private vehicles, toxic materials used as fill at DCMs Lewiston Street facility, copper wiring pulled from walls, missing scrap metal and questionable procurement practices, and a nearly $65,000 payoff for Perry to step down. Herald News Reporter Jo C. Goode has the story. Misused equipment, dumped toxic waste: What report on ex-Fall River public work boss says Herald News/Taunton Daily Gazette copy editor and digital producer Kristina Fontes can be reached at kfontes@heraldnews.com. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Herald News and Taunton Daily Gazette today. This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Herald News Top 5: Ship scrapped; pick Fall River's best food Murder rates are down in the Jackson area in 2023, but law enforcement officials continue to say homicides are way too high and remain a focal point of agency duties. More than 107 people have been killed in Jackson this year, according to compiled reports from four law enforcement agencies operating within the city limits: Jackson Police Department, Jackson State University Department of Public Safety, the Capitol Police and the Hinds County Sheriff's Office. None of the four law enforcement agencies in Jackson reported their homicide numbers to the 2022 FBI Crime in the Nation report this year. The FBI report is typically the most comprehensive snapshot of crime in the United States down to county level law enforcement agencies. But only 60% of participating law enforcement agencies in Mississippi were accounted for in the 2022 FBI report. Below is a look into each department's homicide numbers. Jackson Police Department As of Nov. 10, JPD had 98 homicides, according to Jackson Police Department Chief Joseph Wade. Around this same time last year, JPD was working 119 homicide cases. Wade said while the numbers are moving on a downward trajectory compared to the previous year, he is not proud of the high count. That is something that I do not hang my hat on, Wade said. We are going to fix this. Despite the agency's previous participation in the annual report, JPD did not participate in the 2022 FBI report. Sam Brown, public information officer for the Jackson Police Department, said the agency was in the process of restructuring our software system. He said they did not have the software completely implemented. Therefore, JPD did not want to report an inaccurate count to the FBI. Brown said if the 2023 report comes around in the next five to six months, then JPD has a high chance of submitting its updated numbers. JPD's numbers from 2020 to 2022 made headlines in the city and the nation. Jackson Police Department Chief of Police Joseph Wade speaks during the State of the City address at The Rookery in Jackson on Thursday, Oct. 26. In 2020, Jackson reached a then record-breaking 128 homicides, according to records obtained by the Clarion Ledger. The city then saw 155 homicides in 2021 with the highest per capita murder rate in the nation of about 100 deaths per 100,000 people. In 2022, the city had around 135 homicide deaths. "I had a mother sit here (recently) who lost her daughter; she will never get over that. Never," Wade said. "So, we're going to attack, and we're no longer going to sit back and allow this stuff to happen. We're going to get right in the middle of it. That's the plan." Wade said a reduction of murder rates in the city will come once the ranks of the Jackson police force is rebuilt, considering it has been "depleted as far as manpower." More: Jackson Interim Police Chief Joseph Wade outlines top priorities. See what they are Prior to June 1, JPD had 221 police officers staffed, according to Wade. The JPD staff currently sits at 255 as of Nov. 10. A fully staffed department for JPD initially was 300, but in order to increase officers' salaries from $45,000 to $48,000, the agency's maximum staff limit dropped to 275. With more staff, Wade said he will be placing officers in "hotspots" or high-crime areas next month to "apprehend individuals who pillage our city." More: Jackson Police Department reveals new technology to improve safety in high-speed chases Wade said he has also talked with law enforcement agencies from the local to the federal level such as the Jackson FBI, Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Those agencies and others have allowed Wade to think of strategic approaches to apply in the near future, switching the department from "reactive to proactive." Even with the partnerships JPD is forming with different agencies, Wade said another way to reduce crime is by engaging with the community to get them working alongside the department. Wade said he implemented a new program named Community Engagement Unit, that used to be called Crime Prevention Unit. The revamped program is a four-prong approach to engage the community with officers: community groups and organizations, businesses, faith-based and youth. "We will all work together to eradicate the city of this crime albatross that is hanging over our heads," Wade said. "And we will see some significant drops in violent crime in the City of Jackson over the next year." Jackson State University Department of Public Safety In recent months some high-profile murders have occurred in Jackson, including two that occurred on the Jackson State University campus. On Oct. 15, 2023, Jaylen Burns, a 21-year-old Jackson State University industrial technology major, was fatally shot on the west side of campus. His father said Jaylen was shot while attempting to break up a fight. The alleged suspects held in connection to the case were released on Nov. 10 and Nov. 13. On Dec. 2, 2022, Flynn Brown, another JSU student, was found shot to death in a car parked in a parking lot on the JSU campus. Due to JSU not providing the data before press time, it is unknown whether there are more homicides outside of those two known slayings. No comment was provided in regard to why the JSU department did not participate in the report. Capitol Police Capitol Police reported seven homicides for 2023 and three homicides for 2022. Capitol Police spokesperson Bailey Martin said that prior to the department coming under the Mississippi Department of Public Safety and the Capitol Complex Improvement District (CCID) being created, Capitol Police provided security for state buildings and employees. Thus, the the department has no homicide statistics recorded before 2022. In response to being asked why the agency didn't participate in the 2022 FBI report, Martin provided a statement on behalf of the department: Capitol Police, like many other departments across the state, are working towards NIBRS (the system the FBI uses to track crime) compliance in order to be able to submit their statistics. Hinds County Sheriff Department Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones said the Hinds County Sheriff's Office has not worked any homicides in Jackson proper in 2023. Sheriff's departments often do not investigate homicides cases in cities with local policing agencies, and Jackson has three JPD, JSU and the Capitol Police. Jones said he looks forward to participating in the FBI process in the future but was not set up to do so at the last FBI study. "The Hinds County Sheriff's Office is still trying to get online and get qualified for the system," Jones said. Law enforcement can't do it alone Recently, Mississippi was deemed as one of the most dangerous states to live in, according to a 2023 Hubscore report. The Hubscore report ranked Mississippi as the sixth most dangerous state in the nation. Five of the 10 most dangerous states in the nation are in the South. No Southern state is in the top 10 for being the least dangerous state. The ranking was based on various factors including crime rates, firearms, personal and social welfare and transportation safety to determine the safety environment. More: 'We got to do something about these guns and these masks.' See councilman's proposed ordinance According to Hubscore's data, the state also ranked first as the most dangerous state for firearms and violence. Hubscore states that specific ranking was primarily driven by a rise in gun deaths, gun injuries and mass shootings. The most recent data from the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention showed Mississippi reported 962 gun-related deaths in 2021, which was 144 deaths more than in 2020. Mississippis Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said to get the numbers moving downward at a state level, law enforcement cannot solve the problem alone. Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell speaks during the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Fallen Officers Memorial Service, Tuesday, May 11, 2021, at headquarters in Jackson, as part of National Police Week, observed this year Sunday, May 9, through Saturday, May 15, honoring those officers who were killed in the line of duty. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis) Tindell said police officers and community leaders will have to work together to discuss the communitys areas of concerns to best target what people are in need of. But in order for law enforcement officers to successfully engage with their community, police departments have to adequately staff their agency and pay officers a salary they can build a career upon, Tindell said. According to Indeed and GovSalaries, police officers in Mississippi on average make roughly $43,000 a year. If you have a law enforcement agency that is fully staffed, then that's certainly a deterrent to crime. The officers also do a better job of investigating a crime quickly and holding those that commit those crimes accountable, Tindell said. "If there's no accountability to the criminal element, they're just going to keep committing those crimes." More: Local nonprofit organization seeks to aid gun violence through mentorship Tindell said with most crimes committed, there are socioeconomic factors such as poverty and mental illness that need to be addressed by improving cross-agency communication and intel. He said connecting law enforcement with experts in fields such as Mississippi Department of Child Protective Services or narcotics agents could help officers recognize the warning signs in a suspect. "I don't think it's fair to put it all on the back of law enforcement " Tindell said. "We need to bring in other experts who are better suited for the issue at hand to address the situation and not just work in our own silos." This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Jackson, MS murder rates for 2023 down over 2022 European Union countries have quietly funded Vladimir Putins war machine to the tune of 6.1 billion (5.4 billion) this year through the purchase of liquefied natural gas (LNG), The Telegraph can reveal. Despite a promise to wean themselves off Russian fossil fuels, the number of cargo ships carrying LNG from Russia to Europe has increased. The bloc has bought up more than half of Moscows LNG exports, with Spain and France being the second and third largest buyers behind China. Eurostat trade data acquired by The Telegraph shows Madrid sent 1.8 billion to Moscow in the first nine months of the year. Europes second-largest purchaser was France with shipments worth 1.5 billion arriving in its ports, while Belgium followed closely behind buying 1.36 billion worth of Russian LNG. Some of Kyivs most ardent backers in Europe, including Estonia and Lithuania, also continued to send money to Moscow for LNG. Sale of gas generating huge revenue for Putin The sales are expected to generate huge revenues for Russia at a time when EU countries are hoping to starve Putins regime of the funds needed to wage war in Ukraine. On Friday, the Russian parliament raised the military budget to a third of total expenditure, equivalent to a massive 6 per cent of Russias total GDP. Previous analysis of European imports of Russian LNG suggested purchases were up 40 per cent compared to 2021, before Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine. This is despite plans by the EU to end its use of Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Since war broke out, Europes pipeline gas flows from Russia have fallen to historic lows, with LNG being used to make up for shortfalls in supplies. The bloc has sanctioned seaborne shipments of Russian crude oil and oil products, such as diesel. It leaves member states exposed to any decision by the Kremlin to sever LNG supplies, as it did for piped gas last year. Bloc on Russias fuels Earlier this year, Kadri Simson, the EUs energy commissioner, called for the bloc to reduce its reliance on Russian LNG. Britain banned the import of Russian supplies of the gas last December, as well as blocking services relating to shipments. The US is also trying to curb Russias plan to become a major LNG exporter, with Moscow planning to produce 100 million tons of the fuel by 2030. Spain and Belgium have claimed their high purchases are likely a result of traders storing Russian LNG at facilities in their ports. In September, Madrids energy minister said there were no plans to ban Russian LNG, despite the blocs soaring imports. There is this feeling of scarcity and fear, Teresa Ribera said at the time, referring to concerns of an energy shortage. The Belgian ports of Antwerp and Zeebrugge act as hubs for access to 18 markets, including France and Germany, with only 2.8 per cent of gas consumed domestically, according to government data. The European Commission, which produces sanctions packages on behalf of the bloc, said: Its up to member states to decide unanimously on EU sanctions. 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. The Hungarian Prime Minister said Ukraine is light years away from being invited into the European Union (EU) in Saturday comments. At a biannual congress for his party, Viktor Orban said he and his government would push back against December talks on whether Ukraine should be invited to begin membership negotiations, according to The Associated Press. Our task will be to correct the mistaken promise to start negotiations with Ukraine, since Ukraine is now light years away from the European Union, Orban said, according to the AP. Orban has threatened to withdraw support for Ukraine as it fights an ongoing war with Russia in the past, in relation to its treatment of ethnic Hungarians. He told lawmakers that he was protesting a 2017 law limiting Hungarians from speaking their language, saying Hungary wouldnt support Ukraine when it comes to international issues, until the previous laws are restored back in September. He added that Hungary is doing everything for peace in the war between Ukraine and Russia. But unfortunately the Russian-Ukrainian war continues, tens of thousands of people are victims, he said, according to transcripts of the speech from Hungarian media outlets. Diplomats must take control back from the hands of the soldiers, otherwise it will be in vain for women to wait for their sons and fathers and husbands to come home. Orban is also one of Russian President Vladimir Putins only allies in the EU. He has also said negotiations on allowing Ukraine into the EU shouldnt start when the country is at war. The Associated Press contributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The reigning Miss Universe, RBonney Gabriel of Texas, brought all the drama during the 72nd Miss Universe pageant held on Saturday at Gimnasio Nacional Jose Adolfo Pineda in San Salvador, El Salvador. Gabriel was crowned Miss Universe in 2022 and tonight she will hand over her crown to her successor. In a post made to Miss Universes official Instagram, Gabriel posed for a photo backstage at the pageant. The Texan was outfitted in a pair of sparkling strappy sandal heels that appeared to be in a deep blue hue. Jojo Bragais is the footwear sponsor of tonights event. More from Footwear News Gabriels footwear featured shiny uppers accompanied by thin but sturdy straps that kept the heels in place. Stilettos likely finished off the dazzling set. Giving mermaid vibes, Gabriel wore a scaly blue and purple gown that sat off-the-shoulders. The garment featured a scaly texture and a molded metallic blue armor-esque plate across the midsection in the shape of an abdomen. The scaly structural hips of the gown jutted out from under the blue armor, creating dimension. Finishing off her look, Gabriel wore a variety of diamond-encrusted jewelry accompanied by her show-stopping Miss Universe crown. Gabriel was previously announced as the winner of Miss Universe 2022, followed by finalists Miss Venezuela Amanda Dudamel, Miss Puerto Rico Ashley Carino, Miss Curacao Gabriela Dos Santos and Miss Dominican Republic Andreina Martinez. Gabriel is the pageants first Filipino-American winner. She was born to a Filipino father, Remigio Bonzon R. Bon Gabriel, and an American mother Dana Walker. Miss Universe is a pageant held annually by the Miss Universe Organization, which celebrates womens accomplishments across the world. This years event will be held in El Salvador, featuring 86 contestants from international countries. The occasion includes John Legend as this years musical performance, which will take place before the current Miss Universe RBonney Gabriel crowns her successor. About the Author Amina Ayoud is an Assistant Digital Editor for Footwear News, where she writes stories about everything from celebrity style to breaking fashion and shoe releases. Ayoud cultivated a love of all things fashion early in life thanks to a deep love of fashion history and the luxury industry. In her free time, Ayoud is a self-proclaimed fashion nerd and thriftaholic. Related: Most Comfortable Heels Best Work Shoes for Women Miss Universe, pagent, gown, sparkly. Miss Universe Competition 2023 Photos: All the Looks View Gallery11 Images Launch Gallery: Miss Universe Competition 2023 Photos: All the Looks Best of Footwear News Sign up for FN's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. ST. LOUIS Wednesday will mark 60 years since the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States of America. On Nov. 22, 1963, President Kennedy was shot while riding in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas. Kennedy was campaigning for reelection and had been scheduled to speak at a luncheon before Lee Harvey Oswald fatally shot him from a nearby building. Kennedy, a Democrat, served as president during the height of the Cold War and the Civil Rights Movement. A Massachusetts native, Kennedy served in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate prior to his presidency Many travels during and leading up to Kennedys presidency were centered around national and international affairs. He made several key trips to St. Louis in the 1960s, both as a presidential candidate and as president. Kennedy and Nixon campaign In September 1960, Kennedy ramped up his campaign efforts against Republican candidate Richard M. Nixon. Both visited the St. Louis region within days of each other, delivering remarks at the Kiel Auditorium. Kennedy addressed a crowd mostly consisting of people from the International Association of Machinists. I think the future lies with us, but we must help that future we must work for it, we must not say we have never had it so good. We must say we can do better, read one excerpt from Kennedys speech, which largely tackled economic reform. Nixon, serving as vice president to Dwight D. Eisenhower at the time, also addressed the union, discussing how ethics and the threat of communism impacted the American labor movement. Near the end, he addressed the crowd with this message, I respect your sincerity and your work for a better life in our country and I would only hope you would respect mine. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, its estimated that tens of thousands swarmed Lambert Airport upon Kennedys arrival in September, some even the opportunity to shake his hand. Other impromptu 1960 trips With the St. Louis region covering two battleground states at the time of his campaign, Kennedy didnt slow down his efforts for Missouri and Illinois support after his September visit. On Oct. 3, 1960, Kennedy paid a visit to East St. Louis around his vision of unfinished business. He again addressed a crowd about the need for improved wages, along with equal opportunity for Americans regardless of their race or religion. Kennedy also touted the 1960s as a time to embrace growth, including in space exploration. I see no reason why we should be second to anyone in outer space, he said. Weeks later, on Oct. 22, 1960, Kennedy made one more visit to Greater St. Louis, this time around the grand opening of the Crestwood Shopping Center. He didnt address the mall much in a speech largely focused on international relations, but he made one notable claim: This state is a key state in this campaign. Whoever carries Missouri may well carry the United States, Kennedy said to applause. Coincidentally, after his follow-up efforts, Kennedy ended up winning Missouri and Illinois by slim margins in 1960, two key states to secure the office of president. Space Exploration On Sept. 12, 1962, Kennedy ramped up his efforts to promote space exploration by visiting the McDonnell Aircraft Corporation (now known as Boeing) in north St. Louis County. The trip gave Kennedy an opportunity to connect with key leaders and see two important space capsules in the works, the Mercury and Gemini, up close. After touring the facility in a go-cart, Kennedy spoke to hundreds, expressing that McDonnells work was important for national defense and the aerospace industry. This is the most important effort in which you are all involved. Building these planes, which help protect the security of the United States and dozens of [allies]. He also reaffirmed his commitment to putting a man on the moon. It is essential that the United States participate in this adventure, and it is essential the United States be first. And therefore, we depend upon you. Made a little more famous was a speech Kennedy delivered on another leg of his travels that began in St. Louis. Later on Sept. 12, at Rice University in Houston, Texas, Kennedy made the popular remarks, We choose to go to the moon! We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard. FOX 2s Patrick Clark spoke to some around St. Louis back in 2013 about the impact of Kennedys 1962 visit, echoing similar sentiments. Sen. John Kennedy, Democratic presidential nominee is besieged by an unruly group of admirers at the airport upon his arrival in St. Louis, Missouri on Sept. 18, 1960. The crowd surged through sparse police lines foreign Kennedy to take refuge in his plane until the crowd could be calmed down. (AP Photo) A demonstration is in progress as Sen. John Kennedy, Democratic Presidential nominee, on stand at right, arrived to speak before the International Association of Machinists in convention at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis on Sept. 14, 1960. (AP Photo/ Charles Knoblock) President John Kennedy shakes hands with Anthony A. Oading of Florrissant, Mo, the 15 millionth people to receive benefits under the federal Social Security program in his White House office on Feb. 27, 1961. Mrs. Oading and Secretary of Welfare Abraham Ribicoff accompanied him on the visit. Oading has just retired as a model builder for a St. Louis, MO, aircraft firm. Born in Freckenhorst, Germany, he became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1928. (AP Photo/HWG) President John F. Kennedy delivers an address to approximately 50,000 people at Rice University stadium in Houston during his tour of NASA installations throughout the country, Sept. 12, 1962. The President promised that outer space will not be filled with weapons of mass destruction. (AP Photo) JFKs other STL impacts Kennedy didnt have many more thoroughly-documented trips around St. Louis, but his impact in the area proved strong beyond his travels. The Associated Press reports that Anthony Oading of Florissant was the 15 millionth person to receive social security benefits under his office in 1961. He was born in Germany, but became a citizen in 1928 and spent many years as a model builder in St. Louis. His wife, Jackie, helped the St. Louis fashion scene take stage nationally in the early 1960s, using clothes exclusively from the Saint Louis Womans Exchange in 1963 for an Easter photoshoot. As reported by Nine PBS, one photo in those clothes served as the cover for popular fashion magazine Palm Beach. St. Louis County was also home to a private Catholic school for several decades, from 1968-2017, known as John F. Kennedy Catholic High School, named after the late president. A new subdivision is planned on the grounds of the school after years of declining enrollment, but alumni remembered their time with a sendoff in 2021. Forest Park also recognizes JFK with the John F. Kennedy Memorial Forest Market. The City of St. Louis says its the only area of virgin forest remaining at the park. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. Route 422, with a 5-year makeover set to kick off next Monday Bucks County drivers headed to the Philadelphia Premium Outlets or the King of Prussia Mall for holiday shopping should be prepared for some extra traffic. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is starting work Nov. 20 on a portion of Route 422. The work along a 1.9-mile stretch of highway in Lower Pottsgrove Township, explained PennDOT spokesman Brad Rudolph, is expected to last five years. How long will the 422 project last? The project aims to reconstruct and improve a 1.9-mile section of eastbound and westbound U.S. 422. This stretch spans from just west of Porter Road to Evergreen Road, finishing where the ramp tapers at the Sanatoga Interchange in Lower Pottsgrove Township, Montgomery County, PennDOT explained. The roughly $80 million project is meant to improve travel and safety with improvements including changes to shoulder widths, height clearances and alignments. Specific components of the project include the replacement of a culvert at Sprogels Run, just east of Porter Road, and an existing single-span bridge over Porter Road, with a new two-span bridge. The reconstruction and widening of the bridge over Sanatoga Road and Sanatoga Creek are also planned. The entire reconstruction and improvement project is anticipated to last five years, with PennDOT aiming for completion by late 2028. Commuters should be prepared for lane closures during major construction activities, primarily in December and into next year. PennDOT has scheduled most closures for overnight hours with some daytime restrictions, and crews plan to keep the public informed of any changes. PennDOT has already completed work on six other sections of the Route 422 corridor in Montgomery and Chester counties since 2012. This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: PennDOT to start five-year rebuild of Route 422 stretch Russias Ministry of Justice announced today it petitioned its countrys Supreme Court to declare the international public LGBT movement an extremist element and ban its activities within the country. The Russian Ministry of Justice has lodged an administrative legal claim with the Supreme Court to recognize the International LGBT public movement as extremist and ban its activity in Russia, the ministry said in a statement announcing the move online on Friday. The ministry further accused the movement of exhibiting various signs and manifestations of extremism, including incitement to social and religious hatred. The statement, reported by Barrons and other media, did not identify any specific LGBTQ+ groups, nor did it clarify what actions would result if the court granted the petition. Russia has become increasingly hostile to the LGBTQ+ community under the reign of President Vladimir Putin. In July he directed sexologists to help gay people overcome what he called the mental disorder of same-sex sexual attraction. A month earlier he ordered the Ministry of Health to create an institute to study queer people at the Serbsky Center for Psychiatry and Narcology. In June Russia also passed a bill that banned gender-affirming surgery and treatment and outlawed changing official documents to align with a persons true gender. Last December, Putin signed a law strengthening a ban on LGBTQ propaganda in Russia and making it illegal to promote same-sex sexual relations or suggest non-heterosexual attractions are normal. Individuals can be fined up to 400,000 rubles ($6,370) for LGBT propaganda and up to 200,000 rubles ($3,185) for demonstrations of LGBT and information that encourages a change of gender among teenagers. The fines increase to 5 million rubles ($80,000) and 4 million rubles ($64,000) respectively for legal entities. Olympian and WNBA star Britney Griner was held under harsh conditions in a Russian prison for nine months last year. She was held after empty vape cartridges containing remnants of THC were discovered in her luggage upon arrival in Moscow to play professionally in a local league. She was released in a prisoner exchange in December. Shortly after her release, Griner said she would never play overseas again unless it was in the Olympics. The next court hearing for the petition from the Ministry of Justice is currently scheduled for November 30. A photo from the 1942 Lolomi, the yearbook of what is today A.C. Davis High School in Yakima, shows students in the auditorium saluting the American flag with what was known as the "Bellamy Salute." The salute was changed that year to the current hand-over-heart to avoid the similarities to the salutes used by German and Italian fascists. Jasper Kenzo Sundeen's reporting for the Yakima Herald-Republic is possible with support from Report for America and community members through the Yakima Valley Community Fund. For information on republishing, email news@yakimaherald.com. Santiago Ochoa's reporting for the Yakima Herald-Republic is possible with support from Report for America and community members through the Yakima Valley Community Fund. For information on republishing, email news@yakimaherald.com. You are the owner of this article. 31 premature babies are evacuated from Gaza's largest hospital, but scores of trauma patients remain The World Health Organization says 31 premature babies in extremely critical condition have been evacuated from Gazas largest hospital and will be transferred to Egypt for specialized care If you are sending a Letter To the Editor, please be sure to follow these rules: Letters have a firm 200-word limit and will be edited for grammar, clarity and accuracy. The person who signs the letter must be the author. Anonymous letters will not be considered. Letters must address the editor, not a third party. We will not print form letters, libelous letters, business promotions or personal disputes, poetry, open letters, letters espousing religious views without reference to a current issue, or letters considered in poor taste. Letters reflect the opinion of the writer. The Yakima Herald-Republic cannot verify the accuracy of all statements made in letters. Writers are limited to one published letter per calendar month. A banner announcing the acquisition of Yakima Valley Memorial by MultiCare Health System is seen Tuesday morning on the east side of the hospital building. The facility is now called MultiCare Yakima Memorial Hospital. New Delhi: The co-founder of BharatPe, Ashneer Grover, and his wife, Madhuri Jain, have been summoned by the Delhi Polices Economic Offences Wing (EOW) for questioning regarding an alleged fraud of Rs 81 crore at the fintech unicorn. The couple is required to appear at the EOW's Mandir Marg office on November 21. The summons comes in the wake of an incident where Grover claimed to have been stopped at Delhi airport on Thursday, preventing him and his wife from traveling to New York for a vacation. (Also Read: Turn Rs 233 Daily Into A Secure Future: This LIC's Policy Promises Rs 17 Lakh And Tax Benefits) EOW officials confirmed the summons and mentioned that a lookout circular had been issued against the couple, leading to their interception. (Also Read: Anand Mahindra Shares Hilarious Video Of Man On Sky-High Tractor, Says Interesting But...) In May, the EOW filed a First Information Report (FIR) against Ashneer Grover, Madhuri Jain, and their family membersDeepak Gupta, Suresh Jain, and Shwetank Jainin connection with the alleged fraud amounting to Rs 81 crore. BharatPe asserted that Grover and his family caused damages through various means, including illegitimate payments to bogus human resource consultants, inflated payments through vendors connected to the accused, sham transactions in input tax credit, penalty payments to GST authorities, illegal payments to travel agencies, forged invoices by Madhuri Jain, and destruction of evidence. EOW sources disclosed that a status report was filed in court on November 7 regarding the ongoing investigation. If convicted, the accused could face a sentence ranging from 10 years to life in prison. In December 2022, BharatPe also initiated a civil suit in the Delhi High Court against Ashneer Grover and his family, seeking damages of up to Rs 88.67 crore for alleged cheating and embezzlement of funds. New Delhi: Renowned Turkish chef Nusret Gokce, famous for his viral salt-sprinkling technique, is facing criticism as an alleged bill from one of his Nusr-Et steakhouses sparks outrage among food enthusiasts. The upscale chain, known for its luxury steaks, has often been accused of exorbitant pricing and a focus on presentation over food quality. A video shared by a user on X showcased Nusret Gokce preparing a steak with his signature flair, accompanied by a cost breakdown of the bill. (Also Read: Delhi Police Summon Ashneer Grover And His Wife For Questioning) Notable items included a Sprite priced at $10 (about Rs 800), over 10 times its market value, and the "Golden Tomahawk," a gold foil-covered beef steak, listed at $1000 (approximately Rs 83,000). (Also Read: A Look Inside Delhi's Jaw-Dropping Mansions Owned By Biz Tycoons - In Pics) Im sorry but this is just so cringe. pic.twitter.com/ULzFFSkMth South Dallas Foodie (@SouthDallasFood) November 13, 2023 Im sorry but this is just so cringe. pic.twitter.com/ULzFFSkMth November 13, 2023 This revelation led to widespread criticism, with one person describing the prices as "Overpriced garbage for people who dont know any better." Concerns were also raised about hygiene practices, as a self-professed chef pointed out that Gokce failed to clean a knife after sharpening it, violating safety standards. Critics questioned the authenticity of Nusr-Et's culinary prowess, with one person stating, "Hot take but gold foil on food is usually a clear sign the chef is pretentious and not as talented. Does nothing for taste and just increases the price of food superficially." In a previous incident in September 2021, a bill from Nusr-Et's London branch totaling 1,812 (around Rs 1,88,000) raised eyebrows for its high costs. A user commented, "Its cheaper to fly and have food at Salt Baes Turkish restaurant than to go to the London one. 9 for coke. 630 for Tomahawk steak. No thank you." Its cheaper to fly and have food at Salt Baes Turkish restaurant than to go to the London one. 9 for coke. 630 for Tomahawk steak. No thank you. pic.twitter.com/PufkwKzthM September 27, 2021 In response to accusations of overpricing, Nusret Gokce shared a receipt from his Abu Dhabi restaurant, totaling over Rs. 1.36 crore, with the caption, "Quality never expensive." The controversy continues as critics question the balance between the perceived extravagance and the value offered by Nusr-Et's dining experience. Uttarkashi: As rescue operations continue for eight days to save the 40 trapped workers at Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi, Secretary, Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways Anurag Jain announced on Sunday the decision to take up a five-option action plan. The government has taken a decision to work on all fronts to save the precious lives of the labourers trapped in the tunnel at Silkyara, Jain told ANI. "The government has taken a decision to work on all fronts to save the precious lives of the labourers trapped in the tunnel at Silkyara. In a high-level meeting today, various options were examined based on technical advice and 5 options are to be pursued," he added. "In addition to these 5 options, a couple of additional pipes for redundancy of food support would also be put up," he added. According to Anurag Jain, National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHDCL), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVNL), Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited (THDC) and Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) have been assigned one option each. The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) and the construction wing of the Indian Army have also been assisting in the rescue operation, he said. Jain further said that the Managing Director of NHIDCL has been made in charge of coordination with all the Central agencies and has been stationed in Silkyara. "The government of Uttarakhand has appointed Dr Neeraj Khairwal, Secretary, as the Nodal Officer for coordination. All the agencies concerned have posted senior officers at the site," he informed further. The centre has given clear directions that whatever is possible must be done for the rescue operation, Jain added. He further said, "Along with these 5 options, there is an action plan. We are working on the declared unsafe areas where we were working and stopped later due to movement on earth. We will make a canopy and restart the work with all the security measures." Meanwhile, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reached the scene to review the ongoing rescue and relief operation. They were accompanied by Uttarakhand Chief Secretary SS Sandhu at Silkyara. Speaking to ANI about the ongoing relief and rescue operations, CM Dhami said, "We are working on all the possibilities available. All types of expert teams are working here." CM Dhami said that the state government is ready to provide all the help required to the agencies involved in the rescue operation. The under-construction tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri national highway collapsed in the early hours of November 12. Earlier in the morning, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari visited the Uttarkashi tunnel collapse site and said he expects the rescuers will be able to reach the victims who are trapped inside it in another two to two-and-a-half days. "If the auger machine works properly, we will be able to reach them (victims) in the next 2 to 2.5 days," Gadkari told the reporters from the tunnel site. Minister Gadkari apprised that those private tunnel experts working for various organisations in the region have also been roped in for the rescue efforts. Food, medicine, and oxygen were being provided to those trapped inside through pipes. Work is on for another alternate supply line in case of any exigencies that may arise in the first line. "There is light and ample space inside the tunnel and the victims are able to move around; the communication line is on," Gadkari told reporters, adding their morale was high. Stating that the geology and terrain in the Himalayas are very difficult, the efforts to rescue the workers are on a war footing. Notably, the rescue efforts have now entered eighth day. Further, the Union Minister urged people not to draw any early conclusions about the incident. "Early diagnosis of anything is not advisable. We are going into the details and investigating it. Please cooperate with us to keep the morale of the victims high." "It will take some time to find out what the technical reasons are, and we are honestly working on that," Gadkari added. The under-construction tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri national highway collapsed in the early hours of November 12. WASHINGTON: In an op-ed published on Saturday, US President Joe Biden dismisses increasing ceasefire calls for Gaza, asserting that it won't bring about peace. "As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a cease-fire is not peace. To Hamas's members, every cease-fire is time they exploit to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters and restart the killing by attacking innocents again," Biden wrote in the piece for The Washington Post, adding, "Our goal should not be simply to stop the war for today -- it should be to end the war forever, break the cycle of unceasing violence, and build something stronger in Gaza and across the Middle East so that history does not keep repeating itself." Biden also called for Israel to respect humanitarian law and minimise the loss of civilian life, saying he counselled Israeli officials during his trip to Tel Aviv "against letting their hurt and rage mislead them into making mistakes we ourselves have made in the past." In the op-ed, Biden also said that a two-state solution is the only solution to the enduring conflict in the region and that, in the meantime, there should be governance under the Palestinian Authority. "As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalised Palestinian Authority, as we all work towards a two-state solution," Biden wrote in The Washington Post. Biden also took aim at the extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, which has been a concern among officials, saying that the US is prepared to issue visa bans against the perpetrators. "I have been emphatic with Israel's leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable," President Biden wrote. The warning surfaced amid worries about Israel allegedly violating the Visa Waiver Programme, enabling eligible travellers to seek entry into the US without a visa, effective since late October, according to CNN. "I won't get into full details of our private diplomatic conversations, but we expect Israel to address those concerns," State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said this week. Last month, the Biden administration sought over USD 105 billion from Congress in a proposed package, aiming to allocate security assistance for the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel. President Biden passionately appealed for the funding during a primetime Oval Office address, deeming the moment "an inflection point" in American history. In his closing remarks, the president denounced the escalating antisemitism and Islamophobia since the onset of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, CNN reported. Maldives's new President Mohamed Muizzu yesterday met Union Minister of Earth Sciences Kiren Rijiju formally urging the Indian government to remove its military personnel from the island nation. The move is expected as Muizzu, who is considered 'pro-China' in his policies, had promised to end foreign military presence during his poll campaign. Muizzu had time and again said that once into power, he would draw a red line in terms of the country's security while respecting the red lines of other countries too. According to reports, the Ministry of External Affairs of India is discussing a 'workable solution' to the issue as Indian soldiers man radars and surveillance aircraft in Maldives while Indian warships help patrol the island country's exclusive economic zone. There are around 70 Indian soldiers in Maldives It was speculated that Muizzu would replace Indian soldiers with Chinese, a move he denied saying Maldives is too small for any 'geopolitical rivalry'. The Maldives' statement regarding Indian troops coincided with a visit from Shen Yiqin, the Special Envoy of the Chinese President, who paid a courtesy visit to President Muizzu on the same day. Privileged to call on President H.E. Dr. Mohamed Muizzu. Conveyed greetings from Honble PM @NarendraModi and reiterated Indias commitment to further strengthen the substantive bilateral cooperation and robust people-to-people ties. pic.twitter.com/nFa95QD9ES Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) November 18, 2023 Rijiju attended the swearing-in ceremony of Mohamed Muizzu on Friday and paid a courtesy call at the President's Office yesterday when Muizzu made the request. "At the meeting, President Muizzu had formally requested the Government of India to withdraw its military personnel from the Maldives. The President noted that at the Presidential Election held in September, the Maldivian people had given him a strong mandate to make the request to India and expressed the hope that India would honour the democratic will of the people of the Maldives," a statement from Maldives President's Office said. The statement further said, "The Minister expressed his aspiration to foster a constructive relationship with the Maldives, acknowledging the presence of a vibrant Indian community residing in the Maldives." President Muizzu and Minister Kiren Rijiju also reviewed the progress of the implementation of various projects in the Maldives with the support of India. India has said that its cooperation with Maldives is based on jointly addressing shared challenges and priorities. MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had said last month at a media briefing that assistance and platforms that India has provided have contributed significantly in areas like people's welfare, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, and combating illegal maritime activities in Maldives. (With agency inputs) International Men's Day, celebrated annually on November 19, is a global observance focusing on men's well-being, mental health, and positive contributions to society. The day aims to highlight issues such as men's health, gender roles, and the importance of fostering positive masculinity. International Men's Day serves as a crucial platform to address the multifaceted challenges faced by men and promotes a more nuanced understanding of masculinity. By fostering open dialogue and celebrating positive contributions, the day contributes to the ongoing global conversation on gender equality and well-being. International Men's Day 2023: History The inception of International Men's Day dates back to the early 1990s when Dr. Jerome Teelucksingh, a Trinidad and Tobago doctor, proposed the idea to celebrate men's achievements and contributions. The first International Men's Day was officially observed on November 19, 1999. International Men's Day: Significance International Men's Day provides an opportunity to address and raise awareness about the challenges and issues that men face in today's world. It seeks to promote gender equality and encourage positive role models for men, emphasizing the importance of their mental and physical well-being. The day also serves as a platform to discuss and challenge stereotypes surrounding masculinity, encouraging open conversations about men's emotions and breaking down societal expectations that may contribute to mental health struggles. Celebration: On International Men's Day, various events and activities take place globally to celebrate men's achievements and contributions. These include seminars, panel discussions, health awareness campaigns, and community outreach programs. Organizations and individuals often participate by organizing events that focus on men's health, career development, and fostering positive relationships. The color blue is commonly associated with International Men's Day, symbolizing peace and solidarity. Social media plays a significant role in spreading awareness, with hashtags like #InternationalMensDay trending to encourage discussions and sharing of experiences. Focus Areas: Health: International Men's Day emphasizes the importance of men's health, addressing issues such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health challenges. Health campaigns and screenings are often organized to promote early detection and preventive measures. Gender Roles: The day encourages a reevaluation of traditional gender roles and stereotypes, promoting a more inclusive and diverse perspective on masculinity. It advocates for men to express their emotions openly and challenges the notion that vulnerability is a sign of weakness. Positive Masculinity: Celebrations often highlight positive male role models who have made significant contributions to society. This helps counterbalance negative stereotypes and showcases the diverse ways in which men positively impact their communities. (This article is intended for your general information only. Zee News does not vouch for its accuracy or reliability.) New Delhi: As we celebrate International Men's Day, it's crucial to shed light on an often overlooked aspect of men's well-being their skin health. In a special insight, renowned makeup artist Sahibba K Anand delves into the significance of a disciplined skincare regime for men and why it deserves a place in every man's daily routine. In today's fast-paced world, where stress and environmental factors abound, maintaining healthy skin goes beyond mere aesthetics. Healthy skin is a reflection of overall well-being, and for men, it is an integral part of leading a truly healthy life. Sahibba emphasizes that skin care is not exclusive to women; it is a universal necessity for both genders. Men's skin, often thicker and oilier than women's, requires specific care tailored to its unique needs. A disciplined skincare routine is not just about vanity; it's about nurturing the body's largest organ. Why should men religiously follow a skincare routine? Sahibba breaks it down to the basics prevention, preservation, and confidence. A consistent skincare regimen helps prevent common issues like acne, premature aging, and skin damage caused by environmental factors. By preserving the skin's health, men invest in their long-term well-being. Feeling good about one's skin contributes to a boost in confidence and self-esteem. In a world where appearance often influences perceptions, taking care of one's skin becomes a form of self-care and empowerment. As we celebrate International Men's Day, let's challenge stereotypes and encourage men to embrace a disciplined skincare routine as an essential component of a healthy lifestyle. Sahibba K Anand's insights remind us that skin care is not just a beauty ritual; it is a commitment to self-care and overall well-being that every man deserves. No matter your age, skin care is the most essential habit! When I look around, the closest men around me are My teenage son, my 40-year-old husband, and my 65-year-old father. Believe me when I say this, they all take care of the skin and Im so happy they do. Men dont realise that the skin on the face is a lot more delicate and requires extra love and care. I dont understand how and why they feel that they can use a body wash for their face or use a body moisturiser as a face cream! 1. Cleansing Ritual - It is very important to start with a good face cleanser. Wash your face daily with a facial cleanser, especially after a workout. Cleansing your face is essential for maintaining your pore size, providing skin hydration, and preventing excess oil build-up. I emphasize the importance of this foundational step for a fresh canvas. 2. Hydration Haven - This should be followed by a facial moisturiser that works for your skin type. Use a creamier moisturiser for drier skin. Moisturising is important to keep the skin balanced and camouflage skin blemishes. Choose a hydrating serum enriched with ingredients like hyaluronic acid to replenish moisture. Sahibba insists that hydration is a non-negotiable element for skin health. Believe it or not, but my teenage son also realises the importance of a facial mist spray and a serum as the first step of a skincare regime. They both provide hydration and make the skin feel supple. says Sahibba K Anand. 3. Essential Sun Shield - It is of utmost importance to use sunscreen, every time you plan to step out. Sunscreen not only prevents sunburn but also protects against skin cancer and reduces aging. Never skip sunscreen, I advise. Opt for a broad-spectrum SPF to shield the skin from harmful UV rays, preventing premature aging and maintaining an even skin tone. 4. Exfoliation Elegance - Incorporate a mild exfoliator 2-3 times a week to slough off dead skin cells, promoting a smoother texture and aiding in product absorption. Sahibba notes that exfoliation is key for a revitalized complexion. Whenever you have extra time at hand, remember to exfoliate. The easiest is to mix honey, coffee, and a pinch of cinnamon powder. Apply, rub, and rinse for a radiating glow! 5. Eye Opener - Apply a specialized eye cream to address concerns like dark circles or puffiness. Sahibba stresses the significance of this step for a well-rested appearance. 6. Nighttime Rejuvenation - Before bedtime, indulge in a nourishing night cream. Sahibba highlights the reparative benefits, allowing the skin to regenerate and recover while you sleep. Some Extra Light On The Issues That Impact Our Skin Health * For those who shave, you should use a Pre-shave oil, a good shaving cream, followed by an after-shave. * Your skin care would be incomplete if you dont keep yourself hydrated. Set reminders to drink water every hour or so and aim for at least 2 liters in a day. * Avoid smoking and reduce alcohol consumption for good skin. Both dehydrate and make the skin age faster causing fine lines, breakouts, or even destroying collagen thus reducing the elasticity of the skin. * Working out regularly makes you sweat, opens your pores, and gets a glow that no product can. So take out at least 45 minutes daily to sweat it out, pump your heart and blood, and make the skin feel radiant. Happy International Men's Day! In a dazzling display of beauty, grace, and intellect, Sheynnis Palacios from Nicaragua was crowned Miss Universe 2023 in a ceremony that captivated viewers around the world. The event, which took place on a glittering stage, showcased the poise and charisma of contestants from various nations. Sheynnis Palacios stood out not only for her stunning looks but also for her compelling personality and commitment to positive change. Sheynnis Palacios, who is the first Nicaraguan woman to win Miss Universe, glittered in an embellished gown for the pageant. The coronation of Miss Universe 2023 marked a historic moment for Nicaragua, as Sheynnis Palacios became the first representative from the Central American nation to claim the prestigious title. The announcement was met with cheers and applause, both within the venue and across the globe. Palacios' victory was well-deserved, as she demonstrated not only exceptional beauty but also intelligence and a passion for making a difference. During the question and answer segment, Palacios eloquently addressed critical issues, showcasing her depth of understanding and commitment to social change. The judges were undoubtedly impressed by her thoughtful responses, which touched on topics ranging from climate change to gender equality. Palacios' ability to articulate her views with clarity and conviction undoubtedly contributed to her success in the competition. Sheynnis Palacios' win goes beyond the realm of beauty; it symbolizes the breaking of barriers and the celebration of diversity. As Miss Universe 2023, Palacios is poised to use her platform to advocate for the causes she holds dear, further establishing herself as a role model for young women worldwide. Nicaragua can undoubtedly take pride in Sheynnis Palacios, who has not only brought glory to her nation but also serves as an inspiration for aspiring individuals to reach for the stars. Moraya Wilson from Australia secured the position of the second runner-up, while Anntonia Porsild from Thailand earned the title of the first runner-up in the beauty pageant. In the Miss Universe 2023 competition, Shweta Sharda, hailing from Chandigarh, represented India and successfully advanced to the top 20 finalists. Additionally, this year marked Pakistan's debut at the Miss Universe, adding a new dimension to the global pageant stage. The 72nd edition of the Miss Universe pageant took place at the Jose Adolfo Pineda Arena in El Salvador. Audiences worldwide were treated to a captivating performance by 12-time Grammy winner John Legend. The hosting duties for the event were expertly handled by Maria Menounos, who shared the stage with former Miss Universe Olivia Culpo and Jeannie Mai. New Delhi: Zeenat Aman, the OG Bollywood Diva has always ruled the hearts of millions of people. She recently joined social media and fans go gaga over the news. She often shares pictures, videos of the throwback memories and keeps treating her fans with engaging content. The 70s Queen, turns 72 today and we shall unveil for you some of the biggest controversies around the actress. Zeenat Aman-Sanjay Khan Actress tied the knot with actor Sanjay Khan at Jaisalmer in 1978 and got separated in 1979. Many warned Zeenat when she was to get married to Sanjay. But, according to Cine Blitz magazine, she defended him saying "I love this man. Don't you understand? I will back his every move and I will make him a king one day." They fell in love with each other while they were shooting for their film, Abdullah. However, Sanjay Khan was also married to another woman, model Zarine Katrak at this point. But, things between the two went ugly in 1980, according to an article by The Quint, the actor was reported thrashing Zeenat Aman black and blue at a five-star hotel in Mumbai. After the horrific incident, Zeenat was hospitalised for weeks. Due to the accident, her jaw was broken, which was set right surgically. But, her beautiful eyes were never the same. Satyam Shivam Sundaram Zeenat's film Satyam Shivam Sundaram was mired in controversy for its portrayal of sexuality and the female body. The Supreme Court had reportedly dismissed a charge of obscenity against the film before its release. The film also starred Shashi Kapoor in the lead role. The film got in trouble over actress' 'obsene' costumes. Later, the actress opened up on it over social media and cleared the air. Humiliated By Amitabh Bachchan Zeenat Aman recently revealed that she was humiliated by an act of Amitabh Bachchan, she said that she cried a lot after the incident happened. Zeenat Aman and Amitabh Bachchan, two legendary actors have worked together in several films over the years, including 'Laawaris', 'Dostana', 'Mahaan', and 'Pukar.' Sharing the incident, the actress wrote on Instagram,"We had a morning shift that day, and I hitched a ride to set with the films producer. As always, I had my script in hand and rehearsed my lines as we drove to the studio. Upon my arrival I went directly to my makeup room, and informed the crew to send me a message once Mr. Bachchan was ready for the shot. Our 'roll time' came and went, but there was no sign of Mr. Bachchan. 30 minutes passed. Then 45. An entire hour went by before there was a knock on the door. An AD informed me the Mr. Bachchan had arrived. And that hed run straight from his car to the set!" Later, Big B came to her with the producer and apologised for being late and setting the director's mood badly. "I accepted Mr. Bachchans apology of course but I was still stinging from the unwarranted dressing down I had received. I was in no mood to shoot after that humiliation. When I finally softened and agreed to come back on set, the director threw himself at my feet and begged my forgiveness," she added. New Delhi: Global consumer electronics brand Nothing swiftly pulled its new "Nothing Chats" beta app from the Google Play Store, just a day after its initial release, citing privacy concerns. The app, designed to be compatible with Apple's iMessage, was powered by the messaging platform Sunbird. In an announcement on Saturday, posted on X, Nothing revealed the removal of the beta app and the postponement of its launch until further notice. (Also Read: A Look Inside Delhi's Jaw-Dropping Mansions Owned By Biz Tycoons - In Pics) The company stated, "We've removed the Nothing Chats beta from the Play Store and will be delaying the launch until further notice to work with Sunbird to fix several bugs. We apologize for the delay and will do right by our users." (Also Read: Mangaluru Victim Loses Rs 25 Lakh In Fake Trading's Mirage) This decision followed users sharing a blog post from Texts.com that raised alarms about Sunbird's message encryption, highlighting that it lacked end-to-end encryption and could be compromised easily, as reported by The Verge. As per the findings by Dylan Roussel, detailed on 9to5Google, Sunbird's solution involved decrypting and transmitting messages through HTTP to a Firebase cloud-syncing server, storing them in an unencrypted plain text format. Roussel emphasized that Sentry, a debugging service, recorded these messages as errors, giving Sunbird access to all messages exchanged through the app. Roussel explained, "Sunbird has access to every message sent and received through the app. They do this by abusing @getsentry, which is used to monitor errors. But Sunbird logs messages, pretending they are errors." In response, Sunbird defended its approach, stating that HTTP was "only used as part of the one-off initial request from the app notifying back-end of the upcoming iMessage connection." Nothing Chats had been announced on November 14, and its beta version was initially released on November 17. The abrupt removal underscores the critical importance of addressing privacy concerns in messaging apps, particularly when handling sensitive user data. The Torrance County Detention Facility is seen, Sept. 29, 2022, in Estancia, N.M. A lawsuit announced on Nov. 8, 2023, on behalf of four migrants accuses U.S. immigration authorities of disregarded indications of unsanitary and unsafe conditions at the immigrant detention center in New Mexico to ensure the facility would remain open, in violation of federal standards. Tom Cronin and Bob Loevy are news columnists who write about Colorado and national politics. Photo: The Canadian Press The Toronto police hate-crime unit has charged a woman who allegedly vandalized a Starbucks in a Jewish neighbourhood. A Toronto Police Service logo patch is shown in Toronto, on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby The Toronto police hate-crime unit has charged a woman who allegedly vandalized a Starbucks in a Jewish neighbourhood. Police say they were called to the coffee shop on Thursday and found the storefront littered with posters and writing. They say they have charged 25-year-old Skigh Johnson with mischief interfere with the enjoyment of property. A woman posting under the same name on TikTok says in a video that she vandalized a Starbucks with pro-Palestine sentiments. She says she is not a criminal and is fighting for peace. Police say the woman is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 11, 2024. Re: It appears illogical to some people that West Germany, which bans such [ #permalink 1 Kudos 1 Bookmarks Profile Review Request - MiM [ #permalink Race: Indian Male (Settled in UAE) Business Student at a Tier 2 College in India GMAT: Not given (Mocks are at 700) GPA: 8.0 (Batch Highest 8.4) Internship experience: 2 months in a TiO2 Chemical Production Government firm, Largest producer of said chemical, Part of their International Markets Division for the time period of the internship Directly under the Deputy Manager and responsible for all expansion plans in China and Europe. Strategy Analyst Intern at a startup Consultancy firm, Currently doing this internship with 1 month in so far, Plan to pivot to aerospace or energy startups while focusing on strategic roles till i graduate. ECs: 2nd in All India Nationals for Public Speaking/ Elocution, Zonal and Regional Champion for the same, Ill most likely win again this year on all levels. Multiple Debate, MUN and other speaking type competition wins at intra/inter/regional/zonal levels. Participated in high profile MUNs and Debates hosted by Harvard, NYU etc. Founder and President of Consulting Club and Research Club in College, Core Committee Member of Festing team, Debating Team and Cultural Association. Under my leadership, there has been a significant increase in participationup to 30%for all events I have been in charge of, including department fests and other activities. Im also Currently Volunteering as a teacher for rural children with teach for India NGO (been doing it for a month or so) Languages - 5 known - Mother Tongue, Hindi, English, Arabic(Basic), French(Basic) Post MiM Goals - Consultancy in UAE or India Target Schools - LBS, INSEAD, HEC, ESSEC A 45-year-old inmate at the Danville Adult Detention Center died Sunday morning, authorities report. It was about 4:45 a.m. when officers discovered Scott McCoy unresponsive in his cell. "Adult Detention officers began life savings measures," Danville Police Department officials wrote in a news release. "The Danville Life Saving Crew responded and transported the inmate to Sovah Health where he was pronounced dead a short time later." Chris Wiles, the interim chief of the police department, asked the Virginia State Police to conduct an independent probe of the death. Police also reported a review of the incident also will be conducted by the Virginia Department of Corrections. Tyrell Payne, the vice chair of the Danville School Board, was tapped this week to be the vice chair for the Virginia School Board Association Southern region. It came at the associations annual conference hosted recently in Williamsburg. Im really fortunate to have the opportunity to work on the state level now, and also represent our city, Payne told the Register & Bee. The region encompasses Amherst County, Appomattox County, Bedford County, Campbell County, Charlotte County, Danville, Halifax County, Lynchburg, Lunenburg County, Mecklenburg County, Pittsylvania County and Prince Edward County, according to a news release from Danville Public Schools. It was a long, extensive week of training, he said of the trip, only returning home Friday. A lot of good education. He even met the governor there. In fact, after that meeting, Gov. Glenn Youngkin came to Danville to give the Spirit of Virginia Award to Gods Pit Crew. Everyone is working to make sure that everyone knows that education is our top priority, Payne said, who was at the School Choice Fair on Nov. 18. Payne has been on the school board for three years and was selected as vice chair in January. The four new student representatives on the Danville School Board also traveled with the trustees and took part in special sessions. It marked a first for Danville after the teenagers made history in September becoming the first students to represent their high schools on the board. Darrien Saunders, the alternate representative for Galileo Magnet High School, told the Register & Bee he enjoyed the conference experience. I liked it, he said. I actually learned a lot. Some of this sessions including learning the finer points of how a meeting runs. For example, when it comes to an action item, a motion is made and must receive a second before going to a vote. He witnessed that happening at the meetings, but, never knew the reason. I was like, why do they always do that? he questioned. Turns out, they need too. As he chatted with his student counterparts at other schools throughout Virginia at the conference, he began to realize everyone was facing the same set of issues. When we actually started talking, we realized like wow, we all have the same problems, he said. It was really just a bit of an eye-opener. Other schools have bus issues and encounter students who vape in the bathrooms. We werent nearly as different as we thought we were, Saunders explained. He also enjoyed the speakers. One was an architect of schools, who detailed the extensive planning that goes into designing a new facility now of days. It was like a really good time, he said of the conference. We had a lot of fun. Now that hes a board representative, hes often inundated with questions from classmates. When you are in a certain position, people just kind of assume that you would know, he said of how his new role has changed him. Its like they thought as soon as I got in, they took me to this dark room and told me all of Danvilles secrets. He gets asked many questions daily and its a 50/50 shot whether he knows the answer or not. Either way, he said hell work to find the information and will always strive to represent Galileo. To me, its just a learning experience, Saunders explained. And his position is preparing him for his future. Hed like to go into federal politics, so hes getting a small taste of what life is going to be like down the line. Mass shootings tend to dominate the debate over gun violence but they accounted for just 3% of all firearm homicides in the United States in 2021. The vast majority of gun homicides are murders that happen in an extremely concentrated number of neighborhoods places where the rate of gun deaths rivals war zones. As a scholar of gun violence and victimization in the United States, I study and publish research on the geographic and demographic concentration of shootings, and Im always searching for new perspectives to help people understand this crisis. Concentrated disadvantage Shootings happen over and over in the same locations. About half take place in just 1% to 5% of the land area in U.S. cities in other words, in a tiny percentage of the nations homes, stores, parks and street corners. These same neighborhoods tend to suffer from what criminologists call concentrated disadvantage: an unsavory mix of high crime rates, illegal drug markets, poverty, limited educational and economic opportunities, and residential instability. Cumulatively, these factors decrease the residents ability to maintain public order and safety in the ways that safer neighborhoods do informally by confronting violent behavior or supervising teenagers. Kids who grow up in these neighborhoods suffer the long-lasting repercussions of exposure to violence, such as high levels of stress and trauma that dampen educational attainment and result in decreased cognitive ability. The demographics of these neighborhoods means that both victims and perpetrators of shootings are disproportionately young Black men. Young Black men represented 93.9% of firearm-related homicide victims in Chicago and 79.3% of gun homicides in Philadelphia where young Hispanic men make up another 12.9%. Homicides disproportionately affect the young largely because men ages 15 to 25 are more likely to engage in delinquent and criminal behavior, a phenomenon known as the age-crime curve. How bad is it? For some young men, it can be safer to be in the U.S. military at war than living at home in the most violent neighborhoods of Philadelphia and Chicago. How we did this work This finding comes from a study my co-authors, Brandon Del Pozo and Aaron Chalfin, and I did to compare shooting rates in Philadelphia, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles with casualty rates of U.S. military personnel during the recent campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our paper is published in JAMA Network Open, an open-source medical journal, and is freely available to read. We first collected all publicly available city-level data on shooting deaths, including the time, exact place and information about the victim. Our study focused on Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago because they were the largest American cities with public data available. However, gun homicides happen everywhere, with notable rates of gun homicides in St. Louis, Baltimore, New Orleans, Detroit and Cleveland. In military zones For the military casualties, we relied on the estimates from studies of the mortality of U.S. soldiers at war in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Afghan War was deadlier, with 395 deaths of U.S. combatants per 100,000 people per year, compared with 330 in Iraq. We used the higher rate from the Afghan War as our reference, setting its value as 1 and expressing the homicide rate in other places in relationship to this benchmark. How places compare The most violent ZIP code in Philadelphia is 19132 in North Philadelphia, which includes parts of Strawberry Mansion and the blocks further north and east. The violence of these city streets was captured by sociologist Elijah Anderson in his ethnographic study Code of the Street, published in 2000. A young man living in this ZIP code had 1.91 times more annual risk of getting killed with a firearm than a U.S. soldier deployed to Afghanistan for a comparable amount of time. During 2020 and 2021, this ZIP code was home to about 2,500 young men. Thirty-seven were killed in gun homicides. A similar calculation for the most violent neighborhood of Chicago, an area around Garfield Park with the ZIP code 60624, yields statistics that are even grimmer. Young men living there were 3.23 times more likely to die from a bullet than U.S. service members deployed to Afghanistan. Sixty-six young men were shot dead during 2020 and 2021. Moreover, survivors of this violence bear the burden of it for the whole time they live in these neighborhoods. In contrast, the average deployment is less than 12 months. Complicating the narrative Research papers like ours can raise many yeah but questions. Answering them can better help us understand the limitations of our study. For example, many service members do not engage in active combat. This fact made our research team wonder if the inclusion of data from personnel in safer support roles was skewing our data, so we specifically looked at the casualties of one U.S. brigade combat team that was heavily engaged during the Iraq War. The brigade had a casualty rate 1.71 times higher than our benchmark. That means that members of the brigade were still safer than male youth in the most violent area of Philadelphia (with a casualty rate of 1.91 times higher) and Chicago (3.23 times higher). It is also worth noting that we studied two particularly violent years in U.S. cities; 2020 saw a record increase in homicide rates. That number stayed high in 2021, before decreasing slightly in 2022. Lastly, on a more positive note, gun mortality in New York and Los Angeles was significantly lower than in Philadelphia and Chicago, and much lower than the risks faced in war. Faster care could help Our research also showed that soldiers who are injured on the battlefield are less likely to die from their wounds than people shot in the American cities we studied. Surviving a wound is more likely if medical help is immediate. This suggests two ideas to decrease shooting deaths: train more police officers to provide urgent basic medical treatment to the victims of gun violence and add capacity to trauma centers near violent neighborhoods. Photo: The Canadian Press Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak speaks at the 2023 Halifax International Security Forum in Halifax on Saturday, Nov.18, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Kelly Clark Israel must continue waging war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip until the organization's military capacity is destroyed, one of the country's former prime ministers said Saturday, despite the fact the mounting civilian death toll in the conflict has drawn increased criticism from world leaders. Ehud Barak's remarks came on the second day of the Halifax International Security Forum at an early morning "chat" with PBS correspondent Nick Schifrin. We have to finish it," the Israeli former general told the 15th annual version of the three-day conference, which has attracted about 300 delegates from around the world to discuss ways to promote democracy. "We have to complete it. Its a compelling imperative. Israels government cannot survive if it cannot live up to its basic commitment to its citizens (and) if Hamas can ... come back to power." Barak's remarks came the day after a group of protesters chanting "free Palestine" gathered outside the hotel hosting the conference. The latest war in the Middle East was triggered on Oct. 7 when Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing an estimated 1,200 people and taking some 240 others back into their stronghold in the Gaza Strip as hostages. Israel immediately declared war and has launched daily retaliatory attacks. Since the offensive in the Gaza Strip began, Palestinian health authorities say more than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, two-thirds of them women and minors. They say another roughly 2,700 people are currently missing, possibly buried under rubble from intense shelling over the past seven weeks. Barak, who was prime minister from 1999 to 2001, told the conference delegates he's a fierce critic of current prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, likening some of his cabinet members to the U.S.-based far-right group Proud Boys. But the former military chief of staff said Israelis of all political stripes are united in their desire to complete the war and argued Israel follows rules of engagement that seek to minimize civilian deaths. For Israel, any target is searched, sometimes more than once, and a legal adviser and expert on international law is consulted to ensure everything is done, as far as possible, in a way to minimize the risk of killing people," said Barak. "People (in Gaza) are warned from Day 1 that if they are in a place where there is any activities by Hamas, whether a munitions depot, command post, training site, launching pad, they should leave this place for this is a target and we are going to hit it. We are sorry for any life lost but thats part of war. Schifrin, however, said he personally witnessed the Israeli military targeting Hamas leaders during its 2014 campaign, even when they were surrounded by their families and neighbours. "The United States doesnt have that policy and wouldnt take that shot," he said. During a panel after Barak's presentation, several participants said they understood Israel's distress over Oct. 7, but argued the logic of the Gaza war is flawed. Nancy Okail, president of the U.S.-based Center for International Policy, said there "has been a complete absence of a serious political path for Palestinians to live with dignity and rights." Mouaz Moustafa, director of the Syrian Emergency Task Force, said the creation of hundreds of thousands of refugees and civilian deaths doesn't further the cause of democracy, whether in Gaza or elsewhere. "One out of 57 people in Gaza have been killed or injured since Oct. 7, and we have dozens of journalists who have been killed, food and water and other necessities have not been allowed in," said Moustafa. "Such a campaign, where there are thousands and thousands more children being killed than Hamas fighters, is not something that makes Israel or the West safer," he said. In an interview later in the day with several journalists, Barak said his hope is that the Palestinian Authority, based in the West Bank, would govern Gaza after the latest war comes to an end. "Bring back the original, internationally recognized owner ... that might be the solution. Of course that's not the current (Israeli) government's position. I think they're wrong and I'm right," he said. He also said that while the time "is not right" to pursue a two-state solution, creating a sovereign Palestinian state remains the ultimate pathway to peace. In 2000, he pursued that option during failed peace talks held at Camp David with former president Bill Clinton attempting to mediate. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repeatedly called on Israel to show "maximum restraint" to protect civilian life in Gaza, and has said, "the world is witnessing this. The killing of women and children, of babies." Barak said he would prefer to hear Trudeau "following the tone of the first days" after the Oct. 7 Hamas incursion, when the focus was on condemning the attack and the taking of hostages. "But we will send our fighters anyhow to destroy Hamas even if most of the leaders in the world say it's not the right thing. We have no other way to protect our people," he said. The recent election results in Kentucky, Ohio and Virginia were more than a victory for abortion rights. They were part of a larger conversation about public health -- and the need for government to ensure Americans have quality, affordable and equitable health care. Abortion care is health care, and everyone wins when people vote to protect public health. That's what next year's elections will be about, too. Activists are working to get abortion rights initiatives on the ballot in 2024 in Arizona, Nevada, Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota. But those are not the only public health measures that will come before voters. In California, for example, Gov. Gavin Newsom has put the transformation of the states mental health system on the March 2024 ballot a $6.38 billion proposal to build behavioral health housing and treatment facilities. He wants to get people off the streets, out of tents and into treatment. Advocates in Alaska, Nebraska and Missouri are gathering petitions to put paid sick leave on their ballots. Our right to a healthy life is clearly in jeopardy. Abortion care and contraceptives are threatened, and they are connected to the economy, family life and education. Women who are denied access to abortion care have four times greater odds of living below the federal poverty level. They are more likely to be experiencing high levels of debt, evictions and other economic hardships, according to the Turnaway Study at the University of California San Francisco. This study gathered for the first time quality research on the physical and social consequences of unwanted pregnancy for women who were turned away from abortion care. Before this study, most research focused on whether abortion is responsible for mental health problems such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, or drug and alcohol use. This led to hardened attitudes and erroneous assumptions that were unsupported by the evidence. The Turnaway study showed that 95% of women reported having an abortion was the right decision for them more than five years after. We must focus on the facts about abortion care not scare tactics, junk science or misinformation by adding a public health lens to our view of politics. That is the challenge for 2024, brought into focus by the 2023 elections. We need to change the political landscape in those states where restrictive reproductive health policies are behind the rise in women giving birth to low-weight babies. The United States already has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the developed world with those rates are highest in states where abortion restrictions have been in effect. We need to make our elections about issues like that that have a real effect on peoples lives. Women who are denied abortion care are more likely to Experience serious complications from the end of pregnancy including eclampsia and death. Stay with abusive partners. Suffer anxiety and loss of self-esteem Experience poor physical health for years after the pregnancy, including chronic pain and gestational hypertension. Being denied abortion also has serious implications for the children born of unwanted pregnancy, and for the existing children in the family. Economists have shown that the expansion of legal abortion after Roe v. Wade reduced teen motherhood by a third and teen marriage by a fifth. They showed how access to abortion care increases the probability that teenage women of color graduate from high school and attend college. The right to ones own bodily autonomy is so basic that sometimes it seems incredible we even have to defend it. Yet womens independence, freedom, access to health care and other rights are increasingly politicized. That is the last thing we need. Public health is basic to the way we live our lives, and to our hopes for the future. That is what we will be fighting to put on the ballot in 2024. ABINGDON, Va. After 125 years and four families of owners, one of Abingdons oldest fixtures in town is going out of business in the coming weeks. Greer Jewelers, an independently-owned store front will close its doors after Christmas when owners Susie Buckner and her brother-in-law Carson Jackson retire from a business that has served generations of families in the community. The owners are currently liquidating the merchandise at discounts from 30 to 80 percent, and plan to sell the inventory until everything is gone. It was a hard decision but the time just seemed right, said Buckner, 68, who has owned and operated the business for 48 of those years. I dont know what its going to be like when I flip that light switch off for the last time, but after this many years Im ready to do something different. Neta Farmer, executive vice president of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce, helped celebrate the longevity of the business by conducting a ribbon tying event last week, the opposite of a ribbon cutting ceremony. Farmer said a ribbon tying is a new trend among chambers of commerce throughout the country. This is the first one we have done, she said. During the informal ceremony at the store, Farmer closed the ends of a ribbon held at each end by the two owners, symbolizing the closing business being united to the chamber of commerce, customers, friends, and family. They are one of our oldest members, said Farmer. Our members are our life blood of the Chamber. Were always looking for ways to go above and beyond for our members in the community. Many memories Greer Jewelers has enjoyed a steady flow of traffic since the closing was announced earlier this month. Customers are sharing their memories of the store while browsing the shelves. A cute young couple came in and told us his grandfather bought his grandmother an engagement ring at the store years ago. A lady came in today to buy a piece of jewelry that she could keep to remember us by. Weve heard so many sweet stories, related Buckner. Its bittersweet we say that word a lot lately because its sad. Greer Jewelers is sort of an institution in Abingdon. Its a fixture in town. Its hard to imagine it not being here, Buckner said. A brilliant history The jewelry store, known for its eye-catching decorative store windows on Main Street, also has a brilliant history. Buckner and Jackson are the fourth owners to operate the business which actually began as many as 125 years ago. The store was started in the late 1800s in downtown Abingdon by M.A. Barbee and Buck Hagy, and was named the Barbee Hagy Jewelry Store. The business was later sold to the McChesney Lester family who also owned a jewelry store on State Street in Bristol. When they decided to retire, Aline Greer, an employee at the store, and her family purchased the business, naming it Greer and Son Jewelers. In 1959, the owners built the store that currently occupies the business. At the age of 20, Buckner went to work for the Greers, working for the family for nearly ten years. When they decided to retire, they offered the business to my family and me and we changed the name to Greer Jewelers Inc., said Buckner. Buckners sister Judy, her husband Carson, their mother Millie Woody, and Buckner all worked together until Judy left to pursue a career and their mother retired as the bookkeeper in the early 2000s. Its always been a family-run business, Buckner said. Their employees also have deep connections to the business. Doris Tyler of Abingdon started working at the store when she was only 12, making bows for the gift wrapping. She still works here, Buckner laughed. I think shes the longest employee of Greer Jewelers. Penny Arrington Hite said shes shopped at the store since she was as young as 14, picking out small pieces of jewelry back in the day when the owners allowed customers to charge. Sometimes it would be $2 and sometimes it was $10. Mary Alice Bodenhorst, a longtime customer, was present during the ceremony at the store. Ive been a customer since we moved to Abingdon in 1976. This store is where Ive bought all my Christmas and wedding gifts, my children got their fine china here when they got married. William Denton, a partner in White Birch Kitchen & Juice Bar in Abingdon, remembers shopping with his mother when he was a young child. There used to be a bench that sat over there, said Denton pointing to the front of the store. I stood and climbed all over that bench, he laughed. Ive bought all my jewelry here. This place is like family to me, said Denton. Timeless treasures Buckner and Jackson have seen many changes in the jewelry industry throughout their careers. Customer tastes have evolved from faddish items like mood rings, and identification and charm bracelets. But, something that has stood the test of time are the timeless pieces, such as beautiful strands of pearls and diamond solitaire pendants, she said. During the 1880s, she speculates the best sellers were fine china, crystal and silver, along with pocket watches, wedding rings and brooches. I think jewelry became more accessible to people during the early 1900s, said Buckner. Mr. Hagy was a watch maker and did repairs. And, back in the day, they did eye exams and fitted customers with glasses. As a small family-owned business, they have always tried to put customer service first, she said. Thats what sets us apart from other businesses. We go the extra mile for our customers. We know our customers. They are our friends, the people we go to church with and see at club meetings. We know their children and their grandchildren, Buckner said. Were just like a big family. The 81-year-old tradition of the CSX Santa Train returned to the rails Saturday, providing a unique experience for all who encountered it, whether for the first time or the long-term followers. Large crowds braved chilly, wet weather during the morning trek through the mountains of east Kentucky and Southwest Virginia before the sun finally broke through by mid-afternoon. Through it all, Kris Kringle and a devoted group of over 100 volunteers dispensed items at pre-determined stops along the way. CSX brought a significant number of people from its different divisions to experience the train which distributes 15 tons of toys, clothing items, backpacks, handmade items and wrapping paper at stops along a 110-mile route from Pikeville, Kentucky, to Kingsport, Tennessee. Last year was very emotional; my first time to be here, CSX CEO Joe Hinrichs said during a break from distributing gifts. This year I get to enjoy it a bit more watching everybody else enjoy it These people are so appreciative and so thankful and so kind; this means so much to so many people. We brought more people on the train this year. We wanted more people to feel this same feeling. We wanted as many people as possible to be part of giving back and to feel what this connection means to CSX and all the other sponsors. It is a very special day Mostly its about the CSX family giving back to the community. At the Dante stop Hinrichs spoke to a woman who recalled coming to the very first Santa Train in 1943. She said, when she was a child in 1943 she remembered walking five miles to get a piece of candy and to see Santa, he said. Its emotional because it means so much to these communities; multiple generations of people who have been a part of this. He pointed with pride to an all-new Santa car with some special features to improve distribution as evidence he and the company are committed to continuing this tradition. We wouldnt go to all that trouble for just one time, Hinrichs said. That was this years special surprise and we may have a surprise next year. His wife Maria Hinrichs was so inspired during last years trip that she recruited family members to help make nearly 30 fleece blankets to distribute. This year Im going to take it bit further. Im going to start going to CSX headquarters about once a month and get some CSX employees involved, Maria Hinrichs said. One of my favorite parts of the Santa Train is when I can get off and I have a backpack or a bag of toys or a blanket and you go out into the crowd and these people are just genuine. This is their Christmas and it warms my heart to be able to do this. Its giving. And when I see the childrens faces, it brings a smile to my face, she said. Lisa Johnson of Bristol, Tenn., a 35-year-Food City employee and its special events manager, fulfilled a lifelong goal Saturday to ride the train, which is co-sponsored by the grocery chain. I didnt really know what to expect, she said. That first stop said it all. You see all these families and all these children just hoping to get something, it makes everything so worthwhile to be able to give back to see a child get a toy; to watch them smile. When I was handing off toys, it was so special to hand a child a toy and watch that childs eyes light up. She called the entire experience emotional. Im humbled to be here. Im very grateful for the Santa Train and for this opportunity. What a blessing it is to give something back to these families because, at the end of the day, Christmas is about the children, Johnson said. Among those children were twins Maddox and Maverick Winslow of Coeburn, who experienced the train for the very first time with grandparents Phil and Gail Rasnick. They love trains anyway and they saw that train and they just lit up, Gail Rasnick said. This has been a tradition in our family for about 70 years. I lived by the tracks and we always did the stop at Hanging RockI dont know if they have a clue who Santa is. They opted to stand back near the former Dante train station rather than wade into the considerable crowd which formed a semi-circle around the Santa car. One of the events that has grown from the Santa Train is a party, attended by Santa and hosted Friday by Appalachian Power for over 50 special needs children in Dickenson County. Linda Dixon, of Clinchco, who works at Ridgeview High School, also attended the Dante stop. I come and I get stuff so that I can take it back to school for them. We have a Christmas party. It is awesome, just awesome, she said. They [kids] enjoy it tremendously and its a blessing. They look so forward to it every year. Desteny Clemons has been involved in the Santa Train for 16 years, starting when she worked at Food City as a teen. Now she is the lead Santa Train coordinator for the Kingsport Chamber of Commerce. I fell in love with it and, when I went to work for the chamber, I got more involved. She rode for the first time in 2019 and was immediately hooked. As soon as you get off the train and see that crowd of people its an adrenaline rush. When you get to the crowd and see the kids that want these items, its a second adrenaline rush. When youre able to hand that toy to that child, its heartfelt, amazing experience, she said. One memory stands out above the others. In 2018, I was in one of the follow behind box trucks the first year I traveled to Pikeville. We got to a stop were handing out coats that year from [train partner] Soles4Souls, Clemons said. This little girl came up, pajamas with short sleeves and house slippers on and it was cold and rainy that year and she looked so cold. We found this perfect red fur coat with a matching hat that fit her oh so good. She put it on and had the biggest smile. And her mom started crying and she started crying and I started crying. She allowed us to take a picture and I show that picture to everyone Im involved with to say that was my first aha moment that said I will always do this. During the week, Tianne Doyle is president of retailer Bealls, Inc. She also serves as finance chair and on the board of directors for Soles4Souls, and Saturday made her first trek on the Santa Train. And it made a big impression. This goes to the heart of America. The Appalachia region is one thats always on my mind, Doyle said. There are a lot of people who are in great need. It feels very good to see smiles on the kids faces when theyre getting gloves kids books. That was awesome. So many beautiful children of all ages here today. Food Citys Raymond Stockard spent his fifth trip on the Santa Train working the Santa car. I think the crowds have been a little bigger than normal, Stockard said. I think the children have been excited and I think the communities have been great. We saw it at the packing party at the Eastman Road store Wednesday and we had a lot bigger turnout than what we had in the past and I think thats carried over to the train. I think people are still hungering to get back to normal and I think this is just another example of that, he said. The star of the show who never left the rear platform all day agreed the crowds were bigger. We thank everyone for coming, Claus said. The children have been well behaved. Its been an exceptional crowd today. I know naughty and nice, and this has been a nice crowd. Motorists driving into Morganton on South Green Street by Hillman Beer likely have noticed something is missing. The large tanks outside have been dismantled. Those are fermenters and some have been taken down to be sold, said Greig Hillman, one of the owners of Hillman Beer. The fermenters were installed by Catawba Brewing Company when it owned the location. Hillman Beer purchased the building located at the corner of South Green and East Concord streets earlier this year. Hillman Beer has a tasting room across the street that it is leasing from the former owners of Catawba Brewing while renovations on its 212 S. Green St. location are ongoing. Hillman said brewing will take place at its Morganton location once it opens, but the business just wont need the really large tanks. As for the renovations on the building, Hillman said they are still in the design phase and hope to open by the end of next year. We have been made to feel very welcome; Morganton has been amazing, Hillman said. I wish we could be getting the new site open sooner, but it will be worth the wait. The location is expected to have a restaurant and a tasting area in the main brewery. The brewery is looking to invest more than $1 million to renovate the building and include a kitchen and hire 10 full-time employees, according to a previous story. The Morganton location will offer a variety of traditional pub fare entrees and appetizers, as well as vegan and vegetarian options. It will be open for lunch and dinner seven days a week, Hillman Beer has said. In October 2021, Scott and Billy Pyatt sold Catawba Brewing, which they started in 1999 in Burke County, to Made By The Water LLC, which merged with Faubourg Brewing Company in New Orleans in September, according to a previous story. The Pyatts kept ownership of the Morganton property until it sold the main property to Hillman Beer. Faubourg laid off the Morganton employees of Catawba Brewing and closed its doors on Nov. 27, 2022. News reports this week say Faubourg plans to scale back operations at its New Orleans East production and packaging facility, according to 4WWL-TV New Orleans. A Hickory woman died in a two-vehicle collision Friday evening in Lincoln County, according to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. Susan Willis Wilson, 65, of Hickory, was killed in the wreck, the State Highway Patrol said. Master Trooper Christopher M. Casey said in a news release that on Nov. 17 at approximately 5:15 p.m., the NC State Highway Patrol responded to and investigated a fatal collision on Reepsville Road at Cansler Road. The release said a 2002 Toyota RAV4 traveling west on Cansler Road failed to stop at a stop sign and was struck by a 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe traveling south on Reepsville Road. The driver of the RAV4, Wilson, succumbed to her injuries at the scene. She was not restrained by a seat belt, the release said. The driver of the Tahoe, Desma Ann Hart, 56, of Vale, and a juvenile passenger were transported by EMS to Atrium Health Lincoln, with non-life-threatening injuries. The initial investigation does not indicate speed or impairment to be a contributing factor and no charges will be filed in this case, the news release said. During the on-scene investigation, the road was closed in the area for approximately two hours. CONCORD Cabarrus Countys Department of Human Services (DHS) is increasing its foster care and adoption assistance rates, following a change in North Carolinas Child Welfare Legislation. DHS Social Work Program Administrator Anneka Roundtree presented details on the increased rates to commissioners at the Nov. 6 Work Session. In Cabarrus County, 192 children are in the foster care system, Roundtree said at the meeting. The increased rates will help those caring for foster children meet daily needs and help keep kids in our community, she said. For children 5 and under, the rates will increase from $514 to $702; for children ages 6-12 years old rates will increase from $654 to $742; children ages 13-17 and 18-21 years of age will have a rate increase from $698 to $810.10. Also at the meeting, Roundtree described a new policy called Kinship Care relative placements, which was recently approved by state lawmakers. The policy allows relatives (related by blood, marriage or adoption) providing foster care to receive half the reimbursement rate of a licensed family foster home. Monthly rates for an unlicensed relative placement are $351 (ages 0-5); $371 (ages 6-12); and $405 (ages 13-17). The state and county will share 50% of the nonfederal share of the cost. A budget amendment is required for DHS to cover proper funding for residents providing foster care. Commissioners will vote on the budget amendment at the regular meeting on Monday, Nov. 20. For additional information about DHS Foster Care and Adoption services, visit cabarruscounty.us/foster or call 704-920-1400. Also, during the November work session, commissioners: Heard from Roundtree on funding for the Elevate Program. The program seeks to advance health equity for adolescents, their families and communities in Cabarrus and Rowan counties. The department was awarded $15,000 from the Cabarrus Health Alliance (CHA) to help operations. CHA and various partners will offer programs in schools, foster care and community-based organizations. Heard from Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Chief Jimmy Lentz and Deputy Chief Jonathan Maulden on a new lease agreement for stretchers and power loads. The current lease expires June 30, 2024. The EMS department is looking to enter a 10-year lease with Stryker, a medical technology company. As part of the lease agreement, EMS will get updated equipment after five years. Commissioners will vote to approve the new lease agreement at the Regular Meeting. How to watch the meetings To watch the full November 6, 2023 Work Session, visit youtube.com/cabarruscounty. The regular meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. on Monday (Nov. 20) at the Cabarrus County Government Center in downtown Concord. Residents can watch commissioner meetings on the Cabarrus County livestream at cabarruscounty.us, on YouTube (@CabarrusCounty) and on CabCo TV (Spectrum Cable Channel 22). Stay updated on these and all County programs and projects by visiting cabarruscounty.us and following Cabarrus County at facebook.com/cabarruscounty and on Twitter and Instagram @CabarrusCounty. Who doesn't love Bluey? The Australian cartoon isn't only for children, with plenty for adults to enjoy too. Here's your chance to win a custom Bluey-themed Xbox Series X and controller to celebrate the launch of the new Bluey videogame. Australia's latest greatest export to the world - the animated adventures of Bluey and family - is a global hit, and it's easy to see why. The cartoon is often hilarious, and always mixed with wonderful lessons for children and adults alike. It's hard to pick a favourite Bluey episode, but I think Sleepytime (season 2, episode 26) would have to be mine. Well, BCC Studios and Artax Games have joined with Xbox to celebrate the release of Bluey: The Videogame by launching a global competition for fans to win a custom Bluey-themed Xbox Series X and controller bringing the joy of Bluey and gaming to families worldwide. The custom Bluey Xbox Series X displays vibrant colours and a design that exudes Blueys high energy and lovable personality, and the complimentary controller also features Blueys sister, Bingo. Fans can win this console and controller by following Xbox on X (formerly Twitter) and retweeting the Xbox sweepstakes tweet through December 13, 2023. For official rules and eligibility details, please visit here. Bluey console and controller are limited to sweepstakes only not for retail. For the first time ever, Bluey and Xbox fans can explore iconic locations from television such as the Heeler House, Playgrounds, Creek and the beach on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and PC. Experience the joy and wonder of Bluey's world by exploring and collecting items for your digital sticker book, unlocking dress-ups and uncovering the many secrets and hidden references throughout each location. SHELBYVILLE By this time next year, Army PFC Aaron Tieffel and his family should be hosting holiday meals. I hope so, he said. On Saturday, the national nonprofit organization Homes For Our Troops kicked off the building process of a specially adapted home for the 37-year-old veteran. A crowd of nearly 50 visitors, who cheered on the veteran and his family along with a police escort, attended the event at the Lions Club in Shelbyville. The Tieffel home, which will be in rural Shelbyville, will feature more than 40 special adaptations to suit Tieffel's needs, including wide doorways for wheelchair access, a roll-in shower, and kitchen amenities like pull-down shelving and lowered countertops. An Effingham native, Tieffel chose Shelbyville for his new home because of the school district, he said. Its a beautiful place, he said. Not a whole lot of people around right now. A move-in date is expected in June. Tieffel and his fiancee, Myca Brown, have a toddler named Joshua, and they currently live in a modular home with narrow spaces and stairs. Sometimes, wheelchairs arent even an option, Brown said. Its not equipped for things like the shower. On Aug. 23, 2007, Tieffel was on a mission during his first combat deployment looking for possible improvised explosive devices in Riyahd, Iraq, with the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, when his vehicle was struck by an IED, flipping the vehicle over causing him to fall out. The blast resulted in a right below-knee amputation, left leg limb salvage, a spinal cord injury, open book pelvic fracture, and other internal injuries, HFOT described in a press release. Once back in the United States, Aaron had multiple surgeries and a long recovery. Since then, life has been filled with challenges and adaptations. I cant have a wheelchair in my home, Tieffel said. So most days, I stand on my leg for about 18 hours a day, causing multiple sores, making it hard to walk on my leg. The veteran hopes the new home, adapted to his specific needs, will be helpful for daily living. It will make things easier, from a roll-in shower, which everyone talks about, Tieffel said. And also to help me stop working all the time and maybe go into a field where I can work from home, go back to school and get a computer science degree. According to the Massachusetts-based agency, HFOT has built 370 homes since it began in 2004. Homes For Our Troops relies on contributions from donors, supporters, and corporate partners for the building of each veterans home, the organization stated. Like so many other HFOT home recipients, LCPL Bryan Chambers mostly admired the shower in his new Indiana house. It is no stairs, he said during Saturdays event. I can help out around the house a lot more with it all being on one level. Chambers and his family moved into their home a year ago. You are going to enjoy it, he said to Tieffel. One thing I like about it is that its a mortgage-free home. The homes are built in the veterans requested location, said Bill Ivey, executive director of HFOT. It doesnt make sense to build someplace they dont want to be, he said. A team studied the location Tieffel selected. In this area, it was easy to find flat land, Ivey said of the Shelbyville location. We just needed to find flat land that was for sale. Along with wider halls and doorways, the contractors often raise the electrical outlets and lower windows and light switches for those using wheelchairs. Tieffel has been fitted for prosthetics as well as a wheelchair. On a day-to-day basis, life is a struggle, but he powers through each step, Brown said. I always say, (Hes) a guy with no legs that can run circles around everybodys excuses. HFOT has built four other homes in Illinois with the help of local contractors. Along with the kickoff, the organization will host two other events for the Tieffel family: a volunteer day, to provide landscaping for the home, and a key day, when the family moves in. Although Tieffel was injured in 2007, the process of building a home, while addressing the veterans needs, takes time. But its getting these guys and gals to understand, although they dont like it, that they are special, Ivey said. They are special because they volunteered to join the military. They got hurt and persevered through it. The agency has studied the impact of providing mortgage-free homes adapted for the individual veterans. For example, the employment rate for veterans increases by 123% after receiving the HFOT home. For the spouse, the increase jumps to 273%. This aint charity work, Ivey said. This is repaying a debt. These guys and gals have sacrificed so much. According to Ivey, many of the recent HFOT applications are from veterans who served around the same time Tieffel did. They were sucking it up, he said. But now that theyre 15 years older, its harder now than it was in their 20s. Its really going to be tough in their 70s and 80s. Sara Miller, Tieffels sister, has witnessed the struggles associated with her brothers injuries. He does suffer with a lot of pain, she said. So this will allow him some stress-free commodities. In the past, Miller, 40, was the host for the holiday gatherings. It just fell on me, she said. But now she is ready to pass the torch to her brother. So Im very excited about that, Miller said. That takes a little bit off of me too, I guess. Photos: Athens 39, Shelbyville 6 Announcements Piedmont Financial Holding Company, the parent company of Piedmont Federal Savings Bank, has announced the receipt of all of the requisite regulatory approvals from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to complete the acquisition of Wake Forest Bancshares (OTC Pink: WAKE) and the related merger of Wake Forest Federal Savings and Loan Association into Piedmont Federal. The transaction remains subject to the approval of Wake Forest Bancshares shareholders and the satisfaction of the closing conditions to the merger. Wake Forest Bancshares shareholders are expected to vote on the transaction at a special meeting of shareholders to be held on Dec. 15. The transaction is currently expected to close early in the first quarter of 2024. * * * * Wake Forest University ranks third among doctoral U.S. colleges and universities in the percentage of students studying abroad, according to the Open Doors 2023 report published by the Institute of International Education. Based on IIEs methodology, 72% of Wake Forest undergraduates received credit for study abroad in the 2021-2022 academic year and summer 2022. The Open Doors 2023 Report shows that during the 2021/2022 academic year, U.S. study abroad rebounded to more than half of pre-pandemic levels, with 188,753 students pursuing opportunities abroad for academic credit. The U.S. study abroad total reflects the 2021/22 academic year when travel and study abroad programming were still affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially during the fall and winter. The rebound signals a critical turning point in students ability to pursue in-person experiences abroad safely. This years report also notes a 12% increase in international students coming to the U.S. The number marks a near-return to pre-pandemic levels and the fastest growth rate in more than 40 years. This year, as part of International Education Week, Wake Forests Center for Immigration & Support hosted its first Scholar Symposium where international scholars shared their research with the University community. International Education Week, Nov. 13-17, is an opportunity to celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange across the U.S. and worldwide. This joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education promotes programs that prepare Americans for a global environment. * * * * Lowes Foods celebrated on Nov. 16 the grand reopenings of its stores located on Robinhood Road in Winston-Salem and off Shallowford Road in Lewisville. The Robinhood Road store will expand its Poppy Go Lucky Original that features a variety of fresh instore made popcorn. Flavors include the classic Butter Me Up, Lets Get Cheesy and the popular All Mixed Up variety popcorn. In addition to Poppy Go Lucky, Lowes Foods has expanded the stores Breadcrumb Original featuring fresh-baked artisanal breads that are hand-crafted, all natural and have no preservatives and has added a full service Sammys deli sandwich area. In Lewisville, Lowes Foods has added Smokehouse, which offers a daily rotation of wood-smoked meats including beef, pork, chicken, and salmon using a variety of woods to infuse flavor. Smokehouse items are available ready to eat or to take home and heat. In addition, the Lewisville store has expanded to include a larger Cakery, with square cakes in all sizes that are assembled and topped with icing made fresh in-store with real cream and real butter and a bigger assortment of bread in the Bread Crumb. Awards Childrens Home Society of NC received several marketing communications awards. The MarCom Awards honor excellence in marketing and communications while recognizing the creativity, hard work and generosity of industry professionals. Awards include: Platinum Its Worth It Foster Family commercial Platinum Its Worth It Foster Family campaign Gold Combatting the Shortage: Foster Family Recruitment campaign Honorable Mention The Foster Care Education Video Series Additionally, The Institute for Family, an initiative of Childrens Home Society, won a gold award for their Seen Out Loud podcast. With approximately 11,000 children in foster care in the state, and 450+ aging out each year, the society works to promote the right of every child to a permanent, safe and loving family. For information, call 800-632-1400 or visit www.chsnc.org. * * * * Six distinguished North Carolinians were presented the North Carolina Award, the states highest honor, by Governor Roy Cooper at a Nov. 9 ceremony at the North Carolina Museum of Art. The award recognizes significant lifetime achievements in the areas of fine arts, literature, public service and science. The 2023 honorees are Honorable David Price, Honorable G.K. Butterfield and Fred A. Whitfield, all for public service, Marsha White Warren for literature, Patrick Dougherty for fine arts and Dr. Mandy K. Cohen for science. For information, please visit www.dncr.nc.gov/NCawards. The awards are administered by the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. * * * * Attorney Donald R. Vaughan recently received the Greensboro Bar Associations Distinguished Service Award. Vaughan is a Greensboro native, Eagle Scout and Wake Forest University alumnus. Vaughans private law practice over the last several decades has afforded him opportunities to help others, whether in the halls of traffic court or the cells of prisons, where he has devoted time in post-conviction clemency matters. Vaughan is an adjunct professor at Wake Forest and Elon Law Schools. * * * * Piedmont Environmental Alliance awarded its Green Business of the Year Award to Second Harvest Food Bank Northwest NC. The nonprofit is a member of PEAs Green Business Network. They offer community-based solutions to food insecurity and food waste and divert tons of food and household waste from landfills every day. Some of the actions Second Harvest has taken to green their food bank include: Collaborations with local farmers to expand food waste diversion efforts. In-office composting with the use of compostable service ware, in partnership with Gallins Family Farm. Working closely with PEA to pursue projects like rooftop solar energy production, rainwater collection, and electric vehicle charging stations at their new Whitaker Park headquarters in Winston-Salem. Grants Six local parks and recreation projects across the state will receive grants totaling nearly $1.9 million through the N.C. Parks and Recreation Trust Fund, the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation has announced. The N.C. Parks and Recreation Authority selected the recipients Nov. 3. Local projects include: Double Bluff Recreation Area, $500,000; The Park at Seven Devils, $250,000; and London Park, $61,000. Photo: File photo/Western Producer. The livestock industry wants hours-of-work rules for truck drivers to take into account 'unforeseen circumstances.' The Canadian livestock sector wants flexibility in the enforcement of truck driver hours-of-work rules to account for unforeseen circumstances. Animal transporters said they dont want to be fined for taking animal welfare into consideration if they are unexpectedly delayed and exceed the maximum 13 hours of truck operation per day. However, Transport Canada said the regulations already include flexibility and transporters should apply for an exemption instead. Melanie Vanstone, director general of multi-modal and road safety programs at Transport Canada, said officials have met with the industry since the requirements for electronic logging devices (ELDS) were first proposed in December 2017. The final regulations requiring ELDs instead of paper log books came into force in June 2021 but enforcement measures werent applied until January 2023. She told the standing agriculture committee that truckers hours of work havent changed since 2007. The only change was that these hours must now be tracked electronically, which means they are less susceptible to errors or deliberate falsification, she said. Vanstone said the regulations, which provincial authorities enforce, allow exemptions for those who work within 160 kilometres of their home terminal, the ability to defer up to two hours of daily off-duty time and the ability to increase driving time by up to two hours in adverse conditions. She said an exception can be granted if its found to be in the public interest and doesnt affect motor carrier safety. But livestock industry representatives said they are concerned about the safety of their live cargo. They said ideally Canada would harmonize regulations with the United States, which allows unlimited hours for livestock haulers within a 150-air-mile, or about 270 kilometres, of the origin or destination of their load. Canadian Pork Council chair Rene Roy said Transport Canada should update its guidance to address animal welfare. We are not seeking an exemption from hours of service requirements or from ELDs, he said. Instead, we are asking for flexibility in enforcement in unforeseen circumstances, and communication of this flexibility. Cathy Jo Noble from the National Cattle Feeders Association said drivers nearing the end of their hours sometimes have to decide whether to adhere to the hours-of-work requirements or deliver their loads. They plan their routes to include a time buffer but unforeseen circumstances, such as weather, a closed road because of an accident or a border delay, can affect that plan. She said the guidance should allow an extension in an emergency. Noble said Transport Canada asked for data that isnt available, including the number of additional hours that would be required and how often it would happen. We cannot predict unforeseen delays until they happen, she said. What we do have are numerous first-hand examples of how regulations are unworkable for livestock transporters and the animals in their care. Beef Farmers of Ontario president Jack Chaffe said the feed, water and rest requirement that means loads have to stop at Thunder Bay could be compromised if a driver is delayed. There are no facilities along the route and no place to pull over. David Fehr, chief financial officer at Van Raay Paskal Feeders in Alberta, said the company imports feeders from throughout the Pacific Northwest in the U.S. Drivers have to deal with multiple organizations and authorities and could encounter unforeseen delays anywhere. Loads from Iowa, for example, are planned a week in advance with veterinarians on both sides of the border, sorting facilities and drivers, but he said sometimes things happen. Even within loading yards, the ELDs start to record time at a speed of three m.p.h., he said. Also, loads often travel as a group and the first driver loaded may be using up time while waiting for the others. The driver has to choose what hes going to take care of and at the end of the day he has a responsibility to care for the animals and thats what his biggest priority is going to be, said Fehr. The committee heard that there are concerns about drivers having to stop in extremely hot weather, when ventilation through the truck would not be available. Susan Fitzgerald from the Canadian Livestock Transporters Alliance said this applies to bees, too. Plus, with bees, there is the concern of bee escapes when stationary, which could become a human safety concern. She said live-haul drivers cannot simply pull into a rest area or go off-duty when they reach the maximum hours and said the U.S. regulations recognize the unique aspects of transporting live animals and that provides the needed flexibility. She and Noble both said the industry wants guidance because decisions about enforcement should not be left to individual officers. Thus far Transport Canada officials have not indicated to us that they would move forward with this reasonable request, said Fitzgerald. Transport Canadas Vanstone said the regulations are part of the national safety code maintained by the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators. The CCMTAs compliance and regulatory affairs program committee was scheduled to discuss the issue last week. A Raleigh community bank is taking a decidedly old-school approach as it enters a highly competitive Triad marketplace. Dogwood State Bank, with $1.3 billion in total assets, has seven branches in North Carolina one each in Charlotte, Fayetteville, Greenville, Morehead City, Raleigh, Sanford and Wilmington. There are plans to enter Charleston and Greenville, S.C. as well. Dogwood States primary focus is commercial banking, serving businesses and their employees. We are active in the Triad markets now and looking for temporary space shortly, said Greg Heaton, the banks Triad region president. We feel there is a void of local decision-making. ... Our most effective strategy is meeting customers where they are while providing them the ability to work with us where we are. Heaton said Dogwoods expansion strategy centers on always going into a new market people-first, hiring the exact right bankers for what we want to do. Dogwoods entry will be led by Justin Combs in Winston-Salem and Grant Cook in Greensboro, both veterans of the local market. Combs counts on his resume working for Southern Community Financial Corp., NewBridge Bancorp and Community One Bank all of which have been bought by out-of-state regional banks. Cook, meanwhile, is a veteran of BB&T Corp. and Truist Financial Corp. before joining Southern First Bank of Greenville, S.C. Combs and Cook have been hired in the past month, Heaton said. We take a few months to build up a critical book of business and then usually follow with at least one branch for each new market, Heaton explained. Dogwood is the 21st bank serving the five-county Winston-Salem metro area as well as the 26th serving the three-county Greensboro-High Point metro. What makes the Triad so competitive from a financial services perspective is that two of the four national banks Bank of America Corp. and Wells Fargo & Co. already have a major presence here as well as No. 1 JPMorgan Chase & Co. dipping its toes in Greensboro. There are several super-regional banks (Truist Financial Corp. and PNC Financial Services Group), several growing regional banks (First Citizens Bancshares, Pinnacle Financial Partners and First Horizon Corp.) and a number of community banks. Theres also the presence of the nations second-largest credit union in State Employees Credit Union. Many of out-of-state banks have struggled to grow North Carolina market share beyond what they spent hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars to acquire in a typical big-splash transaction. Still, CFRA analyst Alexander Yokum said North Carolina is a highly desirable banking market despite so many competitors. In recent months, US Bancorp, TD Bank Group and Fifth Third Bancorp have been aggressively adding branches in the Charlotte and Triangle markets although the three have shown no interest in the Triad to date. Retired UNC-Charlotte finance professor Tony Plath said the soaring economic growth in Charlotte and the Triangle, coupled with steady growth in the Triad, is too good of an opportunity for banks to pass up. Were simply running out of banks here in North Carolina in the mad rush to consolidate these things into bigger, and not-necessarily-better, regional franchises, Plath said. Heaton said Dogwood has invested in providing customers with online and mobile banking services thats on par with larger competitors. North Carolina has a great history of homegrown banks some local, some statewide that reflect the values of North Carolinians, Heaton said. Weve either worked for those banks or admired those banks. A number of them have gone away since 2012, but there remains a customer base who likes to do business with North Carolina bankers, North Carolina decision-makers. Heaton said that Dogwood management, led by chief executive Steve Jones, has felt there was a hole in the statewide market created when the large community banks were bought by out-of-state banks. Jones is a former Yadkin Financial Corp. executive. Heaton continued: They want a banker who is going to be at their site at least once a quarter, checking in on how business is going, what we can do to assist and how their business is affecting their personal and financial life. Heaton stressed that Im not trying to criticize other banks, but thats hard to do if youre based somewhere else. We dont go into a market because of geography, but because we feel there is a market out there for us that has been proven out in other markets weve entered. Tired of Congress repeated partisan standoffs every time a big fiscal deadline approaches, like this weeks? Weary of the breathless cable coverage of looming government shutdowns or debt defaults, knowing the partisans (almost) always come to some 11th-hour compromise, as they did Tuesday? Or have you tuned out by now? Heres why you should pay attention: These senseless, self-induced crises have cost us taxpayers big bucks in higher interest on U.S debt, even when Congress manages to avert a government stoppage or a default. On top of that, theyve taken an incalculable toll on the publics faith in governance. And know that this irresponsibility is not a both-sides issue. Democrats and Republicans are not equally culpable. Going back more than a quarter century, it has been Republicans who have provoked the showdowns, setting conditions that couldnt become law on their own both for funding the government and raising the nations debt limit, so the Treasury can keep borrowing to pay the bills. In fact, Republicans have made budget brinkmanship routine when a Democrat is in the White House, that is. They were quietly complicit as the federal debt grew by nearly $8 trillion during the Trump administration. The serial fiscal dramas have real consequences. The latest came Friday, when Moodys Investors Service announced that it had changed its outlook for U.S. government debt to negative from stable, partly because of continued political polarization. The firms statement did not single out Republicans explicitly. Yet Moodys gave four examples: Renewed debt limit brinkmanship, the first ouster of a House Speaker in U.S. history, prolonged inability of Congress to select a new House Speaker, and increased threats of another partial government shutdown. Those examples only describe the House Republican majority. On Tuesday the latest shutdown threat was lifted for now. The Houses novice speaker, Mike Johnson of Louisiana turned to Democrats for enough votes to pass a stopgap funding bill that simply extends the current spending levels, buying Congress time to February to finally reach an agreement for this fiscal year. So the saga isnt over yet. Though Moodys lowered its outlook for U.S. debt, it did maintain the nations triple-A credit rating, the highest possible. If Congress makes a hash of the funding process yet again in the new year, Moodys is poised to knock that down as well. That, in turn, could provoke the countrys creditors, who buy Treasury bills and notes, to demand that the government pay them higher interest, which only adds to the annual deficit. Two ratings firms have already downgraded U.S. credit from AAA to AA+. Fitch Ratings did it in August, soon after House Republicans refused to raise the debt limit without unrealistically deep spending cuts. The last-minute debt deal that since-ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy negotiated with President Biden enraged far-right Republicans and was the beginning of his end. Fitchs analysis pointed to a steady deterioration in standards of governance over the past two decades. Again, Fitch didnt cite Republicans specifically, but the timeline makes clear who it faulted. Fitch had warned months earlier that debt ceiling brinkmanship and the continued questioning of the 2020 presidential election were worrisome signs. When it finally lowered the credit rating, Fitch reportedly told Biden administration officials that the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection was a factor. According to The Associated Press, Fitch had concluded that the governments stability deteriorated from 2018 to 2021, then increased once Biden succeeded Trump. But then Republicans took over the House this year. Republicans once claimed the descriptor fiscal conservatives. But over decades of covering budget policy, Ive watched them squander that brand. Insisting on excessive spending cuts to reduce deficits while opposing any tax increases, threatening shutdowns and near-defaults those arent the tactics of fiscal conservatives. By now were sick and tired of the brinksmanship. If only Republicans were, too. Demeter is a common name in the grain trade. For example, Indiana-centered Demeter LP was a family-owned, regional grain business for more than 50 years before its purchase by Wisconsin-based DeLong Co. in 2019. Another Demeter-themed company, Demeter Grains, currently exports animal feeds, grains and pulses for human consumption from Perth, Western Australia, to most of east Asia and the American West Coast. Its not a coincidence that these companies there are several more share the name. Revealingly, Demeter is the Greek goddess of agriculture, grain and bread who, mythology maintains, sustained mankind with the earths rich bounty. She is depicted as a mature woman bearing a sheaf of wheat or a cornucopia and a torch Its the cornucopia that Americans have made their centerpiece at todays Thanksgiving celebrations. We werent the first. The ancient Greeks filled their cornucopia a goats horn they called the horn of plenty with flowers, fruit, and corn, notes my 1937 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary. The Oxfordians, however, were doing some mythmaking of their own with that explanation. There was no corn in ancient Greece nor, in fact, in all of Europe until Christopher Columbus carried it back from Mexico in 1493. There were no cornucopias (or goat horns either) at the Thanksgiving dinners on the southern Illinois dairy farm of my youth. In fact, I dont clearly remember more than one or two Thanksgivings on the farm while growing up. My mother, an excellent cook, let other relatives do that holiday's hosting while she did that holidays visiting. And who could blame her? A day of true thanksgiving to her was any day that didnt put her in the kitchen for most of it while making meal after meal for a husband, six children, and Dads ever-present Uncle Honey. I caught on early to Moms go-to-Grandmas Thanksgiving pattern and usually volunteered to remain home so my father or one of my older brothers wasnt forced to leave the feast mid-afternoon to do the evening milking. It wasnt a sacrifice; I sought it out for several reasons. First, I was a free bird from late morning until our 4 p.m. milking time every Thanksgiving. That thought alone was sweeter than Grandmas pecan pie because it held adventure-filled possibilities like hiking to the woods along the river, eating a lunch of thick, just-made chocolate pudding, or lighting up one of Dads unfiltered Camels for a dizzying puff or two. Then there was the money. I was paid 50 cents an hour for farmwork and I fought my older brothers to get as many hours a week as they conceded. The small earnings were vital to finance my modest independence. They paid for the clothes I wanted to wear, the movies I wanted to see, and the expected $1-per-week church donation my parents wanted to see. Only much later did I learn that those days were really about love. I loved being on the farm. I loved being depended upon by my father. I loved being alone anywhere any day, whether it was cultivating soybeans at 2 miles an hour on a hot summer afternoon or milking cows so my family could have an enjoyable, unpressured afternoon and evening off the farm some winter holiday. Being alone also gave me permission to daydream, and later, believe that those dreams werent daydreams but real possibilities and reachable hopes. And I really loved being with Howard, the quiet, kind herdsman whom I had been around since my grandfather had hired him when I was a small boy. Milking with Howard any day meant three hours of pipe tobacco smoke and long, often-interrupted stories about his growing up in the Mississippi River bottoms 50 years earlier. Maybe I was too naive or too self-important to either feel or see that love back then but it was there. And I suspect its still there and I wouldnt need to be paid 50 cents an hour to relive another day of it again. The next pandemic could strike crops, not people The next pandemic could strike crops, not people Not all microbes are bad, and limiting or eliminating them can negatively impact biodiversity Intercropping may provide a means of making large-scale agriculture more biodiverse Ada Robinson will be remembered by many for her kind heart and welcoming smile. Her students will think of the tight hugs she gave and the way she still remembered their names years later. Her son and daughter will remember the attentive and loving mother she was, the late nights she spent creating lesson plans at the kitchen table and the many things she taught them about life. Others will remember Robinson for her dedication to Lincoln, the loyalty she had for a community she loved so deeply. Students at Robinson Elementary School will forever know her name and the legacy she left behind. Robinson was a beloved teacher for more than 30 years at Clinton Elementary School, the namesake for Lincolns newest elementary school and an advocate for children in underserved communities. She died on Monday at the age of 84. Services for Robinson will be 10 a.m. Dec. 1 at Christ Lincoln Church, 4325 Sumner St. A viewing will take place the evening prior from 4-8 p.m. at Roper and Sons Funeral Home. Originally from Hastings, Robinson had 13 siblings. She moved to Lincoln to attend the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a dream of becoming an educator. During college, she was a student teacher at Clinton Elementary and later became a paraprofessional there. In 1974, she was offered a full-time teaching position at Clinton, a job she would keep until retirement. Even early in her career, Robinson stood out. She treated every single student who came into her classroom like they were her own children. It was more than just a job to her, and that was clear to those around her, her daughter, Tami Robinson Soper, said. Robinson set out to spend her life giving back to the community, which Robinson Soper believes she achieved. She learned from her parents, like many of us do and like my brother and I certainly did from her, that you should leave a place better than you found it, Robinson Soper said. I truly believe that she did that. And many in Lincoln would likely agree. Robinson retired from Clinton in 2003, but she continued to work as a substitute teacher for several years only taking jobs at Title I schools and tutored several children in her neighborhood. She continued to do so until around 2016 when symptoms of dementia began to appear and she moved into Tabitha's GracePointe assisted-living center in Lincoln. However, her legacy goes beyond the vast work she did in Lincoln Public Schools. Robinson was also the first Black woman to sit on the board for Cedars, where she assisted in securing the funding for the Northridge Early Childhood Development Center. She was involved in WICS Home for Girls and the Malone Center and loved to volunteer. We're very proud of the legacy that she has left, Robinson Soper said. We're proud of the person that she was, the kind of human that she was. Robinsons hand of love extended as far as she could reach, her son, Mario Robinson, said. The role his mother played in the lives of people across Lincoln became clear to him when his mothers name was chosen for the elementary school, which opened in 2022. A downright honor, he said. Now, its even more evident, as the family has received an even bigger outpouring of love and support at the news of her death this past week from the many people whose lives their mother touched. Past students, colleagues and people from throughout the community have reached out to him and Robinson Soper, each with their own stories of Robinson to tell. It's unreal the impact that she had with so many people, Mario Robinson said. Job well done, Mom. Photos: Tour Robinson Elementary one of Lincoln's newest schools Thousands of visitors took to the Lancaster County Event Center this weekend to see major LEGO builds up close and personal at LEGO Brick Days Fan Expo, a weekend-long event designed to bring hobbyists, vendors and LEGO fans together. Daniel Schmidt, owner of Hobbytown USA in Lincoln, said every builder at the expo had an original design, nothing entirely from a booklet or set. The event features members of LEGO User Groups, including Lincoln and Omaha LEGO User Group (LOLUG). "I'm inspired by all the creativity that's here," Schmidt said. "Brick Days is really the opportunity to see all the cool stuff that you can do with LEGO." Schmidt and LOLUG came together to host Brick Days back in 2017. Since then, the event has grown. This is the first year that the Iowa LUG has its own separate booth, and one of its biggest pieces is a recreation Aja Trier's Calvin and Hobbes Starry Night, featuring roughly 38,000 LEGO pieces. The builders, husband and wife Ben and Tigon Woline, are from Ames, Iowa. The couple built the piece out of almost 150 of the 16x16-piece art LEGO plates. "We have a place in our house just begging for a large piece of art," Tigon Woline said. "We were deciding whether we should buy something or not when we both said, 'We should totally just make it.'" Tigon Wilone said the event gives her the opportunity to promote LEGO as a hobby for all ages. While she shows off the three months of hard work that she and her husband spent on the art piece, Ben Wilone works in the team of five at the Great Ball Contraption. The GBC is one of the hot spots of the expo, a feat of teamwork and engineering. Each builder crafted specific modules of the contraption that moves a ball from one end to the other in a loop. Denise Wally, a LOLUG member, said the GBC groups are slowly growing from the three members it started with six years ago. Most of the work, Wally said, is keeping up with any malfunctions in the machines. Since it's a collaborative effort, running the GBC takes teamwork and patience to keep the builds running smoothly. "It is great, but it can be really frustrating," Wally said. "But for the most part, we're here and it's a labor of love watching it, because everybody loves it." And she's not wrong. While the team takes their fifteen-minute break before the balls drop at the top of the hour, crowds begin to form and wait for the countdown led by Ben Wilone. Wally said the most inspiring change she's seen in the local LEGO community is the increase in girls and women in the groups. One of the newest builders is Kasey Alberts, a 10-year-old who has been building LEGO for over half of her life. Her father, Jason Alberts, said he loves the STEM side of the builds. Kasey Alberts said traveling to different LEGO shows is her favorite part of the community. This is the father-daughter team's first show. This year's expo is far from the first time Dawn Sloboda's work has been on display. Her massive sunflower LEGO art piece, "Here Comes the Sun," was featured as a commissioned piece for The Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. A patch on her denim vest read 'As Seen on TV,' referencing her run as a contestant on the second season of LEGO Masters. She and her brother, Jack Schwarz, were a team on the show. Sloboda said that there's an instant bond between LEGO builders, not just from her season but past builders and builders around the world. Building something with motors was the biggest challenge for them, learning from YouTube videos and practicing on train sets bought for them by family. "You meet, in person, people you've seen on YouTube or TikTok or Instagram. It's a family now, and that's no joke," Sloboda said. "People say the LEGO family, and this is like an immediate family." Builds ranged from a replica model of a Van Halen rock concert, complete with lights and sound, to a replica of the city of Lincoln featuring iconic spots like Iron Horse Park, Lazlo's Brewery and Grill and the Joyo Theater. Young or old, builders or admirers, the LEGO Brick Days Fan Expo is a unique experience for LEGO fans to make connections, share tips and tricks and show off their dedication to the craft. If You Go What: LEGO Brick Days Fan Expo When: Sunday, 10 a.m.-4p.m. Where: Lancaster Event Center Expo Hall, 4100 N. 84th Street, Lincoln, NE Extra Info: Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 3-8. Children under three get in free. Tickets can be purchased at the door or ahead of time at brickdays.com Top Journal Star photos for November 2023 A 16-year-old Omaha boy allegedly beaten and stabbed by a then-15-year-old boy last week has died, according to a GoFundMe posted Thursday to raise money for his funeral expenses. Clayton McCue died as a result of injuries he sustained after being beaten and stabbed Nov. 8, according to the GoFundMe. Christopher DeLong Jr., who turned 16 on Friday, was initially charged as an adult with first-degree assault and use of a weapon to commit a felony. On Friday, prosecutors amended the assault charge to second-degree murder, alleging that DeLong killed McCue intentionally but without premeditation. He is scheduled to appear in court on the updated charge Monday. A police report said officers were dispatched to the parking lot of Living Faith United Methodist Church near 180th and Q Streets shortly before 8:45 p.m. Nov. 8. They found McCue with a stab wound to the head, and multiple witnesses at the scene identified DeLong as the suspect. DeLong was taken into custody the same night, the report said. DeLong was on juvenile probation at the time of the alleged stabbing, which he had been placed on after he was convicted of criminal mischief in September. On Nov. 7, the day before the stabbing, prosecutors filed a misdemeanor third-degree assault charge in Juvenile Court against DeLong for an alleged unrelated assault from October. In February, a Douglas County judge granted a domestic violence protection order request against DeLong filed by the father of a 15-year-old girl whom DeLong had dated. The petition outlines multiple instances in which DeLong allegedly displayed aggressive and controlling behavior toward the girl while at school to the point where teachers had to intervene. A man being pursued by a deputy from the Saunders County Sheriffs Office died after his car crashed into a tree in Ashland early Sunday, the sheriffs office said. Tyler Persons, 29, of Ashland, was killed when the 2004 Chevy Malibu he was driving left the road and struck a tree at about 2:35 a.m. Sunday, according to a sheriffs office news release. Shortly before the crash, a sheriffs deputy alerted dispatchers that they were pursuing the Malibu, which was headed northbound on 16th Street in Ashland. About a minute later, the deputy reported the crash and called in Ashland Fire and Rescue, which declared Persons dead on the scene. Persons had not been wearing a seat belt, the release stated. The Nebraska State Patrol will investigate the crash because it happened during a pursuit. A grand jury investigation also will be convened, according to the release. Top Journal Star photos for November 2023 At 14 years old, she was abducted at knifepoint from a church parking lot in Omaha, thrown into a van, assaulted, held for ransom and then left to die as an ice storm made its way to the city. Debora Harding survived and was able to identify her attacker to police. After returning home, her parents expected her to simply move on as denial became the family coping strategy. Decades later, facing lingering PTSD symptoms, Harding visited her childhood attacker face-to-face in prison and began to reconsider his story. Thus began her quest for the truth that threatened the lie at the heart of her family. In 2020, she published her memoir, Dancing with the Octopus, which untangles her kidnapping and escape while offering an intimate portrait of her familys disintegration in the 1970s Midwest. The book is a groundbreaking narrative of reckoning, recovery and the inexhaustible strength it takes to survive, according to a Nebraska Library Commission news release. Dancing with the Octopus: A Memoir is also One Book One Nebraskas 2024 selection. The program, sponsored by the Nebraska Center for the Book, encourages Nebraskans to read and discuss one book each year. Next year will be One Book One Nebraskas 20th anniversary. The memoir is selected from a list of titles by Nebraska authors or that have a Nebraska theme or setting. Libraries across the state will partner with literary and cultural organizations to plan book discussions, activities and events to encourage Nebraskans to read and discuss the book. Support materials for local reading and discussion activities will be available after Jan. 1. Updates and activity listings will be posted on the One Book One Nebraska Facebook page. Lincoln City Libraries' most popular books of 2022 1. The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles 2. Sparks Like Stars by Nadia Hashimi 3. Sparring Partners by John Grisham 4. The 6:20 Man by David Baldacci 5. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens 6. Run, Rose, Run by Dolly Parton and James Patterson 7. The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand 8. Dream Town by David Baldacci 9. Shattered by James Patterson 10. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days by Jeff Kinney RACINE Ahead of Thanksgiving and Black Friday, the U.S. Small Business Administration is encouraging shoppers to support their local communities by shopping and dining at small businesses. Held the day after Black Friday, Nov. 25 will mark the 14th annual Small Business Saturday. During a shopping and dining tour Friday, members from SBA, the City of Racine and the Wisconsin Womens Business Initiative Corporation highlighted several local businesses in the downtown and uptown areas of Racine. Featured businesses included BePlush, Della Mar Chris Bakery, SheaBroJaes, 2SwiftSuits, Divine Melanin Beauty Supply, Rooted, Esperanza Coffee Collective and Dragon Pit Barbecue. According to Heather Lux, southeast regional director at WWBIC, many of the business owners received an SBA loan through WWBIC. The SBA has increased the number of loans granted in the region by 370% during the last two years, including a 70% increase to women-founded businesses, a 67% increase in loans to Black-owned businesses and an increase in loans of about a third to Hispanic-owned businesses, according to Geri Sanchez Aglipay, SBA Great Lakes regional administrator. Eric Ness, SBA Wisconsin district director, highlighted the technical assistance WWBIC offers. Even if business owners say, I know what Im doing, there might be three or four things they dont know, he said. It is great to have a resource where business owners can talk to somebody. They also host classes, so not only will you learn from the experts, but you can also learn from other people going into new business ventures as well. The tour kicked off at BePlush at 300 Main St., which also houses Della Mar Chris Bakery and SheaBroJaes. Yolanda Coleman, owner of BePlush, received 2023s SBA Wisconsin Women in Business Champion award. Stop No. 2 was 2SwiftSuits, 411 Main St., which is owned by Eric Dogans, owner of 2SwiftSuits. It doesnt make sense for (Racine) to have a population of about 70,000 people and for us not to have a quality mens clothing store, he said. That was the dream and the goal to bring that here and to bring those dollars here. The last stop in downtown was at Divine Melanin Beauty Supply, 422 Main St. A woman-founded business, Divine Melanin Beauty Supply opened in February 2023. While the downtown portion of the tour took place on foot, attendees boarded RYDE Racines electric buses for the second half of the tour, commuting to uptown Racine and back. While in uptown Racine, the tour stopped at Rooted, a plant store at 1505 Washington Ave. Rooted co-owners Kristina Campbell and Joanna Luebke set their roots in the uptown neighborhood of Racine in August 2021. Three weeks ago, Campbell and Luebke moved from their original 1436 Washington Ave. location to 1505 Washington Ave., right across the street. For a quick pick-me-up, the tour group walked up to the drive-thru of Esperanza Coffee Collective. The shop is The Branch at 1501, at 1501 Washington Ave., an event space and commercial kitchen. The shop is owned by Sergio Molina. The coffee comes directly from their familys coffee farms in Acatenango, Guatemala. The beans are roasted locally by Anodyne Coffee Roasting Company in Milwaukee. The last stop on the tour was Dragon Pit Barbecue. Emerson Holliday opened the restaurant in 2020, during the pandemic. He was awarded the 2023 Greater Racine BBQ Champion. Last years Small Business Saturday drove an estimated $17.9 billion based on projections from U.S. consumer-reported spending at independent retailers and restaurants on the day, according to a study conducted by American Express, the company that started Small Business Saturday in 2010. Photo: Paul McGrath / North Shore News. North Vancouver MLA Bowinn Ma and daughter Azalea, born Nov. 15. Bowinn Ma and Baby photo Paul McGrath MLA Bowinn Ma with her baby girl Azalea born November 15th. If her entrance into the world is any indication, baby Azalea may have inherited a dose of her cabinet minister mothers approach to getting things done. Azalea, the newborn daughter of North Vancouver-Lonsdale MLA and Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness Bowinn Ma, made her entrance as a new constituent punctually at 9 a.m. on her due date Wednesday morning at Lions Gate Hospital. Ma and her husband arrived at the hospital just seven hours earlier and we werent a moment too soon or too late, she said. Things escalated pretty quickly for me. Thank goodness for epidurals. Ma added she has nothing but praise for the staff at Lions Gate Hospital. Mother and baby are now back home recovering and getting to know each other while Ma takes a six-week break from her duties as a cabinet minister and MLA. Meet little Azalea, born 7 lbs 3 oz on November 15, 2023 at 09:01 by the amazing team at Lions Gate Hospital. Delivered on time and on budget. ?? pic.twitter.com/RnnPFLlPwb Bowinn Ma (@BowinnMa) November 15, 2023 Ma acknowledged that having a baby while in elected office has presented some unique circumstances in addition to those that most working mothers face. While most couples would likely tell family and close friends first about their pregnancy news, in Mas case, B.C. Premier David Eby was the first to know, because as a minister we needed to be transparent about what the next several months would be for me, said Ma. Theres a lot that can happen with a pregnancy that cant be planned for. Ma said she did make up a plan for how she would handle both the summer wildfire season and debate on legislation while also being mindful of her own pregnancy milestones. Political colleagues were amused, she said, warning her that babies tend to follow their own calendars. For the most part, her pregnancy was straightforward, said Ma until the last six weeks when walking became difficult. During committee stage debates in Victoria, it would take her an entire 15-minute break to walk to the washroom and back, she said. After that, she was able to continue participating in debates online something that only became possible after the COVID-19 pandemic. Ma said along with a very supportive husband, shes been fortunate to have support from colleagues of all political stripes in recognizing the democratic value of having elected representatives from all walks of life and different family circumstances. Ma said there was only one instance when a community leader suggested she should resign her cabinet post early, ahead of the summers wildfire season. They said everyone would be more comfortable if I gave up my post early on. Ma said she rejected that. She added shes also faced criticism from people on social media over her plan to go back to work in the new year. I'll take "questions men don't get asked" for $400, Alex. https://t.co/ZU6Z3ptZ4q Bowinn Ma (@BowinnMa) November 11, 2023 Timing a pregnancy is difficult for working women at the best of times, said Ma, 38. The nature of a four-year term means theres no real way for an MLA to tap in someone else to represent your community during an extended absence, she said. You have a few options, and they all come with their share of criticisms. Its a challenging thing to balance. Ma is the third sitting B.C. cabinet minister to give birth while in office, and the 14th to do so in Canada, according to research done by the legislature library staff. Other women whove had children while holding elected office in B.C. in the past include Linda Reid, Jenny Kwan, Judy Tyabji, Christie Clark and Michelle Mungall. Im able to benefit from a lot of the changes their experiences brought about, said Ma like being able to bring her baby into the chamber in a pinch. The attitudes in the legislature about having children have drastically changed, she said. Having said that, Theres still a lot of room for improvement. Ma said she recognizes how fortunate she is to have the kind of support she does in her work. She added its important for the legislature to accommodate politicians of all family circumstances to better reflect all British Columbians. Ma said she hopes that will continue to extend to all sorts of life circumstances and backgrounds. RACINE Christel Rivera was crowned Miss Racine 2024 on Saturday night at J.I. Case High School. Eleven women competed for the title in front of a sold out crowd of 450 in the Case High School theater. The 11 contestants were Traviance Witherspoon, Avril Beesley, Alahna Conley, Victoria Angotti, Ireland Hinze, Theresa Guardiola, Charlotte Pier, Angeling Gutierrez, Soija Cameron, Claire Schultz and Christel Rivera. Guardiola was first runner-up and Hinze was second runner-up. Close Traviance Witherspoon smiles at the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition. Witherspoon is a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Avril Beesley smiles during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine competition. Beesley is a student at Marquette University. Alahna Conley Conley sings "The Journey," an original song, during the talent portion of the Miss Racine competition. Conley is a senior at J.I Case High School. Victoria Angotti, a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, looks to the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition on Saturday night. Ireland Hinze smiles at the crowd during the eveningwear potion of the Miss Racine competition. Hinze, who placed second runner-up, is a senior at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Theresa Guardiola smiles after she was announced as one of the top three candidates for Miss Racine 2024. Charlotte Pier gets ready to pull a needle as a part of her tumbling and dance routine during the talent part of the Miss Racine competition. Pier is a senior at the R.E.A.L Highschool. Angelina Gutierrez looks to the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine competition. Gutierrez is a student at Gateway Technical College. Soija Cameron smiles to the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine competition Saturday. Cameron is a sophomore at Southern University and A&M College. Claire Schultz performs "Part of Your World" from the Little Mermaid during the talent portion of the Miss Racine competition. Schultz is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. Christel Rivera waves to the crowd after being crowned Miss Racine 2024. Margret Hinze gives her final speech as Miss Racine 2023. Hinze was a top 10 finalist at the Miss Wisconsin competition in June. Traviance Witherspoon, from left, Avril Beesley, Alahna Conley, Victoria Angotti, Ireland Hinze, Theresa Guardiola, Charlotte Pier, Angeling Gutierrez, Soija Cameron, Claire Schultz and Christel Rivera hold hands on stage as they wait for the top three candidates for Miss Racine 2024 to be announced. Margret Hinze, Miss Racine 2023, places the crown on Christel Rivera's head after she was announced as the winner of the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition on Saturday night. The 11 contestants who participated in the Miss Racine Scholarship competition hug after Christel Rivera was crowned this year's winner. Photos from the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition Traviance Witherspoon smiles at the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition. Witherspoon is a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Avril Beesley smiles during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine competition. Beesley is a student at Marquette University. Alahna Conley Conley sings "The Journey," an original song, during the talent portion of the Miss Racine competition. Conley is a senior at J.I Case High School. Victoria Angotti, a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, looks to the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition on Saturday night. Ireland Hinze smiles at the crowd during the eveningwear potion of the Miss Racine competition. Hinze, who placed second runner-up, is a senior at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Theresa Guardiola smiles after she was announced as one of the top three candidates for Miss Racine 2024. Charlotte Pier gets ready to pull a needle as a part of her tumbling and dance routine during the talent part of the Miss Racine competition. Pier is a senior at the R.E.A.L Highschool. Angelina Gutierrez looks to the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine competition. Gutierrez is a student at Gateway Technical College. Soija Cameron smiles to the crowd during the eveningwear portion of the Miss Racine competition Saturday. Cameron is a sophomore at Southern University and A&M College. Claire Schultz performs "Part of Your World" from the Little Mermaid during the talent portion of the Miss Racine competition. Schultz is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. Christel Rivera waves to the crowd after being crowned Miss Racine 2024. Margret Hinze gives her final speech as Miss Racine 2023. Hinze was a top 10 finalist at the Miss Wisconsin competition in June. Traviance Witherspoon, from left, Avril Beesley, Alahna Conley, Victoria Angotti, Ireland Hinze, Theresa Guardiola, Charlotte Pier, Angeling Gutierrez, Soija Cameron, Claire Schultz and Christel Rivera hold hands on stage as they wait for the top three candidates for Miss Racine 2024 to be announced. Margret Hinze, Miss Racine 2023, places the crown on Christel Rivera's head after she was announced as the winner of the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition on Saturday night. The 11 contestants who participated in the Miss Racine Scholarship competition hug after Christel Rivera was crowned this year's winner. Rivera, a student at University of Wisconsin-Parkside, said it felt incredibly surreal when she was announced as the winner of the Miss Racine 2024 Scholarship Competition. I was just thinking about the incredible women that were standing next to me and how much I admired them, she said. Every single candidate has put in so much love and effort into Miss Racine this year. Rivera said in her year as Miss Racine she wants to finalize her Mind and Movement Fundraiser, which will take place this winter at Razor Sharp Fitness. She said the event will be free, and donations will go to the Racine County Food Bank. Alyssa Bohm and Paula Winiarski stepped into leadership roles at the Miss Racine Scholarship Competition organization earlier this year. Bohm and Winiarski are former Miss Racine and Miss Wisconsin title holders. Rivera said Bohm and Winiarski helped keep her on track for the competition. I wake up every morning thinking what can I do for Miss Racine today? Rivera said. Thats the kind of mindset Im going to have this entire year, waking up and knowing that I want to accomplish, even if its a small goal. RACINE Priscilla Marquez gave a letter to students and families at a Mitchell K-8 School open house in August informing them about cellphone use changes during the upcoming school year. Cellphones needed to remain in students lockers during the school day, otherwise they would be confiscated. Marquez, Mitchell K-8 School principal, expected pushback from some parents who wanted to quickly contact their children during school, but she said the overwhelming sentiment was, Its about time. That was encouraging, and Marquez said the policy changes have resulted in fewer students on phones, fewer behavioral issues and better classroom learning and social engagement at Mitchell, 2701 Drexel Ave. At Starbuck Middle School, staff have emphasized enforcement of the buildings cellphone policy since returning to in-person learning after the pandemic. Thats the fight were going to fight, said Ellis Turrentine, Starbuck Middle School principal. We all just felt like it really would help us academically if we could get our kids focused. Starbuck school policy is for students to have phones stored in their lockers or backpacks. If a student has a cellphone out, school staff confiscate it, and students can pick up the phone at the end of the school day. Our kids know now that its not something were going to tolerate, Turrentine said. New cellphone committees Mitchell and Starbuck are two of the Racine Unified schools that will soon have cellphone committees tasked with determining policies on phone use. RUSD is trying to decrease cellphone usage in schools, which can negatively impact student learning and behavior. Last week, RUSD cellphone committee members gave a presentation to the RUSD Board with recommendations about addressing cellphone use at schools, including creating a cellphone committee at every building. The school cellphone committees will begin meeting in January 2024 and are expected to determine school policies by March for the 2024-25 school year. April to June will involve educating students, teachers and families on the new policies, which will be enforced at the start of the 2024-25 school year. The committees will make school policy that will be enforced in all classrooms. K-8 schools might have different guidelines for elementary schoolers and middle schoolers. School policies will be reviewed and adjusted as needed. Stacy Tapp, RUSD chief of communication and engagement, said all RUSD schools will develop a committee and create a plan, but the district will prioritize middle school and high schools first and then elementary schools. At Mitchell, Marquez said cellphone use is almost entirely a middle school issue, mainly among seventh and eighth graders. She estimated that 80-85% of Mitchell middle school students have a cellphone. Turrentine, an RUSD cellphone committee member, estimated that 80% of students have a cellphone at Starbuck Middle School, 1516 Ohio St. A 2019 Pew Research Center study found that 95% of Americans ages 13-17 have access to a smartphone, with 45% saying they are almost constantly using the internet. Mitchell, Starbuck policies At the end of last school year, Mitchell staff said cellphone usage was a major problem, so changes began this school year. In addition to students, Marquez said it is important for Mitchell staff to not be on their phones during the school day. I practice what I preach, Marquez said. I feel we have to be role models, and if we expect the kids not to have them, then we shouldnt either. Mitchell had an assembly on the first day of class clearly explaining the expectations to students. If Mitchell teachers see a student possess a cellphone, they tell the student to put it in a locker. If that happens a second time, the staffer takes the phone for the rest of the school day and the student picks it up after school. If cellphone possession happens a third time, a parent must come to the building to pick up the phone for the student, who receives an in-school suspension. Additional occurrences result in suspensions. Marquez thinks most parents are receptive to the changes because they know excessive cellphone use can be detrimental for young people. Cellphones, they are good in some ways, but they can cause a lot of damage and a lot of mental health issues for kids, Marquez said. Phones can also lead to and exacerbate school fights. Students text where to meet to fight, and other students might use phones to take videos of fights. Mitchell students caught doing those types of activities on their phones have them confiscated and face either an in-school or out-of-school suspension. At Starbuck, if cellphone use is a repeat issue for a student, administrators talk to parents, nearly all of whom support the school policy, according to Turrentine. Turrentine said Starbuck staff are on the same page about the cellphone policy. He said teachers rarely argue with students who dont want to give up cellphones, instead notifying school administrators to talk with the student and confiscate the phone. When walking through the halls, Turrentine sometimes sees a student use a phone when a teacher isnt looking. If that occurs, he walks into the classroom, opens his hand and waits for the student to give him the phone. Our kids understand that were not making a big production out of this, Turrentine said. You know the rule. You know the policy, and thats just the way it is. He said the number of phones confiscated at Starbuck depends on the day. Some days there arent any, while other days there are 20. Concerted effort At Mitchell, some students still possess and use their phones, but Marquez said cellphone use has decreased as this school year has gone on, since students are reminded every day about the expectations. She believes the changes at Mitchell have been effective because they are emphasized daily. Most teachers are willing to enforce the policy or call school staff or administrators to do so. If thats something youre going to focus on and focus on, then its going to work, Marquez said. If its something youre putting in place but theres no real follow-through for it, then its never going to work. That is helpful for cellphone committee members to keep in mind as they develop new school policies starting next year. How cellphone use while driving has changed in America since 2004 How cellphone use while driving has changed in America since 2004 Cellphone behavior while driving has changed as technology has developed Fewer people are talking with the phones up to their ears More drivers are seen using cell phones while driving Headset use while driving remains less common WASHINGTON Up to 30 million of the poorest Americans could be purged from the Medicaid program, many the result of error-ridden state reviews that poverty experts say the Biden administration is not doing enough to stop. The projections from the health consulting firm Avalere come as states undertake a sweeping reevaluation of the 94 million people enrolled in Medicaid, governments health insurance for the neediest Americans. A host of problems have surfaced across the country, including hourslong phone wait times in Florida, confusing government forms in Arkansas, and children wrongly dropped from coverage in Texas. Those people were destined to fail, said Trevor Hawkins, an attorney for Legal Aid of Arkansas. Hawkins helped hundreds of people navigate their Medicaid eligibility in Arkansas, as state officials worked to swiftly disenroll about 420,000 people in six months time. He raised problems with Arkansas process like forms that wrongly told people they needed to reapply for Medicaid, instead of simply renew it with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Nothing changed, he said. They ask questions but they dont tell us what is going on, Hawkins said of CMS. Those should be major red flags. If there was a situation where CMS was to step in, it would have been Arkansas. Nearly a dozen advocates around the country detailed widespread problems theyve encountered while helping some of the estimated 10 million people whove already been dropped from Medicaid. Some fear systemic problems are being ignored. Congress ended a COVID-19 policy last year that barred states from kicking anyone off Medicaid during the pandemic, requiring them to undertake a review of every enrollees eligibility over the next year. But the Democratic-led Congress also gave Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra the power to fine states or halt disenrollments if people were improperly being removed. HHS has shared little about problems it has uncovered. Earlier this year, the agency briefly paused disenrollments in 14 states, but it did not disclose which states were paused or for what reasons. In August, HHS announced thousands of children had been wrongly removed in 29 states that were automatically removing entire households, instead of individuals, from coverage. CMS required the states to reinstate coverage for those who had been terminated under that process, said Daniel Tsai, the director of the CMS Center for Medicaid and Childrens Health Insurance Program Services. We are using every lever that we have to hold states accountable, Tsai said. If trends continue, as many as 30 million people could end up being dropped from Medicaid at some point once states finish reviewing their Medicaid rolls, according to Avaleres projections. The numbers dwarf the Biden administrations initial projections that only 15 million people would lose coverage throughout the process. We have to say its going poorly, Massey Whorley, a principal at Avalere, said of the Medicaid redeterminations. This has been characterized by much higher-than-expected disenrollment. Most have been removed for procedural reasons, like failing to send back their renewal form or mail in proper paperwork. That points to bigger problems with how the states are determining Medicaid eligibility: Their notices arent reaching people, dont make sense or theyre requiring unnecessary paperwork. Many of the people removed for those reasons may still qualify for Medicaid and might eventually be re-enrolled. In Arkansas, which has finished its Medicaid redeterminations, public records shared with the AP show more than 70% of people were kicked off Medicaid because the state couldnt reach them or they didnt return their renewal form or provide requested paperwork. The states Department of Human Services says it tried to reach people with additional calls, emails and texts. It believes the high number of procedural disenrollments were the result of people who no longer qualified for Medicaid not mailing back their renewal forms, spokesman Gavin Lesnick told AP in an email. Lesnick said CMS has never asked Arkansas to pause disenrollments. Long phone wait times and notices that dont include reasons why people are being kicked off Medicaid have plagued the process in Florida, said Lynn Hearn, an attorney at the Florida Health Justice Project. The Florida Department of Children and Families has had an 87% response rate to its renewal forms and call wait times are under five minutes, spokeswoman Mallory McManus said in an email. Medicaid enrollees in North Carolina, meanwhile, are also having trouble reaching their local office by phone or getting calls returned when they leave a message, said Cassidy Estes-Rogers, the director of family support and healthcare at the Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy. State officials didnt immediately respond to questions about phone troubles. Similar problems have arisen in Texas, where website and app outages have meant families dont even get the electronic notices stating their Medicaid coverage was up for renewal, said Graciela Camarena, the child health outreach program director for the Childrens Defense Fund in Texas. They were visiting the doctors office or the pediatricians office thats where they found out they were denied, Camarena said. Camarena said CMS met with her organization to go over some of the issues and has been pleased with its help. Some Texas lawmakers have asked CMS to investigate issues in the state, where nearly 1 million have lost Medicaid. CMS has not asked the state to stop the process, Texas Health and Human Services spokeswoman Jennifer Ruffcorn said in an email. The agency is continuously working to improve its app and website, she added. Local groups have also been funneling up problems to national groups that CMS meets with weekly, Tsai said. In some cases, issues raised to the agency dont violate federal regulations. However, Tsai said, You look at whats happening and you say, how is this a good, consumer friendly-process? 10 states haven't expanded Medicaidhere are the health care challenges they face 10 states haven't expanded Medicaidhere are the health care challenges they face Where Medicaid expansion hasn't been adopted Alabama Florida Georgia Kansas Mississippi South Carolina Tennessee Texas Wisconsin Wyoming This National Weather Service graphical point forecast is tailored to local zip codes. This graph shows a wind shift in conjunction with an incoming cold front currently forecast for Monday and Tuesday. Winds begin to shift to the west around 8 a.m. on Monday, and reach peak velocity around 10 a.m. on Tuesday. Fishing will be well above average during this period. 1. Yes. The platform takes up too much time and is often abused by speakers. Get rid of it. 2. Yes. The Citizen Petitions section is unworkable and generally results in a gripe session. 3. No. The platform is the only way residents can discuss non-agenda items. Keep it around.. 4. No. Killing it will discourage public input. Keep it or broaden Citizen Comments criteria. 5. Unsure. It can be a drain on the councils time, but it does serve a purpose for residents. Vote View Results Photo: The Canadian Press Rogers Communications Inc. has reached a tentative agreement with the union representing nearly 300 striking workers in Metro Vancouver after contract talks broke down and the company issued a lock-out notice earlier this month. Rogers Communications Inc. has reached a tentative agreement with the union representing nearly 300 striking workers in Metro Vancouver after contract talks broke down and the company issued a lock-out notice earlier this month. A statement from Rogers spokesman Cam Gordon says the company is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement, adding the goal "has always been to achieve a negotiated settlement that meets the needs of our employees and our customers." Representatives of United Steelworkers Local 1944 Unit 60 have not responded to multiple requests to confirm the tentative deal this weekend. Rogers had issued the lock-out notice shortly after the union announced plans for a series of rotating strikes among former Shaw technicians in B.C.'s Lower Mainland. At the time, the union said it issued the 72-hour strike notice after rejecting a proposal from the company it described as "a shameful attack on our members, their families and the communities Rogers serves." A statement from Rogers says it asked the union to provide clarity on the planned job action, but "no further details were shared," and the company took what it describes as the reluctant step to issue a lock-out notice and activate contingency plans to ensure it could provide customers with uninterrupted service. The company did not confirm any details or timing about the tentative deal. The workers are former Shaw technicians who were absorbed by Rogers when the companies merged last spring. They support homes and businesses for internet, phone and television services in Vancouver, Richmond, Surrey and Langley, B.C. The two sides had been negotiating since February as union members worked under the terms of their previous collective agreement that expired on March 23. Workers voted 99.6 per cent in favour of a strike mandate in September, after starting a conciliation process with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. The union has said recent job losses associated with the merger, meant to reduce overlap following Rogers' $26-billion takeover, call into question the company's commitment to creating 3,000 new jobs in Western Canada over five years. United Way of Kenosha County is gearing up for its 15th year of providing free income tax preparation to underserved residents in the Kenosha community. This initiative, led by UWKC in collaboration with the Kenosha County VITA Coalition, stands as a beacon of hope for those seeking financial stability and support during tax season. At the heart of the KCVCs efforts lies the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, which deploys IRS-certified volunteers to offer free, high-quality tax preparation services to moderate and low-income individuals and families in the community. In a remarkable demonstration of dedication and service, two United Way of Kenosha County VITA volunteers, Frances Wargolet and Dana LeVault, have recently been honored in Madison as recipients of the 2023 DOR Outstanding Volunteers of the Year-VITA Program award. This recognition underscores their commitment to the VITA program and their substantial contributions to the community. These volunteers tireless service and their impact on Wisconsin taxpayers were lauded in the presence of Peter Barca, Secretary of Revenue, and other DOR officials. Their recognition serves as an inspiration for those who tirelessly dedicate their time to helping others during tax season. Another such dedicated VITA volunteer was recognized by United Way of Kenosha County at our 100th anniversary celebration for her nearly two decades of service. Sue Miekle has been instrumental in assisting Kenosha residents in optimizing their tax returns, and her impact on the community cannot be overstated. Sue understands that taxes can be intimidating for many individuals. Taxpayers may not be aware of the various qualifying tax credits available to them or may struggle to decipher complex tax jargon. Volunteers like Sue, with their training and knowledge, bridge this knowledge gap, making tax preparation more accessible and manageable for all. Clients, both new and returning, have come to trust VITA volunteers like Sue for their dedication and expertise. Beyond the tax preparation, VITA volunteers like Sue build lasting connections with the individuals they serve. The clients we serve have become like friends, Sue says. We get to catch up once a year. The relationships formed between volunteers and clients are a true testament to the dedication and the collective commitment of VITA volunteers to the Kenosha community. United Way of Kenosha County expresses its heartfelt appreciation for Sues unwavering dedication and service, as well as for all VITA volunteers who contribute to the communitys financial well-being. As the 15th year of VITA services approaches, the impact of these volunteers continues to grow, ensuring that more residents can navigate the complexities of tax season and improve their financial well-being. VITA volunteer recruitment is happening now. Join the January 2024 VITA training class by contacting Rita Nicholson, VITA program coordinator, at RNicholson@kenoshaunitedway.org or call 262-658-4104. Professional tax preparation experience is not required. A FRENCH ARMY BASE, France Battle cries pierce the smoke and rat-a-tat-tat of gunfire as Ukrainian soldiers fight through and take enemy trenches and dugouts that hide gruesome, bloody remains. Grenade! one screams in Ukrainian. Another yells: Lets go, lets go, lets go, lets go!" This time, no lives or limbs were lost. Because this time, the rounds fired were blanks and the enemy" troops were, in fact, French soldiers whose intention was not to kill the Ukrainians but instead to help shape them into better, more lethal warriors. But soon, the war games these troops played in the mud in France will become all too real, when the Ukrainians return home and are sent to the front lines against Russia's forces. As the Russian invasion grinds into a second winter and casualties already estimated in the hundreds of thousands continue to mount on both sides, combat training programs provided by Ukraine's allies are helping it hold out and its odds of eventual victory. By continuing to prepare Ukrainian troops for battle even as the Israel-Hamas war diverts global attention, Ukraine's backers also are making concrete their promises to stick with it for the long haul. France is on course to have trained 7,000 Ukrainians this year some in Poland, others at French bases as part of a European Union military assistance mission for Ukraine that launched a year ago. The French army granted The Associated Press access to a training base in rural France recently to observe the latest class of Ukrainian infantrymen being put through its paces at the tail end of a four-week course. The EU mission's initial goal was to train 15,000 soldiers, but it has far exceeded that target and now expects to hit 35,000 by the end of this year. All but three of the EU's 27 member countries, plus non-member Norway, have provided training courses or instructors, the EU Commission says. The United States has trained about 18,000, mostly in Germany, with an additional 1,000 in the pipeline, the Pentagon says. In Britain, 30,000 have learned soldiering in the past 17 months, a training program the U.K. government says is unprecedented since World War II. As well as basic training with weapons, battlefield first aid and other skills, instructors are also imparting specialized military know-how, ranging from clearing mines and launching waterborne attacks aboard small boats to equipment repair, officer training and even help for Ukrainian military chaplains. With their return to Ukraine just days away, the grimness of the future that awaits the trainees at the French base was perceptible in the men's determined, unsmiling looks. Civilians not long ago, they now carried themselves like soldiers. They addressed each other with nicknames. There was liberal swearing as the men caught their breaths after storming trenches with fake grenades and blank rounds. French instructors left animal remains in the complex of dugouts and ditches to harden the troops to battlefield bloodshed. Only the officers had previous front-line experience, the chief French training officer said. He said Ukraine is looking to France for tactics and know-how that could help its forces bust through Russian defenses. Because of French military concerns for the base's security, the officer, Lt. Col. Even, could only be identified by his rank and first name. One can clearly see in Ukraine that the front line is relatively frozen, with two belligerents who employ very similar doctrines," he said. "So today, one of the keys being sought in an attempt to break this inertia is to try to develop maneuvering schemes that can bother and even shake up the adversary. As well as seeing their assault on freshly dug trenches, the AP also observed Ukrainians vigorously defending a mock-up village against a French enemy attack and concealing themselves in rain-drenched woodlands. Translators bridged the language gap between the soldiers and their French hosts. French trainers said they've learned through experience that it's unwise to get too friendly with the trainees because some of them are sure to be killed back home. Despite sharing the bonding discomforts of long days and nights in the French wilds, they sever ties when the training is done, with soldiers under orders not to swap phone numbers or other contacts. "You have to burn bridges because otherwise you ask yourselves too many questions. When you find out that this or that person is dead, youre bound to ask yourself what you did wrong: Did we work enough on this or that tactic? Should I have insisted more on this point? said one of the instructors, Capt. Xavier. Were doing our utmost," he said. Asking yourself afterward what you did wrong or could have done better is torturing yourself for nothing. Photo: The Canadian Press Palestinians with Canadian passports who were evacuated from Gaza sit in a bus at the Rafah border crossing in Egypt, late Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023. A group of 135 people with ties to Canada desperate to flee escalating violence in the Gaza Strip were officially cleared to leave the besieged territory Sunday, though there was no immediate word on how many were able to make the trip. Global Affairs Canada did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the latest efforts to get Canadians through the Rafah land crossing into Egypt, but the names of 135 Canadians were on a list of foreign passport holders cleared for the journey as of Sunday. That list is updated daily by Gaza's General Authority for Crossings and Borders. Among those cleared for departure was Palestinian-Canadian Khalil Manaa, 71, who left Gaza for Egypt Sunday. After fleeing to southern Gaza, he said he and relatives shared a crammed home of 40 people. And there, we also were subjected to intense strikes. A rocket hit our house," he said. The most recent update from Global Affairs, provided on Friday, said 376 Canadians, permanent residents and their relatives had so far been able to leave the Palestinian territory through the Rafah crossing. The current conflict began on Oct. 7 when Hamas militants killed an estimated 1,200 Israelis in brutal surprise attacks, taking another 240 people hostage. Israel immediately declared war on Hamas, began an airstrike campaign and cut off food, water and supplies to Gaza, which is home to 2.3 million Palestinians. The territory's health officials said more than 11,500 people have been killed so far, two-thirds of them women and children, and another 2,700 people are reported missing. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, is struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of thousands of displaced people. Seventeen of its facilities have been directly hit, the agency said. Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days, and to keep internet and telephone systems running. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gaza's sole power plant and most water treatment systems to shut down. Israels Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday gave the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to the south, where Israel has told Palestinian civilians to seek refuge. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Egypt has refused to accept any influx of Palestinian refugees, in part because of fears that Israel would not allow them to return. Walt Nauta, Donald Trump's personal aide, helps him with a shirt during LIV Golf's pro-am tournament at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. on May 25, 2023. (Doug Mills/The New York Times) Donald Trumps acting more African again Back when he was the new host of Comedy Centrals The Daily Show, South Africa-born comedian Trevor Noah notably disagreed with those who thought then-rising presidential candidate Donald Trump was not presidential enough. Advertisement For me, as an African, said Noah, theres just something familiar about Trump that makes me feel at home. He then compared Trump sound bites with some African despots on such topics as immigration, health care and his own self-regard. Advertisement On immigration, for example, Trump said, When Mexico sends its people, theyre bringing drugs, theyre bringing crime, theyre rapists and some I presume are good people. Similarly, South African President Jacob Zuma linked the influx of illegal migrants to crime, unfair business practices, drugs, while assuring us it was not true that all foreign nationals are involved in criminal activities. There are some who are, but not all of them. Gee, thanks. Noah correctly described Zumas remarks as a light xenophobia with just a dash of diplomacy. After reporting in several African countries with varying degrees of friendliness to press freedoms or not I was darkly amused to see despots taken to task. But fast forward: not even a dash of diplomacy softens the bracing sound of Trumps recent episodes of letting his inner Hitler out. In a speech on Veterans Day, of all days, in Claremont, New Hampshire, he called his political opponents and critics vermin and suggested they pose a greater threat to the United States than such rivals as Russia, China or North Korea. We pledge to you that we will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country that lie and steal and cheat on elections, Trump said, repeating his debunked claims that the 2020 election was stolen. Theyll do anything, whether legally or illegally, to destroy America and to destroy the American Dream. Trump went on to state: The threat from outside forces is far less sinister, dangerous and grave than the threat from within. Our threat is from within. Because if you have a capable, competent, smart, tough leader, Russia, China, North Korea, theyre not going to want to play with us. Advertisement Continuing his recent turn to messages of vengeance and grievance, he added some fire to his defiance by calling himself a very proud election denier and decried his legal entanglements, though of course theyre largely of his own making. In the past, I have said and written that, no matter how angry we may be, we should refrain from references to Hitler except when referring to one man Adolf Hitler. But these days Trump increasingly shows an uncanny facility for attracting the comparison himself, all in the interest of firing up crowds of supporters who see him as being on their side, no matter the repercussions for those who are not. His gratuitous use of vermin, an age-old blast of dehumanizing language used by Hitler, Benito Mussolini and the like, reminded me of how Rwandas minority Tutsi population was branded as cockroaches during that countrys genocide in the early 1990s. Two years later, some 800,000 Rwandans mainly Tutsis were brutally slaughtered, mostly hacked to death, over 100 days. Clarence Page Columns As it happens Sign up to receive Clarence Pages columns by email as soon as they're published. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy > Most astonishing to me was how swiftly the majority Hutu turned from peaceful coexistence to barbarism against the Tutsi minority, fired up by ethnic-linked propaganda. Advertisement Trump may speak of a need to make America great again, a slogan borrowed from Ronald Reagans 1980 campaign, but his rhetoric appears more clearly intended to make us hate each other again. Recent reports name the people Trump has said he wants to investigate and prosecute, and his associates are drafting plans to potentially invoke the Insurrection Act on his first day in office. That controversial law would allow him to deploy the military in response to civil demonstrations. That brings me back to Veterans Day, which has special meaning to me as a Vietnam-era Army draftee. I wonder what Trump, who evaded the draft thanks to a diagnosis of bone spurs, thinks our side was fighting for. Or does he have too much strongman-envy to care? cpage@chicagotribune.com Twitter @cptime Islamist groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State have been spreading across Africa for years. The groups came from the large area south of the Sahara Desert called the Sahel. They are spreading into wealthier West African coastal nations like Benin. Militants once were believed to want to use coastal nations like Benin, Togo and Ghana as bases for attacks on Sahel governments. Now the militant groups are strengthening. Benin has been the hardest hit. This year it had more than 10 times the number of violent incidents involving Islamists than Togo did. That information comes from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project. Attacks by militant Islamists, or jihadis, against civilians in Benin went from more than 30 to about 80. The overall number of incidents involving jihadi groups rose by more than 70 percent. The jihadis' activity in Benin is mostly in the north of the country. There, they try to recruit people and create division within local populations. Residents of one small town told The Associated Press recently that civilians can no longer move freely. People in Materi live in fear because of the jihadi threat. The fighters place explosives and carry out kidnappings in the area. They aim to make people lose trust in the government. The government has put in place a curfew and a ban on gatherings. I cant sleep at night, were not free to travel, to move, Materi resident Florence Bati said. People are too afraid. People are being displaced from their homes as attacks increase. Some people fear a humanitarian crisis. In August, more than 12,000 people were displaced from their homes in the Atacora and neighboring Alibori states. That is an increase from about 5,000 in March, the United Nations said. The violence is also pushing people from their farms. The U.N. estimates that tens of thousands of people could face hunger. The government is trying to improve the situation by placing additional security forces along the borders and hiring more soldiers. Local people in the north say they have seen increases in soldiers but say the army is underequipped and is sometimes late when answering attacks. Neighboring Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali, are being overrun by violence. The nations ousted French troops after the militaries there seized power. But Benin is still open to help from its former colonial power, which left in 1960. The French do not have a permanent base in the country. At Benins request, however, French troops can take part in training programs with Beninese soldiers, a French military spokesman said. People in the north told AP that Benin's government is also trying to hide the level of the crisis. The government has limited freedom of speech and arrested reporters who cover insecurity. Local officials have said the problem does not go beyond the border with Burkina Faso. There is no terrorist, no movement, no organization, no group that has settled or tried to settle in our department, said Robert Wimbo Kassa, the mayor of Materi. Benin is an agricultural nation of 13 million people. It has invested billions of dollars in culture and tourism. It is also building a $1.5 billion industrial area outside of the city of Cotonou aimed at creating 300,000 jobs by 2030. The lack of information has left people in other parts of the country unaware of the security problems in the north. People in Cotonou said they did not know about the jihadi problem. They did not believe the news or said that it was a problem limited to neighboring countries. Rights groups say the government is attempting to control information, while arresting people believed to be working with the jihadis. The groups say the government is pushing people into the militants' hands. Bertin Assogba is with Durable and Develop Reference, a local aid and human rights group. The jihadis live with the populations, the citizens know them, but they refuse to denounce them because the government doesnt encourage people to do so, he said. Im Dan Novak. Dan Novak adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by The Associated Press. _______________________________________ Words in This Story recruit v. to persuade someone to join a group or the military resident n. a person who legally lives in a particular place tourism n. the industry that provides places to stay and things to do for people who travel to other places for pleasure encourage v. to make someone more likely to do something If humans are to establish long-term bases on the moon, they will need food resources. In recent years, scientists have been taking steps toward making moon agriculture possible. Researchers in China said this month that they have found a way to turn soil, that is similar to lunar soil, fertile. They found that introducing special bacteria into the soil can increase the amount of phosphorus, an important nutrient for plants. The Chinese scientists grew a plant that it is related to the tobacco plant in a laboratory in China. They used volcanic soil from the Changbai Mountains in Jilin province that is similar to moon soil, which scientists call lunar regolith. They treated the moon-like soil with three different kinds of bacteria. The researchers found that the plants raised in the bacteria-treated soil grew better than plants that grew in moon-like soil without the bacteria. The researchers said the bacteria made the soil more acidic. This permitted phosphate from minerals to dissolve, making the nutrient available to the plants. Researcher Xia Yitong of the China Agricultural University in Beijing was the lead writer of the study published in Communications Biology. Xia said the importance of these findings is that scientists may be able to use the bacteria in lunar regolith to grow crops in future greenhouses on the moon. In a study published last year, researchers in the United States grew a flowering plant called Arabidopsis thaliana in small containers. Each container had a gram of moon soil collected during the NASA missions to the moon more than 50 years ago. Arabidopsis, also called thale cress, is a plant widely used in scientific research. In the earlier study, Arabidopsis did grow, but not as well in soil from the moon as it did in volcanic ash from Earth, which the researchers used for comparative purposes. Their study suggests that soil from the moon could become more fertile with improvements. The new research involved benth, or Nicotiana benthamiana, another plant often used in research. In the most recent study, the scientists said they used volcanic material from the Changbai mountains to create soil with similar chemical and physical properties to lunar regolith. The names of the three bacteria used in the study are: Bacillus mucilaginosus, Bacillus megaterium and Pseudomonas fluorescens. The researchers tested other bacteria as well, but those did not produce the same effects. Xia said carrying food, oxygen, and water to people on the moon would be too costly. Xia added, A greenhouse for plant cultivation on the moon could greatly reduce the need of Earth-moon transportation. A plant cultivation system on the moon could help meet long-term food and oxygen requirements for humans on the moon, Xia added. Plants produce oxygen from carbon dioxide in the process they use to create energy, called photosynthesis. Xia said other plans to grow food on the moon that do not require soil are more costly because they require materials to be transported from Earth. Xia said his teams study met, the same goal [of plant cultivation] with much less consumption of carrying capability compared to other plans. Im Gregory Stachel. Will Dunham reported this story for Reuters. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English. _____________________________________ Words in This Story dissolve v. to mix with a liquid and become part of the liquid greenhouse n. a building or part of a building that has glass walls and a glass roof and that is used for growing plants mission n. a flight by an aircraft or spacecraft to perform a specific task cultivate v. to grow and care for (plants) consumption n. the use of something (such as fuel) capability n. the ability to do something Chinese researchers say they have built an artificial intelligence (AI) robot that can carry out chemical reactions to produce oxygen from water on Mars. The system could be another way for space travelers in the future to make much-needed oxygen on Mars. Humans visiting the Red Planet will need oxygen to support life. The gas could also be used to make rocket fuel, which is difficult to transport to space. Scientists have already established from multiple studies that Mars contains large amounts of water. Most of the water exists in the form of ice. Developers of the new robot system in China say it can be used to release oxygen from the planets water supply. Scientists at the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei led the research. The team explored whether an AI robot could use materials found on Mars to produce catalysts to break down water and release oxygen. A catalyst is a substance that permits certain chemical reactions to happen. Experiments were carried out on meteorites that either came from Mars or contained materials similar to the Martian surface. The researchers said the robot chemist first used an acid and chemical mixture to separate and examine materials contained in the meteorites. It identified several different metallic elements, including iron, nickel, magnesium and aluminum. The machine then worked to identify different molecules that could be produced from meteorite materials. The team said the system found more than 3.7 million possible molecule combinations. The robot used that data to predict which catalysts would be able to split water molecules to produce oxygen. The catalyst chosen as the best fit was able to operate at minus 37 degrees Celsius. This temperature is similar to current conditions on Mars. A press release announcing the experimental findings said the AI chemist was able to complete the whole process without human involvement in just two months. The release claimed such an operation would take 2000 years for a human chemist to finish. The publication Nature Synthesis reported the full results of the study. The studys lead writer, Jun Jiang, told the website Space.com that as a boy, he often dreamed of being able to one day travel in space. "So when we finally saw that the catalysts made by the robot could actually produce oxygen by splitting water molecules, I felt like my dream was coming true. I even started to imagine that I, myself, will live on Mars in the future." The researchers said they plan next to test whether their AI system performs well under a series of other conditions besides temperature found on Mars. A report explaining the studys results in Nature notes Jiang suggests that for every square meter of Martian material, his groups system could produce nearly 60 grams of oxygen per hour. The researchers say this level of production could remove the need for future astronauts to transport oxygen from Earth. The robot can work continuously for years, Jiang said. Jiang told Nature he thinks his teams robotic system could also be used to produce other useful catalysts on Mars. This could include processes for making substances to support the growth of plants that could be used to produce food for astronauts. Different chemicals can be made by this robot, Jiang said. He noted that Mars might also not be the only place where it could find other uses, suggesting the moon as another possibility. Im Bryan Lynn. Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from the University of Science and Technology of China and Nature. Quiz - Study: AI Robot Finds Way to Produce Oxygen from Water on Mars Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz _______________________________________ Words in This Story meteorite n. a piece of rock from outer space that has fallen to a planets surface FOOD SYSTEMS | LAB-GROWN MEAT A familiar aroma wafted through the Believer Meats test kitchen earlier this year as Research and Development Chef Andres Voloschin flipped sizzling strips of chicken conjured from cells. Scientists, not farmers, produced this chicken. More than 150 startups are chasing an ambitious goal: meat that doesn't require raising and killing animals that is affordable and tastes and feels like the meat we eat now. They are part of a young industry aiming to use cell biology to reduce the environmental impact of the world's ever-increasing demand for meat and change global protein production the way electric cars are shaking up the auto industry. "We are addicted to meat as a species. It's part of our evolution. It's part of our culture," said Believer founder Yaakov Nahmias, whose country, Israel, is an industry hub along with California and Singapore. But "we thought about quantity rather than the environment, rather than sustainability." Companies making so-called "cultivated," or "cultured" meat, which is also popularly known as "lab-grown" meat, are trying to scale up quickly partnering with traditional meat companies, drawing more and more investors and breaking ground on new production facilities in the U.S. and elsewhere. Wide adoption of meat from cells is nowhere near assured, however. This meat is expensive to make. There are scientific challenges, such as learning how to mimic the complex structure of steak. Government regulation is another obstacle. Only Singapore and the U.S. allow sales of cultivated meat. And while many people who have tried it say they like it, others find the idea distasteful. An Associated Press-NORC poll found that half of adults in the meat-hungry U.S. would be unlikely to try it. A majority of those who said they wouldn't said "it just sounds weird." Even Nahmias' 10-year-old son Oren says he will only eat traditional meat. "I feel bad" for the animals, he said, "but they are yummy!" Cells to cutlets The science behind this new meat comes from the medical world. The process starts with cells. Depending on the company, the cells may come from a piece of tissue, a fertilized egg or a cell "bank." Various sorts can be used; scientists choose cells that can self-renew and turn into the muscle and fat cells that make up meat tissue. From starter cells they create "cell lines" so they don't have to keep going back to animals. These cells are placed inside vessels of various sizes called bioreactors and bathed in a nutrient-rich broth where they multiply. Thick, structured meat also requires a scaffold that helps cells organize into a shape. Changes in the composition of the broth, or media, and cues from the scaffolding, tell immature cells to turn into muscle, fat and connective tissue. Producing meat this way could dramatically reduce the impact of meat on the environment because it would reduce the need for land for the animals and for feed. "The most important thing is that this field move forward and start reducing the destruction to our environment associated with current animal agriculture techniques," said Glenn Gaudette, a biomedical engineering specialist at Boston College. But transforming the ecosystem is a distant vision. Scientists and industry experts say cultivated meats have a way to go before they're indistinguishable from conventional meats, especially when it comes to the texture of products other than burgers or nuggets. There are vexing scientific hurdles. Gaudette said scientists are still trying to find the best scaffolds for structured meat, which must include a way for oxygen to get to all the cells. Options include animal-based scaffolds such as gelatin and, increasingly, decellularized vegetables like spinach. Experts expect scientists to overcome the remaining scientific hurdles. But they say shaping human perception may be more difficult. Public opinion Most people connect meat production with farms rather than science labs which influences how they view these new products. In the AP-NORC poll, just 18% of U.S. adults said they are extremely or very likely to try cultivated meat, and 30% said they are somewhat likely. Those under 45 years old are more likely than older adults to try it and men are more likely than women. When those unlikely to try it were asked to choose from a list of reasons why, half said they didn't think it would be safe. That's a concern for respondent Nora Bailey, 31, a mother of three in rural Arkansas. "I would obviously want to do more research as far as the long-term effects," since early products deemed safe may later be found to be unsafe, she said. A World Health Organization report noted several potential safety issues, such as microbial contamination at various points in the process, biological byproducts and scaffolding that some people might be allergic to. Experts acknowledged a lot more safety testing is needed but noted that conventional meat carries significant food-safety risks, such as potential bacterial contamination during slaughter. At this point, relatively few people have tried cultivated meat. But since its approval in the U.S. this summer, a small number of diners are eating it for the first time at particular restaurants and special events. People who recently tried cultivated chicken at U.S.company Good Meat's headquarters in Alameda, California, said they liked it and would eat it again. Karen Hunt, who joined the taste test because she works nearby said she's not bothered by how it's made, especially when she thinks about how traditional chicken is made. "When you bite into it, it was moist. It wasn't dry. It did have that kind of feel of chicken, taste of chicken," she said. "I was pleasantly surprised, and it tasted great." Associated Press video journalist Terry Chea contributed to this report. The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) teamed up with Singapore sovereign fund GIC to acquire more than a third of an Indonesian state-owned tollways operatora transaction that could be worth up to $1.5 billion. MPTC chief finance officer Chris Lizo said in a news briefing the joint venture partners would bid for a 35-percent stake in Jasamarga Transjawa Tol (JTI). They are selling 35-percent stake in a company that owns 13 toll roads with estimate value anywhere from $1 billion to $1.5 billion, Lizo said. JTI has the largest connected toll road network in Java. It operates 13 toll sections spanning 676 kilometers. All JTIs toll roads have been fully operational since 2019 with an average 35 years of remaining life in the concession. Under the proposed partnership, MPTCs Indonesian subsidiary will acquire 20.3 percent of the 35 percent to be purchased, while GIC will own 10.3 percent. MPTC-led PT Margautama Nusantara will take the remaining 4.2 percent. Lizo said due diligence is ongoing until December 2023, while submission of final bids will be in January 2024. He said depending on the final bid, MPTCs share could amount to $600 million. GIC recently invested in MPTCs tollroad unit in Indonesia, acquiring 33 percent. So, we will jointly bid for this trans-Java project, Lizo said. Meanwhile, Lizo reported that MPTC recently bagged a new concession project in Indonesia, which involves a 21.5-kilometer elevated toll road worth $1.4 billion (P80.8 billion). The project, similar to Skyway in South Luzon Expressway, is located in one of the highly-congested areas in Indonesia. The project will commence this month and will be completed by January 2028. It will have concession life of 45 years. Nicaraguas Sheynnis Palacios was crowned Miss Universe 2023 on Saturday at the 72nd edition of the pageant, held this year in El Salvador. Palacios, 23, received the crown and sash from her predecessor, RBonney Gabriel from the United States. This is the first time a contestant from Nicaragua has won the contest, with Thailands Anntonia Porsild and Australias Moraya Wilson rounding out the top three. Palacios, who said she considers humility and gratitude for little things as her main qualities, bested 84 contestants during a week of competitions that included posing in swimsuits, evening gowns, and traditional dresses. In her final answer to the jury, Palacios emphasized the importance of equal pay regardless of gender so that women can work in any area. There is no limit for women, she said. Each participant paraded on a stage set up in the newly renovated Adolfo Pineda National Gymnasium, in the capital San Salvador. The organizers of the gala, which was attended by El Salvadors President Nayib Bukele, also announced that the next edition will be held in Mexico. The Philippines Michelle Dee made it to the Top 10 out of a field of 84 candidates. Dee was a standout in her Apo Whang Od tattoo-inspired evening gown designed by Mark Bumgarner after impressing the audience in a one-piece red swimwear during the Top 10 swimwear competition. She won the Spirit Cruise Award and was named one of the Gold Winners for the pageants Voice for Change category along with candidates from Angola and Puerto Rico. Each candidate will receive a $12,000 cash prize. Dees entry focuses on advocating for autism acceptance, inclusivity, and empowerment. The Top 20 group was a showcase of diversity and inclusivity with Miss Nepal 2023 Jane Dipika Garrett, the first plus-size contestant; Miss Colombia Maria Camilla Montanes, a mother; the first transgender Miss Netherlands Marina Machete; and a first-ever Miss Pakistan Universe Erica Robin. Rounding out the Top 10 were Perus Camila Escribens, El Salvadors Isabella Garcia-Manzo, Venezuelas Diana Silva, Spains Athenea Perez, and Venezuelas Diana Silva. With AFP The Department of Education (DepEd) said Sunday it will leave it to local governments to decide whether to suspend classes to cope with a nationwide transport strike that begins today, while the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said it will suspend the number-coding scheme. The transport group Piston (Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide) said its 100,000 members would push through with the strike to dramatize its objection to the governments Dec. 31 deadline for jeepney operators and drivers to consolidate as part of the the public utility vehicle modernization program. In a statement, however, the DepEd said unless local government units announce the cancellation or suspension in their respective jurisdictions, schools will hold classes without disruption. Classes in some areas have been suspended or will shift to online on Monday, Nov. 20 following the magnitude 6.8 quake in Davao Occidental and a nationwide transport strike set by some operators and drivers of jeepneys. Local government units: Camalig, AlbayAll levels, public and private Cabuyao, LagunaFace-to-face classes in all levels, public and private, to shift to online classes Calamba, LagunaFace-to-face classes in all levels, public and private schools to shift to modular or online classes PampangaSuspension of in-person classes in all levels, public and private General Santos CitySuspension of classes at all levels, public and private, from Nov. 18 to 21; work suspension in government on Nov. 20 Davao OccidentalProvince-wide suspension of classes, all levels, and work suspension in schools from Nov. 2021 Universities: Adamson University: Synchronous online classes will be conducted in all levels Arellano University: Online classes via LMS will be conducted in all levels and branches from Nov. 2022 Ateneo de Manila University: Undergraduate and graduate classes in the Schools of Education and Learning Design, Humanities, Management, Science and Engineering, and Social Sciences will be held online from Nov. 20 to 23. However, onsite classes will resume as soon as the strike ends. De La Salle University-Manila campus: Classes in all levels, including non-critical work, will shift to online from Nov. 20 to 22 De La Salle University-Laguna: In-person classes in all levels from preschool to college, including non-critical work, will shift to online from Nov. 20 to 22. Far Eastern University-Manila and Makati: Online classes will be conducted FEU High School: Synchronous online classes will be conducted Mapua University: Synchronous online classes will be conducted for all levels Miriam College-Loyola Heights: Basic Education Unit, Skills Development and Technical Education Center, and Higher Education Unit will shift to online classes from Nov. 20 to 21 Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila: Classes will shift to synchronous online classes from Nov. 20 to 22 Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Marikina: All classes will shift to asynchronous mode from Nov. 20 to 22 Polytechnic University of the Philippines: All campuses will shift to online mode of classes from Nov. 20 to 22 University of the East-Manila and Caloocan Campus: Classes in all levels will shift to online synchronous from Nov. 20 and 21 University of the Philippines-Diliman: Classes will shift to remote or asynchronous learning modes from Nov. 20 to 22 University of the Philippines Integrated School: Classes will shift to synchronous or asynchronous mode from Nov. 2022 University of the Philippines-Manila: Classes will shift to synchronous and/or asynchronous mode on Nov. 20 University of the Philippines-Los Banos: Classes shall be delivered via remote or asynchronous mode on Nov. 20 University of Santo Tomas: Classes and office work will shift to the enriched virtual mode and remote arrangements on Nov. 20 No number coding The number coding in Metro Manila will be suspended except in Makati, the MMDA said. MMDA Chairman Don Artes said the suspension is in anticipation of some transport routes being affected by the strike. However, Artes said they will evaluate the need for further suspension of the number coding on a daily basis. At the same time, he advised the public to stay at home if going out is not important or going out can be postponed. He told the commuters to brace for heavier traffic. Piston president Mody Floranda said they are not against consolidation as long as the government would assure them that they would still own their franchise under the modernization program. Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) chairman Teofilo Guadiz III said he would personally monitor the transport strike today on the eastbound lanes of Commonwealth Avenue near the University of the Philippines and Philcoa near Shell as early as 5:30 a.m. The LTFRB identified routes that may be affected by todays strike Novaliches-Malinta along General Luis, Shelter Ville-Novaliches, Bagumbong-Novaliches, Deparo-Novaliches, Paco-Sta. Mesa, Monumento Area Catmon, Alabang Area, Baclaran, A. Francisco St.-San Andres Bukid and NIA-NPC to Mindanao Avenue. Guadiz said the government is fully prepared to deal with the strike, with free rides to be offered to stranded commuters. The Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines (FEJODAP), another major transport alliance, announced Sunday that it will not join the Piston-led strike. In an interview with radio dzBB, FEJODAP national president Jephraim Gochangco said they would not join the strike out of concern for commuters, who will be most affected by the protest action. He apologized to their colleagues and said he sympathized with their grievances, but said their first concern was for the commuters. Far from being a dance of the sabers, Xi was simply warming up the temperature that has caused the world to be on edge The setting was perfect. Away from the madding crowd, sheltered in a huge estate in the rolling hills off the California coast called Filoli, the two most powerful leaders of the world met. Biden broke the ice in a four-hour meeting by greeting Xis wife, Peng Liyuan, a happy birthday. The Chinese first lady shares the same birthdate as the American president, November 20, although the latter is 20 years older than she is. No earth-shaking agreements came out of the historic meeting, billed as a tete-a-tete between two estranged friends, with relations between the two superpowers having been strained by worsening trade relations and the status of Taiwan. Official statements by both sides averred that Taiwan was on the table, where Xi asked Biden to restrict arms sales to the island nation it considers a renegade province. Whether Biden agreed or not was not in the official release. As it should not, per the rules of diplomacy where unfinished issues are not disclosed. About the only conclusions seen after the summit was an agreement for China to curb production of the ingredients that make fentanyl, and more significantly, that military to military communications would be resumed, one that stopped after the contentious visit of Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan last year. Both agreed to pick up the phone to prevent the worst, as part of steps to prevent disagreements to turn into irreparable conflict. Not even climate change, one of the pressing issues where both sides are the worlds worst offenders, was discussed. The face-off turned into a seemingly cordial thaw in icy relations, although Biden in his press conference afterwards still distastefully referred to Xi as a dictator. Even if true, it was a sour note. Still and all, as Morris Chang, the venerable founder of Taiwans giant TSMC, the worlds biggest supplier of microchips and Taiwans representative to the APEC summit in San Francisco, said, the Biden-Xi meeting would help reduce tensions in the Asia-Pacific and promote reliable supply chains. Meanwhile, in another meeting, Japans Kishida and Chinas Xi committed to a mutually beneficial relationship, despite serious national security and economic rifts. Detente, the international media described the talks between the two Asian neighbors, whose history has been marred by bloodshed and conflict. Focus was on improving trade economics in short, rather than geo-politics. Xi harped on the need to handle divergent views adequately grasping the flow of current times. Nice words, but words only. The Chinese president, successor to Mao in longevity of power, was doing a Maoist one step backwards, two steps forwar,d, with the whole world none the wiser as to when the two steps will be made. Far from being a dance of the sabers, Xi was simply warming up the temperature that has caused the world to be on edge. With Ukraine and Russia still at war, with Israel pounding Gaza to rid it of the Hamas terrorists, the human suffering in both theaters of conflict incalculable, China could have upped its pressure on Taiwan, the lynch pin of its conflict with the Western powers and its Asian allies. Even this writer at one point feared that after the surprise attack on Israel, China might cause tensions in the Taiwan Strait to heat up further, taking advantage of Americas divided attention. But China did not, and, instead, in the cadence of the Maoist dance, showed diplomatic smiles rather than confrontative stance. Xi also had a short meeting on the sidelines of the APEC confab with our president, who brought up the plight of our fishermen, the sector most disadvantaged by the WPS conflict, and asked that both Chinese and Filipinos should fish in the same waters without bullying by the superpower. Whether the PLA and its tentacles would listen, only time will tell. It is a vamos a ver situation, with no concrete assurances made, only cordial smiles. One could read into the one step back and a future two steps forward of the Chinese leader as a concession to domestic troubles that bedevil Chinas economy. Like the rest of the world, Chinas economy is in deflated state, with growth figures drastically down, debts both public and private growing to unsustainable levels, and trade with the rest of the world tapered. Thus, thaw is better addressed towards frosty relations with rivals in the world stage. In our next column, we will see how this thaw is playing out in the Taiwan situation. On Friday, Gov. Roy Cooper joined North Carolina Department of Transportation Secretary Joey Hopkins and Amtrak and state transportation officials to tout record ridership on the Piedmont route since a fifth daily round trip began between Raleigh and Charlotte in July. More people than ever are riding the states intercity passenger rail service, NC By Train. The governor also touted new and planned investments that will replace half-century-old state-owned passenger trains with modern, state-of-the-art locomotives and passenger cars and potentially lead to new routes within North Carolina. Gov. Cooper, Secretary Hopkins and Amtraks Dennis Newman, executive vice president of strategy and planning, addressed media at Raleighs Union Station Friday morning before riding the Piedmont Train to Greensboro, according to a news release. NC By Train has been a success story for our state because people know its a safe, reliable and convenient way to travel, and my many conversations with passengers on the train today confirm that its a positive experience, Cooper said. Weve expanded service resulting in record breaking ridership, and I encourage more people to give it a try. We hope that people will see us riding the train and say Hey, that looks like a great idea, Hopkins said. If you dont have access to a vehicle or you dont want to worry about getting behind the wheel, you can remove the stress and take the train. NC By Train, which provides daily train service between Raleigh, Charlotte and the Northeast, is managed by the N.C. Department of Transportations Rail Division. The state agency contracts with Amtrak to serve as the trains operator. North Carolina continues to make substantial investments to improve and expand service to keep up with the increasing demand for train travel, said Dennis Newman, Amtraks executive vice president of strategy and planning. We are happy to partner with the state to bring more passenger rail to the region and provide customers a vital and sustainable way to travel. NC By Train saw its highest ridership in the services 32-year history in 2022, and the service is on pace to break that record in 2023. Ridership during the first three quarters of 2023 increased 23% over the same period in 2022. And in October, NC By Train experienced another milestone with its highest ever monthly ridership of 65,980 passengers. To meet demand and grow the service, NCDOT has increased the number of daily round trips between Raleigh and Charlotte twice during Gov. Coopers administration first from 3-to-4 trips in 2018 and again from 4-to-5 trips in July. Julys expansion means there are now 10 trains per day on the Piedmont corridor with stops in cities between Raleigh and Charlotte, according to a news release. NC By Train operates some of its services on tracks owned by the North Carolina Railroad Company, which owns a 317-mile rail corridor extending from Charlotte to Morehead City. NCDOTs Rail Division recently applied for funds from the Federal Railroad Administrations to explore 12 new routes to destinations such as Asheville and Wilmington. If this happens, passenger rail service would return to western North Carolina, and that could include stops in towns like Old Fort and Marion. The division has also applied for FRA funds for the final engineering and construction work on a proposed passenger rail route between Raleigh and Wake Forest. This proposal is part of a larger passenger train initiative to connect North Carolina and Virginias rail systems with frequent, fast and reliable train service. The state agency expects to hear soon if it has won the grants, according to the news release. Interested in riding NC By Train? Children under 2 ride for free and children under 12 are 50% off every day. Visit NCByTrain.org for tickets, full schedules and discounts to get to the events and follow NC By Train on Twitter/X and Facebook for updates and reminders. Five new African leaders have joined the signatories of the Tangier Appeal for the expulsion of the so-called SADR from the African Union (AU). During a follow-up meeting of the Tangier Appeal, held Friday on the sidelines of the 15th edition of the MEDays Forum, five former African foreign ministers signed this Appeal, launched from Tangier on November 4, 2022 by former African Prime Ministers and Foreign Ministers. The new signatories are David J. Francis, former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Sierra Leone; Urbino Botelho, former Foreign Minister of Sao Tome & Principe; Ezechiel Nibigira, former Foreign Minister of Burundi; Albert Mabri Toikeusse, former Foreign Minister of Cote dIvoire; and Cheikh Tidiane Gadio, former Foreign Minister of Senegal and initiator of regional roundtable discussions on the expulsion of pseudo-SADR from the African Union. This brings to 23 the number of Tangier Appeal signatories since its launch a year ago. During the follow-up meeting, the Tangier Appeal signatories welcomed the continental impact and the momentum generated by this initiative, reiterating their commitment to continue working for the urgent exclusion of the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (RASD), a non-state entity, from the African Union. The growing commitment in Africa in favor of the Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara was also welcomed by the signatories, who stressed that the opening of new consulates in Dakhla and Laayoune testifies to the vitality of pan-African dialogue and the common desire to overcome divisions, inherited from a bygone era, to build a prosperous future in Africa. The signatories also welcomed Resolution 2703 of the UN Security Council, recognizing that the Sahara conflict can only be settled through a just, lasting, and mutually acceptable solution, and promoting pragmatism, realism, and compromise spirit, which characterizes the Moroccan autonomy plan. They reaffirmed their full support for the Moroccan Autonomy Plan as the only solution for the definitive settlement of the regional dispute over the Sahara. Welcoming the international support that this plan continues to garner, they called on the African and international community to fully adhere to the Moroccan Autonomy Plan to put an end to this conflict which has lasted too long. The appeal signatories also reiterated their full commitment to achieve the objective of the expulsion of the pseudo-SADR from the African Union, a key prerequisite for the return of impartiality and credibility of the Pan-African Organization on the Sahara issue. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, sit together during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (John Bazemore/AP) ATLANTA Reactions to the death of Rosalynn Carter, former first lady and global humanitarian: ___ Advertisement Former President George W. Bush called Carter a woman of dignity and strength. There was no greater advocate of President Carter, and their partnership set a wonderful example of loyalty and fidelity. She leaves behind an important legacy in her work to destigmatize mental health. We join our fellow citizens in sending our condolences to President Carter and their family, Bush said in a statement with former first lady Laura Bush. ___ Advertisement U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia said Carter would be remembered for her compassionate nature and passion for womens rights, human rights and mental health reform. The State of Georgia and the United States are better places because of Rosalynn Carter, Ossoff said in a statement. I join all Georgians and Americans in mourning her loss. May Rosalynn Carters memory be a blessing. ___ Former President Donald Trump said Carter earned the admiration and gratitude of the nation. From her days as a U.S. Navy spouse, to the Georgia Governors Mansion, to her tenure as First Lady of the United States, and her later work at the Carter Center and volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, she leaves behind a legacy of extraordinary accomplishment and national service, Trump said on Truth Social. In a separate statement, former first lady Melania Trump said Carter leaves behind a meaningful legacy. We will always remember her servants heart and devotion to her husband, family, and country. May she rest in peace, Melania Trump said on X, formerly Twitter. ___ Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Carter was a saintly and revered public servant driven by faith, compassion and kindness. On the world stage, First Lady Carter was a pioneer. Her historic, high-stakes diplomatic mission to Latin America in 1977 ushered in a new era of engagement in the region. Two years later, she became the first sitting First Lady to address the World Health Organization, where she argued that mental health was an aspect of physical health and that health is a human right, Pelosi said in a statement offering condolences to the Carter family. ___ Bill and Hillary Clinton called Carter a champion of human dignity. Thanks to her mental health advocacy, more people live with better care and less stigma. Because of her early leadership on childhood immunization, millions of Americans have grown up healthier. And through her decades of work at the Carter Center and with Habitat for Humanity, she spread hope, health, and democracy across the globe, the former president and former secretary of state said in a joint statement. Rosalynn will be forever remembered as the embodiment of a life lived with purpose. Advertisement ___ Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens called Carter the model for the modern day First Lady and praised her work promoting mental health awareness. She never stopped advocating for mental health or the Equal Rights Amendment, Dickens said in a statement. The city of Atlanta joins all of Georgia and mourners around the world as we honor the memory of First Lady Rosalynn Carter. ___ Habitat For Humanity, the Georgia-based charity that the Carters worked for tirelessly, said its members were saddened by the former first ladys passing. She was a compassionate and committed champion of #HabitatforHumanity and worked fiercely to help families around the world, the group said on X. ___ Carters legacy will be a source of pride for her home state, said U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, the chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia. Georgia Democrats join our entire state, nation, and the world in mourning the loss of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter an extraordinary humanitarian, fierce mental health advocate, and beloved daughter of Georgia, Williams said. Advertisement ___ The Carter Center said it was grieving the passing of its co-founder. She was a partner in good deeds with her husband, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, as they traversed the globe to strengthen democracy, resolve conflicts, advance human rights, and eliminate debilitating diseases after their time in the White House, the center said in a statement. In lieu of flowers, Carter requested that those wishing to honor her memory do so through contributions to the Carter Centers Mental Health Program or the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers, the statement said. When I think about my grandpa before he moved in, an image of white hair, brown eyes and the most improper cackle of laughter pops into my head. But after he could no longer live in his southern Idaho home and transitioned to live with my parents in Montana, 500 miles from where he had spent the last 60 years of his life, the image in my mind changes. The mischievous gleam in his eyes evaporated over the year he spent with us and the once ever-present grin appeared only rarely. Instead, his charms were replaced with one heart-breaking and repetitive question: When are you going to take me home? In Oct. 2021, my mother became the primary caregiver for her 99-year-old father. His brain had been broken down by a series of what were described to us as mini strokes or transient ischemic attacks. As a family of health care workers, we had an advantage when confronting dementia care for my grandpa, but still we were not prepared or equipped to be caregivers. Even with abundant financial reserves, the woeful patchwork of support services in Yellowstone County were difficult to access, and we all suffered for it. As the Silent Generation peters out and the youngest of the baby boomers start racking up their senior moments, laymen everywhere are filling in the gaps in Americas long-term care system. In the United States, about 38 million people are caring for their ailing loved ones, providing about $600 billion worth of unpaid services, according to data by AARP. And by 2050 the share of the global population 80 years old and older will more than double. More than one third of family caregivers struggle to coordinate care for their loved ones, according to data from the Family Caregiver Alliance. And women are doing the majority of the caregiving in the U.S., making up about two-thirds of all unpaid caregivers. As the sixth oldest state in the country, Montana has felt the effects of whats nicknamed the silver tsunami more intensely than most other states. But access to senior and long-term care has been dwindling in the years since the pandemic and innovation in senior service work has been slow to develop. Caregiving by a professional or a family member is getting more complicated and solutions that address the aging crisis will need to be multifaceted. Strengthening the workforce with education and benefits that reflect the professionalism the field requires and investment in the community services are the first steps, according to Montanas long-term care leaders. While legislators agreed to make a historic investment in Medicaid earlier this year, which long-term care providers rely on almost exclusively, policies that would have bolstered services for seniors and their caregivers were voted down or vetoed by Gov. Greg Gianforte. Gianforte shrugged off the closure of 11 rural nursing homes in 2022, citing low census and a growing desire among Montanans to age in their homes. The closures affected at least 300 residents, many of whom were forced to move away from their hometowns. The limited access to nursing home beds also increased pressure on a strained home and community-based health system, which providers around the state say will need timely investment in order to successfully transition away from expensive institutionalized care. Start with education Lindsey Klebenow has a strong voice, but theres one question that causes her to put her hand to her heart and tears well up in her eyes. She became the primary caregiver for her husband, 35, after a traumatic brain injury damaged his short-term memory. In the years to come, the injury will make him more susceptible to dementia and other neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinsons. Klebenow doesnt flinch at the mention of this fact. With a masters degree in gerontology and the owner of Heart-to-Heart Home Care in Bozeman, she knows the ins and outs of caregiving better than most. What does scare her is what will happen to her husband if she can no longer care for him. I have to fight for myself. Im fighting for where my husband is going to go if I die in a car accident tomorrow, Klebenow said. He is such a strong and smart human being, but (in a residential facility) theyll over medicate him. For Klebenow, the fight starts with education. There is a significant gap in education for those caring for people with dementia, which stretches across all aging services, Klebenow said. While professional caregivers might receive some training, family caregivers face the challenge with no education at all. For example, a dementia patient only hears and understands every three-to-five words spoken to them due to slow processing of the brain, Klebenow said. Worsening hearing and eyesight that accompanies old age adds another layer of frustration. A lack of understanding from the caregiver can cause the senior to feel misunderstood, depressed and anxious which then leads to negative interactions and behaviors often associated with the disease such as anger, frustration and apathy. Without mitigation, these behaviors are difficult to manage and burnout follows for both professional caregivers and families. In a facility, burnout affects staff retention, quality of care, increases use of psychotropic medications and can lead to low customer satisfaction. For family members, their mental health worsens, feelings of inadequacy increase, relationships may erode, and in some cases, can create an unsafe home environment. Whats missing in memory care today is empathy, Klebenow said. But it can be hard to reach that deep level of understanding when normal reasoning is lost and repetitive questions grade on the nerves. Mom had nowhere to go Being in my early 20s, I had a job and a home of my own to escape to after listening to my grandpas frustrations repeated over and over again. But for my mom, there was nowhere to go, and the irritability between the two mounted. Emotional wounds from the past resurfaced and made the final months we had with him complicated. Its your way or the highway, my grandpa would grumble when mom would explain that he had already had one glass of wine. He didnt remember that he had already sipped down his glass and guessed that mom was gatekeeping one of lifes little pleasures. A glass of wine at the end of a long day was one of the things the two had enjoyed together for years, but when the dementia set in, she eventually had to stop the practice in order to keep things civil. Though little squabbles like this were completely forgotten within 10 minutes, the emotions of those interactions linger, perpetuating bad moods, depression and anxiety for both the carer and the senior, Klebenow said. As his dementia grew worse, it was clear that it takes a diverse skill set to care for a 99-year old man with limited mobility and no short term memory. Lack of infrastructure The workforce shortage and the increasing demand for services means families in Montana are doing more than they have in the past. Their work is valued at $1.76 billion annually, accounting for a $350 million increase from 2021, according to data from Montana AARP. Caregiving plays an essential role in Montanas economy, but the workforce thats needed to arm families with the necessary skills and services is scarce, especially in rural Montana. Low wages and little to no benefits characterize direct care work and fail to reflect the value of the profession, said Margie MacDonald, interim executive director of Big Sky 55+, an advocacy group for seniors. While the investment legislators made in Medicaid earlier this year was used by providers to raise wages for workers, there are many direct care jobs that did not reap the rewards of the increase. With no state licensure for caregivers providing housekeeping, meal prep, socialization and respite, these services arent covered by Medicaid or Medicare. But if seniors receive these supports when its needed, theyre able to stay at home longer and out of expensive institutionalized care. During the 2023 State Legislature, one bill passed by both the Senate and the House would have expanded the state funded Community First Choice program, which makes in-home care support accessible to seniors before they require expensive nursing home care. But the legislation was vetoed by the governor. The struggle we had to address a rapidly deteriorating infrastructure was alarming. There was no proactive planning to move us forward, MacDonald said. Its just not feasible to think that we dont need a strong system of supportive care. With services scattered haphazardly across the state, MacDonald sees a need for a conglomerate of services with one clear access point. No Wrong Door (NWD), presented to legislators in February by ADvancing States, is an initiative that creates a roadmap for developing a one-stop resource and access point for long-term services and supports. The organization awards grant money to implement the program, but its up to state agencies, like the states unit on Aging Services, to build up the infrastructure and train their employees. Nationally, about one third of families struggle to coordinate care for their loved one, according to data from the National Alliance for Domestic Workers. The NWD system aims to coordinate disparate long-term care services through various state and local agencies. This is an investment that pays for itself by effectively diverting people before they land in high acuity services, MacDonald said. We struggled to find support In my familys caregiving experience, I often think about what we could have done differently to make the last year of my grandpas life happier. But between the emotional toll it took on all of us and the difficulty of accessing things like respite care, I think we did the best we could. On the few occasions we managed to find an agency caregiver to sit with my grandpa while my mom attended the painting class that connected her to the outside world, a different worker would arrive at our door every time. We never had the chance to build trust before leaving them alone in our house with our loved one. The last time we had a caregiver come in, my grandpa nearly called the police because there was a stranger in the house. We had never had this happen with other caregivers. We still dont know what circumstances caused my grandpa so much agitation, but the experience rattled us. The lack of licensure for home care providers means these workers are rarely vetted and low wages fail to reflect the professionalism the job requires. Before my grandpa moved to Montana, we managed to find a live-in caregiver, which allowed my grandpa to stay in his own home for a while longer. However, the arrangement with the caregiver grew more strained with every month, eventually culminating in a bout of road rage that led her to assault another driver. When the cops arrived at my grandpas house, her employment with us ended abruptly. Building up The dearth of elder care choices have caused 16% women, particularly women of color, to leave their jobs and 13% of women caregivers retired early in order to take care of an elder, according to the Family Caregiver Alliance. The study also found that 29% of women caregivers passed up a job promotion, 33% decreased work hours, 22% took a leave of absence. Between the loss of income and, in some cases, the loss of employer funded health insurance, the financial strain is significant. Following the closure of 11 nursing homes in Montana, taxpayers should expect to see a rebalancing of Medicaid funding, said Mike Batista, government affairs director for Montana AARP. The bulk of Medicaid money goes to nursing homes. But now I hope that we see a repurposing of that money toward things that could be useful, Batista said. We need to look at the needs of the community. National AARP officials are considering ways to compensate family caregivers for their services and find ways to direct health insurance benefits to them. For agency caregivers or caregivers in nursing homes, if the company offers health insurance, they could receive increased Medicaid reimbursement, Batista said. We need to ask our lawmakers, where do you see opportunities to support family caregivers, Batista said. We need to recognize that family caregivers need help and support. We just cant wait any longer. The Area Agencies on Aging, the outcome of the 1965 Older Americans Act, created a structure at the federal, state and local level to disperse funding and develop programs for the nations elderly. Montanas 56 counties are split into 10 Area Agencies on Aging, each of which has unique partnerships with the services in their respective regions. Batista suggested expanding these services, which would also be an excellent touchstone for implementing the No Wrong Door system recommended by MacDonald with Big Sky 55+. My parents have contributed so much not only to their family but to their community. And we havent made (aging) a priority, Batista said. We need to recognize we need to make a commitment to them. We need to get some traction on this issue. I wouldnt trade it While our experience caring for my grandpa was far from perfect and would have been greatly improved with more support, I dont think any of us would trade the time that we had with him before his death. Data shows that caring for a family member comes with a great sense of fulfillment. And from personal experience, I would have to agree. It was much better to have him home with us where we could comfort him, laugh with him and talk about the distant memories that seemed to have taken better hold than the more recent ones. In those moments I knew he was his same old self, no matter how badly his body betrayed him. And I wouldnt trade those little reminders for anything. Every time I left the house that year, I would tell my grandpa I loved him. And every time, he'd smirk at me as if he thought it was ridiculous for us to remind each other of our love all the time. But then hed take my hand, squeezing it with whatever strength he could muster and say I love you too, honey, you know that. As the 2023 harvest winds down, its a good time to examine efforts being made in Napas wine industry to reduce climate impact and adopt sustainable practices. Napa Green is the powerhouse nonprofit that has defined sustainability standards for wineries and vineyards. The winery certification process includes consulting services and informational resources to help wineries reduce greenhouse gas emissions by increasing water and energy efficiency, prevent waste, and commit to social equity. There are 88 certified wineries that saved over 15 million kilowatts of electricity and over $5 million in energy costs over the last five years. The vineyard certification provides a pathway for growers to become carbon neutral to negative within 6-9 years by implementing a Carbon Farm Plan, and requires social equity standards. Ben Mackie, Program Manager, describes the benefits of working with a Carbon Farm Plan: Increasing the health of the soil and the vine results in the fruit being more resilient to the rollercoaster of seasonal variations: less affected by smoke taint (2020), less susceptible to desiccation in high heat events (2022) and able to sustain quality during a longer hang-time for ripening (2023). Clif Family Winery and Farm in St. Helena was one of the first to complete the vineyard certification. They have followed a sustainable creed since their inception as a family farm in Pope Valley in 1997. I asked Clif Family President Linzi Gay to explain their approach. Our co-founders, Kit Crawford and Gary Erickson, employed a five aspirations business model in their Clif Bar businessto benefitour employees, the planet, our community, our business, and our brands. We adopted this from the early days of the winery Our internal sustainability mantra is Think like a tree, act like a forest. Trees conserve and restore the places they grow. A forest of trees creates even more impact. We work on sustainability as a business but also encourage a community network of sustainability. Clif Family acreage has always been farmed organically. A huge value of the Napa Green Vineyard certification was that the Napa Green team was able to collect and analyze data from our properties and create a Carbon Farm Plan for us that gave us a baseline from which to move forward, Gay explained. This has become a central part of our environmental management systems plan. Weve been able to include our production partners in our sustainability efforts. For example, theprocess required us to work with our vineyard management partner, Wight Vineyard Management, to make sure that they were able to meet the enhanced employee safety and training requirements, which they were. Our wines are made at Materra Winery, a Napa Green certified facility, under the direction of our winemaker, Laura Barrett. Materra was happy to become an MCE Deep Green customer (purchasing 100% renewable electricity) at our suggestion. In April of 2022, Clif Family became a certified B Corp. This certification measures a companys social and environmental impact with the goal of using businesses to benefit all. Gay explained that B Corp certification provides transparency about climate actions and stimulates sharing information with the worldwide B Corp community. Clif Family uses sheep grazing to replace springtime tractor tilling at all their vineyard properties and for fire fuel mitigation at the Pope Valley farmstead. Gay pointed out, This also reduces emission from tractor passes. We are currently assessing electrifying everything that we use including tractors. And, of course, we use battery-powered leaf blowers. Clif Familys Bruschetteria food truck, which uses organic produce from the Clif Family farm, has earned an Earth Friendly Eatery decal from Napa Climate NOW! by eliminating waste from single-use plastic take-away items. Gay sums it up: When it comes to sustainability, its a journey of continuous improvement. Were never going to rest on our laurels. Actions You Can Take Learn more about Napa Green wineries and vineyards at https://napagreen.org/. Visit the Clif Family Tasting Room and Bruschetteria Food Truck at 709 Main Street, St. Helena. Armenia economy minister on cars customs clearance fees: We will have internal discussions with EAEU Armenia president attends COP 28 opening ceremony Defense minister meets with head of EU delegation to Armenia (PHOTOS) Armenia Security Council chief to travel to US Armenia was informed about antiterrorist measures in Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan FM claims Ambassador Kvien: US proud to work with Armenian counterparts to preserve Armenias cultural heritage PM lauds Romania role in deploying EU civilian monitoring mission in Armenia Porsche holds 3rd generation Panamera world premiere Hamas violated ceasefire, Israel says US dissatisfied with Turkey Newspaper: Armenia national air carrier suspending flights Archaeologists to soon reveal Great Pyramid of Gizas main secret Fast & Furious 9 movie producers fined $1M Armenia, mediators are to blame for military aggression against Karabakh Armenians, Azerbaijan FM claims Armenia did not participate in the meeting of representatives of the CSTO member states The OSCE Chairmanship supports the dialog aimed at concluding a peace treaty between Baku and Yerevan We need Azerbaijan to stop rejecting proposals of facilitators to meet and finalize the peace treaty. Ararat Mirzoyan Representatives of CSTO member states met in Northern Macedonia Nassim Taleb: Painful that Mt. Ararat is in Turkey, Armenia is having territorial reductions Nassim Taleb predicts 3 major global risks: pandemic, financial collapse, rising debt Armenian captive Gagik Voskanyan not brought to court, Azerbaijan media report Mirzoyan to Colomina: Azerbaijan public position on territorial integrity mutual recognition is of paramount necessity Lavrov: Russia ready to contribute to normalization of Armenia-Azerbaijan relations Mirzoyan presents to Lavrov Armenia positions regarding Russia steps Ararat Mirzoyan, Javier Colomina discuss Armenia-NATO partnership Kremlin: Russia considers Armenia an ally France envoy to Armenia: Karabakh refugees have the right to return to their homes Armenia-Azerbaijan border delimitation commissions 5th meeting held at border Poland First Lady arrives in Armenia The PM, no longer the president, to appoint and dismiss Armenia National Security Service director and deputies Armenia president travels to Dubai for UN Climate Change Conference Armenia, Azerbaijan FMs meeting not planned in North Macedonia International law expert: Torture, inhumane treatment of Armenian detainees continues in Azerbaijan US deputy assistant secretary of state for education, cultural Affairs is in Armenia FM to France official: Armenia sent recommendations package to Azerbaijan to move settlement process forward (PHOTOS) Monument Watch: Azerbaijan propaganda machine circulates new theory Armenia FM, EU foreign policy chief confer about South Caucasus security Maragos: There is move towards situation stabilization on the ground ever since EU mission deployment in Armenia EU ambassador: Armenia citizens largely benefit from Visa Facilitation agreement Armenia, Azerbaijan border delimitation state commissions meeting kicks off Ambassador Maragos: EU hopes Armenia, Azerbaijan will come to some understanding during border delimitation talks Yerevan hosting international conference on Armenian communities of Middle East Ararat Mirzoyan, David Cameron speak about South Caucasus developments Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger dies aged 100 Towards a Brighter Tomorrow: India's G20 Presidency and the Dawn of a New Multilateralism Newspaper: Armenia, Azerbaijan deputy PMs to meet today in Tavush Province Mirzoyan, Blinken discuss South Caucasus security, stability Ararat Mirzoyan underscores Netherlands support to Armenia sovereignty EU reiterates support to Armenia-Azerbaijan relations normalization based on 1991 Almaty Declaration Deputy PM Mher Grigoryan stresses EU programs strategic importance for Armenia Envoy presents vision of Armenias Crossroads of Peace project to Greece lawmaker Armenia, Georgia security councils chiefs discuss regional security, stability (PHOTOS) Another judicial farce to begin in Azerbaijan against another Armenian Opposition MP: Armenia will face serious economic problems next year Karabakh ex-official says he does not consider signing Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty possible at this phase Dollar, euro go up in Armenia Armenia premier meets with big businessman from Egypt Armenia economy minister: Situation at Upper Lars checkpoint is strange EU Special Representative for South Caucasus discusses peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Turkey Amazon Web Services representative to Armenia PM: We are in active discussions with high-tech ministry The banks should help the customers in making right decisions when managing their own funds. Saribek Sukiasyan Armenia FM to attend OSCE Ministerial Council Armenia-UK 6th strategic defense consultations held in London (PHOTOS) Gagik Aghajanyan: Upper Lars border checkpoint closure means Armenia-Russia relations termination Vahan Kerobyan: Armenia, Russia representatives will discuss situation at Upper Lars border checkpoint Kremlin: Currently no plans for Russia President-Armenia PM contacts Freight-forwarding company director: Yerevan is 2nd largest cargo-container hub in South Caucasus Armenia, Azerbaijan deputy PMs meeting to be held in Tavush-Kazakh sector of border, media report Russia MFA pays attention to dispute over Armenian Gardens in Jerusalem Armenia parliament speaker: I tried to grasp who these people are who dont want to live side by side with Azerbaijanis Media: South Caucasus to be discussed at Turkey security council Karabakh former official Samvel Babayan speaks about negotiating with Azerbaijan Karabakh ex-official: Artsakh issue cannot be resolved at any time Japan space agency hit with cyberattack Saudi Arabia capital Riyadh wins right to host Expo 2030 world fair Newspaper: Armenia ruling force MP ready to live in Azerbaijan if his safety is ensured World's largest iceberg moves, leaves Antarctica after nearly 40 years of 'rest' Armenian-made satellite to be launched into space on Friday Armenia MFA: Azerbaijan continues blocking matter of sending UNESCO mission to Karabakh Turkey deputy FM, Toivo Klaar discuss South Caucasus, media report Armenia deputy PM receives World Bank regional director Dollar, euro drop Armenia Cyprus to host 30 children forcibly displaced from Karabakh, for 12 days of entertainment "Gyumri" branch of AMIO BANK was reopened under a new brand (PHOTOS) Alen Simonyan: Armenia should attend EAEU summit in St. Petersburg Armenia legislature head: Karabakh issue was resolved in 2016 PM Nikol Pashinyan receives delegation led by head of the Lithuania-Armenia interparliamentary friendship group Some Armenia trucks sent back from Upper Lars checkpoint on Georgia-Russia border National Assembly speaker: Nagorno-Karabakh issue does not exist for Armenia Alen Simonyan: No agreement on new meeting between Armenia, Azerbaijan leaders Armenia legislature speaker: Peace agreement can be signed within next 15 days if Azerbaijan shows political will Armenia legislature head: Our political relations with Russia are bit tense Irakli Garibashvili to Armenia PM staff chief: Georgia ready to assist peace process in region Armenia parliament chair: We are ready to return Azerbaijanis enclaves to them Amaryan Charitable Foundation Commits initial 122 mln AMD in Support to Syunik Region Armenia National Assembly speaker: We have 31 villages whose territories are under Azerbaijan occupation Embassies to be opened in Armenia, S. Korea on reciprocity basis Armenia legislature head: I don't understand what Azerbaijan delaying time will give it or to the region Alen Simonyan: Azerbaijan attempts to erase Armenian trace from Armenian highlands are unacceptable How did Cyprus company that bought MTS Armenia shares gain Public Services Regulatory Commissions trust? 17:06 Whatever is required to save the 41 trapped workers will be done and keeping the morale of workers and their family members high should be everyone's collective responsibility, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Sunday as he reviewed the rescue operation at the partially collapsed Silkyara tunnel. The minister for road transport and highways, who was accompanied by Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, said the rescue operation is challenging as the soil strata in the Himalayan region is not uniform. It is soft at some places and hard at other places which makes any mechanical operation difficult, he said. Horizontal drilling with the American auger is the quickest method in the given circumstances to reach the trapped workers, Gadkari said. "American auger was working alright when it was drilling through soft soil. It faced some problems after it encountered some hard obstacle that led to the machine applying greater pressure and creating vibrations following which it was stopped for safety reasons," he said at a press conference in Silkyara. "We are working on six options simultaneously. The PMO is also closely monitoring the operation. Our biggest priority is to save all those who are trapped and as soon as possible. Whatever is needed will be done," he said. Whichever machine or technical assistance is required will be provided, he said. "Keeping up the morale of the trapped workers and their family members should be everyone's collective responsibility at the moment," he said. He said the trapped workers are being constantly provided oxygen, electricity, food, water and medicines. Apart from one pipeline through which they were supplied food earlier, an alternative larger-diametre pipeline has also been inserted up to 42 metres through the rubble so that food like roti, vegetables and rice apart from light food could also be supplied to them, he said, Road, Transport and Highways Secretary Anurag Jain also said that multivitamins, antidepressants and dry fruits are being provided to the 41 workers trapped for the past seven days. "Fortunately, there is light inside because the electricity is on. There is a pipeline, and thus water is available. There is a 4-inch pipe, which was used for compression. Through that, we are sending food from day 1," he said. Jain, in a video brief update on the rescue operation, further said there is water and electricity in two km portion inside the tunnel, which is the finished part of the 4.531-kilometre two lane bi-directional tunnel at Silkyara in Uttarkashi. Experts from different fields have been pooled in and asked to suggest whatever methods can be applied to ensure the safe and early evacuation of the trapped workers, Gadkari said. Preparations are on to start vertical drilling through the hill above the tunnel, he said, adding every possible method is being tried for their speedy evacuation. Gadkari said tunnels at a cost of approximately Rs 2.75 lakh crore are being built by the Centre in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. -- PTI Egypt, France call for "urgent solutions" to Gaza conflict Xinhua) 09:31, November 19, 2023 CAIRO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron stressed on Saturday the need for finding "urgent solutions" to the ongoing crisis in the war-torn Gaza Strip. During a phone conversation, the two presidents exchanged views on the latest developments regarding the military escalation in the Palestinian enclave, the Egyptian Presidency said in a statement. The two leaders agreed on the importance of finding urgent solutions to the ongoing crisis and taking action to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid into the besieged Gaza Strip, the statement said. They also emphasized the importance of starting a comprehensive political process with the aim of reaching a just settlement for the Palestinian issue on the basis of the two-state solution. Sisi stressed the necessity of an immediate ceasefire and the expansion of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. Israel has been carrying out an all-out attack on Gaza to retaliate against the Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages. According to Gaza's government media office, the Palestinian death toll in the enclave has exceeded 12,000 since the start of the conflict. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) One teenager is dead and two others were injured in separate shootings overnight, Chicago police said. A 16-year-old boy was shot and killed Saturday at about 8:34 p.m. in the Austin neighborhood. The Cook County medical examiners office identified the boy as Leontaye Taylor and ruled his death a homicide. Advertisement Police said Taylor got into a physical altercation with a 33-year-old man who fired shots at him. Taylor sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his chest and was pronounced dead at his home in the 100 block of North Parkside Avenue. A witness told officers that the man fled the residence with a handgun before they arrived, police said. Advertisement At 1:08 a.m. Sunday, a 14-year-old boy was transported to Mt. Sinai Hospital after being shot multiple times. Police said the boy was uncooperative with details regarding the shooting, including where it took place. The boys condition was unknown, police said. About 40 minutes later, a man shot a 17-year-old boy in the elbow while he was walking in the 3500 block of West 25th Street in Little Village. The man fled in a silver vehicle, police said. The boy was transported to Mt. Sinai Hospital in good condition, police said. No suspects were in custody in any of the shootings and police are investigating. rjohnson@chicagotribune.com Taking to X, the Israeli PMO said, "Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran's guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia." It also shared, "Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican. No Israelis are onboard." Condemning the hijack, it said, "This is another act of Iranian terrorism and constitutes a leap forward in Iran's aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes." Israel Defence Force (IDF) said that the ship was sailing from Turkey to India with an international civilian crew, without any Israelis aboard and added, "This is not an Israeli ship," The Times of Israel reported. (ANI) People sing during a community solidarity gathering for Israel hosted by the Jewish United Fund of Chicago on Oct. 10, 2023, outside North Shore Congregation Israel in Glencoe. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune) At the first reports of a massacre of Israeli civilians, I shuddered, fearing the worst was yet to come. Sadly, I was right. Before sundown on Oct. 7, Israel was being blamed for Hamas killings, mutilations and kidnappings of Israeli civilians. As a historian, I know only too well the common denominator of thousands of years of my peoples experience: Jews are blamed for whatever calamity humanity suffers. That is true even when Jews are the victims. Advertisement Eighty-five years ago, Nazi mobs and ordinary citizens sacked Jewish stores in a frenzy that became known as Kristallnacht, the night of broken glass. It foretold the gas chambers of the Holocaust. The morning after Kristallnacht, Germanys streets were swept clean of the glass and debris, and the Jews had to reimburse the government for the cost of the cleanup. The animus stretches back further. During the Black Death in the 14th century, Jews were said to have caused the plague by poisoning wells. Adolf Hitler stirred up long-standing prejudice by preaching that Germany lost World War I because Jews sold out their country. Currently, pundits and talking heads are saying that Israel is out to destroy the Palestinians hope for a state of their own. But history is more complex than the story that comes out of a megaphone. Advertisement On the day of Israels birth in 1948, an Arab neighbor made absolutely clear its intention to destroy the Jewish state. All across the Middle East and North Africa, Arabs wildly celebrated the prospect. An Egyptian army set out on a coastal road leading to Tel Aviv, Israels capital. Its commander radioed Cairo that hed soon be there. Hed put an end to this Jewish trespasser on the domain of Islam. But just north of a city named Gaza, the Egyptians were stopped by residents of a kibbutz. Their handful of small arms were left at the trench they defended so future generations would know where Israel won the right to life. [ Rabbi Seth M. Limmer: Will Americans see a Kristallnacht happen here? ] Some mornings, I read newspapers hoping to see the term Gaza strip explained. It is an unusual name for a battlefield. Yet its story isnt forthcoming. What I do see is self-righteous posturing that triggers my memories of painful chapters in Jewish history. When French President Emmanuel Macron insists that Israel stop killing women and children, my minds eye sees the Jews expelled from France in 1182. A contemporary chronicler explained that King Philip II heard: The Jews who dwelled in Paris were wont every year on Easter Day, or during the sacred week of the Lords passion, to go secretly down to underground vaults and kill a Christian. When peaceful counterprotesters were arrested at an anti-Israel march in London, I recalled King Edward Is 1290 banishment of Englands Jews. Lets be clear about todays antisemitism. It imposes a heavier burden on my children than I experienced in my youth. My walk to grade school passed a two-flat. During Israels War of Independence, gentile boys would gather there to sing, in faux Jewish accents: Sons of Hymn and Abbie Join the Jewish Navy Advertisement Fight, fight, fight for Palestine. But I could say to myself: Ill be leaving these louts behind. Im going to college. Today, college can become a stage for antisemitism. Chicago Tribune Opinion Weekdays Read the latest editorials and commentary curated by the Tribune Opinion team. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy > A granddaughter of mine is a student at the University of Maryland. Despite its significant Jewish enrollment or, perhaps, because of it an enormous image projected on a building there advertised: HOLOCAUST 2.0. To her, the Holocaust is more than an abstract concept. She knows that she is alive because Im alive, and Im alive because my maternal great-grandmother sent my grandfather from Poland to Chicago. She somehow sensed the Holocaust was coming. She did the same with the rest of her children, all when they were scarcely teenagers. She was murdered in the Treblinka extermination camp. There wasnt an Israel where she could find refuge. My share of her descendants are social activists. One carried a picket sign while holding a baby. Another chose to teach in Oaklands public schools because children born into poverty need a young, enthusiastic teacher, she felt. Now my children are vilified as colonialists by some they marched with, for not becoming anti-Israel. My own mind is a virtual split screen. On one, I see the bloodshed in Gaza. Advertisement On the other, theres a ghostly procession: I see myself heckled by Jew-hating teenagers, and I see a handful of kibbutzniks keeping Israel from being stillborn. I see my ancestors exiled from England, France and Spain. I see the king of France and others saying that it had to done because Jews thirst for Christian blood. I hear my grandfather sobbing at the news of his mothers murder in Treblinka. And I see her, my great-grandmother, Miriam Komenovich. Without her wisdom, I wouldnt be here writing this story. Ron Grossman is a Tribune reporter. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com. Former US First Lady as well as mental health activist Rosalynn Carter passed away at the age of 96, CNN reported, citing the Carter Centre, on Sunday. According to the Carter Centre, Rosalynn worked tirelessly for reforms regarding mental health and professionalised the role of the US president's spouse. "Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished," her husband, former US President Jimmy Carter, said in a statement, as per CNN. "She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me," he said. The Carters, the longest-married US presidential couple, celebrated their 77th wedding anniversary in July. Rosalynn Carter, a humanitarian and mental health advocate, co-founded the Carter Centre with her husband in his post-presidency to advance world peace and health. Together, they travelled to hotspots worldwide, including visits to Cuba, Sudan, and North Korea, monitoring elections and working to eradicate Guinea worm disease and other neglected tropical diseases. Jimmy Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. As a significant and influential figure in the White House during her husband's presidency from 1977 to 1981, Rosalynn Carter played a key role in helping restore the nation's trust in the presidency following the Watergate scandal, according to CNN. The former first lady Rosalynn Carter had entered hospice care at home in Plains, Georgia, CNN reported, citing the Carter Centre recently. In a statement released by the Centre, Jason Carter, the Carters' grandson, said, ""She and (former) President Carter are spending time with each other and their family. The Carter family continues to ask for privacy and remains grateful for the outpouring of love and support." In May, the Centre announced that the former first lady was diagnosed with dementia. Other details about the 96-year-old's health were not immediately provided on Friday. Former President Jimmy Carter, 99, began home hospice care in February after a series of short hospital stays. (ANI) PORTER TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) A man is in the hospital after a Sunday morning crash in Porter Township. Around 5:20 a.m., deputies with the Cass County Sheriffs Office were sent to the intersection of Lewis Lake Road and Hodgson Street for a crash. Responding deputies learned that 19-year-old Caiden Adams of Colon lost control of his southbound vehicle and hit a tree. The vehicle then caught on fire. Adams was taken to the hospital with injuries that are not considered life-threatening, the sheriffs office said. Deputies said alcohol and drugs are suspected to be a factor in the crash. This embedded content is not available in your region. The crash remains under investigation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Vehicles use the 10 Freeway as it reopens in downtown L.A. after weeklong closure on Monday. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times) A crucial stretch of the 10 Freeway south of downtown Los Angeles reopened Sunday night, earlier than previously expected and weeks ahead of original projections. Traffic started flowing on the freeway at around 7 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol. The mile-long section of freeway between Alameda Street and Santa Fe Avenue had been closed for more than a week, since a massive pallet fire broke out below it Nov. 11. About 300,000 vehicles use the freeway corridor daily. California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks alongside Vice President Kamala Harris, left, and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Sunday about the 10 Freeway, which was closed by an underpass fire Nov. 11. (Alex Gallardo / Associated Press) Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass stressed that it was the urgent action and collaboration of local, state and federal officials and construction crews that made it possible to get the freeway open so quickly. Repair crews have worked around the clock since the fire. "This is a great day in our city," Bass said Sunday. "Let me thank everyone who worked 24 hours to make this effort happen." Bass was joined on the deck of the freeway for a news conference Sunday morning by Newsom, Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). The closure did not cause widespread gridlock across the city's freeway system, but it did snarl traffic in parts of the city and created longer-than-normal commutes for hundreds of thousands of Angelenos. Preliminary data from transportation officials also suggested that the closure prompted more Angelenos to take public transit, heeding calls from local officials. "Thanks to the heroic work of Caltrans and union construction crews and with help from our partners from the Mayor's office to the White House the 10's expedited repair is proof and a point of pride that here in California, we deliver," Newsom said in an earlier statement. Read more: 'Go faster. The political heat is on.' Inside the race to fix the 10 Freeway in L.A. In the immediate aftermath of the fire, there had been fears that the damaged section of freeway might have to be demolished and replaced, potentially putting it out of commission for a far longer duration. But within days, it became clear that the impaired section could, in fact, be repaired, and Newsom announced Tuesday that the freeway would reopen in three to five weeks. Construction was underway Sunday below a stretch of the 10 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles. (Alex Gallardo/AP) An all-hands-on-deck scramble toward a more ambitious target paid off, with Newsom telling reporters last week that all lanes in both directions would be open to traffic by this coming Tuesday at the latest. Then, even that projection was bested with reopening of lanes on Sunday evening well ahead of the holiday weekend. At Sunday morning's news conference, Harris said, "To all Angelenos, I would just say this, tomorrow the commute is back on. Happy Thanksgiving, everybody." The fire is being investigated as an arson. The California Office of the State Fire Marshal on Saturday released a photo and description of a person of interest in connection with the fire. The California Department of Transportation has long been aware of conditions under the freeway, where small businesses stored supplies including flammable wood pallets. Caltrans inspectors were on site as recently as Oct. 6, according to state officials, tenants and a lawyer for the company leasing the land. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. The 10 Freeway through downtown Los Angeles, once thought to be so badly damaged by fire that it would need to be demolished, will instead reopen by Monday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced at a news conference Sunday morning. Newsom was joined by Vice President Kamala Harris, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass to provide an update on the repair efforts. This thing opens tonight, he said. It will be fully operational tomorrow [and] ready for the commute. Structural integrity assessment results indicated that the damage to the freeway was not as bad as originally thought, allowing officials to announce that the restoration process could be completed within three to five weeks. WATCH: Vice President Kamala Harris provides update on 10 Freeway fire response alongside Gov. Gavin Newsom, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass When all is said and done, the restoration process will be completed eight days ahead of schedule, Newsom said. Mayor Bass confirmed on social media that the 10 is going to be safe to drive on on Monday due to urgent action and collaboration at all levels of government. Vice President Harris, a California native, praised local and state officials as well as crews who worked around the clock to fix the freeway. 10 Freeway Fire: Crews completely clear hazardous materials 2 days ahead of schedule The work that happened here is extraordinary, Harris said. And it really is a function of the will and the ambition of the workers on the ground who understood what closure of the 10 would mean for folks on a daily basis. We could give the fancy speeches all day long, she continued. But we are able to stand here and do this because they did this work on the ground. United States Senator Alex Padilla confirmed that the repairs would be covered by federal funding provided by a bipartisan infrastructure bill. We dont have the specific final price tag on this, Senator Padilla said. [It] may be a little bit more [or] a little bit less than three million dollars. The blaze initially broke out around 12:30 a.m. on Nov. 11 in a storage yard near East 14th and Alameda streets in downtown Los Angeles. Flames eventually engulfed both sides of 14th Street underneath the 10, and the heat was so intense that it melted some of the freeways steel guardrails, Los Angeles Fire Department officials said. Flames seen erupting on the 10 Freeway near downtown L.A. on Nov. 11, 2023. (OnSceneTV) Flames seen erupting on the 10 Freeway near downtown L.A. on Nov. 11, 2023. (OnSceneTV) A large storage fire closed part of the 10 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday Nov. 11, 2023. (RMGNews) A large pallet fire closed part of the 10 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles early Saturday morning. (RMGNews) Initially, officials were concerned that the freeway had sustained structural damage that would require potentially months of repair work. But as engineers looked more closely, it became clear that the worst-case scenario -a demolition and rebuild- would not be necessary. The site is owned by Caltrans as part of their Airspace and Telecommunications Licensing program, which is responsible for leasing and managing those properties or sites held for a transportation purpose that can safely accommodate a secondary use, according to their website. Newsom confirmed that the fire was set with malice intent last Monday, saying that the fire burned within the propertys fence line and appeared to be an act of arson. The freeway closure has affected thousands of Angelenos, who have been advised to take public transit; several train and bus routes have been discounted and sped up or had lines added to them in wake of the closure. The scene of the fire that seriously damaged the 10 Freeway through Los Angeles. Nov. 13, 2023. (KTLA) This photo provided by the California Department of Transportation shows the damage of columns from an intense fire under Interstate 10 that severely damaged the overpass in an industrial zone near downtown Los Angeles, Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023. Authorities say firefighters have mostly extinguished a large blaze that burned trailers, cars and other things in storage lots beneath a major highway near downtown Los Angeles, forcing the temporary closure of the roadway. (Caltrans District 7 via AP) The aftermath of a large fire that destroyed part of the 10 Freeway in Los Angeles on Nov. 11, 2023. The aftermath of a large fire that destroyed part of the 10 Freeway in Los Angeles on Nov. 11, 2023. On Saturday, authorities released photos and a description of a person of interest sought in connection with the fire. Anyone with information is urged to call the CalFire Arson Hotline at 1-800-468-4408. Information can also be submitted to the Arson and Bomb Unit by emailing arsonbomb@fire.ca.gov The press conference can be viewed in the video player. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. UPDATE: The I-15 reopened around 3:40 p.m. Sunday. Drivers are still advised to use caution as traffic moves slowly. LAS VEGAS (KLAS) The I-15 near the California-Nevada border was closed due to a major dust storm, according to RTC Southern Nevada. The National Weather Service extended that dust storm warning on Sunday to southwest Clark County including I-15 near Primm until 4:30 p.m. NWS said visibility will be near zero at times. The I-15 southbound was closed at Primm and major backups could be seen Sunday afternoon. The I-15 reopened around 3:40 p.m., according to RTC. Harry Reid airport also saw delays Sunday due to strong winds. Drivers are advised to use extreme caution while traveling along the interstate Sunday. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS. Two people are facing charges for allegedly shooting a Red-Tailed Hawk. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] The Georgia Department of Natural Resources said Sunday morning Corp. Johnny Robinette and Sgt. Jon Penuel was checking a duck shoot in Berrien County. While checking the duck shoot, Robineette and Penuel saw two people shoot a Red-tailed Hawk and a songbird, officials said. TRENDING STORIES: Georgia law prohibits the killing, possession, sale, and transporting of eagles, hawks and other migratory birds except for the transportation of feathers into the state of non-migratory birds for millinery purposes. The University of Georgias Museum of Natural History states that the Red-tailed Hawk can be spotted year-round throughout Georgia where suitable habitat is present. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] The two suspects, who were not identified, were charged with taking protected species. DNR said the hawk was seized as evidence. Berrien County is about 205 miles from Atlanta. IN OTHER NEWS: ANOKA COUNTY, Minn. (FOX 9) - Law enforcement is investigating two separate fatal crashes reported in Anoka County. According to the Anoka County Sheriffs Office, the first crash occurred in the City of Nowthen shortly before 8 p.m. on Friday. A man driving a minivan near the 22700 block of Jarvis Street Northwest crashed into a large piece of equipment being towed by a pickup truck. The minivan driver was pronounced dead at the scene, while a woman and two juveniles in the vehicle were transported to the hospital with unspecified injuries. The pickup driver was uninjured. Hours later, around 2:35 a.m. on Saturday in Lino Lakes, law enforcement said the driver of a Subaru was getting on an entrance ramp for Interstate-35E at a high rate of speed and left the pavement. The vehicle went down an embankment and hit a culvert, causing it to roll several times before coming to rest on its roof in the center median. The 20-year-old driver from Vadnais Heights was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the State Patrols crash report. The sheriffs office did not release further details about the victims or circumstances of the crashes. Both incidents remain under investigation. According to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, crashes have claimed at least 347 lives so far this year. MEMPHIS, Tenn. Memphis Police say a teenage girl and a woman are dead, and another teen girl is seriously injured after a shooting in southwest Memphis. Police responded to a shooting on Field Lark Drive at around 5:43 p.m. Saturday evening. Officers reportedly found a 13-year-old girl and a woman dead on the scene. Reports say a 15-year-old girl went to the hospital in critical condition. Woman found shot to death in southeast Memphis According to police, preliminary information suggests that this shooting was the result of domestic violence. Memphis Police say the suspect is related to the victims. The suspect reportedly fled the scene in a white 2017 Chevrolet Malibu with a Tennessee tag reading 390-BHTM. If you have any information about this incident, call CrimeStoppers at 901-528-CASH. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. Update: All eastbound lanes of Interstate 40 at the South Miami Boulevard exit have reopened Sunday following an early morning pickup truck accident that killed the driver, Durham police said. It is one of two fatal crashes that happened early Sunday morning in the Triangle. In Raleigh, an accident on Capital Boulevard at about 2 a.m. left one dead and another injured, Raleigh police said. The second person has been hospitalized. The other deadly wreck happened in Durham, where police said at about 12:45 a.m., Hector Reyna Gutierrez, 45, of Raleigh, veered off I-40 East near Page Road. He struck a concrete beam and support beams for an overhead highway sign and died at the scene. Due to this crash, the eastbound lanes of I-40 between the Page Road and Miami Boulevard exits remain closed and are not expected to reopen for several more hours, Durham police said in a news release. All traffic is being diverted onto South Miami Blvd. Durham police asked that anyone with information call Investigator J.D. Colquitt at 919-560-4935 ext. 29450. President Harry Truman, left, receives an ornate bronze menorah as a 67th birthday gift from David Ben-Gurion, prime minister of Israel, who called on the chief executive to discuss peace and economic development in the Middle East, on May 8, 1951. Ben-Gurion said the menorah was made in 1767. (Henry Griffin/AP) President Harry Truman was fond of referring to State Department employees derisively as the striped pants boys. That antagonism was sometimes mutual, as was the case in May 1948, when Truman granted de facto American recognition of the newly established state of Israel. This was done to the chagrin of many in the State Department, where anti-Zionist sentiment was rampant. Indeed, according to Truman biographer David McCullough, tensions between the White House and the State Department grew extremely fraught during this period. White House officials were accusing career State Department employees of antisemitism, while the State Department believed the White House was more concerned with domestic political considerations i.e., the Jewish vote. Advertisement In the end, Trumans prerogative as president won out. As he would later write, The problem with many career officials in government is that they regard themselves as the men who really run the government. Truman continued: I wanted to make it plain that the President of the United States, and not a second or third echelon in the State Department, is responsible for making policy. Josh Paul, former director of the Office of Congressional and Public Affairs in the the State Department's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, speaks in Washington on Nov. 15, 2023. (Stefani Reynolds/Getty-AFP) Seventy-five years later, tensions between State Department employees and the White House are again threatening to boil over and once again, it is over the Jewish state. Last month, an 11-year veteran at the State Department, Josh Paul, publicly resigned over the Biden administrations policy of standing in solidarity with Israel. In a scathing resignation letter, Paul denounced the administration for its blind support for the Israelis over Palestinians. Advertisement That was just the opening salvo. This week, news broke that dozens of State Department employees have been circulating internal memos to Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. This isnt just yelling into the void. Blinken has met in person with at least some of these signatories, which might be a tacit admission that the problem wont fizzle out on its own. Such developments threaten to undermine President Joe Bidens strong stance in defense of Israel. In the wake of the Hamas terror attacks of Oct. 7, the president responded resolutely by sending an American aircraft carrier to the region and boldly reaffirming U.S. support for Israel. More recently, however, that support seems to come with more and more caveats. In private conversations with their Israeli counterparts, American officials are warning that Israel is running out of time before support erodes for its military operations. Publicly, Biden has urged Israel to avoid civilian casualties, which, of course, Israel already understands is crucial to retaining international support. This past week, the president observed that Gazas hospitals must be protected, even as the Israeli military was battling Hamas militants outside the al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, which sits atop one of Hamas underground headquarters. Chicago Tribune Opinion Weekdays Read the latest editorials and commentary curated by the Tribune Opinion team. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy > Its not just the executive branch thats struggling to keep its ranks in order. The New York Times recently detailed the extent to which congressional staffers are breaking with their bosses over support for Israel. Recently, more than 100 congressional staffers took part in a walkout to protest the stance on Israel held by the members of Congress they work for. Our constituents are pleading for a cease-fire, said a few of the aides. We are the staffers answering their calls. Delusions of grandeur aside, this is reflective of a generational shift for Democrats on the issue. In recent years, the partys base has shifted dramatically to the point in which, according to pollster Gallup, a majority of Democrats now support Palestinians over Israel. Thats a significant shift from just 10 years ago, when Democrats favored Israel by 35 percentage points. For Democrats, its past time for the adults in the room to reassert control. From the White House to Capitol Hill, our elected officials cannot be strong-armed by their subordinates. In the coming months, the U.S. will have to make tough decisions in regard to the Middle East. Americans deserve to know where the buck stops. Advertisement Tyler Michals is a practicing attorney in Chicago. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com. WILLARD, Ohio (WJW) The State Fire Marshals Office is investigating what caused a cherry picker to catch fire near a nursing home in Willard. According to Willard Fire and Rescue, the initial call went out around 8:30 a.m. at Blossom Healthcare Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Two teenagers die in fiery crash: OSHP First responders found two people trapped in a JLG bucket that was 20 feet off the ground and had caught fire. Willard Fire reports the fire was in the lower unit of the lift, which was within 5 feet from the roof of the nursing home. Firefighters were able to rescue the two people in the cherry picker with ropes and ladders. Dozens sickened in cantaloupe recall; Ohio impacted Both were flown to the hospital in Toledo. Willard Fire says 53 nursing home residents and staff members were moved to a nearby church until the scene was cleared. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. OGDEN, Utah (ABC4) Two people were shot in Ogden on Friday, according to Ogden Police. On Nov. 17, at around 11:30 p.m., police responded to the 500 block of 27th St. on reports of gunshots. Upon arrival, officers found two individuals with non-life-threatening gunshot injuries. First aid was provided to them, and they were taken to local hospitals, according to a release. Pedestrian hit by semi-truck, killed on I-15 near Perry Police are currently in the process of identifying those involved and interviewing witnesses to determine what took place. There is no outstanding threat to the public at this time, police said. This investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call Ogden Police at 801-629-8228. No further information is currently available. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now ABC4 Daily News For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah. Three Colombian migrants were arrested and charged with theft by deception of someone over 60 years old after they used a fake lottery ticket to scam a woman out of more than $20,000 in Illinois, authorities said. The Addison Police Department said that Miguel Pena-Gomez, 43; Liliana Nagles-Cuesta, 49; and Angela Posada-Acosta, 45, scammed a woman outside the Caputos Fresh Market outside of Chicago, Illinois on Nov. 7. Authorities said that the trio swooped down on the older woman in the parking lot and scammed her. Pena-Gomez was allegedly the first person to approach the victim, asking her for help and claiming that he had a winning lottery ticket worth $6 million, but he needed money to collect the winnings. 3 PEOPLE STABBED TO DEATH IN NYC HOME AS LANDLORD CONFESSES TO DOING 'SOMETHING BAD': POLICE The three Colombian migrants scammed over $20,000 from a woman at the grocery store. As they were talking, Nagles-Cuesta approached and offered to help because she spoke Spanish, authorities said. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Nagles-Cuesta allegedly called the lottery authorities and asked how much money was necessary to collect the winnings. INVESTIGATION INTO CHICAGO TRAIN CRASH ONGOING AS SERVICE REMAINS SUSPENDED She claimed to the victim that the lottery authorities needed $30,000 from Pena-Gomez for him to collect his fake lottery winnings. Nagles-Cuesta left and said that she was going to get money from her bank account to help Pena-Gomez, authorities said. Liliana Nagles-Cuesta was charged with one count of theft by deception of $5,000 or more from someone over 60, a Class 2 felony. After Nagles-Cuesta returned, she, Pena-Gomez and the victim drove to the elderly woman's bank where she withdrew $20,143. Authorities said that a short time later, Pena-Gomez insisted that he needed medicine and asked the victim to take him to the pharmacy. Miguel Pena-Gomez allegedly claimed that he was feeling sick and asked the female victim to take him to a local pharmacy for medicine. MASSACHUSETTS HOMELESS SHELTER CAP LEAVES MIGRANT FAMILIES STRANDED When the victim went into the store she left the money in the glove compartment of her car. When she returned, Pena-Gomez took the money and fled. Prosecutors say Nagles-Cuesta never returned. Angela Posada-Acosta allegedly acted as a lookout during the scam. Posada-Acosta allegedly acted as a lookout during the encounter. The three suspects were arrested Thursday and appeared Friday in court, where all faced a charge of one count of theft by deception of more than $5,000 from someone over 60 years old, a class 2 felony. DuPage County officials ordered the release of the three, and ordered them to return to court Dec. 11. Original article source: 3 Colombian migrants charged with scamming woman out of more than $20K at Illinois grocery store How a $40-a-day cruise stateroom compares to a $500-a-day one and which I'd book again Since 2021, I have spent at least one night aboard six cruise ships at varying costs. The cheapest was a Margaritaville cabin that starts at $40 per person in 2024 while the most expensive is over 12 times this price. Here's how my least and most expensive staterooms compared and why I wouldn't recommend Margaritaville. Cruise vacations can be economical with a base fare that includes accommodations, food, activities, and stops at several destinations. But not all of these floating resorts are designed with budget travelers in mind. Luxury cruise lines like the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection offer vacations for $900 a night. And on newer ships like Royal Caribbean's upcoming mega Icon of the Seas , the least expensive 2024 itinerary starts at $1,820 per person for seven nights at the time of writing. Since 2021, I have spent at least one night on six cruise ships ranging from ultra-affordable to luxurious. Here's how my cheapest and most expensive cabins compared, a $460 difference a day and the only one I'd book again. Margaritaville at Sea's Paradise oceanview cabin $40 a night for an old motel Margaritaville at Sea Paradise's oceanview cabin in 2022. Brittany Chang/Business Insider Margaritaville at Sea's Paradise cruise ship is for Jimmy Buffett fans who want to waste away again on a budget. I stayed in the oceanview stateroom during the ship's 2022 one-night inaugural sailing. In 2024, this cabin which isn't even the cheapest option starts at $80 per person for a two-night round-trip sailing from Palm Beach, Florida, to Freeport, Bahamas. Margaritaville's cruise arm operates its two-night itinerary year-round. Brittany Chang/Business Insider Don't let the new paint job fool you: The 30-year-old ship was previously Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line's flagship Grand Classica. Both now operate with Margaritaville at Sea's branding. Or at least that's what the new cruise line promised. My cabin looked as cheap as the cost to stay in it. Brittany Chang/Business Insider The Jimmy Buffett empire, known for its strong and recognizable identity, failed to extend the Margaritaville fun to my 176-square-foot stateroom. I expected a whimsical floating beach cottage plastered with Buffett references. Instead, I found an aged motel room. My Margaritaville cabin looked oudated. Brittany Chang/Business Insider The necessities a bed, a bathroom, and some storage were functional. But the bathroom looked cheap, the old shower looked dirty, and the yellowish wall and wood accents were outdated. The only obvious signs of "Margaritaville" were in the wallpaper and some branded merch like a notepad. My bathroom looked outdated and dirty. Brittany Chang/Business Insider Besides these arguably low-effort aesthetic changes, any other updates made during the ship's Grand Classica to Paradise transformation weren't obvious to me. And when I plugged in my hair dryer, it blew the power strip's fuse. There were only a handful of reminders of the Margaritaville brand throughout the cabin. Brittany Chang/Business Insider Since my one-night stay, the cruise line has poured millions of dollars into renovating spaces like the ship's cabins. I haven't seen these changes in person. And after my last not-so-great experience on the Margaritaville at Sea Paradise , I'm not interested in giving it another try. Explora Journey' Explora I ocean terrace suite $500 a night for a luxury hotel room Explora I's ocean view suite in 2023. Brittany Chang/Business Insider In 2024, the cheapest suite on the Explora I starts at $3,000 per person for a six-night January cruise from Miami to Cartagena, Colombia. In October, I spent one night in this suite while the vessel was docked in New York City. The Explora I had a pool under a retractable glass roof. Brittany Chang/Insider MSC Group's new cruise arm wants to be a fixture in the upscale travel market. So of course my ocean terrace suite was more luxurious than any hotel room I've paid for. Nothing seemed dirty or outdated the Explora I is actually a brand new cruise ship . The Dyson hairdryer was stored in its drawer. Brittany Chang/Business Insider As a suite, I had more "rooms" than I've ever had in a cruise ship cabin. Along with the typical bedroom and bathroom, there was a semi-separated living room with a deep couch, a large balcony, and a walk-in closet with a seated vanity. No more blown fuses: My cabin also came with a Dyson hairdryer. The bathroom was luxurious and modern despite looking smaller than other ones I've had. Brittany Chang/Business Insider Where my Margaritaville at Sea bathroom looked medieval and off-white, the one in my Explora I suite had a dark marble countertop, towel hangers inside the spacious walk-in shower, and refillable toiletry dispensers. Guests in the less luxurious suites get a bottle of Veuve Clicquot. Brittany Chang/Business Insider Unlike the cheaper option, my suite also had contemporary decor and a small bookshelf with global literature. Instead of slightly orange cabinets, the storage units in the ocean terrace suite looked more modern and classy. My cabin came with a Nespresso machine and books in several languages. Brittany Chang/Business Insider Small details like the bedside wall-mounted outlets, binoculars, and pull-out Nespresso and tea drawers elevated this luxury cabin beyond any traditional hotel room. My one critique is the space around my bed was tighter compared to other cabins I've stayed in. But besides that, it's easy to see why this rings in at $500 a night. Margaritaville at Sea and Explora Journeys target different customers While I wouldn't advise anyone to book my Margaritaville cabin, I would only recommend my Explora I cabin to wealthy travelers. Brittany Chang/Business Insider With both, what you pay for is what you get. At $40 a night in 2024, the price of my floating Margaritaville hotel room is unbeatable. But the stateroom didn't make me want to nibble on sponge cake and watch the sun bake. I'd rather pay another $20 for a cabin that looks more like a hotel than a motel. Unless a quick two-night roundtrip sailing from Florida is an absolute requirement, I'd suggest saving yourself the disappointment and booking another cheap cruise cabin, even if it ends up being an interior stateroom on a more updated ship. However, I also can't casually afford a $3,000 six-night vacation. For that reason, I won't be booking the Explora anytime soon unless I suddenly stumble upon a pile of cash. But if I do, I wouldn't mind spending another afternoon lounging on my cabin's large balcony. Read the original article on Insider Rescue workers stand at an entrance of the under-construction road tunnel, days after it collapsed in the Uttarkashi district of India's Uttarakhand state. AFP via Getty Images A partial tunnel collapse in the Indian state of Uttarakhand has left 40 workers trapped for a week. Multiple efforts to drill through the debris to reach the workers have failed. Rescuers have been able to send the workers radios, food, water, and oxygen through a pipe. Rescuers have been working for over a week to extricate 40 workers trapped inside a collapsed tunnel in northern India, and are now shifting strategies following three failed attempts to drill through the debris. The tunnel partially collapsed on November 12 after a landslide in the state of Uttarakhand. Rescue crews have been able to send radios, food, water, and oxygen to the workers through a pipe, according to The New York Times. Rescuers have now made three attempts to drill through the debris to reach the workers from various angles, but all have failed, the BBC reported on Sunday. Officials told reporters the land around the tunnel was fragile, and drilling could risk more debris falling. "We have decided to go with a pause-and-go approach to maintain the equilibrium," Anshu Manish Khalkho, director of state-run highway management company, said Friday, according to CNN. "It may look easy from the outside, but on-site we have to factor in the effects of the drilling vibrations on the fragile terrain." Rescue workers gather at the site after a tunnel collapsed in the Uttarkashi district of India's Uttarakhand state. AFP via Getty Images Officials have now identified a spot directly above the tunnel that rescuers will attempt to drill through, and workers are preparing a platform for the drilling machine. The officials told reporters the rescue could take an additional four or five days, according to the BBC. One doctor on the site, who has been speaking with the trapped workers, said some of them have developed concerning symptoms such as headaches and vomiting. "They are suffering from anxiety and gastritis. We sent medicines, dry fruits, chickpeas, and puffed rice," Dr. B.S. Pokriyal told CNN. "They kept asking us to get them out fast, so I spent some time counseling and motivating them." Pokriyal added that the men have about 0.6 miles of space within the tunnel to walk around. Before the landslide, the trapped workers had been building part of a national highway project intended to facilitate pilgrimages to the major Hindu shrines in Uttarakhand. Read the original article on Insider Five people were injured in a Russian attack on Kherson on 19 November: a 3-year-old girl with her 55-year-old grandmother, a 59-year-old man and two women aged 47 and 69. Source: Mrochko on Telegram, Kherson Regional Prosecutors Office, Ukraines Ministry of Internal Affairs Quote: "Kherson is again under fire from the Russian occupation forces! Powerful explosions are heard in the city. Stay safe! Keep away from windows and remember the rule of two walls [a safety rule whereby a person keeps two walls with no windows between them and the street during attacks ed.]." Details: After that, Mrochko said that a six-year-old child was wounded in Kherson as a result of Russian attacks. The child is now receiving medical attention. According to Mrochko, information on other victims of the attack is being established. Updated: According to the Kherson Regional Prosecutor's Office, a multi-storey residential building was damaged as a result of the attack. Ukraines Interior Ministry reported that five people suffered in the attack: a 3-year-old girl with her 55-year-old grandmother, a 59-year-old man and two women, 47 and 69 years old. "All received shrapnel wounds. Doctors are providing them with the necessary medical attention. The child and grandmother were walking in the front yard. They were caught under the fire of enemy artillery near the entryway [of their home ed.]," the Interior Ministry said. Support UP or become our patron! A 66-year-old traveling nurse visiting California remains missing after vanishing on a hike, sheriffs officials reported. A search continues for Ann Herford, who was reported missing on a trail near Arnold, the Calaveras County Sheriffs Office said in a Saturday, Nov. 18, news release. She had expressed interest in hiking during a breakfast with a friend on Nov. 11, the sheriffs office said, and someone reported seeing her near a trailhead. Deputies responded Nov. 15 to the Arnold Rim Trail for a reported missing person, the sheriffs office said. Herfords vehicle was found Nov. 15 at the Arnold Rim Trail trailhead, sheriffs officials said. She was reported missing after not turning up for work at a hospital in Sonora. Our hearts went into our gut and we were starting to get really scared, colleague Anna Wettengel told KOVR. Herford, a traveling nurse practitioner from Michigan, had been excited to visit California. When we met her, she had the biggest smile on her face, Wettengel told KCRA. She was super excited to come in and help out any way she could. She was amazing. Herford is an experienced day hiker but did not stay out after dark, her nephew, Brandon Neal, told the station. She wanted to take advantage of hiking and going to see the mountains up here, Wettengel told KCRA. A search Saturday, Nov. 18, for Herford included 120 searchers, five dog teams and aircraft, the Calaveras County Sheriffs Office said. Officials ask that anyone with information call 209-754-6500. Arnold is about 100 miles southeast of Sacramento. Carbon monoxide sickens family at rental cabin, Utah cops say. Something is not right 92-year-old survives night in freezing cold after fall down embankment, Oregon cops say Footprints lead to stranded hiker buried in snow on Colorado mountain, rescuers say A 71-year-old man is accused of beating a fellow nursing home resident to death in a dispute over a washing machine, Illinois officials say. Officers with the Joliet Police Department responded to a call from the Salem Village Nursing and Rehabilitation facility at about 9:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 17, the department said in a Nov. 19 news release. Investigators found a 61-year-old unresponsive in the laundry room on the sixth floor of the building, the release said. Nursing home staff were giving first aid to the man until firefighters arrived, police added. Police say a resident, William Paschall, attacked another man, repeatedly punching him in the head after becoming angry about the victims use of the washing machine. Paschall also used the victims walker in the attack, police said, adding that the man fell to the ground. A staff member tried to stop the beating, police said. The victim, who police have not publicly identified, died at the scene, according to the release. Paschall was taken into custody and is facing charges of murder and aggravated battery to a person 60 years of age or older, police said. Joliet is about 35 miles southwest of Chicago. Nobody picked up child after school then came grim discovery at Texas home, cops say Hospice patient found dead in grass was outside for 7 hours, Michigan officials say Man sexually assaults 12-year-old cousin and kills her mom and grandma, Texas cops say Nurse intentionally gave patients lethal doses when staffing was low, officials say A 9-year-old girl died when a heavy metal gate at a school near Tucson detached and fell on her, Arizona sheriffs officials told news outlets. The fatal accident took place on the afternoon of Friday, Nov. 17, at Centennial Elementary School, the Pima County Sheriffs Office told KGUN. The girl was helping close the gate when it fell on her, officials told KOLD. She later died of her injuries at a hospital. This is a tragic event, and we are all grieving, Flowing Wells Unified School District officials said in a letter to parents, KSAZ reported. Counselors will be at the school Monday, Nov. 20. Tucson is about 110 miles southeast of Phoenix. Carbon monoxide sickens family at rental cabin, Utah cops say. Something is not right 66-year-old nurse remains missing days after vanishing on hike, California cops say 9-year-old boy, dad waiting to cross street struck by vehicle, Arizona police say The GoPro Hero 12 Black action camera is on sale for $100 off as part of a Black Friday deal. The sales available via Amazon, Adorama and even the manufacturer itself. This deal is for an accessories bundle, so you can get a carrying case, a strap, an extra battery, a mount and other add-ons, in addition to the camera. All told, that brings the price down to $350 from $450. This is the latest and greatest action camera by the company. We admired the Hero 12 in our official review, calling out the improved battery life when compared to the Hero 11, as it allows for 35 minutes of continuous use per charge. Remember, this deal ships with an extra battery, so thats 70 minutes, minus 30 seconds of fiddling with the battery compartment. We also loved the addition of Bluetooth audio streaming, which even works with devices like Apples AirPods Pro earbuds. This means you can easily wear earbuds without calling too much attention to yourself while hosting an impromptu vlog or live commentary of some kind. The latency is barely perceptible, if noticeable at all. This functionally also allows you to control the GoPro from afar, thanks to voice commands. Gone are the days of having to chop off those awkward final seconds of footage featuring you clumsily walking to turn the camera off. The Hero 12 Black boasts a larger image sensor, allowing users to experiment with different aspect ratios using the same footage, in addition to offering an 8:7 mode across every setting. On the downside, this is a modest upgrade of sorts, so many of the remaining metrics remain the same as with the GoPro Hero 11. Your footage will look a bit cleaner, but it wont be a night and day difference. Still, this is a good deal for a full-featured action camera that ships with everything you need to not only get started, but thrive. This is a limited-time offer but theres no set end-date, with the company stating that it will continue until GoPro terminates the program. Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoos Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblogs experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you. Attorney Jordan Heinz, left, and his fiance Parker Polley grab some green onion plants they were growing in their Chicago home on Nov. 17, 2023, for an omelette breakfast. The couple are planning a July wedding. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune) The wedding ceremony was simple but historic. One bride wore a black satin jacket with a white boutonniere on the lapel. The other bride donned a leopard print jacket and clutched a small bouquet of white flowers. Advertisement Nearly a decade ago, Vernita Gray and Pat Ewert took their sacred vows in the living room of their Chicago condo, marking the first same-sex marriage in Illinois. As they sealed their union with a kiss, they were flanked by their loved ones including many prominent gay rights activists who had fought so hard for the right they had just exercised. Advertisement As part of the festivities, a friend sang At Last, popularized by Etta James. All of these people who had been in our home had been part of the struggle, had been part of the fight, recalled Pat Ewert, 75, during a recent interview. It was awesome. On Nov. 20, 2013, Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation making Illinois the 16th state to legalize same-sex marriage at a ceremony at the University of Illinois at Chicago that was attended by thousands, including Gray and Ewert. The bill was signed on a desk brought from Springfield upon which President Abraham Lincoln wrote his first inaugural address in the 1860s, according to state officials. Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 14 On a desk once used by Abraham Lincoln, Gov. Pat Quinn signs the gay marriage bill at the UIC Forum on Nov. 20, 2013. (Abel Uribe, Chicago Tribune) During his speech, Quinn invoked a different speech made by Lincoln. In the very beginning of the Gettysburg Address, President Abraham Lincoln of Illinois said that our nation was conceived in liberty, Quinn said. And he said its dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal, and thats really what were celebrating today. Its a triumph of democracy. While the milestone was joyous for many, there was still a faction vehemently opposed to the change: One bishop in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield had pledged to offer prayers for exorcism in reparation for the sin of same-sex marriage at the time Quinn was expected to sign the legislation. Ten years later, same-sex marriage has gained far greater acceptance across the nation, with 71% of Americans believing same-sex marriage should be legal, according to a Gallup poll released in June. This is compared with 53% of those surveyed by Gallup in 2013; support for the legalization of these unions has generally risen since 1996, when 27% of respondents favored same-sex marriage rights, according to Gallup. Advertisement Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 18 Alicia Atkinson, 33, left, and Laurin Fabry, 29, both from Eola, appear at the DuPage County Clerk's office June 2, 2014, to be among the first same-sex couples to marry. (Chuck Berman, Chicago Tribune) In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Courts landmark ruling Obergefell v. Hodges made same-sex marriage legal nationwide, spurring celebrations across the country, including in Illinois. We dont have to look at a map to see where we will be a married couple anymore, one Chicago man told the Tribune at the time, as he was headed to celebrate the ruling with his husband. Despite this legal backing and widespread support, advocates say its a precarious time for LGBTQ rights in the United States, including the freedom to marry. In June, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that a Christian graphic artist who wants to design wedding websites can refuse to work for gay couples, because forcing her to do so would violate her First Amendment right to free speech. The case was considered a victory for the far religious right; the dissenting Supreme Court justices lamented the decision, describing it as taking steps backward in terms of LGBTQ rights. Today is a sad day in American constitutional law and in the lives of LGBT people. ... (T)he immediate, symbolic effect of the decision is to mark gays and lesbians for second-class status, wrote Justice Sonia Sotomayor in the dissent, according to The Associated Press. President Joe Biden in December signed the Respect for Marriage Act, which was designed to protect same-sex marriages if Obergefell v. Hodges were to ever fall. The act is also intended to safeguard interracial marriages. Advertisement There are powerful forces that want to roll back decisions like Obergefell v. Hodges, which struck down the remaining marriage bans around the country as a matter of federal law, said Camilla Taylor, deputy legal director for litigation at Lambda Legal in Chicago. Im optimistic that the American public wont allow that to happen, because weve come so far so fast. As for Illinois, while same-sex marriage was legalized in November 2013, the law wouldnt go into effect until the following summer. Pat Ewert, left, and partner Vernita Gray on Sept. 9, 2010. (Chris Walker/Chicago Tribune) At the time, Ewert worried that would be too late: Her partner Gray, a longtime LGBTQ activist, was battling terminal cancer. But a federal court order allowed them to get their marriage licenses immediately; they were wed Nov. 27, 2013, a few days after Quinn signed the legislation, Ewert recounted. For Gray, their wedding was the culmination of so many things she worked for her whole life, Ewert said. I had a more romantic reason, Ewert added. I was actually able to marry the person I loved. That was whats important. Gray died at the age of 65 in March 2014, a few months before the legislation took effect. Advertisement As Ewert was making Grays final arrangements, she recognized the power in the word wife. Id call and say Vernita was my wife. And the people would be like OK, I understand that, Ewert said. They dont understand partner or other words. They understand wife. They understand husband. After Grays death, it didnt cross Ewerts mind that she would ever love again. Its the last thing you think about, she said. But eventually, she was so blessed to find love once more: Ewert married her wife, Susan Blake, about six years ago at a small poolside ceremony in California, exercising her right to marriage equality for the second time. Sometimes things arent that important to you until you are denied them, Ewert said. The ability to marry is just a right that nobody should be denied. Advertisement Yes they can Kathy Forde, left, and wife Yvonne Zipter at the University of Chicago on June 26, 2015. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune) Yvonne Zipter, 69, and Kathy Forde, 60, of the Portage Park neighborhood were among the first same-sex couples in Illinois who married after legalization. They were overjoyed when the law changed but hadnt been planning a wedding. Then family and friends started saying, Yea, we get to go a wedding! So many people were excited about it, so we decided to do a wedding, Zipter said, laughing. They married in July 2014 at the Logan Arts Center at the University of Chicago. Guests danced to an eclectic mix of music, including a lot of Motown hits. Instead of a wedding cake, they served pie, which Zipter had always liked better for dessert. Which was a very big hit, Forde added. Advertisement They recalled that their niece, who was 4 at the time, served as the flower girl. Prior to the wedding, she had gotten into an argument with another child at preschool, who told her two ladies cant get married. Yes they can, the little girl had replied, and Im going to be in their wedding. Zipter and Forde had been together for 25 years before they wed. For most of their relationship, they couldnt fathom that one day they would be allowed to get married. It never occurred to me that we would be able to legally marry, Zipter said. I thought (same-sex marriage) might happen someday, but I didnt think it would happen in our lifetime. But they could see that attitudes were changing, especially among younger people. Advertisement Then Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage following a landmark ruling from the states highest court about 20 years ago. California became the second state to do so in 2008, but then voters approved Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment that banned same-sex marriage; this was eventually rolled back by the courts, and same-sex couples have been able to marry in California since 2013. Marriage equality has been recognized in Connecticut since 2008. Iowa legalized same-sex marriage in 2009. When Illinois followed suit in 2013, it was exciting and shocking, Zipter said. At the start of their marriage, neither Zipter nor Forde was particularly wild about the word wife, though. But, boy, that grew on us really quickly, Forde said. Its a shorthand and people understand what youre saying. Advertisement The title of wife became even more important in 2020 when Zipter was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. While Forde said their medical providers have been nothing but wonderful, the fact that theyre married with all the legal and social customs the institution typically encapsulates provides an added layer of comfort during this health crisis. Its just this extra level of security that I didnt really think about when we got married, Forde said. Zipter was diagnosed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and sometimes Forde wasnt allowed to be at appointments or treatments due to social distancing protocols. On some occasions, Zipter would be in an exam room without Forde, and health care providers would say, Oh wait, we have to call your wife and put her on speaker phone, so she hears whats going on too. Zipter added that society has generally become a lot more accepting of same-sex marriage over the last decade or so. I just always say my wife and no one bats an eye anymore, she said. Yet the couple also noted that the nation is facing increasing backlash to LGBTQ rights by a small but vocal minority, particularly in many southern states. Advertisement As of early November, the American Civil Liberties Union has tracked more than 500 anti-LGBTQ bills introduced across the country. While not all of these bills will become law, they all cause harm for LGBTQ people, the organization said. Many LGBTQ advocates have also been alarmed by the Supreme Courts 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, rolling back federal abortion protections that had been in place for nearly a half-century. For a while, Zipter had become kind of complacent about same-sex marriage rights, she said. Like all right, this is the law of the land now, she said. But then they overturned Roe v. Wade. So now I feel nothing is safe. Mountaintop proposal Jordan Heinz, left, and fiance Parker Polley have breakfast at their Chicago home, Nov. 17, 2023. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune) In 2012, Chicago attorney Jordan Heinz served as co-counsel leading a team that filed a lawsuit in Cook County challenging the ban on same-sex marriage, on behalf of gay couples who had been denied a marriage license. Advertisement While the case became moot once same-sex marriage legislation passed in 2013, the voices of the couples and their children were strong ambassadors for marriage equality. Since 2013, more than 21,000 same-sex marriage licenses have been issued by the Cook County clerks office; nearly 6,200 of them were issued in 2014, the first year the law officially took effect. Just over 1,400 same-sex marriage licenses were issued in Cook County so far this year, according to the clerks office. Heinz recalled that as he argued for these rights years ago as a young attorney, they werent personal to me, in that I didnt know if marriage was something that was going to happen to me, personally. A decade later, hes now planning his upcoming wedding to fiance Parker Polley. Heinz proposed to Polley in Colorado at the top of a mountain near Aspen. They were on a hike when Heinz suggested they take a photo together and instead set the camera to record a video. Then Heinz got down on one knee. He was so nervous he doesnt remember exactly what he said, but it was something to the effect of it was just so wonderful building a life together the last couple of years. Advertisement They plan to wed in July with a wedding in the West Loop, which will likely include around 300 guests. So I can finally exercise those rights that I argued for, said Heinz, who serves as a Lambda Legal board member. Marriage has such a long, rich history in our society. With that institution of marriage comes a societal imprimatur like society is blessing the permanence of this relationship. He added that its kind of poetic that his wedding is planned for roughly a decade after marriage equality was realized in Illinois. Finally, 10 years later, all of those words I was using to describe how precious marriage is and how it should be a right everyone should have access to, now all of that is finally becoming real for me, he said. The Associated Press contributed. eleventis@chicagotribune.com Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) officially endorsed former President Trump for the GOP primary nomination at a Sunday event honoring service members stationed on the Texas border. Joe Biden is causing a potential terror threat in the United States of America, Abbott said at the event. A president has one ultimate responsibility and thats national security. Joe Biden has failed at national security. Well, Im here to tell you that there is no way, no way that America can continue under the leadership of Joe Biden as our president. We need a president whos going to secure the border. We need a president whos going to restore law and order in the United States of America. Not letting these criminals run ransack over the stores that you see images of almost nightly. We need a president whos going to restore world peace as opposed to this outbreak of warfare under Joe Biden. We need Donald J. Trump back as our president of the United States of America, he said. Best Black Friday Deals In his speech, Abbott praised Trumps border policies, including Title 42, building a border wall and eliminating the catch and release practices that allows immigrants caught in the U.S. without proper documents to be released from detention while their cases play out in court. In remarks following Abbotts endorsement, Trump thanked the governor and vowed to make his job very easy if he is elected to the White House. Abbott and Trump spent the early afternoon handing out meals to service members, including Texas National Guard soldiers and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers, at an event in Edinburg, Texas. Abbott, a longtime ally of the former president, praised Trump for his stance on the border and took aim at President Biden for his administrations handling of the border. Trump could be seen posing for photos and shaking hands with the service members Sunday. After handing out food, Abbott and Trump headed outside the airport hangar to speak to a group of supporters. Trump previously made trips to the border while a presidential candidate and during his time in the White House. His campaign has kept up a strong focus on immigration and the border, as has Abbotts administration. Abbott has stepped up his border and immigration policies in Texas during the Biden administration by flying migrants to Democratic-led cities, installing a razor wire fence and establishing Operation Lone Star, the states migrant deterrence policy. Democratic National Committee spokesperson Sarafina Chitika released a statement criticizing Abbotts endorsement of Trump. Donald Trump and his campaign are capping off a horrendous week trying to run away from his cruel and inhumane record by picking up the support of a similarly cruel governor who uses human beings as political pawns, Chitika said. With the support of MAGA acolyte Greg Abbott, Trump has earned another cheerleader for his extreme plans to ban abortion nationwide, pursue a disastrous immigration agenda, and make us less safe by flooding our communities with more guns. Abbotts support will do nothing to help Trump with the voters who have rejected his toxic MAGA agenda time and time again, Chitika continued. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Guest Opinion. As the largest Indigenous nation in the United States with more than 460,000 citizens, Cherokees can be found all across the globe. Cherokee Nation Businesses has global reach, too, with trading partners and business operations on six continents. At the recent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit held in California, I spoke about the unique role that Cherokee Nation and other Indigenous peoples play in the global economy. I was honored to speak at this international gathering with a specific focus on Indigenous communities. At the summit, I was able to meet with world leaders and advocate for improving Indigenous participation in global economic growth. It also provided an opportunity to engage with Indigenous leaders from APEC member countries like Australia, New Zealand and Canada for cultural exchange and learning best practices from one another. Never miss Indian Countrys biggest stories and breaking news. Click here to sign up to get our reporting sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Together, we are dispelling myths, such as the perception that Indigenous communities are stewards of the environment and nothing more. While conservation is crucial and Native peoples have a wealth of knowledge on sustainability, the world must recognize our capacity to advance wealth-building for our citizens, health care access, educational options, expanded connectivity, cultural preservation, and more. Cherokees have always creatively pursued economic partnerships, from our first trade treaties signed with Europeans in the 1600s to our modern international business operations with an economic impact topping $3 billion. We do all this while maintaining a steadfast commitment to our sovereignty, self-determination, and cultural traditions. We have great potential to do even more and to invest those profits back into our reservation in northeast Oklahoma. Within the Cherokee Nation Reservation are important free trade zones (FTZs) tied to the Port of Catoosa and Port of Muskogee, where our region exchanges goods with the entire world. Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin, Jr. However, navigating international trade is made more difficult by uncertainty around what rights are reserved for Indigenous peoples. Native communities, including the Cherokee Nation, have struggled with a legacy of underinvestment and a lack of clarity for how we fit within international legal frameworks. Too often, Indigenous voices are left out of the intricate negotiations of international trade agreements. At the APEC Summit, we made recommendations for more inclusive trade policies that integrate Indigenous perspectives and needs. The summit was a great opportunity to make progress on these issues. As we continue to strengthen our government-to-government relationship with the United States and call on the federal government to meet its trust and treaty obligations, Cherokee Nation is stepping into a greater role on the international stage. Inspired by the Cherokee historical journey from simple bartering to modern international commerce, we are lifting up the economic hopes of Indigenous peoples everywhere. Chuck Hoskin, Jr. is the principal chief of the Cherokee Nation. Help us ensure that the celebration of Native Heritage never stops by donating here. WASHINGTON When Donald Trump looked at Africa, he crudely dismissed its significance and fretted African immigrants would never go back to their huts once they entered the United States. When Joe Biden looks at Africa, he sees opportunities to curb Chinas growing influence in the world. Biden has sought to move beyond Trumps dismissive, sometimes confrontational approach and focus instead on deepening ties with a continent that is home to a rapidly growing population and stands as a potentially important geopolitical partner. Our eyes are fixed squarely on the future, Biden told a small group of African leaders in Washington last year. But beneath the promissory oratory lies a more strategic reason for the shift in attitude and approach to U.S.-Africa policy. Its about China, said Mark Green, former ambassador to Tanzania and president of the Wilson Center, a nonpartisan think tank that focuses on global affairs. Its about great power, competition. On Wednesday, Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in person for the second time since Biden became president. The four-hour meeting, held on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperative conference in San Francisco, comes as the two leaders work to repair relations deeply strained by a trade war that started when Trump was in office and by clashes over technology, Chinas aggression against Taiwan and a Chinese spy balloon that flew over the United States earlier this year until a U.S. fighter jet shot it down. In his opening remarks, Biden told Xi the two leaders must ensure that competition between their countries does not veer into conflict. We have to manage it responsibly that competition, Biden said. Thats what the United States want and what we intend to do. I also believe that's what the world wants from both of us: candid exchange. Xi said that while the China-U.S. relationship has never been smoothing sailing, it has kept moving forward amid twists and turns. Planet Earth is big enough for the two countries to succeed, and one countrys success is an opportunity for the other, he said. Neither leader acknowledged, at least not publicly, the newest arena in the competition between the two economic giants: Africa. 'You're going to be seeing a lot of us': China has far surpassed the US as an economic player in Africa. Can Biden change that? President Joe Biden greets Senegalese President Macky Sall during the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington last December. 'New kid on the block in Africa' China, an economic and military rival of the United States, has made significant gains in Africa over the past two decades, setting off alarms in the U.S. and among European countries who fear Beijings growing influence in the world. China in the 2000s became the new kid on the block in Africa, said Amaka Anku, who heads the Africa practice for the Eurasia Group, a global political risk consulting firm based in New York City. China has far surpassed the U.S. as an economic player in Africa. Trade between China and Africa hit $254 billion in 2021 four times the trade between the U.S. and Africa, according to the United States Institute of Peace, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization founded by Congress. China is the largest provider of foreign direct investment in Africa, supporting hundreds of thousands of African jobs roughly double the level of U.S. foreign direct investment on the continent. China is also by far the largest lender to African countries, often providing loans that come with much more favorable terms than those offered by U.S. lenders. Whats more, the Chinese have been pushing to establish a military base on Africas western coast a particular concern for the Biden administration, which sees China as the most consequential threat to U.S. national security. This is a crossroads moment for U.S.-Africa relations, Green said. And I think its important that we continue to build relationships. The best way to do that, he said, is for the president to set foot in Africa quite frankly, the sooner, the better. 'All in on Africa's future': Biden announces trade, infrastructure investments in Africa Biden has said he plans to visit Africa this year, although no plans have been announced, and with just six weeks left in 2023, a trip there this year seems unlikely. The White House, pressed by reporters on whether Biden plans to keep his promise to visit before the end of the year, has simply said that it has no update on his travel schedule. Biden insists his goal is not to contain China, and his administration has downplayed suggestions that his interest in Africa is tied to a desire to curb Chinese influence there. Besides the economy, analysts say there are multiple reasons for the U.S. to engage with Africa, not the least of which is the rise of authoritarianism on the continent a concern for the U.S. and other democracies. Africa also has the worlds youngest population. The top 10 countries with the lowest median age are there, according to the Wilson Center. The African Union, which represents the continents 54 countries, is pushing for a permanent seat or seats on the U.N. National Security Council, which would provide some of the respect the continent has long sought on the world stage. Biden has publicly supported not only giving Africa a permanent seat at the U.N. but adding the African Union to the Group of 20 nations. South Africa is currently the only African member of the G-20, a governmental forum made up of the worlds major industrial and emerging countries. 'Well, look, he is': Biden calls China's Xi a dictator again, upsetting Beijing after high-stakes meeting 'African leaders don't want to be chess pieces' Trump didnt exactly endear himself to Africans during the four years he was in office. He never visited Africa during his presidency, making him the first president since Ronald Reagan to never set foot on the continent while in office. Trumps incendiary language didnt help, either. During an Oval Office meeting with lawmakers about immigration, he questioned why the U.S. would accept more migrants from Haiti and sh**hole countries in Africa rather than places like Norway. In a separate meeting a few months earlier, he reportedly groused that thousands of Haitians whod entered the United States had AIDS and that Nigerian visitors would never go back to their huts in Africa. Critics called his remarks derogatory and racist. Biden sought to reset relations with Africa upon taking office. Last December, the administration hosted the first U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit since 2014. Heads of state from 49 African nations and the African Union were invited to Washington for an opportunity to re-engage with the Biden administration. To underscore its commitment to Africa, the U.S. has promised to send $55 billion to Africa over the next three years for initiatives to improve health care, mitigate the dangers of climate change, boost trade and investment and set up programs to help women entrepreneurs. And while Biden has yet to visit, first lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other administration officials have traveled to the continent over the past year, promising the U.S. is serious about deepening its ties to Africa. Whenever Biden makes the trip, African leaders will be looking for more than promises from the administration, analysts said. They will be looking for a signal that the U.S. considers the region important and not just as a buffer against China, Green said. African leaders dont want to be chess pieces, he said. African countries need funding to help them finance critical development initiatives, infrastructure projects and climate change mitigation, said Rama Yade, senior director of the Atlantic Councils Africa Center. They have development needs of $200 billion per year, and that is absolutely key, she said. Six hundred million people suffer from a lack of electricity, not to mention food insecurity, problems of housing, of transportation, of infrastructure. Those are critical. African leaders are willing to work so closely with China, Yade said, because the Chinese they bring money. The U.S. governments announcement of funding programs for Africa in the past has always come with the promise of millions of dollars in accompanying investments from the private sector. But the private sector funding seldom materializes, Anku said. For now, I think what African countries would like to see is show me the money, she said. While Africa has many big-ticket needs, smaller projects or those that directly benefit communities can sometimes have the most lasting impact, Green said. Green came to realize that soon after he was named ambassador to Tanzania and landed in Dar es Salaam to present his credentials. The arrival of a new ambassador is a big deal, with lots of limousines and a ceremony filled with pomp and circumstance. But what Green remembers most about that day is his cab driver. Before we took off, he turned around, leaned (over) to me and he said, I was taught by a Peace Corps teacher, and he returned to the wheel, Green said. For him, that was the big deal, not the formalities. It was American compassion and action. That, to me, Green added, is how you make a difference. Michael Collins covers the White House. Follow him on Twitter @mcollinsNEWS. PEPFAR: Long a bipartisan effort, a program to fight global HIV is stuck in Washington gridlock This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why Biden sees Africa as opportunity to curb China's influence PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) The Molina Healthcare Charitable Foundation will hold its 10th Annual AIDNOW Thanksgiving dinner giveaway on Sunday, Nov. 19. AIDNOW supports families during the holidays and helps alleviate food insecurity in Southeastern Virginia. According to Molina Healthcare, over 10 percent of Portsmouths population faces food insecurity, thats higher than the national average. The foundation will provide over 300 hot Thanksgiving dinners to help those in need in the Portsmouth area. Additionally, Molina employee volunteers will distribute hundreds of tote bags stuffed with winter essentials, Molina dental kits, hygiene products, water bottles, and non-perishable foods. The Thanksgiving food giveaway starts at 2 p.m. and will operate while supplies last. It will be held at Club De Porres, 901 High St. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. Police body cam footage shows the moment officers took down the main players of an Albanian gang that had been pumping class A drugs into the Midlands for a year - DERBYSHIRE POLICE/SWNS An Albanian drug dealer who had a large poster of Scarface on the wall of his flat has been jailed as part of a gang which sold more than 1 million of cocaine. The organised crime group operated an extensive drugs network across the Midlands moving kilos of cocaine into South Derbyshire, North West Leicestershire and East Staffordshire. The ten-strong crew, led by Edmund Haziri, 36 and his younger brother Edward, 34, were arrested in a series of coordinated dawn raids on March 23 last year. The gang first came to the attention of police after a Police Community Support Officer spotted a vehicle acting suspiciously in the market town of Swadlincote and notified detectives. The officers quickly uncovered a vast drug dealing network stretching from London to Leicester. A gang member is led away by police officers during a raid which found a stash of cocaine worth up to 1.1million - DERBYSHIRE POLICE/SWNS One raid targeted a business premises linked to the gang and discovered a huge DIY casino complete with poker and blackjack tables in the basement. During another, a sniffer dog found a phone that had been flung out of the window of the home of gang member Alban Krasniqi, in Blackheath Hill, London. Detectives believed the mobile held the key to part of the groups county lines operation, known as the Eddie Line. Bodycam footage from the raid shows police searching the flat which had a giant poster of Al Pacinos villainous character Tony Montana from Scarface by the door. The mobile phone was locked with a six-digit passcode and officers were initially unable to gain access. Detectives were confident the discarded handset would prove to be the Eddie line, but had only a finite number of attempts to enter the correct passcode. Pictured is the Scarface poster of Al Pacino's villainous character Tony Montana owned by one of the gang's members - DERBYSHIRE POLICE/SWNS Officers trawled through hundreds of hours of surveillance footage of the gang member until they found him making a contactless purchase in a convenience store. They believed that the iPhone he was holding in the footage was the same phone they now had in their possession. They were able to watch CCTV footage of him entering the code, which they then duplicated to unlock the device themselves. The phone revealed reams of evidence including drug orders, drop locations, dates, and contacts for other criminals. The drug wraps the group sold were often disguised in folded lottery tickets and were distributed across a wide network of dealers to avoid detection. During the raids police also uncovered expensive jewellery, clothes and vehicles, stacks of cash Derby Crown Court heard that the gang is thought to have processed 19.8lbs (9kg) of cocaine, with an estimated street value of up to 1.1 million. Combined total of 71 years in jail Over the past year, members have been jailed for a combined total of 71 years and seven months. The Haziri brothers were each handed 15-year jail sentences while dealer Razvan Manoliu was given a two-year and eight-month sentence on Nov 17. A final member of the gang, Daniel Stavrat, 29, will be sentenced next month. Det Insp Kane Martin, who led the investigation, said: The Eddie line was responsible for poisoning our streets with harmful drugs but the gang simply didnt care about the damage they left behind. They reaped the rewards of their crimes, living lavish lifestyles in London and elsewhere, while the cocaine they pumped into the Midlands destroyed families and relationships. 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. The State Departments "Worldwide Caution" travel advisory has Americans on edge ahead of a busy holiday season, but experts advise that little has changed when it comes to typical tourism hot spots. "I think its appropriate to say any travel internationally certainly should be taken with vigilance," James Hess, professor at the School of Security and Global Studies at American Public University System, told Fox News Digital. Hess, an expert in counter-terrorism environments and counterinsurgency, acknowledged the current global security landscape appears more fragile and tenuous due to the Israel-Hamas conflict in the Middle East, but he remains confident that Americans "travel well." "That's an economic driver for many areas of the world, many countries, even many places within the United States," Hess said. "So, these are all important areas, and countries want to embrace that" and ensure that Americans feel safe while traveling. POPULAR TOURIST DESTINATION ICELAND ON EDGE AS EXPERTS FEAR IMMINENT VOLCANIC ERUPTION Travelers rushing through one of Chicago O'Hare airport's terminals. The U.S. State Department issued a "Worldwide Caution" advisory shortly after the outbreak of the conflict in the Gaza Strip, issuing the advisory again last week. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "Due to increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests, the Department of State advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution," the advisory states. The upcoming holiday season will likely see heavy tourism as post-pandemic travel interest, strengthened by the flexibility that remote work provides, will likely increase. AAA estimated some 112.7 million people would travel over 50 miles or more during the peak holiday season from Dec. 23, 2022, to Jan. 2, 2023, a 3.6 million bump over the previous year and closing in on pre-pandemic numbers. Hess pointed to several tense global situations that draw American interests and could put Americans in the crosshairs of bad actors. The Ukraine and Russia conflict remains ongoing. North Korea "is still a concern." And the relationship between China and the U.S. remains in flux even after President Biden met with Chinese President Xi Jinping for what appeared to be positive talks for both nations. 3 WAYS TO INCREASE YOUR PRIVACY AND SAVE MONEY WHEN BOOKING TRAVEL The Iran-backed proxy terrorist group Hezbollah attempted an attack in Brazil earlier this month, showing how global some of these regional threats can be. "When you're traveling and there's a concentration of Americans, and you're in an area where suddenly erupts some sort of mass protest in response to something that's going on in in Gaza, that does put Americans at risk," Hess argued, stressing he found the "worldwide" advisory warranted and "well served." Protesters march through the city during the national protest to demand a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war Nov. 18, 2023, in Glasgow, United Kingdom. Spanish news outlet EFE reported in October that the U.S. closed a consulate in the Turkish city of Adana due to the ongoing anti-Israel demonstrations, which condemned Israels strikes in the Gaza Strip as it pursued Hamas targets. The advisory is the 23rd such "Worldwide Caution" issued by the State Department since 2008, with the most recent one occurring in 2022 after the death of al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, according to a review of State Department alert archives by travel news outlet Skift. US AVIATION EXPERTS WARN OF DECLINING SAFETY CONDITIONS AT AIRPORTS Dr. Chuck Roussel, department chair of Criminal Justice and Human Justice for American Military University and American Public University, suggested countries with strong Arab populations might hold some hostility for Americans who are seen as the enablers of Israel and its operations in Gaza, which has deeply upset Muslim communities across the planet. Anti-Israel/pro-Palestinian demonstrations have taken place in Australia, Myanmar, the U.K., Germany and the U.S., and often these protests have included an anti-American element, with protesters seeing little distinction and even alleging that President Biden has "blood on (his) hands" for helping fund the Israeli military and fully backing Israel against Hamas. Sunbathers enjoy Forum Beach as tourism returns to the city during Holy Week April 3, 2021, in Cancun, Mexico. "Many countries in Europe now are like this. Take Belgium, for example; take Germany, for example," Roussel said. "I can think of France as one where there's large segments of populations that came from the Middle East. They were basically like refugee centers, to where being an American, being Jewish could be very problematic when traveling in those areas. "If youre not traveling with, say, a structured group, you really need to know not only where you are, but when youre going from one location to another, how youre getting there, what areas youre going through to get there, because one wrong turn, and you can find yourself in a very, very poor situation. FAMILY OF AMERICAN WHO VANISHED ON YOGA RETREAT CALLS FELLOW TOURIST'S ACCOUNT VERY STRANGE "Were relaxed because were on vacation," Roussel said. "We want to decompress. We want to unwind. We want to let the troubles of the world go away yet, we also have to keep that safety factor in our minds." The State Department advised that U.S. citizens should enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program to remain informed throughout trips to any potential dangers and follow State Department updates on social media. A view of the Trevi Fountain square in Rome June 3, 2022. Hess suggested additionally that travelers should first look at individual countries of interest for their specific travel advisory because they might not have such heightened concerns, such as Peru, which has a level 2 "Exercise Increased Caution" advisory compared to Nicaraguas Level 3 "Reconsider Travel" advisory. He stressed the primary concern for travelers criminals, not terrorists. "Then, after that, there's probably going to be financial/intelligence collection kind of concerns, so those are your bigger threats," Hess explained. "Then, of course, yes, terrorism is a concern. "Weve heard a million times when you travel internationally, you do your best to try to blend in, fit in and get rid of that look of being a tourists. Dont always carry a backpack and have a map in your hand, you know. But thats difficult to do," he added. "Unless you have considerable travel experience, its difficult." Hess also noted the urge to carry more money in local currency and the heavy reliance on phones and computers gives criminals access to digital information and makes tourists more attractive to a criminal element. He suggested learning how to use a VPN to try and help mask data and personal information while also turning off automated passwords so that no one can steal them with data theft, and he suggested changing passwords upon returning home. Original article source: What Americans should keep in mind while traveling this holiday season after 'Worldwide Caution' alert Thomas Greene had been experiencing pain in his right leg, a complication from diabetes, when doctors recommended a procedure to increase blood flow to the limb. Retired from a career as an electrician and HVAC technician, he had an outpatient procedure in April 2021 to alleviate his pain by dilating the clogged artery using a balloon snaked into his blood vessel. Greene, who lives in Oxford, Pennsylvania, came through the procedure without any problems, and it reduced his discomfort, said his wife, Bluizer Greene. She spoke with KFF Health News on behalf of Greene, who is recovering from other health problems. Greene is covered by Medicare and a supplemental policy through Humana and did not expect to pay anything for the care, Bluizer said. Then the bills came. The Patient: Thomas Greene, 74, who is covered by original Medicare and a Medicare supplement policy sold by Humana. Medical Service: Peripheral artery bypass surgery on Greenes right leg. Service Provider: The operation was performed at Jennersville Hospital in West Grove, Pennsylvania, which closed in December 2021. Anesthesia services were provided by two providers who work for North American Partners in Anesthesia, which is private equity-owned and, with thousands of providers operating in 21 states, identifies itself as among the nations largest anesthesia staffing companies. Total Bill: For the anesthesia care, North American Partners in Anesthesia billed $2,965.58: $1,334.51 for a certified nurse anesthetist and $1,631.07 for an anesthesiologist. What Gives: North American Partners in Anesthesia, or NAPA, pursued Greene to pay for his anesthesia care instead of billing Medicare on time, sending the debt to collections before the couple discovered the problem. Medicare eventually received the claims from NAPA, months after the couple started receiving collection letters, Bluizer said. But Medicare denied them because they were filed late nearly 17 months after the surgery. Humana also denied the claims. Medicare requires providers to submit claims within a year of providing their services. And Medicare supplemental policies, like Greenes plan from Humana, generally do not pay for services if Medicare doesnt cover them, whether because Medicare has not paid its part yet or because the program denied the claim. A year after Greenes surgery, in spring 2022, the couple opened a letter from a collection agency working on behalf of the anesthesia group. It demanded Greene pay about $3,000. Something has to be wrong because this is the first time my husband has ever been asked to pay out-of-pocket and weve had the same insurance for years, Bluizer said. She said for several months she called NAPA and the collection agency, C.tech Collections, of Mount Sinai, New York, to determine why it was billing her husband. Greene was also contacted by the Faloni Law Group, a second organization working on behalf of NAPA to collect the debt, and Bluizer said she followed its instructions to respond by mail, disputing the debt on the grounds that it should be billed to insurance. But her communication attempts did not resolve the issue, and she said her husband continued to receive collection notices. Neither debt collector responded to requests for comment. We were angry, and it was very upsetting because we had never had a bill put into a collection agency for any of his hospitalizations, and it was money we did not feel that we owed, Bluizer said. She said they may have received some letters from the anesthesia group in 2021 and 2022 that they discarded without opening because they believed her husbands medical bills would be covered by insurance, as the rest of his surgery bills were. Worried about the situation, including its potential impact on their credit, the couple reached out late last year to Harold Ting, a volunteer counselor for Pennsylvanias MEDI program, which provides free assistance to Medicare beneficiaries. Medicare generally covers anesthesia services. This is totally unfair that a beneficiary ends up having to pay for what should be a totally covered service when the provider is at fault, Ting said. Two explanation of benefits statements from Humana show the insurer received claims from NAPA in April 2021, shortly after Greenes surgery. The statements said the claims could not be considered at that time, though, because Humana had not yet received Medicare EOBs for the services. Kelli LeGaspi, a Humana spokesperson, declined to comment on Greenes case. She said a Medicare EOB a coverage statement generated when the program processes a claim is required for the supplement carrier to consider a claim. Without it, a claim for secondary coverage cannot be considered and is denied, she said. Supplement plans deny claims for benefits that are denied by Medicare, she said. If Original Medicare declines to pay the claim, then the Medicare supplement plan is required to decline the claim as well, she said in an email. In December 2022, a NAPA representative told Bluizer in an email that NAPA billed Medicare after the April 2021 surgery and that Medicare denied the claims in August 2021. The representative provided an account statement showing the claims were sent to collections that month. But Bluizer said a Medicare representative told her in late 2021 that the program had received no claims from NAPA. Greenes Medicare account shows NAPA filed claims in September 2022, about 17 months after his surgery and about five months after he received his first collection letter. Both claims were denied. A quarterly summary notice said while the time limit for filing the claims had expired, Greene also could not be billed. Meena Seshamani, director of the federal Center for Medicare, said in an email to KFF Health News that if a Medicare provider sends a claim a year or more after a service is provided, it is denied except in very rare circumstances. There is no exception for provider error, she said. A spokesperson for NAPA declined to be interviewed on the record, despite receiving a signed release waiving federal privacy protections. Martine G. Brousse, a billing expert and founder of the patient advocacy firm AdviMedPRO, said Greenes Medicare notice should have reassured the couple that he did not owe anything, despite the several overdue-bill notices they received. If the Medicare statement shows a zero balance to the member, then the provider cannot legally go after the patient, said Brousse, who is not involved in Greenes case. The patient has zero liability because it is not their fault, the provider billed Medicare a year after the surgery. That is the end of the story. Another mystery about the claim is why NAPA billed separately for a nurse anesthetist and an anesthesiologist. Bluizer said her husband was not told why NAPA billed individually for the two medical professionals a practice some insurers believe constitutes double billing. Brousse said there could be a simple explanation, such as if the nurse anesthetist started the procedure and the anesthesiologist finished it or if the company charged for the anesthesiologist to work in a supervisory role. But the Medicare claims document shows each provider billed for the same amount of time a little over an hour. As far as I can tell, this looks like two providers billed with the same I did the job Medicare procedure code, she said. Medicare cannot accept that without an explanation. The Resolution: Unable to get answers, Ting connected Greene to the nonprofit, Pennsylvania-based Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of Elders. In March, Ariel Rabinovic, an advocate with the center, contacted NAPA on Greenes behalf and explained that federal law does not allow the group to bill Medicare patients for services Medicare does not cover. He said he was told the company would stop billing Greene. Bluizer said the couple has not received any collection notices since then. Rabinovic said he has seen other situations in which health providers who agree to accept Medicare try to bill patients for services Medicare does not cover, which is not allowed. Older folks have a lot of things going on, and dealing with this can be very confusing for them, he said. A lot of people end up paying because they dont want to deal with it. Greene has faced several health issues and spent time in a rehabilitation hospital this winter. His wife said she was happy the billing issue had been resolved without their having to pay anything. The Takeaway: When a Medicare statement says the patient may not be billed anything for a health service, thats the bottom line. Dont write a check, but also dont ignore bills and collection notices, because they could ultimately hurt your credit. Read your mail, the experts said. While Greene was not responsible for paying the anesthesia bill given that Medicare said he did not owe anything, the couple may have prevented the debt from being sent to collections if they had responded to the anesthesia groups communications and confirmed it had Greenes insurance information, Brousse said. Keep copies of bills and insurance statements, especially Medicare EOB documents, or follow them on an online portal. The couple was smart to reach out to advocates for help resolving the issue when they could not do so on their own, Rabinovic said. This is why people need to read their notices from Medicare even when it says This is not a bill, he said. Also, when an anesthesia bill includes charges for both a nurse anesthetist and an anesthesiologist, question the charges. Many insurers will not pay for both. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recommend beneficiaries call 800-MEDICARE with questions about their care or bills or file a complaint online. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. A male pedestrian died Saturday after being struck on McHenry Avenue about midblock between Sylvan and Woodrow avenues, the Modesto Police Department reported. The crash occurred about 7:20 p.m., according to a Modesto Fire Department incident summary. Emergency responders found the man down in the road, suffering major injuries. He was taken to a medical center, where he died. The preliminary investigation found that a Modesto woman driving a Ford Fiesta was southbound on McHenry when she struck the pedestrian. She remained at the scene, cooperated with the investigation and showed no signs of impairment from drugs or alcohol, police reported. Witnesses to the crash are urged to contact Officer Justin Beverson at Beversonj@modestopd.com. The man is at least the fourth pedestrian killed in Modesto this month. A study released in August, using National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data, ranked Modesto 32nd among the 225 deadliest cities in the U.S. for pedestrians. Three other Central Valley cities Fresno, Sacramento and Stockton also ranked among the top 50. Were really trying to up our shifts where we can go out and enforce pedestrian stuff educate, change behavior by citations but it just keeps keeps happening, and it doesnt have to. Its tragic, Modesto police Sgt. Pat Kimes said Sunday morning. The Police Department announced just last week that it has received a $44,500 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety to fund bicyclist and pedestrian safety efforts. Through September 2024, the grant funds will support a variety of activities focused on bicycle and pedestrian safety: Walking field trips with older residents and pedestrian safety education to those who are experiencing homelessness. Pop-up events that promote the importance of visibility on roads with safety equipment such as reflective armbands/leg bands and bicycle headlights/taillights. Bicycle training courses that educate youth on safe riding behaviors. Helmet fitting inspections and distribution of helmets to those in need. Community and school education presentations. Community bike rides that encourage and teach riders safe riding skills. TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan reported renewed Chinese military activity around the island on Sunday, with nine aircraft crossing the sensitive median line of the Taiwan Strait and warships carrying out "combat readiness patrols". Democratically-governed Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, has complained for the past four years of regular Chinese military patrols and drills near the island, as Beijing seeks to pressure Taipei over its sovereignty claims. With Chinese President Xi Jinping in San Francisco last week for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, where he met U.S. President Joe Biden, the scale of that military activity around Taiwan had scaled off. But Taiwan's defence ministry reported that starting onSunday morning it had detected nine Chinese aircraft crossing the Taiwan Strait's median line, which had previously served as an unofficial barrier between the two and which Chinese planes now regularly fly over. The aircraft involved included Su-30 and J-10 fighters, as well as early warning and electronic warfare aircraft, the ministry said. The aircraft were accompanying Chinese warships carrying out "joint combat readiness patrols" it added. Taiwan sent its own forces to monitor, the ministry said. China's defence ministry did not answer calls seeking comment. China says its activities near Taiwan are aimed at "collusion" between Taiwan separatists and the United States and to protect China's territorial integrity. Taiwan's government, which has repeatedly offered talks with China, rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims and says only the island's people can decide their future. Taiwan was a major focus of the Biden-Xi talks in San Francisco. Xi told Biden during their four-hour meeting on Wednesday that Taiwan was the biggest, most dangerous issue in U.S.-China ties, according to a senior U.S. official. Taiwan holds presidential and parliamentary elections on Jan. 13, with the island's fraught relations with China an important topic on the campaign trail. Over the past year and a half China has staged two large-scale war games around Taiwan, though China's air force has not flown over the island or into its territorial air space. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by William Mallard and Kim Coghill) Richard Paul Rodriguez, 34, was arrested in California on Nov. 7 after the body of a Holbrook, Arizona, woman was discovered in the trunk of the car he was driving, according to authorities. The discovery came a day after the Holbrook Police Department responded to reports of a missing woman, according to a police news release. The woman, identified as 54-year-old Christi Lynn Romero, was not located at her home and neither was her vehicle. Suspect's Facebook post joked about having a body in the car trunk A Facebook account that appears to belong to Rodriguez posted a meme on Sept. 7 captioned, "So you don't like my driving. How do you think the person in the trunk feels." The suspect's Facebook post was highlighted in the Arizona subreddit. Huntington Beach police Sgt. Anthony Pham confirmed that the department was aware of the post. Victim reported missing before body discovered in California Police began searching for Romero's estranged boyfriend, Rodriguez, who had been served an order of protection and was removed from the residence on Nov. 2, according to Holbrook police officials. He was to stay at the local mission, but personnel there told police that he had not been seen there in several days. Authorities issued a nationwide Attempt to Locate for Rodriguez, Romero and her vehicle. Phone location data showed the vehicle was traveling toward California on Interstate 10, according to police. The Attempt to Locate was updated with special attention to California, including the residence of Rodriguez's parents in Huntington Beach. Rodriguez arrived at his parents' house on the evening of Nov. 6 when the police were called. The Huntington Beach Police Department's news release said officers located the body of a woman in the trunk of the car who had passed away "under suspicious circumstances." The Orange County Coroner's Office confirmed that the body was Romero's, according to Holbrook police. Rodriguez was in custody in California as of Nov. 7. Romero's family started a GoFundMe in an effort to transport her body back to Arizona. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Eerie Facebook post made by Arizona man accused of girlfriend's murder Lake Zurich High School senior Melodi Magluyan, who played Mal in the Defendants: The Musicalstage play in February 2023 at the school in Lake Zurich, has been chosen for a lead role in She Kills Monsters as part of the 2024 all-state production at the Illinois High School Theatre Festival. The festival is set for Jan. 11-13, 2024 at Illinois State University in Normal. (Magluyan Family) For the second year in a row, Lake Zurich High School senior Melodi Magluyan has been selected to perform in the all-state production at the Illinois High School Theatre Festival, this time in a lead role in the She Kills Monsters stage play. The 17-year-old was one of 85 students selected from a field of 225 high school students who auditioned or interviewed for a tech position, according to a Lake Zurich School District 95 news release announcing Magluyans participation. Advertisement Magluyan will play the important role of Kaliope which she describes as a dark, magical elf in Qui Nguyens drama comedy, She Kills Monsters. What I really like about the show is that its a contemporary to modern show, Magluyan told Pioneer Press. The messages within the show are still relevant and so important to hear to this day. Advertisement She said those messages include gender identity and bullying. I love being part of a show that can portray that so well, Magluyan said. The play takes place in both reality and the imaginary game world as a woman tries to get to know her late sister better by playing a Dungeons and Dragons module that her little sister developed, the school news release explains. Last year, Magluyan was a member of the ensemble in Shrek: The Musical at the festival. It means so much to me, Magluyan said about her selection as one of the leads for this years production. Being a part of all-state last year gave me an eye-opening experience. That opportunity made her realize that she really wants to have a theater career, and that shes good enough to achieve that goal, the teen said. Performances of She Kills Monsters are limited to participants at the Illinois High School Theatre Festival, which is scheduled to run Jan. 11 to Jan. 13 at Illinois State University in Normal. No public tickets are available. Each student who auditioned had a 15-minute slot to sing a song and recite a monologue. Those who were considered for roles following the initial auditions were invited to callbacks where the final selections were made. Advertisement Magluyan said she has been immersed in theater since she was in sixth grade at Lake Zurich Middle School South. She has continued studying theater and performing in school productions since her freshman year at Lake Zurich High School. She explained that her favorite roles at the high school have included Mal, the daughter of Maleficent, in Descendants: The Musical in February; Frozen in April; and Roxie Hart in Chicago in summer 2022. Magluyan has been a member of the Lake Zurich High School Drama Club since her freshman year. Drama Club Director Tom Skobel, who teaches and directs theater at the school, has high praise for her. Shes a really smart and intuitive actress, Skobel said. Shes really dedicated to the craft of acting and I think she has a real good well of emotions that she can tap into. Magluyan said participating in the Drama Club is inspirational. Its such a great community to be around being such passionate people, she said, adding that being part of that group has fostered my ambition and passion for theater. Advertisement Although Magluyan is still deciding which college she will attend, she definitely plans to study theater. Her goal, she said, is to have an acting career, but I would definitely dabble in directing or playwriting. Myrna Petlicki is a freelancer. Authorities on Sunday identified a man killed in a shooting in Manchester early Saturday morning. Carlos Rodriguez, 42, of Manchester, was found fatally shot in the area of 61 Lowell St., Attorney General John Formella said in a statement. An autopsy has determined that the cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds, and the manner of his death was homicide. At approximately 1:12 a.m. Saturday, Manchester Police officers responded to the area of 61 Lowell St. for a reported motor vehicle accident. At approximately 2:02 a.m., officers were called back to the area for a report of a shooting. When officers returned to the area, they found Rodriguez suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. He was taken by ambulance to the Elliot Hospital, where he died hours later, Formella said. Rodriguezs death remains under investigation, including whether the person who shot Rodriguez acted in self-defense and whether the sequence of events that occurred around the time of the motor vehicle accident led to the shooting, Formella said. There are no indications of any specific threat to the general public at this time, the attorney general said. Anyone with information about events that occurred around the time of the fatal shooting, between 1 a.m. and 2:02 a.m. Saturday morning outside 61 Lowell St. is asked to contact Manchester Police at 603-668-8711 and ask for the detective unit. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW Households living close to new pylons and electricity substations could receive up to 1,000 a year off energy bills for a decade under new plans. It is hoped the plan would convince people to support upgrades in their area, which are needed in part for new electric vehicle charging points. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is expected to announce the policy in the Autumn Statement on Wednesday. It is unclear at this stage how many households will get the full discount. Mr Hunt and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak are currently finalising the content of the statement, which will set out the priorities for government spending in the final year before a general election has to be held. It is known that they are considering announcing some tax cuts, and changes to income tax, national insurance, inheritance tax and business taxes are all being discussed. But the Treasury has indicated the pounds-for-pylons plan will definitely form part of the chancellor's statement. A spokesman said: "By speeding up the planning system - including the rollout of electric vehicle charge-points - we will be tackling one of the most common issues raised by businesses who are keen to invest in the UK." The department declined to say who would be paying for the discounts, or offer any information on how close houses would have to be to qualify for the maximum discount. One of the government's manifesto commitments in 2019 was to reach net zero by 2050 by investing in clean energy solutions and green infrastructure. To better connect with renewable energy projects, much of the UK's electricity network needs upgrading. However, it currently takes 12 to 14 years to build new electricity transmission lines - and the government says it is aiming to cut that time in half. Under the plan, nationally significant low-carbon energy infrastructure will be designated as a "critical national priority", to underline its importance to local planning officers who are required to approve to building projects. Matt Copeland, head of policy at the National Energy Action campaign to eradicate fuel poverty, said: "It's only right that those affected by pylons are compensated - but this is not a substitute for the UK government supporting vulnerable people with their sky-high energy bills." Earlier this summer, a government-commissioned report recommended the idea of simply smoothing the path for the building of new large pylons by handing over cash to those who would be affected. Nick Winser, the former chief executive of the National Grid, said a radical solution was needed to streamline the planning process and his report said people living near newly-built transmission pylons, the larger lines that connect electricity from where it is generated to regional substations, should get lump sum payments. He pointed out that the cost of compensation would be lower than building cables underground and much cheaper than resorting to offshore cables. Thousands more EV (electric vehicle) charging points will be needed in the next two decades The three companies that maintain the transmission grid in Great Britain - National Grid in England and Wales, and Scottish Power and SSE in Scotland - do not currently offer any payments to households. But in the Republic of Ireland, people in rural areas living within 200m of a new overhead line or transmission station qualify for payments of between 2,000 and 30,000 from EirGrid, the state-owned operator, depending on how close they are and the capacity of the line. Ed Miliband, Labour's shadow energy security and net zero secretary, said the Conservative had failed to "solve the problems of the grid", after 13 years in power. "Every family is paying the price of the Tories' failures to deliver clean power- from banning onshore wind, to winding down our storage, to crashing solar, to failing to upgrade our grid," Mr Miliband said. Liberal Democrat Treasury spokeswoman Sarah Olney said: "This scheme would create a postcode lottery system leaving millions of families still facing higher energy bills while others benefit." International defence company Babcock has welcomed more than 250 new apprentices and graduates to its Devonport facility in Plymouth. The intake is part of the firm's early careers programme. The new joiners will benefit from the recently launched Babcock Skills Academy. Paul Watson, Babcock Devonport's managing director, said: "We are delighted to welcome so many talented recruits." The early careers employees will support a variety of business areas at the site, from submarine life extension programmes to advanced manufacturing projects. The apprentice roles include welders, fabricators and pipe workers. The graduates are involved in specialist engineering, naval architecture and project management. Mr Watson said: "The calibre of our candidates was extremely high again this year and it is fantastic to be offering so many apprentices and graduates the opportunity to unlock their potential with us." 'Right skills' Gareth Kenward, Babcock's apprentice and early careers manager, said the opportunity was important for the business and the city. He said: "It's great from a south west perspective, it's great from a city perspective and it's great from a Babcock perspective but it's absolutely about making sure we've got the people trained to the right level to do the job we are going to need to do. "Not just in the short term and medium term, but right to the long term as well." Mr Kenward added: "There have been large technological advances and that's constantly happening. We need to make sure we are pairing our workforce with the right skills to meet those ever changing environments." The company has now launched a recruitment campaign for the next intake of graduates to join in September 2024. Follow BBC News South West on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk Bangladesh's largest Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami's lawyer Matiur Rahman Akanda, addresses journalists after Bangladesh's highest court dismissed their appeal seeking overturn of a previous High Court decision cancelling its registration with the Election Commission in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday, Nov.19, 2023. The decision means Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami party is not eligible to contest any polls as a party. Bangladesh will hold its next national elections on Jan. 7. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) Bangladeshs highest court on Sunday dismissed an appeal by the countrys largest Islamist party seeking to overturn a 2013 ruling that barred it from participating in elections for violating the constitutional provision of secularism Bangladesh is set to hold its next national elections on Jan. 7. A five-member bench of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan handed out the ruling. Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami's main lawyer did not appear before the court due to personal problems and his petition, filed previously, seeking to postpone the hearing for six weeks was also rejected. The High Court's decision 10 years ago canceled the party's registration with the Election Commission, thus stopping it from participating in elections or using party symbols. But it did not ban it from political particpation. The ruling, at the time, came amid calls to ban the party for opposing the countrys 1971 independence war against Pakistan. The government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, after coming to power in 2009, sought to try Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islamis top leaders for their role in acts of genocide and war crimes during the countrys independence war. Some have been hanged or given life sentences since 2013. The verdict of the High Court has been upheld, Tania Amir, a lawyer who stood against the Jamaat-e-Islami party, said Sunday. If they (Jamaat-e-Islami) attempt any meetings, rallies or gatherings or identify their party as legal to any high commission, embassy, foreign agency or state, we are at liberty to bring a new charge of contempt of court against them and an injunction, she said. But Matiur Rahman Akanda, a lawyer for the party, said that the it would continue to be politically active. The court gave its opinion on whether the registration (with the Election Commission) will be upheld," he said, there is no way to ban politics constitutionally. There have long been multiple calls in Bangladesh by secular forces and others to ban the Islamist party, but the government hasn't complied. The United States also considers it a moderate Islamist party. Despite Sundays decision by the High Court, it again remained unclear if Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami could continue its activities. Usually, the Ministry of Home Affairs is the entity that bans radical groups deemed as anti-state. Jamaat-e-Islami has been a key partner to the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who has been the archrival of the current head of government, Hasina, for decades. The Islamist party and Zia shared power in 2001-2006 when the latter was the premier In January, Hasina will seek to return to power for a fourth consecutive term while Zia's party has threatened to boycott the polls. The Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami says they also will boycott elections under Hasina. The memories of the 1971 war with Pakistan are still fresh in Bangladesh. Bangladeshi authorities say Pakistani soldiers, aided by local collaborators, killed 3 million people, raped 200,000 women, and forced some 10 million people to flee the country to neighboring India during the nine-month war in what was then known as East Pakistan, renamed Bangladesh after independence. India aided then an exiled government led by the countrys independence leader and founding President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasinas father, to win the war against Pakistan. Yaqub Ahmed, was jailed in 2008 for rape and attempted to block his deportation back to Somalia A BBC journalist was hired to give evidence used in a tribunal where a Somali rapist was trying to stay in the UK, it has been claimed. Mary Harper, the BBCs Africa editor, was hired as an expert witness by lawyers representing Yaqub Ahmed, in an attempt to block his deportation to Somalia, The Mail on Sunday reported. The journalist has given evidence in at least seven further immigration cases in the past decade, including in support of a Somali who committed sexual assault on a deaf teenage girl, it was claimed. Ahmed is a gang rapist who was jailed in 2008 for attacking a teenage girl in London after she was lured from Leicester Square to a flat in Crouch End. His planned deportation in 2018 was stopped after holidaymakers on his flight from Heathrow to Istanbul staged a revolt prior to take-off after Ahmed claimed he was being separated from his family and would be killed. Ms Harper was hired by Ahmeds London lawyers, Wilson Solicitors, to give evidence in 2021, it is understood. Mary Harper, the BBCs Africa editor, was hired as an expert witness by lawyers representing Yaqub Ahmed, according to reports - STEVEN MAY/ALAMY Appearing at a First-tier immigration tribunal in West London, Ms Harper reportedly told judges that Ahmed could be targeted by terrorist group al-Shabaab because it would want to punish him for raping a 16-year-old girl in the UK. She is said to have claimed he could be harassed by Somali security forces and would struggle to find a job in Mogadishus construction industry because he lacked the right skills. She also reportedly claimed that the Home Office plans to fly Ahmed to Mogadishu on a charter flight and put him up in a safe hotel would wrongly mark him out as a spy. The BBC is facing questions about how Ms Harper was able to give evidence as an employee of the broadcaster. BBC face serious questions Dame Priti Patel, the former home secretary, said it was appalling that Ms Harper had given evidence. She said: I think there has to be serious questions about why a BBC journalist was allowed to give evidence in a case like this. Under what grounds did the BBC see that as appropriate? A BBC spokesman said: There is nothing in the BBCs Editorial Guidelines that prevents staff acting as expert witnesses who, as set out by the Tribunal Procedure Rules, are required to be objective and impartial in their evidence over any other obligation. The BBC declined to clarify whether Ms Harper would have been required to seek permission from the corporation before acting as an expert witness in the rapists hearing. Ms Harper has served as the BBCs Africa editor for almost 15 years, according to her LinkedIn profile. The website also states that she was educated at 42,000-a-year Bedales School in Hampshire, before studying at Cambridge and the School of Oriental and African Studies. Concerns surrounding objectivity Immigration judges have raised concerns about the objectivity of her evidence, The Mail on Sunday reported. It was concerning to hear that she had not read thoroughly key material concerning the appellants case, the judges reportedly said. The failure to do so and the failure to make reference to previous contrary findings by the tribunal when providing her opinion about risk caused us to have concerns about the objectivity of her evidence on this issue. Ms Harpers evidence was said to have been criticised for unhelpfully citing cases that took place outside Mogadishu. The judges disagreed with her warning about a charter flight in Ahmeds case and said they agreed with the Home Office that a charter flight would be a very unusual and counterproductive way to transport a spy. In a separate case involving a Somali with a history of offending, Ms Harpers evidence was also criticised by a judge for lacking objectivity, it was claimed. The judge said he could attach little weight to a report she had prepared, saying it lacks the objectivity demanded and her review of the country information available is selective, according to the Sunday newspaper. Meanwhile, the judges in Ahmeds case reportedly said they had significant concerns about her evidence containing the same failings as those for which she had been criticised previously. Ahmed was reported to have been deported back to Somalia in August. Ms Harper has been contacted for comment. 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. Danny Cohen has called for a 'long-overdue independent inquiry into the corporations editorial and management failures in its reporting of Israel' The BBCs former head of television has called for an independent review into the corporations coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, as he accused a diplomatic correspondent of showing pro-Palestine bias. Danny Cohen, the director of BBC Television from 2013 to 2015, said Britains Jewish people are being harmed through its unbalanced reporting since the war began. He said: The time has now come for a long-overdue independent inquiry into the corporations editorial and management failures in its reporting of Israel. In one example, he pointed out how Caroline Hawley, the BBCs diplomatic correspondent, has written numerous posts on X, formerly Twitter, expressing concern for the shocking and terrifying situation in Gaza, sharing calls for a ceasefire and providing multiple updates on the number of deaths there. But The Telegraph found that just 9 per cent or 18 of her 195 tweets and retweets since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct 7 have mentioned Israeli deaths, casualties and hostages, including case studies of families captured. Since the proscribed terror group Hamas invaded Israel last month, Ms Hawley has frequently updated her 8,600 followers on the death toll in Gaza from Israeli military bombardment, which is attempting to eliminate Hamas. Caroline Hawley has written numerous posts on Twitter, many of which focus on Palestinian casualties and deaths - BBC Only last week, she wrote: New life amid all the death and destruction with more than 4,000 children killed, 100 UNRWA staff dead and 200 medics no longer able to help heal patients. That followed multiple other tweets commenting on how the number of civilians killed in Gaza grows and grows and sharing updates from the United Nations, other UN agencies, charities, NGOs and activists on Gaza death tolls and their various calls for a humanitarian ceasefire. Earlier this month, Ms Hawley tweeted: What shocks me in this small glimpse of the terror civilians are enduring in Gaza is how calm people appear ... I guess there's little choice .. https://t.co/5YG2G0sF6F Caroline Hawley (@carolinehawley) November 1, 2023 While she has reported on Israeli hostages and music festival victims on-air, on X she criticised the shocking level of destruction in the Jabaliya refugee camp following Israeli bombing without mentioning the Israel Defense Forces justification that it was a stronghold for Hamas terrorists. BBC faces urgent questions Mr Cohen, who is also the former BBC One controller, said her biased, unbalanced social media feed reads like a series of press releases from Hamas central command, as he demanded an inquiry into the corporations wider coverage following a series of rows. He told The Telegraph: Day after day Hawley reposts messages and photographs from Gaza without context or any apparent attempt at basic journalistic verification. There is barely a mention of the Oct 7 massacres or the ongoing plight of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas. So why has Hawley been allowed to continue to report in such a biased, unbalanced way? Is the BBC OK with her reporting or unable to control it? This is a question it must urgently answer. He claimed the BBCs credibility with the Jewish community is reaching a point of no return, adding: With these incidents piling up on a daily basis there is only one conclusion to draw. Either the BBCs senior management is complicit in these egregious examples of bias, these regular breaches of its guidelines, or it lacks the ability to control the output of its own organisation. BBC staffs social media investigated The row comes after Isaac Herzog, the Israeli president, threatened to cut off access to the BBC last month over its atrocious refusal to describe Hamas as terrorists. The BBC also apologised on air last week after a newsreader twice mistakenly claimed that Israeli forces were targeting medical staff and Arab speakers at Gazas largest hospital. And the corporation launched an urgent investigation after social media activity by several of its journalists in the BBC News Arabic bureau appeared to celebrate and justify the Hamas attack. A BBC spokesman said: We take complaints about social media use very seriously, especially on such a sensitive and contested subject, and investigate accordingly. Impartiality is crucial for BBC news staff, and our guidelines require them to reflect a wide range of opinion in their social media. We will continue to remind all our journalists of their responsibilities. A new inquiry is essential On Sunday night, Michael Ellis, the former attorney general for England and Wales, backed Mr Cohens call for an independent inquiry of the BBCs coverage. The senior Conservative MP told The Telegraph: The BBC are still concealing the contents of a report conducted nearly 20 years ago that was commissioned because of allegations then of BBC bias against Israel in their reporting on the Middle East. Licence-payers money was spent compiling the report and then more licence-payers money was spent fighting through the courts to conceal it from the licence-payers. As the BBC still refuse to release it, now there is no alternative but to commission another report this time independent of the BBC. It is crucial people around the world can have confidence that the BBC is reporting fairly and accurately and it is quite clear that there is very real concern that their reporting of Israel now does not come close to commanding the confidence of viewers at home or abroad. A new inquiry is essential. 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 crocheted soldier's head, surrounded by poppies, was created to mark Remembrance Day A creator of a Remembrance Day postbox topper said her work had been stolen by the "lowest of the low". Steph Goldsmith, from Bedford, crocheted a soldier's head surrounded by poppies for last week's memorial services. However, when she later turned up to remove the topper, it had disappeared - despite being secured with a chain and padlock. "Where it's gone remains a mystery," said Ms Goldsmith. In May last year, a work-of-art she made for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee also disappeared. A crown made to celebrate the late Queen's Platinum Jubilee was also taken in 2022 The mother-of-two taught herself to crochet when her son was ill in hospital. Since she started making the pieces last year, several have been vandalised and a number have disappeared, including one of a union flag for the King's coronation. Regarding the Remembrance piece, Miss Goldsmith said she was told it was still there on Thursday, but by Friday night, when she went to take it away, it had gone. She had placed it on the gold postbox by St Paul's Square, painted to honour Etienne Stott winning a gold medal in canoeing at the London 2012 Olympics. All that remained of Miss Goldsmith's work was the chain she secured it with "I won't be deterred," said Miss Goldsmith. "I'm not doing them as frequently as I used to, but I'm planning on putting one out for Christmas. "I'm not sure about next year - but everyone loves them, it's a nice thing to do." A spider for Halloween, in 2022, was removed but repaired and placed back Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk An albino girl carries a member of her family in Zimbabwe. Luis Tato/AFP via Getty Images Racism is often debated, discussed and analyzed in politics, the classroom and the workplace. But as a scholar of the politics of skin color, I see colorism as a form of prejudice thats poorly understood and gets very little attention. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines colorism as prejudice or discrimination especially within a racial or ethnic group favoring people with lighter skin over those with darker skin. Western media outlets routinely assume that colorism refers to the preference for lighter skin in communities of color. Yet this assumption betrays a Western bias. Yes, in places like the U.S., darker-skinned people can experience various aspects of discrimination. But in some African communities, the U.S. and other parts of the world, light skin may also lead to prejudicial treatment. Targets for discrimination and abuse Albinism is a hereditary condition caused by mutations of certain genes that affect the amount of melanin produced by the body. The condition is relatively rare roughly 1 in 17,000 people worldwide and rates vary by population group. But in Africa, certain tribal traditions can place the lives of albino Africans in danger. In an environment where dark skin is the dominant norm, light appearances can invite reverse colorism and even lead to violence. Incidents of albino reverse colorism occur most often in sub-Saharan Africa. There, some natives refer to albinos using the pejorative inkawu, which, in English, roughly equates to white baboon. Other words that refer to albinos are isishawa meaning a person who is cursed and zeruzeru, which is predominantly used in Tanzania and means ghostlike. Tanzania is notable for another reason: It has the largest number of documented murders of albino people on the entire continent. There are certain cultural traditions that facilitate the abuse and murder of albino people. A report prepared for the United Nations in 2012 noted that a tradition existed in the Maasai tribe to place a newborn albino child at the gate of a cattle barn. Cattle were then released to graze, and they would often trample the newborn to death. If the child somehow survived, it would be allowed to live. Beyond the imminent physical danger albino newborns can find themselves in, the birth of an albino child can create a host of challenges for the rest of the family, which can find itself newly stigmatized. For these reasons, some families see their albino children as a curse. Other albino children, as well as adults, may end up mutilated, their body parts used to concoct potions and make trinkets. Such forms of violence are reserved for the albino population alone. The statistics are devastating: In Tanzania, only 2% of people born with albinism live to the age of 40. Fighting back In Africa, there are activists who are working to end the stigmatization of albino people. Sister Martha Mganga, who was born with albinism, has been holding community events in Tanzania for over 30 years to help dispel myths about albinism. Through her organization, Peacemakers for Albinism and Community, she has placed over 150 albino children in schools where theyll be safe. Another activist, an albino South African lawyer and model named Thando Hopa, sees it as her mission to change the perception of albino people. In a 2021 essay, she reflected on her experiences: As I grew older, I constantly experienced covert, overt, and borderline obsessive interrogation of my human and biological value, my normality, my general intellectual competence, my racial positioning, and social desirability all linked to my having albinism. An albino model during a 2017 fashion show in Durban, South Africa. Marco Longari/AFP via Getty Images Yet reverse colorism is no less an issue among African-Americans. While many scholars and journalists maintain that colorism manifests as discrimination against those having darker skin, it doesnt always play out that way. In fact, the first African American litigation centered on colorism was brought by a light-skinned African American named Tracey Morrow, who, in 1990, claimed she was discriminated against in performance evaluations by her dark-skinned supervisor at the IRS, where she worked. Oprah Winfreys 2015 documentary Light Girls is one of the few Western works that tackled the issue of reverse colorism. The documentary features personal accounts of light-skinned Black women, some of whom were brought to tears as they described being rejected or discriminated against by their community for not being Black enough. The complexions of people of African descent across time and space are varied from light-skinned sociologist W.E.B. DuBois to the dark-skinned former prime minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Patrice Lumumba and myriad variations in between. Perhaps mankind is always destined to differentiate itself for social, political and economic reasons. But while racial discrimination persists, it has become more difficult to divvy people up by racial group due to the growth of multiracial populations. Skin color, on the other hand, is starkly visible making it an ideal canvas for discrimination. This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world.The Conversation is trustworthy news from experts. Try our free newsletters. It was written by: Ronald E. Hall, Michigan State University. Read more: Ronald E. Hall does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. CHICAGO - A Cook County man is accused of stabbing two people in Logan Square this week. Jesse Richardson, 50, of Berwyn, faces two felony counts of aggravated battery causing great bodily harm, two felony counts of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, one misdemeanor count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one misdemeanor count of unlawful use of a weapon. At about 12:18 p.m. Thursday, Richardson allegedly stabbed and seriously wounded a 19-year-old man and a 44-year-old man in the 2800 block of West Fullerton Avenue. Richardson was arrested minutes later and charged accordingly. No additional information was released. Hard Rock Casino chef Arthur Wiggins places slices of turkey on a tray as meals are prepared as part of an annual Thanksgiving dinner distribution at the Gary Salvation Army on Friday, November 17, 2023. (Kyle Telechan for the Post-Tribune) (Kyle Telechan/Post-Tribune) For three years now, chefs from the Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana have been preparing dozens of turkeys and hundreds of pounds of side dishes to help make Thanksgiving a little easier for some local residents. A team of chefs including Mike Haas of Crown Point, Alan Clark of Dublin, Ireland, Arthur Wiggins of Chicago, Zachary Dwyer of Crown Point and Cynthia Lopez of Puerto Rico, all led by Chef Joshua Bart of St. John spent two days cooking and prepping the Thanksgiving feast for more than 300 clients of the Gary-Merrillville Salvation Army. Advertisement This is a great community cause for us, Bart said. The team all did their part to marinate the turkeys, chop the vegetables and prepare a full-blown turkey dinner served hot and packaged in to-go containers for participants to pick up without leaving their cars, he said. Hard Rock Casino chef Mike Haas prepares his station before participating in an annual Thanksgiving dinner event at the Gary Salvation Army on Friday, November 17, 2023. (Kyle Telechan for the Post-Tribune) (Kyle Telechan/Post-Tribune) Bart said the chefs prepared 240 pounds of turkey and 180 pounds of ham. They also made a variety of sides including 170 pounds of green bean casserole, 120 pounds of stuffing, 6 gallons of turkey gravy, 54 dozen dinner rolls, 55 pumpkin pies and cranberry sauce. Advertisement Its a collective effort, Bart said. After all the prep work and cooking, the team also plated up the hot food in the to-go containers while members of Hard Rocks culinary team added the cold salads, desserts and utensils to each bag before delivering them to the waiting vehicles. Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana chef Joshua Bart speaks before participating in an annual Thanksgiving dinner distribution at Salvation Army in Gary on Friday, November 17, 2023. (Kyle Telechan for the Post-Tribune) (Kyle Telechan/Post-Tribune) It takes a lot of time and effort, Haas said. Bart said Hard Rock has partnered with the Salvation Army since the casino opened three years ago. They typically plan for 300 meals, with a few extra, just in case. This year about 320 people signed up to participate. Chefs made about 340 meals for the giveaway. Each chef was responsible for a dish. Dwyer had mashed potato duty. The team has dubbed him the master of potatoes he said, a title he was given shortly after he joined Hard Rock about a year ago. The nickname stuck, along with the duty of making thousands of pounds of mashed potatoes. A cut of turkey is covered in gravy as Hard Rock Casino chefs prepare meals for those in need as part of an annual Thanksgiving dinner distribution at Salvation Army in Gary on Friday, November 17, 2023. (Kyle Telechan for the Post-Tribune) (Kyle Telechan/Post-Tribune) One day I just did it really well. Now every time there is a banquet or event, I make the potatoes, he said. Dwyer said he had planned on saying his mashed potatoes were a secret family recipe, but the truth is a little simpler. The secret to good mashed potatoes is copious amounts of butter and cream, Dwyer said. A couple stations down the line, Wiggins was in charge of the green bean casserole. Dwyer said his fellow chef used a huge batch of cream of mushroom soup as the base to make the casserole amazing. Advertisement Hard Rock Casino chef Zachary Dwyer opens a container of mashed potatoes as he prepares to tray and distribute food as part of an annual Thanksgiving dinner event at the Gary Salvation Army on Friday, November 17, 2023. (Kyle Telechan for the Post-Tribune) (Kyle Telechan/Post-Tribune) As the team awaited go time Friday, Wiggins and Dwyer said the hard part was over, as the group chatted and joked with one another. Theres so much prep getting done, service for me is my favorite part, Wiggins said. Patrick Brown, vice president of food and beverage for the casino, said the partnering with the Salvation Army is a great cause. Gary Salvation Army Court Officer, Lt. Katrina Andrews, points out dozens of boxes set to be loaded with presents for the organization's "Angel Tree" program on Friday, November 17, 2023. (Kyle Telechan for the Post-Tribune) (Kyle Telechan/Post-Tribune) This is a fun one for our team members. Its a great cause. We do see a lot of demand locally, Brown said. For Salvation Army Corps Officer Lt. Katrina Andrews, Friday was her first Thanksgiving dinner giveaway in Northwest Indiana and first time working with Hard Rock after a transfer from South Dakota. She said the casino has been an amazing partner, not only with the Thanksgiving dinner, but jumping in to help the with locations Angel Tree program. She said casino volunteers helped her set up the 396 boxes for the families who registered for the program, welcome assistance she was not expecting when they came in to help with the dinner. They offered to come back and help on distribution day and take more than 100 angel tree tags. Advertisement Hard Rock Casino chefs, from left, Arthur Wiggins, Zachary Dwyer, and Cynthia Lopez stand in line as they prepare to plate food for an annual Thanksgiving dinner distribution at Salvation Army in Gary on Friday, November 17, 2023. (Kyle Telechan for the Post-Tribune) (Kyle Telechan/Post-Tribune) They are just phenomenal, Andrews said. The assistance is welcome because the need is great, she said. She is hopeful the Salvation Army is able to find sponsors for all of the families participating in the angel tree program. Im just praying all the boxes are filled with toys, she said. From the Dispatch Weekly on The Dispatch Hello and happy Sunday. Its been a pretty quiet weekend in the Ohio bureau. My Buckeyes had an easy game against the Minnesota Gophers, I got a head start on Christmas decorating, and were looking forward to our oldest being home from college for Thanksgiving. Having no obligations lets the mind wander a bit, so bear with me. As we head into the 2024 presidential electionthe Iowa caucuses are January 15, just on the other side of the holiday season were gearing up forthe overwhelming likelihood is that the race will come down to a rematch of the 2020 election between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Biden is the incumbent after all, and Trump has maintained an astronomical lead over the Republican field. One crazy thing about all of this, of course, is that, as Bloomberg put it recently, Biden-Trump 2 Is the Election No One Wants. I dont think I need to spend too much time explaining that to readers of this newsletter. But even crazier is that, according to a new New York Times poll, Trump is leading Biden in five key battleground states. Biden is oldand even Democrats have questioned his fitness for officebut Trump is providing young historians with guaranteed full employment for their careers and has constitutional lawyers scratching their heads by running while facing four separate criminal indictments. Its bound to be an ugly election. The rift in the Democratic Party between progressives and moderates has been exacerbated by the war between Israel and Hamas, with many in the left wing of the party upset by Bidens support for Israel. Trump is running an explicit revenge campaign, and has vowed to conduct mass deportations, implement a Muslim ban, and fire thousands of federal employees if hes elected. It all makes one wonder: Do we really need this sequel? If we somehow dont end up getting that 2020 rematch, a couple stories we published this week could help explain why. First up, Andrew reported this week from New Hampshire, where Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips is focusing his primary challenge against Biden. Phillips doesnt have many ideological differences with Biden, but he worries that the president cannot win again. This is not a campaign of destruction against the president, he told students at Dartmouth College.* To the contrary, it is a campaign to prevent the destruction of democracy. On the Republican side, the quest to keep Trump from securing the nomination has seemed pretty much futile since he announced his campaign almost exactly a year ago. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis enjoyed his highest marks in the RealClearPolitics polling average in January 2023four months before he actually announced he was running. But former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has been surging this fall thanks to strong performances in the GOP primary debates. That has attracted interest from mega donors, and in Dispatch Politics on Wednesday, Andrew and David Drucker reported that the super PAC backing Haley is planning for major ad buys in the key early states of Iowa and New Hampshire. The idea that we could end up with a Phillips-Haley race is beyond far-fetched. Phillips is now being tracked in the national RCP polling average at 5 percent, trailing even spiritual adviser and failed 2020 candidate Marianne Williamson. Haleys surge has her all the way up to 10.7 percent nationally, compared with Trumps 58.9 percent. But Phillipswho describes himself as progressive but pragmaticrepresents a purple district in Minnesota. Haley has executive experience from her time as governor and significant foreign-policy chops from her stint as U.N. ambassador. Shes made serious policy proposals on the debate stage. Its easy to see how a presidential campaign between the two of them would be, dare I say, normal. Wed not be subject to news stories highlighting every senior moment by either candidate (both of whom are in their 50s), and the cable networks could keep fewer legal commentators on retainer to discuss whether a convicted felon would preside from prison or the Oval Office. The circumstances that brought us to this point are complex and will keep sociologists just as busy as historians for the foreseeable future. Our journey out of this morass will take time, almost definitely too much time to get us a normal election next year. But a girl can dream. Now, excuse me. Im going to go help the kids write some early letters to Santa Claus. Thanks for reading, and enjoy your weekend. Not a member? Join now! Bennett Murray reports from the trenches of Bakhmut, Ukraineliterally. He embedded with the 28th Mechanized Brigade and writes about spending time with Ukrainian soldiers in an abandoned Russian trench while shells whizzed overhead and exploded behind him. One soldier passed the time playing games on his phone. Why the lack of urgency? One of the soldiers was in possession of a Sugarcube, a 3D-printed device that retails for $35 detects ominous radio signals associated with the enemys technology. Murrays fascinating report focuses on the cheap do-it-yourself technology that has changed the battlefield, but its not all good news for the beleaguered Ukrainians. The Russians have taken advantage, too. The headline of Wednesdays G-File () is Jonahs question to those calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. After all, a ceasefire had been in place on October 6. If you think Israel should not respond to the horrific massacre of its people, youre in effect saying, Shut up Jews. You deserve it. And so he asks, just what should Israel do? If you have some military insight, some greater grasp of tactics than the IDF or the Pentagon, I am honestly interested in what this better way is, he writes. But none of these people offer any such solutions to the very real problem of Hamas using Palestinian babies to protect their murderers and rapists. Theyd prefer to reward Hamas policy of using civilians to protect their terrorists and condemn Israels policy of using soldiers to protect civilians. Theyd rather pretend that blame for these tragic casualties is Israels alone. Donald Trumps various criminal trials, combined with the possibility he could be elected president before they are concluded, present more than one nightmare scenario. Based on legal guidance dating back decades, any federal proceedings against Trump would come to a halt if he were the president. But that guidance doesnt apply to states, and Georgia is prosecuting him for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. In The Collision, Sarah and Mike look at the various hypotheticals and how they might play out. But in her analysis at the end of the newsletter, Sarah writes, What we are testing now is too bizarre to even make it into a law school hypothetical. The true constitutional answer to all of these hypotheticals is that we were never meant to need an answer to them. No constitution for self-government can save a people from voluntarily ending their own reign. A republic, if you can keep it wasnt just a foreboding turn of phraseit was a statement of historical literacy. For Wanderland (), Kevin reported on the first conference of the Texas Nationalist Movement, a group that is institutionally committed to seeking the independence of Texas as a sovereign republic apart from the United StatesTexit, as they call it. He doesnt find many legitimate arguments for the causeor many genuine Texansbut he does encounter a not insignificant amount of antisemitism, conspiracy theorizing, and general kookery. He writes: Its mostly just MAGA in Western wear from Cavenders and Boot Barn, the detritus of various suburban Tea Party groups and Trumpist organizations and QAnon cultists that have moved on to the next obsession. Not a member? Join now! And heres the best of the rest: Maria Powelll writes about a 1,600-year-old Orthodox church in Gaza that is providing shelter to 500 Christians. She notes that Christians in the region have faced hostility from the outsetthough in those days it was a pagan majorityand discusses how they have persevered over time. Did Kevin McCarthy elbow a fellow Republican congressman? If so, what the heck is going on with the former speaker? Nick has some theories in Boiling Frogs (). Campuses across America have been home to demonstrations that are nominally pro-Palestinian but are rife with antisemtism and outright support for Hamas. Frederick Hess and Mathew Levey argue that a lot of the blame lies with a K-12 education system that has long failed to teach history. Charlotte reported on the March for Israel that took place at the National Mall this week. She talked to Jewish attendees who are scared and worried, and non-Jewish attendees who wanted to show solidarity. We are peaceful people, one rallygoer told her. We just want to be safe in our homes, out of our homes, in colleges. On the pods: On The Dispatch Podcast, Declan interviews Jon Karl about his new book about Donald Trump (which Declan helped him with), Tired of Winning. On Advisory Opinions, David and Sarah discuss the latest from the Supreme Court, including its new ethics code. And on The Remnant, Jonah welcomes Alexandra Hudson to explore whether we can regain our sense of civility. Fortunately, shes just written a book on the topic. *Correction, November 19, 2023: In a reference to Andrews reporting from New Hampshire, this newsletter mistakenly referred to Dartmouth University. Its Dartmouth College. Read more at The Dispatch The Dispatch is a new digital media company providing engaged citizens with fact-based reporting and commentary, informed by conservative principles. Sign up for free. President Joe Bidens re-election campaign continues discussions on how to handle the presidents age during election season. Bidens deputy campaign manager, Quentin Fulks, reportedly told donors at the DNC fundraiser retreat in September that he advised focusing on Bidens accomplishments instead of his age. Other donors are reportedly pushing for more jokes about the presidents age, a strategy Biden has deployed by publicly making self-deprecating remarks about his age at fundraisers while simultaneously roasting Trump. Biden is Americas oldest president and is turning 81 on Monday. Ron Klain, Bidens chief of staff for the presidents first two years in office acknowledged that everyone knows its an issue, and we have to address it. Klain said it will be important in Bidens reelection campaign to emphasize [that] it gives him more wisdom and experience, how hes navigated this difficult problem in Ukraine. Read it at Politico Read more at The Daily Beast. President Biden penned an op-ed in The Washington Post where he discussed his framework for the Israel-Hamas war, saying the United States is prepared to take our own steps on the issue. Biden said a two-state solution would be the road to peace for Israel and the civilians of Gaza, adding they must have equal measures of freedom, opportunity and dignity. He called out Israeli settlers who have reportedly attacked Palestinians in the West Bank since the war began and outlined several recommendations he has on how to move forward. I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable, he wrote. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank. He proposed several principles for how to move forward, including suggesting Gaza must never again be used as a platform for terrorism. He said that after the war, the voices of the Palestinian people must be at the center of the post-crisis governance. Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, Biden said. The international community must provide resources to support the people of Gaza in the immediate aftermath and meet civilians long-term needs, he suggested. The conflict in the Middle East began in early October when the Palestinian militant group Hamas entered Israel in a brutal surprise attack that killed 1,200 people. In the weeks following the initial attack, Israel has launched an air and ground counteroffensive that has killed more than 11,000 people, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry has reported. Both Putin and Hamas are fighting to wipe a neighboring democracy off the map. And both Putin and Hamas hope to collapse broader regional stability and integration and take advantage of the ensuing disorder, Biden wrote. America cannot, and will not, let that happen. For our own national security interests and for the good of the entire world. Biden also reiterated his previous comments on a cease-fire, saying that as long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a cease-fire is not a peace solution. Instead of calling for a cease-fire, which several former campaign staffers and an increasing number of members of Congress have urged him to do, Biden has worked with Israeli leaders to negotiate pauses in the fighting to allow for deliveries of humanitarian aid to be made to the civilians in Gaza. He held firm in his previous statements, saying that he stands with the Israeli people as they defend themselves against the murderous nihilism of Hamas. Biden recently spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about potential pauses in the fighting to allow for more humanitarian aid to be sent to the civilians of Gaza. Biden also wrote that he is heartbroken by the images coming out of Gaza. Both Biden and Netanyahu have said that a cease-fire would not happen until the more than 200 hostages taken in the Oct. 7 attack are released. Biden said his team is doing everything they can to get the hostages out. Our goal should not be simply to stop the war for today it should be to end the war forever, break the cycle of unceasing violence, and build something stronger in Gaza and across the Middle East so that history does not keep repeating itself, Biden wrote. With the conflict taking a toll on the U.S., with protests breaking out across the country and antisemitism on the rise, Biden said the country has to work harder to hold on to the values that make America what it is. A nation with freedom of religion and expression, we have the ability to debate and disagree but with a rise in antisemitism, Biden said hate and bias must be denounced. In recent years, too much hate has been given too much oxygen, fueling racism and an alarming rise in antisemitism in America, Bidens op-ed said. In his closing remarks, the president said in moments of violence and suffering, it can be difficult to imagine that something different is possible. We must not lose our resolve to pursue those goals, because now is when clear vision, big ideas and political courage are needed most, he wrote. That is the strategy that my administration will continue to lead in the Middle East, Europe and around the globe. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. President Joe Biden directed top officials to prepare visa bans and sanctions for extremist Israeli settlers attacking and displacing Palestinians in the West Bank, according to an internal document read to POLITICO. The Cabinet memo, sent to senior aides like Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Friday, orders their agencies to develop policy options for expeditious action against those responsible for the conduct of violence in the West Bank. A senior U.S. official read sections of the memo to POLITICO on Saturday evening shortly after Biden published an op-ed in The Washington Post revealing his intentions for such a move. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank, he wrote in the op-ed. The directive comes as the Biden administration aims to show that its supporting Palestinian civilians in need, even as it staunchly defends Israels retaliation against Hamas, and while members of the presidents party seek conditions on military aid to Washingtons ally. The targets for reprimands are broadly defined in the memo. They include people or entities that have directly or indirectly engaged in actions or policies that threaten the security or stability of the West Bank, take actions that intimidate civilians in the West Bank with the purpose or effect of forcing displacement actions in the West Bank, or make moves that constitute human rights abuses or violations and actions that significantly obstruct, disrupt or prevent efforts to achieve a two-state solution. The memo notes that Biden sees the settler-violence issue as a serious threat to peace among Israelis and Palestinians and destabilizing throughout the Middle East. The decision to issue the directive came after intense debate on the topic, with national security adviser Jake Sullivan and deputy Jon Finer offering their direct input during a dedicated internal process, the official said. POLITICO has not seen the memo, and the official was granted anonymity to read from a sensitive internal document. The White House declined to comment. Israeli settlers have been moving into the West Bank for years, and incidents of violence were already growing after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power nearly a year ago. But the intensity of the long-running issue has grown since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people. Yesh Din, an Israeli rights group, reports that 197 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by settlers or Israeli forces since Oct. 7. The United Nations reports that, in the same time frame, at least 121 Palestinian households about 1,150 people, including 452 children have been displaced by settler violence and access restrictions. Daily incidents of settler violence rose from three a day earlier this year to seven since the attacks, per the United Nations. About 11 Palestinian communities have been completely abandoned in 2023 alone, according to the West Bank Protection Consortium, six of them since Hamas assault. Biden has often condemned the rise in violence. I continue to be alarmed about extremist settlers attacking Palestinians in the West Bank, he said in October, equating the attacks to pouring gasoline on fire. Theyre attacking Palestinians in places that theyre entitled to be, and it has to stop. They have to be held accountable, Biden added. On Friday, Blinken urged the Israeli government to confront rising levels of settler extremist violence during a call with Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz. The president initially stood firmly behind Israel, saying it needed to strike back at the militant group in Gaza. Later, the administration faced pressure to alleviate the growing humanitarian crisis, eventually working with regional partners to get aid into Gaza for its 2.3 million residents starved of food, water, fuel and medical attention. That was too little too late for some Biden voters who say they wont pull the lever for him in 2024 over this Israel-Hamas policy. Pressure from within Bidens party is also mounting in Congress. Two Democrats on Thursday, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), sent a letter urging him to do more to curb settler violence. Progressives want the administration to call for a cease-fire in the war that has killed more than 11,000 people in Gaza, according to Hamas-led Gaza health authorities. Mainstream Democrats in the Senate and House are quietly discussing how to impose conditions on future military aid to Israel. On Saturday evening, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who this week held a lunch for Senate Democrats to discuss the war, said he supported certain conditions like Israel halting settler violence and an end to the indiscriminate bombing. President Bidens support among Democrats is dwindling over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war, according to a new poll. A new poll by NBC News found that just 34 percent of all voters approved of how Biden is handling the Israel-Hamas war, which has been ongoing since militant group Hamas launched its deadly incursion into southern Israel on Oct. 7. Since the onset of the fighting, Biden has remained adamant over the U.S.s continued support to Israel. NBC News noted that only half of Democratic voters, 51 percent, approved of Bidens handling of the conflict. Nearly 60 percent of independent voters said they disapproved while nearly 70 percent of Republicans said the same thing, the outlet noted. Some Democrats have been outspoken against the U.S.s support of Israel, arguing that the U.S. should cease funding the country and also calling for a cease-fire in the war. Progressive members of Congress, including Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Cori Bush (D-Mo.) have spearheaded these calls. This also comes after a protest broke out in front of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters in Washington, D.C. last week. Organizers said attendees of the demonstration wanted to engage with Democratic lawmakers to discuss a cease-fire in Gaza, but that they werent able to due to a clash with Capitol Police. The poll also found that Bidens approval rating dropped to 40 percent, which it said is his lowest level of his presidency. NBC News noted that the poll found that his support largely eroded among Democrats who believe that Israel has gone past the line of its military action in Gaza as well as among voters 18 to 34. Among this age group, 70 percent disapprove of Bidens handling of the war. Joe Biden is at a uniquely low point in his presidency, and a significant part of this, especially within the Biden coalition, is due to how Americans are viewing his foreign policy actions, Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates, who helped conduct this survey, told NBC. He said that its stunning because of the impact the Israel-Hamas war is having on Biden. However, he also cautioned that Biden can likely win these voters back, pointing to former President Trumps looming legal battles as an obstacle for the presidents opponent. The poll was conducted among 1,000 registered voters between Nov. 10 and 14, with a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Republicans are making a big deal about whales as they ramp up their attacks on President Joe Bidens energy policies. But theyre having trouble getting their message straight. Case in point: A new television commercial from a GOP-linked conservative group accuses Biden of raising gasoline prices by creating an E-ZPass lane for whales in the Gulf." The ad aligns with GOP lawmakers attempts to block the administration from limiting oil and gas exploration in an endangered whales habitat in the Gulf of Mexico. But that attack conflicts with a theme that Republicans such as former President Donald Trump have hammered for months the claim that Biden is killing whales in the Atlantic by promoting wind farms. The dueling assertions neither backed up by science or facts have prompted Republicans and Democrats to accuse each other of hypocrisy when it comes to safeguarding whales from offshore energy projects. The attacks are flaring at a time when a spate of mysterious whale strandings off the East Coast has created awkward optics for Bidens plans for a huge expansion of maritime wind power. At the same time, his administration has proposed to protect the endangered Rices whale in the Gulf of Mexico by delaying oil and gas leases in more than 28,000 square miles of the creatures habitat. 'Weird fixation' The GOPs newfound focus on whales is a weird fixation, said Brett Hartl, government affairs director at the environmental group the Center for Biological Diversity. He attributed the clashing messages to whether Republicans support or oppose the offshore industry in question. Whatever industry is dominant that they are supporting and supported by thats what really motivates them, Hartl said. The TV ad, which aired during this month's Republican presidential debate on NBC, was produced by a group called Building Americas Future, which Virginia corporate records indicate is based in D.C. So was an F-bomb-laden alternative version that was posted online before being taken down. The group, whose leaders have worked on causes such as promoting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis presidential campaign and assisting Federalist Society co-Chair Leonard Leos push for a more conservative Supreme Court, did not respond to requests for comment. The ads dont explain what an E-ZPass lane for whales is, but the groups website links it to the Biden administrations proposed protections for the Rices whale. The TV spot aired the same day that a House committee approved a GOP bill to block those protections. When it comes to another endangered whale hundreds of miles away, Republicans are taking a decidedly different tone in accusing the offshore wind industry of killing the animals. Republicans from Congress to state legislatures and the presidential trail have increasingly raised alarms about right whale deaths off the East Coast. They contend that the nascent offshore wind industry embraced by Biden and Democrats is to blame, despite a lack of scientific evidence. In 50 years, one whale was hit by a boat, but the windmills have driven hundreds of whales onto shore," Trump said at a campaign rally last month. GOP candidates in legislative elections in New Jersey, which has seen a number of dead or dying whales wash onto beaches recently, tried to use anti-wind sentiment to their electoral advantage this month with little success. Meanwhile, congressional Republicans have tried to crack down on offshore wind in the Atlantic, including by demanding research into potential harms to whales. And last month, after the demise of a major wind project off the coast of New Jersey, Trump congratulated Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.), one of the loudest voices in Congress looking to tie offshore turbines to whale deaths. "The whales, which are dying in record numbers because of these wind scams, are very happy tonight," Trump said on his social media platform, Truth Social. "Way to go Jeff." Moderately moving train wreck Conservation advocates say the GOP is making all the wrong moves. Oil and gas drilling vessels account for about 40 percent of the traffic in the Gulf of Mexico, so restricting traffic and speeds likely would help whales there. But offshore wind is still in its earliest stages in the Atlantic, and claims about the industry hurting the animals there havent been proven. "If youre really concerned about whales being affected by energy projects, Ive got a whale in the Gulf of Mexico that Id like you to meet," said Steve Mashuda, an Earthjustice attorney who has been working on the groups litigation to keep Rices whale protections in place. "You ought to be way more concerned about the Rices whale in the Gulf of Mexico, which is being driven to extinction, largely by offshore drilling," Mashuda said. "Its a moderately moving train wreck." Mashudas group was in federal court this past week demanding tighter restrictions on drilling in the Gulf to protect Rices whale from a planned oil and gas lease sale by Bidens Interior Department. Lawyers for the petroleum industry contended that too little is known about the newly discovered species range to warrant the limits on sales. The court ruled Tuesday against Earthjustice and other environmental groups. Mashuda said both the right whale and Rices whale face an array of threats related to fishing, energy exploration and pollution, among other concerns. But targeting one industry oil and gas would make a big improvement in the Gulf. A lot of the arguments being made about right whales are directly contrary to the arguments that largely the same people are making with respect to the Rices whale," he said. Hartl, from the Center for Biological Diversity, said he doubts many Americans believe the rhetoric outside of Republican base voters. But hes concerned when he sees some Democrats buy in, such as Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine), who has joined other Maine lawmakers in fighting against pro-whale policies that the lobster fishing industry has opposed. Its concerning when we see some of this same rhetoric being adopted by Democrats, who are sometimes falling for it because it seems like an easy out, he said. Action in Congress The Building Americas Future ad debuted the same day Republicans in the House Natural Resources Committee approved Louisiana Republican Rep. Garret Graves' Requiring Integrity in Conservation Efforts (RICE's Whale) Act," H.R. 6008, which aims to undo the administrations efforts to protect the species from offshore oil and natural gas drilling. The administration proposal doesnt have anything to do with the whale," said Graves. "This has to do with another tool in the tool chest to actually stop energy production in the Gulf of Mexico." As for the group behind the ad, Building America's Future reveals little about its operation on its website. However, Virginia records show that its president is Chris Jankowski, a Republican operative who is also a longtime consultant for Leos dark money operation. Jankowski is also the executive director of the Never Back Down super PAC, which is backing DeSantis 2024 presidential run. The groups deputy executive director is Katherine Neal, the vice president of P2 Pathway Public Affairs, a consultancy firm founded by senior DeSantis adviser Phil Cox, according to the records. Jankowski, Leo, Neal, Cox and Never Back Down did not respond to requests for comment. Nor did DeSantis office. The Rice's whale is among the most endangered species on the planet, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Scientists believe only about 50 remain in existence. They can be found in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico, at depths of 100 to 400 meters along the De Soto Canyon region off the Florida Panhandle region. They were not even discovered as a distinct species until 2021. The whales are threatened by vessel strikes, acoustic disturbance from seismic airguns and other oil and gas-related activities, military training activities, vessel noise, entanglement in commercial fishing and aquaculture gear, marine debris, and pollution from agricultural runoff and oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission. The oil industry has already proved to be devastating for the whales longevity, and researchers estimate about a fifth of its population died because of the Deepwater Horizon spill in 2010. The new protections could have a ripple effect on offshore energy, including wind turbines as well as oil and natural gas, said Erik Milito, head of the National Ocean Industries Association, which lobbies for offshore energy. For oil and gas, it will have a significant impact on the ability for the companies to plan for, construct and then operate the offshore productions facilities and also to do the exploration activities when it comes to exploring for and finding oil and gas, he said. Republican hypocrisy? As Republicans question protections for the Rice's whale and demand scrutiny of the offshore wind industry's effects on the right whale, they criticized the administration's moves to protect species from other harms in the Atlantic such as speed limits in some areas for recreational boaters and restrictions on the kinds of nets some commercial fishermen can use. During debate on Graves' bill, House Natural Resources Chair Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) acknowledged the lopsided treatment different whales are getting. But he pointed the finger at Democrats. It seems like theres a big whale issue in our country thats kind of gone off the radar, because all of the sudden the focus is on Rices whales in the Gulf, which, to my knowledge, I dont think one has shown up washed up on the beach anytime recently, he said. But I do know that dozens and dozens of whales on the Atlantic coast have been washing up on the beach, Westerman continued. U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden leave the White House By Steve Holland NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Virginia (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden donned aprons and served Thanksgiving dinners to military personnel and their families on Sunday at an early holiday meal dubbed "Friendsgiving." The event took place in a flag-bedecked hangar at Naval Station Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia. The Bidens participation in the gathering for friends known as "Friendsgiving" kicked off the week ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday. Biden served up portions of mashed potatoes and Jill Biden spooned out sweet potato casserole as the diners passed in front of them. The Friendsgiving event included service members and military families associated with the Dwight D. Eisenhower and the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carriers. Both vessels are deployed in the eastern Mediterranean in response to tensions from the Israel-Hamas conflict. "You literally are the spine, the sinew, the backbone of this operation," Biden said. Of the family members of those deployed abroad, he added: "You family members are the heart of this operation." Biden will conduct the traditional pardoning of the National Thanksgiving Turkey on Monday, and then leave on Tuesday for the Atlantic island of Nantucket to spend the Thursday holiday there with his family. He celebrates his 81st birthday on Monday. While in Norfolk, the Bidens kicked off an advance screening with service members and their families of Wonka, a new musical fantasy film focusing on a young Willy Wonka. The Norfolk event was part of the White Houses Joining Forces Initiative, co-hosted by the United Service Organizations (USO) and Robert Irvine Foundation. (Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Franklin Paul and Diane Craft) Lawmakers on both sides expressed their condolences on the death of former first lady Rosalynn Carter, referring to the humanitarian activist as a beacon of humble charity. The Carter Center, a human rights nonprofit organization founded by Carter and her husband, former President Carter, announced Sunday afternoon that the former first lady passed away just after 2 p.m. Sunday at her home in Plains, Ga. Carter, 96, just entered hospice care two days ago. First Lady Rosalynn Carter dedicated her life to serving others, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote in a Sunday post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. America has lost a passionate humanitarian and champion for people all over the world. My heart goes out to her entire family. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter was a beacon of humble charity, kindness, and generosity that inspired our nation for generations, Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) wrote in an X post. I mourn her passing and the pain President Carter is feeling today. America is blessed by the Carters. First Lady Rosalynn Carter was a beacon of hope and light using her platform for humanitarian causes to make our world a better place, Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) wrote in an X post. I send my heartfelt prayers and steadfast support to President Carter and the entire Carter family. May she rest in perfect peace. Erika and I extend our deepest condolences to the family of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Her commitment to her philanthropic work, her beloved husband and family, and our nation was admirable, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said in an X post. May her legacy live forever and may God be near to those mourning her passing. Wishing peace and comfort to former President Carter and his family, Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) said in an X post. Rosalynn Carter was a champion for the nation and a lifelong partner in public service. May her memory be a blessing. All her life Rosalynn Carter dedicated herself to serving others. As First Lady she served our country with grace and kindness, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) wrote in an X post, also sharing a photo he took with the Carters and the late Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.). My heart is with her love of over 75 years, President Carter and their family today. Deeply saddened by the passing of Rosalynn Carter. A beloved First Lady and wonderful humanitarian, she led a life of service and compassion, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said in his own statement. May God watch over President Jimmy Carter and their family during this difficult time. Kelly and I are saddened to hear of the passing of First Lady Rosalynn Carter. She and President Carter were an outstanding example of love and devotion to one another, and to others through their years of public service and extraordinary charitable works, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said in an X post. President Carter and the Carter family are in our prayers today. First Lady Rosalynn Carter devoted her entire life to our Nation. She brought compassion and grace to every issue she fought for, especially mental health advocacy, Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) said in an X post. Terese and I send our deepest condolences to President Carter and the entire Carter family. Rosalynn Carter lived an incredible life that was wholeheartedly devoted to serving others, Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) said in an X post. She leaves behind a legacy of grace, grit, and goodwill. Our thoughts and prayers are with President Carter and their loved ones. I extend my deepest condolences to President Carter, Jack, Chip, Jeff, Amy, and the entire Carter family on their loss, Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) said in a statement, noting the former first ladys achievements with her work as a humanitarian and advocate for mental health. The State of Georgia and the United States are better places because of Rosalynn Carter, Ossoff added. I join all Georgians and Americans in mourning her loss. May Rosalynn Carters memory be a blessing. Updated at 6:20 pm. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The world of antiques can be surprisingly treacherous. With clever dealers out to sting you, and a very fine line between trash and treasure, its a tough place for a novice. Turning a shop upside down wont find you a hidden gem every time, but carefully inspecting chips, cracks, hallmarks, logos and cushions will help you avoid costly mistakes. Thats the advice of Mark-Francis Vandelli, best known for his stints on Made In Chelsea and Celebs Go Dating, and the ideal expert guide. With a degree in art history from University College London and penchant for the finer things, Mr Vandelli is now a representative of international auction house Christies. We meet on a blustery day, ready to tackle the antique shops and market stalls in the tourist trap of Portobello Road to see what it really takes to find a genuine treasure among the chaff. Its possible, but there are some rules youll need to stick to. Get hands on Even with all the research possible, theres no substitute, Mr Vandelli says, for being in the room with the object. Furniture collectors will immediately turn a prospective piece upside down and (if theyre allowed to) inside out to check its quality. Whenever you look at a dealer or a really good collector inspecting a piece of furniture, the first thing they do is turn it upside down. They look behind and they look underneath, because thats where you are going to find all the clues that are going to tell you more about the piece, he says. From the front, even a fake or a reproduction can look good. Potential amateur buyers shouldnt be afraid to do the same if theyre really interested in a piece, but are not sure if its genuine. When youre examining something, no matter what it is, you should be as gentle as possible while still getting into every nook and cranny. Dont be afraid to get into every nook and cranny while inspecting antiques but do so gently - Geoff Pugh Logos and hallmarks give away genuine pieces almost immediately, but it can be necessary to check all over an item to find the tiny markings. Sterling silver, for example, will be marked with the number 925, and gold jewellery should be stamped with the carat amount but you might need further tests to be carried out to determine where it was assayed and its quality. If youre looking at a piece of furniture that has been upholstered, take it apart as far as possible and check the bare bones. If an item has had a bad paint job, it could be hiding other scars. Without scratching it, see if you can tell how many times it has been repainted (for instance, if there are a few different shades of paint visible), and how well its been done. Other warning signs include cracks in wood, enamel or silver. If something could be an easy fix, it can still be a worthwhile purchase especially if you get extra money off but even simple breaks can become very expensive to have fixed professionally. Glassware is a tricky choice if you are searching for the real deal. If you can, see if you can gather whether it has been machine cut or hand blown if its been made by machine it is unlikely to be worth much. High-quality makers, such as Depression Glass, Carnival Glass, Milk Glass, Moonstone, Hobnail Glass, and Jadeite, can sell well but it is the art pieces, rather than glasses and vases, that hold their value best. I see all this advice in action in the first shop we visit. Mr Vandelli immediately picks out what he thinks is an Indian dagger handle, and, admitting that he knows little about this type of object, we question the shop owner about its provenance that is, its authenticity. His assurances about the pieces worth are a bit unconvincing, so we take a closer look at the handle. A dagger handle catches our expert's eye - Geoff Pugh The joining, where it would be connected to a blade, looks modern to my untrained eye, and neither of us are sure about the quality of the stones. The seller quotes us 7,500, which is wildly over budget. We carry out some further checks using Mr Vandellis phone, using his Google Lens to image search the item, but nothing specific comes up. In the end, we decide it is too risky to purchase. But the owner isnt ready to let us go yet, and drags us inside to show us a very pretty French cigarette case, with a black enamel cover. When Mr Vandelli opens the case, we discover that its in fact an English Dunhill creation not French at all. While its still a very pretty piece, it isnt real gold, so we decide not to make an offer. Ransacking a shop is not the only thing you must do to find hidden treasures. Mr Vandelli also emphasises the importance of doing research, questioning traders and haggling during our day at the shops. A cigarette case advertised as French was revealed upon inspection to be English Dunhill - Geoff Pugh Do your research Doing your research, either online or in reference books, can help you avoid common pitfalls such as falling for a cheap replica, or paying over the odds. Mr Vandelli recommends the Christies catalogue, which has a database of the last 25 years of their sales, so you can gauge the kind of price you might expect to pay for different types of genuine items. Mr Vandelli says its a good idea to stick with what you know best, to ensure you are getting a good deal. Its much easier to collect something that you understand, he says. It can pay to connect with experts here, he adds: The beauty is to be next to someone who really does know, and then they teach you. Then you begin to appreciate something that you never really understood and thats where you learn and fall in love with something. You understand the circumstances in which it was made, and what makes it rare and why its so valuable. Be prepared to quiz the trader Anyone looking to buy should make sure to quiz the trader on where they bought the item, and to make sure they get every single detail they know about the object. You build a story, you try to find out where it has been before, where it was made, who might have owned it, the provenance, Mr Vandelli explains. Quizzing traders on the provenance of objects is common practice among buyers of antiques - Geoff Pugh Some antiques traders are more scrupulous than others, so its a good idea to put their knowledge and customer service to the test before you part with your money. Some key questions to ask include: Do you have proof of the pieces authenticity? This could include purchase receipts, historic records and certification from auction houses. Has there been any damage or restoration work done? They should be able to point this out to you. Whats your returns policy? If you find any issues with the item, ask whether you can bring it back for a full refund. If the seller doesnt have satisfactory answers to your questions, it might be best to move on. Look for lesser-known brands Throughout the day, he points out well-known creators, including some Meissen and Blue John urns (for the uninitiated, Meissen is Europes oldest porcelain and china manufacturer), but warns that there are unlikely to be any bargains with these kinds of products. Dealers will also know the value of such collectibles, and will price them accordingly. Instead, it is often branching out to look for brands that arent so well known but can be just as valuable. As part of the research step mentioned above, the Christies catalogue or similar can help here, and its a good idea to familiarise yourself with common logos and labels used by popular makers, that way you can recognise them in the wild. You can also increase your chances of finding a hidden gem for a good price if you interrogate some of the more damaged items, which other shoppers may have been put off by. For example, in one shop Mr Vandelli found an item he had seen at auction before, which has been primped ready to sell. You are never going to find a hidden gem in a shop like this, because theyve done everything for you, he says. I like to find something really beautiful and maybe restore it myself and do all the hard work. You feel that youve done something really worthwhile. Haggle, always Standing in the crowded showrooms, I am not sure if I am brave enough to start upending the furniture, but as the day goes on, I am more confident in haggling with the sellers. Even if I am not sure about buying something, we push back on prices to give us a better understanding of what a seller would be willing to take if we come back later. To haggle effectively, you first need to know exactly what you are prepared to pay for the object. Think of an exact number, rather than being vague, and stick to it. If you cant get the price down to that number, then be prepared to walk away. To haggle effectively, you first need to know exactly what you are prepared to pay for the object - Geoff Pugh Depending on how courageous you are, and where you are shopping, start off by making a first offer usually around half of the initial price. Dont be perturbed when the dealers dont accept your first bid. Up your offer steadily, rather than all at once, and avoid making big jumps. Try to stay calm, and remember the number you set in your head at the start of the process. The party that stays calmest usually has the upper hand. Once your bid is accepted, you can pay. Make sure to ask for a receipt and about the returns policy. Haggling is a bit like asking someone out on a date you have to remember that the worst thing they can do is say no. If they wont come down to the number you want, leave it. Accept that, sometimes, you might still overpay One final lesson is that the value of antiques can be quite subjective; they are ultimately worth whatever someone is willing to pay for them, and opinions can be divided over what is trash and what is treasure. Therefore, even after following all the right steps, some people may think youve overpaid. In our case, I stumble across a set of antique brushes, complete with a handheld mirror. The box is slightly broken, but all the pieces are present, including an intact comb. Its unusual, and very different to everything else weve seen. I have a look, pick up the brushes and check their durability, inspecting the box carefully. It will be an easy fix with some superglue to return it to its previous glory something even I could manage. The seller tells us the price is 750, but we walk away with the set for 500. A set of combs and brushes made by Adie Brothers was priced at 750 but the seller accepted 500 after some negotiation The Telegraph Money team is bemused by my choice of antique when I return to the office. But I stuck to my guns, and took the set to be valued by an expert. A silver expert from auctioneers Bonhams said that the set had been made by Birmingham-based jewellery maker Adie Brothers. While the silversmith was founded in 1879, it wasnt possible to age the hair brushes exactly, although a patent for applying enamel to hand brushes and mirrors was granted in 1923. The set was likely made some time after this. But the auctioneer suggested the 500 might have been too steep; some of the hallmarks are eroded and theres a crack in one piece of silver. I guess you win some, you lose some. Recommended The rarest coins in Britain and how much they could be worth if you find one Read more 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. This embedded content is not available in your region. Conservative Bob Stewart has announced he will step down as MP for Beckenham after being convicted of a racially aggravated public order offence. Mr Stewart, who has represented the south-east London constituency since 2010, relinquished the party whip after his conviction. He currently sits as an independent and will not seek re-election. Making the announcement on X, formerly Twitter, he said it was "an honour and a privilege" to serve in the role. The 74-year-old said: "I am incredibly grateful to everyone who has given me this opportunity. However, it is time for a new candidate, so I will not be seeking re-election at the next election." Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei is director of advocacy at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy Last month, Westminster Magistrates' Court heard Mr Stewart had been attending an event hosted by the Bahraini Embassy when Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei shouted: "Bob Stewart, for how much did you sell yourself to the Bahraini regime?" The MP, who was stationed in Bahrain as an Army officer in the 1960s, told the campaigner to "get stuffed" and added: "Bahrain's a great place. End of." Mr Alwadaei - the director of advocacy at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy - challenged Stewart on his connections with the country, asking whether he had accepted any money from the Bahraini government. Mr Stewart replied: "Go away, I hate you. You make a lot of fuss. Go back to Bahrain." The confrontation took place outside the Foreign Office's Lancaster House in Westminster and the MP was ordered to pay legal costs of 835, on top of a 600 fine. The BBC understands Mr Stewart is considering appealing against the conviction. A crowdfunding page set up by Conservative MP for Bassetlaw Brendan Clarke-Smith to cover Mr Stewart's fine and any further legal costs has so far raised more than 18,000. The Beckenham constituency is expected to be changed at the next general election, following a regular review process. The Boundary Commission for England has proposed a new constituency of Beckenham and Penge. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk A 2-year-old boy was shot and fatally wounded by his 3-year-old brother Friday evening in Gary, according to police. Gary police spokesman Cmdr. Sam Roberts said in a release Saturday that officers were sent around 7:21 p.m. Nov. 17 to Methodist Hospitals Northlake Campus for the shooting of a 2-year-old boy. They spoke with the childs mother, who said hed been shot after her 3-year-old found a gun in her purse when shed left a bedroom, Roberts said. Advertisement Officers were then sent to secure a home in the 2100 block of Georgia Street where the shooting allegedly occurred, Roberts said. The boy, meanwhile, died as a result of the shooting, he said. Gary Mayor Jerome Prince and Gary police Chief Anthony Titus offered their condolences in a release Saturday evening. They reminded residents that the department offers gun locks free of charge. Advertisement Our hearts and prayers go out to the loved ones of the two-year-old child who was so tragically taken from our community. We understand nothing we say will ease the pain these tragedies cause in our community, they said. This case is under investigation, but its a difficult reminder of the responsibility we all have as adults in properly securing any firearms and devices that may become weapons in the hands of innocent children. Adults must become fully responsible when in possession of all firearms. Clearly, we must do more to protect our community members from accidents like these, and we are going to act now. We have free gun locks available at our Gary Police Department, 555 Polk St., and we are ordering many more. We will determine the best way to issue these free and potentially life-saving devices throughout our community. The boy is the second death resulting from a child getting a hold of a gun in just less than three months. On Aug. 30, Edan Oliver Johnson, 5, of Chicago, was visiting relatives in the 2400 block of Filmore Street when he picked up a handgun that was left on a table by a 32-year-old man who had fallen asleep in the house. Police said he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. In September, a 4-year-old Gary boy shot and injured himself after he found an unsecured gun inside his moms purse while his parents were watching TV and taking a shower. Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune. Police in three local communities responded to bomb threats at houses of worship Sunday. They evacuated synagogues in Needham and Hingham....and a church in Northampton. Nothing was found but there are heightened concerns for the Jewish community due to the war in Israel and Gaza. The bomb threat toward Congregation Shaaray Shalom came in an email. It prompted police to even shut down part of Main Street for part of the afternoon. Boston 25 News spoke with one of the leaders here who says the response from the community has been tremendous. Honestly we were shocked but not entirely surprised, said Cantor Steven Weiss. He was home when he received the call. The rabbi at Congregation Shaaray Shalom had just checked the email and one was a threat. It said pipe bombs were in the building. Police evacuated a couple of people still at the synagogue. Folks in several nearby homes were also told to leave. Of course, my heart was beating, said Valerie Rooney. There was a little panic getting out of here for sure. Workers at Weston Nurseries across the street were told to stay back too. A portion of Main Street was closed as explosive detection dogs went through the building. about two hours later officers gave the all-clear. Earlier in the day, a Needham temple reported a similar e-mailed bomb threat. Cantor Weiss said at the end it gave a phone number to call for more information. You would not expect something to happen like this in a place like Higham but theres lots of hate out there right now and seems like since October 7 anti-Semitism and hate has increased, Cantor Weiss said. He says as news of what happened spread, the support from the entire community is helping make sure hate does not win. The outpouring we have heard in just the last few hours just been tremendous, said Cantor Weiss. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW The Russians carried out 25 bombardments on the border of Sumy Oblast over the course of the last day, injuring two civilians. Source: Sumy Oblast Military Administration Details: As a result of the bombardment of 11 hromadas, 189 explosions were recorded. [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories ed.] The Russians shelled Mykolaivka hromada with mortars (19 explosions). Artillery shelling was carried out in Bilopillia hromada (12 explosions). Howitzer (2 explosions) and mortar (2 explosions) fire were used to strike Khotin hromada. Druzhba hromada was shelled with barrel artillery (57 explosions) and mortars (22 explosions). The Russians launched 8 unguided missiles from a helicopter over Krasnopillia hromada. On the territory of Yunakivka hromada, the Russians dropped a VOG explosive from an unmanned aerial vehicle (1 explosion). Velyka Pysarivka hromada was attacked with LNG-9s (12 explosions), mortars (22 explosions) and artillery (2 explosions). The Russians hit Znob-Novhorodske hromada with barrel artillery (9 explosions). As a result of one of the bombardments, two civilians were injured. The Russians dropped two bombs on Seredyna-Buda hromada. There was mortar bombardment (4 explosions) in Esman hromada. Shalyhyne hromada was also subjected to a mortar attack (5 explosions). Support UP or become our patron! A gang of violent monkeys that has terrorized a small town in India struck again, killing a 10-year-old boy by ripping out his intestines last Tuesday. Dipak Thakor was playing with friends in the village of Salki when he was attacked by what has become a notorious gang of monkeys, with one of the animals digging his claws into the boy and tearing out his intestines, according to a report from The Sun. Thakor was rushed to the hospital after the attack, but doctors were unable to save his life. WOMAN BLEEDS TO DEATH AFTER BEING ATTACKED BY MONKEYS DAYS AFTER BABY WAS KILLED IN SAME CITY "His intestine was ripped out in the attack. He rushed [back] to his house and was taken to a hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival," a local official said in a statement, according to The Sun. The monkeys responsible for the boy's death have been on the run and responsible for multiple attacks, with the official saying the latest incident was "the third attack by monkeys in the village within a week." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Long-tail macaques sit in an abandoned building in the Thai town of Lopburi, north of Bangkok. Vishal Chaudhary, a forest official in Salki, said officials have been hunting what has been described as a "large troop" of monkeys and have succeeded in capturing a few so far. MONKEY SNATCHES 12-DAY-OLD BABY FROM MOTHER'S ARMS, FATALLY BITES HIM "We have rescued two langurs in the past one week and set up cages to trap another langur," Chaudhary said, according to the report. "There is a large troop of monkeys in the village, including four adults who have been involved in attacks in the past one week. Two of them have been rescued; efforts are on to cage another." According to the report, dangerous encounters with monkeys are not rare in India. Earlier this year, a 3-year-old was abducted by a monkey that carried the child up a cliff. In that case, police conducted a multiple-hour search and safely returned the child to their parents. Original article source: Boy, 10, killed by violent gang of monkeys that continues to terrorize small village A Braintree man has been sentenced to five years in prison for possessing and distributing child pornography on his Tumblr account, the U.S. Attorney said. Michael Martin, 44, was also sentenced to five years of supervised release, Acting United States Attorney Josh Levy said in a statement on Friday. U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns also ordered Martin to pay $5,000 in restitution to one of the victims, a $5,000 special assessment under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act and a $10,000 special assessment under the Amy, Vicky and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act. On Aug. 14, 2023, Martin pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography and one count of distribution of child pornography, Levy said. On March 9, 2021, the social media platform Tumblr reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that one of its users later identified as Martin had suspected child pornography on their account. During a search of Martins Braintree residence, investigators seized various electronic devices storing child pornography, Levy said. A search of Martins Tumblr account also found that Martin has posted and received child pornography over the social media site, including images of children believed to be between four and eight years old, Levy said. In a separate case, a Quincy man has been sentenced to five years in prison followed by five years of supervised release for receiving child pornography on custom-built computers seized from his home. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW Every May 1, before sunrise, several thousand members of the religion known as the Valley of the Dawn gather in silence at a temple outside the Brazilian capital of Brasilia. They come from around the world to synchronize their spiritual energies. As the Suns first rays appear over the horizon, the members, in fairy-tale-like garments, chant their personal emissions a ritual invocation of cosmic forces that fills the air with a collective drone. Valley of the Dawn adherents manipulate cosmic energies to heal themselves and others. They describe themselves as members of a spiritual tribe called the Jaguars, who are the reincarnated descendants of highly advanced extraterrestrials sent by God some 32,000 years ago to jump-start human evolution. Normally, the May 1 Day of the Indoctrinator ceremony attracts Jaguars from across the globe, as well as spectators and journalists. Day of the Indoctrinator, 2012. Marcia Alves, CC BY-SA In 2020, the ceremony was postponed because of the coronavirus dismaying Valley of the Dawn members, who believe their spiritual force field could really help in this global crisis. The Valley of the Dawns beliefs are fantastical, but their practices may be less otherworldly than bemused journalists have often suggested. My scholarship on Brazilian religions and research at the Valley of the Dawn finds that some of the groups rituals speak directly to the harsh realities of the modern world. Jaguars past and present Valley of the Dawn, called Vale do Amanhecer in Portuguese, is a recognized religion in Brazil. It has over 700 affiliated temples worldwide and nearly 139,000 registered members. According to Valley of the Dawn doctrine, the Jaguars inspired some of humanitys greatest achievements, including the great pyramids of ancient Egypt and Mesoamerica, before eventually straying from their mission. Their spiritual tribe was reunited in Brazil in 1964 by a woman called Aunt Neiva, who foresaw the world as we know it ending within decades. My research indicates that Valley of the Dawn members are mostly middle- and working-class Brazilians, of all races. Many live in the town that has grown up around the Mother Temple; others travel there for ceremonies. To redeem the bad karma they believe they have accrued over the millennia, Valley of the Dawn members perform spirit-healing rituals called trabalhos, or works. These are offered to the public at the Mother Temple nearly 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In Brazil, which has hundreds of spirit-based religions, such healing is widely accepted. According to anthropologist Emily Pierini, who has studied spirit healing at the Valley of the Dawn, thousands of Brazilians suffering from health problems, mental illness, grief or addiction visit the Valley of the Dawn each month to remove negative spiritual influences and channel healing forces. Most patients have had unsuccessful experiences with both Western medicine and other religions. A healing ritual at the Valley of the Dawn. Marcia Alves, CC BY Meaningful work and education The Valley of the Dawn has grown steadily since the founders death in 1985, spreading from Brazil to Portugal, the United States and England. Outsiders often dismiss the Valley as a cult. A BBC journalist who visited the community in 2012 called it a refuge for lost souls. But my research offers an alternative explanation of why some people might find the Valley of the Dawn appealing: It offers a more progressive, egalitarian version of modernity. Brazil, with its corruption scandals and savage social inequalities, has not always lived up to the motto order and progress as inscribed on its national flag. It is not alone. Across much of the West, the promise that modernity would bring higher living standards, greater personal freedoms and a more just society remains largely unfulfilled. Instead, the 21st century has created low-wage jobs with little security and government institutions that too frequently benefit the richest and most powerful. Individualism has supplanted community, leaving people increasingly isolated and lonely and that was before coronavirus and social distancing. The Valley of the Dawn, in contrast, offers a collective life that members find gratifying. By living out the doctrine, you see what you can improve in your life and how you can repair the errors of the past, a member named Ilza told me. You see the results of your dedication. Prayer at Mother Temple. Marcia Alves, CC BY Rejecting capitalist values, Valley of the Dawn members refuse to work for money. Healing trabalhos are offered freely as an expression of unconditional love. In Brazil, where poverty prevents many from completing their education, the Valley of the Dawn has its own education system premised on merit, not privilege. It offers free courses on personal development, moral conduct and mediumship taught by trained instructors. Educational advancement earns members a title, like Master or Commander, and the right to wear specific clothing, participate in new rituals and take on leadership duties. Restorative justice Justice in the Valley of the Dawn likewise offers a progressive alternative to contemporary criminal justice systems that emphasize punishment and incarceration. In the Valley of the Dawn, justice means reconciliation for past harms not retribution. According to Valley of the Dawn doctrine, much human suffering and wrongdoing is the work of spirits called cobradores, or debt collectors. A cobrador is the spirit of a person usually a family member or friend who was harmed by a Jaguar in a past life. When the spirit attaches itself to its living debtor causing depression, for example, or aggression the afflicted Jaguar spend a week gathering signatures from fellow Valley members who wish them positive energy to pay off their spiritual debt. A prisoner collecting signatures. Marcia Alves, CC BY-SA The week-long prison ritual conducted in a colorful dress or, for men, black shirt with a leather sash culminates in a courtroom trial. There the cobrador, channeled by a fellow Jaguar, explains the wrongdoing that caused the karmic debt. After the prisoner expresses regret, balance is restored. He forgives me, I forgive him, he leaves and I am released, as a Jaguar named Master Itamir explained. Fantastical solutions to real problems I find no evidence, by the way, that this New Age group has an unsavory underbelly, or that its leaders are exploiting members. People are free to join or leave the Valley of the Dawn at any time. For Jaguars who cannot afford training, the community provides food and housing. Jaguars celebrate the Day of the Indoctrinator, May 1, 2012. Marcia Alves, CC BY My research indicates members find real meaning in the Valley of the Dawns egalitarian work, education and legal systems, all structured on the principles of equality and justice. In that sense, despite their mystical nature, the social practices of the Valley of the Dawn arent alien at all: They are a reaction to the very real deficiencies of modern secular society with some flamboyant costuming on the side. [Deep knowledge, daily. Sign up for The Conversations newsletter.] This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world.Like this article? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. It was written by: Kelly E. Hayes, IUPUI. Read more: Kelly E Hayes received funding from the Fulbright U.S. Scholars Program in 2012. British artist Sam Cox, better known as Mr Doodle, calls his style 'graffiti spaghetti' (Dene CHEN) A Hong Kong transport hub was taken over Sunday by googly eyed aliens, extraterrestrial jellyfish and a cast of eccentric characters -- all part of a live performance by British artist Sam Cox, better known as Mr Doodle. The 29-year-old calls his style "graffiti spaghetti" -- a series of interlocking patterns, whimsical characters and surreal narratives that often chronicle the adventures of Mr Doodle in "Doodle Land". His show in Hong Kong attracted hundreds of fans and curious onlookers, his canvas a two-metre-wide silver spaceship for him "to fly back home" installed at an MTR station in Central district. "I really enjoy the live performances in front of people, because I love to be able to hear people get inside the process," Cox told AFP in an interview Thursday. "I don't always know where it is going, and everyone is just there together and enjoying the process." Cox -- who cites the late American pop artist Keith Haring as an influence -- gamely adopts his alter ego, dressing in a doodled suit during his public events, which on Sunday included a crowd of children. "(My daughters)... were so excited when they knew Mr Doodle was coming," Mimi Tjen told AFP, as her husband alternated between hoisting their nine- and 11-year-old daughters on his shoulders to get a better view. As many children's first drawings are often doodles, "they understand that language," said Cox. At Sunday's event, 10 children joined him to scrawl their own creations on his spaceship -- some imitating the Mr Doodle style, while others opted for mountains and stars. - 'Relaxation and joy' - "I like to create artwork that doesn't take itself too seriously... a lot of people expect art and artists to act a certain way," Cox told AFP. "I try to listen to myself and think about what's the most ultimate version of myself I can be." His pieces carry price tags ranging from $10,000 to $500,000, according to Pearl Lam, Cox's global representation. Lam said she typically signs more traditional creators who tend to prefer their exhibition spaces austere. But for "Mr Doodle in Space" -- a solo exhibition launched Thursday -- her staff wallpapered her gallery in Cox's signature imagery, enveloping his canvases with an eye-popping pandemonium of scribbles. Lam said Cox's social media following and full embodiment of the character is bringing a younger generation to art. "In this modern commercial world, you need some relaxation and joy... that's what Mr Doodle gives." dhc/lb BROCKTON A Brockton woman, who worked at at the Montello Post Office on Oak Street, was convicted of embezzling almost $100,000 during her USPS employment. A new Italian bakery is serving up roasted focaccia, bomboloni, and authentic recipes. in Middleboro. Italian Gem Cafe owner Jessica Gemma is baking up family recipes she learned as a child when she frequented Frosinone, a town south of Rome. 'I have never seen Brockton High in such disarray': Brockton High School teachers recount a chaotic school environment, urging school committee members and administrators to help. Police said a good Samaritan pulled a woman from her vehicle that she crashed into Lake Nippenicket in Bridgewater on Thursday morning. Brockton's iconic Romm Diamonds announced it was closing for good after 123 years. In case you missed it, here are five stories of the top stories from the past week throughout the Brockton area. Brockton woman convicted of embezzling almost $100,000 during USPS employment A Brockton woman was convicted of one count of theft of government money and three counts of wire fraud after embezzling more than $96,000 and fraudulently obtaining unemployment benefits during her time as a U.S. Postal Service (USPS) employee, the U.S. Attorneys Office in the District of Massachusetts announced in a news release at the beginning of the month. Brockton woman convicted of embezzling:: Brockton woman convicted of embezzling almost $100,000 during USPS employment Evesham police have reported an arrest after a spree of thefts from a mailbox at the Marlton Post Office. New Italian bakery is serving up roasted focaccia, bomboloni, and authentic recipes Sweet Italian delicacies have planted their roots on Center Street in Middleboro. Italian Gem Cafe is baking up family recipes that owner Jessica Gemma learned as a child when she frequented Frosinone, a town south of Rome. Foodies can try the baker's favorites including pistachio white chocolate cookies, classic bomboloni, and roasted focaccia bread made from scratch daily. She opened Italian Gem Cafe to bring her Italian culture to Middleboro as a second-generation Italian living in America. Italian bakery serving authentic recipes New Italian bakery is serving up roasted focaccia, bomboloni, and authentic recipes Photos of Italian cafe Italian Gem Cafe brings true Italian treats to Middleboro Jessica Gemma owner of Italian Gem Cafe, made a tray of Bomboloni pastry on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. 'I have never seen Brockton High in such disarray': BPS teachers depict chaos in school Multiple Brockton Public School teachers described the chaotic scenes they see inside the schools on a daily basis at a tense Brockton School Committee meeting Tuesday night. Teacher after teacher said when they tried enforcing the school district's vaping, dress code or cell phone policy, high school students often verbally abused or ran from them. I have never seen Brockton High in such disarray," said Brockton High teacher Melissa McLaughlin, who has taught for over 30 years. Before COVID students were held to a much higher standard of student expectations than they are now and it's doing a disservice to the students' learning conditions. Brockton high in 'disarray': 'I have never seen Brockton High in such disarray': BPS teachers depict chaos in school Principal paints stark picture: Brockton High principal paints stark picture of just how chaotic school has become Brockton's Acting Superintendent James Cobbs and School Committee Vice-Chair Kathleen Ehlers discuss staff shortages in the school district at a meeting on Nov. 14, 2023 at Arnone Elementary School. Good Samaritan pulls woman from vehicle that drove into Bridgewater's Lake Nippenicket Police say a good Samaritan pulled a woman from her vehicle that she crashed into Lake Nippenicket on Thursday morning. Police and firefighters responded to a report of a vehicle into the lake about 7:45 a.m. "Upon arrival, first responders observed a white SUV partially submerged approximately 50 yards out into the lake," Police Chief Christopher Delmonte and Acting Fire Chief John Schlatz wrote in a joint statement. "First responders also observed a man and a woman exiting the water via a boat ramp." Woman puled from vehicle in lake: Good Samaritan pulls woman from vehicle that drove into Bridgewater's Lake Nippenicket Bridgewater police and fire investigate a vehicle into Lake Nippenicket in Bridgewater, Nov. 16, 2023. The driver was transported to a local hospital. 'Amazing customers': Denneno's Pizza in Stoughton closing after nearly 70 years One of the go-to pizza shops for local residents is closing its doors at the end of the year after nearly 70 years in business. Denneno's Pizza announced last week on social media that the business' last day in operation would be Dec. 31. "The time has come for us as a family to make the difficult decision to close our family business," the Denneno family wrote in the announcement. "We are grateful for your patronage and support for the past 68 years." 'Amazing customers': 'Amazing customers': Denneno's Pizza in Stoughton closing after nearly 70 years Denneno's Pizza on Pearl Street in Stoughton. Staff writer Kathy Bossa can be reached by email at kbossa@enterprisenews.com. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Enterprise today. This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Brockton-area top 5 stories: Brockton High in 'disarray'; new bakery The first indication usually comes from a worker in Brownsville, Texas. That person informs Los Angeles officials that Texas authorities have just completed their latest roundup of immigrants from shelters and meeting sites. The state has loaded up a bus full of men, women and children and pointed it toward Los Angeles. As far as Texas is concerned, thats all state officials need to do: Load the bus, ship them out. But in Brownsville, locals take it upon themselves to provide at least some of the help that Texas withholds, so they jump on the bus before it departs and create a quick manifest of those on board. They get names, phone numbers and other contact information for friends or loved ones they might have in California. Then the bus pulls out. Brownsville workers call their counterparts in Los Angeles and relay the manifest. The clock starts ticking. We have 24 hours to start calling people, said Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Human Immigrant Rights, known as CHIRLA. Everybody has to scramble. Their goal in those 24 hours the time it takes for the bus to reach L.A. is to contact anyone who can help care for the arriving migrants, to shelter them, feed them, help them find jobs and introduce them to life in this country. Calls also go out to L.A. representatives and county agencies who can meet the buses and offer services that the migrants may need. The buses began arriving in California in June. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and his administration have dispatched at least 28 buses to Los Angeles. A total of 955 migrants from pregnant women and women with newborns to unaccompanied minors and seniors have reached Southern California courtesy of Abbotts directive. They are exactly as entitled to live in the United States and to enjoy the protection of its laws as any other person in this country, whether born here or elsewhere. When a bus pulls into Los Angeles, it usually heads to Union Station, the citys main train and bus depot, though drivers sometimes have instructions to drop the migrants a few blocks away, just to add to their confusion and hardship. And the same Texas officials who decline to warn their Los Angeles counterparts that a bus is on its way sometimes make the effort to alert Fox News, Salas said, hoping to capture scenes of confusion that will reinforce the political strategy behind this effort. At Union Station, the migrants disembark and are given water and a snack. They receive no food or water during the 24-hour trek from Brownsville, though some carry their own. Metro buses then take them from Union Station to a pop-up welcome center often located at a church or community gathering space. There, they are seen by doctors who test them for COVID and other possible ailments, and offer treatment they might need. Lawyers review any paperwork they might have, such as dates for asylum hearings. School representatives talk with parents about getting their children enrolled. The idea, Salas said, is for folks to quickly settle. For most of the new arrivals, the key is connecting with family or others who are prepared to sponsor them. According to Salas, about 80% of those who arrive in Los Angeles are quickly united with friends or family. In some cases, those connections are elsewhere in the state, prompting transportation to San Francisco, San Diego or other communities in California. These areas become the center of their new lives. The migrants without any family or contacts in the country usually need emergency shelter, which the city provides, even though Los Angeles already is confronting a homeless crisis that is at the center of Bass agenda. With homelessness grindingly affecting so many aspects of life in Los Angeles not to mention last weeks fire that knocked out a linchpin of the regions transportation network the last thing the city needs is 1,000 more people with critical needs. But advocates here reject Texas approach, emphatically refusing to treat these people as something less than human. They are instead viewed as people driven from their homes and desperate for an opportunity to live and work in peace to avail themselves of the promise of America just as Germans and Irish and Italians did in their periods of migration, just as Syrians and Vietnamese and countless others did in theirs. Salas herself came to this country at 4 years old, in the company of teenage relatives. She weathered the uncertainties and dangers of making her way to the United States, and she sees in these new immigrants a version of herself. Today Salas hopes that CHIRLA and others at this end present immigrants with a sense of welcome rather than subjecting them to the harm and disregard that greeted their arrival in Texas. They are seeking a better life, Salas said of those who arrive, month after month, bus after bus. Striving for that is no crime. Jim Newton is a veteran journalist, best-selling author and teacher. He worked at the Los Angeles Times for 25 years as a reporter, editor, bureau chief and columnist, covering government and politics. This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Texas to Los Angeles: The migrants forced to travel through American politics Emilian Gebrev, a Bulgarian arms magnate who survived two Russian assassination attempts, is warning of a sabotage campaign aimed at obstructing vital arms supplies to Ukraine. Source: Gebrev in a comment to Financial Times Details: According to him, Russian saboteurs are actively attacking the factories and warehouses of his company EMKO, which produces most of the Bulgarian bullets and Soviet-style tank shells supplied to Kyiv. Quote: "The Russian threats [mean] a new set of measures should be undertaken at a national level, as well as the level of the alliance," said Gebrev. Gebrev attributed the failure to apprehend or prosecute any Russian operatives in relation to his poisonings and the explosions at his company's locations to Moscow's continued sway over Bulgaria's government. "There has been no result whatsoever in any of more than a dozen cases, involving Russian terrorist acts and spy networking in Bulgaria. All the investigations have been either stopped or stalled and none has been brought to court," he noted. The arms manufacturer and other sources of the publication in the country's defence industry argue that Bulgaria remains the main sphere of activity of Russian agents, and infiltration is especially acute in the prosecutor's office and the country's security service. "Russians are very interested in our facilities and the people manning them," a Bulgarian official, who requested to remain anonymous, told The Financial Times. At the same time, according to Veselin Ivanov, a spokesman for the Bulgarian Prosecutor's Office, the accusations of Russian infiltration are "categorically not true," and the new leadership is dedicated to changing the organisation. According to him, the prosecutor's office documented the criminal activities of GRU agents and brought them to criminal responsibility, but since Russia does not extradite its citizens, Sofia did not have the opportunity to bring them to justice. Background: In July it was reported that a large-scale fire broke out in a warehouse of the EMKO arms company near the Bulgarian town of Karnobat. The owner suspected that this was a deliberate arson. The fire was the second consecutive case at this facility after ammunition detonated as a result of a fire in another warehouse on 31 July 2022. Since then, an investigation has been ongoing. The prosecutor's office has not released any official information on the progress of the case. Earlier, Gebrev, who survived an alleged Novichok poisoning in 2015, said he was "100% sure" that Russian operatives were behind the explosion and subsequent fire in July 2022. Gebrev fell into a coma in 2015, and Western authorities and intelligence agencies believe he was poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok by officers from Russia's GRU military intelligence service. Support UP or become our patron! VISTA, Calif. The suspected burglar who was shot and killed by a Vista homeowner earlier this week was identified by the San Diego County Sheriffs Department in a release on Saturday. Theodore Anthony Stewart, a 43-year-old Vista resident, was named as the deceased suspect. According to SDSO, findings from the preliminary investigation indicate that Stewart did not know the resident of the home before the attempted burglary that led to the shooting. We are still in the early stages of this investigation, SDSO Lt. Joseph Jarjura said. We have yet to determine all the facts surrounding this incident, which will determine what additional information may be released. We may be able to release more information at a later date. The incident occurred on Thursday, Nov. 16 shortly before 5 a.m. in the 1700 block of York Drive. According to authorities, deputies were dispatched to the scene after receiving a call from a resident in the area reporting that a possible burglar was in their backyard. Two dead in three-vehicle DUI collision on SR-76 After a few minutes on the phone with SDSO, the resident then reported that the man was attempting to break into their home. A gunshot was heard on the call shortly after, authorities said. When deputies arrived, the suspect was found with a gunshot wound. He was transported to a nearby hospital where he was later pronounced dead by medical personnel. On Thursday, authorities told FOX 5 that the resident who reported the break-in was alone at the time of the incident. Neighbors described them as visibly shaken afterwards. Their name has not been disclosed by law enforcement. At this time, it is unknown if authorities are planning to pursue charges against the resident for the shooting. Anyone with information is asked to call the SDSO Homicide Unit at 858-285-6330 or the after hours line at 858-565-5200. Those who would like to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego. Members of the board of the directors of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Northwest Indiana and a donor break ground on a multi-million dollar renovation at the South Haven Club on Long Run Road on Thursday, Nov. 17, 2023. (Deena Lawley-Dixon/Post-Tribune) South Havens Boys & Girls Club is getting a face-lift. Thursdays groundbreaking ceremony took place outside the facility on Long Run Road, as over 60 people from Portage Township and the community of South Haven gathered to get the first look at renovations on the building that has been part of the neighborhood since 1982. Advertisement Through the American Rescue Plan Act process, Porter County awarded $850,500 to the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Northwest Indiana as part of an overall $5.5 million renovation and expansion to the current 40-year-old club. The entire process started on the heels of a donation of one acre of green space from Indiana American Water Company, Inc., in 2020. Renovations are underway at the South Haven Boys & Girls Club, set to open for members in the fall of 2024. (Deena Lawley-Dixon/Post-Tribune) Since the ARPA fund allocation, many private donors have stepped forward, including NIPSCO, the John Will Anderson Foundation, and Jackie Stutzman of Porter Township. Advertisement We are at $3.3 million of our $5.5 million dollar goal, said president and CEO Mike Jessen, introducing the local capital campaign chairman Brendan Clancy, also Portage Townships trustee. Clancy, who was a club kid himself, said that the Boys & Girls Club greatly impacted his life. I look forward to reaching the goal quickly and opening the doors quickly. When I became trustee, what I really learned about South Haven is that it is a strong community, said Clancy. Over the years, the Boys & Girls Club has been especially important to South Haven. South Haven is a small community with a unique identity, said Jessen. Its a neighborhood with a Valparaiso address, served by county utilities, and Portage schools. Its is a very close-knit community and is very much what the Boys & Girls Clubs envisioned when they started building clubs, said Jessen. Lets go into the neighborhood, lets go into an area where kids can ride their bike or walk to make it to the club. We are looking forward to the opening, said club director Brandon Boyer. The kids are constantly asking when they get their place back. Mike Jessen, president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana, left, listens to Brandon Boyer, South Haven Boys & Girls Club director, speak about his involvement and anticipation of the opening of the new facility during a groundbreaking on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023. (Deena Lawley-Dixon/Post-Tribune) Currently, all Boys & Girls Club activities are occurring at Paul Saylor and South Haven Elementary schools. The schools are great, said Boyer. But we do feel a little displaced. South Haven Boys & Girls Club serves 115 club members every day. The renovated facility will include a gymnasium, STEM room, lounges, age level rooms, tutoring rooms, and more security in the front entrance to keep the club kids safe. Advertisement Reminding the crowd of staggering statistics, such as suicide being the second leading cause of death in Indiana teens, Jessen stressed the importance of the club being a safe place full of volunteers and employees who care for the kids who go after school and into the evening. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indianas impact statement reads: We exist to prove every kid has what it takes we are out to assure success is within reach of every young person who enters our doors. This building, this place has changed and saved lives for a long period of time, said Jessen. Visit https://www.bgcgreaternwi.org/ for more information. Deena Lawley-Dixon is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune. A bus carrying Ukrainians has crashed into a tree in the Polish village of Wereszyn, Lublin Voivodeship, killing two women and a six-year-old child. Source: RMF citing Poland's State Fire Service, as reported by European Pravda Details: Jakub Kurczuk, an officer on duty at the regional office in Lublin, said there were 10 people on the bus, all of them citizens of Ukraine. "The bus drove onto the oncoming lane, then into a ditch and hit a tree," the official said. Two people died on the spot, whereas attempts to resuscitate the third failed. The other seven people were taken to hospital. The incident took place at around 05:00 on 19 November. The Ukrainian citizens were heading to the border crossing in Dohobyczow. Early reports suggest that the accident was caused by the driver falling asleep. Background: Earlier in Venice, a bus fell from a height of about 10 metres and caught fire. There were Ukrainians among the passengers. A total of 21 people were killed in the accident: 9 Ukrainians, 4 Romanians, 3 Germans, 2 Portuguese, a Croatian, a South African and an Italian. The latter was the driver. In September, at least two people were killed in a bus accident on the Cetinje-Budva motorway in Montenegro, with Ukrainians also injured. Support UP or become our patron! (BCN) California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the Federal Trade Commission have filed an antitrust lawsuit challenging John Muir Healths acquisition of controlling interest in San Ramon Regional Medical Center. The suit, filed Friday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, seeks to block John Muir Health from acquiring Tenet Healthcare Corp., which holds controlling interest in the Contra Costa County medical center. John Muir currently owns 49 percent of San Ramon Regional Medical Center, a 123-bed general acute care hospital, through a joint venture. Tenet holds a 51% majority. John Muir announced a definitive agreement with Tenet in January to acquire sole ownership for $142.5 million. The California Department of Justice and the FTC argue that the deal is inherently anticompetitive and violates the Clayton Antitrust Act, which prohibits mergers and acquisitions that would result in less market competition. The complaint argues that the acquisition would lead to higher costs for patients, employers and insurers by eliminating competition between the medical center and John Muirs nearby hospitals, Walnut Creek Medical Center, with 540 beds, and Concord Medical Center, with 244 beds. When healthcare markets illegally consolidate, patients pay the price, Bonta said in a statement. Competitive markets help keep prices lower. We will continue to fight to ensure that Bay Area residents and all Californians can access the affordable healthcare they need. The attorney general said a 2020 RAND study found Walnut Creek Medical Center was the costliest hospital in the U.S. from 2016 through 2018. Copyright 2023 Bay City News, Inc. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. LOS ANGELES - A nonprofit founder known for holding massive toy drives in Los Angeles claims his carry concealed weapon (CCW) permit got taken away after getting in a shootout with would-be robbers at his own home. Earlier in the month, Vince Ricci made headlines after he used his own gun to fend of apparent would-be robbers at his Mid City home. Ricci is seen on camera, which was taken November 4, walking up to his house, drink in hand and taking his keys out of his pocket. Two armed suspects jumped the fence of his home and one of them rushed Ricci from behind. "When I turned around, the first thing I feared for my family and for my daughter," Ricci told FOX 11's Marla Tellez in a Nov. 14 interview. Ricci, who was at his own home, fought back by opening fire at the suspects. Both suspects fired back before taking off from the scene. Now, a report from FOX News claims Ricci's gun permit has been revoked. "When the incident happened, there were only two things I could rely on: myself and the Second Amendment; and now that's in jeopardy. The leftist gun grabbers do not care about your safety. The NRA does," Ricci said in an interview with FOX News. Following FOX News' article, the Los Angeles Police Department released a statement saying while city police are investigating the Nov. 4 shootout, LAPD did not revoke Ricci's permit. Leading up to the apparent loss of the permit, Ricci had openly supported law enforcement. "I support the police department," Ricci told Tellez in the Nov. 14 interview. "I think they're not getting the support that they need." The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has since released the following statement in response: "We recognize that this incident was extremely traumatic and startling for the Ricci family and we hope the individuals responsible for this crime are arrested and held accountable. The Department of Justice (DOJ) establishes guidelines for CCW permits and the Sheriffs Department must follow the DOJ parameters in accordance with the law. The CCW permit may be immediately reinstated as long as the permit holder has also followed all required CCW policies (i.e. proper notifications, use of properly documented weapon, etc.). The DOJ has been notified and there are avenues for Mr. Ricci to re-apply for his permit. We have been in contact with the Ricci family and have been providing information to them about CCW protocols and guidelines in an effort to ensure their Second Amendment rights are protected. The Sheriff's Department respects the rights of individuals to exercise their Second Amendment rights and continually processes over thousands of CCW permit applications and renewals every year. The Sheriffs Department CCW Unit works diligently to track, process, and manage individuals who possess or seek CCW permits in Los Angeles County." This is not the first time Ricci's home was targeted. The Mid City dad told FOX 11 in the Nov. 14 interview that his house had been robbed in the past and that the suspects "took every piece of valuable thing we had in the home." "There was no arrest made," he added. "There was no follow-up investigation. Some viewers may recognize Ricci from previous interviews with FOX 11. Last winter, he and the nonprofit organization he founded, Trina's Kids Foundation, made a push for a record-breaking toy drive. This year, he plans to once again go big for the children. "There's no fear that any criminal could put in my heart that will stop me from giving back This community has embraced me," Ricci said in the Nov. 14 interview with Tellez. "I'm not [from] California and I'm from New York and they've taken me in and I will always give back." A California woman is arguing that honking a car horn is free speech. Police ticketed Susan Porter for honking at a protest outside Rep. Darrell Issa's office. California and 41 other states have laws banning honking unless it's used as a warning. Is honking your car horn free speech or just obnoxious? A woman in California says it's the former and plans to take her case to the US Supreme Court. Police gave Susan Porter a ticket in 2017 after she honked her car horn 17 times while driving by a protest outside Rep. Darrell Issa's office, according to the National Constitution Center, a nonprofit encouraging education and debate about the US Constitution. While the ticket was ultimately dismissed, Porter felt compelled to protect other drivers from potential tickets related to their right to honk their car horns, her lawyers said in a complaint. Porter is now challenging a law in the California vehicle code that says car horns should only be used to "give audible warning" to other drivers. The only other legal use for the horn the law allows is as a theft alarm system. Porter first filed a lawsuit against the Sheriff of San Diego County and the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol in April. Attorneys for Porter argued in her appeal filed to the Supreme Court that honking a car horn is a protected form of free speech that shows "democracy in action," USA Today reported. The State of California argued that section 270001 of the vehicle code is intended for public safety and is not applied to specific content. A district court agreed. On April 7, California's Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the previous ruling, but Judge Marsha S. Berzon dissented, writing that "honking in response to a political protest" is protected speech, according to the Constitution Center. "Section 27001 violates the First Amendment because Defendants have not shown that the statute furthers a significant government interest as applied to political protest honking, and because the statute is not narrowly tailored to exclude such honking," Berzon said, according to the outlet. Similar laws limiting car honking appear in vehicle laws in 41 other states, according to USA Today. Several of the laws have been previously challenged in court. Laws in New York City only allow honking as a "warning of danger," which, if enforced. In May 2022, New York City Councilman Eric Bottcher introduced a bill to increase fines for excessive honking from $1,000 to $2,000 for a first offense, according to SI Live. While Porter's constitutional challenge might seem like a joke, in 2011, the US Supreme Court actually ruled in favor of a woman in a similar situation. Helen Immelt sued the state of Washington after police charged her for violating a law that banned horn honking for anything "other than public safety, or originating from an officially sanctioned parade or other public event," according to the Constitution Center. Immelt's neighbor had complained that she was raising chickens, violating a homeowners' association agreement, so Immelt honked a car horn in front of the neighbor's house for 5 to 10 minutes, according to court documents. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled that the law was overbroad but did not say if it was covered by the First Amendment, the Constitution Center says. Read the original article on Insider On the campaign: Later I was thankful for those early months when there were no large crowds, although I wanted them at the time, and when there were no press with me to record every slip up or misstatement. I was soon able to anticipate questions and to answer them, falteringly at times, but I learned. I also developed a standard stump speech and learned to get my message across in the often small time allotted no matter what questions were asked. On her relationship with the president: I often acted as a sounding board for him. While explaining a particular issue to me, he could think it through himself; and I and the rest of the family often argued with him more strenuously than his advisers or staff did. To us he was the same participant in our nightly dinner table discussions that he had always been. I soon discovered that it was easier for me to learn about peoples needs as I traveled than it was for him. ... A president, no matter who he is, can become very isolated if hes not careful. On criticism that she was too powerful: Jimmy and I had always worked side by side; its a tradition in Southern families, and one that is not seen as in any way demeaning to the man. Once the press and our persistent opponents heard about my attendance at the (Cabinet) meetings, very soon it was rumored that I was telling Jimmy what to do! They obviously didnt know Jimmy! On making mental health her top priority: I wanted to take mental illnesses and emotional disorders out of the closet, to let people know it is all right to admit having a problem without fear of being called crazy. If only we could consider mental illnesses as straightforwardly as we do physical illnesses, those affected could seek help and be treated in an open and effective way. A Cape Cod man has been indicted for his role in the death of an infant in 2021, authorities said. Randy Patterson-Gerber, 25, formally of Centerville, was arraigned Monday in Barnstable Superior Court on a charge of first-degree murder, according to the Cape and Islands District Attorneys Office. On Sept. 7, 2021, Barnstable Police received a call around 10:25 a.m. for a report of an unresponsive six-week-old infant, the DAs office said. Responding officers reportedly found the baby discolored and cool to the touch. After CPR was performed, the baby was transported to Cape Cod Hospital and eventually, a Boston area hospital via med flight where he passed away, prosecutors said. The baby died allegedly while under the care of Patterson-Gerber and prosecutors cited a doctors report, suggesting the 6-week-old died after suffering severe blunt force trauma. Patterson-Gerber will be back in court on January 3 for a pretrial hearing. The investigation was conducted by the Unsolved Homicide Unit of the Cape & Islands District Attorneys Office, the Barnstable Police Department, and the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Cape and Islands District Attorneys Office. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW A family of 19, including 13 children, celebrating Thanksgiving at a Utah cabin narrowly escaped after being poisoned by carbon monoxide fumes, family members told a news outlet. If one thing would have happened different, then this would be a story about 19 corpses being found in a cabin, family member Jade Smith told KUTV about the incident Friday, Nov. 17. Family members began falling ill overnight before evacuating the cabin and being treated at a hospital for carbon monoxide poisoning, the Duchesne County Sheriffs Office said in a news release. I just kept telling him, something is not right, Cassidee Smith told KUTV, referring to her husband. She said firefighters told the family that a carbon monoxide detector in the cabin wasnt working. Deputies and emergency crews responded to the cabin at about 2:30 a.m. Nov. 18 to assist the family, sheriffs officials said. Firefighters found high levels of carbon monoxide inside. On Nov. 4, two people died of carbon monoxide poisoning elsewhere in Utah, the Carbon County Sheriffs Office reported. Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas that can cause sudden illness and death, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC advises having heating systems, water heaters and any other gas, oil or coal burning appliances serviced each year. Install a carbon monoxide detector in your home and check the batteries each spring and fall, the agency said. Dont use a generator, charcoal grill, camp stove or other gasoline or charcoal-burning device inside the home, and dont run a vehicle inside an attached garage, the CDC said. Seek help immediately if you suspect carbon monoxide poisoning and feel dizzy, light-headed or nauseated, the agency said. Duchesne County is about 110 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. Woman fires gun inside airport near a security checkpoint, Oregon officials say 19-year-old opens fire at fight, killing one and shooting own brother, Utah cops say 92-year-old survives night in freezing cold after fall down embankment, Oregon cops say Two people have been taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries after a crash involving three vehicles. Police said a 73-year-old woman and a man, 76, were seriously injured after the crash at 21:45 GMT on Saturday on Southern Way in Cardiff. An eight-year-old girl who was also in the car suffered minor injuries. A 44-year-old man from Tottenham in London was arrested on suspicion of drink driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving. The three injured people were taken to to the University Hospital of Wales, along with the 33-year-old driver of the third car who attended hospital as a precaution. South Wales Police said the road was closed for several hours while investigations took place and the vehicles were removed. An Ohio priest was sentenced to life in prison Friday after he was convicted of grooming three boys and taking advantage of their opioid addictions to force them into commercial sex, according to the U.S. Justice Department. In May, a federal jury in Toledo found the Rev. Michael Zacharias, a Roman Catholic clergy member, guilty of five counts of sex trafficking in allegations that spanned 15 years, from July 2005 to August 2020. Prosecutors said he abused his role as a teacher and priest at a Toledo parish school to groom the three boys into adulthood, force them into sex and enable their addictions to pain medications and heroin later in life. Michael Zacharias used his position as a trusted spiritual leader and role model for young boys and their families to exploit them in the most insidious ways, coercing his victims from childhood and beyond to engage in commercial sex with him, said Kristen Clarke, the assistant attorney general of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division, in a statement. The Rev. Michael Zacharias conducts Mass at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Mansfield in 2014. Toledo diocese: Ohio Catholic priest guilty of sex trafficking boys; allegations spanned 15 years Testimony and evidence at trial showed Zacharias developed relationships with the victims' families when they were young to gain their trust, prosecutors said. As the victims got older, he exploited their fears, their housing instability and their criminal records to force them into commercial sex. Zacharias was ordained as a priest in 2002, a Diocese of Toledo news release said. In 2020, upon his arrest, Zacharias was placed on administrative leave from his role in the diocese and a pastor at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Toledo. On Friday, the Rev. Daniel Thomas, the bishop for the Toledo diocese, said in a statement that Zacharias' life sentence marked another step toward justice. After he was convicted in May, Thomas said, the diocese requested to dismiss Zacharias, 56, under canonical law, but it needs official approval from the Vatican. The diocese is awaiting a response. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ohio Catholic priest gets life sentence for sex trafficking of boys Washington Jordan's ambassador to the U.S. said her country is calling for a cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas because her country's leaders believe the conflict will fuel radicalism. Jordanian Ambassador Dina Kawar told "Face the Nation" on Sunday that up to 18,000 children could be orphaned from the war in Gaza. "What do we do with that?" she asked. "Some studies have shown that some of the Hamas the majority of Hamas fighters were orphans. Our call here is for a cease-fire. Not because we want to think differently from the rest of the world, but because we feel that with the Arab countries and with Islamic countries, this is the only way forward to stop this war and to sit around the table and go back to negotiations." Transcript: Jordanian Ambassador to the U.S. Dina Kawar on "Face the Nation" Kawar also questioned the strategy behind the Israeli military ordering civilians in Gaza to evacuate the northern half of the territory as it prepared for a ground invasion in the days after the Oct. 7 terrorist attack by Hamas militants. In recent days, Israel has told Palestinians to leave parts of southern Gaza. "These displaced people were asked to leave the north in no time to go to the south, and now they're asked to leave the south. Didn't didn't anybody think that if Hamas is in the north, they would go to the south?" Kawar said. "Our worry is that this violence is going just to breed violence and it's putting pressure in the region. And if we cannot talk to the moral compass of the world, nor to the humanitarian feelings, let's talk strategic thinking." Jordan's King Abdullah has criticized the Israeli offensive, calling on the international community to push for an immediate cease-fire to end the killing of innocent Palestinians and allow humanitarian aid into the region. U.S. officials have said anything more than a temporary cease-fire to allow for the release of hostages and delivery of humanitarian aid would empower Hamas, while Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas. "It is putting a lot of pressure on His Majesty, on the government because people are angry," Kawar said of whether the war could destabilize relations between Jordan and Israel. "They see the images every day. I mean, we're all angry. It's very humiliating. It's very hurtful and it's inhuman. And we're just wondering how far is this going to go? We're calling for a cease-fire. We're calling to go back to negotiations." The Chicago sandwich joint that inspired "The Bear" A sweet celebration of pawpaw fruit Texas BBQ, with a foreign flavor A protest by LGBTQ Outreach of Porter County before Thursdays Valparaiso Community Schools Board meeting, and public comment at the meeting by a stream of supporters for the reinstatement of a pride flag in a Valparaiso High School classroom, will not see the flags return, but have opened a dialogue that will continue, the school board and superintendent say. Many people, from high school students who identify as part of the LGBTQ community to elderly congregants of area churches, gathered in the dark on the sidewalk in front of the VCS administration building in the hour before the board meeting. They were told it was standard practice for demonstrations to be required to remain within the easement and not on school district property. Advertisement They were protesting the removal of a pride flag from a classroom that read All are welcome here. The flag had been up since the beginning of the school year, but was removed recently after the parents of a student complained. An overflow crowd packs the room at a meeting of the Valparaiso School Board on Thursday, November 16, 2023. Most were there to oppose the removal of a pride flag from a classroom at the high school. (Michael Gard/Post-Tribune) (Michael Gard/Post-Tribune) Jessica Jepsen, a former Porter County Board of Health member, said before the meeting that her daughter, who attends VHS under an Individualized Education Plan, found the flag distracting. Jepsen said her daughters grades had drastically improved since middle school because she had learned good habits of advocating for herself and asking teachers for help when she didnt understand something except in the classroom with the pride flag. Advertisement This was the only class she was not doing that in because she wasnt comfortable advocating for herself, Jepsen said before the meeting began. The standing-room-only crowd that squeezed into the meeting room produced nearly two dozen speakers who mostly used all of their allotted three minutes each to make their points. All but a handful spoke in favor of reinstating the flag, speaking of the personal experiences of themselves and their children feeling unwelcome at school and demanding the administration stop with the neutral stance and do something to counteract the bullying, the elevated rates of suicide among LGBTQ youth, and the feelings of isolation. The Duneland School Corporation faced similar pushback in April 2021 after school administrators directed three Chesterton Middle School teachers to take pride flags and related items off their walls because of parent and student complaints that the items, according to the school corporation, conflicted with their personal social and/or political beliefs. Christopher Pupillo, of Valparaiso, was the second to speak, and said in the hall afterward that hes had it with 20 years of complacency from VCS. Im here to speak about the utter lack of leadership from Dr. (Jim) McCall and the board, he told them. Dr. McCall, you read an innocuous statement. The teachers and the students, they deserve more from you. Were tired of the lack of response, the lack of dialogue. You can do better. You must do better. Carolyn Rodea told the board she asked her grown son what had made him feel safe when he was in school. Teachers who had Safe Space stickers, he told her. Heather Novak addressed board member and once-and-future Mayor Jon Costas to pick up where he left off as mayor last time with human rights. You championed the Human Rights Ordinance, she said of his past efforts as mayor. I call on you again as our future mayor . . . to ensure that we are, in fact, a modern and welcoming city for all. Heather Novak of Valparaiso speaks at a meeting of the Valparaiso School Board on Thursday, November 16, 2023. (Michael Gard/Post-Tribune) (Michael Gard/Post-Tribune) Such a request has farther-reaching implications than the tone set by the city of Valparaiso in its administration, as four of the VCS board seats are appointed by the city council. The fifth is appointed by the Center Township Advisory Board. VHS junior Daniel Gibson was one of several current and former students who spoke. He read a statement for his sibling, freshman Magdalena Gibson, who wrote, It seems that right now, its up to kids like me to speak out on what the flag means. It says, You are not alone. You are loved. You are beautiful. You are not broken, he read. Advertisement The six people who spoke in favor of the flags removal spoke mostly of the need only for a U.S. flag, state flag, and perhaps a school flag to be posted, arguing that anything else could be divisive, or even lead to tribalism, because it would be impossible to represent all subgroups of society. That should be inclusive enough for our students, said Peggy Taylor, a lifelong Valparaiso resident. It only brings confusion, she added. When it comes down to forensic science, the bones tell a story. The real diagnosis for these people is gender identity crisis. The most heated moment of the meeting came when Valparaiso resident Dawn Miller refused to concede her time limit and the crowd loudly drowned her out with chants of Time! before she relinquished the podium and sat back down. Members of the Valparaiso School Board conduct a meeting on Thursday, November 16, 2023. (Michael Gard/Post-Tribune) (Michael Gard/Post-Tribune) When all who wished to speak had done so, McCall and the board took turns addressing the crowd. McCall thanked the audience for its overall civil discourse. We will not stop the conversation tonight. We will continue, because I care about all of the kids, he said. Well speak now in hard words, and well speak later in hard words, but theres no place Id rather be. While Costas spoke to the need for a supportive environment for all, he made it a point to explain to the crowd the boards focus on not micromanaging its administrators and the guidelines it uses to assess their decision-making. Is it legal? Is the policy at issue fair and effective? Was the application in this policy reasonable? he said, acknowledging the principals decision could have been deemed reasonable if she had ruled either way. But it was the baldly honest words of black Board Member Erika Watkins that brought a palpable reaction from the audience. She said it was very difficult to sit in her seat and choose a side, but she certainly could empathize with feeling other. Advertisement It has taken me some work to feel like Im welcome in this community, she said, admitting to the crowd that she wonders how welcome she would feel if she werent sitting on the dais. Watkins challenged everyone to think about how they do something as simple as moving through the grocery store. Am I really making this person feel welcome? Or did I clutch my purse? Or did I turn up my nose? I really wish every teacher made every child feel like they were welcome. Shelley Jones is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune. Householders near new electricity pylons and substations will receive up to 1,000 off their annual bills under plans to be unveiled by Jeremy Hunt in the Autumn Statement. The Chancellor will make the announcement as part of a drive to slash the time it takes to deliver energy infrastructure as Britain transitions to net zero. The news comes as the Chancellor puts the final touches to Wednesdays statement, which is widely expected to include an inheritance tax cut and investment tax cut for businesses. Mr Hunt has billed it as an Autumn Statement for growth. However, in a striking intervention ahead of the fiscal event, the Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch said the Treasury was not the right department to lead economic growth. In an interview with The Telegraph, Ms Badenoch said it made more sense for her own department to take responsibility for growth. One of the things which I think business needs is a department focused on economic growth, she said. The Treasury is very much a finance ministry and having an additional department thats looking at measures that will improve growth is key. That is what I have built with the merger of business and trade departments. Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch says the Treasury is not the right department to lead economic growth - Tayfun Salci/Shutterstock In July, The Telegraph revealed plans to fast-track hundreds of miles of overhead cables and pylons to phase out fossil fuels and reconfigure the grid for an explosion in the number of electric cars. However, the Government is concerned about a potential backlash from people opposing new developments in their neighbourhoods. To help defuse local opposition, Mr Hunt will announce that those living near to new transmission infrastructure will receive up to 10,000 off their bills over 10 years. The rebates are part of a package of reforms aimed at halving the time it takes to deliver new electricity networks from 14 to seven years. A new premium planning service will provide advice to accelerate major planning applications. Nationally significant low-carbon energy infrastructure will be designated as a critical national priority, meaning there is a presumption in favour of approval, while the rollout of electric vehicle charging points will also be prioritised. Keep energy costs down A Treasury source said: Expanding the grid will unlock global investment for Britain and bring improvements for people across the country, with energy security that will keep energy costs down. And by speeding up the planning system including the rollout of EV chargepoints we will be tackling one of the most common issues raised by businesses who are keen to invest in the UK. This Autumn Statement will show that its the UK Government which is taking the long-term decisions to deliver the changes we need. It comes amid a warning from the national infrastructure tsar that the UK is at risk of missing its 2035 net zero targets, such as the ban on new petrol and diesel cars. In an interview with The House magazine, Sir John Armitt, the chair of the National Infrastructure Commission, said he would be surprised if the 2035 targets were met. He also said the Government was moving too slowly on new nuclear energy. At the moment, were not making any progress really on Sizewell C, there is no deal being done with EDF... so we dont see nuclear as really having a significant part to play in any new stations other than Hinkley before 2035, he said. I would say Im not sure the Governments really serious about nuclear. Tackling late payments The Telegraph understands that Mr Hunts Autumn Statement will also include a range of measures aimed at tackling late payments to small businesses. The Chancellor will announce a commitment to blocking firms from bidding for large government contracts if they fail to pay their own suppliers within an average of 55 days from April 2024. The intention is to reduce this to 45 days in April 2025 and 30 days at a future date. In 2022, small- and medium-sized businesses were owed on average an estimated 22,000 in late payments. A Government source said: The Government hears from many small businesses that late payment is a huge issue. Evidence tells us that 40 per cent of invoices are still not being paid according to agreed terms. Thats why were beefing up the UKs already world-leading prompt payments regime to protect small businesses and make sure prompt payment poor performers shape up. Labour has meanwhile claimed that its own economic plans would cut household bills by up to 3,000 a year over the next decade through action on energy, petrol and mortgages. Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, said: The economy is not working for working people. After 13 years of economic failure, families are worse off, with higher taxes, higher mortgage payments and prices still rising in the shops. She added: Under Keir Starmers leadership, the Labour Party has changed and is now the party of economic responsibility. A Labour governments priority would be growing our economy so we can boost wages, bring down bills and make working people in all parts of the country better off. 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 Chandler officer fired gunshots at a woman after police said she grabbed her weapon during an encounter with the officer. The woman survived her injuries, and the officer was uninjured, according to police. Authorities identified the woman as Renata Eldred, who is 50 years old. Police said on Nov. 17, just after 6 p.m., Chandler Police Department officers responded to a "disorderly subject" in the area of 56th Street and Ray Road. Police said Eldred was demonstrating disorderly behavior toward other people in the parking lot. Police officials said that upon arrival, an officer contacted Eldred in a vehicle and saw she had an unholstered firearm near her. Police said the officer gave her commands not to touch her weapon, but she grabbed the weapon and "made a threatening move with it" toward the officer. Police said the officer fired two shots at her, which struck her in the upper chest. Police said she was taken into custody and medical aid was provided. Police said the officer was not injured. After being treated and released from the hospital, Eldred was booked into a Maricopa County jail on charges of disorderly conduct and aggravated assault. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Chandler officer shoots woman twice in chest, says she reached for gun In the six decades since President John F. Kennedy was killed, America has added many chapters to its story. These days, some are hand-wringing that things have never been worse, conveniently forgetting that in 1963, America was wrangling with civil rights, an aggressive Soviet Union and a quagmire in Vietnam, all during a decade which included not one, but three assassinations. On Nov. 22, 1963, America was shaken and shocked out of the fantasy that we had progressed beyond the kind of political hatred and anarchy which had cost three previous presidents their lives. In the autumn of 1963, we were the world's premiere power, our sights set on the moon, led by an erudite president who embodied The American Century. Assassination was so beyond the pale of how we saw ourselves, it gave birth to theories that persist to this day. Doubt still persists: The government should release JFK assassination files Despite all of our achievements hence, his death cast a shadow from which we never have fully escaped. Kennedy was not perfect. His first meeting with Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev was a disaster, as was the Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba. We now know all about his illnesses and infidelities and his initial reticence toward civil rights. But his brief presidency shines a glaring light on our acute lack of statesmanship in 2023. We've devolved from "Ask not what your country can do you you; ask what you can do for your country," to the notion that America is so paralyzed and corrupt, democracy is no longer worth such sacrifice. In keeping with the current anti-intellectual populism, those few who still embrace the notion of statesmanship are derided as weak or "elites." In 2023, we're electing people who choose performance art over substance, and are proud of it. Their rejection of statesmanship is not a source of embarrassment, but rather a badge of honor. As a result, we've opted for people who "tell it like it is" rather than those telling us what we need to hear. Taxpayers are being cheated, daily, by people who excel in gasbag rhetoric but have no skills or interest in legislating. Aided and abetted by a national media always in search of the next horse race, they have no intention of embracing statesmanship because nuance doesn't generate clicks. In a 1957 a speech at the University of Pennsylvania, Kennedy noted: "At most periods of our history, our national prestige and effective influence has been measurable by the strength of will, the capacity for judgment, and the articulation of policies at the pinnacle and that is the presidency. If initiative falters there, if the public is not honestly informed, if all executive action is merely reflex action, then foreign policy by its very nature cannot but fail in its large objectives." The brilliance of our system is that the founders assumed that liars, crooks and charlatans would wheedle their way into power. They implemented checks and balances designed to withstand such people up to a point. Our current desire for noise and jingoism over the hard work of statesmanship diminishes the legacy of one of America's most promising presidents. Election? What election? Before the smoke from Election Day had even cleared, some Ohio legislators have declared they intend to undermine the public's approval of Issues 1 and 2. In other words, some of the same folks who clamor for less government and more freedom are telling you to your face that they intend to ignore the results and will subvert the democratic process. Some have expressed shock that a number of Republicans voted for Issue 1, but they shouldn't have been so surprised. People of all stripes have had it with overreach, no matter the cause. Regarding Issue 2, legislators have indicated they want the proceeds from marijuana sales to be used to build more jails rather than the social programs for which they were to be designated. It's too bad such determination to "tweak" the results isn't being applied to Ohio's crooked election maps. Charita M. Goshay is a Canton Repository staff writer and member of the editorial board. Reach her at 330-580-8313 or charita.goshay@cantonrep.com. On Twitter: @cgoshayREP This article originally appeared on The Repository: Charita Goshay: JFK anniversary highlights our lack of statesmanship Chernobyl, the site of the worlds most well-known nuclear disaster, has been essentially abandoned since the infamous reactor meltdown of 1986 with good reason, as the site has been contaminated by radiation. Nonetheless, Ukraine now plans to give Chernobyl a makeover that will have it generate power once again. But this time, its going to be a massive wind farm. The current plan, according to a report from Popular Mechanics, is to turn Chernobyl into a one-gigawatt wind farm, which would be one of the largest in Europe. At full capacity, the wind farm could power up to 800,000 homes in nearby Kyiv, Ukraines capital, according to the report. As for whether it will actually be safe for workers to spend time in the radiated zone, the answers are somewhat unclear. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, there is still radioactive material in the atmosphere, but it exists at tolerable exposure levels for limited periods of time. However, there were also reports of Russian soldiers experiencing radiation sickness as recently as last year after digging into the dirt near the power plant. Russian forces seized the Chernobyl site during its invasion of Ukraine and held it for several weeks before abandoning it. The Ukrainian government and Notus Energy, the German company that has been brought on to build out the project, are reportedly still assessing how to move forward safely. While there are certainly concerns around the projects, the Chernobyl site also comes with big upsides, as there is already a lot of power plant infrastructure in place. Furthermore, no residents will be displaced by the project, as the radiation zone is still basically a ghost town. There is also a nice symmetry to the site of one of the worlds worst-ever power-related disasters being rehabilitated into a modern power plant that can produce clean, renewable energy that allows Ukraine to transition away from harmful dirty energy sources. It could become a symbol of clean, climate-friendly energy, providing Kyiv with green electricity, said Oleksandr Krasnolutskyi, Ukraines deputy ecology minister. Join our free newsletter for cool news and cool tips that make it easy to help yourself while helping the planet. In November 1923, an entourage accompanying Mary Bartelme to her Circuit Court chambers bore witness to a significant occasion. At the door, she was caught in a swirl of employees, flower baskets, after election cigar smoke and soprano congratulations, the Tribunes Genevieve Forbes reported. The procession of club women, judges, scrub women and dependent girls filed past. And Miss Bartelme enjoyed it much as a debutante with her first party. The day before, Bartelme had won the popular vote to become a Circuit Court judge, the first woman to be elected to a position in a court of such high jurisdiction, the Tribune reported. Two girls whod been before her in Juvenile Court said they were so glad their friend was now a real judge. For 11 years Bartelme had been an assistant judge in juvenile court, appointed because the head of Juvenile Court threatened to quit if he didnt get someone to do his pretrial investigations of girls. Jane Addams, the famed pioneer of social work, recommended Bartelme for that post. They agreed that truancy isnt necessarily a telltale sign of delinquency. Maybe a child is hungry and theres little or nothing to eat at home. The natural reaction is for them to break away from school and go foraging for what they can find, Judge Bartelme would tell the Tribune in 1931. The day after being elected, Bartelme spoke at a luncheon in her honor at the Chicago Womans Club. She denied any exclusivist feminist ideas. Women have no bigger place than the place that makes family life right and normal. Some of us are not in those places. So we do other things that help the family life, she said. And perhaps we mother some children, even though we may be the judge of a court. She was known as Suitcase Mary because of her follow-through when removing a child from an abusive or neglectful household. She would fill suitcases with clothes, nightwear and other necessities and give them to the needy children, the Tribune noted. Gee, is all this mine? a typical Mary girl, pleasantly surprised, would exclaim when given a packed suitcase. Bartelme said: I believe that the young girls of Chicago and of all Cook County are entitled to at least one judge who can deal with them in terms of real sympathy and understanding rather than in terms of legal lore and technicalities. Bartelme was born in 1866. Her parents were German immigrants who lived on the open prairie that later became the Fulton Market. Graduating high school at 16, she taught school for six years, and dreamed of going to medical school, until she meet Myra Bradwell, the first woman to pass the Illinois bar exam. One visit to her, and I was determined to take up the study of law, Bartelme recalled. The Illinois Supreme Court denied Bradwell a law license because she was married. Instead Bradwell edited the Chicago Legal News, having been granted an exemption on a prohibition against married women running a business by the Illinois legislature. Thus forewarned of the potential pitfalls of a woman entering the legal profession, Bartleme enrolled in Northwestern Universitys law school in 1892. After graduating, she opened a practice concentrating on contracts and other aspects of business law. Then her do-gooder gene kicked in. In 1897, she became the first woman appointed Cook Countys public guardian. She protected the legal interests of children, senior citizens and the incapacitated. That brought her into local courts at a pivotal moment, as she recounted in a 1914 essay, The Opportunity For Women in Court Administration. She noted that abused and wayward girls were subjected to the same procedures as adults: a large public courtroom presided over by a man, whose clerks were men, whose other occupants were men, women and children waiting to have the cases in which they were interested heard or perhaps mere curiosity seekers. A judge in Cook Countys Juvenile Court the worlds first juvenile court decided that situation was not conducive to secure the facts from the child, or to do justice to her. Instead, the judge appointed a woman to hear what the girls had to say, with as few other people involved as possible. Bartelme made such gentler proceedings her trademark as she went from public defender to assistant judge and elected Judge. It got her kudos from unlikely sources. In 1917, the father of a girl who alleged she was being abused by her parents was accompanied to court by Barney Grogan, a salon-keeper politician. Getting constituents out of legal jams was standard operating procedure for ward heelers such as Grogan at the time, but watching the hearing under Bartlemes direction he switched sides, the Tribune reported. See here, said Mr. Grogan, turning to the father, the court is doing the right thing for the little girl. She is afraid of you and she is sick and nervous and needs quiet and care. Terminating parents custody presented Bartelme with a vexatious problem: Where to place an abused child? In jail, cellmates would likely tutor delinquents in advanced criminal techniques. In many cases, Bartelme found a simple solution. She took children home with her. She and a sister, unmarried and motherly just as she was, shared a three-story house in the Austin neighborhood. Two German orphans came to live with her and her sister in 1914. After the horrors theyd experienced back home, the German girls sensed themselves not just sheltered, but given a home. The morning after their arrival, Bartelme heard a mixture of German and American accents and went down stairs, the Tribune reported: There, seated along the wall in a row, their little hands folded solemnly across their laps, sat the four little girls. They had dressed themselves, made their beds, and while they waited for their benefactress and their breakfast, they sang.The newcomers were teaching the American orphans a German patriotic anthem: Die Watch am Rhein. During her 16 years as public guardian, she and her sister took in at least 400 children annually. Each stayed until a permanent placement could be found. That inspired the creation of Mary Clubs, or Mary Bartelme Clubs, in Evanston and elsewhere. The organizations were dedicated to the welfare of girls and funded by traditional charity benefits such as bridge parties, fashion shows, lectures and concerts. Bartelmes strength with women voters provided her with a following that would not be denied when there was vacancy on the Circuit Court in 1923. Womens clubs throughout the city and county rallied to the support of the woman judge who had gained widespread fame in the handling of delinquent girl cases, the Tribune reported the day after her election. Social workers and civic leaders from around the world came to see her at work in her courtroom, and the message they heard was simple, the Tribune wrote in 1968. There are no bad children, she told them There are confused, neglected, love-starved, and resentful children, and what they need most I try to give them understanding and a fresh start in the right direction. Have an idea for Vintage Chicago Tribune? Share it with Ron Grossman and Marianne Mather at rgrossman@chicagotribune.com and mmather@chicagotribune.com. If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, BGR may receive an affiliate commission. China wants to steal NASAs thunder by launching a Mars sample return mission that brings back Martian soil and rocks roughly two years before the U.S.-based space agency can. Currently, NASAs Mars Sample Return mission is hitting a few snags. And those snags may be just enough to get China the chance it has been waiting for. According to new reports from Science Alert, the Chinese space agency wants to send a crewed mission to Mars within the next decade. In preparation for the arrival of taikonauts on the Martian surface, though, China hopes to complete a Mars sample return of its own two years before NASAs current proposed mission would end. Today's Top Deals The mission will be the third in the China National Space Administrations Tianwen program, as such itll be known as Tianwen-3. The mission will consist of a pair of launches in 2028, which will gather samples on the Martian surface and then return them to the planet sometime in July of 2031. A concept of the Mars sample retriever that could bring alien germs to Earth Its unclear if China has any big plans set aside for its Mars sample return mission, but if it does manage to pull it off before NASA, itll open some interesting possibilities. It is no secret that China has been working hard to get more established in the space exploration field, and the country has managed some intriguing displays over the past few years. However, some of those displays have also been cut off much earlier than expected, with the Chinese Mars rover failing to survive a harsh Martian winter earlier this year, making it unable to wake up after a long slumber on the Martian surface. A new paper also says China is also working on new ways to understand the Martian atmosphere. Armed with the new model of Mars atmosphere, as well as plans to pull off its own Mars sample return mission, China is setting itself up to be a big name in the exploration of the Red Planet. How well those plans play out, though, remains to be seen. Don't Miss: Best Black Friday sales to shop this weekend: Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, more More Top Deals See the original version of this article on BGR.com GOP presidential candidate and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie insisted on Sunday that antisemitism in the United States is not on the rise, arguing that it has been there all along. Christie, appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press," responded to the controversy surrounding X owner Elon Musk and antisemitism espoused on TikTok and by American college professors since Hamas terrorists launched their October 7 attack against civilians, killing about 1,200 people and dragging some 240 more into Gaza as hostages. "I think that what we're seeing in this country, Kristen, and with Iran, with the incredible unmasking of antisemitism, I don't want to say it's a rise. I think it's been there," Christie told host Kristen Welker. "And I think what we're seeing now, due to what's happening in Israel at the moment, is that unmasking of that, we're seeing it all over college campuses." DEM CHAMPIONS POSSIBLE ISRAEL-HAMAS HOSTAGE DEAL AHEAD OF THANKSGIVING, BUT STAUNCHLY REJECTS CEASE-FIRE CALLS Republican presidential candidate and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie speaks at the Hudson Institute Nov. 15, 2023 in Washington, DC. "We're seeing it on social media sites like X and TikTok and other social media sites. And it is horrific," he said. "I think the president, United States needs to be much stronger than he's been in speaking out against antisemitism in this country. This is an outrageous, outrageous type of hate that's being expressed. And we need to be speaking out against it no matter who does it, whether it's Elon Musk, whether it's professors on our college campuses or students that they are misleading or whether it's individuals who are speaking out in an antisemitic way on the streets of our cities. This is unacceptable. And the president has not been strong enough in this view and in this point." Musk was accused of endorsing a post on X in which another user appeared to have espoused the antisemitic trope of claiming Jewish people hate White people. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie led by IDF Spokesperson Maj. Liad Diamond and Amir Ohana, Speaker of the Knesset, is seen visiting Kibbutz Kfar Aza which was attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7 near the Gaza border. Musk later issued a clarification, claiming he was only addressing left-wing organizations, not Jews in general, and said that anyone advocating for the genocide of any group of people on X would be suspended from the platform. Christie, the first Republican presidential candidate to visit Israel since the war began, called on the Israeli and United States governments to work on a deal to bring hostages home. NETANYAHU WAR CABINET STIFLES REVOLT FROM FAR RIGHT OVER SENDING GAZANS FUEL WITHOUT HOSTAGE DEAL: REPORT "I would support a deal that that was fair and equitable and one that gets these people home now," Christie said. "I absolutely do think Israel is following international law," Christie added, rejecting allegations from the United Nations human rights chief who accused Israel of war crimes in Gaza. Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie on Nov. 12, 2023 in Kfar Aza, Israel, seen visiting the country in the wake of the October 7 attacks by Hamas. "Unlike a lot of other people who are expressing opinions about this, I was there and spoke to the leaders in Israel, spoke to the president of Israel. I spoke to members of the Israeli Defense Forces. I was 600 yards from the Gaza border. I went everywhere in Israel to see what's going on. And they are doing everything they can to avoid civilian casualties," Christie told Welker. "The problem is that Hamas is forcing these civilians to stay in places where Israel is warning them out of dropping thousands of leaflets, sending hundreds of thousands of text messages to warn people away from areas before they're attacked," he said. "It is Hamas that's doing this. And let us not forget, for those who are advocating for a ceasefire, there was a ceasefire on October 6 and it was Hamas that broke it on October 7." Original article source: Christie insists antisemitism in US not a 'rise' but 'unmasking': 'It's been there' GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie said Sunday he would not call for a freeze in West Bank settlements amid escalating violence in the region. No, I would not. No, Kristen, I would not call for a freeze, he told NBCs Kristen Welker on Meet the Press. I would not be dictating policy to the Israeli government. But I would advise, as friends do, that that type of violence in the West Bank is a distraction from what needs to be done, which is to protect Israels territorial integrity, protect the safety and security of their citizens, and to make sure that Hamass capability to commit this type of act again is degraded militarily, he continued. Christie was the first GOP presidential candidate to visit Israel earlier this month since the onset of the war on Oct. 7 and has been opposed to calls for a cease-fire in the fighting. The Israeli government revealed earlier this year that it had plans to reestablish settlements in the West Bank a move that that the U.S. said it was extremely troubled by at the time. This legislation in the Israeli Knesset rescinded parts of a nearly two-decade-old law that prohibited Israeli communities to be built on specific territory in the West Bank. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called for conditioning U.S. aid to Israel amid the ongoing violence Saturday, including a freeze on settlement expansion in the West Bank and an end to bombing that has taken the lives of thousands of civilians. Settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank has escalated since the militant group Hamas launched a surprise, deadly attack on Israel on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,200 people. The U.S. has warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to rein in extremist settlers in the West Bank in the wake of reports of violence against Palestinians. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Renewed hostilities between the Myanmar military and ethnic minority armed group the Arakan Army (AA) have spread to various townships in western Myanmar, including Pauktaw, where civilians have been caught in the crossfire as fighting escalates. A former member of parliament from Pauktaw township, who asked not to be identified due to safety concerns, told CNN on Saturday that he had lost contact with people from the town and did not know what is happening. I left the town the day the fighting broke out. But there are elderly people, sick people and families with young children left as they could not make haste, he said. Its raining and a storm is coming too. Its a devastating situation. It breaks my heart to see people in such a situation. Ongoing clashes between the Arakan Army and the military began in the Rathedaung township on November 13 and have since spread to the townships of Maungdaw, Kyauktaw, Minbya, Pauktaw, Ponnagyun, and Paletwa, according to a statement from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) on Friday. The renewed fighting has displaced more than 26,000 people in the countrys western Rakhine state since Monday, according to UNOCHA. The two parties had previously established an informal ceasefire in November 2022, according to the UN, but fighting broke out after the Arakan Army reportedly attacked two border posts. In a statement released on Friday, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said the latest figures brought the total number of internally displaced people due to the conflict between the two sides to approximately 90,000. It added that there had been reports of military shelling in Arakan Army-controlled areas. Myanmars military had also conducted at least one operation backed by air and naval support, UNOCHA said. Myanmar military spokesperson Zaw Min Tun said during a briefing Friday that the Myanmar army and police force had retaken the Pauktaw police station and that the town was already under control of the military. Most humanitarian activities have been suspended due to the resurgence of the conflict and virtually all roads and waterways between townships in Rakhine have been blocked, according to OCHA. Battles between the military and resistance groups have unfolded almost daily across Myanmar since army general Min Aung Hlaing seized power in February 2021, plunging the country into economic chaos and fresh civil war. Airstrikes and ground attacks on what the Myanmar military calls terrorist targets have been occurred regularly since 2021 and have killed thousands of civilians to date, including children, according to monitoring groups. Whole villages have been burned down by junta soldiers and schools, clinics and hospitals destroyed. The son of a man from Pauktow who was killed as a result of the latest hostilities, told CNN that his father had been hit by pieces of artillery at a meditation center after Myanmars State Administration Council (SAC) soldiers started shooting at him constantly. I was told he was crying out of pain, I cant imagine how he would be suffering in a pool of blood. The next morning, I got a call that he passed away at night, the man said. A familys plight U Nan Diya, Chaung Suak villages abbot monk, told CNN that he had been assisting three fellow villagers a father sick with heart disease, accompanied by his daughter and son-in-law. Despite the family reaching a hospital two days before hostilities resumed, they remained stranded in a house in Pauktaw after the town turned into a war zone, U Nan Diya said. The sick mans daughter had attempted to look for a boat to return to their village but was arrested by soldiers on Friday, he added. U Nan Diya said the 60-year-old man with heart disease was getting worse without medication. (His) family wants him at their home instead of letting him die at a strangers house but nobody can go out or use the water route because the military navy is stationed in the sea, shooting everyone they see, he said. The sick man cant die peacefully. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com As Israels bombardment of Gaza rages on, a U.S. official signaled hope for a deal between Israel and Hamas to release hostages. We believe we are closer than we have been to reaching a final agreement, Deputy White House National Security Adviser Jon Finer said on CBSs Face the Nation. But Finer advised caution, saying that the mantra that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed really does apply. "We believe we are closer than we have been to reaching a final agreement" on the release of hostages held by Hamas, deputy national security adviser Jon Finer tells @margbrennan. But "the mantra that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed really does apply," he says. pic.twitter.com/Y8HGWUteTr Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) November 19, 2023 Negotiations between Israel and Hamas, brokered by the U.S., are nearing a deal to release hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7 in exchange for a temporary cessation of fighting in Gaza, according to multiple outlets. Some media, including The Washington Post, reported that the two parties reached a tentative deal Saturday night. But an hour after The Posts report, National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson shared the article on X (formerly Twitter) and wrote, We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal. The paper then updated its story to reflect that the U.S. was close to finalizing a deal. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there is no deal as of now in a Saturday briefing. We want to get back all the hostages, he said. Were doing the utmost to bring back the most possible, including in stages, and we are united on this. Finer also said that Israels military operations in southern Gaza should not go forward until civilians have been accounted for in their military planning. Israel's operations in southern Gaza "should not go forward" until "civilians have been accounted for in their military planning," deputy national security adviser Jon Finer says, adding Israel should draw "lessons that lead to greater and enhanced protections for civilian life." pic.twitter.com/1y8UO4NqfM Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) November 19, 2023 U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said Sunday that the events in Gaza over the past two days beggar belief. More than 12,000 Palestinians have been killed during Israels assault on the Gaza strip, and more than one million Gazans have been forcibly displaced from their homes as bombing decimates the northern strip. In addition to bombing, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have also entered Gaza. This week, the IDF raided Gazas Al-Shifa hospital, which the Israeli government has claimed was a center of operations for Hamas. Doctors at the hospital said newborn and premature babies were dying after the facility ran out of fuel to run generators that supplied power to incubators that were keeping infants warm. UNICEF said Sunday that 31 premature infants have been evacuated from Al-Shifa hospital to the Raffa crossing with Egypt. The newborns condition was rapidly deteriorating, and follows the tragic death of several other babies, and total collapse of all medical services at Al-Shifa, the UNICEF statement said. Irrespective of warnings, Israel is obliged to protect civilians wherever they are, Turk added. He also spoke of horrifying images of dozens of dead bodies allegedly from an Israeli attack on a school in Jabalia refugee camp. The pain, dread, and fear etched on the faces of children, women and men is too much to bear, Turk said. How much more violence, bloodshed and misery will it take before people come to their senses? How many more civilians will be killed? More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone People visit the Tianjin International Shipping Industry Expo 2023 in north China's Tianjin, Nov. 16, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua] Cheng Weidong has worked as a trailer driver in Tianjin Port for almost three decades. Over the years, the port and his job have changed a lot, with training AI transportation robots newly added to his duties. "In the past, a skilled trailer driver could only transport a few hundred tonnes of cargo a day. Today, goods from all over the world can be transported, loaded and unloaded much more efficiently owing to the intelligent port construction," Cheng said. Home to the world's first smart zero-carbon terminal and a demonstration area of port autonomous driving, Tianjin Port maintains shipping trade with more than 500 ports in over 180 countries and regions, and its cargo and container throughput ranks among the global top ten. Tianjin Port is the epitome of China's shipping industry. This dynamic sector is characterised by innovation and improved efficiency, which have helped buoy global industrial chains and promote economic growth. Connecting the world The Tianjin International Shipping Industry Expo 2023 was held from Thursday to Saturday in north China's Tianjin Municipality to promote the development of the global shipping industry and marine economy. "As we delve into the future of shipping at this influential gathering, we also reflect on the impressive advancements that have positioned China at the forefront of the maritime world," Jin Yu Cheong, head of Baltic Asia, said via video link. The latest issue of the Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Center Development Index Report shows that the Asia-Pacific region's shipping centers have continued to rise over the past decade. Over the past 10 years, the centers of international shipping industry have undergone significant changes, with the goods, trade, and capital gradually moving eastward, said Hayao Gen, president of Fenghai Technology Consulting Services Co., Ltd., a consulting firm of Japan Port Group. Chinese port cities such as Shanghai, Guangzhou and Qingdao now rank among the top international shipping centers, contributing to the stability of the global supply chains, said the port construction expert. The Shanghai Port has ranked first in container throughput for 13 consecutive years. By the end of 2022, the number of shipping routes passing through the Port of Ningbo Zhoushan reached 300, including 248 international routes. "In a rapidly evolving global trade landscape, China's achievements in shipping are paving the way for the future," said Jin Yu Cheong. Benefiting the world At Tianjin Dongjiang Free Trade Port Area, a container carrying wine shipped from Italy has just arrived. The wine will be sold across China. "In 2017, we only introduced a few pallets of the wine of this brand and decided to 'wait-and-see' how the market would react," said Michelle Hu, operation director of Marquis (Tianjin) Trading Co., Ltd. "Now we import several containers of Italian wine every year," said Hu, adding that years of promotion have helped improve consumers' recognition of this Italian brand. Speaking via video link, Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said that in recent years, China had made solid strides in high-quality development of foreign trade, ranking first in global trade in goods for six consecutive years. The shipping industry played an important role. Data showed that China's port cargo and container throughput have ranked first in the world for many consecutive years. In 2022, the cargo throughput of China's ports reached 15.69 billion tonnes, and the container throughput was 296 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). In addition to logistics and trade, China has carried out in-depth global cooperation across the whole shipping industry chain, including global ports cooperation, shipbuilding and ship leasing. As one of the largest shipping enterprises in the world, China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited (COSCO Shipping) owns over 1,300 ships with a combined shipping capacity of 111 million deadweight tonnes, ranking first in the world. The company's global shipping routes cover more than 1,500 ports in 160 countries and regions, with an annual cargo volume of 1.3 billion tonnes. "We have made the port of Piraeus a leading container port in Europe. With joint efforts of the COSCO Shipping management team, the company has made a significant contribution to the local economy, culture, society and finance of Greece," said Yu Zenggang, executive chairman of COSCO shipping (Piraeus) Ports Ltd. George Xiradakis, president of Hellenic Shipping Finance Association, said that many Greek shipowners build their ships in China, and during the last decade, half of the Greek new ships were built in China. "China has introduced a number of policies and measures to smooth import and export logistics, facilitate cross-border trade and innovate in the development of foreign trade, providing stable impetus to the world economy," said Liang Feng, an associate professor with Nankai University. An overdue sailor from New Jersey was found alive aboard a tattered vessel adrift nearly 300 miles off the coast of North Carolina on Wednesday. The sailor had departed from Jersey City, New Jersey, en route to Bermuda but on Nov. 6 lost communication with family members, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) said in a news release on Thursday. The family told officials that he was considered overdue as of Tuesday. The Coast Guard Atlantic Area command center issued an urgent marine message broadcasting a description of the mans boat to other sailors. Cmdr. Wes Geyer, search and rescue mission coordinator, described the search area as "nearly twice the size of Texas" and the seas as "very unforgiving." A good Samaritan aboard the sailing vessel Time Bandit heard the message and encountered another vessel adrift with tattered sails and a missing boom 270 miles off Hatteras, North Carolina. The vessel matched the description of the overdue mariners boat, officials said. TEXAS WOMAN FOUND ALIVE AT BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK A WEEK AFTER SHE WENT MISSING A good Samaritan found the overdue sailor alive. The good Samaritan was able to communicate with the overdue mariner, though the Coast Guard advised against an at-sea transfer due to sea conditions at the time. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP The overdue sailor's tattered vessel was located 270 miles off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Lawrence Lawson based in Cape May, New Jersey, arrived on scene Wednesday and safely transferred the overdue sailor aboard the vessel in stable condition. The crew reunited the mariner with family Thursday at Coast Guard Training Center Cape May. Coast Guard Cutter Lawrence Lawson, based in Cape May, New Jersey, reunited the overdue mariner with his family. "We are pleased that this case resulted in a family reunion," Geyer said. FAMILY OF AMERICAN WHO VANISHED ON YOGA RETREAT CALLS FELLOW TOURIST'S ACCOUNT VERY STRANGE Officials did not immediately release the identity of the sailor. USCG officials urged all mariners to carry a properly registered Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon, a device that Geyer said can help pinpoint your exact location should the "unthinkable ever happen." CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Other Coast Guard assets involved in the search and rescue operation included an HC-130 Hercules crew and an MH-60 helicopter crew both from Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina, and an HC-144 crew from Air Station Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Original article source: Coast Guard rescues missing sailor adrift in tattered vessel 270 miles off North Carolina coast Colombia has started sterilizing the hippos descended from the four that drug lord Pablo Escobar left behind when he was killed in 1993capping years of debate about how to cull the herd. We are in a race against time in terms of permanent environmental and ecosystem impacts, Susana Muhamad, Colombias environmental minister, said in a statement, according to The New York Times. To sterilize the hippos, veterinarians have to immobilize the behemoths with sedative-filled darts and then perform the surgery on the spot. Read it at The New York Times Read more at The Daily Beast. President Biden and China's President Xi Jinping walk in the gardens at the Filoli estate in Woodside, Calif., on Wednesday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperative conference. (Doug Mills / Associated Press) In a world beset by wars in Gaza and Ukraine, its good news when two superpowers step back from frictions that increased the danger of another war in Asia. Thats what happened last week when President Biden met with Chinas Xi Jinping at a country estate in the ridges west of Silicon Valley. The two presidents met after a year of frosty noncommunication, touched off by Chinas suspected espionage balloon that wandered across U.S. airspace last winter, by aggressive Chinese military actions in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, and by U.S. restrictions on advanced technology. The presidents agreed to bury a few of their differences for the simple reason that neither needs another crisis right now. Beijings stock has been falling literally and figuratively. Its economy, once the worlds powerhouse, has slowed to a low-for-China growth rate of 5%. Foreign investors are pulling money out of the country, a reversal of a decades-long trend. On the diplomatic front, Xi appears to have recognized that he needs to soften Chinas image as a bully, which has driven other countries into the arms of the United States. Biden also hoped to ratchet down tensions. In the coming presidential election year, he doesnt want to contend with a third foreign policy crisis on top of Gaza and Ukraine. He probably wont get much credit from voters for lowering friction with China, but he might win points if Xi delivers on his promise to choke off the supply of chemicals used in fentanyl production. Read more: I am an expert on polls. Here's why they can't tell you if Biden beats Trump again Xi acceded to U.S. requests on other issues, too. He agreed to reopen talks among the two countries military leaders, including a red line for communication in emergencies like near-collisions in the waters and airspace around Taiwan. Even before the summit opened, China agreed to strengthen cooperation with the United States on climate change. And Xi agreed to open talks on managing the dangers of artificial intelligence in military systems. The Chinese leader was clearly on a charm offensive. He told American business leaders that China wants to be a partner and a friend, not an adversary. He even threw in the possibility of sending pandas to the San Diego Zoo. Those were easy concessions; they dont cost much in economic or political terms. Still, China watchers were skeptical about how much Beijing will actually deliver. Its a little early to pop the cork on the Champagne, said Bonnie Glaser, a China scholar at the German Marshall Fund. Im not convinced that they are actually going to take serious action to prevent military accidents. They dont want to eliminate all the risks for the U.S. military if it operates near their coastline. Im not sure theyre going to answer the phone in an emergency. Whether China keeps its specific promises should be easy to measure. If theres a reduction in the supply of ingredients for fentanyl, well know it. If Chinese officers show up for joint military conferences, well see that although its unclear how much cooperation will result. Theyve never taken it all that seriously in the past, warned Bates Gill, executive director of the Asia Society Policy Institutes Center for China Analysis. And if a FedEx cargo plane arrives with pandas aboard, well know that, too. The more important test is whether those small steps lead to larger openings such as cooperation on nuclear arms control or peace efforts in Gaza and Ukraine. The Biden administration is testing the proposition that we can have intense competition and cooperate with China at the same time, Glaser said. These agreements have at least created opportunities for the two countries to demonstrate that they can cooperate in some areas. But its equally noteworthy that there was no discernible movement on the big, fundamental issues that divide the two countries beginning with their military standoffs over Taiwan and the South China Sea. Thats where collisions both figurative and literal are not only possible but likely, and where basic differences are impossible to paper over. This meeting hasnt altered the fundamentals of the relationship, Gill said. Theres a big chasm over issues that arent going to get settled by military dialogues or actions on fentanyl. In superpower relationships like this one, breakthroughs dont often happen. The test is whether collisions can be averted, and whether those that occur can be managed more successfully than the months-long spat over the spy balloon not whether the two countries agree to share symphony orchestras or pandas. Breakthroughs would be nice. But when they arent available, stability will do fine. Get the best of the Los Angeles Times politics coverage with the Essential Politics newsletter. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) Conde Nast Travelers editors named Mobile, Alabama, among The Best Places to Go in North America & the Caribbean in 2024. This week, the website named their top locations where travelers can find design-forward stays, off-the-beaten-track adventures, and delicious dining. The publication said now is the perfect time for travelers to discover the Port City because passenger train rides will finally return in 2024 with the start of Amtraks Gulf Coast service. Its been a long wait since Hurricane Katrina damaged area railways, including the downtown Mobile train station, in 2005. Amtrak has not serviced the city since. The long-awaited service is particularly well-timed for the flurry of recently unveiled and soon-to-come cultural moments in Mobile, the article said. Among those was the July 2023 opening of Clotilda: The Exhibition. This show chronicles the last ship carrying enslaved people and the creation of Africatown. The publication also encourages travelers to check out the Isom Clemon Civil Rights Memorial Park, which is scheduled to open next spring on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. It will feature works of art honoring Clemon, a Civil Rights pioneer. In the same area, the Historic Avenue Cultural Center is another cultural hotspot, with its Remembering the Avenue exhibition and the Alabama Contemporary Art Center that tells the story of Black Main Street. Travelers need comfortable lodging, and Conde Nast editors praised The Admirals anticipated updates. Though The Admiral originally opened its doors in 1940, the 156-room boutique hotel will unveil a top-to-bottom refresh in early 2024, the publications editors wrote about the downtown fixture. The upgrades include a new restaurant and reimagined communal spaces and rooms, including a jewel-toned palette inspired by the citys Mardi Gras heritage, the site states. Other featured locations on Conde Nast Travelers The Best Places to Go in North America & the Caribbean in 2024 list include Barrio Viejo, Tucson, Arizona; Big Sky, Montana; Detroit, Michigan; Dominica; and Grenada. To read the full article, click here. ALSO ON WKRG.com: Mobile International Festival Marks 40 years For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRG News 5. Leaders of the US Congress hope to mobilise the voices for additional aid for Ukraine and Israel, as well as for the improvement of the immigration system, by Christmas. Source: news story aired on the NBC News TV channel, as reported European Pravda Details: Chuck Schumer, the Senate majority leader, has made it clear that approving the additional aid will be a priority for him between Thanksgiving and Christmas. He stressed that American lawmakers would start working on the bills about the aid for Ukraine and Israel, as well as on the immigration package, which must facilitate resources for border security. Michael McCaul, Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who is an ardent supporter of financing Ukraine and Israel, regularly gets in touch with Michael Johnson, spokesperson of the Chamber of Representatives, concerning the additional aid. McCaul has recently returned from a trip to Israel and stated that the Israeli leaders insist that the US supply Israel with necessary aid as soon as possible. A source in the Committee told NBC News that McCaul regularly gets calls from the Israeli and Ukrainian leaders who are growing more and more worried that critically important support from the US may never arrive. Four sources in the Senate told NBC News, that the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas is decisive, and that there is a growing concern among both Republicans and Democrats that if the schedule is postponed until New Year, the chances to adopt all four points of the plan the aid for Ukraine, Israel and Indo-Pacific region, as well as border security will decrease drastically. "My best guess is that [the aid for] Israel will be adopted separately, and [the aid for] Ukraine [will be voted for] jointly with the progress on the border," one of the lawmakers said. Earlier, it was revealed that Republicans threaten to block the allocation of the aid for Ukraine in Congress if it does not include the decision about the security of American borders. On Thursday, US President Joe Biden signed a short-term government funding bill to avoid a government shutdown. This bill does not include funding to support either Ukraine or Israel. The bill about expenses does not include the White Houses appeal for more than US$106 billion, which includes the aid for Israel and Ukraine. It was reported that the combined package of bills, which includes aid to Israel, Ukraine, Taiwan and border security, is to be considered in the Senate after Thanksgiving, which will be celebrated in the US on 23 November. Republican Congressman Don Bacon said that the House of Representatives already knows what to do with the bill on aid to Ukraine, as well as how much money they want to allocate to Kyiv. In his opinion, the consideration could take place in December. Support UP or become our patron! Congress is facing a fierce battle next month over military aid to Israel and Ukraine, which has been thrown into flux by divisions among Republicans over how to move forward. While both chambers moved quickly last week to pass bipartisan legislation averting a government shutdown, they left assistance for the two war-torn countries up in the air. The decision has highlighted the GOP divisions when it comes to Americas role in global affairs, and its raised questions about how, or if, lawmakers will get that emergency funding over the finish line before years end. House Republicans passed $14.3 billion in Israel aid earlier this month, and newly installed Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has vowed to back separate legislation combining Ukraine assistance with tougher security measures at the U.S.-Mexico border. But the Republicans Israel bill included cuts in IRS funding a non-starter with Democrats in the Senate, where the proposal was dead on arrival. And the notion of providing more funding to Ukraine has grown increasingly unpopular within the House GOP conference, presenting Johnson with the dilemma of how or whether he intends to bring that bill to the floor. Additionally, lawmakers are not facing any specific deadlines when it comes to either the Ukraine aid or the Israel assistance. And the must-pass package that might have acted as a legislative vehicle for those provisions in a typical year the government funding bill has already been signed into law and wont need revisiting until late January. The confluence of ticklish factors has created plenty of uncertainty about how Congress will proceed after lawmakers return from the long Thanksgiving break, when party leaders will have to decide where the aid bill will originate, how it will be structured and what exactly it will contain. Leaving Washington for the recess, many lawmakers said those details are all unsettled. I dont think theres one simple way its going to move, said Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), senior Democrat on the Armed Services Committee. Its all in play. Kick-starting the debate last month, President Biden proposed a massive, $105 billion supplemental spending package featuring emergency assistance for both Ukraine and Israel, largely in the form of military amenities, as well as funding to provide humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians in Gaza, boost security at the southern border and help Americas Indo-Pacific allies counter Chinas growing influence. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) vowed last week that the upper chamber will move immediately to consider those issues. But the debate has been bogged down by partisan disagreements between Senate negotiators over the border security component, which is essential for winning GOP support in both chambers. We dont know how its going to happen, Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) said. Weve got to get back and do a lot of work. Amid the muddle, lawmakers in both parties laid out several competing tracks the debate might follow. Because the House has already passed an Israel aid bill, its not expected to revisit the issue unbidden. But some top Republicans said they expect Johnson to make good on his word to consider legislation combining Ukraine funding with border security, if only to serve as a negotiating tool with Democrats in the Senate and White House. I think were going to have a Ukraine-border bill, said Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. And then the Senate, after Thanksgiving, will probably pass their Ukraine-Israel-border-Taiwan bill. And that will come over to us, and the Speakers going to have to make a decision. McCaul said the logical strategy would be for the House to combine everything into one big package, but acknowledged that the divisions within the GOP conference, particularly on Ukraine, might force Republican leaders into a piecemeal approach. I think all the threats are tied together, but I understand the Speakers got to manage our conference, and a lot of people dont want it all tied together, McCaul said. Other Republicans predicted the House would wait for the Senate to act on both the Ukraine and Israel aid, if only to deflect some of the internal tensions within the GOP conference. A September vote to approve $300 million in military aid to Ukraine was opposed by 117 House Republicans more than half of the GOP conference sending a warning to party leaders that the group has soured on the issue. I suspect that were going to get both out of the Senate, and weve just got to find a way to get them onto the floor, said Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), a leader of the moderate Problem Solvers Caucus. The question is: Will it be put on the floor? Because obviously, you-know-who will object to it. Still other lawmakers said that, while a Senate-passed bill would help rouse the House to act, they have no confidence in the upper chamber to move the various aid provisions efficiently. Instead, theyre suggesting that House leaders should be taking aggressive steps behind the scenes to iron out sticking points and grease the path to passage. Itd be enormously helpful if theyd just deliver something to us, Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) said of the Senate. But the feeling Im getting is that the Democrats on this side need to get our ducks in a row, maybe some kind of four corners conversation. Weve got to be taking steps that dont count on the Senate. Smith, the ranking member of Armed Services, agreed, saying his lack of faith in the Senates ability to do anything means that House leaders Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) should continue their talks; top appropriators in both chambers should be working behind the scenes; and the White House should engage with leaders of both parties at all levels. Were not just going to sit back and go, Well, I guess at some point the Senate will send us something, Smith said. Jeffries, meanwhile, is stressing the urgency of getting an aid package passed before January. There is no circumstance where we should leave Congress this year without making sure that we have provided funding for Ukraine, funding for Israel, funding for humanitarian assistance for Palestinian civilians who are in harms way, and otherwise meeting the national security needs of the American people, Jeffries told reporters in the Capitol last week. But hes also warning GOP leaders that the inclusion of conservative wish-list provisions such as the IRS cuts would immediately dissolve Democratic support and sink the underlying aid bills. There is nothing that will happen in the House of Representatives in a partisan fashion that has any shot of becoming law, he said. Heading into last weeks vote to fund the government, some Democrats had expressed a hope that Jeffries and other Democratic leaders would leverage the Democrats support for averting a shutdown to win assurances from Johnson that the Israel and Ukraine aid proposals would both reach the floor this year. Jeffries has declined to characterize his talks with the Speaker, but some other lawmakers said squarely that it was an idea that was never realistic. I am not confident theres any assurances, Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) said. You hear all kinds of rumors that Ukraine and border policy will be in one package, and Taiwan and Israel will be in another. And I want them all together. Im getting more concerned, not less. Leverage is of degrees, and that leverage wasnt going to work, Smith said. I mean, keeping the government open so that a shutdown is no longer on the table helps us now focus on both the appropriations bills and the supplemental. Its a hard lift its a hard lift for 1,000 different reasons, he continued. But it wasnt going to be any easier if the government was shut down. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. EXCLUSIVE: The influential House Committee of Education and the Workforce on Thursday launched an investigation into the role of a former Iranian official, Seyed Hossein Mousavian, at Princeton University. It is claimed that he is suspected of advancing the interests of Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism. Twelve Republican committee members sent a letter to Princeton President Christopher L. Eisgruber with detailed questions about the influence of the Islamic Republic of Iran via Mousavians activities on the campus of the New Jersey-based Ivy League institution. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., who along with Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., spearheaded the letter to Princeton, told Fox News Digital "Higher education has bowed down to the radical left and enemies of America for far too long, and the mere fact that a former member of the Iranian regime is given a platform at Princeton is proof." "Lets be clear. The Islamic Republic of Iran is not our friend. They are a major adversary, a state sponsor of terrorism, and a destabilizing force in the Middle East that sympathizes with Hamas. We cannot let a radical Iranian manipulate young American minds, and its well past time we do something about it," McClain charged. OUTRAGE AS IRAN PRESIDENT PREPARES TO ADDRESS UN: 'WANTS TO KILL AMERICAN CITIZENS' Blair Hall on the campus of Princeton University Mousavians conduct raised alarm bells from the NGO United Against a Nuclear Iran after he attended the funeral of the U.S. and E.U.-designated Iranian regime terrorist Qassem Soleimani in Tehran in 2020 and appeared in a tribute to Soleimani in a 2022 Iran TV program. Mousavian said on Iranian TV that an American told him, "The wife of Brian Hook could not sleep for a few nights now" because she feared her husband, Hook, the former U.S. Iran envoy at the time of the assassination of Soleimani, would face retaliation from Tehran." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "The 10-second clip from my two-hour interview with Iranian TV was taken out of context," Mousavian told Fox News Digital. "Iranian TV never broadcast the interview with me. It just broadcasted the 7-10 seconds about Brian Hooks family. I have always opposed assassinations and threats of assassination against both Iranian and U.S. nationals". The U.S. military assassinated Soleimani, the commander of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corp, in January 2020 in Iraq for his alleged role in overseeing the murders of more than 600 American military personnel in the Middle East. Protesters hold up an image of Qassem Soleimani, an Iranian commander, during a demonstration following the U.S. airstrike in Iraq that killed him, in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 3, 2020. "When President Trump had General Soleimani assassinated, I was in Iran to visit my mother who was hospitalized," Mousavian told Fox News Digital. "As a researcher, I attended the funeral of General Soleimani to see the reaction to this assassination. Seven million attended Soleimanis funeral in Tehran and 20 million in other cities in total. This was clear evidence of General Soleimanis popularity." When Fox News Digital asked Mousavian if he agrees with the U.S. governments classification of the IRGC, including its Qods force, as a foreign terrorist organization, Mousavian said, "The U.S. CENTCOM [United States Central Command] and the Iranian Qods Army have designated each other as terrorist organization. I think rather than these endless accusations, they need to sit and talk and resolve their differences through peaceful means." Seyed Hossein Mousavian, speaks to journalists at the International Atomic Energy Agency November 29, 2004, in Vienna. Fox News Digital recently reported on the role of the IRGC and Soleimani in the initial planning to help the terrorist movement Hamas massacre about 1,200 people, including Americans, Oct. 7 in southern Israel. "Individuals who are aligned with malignant regimes continue to permeate Americas postsecondary education system," Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., who chairs the Education and the Workforce Committee, said. "Seyed Hossein Mousavians refuge at Princeton for 15 years is a textbook example. These individuals pose a grave threat to Americas national security posture, and they are left to fester without any intervening action or diligent oversight efforts. Its time for some much-needed sunlight to expose the blatant corruption and influence peddling that has become far too commonplace." Mousavian specializes in Middle East security and nuclear policy. OBERLIN COLLEGES 'PROFESSOR OF PEACE' ENDORSED FATWA TO MURDER SALMAN RUSHDIE To the surprise of some in Congress, STRATCOM hosted Mousavian as a speaker in August 2023. According to the congressional letter, Mousavians appearance at the STRATCOM symposium "concerned members of the Armed Services Committees of both the House and the Senate. Additionally, aspects of this issue trouble us as members of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce." When asked if STRATCOM responded to concerns about Mousavian, Joshua Kelsey, chief of media operations for United States Strategic Command, told Fox News Digital, "I can confirm Gen. Cotton responded to the Congressional letter on September 27, which is official correspondence since it went directly to Congress We have nothing additional to add to the response." Mousavian told Fox News Digital, "My talk at the U.S. Strategic Command was all about peace in the Middle East and why the U.S. should avoid wars and focus on peace and cooperation." During Mousavians tenure as Irans ambassador to Germany, he was in charge of the embassy that a German court found "served as the headquarters for the planning of the 1992 assassination of four Iranian dissidents at the Greek restaurant Mykonos in Berlin." "This accusation is a big lie," the former ambassador said. "The 398-page verdict is published, and everyone can have access to it. The Berlin court verdict does not contain any direct or indirect allegations against me. German authorities never forced me to leave the country. I have been a frequent visitor to Germany." A mural of Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, is painted next to a smaller one of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini on Motahari Street March 8, 2020, in Tehran, Iran. DOZENS DEAD, OVER 1,200 ARRESTED IN IRAN AS REGIME WARNS OF 'DECISIVE' CRACKDOWN According to media reports, after a Berlin court ruled in 1997 that Irans regime ordered the assassination of the four Iranian dissidents, three of whom were Kurds, the German government requested that Mousavian be removed from his post. "My work is just an academic work, and I have nothing to do with the U.S. or the Iranian or any other government," Mousavian told Fox News Digital. "I was arrested in 2007 and ultimately deprived from diplomatic work. So, I retired from the Iranian foreign ministry 13 years ago and, since then, I have not been engaged with any government, including the government of Iran." Even though he was arrested by the regime, the congressional letter cast doubt on Mousavians alleged separation from it. "Despite his supposed disaffiliation with the Iranian government, Mousavians ability to travel freely to the United States and act as an unofficial government representative while discussing U.S.-Iranian ties has left his relationship with the Iranian government unclear," the Republicans lawmakers' letter said. "Other Iranian regime officials confirm that, while Mousavian left Iran, he did not cease to serve the regime. In a 2016 interview, then-Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that he did not believe the accusations of espionage against him [Mousavian], that Mousavian continued to, and continues to, work hard, for Iran, and that he believes in, and is completely tied to, the system of the Islamic Republic and [sic] Iran." Nassau Hall, the oldest Building at Princeton University, in Princeton, N.J. "Campus antisemitism has reached crisis proportions," Rep. Banks told Fox News Digital. "Iran is a leading state booster of antisemitism as well as the leading state sponsor of terror, and House Republicans have a duty to investigate malign Iranian influence at U.S. universities." Banks continued, "Mr. Mousavian is a longtime Iranian propagandist who only knows how to teach anti-Israel, antisemitic lies. Princeton should immediately cut ties with Mr. Mousavian and the other Iran apologist on their payroll, Rob Malley, Joe Bidens disgraced former envoy who is currently under federal investigation for mishandling classified information." Mousavian countered that Banks has said "Mousavian helped Iran to make nuclear bomb! He still doesnt know that Iran doesnt have nuclear bomb. His other statements are like that." While a July unclassified U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence report said "Iran is not currently undertaking the key nuclear weapons-development activities that would be necessary to produce a testable nuclear device," a batch of public European intelligence reports from 2023 say Irans regime has an active atomic weapons program . Princeton University did not respond to numerous Fox News Digital email and telephone press queries. Original article source: Congress probes Princeton University over professor's alleged ties to Iranian regime U.S Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he will prioritize passing further military aid packages for Ukraine and Israel so that they are approved before Christmas, NBC News reported on Nov. 19. President Joe Biden previously asked Congress to approve a new $106 billion aid package, including more than $61 billion in funding for aid to Ukraine. Republicans in Congress have threatened to block the aid unless there were security resolutions on the southern border of the U.S., leading to a standoff between the two parties. To avoid a government shut down, Biden signed a temporary spending bill into law on Nov. 16, but the issue of continued aid for Ukraine was left unaddressed. Schumer, a Democrat, said that American lawmakers will begin work on an immigration package to bolster resources for border security, in addition to aid for Ukraine and Israel. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, a Republican and strong supporter of Ukraine, has made repeated contact with the new House Speaker Mike Johnson over the aid packages. McCaul has received numerous calls from Ukrainian and Israeli leaders worried that the aid may never arrive, a committee source told NBC News. The window between Thanksgiving and Christmas is crucial, four Senate sources told NBC. If a solution is not found by the New Year, both Democrats and Republicans are concerned that the possibility of passing packages to Israel, Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific, and border security forces will drop drastically. My best guess is Israel is passed as stand-alone, and Ukraine is done in tandem with progress on the border, a Republican lawmaker said. Johnson previously suggested a standalone funding package for Israel only, but it was rejected by Biden and Democrats out of hand. Schumer said at a press conference on Nov. 14 that Congress would reconvene after Thanksgiving on Nov. 23 in order to try and pass a joint funding bill that contains aid for all four issues. U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Nov. 13 that "the window is closing" for the U.S. to provide aid for Ukraine before there are serious consequences for Ukraine's ability to defend itself. Read also: Borrell: US support for Ukraine will most likely decrease, EU should be ready Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. An earthquake in Cornwall over the weekend felt like a juggernaut crashing into a house, local residents have said. The British Geological Survey (BGS) recorded a 2.7 magnitude quake shortly before 1am on Sunday. Although the epicentre was near St Michaels Mount on the south coast, and eight miles beneath ground, it shook houses for several seconds from St Just in the far west of the county to Redruth some 25 miles away. Residents described the event as like the rumbling of thunder, an explosion or an avalanche which shook windows and ornaments. Others thought it was a sonic boom from an aircraft. The BGS also said it had received reports from Helston, Penzance and Camborne. Quite small by global standards Dr David Hawthorn, a seismologist with the BGS, told BBC Cornwall: This was quite small by global standards. In the UK we have a phenomenally complicated geology and thats particularly true in Cornwall and sooner or later that stress weakens and we get an earthquake. The team has appealed for information and is urging residents to get in touch about their experiences. Dr Hawthond added: We are still getting data in, so please give us a description because we want to know how much it shakes the ground in any given location. According to the BGS, Britain is shaken by between 200 and 300 small to moderate-sized tremors every year, with fewer than 30 ever felt. Most occur on the west of mainland Britain, where tectonic plates are thinner and weaker. Large earthquakes rare in Britain Large earthquakes are very rare in Britain because the UK does not sit on any fault lines between tectonic plates. The BGS has estimated that the largest possible earthquake Britain could suffer would be 6.5 on the Richter scale, which could cause widespread damage in populated areas. The largest recorded earthquake near the UK happened in the North Sea on June 7 1931. Known as the Dogger Bank earthquake, it occurred around 60 miles off the Yorkshire coast, causing a small tsunami to hit the east coast. Several chimneys and areas of cliff collapsed and tremors could be felt as far south as London. It was reported that a tourist from Hull died after suffering a heart attack when the head of a waxwork of murderer Dr Crippen was shaken off at Madame Tussauds. 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. Numbers testing positive for Covid in hospital are now going down again, according to Public Health Wales figures What can statistics tell us about coronavirus in Wales? Here we assess some of the figures showing the pandemic over more than three years and also update some of the remaining indicators. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared in May 2023 that Covid-19 was no longer a global health emergency, but said it did not mean the danger was over. In Wales, while some hospital and mortality data is still being published, other surveillance measures have been scaled back or discontinued. We will next update this feature in December/January Summary of main Covid indicators in Wales What are indicators showing now? We can see a fall in people testing positive for Covid in hospitals in recent weeks, with the latest total similar to what we were seeing over the summer. Mortality figures at the start of November involving Covid are lower than this time last year, averaging 20 a week over the last three months. Deaths from all causes have been below normal levels in recent weeks although the trend this year has been above average most weeks. In-patients in hospital in Wales with Covid-19. . . Numbers of in-patients with Covid by 3 November had fallen for five weeks and were similar to totals seen in August. Positive tests for Covid appear to follow a more cyclical pattern than flu or other winter viruses, which show a seasonal peak. There were 312 in-patients testing positive for Covid, including four patients in critical care. We might expect to see more elderly people in hospital and nearly half of those testing positive for Covid were over 80 and 88% were over 60. We no longer know how many of these patients are being treated primarily for Covid or happen to be incidentally testing positive while in hospital for other things. When analysis was possible last year it was found that there were far fewer patients being primarily treated for Covid. Patients with Covid-19 in hospital beds in Wales. Hospitalisations by week and category. Up to 12 July 2023. Only snapshot figures for Wednesdays were published after 10 February 2023 and so similar figures from start of pandemic are given for comparison. Digital Health and Care Wales has now stopped its weekly Covid snapshot figures, although Public Health Wales (PHW) is still publishing some hospital data. Numbers of acute hospital patients testing positive for Covid by 12 July 2023 had fallen to the lowest levels for nearly two years (65), with only three (5%) being primarily treated for the virus. When patients with suspected Covid and those recovering were included, there were 206 people in hospital beds for these last set of figures. These included 138 patients recovering, so they were no longer testing positive for Covid but were waiting for discharge or for a care package to become available. The number of people in hospital with Covid has held a similar pattern for the past year. Critical care in Wales. Numbers of patients by week since start of Covid pandemic. Only snapshot figures for Wednesdays were published after 10 February 2023 and so similar figures from start of pandemic are given for comparison. Includes patients on invasive ventilation. . The waves of the pandemic saw dozens of patients in critical care with Covid. This reached 164 patients at the first wave peak in April 2020, while the second wave peak in January peaked at 150 patients. As the vaccination programme kicked in, there were only 40 patients at the winter peak of 2021-22 and then 24 patients with Covid in critical care at the peak of winter 2022-23. For the final Digital Health and Care Wales figures, there were five patients in critical care with Covid on 12 July 2023, with one of those recovering from Covid. A long-running study of more than 500 Welsh critical care patients with Covid gave insights into the virus. https://www.icnarc.org/Our-Audit/Audits/Cmp/Reports The mortality rate was about 34%, including those who died later on a general ward. About 63% had been discharged from hospital. The study also showed patients admitted in the past year who survived were spending less time in critical care - an average of seven days - than early in the pandemic. Around 60% of patients had been admitted to critical care with Covid the primary reason for treatment. The average age of those admitted in 2022-23 was 58, and just over half were men. Half were from more deprived parts of Wales. About 26% were under 50. Covid-19 hospital admissions. Confirmed and suspected daily Covid cases in Wales, by week. Only snapshot figures for Wednesdays were published after 10 February 2023 and so similar figures from start of pandemic are given for comparison. At its peaks, there were between 120 and 140 admissions a day on average to hospitals for patients with Covid. There were five admissions of people testing positive for Covid on 12 July, with numbers in single figures for the previous three months. Figures had been low and, for the first time since the pandemic began, no Covid admissions were recorded on 24 January 2023. The previous low had been just one admission on two days in May and June 2022. Patients in hospital with Covid-19. Confirmed cases of Covid in acute beds in Wales - and those 'actively' with Covid. Only snapshot figures for Wednesdays were published after 10 February 2023 and so similar weekly figures are given for comparison. . How many Covid hospital cases were directly due to the virus? Over 18 months from the start of 2022, hospitals in Wales were asked to track how many of their patients testing positively for Covid were actually being primarily treated for it. Over this period, 13% of patients on average with Covid were being actively or primarily treated for it. There were some differences between health boards over definitions so care needs to be taken in how we interpret this. But since the autumn of 2022, the proportion of "active" Covid cases was usually in single figures. The Icnarc intensive care study has found a far smaller proportion of critical care patients with Covid were being primarily treated for the virus during 2022 (41%), compared with the period before (nearly 86%). The mortality rate was 31% for those with "primary" Covid, compared with 25% for those with incidental Covid. Covid-19 hospital infections in Wales. Weekly positive cases, by source, since April 2022. . Public Health Wales is still publishing weekly data on patients who test positive for Covid in hospitals - and where they are likely to have acquired it. There were 118 positive tests for Covid in hospitals in the week ending 12 November. Public Health Wales figures showed "probably" or "definitely" hospital-acquired infections in patients made up more than half of those with Covid in beds, compared to those patients who came with Covid or the origin can't be determined. Hospital-acquired infections stood at 66. There have been around 22,000 hospital-acquired infections recorded since the start of the pandemic. The issue of patients catching Covid while in hospital was a particularly acute feature during the early days of the pandemic, when there was no vaccine. Hospital in-patients with acute respiratory infections in Wales. Weekly bed occupancy, by condition. . Figures showing the pattern of acute respiratory infections last winter and into this coming winter show seasonal peaks for flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Covid hospitalisations show more of an undulating pattern over the course of the year. RSV has started to rise amongst mostly young children. NHS Wales bed occupancy. Rate of % acute hospital beds occupied during Covid-19 pandemic. Based on bed availability. Figures from 10 February 2023 involved a snapshot figure on Wednesdays. NHS bed occupancy hit a high of 96% An indication of pressure on the NHS in the aftermath of Covid was overall bed occupancy in acute hospitals, which hit a new high of 96.2% on 1 March 2023. This broke the previous record set two weeks before and an earlier high at the end of October 2022. The final weekly snapshot showed bed occupancy at 94.8%. Over the course of 2022-23 bed occupancy was 85.5% on average. It had fallen to 69% in 2020-21, during the height of the pandemic - the lowest recorded. Early in the pandemic there was a fear hospitals would not be able to cope with a surge in cases and many planned treatments were cancelled. Modelling for winter 2023-24 chart Covid in the winter Health officials will continue to keep a close eye on Covid over the winter period, in case it adds to pressures on the NHS with more seasonal viruses. This winter, there is a realistic worst scenario of just under 1,200 Covid patients in late December and a "most likely" of 620 patients in the updated modelling from Welsh government scientists. Currently, the figures are close to the "most likely" scenario although it is at the early part of the winter. Modelling for the winter of 2022-23 had suggested in a "worst case" scenario that Covid, flu and other respiratory conditions could account for 2,750 hospital beds - or 28% of total capacity at the peak. The "most likely" scenario had been for 1,390 patients with Covid, flu and other respiratory conditions on 9 December 2022, including 668 with confirmed positive tests for Covid. The peak when it came in early January reached around 1,760 patients. Modelling for Covid alone peaked at more than 1,800 patients with the virus in a "worst case scenario" in December 2022. The actual curve for patients with Covid positive tests by the end of the modelling period in March was tracking with the "most likely" scenario after following a more undulating pattern, which had taken it closer to the "optimistic" scenario at one point. What do other indicators tell us? GP consultation rate for suspected Covid-19. Rolling seven-day consultations per 100,000 people. Data taken from sample of 349 GP practices. The rate at which GPs are consulted about Covid-19 is also another indicator, which peaked in the first week of January 2022 at 98 consultations per 100,000 and has now fallen back to extremely low levels, under one or two per 100,000. Another measure had been analysing samples of waste water, although this due to be brought back for the winter of 2023/24 after the monitoring programme was stopped after three years in the summer of 2023. Surveillance involving testing for infection of blood donors was also stopped at the same time. Wales was not re-joining a scaled-down relaunch of the long-running ONS swab survey, which had been discontinued in early 2023. Deaths waves How many people have died from Covid-19? The number of people who have died with Covid a contributory factor had reached 12,258 in Wales by 3 November 2023. In the most recent week, 21 people in Wales had a death registered which involved Covid-19 and saw it mentioned on their death certificate, according to the ONS. There were deaths in 13 of Wales' 22 local authorities, including in three in Cardiff and Swansea. Sixteen of the deaths (76%) were due to Covid, when it was the underlying cause of death. Sixteen of the latest registrations also involved people over the age of 75. Deaths by wave, each day since March 2020 in a chart When counted by day occurring - not day registered - there were 10 deaths involving Covid in the week ending 3 November. However, the most recent weekly figures are usually an underestimate, due to delays in registrations catching up. Up to 3 November, there have been 10,063 deaths due to Covid, with the virus the underlying cause of death. There have been just over half the number of Covid deaths so far in 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. Covid was the ninth leading cause of death in 2023 up to the end of July. The ONS counts deaths in people's homes, hospices and other settings, as well as hospitals and care homes. The first death in Wales from Covid occurred on 15 March 2020 in a 68-year-old Wrexham hospital patient The first wave peaked with 73 deaths on a single day in April 2020 Covid's second wave in the winter of 2020-21 brought 83 deaths on 11 January 2021 alone - the worst single day during the pandemic in Wales The pattern for deaths remained fairly low in 2022, although the summer heatwave brought a peak of 27 deaths between 18-19 July 2022 Winter 2022-23 brought a peak of 17 deaths on 10 January 2023, the most occurring in a single day for a year Deaths in Wales in 2023 from all causes. Number of registered deaths by week. . ONS also records so-called "excess deaths". This looks at average deaths from all causes overall, compared with five non-pandemic years. So since March 2020, there have been 10,309 more deaths than we might have expected to see. There have been 1,632 deaths from all causes above the non-pandemic average so far in 2023 and 2,224 in the last 12 months. So far in 2023, there have been 5.6% more deaths than average and deaths in people under 44 are 10% higher. Excess deaths 2020 until 2023 chart Deaths in the week ending 3 November were 4.2% below the five-year pre-pandemic average. There were 642 deaths from all causes - 28 fewer than we might expect to see. This was the third successive week deaths had been below average, although most weeks have been above average this year so far. Covid accounted for 3.3% of all deaths in Wales in the latest week, more than the proportion in England (3%), where deaths were above normal by 4.1%. Excess deaths in Wales during the Covid-19 pandemic period. Numbers of deaths from all causes above five-year average, April 2020 to December 2022. There were a total of 8,541 excess deaths and non-Covid excess deaths were 103 below average over 34 months. Analysis by ONS found excess deaths - when deaths due to Covid were excluded - were 103 (-0.1%) below average over the whole pandemic period to the end of December 2022. But non-Covid excess deaths were running above average for eight successive months at the end of 2022, totalling 1,653. At a local level, Monmouthshire (15%) and Caerphilly (13%) had the highest proportion of excess deaths. Monmouthshire saw the 12th highest proportion of excess deaths across England and Wales in 2022. Both Rhondda Cynon Taf, Vale of Glamorgan and Bridgend saw deaths below average. Where have Covid-19 deaths occurred?. Total deaths involving Covid in Wales since March 2020. Registered up to 3 November. Nearly a fifth (17.3%) of all Covid deaths registered have occurred in care homes. There has been 18 deaths involving Covid among care home residents registered over the last three months. There were two deaths in the latest week out of 106 deaths from all causes. Care Inspectorate Wales reported that deaths peaked in May 2020 and before it stopped publishing data it was notified of 2,339 care home resident deaths with suspected or confirmed Covid up to the end of June 2023. Excess deaths in care homes in Wales. Number of deaths above the five-year average, by month. . There were 726 deaths above the five-year average in care homes in Wales in April 2020, at the height of the first wave of the pandemic. There were also high numbers of excess deaths in the winter of 2020-21, when the vaccination programme was only just starting. Altogether, in the three-year period from January 2020 there were nearly 1,500 excess deaths in care homes in Wales. ONS analysis of deaths in care homes in 2021 found mortality rates lower in Wales in male residents than in England or any English region. The same occurred in 2022. Covid was the second leading cause of death in care home residents after dementia in 2021, accounting for 12.9% of male resident deaths and 11.1% of female resident deaths. In 2022, Covid dropped to being the fifth leading cause of death in care home residents in 2022, accounting for 4.5% of deaths. Deaths due to flu and Covid-19 in Wales. Numbers of weekly deaths since 2019, based on registrations. . How do deaths from Covid-19 compare with other causes, like flu? There have been nearly twice as many deaths due to flu and pneumonia in Wales than due to Covid so far in 2023. There have been more Covid than flu deaths in only three weeks. Covid-19 was the 32nd leading cause of death in Wales in July 2023, after being the 19th leading cause in June. This was the lowest ranking as cause of death for two years and the third lowest since the pandemic began. It was behind accidental poisoning and appendicitis. Monthly mortality analysis - which was also discontinued at the end of July - showed there were 21 deaths due to Covid in July - 0.8% of all registered deaths. This was fewer than in June when there were 35 deaths. Looking at when Covid was a contributory factor, there were 29 deaths involving Covid in Wales - or 1.1% of all deaths registered in July. So far in 2023, up to the end of July, ill-defined conditions - which include old age and frailty - was the leading cause of excess deaths, nearly 41% above normal levels. Mortality rates due to Covid-19 in Wales. Age-standardised mortality rates - deaths per 100,000 by month. Covid when the leading cause of death appears in red. June 2021 was not rankable due to low numbers. Analysis discontinued after July 2023. Heart disease was again the leading cause of death in July 2023 in Wales. Flu and pneumonia again ranked sixth but below normal levels. Leading 10 causes of death in Wales. Mortality rates in 2023 up until end of July. ONS discontinued analysis at end of July 2023. Up to the end of July 2023, heart disease was the leading cause of death - although still below average - and Covid was the ninth leading cause. Heart disease ranked as the leading cause of death for 2022 as a whole. Covid was the seventh leading cause of death in 2022, with a mortality rate of 38.5 deaths per 100,000, after being the second leading cause of death in Wales after heart disease in 2021. It was the leading cause of death at the height of the pandemic in 2020. Deaths involving Covid-19 by age in Wales. Total number of registered deaths, by age group, up to 3 November 2023. . More than three quarters of deaths involving Covid in 2023 have been in the over 75s, according to the ONS. The median age of a person to die due to Covid during the pandemic has been 82. Three children aged one to 14 have died where Covid has been a factor. A baby girl is so far the only child under one to have died where Covid was a factor, in the week ending 18 November 2022. The median age of death due to Covid in June 2023 was 83. There has been one death in Wales, in October 2022, where Covid vaccination has been a factor, according to death registrations. It involved a person in their 50s. Covid-19 mortality rates in UK. Total deaths per 100,000 people since March 2020. Age-standardised rates are for 41 months of the pandemic up to end of July 2023. Crude rate covers period up to 3 November. Analysis of mortality from the start of the pandemic until the end of July 2023 shows the age-standardised mortality rate for deaths involving Covid is slightly higher in Wales (102.2 deaths per 100,000), than England on 101.5 deaths per 100,000. Scotland (9.56) and Northern Ireland (93.2) are both lower in the 41 months to the end of July. The age-standardised mortality rate due to Covid - with Covid the underlying cause of death - is slightly higher in England than in Wales. It is also higher in all English regions apart from south west, south east and east England. When a crude mortality rate, not adjusting for the age or population profile, is used, deaths are higher in Wales. Registered Covid-19 deaths in Wales during the pandemic. Numbers by month mentioned on death certificate and also underlying cause of death. Total across pandemic up to end of July 2023 is 82.4% of deaths involving Covid had Covid as underlying cause of death. Are deaths really 'due to' Covid-19? Covid was the underlying cause of death - not just a contributory factor - in 71% of Covid deaths mentioned by doctors on death certificate in Wales in 2023 up until the end of October. It has been as high as 94% and on average since the start of the pandemic, 82.1% of deaths with Covid on death certificates can be said to be due to Covid. So, there were 10,063 deaths due to Covid by 3 November 2023 in Wales. Covid has been "suspected" by doctors in around 4% of cases. A doctor's duties include certifying deaths, and this can include any cause in a chain of events leading up to them, including pre-existing conditions and whatever medically makes a contribution. Covid-19 mortality - by deprivation. Age-standardised deaths per 100,000, by deprivation fifth. Deaths involving Covid from 2020 to 27 October 2023. Based on Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation. Which areas have been hit hardest? Rhondda Cynon Taf (RCT) and Merthyr Tydfil have the highest mortality rates over the course of the pandemic in Wales. By 3 November, RCT had reached a total of 1,233 deaths, with the highest crude mortality rate - 518.7 deaths per 100,000. This was the eighth highest crude mortality rate of all local authorities across England and Wales. Deaths involving Covid can also be shown to be hitting people living in deprived areas, usually associated with poorer health, harder than in the least deprived areas of Wales. Deaths by local area table Merthyr with 302 deaths (513.6 deaths per 100,000) was the 11th highest. Bridgend was 14th (502.4 deaths per 100,000) in England and Wales. Cardiff (1,221) has the second highest number of deaths in Wales, although because of its population size, its mortality rate is one of the lowest in Wales. Mortality map of Wales So far in 2023, Conwy and Powys have the highest Covid mortality rates in Wales, based on the sizes of their populations. They are followed by Bridgend. Six of RCT's communities were in the highest 20 within Wales during the first and second waves, when the death rates can be broken down further. At a health board level, the age-standardised mortality rate for Cwm Taf Morgannwg, which covers RCT, Merthyr and Bridgend, was 127 deaths per 100,000 due to Covid in the three years of the pandemic up to the end of July 2023. This is the highest in Wales, the lowest being 55.5 deaths per 100,000 due to Covid in the Powys health board area, set against a Welsh average of 84.3. Mortality map of Wales The community with the highest number of Covid deaths across 2020 and 2021, including in the first two waves of the pandemic, was Tonyrefail West in Rhondda Cynon Taf, with a total of 63 deaths due to Covid. This was followed by Sandfields in Neath Port Talbot and Porth East and Ynyshir in RCT (55 deaths each), by the end of 2021. When translated into mortality rates, based on population size, Gwersyllt West and Summerhill in Wrexham was the highest at 742.6 deaths per 100,000 - or 44 deaths over the two years. This was followed by Tonyrefail West, Port Talbot East and Llanelli Bigyn in Carmarthenshire. All communities of Wales have now had at least two deaths during the pandemic. The lowest number of deaths at a community level were in Aberystwyth North and Aberystwyth South, Bangor City and Llandudno Junction South and Llansanffraid Glan Conwy. At a local authority level, in the second wave of the pandemic, Bridgend was the worst-hit area in Wales. In 2021, Bridgend had the highest Covid mortality rate - 271 deaths or 183.2 deaths per 100,000; this was the 24th highest area across England and Wales. Excess deaths How does Wales compare with other countries? There are figures to compare relative excess deaths in different European countries. Bulgaria has the highest relative cumulative age-standardised mortality rate - 18.2% higher than normal - and Norway the lowest, 4.1% below average. Wales was 3.7% above average in June 2021 and then 2.1% above average in July 2022 - ranked 21st out of 33 nations. For those aged under 65, Wales was 4.8% above average (ranked 12th) and 1.5% above average (joint 24th) in the over-65s. Wales also saw excess mortality in more than half of weeks over the period. Covid-19 vaccine take-up by key group. % coverage for different stages in vaccination programme. 2023 autumn booster figures are up to 9 November. Autumn vaccine programme reaches half of over 65s The 2023 autumn booster programme had by early November reached more than 461,500 people. That included more than half of over 65s and 81% of care home residents. Numbers of NHS staff who took up offers of a vaccine booster was down on earlier stages of the programme. Just over a third of all those eligible across different groups had taken up the offer by early November, perhaps reflecting numbers who felt they had immunity from having had the virus more than once. Autumn booster 2023 in Wales. % uptake by eligible group. Up to 9 November. More than 9.6m doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in Wales since December 2020. Analysis of vaccine uptake has consistently found gaps between people living in deprived areas and also people from black, Asian and mixed groups. The offers of the primary course of vaccine to anyone over five, available since December 2020, ended in June 2023. What about variants? Covid-19 variants analysed in Wales. Number of Omicron sub-variants sequenced weekly. . The dominant variant in Wales has been Omicron for more than a year and 680 new cases have been sequenced in the last month. Because of the ending of mass testing in April 2022, we should not expect to see the same numbers of results going off for sequencing any more. Around 46% of those analysed in the week have been the EG.5.1 sub-variant. Covid-19 infections estimate in Wales. Number of people infected, based on swab survey. Based on swab surveys of 3,269 people in Wales. This survey will no longer be updated. Infections survey paused after two and a half years From summer 2020, the ONS organised a weekly nose and throat swab survey involving thousands of households across Wales, which latterly saw people being sent test kits by post. It became the most important tool to measure the level of infections, with the end of mass testing in March 2022. By this measure, infections were estimated to have peaked in Wales in April 2022 with 232,000 (around 8%) estimated to be affected. However, the survey was "paused" at the end of March 2023, as the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) worked to confirm a surveillance approach which was "proportionate and cost effective" to living with Covid. The health minister expressed her "deep disappointment and concern" about the "loss of this important source of surveillance". and the break in data gathering at a time infections were still being recorded in Wales. But the Welsh government decided not to re-join a scaled-down version of the survey, which was relaunched in winter 2023. Antibodies estimate in Wales. % of adults estimated to have Covid-19 antibodies. . Data from the infection survey, before it was wound up, also suggested 94.6% of adults in Wales have some protection from antibodies - through vaccination or immunity following infection. The estimate was 91% of 16 to 24-year-olds in Wales would have tested positive for antibodies in February 2023. At the higher threshold, 79.5% of adults in Wales are at or above 800 nanograms per millilitre and nearly three quarters in those aged 16 to 24 and 92.3% of the 75-79 age group. A test of blood donors in Wales found more than 80% prevalence of the N antibody, indicating a natural infection from having Covid, and a 99.9% prevalence of the S antibody from either infection or having had the Covid vaccine. Long Covid symptoms in Wales. Numbers self-reporting symptoms by month. Estimate based on a sample size of 14,625 people in Wales. Around 94,000 reported long Covid symptoms The number of people who were reporting they had long Covid symptoms in Wales a year after being infected in early March 2023 was estimated to be around 57,000. This was just under 2% of the population who are estimated to still be suffering symptoms 12 months or more since having Covid. A total of 94,000 people were estimated to have long Covid at any duration. Of these, 24% said it had "a lot" of impact on their daily lives and 52% said it had little impact. An estimated 3.14% of people in Wales reported having long Covid - this was slightly less than in Scotland and the West Midlands and north west and north east of England. Just under 2% reported long Covid after a year - fewer than England and most of its regions and Scotland. Two thirds in Wales reporting long Covid said they had symptoms of weakness and tiredness and more than half a shortness of breath. Nearly half had muscle ache. This data set has now been curtailed, with the end of the ONS infection survey. A separate survey of more than 1,600 people with long Covid in Wales referred to the Adferiad recovery programme found around 70% were female and half were aged over 50. Of those needing follow-up, around a quarter had hospital treatment. Average stays were around two weeks. Fatigue, "brain fog" and shortness of breath were the most common symptoms. Scientific advisers for the Welsh government estimate that potentially up to a quarter of people who have Covid may develop long Covid. In January 2022, this would have included far higher proportions of Covid cases involving people aged between 50 and 70 - an estimated 43% of those with Covid. But even if 6% of young people under 25 with Covid developed long-term symptoms, this could still mean more than 2,200 young people with long Covid in Wales. This analysis was used to develop a "social cost" estimate for Covid, which looked at the cost to the NHS of treating Covid at different stages of the pandemic. With the effects of the vaccine, and less patient time in hospital and intensive care, it meant this estimated cost had fallen from 21,000 per case in the second wave of the pandemic to 5,769 per case by January 2022. Of this, more than 4,800 per case would be the cost of long Covid. Case rate chart What case rates told us about Covid in Wales After the end of mass testing at the end of March 2022, there was no longer a reliable case rate based on PCR test results Up to 1 April 2022, there were 827,225 positive cases across Wales, but this only measured people who were tested. It did not include many people not offered a test in the first wave, those who chose not to be tested, as well as thousands testing positive with lateral flow tests in 2022 Over the course of the mass testing period in the pandemic, Merthyr Tydfil had the highest cases per 100,000 of Wales' local authorities. Only around 33,730 positive PCR tests recorded in the year after mass testing ended. Only around 130 positive PCR tests were being recorded weekly in November 2023. MSOA map of infection When we look at infections at a community level, there has generally a split between rural and more urban areas. This is noticeable when we look at a map of community case rates for the whole pandemic, taking into account population sizes. Pontardawe in Neath Port Talbot - of similar-sized smaller communities - had the highest number of positive Covid tests, 3,796 Tonypandy West and Clydach Vale in Rhondda Cynon Taf had the highest case rate of these smaller communities The lowest case rate was in Cilgerran and Crymych in Pembrokeshire Abersoch in Gwynedd is the community with the smallest number of positive tests, 839. Positivity rate chart At the peak of the Omicron wave at the end of 2021, the positivity rate - the number of positive results from all PCR tests taken - reached 51.6%. Locally, Neath Port Talbot over the course of the whole pandemic had the highest positivity rate (18.8%) and Ceredigion the lowest. Earlier in the pandemic, a 5% positivity threshold was suggested by the World Health Organisation as an indicator that infections were too high. Covid cases age group A younger profile for much of the third wave There was a much younger profile to cases in the third wave in the latter half of 2021. Between January and March 2022 there was a rise in proportions of those aged 20 to 40 testing positive. In terms of PCR tests, the 20 to 40 age group made up more than 41% of positive results in winter 2021-22. Covid testing over time chart What do the figures on testing tell us? More than 8.8 million Covid-19 tests have been carried out since the start of the pandemic, with the first positive result recorded in Swansea on 27 February 2020. For most of the first wave, testing was confined to hospitals and some care homes but mass testing became available in the spring of 2020. This ended at the start of April 2022, although it is still taking place in hospitals and also for some vulnerable people and those with symptoms in care homes. There are around 2,400 PCR tests currently taking place each week, about half in the over 60s. This compares to around 200,000 a week at the pandemic's peak. Up to the end of routine testing in April 2022, about 17,000 PCR tests routinely took place in hospitals each week and up to 30,000 weekly in care homes. Testing that was processed privately - at so-called Lighthouse labs - is no longer taking place. There have also now been changes to guidance for Covid testing in hospitals, although patients will still be tested before admission or ahead of surgery or chemotherapy. Covid-19 testing in care homes. Number of positive tests per week. Up to week beginning 4 April. Routine testing ended on 1 April 2022. Altogether, around 32,500 positive results were recorded in care homes over the course of the routine testing programme from autumn 2020. Care home staff no longer need to take a weekly PCR test, while free lateral flow tests will only be provided in limited circumstances. School absence for Covid reasons. % of pupils absent by day. . School absences for Covid-related reasons are no longer being recorded. We saw over the 2021-22 academic year, 69.1% of pupils missed at least half a day's schooling because of Covid. Meanwhile, absence in general was much higher than in previous years - running at an average of 11% in primary-aged pupils and 16.3% in secondary-aged children during the 2021-22 academic year. This was more than twice the absence rate in pre-pandemic years. Analysis of these figures showed 10% were persistently absent - and this rose to 21% of those from poorer backgrounds. Tracking Wales' R-number. . Up to 21 December 2022. R-number no longer being used to measure infections The so-called R-number - the reproduction number - had been a tool to express the infection rate of Covid. However, it is has now been phased out as a measure. Expressed within a range, if it was above 1, this indicated that infections were growing. The range for the last estimate in December 2022 was between 0.9 and 1.2, suggesting infections were rising. So, for every 10 people with Covid in Wales, between another nine and 12 people would be infected. PPE graphic How much has Covid cost? In the financial year ending in March 2021, the first year of the pandemic, spending on infectious diseases in the NHS in Wales jumped by 373 million. That worked out at 156 per person in Wales, or just under 6% of all NHS Wales spending. The costing of treating patients with Covid and managing the virus was put at 628m. Spending also included field hospitals and operating the track and trace system. Around the BBC - Sounds Around the BBC footer - Sounds Chinese-singing competition held in South Australia Xinhua) 09:37, November 19, 2023 CANBERRA, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- The 2023 Australian Voice Chinese-Singing Competition was held in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, on Saturday, with three girls from local Walford Anglican School winning the first prize. Started in 2022, the competition has received wide support from the local community, schools and Chinese learners. In 2023, the competition attracted over 600 participants from more than 30 local schools and individuals. John Taplin, the honorary president of the Australia-China Cultural Promotion Association, expressed in his speech that music serves as a bridge for communication, contributing to the exchange and dissemination of cultural diversity. Holding such a competition in Adelaide, known as the UNESCO City of Music, is very meaningful. According to the organizer, Xiaojing Zhai, the secretary-general of the Australia-China Cultural Promotion Association, the purpose of introducing this singing competition is to encourage enthusiasm for learning Chinese in the local community, promote the development of Australia's multiculturalism, and facilitate cultural exchange. The three students, who won the first prize with their performance of the classic Chinese song "Friends," are classmates in the Chinese language class. In the interview, they expressed their inspiration for winning the award. Kasha, one of the award-winning students, mentioned that Chinese is a very interesting, beautiful, and charming language. Alana, a student in the 11th grade, shared that after five years of learning Chinese, she has developed a strong interest in China's rich cuisine, culture, and history and plans to continue studying Chinese in the future. Another student Amelie's mother Heather Rickman shared that their family is planning a trip to China, and Amelie will be the guide. The teacher, Ms. Belinda, said music plays a particularly important role in cross-cultural communication, and students are excited to learn Chinese and sing meaningful songs through such opportunities. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) CEO of OpenAI Samuel Altman testifies at a hearing of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on Oversight of A.I.: Rules for Artificial Intelligence in Washington, D.C., the United States, on May 16, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua] OpenAI, the company that launched ChatGPT, announced on Friday that it had dismissed CEO Sam Altman after the company lost confidence in his ability to lead. "Mr. Altman's departure follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities," the board said in a statement, adding that OpenAI was grateful for Altman's contributions. "I loved my time at OpenAI. It was transformative for me personally, and hopefully the world a little bit. Most of all I loved working with such talented people. Will have more to say about what's next later," said Altman via a post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati would take over as interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent replacement, according to the board of directors of the artificial intelligence research company. The Hull Humber View hotel in North Ferriby first began receiving asylum seekers last November Crime has fallen in an East Yorkshire village since almost 100 asylum seekers were moved there a year ago, police have said. Some residents feared crime would rise when the men were housed in a hotel in North Ferriby. But Humberside Police said there was actually a "slight decrease in crime, specifically in North Ferriby" over the past year. The Humber View Hotel began receiving asylum seekers in November 2022. Reverend Andrew Brailsford said many residents' initial fears about the asylum hotel have been alleviated The Reverend Andrew Brailsford, vicar of North Ferriby, said: "Most people say the men keep themselves to themselves but also some have become part of the community, they've made friends, been able to do things and play their part." He said the initial fear was "understandable", adding: "But thankfully those sorts of fears really have been alleviated." It had been "heart-breaking" to hear the men's stories, he said, and many of them are "humble and appreciative" that they turned up at North Ferriby to some kind of welcome and refuge. But he remains concerned that the hotel is in an isolated location away from support and agencies. David Davis MP said the plan to almost double numbers would put "greater pressure" on the community In 2022, East Riding of Yorkshire Council lost a High Court battle to prevent the Humber View Hotel's use for asylum seekers. In June David Davis, Conservative MP for Haltemprice and Howden, criticised the Home Office for planning to nearly double the number of asylum seekers there, saying it would put "greater pressure" on the community. Meanwhile, Margaret Corless, Liberal Democrat leader of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said councillors had been given little information about the planned increase, adding it showed "a complete disregard to residents". Follow BBC East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk. No fewer than four episodes of the latest season are dedicated to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales - Daniel Escale / Netflix The final season of The Crown is upon us, and once again writer Peter Morgan has been accused of playing fast and loose with the truth about events involving the Royal family. With no fewer than four episodes dedicated to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales and Dodi Fayed, the Netflix drama is firmly in the territory of events that much of the audience will be able to recall, which makes any invented scenes all the more controversial. The newly released episodes have already drawn widespread criticism for Morgans depictions of what happened in Paris in 1997, and run the risk of reanimating conspiracy theories that had largely faded into the background. The proposal Perhaps the most controversial scene of all places Dodi Fayed on one knee in his suite in the Ritz Paris hotel, proposing to Diana hours before they were both killed. Dodi, the son of the then Harrods owner Mohamed al-Fayed, had spent the summer of 1997 wooing Diana aboard his fathers yacht in the Mediterranean, despite being involved with Kelly Fisher, an American model, who claimed they were engaged at the time. Mohamed claimed in the years following the fatal crash that Diana had accepted a proposal from his son, and used this as the motive for his accusation that the couple had been assassinated on the orders of Prince Philip. His reasoning was that the Royal family could not accept a Muslim as the stepfather of Prince William, a future king. Dodi spent the summer of 1997 wooing Diana aboard his fathers yacht in the Mediterranean - Shutterstock While The Crown avoids recreating the crash itself (the couples Mercedes is seen speeding into the Alma tunnel but no more) Morgan creates a narrative in which the whole reason for Diana and Dodis presence in Paris that night was in order for Dodi to collect an engagement ring and put it on her finger and that a proposal did happen. In episode three, the couple go ashore from their yacht in the South of France, but after being recognised by tourists and photographers they flee into a jewellery shop where Dodi asks Diana if she sees anything she likes. She jokingly says Well thats quite nice with a nod to a picture of a diamond-encrusted ring from a range called Dis-Moi Oui or Tell Me Yes. Dodi later calls the shop, is told they do not have the ring in stock but that they have it in their Paris store, and after briefing his father on the latest events, Dodi persuades Diana due to return to London the next day to break her journey in Paris, where he secretly plans to propose. In truth, the couple did go ashore in Monte Carlo on August 23 1997, but their bodyguard Trevor Rees (formerly known as Trevor Rees-Jones) told the inquest into their deaths that they did not go into a jewellery shop or do any window-shopping. Diana's bodyguard Trevor Rees arrives at the Paris Palais de Justice - AP It is true that when they got to Paris a week later Dodi bought an 11,500 ring from jeweller Alberto Repossi, described as an engagement ring on the receipt later found in his apartment, though Repossi said he had no idea whether it was intended as an engagement ring (Diana had also been given a gold Bulgari ring by Dodi that she wore on her right hand). Dianas driver Colin Tebbutt and other friends have said the real reason for the Paris stopover was that the Princess had decided to delay her return to London because of a political row in the UK over comments she had made about foreign policy on landmines. In The Crown, Dodi proposes to Diana but she rejects him, saying she is not ready to remarry. In real life, Mohameds butler explained to investigators that Dodi had told him he planned to propose that night when the couple returned to Dodis flat after dinner, but they were killed before he had a chance to do so. Henri Paul Another key pillar of Diana death conspiracy theories involves the sobriety, or otherwise, of Henri Paul, the acting head of security at Mohameds Ritz Paris hotel. Henri was the man at the wheel of the Mercedes S280 in which Diana and Dodi were killed, and he was pronounced dead at the scene after hitting a concrete pillar in the Alma tunnel at speed. In The Crown, he is depicted sitting at the bar of the Ritz, being told that he needs to drive the couple to Dodis flat from a rear hotel entrance while decoy cars leave from the front to confuse waiting paparazzi. Driver Henri Paul arrives at the Ritz Hotel in Paris - AP As he gets up, the camera fleetingly shows an empty glass next to one that is half full of a cloudy drink, like the Ricard Pastis that Henri was drinking that night but no other reference is made to his drinking, even though there is evidence that he had several other drinks while off duty that night before he was told to return to work. Security footage from the Ritz also showed Henri struggling to park his Mini in a large empty space when he got back to the hotel, but The Crown does not reference this. According to Operation Paget, the Metropolitan Police report into allegations of a conspiracy to murder the couple, Henris blood/alcohol level was 1.87 grams of alcohol per litre of blood, almost four times the French drink-drive limit of 0.5g/l and more than twice the UK limit of 0.8g/l. But Mohamed claimed that Paul was not drunk and that his blood sample was switched with that of someone who had been drinking in order to falsely implicate him. Herve Stephan, the examining magistrate who investigated the deaths, personally accompanied a toxicologist to the mortuary on September 4 1997 to take a second sample which he placed under seal and which confirmed the findings of the original tests. Dianas new life in California According to Dianas former butler Paul Burrell, she was making plans to move to California to live with Dodi at the time she died. Dodi had bought a villa previously owned by the film star Julie Andrews, and Burrell claimed that she had shown him the floor plans and told him: This is our new life, just wont it be great, think of the lifestyle [for] the boys nobodys judgmental here in America, you dont have the class system, you dont have the Establishment. Prince Harry has since suggested that his own move to California means he is now living the life that she wanted us to be able to live. Any truth in the suggestion that Diana was going to move to Malibu would lend weight to Mohammeds claims that the couple were going to marry. The Crown leans heavily into this idea, telling Dodi she wishes she could move away, start afresh and live in another country. California, he suggests. Exactly, she replies. Close friends of the Princess have suggested her summer fling with Dodi was no more than a holiday romance, and that she had not given up hope of marrying heart surgeon Hasnat Khan, whom she hoped to make jealous. The final phone call Dianas final conversation with her sons is filled with significance in The Crown. Prince William asks her: Mummy, are you going to marry Dodi? All the newspapers are saying you are. She tells him she is emphatically not going to marry Dodi, but cryptically adds: Mummy just needs to make some changes to her life, thats all. But thats not your problem, thats mine. Coming so soon after her conversation with Dodi about California, the clear implication is that she is thinking of moving abroad. Yet the real final phone call was brief and unremarkable. In a 2017 documentary, Prince William said: Harry and I were in a desperate rush to say goodbye, you know, see you later. If Id known now obviously what was going to happen I wouldnt have been so blase about it and everything else. Harry said: I cant really necessarily remember what I said but all I do remember is probably regretting for the rest of my life how short the phone call was. The final journey Diana and Dodi Al Fayed meet their driver Henri Paul moments before leaving the Ritz Hotel - Reuters The Crown suggests that Diana sealed her own fate by telling Dodi she wanted to return to his flat in the Rue Arsene Houssaye, rather than staying overnight at the Ritz where they had dined, because she had left her belongings there. Dodi then came up with the ill-fated scheme to get there in a car driven by Henri, against the wishes of his bodyguards but approved by his father Mohamed. The evidence suggests, however, that the fateful decision to return to the flat was very much Dodis rather than Dianas. Rene Delorm, the Fayeds butler at their Paris flat, told Operation Paget that he had been told by Dodi hours earlier that the couple were going to return from dinner at around midnight and Dodi said to him: Make sure that we have champagne on ice when we come back from dinner. I am going to propose to her tonight. 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 woman who worked at a Dayton residential treatment facility pleaded guilty to having sexual contact with a 14-year-old resident Friday. >>PREVIOUS REPORT: Dayton treatment facility worker accused of having sexual contact with teen indicted on charges Jade Lowe, 26, of Huber Heights pleaded guilty to one charge of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, according to court records. She was also charged with sexual battery but it was dismissed, court records show. Lowe faces up to five years in prison and will now be a tier II sex offender. This designation requires her to register her address every 180 days for 25 years, court documents explain >>PREVIOUS REPORT: Dayton treatment facility worker charged after allegedly having sexual contact with 14 year old In March, police began to investigate after they were called to Dayton Childrens Hospital on reports of a sexual assault. Officers were informed by staff at the hospital that a 14-year-old reported engaging in sexual conduct with Lowe while living at Northcutt Residential Treatment Center, according to a statement of facts. >>Invasive moth detected in Ohio; What to do if you spot one In May, Lowe was interviewed by officers and stated she worked at the center on and off for about a year starting in January 2022. Lowe said there was sexual contact with the child but denied having sex with them, according to the statement of facts. She later told detectives the sexual contact happened multiple times. She was indicted on unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and sexual battery in June. Lowe will be sentenced on December 21. Members of Congress belonging to the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) have not condemned the violent anti-Israel protest that targeted the headquarters of their own party in Washington, D.C., this week. The offices of representatives Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich.; Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.; Greg Casar, D-Texas; and Cori Bush, D-Mo., did not respond to Fox News Digital's multiple requests for comment concerning the violence that erupted Wednesday when pro-Palestinian demonstrators calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war rioted outside the Democratic National Committee (DNC). None have released a public statement addressing the violence, other than Bush sharing a statement on X from left-wing group IfNotNow Movement blasting House Speaker Mike Johnson for his criticism of the protest. REPUBLICANS BLAST PRO-PALESTINIAN PROTESTS AT DNC: NATIONS CAPITAL IS UNDER SIEGE' Representatives Cori Bush, D-Mo.; Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich.; Greg Casar, D-Texas; and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) responded to what they said were 150 people "illegally and violently protesting" near the DNC headquarters building in the Capitol Hill neighborhood. The ensuing clash led to a number of injuries to police and protesters and led to the evacuation of multiple Democratic members of Congress and candidates attending a reception inside the building at the time. USCP confirmed on X that six officers were injured during the clash, which included injuries ranging from minor cuts and pepper spray burns and punches from protesters. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., who was inside the DNC during the protest, told Fox the violence "rattled" her more than the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots, while Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., who was also inside, said many anti-Israel protesters are being "duped" into supporting Hamas terrorism. DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMAN CALLS OUT VIOLENT ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTERS, SAYS SOME HAVE BEEN DUPED Protesters block the entrance of the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee during a demonstration Wednesday against the war between Israel and Hamas on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Tlaib, Ocasio-Cortez, Casar and Bush's refusal to condemn the violence comes just weeks after the DSA was blasted as "morally bankrupt" over its response to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel that resulted in the deaths of more than 1,300 Israelis, including children and babies. DSA founding member Maurice Isserman, who issued the criticism, announced in October he was leaving the organization. "I left to protest the DSA leaderships politically and morally bankrupt response to the horrific Hamas Oct. 7 anti-Jewish pogrom that took the lives of 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and saw over 200 hostages carried off to Gaza, both groups of victims including children and infants," he wrote in piece published in The Nation headlined, "Why I Just Quit DSA." SPLC SILENT ON WHETHER BLM, DEM SOCIALISTS' PRO-HAMAS ACTIVISM RAISES HATE CONCERNS Members of U.S. Capitol Police try to remove protesters from the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee during an Israel-Hamas war cease-fire demonstration Wednesday on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich., announced just two weeks earlier he was renouncing his DSA membership over the group's backing of a "hate-filled and antisemitic" rally in New York City following the Hamas attack. "After the brutal terrorist attacks on Israel, which included the indiscriminate murder, rape, and kidnapping of innocent men, women, and children, I can no longer associate with an organization unwilling to call out terrorism in all forms," Thanedar posted on X. Fox News' Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, Adam Sabes, Kelley Kramer and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report. Original article source: Democratic Socialist members of Congress have not condemned violent anti-Israel protest targeting own party HQ Poll after poll has brought bad news for Joe Biden. Whether the incumbent president is trailing his likely 2024 Republican challenger, hitting a new low in approval or seeing the majority of Democrats raise concerns about his age, the numbers should be disconcerting for the Biden camp. Despite the grim data, so far Democrats are sticking with their man. And rather than confronting just how bleak things look at the moment, many Democrats are finding solace in a cycle of self-soothing spin that explains away the difficult political reality. Here are some of those rationalizations and why they might not be so rock-solid. 1. Biden was underestimated in 2020, too. Many people close to the president like to point back to the 2020 election as proof that Biden can beat the odds. People doubted Biden then, too and they turned out to be wrong. The campaign can either build a campaign that is knee-jerk responsive to the same Washington sources that were wrong in 20 and 22, or they can put in the historic time and money they are right now to mobilize their coalition to win a year from now. Personally, I think a strategy centered on voters not Washington is the right one, one pro-Biden source told Playbook. Sure, there were times during the 2020 race when Bidens nomination and his defeat of Donald Trump seemed far from a sure thing. But this isnt 2020, when Democratic voters were mobilized by four years of a Trump presidency defined by chaos in the White House and a slow, shoddy response to a deadly pandemic. 2. The polls this far out aren't predictive. As bad as the numbers look now, some Democrats like to say, dont forget they could still change. The only thing you can be sure of after todays NBC poll is that people will short-circuit again. Polls a year out are about as good at predicting election results as a Magic 8 Ball would be, former Barack Obama Campaign Manager Jim Messina pointed out on X (formerly Twitter). They just dont show the full picture. Well, true these polls are not a crystal ball. But they show where things stand at this moment in time, and where they stand isn't great. 3. Trump is much, much worse! One tactic Democrats and liberal commentators use to counter Bidens vulnerabilities is to highlight Trumps egregious flaws. For instance, the writer Michael Tomasky recently countered a wave of coverage of Bidens age a key concern for most voters with a long catalog of Trumps misdeeds. Tomaskys list included some of Trumps most infamous moments (sharpie on the hurricane map, alternative facts, suggesting people should inject bleach to prevent Covid-19 infections, and his lies about the 2020 election results, to name a few). So, to those voters more repulsed by Bidens age than Trumps deeds: Is your memory really that short? Do you seriously want to live through all this again?, Tomasky writes. But many of Trumps serious missteps happened while he was in office. Voters had a chance to vote for Trump when those flaws were still fresh and nearly half still did. If voters will change their minds when they focus on Trumps baggage, some of which is new since the last election, its unclear why they havent yet. 4. Theres no other option. The Washington Post reported that during a September political panel in Aspen, Colorado, an attendee raised concerns about Bidens viability as the Democratic nominee, and asked: Whats the backup plan? According to the Post, former Biden chief of staff Ron Klain had a quick rebuttal: The president is the partys nominee, Klain said, and a strong nominee at that. There is no backup plan. There is certainly no backup plan that would be as orderly as renominating Biden. But theres an entire fleet of Democratic up-and-comers biding their time and laying the groundwork for future White House bids whether its by hosting a debate in the first-in-the-nation primary state, or holding a surprise meeting with President Xi Jinping in China. And there are a few members of the Biden administration whom the president has cast as the partys political future, including his vice president. However, pitching Biden as the only option plays into Democrats fear of the unknown, particularly when up against Trump. 5. Whatever the polls say, the world needs Biden as president. This is less of a response to the polls than a plea to ignore them from Democrats who think Biden is uniquely equipped to manage a moment of global tension and war. Attendees at the Halifax International Security Forum heard a version of this from Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), a national co-chair of Bidens reelection campaign. Coons suggested theres absolutely more concern about Americas future because of the possibility of another Trump presidency, Alex Ward, Lara Seligman and Paul McLeary report from Nova Scotia. A year ago, Coons said, foreign officials would broach the possibility of a Trump return to office in their fourth or fifth question. Now theyre saying Oh my God, Trump could be president again! Im going, Uh huh, this is going to be close. Even the co-chair of the Biden reelection campaign will tell you this is going to be close, Coons said. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has refused to condemn an antisemitic tweet by X owner Elon Musk. Speaking on CNNs State of the Union on Sunday, the presidential hopeful refused to denounce Mr Musks promotion of a conspiratorial tweet, which accused Jewish communities of pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites. You have said the actual truth, Mr Musk replied. CNN host Jake Tapper asked Mr DeSantis, who launched his presidential campaign on X, about his reaction to Mr Musks tweet including whether he condemned it. I did not see the comment, Mr DeSantis said before abruptly switching gears. Elon has had a target on his back ever since he purchased Twitter, because I think hes taking it in a direction that a lot of people who are used to controlling the narrative dont like. So I was a big supporter of him purchasing Twitter. I think that theyre obviously still working some stuff out, but I did not see those comments. Tapper showed Mr DeSantis the X exchange before asking: Youve been very upfront when you see antisemitism on the left. Is antisemitism on the right something that concerns you as well? Across the board, the Florida Republican said. He then tried to distinguish the difference in antisemitic attacks coming from both sides. He alleged that such hate has arisen from prominent universities on the left compared to fringe voices on the right. Tapper interjected that Mr Musk is far from fringe, being the wealthiest person in the world. I would ask that major Republican figures, like you, use your voices as well to stand against it, the anchor added. Mr DeSantis dismissed Mr Musks post as simply blogging. Im just saying, Elon Musk is a pretty powerful guy, and hes out there endorsing some pretty hideous antisemitic conspiracy theories, Tapper said. And I still havent heard you condemn it. Well because I havent seen it, the 2024 hopeful replied. I have no idea what the context is. I know Elon Musk. I have never seen him do anything. I think hes a guy that believes in America. I have never seen him indulge in any of that. So its surprising, if thats true, but I have not seen it. So I dont want to sit there and pass judgment on the fly. The Florida governors refusal to condemn the offensive tweet arrives amid a rise in antisemitism across the country following the 7 October attacks in the Middle East, leading to the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Sunday refused to condemn a post that Elon Musk made on X endorsing an antisemitic tweet that alluded to a white supremacist conspiracy theory. During an interview on CNNs State of the Union, anchor Jake Tapper asked DeSantis whether he would condemn Musks post that he said openly endorsed an antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews are conspiring to replace white Americans with minority immigrants, noting that major companies such as Apple and Disney pulled their ads from X in response to Musks endorsement. I did not see the comment, DeSantis said. I know that Elon has had a target on his back ever since he purchased Twitter, because I think hes taking it in the direction that a lot of people who are used to controlling the narrative dont like. I was a big supporter of him purchasing Twitter, he added. I think theyre obviously still working some stuff out, but I did not see those comments. Tapper then read the post aloud, in which a user said he was deeply disinterested in giving the tiniest s--- now about western Jewish populations realizing that minorities that support flooding their country dont exactly like them too much. The user claimed that Jewish people have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. Musk replied to the post, You have said the actual truth. He went on to target the Anti-Defamation League, an organization that fights antisemitism: The ADL unjustly attacks the majority of the West, despite the majority of the West supporting the Jewish people and Israel. This is because they cannot, by their own tenets, criticize the minority groups who are their primary threat. The Tesla CEOs comments drew comparisons to the great replacement theory, a racist conspiracy theory that Jewish people are conspiring to replace white people with minority groups. Its a lot of condemnation for singling out a specific religious group during this time of rapidly rising antisemitism, Tapper said, adding that you have been very out front when you see antisemitism on the left. Is antisemitism on the right something that concerns you as well? Across the board, DeSantis said. And, actually, I think, in the advent of these attacks, the amount of antisemitism that we have seen has really surprised me. DeSantis said he signed legislation in Florida that he characterized as an effort to combat antisemitism on college campuses which has come under fire for its ban on pro-Palestinian student groups before insisting that antisemitism is seen on both sides. The difference is that, on the left, that tends to be attached to some major institutional power, like some of our most august universities, he said. Whereas I think, on the right, it tends to be more fringe voices that are doing it. But its wrong no matter what, he added. And I dont think that we have seen antisemitism this bad in the world probably since the Second World War. Tapper later mentioned in the interview that he still hadnt heard DeSantis condemn Musks post. DeSantis again insisted that he hadnt seen it. I know you tried to read it, I have no idea what the context is, he said. I know Elon Musk. I have never seen him do anything. I think hes a guy that believes in America. I have never seen him indulge in any of that. So its surprising if thats true, but I have not seen it. So I dont want to sit there and pass judgment on the fly. Meanwhile, DeSantis fellow Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on Saturday defended the tech mogul. Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur who is friends with Musk, angrily derided the SpaceX CEOs critics. Now they use the label of antisemitic if you say something that challenges the orthodoxy, Ramaswamy said while drawing a comparison between the backlash against antisemitism and the social justice movement that swept the nation in the wake of George Floyds death. I think what theyre doing to him is ridiculous. I think its crazy to call him antisemitic, he added. When NBC News tried to ask him if he agreed with Musks antisemitic post, Ramaswamy interjected: I think the reality is the woke infection from several years ago, which many left-leaning groups like the ADL, have supported, actually planted the seeds for the antisemitism were seeing today. Moments later, Ramaswamy, who has said he wants Musk as an adviser if he is elected president, said in a post to X that there have been intentional distortions of Elons comments. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, another GOP presidential candidate, said he found Musks post to be among the "unacceptable" instances. In an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," Christie condemned Musk's post as one of the many "unacceptable" instances of antisemitism that has emerged amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. We need to be speaking out against it no matter who does it, whether its Elon Musk, whether its professors on our college campuses where students that they are misleading, or whether its individuals who are speaking out in an antisemitic way on the streets of our cities, he said. The White House has condemned Musks post, saying its an abhorrent promotion of antisemitic and racist hate that runs against our core values as Americans. Asked to respond to the ongoing backlash over Musks post, Twitters press email automatically replied: Busy now, please check back later. Jews have experienced a significant increase in antisemitic incidents since Hamas launched its brutal attack on Israel on Oct. 7. There has been a 316% increase in antisemitic incidents in the U.S. compared to the same period in 2022, according to the Anti-Defamation League. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com When CNNs Jake Tapper gave Ron DeSantis multiple opportunities to condemn Elon Musks antisemitic post on X (formerly Twitter), DeSantis repeatedly ducked the question and defended Musks character. I did not see the comment. I know Elon has had a target on his back ever since he purchased Twitter because hes taking it in a direction that a lot of people who are used to controlling the narrative dont like, DeSantis said. So I was a big supporter of him purchasing Twitter. I think that theyre obviously still working some stuff out, but I did not see those comments. He later added, I know Elon Musk. I have never seen him do anything. I think hes a guy that believes in America. I have never seen him indulge in any of that. So its surprising, if thats true. TAPPER: Elon Musk is a pretty powerful guy and he's out there endorsing some pretty hideous antisemitic conspiracy theories and I still haven't heard you condemn it. DESANTIS: Well, because I haven't see it. I have no idea what the context is. pic.twitter.com/Nnh9EXKBQr Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 19, 2023 The post was made four days ago, so at this point, DeSantis professed failure to read it seems like an intentional choice, or hes lying and has seen it. Musk amplified a post on X that accused the Jewish community of promoting dialectical hatred against whites and pushed an antisemitic conspiracy theory that purports Jews are trying to replace white Americans with immigrants of color. This conspiracy theory, known as great replacement theory or white replacement theory, has been cited as motivation by killers in several mass shootings, including: the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue in Pittsburgh; the 2019 New Zealand mosque shooting; the 2019 El Paso Walmart shooting; and the 2022 Buffalo, N.Y., supermarket shooting. Tapper didnt let DeSantis skirt the issue so easily and showed DeSantis the original post and Musks response. So heres a post claiming that Jews are pushing dialectical hatred against whites and are flooding the country with hordes of minorities, Tapper said. And Elon Musk replies: You have said the actual truth. He goes on to say that hes talking about the ADL and other Jewish groups are pushing replacements of whites. I know you have been very out front when you see antisemitism on the left. Is antisemitism on the right something that concerns you as well? the host asked DeSantis. Across the board, DeSantis said. I think, in the advent of these attacks, the amount of antisemitism that we have seen has really surprised me. And Im somebody that signed major legislation in Florida to combat antisemitism on college campuses. And yet you have seen it on both sides. DeSantis went on to say that antisemitism on the left tends to be attached to some major institutional power, like some of our most august universities while claiming that antisemitism on the right is from fringe voices. I dont know how fringe the voices are, to be completely frank. I mean, Elon Musk is the wealthiest man in the world, Tapper responded. And we have seen some major conservative media figures, Charlie Kirk, Candace Owens, and others, pushing really, really hateful stuff, backing these nonsensical theories of white genocide, White Replacement Theory. And I would ask that major Republican figures like you use your voices as well to stand against it. Tapper also noted that DeSantis launched his presidential campaign on X. Huge companies, including IBM, Apple, and Disney, are now removing their ads from the platform because of Musks antisemitism. Im just saying, Elon Musk is a pretty powerful guy, and hes out there endorsing some pretty hideous antisemitic conspiracy theories, the host added. And I still havent heard you condemn it. Well, because I havent seen it. I know you tried to read it. I have no idea what the context is, DeSantis said, even though Tapper made the context pretty clear. Later in the show, Tapper spoke with Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin, who called out DeSantis for not condemning Musks comment. Raskin calls out DeSantis for claiming he didn't see Elon Musk's antisemitic post four days after he published it: "You showed it to him, and he still refused to condemn it." pic.twitter.com/g6Tse1t3IB Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 19, 2023 Well, the guys running for president, and Elon Musk did that on Wednesday. Its Sunday, so this is four days later. And he has not had the chance to read what Elon Musk wrote? That is very hard for me to believe You showed it to him, and he still refused to condemn it, Raskin said, calling Musks comment outrageous and dangerous. The congressman added that he will be working with colleagues to write a letter to Musk asking him to renounce those comments and to clean up his act. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who announced his 2024 presidential campaign on what was formerly known as Twitter, is refusing to directly condemn Elon Musk for his recent decision to endorse an antisemitic post on his platform at a time when Jewish Americans are facing a rise in hate. On Wednesday, an X user whose profile indicated he identifies as Jewish shared a video of an advertisement about combating antisemitism. The user said that anyone who anonymously posts Hitler was right should say it to our faces. Another user replied to the post, accusing Jewish people of pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. The user also suggested that said supposed behavior by Jews justifies hatred against them by hordes of minorities that support flooding their country, a conspiracy theory linking Jewish people to nonwhite immigration that the gunman in the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting subscribed to. You have said the actual truth, Musk replied to the antisemitic user, sparking widespread anger over his agreement with the post. The White House condemned Musk in a statement, calling his post an abhorrent promotion of Antisemitic and racist hate which runs against our core values as Americans. Musks post has resulted in multiple major corporations pulling their ads from X, the service formerly known as Twitter which the tech billionaire bought in 2022. The companies also paused advertising after Media Matters for America reported that X has been placing some of their ads next to pro-Nazi content. MMFA said that Musk has since threatened to sue the organization. When asked about the companies decisions, DeSantis claimed he was unaware of Musks antisemitic comment. I did not see the comment. And so I know that Elon has had a target on his back ever since he purchased Twitter, because I think hes taking it in a direction that a lot of people who are used to controlling the narrative dont like, The Republican candidate told Jake Tapper on Sunday during CNNs State of the Union. So I was a big supporter of him purchasing Twitter. I think that theyre obviously still working some stuff out, but I did not see those comments. Ron DeSantis, who launched his campaign on twitter, on Elon Musk's antisemitic post: "I did not see the comment. I know Elon has had a target on his back ever since he purchased twitter." pic.twitter.com/4Jve2agyod Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 19, 2023 Tapper then tried to read Musks comment to DeSantis, who then claimed he has no idea what the context is. I know Elon Musk. I have never seen him do anything. I think hes a guy that believes in America. I have never seen him indulge in any of that, the governor said. So its surprising, if thats true, but I have not seen it. So I dont want to sit there and pass judgment on the fly. Despite DeSantis claiming Musk has never engaged in fringe conspiracy theories, the billionaire has a history of using X to endorse and amplify conspiracies, including antisemitic ones. With a following as big as his, Musks regular amplifying of extremist accounts and conspiracies gives them an even bigger stage to spread their ideologies. TAPPER: Elon Musk is a pretty powerful guy and he's out there endorsing some pretty hideous antisemitic conspiracy theories and I still haven't heard you condemn it. DESANTIS: Well, because I haven't see it. I have no idea what the context is. pic.twitter.com/Nnh9EXKBQr Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 19, 2023 Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) told Tapper on Sunday that Musks comments were outrageous and dangerous, and expressed skepticism that DeSantis is unaware of the post. Well, the guys running for president, and Elon Musk did that on Wednesday. Its Sunday, so this is four days later. And he has not had the chance to read what Elon Musk wrote, Raskin said of the Republican. That is very hard for me to believe. In any event, you showed it to him, and he still refused to condemn it, he continued. So, if youre serious about condemning and confronting antisemitism and racism and these bigotries, which are the gateway to destruction of liberal democracy, you have got to be explicit and open and full-throated about it, and you have got to denounce antisemitism and racism across the board. Raskin calls out DeSantis for claiming he didn't see Elon Musk's antisemitic post four days after he published it: "You showed it to him, and he still refused to condemn it." pic.twitter.com/g6Tse1t3IB Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 19, 2023 Musks comment comes amid a rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia in the U.S., as Israel continues its destruction of Gaza following Hamas attack on Oct. 7. DeSantis has broadly denounced antisemitism, though he has sidestepped condemning specific people in his party. Last month, DeSantis ordered state universities to shut down chapters of Students for Justice in Palestine, a national Palestinian advocacy organization run by students. The governors administration claimed without evidence that the group is antisemitic and supports terrorists, which SJP has denied. On Thursday, the ACLU filed a federal lawsuit against DeSantis administration over the ban, accusing him of violating students free speech rights. Related... FILE - Palestinians search for survivors after an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip in Nusseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, Nov. 17, 2023. Workers from the State Department to the Pentagon have endorsed open letters demanding President Joe Biden pursue a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war. Congressional staffers have spoken out from the Capitol against what they say is their bosses' silence on the war's toll among Palestinian civilians. It's an unusual public challenge from within the government to the strong U.S. support for Israel's offensive. (AP Photo/Marwan Saleh, File) WASHINGTON (AP) Federal government workers from the State Department to NASA are circulating open letters demanding that President Joe Biden pursue a cease-fire in Israels war against Hamas. Congressional staffers are picking up microphones in front of the Capitol, speaking out to condemn what they say is the silence of lawmakers about the toll on Palestinian civilians. As the deaths soar in Gaza, Biden and Congress are facing unusually public challenges from the inside over their support for Israels offensive. Hundreds of staffers in the administration and on Capitol Hill are signing on to open letters, speaking to reporters and holding vigils, all in an effort to shift U.S. policy toward more urgent action to stem Palestinian casualties. Most of our bosses on Capitol Hill are not listening to the people they represent, one of the congressional staffers told the crowd at a protest this month. Wearing medical masks that obscured their faces, the roughly 100 congressional aides heaped flowers in front of Congress to honor the civilians killed in the conflict. The objections coming from federal employees over the United States' military and other backing for Israel's Gaza campaign is partly an outgrowth of the changes happening more broadly across American society. As the United States becomes more diverse, so does the federal workforce, including more appointees of Muslim and Arab heritage. And surveys show public opinion shifting regarding U.S. ally Israel, with more people expressing unhappiness over the hard-right government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. After weeks of seeing images of bloodied children and fleeing families in Gaza, a significant number of Americans, including from Bidens Democratic Party, disagree with his support of Israels military campaign. A poll by The Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research in early November found 40% of the U.S. public believed Israels response in Gaza had gone too far. The war has roiled college campuses and set off nationwide protests. As of late this past week, one open letter had been endorsed by 650 staffers of diverse religious backgrounds from more than 30 federal agencies, organizers said. The agencies range from the Executive Office of the President to the Census Bureau and include the State Department, U.S. Agency for International Development and the Department of Defense. A Biden political appointee who helped organize the multiagency open letter said the president's rejection of appeals to push Netanyahu for a long-term cease-fire had left some federal staffers feeling dismissed, in a way. Thats why people are using all sorts of dissent cables and open letters. Because weve already gone through the channels of trying to do it internally, this person said. The letter condemns both the Hamas killings of about 1,200 people in Israel in the militants' Oct. 7 incursion and the Israeli military campaign, which has killed more than 11,500 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The letter calls for the U.S. to push for a cease-fire and a release of hostages held by Hamas and of Palestinians that the signers say are unjustly detained by Israel, as well as greater action overall on behalf of Gazas civilians. The organizers of the executive branch and congressional protests all spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity, citing fear of professional and other repercussions. The federal employees speaking up in opposition to the U.S. policy appear to be seeking a balance, raising their objections in a way that doesn't deprive them of a seat at the table and risk their careers. Some current and former officials and staffers said its the public nature of some of the challenges from federal employees that is unusual. It worries some, as a potential threat to government function and to cohesion within agencies. The State Department has an honored tradition of allowing formal, structured statements of dissent to U.S. policy. It dates to 1970, when U.S. diplomats resisted President Richard Nixons demands to fire foreign service officers and other State Department employees who signed an internal letter protesting the U.S. carpet-bombing of Cambodia. Ever since, foreign service officers and civil servants have used what is known as the dissent channel at moments of intense policy debate. That includes criticism of the George W. Bush administrations prosecution of the war in Iraq, the Obama administrations policies in Syria, the Trump administrations immigration restrictions on mainly Muslim countries and the Biden administration's handling of the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. But dissent cables, which are signed, are classified and not for public release. In State Department tradition, at least, if for whatever reason a criticism or complaint were not taken into account or were not believed to be sufficient to change policy, well, then, it was time to move on. It was done,'' said Thomas Shannon, a retired career foreign service officer who served in senior positions at the State Department. "It was time to salute, and execute." Shannon was briefly interim secretary of state in the Trump administration. There, he fended off a recommendation from White House spokesman Sean Spicer that State Department staffers who signed a dissent cable against President Donald Trumps so-called Muslim ban should quit. Growing diversity of the State Departments workforce is a positive, Shannon said. But in the foreign service as in military service, discipline is real and its important, he said, citing the need for consistent, cohesive foreign policy. I guess Im just saying Im not a fan of open letters, Shannon said. State Department officials say several expressions of dissent have made their way through the formal channels to Secretary of State Antony Blinken. One State Department official, 11-year veteran Josh Paul, quit late last month to protest the administration's rush to provide arms to Israel. Blinken addressed internal opposition to the administration's handling of the Gaza crisis in a departmentwide email to staffers this past Monday. Were listening: what you share is informing our policy and our messages, he wrote. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the dissent was welcome. One of the strengths of this department is that we do have people with different opinions, he said. Unlike the dissent cables, the multiagency open letter and another endorsed by more than 1,000 employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development have been made public. They also are anonymous, with no names of signers publicly attached to them. The USAID letter with 1,000 staffers backing it, which was given to The Washington Post, Foreign Policy and others, calls for an immediate cease-fire. But one longtime USAID staffer said it distressed some of the agency's staffers, including some who are Jewish, by not addressing the Hamas killings of civilians in Israel. The delivery of the letter to news organizations also seemed outside the agency's tradition of handling matters internally in a consultative way, the staffer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. In comparison, an internal State Department memorial for all civilians killed since Oct. 7, organized by Muslim, Christian and Jewish employee organizations, brought more solace, and seemed to bring colleagues of diverse outlooks and backgrounds closer together, that USAID staffer said. The organizers of the multiagency open letter said they acted out of frustration after other efforts, particularly a tense meeting between White House officials and Muslim and Arab political appointees, seemed to have no effect. Staying silent, or resigning, would shirk their responsibility to the public, the staffer said. If we just leave, there's never going to be any change." ___ Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva and AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report. Undated file photo shows the Paleolithic ruin sites in Daocheng County, southwest China's Sichuan Province. [Photo/Xinhua] More than 200 Paleolithic sites have been found in southwest China's Sichuan Province since 2019, challenging the claim that the area had scarce hominins in the Old Stone Age. The discovery, a result of a comprehensive archaeological investigation launched in 2019, was briefed on Saturday at a seminar in Sichuan's Meishan City. Before 2019, archaeologists had only identified over ten Paleolithic sites in Sichuan, leading some experts to believe that there were few early human dwellers in the region until much later, said Zheng Zhexuan with the Sichuan institute of cultural relics and archaeology. The 200 sites, where many stone tools and human remains have been unearthed, are scattered across the Sichuan basin and the western Sichuan plateau. They include the Mengxihe Site in Ziyang City, the Taohuahe site in Suining City, and the Wangjiayan site in the provincial capital, Chengdu. The findings suggest that as early as the Paleolithic Age, Sichuan was already a significant area for cultural exchange and population migration between the East and the West and between China's northern and southern regions, said Zheng. Preventive health care such as cancer screening is a critical tool in the early detection of disease. Missed screening can result in a missed diagnosis, delayed treatment and reduced chances of survival. But the medical system is poorly equipped to meet the needs of gender-diverse patients. Around 1.64 million people in the U.S. identify as transgender, nonbinary or gender diverse people whose gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned at birth. This adds up to 1.3 million or 0.5% of U.S. adults, all of whom are more likely to encounter implicit, or unconscious, biases when they seek medical care compared with their cisgender counterparts those whose gender identity aligns with the sex they were assigned at birth. I am a primary care doctor in Appalachia, as well as a medical educator who studies how to improve the instruction of future health care providers. I work hard every day to improve the health of the underserved. Primary care doctors devote much of their lives to preventive medicine the art of stopping disease before it starts. Cancer screening consumes much of my life. So Im concerned about the barriers to preventive care for patients who are transgender, including consistent access to adequate cancer screening. The problems with the binary model Health care spaces and providers often focus on mens health or womens health specifically. Intake forms may have no option for declaring a gender identity separate from the sex assigned at birth. Health screening and insurance policies for diseases like cancer tend to remain geared to a flawed binary male-female model. Gender-diverse patients often find themselves teaching their primary care doctors how to provide them with competent care, because many medical students get little training on providing gender-affirming care. As a result, 1 out of 3 gender-diverse adults do not seek preventive care, according to a report by the National Center for Transgender Equality or they are not offered these services at all when they see a health care provider. Even more alarming, 19% of transgender folks report that theyve been refused care altogether. This may contribute to higher rates of tobacco use, obesity, alcohol use and other cancer risk factors in gender-diverse people. Cancer care challenges Research to date shows that transgender adults over age 45 are screened for colon cancer at a lower rate than cisgender patients. They are also more likely to be diagnosed at later stages of lung cancer. This can be devastating, because finding lung cancer before it spreads can literally mean the difference between life and death. The University of California, San Francisco, one of the few places that has protocols for the care of transgender patients, recommends that transgender women who are older than 50 and have been taking a feminizing hormone for five years begin getting screened for breast cancer. However, according to a recent Canadian study, only about 1 in 3 transgender women who are eligible for breast cancer screening receive mammograms, compared with 2 in 3 eligible cisgender women. In a 2021 study, researchers found that transgender patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, prostate cancer or bladder cancer had roughly twice the death rate of their cisgender counterparts. Since the researchers were able to firmly identify only 589 transgender individuals out of nearly 11.8 million records, they could not accurately compare rates for other types of cancer. Since 2017, the American Society of Clinical Oncology has recommended including data about patients sexual and gender minority status in cancer registries and clinical trials. However, in 2022 the society found that only half of oncology care providers are routinely collecting gender identity information. So its clear that theres still a lot to learn about the barriers to inclusive cancer care. Lack of training in both medical school and residencies intensive training stints where new doctors hone their skills perpetuates these disparities. Bias in medical school Medical education is plagued by biases that reflect societys stereotypes and prejudices. Further, researchers have found that students can unconsciously absorb biases or stereotypes encountered in their medical education. And just 26% of doctors directing family medicine clerkships courses in which medical students start working and interacting with real patients say they feel comfortable teaching transgender health care. So the Association of American Medical Colleges has called for emphasizing at all levels of training the health of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning and other identities known as LGBTQ+. The association recommends that schools take a layered approach that integrates education on gender-affirming health care across their curricula. This can include incorporating LGTBQ+ health in early coursework, using practice patients in simulation, and creating opportunities to care for patients with lived experience. Many medical schools still fail to integrate gender-affirming care throughout the curriculum, though. Instead, medical schools often append it to the existing curriculum offering dedicated lectures or small-group activities that address LGBTQ+ health. Medical schools overall are providing a median of only five hours of instruction on gender-affirming health care practices. Health insurance obstacles In 2015, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services clarified that preventive care services are available under the Affordable Care Act, regardless of gender identity. However, the main organizations guiding providers and insurance coverage regarding breast, cervical and prostate cancer screening continue to use an approach based on the ingrained binary male-female model approach. For example, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force still gears its recommendations for breast and cervical cancer screenings toward cisgender women, with little guidance on how to apply them to transgender patients. This is driven in part by a lack of data on how to best screen transgender patients for cancer. Insurance coverage and companies also create hurdles. Gender-diverse patients are more likely to be uninsured or underinsured making it much harder for them to access preventive medical care. A gender identity mismatch in an electronic medical record can trigger a denial for a cancer screening. Momentum for change Fortunately, the medical field is recognizing that gender-diverse patients have unique health care needs. Since 2017, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has published recommendations for health care providers on making their practices open and inclusive for all individuals. Training all staff and creating an open office space without a gendered approach is a key recommendation. Now over 20 medical organizations give similar guidance, with hopes of increasing inclusion through the health care system. Another encouraging sign is that some medical schools are integrating gender-affirming care into their coursework. The University of Louisville in Kentucky reports that it now offers 50 hours of LGBTQ+-specific topics. And a faculty-student team at the Boston University School of Medicine has developed a tool to help medical schools assess and improve how they educate students to provide sexual and gender-minority health care. Im hopeful that the next generation of health care providers will be a force for change at their institutions; in my experience, incoming medical students are more aware of health disparities than their older generations of educators. This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world.The Conversation has a variety of fascinating free newsletters. It was written by: Jenna Sizemore, West Virginia University. Read more: Jenna Sizemore does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. With a higher percentage of white officers, Myrtle Beach Police Departments staff doesnt reflect the diversity of the residents they serve. Myrtle Beach Police provided information on its staffs ethnic groups and gender. Earlier this year, The Sun News looked at North Myrtle Beach and Conway police departments which includes officers and administrative positions and compared each ethnicity groups and gender to the latest U.S. Census data for each areas. At the time of the storys publication on Aug. 12, The Sun News had not received Myrtle Beachs information. Myrtle Beach Police reported having 299 employees as of Aug. 14. The citys population estimate as of July 1, 2022, was 38,417. According to the departments demographics, Myrtle Beach reports that 89% of its staff identifies as white, compared to 72.2% of city residents. The numbers also show that 6.7% of employees identify as Black compared to 17.5% of the population, and 4.3% identify as Hispanic or Latino while 13.3% of residents identify as such. When looking at gender, 28% of the police department identify as women, including its police chief Amy Prock. That is compared to 51.6% of residents. These are the figures provided by Myrtle Beach Police. The data was provided through a Freedom of Information Act request. Total employees: 299 Male employees: 215 Female employees: 84 Caucasian employees: 266 Black employees: 20 Hispanic employees: 13 According to 2022 Census data, here is a breakdown of the city of Myrtle Beachs population: White alone: 72.2% Black or African American: 17.5% American Indian and Alaska Native: 0.1% Asian alone: 1.2% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander: 0.0% Two or more races: 7.7% Hispanic or Latino: 13.3% White alone, not Hispanic or Latino: 65.2% Myrtle Beach Police announced on its Facebook page in October the hiring of six new officers. The goal of the Myrtle Beach Police Department is to have a diverse, inclusive staff, the departments FOIA coordinator Lydia Chichester said in an email. The City of Myrtle Beach also has been working with resources such as Handshake to assist us with recruiting at Historical Black Colleges or Universities, and Diversityjobs.com to assist us with reaching a more diverse audience. Diversityjobs.com sends our active open positions to various community organizations and linkage agents to promote our job vacancies. The Myrtle Beach Police Department understands that we are in a very competitive market to hire law enforcement personnel, but we are dedicated to our commitment of hiring well qualified candidates to serve our great city, Chichester said. We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, political affiliation or disability. AUSTIN (KXAN) Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and millions of Texans will gather with family, friends and loved ones next Thursday to break bread and celebrate the blessings in their lives. But how does that dinner table spread compare to other parts of the country? While turkey is the centerpiece to many Americans Thanksgiving meal, fried or smoked turkey are particularly popular in the Lone Star State, as documented by media platform Wide Open Country. Honey baked ham is also a common alternative for those who arent much of a turkey eater. There are also Mexican dishes that have become cornerstones of the Texas Thanksgiving celebration, such as tamales or charro beans. Casseroles like sweet potato or green bean varieties are also particularly prevalent in Texas cooking, and pair well with biscuits and cornbread dressing. But no meal is complete without dessert, and pecan pie is a Texas staple that tends to make its way onto the menu alongside pumpkin and apple pies. Sweet tea might not classify as a dessert, but itll satisfy your sweet tooth throughout the meal. What are some regional Thanksgiving favorites? How does that compare to other parts of the country? The Food Networks Thanksgiving Recipe Road Map explores the regionality popularity of some dishes throughout the U.S. Those include red velvet cakes in Alabama; Shepherds pie in Connecticut; oyster stuffing in Washington, D.C.; corn pudding in Indiana; sweet potato pie in Maryland; scalloped corn in Nebraska; butternut squash soup in New York; collard greens in North Carolina; pineapple casserole in South Carolina; and baked acorn squash in Wisconsin. What are some unique Thanksgiving spreads in different states? A November 2021 deep dive by Business Insider gave regional scope to some of the more unique traditions behind Thanksgiving. In Maryland, sauerkraut is a popular dish, inspired by the states large German-American population. Crab cakes tend to also be a standard staple there, given its proximity to the Chesapeake Bay. Up in New England, hasty pudding is a dessert comprising cornmeal, molasses, brown sugar and spices thats then topped with either whipped cream or ice cream. In New York and New Jersey, many Italian families factor traditional dishes into their meal, such as manicotti, lasagna and baked ziti. Within the northeast, cranberry relish is a common sight on the dinner table. Down in the southwest and west, frog-eye salad or a fruity pasta made with acini di pepe pasta, pineapples, mandarin oranges, whipped cream and marshmallow topping is a popular dish. In the southwestern states of New Mexico and Arizona, empanadas bring Mexican roots to the Thanksgiving dinner table. Up in the Midwest, green bean casserole and corn pudding are commonplace, while Wisconsin embraces its dairy industry roots with cheesy mashed potatoes. Here in the south, macaroni and cheese is a staple, as can be collard greens. In Kentucky, derby pie or chocolate pie with walnuts is a famous, tried and true dessert. Down in the southeast such as Florida, key lime pie tends to be a Thanksgiving staple. Out west in Hawaii, Okinawan purple sweet potatoes tend to be selected or russet or yellow gold varieties for dishes. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. Ocean explorer Captain Don Walsh has died at the age of 92. More than 60 years ago he made the first ever descent to the deepest place in the ocean, the Mariana Trench which lies almost 11km (seven miles) down. I was lucky enough to count him as a good friend. This is the story of an extraordinary dive by a remarkable man. In 1960, space-mania was gripping the world and would-be astronauts were dreaming of their first forays skywards. But 28-year-old Captain Don Walsh had his sights set very much downwards. He was about to descend deeper than any human had ever ventured before. The US Navy had acquired a submersible called the bathyscaphe Trieste and Don, a submarine lieutenant, volunteered to join the project. But when he signed up for the mission, the deepest he'd been in a sub was just 100m down. He was in for a bit of a shock - the US Navy wanted him to dive more than a hundred times deeper. The plan was to head to the deepest place on the planet, the very bottom of the Mariana Trench, a narrow, underwater canyon, which lies in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Guam. "My first reaction was 'What!? Why didn't they tell me before I volunteered?'" he told me in an interview in 2011. "After that, I thought: 'Well, I knew the machine well enough at that point to know that, theoretically, it could be done and we could pull it off.'" On 23 January, 1960, Don and Swiss oceanographer Jacques Piccard, who had designed the bathyscaphe with his father Auguste Piccard, began their descent beneath the waves. They squeezed inside a thick steel-walled chamber. Don said the space was about the size of a large household refrigerator, and that the temperature inside was just about as cold too. As the pair plunged slowly into the darkness, the craft began to creak and groan as the pressure grew. The bathyscaphe had been built to withstand more than 1,000 times the pressure at sea level, but it had never been tested to its limits at these kinds of depths until now. The start of the dive went smoothly, but at around 9,000m, the bathyscaphe jolted with an alarming bang. "That was unusual - we'd never heard that before," Don later told me. It sounded like something big had broken. Don and Jacques carefully checked their instrument readings, but everything seemed OK, so they decided to go on. After five hours, slowly heading ever deeper, the depth-gauge passed 10,000m - but there was still no sign of the sea floor. They began to wonder just how far down they would have to go. But finally, the glow of the bathyscaphe's lights began to reflect back towards them. Don and Jacques had made it: at almost 11km (seven miles) down, they were at the very bottom of the Mariana Trench. "After we landed, we stirred up a lot of sediment because that bottom sediment is semi-liquid," Don said. "It was like looking at a bowl of milk - so we never got a photograph of the deepest place in the ocean." There weren't any whoops or cheers at the end of this epic, record-breaking descent. "It was just a quiet moment," Don recalled. The pair spent about 20 minutes on the seafloor. While inspecting the craft they discovered the source of the bang they'd heard earlier. An acrylic window inside the entrance hatch had cracked. Thankfully it wasn't a pressure boundary - if that had been the case it would have caused an instant implosion. They were able to make it safely back to the surface. The team had made history, receiving the Legion of Merit from US President Dwight D. Eisenhower among other medals and plaudits. Don worked with filmmaker James Cameron who went on to repeat the dive 50 years after the first descent For Don, the dive came to partly define him - he used to quip that he'd spent the rest of his life "dining out" on it. But deep-sea devotees - myself included - wanted to know about his visit to one of the most mysterious parts of the planet. And being generous - as well as very funny and humble too - he was always happy to tell the incredible tale. But Don wasn't stuck in the past. Far from it. His dive was just the start of a life spent advocating for the ocean, and supporting those who wanted to explore and learn about the deep. After the navy, he became a professor of ocean engineering, he also set up a marine consultancy business and was a strong advocate for safety within the industry. He forewarned of the Titan tragedy - the submersible that imploded on its way to the Titanic, killing all six people on board. Years before, he had written to the company's CEO warning that the lack of testing of the sub could have catastrophic consequences. In later life, it was the Mariana Trench that grabbed his attention once again. After Don completed his dive in 1960, he thought it would only be a couple of years before someone would return. In fact, it would be more than half a century. In 2012, Hollywood filmmaker and ocean explorer James Cameron became the first to repeat the dive. Don was there to congratulate him after he resurfaced from his solo descent. Don returned to the Pacific once again in 2019 when former American naval officer and explorer Victor Vescovo took the plunge. Victor went on to take his sub to ocean trenches around the world - and with an extra seat on board, he could carry passengers. One of these was Don's son Kelly Walsh. Don told me that Kelly's Mariana dive was the best Father's Day gift he'd ever had - and he loved that Kelly had made it 8m deeper than he had. Ocean and space exploration are frequently compared, and Don often joked that he had the "Right Stuff", just in the wrong direction. He was talking about the fabled qualities - courage, daring and dependability - that made astronauts the stuff of legend. And it's true. Don had these attributes in spades. But it's fair to say the Mariana dive never attracted the same attention as the achievements of astronauts from the same era. Today though, I'm not so sure that Don's focus on the ocean could be described as the wrong direction. Recent advances in technology mean that we're finally understanding the importance of the deepest sea. While the ocean trenches were once thought of as desolate places, of little interest apart from their depth, it turns out that they're a vital part of the Earth's systems, from the weird and wonderful creatures that live there, to the important role they play in the carbon cycle and climate change. None of this would have been possible without Don and Jacques Piccard's incredible feat so long ago. The DNA from their dive runs right through this new era of research - it took a plunge into the unknown to start shedding light on what lies beyond the abyss. Follow Rebecca on X formerly known as Twitter. With a steaming cup of coffee in hand, Anythony Perry walks to greet a group of church leaders set up in the parking lot of Morning Star Baptist Church in Pasco. He just returned from delivering a free Thanksgiving meal packed with turkey, ham, pumpkin pie and vegetables to an elderly woman who attends church with him at Greater Faith Baptist Church. It was a 25-mile trip to her home out near Ice Harbor Dam. But that didnt seem to phase him. Its a blessing to help others, Perry, 39, said. Around 50 volunteers gathered Saturday at Morning Star Baptist to hand out about 300 Thanksgiving meals to Tri-City families in need during a drive-through giveaway. Local faith leaders, elected officials and community leaders gathered at the event to kick off the holidays and season of giving. It was made possible thanks to a partnership between General Baptist Convention Northwest, the Pasco Chamber of Commerce and food delivery company DoorDash. As part of DoorDashs Project Dash, there also were local contractors on hand to deliver meals directly to the homes of residents who were unable to stop by. Theres a need in this city, area, country for people to have enough food to eat, said Morning Star Senior Pastor Albert Wilkins. Volunteers pack Thanksgiving meals in the back of cars and trucks Saturday morning at Morning Star Baptist Church in Pasco, Wash. Local Tri-City faith leaders, in partnership with DoorDash, expected to hand out 105 ham-and-turkey meals to local families in need. These meals will feed many families not just for the holiday, but for several days next week, Wilkins said. New Hope Baptist Church Pastor Wayne Jenkins said its their job to provide for those who are in need right now and to serve their community. Ministry is not just for inside the church walls. Ministry has to be out in the community, he said. This goes beyond, Well Im going to just pray for you. This goes beyond, Well, why dont you come to service? This is going out and meeting people right where theyre at thats what makes an impact in peoples lives. Its not just families who are stretched thin during the holidays. In recent years, nonprofits and food banks assisting people at their most vulnerable have had to serve more people with less food and resources. Churches are playing a bigger role in helping to curb food insecurity. Garry Tyson, president bishop of the General Baptist Convention Northwest, said this event with DoorDash began last year after he approached the company, which is one of their largest sponsors. Tri-City faith leaders gathered Saturday at Morning Star Baptist Church in Pasco, Wash., to hand out boxes and DoorDash bags filled with Thanksgiving staples including turkeys, pumpkin pie, potatoes, rolls and vegetables for families in need. The event was made possible thanks to a partnership between the General Baptist Convention Northwest and DoorDash. Faith leaders and volunteers gathered Saturday at Morning Star Baptist Church in Pasco, Wash., to distribute more than 100 Thanksgiving meals to Tri-City families in need. The event was made possible thanks to a partnership between General Baptist Convention Northwest and food delivery company DoorDash. Last year, they handed out 450 meals in Seattle and Portland. This years event was their first time distributing in Eastern Washington. God spoke to me and told me to bring it to the east side to share with our churches and congregations over here, Tyson said. The event also got the attention of local elected officials, who came out to lift boxes and insulated food bags into cars, including Washington Rep. Stephanie Barnard, R-Pasco, and Pasco Mayor Blanche Barajas. A lot of the people here really do need the help, said Washington Sen. Nikki Torres, R-Pasco, who grew up in the community. Right now, when you look at gas prices and grocery prices, our economy is super expensive and it makes it even harder for those who were already living below their means, she said. Anna Powell, DoorDashs manager of government relations Northwest, said, Food insecurity is an issue across not only the state, but the country. Were thrilled to provide some assistance and some of our logistics to be able to get food delivered to people, particularly this time of the year when theres a lot of need around the holidays. Volunteer Abraham Arousa, 33, of Kennewick, organizes DoorDash bags filled with turkeys and hams Saturday at a Thanksgiving meal distribution event held at Morning Star Baptist Church in Pasco, Wash. For the first time, people worried about their risk of Alzheimers disease can go online, order a blood test, and receive results in the privacy of their homes. This might seem appealing on the surface, but the development has Alzheimers researchers and clinicians up in arms. The Quest Diagnostics blood test, AD-Detect, measures elevated levels of amyloid-beta proteins, a signature characteristic of Alzheimers. Introduced in late July, the test is targeted primarily at people 50 and older who suspect their memory and thinking might be impaired and people with a family history of Alzheimers or genetic risks for the condition. Given Alzheimers is among the most feared of all medical conditions, along with cancer, this could be a sizable market, indeed. Nearly 7 million older adults in the U.S. have Alzheimers, and that number is expected to double by 2060 if medical breakthroughs dont occur. Concerns about false positives But Alzheimers researchers and clinicians arent convinced the Quest test is backed by sound scientific research. The possibility of false-positive results is high, as is the likelihood that older adults wont understand the significance of their results, they say. The test should be taken only under a physicians supervision, if at all, they advise. And, priced originally at $399 (recently discounted to $299) and not covered by insurance, it isnt cheap. Though blood tests for Alzheimers are likely to become common in the years ahead, the Alzheimers Association said its premature to offer a test of this kind directly to consumers. For its part, Quest, which also sells direct-to-consumer tests for sexually transmitted diseases and various other conditions, suggests older adults can be trusted to respond responsibly to AD-Detect results. The test is not meant to diagnose Alzheimers, the company stressed; instead, its meant to help assess an individuals risk of developing the condition. But under a new, proposed biological definition of Alzheimers, excess amyloid could automatically trigger a diagnosis of preclinical Alzheimers. Michael Racke, Quests medical director of neurology, said individuals who test positive might be inspired to talk to their physicians about cognitive symptoms and seek comprehensive evaluations from dementia specialists. Others may just want to adopt behaviors associated with brain health, such as exercising more and maintaining healthy blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels. People who do consumer-initiated testing are often very motivated to figure out what they can do to help reduce the risk of disease, he said. To get the test, a person first needs to go to the AD-Detect tests website and report that theyre experiencing mild cognitive decline and have at least one other risk factor. (Self-reported complaints of this kind are often unreliable, experts note.) The order then goes automatically to a doctor paid by Quest, who will order a blood test to be drawn at a Quest laboratory. Results classifying a person as low, medium, or high risk will be provided on a secure patient portal. Post-test counseling isnt mandatory, but individuals can speak to a physician paid by Quest, if they like. (There is a separate $13 physician service fee.) A new poll from the University of Michigan confirms that older adults will take results seriously: Ninety-seven percent of seniors said they would take steps to improve brain health upon receiving a positive result from a blood test, while 77% said they would consider changes to financial or end-of-life plans. No peer-reviewed studies published about drug However, research scientists and clinicians worry that Quest hasnt published any peer-reviewed studies documenting the tests validity. The companys preliminary data released at the 2022 Alzheimers Association International Conference in San Diego suggests theres a relatively high chance of false-positive results, said Suzanne Schindler, an associate professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Thats a significant problem because telling someone they have biological changes associated with Alzheimers disease is a big deal and you want to be as accurate as possible, Schindler noted. Racke said at least three scientific studies giving more details about the AD-Detect test have been submitted to medical journals and might be published by the end of this year. Experts also question the usefulness of the test since a positive result (indicating abnormal levels of amyloid in the blood) doesnt mean an individual will definitely develop Alzheimers disease. Amyloid in the brain accumulates slowly over the course of decades, typically beginning in middle age, and becomes more common as people age. This test gives you a fuzzy answer. We dont know whether youre going to get dementia, or when symptoms might begin, or, really, how high the risk is for any individual, said Meera Sheffrin, medical director of the Senior Care clinic at Stanford Healthcare. Also, cognitive symptoms that prompt someone to take the test might be due to a wide variety of other causes, including mini-strokes, sleep apnea, thyroid problems, vitamin B12 deficiency, or medication interactions. If an older adult becomes anxious, depressed, or hopeless upon learning theyre at risk for Alzheimers another source of concern they may not go for further evaluation and seek appropriate care, said Rebecca Edelmayer, senior director of scientific engagement at the Alzheimers Association. The University of Michigan poll confirms the potential for misunderstanding. Upon receiving a positive result from a blood test, 74% of seniors said they would believe they were likely to develop Alzheimers and 64% said they would be likely to experience significant distress. Because the science behind blood tests for Alzheimers is still developing and because patients may not really understand the uncertainty of test results, Edelmayer said, the Alzheimers Association does not endorse the use of the AD-Detect test by consumers. FDA approves early-stage Alzheimers treatment Quests blood test is one of several developments altering the landscape of Alzheimers care in the United States. In early July, the FDA granted full approval to Leqembi, an anti-amyloid therapy that slightly slows cognitive decline in people with mild cognitive impairment and early-stage Alzheimers. Early detection of cognitive symptoms and diagnosis of cognitive dysfunction have assumed greater importance now that this disease-modifying drug is available. Also in July, a work group convened by the National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimers Association proposed a new definition of Alzheimers disease to be used in clinical practice. Previously, Alzheimers could be diagnosed only when there was evidence of underlying brain pathology (amyloid plaques and tau tangles) as well as cognitive symptoms (memory loss, poor judgment, disorientation, among others) and accompanying impairments (difficulty with managing finances, wandering, problems with self-care, and more). Under the new definition, Alzheimers would be defined purely on a biological basis, as a continuum that is first evident with the appearance of brain pathologic changes including amyloid accumulation, according to a draft of the work groups report. That would mean you can get a positive result from the Quest test and be diagnosed with Alzheimers disease if these guidelines are adopted, even if youre cognitively normal, cautioned Eric Widera, a professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco. Demand for follow-up evaluations by dementia specialists is likely to be high and contribute to already-long waits for care, he suggested. Additional concerns about the test relate to safeguarding privacy and the potential for discrimination. No federal laws protect people who receive Alzheimers biomarker results from discriminatory practices, such as employment discrimination or the denial of life, disability, or long-term care insurance. (The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act applies only to genetic tests.) And laws that normally protect the privacy of health information do not apply in this space, said Emily Largent, an assistant professor of medical ethics and health policy at the University of Pennsylvanias Perelman School of Medicine. Notably, HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, doesnt extend to laboratory tests marketed directly to consumers. The bottom line: Before taking a test, older adults need to ask themselves, Why do I want to know this? What will I do with the information? How will I react? What would I change in the future? said C. Munro Cullum, a neuropsychologist and distinguished professor of clinical psychology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. This test needs to be used very cautiously and with great forethought. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. One person is dead after crashing into a building in Cincinnati early Sunday morning. Cincinnati police officers pulled over a vehicle for speeding in the Northside neighborhood around 2 a.m. on Sunday. After speaking with police, the driver sped off from the traffic stop at between 50 to 70 mph, our news partners at WCPO in Cincinnati. >> Big green and blue explosion; Business owners react to crash that shut off power in local city The driver later lost control of the vehicle, hit a curb, and then crashed into a building, according to police. The driver, who has not been identified by police, died in the crash. Daniel Hills, President of the Fraternal Order of Police 69, which represents Cincinnati police, told WCPO that the driver made all the decisions. >> Man dies after being hit by car in Clark County The driver made decisions that were tragic decisions. The very high speed involved resulted in the tragic accident, Hills said. Police said the building the driver hit was believed to be abandoned. An on-duty Chicago police officer and two others, including a 12-year-old boy, were injured in a traffic crash early Sunday morning in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood, according to police. Police said a 33-year-old woman drove into oncoming traffic at about 3:30 a.m. in the 2000 block of West 79th Street, striking the officers squad car. The officer was taken to Stroger Hospital in stable condition with a broken hip. The woman and a passenger, a 12-year-old boy, were both transported to Stroger in stable condition, police said. The woman had a broken wrist and the boy was taken in for observation. Police said the woman was arrested with charges pending. rjohnson@chicagotribune.com COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A womans murder that occurred while she was dancing in a parking lot with friends remains unsolved nearly 3 1/2 years later. Central Ohio Crime Stoppers and Columbus police are seeking help in solving the murder of Kaykimia Ruffin, who was shot and killed on June 1, 2020. Ruffin and a group of friends were reportedly dancing together in a parking lot off the 1900 block of Maryland Avenue in the Eastgate neighborhood. Area surveillance cameras captured images of a gold sedan, which was seen on the street just prior to the shooting. Police said the camera revealed that the vehicle stopped on Maryland Avenue, where two people got out of the car. The car then turned around to face west, shots were fired, and the two got back in the car, which then fled the scene. Police do not believe that Ruffin was the intended target but another individual who was close by. Central Ohio Crime Stoppers seek answers to three-year-old drive-by shooting. (Courtesy/Central Ohio Crime Stoppers) Central Ohio Crime Stoppers seek answers to three-year-old drive-by shooting. (Courtesy/Central Ohio Crime Stoppers) Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward for any information leading to the arrest and/or indictment of the person(s) responsible for this crime. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 614-461-TIPS (8477) or visit www.stopcrime.org and e-mail your tip. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. Dont let anybody tell you California cant move fast on transportation construction. Gov. Gavin Newsom said that the section of the 10 Freeway damaged by a pallet fire will reopen Monday morning, if not sooner a little over a week after the blaze severely damaged the overpass. Initially, officials warned that the freeway could be closed for weeks or months, but the bridge structure was in better shape than anticipated. Still, the repair work has moved with extraordinary speed, and it shows what is possible when leaders put their energy, organizations and funding toward delivering quick results. Read more: Editorial: The 10 Freeway closure is an opportunity to make public transit shine So, why cant more transportation projects get the speedy treatment? Although the work being done on the 10 Freeway is a model of expediency, other important transportation repair jobs have taken far longer to complete. Take for example the rail line used by Amtraks Pacific Surfliner and Metrolink between Orange and San Diego counties. Its the second busiest passenger route in the country, but was out of service for six months from late 2022 to early 2023 after a landslide and coastal erosion undermined the tracks. Its taken a year in some cases to repair storm-damaged bike paths in Los Angeles, leaving those routes closed to riders and forcing them onto busy streets, noted Michael Schneider, founder of the road safety advocacy group Streets for All. Read more: Editorial: California's transportation spending doesn't match its climate promises And when it comes to new transportation projects, well, dont hold your breath. Metro has been planning to build a busway on Vermont Avenue for nearly a decade, and it still isn't slated for completion until 2027. Californias high-speed rail project, which was approved by voters in 2008, wont have its first segment in operation until 2030. And there are countless other valuable projects that are moving at a snails pace because of red tape and funding delays. Of course, new projects take longer than repair projects, and some repairs are more complicated and take more time to complete. (Highway 1 through Big Sur is still closed after storm damage in January.) The point is not that Californians should expect every transportation project to be completed in weeks or months or even a few years. But rather, the frenzy to fix the 10 demonstrates how government agencies can move fast when there is the opportunity and political will. Read more: Editorial: New York City is moving forward with congestion pricing. Los Angeles should be next Within hours of the fire under the freeway, Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency , which allowed agencies to bypass bureaucracy and permitting, access emergency funding and offer private contractors financial incentives if they complete the work faster. Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass were on scene with promises to work across local, state and federal agencies to get the route reopened as fast as possible. Bass gave daily briefings and stepped up public transit options for commuters. The California Department of Transportation set up a command center on site to coordinate the work, and construction crews have been working 24/7. And the federal government gave Caltrans $3 million in quick release emergency funds, money that is available only for freeways and bridges. That kind of immediate federal assistance is not available for rail and other transportation projects, state officials said. The model of interagency coordination, on-the-ground leadership, cutting red tape and fast funding has worked before look at Interstate 95 in Philadelphia, which reopened 12 days after it collapsed earlier this year. But it should not be reserved only for the rare freeway catastrophe. There are countless other transit, pedestrian and safe-streets projects that deserve a similar sense of urgency. Transportation is the state's biggest source of planet-warming emissions. Rapidly building our transportation system to make it easier and faster for people to get around without a car, while also expanding the electric vehicle charging network, will help address the longer-term catastrophe of climate change. If its in the news right now, the L.A. Times Opinion section covers it. Sign up for our weekly opinion newsletter. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Giant panda cub Xiao Qi Ji plays at his enclosure at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington in September. On Nov. 8, he and his parents were loaded by forklift onto trucks for the trip to Chengdu, China. (Jose Luis Magana / Associated Press) They are not typical diplomatic envoys. They spend their time eating, snoozing, lollygagging in the grass and rolling in the snow. But the giant pandas that have roamed a few select U.S. zoos for the last half century have captivated visitors who flocked to exhibits and lined up to see the debut of panda cubs and marvel at what seemed like plush toys come to life. In a way that only exotic creatures can do, they enchanted Americans. So people were understandably bummed when the Chinese government ordered all remaining pandas in U.S. zoos back to China. The three at the Smithsonian's National Zoo in D.C. flew back (via FedEx) earlier this month, with the four at Zoo Atlanta scheduled to depart next year. Did the Chinese decide to take them back as a, well, (you know), to the U.S. government at a time of deteriorating relations? Read more: Opinion: Think humans' treatment of animals has improved in 50 years? Think again We dont know exactly why the Chinese ended the panda loan but we were heartened to hear Chinese President Xi Jinping say on Wednesday after meeting with President Biden in Northern California that the Chinese "are ready to continue our cooperation with the United States on panda conservation." He said he'd learned that the San Diego Zoo and people in California very much look forward to welcoming pandas back." Yes, we do. The only giant pandas to call California home were those loaned to the San Diego Zoo, which returned its last pandas to China in 2019. "We are excited to hear of President Xis commitment in continuing the giant panda conservation efforts between our two countries, and his attention to the wish of Californians and the San Diego Zoo to see the return of giant pandas, said Paul A. Baribault, president and chief executive of the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. Read more: Editorial: The L.A. Zoo's plan to house mountain lions and grizzlies shouldn't mean wrecking the view We get it that an agreement over pandas doesn't resolve issues over spy balloons, Taiwan, fentanyl and other things. But it's still promising and unexpected good news that the Chinese would agree to share their pandas with us again. The program was always more than just a gift of cute rare animals. Although the first pandas did arrive in 1972 as a gift from Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai to the American people after President Nixon's historic visit to China. During the trip, First Lady Pat Nixon told the premier how much she liked pandas. Anyone who lived in D.C. in the 70s and 80s will remember the zoos relentless and closely chronicled efforts to get Ling Ling pregnant. (Pandas are notoriously difficult to breed.) Although the zoo was successful several times, all the cubs she bore died shortly after birth. Read more: Opinion: Why shouldn't elephants have rights? They're intelligent beings who can feel joy and sorrow The National Zoo as well as Zoo Atlanta, the San Diego Zoo and the Memphis Zoo would go on, collectively, to host more than a couple dozen pandas including the bevy of surviving cubs born here over the last several decades. Over the years, zoos got better at breeding and raising healthy cubs. The panda program helped support their survival in the wild. U.S. zoos paid $1 million per year for the pandas funds that went to China for conservation and research. Any cubs born in the U.S. zoos had to be returned at a young age. Zoo Atlanta has contributed more than $16 million for the conservation of giant pandas, the zoo says on its website. Those funds have supported research on genetic diversity and reserve management, among other projects. The conservation efforts have helped the panda population rebound in the bamboo forests of southern China. Giant pandas were once considered endangered after their numbers dwindled to about 1,100 in the 1980s due to loss of habitat. With an estimated 1,864 pandas in the wild at last count, their status was adjusted in 2016 to "vulnerable" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Reviving the panda program won't solve the conflicts between the U.S. and China. But it is one effort toward conservation that gives another generation of Americans a chance to get to know these remarkable animals. If its in the news right now, the L.A. Times Opinion section covers it. Sign up for our weekly opinion newsletter. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Floridians, take notice. Your right to a representative government is being stolen away. Recent headlines document angry eruptions among an audience of people who show up to meetings ready to tell their leaders what they think only to be muzzled by time limits that shut down some would-be participants before they could utter a single word. More often, however, the exclusion is happening quietly and secretly, in meetings that never take place. Closed doors that should be open. A row of empty seats on a dais, facing a roomful of chairs that are also empty. The result, however, is the same: The only people who can register their concerns face-to-face with their elected officials are the elites who can afford the private clubs and campaign contributions that give them direct access to power. The voices of regular Floridians are shut out or told to shut up. Let us speak That latter command stirred an outcry November 9-10 when the Board of Governors of Floridas state university system convened in Orlando. As the Sentinels Annie Martin reported, a crowd primed to protest rules that threaten free-expression rights on Florida campuses overspilled the boundaries of the meeting room and a designated overflow room. In a cruelly related dictate, Board Chairman Brian Lamb denied them the right to speak in favor of free speech, diversity and inclusion by imposing a 15-minute time limit on all public comment. When he gaveled the discussion to a close, the crowd chanted Let us speak. But a majority of board members were unwilling to listen. Lamb said the limitation was customary, Martin reported. Thats categorically false. Across Florida, elected and appointed boards and commissions have taken it as a point of pride: When their constituents show up to a public meeting, they deserve the opportunity to be heard. Its even enshrined in the state constitution. A brutal quiet Even worse, however, are those meetings that never take place. The public is not just shut out of a chance to talk about what their elected officials are doing they are denied the chance to listen. That was also on display or rather, not over the past week, which was one of the last scheduled committee weeks before the state Legislature starts its regular session in January. Editorial: DeSantis has yet to explain why just 20 ex-felons were singled out on voting charges These committee meetings are essential parts of Floridas legislative process, because they are the publics only opportunity to directly address lawmakers on issues that are important to everyday Floridians. Of 35 House committees, 16 canceled their meetings last week; the ratio was even worse in the Senate, where 17 of 26 committees did not meet. Among them: All 10 of the committees Sen. Linda Stewart, D-Orlando, serves on, including Banking and Insurance; Governmental Oversight and Accountability; and Appropriations. Stewart said she didnt even bother to return to Tallahassee after the November 6-10 special session. The cost of those cancellations could be devastating for Floridians who hoped to ask lawmakers for statutory changes governing everything from homeowners associations to prison conditions or to register their opposition to policies that take away essential freedoms or reduce oversight. Because legislation must be heard in at least one committee before it goes to the floor, shutting down committee meetings means narrowing the pipeline that allows that information to flow. It also means an increased likelihood that lawmakers will seek to link their unheard bills to other legislation creating massive trains that thunder through the legislative process before anyone can register whats happening. Wed like Senate President Katherine Passidomo and House Speaker Paul Renner to explain why these meetings were canceled, and pledge that legislation will be given ample public hearing time. Stewart says shes worried that many of her bills will die on the vine. That includes tax exemptions for local businesses, and a request from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to preserve evidence that supports victims of sexual assault. Lately, she said, shes hearing disturbing rumors that an entire weeks worth of committee meetings in December might also be canceled. Were already at a breaking point, she told the Orlando Sentinel Thursday. Ive never seen anything like this happen before. Closed doors But it has with the Florida Cabinet, a governmental construction that is unique to this state. The Cabinet includes the governor along with three independent, statewide leaders the attorney general, the chief financial officer and the commissioner of agriculture and consumer services. Its intended to serve as a check over a governors executive power by providing independent oversight for executive-branch operations and finances. The same officials make up several independent boards, such as the State Board of Administration, which oversees the states multi-billion-dollar investment accounts; the Florida Land and Water Adjudicatory Commission, charged with protecting the states environment while hearing appeals of local growth decisions and the State Board of Executive Clemency, which considers civil rights of former felons. In a normal year, the Cabinet (and the associated commissions) would have met at least 11 times, usually over a two-day span. This year, the Cabinet met five times. Three of those meetings were by phone. One, on March 13, was only seven minutes long. This is how Floridians lose their chance to be heard. The business of state government grinds on but it does so in secret, with no oversight, no chance to voice protest or encouragement to those entrusted with vast power. Floridians must confront their elected and appointed leaders and demand change. It will be hard, since they cant even see, right now, what opportunities are being taken away. It may require more amendments to the state constitution but even that is no guarantee, since many provisions meant to hold Floridas leaders accountable are being trampled. In the end, all Floridians can do is register our outrage directly to elected officials and in the voting booth. Our birthright is sunshine. But darkness is taking hold. The Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Opinion Editor Krys Fluker, Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson and Viewpoints Editor Jay Reddick. Contact us at insight@orlandosentinel.com Harrowing body-camera video captured an elderly woman begging police for help just hours before she was allegedly shot dead by her caretaker. Police responded to 82-year-old Juneanne Fannells home in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, in April after her caretaker, Henry Cardana, called 911. Mr Cardana told the 911 dispatcher that Fannell, a hospice patient, was uncontrollable and needed to be removed from her home for her own safety, according to KOAT. The 82-year-old Fannell then told the dispatcher that she felt like she was in danger and she mentioned Mr Cardanas firearms. When police arrived, video released this month shows one officer asking Mr Cardana: Youre a firearms guy? Oh, yeah, Mr Cardana replies. Nice, the officer says. Theyre loaded. Theyre ready to go, the caretaker says. We dont need to see them, the officer says, adding, I like folks that have guns, explaining that hes also a gun owner. As the officers turn to leave, Fannell begs them: Please dont leave me. Cardana then says something inaudible on the video, to which Fannell replies: What did you say? I said youre fine until I kill you, Mr Cardana says. All right? Hes threatened to do that, Fannell tells the officers. Get out of here now, Mr Cardana snaps at the officers. Go away. Four hours later, police were called back to Fannells home after a neighbour made a harrowing 911 call. Seemingly referring to Mr Cardana, the neighbour said: He says hes killed her. Officers then found Fannell dead and Mr Cardana covered in blood. Rio Rancho Police Chief Stewart Steele defended the officers actions to KOAT as the video was released this month, saying there was no reasonable belief to suspect that either individual was sincerely contemplating an imminent act of violence. The officers also lacked the authority to arrest, implement a protective order or file a petition under the Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act which keeps guns out of the hands of those who are at risk to themselves or others, the chief added. Mr Cardana was charged with murder. The caretaker allegedly blamed police for the 82-year-olds death. Neuralink, Elon Musk's brain-computer interface company, has won approval to start its first human clinical trials. (Getty Images) (NurPhoto via Getty Images) The idea of connecting our brains to computer systems is a staple of science-fiction films like The Matrix but it could become a reality next year. Elon Musk's start-up Neuralink aims to install brain chips in up to 11 people in 2024, with thousands of volunteers having lined up to take part. Research by Foresight Factory suggests that more than a third of consumers (35%) would be willing to have such a chip implanted, in order to connect directly to computer systems. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently gave Neuralink approval to begin human trials, after initially refusing it. Neuralink, which launched in 2016, is centred on creating devices that can be implanted in the human brain, and has already implanted chips successfully in mice, pigs and monkeys. The startup is working on flexible threads, far thinner than human hair, designed to be implanted into the brain by a large robot to 'read' brain activity. Read more: Elon Musk to start human trials with brain chip startup Neuralink Musk has made various claims for what Neuralink may one day be able to do from 'telepathic' communication to wearers being able to operate bionic limbs based on Tesla's Optimus robot. A report by one of Musk's biographers, Ashlee Vance, recently described the procedure, with a surgeon removing a chunk of skull, before a robot weaves in electrodes and super-thin wires into the brain. A separate unit sits behind the ear, with wires running directly into the wearer's brain. Musk reportedly urged the team to speed up progress in the wake of a breakthrough by rival Synchron, one of whose patients sent a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, using only his mind earlier this year. What will happen in the first human trial? The first trial will focus on people with quadriplegia due to cervical spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). In the trial, Neuralink hopes to give people the ability to control a computer cursor or keyboard using their thoughts alone. How does Neuralink work and what can it treat? Neuralink's device has a chip that processes and transmits neural signals from implants in the brain to a unit behind the ear and from there to devices like computers and phones. The company hopes that a person would potentially be able to control a mouse, keyboard or other computer functions such as text messaging with their thoughts. Neuralink also believes its device will eventually be able to restore neural activity inside the body, allowing those with spinal cord injuries to move limbs. The San Francisco and Austin-based firm also aspires to cure neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's and dementia. Is Neuralink unique? Far from it. Not only are there direct rivals such as Synchron, but there are several other companies working on implants of various kinds. BlackRock Neurotech's Neuralace can be installed in human brains. (BlackRock Neurotech) (BlackRock Neurotech) Writing in The Conversation, David Tuffley, senior lecturer in applied ethics and cyber security at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia, said: "Neural implants have been helping people since the early 1960s when the first cochlear implant was placed in a person with impaired hearing. There has been much progress in the 60 years since then." An under-the-radar firm, Blackrock Neurotech (unrelated to the asset management firm) has implanted brain computer interfaces (BCIs) in dozens of patients over the past 19 years. Their chips have helped paralysed patients create art to play Pong in the lab and the company hopes to create a version for use in the home soon, with ambitions to create implants that could deal with deafness and blindness. What has Elon Musk claimed the tech will be able to do? In his typical style, Musk has said Neuralink could lead to a future in which man and machine merge and has promised to install the tech in himself. He has made similarly ambitious statements in the past about the technology, which some hope could treat Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, having said in 2019 that he would be testing on humans in 2020. Replying to a question on X, Musk said that the technology could one day be used to stream music directly into users' brains. He added that the technology "would solve a lot of brain/spine injuries and is ultimately essential for AI symbiosis". Musk has previously said: "Over time I think we will probably see a closer merger of biological intelligence and digital intelligence. "It's mostly about the bandwidth, the speed of the connection between your brain and the digital version of yourself, particularly output." OpenAI fired its CEO Sam Altman on Friday. Elon Musk said OpenAI should explain why it fired Altman, citing AI's potential dangers. Musk previously said he left the OpenAI board in 2018 over safety concerns. Elon Musk said the potential danger of artificial intelligence is so great that OpenAI, the most powerful AI company in the world right now, should disclose the reason it fired CEO Sam Altman. OpenAI announced Altman's firing Friday, saying only that the company, which makes ChatGPT, "no longer has confidence in his ability to continue leading." Musk, responding to a post on X from former Yammer CEO David Sacks, said that "given the risk and power of advanced AI, the public should be informed of why the board felt they had to take such drastic action." Given the risk and power of advanced AI, the public should be informed of why the board felt they had to take such drastic action Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2023 Musk is a former OpenAI board member but left the company in 2018, citing a conflict of interest with Tesla. Musk later told CNBC, however, that he had become concerned with the company's possible impact on society. It's worth noting, though, that Musk's own AI company will probably only benefit from the current chaos at OpenAI. One reason for Altman's ouster may have been growing tension among the company's leadership over the dangers AI poses for humanity. Altman has aggressively sought funding to expand the technology's development, while several other board members have called on the company to do more to mitigate any threats. OpenAI's cofounder Ilya Sutskever who played a role in Altman's dismissal for example, has preferred to tread more carefully given AI's potential to harm society. The New York Times reported that Sutskever created a "Super Alignment" team within the company before Altman's ouster to ensure that future versions of GPT-4, the technology behind ChatGPT, wouldn't be harmful to humanity. Read the original article on Business Insider Denmark is considering a new law that would tax all flights in an effort to boost the country's sustainable energy goals, but not all the money raised would be used for green energy. The new proposal would tax passengers about $9 for flights within Europe, $25 for medium distance flights, and $56 for long-distance flights, according to a report from the Washington Post. The new tax is expected to raise about 1.2 billion krones, or roughly $176 million, and would be used to fund a transition to having all Danish domestic flights use sustainable fuels by 2030. Another portion of the funds raised would go toward paying pension increases to elderly Danes, according to the report. US AVIATION EXPERTS WARN OF DECLINING SAFETY CONDITIONS AT AIRPORTS A view of SAS plane at Oslo Gardermoen International Airport. "Flying takes a toll on the climate, which is why we need to equip our flight sector with green wings," Denmarks Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities Lars Aagaard told the Washington Post. "The flight sector in Denmark must as all other sectors lower its carbon footprint and get on board a green future. We will create that change and make green flights our reality." The policy would be phased in over time, the report notes, starting in 2025 and with the goal of a complete transition by 2030. The country also plans to have its domestic flight route powered by all-green-fuels in the skies by 2025. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Airbus A330-200 prototype at the 1998 Farnborough Airshow. But not everyone is convinced the move will make much of a difference, with some comparing the tax to a European-wide effort to "greenwash" airlines that misrepresent their sustainable energy practices. CRISIS AVERTED...FOR NOW: PILOT REVEALS WHY PLANES BARELY AVOIDING TRAGEDY AS TERRIFIED PASSENGERS SPEAK OUT "This proposal is little more than greenwash that will ultimately fuel the industrys growth. The tax is too tiny for demand reduction, and most of it will be swallowed by the industry," Magdalena Heuwieser, co-founder of the Stay Grounded network, told the Washington Post. Instead, Heuwieser believes that Denmark should ban all domestic flights and promote the country's rail system. SAS aircraft parked on the tarmac during the pilot strike, at Copenhagen Airport, on July 18, 2022. "This would be much more sustainable, as flying is always more energy intensive, no matter which technology might come up in the future," Heuwieser said. Original article source: European country wants to charge 'green tax' on all flights to fund pensions: report An explosion was heard in occupied Melitopol, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the citys exiled mayor Ivan Fedorov announced on Telegram on Nov. 19. The blast occurred just before 7 p.m. local time. There is currently no information as to what caused the explosion or if there are any casualties. The city has been under Russian occupation since March 2022. An important logistics hub for Russian forces, it is frequently targeted by the Ukrainian military. Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) on Nov. 12 reported that a powerful explosion at a Russian military headquarters in the city had killed at least three Russian officers. HUR said the attack was an "act of revenge" carried out by representatives of the local resistance movement on Nov. 11. The alleged headquarters was located at the former office of Nova Poshta, a private Ukrainian postal service. Read also: Official: Ukraine destroys over 700 units of Russian military equipment, 7,000 troops in past week Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Jed Clark drives his combine while harvesting soybeans, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023, in Lynnville, Ky. After historic rainfall in July 2023, floods submerged crops on Clark's farm, destroying about 18 acres of tobacco crop and 200 acres of soybeans. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) MAYFIELD, Ky. (AP) Justin Ralph estimates he's made about 200 trips delivering grain from the fields he farms with his brother and uncle this year. They're accustomed to using their four semi-trucks to take the harvest from a total of about 800 acres each of corn, soybeans and wheat to market. What they're not used to are the distances they've had to drive the past couple years, a consequence of bad weather that's only expected to increase in their area as a result of climate change. They used to take advantage of a grain elevator in Mayfield, Kentucky a massive facility that bought and stored millions of bushels of grain from farmers. But it was destroyed in the 2021 tornado outbreak that killed dozens of people and leveled entire parts of the town, and the company that ran it shut down. Now, instead of driving ten minutes, they sometimes travel an hour or more. The swings in the weather events that we have ... thats kind of scary, he said, especially for those with smaller farms. If youve got a larger farm operation, your acreage is spread out over a larger area, so the risks are probably minimized more because theyre spread out more. Farmers and experts echo Ralph and say that larger farms have more ways to manage risk, but smaller to midsize farmers struggle when extreme weather hits. Human-caused climate change is only anticipated to amplify the number and intensity of those extreme events, from flash droughts to increased rainfall. And as the planet warms, scientists say the country will see more tornado- and hail-spawning storms and that those deadly events will strike more frequently in populous mid-Southern states a big issue for everyone living in those areas and especially for those trying to hold onto small family farms. That's already a reality for the area around Mayfield, which is in a flat coastal plain region in the western part of the state and which has been hit by extreme weather in more ways than one. In addition to the 2021 tornado outbreak, this summer they were hit by flooding that surpassed 10 inches in some areas, submerging crops. Keith Lowry, another farmer near Mayfield, woke up one morning this summer to eight inches of rain, and by dinner time, when the deluge finally stopped, knew he had a problem. Lowry found fields of half-submerged corn, soybeans that had disappeared under the flooding almost entirely and rapids rushing from their spillway like a waterfall. Now, at harvest time, he estimates that they lost between five and 10% of their crop this year. Whats more, they had to deal with the debris that had washed into their fields, a nuisance that gets in the way of heavy machinery. Lowry has a relatively big operation 3,000 acres, mostly in corn and soybeans, along with another 2,000 acres his son farms. Although he took some losses, he says that he and other farmers are used to dealing with uncooperative weather. Thats the nature of the beast, he said. But without the grain elevator or on-farm storage and with limited transportation options, Lowry explained that his neighbors would have been stuck with soybeans in their fields. That's why a cloudy day this November found him helping out on a much smaller parcel of land, to bring in a harvest from about 250 acres. While farmers and town residents have leaned on each other to be resilient, the compounding effect of those natural disasters has had lasting impacts on a community where agriculture is at the heart of commerce. Because we have such a big county thats really heavily populated with grain farmers, the loss of (the grain elevator) has forced them to move to surrounding counties, oftentimes 40 or 50 miles away to transport their grain, said Miranda Rudolph, the University of Kentucky's cooperative extension agent for Graves County. She said that fuel costs have risen, adding to the strain. Hans Schmitz, a conservation agronomist with Purdue's extension agency, said that large farms tend to have a wider range of options to balance out their risk, including crop insurance, which often costs less per acre when applied to larger areas. Jed Clark, for example, who farms about 3,000 acres of grain near Mayfield, said that he relies on crop insurance and also tries to spread out his crop rotations strategically, betting that crops in a low-lying area will do well in a dry year and that crops on higher ground will outlast the ones that are washed out when it floods. On smaller farms, if farmers are forced to put everything in a low-lying area that floods, an entire crop can be affected, Schmitz said. Farmers with less land therefore sometimes look toward specialty crops like watermelon or tomato to try to increase profits with the acreage they have, but those crops are not as easily insured. Schmitz said he thinks that climate change is contributing to the consolidation of farmland that is, large farms getting larger. Its relatively easy for a very small farm to get started, but harder to stay afloat. What concerns me is the hollowing out of the middle, he said. The capability of a smaller farm to survive also has to do with infrastructure, said Adam Kough, another Kentucky farmer who has a mostly family-run 1200 acres of corn, soybeans and wheat (as well as two swine barns and 100 sheep) between Mayfield and Murray. He thinks the farmers who were hurt the most after the tornado were those who didn't have grain storage on their land. Kough said he has noticed changes in the weather over the years, but he thinks a corporate mentality has more to do with why big farms will always get bigger. People have changed more than the weather has, he said. The morals have changed in the last 20 years ... I call it cutthroat." Still, the weather impacts are undeniable. Schmitz, who also farms about 1200 acres of corn, soybeans and wheat in Indiana, says that he's seen increasing summertime humidity foster diseases of wheat, barley and oats in the Midwest. He's seen higher nighttime temperatures induce more heat stress on most crops. And he said that while some farmers turn to irrigation to get them through sudden and intense droughts he's seen those same irrigation pivots end up in standing water after intense and sudden floods. It goes back to the old saying that in the Midwest, if you dont like the weather, wait 5 minutes.' We certainly always have had the capacity for pretty significant changes in weather over a short period of time, he said. But to see climate change exacerbating those potential extremes both ways within a short period of time is disconcerting. ___ Associated Press journalist Joshua Bickel contributed to this report. ___ Read more of APs climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment ___ Follow Melina Walling on X, formerly known as Twitter: @MelinaWalling. ___ Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about APs climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Claim: Images shared on social media authentically show Osama bin Laden posing with Barack Obama, Condoleezza Rice, and Hillary Clinton. Rating: Rating: Fake An image consisting of three photos allegedly showing 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden posing with former U.S. President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, was posted online several hundred times. Only one post, shared in May 2023, had over 119,000 views on X (formerly Twitter). The collage was also attached to posts in various languages, such as Korean, Persian, or Spanish. "Thought I unfollowed them all," a post shared on Reddit in 2019 read: TinEye search results showed that the collage has been shared online at least since 2015. The first of the three pictures allegedly shows Barack Obama posing with bin Laden. However, the original version of that photo did not feature bin Laden. According to www.attyandrewooten.com website, it showed "Attorney Andre Wooten seen here having some quality time with Senator Barack Obama." The photo was captured when the senator visited Hawaii. (X user @theMemesBot, www.attyandrewooten.com) What's more, the image was used for the cover of the book "African American Attorneys In Hawaii," which at the time of this writing was available on Amazon. The second picture allegedly shows Rice standing next to bin Laden. "Released Photo of Condoleezza Rice and Osama bin Laden in party 2 weeks before 9/11," one X post claimed. Released Photo of Condoleezza Rice and Osama Bin Laden in party 2 weeks before 9/11 https://t.co/FH92KP49uj #svpol pic.twitter.com/VOkhnXWqcF olofpalmskrutt (@olofpalmskrutt) February 19, 2015 Moreover, the above-mentioned post redirected to an article that read: A newly declassified photo showing former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and super terrorist Osama Bin Laden has been released under the Freedom of Information Act. The photo purportedly shows the two partying at a wine and dine in an American owned bar at Kandahar, Afghanistan just two weeks before the infamous and fateful 9/11. Unnamed C.I.A. sources say the purpose of the soiree was to drug Bin Laden with truth serum and get him to divulge any impending terrorist plans. According to the sources Bin Laden got very drunk and was whisked away by his bodyguards before the truth serum could take affect. We have also found a meme template featuring the picture with a title "September 11th 2001 Inside Job Controlled Demolition." (imgflip.com) In reality, the image was digitally edited, and we reported on it back in 2015. The photograph was originally created for an April Fool's Day Photoshop Contest in 2008 organized by FreakingNews.com, which described itself as a "photoshop contest site focusing on news, politics, and celebrities." (X user @ElPizarronNene) The third picture was also digitally edited for the the FreakingNews.com Photoshop Contest, similarly to the one featuring Condoleezza Rice. The organizer's directions for the contest read: Contest Directions: Senator Hillary Clinton officially declared her bid for presidency 2008. Making her announcement Hillary said "I'm in". This is the phrase she rarely heard from Bill in their bedroom. In this contest you are asked to photoshop anything connected to Senator Hillary Clinton running for president of United States. Examples may be photoshopping magazine covers, campaign photos, or future presidency achievements. We accessed the currently unavailable website of the contest via the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, and the image's description in 2008 read "Going for the terrorist vote." (www.freakingnews.com) The original version of the picture could be found on www.swarmandal.com website and it showed Hillary Clinton shaking hands with an Indian musician, Shubhashish Mukherjee. (X user @TopInfoBlogs, www.swarmandal.com) In sum, all three photos visible in the viral image were digitally edited to insert the face of Osama bin Laden. Because of that we have rated this claim as Fake. If you ever find a suspicious image on social media, free to send it to us so we can fact check it. Sources: Amazon.Com. https://www.amazon.com/African-American-Attorneys-Hawaii-Barbee-Wooten/dp/0986075515. Accessed 15 Nov. 2023. Attyandrewooten.Com. 7 Jan. 2020, https://web.archive.org/web/20200107162226/https://www.attyandrewooten.com/23a.html. Hillary Clinton for President? Pictures - Strange Hillary Clinton for President? Pics. 21 Dec. 2007, https://web.archive.org/web/20071221112952/https://www.freakingnews.com/Hillary-Clinton-for-President-Pictures--1303.asp. Home - Freaking News Pictures. 28 May 2018, https://web.archive.org/web/20180528191750/https://freakingnews.com/faq5.asp#11. Mikkelson, David. Condoleezza Rice and Osama Bin Laden. Snopes, 19 Feb. 2015, https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/condoleezza-and-osama/. ---. Hillary Clinton Meets Osama Bin Laden. Snopes, 5 June 2015, https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/hillary-clinton-meets-osama-bin-laden/. Shubhashish Mukherjee. https://www.swarmandal.com/AsiaInWashington.html. Accessed 15 Nov. 2023. ALTAMONT, Utah (ABC4) A family was hospitalized after officials said their cabin was found full of carbon monoxide in Duchesne County. At approximately 2:30 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18, Duchesne County Sheriffs Office deputies responded to a rental cabin at the Six Lakes Lodge, according to the Duchesne County Sheriffs Office on social media. What you need to know for the Municipal General Election Family members reported feeling sick during the evening and into the night, and the Altamont Fire Department, along with the Altamont and Roosevelt Ambulances, were dispatched to the location Using a carbon monoxide detector, the Altamont Fire Department found the cabin was full with carbon monoxide, causing the occupants to become sick. All occupants were reportedly transported to the Uintah Basin Medical Center for treatment. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now ABC4 Daily News Every year in the U.S., at least 420 people die and more than 100,000 people visit the emergency room from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Red Cross recommends installing carbon monoxide detectors in central locations on every level of your home and outside sleeping areas. If the carbon monoxide alarm sounds, the Red Cross says to move quickly to a fresh air location outside or by an open window or door. Additionally, they recommend checking and changing the batteries in your carbon monoxide alarms every six months, just like your smoke alarms. While the Red Cross of Utah does not provide free carbon monoxide detectors, their staff and volunteers do install free smoke detectors. While in homes, their teams check the batteries of existing smoke alarms and will check carbon monoxide detectors as well. Residents who cannot afford smoke alarms or are physically unable to install one or check and replace batteries should contact the Red Cross of Utah. More information is available here. Common symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include headaches, dizziness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah. FRISCO, Texas - The family of Dung Doan is heartbroken after he was shot and killed outside a Walmart in Frisco earlier this week. Police said the suspect hasnt been caught in what they believe was a random shooting that happened just after 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, outside a Walmart located at the corner of Preston Road and Hickory Street. It left one person dead and another injured. Family identified the deceased victim as Dung Doan. "Things were starting to look up for him," Doans niece, Kaitlin Nguyen, said. "And then we got the call on Thursday, and he's gone." It was a devastating call that Nguyen got from her aunt letting her know that her uncle died after a shooting in the parking lot of Walmart. "We thought maybe it was a robbery gone wrong," she said. "After finding out more information from the police, it doesn't sound like it. It just sounds like maybe some random act of violence, which is really scary because the murderer is still out there." Doan moved to the United States from Vietnam last year. "Just when he found out that he was able to come to America, I felt like it's like he was hitting the jackpot," she recalled. "His wife came two years ago, and he has some medical problems that he stayed behind." Family said Doan walked from his apartment to the Walmart frequently. "He was living in that apartment right across from Walmart. So you know, he is trying to do more walking just to be on the healthier side," Nguyen said. He leaves behind two children, and was working to put his son through college in Toronto, Canada. "It's heartbreaking to hear from his daughter that shepart of her still hopes that he would come back. You know, he has a lot of family members that love him," his niece said. "I'm sure he never thought something like this could happen in America, right? Its supposed to be a better place, a safer place. And how scared he was when he was taking his last breath. And his family couldn't be there." Frisco police said the second victim is expected to recover from their injuries. Anyone with information that can help authorities is asked to contact Frisco police. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis knocked former President Donald Trump over his age Sunday, saying the presidency is not a job for an 80-year-old. If elected, Trump would be 78 on the first day of his second term. He's approximately four years younger than President Joe Biden, whose age has been raised as an issue by Republican foes, as well as some voters in polling. This is not the same guy as the Trump in 2015 and '16. That Trump would show up on the debate stage, he would barnstorm, the Republican presidential hopeful said of the former president during an interview on CNNs State of the Union. Now he's wedded to the Teleprompter, he's not willing to debate, and he's running on many of the same things he promised to do in 2016 and didn't deliver, DeSantis added. In October, DeSantis campaign began tracking what it describes as Trumps blunders with a so-called Trump Accident Tracker, in effort to highlight the front-runners gaffes, pointing to some of Trumps missteps as the reason his handlers wont let him debate. Age has been a constant topic in the 2024 presidential election, as voters prepare for a race that looks primed to pit Trump against Biden, who will turn 81 on Monday. (DeSantis is 45.) Look, when you get to this point the presidency is not a job for somebody that's pushing 80 years old, I just think that that's something that has been shown with Joe Biden, DeSantis said Sunday. Father Time is undefeated. Donald Trump is not exempt from any of that. The wreckage of a downed Shahed, archive photo Russia launched a series of kamikaze drone attacks across Ukraine in the early hours of Nov. 19. No casualties have been reported thus far. Debris damaged several houses in Cherkasy Oblast. In Kyiv Oblast, an infrastructure facility was damaged. Read also: Civilian hospitalized, energy infrastructure damaged in Russian drone attack on Odesa Oblast Air defense systems stationed around Ukraines capital Kyiv successfully intercepted and destroyed a significant number of incoming drones. The Air Force subsequently confirmed the destruction of 15 drones, and that air defense systems were active in three oblasts. 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 Finland accuses Russia of flooding borders with Middle Eastern migrants in retaliation for cooperation with US Finland has accused Russia of flooding its borders with migrants from the Middle East and Africa over its decision to increase defense cooperation with the United States, a claim which Moscow denies. As many as 300 migrants from Iraq, Yemen, Somalia and Syria have arrived in Finland this week, Reuters reported, citing the Finnish Border Guard. The arrivals have prompted Finland to erect barricades at the border with Russia to stop the migrants from crossing freely into the country. The razor-wire barriers were put up Friday around midnight at the Vaalimaa, Nuijamaa, Imatra and Niirala border posts in southeast Finland, border officials said. After two people breached the barriers and crossed into Finland, border authorities said the barriers would be improved so that similar crossings would be impossible. ZELENSKYY WARNS RUSSIA WANTS TO CAUSE EXPLOSION IN THE BALKANS Migrants, mostly from the Middle East and Africa, have arrived in the Nordic nation without proper documentation and have sought asylum after allegedly being helped by Russian authorities to travel to the heavily controlled border zone. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Nearly all the migrants have arrived at the border zone on bicycles that Finnish and Russian media reports say were provided and sold to them. Confiscated bicycles sit at the border between Russia and Finland at the Nuijamaa border checkpoint in Finland on Friday. KREMLIN SAYS PUTIN'S EVENTUAL SUCCESSOR WILL BE DIFFERENT BUT THE SAME Moscow has denied the claims about being behind the flood of migrants. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russian authorities "deeply regret that the leadership of Finland chose the path of deliberate distancing from the previously good nature of our bilateral relations." A border guard vehicle moves bicycles used by asylum seekers to cross the border to an impound warehouse in Lappeenranta, Finland, on Saturday. CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Finland-Russia land border serves as the European Unions external frontier and runs a total of 832 miles (1,340 kilometers), mostly through thick forests in the south, reaching the rugged landscape in the Arctic north. There are currently nine crossing points, with one dedicated to rail travel only. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Original article source: Finland accuses Russia of flooding borders with Middle Eastern migrants in retaliation for cooperation with US The Finnish Defense Forces will assist the country's border guards in erecting fences near Kuhmo, a town near Finland's border with Russia, the Finnish Broadcasting Company reported on Nov. 19. According to the Finnish outlet, the Finnish defense forces were sent to help with construction of temporary barriers at the Vartius crossing station. The construction and materials needed have reportedly already arrived at the site. When asked by the outlet why they are building the fences, the Finnish Border Guard cited ensuring "public order and safety in the prevailing disturbance situation and to guarantee that legal cross-border traffic runs safely." The Finnish military are reportedly not providing the border guards with military assistance, as the "situation is under control." Finland closed several border crossings in an attempt to stop the flow of migrants of various origins from Russia. "Finland has chosen the path of confrontation with Russia. From the Kremlins point of view, this is a big mistake," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said. Finland closed four of its nine crossings along its eastern border from Nov. 17, 2023, to Feb. 18, 2024, to stop the flow of Middle Eastern and African migrants it says Moscow is purposefully ushering across the border, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo told reporters on Nov. 16. The four crossings on the southern stretch of the over 1,000-kilometer-long border are the busiest entry points between the two countries. Finland has accused Russia of encouraging or turning a blind eye to undocumented migrants in retaliation for Helsinki's accession to NATO in April. Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, during a press conference on Nov. 15, said Finland should be prepared for a certain malice from Russia over the country's accession to the alliance. Yes, we are now constantly being reminded every day that Finland joined NATO. I think that this time, maybe it was the DCA (defense cooperation agreement) that triggered the situation, he said. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen supported Finland's move, saying it was helping to protect the European Union's border. "Russia's instrumentalization of migrants is shameful. I fully support the measures taken by Finland," she said on X on Nov. 16. Finnish authorities reported a spike in asylum seekers arriving at its eastern border on Nov. 12. These are foreigners who pass through Russia from third countries, such as Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Somalia. Finnish media also reported in September that Russia has been building up its military bases along the border with Finland. Finland's Borders Act allows the government to close a crossing point or restrict border traffic for a limited or indefinite period of time in order to prevent serious threats to national security or public health. Finland shut its border to Russian tourists in September 2022. Read also: Finland plans to restrict border with Russia due to security concerns Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. A British astronaut could walk on the Moon for the first time by 2025, Nasa officials have told the UK Government. The space agency told Michelle Donelan, the Science Secretary, it was incredibly possible that a British person could be on the Artemis III mission the first time that humans will walk on the Moons surface in more than 50 years. She told The Telegraph it was only a matter of time until we get a British person on the Moon, and suggested UK astronauts should also be involved in the first missions to Mars in the next decade. All 12 people who have ever walked on the moons surface, on missions by Nasas Apollo space programme, have been American. But a new space race has sprung up as countries use lunar landings to test new technology that will be used to put a person on Mars prompting the first crewed moon missions since Apollo ended in 1972. India has said it hopes to put a person on the moon by 2040, and build a space station by 2035. Michelle Donelan says she asked Nasa specifically about getting a British astronaut onto the surface of the moon - Josh Valcarcel Nasas Artemis programme, which launched its first mission last year, is a collaboration between Nasa, the European Space Agency (ESA) and other agencies in Japan, Germany, Israel and Canada. The first mission, using the new Orion spacecraft, took flight in November 2022. A second, to put astronauts in lunar orbit on the Lunar Gateway satellite, launches in November next year, while the third will put humans on the moons surface in December 2025. British firms have been involved in constructing the Lunar Gateways service and habitation modules, while Elon Musks SpaceX has been chosen to ferry astronauts between the satellite and the surface. Ms Donelan visited Nasas Johnson Space Centre in Houston on Wednesday and said she had asked officials about the prospect of a British astronaut joining the crewed moon mission. I asked Nasa, in relation to the Artemis programme, what was the feasibility around the Artemis 3 mission, and they said it was incredibly possible, she said. We have one of the most innovative space sectors in the world, and we have some fantastic talents, homegrown. Look at Tim Peake. The second Artemis mission will be going around the moon, and then the third one will go on the moon. So arguably the one to be in is the third one. High hopes Mr Peake, the first British astronaut to go to the International Space Station, has already said he hopes to walk on the moon. Three other Britons were chosen to join the ESA last year, after 22,500 applications from across the continent. They are Rosemary Coogan, Meganne Christian and John McFall, a former Paralympian. Nasa officials visited London last July to discuss an international partner joining the Artemis III mission, which will also see a woman and person of colour visit the moon for the first time. British astronaut Tim Peake is a rare success story for the British space programme - Channel 5 Ms Donelan said she hopes British astronauts will also join future missions to Mars, which Nasa officials said on Wednesday could launch in the next ten years. Maybe we should be thinking more about whether we can get a Brit to Mars. What Im telling you is that weve got some fantastic talent that I know would certainly relish the opportunity, she said. The UK spends around 400m on the ESA each year, and is one of the top four contributors, alongside France, Germany and Italy. In September, Britain re-joined the Copernicus satellite programme, which is a collaboration between the ESA and EU, following a post-Brexit stand off over funding. The ESA is one of five space agencies, including Russias Roscosmos, that contributes to the International Space Station (ISS), which celebrates its 25th anniversary on Monday. Ongoing collaboration Ms Donelan, who visited Nasas Mission Control this week, welcomed the ongoing collaboration with Russia on the ISS in spite of the war in Ukraine. I think one of the things that struck me is that in those 25 years, theres been a great deal of conflict and change, including especially at the moment, given Russias involvement, she said. But the fact that it has been maintained as a constant really demonstrates how important the space agenda is, and how we can work together on projects when we set our minds to it. If we think about future telecoms and satellites, an area which we are particularly leading on, it is incredibly important, she added. Identifying weather patterns et cetera, all these different things it goes much further than just mans ambitions. The UK space industry employs 50,000 people and is worth more than 17.5 billion to the British economy, according to government figures. The RAF also operates a Space Command, based in Buckinghamshire, which has a remit to monitor the space domain, enable global military operations, and protect and defend allied interests in space. 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. Fisher Space Pen has some new Blue ballpoints. The maker of the pressurized-ink writing instruments used by astronauts to scrawl in space has partnered with Blue Origin to become the company's official pen provider. Fisher Space Pen will be the only brand ballpoint pen used on all of Blue Origin's upcoming crewed launches. "We can see the future, and Blue Origin is helping fly us there," Matt Fisher, vice president of Fisher Pen Company, said in a statement. "My grandfather helped build this company with an innovative product that yesterday's space pioneers needed, with a pen that has stood the test of time. This partnership now has all of us anticipating the possibilities that lie ahead, and we couldn't be more excited to help further our involvement in upcoming space endeavors Blue Origin will lead." Founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos with the goal of "building a road to space for the benefit of Earth," Blue Origin is developing and building reusable rocket engines, launch vehicles, in-space systems and lunar landers. The company has used its New Shepard launch vehicle to fly 31 people to date on suborbital spaceflights and has a contract with NASA to provide a human landing system for sustained access to the surface of the moon. Blue Origin is also working with Sierra Space on Orbital Reef, a commercial space station to be deployed in low Earth orbit. Related: Blue Origin shows off moon lander prototype for NASA's Artemis program 12 pens four of them blue and the others gray sit against a white background. To commemorate this new partnership, Fisher is releasing three custom-designed space pens featuring Blue Origin's feather logo representing the perfection of flight hardware design an ideal balance of strength and lightness. Fisher's original astronaut space pen, the AG7 model that first lifted off to space on NASA's Apollo 7 mission in 1968, has been updated for this release with a black titanium nitride exterior that helps protect it from scratches and gives it a stealthy appearance. Blue Origin's feather and celestial icons are laser engraved around the pen. The Blue Moon Bullet Space Pen features a blue translucent finish and a chrome feather symbol. The third release is also a Bullet, but with a matte black finish and the Blue Origin feather emblazoned in gold wrapping around the pen. The Blue Origin AG7 retails for $125, the Blue Moon Bullet is $45 and the matte black Bullet is $39. All three pens are available to order through the Fisher Space Pen website. two pens sit on the open pages of a small notebook. RELATED STORIES: Fisher Space Pen marks Apollo 11 50th with moon-flown material Fisher space pen celebrates 50 years in space with Apollo 7 pen set Axiom crews to use custom Fisher space pens on private missions As part of the agreement, Fisher is also joining forces with Blue Origin's nonprofit Club for the Future to help further engage students in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields. "Our partnership with Fisher Space Pen will inspire future generations to reach for the stars, write their STEM goals and leave an indelible mark in the space industry for the benefit of Earth," said Michael Edmonds, president of Club for the Future. Blue Origin is the latest company to continue Fisher Space Pen's legacy as the choice writing instrument for space-bound travelers. After being adopted by NASA at the start of the Apollo program and by the Soviet space program in 1969, Fisher space pens went on to be used on every crewed mission for the past five decades. Today, the company also has agreements with Virgin Galactic to fly on SpaceShipTwo suborbital vehicles and Axiom Space to launch on private SpaceX Dragon missions. Follow collectSPACE.com on Facebook and on Twitter at @collectSPACE. Copyright 2023 collectSPACE.com. All rights reserved. Cuttlefish is a type of squid popular in European markets Fishing industry leaders in Cornwall have expressed concern over the proposed introduction of a minimum landing size for cuttlefish. The species, which is a type of squid, is popular in European markets. The fishing industry says new rules would lead to wastage and damage the industry. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) says it is considering a management plan for cuttlefish, as there is currently none in place. 'Low stock levels' According to the Marine Conservation Society, there are "indications that populations are too small and fishing pressure is too high" in the English Channel. Reported landings in 2021 were 2,616 tonnes in the UK, considerably below the five-year average of 4,531 tonnes, which it said "may be due to low stock levels". The Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) Defra is being urged to agree other methods of stock control such as rotating the fishing grounds, which the fishing industry says would be more effective and acceptable. Chris Ranford from the Cornish Fish Producers Organisation, said: "This is the whole point of actually working with the fishing industry, to come up with good ideas, practical ways to manage the fishery. "The industry wants to do it. "It's got its own ideas and ways of doing that, and minimum landing size isn't one of them." One fishing spokesman said minimum landing size were not the answer Paul Trebilcock, managing director of Cornish trawler owners WH Stevenson said a proposal for a minimum size was "crazy". He said the difference between a legal and an illegal cuttlefish at 24cm (9.4 in) long was barely noticeable, and throwing back dead cuttlefish made no sense. South Devon MP Anthony Mangnall said he was confident that he could persuade the government to drop the minimum landing size idea, which he described as the wrong thing to do. The government is expected to make a decision on the cuttlefish management plan before Christmas. Follow BBC News South West on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk. While training, flight attendants rank their preferred "base cities" where they'll fly from. It's an intense process based on seniority and availability, but ultimately the airline decides. Videos of flight attendants revealing the cities they want vs the cities they get go viral. For the past couple of weeks across TikTok, bright-eyed flight attendant trainees have hopped on the app to eagerly share their base assignments, aka the city and airport they'll predominantly fly in and out of. It's a whirlwind of emotions. One flight attendant has her heart set on the Dallas-Forth Worth area. A clip later, she's defeated as she tells the camera she was assigned to LaGuardia Airport in New York. Meanwhile, others are bouncing with joy as they get their top pick: flying out of Chicago. To viewers, the process feels eerily reminiscent of sorority preferencing, where potential sisters rank which chapters they hope to join. And the results are filled with similar, extreme emotions. These base reveal videos have consumed people. A video by TikTok user @dogarmnose gained 10 million views in a week. Another by @rainclements has racked up 4.1 million views. Flight attendants share their reactions to their new homes in base reveal TikTok videos. David Becker/AP But there's a lot to the process viewers are missing. Business Insider spoke to three flight attendants at three different airlines. They shared what it's really like to go through a base reveal. "People are crying, people are angry, and some people quit even though you're almost through training," Lea McIntyre, an American Airlines flight attendant who goes by @flightattendantbaelee on TikTok and Instagram, told Business Insider. Some of the flight attendants who spoke to Business Insider for this article asked to omit full names, base locations, and/or airlines for privacy reasons. Insider verified these individuals' employment as flight attendants with pay stubs and ID badges. Flight attendants get assigned their base during training While training, uniforms, and rules can vary widely across airlines, the three flight attendants agreed that the base preferencing process is largely the same across airlines. Lea McIntyre, a flight attendant at American Airlines. @flightattendantbaelee/TikTok Once a flight attendant has accepted a job offer, they go through their airline's training, which can range from three to six weeks, McIntyre said. During training, flight attendants learn safety protocols, practice emergency drills, and get familiar with airplane equipment. This is also where they'll be assigned their base. The process works based on seniority and age In some of the TikTok videos, viewers are confused as some flight attendants seem overly confident they'll get their top choice. That's because the process works on seniority, McIntyre said. The older you are, the more likely you are to get a base of your choice. McIntyre added that this is regardless of whether you've had flight attendant experience or not. In her case, McIntyre had experience at a regional airline before working at American Airlines. When she was preferencing for American Airlines, her experience at a regional carrier didn't matter. Her age within her training class was what factored into the process. Flight attendants rank where they want to work Two flight attendants said their base reveal happened within the first three weeks of training. Before they received their assignments, the flight attendants were able to rank their top cities. Alajah Parker, a 25-year-old flight attendant who has been living in her base city for about a year now, told Business Insider her training class was asked to give a ranked top-four list. Parker's top choice was New York City, but she was placed in the second city on her list. She said she's loving it so far. Alajah Parker, a flight attendant at a US legacy airline. Alajah Parker "A lot of people got their first choice, some people got their second, and some people didn't get their pick at all if they were too junior," Parker said. McIntyre called the rankings a "dream sheet," placing an emphasis on "dream" because, ultimately, an airline is going to place the flight attendants where it needs people regardless of where they want to work. "People don't realize that when the airline asks, 'Are you willing and able to live anywhere?' they really mean it," she said. When London, a flight attendant who goes by the username @londonkaizen on TikTok, was going through JetBlue's training a few years ago, she was living in Los Angeles, California, she told Business Insider. Her top choice was to stay in LA, so she ranked that first. She also had dreams of living in New York, so she put that as her second choice. Below that were cities like Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Boston, Massachusetts; and Orlando, Florida. London said at the time she knew getting placed in LA was unlikely. For JetBlue, LA was a senior base. This means the airport had appealing flights and flight times, and therefore senior flight attendants sought that location. London, a flight attendant at JetBlue. @londonkaizen/TikTok JFK, on the other hand, was what's considered a junior base and home to a larger population of new flight attendants. London said she thought there was a good chance she was moving to New York. But when she opened the email revealing her base, she had been assigned to Boston her fourth choice. In fact, her entire class of trainees was headed to Boston. "Boston is completely different from LA," she said. "I had never spent any time there and then thinking about spending all the time there, my emotions weren't the happiest, naturally." London had a choice to make since the airline wasn't going to force her to move. She could still live in LA while commuting to Boston for work. Flight attendants aren't required to live in their base cities While London said that it's typically encouraged to live in your base city as a new flight attendant, few airlines require it. Instead, flight attendants can commute to their base cities and spend their working nights in hotels, temporary apartments, or crash pads , which are affordable dorm-like accommodations specifically for airline crews. "I had to basically decide if I wanted to commute or move completely across the country in a matter of weeks," London said. But commuting via a five-and-a-half-hour flight didn't make sense. So London, along with two other flight attendants in her training class, moved into a Boston apartment together. While she wasn't initially thrilled with the situation, London said "it actually ended up being the best thing that happened to me in the end." She made new friends and fell in love with a brand-new city. McIntyre, on the other hand, decided to commute after her base reveal at the regional airline. She had been assigned to Dayton, Ohio. At the time, she was living in a completely different state. She didn't want to pack up her entire life to live in Dayton, so she landed on commuting. Every week, she'd fly into Dayton and spend her nights in a crashpad, which she said she paid about $300 a month for. Some flight attendants can immediately request a transfer, but that doesn't mean they'll get one Not everyone ends up at their top city. David Zalubowski/AP If a flight attendant isn't happy with their base assignment, many airlines will allow them to request a transfer, McIntyre said. This isn't the case for every airline, Parker said. Her airline requires flight attendants to complete a six-month probationary period before they can submit a bid to transfer to a new base. After six months, they can apply to move around as much as they'd like throughout their career. London remembers the storm of emotions her training class experienced as they discovered they were all going to Boston. Some were thrilled they'd be in the same city with their newfound friends. Others were heartbroken to realize that their lives were about to drastically change. "I was in a state in my life where I wanted some change versus some of my classmates who had family and children and partners," she said. But those people who weren't happy with their base assignment could request a transfer, she said. Transfers work based on which cities need flight attendants. They can take weeks and months to happen, the flight attendants said. And if a flight attendant agrees to a transfer, they're required to be in their new city for a minimum of three months, London said. Once you build more seniority with the company, London said moving and switching bases is easier. Certain cities, like Miami and Houston, are bases for more senior employees where new hires shouldn't expect to be placed right away. But, places like New York City and Austin are more realistic choices for junior flight attendants, Parker said. For London, who has now worked at JetBlue for more than four years, Boston has remained the unexpected place she calls home. Read the original article on Business Insider This article was originally published in Florida Phoenix. Among the education deregulation policies prioritized by Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo during a committee meeting Wednesday is one that may change the way schools offer recess to students. One part of a trio of bills likely to be considered during the 2024 legislative session would mandate that schools provide 100 minutes of recess over a week rather than the existing mandate of 20 minutes every day. Sen. Corey Simon, chair of the Education Pre-K committee, said that although districts would still need to see that students receive the full 100 minutes of recess a week, the reform would give greater flexibility to districts. Some, the senator said, provide half-days or have other circumstances that make it difficult to mandate some programs daily. Support The 74's year-end campaign. Make a tax-exempt donation now. [The bill] doesnt do away with the requirement, Simon said. All this does is push it down to the district so that you all can sit down with your superintendent, and you can sit down with your school board, and have that discussion. Other reforms on the table include streamlining teacher certification and training, removal of policies mandating school boards provide economic security and district guidance reports to parents, and removal of the requirement that each school district offer summer voluntary prekindergarten. The recess initiative drew several dissents during the public comment potion of the committee meeting. Angie Gallo, an Orange County School Board member, was among the recess moms who, in 2017, successfully lobbied for the 20 minutes a day mandate. Gallo told the committee that while she understood wanting to give the districts flexibility, she wasnt confident they would do the right thing. Related TikToks Star Teacher: Florida Educators Videos Streamed 4 Million Times This is a wonderful bill. We just implore you to please, please, leave the mandate alone, Gallo said. What youre doing will really make the mandate useless. Andrew Spar, president of the Florida Education Association, said that while the trio of bills had a mixed bag of policies he supported, he agreed that the state needs to return power to the school districts. School districts should not be run from Tallahassee, Spar said. I think the Department of Education has too much influence on school districts, which interferes with what parents want to see. Kids need recess time, Spar said, but districts should have more autonomy over the programs the state mandates they carve out time for such as physical education, math instruction, and independent reading. The committee unanimously passed along the bill containing the recess reform on Wednesday. Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Diane Rado for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com. Follow Florida Phoenix on Facebook and Twitter. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 19) Philippines Michelle Dee has once again showed her signature Snake Walk as she paraded her tattoo-inspired evening gown, a tribute to oldest tattoo artist Apo Whang-Od, during the semi-finals of the 72nd Miss Universe. A tribute to a legendary Filipina who has become an icon, preserving the rich cultural heritage of indigenous tattoo art, Dee said in an Instagram post. She has achieved global recognition and symbolizes timeless beauty, coinciding with Miss Universe lifting its age restrictions, championing inclusivity and challenging age stereotypes, she added. Apo Whang-Od is the last mambabatok of her generation. The 106 year-old tattoo artist inks Kalinga symbols on the skin with a hand-tapping technique using thorns and bamboo sticks. Dees long black bedazzled dress with patterns is the creation of Mark Bumgarner, the fashion designer behind Dees green evening gown that she wore during the Miss Universe preliminary round. Bumgarner also penned a heartfelt message, saying that the gown was made with love and pride for the countrys Miss Universe candidate and the Philippines. In another Instagram post, Bumgarner said he wanted to make Dee look powerful, like a warrior, as the beading on her dress was made to look like the design was tattooed on her. The message [of the gown] resonated with her (Apo Whang-Od): a legendary Filipina whose art symbolizes bravery, beauty, and identity, and who has become a symbol of timeless beauty, Bumgarner said. He added that Dees gown is timely -- as the Miss Universe Organization lifted the age restriction in its pageants next year. READ: Miss Universe Organization removes all age limits for 2024 pageants Florida driver injured after Corvette smashed to pieces during suspected street race crash, officials say A Corvette crashed and burst apart in Florida on Saturday morning during a suspected street race that seriously injured the driver, according to authorities and a local report. Fire personnel responded just before 8:30 a.m. to a report of a vehicle crash at the intersection of State Highway 200 and SW 80th Street and found the white Corvette smashed "in pieces," Marion County Fire Rescue said. The car had careened off the road and clipped a power pole before breaking apart, according to witness reports. Fire officials said that downed power lines temporarily closed the highway. The driver of the Corvette was declared a "Trauma Alert" and rushed to a local hospital. The driver was the sole occupant of the vehicle. INVESTIGATION INTO CHICAGO TRAIN CRASH ONGOING AS SERVICE REMAINS SUSPENDED The white Corvette struck a power pole and broke apart in Marion County, Florida, on Saturday morning. Florida Highway Patrol said the cause of the crash is suspected to be street racing, the Ocala Star Banner reported. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP The impact of the crash split apart the Corvette at the intersection of State Highway 200 and SW 80th Street. The Corvette and a silver Ford Mustang were believed to have been racing westbound on the highway when the Mustang cut off the Corvette, causing the Corvette to swerve and strike another car, troopers told the newspaper. The Corvette driver was declared a "Trauma Alert" and rushed to a hospital. No update on the driver's condition was immediately available. After striking the other car, troopers said the Corvette smashed through the power pole and hit a tree. The Corvette was ripped into at least four major pieces and the driver was ejected 154 feet from the wreck. Firefighters arrived at the scene and said they found the Corvette "in pieces" and power lines hanging "very low." 2 MEN RESCUED FROM SINKING BOAT IN FLORIDA WATERWAY AMID HARSH WEATHER: POLICE No update on the Corvette drivers injuries was immediately available. Troopers said that street racing is suspected of playing a role in the crash. Troopers have asked the public for help in identifying the driver of the Ford Mustang in connection with the crash. CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Mustang driver was described as a White male with a neatly kept beard and two tattoos on his right forearm. He is believed to stand between 5 feet, 8 inches and 6 feet tall and weigh between 225 and 250 pounds. Original article source: Florida driver injured after Corvette smashed to pieces during suspected street race crash, officials say Coral reefs are experiencing mass bleaching and die-off events due to climate change. Scientists are now looking for ways to toughen them up and bolster their numbers. These methods include temperature-controlled tanks and new breeding methods. After marine heatwaves devastated the coral reef off the coast of Florida, scientists are now considering ways to toughen up coral in the face of rising ocean temperatures. Following a record marine heat wave this past summer, Florida's iconic coral reef experienced massive bleaching and die-offs. One estimate from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute estimated that 60% of monitored coral reefs were bleached as a result of the stress a sign that the coral could potentially die off if the stress is prolonged. Ian Enochs, the head of the coral program at NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, told the Wall Street Journal that his team is looking at a variety of methods to help the vulnerable sea creatures bolster their numbers. One such method was subjecting the coral to "gyms," Enochs told the publication. In these tanks, corals are trained to withstand high temperatures and acidic seawater conditions in waves. The water is also injected with nitrogen and phosphorus chemical pollutants most often associated with fertilizer runoff that could exacerbate coral bleaching . "If we hit corals twice a day with very high stressful temperatures, it toughens them up," Enochs told the Journal. Another method that the team is looking at is targeting the reproduction of coral to help boost their populations. This includes administering in vitro fertilization, or IVF, to quicken the growth of their larvae and giving them booster shots to prevent them from dying after experiencing bleaching. For years, scientists have been looking for ways to make coral resistant to heat as climate change results in more marine heatwaves and healthy coral reefs continue to decline. In 2020, the BBC reported that a team of researchers tried altering the algae that live on coral to make it more heat-resistant, therefore making coral bleaching events less likely. Researchers are also breeding coral on land now to prevent more die-offs and determine which species are more likely to survive human-induced climate change. "If we can breed these corals growing in tanks and produce offspring by the tens of thousands we can start to have an impact on the problem," Andrew Baker, a principal investigator for the Darpa hybrid reef project, told the Journal. "We are great at destroying reef ecosystems. We just need to reverse that trajectory and become great at restoring them." Read the original article on Business Insider The Florida manatee population has been in serious trouble for years due to factors directly and indirectly caused by humans. Now, the animals may be on the verge of getting some desperately needed help if their endangered species status is rightfully restored. Though manatees are, in fact, critically endangered, they were removed from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services endangered species list in 2017 by the outgoing Trump administration, in what was decried at the time as blatant corruption. The move effectively cut off any federal funding that would have gone toward saving many threatened and endangered species. On the way out the door, the Trump administration tosses more handouts to its favored polluting industries drillers, miners, and industrial clear-cutting operations at the expense of wildlife facing extinction, said David Henkin, an attorney for Earthjustice. Although the Fish and Wildlife Service said earlier this year that it would restore blanket protections for several species, that apparently hasnt happened for manatees yet. Manatees suffered a record die-off in 2020 due to factors such as habitat loss, toxic algae pollution, and decimation of food supplies. The 1,200 manatees that reportedly died in 2020 was the largest die-off in a single year since records have been kept. In the past two years, another 1,000 manatees have died, and there are only an estimated 7,500 of them left in the state. We are at a critical point, Ragan Whitlock, staff attorney specializing in endangered species at the Center for Biological Diversity, told the Guardian. Weve lost 20% of the entire manatee population over the course of two years and that resulted directly after the service downlisted the species back to threatened. Now, if the federal government does go ahead and restore their endangered status, that could be followed by an increase in funding and staffing dedicated to saving the manatees. Previous efforts to help manatees have included wildlife officials hand-feeding the wild animals romaine lettuce in areas where their food supply had disappeared, a sign of how desperate the situation has gotten. Its a baby step, honestly, said Pat Rose, an aquatic biologist and executive director of the Save the Manatee Club, in regards to the manatees endangered status being restored. Unless they follow it by increasing the staffing and funding and recovery actions, we wont get there. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the coolest innovations improving our lives and saving our planet. The Tokyo Toilet Project has seen 17 outdated public toilets across the citys Shibuya Ward replaced by state-of-the-art lavatories - Satoshi Nagare, courtesy of the Nippon Foundation Walking into the public toilet on a corner of Suido Avenue in Tokyos Hatagaya district is a first-class experience. The lavatories incorporate built-in bidets, heated seats, and noise-making devices known as otohime or sound princesses that can drown out any embarrassing eruptions. They sit in a bright, airy complex of white slanting walls - an area, it is hoped - that could eventually host film screenings or pop-up businesses. While making toilets for the Japanese may sound like selling coals to Newcastle, the rebuilt public convenience here is a product of British design. Miles Pennington, a professor of design-led innovation at the University of Tokyo and co-founder of the DLX Design Lab, is one of just two foreign architects invited to take part in the Tokyo Toilet Project, a 2020 scheme to replace 17 outdated public toilets across Shibuya ward with state-of-the-art facilities. The values of the renovation project should be shared, Mr Pennington believes, with Britain - a nation where public conveniences are increasingly run down or scarce. The toilet [on the corner of Suido Avenue and Nakano Avenue] that was there was a taxi driver spot, so we did a survey of users, observing from the other side of the crossroads and counting who used it, Mr Pennington told The Telegraph ahead of the UNs November 19 World Toilet Day. The research by Mr Penningtons team - named Penny, after spend a penny - revealed that only 20 per cent of the users were female. And that was our starting point; to address this imbalance and make a welcoming place for everybody, he said. Japans capital has invested precious little in its public conveniences since a vast infrastructure boom in the 1960s and 70s. As a result, the majority are of the hole-in-the-floor design that is seen as outdated and difficult to use, while residents complain they are also often grubby, smelly, and poorly lit, making people fearful of entering because they might be attacked. Armed with a budget that he described as generous, Mr Penningtons team held a series of community hearings, came up with multiple concepts, and listened to locals feedback before settling on a design. The idea was to create a space that would support a toilet, not the other way around, he said. The completed structure has the toilets set on three sides of a covered central space that Mr Pennington hopes will become a local hub. Our core concept was to have a community space, which is why it is called With Toilet, he said. The site is on a junction, with a bus stop and people are always coming and going. That makes it a good gathering area. We wanted to create a mini-plaza that people would use for many reasons; a pop-up business, an outdoor art gallery, a community meeting spot and you can even use the big blank wall to project a movie onto, he said. So its a space plus a toilet. Ultimately, Mr Pennington hopes that the young musicians and creative types who are moving into this part of Tokyo will see the opportunity and adopt the facility as the local place to linger. Tourists in Japan are often left gaping at the technologies included in modern toilets. An array of buttons controls the strength of the flush, the power of the bidet stream, and even the strength and temperature of the air that dries a users derriere. One Japanese home bathroom fittings company even has a function that automatically analyzes waste and provides a read-out of the health of its producer; it may only be a matter of time before that is also available in public toilets. Japan also perceives toilets quite differently from how Britain has long thought of what is typically just the smallest room in a house, Mr Pennington said. School kids here clean the toilet and its the same at many companies, where the CEO cleans the toilet or sweeps up outside the office because he understands the importance of cleanliness and leading by example, he said. Britain can learn from the work that has gone into the Tokyo Toilet Project, he added. The project really does highlight the shocking lack of service in the UK, where you often struggle to find a toilet that is clean and usable, he said. This is a natural process and there are many people who feel very uncomfortable those with bowel problems or colostomy bag users and others for whom clean and accessible toilets can provide massive stress relief. We have all been in desperate need of a basic human need, so why shy away from providing the best possible service and one that everyone would appreciate? 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. Food banks across Scotland have noticed a continuing increase in users, while some say donations have dropped. Fiona Dalgleish, the manager at Peeblesshire Foodbank, told BBC Scotland News: We are dreading the winter to be honest. "Last year was bad enough, but people are now completely exhausted and demoralised on top of being cold and hungry." Trussell Trust, a food bank network which operates across the UK, said it had distributed 128,490 food parcels in Scotland so far this year. Adam Wines said food bank use had increased by 36% The Inverclyde food bank is part of the Trussell Trust network and manager Adam Wines said he had noticed a 36% increase in use at the same time as a 30% drop in donations. Mr Wines said donations were typically from local supermarkets and churches. However, he added that the food bank has had to shop for groceries to be able to continue supporting the community. FareShare is an organisation that distributes unsold and extra food from supermarkets to community groups such as after-school clubs, homeless shelters and food pantries across Scotland. It has also noticed it has distributed more food this year and is expecting the demand to increase over the winter period. The People's Pantry in the Govanhill area of Glasgow is part of the Fairshare Network. In 2022/23, FareShare Scotland distributed 3,725 tonnes of food Pantries are an alternative to food banks where users shop for produce at a highly subsidised price instead of receiving it for free. The People's Pantry aims to provide nutritious and "culturally appropriate" food to accommodate the community, particularly as Govanhill is one of the most ethnically diverse neighbourhoods in Scotland. Ms Uygun is the chief executive of Govanhill Baths, which manages the pantry. "We have a lot of Muslims and people from different ethnic backgrounds who don't always understand or like what we consider appropriate food," she said. "There are lots of vegetables that you wouldn't get in supermarkets because theyre eaten by a particular ethnic group and they dont get catered for." Other culturally relevant foods include halal meat and specific herbs and grains. Donations have 'completely dropped' The 4 fee members pay for their regular shop is used to buy fresh and culturally specific foods from markets and wholesalers, as these are not always included in supermarket donations. "We also have a really good relationship with local community organisations," Ms Uygun said. However, she added that donations had "completely dropped" and the diversity of food that was being donated was much smaller. The People's Pantry has about 550 active members with 300-400 people using the shop weekly. "We do have a very large waiting list of more than 400. That tells you quite a lot about the amount of people wanting cheap food." she said. She added that community members had asked for a microwave in the space and that "hot soup Fridays" had been reintroduced to provide hot meals to take away. "Were doing more of that now than were used to because people are turning up more and more hungry, but also they can't afford to heat the food that they buy from us," she said. Gerard's "tuck shop" serves the community through The Blankfaces store in Glasgow's west end Gerard McKenzie-Govan runs a food bank nicknamed the "tuck shop" at his not-for-profit clothing store in Glasgow. He has noticed the same drop in donations as Mr Wines and Ms Uygun, and has also begun a weekly hot food service for the community. Mr McKenzie-Govan told BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime programme: "We've got younger people coming in, we've got people that are older, in their late sixties. "It seems like it's now become a reality that poverty has really hit people this year." Polly Jones, head of the Trussell Trust in Scotland, said: "At a time when need for emergency support is greater than ever, the scale of the hunger and hardship faced by thousands in Scotland must be met with significantly scaled-up action this winter and beyond." A 25-year-old man will be arraigned in Barnstable Superior Court on Monday for his alleged role in the 2021 death of a six-week-old baby, Cape & Islands District Attorney Robert Galibois said Sunday in a written statement. Randy Patterson-Gerber, formerly of Centerville, was indicted by a Barnstable County Grand Jury and faces a murder charge for the Sept. 7, 2021 death. Barnstable police received a 9-1-1 call around 10:25 a.m. "on or about Sept. 7, 2021," to report an unresponsive six-week-old baby, according to the statement. "Upon arrival officers found the infant unresponsive, discolored, and cool to the touch." CPR was performed on the infant on way to Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. The baby later died after being flown to a Boston area hospital, the statement said. Patterson-Gerber was arrested by Dedham police, the statement said. Charges come from an ongoing investigation conducted by the Unsolved Homicide Unit of the Cape & Islands District Attorney's Office, Barnstable Police and the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Cape and Islands District Attorney's Office. Second District Attorney Tara Cappola and Domestic Violence Unit Chief Ali Isaacs will prosecute the case. Zane Razzaq writes about housing and real estate. Reach her at zrazzaq@capecodonline.com. Follow her on X @zanerazz. Gain access to premium Cape Cod Times content by subscribing. This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Former Centerville man charged with murder in death of an infant Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the devoted wife of the nation's 39th president and a tireless advocate for mental health care, has died. The Carter Center confirmed that she died Sunday morning at her home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 96. The former first lady and former President Jimmy Carter were married for 77 years. She and the former president had four children, 11 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, Jimmy Carter said in a statement from the Carter Center. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. Throughout the political career of her husband, Jimmy Carter, Rosalynn Carter was his most fervent supporter. She campaigned aggressively for him, energizing supporters and once admitted being more adamant about winning than he was. After her husband was elected president in 1976, Carter transformed the role of first lady into a full-time job. She was the first presidential spouse to set up an office in the East Wing and hire a full staff. Many recalled Rosalynn Carter carrying a brief case filled with papers to the office every day. She was a trusted adviser to the president, a participant in foreign and domestic affairs and often set up weekly meetings with Jimmy Carter in the Oval Office, Kate Anderson Brower, author of "First Women: The Grace and Power of America's Modern First Ladies," told USA TODAY in 2018. Rosalynn Carter sits next to her Caring for Children lifetime achievement award during a ceremony in Washington on July 12, 2002. She was honored for her contribution to improving the quality of life for vulnerable children and their families. Carter traveled the world, promoting her own platform of improving mental health care and her husband's position on human rights. She lobbied for the Equal Rights Amendment, which would have granted legal gender equality to women and men. Former colleagues, friends and observers described her as genuine, warm and selfless. Throughout much of her life, she epitomized the modern working mom and wife. Brower said Carter cared more about helping people than materialistic things. I think she will be remembered as a strong, tough, disciplined woman who also is very kind and had a lot of empathy for other people, Brower said. Carter, 96, entered hospice care Friday after it was revealed she was diagnosed with dementia in May. Jimmy Carter entered hospice care in February after a series of short hospital stays, and their grandson, Jason Carter, told USA TODAY in September that his grandparents were nearing an end. They are together. They are at home. They're in love, and I don't think anyone gets more than that. I mean, it's a perfect situation for this time in their lives, Jason Carter said in September. The Carters both grew up in the small town of Plains. Rosalynn Carter was the eldest of four children who, after her father died when she was 13, had to care for her younger siblings and help with housework while her mother went to work. The family struggled to make ends meet, but Carter completed high school and went on to attend Georgia Southwestern College. In 1945, she began dating Jimmy Carter, who was home from the U.S. Navy. In 1946, the couple married. Jimmy Carter's career in the Navy kept the family on the move. Their three sons were all born on different naval ports in Virginia, Hawaii and Connecticut. Their daughter was later born in Plains. During her husband's tenure as president, the former first lady was passionate about developing solutions for problems facing the elderly and brought groups together for the White House roundtable discussion on aging. Kathy Cade, who served as special projects director to the first lady, said Carter was inspired to pursue mental health reform after watching a distant cousin suffer mental illness when she was a child. When Jimmy Carter ran for governor of Georgia, Rosalynn Carter discovered how public programs for people with mental illness were abysmal, leaving families struggling to find care. In 1977, Carter became honorary chair of the President's Commission on Mental Health. The position allowed Carter to continue her work in ending the mental crisis that she started as first lady of Georgia. She led efforts to pass the Mental Health Systems Act in 1980, which provides grants to community mental health centers. Carter also lobbied for immunizing children against preventable diseases while her husband was Georgia governor and president. She partnered with Betty Bumpers, first lady of Arkansas from 1971 to 1975, to promote vaccinations as a routine health practice. In 1981, 95% of children starting school were immunized against measles and other diseases. When the Carters left the White House, they returned to Plains and continued to make a difference. In 1982, they founded the Carter Center a non-profit that strives to improve the quality of life, alleviate suffering and advance human rights through its programs. Through the Carter Center, the former president and first lady have traveled the world working to stop Guinea worm disease, increase agricultural production in Africa, and advocate for human rights. Carter created the Carter Center's Mental Health program to continue fighting the stigma and discrimination of people with mental illnesses. She also established Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism to encourage in-depth reporting on mental health. Outside of the Carter Center, Carter sat on a number of boards for organizations over the years including the Plains Better Hometown Program, Plains Historic Preservation Trust and the Gannett Board of Directors. In 1984, Carter's autobiography "First Lady from Plains" was published. Matt Costello, historian for the White House Historical Association, said the Carters accomplished so much post-presidency that it seems to overshadow their time in the White House. "They have created this incredible legacy of promoting human rights," Costello said. "Oftentimes presidents and first ladies slowly fade into retirement (when they leave office)." Elder years Rosalynn Carter remained active into her elder years, traveling with her husband, going to church, managing The Carter Center in Atlanta and volunteering with Habitat for Humanity. The Carters lived modestly in the one-story ranch in Plains that they built in the 1960s. I would never call them relaxed, Brower said. They are the most active 90-something people you would ever meet. Cade said Carter viewed her role as first lady as an opportunity to make an impact on the world. Carter and Cade have remained friends and colleagues over the years and Cade currently serves as vice chair of the Carter Center. Cade also co-authored Carter's book "Within Our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis." "She is someone who has enormous compassion for people who are suffering," Cade said. "And she is not one to just sort of have that compassion. She is always driven to take action." Jimmy Carter with Wife Rosalynn Carter at the National Convention in Madison Square Garden in New York July 15, 1976. The Carters became champions for Habitat for Humanity in the 1980s. In 1984, they gained recognition for starting the annual Jimmy Carter Work Project, which is now the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project. The week-long home building effort launched in Manhattan but over the years expanded to other cities and other countries. Now some 1,200 volunteers join the Carters each year for the project, said Jonathan Reckford, International CEO for Habitat for Humanity. Reckford, who joined Habitat for Humanity in 2005, described Rosalynn Carter as an extraordinary leader and a hard worker who dedicated her life to helping others. Reckford said Carter loved getting to know the families who benefited from Habitat for Humanity projects. The Carters often hand out autographed bibles to the families, Reckford said. I think her legacy will be felt in so many ways, Reckford said. She brings such compassion along with that fiery desire to fight to make things better." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rosalynn Carter, who transformed role of first lady, dies at 96 Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, wife of former President Jimmy Carter, died on Sunday at 96, according to The Carter Center. Rosalynn Carter was diagnosed with dementia in May. She entered hospice care earlier this month, according to a statement from her grandson Jason Carter sent out by The Carter Center, which the couple founded in 1982. She died peacefully with family by her side. Months before her dementia diagnosis was announced, the Carter family announced that her husband of 77 years,who has earned the title of the longest-living U.S. president, had started receiving hospice care. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, 99-year-old Jimmy Carter said in a statement on Sunday. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. Rosalynn Carter was the first lady from 1977 to 1981 and was a torch-bearing mental health advocate. She was an active honorary chair of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health, according to The Carter Center. Before Jimmy Carters presidency, he was governor of Georgia. As the states first lady, Rosalynn Carter served on the Governors Commission to Improve Services for the Mentally and Emotionally Handicapped. Around that time, she also traveled alone to various states across the country for her husbands presidential campaign. I love it. I love campaigning. I had the best time. I was in all the states in the United States. I campaigned solid every day the last time we ran, she told The Associated Press in 2021. She is also the founder of the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers, an organization that provides support and mental health care for caregivers. Rosalynn Carter is a 2001 National Women Hall of Fame inductee and has seven honorary degrees. She was also an advocate of womens rights and vaccination access for preventable diseases, Georgia Public Broadcasting reported. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, lead their guests in dancing at the annual Congressional Christmas Ball at the White House in Washington on Dec. 13, 1978. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, lead their guests in dancing at the annual Congressional Christmas Ball at the White House in Washington on Dec. 13, 1978. Rosalynn Carter was born in Plains, Georgia, on Aug. 18, 1927, to Allethea Murray Smith and Wilburn Edgar Smith. She was the oldest of four children, helping her mother care for her siblings after her father died when she was 13 years old. She is survived by her husband, her children Jack, Chip, Jeff and Amy her 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. A grandson died in 2015. Besides being a loving mother and extraordinary First Lady, my mother was a great humanitarian in her own right, Chip Carter said in a statement on Sunday. Her life of service and compassion was an example for all Americans. She will be sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today. Sanjana Karanth contributed to this report. Related... Rosalynn Carter, one-half of the longest-lived presidential couple in American history and perhaps the most egalitarian as well, died on Sunday, the Carter Center announced. She was 96. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, former President Jimmy Carter said in a statement on Sunday. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. In May, her family reported that she was living with dementia; last week, they said that she had entered hospice care. The Carter Center said she died peacefully, with family by her side. Her husband, who turned 99 last month, has been in hospice care since February. Carter, who married the future governor and president in 1946, was widely credited with expanding the role of first lady beyond the nations most prominent hostess to an active partner in policy and international travel, becoming a trusted adviser even in an era when most newspapers would only call her Mrs. Carter. Rosalynn Carter set a new precedent for first ladies, wrote historian E. Stanly Godbold, author of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter: A Biography. She established the Office of First Lady, worked side by side with her husband as an equal partner in most of the responsibilities of the presidency, and actively pursued her own agenda to make the world a gentler place. The Carters were perceived as exemplars of the new South in the 1970s, a marked change from the years of George Wallace, John Patterson, Lester Maddox and other Southern governors who thrived on rage and intolerance in support of segregation and states rights and who, at least some of the time, countenanced extrajudicial violence against African Americans. Jimmy Carter, as much as it was possible for an ambitious political leader to do so, projected beneficence, not bitterness, and Rosalynn Carter was a picture-book complement to her husband, a woman of gentle grace. It was these traits that made them much-admired figures long after Jimmy Carters thorny presidency had left his reputation nowhere to go but up. In their long post-presidential lives, she would remain by his side through public and private matters. The best thing I ever did was marrying Rosalynn. Thats a pinnacle in my life, Jimmy Carter would say. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born Aug. 18, 1927, in Plains, a small Georgia town that certainly didnt know it was on its way to becoming world-famous. Her father died of cancer when she was 13, leaving her with extended family responsibilities in difficult financial times. Her future husband was also from Plains. They first dated when she was 17 she was a friend of his sisters and a student at Georgia Southwestern College. He was attending the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. I thought he was the most handsome young man I had ever seen, she would say later. Jimmy Carter would tell his mother after the first date that he had met his future wife. In her autobiography, Rosalynn Carter said that she didnt accept his first proposal, determined as she was to honor a promise to her father to finish college. On July 7, 1946, shortly after Jimmys graduation, they were married. The couple had four children, the youngest of whom, Amy, would grow up in the public eye in the White House. The family returned to Plains in 1953, and Jimmy Carter entered politics a few years later. By 1970, she was making speeches for him as he ran for governor of Georgia. In December 1974, her husband launched his presidential campaign. He started as the longest of longshots, but, amazingly, Carter ended up getting elected in November 1976. During that underdog campaign, Rosalynn Carter visited more than 40 states on his behalf, maintaining a busy speaking schedule. It drew us closer together, she told a Plains audience 40 years later. We were separated for 18 months during the campaign. I always felt like he could not have won without me. Her husband then added: We used the wisdom and advice of each other throughout. She established a different tone for a first lady even before he took office: She chose to wear the same gown to the inaugural balls she had worn when Jimmy was sworn in as a governor in 1971. It enhanced the incoming Carter presidencys notions of modesty and frugality, Smithsonian curator Lisa Kathleen Graddy said years later. Once they were in the White House, it was clear the first lady would have a meaningful role: She had her own office and sometimes attended Cabinet meetings. In June 1979, The New York Times described her partnership with her husband in The Importance of Being Rosalynn. The article shined a light on their weekly working luncheon, one that the Times said was devoid of typical husband-and-wife small talk. For the next 40 minutes, the Carters explore a wide range of subjects as they sit through a meal of lamb chops, baby potatoes and salad. They customarily discuss the minutiae of political appointments and the status of the White House staff; they weigh the future of their pet bills in Congress and the fate of Mrs. Carters favorite projects; they consider lobbying efforts and campaign plans. Their discussions move from domestic politics to assessments of China, Iran, and the latest events in the Middle East, the Times wrote. The president added: I have found, that the more that she and I can share responsibilities, with her being in an unofficial position and me in an official position, then that tends to strengthen the personal kind of relationship between husband and wife. Her advice sometimes led to important breakthroughs. It was at her suggestion that Jimmy Carter invited Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel and President Anwar Sadat of Egypt to Camp David, which became the site of their stunning 1978 peace deal. She made her presence felt around the globe. In 1977, she embarked on a 13-day trip that took her to Jamaica, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela, drawing praise for her knowledge and empathy.An official in Peru called her highly competent, and she was praised in Ecuador as a lively spokesman of the greatest good will. In November 1979, she visited tens of thousands of Cambodian refugees in Thailand. The trip was widely credited with increasing awareness of a humanitarian crisis created by years of war, tyranny and international indifference. Rosalynn Carter walked among the hungry and the dying, trailed by 150 reporters, wrote George Packer of the Thailand-Cambodia trip in 2015. She held a starving baby in her arms while speaking to the infants mother, who lay on the ground. Give me a smile, she told another woman, kissing her forehead. Afterward, Mrs. Carter said that she wanted to hurry home and tell my husband. Carter had other causes she made her own. She fought for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, attempting to present ERA in a way that would appeal to mothers, housewives and Southerners, Texas Christian University professor Elizabeth Flowers said. Despite her efforts, time ran out before the ERA amendment was approved by the required number of states. She was an advocate for mental health, serving as an honorary member of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health and lobbying on behalf of the Mental Health Systems Act of 1980. Implementation of that law, however, was left to the incoming Reagan administration, which had little interest in it. The incoming president put it on the shelf, she lamented in 2013. She was also an articulate defender of the United States. In 1978, the Russian writer and dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn assailed America and the West during a speech in Harvard: Destructive and irresponsible freedom has been granted boundless space. Society appears to have little defense against the abyss of human decadence. Addressing the National Press Club, Rosalynn Carter responded: Im not a Pollyanna about the mood of the country, but I can tell you flatly the people of this country are not weak, not cowardly and not spiritually exhausted. After Jimmy Carter failed to win reelection in 1980, the couple returned to Plains. In the decades afterward, they were involved in a seemingly never-ending series of public activities, many of them for charity. They could frequently be seen helping to build houses on behalf of Habitat for Humanity. The two also founded the Carter Center, a worldwide organization. The Carter Center is guided by the principles of our Founders, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, it said on its website. Founded, in partnership with Emory University, on a fundamental commitment to human rights and the alleviation of human suffering, the Center seeks to prevent and resolve conflicts, enhance freedom and democracy, and improve health. In 2013, she expressed delight when the Obama administration issued a rule designed to expand access to mental health care decades after her efforts to do so. As soon as I heard it, I started shaking, you know? I had wanted it, so it was exciting. It was emotional, Carter said. During the 2016 presidential season, she made a rare campaign appearance in Albany, Ga., on behalf of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. A thing I like about Hillary is shes a mother and a grandmother. She has one daughter and two grandbabies, and shell be concerned about children, she said. In October 2019, the Carters surpassed George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush as the longest-married presidential couple of all time. (The Bush marriage lasted from January 1945 until her death in April 2018.) Pundits dug up quotes to try to explain their longevity, even as the two continued to speak at the Carter Center, attend sporting events or go to church in Plains, where he taught Sunday school and then posed for photos afterward with visitors. She leaves a legacy, Godbold said of Rosalynn Carter, of improved care for the mentally ill, help for the vulnerable in American society, successful peace initiatives in the Middle East and elsewhere, and the advancement of human rights around the globe. A master politician, diplomat, as well as caring mother and wife, she was intimately involved in every aspect of the Carter presidency. She is survived by her husband and their four children Jack, Chip, Jeff and Amy as well as, according to the Carter Center, 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. Her life of service and compassion was an example for all Americans, Chip Carter said in a statement on Sunday. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter listens to a speaker at The Carter Center in Atlanta on April 6, 2011. Carter died at age 96 on Sunday. | Jason Bronis, Associated Press Former first lady Rosalynn Carter died at age 96 on Sunday after she had entered hospice care in her home in in Plains, Georgia, The Carter Center announced. The mental health care advocate and wife to former President Jimmy Carter died peacefully, with family by her side, according to a press release from The Carter Center, the human rights group formed by the Carters. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, President Carter said. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. The couple had four children together: Jack, Chip, Jeff, and Amy. In a statement Sunday, Chip Carter described his mother has a great humanitarian in her own right. Her life of service and compassion was an example for all Americans. She will be sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today. In May of this year, the Carter family announced that Rosalynn Carter had been diagnosed with dementia. The diagnosis came three months after President Carter began hospice care at their home in Plains, Georgia, the Deseret News reported. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived first lady after Bess Truman, who died at age 97, according to The Associated Press. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 19) Several Filipino beauty queens lauded the performance of the countrys bet Michelle Dee in the 72nd Miss Universe pageant in El Salvador as she ended her journey in the Top 10. In an Instagram post, 2011 Miss Universe third runner-up Shamcey Supsup celebrated Dee's success in securing a spot in the Top 10, as she puts the Philippines back on the map as a pageant powerhouse. Supsup, who is also the National Director of Miss Universe Philippines, said she is proud of Dees dedication to her advocacy on autism awareness. Being awarded as a gold winner in the Voice for Change category is a true testament to your dedication and your ability to walk the talk like a true queen, Supsup said. Dee is among the winners of the Voice for Change campaign along with Angola's Ana Barbara Coimbra and Puerto Rico's Karla Guilfu Acevedo. READ: PH bet Michelle Dee among winners of Miss Universe Voice for Change Dees cousin and 2017 Reina Hispanoamericana Winwyn Marquez said she marveled at Dees poise, grace, and confidence during the competition. Your preparation and hard work showed in your every move, and you truly shone like the queen you are, Marquez said in an Instagram post. 2015 Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach and 2023 Miss Supranational first runner-up Pauline Amelinckx honored Dee in their Instagram stories, with Amelinckx describing Dee as timeless." Nearly a year after a judge ordered former state lawmaker Chris Dorworths development firm to pony up more than $432,000 to reimburse Seminole Countys legal expenses after a failed lawsuit, Dorworth still hasnt paid and says he has no intention of doing so. Its a maddening turn of events for officials who prevailed in the years-long legal battle, but now must fight Dorworths claim that only his River Cross development company is on the hook and that it has just over $300 in the bank. We believe the taxpayers need to be reimbursed for the cost of litigation and for preserving really what was the will of the people, said county Chairman Jay Zembower. In 2021, U.S. District Judge Anne Conway dismissed a lawsuit from Dorworth, who charged that the county violated the Fair Housing Act in rejecting his proposed development. Last year, Conway sided with the county again, ordering the firm to pay back Seminole for the majority of the expenses the county incurred defending itself and writing that Dorworths attempts to invalidate the Rural Boundary were completely unreasonable, groundless, and bordering on bad faith. Dorworth filed the suit in 2018, two months after county commissioners unanimously rejected his plans for a large residential and commercial development within the countys rural boundary. Voters determined in 2004 via a countywide referendum that development density in the area, which covers much of eastern Seminole, should be limited. The original proposal called for 1,370 single-family homes, apartments and townhouses, in addition to 1.5 million square feet of commercial and office space on 669 acres of old pasture land just east of the Econlockhatchee River and north of the Orange County line. Last summer, in an effort to collect its court-ordered fees, the county sought to garnish the development firms Truist Bank account, but the bank responded that River Cross had $306 in its checking account. Seminole commissioners say they intend to continue seeking to recoup the costs of defending the county. Zembower said this week he thought the judges order, which awarded nearly $93,000 less than what the county estimated it paid, was very clear. Dorworth countered that the judges order for him to reimburse the county was unorthodox and absurd and that developing the property was the only way for River Cross to generate income. If Seminole County wishes to allow a suburban development on the property River Cross would be happy to pay the fees, but if not we will wind up dropping the contract and I have no plans to deposit any more money in the account , Dorworth wrote in an email to the Sentinel. I encourage them to do so as River Cross would love to settle this and move forward. If not, they are welcome to all $306 per the court order. Dorworth, who was in line to be the speaker of the Florida House before losing re-election to the Seminole seat in 2012, has long been a powerful player in state and local politics. After losing his state House race, Dorworth worked as a lobbyist for Ballard Partners, where he was paid $1 million per year, according to court filings. He resigned from Ballard in April 2021, after disgraced former tax collector Joel Greenberg alleged Dorworth was involved in his schemes, which included trafficking of minors for sex. Dorworth also is suing Greenberg and his family, accusing them of damaging his reputation and costing him his job. Dorworth and his wife, Rebekah, own a $1.4 million home in a gated neighborhood in Heathrow. The former lobbyist also owns a twin-engine Cessna through an LLC that he keeps in a hangar at Orlando Sanford International Airport, court records show. That arrangement has soured, as well: The firm that sublets the hangar is suing Dorworth, saying he owes $22,800 for rent and other expenses, while Dorworth counters that the hangar manager didnt provide maintenance services as promised. In recent years, Dorworth has focused on getting River Cross off the ground. He first approached the owners of the pastureland just north of the Orange County line in 2017, signing a letter of intent to purchase the property for $35.3 million. Three months later, Dorworth signed a contract to purchase the property, contingent on approval from Seminole to rezone the agricultural land to allow for a development. Hes spent several hundreds of thousands of dollars on deposits and he told the Sentinel in 2021 he had no other investors. Everybody knows that River Cross is Chris Dorworth and Chris Dorworth is River Cross, Seminole County Commissioner Lee Constantine said this week. Constantine said hes still hopeful the county will be able to collect its money from Dorworth, who is trying to avoid paying his debt by using the River Cross entity as a corporate shield or corporate veil that protects him from liability. It is our responsibility and obligation as stewards of the taxpayer dollars to continue to try to get our money back, Constantine said. County attorney Kate Latorre confirmed she and her colleagues havent given up, though she declined to elaborate. We are still exploring options to see if theres any other way to recover the fees, she said. Many residents and environmentalists opposed Dorworths development proposal, saying it would lead to sprawl and open the doors for other high-density developments in the rural area. Those opponents included David Bear, president of the nonprofit conservation group Save Rural Seminole, who said he thinks it was not an accident that Conway used Dorworths name times in her dozens of times in an order last year saying the developer should pay the countys legal expenses. The court should be able to pierce the corporate veil, allowing the county to collect its debt from Dorworth, said Bear, an attorney who lives in Winter Springs. Mr. Dorworth is trying to protect himself by playing a shell game, Bear wrote in an email this week. Its not going to work. anmartin@orlandosentinel.com A 17-year-old Texas girl who was the subject of an Amber Alert in September has been indicted on a capital murder charge in the Aug. 27 death of a man she allegedly met online. A Dallas County grand jury indicted Natalie Navarro this week on allegations she "did unlawfully then and there intentionally cause the death of" Arturo Pena, 21, by shooting him, according to the indictment. She was also allegedly "in the course of committing and attempting to" rob Pena's belongings when she allegedly shot him, the indictment states. Investigators believe Navarro and Pena met online, according to the Garland Police Department, and the 17-year-old suspect allegedly intended to rob him with a male accomplice, 21-year-old Yordy Martinez. TEXAS WOMAN FOUND ALIVE AT BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK A WEEK AFTER SHE WENT MISSING A Dallas County grand jury indicted Natalie Navarro on allegations she killed Arturo Pena, 21, by shooting him, according to the indictment. Navarro told police "she had spoken to Yordy once before online but had never met him in person the night of the actual murder," Garland Police Department spokesperson Richard Maldonado told Fox News Digital. But officials have "reason to believe" she may not be completely truthful. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP The 17-year-old suspect allegedly met with Pena in person two weeks prior to the alleged shooting in what police believe was an attempt to set up the victim, FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth reported. TEXAS CONVICT WHO KIDNAPPED GIRL FROM STORE, STRANGLED HER TO DEATH AND BURNED BODY EXECUTED Navarro met Pena two weeks before the alleged shooting in what police believe was an attempt to set up the victim, according to FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth. On Aug. 29, Garland Police Department officers were dispatched to 342 West Oates Road after receiving a report about a passed-out person in a vehicle. Upon arrival, they determined that the man, later identified as Pena, had been shot dead. A GoFundMe titled "Arturo Pena's Home to Heaven Memorial Service" states he was "viciously taken from his family and loved ones" in August. Pena had been reported as a missing person Aug. 27, Garland Police said in a press release at the time. On Sept. 1, Garland detectives identified Navarro and Martinez as persons of interest in Pena's apparent murder. TEXAS DEATH ROW INMATE SPEAKS OUT AFTER 'SHOCKING' LAST-MINUTE STAY OF EXECUTION Texas authorities issued an Amber Alert for Navarro at the time, and law enforcement later located her near the Mexican border, according to FOX 4, and took her into custody. Authorities continue to search for Martinez. Police are asking anyone with information regarding the incident to contact the Garland Police Department at 972-485-4840. Original article source: Former missing Texas teen accused of murdering man she met online Yuriy Boyko should not even dream of presidential elections, Oleksiy Koshel emphasized Individuals who ran for office on behalf of pro-Russian parties since 2014 should face at least a 10-year ban from political life, political analyst Oleksiy Koshel said in an interview with Radio NV on Nov. 19 as he discussed his ideas for sweeping political reform. In my opinion, Yuriy Boyko should not be allowed to campaign at all and should not even dream of the presidential elections, said Koshel. The parliament should carry out lustration of those individuals who were leaders of pro-Russian parties or activists of such parties. I am convinced that everyone who ran in any election, starting from 2014, representing pro-Russian parties, should undergo lustration and be excluded from political life for at least 10 years, so that they do not have the right to run for office, Koshel told Radio NV. Read also: This action is necessary for informational and overall state security, because these individuals cannot be allowed into the processes of state governance, said Koshel. This work has not been done so far, and unfortunately, this issue is not even being raised within the walls of parliament today, he added. The Opposition Platform For Life party announced the suspension of its activities on March 28, 2022. Read also: Rumored plans to dismiss military commanders are likely government intrigue expert interview Ukraines National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) declared the suspension of the Opposition Platform For Life faction in parliament on April 14. Ukraines parliament announced the creation of the parliamentary group Platform for Life and Peace on April 21, which included representatives of the banned Opposition Platform For Life. Yuriy Boyko led the group. Some former members of the Opposition Platform For Life formed the parliamentary group Restoration of Ukraine. The parliament adopted a law on May 3, which banned the activities of political parties cooperating with Russia on the territory of Ukraine. The Supreme Court ruled to ban the activities of the Opposition Platform For Life party, rejecting the appeal of the pro-Russian political force on Sept. 15. The decision is final and cannot be appealed. 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 EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) As part of the City of El Pasos eighth annual WinterFest, the El Paso Community Foundation Plaza Classic Film Festivals free Holiday Movies return to the Plaza Theatre and is now expanding to the El Paso Museum of Art. Flyer courtesy of the El Paso Community Foundation Details about the screenings: The series begins Sunday, Nov. 26 and runs on various days through Sunday, Dec. 24. All movies are free, and no tickets are required. Seating is first-come, first-served. The Holiday Movies at the Plaza Theatre will be presented Plaza Classic style, including a 30-minute performance by Richard Garven on the Wyler Mighty Wurlitzer Pipe Organ before each movie. The movies are presented in partnership with El Paso Live and the El Paso Museum of Art. Go to plazaclassic.com for more information. Additionally, the WinterFest runs Nov. 18 through January 1. Heres the Holiday Movies schedule: SUNDAY, NOV. 26 Plaza Theatre Kendle Kidd Performance Hall 1 pm: The Nightmare Before Christmas (PG) 3:30 pm: Home Alone (PG) SUNDAY, DEC. 3 Plaza Theatre Kendle Kidd Performance Hall 1 pm: Elf (PG) 3:30 pm: National Lampoons Christmas Vacation (PG-13) SATURDAY, DEC. 9 El Paso Museum of Art EP Energy Auditorium 3 pm: Miracle on 34th Street (Not rated) SATURDAY, DEC. 16 El Paso Museum of Art EP Energy Auditorium 3 pm: Frozen (PG) THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21 Plaza Theatre Kendle Kidd Performance Hall 1 pm: The Polar Express (G) 3:30 pm: How the Grinch Stole Christmas (PG) SUNDAY, DEC. 24 Plaza Theatre Kendle Kidd Performance Hall. 1 pm: Its a Wonderful Life (PG) For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. Delegates at the final day of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution meeting in Nairobi on Sunday (Tony KARUMBA) The latest negotiations toward a global plastic treaty concluded late Sunday with disagreement about how the pact should work and frustration from environment groups over delays and lack of progress. Negotiators spent a week at the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) headquarters in Nairobi haggling over a draft treaty to tackle the growing problem of plastic pollution found everywhere from ocean depths to mountaintops to human blood. It is the third time negotiators have met since 175 nations pledged early last year to fast-track talks in the hope of finalising a treaty by 2024. The meeting in Nairobi was supposed to advance the process by fine-tuning the draft treaty and starting discussions about what concrete measures should target pollution from plastic, which is made from fossil fuels. But the treaty specifics were never really addressed, with a small number of oil-producing nations - particularly Iran, Saudi Arabia and Russia - accused of employing stalling tactics seen at previous negotiation rounds to hinder progress. "Unsurprisingly, certain countries are blocking progress on every term, playing obstruction and procedural manoeuvres," Carroll Muffett from the Center for International Environmental Law told AFP. - Lacking leadership - In closed-door meetings, so many new proposals were put forward that the text -- instead of being revised and streamlined -- ballooned in size over the course of the week, according to observers following the talks. Graham Forbes from Greenpeace said the meeting had "failed" its objectives and urged governments to take a harder line in future negotiations on nations not acting in good faith. "A successful treaty is still within reach but it will require a level of leadership and courage from big, more ambitious countries that we simply have not seen yet," he told AFP. There was anger directed at UNEP, with the civil society alliance group GAIA accusing the hosts of overseeing "an undisciplined and meandering" meeting that allowed a minority to hold proceedings "hostage". UNEP said "substantial" progress had been made by nearly 2,000 delegates in attendance. The International Council of Chemical Associations, the main industry group for global petrochemical and plastic companies, said the process had improved an "underwhelming" draft and jostling between governments was critical for treaty building. "We (now) have a document -- a draft text -- that is much more inclusive of the range of ideas," spokesman Stewart Harris told AFP. The plastics meeting comes just before crucial climate talks in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates later this month that are set to be dominated by debate over the future of fossil fuels. Global demand for plastic has seen production double in 20 years and at current rates, it could triple by 2060 without action, according to the OECD. Ninety percent of plastic is not recycled, with most dumped in nature or improperly burned. Environment groups have long argued that without curbs on the manufacturing of new plastic any treaty would be weak. - Behind schedule - Around 60 "high ambition" nations have called for a treaty that eliminates some plastic products through bans and phase outs, and enshrines rules to reduce plastic production and consumption. But in Nairobi, some nations expressed reluctance to support cuts on plastic production, a concern recognised by the incoming chair of the negotiation committee. "We are not here to end all plastic, we are here to end plastic pollution," Ecuador's Luis Vayas Valdivieso told delegates after his election on Sunday. Divisions also sharpened over whether treaty terms should be legally binding or voluntary. Eirik Lindebjerg from the World Wide Fund for Nature said despite frustrations the process had not been derailed, and a majority of countries still supported a strong treaty. "I wouldn't call the meeting a failure. We are behind schedule, but we are not off track," he told AFP. There are two final rounds of negotiations in 2024: the first in Canada in April, and a second in South Korea in November, with the goal of adopting a treaty by mid-2025. np-dyg/bp On this "Face the Nation" broadcast, moderated by Margaret Brennan: House Intelligence Committee chair Rep. Mike Turner, Republican of OhioDeputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer Dina Kawar, Jordanian Ambassador to the U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, Democrat of Maryland Reps. Mike Gallagher, Republican of Wisconsin, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, Democrat of Illinois Click here to browse full transcripts of "Fac the Nation." MARGARET BRENNAN: I'm Margaret Brennan in Washington. And this week on Face the Nation: From the Middle East to the Pacific rim, America's influence is being tested around the world. The deadly conflict between Israel and Hamas has entered week seven, with no clear end in sight, as Israeli forces intensify efforts to eliminate Hamas in Gaza. Caught in the crossfire, Palestinian civilians and a society on the brink of collapse. Are we any closer to rescuing more than 200 hostages, some Americans, still held by Hamas? We will check in with some key players from the Biden administration, Capitol Hill, and around the world. Then: After President Biden's long-anticipated face-to-face meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, what's next for America's relationship with its biggest rival? We will hear from the bipartisan leaders of Congress' China Committee. Finally, as tempers flare here in Washington (Begin VT) REPRESENTATIVE MARKWAYNE MULLIN (R-Oklahoma): Well, stand your butt up then. SEAN O'BRIEN (General President, Teamsters): You stand your butt up. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vermont): Oh, hold it. No, hold stop it. (End VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: thoughts on the importance of restoring civility in our public discourse. It's all just ahead on Face the Nation. Good morning, and welcome to Face the Nation. We begin with the deteriorating conditions in Gaza and new warnings by the United Nations that disease is a growing concern, as civilians shelter in crowded spaces with scarce food and water. Meanwhile, it appears a deal with Hamas to release some hostages in exchange for Israel allowing in some aid to Gaza is taking shape. Qatar's prime minister, who is involved with mediating the talks, said today that an agreement is within reach. Imtiaz Tyab is in Jerusalem with the latest. (Begin VT) (CHANTING) IMTIAZ TYAB (voice-over): They walked for days from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in their thousands to demand the hostages being held in Gaza be released PROTESTERS: Free them all now! IMTIAZ TYAB: and to vent their fury at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's failure to meet regularly with the families of captives. PROTESTER: Our government isn't talking to them, doesn't isn't telling them what's going on, what's on the what's on the table, what are the offers, what are the reasons for and against, nothing. Nobody's talking to them. (MAN SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) IMTIAZ TYAB: Multiple parties, including the U.S., have been negotiating for the release of captives, potentially in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting and a major increase in humanitarian aid. The negotiations remain ongoing as Israel appears to be expanding its offensive against Hamas from Northern Gaza to the south, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were told to flee for their safety. But nowhere, it seems, is safe. Massive Israeli airstrikes across Gaza over the past 24 hours have killed dozens of civilians. Many of the victims are children, whose tiny bodies were wrapped in white cloth before being taken for burial, as loved ones try to make sense of the incomprehensible. But it's the Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City which is being called a death zone. The World Health Organization were able to access it after Israeli forces took control of the main health center earlier this week and are working to evacuate the remaining medical staff and patients, including 32 babies in critical condition. The Israeli military took us to the sprawling hospital complex on a late- night visit to show us what they say is evidence of a Hamas command center that was operating underground, which includes this apparent sand-filled tunnel opening and these weapons. The existence of the apparent Hamas command center, which the U.S. has said it also has intelligence on, has been central to Israel's justification for its assault on the hospital and beyond. There's been so much damage, so much devastation to this hospital because this hospital was described as a command center for Hamas. Did you find a command center? MAN #1: Oh, yes, we found a few. (CROSSTALK) IMTIAZ TYAB: What does that mean, a few? MAN #1: OK, I will talk about it. But what you see here is a fraction of the MAN #2: Equipment. MAN #1: equipment we found. (End VT) IMTIAZ TYAB: And since our visit, the Israeli military has made multiple statements about the so-far underwhelming evidence of the apparent Hamas command center at Al Shifa, saying we were only shown quote "preliminary findings" and that more details would be shared soon. Hospitals, of course, have protected status under international law, Margaret, but Israel insists its assault on Gaza's largest and most important medical facility falls within those boundaries. MARGARET BRENNAN: Great reporting from Imtiaz Tyab in Jerusalem. We go now to the Republican chair of the House Intelligence Committee Mike Turner. Good to have you back with us, sir. REPRESENTATIVE MIKE TURNER (R-Ohio): Thank you, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: You've said that that absolutely brutal and horrific attack on October 7 by Hamas was a huge intelligence failure. Things were missed. And then there were operational failures, as we know, once that attack was under way. Given those massive blind spots, can the U.S. actually be confident in Israeli intelligence now when it says that what it's doing is with full accuracy? MIKE TURNER: Well, I think there certainly is a gap that was unexpected with respect to Israel's intelligence gathering. You know, when we saw the failures of October 7, where they failed to see the the emerging horrendous Hamas attack and the taking of hostages that resulted in what you're reporting, we wondered whether or not it was a lack of focus. But now that the United States is actually working with Israel, and trying to assist in locating Hamas and understanding Hamas' structure, we're actually understanding that that Israel has a gap in also capabilities. Now, of the operational aspects, as you related, because we saw a lack of response after the Hamas attack began to unfold, there also were concerns as to whether Israel was going to get to go into Gaza and to be able to locate and to dismantle Hamas. But I think everyone's seeing it. They're progressing at a much faster rate than than anyone had expected. But, still, as we see now, the reports that are coming out of Gaza, as Israel reports, what they're accomplishing, there certainly is is concern and doubt. MARGARET BRENNAN: Do you believe it is militarily potentially successful goal to eliminate Hamas? MIKE TURNER: Well, certainly, with any terrorist group and organization, it's not just the individuals that are operating it that you have to look at. It's also its function, its structure, its finances, its weapons systems, its command-and-control. Those are things that certainly Israel has the ability and they are prosecuting the war to that, so they can significantly diminish Hamas' ability to conduct attacks on Israel, and also give the Palestinians an opportunity to to bridge to some other form of government in Gaza. You know, the Palestinians in Gaza are just as much a prisoner and certainly victims of Hamas as as we're seeing with the effects on Israel. MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you about threats here at home. But, very quickly, have you seen intelligence to back up some of the reporting that says some of these Hamas attackers, who were just so brutal that they were actually on an amphetamine called Captagon? I know some of your Republican colleagues are trying to take action. Was that a factor here? MIKE TURNER: We don't have I have not seen intelligence specifically about that. MARGARET BRENNAN: OK. MIKE TURNER: Like you, I have seen the news reporting. And it's certainly very troubling, because it certainly shows the viciousness of the attack. MARGARET BRENNAN: Here at home, the FBI director, I know, recently testified that foreign terrorist groups, including Al Qaeda, have issued specific calls to attack the U.S. How do you understand the threat to the homeland now? MIKE TURNER: You know, this is very very unusual for the FBI director to so publicly make these statements. And, certainly, in his conversations with the Intelligence Committee, they've been on an unclassified basis. So we have the ability to talk about it. It certainly shows the extent to which these threats are troubling the director. And what he's indicated specifically is that, more than a decade, the increase in terrorist threats to the United States inside the United States is at its highest ever. And he cites the the chaotic withdrawal of Afghanistan and our loss of intelligence gathering there. He cites the Southern border and individuals who are allied with international terrorist organizations that have crossed the border. Those are two Biden administration policies. So, for the FBI director to cite those, where the as threats MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. MIKE TURNER: where the threats are emanating certainly shows you how important these statements are. MARGARET BRENNAN: OK. So what would it take to get you on board with supporting some sort of overhaul of border policy? I know that, in the Senate, they're talking about trying to bundle together some of these initiatives? MIKE TURNER: Well, I think they I think they should be boarded together. And I have been at the White House several times talking about what we call sort of the quad national security package, where they're looking at Ukraine, Taiwan, East Asia, but border. Border has to be a part of it, and not just funding for the border. It needs to be policy changes. Our border needs to be secure. The FBI director has specifically cited that individuals who come across that border allied with international terrorist organizations are a threat internal to the United States. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, Congress went home for the next few weeks. And you have got a lot of work to do before the end of the year. One of those things, potentially, is reauthorizing Section 702, which allows agencies to gather data like phone calls and text messages from foreign nationals abroad. Some of your Republican colleagues like Jim Jordan and Matt Gaetz have said they they don't like Section 702. Is the Republican controlled House going to reauthorize this, and when? MIKE TURNER: Absolutely. The problem is, there's a bunch of misinformation out there. What you just said is absolutely correct that 702 allows the collection of foreigners outside the United States who pose a national security threat to the United States. We have to continue to collect that data and information. It's from which we are able to keep our country secure. And, certainly, in that, we also capture those inside the United States like those terrorists who have come across the southern border that the FBI talks about as being a threat here, their communications outside the United States with those terrorist groups and organizations, so we can track them down and prevent those attacks. This is absolutely essential. This is our post-9/11 structure. As our national security threat increases, we have to make certain that we maintain the tools that have kept us safe. MARGARET BRENNAN: And just to clarify here, I know that Border Patrol has said there are people who've come across the border whose names match the terror watch list, but that doesn't necessarily represent a terrorist or a suspected terrorist, just for anyone who's concerned there. On the MIKE TURNER: But the FBI director has specifically said that there are individuals that are allied with international terrorist organizations who have come across the border that pose a threat. That's that's the part of what his last two weeks of public statements have been. MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you about classified documents, because CBS has been reporting that special counsel Robert Hur is near the end of his investigation into President Biden and his alleged mishandling of classified info. If there are indeed no charges brought, which is what we are reporting, what do you think the signal will be to the national security world? MIKE TURNER: Well, it this will be certainly devastating, continuing to be devastating for the Department of Justice into the Biden administration with their two-tier system of justice. You know, Biden has been found to be a serial classified document hoarder. Over a 10-year period, he's been taking classified documents, some of the most sensitive that threaten our national security, home, without any protection, and certainly able to for others to be able to access them. There needs to be consequences. The fact that Hillary Clinton, who had over 100 classified documents at home when she was secretary of state and Vice President Biden, both under Obama at the same time, were taking classified documents home, and certainly had them be vulnerable, with no consequences, shows the Department of Justice is not pursuing Democrats. MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, as you know, there is a difference with the case against President Trump, who refused to hand over documents fully and violated the Espionage Act, that's the charge against him, because he didn't work with the government to hand those over. MIKE TURNER: Well, as you know, Margaret, Biden Biden Biden had these documents for over 10 years. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. MIKE TURNER: You can't hoard documents in your home for a 10 a decade- long period, concealing them, taking them home as a senator, vice president, and then suddenly say, hey, two weeks while I was president, I - - I cooperated and, therefore, it doesn't count that I spent 10 years as a serial classified document hoarder. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes, all right. Well, we're going to have to leave it there for today. Thanks, as always, for joining us. MIKE TURNER: Thank you, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: We go now to the deputy national security adviser, Jon Finer. Good morning. JON FINER (White House Principal Deputy National Security Adviser): Good morning, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: I know hostage diplomacy is extremely delicate. We've been close to a big breakthrough before and then fallen apart. But, this morning, Qatar's prime minister says we are close enough to reach a deal and the differences are just logistical at this point. Does the U.S. share that assessment? PRINCIPAL DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER JON FINER: What I can say at this point is we share the assessment that many areas of difference that previous previously existed have been narrowed, that we believe we are closer than we have been to reaching a final agreement, but that, on an issue as sensitive as this and as challenging is this, the mantra that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed really does apply. And we do not yet have an agreement in place. And so, until that is the case, you know, we're not going to lay out all the details in public. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, Israel's prime minister said on CBS recently that they had intelligence indicating that there were hostages at Al Shifa Hospital, but none were found. There were two bodies found nearby. Did the U.S. share the assessment that hostages were being held at at the hospital? Because there was a release suggesting that from declassified intelligence the U.S. shared. Was the U.S. assessment wrong? PRINCIPAL DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER JON FINER: So, what I am going to tell you is what we have put out in terms of intelligence that we have been able to share and that we've been able to downgrade on Al Shifa. And, look, this is a microcosm of the challenges associated with this entire conflict, because this is obviously a hospital, where there are patients who were being treated, the most advanced hospital in Gaza, also a place where innocent civilians have gathered during the course this conflict. And all of those innocent lives are sacred to us, are equal in value to lives anywhere that are innocent. We've also said and been quite clear that we have intelligence information, not just Israeli intelligence, but American intelligence, that Hamas has used this facility to build terrorist infrastructure, to do command and control for combat operations. And we've been quite clear about that. But we've also said that none of that authorizes, in our view, direct military strikes from the air or on the ground against that hospital. So that is the complicated knot that the Israeli Defense Forces find themselves in. And that is how we are advising them to proceed at this point. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. The downgraded assessment shared by the White House said the U.S. believes that there could be, in Al Shifa Hospital, a command node and tunnels underneath and that, in the past, these hospitals have been used to hold hostages. That's why I was asking you, since none were found there, if the U.S. actually thought there would be hostages there. There has been no command PRINCIPAL DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER JON FINER: One thing I would say about that, Margaret, is MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. PRINCIPAL DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER JON FINER: is that that facility is still being exploited by the Israeli Defense Forces. I expect you'll see more information in the coming days. I think we feel confident in the information that we've put out. And let's see what their investigation reveals and where it leads. MARGARET BRENNAN: Israel's prime minister was on this network this week and told my colleague Norah O'Donnell, that they are trying to cause minimal civilian casualties, but quote "Unfortunately, we're not successful." Given that acknowledgement by Israel, I wonder if the administration is applying the Leahy Act here that would allow for the United States to restrict some military equipment based on human rights basis. Is Israel exempt from that? Given what's happened and what Israel is acknowledging, do you need to change that? PRINCIPAL DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER JON FINER: No countries are, obviously, exempt from laws of armed conflict or from U.S. statutory restrictions, but, beyond that, I'm not going to say more. What I will say, though is is, we have been quite clear that Israel has every right to defend itself against the threat that it faces. That includes, by the way, the right to go after Hamas leadership, who they say now have fled to the southern part of Gaza and have sought refuge there. So, in the in the event that we believe that Israel is likely to to embark on combat operations, including in the south, we believe both that they have the right to do that, but that there is a real concern, because hundreds of thousands of residents of Gaza have fled now from the north to the south, at Israel's request. And we think that their operations should not go forward until those people those additional civilians, have been accounted for in their in their military planning. And so we will be conveying that directly to them and have been conveying that directly to them. They should draw lessons from how the operation proceeded in the north, including lessons that lead to greater and enhanced protections for civilian life, things like narrowing the area of of active combat, clarifying where civilians can seek refuge from the fighting. But I will also reiterate that Hamas takes no such precautions, in fact, openly and wantonly flouts and almost brags about its desire to perpetrate war crimes. And so this is an adversary that does not hold itself to the standard that we and others believe is essential. MARGARET BRENNAN: Understood. Hamas is extremely brutal. I want to quickly ask you about President Biden's op-ed that he published in "The Washington Post." He said the U.S. is prepared to issue visa bans against extremists. He was referring to Israeli settlers moving into the West Bank. Does that threat have teeth, given that there are estimates that American citizens make up as much as 15 percent of the settler population? PRINCIPAL DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER JON FINER: Look, the president has been extremely clear, I think far beyond even what many of his predecessors said, about our concerns about developments on the West Bank, and, in particular, our concerns about violence perpetrated against innocent Palestinians by extreme settlers. He said that in public speeches. He said that in an op-ed that he has published just this weekend. And, as he indicated, and as we are now moving to operationalize, that could include consequences that the U.S. would impose on people associated with violence against innocents in the West Bank, including a ban on them being able to travel to the United States on visas. And we're moving in that direction, and we'll have more to say about that, I'm sure, in the coming days. MARGARET BRENNAN: Understood. Jon Finer, thank you very much for your time this morning. And Face the Nation will be back in a minute, so stay with us. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: We're now joined by Maryland Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen. It's good to have you here in person. SENATOR CHRIS VAN HOLLEN (D-Maryland): It's good to be with you, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: A lot to talk to you about today. But I want to quickly just ask you, since Congress just went home for the better part of two weeks, they haven't reauthorized a lot of things. And they haven't passed the supplemental for Israel, for Ukraine, Taiwan. Is that going to get done before the end of the year? CHRIS VAN HOLLEN We have to get it done by the end of the year. We have to pass the supplemental request, which includes, as you say, desperately needed military assistance for Ukraine, support for Israel, humanitarian assistance, as well as support for our partners in the Indo- Pacific region. One of the issues, as I'm sure you know, that's being discussed is trying to get something done with respect to border security and immigration reform. And there are ongoing, bipartisan discussions as we speak. MARGARET BRENNAN: I understand that's happening through the recess CHRIS VAN HOLLEN That's true. That is. MARGARET BRENNAN: for the border. Do you know I mean, is it really realistic, though, that that's a very hard issue that that's going to get done before 2023's up? CHRIS VAN HOLLEN Well, there are good-faith negotiations going on. Whether they get done or not, I don't know. But let me just say, it seems to me that, given the desperate situation in Ukraine MARGARET BRENNAN: Mm-hmm. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN it is irresponsible for people to say that we're going to allow Putin to continue his assault on Ukraine and only going to provide that assistance if we get a deal on something else. I want to get a deal on immigration reform, but it doesn't make sense to me to connect the two. MARGARET BRENNAN: So you wrote a letter this month endorsing more funding for Israel, but also pressing the Biden administration on its assessment of whether these military goals are actually achievable and how that country is protecting civilians. Are you satisfied with what the White House has told you? CHRIS VAN HOLLEN We're still awaiting a public response from the Biden administration. We've not received that public response yet. We have had outreach at the highest levels. And we've been offered, those of us who signed the letter, to meet with the president's top national security and foreign policy team to discuss some of those issues. But but we are still awaiting an answer to the letter, because we asked a lot of questions that we think are important to get answers to. MARGARET BRENNAN: This is hurting the president with his fellow Democrats, isn't it? CHRIS VAN HOLLEN Well, I don't know if it's hurting the president with fellow Democrats. I do think it's important that the president speak out more clearly on this issue. Let me say this. In the aftermath of the horrific Hamas attacks of October 7, you have, I think, virtually every senator supporting Israel's objective of going after Hamas and neutralizing them from a military perspective, no more October 7s. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN But we also need to do, as Secretary Blinken said, see how Israel conducts this operation is important. And so many of us were concerned, just a few weeks ago, when one of the White House National Security spokesperson was asked if the United States has any red lines. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN And the answer was no, which means anything goes. And and that cannot be consistent with American interests and American values. So, that's why we're asking these questions. MARGARET BRENNAN: It can't be consistent, because that's not the policy for any other country that the United States provides military aid to. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN Look, that that's right. Look, we we have a a policy of trying to make sure that our funds are used in a manner that advances our interest and our values. And if you look at what's happening right now in Gaza, the desperate humanitarian crisis, clearly, that's more that can be done. And if you look at the level of civilian casualties, Secretary Blinken himself has acknowledged that there are additional measures that the Netanyahu government can take to reduce the high level of civilian casualties, two-thirds of them children. So, this is why we're asking the president questions. We want to work with the president to get more assurances that our interests and values will be protected. MARGARET BRENNAN: OK, we have to take a break, but I want you to stay here with us for more Face the Nation. And all of you stay with us too. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: For the very latest on the presidential elections, go to the CBS News YouTube page. Our senior White House and political correspondent, Ed O'Keefe, is hosting a new weekly review of the latest developments in the 2024 race for the White House. We will be right back. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: Welcome back to FACE THE NATION. And we have more questions now for Senator Chris van Hollen. Senator, I want to pick up on something you've been raising concerns about for a while. Going back to July, I found a letter where you were saying to the White House you had concerns about the more than 3 billion in security assistance to Israel because you thought taxpayer money should not shield settlers who are attacking and burning Palestinian villages with immunity. Last night the president started very publicly saying he's going to start trying to crack down. What do you think of this plan to restrict visas? CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: I was pleased to hear the president say what he - he said. And I fully support the president's plan to restrict visas from people who have a record of violence against innocent people. So, I think that's an important first step. As you know, extreme settler violence against Palestinians has been an issue for a very long time. We've seen a huge spike in extremist settler violence since the - the Gaza war started as people have been focused on the war there. A 500 percent increase. The Palestinians have been killed by extremist settlers, their houses burned down, pushed out of villages, olive orchards chopped down in the middle of olive season, which is the number one income producing time for a lot of these villagers. So, this is a big, big problem. Remember, in the Netanyahu coalition you have some very extreme members. Smotrich, Ben-Gvir, one of them, you know, belongs to the successor party, to the Kahanism (ph) party, a party that was on the U.S. terrorist watch list. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: So, this is why it's very important for the United States to weigh in and weigh in strongly. I'm glad to see the president do what he did. MARGARET BRENNAN: And they were in the government well before October the 7th. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: That's right. MARGARET BRENNAN: Just quickly, you've made some statements that being pro- Israeli doesn't require being anti-Palestinian and vice versa. Why do you think that that's a controversial statement? CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: Well, it shouldn't be, right? MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: Because you can be both pro-Israel, as I am, and also pro-Palestinian and support Palestinian rights and aspirations to self- determination and a homeland of their own. In fact, the president's vision, when he sees some light maybe at the end of this dark tunnel, has been a two-state solution. Israel living securely with a Palestinian state as a neighbor, where Palestinians have equal dignity and full rights. And one of the problems with what's happening on the West Bank right now is when you push the Palestinians off of their lands, you make it even harder to have a two-state solution. You strengthen Hamas, you weaken the Palestinian Authority, and you make it harder. So, I was disappointed to see Prime Minister Netanyahu smack down President Biden's call for a two-state solution. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: This is going to mean that the president, President Biden, has to do even more to put forward a clear vision of how we're going to emerge from this very dark tunnel into a bright future. MARGARET BRENNAN: I think we all hope for a brighter future. Senator, thank you very much for your time today. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: Thank you. MARGARET BRENNAN: And we're going to turn now to Jordan's ambassador to the United States, Dina Kawar. Ambassador, good to have you here in person. DINA KAWAR (Jordanian Ambassador to the United States): Thank you very much, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, before the war there were more be than 2 million children in Gaza. Estimated 4,600 have been killed in the past few weeks. And for those who do survive, many of them are disabled. I wonder what you think this does to the security of the region to have these next generations so impacted? DINA KAWAR: Margaret, the images we're seeing out of Gaza are not the same images that the United States is seeing on the mainstream media. We're watching our social media and everybody in the Arab world is doing the same. The images are flabbergasting and very, very sad. When you see parenting looking for their - the remains of their dead kids in - in supermarket bags, or you're seeing children looking for parents or any familiar face because they're left alone in this world. Now, out of the 11,500 dead, the majority are women and children for sure. And this is asking ourselves, like 17,000 to 18,000 children are going to be orphans. What do we do with that? Some studies have shown that some of the Hamas - the majority of Hamas fighters were orphans. So, our call here is for a cease-fire. The Jordanian government is asking for a cease-fire. And his majesty has spoken about the importance of going to a cease-fire, not because we - we want to think differently from the rest of the world, but because we feel that with the Arab countries and with the Islamic countries, this is the only way forward to stop this war and to sit around the table and go back to negotiations. The humanitarian situation in the West Bank is beyond. And right now what is worrying us is the UNRWA reports that are coming out of Gaza - MARGARET BRENNAN: The U.N. reports. DINA KAWAR: Yes. UNRWA is the one on the - on the ground. And they've lost 103 people out of them. You've - you've lost 49 colleagues as journalists. We've lost 200 people from the medical health system. And UNRWA is worried about out of the 154 centers they have in - in the West Bank - in the in Gaza, sorry - MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. DINA KAWAR: They are inundated with around 830,000 IDPs. These IDPs came from the north to the south because they were asked MARGARET BRENNAN: (INAUDIBLE) people, right. DINA KAWAR: Yes. And these displaced people were asked to leave the north in no time to go to the south and now they're asked to leave the south. Didn't - didn't anybody think that if Hamas is in the north they would go to the south? Didn't anybody think that this military strategy is going to work? So, our worry is that this violence is going just to breed violence and it's putting pressure in the region. And if you cannot talk to the moral compass of the world, nor to the humanitarian feelings, let's talk strategic - strategic thinking. And that's where we're going. MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, and I want to go there with you as well. We should say that estimated 4,600 children, that's from the Gaza Health Ministry, but no one has an accurate assessment, including the United States government, because they can't actually get in there and count bodies. DINA KAWAR: Yes. MARGARET BRENNAN: But it is a tremendous amount of death. Your government has had to airdrop in medical aid to some of the personnel you do have on the ground there. I understand there was an attack against a field hospital. DINA KAWAR: Yes. MARGARET BRENNAN: Who carried it out? What happened? DINA KAWAR: OK. We have the hospital, a military hospital, south of Gaza City. And now we're going to have a second one in the south of Gaza. Now, the one that was struck was - there was there's a mosque next to the hospital and the Israeli military bombarded that mosque and people were running because they were injured, running to the hospital. And as our military people came out to help them, they got also hit. So, we had seven injured, and now they're OK. They've been taken care of. But we do not find it normal that - that all the hospitals are attacked. We do not find it normal that we're attacking civilians and - and a collective punishment. This cannot go on, Margaret. This cannot go on. It's not solving the problem. So, now - and now there's a third hospital in the West Bank as well. Also, concerning the West Bank because we're talking about Gaza a lot. Just one word about the fuel shortage in Gaza. It is getting so complicated that we that we are worried about the health hazard in - in - in Gaza. The WHO, the World Health Organization, is warning that if there is no fuel coming in, it's going to be a problem for the sewage system, for the water pumping desalination. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. DINA KAWAR: And dogs are eating bodies if you because they have not everybody is able to - to put people into - into burial morgues (ph). So, we need to worry about this because otherwise we will have diseases that we didn't have before. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. DINA KAWAR: We need to get more openings and our charity, the (INAUDIBLE) charity organization, is working a lot on - on getting this aid. And we're calling upon the - the world that is wanting to help to either help UNRWA, that is on the ground, or buy items that are in the country, whether in Egypt or Jordan, to help to send to - to Gaza. MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me ask you because Jordan has had a peace treaty with Israel for 30 years. You have trade. You have all sorts of contact with them. Do you worry that the next generation of Jordanians, or the surrounding countries, will not be able to maintain the peace that they have had for decades because of what's happening now? DINA KAWAR: Well, there's a lot of pressure MARGARET BRENNAN: Is it destabilizing? DINA KAWAR: It I wouldn't say the word destabilizing, but it is putting a lot of pressure on - on his majesty and on the government because people are angry. They see the images every day. I mean we're all angry. It's very humiliating. It's very hurtful and it's - it's inhuman. And we're just wondering, how far is this going to go? We're calling for a ceasefire. We're calling to go back to negotiations. And as the senator said, we do not to be - you do - you - the only way to be pro-Israeli is to ask for peace. And the only way to be pro-Palestinian is to ask for peace. And this is common grounds for both of us. MARGARET BRENNAN: OK. DINA KAWAR: So, we need to go further on that. And on the settlers. Just as a word in the West Bank. The settlers are going haywire, unhinged and are not caring about the law and nobody's able to stop them. Every day there are eight (ph) attacks on Palestinians and they are mistreating them, humiliating them, sending videos all over social media of them naked and in - in situations that are unacceptable. They are attacking also the Armenian quarters, they're attacking Christian worshipers in Jerusalem. So, we're wondering how much more do they need to do to be stopped? So, I was very happy and we were very happy to see the op-ed of - of the president. We're very grateful that he mentions the issue of the settlements and that they need to - to think about the civilians and stopping of the killing. MARGARET BRENNAN: We'll see - we'll see if there's more on that this coming week as the White House has promised. Thank you, Ambassador. DINA KAWAR: Thank you. MARGARET BRENNAN: We'll be right back. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: We go now to the chairman and ranking member of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, Republican Mike Gallagher and Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi. Good morning to you both. Gentlemen, we like bipartisan conversations on this program, so welcome back. REP. RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI, (D-IL): Good morning. REP. MIKE GALLAGHER (R-WI): Thank you. Great to be here. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, I want to put it to you both then, can you work together to pass this, what, $4 billion President Biden is asking for, for Taiwan and Asian allies before the end of the year? Congressman Gallagher, Republicans are in control, so I'll go to you first. MIKE GALLAGHER: I think we can. And I want to salute the ranking member for his leadership in setting the serious tone that our committee has been operating under. The rest of Congress has been descending into what looks like a high school reality TV program, but we've been able to work together. And so that gives me a lot of optimism, particularly in light of the growing threat to Taiwan. One thing that went almost unreported amidst Biden and Xi's summit is that Xi tripled down on his threats to Taiwan. He reportedly said to the president in their meeting that peace and stability in the region are less important than solving the Taiwan question. The CCP's official statement afterwards said that we need to stop arming Taiwan and support the reunification effort. So, all of this should remind us that no amount of relentless diplomacy will make a difference if we don't fix the fundamental problem, which is that the balance of hard power across the strait and throughout the Indo- Pacific region is eroding and with it the risk of war is increasing, which is why we need to act before it's too late. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. Congressman Krishnamoorthi, you're confident before the end of 2023 this is going to pass? RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI: We have no choice. We have to pass this. The president's absolutely correct to ask for this funding, not only for Taiwan, but for Ukraine, as well as Israel, and other priorities. They're all inextricably linked. We have to make sure that we send the right message to Xi Jinping. Now, a recent survey showed that a majority of voters believe that a war is possible in the next ten years. And they're very concerned about it. Three quarters of Democrats and Republicans want us to prevent war. And the best way to do that is to make sure that we deter aggression by equipping Taiwan with what it needs to prevent aggression, but also to tone down the rhetoric and make sure that we have diplomacy with the highest levels of the CCP. MARGARET BRENNAN: Tone down the rhetoric. In an election year no less. Congressman Gallagher, I read that you want to subpoena potentially the main sponsors of a dinner that Xi Jinping attended with some of the biggest CEOs in the United States. CEOs from Blackstone, KKR, Pfizer, Boeing, FedEx, Apple, BlackRock. What do you seek to achieve there? Don't you know the names of everyone who bought tickets? MIKE GALLAGHER: Well, I never mentioned a subpoena, so I don't know where that report is coming from. MARGARET BRENNAN: It was in "Bloomberg." MIKE GALLAGHER: I'll comment broadly on the dinner, which I thought was disgusting. Well, "Bloomberg" got it wrong in this case. $40,000 to eat coffee-rubbed flank steak and sip cake bread, Sovereign Blanc with Xi Jinping. And what's worse than that is the fact that they gave him a standing ovation. This a communist dictator who's committed a genocide in Xinjiang, who's committing a cultural genocide in Tibet, who has completely destroyed civil society in Hong Kong, who's risking, as we just talked about, provoking World War III. To give him a standing ovation. And what's even worse than that is, it wasn't just the people you'd expect, like Tim Cook from Apple or BlackRock, it was American defense contractors. All the more reason why Congress, I think, needs to step up to cut off the flow of U.S. capital to Chinese military companies, to specify the appropriate level of de-risking or diversification so we have a healthier economic relationship to modernize our military because corporate America and Wall Street have proven time and again they're willing to sell out American interests in order to make money in China. MARGARET BRENNAN: But the two economies are so incredibly intertwined. I mean the very fact that Rahm Emanuel MIKE GALLAGHER: Absolutely. MARGARET BRENNAN: The president's ambassador to Japan, said, "the CEOs literally have their R&D, their intellectual property stolen from them and they gave Xi Jinping a standing ovation." Doesn't that just tell you that China's great greatest leverage here is financial and the reality is that it's not going to be unwound? MIKE GALLAGHER: Well, it has to be unwound, at least in part. I'm not arguing for a total decoupling. RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI: I personally think it has to be. MIKE GALLAGHER: Go ahead, Raja. Sorry. MARGARET BRENNAN: Go ahead. RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI: No, I was just saying that I think that our even without any U.S. government action, I'm I'm heartened that a lot of companies in the private sector are de-risking, are reducing their exposure in China. That particular dinner left a bad taste in my mouth. I don't think that people were paying $40,000 for the coffee-crusted steaks. They were paying for access. I hope that they also brought up some of our concerns with regard to economic aggression that the CCP is routinely practicing against American entities. For our part on the Select Committee I want to just say, I'm very glad to be working with Mike on ways to work with the Biden administration to reduce our investments in entities in China that are fueling the PLA's military modernization and human rights abuses. Thankfully, the Federal Thrift Savings Plan listened to us recently when they decided to remove investments in precisely those entities. So I think what we're doing on the committee is having a difference. MARGARET BRENNAN: Congressman Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi, I want to ask you about what you thought was achieved at the summit because expectations were set very low, right? Just answering the phone, military to military, and getting China to enforce some of its existing policies to cut down on the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals. So, do you both think this was a success just to simply have the two leaders face to face? GALLAGHER: Well, I welcome the establishment of a crisis communication channel in so much as it reduces the risk of miscommunication leading to war. I'm skeptical of the fentanyl agreement, I have to confess, only because we've seen this movie before, but certainly I anything to reduce the devastating effects of that fentanyl is causing all across America would be welcomed. My concern more broadly, and while I think it's too early to characterize this one way or the other, is that whenever we have summits like this, we tend to pay cash up front, but for the CCP the check is always in the mail. And as I said before, the most important form of communication is the investments we make in our own hard powered posture in the Indo-Pacific. And not we're simply not just moving hard enough. We've had two administrations now of different parties that have failed to implement a deterrence by denial posture in the Pacific. MARGARET BRENNAN: Congressman Krishnamoorthi, was it a success? RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI: I - well, I think it was very promising. I think that their agreement with (INAUDIBLE) cooperation on fentanyl is a good first step. I also like the establishment of the military-to-military communications channels. I quite frankly, I like the fact that Xi Jinping was pandering and he's going to send a few pandas to the United States and increase commercial flights both ways. What I would have liked to have seen a little more is talk about the human rights abuses and the crackdown on Uyghurs, Tibetans and dissidents in China. I'm hopeful that we can see more action on that particular score. But look, Margaret, their expectations for the summit were super low. You know, as long as a Chinese spy balloon isn't flying over the U.S. now following the latest meeting, I think that it's probably going to be viewed as having met expectations and exceeded them probably. MARGARET BRENNAN: The comments from Xi on the pandas was a little squishy too. It wasn't a hard commitment that everyone's getting their pandas back here. But, Congressman, on the - the one thing that you have, as I understand it, subpoenaed was in regard to an illegal bio lab in California. Your committee took this on. What did you discover and what's your message to the administration? MIKE GALLAGHER: Well, local officials in Reedley discovered this illegal bio lab where there were transgenic mice, there was all sorts of equipment, there were vials containing Ebola, HIV, dangerous pathogens. And when they called the CDC and the FBI, they refused to investigate. The CDC hung up on them in many cases. We also discovered that the owner of the biolab, Jesse Shu, was a fugitive. He was here illegally. He was fleeing a $330 million IP judgment against him and he was receiving all sorts of unexplained wire transfers to the total of $2 million from China. He was a Chinese national. Bottom line is, we just don't have appropriate trip wires in place. You can buy some of this stuff illegally online. We need to have a more robust defense in depth for biolabs like this. We can't allow this to happen again. And we need to support local officials - MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. MIKE GALLAGHER: Not hang up on them when they call the federal government. MARGARET BRENNAN: Understood. More to talk about with you both. Thank you for your time today. We're going to have to leave it there. We'll be back in a moment. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: Congress has not been the friendliest place of late, but even by today's diminished standards we were struck by the lapse in decorum on Capitol Hill last week. (BEGIN VT) MARGARET BRENNAN (voice over): Since Election Day on November 7th, more than a half dozen members of Congress have announced plans to retire, resign or seek another job. This past week's stunning lack of civility on Capitol Hill may offer a glimpse as to why. A U.S. senator, Oklahoma Republican Markwayne Mullin, challenged a testifying witness, a teamster's boss, to a fight. SEN. MARKWAYNE MULLIN (R-OK): Well, stand your butt up then. SEAN O'BRIEN (President, International Brotherhood of Teamsters): You stand your butt up, big guy. SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT): Oh, hold it - hold - stop it. All right, hold it. MARKWAYNE MULLEN: Is that your solution to every problem? BERNIE SANDERS: No, no, sit down. MARGARET BRENNAN (voice over): Americans have enough contempt for Congress, Senator Sanders said. Let's not make it worse. The former speaker of the House denied intentionally hitting one of the members who voted to oust him. REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA): No, I did not elbow him. No, I would not elbow him. REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): I mean it was just a clean shot to the kidneys. MARGARET BRENNAN (voice over): This breakdown in discourse sparked comparison to the 1850s when pro-slavery Democratic House member Preston Brooks beat anti-slavery Republican Senator Charles Sumner unconscious. The nation was on the cusp of civil war then. It isn't clear what we're on the cusp of now. Former president and leading Republican candidate, Donald Trump. DONALD TRUMP (Former U.S. President and 2024 Presidential Candidate): We will root out the communists, Marxist, fascist and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country. MARGARET BRENNAN (voice over): On stage at rallies, on TV, and on social media, inflammatory language is common. Rival Chris Christie derided it as TV tough guy talk. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE): When Ron DeSantis thinks it sounds tough, by saying he's going to slit the throats of bureaucrats, or shoot immigrants stone cold dead at the border, this is fundamentally unserious. MARGARET BRENNAN (voice over): The FBI warned again this week of a heightened threat environment in the U.S. These protesters claimed to be in favor of Middle East peace, but they injured six Capitol Hill police officers outside Democratic committee headquarters. Violence the new Republican speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, condemned as he defended the officers. It isn't clear how the safety of those very same officers will be impacted by his Friday release of the explicit security footage of the January 6th assault on the Capitol. A year out from a heated presidential race, let's all bring some civility back to our politics. The serious issues facing our country require it. (END VT) MARGARET BRENNAN (on camera): We'll be right back. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: That's it for us today. Thank you all for watching. Until next week, for FACE THE NATION, I'm Margaret Brennan. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) The Chicago sandwich joint that inspired "The Bear" A sweet celebration of pawpaw fruit Texas BBQ, with a foreign flavor Cultural differences surrounding death may contribute to lower levels of prolonged grief in Ireland than the UK Traditional Irish wakes may help people cope better with their bereavement, new research has suggested. The Ulster University study, which involved more than 2,000 people, looked at prolonged grief disorder (PGD). It described the disorder as an enduring yearning for the deceased persisting for more than six months. About 10.9% of grieving people in Ireland featured in the research fulfilled the disorder's criteria, compared to 15.3% in the UK. The authors of the research, which has been published in the Journal of Traumatic Stress. said that "cultural differences with regard to death may be an explanatory factor" to the reduced levels of the disorder in Ireland. "For example, in Ireland, it is customary to hold a wake (i.e., social gathering prior to a funeral) during which family, friends, neighbours, work colleagues and acquaintances can come to pay their respects and support the bereaved," the authors said. Traditional wakes are commonplace across the island of Ireland The Irish wake usually takes place in the days between an individual's death and their funeral. It is a traditional social practice, associated with an intense period of mourning and honouring the deceased. In some cases, there may be an open coffin, allowing attendees to pay their respects and say their goodbyes. Wakes usually last two or three days, to allow people time to come and go and participate in the communal experience, and often involve elements such as sharing stories and memories; comforting family members; and music and refreshments. The study added that, in the United Kingdom, such events take place after the funeral and that while Irish funerals are typically regarded as communal events, in the United Kingdom they are often regarded as being private. "Hence it may be that there is a greater sense of community within Irish bereavement culture, with it being widely established that social support plays a key role in determining the ability of the bereaved to adjust to their loss," researchers said. Reactions are pouring in from around Georgia and across the country after the death of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. The Carter Center announced Sunday that Rosalynn, 96, passed away at 2:10 p.m. at her home in Plains, Georgia. She died peacefully, with family by her side. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden said Rosalynn Carter will always be in their hearts and that she inspired a nation and world throughout the journey of life. First Lady Rosalynn Carter walked her own path, inspiring a nation and the world along the way. Throughout her incredible life as First Lady of Georgia and the First Lady of the United States, Rosalynn did so much to address many of societys greatest needs. She was a champion for equal rights and opportunities for women and girls; an advocate for mental health and wellness for every person; and a supporter of the often unseen and uncompensated caregivers of our children, aging loved ones, and people with disabilities. Above all, the deep love shared between Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter is the definition of partnership, and their humble leadership is the definition of patriotism. She lived her life by her faith. Time and time again, during the more than four decades of our friendship through rigors of campaigns, through the darkness of deep and profound loss we always felt the hope, warmth, and optimism of Rosalynn Carter. She will always be in our hearts. On behalf of a grateful nation, we send our love to President Carter, the entire Carter family, and the countless people across our nation and the world whose lives are better, fuller, and brighter because of the life and legacy of Rosalynn Carter. May God bless our dear friend. May God bless a great American. Former First Lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama also released a joint statement on the death of the Mrs. Carter: You learn very quickly that there is no handbook or rules to being First Lady. Technically, its not even an official position. And while there are spoken and unspoken expectations that provide some structure, the role is largely shaped by the passions and aspirations of the person holding it. First Lady Rosalynn Carter understood that well. Guided by her abiding faith and her commitment to service, Mrs. Carter used her platform in profoundly meaningful ways. Her groundbreaking work to combat the stigma faced by those struggling with their mental health brought light to so many suffering in silence. She advocated for better care for the elderly. She advanced womens rights. And she remained a champion for those causes and many others like building affordable housing for those in need and caring for our nations caregivers in the more than four decades that followed. When our family was in the White House, every so often, Rosalynn would join me for lunch, offering a few words of advice and always always a helping hand. She reminded me to make the role of First Lady my own, just like she did. Ill always remain grateful for her support and her generosity. Today, Barack and I join the world in celebrating the remarkable legacy of a First Lady, philanthropist, and advocate who dedicated her life to lifting up others. Her life is a reminder that no matter who we are, our legacies are best measured not in awards or accolades, but in the lives we touch. We send our thoughts and prayers to Jimmy and the entire Carter family during this difficult time. President Bill Clinton and Secretary Hillary Clinton also released a joint statement regarding Mrs. Carters passing: Rosalynn Carter was the embodiment of a life lived with purpose. My and Hillarys full statement: pic.twitter.com/VJHfc8oLh4 Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) November 19, 2023 Former President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to express condolences in the passing of Mrs. Carter: Melania and I join all Americans in mourning the loss of Rosalynn Carter. She was a devoted First Lady, a great humanitarian, a champion for mental health, and a beloved wife to her husband for 77 years, President Carter. Over a life spanning nearly a century, Rosalynn Carter earned the admiration and gratitude of our entire nation. From her days as a U.S. Navy spouse, to the Georgia Governors Mansion, to her tenure as First Lady of the United States, and her later work at the Carter Center and volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, she leaves behind a legacy of extraordinary accomplishment and national service. Our prayers are with the former president, the Carter family, and the entire community of Plains, Georgia, that she loved so much! Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens described the former First Lady as an activist, author and humanitarian. More than 96 years ago, a First Lady was born years ahead of her time who urged us to take our mental health seriously. She was Rosalynn Carter, and sadly she has passed away. Mrs. Carter worked side by side with her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, to make life better for people around the world. She never stopped advocating for mental health or the Equal Rights Amendment. She was an activist, author and humanitarian, travelled internationally as her husbands envoy and was the model for the modern day First Lady. The city of Atlanta joins all of Georgiaand mourners around the worldas we honor the memory of First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Georgia Democrats released the following statement on the death of the former First Lady: Georgia Democrats join our entire state, nation, and the world in mourning the loss of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter an extraordinary humanitarian, fierce mental health advocate, and beloved daughter of Georgia. https://t.co/eXBHTxe5PF Georgia Democrats (@GeorgiaDemocrat) November 19, 2023 TRENDING STORIES: Congressman Hank Johnson of Georgias Fourth District called Rosalynn Carters contributions to Georgia and society as unparalleled. Our prayers are with the former president and the Carter family during this difficult time. https://t.co/r5u1ODg1hn pic.twitter.com/3T4tBRje99 Rep. Hank Johnson (@RepHankJohnson) November 19, 2023 Gov. Brian Kemp credited Rosalynns indelible impact on Georgia and the nation as a whole. Bernice King, daughter of Civil Rights activist Dr. Martin Luther King offered love and prayers to the Carter family during this loss. Blessed are the peacemakers Love and prayers for former First Lady, #RosalynnCarter, and former President, #JimmyCarter. pic.twitter.com/hU37Jb6Owc Be A King (@BerniceKing) November 19, 2023 Georgia Tech called Rosalynn Carter a friend of the university and acknowledged her contributions. Rest in peace former First Lady Rosalynn Carter an Ivan Allen Prize winner for social courage and a friend to Georgia Tech. pic.twitter.com/7jWiARsfvy Georgia Tech (@GeorgiaTech) November 19, 2023 Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said Mrs. Carter represented the best of Georgians and expressed gratitude for the example Rosalynn set. Derek and I send our heartfelt condolences to the Carter family. President and Mrs. Carter have always exemplified the very best of who we are as Georgians and we are grateful for their example. https://t.co/hlwRIychbO Keisha Lance Bottoms (@KeishaBottoms) November 19, 2023 Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi said Rosalynns profound faith, compassion and kindness allowed for transformational change to families across the country. Our sincere condolences to the family of Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, a passionate champion of mental health and caregivers, who passed away earlier today at her home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 96 surrounded by her family. GAGOP (@GaRepublicans) November 19, 2023 Friend, champion and profound impact is how Sen. Raphael Warnock chooses to remember the former First Lady and impact she had on others. Today, we remember a mother and a grandmother, a friend, a champion, and a woman who made a profound impact on the lives of countless individuals. I pray for strength and comfort for President Carter, and all those across our globe who knew and loved Rosalynn Carter. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/qyDwBot5D0 Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (@SenatorWarnock) November 19, 2023 The United States Secret Service also credited Rosalynn for her impact she had on others. Our deepest condolences go out to the Carter family. First Lady Rosalynn Carter dedicated her life to helping others with compassion and grace, and was a model for us all. pic.twitter.com/t96sKscfxR U.S. Secret Service (@SecretService) November 19, 2023 Congresswoman Lucy McBath credited Rosalynns heroic leadership and said she will never be forgotten. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter was the light of our state, a servant to the nation, and a humanitarian for the world. She leaves behind a legacy of heroic leadership, and her name will never be forgotten. My prayers are with the former President and the entire Carter family. Lucy McBath (@lucymcbath) November 19, 2023 The Atlanta Hawks have expressed condolences for The Carter family. We grieve with the state of Georgia for the loss of humanitarian and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Our thoughts are with President Carter and the Carter family pic.twitter.com/LhzT1Hzz7w Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) November 19, 2023 The Atlanta Braves released the following statement: The Atlanta Braves are deeply saddened by the passing of humanitarian and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Our thoughts and prayers are with President Carter and the entire Carter family. pic.twitter.com/o86II16utR Atlanta Braves (@Braves) November 19, 2023 The Atlanta Falcons and owner Arthur Blank said Rosalynns life was one of selfless dedication of service to those around her. A statement from Chairman Arthur M. Blank on the passing of Rosalynn Carter. pic.twitter.com/AP7fqLAP81 Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation (@BlankFoundation) November 20, 2023 Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, President Jimmy Carter said in a statement. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. She is survived by her children Jack, Chip, Jeff, and Amy and 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. A grandson died in 2015. The schedule of memorial events and funeral ceremonies will be distributed as soon as possible to media and posted on here, according to the family. This tribute website includes the familys official online condolence book and opportunities for memorial gifts, as well as an official biography and downloadable photos. RELATED NEWS: By David Morgan and Jasper Ward WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A deal to secure the release of some of the hostages held in Gaza by Hamas militants is closer than ever in the Islamist group's war with Israel, a White House official said on Sunday. White House deputy national security adviser Jon Finer said an agreement to free "considerably more than 12" hostages would also likely include an extended pause in the fighting and allow for the distribution of humanitarian assistance in Gaza. Fighting raged on Sunday, with Hamas militants battling Israeli forces trying to push into Gaza's largest refugee camp, the day after Israeli and U.S. officials denied a Washington Post report that a deal had been reached. "What I can say at this point is that some of the outstanding areas of disagreement, in a very complicated, very sensitive negotiation, have been narrowed," Finer told NBC's "Meet the Press" program. "I believe we are closer than we have been in quite some time, maybe closer than we have been since the beginning of this process, to getting this deal done," he added. Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog also said in an interview on ABC's "This Week" that Israel is hopeful a significant number of hostages could be released by Hamas "in coming days." But Finer cautioned: "Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. Sensitive negotiations like this can fall apart at the last minute." Hamas took about 240 hostages during its deadly cross-border rampage into Israeli communities on Oct. 7, which prompted Israel to lay siege to Gaza and invade the Palestinian territory to eradicate its ruling Islamist group. "We're talking about considerably more than 12 (hostages)," Finer told NBC. "This could and would likely include an extended period of a pause in the fighting, a multiple-day period," he added. "It would enable us, we believe, to get more humanitarian assistance into Gaza. That's a priority under any circumstances." Finer also said Israel should not conduct combat operations against Hamas in the south of Gaza until military planners have taken into account the safety of fleeing Palestinian civilians. "In the event that Israel is likely to embark on combat operations, including in the south, we believe ... that they have the right to do that," Finer told CBS' Face the Nation program in a separate interview. "We think that their operations should not go forward until those people, those additional civilians, have been accounted for in their military planning," he said. Israel's blitz has reduced swaths of the north to rubble, while some two-thirds of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have been displaced to the south. Gaza's Health Ministry has raised its death toll from Israeli bombardment to 12,300, including 5,000 children. Finer urged Israel to draw lessons from its military operations in the north of Gaza and provide enhanced protections for civilians by narrowing the area of active combat and by specifying where civilians can seek refuge. On Saturday, Israel warned civilians in parts of southern Gaza to relocate as it girds for an offensive from the north. The south has been repeatedly bombarded by Israel, rendering Israeli promises of safety absurd, Palestinians say. (Reporting by David Morgan and Jasper Ward, additional reporting by Leah Douglas; Editing by Scott Malone and Bill Berkrot) The fate of the babies has often been mentioned as al-Shifa ran out of fuel and stopped crucial services Thirty-one premature Palestinian babies have been evacuated from Gaza City's al-Shifa hospital, which the World Health Organization (WHO) has described as a "death zone". The babies have been taken to an Emirati hospital in the southern city of Rafah, close to the Egyptian border. Hundreds of people, including patients, left from al-Shifa on Saturday. The hospital - the territory's largest and most modern - is under the control of Israeli troops. They have been searching the complex for evidence that it served as headquarters of Hamas. On Saturday, hundreds of people, including some patients, evacuated the hospital, but some 300 critically ill people remained as well as 33 premature babies. A Red Crescent spokeswoman told the BBC that one baby then died on Friday evening and another on Saturday morning. On Sunday the 31 surviving babies were evacuated by the Red Crescent in coordination with the UN. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the babies were "very sick", had been moved under "extremely intense and high-risk security conditions", and were now "receiving urgent care in the neonatal intensive care unit" in Rafah. Dr Mohammad Zaqout, general director of hospitals in the Gaza Strip, told AP some of the babies were dehydrated or had developed gastritis due to unsanitised water. Lack of medications had caused others to develop sepsis, and some had hypothermia as they could not be placed in incubators. The babies had been accompanied by six health workers and 10 staff family members, Dr Tedros said. Doctors at al-Shifa had previously said newborns had died after power for incubators was cut off due to a lack of fuel. Red Crescent spokeswoman Nebal Farsakh told the BBC that some of the premature babies' parents had been killed in Israeli air strikes. The BBC is not able to independently verify this. She said the surviving parents had been ordered to leave Gaza City - where al-Shifa hospital is located - before the babies' evacuation, and their current whereabouts were unknown. A Gaza health ministry Facebook page urged the babies' parents to rejoin their babies at the hospital in Rafah. Israel has not yet commented, though it previously said it would help evacuate babies to a "safer hospital". The WHO was planning further missions to take the remaining patients and staff out of al-Shifa once safe passage guarantees had been secured, he said. Al-Shifa's hospital director Dr Muhammad Abu Salima has called on the WHO and the UN to help the medical teams and patients "leave this desolated place". He told BBC Arabic there were about 25 medical staff left at the hospital, but that without water and electricity they were unable to properly care for the hundreds of remaining patients. "The hospital, now, is a ghost house in the full sense of the word," he said. "Corpses are spreading out in the emergency department, patients are screaming, the medical staff is quite helpless, while the army is walking freely around in the hospital," he said. Israel has said Hamas has a command centre under al-Shifa - a claim Hamas has denied - but has not yet provided substantial evidence of this. Later on Sunday the Israeli military released footage which it said showed a "55m-long terror tunnel, 10m deep underneath the Shifa hospital". The footage shows a tunnel leading to a door. The IDF said investigations were "continuing to uncover the route of the tunnel". Earlier this week, Israel military spokesman Lt Col Jonathan Conricus, said it could take weeks to fully search the medical complex. Hamas, classified as a terrorist organisation in many Western countries, attacked Israel on 7 October, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 240 hostage. Israel has launched a massive retaliatory operation - involving air and artillery strikes as well as ground troops - with the aim of eliminating Hamas. The Hamas-run health ministry says the death toll in Gaza since then has reached 12,300. More than 2,000 more are feared to be buried under rubble. More on Israel-Gaza war (CNN) Taylor Swift announced that her concert scheduled for Saturday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil has been postponed due to high temperatures. Im writing this from my dressing room in the stadium. The decision has been made to postpone tonights show due to the extreme temperatures in Rio, Swift wrote on her Instagram story on Saturday. The safety and well-being of my fans, fellow performers, and crew has to and always will come first, she added. The decision comes a day after a fan died before her performance on Friday in the same city. I cant believe Im writing these words but it is with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show, Swift said on her Instagram story at the time. I cant even tell you how devastated I am by this. Theres very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young. The circumstances surrounding the death are unclear. Im not going to be able to speak about this from stage because I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it, Swift said. I want to say now I feel this loss deeply and my broken heart goes out to her family and friends. This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil. Friday marked Swifts first show in Rio de Janeiro, which is experiencing high temperatures, according to Brazils National Institute of Meteorology. Swift is slated to perform on Sunday in Rio de Janeiro before heading to Sao Paulo for an additional three performances, according to her website. Ukraine's air defense downed 15 out of 20 Shahed drones launched by Russia in its overnight attack, the General Staff reported on Nov. 19. Russian forces launched the drones across Ukraine's northern border at around 8:54 p.m. on Nov. 18. The General Staff didn't say whether the remaining five drones hit their targets. However, Kyiv Oblast Governor Ruslan Kravchenko wrote that an infrastructure site was damaged as a result of the attack. Preliminary information showed there were no casualties, however. The air raid alert lasted five hours. Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, also reported that air defense shot down "around 10" drones targeting the city. According to Cherkasy Oblast Governor Ihor Taburets, air defense shot down one drown over the region. The debris "slightly damaged" five buildings but there were no casualties. On the previous day, the Air Force reported downing 29 out of 38 Russian Shahed drones targeting Ukraine. Read also: Not backing Ukraine is disastrous for Slovak security, says former defense minister Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. After more than a month on the run, a murder suspect who was among four escapees from a Macon, Georgia, jail has been recaptured following a multiweek manhunt. Joey Travis Fournier, 52, was apprehended Saturday around noon near Stockbridge, Georgia, according to the Bibb County Sheriffs Office. Fournier was being held in the Bibb County detention center on a murder charge, police said. Fournier had been on the run since Oct. 16, when he escaped from Bibb County Jail along with three other men, Marc Kerry Anderson, Johnifer Dernard Barnwell and Chavis Demaryo Stokes. The inmates made their way out of the detention center through a damaged window and a cut fence, the Bibb County Sheriffs Office said in a statement at the time of the escape. We are grateful that this last escapee has been captured, Bibb County Sheriff David Davis said. My heartfelt appreciation goes out to all of the hard working law enforcement officers from the Bibb County Sheriffs Office and from all of our partner agencies who worked tirelessly to bring these four fugitives back into custody. Police said Fournier will be returned to Bibb County Law Enforcement Center later today. Stokes was the first to be apprehended on Oct. 26 in Montezuma. Then Anderson was found in Atlanta on Nov. 3. On Nov. 12, Barnwell was apprehended in Augusta. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Saturday Night Live opened with a skit poking fun at President Joe Bidens meeting with Chinas President Xi Jinping - with a giant panda as a special guest. The world leaders met in California this week amid heightened tensions between the two countries, including, among other issues, what some feared was the end of panda diplomacy. SNL took inspiration from the meeting with its latest cold open, with Biden (played by Mikey Day) holding a press conference. Meeting was a total win. Sure, we made agreements about communications, fentanyl, climate change, but most importantly, got the thing America really needs right now. More pandas! Days Biden says before taking questions from press. China relations broke off this past year partly because you called President Xi a dictator, a reporter (Heidi Gardner) says. Fake Biden replies, Thats right. But your summit last week saw remarkable strides in mending that relationship, the fake reporter continues. Would you like to completely undo your accomplishment by calling him a dictator again? I would, the fake president says, referring to the real President Biden calling the Chinese leader a dictator earlier this week. After dodging a series of questions about the border crisis, and how old he is, the fake Biden brings out a very important Chinese dignitary, Bowen Yang dressed as a giant panda. Yang-as-the-panda corrects the giant moniker, saying hes more slim thick. Truly, Im honored to be here. But am I the only one who was surprised that the presidents of the two biggest economies in the world met and everyones just like, Whats up with the pandas? Yang asks. He continues, I mean, I get it: Im hot, Im smart, Im alluringly asexual. But there have to be bigger issues, right? The real President Xi called the creatures envoys of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples earlier this week, signalling that he will send more pandas to the US after three at the Washington DC National Zoo left for China earlier this month. The Associated Press reported that since their departure, only four pandas are left in the US. Saturday Night Live featured a talking giant panda participating in a press conference alongside a mock President Biden giving remarks after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in its cold open. Meeting was a total win. Sure, we made agreements about communications, fentanyl, climate change, but most importantly, got the thing America really needs right now. More pandas! the impersonated Biden told a group of fake reporters. Biden, played by Mikey Day, opened the scene by addressing a group of reporters about the meeting with Xi. The scene poked fun at the pandas leaving the National Zoo earlier this month, Bidens age and Biden calling Xi a dictator after meeting with him. Best Black Friday Deals China relations broke off this past year partly because you called President Xi a dictator, a reporter, played by Heidi Gardner, said, to which the fake Biden responded, Thats right. But your summit last week saw remarkable strides in mending that relationship. Would you like to completely undo your accomplishment by calling him a dictator again? she asked at the mock press conference. I would, he responded, referring to comments Biden made last week calling Xi a dictator again. Instead of asking the fake president something, one of the reporters used her question to just say, Youre old to Biden. When Biden appears to be fed up with these questions, he introduces a very important Chinese dignitary, which turns out to be Bowen Yang dressed in a panda costume. Thank you, but no need to say giant. I think Im really more slim thick. Truly, Im honored to be here. But am I the only one who was surprised that the presidents of the two biggest economies in the world met and everyones just like, Whats up with the pandas? Yang, playing the panda, said. The impersonated reporters poked fun at the panda issue, glossing over more serious topics in favor of asking the panda how he liked America, whether it was a good time to return to China and how the panda felt about being called envoys of friendship. Honestly, I think the timing is right. I just have to leave the country. Now. You know if Trump gets elected in 2024, that would be a disaster. He said hell round up immigrants and put them in camps, democracy will end and there might be a civil war, the panda said when asked about leaving the U.S. When pressed further, the panda was hesitant to say whether he would vote for Biden. The cold open concluded with Day, playing Biden, saying him and the panda were similar. Were dads, were cute. People love sharing videos of us falling down, Day said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Looking for the perfect stocking-stuffer or other gift while also supporting immigrant and refugee-run businesses? Greater Columbus is home to a variety of such enterprises producing handicrafts, clothing and other items appropriate as gifts for the holiday season. Here are four places to start with: Attitude by Aishata: African-inspired clothing and accessories Stepping into Attitude by Aishata, a boutique store in Columbus' Franklinton neighborhood, one feels as if theyve landed on the shores of West Africa. Boubous colorful, wide-sleeved robes and recycled glass-bead jewelry hang from racks; painted wooden masks adorn the walls. Aishata Seyeed, who is African American, runs the business with her husband, Ibrahim Seyeed, a Ghanaian wood carver who produces many of the items the couple sells. Aishata told The Dispatch her interest in crafts began when she learned to quilt from her mother. When she first traveled to Ghana years ago, she was struck by the similarity between African American symbolism and African icons particularly the Adinkra symbols, which represent concepts or sayings. Theyre like a framework for living a moral life, Aishata said of the Adinkra symbols, which are incorporated into many of the boutique's products. Ibrahim, speaking by phone from Accra, the capital city of Ghana, said he has been carving since he was 15 years old and that many of his masks are used at festivals in Ghana. They represent the cultures of several ethnic groups, including the Dagomba and Akan peoples. USA Attitude by Aishata is a shop run by Aishata Seyeed and her husband, Ibrahim Seyeed, who is from Ghana. Many of the wooden items in the shop were carved by Ibrahim while Aishata produces the clothing items. Their shop is at the 400 W. Rich studios. Attitude by Aishata is a shop run by Aishata Seyeed and her husband, Ibrahim Seyeed, who is from Ghana. Many of the wooden items in the shop were carved by Ibrahim. Were keeping our traditions alive, Ibrahim said, adding that he uses a variety of woods as well as charcoal, acrylic paints and polish for finishing. How to connect: The boutique at 400 West Rich St. in Franklinton is open by appointment during the week call (614) 592-0465 or from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Aishata is also a participating vendor at the Op! Marketplace Thursdays through Sundays until Dec. 31 at 222 Neilston St., Downtown. Mexa Collection: blending Mexican tradition with modernity Hilliard resident Pamela Alvaros jewelry and accessories business, Mexa Collection, features what she calls images from a syncretism of Mayan and Christian worldviews that are common in her country of birth, Mexico. Alvaro works with artisans in the Mexican states of Puebla, Oaxaca and Chiapas to produce components for necklaces, earrings, headbands, bags and other items. Her materials include barro negro (black clay pottery), embroidered cloth, gold, leather and silver. A necklace from Mexa Collection. Alvaro said she likes to refashion and repurpose items. Some of her jewelry incorporates Talavera a type of ceramic from backsplash tiles used in Mexican kitchens. I wanted to sell something different, not just what they have back in Mexico, Alvaro said. In a piece of jewelry, you have tradition and culture, and you can wear that. Designs by Mexa Collection. Mexa means something or someone who is muy Mexicano or very Mexican, according to Alvaro. How to connect: Mexa Collection items are available online through Etsy at: www.etsy.com/shop/MexaCollection Balady Stitch: Palestinian embroidery from bracelets to mirrors Balady Stitch, a Dublin-based small business, features Palestinian embroidered items ranging from bracelets to bookmarks, pencil cases, badges, womens clothing and decorated mirrors. Owner Afnan Isleem Algharabli grew up in the U.S. and Gaza, where she learned to embroider from an aunt. She said she works with a small group of female artisans in Gaza to produce the items featuring traditional Palestinian cross-stitch patterns. Afnan Isleem Algharabli seen in one of her embroidery-framed mirrors. Balady means my country, Isleem Algharabli explained. When I started doing this, I tried to make an everyday use item that will give people a chance to talk about the history of embroidery and Palestine, she said. Balady Stitch features traditional Palestinian cross-stitch patterns. Though almost all of her business' work in Gaza has been put on hold following Israels invasion in response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, Isleem Algharabli said she still has many items in stock. How to connect: Balady Stitch items are available online through Etsy at: etsy.com/shop/baladystitchshop Qamaria Yemeni Coffee: Straight from its birthplace Besides its freshly brewed coffee, Qamaria Yemeni Coffee Co. in Hilliard also sells whole coffee beans and spiced mixes that can make a perfect gift for caffeine lovers. Abdul Nagi, co-owner of Qamaria Yemeni Coffee Co. in Hilliard, makes a latte. The Michigan-based brand sources all of its coffee from Yemen, where coffee was first roasted in the 14th century (though the plant is native to East Africa). Yemeni coffee has a fruity and earthy flavor to it. It's grown in high altitude over 3,000 meters, and its sun dried for 30 to 45 days, on top of the roofs, said Adam Ahmed, 30, of Hilliard, one of the local franchises co-owners. Coffee beans from Qamaria Qamaria sells spiced coffee mixes that are made with cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and ginger as well as plain beans. The packages come with instructions on preparation. How to connect: Coffee beans and mixes can be purchased locally at the cafe at 3221 Hilliard Rome Road in Hilliard, or online at qamariacoffee.com/ 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 @pitaarji This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Gift shopping? Try these new American-owned businesses in Columbus The U.S. is keeping all options on the table as negotiations to free scores of hostages in Gaza press on playing a significant role in advancing talks between Israel and Hamas while actively formulating plans with international partners for tactical recovery operations that could be put into action if it's determined they could be carried out with a reasonable level of risk, according to two American officials. The U.S., along with Qatar and Egypt, is working to move Israel and Hamas toward a deal to free many of the more than 200 captives Israel assesses are being detained, potentially including some of the 10 Americans that are still unaccounted for following Hamas' surprise terror attacks on Israel on Oct. 7. PHOTO: Family members, relatives and supporters hold posters showing hostages as they march to Jerusalem, Nov. 15, 2023 in Beit Hashmonai, Israel. (Amir Levy/Getty Images) On Friday, President Joe Biden spoke with the emir of Qatar to discusses "the urgent need for all hostages held by Hamas to be released without further delay." Despite the push for diplomacy and reports that both sides were close to reaching an accord earlier in the week, a senior State Department official said on Friday that the U.S. was still unconvinced a deal would be reached. Multiple sources confirm to ABC News that Israel and Hamas are discussing an arrangement that would exchange at least 50 hostages, mostly women and children, for a multi-day truce as well as the release of an unspecified number of Palestinian women and minors detained by Israel, but that both sides had not reached a consensus on specific details. Although Biden expressed varying levels of hope through the week that a deal would happen, a senior administration official says Israel and Hamas have been close to an agreement at various points in recent weeks, but that each time, those talks had broken down in the final stages. In the early days of the conflict, officials said that the circumstances on the ground in Gaza made any kind of targeted attempt to physically extract hostages untenable. While recovery missions always come with inherent danger and the U.S. believes a brokered deal is the best option for securing a large number of the detainees, sources say tactical plans are being developed in case circumstances change. PHOTO: Relatives and friends of Israeli hostages held in Gaza since the October 7 attack by Hamas militants in southern Israel, hold placards and images of those taken during a protest for their release in the central city of Modiin, Nov. 16, 2023. (Menahem Kahana AFP via Getty Images) U.S. military or law enforcement personnel would not necessarily be involved in actually carrying out any such operation, as foreign forces have often carried out plans developed in partnership with their American counterparts in the past. The various potential courses of action unfolding simultaneously against the intricate web of diplomatic negotiations reflect the unparalleled complexity of the Gaza hostage crisis, which involves a massive number of individuals now believed to be held by Hamas and other terrorist groups through various locations in the besieged enclave for more than 40 days. "There are a few different things that can make hostage takings and hostage recovery negotiations extremely complicated. This hostage situation has all of them," said Danielle Gilbert, a member of the Bipartisan Commission on Hostage Taking and Wrongful Detention at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and political scientist at Northwestern University. Gilbert points to the lack of information available about the hostages' wellbeing and the likelihood that Hamas will want to retain a significant number of detainees for leverage during future negotiations, as well as the deep distrust between the parties. "Sometimes hostage-takers have in the past quite intentionally used an iterated nature of a negotiation to gather as many concessions as possible while retaining hostages as well so they might negotiate some sort of swap and then only release a portion of the hostages that they are holding and continue to demand more to let more people go," she said. "So that is something probably both the kidnappers and target governments are thinking about: ways to ensure they won't be taken advantage of in this way." PHOTO: Families and friends of about 240 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza call for their return as they begin a five-day 'March for the Hostages' from Tel Aviv to the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, Nov. 14, 2023. (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) Christopher O'Leary, the former director of the U.S. task force on hostage recovery, says that the situation is like none other he has experienced through the course of his career, but as it plays out, the U.S. and Israel will likely be able to piece together a more completed intelligence picture that can inform recovery efforts. "There's always multiple lines of effort being planned. There's a recovery being planned from the second an American gets taken. Our special operations and intelligence units are collecting data and coming up with options for recovery and that is constant," he said. "The movement into Gaza actually aids in that," O'Leary, who is also the senior vice president for global operations at The Soufan Group, an intelligence and security consultancy, continued. "For every block that is taken, every apartment complex that is seized, battlefield evidence is being collected, detainees are being taken, so biometrics are being run, tactical questioning is done, [and] electronic devices are being exploited. That is all feeding into the intelligence picture to try to locate where the hostages may be held." While O'Leary says these efforts will unfold on a separate track from negotiations, it seems unlikely that Hamas will ever agree to turn over some of the hostages including members of the Israel Defense Forces. "I would be surprised if you didn't see some form of hostage rescue for some of the members that aren't getting negotiated out," he said. Pressed on the total number of American hostages, national security adviser Jake Sullivan told ABC "This Week" co-anchor Jonathan Karl that America doesn't have a "precise number." So far, Hamas has released two American hostages and two Israeli hostages since Oct. 7. US considering tactical recovery plans for hostages in Gaza originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Help during the holidays is available from the Goodfellow Fund. There is one catch, however. Those asking for help need to show up to receive it, something that Executive Director Richard Greene noted has become a primary concern for the campaign this holiday season. He said theyve seen an increase in the number of applicants not coming in for their short interview for the last couple of years, Greene said. The Goodfellow Fund is the Star-Telegram charity that is once again helping to make the holidays better for children in need throughout Tarrant County. With the aid of their many volunteers, the organization is once again providing a $50 tax-free gift certificate for each child for new clothing from Old Navy, with a goal of serving 13,000 children. Greene said numerous steps have been taken in the past several months to increase the number of families applying for assistance. But for those who have applied, a mystery remains. Why would they not all come in for the short interview required to verify their need and to provide them with the gift that will satisfy both a need and a joy for their children? Changes in the interview process Greene said the excuses for missing their interview are typically a) they forgot, or B) they had a conflict with the time, such as children or work responsibilities. However, there have been some pretty interesting excuses, including what he called the oddest of all, Their dog ate the appointment letter. That, of course, might have been an appropriate time for the applicant to double check on the homework assignment. This year, in an effort to help alleviate the problem, the organization changed the interviews from a specific time to coming in anytime on a specific day. Greene said a concern in the past was that the volunteers vetting the applicant would be overwhelmed with applicants during certain times of the day. Additionally, the applicant may have to wait longer to be served. Greene also assured the Goodfellow staff will stay as long as it takes to see any applicants who come in on that day. We want to serve as many families as possible and not have them have to make another trip for a subsequent interview day, he said. Interviews Interviews are conducted in Fort Worth at the Travis Avenue Baptist Church on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. In Arlington they are conducted at the St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church on Mondays and Wednesdays. No interviews are held Thanksgiving week as Greene noted both the volunteers and applicant families are busy with their own holiday plans. No proxies with certain exceptions or virtual interviews are allowed. However, there is a dedicated phone number and dedicated email address posted on the Goodfellow Fund website to accommodate those with a conflict of the scheduled interview date. To date weve received a number of requests and have worked to accommodate each of them, Greene said. As a part of the reschedule conversation we let the applicant know that a family member, neighbor, church associate or friend may come in for them. But the individual must bring the applicants Identification and the additional documentation that supports their residency, childs age, number of children in school and income. This is done for the integrity of the Goodfellow Fund. The donor can be assured that their gift goes to families with the most need and each family is individually qualified. If you would like to help, go to the Goodfellow Fund website at goodfellowfundfw.com. It only takes six or seven clicks to make a difference in the holiday season for thousands of children, Greene said. About the Goodfellow Fund The story on the Goodfellow website describes its beginning as an offshoot of the first newspaper charity drive in the United States, started by the Chicago Tribune on Dec. 10, 1909. A Chicago city attorney wrote a letter challenging his friends to donate the money they would have spent on holiday partying to charity. A couple years later, the Advertising Club of Fort Worth staged the first local Goodfellow campaign. On the day after Thanksgiving in 1912, Publisher Amon G. Carter brought the tradition to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. To find out more, or to learn more about helping, visit goodfellowfundfw.com. The post office box for donations and correspondence is P.O. Box 149, Fort Worth, TX. 76101. Former President Donald Trump greets and shakes hands with Gov. Greg Abbott at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg, on Nov. 19, 2023, after the governor announced that he was endorsing Trump. Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday endorsed Donald Trumps comeback campaign for the White House, while hosting the former president at the Texas-Mexico border. We need Donald J. Trump back as our president of the United States of America, Abbott said during a speech in Edinburg, promising Trump would secure the border and restore law and order. Trump said the endorsement was a tremendous honor given how hard Abbott has worked to fortify the border under Democratic President Joe Biden. Mr. Governor, I am going to make your job much easier, Trump said. Youll be able to focus on other things in Texas. Abbott made the endorsement after he and Trump served meals to service members deployed for Operation Lone Star, Abbotts sprawling border security mission. As part of the effort, which has cost Texas billions of dollars, Abbott sent state troopers and National Guard members to the border to arrest migrants crossing the Rio Grande. Some of the arrests are the subject of civil rights lawsuits against the state. Ahead of Trumps visit, Democrats doubled down on criticism of his and the governors immigration strategy. During a news conference on Saturday, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Bidens campaign manager, said Trump would enact extreme, inhumane and fundamentally un-American immigration policies if given a second term. In recent months, the former president has promised to revive his ban on travelers from Muslim-majority countries and has refused to commit to not reinstating a controversial policy that led to family separations. Trumps trip to Texas is not about securing the border, Rodriguez said. It's just another photo-op with what we know is one of the most anti-immigrant governors, whose policies have forced vulnerable women and children into horrific conditions. Abbotts endorsement comes as Trumps lead grows among the other Republicans seeking the 2024 presidential nomination. Both nationally and in Texas, Trump is polling far ahead of his nearest rivals, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations. Abbotts support is notable because he has not embraced Trump as much as some other statewide officials like Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who twice chaired Trumps campaign in Texas. Abbott does not often attend Trumps campaign events in Texas, like the stop he made in Houston earlier this month. Abbott instead made a surprise trip to Israel at the time, saying he wanted to show solidarity after the Palestinian militant group Hamas Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Trump and his allies have also shown occasional signs of frustration with Abbott over the years. More recently, Trump questioned in May on his Truth Social platform why Abbott was not speaking out about the Texas Houses impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton, a top Trump ally in Texas. But Abbott and Trump have previously found ways to shore up their relationship at election time. Trump gave Abbott an early and crucial endorsement in his contested primary for reelection last year, and Abbott appeared at a Trump rally in the Houston area weeks before the primary, which the governor easily won. Trump called Abbotts nod a big endorsement, saying the governor is not free and easy with endorsements. Earlier this year, Abbotts relationship with DeSantis was also a subject of political intrigue. With DeSantis riding high after his resounding reelection in Florida, Abbott and his agenda faced regular comparisons to his newly ascendent fellow GOP governor. DeSantis visited Texas in March and played down any tensions in speeches at county GOP fundraisers, hailing the two states as leading partners against the political left. Abbott also knows Haley from her time as a fellow GOP governor in South Carolina. They have appeared multiple times together in Texas, including in the final weeks of his reelection bid last year. Earlier this year, Abbott was himself considered a possible 2024 presidential candidate. While he never ruled it out, speculation faded as his legislative agenda stalled at the state Capitol, prompting four special sessions. Throughout the year, Abbott stayed out of the presidential primary, even as DeSantis and Haley traveled to the state for fundraising and made inroads with some of Texas top donors. When he was asked in August if he preferred DeSantis or Trump on border policy, Abbott dodged the question. We just want a Republican president, he said. Uriel Garcia contributed reporting. Saturday saw the return of an unwelcome new element in the rhythm of weekly life. While no large march was held in London, pro-Palestine protesters turned out at roughly 100 events up and down the country. For some areas, it was their first taste of the disruption London has been dealing with. For weeks, these demonstrations have been marred by loud anti-Semitic elements. Many protesters have routinely chanted from the river to the sea, a slogan widely understood to be a call for the destruction of the state of Israel, amid a torrent of abuse targeting the Jewish state and people. There have been instances of genocide denial, anti-Semitic signs, blood libels and some have gone so far as to dress in imitation of Hamas terrorists. Calls for the release of hostages, or for Hamass surrender, have been all-but absent. Some have started targeting MPs in a way that appears to be an ill-disguised attempt at intimidation. This cannot go on without a proper response. Even the most ardent believers in free speech concede that there must be carve outs to prevent threats and calls for violence. Inciting racist hate is rightly illegal. The behaviour of some pro-Palestine protesters has crossed numerous lines time and time again, and yet the Government seems paralysed. It cannot be the case that each weekend, our streets play host to displays of anti-Semitic hatred that leave many Jewish people afraid to venture into their town centres. The Government can no longer stand idly by. It is clear that extremism has been allowed to fester in this country, spreading hatred and division. To see young people, educated in Britain, take to the streets to call for the eradication of Israel is heartbreaking. It is time for the state to act as it has both a right and duty to, and to confront this scourge in our schools, in our universities, on social media and above all in our streets. It must come out with a proper strategy, and plans for whatever emergency legislation is required to enact it. 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. Chris Lindesay, landlord of the Sun Inn and director of Protect Dunsfold - Eddie Mulholland for The Telegraph In the sleepy Surrey village of Dunsfold, the landlord of the local pub was clipping the hedge outside when, somewhat unexpectedly, a man from an oil and gas company turned up. Weve got a public meeting in the village hall would you like to come? said the stranger. About what? asked Chris Lindesay, as the two men faced each other outside the 17th century Sun Inn. Were going to be drilling near here, said the man, according to Lindesays recollection. Bemused, Lindesay attended the meeting where, he says, he was surprised to see security guards on hand, as if they were expecting trouble. It was here, in 2019, that this rural Home Counties community first learnt of the plans by UK Oil & Gas (UKOG), an AIM-listed company, to drill in nearby countryside at Loxley. The firm would not be fracking, nor polluting, nor causing earthquakes, they assured the assembled villagers. Fast forward more than four years and the villagers efforts to prevent the drilling continue. The latest stage of a protracted legal battle concluded in the summer, with a judicial review deciding in UKOGs favour. Local campaign group Protect Dunsfold, backed by the Good Law Project, has applied to the Court of Appeal for permission to appeal the ruling. They expect a decision any time now. Its a fight between a quiet community loath to see fossil fuel exploitation on their green and pleasant land, and a company intent on it. On the one side: a coalition of those who fear disruption, pollution and climate change. On the other: commercial interest and, crucially, the Government, which gave the green light to the scheme after council planners rejected it. The fight over Loxley is perhaps emblematic of a broader conflict between the Governments approach to carbon and climate with energy security and consumer prices uppermost and that of an increasingly eco-conscious electorate, who will face a choice at the next general election between parties with differing plans for tackling the crisis. While Labour has pledged to stop new oil and gas exploration licences in the North Sea, Rishi Sunak will allow it. In the Kings Speech earlier this month, the Government confirmed its plans to grant new licences every year, to reduce reliance on volatile international energy markets and hostile foreign regimes. Opponents allege it makes a mockery of the UKs climate commitments. Dunsfold village - Alamy But while Sunak may hope to widen a Left-Right rift on the issue, environmental concerns transcend party political lines. Among many others criticising his North Sea policy earlier this year was Conservative MP Chris Skidmore, who said it was on the wrong side of modern voters. In Dunsfold, the story has been playing out on a micro level. Those opposed to the scheme comprise a broad coalition of local residents, environmental activists, Waverley Borough Council (in which the Liberal Democrats are the largest party) and the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, who also happens to be the local MP. The concerns voiced by Dunsfold residents are not all climate-focused, but most cite climate as the main one. Their other reasons are various. The village a relatively isolated thread of homes stretching along a large common, and dating back to the Middle Ages lies in the Weald Basin, beneath which hundreds of thousands of tonnes of oil is thought to lie. On Dunsfolds doorstep is the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which the community is at pains to protect. The Surrey Hills could find itself home to drilling, trucks and other disruption including a 30m rig - iStockphoto There are going to be loads of trucks [on the country lanes], says Lindesay, a director of Protect Dunsfold. The damage to the roads will be significant. There are other local issues causing concern not least the risk of the picturesque views being ruined by a 30m rig standing where currently only sheep dot the landscape. (UKOG says the rig would only be up for six weeks.) Lindesay, like others, dismisses the idea that extracting more fossil fuels in Britain and off its shores will aid energy security as we transition to net zero. It would be sold on the open market and much of it would end up being exported anyway, say critics. I dont understand why, if were supposed to be moving away from fossil fuels, the Government is allowing people to drill, says Diana from behind the counter of the small village store that doubles as a post office. But what can we do about it? Sarah Godwin, another director of Protect Dunsfold, meanwhile remains determined to do whatever she can about it. This environment will be quite severely impacted, she says. But the greater picture is that since 2019 theres been increasing awareness about the climate crisis. A little project like this will have no impact on fuel security. Whats the point of doing it? Sarah Godwin: Britain is falling further and further behind on climate and its shameful - Eddie Mulholland for The Telegraph She is 75 and worries about whats at stake for future generations. My grandchildren wont know all the fauna and flora we have enjoyed and taken for granted, she says. The [climate] warning signs are so stark, they shouldnt be messing around with these poxy projects. Britain is falling further and further behind on climate and its shameful. Others argue that the community will have to put up with the disruption without seeing any upsides themselves. Its not going to be of any use to us, says Lisa Tarlton, 42, who has recently moved to a house in the village dating back to the 16th century. What does UKOG make of this objection? Who knows? says a spokesman. We might be supplying them with gas. Well see what happens. How much gas does UKOG believe lies under this land, ripe for exploitation? The estimates make it worthwhile investigating. Ashley Herman, 69, whose cosy book-lined farmhouse dating from 1450 sits close to where the drilling is set to take place, disagrees. Ive spoken to geologists and theyre of the opinion there is oil and gas here but very little, he says. Ashley Herman: Its going to blight our lives and they probably wont find anything anyway - Eddie Mulholland for The Telegraph He powers his own home largely through solar energy and heat pumps, and is troubled by UKOGs plan. This whole thing came as a bit of a shock when suddenly Im told theres an oil well going over there, 250 metres from my bedroom. Im quite upset. UKOG says its only gas that will be drilled for, though its original booklet on the scheme says the purpose is to find much-needed oil and gas for the UKs energy security. Herman shakes his head. Its absolutely absurd to do it here. Its going to blight our lives and they probably wont find anything anyway. Waverley Borough Council, which declared a climate emergency in 2019, has its own list of objections, ranging from the potential noise impact on local residents to the safety and wellbeing of the community as a result of HGV movement around the site. But again, the local issues are coupled with the global. This is not about nimbyism; its about saving the planet as much as it is about preserving our local countryside and neighbourhood, says Green Party councillor Steve Williams, portfolio holder for environment and sustainability. The exploitation of fossil fuels makes a complete mockery of any attempt to cut carbon emissions to net zero. To get on this trajectory its clear that any newly discovered onshore reserves of fossil fuels need to stay in the ground, and that applies to the drilling in the Surrey countryside as it applies to opening new coal mines elsewhere. Waverley Borough Council and Protect Dunsfold protesting at the Royal Courts of Justice - Alamy Following the latest legal ruling, UKOG is bullish. Planning consent continues to remain in full force and the companys plans to implement the project remain unchanged, it said in a statement in the summer. UKOG has consistently stated that Loxley can play its part in the Governments Hydrogen and British Energy Security Strategies via the supply of its gas as feedstock for reformation into clean burning hydrogen. But the company spokesman said there was no fixed timetable for when drilling would actually begin and that UKOG may even farm it out to someone else. Theres no rush. Weve been granted permission to get on with it, [to] explore and see if its worth it, but we think it is. The objections have been so silly because the [local residents] are not going to see anything. What about the objections on the grounds of the climate emergency? Weve got Government consent. UKOG has been contacted for further comment Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 19) Ahead of the coronation in El Salvador, Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach goes on a call with this year's Philippine bet Michelle Marquez Dee to show her support for the upcoming big night. "So grateful for you!! @piawurtzbach. Prepping the final touches for tomorrow!" Dee said in an Instagram (IG) story on Saturday (Philippine time). Wurtzbach was unable to fly to San Salvador, El Salvador to watch the pageant live but said she is supporting the 28-year-old Dee from afar. Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray, who will be sharing pageant insights as a backstage correspondent for the event, met with Dee when she arrived in El Salvador. Rabiya Mateo and Beatrice Luigi Gomez, representatives to the pageant in 2020 and 2021, respectively, have also expressed their support. "Grabe ka. You've united the Filipino fans, and we're so proud of you," Gomez said in a previous IG post. "Mahal na mahal ka namin and mabuhay ka, Michelle Dee!" https://www.instagram.com/reel/Czf44qLLaYL/ Dee will take a shot at bringing home the country's fifth Miss Universe crown during the coronation night in San Salvador on Sunday (Philippine time). A six-year-old girl was injured when Russian forces shelled Kherson on Nov. 19, Roman Mrochko, the head of the city's military administration, reported. Mrochko didn't specify how grave the injuries were, saying only that the child was receiving medical help. Kherson and the greater region have been the target of Russian attacks on a near-daily basis since Ukrainian forces liberated it from Russian occupation in November 2022. The territory of Kherson Oblast to the east bank of the Dnipro River is still under Russian occupation, from which Russian forces continue to launch attacks against military and civilians. Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported earlier on Nov. 19 that Russian forces had carried out 71 attacks across the region the previous day, injuring four people. Children are often among the victims of such attacks. According to the official count led by Ukraine's Prosecutor's Office, at least 510 children have been killed since the start of the full-scale invasion by Russia. The actual numbers regarding child casualties may be much higher since they do not fully account for territories still under Russian occupation, recently liberated by Ukrainian forces, or experiencing heavy fighting. Read also: Under deadly attacks, Kherson fights to keep life going 1 year after liberation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. A Russian attack on the city of Kherson injured five people, including a three-year-old girl, Kherson Oblast Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported on Nov. 19. According to Prokudin, Russian troops launched the attack on the regional capital at around 11 a.m., hitting residential districts. Women aged 47, 55, and 68, as well as a 59-year-old man, were also injured. The toddler injured in the attack was hospitalized at the intensive care unit, Prokudin reported later in the day. "Doctors discovered that she had a mine-explosive injury, multiple shrapnel wounds, a penetrating wound to the chest cavity, a general contusion, a closed craniocerebral injury, and a lung contusion," he wrote. She might need to be transferred to Kyiv for further treatment, Prokudin added. According to the official count led by Ukraine's Prosecutor's Office, at least 510 children have been killed since the start of the full-scale invasion by Russia. The actual numbers regarding child casualties may be much higher since they do not fully account for territories still under Russian occupation, recently liberated by Ukrainian forces, or experiencing heavy fighting. Read also: Under deadly attacks, Kherson fights to keep life going 1 year after liberation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Retired educator Joseph H. Crowley is co-author with Albert Colella of "Poverty & Despair vs Education and Opportunity." Slick move, governor. The headline reads, RI plans $81M in learning centers (Providence Sunday Journal, Nov. 5, News). But can it really? In April, Gov. Dan McKee announced his Learn365RI education plan. The goals were to improve students test scores, increase student attendance and increase the number of financial aid applications (known as FAFSA and used for college tuitions). The one measurable target was making Rhode Islands test scores comparable to Massachusetts'. Later, the governor announced he was providing $3.8 million for communities to use in supporting his plan. He is quoted in GoLocalProv (July 30) as saying, A key component of our strategy to increase out-of-school learning time is to achieve a high-level commitment from mayors, town administrators, council presidents, and town managers across the state. They are the ones who are uniquely positioned to take this effort communitywide. More: Pandemic funding for schools is drying up. For Providence, it could mean disaster Perhaps the governor forgets that school committees are the municipal officials most uniquely positioned to increase student test scores and attendance. (The jury is still out on how increasing financial aid forms improves learning.) Many communities across the state sought some of the $3.8 million budgeted to the plan. Many communities have long offered afterschool and summer programs through Community Opportunity Zones, Boys & Girls Clubs and the YMCA. Any program supporting learning and supplementing school learning is a good thing and deserves support. Back to that headline, RI plans $81M in learning centers. Really? According to Joseph Lender of the Treasury Department, the funds are to be used to construct or rehabilitate multipurpose community facilities accessible to all residents. That really does not sound like $81 million for learning centers as the governor describes it. Following in the article, one finds the Journal reporter researched more than two dozen communities on how their funds would be used. Twenty-one were funding new or expanded community centers and four were expanding libraries. Twelve were planning on using the facilities for job training and 13 for health-related programs. Fewer than 10 referenced student learning. The governor has presented a plan for improving Rhode Islands student learning outcomes his Learn365RI. The best part of his plan is the name. Is there any relationship between the name and the so-called plan? The one measurable goal is eliminating the gap between Rhode Island and Massachusetts students test scores. As noted here previously, average test scores are significantly impacted by the lower test scores of children living in poverty. Rhode Islands childhood poverty rate is 16.3%. In Massachusetts, it is 12%. If the governor is able to reduce Rhode Islands childhood poverty to the level of Massachusetts, the students will be on a level playing field. More: Johnston's mayor wanted federal funds for learning centers. Then he learned there is a catch. The plan offers no objectives for increasing learning outcomes, improving attendance or increasing FAFSAs. A real plan has measurable objectives. Under this so-called plan, any improvements in any of the stated goals, regardless as to how they are achieved, likely will be claimed as Learn365RI gains. According to the Journal article, the governor is claiming $81 million will be used for learning centers. They may well be. However, they will be used primarily for job and wellness training. A few communities will be providing tutoring, homework help and, one, a summer program. So there is truth in the headline that the funds will be used for learning. However, to suggest there is a relationship between these federal funds and Learn365RI is a total misrepresentation based on the reported intended purpose of the federal funds. Our governor has now proposed a virtually meaningless education plan that supposedly will be funded by a federal program meant to building community centers. Slick political move, governor. This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: The plan offers no objectives for increasing learning outcomes, improving attendance or increasing FAFSAs. When Racha Mousdikoudine opens her kitchen faucet, she never knows what will happen. Maybe I wont get any water at all, she told CNN. Maybe Ill get 30 minutes of water. Maybe the water will only come after hours of waiting. For the last four months, Mousdikoudine and her two children have had little or no running water in their home on the French territory of Mayotte, and island of around 310,000 people in the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of Africa, between Mozambique and the island of Madagascar. Mayotte is facing an unprecedented water crisis amid one of the worst droughts in its history, as the impacts of the human-caused climate crisis collide with a chronic lack of investment in the water system. The island is grappling with its worst drought since 1997. Its two water reservoirs have reached a critical level of decline one is at 7% of capacity and the other at 6%, according to the most recent estimates, and they are on the verge of drying up. It has led to drastic water cuts. Residents only have access to water for around 18 hours at a time every couple of days, according to a schedule published by the Prefecture, the local subdivision of the French government. Many say what little water they have is often contaminated and undrinkable. Residents have had to cope with school closures and a growing health crisis, all while water bottles become a rare and expensive commodity on supermarket shelves. In a country like France this is unimaginable Though 5,000 miles away from mainland France, under French law, Mayotte is as French as the suburbs of Paris. Colonized by France in 1841, the island was formally recognized as a French department in 2011, meaning it has the same legal status as the 96 departments that make up mainland France. The French government has responded to the crisis. In September, it shipped 600,000 liters of bottled water to the island for its most vulnerable residents and has deployed soldiers and civil servants to help with water distribution. The government has also suspended water bills for all residents. But many Mahorais the term used to refer to people from Mayotte still feel abandoned. Douainda Attoumani, 27, is scared of what the future might hold. She lives in a household of 10, with her parents, her sister, four brothers and two cousins. Every day is harder than the last, she told CNN. The authorities seem absent in our daily suffering, she said, adding, when we have no water, what are we actually going to do? Were going to die of thirst. Soldiers unload water packs following the arrival of a ship on the French island of Mayotte carrying 600,000 liters of bottled water for distribution to the department's most vulnerable people, on September 20, 2023. - Chafion Madi/AFP/Getty Images Many, like Mousdikoudine, are angry. Im a French woman, but one without any autonomy, because I have no water, she said. I have to choose between going to look for water for my family and going to work. In a country like France, having to make these kinds of decisions, its unimaginable. The simple acts of washing or pouring glasses of water for her daughters, ages 7 and 9, became such a huge challenge she and her husband decided to send the children to live with their grandmother in the French territory of La Reunion, about a two-hour flight from Mayotte. The decision was extremely difficult, Mousdikoudine said, but she felt she had no choice. It got to the point where I could no longer ensure the safety of my children. Cook them proper meals, take care of their hygiene, things like going to the toilet, washing. At any moment things can get out of hand Water in Mayotte is not only scarce, but whats available is often contaminated. Online, residents use the hashtag #MayotteASoif (Mayotte is thirsty) to share videos of the brown, sediment-filled liquid that emerges from their taps. Some, including Mousdikoudine, have taken to the streets in protest. The Regional Health Authority (ARS) in Mayotte has identified several instances of contaminated water. As of mid-October, the cases of non-compliant water were at around 3%, ARS general manager Olivier Brahic told CNN. Many residents, however, believe the water quality issue to be a much bigger problem. Estelle Youssouffa, a lawmaker for Mayotte in the French National Assembly, told CNN the reason authorities are able to say the water is drinkable is because they perform tests only once its been flowing for several hours after an interruption. The ARS confirmed to CNN that tests are undertaken after water has been running for 12 hours following a cut. Mousdikoudine and Attoumani both said that after a cut, the water only starts to flow clear after its been running for hours. But most residents cant forgo water during that time when it is rationed. A dried up reservoir in Dzoumogne on the French Indian Ocean island of Mayotte on October 15, 2023. - Marion Joly/AFP/Getty Images Women fill up buckets with water in the district of M'tsamoudou, near Bandrele, on Mayotte, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023. - Gregoire Merot/AP As the water crisis continues, so do the health risks. The island has been experiencing an acute gastroenteritis epidemic, according to Dr. Soumeth Abasse, president of the medical committee of Mayottes Hospital. Gastroenteritis epidemics are not unusual in the summer months, Abasse said, but this one is extending well into the fall. Weve also had a worsening of cases, he added. Some cases were a little more difficult, more complicated, with a lot of cases ending up in intensive care. He said the causes of the epidemic are both contaminated water and lower hygiene standards resulting from people having less access to water, which affects their ability to wash their hands, shower, flush their toilets and clean their homes. Were always afraid of a possible explosion of these water-borne diseases, Abasse said. At any moment, things can get out of hand, and we dont have enough staff to deal with it. Mayottes understaffed hospital is only one of many infrastructural issues the French department is facing. Mayottes population has nearly doubled since 2007, and infrastructure improvements havent kept pace, Youssouffa said. Even outside periods of drought, water production on the territory is insufficient, according to the Prefecture, with water cuts a regular occurrence on the island, long before this years exceptionally low rainfall. The increased demands of a larger population coupled with the impacts of climate change, which is making droughts both more frequent and more severe, has put a huge amount of pressure on the islands water resources. The rains have been diminishing for years, said Youssouffa. Weve seen the path of cyclones and the path of rains changing in the region and thats directly the impact of climate change. For years, talks have been underway to build a third water reservoir and a second desalination plant to increase Mayottes drinking water production capabilities. But neither project has begun, according to the Prefecture. Mayotte has received funding to help with its dire water situation. In 2014, the European Commission allocated 22 million euros ($24 million) to Mayotte for its water supply, as part of a larger funding package. But in 2021, payments of the whole fund were suspended after an audit found serious irregularities and shortcomings in the management of the money, before resuming again this year. So far less than half of the money earmarked for water has been spent, the Prefecture told CNN. Its not a normal life A man fills a bucket with water in Dzaoudzi, on the French Indian Ocean island of Mayotte, Nov. 7, 2023. - Marion Joly/AFP/Getty Images Mahorais continue to struggle with the financial repercussions of the dire water crisis. In July, the French government introduced a price freeze on bottled water, but a pack of six 1.5 liter bottles can still cost as much as 12 euros ($13), according to CNN affiliate BFMTV. This makes it unaffordable for the majority of the islands population. And thats if bottled water is even available in the first place. Elsa Leduc, a humanitarian worker who moved to Mayotte from Paris in September, said trying to find bottled water has become a daily chore. Every time I go to the supermarket, theres no water, she said. I have to go to smaller shops that are a lot more expensive. Leduc is lucky that she is able to afford the high prices, but most on the island cant. According to INSEE, 77% of Mayottes inhabitants live below the national poverty line, a figure that is five times higher than in the rest of France. The difficulty with the water crisis is that its making Mayotte unlivable, said Youssouffa. The crisis is so bad that its interrupting public services. Its interrupting schooling. Its interrupting businesses. Its not a normal life. Mousdikoudine and Attoumani, like many Mahorais, wonder why authorities failed to prepare for it. Since 2018, weve had small (water) cuts and we could see that there wasnt any rain, said Attoumani, so they should have anticipated, found solutions. The whole system is falling apart literally before our eyes, because its shutting down, said Youssouffa. You cannot function without water. All hopes are on the rainy season, which starts in December. But Mousdikoudine worries it wont be enough. I know things are going to get worse. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com The Oklahoma Constitution mandates we fund and maintain a public school system for the benefit of every child in our state. So, why are we diverting public funds toward private school tuition tax credits? During the 2023 legislative session, the Parental Choice Tax Credit Act was approved, providing as much as $7,500 per child for private school tuition. The legislation also provides up to $1,000 for home-schooling expenses. Supporters of this program framed it as enabling more Oklahoma families to take advantage of other education options, such as private school, by making it more affordable, but in fact, the wealthiest families even those earning millions will be able to access public dollars. Families earning less than $150,000 a year can apply beginning the first week of December, then everyone else can begin applying Jan. 1. Theres an overall cap of $150 million for tax year 2024, and by 2026, a $250 million cap. Not only are lower-income families barely prioritized, but we are now told the cost to taxpayers is going to be even higher because of administrative costs. Last spring, the Oklahoma Tax Commission estimated the administrative cost of the program at $1 million in the current fiscal year, with an additional $706,000 the next year. But now weve learned the Tax Commission has outsourced administration of the program to a company called Merit, and the actual cost for a one-year contract will be nearly $4 million dollars four times higher than the estimate given to legislators. Furthermore, there was no competitive bidding for this contract and no guarantee of transparency in program administration moving forward. The Oklahoma Constitution is clear. We have a mandate to fund and maintain a public school system for the benefit of every child in our state. Despite recent investments, we are still dealing with the negative impact of previous cuts. Just this past summer, the Annie E. Casey Foundation released its annual KIDS COUNT report that revealed Oklahoma was ranked 46th in the nation for child well-being, and 49th for education. The metrics in that education ranking include children 3 and 4 years of age not in school, fourth-graders not proficient in reading, eighth-graders not proficient in math, and high school students not graduating on time. Its even more concerning when you compare the 2023 ranking of 49th in education, to just a decade ago in 2013, we were ranked 40th in the nation. Were losing ground, and it points to the need for more, not less funding for our public schools. An education provides children with tools needed to succeed throughout life, decreases reliance on social services, and provides the knowledge and skills to become engaged citizens. The vast majority of children, nearly 670,000 in the 2021-22 school year, attended public schools, compared to less than 33,000 who attended private schools that same year. The state is diverting tax dollars from our public schools when we should be investing even more, and now weve learned the price tag is higher than wed initially been told. Its a disappointing development that undermines our constitutional mandate to fund and maintain public schools, and one that increasingly shortchanges the overwhelming majority of Oklahoma children. Sen. Kay Floyd Sen. Kay Floyd, a Democrat, represents District 46 and is the minority leader in the Oklahoma Senate. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Funding Oklahoma private schools is hurting public schools UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz says hes weighing whether to accept a new job as president of Michigan State University. Thats like a man in a burning building weighing whether to leave. No one understands this better than Guskiewicz. As a neuroscientist who has researched the effects of concussions, he knows that repeated blows to the head can lead to mental impairment. Now he knows that repeated blows to the head of a university can lead to career endangerment. Since becoming chancellor in 2019, Guskiewicz, 57, has stood between radical Republicans in the state legislature who see the university as a liberal indoctrination center and those who respect the quality of the nations oldest public university and the principle of academic freedom. Circumstances have forced him to be more of a buffer than a leader. Only Guskiewicz knows how many political intrusions he has diverted, delayed or quietly accommodated. He deserves credit for doing well in a compromised role. There have been blowups over a Confederate statue, tenure for Nikole Hanna-Jones and ignoring health officials call to hold off on bringing students back to campus at the height of COVID. But overall, the chancellor has kept controversies from growing into crises. Faculty members are thankful for what the chancellor has been able to fend off and are apprehensive about who might take his place. Now that worry is likely to be realized. Since gaining full control of the General Assembly in the 2010 election, Republican lawmakers have increasingly expanded their power to shape North Carolina. Theyve locked themselves into legislative control by extreme gerrymandering. Theyve politicized the courts in their favor. They control the Department of Public Instruction. Theyve peeled away appointments that belonged to the governor and have overridden his vetoes. Theyve filled the UNC Board of Governors with appointees whose main qualification is their allegiance to legislative leaders. Now there is one more conquest to make: Take complete control of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Republican lawmakers have provided $4 million to fund a new School of Civic Life and Leadership at Chapel Hill. Its supporters say the schools curriculum will counter a liberal academic culture that they say makes conservative students feel intimidated and unwelcome. A provision in this years state budget ends state contributions to endowed professorships in the humanities, where the Republican lawmakers loudest critics are often found and where that alleged liberal indoctrination takes place. For a sense of what may be yet to come, consider the model state legislation being backed by conservative groups, including North Carolinas James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal. The proposed bill, blandly named the General Education Act, would effectively overhaul public universities, starting with the flagship schools. John Wilson, author of Patriotic Correctness: Academic Freedom and Its Enemies, described the General Education Act this week in Inside Higher Education: If the model legislation were to be enacted, lawmakers would force public colleges to adopt a uniform general education curriculum devoted to conservative values, give a new dean near-total power to hire all faculty to teach these classes and then require the firing of many existing faculty members in the humanities and social sciences, including tenured professors. Maybe Republican lawmakers would not pass legislation that would subvert one of North Carolinas greatest assets. But a new chancellor will be chosen for his willingness to go along with radical changes opposed by much of the faculty. Its unlikely that a distinguished academic, experienced administrator and strong leader would want such a job. But, of course, its also unlikely that those seeking to reshape the university would not want such a chancellor. Associate opinion editor Ned Barnett can be reached at 919-404-7583, or nbarnett@ newsobserver.com Hall County announced it has added eight new fire engines to upgrade its once-aging fleet. The new engines will be spread across different parts of southern Hall County. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] These additions are part of a multi-year plan to replace and upgrade the fleet. Stations 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 12 and 14 will each receive new trucks. Were very excited to have completed the update of our sixteen-engine fleet with the release of these trucks, Interim Fire Chief Jerry Smith said. Finalizing the replacement of our outdated fleet ensures Hall County Fire Rescue maintains the highest levels of service to our community. Fire officials said these upgrades will reduce maintenance cost on some of the older engines. TRENDING STORIES: The new trucks will have more life-saving equipment and other new technologies. Emergency services are the most critical and impactful services provided by local government, Hall County Board of Commissioners Chairman Richard Higgins said. We want our firefighters to have equipment that is reliable, effective and efficient, so our community has peace of mind knowing the men and women of Hall County Fire Rescue will be there when they need them. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - Harris County authorities are on the scene of a major crash caused by a juvenile street racer, officials say. According to Harris County Constable Precinct 4 officials, the incident happened at 16405 North Freeway Service Road in Houston around 2:49 p.m. CONSTABLES ARREST JUVENILE STREET RACER WHO CAUSED A MAJOR VEHICLE CRASH ON THE NORTH FREEWAY! Follow us at https://t.co/EzyDHKl8Js and Download our new mobile app C4 NOW to receive live feeds on crime, arrests, safety tips & traffic accidents in your area. pic.twitter.com/d935VER5wP Mark Herman, Harris County Constable Precinct 4 (@Pct4Constable) November 18, 2023 Two juvenile drivers, one identified as 16-year-old, were racing when the 16-year-old lost control of the car and crashed. Authorities say the drivers were leaving Dekaney High School. DOWNLOAD THE FOX 26 HOUSTON APP BY CLICKING HERE The 16-year-old's car had a male and female passenger inside who were taken to a local hospital with unknown injuries. Constable Mark Herman says the juvenile driver was arrested and charged with Racing on a Roadway. We will continue to update this story as more information is released. President Joe Biden tends to brush off bad polls and insist that there are eight that show him beating Donald Trump for every two that show him losing. Vice President Kamala Harris, confronted with those same polls, is much less dismissive. Were going to have to earn our reelect, theres no doubt about it, the vice president told CNN in an exclusive phone interview from Air Force Two after spending just over an hour in South Carolina on a trip to officially file Biden for the Democratic primary there. Polling nationally and in battleground states alike suggests the president, who turns 81 on Monday, is weak with young voters, as well as with Black and other voters of color. Overall, Biden and Harris hold similar approval ratings, but Harris ratings among these key subgroups have varied, suggesting views of the vice president are not as deeply entrenched. Several Harris insiders have optimistically pointed to the New York Times/Siena College polls of battleground states released this month, which showed 11 percent of Ms. Harriss would-be supporters do not back Mr. Biden, and two-thirds of them are either nonwhite or younger than 30, according to The Times. That has created an uncomfortable dynamic for the Biden team in Wilmington, Delaware, and the West Wing that has mythologized his connection with voters as being stronger than polls can measure and where some are still carrying grudges from the Democratic primary race. Harris is consistently rating better which, to a growing number of Democrats, means that if Biden wants a second term in an election that Biden aides are forecasting will be won by slivers of votes, he will need to rely on her help to get there. But they need to lean into that marginal advantage without exposing her so much that she proves a liability with voters who dont like her including those whom Republican presidential candidates are trying to appeal to by warning that Biden actuarially might not make it through a second term, and a vote for him might end up with Harris in the Oval Office. People were saying, The VP is a drag on the ticket, South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn, who boosted Biden in 2020, said after joining Harris for the filing. Now theyre saying just the opposite. I absolutely think she can move voters, said Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, a 34-year-old African American in one of the target demographics the Biden campaign is desperate to improve with, in a state the president needs to carry. A vital part of the formula is the assessment of Lavora Barnes, a Black woman herself who is the Democratic Party chair in battleground Michigan. While several people close to Harris say that it might be too late to return to the days when she was seen as an embodiment of the future, they see 2024 as her best and perhaps last chance for a major political reboot hoping that by maximizing her time on the trail, she can defy the seemingly constant narrative during her time as vice president of stumbles and missed moments. A new abortion rights-focused tour of battleground states is being planned for the beginning of the year, and Harris is also looking for moments to call out the need for more action on gun violence in a continuation of what became one of the most distinctive elements of her summer college tour. Aides said they are hoping to get her to embrace more fully the lead attacker role that running mates often go for, swinging hard with contrast as Biden is expected to stick more with the Americans working together to get past Trump approach. After months of several sought after hires turning her down, she has been looking to bring on her own political strategist a Mike Donilon type is how her team talks about it, referring to the presidents longest and closest senior adviser though some on Bidens team have been resistant, feeling that they already have Donilon himself and dont need a Harris cook in the kitchen. (Harris aides said they have already gotten used to dayslong email chains waiting for West Wing aides to sign off on her hitting the road and worrying over costs that would need to be covered by a reelection campaign still not raising money at the clip it hoped for.) Meanwhile, Democratic strategists closely involved with taking what they believe is realistic stock of the presidents capacity are already looking at her to pick up the slack not just on the campaign trail, but by popping up with TikTok influencers (she was the top surrogate for influencer conversations during the midterms, racking up over a dozen) or mixing it up on Black drive time radio. There are things that Biden wont or cant do because of the care staff takes not to exhaust him, because they would be too demeaning for the leader of the free world to do or simply because hes busy with the wars in Ukraine and Israel, and in a never-ending cycle of trying to keep the government open. Asked about how she envisions her time on the trail, Harris started with a typical deconstruction of the premise as she flicked it away: To be honest, Ive not compared this cycle with what previous vice presidents have done in a reelect. But, Harris went on, I have a great sense of duty and responsibility to do as much as I can, to be where the people are and to not only speak with them, but listen to them and let them know what weve accomplished. Her experience so far out and about, Harris said, has informed her sense of how tricky this is going to be. It is absolutely right in a democracy with free and fair elections that the candidates, the people who want to continue in leadership have to make their case, and have to make it effectively, Harris told CNN. And that means communicating in such a way that the message is received about the accomplishments and what we care about. Communication and messaging advice from a vice president who has become infamous for word salad answers might make some political insiders laugh. This is a politician, after all, whose staff the night before a scheduled speech to the most core party members at the Democratic National Committee meeting last month in St. Louis replaced it with a fireside chat moderated by her outside adviser and former DNC chair Donna Brazile, worried that otherwise she would struggle to come across, people involved in the switch-up told CNN. That format was adopted from the one she had been using on her popular tour of colleges in the summer and early fall with an aide acknowledging the problems she has faced. She is a human, and these moderated conversations are a way for people to see that part of her, the aide said. That tour proved to be a learning experience for her, giving her the direct voter feedback and engagement that led her to hammer staff to distill phrases like freedom to not just survive but thrive into something more relatable: freedom to live your best life or, sometimes, freedom to just be. Thats part of what she thinks the campaign needs to do too, Harris told CNN. When it comes to appealing to Black voters who feel checked out from a government and political system, which they feel keeps on coming up short on promises to meaningfully improve their lives, the vice president can quickly tick through the administrations record on funding historically Black colleges and universities, dropping insulin prices and increasing affordable housing. But she knows that isnt resonating as much as she would like. In some ways, Harris said, actually, probably theres a hindrance, in that the list is really long, and we have to triage around what we repeat over and over again to make sure that it resonates and its actually heard. Can she step up? In May, the Democratic womens political group Emilys List finished polling that had just been completed to inform the efforts they had begun to promote Harris. For all the hits she has taken on social media and all the devastating articles that have left her and the people around her feeling burned and on guard, their research showed that most voters still knew almost nothing about her at all. The vice president did not get a direct briefing on the results, but the way the numbers were laid out in a memo to the groups top donors quickly made it back to her team. They focused on gettable voters wavering Democrats and independents open to voting for Democrats in battleground states. A third of voters knew almost nothing about who she was or what she has been doing, but when asked to rate issues that will get them to vote, abortion was at the top, followed by gun violence protection and racial justice. Give those voters information about her, according to people who have seen the polling results, and they could significantly improve answers to questions like, Do you think shes ready to be president? and Is she a good partner to Biden? When told that many of those top issues are in Harriss portfolio, they tracked massive upticks in independents and soft partisan non-core Democrats in how they felt about Biden, and whether they were motivated to vote for him. I get that on the doors What has she done? Can she step up? said Rozia Henson, who at 30 just won a campaign to be the first out gay, Black member of the Virginia House of Delegates. A proud member of the online obsessive K-hive, he said he spent his whole campaign hearing voters tell him they dont want a Biden-Trump rematch. I think wed be having a way different conversation if it were two White males as president and vice president, Henson said. Its a little bit different when you see people like yourself tell the stories of how they changed things that affect your daily life. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said he was struck by how much people connected with Harris when she appeared at a rally he hosted in Raleigh on the anniversary of the Dobbs decision earlier this year. In a state that the Biden campaign has made a top target for picking up next year, Cooper told CNN that Harris is in a unique position to deliver the message to a number of people that may be more receptive to talking about the good things that theyve done and talking about what will happen to peoples rights and freedoms if extreme Republicans win this election. Quentin Fulks, one of Bidens deputy campaign managers, said in an interview that he expects this to play to the strengths that first made Harris a political star, from grilling Republicans in Senate hearings to her original prosecutor for president pitch when she first launched her own 2020 White House campaign. Being a prosecutor is in her blood. Litigating what the election is about is in her blood, Fulks said, describing that as complementary to Bidens empathetic and usually more soft-pedaled approach, even with his recent uptick in jabs at Trump. Its whats most comfortable to her. And what youre most comfortable about, youre going to do well. Because Harris presidential campaign was over before most people started paying attention she dropped out ahead of the nominating contests and her time as a running mate in a campaign that was defined by pandemic social distancing and car rallies, almost no one has seen her as a full-fledged candidate out on the trail. That includes Fulks, who, despite helping run the campaign, had never himself seen Harris stump in person before joining her for that South Carolina trip. In Washington, DC, shes the leader and shes next up, Fulks said. But on the trail, its something special to watch and its very different. Harris continues to get subsumed though she is the point person for the new White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, Biden was still the one who took the lead on commenting on the Maine mass shooting three weeks later and the one to travel there, and her college tour was cut short by making sure she was in the meetings (and being photographed in the meetings) on the Israel-Gaza crisis. But shes been pushing back on that. She joined the event in South Carolina she wasnt initially scheduled to be at. Two days earlier, she popped up on the White House driveway to give reporters her own reaction to the off-year election results to the consternation of some on the presidents staff who didnt like that she was doing it without warning and that she did it while the daily press briefing was happening a few feet away inside. Harris quickly shoots down any hint that campaigning would conflict with being an integral part of the administration every day, and quickly rattles off what she has been doing on artificial intelligence, the APEC leaders conference and more. All of it is connected, she said. Trying to get young people to see themselves in an old president In Nevada, some polls show a challenging landscape for Biden. Daniele Monroe-Moreno, speaker pro tempore of the Nevada legislature and the new chair of the states Democratic Party, said that the issue goes beyond how to talk about Bidens record. As devoted as she is to Biden, Monroe-Moreno said, his hardscrabble Irish Catholic childhood stories from Scranton in the 1940s only go so far. She herself is about Harris age, is also married to a Jewish man, had a more up-to-date version of struggles growing up and has a more mixed family now. The presidents story resonates with my mom and with me. But Kamala and our history really resonates with me, Monroe-Moreno said. Where she is now as the vice president of the United States lets Black voters and women voters know there is a pathway forward for us in this country. Monroe-Moreno said she saw that ring true for the younger voters who filled a room when Harris was at the College of Southern Nevada last month. They werent just Black and brown kids, they were White kids who look to her as a leader for the future, she said. President Biden is wise, knowledgeable, tested shes passionate and seasoned, said Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, who just won a second term in the second largest city in battleground Arizona. Communities of color and young people, they absorb that passion from her. In the interview, Harris ticked through the administrations record on fighting climate change, reducing gun violence that has become a standard part of going to school or walking down the street for a generation and protecting reproductive rights. She built up to a line primed for a teleprompter: The president has been resolute, he has been firm, he has been consistent on seeing the challenges that young people in America face and addressing them with real solutions. But asked why young people should see themselves in a president who is old enough to be older than many of their grandparents, Harris was a little less formal. It is they, Harris said in thinking about the election winner, who are going to either benefit from or pay the price. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com On a rainy day this September, Kathy and I had two of the best sandwiches weve ever eaten. They were messy, with gobs of macaroni and cheese filling the space between two pieces of toast at a place in Provincetown, Massachusetts, called the Grilled Cheese Gallery. My wife and I followed that with some Lewis Brothers Homemade Ice Cream also some of the best weve tasted before getting back on the bus to continue our tour of New England. Until that trip, we had no idea that Provincetown was the real site of the Pilgrims first landing in 1620, not Plymouth Rock, more than 20 miles across Cape Cod Bay. Not to take away the significance of that hallowed granite boulder, but the English Separatists, looking for a favorable home where they could worship God as they believed they should, set foot on shore in November 1620 near the tip of Cape Cod, which juts out into the Atlantic Ocean in the form of an arm with a coiled fist. We Texans were surprised to learn that Provincetown, now a tourist destination, even has a 252 foot tower, also granite, commemorating that first landing. It was dedicated by President William H. Taft in 1910. The Pilgrim Monument, 252 feet high, towers above a World War I statue in Provincetown, Massachusetts. The monument was dedicated in 1910 to recognize the 1620 landing of the Pilgrims nearby. The famed Mayflower Compact, which set out how the new settlement would be governed and which began, for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith, was signed by 41 male passengers while still aboard the even more famous ship as it was anchored off what now is Provincetown, not Plymouth. The travelers decided the area wasnt suitable for a permanent home, and a scouting party in a small boat located the Plymouth site in December 1620. The Mayflower then sailed to the location of Plymouth Rock, where all the 102 passengers disembarked. Like it did in 1620, the weather at Plymouth, Massachusetts, includes plenty of rain, prompting this tourist to wear a slicker in September 2023 on the replica ship Mayflower II. The Pilgrims enjoyed no luxuries such as mac and cheese or ice cream. They had to scrounge for food, and after a harsh winter battling disease possibly scurvy and pneumonia only 53 people remained alive. With help from the Wampanoag native American tribe, the survivors grew corn and other crops in 1621, and they had a good yield in the fall. In October, they celebrated with a three-day harvest festival, an English tradition, attended by about 90 native people. Edward Winslow, one of the Pilgrim leaders, wrote about the first Thanksgiving in a journal published in England in 1622: "our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together, after we had gathered the fruits of our labors; "they four in one day killed as much fowl, as with a little help beside, served the Company almost a week, at which time amongst other Recreations, we exercised our Arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and amongst the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five Deer, which they brought to the Plantation and bestowed on our Governor, and upon the Captain and others. And although it be not always so plentiful, as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want, that we often wish you partakers of our plenty. Inquiring minds, of course, want to know, Where are the turkeys? Winslow didnt mention the Thanksgiving staple, but the groups governor, William Bradford, and a later arrival, William Hilton, both mentioned the big bird as common in the area. The replica ship Mayflower II, open to the public, is docked at Plymouth, Massachusetts. Bradford wrote in Plimoth Plantation: "All the summer there was no want; and now began to come in store of fowl, as winter approached And besides waterfowl there was great store of wild turkeys, of which they took many, besides venison, etc. Besides, they had about a peck of meal a week to person, or now since harvest, Indian corn to that proportion. Mike Haynes And Hilton wrote to his cousin in November 1621: At our arrival in New Plymouth , in New England, we found all our friends and planters in good health, though they were left sick and weak, with very small means; the Indians round about us peaceable and friendly; Timber of all sorts you have in England doth cover the land, that affords beasts of divers sorts, and great flocks of turkey, quails, pigeons and partridges; many great lakes abounding with fish, fowl, beavers, and otters. Our company are, for most part, very religious, honest people; the word of God sincerely taught us every Sabbath; so that I know not any thing a contented mind can here want. On our trip, Kathy and I did get to see Plymouth Rock, not far from where that 1621 celebration happened, and we went below decks of the Mayflower II, a replica ship built in 1957. Its docked in Plymouth Harbor, a two-minute walk from the iconic rock. Plymouth Rock, believed to have been at the site of the Pilgrims landing in 1620, now is protected under a portico on the beach at Plymouth, Massachusetts. I think only the most adventurous of us today would undertake a 66-day voyage in those cramped conditions with limited food and an uncertain future. The courage that allowed the Pilgrims to do it and to start a successful community undoubtedly came from their faith. Referring to the group years later, Bradford wrote: All great and honorable actions are accompanied with great difficulties, and must be both met and overcome with answerable courage. What, then, could now sustain them but the spirit of God, and His grace? Mike Haynes taught journalism at Amarillo College from 1991 to 2016 and has written for the Faith section since 1997. He can be reached at haynescolumn@gmail.com. Go to www.haynescolumn.blogspot.com for other recent columns. This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Haynes: Reflections on the history of the first Thanksgiving Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 19) A Hong Kong cargo ship spotted and rescued a Filipino fisherman in the middle of the sea off Agno, Pangasinan, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said Sunday. MV Deryoung Space, a general cargo vessel under the flag of Hong Kong, was en route to Subic, Zambales at 2:20 p.m. on Saturday when it found the fisherman who had been missing with a companion since Friday. PCG spokesperson Rear Admiral Armand Balilo said it was also fortunate that MV Deryoung Space changed course while avoiding a weather disturbance. "According sa chief mate, destiny ang nangyari. Styro na kinakain ng survivor," said Balilo. "Nagkataon ding Sabado, half day ang trabaho ng mga crew, kaya mga crew nasa labas. Naswertehan lang talaga umayon ang pangyayari sa survivor." [Translation: According to the chief mate, what happened was destiny. The survivor was already eating styrofoam. It also happened to be Saturday, and the crewmen worked half day, so they were outside. It was lucky that the circumstances aligned for the survivor.] The PCG commended the Filipino master, officers, and crew of MV Deryoung Space for the successful rescue operation. "I recognize the exemplary professionalism and commend the humanitarian act of the master, officers, and crew of MV Deryoung Space. In the Philippine waters, our seafarers are indeed our everyday heroes," PCG Commandant CG Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan said. Based on the investigation, the two fishermen from Agno sailed on Friday but failed to return home after their motorbanca was submerged due to bad weather conditions. The PCG said it immediately informed transiting vessels regarding the incident for possible sightings. The rescued fisherman safely returned to his family while a search and rescue team continued to look for his companion. KANSAS CITY, Mo. Two drivers collided head-on in downtown Kansas City Sunday, according to Kansas City police. Around 5:56 a.m. a driver of a Kia was going the wrong way on Interstate 35 south of Front Street. Pedestrian critically injured after being hit by car in KCMO The driver of a Nissan was going southbound, the correct way, and ran directly into the Kia. Both drivers died in the crash and there were no others riding in the cars with them. Authorities closed all lanes of southbound I-35 to traffic at Front Street for approximately three and a half hours. The highway has since been reopened. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. In a statement, Heathrow Airport said strong winds had caused minor changes to flight schedules - AFP Passengers are facing delays at Heathrow Airport after strong winds and staff shortages led to air traffic control restrictions. It comes following reports from angry passengers on social media on Sunday who said their flights had been delayed or cancelled. In a statement, Heathrow Airport said strong winds had caused minor changes to flight schedules. Strong wind is forecast today, while there may be minor changes to todays schedule as a result of the weather, we want to reassure passengers that our colleagues are working in close collaboration with our airline and air traffic control partners to get them safely on their journeys as quickly as possible, a spokesperson for the airport said. The spokesman said passengers should check with their airline for the latest information. However, the National Air Traffic Services (Nats) said that staff shortages were also a factor. We are working hard to minimise disruption". - AP Due to short notice staff absence in the tower and strong winds at Heathrow, temporary ATC restrictions are currently in place, Nats said in a statement. We expect the situation to improve this afternoon. We are working hard to minimise disruption, working closely with Heathrow airport and airlines. Passengers should check the status of their flight with their airline. Restrictions of this sort are only ever applied to ensure safety and we apologise for any inconvenience caused. British Airways said that it had been forced to make some adjustments to its short-haul schedule as a result of the restrictions. Air traffic control restrictions imposed on all airlines at London Heathrow mean weve had to make some adjustments to our short-haul schedule, a spokesperson said. Weve contacted affected customers to apologise and offer them rebooking options or a full refund. 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. Heathrow Airport carried more than seven million passengers in September (Jonathan Brady/PA) (PA Archive) Thousands of passengers travelling to or from Heathrow Airport have had flights cancelled or diverted, or are facing long flight delays after staff absences and high winds led to air traffic control restrictions being imposed. More than 30 departing flights have been cancelled since 9am, with at least 28 arrivals grounded, analysis by The Independent found. At least 10,000 passengers are thought to be affected. Three-quarters of those cancelled have been British Airways flights to and from short-haul destinations including Madrid, Milan, Berlin and Oslo. Aer Lingus, Brussels Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa, SAS and Swiss also canceled flights from and to their hubs. Air traffic control (ATC) restrictions were imposed early on Sunday morning, with staff shortage partly responsible. It follows large-scale cancellations at Gatwick in September due to an outbreak of Covid among controllers working in the tower. Just 25 flights per hour were permitted to arrive earlier on Sunday, The Independent was told. Normally 40-45 aircraft can land each hour. Due to short notice staff absence in the tower and strong winds at Heathrow, temporary ATC restrictions are currently in place, a spokesperson for air traffic control provider Nats said. More than 30 departures have been grounded at Heathrow (Simon Calder) We are working hard to minimise disruption, working closely with Heathrow airport and airlines. Passengers should check the status of their flight with their airline. Restrictions of this sort are only ever applied to ensure safety and we apologise for any inconvenience caused. All restrictions have now been lifted, but disruption continues. Two planeloads of BA passengers touched down at other London airports. The service from Baltimore went to Stansted, while the arrival from Chicago circled above Bristol for about 30 minutes before diverting to Gatwick. A Heathrow spokesperson said: Due to strong wind and staff absence in air traffic control, temporary air traffic control restrictions were implemented at Heathrow earlier today. ATC continue to implement temporary regulation due to the weather conditions this afternoon. We want to reassure passengers that our colleagues are working in close collaboration with our airline and air traffic control partners to get them safely on their journeys as quickly as possible. We encourage passengers to check with their airline for the latest information. British Airways said most customers on cancelled flights should still be able to reach their destination today (EPA) Despite the cancellations only affecting short-haul flights, many passengers complained of having missed connections further afield. KLM flight delay compensation is available for those whose flights were affected. Weve been held on the tarmac at MCR [Manchester] Airport because Heathrow accepting reduced number of flights, one passenger wrote on Twitter/X. Not expected to depart for a further 2 hours, which means missing our transfer to New York. My 40th birthday celebration is turning disastrous. The flight operated three hours late. Going places? The British Airways arrival from Chicago, which held over Bristol and then diverted to Gatwick rather than landing at Heathrow (Flightradar24) A British Airways spokesperson said: Air traffic control restrictions imposed on all airlines at London Heathrow mean weve had to make some adjustments to our short-haul schedule. Weve contacted affected customers to apologise and offer them rebooking options or a full refund. The airline said most customers on cancelled flights should still be able to reach their destination today, however for some the next available flight would be on Monday. Many other connecting passengers faced long waits after flights to key Continental hubs including Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Munich were grounded. I cannot stop thinking about the dozens of Israeli children held in captivity by Hamas and the Islamic Jihad in underground tunnels in Gaza, while above them Israels attack has killed , so far, nearly 4,500 Palestinian children. Stopping the violence, and returning the hostages, is urgent for any person who values all lives. That it is very difficult to imagine how this happens tells a terrible truth: Those with the most power to effect change refuse to recognize the humanity of all people. There is little doubt that the Palestinians who participated in the mass murder of more than 1,200 Israelis and migrant workers on Oct. 7 did not see their victims as humans, and that decades of Israeli military occupation, siege, oppression and repeated attacks motivated this dehumanization. There is also little doubt about the dehumanization of Palestinians in Israeli society well before Oct. 7. Shirts printed by Israeli army units have depicted pregnant Palestinian women and children as military targets; calls of death to the Arabs have characterized the annual settler Flag March through the Old City in Jerusalem; and students as young as 13 in Israel sing anti-Palestinian songs, hoping that your village burns down. Read more: Editorial: Cease-fire now. The killing in Gaza must stop Now, Israeli politics, society and media are awash with annihilatory language against Palestinians in Gaza, from the dehumanizing language of Defense Minister Yoav Gallants total siege order, where he referred to Palestinians as human animals, and journalists who have called to turn Gaza into a slaughterhouse, to banners on bridges in Tel Aviv that call to annihilate Gaza. Israeli state leaders, ministers in the war cabinet and senior army officers people with command authority have used such language dozens of times since Oct. 7 in a way that constitutes clear intent to destroy , according to the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. On Nov. 13, the Center for Constitutional Rights filed a lawsuit against President Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III for complicity with genocide. The lawsuit was filed in federal court in San Francisco on behalf of Palestinian individuals and organizations. It requests that the defendants stop providing further arms, money, and diplomatic support to Israel on grounds that there is an unfolding genocide by the State of Israel against the civilian population of Gaza and the U.S. officials have a legal duty to prevent, and not further, this most serious of crimes, according to the center . Read more: Opinion: Gaza's health system has collapsed, multiplying the war's toll on children The submission to the court includes an expert declaration by three leading Holocaust and genocide studies scholars: Victoria Sanford, Barry Trachtenberg and John Cox. Sanford has written extensively on genocide and state violence in Latin America, especially in the case of Guatemala. Trachtenberg and Cox have published widely on the Holocaust. They stress in their report that the levels of destruction and killings in just over one month, together with the annihilatory language expressed by Israeli state leaders and senior army officers, point not to targeting of individual Hamas militants or Hamas military targets, but to the unleashing of deadly violence against Palestinians in Gaza as such, in the language of the UN Genocide Convention. The assessment of the three senior Holocaust and genocide studies scholars is accurate. Gaza now resembles Ukrainian cities after Russian bombings and invasions, but with levels of destruction and killings that have surpassed in less than a month what we have seen in Ukraine in nearly two years: Official U.N. figures from early September note that Russian attacks killed slightly fewer than 10,000 civilians since February 2022, and injured just above 17,500. Israel has so far killed more than 11,000 Palestinians, wounding nearly 30,000. It is important that Biden described Russias attack on Ukraine as genocide on April 12, 2022, commenting that well let the lawyers decide, internationally, whether or not it qualifies, but it sure seems that way to me. In the same way, Gallants total siege policy, together with the forced displacement of more than 1.5 million of the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, has created what sure seems like genocide. Read more: West Bank violence is growing. Will it open another front in the Israel-Hamas war? Indeed, Palestinians in Gaza are facing a slow death of hunger and thirst, surviving on two pieces of bread and three liters of water a day per person as much as 97 liters less than the minimum suggestion of the World Health Organization. The lack of clean water and the severe overcrowding in the southern part of Gaza where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from the northern part have fled have markedly increased the risk of outbreak of infectious diseases. The lack of fuel and medical supplies, coupled with Israeli bombings of hospitals and the Israeli army operation inside Shifa Hospital, has turned hospitals into sites of mass death. And all along, Israel continues bombing the southern part of Gaza. No place in Gaza is safe from Israels assault, which is, in the language of Article 2 (c) of the U.N. Genocide Convention, deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part. These unfolding horrors render it extremely difficult to imagine possible futures beyond the violence. I spoke about this last weekend at Kol Tzedek, my Jewish congregation in Philadelphia, from my perspective as an Israeli and Jewish Holocaust and genocide studies scholar. I noted that Israels mass violence against Palestinians stems from a new Jewish identity, tied to the creation of Israel in 1948: Jewish supremacy. I also noted that white supremacists in Europe and the U.S. find Israeli state practices of Jewish supremacy inspiring even as they hate Jews in Europe and the U.S. deeply. While Israel and its allies strive to portray any criticism of Israeli policies and violence against Palestinians as antisemitism, some of Israels greatest supporters, such as American white supremacist Richard Spencer or Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, are fierce antisemites . Read more: Jewish parents call for protection, sensitivity for their children in Los Angeles schools This terrible fact should direct us to the roots of the historical struggle against antisemitism before the creation of Israel in 1948. It was a struggle that aimed to protect a powerless group from powerful states, not to defend a powerful state in its attack against a powerless group. It was a struggle for a people to live in dignity in a society where everyones humanity is recognized, not to legitimize a state where leaders, politicians and TV anchors call openly to wipe out places and people. Imagining possible futures, beyond Israels Jewish supremacy, then, is for me a political act rooted in Jewish histories and Jewish identities that are not far removed from us. They point to the urgent need to forefront Palestinian voices and experiences, to humanize Palestinians in the face of attempts to demonize and silence them, to call for a cease-fire and the return of all the hostages held in Gaza and the political prisoners held in Israel and to insist on truth, justice and equality for everyone between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. Raz Segal is an associate professor of Holocaust and genocide studies and endowed professor in the study of modern genocide at Stockton University in New Jersey. If its in the news right now, the L.A. Times Opinion section covers it. Sign up for our weekly opinion newsletter. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. A Home Office minister was sacked after backing Suella Bravermans hard-line Rwanda plan, allies of the former home secretary have claimed. Lord Murray, a leading human rights lawyer who steered Rishi Sunaks stop the boats Bill through the Lords, was ousted in last weeks reshuffle in which Mrs Braverman was also sacked. The peer is understood to have been one of three signatories to a letter sent by Mrs Braverman in which she advocated the opting out of European human rights laws ahead of the Supreme Court ruling that the Rwanda policy is unlawful. The belief is he was sacked because he signed the hard-line Plan B letter despite being a leading lawyer, said a source in the Suella camp. Lord Murray, a barrister with specialist experience in judicial reviews on immigration, declined to comment, or to confirm or deny whether he signed the letter. A government source said it never commented on individual reshuffle decisions, but pointed out that the third signatory of the letter, Robert Jenrick, the Immigration Minister, was still in post. The Telegraph revealed on Saturday that Mr Jenrick signed the letter and is now pushing for a belt and braces approach to the emergency legislation, announced last week by the Prime Minister, which will declare Rwanda safe and bar anyone from lodging a legal challenge against the policy as a whole. Rishi Sunak is under pressure to go further and is said by sources on the Right of the party to be actively considering disapplying the Human Rights Act in asylum claims to prevent courts blocking the Rwanda deportation flights. No 10 declined to comment. This would force a claimant to take their case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, a process that would take time during which its advocates hope the Rwanda policy could be shown to have worked. However, this is unlikely to satisfy Mrs Braverman and MPs on the Right who want the Government to remove the right of judicial review and include notwithstanding clauses which would allow ministers to ignore the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), without leaving the treaty. Victoria Prentis, the Attorney General, and Alex Chalk, the Justice Secretary, are thought likely to oppose moves to exclude Human rights laws. It was reported at the weekend that Isaac Levido, the Tory campaign strategist, supports the harder-line option as well as Mr Jenrick, who one Tory MP described as the shop steward of the Right in Government. On Sunday, Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, said the Government would do whatever it takes to ensure the Rwanda deportation flights took off. Although he said last week the Government could not guarantee the flights before the election, he told the BBCs Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: We expect planes to be flying to Rwanda in the spring. We will change the law as necessary. Were going to do a new international treaty with Rwanda. This isnt easy stuff. Were going to solve the problems that people are most frustrated about. Its going to take persistence. Its going to take determination. The legislation and treaty to pave the way for the deportation flights by declaring Rwanda a safe country for migrants to claim asylum will be delayed until at least the New Year. The new legally binding Treaty with Rwanda is expected to be published this week and will place new duties on Rwanda not to remove any migrant deported to it by the UK, a move designed to counter the central criticism by the Supreme Court that Rwanda has sent failed asylum seekers back to their homelands to face persecution. However, it is likely to take 42 days before it is approved by Parliament, which means it cannot be ratified before MPs and Lords break for the Christmas recess on Dec 19. It is understood that consideration of the Bill declaring Rwanda safe cannot begin in the Commons until the Treaty has been ratified and signed by Rwanda. 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. (Reuters) - A humanitarian assessment team visited Al Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza and saw signs of shelling and gunfire in what was described as a "death zone," the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Sunday. The WHO-led team, which included public health experts, logistics officers and security staff from various U.N. departments, was able to spend only an hour inside the hospital on Saturday due to security concerns, WHO said in a statement. The team described the hospital as a "death zone" and said the situation was "desperate," with the hospital basically not functioning as a medical facility due to scarcity of clean water, fuel, medicine and other essentials. "Signs of shelling and gunfire were evident. The team saw a mass grave at the entrance of the hospital and were told more than 80 people were buried there," the WHO statement said. The hallways and hospital grounds were filled with medical and solid waste, and patients and health staff expressed fear for their health and safety, it said. There were 25 health workers and 291 patients, including 32 babies in critical condition, remaining in Al Shifa, WHO said. "WHO and partners are urgently developing plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families," it said. "Over the next 2472 hours, pending guarantees of safe passage by parties to the conflict, additional missions are being arranged to urgently transport patients" to other hospitals in the south of Gaza. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the WHO statement or the visit. The remaining 2,500 internally displaced people who had sought refuge on Al Shifa grounds were gone after the Israeli Defense Forces issued evacuation orders on Saturday, WHO said. Israeli forces seized Al Shifa in their offensive across north Gaza last week, saying it concealed an underground Hamas command centre. The military said it found evidence of a Hamas base underground. Al Shifa staff say Israel has proven no such thing. The visit was coordinated with the Israeli military to reduce risks but occurred in an active conflict zone, with heavy fighting close to the hospital, WHO said. WHO repeated its call for an immediate ceasefire and sustained humanitarian assistance, saying options for medical care in the small coastal enclave were dwindling. (Reporting by Gursimran Kaur in Bengaluru and Doina Chiacu in Washington; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) CHICAGO A large group of protesters in support of Palestinian victims in the Gaza conflict flooded Jean Baptiste Point DuSable Lake Shore Drive Saturday afternoon in the heart of the Loop. Just before 3 p.m., 400 to 500 protesters gathered at the Buckingham Memorial Fountain streamed into north and southbound lanes of traffic. Chicago police shut down vehicle traffic in both directions soon after. At its height, there were between 1,000 and 1,500 demonstrators at the fountain before a large portion of the group walked into the roadway. About a half-hour later, the group began walking slowly north on Lake Shore. Eventually the group moved back toward the area of the fountain until much of the crowd dissipated as the sun set. The march was organized by the U.S. Palestinian Community Network-Chicago and the Chicago Coalition for Justice in Palestine, who had nine previous rallies since the start of the conflict on Oct. 7. The march called on elected officials to support a ceasefire in Gaza. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed in the war, with another 2,700 reported missing, according to Palestinian health authorities. The protest slowed the flow of traffic around Grant Park, as Lake Shore motorists were diverted to side streets to bypass the gathering. Saturdays demonstration took place hours before hundreds of spectators were expected to arrive and line downtown streets for the evenings Festival of Lights parade on the Magnificent Mile. Just before 5:20 p.m., the citys Office of Emergency Management and Communications posted a message on social media announcing that Lake Shore traffic in both directions had been reopened. Despite scuffles between some Chicago police officers and protesters, it was unclear whether any arrests were made or citations issued. Idaho Power customers can expect their electric bills to increase next year. By exactly how much, though, has not yet been finalized. The utility company serving much of southern Idaho applied in June to raise its overall base rates by 8.61%, for a annual revenue increase of $111 million. For residential customers, that would mean a 10.8% rate hike, or an average monthly increase of $11.61. But Idaho Power and the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, the agency tasked with rejecting, approving or modifying the request, have been in talks with other stakeholders to reach a settlement that would slash those numbers by more than half. If the proposed settlement is approved, the average residential customer using 950 kilowatt hours per month would see their monthly bill increase by about $4.44, to $111.69 a month. And the company would be granted an overall revenue increase of $54.7 million a year, instead of the $111 million it initially requested. Three settlement conferences have taken place since mid-September. Under the settlement, the fixed service charge for residential customers would increase from $5 to $10 in 2024 and from $10 to $15 in 2025, according to a news release from the commission. The new rates and charges would take effect in January. We are sensitive to the impacts rate increases have on our customers, and our company works hard to keep our expenses low and our prices well below the national average, Idaho Power President and CEO Lisa Grow said in a prior news release. This case is largely focused on the infrastructure additions that have been necessary to reliably serve our growing customer base. Idaho Power has said it invested more than $3 billion in the grid over the past decade. Meanwhile, its customer base grew by 23%. The base rate hikes proposed by Idaho Power are separate from the variable charges reflected on a customers bill. Each spring, the company files separate applications to account for annual fluctuations in power-supply purchased and fixed costs, and those adjustments provide no financial return to the utility or its shareholders, the company has said. An Idaho Power spokeperson told the Idaho Statesman that he had no average costs to provide for the annual adjustments, since they fluctuate greatly from year to year. The company last filed a general rate case in 2011. In that case, the company requested an increase of 9.9%, or $83 million, but the commission in 2012 approved a much lower a rate hike of 4.07%, or $34 million, spokesperson Jordan Rodriguez previously told the Statesman by phone. For the latest proposal, the commission has scheduled two hearings for Idaho Power customers and other members of the public to share their thoughts. The hearing in Boise is set for 3 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 28, at the commissions office at 11331 W. Chinden Blvd., Building 8, Suite 201-A. In-person attendance at the hearing is required to submit testimony, however written comments on the proposal are being accepted until Nov. 28. Another hearing in Twin Falls is scheduled the day before at 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 27, at the American Legion Post 7 Building at 447 Seastrom St. Written comments on the base rate case can be filed on the commissions website or mailed to P.O. Box 83720, Boise, Idaho, 83720-0074. The case number is IPC-E-23-11. Idaho Power is the largest electric utility company in the state. First time in over a decade, Idaho Power seeks base rate hike. See how much it could be Idaho Power to shift solar compensation to on-peak, off-peak times. What it means to you Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Sunday expressed deep concern about rhetoric from former President Donald Trump that he said echoed language from Nazi Germany. Speaking on MSNBC's "Inside with Jen Psaki," the Illinois Democrat said, "I don't know where it's going with Donald Trump. What I can tell you is that the things that he talks about are frightening to those of us who know the history of Europe in the 1930s and 40s." "And," Pritzker added, "I'm deeply concerned about his predilection for revenge and what that will mean for you know, groups of people that didn't support him in the 2024 election if, in fact, he gets elected." Pritzker was referring to a Trump speech a week ago in Claremont, N.H., where he said: We pledge to you that we will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country that lie and steal and cheat on elections." The former president has used similar language on other occasions. The "vermin" rhetoric in particular has come under criticism from those like Pritzker who say that the language dehumanizes opponents in the way that Adolf Hitler and others did in gaining power in 1930s Germany. Saying "I'm deeply concerned about the rise of hate in the United States and especially, of course, here in Illinois," Pritzker also expressed general fears about hate speech and hateful behavior in the United States amid the Israel-Hamas war, referring to the recent slaying of a 6-year-old Muslim boy in his state. "Wadea Al-Fayoume, the 6-year-old Palestinian American boy, is a completely innocent young child who doesn't know anything about conflicts happening thousands of miles away, who's just living his life, and he's attacked by an extremist here in the United States. It's just something that none of us should even fathom," Pritzker said of the fatal stabbing of the youngster in his home on Oct. 14 in Plainfield Township, Ill. "And yet, it happened and it happened in the wake of this war that's happening overseas, and this young boy, killed, murdered, because someone had been radicalized by right wing radio and right wing television; that's something we all need to pay attention to," Pritzker said. Illinois man, 71, charged with murdering fellow nursing home resident over fight about washing machine: police An Illinois nursing home resident was arrested Friday after his neighbor was punched and beaten to death over a dispute about a washing machine, police said. William Paschall, 71, is charged with first-degree murder and aggravated battery to a person 60 years of age or older, police said. Police in Joliet, Illinois received a call Friday evening from Salem Village Nursing and Rehabilitation concerning a "battery" on the buildings sixth floor. William Paschall is facing first-degree murder charges. Responding officers found an unresponsive 61-year-old man in the laundry room. Investigators determined that Paschall had gotten angry over the victims use of the washing machine and began attacking him prompting staff to intervene. Police did not elaborate. Paschall is believed to have repeatedly punched the victim in the head and used the victims walker in the attack, causing him to fall to the floor, police said. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP MEMPHIS MAN ACCUSED IN DEADLY SHOOTING SPREE FOUND DEAD INSIDE GETAWAY CAR: POLICE The facilitys staff rendered medical aid to the victim until Joliet Fire Department paramedics arrived. The Will County Coroners office pronounced him dead at the scene. Paschall was taken into custody and charged. The victims identity and manner of death will be determined by the Will County Coroners Office, Joliet police said. Salem Village Nursing and Rehabilitation declined to comment when reached by Fox News Digital. Original article source: Illinois man, 71, charged with murdering fellow nursing home resident over fight about washing machine: police Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 19) President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. looked back on this family's time in Hawaii during a meeting with the Filipino community in Honolulu on Sunday (Philippine time). "Let me say that I have waited a very long time to say, aloha!" Marcos said to a cheering crowd at the Hawaii Convention Center. The US state is Marcos' last stop in his six-day trip which began in San Francisco for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit. He is set to visit the Indo Pacific Command. The Marcos family fled to Honolulu, Hawaii after the EDSA People Power Revolution toppled the dictatorship of Ferdinand E. Marcos in 1986. They were allowed to return to the Philippines in 1991 by then President Corazon Aquino, wife of slain Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr., a staunch critic of the elder Marcos and Martial Law. The elder Marcos died in 1989 and was brought back to the country in 1993. His 2016 burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani was heavily denounced by critics as his 20-year presidency was historically remembered for its record of corruption and human rights abuses. RELATED: Marcos: No forgiveness needed for fathers ouster The president turned nostalgic as he recalled his life in Hawaii. We landed here with nothing, he said. Kung hindi dahil sa inyo, palagay ko, wala na ang pamilyang Marcos kaya't hindi ko makakalimutan. [Translation: If not because of you, maybe the Marcos family would have been no more, so I will never forget this.] When my mother (former first lady Imelda Marcos) found out I was coming to Honolulu, she said, You make sure that you go back to all of those people who went out of their way to keep us comfortable and keep us alive, he added. The chief executive said even if he thanked them every day for 1,000 years, it still would not be enough. "The Filipinos and the Filipino-Americans in Hawaii hold a very special place in my heart for all the wonderful experiences that we had here with our Filipino compatriots," Marcos said. During the meeting, Marcos again thanked Filipinos for trusting and voting him and Vice President Sara Duterte. "From the bottom of my heart, I must say thank you for believing in this leadership. In return, I and my administration will be hard at work, and have been hard at work, from day one to ensure that we accomplish all that we have set out to do, he said. Before traveling to Hawaii, Marcos met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC summit in San Francisco to voice his concerns over persistent tensions in the West Philippine Sea. The Presidential Communications Office said Marcos asked the Chinese leader "that they go back to the situation where both Chinese and Filipino fishermen were fishing together in these waters, a point that he thinks was well taken by Xi. A crippling strike by Polish truckers has led to a massive traffic jam at the Ukraine-Poland border, leaving approximately 2,900 cargo vehicles stranded in queues as long as 30 kilometers, Ukrainian State Border Guard Service spokesperson, Andriy Demchenko, said on national television on Nov. 19. Unfortunately, the movement for trucks continues to be blocked by Polish carriers, Demchenko said. The strike is concentrated at three border crossing points Yahodyn, Rava-Ruska, and Krakovets. They eventually allow a few trucks to pass per hour in both directions, those coming from Poland and those heading into the country. However, this does not significantly increase the traffic intensity, Andriy Demchenko explained. Presently, about 1,200 trucks are stuck in the queues toward the Yahodyn and Krakovets crossing points, with an additional 500 trucks awaiting passage on the Rava-Ruska route. Read also: Over 2,500 trucks backed-up at border blocked by striking Polish truckers, lines still growing Seeking faster alternatives, carriers are diverting to other border crossing points, exacerbating congestion in those areas. For instance, at the Shehyni border crossing point into Poland, approximately 1,300 trucks are awaiting entry into Ukraine. An additional 400 trucks combined are waiting at the Ustyluh and Smilnytsia crossing points in the direction of Ukraine, Demchenko reported. Read also: Poland buys Ukraines excess electricity Before the strike, the State Border Guard Service reported daily traffic of 1,200-1,300 trucks at the Yahodyn border crossing point and approximately 600 trucks at the Rava-Ruska and Krakovets crossing points in both directions. Update at 1:40 p.m.: Crisis headquarters established at the Poland border to assist stranded Ukrainian drivers The Development of Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Ministry, in collaboration with relevant associations and carriers, has opened a crisis headquarters to assist Ukrainian drivers stranded at the Poland border for over 10 days. The primary objective is to provide drivers with essential supplies such as food, drinking water, medications, and fuel, said Oleksandr Kubrakov, the Infrastructure Minister. The queues toward Yahodyn, Rava-Ruska, and Krakovets have stretched over 30 km, over 10 km, and over 16 km, respectively, said Kubrakov. Read also: Ukrainian truck driver died while waiting at blockaded Polish border Polish carriers have enforced a blockade of truck traffic at the three largest border crossing points with Ukraine since Nov. 6, citing demands to reinstate the permit system for Ukrainian cargo transportation. Additional requests include restrictions on the movement of Ukrainian companies across Europe, prohibition of registering companies in Poland with finances outside the EU, the introduction of separate queues for vehicles with EU numbers, a separate line for empty trucks at all borders, and access to the Ukrainian Road system for volunteers and long-haul drivers. 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 A new auger machine arrives at the site where road workers are trapped in a tunnel after a portion of it collapsed, in Uttarkashi A new auger machine arrives at the site where road workers are trapped in a tunnel after a portion of it collapsed, in Uttarkashi By SAURABH SHARMA SILKYARA, India (Reuters) - Indian authorities were exploring five new plans to rescue workers trapped inside a collapsed tunnel in the Indian Himalayas after a week of failed attempts. Forty-one men, stuck in the highway tunnel in Uttarakhand state since Nov. 12, are safe and being fed through a pipe, the authorities say. The cause of the accident has not been determined, although the hillside region is prone to landslides, earthquakes and floods. Rescuers had been drilling horizontally through the debris toward the trapped workers in the 4.5-km (3-mile) tunnel until the auger drilling machine broke on Friday and a new one was flown in. Drilling was suspended and it would take four or five more days "to get the good news", Bhaskar Khulbe, officer on special duty for the tunnel project, said on Friday. Now the rescue team is considering alternatives including a perpendicular tunnel with two proposed routes and insertion of a pipe six inches (15 cm) wide as a lifeline, according to a government document reviewed by Reuters. The trapped workers have received Vitamin C and medicines including anti-depression tablets, said RCS Panwar, a health official involved in the rescue efforts. The health department has set up a camp for health checkups near the site and kept 10 ambulances on standby. (Reporting by Saurabh Sharma in Silkyara; Writing by Munsif Vengattil; Editing by William Mallard) A 61-year-old man needed rescue after falling from a tree stand while hunting deer in northern Michigan, officials say. It was about 6 a.m. on the first day of firearm deer season, Nov. 15, when the hunter fell 25 feet from his tree stand, Michigan State Police said in a news release. He suffered possible injuries to his pelvis, back and chest, officials said. His backpack was still on the ground and he crawled over to it, found his phone and made two calls one to his brother and the other to 911, according to the release. Authorities found the mans vehicle near Dead Stream Swamp, in Roscommon County, and his brother arrived at the area soon after and helped lead rescuers to the hunters location, police said. However, the terrain was too rugged for a ground rescue, and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter flew to the scene and lifted the man to safety, officials said. BZ #USCG AIRSTA Traverse City after report received of a hunter that suffered a fall injury in the woods IVO Houghton Lake #Michigan AIRSTA Helo crew arrived, lowered the rescue swimmer, hoisted the hunter into the Helo and transported to local EMS waiting at AIRSTA #TraverseCity pic.twitter.com/vD5QmiIiSn USCG Great Lakes (@USCGGreatLakes) November 15, 2023 Authorities did not comment on the mans condition. Roscommon County is roughly 190 miles northwest of Detroit. Man vanishes after doctor visit, then farmhand finds his vehicle, Texas officials say Rare mountain lion shot and killed by archery deer hunter in Wisconsin, officials say Trucker said he thought he hit a bird, but he killed tow truck driver, Iowa cops say Son finds 79-year-old mother dead in bayou with mysterious bite marks, Texas cops say TEL AVIV The video shows a drab office, a young Palestinian man sitting hunched and grimacing in front of a desk. Hes in handcuffs, his left hand wrapped in a bandage, and is wearing a brown prison uniform. In response to questions from an unseen interrogator, the man at first acknowledges being a member of Hamas. Pushed, he says hes part of the Qassam Brigades, Hamas military wing. Pushed again, he says he is from the Nukhba Force, an elite commando unit. The young man is one of around 50 suspected Hamas commandos who were the focus of one of the most intense and high-stakes interrogation programs in Israeli history, according to the Shin Bet, Israels domestic security agency. The Shin Bets director has acknowledged his force failed to prevent the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack, which Israel estimates killed 1,200 Israelis. But in the chaotic days that followed, the agency had little time for self-reflection. Instead, it was under intense pressure to interrogate dozens of Hamas suspects who were captured during the attack and press them for intelligence about where hostages might be held and what Israeli troops might face inside Gaza. This account of the interrogation program is based on a series of videos released publicly by the Shin Bet as well as an interview with Shalom Ben Hanan, a veteran intelligence officer who retired last year but returned to service after Oct. 7 and sat in on the interrogations. He was authorized by the Shin Bet to speak publicly. Sometimes you feel like you want to kill him with your bare hands, but you do nothing, Ben Hanan told NBC News. Sometimes even the opposite, you have to connect to some dots in his personality. And if this connection is good for the interrogation: be nice to him, give him a cigarette, drink coffee with him, eat with him, be like his big brother. Ben Hanan said the interrogation of the alleged Nukhba fighters took place across four weeks, mainly in a prison in southern Israel, which he declined to identify. There is a clock above your head that is ticking, he said. The interrogations finished in early November, he said, and the suspects are being moved into Israels military court system where Palestinian defendants from Gaza and the occupied West Bank are put on trial. Around 95% of cases in the military courts end in conviction, according to Military Court Watch, a legal rights group. Ben Hanan said Shin Bet interrogations usually have two goals: extracting confessions about the past and gaining intelligence that could be useful in the future. But he said that after the Oct. 7 attack, the agency was given a third goal: produce videos that Israel could use in the global information war. It was a very important goal in this specific interrogation. We are not doing it at any other interrogation, he said. Its for the West. Dr. Shai Gortler, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of London's international affairs school, who specializes in the study of incarceration and torture, noted that the Hebrew subtitles in the interrogation videos mean they are also intended for the Israeli public to convey "the justness of the military aims." He added that while secrecy had been central to Shin Bet in the past, it is "very slowly coming to the realization that our times demand some level of exposure." Among the reasons Shin Bet allows media exposure, Gortler said, is "because it understands the need to put forward its own narrative about its actions, torture included." NBC News is not identifying any of the suspects seen in the videos because they have not been convicted, and it is unclear whether they were speaking under duress. One man appears to have blood on his T-shirt, while others have bruises on their faces and marks on their wrists. Asked whether any of the Hamas suspects had been tortured, Ben Hanan paused, then said: They were captured in combat. It wasnt a polite capture. He added: There is no torture in Shin Bet interrogations. Shin Bet interrogations are operating under a law, a very specific and a very clear law and this law, principally, is taking out the way to use physical means from 99% of the interrogations. He was referring to a 1999 Israeli Supreme Court ruling that barred torture in all cases except for a ticking bomb scenario, in which the failure to obtain intelligence quickly could cost lives. The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, a human rights group, says the Shin Bet still uses sleep deprivation, stress positions and extreme hot and cold during interrogations. Ben Hanan said most of the suspected Hamas commandos fit a profile: ideological, religious and selected from a young age to become fighters. He said most did not expect to survive on Oct. 7 and few denied taking part in the attack, though some tried to shift blame to senior commanders. They were talking about it very calmly, he said. He added that the fighters described high levels of planning, with different teams assigned different roles. It was planned very well, in a very accurate way, with very specific orders to each and every one. There are people there that didnt rape and didnt slaughter, only captured people and took them to Gaza because this was their orders. In 2011, Israel released hundreds of Palestinian militants to secure the release of a single Israeli soldier held prisoner by Hamas in Gaza. Asked how he would feel if the Oct. 7 suspects were released as part of a prisoner deal, Ben Hanan said: Terrible. But I felt terrible also about the [2011] deal. He added, I will not judge and will not criticize any deal, although for us to see these people walk free will be another disaster. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com By Brendan O'Boyle (Reuters) - International rebuke swelled on Saturday over what observers say are efforts to use a politicized justice system to keep Guatemalan President-elect Bernardo Arevalo out of office. A prosecutor at Guatemala's attorney general's office on Thursday moved to strip Arevalo of his immunity from prosecution, accusing him and his running mate of complicity in the takeover of a university in the capital last year. Arevalo, an anti-graft candidate elected in a landslide in August, called the prosecutor's move "absolutely illegal." In a statement on Saturday, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and its Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, condemned the attorney general's office's "incessant improper actions and interference." "These threaten the democratic order, the ongoing presidential transition process and the individual and collective exercise of civil and political liberties in the country," the statement said. Earlier Saturday, senior U.S. Department of State official Brian Nichols condemned the attorney general's office's "malign request" to strip Arevalo and his Vice President-elect Karin Herrera of immunity in a post on social media. Also on Saturday, the Democratic Initiative of Spain and the Americas (Grupo IDEA) published a letter signed by 29 former heads of state from Latin America and Spain denouncing the "persecution" of Arevalo and Herrera, which has the "repeated and clear purpose of obstructing the sovereign will of Guatemalans, already expressed through free elections." Guatemalan Attorney General Consuela Porras, accused by the U.S. government of corruption, has pursued a criminal investigation against Arevalo as well as his center-left Seed Movement party since before his election. (Reporting by Brendan O'Boyle; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama) New documents are shining a light on the gas utility industry, which has been found holding a smoking gun. Or, more accurately, a page from the book written by the tobacco industry. Whats happening? An investigation by NPR, along with documents uncovered in a new report from the Climate Investigations Center a research and watchdog group have revealed that for the last 50-plus years, the gas industry has employed Big Tobacco-style tactics to successfully undermine the links between gas stoves and respiratory illness. In the late 60s, natural gas utilities launched Operation Attack, an ambitious marketing campaign to get more gas stoves into peoples kitchens. However, as the campaign gained speed, concerns about indoor pollution from the stoves like household nitrogen dioxide levels were becoming public. The documents show that natural gas utilities and the American Gas Association convinced consumers and regulators that cooking with gas is as safe as electricity despite growing evidence that this is not the case. NPR reports that as evidence mounted, the gas industry turned to tactics effectively used by tobacco companies to avoid stricter regulations. My gas stove sets off my smoke alarm and I am slowly putting two and two together, said one homeowner in a comment on a Reddit post linking to an article about the revelation. Now that the tactic and its effects have been made clear, experts are calling for a change. Dr. Bernard Goldstein, professor emeritus at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health, who researched gas stoves, nitrogen dioxide, and indoor air quality in the 70s told NPR, I think its way past the time that we were doing something about gas stoves. It has taken almost 50 years since the discovery of negative effects on children of nitrogen dioxide from gas stoves to begin preventive action. We should not wait any longer. Why is the CIC report concerning? The gas industrys tactics 50 years ago generated doubt that affected policymaking around protecting peoples health at the Environmental Protection Agency and Consumer Product Safety Commission, which still have effects today, including possibly hindering efforts to regulate nitrogen dioxide pollution standards for indoors. Nitrogen dioxide is a key element of smog, and exposure to it can irritate airways and may contribute to the development of asthma. Further, natural gas is composed of methane a gas at least 28 times more powerful at warming Earth than carbon dioxide over a 100-year period which is leaked into the environment at every step of the process from pipeline to burner, contributing to rising global temperatures, as NPR reports. What can be done about it? In light of the new information and the truth of the risks of gas stoves, NPR points out that a new opportunity has arisen for policymakers and regulators to take action free of misinformation. Cities nationwide are passing laws to limit the construction of natural gas pipelines to homes and buildings, and places like New York are banning gas stoves. Individually, electric or induction stoves are great alternatives that dont release the toxic gases we now know gas stoves create. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the coolest innovations improving our lives and saving our planet. State police and an FBI bomb technician stand at a staging area in the parking lot of New Hampshire Hospital Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, in Concord, N.H. A fatal shooting at the New Hampshire psychiatric hospital Friday ended with the suspect dead, police said. New Hampshire Hospital is the state psychiatric hospital, located in the states capital city. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer) CONCORD, N.H. (AP) Investigators in New Hampshire were probing for answers Sunday as to why a man shot a security guard to death at a New Hampshire psychiatric hospital moments before being killed by a state police trooper. New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said Saturday that 33-year-old John Madore entered New Hampshire Hospital on Friday afternoon and killed Bradley Haas, a state Department of Safety security officer who was working at the front lobby entrance of the facility. Michael Garrity, a spokesperson for the attorney generals office, said Sunday that the investigation into the shooting is active and ongoing. Autopsies determined that the cause of death for both Haas and Madore was multiple gunshot wounds, according to Formellas office. In 2016, Madore faced assault charges that were later dismissed, according to a court summary of the case. The summary, without elaborating, indicates that a judge had ordered Madore to be transported from New Hampshire Hospital for a court hearing. Madore was most recently living in a hotel in the Seacoast region and also had lived in Concord, according to Formella. He was wielding a 9mm pistol and had additional ammunition on him when he shot Haas, who was unarmed. Police also found an AR-style rifle, a tactical vest and several ammunition magazines in a U-Haul truck in the hospitals parking lot and were investigating connections between the truck and Madore. The shooting happened around 3:30 p.m. and was contained to the front lobby of the 185-bed facility, according to investigators. CPR was performed on Haas, who later died at Concord Hospital. On the day of the shooting, there were 152 patient beds occupied at the hospital according to a daily patient census report by the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. The facility is the only state-run psychiatric hospital for adults in New Hampshire, We have a lot of work to do to really figure out who this man was, why he might have done what he did, what led up to this incident, Formella said Saturday, adding that the Haas family has requested privacy. Haas lived in Franklin, a small city about 20 miles (32 kilometers) from Concord. He worked as a police officer for 28 years and rose to become police chief, according to the attorney generals office. Fridays shooting was the latest act of violence at a U.S. hospital. Medical centers nationwide have struggled to adapt to the growing threats, which have helped make health care one of the nations most violent fields. It came weeks after 18 people were killed and 13 others injured in a mass shooting in neighboring Maine. New Hampshire House Democratic Leader Matt Wilhelm said he and fellow Democrats mourn the death of Haas. Our hearts are with his colleagues, staff, and volunteers at the hospital as they cope with this tragedy while continuing their critical care for our states mental health patients," Wilhelm said in statement. A Ukrainian drone pilot reaches for a reconnaissance drone in the Luhansk Region, Ukraine, Saturday, Aug. 19, 2023. The drone unit's task is to destroy Russia's heavy machinery, armored vehicles and infantry. (AP Photo/Bram Janssen) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) KYIV, Ukraine The drones began crashing on Ukraines front lines, with little explanation. For months, the aerial vehicles supplied by Quantum Systems, a German technology firm, had worked smoothly for Ukraines military, swooping through the air to spot enemy tanks and troops in the countrys war against Russia. Then late last year, the machines abruptly started falling from the sky as they returned from missions. It was this mystery, said Sven Kruck, a Quantum executive who received a stern letter from Ukraines Ministry of Defense demanding a fix. Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times Quantums engineers soon homed in on the issue: Russians were jamming the wireless signals that connected the drones to the satellites they relied on for navigation, leading the machines to lose their way and plummet to earth. To adjust, Quantum developed artificial intelligence-powered software to act as a kind of secondary pilot and added a manual option so the drones could be landed with an Xbox controller. The company also built a service center to monitor Russias electronic attacks. All we could do is get information from the operators, try to find out what wasnt working, test and try again, Kruck said. A battle is raging in Ukraine in the invisible realm of electromagnetic waves, with radio signals being used to overwhelm communication links to drones and troops, locate targets and trick guided weapons. Known as electronic warfare, the tactics have turned into a cat-and-mouse game between Russia and Ukraine, quietly driving momentum swings in the 21-month old conflict and forcing engineers to adapt. Electronic warfare has impacted the fighting in Ukraine as much as weather and terrain, said Bryan Clark, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, a think tank in Washington, adding that every operation in the conflict now has to take into account enemy moves in the electromagnetic spectrum. Electronic warfare has been a feature of wars for more than 100 years. During World War II, the British mimicked German radio signals to deceive targeting systems that bombers used, which Winston Churchill popularized as the battle of the beams. In the Cold War, the Soviet Union invested heavily in electronic weapons to gain an asymmetric advantage against the missiles and planes from the United States. In recent decades, the use of electronic attack and defense has been more lopsided. In the Iraq War in the 2000s, the United States used gadgets called jammers to create so much radio noise that improvised explosive devices could not communicate with their remote detonators. More recently, Israel has jumbled GPS signals in its airspace with electronic warfare systems to confuse would-be attacks from drones or missiles. The war in Ukraine is the first recent conflict between two large and relatively advanced armies to widely deploy electronic warfare abilities and evolve the techniques in real time. Once the purview of trained experts, the technologies have spread to front-line infantry troops. Ukrainian drone pilots said they constantly fine-tuned their methods to parry the invisible attacks. One day, a new radio frequency might work, some said. The next, a different antenna. The tactics have become so critical that electronic warfare received its own section in a recent essay by Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, Ukraines top military commander. Widespread use of information technology in military affairs would be key to breaking what has become a stalemate in the conflict with Russia, he wrote. The techniques have turned the war into a proxy laboratory that the United States, Europe and China have followed closely for what may sway a future conflict, experts said. Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, raised the topic of electronic warfare this year in prepared remarks for a Congressional hearing. NATO countries have expanded programs to buy and develop electronic weapons, said Thomas Withington, an electronic warfare expert at the Royal United Services Institute, a British security think tank. The war in Ukraine has been the performance enhancing drug for NATOs electromagnetic thinking, he said. It has been the thing that concentrates minds. Antennas and Jammers As Russian tanks rolled toward Kyiv, Ukraine, in February 2022, the Russian military initially made good on its reputation as one of the worlds best at electronic warfare. It used powerful jammers and decoy missiles to inundate Ukrainian air defenses, leaving Ukraine reliant on aircraft to fight off Russian planes. The electronic weapons do not appear dangerous at first glance. They are typically satellite dishes or antennas that can be mounted on trucks or set up in fields or on buildings. But they then beam out electromagnetic waves to track, trick and block sensors and communication links that guide precision weapons and allow for radio communications. Just about every communications technology relies on electromagnetic signals, be it soldiers with radios, drones connecting to pilots or missiles linked to satellites. One basic but effective tool is a jammer, which disrupts communications by sending out powerful signals at the same frequencies used by walkie-talkies or drones to cause so much disturbance that beaming a signal is impossible. Jamming is akin to blasting heavy metal in the middle of a college lecture. Another key weapon sends a signal that pretends to be something it is not, like a satellite link. Called spoofing, the fake signal can convince a drone or missile it is miles off course by feeding it false coordinates. In other cases, spoofers ape the signals made by missiles or planes to trick air defense systems into detecting attacks that arent happening. Other tools listen for beams of radiation and seek to locate their origin. These devices are often used to find and attack drone pilots. After early success using these tools, the Russian military stumbled, analysts said. But as the war has stretched on, Russia has innovated by making smaller, mobile electronic weapons, like anti-drone guns and tiny jammers that form a radio-wave bubble around trenches. The Russians have been more nimble at responding than we would have expected from their ground behavior, said James A. Lewis, a former U.S. official who writes on technology and security for the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. That should be worrisome for NATO. The Kremlin did not respond to a request for comment. Soviet Versus Startup To combat Russias century of Soviet know-how in electronic attack and defense, Ukraine has turned to a startup approach associated with Silicon Valley. The idea is to help the countrys tech workers quickly turn out electronic warfare products, test them and then send them to the battlefield. This summer, Ukraines government hosted a hackathon for firms to work on ways to jam Iranian Shahed drones, which are long-range unmanned aerial vehicles that have been used to hit cities deep inside the country, said Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraines digital minister. At testing ranges outside Kyiv, drone makers pit their craft against electronic attack weapons. In a field in central Ukraine in August, Yurii Momot, 53, a former Soviet Union special forces commander and a founder of the electronic warfare firm Piranha, showed a new anti-drone gun built for the conflict. The guns have a checkered performance in the war, but Momots version worked. Pointing it at a DJI Mavic, a common cheap reconnaissance drone, he pulled the trigger. The drone hovered motionless. Its navigation system had been swamped by a burst of radio signals from the gun. The whole system is more structured in Russia, Momot said of Russias electronic warfare program, which he knows from his time with the Soviet army. Were catching up, but it will take a while. Other Ukrainian companies, such as Kvertus and Himera, are building tiny jammers or $100 walkie-talkies that can withstand Russian jamming. At Infozahyst, one of Ukraines biggest electronic warfare contractors, engineers recently worked on a project to track and identify Russian air defense systems. Iaroslav Kalinin, the companys CEO, said Russias anti-aircraft radars were not as easy to replace as tanks. But if enough were eliminated, it could provide a turning point in the war. Once we control the sky, then Russia fails hard, he said. A Call to Action This summer, Oleksandr Berezhny, a Quantum executive, traveled with one of Ukraines top drone pilots to share what they knew about electronic warfare with NATO. At a large round table in a base in Germany, they explained the problems they faced to a rapt audience of commanders. We told them probably 90% of the American and European systems coming to Ukraine were not prepared to meet the electronic warfare challenge, Berezhny said. There was total understanding that something needed to change. As Ukraine offers a glimpse of how future electronic battles may be waged, would-be combatants of those fights have taken note. The United States and Europe have paid close attention to how such weapons have fared against Russian systems, with some worrying they are not responding fast enough. Chinese experts have also exhaustively chronicled which Russian electronic attacks were most effective against NATO systems, and in turn, where Russia failed. In one November 2022 report, a Chinese defense think tank detailed how a Russian electronic attack had tricked NATOs detection equipment, leading Ukraine to reveal the location of its own electronic defenses. The Russian armys anti-drone combat capabilities are superior to those of the U.S. military, the report said. As Ukraine evolves its anti-jamming techniques, some of those tactics are flowing to the United States and its allies, said Clark of the Hudson Institute. Now youre starting to see countries, including the United States, field these smaller systems, just like youre seeing folks in Ukraine cobbling them together, he said. For many on Ukraines front, the improvements cant come fast enough. Even if you make your drone invisible, your controller and your antenna give out a signal, said one Ukrainian drone pilot, who gave only his first name, Vladislav. Russians can detect a window of about 200 square meters where a drone pilot might be, he added, noting that artillery had once come within about 15 to 20 meters of hitting him. Its not possible to hide completely, he said. c.2023 The New York Times Company Recent iPhone updates have seen Apple lavish the most attention on its Pro models, and the iPhone 16 Pro should be no different. Even though we're a little less than a year away from that model's debut, early rumors already point to some significant iPhone 16 Pro vs. iPhone 15 Pro differences. It's not that the iPhone 15 Pro wasn't a big step forward from its predecessor. For the most recent release, Apple upgraded the phone's frame to titanium, introduced a more powerful A17 Pro chipset and added a physically larger main sensor along with other photo processing improvements. And that's before we even talk about changes such as switching out the Lightning port for a USB-C one and adding a new Action button that triggers shortcuts. Yet, some big changes are apparently in the works for the iPhone 16 Pro, beyond just the usual chipset upgrade. The iPhone 16 Pro could also see a larger screen while adopting one of the best improvements from the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Here's how the iPhone 16 Pro vs. iPhone 15 Pro comparison is shaping up at this point, based on rumors about potential changes to Apple's iPhone lineup. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Price and availability We usually don't hear about pricing rumors until we get closer to the launch date for a new iPhone. In the case of the iPhone 16 Pro, that's likely to happen in September 2024, so it'll be a while before we start getting the definitive word on whether Apple will deviate from the $999 starting price it charges for the iPhone 15 Pro. You'd expect Apple would want to hold the line on that price. For one thing, it means you can still get a Pro-level iPhone for less than $1,000. For another, with the price of the iPhone 15 Pro Max going up to $1,199 and a potential iPhone 16 Ultra debuting in 2024 at an even higher price, Apple may be content to keep iPhone 16 Pro pricing as is. Still, it's hard to deny that the price of phone parts has gone up. And as Apple adds more high-end features to its Pro models in order to make them stand out from the standard iPhone, that increases the possibility of a price hike. Stay tuned to find out what the iPhone 16 Pro might cost. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Design iPhone 15 Pro shown in hand Apple made a big design change with the iPhone 15 Pro, swapping out the stainless steel frame for one made out of titanium. That's not only more durable, it also helps the iPhone 15 Pro weigh less than its predecessor about half-an-ounce less, according to the listed specs. Look for the iPhone 16 Pro to keep that titanium frame. The other big design change introduced with the iPhone 15 Pro involved a new Action button replacing the mute switch found on previous models. A long press of the Action button toggles on silent mode, but you can also assign shortcuts to the Action button by diving into the Settings app on the iPhone 15 Pro. Alas, you can only assign one shortcut at a time. There's a possibility of that changing with the iPhone 16 Pro, as more people get used to the Action button's presence. But a more likely addition, according to iPhone 16 Pro rumors, would be the addition of another dedicated button. This one's the Capture button, and you'd reportedly use it as a shortcut for snapping photos or capturing video with your iPhone's camera. A mock-up render of an alleged iPhone 16 Pro prototype featuring a punch hole cutout instead of a Dynamic Island Another iPhone 16 Pro design rumor that we're less convinced about involves the potential of Apple turning to under-display Face ID sensors for the iPhone 16 Pro. That would eliminate the need for Dynamic Island-sized cutout on the phone's display. And while there's a prototype of an iPhone 16 Pro showing off a circular camera cutout, even the leaker sharing that image doesn't believe the feature will be ready until at least the iPhone 17 Pro in 2025. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Display iPhone 16 Pro Concept Video Science & Knowledge Since the iPhone 12 Pro, screen sizes have been locked at 6.1-inches for the more compact of Apple's two Pro options. But that could be changing with the iPhone 16 Pro. A rumor suggests Apple is considering larger displays for both the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. In the case of the Pro, the size of the panel would increase to 6.3 inches, making us wonder how easily the new phone would fit in our hand when compared to the 6.1-inch iPhone 15 Pro. Apple didn't change the brightness level of the iPhone 15 Pro's display, sticking with a maximum brightness of 2,000 nits when the phone's outdoors. There's a possibility of the phone maker opting for a brighter panel for the iPhone 16 Pro, especially with the Google Pixel 8 Pro boosting its maximum brightness to 2,400 nits. A better sourced rumor tips the iPhone 16 Pro to use new panels supplied by Samsung that are more power-efficient, thanks to a switch from blue fluorescent technology to blue phosphorescence technology. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Cameras iPhone 15 Pro shown in hand After upgrading the size of the sensor of the iPhone 15 Pro's main 48MP camera and improving features like Night mode, Portrait mode and SmartHDR, you'd think that Apple had done about all that it could do for cameras on its Pro phones. Yet, another improvement seems likely for the iPhone 16 Pro, and it's already available on the iPhone 15 Pro Max. That phone got an exclusive upgrade to its telephoto lens, switching to a tetraprism design in order to support a longer zoom. While the iPhone 15 Pro continues to offer a 3x optical zoom, the Pro Max model relies on the new telephoto lens setup for a 5x zoom. A consistent rumor tips that feature to find its way to the iPhone 16 Pro this time out. That may not be the end of the hardware changes to the iPhone 16 Pro's camera setup. There's also the possibility of the 12MP ultrawide camera on the current Pro model getting a boost to 48MP on the iPhone 16 Pro. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Performance iPhone 15 Pro shown in hand The iPhone 16 Pro is certain to get a new system-on-chip, and like the A17 Pro inside the iPhone 15 Pro, the upcoming A18 silicon should be built on a 3-nanometer process for better performance and power efficiency compared to 4nm chips like Qualcomm's new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. The difference this time around is that the A18 should be available for all iPhone 16 models the Pro versions would get a more premium iteration of that chipset compared to the standard iPhone 16. The iPhone 15 Pro Max became the first Apple handset to offer 256GB of storage in its base model. It's possible Apple extends that to the iPhone 16 Pro, though it could just as easily keep a higher storage capacity as a distinguishing feature for its premium phone, whether that's the iPhone 16 Pro Max or the iPhone 16 Ultra. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Battery life and charging iPhone 16 Pro Concept Video Science & Knowledge We haven't heard much about Apple's battery plans for the iPhone 16 Pro, which isn't surprising. Apple doesn't talk about the size of the batteries it uses in its phones, even after they're released. (We have to rely on teardowns for that kind of info.) So it's unclear if Apple plans to use a larger battery than the 3,274 mAh cell inside the iPhone 15 Pro. The current Pro model lasts a pretty long time on a charge we recorded a result of 10 hours and 53 minutes on our battery test, and that's nearly an hour better than the average smartphone. We'd guess that Apple would rely on better power efficiency from both the iPhone 16 Pro display and the A18 silicon to get more battery life out of its upcoming phone. A more pressing matter to keep an eye on is whether the new iPhones see their wired charging speed extend beyond 20W. Even though Apple added USB-C to the iPhone 15 models, including the Pro, that didn't translate to the faster charging speeds USB-C can support. (The iPhone 15 Pro does enjoy faster data transfer speeds than its predecessor.) Perhaps Apple introduces faster charging with the iPhone 16 Pro. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Software ios 18 The iPhone 16 Pro will almost certainly arrive with iOS 18 pre-installed, but that's no great edge over the iPhone 15 Pro on paper, as the software update will be available to current iPhones as well, save for a handful of models that came out five years or so ago. But some iOS 18 features may turn out to be exclusive to the iPhone 16 series. Specifically, the future version of iOS is said to be putting a lot of effort into AI-powered features, including the possibility of generative AI onboard the iPhone. iPhones with an A18 chipset, including the iPhone 16 Pro, are likely to have the processing power to handle all AI features on device, while older models may have to turn to the cloud for some AI capabilities. If true, you'd expect those specific features to run faster on the iPhone 16 Pro than they might on the iPhone 15 Pro. iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Outlook Even with more than nine months to go before the iPhone 16 Pro sees the light of day, we're already hearing about a number of changes for Apple's upcoming handset. That would seem to suggest big iPhone 16 Pro vs. iPhone 15 Pro differences. The iPhone 15 Pro is certainly one of the best iPhones out there, and if you need a good compact premium device right now, there should be nothing stopping you from an upgrade. But if the prospect of an improved telephoto lens and on-device AI intrigue you, it may be worth holding out until fall 2024 to see what the iPhone 16 Pro delivers. More from Tom's Guide A cargo ship linked to an Israeli billionaire was allegedly seized by Iran-backed rebels in the Red Sea on Sunday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office said it "strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel." "The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia," Netanyahu's office said in a statement. "Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities, including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican. No Israelis are onboard. This is another act of Iranian terrorism and constitutes a leap forward in Iran's aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes." Israel Defense Forces also wrote on X, "The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship." While Israeli officials insisted the vessell was British-owned and Japanese-operated, ownership details for the Bahamian-flagged Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier, in public shipping databases associated the ships owners with Ray Car Carriers, which was founded by Abraham "Rami" Ungar, who is known as one of the richest men in Israel, according to The Associated Press. NETANYAHU WAR CABINET STIFLES REVOLT FROM FAR RIGHT OVER SENDING GAZANS FUEL WITHOUT HOSTAGE DEAL: REPORT READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Ungar told the AP he was aware of the incident but couldnt comment as he awaited details. The complex world of international shipping often involves a series of management companies, flags and owners stretching across the globe in a single vessel. There was no immediate comment from the Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel group in Yemen that threatened earlier Sunday to target Israeli-linked vessels in the Red Sea. A spokesperson for the Houthi military in Yemen, Yahya Sarea, vowed on X earlier Sunday, "In solidarity with Palestinian people in the wake of the brutal Israeli aggression on Gaza, Yemen reiterates the threat against Israeli vessels in the Red Sea." "The Yemeni Armed Forces announce that they will target all of the following types of ships: 1. Ships carrying the flag of the Zionist entity 2. Ships operated by Israeli companies 3. Ships owned by Israeli companies," he wrote. "The Yemeni Armed Forces also calls on all countries of the world to: a. Withdrawal of its citizens working on the crews of these ships. B. Avoid shipping on or handling these vessels. C. Inform your ships to stay away from these ships." Last month, Houthi rebels were suspected of sending missiles and drones over the crucial shipping lane of the sea. Yemen's Houthi followers participate in a pro-Palestinian protest against the escalating Israeli military actions in Gaza on Nov. 18, 2023 in Sana'a, Yemen. MORE THAN A MILLION PALESTINIANS IN GAZA ARE NOW DISPLACED; WHY ARE ARAB COUNTRIES NOT OPENING THEIR DOORS? Satellite tracking data from MarineTraffic.com analyzed by the AP showed the Galaxy Leader traveling in the Red Sea southwest of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, more than a day ago. The vessel had been in Korfez, Turkey, and was on its way to Pipavav, India, at the time of the seizure reported by Israel. It had its Automatic Identification System tracker, or AIS, switched off, the data showed. Ships are supposed to keep their AIS active for safety reasons, but crews will turn them off if it appears they might be targeted or to smuggle contraband, which there was no immediate evidence to suggest was the case with the Galaxy Leader. Yemenis chant slogans as they participate in a pro-Palestinian protest against the escalating Israeli military actions in Gaza on Nov. 18, 2023, in Sana'a, Yemen. The British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Persian Gulf and the wider region, put the hijacking as having occurred some 90 miles off the coast of Yemens port city of Hodeida, near the coast of Eritrea. The Red Sea, stretching from Egypts Suez Canal to the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from Africa, remains a key trade route for global shipping and energy supplies. Thats why the U.S. Navy has stationed multiple ships in the sea since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7. An American defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media, told the AP that U.S. military officials were tracking an incident involving the Galaxy Leader after its alleged hijacking. A ship linked to Ungar experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time. Since 2019, a series of ships have come under attack at sea as Iran began breaking all the limits of its tattered nuclear deal with world powers. As Israel expands its devastating campaign against Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip following the militant group's unprecedented attack on southern Israel, fears have grown that the military operations could escalate into a wider regional conflict. The Houthis have repeatedly threatened to target Israeli ships in the waters off Yemen. Original article source: Iran-backed Houthi rebels accused of hijacking ship linked to Israeli billionaire in Red Sea Across China: Antique, modern arts breathe new life into Dong ethnic county Xinhua) 10:20, November 19, 2023 NANNING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- The signature embroidery with a centuries-long history of the Dong ethnic group and their modern farmer paintings are breathing new life into Dong people's intangible cultural heritages while bringing locals considerable incomes. Dong people mainly live in China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Hunan Province and Guizhou Province. Sanjiang Dong Autonomous County, which sits in a mountainous area at the junction of Hunan, Guangxi and Guizhou, is a densely populated county for Dong people. The county, with over half of its residents from the Dong ethnic group, has preserved various ancient distinctive handicrafts. Among the cultural heritages is the Dong embroidery, a combination of paper-cutting and flower embroidery skills that has existed for nearly 1,000 years. In the past, due to the poor traffic infrastructure, young generations in the county preferred to work outside their hometown, leaving the place in grinding poverty and the Dong embroidery lacking inheritors. However, the local government reached out a helping hand, building an inheritance base for the antique craft with training courses and a complete sales network for the embroidery products set up. Wei Qinghua and her daughter Qin Guizhen co-founded the Qing Hua Embroidery Workshop, dedicated to the inheritance and further promotion of the Dong embroidery. They integrate the Dong embroidery art into decorative rings, earrings, bracelets, and other ornaments. Now, their handicrafts are also sold online, winning the hearts of young consumers across China. The two also traveled to the United Kingdom, the Republic of Korea, and other foreign countries and regions to display their charmful embroidery. Their products have participated in various fairs and expos, including the China-ASEAN Expo, and exported to Europe, the United States, and Southeast Asia. "Our embroiderers are constantly improving their skills, replacing ordinary cotton yarns with threads of brighter colors. Their adaption has made the patterns even more colorful than before," said Wei Qinghua. Nowadays, the embroiderers spend their spare time on the items, which helps them earn more than 2,000 yuan (about 280 U.S. dollars) each month per person, she added. Over the years, her workshop has trained more than 2,500 embroiderers, creating more than 300 jobs in the county. Besides the ancient handicrafts, Sanjiang is also giving its traditional farmer paintings a modern touch. Local Dong farmers love to draw things based on their daily lives and production activities. And now, their hobby has proved to be lucrative. The Museum of Dong Paintings in Sanjiang displays many colorful farmer paintings with rich contents and scenes. The fans, porcelain, scarves, and other derivatives inspired by the artworks draw visitors' attention. "We often invite teachers to teach us how to paint better and take our painters to local communities, villages, and schools to pass on their painting skills," said Wu Fanyu, founder of a local art gallery and also a representative inheritor of Sanjiang's farmer paintings. Wu added there are several public welfare training sessions held every year, and now many children are getting to know and learn the farmer paintings. The Dong people had lived in relatively isolated mountains and river valleys for thousands of years. Not until 2014, when a high-speed railway began to run through the country, did the county become a sought-after tourist attraction. For the locals, people-to-people exchanges, protection and inheritance efforts, and innovations during the art process have all contributed to the ethnic county's rural revitalization in modern days. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 19) The Philippines is looking to tie up with Elon Musk's internet service provider Starlink to further boost connectivity across the country. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. made the announcement after meeting with members of the Filipino community in Los Angeles, California on Sunday (Philippine time). He said he and members of his delegation were given a tour of the SpaceX facility, adding that the county's unique landscape makes it ideal for a satellite broadband service like Starlink. "That vast archipelago is an ideal candidate for satellite broadband service and we look forward to improving broadband connectivity in the Philippines through Starlink and through all the others," he said. The president also said poor internet connection still plagued the country, but this would change because of the links forged during his US trip. "We are very confident that we will no longer hear complaints about our internet, our online services. We will instead be hearing praises for the speed of our countrys internet connectivity," he added. Digitalization remains one of the key developments pushed by the Marcos administration. Earlier, he called on Filipinos to embrace technology, saying it has the power to bridge gaps that would otherwise be difficult to close. RELATED: Marcos calls for more tech investments to boost AI in PH Starlink became available in the Philippines in February, almost a year after it received the governments approval to register in the country as a value-added service provider. https://www.cnnphilippines.com/business/2023/2/22/Starlink-now-live-PH.html Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (L) during a visit to a Revolutionary Guards centre in Tehran (-) Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Sunday Israel has suffered a "defeat" in its war against Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas, and that it was "a fact". Israel has been pounding the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip since gunmen stormed across the border on October 7, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials. The Hamas government says Israel's bombing campaign and ground invasion have killed more than 12,300 people in the narrow Palestinian territory, including more than 5,000 children. In a speech at an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps aerospace force centre in the capital Tehran, Khamenei said "the defeat of the Zionist regime (Israel) in Gaza is a fact." "Advancing and entering hospitals or people's homes is not a victory, because victory means defeating the other side," he said. Khamenei charged that Israel "has so far failed" in achieving its declared goal of destroying Hamas "despite the massive bombings" of Gaza. "This incapacity reflects the inability of the United States and Western countries" which back Israel, he added. Iran, which supports Hamas financially and militarily, has hailed the October 7 attacks a "success" but denied any direct involvement. Tehran has made support for the Palestinian cause a centrepiece of its foreign policy since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Khamenei said Israel has "killed thousands of children without any remorse" because, as he claimed, "Zionists consider themselves to be a superior race." During his visit, the Revolutionary Guard's aerospace force unveiled new defence systems and drones, state media said, and Khamenei inspected a drone which carried the name "Gaza". The force also unveiled Fattah 2, an upgraded version of a hypersonic missile unveiled in June, according to official news agency IRNA. Khamenei urged Muslim countries which have formal relations with Israel to "cut off" these ties and halt trade. "Some Islamic governments... have not yet condemned (Israel's actions in Gaza), but this is not acceptable," he said. rkh/mz/ami Protesters hold photos of people held hostage by Hamas in Gaza, during a demonstration outside Downing Street on Sunday - JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP) (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images A deal to halt the fighting in Gaza in return for the release of up to 50 hostages is expected in the coming days, Israel said on Sunday night. It came as US officials said negotiations had entered a sensitive phase after the prime minister of Qatar, where talks are being hosted, said only minor details remained to be resolved. Under a US-brokered deal between Israel and Hamas dozens of women and children would be released in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, draft agreement documents are reported to say. The possible breakthrough comes as the chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) signed off plans on Sunday to extend the offensive within Gaza, ahead of a widely anticipated push south. The southern advance is seen as a pivotal moment not just for civilians trapped in the territory, but also Benjamin Netanyahus efforts to maintain diplomatic support in the face of growing calls for a ceasefire and more aid. Michael Herzog, Israels ambassador to the US, told American media on Sunday: Im hopeful we can have a deal in the coming days. Amid growing optimism, a senior White House official said he believed the vast majority of the abductees were most likely alive and that significant progress in negotiations had been achieved. Jonathan Finer, the White Houses deputy national security adviser, also said negotiations had reached a sensitive stage, adding: Were following this minute by minute, hour by hour, and have been over a number of weeks. He added: Some of the issues, whether it was disagreements, have now been either narrowed or an understanding has been reached, but it is not complete, it is not everything. When asked if the number of hostages included in a potential deal amounted to 12, more than two dozen, dozens, he replied: Were talking about considerably more than 12. He said that a temporary ceasefire would allow more humanitarian assistance to reach Gaza. Relatives of Israeli hostages demonstrate in front of the defence ministry in Tel Aviv - Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images) Mr Herzog told ABCs This Week that Israel ruled out a full ceasefire but suggested there could be a pause in the fighting so we can get the hostages out. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, a Qatari diplomat, told a press conference on Sunday that the main challenges were practical and logistical but he was confident we are close enough to reach a deal. The challenges that remain in the negotiations are very minor compared to the bigger challenges, he said. However, Mr Netanyahu urged caution, stressing early in the day that a deal had not been struck. The flurry of negotiations came amid further violence in the Middle East, after Yemeni Houthi rebels, who are backed by Iran, seized what they described as an Israeli ship in the Red Sea. Israel denied that the ship was theirs or contained Israeli crew and described the incident as an Iranian act of terrorism. Meanwhile, fierce fighting continued on the ground in Gaza, four days after Israel took control of the Al-Shifa hospital, where it had claimed Hamas had built an underground base. A Palestinian family in Khan Yunis, Gaza, as fighting continues - Belal Khaled/Anadolu via Getty Image On Sunday night the Israeli military released CCTV footage which they claimed showed Hamas bringing hostages to the hospital on Oct 7 and parking vehicles used in the terror attack there. The IDF said a captive soldier had been executed and two foreign hostages were held at the site. These findings prove that the Hamas terrorist organisation used the Shifa hospital complex on the day of the massacre as terrorist infrastructure, an IDF statement said. It had earlier reported the discovery of 50-metre-long tunnels at the complex. Earlier in the day at least 30 premature babies were evacuated from the Al-Shifa hospital by the World Health Organisation, which described the hospital as a death zone ahead of a transfer to specialist care in Egypt. On Sunday, IDF operations appeared to largely focus on efforts to expose the Hamas terror network in and around Gaza City, to the north of the strip. However, the military was heavily criticised by Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general, following reported attacks on two UN schools housing civilians in less than 24 hours. Humanitarian organisations have spoken of their alarm at the prospect of an IDF push south, given that for weeks Israel has been ordering Gazan civilians to evacuate there to avoid the fighting. Approximately 240 hostages were abducted into the Gaza strip by Hamas during its massacre of October 7, which killed more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Mr Netanyahu, whose personal popularity has been dramatically damaged by the massacre, is under significant political pressure to prioritise returning the hostages over defeating Hamas. 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. This embedded content is not available in your region. Some of the protests targeting MPs over the Israel-Gaza war are "crossing the line" into intimidation, the shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has said. She made the comments after a demonstration was held in north London on Saturday close to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer's constituency office. Ms Reeves called for "civility and decency" when discussing the conflict. Labour MPs were this week told not to vote for an SNP amendment calling for an immediate ceasefire. On Wednesday, 10 Labour frontbenchers resigned from their jobs to defy Sir Keir and back the amendment. In total, 56 of the MPs voted with the SNP rather than the Labour Party's official position, which is to call for "humanitarian pauses" in order to allow more aid into the enclave while backing Israel's right to self-defence. Ms Reeves called for the targeting of public figures by protesters to stop, telling the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme: "What I find very concerning is the huge pressure that MPs have been put [under] leading up to the vote and this week. "I support the right to protest - Suella Braverman's comments about these being 'hate marches' are appalling. "But I don't support the intimidation of MPs and I think that's what you are seeing with some of these protests now, outside of people's offices and outside of people's homes. "MPs have got a difficult job to do - all public servants do - and this sort of intimation, taking protests to people's homes, goes beyond the line." Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters descended on Sir Keir's north London office on Saturday, chanting "Starmer, shame on you". Jo Stevens's constituency office was covered in red paint and banners on Thursday night Shadow Welsh secretary Jo Stevens had her Cardiff constituency office vandalised after abstaining on the Gaza vote, and told BBC Wales the experience was "intimidating" and "threatening". Bradford West MP Naz Shah - who quit the Labour frontbench to support a ceasefire - said she has received "Islamophobic hatred", while Conservative minister Michael Gove needed a police escort after he was surrounded by pro-Palestinian protesters at a London train station last weekend. Ms Reeves said she had not personally been targeted but said it had happened "to colleagues" without providing specific examples, adding: "I'm afraid that some of these protests are now crossing the line." Asked about the Labour rebellion over the ceasefire motion, Ms Reeves said she was "sorry" to see resignations. She added: "But being leader - and hopefully next year, prime minister - Keir is going to make incredibly difficult decisions, and he's going to have to do what he thinks is right, and offer that leadership, even in difficult times." Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell said he had not seen examples of antisemitism on pro-Palestinian marches he has attended, but said he would challenge it if he did. He told the BBC: "It bothers me those chants, but they're so small a minority we've got the powers to deal with that." Hamas gunmen launched an unprecedented assault on Israel from the Gaza Strip on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 200 hostages. Israel responded with air strikes on Gaza and has launched a ground offensive. More than 12,300 people have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Yemen's Houthi rebels hijack an Israeli-linked ship in the Red Sea, taking crew members hostage Yemen's Houthi rebels seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship in a crucial Red Sea shipping route on Sunday, officials said, taking over two dozen crew members hostage and raising fears that regional tensions heightened over the Israel-Hamas war were playing out on a new maritime front. The Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they hijacked the ship over its connection to Israel and took the crew as hostages. The group warned that it would continue to target ships in international waters that were linked to or owned by Israelis until the end of Israel's campaign against Gaza's Hamas rulers. All ships belonging to the Israeli enemy or that deal with it will become legitimate targets, the Houthis said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office had blamed the Houthis for the attack on the Bahamas-flagged Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier affiliated with an Israeli billionaire. It said the 25 crew members had a range of nationalities, including Bulgarian, Filipino, Mexican and Ukrainian, but that no Israelis had been on board. The Houthis said they were treating the crew members in accordance with their Islamic values, but did not elaborate on what that meant. Netanyahu's office condemned the seizure as an Iranian act of terror." The Israeli military called the hijacking a very grave incident of global consequence." Israeli officials insisted the ship was British-owned and Japanese-operated. However, ownership details in public shipping databases associated the ships owners with Ray Car Carriers, which was founded by Abraham Rami Ungar, who is known as one of the richest men in Israel. Ungar told The Associated Press he was aware of the incident but couldnt comment as he awaited details. A ship linked to him experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time. The complex world of international shipping often involves a series of management companies, flags and owners stretching across the globe in a single vessel. Two US defence officials confirmed that Houthi rebels seized the Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea on Sunday afternoon local time. The rebels descended on the cargo ship by repelling down from a helicopter, the officials said, confirming details first reported by NBC News. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to publicly discuss the matter. Twice in the last month, US warships have intercepted missiles or drones from Yemen that were believed to be headed towards Israel or posing a threat to the American vessels. The Red Sea, stretching from Egypts Suez Canal to the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from Africa, remains a key trade route for global shipping and energy supplies. Thats why the US Navy has stationed multiple ships in the sea since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on 7 October. Since 2019, a series of ships have come under attack at sea as Iran began breaking all the limits of its tattered nuclear deal with world powers. As Israel expands its devastating campaign against Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip following the militant group's unprecedented attack on southern Israel, fears have grown that the military operations could escalate into a wider regional conflict. The Houthis have repeatedly threatened to target Israeli ships in the waters off Yemen. Israeli army claims it has discovered 55-metre-long tunnel under Shifa hospital The Israeli army has said that it has discovered a 55 metre long tunnel used "for terrorism" by Hamas under the besieged Shifa hospital in Gaza. The IDF says it has been searching since Wednesday to find a Hamas military base. Posting a video of the discovery on X - formerly Twitter - they claim the tunnel is ten metres deep, with a steep staircase leading to the entrance. The IDF also added in a press release that the tunnel is equipped with several means of defence including an armoured door. This type of gate is used by Hamas organisation terrorists to prevent Israeli forces from entering command centres, the IDF claimed. The tunnel was apparently discovered in an area of the hospital under a hangar containing weapons, including "grenade launchers, explosives and Kalashnikov rifles", the army said. Israeli forces have besieged the hospital since Wednesday, leading to the evacuation of a large number of its patients. The army claims that Hamas has a hideout there, which the movement denies. Volker: 'Horrific events' in Gaza 'beyond comprehension' The "horrific events" that have taken place in Gaza over the past 48 hours "are beyond comprehension", the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, said on Sunday. "The killing of so many people in schools turned into shelters, hundreds fleeing al-Shifa hospital to save their lives while thousands of others continue to be displaced in southern Gaza, are actions that run counter to the basic protections that international law must afford civilians," he warned in a statement. France to send Dixmude helicopter carrier for hospital support France is preparing to send the Dixmude helicopter carrier to the Middle East "in the coming days", configured to offer "hospital support" to Gaza, the Elysee declared on Sunday. The Dixmude will set off "at the beginning of the week" and "will arrive in Egypt in the coming days", a spokesperson for the French president said. A new charter of a plane carrying more than 10 tonnes of medical cargo for the start of the week was also announced. France will also contribute to the European effort with medical equipment on board European flights on November 23 and 30, the Elysee said, adding, France is mobilising all the means at its disposal to help evacuate injured or sick children from the Gaza Strip to its hospitals who need urgent care. Emmanuel Macron met with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and the Egyptian President, Abdel Fattah al-Sissi on Saturday. They discussed the pressing situation of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza and the ongoing negotiations. Macron and his Egyptian counterpart are said to have agreed on: "the need to increase the number of trucks entering Gaza and to strengthen coordination for the delivery of humanitarian aid and the treatment of the wounded." Palestinian Authority will meet with Muslim leaders in China on Monday A delegation of foreign ministers from the Palestinian Authority and four predominantly Muslim countries will visit China on Monday and Tuesday to discuss the situation in Gaza, Beijing announced on Sunday. The foreign ministers of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia - a non-Arab country but with the largest Muslim population in the world - as well as the secretary general of the The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation will be part of the delegation. "During the visit, China will maintain in-depth communication and coordination with the delegation... to promote de-escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, protection of civilians and a fair settlement of the Palestinian issue," a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in a statement. Tens of thousands rally in Pakistan against Israel's bombing in Gaza Tens of thousands of supporters from Pakistans main religious political party have rallied in the eastern city of Lahore against Israels bombing of Palestinians in Gaza and what it said is the worlds failure to protect Gazans. Amid anti-Israeli and anti-American slogans the emotionally charged crowd also called for jihad, or holy war. Earlier this month, Jamaat-e-Islami held massive rallies in the port city of Karachi and the capital, Islamabad. Supporters, including women and children, marched for several kilometres to reach the location of the rally, holding banners and posters with slogans opposing Israel and the United States and in support of the Palestinians. Senator Sirajul Haq, the JI chief, said the ongoing rallies in support of Palestinians around the world awaken world governments and give a voice to the innocent. He said the resolutions and words issued by the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation will not work, and that Muslim rulers have to rise and to stop the hand of the aggressor. Supporters of right-wing religious Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) party take part in a march to express their solidarity with Palestinians in Lahore on Sunday - ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images Qatar: minor obstacles before an agreement on hostages The conclusion of an agreement on the release of hostages kidnapped by the Palestinian movement Hamas during its attack on 7 October against Israel now rests on "minor" practical questions, the Qatari prime minister said on Sunday, without providing a timetable. The challenges that remain in the negotiations are very minor They are more logistical, they are more practical, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani during a press conference in Doha alongside Josep Borrell. Negotiations for a deal have been "up and down over the last few weeks. I think I'm more confident now that we are close enough to reach an agreement that will allow these people (the hostages) to return home safely, he added. Evacuation of 31 premature babies from Shifa hospital announced 31 premature babies who were still in Gaza's Shifa hospital after its evacuation yesterday have been removed from the establishment, Mohammed Zaqout, director general of hospitals in the Gaza Strip, told AFP According to him, "three doctors and two nurses are accompanying them" and "preparations are underway to evacuate them to Egypt" via the Rafah terminal, the only opening to the world from the Palestinian territory which is not in the hands of Israel. Three Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza, bringing total to 62 since war began Three Israeli soldiers were killed in fighting in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army said in a statement on Sunday, bringing to 62 the number of soldiers killed since the start of the war. The three new victims were all reservists and were killed in the north of the Gaza Strip, said the army, which is relentlessly shelling the Palestinian territory and has launched a ground offensive there to "eradicate" the Islamist Hamas movement. Scores of patients left at beseiged Shifa Hospital after mass evacuation A United Nations team has said that some 291 patients are left at Gazas largest hospital after Israeli troops made all others evacuate. Those left include 32 babies in extremely critical condition, trauma patients with severely infected wounds and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. The team was able to tour Shifa Hospital for an hour after about 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left the sprawling compound Saturday morning, said the World Health Organisation, which led the mission. It added that 25 medical staff remained, along with the patients. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. It said more teams will attempt to reach Shifa in the coming days to try to evacuate patients to southern Gaza, where hospitals are also overwhelmed. Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end the militants' rule in Gaza following their wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago, which triggered the war. Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations. Israeli troops who have been based at the hospital and searching its grounds for days claim they have found guns and other weapons and showed reporters the entrance to a tunnel shaft. Saturday's mass departure was portrayed by Israel as voluntary, but the WHO said the military had issued evacuation orders, and some of those who left described it as a forced exodus. We left at gunpoint, Mahmoud Abu Auf told The Associated Press by phone after he and his family left the crowded hospital. He said he saw Israeli troops detain three men. Strikes continue - in north and south Elsewhere in northern Gaza, dozens of people were killed in the urban Jabalia refugee camp when what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike hit a crowded UN shelter Saturday. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. It rarely comments on individual strikes, saying only that it targets Hamas while trying to minimise civilian harm. In southern Gaza, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential building near the town of Khan Younis on Saturday, killing at least 26 Palestinians, according to a doctor at the hospital where the bodies were taken. Doctors Without Borders, an international aid group, said a convoy of staff members and their families tried to evacuate northern Gaza in a clearly marked convoy on Saturday but turned back after shots rang out at a crowded Israeli checkpoint. On their way back to Gaza City, the convoy was attacked and a staffers family member was killed, it said. It was not immediately clear who attacked the convoy. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Protesters have gathered in cities around the world calling for the release of hostages taken by Hamas The Israeli ambassador to the US says he is hopeful a deal for the release of a significant number of hostages will be reached "in the coming days". Michael Herzog told ABC "serious efforts" were being made, but that the fewer details he revealed, "the better the chances of such a deal". Hamas took an estimated 240 people hostage during their 7 October attacks which killed 1,200 Israelis. Qatar, which has been mediating, also says a deal is within reach. The Washington Post newspaper has reported that Israel and Hamas are "close to agreement on a US-brokered deal that would free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting", citing "people familiar with the emerging terms". Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said on Sunday that only "very minor" practical and logistical obstacles remain, adding that "we are close enough to reach a deal". The US has not confirmed any details of progress. White House National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson posted on X: "We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal." And Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out a full ceasefire. Qatar has been playing a leading role in mediation efforts to secure the release of hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza. It was involved in the negotiations that have seen four people freed so far - a mother and daughter, who are US nationals, and two elderly Israeli women. The small, gas-rich Arab Gulf state is home to the political leadership of Hamas, which has had an office in the capital, Doha, since 2012, headed by its leader Ismail Haniyeh. On Saturday, protesters calling on the Israeli government to prioritise securing the release of hostages walked from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem before holding a demonstration outside Mr Netanyahu's residence. Mr Netanyahu has been criticised for not doing more to free those held by Hamas. In a press conference on Saturday night, he said the first goal of the war was to destroy Hamas, the second was to return the hostages and the third was to eliminate the threat from Gaza. Thousands have joined hostages' families putting pressure on the Israeli government "We want answers," said protester Ari Levi, who had two family members - including his 12-year-old son - taken by Hamas from kibbutz Nir Oz on 7 October. "It's not normal to have children kidnapped for 43 days. We don't know what the government is doing, we don't have any information," Mr Levi told the AFP news agency. "I want the government to bring them home to us," said Dvora Cohen, 43, whose brother-in-law and 12-year-old nephew are both believed to be held by Hamas. This week Israel's military said it had found the bodies of two hostages - 65-year-old Yehudit Weiss and 19-year-old soldier Noa Marciano - in the Gaza Strip. Israel has launched a massive retaliatory operation - involving air and artillery strikes as well as ground troops - with the aim of eliminating Hamas. The Hamas-run health ministry says the death toll in Gaza since then has reached 12,300. More than 2,000 more are feared to be buried under rubble. More on Israel-Gaza war Israels ambassador to the US has expressed hope that Hamas could release a significant number of hostages held in Gaza in the coming days, amid reports of talks that are also aimed at securing a days-long humanitarian pause in the conflict. Declining to go into details of the very sensitive negotiations to free some of the estimated 240 captives seized in Hamass brutal cross-border incursion into Israel on 7 October, Michael Herzog told ABCs This Week: They are very serious efforts, and Im hopeful we can have a deal in the coming days. Echoing the Israeli diplomats positive sentiments, White House deputy national security adviser Jon Finer said on Sunday that he believed a deal to free a considerable number of hostages could be closer than ever. What I can say at this point is that some of the outstanding areas of disagreement, in a very complicated, very sensitive negotiation, have been narrowed, Mr Finer told NBCs Meet the Press programme. A premature baby being fed after being transferred from al-Shifa Hospital (Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu/Getty) But he warned: Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. Sensitive negotiations like this can fall apart at the last minute. On Sunday, The Washington Post reported that a deal was imminent in which all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while 50 or more hostages were released in groups every 24 hours. However, US and Israeli officials denied the report. It came as the World Health Organisation (WHO) chief said that 31 very sick premature babies had been safely transferred from al-Shifa Hospital Gazas largest more than a week after it was encircled and attacked by Israeli troops, who insist the hospital lies above an underground Hamas headquarters. On Sunday night, the Israeli military published a video that it said showed a 55-metre fortified tunnel dug under the hospital. While hundreds of patients and staff had already fled the hospital as food, water and medical supplies ran out, with all but five doctors remaining there on Saturday, international alarm had been growing over the fate of premature babies who had been left without incubators following a power blackout. The premature babies were transferred to the United Arab Emirates Hospital in Rafah (Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu/Getty) WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the babies were evacuated in ambulances of the Palestinian Red Crescent to a hospital in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, where they were receiving urgent care before being moved to Egypt. The babies were suffering from dehydration, vomiting and hypothermia, and some had sepsis because they hadnt received any medication. They had not been in suitable conditions for them to stay alive, said Mohamed Zaqout, the director of hospitals in Hamas-run Gaza. A team of UN officials who visited the hospital on Saturday described it as a death zone and said 291 patients were still there, including the now rescued babies, trauma patients with severely infected wounds, and others with spinal injuries who were unable to move. Palestinians search for casualties at the site of Israeli strikes on houses in Jabliya (Reuters/Fadi Alwhidi) The WHO team reported signs of gunfire and shelling and a mass grave at al-Shifas entrance, and said they were making plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients and staff, as evidenced by the babies departure on Sunday. According to the health ministry, whose figures are deemed credible by the UN, more than 12,000 people have been killed in Gaza 5,000 of them children since Israels intense retaliatory bombardment and subsequent invasion of the densely populated strip began on 7 October. Witnesses reported heavy fighting overnight between Hamas gunmen and Israeli forces trying to advance into Jabaliya, Gazas largest refugee camp, where scores of people were feared to have been killed by Saturdays alleged Israeli airstrike at a school where thousands were sheltering. An opening to a tunnel that, according to Israel's military, was used by Palestinian militants under Al Shifa hospital (via REUTERS) Israels military said on social media on Sunday that residents of several Jabaliya neighbourhoods should evacuate towards south Gaza to preserve your safety, and that it would pause military action from 10am to 2pm. Once the pause had expired, 11 Palestinians were killed by an Israeli airstrike on a house in Jabaliya, Gazas health ministry said. Further south, Palestinian medics said 31 people were killed, including two local journalists, in airstrikes targeting houses in the Bureij and Nusseirat refugee camps on Saturday night. Another airstrike killed a woman and her child overnight in the southern city of Khan Younis, they said. UN secretary general Antonio Guterres said on Sunday that he was deeply shocked that two UN schools had been struck in less than 24 hours in Gaza, killing and injuring dozens of people as they were seeking safety in United Nations premises. (Bloomberg) -- Israel released video it says proves its assertion of a Hamas tunnel beneath Gazas Al-Shifa hospital, which the military raided last week amid broad international criticism. The footage shows a shaft to a fortified tunnel that the military said is 10 meters (33 feet) deep and 55 meters long leading to a blast-proof door. Most Read from Bloomberg A deal for Hamas to release hostages taken during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel may be the closest yet and would require a multiday pause in the fighting, US Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said. Israels government said on Sunday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen hijacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea, endangering a key global shipping route. The Palestinian death toll in Gaza has surpassed 13,000, Hamas said. For more stories on the Israel-Hamas war, click here. (All times are Israeli time) Biden Says Ill Tell You When Hostages Out (11:57 p.m.) President Joe Biden said Sunday he isnt in a position to comment on negotiations for Hamas to release hostages, then added: I want to make sure theyre out and then Ill tell you. Biden made the brief comment to reporters while arriving at a military base in Norfolk, Virginia, to meet with US service members. Israeli Cabinet Expected to Discuss Hostage Deal, Ynet Says (10:28 p.m.) Israels cabinet is expected to discuss negotiations to free hostages held by Hamas, Ynet reported. Prior to the Sunday night meeting, Defense Minister Yoav Gallants office released photographs of him surrounded by officials involved in the negotiations, including the head of the Mossad intelligence agency, the news website said. An Israeli official said that a deal isnt expected today, Ynet reported. Hamas Chief Returns to Hostage Talks, Axios Reports (9:42 p.m.) Hamass leader, Yahya Sinwar, has re-engaged in talks on a hostage release, Axios reported. Hes agreed in principle to increase the number of women and children to be freed to more than 50, Axios said, citing three unnamed sources. Sinwar wants in return the release of all Palestinian women and children in Israeli prisons and a six-hour daily halt in Israeli aerial surveillance of Gaza during a pause in fighting. Axios quoted two of the sources as saying that Qatari mediators have narrowed the differences but not enough for a deal. Israel Says Hostage Was Killed in Shifa Hospital Complex (9:10 p.m.) An Israeli hostage, whose body was recovered a few days ago in Gaza, was taken alive by Hamas to Shifa Hospital and killed there, Israel Defense Forces Spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a press briefing. Hagari also presented camera footage that showed that two non-Israeli hostages, a Nepali and a Thai, were taken to Shifa Hospital by gunmen on Oct. 7. An additional photograph showed that an Israeli military vehicle that was stolen during the attack was taken to Shifa Hospital. These findings add to previous evidence presented regarding Hamas use of the hospital area as infrastructure for its terrorist activities in a systematic and ongoing manner, the IDF said. Palestinian Death Toll Rises Above 13,000, Hamas Says (8:30 p.m.) The Palestinian death toll in Gaza has surpassed 13,000, the Hamas-run government media office said. More than 5,500 children are among the dead and more than 6,000 people are reported missing or trapped under rubble. Injuries exceed 30,000. Israel Says It Arrested Over 100 Hamas Operatives in Gaza (8:02 p.m.) Israeli troops have arrested more than 100 Hamas operatives in Gaza and transferred them to Israel for questioning, the military said. Three took part in the Oct. 7 massacre. The Hamas militants disclosed the locations of underground tunnels, storage compounds and weaponry, as well as operating methods used by the organization. Israel Says Iran-Backed Rebels Seize Cargo Ship (7:57 p.m.) Israels government said on Sunday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen hijacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea, endangering a key global shipping route. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office condemned the seizure of what it said was a vessel owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese firm, without naming either of those. The vessel, named Galaxy Leader, is owned by Israeli businessman Rami Ungar, according to a person familiar with the matter. It is registered in the UK. Israeli Army Says It Uncovered Fortified Tunnel Under Al-Shifa Hospital (7 p.m.) Israel said it has exposed a 10-meter deep, 55-meter-long fortified tunnel underneath the Shifa hospital complex. The Israel Defense Forces released a video showing a deep staircase leading to the entrance to the tunnel shaft. The tunnel leads to a blast-proof door with a firing hole. This type of door is used by Hamas to block Israeli forces from entering the command centers and the underground assets belonging to Hamas, the military said. Forces are continuing to uncover the route of the tunnel, it said. The tunnel shaft was uncovered in the area of the hospital under a shed alongside a vehicle containing numerous weapons including RPGs, explosives and Kalashnikov rifles, the IDF said. Hostage Deal is Closer, Biden Aide Says (4 p.m.) An agreement for Hamas to release hostages taken during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel may be the closest yet and would require a multiday pause in the fighting in Gaza, US Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said. Read more: Deal to Free Hamas Hostages Has Gotten Closer, Biden Aide Says UNRWA Estimates Gaza Needs 160,000 Liters of Fuel Daily (2 p.m.) Gaza needs 160,000 liters (42,000 gallons) of fuel daily to maintain a reasonable level of humanitarian services, said Adnan Abu Hassna, United Nations Relief and Works Agency spokesman. The fuel is needed for water desalination, sewage treatment plants, wells and hospitals, as well as hundreds of vehicles for UNRWAs operations. Israel said it would allow entry of nearly 70,000 liters of fuel per day, according to OCHA. Hundreds of Gaza Cancer Patients Will Head to Turkey (1:35 p.m.) Some 351 cancer patients in Gaza will travel to Turkey to resume treatment, the Hamas-run health ministry said. The patients had been receiving treatment at the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, the only oncology hospital in Gaza, which was shut down shortly after the start of Israels ground assault. Meanwhile, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said it evacuated 31 premature babies from Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza in coordination with the World Health Organization and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Theyll be transferred to a UAE-run hospital in the Egyptian border city of Rafah. Irans Khamenei Repeats Call to Isolate Israel (12:35 p.m.) Irans Supreme Leader urged Muslim countries to cut off diplomatic ties with Israel at least for a limited time. Some Muslim states have ostensibly condemned Israel in conventions and some havent, but this is unacceptable, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Sunday, according to his Telegram account. The principal task is to cut off Israels lifelines, and Muslim governments must stop the supply of energy and goods to this regime. Qatar Sees Good Progress in Reaching a Hostage Deal (11:36 a.m.) Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said theres been good progress in the past few days on reaching an agreement between Israel and Hamas to release hostages. Al Thani, whos also the foreign minister, said hes more confident about sealing a deal, with the remaining challenges practical and logistical. He spoke at a joint press conference with European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell. Israel Says It Raids Residences of Senior Hamas Officials in Gaza (11 a.m.) Israeli paratroopers and other forces operated in the Sheikh Ijlin and Rimal areas of northern Gaza in order to identify and destroy Hamas infrastructure and assets, the defense force said in an operational update. The soldiers located approximately 35 tunnel shafts as well as a large number of weapons and eliminated terrorists, according to the update. Embedded in the Rimal area are the residences of senior Hamas officials. The troops also located a military base belonging to Hamass military intelligence unit, as well as ammunition depots and seven rocket launchers. Israels claims cant be independently verified. Israeli Forces Engage Enemies in North and South (9 a.m.) Israels air, sea and land forces fought enemies on two fronts early Sunday, destroying infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah in Lebanon and that of Hamas in Gaza, the military said. Air-raid sirens blared in Israels southern and northern towns, while mortar shell launches from Lebanon fell in open areas. Hezbollah said it attacked two Israeli sites, the Iran-backed militant groups Al Manar TV reported. About 2,500 People Vacated Al Shifa Hospital, OCHA Says (3:11 a.m.) Some 2,500 internally displaced persons, along with patients and staff, vacated Gazas Al Shifa Hospital on Nov. 18, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said. That followed orders from Israels military, which continued its operations within the compound for a fourth consecutive day, OCHA said. About 123,000 liters of fuel entered Gaza from Egypt on Nov. 18, according to the UN agency. Israel said it would allow entry of nearly 70,000 liters of fuel per day, which is well below the minimum requirements for essential humanitarian operations, according to OCHA. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2023 Bloomberg L.P. An Israeli soldier aims his rifle during a raid on Balata refugee camp in the occupied West Bank (Jaafar ASHTIYEH) At least two Palestinians were killed Sunday during Israeli army raids in the West Bank, the Red Crescent said, as violence surges in the occupied territory in tandem with the Israel-Hamas war. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, a 45-year-old man was killed in Jenin, a stronghold of armed groups in the northern West Bank, and another person was killed in Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem further south. Contacted by AFP, the Israeli army did not immediately comment. The Red Crescent said that overall, Israeli forces carried out at least five overnight operations in towns and refugee camps across the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967. Israeli army raids targeting suspected Palestinian militants in the West Bank have surged since Hamas launched its deadly October 7 attacks on southern Israel from the Gaza Strip, as has Israeli settler violence against Palestinians. The Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah says Israeli forces and settlers have killed more than 200 Palestinians in the West Bank since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Hamas gunmen on October 7 Hamas surged out of Gaza and, according to Israeli officials, killed 1,200 people -- mostly civilians -- and seized around 240 hostages. In retaliation, Israel launched bombardments and a ground offensive against the Islamist movement in Gaza, where the Hamas government says at least 12,300 people, also mostly civilians, have been killed. In the northern West Bank on Saturday, five fighters in the armed wing of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah movement were killed in a rare Israeli airstrike on Balata refugee camp, the Palestinian Red Crescent and Fatah sources said. On Sunday, an AFP photographer saw Israeli troops searching Nablus's Balata camp. bur-sbh/slb/jts/ami The State Department on Friday approved a potential $2.35 billion sale of 400 Tomahawk cruise missiles to Japan. The deal would allow for Japan to receive up to 200 Tomahawk Block IV and 200 Tomahawk Block V All Up Rounds (AUR) and related equipment. The approval comes after years of talk that Japan would procure long-range land attack cruise missile capability via Tomahawk and is another glaring example of the country's changing military policy when it comes to 'offensive' weaponry. This is primarily spurred by tensions mounting in the Pacific that have pushed Japan to expand its counterstrike capacity against potential threats, especially emanating from China and North Korea. https://twitter.com/StateDeptPM/status/1725606622809006352 Japan is planning to use the Tomahawks on its Aegis destroyers, although ground and submarine launch platforms are also a possibility in the future. The guided-missile destroyer USS Chafee (DDG 90) launches a Block V Tomahawk, the weapons newest variant, during a three-day missile exercise in December 2020. This event marked the first time a Block V Tomahawk missile was operationally tested. U.S. Navy photo by Ens. Sean Ianno/Released The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force has eight Aegis destroyers : four Kongo class , two Atago class and two Maya class Japans latest in-service Aegis capable destroyers . https://youtu.be/pR3wkZ-tksU The Tomahawks would add a new offensive kinetic dimension to these vessels. Equipped with powerful radar systems and an assortment of surface-to-air missiles , as well as anti-ship and anti-submarine weapons, they currently serve, in part, as floating air and missile defense platforms. You can read more about these vessels here . In October, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara met at the Pentagon, where Japan asked to speed up delivery of the Tomahawks. The Ministers confirmed to steadily progress efforts to strengthen Alliance capabilities to deter and respond under the new strategies, the Japanese Defense Ministry said in a media release at the time. They confirmed accelerated discussions on roles, missions and capabilities of the Alliance including effective operation of counterstrike capabilities under Japan-U.S. cooperation. Japan is considering deploying Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles on its submarines. (Raytheon photo) The Block IV Tomahawk can hit targets nearly 1,000 miles away with a 1,000-pound unitary warhead. It is capable of rerouting mid-flight and can loiter over an area to hit targets as they emerge, featuring an imaging infrared seeker capability. The Block V variant is an improved version with survivability upgrades that can be used to also hit moving targets, especially in the long-range anti-ship missile role. Japan had originally planned to purchase 400 of the Tomahawk Block V missiles, but decided to also seek the earlier version in a procurement plan that will stretch between Fiscal Yearl 2025 and Fiscal Year 2027, Japan Times reported last month. Tokyo plans to use the Tomahawks to fill immediate gaps in an initial five-year plan while the range of its Type 12 anti-ship missile now in development is extended, the publication reported. Japan has been working to field its own long-range land attack cruise missile for some time. It's likely locally-developed types are envisioned as now serving alongside Tomahawks in the long term. Japans request for an offensive weapon like the TLAMs is another example of its move away from its traditional self-defense posture as China ramps up its aggressive actions in the region and North Korea touts its growing missile arsenal. As such, the TLAM is seen as much as a conventional deterrent as anything else. Japan is also acquiring air-launched cruise missiles for land attack applications. Tomahawk has a growing presence in the Pacific as Australia is also acquiring the type, which you can read more about here . Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 19) Vice President Sara Duterte on Sunday said her relationship with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. remains "okay" amid rumors of a rift within their alliance, known as the UniTeam. "We're okay," Duterte said at the sidelines of the World Children's Day celebration at the Quezon Memorial Circle. "I believe that I still have the trust of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.," she added. Rumors of cracks in the UniTeam were revived after the House of Representatives, which is led by Marcos' cousin, Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, stripped Duterte of her 650-million confidential fund under the proposed 2024 national budget. This prompted her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, to be publicly critical of the House in televised interviews, even calling the lower chamber the "most rotten institution" in the country. Duterte said she is looking into rumors about the possible filing of an impeachment complaint against her. "We are currently doing our due diligence on this one. We will release a comment on the appropriate time," Duterte said. House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe earlier dismissed rumors of an impeachment attempt against Duterte as "fake news," saying these are only aimed at sowing intrigue between the vice president and Romualdez. House Deputy Minority leader and ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro said that while the impeachment talks were "not a serious move," it still highlights "the growing rift in the supposed UniTeam." READ: Romualdez: Uniteam still intact despite House row with Dutertes As to her father's advice that Duterte no longer seek the presidency in 2028, the Vice President said: "Sinabi ko noon na hindi ko gustong tumakbong president." [Translation: I said before that I don't want to run for president.] Lahat ng ginagawa natin [Everything we do], we can only plan but it will be God's plan that will truly prevail," she added. A member of the teamLab digital art group poses in an installation in preparation for the reopening of their Borderless museum in February at the Azabudai Hills complex in Tokyo A member of the teamLab digital art group poses in an installation in preparation for the reopening of their Borderless museum in February at the Azabudai Hills complex in Tokyo By Rocky Swift TOKYO (Reuters) - In a basement maze beneath Japan's tallest skyscraper, construction crews and digital artists are racing to assemble an immersive museum that will serve as the cultural anchor of Tokyo's latest megaproject. teamLab, an international collective of artists, set a Guinness World Record by attracting more than 2 million visitors in 2019 to their Borderless museum on the Odaiba island in Tokyo Bay. The name refers to digital art pieces that blend into each other and encourage guests to wander at their own pace. The attraction closed last year ahead of redevelopment of the site by Mori Building, one of Japan's leading developers. It is due to reopen in February in Mori's new Azabudai Hills complex in central Tokyo. "To be able to create this kind of large space in which we can exhibit is what's really important to us," teamLab founder Toshiyuki Inoko said in an interview on Friday. The relocation is part of Mori's strategy of placing cultural attractions in integrated business and residential projects. The 330 metres (1,082 feet) Mori JP Tower is due to open next week, with adjacent shopping arcades, residential towers, medical facilities, and a school in various states of construction. Several pieces of the new Borderless facility are nearing completion, including "Flowers and People," a continuous computer projection of blooming and scattering petals, and "Bubble Universe," a mirrored room of twinkling bulbs that appear to extend into infinity. teamLab has developed a global reputation for its experimental and interactive set pieces that meld images and senses. Previous projects in Tokyo featured digital art mixed with a sauna experience and a laser light show enhanced performance of Giacomo Puccini's opera "Turandot." "We as team want to create something that makes people feel that the continuity itself is something beautiful," Inoko said. (Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore) An unhinged Brooklyn man made good on his threats to gun down his wife, killing the woman and her stepson in a jealous rage inside their first-floor East New York apartment, neighbors and police said Saturday. Luis Collado, 52, faces two counts of murder as well as counts of attempted murder and weapons possession in the Friday night shooting slayings of Rose Acevedo, 43, and her stepson, Gustavo Devora Acevedo, 26, police said. Rose Acevedo was pronounced dead Friday night at her home on Louisiana Ave. between Hegeman Ave. and Williams Ave. in East New York. Gustavo Acevedo was alive when first responders got to the scene. He was rushed to Brookdale Hospital, and died on Saturday, police said. Collado had a history of domestic incidents, said police sources. The familys neighbors on Saturday recalled the couples combative past and the suspects menacing remarks to his spouse. Collado and his wife had a very dysfunctional relationship, said a 56-year-old local restaurant worker to the Daily News. It was toxic. He always threatened that he was going to kill her. Thats what transpired. He was very overprotective, a jealous type of guy. He threatened her so many times. Verbally. At the shooting scene, neighbor Victor Cruz, 56, and other local residents told The News of Collados prior vow to execute his spouse. He said, Im going to kill her, Im going to murder her, Im going to shoot her,' said Cruz. A small memorial of three candles and some flowers appeared Saturday on the front steps of the family home, with the 47-year-old man who left them saying the victims relatives were now gathered at the hospital with the injured stepson. Collado had just left a nearby restaurant on Louisiana Ave. where he dined alone before returning to the house and opening fire, said the 47-year-old neighbor, who asked his name not be used. I walked over here and thats when I heard the gunshots, he recounted. I heard five shots. I know her son. He was defending his mother. I heard when (Collado) shot his mother, he came running down from the back. The neighbor also said the victim had a restraining order against her killer, although police could not confirm the report. A handgun was resting on the ledge of a courtyard nears the crime scene Friday as the investigation began. Another witness, the couples upstairs neighbor, knew the family for about five years. She recalled watching through tears as the mother and son were brought out of the home on stretchers. I cried last night when I saw them taking her body, man, she said. I came home at the point they were taking the son out and I saw he was bleeding. He was conscious but it looked like he was bleeding from his head or his neck. They were rushing him to the ambulance. All I saw was blood. The neighbor described the mom as an amazing woman and wife who deserved a better fate. He should have never ever treated her the way that he did, she said. That was cowardly and I hate that. I can tell from when Ive seen them interact to each other, shes never (shown) ill will towards him. So that really hurts. It is thought to be the first time the community has celebrated the festival with the rest of the island Volunteers have put on what is thought to be the first public Diwali event in Jersey. More than 40 members of the island's Indian and Hindu community worked to host The Jersey Diwali Festival. It was held at the Jersey Library and the Jersey Central Market to showcase Indian culture to the wider public with traditional food, music, art, and dancing. Diwali is a major festival celebrating the triumph of light over darkness and the start of new beginnings for millions of people of the Hindu, Sikh, and Jain faiths. 'Absolutely spectacular' This is thought to be the first time the community has celebrated the festival of lights with the rest of the island, said volunteer Nirupa Ramanathan. "It's been absolutely spectacular," she said. "I've lived here for nearly 20 years and we've always celebrated Diwali within our own little groups. "The participation of the local community has been amazing, and it's been reciprocal of what we wanted to show as a community. "What we've tried to do is a little showcase of Diwali which is the festival of lights which we celebrate every year - a bit like our community's version of Christmas." The event was hosted by Jersey International Cultural Centre which is a government project to celebrate cultural identities and to bring islanders together. Follow BBC Jersey on X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook. Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk. First lady Jill Biden on Sunday remembered former first lady Rosalynn Carter for her efforts with mental health, caregiving and womens rights while meeting with service members and their families in Norfolk, Va. [Rosalynn] was well known for her efforts on mental health and caregiving and womens rights, Biden said, standing alongside President Biden. So I hope that during the holidays, youll include the Carter family in your prayers, the first lady continued. Best Black Friday Deals Rosalynn Carter, the wife of former President Carter, died earlier Sunday at the age of 96. The Carter Center said the former first lady passed away at her home in Plains, Ga., about two days after she entered hospice care. Biden and the first lady were in Norfolk, Va., visiting naval installations ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday week. The president and first lady hosted an early screening for the movie Wonka and participated in a friendsgiving meal with service members and their families. The event, with service members from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS Gerald R. Ford and their families, is part of the White Houses Joining Forces Initiative. Rosalynn was diagnosed with dementia in March, around a month after her husband himself entered hospice care following a series of hospital stays. Rosalynn Carter was known as an advocate for various humanitarian issues, notably for her efforts to improve mental health care and caregiving. Earlier this year, President Biden, 80, revealed the former president asked him to deliver his eulogy when he dies. I spent time with Jimmy Carter, and its finally caught up with him, but they found a way to keep him going for a lot longer than they anticipated because they found a breakthrough, Biden said at a Democratic National Committee fundraiser in March. He asked me to do his eulogy. Jimmy Carter, 99, was diagnosed in 2015 with melanoma that spread to his liver and brain, but by the end of the year he was cancer-free after undergoing radiation therapy and cancer immunotherapy. He is the oldest former living president in U.S. history. The Bidens visited the Carters at their Georgia home in 2021 in a private meeting between the oldest-lived former president and the oldest serving president. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Joe Tilson, who has died aged 95, was regarded as one of the leading pioneers of pop art in Britain in the 1960s. Spotted for the Marlborough Gallery in 1961 by John Kasmin, he was the first of a group of young art stars to launch the gallery into the Swinging Sixties with a highly successful first show in 1962. He came to be associated with such artists as David Hockney, Peter Blake, Allen Jones and Richard Hamilton all friends but pop art took up only about half a decade of his career, and in any case his work was not typical of the movement. When, for example, he made his A-Z Box of Friends & Family (1963), a portable grid-like construction resembling a printers tray, housing a collection of small paintings and constructions by new stars of the art world with different letters of the alphabet allotted to each person, Tilsons own contribution was the box itself. Tilson's 'A-Z Box of Friends and Family', 1963 - www.bridgemanimages.com For Tilson trained in woodwork before moving to art and many of his vibrantly coloured, geometric pop art pieces involved carpentry as much as or more than painting. Some of the older artists didnt like my work because of that, he told The Daily Telegraph in 2009. They wanted me to make my mind up whether I was a painter or a sculptor. He continued to defy categorisation. After he started making prints in 1963, and some were hung in the Marlborough Gallery window, the Printmakers Council objected on the grounds that they were not original because they had incorporated reproductions of images from magazines and newspapers. In response Tilson made a list of things he was not supposed to do in printmaking and deliberately broke every rule. The machinations of the art market never interested him, however, and at the end of the 1960s Tilson turned his back on Swinging London, decamped to Wiltshire and began developing a new body of work, with roots in nature and myth. A banner designed by Tilson for the Siena 'Palio' horse race - www.joetilson.com In 2009 the Telegraphs art market correspondent CG described him as the forgotten king of British Pop Art, though by that time he had featured in a major retrospective at the Royal Academy, and interest in him continued to revive with shows at leading galleries, while his works began to fetch good prices at auction. Joseph Charles Tilson, a Cockney from nowhere, as he put it, was born in Lewisham, south London, on August 24 1928 to Frederick Tilson and his wife Ethel, nee Saunders, working-class parents who had both worked as telegraphists in France during the First World War. He decided he wanted to be a painter aged eight when he won a prize in a council competition, but his father, who hated art, dismissed the idea. His formal education ended early when the outbreak of war led to the closure of his school, leaving him, as he put it unlettered and ignorant. 'Euterpe' (2005), one of Tilson's set of nine aquatints of the Greek muses: he responded with dismay to news that a set had found its way on to the walls of the prime ministerial flat at 10 Downing Street under Boris Johnson, saying, 'Its a joke. Hes a complete phoney' - Cristea Roberts Gallery When he was 13 his parents sent him to the Brixton School of Building, where he learnt bricklaying, masonry, woodwork and hand-carving, before starting work in a furniture factory aged 15. Between 1946 and 1949 he did his National Service in the RAF, and it was thanks to an ex-servicemans grant that he was able to pursue his passion for art, spending time in Italy and taking up a place at Saint Martins School of Art, where he became friends with Frank Auerbach, Leon Kossoff and Len Deighton. He spent another three years as a postgraduate student at the Royal College of Art, where he came to know Richard Smith, Malcolm Morley and Peter Blake. After two years in Italy, from 1958 and 1963, he taught at St Martins and went on to teach at other colleges in Europe and the US. In 1964 some of his mixed-media works were shown in the British Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, and by the middle of the decade he was at the centre of a fashionable coterie of artists and writers who frequented Hennekeys pub on Portobello Road and sundry Soho watering holes and came together at informal gatherings in each others homes. Tilson's stained-glass window commissioned by the Earl and Countess of Rosslyn being installed in Rosslyn Chapel, near Edinburgh, in 2021 - Rob McDougall But after moving to Wiltshire Tilson sought to develop a style that would transcend fashion by drawing on motifs of Mediterranean mythology and arcane symbolism the eternal rather than the ephemeral, as he put it. Although he began to use a wider variety of materials, including stone, straw and rope and later glass words and letters were always important features of his work, alphabets. His painting style moved towards loose brushwork rather than starkly outlined lettering and geometric shapes. He worked for extended periods in Italy, where he had a second home and where, for some years, he was better known than in Britain. Elected a member of the National Academy of San Luca in Rome, his commissions there included the banner for the 1996 Palio in Siena. In Italy they have huge respect for artists, Tilson told The Daily Telegraph: In England, its oh, dodgy chancer f-----g artists. It was an exaggeration to say that Tilson was forgotten in Britain. He was elected an associate of the Royal Academy in 1985 and a full Academician in 1991, but it was the Academys 2002 retrospective Joe Tilson: Pop to Present that put him firmly back on the map. In 2009 the Cristea Roberts Gallery mounted a retrospective of his printed works; and in 2013 the Marlborough Gallery put on a survey exhibition, and both galleries held exhibitions earlier this year to mark his 95th birthday. Examples of his work are held by the Tate and the V&A, the Museum of Modern Art in New York and other museums across Europe and North America. In 2005 Tilson created a set of nine aquatints of the Greek muses as limited-edition prints; one set was bought for the Government Art Collection, though he responded to news that it had found its way on to the walls of the prime ministerial flat at 10, Downing Street following its much-publicised refurbishment under Boris Johnson with dismay. Its a joke, Tilson said. Hes a complete phoney. In 2019 Tilson was commissioned by the Earl and Countess of Rosslyn, who had been inspired by work he had done with Murano glass makers, to design a new stained glass window for the Rosslyn Chapel, near Edinburgh. The window was unveiled in 2021. In 1956 he married Joslyn Morton, daughter of the abstract artist Alistair Morton, who survives him with two daughters and a son. Joe Tilson, born August 24 1928, died November 9 2023 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 Larimer County jury has found the Loveland man who punched an undercover Fort Collins Police Services detective last year not guilty of assault. Quentin Wallace, now 36, was arrested in late September 2022 after punching undercover Fort Collins police Sgt. Scott Crumbaker and knocking him unconscious while Crumbaker and another plainclothes detective, Cpl. Josh Goldschmidt, conducted an operation to remove a GPS tracker from a vehicle in Loveland. A jury found Wallace not guilty of second-degree assault Friday after a four-day trial. Wallace's attorneys argued that he acted in self-defense when he punched the undercover officer, who Wallace did not learn was a police officer until later. The two Fort Collins police detectives were following up on a previous case in the area of North Boise Avenue and East Eighth Street in east Loveland about 8 p.m. Sept. 29. The GPS tracker was on a truck that Wallace was driving, which belonged to Wallace's boss as part of a criminal investigation that Wallace was not involved in. Wallace, who testified in his own defense Thursday, told the jury he thought he was being robbed when he returned from an errand and was still sitting in the truck when he felt it shaking like something was in the bed. He said the only thing he saw was one of the undercover officers, Crumbaker, standing on the corner as if he were acting as a lookout. Wallace said he was "very suspicious, very skeptical and very scared." Wallace's defense attorneys argued Wallace acted in self-defense when he punched the officer, but prosecutors said Wallace acted out of anger and tried to take justice into his own hands. Wallace got out of his truck to confront Crumbaker when he saw Goldschmidt move away from his truck holding something, Wallace told the jury. Wallace said Goldschmidt fled and he tried to chase after him, but Crumbaker stopped him and told him to relax or calm down. Wallace claimed Crumbaker grabbed him and reached for his waist, which made Wallace think Crumbaker had a gun and was about to pull it out, which is when "it turned into a fight or flight thing" for him, he told the jury. Wallace punched Crumbaker in the left side of his head, knocking him unconscious. Crumbaker suffered multiple fractures in his face and one on the back of his head from hitting the ground, Deputy District Attorney Kati Kunisch told the jury. Crumbaker ended up spending eight days in a medically induced coma. He attempted to return to work at the police department but ended up retiring after 20 years with the department in January. "The injuries from this one punch cost Sgt. Crumbaker his career," Kunisch said in her opening statement, adding that this incident "changed the entire trajectory of his life." Crumbaker testified during the trial that he did not remember anything about that night starting shortly after arriving to the area with Goldschmidt and that he has no memory of interacting with Wallace or being hit. Goldschmidt testified that, despite not being nearby during Wallace and Crumbaker's confrontation, he could see that Crumbaker's hands were at his sides when Wallace punched him. Goldschmidt said he rushed to Crumbaker's aid and told the jury, "I think he's dead at this point, he's just still." "Cpl. Goldschmidt was shocked at the fact that the punch had been thrown ... and he was shocked at the force of the punch," Kunisch said. It's at that point that Goldschmidt told Wallace that he and Crumbaker are police officers, and Wallace helped hold Crumbaker's head while Goldschmidt used Crumbaker's phone to call 911. Deputy District Attorney Robert Axmacher argued that Wallace acted out of anger, not fear, when he thought someone was stealing from him, confronting who he thought was responsible. Axmacher told the jury that people are allowed to use reasonable force in self-defense, "but the law does not allow for someone to take justice into their own hands out of anger." But defense attorney Ashley Morriss told the jury that Wallace "defended himself with a single punch from what he thought was a threat." Wallace's other attorney Grace Kennedy called this a "flawed undercover operation," and said the officers did not attempt to identify themselves or deescalate the situation. "His punch was in response to his reasonable fear," Kennedy said. Fort Collins Police Chief Jeff Swoboda said in a statement that the department "honors and respects the verdict of the jury," and now their focus will turn to supporting our retired Sergeant and his family as he continues to recover from this incident." This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Loveland man found not guilty of assault for punching Fort Collins officer FILE - Anne Neuberger, Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology, speaks during a news briefing at the White House, Monday, March 21, 2022, in Washington. Since a White House conference in August on ransomware threats, dozens of school districts have signed up for free cybersecurity services, and federal officials have hosted exercises with schools to help them learn how to better secure their networks, said Neuberger. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) WASHINGTON (AP) Some K-12 public schools are racing to improve protection against the threat of online attacks, but lax cybersecurity means thousands of others are vulnerable to ransomware gangs that can steal confidential data and disrupt operations. Since a White House conference in August on ransomware threats, dozens of school districts have signed up for free cybersecurity services, and federal officials have hosted exercises with schools to help them learn how to better secure their networks, said Anne Neuberger, the Biden's administration's deputy national security advisor for cyber and emerging technology. Neuberger said more districts need to take advantage of programs available that would better guard against online attackers who are increasingly targeting schools. Their aim is to lock up computer systems, and in some cases, steal and publish sensitive personal information if a ransom is not paid. Compromises happens again and again, often in the same way, and there are defenses to protect against it. And here the government has really brought companies together, brought agencies together to deploy some of those," Neuberger said in an interview. Dont give up. Reach out and sign up. And your kids will be a lot safer online." The administration announced steps over the summer to help cash-strapped schools, which have been slow to build up cybersecurity defenses. Ransomware attackers, many of whom are based in Russia, have not only forced schools to temporarily close but have exposed a wealth of students' private information. Last month, parents sued the Clark County School District in Nevada, alleging a ransomware attack led to the release of highly sensitive information about teachers, students and their families in the country's fifth largest school district. In another high-profile case this year, hackers broke into the Minneapolis Public Schools system and dumped sexual assault case records and other sensitive files online after the district refused to pay a $1 million ransom. More than 9,000 small public school districts across the United States with up to 2,500 students that's roughly 70 percent of public districts in the country are now eligible for free cybersecurity services from web security company Cloudflare through a new program called Project Cybersafe Schools, Neuberger said. Since August, roughly 140 districts in 32 states have signed up for the program, which provides free email security and other online threat protection, she said. James Hatz, technology coordinator for Rush City Public Schools in Minnesota, said the program arrived just in time for their district, quickly stopping 100 suspicious emails from getting to staff. Hatz said cybercriminals often try to get teachers to click on malicious links by pretending to be an administrator sharing documents about things such as pay raises. We are not going to be bulletproof, but the more we can do to make it harder, the better between user training, this program and everything else, Hatz said. Neuberger also said a $20 million grant program from Amazon Web Services that is designed to help schools improve their cybersecurity has received about 130 applications. The Federal Communications Commission has also proposed a pilot program that would make up to $200 million available over three years to strengthen cyber defense in schools and libraries. Neuberger said the hope is that money will be available to schools in the near future. But Doug Levin, director of the K12 Security Information eXchange, a Virginia-based nonprofit that helps schools defend against cybersecurity risk, said he fears attacks against schools are going to continue to grow both in frequency and severity without more federal support and requirements that schools have baseline cybersecurity controls. Most have underfunded their IT functions. They do not have cybersecurity experts on staff. And theyre increasingly being viewed as as a soft target by cyber criminals," Levin said. So, ultimately I think the federal government is going to need to do more. NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) On Monday, Nov. 20, Sen. Tim Kaine and Rep. Bobby Scott are scheduled to host a roundtable in Norfolk to discuss lowering drug costs, and improving infrastructure to support Naval Station Norfolk. The roundtable is set to take place at Senior Services of Southeastern Virginia in Norfolk. It will be used to discuss the importance of lowering prescription drug costs and meet with local leaders after federal funding was allotted to improve flooding on Hampton Boulevard, a main road to Naval Station Norfolk, a release states. Kaine and Scott will meet with providers and seniors at Senior Services of Southeastern Virginia in Norfolk, Norfolk Mayor Kenneth Alexander and leaders from Naval Station Norfolk. Kaine recently announced nearly $2.4 million in federal funding for the project. Keep checking WAVY.com for the latest developments. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. Kaitlin Armstrong, 35, was sentenced Friday to 90 years in prison after being found guilty of first-degree murder of elite cyclist Moriah Wilson who had briefly dated Armstrong's boyfriend. Armstrong fled the country to Costa Rica, leading law enforcement on a 43-day manhunt. Armstrong will be eligible for parole in 30 years. Image by Simaah from Pixabay Nov. 18 (UPI) -- A Texas woman who fled the country to evade capture was sentenced to 90 years in prison in the jealousy-fueled homicide of an elite cyclist. Kaitlin Armstrong, 35, was sentenced Friday after being found guilty of first-degree murder in the May 11, 2022, death of Moriah Wilson, a professional cyclist who briefly dated Armstrong's boyfriend. Armstrong fled the country to Costa Rica, leading law enforcement on a 43-day manhunt. The prosecution had asked for a minimum of 40 years. Armstrong will be eligible for parole in 30 years. Wilson's family said the sentence does little to ease their pain. "Other than the prosecution team, there really are no winners here," the victim's father, Eric Wilson, said. "This is not a time for celebration but a time for prayer, a time to pray for our family, her friends and the Armstrong family and their friends." During closing arguments in the Friday sentencing phase, prosecutor Guillermo Gonzalez said Armstrong was "a sophisticated adult who had time to think about and calculate her actions, as well as the consequences." "Ultimately, that calculation really comes from an age-old, beginning-of-time motive, and I'm talking about jealousy," he said. Armstrong's attorney, Rick Cofer, said after the trial, "the loss of Moriah Wilson is a tragedy, and our hearts go out to the Wilson family and to the family of our client, Kaitlin Armstrong." During the trial, witnesses testified Armstrong was jealous that Wilson dated her boyfriend, professional cyclist Colin Strickland, briefly when they had broken up. She fled to Costa Rica using her sister's passport and got a nose job before being captured. Turn on your radio at home, crank that tuning dial to the left and youre bound to hear the public radio station at 89.3 FM, a station that has been providing eclectic independent music, news and community information to Olympia for the past 50 years. Its KAOS, which was started by students at The Evergreen State College and remains there today, still in the College/Campus Activities Building, although on a different floor. As the station prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary, it is in a much better place than it was during the pandemic, when the campus closed, offering only remote learning, and volunteer disc jockeys were forced to do their recordings at home if they did them at all. During the pandemic, the number of DJs fell to around 17 from a pre-pandemic level of 40-45, representing both students and community members. General Manager Jon Hamilton, now approaching six years with the station, was one of the few allowed on campus to keep the station going after the campus shut down. Hamilton agreed it was an Omega Man experience, a reference to the Charlton Heston sci-fi movie that finds Heston alone in Los Angeles. Hamilton would show up early on a dark, foggy morning and have the campus to himself, then put in 45-50-hour weeks to keep the station functioning. He remembered the day he finally saw someone else at a campus bagel shop and they waved at each other excitedly. Its the kind of situation that might chase a lot of people away, but Hamilton, who came from KEXP in Seattle to join KAOS, said he loves community radio. The music got him in the door, but its the sense of community that keeps him around, Hamilton said. I think were in a really good place, he said about the station, which is building up its base of student DJs again and is now set to get out into the community more, including the 50th anniversary celebration at the Capitol Theater on Nov. 30. The station operates on an annual budget of about $250,000, provided by a combination of student activity fees, underwriting and community memberships. For example, if a resident spends $60 or more, they get a T-shirt and membership card that qualifies them for discounts at certain stores, such as Rainy Day Records, he said. The college holds the license to the station. The station also used to be known for its fund drives, but it hasnt done one since the pandemic, Hamilton said. He said the station has around 40 DJs, but 60-70 DJs would be ideal because then the station could have substitute DJs to call on, Hamilton said. The heyday of college radio KAOS started as a 10-watt station (which transmitted less than 5 miles), then became a 400-watt station. It now operates at 1,110 watts, which is strong enough so that the station can be heard throughout the greater Thurston County area, said former general manager Michael Huntsberger, who spent 20 years at the station, 18 of them as GM, from 1980 to 2000. He later went into consulting, then pursued an academic career, earning a doctorate at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication. He later became a tenured professor at Linfield University in McMinnville, Oregon, where he still teaches part-time. Huntsberger recalled his days at KAOS as the absolute heydays of college radio, a time when the station was nationally known for its independent music policy and the recording industry viewed college radio as a place to introduce new artists. That policy is still in place at KAOS today, which emphasizes that 80% of music played at the station must be independent as opposed to major label recordings. That policy has a little wiggle room, said DJ John Ford, who has had a longtime jazz program at KAOS. Most older jazz music was only recorded on major labels; however, he acknowledged that if you were to show up and play nothing but the Billboard Top 40, you are going to get some static, he said. There also was a time when the station had as many as 120 volunteers, earned as much as $5,000 during a pledge drive, carried Evergreen commencement speeches, was on site for the Evergreen-based community event known as Super Saturday and had people call in during the World Trade Organization riots in Seattle to report from the scene, Huntsberger recalled. It was that moment when college radio was really happening, he said. KAOS also had one of the first radio programs in Spanish and once covered all five days of the Thurston County Fair from the fairgrounds, he said. There also were less successful moments like the time they played the song Money (Thats What I Want) by Barrett Strong over and over again during a fund drive that didnt work as intended, Huntsberger said. He also had his own radio shows: An adult folk alternative music show called The Penguin Cafe and an R&B program called Five Guys Named Moe. Bruce Pavitt, who went on to form the Sub-Pop music label, was a former music director at the station, he said. Huntsberger, too, reviewed the current show lineup at KAOS and singled out programs that have been on the air since he was at the station, including, Dr. T.G. Hokum The Audiological Phatasmagoria, Spin the Globe and Johns Place. DJ John Ford Ford, who said he has held every role at the station other than general manager, has been hosting a radio show at KAOS since 1993. He has multiple shows at the station, but is perhaps best known for Johns Place, a four-hour jazz program from 4-8 p.m. Mondays. It started a hell of an adventure, he said. Ford came to Evergreen late in life. He was working as a features writer for the Niagara Gazette in Niagara Falls, New York, when he got the chance to interview Greener and Simpsons creator Matt Groening. That conversation inspired him to enroll at the college at 40 and emerge from it four years later. In between, he got hooked on radio. I think KAOS matters, said Ford, acknowledging that community radio has always been a little financially precarious. We do good things and good work. What keeps him going? He enjoys sharing music and he takes it seriously, saying a big part of the job is sharing yourself and to make sure you are delivering your best self because listeners are inviting you into their homes or cars. He has had his share of high-profile moments, including interviews with Frank Zappas widow, PBS Bill Moyers, a member of the Indigo Girls, Dr. Cornel West and former Evergreen President Les Purce, who would sometimes bring his guitar, Ford said. The station itself is home to a large collection of CDs and it still has turntables to play records, although now Ford said many of the volunteer DJs play music directly from their iPhones, iPads and computer laptops. Some, too, play nothing but vinyl, he said. Evergreen students at KAOS Given the huge transition from analog to digital media that has has happened over the past 20 years, one might wonder about the appeal of radio to those who grew up on digital downloads. Still, there are students at Evergreen interested in radio, such as assistant production director Wriston Marshall. In an age where everything is streaming, its nice to have the old ways that are still going and to be part of that is really cool, and in the process you find a larger community of people, he said. I hope that these formats can continue to influence generations and inspire. Forest Ember, a former outreach coordinator for the station, said she likes the social aspects of radio. It fees like youre hanging out with someone listening to someone on the air, she said. And the station became an important social destination to meet new people and make friends, Ember said. Student and production director Adam Hahn takes care of everything that is pre-recorded at KAOS, editing, mixing and mastering before it goes on air, or what he called the nitty-gritty of all the technical aspects of radio. What is his assessment of KAOS at 50? We are prospering after a long arduous recovery, he said. The 50th Anniversary Celebration Where: Capitol Theater, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia When: 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30. Who: Oh, Rose and Jack Habeggers Celebrity Telethon are set to perform. How much: Tickets are $22. Want to be a DJ at KAOS? Go to kaosradio.org and click on DJ training. (CNN) Rescue efforts in India have stretched into a seventh day as emergency response teams race to retrieve 40 construction workers trapped underground since Sunday. The workers became stranded when a highway tunnel they were building partially collapsed in the northern state of Uttarakhand. Rescue teams had been drilling non-stop to reach the stranded workers since acquiring a high-powered drilling machine on Thursday, but given the fragile mountain terrain, there were concerns of more debris falling and further complicating the rescue efforts. We have decided to go with a pause-and-go approach to maintain the equilibrium, Anshu Manish Khalkho, director of state-run highway management company National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) told the media on Friday evening local time. Videos posted on social media show rescue work paused with no drilling activity reported overnight Friday into Saturday. Khalkho told reporters that rescuers, with the help of the high-powered drilling machine, have so far drilled about 25 meters (82 feet) inside the collapsed Uttarkashi tunnel thats about one-third of the way to the trapped workers. The rescuers 60 meters of debris between themselves and the trapped men. According to Khalkho, pipes designed for the rescue mission have been successfully inserted into approximately 25 meters (82 feet) of the debris. However, there remains an additional stretch to cover before reaching the 40 workers. The 25 meters of pipe, which are approximately 900 millimeters in diameter, are being inserted into the freshly drilled hole and being welded together, Khalkho explained. These interconnected pipes will provide an escape passage for the stranded men, enabling them to move beyond the section of the tunnel that has collapsed. It may look easy from the outside, but on-site we have to factor in the effects of the drilling vibrations on the fragile terrain, Khalkho told reporters when questioned on the duration of the rescue mission, which entered its seventh day on Saturday. Khalkho confirmed that the trapped workers are being supplied with food, water and oxygen through a smaller pipe and authorities have been in contact with them via walkie-talkies. Some of the men have also started getting ill, a doctor on site told CNN earlier this week, developing symptoms such as vomiting and headaches. He also confirmed that a backup drilling machine is being airlifted from Indore city in the central state of Madhya Pradesh in India, to assist in the rescue operations. Reuters reported Saturday that the initial drilling machine broke on Friday and needed to be replaced. Separately, Uttarakhands Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also assured the press that the rescue work is on track with the engineers and experts from NHIDCL working relentlessly. He added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is reviewing the situation. A special team from the Prime Ministers office has also arrived at the tunnel collapse site to review the situation. The tunnel is part of Modis ambitious Himalayan Char Dham Highway project, a multimillion-dollar infrastructure plan to improve connectivity in the state of Uttarakhand and better access to important pilgrimage locations. The defence forces have pushed the Russians 3-8 km from Dnipro on the left bank of Kherson Oblast, so mortar fire no longer reaches the right bank. Source: Nataliia Humeniuk, Head of the Joint Press Centre for Operational Command Pivden (South), during the national joint 24/7 newscast, Ukrinform quotes Quote: "Preliminary figures indicate that the distance varies from 3 to 8 kilometres, depending on the specifics of geography and landscape across the left bank. Now their mortars cant hit the right bank, so we see it as a certain achievement." Details: She noted that Ukrainian defenders continue to gain ground on the left bank. As Humeniuk said, there is a lot of work for our military. Although the reports show 4-10 destroyed artillery systems every day, the Russians still continue to shell the right bank of Kherson Oblast. This means that the Russians have the opportunity to pull up their reserves, and that they do not yet have a critical limit on the number of these systems. In addition, it should be understood that the Russians are not so knocked out as not to be able to raise additional forces. She added that other, fresher units are returning to replace those destroyed. At the same time, Humeniuk outlined how many Russian invaders there are on the left bank. She said the total number of the group is estimated at several tens of thousands, but she did not name a specific number in order not to "guide the enemy". "Theres a massive force there so weve plenty of work to do," she summed up. Humeniuk also added that no Russian strike groups were created, according to Ukrainian records. She said this means that the Russians do not have the capacity to prepare for active operations. Background: Ukrainian marines have confirmed that the Defence Forces gained ground at several bridgeheads on the left bank of the Dnipro River on the Kherson front. Background: On 8 November, analysts reported that the Ukrainian military had transferred armoured vehicles to the left bank of Kherson Oblast. On 13 November, they reported that Ukrainian troops had made some progress on the left bank of Dnipro in Kherson Oblast. Support UP or become our patron! Gazas largest hospital, Al-Shifa, has become a flashpoint in Israels war against Hamas, which began when gunmen from the militant group crossed the border into Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people. Palestinians and humanitarian agencies say the current fighting in and around Al-Shifa is proof of Israels wanton disregard for civilian life in Gaza, while Israel accuses Hamas of using the medical center as a shield for its operations. On top of providing medical care, the Al-Shifa Hospital had recently become a key shelter for thousands of Palestinian civilians fleeing Israeli bombardment. Since launching its operation at the hospital on November 15, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have shown images of a tunnel shaft and military equipment, but have yet to show conclusive proof of the large-scale command and control center it alleges is there. Hamas, the Gaza Health Ministry and hospital officials have denied Israels claims, saying that hospitals in the Strip have only been used to treat patients. Doctors in Al-Shifa have also sounded the alarm about deteriorating conditions inside the medical facility, which is struggling to meet patients needs amid supply shortages and the presence of Israeli troops. The IDF is now under pressure to prove Israels long-standing assertion with its promise of concrete evidence. Its ability to continue its operation in Gaza, and the credibility of Israel, could be at stake as the number killed in Gaza surpasses 12,000, according to authorities in the Hamas-controlled Strip. Heres what we know so far. What does Israel say? For weeks, the IDF said Hamas has been using Gazas largest hospital as cover for what it calls terror infrastructure below ground. IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Hamas had a command and control center or headquarters underneath the hospital complex grounds, which other senior Israeli officials have also insisted on. In a presentation to the media last month, Hagari claimed that Hamas was directing rocket attacks and commanding operations from bunkers underneath the hospital building, which he said were linked to a network of tunnels that Hamas had dug underneath Gaza City. The IDF also published an intelligence-based illustrated video of what it claims the Hamas headquarters under Al-Shifa looks like. The video shows a 3D diagram of the hospital, which moves to show an animated network of purported tunnels and operation rooms. Premature babies which were evacuated from an incubator in Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City to receive treatment at a hospital in Rafah, in southern Gaza, on November 19. - Hatem Khaled/Reuters CNN cannot independently verify Israels claims that Hamas is operating a command and control center from the hospital. The White House has backed Israels claims, saying that Hamas was storing weapons and operating a command node from Al-Shifa, citing US intelligence. But senior US officials have declined multiple times to expand on how they can corroborate Israels claims, as the US does not have a presence on the ground in Gaza. What evidence has Israel provided? Over the weekend, the IDF took CNN and other news organizations to a newly exposed tunnel shaft on the grounds of the Al-Shifa hospital complex that it says was used by Hamas. The structure appeared to be substantial, with the remains of a ladder hanging over the opening and a pole that looked like a hub for a spiral staircase running through the middle of the shaft. The IDF also released video filmed on Friday from inside the shaft, showing a staircase leading down into a concrete tunnel that the military said was 55 meters long and located 10 meters underground. At the end of the tunnel is a metal door with a small window, according to the video, which the IDF said it had not yet opened to the possibility that Hamas had booby-trapped it. The video is arguably the most compelling evidence thus far that the IDF has offered that there may be a network of tunnels below the hospital. It does not, however, establish without a doubt that there is a command center under Al-Shifa. The Israeli military on Sunday also presented several videos that it said illustrated Hamas presence at Al-Shifa hospital, including CCTV footage that appeared to show hostages being brought through the hospital itself and separate footage from inside a tunnel shaft on the medical compounds grounds. CNN cannot independently verify the content of the videos. The CCTV footage showed Hamas fighters moving a Nepalese hostage and a Thai hostage through the hospital on October 7, IDF spokesperson Hagari said. One appears to be frog-marched through the building, while another appears to be bleeding and is pushed on a gurney. Hagari did not spell out how the IDF had acquired the videos, though he did say that Israeli intelligence officers were part of the operation inside the hospital to try to locate the hostages. Hagari also dismissed suggestions that the hostages had been brought to the hospital because they were wounded, claiming that one of the two hostages in the videos was not injured and did not need medical treatment. They had been brought to the hospital first before being moved to hiding spots like nearby apartments, he said. The shared CCTV footage comes after Israels military said it found the bodies of two Israeli hostages a 65-year-old woman and an Israeli soldier in the same neighborhood as Al-Shifa hospital. The IDF had previously touted other alleged discoveries on the hospital grounds, saying soldiers located a room in Al-Shifa where they found technological assets, along with military and combat equipment used by Hamas for terrorist purposes. Hamas has rejected those claims as baseless lies. CNN analysis of separate footage published online by the IDF prior to visits from international media outlets suggests weaponry at Al-Shifa may have been rearranged. An IDF video on November 15 showed a military spokesperson touring the facility, during which an AK-47 gun is seen behind an MRI machine. Fox News and the BBC were subsequently granted access to the hospital. In their reports filmed after the IDF clip, two AK-47 guns are visible in the same location. It is unclear where the second assault rifle came from. The IDF told CNN the discrepancy between the militarys own video and the BBC footage was due to the fact that more weaponry and terrorist assets were discovered throughout the day. Suggestions that the IDF is manipulating the media are incorrect, it said. The United Nations has called for access to the site for an independent investigation into the competing allegations and warned that hospitals should not be used as battlegrounds for any side. How has Hamas responded? Israels allegations have been vehemently denied by Hamas, the Gaza Health Ministry, and hospital officials. The director general of the Hamas-controlled health ministry, Dr. Medhat Abbas, told CNN that hospitals in the enclave are used to treat patients only and are not being used to hide anyone. The health ministry responded to the images of hostages inside Al-Shifa released Sunday by the IDF by questioning their authenticity but went on to say that if true, the pictures showed that hospitals in Gaza provided medical care to anyone who needed it. In a statement issued Saturday before the release of the CCTV videos, Hamas said it had brought several hostages to hospitals for medical treatment after they were injured in Israeli air strikes. After Israel launched its operation, Hamas accused the US of giving Israel a green light to commit more massacres against civilians by amplifying what it called a false narrative that a militant command center lies somewhere inside Al-Shifa. Why Al-Shifa matters and whats happening to its patients More than five days since the IDF raided Al-Shifa hospital, Israeli troops are still on hospital grounds, and the facility is still filled with patients and medical staff operating in dire humanitarian circumstances. Doctors who are still at the hospital cannot treat patients due to heavy shelling in the past week. Fuel shortages and a lack of electricity prevent them running incubators for the babies. ICU patients and several neonatal babies in Al-Shifa have died in recent days. A doctor inside Al-Shifa hospital told CNN Monday that staff movements around the complex were being restricted, and Israeli forces are questioning staff about Hamas and tunnels. Dr. Ahmed El Mokhallalati, head of the burns unit, said the hospital is also running out of urgent requirements, including anesthetics, oxygen tanks, medicine and blood banks. Israels Defense Ministry says it delivered more than 6,000 liters of water and 2,300 kg of food including fish, canned food, bread, spreads and dates over the weekend. El Mokhallalati also told CNN that Israeli forces had removed about 200 bodies from the hospitals mortuary as well as from mass graves recently dug on the site. They brought two trucks and they have taken all the dead bodies out of the hospital, he said. Several days ago, Israels army spokesman Hagari dodged a question about whether Israel had taken bodies out of the hospital complex as part of its efforts to determine the fate of hostages kidnapped from communities in southern Israel on October 7. A group of UN humanitarian workers visited Al-Shifa on Saturday, describing the hospital as a death zone where signs of shelling and gunfire were evident. An Egyptian government official told CNN Monday that 28 of 31 premature babies that were evacuated from Al-Shifa to southern Gaza have arrived in Egypt through the Rafah crossing. The three remaining babies remained in Gaza but are still alive, the official added. The sprawling medical facility of Al-Shifa, which sits in the western part of Gaza City, was built in 1946 when Gaza was still under British rule. It has long been seen as the backbone of medical services across the besieged Gaza Strip, and Israels operations there have compounded a grim humanitarian crisis, Palestinian health officials have said. This story has been updated with additional developments. CNNs Eyad Kourdi, Kareem Khadder, Nadeen Ebrahim, Jessie Yeung, Christian Edwards, Andrew Carey, David Shortell, Katie Polglase, Gianluca Mezzofiore, Lauren Said-Moorhouse, Martin Goillandeau, Eleni Giokos and Jo Shelley contributed reporting. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com The Russians have opened a Kremlin-funded "blogger school" in the occupied territories of Ukraines south to overcome a shortage of propagandists. Source: National Resistance Center Quote: "The Russians are trying to overcome the shortage of 'journalists' in the temporarily occupied territories. Most of the locals refuse to cooperate with the occupiers, and they are forced to bring in temporary workers from the Russian Federation to establish a propaganda system in the region. To solve this problem, the enemy is attempting to create 'journalists' from scratch. To this end, the occupiers have opened a 'school of bloggers' financed by the Kremlin in the TOT [temporarily occupied territories ed.]. The enemy hopes to find collaborators from among students in search of fame who will agree to create propaganda content." Details: Ukraine's National Resistance Center noted that propaganda is a crime, and anyone involved in working for the Russians will be held accountable. Support UP or become our patron! NBCs Kristen Welker pressed deputy National Security Adviser Jonathan Finer on Sunday over whether the U.S. is confident that Israel is following international law when it comes to its operations in Gaza with the Biden administration official appearing to dodge answering the question. Welker pointed to comments made by the Qatari prime minister who said that Israels actions at the al-Shifa Hospital were a crime. This comes almost a week after Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) revealed it was going through with an operation at the hospital, claiming that it was a base for Hamas the militant group that launched its deadly surprise attack on Israel early last month. When asked if the U.S. stood by Israels assessment that Hamas is headquartered underneath the hospital and whether they were following international law, Finer reiterated that U.S. intelligence supported that notion. We have been equally clear that our intelligence, US intelligence information, not just Israeli intelligence information, suggests that Hamas is used al-Shifa in an unconscionable way as a command and control facility for the planning of terrorist attacks and the execution of service attacks and continues to do, Finer said on Meet the Press. That does not, in our view, mean that Israel should conduct airstrikes on the hospital or ground assaults on the hospital, he added. Weve been equally clear about that. But Hamas has put these people in severe jeopardy by the way in which its conducting this war. So this is a microcosm of the real challenge associated with this entire conflict and weve laid out our position. Welker then asked again: And are you confident Israel is following international law, Jon? Just yes or no there. We are confident that it is our position that it needs to. When we have seen issues that are raised. Based on incidents on the ground we raised them privately and directly with the government of Israel Finer said, before Welker interjected again and they began talking over each other. John, let me just so youre saying youre saying that Israel will Welker said. but were not going in real time to play judge and jury on this question, Finer said to which Welker again pressed him on the question of international law. What I can say is it is not our position, certainly my position, as a policymaker to play real time judge and jury on the question of any particular incident, Finer said. When we see things that concern us, we raise them. We have done that during the course of this conflict. We will continue to do that. And again, just to restate, it is our position that all countries including Israel, including the United States, need to adhere to laws of armed conflict, he added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The Infrastructure Ministry has launched a humanitarian effort to help truck drivers blocked at three Polish-Ukrainian checkpoints, Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov wrote on Facebook on Nov. 19. Disgruntled Polish truckers have been protesting at three checkpoints since Nov. 6, causing huge lines on both sides of the border. The protestors are demanding limitations on the number of Ukrainian haulers entering Poland. Drivers are facing tough conditions as temperatures plummet and snow falls in eastern Poland. Kyiv has created a support group to provide Ukrainian drivers with food, drinking water, medicine, and fuel. Today, an initiative team is already working at the border, which has 11,000 food kits, drinking water, and necessary medicines, Kubrakov said. The headquarters will work until the border is unblocked and traffic stability through the checkpoints is restored. The team is also ready to evacuate some 3,000 Ukrainian drivers stuck on the Polish side if needed. Lines stretch from 30 kilometers at the Yahodyn checkpoint, to 10 kilometers at the Rava-Ruska checkpoint. Lines are over 16 kilometers long at the Krakivets crossing. The situation is escalating as negotiations between Ukraine and the protestors earlier this week failed to resolve the situation. As part of the Solidarity Lanes Initiative, the EU suspended transport permits for Ukrainian drivers last summer to help Ukraines struggling export industry following Russias blockade of Ukraines Black Sea ports. As such, Ukrainian drivers have free movement into neighboring EU states. The number of Ukrainian haulers entering Poland has increased drastically and protestors argue that local businesses are being undercut. They claim Ukrainian drivers are transporting goods from Poland to third countries at a cheaper rate than what local companies can afford. Despite the European Council warning Warsaw that it needs to end the blockade, the situation is only getting worse and looks set to spread beyond Poland. Members representing the road transport industry in Slovakia, Hungary, Czechia, Lithuania, as well as Poland, released a joint statement on Nov. 17 addressed to the EU. They called for Brussels to consider termination or significant changes to the current EU-Ukraine arrangement without any delay. Read also: Slovakia scrutinizes Ukrainian trucks amid long lines at border Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Update: This story has been updated with comments from the Aldea Glen HOA board president and treasurer and a new time for an upcoming meeting. Four residents came before Lacey City Council on Thursday, urging the city to help them with a homeowners association board that they accused of being out of control, rogue, and twisting and violating HOA rules to fit their agenda. The HOA in question represents the Aldea Glen neighborhood, which is north of Lake Lois and east of Carpenter Road. The four residents spoke during public comment at Thursdays Lacey City Council meeting. Board President Bridget Gilleese and Treasurer Robin Wilson contacted The Olympian on Sunday and disputed nearly every statement made by the residents at the council meeting. Resident Shane Hunter told the council that an HOA special meeting can be called by the board president, a majority of board members, or by owners having 10 percent of the vote in the HOA. They have done so with more than half of the HOA, he said. They voted to replace the board, but control of the board did not change, Hunter said. Treasurer Wilson said that the vote took place at an illegal meeting, which requires that a petition be submitted to the board for review to check that those who have signed it are actual homeowners in the association. There are many out-of-area owners who rent their properties, she said. Hunter also said the board added an additional voting member that was not in accordance with HOA rules. Hunter accused that person of then accosting elderly homeowners and bullying neighbors. I do not have time to speak on all of the grievances we have with this rogue board, he said. He asked the city for help. I implore our city council to help out our community with this matter, he said. If this person continues to accost neighbors, Im afraid that physical violence will occur. President Gilleese said she can appoint someone to the board to fill a vacancy until the next general meeting in May. She conceded that the board has not had a May meeting since the pandemic because they were not aware that they could hold the meetings online, citing a Gov. Jay Inslee proclamation that they didnt fully understand. She contends that no one has been accosted or bullied. Tim Smith characterized the HOA board as lacking in communication, transparency, honesty and good judgment. Brandon Gardner told the council he serves on the HOA board as the member at large and his wife is the secretary. He agreed that the board has not been transparent and also accused board members of having secret meetings and voting and approving budgets without input. Gilleese said Gardner and his wife were on the board, but not now. However, she acknowledged that Gardners wife shouldnt have been on the board because she is not identified as homeowner in the association; however, she was appointed because they were desperate to fill a position on the board, she said. Joshua King, who said he co-owns a home in Aldea Glen, asked the city to come up with a solution for HOA disputes outside of having to file a lawsuit in Thurston County Superior Court, a process that can be expensive and time-consuming for residents. He encouraged the city to increase the number of people at the city who work with HOAs. They could then engage in hearings at the HOA level, the city level and have an administrative law judge rule in HOA matters, he said. King said he and some members of the HOA tried to alert others about an upcoming election and were confronted by a board member that devolved into a screaming and shouting match in the street. Its gotten to a level that I think is not adult anymore, he said. Before the public comment period came to an end, resident Hunter invited council members, the city manager and city attorney to come to their next election, set for 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Lacey Community Center, 6729 Pacific Ave SE. Gilleese and Wilson dispute that King is a homeowner in the association. They also said Tuesdays meeting is illegal because they did not follow the aforementioned process. Anything that transpires isnt legal, Wilson said. LAS VEGAS (KLAS) The Las Vegas airport connector was closed, and traffic in the area stopped Saturday after a crash. According to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officials, a crash on the Harry Reid International Airport Connector had closed all northbound lanes and blocked traffic Saturday evening. Officials say three vehicles were involved in the crash in the northbound lanes, one of which rolled over. The driver police say was at fault fled the scene before officers arrived. Only minor injuries were reported and no one was hospitalized. At approximately 11:15 p.m., at least one of the lanes of the northbound airport connector had reopened, and traffic was slowly trickling through. Travelers were advised to allow for extra time when heading to the Las Vegas airport on Saturday evening. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS. (Bloomberg) -- Latvian Foreign Minister Krisjanis Karins is looking to join the list of contenders to succeed NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg, a second top politician from the Baltics to express interest. Most Read from Bloomberg Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas previously threw her hat in the ring for the post, which opens up in 2024. Provided Latvia would decide to stand for the candidacy of the Secretary General, Dr. Krisjanis Karins is ready to join the competition, according to a statement shared by Karins spokesman on Sunday. The 58-year-old resigned as prime minister in August as his party sought to form a new government. Read more: Estonian Premier Eyes NATOs Top Job Even Amid Calls to Resign According to the statement, he would offer to contribute to the alliance with his leadership experience as prime minister, clear understanding of Russias threat, strong stance on Ukraine, and proven track record as an international consensus builder. Outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Kallas have each expressed interest for the top NATO job. After a fourth extension Stoltenbergs tenure ends in October and hes made clear he will step down then. Read more: Dutch Premier Rutte Says He Is Open to Becoming Next NATO Chief NATO allies have wanted to consider candidates from different regions and with different profiles than the recent secretary generals, who were Nordic or Dutch men. The decision needs to be unanimous among the 31 allies but the view from the US, which leads the military contributions at NATO, always holds the most weight. Karins, who was born and raised in the US and holds a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania, may face a similar hurdle as Kallas as a vocal critic of Russia. Baltic nations have been seen as too hawkish toward Moscow to lead the alliance. Allies are hoping to hand the post to another former leader, so while Karins currently serves as his nations top envoy, his stint as prime minister may keep him in the running. Karins was PM from 2019 until his recent resignation, and was Latvias longest-serving head of government since it regained independence in 1991. Another important factor is whether the candidates country has reached or is nearing the goal of spending at least 2% of GDP on defense. The geopolitical situation and the nature of challenges surrounding the North Atlantic Alliance require dynamic, determined, and consensus-based leadership, Karins statement said, adding that under his leadership, Latvia has consistently met and exceeded the 2% target in defense spending. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2023 Bloomberg L.P. Sep 27, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, US; Benjamin Flowers speaks to the Ohio Supreme Court Justices during oral arguments about a 2019 ban on most abortions in Ohio. Ohioans have a lot to be grateful for this Thanksgiving week, not least for a state constitution that offers the states voters a direct check-and-balance when the General Assembly goes haywire. That check and balance, ratified by voters in 1912 as the statewide initiative and referendum was crafted by a constitutional convention fed up with special-interest Statehouse wire-pullers. And voters may need to keep those voter-protections handy, given the continuing or threatened antics of the General Assembly: At a very minimum, perhaps members of the state Senate and Ohio House of Representatives should be required to pass a proficiency test on the state constitution before being sworn in as legislators for two years (Ohios House) or four (the state Senate). Thomas Suddes Starting pay: a minimum of $69,876 this year, plus benefits. (Median family income is Ohio is $61,938.) There would be a big "problem" with banning Ohio judges from judging abortion laws. Two weeks ago, 57% of the Ohioans voting on the ballot issue decided to protect abortion access with a voter-initiated constitutional amendment. The polls had barely closed when a quartet of Ohio House Republicans vowed to pass a bill that, in effect, would attempt to forbid Ohios judges to enforce the pro-choice amendment, known as Issue 1. There are, of course, a few hinky things about such a judicial ban, starting with the fact the courts as one of the three branches of state government have the inherent power to review and interpret laws. More: Ohio GOP lawmakers propose stripping judges of power to interpret abortion rights, Issue 1 Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens, a Kitts Hill Republican and himself a no on Issue 1 said last week that trying to pass an end-run around the courts was a non-starter. The constitution is what we abide by, Stephens told the Dispatch. And thats the constitution that General Assembly members swear to uphold. Beth Lear Announced sponsors of the bill to bypass judges on Ohio abortion law (and, in effect, to cancel the votes of the 2.19 million Ohioans who voted yes on Issue 1), are Republican state Reps. Jennifer Gross, of suburban Cincinnatis West Chester; Melania Miller, of Ashland; Bill Dean, of Xenia; and Beth Lear, of Galena. Stephenss statement virtually ruled out passage of the measure, but even if it did pass, courts would spike the bill before its ink was dry. Is the Flat Earth Society trying to control Ohio? The question naturally arises as to how people can get elected to the General Assembly with such a ... creative ... view of the way the three branches of government are supposed to work. The same is true of members of Congress who may also think that courts shouldnt be ruling on constitutional challenges, although that power was entrenched long ago in American law. Heres one answer for such thinking in Congress, but its also applicable to the General Assembly, recently reported by Annie Karni and Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: In the [U.S.] House ... gerrymandering has made most Republican seats so safe that lawmakers routinely cater to the far-right wing of their party. The result has been that House Republicans continue to draft legislation that is out of step with a vast majority of voters, including some of their own constituents, on social issue, they wrote. Put another way, if you get elected by the Flat Earth Society, you sponsor bills to declare that the Earth is flat and maybe require that to be taught in Ohio schools. More: Election results show Ohio lawmakers 'insulated from reality,' negligent in serving Ohioans That at times is the story of the Ohio General Assembly today, and why a prospective Ohio anti-gerrymandering plan, Citizens, Not Politicians, is aiming for the November 2024 statewide ballot. Thatll likely be a high turnout election because of 2024s presidential contest and, also likely, a donnybrook between U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Cleveland Democrat, and whichever Republican GOP voters nominate to challenge Browns election to a fourth term. If Citizens, Not Politicians, draws enough voter signatures, and then wins voter approval statewide next November, the measure would, at long last, let Ohioans pick their legislators rather than, as now, let legislators pick their Ohioans which has made the General Assembly a rubber stamp for political insiders and a fountain of corporate welfare. Thomas Suddes is a former legislative reporter with The Plain Dealer in Cleveland and writes from Ohio University. tsuddes@gmail.com This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Abortion, marijuana shows Ohio lawmakers don't get branches of government Lawmakers shared their thoughts on social media following reports that Democrats in the House and Senate are discussing how to create conditions for future military aid to Israel. The discussions, first reported by Politico, are preliminary, and its unclear if they will evolve into congressional action. A House Democrat who was granted anonymity by the outlet said Democrats are moving toward pushing for conditions on future support for Israels military. The member said they had never heard the idea being discussed until Israel ramped up its bombardment of airstrikes and launched a ground operation on the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza. In the weeks since Hamas entered Israel in a deadly surprise attack that killed 1,200 people, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Authority reports that more than 11,100 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed from Israels counteroffensive. The onset of the conflict has highlighted the established Democratic divisions over Middle East policy. Democrats posted online both supporting or opposing the idea of conditioning aid for Israel. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) has been an outspoken advocate of Israels right to defend itself against Hamas. We cannot abandon our obligation to free hostages, secure Israels democracy and eradicate Hamas, Wasserman Schultz said in a post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Conditioning aid to Israel is a gift to Iran and Hamas at the expense of innocent lives. Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) said in a post that he disagrees with the Democrats who are suggesting the change in funding to Israel. I didnt agree with conditioning aid to Israel when Republicans did it and I dont agree if Democrats are trying to do it, his post said. Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.) disagreed with the report. She said that the majority of Democrats, herself included, have pushed for aid for Israel to move as soon as possible without conditions. We will deliver on President Bidens principles request as Israel defends herself from the terrorist threat that is Hamas, Frankels post said. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said he is opposed to attempts to condition aid to Israel, calling the discussions an irresponsible move. Other members said conditioning aid would be a slippery slope and outrageous. Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) posted online saying that he thinks the U.S. should be sending money to both Israel and Gaza. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said she supports conditioning aid to Israel, as we do with virtually all other US allies. The United States has a legal and moral responsibility to ensure that public resources do not facilitate gross violations of human rights and international law, her post said. According to the Politico report, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) hosted a lunch this week for Democrats to discuss the Israel-Hamas war. Its not determined how or if the conditions on military aid for Israel would work, but the lawmakers that spoke with Politico said conversations are about using the Leahy Law, which prohibits sending funds to countries that violate human rights. The discussions come as fighting in Gaza has intensified. Earlier this month, the House passed a $14.3 billion aid package for Israel in a win for Republicans. It was reported Saturday evening that a possible deal between Israel and Hamas has been reached, facilitated by the United States. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. LCPD: Woman killed in rollover crash, teen driver facing multiple charges EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A single-vehicle rollover crash at Young Park in Las Cruces resulted in the death of a 20-year-old woman and the arrest of a 16-year-old driver whom police say was driving a stolen vehicle. The teen driver is facing a range of charges including homicide by vehicle. Shortly after midnight on Saturday, Nov. 18, Las Cruces police and fire were dispatched to a single-vehicle crash in the parking lot of Young Park. A 20-year-old woman was ejected during the rollover and the stolen 2017 Hyundai Tucson came to rest on top of her, Las Cruces Police said. The woman, identified as Leilani Solis, was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators learned the Hyundai was reported stolen earlier in the day. Three times during the day, LCPD officers spotted the stolen Hyundai and attempted traffic stops on the SUV. Each time the driver failed to stop for police and officers declined to engage in a pursuit, according to LCPD. , At close to midnight, the owner of the vehicle happened to spot her SUV at Young Park. She called police and tried to confront the youths when they sped away and onto Walnut Street, police say. The vehicle re-entered the parking lot and started following the owner who was on foot. The driver of the stolen vehicle once again accelerated but, this time, struck a curb during a turn and rolled over, police said. After the rollover, the 16-year-old driver and two 15-year-old passengers, all boys, fled on foot from the crash. Police located and detained the driver and one of the 15-year-olds. The second 15-year-old passenger has not yet been found. The 16-year-old driver was charged with homicide by vehicle, two counts of child abuse, three counts of aggravated fleeing from an officer, two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, failure to report a crash, failure to render aid, criminal damage to property and receiving or transferring a stolen vehicle. The 16-year-old was booked into the juvenile section of the Dona Ana County Detention Center. Because of his age, police will not be identifying him publicly. At this point, no charges have been filed against the two 15-year-od boys who were passengers of the stolen vehicle. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) At least 30 premature babies were evacuated from Gazas main hospital on Sunday and will be transferred to facilities in Egypt, the territorys Health Ministry said. Medhat Abbas, a spokesman for the ministry, confirmed the evacuation in a phone call with The Associated Press. A World Health Organization team that visited Shifa Hospital on Saturday said 32 babies were among scores of critically ill patients stranded at the hospital, where Israeli forces have been operating since last week. It was not immediately possible to resolve the discrepancy in the numbers. There was no immediate comment from the WHO. The WHO team said earlier Sunday that 291 patients were left at Shifa after Israeli troops had others evacuate. They included the babies in extremely critical condition, trauma patients with severely infected wounds, and others with spinal injuries who are unable to move. The team was able to tour Shifa Hospital for an hour after about 2,500 displaced people, mobile patients and medical staff left the sprawling compound Saturday morning, the WHO said. It said 25 medical staff remained, along with the patients. Patients and health staff with whom they spoke were terrified for their safety and health, and pleaded for evacuation, the agency said, describing Shifa as a death zone. It said it hopes to evacuate patients to southern Gaza, where hospitals are also overwhelmed. Israel has long alleged that Hamas maintains a sprawling command post inside and under Shifa. It has portrayed the hospital as a key target in its war to end the militants rule in Gaza following their wide-ranging attack into southern Israel six weeks ago, which triggered the war. Hamas and hospital staff deny the allegations. Israeli troops who have been based at the hospital and searching its grounds for days say they have found guns and other weapons, and showed reporters the entrance to a tunnel shaft. The AP couldnt independently verify Israels findings. Saturdays mass departure was portrayed by Israel as voluntary, but the WHO said the military had issued evacuation orders, and some of those who left described it as a forced exodus. STRIKES IN THE NORTH AND SOUTH Elsewhere in northern Gaza, dozens of people were killed in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp when what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike hit a crowded U.N. shelter Saturday. The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help, Ahmed Radwan, who was among the wounded, said by phone. AP photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave northern Gaza, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. It rarely comments on individual strikes. Heavy clashes were reported in the Jabaliya camp overnight into Sunday. There was the constant sound of fire, gunfire and tank shelling, Yassin Sharif, who is sheltering in a U.N.-run hospital in the camp, said by phone. It was another night of horror. In southern Gaza, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential building near the town of Khan Younis on Saturday, killing at least 26 Palestinians, according to a doctor at the hospital where the bodies were taken. Doctors Without Borders, an international aid group, said a convoy of staff members and their families tried to evacuate northern Gaza in a clearly marked convoy on Saturday but turned back after shots rang out at a crowded Israeli checkpoint. On their way back to Gaza City, the convoy was attacked and a staffers family member was killed, it said. It was not immediately clear who attacked the convoy. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. HOSTAGES AND AID Around 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians killed during Hamas Oct. 7 attack, in which the group also dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza. The military says 52 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two hostages were found near Shifa in an area where there had been heavy fighting. Israel, the United States and the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating over a hostage release for weeks. On Saturday, a senior White House official suggested it would need to be completed before the entry of large amounts of desperately needed aid. A release of large number of hostages would result in a significant pause in fighting and a massive surge of humanitarian relief, Brett McGurk, the White Houses National Security Council coordinator for the Middle East, said at a conference in Bahrain. More than two-thirds of Gazas population of 2.3 million have fled their homes. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, is providing basic services to hundreds of thousands of people sheltering in schools and other facilities. Over the weekend, Israel allowed UNRWA to import enough fuel to continue humanitarian operations for another couple of days, and to keep internet and telephone systems running. UNRWA had been forced to put aid operations on hold Friday during a communications blackout. Israel cut off all fuel imports at the start of the war, causing Gazas sole power plant and most water treatment systems to shut down, leaving most residents without electricity or running water. A WIDER OFFENSIVE? Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Saturday that Israels forces were expanding operations in Gaza City. With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate, he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza in the coming days. His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to southern Gaza, where Israel had told Palestinian civilians to seek refuge. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moved closer. Even as it warns of a broadening offensive, Israel remains at odds with its main ally, the United States, over what to do with Gaza should it succeed in removing Hamas from power. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday that the Israeli military would have full freedom to operate within Gaza after the war, indicating it would at least temporarily reoccupy the territory from which it withdrew soldiers and settlers in 2005. In an op-ed published Saturday in The Washington Post, U.S. President Joe Biden said Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited and governed under a revitalized Palestinian Authority while world leaders work toward a solution that would create a Palestinian state alongside Israel. Netanyahus government is strongly opposed to Palestinian statehood. Magdy reported from Cairo. Full AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. ST. BERNARD PARISH, La. (WGNO) For this early voting period, only 8.5% of registered voters cast a ballot, according to data from the Louisiana Secretary of States website. This years election saw the lowest voter turnout in a decade, as only about 36% of voters showed up to the polls. Runoff election turnout was worse with the Louisiana Secretary of States Office predicting only 15% to 18% of eligible voters were expected. Early voting numbers show lower turnout than October election in Louisiana I was very disappointed, says St. Bernard Parish voter Marie. Marie tells WGNO it was sad to see the majority of the state not energized to come out and vote. Its very important that people come out and vote so that they can have a voice on whats going on in Louisiana and have choices, says Marie. Another says each year, she brings her daughter to the polls to show her that her voice matters. Set a good example and show that we should be participating. We are lucky to live in a place where we have the option to vote. So, I always like to take advantage of it whenever we can, says St. Bernard Parish voter Heather Kindschy. When asked how to get more people involved, Marie and Kindschy say its a difficult question to answer, adding its all about the person and whats important to them. You have to have the want to do it and I am not sure if it is a transportation problem or people arent understanding what going on. Everybody has the right to vote, and I think all should come out and vote, says Marie. Look at what we really need and just think about things a little bit more moderately, just be about how can we move things forward for our country, we would be a lot better off, says Kindschy. Stay updated with the latest news, weather, and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play store and subscribing to the WGNO newsletter. Latest Post For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGNO. COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) After the mass shooting last November at an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado Springs that turned a drag queens birthday celebration into a massacre, the conservative community was forced to reckon with its reputation for being unwelcoming to gay, lesbian and transgender people. What motivated the shooter, who didnt grow up in Colorado Springs and is now serving life in prison, may never be known. But since the attack that killed five people, wounded 17 others and shattered the sense of safety at Club Q, which served as a refuge for the citys LGBTQ+ community, Colorado Springs has taken steps to reshape itself as inclusive and welcoming. A new LGBTQ+ resource center is set to open in the city, where an independent candidate surprisingly defeated a longtime Republican officeholder to become the first Black mayor of the city of roughly 480,000 people. And the owners of Club Q, which has been shuttered since the Nov. 19, 2022, attack, plan to build a memorial and reopen at a new location under the rebrand The Q. Mayor Yemi Mobolade, a West African immigrant who has been mayor since June, said Friday he knows what its like to feel being on the outside looking in, to be a minority. And now to be mayor of this great city, I bring that empathy to the mayors office. Mobolade said he created a three-person office of community affairs with one person whose emphasis is to be very inclusive of minority communities, including the LGBTQ+ community. Yet as the city prepares to gather Sunday to mark the shooting anniversary, some LGBTQ+ advocates say work remains. It feels like theres some real fear in the community and then it also feels like those who are opposed to queer rights and queer people living their lives are continuing to become entrenched in those positions and are doing more politically to see those positions forwarded, said Candace Woods, a queer minister and chaplain who has called Colorado Springs home for nearly two decades. Additional security is planned for the memorial events in case anti-LGBTQ activists gather to protest, as they did at this summers Pride events. Candidates supported by the conservative group Moms for Liberty, which opposes instruction on systemic racism and gender identity in the classroom, won the recent school board elections, Woods noted. Colorado Springs, nestled at the foothills of the Rockies and home to the Air Force Academy and several conservative megachurches, has historically been conservative. Yet, the city also has a growing and diversifying population set to top Denvers by 2050, is home to a liberal arts college and has marketed itself as an outdoorsy boomtown. On the night of the attack, Anderson Lee Aldrich walked into Club Q and began firing indiscriminately. Clubgoers dove across a bloody dance floor for cover and friends frantically tried to protect each other. The attack was stopped when a Navy officer grabbed the barrel of the suspects rifle, burning his hand, and an Army veteran helped subdue and beat Aldrich until police arrived, authorities said. Sundays gathering outside of Club Q, which Mobolade and Gov. Jared Polis are expected to attend, will allow people to come together to stand as one community, the club said when announcing the event. Hate will not be tolerated in this city under my watch, and we stand resolute, Mobolade said Friday. Our community will not be defined by the terrible acts at Club Q, but our response to it. Our community has come a long way, and I understand that we still have a ways to go. Aldrich, who has not publicly revealed a motivation for the shooting, pleaded guilty in June to five counts of murder and 46 counts of attempted murder for each person who was at the club during the attack. Aldrich also pleaded no contest to two hate crimes and was given five consecutive life sentences. The attack came more than a year after Aldrich, who identifies as nonbinary and uses the pronouns they and them, was arrested for threatening their grandparents and vowing to become the next mass killer while stockpiling weapons, body armor and bomb-making materials. Those charges were eventually dismissed after Aldrichs mother and grandparents refused to cooperate with prosecutors. ___ Associated Press writer Amy Beth Hanson in Helena, Montana, contributed to this report. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Hey! Hey! LBJ! How many kids did you kill today? Antiwar chant, circa 1967 I was among the hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions of young people who chanted those words as the horror of the Vietnam War dragged on despite rapidly growing opposition in 1967. I was morally outraged at the slaughter of innocent children in my name, and particularly by the unforgivable decisions of a president who had shown such sober, even bold and inspiring leadership in the past in passing the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, as prime examples. I've never wavered in my belief that calling out Lyndon Johnson that way was the right thing to do. Yet it ultimately led to LBJ abandoning his re-election bid in 1968, and thus to the election of Richard Nixon (aided by some seditious conspiracy) and 50-plus years of mostly horrible foreign and domestic policy starting with Nixon prolonging, worsening and expanding the same horrific slaughter of innocents I had been protesting. I can honestly say that there's no comparison: LBJ was far and away the best U.S. president of my lifetime. His policy record on civil rights, social programs (Medicare, Medicaid), environmental protection (even environmental justice. via his wife), consumer protection, you name it towers over everyone else, and over the entire half-century. Without it, we'd be a nation so backward that even present-day Mississippi might look like a beacon of hope. Whats more, we now know two fundamental things about the Vietnam War: First, that Johnson felt tormented and dragged into it, as tapes released decades ago make clear and, second, that he was not alone: The entire political class was complicit in leading the U.S. into a futile and disastrous war something that should have been avoidable after the dire military misadventure of Korea. Historian Robert Mann, a former Senate staffer and author of A Grand Delusion, an invaluable Senate-centric history of the Vietnam War, summarized it in an email: The tragedy of Vietnam was individual and collective. I don't want to downplay the horror of the individual atrocities committed by rogue soldiers or underestimate the corrupt and reckless decisions made in the White House, Pentagon or State Department. But I've always believed that the Vietnam War was a catastrophic, collective decision that didn't involve the public in any meaningful way. If Johnson had been honest with the public and had Congress fulfilled its constitutional duties, the calamity might have been prevented. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution in 1964 was the original sin, Mann said. But hardly the only one: Throughout the 1960s, Congress most of its members understanding little about Vietnam and our reasons for fighting supported the American policy, fearing political retribution if they did not. But the leaders knew. Most leaders of both parties in Congress understood our involvement's futile and reckless nature but did too little to stop our headlong rush into Southeast Asia. Johnson bears the lion's share of the blame, for sure, but it wouldn't have happened without the help and/or abdication of every other military, political and diplomatic institution. So what does all this mean, when we look at Joe Biden today? How should today's left, and the broader progressive movement, respond to his military support for Israel? We can protest it vigorously, sure but how? Do we drive him from office and end up with Donald Trump? Echoing what happened with Johnson and Nixon but honestly far worse, given what experts on authoritarianism tell us doesnt seem like a sound strategy to me. It doesnt sound like a strategy at all, and it would leave all the other enablers in place, some even stronger than ever. Of course, if youre as horrified and angry with Biden as I was with LBJ, you might not listen and Id understand. I couldnt vote yet in 1968, but I would have voted for the Peace and Freedom Party, created the previous year to give voice to people like me. (It ran two candidates for president, curiously enough: comedian Dick Gregory in some states, Black Panther Eldridge Cleaver in others.) Although I supported Rep. Shirley Chisholm in the Democratic primaries four years later when she became the first Black woman to run for president and campaigned with a friend who went to Miami as a Chisholm delegate, I remained primarily identified with Peace and Freedom until I volunteered with Jesse Jacksons 1988 Democratic campaign. So I probably wouldnt have listened to me, either. But I genuinely wish there had been an older me around, at least to make this argument and push younger-me to think more systemically and more long-term. It's not that my 1967-'68 experience should count for anything special. The world has changed, America has changed, the left has changed all of them dramatically since the chants I joined in helped drive LBJ from office. To take that experience in such a different context as a beacon of eternal truth would be foolish. But so would ignoring it entirely. It's an experience that should be considered as part of the framework for making a better way forward. I believe that the possibilities for the left today particularly here in America are far greater than they were for us in back in the late '60s, and we should be far more ambitious in fighting for systemic change. For one thing, we have far more mass support from young voters in particular, across a broad range of issues on inequality, climate, abortion, guns and LGBTQ rights, substantial majorities support progressive positions and are potentially receptive to systemic left arguments. The connections that have produced broad support for a Gaza ceasefire and for Palestinian rights more fundamentally are evidence of how many people are able to understand networked and intersecting issues. In contrast to where we stand today, consider the implausible but true fact Nixon won a majority of younger voters in 1968. The future, in terms of potential mass politics, is far brighter today, in contrast to the threatening darkness we see close at hand. Theres also an immediate threat to that: The pro-Israel lobby AIPAC plans to spend $100 million in Democratic primaries next year, with the principal aim of ousting progressive incumbents. This comes at a time when polling suggests that 80% of Democratic voters and, for that matter, 57% of Republicans support a ceasefire in the Gaza war. Defending folks like Reps. Cori Bush of Missouri, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Jamaal Bowman of New York and Summer Lee of Pennsylvania is vital for leftists and progressives, whatever strategic, tactical or ideological choice you might make about Joe Biden. Building solidarity by uniting to defend those people and other progressive legislators is a good start toward building a strategy that resonates with the majority of Americans who already agree with us on a broad range of front-line issues. We also dont have to limit ourselves to playing defense. Run for Something has been doing a great job of promoting progressive candidates from the bottom up, and their model provides a path for going on offense as well. It can be quite liberating to realize that presidential politics doesnt have to dominate your life. You can choose where to put your time, energy and resources, can give presidential politics no more than a few minutes of effort on Election Day and can still work effectively to save America from Trump. If you find my larger argument persuasive, that is. And even if you dont, well be a lot closer to building the kind of political power that can actually change things over the long term. Big picture: getting rid of leaders to get rid of wars doesnt have a great track record. Consider the example of Barack Obama following George W. Bush. This shouldnt surprise anyone familiar with any sort of leftist systemic analysis. Systems are the problem; politicians are symptoms of that system, at best. If anything, changing leaders can relieve the pressure to end the war. Thats what happened with Nixon, and again with Obama. Im not saying we should give Biden a pass far from it. He needs to be pressured on his deeply misguided decision, as does every other facet of the Democratic establishment. But to do what, and toward what end? And as part of what larger systemic project? To get a handle on that, consider Biden's speech that sought to combine support for Ukraine and support for Israel in a single overarching pro-democracy framework. It won wide approval from the liberal media, particularly in contrast to the chaos in the GOP-led House. But the view from the Democratic base particularly among younger voters as well as from around the world, was markedly different. Notwithstanding Beltway conventional wisdom, neither Israel itself nor America's support for Israel has much to do with defending democracy or the "rule of law." Neither countrys democracy is doing so well just now, as even a cursory glance at the headlines will tell you. It's even worse when we come to the rule of law. Israels illegal West Bank settlements and its broader apartheid system, recognized by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and even a former head of Mossad, clearly put it outside the rule of international law. And the U.S. has issued 34 Security Council vetoes to protect Israel as that nation has grown increasingly lawless, making our sanctimonious our claims about the rule of law ring equally hollow. Insisting otherwise only serves to sow deep cynicism toward the very value system we are supposedly trying to uphold. It's actively helping Putin and Xi Jinping and, closer to home, Donald Trump too. What Biden should be doing in this moment is incredibly difficult, as well as unlikely: He should break with decades of false pieties. But it should also be clear, if only we had a realistic understanding of the Cold War, and what the U.S. did right and wrong during those decades. Our post-World War II failure to respect a pluralistic, self-determined majority of new nations, in the spirit of our own Declaration of Independence, did incredible damage to our claims of moral superiority at the time, severely weakening the spread of democracy and planting the seeds for much of the chaos and right-wing authoritarian violence we see across the world today. The Vietnam War, in fact, offers a prime example. Ho Chi Minh had been reaching out to America, appealing to stated values of freedom and self-determination, since the Paris Peace Conference in Versailles in 1919, as Marilun Young lays out in her classic, The Vietnam Wars 1945-1990. So America's folly long predated the Cold War, but that era of superpower conflict supercharged it. We failed to respect the people of Iran and Guatemala, just to cite the first two CIA-backed coups of that era, and we're still living with the poisonous fruits of that betrayal. When I was a young teenager, my family hosted an Iranian foreign exchange student named Said, who gave me a visceral first-hand account of how the CIAs overthrow of Mohammad Mosaddeghs democratically-elected government for the sin of trying to reclaim Irans oil wealth had plunged his nation backward into a nightmarish police state under the Shah. Yet like so many other Iranians even down to the present day, Said looked to American ideals, American culture and the American people with admiration. Only our governments policy was wildly at odds with what he and so many others, in Iran and around the world, found so appealing about America. Its a lesson Ive never forgotten, and in return a part of me feels Iranian to this very day. The hope and then the betrayal of the 1979 revolution, the point at which most Americans belatedly discovered Iran, still seems like yesterday to me. By demonizing Iran rather than recognizing its complexity and America's role in poisoning its politics, we created an enormous, ever-evolving geopolitical problem that never had to exist at all. Obama at least tried to reckon with this when he reached the historic multilateral nuclear deal in 2015, which drew in both China and Russia as partners. That was only a first step, but so clearly in the right direction. But the demonization of Iran has been so powerful that Biden hasn't even reinstated the deal that Trump so off-handedly destroyed. Not only has our relationship with Iran grown sharply more hostile, the idea of partnering with China and Russia once again seems absurd. So much opportunity has been lost or wasted that weve grown accustomed to accepting desolation as our baseline, which is exactly what fascism requires in order to present itself as an appealing option. What happened in Guatemala is also worth considering. The CIA overthrew the democratically-elected government of Jacobo Arbenz in 1954 for daring to attempt its own version of the New Deal, starting with a minimum-wage law and going so far as to legalize the Communist Party. Guatemala had only gotten rid of its military dictatorship a decade earlier, but a decade of democracy was too much for Cold War America. The possibility of even modest social democracy spreading to the developing world was more than enough reason for the CIA to oust Arbenz and usher in generations of military dictatorship, political instability and violence, which has essentially continued to this day. Indeed, violence in Central America partly fueled by an extensive history of U.S. intervention, with an overlay of climate crisis and disrupted food security is the primary reason for the border crisis were experiencing today. Thats another basic geopolitical fact that has absolutely no place in elite Americas political discourse about the most salient problems we face. Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. We need to find some way to atone for those sins an impossible task, you might say. You're probably right. But we have to try anyway, because only by doing that can the U.S. actually become what we pretend to be on the world stage. And that's the only way, in the long run, that democracy and the rule of law can actually have a chance to prevail with America playing any significant role in the process. Living up to America's supposed ideals has always been problematic. All men are created equal, while some are slaveowners and others are slaves? Really? But for the foreign policy purposes at hand we can start with the early Cold War. As I noted recently, Cold War liberalism had diverse tendencies, including George Kennan's Long Telegram, the initial defining document of the Cold War, in which he exhibited progressive aspirations and even praise for Scandinavian socialism. Kennans outlook should be seen as related to FDRs Four Freedoms speech, defining what we were fighting for in World War II, and also to Eleanor Roosevelts role in establishing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. (That, by the way, includes the right to a nationality, which Israel is denying to the Palestinian people, with U.S. support.) All three reflect an aspect of Cold War liberalism that was far more open to the left, and more committed to America's professed values, than the term usually conveys. Its something that can be built upon, even by those of us critical of that tradition. As Ive written about before, as far back as 2007, the Cold War as Kennan understood it was not the Cold War actually fought by U.S. elites fought, as a 1998 paper by Efstathios T. Fakiolas, "Kennan's Long Telegram and NSC-68: A Comparative Analysis," helps to clarify. NSC-68 was a secret national security memo written under the supervision of Paul Nitze that profoundly influenced Cold War foreign policy, particularly though not exclusively in terms of the use of covert actions. Fakiolas describes both documents in terms of the realist school of thought about international relations, but based on different paradigms. Nitzes billiard ball paradigm sees only state actors as significant, and thus only zero-sum possibilities exist: Whatever one country gains, another loses. Kennans tectonic plate paradigm recognizes multiple kinds of actors, and therefore non-zero-sum outcomes are possible: everyone can be better or worse off. As I wrote back in 2007: Kennan favored a strategy of containment that emphasized strengthening the West socially, economically and culturally, addressing its flaws which the Soviets exposed. In contrast, Nitze ignored issues of the West's internal flaws, and focused almost exclusively on military force to combat the Soviet Union. It's my own observation, based on this analysis, that we fought Nitze's Cold War, but we won Kennan's. It was not, in the end, military strength that defeated the Soviet Union; it was the appeal of our culture of openness and freedom. The history of Eastern European resistance movements, especially in Czechoslovakia and Poland, makes this abundantly clear. Through their influence on dissident culture, Frank Zappa and Lou Reed did more to win the Cold War than any division of tanks ever did or even a wing of nuclear-armed B-52s. What I wrote then remains true today, except that the West has lost more of its cultural appeal as the folly unleashed by our response to 9/11 has continued to undermine the world order we halfheartedly built. Thats both a good and a bad thing. Its bad because undermining that world order has opened the floodgates for a resurgence of fascism. But its good because the failures exposed are now understood far more broadly than ever before and therefore are ripe for fixing. The challenge for leftists and progressives now is to salvage what is best in the Cold War liberal vision particularly the egalitarian framework of international law that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights did so much to advance and build on it along with other progressive traditions from around the world, including our own Black liberation traditions and Henry David Thoreaus tradition of nonviolent resistance, so powerfully expanded and enriched by Mahatma Gandhi and his associates in India, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his allies in America and Nelson Mandela and his allies in South Africa. Building a new world, the beloved community, as Dr. King called it, is far more difficult than simply getting rid of a tragically misguided leader. But its far more rewarding, too. That should be our North Star in the days, weeks, months and years ahead. If it is, we will not regret it, not even 50-odd years in the future. Assault troops soldier Vuzh (Grass Snake) is one of the most experienced fighters in the Safari Assault Regiment. He participated in three combat operations and saved the lives of three of his brothers-in-arms, and has been caught between life and death for almost an hour once. The man says that above all he seeks to avenge his nephew and comrade who died near Kupiansk. The story of the fighter was told by the National Police of Ukraine. Vuzh is 45 years old, more than 20 of which he spent in law enforcement in his native Volyn. Early this year, he decided to go to the front line and joined the Safari Regiment of the Liut (Fury) Assault Brigade. The man says his biggest motivation at the front is avenging his loved ones During his service, he took part in three combat operations and saved the lives of three of his brothers-in-arms. According to his comrades, he has once been caught between life and death for almost an hour. "Probably the most dangerous was the operation near Kurdiumivka. I had to evacuate my comrade Korzhyk ["Biscuit"] from the battlefield. According to my brothers-in-arms, I was unconscious for an hour and a half after an enemy SPG (heavy anti-tank grenade launcher) was shot at us. Fortunately, I recovered and got down to business. The evacuation of Korzhyk seemed to go on for an eternity we were accompanied by enemy artillery and drones that tried to kill us. In addition to the comrade, I was able to get two more wounded servicemen from the battlefield," says Vuzh. The police officer explains his choice of alias quite simply he loves snakes very much. est motivation at the front is revenge for people dear to him. "I want to avenge my nephew, who died in October last year near Kupiansk, and my friend, who was also killed near Kupiansk," Vuzh says. At home, Vuzh has parents, a wife and three sons waiting for him. "It was for their sake, as well as in memory of my deceased nephew, that I went to the front," the man adds. The policeman says that the first thing he would like to do after the victory is to buy a Cruiser motorcycle and visit his brothers-in-arms in different parts of Ukraine. He also dreams of visiting Ukrainian Crimea, where he served his military service, and of swimming in the Kerch Strait. Support UP or become our patron! The people huddling for safety in the compound of St. Porphyrios Orthodox Church in Gaza City may seem radically different from the rest of Gazas population. These 500 people represent just under half of all Christians in the Gaza Strip. Since October 7, more than 1,200 in Israel and thousands in Gaza have been killed. Many more are suffering tooincluding one of the oldest Christian communities in the world. So in that way this small minority sheltering at St. Porphyrios Orthodox Churcha place that has meant everything to them and to their people for centuriesis but a part of the whole: a group whose ancestral ties to this place compels them to stay even as bombs fall from overhead (the church was hit by was hit by an Israeli airstrike last month) and battles rage on the ground. The roots that tie these people here seem especially important at this time of year, as Christmas approaches. The story of the gospel began in Palestine, after all: the birth of the Christ child, away in a mangerin Palestinewhile shepherds watched their flocksin Palestine. The roots of the Christians in Gaza run so deep that even at the outbreak of this war, as they have the last three wars, many said they would not leave the place where they were born and baptized, the place they now have come for shelter. For many North Americans, this is an incomprehensible stance. We move about our country freely, as climate, economics, or whim dictate. According to data compiled in September, Americans live in their homes an average of eight years before selling and moving on. Our homes are built with a life expectancy of less than 100 years, our household goods temporary things with built-in obsolescence. Most of us have no relation to the people who built our homes, offices, or places of worship. For the people in Gaza of all faiths, what is incomprehensible is this lack of permanence. They live on the land their ancestors lived on, produce many of the same crops their ancestors did, and offer worship in the same structures their ancestors built. One of these ancient buildings, the Church of St. Porphyrios is, at almost 1,600 years old, older than most modern countries. Archbishop Alexios of Tiberias of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the local bishop and rector of the church, calls St. Porphyrios Orthodox Church a treasure of Christianity, but it is more than that; it is a treasure of humanity and archaeology with a history more profound and robust than that of most current countries. The current church complex is not the original structure built in 420 A.D. Almost nothing of that remains. It was not a building constructed by a faceless architectural firm, submitting blueprints to a planning department, obtaining permits, and hiring contractors who in turn hired subcontractors. The original church building was built by the roughly 280 Christians in Gaza at the timeby hand. Between whatever their normal labor was, with funds they gave from sacrificing their daily necessities, with bricks they made and stones they gathered, according to the plans they drew up under their ecclesiastical hierarch, Archbishop Porphyrios of Gaza, who is the direct predecessor of Archbishop Alexios of Tiberias. What is known of Gaza in those days is that the pagan majority of the time was hostile enough to the minority Christian population that the church had to be built outside the city walls. The Christian minority was, even then, so marginalized that the bishops were styled as bishops about Gaza rather than bishops of Gaza. These experiences, and the memories of the saints who lived among their people, were built into the very bricks of the church. For them, the events of Christs incarnation and resurrection were still closely held in their hearts. Consider what we know of our own history. Americans can tell what their ancestors did 400 years ago with great pride. Was an ancestor a passenger on the Mayflower? Was one among the Native Americans without whom the earliest colonists would not have survived their first winter? A patriot who served in the Revolutionary War more than 100 years later? We know what our forefathers were doing, how they lived, what they ate, and how they worshiped. The people of Palestine had these memories of their ancestors as well. The early Christians who built the first church at the current site of St. Porphyrios remembered the names we know as people of the Bible, but they remembered them as their ancestors, people who walked the same streets they did. Christ himself walked in their villages, as did his disciples. They shared these ancestral memories as they built their temple with their own hands. Six hundred years after the first structure, the next structure at the site was consecrated in 1050 A.D., and the temple was renamed to honor St. Porphyrios, who is buried in the northeast corner of the current church. The churchs present-day structure is the result of renovations in 1856. Tiny by modern standards, only 75 feet long by 29 feet wide, St. Porphyrios is the third oldest church still active in the world and the oldest in Gaza. This church formed the memories of generations who looked back and saw not only their own ancestors, but the memory of those whose names are in the Bible. Those who know the Bible know those names well. We sing of places in the Holy Land and events that occurred there more than 2,000 years ago. We remember that Palestine includes not only Gaza, but the West Bank. We can read of Jesus as he traveled around Palestine, read the name of His friend Lazarus, whose tomb is a mere 50 miles from St. Porphyrios. Hundreds of people stood at the tomb with Lazarus sisters, Mary and Martha, and hundreds of Palestinian people witnessed the many miracles of Jesus, believed, and handed that belief down to their children, saying: Here, our Lord walked. Our fathers were there. Remember. Palestinian Christians remember, and during times of peace pray in these places with hundreds of people from all over the world who come to worship their God in the place where he lived his life. Today, they huddle daily in the church to pray for peace and to get safely through the day or night. At least twice a day, every day, they gather to pray and worship. Today, it is not safe for them to walk the same streets their ancestors walked with the God they worship morning and night. The Orthodox Christians of Gaza have only St. Porphyrios Church, the Arab Orthodox Community Center, and the Arab Orthodox School, also hit by blasts. They are both sheltering and worshiping in the churchand getting other physical needs met there, at the church. Of course other Christian communities call Gaza home: the Holy Family Catholic Church and Gaza Baptist Church are also sheltering GazansChristians and non-Christians alikeand sometimes are so full the refugees sleep on the steps outside the building. The West Bankwhere most Christian holy sites are locatedis now cut off from Gaza.The monasteries carved into the cliffs around the West Bank, more than 1,000 years old, remind people that not only Muslims and Jews live here, but for centuries, Christians have as well. They still do, even under control of Hamas and a siege from Israel. They pray they can go on living the faith of their fathers in a war-torn land. Read more at The Dispatch The Dispatch is a new digital media company providing engaged citizens with fact-based reporting and commentary, informed by conservative principles. Sign up for free. NEW YORK - Hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered across New York City Friday night. Friday marked another night of large-scale demonstrations in NYC since Hamas militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel launched its counteroffensive. "The past month has marked a new chapter of struggle in the battle for Palestinian freedom in New York City," an Instagram post promoting the march read. PREVIOUSLY: NYC pro-Palestinian rally: Hundreds swarm Midtown Manhattan's Moynihan Train Hall Pictures show demonstrators carrying signs calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Others could be seen praying as scores of people marched. NYPD officers stood guard outside The New York Times' headquarters as people gathered outside. People even gathered outside the New York Public Library. Pro-Palestinian activists organized the rally in Union Square to "shut it down." It was unclear if demonstrators from the Union Square march had joined the Midtown demonstration. FOX Digital contributed to this report. Lord Cotter, who has died aged 87, was the Liberal Democrat MP for Weston-super-Mare from 1997 to 2005, and sat in the House of Lords from 2006 until his death. Having built up a plastics manufacturing firm with 27 employees, Cotter was the Lib Dems spokesman on small business for most of his time in the Commons, then in the upper house until his party went into David Camerons coalition in 2010. Rated sensible, capable and efficient if not spectacular, he championed new technologies, being one of the first MPs to have his own website. Cotter was fiercely protective of his constituency, his fathers home town. After Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare, who had been brought up there, was imprisoned for perjury in 2000, he led the calls for him to be stripped of his peerage. Time and again he is mentioned in connection with Weston-super-Mare, pulling the town down, Cotter said. People feel he is getting special treatment; now he has issued a diary from prison, and so it goes on. I am taking this action in response to a clear call from the people of Weston-super-Mare. C otter was also arguably the best-known Liberal Democrat in the Peoples Republic of China, giving frequent interviews to the Chinese media after visiting the country in 2002 with the All Party China Group, of which he became secretary. Brian Joseph Michael Cotter was born at Ealing, west London, on August 24 1936, the son of Michael Cotter, a GP, and the former Mary Nugent. He was educated at St Benedicts School, Ealing, and at Downside, where, aged 16, he ran a 4-minute mile. After National Service with the Army in Germany, he took a business studies course at a polytechnic in London. After a chequered start including a year out of work, he became first sales manager, then managing director, of Plasticable Ltd in Alton, Hampshire, owning the business from 1989 to 2003. Originally a Conservative, Cotter joined the Liberal Party in 1983, and in 1986, the year he turned 50, was elected to Woking council, serving for four years. He first fought Weston in 1992, cutting the Conservative Jerry Wiggins majority by 2,000 to 5,342. Wiggin stood down at the 1997 election, the former MEP Margaret Daly taking his place. Cotter worked hard to persuade Labour supporters to vote tactically, and with the Referendum Party polling 2,280 as John Major went down to a heavy defeat, he captured the seat by 1,274 votes, ending a Conservative tenure dating back to 1923. Appointed Lib Dem small business spokesman by Paddy Ashdown, Cotter told the House in his maiden speech: If just one job were to be created in every small business, it would solve the employment problem in this country. He went on to call for a fairer rating system, for the Government to pay its bills quicker and for less red tape, saying that 50 per cent of small-business owners would not start one again because of the burden of red tape. In 1999, he voiced concern about troop safety in Kosovo after one of his constituents became the first British soldier killed there. Cotter held his seat in 2001 by 338 votes from a new Conservative candidate, John Penrose, after a recount. From 2003, he was a Trade & Industry spokesman under Malcolm Bruce. At the 2005 election Penrose captured Weston from Cotter by 2,079 votes; he still holds the seat today. The following year Cotter was created a life peer, also becoming the partys spokesman first on small businesses, and later on skills and apprenticeships. At 73 he was not considered for a ministerial post when the Coalition was formed, but he continued to speak on business and vocational issues. A practicing Roman Catholic, Cotter was a national patron of the YMCA and patron of the Somerset homeless charity Somewhere To Go. Brian Cotter married Eyleen Wade in 1963. She survives him, with their two sons and a daughter. Brian Cotter, born August 24 1936, died November 14 2023 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. Love Christmas markets? See the best Europe has to offer with these multi-country train tours With Christmas just around the corner, city squares across Europe are crystallising into their sparkliest forms. Few things can get you in the festive mood faster than a turn around a Christmas market, clutching a mulled wine or hot chocolate as you stock up on gifts. But the lovely, local feel of these spaces can be undercut by the carbon emissions spent flying to them. Luckily, market fans can reach numerous locations by train, thanks to sustainable travel company Byway. The UK-based specialists have built up an impressive record, whisking tourists away to the splendours of Bruges, Cologne, Strasbourg and other cities. This year, theyve put together three new shiny itineraries to help you see festivities in multiple countries without leaving the ground. Drift away to Prague Christmas markets This sleeper train adventure will take you on a magical tour of Prague, Berlin and Cologne. It starts in London with a quick dip across the Channel on the Eurostar. From Paris, youll catch the sleeper train to Zurich, then on to the Czech Republics handsome capital of Prague - where visitors are spoilt for choice on Christmas markets. Larger ones at the atmospheric Old Town Square, Wenceslas Square and Prague Castle offer regional cuisine and traditional Yuletide goods, such as glass baubles and wooden toys. A magnificent Christmas tree at Prague Christmas market. - Canva For something a bit smaller, Byway recommends a visit to the market at Namesti Republiky (Republic Square) to pick up some mistletoe. Theyve planned a charming, circular trip back through Germany, taking in the sights of Berlin and Cologne. A renowned Christmas market destination, Cologne has the Weihnachtsmarkt am Kolner Dom under its grand cathedral; the Harbour Christmas market with a maritime theme - featuring tents reminiscent of sails; and the twinkly Market of Angels in Neumarkt. In total, the trip takes six days, and Byway recommends going between 2 to 26 December. Sweep through Central European Christmas markets If youve got more time to spare and an endless appetite for Christmas markets, this is the holiday for you. The pinnacle of this 12 day trip is a two-night stay in Budapest - where the citys Christmas market has been voted the best in Europe three times in a row. It also encompasses Cologne, Munich, Prague, Krakow and Brussels. So be sure to pack an extra bag for all the Christmas trinkets youll pick up (another perk of train travel). The Budapest Christmas market has been voted the best Christmas market in Europe three times in a row. - Canva Theres a fun sleeper leg between Munich and the Hungarian capital, as well as lots of gorgeous hotels to stay in. Byways customisation means you can set your budget level for these stays - and maximise your spending power at the market huts. The sustainable travel specialists recommend embarking on this memorable train trip between 2 and 23 December. Pack in three North European Christmas markets in just five days For those with less time to get their burst of Christmas magic, Byway have planned this five day jolly in Northern Europe. Starting in London, it takes you by Eurostar to Brussels, where you can get straight into the festive spirit at Winter Wonders - otherwise known as Plaisirs d'Hiver or Winterpret. Christmas markets are the perfect cosy winter activity. - Unsplash Here there are 200 chalets with treats and gifts, alongside impressive sound and light shows at the Grand-Place, a life-sized manger and an ice-skating rink. Next youll be whisked away to Berlin. Tuck into some street market currywurst and delicious doughnuts, or enjoy a spot of high-end dining at the capitals many plant-based restaurants. Youll return via Amsterdam and its glittering ICE village in the Museumplein. The best time for this festive round trip is 13 to 26 December. MALE (Reuters) - Maldives new President Mohamed Muizzu, who campaigned on altering the tiny Indian Ocean archipelago's "India first" policy, has requested India withdraw its military from the country. Muizzu won the presidential election in September, ousting Ibrahim Solih in a runoff after promising to remove a small Indian military presence of some 75 personnel. India and China have been vying for influence in the region, with the coalition backing Muizzu considered to be leaning more towards China. "The Maldivian people had given him (Muizzu) a strong mandate to make the request to India and expressed the hope that India will honour the democratic will of the people of the Maldives," the president's office said in a statement on Saturday. India's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. At his inauguration on Friday, Muizzu said, "I will ensure that this country has no foreign military presence on its soil." Muizzu made the request to Kiren Rijiju, India's minister for earth sciences, who was representing India at the president's inauguration, it said. "It was agreed that the two governments would discuss workable solutions for continued cooperation," a senior Indian government official said on condition of anonymity, without clarifying whether India would return its military. (Reporting by Krishn Kaushik in New Delhi and Mohamed Junayd in Male; Writing by Munsif Vengattil; Editing by William Mallard) Girkin said that he did not think that he would be allowed to take part in the election - AFP A pro-war Russian nationalist who played a leading role in bringing down the MH17 airliner over Ukraine has said he wants to run for president against Vladimir Putin despite describing the forthcoming election as a sham. In a letter published by his account on Telegram, Igor Girkin, a former Federal Security Service (FSB) officer who helped Russia to annex Crimea, said: I understand perfectly well that in the current situation in Russia, participating in the presidential campaign is like sitting down at a table to play with card sharps. Girkin said that he did not think that he would be allowed to take part in the election, but hoped that his attempt to unite patriotic forces would disrupt the Kremlins plan for a sham election in which the only winner is known in advance. This is our chance to unite in the face of external and internal threats, he said in the letter post entitled I am going to run. Putin to stay until 2030 Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said in an interview published on Friday that he hoped Putin would run in the March election for another term as president, a move that would keep him in power until at least 2030. Opposition politicians say Putin has built a dictatorial system since he first came to power in 1999 that mimics the institutions of democracy while preventing any true political competition or real dissent. Girkin was a commander of the separatist-backed forces in Ukraine when the MH17 airliner was shot out of the sky, killing 298 passengers. He was found guilty in a Dutch court last year, in absentia. A monarchist who wrote a dissertation on the White Russians who fought the Red Bolsheviks after the 1917 revolution, he is one of the most prominent nationalists who has criticised Russias execution of the war, which he casts as part of an existential battle with an arrogant West. He has called the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union positive but says the post-Soviet Russian elite was corrupt and working for the West to weaken Russia. 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. An 85-year-old man who was exonerated for the murder of civil rights activist Malcolm X is suing the FBI on allegations that the agency hid evidence of the onetime Nation of Islam leaders actual killers and proof of his innocence. The $40 million lawsuit filed by Muhammad Aziz alleges that the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including then-Director J. Edgar Hoover, intentionally caused the presentation of false evidence againstconcealed a trove of evidenceand orchestrated fundamentally unfair legal proceedings against Mr. Aziz. Muhammad Aziz, 85, filed a lawsuit against the FBI for allegedly concealing evidence of his innocence in Malcolm Xs murder. (Photo: YouTube screenshot/ABC News) He claims the agency engineered this cover-up to protect and preserve the scope, nature, and activities of its counterintelligence operations while simultaneously weakening the civil rights movement. At Hoovers behest, the FBIs Counterintelligence Program, also known as COINTELPRO, enabled agents to infiltrate U.S. political and social movements. Hoovers aim was to expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit, and otherwise neutralize Black activist groups, according to one decades-old FBI report. The suit also claims the FBI carried out concerted efforts alongside the New York Police Department to suppress the integrity of the investigation into Malcolm Xs murder and exchanged a network of information and evidence. Aziz, a U.S. Navy veteran, was a 26-year-old father of two at the time he was arrested for Malcolm Xs death alongside another accused killer, Khalil Islam. The civil rights leader was murdered on Feb. 21, 1965, as he was preparing to give a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in Upper Manhattan. Aziz spent 20 years in prison after his conviction. Islam served 22 years but died in prison in 2009. Islams estate filed a companion $40 million lawsuit. Their lawsuits claim that both men were attractive targets to pin the crime on because of their affiliation with the Nation of Islam and also because they didnt have many alibi witnesses. Both werent declared innocent until November 2021 after their attorneys worked hand in hand with New York County district attorneys and the Innocence Project to prove that Aziz and Islam were wrongfully convicted. In a hearing to vacate their convictions, then-District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. claimed that FBI employees and the New York Police Department intentionally concealed records of witnesses some of whom were FBI informants who failed to identify Mr. Islam and implicated other subjects and suspects. Mujahid Abdul Halim, one of the men who shot Malcolm X, testified in 1966 that Aziz and Islam had nothing to do with the murder. Halim confessed that he and four other men were involved in the fatal shooting but never identified his co-conspirators. However, Azizs suit alleges that the FBI concealed evidence pointing to another suspect named William Bradley, who fired a shotgun blast at Malcolm X because the agency had a significant ongoing relationship with Bradley. Aziz and Islam both told police they were at home at the time with their families. Aziz was home recovering from a leg injury that he sustained after being beaten by police officers a month before Malcolm Xs murder, the suit stated. The complaint also alleges that the FBI coerced witnesses into giving false and materially misleading statements to prosecutors and in their sworn testimony and claims that the weapon Halim used to shoot Malcolm X was recovered by an FBI informant named Ronald Timberlake. Timberlake reportedly delivered the gun to the FBI, and agents then handed it off to the NYPD. New York City and the state of New York did award $26 million to Aziz and Islams estate to settle lawsuits over misconduct from police and Manhattan district attorneys in their convictions. FRANKLIN COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) A man who has already been arrested at least 40 times over the course of his life was taken into custody again after reportedly leading multiple law enforcement agencies on a chase through two Middle Tennessee counties Monday. The Estill Springs Police Department said officers were dispatched to a home along Wells Street on Monday, Nov. 13 for a report of a suspicious person wearing a hoodie and face mask behind a residence. Before authorities got to the scene, they said a witness called and identified the individual as Richard Flowers, who has an active order of protection and was not supposed to be at the home. 3 charged with elder abuse in Franklin County following 87-year-olds death in December When officers arrived, they reportedly noticed a Dodge Charger sitting in the road, ran the tag, and discovered it belonged to Flowers. Police said they tried to perform a traffic stop at the intersection of Fairview Street and Circle Drive, but the vehicle turned into Lu Lus Cafe and stopped at the front of the business. Even when law enforcement approached the vehicle, Flowers allegedly wouldnt follow orders. Shortly afterward, the vehicle left the parking lot, headed northbound on Highway 41A. Authorities said they pursued the car, which turned off Highway 41A onto Tyson Drive, driving through the feed mill. It was evil: Nashville woman stabbed, burned, dumped on Pennsylvania interstate According to officials, the chase continued all the way to Arnold Air Force Base, where the bases law enforcement unsuccessfully tried to use spike strips on the suspect vehicle. Police said the car headed toward Manchester, so members of the Coffee County Sheriffs Department joined the pursuit. In the end, all of the law enforcement agencies involved in the chase were able to block in the vehicle and take Flowers into custody. When providing additional details about Flowers history, authorities said an order of protection against him was signed in July due to eight previous domestic assaults; one aggravated domestic assault; 16 probation violations; six violations of orders of protection; four drug-related arrests; and five charges for resisting, evading, or escaping. He has reportedly been arrested a total of 40 times in the past. Read todays top stories on wkrn.com Coffee County deputies brought Flowers to their jail. By Wednesday, Nov. 15, he was still being held in Coffee County on a $103,000 bond for two counts of aggravated assault, evading arrest, and resisting arrest, officials said. However, according to police, Flowers is still facing charges in Franklin County for three counts of violating an order of protection, three counts of aggravated stalking, resisting stop/arrest, reckless driving, evading arrest, aggravated criminal trespassing, driving on a suspended/revoked license, and felony reckless endangerment. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRN News 2. ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) A man has been found guilty in the death of a woman whose remains were found inside a duffel bag along a rural northwest Missouri road almost two weeks after she was killed at a Kansas City hotel. Marcus Brooks was convicted Thursday of first-degree murder in the death of 21-year-old Ariel Starcher, a mother of two from Independence, The St. Joseph News-Press reports. One allegedly shot and killed in KCMO front yard along Mercier Street A Missouri Transportation Department worker found the bag with Starchers body inside it in February 2020 around 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Kansas City. She had died of suffocation and also suffered a broken neck. Key testimony against him came from Taylor Stoughton, who pleaded guilty last year to second-degree murder, as Brooks accomplice. She and Brooks were arrested a year after the killing. At the time, Starchers grandfather, Jim Starcher, told FOX4 that his granddaughter knew Brooks and sometimes called him for rides. Her friends had made the family nervous, he told The Kansas City Star. I always worried about her, the life she was going through, he told The Kansas City Star. She was trying to change her life, get her life straightened out. But its just one step forward and four steps back. The defense argued that Stoughton was the one to suffocate and bind Starcher. Brooks said he was in the shower at the time and only helped dispose of the body. Special Public Defender Steven Willibey also questioned Stoughtons testimony, noting that a plea agreement shortens her potential sentence. FOX4 newsletters: Get the latest news delivered to your inbox But Buchanan County Prosecuting Attorney Michelle Davidson said Brooks DNA was found underneath Starchers fingernails and that one was torn, suggesting she had been killed trying fight off her attacker. Stoughton will be sentenced Nov. 20 and Brooks on Dec. 21. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. WASHINGTON Nearly 30 years ago, a Pennsylvania man falsified his income on an application for food stamps. Because of it, he lost his ability to own a gun for the rest of his life. Last year, in Mississippi, another man was pulled over for driving without a license plate. When police discovered marijuana and a loaded rifle in his car, they charged him with violating a law that bans drug users from owning a gun. Both men now have cases before the Supreme Court with sweeping implications for the Second Amendment. Seventeen months after the nations highest court handed down a landmark decision that redefined the standard used to judge gun restrictions, the Biden administration has queued up several cases on a host of federal gun laws including those dealing with nonviolent crimes and drug use. Trump: Colorado court sides with Donald Trump in latest test of 'insurrection' claims The cases are closely tied to one of the most significant disputes already before the justices this term: whether domestic abusers can be barred from owning guns. Advocates on both sides of the gun debate are eager to see how the Supreme Court resolves an appeal from a Texas man, Zackey Rahimi, who violated a law banning guns for people who are the subject of domestic violence restraining orders. Win or lose and Rahimi appears poised to lose the courts decision in that case next year could signal how the justices feel about similar laws that block people from accessing guns. The appeals are arriving at a moment of uncertainty about just how far the Supreme Courts 6-3 conservative majority is willing to go to roll over controversial gun laws laws that critics say flout the Second Amendment, but that supporters say are crucial to ensuring Americans safety. Last year, in a case called NYSRPA v. Bruen, the Supreme Court said gun prohibitions must be grounded in history. Now, its being asked to explain what that means. Worries about an 'emboldened' gun lobby In the year and a half since the Supreme Courts decision in Bruen, we have seen how dangerous it can be when the gun lobby is emboldened to relitigate even the most common-sense gun safety laws in the courts, said Janet Carter, who directs the national Second Amendment practice for the gun control group Everytown Law. Carter will be watching the Supreme Court carefully to see if its opinion in Rahimi will serve as a necessary corrective or whether it will once again put our communities especially women and families at risk. Though they are hoping for a different outcome, gun rights groups are watching, too. Alan Gottlieb, executive vice president of the Second Amendment Foundation, predicted the court will decide that the federal law at issue in Rahimi can only be applied to people who have been deemed dangerous. That would potentially weaken other gun laws. These cases are just the beginning, Gottlieb said. If the conviction was for a nonviolent crime and the government cannot prove you are a danger to yourself or others, the law as applied is unconstitutional. Gun rights advocates and militia members gather in Virginia's capitol to protest potential gun control bills. Food stamps: Should nonviolent criminals have guns? Bryan Range pleaded guilty in 1995 to making false statements about his income to obtain $2,458 of food stamp assistance as he and his wife struggled to raise three children, according to court records. Range was sentenced to probation and ordered to pay back the money along with a $100 fine. Because the crime was a "felony-equivalent" a state misdemeanor punishable by up to five years imprisonment Range is barred from possessing a gun. A federal appeals court in Philadelphia sided with Range this summer, ruling that the government had not shown that our Republic has a longstanding history and tradition of depriving people like Range of their firearms. The Biden administration appealed, warning that the ruling would flood the courts with felons seeking to restore their gun rights, an outcome that threatens public safety. Whataburger shooting: Domestic violence advocates watching closely Even some gun rights groups acknowledge Rahimi, who was involved in five shootings between 2020 and 2021, should not have access to guns. In 2019, Rahimi fired at a passerby who witnessed him dragging his girlfriend through a parking lot. In 2021, he fired into the air when a friend's credit card was declined at a fast-food joint. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in his case on Nov. 7. Federal law bans people who are the subject of a civil domestic violence restraining order from owning a gun. Studies show a woman is five times more likely to die from domestic violence if the abuser has access to a gun. The law bars guns based on two types of restraining orders: those in which a judge finds a person poses a credible threat to an intimate partner, and those that make no such finding but that prohibit the use or attempted use of physical force. Rahimis case deals with the first type. Another case already pending at the Supreme Court centered on a Kentucky man who police say struck his partner while she was holding their baby involves the other. Jennifer Becker, director of the National Center on Gun Violence and Relationships at the Battered Womens Justice Project, said she is watching the Rahimi outcome very closely for the potential to affect other lawsuits. This case is not operating in a silo, Becker said. The reasoning that the court puts forward in its opinion could have implications for other challenges. Gun control activists rally outside the Supreme Court on Washington on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023. When drugs and guns mix: A case with ties to Hunter Biden The sheriffs department in Hancock County, Mississippi, pulled over Patrick Darnell Daniels Jr., last year for driving without a license plate. But as they approached the car, officers say they smelled marijuana. As they searched, police found marijuana cigarette butts, a loaded pistol and a semi-automatic rifle, according to court records. Daniels would later tell a Drug Enforcement Administration agent that he used pot approximately fourteen days out of a month, though police didnt present evidence that he was high at the time he was pulled over. 'An odd situation': President Biden aims to tighten firearms sales. Hunter Biden is caught in the crosshairs Daniels was ultimately convicted of a federal law that bans people who are using illegal drugs from possessing a gun. Hunter Biden, President Joe Bidens son, was charged with that same crime earlier this year and has pleaded not guilty. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans framed Daniels appeal as a deeply challenging question but ultimately ruled that history could not justify disarming a sober citizen based exclusively on his past drug usage. Daniels conviction was tossed, and the Biden administration appealed to the Supreme Court last month. Drug users use firearms to commit crimes that fund their drug habit, to engage in violence as part of the drug business or culture, to attack police officers who are investigating their drug crimes, and to commit suicide, the government told the Supreme Court. Those risks justify disarming drug users even between periods of drug intoxication. President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, arrive at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C., on June 25, 2023. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Guns: The next Second Amendment fight could be over drug users, felons MEMPHIS, Tenn. Memphis Police are investigating after a man was found dead in Binghampton Saturday. Memphis Police responded to a medical call on Scott Street off of Summer Avenue at around 4:19 p.m. According to police, officers found a man with apparent head trauma. The man was pronounced dead on the scene. Woman found shot to death in southeast Memphis Memphis Police did not say how the man was injured or give any details on possible suspects. Memphis Police say the investigation is ongoing. If you have any information about this incident, call CrimeStoppers at 901-528-CASH. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. SAN DIEGO A motorcyclist was critically injured Saturday after a collision in Valencia Park, authorities said. According to the San Diego Police Department, a man of unknown age was driving a 2022 Harley Davidson MC west on the 5200 block of Imperial Avenue around 6:34 p.m. when he failed to negotiate the curve in the roadway. CSI San Diego: What it takes to be a criminalist in Americas Finest City Police said the rider impacted a legally parked vehicle at the curb line, and was ejected from the motorcycle. He was transported to a local hospital with multiple fractures to his right leg. According to authorities, the man went into cardiac arrest twice before being stabilized for surgery. His injury resulted in his right leg being amputated. His injuries are considered life-threatening. SDPDs Traffic Division is investigating the crash. Anyone with information related to the incident is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego. A man faces up to 75 years in state prison after being convicted Thursday by a Sacramento jury of sexually abusing a young girl. Edward Evan Hann abused the 8-year-old for three straight nights after roughly a year of planning, prosecutors said in a news release. The man spent considerable unsupervised time with the child between October 2020 and October 2021 before the assaults occurred. The girl, who was threatened by Hann to keep quiet about the abuse, told her friend one year later after she was no longer in contact with him. That friend encouraged the girl to tell her mother and the case was soon investigated by the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office and Hann was arrested. The jury also found true that the crime involved great violence, or other acts disclosing high degree of cruelty, callousness or viciousness; the victim was particular vulnerable; Hann took advantage of a position of trust or confidence; and the crimes involved planning, sophistication, and professionalism, prosecutors stated. Hann was convicted in Sacramento Superior Court of three counts of lewd acts with a child under 14 with force or fear. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for Dec. 15, where allegations of three prior strike convictions for robbery will be decided. A Texas man went missing after going to a doctors appointment and a farmhand found his vehicle abandoned miles from where he was expected to be, according to officials. The Bowie County Sheriffs Office was contacted by the mans family in October, after he never returned home from the doctors office, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said in a Nov. 14 news release. He had been missing for 24 hours by that point and temperatures had fallen into the 30s, meaning investigators expected the worst, the release said. As the search was underway, a call came in to TPWD game wardens from a farmhand at an area ranch who found a vehicle stuck in mud and abandoned, according to officials. The vehicle was confirmed to be the missing mans, investigators said, adding that it was 16 miles off course from his destination. Officials quickly shifted their focus to the 3,000-acre farm, bringing dogs, drones, ATVs and a helicopter to assist in the effort, the release said. While crews scoured ground on ATVs, the helicopter scouted ahead and eventually spotted a figure on one of the farm trails running between a river and the fields, according to officials. The farmhand and game wardens rode to the location and, as they approached, saw a man lying motionless on the ground. At first (they) believed they were too late, officials said. But as they bent down to take a pulse the individual moved. The group warmed the man with their jackets and performed first aid, according to the release. He regained his senses, started drinking water and talking and the team took him to a nearby road where the helicopter was waiting to fly him to a hospital, officials said. Despite missing in freezing temperatures for 48 hours, he is expected to make a full recovery, officials said. Texas Game Wardens are extremely grateful to the three men who reported the vehicle and volunteered with the search and care of the missing individual. Man holding drink cup full of meth confidently lets warden search truck, officials say Hiker found and rescued after going missing at Texas national park, officials say Nobody picked up child after school then came grim discovery at Texas home, cops say Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) attacked President Biden in a vow to mobilize the radical middle. Joe Biden has been pulled so far to the left, the extreme left, as far as liberal, Manchin told radio host John Catsimatidis in a Sunday interview on The Cats Roundtable on WABC 770 AM. Makes no sense at all. Its not the person we thought was gonna bring the country together. Manchin also decried current political polarization, saying its dividing Washington. Best Black Friday Deals Washington wants you and I to be divided, and the rest of America to be divided because its a better business model for em, he said. So, I came to the conclusion I cant change Ive been here 13 years. Im not going to change it from within. And Ive decide[d] to go around and see if I can mobilize the radical middle. Last week, Manchin said he wouldnt seek reelection to the Senate, and he noted he absolutely would think about a run for the presidency in an interview that aired Wednesday. I will do anything I can to help my country, and youre saying, Does that mean you would consider it? Absolutely. Every American should consider it if theyre in a position to help save the country, Manchin told NBCs Meet the Press host Kristen Welker. Manchin has also said hes considering leaving the Democratic party. The business of politics has gotten so big because the business model is a Democrat business and a Republican business, and its really forgotten about the people to a certain extent, Manchin said in a CNN interview Wednesday. All they want is 51 or greater to be the majority, and then they do so much damage trying to get there, he continued. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. A manhunt is underway Saturday for a suspect in a series of shootings that left at least four people dead and a fifth person injured across multiple locations in Memphis, Tennessee, police said. Police responded to a shooting around 9:20 p.m. and found a female with an apparent gunshot wound, th e Memphis Police Department said in a news release. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators later determined that the killing was connected to two other recent shootings and involve the same suspect, police said. The suspect, identified as Mavis Christian Jr., 52, is armed and extremely dangerous, police said. Preliminary information indicates this was a Domestic Violence incident, and the suspect is a known relative who fled each scene in a white 2017 Chevrolet Malibu bearing TN Tag #390-BHTM in an unknown direction, police said. One of the shootings, on Fieldlark Drive, wounded three females, two of whom died and a third who was left in critical condition, police said. The other shooting, nearly 13 miles away on Warrington Road, left another female dead, police said. Authorities have not identified the victims or provided information on their ages or how theyre related to the suspect. Memphis police said local, state and federal agencies are involved in the manhunt for Christian Jr. If you see him or his vehicle, please call 911 immediately, police said. This is a developing story and will be updated. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Sen. Mike Lee perpetuated an unfounded conspiracy theory that federal agents or informants were among the rioters on Jan. 6 and that one may have flashed a law enforcement badge during the attack (in reality, it was a vape). In two posts to X (formerly Twitter) over the weekend, the Republican indulged in a MAGA disinformation campaign. Lee quoted a post from former Jan. 6 committee member Liz Cheney that contained footage of the Capitol attack, writing, Liz, weve seen footage like that a million times. You made sure we saw thatand nothing else. Its the other stuffwhat you deliberately hid from usthat we find so upsetting. Nice try. He then added, P.S. How many of these guys are feds? (As if youd ever tell us). Then on Saturday, Lee quoted a post from a Republican former West Virginia legislator Derrick Evans who asked if an image from a Jan. 6 video inside the Capitol shows a rioter flashing a badge? If so, this would prove there were undercover federal agents disguised as MAGA, Evans wrote. Lee quoted Evans post and wrote, I cant wait to ask FBI Director Christopher Wray about this at our next oversight hearing. I predict that, as always, his answers will be 97% information-free. You might pause and wonder, is the person behind the account with the handle @BasedMikeLee really a U.S. senator? But it is. Lee confirmed to The Salt Lake Tribune in 2022 that the account is his. The man pictured with the alleged badge is Trump supporter Kevin Lyons, who is shown in a separate photo carrying a vape in his hand. Twitter appended two fact checks to the tweets, writing that Lyons is not a police officer and is not holding a badge. He is carrying a vape and a photograph and wallet stolen from Pelosis office. Cleaner shot of the vape: https://t.co/LBLrKApvll Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) November 19, 2023 Even if Lyons were a federal agent, he would certainly be going to great lengths to disguise his affiliation. Lyons is currently serving a four-year prison sentence for his actions in the Capitol, which include stealing a wallet and taking a framed photo of the late Rep. John Lewis from then-Speaker Nancy Pelosis office. Before his sentencing, Lyons told the judge, Im an idiot, I realize that. I was stupid. I dont know what came over me. I apologize to you, the country and my family. Fox News host Maria Bartiromo brought up the conspiracy theory on her show Sunday, asking former speaker Kevin McCarthy about the rumors that federal assets were involved. Speaker, I want to be real specific, she said. There are questions regarding FBI informants that were in Trump clothing around the Capitol on that day, throughout the crowd. Do you have any insights for us regarding their role in those events, the FBIs role? Bartiromo: Questions regarding FBI informants that were in trump clothing around the capital that day throughout the crowd. Do you have any insights for us regarding their role in those events. The FBIs role. pic.twitter.com/0kp5gcPjMc Acyn (@Acyn) November 19, 2023 McCarthy said he was not aware of it. I personally dont. Thats the committee. I would make sure to look at that and see all that and get more information, he said. I know the director of the FBI has been asked this question numerous times. [Republican Rep.] Thomas Massey is the one working on this, and I think hed have greater insight for you. House Speaker Mike Johnson said Friday that he intends to release all 44,000 hours of Jan. 6 footage to the public, which would fulfill a vow he made to appease his partys right-wing while campaigning for the speakership. By Friday afternoon, 90 hours of the footage was posted to the House Administration Committees website. GOP Rep. Clay Higgins asked FBI Director Christopher Wray about the conspiracy theory last week during a hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee. Wray has long denied federal agents being involved in the riot or its planning. If youre asking whether the violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6 was part of some operation orchestrated by FBI sources and/or agents the answer is an emphatic no, Wray said. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone Two Ukrainian women and a six-year-old girl were killed in a bus crash in Poland, RMF 24 Media reported on Nov. 19. According to the Polish news outlet, the crash occurred near the village of Wereszyn, which is located near the Polish-Ukrainian border. All 10 passengers on board were Ukrainian citizens. Two of the victims died on the spot, and the third died of her injuries later. The remaining seven passengers were transported to the hospital, including a three-year-old who is in serious condition. The police are currently investigating the incident. As of July, 1.6 million Ukrainian refugees, mostly women and children, resided in Poland more than in any other country, according to the UNHCR data. Read also: As their kids find refuge abroad, Ukrainian fathers struggle with separation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Igor Girkin, a jailed warlord and former intelligence officer, has told his allies to prepare a campaign for his intended run for president of Russia, Oleg Nelzin, head of a pro-Girkin political group, said in a video published by Russian media outlet Sota on Nov. 18. Nelzin cited Girkin's instructions written in a letter sent from pre-trial detention. Girkin, also known by his alias Strelkov, called on "all patriotic Russian forces and political and social organizations" to support him and asked his allies to start collecting signatures for his campaign. However, it would be impossible for Girkin to be registered as a candidate in the March 17, 2024 presidential election without the Kremlin's approval, according to independent observers. Candidates in Russian elections are vetted by the Kremlin beforehand, and voting is heavily rigged. Girkin, who is also a military blogger, was arrested on extremism charges in July in what was widely seen as the Kremlin's vendetta for his criticism of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. The formal excuse for Girkin's arrest was a post he wrote on the Telegram and Vkontakte social networks in May 2022. In the post, he complained about Russian proxy fighters in Donetsk Oblast allegedly getting no pay and called for "shooting" those responsible for that. Girkin has frequently slammed Putin and Russia's Defense Ministry for their handling of the full-scale invasion. He has attacked Putin for not going far enough in his efforts to defeat and destroy Ukraine. He has called for carrying out a full-scale mobilization of conscripts and the economy, introducing martial law, and setting the destruction of the Ukrainian state as Russia's official war aim. Girkin, a former officer of Russia's Federal Security Service, took part in the annexation of Crimea in February-March 2014 as one of Russia's proxies. He later admitted that pro-Russian militants had forced members of Crimea's legislature to vote for a referendum on seceding from Ukraine. In April 2014, a group of militants headed by Girkin seized the town of Sloviansk in Donetsk Oblast, effectively launching Russia's war in the Donbas. He said in a 2014 interview that he had pulled the trigger of the war, and it would not have begun without him. In November 2022, the Hague District Court convicted Girkin and his subordinates in absentia for downing a civilian aircraft flying over Ukraine from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur in 2014 and killing all 298 people on board. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. Another visible critic of Putin, Yevgeniy Prigozhin, ran the Wagner Group private army employed by the Kremlin. After a one-day mutiny by Wagner forces in June, the Kremlin cracked down on dissenting voices and Prigozhin's plane was shot down in Russia in August, killing him. Read also: Putin cracks down on pro-war opposition as all-out war falters Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Palestinian medics care for premature babies evacuated from Al-Shifa hospital to the Emirates hospital in Rafah, in southern Gaza (Mohammed ABED) Palestinian medics evacuated 31 premature babies from Gaza City's war-torn Al-Shifa hospital Sunday in a high-risk operation, the UN said, pledging to also move patients and staff who remain there. The hospital, Gaza's largest, has been described by the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) as a "death zone", after it sent a team to visit the facility on Saturday. Mohammed Zaqut, director general of hospitals in Gaza, told AFP "all 31 premature babies in Al-Shifa hospital... have been evacuated" and said "preparations are under way" for them to enter Egypt. The infants were taken in Palestinian Red Crescent Society ambulances to a hospital in southern Gaza for assessment and treatment, the WHO said in a statement, with 11 in critical condition. Doctors found that "all the babies are fighting serious infections due to lack of medical supplies and impossibility to continue infection control measures in Al-Shifa Hospital", it said. None were accompanied by family members as the health ministry in Gaza had been unable to locate them, it added, and two babies had died at Al-Shifa while awaiting the transfer. Al-Shifa hospital has become a focal point for Israeli operations, with the army claiming Hamas uses it as a base. Hamas, and medical staff, have denied the accusations. Israel is seeking to destroy the Hamas militants behind the unprecedented October 7 attacks that Israeli officials say killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and saw around 240 people taken hostage. The Hamas authorities say Israel's relentless military campaign has killed at least 13,000 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians and more than 5,500 of them children. More than 250 patients and 20 health workers were still at Al-Shifa and plans were being made to evacuate them, the WHO statement said, but it would take "several days" to do so completely. "Priority will be given to the 22 dialysis patients and 50 patients with spinal injuries," it added. The WHO's initial visit to Al-Shifa came after hundreds fled the hospital on Saturday following what Al-Shifa's director said were Israeli army orders for it to be emptied. Israel denied ordering the move. An AFP journalist at the scene saw crowds of sick, injured and displaced people walking towards the seafront, with the health ministry saying 120 patients had stayed behind, among them a number of premature babies. "Many patients can not leave the hospital as they are in the ICU beds or the baby incubators," Ahmed al-Mokhallalati, a doctor at the hospital, wrote Saturday on X, formerly Twitter. Following its visit to Al-Shifa, the WHO said 291 patients and 25 health workers were still inside the hospital, figures issued several hours before the babies were evacuated. Since November 11, when fuel supplies ran out at Al-Shifa, eight babies died due to the lack of electricity to run incubator units, the health ministry has said. az-sbh/hmw/slb/imm Meet Anne Jakrajutatip, the first woman to own the Miss Universe pageant Anne Jakrajutatip is the current owner of Miss Universe. Josh Brasted/Getty Images Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip became the first woman to own Miss Universe in October 2022. She said she was inspired by Angela Ponce, who was the first trans woman to compete in the pageant. Jakrajutatip has ushered in big changes, including allowing all women aged 18 and over to compete. Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip made history when she purchased Miss Universe in October 2022, making her the first woman to own the organization since it began in 1952. Jakrajutatip has since ushered in some big changes at the pageant, including allowing all women aged 18 and over to compete. It's been a long road to success for the Thailand businesswoman, who turned her family's declining video-rental store into the multimillion-dollar company JKN Global Group. Here's how Jakrajutatip made her way to the top spot at Miss Universe. Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip was born and raised in Bangkok, where she struggled with her gender identity from an early age. Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip was born in Bangkok, Thailand. Courtesy of Miss Universe During a January interview on "The Journal" podcast , Jakrajutatip said she knew she was "trapped in the wrong body" from the age of 5. Jakrajutatip also told Them in June that she was bullied as a child and didn't find her voice until she took a public speaking class in high school. "I wanted to have the weapon that is the microphone to express my attitude and exhibit that leadership to everyone," she said. "No more bullies. You cannot do anything harmful to me because I'm clever and smart and I can be successful." Jakrajutatip attended university in Sydney, Australia, before returning home to take over her parents' video-rental business. Jakrajutatip took over her parents' video-rental store when she was 21. Courtesy of Miss Universe Jakrajutatip graduated with a degree in international relations, paying for her tuition fees with the money she made working at a gas station, according to Them. At this point, Jakrajutatip said she knew she was a transgender woman, but she didn't feel comfortable coming out in Thailand. Same-sex marriage is still illegal in the country, and transgender people are not allowed to change their gender on legal documents. Jakrajutatip turned her parents' store into a content distribution empire. Jakrajutatip turned her parents' video store into a multimillion-dollar company. Hector Vivas/Getty Images Jakrajutatip's first major deal was with the BBC, she told the Guardian. She said she had spotted the documentary "Walking With Dinosaurs" at her parents' store and offered to distribute the BBC series in Thailand. According to the outlet, she sold a million copies and soon began distributing content from India, Japan, the US, and South Korea as well. Jakrajutatip expanded JKN Global as she launched beauty lines and bought TV channels in Thailand. Jakrajutatip counts Oprah Winfrey as her biggest inspiration. Courtesy of Miss Universe According to Them, Jakrajutatip's profile rose in Thailand as she made appearances on the country's version of "Shark Tank" and "Project Runway," and she continued to expand her business portfolio by launching drinks and food supplements. Oprah Winfrey served as Jakrajutatip's main source of inspiration as she pursued a career in media, she told the Guardian in January. To this day, Winfrey is the only person that Jakrajutatip follows on Instagram. In 2018, Jakrajutatip launched a nonprofit to support transgender people. Two years later, she underwent gender confirmation surgery. Anne Jakrajutatip has two children. LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA/AFP via Getty Images According to Them, Jakrajutatip launched the LIFT Foundation to advocate for transgender people in Thailand. The outlet also reported that she underwent surgery in 2020 and became a mother six months later. She had a second child the following year. Jakrajutatip told the Guardian that although she has undergone gender confirmation surgery, she is still not allowed to change the gender on her ID in Thailand, thus making it impossible for her to travel to certain countries for business. Jakrajutatip knew she wanted to own Miss Universe after she saw Miss Spain 2018 Angela Ponce make history. Miss Spain Angela Ponce during the national costume competition at the 2018 Miss Universe pageant. LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA/AFP via Getty Images Jakrajutatip told Them that she was in the audience when Ponce became the first transgender woman to compete at Miss Universe. "I stood up and applauded for her. I cried and she also cried on the stage," Jakrajutatip said. "When I turned back, everyone just stood up after me and applauded her big time." "That moment, I thought, 'This is it. This is a pageant I can turn into a platform and it must be a women's empowerment platform,'" she added. Jakrajutatip bought Miss Universe for $20 million in October 2022. Jakrajutatip with Miss Universe R'Bonney Gabriel. Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Empire State Realty Trust Jakrajutatip acquired the Miss Universe brand just weeks after the Miss USA organization descended into chaos as contestants claimed the 2022 pageant had been rigged in favor of R'Bonney Gabriel , who went on to win Miss Universe months later. In a statement sent to Business Insider after the news was announced, Jakrajutatip said she was proud to take over the organization. "We seek not only to continue its legacy of providing a platform to passionate individuals from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and traditions, but also to evolve the brand for the next generation," she added. During her first Miss Universe as the owner in January, Jakrajutatip told pageant fans that she was ushering in a new era. "From now on it's going to be run by women, owned by a trans woman, for all women around the world," she said. But there have been bumps in the road for Jakrajutatip, whose company recently filed a "business rehabilitation" petition. Jakrajutatip with Miss Universe President Paula Shugart (left) and Miss Universe CEO Amy Emmerich (right) during the Miss Universe Extravaganza in Bangkok on November 7, 2022. LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA/AFP via Getty Images Thailand's bankruptcy court accepted the petition from JKN Global , which missed a payment on a multimillion-dollar loan in September. The company said in a letter to the stock-exchange president that its financial liquidity management was "not in line with the expected forecast," and that it intends to restructure its debt. In a statement to pageant fans , JKN Global said the 72nd Miss Universe competition would move forward as planned and would still be a "top-notch experience." "We reaffirm that the legacy of Miss Universe will be carried on by JKN Global Group as envisioned from the beginning," the statement said. "We are confident that the new plan will support all of the company's business operations, including Miss Universe." Jakrajutatip reaffirmed her commitment to Miss Universe in a separate statement that she posted to her Instagram on November 9. "I always put The Miss Universe Organization as my first priority in life," she said in the caption of the post. "No matter how joyful or painful it's gonna be. Our universe must go on, must be great and must stay on top as the legendary Beauty Olympics in the World! I will sacrifice and do everything for the great success of OUR UNIVERSE!" The second Miss Universe with Jakrajutatip as owner is taking place on Saturday. Miss Canada during the Miss Universe national costume contest in November 2023. Hector Vivas/Getty Images The 72nd Miss Universe competition is taking place in San Salvador, El Salvador. Eighty-four women are competing in this year's pageant, which is the most inclusive Miss Universe contest to date. The new winner will be crowned by R'Bonney Gabriel. Read the original article on Insider Voters in Louisiana elected a new governor last week. For 56 of the states residents, the stakes of that contest were especially high: The elevation of Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, a rabid defender of the death penalty, dramatically increases the odds they will soon be executed. Earlier this year, the dozens of inmates on Louisianas death row had a glimmer of hope: In April, Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, used his last state of the state address to call on the legislature to abolish executions. He declared them exorbitantly expensive, difficult to administer, and often wrong, pointing to more than 50 reversals of sentences and six full exonerations of death row inmates in the last 20 years. The death penalty, Edwards said, doesnt deter crime; it isnt necessary for public safety; and more importantly, it is wholly inconsistent with Louisianas pro-life values as it quite literally promotes a culture of death. All but one of Louisianas 57 death row inmates petitioned the governor for clemency following his remarks. But, in Louisiana, the governor does not have sole authority to commute death sentences; granting clemency requires the approval of the Louisiana Board of Pardons and Committee on Parole. In July, the board, acting on advice from Attorney General Landry, denied all 56 petitions outright and en masse. Look, this is ridiculous, Landry told a radio host in June. We havent executed anyone since 2010. All of the states around us are holding executions, and doing a lot better in the crime metrics than Louisiana. (This is not exactly true: Texas is the only one of Louisianas direct neighbors to have held executions in 2023, and it had the second highest number of murders in the country in 2022, according to the FBIs Uniform Crime Report.) Landry went on to say the state made a promise to execute those prisoners, and it would be wrong to go back on a promise: Every time we dont uphold our end of the contract or our promises, its a further eroding of trust between our citizens and the government. At Edwards urging, the board later agreed to hold clemency hearings on each of the 56 petitions. But in September, several Louisiana district attorneys and Landry sued the board to block them. Instead of full hearings on the merits of their claims, the board has given a handful of the prisoners an administrative review, an abbreviated process in which the prisoner does not participate. After Jeff Landry improperly interfered, they converted the hearings on the merits to administrative reviews that looked exactly like a hearing on the merits except the applicant himself was not allowed to be there, says Cecelia Trenticosta Kappel, executive director of the Capital Appeals Project in New Orleans. Its been described as a Franken-process. Its never been used before. And we found out very quickly that it was a sham. Only 11 of 56 prisoners have had reviews; all 11 requests were denied. Two others are scheduled before Edwards leaves office and Landry takes over in January. In filing these petitions and looking into these cases, it became clear to us that out of the 57 people on death row, each one of these guys and and one woman have extremely strong claims, ranging from intellectual disability, serious mental illness, childhood trauma, innocence, racism every single one of them, Trenticosta Kappel says. And the fact that the DAs and the AG fought so hard to prevent these cases from being heard just shows that they are afraid of the broken nature of the death penalty in Louisiana being exposed in front of the national audience. Landrys campaign office did not respond to requests for comment. The clemency push is not the first time that Edwards and his successor tangled over the death penalty. Five years ago, Landry sent a letter to the governor urging him to explore other options after a critical component of the drug cocktail used in lethal injections became unavailable. Among other ideas, Landry floated the possibility that the state manufacture the drug pentobarbital itself in the pharmacy at Angola, the Louisiana State Penitentiary. You make the unremarkable observation that other methods of execution are not allowed by Louisiana law, Landry wrote. While this is true, you avoid the simple truth that the law can be changed. He went on to suggest language that could be added to the state law governing executions, including a line allowing the use of nitrogen hypoxia, or the gas chamber. If neither that nor lethal injection were available, Landrys proposed law states: then the method shall be by hanging, firing squad, or electrocution. Landrys enthusiastic embrace of the death penalty has not just put him at odds with Edwards it has put him at odds with his own church. Im a practicing Catholic, and for more than two thousand years, the Catholic Churchs teachings have supported the death penalty. But these days, some in the church have made ending the death penalty a top priority, Landry said at a hearing in 2019. Those bishops cherry-picked: by solely focusing on the mercy of God, they have glossed over the fact that God is also a just God. Landry will be sworn in as Louisianas governor on January 8, 2024. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone Tracks, trains, signals and stations: the list of needed upgrades at the MBTA includes some very big ticket items. But new Malden mom Samantha Gillis hopes the transit agency wont forget to address the little things -- in particular, an elevator she depends on at Wellington Station. For weeks, she said, it hasnt worked. I think with all the issues at the MBTA already, its stressful enough, said Gillis. Now having the elevator on top of that, its not making it any better. Gillis depends on the elevator because her four-month-old son, Micah, is in a stroller. Ive mentioned it to the people at Wellington Station, and they say theyll say something or do something about it, she said. And I havent gotten a response yet. Her entreaties to the MBTA unanswered, Gillis turned to Boston 25 News to help get word to transit officials how important the lift is not only for parents with strollers -- but those in wheelchairs, too. Boston 25 News took a look at the elevator at issue and found it functioned just fine -- until it was directed to descend. Then, it just sat there. No signage indicates the elevator is a problem -- and, indeed, the MBTA said in a statement that Wellingtons elevators were all functional. At least one is. It carries passengers down to the platform where shiny new Orange Line trains stop en route to Forest Hills. Why cant Gillis just use that one? One direction is to Forest Hills, one is to Oak Grove, she explained. And theres no bridge between the platforms. So you should have to come upstairs and try to switch over. You just need both. Gillis said the MBTA offered some less-than-helpful advice, given shes usually at the station with Micah in his stroller. They told me that when the train arrives, I would have to run through the train (to get to the other platform), she said. Going in and out of people, with the doors shutting very fast. A challenging course for any passenger -- let alone one pushing a baby. So, Gillis has resorted to taking the stairs -- her arms wrapped around the stroller. Or, she takes a disquieting descent via the escalator. To protect Micah, she stands in front of him on the moving staircase, her back to the bottom. Im scared Im going to fall backwards and its not a good feeling, she said. Gillis said she got in touch with Boston 25 because shes not the only one dependent on functioning elevators. She said other Moms with strollers are having issues -- and shes seen wheelchair-bound passengers dealing with the situation, too. She had one message for the MBTA. Please get your elevators fixed -- or look into it more, she said. The MBTA is supposed to be for easy access and we cant get that right now. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) A mom from Orange County who went missing on Nov. 11 was found dead inside a storage unit around 5 p.m. Saturday, according to deputies. Shakeira Rucker, a 37-year-old mother of four, was reported missing last week. 16-year-old girl dies after crashing into oncoming truck in Pasco County On Saturday, Orange County deputies responded to the Self Storage at 2400 Wiggings Road in Popka, where they found Ruckers body. Shakeiras family was notified this evening, the sheriffs office said. We grieve with them & our detectives are committed to bringing them justice in this case. According to NBC affiliate WESH who had been following this missing persons case, said the last time Ruckers family heard from her was when she said she was going home after picking up food the night of Nov. 11. On Nov. 13, the Winter Springs Police Department said Rucker was last seen around 7:30 p.m. leaving her home in Winter Springs with her estranged husband, 51-year-old Cory Hill, who was a person of interest in her disappearance. They said her family believed she left with Hill to an unknown destination. Hill is in custody at the Orange County Jail on four counts of attempted murder for shooting at his former girlfriend last Sunday. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. A Florida woman who was last seen more than a week ago has been found dead in a storage unit, deputies say. It is believed Shakeira Rucker, a 37-year-old mother of four from Winter Springs, was last seen Nov. 11. Her body was found Saturday, turning her disappearance into a homicide investigation, the Orange County Sheriff's Office said. Deputies responded to the Self Storage at 2400 Wiggins Road in Apopka around 5 p.m. after someone complained about an odor, FOX 35 Orlando reports. "Shakeiras family was notified this evening," OCSO said in a Facebook post. "We grieve with them [and] our detectives are committed to bringing them justice in this case." SECOND ARREST MADE IN HALLOWEEN WEEKEND SHOOTING IN TAMPA THAT KILLED 2, INJURED 16 OTHERS Rucker was last seen leaving her home with her estranged husband, identified as Cory Hill by FOX 35. Hill was quickly named a person of interest when she vanished. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP The two were seen on surveillance video leaving a Polk County restaurant together the night she was reported missing, investigators said. Hill is currently in the Orange County jail, according to online records. He faces unrelated attempted murder charges, but reportedly refused to talk to deputies or police about Rucker's disappearance. He has not been named a suspect or charged in Rucker's death. 2 MEN RESCUED FROM SINKING BOAT IN FLORIDA WATERWAY AMID HARSH WEATHER: POLICE "I just want my mom to come back," 16-year-old Mikayla Rucker previously told FOX 35. "Its hard, her not being here, because Im always with her. Its like I cant live without her. Shes all I know." Crimeline had offered a $5,000 reward for help finding out what happened to Rucker. Orange County Sheriff John Mina is expected to discuss the case during a press conference Sunday. Original article source: Missing Florida woman found dead in storage unit, deputies say MIT researchers developed an ingestible capsule that can monitor vital signs including heart rate and breathing patterns from within a patients GI tract. The scientists also say that the novel device has the potential to also be used to detect signs of respiratory depression during an opioid overdose. Giovanni Traverso, an associate professor of mechanical engineering at MIT who has been working on developing a range of ingestible sensors, told Engadget that the device will be especially useful for sleep studies. Conventionally, sleep studies require patients to be hooked up to a number of sensors and devices. In labs and in at-home studies, sensors can be attached to a patients scalp, temples, chest and lungs with wires. A patient may also wear a nasal cannula, chest belt and pulse oximeter which can connect to a portable monitor. As you can imagine, trying to sleep with all of this machinery can be challenging, Traverso told Engadget. Clear pill tab (MIT) This trial, which used a capsule made by Celero Systems A start-up led by MIT and Harvard researchers marks the first time ingestible sensor technology was tested in humans. Aside from the start-up and MIT, the research was spearheaded by experts at West Virginia University and other hospital affiliates. The capsule contains two small batteries and a wireless antenna that transmits data. The ingestible sensor, which is the size of a vitamin capsule, traveled through the gastrointestinal tract, and collected signals from the device while it was in the stomach. The participants stayed at a sleep lab overnight while the device recorded respiration, heart rate, temperature and gastric motility. The sensor was also able to detect sleep apnea in one of the patients during the trial. The findings suggest that the ingestible was able to measure health metrics on par with medical-grade diagnostic equipment at the sleep center. Traditionally, patients that need to get diagnosed with specific sleep disorders are required to stay overnight at a sleep lab, where they get hooked onto an array of sensors and devices. Ingestible sensor technology eliminates the need for that. Importantly, MIT says there were no adverse effects reported due to capsule ingestion. The capsule typically passes through a patient within a day or so, though that short internal shelf life may also limit how effective it could be as a monitoring device. Traverso told Engadget that he aims to have Celetro, which he co-founded, eventually contain a mechanism that will allow the capsule to sit in a patients stomach for a week. Dr. Ali Rezai, the executive chair of the West Virginia University Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, said that there is a huge potential for creating a new pathway through this device that will help providers identify when a patient is overdosing according to their vitals. In the future, researchers even anticipate that devices could incorporate drugs internally: overdose reversal agents, such as nalmefene, could be slowly administered if a sensor records that a persons breathing rate slowed or stopped. More data from the studies will be made available in the coming months. Officials in Florida are investigating after they say a mother of four was found dead inside of a storage unit one week after she went missing. Shakeira Rucker was last seen by her children on Saturday, Nov. 11, when she left her home in Winter Springs with her estranged husband, Cory Hill, officials say, WFTV reported. The two had gone to a restaurant in Polk County the night she was reported missing, WOFL reported. The last time Ruckers family heard from her, she told them she had picked up food and was on the way home, WESH reported. Two days after Rucker was last seen, Hill was arrested on unrelated charges of four counts of attempted murder and was accused of shooting at his girlfriend and family on Nov. 12, officials said at a news conference held Nov. 19 and streamed on the Orange County Sheriffs Offices Facebook page. But officials say Hill refused to talk about Ruckers disappearance, WOFL reported. On Nov. 18, officials received a call from a storage unit facility in Apopka about a smell coming from one of the storage units, Orange County Sheriff John Mina said at the news conference. When authorities entered the storage unit, they found Rucker dead from gunshot wounds, Mina said. Mina said the storage unit is registered to Hill. Records did not list an attorney who could comment on his behalf. Cory Hill could have stopped a lot of that pain and suffering by talking to investigators in the very beginning, instead of putting them through this week-long nightmare. The storage unit was registered to him, he had to have known that we would eventually find her in there, Mina said. Hill is the prime suspect in Ruckers disappearance and in her death, officials said. Since he is already jailed with no bond, Mina said they have not officially charged him in Ruckers death yet, but charges will be filed soon. Hill was convicted of murder in 1993, Mina said at the news conference. Officials say they have not determined a motive yet and say they believe Rucker was killed at the storage unit where she was found. Friends and family have taken to social media sharing their grief over Ruckers death. One person wrote that she was ripped away from her babies. The memories we share I will cherish them for a lifetime, sleep peacefully beautiful, another person wrote on Facebook. Apopka is about 20 miles northwest of Orlando. Deputy kidnaps girl and kills her mom, grandparents days after he was hired, suit says Loving father and football coach missing since June found dead, Michigan cops say Pregnant woman shot by husband during argument over their finances, Illinois cops say A Michigan mother was arrested for leaving her 1-year-old baby on the beach, a Florida woman was arrested for allegedly attacking an elderly woman over a thermostat, a Florida woman was scammed out of $5,000 by her daughter, an 11-year-old Florida boy fabricated a bomb threat because of TikTok, and a Florida man is accused of shooting his spouse and brother-in-law at a hotel: Here's FOX 35's Week in Review. 'She took my little brother somewhere': 911 call reports missing baby found abandoned on beach A Michigan woman is behind bars, accused of leaving her one-year-old son alone on a Florida beach. Shamika Mitchell, 37, of Detroit, faces charges including aggravated child abuse. A frantic 17-year-old called 911 just after midnight on Nov. 8 as he desperately searched for his baby brother. "She took my little brother somewhere," he said. Florida woman attacks elderly woman after she adjusted thermostat, deputies say Photo: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office A Florida woman was arrested after she allegedly "tried to trip" the "face off" an elderly woman after she adjusted the thermostat, according to deputies. Breiland Springer was arrested and charged with battery on a person older than 65 after the incident that unfolded in Palm Beach County on Nov. 2, according to an arrest affidavit from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. Deputies responded to a development around 4:45 p.m. in response to a domestic call. The victim said she adjusted the thermostat at around 1 a.m. and Springer allegedly came up behind her and grabbed her by her face, according to the affidavit. She "tried to rip my face off," the woman told deputies, adding that she was able to get away. Florida woman scammed out of $5,000 by 'daughter' and fake defense attorney, deputies say Florida deputies are warning of a new scam affecting residents that involves a family member being "arrested" and needing bail money. Earlier this week, a resident reported a scam to the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office after she was called by an unknown person saying her daughter was in jail and needed $5,000 to post bond. The person said a defense attorney by the name of Matt Arnold would meet her to get the money. The woman went to the bank, took out $5,000, met the "defense attorney" at her house and gave him the cash, according to deputies. Florida boy, 11, said he fabricated bomb threat because of TikTok: deputies An 11-year-old student at a Florida middle school is potentially facing serious charges after allegedly making a fake bomb threat during class last week - admitting that he was inspired by an apparent trend on TikTok. According to a Lake County Sheriff's Office arrest affidavit obtained by FOX 35, the boy a student at Umatilla Middle School stood up during his second period class and yelled, "There is a bomb on campus." He was taken to the school's main office and admitted to deputies that "he made the statement because of a TicTok (sic) [TikTok)," according to the report. "[TikTok] has you yell out statements to get points," the report said. He ultimately told deputies, "It was only a joke and there is no bomb." Florida man accused of shooting spouse, brother-in-law at hotel following wedding A Florida man was arrested after reportedly shooting his spouse and brother-in-law following a wedding in Franklin, Tennessee, over the weekend, according to police. Cody Wiggins, 29, was booked into the Williamson County Jail on charges of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, aggravated domestic assault, and tampering with evidence, the Franklin Police Department said in a news release. Franklin police officers were called out to the Marriott of Cool Springs around 9:30 p.m. on Saturday for reports of an "active shooter." When they arrived at the hotel, they found the two injured victims and immediately began rendering aid. They were taken to Vanderbilt Hospital. As of Tuesday morning, their conditions remain unknown. Wiggins left the hotel before officers arrived but was later found by police in a nearby subdivision. A UNHCR worker talks to Rohingya refugees who landed in western Indonesia on Sunday (AMANDA JUFRIAN) Three boats filled with more than 500 Rohingya refugees landed in Indonesia's westernmost province on Sunday, a UN agency said, in one of the biggest arrivals since Myanmar launched a military crackdown on the minority group in 2017. The mostly Muslim Rohingya are heavily persecuted in Myanmar, and thousands risk their lives each year on long and expensive sea journeys, often in flimsy boats, to try to reach Malaysia or Indonesia. United Nations refugee agency protection associate Faisal Rahman told AFP one boat had arrived in Aceh province's Bireuen district with 256 people aboard, while at least 241 others arrived in Aceh's Pidie region and a smaller boat carrying 36 arrived in East Aceh. "They were found in several spots," Rahman said Sunday. Of the 256 aboard the Bireuen boat, 110 were women and 60 were children, he said. It was the same boat that locals had pushed back out to sea on Thursday, leaving it stranded off the coast for several days, according to Rahman. "It's confirmed... because many people were identified by security officials during the landing," he said. The latest arrivals mean more than 800 refugees have landed in Aceh province this week alone, after 196 arrived on Tuesday and 147 on Wednesday, according to local officials. An AFP journalist saw the Rohingya boat docked on the beach in Bireuen after the refugees had disembarked. The refugees were being held at a temporary shelter while awaiting a decision from authorities on their fate, and were mostly in good health. Bireuen regional secretary Ibrahim Ahmad told reporters Sunday the refugees' cases would be handled by other institutions, without elaborating. In Pidie, Marfian, a spokesperson for the local fishing community who like many Indonesians goes by one name, confirmed to AFP that a boat of nearly 250 refugees landed overnight. One of them, 20-year-old Aziz Ullah, said he was living in a camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh before the group started their journey 16 days ago. "The (reason) behind our journey was that... the Myanmar government committed violence (against us) again and again," he told AFP. "I just want a peaceful life, anywhere. If I will get a peaceful life here, I will stay here." - 'Very distressing' - But Hasan Basri, another leader of the fishing community in Pidie, told reporters they would reject Rohingya people, claiming refugees had committed crimes in the area in the past. Those who arrived in the Pidie region landed at around 3:00 am local time (2000 GMT Saturday) and walked into the nearest village of Kulee from the coast without the knowledge of locals, said Basri. "They already arrived and it is our obligation as humans to give them food and drinks," he said. "Our reason to reject them is because the attitude and character of the refugees are not in line with the Aceh people. Their conduct is very distressing, this is what we really don't like." During this week's arrivals, some Rohingya aboard one vessel made a desperate dash for shore after residents refused to let them land. They collapsed to the sand and begged for their exhausted fellow passengers to be allowed to disembark. Chris Lewa, director of Rohingya rights organisation the Arakan Project, said it was the "beginning of the sailing season" for boats from Bangladesh across to Indonesia, which is often used as a transit point to Malaysia where many Rohingya refugees settle. A 2020 investigation by AFP revealed a multimillion-dollar, constantly evolving people-smuggling operation stretching from a massive refugee camp in Bangladesh to Indonesia and Malaysia, in which members of the stateless Rohingya community play a key role in trafficking their own people. More than 2,000 Rohingya are believed to have attempted the risky journey to other Southeast Asian countries in 2022, according to UNHCR. Nearly 200 Rohingya died or went missing last year while attempting hazardous sea crossings, the agency has estimated. str-mrc-jfx/sco More details regarding a possible deal between Israel and Hamas, facilitated by the U.S., emerged on Saturday. A tentative deal to pause the conflict for at least five days in exchange for the release of dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza is near agreement, according to The Washington Post. The outlet previously reported on the potential deal, citing an Arab diplomat, but the details remained foggy at the time. New information suggests that Israel may agree to the deal, and the first substantial pause in fighting could now begin in days. The six-page agreement reportedly stipulates that around 50 hostages would begin to be released every 24 hours. Its believed that about 239 hostages remain in Hamas hands. Overhead surveillance would be employed to ensure the deal is adhered to, therefore allowing for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, notes the Post. Israel had previously agreed to daily pauses of around four to five hours to let aid enter for the Palestinian people but has staunchly refused to consider any significant pauses until hostages are freed. In Saturday comments, White House adviser Brett McGurk said a hostage release would lead to a massive surge in humanitarian relief. The surge in humanitarian relief, the surge in fuel, the pause in fighting will come with hostages are released, he said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Biden have echoed similar sentiments, but both have dismissed the possibility of a cease-fire, instead discussing the option of tactical pauses. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. More than a million Palestinians in Gaza are now displaced; why are Arab countries not opening their doors? JERUSALEM At a summit of leaders from more than 50 Arab and Muslim states held last weekend in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Israels military response in Gaza following Hamas Oct. 7 massacre was fiercely condemned. But what was missing from the gatherings final statement was any immediate solution for the 2.3 million civilians of the Palestinian enclave, more than half of whom are now internally displaced after nearly six weeks of fighting. While the final resolution called for an immediate end to "the brutal Israeli aggression on Gaza" and made offers of humanitarian and financial aid to the Palestinians, not one country came forward with a viable solution, even temporarily, for the 1.5 million civilians who, according to the latest U.N. figures, are now internally displaced in the southern section of the Strip. As the death toll in Gaza rises, thousands of civilians continue to flee the conflict and head southward, where the Israeli military has said it is safer and where truckloads of food, water, and medicine arrive daily via the Rafah Crossing with Egypt. The U.N. estimates 250,000 fled in the past week alone. 400 AMERICANS APPROVED TO LEAVE GAZA AS ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR RAGES Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, fifth from right, poses for a family photo during the Extraordinary Joint Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League at King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Nov. 11, 2023. Some have questioned why nearby Arab countries, who have provided temporary shelter in the past to civilians from other regional conflicts, appear unwilling to even discuss sheltering the refugees from Gaza. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "Arab states have historically been divided with regard to their stance on the Palestinian people and numerous other significant issues," Ahed Al-Hindi, a senior fellow at the Center for Peace Communications, told Fox News Digital. "Although these states project solidarity with the Palestinian people, they hold divergent views on the most effective course of action." "Certain countries, including those in the Arab Gulf, Jordan, Morocco and Egypt advocate for a two-state solution, which they believe can be accomplished through diplomacy. Conversely, the Iranian axis espouses the ideology of obliterating Israel and establishing a Palestinian state extending from the river to the sea." Al-Hindi said the primary reason why even the moderate states, most of which have diplomatic ties with Israel, have not taken practical steps to help the civilian population in Gaza is due to their aversion to Hamas and its goals." "As a result, many Arab countries are concerned that aiding the Gazans could inadvertently benefit Hamas, given that the organization has ruled in Gaza for nearly a generation," he said. "Hamas is a network affiliate of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Muslim Brotherhood opposes every Arab monarch. This poses significant internal risks to the aforementioned states." GAZA RESIDENTS SPEAK OF HAMAS BRUTALITY AMID DESIRES FOR PEACE IN THE REGION "Ideologies of the Muslim Brotherhood advocate for the overthrow of Arab monarchies and the formation of a Sunni revolutionary Islamic republic, which would resemble Iran but operate under the banner of Sunni jihadism," Al-Hindi added. "Since Hamas serves as an agent for Iran, which in turn presents an additional danger to Arab monarchs, the majority of these nations are worried that their assistance to Gaza may fall into the clutches of Hamas." The two Arab countries bordering Israel on either side Egypt and Jordan have both pointedly refused to offer refuge to any number of Palestinians from Gaza, even though Jordan already has a large Palestinian population and Egypts expansive and sparsely populated Sinai Peninsula is just a few miles from where the thousands of Palestinians are now being cared for by international aid agencies. Earlier this month, Egypts Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly dismissed calls for displaced Palestinians to resettle in the Sinai desert, saying his country would protect its land and sovereignty at any cost. His comments came following the revelation of an Israeli intelligence document proposing that residents of the Strip be evacuated to tent cities in Sinai as the Israeli military works to destroy Hamas. An aerial picture taken from a commercial airplane shows a view of Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on the Sinai Peninsula. "We are ready to sacrifice millions of lives to protect our territory from any encroachment," Madbouly said in a recent speech, advocating that a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians was the only comprehensive resolution that would guarantee regional peace. Hussain Abdul-Hussain, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that such a solution should have been touted by the international community at the onset of the war. "Washington should have made the humanitarian argument, helped fund a camp for Gaza refugees in Sinai and guaranteed their return after the end of the war," he said. "This would have convinced Egyptians to take them." Tents set up for Palestinians seeking refuge along the Gaza Strip Oct. 20, 2023. Still, said Abdul-Hussain, both Jordan and Egypt also have their own domestic concerns driving their refusal to offer refuge to Palestinians now displaced due to the fighting. "Jordan is not an option," he said, adding that it does not border Gaza, and logistically it is not feasible to move hundreds of thousands of Gazans there. Egypts resistance, Abdul-Hussain said, stems from President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi's view of Hamas, a Palestinian off-shoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, which the Egyptian leader has been fighting since he came to power. 300 MILES OF HAMAS SUBTERRANEAN TERROR TUNNELS THE NEXT BIG CHALLENGE FOR IDF: 'GAZA METRO' A man walks in front of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency building as UNRWA personnel strike, demanding a salary increase because of the high cost of living in Gaza City, Gaza, Jan. 30, 2023. "Transplanting Gazans, with thousands of possible Hamas cadres or partisans, into his Sinai, where he battled ISIS, might scare the Egyptians a bit," he explained. Hussain also pointed out that even if Egypt did want to take in the Gazan refugees, the countrys financial instability made it impossible. While the practical arguments presented by these two Arab countries are plausible, there is also a deeper, ideological and even emotional reason rooted in the regions history, mostly dating back to Israels creation in 1948. In fact, many of the images coming out of Gaza in recent days, with columns of shabbily dressed and clearly shaken civilians trekking miles on foot to reach safety in the south, have been compared to what Palestinians refer to as the Nakba, or "catastrophe," when an estimated 700,000 Palestinians chose to leave their homes or were forced to flee to neighboring countries during Israels war for independence. "The Arab world, particularly countries like Egypt and Jordan, have found themselves in a very uncomfortable situation," said Michael Horowitz, a geopolitical and security analyst and head of intelligence at Leo Beck International. "They need to show support for Palestinians in Gaza because a large majority of the Arab public sympathizes with the Palestinian cause. But there is not much they can do beyond token statements of support and limited aid." Horowitz said the notion of Egypt or Jordan hosting Palestinian refugees was a "non-starter." "Doing so would actually anger the pro-Palestinian segments of their population, who would feel that they are actively facilitating a "second Nakba," he said, adding that such a move would be so unpopular among the public it could even destabilize some of those countries. Terrorists from Hamas during an anti-Israel military march in Gaza City. "Arab states feel they should not be held responsible for Israel's conflict with the Palestinians, which to them stands at the origin of much that ails the region," said Joost Hilterman, program director for the Middle East and North Africa at the International Crisis Group. "To them, Israel, as the occupying power, has absolute responsibility for the welfare of the Palestinian population." Hilterman also noted that the Palestinians "do not want to leave Palestine and become refugees again, and both Egypt and the Palestinian population of Gaza fear that the temporary will become permanent, especially if Israel renders Gaza uninhabitable, which it is well on its way in doing." Original article source: More than a million Palestinians in Gaza are now displaced; why are Arab countries not opening their doors? Russian air defense systems successfully intercepted an unmanned aerial vehicle on approach to Moscow, according to the citys mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, on Nov. 19. Last night, in the Bogorodsky municipal district, air defense forces prevented an attempted attack on Moscow by an unmanned aerial vehicle, Sobyanin said. Read also: Huge blast and fire at Russian military unit near Volgograd video According to preliminary data, the incident did not cause any damage or injuries. Emergency services are working at the scene. The drone was reportedly shot down around 1 a.m. Moscow time, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. 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 body of Dexter Wade is transferred from an SUV to a hearse for transport to a funeral home as his mother Bettersten Wade, center, watches, in Raymond, Miss., Nov. 13, 2023. (Emily Kask/The New York Times) JACKSON, Miss. For months, Bettersten Wade called the police in Jackson, Mississippi, desperate for any update or sign that detectives were making progress in tracking down Dexter, her 37-year-old son who left their home one day in March and vanished. Each conversation ended in frustration. They never seemed any closer to finding him, she said. And yet, records show that investigators for the Jackson Police Department knew exactly where Dexter Wade was. An off-duty police officer driving an SUV had struck and killed him on the same day that his mother last saw him, according to officials and coroners records. A deputy coroner said he was identified by a bottle of prescription medication he was carrying and through fingerprints. Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times Bettersten Wade kept searching for more than five months, unaware that her son had been buried behind the local jail, in a ragged cemetery for the poor and unclaimed where graves are marked by small, numbered signs poking out of the dirt. All that time, they knew where hes at, Wade said of the Jackson police in a recent interview. They knew who he was. Officials in Jackson, a city of 150,000, have described Dexter Wades burial and the long delay in informing his mother of his death as regrettable but honest mistakes, a matter of miscommunication within an overburdened police department. But Bettersten Wade was not inclined to give the police the benefit of the doubt. Four years ago, three officers had been charged with murder after they pulled her brother from his car and slammed him to the ground. Wade wanted her son removed from the unmarked paupers grave. She wanted to be there when it happened, praying over his remains as they were raised from the dirt. And she wanted answers from an independent autopsy and, she hoped, an investigation into her sons death and how it was handled by the police. You cant write it off as a mistake, you cant write it off as a miscommunication, Wade said. I dont exactly know why they did it. Thats what I want to find out. What happened to Dexter Wade drew national attention when NBC News reported on the case on Oct. 25. The next day, Wades family retained Ben Crump, the civil rights lawyer who handles high-profile cases of police misconduct across the country. Activists and elected officials have now joined Bettersten Wade in urging federal investigators to step in. The system owes Mr. Wades family an explanation for the callous manner in which his untimely death was mishandled, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said in a statement. Chokwe Antar Lumumba, Jacksons mayor, addressed Wades death in a speech last month, saying that he had not seen any evidence of police misconduct or malicious intent. Wades death, and the failure to tell his mother about it for months, honestly was an unfortunate and tragic accident, he said. Still, lawyers for Wades family said that city and police officials have failed to provide any clarity about how his death was handled. The preliminary findings from an independent autopsy directly contradicted some of the statements from officials, including that he was not carrying identification. The fact that Dexter had a state identification card and several other identifying items, Crump said in a statement, shows us that there was a concerted effort to keep the truth and manner of his death from his family. The Hinds County coroner did not respond to messages seeking comment Friday. A spokesperson for the Police Department referred a reporter to the citys spokesperson, who said Friday that the city was in no position to comment on what was in Wades possession. From the moment the coroner arrived on the scene of the accident until the moment Dexter Wade was buried, his body was in the custody of Hinds County and not the City of Jackson, Melissa Faith Payne, the spokesperson, said in a statement. On March 5, Wade left home with a friend, his mother said. After about a week without hearing a word from him, she called the police to report him missing. It was unusual for him to leave home for a long period without sharing his plans with her. Hed always let me know, she said. He had worked as a roofer, and he mostly stuck close to home, mowing the lawn and spending time with his children on visits. His mother knew he had been struggling with mental illness. He moved in with her after he was released from prison in 2017. After them six years, something just happened, she said, referring to the time he spent incarcerated for an armed robbery conviction. Coroners records show that at about 8 p.m. March 5, Wade was hit while apparently trying to cross the southbound lanes of Interstate 55, southwest of downtown Jackson. Officials said the driver was an off-duty police officer in a department vehicle. His death was ruled accidental by the Hinds County coroner. A toxicology screening found phencyclidine, known as PCP, and methamphetamine in his system. The coroners office called Hinds Behavioral Health Services, which had prescribed the medication he was carrying. The clinic confirmed that Wade was a patient and provided the coroners office with his mothers name and a phone number, according to notes attached to his death certificate. A deputy coroner tried the phone number, records showed, but there was no answer. Bettersten Wade said she did not receive a call. Then, the information was given to the police to try to reach her. The deputy coroner checked in with police several times over the next few months to ask if anyone planned to claim the body, and there were no updates, according to notes in the coroners records. On July 14, Dexter Wade was buried at the Hinds County Penal Farm. Bettersten Wade kept calling the missing persons investigators at the Police Department. Over the summer, the detective handling the case retired and a new investigator took over. Within two weeks, an officer showed up at Wades home, telling her that her son had died. Wade was shocked and infuriated by the failure to inform her sooner. She believes she should have been familiar to the department: Not only had she hounded the agency to help find her missing son, she had also been a visible critic of the Jackson police after her brother, George Robinson, was fatally beaten by officers in 2019. An internal investigation into Robinsons death cleared the officers of wrongdoing before the county prosecutor revived the case and brought criminal charges. Charges against two of the officers were later dismissed; a third officer was convicted of manslaughter by culpable negligence and sentenced to five years in prison. Wade was hopeful that exhuming her son could bring her a measure of peace. A letter from the countys lawyer confirmed that Dexter Wades body would be exhumed on Nov. 13 at 11:30 a.m. It is the procedure of the coroner to exhume the body from the burial site in the presence of representatives of the Hinds County Sheriff Department, coroners office and the funeral home that will receive the body, the letter said. Instead, when Bettersten Wade and employees of the funeral home showed up Monday morning, his remains had been dug up hours earlier by an unsupervised public works crew. Wade broke into tears as she stood in the paupers cemetery, dressed in black. She was crushed. She was angry. She was exhausted. I dont matter, she said. It dont matter what I think and what I feel. Nothing matters. The familys lawyers said a chain of custody had been broken, denying them a chance to know how the remains had been handled. We dont know whether he was in a box, whether he was in a bag, what exact condition he was in, said Dennis C. Sweet, one of the lawyers. Dexter Wades body had not been embalmed, according to the preliminary findings of the independent autopsy released Thursday. It showed blunt force injuries to his skull, ribs and pelvis, and his left leg was severed. His wallet was in his front pocket. It had his credit card, his health insurance card and his state identification card, which listed the address where he had lived with his mother. c.2023 The New York Times Company Bob Stewart MP leaves court on Nov 3 after being found guilty of racially abusing Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei by saying to him "go back to Bahrain" and "you're taking money off my country" during a row outside the Foreign Office's Lancaster House in Westminster - JAMES MANNING/PA Bob Stewart, the Conservative MP who relinquished the party whip after being convicted of racist abuse, has announced he is standing down at the next election. Mr Stewart, who has represented the south-east London constituency of Beckenham since 2010, said he would not seek re-election in a brief statement on Twitter, which made no reference to the recent conviction. Earlier this month, a Government source told the PA news agency that Mr Stewart had informed Simon Hart, the chief whip, that he wished to surrender the party whip until a possible appeal of his conviction is resolved. Mr Stewart currently sits as an independent MP in the House of Commons. Serving Beckenham as its Member of Parliament for 13 years has been an honour and privilege. I am incredibly grateful to everyone who has given me this opportunity. However, it is time for a new candidate, so I will not be seeking re-election at the next election. Bob Stewart MP (@Bob4Beckenham) November 18, 2023 The geographical boundary of the Beckenham constituency is expected to be changed at the next general election following a regular review process carried out by the Boundary Commission for England, which is seeking to introduce greater uniformity in population sizes across the seats for Westminster. A new constituency of Beckenham and Penge has been proposed. Mr Stewart, 74, who is also a former British Army officer and served as a United Nations commander in Bosnia, was earlier this month found guilty at Londons Westminster magistrates court of racially abusing an activist by telling him to go back to Bahrain. Paul Goldspring, the chief magistrate, found the MP guilty of a racially aggravated public order offence, and despite mentioning Mr Stewarts immense positive character, remarked: I accept he is not racist per se, but that is not the case against him. Good men can do bad things. A crowdfunding page to cover Mr Stewarts fine and legal costs has raised 18,000 so far - JAMES MANNING/PA Mr Stewart had been attending an event hosted by the Bahraini embassy in London on Dec 14 last year when confronted with a protester who asked him for how much did you sell yourself to the Bahraini regime? Addressing the allegation of racist abuse, Mr Stewart has previously said: Thats absurd, its totally unfair, my life has been, I dont want to say destroyed, but I am deeply hurt at having to appear in a court like this. The MP said he was not a racist, and added: Go back to Bahrain meant Why dont you go back to Bahrain and make your point there? A crowdfunding page set up by Brendan Clarke-Smith, the Conservative MP for Bassetlaw, to cover Mr Stewarts fine and any further legal costs has already raised more than 18,000. Mr Stewart joins a growing list of Tory MPs who have announced they will not stand at the next general election, expected next 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. Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mike Mullen said that Secretary of State Antony Blinkens reaction to President Biden calling Chinese President Xi Jinping a dictator was accurate, adding that the president should not be calling Xi any names. I think the wincing is accurate, and I actually think we need to stay away from name-calling at that level. It doesnt help in any way. One of the things Ive learned across the globe is people like to be treated with respect. And you need to do that, particularly at that level, Mullen said on ABCs This Week. Biden once again called Xi a dictator last week after meeting with the Chinese leader for hours, in which he said they made agreements on resuming military-to-military communication and dealing with the influx of fentanyl into the U.S. A video circulating on social media showed Blinken reacting to the remarks, where he appears to wince at Bidens off-the-cuff response to a question as he was exiting a press conference. Best Black Friday Deals Look, he is, Biden said when asked if he would still refer to Xi as a dictator. Hes a dictator in the sense that hes a guy who runs a country that is a communist country that is based on a form of government totally different than ours. China pushed back on Biden calling Xi a dictator last week, with Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning telling reporters Thursday it strongly opposes the comments. Biden previously called Xi a dictator in June, when the Chinese president got upset after finding out that a Chinese spy balloon had been shot down without his knowing about it. The meeting came as tensions between China and the U.S. have been rising for months. Biden said that he was blunt with Xi on some of the more fraught issues between the two countries while still boasting about other areas of cooperation with Xi. Mullen praised Biden for the meeting in California last week but warned that the relationship between the two countries could still be difficult in the future. Well, I think it really is important because we shouldnt underestimate how bad the relationship has been, how difficult it is not just now, but I think in the future, he said. So I think its a the meeting was a big deal, and in particular, as weve talked about how bad the military-to-military communications issue was, now that its reestablished, to me, thats a big accomplishment, he added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, Mich. (WOOD) Muskegon Heights police say they have made four arrests in their investigation of an alleged dogfighting ring. The Muskegon Heights Police Department said it carried out search warrants on four Muskegon Heights residents and one Norton Shores resident on Friday. In total, police said they removed 22 dogs and found one dog dead. They also arrested four people: Three were arrested on dogfighting charges, and one had a previous warrant for their arrest, according to MHPD. The police department said it is still investigating the alleged ring and anticipates more arrests will follow. Anyone with information is asked to contact MHPD at 231.733.8900 or Silent Observer at 231.722.7463. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. A recent wave of tenant protections have been enacted locally to help renter households stay housed. Praised by tenant rights advocates, these protections were primarily intended to slow down economic evictions, the displacement of tenants due to significant rent increases. Other measures were intended to improve living conditions. Not too surprisingly, these changes havent been universally welcomed by landlords, some of whom see these measures as going too far. Are there better approaches? In 2022, both Olympia and Tumwater city councils voted to slow down rent increases by extending the required notices of rent increase to a minimum 120 days for increases between 5-10% and a 180 days for increases greater than 10%. Under state law, landlords must provide a minimum of 60 days notice of any rent increase, which locally would apply to increases of less than 5%. Additionally, both cities offer landlord-tenant information on their websites. Beyond these required notices, Olympia is considering a rental property registration program intended to support housing preservation, ensuring basic health and safety for tenants, supporting landlords by sharing information and resources, and gathering data about housing trends to target needs, according to the citys Proposed Rental Housing Registry and Inspection Program. Lacey has an existing rental registry program with more limited goals to prevent neighborhood blight and deterioration... to offer incentives for the voluntary compliance by the owners of all residential rental buildings with the Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) Program, and participation by the owners of all multiple-family rental buildings in the Crime Free Multi-Family Housing Program, according to the citys Municipal Code. In all three cities, these tenant protection laws were developed by staff, discussed in public meetings and then voted into law by their respective city councils. While the Olympia City Council-level decision reflects the 52% renter majority population of Olympia, homeowners are the majority in both Lacey (57%) and Tumwater (56%). Tenant protections are being enacted in other parts of Washington, where similar measures are being supported by cities with majority owner-occupants. The Tacoma City Council ran a tenant protections ballot measure in the recent election, where it passed by a slim margin of 361 votes. Its notable that Tacoma is 56% owner-occupied. By letting the voters decide, Tacomas new law clearly shows that a majority are concerned about renters in their community. Tacoma News Tribune columnist and editor Matt Driscoll summed it up well in a Nov. 15 opinion piece: From the start, Ive acknowledged the issues the citizen-led effort is designed to address are real. Ive also argued that everything the initiative includes are protections renters in Tacoma deserve. Still, the initiatives approach feels unnecessarily and indiscriminately vindictive, placing too much of the burden of systemic failures squarely on landlords, no matter who they are. Locally, some landlords echo Driscolls assessment. Reluctant to be quoted, these landlords privately share concerns that the protections will make it too expensive for them to stay in the rental property business. Some noted that it might backfire and cause more private rental property owners to sell off their properties, leaving a larger share of corporate-owned rental housing stock. And none of these measures remedy the fact that over half of Thurston County renters are paying more than 30% of their income for housing, and that 75% of extremely low-income renters pay over half of their income on rent, according to the Thurston Regional Housing Council. Thats a lot of folks at risk of homelessness. Clearly, local renters need help. While landlords may prefer a free-market approach to keep rental rates lower through competition, it appears the market continues to price out low-income tenants. Finding ways to reduce rental costs would offer the greatest relief for low-income renters, but not if it drives more landlords to sell. A more balanced approach of some regulation, more accessible rental assistance and incentives for property owners to keep rents affordable may offer the most lasting solution. Anna Schlecht is retired from the City of Olympia where she worked on housing and homeless issues for several decades. This column is part of her year-long exploration of housing issues in our region. Jim Langevin is the Distinguished Chair of the Institute for Cybersecurity and Emerging Technologies and a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Jen Easterly is the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Cybersecurity has fast become one of the most important issues of the day, for all Rhode Islanders, and across our nation. In late 2018, Congress established the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA), recognizing the importance of creating a civilian cyber defense agency completely dedicated to keeping the critical infrastructure Americans rely on every day safe from cyber threats. Former U.S. Rep. James Langevin was central to passing the legislation that created CISA, and over the past few years we have worked together to address our nations cybersecurity challenges from our respective roles: one as a cybersecurity leader in Congress and the other as the current head of CISA. What we see is that the challenge of cybersecurity is only growing more complex and the threats more impactful, with the scourge of ransomware having devastating impacts on small businesses across the country. This reality makes cybersecurity a key issue for every business and municipality across the country, yet it is estimated that hundreds of thousands of cybersecurity positions remain unfilled. More: Cyberattack affects two RI hospitals. What patients should know. CISA has committed to closing the cybersecurity workforce gap by creating a more inclusive workforce and streamlining our hiring processes to attract and retain cyber talent from across the nation. Given that there are over a half million unfilled positions in the U.S. and 2,700 job openings in Rhode Island, this work is crucial. But how do we recruit talent? How do we identify talent? To prepare for tomorrow, we must invest today. The Cyber Institute is preparing the next generation of cyber professionals with the skills to meet the growing challenges and demands of a rapidly evolving industry. Rhode Island College is rising to meet this challenge with the launch earlier this month of the Institute for Cybersecurity and Emerging Technologies. As the first and only business-oriented cybersecurity degree program in Rhode Island, the Cyber Institute will make strides in developing a diverse pipeline of talented leaders. The Cyber Institute is positioned to prepare the next generation of cyber professionals with the technical and business skills to meet the growing challenges and demands of a rapidly evolving industry. The campus is already attracting thought leaders and educators to Rhode Island to develop best practices and policy approaches to current cybersecurity challenges. More: Sewer commission paid quarter-million-dollar ransom to end cyberattack Tackling cybersecurity often requires creative problem solving, and thats exactly what the Cyber Institute strives to do: provide hands on experience to students from diverse backgrounds to prepare them for the future. Real world opportunities through paid internships will be available to students looking to work with Rhode Island businesses and government agencies, in particular allowing underserved students the opportunity to gain valuable experience that might otherwise have been out of reach. Building cyber resiliency will take a whole-of-nation approach, which is why we are thrilled to be standing together once again at the beginnings of something big: the launch of the Cyber Institute. The future of the nations cybersecurity is bright. This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RIC is meeting this challenge with the launch of the Institute for Cybersecurity and Emerging Technologies. Legendary French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte's hat was auctioned off today. It was expected to go for between 600,000 euros and 800,000 euros, or around $655,000 to $873,000. It actually fetched around 1.9 million euros, which is about $2.1 million. A hat owned by the legendary French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte went up for auction today. The bidding started at Osenat auction house in Fontainebleau, Paris, on Sunday and the hat was expected to be sold for between 600,000 euros, which is about $655,000, and 800,000 euros, which is around $873,000. But the iconic hat ended up going for 1.9 million euros, which is roughly $2.1 million, to a buyer who has not yet made themself known, the BBC reported. The bicorne black beaver felt hat is one of around 120 bicorne hats that Napoleon owned during his reign in the 19th century. Napoleon would wear the hat sideways to make himself easier to spot in battle, as it distinguished him from other officers who wore their hats facing forward. "People recognised this hat everywhere. When they saw it on the battlefields, they knew Napoleon was there," Jean-Pierre Osenat, the head of the Osenat auction house, said, per the BBC. "And when in private, he always had it on his head or he had it in his hand, and sometimes he threw it on the ground. That was the image the symbol of the emperor." Osenat told The Associated Press that for people who are fans of Napoleon, "it's the holy grail to have a hat." "There's about 20 left that are authentic and about 15 of them are kept in museums, so there's about 4 or 5 that are in collectors' hands," he said. The 1.932 million euro fee is a new record for one of the hats, just pipping the 1.884 million euros a South Korean collector paid in 2014, The Guardian reported. The auctioning of another of Napoleon's hats in 2014. DOMINIQUE FAGET/Getty Images Napoleon's wooden vanity case is also up for auction today. The case contains some of his razors, a silver toothbrush, and a pair of scissors. All the items come from the collection of a collector named Jean-Louis Noisiez, per The AP. "Napoleon," a movie about the emperor's rise to power, is set to be released on November 22. It features Joaquin Phoenix in the lead role. Read the original article on Insider Joaquin Phoenix and Sir Ridley Scott at the UK premiere of Napoleon on Nov 15 - Scott Garfitt/Invision Sir Ridley Scott has dismissed criticism that his spectacular Napoleon biopic is anti-French, saying the French dont even like themselves. The directors interpretation of the story of the French soldier turned emperor, starring Joaquin Phoenix with a running time of two hours 38 minutes, has been criticised in Napoleons native land as being riddled with historical inaccuracies. Patrice Gueniffey, a historian and author of two books on the Emperor, said the film not only peddled myths about Napoleon but was also too pro-British to be a credible account of his life. Sir Ridley responded: The French dont even like themselves. The audience that I showed it to in Paris, they loved it. Mr Gueniffey, the author of Bonaparte and Napoleon and de Gaulle: Two French Heroes, has damned the film. In an interview with French magazine Le Point he pointed out that Napoleon was not present at the execution of Marie Antoinette and did not fire a cannon at an Egyptian pyramid, as seen in the film. Joaquin Phoenix stars as Napoleon Bonaparte - Apple TV+ He said Sir Ridley had created a caricature of Napoleon as a sullen boor and a cad with his wife, Josephine rather than the complex politician and military leader who shaped history. He also called the film very anti-French and very pro-English. He said: The proof that this film is by an Englishman is that the most successful sequence is devoted to Waterloo and the revenge of Wellington, promoted to hero at the end. Others in France have taken offence at the delivery of some of the dialogue. Le Figaro said the film could be renamed Barbie and Ken under the Empire. French GQ said there was something deeply clumsy, unnatural and unintentionally funny in seeing French soldiers in 1793 shouting Vive La France with American accents. French GQ called the film 'unintentionally funny - Apple TV+ / Courtesy Everett Collection/Shutterstock But the director of Gladiator and Alien said he had little time for historians who pointed out the films historical inaccuracies or inconsistencies, saying: Were you there? Oh you werent there. Then how do you know? Asked in a BBC interview what he thought of historians who take aim at his film, Sir Ridley said: You really want me to answer that?... it will have a bleep in it. And while some in France have panned Phoenixs portrayal of Napoleon, Sir Ridley described the star as probably the most special, thoughtful actor he has ever worked with. Sir Ridley, who turns 86 next month, said his fascination with Napoleon harked back to his first film released in 1977, The Duellists, set during the Napoleonic Wars. He added: Hes so fascinating. Revered, hated, loved, more famous than any man or leader or politician in history. How could you not want to go there? 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. The hat went for well over the estimate price (Dimitar DILKOFF) A hat belonging to Napoleon Bonaparte when he was French emperor sold for a record of nearly two million euros at a French auction on Sunday, the auction house said. It went for 1.932 million euros ($2.1 million), breaking the previous record for a Napoleonic hat, held by the same auction house, of 1.884 million euros in 2014. The hat, known as a bicorne, is in Napoleon's trademark colours -- black, with the French flag's colours blue-white-red as insignia -- and attracted collectors "from the world over" auctioneers Osenat said, declining to give the identity or nationality of the eventual buyer. It was last owned by businessman Jean-Louis Noisiez who died last year. The final price was more than double the estimate of 600,000 to 800,000 euros, and nearly four times the reserve price, the auction house based in Fontainebleau south of Paris said. Napoleon is believed to have owned around 120 such hats in total, most of which are now lost. "The hat in itself represented the emperor's image," auction house expert Jean-Pierre Osenat told AFP ahead of the sale. Napoleon wore this particular hat towards the middle of his time as emperor which lasted from 1808 to 1815, according to the auction house. Unlike most other people at the time, Napoleon wore his hat sideways, which gave him a distinct silhouette easily recognised by his troops in battle. Napoleon rose to prominence during the French Revolution, becoming a key figure in the revolutionary wars. He served the republic as first consul, and had himself crowned as emperor in 1804. He was exiled in 1815 after losing the battle against British and Prussian forces at Waterloo. He died in 1821 on the island of Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean. Sunday's hat sale comes only days before a biopic on Napoleon reaches cinemas worldwide. The film, by Ridley Scott, features massive-scale battles across Europe but also portrays his complex relationship with his wife Josephine. Joaquin Phoenix, who plays Napoleon in the movie, said of the late emperor that he was "socially awkward", but also a "romantic". vid-may/jh/pvh The hat went for well over the estimate price (Dimitar DILKOFF) A hat belonging to Napoleon Bonaparte when he was French emperor sold for a record of nearly two million euros at a French auction on Sunday, the auction house said. It went for 1.932 million euros ($2.1 million) -- breaking the previous record for a Napoleonic hat, held by the same auction house, of 1.884 million euros in 2014 shelled out by a South Korean businessman. The hat, known as a bicorne, is in Napoleon's trademark colours -- black, with the French flag's colours blue-white-red as insignia -- and attracted interest from collectors "the world over", auctioneers Osenat said, declining to give the identity or nationality of the eventual buyer. It was last owned by businessman Jean-Louis Noisiez, who died last year. Other Napoleon memorabilia from the Noisiez collection also went on the block, including a Legion of Honour medal and a pair of silver spurs owned by Napoleon. The final price for the hat, including all charges, was more than double the estimate of 600,000 to 800,000 euros, and nearly four times the reserve price, the auction house based in Fontainebleau, south of Paris, said. Napoleon is believed to have owned around 120 such hats in total over 15 years, most of which are now lost. "The hat in itself represented the emperor's image," auction house expert Jean-Pierre Osenat told AFP ahead of the sale. - 'A romantic' - Napoleon wore this particular hat towards the middle of his time as emperor, according to the auction house. Unlike most other officers at the time, Napoleon wore his hat sideways, which gave him a distinct silhouette easily recognised by his troops in battle. Napoleon rose to prominence during the French Revolution, becoming a key figure in the revolutionary wars. He served the republic as first consul, and had himself crowned as emperor in 1804. He was exiled in 1815 after losing the battle against British and Prussian forces at Waterloo. He died in 1821 on the island of Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean. Sunday's hat sale comes only days before a biopic on Napoleon reaches cinemas worldwide. The film, by Ridley Scott, features massive-scale battles across Europe but also portrays his complex relationship with his wife Josephine. Joaquin Phoenix, who plays Napoleon in the movie, said of the late emperor that he was "socially awkward", but also a "romantic". Phoenix told AFP in an interview that there had been "something almost endearing" about Napoleon, except that he was "also responsible for the deaths of millions of people". Research for the movie was complicated by the vastly different accounts that have come down through the centuries. "It's very hard to get a clear answer about many things," said Phoenix, who said his interest was in finding "inspiration more than information", through details like how Napoleon ate and drank. vid-may/jh/rox Sir Ridley Scott is famously forthright. The director of celebrated films including Gladiator, Alien, Thelma & Louise and Blade Runner certainly speaks his mind. Does he seek out advice? Asking someone what they think is a "disaster", he tells me. What about his lack of a best director Oscar - despite being at the helm of some of the most memorable films of the past four decades? "I don't really care." And as for the historians who have suggested his latest movie, Napoleon, is factually inaccurate: "You really want me to answer that?... it will have a bleep in it." We meet in a plush hotel in central London. Scott had recently arrived from Paris, where the movie - which stars Joaquin Phoenix as the French soldier turned emperor, and Vanessa Kirby as his wife (and obsession) Josephine - had its world premiere. Sir Ridley (with Phoenix and Kirby) at the Paris world premiere It's a visual spectacle that contrasts the intimacy of the couple's relationship with the actions of a man whose lust for power brought about the deaths of an estimated three million soldiers and civilians. "He's so fascinating. Revered, hated, loved more famous than any man or leader or politician in history. How could you not want to go there?" The film is two hours and 38 minutes long. Scott says if a movie is longer than three hours, you get the "bum ache factor" around two hours in, which is something he constantly watches for when he's editing. "When you start to go 'oh my God' and then you say 'Christ, we can't eat for another hour', it's too long." In spite of the "bum ache" issue, it's been reported that he plans a longer, final director's cut for Apple TV+ when the movie hits the streamer, but "we're not allowed to talk about that". Scott looked to Jacques-Louis David's painting, Napoleon Crossing the Alps Napoleon has been well reviewed in many parts of the UK media. Five stars in the Guardian for "an outrageously enjoyable cavalry charge of a movie". Four stars in The Times for this "spectacular historical epic" and in Empire for "Scott's entertaining and plausible interpretation of Napoleon". The French critics have been less positive. Le Figaro said the film could be renamed "Barbie and Ken under the Empire". French GQ said there was something "deeply clumsy, unnatural and unintentionally funny" in seeing French soldiers in 1793 shouting "Vive La France" with American accents. And a biographer of Napoleon, Patrice Gueniffey in Le Point magazine, attacked the film as a "very anti-French and very pro-British" rewrite of history. "The French don't even like themselves" Scott retorts. "The audience that I showed it to in Paris, they loved it." In his movie, Napoleon's empire-building land grabs are distilled into six vast battle scenes. One of the emperor's greatest victories, at Austerlitz in 1805, sees the Russian army lured onto an icy lake (shot at "an airfield just outside London") before the cannons are turned on them. "The reverse angle in the trees was where I made Gladiator I managed to blend them digitally so you get the scale and the scope". To prepare for battles scenes, Scott gave images which he had storyboarded to his crafts team As the cannonballs hurtle into the ice, bloodied soldiers and horses are sucked into the freezing waters, desperately trying to escape. It's dramatic. It's terrifying. It is also beautiful. "I'm blessed with a good eye, that's my strongest asset," says South Shields-born Sir Ridley, who went to art school first in Hartlepool and then London. In the 1970s he was one of the UK's most renowned commercial directors, making, he tells me, two adverts a week in his heyday. He always wanted to direct films but "I was too embarrassed to discuss it with anyone", and "I didn't know how to get in." Once he did, he rose fast. Scott's visual artistry makes him a consummate creator of worlds, whether that's outer space in Alien and The Martian, civil war Somalia in Black Hawk Down, medieval England in Robin Hood or the Roman Empire in Gladiator. Scott's 1979 science fiction horror film, Alien, was considered "culturally significant" by the US Library of Congress An accomplished artist, he does his own storyboarding. "You could publish them as comic strips," he says. "A lot of people can't translate what's on paper to what it's going to be and that's my job." His Napoleon, Joaquin Phoenix, tells me Scott also "draws pictures, as he's coming to work, of what the scene is." He finds Scott an open and receptive director. "He's figured everything out and yet he's also able to spontaneously pivot" when new ideas are suggested, on this occasion even when there were 500 extras, a huge crew and multiple cannons. Phoenix was "excited" to work with Scott again, 23 years after he was cast as the emperor Commodus in Gladiator. "The studio did not want me for Gladiator. In fact, Ridley was given an ultimatum and he fought for me and it was just this extraordinary experience." Joaquin Phoenix said Sir Ridley "fought" with the studio for him to take on the role of Commodus in Gladiator Scott has called Phoenix "probably the most special, thoughtful actor" he has ever worked with. The leading actors had freedom to develop the relationship between Napoleon and Josephine, a woman six years older than him, who he divorced because she was unable to provide him with an heir, but whose name was on his lips when he died in exile on St Helena. "France, the Army, the Head of the Army, Josephine" were the Emperor's last words. Vanessa Kirby says of her experience being directed by Scott that "none of it was prescriptive from the start and I thought that was really freeing." Vanessa Kirby says it was freeing to see the relationship between Josephine and Napoleon as "unconventional" But she adds that she had to adjust to the pace at which he works. "He moves really fast. You might have five big scenes in one day, which means you're on the fly." They shot Napoleon in just 61 days. "If you know anything about movies, that should have been 120," Scott tells me. In the early days, he used to operate the camera on his films as well as direct - think The Duellists, Alien, Thelma & Louise, though it wasn't allowed on Blade Runner. He says he realised where the real power lay - with the camera operator and the first AD - and didn't want to relinquish it. Scott's fascination with Napoleon goes back to his first film, 1977's The Duellists, set during the Napoleonic Wars On Napoleon he worked with up to 11 cameras at the same time and directed them from an air conditioned trailer, saying: "It's 180 degrees outside and I'm sitting inside shouting 'faster!'." Using all those cameras shooting from different angles "frees the actor to come off-piste and improvise" because you don't need to repeat endless takes (which is "disastrous"). Immortalising Napoleon on film was something Scott's hero Stanley Kubrick tried and failed to do. "He couldn't get it going, surprisingly, because I thought he could get anything going." That was down to money, says Scott. These costume designs were for Stanley Kubrick's meticulously researched, but unmade film about Napoleon His Napoleon watches Marie Antoinette die at the guillotine and fires a cannonball at the Sphinx. The artistic licence in this impressionistic film has put up the backs of some historians. Scott says 10,400 books have been written about Napoleon, "that's one every week since he died." His question, he tells me, to the critics who say the film isn't historically accurate is: "Were you there? Oh you weren't there. Then how do you know?" Director of photography Dariusz Wolski said Jacques-Louis David's coronation painting was an influence The moment Napoleon crowns his wife Josephine (Vanessa Kirby) Empress Scott announced he was making Napoleon on the day he wrapped his previous film, The Last Duel, which starred Jodie Comer. She was originally cast as his Josephine, but had to pull out after the dates were pushed back by the pandemic. With Napoleon heading into cinemas, Scott is about to restart filming Gladiator 2, with Paul Mescal and Denzel Washington, a shoot interrupted by the actors' strike. So why go back to Gladiator? "Why not, are you kidding?" He also has another movie in the pipeline which is already written and cast, but what it is, "I'm not going to tell you." And he will celebrate his 86th birthday later this month. Many might be happy to slow down, but not Scott. He will make films for the rest of his days, he tells me. "I go from here to Malta, I shoot in Malta, finish there and I've already recce'd what I'm doing next." So would he have any advice for his younger self? "No advice. I did pretty good. I got there," comes his characteristically direct reply. Deputy National Security Adviser Jonathan Finer said Sunday that they are closer than ever in closing a deal to secure the release of some hostages being held by militant group Hamas. NBCs Kristen Welker asked Finer on Meet the Press about reports that officials are close to securing a deal among the U.S., Israel and Hamas to release some of the 240 hostages its militants kidnapped on Oct. 7. Finer, who did not offer many details of the potential deal, said that it is not finalized yet but that they are getting closer. What I can say at this point is that some of the outstanding areas of disagreement, very complicated, very sensitive negotiation has been narrowed, Finer said. That I believe we are closer than we have been in quite some time, maybe closer than we have been since the beginning of this process to getting this deal done and we are following it minute by minute, hour by hour and have been for a number of weeks. Despite expressing optimism for a deal to be closed soon, Finer warned that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed in terms of the potential deal. When pressed further on how many hostages can potentially be released, he said they are talking considerably more than 12, but did not offer much more detail. When asked whether these potentially released hostages are women and children, Finer declined to answer. He explained that it would not be helpful to the completition of the deal to discuss more specifics. He also declined to say whether a prisoner exchange was being discussed to get the hostages released. We believe is not actually helpful to getting this deal across the line, he said. But these are exactly the topics that are under discussion. I just want to leave it to them and give them the space and the privacy to be able to work this out and get the deal completed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The key to solving the gruesome rape of a 13-year-old girl sat for nearly 30 years in the storage unit of a small North Carolina police department. George Lilly III, 21 at the time, forced his way into the girls Spring Lake home in November 1989 before raping her at knifepoint. It wasnt until July 2019 that the sexual assault kit collected after the crime was tested. Spring Lake Police Lt. Greg Wilkerson wasnt with the department when the break-in and rape occurred, so he couldnt say why the kit remained untested for so long he guessed it might have been forgotten or technology wasnt advanced enough to detect the DNA at the time. But when the nearby Fayetteville Police Department received a grant to clear its rape kit backlog, the Lake City department jumped at the chance to seek closure on some its oldest cases. It was definitely rewarding for us as an agency ... to get this closed and arrest this individual, Wilkerson said, noting Lilly was arrested in 2020 and is now serving a 12-year prison sentence. Lillys arrest is one of more than 40 cold cases dating back as long ago as 1984 to be solved during recent years in North Carolina thanks to a concerted effort by the states law enforcement agencies to clear a rape kit backlog that was once described as the nations largest. That commitment stands in contrast to South Carolina, where the extent of its backlog remains unknown, a mandate from state lawmakers to begin tracking the kits is delayed and no requirements are in place to test the potentially vital pieces of evidence. The S.C. Law Enforcement Division, where most agencies send their kits to be tested, had 1,987 kits awaiting testing through the end of October, according to a spokeswoman. But that number doesnt take into account rape kits sitting in storage at police precincts across the state. SLED workers remove possible human DNA that could be used to find who loaded a firearm at their new forensics laboratory on Thursday, April 27, 2023. In addition to the possibility that violent offenders who otherwise could be identified and arrested are moving freely, the untested or long delayed testing of kits makes it less likely that victims of these sexual assaults report their traumas to law enforcement, advocates and survivors say. At the end of the day, we want to report these violent crimes just like we report other violent crimes, ... but we know sometimes theyre going to be re-traumatized and impacted in a really negative way because of how theyre received, so its really hard for us to encourage people to report, said Lindy Studds, executive director of the Rape Crisis Center of Horry and Georgetown Counties. Importance of testing rape kits Jill Dudley was short of breath as she hung up the phone with the Horry County officer, unable to fathom how quickly her life had gone from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows so quickly. The Socastee native had just been named Miss South Carolina months earlier in June 2022. She planned to go public with her story of being raped in 2021 without receiving justice as part of an advocacy campaign in her new position. But first, Dudley wanted access to the dismissed police investigation to make sure she knew what information would be available to anyone wanting to later attack her credibility, she said. When she saw that the case was dismissed for lack of evidence, Dudley asked the officer what happened to her rape kit the product of an invasive, excruciating hourslong forensic examination she was subjected to in the immediate aftermath of being assaulted. Jill Dudley is crowned Miss South Carolina at the Township Auditorium on Saturday, June 25, 2022. It was discarded and never tested, Dudley said she was told. I was completely devastated, she said. It was almost like a part of me was gone. ... I knew there was no potential justice ever, ... it was the end. But it wasnt the end of my suffering and dealing with the psychological trauma of going through something like that. Sara Barber, executive director of the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, said its important to remember that each kit represents a person and their story, so its vital theyre treated with respect, whether they can be used to catch a serial rapist or not. In the vast majority of cases, people know who assaulted them, so (the kit is) not going to necessarily result in a prosecution, Barber said. But like any other medical test that you go to do, you expect it to be tested. Dudley knew the person who raped her, she said. New SLED lab Spartanburg Police Capt. Mark Hillers confirmed that they do prioritize getting kits tested when the suspect is unknown. He suggested most of the states backlog likely involve cases where both parties have admitted to sexual intercourse, but the question is whether it was consensual. Those are lower priority for testing because its not really proving anything, he said. They will get submitted for testing, but its mainly for court purposes. Hillers noted that SLED has always quickly processed rape kits for his agencys priority cases. First Circuit Solicitor David Pascoe agreed that SLED is responsive in expediting certain cases, but added that they otherwise typically have to wait at least 18-24 months for rape kit test results. That lengthy wait is concerning not just for unsolved crimes but also because it may mean an innocent person is sitting in jail longer, Pascoe said. SLED moved late last year into a new $62.8 million forensic services laboratory that advocates hoped would increase the agencys ability to process the kits more quickly, but its unclear whether thats happened so far. State Law Enforcement Division, known more commonly as SLED, hosts a ribbon cutting for their new forensics laboratory on Thursday, April 27, 2023. Fifteenth Circuit Solicitor Jimmy Richardson said hes noticed test results getting back to his office more quickly since the new lab opened, but Pascoe said his office hasnt seen any improvement. SLED refused multiple interview requests to discuss the new lab or its impact on rape kit processing. Delayed tracking system The agency is also required to oversee the implementation of a statewide sexual assault kit tracking system, but its more than a year behind schedule. Legislators passed the law in 2020 to create the tracking system, giving SLED a deadline of June 1, 2022. The agency has procured a vendor and was rolling out a pilot program while anticipating the system being fully operational by the end of 2023, according to SLED Chief Mark Keels July 31 letter to stakeholders. Barber said that, while shes been frustrated with the delay, she believes SLED personnel are working in good faith to ensure the system works as intended. The system is particularly important for survivors, she noted, because it will allow them to anonymously track the status of their kits, granting them more control in a process that otherwise leaves many feeling helpless. Barber is hopeful that the system which will offer biannual reports with data including the total number of kits by jurisdiction, the number of kits awaiting testing and the average length of time for testing to be completed will lead to increased pressure to clear the states backlog. Ilse Knecht, policy and advocacy director for the Joyful Heart Foundation, a nonprofit pushing for states to enact legislation to clear untested rape kit backlogs, said that while the tracking system is an important first step, it will only account for kits collected moving forward, so South Carolina still wont have a full accounting of its kits awaiting testing. North Carolina mandated in 2019 a full inventory, identifying 16,000 sexual assault kits in law enforcement storage units across the state. That was coupled with a mandate to test all kits where a case was still pending, and fewer than 1,000 of those tests remain untested, according to the North Carolina Attorney Generals Office. That effort has led to more than 2,000 DNA matches and 88 arrests, the offices tracking dashboard shows. Mandated testing is key, Knecht said, because research shows backlogs continue to grow in states without that law. (Whether or not a kit is tested) comes down to one persons decision, who may not have training about victimization or DNA, and can misunderstand survivors reactions, she said. Its not prioritizing sexual assault as the violent crime that it is. Negotiators are getting closer to an agreement with Hamas to release an initial 50 civilians in exchange for Israel allowing in more aid including fuel, coinciding with a limited pause in fighting, multiple sources told CBS News. More civilian hostage releases could potentially follow. At this stage, there is no firm deal in hand but rather a written draft agreement that is being passed between parties who remain locked in what were described to CBS News as very difficult talks brokered with the help of the U.S. and Qatar, according to two sources familiar. In an interview with "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," White House deputy national security advisor Jon Finer said that "many areas of difference that previously existed" in the hostage talks "have been narrowed," and that the U.S. is "closer than we have been to reaching a final agreement." Finer said it would not be helpful to detail the developing diplomacy in public, and acknowledged the caveat that past deals had been close before collapsing. Hopes were high last week that a breakthrough in diplomacy was finally imminent, but two officials in the region cited the Israeli military move on al-Shifa hospital as having complicated diplomacy with Hamas. A source familiar with the draft agreement told CBS News that the proposal as it stands now would involve 50 hostages being released on day one with a limited pause in fighting that would last around four days for a duration of six hours a day. If that release and pause happens as planned, there would be a second release of around 20-25 hostages, according to this source. White House officials declined to comment on the sensitive diplomacy. In a press conference on Sunday in Doha, Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani described the remaining sticking points to the emerging deal between Israel and Hamas as "very minor" logistical matters and said the parties are "close to reaching an agreement." Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani speaks during a press conference with the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borell, in Doha on November 19, 2023. / Credit: AFP via Getty Images Sources familiar with the talks have said there are several recent complicating issues, including whether overhead surveillance would happen during the releases. Israel has also demanded that Hamas provide some accounting for the captives it holds or can obtain from other militant groups such as Islamic Jihad, as the total figure of more than 200 hostages remains just an estimate. Last week, two of those unaccounted for who were believed to have been hostages, Noa Marciano and Yehudit Weiss, were found dead by the IDF nearby the 45,00-square-meter al-Shifa hospital complex in Gaza. The remains of those slaughtered by the terror group Hamas and other militants during the Oct. 7 attack in Israel continue to be identified. "Obviously, Gaza is an extremely dangerous place to be a civilian, to be a hostage held at this point," Finer told CBS' Margaret Brennan, "so there is a time imperative." Finer said he wouldn't use the phrase "running out of time," but "we feel acutely that this should be done as soon as possible." Moussa Abu Marzouk, a founding member of Hamas and a senior figure in its political wing, told CBS News senior foreign correspondent Holly Williams on Monday in Doha, Qatar, that the two sides were "close" to reaching an agreement that would see his group release 50 hostages in exchange for a five-day cease-fire and the release of 100 Palestinians from Israeli prisons. He said Israel would also cease all flight operations over the southern portion of Gaza during the temporary cease-fire, and for six hours daily in the northern part of the enclave to enable the transfer of hostages and the provision of humanitarian aid supplies. Marzouk's description of the prospective agreement differed notably from what other officials involved in the talks have spoken of, primarily for its inclusion of the release of Palestinian prisoners by Israel. He said all 100 of the Palestinians in question were women, children and the elderly currently in Israeli prisons. Marzouk acknowledged that Hamas could not account for the location or condition of all of the Israeli hostages in Gaza, and he reiterated the group's claim that some "maybe around 60" had been killed by Israel's ongoing bombardment of the densely-populated enclave. Others, he said, could be captives of other Palestinian militant groups or even be in the homes of Palestinian families. "Nobody can search about this," the Hamas official told CBS News. "It's a war." Officials have told CBS News that one of the complications of the ongoing talks in Doha is the time it can take for information to be relayed between Hamas officials there and their military counterparts in Gaza. Some sources have said there can be a delay of two to three days between officials in Doha agreeing to something and Hamas' commanders in Gaza either confirming or rejecting the proposal, for instance. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told CBS News' Norah O'Donnell last week that Israel had "strong indications" hostages were held in al-Shifa hospital, which was one of the reasons he cited for the Israeli Defense Forces' decision to enter al-Shifa. However, Netanyahu added "if there were they were taken out." The United States has not produced intelligence to confirm the assessment, but did issue downgraded intelligence last week that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad members operate a "command and control node" from al-Shifa hospital and tunnels underneath, and have used it for both weapons and hostages. Finer said the U.S. is still confident in its assessment, and said that the Israeli military is still "exploiting" the al Shifa facility to find further information. On Saturday in Manama, President Biden's top Mideast adviser Brett McGurk described the hostage talks as intensive and ongoing before heading to Doha for meetings with the Qatar Prime Minister that night. In public comments, McGurk echoed Israel's call for the release of a "large number of hostages" in order to lead to a "significant pause in fighting" and what he described as a "massive" surge of humanitarian relief. He acknowledged that one of Hamas' demands has been to receive fuel and humanitarian supplies. McGurk did not make public mention of an earlier request by Hamas for the release of an undetermined number of Palestinian women and children from Israeli detention centers. "That's the bargain they set," McGurk has said from the earliest days. McGurk said the onus remains on Hamas to release all of the hostages "the women, the children, the toddlers, the babies, all of them." CIA director Bill Burns is back in Washington but has remained involved following his meetings in recent weeks with the Mossad chief. President Biden himself has been working the phones, calling Qatar's Emir on November 12th and as recently as Friday, an indication that a resolution was near. Qatar is using its relationship with Hamas to mediate and the U.S. is helping to broker proposals that are passed from a tight circle in Doha to Hamas leaders in Gaza as well as Israel's five-person war cabinet that is led by Netanyahu. Steven Van Zandt: The 60 Minutes Interview The Chicago sandwich joint that inspired "The Bear" A sweet celebration of pawpaw fruit A general view of the Wisconsin State Capitol the day after the 2020 U.S. presidential election, in downtown Madison. REUTERS Members of the antisemitic hate group "Blood Tribe" marched in downtown Madison, Wisconsin. The neo-Nazi group waved swastika flags and chanted "There will be blood." The mayor of Madison called the Nazi symbols "disturbing" and condemned the group. Neo-Nazis marched in downtown Madison, Wisconsin, chanting "There will be blood," CBS News reports. Almost two dozen masked marchers walked along State Street toward the Wisconsin State Capital before ending up at James Madison Park. The group, who had also chanted "Israel is not our friend," gathered in front of a historic synagogue, per the Milwaukuee Sentinel Journal. It is not currently being used for religious services. Neo-nazis are marching in Madison, Wisconsin - chanting there will be blood pic.twitter.com/ywS86HrydY Gabriel Noronha (@GLNoronha) November 18, 2023 The group of men wore red shirts identifying them as members of Blood Tribe, a white supremacist group whose aim is to "normalize the swastika, usher in a resurgence of Nazi ideas and ultimately build a white ethno-state occupied, controlled and led by "Aryans," per the Anti-Defamation League. The group has targeted Jews, people of color, and the LGBTQ+ community since 2021. The participants shouted racial slurs at onlookers, The Daily Beast reports. Madison's mayor, Satya Rhodes-Conway, released a statement condemning the march: "Madison does not want or welcome hate groups like the one that invaded our community today." Rhodes-Conway called the Nazi symbols "disturbing" and accused the group of inciting hatred, racism, and antisemitism. A police incident report stated: "The Madison Police Department does not support hateful rhetoric. The department has an obligation to protect First Amendment rights of all." Wisconsin's governor, Tony Evers, called the march "truly revolting," CBS News reports. David Goldenberg, the ADL Midwest Regional Director, said: "Now is the time to speak out against antisemitism, extremism, and hate and take the necessary actions to ensure Jews feel and are safe." Read the original article on Business Insider WASHINGTON President Joe Biden is delivering different messages on the war in the Middle East to pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel Americans, according to copies of official White House correspondence obtained by NBC News. While one letter emphasizes Biden's support for Israel against the "pure evil" of terrorism, the other focuses on the administration's work to protect civilians in Gaza. Though the two letters do not contradict each other or Bidens own policies it is not common for the White House correspondence office to craft versions of a letter on the same topic that diverge so dramatically in their emphasis. Yet they reflect the political tightrope Biden is trying to walk as pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian elements of his coalition fray over the war. The form response sent to people who back Israel, generated by the White House office of presidential correspondence and auto-signed with Biden's name, invokes the Holocaust in relation to the Oct. 7 terrorist assault by Hamas, pledges ongoing support to Israel and promises to prioritize the return of hostages. "The people of Israel lived through a moment of pure evil" that "resurfaced horrible memories" and amounted to the "deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust," Biden writes. "The United States stands with Israel," he continues. "We will continue to ensure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself against terrorism in accordance with international humanitarian law. I will bring all resources to bear to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas including our fellow Americans." But the mirror-image response to pro-Palestinian letter-writers makes no mention of evil, of the Holocaust or of American support for Israel. Instead, it focuses on providing aid to Palestinians. "We must always condemn terrorism when we see it," Biden writes to pro-Palestinian correspondents. "But Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people. It does not stand for the dignity of Palestinians. We mourn the many innocent Palestinians who have been killed." He goes on to explain that is why his administration "is working closely with partners to ensure that life-saving assistance including, food, water, and medicine can urgently reach innocent Palestinians in Gaza" and emphasizes that "the United States stands unequivocally for the protection of civilians during conflict." There are sentiments common to the letters, including Biden's promises to pursue protection of civilians, secure humanitarian assistance for "innocent Palestinians" and work to realize a two-state solution, as well as calling Hamas a terrorist organization. "Anyone who reads the different views we are seeing in the mail would see that these letters need two separate responses," said a White House official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. "This is a complex issue that involves nuance and sensitivity. Having unique responses allows us to better address the distinct concerns and sensitivities raised in these incoming letters." Biden has seen "representative samples" of incoming mail, the official said, adding that the multiple-response approach "is standard for many complex issues and is designed to be respectful to and informative to the writer." The split messaging reflects Biden's need to appeal to both sides of a schism in his party that has been exacerbated by the war. With less than a year to go before he faces re-election, he can ill afford to further anger Democratic voters. An NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll released this week shows that most Democrats 56% now believe that Israel's response to the terrorist attack has been "too much." That's up from 35% four days after the assault, when Israel had yet to launch its ground invasion of Gaza. Overall, 60% of Democrats approve of Biden's handling of the war, according to the survey. In Michigan, a crucial swing state with large Arab American and Muslim communities, some Democrats are threatening to withhold their votes from Biden over his backing of Israel. And pro-Palestinian demonstrators clashed with Capitol Police this week after the demonstrators blocked access to the Democratic National Committee, providing a stark reminder of the stakes for the party. There seems to be little safe political space for Biden at the moment within his own party, and he runs the risk of further alienating people with passionate views about the war in the Middle East if he doesn't acknowledge their concerns. On many issues, the White House sends a single form letter in response to people who write to ask about the president's position or to express their own views on a particular topic. At times, on particularly controversial issues, the White House will draft different versions of a letter to accentuate the president's agreement with one side or play down his disagreement with the other side, said one person who worked in the correspondence office in a prior administration. Every office deliberates over it, this person said, noting that the possibility of the versions becoming public typically deters wide variance. Its more of an art and a gut instinct than a science, the person said. We generally erred in the direction of saying less to everyone in order to be saying the same thing to everyone. Biden can be sure he won't be accused of saying the same thing to everyone based on these two letters. They are so precisely curated that even Biden's call to fight hatred, an echo of his remarks in an Oval Office address last month, uses inverse structures. "Here at home, I have directed my team to identify, prevent and disrupt and domestic threats that could emerge against Jewish, Muslim, Arab or any other communities," he writes to supporters of Israel's actions. "There is no place for hate in our world. Not against Jews. Not against Muslims. Not against anybody." But in the letter to pro-Palestinian Americans, he writes, "I have directed my team to identify, prevent, and disrupt any domestic threats that could emerge against Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, Jewish, or any other communities. There is no place for hate in America. Not against Muslims. Not against Arabs. Not against Palestinians. Not against Jews. Not against anybody." In the same way, Biden flips antisemitism and Islamophobia later in the two versions, emphasizing the latter in the letter to the pro-Palestinian correspondents. And in the pro-Israel letter, Palestinians are omitted from the list of people Biden wants to protect from hatred. The pro-Israel letter reviewed by NBC News was dated Nov. 1. The pro-Palestinian letter was dated Nov. 8. Even the closing lines are very distinctly written to appeal to opposing sides. "And we will continue to hold in our hearts all the families across our country and around the world who are mourning the loss of a loved onea piece of their soulto this tragedy," Biden writes to the pro-Palestinian set. "And we will continue to reject terrorism and its indiscriminate evil, just as we have always done," he writes to folks who write letters in support of Israel. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Meet the 6 Miss Universe 2023 contestants who are making the pageant more inclusive From left: Miss Universe pageant contestants Rikkie Valerie Kolle, Miss Netherlands; Jane Dipika Garrett, Miss Nepal; and Camila Avella, Miss Colombia. Hector Vivas/Getty Images The 2023 Miss Universe pageant takes place in El Salvador on November 18. This year's contestants include two transgender women and two mothers. Erica Robin is the first Miss Pakistan, while Guatemala's Michelle Cohn is the first mom to compete. The Miss Universe 2023 pageant has arrived. The global competition will occur on Saturday in San Salvador, El Salvador, where 84 women will compete for the coveted title. R'Bonney Gabriel, who snagged the title of Miss Universe 2022 and became embroiled in a rigging scandal, will crown the winner. This year's competition is set to be the most inclusive Miss Universe pageant yet, with mothers, married women, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and a plus-size model among the contestants. Organizers announced that mothers and married women could enter the competition in August 2022, while transgender contestants could compete in April 2012. In recent years, there have also been calls for Miss Universe to become more body-inclusive. These contestants are fighting to make the Miss Universe pageant more inclusive. Take a look. Miss Guatemala Michelle Cohn is the first mother to compete in the Miss Universe pageant. Michelle Cohn, Miss Guatemala 2023. Courtesy of Miss Universe Cohn, 28, is a mother of two, a model, a brand founder, and an entrepreneur. According to Cohn's bio via the pageant's Instagram page, she launched a swimwear brand in 2016 and employs deaf women to promote equal opportunities. "I'm most proud of being the first mother elected to represent my country at Miss Universe, breaking stereotypes and promoting women's empowerment," her bio reads. Miss Colombia, Camila Avella, is married with one child, making her the first married contestant. Camila Avella, Miss Colombia 2023. Courtesy of Miss Universe Avella, 28, told HOLA this month that she competed for the Miss Colombia title in 2018 but didn't make the cut. After the Miss Universe organizers announced that mothers and married women could compete, she decided to try again as a wife and mother. Her bio says Avella is a journalist and model who works to uplift young mothers by providing them with resources, including financial management and mental-health training. Rikkie Valerie Kolle is the first transgender Miss Netherlands. Rikkie Valerie Kolle, Miss Netherlands 2023. Courtesy of Miss Universe In July 2023, Kolle, 22, beat nine other finalists to become Miss Netherlands. NOS, a broadcasting organization based in the Netherlands, reported that Kolle is the second transgender person to compete in the Miss Universe pageant, following Angela Ponce, who represented Spain in 2018. In a video shared for the Voices for Change campaign, Kolle who competed on "Holland's Next Top Model" said she advocates for equality and is against bullying, which she said she faced due to her gender identity. Marina Machete became the first transgender Miss Portugal. Marina Machete, Miss Portugal 2023. Courtesy of Miss Universe Machete, 28, is a flight attendant who won the 2023 Miss Portugal competition in October, making her the first transgender contestant in her country to do so. Her bio says she is passionate about equity and inclusion. "I'm most proud of the challenges I overcame with courage and strength. Leading me to develop humanity and kindness towards others in my life," her bio reads. Miss Nepal, Jane Dipika Garrett, made history as the first body-inclusive contestant. Jane Dipika Garrett, Miss Nepal 2023. Courtesy of Miss Universe Some outlets have hailed Garrett, 22, as Miss Universe's first plus-size contestant something pageant contestants said is long overdue. She advocates for mental and hormonal health after experiencing depression caused by PCOS, according to her Voices of Change campaign video. "I am a determined, resilient, and genuine woman who embraces her true essence and nature without fear," her bio reads. "My life experiences have molded me into the strong, bold, and courageous woman I am today." In a November Instagram post, she wrote: "It's time to celebrate the different changes in women's bodies and embrace all our shapes and sizes." Erica Robin is the first Miss Pakistan to compete in the pageant. Erica Robin, Miss Pakistan 2023. Courtesy of Miss Universe Robin, 24, will make history on Saturday as the first-ever Miss Pakistan. Per her bio, Robin is a model fighting gender bias and inequality in the workplace. "I'm most proud of standing up for what I believe in my life. Recently, right after I was announced as the new titleholder for Miss Universe Pakistan, I received some backlash from different sectors of the community, but I would like to stand up for what I believe in," her bio reads. "Despite these criticisms, I was ready to face any challenges ahead of me while maintaining my values as a young modern Pakistani woman, representing our rich culture and heritage, and showing the world that Pakistan can celebrate the success of women," her bio added. Read the original article on Insider The newly crowned Miss Universe 2023, Sheynnis Palacios from Nicaragua, waves after winning the 72th edition of the pageant (Marvin RECINOS) Nicaragua's Sheynnis Palacios was crowned Miss Universe 2023 on Saturday at the 72nd edition of the pageant, held this year in El Salvador. Palacios, 23, received the crown and sash from her predecessor, R'Bonney Gabriel from the United States. This is the first time a contestant from Nicaragua has won the contest, with Thailand's Anntonia Porsild and Australia's Moraya Wilson rounding out the top three. Palacios, who said she considers humility and gratitude for little things as her main qualities, won among 84 contestants who participated during a week of competitions that included posing in swimsuits, evening gowns and traditional dresses. In her final answer to the jury, Palacios emphasized the importance of equal pay regardless of gender so that women can "work in any area." "There is no limit for women," she said. Each participant paraded on a stage set up in the newly renovated Adolfo Pineda National Gymnasium, in the capital San Salvador. The organizers of the gala, which was attended by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele, also announced that the next edition will be held in Mexico. jjr/mis/arm/aha/dhw MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa As former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley gains support in early state polls, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis isn't willing to call the fight for GOP nomination a three-person race. Asked about Haley's rising poll numbers at a campaign stop in Marshalltown, Iowa, DeSantis told reporters to "watch where the money goes" specifically, who former President Donald Trump is spending the most money to attack. "That shows you who the threat is, DeSantis said. DeSantis and his campaign staffers previously have pointed to Trump attack ads as confirmation that the Florida governor is a significant challenger to Trump. DeSantis said Friday that Trump had spent $30 million in attacks against him. "They are raining down millions and millions of dollars against me. Everybody's attacking me," DeSantis said. "That should show you who they care about." Nikki Haley on the rise in Iowa and New Hampshire polls DeSantis entered the presidential race in May, hoping to harness his popularity as a conservative governor who made national headlines during the COVID-19 pandemic. DeSantis described the primary as a two-man race between him and Trump, who consistently polls as the most popular first choice candidate for Republican voters. But, despite months of intense campaigning in Iowa, DeSantis has yet to surge with caucusgoers. An August Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa Poll found DeSantis was the first choice of 19% of likely Republican caucusgoers. In October, DeSantis was first choice for 16% of likely caucusgoers, tied with Haley, who jumped 10 points. Haley's position is even stronger in New Hampshire: In a Washington Post/Monmouth University poll released Friday, Haley is in a solid second at 18% and DeSantis is in fifth, with 7%. "Anyone still talking about DeSantis as the stalking horse is not keeping up with the race," said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute. Ron DeSantis argues Trump attack ads prove him as a 'threat' When asked Friday whether the "two-man race" had become a three-man competition with Haley, DeSantis pointed to Trump's attack ads against him, rather than the poll numbers. He touted his record as Florida's governor. "They see that I appeal to conservatives in a way that none of the other candidates do," DeSantis said. "And when you're in a Republican primary, you know that's 80% of the vote. And so you've got to be able to go and win those types of voters." DeSantis, Haley and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy met on stage Friday evening for the Family Leader Thanksgiving forum. DeSantis criticized Trump for not attending the event. Instead, Trump held a rally Saturday in Fort Dodge. "I think that it speaks volumes when you have such an important forum like this and Donald Trump just shakes it off," DeSantis said. More: Haley, DeSantis, Ramaswamy will meet at the Family Leader's Thanksgiving forum Friday Katie Akin is a politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at kakin@registermedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @katie_akin. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Ron DeSantis says Trump attack ads separate him from rising Nikki Haley GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley has called for "consensus" on the issue of abortion. But for conservatives inclined to back Trump in 2024, they may want to hear stronger language from Haley. Haley is anti-abortion, but at this juncture of her bid, she'll need a lot to overcome Trump's edge. After the 2023 elections, which saw Republicans not only lose critical races in Kentucky and Virginia but also come out on the losing side of a Ohio ballot measure that enshrined abortion rights into the state constitution, GOP presidential Nikki Haley of South Carolina said that the party had to be realistic with voters on the issue of abortion. Haley, a former South Carolina governor, had a conservative record on abortion while in Columbia, signing into law a 20-week abortion ban in 2016 and aligning herself with the anti-abortion movement in a state where evangelical Christians hold immense political sway. (The 2016 law included exceptions for a mother's life, and South Carolina now has a six-week abortion ban which was upheld this past summer by the state's Supreme Court.) However, as Haley in recent weeks has emerged a potential top alternative to former President Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican presidential primaries, she has attracted attention over her longstanding call for "consensus" on abortion which she repeated at the GOP presidential debate in Miami earlier this month. "As much as I'm pro-life, I don't judge anyone for being pro-choice, and I don't want them to judge me for being pro-life," Haley said at the time, while also making it clear that she'd sign a GOP-crafted national abortion ban into law if she were elected president. Haley has sought to add some nuance to the abortion debate, while still affirming her anti-abortion views, but could it actually hurt her with the very same conservatives she'll need to have a chance at dethroning Trump? Haley, right, listens to DeSantis speak during the Forum. GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is at center. AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall 'Everyone can give their voice to it' On paper, Haley's comments could appeal to some conservative-leaning independents who support abortion restrictions but aren't as dogmatic about the issue as many on the right flank. But it was the former governor's comments at a conservative forum on Friday which could put her the unenviable position where she doesn't truly satisfy anyone. During Haley's appearance at the Family Leader's Thanksgiving Family Forum in Iowa and in response to some murmuring that she had taken a softer stance on abortion the ex-governor said she would have signed into law a six-week abortion ban had one been passed by the South Carolina legislature when she led the state from 2011 to 2017. But she also said that while she'd back a national abortion ban, the chances of such a bill coming before her desk or that of any potential GOP president were highly unlikely given that Republicans are not only in the minority in the Senate but are well short of the 60 seats needed to overcome a filibuster. After Roe v. Wade was overturned last year, the issue of abortion returned to individual states. And Haley said the states are where abortion policy should be dictated. "This was put in the states that's where it should be," she said during the debate. "Everyone can give their voice to it." However, there are conservatives who will likely not be thrilled by her dismissal of a national abortion ban due to the impracticality of its passage in Congress, especially ones already inclined to back Trump again next year. And with Haley expressing her support for a six-week abortion ban, she also puts herself outside of reach for many swing voters who may currently disapprove of President Joe Biden's job performance but are disdainful of abortion limits at such an early stage. Biden's campaign quickly jumped into the fray last week to attack Haley over the issue, warning that she was "no moderate" on abortion. Haley has a lot going for her campaign at the moment: she's rising in the polls in key states like Iowa and New Hampshire, she represents a new generation of GOP leaders sans the political baggage of Trump, and she's tried to take the lead on an issue that has become a political albatross for Republicans since Roe was overturned. But threading the needle can only go so far, and for many Republicans, they will want to hear more commitments from her on abortion an issue which will be front and center for the foreseeable future. Read the original article on Business Insider CLIFTON About 50 health care workers decried the Israeli focus on Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza and called for a cease-fire in the monthlong war between Israel and Hamas at a gathering Saturday at the Palestinian American Community Center. Hoisting a large banner that read "Healthcare Workers Against Genocide," doctors, nurses, EMS technicians and others called on American medical groups to be more forceful in denouncing the siege of the region's largest hospital, which Israeli and U.S. officials believe is a Hamas command center. They said too many innocent civilians are being harmed in both the fighting and the lack of adequate medical care. "The deafening silence within the medical community and the oppressive pressure to remain silent in the face of these atrocities has forced us to question not only our ethical compass but our duty to the broader health care community," Dr. Amal Al-Shrouf, a Paterson pulmonologist, said in a speech read to those gathered at the center. Saturday's event was the latest in what have been scores of demonstrations and rallies held across New Jersey in the six weeks since fighting began. Dr. Samir Zaina speaks at a news conference Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023 in advocating for the protection of hospitals "against indiscriminate bombing, invasion, and senseless violence in Gaza." 'It was another Holocaust': For these NJ Jews, the Hamas attack was personal. Why they say Israel must finish the war Well-armed Hamas terrorists attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, including the elderly and children, according to survivor accounts. More than 200 Israelis are still being held hostage. The counterattack by the Israeli military has left 10,000 to 12,000 dead in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, reported the Hamas-run health ministry. The latest chapter in the conflict has centered on the large Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, which Israeli troops entered last week. Israeli military officials said they found weapons at the facility and showed journalists a shaft on the hospital's grounds that they said led to tunnels used by Hamas. But there has yet to be definitive proof, since troops had not entered the shaft as of Friday, saying it might be booby-trapped. 'Killed as if they were animals': In Paterson's 'Little Palestine,' a community is united in grief Those gathered here on Saturday in white coats, scrubs and EMS uniforms said they denounced the targeting of Palestinian and Israeli civilians. They said the forced evacuation of doctors, patients and others at the hospital by the Israeli military will lead to more deaths and suffering. They held signs saying things like "Babies in Incubators Are Not a Target." "They are already struggling with low medical supplies, no oxygen, no medication," said Dr. Samir Zaina, a North Jersey primary care physician. "They are working 24 hours to protect kids, patients, critically ill patients." Al-Shrouf said the American Medical Association has not gone far enough to denounce the violence and call for a cease-fire. A statement by the AMA board of trustees on Nov. 9, before the siege at Al-Shifa hospital, called for "medical neutrality" in the conflict to allow doctors unfettered access to treat their patients and condemned "the military targeting of health care facilities and personnel and using denial of medical services as a weapon of war." Some doctors at the event Saturday did not want their names made public, fearing online harassment or discipline at work. One who did speak was Dr. Yasmine Elfarra, a resident, who said she was questioned by executives at her hospital in New York for Instagram posts critical of Israel hours after she learned that 10 members of her family in Gaza had died or had been severely injured in an explosion. She said she had to denounce Hamas and that she would treat an Israeli or Jewish patient as any other. NJ employees are stressed: How to keep the Israel-Hamas War from tearing a workplace apart "As a Palestinian, I felt like I was a tumor in their hospital system and they were slicing me open to see if I was benign or malignant," Elfarra said. "I told them I am here and I refuse to see anyone with hate, ever," she said. "None of us do. Fighting for the humanity of my people and their right to live with dignity aligns directly with my ethics as a doctor." This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ doctors at Palestinian American center decry Gaza hospital fight The United States is engaged in working towards a tentative agreement between Israel and Hamas to free dozens of hostages in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting. The hostage release could begin within the next several days, barring last-minute hitches, the Washington Post reported, quoting people familiar with the detailed, six-page agreement. Under the agreement, all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while 50 or more hostages are released in groups every 24 hours, the Post reported. Qatari prime minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said on Sunday that he had growing confidence that a hostage deal would be reached between Israel and Hamas. The challenges facing the agreement are just practical and logistical, Sheikh Mohammed said, adding that the challenges that remained were very minor. However, both Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the White House have said no deal has been officially reached yet. No deal yet but we continue to work hard to get a deal, the White Houses National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement. Mr Netanyahu told a press conference on Saturday evening: Concerning the hostages, there are many unsubstantiated rumours, many incorrect reports. I would like to make it clear: As of now, there has been no deal. But I want to promise: When there is something to say we will report to you about it. Israeli defense forces (IDF) are currently carrying out ground operations in Gaza to destroy Hamas after the militant groups rampage into Israel on 7 October in which its fighters killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages. Israel also said it is preparing to expand its offensive in the strip. A senior aide to Mr Netanyahu urged Palestinian civilians to relocate away from southern Khan Younis, indicating that a ground offensive into the south is imminent. IDF said it was fighting militants in the Zeitoun neighbourhood of Gaza City and on the outskirts of Jabaliya, the refugee camp which is home to one of two schools that were allegedly hit by airstrikes on Saturday. The Hamas-run Gazan Health Ministry says the death toll in the Gaza Strip has already increased to 12,300, including 5,000 children. Meanwhile, the families of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas and thousands of supporters arrived after a five-day march in Jerusalem on Saturday. The marchers sought to pressure Israels government to do everything they could to bring hostages back. Some of the marchers have expressed fear that the Israel military offensive endangers their loved ones but government leaders argue that only military pressure on Hamas can lead to some hostage releases. So far of the 240 hostages kidnapped from Israel into Gaza, only five have been released four via international diplomacy involving Qatar and one rescued by Israeli troops. A humanitarian assessment team that visited Al Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza reported seeing signs of shelling and gunfire in what was described as a death zone in a desperate situation, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). People search buildings destroyed during airstrikes on November 18, 2023 in Khan Yunis, Gaza. Heavy fighting rages in the northern Gaza Strip as Israel encircles the area, despite increasingly pressing calls for a ceasefire. (Getty Images) Signs of shelling and gunfire were evident. The team saw a mass grave at the entrance of the hospital and were told more than 80 people were buried there, the WHO said in a statement. The assessment team which included public health experts, logistics officers, and security staff from various UN departments could reportedly spend only an hour inside the hospital due to security concerns. Their visit, while coordinated with the Israeli military, still occurred with heavy fighting near the hospital. WHO and partners are urgently developing plans for the immediate evacuation of the remaining patients, staff and their families, the UN organisation said. The hospital was not functioning as a medical facility, according to the team, due to a scarcity of clean water, fuel, medicine, and other essentials. Palestinians search the rubble of a building for survivors follwoing Israeli bombardment in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on 18 November 2023 amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. (AFP via Getty Images) The WHO reiterated its call for an immediate ceasefire and sustained humanitarian assistance. The territorys Health Ministry said at least 30 premature babies were evacuated from the hospital on Sunday, and will be transferred to facilities in Egypt. A spokesperson for the ministry said 32 babies were among the many critically ill patients stranded at the hospital. However, US president Joe Biden said that a ceasefire is not peace. As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, a ceasefire is not peace, the president wrote in an op-ed for the Washington Post on Saturday. An outcome that leaves Hamas in control of Gaza would once more perpetuate its hate and deny Palestinian civilians the chance to build something better for themselves, Mr Biden wrote. Protesters march through the city during the national protest to demand a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war on 18 November 2023 in Glasgow, United Kingdom. Voices across the world calling for a ceasefire in Gaza continue to grow as the IDF pushes deeper into Gaza warning people to move south and evacuation orders are issued for the al Shifa hospital. (Getty Images) A ceasefire he said would give Hamas the opportunity to rebuild their stockpile of rockets, reposition fighters and restart the killing by attacking innocents again. If Hamas cared at all for Palestinian lives, it would release all the hostages, give up arms, and surrender the leaders and those responsible for the 7 October attacks, the US president said. My administration has called for respecting international humanitarian law, minimizing the loss of innocent lives and prioritizing the protection of civilians, Mr Biden said, adding that the goal should not be simply to stop the war for today but to end the war forever. There must be no forcible displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, no reoccupation, no siege or blockade, and no reduction in territory, the US president said. Oil and gas lawyer Sarah Stogner visits Lake Boehmer in Pecos County where abandoned wells have brought produced water to the surface for decades. The Railroad Commission of Texas considers these water wells and therefore not under their jurisdiction. Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News The prolific oil and gas wells of Texas generate billions of gallons of salty liquid known as produced water. And a lot of this toxic water, just like crude oil, tends to get spilled not just occasionally but hundreds of times a year. From a spill of 756,000 gallons into the Delaware River in West Texas that sent chloride levels soaring to hundreds of small spills in one Permian Basin county, theres hardly a corner of Texas not impacted. But messy record-keeping and ambiguous rules at the Railroad Commission of Texas, the state agency charged with regulating oil and gas drilling, have long obscured the scope and severity of these spills from the public. The Railroad Commission has never formally adopted 2009 draft guidelines for reporting and cleaning up produced water spills. The agency delegated the authority to set different reporting thresholds to district offices, in a system that relies on self-reporting by offenders and includes little enforcement to assure accuracy and compliance. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A commission spokesperson said that produced water spills must be reported and that the agency fully investigates and mitigates all spills. But because the agency has never adopted guidelines, numerous companies are under the impression they are not required to report spills at all. Inside Climate News has conducted the first-ever public analysis of produced water spills in Texas using data provided in response to open records requests to the Railroad Commission. Over the decade from 2013 to 2022, the analysis found that oil and gas companies reported more than 10,000 spills totaling more than 148 million gallons of produced water. Where possible, companies use vacuum trucks to suck up as much spilled water as they can. But only about 40% of the water reported spilled from 2013 to 2022 was recovered. The spills ranged from small leaks of less than 10 gallons to massive incidents, with 19 reported spills exceeding 500,000 gallons. Although they represented a tiny fraction of spills, with about 350 reported in the data, some of the most damaging incidents took place when produced water was spilled directly into streams, rivers or lakes. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Both conventional oil and gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, rely on large quantities of water, sand and proprietary chemicals, some of which are toxic, to free the oil and gas from geologic formations deep underground. Produced water is the liquid waste that comes back to the surface and contains both the proprietary drilling fluids and naturally occurring hazardous compounds from the earth, including arsenic and organic compounds such as benzene, a carcinogen. The highly saline water can render land barren for years. Residents have filed lawsuits detailing damages from contaminated well water to poisoned cattle. In East Texas Anderson County, cattle rancher Tate Willfong noticed a produced water spill on his property from Vista Energy Consultings pipeline in July that killed the grass his cattle graze on. He said he reported the spills to the Railroad Commission but only got help after he went to a local television reporter at KETK in Tyler. Vista Energy Consulting did not respond to a request for comment. I aint got a beef with the Railroad Commission at this time, Willfong said. But I didnt get a lot out of them in the beginning. In Lamesa, the county seat of Dawson County in the high plains where Permian Basin oil production borders cotton farms and towering wind turbines, Doty Huff and Saul Torres filed a lawsuit against an energy firm named Enhanced Midstream, alleging that two leaks from one of the companys produced water pipelines contaminated their well water and caused a total loss of fair market value of their property. Enhanced Midstream did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In Knox County, north of Abilene, rancher Tim Foote sued after his cattle knocked down a fence around a Texcel Exploration tank where produced water and oil was stored. The livestock came into contact with spilled produced water and 132 cattle died. An appeals court recently upheld a trial courts decision that the company cannot be held responsible. Theres a reason why you salted your enemys land in the Bible, said Sarah Stogner, an oil and gas lawyer in the Permian Basin, who has documented damages from produced water spills. Nothing grows. Produced water bubbles up to the surface from an abandoned well near Imperial, Texas. Produced water spills and discharges have taken a toll on lands across Texas. Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News Oil and gas lawyer Sarah Stogner picks up a salt crystal left over from produced water that spewed from a geyser at an orphaned well. The remediation site in Crane County shows the devastating impacts of produced water on the land. Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News Spill logs reveal trends Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Railroad Commission records of these spills are not held in a database facilitating easy analysis. Instead, they are recorded in chaotically maintained spreadsheets called spill logs. Before running the analysis, Inside Climate News had to diagnose and fix various problems with the data, including inconsistent use of units, incorrectly entered dates, misaligned columns, duplicated entries, misspellings of company names and more. The totals from the analysis are likely incomplete. Different district offices of the Railroad Commission ask companies to report spills at different thresholds, and the entire system depends on operators self-reporting their mishaps with little enforcement to ensure that they do so consistently and accurately. In addition to analyzing the central spill logs provided by the Railroad Commission, Inside Climate News obtained spill logs from its regional offices throughout the state. The analysis of these sprawling records, spread across more than 200 spreadsheet files, gave a similar overall picture while revealing almost 11 million additional gallons of spilled water. Further scrutiny of the differences between the central- and district-level records revealed several large spills of produced water recorded at the district level that were not found in the Railroad Commissions central records. In some cases, this was because the corresponding central record had apparently not been updated from an initial entry. Others, including a spill of more than 500,000 gallons in November 2022 from a corroded pipe operated by Occidental Petroleum at a site in Gaines County, seemed to be missing from the central records altogether. Occidental did not respond to a request for comment. Advertisement Article continues below this ad There have been different systems of tracking spills over time, so there could be differences if youre comparing different logs, a Railroad Commission spokesperson said. Spill rules vague As hydraulic fracturing enabled Texas to rapidly increase oil production, vast amounts of produced water were generated. But even as fracking transformed the oil and gas industry, the Railroad Commission did not adopt formal rules for reporting and remediation of produced water spills. A 2022 report calculated that the Permian Basin alone is generating 3.9 billion barrels, or more than 168 billion gallons, of produced water a year. That means wastewater must be piped off well pads, stored in tanks and trucked to disposal wells. At each step in the process, the risk for spills is present. Produced water is stored in tanks outside Pecos, Texas, in August 2023. Spills of produced water often occur at storage tanks or from pipelines. Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News The Railroad Commission has 180 oil and gas inspectors statewide. As of July, Texas had more than 161,000 oil wells and 86,000 gas wells in production. The Railroad Commissions Rule 3.20 requires oil and gas companies to immediately notify a district office after spills of oil or condensate, a low-density hydrocarbon liquid present in natural gas. Those spills are reported on a publicly available Railroad Commission form known as the H-8. Any crude oil spill of over 210 gallons, or five barrels, must be reported. State law prohibits pollution of above-ground or subterranean water. The H-8 form does not include produced water spills. However, a Railroad Commission spokesperson told Inside Climate News that companies must report produced water spills. The spokesperson said the commission issued 116 violations of Rule 3.20 during fiscal 2022. However, Railroad Commission staff were not able to identify how many of these violations were for produced water spills as opposed to oil spills. The commission drafted guidelines for cleaning up produced water spills in 2009 that were never formally adopted. The guidelines state that companies are not required to report produced water spills but are encouraged to do so, an apparent contradiction of the commissions statement to Inside Climate News. This ambiguity has bred confusion. A spokesperson for Apache, a Houston-based oil and gas company operating in the Permian Basin, said the Railroad Commission does not require reporting. In an email exchange provided to Inside Climate News, a Chevron employee told a Crane County land owner who had complained to the company about a produced water spill on her ranch that the company was not required to report produced water spills. A Chevron spokesperson said the companys policy is to follow all RRC requirements for reporting spills, including produced water, without elaborating. According to the District 8 office in Midland, which covers the heart of the Permian Basin, companies only must report spills larger than 250 barrels or 10,500 gallons of produced water. But there are many smaller spills on the district spreadsheets, indicating that companies may have their own internal standards. Meanwhile, produced water is included in neighboring New Mexicos spills rule, which classifies spills of 25 barrels or more as major releases and spills of five to 25 barrels as minor releases. In New Mexico, major and minor releases are prohibited and must be reported and remediated. According to the conservation nonprofit Center for Western Priorities, during 2022, operators in New Mexico reported 5,085,654 gallons or 121,087 barrels of produced water spills. Produced water has bubbled up to the surface from an abandoned well near Imperial, Texas, for years. Known as Lake Boehmer, the site is encrusted with salt crystals and high levels of hydrogen sulfide. Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News Salt crystals from produced water that spewed across a ranch in Crane County. The salt and chlorides can take years to break down and have lasting impacts of soil health. Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News Company policies vary Inside Climate News reached out to the 10 companies with the largest total volume of produced water spills with questions about their internal policies for reporting spills and remediation. Several of the companies have been sold since the spills occurred, in which case the new owners were contacted. Texas has robust reporting requirements and cleanup standards for spills that may incidentally occur during oil and gas production, Permian Basin Petroleum Association President Ben Shepperd said in a statement. Oil and gas operators in the Permian Basin each have best practices they follow for handling produced water. An Apache spokesperson said the company takes strict measures to store and transport produced water in a manner that reduces the risk of impacts on soil, groundwater and surface water quality. The spokesperson said the company reports any spill larger than 100 barrels 4,200 gallons that breaches secondary containment or may be deemed sensitive. A spokesperson for Exxon Mobil Corp., in reference to its subsidiary XTO Energy, said the company complies with the reporting requirements of the Texas Railroad Commission but did not elaborate. The spokesperson said remediation depends on salinity and soil type. Diamondback Energy, which is not on the top 10 list, but in 2019 acquired Energen, which appears on the list, is one of the few companies to include produced water spill data in its annual sustainability reports. According to the Midland-based companys 2023 report, spills increased 67% from 2021 to 2022. Ashley Watt, the owner of Antina Ranch in Crane County who complained to Chevron about a 2020 spill on her property that she said killed mesquite trees, said oil and gas operators in the Permian Basin often fail to report spills to the Railroad Commission. I have never seen an operator self-report anything. Full stop, thats it, Watt said. How many speeding tickets would be written if the only way that you got caught was self-reporting? Watt said her property alone has hundreds of wells and hundreds of miles of flow lines, which transport oil and gas. Watt said landowners, let alone inspectors, are unable to regularly check every well or pipeline. Its almost just luck when us or anyone catches a spill, she said. Watt said a Chevron representative eventually told her that produced water is not included in the Railroad Commission definition of spills required to give notice and that the company would not be reporting the spill to the Railroad Commission. A Chevron representative declined to comment on the spill. Spill response protocol Although the Railroad Commission spokesperson told Inside Climate News that the agency requires remediation of all spills, records and interviews show that the commission only required cleanup after some spills, not all. Apache reported that a storage tank spilled 77,500 barrels 3.26 million gallons of produced water on July 29, 2020, in Reeves County, about 10 miles north of Balmorhea. According to documents provided in a records request, Railroad Commission inspectors visited the spill area, which covered about one-quarter mile by one-half mile, on July 29, Sept. 8 and Nov. 12, 2020. During each inspection, they noted produced water pooled on the ground, heavy salt crystals and distressed vegetation. Apache Corporation is one of the largest oil and gas operators in the Permian Basin. The company is headquartered in Houston with offices in Midland. Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News On Nov. 17, the Railroad Commission moved to sever Apaches lease because the spill violated state rules. Apache contacted the commission to appeal. On Jan. 26, 2021, District 8 Director Jeffery Morgan replied, siding with Apache. After further review, no further action will be needed for this site at this time, Morgan wrote. Apache kept the lease. The Railroad Commission did not require remediation or issue any penalties. An Apache spokesperson said regulators and the company agreed that it would be more harmful to dig up the soil instead of allowing rainfall to dilute the produced water. The commission spokesperson said companies are required to remove as much of the liquid as possible after spills and in some cases remove the contaminated soil. But experts said the agency should take a more holistic approach to remediation. In the case of the 756,000-gallon spill from a flow line into the Delaware River in West Texas, the Railroad Commissions Midland District Office was notified immediately on Aug. 1, 2017, but it took a back seat to other agencies in monitoring potential pollution. The event occurred after a Cimarex Energy saltwater disposal unit in Culberson County lost power during a rainstorm. Roughly 18,000 barrels of produced water or 756,000 gallons, more than enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool spilled from the flow line into the Delaware River, in addition to 420 gallons of oil. The river is home to the endangered Texas hornshell mussel. The produced water had chloride levels of 80,000 to 100,000 parts per million. The EPA recommends drinking water not exceed 250 parts per million. On Aug. 4, a staff member at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality emailed a colleague after a counterpart in New Mexico had told her about the spill. Did they notify yall about this? she asked. We obviously have concerns. Do we have anyone checking this out? On Aug. 5, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department documented a fish kill in the Delaware River, including minnows, perch and carp. A Railroad Commission inspector, Glenn Gainey, visited the site on Aug. 7, and district engineering specialist Wade Goode met with company executives two days later. I had a meeting with Cimarex representatives to discuss the progress on the remediation, the plan going forward, and to get water sample test results, Goode wrote in an inspection update. Cimarex informed me the booms they deployed have not seen any oil sheen. The Environmental Protection Agency sent its own inspectors on Aug. 9. By Sept. 21, the company seemed to think remediation was wrapping up. We conducted a flyover this past Thursday and since we are not observing any sheening or negative impacts to the river or surrounding shoreline, Cimarex will be discontinuing this operation, a Cimarex supervisor wrote. The EPA disagreed. The agencys Region 6, which covers Texas and New Mexico, eventually issued a consent agreement requiring Cimarex to pay a $13,220 penalty and continue water testing for three years on a 40-mile section of the Delaware River. Cimarex Energy has since merged with Cabot Oil & Gas to create Coterra Energy, which did not respond to a request for comment. The involvement of the EPA, the TCEQ and other agencies in the Cimarex spill was atypical in many ways. For most produced water spills, the Railroad Commission acts on its own. A TCEQ spokesperson said that while the Railroad Commission has jurisdiction over produced water spills, the TCEQ may initially respond to reports of spills. A spokesperson for EPA Region 6 said the Railroad Commission is not required to notify federal officials about produced water spills, unlike with crude oil spills over a certain size. The Railroad Commissions 2009 draft guidelines for cleaning produced water spills focus on reducing chloride levels in soil and identifying potential groundwater contamination. The guidelines also recommend testing for additional contaminants, including benzene, toluene and metals in some cases. Stogner, the lawyer, said that in practice, many companies in the Permian Basin simply remove the soil and replace it with caliche, a sedimentary rock common in the area. She said the remediated areas are unfit for any other productive use like agriculture. Stogner is running against incumbent Railroad Commission Chair Christi Craddick as a member of the Forward Party. In 2022, she unsuccessfully challenged Commissioner Wayne Christian. John Lacik has used his proprietary soil amendment for produced water spills on sites from North Dakota to Louisiana. He advocates for remediating the soil on-site, instead of trucking in soil or rock. Lacik, who now owns the Texas-based remediation company Gromega LLC, said chloride shouldnt be the only constituent considered in remediation. Treatment types have to be based and determined on each site, Lacik said. If there was a cure-all fix, wed be using it everywhere. Experts agreed the problem of salty produced water spills in Texas isnt going away any time soon. But Lacik said there are solutions for those willing to look for them. The large amphibious assault ship Minsk before and after the Ukrainian Armed Forces' attack (the strike was carried out in September 2013, when the ship was in a ship repair dock in Sevastopol) Stormy weather is preventing Russia from deploying its warships in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk said on national television on Nov. 19. "As of 07:30 on November 19, 2023, there are no enemy ships in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov," Pletenchuk said. Read also: Zelenskyy tells PABSEC Russia no longer able to use Black Sea as springboard to destabilize other countries Two Russian ships are currently in the Mediterranean, including a Kalibr cruise missile carrier with eight missiles. Four ships have crossed the Kerch Strait into the Sea of Azov in the last 24 hours. Two of them sailed from the Bosporus. No vessels crossed into the Black Sea. Read also: Ukraine successfully pushing Russian navy out of Crimea Stoltenberg Previous Ukrainian Navy reports registered one enemy ship on Nov. 18 in the Black/Azov sea region, and three on Nov. 17. This compares to nine ships in both seas and one in the Mediterranean on November 8. 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 NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) Virginia will receive nearly $1.5 billion in funding to increase broadband internet access. Funding for the broadband increase comes from the Infrastructure and Investment Act and will be distributed to localities across the Commonwealth. The City of Norfolk is asking residents to complete a survey to better the chances for increased funding in Hampton Roads. To access the survey visit connectingvirginia.com. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. The officer lost control of the drone near Henley-on-Thames in April Plans to use drones as first responders to emergencies will be trialled by a police force next year. Dubbed Project Eagle X, initial trials will take place in Norfolk because of limited access to the helicopters flown by the National Police Air Service. If successful, drones would be stationed on buildings and operated remotely to scenes to give the police early information. Further tests will also take place with Thames Valley and Hampshire forces. Similar trials have taken place in San Diego, USA, and other tests are set to take place in Belgium and the Netherlands. About 400 drones are already in use across England and Wales but must be flown in the operator's line of sight It is hoped the devices, known as "drones as first responders" (DFRs), would give more accurate information on the potential scale of an incident than a member of the public - and arrive more quickly than a helicopter. 'Situational awareness' Neil Sexton, who advises the National Police Chiefs' Council on the use of drones, said: "DFR is a drone that sits autonomously on a roof somewhere in a city and it's in a box, it's protected. "From a control station that receives a 999 call it can be launched completely remotely, flying overhead an incident to gain situational awareness that will be fed back not just to that control station or control room, but also to the first responders who are about to arrive on the ground." "The ability to get a remote aircraft overhead an incident that is still developing to gain a better situational awareness [is] much improved over phone calls from members of the public who are under stress," Mr Sexton added. "Sitting overhead, it can tell you straight away whether you're talking about a major road traffic collision that requires three fire engines and four ambulances, or whether it's a minor prang and someone's getting over-excited." About 400 drones are currently used by police forces in England and Wales that cannot be flown out of the operator's line of sight. There are plans to amend those rules with initial trials taking place in areas with closed-off airspace next year. Follow East of England news on Facebook, Instagram and X. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp 0800 169 1830 NORTH PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia police officers were hospitalized, while a police cruiser was damaged and two men have been arrested, all after two suspects attempted to dodge police in a reported carjacked vehicle. The situation unfolded Friday night, about 10:30, on the 5000 block of North Broad Street, officials said. Police saw two men in a Hyundai SUV that had been the subject of a carjacking in August, from the 2300 block of Gratz Street, in North Philadelphia. Officers witnessed the SUV on the 5000 block of North Broad. They tried to pull the vehicle over, but the driver took off, speeding and running through traffic lights, eventually crashing into a marked police cruiser, at the intersection of Belfield and Ogontz avenues. MORE LOCAL HEADLINES: At that point, the driver, a 33-year-old man, jumped out and took off on foot, with police chasing him. They caught up with him and he was placed under arrest on the 1700 block of Ruscomb Street, authorities explained. Back at the crash site, the passenger in the SUV, a 30-year-old man, was placed under arrest. Officers in the cruiser hit by the SUV were hospitalized at Einstein Medical Center. They are said to be in stable condition. Both the police vehicle and the SUV were towed. Northwest Detectives are leading the investigation into the incident. An Ohio priest was sentenced to life in prison Friday after he was convicted of grooming three boys and taking advantage of their opioid addictions to force them into commercial sex, according to the U.S. Justice Department. In May, a federal jury in Toledo found the Rev. Michael Zacharias, a Roman Catholic clergymember, guilty of five counts of sex trafficking in allegations that spanned 15 years, from July 2005 to August 2020. Prosecutors said he abused his role as a teacher and priest at a Toledo parish school to groom the three boys into adulthood, force them into sex and enable their addictions to pain medications and heroin later in life. Michael Zacharias used his position as a trusted spiritual leader and role model for young boys and their families to exploit them in the most insidious ways, coercing his victims from childhood and beyond to engage in commercial sex with him, said Kristen Clarke, the assistant attorney general of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division, in a statement. The Rev. Michael Zacharias conducts Mass at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Mansfield in 2014. Toledo diocese: Ohio Catholic priest guilty of sex trafficking boys; allegations spanned 15 years Testimony and evidence at trial showed Zacharias developed relationships with the victims' families when they were young to gain their trust, prosecutors said. As the victims got older, he exploited their fears, their housing instability and their criminal records to force them into commercial sex. Zacharias was ordained as a priest in 2002, a Diocese of Toledo news release said. In 2020, upon his arrest, Zacharias was placed on administrative leave from his role in the diocese and a pastor at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Toledo. On Friday, the Rev. Daniel Thomas, the bishop for the Toledo diocese, said in a statement that Zacharias' life sentence marked another step toward justice. After he was convicted in May, Thomas said, the diocese requested to dismiss Zacharias, 56, under canonical law, but it needs official approval from the Vatican. The diocese is awaiting a response. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ohio Catholic priest gets life sentence for sex trafficking of boys An Ohio man is facing criminal charges after he allegedly lied about being the victim of a hate crime involving anti-Palestinian slurs. According to WKYC, citing the North Ridgeville Police Department, 20-year-old Hesham A. Ayyad came to a local hospital on Oct. 22, and told officers that he had been hit by a car in an incident that was "racially motivated." The next day, the Cleveland chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called for an immediate investigation into Ayyad's claims. "We call on state, local and federal law enforcement authorities to monitor and investigate crimes related to the rising Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism," Faten Odeh, CAIR-Ohio, Cleveland Interim Executive Director said in a statement. "We hope the North Ridgeville Police Department and the FBI will collect all the information they need to charge this individual with a hate crime. We should all feel safe to walk down the street to grab a bite to eat, go to the store and go to school." CORNELL PROFESSOR ON LEAVE FOR REMARKS ABOUT 'EXHILARATING' HAMAS ATTACK HAS HISTORY OF INCENDIARY RHETORIC The CAIR-Cleveland released an image of Hesham A. Ayyad in the hospital after his injuries. CAIR said in a press release that Ayyad said that he was walking home from lunch and was hit by an individual in a dark SUV while he was walking along the road. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP According Ayyad, the driver aggressively swerved the SUV and rolled down the window and yelled, "Kill all Palestinians" and "Long live Israel." The driver then allegedly turned around and hit the man while shouting "DIE!" According to WKYC, police investigated Ayyad's and found that his allegations were fabricated. PROFESSOR WARNS TERRORIST SUPPORTERS A MASSIVE PROBLEM IN COLLEGES AS PRO-PALESTINIAN GROUPS DEFEND HAMAS Police confirmed to the local station that Ayyad was never struck by a vehicle nor subjected to racial slurs. After reviewing video evidence, police found that he was injured during an earlier fight with his brother, 19-year-old Khalil A. Ayyad. Hesham A. Ayyad claimed that a black SUV driver hit him because he was pro-Palestinian. WKYC reported that both brothers were arrested and charged with domestic violence and assault. In addition, Hersham Ayyad is accused of making false alarms, falsification, and obstructing official business. The two brothers were released from custody Wednesday after each posted bond. Original article source: Ohio man allegedly fakes hate crime, claims he was hit by car by person who yelled, 'kill all Palestinians' Licking County Sheriff Randy Thorp agonized during the drive Tuesday morning toward the Interstate 70 and State Route 310 interchange. The longtime sheriff had been in Sandusky, attending a conference of Ohio sheriffs, when he started getting alerts about a five-vehicle crash involving a charter bus of high school students and a tractor-trailer. Six people, including three teenagers, died Tuesday after a five-vehicle crash on Interstate 70 in Licking County. The crash is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board. "I packed up all my stuff, checked out and started driving," Thorp said. "Those miles were awful." Thorp went to the scene on Tuesday, helping to provide support for deputies from his agency, and first responders from other police and fire agencies across Licking and Franklin counties who had responded to the scene. Six people died as a result of the crash, 18-year-old Tuscarawas Valley seniors John Mosley and Jeffrey Worrell, 15-year-old sophomore Katelyn Owens, teacher Dave Kennat, 56, and parents Kristy Gaynor, 39, and Shannon Wigfield, 45. All six died at the scene. More than a dozen other students were hurt in the crash, along with several others. While deputies are trained to respond to traumatic situations and run toward danger, the aftermath can be devastating for first responders. Thorp said a Licking County deputy who doubles as the chaplain for the agency went to a hospital with some of those injured Tuesday, then came back to the reunification center to support deputies and those students waiting for their loved ones. Chaplains from Franklin County also came to the scene to help provide support for victims and first responders. "It impacts all of us, including me," Thorp said. "For fire, EMS, the (Ohio Highway Patrol) troopers, it's a tough job when you're dealing with something like this." Licking County deputies held a debriefing Wednesday morning to talk about the crash response and make sure deputies knew about support services and resources that are available if they need them. The sheriff's office is also continuing to offer what support they can to the Tuscarawas Valley community. "It started as a really happy day for those folks from the school," Thorp said. "Everyone's just devastated." bbruner@dispatch.com @bethany_bruner This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Sheriff: Fatal high school bus crash, response 'impacts all of us' MEMPHIS, Tenn. A person was hit and killed by a car on Central Avenue Friday night, according to Memphis Police. Officers responded to the area of Central Avenue and Zach H. Curlin Street in the University Area around 11:45 p.m. A victim was reportedly located and pronounced dead on the scene. One dead after Midtown hit-and-run Police say the driver involved remained on the scene. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A driver remains in critical condition with life-threatening injuries after crashing into a light post in west Columbus on Sunday. A white 2016 Honda Accord was driving north on North Wilson Road toward Valley View Drive at about 1:49 a.m. on Sunday when the car traveled off the roadway and struck the curb of the intersections northeast corner, according to the Columbus Division of Police. The car continued traveling then struck a light post and a utility pole. This embedded content is not available in your region. The driver was ejected from the car and was transported to Grant Medical Center with life-threatening injuries and remains in critical condition, authorities said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. One person is in the hospital after a Sunday morning shooting in southwest Charlotte, MEDIC says. The shooting happened on Tyvola Glen Circle, just off Nations Ford Road, shortly before 4 a.m. Sunday. This embedded content is not available in your region. Google Maps shows the block where the shooting happened is filled with hotels. Channel 9 asked CMPD which hotel the shooting may have happened at. READ MORE: 2 shot, 1 killed in south Charlotte, police say The victim was hospitalized under emergency circumstances. Channel 9 asked for an update on the victim. Details are limited, but we are working to learn what led to the shooting and whether a suspect has been identified. This is a developing story; check wsoctv.com for updates. (WATCH: 1 person suffering life-threatening injuries after incident at Carowinds Camp) Experts pool wisdom to address global development challenges at forum Xinhua) 10:24, November 19, 2023 This photo taken on Nov. 18, 2023 shows the opening ceremony of the Tongzhou Global Development Forum in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong) BEIJING, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- The development of the world must be achieved through the process of globalization, while de-globalization is not helpful, according to experts attending the Tongzhou Global Development Forum on Saturday in Beijing. The two-day event, hosted by Renmin University of China (RUC) and co-organized by the People's Government of Tongzhou District, brought together more than 400 attendees from over 30 countries around the world. Four parallel sessions featuring topics including Chinese modernization and the global governance system, and several academic dialogues were also held during the forum. "To address the issue of global common development, I still believe that economic globalization, investment facilitation and trade liberalization are fundamental approaches," said Wu Xiaoqiu, dean of the National Finance Research Institute of RUC. Uncertainty is a prominent feature of this era, Wu said, adding that finding opportunities for development is a challenge for the whole world. Adrian Nastase, a former Romanian prime minister, noted the necessity of building international consensus to promote development and strengthen the objectives of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to create a favorable international environment. It is also important to achieve a partnership or development in which developed countries should pay their obligations and developing countries strengthen their cooperation, Nastase said. Filip Vujanovic, former president of Montenegro, said that multilateralism does not have alternatives, and called for international cooperation to cope with the challenges to globalism that "exist and will exist in the future." Speaking of the role of the China-proposed initiatives represented by the "Belt and Road" in addressing global development, Chen Wenling, chief economist with the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, said that these initiatives are solutions offered by China to the world, which is also a new type of global public good. "China is not the sole beneficiary, while the entire globe benefits from them," Chen said. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) Students walk past a C-17 jet transport at Kelly Field during an event celebrating the role women have played in aviation and the U.S. military. Kelly Field is now part of Port San Antonio, a tech, aerospace and logistics hub on the Southwest Side. Billy Calzada/Staff photographer A serviceman checks baggage at Kelly Air Force Base as military personnel prepare to leave for Operation Desert Storm in 1991. The air base closed in 2001. The runway and adjacent land became part of Lackland AFB. The rest of Kelly was turned over to Port San Antonio, a hub of private aerospace, tech and logistics companies. EXPRESS-NEWS FILE PHOTO One hundred years ago today, a pilot was killed over Kelly Field during an aerial exhibition gone wrong. It happened on Nov. 18, 1923, during a demonstration of mid-air refueling that was part of an Army relief fund carnival, according to an Associated Press report published in the Houston Post. Most of that day's scheduled events were canceled because of inclement weather, but not the refueling exercise. Advertisement Article continues below this ad First Lt. Paul Wagner, an Army aviator from Oregon, was flying above another plane to refuel it when he lost altitude and the refueling hose went slack. The hose then caught on one of the lower plane's wings and caused it to collide with Wagner's plane. "With a resounding crash, heard for hundreds of yards, the right wing of the upper ship gave way and it fell to the ground catching fire upon impact," the AP reported. The other plane landed safely, but Wagner, just 33, sustained burns so severe that he died at the Kelly Field hospital that evening. That wasn't the only accident during the carnival. During a separate aerial display, a pilot pulled into a nosedive to avoid hitting another plane and was forced to eject. Advertisement Article continues below this ad He sustained only minor injuries, according to the AP. Wagner, a World War I veteran, was one of the most experienced pilots at Kelly Field, where he had been stationed since June 1922. (KRON) One person was shot in an alleged robbery on Friday, the Oakland Police Department announced Sunday. The Oakland Police is investigating a shooting that occurred on Nov. 17 in the 3300 block of Foothill Boulevard, around 6 p.m. Two drivers arrested in Concord PD DUI enforcement patrol The OPD Communications Division was notified of a gunshot wound(s) victim self-transporting to an area hospital. Hospital personnel provided medical treatment to the victim who is listed in stable condition, police said. According to the police investigation, officers responded to the hospital and learned that the victim sustained their injuries during an attempted robbery that occurred. This is an ongoing investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the OPD Criminal Investigation Division at (510)-238-3426. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) Oklahoma City Police are looking for a suspect after a road rage incident led to a shooting on Saturday. According to police the shooting occurred near West Hefner Road and North May Avenue. Police said one victim was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and that the suspect is still at large. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Britains statistics quango faces an official investigation over a faulty census question which appears to have drastically overestimated the number of trans people in the country. A campaign group has written to a watchdog to demand it take regulatory action in order to secure public confidence in national statistics. They said action was required to ensure the faulty question is not replicated in future years. It comes after the 2021 census in England and Wales reported there were 262,000 trans people, equivalent to 0.5 per cent of the population. It was the first time the survey had asked whether people identified as a gender that was different from their registered birth sex. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has admitted there were patterns in the data consistent with some respondents not interpreting the question as we had intended. The ONS census asked: Is the gender you identify with the same as your sex registered at birth? People whose first language was not English were four times more likely to say they were trans than those with English as their main language. It led to anomalies such as a greater proportion of people in the London boroughs of Newham and Brent declaring themselves trans, than in places such as Brighton. Despite this, the ONS declared it still had confidence in the gender identity estimates as a national level. The data on gender identity are worse than useless The gender-critical group Sex Matters has written to Ed Humpherson, the head of the Office for Statistical Regulation, to demand an investigation. Maya Forstater, its executive director, also called for the Commons public administration and constitutional affairs committee to open an inquiry into what went wrong. She said: Despite warnings from many that its questions and guidance on sex and and gender identity were confusing, and the categories were muddled, the ONS bullishly went ahead with them in the census. This was a costly mistake. The resulting data on gender identity are worse than useless, as they give the impression of certainty and detail on which decisions can be made. The ONS has dug in and refused to admit that this data is unreliable, so we are calling on the national statistics regulator to properly investigate and determine whether they meet the grade for national statistics. ONS investigation undermined confidence in national statistics In their letter, the group said: Our conclusion is that data on gender identity (including the sex of the people identified as transgender) is not fit for purpose. It was driven by the adoption of concepts and questions promoted by lobby groups that seek to replace sex with gender identity. This investigation by the ONS is inadequate and undermines confidence in national statistics. It lays the groundwork for further erosion of clarity on sex, and the wider adoption of a gender identity question, and use of associated data, that has been demonstrated to be unreliable. The ONS has proved itself unwilling to accept clear indications that the gender identity question produced unreliable answers. We call on the Office for Statistics Regulation to take regulatory action in order to secure public confidence in national statistics, and to prevent the faulty question being replicated. They said the question on gender identity should be removed from future censuses, with an apology and an explanation to discourage others from using the same wording. They added that a warning should be put on the data, that it should not be designated as national statistics, and the ONS definition of sex must be changed to mean biological sex. The letter is signed by Ms Forstater along with Helen Joyce, Sex Matters director of advocacy, and Michael Biggs, an advisory group member. The ONS was approached for comment. 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. Open AI's board Sunday is reportedly discussing reinstating former CEO Sam Altman after he was ousted on Friday. Altman, (pictured testifying before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law about artificial intelligence in May) was scheduled to meet with board members at the company's San Francisco headquarters. File Photo by Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA-EFE Nov. 19 (UPI) -- OpenAI's board of directors is reportedly in discussions to reinstall ChatGPT developer and former CEO Sam Altman after he was ousted days ago, but it's not clear if he even wants to return. The Information, a tech news website, reported Altman, 38, was invited to meet with OpenAI executives at the company's San Francisco headquarters on Sunday afternoon. Greg Brockman, who resigned from the company after Altman was fired, was also invited to the meeting, Interim CEO Mira Murati told staff on Sunday morning. At the same time, Altman is considering launching a new artificial intelligence venture, The New York Times reported. On Friday, the OpenAI board fired Altman in a surprise move that came after "a deliberative review process." The news was such a surprise that Microsoft, a leading investor in the company, wasn't aware of it until after it happened. Since then, many of OpenAI's investors and supporters have lobbied to bring him back. Late Saturday, Altman posted on X: "I love the OpenAI team so much." While there's no official word on why the board ousted Altman, some speculate tension between Altman, who favored pushing AI more aggressively, and OpenAI board members, who wanted to move cautiously, CNN reported. Publicly, Altman has advocated for ethical use of AI, meeting with the Biden administration to lobby for responsible development. Axios reported that OpenAI's chief scientist, Ilya Sutskever, who is deeply concerned about dangers of advanced AI, may have persuaded three board members that Altman's approach to AI was too risky. Sign up to get this weekly column as a newsletter. Were looking back at the strongest, smartest opinion takes of the week from CNN and other outlets In his new book Determined, neurobiologist Robert M. Sapolsky argues that there is no such thing as free will: everything we do is the result of factors such as biology, environment, culture and genetics. When you behave in a particular way, which is to say when your brain has generated a particular behavior, he writes, it is because of the determinism that came just before, which was caused by the determinism just before that, and before that, all the way downwe are nothing more or less than the cumulative biological and environmental luck, over which we had no control, that has brought us to any moment. The consequences of accepting Sapolskys view would be revolutionary: it would make no sense to blame people for bad behavior. What they do results from neurons firing in assorted regions of the brain, the product of an array of causes they cant control. Yet even Sapolsky recognizes that taking the absence of free will seriously sounds absolutely nutty. But how else to explain what went on in Congress last week? On Tuesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders had to intervene when a fellow senator challenged the Teamsters president, who was testifying at a hearing, to a stand your butt up fight. A House committee chairman called a colleague a smurf and a liar. And, as Douglas Heye, who formerly worked for the House Republican leadership, noted, Tennessee Republican Rep. Tim Burchett accused former Speaker Kevin McCarthy of elbowing him with a clean kidney shot, a charge McCarthy denies. These events all of which happened before lunch was over are more and more typical of daily life in Congress. The reality is that Congress has become a terrible workplace, and members and staff are feeling those effects, Heye observed. Burchett was one of eight Republicans instrumental in McCarthys ouster for the sin of allying with Democrats to pass a short-term measure to keep the government operating. Decapitating the speaker led tortuously to the choice of a new speaker, Rep. Mike Johnson. What did Johnson do last week? He allied with Democrats to pass a short-term measure to keep the government operating. As if to punctuate the wild week, the House Ethics Committee issued a report Thursday accusing the indicted Rep. George Santos of New York of seeking to fraudulently exploit every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit. He charged the campaign for expenses related to apparently personal trips to Las Vegas and Atlantic City, along with cosmetic products and services, the report alleged. It accused him of blatantly stealing from his campaign, deceiving donors into providing what they thought were contributions to his campaign but were in fact payments for his personal benefit and constantly lying about his background and experience. Drew Sheneman/Tribune Content Agency Santos, facing potential expulsion from the House, responded by announcing he will not seek reelection next year. As Julian Zelizer noted, we know of Santos only because he fabricated a record, a whole fake life really, to become one of the handful of Long Island Republicans who helped swing control of the House from the Democrats to the GOP The Santos story, as dramatic as it has been, is just one piece of a much bigger puzzle that has allowed US democracy to descend into a morass of disinformation and falsehood. Santos may be bowing out, but Trump is still their 2024 presidential frontrunner. Four indictments aside, as well as numerous civil suits, Trump remains popular and enormously powerful despite a fact-checking record so long that it should find a place in the Guinness Book of World Records, Zelizer wrote. For more on Congress: John Avlon: Republicans only care about the debt when a Democrat is president Clay Jones/CNN Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley is gaining ground with New Hampshire voters, according to a CNN poll, which puts her second in the GOP primary race, though still far behind Trump. But SE Cupp argued that Haley made a big misstep in saying on Fox News that if elected president shed solve the problem of social media bots and incivility by requiring every person on social media [to] be verified by their name. She later amended that thought to apply it only to people outside the US. Cupp pointed out that What Haley is missing isnt just the importance of anonymous speech in our founding, or the fact that anonymous speech is protected under the First Amendment, but the fact that anonymous speech actually keeps us safe. It protects whistleblowers, victims of sexual assault and harassment as well as dissidents living under repressive regimes, Cupp noted. Israel-Hamas The most important factor in determining the political outcome of Israels current war will not take place in Gaza but will instead unfold in the West Bank, wrote Hussein Ibish, a senior scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. He argued that for Israel to cripple the political power of Hamas among Palestinians it will need to seriously rethink its attitude towards the Islamist extremist groups archrivals: the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) on the international stage. Without strengthening these Palestinian groups, which still represent the mainstream of the national movement, Hamas and even more extreme groups will almost certainly continue to grow and thrive among the Palestinian people. A negotiated agreement with the Palestinian factions who, despite everything, still want to reach a peace deal with Israel for good or ill, currently led by Abbas can bring that about. Its the only thing that can bring Israelis peace and genuine security. After the outbreak of the war, Fatma Ashour, a lawyer and human rights activist, fled south from Gaza City to Khan Younis, where she is living in a house with 28 people. Eight children, and 3 elderly people. Our priority is those 11 people. We give them breakfast. If there is not bread, they can have a biscuit or whatever can be found. If we find dates, they can have one each. If theres neither, we use powder milk to make them tea. Thats how things stand. We, the grown-ups, we have to endure. We only eat lunch Some of the people with us have run out of money. We help them as much as we can. Every now and then someone bursts out crying a member of his family has been killed, or his house destroyed. Its an unbearable situation. Rabbi Jessica Rosenberg, a progressive based in Minneapolis, drew national attention after she bought a ticket to a campaign fundraiser for President Joe Biden and stood up to ask him to call for a ceasefire right now. Biden replied by recommending a pause. And while Israel has implemented regular pauses, Rosenberg argued that these are not enough: Biden and others in his administration have continued to mince their words, calling time and again for a pause, instead of speaking out loudly and unambiguously for the one thing in Gaza that will truly end the suffering and save innocent lives: a ceasefire. Aviva Klompas, former director of speechwriting at the Israeli Mission to the United Nations, observed that accepting a ceasefire now will cost many more lives in the long run if Hamas infrastructure isnt destroyed after its October 7 attack on Israel. A ceasefire would be a de facto victory for a nihilistic jihadi terrorist organization that is financed and backed by Iran, one of whose leaders recently stood on American soil and warned that new fronts will be opened up against the United States. Any truce would leave Hamas leadership, military, weapons and deadly ideology along with its network of tunnels intact. It would also broadcast a message to Iran and its other proxy terror groups that there are no real consequences for committing large-scale atrocities. Bin Laden on TikTok A 21-year-old Letter to America, purportedly written by terrorist leader Osama bin Laden, became the focus of posters on TikTok, who endorsed his critique of US behavior in the Middle East. The Guardian, which had posted the letter as part of its news coverage in 2002, took it down amid the flurry of attention last week. Peter Bergen, author of a biography of bin Laden, wrote, Lets be clear: Osama bin Laden was not a deep thinker but the leader of a group responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans and other Westerners, along with tens of thousands of people in Muslim-majority countries. So, the fact that people on TikTok are extolling bin Ladens 2002 Letter to America, al Qaedas rationale for the 9/11 attacks, in videos that have been watched at least 14 million times is simply baffling. Most of the people praising bin Laden on TikTok seem to be in their 20s, so they were either not born or were young children when 9/11 happened, and they seem to be entirely ignorant of the actual history of al Qaeda. Walt Handelsman/Tribune Content Agency For more: Joan Steinau Lester: The unwelcome topic at this years Thanksgiving table Biden-Xi Dana Summers/Tribune Content Agency President Biden met with Chinas President Xi Jinping at an estate outside San Francisco Wednesday. The fact that the leaders of the two powers, increasingly at odds, are still talking is likely more important than the specifics of their agreement on matters such as restoring direct contact between US and China military leaders. There was no visible sign of progress on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. Writing before the summit, Frida Ghitis noted, Biden may want Xi to help bring down the temperature on the worlds ongoing wars and help prevent new ones from igniting. But from Xis perspective, todays open conflicts are damaging to the US-led world order and hence, I believe, helpful to his goal of seeing the US fail as the worlds preeminent superpower, allowing China to emerge as an alternative. After the four-hour meeting, Biden said Xi agreed to reduce exports of chemicals that are used to manufacture fentanyl, the powerful synthetic opioid routinely smuggled from Mexico to the US. If China can indeed get a handle on the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals, that might help make a difference in preventing the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans succumbing each year to overdoses, Peter Bergen wrote. Supreme Court rules Who will guard the guardians? That question, posed by Juvenal, the Roman poet more than 2,000 years ago, is at the heart of the controversy over the Supreme Courts new ethics code, which sets out 14 pages of rules and commentary. It follows revelations about unreported financial ties between two justices and deep-pocketed conservatives. As Stephen I. Vladeck asked, how is the public supposed to have faith that theyll be followed. In adopting these rules, the Supreme Court didnt address that issue at all. Whats needed is some mechanism for obtaining the justices compliance with the rules. One possibility is the creation of an Article III inspector general. Its a position that has long been proposed for lower federal courts but that could also have at least a modicum of authority to monitor the justices behavior as well. 6% is doomed Finally there may be some good news for home buyers. A jurys ruling last month in Kansas City, Missouri is likely to end the 5% to 6% real estate commission rate that is typical in the US, but much higher than in most parts of the world. The industry argues that requiring homebuyers to pay commissions would make it difficult for some to afford homeownership, wrote Stephen Brobeck of the Consumer Federation of America. In reality, effective rate competition would lower not raise the cost of buying a home. Today, buyer agent commissions are baked into the sale price of homes, but buyers are unable to comparison shop for and negotiate them. If buyers knew they were paying these commissions, many would look for lower rates, have serious conversations with their agents about compensation and try to negotiate lower commissions. Trumps remarks Former President Donald Trump came under sharp criticism for his incendiary remarks in New Hampshire: We will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country. Biden told campaign donors it was reminiscent of language you heard in Nazi Germany in the 30s. But Dean Obeidallah pointed to another aspect of Trumps recent public appearances. Im not talking about Trump saying outrageous and incendiary remarks or lying to help himself politically. We are all sadly used to that Trump. No, this is something far more alarming. In just the past two months of campaigning, Trumps confusion and errors range from saying he defeated Barack Obama in 2016 to confusing the name of the city and state he was in. What makes all of this really interesting is that the shoe is now on the other foot: Trump has long railed that the 80-year-old Biden, his likely Democratic opponent in the 2024 presidential race, was showing the effects of aging in his mental abilities. In fact, Biden is just three years older than the 77-year-old Trump. For more: Peter Bergen: Trumps ridiculous terrorism claim Megan Fox, poet Mike Coppola/Getty Images Megan Fox isnt the first celebrity to take up the pen of a poet, Patricia Grisafi wrote. Jewel, Tupac Shakur, Billy Corgan, Alicia Keys, Mary Lambert, Florence Welch, Halsey and Lana del Rey, among others, have all penned and published poetry with varying degrees of commercial success. And, after all, Bob Dylan received a Nobel Prize for new poetic expressions in his body of work. Foxs poetry matters because women and their stories matter, Grisafi observed. No matter how often we are told that we need to listen to women, the prevailing message is always that women should shut up. Where Fox would be the muse for other artists, she is now a creator and a muse for her own art. Her body, famous subject of the male gaze, becomes a poetic body that is the site of multiple traumas, struggling to speak and make meaningThese are feminist poems, and they carry Foxs message: reject silence. Air travel grief Flying for the holiday? Get ready for flight delays, cancellations, lost baggage and all the miseries that come with flying, warned Ganesh Sitaraman, author of the new book, Why Flying is Miserable. Airlines make money when they cut costs and increase profits, which can mean worse service for flyers. If we want to make flying less miserable, policymakers and the traveling public will have to tackle these incentives. The airline industry once gave passengers piano bars in planes, poker machines and steak and champagne, Sitaraman noted. But in 1978, Congress deregulated the airlines and it became a race to the bottom. Todays miseries of flying derive from this choice to deregulate airlines and unleash them into the Hunger Games of ordinary incentives. Added fees for baggage, an increasing number of fare classes, differential pricing these all make perfect sense as a way to squeeze money out of passengers. Dont miss: Fareed Zakaria: The strategy that can support Ukraine even if Trump is elected Jill Filipovic: Travis Kelce is happy to be Mr. Taylor Swift Judi Ketteler: We defeated Moms for Liberty in our small Ohio community Noah Berlatsky: This Nicolas Cage movie is a hard lesson in being human AND The Crown returns Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana in "The Crown" season 6 - Daniel Escale/Netflix The beginning of the final season of the royal soap opera The Crown has landed, and it doesnt hold back. As Holly Thomas wrote, The undisputed star of season six or at least, of the first four episodes released this week is the late Princess Diana, played by Elizabeth Debicki. This installment, which covers the weeks leading up to Dianas death in 1997, sees the stiff fabric of the show unravel as everyone is dragged irresistibly into her orbit. The measured, stately pace of the series so far is upended by the all-consuming tragic story, which even includes ghostly, posthumous visions of Diana. The episodes melt into each other, Thomas noted. Their themes are all the same: Diana, as ever, outshining her former in-laws; Prince Charles jealousy as he seeks public approval for Camilla Parker-Bowles; the senior royals resisting modernization and Mohamed Al-Fayeds attempts to fashion his son Dodi as the new Mr. Spencer. Images of Diana cavorting on Al-Fayeds yacht in a swimsuit and the paparazzi hurtling after her could be placed almost anywhere on the storyboard. Its deliberate chaos, perhaps, but chaos nonetheless. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com I have reported on conflicts around the world for over two decades, but nothing prepares you to cover a war at home. To see familiar places occupied and demolished. To fully plunge the depth of your helplessness. Yet my team and I set out to do just that this summer, working on a documentary about Sudans conflict and the hidden hands ultimately responsible for the atrocities that have come to define this war. Two separate voices fought for space in my head. One voice the journalist asked questions, took down notes and talked through testimony. I worked with my team to tackle the enormity of the logistical and editorial challenges that comes with filming an investigative documentary in a country ravaged by war. The second voice, which I tamped down while working, was closer to a babble, looping round and round in my head, reminding me that I could never truly run away from the fact that this was home, this was personal. You, a people, whose spirit of revolution is ablaze The music accompanying these words is sometimes joyful, sometimes somber, sometimes martial, interpreted as they have been by so many of Sudans musical maestros. To so many Sudanese, though, they are instantly recognisable as the words of the peoples poet: Mahjoub Sharif. The depth of your sense of freedom will become a defining trait, running down the line of your descendants. Even now, I hear his words and Im instantly transported back to being five years old. To the first time I watched my mother cry in our London kitchen, as she copied tapes over on our double cassette deck, one reel playing out the songs as the other recorded. Wed then pass the original on to whoever was next in line in their small community of exiles. Sudanese women who fled the conflict in Geneina in Sudan's Darfur region, line up to receive rice portions from Red Cross volunteers in Ourang on the outskirts of Adre, Chad. - Zohra Bensemra/Reuters Sharifs werent the only tapes that she and my father waited for impatiently. There were love songs from their youth, traditional tribal music for my village-boy father, and the latest songs taking over weddings and parties in Sudanese cities. It was the music of home, transporting them back to the country theyd loved so much that theyd been forced to leave it. I was warned to never, ever play with any of the tapes in the cassette deck, especially the tapes of Sharifs songs. What I didnt know at the time is that the tapes of his songs were contraband, smuggled out at risk of execution his words deemed as dangerous as the protests they inspired. Nonetheless, I learned at an early age that words could get you killed. My mothers and fathers words, as journalists, forced them into exile. My words and my teams work investigating the RSFs alliance with Russia got me indicted by pro-RSF authorities. For a year, it was too dangerous to go home. Yet, the moment the war broke out earlier this year, home was the only place I wanted to be. I am a child of exile because my parents aspired to practise journalism in a country where basic freedoms were withheld. In one of the interludes of stability between our bouncing around Khartoum, Cairo, Jeddah and London my parents set up a newspaper, initially in Sudan. That was during a lull between periods of military rule. Its publication later moved to Cairo, then back to Sudan in 2000, when my parents were persuaded to return home by a promise of democratization by then-dictator Omar al-Bashir. I am now past the age my mother was when we were in that kitchen in London. Over the past few years, I have been watching and reporting on the upheaval back home in Sudan, in the aftermath of the overthrow of Bashir. This has been the first time Ive seen my country through my parents eyes. In 2019, I watched in awe as people flooded the streets and resisted gunfire to defy Bashir, and I watched in tears as the very soldiers Bashir had nurtured and elevated seized back control. What its brought home to me is that everything I am as a journalist stems from everything my parents are and still aspire to: the belief that we all even those of us living far from Western capitals deserve to dream of better. Everyone deserves a country that feels like it belongs to its people, not strongmen and soldiers. Everyone deserves the freedom to raise their voices. That is what has informed my work and the investigations we do. In April, when fighting broke out between Sudans army and the leadership of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, implicated in a previous genocide in Sudans western Darfur region, the team and I jumped straight in. We were broadcasting live. I was on air almost non-stop and in between those reports, I was messaging with my siblings around the world on how we would convince our parents to leave their home. Then the best news came. CNNs US documentary strand The Whole Story wanted to commission an hour on Sudan. It was more than the team and I could have hoped for. We began to plan and I began to retreat into my place of experience and comfort, my journalist self. Who is behind this? Who is supporting and sustaining the fight? How do we get the world to care? The kind of questions we ask at the start of any investigation. Questions, though that hit a little differently because for me it was home. When the very act of seeking answers has implications for people you love, when the answers cast doubt on your familys ability to ever return home again, the equation changes. For hours, the team and I worked under the raffia mat roof of a traditional wooden structure near the Chad-Sudan border, setting up and rearranging ourselves as best we could, as interviewee after interviewee sat down in front of our cameras. There were almost two dozen in just one of the sittings. They were all bravely willing to record their testimony, what they had witnessed, what they had been forced to endure just across the border in Darfur. We arrived here after almost three weeks spent crossing through Sudan, and the months prior, investigating how Emirati backing, and Russias provision of support via its Wagner proxy militia and regional meddling, had enabled this war. This was also the moment when we finally got to hear from the victims themselves. I sat on the ground listening to witness testimony, to young girls describing holding their younger brothers as the blood drained out of them, to litanies of rape, humiliation and enslavement, to descriptions of the depth and expanse of peoples loss. I found that I was furious. My journalist self was no longer a place I could hide. Nima Elbagir on a UN-chartered flight to report on Sudan's conflict. - Alex Platt/CNN Even now back home in London, I find my rage is sometimes hard to contain. Again and again and again, I turn their stories over in my mind. Ive never been ashamed of crying but for too long the tears wouldnt come. Forty years after I watched my parents sing and cry and laugh to the Sudanese songs smuggled out to them, I find myself searching through Spotify for Sudanese playlists. I must not be the only one because almost every day I find new ones: love songs, pop songs about girls running barefoot to answer the door to aspiring suitors. Songs likening a beloveds smile to a string of pearls, threaded to match the beauty mark on her cheek. Listening to those songs the poetry of Sharif and Mohammed Mekki Ibrahim, the soaring vocals of Mohammed Wardi and Abdelgadir Salim that is the only time I find myself able to cry. Those songs and what they meant for my parents, for the generations before them and the generations fighting for freedom today remind me that we, as a people, have been here before. That we overcame. That even now, surrounded by horror and bloodshed, so many Sudanese still believe in change. We still talk about democracy as a right. As an inevitability. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Back in 2022, when the Republican bloc of the Supreme Court retired the constitutional right to abortion that had been American law since Jan. 22, 1973, more than a few observers compared the Republican Party to the dog that had finally caught the station wagon. What would Republicans do now that they had been unleashed to pursue their unpopular antiabortion agenda across the land? In the end, the car metaphor turned out to be a vehicular mistake. The GOP is more like a dog that caught a Greyhound bus. And its not going to digest that rolling hunk of metal anytime soon. A nongoverning political party that agrees on little other than its own will to power and an undying lust to own the libs will not soon reach a compromise on a difficult issue such as abortion. Indeed, after a half century of GOP abortion politics, its humiliating that the party was completely unprepared for a victory that lets face it many Republican strategists were hoping never to see. Surveying the field at the recent GOP presidential debate, CNN reported : "The five candidates on stage for NBCs debate in Miami came up with at least five different positions about the extent to which abortion should be allowed and over whether the federal government or the states should adjudicate the issue. The mess of approaches underscored how Republicans who for years used the stark clarity of the antiabortion drive to galvanize their voters now lack a single compelling position to combat political messaging from Democrats and pro-abortion-rights groups." Ban it after six weeks. No, after 15. No, leave it to the states. No, enact a nationwide ban once and for all. Trouble is, as Josh Marshall pointed out at Talking Points Memo, the variously timed bans on a previously legal right just amount to the bank robber offering to hand back half of the cash stolen in the heist. It turns out that Americans dont like their rights summarily revoked, even if they get to keep them for a few weeks before theyre snatched away. Democratic victories in elections earlier this month, which were significantly driven by demand for abortion rights, heightened the GOP contradictions. There is just no logical way to satisfy a party whose base is passionately opposed to abortion but equally determined to do anything including, for many, jettisoning its position on abortion to gain power. But there might be a political way to square that lumpy circle. Its name is Donald Trump. In the topsy-turvy world of conservative America, only this amoral figure can deliver the moral victory that the antiabortion movement craves. Only a fanatical liar has the credibility to see it through. In the absence of Trump, intramural abortion politics would likely go the way of most politics in the GOP. Anyone seeking compromise will be sandbagged by what my colleague Jonathan Bernstein calls the true conservative cycle. Republicans from far-right districts will demand fealty to the most far-right true conservative position no matter how destructive, stupid or untenable because its more important to be a true conservative howling in rage than a RINO compromised by the need to govern. Of course, after many seasons of happy hunting, there are few actual RINOs left, so the "true conservative" rhetoric is aimed now at any fellow conservative who fails the latest ultra-purity test. Trump is the only one who can lie his way through the GOPs abortion test without lighting a fuse under the true conservative powder keg. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, by contrast, who is visibly seeking a way out of the abortion dilemma, is liable to be true-conservatived to a pulp. The GOPs most pious crusaders stuck with Trump through multiple exposures of his fraud, sexual assaults, sleazy coverups of sleazy sexual encounters and more depravity than anyone could possibly remember. When the New York Post published what it called girl-on-girl pornography featuring Melania Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign the pictures in black and white in Rupert Murdochs right-wing tabloid conservatives shrugged. Then they set out to ban books with lesbian characters from the library. Trumps claim that he could get away with murder on 5th Avenue was not a joke; it was a prescription. Trump made the reversal of Roe happen, appointing three antiabortion justices to the Supreme Court. He has often taken credit for Roes demise, a claim that Democrats intend to amplify. But after many recent Republican defeats, Trump has mostly stopped crowing. He has let it be known that he is chafing beneath the partys abortion straitjacket. He called a six-week abortion ban a terrible thing. This will not impress American voters who are committed to abortion rights. But Trumps emergent obfuscation might well mollify the kind of infrequent, often low-information voters who are likely to play a big role in the 2024 election. His trademark lack of credible detail is only a red flag to people who pay attention to detail, or credibility, in the first place. Would Trumps Christian conservative base abandon him for suddenly going wobbly on abortion? Absolutely not. Above all, white Christian nationalists want power over others. In the event Trump is elected, his MAGA officer corps has signaled that the democracy game will be over in any case, and new rules will be in place. Provided Trump can commandeer enough extralegal force, the new regime will be positioned to reward his far-right Christian supporters with any draconian policies they like. A few true believers might still experience some cognitive dissonance. A student group showed up outside Trumps rally in Florida recently holding signs stating, Make Trump Pro-Life Again. You have to respect their commitment to the cause. But MAGA politics now dictate a different approach. For the 2024 campaign, Trump is eager to throw his antiabortion allies under the bus, just temporarily, while still counting on them to vote his way. They will almost certainly go along. If Trump actually makes it to the Oval Office, they rest assured that he will run over their enemies once and for all. Francis Wilkinson is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion. @fdwilkinson If its in the news right now, the L.A. Times Opinion section covers it. Sign up for our weekly opinion newsletter. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Oregon Dem House candidate looks to 'reclaim her sexuality' after being outed as a Manhattan dominatrix An Oregon Democratic congressional candidate is embracing her past and looking to "reclaim her sexuality" after a clip of her working at a Manhattan BDSM dungeon was leaked online earlier this year. Prior to being exposed for her past work in her 20s and 30s, Courtney Casgraux, a 41-year-old self-described international businesswoman who is seeking to represent Oregon's 1st Congressional District in the House, worked as a dominatrix and charged clients an estimated $500 per hour. In an interview with the New York Post, Casgraux discussed how she felt when the video was released and how she's using the incident to empower her campaign for Congress. "[I was] just panicking. . . . Then I was like, Who did this? and I just started calling every single person that I pretty much knew from my past. . . . I was like hyperventilating, crying," Casgraux, the single mother of a teenage son, recalled of how she felt when she found out about the video. PARENTS, KIDS SIDELINED AS PORTLAND TEACHERS' UNION, DISTRICT REMAIN GRIDLOCKED AMID STRIKE: 'SETTING US BACK' Courtney Casgraux, who is seeking to represent Oregon's 1st Congressional District in the House, worked as a dominatrix and charged clients an estimated $500 per hour. A native of California, Casgraux returned to the BDSM industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, this time working at Donatella's Dungeon an S&M club located in Midtown Manhattan, according to the Post. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Though she was never able to identify who was responsible for leaking the video, Casgraux told the outlet she believes someone was attempting to "shame" her. "To shame me for something that helped create the life that I have today where I have opportunity . . . made me really mad. Because it felt like an attack on women, not just an attack on me," Casgraux said. Casraux is also expressing frustration with those that currently represent the Democratic Party on a federal level, saying she believes the party currently lacks "strong leadership." In a statement to Fox News Digital, Casgraux said she does "not feel Democrats have strong leadership" and that those representing the party have "compromised the nation," pointing specifically to President Biden. In a statement to Fox News Digital, Casgraux said she does "not feel Democrats have strong leadership" on a federal level and that those representing the party currently have "compromised the nation," pointing specifically to President Biden. Casgraux also told Fox that she is surprised about the state of Congress when it comes to who can represent people throughout the country and who cannot. "Unfortunately, we live in a nation where there can be sex purchasers in Congress, but not still not sex workers," she said. Despite the incident that rattled Casgraux, she is now attempting to win a seat in the House that's currently held by Democrat Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, who's seeking re-election to her post. Casgraux's campaign has reportedly focused on abortion rights and reversing the decriminalization of certain drugs in Oregon. OREGON MOMS UNION SLAMS REMOVAL OF STANDARDIZED TEST FROM HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION REQUIREMENT: 'NOT SURPRISING' Casgraux is now attempting to win a seat in the House that's currently held by Democrat Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, who's seeking re-election to her post. Casgraux, who the Post reported is looking to use the "outing" in an effort to "reclaim her sexuality," recently created a Playboy profile where she can sell risque pictures of herself for up to $150 each. Through the Playboy profile, Casgraux, who doesn't receive compensation from Playboy, posts other material, such as an explanation of how Article 2 of the Constitution grants presidential powers and impeachment, as well as her views on challenges faced by American farms, according to the report. "Once [the video] came out and I got the Playboy page, I was like, Oh my God, I feel like I can just be me. And I could say the things that I wanna say, and I can be funny and be tongue in cheek with things, and reclaim my sexuality," she said of the experience thus far. The Post also reported that Casgraux's campaign has only raised $757 from a total of 13 donors so far, but her persistence in the race remains. Through social media, Casgraux discusses an array of topics she's passionate about. In this photo, shared to Instagram in September, Casgraux is shown visiting the Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial. CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Casgraux explained that her campaign, which was launched in June, is about more than winning a seat in Congress. "If I can win, thats incredible lets go to Washington . . . and well make amazing legislation," she told the outlet. "But theres no losing if I can make one woman feel like theres no shame in your past and what you have done. . . . You too can run for Congress." Original article source: Oregon Dem House candidate looks to 'reclaim her sexuality' after being outed as a Manhattan dominatrix A neo-Nazi march outside of the Wisconsin State Capitol on Saturday has sparked widespread outrage across the state and the country amid an alarming rise in antisemitism. The Madison Police Department said that the group consisted of around 20 people carrying Nazi flags. Authorities added that the demonstrators did not seem to have any weapons. Social media videos of the protest captured marchers all men carrying flags emblazoned with swastikas, doing the Nazi salute, and chanting, there will be blood. Every demonstrator wore red shirts that said Blood Tribe on the back. Wisconsin Gov Tony Evers wrote a statement on Saturday condemning the demonstration: To see neo-Nazis marching in our streets and neighborhoods and in the shadow of our State Capitol building spreading their disturbing, hateful messages is truly revolting. He continued, Let us be clear: neo-Nazis, antisemitism, and white supremacy have no home in Wisconsin. We will not accept or normalize this rhetoric and hate. He called those ideologies repulsive and disgusting, and denounced their presence in our state in the strongest terms possible. Wisconsin Democratic Sen Tammy Baldwin wrote, This has no place in Wisconsin. She added, At a time when we are seeing disturbing spikes in antisemitism, it is more important than ever to denounce this hate in no uncertain terms. Hate has no home here, Democratic Rep Mark Pocan, who represents Madison, said, These despicable extremists do not speak for the people of Madison, Wisconsin, or the United States. I strongly condemn this blatant showcase of antisemitism. Our community stands resolute against such bigotry. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) described the Blood Tribe as an all-male group they dont allow female members of hardcore white supremacists. The presence of neo-Nazis outside a synagogue and in front of Wisconsins state capitol today is deplorable, the ADL Midwest Regional Director David Goldenberg said in a statement. He called on city, state, and university leaders to act aggressively to develop comprehensive strategies to combat antisemitism and extremism in Wisconsin and on university campuses across the state. The demonstration comes after a marked rise in antisemitism exhibited across the country since the 7 October attacks in the Middle East. aaThe ADL recorded an increase in antisemitic incidents compared to last year. From 7 October through 23 October of this year, the ADL documented 312 antisemitic incidents; in the same time period last year, the ADL documented 64 antisemitic incidents. KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) Patients, staff and displaced people left Gazas largest hospital Saturday, with one describing a panicked and chaotic evacuation as Israeli forces searched and face-scanned men among the evacuees and took some away. Israels military has been searching the hospital for a Hamas command center that it alleges is located under the building a claim Hamas and the hospital staff deny. The evacuation from Gaza Citys Shifa Hospital, which Israel says was voluntary, left behind only Israeli forces and a small number of health workers to care for those too sick to move. We left at gunpoint, Mahmoud Abu Auf told The Associated Press by phone after he and his family left the crowded hospital. Tanks and snipers were everywhere inside and outside. He said he saw Israeli forces detain three men. Elsewhere in northern Gaza, dozens of people were killed in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp when what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike hit a crowded U.N. shelter in the main combat zone. It caused massive destruction in the camps Fakhoura school, said wounded survivors Ahmed Radwan and Yassin Sharif. The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help, Radwan said by phone. AP photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets. The Israeli military, which had warned Jabaliya residents and others in a social media post in Arabic to leave, said only that its troops were active in the area with the aim of hitting terrorists. It rarely comments on individual strikes, saying only that it targets Hamas while trying to minimize civilian harm. Receiving horrifying images & footage of scores of people killed and injured in another UNRWA school sheltering thousands of displaced, Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, said on X, formerly Twitter, pleading for a humanitarian cease-fire. Civilians cannot and should not have to bear this any longer, U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said on X. Attacks continued in southern Gaza. An Israeli airstrike hit a residential building on the outskirts of the town of Khan Younis, killing at least 26 Palestinians, according to a doctor at the hospital where the bodies were taken. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israels forces have begun operating in eastern Gaza City while continuing its mission in western areas. With every passing day, there are fewer places where Hamas terrorists can operate, he said, adding that the militants would learn that in southern Gaza in the coming days. His comments were the clearest indication yet that the military plans to expand its offensive to the southern areas of Gaza where Israel had told Palestinian civilians to flee early in the war. The evacuation zone is already crammed with displaced civilians, and it was not clear where they would go if the offensive moves closer. It was not clear how the Shifa hospital evacuation occurred. On Saturday, the military said it had been asked by the hospitals director to help those who would like to leave do so by a secure route. Israels military said it did not order any evacuation. But Medhat Abbas, a spokesman for the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza, said the military had ordered the facility cleared, giving the hospital an hour to get people out. A Shifa physician, Ahmed Mokhallalati, said on social media that about 120 patients remained, including some in intensive care and premature babies, and he and five other doctors were staying. It also was not clear where those who left the hospital had gone, with 25 of Gazas hospitals non-functioning due to lack of fuel, damage and other problems, and the other 11 only partially operational, according to the World Health Organization. Israel has said hospitals in northern Gaza were a key target of its ground offensive aimed at crushing Hamas, claiming they were used as militant command centers and weapons depots, which both Hamas and medical staff deny. Israeli troops have encircled or entered several hospitals. Internet and phone service were restored Saturday to the Gaza Strip, ending a telecommunications outage that forced the United Nations to shut down critical aid deliveries. The war, now in its seventh week, was triggered by Hamas Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel, in which militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted some 240 men, women and children. Fifty-two soldiers have been killed since the Israeli offensive began. More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed in the war, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, but more than two-thirds of those killed were women and children; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday that the Israeli military would have full freedom to operate within the territory after the war. The comments again put him in conflict with U.S. visions for a post-war era in Gaza. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said the U.S. opposes an Israeli reoccupation of Gaza and envisions a unified Palestinian government in Gaza and the West Bank as a step toward a Palestinian state, long opposed by Netanyahus government. GROWING FRUSTRATION Gazas main power plant shut down early in the war, and Israel has cut off electricity. That makes fuel necessary to power the generators needed to run the telecommunications network, water treatment plants, sanitation facilities, hospitals and other critical infrastructure for Gazas 2.3 million people. Juliette Touma, spokeswoman for the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, said 120,000 liters (31,700 gallons) of fuel arrived, meant to last for two days, after Israel agreed Friday to allow in that amount for the U.N.s use. It is also allowing another 10,000 liters (2,642 gallons) to keep the telecommunications systems running. The U.N. has warned that the amount of fuel being provided is only half of the daily minimum requirement. It was not immediately clear when UNRWA would resume the delivery of aid that was put on hold Friday. Gaza has received only 10% of its required food supplies each day in shipments from Egypt, according to the U.N., and the water system shutdown has left most of the population drinking contaminated water, causing an outbreak of disease. Dehydration and malnutrition are growing, with nearly all residents in need of food, according to the U.N.s World Food Program. In Jerusalem, thousands of marchers including family members and supporters of some 240 hostages held in Gaza by Hamas arrived on the last leg of a five-day trek from Tel Aviv, castigating Netanyahu over his handling of the war and pleading with the government to do more to bring their loved ones home. With public pressure mounting, Netanyahu said Saturday that Israels War Cabinet would soon meet with representatives of the families. I promise, when we have something to say, we will inform you, said Netanyahu. Rallies over the war were again held in several cities around the world. AIRSTRIKES CONTINUE The Israeli military said its aircraft struck what it described as a hideout for militants in the urban refugee camp of Balata in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance service said five Palestinians were killed. The deaths raised to 212 the number of Palestinians killed in West Bank violence since the war began, making it the deadliest period in the territory since the second Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s. Some people moving south in Gaza recovered bodies of strangers along the way. I found these young men inside the car. The car was destroyed, said Moemen Abu Erban, one man on the move. Frankly, it is a difficult thing. There is complete destruction. The bodies had been placed on a horse cart and covered with blankets. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. A 4-year-old girl was grazed in the head with a bullet on the South Side after a family member's gun accidently discharged, police said. kali9/Getty Images/iStockphoto A 4-year-old girl was grazed in the head with a bullet after a family members weapon accidently discharged, police said. The incident happened Saturday in the 8800 block of Larkia Street on the South Side. A preliminary report by the San Antonio Police Department said a 60-year-old man who is related to the child had just returned home after visiting a shooting range. While he handled the weapon inside the home, it discharged, police said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The child was taken to a local hospital and is in stable condition. Police said she had no apparent gunshot puncture and suffered only a graze. HANFORD, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) A man is behind bars after assaulting two women and barricading himself in an apartment with six children Saturday morning, according to the Hanford Police Department. Police say around 9 a.m. they responded to a call regarding a man who was dragging two women out of a car at the Casa Del Sol Apartments in the 12200 block of West Hanford-Armona Road. While en route, police were notified the man was stabbing one of the women. Upon arrival, responding officers reported a 29-year-old woman on the ground between parked cars in the parking lot with a stab wound in her neck and bleeding from her head. She was immediately transported to a local hospital. Witnesses helped authorities identify the suspect as 30-year-old George Watley and said he ran back to the apartment he shared with the victim. Police tried to make contact with Watley but he locked the front door, barricading himself inside with six kids who also resided in the apartment. After about 40 minutes of negotiating Watleys surrender by SWAT and the Crisis Negotiation Team, officers say Watley exited and surrendered. Authorities searched the apartment and found all six children safe. Detectives also found the second victim at the scene, a 27-year-old woman, who told them about what happened. Police say Watley had tried to stop the two women from leaving in a car, forcing himself inside the vehicle. During the altercation between them, investigators say Watley punched the 27-year-old in the face and head and attempted to stab her. He then stabbed the 29-year-old in the neck and repeatedly hit and kicked her while she was on the ground. Officials say both women were transported to a local hospital where they remain in stable condition. Hanford police say Watley was booked under suspicion of attempted murder, domestic violence, criminal threats, assault with a deadly weapon, child endangerment, and violation of a domestic violence restraining order. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com. KANSAS CITY, Mo. One person has suffered serious injuries after being hit by a car in Kansas City Saturday evening. Investigations revealed that a pedestrian was crossing St. John from the north side of the street to the south side of the street. FOX4 newsletters: Get the latest news delivered to your inbox The pedestrian left the sidewalk and walked directly out in front of a gold Toyota RAV4 that was traveling eastbound on St. John. The Toyota hit the pedestrian, throwing them to the pavement. The driver and sole occupant of the Toyota stopped immediately and was not injured during the collision. The pedestrian was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. They are currently in very critical condition. Investigations are ongoing. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. Police investigating the murder of County Down man Peter McCormack have issued a fresh appeal for information on the 31st anniversary of his death. The 42-year-old was shot dead when two gunmen burst into the Thierafurth Inn in Kilcoo on 19 November 1992. Three other customers, including a 69-year-old man who was registered blind, were also injured in the attack. Det Ch Insp Byrne said Mr McCormack was "an innocent victim of a sickening sectarian attack". He added that police are appealing for "anyone who has any knowledge of what happened that evening who has not spoken to police previously, or who has any new information, to do so now". "It is not too late," the senior officer from the PSNI's Legacy Investigation Branch added. "If anyone now feels they are able to talk to us, we are ready to listen." Det Ch Insp Byrne said the bar was full of customers who were about to take part in a charity darts match when the fatal attack happened. Police believe the gunmen made their escape in a grey Ford Orion car, which was found abandoned a few miles away from the bar in Tollymore Forest Park. The car had been stolen from an address in east Belfast earlier in the day. Det Ch Insp Byrne also made a direct appeal to those involved in Mr McCormack's murder. He said that "a number of people were involved" and urged them to "do the right thing and make a difference to Peter's family by making themselves known to police". Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. speaks at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu, Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. Marcos said the situation in the South China Sea "has become more dire" as China expands its presence in an area where multiple nations have competing territorial claims. (AP Photo/Audrey McAvoy) HONOLULU (AP) President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of the Philippines said the situation in the South China Sea has become more dire as China expands its presence in an area where multiple nations have competing territorial claims. China has showed interest in atolls and shoals that are closer and closer to the coast of the Philippines, with the nearest atoll about 60 nautical miles (111 kilometers) away, Marcos said. Unfortunately, I cannot report that the situation is improving, Marcos said Sunday. The situation has become more dire than it was before. Marcos spoke during a question and answer session after he delivered a talk at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu. The Philippines president stopped in Hawaii to meet with U.S. military leaders and the local Filipino community on his way home from a regional summit meeting in San Francisco. The visit held both geopolitical and personal significance for the leader. Marcos's father, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, was forced into exile in Hawaii in 1986 after he was ousted in an army-backed people power uprising in the Philippines. His trip comes at a time when the U.S. and the Philippines have been deepening their long-standing alliance in a shift after Marcos predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, nurtured cozy ties with China and Russia. China claims virtually the entire South China Sea as its own territory and refuses to acknowledge claims from the Philippines and four other other governments to some or all of the waterway. Beijing has dismissed the findings of a U.N.-backed arbitration tribunal that invalidated Chinas sweeping historical claims under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea. Marcos reiterated that his nation wouldnt yield. The Philippines will not give a single square inch of our territory to any foreign power, he said in his speech. The U.S. says China has militarized several islands it built in the area, arming them with anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile systems, laser and jamming equipment, and fighter jets. Marcos said features in the South China Sea are slowly being turned into bases." He said Adm. John Aquilino, the top U.S. military commander in the Indo-Pacific region, showed him a model of one earlier in the day. The level of commitment China made "to those military bases was remarkable, Marcos said. Tensions in the area have risen recently as China has blockaded an isolated Philippine marine outpost on Second Thomas Shoal, also known as Ayungin Shoal. Last month, a Chinese coast guard ship and an accompanying vessel rammed a Philippine coast guard ship and a military-run supply boat near the contested shoal, according to Philippine officials. China accused the Philippine vessels of trespassing in what it said were Chinese waters without authorization despite repeated radio warnings. The U.S. and the Philippines have a mutual defense treaty dating to 1951. Marcos said the U.S., as its only treaty ally, was its main partner. But he said Manila also was seeking to strengthen ties with other nations sharing its ideals and values, noting the examples of Australia, Japan and South Korea. He said the Philippines also was seeking to negotiate a code of conduct with Vietnam and Malaysia, other nations with whom it has territorial conflicts. Marcos' remarks came after he met Friday with Chinese President Xi Jingping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. He told reporters afterward that they agreed the challenges in the South China Sea should not be the defining element of their relationship. Marcos said the two leaders tried to come up with mechanisms to lower tensions in the South China Sea. Many Filipinos immigrants to Hawaii come from the same province as Marcos, Ilocos Norte, and support him. But he still faced small protests at the airport and at a convention hall where he met members of the local Filipino community. Satu Limaye, the vice president of the East-West Center, noted the U.S. and the Philippines have a long, complicated relationship. He pointed to years when the U.S. ruled the archipelago as a colony, their signing of the defense treaty and when the U.S. military withdrew from major bases in the country in the 1990s. Limaye said it's important to watch how the U.S. and the Philippines manage their nations' long and complex relationship while facing their common concern, China. CHARLESTON, S.C. Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips walked straight into Joe Biden territory when he arrived at the American Theater, nestled on Charlestons historic King Street. He took the stage to a cold reception. Hey, everybody, Phillips said, to little response from the crowd. Is that a warm South Carolina welcome? he joked, drawing out some more cheers from the audience. Phillips first trip to the state since launching his longshot presidential campaign just three weeks ago and his frosty welcome here underscored the uphill climb facing the Minnesota Democrat across the country, but especially in Bidens political safe haven of South Carolina. He chose the Blue Jamboree, an annual showcase of national and Charleston-area Democrats, to make his first pitch to more than 200 voters in this key early voting state. Its a longshot. This is Biden country, said Bre Spaulding, a South Carolina-based political consultant, referring to Phillips campaign. But we also understand the process, and thats the good part about being true to our democracy is people have the right to make their case. Phillips speech featured several tense and awkward moments, like when he compared the current political challenge facing Biden to that of Hillary Clintons loss to Donald Trump in 2016. A Biden volunteer shook her head aggressively in disagreement. But there was also a subtle but palpable shift in the room by the end of his remarks. He never received the thunderous applause garnered by Biden surrogates South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn and Steve Benjamin, White House director of public engagement and former Columbia mayor but the crowd was engaged as he talked about the one thing uniting both Biden and Phillips supporters in the room: The desire to beat Trump. Is it hard for an insurgent taking on the entire establishment and institutions to introduce him or herself in a state like this, with a person of such extraordinary influence as a person like Jim Clyburn? Of course its hard, Phillips said in an interview with POLITICO Saturday evening. But it was so much better than I ever imagined. Walking off the stage, Phillips hugged Clyburn, his Democratic Caucus colleague, and a crowd gathered outside the theater doors, lining up to ask the Minnesotan questions and to snap group photos. Even some Biden voters who were wary of the outsider acknowledged that they were glad he came Phillips said he measures his success at these events not by the clapping, but by the number of people who talk to him afterwards. Some Phillips supporters wore his blue campaign t-shirts or hats, while a few people said they showed up because they received a mysterious digital invite sent to their phones on Saturday. The invite said if they stayed for the entirety noting that they may be asked to wear campaign attire and participate in photos they would get a $50 gift card. Phillips said hed never seen the invite, and his campaign staff said it wasnt from his team after internal inquiries. One voter, Karen Hutchinson, spent several minutes talking to Phillips afterwards and posed for a photo with him. Hutchinson was a Biden voter in 2020, and said she had never heard Phillips name before but came because she received the flier. But I think Im going to vote for him, Hutchinson said, speaking about her financial concerns. She said that even when she has extra money to spare, she often has to help her son and his family. Hes speaking for the next generation, these young people, she said. Phillips spent his Saturday morning on randomly selected calls with small-dollar donors, and then moved to a long list of calls with local South Carolina officials. He said hes planning to hire more staff in the state after the trip. Some had said that the presidents support is a mile wide but its only an inch deep. And what Im discovering is its only a half-mile wide and a half-inch deep, Phillips said. For Bidens part, theres a sense among some South Carolina Democratic leaders that his campaign is apprehensive about planting a flag too firmly in the state, fearful of appearing as if its taking Phillips campaign seriously. Clyburn was a safe choice to speak on behalf of Biden: A big enough name that no one could complain that the Biden campaign wasnt well represented, and one whose presence would not make it appear as if they were reacting to Phillips. Benjamin was added to the schedule last-minute on Saturday. Democratic Party leaders have expressed frustration for months that the Biden campaign has not been more engaged in the state, even though it is an off-year election cycle. There was a hope among some that the Biden campaign and national party would have invested more time and energy into the state, particularly with its first-in-the-nation status. Democrats also want to chip away at the Republican hold on state and local offices. While Phillips may see an opening, it wasnt obvious from the room. Clyburn, a Biden campaign co-chair, touted the presidents successes, and received booming applause when he talked about the Biden doubters in 2020: Well I didnt listen then, and Im not listening now. Hours after the event, Phillips tried to have his own moment with the South Carolina political giant, posting a picture of his embrace with Clyburn. What a great evening at the Charleston Blue Jam, Phillips said in a post on X. A cool welcome, a VERY warm send-off, and a great moment with my colleague and lion of Congress, @RepJamesClyburn. Lauren Egan contributed to this report. Thames Valley Police said officers were conducting rural patrols in Wing when they saw a car being driven suspiciously Telephone services in a village were disrupted after a vehicle which failed to stop for police crashed into a field and struck a power line. Thames Valley Police said officers from its neighbourhood policing team had been carrying out targeted burglary patrols in the area of Wing, on the Buckinghamshire-Bedfordshire border near Leighton Buzzard on Saturday. The nearby village of Mursley was affected by the outage. The force reported that the vehicle was being driven suspiciously, and was found to have no insurance. The driver failed to stop and eventually crashed into a field. Two uninjured people were detained after they tried to flee the scene, the force added. Repairs were later made to the phone line and inquiries are ongoing. Follow East of England news on Facebook, Instagram and X. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 0800 169 1830 The waxings - like this one spotted in Bellshill by Marie-Pierre Garroway - come from Scandinavia in search of food A bumper number of waxwing sightings is being reported across Scotland this winter. BBC Scotland news website readers have captured them on camera throughout the country. Waxwings are annual visitors from Scandinavia but they sometimes come in more significant numbers - known as an irruption - in search of food. RSPB Scotland said it was "lovely to hear" so many people were sharing photographs of the birds. It is called an irruption when the birds arrive in larger numbers than usual Holly Taylor captured these images of the birds in Edinburgh's Saughton Park Sightings have been reported throughout Scotland this year with photographs sent in from Bellshill, Edinburgh, Shetland, St Andrews, Alford, Irvine and Kirkcaldy. The waxwing is described as a "plump bird" which is slightly smaller than a starling. It is known for its prominent crest and does not breed in the UK but is a winter visitor. Sheila Tough from Alford said there had been reports of large flocks of waxwings in the north east of Scotland A spokesperson for RSPB Scotland said: "Waxwings are welcome visitors to Scotland every year. "In some years, we see them in much larger numbers, called irruptions. "This happens when the population of the birds in their breeding grounds gets too large for the food available there and they have to venture further afield." Adrian Plumb saw a large flock of waxwings that were flying round Bankhead in Edinburgh The organisation said it was pleased so many people were sharing their photographs. "Connecting with the nature around is so important and can be such a tonic, particularly at this time of year when the nights are drawing in," the spokesperson added. Rhona Summers spotted several waxwings on her garden fence in Shetland "This may be a good winter for waxwing sightings," says Chris Reekie. "This one was in a group of 10 or 12 in St Andrews, feeding on the berries." "Spotted these winter visitors from Scandinavia in Irvine," says Ken Milne. "They quickly strip a tree of its berries and then move on to a different location." Christopher Wicks was tidying up his garden ready for the winter period when 20 or so waxwings descended on to the rowan tree and started to "gorge themselves" Jo Nickson saw these waxwings "having a bath" with some starlings in Kirkcaldy Angela Pearson also caught an image of a Scandinavian visitor to Kirkcaldy All images are copyrighted. Piglets on the loose: Firefighters corral piglets after trailer hauling 1,900 of them overturns Related video above: Pigs take over highway after semi rollover in Minnesota. VANDALIA, Ohio (WFLA) Firefighters spent Friday evening corralling thousands of piglets after a livestock truck hauling them overturned on Interstate 75 just north of Dayton, Ohio. Shortly after 8 p.m., the City of Vandalia Division of Fire posted on Facebook that its firefighters were working to round up the piglets that had escaped the overturned truck. Must-see video shows squirrel munching on a Dum Dums lollipop in Spring Hill Vandalia firefighters assisting Butler Township firefighters with overturned livestock truck on flyover northbound 75 to westbound 70. Firefighters (are) working to coral piglets that escaped the overturned truck, the agency said in a Facebook post. Photo courtesy of the City of Vandalia Division of Fire Photo courtesy of the City of Vandalia Division of Fire The semi-trailer was carrying 1,900 piglets when it overturned. While many of the piglets escaped in the crash, NBC Affiliate WDTN reported that some of them died. WDTN reported that a majority of the escaped animals were found and rounded up by authorities and were eventually transferred to another semi-trailer. According to WDTN, the driver was not injured during the crash and was cited for failure to control his vehicle, adding that speed was reportedly a factor in the crash. The ramp on I-75 was shut down for about five hours due to the crash. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. ASHEVILLE - A fire sparked by a traffic accident along Interstate 40 in Haywood County continues to grow, increasing about 44% in size overnight, according to a Nov. 19 news statement from the North Carolina Forest Incident Management Team. The Black Bear Fire, which started Nov. 16, is now 1,720 acres and is 0% contained, is burning in Pisgah National Forest near the Tennessee border, but a rainstorm expected the night of Nov. 20 might go a long way toward tamping down the smoke and flames. While I-40 remains open, drivers should expect delays from both directions, and might experience reduced visibility on I-40 due to fires in the area. For public and firefighter safety, the Appalachian Trail is closed from I-40 to Max Patch. Road closures are in effect for Cold Springs Road and Brown Gap Road. Check current road conditions at drivenc.gov. For more information on Black Bear fire, visit https://inciweb.nwcg.gov. Smoke from the Black Bear Fire, which is now burning 1,720 acres in the Pisgah National Forest in Haywood County near the Tennessee border, can be seen in the distance. Primary containment lines have been identified around the Black Bear Fire, using I-40 on the southwest, the Appalachian Trail from I-40 to Groundhog Creek Shelter along the north, and Forest Road 3580 on the east, south to I-40, according to the U.S. Forest Service. "Groundhog Creek drainage is being scouted as a better eastern containment line to further limit fire spread potential. Containment line work along the Appalachian Trail will consist of raking away forest floor litter and removing fallen trees, much like normal trail maintenance, to minimize impacts along the National Scenic Trail," according to the agency's Nov. 19 post. Rain is expected to start in the Western North Carolina mountains around midnight Nov. 20, gradually increasing across the night into the day Nov. 21, then decreasing Tuesday night and ending Wednesday morning, according to Doug Outlaw, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, based in Greer, South Carolina. The total amount of rain expected for Asheville is about an inch. Places further south including Hendersonville, should receive 1.5-2 inches of rain, and Brevard and Lake Toxaway will see from 1.5 to 3 inches, Outlaw said. Along the Tennessee border, including Marshall, 3/4 of an inch to an inch are expected. "All the fires should be extinguished by Tuesday night, I would think, with all this rain. At the very lease, firefighters should make a lot of progress and have everything under control," Outlaw said. Answer Man Is Asheville at increased wildfire risk? How can we protect our homes? State of emergency: North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declares state of emergency as wildfires burn in mountains The rain forecast is a welcome relief from the drought that has been strangling much of Western North Carolina this fall. So far in November, the Asheville area has only received .15 of an inch so far, which is 2 inches below normal, Outlaw said. Stronger winds from the southeast with gusts in excess of 30 mph can be expected at the highest peaks near the North Carolina-Tennessee border Monday evening. Other areas in the region are expected to see an increase in southerly winds on Tuesday with gusts in excess of 30 mph. But since Jan. 1, the area is 12.64 inches below normal rainfall to his point in the year, which should be 43.82 inches by now, he said. The Asheville area is in moderate drought, while other parts of Buncombe and Madison counties are in sever drought, and Henderson County is in extreme drought. The next chance of rain after Tuesday is coming up on Saturday, Nov. 25. High temperatures on Monday and Tuesday will be about 50 degrees, then 52 on Wednesday and a high of about 57 is expected for Thanksgiving Day, though the morning of Nov. 23 will be about 30 degrees, Outlaw said. Prison escapee in Jackson County: FBI: Prison escapee charged with child rape spotted in Sylva, Jackson County Deer hunting season impacts? Gun season for deer rifle starts Nov. 20 and lasts through Dec. 9 in WNC, in areas including Pisagh National Forest. During this time, bear hunting is in recess and starts again Dec. 11-Jan. 1. The U.S. Forest Service on its Facebook page Nov. 19 issued hunting safety announcements while firefighters remain in the area: More: Chronic wasting disease detected in NC deer: what hunters need to know Before pulling the trigger, know what is behind your target. Fire crews may be working in the area. Even if the fires are not actively burning, there are still hot spots and potential for reburn that could be dangerous to anyone within the interior of a burned area. New firelines may be popular ways to walk into hunting spots, but also heavy equipment may be working along these firelines. Avoid approaching heavy equipment while it is working because the operator may not see you. Trees have been weakened by the fire and could fall, so be cautious around snags and damaged trees. Update on other WNC fires Poplar Drive Fire: The fire burning in Henderson County has reached 100% containment and will continue to be monitored by N.C. Forest Service personnel. The fire footprint was 434 acres, and the cause was determined to be a debris burn. Collett Ridge Fire: Burning in Cherokee and Clay counties in the Nantahala National Forest, the fire is 5,505 acres and 82% contained. The Collett Ridge Fire, determined to be started by lightning strike, is being managed under unified command by the U.S. Forest Service and N.C. Forest Service. Information on this fire can be found at facebook.com/nfsnc/. Multiple fires continue to burn across Western North Carolina, including the Black Bear Fire off I-40 in Haywood County. Fire totals: From Nov. 1-19, 828 fires have burned on state and private lands statewide, according to the N.C. Forest Service. Firefighters responded Nov. 18 to several small fires across the region, protecting more than 20 structures with an estimated total value over $100 million. Burn ban notice: A burn ban was instated in 14 Western North Carolina counties Nov. 6 in response to severe drought conditions and multiple fires. On Nov. 8, the burn ban was expanded to an additional 16 counties amid persisting drought conditions and fires, with Gov. Roy Cooper declaring a state of emergency on Nov. 9. The Blue Ridge Parkway has banned backcountry campfires, while the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has banned all campfires and charcoal use throughout the park. Backcountry campsites are closed in nine N.C. state parks. See a map of fires burning across Western North Carolina at https://data.citizen-times.com/fires. For fire updates, visit https://www.ncforestservice.gov/fire_control/sit_report.htm or follow the N.C. Forest Service on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NCForestService. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Pisgah National Forest Black Bear Fire grows near Appalachian Trail Platte City police identified an 18-year-old killed Wednesday night outside a Wendys. Kareem Z. Hassan of Kansas City was one of two people shot around 6:30 p.m. in the Wendys parking lot at 1400 Platte Falls Road, according to Chief Joe Wellington Jr. of the Platte City Police Department. Hassan died after the shooting. Another victim, who was critically injured in the shooting, has not been identified. The Metro Squad, a group of detectives from surrounding law enforcement agencies who help smaller departments like Platte City, will assist in the investigation. A crowd of around 200 marches to the San Antonio Express-News offices during a demonstration calling for a cease-fire in Palestine and criticizing local political leaders and media. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL Speakers address a crowd of around 200 participating in a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and criticizing local political leaders and media organized by several groups including San Antonio Justice for Palestine, Party for Justice and Liberation, Muslim Student Association at UTSA, Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace-San Antonio on Nov. 19, 2023. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL A crowd of around 200 marches to the San Antonio Express-News offices during a demonstration calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and criticizing local political leaders and media for their support of Israel. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL Speakers address a crowd at a rally calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and criticizing local political leaders and media for their support of Israel. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL A downtown crowd of about 200 on Sunday called for a cease-fire in Gaza and criticized local political leaders and media for supporting Israel. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL A crowd of around 200 marches to the San Antonio Express-News offices during a demonstration Sunday calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and criticizing local political leaders and media for supporting Israel. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL A crowd of around 200 protests outside the San Antonio Express-News offices calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and criticizing local political leaders and media for supporting Israel. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL Demonstrators calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and criticizing local political leaders and media for supporting Israel marched downtown Sunday. KAYLEE GREENLEE BEAL Hundreds of protesters rallied at Main Plaza and marched downtown Sunday to call for an end to U.S. aid for Israel and a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, describing the thousands of civilians killed there by Israeli airstrikes as a genocide. Fists up and carrying signs and Palestinian flags, the participants numbered about 300 at the rallys peak, many wearing black and white checkered keffiyehs, the traditional scarf that has become a signal of support for Palestine. The rally, organized by the San Antonio Party for Socialism and Liberation, also criticized Mayor Ron Nirenberg for saying he would not end San Antonios friendship city relationship with Tel Aviv, the former Israeli capital, that then-Mayor Julian Castro established in 2011. Nirenberg also has said he had no plans to seek a City Council proclamation favoring a cease-fire. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Protesters chanted, Ron, Ron, you cant hide, we charge you with genocide. I hate to see my tax dollars pay the salary of people like Ron Nirenberg, who listen to public comment in (council meetings) and ignore Palestinians when they tell him to end the friendship agreement with Tel Aviv, Israel, said Tory Cruz, an organizer with PSL. Protesters marched about 2 miles from Main Plaza to the San Antonio Express-News office on Broadway to decry recent editorials on the conflict. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, in response to terror attacks Oct. 7 that killed about 1,200 Israelis and others. Hamas still holds more than 200 hostages. Israeli air strikes and shelling of densely populated urban areas have killed more than 11,000 people, including at least 3,000 children, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Several speakers at Main Plaza called for an end to Israels attack. In a pre-march round of speeches, none mentioned the Oct. 7 attack and none of those affiliated with the PSL mentioned Hamas by name. One of several others invited to address the crowd received cheers when she said Israel, not Hamas, was responsible for the violence in Gaza. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Carrying signs saying Cease-fire Now and Free Palestine, a 33-year-old participant who identified herself as CC said she recently attended the protest at the Texas Capitol in Austin on Nov. 12 that drew thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators. Palestinians "deserve to have their land. What Israel is doing is awful and disgusting, she said. It just keeps getting worse. Some displayed a huge banner bearing several thousand names, said to list only half of those killed in Gaza since the war began. Nadia A, a PSL organizer who said she was of Palestinian descent and declined to give her last name, was teary and visibly shaken as she viewed the names. I stand in front of you shaking because I am so angry, I am so sad, I am so tired of having to convince the world that these people matter, Nadia said. "I am deeply impacted by what is happening right now, but it is also moving me in a way that nothing has ever moved me in my entire life, and I hope it does the same for you. SPRINGFIELD, Va. (DC News Now) The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) is investigating a fatal crash that killed a man. The incident occurred Sunday around 1:30 a.m. at Old Keene Mill and Backlick roads. Police detain 2 people for shooting, killing man in Fairfax County Issac Garcia Mendoza, 21, of Oxon Hill, Md., was driving a 2019 Nissan Rogue when he crashed into the roads jersey barrier. He died there, according to FCPD. Witnesses told FCPD that they saw him driving really fast on Backlick Road and hit the barrier on Old Keene Mill Road head-on because he did not make a turn. FCPD said it believes speed was the cause of the crash but is still investigating the case. Anyone with information regarding this crash is asked to call (703) 280-0543. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) Police are trying to identify a person who broke into a business in Scranton. According to Scranton police, the individual pictured below broke into American Manufacturing in the 1000 block of Barring Avenue. Images from the Scranton Police Department At this time, police have not indicated when the burglar entered the business or what was stolen. Police are asking anyone who might recognize the burglar above to reach out to the Scranton Police Department at 570-348-4134, Scranton Police Detective Bureau at 570-348-4139, or leave an anonymous tip through their website. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PAhomepage.com. OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (KFOR)- Oklahoma City Police are investigating a shooting that happened Saturday night shortly after 9 p.m. at the Royal Oaks Village Apartments. According to police, two people were shot and taken to a nearby hospital. At last check, police said the two victims were stable. Police are still searching for a suspect in the double shooting. This is a developing story. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Wlodzimierz Karpinski speaking to Polish press after his release from prison A politician accused of taking a 1 million (876,000) bribe and facing 12 years on corruption charges was released after eight months behind bars because he became a member of the European Parliament. Wlodzimierz Karpinski, a former Polish treasury minister, will be given parliamentary immunity as an MEP, which means the EU institution will have to waive any more jail time he may face. Mr Karpinski, a member of Donald Tusks Civic Platform, ran in the 2019 European Parliament elections as fourth on the party list but was not elected. The MEP who was elected won a seat in the Polish parliament in Octobers general election, leaving the European Parliament seat vacant. The politician who was second on the list was also elected to the national parliament in a vote that has put Mr Tusk on the path to power. The third person on the party list died in May, which means Mr Karpinski, the head of Warsaws waste management department, is next in line for the vacant MEP seat. Alleged bribe taking He was arrested in February for allegedly taking a bribe of more than 870,000 from a company bidding on a rubbish collection contract and had been in detention ever since. The investigation by Polands anti-corruption agency also led to the arrest of former deputy treasury minister Rafal Baniak and two businessmen, who are suspected of illegally arranging contracts worth almost 111 million. On Thursday, prosecutors revoked his temporary arrest after the Speaker of the Polish parliament confirmed he had become an MEP. The prosecutor has been forced to revoke the preventative measures applied to the suspect, they said, The suspects release will have a negative impact on the further course of procedures, High probability guilty of corruption Prosecutors added there was a high probability Mr Karpinski was guilty of corruption and accused him of taking actions to obstruct their investigation. I feel wronged by the prosecutors office and the way they acted that resulted in such a long stay in custody, Mr Karpinski said after his release. Polands ruling Law and Justice party won the October elections but does not have a majority. Its chances of forming a coalition government are slim, while Mr Tusks Civic Platform has an alliance ready to take power if it fails. Joining the European Parliament straight from custody was a scandal on a European scale, said Rafa Bochenek, a Law and Justice spokesman. The release from custody of Mr Karpinski, who faces serious corruption charges, and his assumption of the mandate of an MEP is a prominent symbol of the new coalition, he added. 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. TechCrunch With dubstep as the soundtrack and neon lighting as the backdrop, Elon Musk handed the first Cybertrucks over to a select group of customers that included Reddit co-founder and VC fund Seven Seven Six founder Alexis Ohanian and Trousdale Ventures founder and CEO Phillip Sarofim. The livestreamed portion of the Tesla Cybertruck delivery event was a short affair around 30 minutes. The Tesla Cybertruck deliveries come at least six years since Musk first tweeted about building a truck and four years since he debuted the futuristic-looking pickup. Ukraine's Prosecutor General Andrii Kostin said that Ukraine has collected evidence of 109,000 Russian war crimes in Ukraine, Politico reported on Nov. 18. Its our commitment to decide to document, prosecute each and every incident, because each and every incident of war crimes has its victims," Kostin told Politico at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia, Canada. The top prosecutor noted that Ukrainian officials have identified over 400 suspected war criminals, with around 300 having been indicted and 66 convicted. These numbers include four investigations into cyber war crime and 265 investigations into crimes against the environment, most of which result from Russia's attack on the Nova Kakhovka Dam earlier this year. Kostin acknowledged the challenge of convicting war criminals who remain in Russia or who have evaded capture, though he said it was important to bring them to trial in absentia nonetheless. While all of them receive defense, its our position to ensure a fair trial for everyone, including Russian war criminals, he said. Last month, prosecutors in Germany received evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine in three cases filed by the Clooney Foundation for Justice. The cases were filed under the legal principle of universal jurisdiction, which stipulates that for certain serious crimes, countries have a duty to prosecute perpetrators of crimes that extend beyond the borders of the country where the acts were committed. Prosecutors had also shared the dossiers with the International Criminal Court (ICC) so that the evidence can be included in their ongoing investigation. Human rights law firm Global Rights Compliance (GRC) released a report on Nov. 16 containing evidence that the Russian government planned to starve the Ukrainian population and target food infrastructure ahead of the full-scale invasion in early 2022. That evidence will also be presented to the ICC. The ICC has previously issued arrest warrants for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and Russian official Maria Lvova-Belova over the unlawful deportation of children from occupied areas of Ukraine. The ICC has also started an investigation into the destruction of Nova Kakhovka Dam. Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov may attend the 30th Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Skopje, North Macedonia, from Nov.30 Dec. 1, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg admitted in an interview with Austrian newspaper Die Presse on Nov. 18. He called Lavrov's invitation to the annual meeting in Skopje "correct" and said he was ready to hold talks with him, because it is not possible to conduct foreign policy "by talking only with Switzerland and Liechtenstein. The Ministerial Council is the central decision-making and governing body of the OSCE, which has 57 participating States. Read also: Schallenberg also called on Europe to adopt a supposedly "pragmatic and sober" approach to foreign policy in order to secure its "future". At the same time, he expressed support for Ukraine's gradual integration into the European Union. 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 NORFOLK President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden spoke Sunday to a line of Norfolk military members and their families at Naval Station Norfolk, serving mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes for dinner. The pair visited the base for a Friendsgiving dinner, donning aprons for the meal. The visit is part of the White Houses Joining Forces initiative resources and programs meant to support military families. The initiative, championed by Jill Biden, includes child care fee assistance, military spouse employment support and counseling and other resources for health and well-being of military and veteran families, caregivers and survivors. According to previous reporting from The Virginian-Pilot, Hampton Roads has roughly 90,000 active-duty military members. Biden said military members were the backbone of the United States. The president discussed his personal connection as a military family member. The Bidens son Beau served in Iraq as a member of the Delaware National Guard. You family members are the heart of this operation, he said. The first lady has been traveling to military bases across the country and overseas for the initiative, including Coast Guard Air Station Miami in Opa-Iocka, Florida, and Fort Campbell Army Air Field in Oak Grove, Kentucky. According to the White House, the initiative will have a strong focus on military child education. The program aims to ease the burdens created by the highly mobile military lifestyle. Jill Biden said Sunday that many families in Norfolk would have empty tables for Thanksgiving this year. In October, 5,000 sailors deployed aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower the flagship of the Ike carrier strike group. It had long been scheduled to deploy to the Mediterranean. The Eisenhowers deployment comes amid rising tensions in the area. You and your families sacrifice so much, in times of war and peace, the first lady said. And its our duty and honor to make sure that you get support. Hundreds of people sat for Bidens remarks at tables draped with dark red tablecloths. Chaplain Brian Stamm opened the meal with a prayer, and young children quickly lined up at the dessert table for pie, ice cream and cheesecake. Friendsgiving is a Thanksgiving-style event but held with friends instead of family, and it is usually celebrated in addition to traditional Thanksgiving gatherings. In February, the president made a stop in Virginia Beach to discuss his administrations differences with Republicans on healthcare ahead of releasing his budget plan. Before this year, the last time Biden visited Hampton Roads was in May 2021 as part of his Get America Back on Track Tour. Sibrena Sears, whose husband is currently deployed on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, said she is also a former active member of the military, and seeing both sides of the military lifestyle has given her a unique perspective of how hard it can be especially on holidays. One thing I can say that makes it easier is this military community, and events like (Friendsgiving) help bring us together and let us know that were not forgotten and we are so important, she said. Eliza Noe, eliza.noe@virginiamedia.com The family of an Rideshare driver who was shot and killed almost a year ago, remembers her. Peachtree Corners City Councilman Joe Sawyer said his daughter was shot and killed while dropping off a passenger back in November 2022. On Saturday, they held a dove release to celebrate her. Its been pretty hard, said Councilman Sawyer told Channel 2 Action News reporter Larry Spruill. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Thats how Peachtree Corners City Councilman Sawyer describes the last year. Sawyer said his daughter, 31-year-old Lauren Sawyer, was a Rideshare driver. She was dropping off a passenger in the area of Cedar Croft Court in Lithonia. Police said thats when 23-year-old Lerelle Chatman shot and killed her. Police got into a shootout with Chatman and killed him. That night was probably the hardest night of my life. I got to spend 30 minutes before. I was just with her and all of a sudden you get a phone call saying your daughter was shot. I still have nightmares about that, said Sawyer. TRENDING STORIES: Saturday, family, and friends of Lauren Sawyer met at the cemetery where she is buried to honor and celebrate her life. They released doves and butterflies. Peachtree Corners City Councilwoman Ora Douglass said she also wanted to show support for the Sawyer family. I came out here today to support Joe Sawyer. Also, to show up and have the city to know that when one of us hurts. We all hurt, she said. Joe Sawyer said hes working to draft up a resolution that will protect rideshare drivers. Im trying to get a law passed to allow the drivers to tote a weapon, because theyre sitting ducks. They dont have anything, said Sawyer. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] In the meantime, Sawyer has a message for everyone. Hug your kids. Hug your family. Enjoy your holidays, because you never know if its going to be your last time with them. Councilman Sawyer said hes currently meeting with representatives on both sides of the aisle. IN OTHER NEWS: The Duke and Duchess last spent Christmas at Sandringham in 2018 - Samir Hussein/Samir Hussein/WireImage The Duke and Duchess of Sussex would be happy to accept an invitation to spend Christmas with the Royal family at Sandringham, it has been reported. Sources close to the couple say that no arrangements have been made so far, but that it is highly unlikely they would decline any invitation to spend the festive season with the King. A Christmas invitation would mark a significant warming in relations between Prince Harry and his father. It would follow reports in The Telegraph that the Duke rang the King last week to offer him best wishes for his 75th birthday. After a lengthy spell during which the two have barely spoken, the chat is understood to have marked a notable shift in tone. The King also spoke on the phone with Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex. Prince Archie, four, and Princess Lilibet, two, are understood to have recorded a video of themselves singing happy birthday to their grandfather. Number of damaging accusations Friends of the Sussexes say the couple are keen to follow up this new rapprochement with a visit to Sandringham, the Kings Norfolk home, at Christmas, or to Balmoral in the summer. A friend told The Sunday Times: I cant imagine the Sussexes would decline an invitation to spend time with His Majesty. As of yet, there have not been any invitations for the holidays. An invitation would come at the end of a year in which the Sussexes gave a series of interviews that included a number of damaging accusations against the Royal family. Earlier this year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were asked to vacate their UK home just weeks after Harrys book Spare was released. Reports at the time claimed the move was sanctioned by the King and the decision removed their remaining foothold in the UK and further weakened ties with the Royal family. Sources close to the Sussexes point out that without security cover or a place to stay in Britain, they would now require a formal invitation from the King or Buckingham Palace to stay on protected property. Private conversations could be questioned The Duke and Duchess last spent Christmas at Sandringham in 2018, when after their walk to church on Christmas Day with the now Prince and Princess of Wales they were dubbed the fab four. The Sussexes children have seen little of their cousins Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five, though the couples are known to have exchanged presents for each others children last year. Friends of the Sussexes are understood to have grown aware that the leaking of details of their birthday call to the King could undermine attempts to bridge the divide with the Royal family. In the wake of the publication of the Dukes memoir Spare, one source close to the couple said: They realise theyve got to a place where private conversions and calls could be questioned if theyre going to be private. Following the publication of details about the birthday call, a royal insider told The Telegraph: The King and Queen worry that if stories about phone calls and private conversations make it into the public domain they will be accused of leaking to the press, even if its obvious it didnt come from them. They just think its in the public domain, and public domain equals bad. Buckingham Palace declined to comment. 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. Apple will adopt the RCS messaging standard, making it easier for iPhone and Android users to exchange text messages. Dreamstime, HO / TNS While iPhone and Android users may disagree on who has the better smartphone for the money, they usually see eye-to-eye on one thing: texting between the devices shouldnt be such a headache. Last week, technology giant Apple announced that it will adopt the Rich Communication Services messaging standard, or RCS, later next year. The update will allow iPhone and Android users to use iMessage-style features when communicating, according to 9to5mac, which first reported it. Apple is a multitrillion-dollar brand, so its decision is a major reversal. But dont get ahead of yourself those annoying green message bubbles, which appear when someone with a non-Apple device sends a message, arent going anywhere. They still will be used for RCS messaging, while texts from iPhone users will remain in their signature blue hue. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The change will mean no more grainy photos or unreliable group chats. Smartphone users, regardless of brand, will be able to share high-quality images and videos, have the option of sending read receipts and use typing indicators. In a statement provided to 9to5mac, an Apple spokesperson said RCS will offer a better interoperability experience than SMS (Short Message Service) or MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). RCS is the standard currently published by the GSM Association, a nonprofit representing the interests of mobile network operators worldwide. The feature also will allow users to share their location with other people inside text threads, Apple said. Apple wants to make one thing clear: RCS is not replacing iMessage. The company has emphasized its own messaging service, used by more than a billion people worldwide, is far more secure than RCS due to its end-to-end encryption. RCS, rather, will become the go-to when iMessage isnt available. The corporation said SMS and MMS will be a backup when needed. Its a surprising turn of events for Apple, which has shown no desire to adopt the commonly used messaging service over the past decade. It comes as the company faces continued pressure from competitors Google and Samsung as well as heightened regulation from the European Union. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Demonstrators who are seeking a cease-fire solution in the Israel-Hamas war shut down a convention held by the California Democratic Party (CDP) in Sacramento, Calif. The Los Angeles Times reported that protestors barged through a security detail at the event Saturday evening, resulting in delegates and other participants in the convention to be temporarily boxed out from entering and exiting the building. Protestors were carrying signs of Free Palestine as they chanted cease-fire now. Cease-fire now, while marching through the convention hall. Protestors also referred to President Biden as Genocide Joe, also saying bombing hospitals and children is a crime, according to the LA Times. Democrats for Israel California board member Naomi Goldman told the news outlet that it was painful to hear protestors chant, From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. She expressed the frustration she and other Jewish-born delegates felt who attended the convention. I am eagerly anticipating meaningful comment from my party on hate speech and violence targeting the Jewish community, Goldman told the LA Times. As well as a total denunciation of what delegates did to disrupt our assembly, and how it will ensure safe inclusive spaces for everyone who hold a diversity of opinions. The protest at the CDP convention is similar to the ones that occurred at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington, D.C., where protestors clashed with police outside the building. The incident also saw lawmakers evacuate the building. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators also blocked traffic on a Boston University bridge in an effort to get Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) to change her stance on the issue. In a statement to the LA Times, spokesperson Sherry Yang said the CDP canceled evening events and parties for the safety and security of our delegates and convention participants. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. A Worcester psychiatrist who previously practiced on Nantucket has been convicted of illegally prescribing dangerous combinations of highly addictive drugs to his patients, the U.S. Attorney said. Mohamad Och, 67, was convicted by a federal jury on Friday following an 11-day jury trial of three counts of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance, Acting U.S. Attorney Josh Levy said in a statement. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret Guzman scheduled sentencing for Feb. 16, 2024. Och was arrested and charged in July 2021. Dr. Och deliberately and recklessly jeopardized patient safety by repeatedly prescribing dangerous combinations of benzodiazepines and stimulants, Levy said. This case underscores our offices unwavering commitment to justice, patient safety and the responsible management of healthcare resources. Ensuring the well-being of patients is paramount. Och was a licensed psychiatrist who owned and operated Island Counseling Center in Worcester, Levy said. He also has practiced psychiatry elsewhere in Massachusetts, including Nantucket. Among other services, Och was authorized to prescribe Schedule II-IV controlled substances to patients. Och repeatedly prescribed a combination of benzodiazepines and stimulants outside of the usual course of professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose, Levy said. Specifically, om multiple occasions between August 2016 and February 2017, Och knowingly issued prescriptions for Adderall (a Schedule II amphetamine) and Xanax (a Schedule IV benzodiazepine) to undercover agents working for the DEA, Levy said. Evidence at trial showed that amphetamines have a high potential for abuse and present serious cardiovascular risks. Evidence also showed the risks presented by mixing Xanax, a depressant, with a stimulant like Adderall. Additional trial evidence showed that Och prescribed such highly-addictive medications without doing proper psychiatric examinations, without obtaining prior medical records, and without administering diagnostic tests (including urinalyses or blood tests) even when faced with facts that the undercover patients may have been participating in drug diversion, Levy said. Furthermore, Och did not discuss or review medication side effects, their conditions symptoms, or the risks and benefits of taking drugs like Adderall and Xanax with the undercover agents despite documenting in medical records that he had done so, Levy said. Investigators said the case is one that highlights the dangers of illegally prescribing drugs and the subsequent threat to patient and public safety. Handing out controlled substances as casually as Halloween candy is a clear-cut crime, in which Dr. Och abrogated his professional ethics. Going forward, this experienced psychiatrist will have plenty of time to analyze his incredibly poor decisions that led to todays conviction, Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division, said in a statement. The FBI, meanwhile, will continue to pursue investigations involving psychiatrists like Dr. Och. Special Agent in Charge Roberto Coviello of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, said in a statement, Dr. Och disregarded the wellbeing of his patients by illegally prescribing controlled substances. We will continue working tirelessly alongside our law enforcement partners to ensure that corrupt medical practitioners who prey on their patients are brought to justice. The DEA is committed to ensuring that all registrants are in compliance with the required regulations, which are enforceable through the Controlled Substances Act, said Brian Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Division, in a statement. Failure to do so increases the potential for diversion and jeopardizes public health and public safety. DEA pledges to work with our law enforcement and regulatory partners to ensure these rules and regulations are followed. The charge of illegal prescription of a Schedule II controlled substance provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $1 million. The charge of illegal prescription of a Schedule IV controlled substance provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $1 million. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) stipulated Sunday that his call for a humanitarian pause or cease-fire between Israel and Hamas must include the removal of the militant group, along with the release of hostages. In an interview on CNNs State of the Union, Raskin outlined his idea for what he hopes would be a better future for the Israeli and Palestinian people. The underlying political dynamic is that there must be a recognition of the interests of the people in Gaza to democracy, to freedom and their rights, Raskin said. Theres got to be a democratic Palestinian state that emerges from this nightmare that is safe and secure, and we have a safe and secure Israel to go with it, he added. Otherwise, were going to keep reenacting this cycle of bloody violence and revenge forever. Raskin said reports of a five- or six-day pause in fighting and the resulting release of dozens of hostages moves in the right direction, and he said he supports President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinkens steps toward achieving peace. Raskin called Hamas a terrorist medieval death cult, which just assassinated more than 1,200 Israelis. When anchor Jake Tapper pressed Raskin on whether he believes the numbers reported out of the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry which reported that more than 11,000 Palestinians have died since the war began Raskin said, if it were half of that, it is still an absolute tragedy. Raskin on Friday joined a list of Democratic lawmakers to call for a humanitarian pause or a mutually agreed-upon cease-fire that would provide for a global humanitarian surge of aid to hundreds of thousands of displaced and suffering innocent civilians throughout Gaza. Raskins careful call for a cease-fire comes at a time when public pressure has grown in response to Israeli bombings in Gaza and its ground invasion. Israel claims it is targeting Hamas and not civilians and that Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, is using civilians as human shields. About 240 hostages were taken from Israel and are understood to be held by Hamas in Gaza. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. FILE - Former first lady Rosalynn Carter answers questions during a news conference at a Habitat for Humanity project, Oct. 7, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File) ATLANTA (AP) Reactions to the death of Rosalynn Carter, former first lady and global humanitarian: ___ President Joe Biden said the Carters brought grace to the White House. He had this great integrity, still does. And she did too, Biden told reporters as he was boarding Air Force One to leave Norfolk, Virginia on Sunday night. God bless them. Biden said he spoke to the family and was told that Jimmy Carter was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. Later the White House released an official joint statement from the president and first lady Jill Biden saying that Carter inspired the nation. She was a champion for equal rights and opportunities for women and girls; an advocate for mental health and wellness for every person; and a supporter of the often unseen and uncompensated caregivers of our children, aging loved ones, and people with disabilities, the statement said. ___ Former President George W. Bush called Carter a woman of dignity and strength. There was no greater advocate of President Carter, and their partnership set a wonderful example of loyalty and fidelity. She leaves behind an important legacy in her work to destigmatize mental health. We join our fellow citizens in sending our condolences to President Carter and their family, Bush said in a statement with former first lady Laura Bush. ___ U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia said Carter would be remembered for her compassionate nature and passion for womens rights, human rights and mental health reform. The State of Georgia and the United States are better places because of Rosalynn Carter," Ossoff said in a statement. I join all Georgians and Americans in mourning her loss. May Rosalynn Carters memory be a blessing. ___ Vice President Kamala Harris said Rosalynn Carter redefined the role of first lady and lived a life of service, faith, compassion, and moral leadership. As a humanitarian, a public servant, and a global leader, Mrs. Carter improved the lives of millions and inspired countless more to dedicate their lives to service. Her legacy will be a beacon for generations to come, Harris said in a statement. ___ Former President Donald Trump said Carter earned the admiration and gratitude of the nation. From her days as a U.S. Navy spouse, to the Georgia Governors Mansion, to her tenure as First Lady of the United States, and her later work at the Carter Center and volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, she leaves behind a legacy of extraordinary accomplishment and national service, Trump said on Truth Social. In a separate statement, former first lady Melania Trump said Carter leaves behind a meaningful legacy. We will always remember her servants heart and devotion to her husband, family, and country. May she rest in peace, Melania Trump said on X, formerly Twitter. ___ Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Carter was a saintly and revered public servant driven by faith, compassion and kindness. On the world stage, First Lady Carter was a pioneer. Her historic, high-stakes diplomatic mission to Latin America in 1977 ushered in a new era of engagement in the region. Two years later, she became the first sitting First Lady to address the World Health Organization, where she argued that mental health was an aspect of physical health and that health is a human right, Pelosi said in a statement offering condolences to the Carter family. ___ Bill and Hillary Clinton called Carter a champion of human dignity. Thanks to her mental health advocacy, more people live with better care and less stigma. Because of her early leadership on childhood immunization, millions of Americans have grown up healthier. And through her decades of work at the Carter Center and with Habitat for Humanity, she spread hope, health, and democracy across the globe, the former president and former secretary of state said in a joint statement. Rosalynn will be forever remembered as the embodiment of a life lived with purpose. ___ Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens called Carter the model for the modern day First Lady and praised her work promoting mental health awareness. She never stopped advocating for mental health or the Equal Rights Amendment, Dickens said in a statement. "The city of Atlanta joins all of Georgia and mourners around the world as we honor the memory of First Lady Rosalynn Carter. ___ Former first lady Michelle Obama said Rosalynn Carter sometimes offered advice during their periodic lunches at the White House. She reminded me to make the role of First Lady my own, just like she did. Ill always remain grateful for her support and her generosity," Obama said in a statement. Today, Barack and I join the world in celebrating the remarkable legacy of a First Lady, philanthropist, and advocate who dedicated her life to lifting up others. Her life is a reminder that no matter who we are, our legacies are best measured not in awards or accolades, but in the lives we touch. ___ Habitat For Humanity, the Georgia-based charity that the Carters worked for tirelessly, said its members were saddened by the former first lady's passing. She was a compassionate and committed champion of #HabitatforHumanity and worked fiercely to help families around the world, the nonprofit said on X. ___ Carter's legacy will be a source of pride for her home state, said U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, the chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia. Georgia Democrats join our entire state, nation, and the world in mourning the loss of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter an extraordinary humanitarian, fierce mental health advocate, and beloved daughter of Georgia," Williams said. ___ The Carter Center said it was grieving the passing of its co-founder. She was a partner in good deeds with her husband, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, as they traversed the globe to strengthen democracy, resolve conflicts, advance human rights, and eliminate debilitating diseases after their time in the White House, the center said in a statement. In lieu of flowers, Carter requested that those wishing to honor her memory do so through contributions to the Carter Centers Mental Health Program or the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers, the statement said. People living in areas which would be part of the trial have called for a public vote A protest has been held in Redcar against a government proposal to test the potential for heating homes with hydrogen. Some 2,000 properties would be part of a "hydrogen village", looking at green alternatives to gas boilers. But people living there are "angry" there has not been a local vote. The government said strong community support would be "a critical factor" in approving a trial and it is due to make a decision soon. A protest was held in Redcar on Saturday morning If approved, Northern Gas Networks (NGN) would switch the properties from natural gas to hydrogen heating. Plans for a similar trial near Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, were scrapped earlier this year in the face of local opposition. Safety is understood to be the primary concern, with more than 500 people signing a petition calling for a vote. Dawn Campbell says she is worried her tenants would not be able to afford to heat their homes after the trial Dawn Campbell, a landlady, told the BBC: "The effect on people's mental health has been appalling, people are worried whether it's going to go ahead and it's being forced." "We are being treated like Guinea Pigs. There's a reasonably high percentage who don't know because they are not being told specifics." Calvin Lawson, regional campaigns organiser for Friends of the Earth, said there was a "clear and organised opposition to this trial that cannot be ignored". Coatham is one of the areas of Redcar earmarked for the pilot A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said a decision would be made later this year. "We have always said community support would be at the centre of any decision," they added. "Before any trials go ahead, the Health and Safety Executive will need to be satisfied it will run safely and we have committed to ensuring consumers are protected before, during and after any trial." A survey suggested 76% of residents were in favour, with another 19% indifferent or undecided. An NGN spokesperson said the firm had "worked tirelessly" over the last 18 months to "engage with and reassure" residents and businesses. "Our door is always open, and we continue to actively encourage anyone with questions or reservations to come and speak to us at our 'Hydrogen Hub' on the High Street." It said it was planning a public meeting in December and is working with the government about the arrangements. Follow BBC Tees on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and Instagram. Send your story ideas to northeastandcumbria@bbc.co.uk. REHOBOTH A 72-year old Rehoboth man shot and killed a 77-year-old Tiverton, Rhode Island, woman and then himself at his Rehoboth home in an apparent murder-suicide Saturday morning, the Bristol County District attorney's office said in a written statement Saturday. Rehoboth Police found the victim and suspect deceased dead while doing a well-being check at 162 Summer St. in Rehoboth, the DA's office said. Police had a received a 911 call at around 10:55 a.m. Saturday from a relative of the victim's saying she had been on phone with the victim when she heard shouting and then the phone disconnected. When she called back no one answered. Construction Company abandons project Contractor walks off $116 million Route 24/140 construction job in Taunton. What we know Who are the victim and suspect? Omar Bradley, 72, had been living in the Summer Street home with the victim's 84-year-old sister, the DA's office said. A preliminary investigation determined that Bradley shot and killed the victim, Barbara J, Cruz, 77, of Tiverton, Rhode Island, and then himself, the DA's office said. The victim's 84-year-old sister was home at the time but was uninjured. Bradley also has a listed address in Providence, the DA's office said. The investigation is being coordinated by Assistant District Attorney Jason Mohan, deputy chief of District Attorney Thomas Quinn's Homicide Unit. This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Rehoboth murder-suicide: DA says Omar Bradley killed Barbara Cruz With its warm climate, affordable cost of living and rich culture, Thailand could be a tempting retirement choice for those who want to live somewhere warm that offers something a little different to the usual pensioner hotspots in Europe. Known for excellent standards of healthcare, stunning beaches and natural scenery, Thailand also boasts a sizable community of British expats and fellow pensioners who can help new arrivals settle in. Some of the most popular destinations are Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai. Making the move isnt always straightforward, however, and its important to make appropriate financial arrangements before you relocate from taxes and visas, to pensions and property prices. Here, Telegraph Money explains everything you need to know before you take the leap. How much money do you need to retire in Thailand? If youre classed as a wealthy pensioner under the Thai visa system, you may be able to get a 10-year Long Term Residents (LTR) visa, but youll need to apply for an additional five-year stay after your first five years are up. Only over-50s can qualify, and you must have an annual pension or stable passive income of at least $80,000 a year at the time of application around 65,600. Eligible income sources can include your pension, capital gains, rental income and dividend income salary income is not included. If your income is less than this, but more than $40,000, you may qualify on the proviso you invest at least $250,000 in Thai property, Thai government bonds or foreign direct investment. Youll also need a high level of private health insurance more on this later. Alternatively, you can apply for a Non-Immigrant O-A visa, which initially grants you a one-year stay. You will need to be at least 50 to be eligible, according to the Thai embassy in London, and employment is strictly prohibited. Each year, youll need to apply for a further years stay. Phuket is among the most popular destinations for expats - MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP You will need financial evidence showing monthly income of not less than 65,000 baht, or a balance of at least 800,000 baht. This means youll need to have income of 1,650 per month, or a savings balance of at least 20,000. Acceptable evidence includes copies of pension statements, three months worth of bank statements and income certificates. What happens to your pension? If you move to Thailand and youve got a British pension, it will be taxed in the UK when you take money out of it. Under normal circumstances, this is the standard tax position. Philip Teague, executive director at Cross Border Financial Planning, said: Theres no option of having [your UK pension] taxed or paid out gross, or taxed locally in Thailand. The double taxation treaty means that any pension income, should it be private pensions or state pension, is taxed locally in the UK. However, one thing expats can do is use something called a qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme (QROPS) to move their pension outside the UK and have Thai tax applied. However, this involves an overseas transfer charge of 25pc of the entire pension, applied for as long as you live in Thailand. Mr Teague says this move is typically not worthwhile, and its better to leave your pension in Britain. He recommends keeping a UK bank account open while youre abroad, because it can be difficult to get pension providers to pay into an overseas account. If they do, a common issue is for pension funds to refuse to do monthly payments, and instead theyll only make payments quarterly or every six months. Most big banks offer expat accounts that can be used by expat pensioners for example, HSBC has one based in Jersey. For state pension claimants, note that Thailand does not appear on the list of countries where an annual increase to the state pension is paid, meaning your payments will be fixed for the duration you live there. As prices rise, this will make your state pension payments increasingly less valuable. Weve recently heard from expats in Canada who have experienced this problem. How you will be taxed in Thailand Thailand isnt specifically a low-tax jurisdiction, but until recently there was a gap in the remittance rules, meaning that earnings from a previous year werent taxed if brought into Thailand in a later year. Peter Ferrigno, director of Tax Services at Henley & Partners, said this rule is changing to bring it into line with other countries, so it isnt totally clear what the exact position will be. He said: The tax change applies to remittances not earnings, and so with the cost of living being relatively low, and tax rates being progressive, the net tax cost to sustain a certain lifestyle may still be low. Thai tax residency only applies if someone is in the country for over 180 days in the tax year, so someone being there part of the year without locally sourced income wouldnt have any Thai tax to worry about. After a personal allowance of 60,000 baht (1,400), the top rates cut in at quite a high level compared to the cost of living. Income below 1m baht (22,800) is taxed on a sliding scale up to 20pc. You pay 25pc up to 2m baht (45,600), and 30pc above that. The top rate of 35pc is charged on income above 5m baht (114,000). Savings interest and dividends are taxable, but at a lower rate if the income is from Thai sources. Mr Ferrigno said capital gains are also taxable, but with an exemption for locally listed shares and securities. As for inheritance tax, anyone who comes into the scope can expect to pay a significantly lower rate than they would in Britain. Mr Ferrigno said: Inheritance tax rates are low (10pc, 5pc for direct descendants, and exempt between spouses), but for someone who remains UK domiciled that wont necessarily be a benefit as there isnt a significant nil-rate band. How to buy Thai property If youre thinking about buying property in Thailand before moving there you should be aware of its strict restrictions for non-residents. Non-residents can buy condos and apartments, but cant make up more than 40pc of the buildings total unit owners, according to the bank Wise. Non-residents can buy condos and apartments but cant make up more than 40pc of the buildings total unit owners Foreigners are not allowed to directly purchase land on which buildings are built and the only way around this is to set up a private limited company that is partly owned by a local. The company can then be used to buy properties, but youll likely need a lawyer to help set this up in a way that follows the rules. Alternatively, you can lease land on a long-term lease for example, 30 years and build a home on it, you just wont be the owner of the land itself. If you decide to use a Thai estate agent to help you find a property, note that theres no regulation or training requirements to enter the profession. If possible, choose an agent based on personal recommendation, and do as much research into their background as you can. Getting private health insurance in Thailand Retirees must have a comprehensive health insurance policy in place in order to be granted a Thai visa, so its important to sort this well before you plan to move. The wealthy pensioner LTR visa requires coverage of at least $50,000, or at least $100,000 deposit available to cover treatments. To get the Non-Immigrant O-A visa you will need to show evidence of health insurance issued by a Thai or foreign insurer for general illnesses, with the insured sum of no less than $100,000. The good news is, there are lots of insurance brokers in Thailand, and many of them speak English. If youre applying from the UK, you should be able to enter a few details online to get a quote. Its best to do this with a range of providers, so you can gauge which offer the best value. However, dont automatically go for the cheapest; youll need to make sure it offers the cover required for your visa, and its a good idea to delve into the terms to make sure there are no spurious clauses that might deny a payout when you need it. Your duration of stay permit in Thailand (within the validity of your visa) will correspond with the duration of your health insurance. Recommended Quitting high-tax Britain? Heres where to move for the most money Read more 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. TechCrunch Yesterday in Helsinki, this editor interviewed four of the six general partners at Benchmark, the nearly 30-year-old, Silicon Valley firm thats known for some notable bets (Uber, Dropbox), paying each general partner exactly the same way, and for continuing to raise similar-size funds over its many years rather than balloon in size. Victor Lazarte, a gaming company entrepreneur who joined Benchmark five months ago as its newest GP, admitted that there was no business reason for Benchmark to come other than its an exceptional place for the tech world to convene. Larzarte was equally candid when the conversation turned to soaring valuations in recent years, and I asked about his own gaming company, Wildlife Studios, which raised a Series A round from Benchmark in 2019 at a $1.3 billion valuation and, less than a year later, was assigned a valuation of $3 billion when Vulcan Capital led a subsequent round. If you were disappointed or simply confused by the results of the Nov. 7 initiated referendum votes, youre not alone. Aside from Question 3 that would have turned over Central Maine Power and Versant to an ill-defined new entity overwhelmingly rejected none of the questions addressed matters of real importance. Douglas Rooks Something is wrong with Maines referendum process, and its up to all of us to ensure that this unusual exercise in direct democracy in New England, only Massachusetts has a similar system is restored to its original purpose. Both initiatives and peoples vetoes were included in a 1908 constitutional amendment the former a law proposed directly by voters, the latter a rejection of statutes enacted by the Legislature. Early on, rejecting legislation was where the action was. During two decades after the first peoples veto attempts in 1909, 19 were considered. By contrast, the initiative was used rarely, though the first, in 1911, was important. It established direct primary elections to replace party caucuses that then made nominations for state and federal offices. The peoples veto then faded out, and initiatives remained rare. There were none between 1948 and 1970. In 1971, everything changed. Business groups proposed repealing the then-new income tax, which backfired when voters supported the tax by an amazing 3-1 margin. Still, initiatives became common, with six voted on during the 1970s. From 1980-2020, there were an average of 15 a decade, and were not slowing down. The basic purpose changed, too. More and more, referendums try to substitute for the legislative process, rather than correct its errors or propose bold action lawmakers shied away from. Even worse, both vetoes and initiatives are used increasingly by legislators themselves. Democrats passed a tax reform measure in 2009 to lower income tax rates and expand sales taxes. Republicans convinced voters to repeal in 2010. The parties also traded peoples veto salvoes. In 2008, Republicans zeroed out the ill-advised Dirigo taxes supporting a public insurance program that already had alternative funding. Democrats returned the favor by pouncing on repeal of Election Day voter registration by a newly Republican legislature in 2011. In both instances, the parties rode those successes to sweeping victories in subsequent elections. This year, former Rep. Seth Berry spearheaded the Pine Tree Power initiative (Question 3) while Sen. Rick Bennett was instrumental in banning foreign contributions (Question 2.) Truly, its not their job. In recent years, Maine has been troubled by questions partly or entirely unconstitutional. In 2016, a ranked-choice system for counting votes was enacted, but cant apply to the governors race, the one people really care about. The original stop the Hydro Quebec power line question in 2020 was ruled off the ballot by the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC). Its 2021 successor, though enacted, was finally found unconstitutional by a Business Court jury 18 months later. Were voting more often, but getting a lot less out of it, even when questions are adopted. Two steps are essential to make referendum campaigns, often long and extremely expensive, worth the effort going into them. First, Maine must require mandatory pre-voting review by the SJC, something Massachusetts already has. It would likely take a constitutional amendment, but one should be proposed immediately. Second, there should be more restraint in filing questions, something only the groups involved can accomplish. Not every popular-sounding idea, or one designed to create electoral advantage for one party, needs to be on the ballot. The disappointing results of recent referendums could eventually act as a deterrent. Consider: in 2016, voters approved surcharges on incomes above $200,000, but for the first time a valid question was repealed through a budget deal accepted by a Democratic House speaker. Progressive taxation is fundamental to the modern Democratic Party, yet Maines top rate has only gone down, not up. During the King and Baldacci administrations, Republican-aligned groups proposed numerous tax-limitation questions; none of them passed but they still had a chilling effect. Despite Democrats long-term success, Maines tax system is based far less on ability to pay than half a century ago. Republicans also proposed many bills to make it tougher to get questions on the ballot, which misses the point. Well-funded interest groups can easily organize campaigns, while true grassroots groups if any are still out there have a tough time even with existing signature requirements. Constitutional review and better common sense about what needs statewide attention will be a recipe difficult to accomplish, but without them voters may just lose interest. The last thing we need is citizens reading a long ballot and concluding, Whats the point? Douglas Rooks has been a Maine editor, columnist and reporter since 1984. His new book, Calm Command: U.S. Chief Justice Melville Fuller in His Times, 1888-1910, is available in bookstores and from Maine Authors Publishing. He welcomes comment at drooks@tds.net. This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Rooks: Broken referendum process in Maine needs our help Rosalynn Carter, former President Jimmy Carters wife, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center announced the former first ladys death on Sunday, two days after she entered hospice care at their home in Plains, Georgia. She leaves behind her husband, four children, 22 grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and a legacy of mental health advocacy. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, a passionate champion of mental health, caregiving, and womens rights, passed away Sunday, Nov. 19, at 2:10 p.m. at her home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 96. She died peacefully, with family by her side, the statement read. The former president, 99, is also in hospice care at their home. He paid tribute to his wife in the statement, saying: Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. The couples son Chip Carter said: Besides being a loving mother and extraordinary First Lady, my mother was a great humanitarian in her own right. Her life of service and compassion was an example for all Americans. She will be sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today. Rosalynn was diagnosed with dementia in May, the Carter Center previously announced. At the time, the Center wrote that she has been the nations leading mental health advocate for much of her life. Throughout her life, she urged improved access to care and decreased stigma about issues surrounding mental health, the statement continued. Consistent with her efforts, the Center said it decided to share the familys news in the hopes that the transparency would increase important conversations at kitchen tables and in doctors offices around the country. Rosalynn Smith was born on 18 August 1927 in Plains, Georgia. As the oldest child, at the age of 13 Rosalynn helped her mother support her family after her father died, according to White House archives. Despite her familys hardships, she attended Georgia Southwestern College at Americus, where she met a man, who would one day become president, after her freshman year. Shes the girl I want to marry, Jimmy Carter reportedly told his mother after his first date with the then 17-year-old. A year later, in 1946, they did exactly that; the couple got married. The pair had four children: John William Carter, James Earl Carter III, Donnel Jeffrey Carter, and Amy Lynn Carter. As Jimmy Carter worked in the Navy, the Carters moved all over the country until his fathers death in 1953 planted them in Georgia, where he took over the family business: a peanut farm. Less than a decade later, Jimmy entered into the political sphere, winning a seat in the Georgia Senate, becoming the states governor, and then, of course, earning the presidency all with Rosalynn by his side. She was frequently praised for her political chops. The press dubbed her the Steel Magnolia, referring to her graceful persona in combination with her tough inner strength. Jimmy Carters White House adviser Stuart Eizenstat said she had uncanny political instincts, while her White House adviser Kathy Cade said, She knew what she wanted to accomplish. Apparently, her interest in mental health reform was inspired by talking to voters during her husbands Georgia campaigns. PBS reported that after hearing one particular story about a mill worker caring for her child, who was suffering from mental illness, she told her husband the next day: I want to know what you are going to do about mental health when you are governor. Mr Carter reportedly replied: Were going to have the best mental health system in the country, and Im going to put you in charge of it. From 1977 to 1978, she served as the Honorary Chairperson of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health. And after Mr Carters 1980 defeat, the couple founded the Carter Center, an institution dedicated to human rights and the alleviation of human suffering. Among many mental health initiatives, in 1996, the Center launched the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, which aimed to provide journalists with the resources to cover mental health issues while reducing stigma around the topic. After he left the Oval Office, Mr Carter remarked: The best thing I ever had happen in my life was when she said shed marry me. Tributes poured in after the news of her death. Former Attorney General Eric Holder wrote on X: Rosalynn Carter was a great partner to a consequential President and helped to define the modern role of First Lady. She was gracious, warm - and determined. My thoughts are with the entire Carter family and especially with the President. First Lady Rosalynn Carter dedicated her life to serving others, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote. America has lost a passionate humanitarian and champion for people all over the world. My heart goes out to her entire family. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley also expressed his condolences. She was an accomplished leader for mental health advocacy & habitat for humanity & so many more worthy causes, the senator wrote. Her devotion to her husband Pres Jimmy Carter of 77yrs is unmatched. God bless the Carter family. Rosalynn Carter lived a life of service to her community and to our nation. New York joins the Carter family in mourning her loss, New York Gov Kathy Hochul remarked. JB Pritzker, Illinois governor, remarked that she lived a life of service devoted to our nation. She leaves behind a legacy of grace and compassion thats inspired generations of Americans. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he was Deeply saddened by the passing of Rosalynn Carter. He called Carter a wonderful humanitarian, she led a life of service and compassion. May God watch over President Jimmy Carter and their family during this difficult time. Ohio Rep Joyce Beatty remarked on her legacy: First Lady Rosalynn Carter was a beacon of hope and lightusing her platform for humanitarian causes to make our world a better place. New York Rep Ritchie Torres thanked Carter for her service, writing that she was a tireless advocate for making America work for all its citizens. Rosalynn Carter leaves behind a meaningful legacy not only as First Lady but as a wife and mother. We will always remember her servants heart and devotion to her husband, family, and country, fellow former First Lady Melania Trump wrote. This photo, a part of the Zintgraff collection maintained by the Institute of Texan Cultures, shows the Joske's Fantasy Land in 1965. ZINTGRAFF COLLECTION/UTSA'S INST Editor's note: This story has been updated from it's original version, which published Nov. 25, 2022. Sixty-three years ago this month, Santas magic train took children for the first time through a winter wonderland full of fairy-tale houses and creatures on the fourth floor of Joskes Department Store in downtown San Antonio. Joskes debuted its Christmas Fantasy Land at the main store Nov. 19, 1960, solidifying what would become an annual tradition for generations of San Antonians. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Once touted as the greatest Christmas attraction ever in the Southwest, it kicked off with a visit from Santa Claus, who arrived at San Antonio International Airport, according to a San Antonio Evening News story. After distributing gifts, Santa jumped on a large fire truck and headed for Alamo Plaza. He was met there by a large festival that featured clowns and candy. Joske's always went all out at Christmastime to lure their patrons in. Seen here is the infamous Santa sitting on the chimney which was placed on the roof of Joske's to welcome shoppers. EXPRESS-NEWS FILE PHOTO Later that morning, Santa climbed a 100-foot ladder to the top of Joskes Department Store, then climbed a 25-foot chimney where he stood next to a giant mechanical Santa. He waved a mitten-covered hand at the crowd below. According to the Evening News, Santa then whisked down into the chimney to his fourth-floor Christmas Season Fantasy Land Castle, where he Advertisement Article continues below this ad unlocked the gatehouse and swung open his enchanted Fantasy Land filled with a whole new magic world of toys for boys and girls. Starting in 1960, kids could visit Santa in Fantasy Land at the Joske's store downtown. UTSA Special Collections Inside the original Fantasy Land were more than 100 animatronic animals many of them life-size. Greeting visitors at the door was a family of bears. There was a house with an elf toy maker, who tapped his foot while a ballerina fairy he made danced. At a reindeer stable, the reindeer sipped tea and talked. Other highlights included a candle maker, post office, and toy and sweet shops. A band played in a forest clearing, and everything (kept) time to the music, including tree lights. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Among the other highlights were a bakers shop where birds, squirrels and mice slid down the rooftops and a schoolhouse where the teachers were Wise Old Owls and students Poor Fish. A Nov. 18 advertisement placed in the San Antonio Light promotes Joske's Fantasy Land. San Antonio Light archives While Santa had been making a pilgrimage to his fourth-floor castle in Joskes since the late 1950s, Fantasy Land didnt come into existence until November 1960. The attraction was free and open from 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. through the shopping season. The new version of Santas Castle, rolled out in 1960, was conceived as a life-size counterpart to a longtime display in Joskes corner window. Early that year, Joskes display director Wendell Potter, started designing a bigger, better attraction. He made models in his home studio and then built the real thing in the stores workshops. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Fantasy Land train was his first design. The train took 24 children at a time twice around a snowy forest of silver Christmas Trees along 355 feet of track, according to the San Antonio Light. From about 1968 onward, Fantasy Land had a new theme each year, including Sesame Street, Mickey Mouse, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Founded in 1867, Joskes closed in 1987 after the company was sold to Dillards. Paula Allen, the Express-News history columnist, reported in 1995 that Joskes elaborate Christmas decorations seem to have been scattered throughout the country. The train from Fantasy Land was donated and bought by a collector in New Braunfels. Last year, the Express-News asked the Classic San Antonio: 1950-1999 Facebook group for their memories of "Fantasy Land." Here a few of our favorite repsonses. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "From 1960 until Joskes finally closed, a 'Fantasy Land' visit in December was the dream of every little boy and girl," wrote JM Garcia. "What wonderful memories we Baby Boomers have of that." "Yes, my Grandmother worked at the downtown store for 31 years," wrote Royce Sample. "During the early 70s, she would take me downtown to go the store, before Fantasy Land was open for Christmas I was able to go behind the curtain and look and see all the great new toys for Christmas." Louis Campbell wrote: "Who remembers the talking bear? One year, my brother and I were trying to figure out how the bear 'worked' and, after doing something mischievous (like yanking the ear or pinching the nose), the bear responded with 'DON'T DO THAT!' and then proceeded to call for a nearby security guard as we hightailed it out of there." Information from Hearst Newspaper archives was used in this report. **Related Video Above: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter marked 77th wedding anniversary in July.** ATLANTA (AP) Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died Sunday after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. 2 rescued from burning cherry picker in Willard The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a full partnership. Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to President Carter sometimes referred to her privately as co-president. Rosalynn is my best friend the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life, Jimmy Carter told aides during their White House years, which spanned from 1977-1981. Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Rosalynn Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicized Cabinet shakeup became known, she was forced to declare publicly, I am not running the government. Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husbands they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanor and a soft Southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her the Steel Magnolia. FILE The former first lady Rosalynn Carter speaks to the press at conference at The Carter Center on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the 96-year-old former first lady, is in hospice care at home, the Carter Center says. (AP Photo/Ron Harris, File) FILE In this Feb. 8, 2017, photo, former President Jimmy Carter, right, and his wife Rosalynn arrive for a ribbon cutting ceremony for a solar panel project on farmland he owns in their hometown of Plains, Ga. Jimmy and Rosalynn are celebrating their 77th wedding anniversary, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File) In this Sept. 15, 1966, file photo, then Georgia State Sen. Jimmy Carter hugs his wife, Rosalynn, at his Atlanta campaign headquarters. Rosalynn Carter turns 96 on Friday, Aug. 18, 2023 and is celebrating at home in Plains, Ga., with her family, including former President Jimmy Carter. Her plan includes eating cupcakes and peanut butter ice cream, then releasing butterflies in her garden with friends doing the same around the Carters hometown. (AP Photo/File) FILE In this July 10, 1976, file photo Jimmy Carter, his wife Rosalynn and daughter Amy, lower left, respond to a huge crowd that welcomed them to New York. Jimmy and Rosalynn are celebrating their 77th wedding anniversary, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo, File) FILE In this Dec. 13, 1978, file photo, President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn lead their guests in dancing at the annual Congressional Christmas Ball at the White House in Washington. Jimmy and Rosalynn are celebrating their 77th wedding anniversary, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Ira Schwarz, File) Former President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, right, work at a Habitat for Humanity building site Monday, Nov. 2, 2015, in Memphis, Tenn. Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, have volunteered a week of their time annually to Habitat for Humanity since 1984, events dubbed Carter work projects that draw thousands of volunteers and take months of planning. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey) FILE This Oct. 1, 2009 file photo shows former President Jimmy Carter getting a kiss from his wife Rosalynn as she introduces him during a reopening ceremony for the newly redesigned Carter Presidential Library in Atlanta. Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn celebrate their 75th anniversary this week on Thursday, July 7, 2021. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File) Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carters landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington. Jimmy Carter trusted her so much that in 1977, only months into his term, he sent her on a mission to Latin America to tell dictators he meant what he said about denying military aid and other support to violators of human rights. She also had strong feelings about the style of the Carter White House. The Carters did not serve hard liquor at public functions, though Rosalynn did permit U.S. wine. There were fewer evenings of ballroom dancing and more square dancing and picnics. Throughout her husbands political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media didnt cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticized reporters for writing only about sexy subjects. As honorary chairwoman of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate subcommittee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying, Weve been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach. She said she developed her interest in mental health during her husbands campaigns for Georgia governor. I used to come home and say to Jimmy, Why are people telling me their problems? And he said, Because you may be the only person theyll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them, she explained. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter coming to the end, grandson says After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, Rosalynn Carter seemed more visibly devastated than her husband. She initially had little interest in returning to the small town of Plains, Georgia, where they both were born, married and spent most of their lives. I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles, she wrote in her 1984 autobiography, First Lady from Plains. But we slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before. After leaving Washington, Jimmy and Rosalynn co-founded The Carter Center in Atlanta to continue their work. She chaired the centers annual symposium on mental health issues and raised funds for efforts to aid the mentally ill and homeless. She also wrote Helping Yourself Help Others, about the challenges of caring for elderly or ailing relatives, and a sequel, Helping Someone With Mental Illness. Frequently, the Carters left home on humanitarian missions, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and promoting public health and democracy across the developing world. I get tired, she said of her travels. But something so wonderful always happens. To go to a village where they have Guinea worm and go back a year or two later and theres no Guinea worm, I mean the people dance and sing its so wonderful. In 2015, Jimmy Carters doctors discovered four small tumors on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she didnt know what she was going to do. I depend on him when I have questions, when Im writing speeches, anything, I consult with him, she said. She helped Carter recover several years later when he had hip replacement surgery at age 94 and had to learn to walk again. And she was with him earlier this year when he decided after a series of hospital stays that he would forgo further medical interventions and begin end-of-life care. Jimmy Carter is the longest-lived U.S. president. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nations first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died at age 97. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains on Aug. 18, 1927, the eldest of four children. Her father died when she was young, so she took on much of the responsibility of caring for her siblings when her mother went to work part time. She also contributed to the family income by working after school in a beauty parlor. We were very poor and worked hard, she once said, but she kept up her studies, graduating from high school as class valedictorian. She soon fell in love with the brother of one of her best friends. Jimmy and Rosalynn had known each other all their lives it was Jimmys mother, nurse Lillian Carter, who delivered baby Rosalynn but he left for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, when she was still in high school. After a blind date, Jimmy told his mother: Thats the girl I want to marry. They wed in 1946, shortly after his graduation from Annapolis and Rosalynns graduation from Georgia Southwestern College. Their sons were born where Jimmy Carter was stationed: John William (Jack) in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1947; James Earl III (Chip) in Honolulu in 1950; and Donnel Jeffery (Jeff) in New London, Connecticut, in 1952. Amy was born in Plains in 1967. By then, Carter was a state senator. Navy life had provided Rosalynn her first chance to see the world. When Carters father, James Earl Sr., died in 1953, Jimmy Carter decided, without consulting his wife, to move the family back to Plains, where he took over the family farm. She joined him there in the day-to-day operations, keeping the books and weighing fertilizer trucks. We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, Rosalynn Carter recalled with pride in a 2021 interview with The Associated Press. I knew more on paper about the business than he did. He would take my advice about things. At the height of the Carters political power, Lillian Carter said of her daughter-in-law: She can do anything in the world with Jimmy, and shes the only one. He listens to her. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. Rosalynn Carter, the former first lady and humanitarian who championed mental health care, provided constant political counsel to her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, and modeled graceful longevity for the nation, died Sunday at her home in Plains, Georgia, according to the Carter Center. Carter was 96. She had entered hospice care in her home on Friday. In a statement, former President Carter said: Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. Rosalynn Carter was widely regarded for her political shrewdness, drawing particular praise for her keen electoral instincts, down-to-earth appeal, and work on behalf of the White House, including serving as an envoy to Latin America. She devoted herself to several social causes in the course of her public life, including programs that supported health care resources, human rights, social justice and the needs of elderly people. Twenty-five years ago, we did not dream that people might someday be able actually to recover from mental illnesses, Carter said at a mental health symposium in 2003. Today it is a very real possibility. For one who has worked on mental health issues as long as I have, she added, this is a miraculous development and an answer to my prayers. US First Lady Rosalynn Carter shakes one hand and waves the other during an unspecified campaign event, New Hampshire, October 24, 1979. (Photo by Diana Walker/Getty Images) (Diana Walker / Getty Images file) In late May, the Carter Center, the couples human rights group, announced that she had been diagnosed with dementia. She continues to live happily at home with her husband, enjoying spring in Plains and visits with loved ones, the organization said in a statement. Bess Truman, the wife of President Harry Truman, is the only first lady to have lived longer, according to the National First Ladies Library. (Bess Truman died in 1982, at 97.) Jimmy and Rosalynn were the longest-married presidential couple in U.S. history. The Carters earned admiration for their humanitarian projects after they left the White House. They were closely linked with Habitat for Humanity, considered by the charity to be tireless advocates, active fundraisers and some of our best hands-on construction volunteers. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains, Georgia, on Aug. 18, 1927, the first of four children reared by Allethea Murray Smith and Wilburn Edgar Smith. Rosalynns father died when she was 13, and her mother became a dressmaker to provide for her family. The loss of her father at such a young age forced Rosalynn to assume additional responsibilities alongside her mother. But the family unit managed to stay afloat. Rosalynn finished high school and enrolled at Georgia Southwestern College. In 1945, following her freshman year, she went on a date with Jimmy Carter, a childhood friend of the family who was home from the U.S. Naval Academy. FILE - In this Dec. 13, 1978 file photo, President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn lead their guests in dancing at the annual Congressional Christmas Ball at the White House in Washington. Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn celebrate their 75th anniversary this week on Thursday, July 7, 2021. (AP Photo/Ira Schwarz, File) (Ira Schwarz / AP file) Shes the girl I want to marry, Jimmy Carter told his mother after their first outing, according to a biography compiled by the White House Historical Association. They were married the following year, on July 7, 1946. They relocated to Norfolk, Virginia Jimmys first duty station after graduation. But life as a Navy family meant they had to move frequently. Their four children were each born in different states: John William in Virginia, James Earl III in Hawaii, Donnel Jeffrey in Connecticut, and Amy Lynn their only daughter in Georgia. Jimmys father died in 1953, sending the couple back to Plains to run the family peanut business. Rosalynn soon started working for the enterprise full time, assisting with accounting and other front-office functions. Jimmy decided to launch a political career in the early 1960s, winning a Georgia state Senate seat in 1962. He unsuccessfully sought the governorship in 1966; during that campaign, Rosalynn learned more about the challenges facing people with mental illnesses, as she recounted to Time magazine in 2010. The more I thought about it and found out about it, the more I thought it was just a terrible situation with no attention, she said. Rosalynn Carter during Habitat for Humanity - 2005 Jimmy Carter Work Project - Day 2 at Benton Harbor in Benton Harbor, Michigan, United States. ***Exclusive*** (Photo by R. Diamond/WireImage) Habitat for Humanity - 2005 Jimmy Carter Work Project - Day 2 (R. Diamond / WireImage file) Rosalynn helped lay the foundation for her husbands winning bid for the Georgia governorship in 1970 and, six years later, advised her husbands grassroots presidential campaign. Political reporters took notice of her vivacity on the trail. Rosalynn Carter, 49, the candidates wife, campaigns with the untiring race-horse type of energy which has typified Carters operation for the past 18 months, U.S. News & World Report wrote in May 1976. Not only that: Top aides claim Mrs. Carter is her husbands most influential political adviser, the author of the article added. Rosalynn attracted particular attention for the skillful way she connected with voters, nabbing their support for her husband with down-to-earth warmth. In an unusual move for the era, she traveled across the country on her own, making the case for her husband on her own terms. Mrs. Carter, soft-spoken and low-key, prefers face-to-face meetings with voters, U.S. News & World Report wrote in June 1976. In her campaigning in 30 states she has scheduled frequent sessions at plant gates and shopping centers. Jimmy, running as a political outsider and a symbolic break from the disillusioned post-Watergate era, defeated President Gerald Ford in 1976. The press quickly understood that Rosalynn would not be content to remain on the sidelines in Washington. Rosalynn Carter will not be simply an East Wing ornament, a First Lady content to redecorate the White House or preside over soirees, Newsweeks Jane Whitmore wrote in January 1977. Theres so much you can do, Rosalynn told Whitmore, and there are things I want to do. I want to work on mental health and the problems of the elderly independently, on my own. FILE - In this Feb. 8, 2017, file photo former President Jimmy Carter, right, and his wife Rosalynn arrive for a ribbon cutting ceremony for a solar panel project on farmland he owns in their hometown of Plains, Ga. Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn celebrate their 75th anniversary this week on Thursday, July 7, 2021. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File) (David Goldman / AP file) Jimmys always talked things over with me, like when he was choosing the Vice President or the Cabinet, she added. Ive always been involved in the meetings. I always tell him what I think even if I disagree and Ill continue to do that. Rosalynn established herself as an active part of her husbands administration. She joined Cabinet meetings, attended key briefings, spoke on behalf of the White House at ceremonial gatherings, served as an honorary member on a mental health commission, and traveled to Latin American nations as the presidents personal envoy. Jimmy Carters presidency itself was judged to be a mixed bag, and many Americans including some Democrats believed that he was an ineffective commander in chief, particularly as the Iran hostage crisis dominated headlines in late 1979. Rosalynn worked tirelessly in the bid to re-elect her husband to a second term in 1980 a campaign Jimmy lost to Ronald Reagan, a former Hollywood star and governor of California who represented the ascendant conservative movement. She was said to have been gutted by her husbands loss and the apparent repudiation of his presidency by so many voters. But she made it clear to political reporters that she was trying to look to the future. I think you accept it, Rosalynn was quoted as saying in a November 1980 article by the longtime UPI reporter Helen Thomas. When youve done all you possibly can do, thats all you can do. It was out of our hands. She pledged to speak out on the issues close to her heart, adding: You go from one phase of your life to the next phase of life. I think its going to be exciting. The next phase of Rosalynn Carters life proved to be fruitful. She wrote several books, including the 1984 memoir First Lady From Plains as well as three books about mental health. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter (John Bazemore / Pool via AP file) The Carters remained committed to bettering the lives of people around the world, winning several awards and honors along the way. In 1982, they founded the Carter Center, a nonprofit human rights organization forged in partnership with Emory University in Atlanta. Seven years later, she established the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers at Georgia Southwestern State University. She held annual symposia on mental health at the Carter Center for more than three decades, uniting experts and advocates for discussions about mental illness, family coping, financing care services, supporting research and reducing stigma. The two were awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton in August 1999. Clinton, speaking at the Carter Center, praised the couple for their humanitarian accomplishments. Rarely do we honor two people who have devoted themselves so effectively to advancing freedom in all those ways, Clinton said. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter have done more good things for more people in more places than any other couple on the face of the Earth. In recent years, the Carters appeared publicly less frequently. But during the 2020 presidential election, they recorded a video tribute to Joe Biden that aired during the televised portion of the Democratic National Convention. Tributes to the former first lady poured in Sunday, with many reflecting on her partnership with her husband and devotion to the causes she championed. Biden said the Carter family brought "grace" to the office in remarks following the news that Carter had died. He said Carter had "integrity" like her husband, adding, "Imagine, they were together for 77 years." Former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump said they are mourning the loss of the devoted First Lady, a great humanitarian, a champion for mental health, and a beloved wife to her husband for 77 years, President Carter. The couple said Carter leaves behind a legacy of extraordinary accomplishment and national service. This photo provided by the White House is the official portrait of first lady Rosalynn Carter in the Vermeil Room of the White House, Feb. 18, 1977. Rosalynn Carter,Eleanor Rosalynn Smith Carter (White House via AP file) Former first lady Michelle Obama said Carter used her platform in profoundly meaningful ways, calling out her work for mental health care, better care for older adults, affordable housing and womens rights. When our family was in the White House, every so often, Rosalynn would join me for lunch, offering a few words of advice and always always a helping hand, Obama wrote. She reminded me to make the role of First Lady my own, just like she did. Ill always remain grateful for her support and her generosity. Former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush said in a statement that Carter was a woman of dignity and strength. There was no greater advocate of President Carter, and their partnership set a wonderful example of loyalty and fidelity, the Bushes said. She leaves behind an important legacy in her work to destigmatize mental health. Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called Carter "a compassionate and committed champion of human dignity everywhere" in a post on X. "Rosalynn will forever be remembered as the embodiment of a life lived with purpose," they said. "Hillary and I are deeply grateful for her extraordinary service to our nation and the world, and for more than forty years of friendship." Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., the former House speaker, lauded the transformational change she brought to mental wellness and to caregiving, inspiring people around the world to work towards a better future for all, in a post on X. A spokesperson for the Secret Service called Carter a "treasure, a beacon of compassion." Your compassion, diplomacy, and penchant to make society better for those less fortunate was an inspiration for an entire generation," the Secret Service said in a statement. "It has been our honor to protect and serve you for all of these years. You were truly a treasure for our nation and our secret service family." Ceremonies celebrating Carter's life will be held Monday through Wednesday in Atlanta and Sumter County, Georgia, according to the Carter Center. Her funeral will be held Wednesday in Plains. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Amy Carter playing on the White House grounds with Mary Prince. Credit - National Archives and Records Administration/Wiki Commons Mary Prince, a Black woman who had been convicted of murder, was already a controversial figure at Jimmy Carters 1977 Presidential Inauguration. Although she was incarcerated, Prince was given permission to travel to Washington, D.C. for the event and arrived in a dress made of material given to her by her fellow inmates at the Fulton County Jail and the Atlanta Work Release Center. At the end of the celebration, Prince remembers newly minted First Lady Rosalynn Carter pulling her aside. "Before I left, Mrs. Carter said, 'How would you like to work in this big old place?'" Prince told People that year. Read more: Rosalynn Carter, Transformative First Lady and Mental Health Advocate, Dies Rosalynn Carter and Prince had known each other for years at that point, and had developed a close bond. Prince had been young Amy Carter's nanny when the family lived at the Georgia governor's mansion, not long after Prince was accused ofand subsequently sentenced to life formurder. When the Carters arrived at the White House, most political operatives would have advised the family to keep their distance from Prince. But the first couple did the opposite. After the inauguration, Prince told Rosalynn that she would indeed be interested in working at the White House. And Rosalynn pulled out all the stops: She secured a reprieve for Prince, helped make President Carter her parole officer and officially hired her to serve as Amy Carter's nanny at the White House. Rosalynn Carter, who died on Sunday at the age of 96, and her husband remained lifelong friends with Prince, and were both staunchly convinced she was wrongly convicted in the 1970 shooting death of a man outside a bar in Lumpkin, Ga., after an argument involving Princes cousin. She was totally innocent, Rosalynn Carter told Kate Anderson Brower for her 2015 book, The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House, bristling at the slightest hint of wrongdoing. She had nothing to do with it. Both Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter earned a reputation for decency over the decades, and their relationship with Prince, who grew up in poverty in Georgia and dropped out of school in the seventh grade to care for her younger sister, gives more credence to their interest in helping the most vulnerable members of society. The Carters first met Prince in late 1970 when Jimmy Carter was serving as Georgia governor, and Prince applied for a job as part of a program to put prisoners to work. Prince quickly made a positive impression on Rosalynn Carter, who asked the young woman if she would be interested in taking care of a then-3-year-old Amy Carter. It was a match made in heaven: the toddler bonded so much with her new nanny that she reportedly cried every time Prince left. In his 2006 book, Our Endangered Values, Jimmy Carter wrote about how Prince was unfairly victimized by the criminal justice system because of her race. He noted that Prince only met her court-appointed lawyer on the first day of her trial, and that the lawyer convinced her to plead guilty after incorrectly promising a light sentence instead of the life sentence that was ultimately handed down. She was fortunate and could just as easily have been executed, Carter wrote. If the victim had been white, we would never have known Mary Prince. (Prince, who was also known by the name Mary Fitzpatrick before her formal separation from her husband, was eventually pardoned after a reexamination of her case.) The Carters raised eyebrows with their decision to move Prince into the White House, both from other members of the White House staff, who were skeptical of her innocence, and from the public at large. Saturday Night Live even spoofed the Carters' relationship with Prince, with Sissy Spacek playing a young Amy Carter and Garrett Morris, in drag, as Prince. The cringe-worthy skit includes dialogue that calls Princes innocence into question and hints that the Carters hired her for publicity. After Carter's one term in the White House, Prince moved just a few blocks from the former first couple in Plains, Ga., where she continued to babysit for their grandchildren. President Carter went on to dedicate his 2004 book Sharing Good Times to Mary Prince, whom we love and cherish. Anderson Brower interviewed both Rosalynn Carter and Prince for her book, and told C-SPAN in 2015 that the two womens bond remained ironclad. "She's still a huge part of the Carter family," she said at the time. "They consier her one of their own, and they just love her." Contact us at letters@time.com. Rosalynn Carter, former first lady and wife of Jimmy Carter, as well as a devoted housing and mental health advocate, died on Sunday, Nov. 19, at her home in Plains, Georgia while surrounded by family, the Carter Center announced. She was 96. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, former President Carter said in a statement. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. Besides being a loving mother and extraordinary First Lady, my mother was a great humanitarian in her own right, their son, Chip Carter, said in a statement. Her life of service and compassion was an example for all Americans. She will be sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today. In May, it was announced that Rosalynn had been diagnosed with dementia, about three months after Jimmy, then 98, decided to forgo additional medical intervention and enter hospice care at the Carters home in Plains, Georgia. At the time of her dementia diagnosis, the Carter Center issued a statement that alluded to Rosalynns extensive work as a mental health advocate: We recognize, as she did more than half a century ago, that stigma is often a barrier that keeps individuals and their families from seeking and getting much-needed support. We hope sharing our familys news will increase important conversations at kitchen tables and in doctors offices around the country. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born Aug. 18, 1927, in Plains, Georgia, a small town in the southwest part of the state near the border with Alabama. Rosalynn grew up in poverty, and her father died of leukemia when she was 13. Rosalynn not only helped care for her younger siblings, but chipped in with the dressmaking her mother took up to provide for the family. On top of all that, she finished high school and enrolled in Georgia Southwestern College, graduating in 1946. Rosalynn and Jimmy who also grew up in Plains started dating in 1945 and married the following year. After Jimmys graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and subsequent enlistment, the couple moved around a lot, with stays in Virginia, Hawaii, and Connecticut. They had three sons Jack, James III, and Donnel each born in a different state; years later, in 1967, the Carters welcomed a daughter, Amy. Jimmy left the Navy in 1953 and brought the family back to Plains following the death of his father. Together, he and Rosalynn took over and ran the family businesses, which famously included a peanut farm. As Rosalynn recalled in her 1984 memoir, First Lady From Plains, the couple gained prominence and notoriety in their small community as they fought in favor of school desegregation. This fight partly propelled Jimmy into politics, and Rosalynn was not only supportive but played a key role in his successful 1962 campaign for Georgia state Senate. Rosalynn remained equally involved when Jimmy embarked on his first failed gubernatorial bid, in 1966, then again when he won in 1970. On the campaign trail, Rosalynn met numerous people and families grappling with mental health issues and learning disabilities; as the first lady of Georgia, she made this her primary focus. Rosalynn admitted in her memoir that she had a lot to learn about the issue, but committed herself thoroughly, attending every meeting of the special commission established to improve services, volunteering one day a week at a regional hospital, and touring other facilities around the state. The commission helped totally overhaul Georgias mental health system, and as Rosalynn wrote: When people ask, What was the most rewarding thing you did as first lady of Georgia? I always answer, My work with the mentally ill. In 1974, near the end of his first and only term as Georgias governor, Jimmy announced he would run for president. Rosalynn once again played a major role, campaigning in more than 40 states on behalf of her husband as he successfully secured the Democratic nomination and then the presidency. And once again, now as first lady of the United States, she took an active role. She sat in on cabinet meetings and briefings, and even served as a presidential emissary on official visits to Latin America and Southeast Asia. She tried to lobby support for the ultimately unsuccessful Equal Rights Amendment, and continued to work on mental health issues, serving as the honorary chairperson of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health. I like to know whats going on, Rosalynn told People in a 1979 interview. I have to meet with people and have press conferences. They ask me questions about whats going on. Its not just that I want to be informed, though I do. Ive just always worked with Jimmy this way, ever since he ran for governor in 1966. I needed to know how he stood on issues. We used to study together, we made up issue papers together. Now that he is the president, am I supposed not to be interested? After Jimmy lost the 1980 election to Ronald Reagan, the Carters returned to Georgia and, in 1982, launched the Carter Center. The nonpartisan nonprofit anchored the couples extensive humanitarian and diplomatic efforts around the world, advocating for peace in conflict zones from the Korean Peninsula to the Middle East; observing elections in 39 countries; advancing human rights and helping to establish and strengthen health care systems in Africa and Latin America; and working to eradicate Guinea worm disease. Rosalyn and Jimmy also famously became involved in Habitat for Humanity, with Rosalynn later serving on the organizations board of advisors. Mental health advocacy remained a major part of Rosalynns work as well. She wrote several books on the subject with co-author Susan K. Golant, and through the Carter Center launched the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism. In 2007, she successfully lobbied for, and testified in Congress on behalf of, a law ensuring that health insurance covers mental illness equally with other illnesses. On Sunday, First Lady Jill Biden paid tribute to Carter during a Friendsgiving gathering with service members and their families in Norfolk, Virginia. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter has just passed. And she was well known for her efforts in mental health and caregiving and womens rights. So I hope that during the holidays, youll include the Carter family in your prayers. Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton whose friendship with the former first lady extended more than 40 years acknowledged Carter as an advocate for the overlooked and underrepresented, noting her work as a mental health advocate, leadership in childhood immunization, and dedication at Habitat for Humanity. Rosalynn Carter was a compassionate and committed champion of human dignity everywhere, they wrote in their statement, adding, Rosalynn will be forever remembered as the embodiment of a life lived with purpose. In many ways, Rosalynn reshaped the role of first lady, notably being the first to establish an official office in the East Wing of the White House. But when asked about her legacy in an interview with C-SPAN, Rosalynn was quick to say she hoped it continues to be more than just first lady. She went on to mention the work of the Carter Center, saying, I hope that I have contributed something to mental health issues, and helped improve, a little bit, the lives of people living with mental illnesses. From there, though, she spoke about the small, but monumentally gratifying moments of her humanitarian work, zeroing in on the Carters efforts to eradicate Guinea worm disease. Recalling visits to villages where the disease had finally been snuffed out, Rosalyn suddenly got emotional as she said, Its just so wonderful just to see the hope on their faces. Something good is happening. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone ATLANTA (AP) Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died Sunday after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a full partnership. Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to President Carter sometimes referred to her privately as co-president. Rosalynn is my best friend the perfect extension of me, probably the most influential person in my life, Jimmy Carter told aides during their White House years, which spanned from 1977-1981. Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Rosalynn Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicized Cabinet shakeup became known, she was forced to declare publicly, I am not running the government. Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husbands they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanor and a soft Southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her the Steel Magnolia. The Carter Center released a statement following the announcement: Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, a passionate champion of mental health, caregiving, and womens rights, passed away Sunday, Nov. 19, at 2:10 p.m. at her home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 96. She died peacefully, with family by her side. Mrs. Carter was married for 77 years to Jimmy Carter, the 39th president of the United States and the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, who is now 99 years old. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, President Carter said. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. She is survived by her children Jack, Chip, Jeff, and Amy and 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. A grandson died in 2015. Besides being a loving mother and extraordinary First Lady, my mother was a great humanitarian in her own right, said Chip Carter. Her life of service and compassion was an example for all Americans. She will be sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today. Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carters landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington. Jimmy Carter trusted her so much that in 1977, only months into his term, he sent her on a mission to Latin America to tell dictators he meant what he said about denying military aid and other support to violators of human rights. She also had strong feelings about the style of the Carter White House. The Carters did not serve hard liquor at public functions, though Rosalynn did permit U.S. wine. There were fewer evenings of ballroom dancing and more square dancing and picnics. Throughout her husbands political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media didnt cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticized reporters for writing only about sexy subjects. As honorary chairwoman of the Presidents Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate subcommittee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying, Weve been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach. She said she developed her interest in mental health during her husbands campaigns for Georgia governor. I used to come home and say to Jimmy, Why are people telling me their problems? And he said, Because you may be the only person theyll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them, she explained. After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, Rosalynn Carter seemed more visibly devastated than her husband. She initially had little interest in returning to the small town of Plains, Georgia, where they both were born, married and spent most of their lives. I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles, she wrote in her 1984 autobiography, First Lady from Plains. But we slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before. After leaving Washington, Jimmy and Rosalynn co-founded The Carter Center in Atlanta to continue their work. She chaired the centers annual symposium on mental health issues and raised funds for efforts to aid the mentally ill and homeless. She also wrote Helping Yourself Help Others, about the challenges of caring for elderly or ailing relatives, and a sequel, Helping Someone With Mental Illness. Frequently, the Carters left home on humanitarian missions, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and promoting public health and democracy across the developing world. I get tired, she said of her travels. But something so wonderful always happens. To go to a village where they have Guinea worm and go back a year or two later and theres no Guinea worm, I mean the people dance and sing its so wonderful. In 2015, Jimmy Carters doctors discovered four small tumors on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she didnt know what she was going to do. I depend on him when I have questions, when Im writing speeches, anything, I consult with him, she said. She helped Carter recover several years later when he had hip replacement surgery at age 94 and had to learn to walk again. And she was with him earlier this year when he decided after a series of hospital stays that he would forgo further medical interventions and begin end-of-life care. Jimmy Carter is the longest-lived U.S. president. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nations first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died at age 97. Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born in Plains on Aug. 18, 1927, the eldest of four children. Her father died when she was young, so she took on much of the responsibility of caring for her siblings when her mother went to work part time. She also contributed to the family income by working after school in a beauty parlor. We were very poor and worked hard, she once said, but she kept up her studies, graduating from high school as class valedictorian. She soon fell in love with the brother of one of her best friends. Jimmy and Rosalynn had known each other all their lives it was Jimmys mother, nurse Lillian Carter, who delivered baby Rosalynn but he left for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, when she was still in high school. After a blind date, Jimmy told his mother: Thats the girl I want to marry. They wed in 1946, shortly after his graduation from Annapolis and Rosalynns graduation from Georgia Southwestern College. Their sons were born where Jimmy Carter was stationed: John William (Jack) in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1947; James Earl III (Chip) in Honolulu in 1950; and Donnel Jeffery (Jeff) in New London, Connecticut, in 1952. Amy was born in Plains in 1967. By then, Carter was a state senator. Navy life had provided Rosalynn her first chance to see the world. When Carters father, James Earl Sr., died in 1953, Jimmy Carter decided, without consulting his wife, to move the family back to Plains, where he took over the family farm. She joined him there in the day-to-day operations, keeping the books and weighing fertilizer trucks. We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, Rosalynn Carter recalled with pride in a 2021 interview with The Associated Press. I knew more on paper about the business than he did. He would take my advice about things. At the height of the Carters political power, Lillian Carter said of her daughter-in-law: She can do anything in the world with Jimmy, and shes the only one. He listens to her. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. Rosalynn Carter, the pioneering First Lady who worked tirelessly to raise awareness for those with mental health illness, died on Sunday. She was 96 years old. Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished, her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, said in a statement confirming the news. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me. Carter displayed a fiery intellect and motivation to help those on the fringes of society long before she moved into the White House after her husband won the 1976 presidential election. She approached her role as First Lady with the same hands-on spiritquietly rewriting the rules with her steely determination and steadfast support from her husband, who considered her his closest advisor and a very equal partner. In an interview from the Jan. 10, 1977 issue of TIME, Carter said she was prepared for her role as First Lady to mean something substantial, and to create meaningful changes: "Jimmy will let me assume as much responsibility as I will. These last two years, I have seen the problems, and I feel that I can help with some of them. Then presidential candidate Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, celebrate victory in the New Hampshire Democratic Primary election, on Feb. 24, 1976. Mikki AnsinGetty Images Carter would go on to play an important role in her husbands presidency. Known to have sat in on her husbands Cabinet meetings, Carter is famously considered one of the most involved First Ladies the Oval Office has ever seen. MaryAnne Borrelli, a professor of government at Connecticut College whose research largely focuses on gender in politics and the presidency, tells TIME that Carter changed the role of First Lady permanently. She was also the first to formally claim office space in the East Wing for herself and her staffan arrangement that has largely endured for all the first ladies who followed. She really took that formalization to the next step by bringing in the expertise and departmentalization of the office so that the First Lady could do more," Borrelli says. Her contributions were first. In the third year of her husband's presidency, TIME declared Carter the second most powerful person in the United States. Rosalyn Carter campaigns over the telephone in Philadelphia in May, 1976. Mikki AnsinGetty Images Her early years Born Eleanor Rosalynn Smith on Aug. 18, 1927, Carter was the eldest of four children born to Wilburn Edgar Smith, an auto mechanic and farmer, and Frances Allethea Allie Murray Smith, a dressmaker. Together they were a religious, hardworking family from the small town of Plains, Ga. Like many women of her time, Carter aspired to graduate college and leave her small-town life, but family obligations initially complicated her dreams. After her father died when she was 13, Carter helped rear her three younger siblings while assisting her mother with sewing work. Even so, she managed to graduate high school as valedictorian and enroll in Georgia Southwestern College. Overall, Carter credited her mother with inspiring her own bootstrapping nature. My mother had an enormous impact on me to become very independent, she told the Chicago Tribune in 2002. I learned from my mother you can do what you have to do. Jimmy Carter embraces Rosalynn after receiving the final news of his victory in the national general election, on Nov. 2, 1976. Hulton Archive/Getty Images Marrying the future president Rosalynn grew up near her future husband in Plains, and grew closer to him through her friend Ruth CarterJimmy's sister. The pair began dating in 1945 while the future president was enrolled in the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and were married on July 7, 1946when she was just 18. She and her husband lived in several states during the first years of their marriage, including Hawaii, Virginia and Connecticut, due to his military duties. In 1953, when Jimmy Carters father died, the familywhich at that point included three childrenmoved back to their hometown of Plains, Ga., to take over the Carter familys peanut business. Although Rosalynn initially opposed moving back homecausing a brief crisis in their otherwise close, solid marriageshe took control of the peanut companys finances. Then presidential nominee Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter share a kiss while standing with their family at the 1976 Democratic National Convention. Owen FrankenCorbis/Getty Images The business soon prospered, and their roots in the community grew. In 1955, Jimmy Carter successfully ran for office for the first time, earning a seat on the Sumter County Board of Education. He later served two terms in the Georgia State Senate before an unsuccessful run for Governor in 1966. That campaign prompted an incident Carter described as the worst political experience of my life in her autobiography, when she recalled being spat on by a supporter of her opponent. In 1970, Jimmy Carter ran for governor againand this time won. Although a primary responsibility of the First Lady of Georgia was to host various events and ceremonies at the Georgia Governors Mansion, the gig did not require the kind of intellect and curiosity that were at Carters core. In a preview to her influential role as First Lady of the United States, Carter used her position to elevate a cause she would continue to champion for decades: mental health. President Jimmy Carter stops to talk with first lady Rosalynn Carter prior to signing an executive order establishing the Presidential Commission on Mental Health at the White House on Feb. 17, 1977. Charles TasnadiAP Her mental health work Carter told TIME in 2010 she first became interested in mental health reform during her husbands first run for governor in 1966. One day I made a remark that I might work with people with mental illness and somebody in the press heard it and it was in the paper. And the more I thought about it and found out about it, the more I thought it was just a terrible situation with no attention. And I've been working on it ever since. Carter also grew her work on behalf of those who live with mental illness while occupying the White House, serving as honorary chair of the President's Commission on Mental Health. But Carter's work was more than a vanity causeshe pushed for policy change. "In four years, [the President's Commission on Mental Health] went from a commission to a full-blown legislative reworking of the entire mental health system in the United States," Borrelli says. Carter was also one of the only first ladies to testify before Congress. In 1979, she and others shared the work of the Commission on Mental Health in support of the scientific research that would become a part of the Mental Health Systems Act of 1980. Rosalynn Carter meets with the President's Commission on Mental Health on April 20, 1977. Corbis/Getty Images Carter continued to advocate for mental health care after she and her husband left the White House following his defeat in the 1980 election. Together, they founded The Carter Center in 1982, a nongovernmental organization that implements worldwide initiatives to fight for peace and health. In 1985, she initiated the annual Rosalynn Carter Symposium on Mental Health Policy, and for years chaired the Carter Center Mental Health Task Force. In 1996 she launched the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, aimed at eliminating the stigma surrounding mental health. Her dedication to the cause never waned, and in a 2010 interview with TIME she lamented the severe dearth of resources for Americans suffering from mental illness. We know what to do for [the mentally ill] yet we don't do it. We know how to treat depression, we know how to treat mental illness, and we have not had the political will in our country to make it happen. People are homeless, sleeping on the streets. Yet today, with what we know about the brain, [we can help people] can recover. Even those who are disabled for years can recover with proper help. I'm really frustrated. For me it's a moral issue. First Lady Rosalynn Carter on board a plane during a campaign trip for reelection of President Carter. Diana WalkerThe LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images Advocating for women and minorities Throughout her life, Carter also advocated for other issues that spoke to her sense of morality and justice. She and her husband had a long but imperfect history of supporting civil rightsan issue that put them at odds with many of the more conservative members of their Georgia community and church. In 1965, Carter family members cast five of the six dissenting votes opposing a resolution barring African Americans from entering their church in Plains. There were times when I went to church and nobody would speak to me and we just knew that everybody was mad, she later reflected. Carter and her husband continued to support underprivileged African Americans in ways large and small throughout their political rise. As Kate Andersen Brower recounts in her book The Residence, the pair symbolically welcomed Mary Prince, a black woman who was eventually pardoned of her murder conviction, to work in the Governor's Mansion in Georgia as part of a rehabilitation program while she served a life sentence. Princewho developed a close bond with their youngest child, Amyreturned to prison after Carter's term as governor ended, but the relationship didn't stop there. In a 1977 interview with People, Prince said that Carter would visit her in jail before inviting her to move to the White House to return to her post as the Carter family nanny. Eventually, Prince was proven innocent and pardoned of her crime. Both the President and First Lady insisted over the years that had Prince been white, she never would have been charged with the crime in the first place. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter working on a building renovation for Project Habitat for Humanity on the Lower East Side, NY in 1984. Evelyn FloretThe LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images Carter also used her political influence to support the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). As she lobbied for the ERA in the 1970s, she encouraged her husband to voice his support as well. In a 1977 interview, she told the New York Times that President Carter never had to inquire about her opinions. I tell him what I think, she said. Her work in fighting for the amendment earned her the Award of Merit for Support of the Equal Rights Amendment from the National Organization for Women. Carter's advocacy also lives on with The Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers (RCI) at Georgia Southwestern State University, which she founded in 1987. The RCIs mission is to promote the health, strength, and resilience of all caregivers at every stage of their journey." This advocacy continued with ongoing volunteer work through Habitat for Humanity, which Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter first became involved with in 1984. The Carter Work Project, a weeklong volunteer effort to assist the organization's mission through creating safe and affordable housing for those in need, continues annually. At the age of 90, and nearly four decades after her time in the White House, Carter continued to speak out for issues she was passionate about. In June 2018 she united with other former first ladies to condemn U.S. President Trumps zero-tolerance immigration policy that separated children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border, calling it a shame to our country. Rosalynn Carter is survived by her husband as well as four childrenJohn William "Jack" Carter, James Earl "Chip" Carter III, Donnel Jeffrey "Jeff" Carter and Amy Lynn Carterand numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Former President Jimmy Carter walks with his wife, former First Lady, Rosalynn Carter towards their home following dinner at a friend's home in Plains, GA, on Aug. 4, 2018. Born in Plains, GA, President Carter stayed in the town following his presidency. Matt McClainThe Washington Post/Getty Images Write to Rachel E. Greenspan at rachel.greenspan@time.com. Abomination Roseville high school board votes for parental notification, (sacbee.com, Nov. 10) Every day, children and teens are abused physically, emotionally and sexually, including teens who attend Roseville high schools. All decent people wish that were not true, but, statistically, it is our reality. So superimposing a Father/Mother Knows Best fantasy on their lives does not make it so; it only locks them into a world of isolation with no escape. Parental notification policies endanger children by making it unsafe for them to seek help. This puts them at increased risk for additional abuse, isolation, anxiety, depression, PTSD and suicide. Studies of adults who manage to survive such childhoods and break the chain of abuse found one common denominator: a single caring adult. Parental notification rules block safe access to those caring adults. This is an abomination for anyone who truly cares about children. Kathy Campbell, MFT Sacramento Not the answer CA must implement forest restoration work to necessary scale, (sacbee.com, Nov. 6) This op-ed author leaves a burning question unanswered: What is the solution? Rather than backing firefighters, home hardening or science-based forest management, the author touts Golden State Natural Resources. But GSNR will undercut efforts to lessen wildfires and harm communities while profiting off lucrative foreign subsidies. They plan to produce a million tons of wood pellets yearly for export markets. Also known as biomass energy, wood pellets carry a climate-polluting and community-harming reputation. Scientists tell us that burning trees increases carbon pollution compared to coal; public health experts tell us burning biomass emits harmful air pollutants; and communities tell us that theyre sick of biomass producers. Biomass production isnt the answer and will only fuel our wildfire problem. With a rapidly changing climate, we must accelerate community adaptation and preparation efforts. Rita Vaughan Frost San Francisco Opinion Protect through hardening CA must implement forest restoration work to necessary scale, (sacbee.com, Nov. 6) The most effective way to protect homes and communities from fire is through home hardening and the maintenance of defensible space up to 100 feet away and not cutting down forests and chipping them for export as fuel pellets on the international market. A single house in Lahaina was surrounded by homes razed to the ground because the owners had, by chance, in restoring the building, done what was most needed for fire protection. Scientists worldwide have stated that the best way to combat climate change is to protect existing forests. Clearing forests makes way for wind-driven flying embers that cause 95% of the fires that destroy homes. The biomass energy industry incentivizes deforestation. It is not clean, but highly toxic, causing asthma, lung disease and cancer. It is not renewable or sustainable, given the length of time it takes for trees to grow. Protect lives, homes and forests. Jenny Blaker Cotati Effective permits New parking plan at Lake Tahoes Heavenly impacts visitors, (sacbee.com, Nov. 10) I was thrilled to learn about the parking permits enforced near Heavenly Resort in South Lake Tahoe to reduce clogged roads due to legal and illegal visitor parking. These permits will only be given to residents, forcing visitors to park outside of residential areas. As a past resident of the neighborhood in the Heavenly Valley, visitor parking and traveling in the neighborhood streets has been detrimental to its year-long residents. Visitors damage properties and block driveways and roads, leaving residents with constant hazards in the winter months. These permits will surely improve Heavenly Valley residents daily lives. These permits must become permanent to ensure that the improvements made will stick. Lillybelle Skeie South Lake Tahoe Foolish Sacramento to inspect garbage cans for food waste, (sacbee.com, Nov. 8) Senate Bill 1383 enacted in 2016 is an example of a bill that is unneeded and will put a financial strain on the citizens of California with results that are miniscule at best. To think that Californias landfills are going to have an impact on a planet of 8 billion people is silly. This is one many bills in the pursuit of a perfect environment undamaged by humans which will never exist. Each bill enacted will just saddle Californians with more expenses. One volcanic eruption or major wildfire negates any environmental improvement that we attempt. Its time to repeal SB 1383. Michael Santos Antelope The National Rural Health Association says costs for hospitals have gone up and funding for rural hospitals has gone down, because COVID-19 funds are no longer a factor. The emergency funds helped many hospitals that were at risk of closing before the pandemic to keep their doors open through 2020. RURAL NORTH CAROLINA HOSPITAL 11TH FORCED TO SHUT DOWN, CHANGE SERVICES THIS YEAR Rural hospitals continue to struggle to find funding. Robert Pascasio is the CEO of OmniPoint Health Hospital in Anahuac, Texas. He says rural hospitals are struggling to maintain their operations after dealing with higher costs and labor shortages. "COVID increased costs for all of us across the board. Labor costs are up, substantially. Supply costs are up, substantially," Pascasio said. "Were still experiencing shortages. A lot of folks got out of healthcare as a result of COVID." Now, COVID funds that kept many rural hospitals open during the pandemic have ended, resulting in the closure of 18 rural hospitals in addition to 18 that no longer offer in-patient care since the funding stopped over a year ago. BIPARTISAN LAWMAKERS EYE SOLUTIONS FOR RURAL MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Carrie Cochran-McClain of The National Rural Hospital Association says many hospitals across the country are now at risk of closing. "We have up to a third of rural hospitals that are vulnerable to closure," McClain said. "Rural hospitals are finding themselves in worse conditions than when they went into the pandemic and when they received those funds." Pascasio says he has worked hard with the local government entities to ensure OmniPoint's doors stay open. Rural hospitals are struggling to find funding. "It's hard: finding staff, moving forward with getting the facilities staffed completely and with the right kind of folks, and the costs that go with that. It was nice while we had it the funding we received. But, the costs havent gone away, while the funding has," Pascasio said. WITH PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY OVER, FUNDING FOR FEDERAL PROGRAM TO RECRUIT DOCTORS MAY BE AT RISK He says supplemental funding has helped them keep their doors open. OmniPoint Hospital is a rural hospital depending on supplemental funding "Theres hardly a day that goes by that I dont read about some hospital somewhere closing, because they just dont have the funding," Pascasio said. "If not for the supplemental funds, we may be one of the ones that folks were reading about going away." He also notes that rural hospitals are typically the largest employers in their areas. So, the majority of jobs in these rural areas are eliminated when the hospitals close. Original article source: Rural hospitals struggle to maintain operations after COVID funds cease Russell Brand has been accused of a number of sexual offences that allegedly took place during his career - James Manning/PA Wire Russell Brand has been interviewed under caution by the Metropolitan Police over allegations of sexual offences. In September, the 48-year-old comedian was accused of rape, assault and emotional abuse between 2006 and 2013, following claims made against him in a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary. Brand was questioned by detectives at a police station in South London on Nov 16. A statement given to The Telegraph said: A man in his 40s attended a police station in south London on Thursday November 16 2023. He was interviewed under caution by detectives in relation to three non-recent sexual offences. Inquiries continue. Following the Channel 4 Dispatches episode, the force encouraged potential victims to come forward amid the sexual assault allegations, which were said to have taken place during the height of Brands fame when he was working for the BBC, Channel 4 and starring in Hollywood films. Brand has strongly denied the allegations, which include claims of controlling, abusive and predatory behaviour. In a YouTube video before the allegations against him were revealed, Brand described the claims as a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks and has said all relationships were absolutely, always consensual. Brand said that while he was very promiscuous at the height of his career, he absolutely refuted the very serious allegations against him. He added: The relationships I had were absolutely always consensual. I was always transparent about that then, almost too transparent, and Im being transparent about it now as well. The force said it had since received a number of allegations of sexual offences in London as well as elsewhere in the country. Two more complainants Earlier this month, the BBC said two more complainants had come forward since it launched a review into the behaviour of Brand, who worked on BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 6 music programmes from 2006 to 2008. The broadcaster said a total of five complaints had now been made directly to the BBC, one of which included allegations of inappropriate conduct in the workplace, including urinating in bottles in a BBC studio. Representatives for Brand have been approached for comment. It has previously been revealed that a team which was set up by the BBC after Jimmy Saviles abuse came to light is helping police investigate the rape and sexual assault allegations being made against Brand. The Hydrant Programme urged people to report any allegations to investigators. Det Supt Andy Furphy, who is leading the inquiry, said: We continue to encourage anyone who believes they may have been a victim of a sexual offence, no matter how long ago it was, to contact us. Brand has been axed by publishers and agents and demonetised by YouTube. He claimed that moves to demonetise his content on social media platforms in the wake of sexual assault allegations made against him have occurred in the context of the Online Safety Bill. 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. Eager though we all are to learn how the Ukraine war ends for Ukraine, there is another great unanswered question about the invasion: How will the war end for Russia? Will it revert to a quasi-Soviet totalitarian past, this time with a simulacrum of capitalism and an ideology of religious nationalism instead of communism? When Vladimir Putin's death or downfall comes, will that bring a new liberal "thaw"? Or will the country slide into violent strife between warlords like the late Yevgeny Prigozhinleading, perhaps, to an even more belligerent fascist dictatorship? Or will the Russian Federation disintegrate as the Soviet Union did 32 years ago, with some of its constituent entities breaking off into independent states? And would that reduce Russia to a shrunken, humbled, impoverished, and increasingly irrelevant country? Russia still commands a vast nuclear arsenal, and there is no realistic scenario where that's going to change soon. Russia's sheer size, its cultural influence, its place at the intersection of Europe and Asia, and its vast network of international connections give it, like it or not, a pivotal role in global politics and development. Whether Russia moves in a liberal or anti-liberal direction, whether it embraces markets or militarism, tolerance or tyranny, will influence social trends in many other countries. For the past decade or so, under Putin's authoritarian rule, Russia has been a superspreader of global anti-liberalism. Now the war in Ukraine has dramatically reduced Moscow's influence by severely damaging its image, its international standing, and (thanks to Western sanctions) its economic reach. But what next? Is the idea of a free, prosperous, peaceful Russia a serious possibility or a pipe dream? What if Russia Wins? Russia, of course, might win the war. Here's a possible scenario after a Russian victory. By the start of 2024, the Ukrainian offensive (or counteroffensive) fails or at least is perceived as a failure, and the West pressures Ukraine to make territorial concessions in exchange for continued aid. The peace accords allow Russia to keep Crimea and at least some of the territories annexed last year, including the land bridge to Crimea and perhaps Mariupol, which Putin appears to view as an especially valuable prize. It's enough of a victory for Putin to position himself as a winner, especially if some or all of the economic sanctions on Russia are lifted (perhaps in exchange for limited reparations to Ukraine, which Kremlin propaganda could spin as generous fraternal aid). It is certainly possible that, as Ukraine fears, Putin and the war hawks in his entourage would view such a peace deal as a breather for a new military buildup and a new effort to bring all of Ukraine under Russian control by installing a Moscow-friendly regime in Kyiv. Some Russian propagandists talk about Ukraine as a stepping stone toward rebuilding a Russian/Soviet empire, and even some Russian military men have echoed such themes; an interview from July shows Andrey Mordvichev (who commanded Russian Army divisions at the battle for Mariupol and was recently promoted to the rank of colonel-general) talking about the alleged need to attack Eastern Europe. But given the current state of Russian armed forces and the population's lack of appetite for war (when the Russian government tried partial mobilization in 2022, the result was a mass exodus of men), such fantasies are likely to remain fantasies. Ukraine is only likely to agree to such concessions on the condition of NATO membership, which would essentially preclude another Russian invasion, perhaps with face-saving assurances to Russia that no NATO bases will be placed in Ukraine. In this scenario, Russia's current neo-totalitarian cocoon will only harden. Political prisoners will remain in prison (unless, perhaps, they are traded for some valuable Russian prisoners of war), and there will be new prosecutions for sharing "fake"i.e., accurateinformation about the war or about Russian war crimes. Access to truthful reporting on these topics will remain severely restricted; the Kremlin will almost certainly further tighten restrictions on the internet. Since the myth of the righteous war will be the foundation of the regime's survival, authoritarian, anti-Western, and anti-liberal propaganda will likely intensify. A cohort of Russian children will be raised on history textbooks (already introduced at the start of this school year) that portray Russia as both the indomitable bastion of all virtues and the eternal victim of nefarious Western intrigue, that discuss the mass-murdering tyrant Josef Stalin in positive terms, that treat Soviet-era dissidents and defectors as selfish and disloyal, and that glorify the "special operation" in Ukraine as part of Russia's historical mission to vanquish Nazism. How long would such a hardline regime survive? At least as long as Putin doesand that could be a while. Losing the War, Winning Freedom It's a broad consensus among Russian dissidents of all stripesnot counting hawks who "dissent" in the sense that they think Putin isn't waging war ruthlessly enoughthat undoing Russia's dictatorship will be impossible unless Ukraine wins the war. As chess grandmaster and opposition activist Garry Kasparov said in February at the Munich Security Conference, "Liberation from Putin's fascism runs through Ukraine." A joint "Declaration of Russian Democratic Forces," spearheaded by Kasparov and a fellow opposition leader, former businessman Mikhail Khodorkovsky, unequivocally called for the withdrawal of Russian troops from all territories recognized as Ukrainian under international law (which would include Crimea, annexed in 2014) as well as war crimes prosecutions and compensation for "the victims of aggression." Such an outcome would indeed be a resounding and humiliating defeat. The idea is not that disgruntled Russians will vote out Putin and his United Russia party, which currently controls the Duma (Russia's so-called parliament) and most local governments. In September, appearing on a YouTube channel created by former staffers of an independent radio station that had been shut down days after the start of the war, Khodorkovsky argued that peaceful transition at the ballot box is currently impossible in Russia: The entire system is designed to leave no chance of that happening. Khodorkovsky thinks the peaceful protest the Russian opposition has traditionally practiced is also futile: He is outspoken in insisting the opposition must be prepared to participate in violent action. What Khodorkovsky has in mind is not a pro-freedom, anti-Putin uprisingthe level of repression and surveillance in Russia today makes organizing dissent extremely difficultbut simply chaos, which, to paraphrase Game of Thrones' Littlefinger, the opposition can use as a ladder. The most likely scenario is an "elite coup": Some people within Russia's political elites get sufficiently fed up with Putin to remove him from power one way or another. Many Russian pundits have sarcastically mentioned "the tobacco-box option," a euphemism for regime change by assassination: In March 1801, Czar Paul I was attacked in his bedchamber by a group of high-level conspirators and knocked unconscious with a tobacco box before being strangled to death with a scarf. A less drastic way of removal would be to either officially place Putin under arrest or force him to announce a sudden retirement for health reasons. It's almost impossible to intelligently assess the probability of any of those outcomes. But massive discontent with the war and with Putin is rife among Russia's business elites. This class once accepted a deal under which they got guarantees of stability in exchange for not seeking influence as independent players in Russian politics. That "stability" worked, for better or worse, given Western countries' willingness to do business with resource-rich Russia. But the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 spectacularly blew up that stability. While Russian markets haven't tanked completely, thanks to continuing oil and gas purchases by non-Western partners, the rich and powerful have certainly taken a hit: Russian billionaires lost a combined $80 billion in the first week of the war. What's more, much of Russia's post-Soviet privileged class now finds itself cut off from access to its vast assets in the West. Bank accounts and investments have been frozen; luxury homes, villas, and yachts are out of reach. Public expressions of discontent have been extremely rare, which is not surprising given how dangerous such expressions are in today's Russia. But on two occasions in the past year, leaked recordings of cellphone conversations showed B-list Russian businessmen lamenting the war, describing Putin as a "retard" who keeps saying that "everyone is an enemy, but we're going to win," and predicting that the current regime would eventually turn Russia into a "scorched desert." Are there people with such views sufficiently high up in the Russian power structuresand with enough loyal armed men under their commandto carry out a coup, whether lethal or nonlethal? There is no way to be sure. For years, a great deal of talk has circulated about rival factions or "clans" within the regime, but all such information comes from supposed insiders or ex-insiders whose accounts cannot be confirmed. (It is alleged, for instance, that the June mutiny of Prigozhin's Wagner mercenary group was coordinated with one such faction.) But a successful coup certainly cannot be ruled out. The Prigozhin mutiny clearly showed that the Russian populace will not take to the streets to support Putin despite his nominally high approval ratings. (There was no outpouring of popular support for Putin either during or after the 24-hour rebellion, and many people in Rostov-on-Don, the city where Prigozhin's private army briefly made its headquarters, cheered for the mutinous mercenaries.) The liberal opposition is extremely unlikely to seize power after Putin's ouster. But there is a more likely (and more morally gray) liberalization scenario. If the architects of an anti-Putin coup are people who want to rebuild good relations with liberal democracies and start reintegrating Russia into global markets and communications, they will have to demonstrate that the new regime is committed to liberal reforms. This will require holding elections with legitimacy in the eyes of the world, giving pro-freedom, pro-democracy parties and candidates meaningful opportunities to get their share of political power. A post-Putin regime might also bring at least some liberal opposition figures into the government, or into a power-sharing coalition, making them the human face of the new Russia. Such a scenario might just mean a new crony-capitalist regime willing to use opposition leaders who are popular abroad, such as Khodorkovsky or the jailed Putin opponent Alexei Navalny, as a front for a corrupt political establishment. But any post-Putin government creates a window for meaningful change. A Russian Springa fresh opportunity for political pluralism, the rule of law, civil society, and a market economymay not seem very likely now. The liberal opposition is too small and fractured; Khodorkovsky's Open Russia movement, for instance, has been feuding with Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation. Support for liberal ideas after almost a quarter-century of Putinism is fairly low even among young people (though measuring public opinion in a fear-ridden authoritarian country is no easy task), and most of the population seems to be mired in a passivity that analysts have described as collective learned helplessness. Still, it's the most optimistic scenario, and it has at least a chance. Private Armies and Scattered Principalities A Russian coup could also lead to a far darker outcome: open armed conflict between rival political factionssome of it based on ideology, some on raw competition for power and wealthand the emergence of multiple regional centers of power. This scenario looks especially plausible given the expansion of so-called private military companies (a misnomer, since they are typically entangled with the state) since the start of the Ukraine war. These companies have existed in Russia for years; Gazprom, the majority state-owned oil and gas giant, has had several as a security service. During the war, these paramilitary units gained a new visibility when Prigozhin's Wagner Group, its ranks padded with convicts recruited from penal colonies, played a pivotal role on the frontline and was elevated in official propaganda to the status of legendary heroes. In summer 2023, as Prigozhin grew increasingly defiant, Putin took steps to bring the Wagner Group to heel by requiring all "volunteers," i.e., mercenaries, serving in the "special operation" in Ukraine to sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense. It was the Wagner Group's refusal to comply that led to Prigozhin's mutinya saga that ended with the Wagner Group being dismantled and with Prigozhin apparently blown up aboard his business jet. But private military companies that do not answer to the Ministry of Defense can still legally function as long as they're not fighting in Ukraine. A month after the Prigozhin mutiny, new legislation was passed allowing regional governors to start such quasi-armies. Putin may think that they're a way to prevent or put down future rebellions, but they could easily have the opposite effect. In other words, Russia has a lot of armed groups in the pay of corporate behemoths and government officials. It's not hard to imagine how this could go if the Putin regime collapses and the government fractures. A protracted civil war seems unlikely, since most of the Russian population is too cowed and passive to mobilize for one side or another. But conflicts between armed groups controlled by a new breed of warlords may well lead to actual warfare, with disgruntled veterans (some of them violent ex-convicts) contributing to the turmoil. Post-Putin Russia could be an impoverished wasteland with well-protected islands of affluence, virtually autonomous cities run like medieval principalities, and roving gangs and militias. Depending on how impoverished it becomes, conflicts over resources could become frequent and brutal. All that could lead to another frequently mentioned scenario: the dissolution of the Russian Federation. A Russian Breakup The Russian Federation currently has 89 distinct areas known as "federal subjects," 83 of them internationally recognized. (The other six are territories annexed from Ukraine in 2014 and 2022, portions of which Russia currently doesn't control.) That includes 21 non-Slavic "autonomous republics" such as Chechnya, Dagestan, Bashkortostan, Chuvashia, and Tatarstan, and six non-Slavic "autonomous districts," some with a population larger than some republics. Some of these entities have previously tried to secedemost notably Chechnya (pacified through two brutal wars and a deal that allows its current president to rule it as a de facto principality) and Tatarstan (whose 1991 declaration of sovereignty was approved in a referendum but invalidated by Russia's Constitutional Court). A May report from the Association of Accredited Public Policy Advocates to the European Union indicates that separatist movements exist in 36 of the federation's constituent entities, but they are mostly small and weak. Even in republics extensively used by the Kremlin as a source of cannon fodder for the war in Ukraine, such as Buryatia and Dagestan, there has been no clamor for liberation. Obviously, that could change quickly if the Putin regime collapsed, the economy tanked, and the country descended into chaos. Even in regions with an ethnic Russian majority, a group of determined activists could generate a serious push for independence. The possibility of Russia's dissolution has been extensively discussed, with vigorous disagreement on both the plausibility and the desirability of such a scenario. Some anti-Putin, pro-Ukraine pundits believe that the West's reluctance to give Ukraine enough support for a decisive victory is due in large part to fears that the collapse of the Putin regime will lead to the collapse of the Russian Federation and the proliferation of dangerous rogue statelets in its place. Warlords with nukes are the ultimate nightmare. Many Russian opposition figures, including Khodorkovsky, believe that Russia's disintegration is extremely unlikely and would be a disaster if it happened. On the other hand, politicians, activists, and commentators from countries historically subjugated by the Russian Empire or the Soviet Unionbe it Ukraine, Estonia, or Polandoften argue that Russia will remain an imperialistic menace unless it's literally cut down to size, and that its peaceful dissolution via separatism is the best chance to do that. Writing in Politico last January, Janusz Bugajski of the Jamestown Foundation even suggested that Western democracies should encourage Russia's disintegration by supporting local separatist movements. A more dispassionate analysis of the federation's possible breakup is offered by French scholar Bruno Tertrais, deputy director of the Foundation for Strategic Research, in a March paper for the Montaigne Institute. Tetrais warns that the disintegration of the Russian Federation, which he believes is entirely possible, would not be a relatively orderly event like the breakup of the USSR into 15 constituent republics. He instead expects a prolonged and chaotic process, very possibly accompanied by bloodbaths. What's more, the conflict would likely reverberate beyond Russia's bordersTetrais bluntly writes that "the lockdown of Russia in the pandemic-related sense of the word" would be a necessary responseand the end result could be Russia's reunification under a new totalitarian regime. The only good news, Tetrais argues, is that nuclear proliferation is unlikely, since Russia's nuclear forces today are almost entirely located "in the heart of the Federation," in areas under Moscow's secure control. But "severe disruption" could reach even those regions. There's also the China factor. While Bugajski's Politico piece speculated that Russia's disintegration would weaken China because Beijing would lose a valuable ally, it is entirely possible to imagine a different outcomeone where China turns Russia's battered remnants into a resource-rich de facto colony, or even annexes portions of Russian territory in the Far East. (In September, China ruffled some feathers in Moscow by publishing a "national map" that includes some disputed land which is currently Russian.) While the Chinese regime almost certainly doesn't want Russia's collapse, since it favors stability, it would also be in a position to take advantage of such a collapse if it happened. Forecasting Through the Fog of War With the outcome of the war still uncertain, predicting the fate of the Putin regime and of Russia is necessarily speculative. Many other scenarios besides the ones outlined above may come to pass, most of which we cannot even envision today. (Who could have predicted the Prigozhin mutiny in early 2023, when the official Russian media were hailing the Wagner Group men as a heroic force fighting at Bakhmut?) But there is a very strong chance that in a few years the United States and other liberal democracies will find themselves in a replay of the 1990s, making difficult decisions about how to respond to sweeping, uncertain changes in Russia. We may have to decide how much to trust and help a new liberalization, whether to respond with humanitarian aid or "lockdown" to chaos and collapse, whether to lend our support to breakaway republics. After the evil that Russia has visited on the world in 20222023, reviving ghosts of World War I and World War II in the heart of Europe, it is tempting for manyespecially those victimized by Russian imperialismto write off the entire country as hopelessly toxic and fit only for a cordon sanitaire. But the exiled journalist and staunch Kremlin critic Igor Yakovenko has warned emphatically against such an approach. "The idea that you can build a mile-high fence and dig a moat filled with crocodilesand the rest of the world can breathe a sigh of reliefthis is a mistake," Yakovenko said on his YouTube channel earlier this year. "Russia isn't going to fall into a deep hole, it's not going anywhere." An authoritarian Russia will pose a threat even if temporarily weakened; a Mad Maxlike Russia of chaos, desperation, and private armies will pose a different kind of threat; and the replacement of Russia with a dozen or two dozen smaller states could create an entirely new set of problems. Optimism about Russia's future, at this point, looks absurdly naive. But forever pessimism is not only bleak but ugly; it almost invariably involves borderline-racist notions of collective guilt and inherent national character. Better to adopt a cautious realism that adapts to developments within Russia and seeks to identify genuinely liberal forces. But nothing good is apt to come from Russia unless it is defeated in the Ukraine war and Putin's regime falls. The post Will Russia Ever Be Free? appeared first on Reason.com. Ruben Navarrette Jr Despite his reputation as a rhetorical bomb-thrower, I believe Donald Trump often chooses his words quite carefully. This is especially true with remarks that are meant to be offensive or incendiary. Granted, with Trump, that covers a lot of ground. At a recent rally in New Hampshire, Trump told the crowd that, if reelected, he would root out left-wing groups that live like vermin within the confines of our country. Advertisement Article continues below this ad With antisemitism on the rise in the wake of the monstrous attack on Israel by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 and the ensuing war in Gaza, its understandable that many analysts and commentators would - after hearing the word vermin - draw comparisons to the language Nazis used to dehumanize Jews. Nazi propaganda frequently referred to Jews as rats or vermin that infested the German homeland, spread disease and needed to be eliminated. President Biden gets it. During a campaign fundraiser in San Francisco, he noted: In just the last few days, Trump has said, if he returns [to] office, hes gonna go after all those who oppose him and wipe out what he called the vermin, quote, the vermin in America. Biden described the wording as a specific phrase with a specific meaning that echoes language you heard in Nazi Germany in the 30s. Moreover, as Biden noted, the vermin slur is just the latest verbal grenade that Trump has tossed into the public discourse as of late. In a September interview with a right-wing website, Trump said waves of immigrants are poisoning the blood of our country. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Today, most immigrants come to the United States from the Caribbean, Asia or Latin America. So its easy to draw a racial inference from Trumps comments. After all, this is the same person who, as president, reportedly asked during a White House meeting why the United States didnt accept more Norwegians rather than people from shithole countries. Its the same person who, before he even became president, described Mexican immigrants as rapists, criminals and drug traffickers. With Trump, the lighter your skin, the warmer the welcome. By now, most Americans who pay attention should have a pretty good idea of who Trump is, who he is speaking to and what buttons hes pushing. My concern is this: There are millions of Americans who - despite being born in the United States and living here their entire lives - dont know enough about their country, and its history, to recognize that Trumps comments are quintessentially American. The United States has plenty of homegrown examples - both contemporary and historical - of human beings being compared to animals as a way of diminishing them. This is particularly true if the human beings in question are immigrants. In the mid-19th century, Irish immigrants were portrayed as monkeys or apes in U.S. newspapers. In the lead-up to Congress passing the notorious Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, magazines published racist cartoons depicting Chinese immigrants as rats. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In the early 20th century, Jewish and Italian immigrants were the popular targets for nativists. Jews were often depicted as rats or pigs, and Italians were simply referred to as street filth. And today, in the 21st century, it is often Latino immigrants who are dehumanized by being compared to animals or insects. In 2006, then-Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) proposed putting an electrified fence along the U.S.-Mexico border to discourage Mexican immigrants from crossing. After all, King said, we do that with livestock all the time. In 2011, Virgil Peck, a Republican state legislator in Kansas, suggested during a committee hearing that if a state program using helicopters to find and shoot feral hogs was successful, maybe we have found a [solution] to our illegal immigration problem. And in 2018, during a White House meeting, Trump added more heat. According to USA Today, Trump lashed out at undocumented immigrants. You wouldn't believe how bad these people are, he said. These aren't people. These are animals. Advertisement Article continues below this ad There are many more examples of immigrants being compared to dogs, insects, farm animals and, yes, vermin. In fact, this is practically an American tradition, one of our uglier ones. Like Bakhmut and many other Ukrainian cities before it, the Russians have left Avdiivka in ruins in their wasted efforts of capture, as can be seen in photos released by Tavria operational group commander Oleksandr Tarnavskyi after more than a month of intense battles. Russian terrorists cynically destroyed the civilian infrastructure of the city and residential buildings on Nov. 19, said Tarnavskyi. Read also: Russians kill three, injure 15 in artillery attacks on Kherson Oblast in a day governor The photos reveal the consequences of shelling and bombardment as Russians continue their assault on the city. Tarnavskyi/Telegram Tarnavskyi/Telegram Ukraine is anticipating a new mechanized assault on Avdiivka by the Russians, said the U.S.-based think tank Institute of War Studies (ISW) analysts in their Nov. 18 report. Russian invaders plan to encircle Avdiivka while avoiding entering the city, aiming for a siege strategy, said Estonian intelligence. Tarnavskyi/Telegram Tarnavskyi/Telegram Russias offensive on Avdiivka What is known Russian troops intensified their offensive on Avdiivka on Oct. 10, launching massive attacks on the Donbas town. The head of Avdiiivkas military administration, Vitaliy Barabash, said that Oct. 10 saw probably the largest attack on the city in the entire full-scale war, but the situation was under control. Read also: Kherson Oblast rocked by major Russian shelling attack, four injured The Ukrainian Armed Forces said that the Russian military wants to surround Avdiivka, and is throwing a large amount of equipment and personnel into battle. Russian troops had launched a new wave of assaults, Barabash announced on Oct. 20. The situation remains difficult, he said at that time. Since the beginning of the Russian offensive on Avdiivka, the losses of the Russian invasion forces in Donetsk Oblast amounted to 6,500 soldiers, Tavria Defense Forces spokesperson, Colonel Oleksandr Shtupun, said earlier. Russian invasion forces have eased their attacks on Avdiivka to replace their losses and regroup, Shtupun said on Nov. 2. 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 A house damaged by Russian shelling in August in in Tarasivka, Ukraine Russia has launched several waves of drone attacks on Kyiv for the second night in a row, the city's military administration said. Serhiy Popko, head of the administration, said Ukraine's air defence systems hit around 10 drones in Kyiv and its outskirts. No "critical damage" or casualties have been reported, he said. Meanwhile, Russian authorities said a Ukrainian drone heading for Moscow was shot down on Saturday. The defence ministry said the un-crewed aircraft (UAVs) was intercepted over the Bogorodsky District on the north-eastern outskirts of the capital. Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said there was no damage or casualties. Sunday's air raids against Ukrainian targets follow a wave of attacks the night before, with Kyiv saying it had shot down 29 out of 38 Iranian-made Shahed drones launched by Russia. The BBC is unable to independently verify exactly how many drones were launched and destroyed. On Saturday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy praised his air force for shooting down the UAVs - the highest number reported to have been launched by Russia in more than six weeks. In his nightly address, President Zelensky said: "Your accuracy, guys, is literally life for Ukraine" - but he warned that as winter approaches Russia would try to make their attacks more powerful. Mr Zelensky said Russia could be stockpiling missiles for a winter assault on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. Friday night's drone strikes caused power cuts in more than 400 towns and villages across Ukraine and also damaged an oil depot in Odesa in the south - leaving more than 1,500 residents without power. Ukraine said nearly 21,000 people in the Donetsk region have no electricity, and 63 settlements are cut off in the Zaporizhzhia region. Last winter, Russian attacks left millions of Ukrainians without power for hours in freezing temperatures. Meanwhile, Ukraine's general staff said on Saturday that its forces "continue to hold positions on the left (eastern) bank of the Dnipro river". Map showing territorial control around Kherson and the village of Krynky Ukrainian forces said this week they had gained a foothold on the eastern bank of the Dnipro about 30km (19 miles) from the city of Kherson. The river has separated Ukrainian and Russian forces since Moscow's troops withdrew from Kherson a year ago. "Our defenders are consolidating their positions and firing on the occupiers," the general staff said on Saturday, updating on its operations on the eastern side of the river. Russia conceded on 15 November that "small groups" of Ukrainian forces had set up positions in the village but insisted they had sustained heavy losses and had no chance of breaking through. On Thursday, Mr Zelensky said Russia was "accumulating" missiles and that while Ukraine did not have "100% protection" from Russian strikes, the country's air defences were better than last year. Russian forces shelled 11 communities in Sumy Oblast on Nov. 18, firing 25 times over the course of the day and injuring two civilians, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration reported. Artillery attacks in the settlement of Znob-Novhorodske left two residents wounded. No additional information was provided on the status of the victims. The communities of Bilopillia, Yunakivka, Mykolaiv, Esman, Krasnopillia, Velyka Pysarivka, Khotin, Znob-Novhorodske, Druzhbivka, Seredyna-Buda, and Shalyhyne came under fire. The administration recorded 189 explosions throughout the day. Druzhbivka experienced the most intense attacks, with 79 explosions recorded in the area. The Russian military targeted different communities with artillery, rocket, mortar, and drone attacks, while also dropping mines on multiple settlements. Shelling is a daily occurrence for the communities near Ukraine's northeastern border with Russia. Residents in the region's vulnerable border settlements experience multiple attacks per day. Read also: Under deadly attacks, Kherson fights to keep life going 1 year after liberation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russia has escalated shelling on the left bank of Kherson Oblast, fearing an expansion of Ukraines bridgehead across the Dnipro River, Oleksandr Tolokonnikov, spokesperson for Khersons Oblast Military Administration (OVA), said on Nov. 19. As for air bombs, they have started shelling the left bank. I understand these are chaotic shelling incidents. The Russians are very afraid of a counteroffensive. They are trying to halt the counteroffensive by our guys, Tolokonnikov said. Read also: Ukrainian force push Russians back from left bank of Dnipro in Kherson Oblast Developments on the Left Bank of Kherson Oblast. Since mid-October, the U.S.-based think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW), has been reporting on the Ukrainian Armed Forces and their advance on the left bank of Kherson Oblast. Read also: How Ukraine can succeed in southern Kherson Oblast interview Reports indicated a breakthrough across the Dnipro River into the occupied part of the region near Oleshky community. It was previously suggested that judging by the reaction of Russian war correspondents, this operation could be more significant than similar raids by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. In late October, ISW reported a Ukrainian advance towards the village of Krynky. On Nov. 10, the think tank subsequently reported that the Ukrainian foothold could have expanded, cutting into the important road from Nova Kakhovka to Oleshky. Andriy Yermak, the head of the Presidents Office, confirmed on Nov. 13 that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had seized a foothold on the left bank of the Dnipro River. 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 moment a Russian missile crashed into the Odesa National Art Museum on Nov. 6 was captured on CCTV footage and has emerged on social media. The footage shows cars driving down the street, followed by a huge explosion. Shrapnel can also be seen flying around, likely damaging other buildings as well. Read also: The Russian Onix and Iskander-M missile attack on the historic center of Odesa on Nov. 6 injured eight people and damaged the museum and numerous nearby residential buildings. Shahed kamikaze drones targeted the city's port infrastructure in the same overnight attack. 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 Russian authorities have claimed that an air defence system intercepted a drone in Moscow Oblast that was allegedly flying towards Moscow. Source: Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin; Russian Defence Ministry Quote from Sobyanin: "Air defence forces foiled an attempted drone attack on Moscow last night in the urban district of Bogorodskoye. Initial reports indicate no damage or casualties from the falling debris. Emergency services are working at the scene." Details: Russias Defence Ministry said the drone was shot down at 01:00 Moscow time. Support UP or become our patron! Over the course of the last day, the Russian invaders did not stop trying to surround Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast. They tried to storm six more fronts. A total of 71 combat clashes took place during the day. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook, information as of 06:00 on 19 November Details: In the area of responsibility of the Pivnich Operational Strategic Group on the Volyn and Polissia fronts, the operational situation remains without significant change. On the Sivershchyna and Slobozhanshchyna fronts, the Russians maintain a military presence in the border areas, conduct active sabotage activities in order to prevent the transfer of Ukrainian troops to threatening directions, and increase the density of mine and explosive barriers along the state border in Russian Belgorod Oblast. In the area of responsibility of the Khortytsia Operational Strategic Group on the Kupiansk front, the Russians conducted assault operations near Synkivka and east of Petropavlivka (Kharkiv Oblast), where the Defence Forces repulsed seven attacks. On the Lyman front, the Russians conducted assaults near Torske in Donetsk Oblast without success. On the Bakhmut front, Ukrainian soldiers repelled eight Russian attacks near Klishchiivka and Andriivka (Donetsk Oblast). Also, Ukraines Defence Forces continue their assault operations south of Bakhmut, inflicting losses in manpower and equipment on the Russians and consolidating their positions. In the area of responsibility of the Tavriia Operational Strategic Group on the Avdiivka front, the Russians continue their attempts to surround Avdiivka. Ukrainian soldiers firmly hold the defence, inflicting significant losses on the Russians. Russian offensive actions east of Keramik, Novobakhmutivka, Stepove, and Avdiivka (Donetsk Oblast) were unsuccessful, Ukrainian Defence Forces repelled 26 attacks in the area. On the Marinka front, the Russians conducted unsuccessful assaults near Marinka and Novomykhailivka (Donetsk Oblast). Here, Ukrainian defenders repelled 22 attacks. On the Shakhtarsk front, the Russians conducted unsuccessful assaults near Staromaiorske in Donetsk Oblast, where the Defence Forces repelled three attacks. On the Zaporizhzhia front, the Russians carried out assaults near Robotyne, Novoprokopivka and west of Verbove (Zaporizhzhia Oblast) without success. At the same time, the Defence Forces of Ukraine continue to conduct an offensive operation on the Melitopol front, inflict losses in manpower and equipment on the Russian forces, and exhaust the Russians along the entire front line. In the area of responsibility of the Odesa Operational Strategic Group on the Kherson front, Ukrainian soldiers are conducting counter-battery measures, inflicting fire damage on the Russian rear. Support UP or become our patron! MEMPHIS, Tenn. The annual Operation Angel Tree walk-a-thon was held at Shelby County Farms on Saturday, where participants walked to raise money for the Salvation Army. The program, Operation Angel Tree aims to provide Christmas gifts to hundreds of children and senior adults across the community who are in need. The walk-a-thon became an annual event for Memphis based accounting firm, HHM, who is proud to take on the role of Santas Elves. Operation Angel Tree walk-a-thon Operation Angel Tree walk-a-thon Operation Angel Tree walk-a-thon WREG to partner with Salvation Army for Angel Tree This is our fourth year. But HHM started putting this together in 2018, said Stephanie Taylor, organizer of Operation Angel Tree. For the certified public accountants at HHM, instead of analyzing financial records, they are collecting finances for a good cause. We get together every year to raise money for the angel tree. We do a walkathon, we used to call little run-a-thon, but most of us walk now, said Taylor. Angel tree is something I had always done, I would always go to get an angel tree off the tree and go shop for some kids, so this was just a no-brainer for me. Participants in the walk-a-thon say they are reaching out in every way to help those less fortunate. Salvation Army hosts Gathering of Angels, donations still needed It feels nice to help and like you said, not everybody is as fortunate. You dont know what someone else is going through, said Danielle Daniels, an Operation Angel Tree Organizer. Theres so much going on in the world. Theres so much unhappiness. This is nice, it makes you feel good. With incredible weather, there is an incredible effort underway to make sure kids and seniors have something under the tree just in time for the holidays. Its not too late to adopt an angel. The Salvation Army is trying to have all gifts in no later than December 8. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. Newly ousted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and former president Greg Brockman are meeting with executives at the companys San Francisco headquarters now as discussions about possibly reinstating their positions continue, The Information reports. Per The Information, interim CEO Mira Murati and others have been leading the push to get Altman reinstated as CEO, and invited the two to HQ on Sunday. Altman and Brockman showed up for talks this afternoon, sources told The Information. Around the time of the reports publication, Altman tweeted a photo of himself wearing a guest badge for entry into the building, writing, first and last time i ever wear one of these (sic) which could be interpreted several different ways, at this point. Sources told The Verge that Altman has set a 5PM PT deadline for board members to reach an agreement that could ultimately determine whether he walks away from OpenAI, or they do. first and last time i ever wear one of these pic.twitter.com/u3iKwyWj0a Sam Altman (@sama) November 19, 2023 After Altman was fired without warning on Friday, Brockman stepped down in solidarity, along with a slew of senior researchers. Other staff members have reportedly pledged to resign as well and follow the two to other projects, signaling their support on social media, according to The Verge. The state of Altman's position and OpenAIs future leadership has remained up in the air this weekend as backlash against the boards initial decision grows. On Saturday evening, The Verge broke news that the board was considering reinstating him as CEO, and had agreed in principle to resign if so. But, the board reportedly couldnt make up its collective mind in time, and missed the deadline that had been set for the decision. According to Bloomberg, thats at least in part because theyve hit a brick wall in trying to agree on what the board will look and what its role will be if hes reinstated. Altman reportedly wants the existing board gone if hes to return, among other governance changes including making former Salesforce CEO Bret Taylor a board member and possibly bringing on a Microsoft executive, Bloomberg reported, though the latter has not yet made a decision. There has been much speculation over the reason behind Altmans removal as CEO and from the OpenAI board of directors, which came as a surprise to Altman, staff, and investors. An internal memo sent that morning to staff and seen by Axios said that the decision to unseat Altman came as the result of a breakdown in communication between Sam and the board. It was not made in response to malfeasance or anything related to our financial, business, safety, or security/privacy practices, the memo from COO Brad Lightcap said. Altman was fundraising for a custom AI chip project codenamed Tigris prior to his unexpected firing, Bloomberg reported. Per Bloomberg and The New York Times, which previously reported on his plans for other AI ventures, Altman has already pitched the idea of custom Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) that would rival NVIDIAs to potential investors in the Middle East. He was also reportedly looking for backers to fund his hardware collaboration with former Apple designer, Jony Ive, for which he approached SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son. Sources with knowledge of the discussions told Bloomberg that Altman is trying to raise tens of billions of dollars to get these projects off the ground. Samsung Foundry has landed an order from AMD to produce processors based on its Zen 5c microarchitecture using its 4nm-class process technology, reports DigiTimes, citing a report from South Korea-based Chosun Biz. If the information is accurate, the deal represents a major pivot in AMD's manufacturing strategy, as it means that it will split production of upcoming CPUs between TSMC and Samsung Foundry. The report from DigiTimes claims that AMD is set to produce Zen 5c-based 'Prometheus' at two contract semiconductor chipmakers: Samsung Foundry and TSMC. The former is reportedly projected to make 'basic' versions of Prometheus on one of its 4nm-class process technologies, whereas the latter is expected to manufacture 'more advanced' versions of Prometheus on a 3nm-class production node. Typically, AMD and other companies assign different codenames for products that use different process technologies and/or architecture configurations, so take the information about Prometheus being made on both 3nm and 4nm-class nodes with a huge grain of salt. If we assume that there is no smoke without fire and AMD will produce something at Samsung Foundry (e.g., I/O dies), this means that AMD is going away from its usual tactics of only working with TSMC on advanced nodes. This move can be seen as an effort by AMD to reduce the risks associated with relying on a single supplier. If the collaboration happens, it will certainly diversify AMD's chip production and will clearly strengthen Samsung Foundry's position in the advanced chipmaking business, as currently only TSMC produces advanced CPUs for AMD and Intel. Samsung's role in producing these chips is a big deal for the company. Although it is still unclear whether Samsung Foundry has indeed landed a major order from AMD, there is already chatter in the industry that this partnership could lead to more opportunities for Samsung. If Samsung Foundry does well with Zen 5c-based chips, AMD might consider using Samsung's 3nm-class technologies for future products. Now that San Antonio has its first European nonstop flight in hand thanks to Condor, its our turn to fill up seats to Frankfurt. Markus Mainka/Markus Mainka/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images John Dickson Courtesy The news of our first transatlantic flight to Germany via Condor Airlines continues to reverberate. Its an understatement to say securing a nonstop flight to Europe was a huge win. The behind-the-scenes heavy lifting by San Antonio city staff and business leaders may never be fully appreciated, but these leaders invested a monumental amount of time and resources to land Condor. Now that San Antonio has its first European nonstop flight, its our turn to fill up those seats to Frankfurt, Germany. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I have more than 40 years experience flying in and out of Germany as a military brat, Air Force officer, businessman and tourist. Frankfurt remains one of my favorite destinations to fly for a variety of reasons. First, you can fly from Frankfurt to practically anywhere in Europe. It is one the largest if not the largest hubs on the European continent with connections across Europe, as well as most destinations in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. There are 300 connections out of Frankfurt to 90 countries. In the past, flyers from San Antonio to these distant destinations have taken three different flights with two long layovers. And a connecting flight is just one of your options. You might want to travel within Europe via its high-speed rail. As luck would have it, there is a high-speed train station in the Frankfurt terminal facility. If high-speed rail is not thrilling enough for you, rent a car at the Frankfurt terminal and head out to the autobahn, famous for sections where drivers can drive as fast as they want. For the business traveler, Condor offers direct connections via Frankfurt to London, Paris, Asia and other popular destinations. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Frankfurt also has become a hopping-off point for business travelers to many of Germany's industrial giants. Germany-based Traton Group, for example, has a subsidiary named Navistar based in the San Antonio area. More broadly, there is a connection between our San Antonio-based Toyota suppliers and the likes of German auto manufacturers such as Mercedes Benz and Porsche. In addition to automakers, Germany has numerous pharmaceutical companies such as Bayer and Novartis that will make attractive partners to San Antonios growing bio- and pharma industries. Finally, there are obvious connections between San Antonios military missions and the enormous Defense Department footprint in Germany. There should be no shortage of active-duty military and their dependents taking advantage of the Condor nonstop to Frankfurt. Of note, Condors code share agreement with U.S.-based Alaskan Airlines will allow U.S. military personnel to travel to Germany and back on military orders. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I am a million miler airline passenger and lifelong international traveler who has spent hundreds of hours stuck in airports on long layovers. Flying nonstop to Germany without a layover means we have a quicker way to get across the Atlantic, which translates to a faster and more convenient way to get to Europe, Africa and South Asia. One of the hostages arriving in Al-Shifa hospital grounds, central Gaza, on October 7 after the Hamas attacks. Israel has released footage it claims shows bloodied hostages being strong-armed into the Al-Shifa hospital grounds on the day of the October 7 massacre. In an effort to prove definitively Hamass use of the complex, the Israel Defense Forces staged a press conference in which its spokesman pointed to footage of two abductees, one with a bloodied arm, being led into the hospital. They also showed images of an IDF jeep taken from Israel during the rampage earlier that morning and a white pickup truck of the type used by the terrorists in the attacks. Hostages being brought to Al-Shifa hospital on October 7 They had earlier released what they said were details of a 55-metre-long tunnel, 10 metres beneath the grounds. Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the IDF spokesman, said: By now the truth is clear - Hamas is waging terror from hospitals. It came as at least 30 premature babies were evacuated from Gazas main Al-Shifa hospital on Sunday, after the World Health Organisation described it as a death zone. Newborns were taken off incubators at the Al-Shifa hospital earlier this week after a power outages - Obtained by Reuters The infants, many of whom have reportedly lost their parents, were removed ahead of a transfer to specialist care in Egypt, the Hamas-controlled health ministry said. The plight of newborns in a hospital with barely any functioning equipment had become the subject of acute concern following the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) circling of and subsequent entry into the facility last week, which it says is to root out terrorist infrastructure on the site. They were among 291 patients still there on Saturday, according to the WHO, many of whom were in a critical state with spinal injuries, infected wounds and other conditions. Mark Regev, senior adviser to Israels prime minister, said on Sunday that IDF troops had found a command and control room on the minus 2 floor of the hospital. The IDF said soldiers had exposed a 55-metre-long terror tunnel, 10 metres beneath the Al-Shifa hospital complex, including a blast-proof door and a firing hole. An opening to a tunnel that, according to Israel's military, was used by Palestinian militants under Al Shifa hospital in the Gaza Strip - ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES During Sunday nights briefing, Admiral Hagari said time-stamped video from 10:50 am on October 7 shows Hamas pulling up at the hospital and using it to drop off hostages. At 10:55, Hagari said, Hamas can be seen taking a hostage inside the hospital. He doesnt even look like he needs treatment but they are taking him inside the hospital. Mr Hagari said the same hostage can be seen a few minutes earlier entering the main entrance to the hospital accompanied by gunmen. Also at 10:55 am, the terrorists enter the hospital with another hostage, Mr Hagari said. The gunmen are guarding the room. We have not yet located both of these hostages and rescued them. We do not know where they are. He also accused Hamas of murdering 19-year-old Corporal Noa Marciano, who was abducted on October 7, in the Al-Shifa hospital grounds. Hostages being brought to Al-Shifa hospital grounds on October 7 Neither Hagaris claims about Marciano nor the alleged hospital footage has been independently verified. The government has claimed Hamas used the site as the beating heart of its operations. But the US says its intelligence suggests the presence of a command and control node. It came as the IDFs chief of staff approved plans to continue the ground offensive in the beleaguered enclave, ahead of a widely expected push south. The military said its operations around the Rimal area of Gaza city, in the north of the strip, had found a base used by Hamass intelligence, as well as the residences of senior Hamas officials. Sixty-three Israeli soldiers are now confirmed to have been killed in the fighting, including Binyamin Meir Airley, whose British father Rob Airley described him as a leader who personified modesty. He said the 21-year-old paratrooper had entered a house that had already been attacked by an Israeli tank, incorrectly thinking the Hamas terrorists inside had been killed. The fighting took place amid growing international hope for a deal to secure the release of a significant number of the 240 hostages seized during the October 7 massacre. Israels ambassador to the US, Michael Herzog, told journalists on Sunday that his government was hopeful a breakthrough could be reached within days. White House Deputy National Security Advisor Jonathan Finer said the White House believed the vast majority of the hostages were most likely alive, while the prime minister of Qatar, which is hosting the negotiations, suggested that only minor details, stood in the way of a deal. In the same interview, Mr Finer suggested that a temporary cessation of fighting could allow the way for better humanitarian aid to Gaza, a possibility that will be seized on by the UN and other aid bodies, who continued to excoriate the IDF for its treatment of Palestinian civilians. Secretary General Antonion Guterres said he was deeply shocked about the treatment of two UN schools, which he said had been attacked in less than 24 hours. Dozens of people many women and children were killed and injured as they were seeking safety in United Nations premises, he said. Meanwhile at the Nuseirat refugee camp, situated between Gaza City and Khan Yunis, 31 people were reportedly killed, including two journalists. An international team led by the WHO visited the Al-Shifa hospital on Saturday to carry out a humanitarian assessment - WHO/Reuters Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) says the number of facilities hit and civilians killed cannot just be collateral damage. The IDF says it endeavours to avoid civilian casualties, although last week Mr Netanyahu said Israel had been unsuccessful in this regard. A doctor at the al-Amal hospital in Khan Yunis said the facility was now home to 9,000 displaced people. The Palestinian Red Crescent said it was suffering its seventh consecutive day of power and water outage. Within Israel, an event was held to highlight the massacre of more than 360 people at the Nova festival rave on October 7. It coincided with a report in Haaretz newspaper, citing a police source, that during the Hamas rampage an IDF helicopter accidentally killed civilians while engaging the terrorists, a claim that was vehemently denied by the military. In the West Bank, at least two people were killed in another Israeli raid, according to Palestinian Red Crescent, including a 5-year-old man who was killed in Jenin and another person who died in Dheisheh refugee camp. Later in the day injuries were also reported during a raid at Balata refugee camp, near Nablus. Amid growing concern over violence towards Palestinians by Israeli settlers in the West Bank, Joe Biden ordered officials to draw up visa bans and sanctions for extremist settlers, Politico reported. 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 sniper from Ukraines security service (SBU) established a new record after hitting a Russian soldier at 3.8 kilometers, local media reported on Nov. 18. The previous world record was 3,540 meters. SBU snipers are rewriting the rules of global sniping, showcasing unparalleled abilities to operate effectively at remarkable distances. The SBU special agent took the shot with a homegrown Ukrainian rifle known as Volodar Obriyu, or Lord of the Horizon." Read also: SBU: Russian propagandist sentenced to 10 years in prison in absentia Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Lady Justice is supposed to be the one wearing a blindfold, not the public. In South Carolina, its the other way around. The state legislature seems to think all of us are wearing blindfolds while its version of Lady Justice holds up a wallet. The legislature about one third of them lawyers has set up the state judicial system to their own personal benefit. We see it in action in our county courthouses. But legislators and judges protecting the status quo say that there is nothing to see here and we should blindly move on along. David Lauderdale Thats what Im getting out of recent hearings before a state ad hoc committee to examine the judicial selection and retention process in South Carolina. Even complaints lodged by some who know the system best, including solicitors, sheriffs and the state attorney general, are called invalid. Mind you, ours is a judicial system controlled by one branch of government, the legislature. And it is a system that has given us the nations only all-male state Supreme Court and a bench statewide that looks like an old white mens club. Here are the two most obvious reasons the system must change: First, legislators who currently practice law in state courts also get to vote on who will become a circuit court judge in those same courtrooms. That is a blatant conflict of interest, pure and simple, no matter what they say. Practicing lawyers should never have a vote that makes a judge beholden to them for his or her career. Beyond that, practicing lawyers sit on a commission that weeds out which judicial candidates will even come to a vote in the legislature. That too is a giant conflict of interest. It drives work that is, dollars to lawyers in the legislature. South Carolina has set up rules that enable one to use a public trust for personal gain. And they dont want change. In the hearings, those who defend this set-up say its not a problem because everyone is behaving and are in fact pure and righteous as a mighty stream. The problem for them is that were not wearing blindfolds. We can see this clearly. The current arrangement tips the scales of justice in a way that is unfair to prosecutors, taints the entire system, and can enrich lawyer/legislators who have way too much sway in the judicial branch. One often repeated suggestion is that South Carolina elect circuit court judges by popular vote rather than by a vote in the legislature. The legislature will let that slide as soon as they figure out how they can commandeer most of the dark money that would pour in here for obnoxious ads and opposition research in judicial races. A second major problem has been raised in the hearings. Its the gift that keeps on giving, this one handed to lawyer/legislators by the state Supreme Court. Legislators practicing law get an automatic exemption from appearing in court for seven months of each year. As they all know, delayed justice is more likely to lead to no justice at all. And its another reason for clients to come rushing with wallets wide open to attorneys who have at least one big fat thumb on the scales of justice. It is on the face of it a conflict of interest. What needs to be protected here are not legislators, but the public trust in the judicial system. Its bad enough when only the wealthy can afford lawyers who can game the system ad nauseum, as we see the disgraced convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh doing. Its even worse when we condone so many unfair advantages in an arena where all Gods people are supposed to be treated equally. David Lauderdale may be reached at LauderdaleColumn@gmail.com. The Seattle Fire Department took to social media Friday and congratulated the members of Recruit Class 119. The class completed Recruit School and will now move to the Operations Division as Probationary Firefighters. The class has 22 new members. Congratulations to 22 members of Recruit Class 119 on your successful completion of Recruit School. You will now enter our Operations Division as Probationary Firefighters to use the skills youve learned when serving the Seattle community. Well done! #ForwardTogether pic.twitter.com/6VYUg5rVY0 Seattle Fire Dept. (@SeattleFire) November 17, 2023 WASHINTON, D.C. (WAVY) Sen. Tim Kaine recently announced two separate bills to support survivors and victims of sexual assault, domestic violence and/or gun violence. Kaine introduced the Support for Universities and Colleges to Champion the Educational Success of Survivors, or SUCCESS, Act. This legislation is meant to support victims of sexual assault, and other violence, and provide them the tools necessary to succeed in universities. Around 13% of all graduate and undergraduate students report experiencing sexual assault or violence, and tend to have a lower grade point average, according to End Rape on Campus; Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, or RAINN. The SUCCESS Act would provide funding for universities and colleges to increase mental health services, provide higher education re-entry assistance for survivors and increase training. It also allows for some financial and academic accommodations, according to the release. The SUCCESS Act is endorsed by American Psychological Association, RAINN and Survivor Fund Hub, the release states. The second bill introduced is the Lori Jackson-Nicolette Elias Domestic Violence Survivor Protection Act. This act protects survivors of domestic violence and gun violence, and was named after Lori Jackson of Connecticut and Nicolette Elias of Oregon, who were killed by their abusive partners using guns. This bill would prevent individuals under emergency restraining orders from purchasing or possessing a firearm instead of waiting for a final restraining order. It also extends the definition of intimate partners to include dating partners. The previous definition only included spouses, those who share a child and/or lived together. Every year, survivors of domestic violence tragically lose their lives to gun violence, and we must do more to ensure theyre protected, said Kaine. This bill would better protect domestic violence survivors by keeping guns out of the hands of abusers. Keep checking WAVY.com for the latest developments. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said in a Sunday interview he was pleased to see President Biden announce he would take measures to more forcefully combat settler violence in the West Bank, specifically noting his suggestion for a restriction on travel visas. I was pleased to hear the president say what he said, and I fully support the presidents plan to restrict visas from people who have a record of violence against innocent people, Van Hollen said in an interview on CBS Newss Face the Nation. I think thats an important first step, he added. Best Black Friday Deals Van Hollens remarks come as many Democrats have increased calls for the White House to focus more on the loss of life among innocent Palestinians as the war continues in the region. On Oct. 7, Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization that governs the Palestinian territory of Gaza, launched a surprise attack on Israel, brutally killing 1,200 Israelis and taking about 240 hostages. Israel responded with a barrage of airstrikes on Gaza and a ground operation in order to retrieve the hostages and destroy Hamas. Amid heightened tensions in the region, reports of violence in the West Bank have skyrocketed, prompting Biden to respond in an op-ed on Saturday in The Washington Post. I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable, Biden wrote in the piece. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank. Van Hollen welcomed Bidens call. Extreme settler violence against Palestinians has been an issue for a very long time. Weve seen a huge spike in extremist settler violence since the Gaza war started, as people have been focused on the war there, Van Hollen said. Im glad to see the president do what he did, he added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. OROSI, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) Fire crews in Tulare County battled a well-involved house fire early Saturday morning. The Tulare County Fire Department received word of the structure fire in the area of Road 128 and Avenue 404 in the Cutler-Orosi area. Fire personnel determined the blaze to be a 3-alarm fire, and resources from Dinuba City Fire, Orange Cove Fire, CalFire, and the Tulare County Sheriffs Office were requested. The Tulare County Fire Department says no injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com. Wikimedia Commons Yemeni Houthi rebels have seized control of a cargo ship reportedly owned by an Israeli shipping tycoon and have taken its 25 crew members hostage, according to the Associated Press. The ship was moving through the Red Sea before bring overrun by the rebel group, which is backed by Iran. All ships belonging to the Israeli enemy or that deal with it will become legitimate targets, the Houthis said, according to the Associated Press. The Israeli Defense Forces said the seizure was a very grave incident of global consequence, though Israel said the ship was actually British-owned and Japanese-operated. Records viewed by the AP, however, link the ship to Israeli businessman Abraham Rami Ungars company. Read it at Associated Press Read more at The Daily Beast. Ukraine will leverage funding from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to complete 28 existing projects and launch 186 new initiatives, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced on Nov. 17. We are talking about the reconstruction and construction of schools, hospitals, kindergartens, administrative buildings, health centers, sewage treatment plants and other facilities. The government also anticipates receiving a $1.1 billion loan from the World Bank to be used for social benefits, education, medicine, and other priority needs. Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Former President Donald Trump received Gov. Greg Abbott's endorsement during a rally at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer Former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Gov. Greg Abbott after receiving Abbott's endorsement for president. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer Gov. Greg Abbott addresses a crowd at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg, where he formally endorsed former President Donald Trump's campaign to regain the presidency. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer Gov. Greg Abbott addresses a crowd at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg, where he formally endorsed former President Donald Trump's bid to reclaim the White House. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer Trump supporters pose for a photo during a rally at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg, where Gov. Greg Abbott endorsed former President Donald Trump's bid to regain the presidency. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer A group of Texas state troopers at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg, where Gov. Greg Abbott endorsed former President Donald Trump's campaign to return to the White House. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer Former President Donald Trump takes the stage after receiving Gov. Greg Abbott's endorsement at a rally at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer Former President Donald Trump speaks after receiving Gov. Greg Abbott's endorsement at a rally at the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg. Marvin Pfeiffer/Staff Photographer EDINBURG At a flag-bedecked rally just 30 miles from the Mexican border, Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday endorsed former President Donald Trumps bid to reclaim the White House. Speaking not far from sections of the border wall that featured prominently in Trump's 2016 campaign, Abbott said re-electing the former president is the only way to stem the surge of migrant crossings under President Joe Biden. READ MORE: Trump touts Texas oil industry in Houston as he tries to woo donors Advertisement Article continues below this ad We need a president who is going to secure the border, Abbott said. Im here today to officially proclaim my endorsement for Donald J. Trump to be president of the United States of America again. The third-term Republican joined six other GOP governors around the nation who have backed Trump from the field of Republican primary challengers. Trump remains well ahead of his two top rivals, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and current Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, in national polls. But both Haley and DeSantis have made inroads in early-voting states, including Iowa and New Hampshire, which play an outsized role in presidential primaries. Its a tremendous honor to get that endorsement in particular, Trump told Abbott from a makeshift stage near the runway of the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg while several hundred supporters watched. Trump told the crowd that Abbott has acted vigorously to secure the border. He noted that Abbott has built segments of a state-owned border wall and has deployed state troopers and the Texas National Guard to the region. Trump said that if he regains the presidency, hell expand the federal government's border enforcement efforts so Abbott can focus on other matters. I am going to make your job much easier, Trump said, speaking to Abbott. He added, "Walls work." Advertisement Article continues below this ad Just before the endorsement, Trump and Abbott spoke to some of the soldiers and state troopers Abbott has dispatched to the border since Trump lost his bid for re-election in 2020. At times, the Abbott administration has had as many as 10,000 National Guard soldiers and Department of Public Safety troopers along the frontier with Mexico. The state also has installed coils of razor wire along the Rio Grande, along with a 1,000-foot line of massive buoys in the middle of the river near Eagle Pass, to deter border crossers. Both measures have sparked court battles with the Biden administration, which contends that Abbott is encroaching on the federal government's exclusive authority to secure the nation's borders and regulate immigration. Abbott also has spent state funds to bus thousands of migrants from the border region to Democrat-led cities including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. In endorsing Trump, Abbott was in part returning a favor. In June 2021, Trump endorsed Abbotts re-election at a time when former Congressman Allen West and former State Sen. Don Huffines were challenging Abbott in the GOP gubernatorial primary. The governor easily defeated West and Huffines and went on to outdistance Democrat Beto ORourke in the general election. Advertisement Article continues below this ad DeSantis has picked up endorsements in Texas from U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Austin, and former Congressman Lamar Smith, R-San Antonio. By staging the endorsement in Hidalgo County, Trump and Abbott were looking to shore up support in an area that both lost by wide margins in their last elections. Their popularity among voters there has improved since then, raising GOP hopes that the once-solidly-blue Rio Grande Valley is shifting in their direction. In 2016, Trump won just 28 percent of the vote in the Valley against Democrat Hillary Clinton. Four years later, he collected 41 percent against Biden. Sunday's announcement comes after the Biden administration reported that federal border agents had nearly 2.5 million encounters with migrants in 2023, a record high. But the Rio Grande Valley sector, historically the most heavily crossed part of the Texas border, has shown a drop in border encounters over the last two years. In 2021, there were more than 549,000 encounters in the Valley. By 2023, the number had fallen to 338,000. Advertisement Article continues below this ad While Trump touted his border wall on Sunday, vast sections remain unfinished. The U.S. had about 654 miles of walls and fences along the border when Trump was elected in 2016, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress. Trump's administration built or replaced about 458 miles of wall. About 80 percent of the work involved replacing existing barriers, according to the GAO. The U.S. has a 1,954-mile border with Mexico, with about 1,200 miles in Texas alone. Wall construction was hampered in Texas during Trump's time in office because most of the land in Texas is privately owned, requiring the federal government to either buy or seize it. In California, Arizona and New Mexico, most of the border region is public land. Although Biden initially halted all border wall construction when he took office, his administration recently announced plans to begin building more than 20 miles of wall just south of Laredo in Starr County. Biden has said he still believes its a waste of time but is forced to carry out construction on previously awarded contracts for which Congress has committed funds. I cant stop that," Biden told reporters last month. (BCN) Two Santa Clara County city councils aired grievances to HomeFirst officials following a range of concerns related to services and allegations of racial discrimination. The Sunnyvale City Council heard a presentation Tuesday from HomeFirst Chief Executive Officer Andrea Urton and Chief Program Officer Kelly Vazquez about the nonprofits city support services and broader metrics countywide. City officials had asked for more information on services after extending HomeFirsts contract for six months. Earlier in the day, the San Jose City Council also briefly discussed its contracts with HomeFirst for two overnight warming shelters, voicing concerns about the NAACP allegations of racial discrimination in the firings of five former employees. One dead after fatal altercation with friend The Sunnyvale councils decision on the contract will come in March, but councilmembers want more information first, specifically on the citys five reserved shelter beds at the Boccardo Reception Center in San Jose. At the Sunnyvale meeting, councilmembers received a fact sheet that said 15 individuals had used the reserved beds for an average of 19 days, over the course of a year. Councilmember Murali Srinivasan pointed out that this was about a 15% use for the beds, and used only by 10% of the 152 clients. When asked by Councilmember Linda Sell why the beds have a low use rate, Urton said HomeFirst initially told the city it didnt believe the beds would be successful because of the distance. People like to stay where they have family and friends, where they know people. They know how to get to the store. They know how to use the bus, Urton said. Councilmember Alysa Cisneros asked questions about the nonprofits data collection and internal Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Council. She told San Jose Spotlight it was important to learn not just what information is collected, but with what methods and how the information is being synthesized. The NAACP San Jose/Silicon Valley branch alleges HomeFirst has been racially discriminating against Black employees, citing five firings over the course of two years and inflexibility while scheduling three single mothers of color, two of whom are Black. Cisneros cited these allegations as cause for concern over HomeFirsts treatment of employees and clients of color. At the meeting, Urton suggested Cisneros visit a HomeFirst DEI council meeting to learn more about its procedures. Cisneros told San Jose Spotlight the councils work speaks to how the organization interacts with people of color who are employees or clients at HomeFirst. Whether everything is true or not, (what) people are saying or alleging, I think its 100% fair to ask HomeFirst to explain why this would not happen in their organization, and be able to give that insight with certainty in a way that marks us feel comfortable and confident, Cisneros told San Jose Spotlight. San Jose concerns Multiple San Jose councilmembers voiced similar concerns earlier in the day. At the San Jose council meeting, Urton said the nonprofit hired an employment attorney to review all five terminations and the attorney found that all five cases were appropriate. HomeFirst Chief Operating Officer Rene Ramirez also said Urton has reached out to NAACP San Jose/Silicon Valley President Rev. Jethroe Moore II, but has yet to receive a response. Ramirez told San Jose Spotlight HomeFirst is not currently considering rehiring the fired employees, but is working with three single mothers to accommodate their child care needs alongside their work schedules. UC pledges $7 million to address islamophobia, antisemitism on campuses He added the council has been overviewing the nonprofits diversity policies, including hiring practices, and is looking for ways to become more involved in termination processes. Were trying to figure out what can this DEI council review to ensure or at least bring some peace of mind to the council and to our workforce, that everything is being done appropriately and legally, said Ramirez, who co-chairs the council. Moore said hes discouraged by the San Jose councils discussion, suggesting that councilmembers should talk with the former employees to get a better understanding of the situation. He added he was initially told the nonprofit would consider bringing some of the former employees back, but acknowledged that he also needed to follow up on his conversations with HomeFirst officials before deciding what to do next. Theyre playing games (with) peoples lives, Moore told San Jose Spotlight. They dont care about their employees. My concern is, how can they care for those who are unhoused? Copyright 2023 Bay City News, Inc. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. Simon Cowell: 'I dont think anyone should be working five days a week' - CraSH/Shutterstock Simon Cowell has advised people to not work on Fridays because the five-day week is pointless. The former X Factor judge, 64, revealed that he does not work on the final day of the traditional working week, as he backed calls for a four-day week. He told The Sun: Actually, the first thing is take off Fridays. Dont work on Fridays, because you dont have to. Eat dinner at five o clock. Dont take calls after 5.30. Dont read emails after 5.30. Watch a happy movie. And stay outside. He added: Im not kidding about the Fridays. I dont think anyone should be working five days a week. Its just pointless. More time with his son Ahead of filming his new show Americas Got Talent Fantasy League, he said he was trying to spend more time with his 10-year-old son Eric. He said parents have got to be absolutely focused because children know when youre faking it. The public and private sector in Britain have experimented with four-day weeks in recent years to varying degrees of success. Last week the Cabinet Office set out new guidance for senior civil servants to come into the office more than 60 per cent of the time to show strong visible leadership. New starters will also have to come into the office more than 60 per cent of the time under the new rules, while other staff have been told they must work there at least three days a week. Corporate and public employers have increasingly adopted the so-called TWaT model, of workers coming into the office only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays with the remaining two days at home. However, some have abandoned it including Krystal, an internet services firm in London, which found it made staff more stressed. 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. ST. GEORGE, Utah (ABC4) A Salt Lake City man is facing charges after police say he refused to exit a Salt Lake Express bus, chased a bus driver, and attempted to steal a bus. James Russell McDougall, 53, was arrested for the offenses of theft firearm or operable motor vehicle, a second-degree felony; unlawful acquire/possess/transfer financial card, a third-degree felony; threatening breach of peace on a bus, a class C misdemeanor; obstructing operation of bus, a class C misdemeanor; and intoxication, a class C misdemeanor, the St. George Police Department said. Just before 1 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 13, a SGPD officer was reportedly dispatched to the Bluff Street Salt Lake Express terminal after a bus driver said a seemingly intoxicated male was chasing him around the parking lot. According to court records, as the officer was responding, the male started to attempt to steal one of the Salt Lake Express busses from the parking lot. Loud booms rattle Washington County homes When the officer arrived, he said he saw a male who matched the bus drivers description looking agitated and standing near a bus with his hands in the air. He was detained in handcuffs, the affidavit states. The officer interviewed the bus driver and reportedly learned that the male, identified as McDougall, walked on the bus and sat near the front after the passengers were dropped off. The driver asked him to exit the bus and he refused. McDougall finally exited the bus but as the driver pulled away, chased him on foot, the affidavit states. The bus driver told police he had to stop the bus so that he would not run McDougall over. The driver then reported that McDougall ran onto another Salt Lake Express bus that was parked in the parking lot and boarded that bus. The driver told police he saw the break lights come on and knew that McDougall was trying to steal the bus, the affidavit states, however he was unable to get it started. McDougall then reportedly exited the bus, chased the driver again, and stood in front of the bus to prevent him from driving ahead. In an interview with police, McDougall admitted that he boarded the bus and did not get off when the driver asked him, but said he could not remember how he had actually gotten to St. George in the first place, the affidavit states. He also reportedly admitted that he boarded the other bus and tried to start it with the intention of taking it and driving it home to Salt Lake City but could not get it started. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now ABC4 Daily News The responding officer said McDougall had a gaunt and sallow look to his face, was disheveled, had bloodshot eyes, an agitated demeanor, fidgety body movements, and struggled to answer questions, seemingly unaware of how he had arrived at the bus terminal, the affidavit states. McDougall reportedly told police that it was the drugs, and said he had used methamphetamine and marijuana. McDougall was booked into the Purgatory Correctional Facility on the aforementioned charges. According to court documents, McDougall is a convicted felon with 16 arrests in Utah since 1994. He has reportedly been arrested and/or convicted of assault, battery domestic violence, theft, driving under the influence, possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine), possession of drug paraphernalia, criminal mischief, distribution of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana, domestic violence in the presence of a child, unauthorized control of a motor vehicle, interference with an arresting officer, fail to stop at the command of law enforcement, possession of a weapon by a restricted person, and disorderly conduct. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah. Californias clean energy future PG&E files application to keep Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant running another 20 years, (sanluisobispo.com, Nov. 10) As world leaders gather for the COP28 climate summit, its time for San Luis Obispo to step up and lead California toward a carbon-free energy future powered by next-generation nuclear technology. As home to Diablo Canyon, the last operating nuclear power plant in California, we have a depth of talent and experience in safely harnessing the awesome power of the atom. Nuclear energy has proven to be one of the safest forms of energy production with far fewer deaths per terawatt hour than many other energy sources. Rather than let Diablo Canyon close in 2025, we should work with PG&E to build next- generation reactors that are smaller, safer, more efficient and create less waste. With inspiring leadership, we can reinvigorate San Luis Obispo as a hub of nuclear innovation and usher in a new era of clean energy leadership for California. Trey Lauderdale San Luis Obispo Choose compassion New program to let SLO County agriculture students work with local animal sanctuary, (sanluisobispo.com, Aug. 15) Isnt it time to choose compassion over animal suffering? The sale of all new fur products is now prohibited in California. However, there are still many other brutal clothing industries. You no longer need to support cruelty when there are numerous comfortable stylish alternatives to fur, leather, down and wool. Please join compassionate members of our community as a voice for animals who are used for clothing at our Annual FUR FREE FRIDAY gathering in front of Mr. Michaels, at 746 Higuera Street. Peggy Koteen Animal Emancipation, director for SLO County Opinion Fall of the empire New Speaker Mike Johnson formally endorses Donald Trump, a step beyond predecessor Kevin McCarthy, (sanluisobispo.com, Nov. 15) The House of Representatives newest entrant in its spurious leadership tournament, Mike Johnson, has been very forthright about divulging his less-than-sophomoric (moronic?) thoughts about our rapidly fading democracy. First, he admits that he really believes that our government should look to the Christian Bible, not the Constitution, as its guiding document. We can all now forget the past centuries of struggle to create and maintain an enlightened, secular democracy. The Founding Fathers must have had their heads in the clouds. Then, he opines that the Roman Empire disintegrated because it tolerated, even sanctioned, homosexuality. The hard truth, Mr. Johnson, is that they allowed monstrosities like Nero and Caligula to rise to leadership. Now, America is cursed with its own examples of that grotesque lineage: Donald J. Trump. It was not too hard to see just where this particular incarnation was leading the nation during his all-too-long sojourn in the White House, and its easy to foresee exactly where giving him another crack at power will lead us. On the bright side, it will provide a market, in some new millennium, for the next Edward Gibbon to write his Decline and Fall of the American Empire. Gene Strohl San Luis Obispo Dont let Hamas survive SLO County residents react to Hamas attack, Israel airstrikes, (sanluisobispo.com, Nov. 7) Hamas is a terrorist organization opposed to peace. We cant allow Hamass cynical strategy of intentionally provoking destruction in Gaza on their own people to morph into an early ceasefire. That would only let Hamas return yet again to trigger more catastrophe. Hamas documents promote holy war as divinely ordained; state that killing Jews is required until Judgement Day; reject political solutions and compromise; and call for instilling these genocidal views in children. Israel has been doing everything possible to prevent future Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel while simultaneously striving to minimize civilian casualties. This is exceedingly difficult when Hamas hides its fighters, rockets and command centers in densely populated civilian areas including under hospitals. Peace could come today if Hamas would release the 240 hostages and surrender completely. Jeffrey Auerbach Arroyo Grande Contemptible response SLO County residents react to Hamas attack, Israel airstrikes, (sanluisobispo.com, Nov. 7) As a 93-year-old Holocaust survivor, I have always been proud to be a Jew. I have no desire for that pride to diminish. However, a unique opportunity has been lost forever. The inhuman barbarism that Hamas released on Israel on Oct, 7 provided an ideal chance to show the world that Jewish values of life had developed from six years of death and destruction resulting from WWII. But our revengeful and destructive responses prove to be equally contemptible. Israel is now helping Hamas achieve Hitlers ultimate goal: to breed worldwide hatred against all Jews. For me, the concept of God is a force, a belief and a trust in each of us for justice, fairness and goodness. I would like to assume that this aspect of God is shared by most faiths. The destructive Jewish/Palestinian conflict is a highly complex issue among neighboring faiths. Now we desperately need a time out to focus on hostages and the prevention of more deaths and destruction. It is high time to understand and respect the faith of all our neighbors. Paul Wolff San Luis Obispo Jason Bleak runs Battle Mountain General Hospital, a small facility in a remote Nevada gold mining town that he described as out here in the middle of nowhere. When several representatives from private health insurance companies called on him a few years ago to offer Medicare Advantage plan contracts so their enrollees could use his hospital, Bleak sent them away. Come back to the table with a better offer, the chief executive recalled telling them. The representatives havent returned. Battle Mountain is in north-central Nevada about a three-hour drive from Reno, and four hours from Salt Lake City. Bleak suspects insurance companies simply havent enrolled enough of the areas seniors to need his hospital in their network. Medicare Advantage insurers are private companies that contract with the federal government to provide Medicare benefits to seniors in place of traditional Medicare. The plans have become dubious payers for many large and small hospitals, which report the insurers are often slow to pay or dont pay. Small hospitals have payment concerns Private plans now cover more than half of all those eligible for Medicare. And while enrollment is highest in metropolitan areas, it has increased fourfold in rural areas since 2010. Meanwhile, more than 150 rural hospitals have closed since 2010, according to the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina. Largely rural states such as Texas, Tennessee, and Georgia have had the most closures. Medicare Advantage growth has had an outsize impact on the finances of small, rural hospitals that Medicare has designated as critical access. Under the designation, government-administered Medicare pays extra to those hospitals to compensate for low patient volumes. Medicare Advantage plans, on the other hand, offer negotiated rates that hospital operators say often dont match those of traditional Medicare. Its happening across the country, said Carrie Cochran-McClain, chief policy officer of the National Rural Health Association, whose members include small-town hospitals. Depending on the level of Medicare Advantage penetration in individual communities, some facilities are seeing a significant portion of their traditional Medicare patient or beneficiary move into Medicare Advantage, Cochran-McClain said. Kelly Adams is the CEO of Mesa View Regional Hospital, another rural hospital in Nevada. He said he applauds Battle Mountains Bleak for keeping Medicare Advantage plans out of his hospital as long as he has. Mesa View, which is a little more than an hours drive east of Las Vegas, has a high percentage of patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. Am I going to say Im not going to take care of 40% of our patients at the hospital or the clinic? Adams said, adding that it would be a tough deal to be forced to reject patients because they didnt have traditional Medicare. Mesa View has 21 Medicare Advantage contracts with multiple insurance companies. Adams said he has trouble getting the plans to pay for care the hospital has provided. They are either slow pay or no pay, he said. In all, the plans owe Mesa View more than $800,000 for care already provided. Mesa View lost about $1.3 million taking care of patients, according to its most recent annual cost report. NRHAs Cochran-McClain said the growth in the plans also narrows options for patients because the contracting that is happening under Medicare Advantage frequently has an influence on steering patients to specific types of providers. If a hospital or provider does not contract with a Medicare Advantage plan, then a patient may have to pay for out-of-network care. That generally wouldnt happen with traditional Medicare, which is widely accepted. At Mesa View, patients must drive to Utah to find nursing homes and rehabilitation facilities covered by their Medicare Advantage plans. Our local nursing homes are not taking Medicare Advantage patients because they dont get paid. But if youre straight Medicare, theyd be happy to take that patient, Adams said. David Allen, a spokesperson for AHIP, an industry trade group formerly known as Americas Health Insurance Plans, declined to respond to Bleaks and Adams specific concerns. Instead, he said enrollees are signing on because the plans are more efficient, more cost-effective, and deliver better value than original Medicare. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services press secretary Sara Lonardo said CMS has acted to ensure that private insurance companies are held accountable for providing quality coverage and care. The reach of private Medicare Advantage plans varies widely in rural areas, said Keith Mueller, director of the Rural Policy Research Institute at the University of Iowa College of Public Health. If recent trends continue, enrollment could tip to 50% of all rural Medicare beneficiaries in about three years with some regions like the Upper Midwest already higher than 50% and others lower, such as Nevada and the Mountain States, but trending upward. In June, a bipartisan group of Congress members, led by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), sent a letter urging federal agencies to do more to force Medicare Advantage insurers to pay health systems what they owe for patient care. In an August response, CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure wrote that a final rule issued in April made impactful changes to speed up care and address concerns about prior authorization when a hospital and patient must get advance permission for care to ensure it will be covered by an insurer. Brooks-LaSure noted another proposed rule that, once finalized, could mandate that insurers provide specific reasons for denying care within seven days. Hospital operators Adams and Bleak also want more federal action, and fast. Bleak at Battle Mountain said he knows Medicare Advantage plans will eventually move into his area and he will have to contract with them. The question is, Bleak said, how can we match the reimbursement so that we can sustain and keep our hospitals in these rural areas viable and strong? KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Invasive Carp Field Lead Kayla Stampfle inspects the components of a telemetry receiver that tracks tagged invasive carp in the Mississippi River near La Crosse, Wis. on Monday, Nov. 6, 2023. The solar-powered receiver can transmit real-time notifications of the movements of tagged invasive carp. (AP Photo/Todd Richmond) LA CROSSE, Wis. (AP) Wildlife officials across the Great Lakes are looking for spies to take on an almost impossible mission: stop the spread of invasive carp. Over the last five years, agencies such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Minnesota Department of Natural Resources have employed a new seek-and-destroy strategy that uses turncoat carp to lead them to the fish's hotspot hideouts. Agency workers turn carp into double agents by capturing them, implanting transmitters and tossing them back. Floating receivers send real-time notifications when a tagged carp swims past. Carp often clump in schools in the spring and fall. Armed with the traitor carp's location, agency workers and commercial anglers can head to that spot, drop their nets and remove multiple fish from the ecosystem. Kayla Stampfle, invasive carp field lead for the Minnesota DNR, said the goal is to monitor when carp start moving in the spring and use the tagged fish to ambush their brethren. We use these fish as a traitor fish and set the nets around this fish, she said. Four different species are considered invasive carp: bighead, black, grass and silver. They were imported to the U.S. in the 1960s and 1970s to help rid southern aquaculture farms of algae, weeds and parasites. But they escaped through flooding and accidental releases, found their way into the Mississippi River and have used it as a super highway to spread north into rivers and streams in the nation's midsection. The carp are voracious eaters adult bigheads and silvers can consume up to 40% of their bodyweight in a day and easily out-compete native species, wreaking havoc on aquatic ecosystems. There is no hard estimates of invasive carp populations in the U.S. but they are believed to number in the millions. State and federal agencies have spent a combined $607 million to stop the fish, according to figures The Associated Press compiled in 2020. Spending is expected to hit $1.5 billion over the next decade. But wildlife and fisheries experts say it would be nearly impossible to eradicate invasive carp in the U.S. Just keeping them out of the Great Lakes and protecting the region's $7 billion fishing industry would be a success. Fisheries experts have employed a host of defenses, including electric barriers, walls of bubbles and herding the carp into nets using underwater speakers. But the fish still have made their way up the Mississippi as far as northern Wisconsin and grass carp have been found in Lake Erie, Lake Michigan and Lake Ontario, leaving fisheries managers racing to blunt the incursion. Agencies such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and state wildlife managers have built a network of receivers extending from the St. Croix River in far northern Wisconsin to the Gulf of Mexico to record tagged invasive carp's movement, with periodic data collection. The first receivers were deployed in the Illinois River in an effort to stem migration into Lake Michigan in the early 2000s. Beginning around 2018, managers started placing new, solar-powered receivers around the Great Lakes region that could track tagged carp and send instant notifications to observers. The real-time notifications reveal where carp may be massing before a migration and illuminate movement patterns, allowing the agencies to plan round-up expeditions to remove carp from the environment and tag more traitor fish. The receivers are essentially a raft supporting three solar panels and a locked box with a modem and a computer that records contacts with tagged carp. The receivers can pick up signals from tagged fish over a mile away, Fritts said. He estimated each receiver costs about $10,000. The federal Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 authorized a multi-agency offensive against invasive carp in the upper Mississippi River and Ohio River basins, allowing the USFWS to spend on the devices through its existing budget. Agencies have deployed the devices in Lake Erie, a stretch of the Mississippi between the Illinois and Missouri borders, the Illinois River and Chicago-area riverways, Fritts said. The USFWS has set up four real-time receivers in the Mississippi backwaters extending from Davenport, Iowa, to the Missouri border. The U.S. Geologic Survey has set up more than a dozen devices, including receivers in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, the Des Plaines and Illinois rivers in Illinois; and the Sandusky River in Ohio. The Minnesota DNR began deploying real-time receivers in the Mississippi backwaters forming the Minnesota-Wisconsin border around La Crosse three years ago. The agency had four receivers out this year, funded largely through federal grants. Plans call for seven next year. Wildlife agencies are still consolidating data on how many invasive carp that real-time tracking has helped them remove, U.S. Fish and Wildlife fisheries spokesperson Janet Lebson said. But they say the traitor fish tactic is worthwhile, pointing to results in the Mississippi from the Illinois-Iowa Quad Cities to the Iowa-Missouri border. Real-time tracking there has helped wildlife managers and anglers as much as double the poundage of invasive carp pulled from that area of river annually, said Mark Fritts, a fish biologist and telemetry expert in the USFWSs La Crosse office. The strategy has drawn muted criticism from the fisheries industry because managers return tagged invasive carp to the wild where they can breed, said Marc Smith, policy director at the National Wildlife Federation's Great Lakes Regional Center. But wildlife agencies need every weapon they can get against the carp, he said. In theory, it works," Smith said. We think the rewards outweigh the risk. We have to throw everything we can at them. I wouldn't want to take anything off the table. Stampfle and fish technician James Stone spent three hours in the Mississippi and Black rivers backwaters around La Crosse on a recent November day removing the receivers for the winter. She said the work is worth it. When are these fish moving? If we can figure that out, it gives us a fighting chance," Stampfle said as she guided her flat-bottom boat back to the landing. Can we keep up with them? I don't think anyone can answer that accurately. It's still unknown territory. It's an uphill battle on a very slick slope. You just pray you have a foothold. Just two years have passed since Europes centrist Mutti, Angela Merkel, left the stage she had dominated since 2005. Now another formidable woman aims to smash the Merkel mould forever. Like the former German chancellor, Sahra Wagenknecht was a loyal communist until the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 and the East German state promptly collapsed. Otherwise, she and Mrs Merkel are polar opposites. After decades as the poster girl of the hard Left, she is setting up a new party, modestly named the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW). Only in Germany, where normal politicians aspire to be dull in order to avoid Hitlerian comparisons, would an anti-establishment party based on the charisma of its leader stand a chance. The BSW will appeal to voters who have abandoned mainstream politics in favour of the far-Right populist Alternative for Germany (AFD). Her argument is simple: Germans dont vote for the AFD because theyre Right-wing. They vote for [it] because theyre angry. Like many former communists, Ms Wagenknecht, 54, is a social conservative and an anti-globalist. She is against mass immigration and multiculturalism; she refused to be vaccinated during the pandemic; she is hostile to costly green policies; and she is fiercely anti-woke. Perhaps the most problematic aspects of Ms Wagenknechts brand of Left conservatism are her implacable opposition to Nato and her passionate support for Putins Russia. Since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, she has demanded an end to sanctions and a peace that would legitimise Russian occupation. In common with both Kremlin propagandists and the hard Right in Germany, Ms Wagenknecht tells working-class families that they are being held to ransom by Anglo-American monopoly capitalists who are driving up energy prices and prolonging the war for their own gain. Indeed, a part of the Wagenknecht base consists of conspiracy theorists who are convinced that Germany is only a sham democracy. She also exploits Ostalgie (nostalgia for East Germany) by claiming that the Federal Republic is no more democratic than the old communist regime. The grain of truth in her claims is the fact that the German political system does make it hard for voters to kick out unpopular governments. The present traffic-light coalition of centre-Left Social Democrats (SPD), liberal Free Democrats (FDP) and Greens has slumped in the polls. Yet Merkel stayed in office for 16 years by changing coalition partners. Admittedly, the present Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is far more despised than Mrs Merkel ever was. The German economy has teetered on the brink of recession since the war began, winter is coming and the outlook is bleak. The crisis in Israel and Gaza has inflamed the German migration debate already reignited by more than a million Ukrainian refugees. The Wagenknecht solution is crude but effective: There shouldnt be any neighbourhoods where natives are in the minority. Ever since the Merkel government opened the door to millions of refugees from the Middle East eight years ago, simmering resentment against the failure to police the borders has periodically boiled over into protests. Last month, an anti-Israel rally in the diverse Neukolln district of Berlin left 65 police officers injured, while the resurgence of anti-Semitism has shaken a nation more accustomed to parading its anti-Nazi credentials than to questioning their validity. Thanks to her Iranian father, Ms Wagenknecht has no hang-ups about demanding much tougher policies, both on the integration of German Muslims (now numbering some six million) and on border security. The Wagenknecht phenomenon is already putting pressure on Berlin. Germany is one of several EU members now exploring Rwanda-style policies to deal with asylum-seekers off-shore. Any resemblance between Sahra Wagenknecht and Suella Braverman is, however, superficial; many of Ms Wagenknechts views are closer to Jeremy Corbyns. Not only is she for a ceasefire in Gaza and against sending arms to Israel or Ukraine, but she advocates the dismantling of Nato. In Moscow, where she is seen as one of Germanys Putinversteher (Putin understanders), they call her a National Bolshevik. For British Remainers who still idealise Europe, the forces represented by Ms Wagenknecht are the stuff of nightmares. The EU is increasingly dominated by politicians who could, like her, be described as national conservatives (such as Italys Giorgia Meloni) or national socialists (Slovakias Robert Fico). A Left-wing Eurosceptic, she has been consistently critical of the euro, open borders and many other aspects of the EU. Even after Brexit, she defended the British decision to hold a referendum in a country that has a constitutional ban on plebiscites. But will the Wagenknecht experiment work? She has taken nine other MPs from the old Left to launch her new platform in January. Polls suggest that she might gain anything from 12 to 20 per cent of the German vote, and up to 30 per cent in the East enough to form a sizeable parliamentary bloc. Wagenknecht is an unabashed demagogue in a land of machine politicians. However attractive the dark horse from Jena may seem to politically homeless conservatives, they will sooner or later wake up to an unpalatable truth. She is hardly the first German leader to combine nationalism, socialism and populism. And at heart, Wagenknecht remains an unreconstructed Stalinist. 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. Following a two-month investigation, an 18-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a shooting that killed two teenagers and wounded three others during a house party in far East El Paso. Angel Avila, 18, of Socorro, was arrested by the U.S. Marshal's Lone Star Fugitive Task Force on a charge of capital murder of multiple persons and booked into the El Paso County Jail on Friday, Nov. 17, police officials said. Avila remained jailed Sunday under a bond of $2 million. He also had a warrant on an assault charge from February. Angel Avila faces a charge of capital murder of multiple persons in connection with a shooting that killed two teenagers and wounded three others at a house party on Tierra Inca Drive in far East El Paso on Sept. 17, 2023. El Paso County Jail records show Avila was previously arrested on charges of unlawful carrying of a weapon on June 2 and having a prohibited weapon on Dec. 29. Those cases are pending in court. 2 killed, 3 wounded in Tierra Inca house party shooting An investigation by homicide detectives with the Crimes Against Persons Unit had been ongoing since the deadly shooting on Sept. 17 at a Vrbo short-term rental home in the 12300 block of Tierra Inca Drive in the El Dorado area. The shooting took place about 1 a.m. during what police described as an out of control Montwood High School homecoming afterparty. Several people were shot. Killed in the shooting were: Julia Worthington, a 14-year-old student at Pebble Hills High School, and Eliel Omar Bultron Hernandez, 19, a graduate of Options High School. Both schools are in the Socorro Independent School District. An 18-year-old Socorro man, a 16-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man, both from El Paso, were wounded. Two teens were killed and three others were wounded in a shooting on Sept. 17 at a house party at this short-term rental house in the 12300 block of Tierra Inca Drive in the El Dorado area of far East El Paso. More: 3 teens shot at El Paso Halloween house party, including teen trying to stop fight A warrant was issued for Avila on Thursday, Nov. 16, before he was arrested by the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force. Under Texas law, capital murder is punishable by the death penalty and life in prison without parole. The Tierra Inca shooting is among a rash of gun violence linked to teen house parties in recent years. Anyone with information on any shooting may call the police nonemergency line at 915-832-4400 or may anonymously call Crime Stoppers of El Paso at 915-566-8477 (TIPS) or leave a tip online at cselpaso.org. This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Socorro teen arrested in Tierra Inca house party capital murder case Details surrounding the death of a child at Fort Eisenhower in Augusta were released Friday afternoon. April Evalyn Short, 30, was identified as the Army wife and mother arrested in connection with her son's death last week. She has been charged with murder during an act of child abuse, according to U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia Jill Steinberg via email. Short allegedly used a knife to cut the neck of her 11-month-old son who later was pronounced dead at Eisenhower Army Medical Center. Fort Stewart deaths: More released of family's on-base deaths at Fort Eisenhower including IDs of parents Thanksgiving dinner: Here are some cooking tips from Augusta-area chefs, plus their restaurants' Thanksgiving plans She has appeared for an initial hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brian Epps and, as of Friday, has not entered a plea. She is in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service and is awaiting further proceedings. Short is the wife of Staff Sgt. James Short, who joined the U.S. Army in 2006 as a signal support system specialist. The former San Diego resident transferred to Fort Eisenhower in 2021 as a drill sergeant. The case is being investigated by the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division with assistance from the FBI, and prosecuted for the U.S. by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Henry Syms Jr. and Patricia Rhodes. This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Army wife charged with murdering son on Fort Eisenhower in Augusta FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. In the fluorescent light of a Fort Lauderdale hotel meeting room, two grieving families of dead and kidnapped Israelis sat across mayors from South Florida and across the United States, pictures of their loved ones clutched in their hands. They had just arrived from Israel, where Natalia Casarottis 21-year-old son, Keshet, was killed at the Nova music festival, and where Diego Engelberts sister, husband and their young children had disappeared, he believes, kidnapped into Gaza. I cant sleep, Engelbert told the mayors, two missing posters held in his hands. Every day, I cry. I need your help. More than 30 mayors from across the country converged in Fort Lauderdale to discuss antisemitism at a summit this week, an event organized months before the war between Israel and Hamas and soaring hate crimes against Jewish people across the world. The event, known as the Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism, took place at the W Hotel in Fort Lauderdale from Wednesday through Friday. The first summit was held virtually in 2021, then, last year, in Athens, after which Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis decided he wanted to host the next one. The irony is this was all planned months and months and months in advance of the barbaric acts that happened on Oct. 7, Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Steve Glassman told the Sun Sentinel on Wednesday night. But I think now, in light of current events, it makes it really vital and more timely than ever. Though the Hamas attack on that date served as a wake-up call, Trantalis told the Sun Sentinel that he wanted the summit to center around antisemitism as a whole, not Middle East politics. I would prefer it to not be the focus, because antisemitism existed in America long before October 7, he said Wednesday. And long before 1973. And then before 1967. I mean, the events in the Middle East certainly trigger antisemitic acts around the world. But we dont need events like that for antisemitism to find a place here in America. Yet the events in the Middle East and their aftermath loomed in the minds of those at the summit as they sought to understand the meaning of antisemitism in their own cities. Sacha Roytman, the CEO of the Combat Antisemitism Movement, which organized the summit, said one of the main things he wanted local communities to work on is defining antisemitism, which he sees as the first step in combating it. When we have folks in the street, calling on the destruction of Israel, its antisemitism, he said. and Jews have been affected, and the fact that we dont have a way to define what it is and what its not, were missing something. At panel discussions and dinners, the mayors met with the families of hostages, survivors of the music festival attack, Jewish advocates and other local leaders. In cities as close as Aventura and as far as Beverly Hills, their stories were often the same: swastikas graffitied outside synagogues, leaflets left outside homes, and, increasingly, hate crimes targeting Jewish people, torn down posters of hostages and protests against Israel that many believed either constitute antisemitism or devolved into it. The IHRA definition The definition of antisemitism is contentious. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition, what Roytman wants more cities to adopt, has received backlash from progressive groups and Palestinians because it includes Israel in its examples of antisemitism, such as blaming Jews for the actions of Israel, comparing Israeli policy to that of the Nazis or claiming that Israels existence is racist. Stephanie Hausner, COO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, has sought to have the definition adopted by cities across the U.S. But at a panel Thursday called Define It To Fight It: Adoption & Implementation of the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism, she warned that, in some areas, trying to use the definition could do more harm than good. If youre in Seattle, for example, introducing IHRA ordinance may actually cause more antisemitism, she cautioned. An exact definition of antisemitism matters. Among law enforcement, for example, it could become the basis for deciding whether to charge someone with a hate crime. In South Florida, new laws have targeted antisemitic speech by adding increased penalties for existing crimes, like littering, if they also target minority groups. But those laws came into effect when local law enforcement were looking for ways to prosecute right-wing groups such as the Goyim Defense League, behind antisemitic incidents like littering pamphlets or projecting swastikas onto a buildings. The war between Israel and Hamas opened up a whole other lane of antisemitism, Glassman said. What were seeing now on college campuses, and what were seeing in the streets, not just in the United States but all over the world, its a very, very interesting strain of what I would call antisemitism that anti-Israel sentiment sort of spills into an anti-Jewish sentiment, and the two get conflated. Support for Israel among Americans has waned as the war rages on, polls show, while antisemitism has risen. The bombing campaign and ground invasion in Gaza has displaced over 1 million people and taken over 10,000 lives, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. The Biden administration has also come under fire from the left for continuing to support Israel. At the same time it has condemned Hamas, the U.S. has also urged Israels leaders to respect civilian lives. Local attendees included Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy, Weston Mayor Peggy Brown, Broward County Commissioner Michael Udine, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez and North Miami Vice Mayor Mary Estime-Irvin, as well as leadership from the Jewish Federations of Broward and Palm Beach County. Leaders discussed incidents where Jewish students were harassed by protesters, shared videos of a group at Cornell chanting intifada, and talked about their own childrens experiences at universities. In South Florida, a March for Palestine at Florida Atlantic University days after the Hamas attacks became violent after protesters clashed with counterprotesters. The Combat Antisemitism Movement has long criticized antisemitism on the left, according to The Forward, a progressive Jewish publication. Earlier this year, multiple Jewish groups, some of whom also appeared at the summit this week, temporarily left the organization because of a video it put out blaming the rise of antisemitism on woke ideology. The organization removed the video, though a senior adviser for the organization, David Bernstein, told The Forward that some mainstream Jewish organizations were unwilling to address the issue of ideological antisemitism on the left. Shift in ideology The recent attacks on Israel have also led some American Jews to shift away from the left while conservatives such as Gov. Ron DeSantis have rallied behind Israel. Last month, DeSantis sought to ban Students for Justice in Palestine groups from college campuses, an effort cited by some attendees at the summit. During a question-and-answer session Thursday, a Tarpon Springs commissioner confronted Steve Benjamin, a senior advisor to President Joe Biden and a former mayor of Columbia, S.C., questioning the presidents support for Israel after state department employees signed an internal memo criticizing Israels military campaign in Gaza. This to me this is more harmful than having a bunch of kids with Palestinian flags, the commissioner said, describing Biden as having a stand that originally was powerful and pro-Israel. Benjamin responded that he fundamentally disagreed with the critique. The president has been forthright and direct and clear about support for our democratic ally in the Middle East, he answered. That we will do everything we can to bring hostages home. Israel has an obligation but also a duty to defend itself against Hamas. Later, in response to questions over whether Biden is concerned about losing support among Jewish people, he told the Sun Sentinel that he didnt do politics but added that Bidens commitment to Israel and our ally in the Middle East has been unshakeable. Help us bring our family back For the families of the hostages, the summit wasnt just about antisemitism, but an opportunity to remind Americas leaders that their lives remain upended and their families still need help. Sigal-Koren worries for her mothers partner, who is in his 70s, has diabetes and needs a breathing machine to sleep at night. The Red Cross has not been able to reach him, she said. In a speech at Wednesdays dinner, and later in a conversation with reporters, she asked everyone in the room to find three names in their phones and text them. Ask them for help, to help us bring our family back, she said. Do everything they can to bring our family back. Many of those who did survive, like Sigal-Korens father, are so afraid that they have still not gone home, now over a month after the attacks. He thinks that he cant go back to his house, she said of her father. His house wasnt burned, his house wasnt destroyed in any way. The terrorists didnt go inside his house. But he cant go back. Because he feels afraid that in any minute it can happen again. Now that Engelberts sister and her family have disappeared, he is the sole guardian of their dog. The only family I have, he said, showing a picture on his cellphone. Work cut out for us After the summit concluded, Fort Lauderdale officials said it served as a reminder of how much work must be done, in particular when it comes to talking to and educating people about history. I think we have our work cut out for us, Glassman told the Sun Sentinel on Friday. Meeting with the families of the hostages brought great immediacy to this moment and weve learned how significantly antisemitism has impacted the lives of so many, Trantalis said. We have to look at ourselves and say to ourselves, what kind of people have we become and why is this continuing to get worse? he added. And thats the come-to-Jesus moment we have to have in America, how are we going to do better as people? As Israeli forces press on with their operations in northern Gaza, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have released photos of their soldiers actively engaged in the region. The absence of BBC journalists, coupled with a communication outage, has made verifying information from the area difficult, as per BBC News. Humanitarian Concerns for Israeli Forces Military expert Chris Morris has suggested that Israel could adopt Egypt's previous strategy of using sewage to hinder tunnel operations. However, this approach has potential repercussions for the evolving humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave. In 2013, the Egyptian military employed a pungent tactic of flooding smuggling tunnels between Sinai and Gaza with sewage-soaked soil. This measure sought to stem the flow of weapons and militants into Sinai from Gaza. Although the method proved effective from a military standpoint, Morris emphasizes that it may adversely affect the humanitarian situation and optics. The tunnels have been vital for essential imports to Gaza and a significant revenue source through smuggling taxes for Hamas. Morris also outlines other potential strategies available to Israel to confront Hamas' underground tunnel network, including deploying special forces, demolishing tunnel entrances, using foam bombs to block access, and employing sophisticated aerially targeted weaponry. As Israeli forces intensify efforts to storm Hamas' labyrinthine tunnel network and secure the release of hostages, prospects for a negotiated deal with the terror group appear to wane. Gershon Baskin, who oversaw the 2011 hostage exchange with Hamas, cautions that IDF troops may soon resort to launching operations within the potential holding locations of hostages. The urgency to secure the release of 239 Israelis and foreigners held captive in the underground maze is paramount as the ground offensive in Gaza persists. Baskin further warns of the possibility that Hamas terrorists may retaliate by harming hostages in response to Israeli incursions into the tunnels. Dubbed the "Gaza Metro," Hamas' underground tunnel network stretches across approximately 311 miles, designed with deadly traps to deter intruders. Baskin, a seasoned negotiator, stresses the uncertainty surrounding the outcome of potential military operations, with the possibility of freeing hostages or losing them in the crossfire, according to The Sun. Read Also: Florida Flooding Leaves Hundreds of Thousands Without Power Hamas Using Hospitals as Command Centers It is imperative to acknowledge that many prisoners released in previous exchanges, including Hamas ringleader Yahya Sinwar, later engaged in attacks that claimed the lives of at least 1,200 Israelis. Following their border incursion, Hamas gunmen perpetrated massacres and took numerous civilians hostage, leaving the bomb-ravaged Gaza Strip profoundly scarred. Recent developments have raised concerns about Hamas potentially exploiting hospitals in Gaza as cover for their command centers. Israeli forces claimed to have uncovered one such lair and weapons headquarters in the basement of a hospital. At the same time, another central medical facility, Al Shifa, has been surrounded by IDF troops and tanks. Fuel shortages have rendered these hospitals ill-equipped to provide adequate care, forcing doctors to resort to desperate measures such as wrapping newborn premature babies in tinfoil to maintain their body temperature. The dire shortage of medical staff, supplies, and vital resources exacerbates the already precarious conditions patients and medical professionals face. Israel's recent distribution of leaflets in southern Gaza, urging civilians to evacuate their homes and seek refuge in designated shelters, suggests a possible expansion of the offensive. The aim is to prevent further overcrowding of UN-run shelters and family residences by evacuees who already heeded previous warnings. Daily air raids have become common, with operations intensifying in the southern region. The toll on Palestinian lives is devastating, with an estimated 11,200 fatalities since the initiation of Hamas attacks near Israel's border, with approximately two-thirds of the casualties reported as women and children. Over 1.5 million people have been internally displaced in Gaza, where access to food, water, and electricity remains scarce. Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, has expressed concerns about deliberate attempts to hinder their efforts to support over 800,000 displaced Palestinians. The agency has been desperately seeking access to fuel to sustain its operations. The increasingly dire situation prompted UN human rights chief Volker Turk to call for an international investigation into allegations of violations of international humanitarian law during the conflict, Mirror reported. Related Article: US Capitol Police vs. Pro-Palestine Protesters: DNC Protest Leads to Violent Clash @ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. SpaceX launched 22 more of its Starlink internet satellites from California early on Monday morning (Nov. 20). A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base Monday at 5:30 a.m. EST (1030 GMT; 2:30 a.m. local California time). Related: Starlink satellite train: How to see and track it in the night sky A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches 22 Starlink satellites to orbit from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base on Nov. 20, 2023. The Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth for a vertical landing about 8.5 minutes after launch on the drone ship Of Course I Still Love You, which was stationed in the Pacific Ocean. It was the 15th launch and landing for this rocket's first stage, according to a SpaceX mission description. That flight resume included nine other Starlink launches as well as the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, a NASA mission that successfully slammed a spacecraft into an asteroid in September 2022. The 22 Starlink satellites, meanwhile, were deployed from the Falcon 9's upper stage into low Earth orbit about 62.5 minutes after liftoff. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket's first stage approaches a landing on the company's Of Course I Still Love You droneship after launching 22 Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Nov. 20, 2023. RELATED STORIES: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches for record-breaking 16th time, lands on ship at sea 8 ways that SpaceX has transformed spaceflight SpaceX Starlink satellites had to make 25,000 collision-avoidance maneuvers in just 6 months and it will only get worse Monday morning's launch wrapped up a very busy weekend for SpaceX. The company also lofted 23 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Friday night (Nov. 17). And on Saturday, SpaceX launched the second-ever test flight of Starship, the giant next-generation system it's developing to help humanity set up shop on the moon and Mars. Starship flew well at first, reaching a maximum altitude of about 91 miles (148 kilometers), but the mission ended about eight minutes after liftoff with a "rapid unscheduled disassembly" SpaceX lingo for an explosion. Monday morning's launch was originally targeted for Sunday, but the company scrubbed the attempt after propellant loading had begun. Starship Die Cast Rocket Model Now $69.99 on Amazon. If you can't see SpaceX's Starship in person, you can score a model of your own. Standing at 13.77 inches (35 cm), this is a 1:375 ratio of SpaceX's Starship as a desktop model. The materials here are alloy steel and it weighs just 225g. Note: Stock is low so you'll have to act quickly to get this. View Deal SpaceX's Starship rocket launches from Starbase during its second test flight in Boca Chica, Texas, on November 18, 2023. . SpaceX launched its Starship megarocket, the most powerful rocket on Earth, on its second test flight this weekend, and while the vehicle may have met an explosive end, its flight absolutely amazing to behold. Stunning photos and video by SpaceX, Space.com, news wires and the public show the sheer spectacle of the Starship second test launch, which SpaceX launched early Saturday (Nov. 18) from its Starbase facility near Boca Chica Beach in South Texas. In a big milestone for SpaceX, the rocket's two stages separated successfully. The Super Heavy booster exploded shortly thereafter, while the Starship upper stage detonated before completing its launch burn. Still, SpaceX hailed the second test flight, which reached space and flew higher, farther and longer than a debut launch in April, as a success and will now study the flight to make any enhancements needed for the next launch. Related: SpaceX Starship launches on 2nd test flight, but explodes Image 1 of 3 a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise Image 2 of 3 a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise Image 3 of 3 a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise "Seeing Starship launch in person was incredible," Space.com's Josh Dinner said of the sight. Dinner captured photos of the Starship launch from South Padre Island's Cameron Country Amphitheatre, where throngs of spectators gathered well before sunrise to pick a great spot to watch the launch. "Even from 5 miles away, you could see the sheer power from the engines as it cleared the launch tower," Dinner said. "It was massively impressive." Related: NASA chief congratulates SpaceX on Starship's explosive 2nd launch test Image 1 of 3 SpaceX's Starship rocket launches from Starbase during its second test flight in Boca Chica, Texas, on November 18, 2023. Image 2 of 3 SpaceX's Starship rocket launches from Starbase during its second test flight in Boca Chica, Texas, on November 18, 2023. Image 3 of 3 SpaceX's Starship rocket launches from Starbase during its second test flight in Boca Chica, Texas, on November 18, 2023. Photojournalist Timothy A. Clary with the news agencies AFP and Getty Images, also captured stunning photos of the Starship launch, including close views of the rocket's liftoff and ascent just before stage separation. Image 1 of 3 a large black and silver rocket launches into a clear morning sky Image 2 of 3 a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise Image 3 of 3 a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise Starship Die Cast Rocket Model Now $69.99 on Amazon. If you can't see SpaceX's Starship in person, you can score a model of your own. Standing at 13.77 inches (35 cm), this is a 1:375 ratio of SpaceX's Starship as a desktop model. The materials here are alloy steel and it weighs just 225g. Note: Stock is low so you'll have to act quickly to get this. View Deal Some of the most amazing early photos came from SpaceX itself, which captured the specific moment of stage separation, which tested a hot-staging technique something new for Starship on this flight in which the upper Starship upper stage fired its engines before pulling free of the Super Heavy first-stage booster. A giant rocket separating during stage separation, with fiery plumes in all directions. A giant rocket separating during stage separation, with fiery plumes in all directions. A giant rocket separating during stage separation, with fiery plumes in all directions. SpaceX and Dinner also captured some great closeups of the joined Starship and Super Heavy, which together stand nearly 400 feet (122 meters) tall, as they soared over the Gulf of Mexico. a large black and silver rocket launches into a clear morning sky a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise a massive rocket lifts off above a plume of fire at sunrise Shortly after stage separation, the Super Heavy booster exploded in what SpaceX called a "rapid unscheduled disassembly." The company will now work to understand what led to this failure after the hot staging and how to avoid it on the next test flight. SpaceX's giant Starship Super Heavy booster explodes after separating from its upper stage during the company's second flight test on Nov. 18, 2023. Across the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, spectators and photographers appeared thrilled to have witnessed the Starship launch test. But some of the most telling images came from after the launch, when photographers were able to visit the launch pad and report it in good condition. During SpaceX's first launch test on April 20, the Super Heavy booster carved out a huge crater beneath the pad, requiring extensive repairs. For the second flight, SpaceX installed a water deluge system and protective metal plate to safeguard the pad. "The pad at Starbase appears to be in good condition following this mornings Starship launch!," wrote photographer John Kraus on X. "The road to the beach is open." Here are some more pad views from photographers. Some spectators watching Starship's second test flight included people who have not only flown in space before, but actually launched on SpaceX rockets. Sian Proctor, who launched to orbit in September 2021 a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule on the private Inspiration4 mission financed by billionaire Jared Isaacman, sent congratulations to the entire SpaceX team for the launch. RELATED STORIES: SpaceX's 2nd Starship launch on Nov. 18: How it worked Starship and Super Heavy: SpaceX's Mars transportation system Elon Musk: SpaceX founder and revolutionary private space entrepreneur "Congratulations to all of the people at SpaceX on continuing to make history in the advancement of humanity to the Moon, Mars and beyond!!" Proctor wrote on X. SpaceX engineers now have the task ahead to understand why the Starship vehicle detonated itself using its flight termination system just before completing its launch burn. The company has said it will also study Super Heavy's explosion so future iterations of the vehicle can be returned to Earth for reuse, as it and Starship are designed to do. "Honestly, it's such an incredibly successful day even though we did have a rapid unscheduled disassembly of both the Super Heavy booster and the Ship," SpaceX quality engineering manager Kate Tice said during the live webcast. "That's great. We got so much data, and that will all help us to improve for our next flight." NASA has picked SpaceX's Starship to land astronauts on the moon on the Artemis 3 mission, which the agency hopes to launch by 2025 or 2026. Meanwhile, SpaceX has already sold trips around the moon on Starship to commercial customers, such as Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa, and hopes to use the vehicle for deep space flights to Mars and other solar system destinations. Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari has addressed the public every night for the past six weeks (GIL COHEN-MAGEN) For the past six weeks, khaki-clad Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari has appeared on Israeli television every evening: the commando-turned-communicator has become the face of Israel's war effort in Gaza. With a standing-at-attention posture and close-cropped hair, the military spokesman's recitals of invasion updates have been a rare certainty in a nation wracked by its worst-ever attacks on October 7. His 20 minute speeches, followed by brisk question-and-answer sessions with the media, are pored over for hints of evidence and inconsistencies in a conflict where information has sometimes overshadowed boots on the ground. Standing in the limelight is something of a contrast for a man who three years ago was leading the shadowy Shayetet 13 naval special forces, renowned for counter-terrorism and sabotage. But the 47-year-old now works on an equally delicate mission: reassuring a traumatised public and convincing an international audience becoming increasingly alarmed over the war's growing toll. "These are difficult days for everyone," Hagari said in his first national briefing on October 9. "One thing must be remembered: we will win." Analysts say he has become the Israeli figurehead of a conflict splitting opinion worldwide. - Outpolling the PM - When he started his new role in March, Hagari said his objective was to "reinforce the confidence of the public in the Israeli army and its international legitimacy". That innocuous mission statement has been dramatically complicated by the Hamas attacks six weeks ago, which saw some 1,200 people killed and 240 taken hostage, according to Israel. The events around the heavily militarised border dramatically dented a lauded reputation Israel's army and security establishment had built up over decades. Many accused the country's political leadership of complacency amid a paralysing constitutional crisis. In that context, Hagari "fills a void", according to Tel Aviv University sociology professor Jerome Bourdon. "When the state's capacity to communicate to its citizens is reduced to nothing, because the state's functioning very poorly, he's the voice of an institution Israelis have the impression is holding together." Hagari's PR offensive has earned him high public trust ratings domestically, according to a poll by Israel's Bar-Ilan University. Some 74 percent of people questioned said the army spokesman was the most reliable source of information on the war -- compared to less than four percent for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But Bourdon described a "lag" between how Hagari's messages were received on the Israeli and global stages. "Arguments which seem perfectly valid here aren't believed or seem a bit ridiculous abroad," he said. The Israeli army did not respond to a request for comment from Hagari for this article. - 'Eyes of the world' - Hagari's evening briefings often include an arsenal of maps, satellite images, audio clips and videos: presenting the case for a ground war in the Gaza Strip to secure Israel's future. Earlier this month he returned to his roots to don a flak jacket and took up a rifle to enter the Palestinian territory and film a first-person presentation in a hospital basement inside the combat zone. But one moment triggered controversy: he said a list posted on the wall was a rota for Hamas militants guarding the hostages, but when the camera zoomed in, it just showed a grid of dates, with no names. Hagari has said he wants to show "the eyes of the world" Hamas is making "cynical uses of Gaza's hospitals to hide its terrorist infrastructure" -- a key claim of the Israeli army. But many international media outlets say the evidence thus far fails to stand up to scrutiny, as the death toll from Israel's offensive in Gaza surges to over 12,300 people, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The spokesman occasionally mixes personal sentiment into his announcements. Two weeks ago, in an English-language address, he compared his son who had just celebrated his first birthday to a 10-month-old infant believed held hostage in Gaza. "It's unimaginable, it's a crime against humanity," he said, his voice heavy with emotion. But a former official in his office warned there was only so much a spokesman could do. "The IDF spokesperson only reflects the military," they told Haaretz. "He doesn't determine reality." smk/jts/slb/jsa A US/Qatari-brokered pause in the fighting in Gaza looks likely to bring some imminent relief to the plight of the Palestinians besieged by Israeli forces hunting down Hamas terrorists. While Benjamin Netanyahu said no deal had yet been reached, reports from Washington say a five-day hiatus is being negotiated to allow many of the 240 hostages to be released and humanitarian aid to be delivered. The cynical tactics of Hamas, whose fighters embed themselves in hospitals and among the civilian population, has led to a high fatality rate. This is draining international support for Israel that was strong, in the West at least, after the October 7 massacres. The siege of the Al-Shifa hospital, which the Israel Defense Forces believes is a Hamas base, is testing the limits of that backing. While most Western governments have defended Israels right to destroy Hamas, unease over the death toll is growing by the day and causing political ructions far beyond the Middle East. In Washington, Joe Biden is under growing pressure to change US policy. Here, Labours divisions over Sir Keir Starmers refusal to back a ceasefire call is a manifestation of a wider political dislocation triggered by the conflict. So, too, is the disgraceful picketing of the homes of Labour MPs, which Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, argues amount to intimidation, not lawful protest. The pause being discussed in Gaza will fall short of a ceasefire and yet the hiatus will be used to try to secure some sort of settlement that could bring the fighting to an end. Much will depend on how much of the Hamas command and control infrastructure has been destroyed sufficient to ensure it can never be reactivated. If there is any chance of its recovery, Israel will not stop until the group is eradicated. The reduced risk of the Gaza invasion triggering a wider regional conflict after Iran made clear it was staying out means the IDF can finish the job it started. But this must be done with as few civilian casualties as possible, while Arab nations and the Palestinian Authority on the West Bank need to agree plans for the future of the strip when the fighting is over. Past Palestinian objections to a two-state solution have wrecked a variety of potential agreements and played into the hands of Israeli hardliners also opposed to such an outcome. This time there needs to be a common purpose or the misery will never end. 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. "Experts" were confident that they knew what America should do about COVID-19. They were wrong about so much. John Stossel Officials pushed masks, including useless cloth ones. Dr. Anthony Fauci said, "Don't wear masks" then, "Do wear them." Some states closed playgrounds and banned motorboats and Jet Skis. Towns in New York banned using leaf-blowers. California pointlessly closed beaches and gave people citations for "watching the sunset." The list goes on. Sen. Rand Paul's new book, "Deception," argues that government experts didn't just make mistakes; they were purposely deceitful. A few weeks ago, this column reported how Paul was correct in accusing Fauci of funding virus research in Wuhan and lying about it. In my new video, we cover other government deceit. Government deceit extensive during COVID-19 Paul says, "There's been one set of truths in private and another set of truths for the people who aren't smart enough to make their decisions." He points out that Fauci, in private, told fellow bureaucrats that masking is pointless. Fauci wrote in one email: "The typical mask you buy in the drug store is not really effective in keeping out virus, which is small enough to pass through the material." But in public, complains Paul, Fauci would sometimes wear multiple masks. "Things that have no scientific basis in fact. There's two sets of information going out, one privately and one publicly." "Why?" I ask. "They think that there could be hysteria. They're in government. They need to do something. So let's get everybody occupied with wearing masks. But in the end, the Cochrane analysis looked at 78 randomized studies and found that masks didn't work at all." Even the N95 masks did not work well "N95 masks may work," I say. "The Cochrane analysis looked at the N95 and found they didn't work very well," Paul replies. Another mistake: the virus is 500 times more likely to kill people ages 65 and up than kill kids. But our government told parents: mask your children. Some states kept kids out of schools for two years. Also, "When they approved the third vaccine for children," says Paul, "The first committee was the FDA committee. They came out with the advice: 65 and older. Nobody else. The CDC had another vaccine committee. They said the same thing (but) Rochelle Walensky, a political appointee of Biden, overrode both scientific committees and said the vaccine booster should be given to six months and up." Biden administration worked to keep people frightened "Why? What's the motivation?" I ask. "Get more people frightened, and then they'll take the vaccine and that will save America?" Paul says, "I think most of them are not very smart and they just blindly think, 'Take the damn vaccine, shut up and take it. It's good for you.'" Has he been vaccinated? "God gave me my vaccine." He tells me. "I was naturally inoculated. But members of my family, my wife, got vaccinated. We're not against the advice." I clarify, "'Naturally inoculated,' meaning you got COVID?" "I had COVID, so I have immunity," he replies. Sweden health officials were smarter At the start of the pandemic, Sweden's health officials did not shut down restaurants or other businesses. They also announced that they would not close schools for younger children. For doing that, Sweden was repeatedly trashed by American government officials and the media. Time Magazine called Sweden's plan "a disaster." But the Swedish approach was right. Not only did Sweden escape the economic and social harm of lockdowns, but its COVID-related death rate was lower than that of most other countries. "It turns out they did as well, or better, than most parts of Europe," says Paul. "Better," I point out. "They also didn't mandate masks in schools (or) close the schools. Everything we did in this country was wrong." US COVID-19 responses called all wrong I push back. "On balance, vaccines were a good thing. They work for older people, people my age." In fact, Republican anti-vax "messaging may have killed people!" Before the vaccine came out, an equal number of Republicans and Democrats died. But once the anti-vax messages spread, Republicans had a higher death rate. Paul replies, "Vaccine hesitancy comes from people's disbelief in government." He adds, "I think people learned from this (learned) what to trust and what not to trust. People will be smarter the next time around." Every Tuesday at JohnStossel.com, Stossel posts a new video about the battle between government and freedom. This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Stossel: Rand Paul's book argues government deceived people on COVID-19 An Allegheny County business owner is facing charges after police say he shot a teenager Saturday night. The Allegheny County Police Department said it was notified of a shots fired incident on Broadway Avenue in Stowe Township around 10 p.m. Saturday. A second 911 call informed police a 15-year-old on Boquet Street had multiple gunshot wounds. ACPD says the incident began at Hook Fish and Chicken before 10 p.m. The 15-year-old is seen on surveillance video entering the restaurant and approaching the counter. The restaurant owner, identified as Mohammad Hamdan, 39, began taking the teens order. But, police say the teen reached over the counter and took a tip jar, then turned for the exit. Police say Hamdan then raised a pistol and fired at least three rounds at the teen. The teen was taken to a hospital with multiple gunshot wounds and is in stable condition. A criminal complaint states he was shot multiple times in his right arm and once in his right shoulder blade. ACPD says after reviewing the surveillance footage and talking to witnesses, detectives found no evidence that the teen was armed or threatened Hamdan. Police then consulted with the district attorneys office, who approved charging Hamdan with aggravated assault. A criminal complaint also alleges Hamdan told investigators he saw the teen and the teens brother earlier in the day and expected them to try and steal from him. Hamdan was arrested Sunday morning and is being held in the Allegheny County Jail pending his preliminary arraignment. Its a little disheartening that peoples first response is violence, said Eszquire Harris, the CEO of The BlackTeaBrownSuga Network, which is a few doors down from the restaurant. Harris is focused on keeping at-risk kids in his community on the right track and out of trouble. He teaches youth their worth and connects with them over music through his multimedia production company. Theyre hurting, so to be able to connect with them when they are the most vulnerable instead of attacking them has allowed us to establish genuine relationships with them, Harris said. Im always out here supporting them, loving them, communicating with them. Hows life? Hows school? Harris was troubled to hear what happened Saturday night. Hearing a kid get shot over money who couldve lost his life over money, when I know a lot of these kids in this community, theyre struggling to survive, Harris said. The BlackTeaBrownSuga Network COO Aaleah Oliver said, Its pretty shocking and also deeply saddening. But a co-owner of the restaurant tells me Hamdan wasnt trying to hurt the kid. He claims Hamdan was only trying to stop him by firing warning shots -adding that he came in three different times that night - twice with a group. The co-owner says the boy ran off with the tip jar that had about a hundred dollars inside. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Multiple houses damaged by fire in North Braddock, at least 1 person injuredPHOTOS: Firefighters respond to large fire in North Braddock, at least 1 person injuredStowe Township restaurant owner arrested after shooting teen stealing tip jar, police say VIDEO: Stowe Township restaurant owner arrested after shooting teen stealing tip jar, police say DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts Strictly Come Dancing star Craig Revel Horwood and RuPaul's Drag Race UK winner The Vivienne have both joined the cast of musical tour The Wizard of Oz. The stage production, which is a new take on the classic story of the Wizard of Oz, is embarking on a UK and Ireland tour and some new casting has added an extra sprinkle of star power. Strictly judge Horwood and drag superstar The Vivienne have both joined the cast of the show in the role of the Wicked Witch of the West on various dates. The tour, which will start its extended festive run on December 13, will travel until January 7, 2o24. Wizard of OZ Related: Strictly's Kevin Clifton confirms new stage role Horwood will appear as the Wicked Witch in Belfast, Dublin, Milton Keynes, Cardiff, Woking, Birmingham, Glasgow and Aberdeen. Dancing on Ice star The Vivienne, meanwhile, who won the inaugural season of Drag Race UK, will star in shows in Liverpool, Oxford, Southampton, Hull, Sheffield, Plymouth, Bristol, Nottingham, Wolverhampton, Sunderland, Edinburgh, Southend, Norwich, Llandudno, Wimbledon, Bradford and Newcastle. Alex Bourne, Allan Stewart and Gary Wilmot will each play select dates as The Wizard. The Wizard of Oz recently staged a run at the London Palladium, before finishing in September this year. The cast of the tour is filled out by some returning company members from the same production, including comedian Jason Manford, who will star as The Cowardly Lion for two weeks in Manchester. JLS star Aston Merrygold will join the production as the Tin Man in Liverpool only. Wizard of OZ Related: Wicked movie: Release date, cast, songs and everything you need to know The rest of the Wizard of the Oz tour will star Aviva Tulley as Dorothy, Benjamin Yates as The Scarecrow, Nic Greenshields as The Cowardly Lion and Emily Bull as Glinda The Good Witch. The musical features the original score from MGM's iconic film, including 'Over The Rainbow', 'Follow The Yellow Brick Road' and 'We're Off To See the Wizard', with other songs by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Tickets and further information is available now. The UK and Ireland tour of The Wizard of Oz begins on December 13. You Might Also Like (KRON) An Amazon delivery driver in San Ramon was kidnapped after a vehicle collision Saturday afternoon, the San Ramon Police Department told KRON4. Around 3 p.m., the Amazon truck and a dark-colored SUV collided near Crow Canyon Road and San Ramon Valley Boulevard. VIDEO: Man robbed at gunpoint in Tiburon after using ATM An unknown man and a woman were inside the SUV. The woman got into the passenger seat of the Amazon truck and forced the victim to drive to a Bank of America in San Ramon while the man followed in the SUV, according to police. The suspects made the Amazon driver withdraw an undisclosed amount of cash from the bank, SRPD said. The Amazon employee was then forced to drive to a Bank of America in Dublin. The transaction at the Dublin bank did not work, so the suspects left the delivery driver there. Police did not report any injuries for both the victim and suspects. SRPD said the Amazon driver contacted his boss before calling police. The Amazon employees boss notified police of the incident. Broadway Plaza in Walnut Creek launches holiday events, The North Face Store opens SRPD did not specify which Bank of America locations the suspects took the victim. No other information was immediately available. SRPD will continue to investigate. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. (Bloomberg) -- Taiwans main opposition parties are running out of time to form a joint ticket in a presidential election that would bolster their chances of unseating an incumbent party with rocky ties to Beijing. Most Read from Bloomberg The Taiwan Peoples Party and the Kuomintang, which both favor engagement with China, announced last Wednesday that theyd agreed to form an alliance and would announce on Saturday which of their candidates would lead the ticket. Instead, this past weekend saw those talks fall into disarray over over the question of who would be their nominee in January, the TPPs Ko Wen-je or the KMTs Hou Yu-ih. Ko appeared to raise the stakes even further on Sunday when he told supporters at an event that he intended to run for president and continue to fight to the end. After his comments, Ko visited Foxconn Technology Group founder Terry Gou, the fourth candidate in the race, at his residence for about 90 minutes. Hou appeared to acknowledge the breakdown in talks with the TPP on Monday, saying: Well respect Ko Wen-jes decision no matter what the final outcome is. If a joint ticket never materializes and both Ko and Hou continue their separate bids, it would increase the odds that the ruling Democratic Progressive Partys Lai Ching-te who has topped polls for much of this year wins in January. The deadline for officially registering candidates is Friday, meaning the opposition parties have just a few days left to strike deal. Lai led a poll released Wednesday by My Formosa, a private company whose founder is linked to the DPP, with the backing of 33.1% of respondents. Hou was second at 26.5% and Ko third with 17.3% support. Gou had the backing of 5% of respondents. After last weeks market gains amid expectations that an opposition victory would reduce geopolitical tensions, investors were largely unperturbed Monday. The benchmark Taiwan Stock Exchange Index declined 0.2% after climbing every session last week. The Taiwan dollar rose to its highest since August at open, along with other Asian currencies that benefit from a weak greenback. The impact of the breakdown in opposition talks will be very mildly negative, said Stephen Chiu, chief Asia FX and rates strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence. He added that investors expect a weaker US dollar now. Both Ko and Hou have said if they are elected, they would seek to establish high-level dialogue with China. Beijing claims self-governing Taiwan as part of its territory, and has pledged to bring the island under its control, even if it must use military force. The DPP has been unable to talk to Beijing since Tsai Ing-wen led the party to victory in 2016, becoming the first woman to serve as Taiwans president. Beijing has insisted that Tsai affirm an understanding known as the 92 Consensus, which essentially states that Taiwan is part of China, before there can be talks. Tsai and Lai, the vice president, have said they wont do that. Despite the faltering negotiations, a TPP-KMT alliance is still possible. Ko said Saturday he was willing to continue negotiating and that both sides needed more time to talk. The KMT also said it will push for more discussions to seal the deal. The partys chairman, Eric Chu, said he hopes a decision will come before Wednesday, according to local media. --With assistance from Iris Ouyang. (Updated with additional details.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2023 Bloomberg L.P. Yusmier Mesa hasnt lost hope, but hes afraid. He left Cuba four years ago and reached the United States by traveling through Latin America. It was a long and dangerous journey, similar to one that Jose Manuel Garces made. Mesa and Garces dont know each other, but they share more than one thing in common. Both Cubans were released by United States immigration officials after crossing the southern border with a form known as I-220A. Thats a form that allows the holder to have a temporary drivers license and a work permit. But it doesnt grant even temporary permission to remain in the U.S. for urgent humanitarian reasons. Under a recent immigration rule, the I-220A designation may now become a ticket to deportation. Cubans have long been granted immigration benefits under the 1966 Adjustment Act, which allowed them to apply for permanent residence after staying in the U.S. for over a year. But in early September, the federal Board of Immigration Appeals ruled that Cubans granted I-220As are not eligible to apply for such benefits. The courts decision has raised concern among Cubans, even though the ruling can be appealed and the Department of Homeland Security has the authority to change the status of such immigrants. Mesa, who lives in New Tampa, feels his efforts to obtain humanitarian parole have been in vain from the moment he crossed the border on the morning of Aug. 10, 2021. The only thing they asked me is if I was afraid to return to my country, said Mesa, 40. Yes, of course, I said. What Cuban doesnt have fear of returning to the island? Mesa said he has nightmares in which he sees himself being deported to Cuba. When he received the I-220A, he had no idea that it could pose a legal obstacle. Mesa sent his residency application anyway, one year and a day after arriving, but he hasnt received a response. He got a work permit and holds a valid Florida drivers license. A year and a half ago, he opened his own business. I still feel mentally imprisoned because there isnt a single day when I wake up without thinking if I will be able to become a resident of this country, Mesa said. In Cuba, he worked six days a week as a vendor in Havana. But in recent years, his criticism of the Cuban regime had become harsher. Mesa began to be seen as a traitor and counterrevolutionary. He decided it was time to leave. Mesa sold his belongings for $2,500; some friends loaned him money. He left Cuba in 2017 for a journey that spanned four years and 13 countries. He flew from Cuba to Guyana, on the northeastern side of South America, a country that doesnt require visas. He continued his journey to Suriname, Brazil and Uruguay, where he stayed for nearly two years, working various odd jobs and saving money. He then moved to Chile for another two years. To reach the United States, he traveled through Peru, Ecuador and the Darien Gap, a jungle between Colombia and Panama, before reaching Central America and the Texas border. If he gets deported, Mesa said he wont be able to support his family here and in Cuba, where he has three children. Advocates and lawyers in Tampa said the courts decision places thousands of Cubans at risk and has the potential to hinder family reunions. Some Cuban exiles also said that it makes no sense when immigrants are admitted at the border and then are placed at risk of deportation. Earlier this month, dozens of Cubans demonstrated at Dale Mabry Highway near Columbus Street to draw attention to the issue. Milton Toro Marquez, an immigration attorney in Tampa, said the recent decision regarding I-220As has caused major havoc for Cubans and the immigration system. Over 200,000 Cuban migrants may have received I-220As, Politico reports. It would have been easier to accept I-220A as parole to allow Cuban nationals to adjust under the Cuban Adjustment Act, Toro Marquez said. Many Cubans who do have parole are eligible to seek free and low-cost legal assistance, making their path a lot easier to navigate, said Danielle Hernandez, an immigration attorney in Ybor City. But the reality can be totally different for I-220A holders, she said. The clients with the I-220A have to hope for a policy change by the administration who can issue a parole after the fact or rely on a very costly asylum path, said Hernandez. Garces left Cuba on Feb. 11, 2022, on a flight to Nicaragua. He crossed through Central America and Mexico until he reached the Arizona border nearly a month later. A dentist in Cuba, Garces, 29, decided to seek new opportunities after he was unemployed for at least a year after criticizing the handling of social services on the island. He said the only question they asked him at the southern border related to Cuba was whether he wanted to contact the Cuban embassy in the United States. I said no, Garces recalled. He was released four days later with the I-220A. At that moment, I didnt know what it really meant, but when I later started researching, I understood what it was, said Garces, who lives in the Carrollwood area. Jose Fernandez, director of immigration services for Catholic Charities in St. Petersburg, said many Cubans who come to him seeking guidance or advice dont understand what an I-220A means, he said. They feel completely disappointed, said Fernandez. But, like many Cubans with the I-220A and ongoing asylum claims, Garces submitted his application over a year ago but only received a response from immigration authorities requesting documentation of his parole, which he said he doesnt have. The Miami Herald recently reported that some Cubans have received unsolicited Immigration and Customs Enforcement paroles, the necessary pathway to apply for a residency or green cards. Danet Rodriguez, 31, a leader of Plantados de Tampa, a group that coordinates anti-government initiatives and shares news about Cuba on Facebook and WhatsApp, knows Cubans who cant reach economic stability because of their immigration status. She said others experience stress and uncertainty due to the fear of deportation. Garces said he doesnt feel completely free because he cant pursue his dreams. He wants to study to obtain U.S. validation of his dentistry degree, but without permanent legal status he cant access financial aid programs or qualify for in-state college tuition. For now, he works Monday to Friday as an assistant dental hygienist in Tampa. He has worked hard since he arrived in this country, he said, bought a used car, and paid $7,000 in less than six months to the people who loaned him money to come to the United States. I want to contribute to society, said Garces, while holding his I-220A. But I dont have the same opportunities as others do. Pink elves, Daysi Bravo, Maria De Leon and Erika Rodriguez select jars of Italian sauce at the Donne Di Domini booth Friday, Nov. 10, 2023 during the Nutcracker Market at NRG Center. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer With holiday celebrations quickly approaching, you may find yourself in a race against time to buy gifts for everyone on your list. From the popular Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market to holiday festivals, the Houston area offers a diverse range of options. Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market Shoppers admire the variety of holiday decorations and Nutcrakers for sale at the Houston Ballet Nutcracker Boutique booth Friday, Nov. 10, 2023 during the Nutcracker Market at NRG Center. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer As one of Texas' top-tier holiday shopping extravaganzas, the Nutcracker Market showcases hundreds of merchants selling an array of exclusive wares, including home decor, gifts, food, apparel, toys and accessories. The event serves as the Houston Ballet's primary annual fundraiser, with 11% of merchandise sales supporting the ballet, its academy and scholarship programs. Advertisement Article continues below this ad When: Through Nov. 12 Where: NRG Center, One NRG Park MORE ON THE NUTCRACKER MARKET: Legendary ballet dancer Lauren Anderson shares her favorite things at Houston's Nutcracker Market Markets for Makers Houston Advertisement Article continues below this ad Markets for Makers, a shopping event with more than 120 vendors, will be at Silver Street Studios on Nov. 11-12, 2023. Courtesy of Markets for Makers Markets for Makers is returning to Houston with over 120 vendors offering everything from home decor to fashion, art, design and food. In addition to shopping, there will be DIY stations, photo walls and beverage trucks. When: Nov. 11-12: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Where: Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Advertisement Article continues below this ad Home for the Holidays Gift Market Robin Wendell and her mother, Kathi Wendell, sell cookies at the Home for the Holidays gift Market in Katy. By Claire Goodman / Staff writer The 16th annual Home for the Holidays Market is Katy's biggest gift market, featuring over 130 merchants offering Thanksgiving decor, Christmas goods, crafts, gifts and more. When: Nov. 17: 2-6 p.m., Nov. 18: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Nov. 19: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Where: Katy Merrell Center, 6301 S Stadium Ln, Katy Advertisement Article continues below this ad Discovery Green Flea by Night Flea by Night at Discovery Green. Morris Malakoff Flea by Night returns to Discovery Green featuring local vintage, handmade, recycled, repurposed and renewed goods for sale, as well as food trucks. When: Saturdays Nov. 18-Dec. 16: 6-10 p.m. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Where: Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney Black Friday Holiday Flea 2023 Shoppers at the Black Friday Holiday Flea. Flea at Silver Street Inside the 20,000 sq ft air-conditioned Silver Street Studios, visitors will discover a curated market featuring unique collectibles, jewelry, vintage items, art, mid-century modern furniture, original designs, a full bar, and local food. The event is dedicated to supporting local small businesses in Houston and Texas. When: Nov. 24-26: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Where: Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Levy Park Holiday Festival Levy Park's annual Holiday Festival. Levy Park Houston Families are invited to the park for the sixth annual Levy Park Holiday Festival. This two-day, free event includes a holiday market, a craft station, live music performances across the park, a special River Oaks Dance performance, a complimentary Santa Claus photo booth, and food and drink concessions. When: Dec. 2-3: Noon-5 p.m. Where: Levy Park, 3801 Eastside Midtown Mistletoe Market Midtown Mistletoe Market. Courtesy photo The theme for this year, "Holiday Twinkle in Midtown," welcomes artisans and specialty crafters to display their unique creations. Visitors can explore a diverse collection of creatively crafted gift items and elegant home decor, ideal for holiday gift-giving. When: Dec. 8: 5-10 p.m. and Dec 9: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Where: Baldwin Park, 1701 Elgin Tomball German Festival Christmas Market Bill Milner, of New Caney, dressed in seasonal attire, browses the booths of Tomball's Annual German Christmas Market. Jerry Baker/Contributor Tomball honors its German heritage annually with a festive event featuring street vendors and live music. You can experience free entry, family-friendly activities, and a taste of German traditions and treats there. When: Dec. 8: 6-10 p.m., Dec 9: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. and Dec. 10: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Where: 201 S. Elm Street, Old Town Tomball Holiday Vibe Market Holiday Vibe Market at Post Houston. Post Houston This two-day artisan shopping experience at POST Houston will showcase over 300 local artists and makers. Visitors will enjoy complimentary cocktails, music and a variety of concept restaurants. When: Dec. 10: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. The official historian of the Conservative Party has called for an independent investigation into the polices disastrous handling of false child sex abuse claims against Sir Edward Heath. Lord Lexden said there was an overwhelming and unanswerable case for a review of Wiltshire Polices 1.5 million investigation into the former prime minister after its former chief constable was barred for life from policing. Mike Veale, the former chief constable of Wiltshire police, who presided over the investigation into uncorroborated claims that Heath raped and indecently assaulted boys as young as 10, was found guilty of gross misconduct and barred from policing for life in July after a disciplinary panel found he had made inappropriate sexual comments to colleagues. The Conservative peer said: We owe it to the memory of a dead statesman, the only first minister of the Crown ever to be suspected of such serious criminal offences, to get at the truth of this grave matter and settle the doubts created by the disgraced Veale. Wiltshires Operation Conifer saw one of Veales senior officers make an unprecedented public appeal outside Heaths house in Salisbury, but detectives failed to interview potential key witnesses during the costly inquiry. Main complainant a fantasist and convicted paedophile The main complainant against Heath was a fantasist and convicted paedophile who claimed that the former PM had abducted and raped him after picking him up while he was hitchhiking on the A2 in Kent in 1961, when he was just 11. But a Telegraph investigation showed the man, now aged 73, had a string of convictions for child sex abuse dating back almost 50 years. Three siblings contacted by this newspaper had no recollection of their brother being abducted and then raped by Heath, as he claimed. Margaret Thatcher and Ted Heath at lunchtime during the Conservative Conference in Blackpool - PA Wiltshire Police failed to interview any of the relatives about the rape allegation. Heath died in 2005 and could not defend his reputation. Writing in The House magazine, which is published Monday, and speaking in the House of Lords, Lord Lexden said: It is imperative to carry out an independent review of the seven allegations made against Sir Edward Heath long after his death, which Veale failed to clear up after a long investigation that one of his officers contemptibly publicised on television in front of Ted Heaths house in Salisbury. The outcome of the disciplinary case, brought following an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct, should be followed by renewed scrutiny of his handling of the allegations against the former prime minister. Lord Lexden, who is the official historian of the Conservative Party, said there was a strong suspicion that former chief constable Veale left these allegations open, neither proved nor disproved, to save face after failing to find any evidence to support the claims against Heath. Wiltshire Police launched Operation Conifer in August 2015 with a public appeal for victims to come forward in a televised press conference made outside Heaths Salisbury home, Arundells. At one stage officers searched all of Heaths private papers in the Bodleian Library in Oxford, during a two year operation that cost more than 1.5 million. Two siblings no recollection of brother being abducted In October 2017 The Telegraph disclosed how two siblings had no recollection of their brother being abducted as he claimed as he walked along the A2 in Kent. He alleged he was picked up by Heath and raped in his flat. The siblings, then aged five and 10, said the boy never went missing. In a letter he later wrote to his family from prison the man admitted he made the claim against Heath only because he faced paedophile charges of his own. The Lords Home Office minister, Lord Sharpe of Epsom, told the Lords that it was for the Wiltshire Police and Crime Commissioner to decide whether an inquiry was necessary, adding: The investigation has already been subject to considerable external scrutiny and the Government do not see the grounds for government intervention. Mr Veale resigned as head of Cleveland police in 2019 after being accused of inappropriate behaviour towards the two women, just ten months after taking up the post following his departure from Wiltshire. He had previously denied having stated a view on Heaths guilt, saying: Our role is to objectively and proportionately go where the evidence takes us. 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. ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) A PSTA trolley struck a pedestrian in St. Petersburg Sunday morning, according to police. The St. Petersburg Police Department said at 11:22 a.m., a 15-year-old girl from Gulfport was hit by the trolley on 1st Avenue South, suffering life-threatening injuries. Nick Hogan, son of Hulk Hogan, arrested for DUI in Clearwater, police say Police said she had just exited the SunRunner bus and had crossed the road before being struck by the trolley. The teen was taken to a nearby hospital where she remains in critical condition. The driver of the trolley, and two passengers, were taken to a local hospital with minor injuries, police said. The avenue from Dr. MLK Street and 5th Street was been closed for several hours while officers investigated the scene. The incident remains an ongoing investigation. This is a developing story. Stay up to date on the latest from News Channel 8 on-air and on the go with the free WFLA News Channel 8 mobile app. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Ukraines Human Rights Commissioner (Ombudsman) Dmytro Lubinets has said that Bohdan Yermokhin, a teenager who had been deported from Russian-occupied Mariupol in southern Ukraine to the Russian Federation where he received a draft notice, has returned to Ukraine. Source: Dmytro Lubinets on Telegram Quote from Lubinets: "Bohdan came back to Ukraine on his birthday, the 19th of November. Our team in the Ombudsmans Office worked alongside other government institutions to find a way to bring Bohdan back as part of the Bring Kids Back UA action plan set out by the President of Ukraine." Details: Lubinets said that Qatar, UNICEF, and Ukraines Embassy in Belarus all took part in negotiations with Russia that culminated in Bohdans return to Ukraine. "I also communicated with the Russian Human Rights Commissioner with regard to Bohdans reunion with his sister," Lubinets said. He stressed that it was a "thorny path". "Bohdan went through a lot during his time in the Russian Federation, but despite it all he wanted to come back home! Today his wish came true. Im sure that Bohdan will never forget his 18th birthday!" the Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner said. Background: Russian occupation authorities deported Bohdan Yermokhin, then 16, from Mariupol in 2022. He was placed in a childrens health centre in Moscow Oblast. In July 2022, Bohdan was placed under the guardianship of Irina Rudnitskaya, a Chechen War veteran. Around that time, Bohdan sought help from a lawyer. With his 18th birthday approaching on 19 November 2023, Bohdan received a draft notice; he was told to report to a military enlistment office in Moscow Oblast on 19 December 2023. Maria Lvova-Belova, Russian Children's Rights Commissioner, who is the subject of the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant, claimed that Bohdan would be able to travel back to Ukraine in a week. In early November, Dmytro Lubinets reported that Ukraine had arranged to bring Bohdan back to Ukraine. Support UP or become our patron! (PINPOINT WEATHER) Good evening, and happy Saturday! It was an absolutely fabulous day across the Carolinas, with sunny skies and temperatures in the low to mid-70s. Tonight, much cooler temperatures will flow into the Carolinas, with highs Sunday in the low to mid-60s. Next week starts dry, but travel headaches are likely on the way, with showers on Monday and continuing through Tuesday with moderate to heavy rain possible. Drier weather is expected Wednesday and Thanksgiving before more potential showers heading into next weekend. As for tonight and Sunday, cooler temperatures are moving into the Carolinas with overnight lows likely falling into the upper 30s in Charlotte. Sunday will be another beautiful day with highs in the low to mid-60s, with ample sunshine and perfect weather for the Panthers game. Heading into Thanksgiving week, we are expecting our first significant rainstorm in over a month, with showers arriving overnight Monday after clouds increase throughout the day. Tuesday looks like a washout and may cause issues for anyone traveling out of Charlotte Douglass. Highs Monday and Tuesday will be in the low 60s. The busiest travel day of the year looks dry and cooler, with highs around 60s. Thanksgiving will be dry and chilly, with high temperatures likely only in the mid-50s. More showers are possible as the holiday shopping season kicks off Friday night and Saturday morning. In the meantime, enjoy the clear skies tonight! Have a great Sunday! For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. Ann Marie Kopp boarded the Red Line bus for home Thursday afternoon after an invigorating turn around the Mall of America and lunch at IKEA. As a 64-year-old with disabilities, the Rosemount resident has no other means of transportation. The Red Line the Twin Cities' first bus rapid transit (BRT) line between the Bloomington megamall and Apple Valley "is my lifeline," she said. When the $112 million Red Line debuted a decade ago, it was seen by local transit planners as an experiment for future BRT service, which features fewer stops and all-day trips built for a fraction of the price of light rail. The fact that BRT service has expanded significantly in the Twin Cities since with close to $1 billion in investment and more than a dozen lines operating or planned suggests the Red Line has been a viable blueprint for expansion. But the laptop-toting masses never materialized on the Red Line, even before the COVID-19 pandemic struck and the rise of remote work upended 9-to-5 commuter patterns. Frequent riders say the Red Line ferries them mostly to their jobs at the Mall of America or the outlet stores in Eagan, and to medical appointments. Last year, average weekday ridership was a modest 344 rides. "If I was writing about the Red Line, I would say it's a lifeline for people," said bus driver Alex Tran, reiterating a common refrain among passengers. That means for families, people with disabilities, those struggling to make ends meet and immigrants, he added. But others question whether the Red Line is a sound investment for taxpayers. "It was never successful even pre-COVID, and now it's even more challenged post-COVID," said Dakota County Commissioner Mary Liz Holberg, who has served on a number of transit boards over the years. Many BRT modes In transportation circles, bus rapid transit service implies buses using a dedicated roadway, a mode widely embraced in Latin America and China. Only the planned $505 million Gold Line between downtown St. Paul and Woodbury comes close to that definition locally, with a guideway hemming Interstate 94 planned for most of the route when service begins in 2025. "Cost-wise, BRT is more bang for the buck," said Nicholas Dagen Bloom, a professor of urban policy and planning at Hunter College in New York. "BRT is really good for establishing new networks." The Red Line travels mostly in traffic along Cedar Avenue, with the option of diverting to the highway's bus-only shoulder lanes. Bus operators say the vehicles are rarely crowded, save for occasional sporting events and concerts. Before the pandemic, annual ridership aboard the Red Line was 242,372, but the outbreak resulted in a 51% plunge in riders. When service began in 2013, it took more than a year for the line to reach its inaugural ridership goal a circumstance largely blamed on an awkward minutes-sucking detour at the Cedar Grove stop, where buses would leave the highway to drop passengers off near the outlet mall. It would take the Metropolitan Council, the regional planning body that operates Metro Transit, four years to remedy the situation by building a $15 million skyway connection at Cedar Avenue connecting passengers to the Cedar Grove Transit Station and the outlet stores beyond. Building convenient access for customers to destinations has been one of the challenges of the Red Line, said Adam Harrington, Metro Transit's director of service development. "It's really been a learning experience," he said, adding, "It's more of a suburban, lower-density market where there are nodes of activity, and that shopping center is one of them,." Another upgrade in 2019 involved a $25 million rebuild of the Mall of America Transit Center the Red Line's northern terminus improving on the previous station, a dank facility that required transit passengers to walk outside before entering the mall. Apple Valley Mayor Clint Hooppaw says private development along the Red Line corridor has totaled about $400 million. An $8 million renovation in 2019 at the Apple Valley Transit Center was prompted by a high level of demand among residents, he said. The city recently received $7 million from the state to help build a new pedestrian bridge at the 147th Street stations. As Harrington noted, in a suburban environment, it's critical to make "the pedestrian and bike environment blend in." Pandemic fallout Nine months after the pandemic struck, the Metropolitan Council decided to end its $3.2 million contract with the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority, the suburban provider that operated the Red Line since it began service. The council said the switch to Metro Transit would save money in a challenging budget environment. MVTA characterized the move as a "body blow" to its business. Since then, some say the relationship between MVTA, which owns the Apple Valley Transit Center, and the council is tense. "It's like the Hatfields and McCoys," said Holberg. But MVTA and Metro Transit officials say the two agencies now have a good working relationship. "We've come a long way," Harrington said. Future of the Red Line In the post-pandemic world, transit agencies are struggling to adapt to a new service paradigm. "If you look at how commuting has changed since the pandemic, I don't know anyone who will ride a commuter bus downtown five days a week ever," said Holberg. Metro Transit's Harrington concedes there has been a "big sea change in travel patterns" post-COVID. Improvement tends to be incremental, and "the same is true with the Red Line," he said. "It's slow, but we're coming back." Ridership on the Red Line continued to plummet at the height of the pandemic to 112,706 in 2021, with average weekday ridership of 326 riders, and a subsidy per passenger of $25.38. Yearly ridership crept up about 8.5% percent last year, to 344 riders per weekday at a subsidy per passenger of $18.22. The pandemic prompted Metro Transit to study how the transit agency will adapt to new ridership patterns, an effort called Network Now. The Red Line is part of that review, including long-ago talk about expanding the service to Lakeville. Recommendations are expected next spring. "They should prioritize transit money for transit-dependent areas that want and need the service," Holberg said. "What would the system look like if they concentrated on what works?" Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, announced in a social media post on Sunday that he is "proud to endorse" former President Donald Trump for the 2024 presidential nomination. "Today, I am proud to endorse Donald J. Trump for President," Abbott said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Now more than ever, America needs a President who will secure the border and prioritize national security. President Trump is the clear choice to get the job done." The former president joined the governor in Edinburg, Texas on Sunday for Abbotts annual pre-Thanksgiving tradition of serving tamales to Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and Texas National Guardsmen deployed along the southern border under the governors Operation Lone Star program. TEXAS GOV. ABBOTT TO ENDORSE TRUMP FOR 2024 GOP NOMINATION WHEN THEY TEAM UP SUNDAY NEAR US-MEXICO BORDER The visit is intended to spotlight the combustible issue of illegal immigration and border security. The border has been a major issue for Republican voters and GOP leaders and politicians for two and a half years, leading to harsh criticism of President Bidens administrations handling of the crisis and a surge in border crossings by migrants. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Trump pledged to launch the largest mass deportation effort in American history if he is re-elected and would reinstate travel bans and his 2019 "Remain in Mexico" program, which forced non-Mexican asylum seekers aiming to enter the U.S. at the southern border to wait in Mexico for the resolution of their cases. GAME ON IN IOWA AS DESANTIS AND HALEY BATTLE FOR SECOND PLACE BEHIND TRUMP In 2021, Trump endorsed Abbott as the conservative governor who was seeking re-election and faced multiple primary challenges from the right. He overwhelmingly won the renomination in March 2022 before defeating his Democratic challenger, former Rep. Beto ORourke last November to secure a third term as governor. Abbott was grateful for Trump's early endorsement last cycle, according to those in the governor's political orbit, and he's now apparently returning the favor. WITH CLOCK TICKING TOWARDS FIRST VOTES IN THE GOP PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION RACE, THIS CANDIDATE REMAINS IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT Former President Trumps legal woes have been covered significantly by ABC, NBC and CBS, but prosecutors are rarely identified as Democrats, according to a new study. Trump is making his third straight White House run and is currently the commanding front-runner for the Republican 2024 nomination, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley currently vying for a distant second place in the polls. Trumps lead expanded over the spring and summer as he made history as the first former or current president in American history to be indicted for a crime. Trump's four indictments including in federal court in Washington D.C. and in Fulton County court in Georgia on charges he tried to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss have fueled his support among Republican voters. Paul Steinhauser of Fox News Digital contributed to this report. Original article source: Texas Gov. Abbott endorses Trump for 2024 GOP presidential bid EDINBURG, Texas (Nexstar) Former President Donald Trump is making a return to Texas on Sunday, where hes expected to receive backing for his 2024 bid from the Lone Star States top Republican. Trump will join Gov. Greg Abbott in the Rio Grande Valley home to a large portion of the highly-pined for Hispanic vote that Republicans have increasingly been investing time, money and resources in. It follows an early November trip to Houston, where the indicted former president held a rally as his poll numbers soar when ranked against fellow Republicans vying for their partys nomination to take back the White House. According to a release from the Governors Office, the two Republican leaders will meet with state authorities stationed in South Texas as part of Abbotts Operation Lone Star his signature multi-billion dollar border security initiative. Trump and Abbott plan to serve meals in Edinburg to Texas National Guard soldiers, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers, and authorities at the border for the Thanksgiving holiday. Former President Donald Trump and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott serve meals in Edinburg to Texas National Guard soldiers, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers, and authorities at the border for the Thanksgiving holiday. (Nexstar Photo/Monica Madden) The two will later make remarks to press at an airport hangar in an event not open to the public. Other top state leaders will join Abbott and Trump, including: Texas Major General Thomas Suelzer, Texas Border Czar Mike Banks and National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd. Pollster Jim Henson of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin calls Trump still the man to beat amongst state Republicans. As of August, the former presidents favorability amongst GOP voters in Texas sits at 79%. At its highest point during his four-year term, 86% of Texas Republicans approved of Trump and it was lowest in October 2016 at 60%. Henson said Trumps legal issues have not impacted Republican voters views of him. It would seem among Republican but probably not enough to make a difference in his highest post-presidential approval rating was about 85-86%. So I said thats now down in the high 70s, not enough to make a difference here, Henson said. This is a developing story, check back for updates. Capitol Correspondent Monica Madden will posting updates on her social media accounts, @TheMonicaMadden. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. Texas mom accused of stabbing husband, driving car into pond with her kids inside: police A Texas mom is accused of stabbing her husband and driving a car into a pond while her three children were inside the vehicle, police said. Wei Fen Ong, of Carrollton, is charged with one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon resulting in serious bodily injury, and three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Police responded to a call Friday morning from the 4400 block of Tall Knight Lane, concerning a man who told officers his wife had stabbed him. Wei Fen Ong was slated to be transferred to Denton County Detention. Carrollton Fire Rescue transported the man to a local hospital for treatment. Hes expected to survive. Police officers in the nearby town of Lewisville received a separate call concerning the mans wife and the three children, ages 8, 9, and 12, who were in the backseat of a vehicle that had been driven into a lake. ILLINOIS MAN, 71, CHARGED WITH MURDERING FELLOW NURSING HOME RESIDENT OVER FIGHT ABOUT WASHING MACHINE: POLICE READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP All four occupants inside the vehicle were transported to local hospitals. A Lewisville officer had to resuscitate one child and another was revived on the way to the hospital, FOX 4 reported. One of the children remains in critical condition, while the others are stable, police said. It remains unclear what led to the stabbing and the subsequent vehicle crash. Neighbors told the station theyd heard yelling and screaming before the stabbing. Ong was taken into custody by the Carrollton Police Department and was slated to be transferred to Denton County Detention. Its unclear if she has retained an attorney who could speak on her behalf. Original article source: Texas mom accused of stabbing husband, driving car into pond with her kids inside: police LAKEWAY, Texas (KXAN) Rebecca Perry spends a lot of time cleaning her Lakeway home. Just solid dust, she said after running her hand along a piece of furniture. Its a constant, constant thing. The 74-year-old is pretty sure it has to do with the cut-out holes in the drywall in just about every room in her house. In her bedroom, there are 10 holes cut into the walls and ceiling. She counted 38 throughout the home. Lakeway resident Rebecca Perry checks for dust on her furniture. She said numerous cut-outs in her walls and ceiling keep particles floating in the air (KXAN Photo/Ed Zavala) Perry, who had her house repiped, is waiting for an inspection from her water provider before the holes can be repaired (KXAN Photo/Ed Zavala) Holes in Perrys living room (KXAN Photo/Mike Rush) Large hole cut out in Perrys kitchen island (KXAN Photo/Mike Rush) Hole in Perrys bathroom (KXAN Photo/Mike Rush) One wall in Perrys hallway has four holes (KXAN Photo/Mike Rush) Exposed plumbing can be seen from cut-outs in Perrys house (KXAN Photo/Mike Rush) When the heater is turned on, when the air conditioner is turned on, you can stand back and just see a cloud of dust that just floats through the air, the retired truck driver said. Perry said she had the plumbing replaced in her home because the plumbing equipment installed when the house was built is now recalled. The project was finished in late September, but Perry cant have the holes repaired until after the work is inspected by her water provider, Travis County Water Control and Improvement District No. 17, or WCID 17. Truckers dont have enough parking. Why it should matter to you Its been six weeks and Im still waiting for an inspection, she said. Perry said she couldnt get updates because the district stopped responding to her calls. Ten, about 10, she said when KXAN Investigator Mike Rush asked her how many unanswered messages shed left. She said some neighbors have similar stories. I have a neighbor whos going through chemo right now, theyre in their 80s. Her husbands taking care of her, she said. He calls me two, three, four times a day wanting to know whats going on. Hes left messages and he even went down to the water company and he said he couldnt get ahold of anybody. And then theres Bob Castellitto, who lives a few doors down from Perry. I dont know if I can say, Im getting pissed off, he said. Castellitto said hes been waiting for his inspection for just as long as Perry. Hes anxious to have more than 30 holes in his house repaired. Bob Castellitto, who lives a few doors down from Perry, has more than 30 holes in his home as he waits for his inspection (KXAN Photo/Ed Zavala) I clean the house every day and I still find stuff on the floor, he said. So, I dont know if Im inhaling that or what. The company that did the work, Aqueduct Plumbing, told KXAN it was taking WCID 17 weeks to inspect six homes the plumbers re-piped in the neighborhood. Texas judge says some renters can sue over AC issues Aqueduct said it typically takes three to four days from permit application to project completion on jobs they do in other areas. A spokesperson for WCID 17 told KXAN Investigates the district is transitioning to a streamlined software system for permit and licensing applications, which the district says will speed up the process. While the spokesperson said the conversion caused a slight delay with progress on Perrys home, in a statement, WCID 17 General Manager Jason Homan wrote Aqueduct Plumbing caused significant delays on Perry and her neighbors homes because the district said plumbers started the work before applying for plumbing permits. An Aqueduct spokesperson said they did apply for permits beforehand but because of what they consider the unprecedented amount of time it took WCID 17 to sign off on them, plumbers mistakenly started work before permits were approved. The Aqueduct spokesperson provided KXAN Investigates with emails between Aqueduct and the district it believes show WCID 17 caused slowdowns by not responding to inquiries in a timely fashion and failing to upload some documents to its system. Austin Water leader responds to KXAN Investigation over customers smart meter complaints KXAN Investigates put in a public information request with WCID 17 asking for records showing the amount of time the water district took to approve all plumbing permits and conduct inspections over the last six months. KXAN will update this story when we receive a response. Customers like Perry and her neighbors are stuck in the middle. Were all seniors, she said. We shouldnt have to live like this. Inspection update Aqueduct told KXAN Investigator Mike Rush that soon after KXAN reached out to WCID 17 about the delayed inspections, the home inspections started and all six have now been completed. Perry said even with the job finished, its too late to have Thanksgiving at her house. A WCID 17 spokesperson said with the new software, permits can be issued in one or two days instead of several weeks under the previous system. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. School life in Damxung County, China's Xizang Xinhua) 10:29, November 19, 2023 Sichod Drolma (C) and her father and sister pasture on the grassland in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma has a Tibetan language class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (front) does exercise at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (2nd L) and her classmates have a physics class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (L) chats with her roommate in dormitory at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma does homework at home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (R) and her sister play at home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (C) has lunch at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (3rd R) and her classmates are pictured during a class-break at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Students have lunch in a canteen at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (standing) answers teacher's question during a class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Sichod Drolma (R) and her sister fetch water in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) This aerial photo taken on Nov. 15, 2023 shows Sichod Drolma's father driving a car to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma's father comes to school to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (C) eats with her family in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (L) returns home with her sister after fetching water in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma's father comes to school to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (R) and her father and sister are pictured as they pasture on the grassland in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) This aerial photo taken on Nov. 10, 2023 shows students doing exercise at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma has a physics class at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma's mother arranges certificates of merit awarded to her children in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma arranges her bed and prepares to sleep in the dormitory at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (L) arrives at home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (3rd R) and her roommates enjoy leisure time in their dormitory at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 9, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Photo by Tenzin Nyida/Xinhua) Sichod Drolma (L) and her father and sister play on the grassland in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma (C) and her classmates are pictured during a class-break at Damxung County Middle School in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 10, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) Sichod Drolma's father comes to school to pick her home in Damxung County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Nov. 15, 2023. Sichod Drolma is a student in Grade 8 at Damxung County Middle School. Her home is located in Choden Village of Lungring Township in Damxung County, at the southern foot of the Nyainqentanglha Range, with an average elevation of over 4,000 meters. At school, Sichod Drolma and her 51 classmates are provided with Tibetan-Mandarin bilingual education. Mathematics is the favorite subject of Sichod Drolma. "I feel satisfied when I succeed in solving math problems," the 15-year-old girl said. After evening self-study hours everyday, Sichod Drolma walks back to the dormitory hand in hand with her friends and takes physical exercise. Roommates of Sichod Drolma always enjoy chatting with each other before falling asleep. The Tibetan girl said school is like her second home. The plateau region has made significant strides in education over the past few decades. Since 2012, students there have enjoyed free board and lodging, and they are exempt from study costs from preschool to senior high school, spanning a total of 15 years. These measures have not only alleviated the financial burden on families but also eased parents' concerns regarding their children's education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje) (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) Houston Parks and Recreation workers remove broken branches from the Holiday Tree in preparation for the trees installation on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023, in Houston. This years holiday tree is a 52 ft White Fir from Grants Pass Oregon and will feature 99,680 LED lights and 4,000 ornaments. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A North Texas meth trafficker who was a member of a white supremacist gang was sentenced to about 16-and-a-half years in federal prison, Leigha Simonton announced in a news release on Friday. Simonton is U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas. Levi Chamberlin Hardcastle, 35, of Rockwall, pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. He was sentenced Thursday to 200 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Jane Boyle. Hardcastle and eight other individuals who are also tied to meth trafficking were charged in an April 2022 indictment with several federal crimes, including distribution of methamphetamine, unlawful possession of firearms, and conspiracy, according to the release. According to plea papers, Hardcastle admitted he delivered about 1,494.6 grams of methamphetamine to an undercover officer on three separate occasions. The meth had a wholesale value of $10,500, the release states. In a court hearing, Hardcastle also admitted to being a member of a white supremacist gang, Peckerwoods. Today's top stories: Arlington officers fatally shoot armed man who said he was suicidal, police say DFW could see 7.4 million customers this holiday travel season. Heres how to prepare Reporters who covered JFK assassination vividly remember, 60 years later Get free alerts when news breaks. Additional defendants in the indictment include: Stephen Scribner pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a schedule II controlled substance and was sentenced to 180 months. Alexis Nicole Pacheco pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a schedule II controlled substance and was sentenced to 200 months. Ruby Pauline Anderton pleaded guilty to illegal receipt of a firearm and was sentenced to 48 months. Sandra Marie Hernandez-Pacheco pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and was sentenced to 168 months. Robert James McKnight pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and was sentenced to 14 months. David Michael Ford pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and was sentenced to 57 months. Mayo Mena pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and was sentenced to seven months. Another defendant, Martin Talaver-Sanchez, is pending sentencing. The Texas Department of Public Safety conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney George Leal prosecuted the case. The load manoeuvred its final turn into Eye airfield A third and final "abnormal load" has managed to squeeze its way through the streets of Ipswich to its destination - a new power station in Eye. The transformer was the smallest of three loads that have recently been unloaded from Ipswich docks. The journey began at about 05:30 GMT and inched its way through the town until it reached Hill View Business Park in Claydon, at about 14:30. It then travelled on to its final destination via rolling roadblocks. Suffolk Highways thanked all the teams involved, who worked over four Sundays to get the equipment to Eye. We have arrived at Eye Airfield. A huge thank you and well done to all teams involved. 3 abnormal loads moved, a transformer, turbine and a generator, all moved in 4 Sundays. Thank you to everyone for your patience. @McCann_Ltd @MytilineosSA @NSRAPT @_Allelys pic.twitter.com/t6AIqMgXq2 Suffolk Highways (@Suff_highways) November 19, 2023 It gently navigated the Felixstowe Road and Derby Road junction The transformer will form part of the Progress Power Station. It travelled along the same route as loads one and two, including Cliff Road, Duke Street, Fore Street, Bishops Hill, Felixstowe Road, Derby Road, Tomline Road, Foxhall Road, Grove Lane and on to St Helen's Street. It also went along St Margaret's Street, Crown Street, St Matthew's Street and on to Norwich Road. Traffic signals were removed on Crown Street to allow the abnormal load to pass over The second part of the journey saw rolling road closures installed along the A14 and A140. Suffolk Highways said: "A huge thank you and well done to all teams involved. "Three abnormal loads moved, a transformer, turbine and a generator, all moved in four Sundays." A temporary bridge was made at Brockford Street for the load to pass over Follow East of England news on Facebook, Instagram and X. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp 0800 169 183 Palestinians mourn local journalists Hassouna Sleem and Sary Mansour, who were killed in an Israeli strike on a house, at a hospital in the central Gaza Strip (Reuters) - The head of a prominent media institution in Gaza and two other journalists were killed during the weekend in Israel's offensive in the territory, their relatives said on Sunday, adding to the dozens of reporters who have died in the six-week conflict. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said the weekend deaths raised to 48 the number of journalists and media workers it had confirmed killed in the region since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent Israeli offensive. The CPJ, whose list covers journalists killed on both sides of the conflict although most have been in Gaza, said it seeks at least two sources to verify each death. It said its list of those killed comprised 43 Palestinians, four Israelis and one Lebanese. "Journalists across the region are making great sacrifices to cover this heart-breaking conflict. Those in Gaza, in particular, have paid, and continue to pay, an unprecedented toll and face exponential threats," Sherif Mansour, CPJ's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, said in an email to Reuters. On Sunday, Belal Jadallah, a journalist and head of the board of the Press House-Palestine, a non-governmental organisation, was killed and his pharmacist brother-in-law was seriously wounded, his sister and other relatives told Reuters. Jadallah told his sister earlier on Sunday he was heading out of Gaza City towards the south. He was killed in the Zeitoun area of Gaza City, said his sister, who added that people who found him and took him to a medical centre where he was declared dead said he had been killed by an Israeli tank shell. Reuters could not independently verify this report or the report of the other two journalists killed this weekend. Four of Jadallah's relatives work for Reuters in Gaza or abroad. One of the journalists on CPJ's list of those killed is Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah who was killed in Lebanon near the border with Israel on Oct. 13. In addition to Jadallah, two freelance journalists - Hassouna Sleem and Sary Mansour - were killed on Saturday in an Israeli assault on Bureij refugee camp, in the centre of the Gaza Strip, their relatives and Palestinian health officials said. The health officials said 17 people died in the incident. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the deaths of Jadallah or the others. In the past, the Israeli military has said it was pursuing its offensive to dismantle Hamas after the Oct. 7 attack and it would look into individual cases at a later date. It has also said it makes every feasible effort to mitigate civilian harm. The Press House-Palestine says on its website that its overall objective is to contribute to developing an "independent Palestinian media, that reflects the values of democracy and freedom of expression and its principles." (Editing by Edmund Blair) Democrats saw a series of welcome victories across Ohio, Virginia, and Kentucky last week as voters in statewide elections delivered the GOP key defeats chiefly tied to the issue of abortion rights. Left-leaning activists in Virginia and Ohio in particular appeared energised by their victories, a much-needed boost to their confidence and optimism after heartbreaking defeats for the party in 2022 and 2021. Ohioans saw the election of author and Trump convert JD Vance to the US Senate, while Virginians witnessed the downfall of Terry McAuliffe, their states former governor, as he sought to defeat Republican Glenn Youngkin. Both were considered blows to Joe Biden for different reasons in Virginia, Mr McAuliffe ran aligned with Mr Biden and was beaten soundly just months into the latters presidency, and in Ohio the president lost a much-needed opportunity to pick up a vote for his agenda in the US Senate. But 2024 is on the horizon, and Democrats are looking ahead to the future though not without some considerable sense of unease. Their incumbent president remains in serious trouble, if the polling is to be believed, based on concerns about his age and ability to represent America through a time of multiple global crises. At the same time, the prospect of a Trump victory with the former president openly plotting to unleash the powers of the federal government on his political enemies presents a real reason to be concerned about the countrys future. Enthusiastic as they are about the partys victory on a ballot initiative enshrining abortion rights in the states constitution, Ohio Democrats are cognizant of the fact that no such issue will be as directly on the ballot next year. What that means for Joe Biden and other Democrats is simple: theyll be running on their own political reputations, and that of the national Democratic Party. If you listen to former Congressman Tim Ryan, thats a real problem. The problem is, the brand is so bad, Mr Ryan told The Independent in an interview on 16 November. People are with us on most of the important issues that are important in their lives, said the former congressman, who was defeated by Mr Vance in last years Senate race. [But] if you put a D by any of those, and all the baggage that the current modern Democratic Party and President Biden carry, you will lose all of them. Mr Ryan is no stranger to sounding these alarms; he was doing so in 2022 as well, when he called out his party for focusing on culture war issues which he argued alienated them from voters who were worried about their economic futures, or what he called pocketbook issues. At the time, he predicted that he could win back Trump supporters from the GOP by focusing on a message of economic empowerment and pro-labour policies. In the end, he performed slightly better than Mr Biden did when he campaigned in the state in 2020; though, importantly, without major investment from his party. As he reflected on the last year out of Washington, he lamented the state of the Congress and the downward spiral on which American politics appears to be set. It feels wonderful on a personal level, Mr Ryan said of not being caught up in the latest drama, which includes a senator from Oklahoma threatening to fight a union boss and the former Speaker of the House being accused of physical assault. But it just makes me very, very worried for where the countrys gone. Though no stranger to bucking party leaders himself, he had no kind words for the contingent of holdout Republicans who ousted former Speaker Kevin McCarthy after he cut a deal with Democrats to avert a shutdown. Its like, what the f*** do you think? Youre gonna get everything you want? You have the House? Barely. You dont have the Senate. You dont have the Executive Branch. Youre not gonna get everything you want. Grow the f*** up, he said. Its like this is basic, like, human interaction. The solution for Democrats in the face of such chaos was simple, he explained: just be normal. He pointed to Andy Beshears re-election victory in Kentucky: You know, it was like a normal Democrat who was able to, who knew the people of the state. He had a moderate-progressive message. He was focused on Kentucky, not on Washington. That kind of message really works. But he had another message for Joe Biden, one the president surely does not want to hear: listen to the voters. Step aside. Were Democrats, the pro-democracy party. We should not be afraid of democracy, and look: the voters are trying to tell us something, said Mr Ryan. In all the polling, in all the data, they dont want a Biden-Trump rematch. On that end, he advised his fellow colleagues: stop trying to shut down Dean Phillips, the Democratic congressman from Minnesota now openly challenging the president for his partys nomination, right out of the chute. I mean, we preach that were the pro-democracy party, you know, and then somebody gets in [the race] to have a conversation and gets torched, he lamented. Mr Phillips has won praise from commentators like HBOs Bill Maher and other critics of the president for his decision to run, despite the long odds of him winning the nomination. The 54-year-old has praised the presidents successes in office but says that Mr Biden should embrace a new generation of leaders as he is confronted by unprecedented and steep concerns about his ability to serve (due to his advanced age) held by majorities of voters in both parties. His one-issue candidacy bears striking resemblances to Mr Ryans own bid to oust former Speaker Nancy Pelosi as leader of the House Democratic caucus in 2016, though he cautioned in his interview that there were key differences as well, the main being dissatisfaction with Democratic leadership in the immediate wake of Donald Trumps first White House victory that year. Ohio is set to be a major battleground in 2024, as it remains a key swing state in the presidential race and is also set to host one of the most hotly-contested Senate races in the country. Incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, is running for re-election in a state where Republicans won the last such race and the last two presidential elections. Mr Brown, according to polling, leads his hypothetical GOP challengers though those margins are likely to tighten once the GOP field coalesces behind one candidate next year. A 2-year-old boy died after police say his 3-year-old brother accidentally shot him in Indiana, news outlets report. Police said they were called just after 7:20 p.m. Friday, Nov. 17, to a hospital in Gary for reports of a 2-year-old who had been shot, WTHR reported. The childs mother told police her 3-year-old son was in her bedroom and found her gun in her purse then shot his younger brother, according to police, WGN9 reported. The mom then drove the toddler to the hospital. The boy died from his injuries at the hospital, WLS reported. His death is being investigated by the Lake County Prosecutors Homicide Task Force. We do criminal investigations, and then we present that to the Lake County prosecutor, who makes a decision whether its negligence or an unfortunate accident, Gary Police Cmdr. Sam Roberts told WLS. The boys death has been ruled accidental by the the Lake County Coroners Office, WGN9 reported. The shooting is alleged to be a result of a child finding an unsecured firearm. The Gary Police Department ask that all gun owners secure their firearms in a gun box or with a gun lock, police said in a Facebook post. No charges were announced by officials as of Nov. 19, and the investigation is ongoing, WTHR reported. Gary is about 150 miles northwest of Indianapolis. Teacher accused of beating 2-year-old to death in 2020 now charged, Georgia officials say 2-year-old finds gun dropped on day care playground and shoots herself, Nevada cops say Baby overdoses on fentanyl twice in one month, Indiana officials say. Mom is charged Sen. Bob Menendez was indicted on corruption-related charges in September. Menendez pleaded not guilty and temporarily stepped down as Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman. Menendez's removal could be a game-changer for two countries who have long sought US fighter jets. Sen. Bob Menendez's indictment on corruption charges in September forced the New Jersey Democrat to step down temporarily from his powerful position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Menendez has been accused of taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, some of it paid in gold bars, from Egyptian intelligence in return for using his position to "approve or remove holds on foreign military financing and sales of military equipment to Egypt." Menendez's post allowed him to exercise influence over US foreign policy, including arms sales. His removal could be a game-changer for Egypt and Turkey two important but vexing US allies when it comes to buying modern US-made fighter jets to upgrade their air forces. Turkey's F-16 prospects A Turkish F-16 during a NATO Air Policing mission out of Poland in August 2021. Cuneyt Karadag/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Menendez is a vocal critic of the Turkish government and has blocked Ankara's request for 40 new F-16s and 79 F-16 modernization kits. Almost immediately after Menendez stepped down, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan noted a potential upside. "Menendez being out of the picture is an advantage." Erdogan told reporters on September 26. "There is benefit in turning this situation into an opportunity." While Turkey is a NATO ally and hosts US forces, its relations with the US have soured over what the US sees as Ankara's democratic backsliding and coziness with Russia. Turkey's purchase of Russia's S-400 air-defense system prompted the US to kick Turkey out of the F-35 program and impose sanctions. More recently, Erdogan's stalling of Sweden's application to join NATO drew criticism from the US. Erdogan has budged on that, but it's still unclear if Menendez's replacement, Sen. Ben Cardin, will give way on the F-16s. Turkish Air Force F-16s in Malbork, Poland, in August 2021. Cuneyt Karadag/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Cardin welcomed Turkey's move to approve Sweden's membership. "It's clear that they had to get this done before we would consider arms sales," Cardin said on October 26, but he highlighted other issues with Turkey, including its "use of the weapons systems, the human-rights issues, and concerns that we have." Ryan Bohl, a senior Middle East and North Africa analyst at the risk-intelligence company RANE, said Turkey's chances of getting F-16s markedly increased after Menendez stepped down. "That being said, there was already an American imperative to deliver those jets in exchange for Turkey's 'yes' vote" on Sweden's NATO accession, Bohl told Business Insider. "Although we have seen a small indication from Cardin that he might also emphasize human rights, I tend to think the White House's focus on getting Turkey deeper into the Western camp will override that," Bohl said. Egypt's decades-long F-15 bid A US Air Force KC-135R tanker, two F-15s, and an F-16 over Egypt in March 1998. US Air Force via Getty Images Egypt has repeatedly sought F-15s from the US since signing a peace treaty with Israel in 1979. Cairo hoped to reach a deal for the jets as early as 1980. Egypt now operates the world's fourth-largest F-16 fleet, but it has never gotten F-15s. In March 2022, Gen. Frank McKenzie, then head of US Central Command, told lawmakers he thought there would soon be "good news" about an F-15 sale to Egypt, which had been "a long, hard slog." Menendez's indictment may be another setback, however. Cardin is a critic of Egypt's government and has put a hold on nearly a quarter-billion dollars of the $1.215 billion in military aid for Egypt next year that the State Department approved in September. "I intend to exercise fully the Committee's oversight responsibilities and my authorities to hold foreign military funds and the sale of arms to the government of Egypt, if it does not take concrete, meaningful, and sustainable steps to improve the human rights conditions in the country," Cardin said in October. The accusations that Menendez took bribes from Egypt could further impede the sale. "I think we are going to see a slow-moving investigation into how that deal came about and whether or not Senator Menendez did anything illegal or unethical in the course of it," Bohl said. "It could be a while before Egypt takes delivery of F-15s." Egyptian Air Force F-16s over northern Egypt in September 2021. US Air Force/Senior Airman Derek Seifert Cairo previously ordered the Su-35, Russia's equivalent of the F-15, in 2018 but backed out of the deal, undoubtedly due to the risk of US sanctions. It has ordered 54 French-made Rafale multirole jets in a bid to, at least partially, diversify its overwhelmingly American-made fighter arsenal. It's unclear if Egypt will seek another fighter type instead of F-15s. China, which hopes to sell more of its military hardware to Middle Eastern countries, showcased its J-10C fighter at the Dubai Airshow this month. Bohl doubted Cairo would want "to upset the United States by purchasing Chinese jets at this particular moment" and said it might "shop around fellow NATO countries like France" to "pressure the US to come through with the delivery." Egypt is in "poor shape" financially, with little room in its military budget for other jets, and is "still pretty stuck" with the US as its main weapons supplier, Bohl said. But the lack of an imminent defense threat means Cairo can "slow walk its negotiations" for new armaments, allowing it take more creative approaches to its defense spending. "Cheaper drones might be a way to thread the needle between the need for tactical aerial support and financial constraints," Bohl said. "In that case, I'd watch Turkey and even China." Paul Iddon is a freelance journalist and columnist who writes about Middle East developments, military affairs, politics, and history. His articles have appeared in a variety of publications focused on the region. Read the original article on Business Insider The following is a transcript of an interview with Deputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer that aired on Nov. 19, 2023. MARGARET BRENNAN: We go now to the Deputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer. Good morning. WHITE HOUSE PRINCIPAL DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER JON FINER: Good morning, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: I know hostage diplomacy is extremely delicate. We've been close to a big breakthrough before and then fallen apart. But this morning, Qatar's Prime Minister says we are close enough to reach a deal. And the differences are just logistical at this point. Does the US share that assessment? FINER: Look, Margaret, we have been following this hour by hour, really minute by minute for a number of weeks now. This is an extraordinarily high priority for everyone in our administration, up to and including the President who is personally engaged on this issue. What I can say at this point is we share the assessment that many areas of difference that previous- previously existed have been narrowed, that we believe we are closer than we have been to reaching a final agreement, but that on an issue as sensitive as this and as challenging is this, the mantra that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed really does apply. And we do not yet have an agreement in place. And so until that is the case, you know, we're not going to lay out all the details in public. We're going to continue working this directly and intensively behind the scenes with the goal of getting as many of these people home including the Americans, who are held hostage there as we can- as soon as we can. MARGARET BRENNAN: So Israel's Prime Minister said on CBS recently that they had intelligence indicating that there were hostages at Al-Shifa hospital, but none were found. There were two bodies found nearby. Did the U.S. share the assessment that hostages were being held at- at the hospital because there was a release suggesting that, from declassified intelligence the US shared. Was the US assessment wrong? FINER: So what I am going to tell you is what we have put out in terms of intelligence that we have been able to share and that we've been able to downgrade on Al-Shifa. And, look, this is a microcosm of the challenges associated with this entire conflict, because this is obviously a hospital where there are patients who were being treated, the most advanced hospital in Gaza, also a place where innocent civilians who've gathered during the course this conflict and all of those innocent lives are sacred to us, or equal in value to lives anywhere that are innocent. We've also said and been quite clear that we have intelligence information, not just Israeli intelligence, but American intelligence that Hamas has used this facility to build terrorist infrastructure, to do command and control for combat operations. And we've been quite clear about that. But we've also said that none of that authorizes, in our view, direct military strikes from the air or on the ground against that hospital. So that is the complicated knot that the Israeli Defense Forces find themselves in and that is how we are advising them to proceed at this point. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. The downgraded assessment shared by the White House said the U.S. believes that there could be, in Al-Shifa Hospital, a command node and tunnels underneath and that in the past, these hospitals have been used to hold hostages. That's why I was asking you, since none were found there, if the US actually thought there would be hostages there. There has been-- FINER: -- One thing I'd say about that, Margaret, is- is that that facility is still being exploited by the Israeli Defense Forces. I expect you'll see more information in the coming days, I think we feel confident in the information that we've put out. And let's see what their investigation reveals and where it leads. MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay. Do you have a sense that you are running out of time? FINER: I'm sorry? MARGARET BRENNAN: On the hostages, do you have a sense that you are running out of time to keep this diplomacy going? FINER: You know, every minute, every hour, every day that these people spend in the situation is too long. So, it is not acceptable that they have been held as long as they have; this is really an unconscionable act by Hamas. And so that is why it is our priority not just to get them out at some point, but to get them out, absolutely as soon as possible. Obviously, Gaza is an extremely dangerous place to be- to be a civilian- to be a hostage held at this point. And so there is a time imperative I wouldn't use the- the phrase running out of time, but we feel acutely that this should be done as soon as possible. And we are putting pressure on- on the diplomacy to try to get this done. MARGARET BRENNAN: Israel's Prime Minister was on this network this week and told my colleague Norah O'Donnell, that they are trying to cause minimal civilian casualties, but "unfortunately, we're not successful." Given that acknowledgement by Israel, I wonder if the administration is applying the Leahy Act here that would allow for the United States to restrict some military equipment based on human rights basis. Is Israel exempt from that, given what's happened and what Israel is acknowledging? Do you need to change that? FINER: So, I'm not going to get into legal determinations in public and in this conversation is not really my role. No countries are obviously exempt from laws of armed conflict or from the U.S. statutory restrictions, but beyond that, I'm not going to say more. What I will say, though is- is, we have been quite clear that Israel has every right to defend itself against the threat that it faces. That includes, by the way, the right to go after Hamas leadership, who they say now have fled to the southern part of Gaza and have sought refuge there. So in the - in the event that we believe that Israel is likely to to embark on combat operations, including in the south, we believe both that they have the right to do that, but that there is a real concern, because hundreds of thousands of residents of Gaza have fled now from the north to the south at Israel's request. And we think that their operations should not go forward until those people- those additional civilians have been accounted for in their- in their military planning. And so we will be conveying that directly to them and have been conveying that directly to them. They should draw lessons from how the operation proceeded in the North, including lessons that lead to greater and enhanced protections for civilian life things like narrowing the area of- of active combat, clarifying where civilians can seek refuge from the fighting. But I will also reiterate that Hamas takes no such precautions in fact, openly and wantonly flouts and almost brags about its desire to perpetrate war crimes. And so this is an adversary that does not hold itself to the standard that we and others believe is essential. MARGARET BRENNAN: Understood. Hamas is extremely brutal. I want to quickly ask you about President Biden's op ed that he published in The Washington Post. He said the US is prepared to issue visa bans against extremists. He was referring to Israeli settlers moving into the West Bank. Does that threat have teeth given that there are estimates that American citizens make up as much as 15% of the settler population? FINER: Look, the President has been extremely clear, I think far beyond even what many of his predecessors said about our concerns about developments on the West Bank, and in particular, our concerns about violence perpetrated against innocent Palestinians by extreme settlers. He said that in public speeches. He said that in an op-ed that was published just this weekend. And as he indicated, and as we are now moving to operationalize that could include consequences that the US would impose on people associated with violence against innocents in the West Bank, including a ban on them being able to travel to the United States on visas. And we're moving in that direction, and we'll have more to say about that, I'm sure in the coming days. MARGARET BRENNAN: But that is a government policy issue, rather than, you know, just the settlers, I guess, is my point there. The last time you were here, you talked about the Palestinian Authority, having done a fairly good job at maintaining control in the West Bank, given the security threat. The president said the Palestinians Authority needs to be revitalized to govern the West Bank and Gaza after Hamas. Does that mean they need to hold elections-like who actually runs the Palestinian Authority? The president is eighty-eight years old. FINER: So the Palestinian Authority, throughout this period of crisis since October 7, has continued to work to provide security in the West Bank has continued to cooperate with Israeli defense forces on the provision of security, including, even though, they are under incredible pressure inside their own communities uh not to do that, quite candidly. And so our view is the Palestinian Authority is the only official institutional representative of the Palestinian people in the West Bank. That it will have to be part of any way forward when it comes to governance, both in Gaza and the West Bank. And the President spoke about this publicly and in his op-ed as well, that it will need additional support in order to be able to have the capability and the capacity to do that important work. But there is also a legitimacy challenge associated with the Palestinian Authority and we will work with them directly on enhancing their legitimacy, enhancing their capacity to be able to play this important role going forward. MARGARET BRENNAN: Understood. Jon Finer, thank you very much for your time this morning. The Chicago sandwich joint that inspired "The Bear" A sweet celebration of pawpaw fruit Texas BBQ, with a foreign flavor Transgender teddy bears have been used to indoctrinate 10-year-old schoolchildren, it has been claimed. Footage of a class delivered to a primary school in St Albans, Hertfordshire, shows a teacher holding up a picture book titled Introducing a teddy to help explain transgender issues. In the session for Year 6 pupils, a video of which has been seen by the Telegraph, the teacher narrates the moment in the picture book that Thomas the teddy comes out as a transgender girl. If I tell you, said Thomas, you might not be my friend anymore, the teacher tells the class of 10-year-olds. Ill always be your friend Thomas, [said his best friend Errol]. Thomas the teddy took a deep breath I need to be myself Errol, in my heart Ive always known that Im a girl teddy not a boy teddy. I wish my name was Tilly not Thomas. Oh, is that why youve been so sad, Errol asked. I dont care if youre a girl teddy or a boy teddy what matters is that you are my friend. The session was delivered through No Outsiders, a charity set up by Andrew Moffat MBE, a gay teacher at Parkfield Community School in Birmingham who faced protests at the school gates from Muslim parents demanding to Get Mr Moffat out for teaching pupils about same-sex relationships. Introducing Teddy is read to children under 10 in classes Story is about a boy teddy who wants to be known as a girl The teddy bear book is one of many used by No Outsiders, the Mail on Sunday reported, with the groups free lesson plans used by hundreds of schools in areas such as Bristol and Watford. In a promotional video from No Outsiders, a female primary school pupil said of the teddy bear story: If you think children cant handle hearing about that kind of stuff, then youre not mature enough to understand that its okay and absolutely fine and theres nothing wrong with it. Later on in the session at the St Albans primary school, the No Outsiders trainer asked the Year 6 class: Who would like to clarify what does transgender mean? Many 10-year-olds put their hands up, with one responding that you dont have to say youre a male or a female, you could say youre a they. The class has been criticised by some campaigners. Lucy Marsh, from the Family Education Trust, a group that researches the causes and effects of family breakdown, told the Telegraph: Teaching children that they could be born in the wrong body is harmful indoctrination. Gender identity is a contested ideology that should never be taught as fact in schools. This ideology leads children down a path to social transition and potential irreversible medical intervention which can cause long-term health problems and infertility. Andrew Moffat who set up the charity No Outsiders - HEATHCLIFF O'MALLEY Mr Moffat has said of the groups aims: As a teacher, weve got to find ways to prepare children for life in modern Britain where they are going to meet people who are Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh or have no faith, or have different families, sexualities, and can go out into the world confidently knowing they can live and work anywhere. This is a resource that helps schools and gives schools a framework to teach children that we are all different but actually, thats fantastic. No Outsiders has been contacted for comment. 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. Trauma is an experience so harrowing that it can alter our gene expression and in some cases, these changes can be passed down to future generations. But if the traumas experienced by our parents, grandparents and other ancestors can be directly transmitted to us through our genes and presumably, we pass down our own psychological residue to our kids what does that mean exactly? Are we doomed to an endless cycle of genetic anguish? A growing body of research is shedding light on this phenomenon. For example, a 2020 paper published in the American Journal of Psychiatry analyzed blood samples of Jews who directly experienced the Holocaust, comparing them with both the blood samples of their children and the blood samples of Jews who lived outside of Europe during the Holocaust. Notably, the scientists found that mothers who survived the Holocaust had changes in their DNA in the sections that regulate stress responses and that their children, who did not experience the Holocaust, had those same changes. So this proves that intergenerational trauma is both real and biologically based, right? Not so fast says Dr. Rachel Yehuda, director of the Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Yehuda has done other research on intergenerational trauma and, when speaking with Salon by email, she emphasized that there is still a lot more work that needs to be done before more conclusive statements can be made. "I dont think we can say anything 'for sure' about genetic or environmental factors that lead to intergenerational effects," Yehuda said. "We can measure things in blood and maybe [the] brain that we think associate with intergenerational effects, but we dont know much about the mechanisms of transmission or even how to fully interpret what we see." Because the data that experts have obtained are always from single points in time, they are correlative that is, while a link can be proven, it is not definitive that the one development has actually been caused by the other. "These data serve us best when they generate hypotheses to explore in more rigorous studies, not when we use them to try to 'explain' why we behave the way we do in the here and now," Yehuda explained. According to Dr. Sophie Isobel, a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Sydney who has also studied intergenerational trauma, scientists know very little for sure about the causes of this specific type of trauma, but they do know that trauma more broadly is passed from generation to generation by a number of variables. Want more health and science stories in your inbox? Subscribe to Salon's weekly newsletter Lab Notes. "We know that trauma can directly and indirectly affect across generations and that this is likely due to a mix of behaviors, sociocultural factors, exposure, patterns, biological factors, genetics and epigenetics," Isobel told Salon. "Across studies and populations, individuals in generations not directly exposed to trauma show traumatic effects similar to those who were directly exposed." Although for a long time scientists believed this was primarily due to a person's environment, recent evidence suggests that there are biological factors involved as well in particular, that sinewy area of genetics known as epigenetics. "Epigenetics is about how certain genes can get turned on and off in response to environment," Isobel explained, comparing it to how caterpillars and butterflies have the same genetic material but look and act very differently based on their environment and life cycle. "Basically, the DNA itself doesnt change but how it is expressed does. It is proposed that intergenerational trauma can lead to cellular changes that alter the expression of genetic material, which over time become encoded, and that it is a vulnerability to traumatic effects that is passed across generations and then activated or not activated by environmental triggers." Although the changes are not as drastic to a human as the metamorphosis from a caterpillar to a butterfly, Isobell said "there is research demonstrating impacted psychosocial functioning and wellbeing in second and third generations, even when life is stable and safe." While this analysis sheds light on individual instances of intergenerational trauma, it also raises questions about collective intergenerational trauma. When one looks at the current wars going on in Israel, Ukraine and elsewhere, it is natural to wonder about the role played by intergenerational trauma in both fostering and perpetuating those conflicts. To what extent are Israelis and Palestinians alike motivated by the past human rights violations that their ancestors endured? Will the conflict in Ukraine lead to intergenerational trauma passed on by Ukrainian parents to their children? "There is a crucial difference between generations who are safe and living in non-traumatic contexts but are impacted by the experiences of their parents, grandparents or ancestors [versus] people, families or cultures who are impacted by trauma transgenerationally," Isobel pointed out. "In populations where exposure to trauma is widespread and sustained, epigenetic changes can become hardwired to enable survival and it can be very difficult to separate out direct trauma responses and those passed down across generations. Trauma of past generations and present dont exist as discrete occurrences they blur into a way of being and knowing, reinforced by environmental factors and events." Isobel added, "In these situations, intergenerational trauma compounds primary trauma leading to complex experiences of transgenerational trauma." Perhaps the best way of understanding intergenerational trauma is to keep in mind that, as Yehuda put it, "what we do know or can observe in people who have an ancestral legacy of trauma cannot be linked to the biology at this point." In addition, there probably is no single response to intergenerational trauma that is easily identifiable: "Sometimes the fact that prior generations have undergone what you are going through makes your current situation seem more acute and intensifies emotions, but sometimes it reminds you that we survive things after all," Yehuda explained. In the end, while the science has yet to offer definite explanations for intergenerational trauma, what we do know for sure "is that in some form, we carry effects of our parent and grandparents' pasts with us. Our ancestors past matters." Yehuda added, "Whether this helps us or hurts us or even whether we have control to use the legacy of these past experiences to our best survival advantage is something we need to learn a lot more about." As the U.S. Senate prepares to debate a funding proposal in support of Israel, some Tri-Citians are continuing to take to the streets to show how they feel about the Israel-Hamas War. The Party for Socialism and Liberations (PSL) local chapter has held demonstrations in support of a free Palestine every weekend since the Oct. 7 attacks intensified the conflict. On Saturday, Nov. 18, about 40 supporters gathered at the USS Triton Park in Richland. The first demonstration in Tri-Cities drew hundreds of attendees. Locals with signs calling for a ceasefire, an end to the occupation and other demands, have gathered on sidewalks and in parks, participating in chants to support their message. Free, free Palestine, said a PSL member into a bullhorn. Attendees chanted back: Occupation is a crime. Peaceful protesters in Pasco, WA call for a free Palestine on Oct. 28. Hundreds gathered with signs and chants to protest U.S. support of the Israeli Defense Forces. Tri-Citians speak on funding Israel Most Washington Congressional members made initial comments condemning Hamas for the Oct. 7 attack, and have offered no statements since. Locally, several Tri-Citians at the protests and others who contacted the Herald directly said theyve been emailing, calling and mailing their federal Congressional members, including Rep. Dan Newhouse, Sen. Patty Murray and Sen. Maria Cantwell, attending town halls and attempting to communicate concerns over the support. Many who spoke to the Herald said theyve received little or no response. Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., held two virtual town halls sessions on Nov. 14-15 to hear constituent concerns on any issue in the 4th District. Several PSL members said they logged in but when one tried to talk about concerns for Newhouses support for Israel the person was removed from the virtual meeting. But a Newhouse spokesman in D.C. was adamant that no one was intentionally cutoff. The Congressman spoke with multiple people on the town hall, including with those who disagreed with him about his support for Israel in the wake of Hamas brutal attack on our nations ally. No one was removed from the meeting. Locals want to hear from Newhouse PSL says they intended the Nov. 18 demonstration to be a direct message to the congressman, demanding a response to their concerns about his unequivocal support of Israel despite the bombings in Gaza that have killed thousands. As a party, PSL is historically anti-war and has been actively voicing their opinions regarding conflicts in the Middle East for decades. The protest started at the USS Triton Park in Richland, where attendees were encouraged to make signs and notes as a message to Newhouse. After about an hour, they walked to his Tri-Cities office on George Washington Way. Dan Newhouse, you cant hide, attendees said in unison as they walked. Youre supporting genocide! Peaceful protesters covered the entrance to Representative Dan Newhouses Richland office on George Washington Way with messages regarding the congressmans support for Israel. Dozens of sticky notes were stuck on the office doors, and signs were propped on the ground. LED candles were placed in memory of innocent Palestinians killed. Chalk messages were written on the walkway to the door. Newhouse has been one of the most prominent voices in support of getting the aid package to Israel. I have been and remain a staunch advocate for Israel and her interests, he said in a Nov. 3 statement. The violence we have seen from Hamas in the past weeks is unconscionable and is a direct reflection of the radical interests of this group. I proudly cosponsored the SHIP Act and H. Res 798, both aimed at condemning these violent attacks and ensuring our allies have the resources they need, he said. Long history of struggle Israel and Palestine have long been in conflict, particularly in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. However, Palestinians also live in territories claimed by both Israel and Palestine, like East Jerusalem, and millions live in exile. Depending on where Palestinians live, their rights vary as a result of varying decades of changing boundaries and governing controls. The United Nations considers the West Bank and Gaza Strip as under Israeli occupation. In Gaza, Israel controls the food, water, electricity and other supplies. Human Rights Watch and others say the conditions of life for Palestinians in Gaza are like the worlds largest open-air prison. Gaza is one of the most densely-populated locations on Earth, populated by primarily refugees. Hamas is a political and military group in Gaza that the U.S. State Department classifies as a terrorist organization. It has grown in power since 2007 and is deemed responsible for the October attack that killed more than 1,200 Israelis. The Israeli Defense Forces says Hamas also took 240 people hostage. Israel has responded with attacks nearly every day, leading to more than 11,000 deaths, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. And Palestinian officials report more than 10,000 Palestinians have been imprisoned. Now, the U.S. House has passed a $14.3 billion proposal for additional military and defense aid to Israel, and the bill has gone to the Senate for debate. University of Houston professors Emran El-Badawi, left, and Robert Zaretsky pose for a photo on the campus in Houston, TX on November 15, 2023. Sharon Steinmann/Staff Photographer Palestinians mourn relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip in front of the morgue in Deir al Balah, Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. Hatem Moussa/AP This slaughter of innocents on both sides has divided the world a division playing out not just in the corridors of political power and cultural production, but also on the campuses of American universities. One consequence, declared the Chronicle of Higher Education, is that advocates, donors, and faculty have flooded administrators inboxes with a flurry of open letters, statements, and petitions demanding that they denounce, speak up for, or stay silent in response to campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war. Yet few people are demanding that universities do what they are meant to do. Rather than choosing one of these sides, they must choose the side of humanity. The authors of this essay one who researches Arab history and Islamic thought, the other who studies the history of French Jewry believe that we can best do this by turning to the humanities as a site not of division and despair, but of comprehension and compassion. Advertisement Article continues below this ad This begins with the study of the past. Many historians have plumbed the social and political sources to the Shoah Nazi Germanys destruction of European Jewry while paying special attention to the long history of antisemitism, an ideology that has its roots in Europe and whose deadly persistence frames how Jews forcibly see the current nightmare unfolding in Israel and Gaza. More recently, other historians have deepened our understanding of the Nakba the catastrophe visited on the Palestinians by Jewish settlers, culminating in Israels creation in 1948. This led to the flight of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, many expelled by the Israeli military and many others fled voluntarily or under orders from their leaders. While philosophers and classicists cannot resolve this tragic situation, they can suggest what we might learn from it. Classicists recall that ancient tragedians like Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides did not do happy endings. Their endings are horrifying, not because they abound in human gore and guts all of that takes place off stage but because they abound in human dilemmas. Not only is there no good choice, but even the best of bad choices is soul-battering. Consider the dilemma that confronts Agamemnon in Aeschylus Oresteia: If he obeys a gods command to sail to Troy to win back Helen, he must then obey a goddess order to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia. As he cries out, Pain both ways, and which is worse? The answer, tragically, is that both choices are worse. What Agamemnon fails to do, Aeschylus reveals, is to hold on to his humanity once he makes his choice. By turning a fellow human being into something other and something less than human in this case, his child Agamemnon adds to the worlds already unbearable amount of pain and bloodshed. Here is where philosophers can perhaps help us. More than a millennium after Aeschylus, Al-Mawardi, the famed 11th century Iraqi jurist, found himself in a situation similar to Agamemnon. As social and theological divisions deepened between rulers and ruled across the caliphate, both sides turned to Al-Mawardi for his support and wisdom. Faced with the grim choice of popular rebellion or a powerful ruler, Al-Mawardi favored the latter, but also forcefully reminded the sultan of his duties to those he ruled. By proposing what came to be known as the Sunni compromise, Al-Mawardi made a stand for moderation and saved lives. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Shortly after, in southern Spain, the philosopher Ibn Tufayl anticipated modern sci-fi with his remarkable novel Hayy Ibn Yaqzan. Its the story of a single man in a state of nature. Hes intrinsically curious and fundamentally reasonable, making discoveries about his place in the world with each passing day. The multiplicity of individuals in the same species, he concludes, is like the multiplicity of parts in the same person. The novel, with its emphasis on tolerance and reason, is a summons to recall that the shattering of lives in Israel and Gaza is also a shattering of shared and single humanity. Leaping forward yet another millennium, we find the 20th century Jewish thinker Martin Buber reminding us that we relate to the world in two ways. First, there is the I-It relationship. This defines our relationship to objects, including our fellow human beings, that we reduce to things that we manipulate and exploit. Second, there is the I-Thou relationship, which entails our recognition that the other is no longer a dot in the world grid of space and time. Instead, he or she is Thou and fills the firmament. Yet this perspective, Buber warns, leads to tragedy. Inevitably, as our attention wanes, so too does our ability to see fellow human beings as subjects. In a haunting phrase, Buber remarks that contemplation never lasts long. In his magnum opus The Prophet, the 20th century Lebanese-American author Khalil Gibran also dwells on both the promise and predicament that define our common lot. Astonished by what he sees, he admonishes an unforgiving world losing its grip on humanity: Oftentimes have I heard you speak of one who commits a wrong as though he were not one of you, but a stranger unto you and an intruder upon your world. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Given events in Israel and Gaza, contemplation, rather than a luxury we cannot afford, is a duty we cannot avoid. Albert Camus, Gibrans younger contemporary, also insisted on the necessity of recalling our common humanity as we confront an absurd world. In his philosophical essay The Rebel, Camus warned that when the goal is absolute, there is absolutely nothing, including the lives of innocents, that will get in our way. This is why, he explains, the true rebel demands a certain degree of freedom for himself, but in no case does he demand the right to destroy the existence and the freedom of others. And yet, we now witness two peoples trampling on that right and abetting the tragic absurdity of our world. We certainly do not need the humanities to remind us that Palestinians and Israelis have sacrificed too many children already. Nor do we need the humanities to recall that we are sacrificing a world in which their children can take responsibility for one another, a world that desperately needs the space and time an immediate cease-fire to save not just lives but also to salvage a livable future. But we do need the humanities, more than ever, to instruct us about our strengths and weaknesses, and inspire us to do what we can even in the knowledge that it will not be enough. There may well be no reason to hope, as Camus once wrote, but that is no reason for despair. I booked $250 roundtrip flights from Vancouver to Dublin with an online budget travel agency. The agency didn't tell us our flight home got canceled then rebooked us on a nightmare route. An airport agent took pity on us at our first layover stop and got us on a direct flight home. I live for a cheap flight deal. Recently, I pounced on a roundtrip flight from Vancouver, Canada, to Dublin for only $344 Canadian dollars, or about $250. This flight can typically cost over CA$1,000. The deal was so good that I didn't give it a second thought when I had to book through an online travel agency instead of directly with the airline to score the low price. A few months later, my husband and I were sipping Guinness and traipsing around the Cliffs of Moher. But our troubles began when we tried to get home. We discovered our direct flight had been canceled at the last minute and our rebooked route was awful We had fun in Ireland but the troubles started on our way home. Riana Ang-Canning The day before our return flight to Vancouver, I went to check in online like I always do. But I couldn't find our flight. Panicked, I reached out to the airline, who let me know I would need to contact the travel agency we'd booked the flights through. After hours of waiting on hold while paying long-distance call charges, I got to talk to someone at the agency and learned that our flight home had been canceled. The agency hadn't bothered to inform us. Fortunately, they offered to book us another route home. But instead of a direct flight, we were given a nightmarish three-layover, four-flight route. Our new itinerary had us flying from Dublin to London, London to New York, New York to Toronto, and finally, Toronto to Vancouver. As a nervous flyer, I was dreading the long journey. But with no other options, we headed to the airport for a 6:30 a.m. departure from Dublin. Unfortunately, our long travel day started out even longer: Our flight from Dublin to London was delayed. Luckily, an agent at the airport in London saved the day Our luck changed when we got to London. JC Cuellar / Shutterstock By the time we reached London, we'd already missed our connecting flight to New York. We headed to the airline's customer-service desk to see what they could do since I really didn't want to be on hold for hours to get back in touch with the travel agency. That's when our luck changed. An agent at the desk saw our itinerary and the bloodshot look in my tired eyes and took pity on us. She offered not just to rebook our connecting flights but to completely change our itinerary and put us on a direct flight to Vancouver that night. We were so fortunate that the angel in customer service helped us, but I never want to test our luck again. Many travel agencies may be perfectly fine and I'm glad I got my flight deal, but this experience was a nightmare. In the future, I'll skip the middleman and book directly with an airline that'll notify me about canceled flights and be way easier to contact if they need to be rebooked. Read the original article on Insider Incendiary rhetoric, performances for the cameras and gripes with the judge seem all but certain to be hallmarks of former President Trumps hush money criminal trial, which is expected to take place in New York City early next year. The battle will play out just steps from the state courthouse where Trumps civil fraud case is unfolding and which may be offering a glimpse of whats to come. Two of Trumps lawyers on the upcoming hush money case, Susan Necheles and Todd Blanche, were spotted taking notes at the fraud case and conferring on the defense side of the courtroom. Best Black Friday Deals Some of the civil fraud case witnesses could also appear in the hush money trial. In the hush money case, Trump faces 34 charges of falsifying business records linked to payments amounting in a combined $280,000 made to former porn actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal to cover up allegations of an affair. While hush money itself is legal, prosecutors charged Trump over how he reimbursed his then-fixer, Michael Cohen, who paid the women. In a surprise, Trump last week this dropped his months-long bid to move the criminal case to federal court. Although doing so would not have made the indictment subject to a presidential pardon, moving courts wouldve broadened the jury pool beyond deep-blue Manhattan and doomed the chances of the proceedings being broadcast. A federal judge previously rejected Trumps efforts to move courts, ruling the case was not sufficiently connected to his role as president, causing Trumps counsel to appeal. But Tuesday, his lawyers without explanation filed documents voluntarily dismissing that effort. Necheles and Blanche did not return requests for comment. Moving ahead in state court changes the dynamic in several respects, including the possibility that Trumps trial will be televised. Media outlets, including Nexstar Media Group, the parent company of The Hill, have mounted attempts to enable Trumps criminal trials to be broadcast, without much luck. In Washington, D.C., where the former president faces federal charges over his efforts to subvert the 2020 election results, Trump and his legal team sided with media outlets and demanded the trial be televised. The prosecution wishes to continue this travesty in darkness. President Trump calls for sunlight, Trumps legal team wrote in a court filing Monday. Every person in America, and beyond, should have the opportunity to study this case firsthand and watch as, if there is a trial, President Trump exonerates himself of these baseless and politically motivated charges. But as opposed to Trumps federal cases, where the broadcasting requests are viewed as a long-shot bid, given the long-standing rules prohibiting recordings of any federal court proceeding, the matter remains an open question in the New York Supreme Court. Media outlets unsuccessfully attempted to broadcast Trumps New York arraignment, though the judge did permit still photographers inside the courtroom for a few moments, enabling the now historic photo of Trump sitting with his attorneys. Broadcasting was allowed in the hallway outside the courtroom, but Trump declined to respond to questions from reporters. However, he has taken a different approach throughout the ongoing fraud trial where the court has implemented similar media rules in recent months. Instead of blowing off reporters, Trump has basked in the limelight. At the start of each day of trial, a handful of photographers and videographers shuffle into the courtroom to make a flurry of images depicting the scene a stern-faced Trump and his battle-ready counsel, a smiling judge beside his controversial clerk and an overflowing gallery seated behind New York Attorney General Letitia James (D). The former president and his entourage before, after and sometimes in between the trial proceedings make fiery speeches outside the courtroom decrying as a political enemy the judge, his clerk, James and anyone else prosecuting him. That energy has sometimes spread to high-profile witnesses. After Cohen testified against his former client, the ex-Trump lawyer and fixer told reporters hed continue to fight against Trump, asserting that the former president will ultimately be held accountable. Eric Trump also remarked to the cameras after his testimony that the witch hunt against his father for political purposes is disgusting. With easy access to reporters and cameras, courthouses have become impromptu campaign stops for Trump, who has maintained his strong lead in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. Facing legal headwinds, Trump has attempted to win his cases in the court of public opinion, portraying his four criminal indictments and several civil cases as evidence of a system biased against him, regularly railing against judges, prosecutors and court staff. In Trumps civil fraud case, the sole decider of his business empires fate is Judge Arthur Engoron, who is presiding over the bench trial with no jury. Engoron and Trump have strongly butted heads throughout the fraud trial, with the former president describing the judge as Trump hating, Radical Left and complicit in purported prosecutorial misconduct. Trumps legal team filed for a mistrial earlier last week on the sole basis that Engoron and his principal law clerk had tainted the case with bias. Engoron dismissed the motion. Trumps rhetoric toward Engoron and his clerk in legal filings and the courtroom is intensified on his Truth Social account, where he rails against their oversight near-daily. Although a jury will hand down a verdict in Trumps hush money case, dropping the effort to move courts means Trumps trial will be overseen by Judge Juan Merchan, whom the former president has repeatedly criticized. Trump had even sought Merchans recusal from the case. The dropped effort contrasts with Trumps criminal case in Georgia, where he opted against trying to move his charges to federal court after expressing confidence in the state judge. This decision is based on his well-founded confidence that this Honorable Court intends to fully completely protect his constitutional right to a fair trial and guarantee him due process of law throughout the prosecution of his case in the Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia, wrote Steve Sadow, Trumps lead attorney in the case. Now, all eyes are on whether Trump will do the same when he makes his next court appearance in the hush money case Feb. 15, when Trump will attempt to get the case thrown out without a trial. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Former President Donald Trump on Sunday visited Texas near the US-Mexico border as he escalates his anti-immigrant rhetoric and campaigns on hard-line immigration policy proposals. During the visit, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination received the endorsement of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. We need Donald J. Trump back as our president of the United States of America, the Republican governor said at an event with the former president in Edinburg, Texas. Speaking in front of a small crowd at the South Texas International Airport, Trump bashed President Joe Biden over his handling of the border, arguing the US now has the most unsecure border in the history, I believe, really, of the world. The former president has been ramping up his rhetoric on the campaign trail, promising to conduct the largest domestic deportation operation in American history if he wins the White House next year. He has said that undocumented immigrants are poisoning the blood of our country in comments that echoed White supremacist rhetoric and has compared migrants who come to the US to the fictional serial killer Hannibal Lecter. Theres never been anything like this. Our country is being invaded. This is an invasion, Trump, who has made curtailing illegal immigration a cornerstone of his 2024 campaign, declared at a recent rally in Hialeah, Florida. Trump is planning a widespread expansion of his administrations hard-line immigration policies that would restrict both legal and illegal immigration, should he be elected to a second term. The plans include rounding up undocumented immigrants already in the US and placing them in detention camps to await deportation. Such a proposal would necessitate building large camps to house migrants waiting for deportation and tapping federal and local law enforcement to assist with arrests of undocumented immigrants across the country. Stopping the invasion at our southern border is an urgent national security necessity and one of President Trumps top priorities. For that reason, he has laid out in his own speeches and Agenda 47 platform by far the most detailed program for securing the border, stopping illegal immigration, and removing those who should never have been allowed into our country in the first place, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign said in a statement to CNN. Biden campaign officials slammed the policies last week, calling them unAmerican. Simply put, Donald Trump is going after immigrants, our rights, our safety and our democracy. And that is really whats on the ballot next year, said Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez. The Biden campaign also blasted Trumps visit to the US-Mexico border, casting the former presidents immigration policies as inhumane and draconian. The former president has been pointing to the Israel-Hamas war to stoke fear and anti-immigrant sentiment within the US to advocate an immigration crackdown. Hes pushed for ideological screenings of immigrants, blocking immigrants and refugees from predominantly Muslim countries, and deporting people in the US on visas who he argues have jihadist sympathies. This story has been updated with additional information. CNNs Priscilla Alvarez contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Former President Donald Trump will test the limits of his free speech rights Monday when he argues to a Washington, DC, appeals court that a gag order placed on him in his federal election subversion criminal case is not constitutionally sound. The high-stakes hearing before the US DC Circuit Court of Appeals will represent Trumps latest bid to undo the gag order issued by a federal judge last month, an effort he says is necessary to defend himself outside the courtroom as he campaigns for a second term in the White House. The gag order from District Judge Tanya Chutkan restricts Trumps ability to publicly target court personnel, potential witnesses, special counsel Jack Smith and his staff. Prosecutors argue such attacks could endanger some people close to the case. The appeals court has temporarily frozen the gag order as Trump continues to contest it. The Gag Order violates President Trumps most fundamental First Amendment rights. Even worse, it gives no consideration to the First Amendment rights of President Trumps audience, the American public, to receive and listen to his speech, Trumps attorneys told the appeals court earlier this month. Legal experts have cast doubt on Trumps argument, with Catherine Ross, a professor at the George Washington University Law School, saying she believes Trumps appeal is meritless. It is a foundational principle that First Amendment rights to speak may sometimes have to give way to the integrity of the judicial process and the importance of guaranteeing a fair trial, Ross said. This is a routine kind of limitation on criminal defendants, Ross added. It is more important to this discussion that hes a criminal defendant than that hes running for president. This is the second Trump appeal of a gag order in the past week. The former president was recently under a gag order in the $250 million New York state civil fraud case. The judge overseeing that case barred Trump and his lawyers from making any statements about court staff, pointing to security risks. But on Thursday, an appeals court judge in the state temporarily lifted that gag order, saying the constitutional rights at issue gave rise to his decision to side, for now, with the former president. Both sides in Smiths case will have the option of appealing the courts decision to a panel comprised of all the judges on the DC Circuit or directly to the Supreme Court. The DC Circuit has considered a litany of Trump-related cases particularly during his presidency and the three-judge panel randomly selected to handle the gag order appeal includes two judges who have sided against Trump in recent years: Circuit Judges Patricia Millett and Cornelia Pillard, both of whom were appointed by former President Barack Obama. The third jurist on the panel Circuit Judge Brad Garcia, an appointee of President Joe Biden joined the bench earlier this year and has yet to hear a Trump-related case. Smith has brought four charges against Trump for his alleged efforts to remain in power after losing the 2020 election. The former president has pleaded not guilty and Chutkan has scheduled his trial for early March. First Amendment scrutiny Trumps attorneys have mounted a constitutional challenge to the gag order, claiming that it violates a number of his rights chief among them those guaranteed under the First Amendment. His legal team has asked the circuit judges to consider whether Chutkans restrictions run afoul of the free speech rights of Trump and tens of millions of Americans to engage in and hear core political speech in the middle of an ongoing Presidential campaign. The panel will also decide whether the gag order is unconstitutionally vague, with Trumps lawyers arguing that it lacks clear and precise language needed to pass legal muster. It restricts large amounts of core political speech that poses no plausible threat to the administration of justice, Trumps attorneys told the court in a filing. The entire Gag Order rests on an unconstitutional hecklers veto theory, so it is overbroad in its entirety. Trumps arguments were not persuasive when he tried to have Chutkan pause the gag order while his appeal unfolded. In rejecting his request last month, the judge said that the First Amendment rights of participants in criminal proceedings must yield, when necessary, to the orderly administration of justice. Prosecutors, meanwhile, have consistently said that Trumps attacks on individuals close to the case give rise to the restrictions on his speech. They told the appeals court last week that the Chutkan did not err when she issued the gag order and that the former presidents recent attacks on people close to the case while the order has been frozen are a reason his speech should be curtailed. There has never been a criminal case in which a court has granted a defendant an unfettered right to try his case in the media, malign the prosecutor and his family, and target specific witnesses with attacks on their character and credibility, Smiths team wrote in a filing. The defendant has recently resumed targeting the Special Counsels family while the order has been administratively stayed, they said. At a campaign rally earlier this month, Trump repeated several attacks on Smith, including with references to the special counsels family. The former president said Smith is deranged and a Trump-hating prosecutor, and that his wife and family despise me much more than he does. Referring to the alleged ill will Smith and his family have for Trump, the former president said that Smith is about at 10 and his family is about a 15 on a scale of 10. Some major legal groups have raised concerns about the gag order, including the American Civil Liberties Union. The entire order hinges on the meaning of the word target, the ACLU wrote in a proposed court filing. But that meaning is ambiguous, and fails to provide the fair warning that the Constitution demands, especially when, as here, it concerns a prior restraint on speech. Latest clash at the DC Circuit The DC Circuit has ruled against Trump in a number of cases both during and after his presidency, with Trump at times taking his losses straight to the Supreme Court for further review. In one of his more memorable cases before the appeals court, Trump lost a bid in 2021 to block records from his time in the White House from being released to the House select committee that investigated the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. In a unanimous opinion authored by Millett, the court said that what transpired on the day of the Capitol attack exposed the fragility of those democratic institutions and traditions that we had perhaps come to take for granted and said Trump had given no reason for the court to prevent the government from turning over the materials. The Supreme Court rejected Trumps appeal. In two recent cases related to Smiths pair of cases against Trump, the appeals court in decisions joined by Judge Pillard ruled in favor of positions that were potentially damaging to Trumps cause. In one 2-1 ruling from late last month, the court upheld the Justice Departments ability to prosecute January 6 rioters with an obstruction charge in a ruling that is likely to bolster their case against Trump, who has been charged under the same federal statute in Smiths case. The other case involved Trumps defense attorney Evan Corcoran, with the appeals court upholding a lower court order that said the lawyer must provide testimony to the grand jury that investigated classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago. The lower court made the decision after prosecutors with Smiths office successfully argued that they had enough evidence that Trumps interactions with Corcoran were part of a possible crime. Trump was later charged in the classified documents probe, where he has pleaded not guilty. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Trump denied old claims from the 2016 Steele dossier that sex workers had urinated on him. He said that his wife Melania didn't believe the allegations because he is a germophobe. He told a rally of supporters in Iowa that his wife knew he wasn't into "golden showers." Former President Donald Trump said that his wife, Melania, didn't believe allegations that sex workers had urinated on him because he is a "germophobe." "'He was with four hookers' you think that was good that night to go up and tell my wife? 'It's not true darling, I love you very much, it's not true,'" Trump said, reenacting telling his wife about the claims made in the infamous Steele dossier. "Actually, that one she didn't believe because she said, 'he's a germophobe, he's not into that, you know.' He's not into 'golden showers' as they say," he said while speaking at a rally in Fort Dodge, Iowa, on Saturday. In a heavily disputed dossier compiled in 2016, the former British spy Christopher Steele claimed that Russian authorities had covertly filmed sex workers urinating on Trump in a Moscow hotel room. Trump has long denied the dossier's contents, and there is no evidence to suggest such a tape exists. Steele has since doubled down on his claims, saying that he believed the tape "probably exists" and claimed, without evidence, that Russia may have kept the tape hidden because Trump offered the country "pretty good value" during his time in office. Trump has often brought up the allegations unprompted during rallies and speeches. The former president has long been a self-confessed germophobe and said in a 1999 interview that shaking hands was a "barbaric practice" because it spreads flu germs. Some of his aides told Politico in 2019 that he would ask visitors to the Oval Office to wash their hands before entering and would "scowl" at staff who coughed or sneezed around him. Read the original article on Business Insider The 2024 campaign of former US president Donald Trump has made clear that if the real estate tycoon is re-elected, he will engineer a tough crackdown on the undocumented, reportedly including huge detention camps and mass deportations (JIM WATSON) Donald Trump takes his presidential campaign down to the border with Mexico on Sunday, as he seeks to double down on the hardline immigration policies that were a hallmark of his first White House term. In recent weeks, the former president has ramped up his campaign rhetoric to extreme levels, warning that undocumented migrants are "poisoning the blood of our country" and denouncing his political opponents as "vermin." Trump plans to visit the Texas-Mexico border Sunday with Governor Greg Abbott, a like-minded advocate of tough immigration measures. The Texas legislature recently passed a bill that would make entry into the state without papers a crime punishable by up to two years in jail -- or up to 20 years if the person refuses to leave the United States. The bill would allow Texas officers to arrest anyone they believed was in the state without proper documentation, a power that critics say is sure to be abused. Abbott has vowed to sign the measure into law. The Trump campaign has made clear that if the real estate tycoon is re-elected, he will engineer a tough crackdown of his own on the undocumented, reportedly including huge detention camps and mass deportations. Texas has been a reliably conservative bastion for Trump as he looks forward to the 2024 elections, and he holds huge leads both there and nationwide over his Republican rivals. Trump and Abbott blame President Joe Biden for the current migrant crisis, as thousands of people flow into the country from Latin American countries beset by crime, poverty and violence. How Biden handles the crisis could play a major role in the 2024 election. The president met Friday with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in San Francisco, and thanked the Mexican leader for his "cooperation" over the migrant crisis. Lopez Obrador, in turn, thanked Biden for being the first recent president "who has not built walls." But the Mexican leader blasted the Texas border bill, saying it would lead to family separation, discrimination and racial profiling. Rights groups have also sharply assailed the bill. If enacted, the measure would be among the "most radical anti-immigrant bills ever passed by any state," said Oni Blair, who heads the American Civil Liberties Union's Texas chapter. mav/bbk/caw/aha Firefighting crews from across Burke County met in Valdese to battle two fires raging on the mountain range. Burke County 911 issued an alert for Mineral Springs Mountain around 3:30 p.m. Saturday warning residents of the fires. The Chesterfield Fire Rescue shared these pictures of the smoke on the mountain: One of the fires was controlled by 4:30 p.m. and the other was getting close to containment, according to the county fire marshal who spoke to our newsgathering partners at The Morganton Herald. Every fire department in the county responded to the fires because of the threat to homes on the mountain, according to a social media post by Burke County 911. The N.C. Forest Service sent several low-flying aircraft, including air tankers and helicopters, to assist. When The Morganton Herald talked to Burke County Fire Marshal Mike Willis Saturday afternoon, he said the estimated area burned was around 5 to 6 acres. READ MORE: Dry conditions fan fire risks in the Carolinas No evacuation was ordered, and residents were told to communicate with fire crews if they wanted to leave. Leaving without alerting the crews can risk the lives of firefighters. A burn ban remains in effect and all open burning is prohibited. Those violating the ban can be fined by the North Carolina Forest Service and The Burke County Fire Marshall. County fire officials have been pleading with people not to burn due to drought conditions. Open burning combined with the winds can cause a fire to grow out of control and become a fast-moving wildfire. Channel 9 asked the N.C. Forest Service and Burke County Emergency Management what caused the fire, how long for both fires to be controlled, and the total amount of land burned. (WATCH: Tractor-trailer crash ignites thousand-acre brush fire near Asheville) WASHINGTON (DC News Now) The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) said officers arrested two suspects who were wanted after being indicted by the US District Court. 20-year-old Keion Brown and 18-year-old Jovan Williams, both from Northwest, D.C., were arrested on Friday by MPDs Sixth District Crime Suppression Team. Brown and Williams as well as a 16-year-old boy from Maryland were charged with carrying a pistol without a license, armed robbery, armed carjacking, and other related charges. Williams was also arrested in connection with a warrant out of Maryland. Former Frederick County town commissioner arrested for allegedly assaulting 13-year-old son Previously, on June 27, MPD, the FBI, the DEA, the IRS, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) arrested 12 alleged members of a drug trafficking organization. The members were charged with conspiracy to commit drug trafficking, possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking, assault with a dangerous weapon, and other related charges. Law enforcement also seized multiple firearms and narcotics. MPD is seeking two additional suspects who are indicted for similar charges in association with the previous arrests. They were identified as 24-year-old Warren Lawrence Fields, III, of Oxon Hill, Md., and 27-year-old Juwan Demetrius Clark, of Northwest, D.C. Anyone with information is asked to call police at (202) 727-9099 or text MPDs tip line at 50411. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. In a coordinated effort, Jacksonville Beach law enforcement announced the arrest of two suspects following a reported theft spree across multiple stores, resulting in the arrest of Gilbert Simmons and Joshua Hough. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< According to the Jacksonville Beach Police, at around 2:11 p.m., officers responded to a reported theft at Ulta Beauty, located at 3928 3rd Street South. The incident unfolded when officers received information about a suspicious vehicle parked in front of Staples, across the parking lot from Ulta, prior to their arrival. Police report that the vehicle was occupied by a male identified as Gilbert Simmons, believed to be one of the suspects involved in the reported theft. As officers approached the area, they reportedly witnessed a second male, later identified as Joshua Hough, hastily exiting Staples with a cart full of merchandise. Staples employees pursued Hough as he loaded the stolen items into the awaiting vehicle. Upon police intervention, Hough fled on foot, prompting a pursuit. Meanwhile, Simmons, the driver of the vehicle, was taken into custody without incident. The second suspect reportedly attempted to evade capture by seeking refuge in Home Depot, but officers successfully located and apprehended him without further issues. According to the Jacksonville Beach Police, a subsequent investigation revealed that Hough had targeted five stores within Jacksonville Beach, including Rack Room Shoes, Books-A-Million, Ace Hardware, Ulta Beauty, and Staples. The stolen merchandise amassed a total value of approximately $4,200.00. Gilbert Simmons, a 37-year-old male, faces charges of 2 counts of accessory to grand theft. Joshua Hough, a 38-year-old male, has been charged with 3 counts of petit theft and 2 counts of grand theft. Both suspects were transported and booked into the Duval County Jail. The Jacksonville Beach Police Department is urging businesses and residents to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities to ensure the safety and security of the community. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] 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. View of, standing center, from left. Egyptian President Anwar El-Sadat, U.S. President Jimmy Carter, and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin as they stand for their respective national anthems on the North Lawn of the White House, Washington D.C., March 26, 1979. Following the Camp David Accord, they were there to sign the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty. Credit - Diana WalkerGetty Images The Biden Administration is confronting a world that looks a lot like the 1970s. Israel has been surprised by an attack on a Jewish holy day, Russia is bogged down in a war with a neighbor, superpower competition is on the rise, American embassies are under attack in the Middle East, and the U.S. appears unprepared to deal with the threats of an ever-changing world. Yet, while similarities between the 1970s and the 2020s abound, these arent just parallel moments. Rather, the failures by the American government in handling the crises of the 1970s helped lay the groundwork for the events in 2023especially in the Middle East. And recent administrations have compounded the situation by failing to grasp the mistakes of the past and correct course. In the 1970s, American policymakers strove to create security and stability in the region. But these efforts floundered because they did not do enough to address the plight of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugeesor to bring about a peaceful resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. When Jimmy Carter entered office in 1977, he had an ambitious plan to pursue a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace process that would guarantee Palestinian statehood and rights. Over the next three years, however, the process fell apart. The initial blow came four months after Carter was sworn in. For the first time, Israeli voters handed control of the Knesset to a right-wing government led by new Prime Minster Menachim Begin. Begin took a hard line in terms of the peace process, and his refusal to make concessions made securing any regional deal difficult. Further plaguing Carter's efforts throughout 1977, the Arab states were completely divided over how to represent themselves at a peace conference. They split over questions of what a self-governing Palestinian entityor, prior to that, even a Palestinian delegationmight look like. Indeed, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), recognized by the Arab states as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, refused to recognize Israels right to exist (though they had previously signaled willingness to do so). On another front, Syrian President Hafez al-Assad insisted on the return of the Golan Heights, which the Israelis had captured in the 1967 War, along with an agreeable solution for the Palestinian people. Read More: Former Israeli Prime Minister: Israels Endgame in Gaza Should be a Palestinian State Those were just a few examples of the hurdles that made it impossible even to bring all of the parties together to negotiatelet alone brokering a deal. Additionally, in October of that year, the U.S. reneged on an agreement to host a comprehensive Middle East peace conference with the Soviet Union, due to a mix of domestic political pressure and advocacy by Israel. Because the Arab states had better relations with the Kremlin than with the White House, this drastically lowered the odds of the Arabs coming to the table. While Carter subsequently attempted to revive the comprehensive peace process, he never came closer to it than he did in his first year in office. As Carter's hopes for a comprehensive Middle East peace deal crumbled, it left only the bilateral peace process between Egypt and Israel, which in 1978 culminated in the Camp David Accords and later the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty. Crucially, however, while Carter's painstaking effort produced a historic peace deal between Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, the exclusion of the Palestinians from the negotiations created tremendous headaches for his administration. This, combined with Begins support for increased settlement expansion in the West Bank and other areas that at the time included Gaza, the Sinai Peninsula, and the Golan Heights, ensured that the Arab countries collectively opposed the agreement, which made it far harder to expand the peace process. Furthermore, while the treaty clearly stipulated that Egypt, Israel, and the U.S. had to work out a deal on the creation of a Palestinian self-governing authority in the West Bank and Gaza Strip by May 25, 1980, the Israelis had no intention of doing so. This largely stemmed from Begins belief that a Palestinian state would be a mortal danger to Israel. It would inevitably be a PLO state . . . turning in no time to a Soviet base. Begin's intransigence, combined with Carters reluctance to force the Israelis to make concessions, ultimately made it impossible to solve the question of Palestinian statehoodwhich affected Americas Cold War effort as well. Carter was hoping to develop a consultative security framework with the moderate Arab states (Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt) to protect American interests in the region from the Soviets and their radical Arab friends like Syria, Libya, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), and South Yemen. Especially after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, Carter was also concerned with securing Americas oil supply. The moderate Arab statesparticularly Saudi Arabia and Egyptwere actually terrified of being overrun by the Soviets and the radical Arabs. But the Saudis and Jordanians were also concerned about how their respective publics might react if they increased their security ties with the U.S. or joined the peace process without the creation of a Palestinian state. Carters team understood that if the U.S. was to increase the security of the Persian Gulf, the military aspect is only half the equation . . . the other half is the need to strengthen and accelerate the peace process. As National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski argued, All of our actions on the security side are futile unless there is parallel progress on the Camp David accords. Failure to conclude a peace deal that included the Palestinians, Carters advisors recognized, risked alienating potential Arab allies and opened up the region to increased Soviet influence. This conundrum led William Odom, Brzezinskis military assistant, to advise that the administration should separate our Arab-Israeli policy from our strategy for the Persian Gulf. But that proved impossible. And Carter was unwilling to force the issue with the Israelis, largely because of domestic political constraints, but also because Sadat had given up so much in negotiations that Egypt had no leverage left, rendering their attempts to pressure the Israelis moot. Without a Palestinian state and an acceptable settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Carter could not establish a pro-American consultative security framework in the Middle East. Todays regional security situation is plagued by similar challenges. Read More: How the Yom Kippur War Changed Israel As was the case with Begin in 1980, over the decades, numerous Israeli governments have proved unwilling to make substantial concessions to the Palestinianseven when Arab states made it clear that they would not normalize relations without respect for Palestinian sovereignty and rights. Yet, once the Arab states demonstrated increased willingness to make peace without serious concessions, Israel had even less incentive to address Palestinian sovereignty. The last few years have featured eerie similarities to the dynamic first seen in the Carter years. During Donald Trumps presidency, the U.S. followed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus lead in normalizing relations between Israel and other Arab states before any Israeli-Palestinian deal. The Israelis liked this idea because it reduced support for the Palestinian Authority from potential wealthy allies, thereby decreasing the PAs leverage in negotiations. Both Netanyahu and Americans policymakers also saw normalization of relations between Arab states and Israel as a key way to balance against Iran. The Trump Administrations orchestration of the Abraham Accords between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco, and the Biden Administrations attempt to expand the Accords to include Saudi Arabia, left Palestinians with little leverage. As was the case with Begin, Netanyahus government took advantage of this situation to enable a massive expansion in Israeli settler activity in the West Bank. More from TIME The terrorist attack on Oct. 7 upended the situation. Hamas attack was horrific in its brutality and its intentional targeting of civilians. Yet, it seems to have at least temporarily achieved one of its aims: preventing an impending Saudi-Israeli peace agreement. The attack and ensuing war have worsened relations between Israel and its Arab neighborsin large part due to the Arab publics support of the Palestinian people. That underscores the lesson that the Trump and Biden Administrations should have learned from the late 1970s: without a lasting settlement acceptable to the Palestinian people and respect for their human rights, regional security is a pipe dream. Benjamin V. Allison is a PhD student in history at the University of Texas at Austin, where he specializes in U.S. foreign and national security policy since 1945, especially toward the Middle East and Russia. He also studies terrorism. Made by History takes readers beyond the headlines with articles written and edited by professional historians. Learn more about Made by History at TIME here. Write to Made by History at madebyhistory@time.com. Gov. Greg Abbott talks to the media during a December 2021 news conference debuting the construction of the Texas border wall in Rio Grande City. Delcia Lopez, MBI / Associated Press Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, right, and former President Donald Trump address supporters and media in June 2021 by the border wall in Pharr. Jerry Lara/San Antonio Express-News Republican state lawmakers are considering a proposal this fall to spend another $1.5 billion on their historic effort to build a wall along Texas southern border. The project, first announced by Gov. Greg Abbott in June 2021, has seen about 12 miles of steel bollards erected since funding was first approved more than two years ago. The $1.5 billion windfall would roughly double what the state already has budgeted for the wall. Most of that has been exhausted by the Texas Facilities Commission, which hired a consulting firm to manage the project, along with five construction companies to build the first 44 miles or so. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The new spending may get tied up amid GOP infighting in the final days of a special legislative session that ends Tuesday, dashing TFCs plans to build 100 miles of the wall by the summer of 2026. But in the meantime, contractors are plodding away at the first 40-plus miles. Who are the firms and how much are they making? TFC officials have awarded contracts to five construction companies for a total of $1.28 billion: BFBC of Texas LLC ($290,000,000) Fisher Sand & Gravel Co. ($254,000,000) Posillico Civil Inc. ($347,265,000) Southwest Valley Constructors Co. ($249,000,000) SLSCO Ltd. ($137,300,000) The agency also has hired a pair of companies, Michael Baker International and Huitt-Zollars Inc., to manage the project. They will receive more than $42 million to oversee construction and continue securing land rights for the wall through 2025. Advertisement Article continues below this ad On top of that, TFC has doled out more than $2 million to a consulting firm, Broaddus & Associates Inc., and paid about $43 million for 12.8 miles of leftover 30-foot steel panels from the Trump administrations halted wall project. The panels were owned by Gibraltar Fabrication LLC. What do we know about these firms? All but one of the construction firms received border wall contracts under the Trump administration, collectively totaling billions of dollars. Much of that construction replaced older fencing and vehicle barriers: By the month before Trump left office, officials had built 415 miles of wall, but only 30 miles in new areas, Hearst Newspapers reported. Fisher Sand & Gravel is the most widely known of the five firms. Tommy Fisher, the companys chief executive, secured $1.7 billion in federal contracts for his North Dakota-based firm after talking up its wall-building prowess in a barrage of conservative media appearances directed at Trump. Fisher also was enlisted to build a 3-mile wall segment in South Texas through a privately crowdsourced effort spearheaded by We Build the Wall, a nonprofit led by former Trump adviser Steve Bannon and other hardline conservatives. The groups four leaders, including Bannon, were accused in 2020 of scheming to divert some of the money for personal use. Two pleaded guilty; another was convicted by a jury; and Bannon was pardoned by Trump. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A ProPublica/Texas Tribune investigation in 2020 found that the 3-mile segment was showing signs of runoff erosion and, if its not fixed, could be in danger of falling into the Rio Grande. In September, TFC officials praised Fishers performance on the state border wall and awarded the firm another $69 million on top of an initial $185 million. Other Trump-era wall contracts went to BFBC a subsidiary of a construction company based in Bozeman, Mont. and SLSCO, a Galveston-based construction company founded and operated by brothers Todd, John and William Billy Sullivan. It is the only Texas-based construction firm of the five hired for Abbotts wall. SLSCO was accused in a 2021 whistleblower lawsuit of illegally hiring Mexican nationals to guard border wall construction sites in California. The suit was later dismissed. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Sullivan brothers collectively have donated $96,000 to Abbotts campaign since 2017, along with numerous other Texas Republicans, according to campaign finance records. Their company also was hired by the Biden administration earlier this year for wall construction in Starr County, the Texas Observer reported. Biden, who vowed during the 2020 campaign to cease further wall building, said he had been forced to move ahead with the project because Congress had authorized the wall funding in 2019, before he took office. Among the biggest recipients of Trumps wall projects was Southwest Valley Constructors, a New Mexico-based subsidiary of the Nebraska construction and engineering giant Kiewit Corp. The firm has received a $249 million contract for Texas wall project. The biggest share of Texas wall construction contracts has gone to Posillico Civil, a New York-based firm that bills itself as the premier heavy civil construction contractor in the tri-state area. The only firm not to receive work on Trump-era wall projects, Posillico was awarded the first contract for Abbotts wall, a $162 million deal that included a 1.7-mile stretch on state-owned land in Starr County. Where is the wall being built, and how much has been installed so far? Advertisement Article continues below this ad State officials have declined to identify specific locations, arguing that cartels and others would use the information to evade the barriers. But they have named at least five counties where construction is planned or underway: Cameron, Maverick, Starr, Val Verde and Webb. At a September meeting, TFC official John Raff provided perhaps the most detailed breakdown so far of where each firm is building its wall segments: BFBC of Texas: 5.51 miles on part of a property in Maverick County and 3.17 miles across three properties in Starr County, for a total of 8.68 miles. Fisher Sand & Gravel.: 4.69 miles on part of a Maverick County property and 5.1 miles in Webb County, for a total of 9.79 miles. Posillico Civil: 7.66 miles across two properties in Maverick County and 5.13 miles over four segments in Starr and Cameron counties, for a total of 12.79 miles. Southwest Valley Constructors: 4.8 miles across two properties in Maverick County and 3.76 miles over two segments in Val Verde County, for a total of 8.56 miles. Last week, Raff told lawmakers that about 12 miles of the wall had been built so far, at a rate of $25 million to $30 million per mile. Much of the progress has come within the last several months after state contractors worked out dozens of agreements with border landowners that opened a path for long-stalled segments to be built on their property. Officials are barred from using eminent domain to forcibly install bollards on private land, so the pace of the construction is dependent on negotiating easements with property owners. But while TFC officials say their newfound success securing land rights has sped up the pace, records show that things are still proceeding slowly. Smoke rises from Gaza, as seen from southern Israel (Reuters) -Israel, the United States and Hamas have reached a tentative agreement to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the deal. As part of the detailed, six-page agreement, all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while "an initial 50 or more hostages are released in smaller groups every 24 hours", the Post reported. Hamas took about 240 hostages during its Oct. 7 rampage inside Israel that killed 1,200 people. The newspaper said overhead surveillance would monitor ground movement to help police the pause, which also is intended to allow in a significant amount of humanitarian aid. There was no immediate comment from the White House or the Israeli prime minister's office on the Post report. The hostage release could begin within the next several days, according to people familiar with its the agreement. (Reporting by Akanksha Khushi in Bengaluru and Doina Chiacu in Washington; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama) The U.S., Israel and Hamas are nearing a tentative deal that could result in the freeing of dozens of hostages held in Gaza, sources told The Washington Post on Saturday. Under this U.S.-brokered agreement, Israel and Hamas will be expected to freeze all combat operations for five days while about 50 hostages are released every 24 hours. There is believed to be a total of about 239 hostages being held in Gaza, according to the Post. The pause, which would be monitored by overhead surveillance, would also assist in allowing humanitarian aid to enter. An outline of the deal was drafted in Doha, Qatar, in recent weeks by Qatari mediators representing the three involved parties in conflict. The hostages could start being released in the next several days, pending the closing of the agreement. The possibility of Israel agreeing to the pause remained unclear in recent weeks. A White House spokesperson said a deal has not yet been reached, but is still working toward one. We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal, Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White Houses National Security Council, posted on X. On Oct. 7, the Gaza-based militant group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel. In retaliation, Israel launched air strike attacks on the territory and declared war. For over a month, Israel has continued to strike at Gaza with the hopes of eliminating Hamas, which has since taken several Israeli hostages. Last week, an estimated 20,000 people, including families of Israeli hostages and their supporters, marched for five days to Jerusalem to put pressure on the Israeli government to take action to bring the hostages back, Reuters reported. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed back on the increasing pressure including from the U.S. to pause the fighting, affirming that Israel would continue going with full steam ahead unless their hostages were released. A U.S. official said earlier this month that a fairly significant pause would be needed to retrieve hostages, similar to the small-scale pause that was done in October that allowed for the release of two American hostages held by Hamas. President Joe Biden has not called for a cease-fire to the war, but said earlier this month that a humanitarian pause was needed to get hostages and to address the crisis in Gaza, especially as the Palestinian death toll surpasses 11,000 and is continuing to rise, CNN reported. Related... Applied Materials, a major U.S.-based maker of chipmaking equipment, is currently under a criminal investigation by the Justice Department for allegedly bypassing U.S. export controls and shipping advanced chipmaking tools to SMIC, a major China-based foundry that is blacklisted by the U.S. government, reports Reuters. During its earnings call on Thursday, the company indicated that the investigation has been ongoing for well over a year. This probe focuses on the accusation that Applied Materials shipped wafer fab equipment worth hundreds of millions of dollars to SMIC via South Korea, sidestepping required export licenses from the U.S. government. The report does not disclose which tools Applied Materials shipped to SMIC and when. The Justice Department is said to be investigating the transactions following the U.S. Commerce Department's decision to add SMIC to its Entity List in December 2020 on national security grounds. In October 2022, Applied Materials acknowledged receiving a subpoena from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Massachusetts, seeking information about its shipments to certain Chinese customers. "We did disclose last year in our K that we have received a subpoena from the U.S. Attorney's Office, and they are requesting information related to certain shipments to China," said Brice Hill, the chief financial officer of Applied, at the company's earnings call with financial analysts and investors this week (via SeekingAlpha). "[] We are fully cooperating with the government on this matter. And, of course, we remain committed to complying to all of the trade rules." The U.S. government imposed strict regulations on the export of high-performance processors and advanced chip manufacturing equipment to China last October, citing national security concerns. In particular, U.S. fab tool makers need a license if they ship equipment to Chinese entities that can make logic chips using 14nm/16nm or more sophisticated technologies. Meanwhile, SMIC, the only China-based foundry that can build 14nm-class chips, has been in the U.S. DoC's Entity List for years, which means that Applied Materials and other prominent makers of chipmaking equipment must obtain an export license for all transactions with SMIC. Despite major sanctions from the U.S. government, SMIC developed its 2nd Generation 7nm-class process technology and established high-volume manufacturing of Huawei's HiSilicon Kirin 9000s processors on the 7nm node earlier this year. Apparently, the company feels quite confident about its 7nm tech and is reportedly making it available to more partners. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) The U.S. Postal Service is looking into making some major changes with how the mail is processed in El Paso. That could include moving some mail processing operations to Albuquerque, according to a news release that was sent out by the agency. According to a news release, USPS is conducting what is known as a Mail Processing Facility Review (MPFR) of processing operations at its El Paso Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC). The review was initiated to evaluate moving some of the mail processing operations from the El Paso P&DC to the Albuquerque P&DC in Albuquerque. The initial results of the facility review support the business case for keeping the El Paso facility open and modernizing the facility as a Local Processing Center (LPC). The El Paso LPC will be a critical node in connecting mail to the state and region. Additionally, the business case supports transferring some mail processing operations to the Albuquerque P&DC, according to a news release. A public meeting will be held at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 28 at the Irving Swartz Library, 1865 Dean Martin. USPS will share the initial results of the study and allow members of the community to provide additional feedback. A summary of the MPFR will be posted on usps.com at least one week prior to public input meeting. Members of the local community may submit written comments at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/mpfr-el-paso-tx though Dec.13. The publics input will be considered prior to a final decision. The Postal Service is investing heavily in its operations as it moves to modernize the nations aging and outmoded postal network and achieve the organizations goal of 95% on-time delivery nationwide, according to the release. The Postal Service will continue to work closely with its unions and management associations throughout the facility review process. This MPFR, currently in review at USPS Headquarters and its Regional Office, is subject to change. The Postal Service will continually monitor the impact of any changes that are implemented and will adjust plans as necessary and appropriate, the release added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's opposition Labour Party said on Sunday its foreign policy chief David Lammy was visiting Israel and the West Bank and meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and the Palestinian Authority's Deputy Foreign Minister Amal Jadu. Lammy will also meet Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, opposition leader Yair Lapid and Leader of the Israeli Labour Party Merav Michaeli, the statement said. Labour has been divided over its position on the Israel-Hamas conflict, with nearly a third of the party's lawmakers defying leader Keir Starmer on Wednesday to back calls for a ceasefire. Several of his policy team quit over the vote. Starmer, like Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, the United States and the European Union, has called for "humanitarian pauses" to help aid reach Gaza rather than a ceasefire which, they say, would allow Hamas to regroup after its attack on Oct. 7. Lammy said, if elected to government, Labour would be "tirelessly committed" to diplomacy required to help deliver "a real, not rhetorical, path to two-state solution". Labour is far ahead in opinion polls before a national vote expected next year. "The ultimate end to conflict we all want to see wont happen simply by affirming that we want it to happen," Lammy said in a statement from Israel. "Hard diplomacy is required with all governments in the region to deliver a longer pause immediately to respond to the shocking humanitarian emergency in Gaza, secure the release of hostages so cruelly taken by Hamas and as a necessary step to an enduring cessation of violence." (Reporting by Kylie MacLellan; Editing by Andrew Heavens) Neither Ukraine nor Russia has made substantial progress on the battlefield and as winter begins to set in, there are few immediate prospects of major changes in the frontline, the UK Defense Ministry said on X on Nov. 18. Intense infantry combat continues near Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast, in Luhansk Oblast, and near Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast, as Russian casualties continue to mount. Eyewitness reports suggest small uncrewed aerial vehicles and artillery (especially cluster rounds) continue to play a major role in disrupting the attacks of both sides. In southern Ukraine, Kyiv has established a bridgehead on the left bank of the Dnipro river in Kherson Oblast. Read also: WSJ: Cluster munitions provide fresh impetus to Ukraines counteroffensive Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. One hundred individuals were sanctioned by Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council on Nov. 18 for their involvement in the kidnapping and illegal deportation of Ukrainian children, including an alleged collaborator whom the Kyiv Independent identified in its investigative documentary film "Uprooted." Forty Russian legal entities were also included in the sanctions list. Svitlana Maiboroda, 53, is a former Ukrainian official who began to collaborate with Russian authorities after Russian forces invaded Donetsk Oblast in 2014. She currently works as the head of all social services for families and children in the Russian-occupied parts of the region. The Kyiv Independent's documentary film "Uprooted," revealed how Russian occupation officials like Maiboroda prevented children in Russian-occupied Donetsk Oblast from being reunited with their legal guardians and were sent to Russia against their will. The Kyiv Independent received a list of 31 Ukrainian children that was deported as a group. Maiboroda facilitated their deportation. In the documentary film, a journalist from the Kyiv Independent called Maiboroda and asked why she'd organized the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children to Russian territory. Maiboroda first denied any involvement but then said to put in an official information request. However, the Kyiv Independent is unable to send such requests to Ukrainian territories under Russian occupation. The Ukrainian government organization Children of War estimates that at least 19,546 Ukrainian children have been kidnapped and forcibly taken, although the actual number is likely much higher. Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. HALIFAX, Nova Scotia The Ukrainian government has collected evidence of around 109,000 alleged Russian war crimes, including physical and cyberattacks, according to Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin. Kostin told POLITICO on the sidelines of the Halifax International Security Forum on Saturday that Ukrainian officials have identified more than 400 suspected perpetrators of these crimes. Around 300 have been indicted, and 66 convicted. The wide range, the big scale of these incidents and war crimes requires a lot of work and a lot of new approaches, Kostin said at the forum, where the Ukraine-Russia war has been a dominant theme. Its our commitment to decide to document, prosecute each and every incident, because each and every incident of war crimes has its victims. As Ukraine struggles to make progress in its fight against Russia, Kyiv has been compiling evidence of war crimes since the full-scale invasion last year to present to the International Criminal Court in the Hague. The vast majority of the charges being prosecuted were considered crimes against humanity, such as the mass executions of Ukrainians in Bucha in 2022. Kostins figures also include 265 investigations into crimes against the environment, such as the Russian attack on the Ukrainian Nova Kakhovka Dam earlier this year that led to the evacuation of thousands of Ukrainians. Four cases so far have also been opened into cyber war crime charges. Kostin said the inclusion of cyber crimes and crimes against the environment for the ICC evidence is a new initiative by Ukraine during this war, stressing that every crime has victims. He also acknowledged the challenge of convicting Russian citizens who may not be in Ukraine or have evaded capture, though he noted that some have been brought to trial. The bigger part is Russian war criminals who we charge and who we try in absentia. This is a quite longer process because it requires more procedural actions, Kostin said. While all of them receive defense, its our position to ensure a fair trial for everyone, including Russian war criminals. Editors Note: This is issue 111 of Ukrainian State-Owned Enterprises Weekly, covering events from Nov. 11-17. The Kyiv Independent is reposting it with permission. Ukrainian SOE Weekly is an independent weekly digest based on a compilation of the most important news related to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and state-owned banks in Ukraine. This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union within the project Supporting Ukraine in rebuilding and recovery implemented by the KSE Institute. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the editorial team of the Ukrainian SOE Weekly and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union. Corporate governance of SOEs Cabinet approves Ukraines action plan to implement OECDs program for Ukraine. On Nov. 3, the Cabinet of Ministers brought the OECDs action plan for Ukraine closer towards fruition. We selected the key points regarding SOEs. The action plan matches the projects stated in the four-year Country Program launched by OECD and the Government of Ukraine on June 7. See Issue 92 for more detail. Policies to improve the financial market and corporate governance in 2024-2025 will be reviewed. The National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), the Economy Ministry, the Finance Ministry, the State Property Fund (SPFU), the National Bank of Ukraine, and other central executive bodies are to provide information at the OECDs request. In 2023-2024, the Economy Ministry, the SPFU, the NSSMC, and the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption should build more capacity to carry out recommendations from the OECD Review of the Corporate Governance of State-Owned Enterprises in Ukraine. The plan also entails improving cooperation between the Ukrainian government and OECDs Corporate Governance Committee and its Working Group on State Ownership and Privatization Practices. To do this, the Cabinet should submit letters to OECD for joining the Committee and Working Group, respectively. No deadlines are specified. One more point is the adherence to the Recommendation of the OECD Council on Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-Owned Enterprises in 2024. To do this, Ukrainian laws should be aligned with the provisions of the Recommendation. In practice, this means adhering to the OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-Owned Enterprises. Ukraine requested adherence to these Guidelines in 2020. Read also: Kyiv sends humanitarian team to help truckers stuck at Polish-Ukrainian border Oschadbanks supervisory board starts work. On Nov. 14, the supervisory board of Oschadbank started its work and elected Volodymyr Lavrenchuk as its new chairman. As we reported in Issue 85, the Cabinet appointed four new independent members of Oschadbanks supervisory board back in April 2023. It is unclear why the board needed seven months to start its work only now. The new board members appointed in April were Micha Krupinski, Volodymyr Lavrenchuk, Elisabeth Nelson, and Philip Heasley. Two other independent members, Juan Enrique Perez Calot and Anton Piatygin, retained their positions on the supervisory board from the previous term. See Issue 85 for more detail. According to Oschadbank, the supervisory board also includes three state representatives: Yulia Pashko (nominated by the Finance, Tax, and Customs Committee of the Verkhovna Rada), Rosa Tapanova (nominated by the Cabinet of Ministers), and Oleksandr Rodnyansky (nominated by the President of Ukraine). According to the Cabinets ordinance on the appointment of independent members, they were appointed for a three-year term commencing after all independent members assume office. However, according to the banking law, supervisory board members of banks take office after their candidacy is approved by the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU). As per the NBUs Licensing Regulation, the approval procedure for banks senior officers may take up to 90 days, starting from the day the bank submits a complete package of documents to the NBU. Additionally, individuals who are reappointed to their positions are not required to seek NBUs approval according to the banking law. According to the NBUs database: Volodymyr Lavrenchuk was approved by the NBU on July 24 and took office on July 27 that is, three months after being appointed by the Cabinet of Ministers. Michal Krupinski and Elisabeth Nelson were approved by the NBU on Aug. 14 and assumed office on Aug. 16 that is, more than three months after being appointed by the Cabinet. Philip Heasley was approved by the NBU on Nov. 1 and took office on Nov. 2 that is, more than six months after being appointed by the Cabinet. It is unclear why seeking or obtaining approval for Heasley took so long. Juan Enrique Perez Calot and Anton Piatygin, who were reappointed as independent board members, did not require NBUs approval. As indicated in the NBUs database, they continued in their positions. Read also: Regional authorities: Dry port for grain exports to be created in Zakarpattia Oblast According to Oschadbanks website and the NBUs database, state representatives also continued to serve on the new board and assumed their offices. Therefore, as of Aug. 16, Oschadbanks supervisory board already comprised eight members, including five independent members, who assumed their office. Since the board was competent and quorate, it is unclear why it needed to wait three more months to commence its work. It is also unclear whether the supervisory board members have been paid during this period. Oschadbank said that Lavrenchuk has 36 years of experience in the banking industry, including 27 years in top management at Oschadbank and Raiffeisen Bank Aval. Since 2020, Lavrenchuk has been the country manager at NEQSOL Holdings Ukraine office, focused on investment activity and asset portfolio management, and a member of the supervisory board of Vodafone Ukraine. Oschadbanks supervisory board also elected the following chairs of board committees: Elisabeth Nelson Risk and Compliance Committee; Juan Enrique Perez Calot Audit Committee; Volodymyr Lavrenchuk Nomination and Remuneration Committee; Oleksandr Rodnyansky Strategy and Transformation Committee. Energy sector Ukrnaftas CEO says the company doubled revenues in the first year under the state management; no financial statements or other official reporting available. On Nov. 14, Ukrnaftas CEO Sergii Koretskyi said on his Facebook page that in the first year after the company was seized by the state, it projects Hr 95 billion ($2.6 billion) in revenue, which would double the average annual figure over the past decade. According to Koretskyi, Ukrnaftas net profit for the first half of 2023 was Hr 14.1 billion ($392 million). As of today, the net profit has exceeded Hr 20 billion ($556 billion). This is much more than in previous years. For comparison, the cumulative result for the previous 10 years was billions in losses, Koretskyi said. We have not been able to find Ukrnaftas audited financial statements for 2021, 2022, or the first half of 2023 in the public domain to verify the above information. According to Ukrainian law, joint-stock companies, particularly those publicly traded, are obligated to publicly disclose various types of information, such as their financial statements. However, after the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion, the National Security and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC) allowed companies to withhold such disclosure. In June, the NSSMC decided that this exemption would be effective until Jan. 1, 2024. After that date, joint-stock companies must resume public disclosure of the above information, including information that was not disclosed during the exemption period. Read also: Economic Security Bureau: More than 20% of grain exported through high-risk channels Koretskyi added that the company also paid Hr 12.3 billion ($342 million) in taxes in the first half of 2023, including Hr 3.3 billion ($92 million) in income tax. According to him, Ukrnafta plans to pay Hr 27 billion ($751 million) in taxes for the twelve months of 2023, including about Hr 5 billion ($139 million) in income tax. For comparison, over the past 10 years, the company paid Hr 12 billion ($333 million) in income tax. Accordingly, in 2023 alone, the company would transfer five times more funds to the state budget than the annual average for 2012-2021, Ukrnaftas CEO claimed. However, Ukrnaftas plans to increase the production of oil, the companys major product, by 6% in 2023 compared to 2022 would not materialize, Koretskyi added. Oil production will increase, but it will be lower than expected. At the same time, gas production will exceed the planned indicators, he said. Koretskyi did not specify what production or growth is forecast for either oil or gas as of now. According to Koretskyi, Ukrnafta is preparing to pay at least Hr 6 billion ($166 million) in dividends for 2023. He explained that this amount was computed at the minimum rate of 30% of net profit (set by law) and will be determined by the shareholders decision (who can go for a higher dividend pay-out rate), which would be higher than the total result of the last 10 years. As we wrote in SOE Weeklys Issue 90, Ukrnaftas financial plan for 2023, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers, expects Hr 74 billion ($2 billion) in net income from operations, Hr 12 billion ($333 billion) in net profit, and Hr 25 billion ($696 million) in tax payments. In May, Koretskyi also said that Ukrnafta earned about Hr 7 billion ($195 million) in net profit in January-April 2023. This figure was likely unaudited. We have not been able to find the respective financial statements in the public domain. Read also: Forbes: Canada lifts sanctions on Russian billionaire following lawsuit As we wrote in Issue 100, in his analysis for Forbes Ukraine, CASE Ukraines economist Vasyl Povoroznyk contested Koretskyis statements on the companys quarterly profits, lower costs, higher production, and transparency. He concluded that Ukrnaftas financial performance was driven by two factors: higher market prices for petrol and diesel (45% and 54%, respectively) and Ukrnaftas sale of gas which the company received as repayment of part of Naftogazs historical debt to Ukrnafta. Povoroznyk also said that the financial reporting disclosed by Naftogaz Ukrnaftas majority shareholder who includes Ukrnaftas reporting in its consolidated reporting did not square with numbers named by Koretsky. In Issue 68, we reported that the shares of Ukrnafta, Ukrtatnafta, Motor Sich, AvtoKrAZ, and Zaporizhzhiatransformator (ZTR) were seized for the needs of the state and transferred to the Defense Ministry on Nov. 6, 2022. Former CEO of the WOG chain of petrol stations, Sergii Koretskyi, became the CEO of both Ukrnafta and Ukrtatnafta on Nov. 8 and Nov. 10, 2022, respectively. See Issue 68 for detail. Naftogaz keeps taking over Firtash gas distribution companies. On Nov. 13, Gas Distribution Networks of Ukraine LLC (Gazmerezhi brand), a Naftogaz subsidiary, reported that Zakarpatgaz came under state control and joined Naftogaz Group. According to Gazmerezhi, Zakarpatgaz is the 19th regional gas distribution company to come under state control since the beginning of the year. Zakarpatgaz supplies gas to 278,000 households and more than 4,000 legal entities. Tariffs, personal accounts, and payment details remain unchanged for residents of Zakarpattia Oblast. Read also: New natural gas deposit discovered in Carpathians, Naftogaz says Zakarpatgaz was part of fugitive tycoon Dmytro Firtashs Regional Gas Company (RGC) Group. In SOE Weekly Issue 71, we reported that Naftogaz changed the management of regional gas distribution companies Kharkivgaz and Dniprogaz on Jan. 16. These gas distribution companies were part of Firtashs RGC Group. RGC accused Naftogaz of an attempted raid." In response, Naftogaz referred to the Cabinet of Ministers Decision No. 429-r dated May 28, 2022, which transferred the corporate rights of about 20 regional gas distribution companies to its subsidiary Chornomornaftogaz. Earlier in May 2022, Kyivs Pechersk Court seized shares of Firtashs regional gas companies because they evaded payment for the use of gas networks. (After that, the Cabinet transferred these rights to Chornomornaftogaz.) RGC then filed lawsuits to overturn the Pechersk Courts decision. This delayed the change of management of these distribution companies. In September 2022, Naftogaz established a new subsidiary named Gas Distribution Networks of Ukraine LLC to consolidate the regional gas distribution companies. We then reported on the ensuing wave of taking over Firtashs gas distribution companies that were also part of RGC Group. For Sumygaz, Vinnytsiagaz, and Dnipropetrovskgaz, see SOE Weeklys Issue 98. For Ivano-Frankivskgaz, Khmelnytskygaz, and Mykolaivgaz, see Issue 100. For Cherkasygaz, see Issue 104. For Volyngaz and Chernihivgaz, see Issue 108. In Issue 105, we wrote that Naftogazs branches received operating licences from the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission (NEURC). Ukrenergo cooperates with Hyundai to modernize electricity transmission system. On Nov. 14, Ukrenergo reported that it signed a memorandum of understanding with South Koreas Hyundai Engineering & Construction (Hyundai E&C) to jointly explore the possibility of developing Ukraines electricity transmission system. The agreement refers to a joint study into cooperation opportunities for Hyundai E&C and Ukrenergo. Read also: Former US state secretary to join Kyivstar board The grid operator mentioned that at the G20 summit, the South Korean government announced its readiness to allocate $2.3 billion over two years to restore Ukrainian infrastructure. Ukrenergo is willing to assist both Hyundai E&C and other companies in effectively studying the investment attractiveness of energy projects, the company said. Naftogaz Group pays over Hr 75 billion in taxes for the first 10 months of 2023. On Nov. 14, Naftogaz Group reported that it paid Hr 69.8 billion ($1.9 billion) in taxes to the state budget in January-October 2023. According to the company, this constitutes 11.5% of Ukraines total tax revenues for this period. Additionally, nearly Hr 6 billion ($167 million) has been paid into local budgets, Naftogaz added. As we wrote earlier, Naftogaz Group paid Hr 33 billion ($918 million) in taxes for the first four months (JanuaryApril 2023, see SOE Weeklys Issue 87); over Hr 48 billion ($1.3 billion) for the first seven months (JanuaryJuly 2023, see Issue 99); and over Hr 70 billion ($1.9 billion) for the first nine months (JanuarySeptember 2023, see Issue 107). Defense Ukraine produces dozens of its own Shahed analogs per month. On Nov. 15, Oleksandr Kamyshin, the minister for Strategic Industries, reported that one of the Ukrainian SOEs produces dozens of so-called Ukrainian Shaheds per month, which are analogs of Iranian-made drones used by the Russian troops. Kamyshin also said that many drone companies see an opportunity to use state-owned plants when they lack the resources to do it alone. The minister cited an example where a service center at a state-owned plant helped small private drone companies. As we reported in SOE Weeklys Issue 110, Herman Smetanin, the CEO of Ukrainian Defense Industry (UDI), confirmed that Ukraine had a drone similar to the Shahed, but also had more powerful models, because the Shahed does not fly that far. We have focused on producing more complex and expensive models, with higher performance, Smetanin said. See Issue 110 for more detail. Confiscation of Russian assets, nationalization, and asset seizure Seized assets under ARMAs management to be sold through Prozorro.Sale auctions. The Cabinet decided that seized assets managed by the Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) would be sold via online auctions in the Prozorro.Sale system, the Economy Ministry said on Nov. 14. The Cabinets resolution was not publicly available at the time of writing. This decision would minimize risks of interference and ensure transparency, the ministry explained. According to the ministry, the adopted changes also: ensure an increase in state budget revenues; allow potential buyers and investors to compete for assets under transparent rules; and unblock the possibility of selling the seized assets abroad. According to Deputy Economy Minister Oleksii Sobolev, before the resolution was adopted, the selection of organizers of auctions for the sale of seized property was not transparent and carried corruption risks. Now, all information about which seized assets are sold, to whom, and for how much will be open and public, he said. According to Sobolev and ARMA, the changes would let them sell the 92-metre yacht Royal Romance, now sitting in Croatia. It had been owned by Ukrainian politician and Kremlin ally Viktor Medvedchuk. After Ukraine charged him with treason, Russia took in Medvedchuk in a prisoner exchange. Read also: Bulgarias Soviet stockpiles and large defense industry may be key to Ukraines success Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Key developments on Nov. 19: Zelensky replaces Medical Forces Commander Ukrainian teenager deported to Russia returns to Ukraine Explosion reported in Russian-occupied Melitopol Russian attacks on Kherson injure 6, including 2 kids Defense Ministry: Russia has lost 7,000 troops over past week President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Medical Forces commander Tetiana Ostashchenko on Nov. 19 amid repeated calls from medics and volunteers to fire the official. She was replaced by Anatolii Kazmirchuk, the president announced in his evening address. Up until now, Kazmirchuk headed the National Military Medical Clinical Center in Kyiv. The announcement follows news on Nov. 13 that Defense Minister Rustem Umerov was preparing requests to dismiss Ostashchenko, as well as Commander of the southern Tavria Group Oleksandr Tarnavskyi and Joint Forces Commander Serhii Naiev. Following the news, the Defense Ministry issued a response to all media inquiries saying that information published by a number of media outlets is not true. However, the ministry did not specify which reports it was reacting to. Ostashchenko was reportedly dismissed from her position after repeated requests from Ukrainian paramedics and volunteers. In July, lawmaker Solomiia Bobrovska said that the Medical Forces Command had not purchased any first aid kits in 2023, and those provided through international aid were not properly checked. "We need a fundamentally new level of medical support for our soldiers," Zelensky said. "From high-quality tourniquets to full digitalization and transparency in supply, from high-quality training to sincere communication with combat medics in those units where medicine is deployed correctly and effectively." Umerov commented on the decision to dismiss Ostashchenko as "obvious" to those fighting and helping Ukraine's Armed Forces. In a Facebook post, Umerov listed three major requirements of the Medical Forces going forward, including digitizing medical standard compliance, tactical medicine training in accordance with NATO standards, and ensuring constant rotation of personnel. Ukraine's newly appointed Medical Forces Commander, Major General Anatolii Kazmirchuk, who replaced dismissed Major General Tetiana Ostaschenko on Nov. 19, 2023. (Army Inform) Teenager deported to Russia returns to Ukraine Bohdan Yermokhin, a Ukrainian teenager who was illegally deported by Russia from occupied Mariupol in Donetsk Oblast, has returned to Ukraine after months of trying, according to the Kyiv Independent's sources and Russian opposition media reports. Ukraines Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said Yermokhin returned to Ukraine on his 18th birthday, on Nov. 19. Russian authorities deported Yermokhin, an orphan, following the occupation of Mariupol in May 2022. He was placed with a foster family in Moscow Oblast, and served with a conscription notice in November 2023, ahead of his 18th birthday. Russian authorities have been illegally deporting Ukrainian children from the occupied territories to Russia, placing them in foster families, where they are raised as Russians. Read also: Ukrainians step up efforts to cross Dnipro, tie up Russian forces in Kherson Oblast Yermokhin was taken to Belarus, a neighbor of Russia, where he reunited with his legal guardian. According to a public statement by Russian authorities, he flew to Belarus on the evening of Nov. 18. Lubinets reported on Nov. 10 that agreements had been made for Yermokhin's return to Ukraine. According to Lubinets, Ukraine cooperated with Qatar, UNICEF Ukraine, and Ukraine's embassy in Belarus after negotiations with Russia to return Yermokhin. When Yermokhin received the summons to a military recruitment center, he recorded a video appealing to President Volodymyr Zelensky for help. His Ukrainian lawyer published it on Facebook. Russian Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova claimed that Yermokhin had signed a written confirmation in August 2023 indicating that he did not plan to return to Ukraine. Yermokhin's lawyer said the teenager was forced to sign the statement. The Ukrainian government has identified over 19,500 children who have been deported or forcibly displaced by Russia. Almost 400 of them have been returned to Ukraine. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Lvova-Belova and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in March 2023 over their role in the forced deportation of Ukrainian children. The day before Yermokhin returned to Ukraine, 100 individuals were sanctioned by Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council for their involvement in the kidnapping and illegal deportation of Ukrainian children, including an alleged collaborator whom the Kyiv Independent identified in its investigative documentary film "Uprooted." Forty Russian legal entities were also included in the sanctions list. Explosion reported in Russian-occupied Melitopol An explosion was heard in occupied Melitopol in Zaporizhzhia Oblast at around 7 p.m. local time, exiled mayor Ivan Fedorov reported on Telegram on Nov. 19. It's unclear what caused the explosion or if there were any casualties. Melitopol, an important logistics hub for Russian forces in the occupied parts of southern Ukraine, held by Russian troops since March 2022. The Ukrainian military frequently target the city. Ukraines military intelligence reported on Nov. 12 that a powerful explosion at a Russian military headquarters in the city had killed at least three Russian officers. Military Intelligence said the attack was an "act of revenge" carried out by representatives of the local resistance movement on Nov. 11. The alleged headquarters was located at the former office of Nova Poshta, a private Ukrainian postal service. Ukraine destroys 7,000 troops, 700 units of Russian military equipment over the past week Ukrainian forces destroyed 711 units of Russian military equipment, as well as 7,029 Russian troops over the past week, First Deputy Defense Minister Oleksandr Pavliuk reported on Nov. 19. Starting from Nov. 13, Russia has lost 86 tanks, 94 armored personnel carriers, 185 artillery systems, 17 multiple-launch rockets launch systems, eight air-defense systems, 170 vehicles, 18 units of some special equipment, 123 Russian drones as well as one aircraft. Earlier in the day, the General Staff of Ukraines Armed Forces reported that Russia has lost 318,570 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24. This number includes 1,190 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day. Read also: Bulgarias Soviet stockpiles and large defense industry may be key to Ukraines success Russian attacks on Kherson injured 6, including 2 kids Russian attacks against Kherson injured six people, including a three-year-old and a six-year-old girl, Kherson Oblast Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported on Nov. 19. Russian shelling hit a residential area in the regional capital at around 11 a.m. Women aged 47, 55, and 68, as well as a 59-year-old man, are among the injured. The toddler injured in the attack was hospitalized at the intensive care unit, Prokudin reported later in the day. "Doctors discovered that she had a mine-explosive injury, multiple shrapnel wounds, a penetrating wound to the chest cavity, a general contusion, a closed craniocerebral injury, and a lung contusion," the governor said. A three-year-old girl might need to be transferred to Kyiv for further treatment. Children are often among the victims of such attacks. According to the official count led by Ukraine's Prosecutor's Office, at least 510 children have been killed since the start of the full-scale invasion by Russia. The actual numbers regarding child casualties may be much higher since they do not fully account for territories still under Russian occupation, recently liberated by Ukrainian forces, or experiencing heavy fighting. Read also: Under deadly attacks, Kherson fights to keep life going 1 year after liberation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. By Anna J. Park The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has vowed to take stern measures against listed companies that do not follow through on their publicly announced business plans. The financial watchdog called it an illegal act impairing the trust of the domestic capital market. According to the FSS on Sunday, 129 companies, or 55 percent, of the 233 listed companies that had announced plans to expand into seven designated sectors during the first half of this year, have not taken any actions so far to realize their announced business plans. The seven designated sectors are perceived as popular growth-potential fields, such as secondary batteries, artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and the metaverse. The financial regulator said it detected a pattern of stock manipulation whereby listed companies announce new business plans without intending to follow through on such plans. As a result, the FSS is currently investigating cases where major shareholders of listed companies announced new business ventures, causing a surge in stock prices, and then unloaded significant amounts of the shares to pocket the profits. In addition, the regulatory authority is scrutinizing 129 listed companies that failed to take substantive business activities in relation to publicly announced business plans to look for involvement in unfair trading practices and to check on accounting practices. The FSS revealed that 25 percent of the 129 companies that have not implemented their announced new business plans turned out to have a history of disclosure violations, such as a failure to submit regular reports. Sixy-five percent of the firms also exhibited inadequate disclosures in their reports, showing a low level of compliance with disclosure requirements overall. Furthermore, the FSS pointed out that many of the 129 listed firms have shown operating losses and capital erosion over the past several years, exhibiting low financial soundness and management instability. "There's high concern that some of these listed companies may raise capital under the guise of new business initiatives while funneling them for other purposes or for illegal personal gains," an official from the FSS said, vowing to sternly respond to the "illegal activities that seriously damage the credibility of the capital market." The FSS plans to continue scrutinizing companies that are frequently involved in inappropriate accounting practices, suspicion of unfair trading, repeated disclosure violations or fundraising without clear business plans. Tatiana Chervenko, Aleksandra Arkhipova and Yaroslav Levchenko were all snitched on by fellow Russians, with different consequences Snitching, or reporting neighbours, colleagues and even strangers to the authorities, was common in Russia's Soviet era. Now, as the government cracks down on critics of the Ukraine war, people with personal grudges and political ideals are denouncing others once again. "I was taught how to snitch by my grandfather who was a snitch himself," claims a woman who goes by the name of Anna Korobkova. She says she lives in a large Russian city but refuses to say which one. But she does say her grandfather was an anonymous informant for the Soviet secret police during Stalin's reign, when denunciations were part of everyday life, and she's following in his footsteps. Now, she is reporting anyone she thinks is a critic of the war in Ukraine. Self-confessed serial snitch Korobkova claims to have written 1,397 denunciations since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. She says people have been fined, fired and labelled as foreign agents because of her denunciations. "I do not feel sorry for them," she reveals. "I feel joy if they are punished because of my denunciations." New censorship laws were introduced shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Since then, Korobkova has spent most of her free time online, often reporting people for "discrediting the Russian army" - an offence that carries a fine of up to 50,000 roubles ($560; 450) or up to five years' imprisonment if it is committed more than twice. Korobkova is very cautious about talking to me and will only communicate via email. She does not want to show her face and refuses to provide proof of her identity. She says this is because she frequently receives death threats and fears her information could get hacked or stolen. She seems to have two motives for snitching on her fellow citizens. Firstly, she tells me she believes she is helping Russia defeat Ukraine and, secondly, she thinks it will help protect her own financial stability. She lives alone and works part-time as a humanities professor, relying heavily on her savings. But Korobkova fears Russia could end up paying reparations if the conflict goes Ukraine's way and that could affect the finances of the whole country and everyone who lives there. "All those who oppose the special military operation are rivals of my own wellbeing," she explains, predicting a win for Ukraine would be a loss for her. "I could lose all my savings and would have to get a full-time job." Since the new censorship laws were introduced, more than 8,000 cases have been opened against people for discrediting the army, according to independent Russian human rights group OVD-Info. The targets Korobkova mostly reports people who speak to the media, especially those who appear on international outlets, such as the BBC. One of Korobkova's targets is anthropologist Aleksandra Arkhipova. As an anthropologist, Aleksandra Arkhipova has researched the snitching revival in Russia "She has reported me seven times," Arkhipova says. "Writing denunciations is her way of interacting with authorities. She considers it her mission. "She has found her niche. Her denunciations silence experts quite effectively," adds Arkhipova, who is now in exile and thinks Korobkova's actions could have contributed to her being labelled a foreign agent by the Russian state in May. "Friends of mine, whom she denounced, now refuse to give any comments to any media. So, you could say she has been successful. Mission completed." Another target was a teacher in Moscow called Tatiana Chervenko. When Russia introduced patriotism classes in September 2022, Chervenko decided to teach maths instead, she told TV Rain, Russia's last independent channel, which was shut down by the government and is now based in the Netherlands. As a result, Korobkova, who saw her TV interview, started making denunciations against Chervenko, complaining to her employer, the Moscow education department and Russia's child rights commissioner. Chervenko was subsequently fired in December 2022. Teacher Tatiana Chervenko says she was fired because of denunciations against her Korobkova shows no remorse for her actions, instead she proudly keeps a database of people she has reported, including the consequences. She claims that following her denunciations six people were fired from their jobs and 15 others issued administrative charges and fined. Although Korobkova insists she targets people she believes are enemies of the state, other people have told the BBC denunciations are also being used in Russia to settle personal scores. Imprisoned and longing for freedom Fisherman Yaroslav Levchenko is from the Kamchatka Peninsula, in Russia's far east, known not just for its volcanic landscapes and extraordinary wildlife but also for its large military presence. Many people in this region are pro-Putin including Levchenko's colleagues. Yaroslav Levchenko is awaiting trial in prison In February 2023, Levchenko's ship docked at the port of Kamchatka after a month-long fishing trip. He says a fellow fisherman offered him an alcoholic drink, which he refused. He believes the other man already held a grudge against him and they ended up in an argument. Levchenko explains that he was hit over the head with a bottle and later woke up in hospital. Levchenko says when he was discharged and went to a police station to file a report, he was horrified to learn he was the one who had been reported - not for assault but for holding anti-war views. He claims police told him there was not enough evidence to bring criminal charges against his colleague. Levchenko was then arrested on 13 July. According to court documents seen by the BBC, he is accused of justifying terrorism, charges he denies, and is being held in prison while he awaits trial. The only way he can tell his story to the BBC is via letters, passed through his lawyer. "Investigators state I used physical force towards other seamen expressing intentions of participating in hostilities against the Russian Federation," Levchenko writes. Levchenko is accused of justifying terrorism, according to documents seen by the BBC, charges he denies Levchenko's friends tell me they think his denunciation was to divert the police's attention away from the assault against him and the fact that alcohol was being consumed on board a ship, which was prohibited. "I just want to come home," Levchenko says. "The sky is just visible from my jail cell, through several rows of bars, and it's unbearable," he writes in a letter to his friend that was shared with the BBC. 'Endless charges' Russian police have acknowledged they have been inundated with denunciations since the war began. Officials have told the BBC anonymously they are spending large amounts of time investigating and revising "endless charges on the discretisation of the army". "People are always looking for an excuse to denounce someone over the 'special military operation'," a recently retired police officer told the BBC, adding: "Whenever something real comes up, there's nobody to investigate. Everyone's gone to check on some grandma who saw a curtain that looked like the Ukrainian flag." With President Putin's repeated calls to "punish betrayers" and the end of the war in Ukraine nowhere in sight, serial snitches like Korobkova show no sign of wanting to stop reporting on their fellow citizens. "I'm going to keep writing denunciations," she writes in an email to the BBC, adding: "I have a lot of work to do." Lloyd Austin, the US Secretary of Defence, has had a phone conversation with Rustem Umierov, his Ukrainian counterpart. Source: European Pravda with reference to the press service of the Pentagon Details: During the conversation, Austin discussed the current situation on the front lines with Umierov. They have also discussed the plans concerning the next meeting of Ukraines Defence Contact Group (the Ramstein format), which is to be held in the format of a videoconference on 22 November. Earlier, Grant Shapps, the UK Secretary of State for Defence, stressed that his government, jointly with its allies, will continue supplying Ukraine with "what it needs to win". After the Ramstein format meeting in September, he announced the supply of tens of thousands of artillery projectiles for Ukraine. Support UP or become our patron! Rustem Umierov, Minister of Defence of Ukraine, has stated that the reason for his request to change the Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is obvious for everyone who is fighting in the Defence Forces or helping the soldiers. Source: Umierov on Facebook Quote: "I have submitted a request to the President of Ukraine to replace the Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. I think that the reasons for this step are obvious for everyone who is fighting in the Defence Forces of Ukraine and everyone who is helping. These problems were discussed many times. It is time to solve the issues of medical supplies for our soldiers." Details: Umierov listed the tasks to be completed in this sector: Utmost digitization of processes and adhering to all the standards of medical provision, including the supply of high-quality medical equipment. Such problems as low-quality tourniquets must not exist at all. Development of the tactical medical training system meeting the NATO standards, with corresponding resource supply mechanism. Implementation of all medical practices needed on the battlefield, which will allow medics saving as many lives of Ukrainian soldiers as possible. Facilitation of constant rotation of personnel between tactical and strategic levels for receiving and sharing experience of the whole cycle of treatment of the wounded, the injured and the sick. Background: On 19 November Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed Tetiana Ostashchenko from the position of the Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and appointed Anatoliy Kazmirchuk, head of a military hospital in Kyiv, as a new commander. On 13 November, Ukrainska Pravda reported that Defence Minister Rustem Umierov was preparing to dismiss Tetiana Ostashchenko, Commander of Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, Commander of the Tavriia Operational Strategic Group of Forces, and Serhii Naiev, Commander of Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Paramedics and volunteers involved in medical support for Ukraines Defence Forces have reportedly been insisting on Ostashchenkos dismissal. Support UP or become our patron! The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has ordered the Ukrainian embassies involved to check the information about Ukrainians being on board the Galaxy Leader cargo ship hijacked by Houthis, members of a Yemeni movement, as reported earlier by Israel. Source: Oleh Nikolenko, spokesperson of Ukraines Foreign Affairs Ministry, on Facebook Quote: "We see reports in the media about the hijacking of the Galaxy Leader cargo ship in the Red Sea. Ukrainians might be on board. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has already tasked the Ukrainian embassies involved to check this information and to turn to the company owning the ship in order to specify the exact crew composition and other details. This situation is under special control." Background: A group of Houthis, members of an Iran-supported Yemeni movement, have hijacked the Galaxy Leader, a cargo ship with an international civilian crew, some of whom are Ukrainian citizens, in the Red Sea. Support UP or become our patron! Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) have reported that the Ukrainian Defence Forces have pursued their operations on the Dnipro River's left (eastern) bank in Kherson Oblast, holding their positions and likely deploying additional infantry. Source: ISW Details: The report noted that Ukrainian troops continued operations on the Dnipro River's left bank in Kherson Oblast on 18 November. The Ukrainian General Staff noted that the Defence Forces are holding their positions in Kherson Oblast's east. Meanwhile, a Russian military blogger (milblogger) claimed that Ukrainian forces, backed by artillery, launched unsuccessful attacks near the villages of Poima (10 km southeast of Kherson and 4 km from Dnipro River) and Pishchanivka (13 km southeast of Kherson and 3 km from Dnipro River), as well as from the village of Krynky (30 km northeast of Kherson and 2 km from Dnipro River). In general, Russian milbloggers claimed that the Ukrainian army had been moving additional infantry to the eastern bank part of Kherson Oblast. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that the Ukrainian Defence Forces had repelled 12 Russian attacks on the eastern bank part of Kherson Oblast on 18 November. The report also mentions other areas where military operations are taking place in Ukraine. Analysts point out that Russian troops conducted offensive operations along the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line but failed to achieve any confirmed successes on 18 November. The Russian Defence Ministry claimed that Ukrainian forces launched unsuccessful attacks along the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line on 18 November in the vicinity of the settlements of Synkivka, Dibrova (7 km southwest of Kreminna) and Hrekivka (22 km southwest of Svatove). In addition, the ISW's data suggests that the Ukrainian army launched an assault near the town of Bakhmut on 18 November yet achieved no claimed or confirmed success. At the same time, Russian troops maintained their attacks north and south of Bakhmut but failed to make any confirmed gains. The Russians also pursued their offensive operations around the town of Avdiivka on 18 November and achieved minor confirmed territorial gains. Geolocation footage released on 18 November indicates that the Russians have made minor advances north of the Avdiivka Coke and Chemical Plant and in an industrial area on the southeastern outskirts of Avdiivka. Colonel Oleksandr Shtupun, spokesperson for the Tavriia Operational and Strategic Grouping of Ukrainian Forces, stated that Russian troops are expected to launch a third wave of the storming of Avdiivka and may soon intensify artillery preparations for the assault. The Colonel noted that over the past two days, Russian troops have not actively employed heavy military machinery on the Avdiivka front, have reduced aircraft use in the area, and are increasingly using infantry. Shtupun added that Russia's Storm and Storm-Z assault units are suffering heavy losses, with some detachments having only 10 to 15% of their original personnel remaining. ISW's analysed data indicates that Russian troops launched an unsuccessful attack near the administrative border of Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts on 18 November. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces pursued offensive activities in western Zaporizhzhia Oblast on 18 November, achieving no claimed or confirmed successes. To quote the ISWs Key Takeaways on 18 November: Russian forces conducted a series of drone strikes against Ukraine on the night of 17-18 November. A Kyrgyzstan government official called on the Russian government to help Kyrgyz migrants in Russia against the backdrop of recent proposals from Russian government officials to decrease migrant work opportunities in Russia. Courts in the Republic of Dagestan reportedly continue to charge participants of the 29 October antisemitic riots with minor administrative crimes, while select Russian ultranationalists call for increased government control in order to curb the alleged spread of Islamic extremism in Dagestan. The Russian government continues efforts to restrict citizens access to the internet and to strengthen its control over the Russian information space. The European Commission will reportedly include sanctions on the sale of petroleum tankers to Russia in an upcoming sanctions package in an effort to curb Russian schemes to skirt the G7 price cap on Russian crude oil and petroleum products. Russian forces continued offensive operations along the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line, near Bakhmut, near Avdiivka, west and southwest of Donetsk City, in the Donetsk-Zaporizhzhia Oblast border area, and in western Zaporizhzhia Oblast and advanced near Avdiivka and Donetsk City. Russia has reportedly frozen prisoner of war (POW) exchanges with Ukraine since the summer of 2023. Support UP or become our patron! Three attack drones were shot down by Air Defence Forces in Sumy Oblast at night during a large-scale Russian drone attack. Source: Sumy Oblast Military Administration Quote: "Tonight, three enemy Shahed UAVs were destroyed in the sky of Sumy Oblast." Background: On Saturday evening, Ukraine's Air Force noticed Russian attack drones moving from Sumy Oblast. Support UP or become our patron! The Ukrainian Armed Forces repulsed numerous Russian attacks across seven sectors of the front over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian General Staff reported on Nov. 19. Five missiles, 76 airstrikes and 50 shelling attacks were carried out by enemy forces against Ukrainian positions and civilian areas. Read also: Ukrainian drone destroys Russias $3 million Solntspek flamethrower system in Kherson Oblast video Kupyansk sector The enemy carried out seven unsuccessful attacks near Synkivka, and east of Petropavlivka in Kharkiv Oblast. Lyman sector Ukrainian forces repelled several assaults around Torske in Donetsk Oblast. Bakhmut sector Eight Russian attacks near Klishchiivka and Andriivka in Donetsk Oblast were repulsed. Ukrainian forces continue to advance south of Bakhmut. Avdiivka sector The Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to maintain a strong defense in this area of Donetsk Oblast, inflicting significant losses on the enemy. Some 26 attacks were repulsed east of Keramika, Novobakhmutivka, Stepove and Avdiivka. Mariupol sector The enemy carried out 22 unsuccessful attacks in the areas of Maryinka and Novomykhailivka in Donetsk Oblast. Shakhtarsk and Zaporizhzhya sectors Three unsuccessful assaults near Staromayorskin Donetsk Oblast were reported. Combat was also recorded around Robotyne, Novoprokopivka, and west of Verbove in Zaporizhzhya Oblast. Melitopol sector The Ukrainian Armed Forces continued to advance. Kherson sector Counter-battery warfare and artillery strikes on the enemy's rear positions were reported. Ukrainian forces maintain their positions on the left bank of the Dnipro River. The Ukrainian Air Force carried out six strikes on concentrations of enemy personnel, weapons and military equipment. Fifteen Russian kamikaze drones were shot down overnight. Enemy personnel, weaponry, and military equipment, as well as an artillery system and an ammunition depot, were hit by Ukraines Rocket and Artillery Forces. 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 By Thomas Peter and Yurii Kovalenko KORTELISY, Ukraine (Reuters) -A Ukrainian teenager who was taken to Russia from the occupied city of Mariupol during the war and prevented from leaving the country earlier this year returned to Ukraine on Sunday. Bohdan Yermokhin, who turned 18 on Sunday, appealed to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy this month to help bring him back to Ukraine. In March, he tried to leave Russia for Ukraine via Belarus, but was stopped and sent back. "I believed I would be in Ukraine, but not on this day," Yermokhin told Reuters while eating at a petrol station after crossing into Ukraine. "This is a very pleasant gift, to put it in the right way. The emotions are overwhelming, all good, with the notion that Ukraine needs me." Zelenskiy welcomed Yermokhin's return in his nightly video address. "Many attempts were made to help him. I am happy everything worked out," he said, expressing thanks to Ukrainian officials, international organisations, and particularly the U.N. Children's Fund, UNICEF, and authorities in Qatar for help in mediation. Ukraine says 20,000 children have been illegally transferred to Russia since the invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, with some being put up for adoption. Kyiv says this is a war crime, an allegation denied by Russia, which says it was protecting children in a war zone. ORPHAN PLACED IN FOSTER CARE NEAR MOSCOW Yermokhin, an orphan from the Ukrainian city of Mariupol that was captured by Moscow's troops during the first year of the war, was taken to Russia and placed in a foster family in the Moscow region. On Sunday, Reuters correspondents at Kortelisy, a Ukrainian village near the border with Belarus, saw Yermokhin driven into Ukraine from the border in a van. Asked if he was glad to be back in Ukraine, Yermokhin said "yes." "We were in constant contact with Bohdan and he's already in Ukraine with his cousin," Andriy Yermak, head of the president's office, wrote on Telegram messenger, announcing his return. Mariam Lambert of the Dutch NGO Orphans Feeding Foundation told Reuters they have been working with Ukraine's human rights ombudsman and Zelenskiy's office on the return of children deported to Russia, including Yermokhin, since August. His lawyer, Kateryna Bobrovska, has said Yermokhin had been told to report to a draft office near Moscow next month and warned he could be conscripted into the Russian army. In a statement, Russia's children's commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, said he had been summoned to update his military registration and that "all Russian citizens of his age receive a summons of that kind." Lvova-Belova said Yermokhin left Russia on Saturday on a plane to Minsk on his way to Ukraine and that he had met a cousin in the Belarusian capital. She acknowledged Yermokhin had wanted to be reunited with his relative. The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in March, accusing him and Lvova-Belova of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. The Kremlin says Moscow does not recognise the jurisdiction of the ICC and has rejected the allegations. (Additional reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Jane Merriman, Ron Popeski, Bill Berkrot and Chris Reese) Bohdan Yermokhin, a Ukrainian teenager who was illegally deported by Russia from occupied Mariupol, has successfully left Russia and returned to Ukraine after trying to do so for months, according to the Kyiv Independent's sources and Russian opposition media reports. According to Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, Yermokhin arrived back in Ukraine on his 18th birthday, Nov. 19. Russian authorities deported Yermokhin, an orphan, following the occupation of Mariupol in May 2022. He was placed with a foster family in Moscow Oblast in October, and served with a conscription notice in November 2023, ahead of his 18th birthday. Russian authorities have been illegally deporting Ukrainian children from the occupied territories to Russia, placing them in foster families, where they are raised as Russians. (Watch our recent investigative documentary about this: "Uprooted"). Yermokhin was taken to Belarus, a neighbor of Russia, where he reunited with his cousin, who has become his legal guardian. According to a public statement by Russian authorities, he flew to Belarus on the evening of Nov. 18. Lubinets reported on Nov. 10 that agreements had been made for Yermokhin's return to Ukraine. "It was our team at the Ombudsman's Office that worked out the way to return the boy together with other state authorities as part of the implementation of the approved action plan of the Ukrainian President, Bring Kids Back UA," Lubinets wrote in a post on Nov. 19. According to Lubinets, Ukraine cooperated with Qatar, UNICEF Ukraine, and Ukraine's embassy in Belarus after negotiations with Russia to return Yermokhin back to Ukraine. "It was a thorny path," Lubinets said. "Bohdan went through a lot while in Russia, but despite everything he wanted to be home! Today, his wish has come true. I am sure that Bohdan will never forget his 18th birthday!" Yermokhin's case is a high-profile one. In March, Russian authorities claimed that he tried to flee Russia for Ukraine, but was captured close to the border. When Yermokhin received the summons to a military recruitment center, he recorded a video appealing to President Volodymyr Zelensky for help. His Ukrainian lawyer published it on Facebook. Russian Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova claimed that Yermokhin had signed a written confirmation in August 2023 indicating that he did not plan to return to Ukraine. Yermokhin's lawyer said the teenager was forced to sign the statement. The Ukrainian government has identified over 19,500 children who have been deported or forcibly displaced by Russia. Almost 400 of them have been returned to Ukraine. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Lvova-Belova and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in March 2023 over their role in the forced deportation of Ukrainian children. Read also: Stolen generation. Russia systematically abducts children from Ukraine, gives them to Russian families Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Bohdan Yermokhin, 17, illegally deported from the Russian-occupied city of Mariupol and served with a military draft notice in Russia, has arrived in Belarus and is staying there with his sister. Source: Vyorstka, a Russian-language online media outlet, citing Yermokhin and his lawyer Ekaterina Bobrovskaya; Tatyana Moskalkova, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Russian Federation, on Telegram Details: Reports indicate that as early as 13 November, Yermokhin, whom the Russian authorities promised to take to a "third country" to meet a relative before he reached the age of majority (by 19 November), posted on his Instagram that he was still unaware of the details of the upcoming trip. "Give me an answer or any information on this," he demanded. Ukrainska Pravda asked the lawyer and Dmytro Lubinets, Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner, to verify this information, but they did not respond at the time of this story being posted. Later, Russian ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkova confirmed that the Russians brought Yermokhin from Moscow to Minsk. She posted photos and videos confirming her words. In the video, Yermokhin thanked everyone who helped him get out of Russia and said that "everything was fine" while he was there. "Now I am at the airport [in Moscow ed.], on my way to Minsk. I want to say to everyone who helped me: I was loved here, and everything was fine. But this is what I want. Thank you all again. See you later," says Yermokhin. Background: The Russians deported Bohdan Yermokhin, 16 at the time, from Mariupol in 2022. He ended up in a children's sanatorium in Moscow Oblast. In July 2022, he was placed under the care of Irina Rudnitskaya, a Russian national and veteran of the Chechen war. Afterwards, the young man sought help from a lawyer. Bohdan turns 18 on 19 November. The young man said he received a draft notice to report to the Moscow Oblast military enlistment office on 19 December 2023. Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights, who is the subject of an ICC arrest warrant, claimed that the young man would be sent home next week. In early November, Dmytro Lubinets, Ukrainian Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights, reported that Ukraine had arranged to bring back Bohdan Yermokhin. Support UP or become our patron! Templestay program fulfills city dwellers' desire for personal introspection and nourishing cuisine By Pyo Kyung-min JANGSEONG Nestled near Mount Naejang, a renowned maple spot in North Jeolla Province, the ancient Baekyang Temple in Jangseong County welcomes its visitors with its rich history and tranquil ambiance. Established in 632 during the 234-678 Baekje period, the name "Baekyang" translates to "white sheep" in Chinese characters. Legend has it that during the reign of King Seonjo of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), the temple earned its name from a fable wherein a white sheep transformed into a boy from heaven after listening to a monk's sermon at the temple. During a two-day templestay press tour organized by the Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism from Nov. 10 to 11, participants immersed themselves in the unique ambiance of Baekyang Temple. The serene surroundings, akin to the softness of a white sheep nestled beneath vibrant autumn foliage, underscored the temple's distinctive charms. Baekyang Temple's templestay programs unfold through three distinct experiences: the resting type, the experience type and Ven. Jeongkwan's temple food program. The resting type offers participants the freedom to relax and unwind within the compound of the temple, providing a respite from daily life. For the experience type, participants engage in curated activities that include temple guidance, meditation and enlightening tea and talk sessions with the resident monks. The highlight is the temple food cooking program led by Ven. Jeongkwan, a renowned figure internationally acclaimed for her mastery in temple cuisine preparation. Participants have the privilege to savor a meal prepared by her during this program. Upon arrival, participants of the two-day press tour underwent a symbolic transformation by donning simple blue Buddhist robes. The journey began with an orientation where participants familiarized themselves with the rules of the temple, learning essential practices such as the wearing of socks when entering halls, maintaining silence during meals and holding their palms respectfully together when encountering monks. Later on the same day, participants had the privilege of meeting the renowned Ven. Jeongkwan at Cheonjinam Hermitage, nestled in the mountain behind the temple. Jeongkwan gained international acclaim with her appearance on the third season of Netflix's "Chef's Table" in 2017, where she promoted the rich tradition of Korean temple food to a global audience. Contrary to her fame, Jeongkwan exuded a friendly and humble demeanor. Taking participants for a stroll around the hermitage, she introduced her collection of jangdok, or earthenware jars, for storing homemade doenjang (soybean paste) and ganjang (soy sauce). With a touch of pride, she said, "They are my jewels, fermented through their own process, breathing under the sun, the stars and moonlight throughout the years." She proudly showcased the approximately 30-year-old soy sauce with a thick viscosity that almost resembled a balsamic glaze. Jeongkwan, who espouses the philosophy that "food is all caring and merciful," demonstrated her culinary principles that evening as she served dinner to the participants as a gracious host. Vegan dishes such as taro soup and tofu paste salad appeared one after another, satisfying both the taste buds and the visual senses of the participants. Among them was her signature dish, shiitake mushrooms braised in grain syrup. Serving the dish, the monk shared a related story with a deeply personal narrative. Reflecting on the past, the monk said, "Around seven years after becoming a Buddhist monk, my father paid me a visit. He attempted to persuade me to return home, saying 'there isn't enough to eat in the temple.' Trying to rebut his claims, I prepared and served him a pot of shiitake mushrooms braised in grain syrup." During the meal, a heartfelt conversation unfolded between father and daughter. As the talk deepened, her father's concerns melted away, replaced by an appreciation for his daughter's religious commitment. Accepting her chosen path, he bowed three times before departing. "After that visit, my father peacefully passed away in his sleep within a week," she added calmly. Jeongkwan revealed that this year, she was unable to take a single day off due to various events showcasing temple food both at home and abroad. Baekyang Temple's temple food experience program is so immensely popular that it is fully booked within a day or two of reservations opening. The monk expressed her perspective on the current state of temple food culture, pointing out that there is still room for improvement despite its widespread acclaim. "The introduction of temple food to the world after the 1988 Seoul Olympics presented it in an overly grand manner. Recently, my focus has been on re-establishing the menu to reflect traditional and simple temple food," she remarked. She elaborated on her aspirations, saying, "My goal is to foster community sharing and communication through temple food. The message I aim to convey is the need to overcome the climate crisis, protect the natural environment and respect life. When I travel abroad to showcase temple food, I intentionally serve a modest selection of about three dishes, departing from the past practice of preparing abundant varieties. My intent is to impart a spiritual message even with minimal sustenance, one can be fully nourished and utilize it as energy." She also emphasized the spiritual essence rooted in the Buddha's teachings 2,600 years ago, where 1,200 practitioners shared the act of eating from a single bowl without leaving food uneaten. In 2022, a total of 2,316 individuals visited Baekyang Temple, with 389 of them being international visitors. This year, as the COVID-19 pandemic subsided and travel resumed in earnest, the number of foreign visitors to the temple so far has nearly doubled compared to the previous year. Around 4 a.m. before sunrise on the second day, the deep mountains echoed with the resonant tolling of the temple bell, marking the commencement of early morning worship. Under the vast expanse of a clear sky adorned with stars which can rarely be seen from a bustling city like Seoul, the Buddha Hall welcomed Buddhist monks and practitioners who gathered for morning prayers. Despite the early hour and sub-zero temperatures, their unwavering faith illuminated the sacred space. Following the ritual, templestay participants engaged in a meditation session, applying aromatic oil and meditating to the soothing sounds of crystal singing bowls. Seated in a cross-legged lotus position, hands placed neatly on their knees, the participants immersed themselves in inner peace, liberating themselves from the entanglements of thoughts and judgments. The concluding segment of the templestay involved a contemplative conversation with the head of Baekyang Temple. Surrounded by the deep aroma of tea, participants sought guidance from Ven. Mugong on the truths of life. The senior monk shared that a common concern among visitors was the challenges arising from human relationships, particularly the distress associated with interacting with individuals they dislike. Reflecting on this, the monk offered profound advice: "When I see people in conflict, I believe the most significant pain arises from harboring hatred." He extended this perspective to the global stage, lamenting the ideological conflicts plaguing the international community that lead to violence and war. He recounted a moment when he watched a video related to a religious war, revealing the distressing reality of people resorting to violence due to deep-seated animosities. "I couldn't hold back tears watching it. Looking at it, I thought about how toxic the heart becomes when humans hate each other, and whether people should be so cruel, leading to collective unhappiness due to religious prejudice," he said. He underscored the importance of philanthropy and cultivating a good heart that transcends religious differences. "All of us here may have different religions, but it is of paramount importance to have a good heart regardless of beliefs, such as having affection for humanity, helping the weak and knowing how to reflect on one's prejudices toward others," he said. Tetyana is from Golovetsko, a village two hours from the western city of Lviv (Anatolii STEPANOV) She may be from a remote Ukrainian village, but Tetyana Kogut has rubbed shoulders with some of the world's most powerful Western leaders. The 36-year-old train hostess never thought she would meet celebrities or heads of state when she started working as a "providnytsa" -- a sleeping car attendant -- 19 years ago. But since Russia's invasion of her country she has taken on an unlikely role, welcoming and catering countless VIPs travelling to show their support for Kyiv. "I've accompanied dozens of passengers -- presidents, prime ministers, princes...," she told AFP. In Ukraine, where all commercial flights have been grounded since the start of the war, night trains remain an integral part of the nation's transport system and one of the only ways to get in and out the country. They have been impressively punctual despite the war, and fares are relatively cheap. For Ukraine's Western supporters, they have no choice: transport by train, usually from Poland, is the quickest way in. Each carriage is manned by one or two hosts who check tickets, serve tea and coffee, and keep things quiet and clean. Tetyana is from Golovetsko, a village two hours from the western city of Lviv, where she still lives with her husband and teenage son. At the start of the invasion, she worked for weeks, sometimes under bombardment, on civilian evacuation routes. - 500 delegations - After Russian forces were forced to retreat from the outskirts of Kyiv in spring 2022, Western politicians began pouring into the capital. Dozens of hosts and hostesses were given the task of accompanying these delegations. The first such delegation was that of European Parliament President Roberta Metsola at the beginning of April 2022. The train crew realised there were going to be VIPs when they saw security guards at the station in Poland. Over a year and a half later, Tetyana has stopped counting her VIP guests, but she has learned enough English to offer tea or coffee and understand the questions of her passengers. "They thank us for our work and say: You've stayed in the country, aren't you scared?" she said, sitting in a compartment on train 091/92 between Kyiv and Lviv. In total, Ukrainian railways have carried more than 500 official delegations during the 21 months of war. For security reasons, information about the journeys are often kept under wraps. But details are sometimes released later, like when German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and then Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi teased French President Emmanuel Macron about his supposedly posh compartment during a visit to Kyiv in June 2022. The passenger Tetyana has accompanied the most is former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, with whom she travelled four times while he was head of government and after he left office. He gave her his hat with the London Underground emblem. - 'I would have preferred peace' - Johnson, Tetyana said, also comforted her during her "worst journey" on August 24, 2022, when a Russian strike on a railway station killed at least 25 civilians, including two of her colleagues. Some politicians are just happy to arrive on time. A team led by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock was "very impressed" with the punctuality of her train, which arrived in Kyiv exactly on schedule, Tetyana said. "They said that in Germany, that doesn't happen," Tetyana said. Her train has been late only once, by a quarter of an hour, Tetyana said, after a tree fell on the tracks. "We had to explain (to the delegation) that it wasn't bombardment but simply the rain," she joked. She has since built up "a little museum" of souvenirs offered by her passengers, including badges, thank-you notes, pens and notebooks. "I never imagined that I would be able to meet presidents of other countries and talk to them", Tetyana said, "but I would have preferred peace at home and to see them only on television." ant/cad/js A group of Houthis, members of an Iran-backed Yemeni movement, have hijacked the Galaxy Leader, a cargo ship with an international civilian crew, some of whom are Ukrainian citizens, in the Red Sea. Source: The Times of Israel; The Jerusalem Post Details: The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said the hijacking of the ship is a "very serious incident on the global scale". The IDF added that the ship was sailing from Turkiye to India with an international civilian crew, and there were no Israelis on board. "This is not an Israeli ship," the IDF stressed. The ship was sailing under the Bahamian flag and is registered under a British company partially owned by Israeli tycoon Abraham Ungar, also known as Rami. The vessel was leased out to a Japanese company at the time of the hijacking, The Times of Israel reported. The Office of the Prime Minister of Israel said in a statement that the British-owned, Japanese-operated ship was "hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia". The statement also said that there are 25 crew members of various nationalities on board, including Ukrainians, Bulgarians, Filipinos and Mexicans, but no Israelis. "This is another act of Iranian terrorism and it constitutes a leap forward in Iran's aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of global shipping lanes," the statement concluded. Earlier on Sunday, 19 November, Yahya Sarea, a spokesman for the Iranian-backed Houthi militia, said that the group would target all ships owned or operated by Israeli companies or flying the Israeli flag. Sarea called on all countries to recall their citizens working on board such ships. Support UP or become our patron! When rocket sirens echo on the factory floor of Rav-Bariach Industries, workers rush to take refuge in bomb shelters fitted with their own kit (FADEL SENNA) When rocket sirens echo on the factory floor of Rav-Bariach Industries, Israel's biggest maker of security doors, workers rush to take refuge in bomb shelters fitted with their own kit. As the wailing subsides, they get back to the production line, making more blast-proof safe room hatches as Israel's economy adapts to the uneasy rhythm of life in wartime. "This is part of our reality," said CEO Idan Zu-Aretz in Ashkelon, 10 kilometres (six miles) from the Gaza Strip where combat rages between Israel and Hamas. Since war broke out, barrages of Hamas rockets -- and the response of Israel's "Iron Dome" anti-missile system -- punctuate the working day at Rav-Bariach, which produces heavy-duty locks and filtration systems, as well as security doors. "The demand for those products is skyrocketing," 51-year-old Zu-Aretz told AFP. But he wants the operation in Gaza to eliminate the threat. "This reality will change," he said. "It must change. There's no other way." - 'Situation is tough' - On October 7, Hamas militants surged over the militarised border from Gaza into Israel, killing some 1,200 people -- mostly civilians -- according to Israeli officials. Three days after the attack, the worst since Israel was founded in 1948, a missile crashed through the roof of Rav-Bariach's factory. No one was hurt. "In the first weeks of the war there were much more alerts," said Ravid Brosh, Rav-Bariach's head of international development, who took refuge in a shelter when a siren sounded during AFP's visit this week. As the initial shock of the attack began to dissipate, a new problem became apparent. At least 125,000 Israelis were forced to leave their homes near Gaza and in the north, where cross-border strikes from Lebanese militants Hezbollah have become a daily ritual. Meanwhile, more than 360,000 army reservists were mobilised to fight as Israel carries out a ground campaign in Gaza, where the Hamas government says more than 12,300 people have been killed, most of them civilians. In a nation numbering only nine million, the reduction in the available labour force has had huge economic consequences. "The situation is tough right now, mainly because we're missing hands," said Zu-Aretz. "Many of our employees are still missing, some of them are recruited to the army." "Some of them are still in different cities and they can't come and work," he said, estimating fewer than two-thirds of his 600 employees in Ashkelon were available. Over its 75 years of existence, Israel has regularly been at war with its neighbours. But "all Israeli-Arab conflicts in previous years were relatively minor compared to the war today", according to economist Benjamin Bental of the Taub Center, an Israeli think tank. Some industries are worse affected than others. "The construction sector is blocked," Bental said, as it relied so heavily on Palestinian labourers with travel permits, which have now been cancelled due to the war. Hospitality has also lagged as consumer confidence has slumped. Business is slow at bars and restaurants in major cities with tourists staying away. Overall, credit card transactions dropped 10 percent after October 7, and then 20 percent as Israel began its ground invasion of the densely populated Gaza Strip, according to economist Bental. The resilience of the tech industry, which makes up 18 percent of GDP, will prove decisive. - 'A lot of conditionals' - Many economic institutes have slashed their growth forecasts for this year and next, though the Israeli central bank remains bullish, predicting a 2.8-percent GDP boost in 2024. But Bental said there were "a lot of conditionals in the scenarios". "If the situation worsens along the northern border, this is going to totally change the picture," he added. "It's very hard to assess what it might entail, except that it is going to be terrible." With fighting ongoing in a war Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned will be "long and difficult", the combat is likely to suck up millions of shekels (dollars) of state spending. Last month, a group of 300 economists wrote to the premier with a warning: "You do not understand the magnitude of the crisis that Israel's economy is facing." smk/dla/jts/slb/sea/sn George Noggle uses a combine harvester to pick corn for Zoe Kent in Crawford County. The sun was golden across the field as Zoe Kent gleaned through her farm's 2023 corn harvest. "This is one of our prettier fields," she said. "I watched a bald eagle in the field all day yesterday, and then there was a buck with a huge rack earlier today." The year was challenging from the onset, but most farmers throughout the Buckeye State are learning their efforts have mostly paid off. "Yields have been a little bit all over the place," Kent said. "Our first two fields were well above average, and now we're into some pretty average fields." 'Ohio is expected to have a new record corn yield' Corn harvest started a little later than normal but has been worth the wait, according to Marlene Eick, director of marketing and communications for Ohio Corn & Wheat. "According to the latest report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Ohio is expected to have a new record corn yield at 195 bushels per acre," Eick said. "Just 10 years ago, the Ohio corn yield was 174 bushels per acre." As of Nov. 12, Ohio's corn harvest was 85% complete, according to a crop progress report published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Buckeye State's soybean harvest was 95% finished. Only 1% of the state's corn is eaten directly by humans, Eick explained. "The corn that's grown in Ohio, one third of it is going to feed livestock, one third of it is going to be made into ethanol and one third of it is going to be exported," she said. 'Definitely a unique opportunity' Farming has been a way of life for Kent since she was a little girl. It was in her family's blood decades before she was even born. "I'm the 8th generation here on our farm," she said. "We came here and then never left." Now, the 28-year-old runs the farm in Crawford County all by herself. "It's definitely a unique opportunity," Kent said. "My dad is retired so I am the only person in our family actively working the farm." Zoe Kent pauses the 2023 grain harvest in Crawford County just long enough to pose with her tractor. She chronicles her farming adventures throughout the day online across several social media platforms. Her accounts are all @farmwithzoe. Her posts include updates on equipment breakdowns, contemplations on whether to sell grain now or wait for prices to increase, and even glimpses of plans for future farm improvements. "I want to teach people what farming is like," Kent said. It's working, too. She has 175,000 followers on Facebook and 120,000 followers on Instagram. 'That means you had a good yield' Harvest started on Kent's farm with beans at the end of September. "Soybean harvest went well," she said. "We got it all done in a 10-day period." Corn, though, proved to be a little more troublesome. "The moisture level of the corn is just higher than other seasons and we've been getting more rain," Kent said. By the first week of November last year, her family farm's harvest was finished. The same week this year, harvest was only 65% done, and 70% of the corn crop was still standing. "The weather has not cooperated at all this year, it seems like," Kent said. The young farmer has learned how to juggle the variables of a successful harvest. "The real story here is this year we just have some really high moisture corn," Kent said. Her options are to hope for warm sunny days that will dry the corn in the field, but the chance of that in November are slim. "We could have used some more hot dry days," Kent said. Other options include running the corn through the grain dryer for selling it, or taking it right to the elevator with high moisture and getting docked on the price per bushel. In the end, she think it's better to run the grain dryer and get full market price for her harvest. "The propane company will be doing really good this season," Kent said. "They're going to be making some money." Early price outlooks were that corn's market value would be a little lower than expected in November, which is why farmers who have the means are storing their grain now and planning to sell it later after markets rebound. With the way this year's harvest is shaping up, it doesn't look like all of it will fit in storage. "That means you had a good yield," Kent said. "You don't mind selling it for a little bit cheaper if it's a surplus." ztuggle@gannett.com 419-564-3508 This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Ohio corn harvest wraps up with near record yield in bushels per acre JERUSALEM Womens rights groups and officials in Israel who have been working tirelessly for the past six weeks to document cases of rape and gender-based atrocities carried out by Hamas terrorists during their mass, brutal terror attack in Israel on Oct. 7., say the United Nations is ignoring them. They say they have also shared much of this evidence, some of it horrifyingly graphic and all of it extremely intimate, with the United Nations and groups that protect and empower women. The response: Silence. "Weve sent letters and shared graphic documentation," Sarah Weiss Maudi, a senior diplomat and legal adviser in Israels Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Fox News Digital. "Their silence is so deafening that its sickening," she said. ISRAELI POLICE SAY EXTREME SEXUAL VIOLENCE, RAPE BY HAMAS TERRORISTS WAS SYSTEMATIC UN and Israel flags Weiss Maudi, who last year became the first Israeli representative to serve as a senior adviser to the president of the 77th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, said that U.N. bodies, particularly U.N. Women, whose specific mandate is to champion the rights of women regardless of race or ethnicity, have simply refused to acknowledge that atrocities were committed against Israeli women and young girls despite much of it filmed by Hamas, and other Palestinian terrorists from Gaza, themselves. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP More than 1,200 people were killed in the mass terror attack, which took place in more than 20 Israeli communities, army bases, and a mass music festival. A further 240 individuals, including women and young children, were kidnapped back to Gaza. While no victims of sexual crimes have yet to come forward directly mainly because they were murdered, kidnapped, or are still reeling from the trauma, the Israel Police said last week that it had collected some 60,000 videos, including footage from the terrorists, victims, first responders, and CCTV, showing these gruesome crimes. Some disturbing eyewitness testimonies of gang rapes and other sexual acts have also been documented, the police said. Members of the Israeli Defense Forces work to clear houses and organize the bodies of civilians who were killed in an attack by Hamas terrorists in Kfar Aza, Israel. "What I dont understand is that we provided very graphic and descriptive evidence of rapes, including gang rapes and the remains of semen on young girls, it was not good enough for the U.N.," said Weiss Maudi. "Yet data provided by the Hamas Ministry of Health is accepted and quoted without any verification at all," she added. On the U.N. Womens website, the only reference to Israel since the Oct. 7 massacre deals with the "devastating impact of the crisis in Gaza on women and girls," where Hamas Ministry of Health estimates that more than 11,200 people have been killed, of whom some 4,506 are said to be children and 3,027 women. U.N. Women also details a two-day trip to Egypt by its executive director, Sima Bahous, where she called for "immediate and unhindered humanitarian access," to Gaza. AT THE ARMY BASE WHERE ISRAEL IDENTIFIES ITS DEAD: 'THEY WENT FROM HOUSE TO HOUSE BURNING FAMILY AFTER FAMILY' "Some of them deny because they think Israelis fabricate lies," said Weiss Maudi. "Others can only see these events in the context of the so called occupation and they say This is unfortunate but what did you expect was going to happen?" While referencing the Oct. 7 attack at a meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Oct. 24, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, "It is important to also recognize the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum." Following his remarks, there were calls for his resignation. He complained to the media that his comments had been "distorted." "I think many believe that Israeli women had this coming to them because they are seen as privileged women living good lives in southern Israel, while they claim the Israeli military is flattening Gaza," Weiss Maudi said, adding that many top international officials refuse to devote their energy to the Israeli female victims because they believe "the Jewish lobby" is supporting them and also "why would they tell the story of a few rapes when they want to look at the bigger picture of what is happening now in Gaza?" A person looks at a wall displaying pictures of people still held hostage in Gaza, on Oct. 26, 2023, in Tel Aviv, Israel. Anne Bayefsky, director of Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust, who has followed U.N. Women closely, said it was more than that, however. "The fact is that U.N. Women is a phony human rights body, for which Jewish women and girls don't count," she said, adding that the organization "is so twisted that it blames Israel for the violence of Palestinian men against Palestinian women, claiming that structural gender discrimination... in Palestine means the war increase[s] womens risks to gender-based violence and food insecurity." UN OFFICIAL CAUSES UPROAR OVER CLAIM THAT ISRAEL DOESN'T HAVE RIGHT TO DEFEND ITSELF AGAINST HAMAS TERRORISTS Bayefsky added that U.N. officials, including its special rapporteur for the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, have not only ignored that rape and gender-based crimes took place against Jewish and Israeli women on Oct. 7, but have even actively questioned whether such acts took place. "U.N. Women have been blasting around blood libels, including demonic characterizations of Israelis, whom they allege are responsible for the war's devastating impact on Palestinian women and girls, including pregnant Palestinians," she said. "Yet on the issue of a pregnant Israeli woman whose body was slashed open and her fetus stabbed to death, or the pregnant woman believed to have given birth in Hamas captivity, they are silent." A picture of Shani Nicole Louk, who was attacked, kidnapped and eventually murdered by Hamas terrorists following the Oct. 7 attacks. Dr. Cochav Elkayam-Levy, chair of Israels newly formed Civil Commission on October 7th Crimes by Hamas Against Women, said the reaction of international womens organizations was "deeply surprising and feels like a betrayal." "Instead of taking care of ourselves and focusing on helping our victims and survivors, we are busy fighting these reactions and trying to prove that there were numerous cases of rape or women killed, their bodies mutilated, in the most horrible of ways," she said, adding, "Gender-based violence is more than just sexual violence." Elkayam-Levy, also a legal expert at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, told Fox News Digital, "We have been struggling for weeks to get any recognition. Not only are they not responding or condemning what happened, they are now asking for us to provide more proof for the allegations." U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks at a Reuters event in New York City, Nov. 8, 2023. FOREIGN SURVIVORS OF BRUTAL HAMAS ATTACK ON ISRAEL RECALL TERROR MASSACRE : 'EVERYTHING WAS BURNING' She recounted how the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), a branch of U.N. Women tasked with "eliminating discrimination against women and girls in all areas," requested she prove to the committee that such atrocities took place. "Never in my life would I imagine that I would be standing in front of this distinguished committee to talk about gender-based war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against Israeli women and girls," Elkayam-Levy told CEDAW representatives on Oct. 30, according to testimony shared with Fox News Digital. The United Nations building New York City on Sept. 19, 2023. As she described to them video footage and other images of women brutalized by Hamas terrorists, Elkayam-Levy said: "I pray that none of you, the committees distinguished members, will ever have to see the images Ive seen." "Hamas might be now denying these war crimes, but during the attack and immediately after Hamas and its terrorists released horrific visuals of its brutal crimes, including hideous acts of torture, rape, abuse and murder of innocent women and girls, as trophies of war and killings in the most inhumane ways possible," she said. Volunteers recover bodies of victims who were brutally tortured and killed by Hamas terrorists in Israel. "But it is not only Hamas that is denying these hideous crimes we as Israeli women feel we are all subject of a collective international denial," Elkayam-Levy added. "The evidence is undeniable. Yet, we find ourselves fighting a dual battle: one against these atrocities and another against global silence." In addition, Elkayam-Levy said the refusal of international organizations to acknowledge such acts were committed against Israeli women is "having a terrible influence on other womens rights organizations around the world, who are failing to understand what happened and even denying it took place." Women's groups have largely ignored the crimes against Israeli women committed by Hamas. She gave the example of a center for sexual assault at the University of Alberta, Canada, where the director signed an open letter disputing that women were raped and sexually assaulted by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7. A statement released by the University of Alberta on Saturday said the director of the Sexual Assault Centre was no longer employed by the university, effective immediately. In response to a request from Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for U.N. Women said the organization "unequivocally condemns all forms of violence against women and girls, as well as any use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, which is a grave violation of human rights. It is never acceptable. International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law must be respected and upheld at all times." The spokesperson said Bahous had spoken about the issue at the Security Councils Open Debate on Women, Peace and Security on Oct. 25, saying, "Every act of violence against women and girls, including sexual violence, is unequivocally condemned, irrespective of the nationality, identity, race or religion of the victims." The organization said an independent commission of inquiry had already started "collecting and preserving evidence of war crimes committed by all sides since 7 October 2023, when Hamas launched a complex attack on Israel and Israeli forces responded with airstrikes in Gaza." Original article source: United Nations slammed for silence over Hamas rapes, mutilation and murder of Israeli women, critics say The vice-chancellor of Imperial College London received the biggest pay rise across all UK universities with a bump of 186,000, latest figures show. Professor Alice Gast, the former president of Imperial College London, who presided over the college during Ulez and Covid controversies, earned a total remuneration, including salary and benefits, of 714,000, with a basic pay of 365,000, in 2021-2022. Her total earnings in 2019-2020, according to Imperials own financial statement, were 527,400, with a basic salary of 358,600. In an official investigation in 2020 Gast was found to have bullied members of staff at the university. I am very sorry that I bullied someone, she said in a subsequent report. While under her leadership the university has come under criticism for its research into Covid-19 and the Ultra Low Emissions Zone (Ulez). In March 2020 Professor Neil Ferguson and his team at Imperial published Covid-19 modelling that suggested more than 500,000 people could die if Britain took no action in the first wave of the pandemic. Bob Seely, MP for the Isle of Wight, said Gasts increased salary raised significant questions. Im all for paying big bucks for big successes, he said. But I wouldnt trust anything that comes out of Imperial after their Covid-19 modelling, which has been criticised by senior academics and scientists. Id love to know how this money has been justified considering this massively controversial research, he added. In 2021, Imperial researchers produced a report into Sadiq Khans proposed Ulez expansion finding it contributed only marginally to air quality improvements. The study from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters in 2021, found that the introduction of Ulez in 2019 cut nitrogen dioxide by less than 3pc, and had insignificant effects on ozone and particulate matter. However, Professor Kelly, a director of Imperials Environmental Research Group, which has been paid more than 800,000 by Mr Khans office since 2021, agreed to issue a statement partly written by Shirley Rodrigues, the London Mayors deputy for environment and energy saying Ulez had helped to dramatically reduce air pollution. Ulez was, the study noted, part of a package of measures that had clearly improved air quality. In one email, obtained through a Freedom of Information request by The Telegraph, Professor Kelly wrote to Ms Rodrigues: I appreciate the level of damage ensured and am pursuing options internally to offset this if possible. I would be very happy to provide the GLA with support required as you move to mitigate the damage to what I believe is a world leading air pollution policy. London Conservatives criticised the funding of scientists by City Hall at the time. Howard Fox, founder of the Fair Fuel UK campaign and Reform UKs London mayoral candidate for next years election, said: Londons tax payers have helped to finance Imperial Colleges studies to show Sadiq Khans political anti-driver agenda is indeed working. It stinks that the former president of Imperial has wallowed in such a significant pay rise whilst motorists have been hit so unnecessarily hard in the pocket. Imperial is one of the UKs top universities and leading research institutions. Consistently in the top 10 of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, it is the only UK university to focus principally on science, engineering, medicine and business. Since its establishment in 1907, research conducted at Imperial has included the discovery of penicillin, the development of holography, and the foundations of fiber optics. In recent years the university has built a 28m centre to explore AI digital healthcare innovation, has invested 17m in improving global access to life-saving vaccines, and worked at the forefront of research into treatments for Alzheimers and malaria among many other successes. Imperial College did respond to requests for comment. Recommended How much it costs to send your children to Britains top university cities Read more Top five vice-chancellors earn over 500k Alice Gast is among several top vice-chancellors whose income and benefits have risen significantly between 2019 to 2022. Of the 155 university leaders salaries examined using data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency, the top five all earned more than 500,000, and 10 earned more than 400,000 in 2021-2022. Stephen Toope, whilst vice-chancellor of the University of Cambridge, received 526,000 in total remuneration in 2021-22, with a net salary of 375,000 compared to 468,000 in 2019-2020, when he took a salary sacrifice of 9,000. Minouche Shafik, director of LSE, was awarded total remuneration of 507,000 in 2019-2020, which decreased to 486,000 as a result of Covid-19 salary cuts in 2020-2021, before rising again to 2021-2022 to 539,000. Louise Richardson, vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford, earned 542,000 in 2021-2022, a significant increase from 475,000 in 2019-2020. In addition, Francois Ortalo-Magne, the Dean of London Business School, had total remuneration of 533,000, with a basic salary 481,000 in 2021-2022 an increase from 2020-2021, when he was compensated with 498,000, having waived 120,000 during the pandemic. Both figures are lower than his total remuneration in 2019-2020 of 609,000. Students have faced significant disruption to their studies because of University and College Union strikes - ANDY RAIN/Shutterstock Students have faced significant disruption to their studies because of rounds of University and College Union (UCU) strikes since 2018. The industrial action, which has seen lecturers across the UK walk out over pensions, pay, and working conditions, led to students being denied teaching contact hours and delays in issuing grades. Despite this turmoil, the financial burden for many graduates is also set to increase. Plan 5 student loans, which came into force in September, will not be wiped until 40 years after graduation, as opposed to after 30 years under previous Plan 2 rules. The changes mean that most graduates will make repayments past the Normal Minimum Pension Age of 55. Graduates will also begin repaying their loans earlier, as the Student Loans Company will take 9pc of anything over 25,000 instead of 27,295 under existing Plan 2 loans. According to financial journalist Martin Lewis, the new plan could see the cost of a university education increase by over 50pc for the average graduate. Meanwhile teaching staff have been subject to short-term and casual contracts, with UCU figures indicating 46pc of universities use zero hours contracts to deliver teaching, and 68pc of research staff in higher education are on fixed-term contracts. Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education, Robert Halfon, said: Vice-chancellor salaries must be justifiable and should not be excessive. Ensuring good value for money for students and the taxpayer is a key part of our reforms to higher education alongside driving up quality, ensuring a sustainable and fair student finance system, and promoting genuine social mobility. This means that students from all backgrounds can go on to good, well-paid jobs wherever they choose to study. A spokesman at the Office for Students (OfS) said: We expect every university to justify and publish the pay of its vice-chancellor to ensure transparency for students and taxpayers. This includes being transparent about the relationship between the vice-chancellors pay and that of all other employees. The OfS does not set levels of pay because universities are autonomous institutions. An LSE spokesman said: 2021-22 was the first year the LSE vice-chancellor took her salary in full during her six-year tenure, having made salary sacrifices in all previous years. The 0.5pc increase on her base pay from the previous year reflects legally mandated national pay bargaining. An Oxford University spokesman said: In 2019, the committee concluded that the vice-chancellors pay was no longer commensurate with the responsibilities of the job or with UK peers and recommended an increase to reflect these greater responsibilities. The London Business School said its pay has to compete with similar institutions in the United States and Europe. The University of Cambridge did not respond to requests for comment. Alice Gast (Imperial College London, August 2014 July 2022) Alice Gast was found to have bullied a member of staff in an official investigation in 2020 - Kimberly White/Getty Images North America Salary Total remuneration 714,000, including accommodation costs of 269,000. Basic pay: 365,000. Subject Chemical Engineering. Career Gasts academic career began with degrees from the University of South California and Princeton, as well as a NATO fellowship at the Ecole Superieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles in Paris. She taught at Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she was vice-president for research and assistant provost, before being made President of Lehigh University in 2006. Alongside her work in further education, Gast was selected as a science envoy to the Central Asian and Caucasus regions by Hillary Clinton, and is a member of the Advisory Board for the World Economic Forum Centre, and a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering. Her leadership has been recognised with numerous awards including election to the USAs National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Controversy Gast was found to have bullied a member of staff in an official investigation carried out by Jane McNeill QC in 2020. It led to a disciplinary hearing for the President, with findings that Gast had created or contributed to a culture which involves and tolerates favouritism, exclusion, the making of disparaging comments about others and at times a lack of respect for others. Members of lecturers union the UCU passed a motion of no confidence in her in February 2022. Quote I am sorry that, at times, I made some senior staff feel unappreciated and left out. I am very sorry that I bullied someone. Professor Dame Louise Richardson (University of Oxford, January 2016 December 2022) As vice-chancellor of Oxford University, Professor Dame Louise Richardson received a total remuneration of 542,000 - Andrew Crowley Salary Total remuneration 542,000, including 5,000 membership of a private healthcare scheme. Basic salary: 411,000. Subject Political science with a specialism in terrorism. Career After gaining BA, MA and PhD degrees from Trinity College, Dublin, UCLA and Harvard, Professor Dame Louise Richardson conducted research in the anti-apartheid movement alongside the South African Council of Churches. Professorships at Harvard University followed, before she moved into leadership roles as executive dean at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, then principal and vice-chancellor at St. Andrews. As vice-chancellor of Oxford, Dame Louise increased the proportion of state school students admitted from 56pc in 2019 to 68pc in 2022. In 2020, she launched a Race Equality Task Force to address the under-representation of racial minorities at the university. During the Covid-19 pandemic, she oversaw the development of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, including distribution as a non-profit venture to low and middle income countries. Controversy The university accepted a 6m donation from the family of Oswald Mosley in 2021. Jewish students and then Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi criticised the decision over Mosleys leadership of the British Union of Fascists in the 1930s. Quote I grew up in Ireland where Oliver Cromwell to me was what Voldemort [the Harry Potter villain] is to my children. And yet a statue of Cromwell stands outside Westminster. Does that mean it should be taken down? No. Stephen Toope (University of Cambridge October 2017 September 2022) Stephen Toope served as the University of Cambridges vice-chancellor for five years - YouTube Salary Total remuneration 526,000. Basic salary: 385,000. Net salary with salary sacrifice: 375,000. Subject Law, specialising in human rights and international development. Career The scholar studied history and literature at Harvard, common and civil law at McGill University, and conducted a PhD at Trinity College, Cambridge where he completed his PhD. Moving into academic leadership roles early in his career, he was the youngest ever dean at the McGill University Faculty of Law, before holding positions at the Trudeau Foundation, the University of British Columbia and the University of Torontos Munk School of Global Affairs. Beside his work in higher education, he served as a consultant to Canadas department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and a number of UN agencies. Controversy The universitys proposed 400m collaboration with the UAE ended over concerns about the Gulf States use of Pegasus spyware. In an interview with student newspaper Varsity, Toope said it was not the right time. Students and academics had previously raised concerns over the countrys documented record of human rights abuses, and limited freedoms for women and LGBT+ individuals. Quote The university will always be a place where anyone can express new ideas and controversial or unpopular opinions, and where those views can be robustly challenged. The statement also makes it clear that it is unacceptable to censor, or disinvite, speakers whose views are lawful but may be seen as controversial. Minouche Shafik (LSE September 2017 June 2023) During strike action in the summer of 2023, Shafik imposed 50pc pay deductions on striking staff - David Rose Salary Total remuneration: 539,000. Basic salary: 380,000. Subject Economics Career After studying at Massachusetts Amherst, LSE and Oxford, Shafik joined the World Bank becoming its youngest-ever vice-president at the age of 36. Shafik held multiple positions in the British governments Department for International Development, before taking leading roles at the IMF and Bank of England. In academia, she taught as a professor at Georgetown University and the University of Pennsylvania. Controversy As Director of LSE, she oversaw the number of academics on fixed-term (casual) contracts increase from 55pc in 2016-2017 to 59pc, HESA data shows. In research organised by the LSE branch of the UCU, 82pc of fixed term staff reported they experienced regular or constant anxiety about their professional futures. During strike action in the summer of 2023, Shafik imposed 50pc pay deductions on striking staff alongside LSE management. Quote In the past jobs were about muscles, now theyre about brains, but in future theyll be about the heart. Francois Ortalo-Magne (London Business School, August 2017 ongoing) Despite a salary exceeding 500,000, Francois Ortalo-Magne claimed a 1 bag of M&S crisps on staff expenses - LinkedIn Salary Total remuneration 533,000, with basic salary 481,000. Subject Economics, specialising in Urban Economics. Career Ortalo-Magne studied at the Ecole dingenieurs de Purpan and the University of Minnesota before teaching at LSE and being appointed as Dean at the Wisconsin School of Business. He also serves on the International Advisory Board of British American Business, and as a director on the Graduate Management Admission Council. His work has been published in multiple international academic journals. Controversy Despite his salary exceeding 500,000 per year, he claimed a 1 bag of salt and vinegar crisps from Marks & Spencer on staff expenses, an investigation by the Times revealed in 2017. Quote Being a leader is to not be the one who provides the solutions - to actually be the one who helps, shepherd the community. But you know, when the sheep know where theyre going, you shepherd from behind. Recommended 'Is university worth it? Ill encourage my youngest children to consider other options' Read more 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. Approval of new US aid to Ukraine may be delayed until mid-December or even longer. Source: Bloomberg Details: This raises questions about Washington's ability to maintain the flow of arms, which both the Biden administration and the Ukrainian government consider vital. Ukraine's supporters in Congress are fighting an uphill battle over a large aid package that is not connected to binding bills that would prompt swift action. The earliest Congress can wrap up negotiations and pass new aid to Ukraine is mid-December, almost two months after President Joe Biden first requested US$61 billion for Ukraine. Senators from both parties plan to work in the coming days on an agreement on an aid package for Ukraine, along with US border needs, which they could vote on after Thanksgiving and return to Washington. Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat with close ties to Biden, said that "we need to push ourselves to negotiate over the next week. The Ukrainians are running out of fuel, weapons and ammunition." He said Congress should act "on a timeline thats going to matter." Background: The White House requested nearly US$106 billion in additional funding from Congress, including aid to Israel and Ukraine. It is scheduled to be considered in the Senate after Thanksgiving, which will be celebrated in the US on 23 November. Republican Congressman Don Bacon said that the House of Representatives already knows what to do with the bill on aid to Ukraine, as well as how much money they want to allocate to Kyiv. In his opinion, the consideration could take place in December. The Biden administration is calling on Congress to approve the White House's request for assistance to Ukraine as soon as possible to prevent serious consequences for its defence capabilities. Support UP or become our patron! Former US first lady Rosalynn Carter speaking in New Delhi in 2006 Former US First Lady Rosalynn Carter, the wife of ex-President Jimmy Carter, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center confirmed in a statement that she died peacefully with her family by her side. On Friday, it was reported that she had entered a hospice care home in the state of Georgia, and was spending time with her 99-year-old husband, who has been in hospice care since February. Mrs Carter was diagnosed with dementia in May. The longest-married first couple marked their 77th wedding anniversary in July. "Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished," said Mr Carter in the statement. "She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me." Mrs Carter was born Eleanor Rosalynn Smith on 18 August 1927. Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn Carter posing in front of a red backdrop She married Jimmy Carter on 7 July 1946 and they had four children. The Carters' son, Chip, described her as a loving mother, extraordinary first lady and "a great humanitarian in her own right." "She will be sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today." She is also survived by 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren, after losing a grandson in 2015. This embedded content is not available in your region. When her husband began his political career in the 1960s - first as Georgia state senator, governor, and later US president - Mrs Carter was focused on raising mental health awareness and reducing the stigma attached to people with mental illnesses. As first lady of Georgia she was a member of a governor's commission to improve services for the mentally ill, and as US First Lady she became honorary chair of the President's Commission on Mental Health, which was key to the passage of a 1980 act that helped fund local mental health centres. After leaving Washington she and her husband founded the Carter Center in 1982, through which she continued her advocacy work for mental health, early childhood immunisation, and other humanitarian causes. The couple were also key figures in the Habitat For Humanity charity, helping build homes for families in need. They received recognition for their humanitarian work in 2002 when Mr Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In a 2013 interview with US TV network C-SPAN, she said: "I hope our legacy continues, more than just as first lady, because the Carter Center has been an integral part of our lives. "And our motto is waging peace, fighting disease and building hope. And I hope that I have contributed something to mental health issues and help improve a little bit the lives of people living with mental illnesses." Mrs Carter seen outside her home after US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden met former President Jimmy Carter in Georgia in 2021 US President Joe Biden paid tribute to Mrs Carter, saying she "walked her own path, inspiring a nation and the world along the way". "On behalf a grateful nation, we send our love to the entire Carter family and the countless people whose lives are better, fuller, and brighter because of Rosalynn Carter," President Biden posted on X, formerly Twitter. Former First Lady Michelle Obama said: "When our family was in the White House, every so often, Rosalynn would join me for lunch, offering a few words of advice and always - always - a helping hand. "She reminded me to make the role of First Lady my own, just like she did. I'll always remain grateful for her support and her generosity." Former President George W Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush said Mrs Carter was "a woman of dignity and strength". In a statement, they said: There was no greater advocate of President Carter, and their partnership set a wonderful example of loyalty and fidelity. "She leaves behind an important legacy in her work to destigmatize mental health." This embedded content is not available in your region. The United States is moving toward imposing new policies restricting entry to the country to extreme settlers in the West Bank who are associated with violence, officials said this weekend. In a Sunday interview on CBS Newss Face the Nation, U.S. deputy national security adviser Jonathan Finer expanded on President Bidens op-ed from Saturday in which he mentioned potential consequences for those inflicting violence on innocent Palestinians. Look, the President has been extremely clear I think far beyond even what many of his predecessors said about our concerns about developments on the West Bank, and in particular, our concerns about violence perpetrated against innocent Palestinians by extreme settlers, Finer said Sunday. He said that in public speeches. He said that in an op-ed that was published just this weekend. And as he indicated, and as we are now moving to operationalize, that could include consequences that the U.S. would impose on people associated with violence against innocents in the West Bank including a ban on them being able to travel to the United States on visas, Finer added. And were moving in that direction, and well have more to say about that, Im sure, in the coming days, Finer said. Finers comments come after the president penned an op-ed in The Washington Post this weekend in which he outlined several potential policy solutions moving forward in order to end violence in the region. He stressed the need for a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine and denounced the Israeli settlers alleged attacks on innocent Palestinians, especially in the West Bank. I have been emphatic with Israels leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable, he wrote. The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Deputy National Security Adviser Jonathan Finer said Sunday theres a real concern over a potential Israeli ground operation in southern Gaza because thousands of civilians have fled there in recent weeks after heeding evacuation orders to do so. Finer said on CBSs Face the Nation that while Israel has the right to expand operations into southern Gaza, it should be wary of the civilians who have fled their in recent weeks to escape the Israeli bombardment of other parts of Gaza. He said Israel should not go forward with any potential plans there before it accounts for the safety of civilians. So in the in the event that we believe that Israel is likely to to embark on combat operations, including in the south, we believe both that they have the right to do that, but that there is a real concern, because hundreds of thousands of residents of Gaza have fled now from the north to the south at Israels request, he said. And we think that their operations should not go forward until those people those additional civilians have been accounted for in their in their military planning. And so we will be conveying that directly to them and have been conveying that directly to them, he continued. He also said that Israel should draw lessons from how its operations took place in northern Gaza. He added that this includes lessons that lead to greater and enhanced protections for civilian life things like narrowing the area of active combat, clarifying where civilians can seek refuge from the fighting. Israel ordered more evacuations in southern Gaza amid its war with Hamas last week, raising fears the war could become more widespread. More than 1.5 million residents in Gaza have been internally displaced due to the war, which was prompted by the Hamass Oct. 7 attack on Israel that left more than 1,200 people dead. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, at least 11,470 people in Gaza have died in the fighting since the onset of the war. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. By Jung Da-hyun The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the World Health Organization will co-host the World Bio Summit 2023 in Seoul from Monday to Tuesday. This year's event will take place at the Conrad Seoul hotel under the theme of "Strengthening capacities for pandemic response," bringing together representatives from governments, the scientific community, the private sector and international organizations that played a pivotal role in responding to COVID-19 in the vaccine and biotechnology fields. The World Bio Summit, driven by the Korean government's pursuit of becoming a global hub for biotechnology, is an annual international event where leaders in the field from various countries, companies and international organizations are invited to discuss international collaboration strategies. This is the second time the event is being held, following last year's inaugural summit. About 200 participants, including those from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), International Vaccine Institute (IVI), Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), as well as health ministers from various countries are set to attend the event. Discussions will focus on how to respond to the next infectious disease outbreak. Through this event, discussions will cover various topics related to preparing for future pandemics, including expanding the capacity for vaccine production and development at governmental, business, and international organization levels. There will also be in-depth discussions on concrete plans for regional and continental cooperation models for vaccine production and development in the recent context of the vaccine field, according to the health and welfare ministry. "We hope that the World Bio Summit 2023 will serve as a constructive opportunity to reflect on the importance of global cooperation for future pandemic responses, to establish a secure healthcare system against threats to human health, and to encourage sustained attention and action for infectious disease responses," Health and Welfare Minister Cho Kyoo-hong said. U.S. officials are walking a delicate yet contorted tightrope when it comes to addressing Israels offensive in Gaza as it stares down a potential deal to release dozens of hostages from Hamass grip, while emphasizing real concern for an Israeli operation eyed in the coastal enclaves southern tip. Deputy national security adviser Jonathan Finer was tasked Sunday with tackling the aftermath of a report that broke late Saturday indicating that a deal was close to being reached for a five-day pause in fighting in exchange for the release of some of the 239 hostages in Gaza who were captured on Oct. 7. Reporting by The Washington Post indicated that a U.S.-brokered deal as a result of talks in Doha that involved Israel and Hamas via Qatari mediators would free dozens of women and children as well as allow an increase in much-needed humanitarian assistance for civilians, including fuel. Finer, as well as Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Herzog, expressed hope a hostage agreement could be reached in the coming days, but they were careful to remain cautious that the deal is not yet done. [W]e are closer than we have been to reaching a final agreement, but that on an issue as sensitive as this and as challenging is this, the mantra that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed really does apply. And we do not yet have an agreement in place, Finer told CBSs Margaret Brennan on Face the Nation. On ABCs This Week with Martha Raddatz, Finer responded to a notion expressed by Qatars prime minister that mostly very minor logistical and practical issues remain before the hostages could be released. [S]ome of the gaps have now narrowed. Some of the issues that were at odds have now been closed out. But we are not finished there is not yet a deal in place. And I think it would be premature to conclude that this is inevitable given how close we have come in the past, Finer said, adding that he would not detail negotiations in public. Theyre making some progress, and we hope that that will be concluded soon so that these people can finally come home, he added. Herzog also on ABCs This Week described the status of the negotiations as hopeful, and he said he hoped that they could soon come to fruition. We are hopeful that we can get a significant number of hostages freed in the coming days. I dont want to go into the details of these talks. They are obviously very sensitive. The less were going to the details, the better the chances of such a deal. But they are very serious efforts, and Im hopeful that we can have the deal in the coming days, he said. Herzog was also cautious, however, to emphasize that a brief pause did not indicate support for a cease-fire, which U.S. and Israeli officials firmly maintain would only help Hamas regroup. Were talking about a pause in the fighting for a few days, so we can get the hostages out, Herzog said. Its not its not a cease-fire because we will continue to push against Hamas to dismantle their military infrastructure and their terror infrastructure. We are not going to stop that, but we are willing to go for a pause, for a significant number of hostages, if we have [a] deal. Simultaneously, Israel has been eyeing an offensive in Gazas south, where thousands of civilians have fled in recent weeks after heeding evacuation orders by Israel to do so. Finer on CBS was asked how much the U.S. would apply any legal restrictions to military equipment it sends Israel on a human rights basis after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the network last week that Israel was not successful in minimizing civilian casualties. The national security adviser responded with a sustained notion by the Biden administration that Israel had the right to defend itself, but he added there were concerns about where they would target next. In the event that we believe that Israel is likely to to embark on combat operations, including in the south, we believe both that they have the right to do that, but that there is a real concern, because hundreds of thousands of residents of Gaza have fled now from the north to the south at Israels request, Finer said. And we think that their operations should not go forward until those people those additional civilians have been accounted for in their military planning. Thomas White, the director of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, told ABC that the situation in Gaza remained very desperate, describing a recent report that one of its schools were hit as horrific. This is the reality of this conflict, is that people in Gaza have got nowhere to go. Its unlike other conflicts where, you know, theres fighting in one city and you move to another city, White said. You know, the reality is, the Gazans have got nowhere to go for safety. And they are all exposed to the threat of fighting, and particularly airstrikes. The Biden administration has come under increased pressure over the last month as the Palestinian death toll climbs to the tens of thousands, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. It has shifted its tone on the war since its start, at first offering unequivocal support to Israel before it began lacing its messaging with warnings to its strongest Middle East ally that it must abide by international law and do what it can to limit civilian casualties while allowing for humanitarian aid to enter. But that shift hasnt resonated with Democrats, whose support of Biden on the matter of foreign policy continues to erode, as evidenced by an NBC poll released Sunday. That survey found just 34 percent of voters approve of how Biden is handling the Israel-Hamas war, with 51 percent of Democrats approving of Bidens handling of the conflict. A growing contingent of Democratic lawmakers are also increasing calls for a cease-fire, a move that neither the administration nor Israel support. Meanwhile, demonstrations by protestors who support a cease-fire have turned violent at the doorstep of Democratic Party headquarters both in Washington and California in recent days. For his part, Biden made his most recent case on the matter in an op-ed published by The Washington Post in which he acknowledged brutal attacks by Hamas on Israelis and the deaths of thousands of civilians in Gaza while offering again the only foreign policy solution he sees fit in the region. A two-state solution two peoples living side by side with equal measures of freedom, opportunity and dignity is where the road to peace must lead. Reaching it will take commitments from Israelis and Palestinians, as well as from the United States and our allies and partners. That work must start now, Biden wrote. When asked about House and Senate Democrats who are increasingly pushing for conditions on aid in relation to what some call indiscriminate bombing, Finer said no U.S. assistance to another country was unconditional but that the situation at hand came with its own set of unique complications. All of the requirements associated with international humanitarian law are applicable here. The last thing I will say on this, though, and its important to bear in mind, is that Israel is fighting an adversary that not only does not hold itself to these same standards, it openly boasts about flouting them and about its violations, flagrant violations of international law, Finer told CNNs Jake Tapper on State of the Union. That does not diminish Israels obligations, but it is a facet of this conflict that makes the challenge extremely daunting. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Oksana Markarova, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United States, has reported that the US state of New York has issued a proclamation on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor, once again stressing the recognition of the 1932-33 Holodomor as genocide of the Ukrainian people. [Holodomor was a man-made famine in the Soviet Union which lasted from 1932 to 1933 and claimed the lives of millions of Ukrainians ed.] Source: European Pravda, citing Markarova on Facebook Quote: "We express our deepest gratitude to the Governor of New York State, Kathy Hochul, for her solidarity with Ukraine. I would also like to thank the team of the Consulate General of Ukraine in New York and the Ukrainian community for their active work in commemorating the victims of the Holodomor." Details: Markarova urged everybody to join the Ukrainian community in commemorating the millions of innocent victims of the 1932-1933 Holodomor, and invited everyone to attend the Holodomor commemoration in Washington, DC, on 25 November at the Holodomor Memorial. Background: Earlier, Iowa became the 33rd state in the United States to recognise the 1932-1933 Holodomor as genocide of the Ukrainian people. Before that, the Holodomor was recognised as genocide by the US states of Washington, Maryland, Arizona, and Wyoming. The Holodomor was a famine artificially created by the Stalinist repressive regime in 1932-1933 during the height of collectivisation, i.e. the forced confiscation of private property and the organisation of collective farms. An estimated four to six million Ukrainians, mostly in rural areas, starved to death in that period. To date, the Holodomor has been recognised as a genocide of the Ukrainian people by the parliaments of about 30 countries, as well as by the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Support UP or become our patron! WASHINGTON In the lead-up to the meeting between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, Ziba Murat was nervous. For her, the stakes were deeply personal, and the outcome of the meeting could impact the possibility of her mother's freedom. Murat says her mother, Gulshan Abbas, has been arbitrarily detained in China since 2018 on false accusations of aiding terrorism because she is a Uyghur. Abbas' case has attracted the attention of the State Department, Congress and human rights groups, which have called her detainment unjust and advocated she be released. Despite the push for Abbas' freedom, there has been no significant progress, Murat said. "We're raising our kids without her presence and her guidance, and they're already like, grown up, school age," Murat said. "And it just hurts so much." For some Uyghur Americans who have family members imprisoned in China, like Murat, the meeting represents a potential opportunity to make headway in their loved ones' cases. Murat said she sees the meeting between Biden and Xi as a way for the countries relations to improve and thinks the increased talks could be an opportunity for China to show a humanitarian gesture and start releasing the innocent family members, like my mom. At the same time, Uyghur Americans worry about human rights being relegated to the back burner in conversations between world leaders. The Biden administration has said that China is committing genocide in Xinjiang and repressing Uyghurs, a mostly Muslim minority in China that resides primarily in the western province of Xinjiang. The Trump administration had previously declared that China was committing genocide against Uyghurs just one day before the Biden presidency started. Uyghur Americans want to see more action, including the administrations efforts to secure the release of family members imprisoned abroad. The U.S. has estimated that since 2017, the Chinese government has detained more than 1 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in internment camps or detention facilities, according to a 2021 report. Also in 2021, Amnesty International released a report detailing that the Chinese government used the guise of a campaign against terrorism to carry out arbitrary mass detention. The evidence Amnesty International has gathered provides a factual basis for the conclusion that the Chinese government has committed at least the following crimes against humanity: imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international law; torture; and persecution, the report said. NBC News reached out to China's embassy in D.C. for comment but did not immediately receive a response. China has previously referred to detention facilities as vocational education and training centers to combat terrorism and religious extremism and asserted that they protect basic rights. Those claims are widely refuted by governments, human rights organizations and Uyghurs. Officials from the State Department and National Security Council pointed to multiple instances of the U.S. condemning human rights abuses, as well as sanctions on individuals and entities over human rights concerns in Xinjiang. Elfidar Iltebir traveled from Washington, D.C., to San Francisco to protest Xi's visit and be a "voice for our voiceless people." Iltebir, along with other critics of Xi, demonstrated outside of the San Francisco airport the day Xi arrived, and later in front of the Chinese consulate, she said. Iltebir wanted to ensure that "Xi is not welcomed by everyone in the U.S., land of the free," she explained. "We wanted to ask and demand from the U.S. President Biden and U.S. government officials to not put human rights on the side of the table," added Iltebir, who is the president of the Uyghur American Association. "Xi Jinping is responsible for genocide and crimes against humanitygovernments *must* hold him accountable," read a post on X from the Uyghur Human Rights Project. Image: Demonstrators gather outside of the Chinese Consulate (Tony Avelar / AP) During Bidens meeting with Xi, he raised concerns about human rights abuses in China, including in Xinjiang, according to a readout of the meeting. Officials from the National Security Council and State Department also said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan have recently raised human rights concerns with their Chinese counterparts as well. A National Security Council official said that the countries' engagement is necessary to raise areas of disagreement, referring to human rights abuses. During his meeting with Xi, Biden also raised the issue of exit bans, according to a White House readout of the meeting. "The President again emphasized that it remains a priority to resolve the cases of American citizens who are wrongfully detained or subject to exit bans in China," the readout said. I dont second guess the political will and the concerns in the senior leadership, because I meet with them regularly. Theres no lack of sympathy. Theres no lack of recognition. Theres no lack of expressing concerns about the illness, the problem, said Nury Turkel, a Uyghur American and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute. Nancy Pelosi also appointed Turkel in 2020 to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. But what I would like to see from our government collectively is the prescription. Among those subject to an exit ban is Turkel's mother, he said. Turkel is sanctioned by China, which Blinken said in a 2022 statement constitutes "yet another PRC affront against universal rights," using an abbreviation for the People's Republic of China. Because Turkel cannot travel to China due to sanctions and his mother cannot leave, the two have not seen each other since 2004, he said. "My mom's last desire in this world: to be able to give a hug to her American grandchildren," Turkel said. "That hasn't happened yet." Ziba Murat holds a photo of her mother Gulshan Abbas in Virginia on June 16, 2021. (Leah Millis / Reuters file) Many Uyghurs also fear transnational repression from China. The U.S. focus on transnational repression is relatively new, according to a State Department spokesperson. When asked whether the newer emphasis on transnational repression is tangibly changing how China is engaging with the U.S., the official declined to speak to the nature of the conversations. In April, 40 officers of Chinas national police were charged by the Department of Justice in transnational repression schemes that targeted U.S. residents. Two Chinese nationals were also arrested in April on accusations of establishing a secret police station in New York City to monitor and intimidate dissidents and those critical of its government, according to DOJ officials. Iltebir said her home address had been posted online previously, with someone saying, "We know where you live. We're watching you," she said. "And I got scared, too." She believes the perpetrators were "Chinese trolls" and reported the incident to the FBI. Now, she has cameras on three sides of her house, she said. In a letter to Biden before the summit, the co-chairs of the Congressional Executive Committee on China, Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., urged the president to "demand an immediate end to the PRCs transnational repression activities in the United States," invoking Abbas' case as an example, as well. Abbas' sister, Rushan Abbas, believes she was detained because of Rushan's activism for Uyghurs in the U.S. Rushan Abbas is an American citizen and lives in the U.S. Her sister was detained just days after she gave her first public speech at the Hudson Institute in September 2018, her family says. "As an American citizen, I am doing what I can to expose China's genocidal crimes against my people," Rushan Abbas said. "But yet, my sister is suffering as transnational repression." When asked about the status of Gulshan Abbas' case, a State Department spokesperson emphasized the sensitivity of speaking to the development of individual cases. The official also pointed NBC News to the government's #WithoutJustCause Political Prisoners Campaign, which highlights Gulshan Abbas' case alongside those of other people who "have been imprisoned for exercising their human rights," the website says. "We're determined. We're not going to give up, and I will continue to fight for her release, advocate for her and other family members here like her," Murat said of her mother. "I have hope." This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) on Sunday called on President Biden to speak out more clearly about civilian casualties in Gaza, when asked whether Bidens pro-Israel positioning hurts his standing with Democrats. I dont know if its hurting the president with fellow Democrats. I do think its important that the president speak out more clearly on this issue, Van Hollen said in an interview on CBS Newss Face the Nation. Let me say this, in the aftermath of the horrific Hamas attacks of October 7, you have, I think, virtually every senator supporting Israels objective of going after Hamas and neutralizing them from a military perspective. No more October 7ths, he said. But we also need to do as [Secretary of State Antony Blinken] said, how Israel conducts this operation is important. On Oct. 7, Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, launched a surprise attack on Israels southern border, brutally killing 1,200 Israelis and taking about 240 hostages, most of whom are presumed to be held in Gaza. It was the deadliest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust. Israel responded with a barrage of airstrikes and a ground invasion with the stated goal of destroying Hamas and bringing the hostages home. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza estimates more than 11,000 Palestinians have died since the start of the war, prompting widespread demonstrations especially among many Democrats for a cease-fire. Democrats have had to tread lightly as the administration navigates the relationship with its closest ally in the region, while also managing its own public image back home, ahead of a 2024 presidential race. Van Hollen stressed its important for there to be red lines on issues of aid and that no aid that the United States gives its allies ought to be unconditional, as has been the policy of the White House. Many of us were concerned just a few weeks ago, when one of the White House National Security [spokespeople] was asked if the United States has any red lines. And the answer was no, which means anything goes, Van Hollen said. And that cannot be consistent with American interests and American values. So thats why were asking these questions. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Democrats are already gearing up for Virginias 2025 elections after the partys successful showing earlier this month in the states off-year elections. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) announced Monday she is running for governor in 2025, while Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney (D) has reportedly been gathering staff in preparation for a gubernatorial run as well. Democrats are also eager ahead of next years federal elections. Eugene Vindman, one of the high-profile witnesses in former President Trumps first impeachment trial, announced Thursday he is running for Spanbergers congressional seat. Best Black Friday Deals The activity following Election Night is emblematic of the optimism Democrats feel, two years after the state appeared to be shifting toward Republicans. 2021 was a wake-up call, said Abhi Rahman, communications director at the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. I think a lot of folks assume that Virginia was at least a lean-blue state, but the way that we had to treat it especially in off-years is that its a toss-up state, because it always is. In this years election, Democrats maintained their majority in Virginias state Senate and flipped the House of Delegates. What we did really well this past year was that we were able to identify targets early, we were able to coordinate and get everybody on the same page to have a unified message, Rahman said. Virginia Democrats stayed laser-focused on painting their Republican counterparts as MAGA extremists and accusing them of having hard-line stances on abortion rights. On top of that, Democrats had a clear money advantage. According to AdImpact, Democrats outspent Republicans in Virginia $35.2 million to $27.6 million this cycle. And while Virginia Democrats say they are eager to compete again in 2025, they acknowledge that much of their messaging two years from now will depend on what happens up and down the ballot in the state. But at the same time, I think both 2024 and 2025 lean blue for Virginia, just with the overall landscape of everything, Rahman said. Virginias 2nd and 7th congressional districts are on track to be the most competitive House races in 2024, particularly the 2nd District. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates Virginias 2nd Congressional District as lean Republican, while the 7th District is lean Democrat. At the federal House level, Virginia Democrats point to specific victories seen in the House of Delegates and state Senate districts that overlap with the two congressional districts. Democrats point to wins in state House District 84, an open seat that Del.-elect Nadarius Clark (D) won earlier this month, and House District 97, where Del.-elect Michael Feggans ousted Del. Karen Greenhalgh (R). Both districts fall under Virginias 2nd Congressional District, which includes much of the greater Virginia Beach and Hampton Roads areas. Coastal Virginia delivered the House of Delegates the flip that happened that night, said one Democratic strategist with ties to Virginia congressional races. That was a testament to the work that was done in coastal Virginia. Democrats point to wins in the 7th Congressional District as reasons to feel optimistic. There, Del.-elect Joshua Cole (D) won in House District 65, and Prince William County Board of Supervisors Chair-elect Deshundra Jefferson defeated Republican Jeanine Lawson. And while Republican Tara Durant ended up winning Virginias 27th Senate District in Northern Virginia, Democrats still said Democrat Joel Griffin outperformed former Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) in red parts of the district such as Stafford and Spotsylvania counties. Were feeling very confident about our prospects in both of those districts, said one Democratic strategist with ties to Virginia congressional races. However, Republicans say that while Election Night 2023 did not go as well as they had hoped, there are still silver linings for the party in going into the next two election cycles. We overperformed in all of the House and Senate districts that overlay with the [congressional] map, said a national Republican strategist. Republicans point to data from the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) that shows GOP candidates winning in state House District 89, which was won by Biden, and state Senate District 17. Republicans also point to the Democratic candidate underperforming Biden in state Senate District 22. All three districts fall under Virginias 2nd Congressional District. As for the state districts making up the 7th Congressional District, Republicans point to victories in House District 27 and Senate District 27, which were both won by Biden in 2020. Additionally, NRCC data shows Cole underperforming Biden in House District 65, despite his victory. Its still a very positive result in a state that Biden won by 10 points in 2020, and theyre still tabulating the absentee ballots, the Republican strategist said. And Republicans point to their efforts on absentee and early voting as victories this cycle. Gov. Glenn Youngkin prioritized the efforts as part of his Secure Your Vote program in Virginia. According to a post-election memo from Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) President Dee Duncan, Republicans generated a 26 percent increase in absentee ballot requests from 2021 and 32 percent increase in absentee ballot returns. Despite district lines that favored Democrats by an average of 4.2%, Republicans were able to win every target district Joe Biden carried by 9 points or less in 2020 while picking up a seat in the state Senate, said Michael Joyce, communications director at the RSLC. Even as Democrats drastically outspent Republicans, over $6 million on TV alone, Republicans still outperformed 2020 numbers by an average of 11%. While it wasnt the night we hoped for, we are encouraged by our absentee and early vote program results and the opportunities it will create for Republicans in 2024 and beyond. Much of what plays out down-ballot in Virginia next year will also depend on who is at the top of the presidential ticket. This would seemingly bode well for Biden, if it were a Trump-Biden rematch; Biden defeated Trump 54 percent to 44 percent in the state in 2020. In Virginia, particularly Northern Virginia, Donald Trump is very unpopular. A Trump candidacy benefits the candidates in Northern Virginia, said Bob Holsworth, a veteran Virginia political analyst. If Trump is the president and he wins, that makes 2025 easier for the Democrats. Some Republicans also acknowledge this conundrum. If Donald Trump is the Republican nominee in Virginia in 2024, hes going to lose the state, said Tucker Martin, a former aide to former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R). And thats going to have an impact all the way down the ballot. It is. But Democrats have areas they could improve on going into 2024 and 2025, particularly in Virginias rural communities. All of the competitive seats were in these edge areas of suburban, exurban areas in Virginia for the most part where Democrats do pretty well, particularly on the abortion issue, Holsworth said, referring to the 2023 elections. But whats happened to the Democrats as well is that there has been a total collapse in the rural areas. [Youngkin] just ran up the score outside of the major metropolitan areas tremendously, and thats still a weakness for the Democrats, he continued. While the Republicans have had no answer for abortion, the Democrats seemingly have no answer for their collapse in rural Virginia, too. Youngkin will not be on the ballot in 2025, because Virginia governors can only serve one consecutive term. However, Democrats say they are feeling excited about a Spanberger candidacy, given her experience as a moderate and track record of reaching across the aisle to work with her conservative counterparts. Shes absolutely formidable, Martin, a Republican, said. She is very, very good and very talented. Shes a good retail politician. But it goes back to, we dont know the environment in which that campaign is going to unfold, he continued. And what Virginia has shown time and time again is that environment means everything. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The Washington Post backed away from its claim Saturday evening that Israel and Hamas had reached a tentative deal that would free at least 50 hostages in exchange for a five day pause in fighting on both sides, after a U.S. National Security Council spokesperson tempered the claim online. In an alert around 8:30 p.m. Saturday evening, the Post reported that Israel and Hamas had reached a tentative U.S.-brokered deal that would pause the deadly conflict in Gaza and allow some women and child hostages to be free. At 9:27 p.m., National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson reposted the story on X, formerly Twitter, with her own clarification: We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal, Watson wrote. The article was subsequently updated to say that the U.S. was close to a deal with Israel and Hamas to free some of the hostages, but no correction or clarification was immediately added to the story. As of Sunday morning, the story had last been updated at 10:52 p.m. on Saturday. On Sunday afternoon, the Post added a correction to the piece, noting that earlier headlines and news alerts had "incorrectly characterized The Posts reporting about the status of negotiations" involving the United States, Israel and Hamas. Following the Posts story, and remarks from Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani who told reporters that there were only minor obstacles blocking a hostage deal, U.S. Deputy national security adviser Jon Finer hit the Sunday show circuit to say that the parties were closer than they have been to reaching a deal to free hostages. A Washington state man was arrested for allegedly killing his mother after he turned himself in with "blood on his hands," police said. According to the Island County Sheriffs Department (ICSD), at around 10:49 a.m., an anonymous person called 911 to report that a man walking on the street approached them, said he had committed a crime and wanted to report it. The caller added that the man had, "blood on his hands." When deputies arrived at the scene, they found a man who appeared to have dried blood on his hands and blood stains on his pants, according to the ICSD. CA MAN DIES AFTER POLICE CONFRONTATION LINKED TO MOTHER'S STABBING A Washington state man allegedly approached a stranger on the street and told them that he had committed a crime and wanted to report it. The man told deputies that he lived a short distance away with his mother and father inside a camp trailer and that his mother was dead. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP According to police, the man allegedly told them that he assaulted his mother, described the injuries he inflicted and where he placed the weapons he used. A deputy then went to the trailer and began investigating the man's claims. The victim was found dead inside the trailer she allegedly lived in, according to the Island County Sheriff's Department. When he arrived at the trailer park, the deputy knocked on the door and waited for a response. After not hearing anyone in the residence, he went inside and found an adult woman lying on the floor. MOM'S FINAL WORDS TO HUSBAND REVEALED BEFORE TEEN BROTHER-IN-LAW KILLED HER, KIDS: DOCS The deputy saw blood on the floor and blood on the right side of her neck, police said. The woman was unresponsive, and she was declared dead at the scene. Deputies took the 32-year-old man into custody and booked him into the Island County Jail on suspicion of second-degree murder. The victims name is not being released until notification of next of kin has been made by the Island County Coroner. Original article source: Washington state man 'with blood on his hands' turns himself in, alleges that he killed his mother: police Both sides of the war in Ukraine have burned through a lot of ammo, straining stockpiles globally. The war appears to have prompted the US Army to rethink how much it's producing and stockpiling. A US official told Business Insider the Army was ramping up production and modernizing its process. With both sides of the war in Ukraine burning through ammo at astonishing rates, the US Army says it's rethinking what it needs for a potential large-scale future fight. But with production, particularly of 155mm artillery shells, ramping up, the Army appears also to be looking at how to modernize its ongoing manufacturing and stockpiles both to continue supporting allies such as Ukraine and Israel and to have enough ammo should the US find itself in a high-intensity conflict of its own, especially against a major military power. "The Army is looking very closely at the war in Ukraine and how munitions are used to inform our decisions regarding munitions requirements," Douglas R. Bush, the assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics, and technology, explained to Business Insider. "Recognizing the use of large quantities of artillery on both sides of the conflict, the Army is investing to better prepare for potential conflict and to support Ukraine as they continue to fight for their freedom." Part of those efforts are ambitious short-term goals, such as upping 155mm production from just shy of 30,000 shells a month right now to a massive 100,000 shells a month by the end of 2025. But another larger, more long-term effort appears to be securing a stronger supply chain and more constant manufacturing of munitions both domestically and with the support of US partners. "The Army began making investments over a year ago in our organic and commercial industrial base to accelerate production and improve capacity for 155mm and other munitions in order to meet demands for Ukraine, allied partners, and US stockpile requirements," Bush said. Looking at the timeline, those investments appear to have come after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and after both sides began expending tremendous amounts of ammunition attempting to batter the opposing army, launching enough artillery shells to severely strain stockpiles worldwide and even push partners to send over controversial weapons such as cluster munitions to slow the ammo consumption. Ukrainian artillery firing toward the frontline during heavy fighting amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near Bakhmut in April. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach Many weapons and systems, such as Storm Shadow/SCALP long-range cruise missiles, first-person-view drones, Russian Kinzhal ballistic missiles, and Western tanks such as Leopard and Challenger, have, at some point or another, had their moment in the war thus far. But this conflict seems to be marked most by artillery and has offered a strong case for its role in future conflicts. Ukraine relies heavily on systems such as towed 155mm and 105mm howitzers and rocket-artillery assets such as the High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System, pummeling Russian forces miles away and devastating advancing troops and vehicles, as well as command, control, and logistics. It's heavily relied on the US and NATO allies for its supply of ammo, and many Western nations have had their stockpiles stressed by the provision of this vital aid. And Russia has often expended ammunition at even higher rates than the Ukrainians, who often speak of rationing their ammo consumption. Even in the face of heavy Western sanctions and a pariah status that have severely limited its ammo production, it's still been able to bolster its stockpiles. Like Ukraine, Russia has also sought out foreign partners for munitions. Back in September, Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted North Korean leader Kim Kong Un for a meeting on North Korean artillery. The result was an arms deal of sorts Russia got ammo, while North Korea probably got food and petroleum products. The exact details of that deal are unclear, but there are indications North Korean ammunition has already arrived in Ukraine. For the US, Ukraine's biggest single-nation donor, the constant bombardment from both sides has apparently been eye-opening, offering insights into not only how much artillery ammunition Ukraine needs to sustain its war effort but also how much ammo the US may need in a future fight. It has also offered lessons in production. "This conflict has allowed the Army to recognize that challenge of implementing multiple initiatives to expand industrial capacity without disrupting current production," Bush told BI. The remains of artillery shells and missiles including cluster munitions being stored in Toretsk, Ukraine, in December of last year. Photo by Pierre Crom/Getty Images At a roundtable earlier this month, Bush told journalists the US was expanding and modernizing its ammo capacity, making a variety of new munitions to bolster its stockpiles, "all critical investments that" were "part of the supplemental requests that builds additional capacity in our industrial base." The primary focus appears to be on 155mm shells, which Ukraine has burned through in artillery duels with the Russians, and the US has had to find "creative ways" to get to Kyiv. Bush said the US was at 14,000 shells a month at the beginning of the war and had ramped up to its current rate of 28,000 a month. He said it was looking to make 36,000 monthly by early 2024 and then skyrocket production to 60,000 by the end of the fiscal year. Bush said that the Army was projecting 100,000 a month by the end of 2025. It's a staggering number, but a lot has to come together to make those numbers a reality. For one, the Army says it plans to increase manufacturing abilities at existing government facilities while building new domestic sites with commercial partners. But for the Army, any increase is a net positive. "Getting to those higher production rates is kind of a win-win," Bush said. "You can support Ukraine or Israel more, but it also means that we can rebuild our stocks much faster than if we don't make those investments." With production still ramping up and both Ukraine and Israel in conflicts, the US may find supporting them both increasingly challenging. On Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the supply of artillery to Ukraine had slowed down since Israel began its war on Hamas after the group's multi-front surprise terrorist attacks last month. But in the roundtable earlier this month, Bush denied that any shells intended for Ukraine had been given to Israel instead. "Nothing that was being shipped to Ukraine got redirected," Bush said. Instead, he said, munitions had been moved out of US stocks in Israel and given directly to them. He said the US had sent ammo from its own stockpile to Israel as well but did not give an exact number. Read the original article on Business Insider CHICAGO - A suburban family is grieving the loss of a loved one whose body was temporarily stuck overseas; a Downers Grove restaurant has been inducted into the Hot Dog Hall of Fame; and the city of Chicago is mourning a firefighter who died battling a blaze in Lincoln Park. These are the top stories on Fox 32's Week in Review. 1. Grieving Chicago-area family struggling to bring daughter's body home from overseas A Chicago-area family is grieving after the sudden death of a loved one happened overseas. They are remembering their beloved daughter, sister, friend, and mother to two little girls. The family later announced they were in the process of getting their family member, Justice Gatlin, home. 2. Winning $500K Illinois Lottery ticket sold for Nov. 12 drawing An Illinois Lottery player won half-a-million dollars over the weekend. The online winner played Sunday's midday Lucky Day Lotto and matched all five numbers, which were: 10-36-37-40-45. The jackpot was $500,000. Associate Judge Michael E. Coppedge | Provided 3. McHenry County judge found dead in his chambers, officials say A McHenry County judge unexpectedly passed away Monday morning. According to the Office of the Chief Judge Michael Chmiel, Associate Judge Michael E. Coppedge was found unresponsive in his chambers at the Judicial Center. He was then taken to Northwestern Hospital where he was pronounced dead. 4. Downers Grove restaurant inducted into Hot Dog Hall of Fame A beloved Downers Grove hot dog stand is Vienna Beef's latest inductee into the National Hot Dog Hall of Fame! Scooby's on Prince Street received that honor Wednesday morning at a ceremony, where officials from Vienna Beef presented owners with a commemorative plaque and customers were treated to free Chicago-style dogs. 5. Cook County shooting: Man found dead on porch in Chicago suburb A man was found fatally shot Friday night in northwest suburban Palatine. Around 6 p.m., police responded to a report of a person down and bleeding in the 800 block of S. Plum Grove Rd. 6. Chicago firefighter dies after battling Lincoln Park fire A Chicago firefighter who was badly injured while battling an extra-alarm fire Monday morning at a building in Lincoln Park on the city's North Side has died. Firefighter Andrew "Drew" Price sustained serious injuries after a "bad fall" while fighting the fire at a four-story mixed occupancy building in the 2400 block of North Lincoln Avenue, fire commissioner Annette Nance-Holt said during a press conference. She said the building was occupied at the time of the fire. 7. Chicago suburb property owners face potential tax hike Property owners in one Chicago suburb could soon see higher tax bills. In a recent development, the St. Charles City Council has given preliminary approval to the 2023 property tax levy, signaling a potential three-percent increase in property taxes in 2024. 8. 3 Colombian migrants charged with scamming woman out of more than $20K at suburban grocery store Three Colombian migrants have been charged with stealing more than $20,000 from a woman in suburban Addison last week. Prosecutors say Miguel Pena-Gomez, 43, Liliana Nagles-Cuesta, 49 and Angela Posada-Acosta, 45, scammed a woman outside the Caputos Fresh Market located at 510 W. Lake Street on Nov. 7. 9. Magnitude 3.6 earthquake hits central Illinois: USGS A 3.6-magnitude earthquake hit Illinois Wednesday morning, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. At first, some people in La Salle thought it was a plane crash, someone pounding on the door, or even a chemical explosion, but no one ever guessed it would be an earthquake in north central Illinois. 10. Witness speaks out after 23 injured, 3 critically in CTA Yellow Line train crash; service remains suspended At least 23 people were injured, some of them critically, after a CTA Yellow Line train collided with rail equipment Thursday morning near the Howard station in Rogers Park. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has launched an investigation into the crash, which happened around 10:35 a.m. in the Howard Rail Yard near Howard Street and Chicago Avenue. The Quinault Indian Nation (QIN) has sent a second letter to the Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) to close fall Coho salmon fisheries in Grays Harbor and the Queets River due to alarmingly low returns of wild adult Coho salmon. The letter sent to the WDFW stated: We are disappointed at WDFWs wait and see attitude and reluctance to take precautionary actions to protect the resources entrusted to our stewardship in the face of uncertainty. -QIN Quinault Indian Nation President Guy Capoeman had sent an earlier letter dated October 30, 2023, asking WDFW to close the hatcheries immediately. In that letter, QIN urged WDFW to close Coho fisheries under its jurisdiction early in the Queets River and Grays Harbor. WDFW has since decided to keep the fisheries open. The later reply from WDFW reads: We agree that the limited information so far this year, suggests that the coho return is likely below pre-season expectations, but there is still a great deal of uncertainty. - WDFW We understand this closure has brought hardship to our tribal fishermen and their families, but as stewards of our salmon for today and future generations, its the right thing to do, said Quinault Fisheries Policy Spokesperson Cleve Jackson. Our shared responsibility to be good stewards of our sacred salmon requires us to be cautious and proactive before its too late. QIN decided in October to close its fisheries early after seeing far lower catch numbers than were anticipated by the Pacific Fishery Management Councils preseason projections. President Yoon Suk Yeol returned home Saturday after attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco. During the three-day visit, Yoon called on APEC's 21 member economies to work together to tackle global challenges, such as climate change and supply chain disruptions. He also met on the sidelines with U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, demonstrating South Korea's growing solidarity with the two countries. A summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping did not materialize despite discussions to arrange one. Yoon is scheduled to depart again Monday on a six-day visit to Britain and France. (Yonhap) Revs. Dr. Alisha Lola Jones and Calvin Taylor Skinner share insights on the significance of gratitude during trying times. Notes on faith is theGrios inspirational, interdenominational series featuring Black thought leaders across faiths. In such tragic and trying times, many of us may find ourselves challenged by the question: What is the point of being grateful? This week, many of us are preparing to observe Thanksgiving; however, there is among us a critical mass who are redefining what the festivities mark in our households. Increasingly, we are acknowledging that the observance of Thanksgiving is not about celebrating the bounty set before us through nostalgic family dishes but, more accurately, a reimagining of genocide through a colonial settlers lens. Photo: AdobeStock Some of us struggle to see how that past connects with the conflicts we witness in the Congo and Sudan today. Or the Israeli-Hamas conflict that has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent civilians. Stateside, we are reckoning with the fact that the civil trial for the murder of Breonna Taylor resulted in a hung jury. Myriad wars are being fought in local political scenes, including Tennessee, where the ultra-super majority Republican state legislators are seriously considering rejecting billions of federal education dollars for children and threaten to spur a national trend. Truth be told, Thanksgiving never comes at the right time. As a couple serving in a pastoral capacity for our communities, we know the personal challenges many face from global matters to personal health, financial stressors to home insecurity and remembering loved ones amidst it all. Like clockwork, we know the performance of gratitude inevitably comes into tension with any unresolved matters in our lives. As the old saints say, youre either starting to go through it, going through it or coming out of it. Yet, through it all, where should our focus lie as we observe the Thanksgiving holiday? Exploring gratitude is useful both as a personal practice and even more so as a collective one in trying times. This holiday can be a golden opportunity to raise our vibration to a loving sentiment, imagine a beloved community, align as a community, and knock down a few metaphoric dominos to move toward a common aim of justice that is true to our humanity. Gratitude invites individuals to find meaning, growth, and even blessings amid adversity. There can be no fight for justice without the replenishment that can only come from the dance. We know our challenges are the only signposts guiding our lives. However, as we face these challenges, they can distract us from entering spaces of gratitude and thanksgiving. Sacred text indicates that every day is a day of thanksgiving: It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night, (Psalm 92:1-2) But what does this mean? What can be done and said to embrace this? The declaration of thanksgiving with our hearts, minds and spirit is about us aligning with the Divine Creator within us. It has atmospheric implications, literally causing us to be lit with our biophotons! We become brighter lights and our electromagnetic fields increase in magnetism. When we believe our Divine Creator pays special attention to us, both as unique individuals and as a collective community that comes together with the Creators intentions in mind, the spiritual awareness that can take place can be life-giving. As we bless others in our just, high regard for them, the universe always places us in the position to bless. Have you ever encountered someone whose simple gesture set the tone for the rest of your day? Whether it is being a listening ear, giving to someone in need, or simply being kind to others, this way of being brings us to the space of a thanksgiving focus. We then are in the resonance frequency that manifests good tidings, peace and well-being. Before your eyes, your simple gestures may cause others to elevate and have a better day, even with brief interactions. People filled with gratitude are contagious and transformative beings who set and change the atmosphere wherever they go. The Black church tradition taught us gratitude is not just responding to favorable circumstances, but rather, gratitude is totally being present to and valuing the times. It is understanding that our external impact can be directed by what is going on internally. As we think about our ancestors, their spiritual journeys, and their ability to pave the way, we are grateful to be similarly empowered to go forward and be the difference. What practices lead you to an attitude of gratitude? What allows you to process the mundane or even difficult aspects of life while accessing a higher realm where all you can say is, Thank You! For the many times Ive fallen yet you forgave me Thank you, Lord; I thank you For unmerited favor and your brand new mercies Thank you, how I thank you For waking me up this morning For letting me see one more dawning Thank you, Lord, I thank you I thank you, Lord For life, health, and strength For food and for shelter, Thank you Lord; I thank you If I had ten thousand tongues It just wouldnt be enough to say (Thank You Richard Smallwood) Rev. Dr. Alisha Lola Jones is a faith leader helping people to find their groove in a fast-paced world, as a consultant for various arts and faith organizations and professor of music in contemporary societies at the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. She is an award-winning author of Flaming? The Peculiar Theopolitics of Fire and Desire in Black Male Gospel Performance (Oxford University Press). For more information, please visit DrAlisha.com. Rev. Calvin Taylor Skinner is dedicated to empowering frontline communities in Knoxville, Tenn. and the United Kingdom. He uses Faith and Policy to address energy justice, criminal justice reform, voter education/mobilization, electoral politics, and global affairs. Along with his wife, Rev. Dr. Alisha Lola Jones, they lead InSight Initiative, a consulting firm focusing on capacity building and live events production. Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrios newsletter. The post Why gratitude is more essential than ever appeared first on TheGrio. According to research Ive conducted in the last few weeks, (not peer-reviewed, unless you count social media) its becoming increasingly clear that men are simply too emotional to govern effectively. They should take their unstable testosterone levels and toxic masculinity far from the halls of power. Maybe go outside and chop down some trees, as God intended. Take for example, the slew of embarrassing incidents that have occurred just this week between men who are supposedly serving in Congress. Opinion On Tuesday, Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., accused former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., of elbowing him in the back in the middle of a hallway calling it a clean shot to the kidney while Burchett was speaking to an NPR reporter. Burchett then chased McCarthy down the hallway to confront him. Thats not even the first time McCarthy has been involved in a near-physical altercation inside congressional halls. In July, he and Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell were heard exchanging professional pleasantries such as Swalwell calling McCarthy a misogynistic and derogatory word that, when hurled between men, signifies that neither hold much respect for women. McCarthy apparently responded equally maturely. Also last Tuesday an unusually busy day for unwarranted displays of machismo in a hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma called out Sean OBrien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, inviting him to what can only be construed as a round of fisticuffs right there in the Senate committee meeting. You want to run your mouth, or we can be two consenting adults and we can finish it here, Mullin said, apparently confusing the Senate conference room with the parking lot at an Applebees; only to have the escalating fight broken up by 82-year-old Vermont Senator, Bernie Sanders, coming in clutch with some excellent finger-wagging. If there was ever a clear sign of emotional instability, it had to be challenging a Teamster to a fight. That alone should be an automatic disqualification from the Senate, but dont worry, Mullin doubled down, telling a podcast host the next day that hes not afraid of biting. I will bite. Then he posed with his guns on X, formerly Twitter, stating Lets do it. Anyplace, anytime. (As an aside, according to a tip Politico received from former Rep. David Trott (R-Mich.), Mullin once walked up and down a tour bus with his camera during a trip to Israel sponsored by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. He would stick his finger up the nose of anyone who was asleep and taking a picture of it.) While Im cataloging the absurdity of the current Congressional roster, I would be remiss to leave out New York Republican Rep. George Santos, who had to drop his bid for reelection on Thursday, after the Ethics Committee found hed used campaign funds to finance botox treatment, shop at Hermes and Sephora and make purchases at OnlyFans. Hes also lately been arraigned on 23 federal felony charges, with his trial expected to begin next year and we still dont know where he keeps getting all these babies from. Nor have we, here in Sacramento, been spared the local indignity of an elected man proving hes unfit to lead after Sacramento County Supervisor Phil Serna railed at a constituent via his Facebook page last week. Serna called the man pathetic, disgusting, a coward, accused him of being a Hamas apologist and blatantly suggested that a specific part of the voters nether regions wasnt big enough to run for public office and ALL the sacrifice that comes with it. Can you even begin to imagine the public reaction if former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had even once shoulder-checked the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein in a hallway? It would be sheer chaos. What if California Senate candidate Rep. Barbara Lee questioned the size of Rep. Katie Porters ovaries? My queens would never. It simply wouldnt happen, because women are statistically better equipped to be leaders. In a recent study of more than 60,000 leaders 22,603 women and 40,187 men the Harvard Business Review found that women outscored men on most leadership competencies, including taking initiative, leading and inspiring others, building relationships, championing change, innovation, solving problems and valuing diversity. In a 2022 Pew Research Center report on what makes a good leader, the general public said it more highly values leadership characteristics such as honesty, intelligence, compassion and innovation, which respondents generally said they found more often in women. The 118th Congress has a record number of women, including Rep. Becca Balint, the first woman and the first openly LGBTQ person elected to Congress from Vermont. On Thursday, U.S. Senator Patty Murray, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced $8.7 million in federal funding for five Environmental Water Resources Projects in Washington state; U.S. Senator Susan Collins co-introduced the Supporting Seniors with Opioid Use Disorder Act; and, earlier this month, U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) urged the Department of Education to reimburse students who were taken advantage of by for-profit colleges like the University of Phoenix and Ashford University. So while Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are planning a cage match, Gov. Gavin Newsom and Gov. Ron DeSantis have their adorable little home run-hitting contest and Santos shops at Sephora, the women will be at work like they always have, getting stuff done. (WHTM) Thanksgiving is less than a week away, and many people are starting to get ready to sit down with loved ones to be thankful for what they have. For many people, the main entree of the meal is a turkey. But why is that? Why are turkeys associated with Thanksgiving? According to Britannica, many people believe that the pilgrims ate turkey during the very first Thanksgiving in 1621. But there is no real proof that turkey was served. The only bird mentioned by the Pilgrims during that time was the wild fowl Fowl could mean turkeys, geese, or ducks were served on the first Thanksgiving. Turkeys may have been served, but the Old Farmers Almanac states that back in that time, turkey was not a typical food. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest By the turn of the 19th century, turkey had become a popular protein on holidays. Britannica said there are a few reasons why. One reason is that turkeys were common, with roughly 10 million being in America at the time of European contact. Another reason is that a turkey can feed a family. The Old Farmers Almanac stated that an editor named Sarah Josepha Hale campaigned for Thanksgiving to be a national holiday, and wrote about making it a holiday to many presidents. In 1863, President Lincoln made the holiday a national holiday, and turkeys started to be on dinner plates around the country. Because of this, Hale is considered to be the godmother of Thanksgiving. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest A fun tradition regarding Thanksgiving deals with US presidents pardoning turkeys. Since 1947, a National Thanksgiving Turkey has been presented to the president. During an official ceremony, the president pardons the turkey, meaning its life is spared and it does not get eaten. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. Emma Duncan admits she does not know where her textiles company would be without the wind farm funding The south of Scotland is home to a little more than a fifth of the nation's wind turbines. A recent report found they had generated more than 30m in community benefit funding since 1996. It estimated that figure could sky-rocket to nearly 900m over the next 35 years. What difference has that funding been making to communities - and will it be enough to win over other areas being targeted? Langholm has seen much of its once thriving textiles industry closed down In Langholm - known as the Muckle Toon - the textiles industry was once a thriving one but it has been hit by a string of closures and cutbacks in recent years. However, projects like Emma Duncan's Creation Mill are trying to create a brighter future for the sector by encouraging younger people to consider it for a career. She admits she doesn't know where her community interest company would be without funds which have come in from nearby wind farms. Map "Langholm has a rich textile heritage and we were seeing a lack of people coming into the industry," she said. "There are really skilled jobs needing new young people to come in and take them on." She said the funding had made a "considerable difference" - supporting their workshop space, putting in equipment and a creating a community project manager post. "It really set us up for a really good, positive direction," she said. Jamie Dent said the amount of money coming into the region was "almost unprecedented" Jamie Dent helps local groups develop projects and apply for funding through the Dumfriesshire East Community Benefit Group. He works with the Ewe Hill and Solwaybank wind farms which have supported about 130 schemes to the tune of more than 1.5m. "I think the smaller projects are just as important as the bigger projects," he said. "Where we have things like community groups applying to put new double glazing in their village hall that is a very important grass roots thing." He said he believed the benefits of the community fund outweighed the impact of turbines. "I think that the amount of money that is coming into these communities via wind farms is really transformative and it is almost unprecedented," he said. "I am not aware of this level of funding into communities at any time in the recent past." In Kirkpatrick Fleming and the surrounding area, they have seen funding come in from a range of nearby wind farms. Stephen Muir of the local community council said the impact on rural areas like this could be "massive". "If it wasn't for the amounts of wind farm money coming into communities, village halls would not be there," he said. "You would not have the groups that have been formed. "The mental health and wellbeing advantages are massive." Further west, the Blackcraig wind farm offers about 250,000-a-year to the community in the Glenkens. Childminder Michele Owen, of St John's Town of Dalry, has been one beneficiary. "We live in a very beautiful but rural and isolated area of Dumfries and Galloway which unfortunately is extremely limited in terms of childcare," she said. "I moved here in 2021 and, due to the lack of childcare available, a number of parents were struggling to find a local provider which would allow them to go back to work." Through a wind farm "microgrant" she was able to complete a number of courses which, in turn, allowed her to complete her registration with the Care Inspectorate. "Being able to fund these has been crucial and without the support from a microgrant it is likely I would have needed to borrow money from another source, which would have been difficult given I was not working at the time," she said. Helen Keron is executive manager with the Glenkens Community and Arts Trust (GCAT) in New Galloway which was set up 22 years ago to support economic regeneration in an area badly hit by the foot-and-mouth crisis. She said wind farm support had made a "real difference" allowing them to support the Glenkens Gazette newspaper and back a community transport project to tackle social isolation. Youth groups, town halls and other organisations have benefited as well as supporting the running of GCAT. "The contribution that they have made to core salaries is absolutely invaluable in allowing us to thrive as an organisation and to continue to deliver on the ground for our communities," she said. Not everyone welcomes the wind farms - no matter the funding they might bring. In Newton Stewart, opponents recently held a vigil to show their opposition to a couple of developments being considered in the area. Hands Off Our Hills co-ordinator Kenny Campbell said the benefit funds were "at best a distraction and at worst a straightforward bribe". He said the sums involved were not guaranteed, tended to be profit-related and were not index-linked in any way. "The initial sums can be huge and the organisations chosen to administer them historically have not had the necessary financial experience," he said. "Without exaggeration this has led to local communities being torn apart, monies not being used and thus returned to the company. "The sums involved do nothing to mitigate the environmental destruction, the impact on tourism and loss of our beautiful spaces for - at the very least - many generations." It is clear that the debate over the impact of wind farm developments in southern Scotland is likely to rage for years to come. Do you have an idea for a story we could cover? Email our local reporters in Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders: dumfries@bbc.co.uk or selkirknews@bbc.co.uk PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) For Oregonians, theres no secret that the Willamette Valley has some of the best wines overall. Apparently, thats also no secret to Wine Spectator: a lifestyle magazine that proclaims itself as the worlds leading authority on wine. Every year, the magazine editors rank the top 100 wines theyve reviewed based on quality, value, availability and excitement. LA Lakers evacuate Moda Center after man fired shot in nearby porta potty: Police Six Oregon wines made the cut this year. Heres more about them. Ranking: No. 9 Carltons Resonance was the only Oregon brand to crack Wine Spectators top 10 of 2023. According to the website, this Pinot Noir has hints of wild strawberries, mulberries, rose and cedar. Ranking: No. 16 On top of the new honor from Wine Spectator, this bottle has received rave reviews from Wine Enthusiast and the International Wine Report. The 2021 Pinot Noir Laurene features notes of Rainier cherries, candied orange peels, sage and wild herbs. Ranking: No. 20 Another Pinot Noir, Purple Hands Lone Oak Ranch is fragrant and gracefully multilayered, with expressive cherry and pomegranate flavors that mingle with black tea and orange peel accents. Drinkers can enjoy the unopened wine through 2031. Pacific Powers plan to minimize wildfire risk Ranking: No. 32 Bergstrom Wines is overflowing with gratitude for recognition of their 2021 vintage Pinot Noir, which is defined as textured and complex. You can buy the bottle, along with the brands other acclaimed options, online. Ranking: No. 56 Archery Summits Pinot Noir is a taste of fall, featuring fragrances of cinnamon spice and fennel. The brand recently remodeled its tasting room, giving guests an opportunity to sample the award-winning wine in a new space. Irreversible risks: University of Washington pediatrician urges parents to keep potent cannabis edibles away from kids Ranking: No. 69 Cost: $38 Wine Spectator says this drink offers deep blueberry and raspberry flavors highlighted by crushed stone, forest floor and dusky spices. The bottle is no longer available online, but you may be able to find one at Ken Wright Cellars tasting room in Carlton. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOIN.com. Kelly Schissel was on board the ferry that sunk in the Bahamas on Tuesday. @kellyswitz/TikTok A woman posted a TikTok showing what happened when a ferry she was on started to sink. Kelly Schissel was en route to Blue Lagoon Island on Tuesday when the disaster happened. She posted another video afterward saying the staff on board were all "freaking out." A woman filmed what happened when her ferry started sinking on the way to Blue Lagoon Island in the Bahamas on Tuesday and shared the footage to TikTok. Kelly Schissel and her husband, Chad, were en route to an excursion on the private island in a two-tier ferry as part of a Royal Caribbean cruise when the disaster happened. Her TikTok showed alarmed passengers in life vests as the ferry slanted and water poured into the bottom deck. "Our boat is sinking," Schissel said, panning the camera around the top deck, showing passengers clinging to the rails. "Everybody's freaking out." Several passengers had also leaped from the ferry and were swimming toward a nearby boat. Schissel caught footage of more people jumping as the crowd on board continued to scream. The final few seconds of the TikTok, which has amassed over 25 million views, showed a photo of the capsizing ferry from a distance. Schissel was on board the ferry, which was carrying more than 100 passengers. The Associated Press reported that one tourist, a 74-year-old woman from Colorado, died and that two more were sent to a medical center. AP reported that other passengers and crew were rescued Schissel shared further videos describing her experience. She said the boat started sinking when it turned and was about to enter the Blue Lagoon area. She said she thought the captain was trying to show off with a fancy move that didn't pay off. Officials haven't determined the cause of the incident, but an investigation is underway. The island is a popular spot for tourists to swim with dolphins and stingrays and is famous for its clear blue water. But Schissel never made it there. She said the trip was "a little bumpy" but thought nothing of it before the ferry lurched forward and water splashed into the boat. "Then all of a sudden, you kind of hear people kind of freaking out a little bit," she said. "And at first, us on the top deck at least, we were just like, 'What's going on?'" Schissel said she looked over the edge and saw water pouring into the ferry on the deck below. "We were starting to lean forward just because we were starting to sink," she said. "And then one of the crew members that was downstairs ran upstairs and was crying, freaking out, absolutely bawling, grabbing a life jacket, and then that's when everybody's like, 'Oh shit, this is real. Something's happening.'" She said passengers then started grabbing life jackets and waiting for instructions that never came. "We were kind of waiting for the staff to tell us what to do," she said. "Which they never did because they were too busy crying and freaking out." Tourists on board were also "screaming" and "freaking out," Schissel said, and then one man jumped into the water. Schissel said other people then began to follow suit. "Everybody else was like, 'Shit, we might as well do the same thing,'" she said. "So we all jumped in, and it was actually pretty rough waves. So a lot of people, they were just trying to stay above water, even with their life vests on." Schissel said it was warm and the weather was fine, but the waves were strong so it wasn't easy to swim toward rescue boats. "I got on a fisherman's boat that had nothing to do with it," she said. "He was just driving by, saw it out of the corner of his eye, and came back around." Schissel said that the staff were still panicking during the rescue, so she tried to help organize the passengers. Schissel said they were all stuck in a small area on the island's pier for an hour or two, waiting for official rescue boats to pick them up and take them back to the cruise ship. "We haven't heard anything yet as of now," she said. "That's all I got for an update." In a second update, Schissel said many people had been asking how she'd remained so calm during all the chaos. "I've been traumatized so many times in my life it's not even trauma anymore," she said. "It was just Tuesday." Read the original article on Insider MEMPHIS, Tenn. Memphis Police officers reportedly found a woman shot to death in southeast Memphis Saturday evening. Memphis Police responded to Warrington Road near Clearbrook Street around 6:40 p.m. Saturday. 2 dead, 1 injured after domestic shooting in southwest Memphis According to police, officers found a woman with an apparent gunshot wound. Police say she was pronounced dead on the scene. Memphis Police did not release details on the possible suspect. Police say the investigation is ongoing. If you have any information about this incident, call CrimeStoppers at 901-528-CASH. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. Police are searching for a hit-and-run suspect who left a woman in critical condition after striking her in South Los Angeles. The crash happened on Aug. 5, when a pedestrian was crossing Figueroa Street at 82nd Street around 9 p.m., according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The suspect, who was driving a dark-colored sedan, struck the woman as she was walking, leaving her severely injured. Surveillance images show the suspect stopped the car and ran out to look at the injured woman before running back to his car and driving away. Police are searching for a hit-and-run suspect who left a woman in critical condition after a crash in South Los Angeles on Aug. 5, 2023. (Los Angeles Police Department) Police are searching for a hit-and-run suspect who left a woman in critical condition after a crash in South Los Angeles on Aug. 5, 2023. (Los Angeles Police Department) The suspect was last seen driving northbound on Figueroa Street and turning eastbound onto 82nd Street, officers said. Paramedics transported the woman to the hospital in critical condition. Teens body found on L.A. County freeway onramp The suspect remains at large and police are hoping the public may recognize him through newly released surveillance images. A reward of up to $25,000 is available to anyone who provides information leading to the suspects identification, apprehension, and conviction. Anyone with information can call Detective Gerald Chavarria at 213-924-3621. The public can also call the LAPD at 1-877-527-3247 or email 37560@lapd.online. Anonymous tips can be submitted to LA Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477. Tips can also be submitted online at lacrimestoppers.org or lapdonline.org. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. I saw it myself Last summer, I volunteered to become a worker at the Johnson County Election Office. A registered Republican, I wanted to see the inner workings of an election. I was impressed. A three-hour, detailed education class. A 90-page election-worker training manual. Ninety minutes working on technical equipment. Solutions to voter issues paper ballets, provisional ballets, offering assistance while ensuring privacy. They thought of everything. On Election Day, I arrived and put on my best professional behavior to welcome voters warmly and assist in any way possible while respecting their privacy and thanking them for voting. Voters were equally polite, and many expressed what a privilege it was vote in our country. I was the new person. Other workers had done it before, several taking off from their jobs to be at the polls. They were kind and helpful, answering all my questions, making sure I made no mistakes. I now know that it isnt possible to rig the election. There are too many checks and rechecks that ensure the safety of the vote. We should be proud of our election officials. These people work so hard to protect our votes and make sure they are counted accurately. - Blair Hyde, Overland Park Happy place I am so sick of the claims that many residents of Prairie Village are racist and that the homes being built on teardown lots are lot-line-to-lot-line mini-mansions. Both claims are pure hogwash. Ive lived in Prairie Village since 1958. On our block, we have two Mexican families and two other Latin American families. A Black family lives right across the street from us and is our absolute favorite neighbors. And this just isnt my opinion, but also the opinion of all our friends on the block. Weve had block parties every year ever since we moved into this house in 1982. Prairie Village is extremely strict about home sizes and maintaining distance on lot lines. I know this because I have added onto our house extensively over the last 40 years, and Ive been told by the city home inspector that I wouldnt be able to do now what I did in the past because the city has tightened restrictions on home sizes. By the way, we have 10 teardowns and rebuilds on our street, and we love it. - Bob Bliss, Prairie Village Future insurance As a Kansas City Royals season ticket holder for 20-plus years, I fully support building a new downtown stadium. Fans who wish to keep Kauffman Stadium seem to be older, consumed by nostalgia and blind to the gradual physical degradation of the stadium. They ignore that the Royals are a business, not a social endeavor. A new downtown stadium is not to be built for us, but for future generations. Critics point to the estimated cost to the taxpayers of several billion dollars over decades, while ignoring the increased revenues a new stadium would generate, such as increased sales and earnings taxes, new jobs, business licenses, housing and area development. The fact is that extending the 3/8-cent sales tax for decades is a benefit, not a burden. The announcement for a new downtown stadium should have been a celebration for the city and fans. Instead, by offering competing sites, the Royals are playing a disingenuous game of three-card monte that has alienated fans and taxpayers alike. (Nov. 17, 1B, Is the Royals list of KC stadium sites growing? A third option is making a late push) When estimating the new cost of a downtown stadium, have the experts considered the cost of losing the Royals and or the Chiefs? Support a downtown stadium for the future of Kansas City. - Patrick Riha, Kansas City I wonder how Bravo to Neta Meltzer for her Nov. 15 Star guest commentary about antisemitism. (8A, I have to believe we are better than antisemitism) My late father, whose ancestry was mostly German, served nearly four years in Europe during World War II because of Germanys (and other nations) willingness to follow a hate-filled madman, slaughter an innocent race and take others to ruin with them. Even as a little kid, I would see tapes of the concentration camps, Jewish people being herded to their deaths and people raving over Hitler, and I would think, How could the Germans and other nations have done such terrible things? Even now, after all those decades, with Hitlers moral descendants popping up all over the place, I still dont know. - Josephine Heinzman, Kansas City, Kansas KCI tweaks A few thoughts regarding traffic at the new Kansas City International Airport terminal: Signage alone is not enough to increase cellphone lot usage. The current lot might as well be in the next county. It should be in plain view immediately on the side of the road into the airport, not up and over a bridge. The car pickup lanes and the crosswalk to the garage and ground transportation should not be at the same level. My opinion is that it is well worth a dollar to park in the garage rather than to deal with the traffic. Oh, and please get rid of the endlessly annoying Dont stop keep moving message at the exit doors. - John Stark, Overland Park Memorable life To the family of Deborah Kipp: I did not know this remarkable woman but happened to read her obituary in the Nov. 14 Star. (6A) Im not sure whether my tears were for your familys loss or for the joy of a life well lived. Thank you for sharing her story. - Tom Bedell, Kansas City Korea has secured a total of 1.5 trillion won ($1.16 billion) in investment commitments from four U.S. companies on the occasion of President Yoon Suk Yeol's attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, the government said Sunday. The industry ministry said that GM, DuPont, IMC and Ecolab have declared commitments to invest in Korea on the occasion of Yoon's attendance at this year's APEC summit in San Francisco. The ministry said it anticipates the investments by these four companies will lead to an annual export expansion and import substitution effect of over 4.5 trillion won. The ministry said GM's investment decision was a result of the government's efforts to improve the investment environment, including regulatory reforms and institutional improvements to attract investment from global companies. On the sidelines of the APEC summit last week, Yoon met with GM Senior Vice President Shilpan Amin, who expressed his confidence in Korean businesses' operations in light of the government's bold regulatory reforms and institutional improvements in line with global standards. DuPont has decided to invest more than 200 billion won in Korea to expand its semiconductor material and component production facilities, and research and development center, aiming to create over 100 new jobs. IMC, a unit of global investment company Berkshire Hathaway, plans to invest in production facilities for tungsten oxide used in semiconductor manufacturing. Ecolab plans to invest in production facilities for high-purity nano particles, essential for the production of CMP slurry used in semiconductor manufacturing, the ministry said. (Yonhap) Yusra Matari was eating lunch across Main Street from the apartment where she spent part of her childhood when an elderly woman two tables over asked where she was from. Me? Palestine, Matari said. Beit Anan, she added her familys village in the West Bank. The woman smiled. She, too, is from Beit Anan, she said, and she recognized Matari as the girl who did some of her growing up in that apartment above her husbands grocery store. It had been years since shed seen Matari, now a 32-year-old attorney for victims of domestic violence. The older woman held her hand out, about waist-high, to illustrate how small Matari was the last time she saw her. Then, the two embraced. Palestinians, it doesnt matter if we met for the first time, or after 20 years, Matari said later. We all know each other. A stretch of Main Street is formally known as Palestine Way in Paterson. - Laura Oliverio/CNN It was a snapshot of life here in northern New Jersey, especially in South Paterson a neighborhood locals call Little Palestine, or Little Ramallah which boasts one of the largest Palestinian American communities in the United States. It was also a brief reprieve in an otherwise weekslong waking nightmare for the close-knit Palestinian American community, both here and beyond, as they watch from a world away the mounting death toll of Israels continued war and siege on Gaza in response to the October 7 attack by Hamas. Some 1,200 people were killed and about 240 kidnapped when the militant group attacked Israel that day. In the weeks since, Israel with the stated goals of destroying the militant group and retrieving the hostages declared war in the Palestinian territory, home to more than 2 million people. Since then, Israel has killed more than 11,000 people in Gaza, while tens of thousands have been injured according to the Palestinian Health Ministry in the occupied West Bank, citing medical sources in the Hamas-controlled enclave. Nearly 1.6 million have been displaced, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. What pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli supporters want you to know Whether they have family in Gaza or the West Bank, Palestinian Americans here in northern New Jersey live with an unrelenting sense of dread a mix of fear, sadness and anger they told CNN. They dont sleep. They cant eat. Many grieve over loved ones killed, while others hold their breath, praying desperately their relatives pick up the phone next time they call. Their collective pain is tangible, as is their love for their ancestral homes and, for many, the resolve to one day return. In the meantime, the survivors guilt is pervasive. We feel so guilty to be alive, said Haneen Albalawi, 35, who grew up in Gaza and whose family remains trapped there. We feel guilt when we eat. We feel guilt when we drink water. We feel guilt when we sleep. We feel guilt, actually, in every single thing we do here, the northern New Jerseyan told CNN by phone, because they have nothing and they are slowly being killed. Main Street honored as Palestine Way South Paterson looks like many other business districts in towns across the US, with a main street lined by restaurants, clothing boutiques, jewelers, convenience stores, barber shops and gas stations. But a stretch of Main Street here is formally known by another name, Palestine Way, and its easy to see why. There are nearly as many signs written in Arabic as in English, including at the Chinese restaurant, which advertises halal food with a neon red sign, as do many neighboring Middle Eastern restaurants and grocery stores. Mannequins in the boutiques windows model hijabs, and the smell of shisha wafts outside a hookah lounge. The Palestinian flag black, white and green stripes, with a red triangle pointing out from the hoist is everywhere. We took ownership of this place in many ways, and we tried to keep growing it, said Rania Mustafa, the executive director of the Palestinian American Community Center just over the city line in Clifton. You feel the sense of belonging and not necessarily like you have to put up a front or feel different. Rania Mustafa stands last week outside the Palestinian American Community Center in Clifton, New Jersey. She is the center's executive director. - Laura Oliverio/CNN In an upstairs room at the center is the framed resolution, passed last year by the Paterson City Council, designating Main Street for five blocks between Buffalo and Gould avenues as Palestine Way. The text of the resolution traces the history of the Palestinian community here back to the 1930s, noting the first generation struggled with language and culture. But they overcame that and found new opportunities. They are entrepreneurs, doctors, lawyers and homeowners, it says. A city councilman, the municipal courts chief judge and the citys chief attorney are all Palestinians, it notes. The resolution passed unanimously. Every day brings a new scar That sense of belonging is perhaps more important now than ever as neighbors cling to one another for support. The Palestinian American Community Center, whose mission is to strengthen and sustain Palestinians ties to their heritage, serves as a kind of anchor a place to gather, to learn, to practice civic engagement, to play. The Palestinian American Community Center features this display. - Laura Oliverio/CNN Indeed, when Mustafa woke up on October 7, she called her sister who was to teach a cooking class at the center that day to ask if her daughter could catch a ride. You havent checked your phone yet, Mustafas sister said, have you? I spent the next three hours on my phone, crying uncontrollably, Mustafa recalled to CNN. Because I knew what was to come. And I just couldnt all I could think of was that, like, so many people are gonna get killed now. Thats all I could think. Im like, this is gonna be horrible. Noreen Rashid, a 21-year-old who like Mustafa grew up in New Jersey, had a similar reaction to news of the Hamas attack, she told CNN. She wondered what it would mean, in turn, for her parents families in Gaza. I knew that, whatever the repercussions were going to be, were going to be hell, she said. Her family lives in that hell now. Six of her family members have been killed in Gaza, Rashid told CNN. Among them were her little cousins, 12-year-old Nouran Allouh and 10-year-old Razan Allouh two of the more than 4,700 children killed in Gaza since October 7, per the Palestinian Health Ministry in Ramallah, which draws its figures from sources in Hamas-run Gaza. Its unclear how exactly the girls were killed, Rashid said, but they had stepped out to fill a bucket of water to use as a shower when the family heard a noise a sniper, they believe and looked out to see the sisters lying dead on the ground. Noreen Rashid's younger cousins, 12-year-old Nouran Allouh and 10-year-old Razan Allouh, pose in happy moments. Their father, Ahmad, is seen at top left. - Courtesy of Noreen Rashid Their father Ahmad Allouh lived for his daughters, Rashid said, describing him as headstrong and firm, a protector the kind of man who built his daughters bedroom furniture himself. Their killings cast him immediately into a state Rashids grandmother likened to a psychosis, the 21-year-old told CNN. Despite his familys pleas, Rashids uncle went outside to cover his daughters bodies, she said. And he lay down between them to say goodbye. And then they shot him, Rashid told CNN. They killed all three of them. While much of the worlds attention is on Gaza, denizens of the West Bank have not necessarily been spared: Some 176 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers since October 7, the Palestinian Health Ministry said 10 days ago. One of them was Mataris 20-year-old cousin, Musab Matari, who she says was fatally shot by Israel Defense Forces soldiers this month. A group had gone into a local olive orchard for a barbecue, Matari said, when the soldiers allegedly opened fire, striking her cousin. It was two hours before anyone could retrieve him, and by then, he was dead, she said. They dont know whether he died instantly or slowly bled out. Is there an investigation? Who shot at him? asked Matari, the non-profit attorney. Theres no way to get justice. Theres no way to figure out who did this. The Israel Defense Forces confirmed to CNN that to prevent unauthorized infiltrations near the area of the security fence it responded with live fire, and a hit was identified around the date and location of Mataris death but stopped short of identifying him as the victim. Matari rejected as unacceptable the Israel Defense Forces characterization and said Israel routinely and without notice creates security zones in the West Bank where local Palestinians are not permitted. Both Rashid and Matari described feeling like they havent even had time to grieve for their loved ones. Waking up every day, I have a new scar on my heart, Matari said. And before that scar gets to heal, the next day, theres yet another scar. After Mustafa learned of the October 7 siege, she feared: "So many people are gonna get killed now," she told CNN. - Laura Oliverio/CNN Rashids sadness is compounded by a degree of the surreal: She was in Gaza just this summer for a monthlong visit, her first in a decade. Everyone keeps telling her how lucky she is to have seen it. Because Gazas gone now, they tell her. Rashid recalled how, during her visit, shed sent her father photos of the outside of his childhood home. He couldnt make the trip because of work but was happy to get the pictures. Soon after Israels bombing began, Rashid saw her father pull up those pictures, she said, and zoom in on his home and cry. Shes grateful to have gone to Gaza when she did, to have gotten to know Nouran and Razan. The girls loved dancing and American culture and celebrities, Rashid said. Nouran liked K-pop and was a fan of the group BLACKPINK. Razan loved jewelry and made it a point to take her big cousin to get coffee, knowing from social media Rashid was always drinking it. They were already looking forward to Rashids next visit, she told CNN, wiping tears from her cheeks. And then, they told her, maybe we can go to America, and visit you guys. Inescapable survivors guilt Immense guilt over being in America while their people suffer in Gaza or the West Bank pervaded nearly everyone who spoke with CNN for this story. Those who grew up in the United States felt twists of fate had spared them a life under Israeli military occupation, they said. Just through a turn of a couple events, Im here and theyre there, Mustafa said. Its not that were that far apart and that distant, that I couldnt have been there as well. The United States continued allyship with Israel and its use of taxpayer money to provide that support adds to the guilt, Mustafa said. It feels like two parts of her identity are at war, she said, like one is literally trying to kill the other. Albalawi, who spoke of feeling guilt in virtually every facet of American life, had spent most of her life in Gaza but always told herself she didnt want to have kids there because they would be killed, she told CNN by phone. She didnt want to leave her family or friends Gaza is home to the most beautiful people in the world, she said but five years ago came to the United States as a student, got married and had a daughter. Still, Albalawi is plagued by worry over family back in Gaza and lives her own days phone call-to-phone call, message-to-message. If a call goes unanswered, she spirals as the possibilities unfurl in her mind. Did they miss the ring? Is the connection down? Or something worse? Each day, her daughter asks about her grandmother, Albalawi said. They met in person once, when her daughter was just a year old, and shes used to visiting on video chat. She always tells me, I dont want them to die, Albalawi said. I want them to come here. Rima Qasim, 63, has family in Ramallah, as does her husband, 69-year-old Adnan Khalil, they told CNN in an interview at their home on a quiet street in Clifton. She also has a cousin whose husband, son and granddaughter are in Gaza. Every two days, Qasim, who sits on the community centers board, sends a message to ask after them. Rima Qasim and Adnan Khalil pose for a portrait last week in their backyard in Clifton. - Laura Oliverio/CNN So far, theyre OK, her cousin responds. Even so, Qasim is devastated, she said not just for the sake of her own family but for all her people. She is proud to be Palestinian. Along with scores of framed photos of their six children and all their grandchildren, her home is adorned with art depicting scenes and people from her homeland. She wears a bracelet woven in the pattern of the Palestinian flag and a gold necklace with a pendant shaped like what many observe as Palestine: a single parcel encompassing whats now Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. And she, too, feels guilty living in the US. I cooked my grandsons dinner, and I drove it over there. And the whole time, Im thinking, How lucky are we? I can feed my grandson. Qasim shows her love for her ancestral homeland with her accessories. - Laura Oliverio/CNN Laura Oliverio/CNN Anger and hope Its not just sadness, adds her husband, Khalil, the editor of an Arab American newspaper. Also, you will be angry. That anger is generated, he told CNN, by the way the US government and the Biden administration in particular have responded to Israels attacks on Palestinians. The couple like everyone who spoke to CNN for this story demand a ceasefire, and Khalil believes the conflict could end whenever the United States decides to make it stop, he said. The White House has increased military aid to Israel and supported hourslong humanitarian pauses in the conflict. But the Biden administration opposes a ceasefire, asserting alongside Israel a longer break would give Hamas time to regroup and potentially launch another October 7-style attack on Israel. This conflict, of course, did not begin six weeks ago but stretches across decades of pain and struggle, Khalil stressed. Both his parents and Qasims father were expelled from West Jerusalem in 1948, they said, a period of mass displacement of Palestinians known as al-Nakba, or the catastrophe. While theyre furious with the US reaction to Israels response to the October 7 attack, Qasim and Khalil also expressed hope, pointing to younger generations and organizations like Jewish Voice for Peace that have called for a just resolution to the conflict. Palestinian flags fly last week in Paterson. - Laura Oliverio/CNN In spite of it all, the couple is determined to return to their ancestral homeland, they said. We love Palestine. We believe in Palestine, Khalil said. We hope, we dream to live in Palestine. Asked if she believed she and her husband would return, Qasim was unequivocal: Were going next year, she said. Absolutely. CNNs Zeena Saifi contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com The world is facing a polycrisis of multiple conflicts and threats to humanity, the South Korean president has warned, as he calls for deeper security ties with Britain on the eve of a state visit. Yoon Suk Yeol suggested two major wars in Ukraine and Israel, and rising tension with Russia, North Korea, and in the South China Sea, had compelled him to seek very close security cooperation with the West. Mr Yoon arrives in Britain on Monday for the first state visit by a foreign power since the coronation of King Charles III. He will meet the King on Tuesday before a summit with Rishi Sunak on Wednesday when the two are expected to discuss defence cooperation. The South Korean leader told The Telegraph that creating deeper security and economic ties with Britain was vital. If the international community is to build peace and achieve sustainable prosperity, it must safeguard and strengthen the rules-based international order above all else, he said. He warned: We are currently facing a polycrisis that includes pandemics, climate change, the war in Ukraine and the armed conflict between Israel-Hamas. Mr Yoon warned against Russia supplying North Korea with nuclear weapons technology - Brittany Hosea-Small/Reuters In a wide-ranging interview Mr Yoon warned against Russia supplying North Korea with nuclear weapons technology; said he believes China is wary of aligning too closely with Moscow and Pyongyang; and pushed for greater post-Brexit trade links with the UK. The president lands in London with his wife Kim Keon Hee and 70 business leaders for a three-day trip that will begin with a carriage procession along The Mall to Buckingham Palace, followed by the presidents address to parliament and a state banquet on Tuesday evening. The leader of the worlds 13th largest economy arrives as the Indo-Pacific region grapples with a number of flashpoints that could rapidly escalate into a fresh geopolitical crisis, whether triggered by a clash over Taiwan, South China Sea disputes, or the nuclear threat from North Korea. The threats have pushed the Yoon administration to strengthen ties with Nato and have very close security cooperation with the members of Aukus, the trilateral defence pact between the US, UK and Australia. British warships regularly participate in joint military drills and dock in South Korean ports. South Korea is considered a trusted US-aligned security and trading partner in the Indo-Pacific region. Seoul has signalled it wants to transform itself into a global pivotal state that will proactively help shape international events. The president stressed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and a rules-based maritime order in the South China Sea. The honouring of Korea with the first state visit since the coronation of the King signals the importance of country to the UK as a strategic partner in the Indo-Pacific a move it wants to reciprocate with deeper cooperation on an array of geopolitical risks including supply chain and energy security, said Mr Yoon. On Wednesday, the Korean president will meet company executives at Mansion House to discuss future opportunities. The visit is expected to yield specific announcements on deepening defence, business and investment ties. Mr Yoon will visit 10 Downing Street for bilateral talks with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in the afternoon, where he is expected to raise the issue of Russias strengthening collaboration with North Korea. An alleged arms deal between Moscow and Pyongyang has prompted alarm over its security implications for East Asia and Ukraine. Yoon Suk Yeol met with Rishi Sunak earlier this year in Japan at the G7 summit For months, US and South Korean intelligence agencies have warned North Korea is supplying ammunition to Russias dwindling stocks as it wages war with Ukraine, in exchange for possible technical assistance with Pyongyangs escalating nuclear-armed missile programme. Both Russia and North Korea have denied the accusations, but the sight of Vladimir Putin rolling out the red carpet for Kim Jong-un as he visited the Vostochny cosmodrome in September intensified international concern about their relationship. North Koreas provision of weapons to Russia will only prolong the war in Ukraine and increase the number of casualties. In addition, if Russia offers military technologies to North Korea in return, it would threaten the security of the Republic of Korea and regional peace, said Mr Yoon. Russia-North Korea military cooperation was a grave violation of UN Security Council resolutions and a provocative act that threatens peace on the Korean Peninsula as well as in Northeast Asia and Europe, he said, adding that Seoul, Tokyo and Washington intended to actively respond. Some analysts have predicted a developing Russia-North Korea-China axis could act to increasingly undermine global freedom and democracy and challenge the current US-led world order. However, Mr Yoon countered the three countries have divergent interests and it would not work to Beijings benefit to align itself with Moscow and Pyongyang. China had an important role in promoting freedom, peace and prosperity in East Asia, he said. China is likely to take into consideration that pursuing trilateral cooperation with North Korea and Russia, which have blatantly violated the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions as well as other international norms, will not be helpful for its international reputation and standing, he added. Since entering office last year, Mr Yoon, a conservative former prosecutor, has made a reinforced military partnership with the US, and enhanced ties with Japan, as part of his defence strategy against North Koreas evolving nuclear threat. The pariah neighbouring state has test-launched close to 90 ballistic missiles since his inauguration, including intercontinental range weapons capable of striking the US. Insecurity on the Korean Peninsula There are concerns the Ukraine war and Middle East conflict could stoke further insecurity on the Korean Peninsula or even prompt Pyongyang to make a rash move against the South, miscalculating that major powers are already overstretched. South Korea has repeatedly warned the North could be capable of a Hamas-style attack across the border. Mr Yoon indicated his trip this week would be an opportunity to build relations in digital and AI technology, cybersecurity, nuclear energy, the defence industry, biohealth, space, semiconductors, offshore wind power, clean energy and maritime affairs. With South Korea the first country in Asia to sign a post-Brexit Free Trade Agreement, there will likely be discussions on the ongoing process to upgrade it. Last year, bilateral trade reached $12.12 billion [9.72 billion], while Koreas investments in the UK reached nearly $2 billion [1.6 billion]. The occasion also marks the 140-year anniversary of diplomatic relations between the UK and Korea an era not only of trade cooperation but of helping each other in times of crisis. In a poignant addition to his schedule, Mr Yoon will visit the grave of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey and meet pensioners who served during the 1950-53 Korean War. When the Korean War broke out, Britains young soldiers did not hesitate to make the ultimate sacrifice to defend Koreas freedom. Thanks to this help from the United Kingdom, the Republic of Korea achieved rapid economic growth in a short period of time and built a free and democratic society, said Mr Yoon. My upcoming state visit will serve as a catalyst for Korea to emerge as one of the United Kingdoms global strategic partners. 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. The Galaxy Leader was commandeered by the rebels with nearly two dozen crew members on board Iran-backed rebels seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship off the coast of Yemen on Sunday, in revenge for what they said were Israeli war crimes in Gaza. Yemens Houthis said they had commandeered the ship in the southern Red Sea and taken it to a Yemeni port with nearly two dozen crew members on board. Militants used a helicopter to hover above the Galaxy Leader, before rappelling down to the deck while armed, US officials told NBC. The rebels have been warning for weeks that Israels continued bombardment of the Gaza Strip would draw them further into the conflict. Earlier this month, the Houthis fired several missiles and drones towards Israel, which later claimed to have intercepted them. Sundays attack raises fears the group has established a new angle of attack and that the war could spread to a new maritime front. The group warned that it would continue to target ships linked to or owned by Israelis until Tel Aviv halts its war against Hamas. All ships belonging to the Israeli enemy or that deal with it will become legitimate targets, the Houthis said. The Galaxy Leader is flagged in the Bahamas, but is owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese one, according to Israel. The ships Israeli link is believed to stem from the nationality of the billionaire who owns the ships parent company, Ray Car Carriers Ltd. Abraham Ungar, the Israeli billionaire, is listed in public shipping databases as being the companys owner. The operating company is Nippon Yusen Kaisha, which chartered the ship to transport cars, according to Nikkei Asia. Among the 22-member crew were Bulgarians and Filipinos, but no Japanese or Israelis, according to Israel. The office of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, strongly condemned what it said was an Iranian attack. The hijacking of the cargo ship by the Houthis in the Red Sea is a very serious event on a global level, an IDF spokesperson said. This is a ship that left Turkey on its way to India with an international civilian crew, without Israelis. This is not an Israeli ship. Abdulmalek Al Ajri, a prominent Houthi leader, told The Telegraph that the ship had been seized because of Israels persistence in killing civilians and carrying out genocide and forced displacement in Gaza. Yahya Sarea, the spokesman for Yemens Houthi rebels, issued a statement after the incident saying that the group would target all ships owned or operated by Israeli companies or carrying the Israeli flag. The [Houthi] forces confirm that they will continue to carry out military operations against the Israeli enemy until the aggression against the Gaza Strip stops and the heinous crimes that continue until this moment against our Palestinian brothers in Gaza and the West Bank stop, he said. 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. Yermak met with the French president's special envoy for assistance to Ukraine Ukrainian President's Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak discussed security guarantees with Pierre Elbron, the French President Special Envoy for Economic Assistance and Reconstruction of Ukraine, during their meeting in Kyiv, Zelenskyys office reported on Nov.19. "I am grateful that France not only provides us with the necessary support to win (Russias war on Ukraine), but also looks to the future and works on Ukraine's recovery." Read also: France, Ukraine discuss joint arms production Elbron said that he had a fruitful dialogue with Ukrainian representatives over the past eight months and reported on the implementation progress of transport, technology, and healthcare projects. He also mentioned that Paris is considering the possibility of providing grants for the restoration of critical infrastructure, energy facilities and enterprises, as well as for demining. The President's Office Yermak hopes that President Emmanuel Macron and the First Lady will accept President Zelenskyys invitation to visit Ukraine in the near future. Read also: France refuses to comment on Pavel Filatyevs asylum status report Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine's First Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister, and Ihor Zhovkva, the President's Office Deputy Head, also attended the meeting. 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 Many people with disposable income are traveling in style. They're spending money and travel points on comfort, convenience, and memorable experiences. Some splurge on fine dining and luxury hotels while others hire photographers to capture the moment. A swanky dinner. A seat in business class. A hotel room with a view. If you're a traveler with disposable income, chances are you've splurged on at least one of these things. I'll admit, I have. Gone are the days when I was a 20-something and sharing a dirt-cheap apartment rental in Paris with friends never mind the mold on the bathroom walls! Now, in my 30s, if I'm going on vacation, I want it to be nice. And looking at my Instagram feed, it seems as if almost everyone is taking luxurious vacations, so I know I'm not alone. People are still 'revenge traveling' Even though it's become more expensive to have fun and travel continues to be a mess flying is a nightmare and cities have a tourism problem people are vacationing like never before. "Demand for American travelers to go somewhere is still at near-record highs," Amir Eylon, the CEO of the market-research consultancy Longwoods International, told me. The firm surveyed 1,000 American adults in October, and 91% said they have travel plans in the next six months. "With such a sustained level of demand, we are seeing people spending more," Eylon said, adding that it's partly because of inflation and because some people saved more during the COVID-19 pandemic. While they may have spent a lot of that money since, he said, people with disposable income are dipping into their savings for trips. And inflation hasn't affected people's travel plans as much as you might expect. Only 22% of those involved in Longwoods International's survey said inflation would "greatly impact" their choice to travel in the next six months. Chloe Pantazi-Wolber/Business Insider A few industry experts told me we're still in a "revenge travel" stage following the pandemic, and it's driving travelers to splurge. "Our clients are spending more, and they're traveling for longer periods of time," Cheri Ozimac, a senior travel designer at Tully Luxury Travel, told Business Insider. Ozimac added that after so much time lost to COVID, people are saying: "'Let's make this trip fabulous and upgrade to business class and just go all out because time is precious.' They don't know what tomorrow's going to bring." Similarly, Anna Abelson, an adjunct professor at New York University's Jonathan M. Tisch Center of Hospitality, noted a sentiment among travelers to "live it up." She said her research shows that "travel is somehow looked as a need rather than a want" right now and seen as beneficial to mental health. People are also splurging with credit-card points, Gilbert Ott, the travel blogger behind God Save the Points, told me. He said he's noticed "a much bigger focus on the actual burning of points now," such as people cashing in points for flight upgrades. "I feel like there's a very 'YOLO' kind of time with that now," he said. Leisure travelers are splurging to sit in business class. xuxu/Getty Images We're splurging on 'the 3 Cs' Curious to know how others spend when they travel, I asked my colleagues, friends, and anyone who sees my Instagram stories the question: "What do you splurge on when you're on vacation?" The answers could mostly be grouped into three categories I'm calling the three Cs: comfort, convenience, and costly experiences. I shared my findings with travel experts, who explained what's driving these spending habits and the broader trends in the industry. Comfort is a hot commodity Unsurprisingly, comfort is high on the list of people's vacation splurges. Some said they pay for airport lounges or travel credit cards that get them in for free and even airport hotels during long layovers. And many people care enough about where they sit on a plane that they'll pay more for it. Some pay to sit in business class on a long-haul flight or as close to the front of the plane as possible. One colleague told me she'll upgrade her seat on the way home to have something to look forward to at the end of her trip. Andria Godfrey, an adjunct professor of hospitality and tourism at the University of Southern California, said she's noticed leisure travelers filling the front of plane cabins "because they wanted to be comfortable, they wanted space." "Even though business hasn't really come back quite yet, planes are still seeing the front of the cabin that's full," she told me, referring to the dip in business travelers following the pandemic. A view of a suite inside the Pestana Plaza Mayor hotel in Madrid. Pablo Cuadra/Getty Images The desire for comfort, of course, extends to luxurious accommodation. Some people said they pay extra for a hotel room with a view or all-inclusive resorts that cater to their every need. Parents are spending more to be comfortable while traveling with kids, too. One colleague told me she pays for a seat for her toddler instead of traveling with her 2-year-old on her lap. Some splurge on suites with multiple rooms to have their own space while their kids sleep. Connecting rooms are also in demand among parents, Abelson said. Parents are also splurging on kid-free trips. A mom of three told me she paid for her own room on a girls' spa trip to Arizona to avoid "having to go back to a big crowded suite with a bunch of people and all their stuff." Godfrey said that for many people, vacationing now is "very much emotionally driven." She said more people are traveling to connect with friends and family, so they may be spending more on amenities that provide comfort for larger groups. "They're willing to spend more on those amenities or to splurge on those amenities like a spa or something like that because travel is so meaningful to them," Godfrey said. Convenience is worth the price Many people said they splurge for the sake of practicality, including investing in custom suitcases that are easy to spot at baggage claim, prebooked airport and hotel transfers, their cellphone carrier's international plan, extra insurance on rental cars, and bags designed to deter pickpockets anything that gives them one less thing to think about. Parents, in particular, splurge for convenience's sake. A colleague told me she'll buy more expensive flights with a layover so her family can fly in and out of their local airport. And Ott, a father of two, said some parents will pay extra to travel around their kids' sleep schedules. Some travelers splurge on travel advisors so they don't have to plan. Thomas Barwick/Getty Images Others want the convenience of not planning at all and hire travel advisors. Michael Trager, the director of the luxury travel agency TravelZork and a travel advisor at Travel Edge, calls the boom in demand for travel advisors "a snowball effect." When things go wrong, he said, his clients don't have to wait on hold with an airline and "wonder if it's going to work out." Trager said his clients think of him as "their insurance policy." Costly experiences and amenities are king Above all, people said they splurge on lavish experiences, whether it's fine dining, a thrill-seeking excursion, a day bed at a buzzy beach club, or a cooking class. Ozimac and Diana Wehrle, also a senior travel designer at Tully Luxury Travel, said they've seen their clients gravitate toward adventure travel, off-the-beaten-path destinations, and small-ship cruising with luxury amenities. A luxury yacht and boat in the Maldives. Aleksei Permiakov/Getty Images Travelers are also seeking more private, personalized activities. Ott has noticed a trend of people hiring local photographers to capture special vacation moments. "I've done it a few times whenever we've gone somewhere special or that we probably won't return to quickly, and that felt like a really worthwhile purchase," he told me. Eylon said he and his wife hired a private tour guide on a trip to Boston rather than join a large group. He thinks people crave these experiences because they want recognition "as being VIPs." "At the end of the day, it's all about meaningful experiences," Eylon added. "If they're going on a fishing trip, they want to catch the fish, and they want the chef to prepare it for them for dinner." Godfrey told me that while travelers seeking more authentic, unique experiences isn't a new phenomenon, "we're really seeing it now." And people are willing to pay for it. Read the original article on Insider Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, has dismissed Tetiana Ostashchenko from the office of the Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and appointed Anatoliy Kazmirchuk, head of a military hospital in Kyiv, as the new commander. Source: evening address of the President Quote: "Today there is an important staff decision. Following the request of the Minister of Defence, I have changed the Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. I have appointed General Major of Medical Service Anatoliy Kazmirchuk, head of the (...) Main Military Clinical Hospital in the city of Kyiv, as the Commander instead of Tetiana Ostashchenko, General Major of Medical Service." Details: Zelenskyy explained that in the society, specifically in the community of combat medics, there have been many statements that a "fundamentally new level of medical supply for our soldiers is needed". "From high-quality tourniquets to full digitalisation and transparency in the supplies, from high-quality training to sincere communication with combat medics in those units where the medicine functions properly and efficiently. The experience of efficiency of specific units must be spread on all the defence forces," Zelenskyy remarked. Background: On 13 November, Ukrainska Pravda reported that Defence Minister Rustem Umierov was preparing to dismiss Tetiana Ostashchenko, Commander of Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, Commander of the Tavriia Operational Strategic Group of Forces, and Serhii Naiev, Commander of Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Paramedics and volunteers involved in medical support for Ukraines Defence Forces have reportedly been insisting on Ostashchenkos dismissal. Support UP or become our patron! Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, calls upon the international community to give Russia a signal that the world will not get tired of helping Ukraine. Source: evening address of the President Quote: "We continue preparing for the planned international events this week. There will be important activity, new communication with our partners. The key thing now is the guarantee that the support for Ukraine will be sufficient next year as well. I am thanking all the countries who share our point of view. Russia needs to get this signal: whatever they (the Russians ed.) do, the world will not get tired of protecting freedom and international order." Details: Zelenskyy has separately thanked the Netherlands which provided for over 2 billion of security aid for Ukraine for the next year. "Thank you, Mark, Mr. Prime Minister, and the society of the Netherlands. This is a timely signal. It is important to feel that the protection of freedom has reliable and sincere support," the Ukrainian President said. Background: On Thursday, US President Joe Biden signed a short-term government funding bill to avoid a government shutdown. This bill does not include funding to support either Ukraine or Israel. Earlier, it was revealed that Republicans threaten to block the allocation of the aid for Ukraine in Congress if it does not include the decision about the security of American borders. Republican Congressman Don Bacon said that the House of Representatives already knows what to do with the bill on aid to Ukraine, as well as how much money they want to allocate to Kyiv. In his opinion, the consideration could take place in December. Leaders of the US Congress hope to mobilise the voices for additional aid for Ukraine and Israel, as well as for the improvement of the immigration system, by Christmas. Support UP or become our patron! TOKYO, Nov 20 ( News On Japan ) - Preparations for the New Year are underway across Japan, with a noticeable shift from overseas to domestic travel for the year-end and New Year season, stemming from the yen's historic decline. As the mood for overseas travel remains subdued, many are rediscovering Japan. Japan Travel Agency reports, "Due to the impact of the yens weakness, domestic travel is becoming more popular than overseas trips. Tokyo and Osaka, with their theme parks, are emerging as popular destinations." According to Kinki Nippon Tourist, compared to pre-COVID times, overseas travel reservations have decreased by 15%, while domestic travel has recovered by 70%. Tokyo Disney Resort, celebrating its 40th anniversary, and Universal Studios Japan in Kansai, are the leading domestic travel destinations, TV Asahi reports. Police are investigating the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old from Council Bluffs Friday night in South Omaha as a homicide. Omaha police were called to the Sippin Sirens bar at South 42nd and H streets at approximately 11:15 p.m., where they found Mauricio Chavez suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, according to a news release from the Omaha Police Department. Chavez was taken to the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha with life-saving measures in progress, but he was declared dead at the hospital, according to the release. Chavez's killing marks Omaha's 23rd homicide of 2023. He is the fourth person under the age of 18 to be killed in Omaha this year. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Omaha Police Department Homicide Unit at 402-444-5656. Anonymously tips can be made through Omaha Crime Stoppers at 402-444-STOP, www.omahacrimestoppers.org or on the P3 Tips mobile app. Anonymous tips leading to the arrest of a homicide suspect are eligible for a $25,000 reward. JERUSALEM (AP) Israel and Hamas agreed at the last minute Thursday to extend their cease-fire in Gaza by another day to allow more hostages and prisoners to be released. But any further renewal of the truce, now in its seventh day, could prove more daunting since Hamas is expected to set a By Ko Dong-hwan Korea has secured 1.5 trillion won ($1.16 billion) in investment commitments from American firms during President Yoon Suk Yeol's U.S. visit to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit last week, according to the trade ministry, Sunday. The registered investments by GM, DuPont, IMC and Ecolab will create a chain reaction that will expand Korea's export channels and reduce import volume, altogether creating an annual net value of over 4.5 trillion won, said the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The announcement came as President Yoon returned to Seoul on Sunday after departing for the summit in San Francisco last Wednesday. The ministry said GM decided on its investment after the automaker saw the Korean government's regulatory reforms and institutional improvements aimed at attracting investment from global companies. GM Senior Vice President Shilpan Amin met President Yoon on the sidelines of the APEC summit and said those reforms alongside the current global standards have given his firm confidence to pursue further business operations in Korea. The company will expand the 20-year-long partnership between GM and Korea by expanding its production capabilities in the country, he added. DuPont, seeing that the world's largest semiconductor cluster will be introduced in Korea, has decided to invest more than 200 billion won in the country to expand its semiconductor material and component production facilities and research and development center here, the ministry said. The ministry said the company's latest bid will create over 100 new jobs. "The amount DuPont claimed it has invested in Korea is double the size the company had registered when President Yoon visited Washington in September last year," said the ministry. "It is widely seen as the company's goal to designate Korea as its second hub of key production and research and development following the U.S." IMC, a subsidiary of global investment company Berkshire Hathaway, has claimed to have invested in production facilities for tungsten oxide, which is used in semiconductor manufacture and in the production of high-density construction tools, said the ministry. It is the company's sixth Korean investment in material parts and reflects that the country has become the company's main hub in the Asia and Pacific region for the industry, according to the ministry. Ecolab has declared that it will invest in production facilities for high-purity nanoparticles, essential for the production of chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) slurry used as an abrasive in semiconductor manufacturing, the ministry said. The Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Bang Moon-kyu said the latest investments by U.S. companies will "greatly contribute to cementing the bilateral alliance in future industries and stabilizing our country's semiconductor supply markets." "In addition to catering to the companies with further support, we will keep reforming the 'killer regulations' still present in our country to make Korea more attractive for foreign investments," said the minister. The security services of the Moroccan southern city of Dakha arrested last Thursday an extremist affiliated to Daesh (ISIS). The operation, conducted in close coordination with the General Directorate of National Territorial Surveillance (DGST), is part of the ongoing security efforts aimed at countering the terrorist organizations threats to the Kingdoms security and to the safety of its citizens. According to the ongoing investigation, the 23-year-old arrested individual, a native of the town of El Hajeb, pledged allegiance to the so-called emir of the Daesh terrorist organization and was actively involved in preparing terrorist plans aimed at seriously undermining the security of individuals and public order, a DGST press release said on Saturday. The suspect was taken into custody for judicial investigation conducted by the Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations (BCIJ), under the supervision of the competent prosecutors office in charge of terrorism cases, with a view to revealing the nature of his terrorist plans and identifying any links he may have in Morocco or abroad. This security operation illustrates, once again, the resurgence of terrorist threats facing the Kingdom, in light of the persistence of individuals imbued with extremist ideology, vulnerable to calls for incitement by terrorist organizations. The President of the Union of the Comoros, Azali Assoumani, commended King Mohammed VIs enlightened vision for a prosperous and autonomous Africa, enjoying the place it deserves on the international stage. Speaking at the close of the 15th edition of the MEDays Forum, the Comorian Head of State and acting chairman of the African Union paid tribute to the Sovereign for his action to strengthen cooperation between the Kingdom and other African countries, with a view to greater progress and development. In this connection, he pointed out that what he saw at the Tanger Med mega-port he visited Friday is very impressive and fantastic, with a huge traffic of ships and containers. The port, which interconnects Morocco with other regions of the world via nearly 40 ports on the continents Atlantic seaboard, bears witness not only to the foresight of King Mohammed VI, but also to his constant commitment to an interconnected world for greater prosperity. Assoumani also hailed the great friendship between the Moroccan and Comorian peoples, and the Sovereigns constant willingness to preserve the strong, age-old ties between the two countries. In another development, President Azali Assoumani reaffirmed in an exclusive interview with the news outlet Le360 his countrys support for the territorial integrity of Morocco, a position that remained steadfast for decades. Our position in support of the territorial integrity of Morocco remains the same since the time of former Comoros President Ahmed Abdellah and the late King Hassan II, said the Comorian Head of State. In this interview, Azali Assoumani also discussed Moroccos return to the African Union (AU). I was a staunch advocate of Moroccos return, a country that has cooperative ties with all countries on the continent, he noted. Regarding the admission of the pseudo-Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) within the AU, a puppet in the hands of the military regime in Algiers, the Comorian Head of State acknowledged the existence of this issue, hoping that Morocco and Algeria, parties to the artificial conflict, could resolve among themselves this issue, which penalizes African actions at the international level. On the sidelines of the 15th edition of MEDays, 24 signatories of the Tangier Appeal for the exclusion of the SADR from AU instances reiterated their position, considering that this entity does not meet the criteria of a free, sovereign, and legitimate state. Participants in the meeting emphasized the need to correct this historical anomaly. The Comorian President also emphasized the importance of the MEDays Forum, a major event for the South, which has become, year after year, a genuine event during which players and decision-makers from all over the world meet to exchange views on the current situation and prospects for countries in the South, particularly African countries. The 15th edition of the MEDays International Forum, held November 15 18, brought together more than 200 high-level speakers, including heads of state and government, political decision-makers, Nobel Prize winners, heads of major international companies and leading international personalities from over a hundred countries. Ways of promoting cooperation between Morocco and Germany were discussed at a meeting that gathered in Berlin this Sunday Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The meeting provided an opportunity to exchange views on several issues of common interest, and to examine possible ways of upgrading economic and commercial partnerships. During the meeting, which took place in the presence of the Minister of Economy and Finance, Nadia Fettah, the two parties expressed their satisfaction with the distinguished partnership linking the two countries, and reviewed the various current and future challenges. The Moroccan delegation arrived in Berlin on Sunday to take part in the G20 Compact with Africa initiative to be held Monday. The United Way of Lee County will join global movement this month to encourage the community to be generous and give back. The nonprofit organization will celebrate Giving Tuesday on Nov. 28 as a part of a global generosity movement. The encourage residents to volunteer donate or take to social media to inspire others to give. Here at the United Way, we support organizations that are meeting the most necessary needs of our community, said Kerissa Helms, UWLC marketing specialist. We have a front row seat to see the daily struggles of our neighbors. Our goal this Giving Tuesday is to make a substantial and noticeable difference in peoples lives and to encourage a spirit of generosity all year long. United Way shared three ways residents can give back to the community: volunteer with the United Ways ReUnited group, donate to the organizations 2024 campaign or inspire other through social media. The entire premise behind Giving Tuesday is to encourage generosity, and I believe we live in one of the most generous counties in the state of Alabama, Helms said. United Ways ReUnited Group is a volunteer program for retired residents of Lee County that work to assist with several volunteer projects in the area. There is no sign-up or commitment when joining the group, and anyone looking to join can email director@unitedwayofleecounty.comor call the UWLC office at 334-745-5540. The UWLC is accepting one-time donations as a part of giving Tuesday to go toward its 2024 campaign. The UWLC is asking that donations of $5 be made to one of the following initiatives that helps several partner agencies: Eradicate hunger (The Food Bank of East Alabama; The Community Market), Protect our children (Twin Cedars Child Advocacy Center; Court Appointed Special Advocates) Impact the next Generation (The Boys and Girls Club of East Alabama; Joyland; The Tallapoosa County Sheriffs Girls Ranch; Special Deliveries of East Alabama Mental Health; Project Uplift; Keeping Family Connections; Dolly Partons Imagination Library) Care for Our Neighbors (2-1-1 Connects Alabama; The Lee County Literacy Coalition; Alabama Head Injury Foundation; East Alabama Services for the Elderly; Easterseals; Unity Wellness; Red Cross; The Domestic Violence Intervention Center) Donations can be made directly through the UWLC website, through cash or checks mailed to the UWLC office at 2133 Executive Park Drive, Opelika, AL 36801 or through Venmo. The UWLC has provided its Venmo account on its website. The UWLC is also asking that community members inspire others to take part in Giving Tuesday by posting on social media with the hashtags #GivingTuesday and #GiveWhereYouLive and by sharing UWLC posts. Anyone interested in joining the UWLCs Giving Tuesday initiative can visit the organizations website. More information on Giving Tuesday can be found at the Giving Tuesday website. See United Way volunteers pack meals at the 2024 Campaign Kickoff Earlier this week, the Financial Times reported Denmark was considering the start of inspections and potential blocks of Russian oil tankers carrying crude across its waters in the EUs latest attempt to enforce a price cap on oil exports from Russia. Also this week, The White House energy security adviser, Amos Hochstein, told Bloomberg the U.S. federal government was going to tighten the sanction noose around Iran, targeting its oil industry more closely. The aim was to remove about 1 million bpd of Iranian oil exports, Hochstein said, but without disturbing prices. Oil prices have weakened recently, mostly on the back of equally weak economic data from the two largest markets for oilthe United States and China. This is good for both the U.S. and the EU but talk about more oil sanctions and their enforcement night just change that. To be fair, a day after the FT report about Denmark was published, EU sources told Reuters that Russian oil tankers will not be targets in the blocs plan for better enforcement of the $60 price cap that Western governments thought would achieve the twinand mutually exclusivepurposes of keeping Russian oil flowing into global markets and reducing the countrys revenues from these exports. In truth, enforcing the cap was easy when all oil prices were naturally lower, including Russias flagship Urals. But when prices started rising again, so did Russian oil prices. For months, the architects of the cap ignored the topic until earlier this month when the FT cited a senior EU official as saying that almost no Russian oil was actually sold below the cap. This state of affairs, the same official told the FT, was not going to be allowed to continue, and the EU was going to toughen up on the enforcement. The report about Denmarks inspection and block plans came out a day later. Related: ExxonMobil vs. Google: Profits and Perceptions Explained While the EU debated how to approach this tougher enforcement, the U.S. acted: the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on three Emirati shipping companies for transporting Russian oil sold at prices above $60 per barrel this week. Shipping companies and vessels participating in the Russian oil trade while using price cap coalition service providers should fully understand that we will hold them accountable for compliance, deputy Treasury secretary Wally Adeyemo said. Tightened sanction control might mean lower Russia oil flows abroad. While this would be sure to reduce revenues from said exports, it would also, of course, reduce oil supply. It was perhaps this that discouraged the EU from going ahead with the Denmark plan: a third of Russian oil exports pass through the Baltic Sea and Danish waters. Cutting off this third would no doubt have a substantial effect on global benchmark prices. Meanwhile, the U.S. is also targeting Irans oil industry in response to the countrys support for Hamas. It is interesting, however, that Hochstein said he thought the best anecdote to revenues in Iran is keeping their exports at a lower level, but also to make sure prices are lower. This certainly sounds like the perfect scenario from the perspective of the White House. Unfortunately, it also sounds like having your cake and eating it, too, similar to the G7s price cap strategy for Russian oil. Oil traders have shrugged off these reports, focusing instead on U.S. retail sales and Chinese refinery activity. The former fell for the first time in seven months in October and the latter slowed down, largely because refiners used up their fuel export quotas. Traders also appear to have focused on the EIAs latest weekly inventory report that showed a build, apparently taking it to mean the chance of supply tightening anytime soon is remote. Based on the latest from the EU and the U.S., it is not that remote. Sanction enforcement against both Russia and Iran will effectively be a supply reduction move. And, if it ever comes to pass, it would come on top of already existing curbs. Of course, it is questionable whether anything besides sanctioning a few shipping companies would in fact be attempted. As noted earlier, both the EU and the U.S. need lower oil prices, not higher. The EU is already struggling with its energy bill and the U.S. is trying to buy some oil for the strategic petroleum reserve after it pretty much drained it last year. ADVERTISEMENT If, however, the sanction enforcers decide to put their money where their mouths are, global oil supply could tighten considerably. Even taking between half and one million barrels daily of Iranian oil off the market would tighten supply considerably, ING analysts said in a note this week. Offsetting this potential losswithout factoring any loss of supply from Russia, at thatwould require more exports from Venezuela, where the Biden administration recently relaxed sanctions for this very purpose. It seems that sanctions and their enforcement have become more of an energy policy tool rather than a means for the punishment of so-called adversaries. The problem with that tool is that it has a double edge. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: This week, both OPEC and the International Energy Agency (IEA) revised their oil demand forecasts higher, citing record Chinese consumption and resilient economies. Oil market participants, however, focused on rising U.S. crude oil inventories, record American oil production, weaker Chinese refinery and economic data, and the first drop in U.S. retail sales in seven months, as negative sentiment persisted and dragged down oil prices to a four-month low. The WTI slide below $75 per barrel and the move down in Brent to well below $80 a barrel intensified speculation among analysts that Saudi Arabia could roll over its extra voluntary cut of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) into early next year. The Saudis and OPEC see the negative sentiment as exaggerated and the current concerns about the economy as overblown. OPEC dismissed the negative market sentiment as overblown and said that the oil market fundamentals remain strong, with Chinese crude imports set to increase to a new annual record in 2023. A few days earlier, the energy minister of OPECs top producer and the worlds largest crude oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, said that oil demand continues to be robust and blamed speculators for the drop in oil prices. The IEA said in its monthly report this week that global oil consumption continued to be strong in September, with a record-high Chinese demand of 17.1 million bpd. Related: ExxonMobil vs. Google: Profits and Perceptions Explained Due to an all-time high Chinese monthly demand and resilient consumption in the United States, the agency revised up its 2023 oil demand growth forecast to 2.4 million bpd, up from 2.3 million bpd growth expected in the October report. This year, China is expected to account for 1.8 million bpd of the 2.4 million bpd growth, which will lift total global demand to 102 million bpd, according to the IEAs estimates. But data on actual crude oil imports in China and the rest of Asia so far this year have shown that demand may be weaker than the IEAs bullish forecasts, Reuters columnist Clyde Russell notes. Demand growth in China is likely to be closer to the OPEC estimate of 1.14 million bpd this year, according to Russells estimates. Concerns about Chinese demand and the U.S. economy have been dragging oil prices down since October, following a jump in the late summer after Saudi Arabia began its voluntary cut. This week, Chinese data showed refinery runs slowed in October from a record-high crude throughput in September, as refining margins weakened and some independent refiners ran out of crude import quotas. The property sector in China continues to be of concern as it is holding back a true economic recovery. The first U.S. retail sales dip since March added to concerns about consumer spending and economies, further weighing on market sentiment. In addition, oil supply from non-OPEC+ producers, led by the U.S., is higher than forecast, suggesting a market surplus early next year and making a stronger case for rollover of the Saudi and Russian cuts into 2024. There are clearly concerns around demand going into next year, particularly around China, which OPEC this week sought to relieve, to no avail, Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at OANDA, said on Thursday after oil prices dipped by 5% in one day. The recent trend may make it difficult for Saudi Arabia and Russia to allow their unilateral cuts to expire at the end of the year, which is something markets may be gradually pricing in, Erlam added. ADVERTISEMENT The lack of a commitment to extend so far may reflect a desire to not but as weve seen so often in the past, the producers will do whatever it takes to support the price. According to Ole Hansen, Head of Commodity Strategy at Saxo Bank, the short-term risk of additional weakness in oil prices cannot be ruled out given continued selling pressure from momentum-focused funds, but traders may also consider the risk of additional action to support prices from OPEC and non-OPEC when they meet on November 26. ING strategists Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey wrote in a Friday note that The price weakness we are seeing means that it is increasingly likely that the Saudis will roll over their additional voluntary cut of 1MMbbls/d into early next year. Doing this should help erase the expected surplus and provide some support to the market. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Starlink, the satellite internet technology made possible by Elon Musk's SpaceX company, is preparing for an initial public offering as soon as the second half of 2024, according to Bloomberg, citing sources familiar with the situation. SpaceX has been shifting Starlink's assets to a wholly-owned subsidiary that would make it ripe for a spin-off ahead of the IPO, one person said, adding there is yet to be a concrete decision about going public. They said the upcoming listing could be postponed to 2025. News of a Starlink IPO follows Musk's comment on social media platform X earlier this month: "Excited to announce that @SpaceX @Starlink has achieved breakeven cash flow!" He continued, "Excellent work by a great team. Starlink is also now a majority of all active satellites and will have launched a majority of all satellites cumulatively from Earth by next year." Musk has commented on the prospect of a Starlink IPO for several years, but the timing remains unclear. However, in 2021, the billionaire said that once the company can "reasonably" forecast cash flow, that would be a sign that a listing to the public markets would be nearing. Last Friday, Billionaire investor Ron Baron told CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin that he expects SpaceX to IPO its Starlink in 2027. Baron said, "We think that by the time they go public with SpaceX, with Starlink in 2027 or so, four years, the company will be worth $250 billion to $300 billion." Tesla blogger Sawyer Merritt recently posted on X a graph that shows Starlink's onboarding of new customers has been parabolic since June 2022. The service now has more than 2 million users worldwide. SpaceX currently has a $150 billion valuation. It has delivered 80% of all Earth's payload mass to orbit this year. As we continue to point out, Musk is becoming the 'uncancellable' billionaire while radical Democrats in Washington weaponize government agencies against his companies. In other news, SpaceX's Starship launch could be as soon as this Friday. ADVERTISEMENT By Zerohedge.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Via Metal Miner The Renewables MMI (Monthly Metals Index) remains volatile, especially when it comes to EV battery technology. Starting in August, the index experienced sharp up-and-down movements from month to month. Indeed, between October 1 and November 1, the index dropped 4.22%. Most index components, including grain-oriented electrical steel, dropped, with only a few managing to move sideways. Cobalt proved the only outlier in the entire index, shooting up 11.85%. That said, this price rise follows the normal seasonal demand boost for cobalt, and oversupply still plagues the cobalt markets. Due to this, many analysts expect the price increase to slow down. On the subject of battery metals, battery technology for EVs could fall under trading scrutiny in the near future. This is due to the EU investigating Chinese EV subsidies, with potential Chinese import tariffs looming. EV Battery Technology and Possible Trade War Due to recent developments, an electric vehicle trade war seems more possible than ever. Many analysts predict that the European Unions (EU) recently implemented investigation into Chinese electric car subsidies could result in tariffs on Chinese imports. This action was spurred on by concerns that the EUs electric vehicle sector would suffer if fair competition isnt maintained. The main worry is that Chinas remains the leading producer of battery technology for EVs. The situation also stems from the EUs environmental goals, which include everyone using clean cars by 2035. The inquiry captures the anxiety around automakers shift from producing conventional cars to electric ones. It also addresses the existential concerns regarding labor and competition accompanying this shift. The fact that China remains the worlds largest producer of electric vehicles and controls a sizable amount of global battery production further contributes to the possibility of a trade war. China Opposes EU Investigation Chinese officials have called the European Commissions inquiry into Chinese clean car imports a naked protectionist act. This immediately sparked fears of possible retribution and supply chain disruptions for EV components. The situation emphasizes the difficulties and even confrontations that can occur when negotiating the rapidly-changing EV and battery technology markets. With the worlds electric car market expanding, nations must figure out how to resolve trade disputes and foster fair competition. This could entail positive conversations, addressing market access and technology transfer issues, and ensuring that all parties follow international trade accords. U.S. and Chinese Tensions Continue to Rise The potential application of EU tariffs further intensified trade tensions between the U.S. and China. For example, Tesla boss Elon Musk recently acknowledged Chinas support for electric vehicles while simultaneously voicing worries about the countrys hefty tariffs on foreign automakers. This helps support assertions that the intricate nature of the commercial relationship between the two nations finds itself exacerbated within these opposing dynamics. Grain-Oriented Electrical Steel MMI While the long-term trend for grain-oriented electrical steel (GOES) still looks bullish, the short-term trend proved volatile month-on-month. After a sharp price upswing between August 1 and October 1, the period between October 1 and November 1 proved far more bearish. Overall, the index dropped a total of 30.93%. By Jennifer Kary ADVERTISEMENT More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Metro Community College culinary arts instructor James Davis just had to sneak away during a recent event at the Durham Museum. He couldnt resist the pull of the traveling exhibit, Julia Child: A Recipe for Life. He reveled in the copper pans hanging from a pegboard, the old TV set and the replicated kitchen. What was kind of fun to me was seeing over 100 people interacting with it, he said. The Durham exhibition, which runs until Feb. 11, is a touring exhibition produced and managed by Flying Fish, developed in collaboration with the Napa Valley Museum, under rights granted by The Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts and The Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University, and generously supported by Oceania Cruises. It explores the life of the American culinary pioneer and delves into pivotal, inspiring moments in Childs life and the supportive network of family and friends who contributed to her career. Davis loves how as part of the exhibition you can step behind a counter and pick up a mixing bowl and whisk. Not everything was boxed up and behind glass, he said. You can touch and get your hands on it. He and fellow teacher Cathy Curtis are both big fans of Child. As teachers and seekers of food education, they say there is no way to have a conversation without talking about Child because she was such an important part of American food culture. She was so fearless in her pursuit of her own culinary education, Curtis said. She was comfortable in failure and humble in her success. Those values are so important to success in our industry. Theyre highlighting all the things that are amazing about Child, Curtis said, for the 300 students enrolled in Metros culinary classes. In one for-credit class taught by Davis, students are asked to create and design a tasting menu. This quarter you have to look at the menu through the lens of Julia Child, Davis said. Just to pick up inspiration from her and maybe other chefs she had personally worked with or taught or worked alongside. Curtis, Davis and other Institute for the Culinary Arts instructors also teach one-time non-credit classes. Two Julia Child-inspired non-credit classes in January are already full. One on Feb. 7 in which participants prepare a meal based on an episode of The French Chef still has some openings. A few pairing events in February based on Child also have openings. Complimentary beverages are matched with each course at the brunch event. At the chefs table class, the chef cooks in the room. Even without Childs input, the classes are hugely popular. We cant keep up with the demand, Curtis said. We have immense support from the community. That is a great thing for people who want to spend time learning about cooking who dont want to buy culinary equipment or work in a restaurant. Photos: Culinary instructors make Julia Child's recipe Gov't urged to restore bilateral ties ahead of envisaged Seoul-Beijing-Tokyo summit By Lee Hyo-jin Strained relations between South Korea and China have ground to a virtual standstill after President Yoon Suk Yeol's attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit ended without a much-anticipated bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, despite discussions to arrange one. The two leaders had a brief exchange during the multilateral event, but an absence of common agendas made it difficult for them to hold formal talks, analysts said Sunday, calling for diplomatic efforts from the Yoon administration to stabilize relations with the nation's largest trade partner. Yoon returned home, Saturday, after attending the APEC summit in San Francisco, which invited the leaders of the 21-member regional economic group, including the United States, China and Japan. There was speculation that Yoon might hold a one-on-one meeting with the Chinese president during his four-day visit, but the two only had a brief conversation. They were spotted exchanging greetings before the start of the APEC Informal Dialogue at Moscone Center, but did not sit down for a one-on-one meeting. "At the current state, the leaders of South Korea and China do not have new agendas to talk about," Park Seung-chan, a professor of Chinese Studies at Yongin University, told The Korea Times. "Also, for China's Xi, smoothing out relations with the U.S. seemed to be his top priority at the APEC summit. So holding a summit with South Korea was not part of his plans in the first place." On the sidelines of the APEC gathering, U.S. President Joe Biden and Xi held a rare four-hour summit on Wednesday, in a sign of cooling tensions between the two superpowers. Park said the recent fence-mending mood between the U.S. and China creates diplomatic room for South Korea to improve relations with its Asian neighbor. "Like the U.S-China relationship, South Korea and China should also work toward building constructive relationships based on mutual benefits in areas like the economy and people-to-people exchanges," the professor said. Bilateral relationship between South Korea and China have strained under Yoons presidency as Seoul has been overtly aligning with the U.S. in its diplomacy of pursuing coalitions with countries sharing universal values, a move perceived by China as joining the U.S.' campaign to counter Beijing. Plus, Beijing has been increasingly wary about Washingtons growing influence in the Northeast Asian region amid quickly strengthening trilateral ties between South Korea, the U.S. and Japan. Amid the complicated relations, an upcoming foreign ministerial meeting and an envisaged trilateral summit between Seoul, Tokyo and Beijing would be a turning point in South Korea-China relations, experts said. The foreign ministers of South Korea, Japan and China are expected to hold talks in Busan around Nov. 26, which, if held, would pave the way for a trilateral summit of their leaders in Seoul. The three-way summit may be held in December at the earliest. Kang Joon-young, a professor of Chinese Studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, commented that the trilateral summit will serve as a momentum to warm up relations with China. "Although it is a trilateral meeting, China's No. 2 leader Li Qiang's visit to Seoul will be highly meaningful in Seoul-Beijing bilateral relations. And given that the trilateral summit traditionally focuses on economic and cultural cooperation, there could be some outcomes that will ease tensions between the two nations," Kang said. While South Korea is expected to demand China's constructive role regarding North Korea's nuclear threats in its upcoming meetings, Kang viewed it unlikely for China to respond with meaningful action. "It's impossible for the two nations to draw conclusions on sensitive geopolitical issues like North Korea or the Taiwan Strait and both sides should acknowledge that," he said. Tricia A. Sharrar Joins Goosmann Law Firm as Chief Operating Officer Jeana Goosmann, CEO & Managing Partner of the Goosmann Law Firm, is pleased to announce that Tricia A. Sharrar has joined the Goosmann Law Firm team as the Chief Operating Officer. Sharrar brings over 20 years of management and leadership experience to the firm. With a track record of dynamic and strategic leadership, she has a broad background in academia, where she excelled in developing and nurturing relationships with external partners, industry leaders, and professional organizations. Her talent in collaborating to drive innovation and optimizing daily operations across various administrative areas is a testament to her exceptional leadership skills. She has consistently led teams to success and is well-versed in ensuring compliance with federal regulations while fostering a culture of equity, diversity, and inclusion. During her tenure at Creighton University, Sharrar held numerous significant positions, including Vice President for Compliance, Vice Provost for Academic Administration and Operations, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Associate Dean at Creighton University School of Law. Goosmann Law Firm's CEO, Jeana Goosmann, expressed her enthusiasm for Tricia Sharrar joining the team, saying, "We are delighted to welcome Tricia to our team. Her extensive experience in compliance, operations management and her commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture make her an invaluable addition to our leadership team. We look forward to her contributions to our firm's continued growth and success." As Chief Operating Officer, Sharrar will be responsible for integrating all major functions of the firm, including overseeing all aspects of day-to-day firm operations, leadership management, strategic planning and the administrative elements of the Firm. About Goosmann Law Firm Goosmann Law Firm is the largest certified woman-owned law firm in the Midwest for trailblazers leading the way. They are one of the fastest growing law firms in the United States with locations in Omaha, Nebraska, Sioux City, Iowa, Spirit Lake, Iowa, and Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Their clients range from local businesses to multinational Fortune 100 companies. Their areas of practice include Business, Estates, Employment, Disputes and Trials. Goosmann Law Firm is a proud member of the National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms. To learn more about the Goosmann Law Firm, visit their website at www.GoosmannLaw.com or call (855) 843-4531. Nebraska Public Media Names Clowney Chief Operating Officer Nebraska Public Media has named Peter Clowney as chief operating officer for the network. Clowney is a veteran leader of creative teams, including roles at the public radio programs "Marketplace," "This American Life," and "Fresh Air," and public radio stations WBEZ in Chicago and WNYC in New York. He has also worked for the podcasting companies Stitcher and Gimlet, as well as Sirius XM. Most recently, Clowney supported content creation at the audio production company Pushkin Industries. "We are pleased to welcome Peter to our team. He has a strong background in media management and will be a key player as we implement our strategic priorities in the future. His commitment to content and journalism is strong, as is his belief in the essential nature of public media," said Nebraska Public Media General Manager Mark Leonard. Clowney will provide management, leadership and vision, ensuring that Nebraska Public Media's internal strategies and goals are implemented successfully. "I'm thrilled to be joining an organization that's dedicated to its services and members and committed to building the future of public media. Nebraska Public Media creates terrific experiences for its audiences," said Clowney. Clowney will manage professionals across several departments, including those working in finance and accounting, human resources and administration, technical planning and services, and research. He is also tasked with ensuring Nebraska Public Media remains relevant in the changing media landscape and monitoring compliance with state, university and federal policies. Swanson Russell Promotes Jason Schmaderer, Patrick Finnegan to Executive Leadership Team Jason Schmaderer and Patrick Finnegan are Swanson Russell's newest executive vice presidents. As a result of their promotions, the two longtime agency leaders are now also members of the agency's Executive Leadership Team. Schmaderer was promoted to executive vice president/group account director. After joining Swanson Russell in 1998 as a public relations writer and working his way up to public relations counsel, Schmaderer transitioned into account management in 2004. Since then, he's served as account manager, associate account supervisor and most recently as vice president/account director. For nearly 20 years, Schmaderer has played a pivotal role by helping Swanson Russell expand its green industry client roster with brands such as Rain Bird, ExMark and SiteOne. Schmaderer was on the Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association's (TOCA) board of directors, eventually serving as the organization's president in 2013. Over the past decade, Schmaderer has helped establish Swanson Russell in the construction industry, managing and developing accounts like JCB, JLG, Walls, Takeuchi and Oshkosh. He is actively involved in the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), including sitting on AEM's Service Member Executive Committee. Finnegan was also promoted to executive vice president/group account director. Joining Swanson Russell in 2013 after 14 years at Snitily Carr, Finnegan began his tenure at the agency as an associate account supervisor. An avid outdoorsman, he soon helped grow Johnson Outdoors brands such as Minn Kota, Humminbird and Cannon. As Finnegan stepped into account supervisor and, most recently, vice president/account director roles, he grew Johnson Outdoors into one of Swanson Russell's largest accounts. Finnegan has also played an integral leadership role on many of the agency's other outdoor accounts over the years, including SIG SAUER, Gerber, Silencer Central and Nebraska Game & Parks. Additionally, Finnegan sits on the Marketing Committee of the American Sportfishing Association. "Jason and Patrick are exceptional strategic thinkers who contribute greatly to the success of our clients and our business," said Brent Schott, CEO of Swanson Russell. "Deeply involved in the industries in which we specialize, they will continue to shape our mission to Make Belief in brands that work and play outdoors." About Swanson Russell Swanson Russell is the nation's leading advertising, branding and public relations agency for brands that work and play outdoors. Based in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska, the agency is on a mission to help brands Make Belief. Their approach to uncovering a brand's reality drives creative thinking and helps build trust with audiences everywhere. Visit swansonrussell.com for more information. Imagine the surprise of a watchman, hearing suspicious sounds at 1 in the morning at the Arch of States. Chop, chop, chop. Shining his searchlight, the watchman found a cloaked woman high on the arch with an ax, mutilating one of the nude figures. It was Lt. Dorothy Maurer of the Salvation Army. Imagine the conversation co-conspirator Lt. Bertha McCormick had outside the Trans-Mississippi grounds that moonlight-less night. Oh, Sister Maurer, should we be doing this? We go into the dives of cities to raise the sinner out of the mire. Never in any place have I seen anything so disgraceful as those statues, even in Chicago, where I lived. This is not for myself but for thousands of young people. Still, Sister, are you sure? Hush, and hold the ladder. Dorothy Maurers crossing of the barbed-wire fence and attack on the statues of Apollo and Venus, lopping off one arm and badly damaging a leg, was national news. It was a quite an amusing start for the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition in Omaha in 1898. And the stories would emanate all summer and into the fall from Omahas worlds fair southwest of 16th Street and Ames Avenue. Sisters Maurer and McCormick were on their way to Chicago, reassigned by the Salvation Army after Omahas mayor asked that the charges against them be dropped, when Little Egypt showed up. What would they have done to her, this hoochie-coochie dancer who packed the menfolk in at the fair? But who was this Little Egypt? The one that wowed them five years earlier at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago? The one that famously danced nude at a stag party at a swank New York City restaurant in 1896? What can be ruled out was that she did not come from Sheeleys dining hall on Cass Street in Omaha, as several retellings of the story claim. Seeley was the name of the stag party host in New York. Little Egypt was merely a stage name for such dancers. Whoever Omahas version was, and there may have been multiples, she quivered every muscle in her body, especially those in her stomach, in her six-month show on the Streets of Cairo. But the performer(s) apparently never took off enough to violate moral standards. With the fair buildings mostly made of wood and plaster, fires were inevitable. It was only three days into the fair before the first one. Again, this story involves an ax. The California gold mining tunnel attraction, benzine igniting in the nearly finished structure, was gutted in an afternoon blaze (it was rebuilt). Firemen quickly put it out, no thanks to an overzealous gatekeeper that Hose Company No. 4 encountered. The gate from Sherman Avenue (16th Street) was nailed shut. According to The World-Herald, the fire captain did not hesitate when the watchmen told him he could not open the gate and asked for a permit. This is all the permit I need, said the fire captain as he took an ax to the gate. The two midways, viciously competing against each other, had a combined 245 attractions, novelties and concessions. A big draw was Hagenbacks Trained Animal Show, which billed one of its tigers as having killed five trainers in five years. Hagenbacks La Belle Fatima, a grizzly bear, didnt arrive until late in the fair. An Omaha banker wished it hadnt, for he lost a $25 bet with a friend that the bear was not real. Other sideshows included Lunette, the Maid of the Moon; Psycho, a wooden figure that purportedly solved math problems and shook hands; Chiquita the Living Doll, a Cuban little person said to have had 21 trunks of costumes and jewelry for her singing and dancing act; the Flying Lady; the Mystic Maze, where the barker would hawk that the person who found the beautiful young woman secreted inside would collect $100; and the Oregon Wonder Horse. Drawing more than 110,000 admissions in its 10 weeks at the end of the fair was the Darkness and Dawn, or Heaven and Hell exhibit. A monk led visitors from the bellows of an infernal region to St. Peters heavenly grotto of gold, radiant under brilliant electric effects. The macabre waiting room, called Cabaret de la Mort, used coffins as tables. The fairs grounds, rich in Native lore especially for the Omaha Nation, welcomed the Indian Congress for the final three months. While it was intended to educate about tribal culture and customs, the assemblage of about 500 from 26 tribes in retrospect was a sideshow using primarily the Kiowa, Cheyenne, Arapahoe, Apache, Sioux, Crow, Omaha, Wichita, Flathead, Sac and Fox, Pueblo, and Tonkawa. Sham battles between tribes counteracted the tribal ceremonies that were performed the ghost dances of the Great Plaines tribes, the mounted horn dance of the Wichitas and the nighttime war and devil dances of the Apache in firelight. Midway through, Geronimo, the Apache chief and federal prisoner for 12 years after his capture, arrived by train. The request to have him be in Omaha apparently shook up the federal government, said to have been unaware he was still in custody. At the fairs end, the Indian Congress wishes for a banquet meal without being put on display were respected. The feast included a steer, two sheep, two hogs, 10 bushels of potatoes, five barrels of apples and 1,000 loaves of bread. Like moths to a light bulb, the Trans-Mississippi attracted the unsavory element. Professional thieves, thugs, con men and prostitutes overran Omaha. In the first four days, almost a dozen crooks were whisked off the grounds by private security no arrests made. But if they returned, they were warned Those spotted included the Velvet Hand from Chicago, Tony the Dago, the King of Pickpockets from New York City and Little Lou. About 55 years old, Little Lou was Mrs. Louise Jordan and she was easy to identify. No right ear. No accident, either. The lower part was cut off as part of a sentencing in Brazil for a diamond theft. As for the ladies of the evening, noted madams Minna and Ada Everleigh got their red-light start in Omaha. Their updated story is next time. The Nebraska Department of Transportation has a little Thanksgiving present for holiday travelers. Traffic lanes closed for months are now reopening on several major highways as the arrival of cold weather heralds the end of the road construction season. Work has nearly concluded on the reconstruction of a series of bridges on U.S. Highway 34/75 between Plattsmouth and Bellevue. Since late March, contractors have rebuilt the road surfaces on about 16 bridges within a four-mile stretch of highway. They milled away the old road surface and patched the deck on the bridges, which are 10 to 15 years old, said Barbara Gerbino-Bevins, NDOTs district traffic engineer. Then they installed a protective membrane over the decks and covered them with 3 inches of asphalt. All of this prompted varying lane closures on a key commuter route near Offutt Air Force Base, one of the regions largest employers. Now, Gerbino-Bevins said, most of the work is done. About all thats left is some guardrail construction as well as some pile-jacketing the wrapping of protective material typically made of plastic or fiberglass around bridge pilings on a set of bridges near the Platte River. About 20 days of work remain, Gerbino-Bevins said, but lane closures will be few and far between. Also pausing or wrapping up: The painting of bridges over the North Freeway , as U.S. 75 is known in North Omaha. All lanes on the freeway are now open, though some bridges over the freeway remain closed. Painting and lane closures will resume in the spring. , as U.S. 75 is known in North Omaha. All lanes on the freeway are now open, though some bridges over the freeway remain closed. Painting and lane closures will resume in the spring. The Interstate 80 eastbound ramp at the I-680 interchange is now fully reopened, with a new high-friction road surface that engineers expect will reduce the risk of crashes there. During the project, the ramp had been closed at night, with traffic rerouted to the L-I-Center Street bypass ramp. is now fully reopened, with a new high-friction road surface that engineers expect will reduce the risk of crashes there. During the project, the ramp had been closed at night, with traffic rerouted to the L-I-Center Street bypass ramp. The resealing of concrete median barriers along I-80, I-680 and I-480 in Omaha has now been completed, ending nighttime lane closures on the inside lanes of those freeways. The project, begun in July, saw contractors spraying the barriers to help them resist salt from wintertime snow treatments. The last stretch to be finished was on I-680 from I-80 to Fort Street. * * * Last week, contractors building Mutual of Omaha's new headquarters tower downtown closed off 15th Street to all vehicular traffic for one block, from Farnam Street to Douglas Street. The closure, scheduled to continue until Dec. 11, will allow for work on underground utilities in the block. The sidewalk on the west side of the street remains open. Sullivan's Steakhouse and a Starbucks coffee shop both front on the street, which runs one-way northbound. The Mutual of Omaha project had already closed a curb lane on the block, as well as on both Douglas and Farnam Streets. The parallel stretch of 14th Street between Douglas and Farnam has also been closed to allow construction access. All those closures will continue until the insurance and financial services firm's 44-story skyscraper is completed in 2026. Whats New Traffic on Military Avenue between Northwest Radial Highway and Binney Street will be restricted until further notice southbound for creation of a building safety zone in the curb lane. Westbound traffic on Q Street at South 136th Street will be restricted to one lane for utility work in the outside curb lane until Wednesday. Southbound traffic on North 69th Street at Cass Street/Underwood Avenue will be shifted into the left turn lane until Thursday while contractors carry out utility work. Woolworth Avenue between South 36th and South 29th Streets will have varying lane restrictions because of utility adjustments until Wednesday. will have varying lane restrictions because of utility adjustments until Wednesday. On I-80 west of Kearney , an eastbound lane is closed for 11 miles and a westbound lane is closed for six miles between mile markers 238 and 249 for lane reconstruction and guardrail replacement. , an eastbound lane is closed for 11 miles and a westbound lane is closed for six miles between mile markers 238 and 249 for lane reconstruction and guardrail replacement. F Street between South 94th and South 90th Streets is restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work until Tuesday. is restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work until Tuesday. Decatur Street between North 65th and North 63rd Streets is closed for street repair until Tuesday. is closed for street repair until Tuesday. North 52nd Street between Maple Street and Bedford Avenue will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work in the northbound lanes until Nov. 26. will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work in the northbound lanes until Nov. 26. South 42nd Street between Pacific Street and Walnut Street will have various lane restrictions for utility adjustments until Tuesday. South 84th Street between West Center Road and the I-80 bridge will have various lane restrictions for utility adjustments until Thursday. will have various lane restrictions for utility adjustments until Thursday. South 90th Street between Dupont Plaza and Arbor Street will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work and water main repair in the southbound lanes until Wednesday. will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work and water main repair in the southbound lanes until Wednesday. The West Dodge Frontage Road South between 130th and 132nd Streets will be restricted westbound for street panel replacement until Monday. will be restricted westbound for street panel replacement until Monday. Center Street between 44th and 43rd Streets will be restricted to one lane eastbound for utility work in the outside curb lane until Thursday. will be restricted to one lane eastbound for utility work in the outside curb lane until Thursday. Weir Street between South 48th Street and South 46th Avenue is closed for road reconstruction until Friday. Around Omaha Northwest (north of West Dodge Road and west of I-680) The eastbound lanes of U.S. Highway 64/West Maple Road over the Elkhorn River will be closed through the fall to remove and replace pavement and improve lighting. Traffic will be shifted to one of the westbound lanes. The access to JC Robinson Boulevard, leading to Waterloo, will be closed. will be closed through the fall to remove and replace pavement and improve lighting. Traffic will be shifted to one of the westbound lanes. The access to leading to Waterloo, will be closed. North 120th Street between Fort Street and Roanoke Boulevard will be restricted to one lane southbound for street construction in the outside curb lane until Tuesday. will be restricted to one lane southbound for street construction in the outside curb lane until Tuesday. Fort Street between North 120th Street and North 122nd Court will have various lane restrictions for island reconstruction in both inside lanes until Tuesday. will have various lane restrictions for island reconstruction in both inside lanes until Tuesday. State Street is closed from 156th to 147th Streets due to grading and paving of the three-lane roadway until fall. is closed from due to grading and paving of the three-lane roadway until fall. State Street is closed from 168th Street to HWS Cleveland Boulevard for grading, paving and reconstruction of the 168th and State Street intersection until November 2024. for grading, paving and reconstruction of the 168th and State Street intersection until November 2024. Fort Street is closed from 183rd to 195th Streets due to grading and paving of the three-lane roadway until fall. is closed from due to grading and paving of the three-lane roadway until fall. North 108th Street between Burt Circle and Decatur Street will be closed with local access only for street widening until Nov. 30. Northeast (north of Dodge Street and east of I-680) The right lane on I-680 is closed from the 31st Street interchange east to the Iowa state line until Dec. 29 while workers repair a damaged expansion joint on the west end of the Mormon Bridge. is closed until Dec. 29 while workers repair a damaged expansion joint on the Sorensen Parkway at Ida Street will be restricted to one lane eastbound with the outside curb lane closed until Nov. 20. The westbound right turn lane at Ida Street also is closed. will be restricted to one lane eastbound with the outside curb lane closed until Nov. 20. The westbound also is closed. Wenninghoff Road between Sorensen Parkway and Reed Street will have lane closures for street widening and sewer construction until Dec. 23. will have lane closures for street widening and sewer construction until Dec. 23. Blondo Street between North 83rd and North 85th Streets will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work until Tuesday. will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work until Tuesday. Traffic is restricted to one lane in each direction and the westbound lanes are closed on Cass Street between North 74th and North 76th Streets for utility work until Tuesday. for utility work until Tuesday. Dodge Street between North 72nd and North 76th Streets/Rose Blumkin Drive will have varying lane restrictions for street improvements connected to the Crossroads redevelopment through December. will have varying lane restrictions for street improvements connected to the Crossroads redevelopment through December. Dorcas Street between South 75th and South 73rd Streets is closed to through traffic for road construction until Friday. is closed to through traffic for road construction until Friday. Westbound Dodge Street between North 38th and North 40th Avenues will be restricted for building construction in the outside curb lane until Dec. 4. will be restricted for building construction in the outside curb lane until Dec. 4. North 30th Street between Patrick and Burdette Streets will have varying lane restrictions because of sewer repair until Tuesday. will have varying lane restrictions because of sewer repair until Tuesday. North 30th Street between Titus and Newport Avenues will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work in the southbound lanes until Wednesday. will be restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work in the southbound lanes until Wednesday. North 29th Street between Blondo and Burdette Streets is closed because of sewer improvement until Tuesday. is closed because of sewer improvement until Tuesday. Binney Street between 26th Street and 28th Avenue over the North Freeway is closed for repair and painting through January 2024. Traffic is detoured to Lake Street. is closed for repair and painting through January 2024. Traffic is detoured to Lake Street. The intersection of North 18th and Grace Streets will be closed for sewer work until Nov. 28. will be closed for sewer work until Nov. 28. North 16th Street will be closed at various points between Pinkney and Clark Streets for CSO sewer separation improvements through Aug. 31, 2024. will be closed at various points for CSO sewer separation improvements through Aug. 31, 2024. North 16th will be closed between Ohio and Corby Streets for utility work until Monday. Truck detour routes will be posted. will be closed for utility work until Monday. Truck detour routes will be posted. Because of construction at the Kiewit corporate campus, North 15th Street between Mike Fahey and California Streets will be restricted southbound, and Mike Fahey Street between North 16th and North 15th Street will have eastbound traffic shifted to the center lane until March 15, 2024. North 16th and North 17th Streets between Cuming and Mike Fahey will have restrictions in the curb lanes until Dec. 13. North 16th Street between Mike Fahey and California Streets will have varying lane restrictions for utility work until Tuesday. will be restricted southbound, and will have eastbound traffic shifted to the center lane until March 15, 2024. will have restrictions in the curb lanes until Dec. 13. will have varying lane restrictions for utility work until Tuesday. Grace Street between North 16th and North 18th Streets is closed for CSO storm sewer upgrades until Nov. 28. is closed for CSO storm sewer upgrades until Nov. 28. Florence Boulevard between Clark and Grace Streets will be closed for storm sewer separation work until Saturday. Southwest (south of West Dodge Road and west of I-680/80) The left lane of U.S. Highway 6/South 204th Street northbound is closed between Q and F Streets due to road construction by a private developer until late November. is closed due to road construction by a private developer until late November. The right lane of U.S. Highway 6/South 204th Street southbound is closed between Blue Sage Parkway and U.S. Highway 275 due to road construction by a private developer until late November. is closed between due to road construction by a private developer until late November. South 168th Street between Q Street and West Center Road will have lane restrictions for street widening until December 2024. will have lane restrictions for street widening until December 2024. Shirley Street between South 168th Street and South 169th Circle will be closed for utility work until Tuesday. will be closed for utility work until Tuesday. South 157th Street between 158th and U Streets will be closed for utility work until Thursday. will be closed for utility work until Thursday. South 156th Street between Pacific Street and Wycliffe Drive/Nottingham Drive will have closures for street widening until Nov. 30. will have closures for street widening until Nov. 30. Pacific Street between South 155th and South 157th Streets will have lane restrictions for street widening until Nov. 30. will have lane restrictions for street widening until Nov. 30. Q Street at South 136th Street will be restricted to one lane westbound for street panel replacement in the outside curb lane until Tuesday. will be restricted to one lane westbound for street panel replacement in the outside curb lane until Tuesday. South 132nd Street at West Center Road is restricted southbound because of utility work until Monday. Southeast (south of West Dodge Road and east of I-680/80) Nighttime lane closures from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. are planned on the Kennedy Freeway (U.S. Highway 75) between Q and F Streets, including entrance and exit ramps, to allow for milling and resurfacing of the roadway, through the fall. including entrance and exit ramps, to allow for milling and resurfacing of the roadway, through the fall. The right shoulder of eastbound I-80 at the 72nd Street off-ramp is closed for road construction work. No completion date is listed. is closed for road construction work. No completion date is listed. Varying lane restrictions are continuing on West Center Road between South 90th Street and the West Center Frontage Road until Nov. 28 because of bridge repair. until Nov. 28 because of bridge repair. The West Dodge Frontage Road South between 84th and 86th Streets is closed for building construction until Feb. 29, 2024. is closed for building construction until Feb. 29, 2024. The northbound curb lane on South 72nd Street from Mercy Road to Arbor Street is closed until Nov. 28 to accommodate building construction. There will also be varying lane restrictions on Mercy Road between 72nd and 68th Streets until Nov. 28. is closed until Nov. 28 to accommodate building construction. There will also be varying lane restrictions on until Nov. 28. G Street between South 50th and F Streets will be closed to through traffic for utility work until Tuesday. will be closed to through traffic for utility work until Tuesday. F Street between South 44th and South 43rd Avenues will be restricted westbound for utility work and to repair a water-main break until Monday. will be restricted westbound for utility work and to repair a water-main break until Monday. Center Street between South 42nd Street and South 47th Street will be restricted to one lane westbound for utility work in the outside curb lane until Dec. 5. will be restricted to one lane westbound for utility work in the outside curb lane until Dec. 5. South 44th Street between Douglas and Farnam Streets will be limited to head-to-head traffic because of road construction until Dec. 1. will be limited to head-to-head traffic because of road construction until Dec. 1. South 42nd Street between the eastbound I-80 exit ramp and Grover/Vinton Street will be restricted to one lane in each direction for street panel replacement until Tuesday. will be restricted to one lane in each direction for street panel replacement until Tuesday. South 42nd Street between the I-80 eastbound exit ramp and D Street will be closed for bridge reconstruction until December. will be closed for bridge reconstruction until December. Harney Street between South 36th and South 35th Streets will be restricted eastbound for street repair until Dec. 8. will be restricted eastbound for street repair until Dec. 8. South 37th Street between Farnam and Harney Streets is closed because of building construction until Dec. 13. is closed because of building construction until Dec. 13. Farnam Street will be restricted westbound at South 16th Street for fiber-optic installation until Monday. will be restricted westbound for fiber-optic installation until Monday. The eastbound curb lane on Douglas Street will be closed between 44th and Saddle Creek Road for construction until December. will be closed between for construction until December. Douglas Street between Turner Boulevard and South 30th Street will be restricted eastbound for street repair until Monday. will be restricted eastbound for street repair until Monday. Grover Street between South 56th Street and South 59th Avenue will be closed for street reconstruction through December. will be closed for street reconstruction through December. L Street between South 30th and South 33rd Streets will restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work/water main break in the westbound lanes until Monday. will restricted to one lane in each direction for utility work/water main break in the westbound lanes until Monday. L Street between South 26th and South 24th Streets will be restricted to one lane eastbound for building construction in the outside curb lane until June 23, 2024. will be restricted to one lane eastbound for building construction in the outside curb lane until June 23, 2024. Q Street between South 45th and South 48th Streets is closed for utility work until Tuesday. is closed for utility work until Tuesday. Traffic in the east curb lane is restricted on South 24th Street between Landon Court and Howard Street due to building construction until Nov. 29. due to building construction until Nov. 29. Farnam Street will be restricted westbound at South 16th Street for fiber-optic installation until Monday. will be restricted westbound for fiber-optic installation until Monday. The intersection of South 17th and Harney Streets will have various lane restrictions until Monday because of a streetscaping project. will have various lane restrictions until Monday because of a streetscaping project. The eastbound lane on Farnam Street between 10th and Eighth Streets is restricted because of building construction until Dec. 11. Sarpy/Cass Counties The intersection of 204th Street and Capehart Road, and Capehart Road east of 204th Street are closed as part of the Gretna Crossing Park project until mid-November. 192nd Street from Lincoln Road to the railroad bridge is closed through the fall for paving and bridge replacement as part of the CONNECTSarpy project. Platteview Road from Highway 31 to 210th Street is closed through January to allow for construction of a three-lane road. Pflug Road is suggested as an alternate route. is closed through January to allow for construction of a three-lane road. Pflug Road is suggested as an alternate route. Lane restrictions can be expected on U.S. 34/75 from Plattsmouth to the Bellevue bridges through the fall to allow for bridge deck repairs, and from Nebraska Highway 1 to Oak Hill Road in Plattsmouth through November 2024 to allow for road construction. through the fall to allow for bridge deck repairs, and from through November 2024 to allow for road construction. A lane is closed intermittently, and a 12-foot width limit is in effect through the fall on U.S. Highway 34 between Bay Road and U.S. Highway 75 while bridge and road construction work is in progress through late November. The right lane is closed in both directions on Nebraska Highway 370/Cornhusker Road from 192nd to 180th Streets east of Gretna due to road construction. A portion of 234th Street north of Schram Road just west of Gretna is closed for replacement of a 550-foot area of culvert until December. Around Nebraska Lane closures also are planned on I-80 between Utica (Exit 366) and nine miles west of Lincoln (mile marker 389) while contractors install guardrails in the median. Work will be performed from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., Sunday through Friday. Completion is expected this month. while contractors install guardrails in the median. Work will be performed from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., Sunday through Friday. Completion is expected this month. Nebraska Highway 79 is closed in Dodge County at North Bend from U.S. 30 to County Road R , with detours in place through the fall. is closed in Dodge County at , with detours in place through the fall. U.S. Highway 77 between Winnebago and Walthill is closed until November while two box culverts are replaced, with traffic detoured via U.S. Highway 75 and Nebraska Highway 94. Then one lane will reopen, and traffic will be maintained with temporary traffic signals, flaggers and a pilot car until the project is completed in midsummer 2024. is closed until November while two box culverts are replaced, with traffic detoured via U.S. Highway 75 and Nebraska Highway 94. Then one lane will reopen, and traffic will be maintained with temporary traffic signals, flaggers and a pilot car until the project is completed in midsummer 2024. Temporary shoulder and lane closures can be expected on U.S. Highway 77 north and south of the I-80 56th Street interchange in Lincoln until March 2024 while workers add left and right turn lanes on Highway 77 and widen westbound shoulders on I-80 entrance and exit ramps. Council Bluffs Occasional nighttime lane and ramp closures may occur on I-80 at the Madison Avenue interchange through June 2026 while the interchange is being rebuilt. through June 2026 while the interchange is being rebuilt. Second Avenue between the northbound and southbound I-29 frontage roads is closed for reconstruction until Wednesday. is closed for reconstruction until Wednesday. The South Expressway from I-80 to 19th Avenue will be rebuilt until Nov. 30, with lane closures expected while one-lane traffic is maintained in each direction. will be rebuilt until Nov. 30, with lane closures expected while one-lane traffic is maintained in each direction. Lane restrictions are in place on South Third Street between Story Street and Ninth Avenue until Friday because of water-main installation. South Third Street between Ninth Avenue and Worth Street is closed entirely until Friday as part of the same project. until Friday because of water-main installation. is closed entirely until Friday as part of the same project. McPherson Avenue between Grand Avenue and Canning Street in Council Bluffs will have lane restrictions for gas main installation until Dec. 8. will have lane restrictions for gas main installation until Dec. 8. South 35th Street between Veterans Memorial Highway and Middle Ferry Road is closed as part of the Gifford Road reconstruction project until Friday. is closed as part of the Gifford Road reconstruction project until Friday. Trail Ridge Street between Grand Avenue and Crestwood Drive is closed for reconstruction until Nov. 30. is closed for reconstruction until Nov. 30. Navajo Street between Portland and Mohawk Streets is closed for sewer rehabilitation work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays until Nov. 30. LINCOLN An effort to upend Nebraskas entire tax system took a key step last month. According to campaign finance reports, the EPIC Option petition drive contracted with a Florida company in October to provide paid circulators and to better organize volunteer signature-gathering efforts. The move boosts the chances that organizers can get a pair of proposed constitutional amendments on the November 2024 ballot that would replace most state taxes with a consumption tax. But challenges remain high for the low-budget effort. Steve Jessen of Norfolk, a lead organizer, said the drive has relied so far on an army of volunteer signature gatherers fueled by anger over property taxes, which have continued going up despite repeated attempts to provide relief by cutting, capping and offsetting those taxes. He said Nebraskans anger is to the point that he can get petition signatures just by asking if people want to eliminate their property tax. This is a grassroots thing, Jessen said. We are just Nebraskans that are sick and tired of our tax system and want to do something about it. The petition proposals seek to eliminate property, income, inheritance and sales taxes and replace them with a broad-based consumption tax, starting in 2026. The consumption tax would be charged on all new goods and services, except groceries, with revenue collected and distributed by the state. The alternative tax system was introduced in the Legislature by State Sen. Steve Erdman of Bayard. For three years, he has proposed legislation to make Nebraska the first state in the nation to adopt a consumption tax. Erdman has argued that his EPIC plan would attract new people and businesses to Nebraska, leading to economic growth, while providing state government, schools and local governments with the same amount of revenue. EPIC stands for eliminate property, income and corporate taxes. The plan would leave some taxes in place, such as excise taxes on alcohol and tobacco, taxes on insurance premiums and government fees. Amendment 314 to Legislative Bill 79 spells out the details of Erdmans latest plan. It calls for applying the consumption tax to all new goods bought by consumers, including the cost of new homes. It also applies the tax to services, many of which are exempt from the current sales tax. Among the newly taxed items would be out-of-pocket health costs, accountant services, car repairs, home remodeling, dormitory rooms, rental payments, lottery tickets, loan processing costs and burial plots. Government agencies would pay consumption taxes on salaries and benefits paid to public employees. To ease costs for lower-income Nebraskans, groceries would be exempt from the consumption tax. The bill defines groceries as food purchased for off-premises consumption. Used goods, including previously lived-in homes, would not be subject to the tax either. Erdmans plan would exclude purchases made for business purposes, as well as purchases for investment and educational purposes, which are treated as an investment. Nonprofits, including churches and other religious institutions, would have to pay consumption taxes, as would state and local governments and public schools and colleges. The bill calls for the federal government to pay the tax as well, although that would violate federal law. The amended version of LB 79 would set the tax rate at 7.5%, based on a study by the Beacon Hill Institute, a Massachusetts-based think tank. That study looked at what rate would be needed to equal the $11.7 billion needed to replace the eliminated taxes in 2026. The study assumed that some of the revenue would come from projected increases in economic activity and calculated the tax base that year would be more than twice as large as the current sales tax base. But a study released in March by the OpenSky Policy Institute, a Lincoln-based think tank, concluded that it would take a 22.1% rate to bring in $11.5 billion in revenue. The OpenSky study did not assume economic growth and calculated a much smaller increase in the tax base. Under the EPIC plan, consumption tax revenue would be collected by the state. Counties, cities, schools and other local governments would submit budgets to newly created state boards for review. LB 79 would allow for 2.5% or 2% annual growth in those budgets, with some room for additional needs. State lawmakers would make the ultimate decision about funding for schools and other local governments, although the plan would allow counties, cities and villages to charge a local consumption tax. Erdmans legislative proposals have stalled against a wall of opposition and skepticism, an indication of the stiff challenges that the proposed ballot measures would have to overcome to pass. Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of the Omaha area, the Revenue Committee chairwoman, is among the skeptics, although she said she understands peoples anger about property taxes. She pushed through legislation this year aimed at cutting or offsetting more than $3 billion worth of property taxes over the next six years. But valuation increases this year have eroded some of the intended relief. Sen. Mike Jacobson of North Platte is also skeptical. He said he has three major questions about the plan: who would pay more under the plan, whether rural parts of the state would lose funding and how the plan could be implemented within the allowed year. For now, the challenge for the EPIC Option backers is gathering enough valid signatures to make the ballot. Organizers had raised nearly $89,000 as of the end of October, according to reports filed with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission. They put $20,000 toward the paid circulator contract. Every successful petition or referendum effort for the past decade has spent $1.5 million or more on signature gathering and campaigning. All of those efforts used paid circulators, as well as volunteers. The EPIC Option drive must get valid signatures from at least 10% of Nebraska voters by July 3 to get on the November 2024 ballot. Thats about 123,000 people based on current registration numbers. The petition also must have signatures from 5% of the voters in each of 38 counties to qualify. Jessen said the group is shooting for about 160,000 signatures on each petition to allow some cushion. He said they are working across the state and have already met the 5% threshold in some counties. Were on the right track, he said. Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of November 2023 LINCOLN At least one Nebraskan cheered Gov. Jim Pillens executive order last week requiring state employees to return to working in their offices by Jan. 2. One Lincoln businessperson reached out to State Sen. Myron Dorn of Adams, expressing optimism about being able to fill job vacancies because people would be leaving state employment because of the order. Meanwhile, hundreds of unhappy state workers flooded phone lines and email inboxes at the Nebraska Association of Public Employees, the largest state employee union, in the days following the Nov. 13 directive. Justin Hubly, NAPE executive director, said employees working from home full or part time called with worries about the orders effects on their lives and families. Others raised concerns about co-workers quitting and leaving already short-staffed state agencies struggling to find replacements. People are definitely asking if they should start looking for another job, he said. Were concerned that this is going to cause such a huge problem for agencies. We believe this decision is shortsighted. The struggle developing over Pillens return-to-office order mirrors struggles going on nationally, as governments and other employers are pushing to undo COVID-era work arrangements and are meeting resistance from employees who want to continue the flexibility of remote work. The conflicts are playing out in the midst of an extremely tight labor market, which has given workers more leverage. Nebraska maintains one of the nations lowest unemployment rates. The preliminary October rate was 2.2%, up 0.1% from September but down 0.5% from one year earlier, according to the Nebraska Department of Labor. A survey released in May by the Arlington, Va.-based firm Eagle Hill Consulting showed that nearly half of federal, state and local government employees said they would look for another job if their agencies reduced remote work flexibility. About 60% of remote and hybrid government workers said their job satisfaction would decrease if they were required to return to the office and 44% said their productivity would decrease. But Pillen defended his order last week, arguing that the most effective way to run state government is to have people in the office, where they can communicate with each other face to face and build workplace culture and engagement. He said he has gotten support for his action. Commonsense Nebraskans are very, very excited and proud that they have a governor thats commonsense, that is requesting that everybody thats a public servant in Nebraska comes to work like all the rest of Nebraskans are, he said. I dont believe in doing it from home. Individual state employees will have to make decisions about staying in their jobs based on whats best for them, Pillen said. But he said having workers in the office uses tax dollars most responsibly. Along with returning to the office, Pillens order requires state employees to work 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Surveys done by the Governors Office show that getting all state employees back to the office may not be easy. The surveys were sent out in August to the states code agencies, meaning those run by the governor. Those 18 agencies account for the bulk of state employees. Other state agencies include those administered by independent boards or commissions and those that fall within the legislative or judicial branches of government. Based on the surveys, at least 20% of the 12,494 full-time equivalent code agency employees are working full-time remotely or working hybrid schedules, in which they spend some days in the office and some days at home. In some agencies, half or more employees are working full or part time remotely. All of the employees in the Fire Marshals Office work remotely at least part of the time, and the field staff spends 100% of its time out of the office. The Department of Banking and Finance said 62 of its 63 positions can work at least one day every two weeks from home, while the Department of Natural Resources reported that 72 of 104 employees work hybrid schedules. Natural Resources Director Tom Riley said the agencys telework policy was updated last year, when the agency moved into a new office with 30% less square footage. He pointed to an internal survey that found agency employees reported the same level of engagement with their work whether they were in the office full time or part time. The Department of Environment and Energy has 55% of its employees working one or two days a week from home. The survey said six field staff members work from home full time, saving taxpayers the cost of rent because there is no state office close. About 53% of Revenue Department employees work full or part time from home. At the Department of Health and Human Services, the states largest agency, 1,145 employees work hybrid schedules and 418 work full time remotely. The agency said it has no in-office work spaces assigned to remote workers, although there are some hoteling spaces that can be used if one of those people needs to be in the office. The Department of Administrative Services said it adopted a telework policy in 2021 to provide space for another state agency in the same building. It said the policy saved the state about $500,000 a year by having about 20% of its employees working full or part time from home. The surveys also showed that several agencies had telework arrangements in place well before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The previous policies were adopted to provide flexibility to employees and meet the agencys needs. The Department of Agriculture said its field staff has always worked remotely to provide efficient customer service across the state, while additional staff members have been working hybrid schedules since the pandemic. In some focus areas, we have seen productivity increase during work-from-home times due to fewer interruptions than in the office, the agency said. It remains to be seen how many state employees will end up working in the office full time. Pillens order provides for some exceptions to be authorized by agency heads. The exceptions include employees whose assigned work hours fall outside the 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday schedule. They also include situations in which office space is unavailable without additional cost. Exceptions can be made for employees who move away from their original office location and no reasonable in-office arrangement is possible, as long as the employee remains in Nebraska. In addition, exceptions can be made to sustain critical operations in a business area with a workforce shortfall. The last exception is subject to the governors approval. The order requires agencies to measure and track productivity for employees who are given exceptions and requires agencies to regularly report the status of their workforce. Pillen did not provide evidence to show whether remote and hybrid work arrangements had affected productivity and effectiveness. People commenting on news stories online about the announcement offered their own perspectives. I WFH (work from home) and get a lot more done. Less distractions and never late to work due to traffic or weather, said one commenter under the name kkwarcinski. But Dan Allen backed the governor. He said state employees just this year got the highest salary increases in 35 years. Is it too burdensome to ask them to come to work in offices we pay for? And Steve Tillman asked: Was there an economic feasibility study done on this? As a taxpayer, I want the workers working in an environment that gives me the most work for my $. Governing by executive order is not governing. Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of November 2023 SHIRLEY Would Medusa wear one normal-sized Santa hat, or would her hair made of snakes be speckled by tiny Santa hats on each of their serpentine heads? That also prompts the question of whether Medusa sleighs or slays for the holidays. These cavernous questions surrounding the Greek mythological figure are explored in the works of Normal artists Sara Fleming and Gavin Lee. Both table their wares under the banner of The Pipe Dream Salon, and attended the Schuckin Awesome Holiday Art Market on Saturday and Sunday in Shirley. Fleming said they fabricate ornaments, jewelry and wall-hung decorations from laser-cut wood, as well as other print and digital illustrations, like custom wrapping paper. Laser-trimmed wood items included a framed wall panel octopus, plus ornaments of turkeys, cats and Medusa wearing Santa hats. A laser-cut design is first drawn on an iPad, Fleming said, and then they have to fidget with it to get it to go with other mediums. The laser cutter is a huge learning curve and can be dangerous to operate at home if youre not trained to use one, she said. Fleming said the opening day of the market on Saturday was one of the best days theyve had at the market. Her best sellers this weekend were jewelry and ornaments. Also at the market was Bloomingtons Brock Eddleman (Gathered Illusions), who previously attended uptown Normal's Sugar Creek Arts Festival in September. Eddleman, 47, said this weekends market was organized by several artists with Central Illinois arts collective Artists of the Corn. At least 30 artists attended. He said those facilitators include himself, Fleming, fabric artist Jill Miller (Hooey Batiks), Bloomingtons Vicki Tinervin (1016 Studios) and Normals Sarah Simpson Art. Eddleman said it was his fifth time at the farmstead venue in Shirley. He tabled items like glass pumpkins, candy canes, marbles and paperweights. The Funk Farms Premium Beef store, 5959 N. 1100 East Road, Shirley, hosted the art market in its 1940s wooden Quonset hut. Carrie Bangert, an employee with the beef store, said they established the Quonset hut as an agro-tourism facility, and have been dipping their toes into the event space market. Bangert said theyre third-generation beef farmers, and their goal was to find ways to get people out to the farm to move beef sales and tell the story of where their food comes from. Market attendees were also encouraged to stop by nine other locations along Route 66 as part of "A Funky Little Weekend" program, which included stores, museums or other community spaces in McLean and Atlanta. Artists choice The market held an artists choice award, titled The Golden Cob, for best overall booth. The winner this year was Cory McCrory, 59, who makes ceramics out of the town of Sandwich. With the win, she was awarded art by last years winner, Downers Grove's Deana Bada Maloney, and a commission to prepare the prized art piece for next years winner. Her ceramics included cups labeled poisoned and not poisoned and can only be set down on their adjoining saucers, hanging Krampus figurines and business card holders. The puzzle is the best, on how to put it together and which way its going to get fired, McCrory said. She said learning ceramics can be a journey longer than some people expect, and expensive because of pricey equipment. McCrory said it takes a long time to really understand the material and experiment with it. Fancy threads Kate and Sarah Suits are two Springfield sisters who shopped at the market with their parents Sunday. Kate Suits said they bought soap for their friends, and she got herself a denim vest with a rainbow-colored netted back. She said she was looking for a denim vest, and the one she found fit what she was already wearing. Suits bought it from Kyle Pingel, who prepares couture wigs and threads out of Normal. Pingel said his jackets and vests are made from upcycled materials, with specially trimmed sleeves or backs. He said he was making clothing for drag performers and tabling pride events, and started thinking of what people would like to wear so that everybody can feel fabulous. Being a part of the weekends market got him way more sales that sitting at home and selling from his website, he said. St. Louis Allison Norfleet Bruenger was another visiting artist at the market. She said she makes mixed-media and assemblage art, and jewelry. On the former art style, she said she has a love for a lot of different art mediums, so I try to marry them all together. Its a happy marriage. Photos: Art fans flock to Sugar Creek Arts Fest SUGAR CREEK ARTS FESTIVAL 100223-blm-loc-2sugarcreek .JPG 100223-blm-loc-3sugarcreek .JPG 100223-blm-loc-4sugarcreek.JPG With construction of the fourth Bloomington-Normal truck stop soon to be underway, lets take a look at how the restaurants or food offerings at truck stops have changed over the years. Many of us can still recall the era when three 24-hour truck stops were open in B-N, with each having a restaurant pumping out comfort food around the clock. Brandtville and 5-Star were about a mile apart on Route 66/Beltline, now Veterans Parkway. Skellys Big Rig Truck Stop was on Route 51 in north Normal. Brandtville was the home of the well-known Bob Johnsons restaurant, later Bob Knapps, that some say made broasted chicken famous and was especially popular as a late-night restaurant. Now, however, the comfort food restaurant is gone at most truck stops, with some version of fast food replacing it. The QuikTrip Travel Center soon to be under construction at the corner of Bloomington Road and Route 9 West, across from Blains Farm & Fleet, will have a QT Kitchens for carryout, and a convenience store. Loves in north Normal opened a year ago with Bojangles, a chain restaurant based in North Carolina, as its restaurant. The convenience store also has sandwiches and salads available. Loves in LeRoy has a convenience store and an Arbys. Pilot Travel Center on West Market Street is undergoing a $6 million renovation that includes a larger convenience store with expanded food offerings, new restrooms and showers. The Wendys is scheduled to be completely remodeled when the truckers side is done and will still serve as the main restaurant for the truck stop. The Caseys truck stop in Lexington has an expanded pizza kitchen. Dixie Travel Plaza in McLean is the oldest truck stop on Route 66, and some say in the U.S. The restaurant opens at 6 a.m. and is one of the few that still features a traditional truckers buffet. TA Travel Center, on Truckers Lane off West Market Street, has a Country Pride restaurant that opens at 7 a.m. From Larry's notebook Los Potrillos Owner Juan Carlos Vega says the recently painted exterior gives the restaurant a more modern look. The new menu has 30 additional items. He purchased, remodeled and opened the former Delgados in 2005. Schooners The day after Bobby Knight passed away, I reposted on Bloomington Normal Restaurant Scene the post from May 2013, when he unexpectedly visited Schooners for a late lunch. Bonchon (Korean fried chicken) The owners of the Parke Regency Hotel & Conference Center are bringing an international Korean fried chicken franchise to the hotel to replace the Central Park Bar & Grill restaurant. Bonchon features Korean double-fried chicken and will be a sit-down restaurant with a full bar, featuring Korean cocktails and specialty drinks. Gracie's Fonda The Mexican restaurant on West Wood Street across from Miller Park recently closed. It was only open four months. Dang Boba, Poke & Banh Mi A Vietnamese quick-service restaurant opened in the former Arbys on East Empire Street. The menu feature is banh mi, a traditional Vietnamese sandwich. The husband/wife owners have a successful restaurant in Peoria with the same name. Hunt Brothers Pizza According to its website, Hunt Brothers Pizza is the No. 1 pizza provider for the convenience store industry. The district warehouse/office that serves 220 stores in parts of four states is located in south Bloomington. Pickled Radish Provisions Co. (Eureka) The husband/wife owners of the former Chanticleer restaurant have transformed the dining room/bar to turn-of-the-century chic and reopened as a steak and seafood restaurant. A Larry favorite menu item Texas Twinkies at Annies Eats, available as a once-a-week special and possibly my favorite menu item in B-N. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared loneliness to be a pressing global health threat, with the US surgeon general saying that its mortality effects are equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. WHO has launched an international commission on the problem led by the US surgeon general, Dr Vivek Murthy, and the African Union youth envoy, Chido Mpemba of 11 advocates and government ministers, including Ralph Regenvanu, the minister of climate change adaptation in Vanuatu, and Ayuko Kato, the minister in charge of measures for loneliness and isolation in Japan. It comes after the Covid-19 pandemic halted economic and social activity, increasing levels of loneliness, but also amid a new awareness of the importance of the issue. The WHO Commission on Social Connection will run for three years. [Loneliness] transcends borders and is becoming a global public health concern affecting every facet of health, well-being and development, said Mpemba. Social isolation knows no age or boundaries. The health risks are as bad as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day, and even greater than those associated with obesity and physical inactivity, according to Murthy. While loneliness is often seen as a problem for developed countries, Murthy said the rates of one in four older people experiencing social isolation are similar in all regions of the world. In older adults, loneliness is associated with a 50% increased risk of developing dementia and a 30% increased risk of incident coronary artery disease or stroke. But it also blights the lives of young people. Between 5% and 15% of adolescents are lonely, according to figures that are likely to be underestimates. In Africa, 12.7% adolescents experience loneliness compared to 5.3% in Europe. Young people experiencing loneliness at school are more likely to drop out of university. It can also lead to poorer economic outcomes; feeling disconnected and unsupported in a job can lead to poorer job satisfaction and performance. Mpemba said that across Africa, where most of the population is made up of young people, challenges around peace, security and the climate crisis, as well as high levels of unemployment, are contributing to social isolation. We believe its important to redefine the narrative surrounding loneliness particularly for vulnerable populations excluded by the digital divide, she said. Murthy added: These issues dont affect one country [Loneliness] is an underappreciated public health threat. Source: BBC Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video China's express delivery volume surges in "Double 11" shopping spree as consumption further recovers Xinhua) 11:49, November 19, 2023 BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's express delivery volume saw a sharp increase during the annual "Double 11" online shopping spree, adding evidence to the recovery and expansion of the consumer market, official data showed. From Nov. 1 to Nov. 16, express delivery enterprises across the country collected a total of about 7.77 billion packages, surging 25.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the State Post Bureau. A total of 7.51 billion packages were sent during the period, representing a 30.9-percent growth compared with the same period in 2022, the bureau said. Express delivery firms have added couriers, extended working hours, and deployed more automated facilities to meet the surging delivery demand during the shopping peak season, the bureau said. First introduced in 2009, "Double 11" has continued to see the robust spending stream of one of the world's largest consumption markets. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Liang Jun) Resident participation programs planned to keep memories alive By Andrew White Baeksa Village is a mountainside shantytown in Junggye-dong, located in northeastern Seoul's Nowon District. It is situated quite literally in the northeastern corner of the district, in the northeastern corner of Seoul, on the slope of Mount Buram, which separates Seoul from Gyeonggi Province to the east. It is known in Korean as a "daldongnae," which translates somewhat evocatively to "moon village," referring to how the residents, being up in the mountains, are closer to the moon. Many such communities once lined the hillsides of the inner city and outer Seoul. Now one of the last still standing, Baeksa Village was formed in the 1960s and 1970s when citizens were forcibly resettled from more central locations such as Cheonggye Stream and Yeongdeungpo, which were undergoing rapid urban development programs. These evictees carved out their village of 3,000 residents from the mountainside border limits of Seoul, along narrow labyrinthine alleyways that stacked into the steep contours of the terraced land. For over 40 years the area's greenbelt status has kept Baeksa Village in its original topography, discouraging developers from building tall apartments that would block the mountain views. Not found in the tourist guidebooks, it offers a rare opportunity to walk through a type of urban living that is rapidly being lost nowadays. Currently, 80 percent of its villagers have emptied their homes and moved on, leaving about 300 people remaining in 140 households. Roughly 90 percent of the structures are uninhabitable and in danger of collapse. On July 28, 710 of the 982 eligible landowners voted in favor of a redevelopment proposal. After approval of the redevelopment management and disposal plan earlier this year, demolition of one of Seouls last moon villages is scheduled to begin in the second half of next year, and the area is to be transformed into a 20-story apartment complex with approximately 2,000 households. Over the past months, Nowon District has been announcing various resident participation projects to preserve the memory of Baeksa Village. According to the Nowon Cultural Foundation, landscape postcards of the scenic mountain village have been produced. From August to October, tour guides providing cultural and tourism commentary on the village were offered. A documentary has been produced on the redevelopment of Baeksa Village, compiling interviews and stories of village residents. Capitalizing on the unique dilapidated single-story shops and residences, a video recording program and contest were held, allowing tour participants to contribute their own sights and memories of the village. The Nowon Village Media Support Center offered their video editing and production know-how, to help budding videographers come up with video content after touring and recording the villages alleys. These projects will culminate with the Village to Disappear, Heart to Live Film Festival, to be held Nov. 25 and 26 at Deosup Artcinema. The Baeksa Village redevelopment documentary film will be screened on both days at 4 p.m., along with local contestants various short films. Moon villages evoke nostalgia with the older generations, those with vague memories of childhood hometowns, yet it is not apparently a sentiment shared by real estate developers and current politicians, faced with sky-high apartment prices and constant demand for more housing in the city. Nowon has already seen a great deal of redevelopment, transforming lower-density housing into more affluent high-rise apartment complexes. Once the development is completed, Baeksa Village will break away from its underdeveloped image of the past and be transformed into a new luxury residential complex. We will preserve our old memories by recording the joy and sorrows of the lives of ordinary people before demolition begins, Oh Seung-rok, head of Nowon District Office, said in August. I hope you can share your valuable experience of turning your personal memories into the history of Nowon District. With urban redevelopment and gentrification programs playing out in all corners of Seoul, there is a collective hope that citizens will preserve their memories of these distinctive neighborhoods. These recent participation programs highlight the historic and unique architecture of these communities and the resourcefulness of their residents, past and present. Visit nowon.kr and forest6.co.kr for tickets to the Village to Disappear, Heart to Live Film Festival screening, or call the Nowon Cultural Foundation at 02-2289-3465. Andrew White is an American, and has been a college professor in Nowon District for 25 years. He received honorary Seoul citizenship in 2018 for his interest in and promotion of Korean traditional culture. One policeman feared killed and three others injured as Boko Haram terrorists ambushed the convoy of Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, on a major highway in neighbouring Borno State, survivors said. The convoy, comprising aides to the governor, protocol men, press crew and security details were returning from Maiduguri, when they ran into an ambush of terrorists around Mainok Saturday evening. The incident happened at about 6:30pm as Boko Haram opened fire on the police escorts, survivors disclosed. Earlier, Gov Buni had attended the 24th Convocation ceremony of the University of Maiduguri and conferment of honorary doctorate degree on Vice President Kashim Shettima. He departed Maiduguri Airport with the VP and other signatories at about 5:30pm while his convoy proceed to Damaturu, some 120 kilometres away, before the ambush. The Maiduguri-Damaturu highway is believed to be volatile at dusk as terrorists could take the advantage of darkness to attack. In recent times, it usually gets dark in northeast by 6pm. Source: sunnewsonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The leading members of the NPP government have made huge cash donations to support the final funeral rites of the late former First Lady, Theresa Aba Kufuor. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and wife Rebecca Akufo-Addo as well as Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and second lady Samira Bawumia together donated a cash sum GH100,000 towards the final funeral rites. Both the President and Vice President along with their spouses were present at a ceremony held in Ashanti region on Saturday November 18, 2023. In addition, the National Executives of the governing NPP also made a cash donation of GH20,000 while the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Bryan Acheampong made a cash donation of GH5,000. These figures were announced during the final funeral rites of the late former First Lady, Theresa Kufuor who passed away on Sunday October 1 2023, 24 days before her 89th birthday. Others bigwigs within the NPP made donations to support the families of the deceased First Lady as part of Ghanaian tradition and norms. The final journey of former First Lady Theresa Aba Kufuor begun on Thursday, November 16, 2023, in Accra when a Requiem Mass was held in her honour at the Christ the King Catholic Church. A state funeral was subsequently held at the Forecourt of the State House in Accra on Friday before her body was conveyed to Kumasi for a final traditional funeral and burial on Saturday, November 18, 2023. The traditional funeral took place at the Heroes Park in Kumasi after which a private burial will be held for the wife of former President John Agyekum Kufuor at a private residence of the former first family in the Ashanti Regional capital. Source: Ghanaweb.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video 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: People walk through a dust storm on a hot summer day in India in April 2023. The UN warned Wednesday that the number of sand and dust storms are increasing "dramatically" with Central Asia the most hit by the dangerous phenomenon. Toxic sand storms plague parts of desert and steppe covered Central Asia and North Africa and the UN called them a threat to life. The UN's Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is meeting for five days in the historic city of Samarkand, just under a week before the COP28 climate change summit opens in Dubai. "The sight of rolling dark clouds of sand and dust engulfing everything in their path and turning day into night is one of nature's most intimidating spectacles," said UNCCD Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw. "It is a costly phenomenon that wreaks havoc everywhere from Northern and Central Asia to sub-Saharan Africa." The agency said the storms impact areas far beyond their origin and that in some parts of the globe "desert dust doubled in the last century." "An estimated two billon tons of sand and dust now enters the atmosphere every year, an amount equal in weight to 360 Great Pyramids of Giza," it added. It said at least a quarter were attributable to human activity, but lamented that global recognition was low and data limited. Major global sources of mineral dust are in the northern hemisphere across North Africa, the Middle East and East Asia. In the southern hemisphere, Australia, South America and Southern Africa are the main dust sources. Credit: UNCCD/UNEP/FAO The experts warned the storms can have "life threatening" effects, but governments lack the means to effectively combat them. "Fine dust particles are carried to high tropospheric levels (up to a few kilometers high) where winds can transport them over long distances," the statement said. Last month, AFP met residents in neighboring Tajikistan who suffered respiratory and other health problems doctors said were caused by the storms. Previously rare, such storms now start in spring and continue into the autumn in large parts of Central Asia. The storms often start out in the dried-out stretches of the Aral Sea in Uzbekistan but also in the Kazakh steppes and neighboring Afghanistan. The UNCCD also pointed to the economic damage the storms cause. "The world loses nearly a million square kilometers of healthy, productive land every year," it said. Between 2015-2019, some 4.2 million square kilometers (1.6 million sq. miles) were affected around the globeequivalent to the combined size of all five ex-Soviet Central Asian countries, the UNCCD said. 2023 AFP 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: Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Many organizations, from community sporting groups to the United Nations, have set themselves a target of gender parity: ensuring half of staff or members are women. Gender parity is desirable because training and retaining equal halves of a population's available talent influences an organization's growth, problem-solving capacity and future-readiness. However, actually achieving gender parity is not always an easy feat. In the astronomy sector, somewhere between 25% and 35% of people identify as women. At our research center in Australia (the ARC Center of Excellence for All-Sky Astrophysics in 3 Dimensions, or ASTRO 3D), we set out in 2017 to reach gender parity. As some of my colleagues write in a new paper in Nature Astronomy, the center adopted a strategy based on evidence from the social sciences, and by 2022 we had increased women's membership from 38% to 50%. This result shows it can be doneand offers some tips other organizations can use. How we did it The change was brought about by a broad range of diversity initiatives across recruitment, retention, leadership and workplace culture. The increase in women was at all levels from students to chief investigators, andin case you were worrieddid not come at the expense of men, as the center's membership grew over this period. The center took a "top-down" approach to gender parity, with five key elements: setting a diversity target with regular monitoring of progress selecting a diverse set of team leaders in-person diversity training for all organization members ensuring 50% women on selection committees for hiring postdoctoral researchers ensuring 50% women on shortlists for postdoctoral positions. We found that when a "tipping point" of 40% women was reached, we saw more women students choosing to join ASTRO 3Dparticularly within research teams led or co-led by women. One of the most powerful messages to take away from the paper is the importance of monitoring and evaluation. That's how we know the strategies applied by ASTRO 3D, built from evidence in the social sciences, were effective. Evaluating programs is crucial, and can be done using platforms like the Women in STEM evaluation portal. Everybody wins The results underscore the continued need for women role models and leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. We know gender parity improves research quality because it reduces the risk of bias and groupthink, which can affect the validity and reliability of scientific findings. Furthermore, diversity can lead to more innovative and creative solutions to scientific problems, as people from different backgrounds bring unique insights to the table. ASTRO 3D has shown that a multifaceted approach can be used to create a diverse workplace, which is better for everyone. While astronomy may seem far removed from day-to-day concerns, everyone benefits from fundamental science. Astronomy is a gateway science and a training ground for our brightest minds. From schoolchildren to the general public, people are fascinated by questions of what's out there in space, and how the elements fused inside stars end up in the air we inhale with every breath. When astronomy comes down to Earth While solving the mysteries of the universe, astronomy students and researchers develop skills in data analysis and problem-solving. Astronomy graduates and researchers are now highly sought in private industry. Their problem-solving skills are easily transferred from astronomy to sectors from biomedical and climate science, to mining and satellite technology, to energy and finance. Curating and analyzing data from stars and galaxies is remarkably similar to predicting bushfires, decoding genomic data and making financial decisions. Research and development teams in both academia and industry benefit from gender parity. It fosters an environment where everyone can thrive and contribute their best work. The many astronomy graduates and postdocs who go on to work in industry take both problem-solving skills and lived experience of a positive research culture built on gender-parity goals. ASTRO 3D has shown how it can be done. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. CAPE MAY Beach Avenue ends with a concrete and stone wall at Wilmington Avenue, topped with a rolling sand dune covered in goldenrod and dune grass. The water used to break right on that stone, before beach replenishment, Mayor Zack Mullock said during a recent town hall meeting. More recently, high tides have washed over the dune path in that area, as demonstrated by a photo Mullock showed at the meeting. He outlined a plan to increase the height of the seawall, with plenty of federal help. As proposed, a new seawall in that section of town would rise at least 11 feet above base flood elevation, increasing long-term protection from coastal storms. The original proposal for the seawall was basically a big block wall. Since then, Mullock said, the proposal has been amended with aesthetic improvements, to better blend with the existing environment. An August 2022, report for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers cited the visual impact of the seawall, and steps that could alleviate it. Since the concrete cap associated with this project will increase the overall seawall height which may result in a visual impact, the landward face of the concrete cap would be textured to create a sand-looking facade so that it looks more like a natural feature and blends with the current environment, the report reads. As proposed, the new elevated seawall would run 350 feet. Plans call for the seawall to be topped with a 3-footsection that can be sat on, serving to add height to the wall to increase storm protection. The federal report includes images of the area being washed over in a storm in 1991, with no beach at all at Wilmington Avenue. Winding up a summer road trip, Sen. Cory Booker visits Cape May shops U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., visited all 21 New Jersey counties this week as part of an end-of-summer tour, including Cape May on Wednesday. Additional sand is on the way for the area, with the Army Corps recently announcing a $16.2 million contract with Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company of Illinois to add a half-million cubic yards of sand to beaches at the Coast Guard Training Center and elsewhere in Cape May. In this instance, the federal government is set to pick up 90% of the check, between the Coast Guard and the Army Corps, with 10% covered by the state. City officials hope a significant portion of the seawall cost will also be covered. Over the summer, the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced a $24.3 million grant for the project. That funding is likely, Mullock said after the meeting, but not yet certain. We still have Ts to cross and Is to dot, he said. When completed, the additional seawall will create a continuous walkway from the east side of Cape May to The Cove section at the other end of town, a popular spot for watching sunsets behind the Cape May Lighthouse. While Mullock said the project had been redesigned for a better appearance, there were some skeptics. I look at the conceptual drawings of this seawall project with a little bit of alarm, said Jay Schatz, a longtime member of the citys Shade Tree Commission. He said volunteers and natural processes have created a complex system on the dunes in that area, not only including dune grass but also many larger shrubs and beach plum trees. Mullock promised the Shade Tree Commission would be involved in replanting the area. Voll announces plans to leave Cape May, chastises council member Cape May City Manager Mike Voll announced his retirement at the Tuesday City Council meeting, along with a criticism of the council member who discussed his plans in August. Mullocks presentation came as part of a lengthy meeting that included updates on multiple projects, including plans for new bathrooms on the Promenade and ongoing work on a new library branch on Franklin Street. The meeting, which stretched more than three hours, began with a closed-door session during which City Council discussed the city managers job. Current city Manager Michael Voll has announced plans to retire. Little information about the search for his replacement was made public, other than that council members interviewed candidates. There also were presentations about Cape Mays Police and Fire Department, which is getting close to opening its new headquarters, talking about the emergency services they provide. That building is the most welcome thing for the fire service in the city of Cape May, fire Chief Alex Coulter said, describing some of the problems in the former building. SOMERS POINT For people like Margate resident Marena Gerber, coming to the Charity League of Atlantic Countys annual Christmas Mart on Saturday is as much a tradition as celebrating the holiday itself. Participating in kid-friendly activities, like taking pictures with Santa or writing letters to Saint Nick with her three boys, Hudson, Thayer and Briggs, shopping around for gifts, and just being encompassed by the holiday spirit that lives through the Christmas Mart, now in its 76th season, was nostalgic for Gerber. Ive been coming here since I was a child, every year since I was a baby, said Gerber, adding the only year she didnt come to the Christmas Mart was two years ago, when it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its a good family tradition, and we look forward to it every year. The tradition that started in 1947 is for a good cause. The Charity League of Atlantic County, which has been around since 1932, donates all the proceeds it makes from the shopping event to local organizations. This year, the proceeds from the two-day event will go to five organizations that focus on aiding women, children and families: Jewish Family Services of Atlantic and Cape May Counties, Atlantic City Day Nursery, Covenant Houses Atlantic City branch, the Donny Fund and Avanzar, formerly known as the Womens Center. Its fun, we get to see people we usually only see once a year, and its a fantastic group of girls who put a lot of time and effort into what we do, said Joanne Kisby, whos been a member of the Charity League for over 20 years. It feels good to give back. Last year, the Charity League raised $133,000 for local organizations. And this year, the ladies hope to raise more than that, said Mary Alice Vesper, a member of the Charity League. Its fabulous and so exciting. Were doing everything we can to give back, said Vesper, who added this year, the Christmas Mart was bigger and better. Held inside the Greater Bay Country Club on Friday and Saturday, the Christmas Mart was filled with everything and anything Christmas a person could imagine. There was a whole section of gourmet delicacies, with over 300 homemade cakes and pies by Charity League members, in addition to over 3,000 cookies, including the charitys coveted holiday spritz cookies that came snuggled in a decorative holiday tin. Likewise, were dozens of tree skirts, Christmas stocking, ornaments and other specialty items the organization made. But the most sought after item the Charity League creates is their holiday pin. Every year, the organization creates a different, handmade pin. Beads, sequins and Swarovski crystals are lovingly sewn to create a different design each year, and each member is required to sew 60 pins for Christmas Mart, which is the organizations biggest event. This years holiday pin was a Christmas gift wrapped in a sparkly red bow. The Charity League made over 5,000 of them, with many sold prior to the event, said Lourdes Vidal-Turner, the organizations president, who came up with this years design. Its very hard to come up with an idea, said Vidal-Turner, the organizations first Latina president, who also noted the league has already started making pins for next years holiday mart. In the past, the Charity League has created a variety of holiday pins that are different every year, like last years 75th anniversary pin. The pins design is kept secret by members until the day of the Christmas Mart. The organization had a vintage pin display at the mart, where people could buy pins from the past or trade in the ones theyve kept in the family, Vidal-Turner said. In addition, there were holiday decorations, toys, treats for pups and other wares vendors sold. They donated 20% of their proceeds to the leagues efforts, as well. The league also had 50/50 cash raffles, along with raffles for two tickets from JetBlue Airways to go anywhere in the world and a raffle for holiday goodies, like gift baskets and certificates. We love it, said Emma Raring, of Vineland, who was at the Christmas Mart with her husband, Cole, 7-month-old son Colin, and daughter Addie, 3. She noted her husbands grandmother, Krisby, has been with the Charity League for 50 years. Her husband has been coming to the Christmas Mart since he was young, so it was nice to continue the tradition with the next generation. Raring said her kids were excited to see Santa and get their picture taken with him by the volunteers from Stockton Universitys Change Builders, and they were excited to shop for toys, Christmas stockings and pins. It gets you into the Christmas spirit, Raring said. Its a good way to start the holiday season. Charity League Christmas Mart MAYS LANDING When retired Army Sgt. 1st Class Richard Grimsley received the keys to his new home Wednesday on White Oak Way, he was speechless. Grimsley received the home mortgage free thanks to Building Homes for Heroes, a nonprofit that builds and gifts homes for veterans, emergency responders and their families across the nation. "It's overwhelming," said Grimsley, 51, who was somewhat in disbelief that he was receiving a new home, where he and his fiancee, Lydia Lechliter, would start the next chapter of their lives together. "I'm at a loss for words." "I don't even know what to say," added Lechliter, who was also in awe of the newly furnished, four-bedroom, 2-bathroom home they will be moving into in a few months from their apartment in Pine Hill, Camden County. "It truly is a blessing." The organization is working to give away 40 homes in 2023, which equates to about one home every 11 days, on average, according to the organization's website. This will be the organization's second home given away in South Jersey, with a third one planned for next year. The last home the organization gifted locally was about two years ago in Egg Harbor Township. "It's so rewarding," said Cody Brannon, construction and events manager for Building Homes for Heroes. "The most important thing is giving back to those making the ultimate sacrifice, their families ... they're able to plant their roots here." Grimsley joined the military in 1999. He served in the South Carolina National Guard from 1999 to 2002, and the U.S. Army Air Corps from 2003 to 2019. Atlantic City veteran, father of five, faces $442,000 water bill An Atlantic City man who says he pays his water bill regularly has been hit with a $442,000 lien on his property by the Municipal Utilities Authority. He was a squad leader with the 82nd Airborne Divisions Troop A, 5th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. In 2007, during his deployment in Diyala, Iraq, an improvised explosive device blew off the front end of his vehicle, knocking him unconscious and resulting in a significant head injury, embedding shrapnel in his face and forehead. The decades of dealing with combat, air assaults and other war scenarios resulted in Grimsley suffering from traumatic brain injury, post-concussion syndrome, major neurocognitive disorder, memory loss, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and other issues. Ken Katter, Grimsley's friend who served with him in Iraq, drove from Sarasota, Florida, to Grimsley's new home Wednesday. Katter also received a home from Building Homes for Heroes about nine years ago, and sympathized with his friend, with whom he was deployed during his 15-month Iraq tour in 2007 (and was injured a day after Grimsley from a roadside bomb) in feeling like maybe he didn't deserve the home. "I felt like I didn't want to take it away from someone else that was more deserving," said Katter, 56. "I didn't want anything from anybody else, but to have someone else help ... it wasn't about me, but it was about how to better take care of my family. I was able to finally save money, and I was able to enjoy my family without any stress." There are more than 18 million veterans living in the United States, making up about 10% of the country's population, according to data from Statista. More than 33,000 veterans experience homelessness in the United States, according to last year's Point-in-Time data from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The Biden administration reported Nov. 2 that the number of veterans experiencing homelessness had dropped by 11% since 2020. Cape May Army National Guard's first 'ruck march' benefits hungry families The Cape May Army National Guard held its first annual ruck march on the Ocean City Boardwalk on Sunday, carrying non-perishable food for a 4-mile journey before donating the goods to families in need. Building Homes for Heroes was able to supply more than just a place to sleep for Grimsley and his family, with the help of sponsors. Lowe's donated a new riding lawn mower, flooring installation and landscaping, while JPMorgan Chase gifted Grimsley the home. "The most important thing today is that this is your new home," said David Weingrad, director of communications for Building Homes for Heroes, when he handed Grimsley the keys. The East Moline school board approved changes to district busing and talked 2023 tax levy rates, among other items. With all board members present, last week's meeting flew through the consent agenda which was unanimously approved and committee reports before hearing informational items. District finance leaders presented the preliminary 2023 tax levy recommending a 4.1084% rate, a three-cent drop from last year. Pending approval, this would mark the seventh consecutive year East Moline schools have decreased its tax rates. Superintendent Kristin Humphries said this trend stems from Illinois' shift to the Evidence-Based Funding formula in 2017, and he hopes to continue pushing tax rates down moving forward. Per Illinois law, the district will hold a public hearing on its proposed 2023 tax levy before the Monday, Dec. 11 board meeting. In Humphries' procedural report, he recognized the board in celebration of the Illinois Association of School Boards' "School Board Members Day. He played a district-produced video to showcase their appreciation for board members' hard work. Next, the board unanimously approved all action items. Highlights: A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the AFSCME (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees) for a floating bus driver position for the 2023-24 school year. The district will pay these employees a $2.00/hour premium to fill-in for district bus drivers when needed. The districts 2024-25 school calendar. A 4% Health Insurance Renewal increase via Blue Cross Blue Shield. Three-year leases for seven new school buses for the 2024-25 school year, including: four traditional buses, two mini-buses and one wheelchair bus. Glenview Middle Schools application for the 2023-24 Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Center Grant. This program supports academic enrichment opportunities for students during non-school hours, particularly those in high-poverty and/or low-performing schools. Next meeting: Monday, Dec. 11 at 6:30 p.m. Photos: Panther Invitational girls swimming meet (Oct. 7, 2023) S. Korea advised to abandon certain provisions rather than scrapping entire pact By Lee Hyo-jin On Sept. 19, 2018, the defense ministers of South and North Korea signed a Comprehensive Military Agreement (CMA), aimed at halting all hostile activities between them. This agreement included the prohibition of military drills in border areas and the establishment of no-fly zones near the boundary. However, the effectiveness of this pact, also known as the Sept. 19 military agreement, has been called into question in recent months as North Korea has intensified military provocations since last year. According to the 2022 Defense White Paper issued by the Ministry of National Defense, North Korea violated the military agreement at least 17 times between November 2019 and December 2022. The most recent incident occurred in December last year when five North Korean drones infiltrated South Korean airspace and flew over Seoul. Given this background, officials from the conservative Yoon Suk Yeol administration are calling for the suspension of the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement. Defense Minister Shin Won-sik, in particular, argues that the agreement significantly restricts Seoul's surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities near the border area. He warned that without better border surveillance, South Korea may not be able to properly defend itself from a North Korean invasion similar to the recent surprise attack on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas. However, experts cautioned against the idea of suspending the CMA, stressing that the benefits of maintaining the military pact outweigh the drawbacks of scrapping it. "The agreement establishes guardrails that could prevent incidents from escalating into crises, however imperfect they may be. There is some utility in having buffer zones," said Naoko Aoki, an associate political scientist at the RAND Corporation who specializes in East Asian security issues. The CMA has instituted buffer zones between the two Koreas by prohibiting hostility on land, sea and air near the border. Specifically, the two sides are restricted from conducting live-fire artillery drills within five kilometers of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL). Plus, no-fly zones have been implemented along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), along with a ban on the operation of unmanned aerial vehicles, helicopters and other aircraft within 40 kilometers of the MDL. "Given the current tensions (between the two Koreas), it is unlikely that another agreement like this can be drawn up in the foreseeable future, so that should be taken into consideration," she added. Terence Roehrig, a professor at the U.S. Naval War College, echoed this sentiment, stating, "Though North Korea has violated the agreement on several occasions and is not adhering to the spirit of the CMA, South Korea is better off with the agreement in place than walking away from it." Roehrig added that security concerns regarding North Koreas non-compliance with the CMA are relatively minor compared to the security and political costs of ending the agreement, which would undercut the broader goal of promoting long-term stability on the Korean Peninsula. The absence of the military agreement would lead to increased belligerence from North Korea, analysts believe. "Pyongyang would craft a narrative portraying Seoul as the aggressor, using South Koreas suspension of the military agreement to justify its military provocations," Roehrig said. In that sense, Aoki suggested that South Korea should further use the idea of suspending the CMA as political leverage against North Korea, instead of actually taking actions to scrap it, saying, "North Koreas violation of the agreement makes it a problematic actor, so South Korea has the moral high ground." But the fact that the military accord limits South Koreas reconnaissance capabilities on the North cannot be ignored, according to Bruce Bennett, a defense researcher at the RAND Corporation. "Over the years I have heard comments from both South Korean and U.S. colleagues that the inability to fly reconnaissance aircraft near the DMZ denies our countries' key reconnaissance information. Thus I would also think that those provisions should be abandoned," said the American researcher. Bennett also raised some humanitarian issues linked to the agreement. According to him, some U.S. military personnel stationed in South Korea expressed concerns that, for instance, if a U.S. soldier serving at Panmunjeom got appendicitis, they could not fly a helicopter up to Panmunjeom due to the provisions in the agreement and provide a timely evacuation for the patient. As such, Bennett commented that the South Korean government can consider canceling its observance of certain elements of the agreement, rather than abandoning the entire pact. Discussions about scrapping the military pact seem to be picking up pace among officials in Seoul. The Ministry of Unification, which handles inter-Korean relations, said Tuesday that related discussions are underway with other government bodies. "In the current situation, I would say that the ball is in North Korea's court regarding the suspension of the Sept.19 agreement," a senior defense official told reporters in a closed-door briefing, also on Tuesday. On the same day, Yonhap News reported, citing an unnamed government official, that the government is mulling the possibility of taking action to partially suspend the agreement as a precautionary measure against North Korean provocations. If Pyongyang launches a spy satellite, Seoul may normalize its reconnaissance activities in the East and West Sea regions, the official was quoted as saying. After two botched attempts to launch a reconnaissance satellite in May and August, the Kim Jong-un regime promised to make a third attempt in October. But it missed its own deadline. South Korean defense officials view that the North may make a third attempt in late November, after receiving technical support from Russia. Most people consider turkey the star of the show on Thanksgiving, but the dessert table always draws fans as well. Pie is almost always a top option, and local bakers know that better than most. Chef Rhonda Groh started baking in 2008 operating as The Bakery of Davenport and changed to The Eastern Iowa Baking Company in 2015. She now operates the business out of her home and turns her kitchen into a pie factory for one week in November. "Thanksgiving week is a little crazy," she said. "We actually will start baking for Thanksgiving at 4 p.m. on Tuesday." This year's pie orders are not as big as previous years, Groh said, but she's still expecting to make about 150. In 2019, she took in several large orders and made nearly 750 pies. "And that was total insanity," she said. 2019 was also a big year for Juli Hurley, owner of Out on a Limb Pie Company in Davenport. She started her business just before Thanksgiving that year. Hurley got her start in high school and kept up her skills as an adult, baking 25-30 apple pies every fall with the leftover apples from the orchard. She would freeze the unbaked pies, then take them out and give them away as gifts. After some time, people started asking if they could purchase pies from her. Hurley would sell about 20 pies every holiday but kept up her day job. After 15 years, she decided to try and branch out on her own with her own company. Her father, Tom Cline, encouraged her to start up the business she'd always thought of opening. She agreed, on the condition that he help. In their first year, they made 75 pies for Thanksgiving. Since then, Hurley started selling at farmer's markets and word spread about her pies. In 2020, her second year in business, Hurley made 323 pies and the the numbers continued to climb from there. This year she's on track for about 400, which requires lots of ingredients and time. This Thanksgiving season alone she is expecting to go through 300 pounds of flour, 90 pounds of sugar, 100 pounds of lard, 150 pounds of butter and more than 1,000 eggs. "I wish I was good at something smaller," she said with a laugh, looking around at all the ingredients. "Thanksgiving is the biggest pie day of the year." Apple pie is her biggest seller around Thanksgiving and she has 400 pounds of Jonathon apples ready to go, as well as 300 pounds of cherries and 60 pounds of pecans for other orders. Groh said a favorite coming out of her kitchen is pumpkin pie, made with her grandmother's recipe, but that's not the only thing on her menu. "I am getting requests for everything," she said, adding she has fielded orders for cherry, mincemeat and oatmeal pies. Hurley operates her company out of a shared kitchen space in Bettendorf. This week, the other businesses will clear the way and she will take over the kitchen. Baking will start at about 7 a.m. and conclude at midnight in three ovens in the kitchen. "If it doesn't have to do with Thanksgiving pies, it goes somewhere else," Hurley said. Out on a Limb concluded taking orders on Nov. 16, but the Eastern Iowa Baking Company is accepting orders until Nov. 20. Orders can be placed at: 563-320-1693. Eastern Iowa Baking Company gets ready for Thanksgiving, 2023 Bettendorf Police arrested an Iowa City man early Friday for allegedly peddling meth. According to the arrest affidavit, at 1:32 a.m. Friday officers were on routine patrol in the area of the Isle Casino and Hotel. Officers came upon a gold Chrysler Town & County van that was parked on the main floor of the garage. Brandon Russell Mishak, 36, was sleeping in the van when officers made contact with him, according to the affidavit. While speaking with Mishak, officers noticed indicators of drug use. Mishak denied officers a consent to search but allowed officers to run a drug dog around the outside of the van. The dog alerted to the vehicle and a probable-cause search was conducted. Officers located a brown Michael Kors purse next to where Mishak was sleeping. Inside the purse was a cash card with Mishak's name. Officers also located in the purse a white bag with multi-colored drawings on it. Inside of that bag was a clear plastic bag containing 30.56 grams of suspected meth. Officers also located another plastic bag in which was 2.1 grams of suspected meth, making the total 32.66 grams of meth. The substance found in the bags tested positive for meth using a field test kit. Also, from the bag officers seized a digital scale and other plastic bags. Mishak is charged with possession with the intent to deliver more than 5 grams of meth, a Class B felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of 25 years. He also is charged with violating Iowas drug tax stamp law, a Class D felony that carries a prison sentence of five years. During a first appearance on the charges Friday morning in Scott County District Court, Magistrate Jay Sommers scheduled a preliminary hearing in the case for Nov. 21. Mishak was being held Monday night in the Scott County Jail on a bond of $10,000, cash or surety. A sunny day with highs in the 50s and low winds attracted thousands of people to downtown Davenport on Saturday for the 31st Annual Quad-City Arts Holiday Parade Children had their plastic bags and even plastic pumpkins in which to catch and store the candy being passed out along the route. Although the children were bundled up against the chill, it was not as cold and windy as last year when the wind chill temperatures prevented some of the bands from playing. Jessica Mumma, who has been marching in the parade for about 10 years for Modern Woodmen of America, said this year, was amazing. The weather was fabulous, she said. I especially like seeing everybody out this year, and the joy. There was just a lot more excitement in the air. Davenport Police Chief Jeff Bladel said this years attendance was one of the largest he had seen. Mumma agreed. As far as audience wise, yes, there were more people, she said. It also felt like there were more floats and entries in the parade. We were way in the back this year and we got to see the actual beginning of the parade come back through before we even started. Children kept an eye out for Santa, and screamed his name when he came by riding in the back seat of Mike Peppers Santa Mobile, a longtime staple of the parade. The parade is billed as the largest helium balloon parade in the Midwest. Rebecca Chomycia of Davenport said she watched the parade on television, but then came down to look at the floats. Chomycia was getting a few photos when she saw Kermit the Frog slowing losing his helium. He looks so sad, she said as she grabbed a photo. After the parade many people headed for the 38th Annual Festival of Trees at the Davenport RiverCenter. Children took in the Festival Express train display, as well as the gingerbread village, and had the chance to tell Santa their Christmas wishes. The Festival of Trees runs through Nov. 26. A schedule of events can be found at www.qcfestivaloftrees.com. Festival of Trees Holiday Parade draws thousands to downtown Davenport on Saturday It has been a year-and-a-half since the Oglala Sioux Tribe sued the United States due to a breakdown of law and order on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Continued reports of drug-related offenses, assaults and homicides prompted the tribal government to take further action. Oglala Sioux Tribe President Frank Star Comes Out signed a new proclamation on Nov. 18 declaring a State of Emergency on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The new State of Emergency declaration will remain in effect until Jan. 1, 2025. A State of Emergency exists on the Reservation due to the failure of the United States Government and its agencies, particularly the DOI and BIA, to honor their treaty trust and statutory obligations to the Oglala Sioux Tribe, President Star Comes Outs proclamation read. The reservation is currently experiencing high rates of murder, suicide, drug offenses, robbery, rape, aggravated assault, burglary and missing and murdered Indigenous women, according to tribal officials. Despite making up roughly 2% of the South Dakota population, Pine Ridge citizens account for 10% of people currently missing in the state. The South Dakota Missing Persons Clearinghouse reports 13 people currently missing from Pine Ridge, six of whom went missing this year and four within the past month. Seven of the total missing individuals are minors. In July 2022, the tribe launched a lawsuit against the United States arguing the government has failed to uphold its treaty obligation of protecting the tribe. The lawsuit references several historical documents that define the United States obligation. The Treaties of 1825, 1851 and 1868 all included clauses that state the United States is responsible for protecting the Oglala Sioux Tribe and its members from bad men." In 1877, after the confiscation of seven million acres from the former Great Sioux Reservation, the United States also promised compensation in the form of necessary aid and protection, according to treaty documents. The BIA has a responsibility to help our people, and I dont see that happening here, Oglala Sioux Tribe President Frank Star Comes Out said during a press conference Saturday. This is an emergency. Whats being done now while were waiting [for litigation]? In 2021, the tribe said the federal government only provided 13% of the tribes requested law enforcement and criminal investigations funding for the fiscal year 2023 budget. The tribe said it only has enough funding for 33 police officers. OST currently has 32 officers on staff, with between five and six officers working at one time. Those few are responsible for patrolling the 3.1 million acre reservation and all nine districts. The Nov. 18 Emergency Proclamation urges President Joe Biden to intervene and direct Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland to request sufficient funds for public safety on the reservation. This would include enough funding for the BIA standard of 2.8 officers per 1,000 persons in the service population. The proclamation also calls for South Dakota Senators John Thune and Mike Rounds, along with Representative Dusty Johnson, to hold field hearings on the lack of adequate law enforcement on South Dakota reservations. While census records indicate nearly 20,000 residents on Pine Ridge, the Oglala Sioux Tribe's total enrollment number is over 54,000 people. The tribe is requesting enough funding for 120 officers. We dont live in Indian country, we survive, Star Comes Out said. We have been patiently trying to cooperate with the government, and we feel that theyre stalling. Its hurting our tribe and its hurting our people. As of Aug. 15, both parties in the lawsuit were supposed to begin discussing the possibility of a settlement, per U.S. District Court for the State of South Dakota Chief Justice Roberto Langes order. There has been no movement since that order. Pine Ridge residents face the realities of life with limited law enforcement every day, OST officials explained. Officers often have to prioritize which calls they respond to, leaving many waiting hours for help if help ever comes. Some individuals have reported waiting three or four hours for a response, according to the tribe. The trust is not there anymore; the people don't feel safe anymore, Star Comes Out said. If youre wondering what a lack of treaty fulfillment looks like, just go to our reservation and see for yourself. Tribal entities such as Oglala Victim Services supported the call for a State of Emergency. On Nov. 16, the organization held a vigil for murdered tribal members and called for an end to drug-related violence. Victim Services said it will continue hosting weekly vigil walks until something is done about violence on the reservation. The Nov. 18 proclamation isnt the first time that a State of Emergency has been issued on Pine Ridge in response to violence. The tribe has authorized several declarations over the past seven years. Were living in a lawless government; were impoverished and we dont have the resources to combat [the violence], tribal council representative Anna Halverson said. There used to be one homicide per month or year, now we hear of one nearly every day. In 2017, a string of emergency declarations were issued regarding high amounts of missing tribal citizens, issues with tribal police, and drug usage. In Jan. 2020, then-president Julian Bear Runner issued a State of Emergency regarding the rising number of homicides and meth use on the reservation. The 2020 proclamation requested immediate help from several federal agencies, asking them to send investigators and other resources to the tribe. Nine months later, in Sept. 2020, the OST entered into an agreement with the Pennington County Sheriff's Department allowing for mutual aid between the two. President Star Comes Out said he is planning to speak with President Biden in the near future regarding this new proclamation. The end of Maid was the beginning of another journey for Stephanie Land. Her new book, "Class: A Memoir of Motherhood, Hunger, and Higher Education," fills readers in on what happened after she arrived in Missoula to earn an English degree at the University of Montana, where as an undergrad, she began writing an essay that eventually became "Maid." "Class" is her follow-up to an all-in memoir that became a surprise hit. Her ground-level view of poverty and the difficulties that working single mothers face found an audience with President Barack Obama and then Netflix viewers through a season-long adaptation. In her new book, she focuses on her senior year, which she says was one of the most difficult of her life. She describes the relentless energy (a criticism she reclaims as a point of pride) required as she was finishing her degree and her daughter was starting kindergarten. Continuing the social criticism of "Maid" and her personal essays, she lays out the tenuous existence of a low-income single parent going back to school, and the costs of trying to improve your life (enduring social judgments and signing up for $50,000 in student loan debt). As she refines a long personal essay that would eventually become Maid, and begins taking steps toward graduate school and the master's degree required to pull a teacher's salary, Land becomes pregnant with her second child and faces yet more questions about her choices as a single mother. Land answered some questions via email ahead of her hometown reading at 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19, at the Missoula Public Librarys Cooper Room. Shell discuss her work with local novelist and vlogger Hank Green. Land will be in Helena 6-8 p.m. Nov. 20 at an event co-sponsored by the Montana Book Co. and the Montana Budget and Policy Center at St. Pauls United Methodist Church, 512 Logan St. Q: In the acknowledgments, you say this book, about your hungriest year, was the one you always wanted to write. When did you start work on it? And how did the response to Maid, including conversations with everyday readers about the issues it covers, inform the way you approached Class? A: I'm not sure if I'll ever fully process how or why Maid took off and was read so widely. I think it possibly spoke to a lot of people who live in the margins of society and sat with them in a space where they normally feel invisible, so they no longer felt so isolated and alone. That was always my biggest hope for the book but I never imagined it would reach such a large amount of readers all over the world. With that, though, there is a lot of "feedback" that comes from people who will possibly never believe that poor people deserve or even can have for a fleeting moment nice things. Unfortunately, those people are the most vocal on the internet and otherwise. My biggest concern with both books is my children's experience with it all. My teenager gets recognized by people who work in local coffee shops and rather loudly identify her, and people approach us whenever I'm out with them in public. It's hard knowing I have brought them into the story that so many people have read and now recognize them from. I don't think I ever in my wildest imagination thought that could happen, so it's been a bit of an adjustment for all of us. As for writing the second book, yeah, it's scary writing about people you will probably run into at the grocery store someday. Q: You discuss the Catch-22 you found yourself in, where youre trying to create a better life for yourself by getting a degree, but the roadblocks make it seemingly impossible. What are some services universities could offer to help parents get a college education? A: Statistics aren't usually something I bring up in conversation a lot, but I think it's important for people to know that in every undergraduate classroom, 23% of your students are likely hungry, one in 10 are parents, one in five are single parents, and about 8% are homeless. The more people can change the type of person they imagine when they hear the word "college student" to something that is more realistic, I think services will sprout sort of organically. Things that would have helped me, beyond daycare that's not itemized by the hour and goes beyond 9 a.m.-5 p.m., would have been a textbook lending library, a food and clothing pantry, counselors who are resourceful about scholarships, and professors who are open about their availability during office hours and whether or not it's okay for people to bring children to class. Some kind of mentor would have helped me immensely, too. Like a grad student I could meet with or email to ask questions or could walk me around campus. That would have been immensely helpful. Q: You mention that you got to see the last few years before gentrification began rapidly changing Missoula. In the book, you capture a lot of the citys culture, particularly from the vantage of someone who doesnt have a lot of money. Did you think of the book as a time capsule while writing it? And did the rapid changes happening in Missoula in the past few years, such as the spike in unhoused people, inform your approach to telling your story? A: Yeah, I really wanted to capture the community from that time. It has changed a lot, and we've lost a lot of really good people due to unaffordable housing costs. I wanted to honor that time when people could mostly manage living and working here at the same time. Q: The introduction notes the research and records you relied on, such as interviews, notes, essays, social media posts, emails, documents, direct messages and the day planner. How did you go about reconstructing this very busy, eventful, stressful year in your life? A: Well, like any writer who procrastinates, I did it partially with office supplies. First I had this idea that I would print out everything I wrote in school and for submission, after I logged into my Submittable account and saw how many times I'd been rejected that year. It was a stack of papers that was two inches thick, and I stared at it for an entire day in awe and gratitude for that version of myself who did all of that work while being deeply food and housing insecure. Then I started to go through my filing cabinet and pulled all the paperwork I had to do during that time for food stamps, the child support case I had with my kid's dad, and all the other day-to-day paperwork for my school and my daughter's school, and decided to file it by month. It took up an entire drawer in my desk. The book is pretty chronological, so I would pull the month's file that I was writing about, and surrounded myself with my notebooks, day planner, and photos from that time while I was writing. I also made a playlist of music I listened to that year, and actually went through and copy/pasted Facebook posts and comments into a big Word document and printed that out. I used to post funny things my daughter said, so I got a lot of really great quotes from my kid that way. Q: You describe the struggle of trying to find time to read and write between raising Emilia, work and classes. How has your relationship to writing (and reading) changed since it became a full-time endeavor? A: It's been a really long time since I have written something purely for myself. Like, something that is just for me. Since I started freelancing, almost everything I wrote could possibly be sold as an essay, so it felt like if I was going to put any energy toward writing it should at least be something I could get paid for. I probably need to find some balance with that. I also don't usually read anything that is not work-related in some way. It's funny: When I started freelancing I never felt like I actually was working because everything I did was what I did for fun. Now I feel like I am always working. Q: Not all writers whove hit the bestseller list discuss their finances, and not a lot of name writers in general talk about how they make a living. Why did you decide to talk about yours? A: Well, when the New York Times offers to do a profile you don't really turn them down. When Ron Lieber approached me about writing one about me, I agreed because I trusted him, but I also learned that people assumed I had been paid millions and that wasn't the case at all and I wanted to correct that. In light of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes and learning that those writers and artists and creators also aren't paid as much as people assumed, I thought it led into a larger conversation about how we all consume art but we're not willing to truly support it. Q: The question about who gets to make art runs through the book. What advice do you give to emerging writers about pursuing a career if they dont come from a place of privilege? A: People really seemed to look down their noses at me for wanting to make money, and I never understood that, so I tried to ignore them. To me, the stories from people who have lived experience in the margins of society are the ones we need the most. A few things: Learn how to write a really good op-ed. Find a niche. The more you can think of yourself as a business, the better. Many (if not most) writers do not look at themselves as first an expert, then a brand, and a business that needs to be marketed and promoted. It's hard to find people who teach the actual business of writing, but it's vital information to anyone trying to turn it into a career. 70% of freelance writing is administrative work. What you end up writing is up to you, but you will write a lot of content you're not all that passionate about when you're starting out. Try your best to never write for exposure. SAN FRANCISCO Sometimes it can be easy to forget that President Joe Biden's original foreign policy priority was reasserting American influence in Asia. After all, that was before Russian tanks tried to blitz Ukraine, and before Israel and Hamas descended into a fresh round of bloody fighting. With each new crisis, it appeared that Asia slipped further down the presidential to-do list. This week was a rare opportunity for Biden to demonstrate otherwise. While playing host for an annual summit of Asian leaders in San Francisco, he could finally refocus on the continent that he views as key to the future. "The United States remains vital to the future of the region, and the region is more vital than ever to the United States of America," he told a gathering of business executives during one of the summit's many receptions. "That's been my administration's outlook from day one." Turning that vision into a reality has never been more challenging. Biden's tenure as president is being constantly reshaped by two very different and unpredictable wars in Europe and the Middle East. He's also struggling to ease doubts about his reelection chances as Donald Trump, the former Republican president, pursues a comeback bid for the White House that would upend American foreign policy. However, those concerns faded into the background for at least a few days during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. Biden outlined a vision of collaboration and friendship for the region during a gala for visiting dignitaries Wednesday evening. "From here in San Francisco, America reaches out all across the Pacific, building bridges mightier than the Golden Gate," he said. He t added that everyone should "take h full advantage of this summit to t make new connections and spark f new partnerships." i On Thursday, Biden attended c a working lunch with regional i leaders and posed for pictures with counterparts. He carved out p time for a separate photo with c South Korean President Yoon Suk C Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, a reflection of i closer relations between the two a U.S. allies. C In his closing remarks Friday, as W he handed over conference ownt ership to Peru for next year, he told leaders: "America's commitment n to the Asian Pacific is unwavering c and in our view from America's a perspective essential." b Biden has always described i recalibrating U.S. foreign policy toward Asia as the true test of his administration. The region is the most important crossroads for global trade, a source of critical minerals for fighting climate change and a hub of technological innovation. It also remains a potential flashpoint for conflict as Biden tries to counter the rise of authoritarian China. Biden's most important meeting of the week was unquestionably his hourslong encounter with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday, which overshadowed the summit itself. The conversation ended with new commitments for Beijing to crack down on the flow of fentanyl and reengage in communications between the two countries' militaries. The fentanyl agreement prompted the U.S. to lift trade sanctions against the Chinese Ministry of Public Security's Institute of Forensic Science, a move announced the day after Biden met with Xi. The institute was sanctioned three years ago when the U.S.Commerce Department said it was "complicit in human rights violations and abuses" against ethnic and religious minorities in China. A senior administration official said Biden and Xi were more candid with each other than the last time they met almost a year ago on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Bali, Indonesia. It helped, the official said, that concerns about COVID-19 eased, and the leaders and their advisers were able to sit more closely together. The intimacy did not preclude disagreements. The official, who insisted on anonymity to describe private conversations, said Biden expressed concerns about Chinese rules on intellectual property, while Xi complained about how the Chinese Communist Party has been negatively portrayed in the U.S. Biden also pressed China to use its influence to persuade Iran to avoid provocations in the Middle East, which could cause the war between Israel and Hamas to engulf more of the region. Reminders of conflict in the Middle East were kept on the periphery of this week's summit. Protesters calling for a cease-fire in Gaza shut down all vehicular traffic heading into San Francisco over the Bay Bridge. Some lay on the ground covered in white sheets to represent slain Palestinians. Biden wasn't the only world leader looking to bolster his position with a few rounds of international speed dating. Xi used the summit as an opportunity to meet individually with leaders from Bahrain, Fiji, Japan, Mexico and Peru. He also outlined his own vision for relations between the U.S. and China in a written speech for an audience of hundreds of business leaders. "The more difficulties there are, the greater the need for us to forge a closer bond between our peoples and to open our hearts to each other, and more people need to speak up for the relationship," he said. However, Xi indicated that he did not want limits on China's ambitions. A recent boom in psychedelic research has given way to a bumper crop of startups seeking to harness the potential of mind-altering drugs for treating depression, addiction and other conditions. In this crowded field, Vancouver-based Filament Health has a unique approach: extracting drugs like psilocybin and mescaline from natural sources, including mushrooms and cacti, rather than synthesizing the ingredients in a laboratory. Filament is studying its mushroom-based psilocybin as a treatment for opioid and stimulant use disorder. And more than a dozen other companies and academic centers are using the company's drugs in trials of depression, chronic pain and other disorders. Filament CEO Benjamin Lightburn spoke about the ethical, therapeutic and medical case for using naturally derived psychedelics. The answers have been edited for length and clarity. Q: What do you mean by "natural psychedelics" and how are they produced? A: It means we're deriving them from natural sources, like plants and fungi, because that is in fact the way that humanity has been interacting with these substances in their natural form for thousands of years. It's only recently that we had access to synthetic chemical manufacturing techniques. Since our products come from natural sources, we believe it allows people to maintain a certain connection to how humans have been ingesting these substances for years and years and to important aspects of many traditional communities. A natural product contains much more than just one single active compound, right? And so in the case of magic mushrooms, for instance, they contain much more than just psilocybin. They contain other compounds like psilocin and a dozen or more other active ingredients. Just like when you drink a cup of coffee there is much more than just caffeine. There's a whole entourage of different compounds, which in the case of coffee gives it a flavor, aroma and terroir. Q: Do you think patients will be able to tell the difference when they take these drugs? A: It's our hypothesis that the presence of these other compounds may contribute to differences or perhaps even improvements in the therapeutic potential of these complex natural mixtures. After all, these substances did evolve in nature alongside humans. Q: Your company also prioritizes ethically and sustainably harvesting these plants. How does that work? A: The iboga plant, which contains the psychedelic ibogaine, is probably the best example of that at Filament. We've been working with groups in West Africa, in Gabon, where the iboga plant is indigenous and, in fact, is also involved with important cultural practices by the Bwiti people. So it's very important for us to make sure that any source of supply that's being imported from overseas, it's being done sustainably, No. 1, of course. And No. 2, that the proper procedures for informed consent with the local indigenous community are put in place and procedures for reciprocity and equitable benefit sharing. We obviously believe in sharing the benefit of any commercial products that get manufactured back with the local community who, after all, have been stewarding and shepherding this cultural resource for the previous millennia. Q: What is the advantage of all of these practices when there are so many competitors in the psychedelic space? A: We're really the only one that is focused 100% on natural. And we've actually been able to successfully manufacture these products and get them into clinical trials. There is a ton of interest from different researchers all around the world to use our psychedelic drugs. And there's a lot of interest, I think, from the investment community to fund our own internal drug development. The last color had barely dried on the rainbow house in the Dundee neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska, last weekend when owner Ryan Basye started receiving calls and texts. Its been fun, he said. My girls think its the coolest thing ever. Others have agreed, he said, including the people who live in the house near 49th and Davenport Streets. It was converted into apartments decades ago. A tenant called it freaking amazing and beautiful. The building was painted in rainbow colors because thats the palette chosen by his three daughters, who are all under the age of 10. To them its not the symbol it is to other people, he said. They would want to play Barbies or have Care Bears over. But thats not the only reason for the bright hues, a symbol of the LGBTQ+ community. Its also a response to a neighbors disparaging comments when some earlier work was being done at the house. Basye didnt want to repeat what was said. It puts a smile on my face knowing that neighbor has to see it every day, he said. Comments were overwhelmingly positive on a post about the house on the Dundee Memorial Park Neighborhood Association Facebook page, ranging from calling it fantastic to saying it reinforces that the Dundee neighborhood is the best in Omaha. Midtown Omaha is laudable for being progressive, and that means respecting differences and supporting marginalized communities, resident Julien Wulfgar said. Hate absolutely has no place, but you know that in midtown thats more than a slogan. Its a way of life for many of us, she said. Basye, a real estate broker and landlord, owns around 15 properties in the Dundee area. Its important to him that daughters Josephine, Louise and Cecilia know what he does for a living. Josephine, the oldest, often accompanies him on visits to his properties. Their input led to the red exterior of an office building he owns near 64th and Pacific Streets. He also used to own a pink building at the corner of 38th and Dodge Streets. After the office building was painted, his daughters suggested rainbow colors for the next paint job. They picked out the paint with their father. The opportunity came up, and that is what we did, Basye said. They loved it. I like to get them involved in Dads work. Jay Axelrod of Everything Axelrod painted the house, which used to be light green. It now includes perfect strips of black, purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red, pink and white. Even the gutters match the color scheme. The project was started the first week of October. It took a lot of extra time and effort and energy to get it to come out that good. And money, Basye said. It probably doubled the cost. Basye said the coolest thing about the rainbow house is that its instantly identifiable for guests of the tenants who live there, and its just one more thing hes done to improve the community. There are no other colorful projects on the horizon. A car-free Carytown? Let's pump the brakes on this idea, say some local residents and merchants. While an updated draft plan of the proposal is due to be published Tuesday, Carytown business owners and residents are already talking about the concept. And some of them are not so sure about it. The idea, which has been put forward multiple times over the past few years, is to close Cary Street to vehicular traffic, theoretically making it easier for pedestrians to enjoy the eclectic collection of shops and restaurants along the retail corridor that stretches between North Arthur Ashe Boulevard and South Thompson Street. Kelli Rowan, the planning and mobility management consultant with Richmonds Office of Equitable Transit and Mobility, said residents have brought it up over and over and over again." She pointed to a recent survey through the Richmond Connects transportation plan that received an overwhelmingly positive response as high as 85% approval. Richmonders asked for it, thats the number one reason (to do it). Our data says there are safety needs in that area," she said. Rowan said that in addition to making the street safer for pedestrians, the move could be a step toward equity in transit and mobility. Grandma, grandson get matching Duke's Mayo tattoos at Richmond shop When Zelda Robinson got a call from her grandson saying he had entered the pair into a mayonnaise contest, she assumed the grand prize would be a ball cap. A T-shirt at most. The recommendations are targeted at closing ... gaps in accessibility, said Rowan, adding that less car-centric infrastructure is one such way to accomplish that goal. But some business owners and Carytown residents worry that such a major change could have a negative impact on those who call the neighborhood home. Its not a new idea, said Kelley Banks, owner of Carytowns Merrymaker Fine Paper and the city liaison for the Carytown Merchants Association. Banks has owned the small stationery shop for a decade, she said. In theory, I love a pedestrian-only street, Banks said. (But) as a retail merchant, I see some of the logistical issues associated with it, and that causes concern. So my reaction would be mixed. Banks said those concerns include parking accessibility for Carytown patrons and local residents and surface traffic congestion on the streets surrounding the commercial strip. I think theres a chance, initially, (the impact on businesses) could be negative, Banks said. She said there is concern (among) merchants that customers might think its not worth coming down and trying to find a parking space. Over time it could become positive, Banks said. (But) I think there are a lot of things that would have to go into it to make it successful, that the city would have to invest in. Alternate parking options, updates to public transportation and a gradual rollout would all be essential for the plan to work, Banks said. Patty Yeh, a new Carytown resident, echoed many of those same reservations. Yeh spoke about the proposal as she unpacked boxes from a U-Haul truck and moved them into her new home on Ellwood Avenue, a block north of Cary Street. She said the first reaction she heard from some of her neighbors was ugh! If Cary Street is car-free, then theyre all going to park here, Yeh said. That will be negative. Yeh said the inconvenience of competing with visitors for parking spaces might sour neighborhood residents toward the proposal. I like car-free, she said. If you actually are driving on Cary (Street) on the weekend, its impossible to drive through. From a safety standpoint, I think its a positive thing. But then it creates other issues. Various cities, including San Francisco and New York City, have adopted car-free zones. The Richmond plan comes after several pedestrian deaths in recent years. Banks said she understands that some business owners are concerned about what it might do to their businesses, and said the opinions of Carytown merchants and residents are being taken into account. She said the draft coming out Tuesday recommends that the city study possible impacts and potentially demo with weekend closures to test ... out and research ... parking capacity, traffic and safety impacts. There would have to be a lot more planning and work, she said. Nic Tanwyn, a Carytown shopper, said he thinks a pedestrian-only Carytown would actually benefit businesses. Im a big fan of the idea, said Tanwyn, who drives to Carytown from North Richmond. I love walking malls and any of the pedestrian-only shopping centers. Carytown already feels like that anyway. Its not like its a great street to drive on anyway. So its not like its going to affect access to shopping. ... I think it will help businesses. From the Archives: Scenes from Grace Street NORFOLK President Joe Biden visited naval installations in Virginia on Sunday to kick off the Thanksgiving holiday week, introducing an early screening of the upcoming movie Wonka and sharing a friendsgiving meal with service members and their relatives. The president and first lady Jill Biden headed to Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads to introduce the new film centered on the early life of Roald Dahls fictional eccentric chocolatier, Willy Wonka. The film will be officially released Dec. 15. He joked to the many youngsters in the crowd: I like kids more than adults and added I wish I could stay and watch Wonka with you. Instead, the Bidens helped serve dinner with service members from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS Gerald R. Ford at Norfolk Naval Station, the largest installation of its kind in the world, along with their families. Before departing for dinner, Biden told families during his speech that military are the literal backbone of this country, adding, 1% of you, only 1 defend 99% of us. The event featured hundreds of attendees seated in folding chairs and around wooden, circular tables inside a concrete-floored hangar that included a display of a Black Hawk helicopter, a towering American flag and a screen with the image of the White House surrounded by falling leaves and the words Happy Thanksgiving. I mean from the bottom of my heart, the president said. Family members, you are the heart of this operation. For dinner, Biden served up mashed potatoes while attendees lined up for the buffet-style meal. Jill Biden spooned out sweet potato casserole to attendees. The menu also featured slow-roasted bourbon brined turkey topped with giblet gravy and cranberry-orange compote, maple-mustard glazed spiral-cut smoked ham, brioche-cornbread stuffing, candied walnuts, roasted garlic and creme fraiche, and a toasted espresso mascarpone Chantilly cream. Meanwhile, Bidens 2024 Republican rival, Donald Trump, was scheduled for a military visit Sunday in Texas. The former president, who has a commanding early lead in the 2024 GOP primary, was in Edinburg after serving meals to National Guard soldiers, troopers and others who will be stationed at the U.S.-Mexico border over Thanksgiving. Trump is promoting hard-line immigration proposals he argues will better secure the border. He and top Republicans have long criticized the Biden administration for failing to do more to crack down on people entering the country illegally. For the Bidens, offering support to the nations military has a personal connection. Their son Beau served in Iraq as a member of the Delaware National Guard. He died of brain cancer in 2015 at the age of 46, when Joe Biden was vice president. Jill Biden talked about Beaus deployment at the Wonka event, telling the crowd: I know there are many here who miss their mom or dad or spouse. While nothing can make up for that empty chair at the table, for us, the kindness of our community and finding moments of joy helps make it a little bit easier, she said. The Israel-Hamas war and the fate of hostages, including Americans, being held by militants in Gaza, were front and center for the president as he prepared to celebrate with the troops at home. A reporter asked Biden upon his arrival in Norfolk when more hostages might go free, to which he replied, Im not in a position to tell you that. Also during their visit, the Bidens learned of former first lady Rosalynn Carters death, announcing her passing just before serving the friendsgiving meal. Jill Biden asked diners to include the Carter family in your prayers during the holiday season. Carter, she said, was well-known for her efforts on mental health and caregiving and womens rights. The President said, in response to a question a question about Carters passing, You know, theyre really an incredible family, because they brought so much grace to the office. He also talked about watching Beau Bidens children while he was deployed, but then appeared too overcome with emotion to continue and said, I dont want to talk about this. The sadness was fleeting. A moment later, he lightheartedly bent down and joked with a 6-year-old, saying What are you, 17? Happy, happy, Thanksgiving, Biden said. May God love you all. Friendsgiving with the military has become a tradition for the Bidens. Last year, they dished out mashed potatoes and other sides as part of the buffet-style meal in Cherry Point, North Carolina, home to more than 9,000 military personnel and roughly 8,000 military family members. In 2021, the Bidens visited the Armys Fort Bragg in North Carolina for an early Thanksgiving meal in a hangar for about 250 service members and their families. Troops got chocolate chip cookies bearing the presidential seal. The president and first lady plan to spend Thanksgiving on Nantucket, a Massachusetts island. North Korea may launch its military spy satellite as early as "within a week or so," South Korea's defense minister said Sunday, citing intelligence of the North's preparations. Defense Minister Shin Won-sik said the launch could take place before South Korea launches its first indigenous reconnaissance satellite on Falcon 9, U.S. aerospace company SpaceX's two-stage rocket, from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Nov. 30. "South Korea and the United States are monitoring North Korea's movements. North Korea's preparations are under way for a launch to take place within a week or so," Shin said in an interview aired on public broadcaster KBS earlier in the day. "It takes about a week to move the engine from the test site to Tongchang-ri (launch site) and assemble the launch pad and inject the liquid fuel," Shin said. Shin said that the North is believed to have "almost resolved" its engine problems "with Russia's help." North Korea made two botched attempts to put a reconnaissance satellite into orbit in May and August, respectively. Shin said that the North's launch of a military spy satellite has been watched closely by the allies as a successful launch would mean an advancement in the rocket technology that can be weaponized. North Korea is banned from any use of ballistic missile technology under U.N. Security Council sanctions resolutions. "The United States is also watching closely because reconnaissance satellites have the potential to dramatically advance North Korea's surveillance capabilities and offset our upper hand," Shin added. Shin's remarks came a day after the North missed the widely expected Nov. 18 deadline set by the allies and observers for its stated plan to put the military spy satellite into orbit. Earlier this month, the North designated a "missile industry day" to mark the anniversary of its test-firing of the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile on Nov. 18 last year. (Yonhap) IN THE NEWS Charlottesville victims remembered Crowds gathered Monday in Charlottesville for the one-year anniversary of three students who were fatally shot on campus. DSean Perry, Lavel Davis Jr. and Devin Chandler were killed on a bus after returning from a trip to Washington, D.C. Another UVa student, Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., has been charged in the deaths. Events Monday included a memorial service and a panel discussion. This has been rough. But with God, all things are possible and so I find my strength in knowing that I need to move forward. And the love and the legacy of DSean will move on and will grow, said Happy Perry, the mother of DSean Perry. And Im going to be OK. CANCEL: A Spanish wind turbine manufacturer vacated its lease and pulled out of a planned $200 million project at Portsmouth Marine Terminal. Siemens Gamesa told the Port of Virginia that the company is canceling the project, Virginia Port Authority spokesperson Joe Harris said. The planned turbine blade finishing facility, announced by Gov. Ralph Northam in 2021, was expected to create 310 jobs. ODDS AND ENDS ARRESTED: Police on Tuesday arrested a 21-year-old Chester resident in the shooting of a Virginia State University campus police officer. Authorities said Deonta M. Blount, 21, shot Officer Bruce Foster, 39, during an altercation on Nov. 12. Foster is the first VSU officer to be shot in the line of duty. BUILD: Interstate 95 has been expanded to 12 lanes in Fredericksburg following a five-year, $264 million project over the Rappahannock River. A ribbon-cutting was held Wednesday. Nearly 150,000 vehicles a day travel I-95 in the Fredericksburg area. These new lanes will definitely help Fredericksburg, our entire region, be an even better place to live, work and play, Fredericksburg Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw said. BY THE NUMBERS $2.06B Amount of federal American Rescue Plan funding that Virginia has spent so far. The state received $4.29 billion for addressing public health needs, helping those who lost jobs or income, and assisting small businesses, among other areas. $63B Amount that long-haul carrier Emirates and sister airline FlyDubai are spending on airliners built by Boeing Co. in a big win for the Arlington-based manufacturer. THEY SAID IT "I look forward to working with our caucus to advance our shared Republican values and serve as a check on the worst far-left policies put forward by the incoming Democratic majority." Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah County, who was elected to become House minority leader in January, when Democrats will control the chamber "It's a job that I really love to do. I've been extremely fortunate to have been surrounded by so many great people." Roanoke Fire-EMS Capt. Craig Sellers, who retired Tuesday after 42 years there IN THE NEWS State must find more money for public education, Medicaid An outlook presented to the Virginia House Appropriations Committee shows the spending needs of state government especially for public education and Medicaid health care will exceed revenues in the next two-year budget. The state must find an additional $1.3 billion to pay the updated costs of public education. Medicaid will cost an additional $714 million. Gov. Glenn Youngkin will present the budget on Dec. 20. MONEY: Rivers Casino Portsmouth generated the most revenue of Virginia's three casinos in October, bringing in $20.03 million. Data from the Virginia Lottery, which oversees the casinos, shows the Caesars Virginia facility in Danville reported $16.84 million and the Bristol Casino $12.7 million. Plans are underway to develop a Norfolk casino. Richmond voters earlier this month voted down for a second time a plan to build a venue. GROUNDED: Workers buried a new time capsule Monday on Capitol Square in Richmond. The contents of the box in front of the new General Assembly building include Christmas ornaments depicting the Executive Mansion and Capitol Square, various publications and photos, and 14 pins like those worn by members of the House and Senate. When will it be unsealed? "We havent determined a date to open it up again," said project manager Chinh Vu of the Department of General Services. "Right now, its indefinite. From the Archives: The Virginia state Capitol building After the massacring, beheading, raping and kidnapping of the Jews in Kfar Azza, Kibbutz Beeri and 20 other Israeli towns left more than 1,400 dead and 240 abducted citizens, the sympathy for this Jewish genocide lasted but a few days until a vile Judeophobia infected societies across the globe. Since the barbarous terrorist attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, antisemitic incidents in the U.S. have increased nearly 400% compared to this time last year, according to the Anti-Defamation League. And according to the FBI, 60% of religious hate crimes victimize Jews. Unfortunately, we are seeing the same rise in antisemitism right here in the commonwealth. Earlier this month, a local high school was vandalized with a swastika. Recently, fliers posted at Virginia Commonwealth University of the civilian hostages kidnapped by Hamas one of whom grew up at the very synagogue I lead were taken down by a young man who called Israel a fake country. In mid-October, protesters in Richmond called for the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people chanting, From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. We all want peace for all civilians. Real Zionists lament the innocent casualties in Gaza. I firmly believe that when Hamas surrenders, there will be a cease-fire that will allow our regional allies to come together to craft a brighter, secure future for Israelis and Palestinians. For today, the greatest atrocity since the Holocaust has retraumatized my Jewish community, and our small demographic, which is just 2% of the population, has now been changed forever. My fellow Richmonders, we are at an inflection point. We need leaders who will stand with the Jewish community and act to ensure this hatred does not continue to escalate. Heaven forbid we end up living through a time when we witness Jewish students needing to be escorted into a classroom by state troopers. Thankfully, Gov. Glenn Youngkin is leading the way, not just for Virginia, but for the nation in how to protect the very religious liberties that underpin Americas foundation. Youngkin is a steadfast friend of the Jewish community. He inspires confidence because he has stood with us against Americas most prevalent religious hatred from the start of his time in office, signing Executive Order 8 establishing the governors Commission to Combat Antisemitism just hours after his inauguration as governor. This week, Youngkin signed Executive Directive 6 to continue the work of combating antisemitism. This executive directive brings into sharp focus the significant security concerns facing our children as they go to school, both in K-12 and in higher education, as well as the broader Jewish community. This directive empowered the secretaries of public safety, homeland security and education to engage local and campus resources and leaders to ensure Virginians under their care feel safe as they go about their daily lives. Youngkins moral clarity is evident and consistent. I recently invited him to Keneseth Beth Israel to share his support for the Jewish community in light of the attack on Israel and the Jewish community. From the pulpit, the governor shared the same support I have heard from him in private. He is committed to combating antisemitism and to ensuring the safety of the Jewish community, and all Virginians, so that no one has to live in this kind of fear. It takes guts these days to embrace our oft-targeted community, and Executive Directive 6 demonstrates the governor is a man of action. The governors support reminds me of another great Virginian. George Washington wrote the congregation of Touro Synagogue in Rhode Island, emphasizing the religious freedom enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and dispelling concerns regarding freedom of religion beyond Christendom, declaring to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance. Youngkin has set an example for every state leader individuals either condemn Hamas evil attack or condone it; there is no middle ground. Antisemitism is a hatred as old as the Jewish people. Never again is more important now than at any other point in my lifetime. There is much work to be done to combat it, but the governor knows that if Jewish Virginians arent safe, then he needs to set an example for every Virginia elected official to follow. Virginias exceptional history of religious freedom requires no less. My hope is that together with Youngkin, we can work to realize the fulfillment of George Washingtons blessing on the Touro Synagogue congregation: May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree and there shall be none to make him afraid. From the Archives: Thalhimers 0710_POD_BroadSt Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers Thalhimers 0205_POD_Thalhimers 0617_POD_thalhimers001 1225_POD_Santa 20180718_FEA_POD_regencyDONE.JPG Rabbi Dovid S. Asher of Keneseth Beth Israel is author of Outreach in the Torah and serves on the executive committee of the Rabbinical Council of America and the executive board of the Virginia Holocaust Museum. Contact Asher at kbi@kbirva.com. KYIV, Ukraine Ukrainian troops worked to push back Russian forces on the east bank of the Dnieper River, the military said Saturday, a day after Ukraine claimed it secured bridgeheads on that side of the river that divides the country's partially occupied Kherson region. The General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces said its troops there repelled 12 attacks by the Russian army between Friday and Saturday. The U.N. Security Council approved a resolution Wednesday calling for "urgent and extended humanitarian pauses and corridors throughout the Gaza Strip" after four failed attempts to respond to the Israel-Hamas war. The vote was 12-0 with the United States, United Kingdom and Russia abstaining. The final draft watered down language from a "demand" to a "call" for humanitarian pauses. It also watered down a demand for "the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups." The resolution makes no mention of a cease-fire. According to Gaza's health ministry, more than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed. MARCH ON DC: Tens of thousands of supporters of Israel rallied on the National Mall under heavy security Tuesday, voicing solidarity in the fight against Hamas and crying "never again." The "March for Israel" offered a resounding endorsement of one of America's closest allies. SUPREME COURT: The Supreme Court on Monday adopted its first code of ethics, in the face of criticism over undisclosed trips and gifts from wealthy benefactors to some justices, but the code lacks a means of enforcement. The policy leaves compliance entirely to each justice. FINANCIAL Justin Whorley has joined Valley Wealth Group as the client service associate. Whorley will be at the companys headquarters in Roanoke. The wealth management firm has also announced the addition of Josh Tessar as wealth adviser to the group. Tessar will be working with clients in the Blacksburg office at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center. ORGANIZATIONS Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project has announced that Natassia Brown is a loan fund coordinator in Virginia. Brown has more than 10 years of experience working with the public and providing services to SERCAP. She previously worked as a real estate loan closing agent. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the start of the Good Neighbors Fund, a partnership between The Roanoke Times and Roanoke Area Ministries. Melissa Woodson, executive director of the charity, estimated that over the past four decades, readers have donated more than $5 million to the cause, helping 2,500-plus Roanokers each year with rent, utility and prescription payments through RAMs Emergency Financial Assistance Program. In all, Woodson said, about 100,000 individuals who would have otherwise lost their housing due to an expected expense were kept from becoming homeless. Roanoke Area Ministries was formed in 1971 when local churches decided they needed a central clearinghouse to screen applicants for aid. The Good Neighbors Fund began in 1983, when then-publisher Walter Rugaber was looking for a way to help the community. Prior to that time, said JoAnne Poindexter, who started working for the newspaper in 1973 and still writes the Giving column in retirement, the newspaper had only sponsored sporting events and craft shows. We werent doing a lot of social services stories back then, Poindexter said, but much of what was published was about Roanoke Area Ministries. The Good Neighbors Fund represented a whole new direction in community involvement, and became something of a personal project for Rugaber, who was president and publisher of the newspaper from 1982 to 1995. He always wanted to try to help people, Poindexter said. He was always concerned about everyone else. Since the beginning of the project, much has changed, and much has not. Between the Sunday before Thanksgiving and the end of the year, the newspaper still publishes profiles of those who have been helped by the fund. Until about a decade or so ago, it also published letters from donors, many of which were heartfelt testimonials from readers who had been helped during hard times themselves. During the holidays, the letters often lay in deep piles on the newspapers copy desk. Now those letters go to RAM, and despite the extra clerical work they generate, Its really exciting to see them, Woodson said. Its like Miracle on 42nd Street. For most of the drives existence, tallying the donations was handled by the newspaper, but that duty was eventually turned over to RAM. With Woodsons arrival, that process has been streamlined further. In the past, 100% of the funds donated went directly to the needy. These days, Woodson said, 10% of the money collected is used for the administrative costs connected with processing payments. Something that hasnt changed over the years is that while there have always some large donations, most of what comes in is in small amounts from people who are clearly giving what they can. Most of them are under $100 from people who are probably struggling, too, Woodson observed. Its a vast group of donors, Poindexter said, and often includes retirees and groups of schoolchildren. Its one of the biggest services the newspaper has offered. Interestingly, although there is now an online option for paying, most donations are still made by check, so RAM sends an envelope along with mailed copies of its monthly newsletter. One of the first things Woodson did at the beginning of her tenure was to secure the means to join a valleywide online network of most of the areas largest charities. This replaced the old system in which paper client records were kept in file boxes, and information was shared over the phone. Now we can all work together, she said. Another big change has been in the donation totals. Poindexter recalled that for the first Good Neighbors Fund campaign, the goal was set at $50,000, but only a little over $40,000 was raised. Within the first decade of the fund, totals topped $100,000. In 2020, an all-time high of $280,505 was sent in at the height of the pandemic. In 2021, the fund drive totaled $241,341, but last year, it just barely missed the goal of $200,000 by bringing in $199,651. I hope we can reach $200,000 this year, Woodson said. The last three years have been amazing. In 2019, we only collected $149,000, so the change is absolutely phenomenal. In all, when the Good Neighbors Fund money is added to grants and donations the charity received, $282,673 was paid out to 1,780 individuals and families last year. Over the years, the needs of the applicants to the Emergency Financial Assistance Program have changed. In the early years, people often needed help paying for prescriptions, while covering utility payments is a perennial problem, since, when those bills get put off, late fees and reconnection fees are added on. Rent has been an especial problem in the past few years, as rental rates have risen, putting scraping together the cash for a deposit and first and last months rent nearly impossible for many. Theres a real rent crisis, Woodson acknowledged, as during the pandemic, many landlords sold their properties to speculators without a stake in the community. A lot of places have been gentrified, she said. Woodson has also been struck by the growing severity of the impact the drug abuse epidemic has had during the past few years. Many applicants have become mired in poverty due to struggles with addiction. Some of them are too sick to even do a 12-step program, she said, and rather than trying to enroll them in a structured treatment plan, we try to meet them where they are. We give them what they need. Last year, she said, RAM helped find housing for 54 people who were leaving rehab and would have been out on the streets. Between all the agencies belonging to the Council of Community Services, she said, weve seen a 77% increase in the number of people were helping with emergency shelter. Last year, Woodson said, the average number of days people stayed in a shelter was 54. Now its up to 74. As a reflection of the difficulties poor and working Roanokers are having with meeting their financial responsibilities, the number of people showing up at RAM House for the daily, free, hot meal the shelter offers also has gone up. Last October, the charity served 220 meals in one day for the first time. Prior to the pandemic, RAM was serving 80 to 90 meals a day. In 2021, Woodson said, the average was about 190 meals per day. This year, the average was closer to 200, with 54,750 meals served to around 320 individuals. Woodson said a lot of us dont realize how close we are to being in a really bad place if someone gets sick, or they lose their main breadwinner. In reflecting on the past, Woodson said: think about what the streets of Roanoke would be like the last 40 years without the Good Neighbors Fund. The Good Neighbors Fund drive begins today and ends on Dec. 31 (though donations may be made into the spring). During this time, The Roanoke Times will publish a series of profiles of some of the people who have been helped by the fund. Readers often ask to give directly to those featured in the stories, but donations cannot be earmarked for individuals. Donations may be made by clipping the form that appears in the newspapers print edition and returning it with cash or a check. Online donations may be made by going to raminc.org and clicking on the Good Neighbors Fund button. The names of donors and honorees will be published in the newspaper, and every donor will receive a thank-you card from RAM. Those who give more than $100 will get a personal letter. There are better and worse ways to deal with lifes problems but not everyone may realize that. That was a central message Saturday at the Melrose Branch Library, where about two dozen people gathered for an event titled the Healing Centered Community NW and NE Youth Conference. The long name came with a simple focus: presenting some of the mental tools that anyone, young or old, could use to improve their ability to bounce back from troubles, whether they be day-to-day irritations or life-altering devastation. Antonio Stovall, one of the events two main presenters, said that his mother was murdered three years ago in a domestic violence incident and that he faced a choice of reacting self-destructively or trying to find some way to become more helpful to others. He said that he had already seen others destroying themselves, and instead relied on a regimen of meditation and martial arts that he termed self-management. We all have to do the work. We all have to do the internal work, said Stovall, who teaches an African American culture class for at William Fleming High School and is a board/executive committee of the Roanoke Prevention Alliance. The alliance put on Saturdays conference with partners the United Way of Roanoke Valley, Hill Street Baptist Church, Blue Ridge Behavioral Health, the city Gun Violence Prevention Commission and the citys libraries. Much of the focus of Saturdays discussion was on Roanokes young Black population, but the measures presented were for anyone. The campaign to build resiliency is funded with a state grant and included a two-day workshop in September aimed at church leaders in Roanokes northwest and northeast. Part of the impetus for the project was the every-two-years Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which in 2021 found that large segments of the citys middle and high schoolers did not feel they mattered to the people around them. Such disconnectedness has to be addressed over time, said Stovall and his fellow presenter Bettina Mason. We cant solve all problems in a day. We can solve them little by little, Mason said. Stovall and Mason walked participants through a list of self-help measures that included working to accept and express feelings, maintaining a sense of humor, and striving to hold to close and trusting relationships. Some of the more youth-oriented steps discussed Saturday were helping young people have more positive experiences, such as participating in community traditions, having at least two adults show genuine interest in a childs activities and thoughts, and generally giving children better family support. During a panel discussion, audience members applauded seventh-grader Trinity Benton when she said that she saw many students who could not handle their emotions and thought it was because the adults in their lives did not deal constructively with their own emotions. Mason thanked Benton and the handful of other young people present, saying, you are the change. The panels other youth member was sophomore Jasmara Leach, who advised encouraging more students to take part in extracurricular activities at school. She said that for her, being in a school marching band was a positive and important experience that led to friendships and to meet an array of people she might not have otherwise encountered. Other panel members included the Rev. Dr. Amy Hodge of Mt. Zion AME Church and George Harrington of the First Impressions Barber Shop, both of whom spoke about the importance of trying to meet people, old and young, where they were to better find out their concerns. The panel also included new city police Chief Scott Booth, who said that he recently began walking neighborhoods in Roanoke as he did during earlier police work in Danville and Richmond to improve communication and eventually, he hoped, trust. Let us be the force of legitimacy in your community, Booth said. As Saturdays conference ended, Mason asked if the police department had a youth advisory group. Booth smiled. We can start one, he said. Fires in Brazil threaten jaguars, houses and plants in the world's largest tropical wetlands In the first two weeks of November, fires fueled by unusually dry and hot weather destroyed nearly 770,000 hectares (1.9 million acres) of the Pantanal, the worlds largest tropical wetlands J. Mark Powell is a novelist, former TV journalist and diehard history buff. Have a historical mystery that needs solving? A forgotten moment worth remembering? Please send it to HolyCow@insidesources.com. The government was working to fix the administrative network that suffered a system failure, officials said Sunday, two days after the breakdown caused disruptions to public access to government-approved papers. More than 100 government officials and private technicians were working to restore the servers and network systems at the National Information Resources Service (NIRS) in Daejeon, 139 kilometers south of Seoul, the interior ministry said. They have replaced some of the network equipment believed to have caused the system breakdown and conducted several tests at local community centers to see if the on-site issuance of the documents was working as normal. No problems were found in the tests, but officials said they are working to normalize the system considering the network traffic will sharply increase after the weekend, they said. Officials said they aim to have the system back to normal by Monday. The Saeol administrative network, a system used by public workers to access government-approved documents, such as birth certificates and resident registration papers, has been down since Friday due to an apparent error in the authentication process. The system failure paralyzed both offline and online issuances of the civil documents, with the suspension of the widely used online portal, Government 24, causing massive delays in and disruptions to public access across the country. The Government 24 portal was temporarily restored on Saturday and is currently accessible both on the web and mobile. IT experts dispatched to the NIRS are trying to determine the exact cause of the system failure, officials said. A possible error from a recent system upgrade has been cited as a likely reason for the system failure. (Yonhap) The central goal of the Montreal conference is adopting a post-2020 global biodiversity framework. This road map expands on frameworks put forth in past meetings, including the 2010 Aichi Targets. As the U.N. has reported, nations failed to meet any of the Aichi Targets by 2020, although six goals were partially achieved. The proposed new framework includes 22 targets to meet by 2030 and four key long-term goals to meet by 2050. They include conserving ecosystems; enhancing the variety of benefits that nature provides to people; ensuring fairness in the sharing of genetic resources, such as digital DNA sequencing data; and solidifying funding commitments. Advertisement Many people will be watching to see whether China can successfully lead the negotiations and promote collaboration and consensus. One central challenge is how to pay for the ambitious efforts that the new framework lays out. Environmental advocates are urging wealthy countries to provide up to $60 billion annually to help lower-income nations pay for conservation projects and curb illegal wildlife trafficking. China moved in this direction in 2021 when it launched the Kunming Biodiversity Fund and contributed $230 million to it. Pledges from other countries currently total some $5.2 billion per year, mainly from France, the United Kingdom, Japan and the European Union. China is likely to face questions about its Belt and Road Initiative, a massive infrastructure project that is building railways, pipelines and highways across more than 60 countries. Critics say it is causing deforestation, flooding and other harmful environmental impacts including in global biodiversity hot spots like Southeast Asia's Coral Triangle, which contains one of the world's most important reef systems. China has pledged to "green" the Belt and Road Initiative going forward, and in 2021, Xi announced a ban on financing new coal power plants overseas, which so far has led to cancellation of 26 plants. This is a start, but China has more to do in addressing Belt and Road's global impacts. As home to 18 percent of Earth's population and the producer of 18.4 percent of global GDP, China has a key role to play in protecting nature. I hope to see it provide bold leadership in Montreal and in the years ahead. Vanessa Hull is an assistant professor of wildlife ecology and conservation at the University of Florida. She receives funding from the National Science Foundation. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. You can find the original article here. Egypt's Ali Farag (left) and Belgium's Nele Gilis emerge as men's and women's champions respectively at the 2023 Vitagen Singapore Squash Open. (PHOTO: Singapore Squash Open) SINGAPORE With optimism in the air following squash's inclusion for the 2028 Summer Olympics, fans enjoyed a drama-filled finale at the US$225,000 Vitagen Singapore Squash Open at the OCBC Arena on Sunday (19 November). Revived last year as a PSA World Tour Gold event - the second-highest tier of professional squash tournaments - this year's finals saw compelling match-ups. The men's final featured the top two seeds - world No.1 Ali Farag of Egypt against No.2 Diego Elias of Peru - while the women's final was a family affair between Belgian sisters Nele and Tinne Gilis. And both finals lived up to their billings. Farag and Elias were locked in a titanic struggle - featuring an intense 30-minute third set - before the Egyptian overcame a slow start to prevail 6-11, 11-4, 14-12, 11-8 after a 78-minute battle to claim his 36th PSA World Tour title. It was his 21st win over 24 meetings with Elias. When I started my career, I would never have thought that I would have 36 titles to my name," the 31-year-old Farag said after his win. "(Malaysia squash great) Nicol David once said that you should cherish these moments while theyre happening, so I'm trying to enjoy every minute of it while improving at the same time. The third set was very crucial. Diego started the match better, he was hitting his marks and I had to change a few things. We had some brutal rallies at the start of the second and in the third we had a really long rally followed by a review and I felt a drop in energy. Thankfully, I managed to recover and then got a good lead in the fourth, and managed to close it out. Squash men's world No.1 Ali Farag (left) returns a shot as world No.2 Diego Elias looks on during their Singapore Squash Open final. (PHOTO: Vincent Thian/Singapore Squash Open) (Vincent Thian) Belgium's Nele Gilis (left) return a shot against her sister Tinne Gilis during the women's final of the Singapore Squash Open. (PHOTO: Vincent Thian/Singapore Squash Open) (Vincent Thian) Family affair as Nele Gilis pips sister Tinne to title Meanwhile, the Gilis sisters took the crowd through a roller-coaster ride of a match, with elder sister Nele storming to a two-set lead before Tinne fought back to send the match into the decisive fifth set. World No.7 Nele, however, steadied herself to finally subdue 10th-ranked Tinne 11-6, 12-10, 8-11, 5-11, 11-4, as the sisters shared a long hug after their match. Story continues "It was already a tough match physically, but the tougher battle was mental," Nele, 27, told Yahoo Southeast Asia after her victory. "Facing your sister on tour, and trying hard to beat her, it's not a nice feeling that's for sure. "I always knew inside that she would make a comeback, so I tried to end the match in the third set, but I didn't succeed. To be honest, the way she won the third and the fourth sets, I thought I had zero chance in the fifth set, but I told myself to reset my emotions, and thankfully I was able to do so." It was the third time the sisters had met in a final on tour, with Nele winning twice (Open de France 2022 and this Singapore Open) and Tinne taking the Annecy Rose trophy last year. Tinne, 26, did not look too unhappy losing to her sister, as the duo smiled and joked with each other after the match. "If I were to lose to her on the tour, it is best to lose in a final, as that would mean she won a title," she said. Such was the air of optimism amid the participating players, that they were able to put aside their rivalries and celebrate Elias' 26th birthday after the two finals. And why not - with squash being included as part of the 2028 Olympics programme and more tournaments being organised around the world, these players have plenty of titles to aim for in the coming years. Farag was even gracious enough to call his finals opponent as the favourite to win the 2028 Olympic squash gold medal, saying, "I'll be 36 by then, so even though I'll give it a shot, it's going to be difficult at the end of my career. But Diego, he'll be in his prime in 2028 and he'll be the one to beat." Do you have a story tip? Email: sgnews.tips@yahooinc.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter. Also check out our Southeast Asia, Food, and Gaming channels on YouTube. SIOUX CITY The Headington Park splash pad project is back on the Sioux City Councils agenda. The council will be asked Monday to adopt plans, specifications, form of contract and estimated cost for the proposed construction of a splash pad at the park, 2951 Isabella St. In August, the council rejected the lone bid for the project from a Pender, Nebraska, construction company because it was substantially higher than the city engineers estimate. When the project was originally bid on April 18, no bids were received. City staff worked with JEO Consulting Group, Inc. to modify the scope of the project to extend the completion date and remove the splash pad features to be bid separately. The project was rebid on Aug. 8. Christiansen Construction Company, of Pender, submitted the sole bid of $755,000. Since the bid was well above the city engineers estimate of $400,000, the council voted to reject it. Headington Park (copy) Headington Park is shown in Sioux City in August. The City Council will be asked Monday to adopt plans, specifications, form of contract and e The project, which is expected to be fully completed by Oct. 15, 2024, includes new construction of a splash pad and general site work, earthwork, seeding, sidewalk construction and concrete slabs. The splash pad features will be provided by the city. Bid alternate 1 is for exterior benches around the splash pad and bid alternate 2 is for installation of umbrella structures around the exterior of the splash pad. If the council approves the agenda item, city staff are ready to go out for bid on the project on Nov. 22. A public hearing will be held on Dec. 4 and bids will be received on Dec. 19. The project will be funded with general obligation bonds and covered under the Capital Improvement Programs aquatic comprehensive plant, which has a total budget of $559,968.38. Downtown infrastructure reconstruction master plan The council will also be asked Monday to approve a resolution adopting a downtown infrastructure reconstruction master plan. Before voting the resolution, the council will hear a presentation about the master plan from city staff and JEO Consulting Group, Inc. The development of the master plan included an overall evaluation of the entire downtown district infrastructure: streets, signals, areaways, utilities including water, sewer, and storm water infrastructure improvements, as well as impacts to economic and community development. The downtown master plan covers approximately 126 blocks in the area of Wesley Parkway to Floyd Boulevard and from Gordon Drive to Eighth Street. According to city documents, JEO Consulting Group, Inc. prepared the master plan for the prioritized water, sewer and storm water infrastructure projects in downtown that required coordination with multiple public and private stakeholders to align timing and priorities of projects. The documents indicate that $1.6 million is being requested in fiscal year 2025 for the first construction project, Eighth Street Reconstruction (Douglas to Nebraska streets). New police vehicle The Sioux City Police Department is planning to replace one of its Drug Task Force vehicles. The vehicle, a 2021 Jeep Laredo, was reimbursed and paid through a federal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Grant. Under the program, vehicles must be replaced every 36 months; the 2021 Jeep would then be rotated into the departments Investigations Bureau fleet, according to council agenda documents. The police department is requesting the council approve a purchase order for a 2024 Kia K5 GT Sedan from Billion Kia of Sioux City, for $31,614. HIDTA funds will be applied to this vehicle as well. MIAMI Hazardous, forced work conditions sometimes akin to slavery have been detected on nearly 500 industrial fishing vessels around the world, but identifying those responsible for abuses at sea is hampered by a lack of transparency and regulatory oversight, a new report concluded. The research by the Financial Transparency Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization that tracks illicit money flows, is the most comprehensive attempt to date to identify the companies operating vessels where tens of thousands of workers every year are estimated to be trapped in unsafe conditions. The report, published Wednesday, found that a quarter of vessels suspected of abusing workers are flagged to China, whose distant water fleet dominates fishing on the high seas, traditionally lawless areas beyond the jurisdiction of any single country. Vessels from Russia, Spain, Thailand, Taiwan and South Korea were also accused of mistreatment of fishers. Forced labor in the seafood industry is a rarely seen but common phenomenon, one increasingly recognized as a widespread human rights crisis, according to the report's authors. The Associated Press in 2015 uncovered the plight of thousands of migrant workers from Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos who were abused while employed on Thai vessels whose catch often ended up in the United States. Globally, as many as 128,000 fishers face threats of violence, debt bondage, excessive overtime and other conditions indicative of forced labor, according to the U.N.'s International Labor Organization. U.S. and European companies are under increasing pressure to clean up supply chains in labor-intensive industries where worker abuse is widespread. The Financial Action Task Force set up by the Group of Seven wealthiest democracies has identified illegal logging and mining as a key driver of money laundering and encouraged its members to set up publicly available databases to raise awareness about the financial flows that fuel environmental crimes. However, the seafood industry has so far escaped the same scrutiny, in part because governments often lack the tools to regulate what takes place hundreds of miles from land. This week, President Joe Biden's administration decided to abandon a planned expansion of the flagship Seafood Import Monitoring Program used to prevent illegal fishing and forced labor on foreign vessels, which supply about 80% of the seafood Americans eat. We are once again seeing the heartbreaking reality of what is happening on some commercial fishing vessels out at sea and its completely unacceptable," Beth Lowell, vice president in the U.S. for the conservation group Oceana, said about the report, which she had no role in. Forced labor and other human rights abuses should not be the cost for a seafood dinner. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Tuesday that it decided to shelve the planned expansion after receiving public feedback on the proposed rule changes and would instead focus its attention on improving the impact of the current import monitoring program, which covers around 1,100 species. Another obstacle to transparency: offenders are frequently licensed by governments like Panama and Belize with reputations for financial secrecy and minimal oversight of their fleets. Of the vessels suspected of abuse and whose ownership could be identified by the Financial Transparency Coalition, 18% flew so-called flags of convenience companies use to avoid careful examination and hide their shareholder structure. The report identified two Chinese companies ZheJiang Hairong Ocean Fisheries Co. and Pingtan Marine Enterprises as the worst offenders, with 10 and seven vessels, respectively, accused of human rights violations. A third company, state-owned China National Fisheries Corp., had five. None of the companies responded to AP's request for comment. But ZheJiang Hairong in a statement last year to the state-owned Fujian Daily claimed ownership of only five of the 10 vessels that would later appear on the Financial Transparency Coalition's list. Pingtan last year was sanctioned by the Biden administration over allegations of illegal fishing and labor abuse. and later saw its shares delisted from the New York Stock Exchange. The Financial Transparency Coalition scoured government reports, media accounts and complaints by advocacy groups to come up with a list of 475 individual vessels suspected of forced labor since 2010. Of that amount, flag information was available for only about half of the total another indication of the need for greater ownership transparency, the group says. What's behind the 62% jump in human trafficking offenses? What's behind the 62% jump in human trafficking offenses? Referrals, prosecutions, and convictions Prior conviction status of offenders State prison admissions DES MOINES Its being proposed that doctors in Iowa would be required to ask multiple questions of rape and incest victims and document their answers before performing an abortion if a woman is more than six weeks pregnant. That requirement is among the rules being proposed for implementing Iowas new abortion law, which would make abortion illegal once a fetus heartbeat can be detected, generally around six weeks. The new law includes an exception under which a woman can have an abortion beyond that six-week mark if her pregnancy is the result of rape or incest. The fetal heartbeat law approved by statehouse Republicans is being challenged before the Iowa Supreme Court. For now, abortion in Iowa remains legal through 20 weeks of pregnancy. If the new law survives that legal challenge, the Iowa Board of Medicine is required by law to adopt rules to govern implementation of the law. The state medicine board rules would go into effect at the same time as the law. Under the proposed rules, when a patient claims to be the victim of rape and asks a physician for an abortion, the physician must ask on what date the rape occurred, how old the patient was at the time of the alleged rape, and when the patient reported the alleged rape to law enforcement or another health agency if it was reported. The physician is to record that information in the patients medical files and determine whether the fetal heartbeat exception for rape applies. The law and proposed rules require similar fact-finding efforts by physicians in cases of incest. TRUST THE DOCTORS On Friday, a state medicine board member asked how a physician determines whether a patient has been raped. An attorney for the Iowa Attorney Generals Office said that under the proposed rules, the physician is required to make that decision. The new law does require the doctor to make that determination, and it does so by setting forth the information that the doctor must gather, Deputy Attorney General Leif Olson told the board. It doesnt specify precisely the questions that have to be asked, Olson said. Its up to the doctor to determine which questions to ask to get to the right answer. And we trust the doctors using their professional judgment to know how to elicit information from a patient to get to the root of a problem. Olson previously worked in the Texas Attorney Generals Office and former President Donald Trumps labor department. DOCTORS AS INVESTIGATORS During the public comment period, Dr. Francesca Turner, an obstetrician/gynecologist in Des Moines, said the proposed rule states that physicians must not only interpret the legal statutes regarding rape and incest, but also ask for facts surrounding the timing of events, such as the occurrence, the reporting, the individuals responsible and their familial relationship to the patient. None of this information is necessary to provide medical care and abortion. Turners statement was signed by 100 Iowa physicians. Dr. Deborah Ann Turner, an obstetrician/gynecologist in Des Moines and recent president of the League of Women Voters of the United States, said, It is clear that these rules are written to assure that most women, and those who can become pregnant, and certainly girls who are a victim of incest or rape, are prevented from access to abortion and choice. Doctors also note it can be difficult for victims to recount the circumstances of traumatic events. Medical experts, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, say whats detected at six weeks of pregnancy is not a heartbeat. Heartbeats, they says, cannot be detected until around 15 to 20 weeks of pregnancy. MAKING THE RULES The Iowa Board of Medicine on Friday voted to publish the proposed rules for public comment and will consider any feedback and discuss them at the boards next meeting in December. Per the normal process, the board has 180 days from when the law was signed to approve rules. That means the board has until Jan. 10 to approve new rules. Iowas rule-making process provides standards and guidelines to assist with the implementation of new state laws. While legislators and the governor pass laws, state boards populated by governor appointees approve the rules that say how the law will be implemented. Olson said the proposed rules for new abortion restrictions in Iowa were drafted by staffers from the state medicine board, the attorney generals office, Health and Human Services Department and the Department of Inspections and Appeals. SIOUX CITY There's help out there for holiday cooks in Siouxland who need an extra hand with the Thanksgiving meal. Melting Cow BBQ in Sioux City is offering pre-orders of the main course for Thanksgiving. Co-owner Nick Carter has been busy preparing smoked bone-in turkey breasts. But that's not all. If you are thinking outside the box for your Thanksgiving menu, Melting Cow is also preparing several barbeque staples for pre-order. For the sweet treats and desserts, crumb. bakery in Sioux City has a pre-order Thanksgiving menu which includes pies, cheesecakes, quiche and rolls. crumb. pumpkin pie Pumpkin pie is a customer favorite this Thanksgiving at Crumb., according to owner Jake Hawkins. Owner of crumb., Jake Hawkins, said he decided to offer a pre-order menu after their Sioux City Farmers Market customers started asking where they could get their pastries after market season ended. crumb. doesn't have a retail space yet. crumb. launched pre-order offerings on the company Facebook page about a week ago and business has been steady. Customer favorites are split between several items. "We are doing a traditional pumpkin pie and then a caramel apple pie with the lattice top and oatmeal crumble underneath that. Those are the top ones," Hawkins said. They also have salted caramel cheesecake, pumpkin swirl and walnut caramel cheesecakes. A pumpkin layer cake and toasted smores chocolate layer cake are also available for order. cinnamon rolls from crumb. crumb. is offering cinnamon rolls on its Thanksgiving pre-order menu this year. Other favorites include carrot cake, their classic cheesecake and cinnamon and pecan rolls. I would encourage people to take advantage of the local bakers that we have. It takes a little bit of stress out of the holiday season by not having to worry about getting desserts and people might want to try something unique to make memories for the day, Hawkins said. Nick Carter and Stacy Johnson, co- owners of Melting Cow BBQ, have smoked turkeys on their menu this Thanksgiving. Smoked Thanksgiving meat at the Melting Cow Nick Carter, co-owner of Melting Cow BBQ, checks on a smoked brisket in Sioux City on Saturday. Smoked Thanksgiving meat at the Melting Cow Nick Carter checks on a rack of ribs cooking on his smoker at the Melting Cow BBQ in Sioux City. Smoked Thanksgiving meat at the Melting Cow Smoked turkeys are on the Thanksgiving menu at Melting Cow BBQ in Sioux City. We just slow smoke it and we make sure not to overcook it, Carter said. Besides turkey, we also offer items like ribs, brisket and stuff like that for anybody who doesn't like turkey. Their pre-order schedule is filling up since they only have so much room in their smoker. Ive been hearing from a lot of people who are very happy for the convenience. People are excited to be able to come and know that I am taking care of the work for them. They can pick it up and head right to their event, Carter said. Smoked Thanksgiving meat at the Melting Cow Racks of ribs and turkeys are smoking at the Melting Cow in preparation for Thanksgiving orders in Sioux City, Iowa, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. Smoked Thanksgiving meat at the Melting Cow Nick Carter, co-owner of the Melting Cow, checks on a smoked brisket in Sioux City, Iowa, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. Smoked Thanksgiving meat at the Melting Cow Nick Carter holds a smoked turkey in preparation for Thanksgiving orders at the Melting Cow in Sioux City, Iowa, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. A few weeks after #MeToo exploded on the internet, an old friend and I did what so many women did during that time: We got on the phone and finally began to acknowledge what had happened to us. My friend shared a story of hers from college. Back then, wed all just considered it a bad date, but she now recognized it as sexual assault. She also shared that at nearly every single job shes had since college, a boss or co-worker has sexually harassed her. The month before our conversation, I had published an essay sharing my own experience of sexual assault while traveling abroad. Like my friend, it was not my only experienceit was one of many. But Id only included the one, because in the early stages of #MeToo, the idea of sharing one assault story still felt risky. The idea of sharing more than one felt culturally impossible. My friend agreed. As a woman, youre only allowed one #MeToo moment, she told me. After that, people begin assuming the problem must be you. Out of the many celebrity #MeToo stories told in the past five years, only a handful have acknowledged the experience of multiple assaults. In an HBO documentary, Alanis Morisette spoke about repeated incidents of statuatory rape that happened when she first entered the music industry, all of which fell on deaf ears when she tried seeking accountability. In her memoir, Selma Blair wrote about a teacher who sexually assaulted her, as well as the many men who raped her in her 20s. In an interview with Dazed, Amber Rose said, I cannot even count how many times a famous guy touched me inappropriately. On a social media post during the Kavanaugh hearings, Tatum ONeal wrote about her multiple assaults: It was not my fault when I was 5, 6, 12, 13, 15. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Stories that emphasize the ubiquitous nature of assault are vital in a world that so often focuses on one dramatic episode, with visceral details of the violation and an easily identifiable villain. This amplifies the false idea that assault is just a singular, horrifying incidentwhen in reality, many of us experience it as part of a larger, more insidious culture. Once a person is assaulted, research shows theyre more likely to be assaulted again, a phenomenon called revictimization. Around 50 percent of children who survive sexual assault reexperience it later in life, and even a single incident of sexual assault in adulthood can increase the risk for it to happen again. As psychologist A.E. Jaffe and her colleagues wrote in a 2019 paper on revictimization: Perhaps the most consistent predictor of future trauma exposure is a history of prior trauma exposure. Advertisement Why would this be? In lieu of a good answer for it (more on that in a moment), we often blame victims themselves. We easily justify these statistics by suggesting that anyone who has survived multiple incidents of violence must be asking for iteither by acting promiscuously, hanging around too many shady men, or getting themselves into precarious situations. One survivor I interviewed told me that though she received some form of victim-blaming in response to all three sexual assaults she experienced, she noticed a stark decrease in support each time it happened again. Advertisement Advertisement After the second and third, some people began saying, Whats happening in your life to attract that? or Do you have enough awareness to know when men want to harm you? she told me. One person even asked why I was trusting men so much. Another friend who experienced multiple assaults went through a similar line of questioning, only with herself. After so many times, I began asking myself, What is it about me that brings on these experiences? she said. I told her I ask myself that question all the time. Advertisement Advertisement In his essay Spectator for Roxane Gays anthology on sexual assault stories, Not That Bad, Brandon Taylor wrote about his best friend telling him she was beginning to think she was just the kind of person this stuff happens to. For a long time, thats what I believed, too. As a travel writer and a single bisexual woman, I figured that at some point, Id pay the price. Eventually, Id have to face some element of physical harmwasnt that the obvious trade-off for attempting a liberated life? To me, survivorshipmore than resilience, bravery, or strengthoften felt like resignation. Advertisement But in some cases, its exactly that resignation that influences repeat assaults. While theres no conclusive evidence as to why revictimization happens, we do know that normalizing assault can contribute to future harm. If a survivor has not internalized their experience as exceptionally traumatic, they are less likely to advocate for themselves, or demand accountability if it happens again. If they, like me, accept violence as an obvious fact of their lives, then when it repeats, they dont seek the support they need to process and heal from each experience. Advertisement In an article for Psychology Today, psychotherapist and clinical social worker Keith Fadelici called this a cognitive accommodation to ongoing violence. The trauma continuously gets downplayed as victims attempt to normalize their assaults, which helps them feel more in control. This dissociative process is a common symptom of PTSD, Fadelici told me. And can also later make survivors less capable of detecting risk by numbing the fear that is supposed to trigger alertness to danger. Oppression also plays a significant role. Those with marginalized identities are more at risk for experiencing assault in general, and thus more likely to experience it again. LGBTQ+ people are four times more likely to be assaulted than the general population (bisexual women and trangender people also are far more likely to experience assault than gay men and lesbian women). Rates of sexual assault for Indigenous women are three times higher than non-Indigenous women, and Black women are much more likely to experience assault than white women. Folks with autism have been found to be more likely to experience sexual assault than others. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement If this is coming up repeatedly with one individual, it might be because that person is within systems and structures that facilitate assault more often, said Jaffe. For those of us living with any of these identities, we normalize violence because living under oppression is consistently violent. In order to survive, a cognitive accommodation to ongoing violence is necessary. We train ourselves to get used to it, and move on. After #MeToo, I began reading and rereading the legal definitions for rape and sexual assault to make sense of what had happened to me. Any sexual contact that occurred without consent constitutes assault? Any sexual contact that included penetration without the other persons consent constitutes rape? The criteria felt almost too easy. Under these standards, I had been raped twice, and assaulted several other timesall stories I had not yet fully internalized, and was not yet ready to tell. Dozens of legal crimes had been committed against my body, but that idea felt so unfathomable I hardly knew what to do next. Advertisement In the three years after publishing that first story, I experienced more incidents, and I still dont know what to call them. I dont feel comfortable firmly declaring them as assault. I dont like how it connects so deeply with an oppressive legal system, and how it automatically connotes some excessive form of violence. Even today, it seems too strong and rough a word for how these episodes played out: often with little physicality, with only brief conflict and polite turns toward quick forgiveness, until weeks later when Id unpack the severity of what had happened. As I began sharing more of these stories with close friends, I would catch myself saying technically before saying I was assaulted, acknowledging the semantic disconnect I still felt. This hesitation is common among many survivors: As one 2019 meta-analysis showed, rates of victimization increase when participants are asked behaviorally descriptive questions about what happened to them, rather than questions that use terms like rape and assault. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Sometimes, people ask How many times all together? I say six-ish, a number that captures the amount of experiences that have dramatically changed the way I relate to my bodyhow it experiences intimacy, how it engages with the world: The one that happened at work, just weeks into my first job out of college. The one at a festival in India. The one while getting a deep-tissue massage. The one at a New York play party. The one so common I learned it has its own name (stealthing). The one with a lover I had loved and trusted deeply. The one with another lover, a violation that was not sexual but physical and thus, as yet another nonconsensual act done against my body, still felt so connected to all the rest. Advertisement And this still does not take into account every time I was nonconsensually touched in publicthe men who pulled and grabbed my arms, my back, my butt, my shoulders to try to get my attention on the streetnor the times Ive been followed, harassed, physically threatened by strangers on the street. The accumulation of more and more of these events creates a compounding impact, one where each additional incident begins to amplify the ones before. For me and most survivors I spoke to, we are not healing from traumawe are learning how to exist in a world where trauma continues to accumulate. Advertisement Advertisement Every survivor I interviewed for this piece told me they fully accept the potential that theyll experience assault in the future. Still, most of them admitted to me that its still easier to only share just one story with the worldnever the full range of what has happened to them. When you only have one story, the enemy is the rapist, one survivor told me. But when you have several people with a lifetime of these experiences, the enemy is all of us. This is what we mean when we talk about rape culture. The first thing we can do to start to dismantle it is to recognize what were up against. The fashion industry is continually changing, especially when it comes to how fashion brands market their products. Influencer marketing has become an increasingly popular trend across industries like beauty and fashion and having a great influencer campaign in place can make a significant difference for brands. Well go through some of the top fashion influencers to follow and partner with if you are looking to build your influencer marketing efforts. What is a fashion influencer? A fashion influencer is someone who has amassed a large following on their fashion blog across platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube. Their power lies in their ability to connect with followers on a personal level while sharing insights, inspirations, and personal style statements. Fashion influencers often become leaders in the industry, dictating trends, and influencing buying behaviors. Selecting Top Fashion Influencers for Brand Partnerships: Our Key Criteria In the dynamic world of fashion, collaborating with the right influencers can significantly boost your brands visibility and appeal. When assessing fashion influencers for potential partnerships, we consider the following criteria, each rated on a scale from 1 (less critical) to 5 (most critical). Drive Traffic to Your Website Sell Your Business Discover the Zoho Ecosystem Advertise Your Business Here Style and Brand Fit: The influencers fashion style should align with your brands aesthetic and values. Importance Scale: 5/5 Audience Demographics and Size: Evaluate the size and demographics of the influencers audience to ensure alignment with your target market. Importance Scale: 5/5 Engagement and Interaction: High engagement rates (likes, comments, shares) indicate a strong connection with the audience, which is crucial for effective promotions. Importance Scale: 5/5 Content Quality and Consistency: The quality and consistency of their content, including images and videos, are important for maintaining a professional brand image. Importance Scale: 4/5 Authenticity and Credibility: Influencers who are authentic and credible in their fashion choices can more effectively influence their audiences buying decisions. Importance Scale: 5/5 Influence in Fashion Trends: Influencers who are trendsetters or have a significant impact on fashion trends can offer greater promotional value. Importance Scale: 4/5 Professionalism and Collaboration History: Review their history of collaborations for professionalism and success in previous partnerships. Importance Scale: 4/5 Creativity and Innovation: Influencers who bring creativity and innovation to their fashion content can create unique and compelling brand stories. Importance Scale: 3/5 Legal and Ethical Compliance: Ensure adherence to advertising standards and ethical practices in promotions and collaborations. Importance Scale: 5/5 ROI and Performance Metrics: Consider the potential return on investment and other performance metrics from the influencers previous brand collaborations. Importance Scale: 4/5 The Fashion Industry in 2023 The fashion industry has shown consistent growth year after year, especially as fashion blogging becomes more popular. There is now more market awareness and interest in fashion trends, especially in luxury fashion. The fashion industry in 2023 is currently predicted to show growth across the industry. Why Your Brand Should Consider Partnering with a Fashion Influencer If youre launching your own clothing line or fashion brand, partnering with a style influencer can be immensely beneficial for your brand. You should also as yourself how do influencers make money as well as how much do influencers make per post. Here are some reasons to consider working with fashion influencers: Build awareness: If youre looking to increase awareness about your fashion brand, collaborating with a fashion influencer should be a major part of your social media marketing strategy. Influencer collaborations are crucial for introducing your brand to new audiences. Increase coverage: Partnering with a top fashion influencer ensures that you will get coverage around your brand and have your own collection featured in popular fashion blogs as a result, which is excellent for your overall PR strategy. Crucial for social media marketing: For top fashion brands, increasing their presence on social media platforms is an integral part of their overall marketing strategy. Clothing lines with a social media presence are much more likely to see better sales, especially if partnering with an influencer that fits the brand well. Top Fashion Influencers in 2023 1. Chrissy Rutherford 168k followers Small Business Deals Chrissy Rutherford Is one of the leading Instagram fashion influencers and has worked with many well-known fashion brands in the luxury space through partnerships and other influencer marketing campaigns. Chrissy Rutherford has built her following due to her unique street style and fashion sense, and she has been in the social media world for over a decade. 2. Cole Sprouse 33.4m followers Cole Sprouse is an actor, photographer, and one of the top male Instagram fashion influencers currently on Instagram with a dedicated following. Although perhaps more well-known for his acting, Cole Sprouse is becoming an emerging style icon when it comes to male fashion and has a unique sense of style that followers really resonate with. 3. Pernille Teisbaek 1.4m followers Pernille Teisbaek is a fashion influencer based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Pernille is a stylist, brand consultant, and fashion influencer with a large following on social media platforms due to her distinctive look and style. Known for her minimalist, chic style and lifestyle content, Pernille Teisbaek has amassed a considerable following on social media. 4. Irene Kim 2.9m followers Irene Kim is a Korean American fashion influencer and one of the top fashion Instagram influencers. Irene Kim is a fashion blogger who has collaborated with many top brands and has her own fashion lines. Known for her street style and creative looks, she has built a strong personal brand and clothing brand. 5. Danielle Bernstein 3.2m followers Danielle Bernstein is one of the top style influencers on social media, who owns her own label while also running a popular fashion blog. Danielle Bernstein is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology and runs her own lifestyle blog. She is one of the top Instagram fashion influencers currently in the fashion world. 6. Mariano Di Vaio 6.9m followers Mariano Di Vaio is a fashion designer and Italian blogger with a resume boasting creative director positions at fashion brands such as Hugo Boss and Dolce & Gabbana. Mariano Di Vaio is one of the top fashion Instagram influencers for men and has built successful brands for himself, as well as highlighting mens style in the fashion space. 7. Camila Coelho 10m followers If youre seeking out top fashion influencers, Camila Coelho is one to consider. Camila Coelho is a designer and influencer known for her unique style. Camila Coelho has worked with many of the leading brands in the fashion world, and her partnerships include collaborations with brands such as Christian Dior and Tory Burch, and her lifestyle content consistently garners a lot of views and attention. 8. Essie Golden 182k followers Essie Golden is one of the most popular fashion bloggers on Instagram and has built her brand by promoting a positive body image and has become a plus-size style icon. Known for eclectic style, bold color choices, and unique look, Essie Golden has become a favorite for beauty brands and fashion brands looking to gain new audiences. 9. Charlotte Saunders 570k followers If youre seeking out top Instagram fashion influencers, Charlotte Saunders fits the bill. Charlotte Saunders is one of the more popular fashion bloggers on social media and has built a following for herself through her chic, minimal style. Her distinct personal style and lifestyle content has made her very popular on Instagram. Charlotte Saunders Instagram also features lifestyle and other types of content as well, all documented in her own style for followers to enjoy. 10. Rochelle Johnson 478k followers Rochelle Johnson is a fashion blogger and plus-size style consultant from the US. Her platform is built to inspire women, and showcase body positivity, similar to Essie Golden, and her Instagram account has seen consistent growth over time. Rochelle Johnson has partnered with brands such as Nordstrom and Walmart to showcase affordable fashion options for plus-size women. 11. Noha Nabil 12.4m followers Noha Nabil is a Youtuber and social media influencer from Kuwait. She is ranked as one of the most influential Arab women in social media and has collaborated with major fashion houses such as Fendi, Giorgio Armani, Givenchy, and more. She has grown her following through her Instagram account and her Youtube channel. Noha Nabil has since launched her lifestyle brand, including cosmetics and beauty products that are gaining popularity. 12. Chiara Ferragni 29.5m followers Arguably one of the leading fashion influencers on social media platforms like Instagram, Chiara Ferragnis fashion blog is a major part of a new era of fashion blogs. Chiara Ferragni started her career as a blogger and was profiled in Teen Vogue for Blog of the Year. Chiara Ferragni also has her own fashion label alongside her blogging and has built an immensely popular brand, solidifying herself as one of the top fashion influencers in the space. 13. Xenia 2.1m followers Xenia is a Swiss-Russian fashion influencer and was ranked as one of the most influential women in the world at one point in time. She frequently attends fashion shows while also cementing herself as one of the top fashion influencers currently. Xenias blog highlights her luxury fashion aesthetic, as well as her travels, as part of her overall lifestyle brand. Name Followers Background & Expertise Style & Niche Brand Collaborations & Achievements Chrissy Rutherford 168k Leading Instagram fashion influencer with over a decade of experience Unique street style Partnerships with well-known luxury brands Cole Sprouse 33.4m Actor, photographer, emerging style icon in male fashion Unique sense of male fashion Becoming a top male Instagram fashion influencer Pernille Teisbaek 1.4m Copenhagen-based stylist, brand consultant, and fashion influencer Minimalist, chic style Large following due to distinctive look Irene Kim 2.9m Korean American fashion influencer, fashion blogger, and owner of fashion lines Street style, creative looks Collaborations with top brands, own clothing brand Danielle Bernstein 3.2m Owner of her label, graduate of Fashion Institute of Technology, top style influencer Running popular fashion & lifestyle blog One of the top Instagram fashion influencers in the fashion world Mariano Di Vaio 6.9m Italian blogger and fashion designer; creative director at Hugo Boss and Dolce & Gabbana Highlights men's style in fashion space Built successful brands for himself Camila Coelho 10m Designer and influencer known for unique style Unique fashion style Collaborations with brands like Christian Dior and Tory Burch Essie Golden 182k Promotes positive body image and a plus-size style icon Eclectic style, bold color choices Favored by beauty and fashion brands for unique look Charlotte Saunders 570k Popular fashion blogger with chic, minimal style Chic, minimal style Distinct personal style and lifestyle content on Instagram Rochelle Johnson 478k Plus-size style consultant from the US, promoting body positivity Plus-size style Partnerships with Nordstrom and Walmart for affordable plus-size fashion Noha Nabil 12.4m Influential Arab woman in social media, Youtuber from Kuwait Lifestyle brand including cosmetics and beauty Collaborations with major fashion houses like Fendi, Giorgio Armani, etc. Chiara Ferragni 29.5m Leading fashion influencer; started as a blogger, has own fashion label Major part of new era of fashion blogs Blog of the Year in Teen Vogue, own immensely popular brand Xenia 2.1m Swiss-Russian fashion influencer, attended fashion shows Luxury fashion aesthetic, travels Ranked as one of the most influential women in the world These top beauty influencers have reach across different platforms, so the top TikTok influencers can also be huge YouTube influencers as well as have a presence on Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and others. How to Find a Fashion Influencer Finding top fashion influencers can often be challenging for brands, but here are some ways to search for the best influencer for your brand: Look at fashion blogs: Many of the top fashion influencers currently on social media are consistently covered by fashion blogs, and you can find the right influencer depending on the style youre seeking. Additionally, many fashion blogs cover specific types of styles such as street, luxury, minimal and more and will feature top influencers as examples. Seek out people in fashion: Many fashion influencers also have professional roles within the industry, e.g., as fashion editors for magazines, or other publications. You can find influential people within the industry by seeking out professionals. Research collaborations: Collaborations can give you a good insight into what kind of fashion the influencer is into and what their audience is like. Many of the top fashion influencers have done large campaigns on Instagram with luxury fashion and beauty brands such as Louis Vuitton, Giorgio Armani Beauty, and leading retailer brands that you can use as a springboard to find influencers for your campaigns. Who is the biggest fashion influencer? The biggest fashion influencer is Chiara Ferragni, as she is solely focused on her Instagram blog and clothing brands. However, she has been featured in leading fashion publications and has collaborated with some of the biggest names in fashion over the span of her career. What top influencer is also a fashion designer? Danielle Bernstein is a top influencer who is also a fashion designer and has her own clothing and lifestyle brands. Which influencers have worked with the biggest fashion brands? Chiara Ferragni, Mariano Di Vaio, and Camila Coelho are all influencers that have worked with some of the biggest fashion brands in the world in terms of partnerships and collaborations. Which fashion influencer has the most Instagram followers? Chiara Ferragni is one of the most popular fashion influencers currently and has the most Instagram followers. In todays world, social media has become the new social proof. And social media marketing has become an indispensable tool for leveraging products and services. Besides running ad campaigns through social media more companies are looking to influencers to connect brands with customers. Customers today are ever more looking towards influencers to get insights into product reviews, seek knowledge on issues and connect with individuals with whom to share common issues. Essentially an influencer produces compelling content that influences potential buyers of a product or service by promoting or recommending the items on social media. With the advent of influencer marketing driven by the advent of social media personalities, brands and businesses are more than ever looking for influencers to help them connect with customers. In todays global marketplace more and more consumers trust the recommendations made by their favorite influencers. In fact, global influencer marketing is expected to grow to $16.4 billion in 2022, up from $ 13.8 billion in 2021. Influencer marketing agencies are taking advantage of trends by helping facilitate collaborations between brands and influencers to connect audiences with their products and/or services. Drive Traffic to Your Website Discover the Zoho Ecosystem Sell Your Business Advertise Your Business Here Read More: How to Be an Influencer. What are Influencer Marketing Agencies? Influencer marketing agencies work with brands and influencers to run influencer campaigns mostly through social media. The influencer marketing agency uses social media influencers who come with their own sizeable following, creative style, and a captivated audience to help create strong connections with brands and companies by developing and personalizing campaigns. Read More: Whats an Influencer. Why You Should Use an Influencer Agency for Your Business We live in an age where customers are looking toward social proof for their purchase decision-making. In an ever more connected world through Tiktok, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook influencers command a high level of following offering some unique customer acquisition for businesses and brands through influencer marketing campaigns. Influencer marketing companies can help boost your marketing strategy by creating unique interactions and engagements with customers. Benefits of working with an influencer marketing agency include: Small Business Deals Help you ease into influencer marketing easily : An influencer agency can help you by taking a lot of the guesswork out of the influencer marketing process. It can set up a strategy and identify core campaign goals by vetting influencers for you, while handling most of the heavy lifting that includes building, running campaigns, and working with each influencer. : An influencer agency can help you by taking a lot of the guesswork out of the influencer marketing process. It can set up a strategy and identify core campaign goals by vetting influencers for you, while handling most of the heavy lifting that includes building, running campaigns, and working with each influencer. Offer valuable insights: The greatest thing about digital marketing is that you get access to lots of insights into how audiences react to your campaign. Besides running campaigns, an agency can offer insights on how people relate to the brand, where customer pain points exist, and how you stack against the competition. The greatest thing about digital marketing is that you get access to lots of insights into how audiences react to your campaign. Besides running campaigns, an agency can offer insights on how people relate to the brand, where customer pain points exist, and how you stack against the competition. Generate leads: An influencer marketing company comes with its own influencer network and can help with lead generation by increasing interest among potential customers. Influencers can offer you a unique opportunity to reach your target audience. An influencer marketing company comes with its own influencer network and can help with lead generation by increasing interest among potential customers. Influencers can offer you a unique opportunity to reach your target audience. Drive traffic to your website/ online store: Through social media influencers you can use product placements, influencer endorsements, and call to action to drive traffic to your website or your online store by encouraging click-throughs. Assessing Top Influencer Marketing Agencies for Your Business Selecting the right influencer marketing agency is a crucial decision. To guide you in this process, weve identified key factors to evaluate, each with a scale of importance from 1 (less critical) to 5 (most critical). Here are the key criteria we considered when compiling the following list. Agencys Track Record and Reputation: Assess the agencys history of successful campaigns and its reputation in the industry. Importance Scale: 5/5 Quality and Relevance of Their Network: Examine the quality and relevance of influencers in their network to your target audience and industry. Importance Scale: 5/5 Strategy and Creativity: Consider the agencys ability to devise creative and effective strategies tailored to your brands needs. Importance Scale: 4/5 Data-Driven Approach: An agency that uses data analytics to inform strategies and measure campaign effectiveness is vital. Importance Scale: 5/5 Transparency and Communication: Evaluate how transparent the agency is about its processes, pricing, and communication with clients. Importance Scale: 4/5 ROI and Performance Metrics: Look at the agencys track record in delivering measurable results and ROI for its clients. Importance Scale: 5/5 Compliance and Ethical Standards: Ensure the agency adheres to legal and ethical standards, especially in influencer disclosures and data privacy. Importance Scale: 5/5 Cost Effectiveness: Consider the cost of the agencys services against the potential return and value they bring to your business. Importance Scale: 4/5 Adaptability to Trends: The agency should be adaptable to changing trends and capable of updating strategies accordingly. Importance Scale: 3/5 Client Support and After-Service: Good client support during and after campaigns is essential for a successful ongoing partnership. Importance Scale: 4/5 Top Influencer Agencies in 2022 Below are some of the top global influencer marketing agencies that can help you with your influencer marketing needs: 1. The Influencer Marketing Factory The Influencer Marketing Factory is a leading influencer marketing agency. It is a full-service influencer marketing agency and is considered among the leading influencer marketing agencies. Its influencer marketing services include helping clients understand their Key Performance Indicators (KPI), identifying the right influencers, working on the campaign narrative and storytelling, and managing the execution, and finalizing of campaigns with tracking and in-depth reporting. The Influencer Marketing Factory agency lists Google, Amazon, Facebook, Dunkin among many of its clients. 2. Pulse Advertising Pulse Advertising is a global influencer marketing agency that helps brands and businesses to win and retain customers through influencer and social media marketing. Its solutions include social media strategy, creative storytelling, influence marketing, paid social media advertising, social media management, and more. 3. August United August United helps brands vet influencers by using IBM Watson and Google AI to pull psychographic influencer data. Its influencer marketing solutions include campaign strategy, activation, network, content creation, real-time data tracking, and more. Some of its clients include Microsoft, Persil, PetSmart, Kroger, and others. 4. Obviously Obviously is a leading influencer marketing and creative agency that offers complete influencer solutions to its clients. Its services include strategy, influencer management, content creation, paid amplification, and reporting. It also offers a client dashboard where clients can get updates in real-time at every stage of a campaign. Obviously lists Lyft, Converse, and bumble among its many clients. 5. impact impact.com is a partnership management platform that works on affiliate marketing, influencer marketing, commerce content publishers, B2B, and more. Through its proprietary analytics platform, Activate, it helps businesses and brands to build authentic, enduring, and rewarding relationships with both creatives and consumers. Tinder, reebok, Olay, and H&M are among its clients. 6. Americanoize Americanoize is an influencer marketing agency that offers end-to-end influencer marketing services. It helps brands in designing customized strategies, vet influencers, runs influencer marketing campaigns, and even offers insights and metrics. In addition, it helps brands in achieving their goals, such as traffic, conversions, engagement, awareness, and sales. 7. NeoReach. NeoReach is a full-service influencer marketing agency that takes a data-driven approach to integrated campaign strategy, creator selection, management, and paid amplification. It specializes in campaign strategy; creative brief development; influencer sourcing and scheduling; content licensing and compliance; reporting and insights; paid social amplification; experiential activations and more. 8. HireInfluence HireInfluence influencer agencys services range from campaign ideation and creative concepts to hands-on influencer sourcing/casting/management. Among its solution on offer include experiential ideation and fulfillment; creative talent sourcing and placement; strategic campaigns content amplification; on-site brand promo and events; paid media management solutions and more. 9. Intellifluence Intellifluence is an influencer marketing platform that helps brands and influencers collaborate. It offers an all-in-one solution that incorporates influencer discovery, payments, and messaging tools. In addition, it has more than 9,000 influencers across multiple social media platforms ranging from Blogs to YouTube and more. 10. GRIN GRIN is an all-in-one creator management platform helping e-commerce companies build more valuable brands through the power of creator partnerships. It helps brands to discover and recruit influencers; nurture relationships; report, analyze and refine campaigns. 11. Fanbytes Fanbytes helps brands connect with Gen Z creators and run global influencer campaigns. They offer a solution where clients can approve influencers and content from one central dashboard. It also offers clients actionable metrics that include clicks, installs, and branded engagement. 12. Viral Nation Viral Nation helps offer businesses with their influencer campaigns through paid boosting, whitelisting, retargeting, experiential, and more. Its services include global activations; research and strategy; talent discovery and management; content creation; Ambassador programs; reporting and analytics; localization and more. 13. Moburst Moburst helps businesses with their influencer campaign planning and strategy. Among the solutions, it offers to include influencer research and recruitment; creative content production; influencer monitoring; analytics and reporting; campaign optimization; mobile marketing and more. 14. Ubiquitous Ubiquitous is a full-service influencer marketing agency that offers solutions to clients through creator-led organic content. It uses predictive analytics and machine learning in addition to influencer sourcing and contracting complete creative services for influencer campaign strategy, and more. 15. Influence Nation Influence Nation is a full-service influencer marketing company. It touts itself as having more than 3,000 Influencers across all consumer verticals and social platforms ready to create original, high-quality, appealing content to drive engagement for brands in a relevant way with their target audience. The solutions on offer include brand storytelling, content syndication/amplification, consumer product reviews, marketing research, and consumer insights. It also provides clients with measurement metrics that include: clicks, page views, video views, reach, impressions, follows, entries, comments, search results, hashtag usage, and more. 16. Socialfly Socialfly is a full-service social media marketing agency that specializes in full campaign strategy and management. Its influencer marketing services offer paid partnerships, Ambassador programs, whitelisting, gifting and product seeding, giveaways, contests, influencer events, and more. Its clients include CONAIR, Discovery, BASF, Girl Scouts, Slim-Fast, and others. 17. Kairos Media Kairos Media is a full-service agency that delivers creative strategies and execution for brands. It handles influencer sourcing, influencer relationships, creating content, executes strategic campaigns, performance reporting, paid media, and more. Its team also does social and digital planning, media buying, and audience analytics with its proprietary software, Kairos Insights. 18. inBeat Agency inBeat Agency is an influencer marketing agency that specializes in micro-influencer campaigns. They offer creative and innovative, data-driven campaigns to generate leads and sales for Direct to Customer (DTC) brands. Its popular clients include 7-Eleven, Nordstrom, New Balance, Disney, and others. 19. Get Hyped Get Hyped is a marketing agency that specializes in social media marketing solutions for clients ranging from small firms to large businesses. Its influencer marketing solutions include raising brand awareness, driving website and store traffic, content production, building brand loyalty, and more. 20. Openinfluence Openinfluence is an influencer agency that offers solutions for brands to connect with consumers through content. Its services include strategy development, creator discovery, campaign management, content syndication, analysis, and reporting. 21. IMA Agency IMA Agency is a digital influencer marketing agency. It offers its clients a range of solutions that include influencer, search, talent relations, contracting, production, onsite event management, paid socials, reporting, and analytics. 22. #paid #paid is an influencer marketing agency that offers matching services with creators. Its platform enables users to collaborate with content creators and publish posts to reach the targeted audience. Users can also collaborate with influencers on various pitches and pre-approve content on a unified interface where teams can approve and schedule posts and share feedback with creators. 23. Audiencly Audiencly helps to connect companies of all types and sizes with influencers and content creators around the world. It offers all-around management for influencers and supports companies in developing marketing strategies. Its influencer management process includes sponsoring, channel management, creative, event management, and product distribution. 24. Sugarfree Sugarfree offers creative influencer marketing campaigns that are data-driven. and that gets to the heart and soul of your brand story. Its services include content creation, strategy direction, influencer recruitment, contracting, and reporting. Sugarfree employs a diverse group of marketing professionals, social media gurus, talented creators, and data analytics. 25. Social Studies Social Studies helps connect businesses with influencers through implementing creative marketing strategies to expand brands voices. Its services include research and strategy; paid media strategy and execution; talent management; campaign optimization; reporting and more. 26. Carusele Carusele is an influencer agency that provides both full-service program management, in addition, to support services for in-house teams. It touts of its capability to track, test, and score in real-time each the content they produce. It also provides users with the Content Performance Index, an algorithmic ranking of the performance of all the clients content. In addition, with iStack, automates the ranking of influencer performance in every campaign. How to Choose an Influencer Agency for Your Business An influencer marketing agency helps you by doing the heavy lifting that requires in selecting the best influencer that is a right fit for your brand some tips you can use to choose an influencer marketing agency include: Check their pricing: Before signing with an influencer marketing agency make sure that the fees for the services dont break the bank. There are agencies that offer robust features and charge hefty fees, chose one that offers the best services at the right price. Before signing with an influencer marketing agency make sure that the fees for the services dont break the bank. There are agencies that offer robust features and charge hefty fees, chose one that offers the best services at the right price. Find out who they work with: when out shopping for an influencer marketing agency make sure to check the agencys track record. Look at what kind of campaigns they are great at, whether they align with your needs, see whether their specialties lie in your industry, and the number of years of experience they have. when out shopping for an influencer marketing agency make sure to check the agencys track record. Look at what kind of campaigns they are great at, whether they align with your needs, see whether their specialties lie in your industry, and the number of years of experience they have. To evaluate an agencys efficiency: check to see the features and services on offer are those that you require, who their clients are, what their testimonials say about them, and who are the influencers that work with them. check to see the features and services on offer are those that you require, who their clients are, what their testimonials say about them, and who are the influencers that work with them. Offer consistent reporting and analytics: your influencer marketing agency should help provide you with detailed reports throughout the campaign to show whats working and whats not. They should come with metrics like reach, impressions, clicks, and conversions to boost lead generation and sales. These insights will help you make informed decisions for future campaigns. Aspect Tips Pricing Consider agency fees in relation to offered services. Opt for quality services at a reasonable price. Track Record Examine the agency's past campaigns, specialties, and industry alignment. Years of experience are vital. Efficiency Ensure the agency's offerings match your needs. Look at their client list, testimonials, and influencers. Reporting & Analytics Prioritize agencies providing detailed campaign reports with metrics like reach, impressions, and clicks. What is the best influencer marketing agency in 2022? The Influencer Marketing Factory is considered among the top influencer marketing agency offering its services across several industries that include retail, e-commerce, consumer products, hospitality and leisure, and others. It helps brands connect with customers by offering targeting and micro-influencer campaigns over several platforms that include TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Twitch, and more. How much does it cost to hire an influencer marketing agency? On average, influencer marketing agency prices range from $1000 to $18,000 per month. Prices are determined by the number of services being offered such as analytics, production, vetting, contracting, web development, running campaigns, social media marketing, payments being made to influencers, and others. How many influencer marketing agencies are there? In 2020, there were 1,360 influencer marketing agencies and platforms worldwide which is over seven times the number reported in 2015. As more businesses and brands look towards influencer marketing to further leverage their products and services the number of influencer marketing agencies is expected to continue growing. https://sputnikglobe.com/20231118/dehumanizing-muslim-and-arab-congressional-staffers-feel-betrayed-by-capitol-hill-employers-1115050979.html Dehumanizing: Muslim and Arab Congressional Staffers Feel 'Betrayed' by Capitol Hill Employers Dehumanizing: Muslim and Arab Congressional Staffers Feel 'Betrayed' by Capitol Hill Employers Muslim and Arab US Congressional staffers shared their frustration over legislators apparent lack of concern over a climbing death toll in Gaza in a report in US media Saturday. 2023-11-18T23:15+0000 2023-11-18T23:15+0000 2023-11-18T23:15+0000 americas gaza israel-gaza conflict gaza strip us politics capitol hill /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/0a/16/1114399494_0:160:3072:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_3f66eb75af3a429e97a9be6d2a49424a.jpg Muslim and Arab US Congressional staffers shared their frustration over legislators apparent lack of concern over a climbing death toll in Gaza in a report in US media Saturday.They have the same faith as us, have the same names as us, a lot of our families live in the region, said one Capitol Hill employee. So when we hear that dehumanizing language, its dehumanizing us My life would not matter to this place if I had been born somewhere else.Each staffer interviewed for the article requested anonymity, fearing reprisal as critics of Israels month-long attack on the Gaza Strip have often faced firings and other disciplinary action from employers on Capitol Hill. Congressional staffers spoke of an environment that reminded them of the days after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, even as Muslim and Arab representation has increased in the country over recent years. That perception was reinforced after Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) advocated US support for what he called Israels religious war.We cant even start a conversation about whether whats going on in Palestine is in our national interest, said one staffer. Were finding that you can come to the table with every possible qualification, but just by coming to the table as a Muslim American, your opinion will be cast aside as biased.Another staffer recounted the congressman they work for helping to organize transportation for Tuesdays March for Israel, an event on Washington DCs National Mall where legislators spoke before pro-Israel constituents. Official backing for the event was seen to legitimize support for Israel, while concern over the deaths of Palestinians was seen as an afterthought.Newly-minted House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) instigated a chant of no ceasefire! among the gathered crowd on Tuesday. Activist groups in the US have called for a suspension of hostilities in the besieged Gaza enclave as the death toll there has surpassed 11,000, including at least 4,500 children.If moderate and liberal legislators reaction to the crisis has been seen as underwhelming by Arab and Muslim staffers, Johnsons response represents the outright hostility theyve perceived from more conservative members of Congress. Representative Virginia Foxx (R-NC) accused a constituent of support for Hamas after they sent an email calling for an end to Gazas siege and a restoration of electricity to its hospitals.When a reporter asked Foxxs office for comment, they demanded to know the identity of the person who leaked her offices email response.Staffers expressed an overall sense of powerlessness over the issue. One recalled breaking down in tears in front of their boss who had refused to support a ceasefire. Another recounted expressing fear for their relatives in Palestinian territories.US Congressional leadership has continued to organize events mourning the deaths of some 1,200 Israelis during Hamas October 7 attack more than a month later. But one congressional staffer described feeling invisible after an invitation to a candlelight vigil made no mention of the thousands of casualties in Gaza. She privately wept in a stairwell of a House office building.Several of the children who have died have not only looked like me or my siblings but bore my name, said another staffer. Literally you have people working in this building who know people who have died because of the policies this institution is supporting.The staffer said the home of a friend had been destroyed in an Israeli bomb attack last month. The friend survived but spent hours trapped underneath her mothers body in the rubble of the building.Inside I feel like Im being torn apart, said the staffer of their experience working in Congress amidst the crisis. I cannot wait to leave every day.At the end of the day, do they really think my life matters? asked another. Staffers noted that not even the presence of US citizens trapped in Gaza has seemed to generate urgency on Capitol Hill.Hundreds of thousands of Americans have protested US support for Israel's military in recent weeks, with many of those demonstrations being led by Jewish groups like If Not Now and Jewish Voice for Peace.Some legislators have responded by calling for the disbanding of pro-Palestine activist groups. Florida governor Ron DeSantis (R) recently ordered the dissolution of chapters of the group Students for Justice in Palestine on the states college campuses, triggering a lawsuit with the backing of the American Civil Liberties Union.The saga has prompted a debate over the limits of free speech in the United States, with some lawmakers even demanding the banning of social media platforms where users share pro-Palestine views. americas gaza gaza strip capitol hill Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International gaza strip, islam, israel-palestine, palestinian-israeli conflict, capitol hill, us politics, dc staffers, capitol hill staffers Dog meat traders up in arms over gov't plan to end dog meat consumption https://sputnikglobe.com/20231118/uk-government-keeping-dossiers-on-critics---reports-1115050653.html UK Government Keeping Dossiers on Critics - Reports UK Government Keeping Dossiers on Critics - Reports Media reported that 15 departments, including the departments of health, culture, media and sport, and environment, were running checks on experts and occasionally disinviting them from government-funded events. 2023-11-18T22:51+0000 2023-11-18T22:51+0000 2023-11-18T22:51+0000 world united kingdom (uk) uk government blacklisting /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/05/1b/1110641258_0:160:3072:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_66d84b5b0897f639270ed553d19c99d3.jpg The Observer revealed on Saturday that 15 departments, including the departments of health, culture, media and sport, and environment, food and rural affairs, were running checks on experts and occasionally disinviting them from government-funded events. Guidelines, seen by the paper, told officials to monitor social media of potential invitees as well as look through a minimum of five to 10 pages of Google search results on them covering a period of three to five years, and keep that information "for future reference." The Observer broke the story about the Department for Education vetting its speakers in October but the true scale of the profiling was uncovered only recently by human rights experts at law firm Leigh Day. Tessa Gregory, partner at Leigh Day, argued that such hidden checks were unlawful and running contrary to data protection laws. "This is likely to have impacted large numbers of individuals, many of whom wont know civil servants hold secret files on them. Such practices are extremely dangerous," she told the Observer. Dan Kaszeta, a chemical weapons expert, hired Leigh Day to take the government to judicial review after learning that he was disinvited from a UK defense conference in April for writing critical posts online. He said he knew other victims of government blacklisting, most of whom were frightened of speaking out. united kingdom (uk) Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International uk, uk government, blacklisting, government corruption, report https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/does-israel-export-oil-and-gas-1115058295.html Does Israel Export Oil and Gas? Does Israel Export Oil and Gas? The unfolding Gaza war has prompted fears of a potential disruption of energy commodity delivery to the global market. How could the conflict derail the trade? 2023-11-19T17:39+0000 2023-11-19T17:39+0000 2023-11-19T17:39+0000 world middle east israel egypt tel aviv israel defense forces (idf) leviathan energean genie energy recep tayyip erdogan /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/102581/08/1025810840_0:183:3858:2353_1920x0_80_0_0_62ba7311409b32d31c4a8880392f3492.jpg Israel used to be a net importer of fossil fuels some decades ago. However, discoveries of oil and gas in the hydrocarbon-rich region have made the Jewish state largely self-sufficient. Recently, Israel has become an exporter of natural gas, which helped it strengthen ties with neighboring Muslim states prior to the bloodbath in Gaza.Why Does Israel Still Import Crude and Could That Change?In September 1955, oil was discovered in Heletz, a moshav (a cooperative association of Israeli smallholders) founded in 1950 in the middle of a triangle formed by Ashkelon, Kiryat Gan and Sderot near the Gaza Strip. Exploratory work kicked off in 1947 with 33 wells having been drilled by the end of 1957 and oil extraction beginning in 1960. The field contained an estimated 94.4 million barrels of crude.In addition, Israel sits on a Meged oil field located near the towns of Kfar Saba and Rosh Ha'Ayin that was first discovered in the 1980s. The site's proven oil reserves amount to about 1,525 million barrels, and extraction started in 2010. However, being located close to the border between Israel and the West Bank, the Meged oil field remains subject to an ownership rights dispute.In 1967, Israel capitalized on its victory in the Six-Day War and started to exploit the Sinai oil fields captured from Egypt at the time. During Israel's 12-year-long occupation of Sinai, the Jewish state discovered and developed the offshore Alma oil field. Production began in the spring of 1978, reaching an average daily output of 32,000 barrels (at times going as high as 40,000 barrels per day). According to some estimates, the continued development of the field would make Israel self-sufficient in energy by 1990. However, Tel Aviv sacrificed this oil treasure for a peace agreement with Egypt in March 1979.Another gain of the June 1967 Six-Day War was the Golan Heights, seized by Israel from Syria. In 2015, oil was discovered in the occupied land which Israeli lawmakers voted to annex in 1981. Afek Oil and Gas, a subsidiary of the American company Genie Energy, announced in October 2015 that the Golan Heights potentially contain billions of barrels of oil, which would be enough to satiate Israel's 210,000- barrel-per-day consumption for decades to come. However, Tel Aviv's plans to extract oil in the occupied Golan territories were met with fierce international criticism. Some observers suggested that US President Donald Trump's decision to recognize the Golan Heights as Israeli territory in 2019 was largely triggered by the 2015 oil discovery.Fully-fledged extraction at Karish started in October 2022 with an initial production capacity of 6.5 billion cubic meters of gas a year in 4-6 months, as per S&P Global. According to some estimates, the field's recoverable reserves amount to 1.4 trillion cubic feet (39.6 billion cubic meters) of gas and 61 million barrels of liquids.Meanwhile, it is believed that Israel may have large reserves of shale oil which is allegedly concentrated in the Shefela basin (estimated reserves at 34 billion tons), located southwest of Jerusalem, as well as in the north of the Negev Desert (Rotem-Yamin, Mishash and Ghareb structures). Geological exploration in the Shefela Basin was conducted by Israel Energy Initiatives, a subsidiary of American company Genie Energy.How Israeli Offshore Gas Fields Created Export OpportunitiesWhile Israel could hardly be called an oil-rich country, it still can boast its natural gas deposits. Between 2005 and 2012, Israel had imported gas from Egypt, but these supplies had been repeatedly interrupted over sabotage attacks and, in 2011, because of the Arab Spring events. Under these conditions, Israel needed domestic sources of the commodity.Natural gas was first found offshore Israel in the so-called Noa field in the Mediterranean in 1999. However, it was decided at the time that the deposit was too small for commercial use. Still, the next year, the Mari-B field was discovered nearby and has begun supplying gas to Israeli power plants since 2004.In 2009, US company Noble Energy and its Israeli partners started exploration works at the Tamar offshore field which is believed to hold around 315 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas. In April 2013, Israel kicked off fuel production to meet domestic energy needs.Then, Tanin and Karish fields were found in 2012 and 2013, respectively, in the Levantine Basin of the Mediterranean Sea. Their combined reserves are estimated at 75 bcm of natural gas. The search for new gas deposits has not stopped since then: to date, Israel has discovered 11 gas fields.As per a report prepared by accounting company BDO Global in June 2023 for the Israeli Natural Gas Trade Association, Israel's natural gas reserves have grown by 40% from 780 bcm in 2012 to 1,087 bcm at the end of 2022 due to extensive drilling and exploration activities.In January 2017, Israel started to sell the fuel abroad. Its first customer was Jordan. Jordanian firms Arab Potash and Jordan Bromine inked a deal with Israel in 2014 to receive gas from the Tamar field. The Israeli press noted that the deal was shrouded in secrecy since it was unpopular with the population of the MidEast kingdom, almost half of whom are of Palestinian origin. Even though Jordan signed a peace deal with Israel in 1994, protests were expected. To calm the public down, Jordanian Information Minister Mohamed Momani told state television that the energy agreement with Israel would slash $600 million a year from the state's energy bill.Three years later, Israel started gas exports to Egypt another country it had a peace treaty with from the Leviathan field in January 2020. However, per Israeli scholars, the nation's gas bonanza created opportunities to sell the commodity elsewhere, including Europe and Asia.Israel to Capitalize on EU Gas Market Amid Anti-Russia SanctionsTo expand the geography of its gas supplies, Israel and Egypt agreed to use the North African country's two liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants to chill and liquefy the Jewish state's fuel. In mid-June 2022, the EU, Egypt and Israel signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to export Israeli LNG to Europe.The deal came at the time when Europe moved to sever energy ties with Russia over the latter's special military operation in Ukraine, which started on February 24, 2022. Following Washington's suit, Europe started phasing out the consumption of Russia's cheap pipeline gas, trying to at least partially supplement it by chilled fuel from various suppliers, including the US and Middle Eastern and African gas producers.To that end, the Jewish state stepped up its gas supplies to Egypt. In August, Israeli Energy Minister Israel Katz said that Israel was seeking to increase exports to Egypt by an additional 38.7 bcm over the next 11 years.To explore the European market, Israel has been considering a number of options: one of them was a US-backed EastMed project to carry Egyptian and Israeli gas to Europe through an offshore pipeline bypassing Turkiye. However, in April 2022, Biden administration officials signaled that the EastMed "was not viable" citing cost-related issues.Another option considered by Tel Aviv envisaged building a gas pipeline to Turkiye and then directing the fuel to Europe. Ankara expressed interest in the project with Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar telling the press on October 5: "Carrying the gas to Europe via Turkiye is solely a part of the scope. Essential is Israeli gas coming to Turkiye." However, the obstacle in the path of the project was strained relations between Turkiye and Cyprus, the island which has remained divided since the Turkish invasion of 1974. A potential offshore pipeline had to pass through Cyprus' water zone and required a settlement of territorial disputes between Turkiye, Turkish and Greek Cypriots.The third option, advocated by the Cypriot government, envisioned building a pipeline that would carry Israeli and Cypriot offshore gas (including that from the mutually contested Aphrodite deposit) to the east Mediterranean island nation where it would be liquefied and then sold to Europe or elsewhere.How Gaza War Affects Israel Energy Export-ImportThe fierce Gaza war prompted Israel to suspend production at the Tamar field located within the range of rocket firing from the Gaza Strip for five weeks, backfiring on the nation's gas revenues. Yet another casualty of the Palestine-Israel conflict was Tel Aviv's pipeline project with Turkiye after Ankara signaled its full support to the Palestinian cause.Last month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a pro-Palestinian rally that he planned to accuse Israel of committing war crimes, as civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip skyrocketed amid Israel Defense Forces (IDF) retaliation against Hamas. In the wake of Erdogan's statement, the Israeli government signaled that it would reassess diplomatic relations with Ankara.Speaking to AP on November 7, Cypriot Energy Minister George Papanastasiou suggested that the Israeli-Turkish row over Gaza could narrow Tel Aviv's gas trade options to building the proposed short offshore pipeline to Cyprus for processing and shipping to foreign markets. The Israeli-Hamas conflict "has changed the situation somewhat, and thats where Cyprus has to take advantage of this emerging window of opportunity," Papanastasiou said.Meanwhile, Jordan recalled its ambassador to Israel in early November, accusing Tel Aviv of creating an "unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe". The Arab country also signaled that it won't sign a deal to provide electricity to Israel in exchange for water. It was planned that the agreement would be ratified last month.To date, 10 countries from across the world have withdrawn diplomats from Israel over its ground operation in the Gaza Strip.Some observers suggested that the war could backfire on Israel's capabilities to import crude given that 60% of it comes from two majority Muslim nations Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, per Bloomberg. The media noted that Iran urged Muslim countries to impose an oil embargo on Tel Aviv. https://sputnikglobe.com/20151028/golan-heights-oil-syrian-conflict-engdahl-1029209074.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20231117/gaza-marine-is-israel-palestine-conflict-caused-by-offshore-gas-interests-1115031157.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20231005/eu-to-face-gas-scarcity-as-energy-market-heads-for-period-of-turmoil-says-gazprom-1113953249.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20200911/turkey-slams-southern-eu-states-declaration-supporting-greece-amid-eastmed-tensions-1080432351.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20231029/turkiye-to-declare-israel-war-criminal-to-world-over-gaza---erdogan-1114569008.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/russian-iranian-foreign-ministers-call-for-ceasefire-in-gaza-strip-1115058127.html israel egypt tel aviv Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Ekaterina Blinova Ekaterina Blinova News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Ekaterina Blinova israel, gaza, israel-hamas war, israel-palestine conflict, gaza strip, israel oil. israel natural gas, israel offshore drilling, eastmed project, israel-cypriot pipeline, israel egypt lng plants, is israel selling gas to europe, anti-russia sanctions, anti-russia energy embargo, tamar, leviathan, karish, natural gas, shale oil, gas exploration, drilling, oil wells https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/eu-states-purchase-over-66bln-worth-of-russian-lng-in-january-september---reports-1115055189.html EU Countries Purchase Over $6.6Bln of Russian LNG From Jan to Sept - Report EU Countries Purchase Over $6.6Bln of Russian LNG From Jan to Sept - Report European Union member states, including Estonia, Lithuania, France, Spain and others, purchased Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) worth 6.1 billion euros ($6.6 billion) in the first nine months of 2023, despite intentions to abandon buying Russian fuel. 2023-11-19T11:00+0000 2023-11-19T11:00+0000 2023-11-19T12:20+0000 economy europe russia european union (eu) liquefied natural gas (lng) /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/105797/92/1057979286_0:312:3001:2000_1920x0_80_0_0_c2a366521af160cc72a8e46cc06d84b9.jpg On the list of countries buying Russian gas in 2023, Spain and France ranked second and third, respectively, after China, the newspaper reported on Saturday. Spain procured 1.8 billion euros worth of Russian gas from January to September, while France purchased 1.5 billion euros worth of Russian LNG, followed by Belgium with 1.36 billion euros, the report said. The deliveries of Russian LNG, along with warm weather and high levels of gas pumped into the EU's underground storage facilities throughout 2022, resulted in a record 99.63% fullness of the bloc's gas storage facilities at the start of the heating season, the newspaper reported. Since the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, the European Union has been looking for ways to limit its dependence on Russian fuel. As part of these efforts, the bloc has increased energy cooperation with a number of countries, including the United States, Algeria and Nigeria, with a particular focus on LNG imports. https://sputnikglobe.com/20231108/us-intends-to-kill-russias-arctic-lng-2-project---state-dept-1114823323.html russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International russia natural gas exports, russian lng exports, europe buying gas from russia https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/france-announces-successful-test-launch-of-strategic-ballistic-missile-1115052764.html France Announces Successful Test Launch of Strategic Ballistic Missile France Announces Successful Test Launch of Strategic Ballistic Missile France has conducted a successful test-launch of a strategic ballistic missile without nuclear warhead, the French Defense Ministry has announced. 2023-11-19T07:57+0000 2023-11-19T07:57+0000 2023-11-19T07:57+0000 military france ballistic missiles /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/107959/80/1079598089_0:0:1280:720_1920x0_80_0_0_8c4a1cc6fd19f2a61398a19d1aa3862c.jpg "Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu has expressed his satisfaction with the successful test launch of strategic ballistic missile M51.3 without a nuclear warhead," the defense ministry said in a statement late on Saturday. The missile landed in the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean a few hundred kilometers off the coast, the statement read. The statement added that the test-launch had been carried out with strict observance of France's international obligations. france Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International france, french ballistic missiles, french icbm, nuclear france https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/idf-says-cargo-vessel-galaxy-leader-seized-by-houthis-in-red-sea-not-israeli-1115059861.html IDF Says Cargo Vessel Galaxy Leader Seized by Houthis in Red Sea Not Israeli IDF Says Cargo Vessel Galaxy Leader Seized by Houthis in Red Sea Not Israeli The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Sunday that the commercial ship Galaxy Leader, seized by Yemen's rebel Ansar Allah movement, also known as the Houthis, does not belong to Israel and there are no Israelis on board. 2023-11-19T17:59+0000 2023-11-19T17:59+0000 2023-11-19T17:59+0000 world israel yemen red sea ansar allah ship /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/107831/88/1078318804_0:161:3071:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_e5f4a08e6d41b60a4391833ddafc275f.jpg "The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship," the IDF said.Israel condemns the seizure of the ship and blames it on Iran, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said."Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia," the statement read. Earlier in the day, a source in the Ansar Allah movement told Sputnik that they had captured the vessel in the Read Sea, towed it to Yemen's Al Hudaydah port and were interrogating the crew."The movement's forces used boats to intercept and board a commercial vessel called Galaxy Leader off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea," the source said. https://sputnikglobe.com/20231115/houthi-leader-threatens-to-attack-israels-ships-in-red-sea-1114964602.html israel yemen red sea Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International houthi ship attack, yemen ship attack https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/lawmakers-slam-political-performance-art-in-us-congress-announce-retirements-1115051349.html Lawmakers Slam 'Political Performance Art' in US Congress, Announce Retirements Lawmakers Slam 'Political Performance Art' in US Congress, Announce Retirements So far, the number of lawmakers announcing their retirements is reportedly in line with previous years. But onlookers note that 2023 has seen an unusual number of experienced, highly valued members announce their exit. 2023-11-19T02:23+0000 2023-11-19T02:23+0000 2023-11-19T02:23+0000 analysis us politics us congress /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e6/01/0a/1092142516_0:0:3072:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_23555ece7573794b61cf42b09207fc85.jpg In 2011, former Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy mused on an increasing decline of civility and decorum in the US Congress, lamenting the lack of rational, quiet, thoughtful, respectful discussion and debate within the legislative body.The verdict on freedom is still out in over half the world, said Kennedy. And the rest of the world is looking at us. They see the current dialogue and discourse and they are horrified by it.Those were the days when iconoclasts like Anthony Weiner, Jim DeMint, and Alan Grayson made headlines, gleefully attacking opposing members of Congress from the floor of the US Capitol. Since then it seems Congress has only become a more brutal and unforgiving place, with several retiring lawmakers recently telling US media that chronic legislative dysfunction contributed to their decision not to seek reelection in 2024.Im just afraid that the performative nature of the House today, the people that you know their names, theyre household names now and the people that are making names for themselves are making spectacles of themselves.Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO), who also recently announced his retirement, agreed, saying, unconstitutional impeachments and censures that dont make any sense.So far, the number of lawmakers announcing their retirements is reportedly in line with previous years. But onlookers note that 2023 has seen an unusual number of experienced, highly valued members announce their exit.A recent study from the Center for Effective Lawmaking seems to buttress this perception. By 2021, the group found almost half of US House members have served for five years or less. This compares to about a third of representatives who had served for that amount of time in 2003. In other words, US Congress is increasingly made up of newer, less experienced members.There may be some advantage to the trend. The average age of members of the US House of Representatives declined slightly after the last midterm election. That may suggest the perspective of younger Americans could get a hearing in a legislative body that many argue has become a stale gerontocracy.But conversely, the average age of those in the US Senate increased slightly. Time will tell whether that trend changes next year, and whether a growing exodus of lawmakers will play a part. Some analysts predict the number of legislators announcing their retirements will increase in early 2024 after they return from time spent with their families over the holiday season.In another era, not long after our countrys founding, US politics was more explicitly dedicated to serving elite interests. Most states required citizens to own land in order to vote. Non-Christians were banned from the polls. And of course, women and African Americans were shut out altogether.Today, were told that America is a more democratic, egalitarian place. But lawmakers cynicism belies that claim. Americans generally agree with their assessment, with Congress approval rating currently standing at 13%.A recent study conducted at Princeton University found that average peoples stances on issues were statistically uncorrelated with action taken by US legislators. Rather, its the desires of the wealthiest Americans that were found to drive Congress activity. The researchers suggested the United States would be more accurately described as an oligarchy rather than a democracy.In light of those findings, perhaps leaders in Washington should spend less time criticizing who they view as state enemies like Russia and China, and more time learning from the way things are done outside of the United States. Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International us politics, us congress, retiring lawmakers, statistics, study, united states, capitol hill, washington, dc https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/progressive-dems-call-to-condition-israel-aid-on-scaling-down-gaza-war-1115060037.html Progressive Dems Call to Condition Israel Aid on Scaling Down Gaza War Progressive Dems Call to Condition Israel Aid on Scaling Down Gaza War The Gaza war has widened a rift between progressive and moderate Democrats in the US Congress: while the former reportedly want to condition aid to Israel on scaling down its military operation in the strip, the latter are fretting and fuming. 2023-11-19T18:45+0000 2023-11-19T18:45+0000 2023-11-19T18:45+0000 us americas palestine-israel conflict bernie sanders joe biden kamala harris israel tel aviv gaza democrats /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e6/01/13/1092366187_0:204:2919:1846_1920x0_80_0_0_f8bf3aa03fb5bf56ba5e5f8d05550706.jpg Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has called upon US lawmakers to force Israel to change its military and political positions by conditioning aid to the Jewish state on its conduct.Tel Aviv "must understand" that no money will be coming to Israel from the US unless the Jewish state agrees to the aforementioned conditions, argued the senator.According to Axios, Sanders is hardly alone in pushing ahead with the initiative. The media noted that American lawmakers are currently facing enormous pressure from pro-Palestinian activists.For its part, Politico insists that the debate is preliminary and one cannot be sure that the discussion will lead to any congressional action, citing sources on Capitol Hill. The media added that the White House is aware of the conversation and warned that its allies may openly push for conditions in the near future. However, earlier, Vice President Kamala Harris made it clear: "We are not going to create any conditions on the support that we are giving Israel to defend itself."Meanwhile, moderate Democrats have expressed dissatisfaction with Sanders' initiative: "Any legislation that conditions security aid to our key democratic ally, Israel, is a nonstarter and will lose scores of votes," stated Josh Gottheimer, a Democratic representative from New Jersey. Gottheimer's party fellow Brad Schneider told the press that those pushing for imposing conditions on Israeli aid "serve only the interests of those opposed to Israel and to peace."Still, the US media has drawn attention to the fact that as Gaza civilian casualties soar, the number of Democrat lawmakers calling for a ceasefire is also increasing. Thus, this figure has grown from roughly a dozen last month to over 30, including several Jewish-American congressmen.Advocating further humanitarian aid for the strip, 13 Senate Democrats said in a joint statement that "much more must be done to protect civilian life." https://sputnikglobe.com/20231116/nearly-100-protesters-calling-for-israeli-ceasefire-injured-in-clash-with-dc-police-1115011221.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/us-will-reportedly-reprimand-aggressive-israeli-settlers-in-palestines-west-bank-1115054718.html americas israel tel aviv gaza Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Ekaterina Blinova Ekaterina Blinova News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Ekaterina Blinova israel, hamas, israel-hamas war, palestine-israel conflict, gaza, the gaza strip, conditioning israel aid, gaza war, israel ground oepration in gaza, calls for ceasefire in gaza, palestinians, palestine, civilians casualties in gaza war . 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You can participate in the discussion within 24 hours after the publication of the article. https://sputnikglobe.com/20231119/venezuela-to-support-measures-in-opec-to-encourage-mideast-dialogue----top-diplomat--1115052272.html Venezuela to Support OPEC Measures Encouraging Dialogue in Mideast - Venezuelan FM Venezuela to Support OPEC Measures Encouraging Dialogue in Mideast - Venezuelan FM Caracas will support any possible measures in OPEC to encourage Israel and Palestine to launch a dialogue, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto told Sputnik in a comment on Iran's calls for an oil embargo on the Jewish state. 2023-11-19T06:18+0000 2023-11-19T06:18+0000 2023-11-19T08:56+0000 world palestine-israel conflict israeli-palestinian conflict israel-gaza conflict venezuela organisation of islamic cooperation opec palestine /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/07/05/1111669568_0:0:3077:1731_1920x0_80_0_0_04a3479b3737f164b128288c17ead5ac.jpg In October, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian urged the executive committee of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to impose political and economic sanctions, including an oil embargo, on Israel and sever diplomatic ties with the country. He also suggested that the Israeli government face an international tribunal over its "war crimes." The Venezuelan top diplomat said that the ongoing hostilities in the Gaza Strip were "a violation" of all international agreements "in the field of humanitarian law." venezuela Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2023 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International israel-palestine conflict, israel-gaza conflict, hamas conflic, venezuela opec, opec israel The Morrill Farmers Market is cooking up something for everybody at the 14th annual Morrill Community Thanksgiving Dinner. Event organizer Cheryl Averill said that she and the Farmers Market started the annual dinner 14 years ago after the community went without such a Thanksgiving meal in 2008. We thought, heck, lets see if we can do this. It should be easy. And it was, Averill said. That was thanks to the vendors of the Morrill Farmers Market, who came together to provide local produce as well as volunteer labor. That first year, the event fed around 130 people in the Morrill area, a number that has grown ever since. Were up to averaging in the neighborhood of 350, so thats been really nice, Averill said. In 2022 the community dinner fed a record number of around 380. A lot of that growth has been due to increased demand for delivered meals throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but Averill hopes to see more folks turn up in person this year. Were hoping more people will come in, sit down and enjoy the afternoon, she said. That being said, the events volunteers arent afraid to take on deliveries all across the area. Averill said theyve delivered as far as the Wildcat Hills, Sioux County, Torrington, Lyman and Henry. That wide range of territory is even more evident among those who turn out to volunteer and participate. We also have people that come in from Hemingford, Kimball, Lusk. We cover an even wider area than we deliver to, which is nice, Averill said. One volunteer Averills niece is even flying in from Kentucky to keep up a longstanding tradition of making cream of mushroom soup for the dinner. Shes done that since she was 9 years old, Averill said. We had to put a milk crate down for her to stand on back then. Shes only missed one year since she was 9. What makes the Morrill dinner so special is that nearly every ingredient used in its preparation is grown locally by the farmers market vendors. The vendors grow the beans, the corn, everything except for the turkeys, cranberries and olives are grown locally, she said. Thats everything down to the garlic and onions in the dressing grown right here in the Panhandle, making the Morrill Community Thanksgiving Dinner one of the best representations of local growers imaginable. To Averill, the best thing about the event is that it is an effort by and for the Morrill community itself. Were a community of people who give a darn and are trying to help other folks, Averill said. It feels really good, and it makes people feel like theyre giving. The Morrill Community Thanksgiving Dinner will begin serving meals in person at 12:30 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 23, at the Morrill American Legion Hall, 117 Center Ave. Those interested in having a meal delivered are asked to call 308-247-2475 and leave a message by 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 22, at the latest. A volunteer will return all calls to verify requests. If we dont get back to you, for heavens sake try again, Averill said. The dinner is free, and all are welcome to pull up a seat and share the bounty of the valley with their neighbors. System running again after 3-day breakdown; critics say fundamental problem remains unsolved By Jung Da-hyun The government faced criticism over a system failure that crippled administrative computer networks and paralyzed both offline and online issuances of civil documents, causing massive disruptions to public services across the country. The Saeol administrative network used by civil servants to access government-approved documents became inaccessible at 8:40 a.m. on Friday, suspending municipal government document services. Later that day, the government's online civil service portal, Government24, also went down, unprecedentedly paralyzing all offline and online services of government-issued certificates and documents to the public. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced on Sunday afternoon that both the Saeol system and Government24 were restored after the three-day service breakdown. It noted that the system failure could have been caused by some network equipment that was replaced recently. This is the third time this year that the government's computer network was paralyzed. The online network system used by judicial courts experienced a shutdown in March, causing delays in trials and the suspension of services such as electronic litigation and case searches. The service of the Supreme Court's Internet Registry Office, which reads copies of the register, was also suspended. In June, an error occurred with the fourth-generation National Education Administrative Information System (NEIS) for elementary, middle and high schools, leading to confusion at school sites. Setbacks were also experienced in the final exam records for the first semester of middle school and high school, as well as in the preparation of school records for high school seniors. Following the latest incident, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo presided over a video meeting at the Government Complex in Seoul on Saturday to discuss recovery strategies and future measures with related ministries. We apologize for the inconvenience and confusion caused by the suspension of public services due to the government's administrative computer network failure. We will do our best to normalize it as soon as possible, he said. Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min, who returned earlier than scheduled during his trip to the United States, chaired a meeting to address the problem of local administrative computer disabilities on the same day. "We will mobilize private experts to closely identify the cause of this incident and do our best to prevent it from happening again," Lee said. However, critics said the fundamental problem has not been solved, claiming that the government's response is passive and damage relief measures have not been mentioned. In October last year, the government declared a significant strengthening of surveillance and investigation of Kakao when the disruption incident occurred at the firm's network. The government even implemented a prevention method for Kakao service breakdowns to avoid recurrence. At the time, Kakao also announced a 500 billion won ($386 million) compensation plan as a follow-up measure. Compared to the previous situation, there has been no strict declaration about investigation or compensation measures for the governments administrative computer network disruption. Affected citizens have a way to claim civil damages against the state, but experts analyze that proving a causal relationship with actual economic damage, such as non-issuance of certificates, may be challenging. Regarding the possibility of the government paying damage compensation before litigation, most analysts believe it will not be easy, as administrative computer services cover all citizens, making it difficult to determine the exact scope of damage. RIO DE JANEIRO Dozens of young people kneeled under the scorching sun recently in Rio de Janeiro's rural interior, planting a green corridor that will be a future safe passageway for the region's most emblematic and endangered species: the golden lion tamarin. The 300 tree seedlings they planted only inches tall at present will eventually connect two patches of forest together. It is the latest in a series of incremental forest growth initiatives driven by environmentalists, providing an ever-larger habitat for the monkey. Until recently, the bare and dry land they were replanting belonged to a ranch owner who tore down its trees for cattle pasture. Rampant deforestation over centuries decimated this part of Brazil's Atlantic Forest, the only place in the world where the small, copper-colored monkey whose face is framed by a silken mane can be found. With fewer than 5,000 individuals, it is considered an endangered species. "One of the biggest problems is the fragmentation of the forest," said Luis Paulo Ferraz, executive director of the Golden Lion Tamarin Association, known by its Portuguese acronym AMLD. "Otherwise the monkeys start mating within their own families." Ferraz says monkeys are too scared to cross the few hundred meters of bare land that sometimes separate two isles of green vegetation, fearing they might become the prey of larger predators, such as big cats. Hence the need for green corridors. Applauding their recent effort was Sarah Darwin, the great great granddaughter of Charles Darwin. The British botanist was joined by a handful of young naturalists who are retracing the sailboat expedition taken by Charles Darwin nearly 200 years ago that led to his theory of evolution, part of a project called Darwin200. "He arrived in the Brazilian Mata Atlantica forest and had a moment of clarity a peak experience, where he felt at one with nature," Darwin said as she entered the forest, known for its astonishing diversity of mosses, ferns and other vegetation. In the canopy above, the small golden monkeys with long tails jumped from one branch to another. "One of the most enduring experiences of his life," she added. Before colonization by the Portuguese in the 16th century, the Atlantic forest biome covered 330 million acres more than 500,000 square miles near and along Brazil's coast. Less than 15% of that remains today, according to The Nature Conservancy. In the specific region of the Atlantic forest where golden lion tamarins can be found, the forest is down to just 2% of its original size, Ferraz said. Sugar cane and coffee plantations were the main driver of early deforestation. Then came urban development and cattle pastures. In the 1970s, when scientists began efforts to save the species, there were just 200 golden lion tamarins left, according to AMLD. In Brazil, the animal became a symbol for wildlife preservation; it was even featured on the country's 20-real bill. In recent times, the science and conservation nonprofit has been purchasing land from farmers and cattle ranch owners, which it then reforests one patch at a time. It bought a first parcel of 339 acres in 2018, and another of 445 acres this month. The process is slow and expensive, as it requires heavy and regular maintenance, especially in the first few years. But it is rewarding. On the ground, the bare hills bought by AMLD in 2018, which the organization began reforesting the following year, have reclaimed their vibrant green, covered with a healthy forest and inhabited by many animal species the nonprofit can trace thanks to night vision cameras. In spite of a bad bout of yellow fever in 2018 when the population dropped more than 30% in a matter of months there are now more golden lion tamarins than at any time since conservation efforts began. According to the association's latest survey, published earlier this year, there are about 4,800 individuals. A Papillion man accused of assaulting a former U.S. senator last week appeared in court in Pottawattamie County on Friday to face a misdemeanor charge of assault with the intent to commit sexual abuse. Dominic Henton, 25, was ordered to be held on a $10,000 bail at Friday's hearing. He is accused of following and assaulting former U.S. Sen. Martha McSally of Arizona at Tom Hanafan River's Edge Park near the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge on Nov. 8. McSally, who was in Omaha to speak at an event, spoke about the assault in an Instagram video. She said she was followed across the pedestrian bridge by a man who engulfed her in a bear hug, molested her and then continued to follow her after she fought him off. I ran after him. I threw my water bottle at him. And I chased him into the brush, where he was then hiding as I called 911 and waited for the police to come, she said in the video. Police responded to the scene but were unable to locate the man, now believed to be Henton. He was taken into custody in Omaha two days later. Appearing in court at the Douglas County Jail on Tuesday, Henton agreed to be extradited to Pottawattamie County. He was transported to Iowa on Thursday. Henton is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing in mid-December. By Lee Hyon-soo Flying and driving are the primary modes of travel these days. That said, there are some advantages of driving over flying. When you travel by car, you have more control over your adventure. You can drive at your own pace and stop as much as you like to take in the beautiful scenery along your way. Many Canadians and Americans, for that matter - dream of driving across their respective countries, from coast to coast once in their lifetimes. While living in Canada, I too dreamed that dream, but I never got around to making my dream come true. Instead, I made road trips to various places in Canada and the United States with my family. Of them all, three trips come to mind. One summer, we set out on a trip to explore Eastern Canada. From Montreal we drove to Quebec City which is the only fortified city in Canada. It is recognized as the cradle of French civilization in North America. We visited many historic sites there. From Quebec City, we moved on to Gaspe which is known as the birthplace of Canada because the French explorer Jacques Cartier landed on the Gaspe Coast to take shelter from a storm at sea. He claimed the land for King Francis I of France and Canada became a colony of France in 1535 (France ceded Canada to Great Britain in 1763 after the Seven Years War). Our next stop was Prince Edward Island located in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is a land of quaint rural communities, rolling hills and great seafood. We visited Green Gable house, the setting for Lucy Maud Montgomerys famous novel, Anne of Green Gables. We spent one afternoon basking in the sun on Cavendish Beach which has miles of white-red sand surrounded and protected by gorgeous dunes. We traveled from Prince Edward Island to Nova Scotia. Having looked around Halifax, one of the most important Canadian commercial ports on the Atlantic seaboard, we boarded a ferry bound for Bar Harbor, Maine, from which we returned to Montreal with a stopover in Boston and New York City. In another summer, we departed Toronto and drove for seven hours to get to Philadelphia. With its parks and quiet pace of life, the city reflects refined Quaker heritage. It also has reminders everywhere of the early days of nation-building. We saw the Liberty Bell and visited Independence Hall, the birthplace of the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. From Philadelphia, we proceeded to Gettysburg where one of the bloodiest battles during the American Civil War was fought. It was considered the turning point in the war, leading to the Unions ultimate victory. We visited Gettysburg National Cemetery where President Abraham Lincoln officially consecrated the grounds and delivered a monumental speech on November 19, 1863. Our final destination was Washington D.C. We visited the White House, the Capitol Building, the Lincoln Memorial and many other tourist attractions that the city offered. In yet another summer, we set out on a long journey to Orlando, Florida which is 2,060 kilometers away from Toronto. We drove, drove and drove, stopping only for food, gasoline and sleep. We passed through seven states and it took us two and a half days to get to Orlando. We spent a couple of days touring Universal Studios as well as Magic Kingdom and Epcot Theme Park located at the Walt Disney World Resort. But the weather in Orlando in July was unbearable. It was so hot and humid that our appetite for sightseeing vanished. So we shortened our itinerary and hurried back home. Although our journey to Orlando turned out to be less than satisfactory, I patted myself on the back for having undertaken an unforgettable 4,120-kilometer round trip by car. The writer (tomhslee43@gmail.com) is based in Toronto, Canada and the author of Ramblings of A Wanderer. Japans Nihon Toyo to invest $220 mln in northern Vietnam By Tri Duc Sun, November 19, 2023 | 7:02 am GMT+7 Nihon Toyo, a subsidiary of Japanese giant Toyo Group, will make multi-sector investments worth $220 million in Bac Ninh province, an industrial hub in northern Vietnam. Senior executives of the firm and Bac Ninh officials signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) Friday at a meeting held in the province to commemorate 50 years of Vietnam-Japan partnership (1973-2023). Bac Ninh Chairwoman Nguyen Huong Giang (right) and Nihon Toyo chairman Katsuhiko Koshio sign a memorandum of understanding in the northern province, November 17, 2023. Photo courtesy of Bac Ninh's news portal. The investments will be made in cosmetics production using Japanese technology, industrial real estate, logistics and manufacturing of next-generation hydrolysis devices. The hydrolysis project aims to manufacture machines for the production of solid materials from waste, contributing to environmental protection in line with the countrys green growth targets. Provincial authorities said they will recommend suitable locations for the investments, connect the firm with local businesses for joint ventures, and support it throughout all project processes. Bac Ninh has so far attracted 2,040 FDI projects, including 101 Japanese ones with a total registered capital of $1.68 billion, or 7% of the total, according to provincial data. Japan is the third-biggest foreign investor in Bac Ninh behind South Korea and Singapore. Notable Japanese businesses in the province include Canon with investments of $130 million, Seiki with $126 million, Hanacans with $114.4 million, Nippon Zoki with $90 million and Nitto with $66 million. Seventy six Japanese businesses active in Bac Ninh posted an industrial production value of VND32.6 trillion ($1.34 billion) in the first half of this year, providing employment to 23,200 people. RIDGEVILLE -- The Dorchester County Coroner has identified a woman found with her automobile in a pond near Ridgeville on Nov. 17, 2023. Doris T. Gallardo, 85, of Eutawville, was found in a pond near the Wal-Mart Distribution Center in Ridgeville on Friday at approximately 7:15 a.m. She was pronounced dead at the scene by the coroner at 9:58 a.m. An autopsy was conducted on Ms. Gallardo Nov. 18, 2023, at the Medical University of South Carolina. Get The Times and Democrat app today Local news has never been this personal. Free to download. Subscribers enjoy unlimited access. Cause of death was determined to be drowning and manner of death is accidental. The Dorchester County Sheriffs Office and Dorchester County Coroners Office are investigating. Several churches and groups across The T&D Region are working to make sure the community is fed a hearty meal with a side of love during the Thanksgiving holiday. Williams Chapel AME Church will be handing out hot meals on Wednesday. Several groups and churches are also offering meals on Thanksgiving Day. Bennie Brown, a member of Williams Chapel, said while the church will not have its traditional sit-down meal this year, there are plans for a walk-through Thanksgiving meal giveaway from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday at the church, which is located at 1198 Glover St., Orangeburg. Weve been averaging between 500 and about 670 meals on Wednesday. There are 300 meals well deliver Wednesday morning, Brown said. The meals will include, but not be limited to, turkey, stuffing, ham, rice, string beans, a roll, fruit and cake for dessert. The church normally gives out food bags every Wednesday, along with cooked meals every second and fourth Friday. Brown said the need has risen. Brown said he appreciates the churchs soup kitchen volunteers and community partners, including businesses, who make donations to the churchs food ministry. I dont know where we would be without the community partners. We get a lot of donations, and they have helped us tremendously. Weve got some volunteers who are steady, who are there and who work. I am so thankful for them. They have stuck with us, he said. He said the Thanksgiving meal is just another opportunity for the church to give back to the community. I think with Thanksgiving, we try to make that a tradition because this is basically the largest meal that we serve every year. ... So I think, with the church, it is one of the major outreach days that we have during the course of the year, Brown said, noting that God has called him to help in the effort. And hes also provided assistance for it. Weve had people to come in and say, I can help you with this or that. That is a tremendous help, he said. On Thanksgiving Day, five churches are coming together for a Thanksgiving Feast. It will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Orangeburg. The event is free and open to the public. Meals will be take-out only and distributed at the church off of Saint John Street. Individuals will be able to walk or drive up for their meals. Were called to serve. Thats what God wants. Were to go out and spread the good news of Jesus. Thats why we come back every year. Weve done a good job all these years and as long as were able, we will continue, said Norma Sells, a member of St. Pauls United Methodist Church. Turkey, dressing, rice and gravy, green beans, sweet potato casserole, macaroni and cheese, cranberry sauce and a roll will be among the items served up. Participating churches include St. Pauls UMC, First Presbyterian Church, Cornerstone Community Church, Trinity UMC and Unity Fellowship Community Church. Sells said the goal is to hold a sit-down feast next year. We have already booked the (Downtown Pavilion) next door to First Baptist. Were going to have it outside. We just have to come up with the tables. God provides everything you need, so I dont worry about it. Everything will fall into place, Sells said. Other groups are also demonstrating their love for their communities on Thanksgiving. Jean Self, secretary at Denmark First Baptist Church, said the church is continuing the work of late church member and Denmark resident Mary Polasky. Polasky, who died on Sept. 25, 2021, was a member of Feed My Sheep Ministries. The ministry is a coalition of several Denmark churches and members of the Denmark-Olar High School class of 1983. It has held two community drive-through Thanksgiving Day dinners for many years. We do miss her, Self said of Polasky, but plans are already underway for the Thanksgiving meals this year. One community dinner will be distributed from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday at St. Phillips Apostolic Church in Olar. Another community Thanksgiving Day lunch will be distributed from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday at Denmark-Olar High School, Heritage Highway in Denmark. Meals can be picked up at the elementary entrance of the school. Bags of nonperishable food items will be given away this year. Self said the meal giveaway will be drive-through only. She also said it is a way to give back to the community. We want to show our love to our community and let others know that we love them and that God loves us. We do it to show them Gods love through a meal, she said. DUBAI Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged Muslim states to "at least cut off political ties with Israel for a limited period of time" on Sunday, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported, weeks after calling for an Islamic oil and food embargo on Israel. During a joint summit between members of the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League in Saudi Arabia's capital on Nov. 11, Muslim states did not agree to impose wide-ranging sanctions on Israel as requested by Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi. How to handle a giant too important to avoid President Yoon Suk Yeol and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida are undoubtedly the closest Korean and Japanese leaders in history. The duo showed off their bromance again at the APEC summit in San Francisco last week. Yoon said Kishida is his closest friend in the international community. Kishida reciprocated, saying, We commonly love good food and drink. The two also attended the summit discussion at Standford University together. In contrast, Yoon and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, exchanged pleasantries for three minutes. Officials attempted to arrange a separate summit between the two leaders but failed. That might not have been due entirely to a lack of time. For the past year and a half, the Yoon administration has moved away from China at the same pace that it approached the U.S. and Japan. Its also been some time since China replaced Japan as the least likable country among young Koreans. They dislike Chinas arrogance and heavy-handedness. Despite the ever-tightening alliance of the U.S., Japan, and South Korea, there is a big difference between them. Unlike Seoul, Washington and Tokyo try to maintain close ties with Beijing. So do Germany and France, attempting to separate the economy from politics. South Korea may be the only major country not hedging its position between America and China. Such a binary diplomacy is neither reasonable nor pragmatic. Especially considering Chinas lingering influence on South Koreas economy and inter-Korean relations. China still accounts for nearly a quarter of South Koreas foreign trade, although the South's share of the giant neighbors trade has dropped to 5 percent. North Koreas rapid approach to Russia makes Pyongyangs ties with Beijing look relatively tepid. Whether North Korea likes it or not, however, Beijing will remain the most influential ally for Pyongyang, like Washington is for Seoul. After a phase of mutual estrangement, Seoul and Beijing seek to restore ties. It is regrettable that such efforts come after, not before, the detente between the U.S. and China. If Seoul had taken the initiative, it might have shed the stigma of being dependent on America. The U.S. and China or their incumbent presidents -- need each other. Joe Biden seeks Xis help in trade and the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East for reelection. Xi, reeling from a property crisis, falling demand for Chinese products, and high unemployment, wants Biden to loosen the economic noose on China. Biden and Xi agreed that if one calls, the other answers. Their militaries will also reconnect severed lines to prevent accidental clashes. However, the G2 will maintain a hegemonic battle to draw other nations to their sides. America and Western Europe are on one side, China and Russia on the other, and the Global South -- middle powers formerly called the nonaligned group -- between them in this multipolar world. It is against this backdrop that China reaches out to South Korea. Seoul should take that hand. The question is how best to hold it. That is hardly an easy job. Seoul cant be too far away from Beijing, but not too close to it, either. Past experiences suggest much. Former President Park Geun-hye was an enigma for Beijing. In September 2015, Park became the only leader of the U.S. allies who inspected the Chinese military at Tiananmen Gate. The following year, she earned Beijings ire by deploying a U.S. missile defense system that also could target China. Parks successor, Moon Jae-in, endured humiliation to restore ties with Beijing, but to no avail. All this shows South Korea should be more consistent, self-reliant, and flexible in relations with China -- and North Korea, too, for that matter. Seoul must not let differences with them get structural, complicated, and ideological. Values and principles are important, but must not be all. Only when South Korea acts independently, not becoming subordinate to others, can the nation expect partners to respect its voices and interests. The ongoing detente between Washington and Beijing is an opportunity and test for Seoul. The Yoon administration must deal with China not only squarely, but also skillfully. THE current financial imbalance, which has the potential to deplete the National Insurance Boards assets by 2035, is not rooted in investment issues but rather stems from the challenges posed by this countrys ageing population, the acting chief operating officer, Business Services at NIBTT, Andy Edwards has said. Nailah Blackman believes shes entering her creative prime. Nailah, on the eve of her 26th birthday celebrations, says she is creatively firing and feels evolved. The Sweet & Loco singer will mark the occasion with a special performance, at La Tropical nightclub in San Fernando, tomorrow night. The public is invited to purchase tickets to the festivities at the door. A nursing manager waiting for two years to get an echocardiogram (ECG) appointment for an urgent heart condition is the reality and experience of patients in the public healthcare system. Members of the public ventilated several negative experiences they have had at health centres and hospitals to a Joint Select Committee (JSC) town hall meeting on Social Services and Public Administration on Wednesday at the Parliament Complex, Cabildo Building, St Vincent Street, Port of Spain. Ultimately, the fate of the Report of the Commission of Enquiry (CoE) into the Paria Diving Tragedy is as important as the report itself. From all indications, the Commissions report contains a cauldron of hard truths. We can easily extrapolate from comments by CoE chairman Jerome Lynch, KC, that those truths will rock many a boat. But we too agree that the public interest demands immediate public view of its contents. By Kim Sang-woo On Wednesday, Nov. 15 at the Filoli Estate in Woodside, 40 kilometers south of San Francisco, U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the APEC summit, overshadowing the summit itself. President Biden emerged from four hours of talks with President Xi confident that the U.S.-China relationship was improving, announcing agreements on curbing fentanyl production and restoring military communications, while acknowledging that serious differences remain. Biden said he and Xi had agreed to pick up the phone and talk during periods of disagreement and called the talks some of the most constructive and productive discussions weve had. Securing Xis promise of Chinese cooperation in stemming the flow of fentanyl to the US, was high on Bidens to-do list. A senior official said the agreement under which China would go after specific companies that use fentanyl precursors was made on a trust but verify basis. In return, the U.S. government on Thursday removed a Chinese public security forensic institute from a Commerce Department trade sanction list over alleged abuses against Uyghurs, a long-sought diplomatic aim for China. This undermines the credibility of our entity list and our moral authority, said a spokesperson for the Republican-led House of Representatives select committee on China. The resumption of military dialogues terminated by China following then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosis 2022 trip to Taiwan is also considered a success. China fears hotlines could be used as a potential pretext for a US presence in areas it claims as its own, said Craig Singleton, a Chinese expert at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington. Foreign policy issues seldom win incumbent U.S. Presidents elections. But they can certainly lose them elections, or at the very least feature heavily. And although topics discussed at the summit are critical in the U.S.-China relationship, domestic issues such as the economy, immigration, abortion rights and crime top the agenda in the election year. Bidens meeting with Xi will, therefore, affect his domestic support mainly in terms of how it relates to these domestic concerns. Fentanyl is an area where the two definitely overlap. Whether Biden succeeds in reducing the flow of the drug across the Mexican border into the U.S. will significantly impact domestic perceptions of his engagement with China. If successful, it could also strengthen his position in the debate on how to manage its southern border: Republicans are attacking Biden as being weak on immigration. At a press conference Biden held immediately after the summit, he said the talks were conducted in the interest of the American people, an effort to convince Americans of the necessity of such talks. On Thursday, Biden and APEC summit leaders posed for pictures. He made time for a separate photo with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, a reflection of closer relations with the two allies. What did the United States Indo-Pacific allies, namely South Korea and Japan think of the summit? Few countries have as much directly at stake as South Korea and Japan, which are U.S. treaty allies dependent on Washington for their security, but closely linked economically with China, and both countries are located in the vicinity. Taiwan which faces an existential threat from China, is even more invested in U.S.-China relations. Beijing considers Taiwan to be an inalienable part of China and reserves the right to achieve full reunification even by force if necessary. With Chinas military maneuvers around Taiwan becoming ever more provocative, the threat of forcible annexation looms large and the question of how the United States would respond is the subject of immense debate. South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and the US have adopted the free and open Indo-Pacific and rules-based international order, meaning lets counter China's bad behavior. They have embraced, at times reluctantly, U.S.-led economic measures designed to target Chinas access to cutting-edge technology and de-risk by reconfiguring trade ties away from China wherever possible. They have also joined the U.S. in efforts to counter China militarily. South Korea and Japan have been deepening both bilateral and trilateral military cooperation with the United States. And Taiwan's arms sales have been increased by Washington, as well as more military cooperation. The perceptions of the U.S. allies of the Biden-Xi summit, for the most part, are positive. Almost every country in the world has deep concerns about U.S.-China tensions reaching a point of no return, and potentially sparking a great power conflict. While their alliance and quasi-alliance relationships with the U.S. mean they have already chosen sides, none of these countries wants to be forced to completely decouple from China. South Koreas Yoon administration has taken a noticeably hard line on China. Yoon has been particularly intent on improving relations with both the United States and Japan, and the three countries cemented their trilateral partnership with the Camp David Summit earlier this year. From both the U.S. and Chinese readouts, the Korean Peninsula didnt feature heavily in the Biden-Xi summit, despite worrying new developments in North Koreas nuclear and missile programs over the past year, and recently, the growing military ties with Russia. Yoon may be hoping that the thaw in U.S.-China relations will give him an opportunity to improve South Korea-China ties. In particular, Seoul is keen to resume the annual trilateral summit between the leaders of China, Japan, and South Korea as it is the latter's turn to host the event. Unfortunately, the much-anticipated summit between Yoon and Xi did not take place, and instead of a trilateral summit between the U.S., Japan and South Korea, a brief photo opportunity took its place. This raises some serious questions in regard to our diplomacy which needs to be answered. Kim Sang-woo (swkim54@hotmail.com), a former lawmaker, is chairman of the East Asia Cultural Project and a member of the board of directors at the Kim Dae-jung Peace Foundation. Mel Brooks has never been one to shy away from satirizing whatever pop culture deems, well, popular, so it made sense to take a shot at a character that Disney has cashed in on a number of different ways. However, what often gets overlooked is that Robin Hood: Men in Tights was not Brooks first foray into the world of the famous English fella who hates the rich as much as the next guy. Read on to learn all about it, and find out how we might never have had this classic comedy if it werent for a 90s tween Click right here to get the best of Cracked sent to your inbox. 15 Not Brooks First Robin Hood Best known for his slate of satirical films, Brooks dabbled in a bit of television, too. He co-created When Things Were Rotten, a 1975 ABC series that satirized Robin Hood. Dick Van Patten, who plays The Abbot in Men in Tights, played Friar Tuck in the Brooks series. 14 Cary Elwes Hung Up on Brooks Elwes was sure he was being pranked when Brooks called him to offer him the lead role. He called me up out of the blue, and I thought someone was putting me on, Elwes remembers. I thought it was someone doing a great Mel Books impression. And he said, This is Mel Brooks. I said, Uh-huh. Sure. And I hung up on him. I thought it was Jim Carrey messing with me. And then, when he called back, he said, Dont hang up! Its really me! I want you for Robin Hood. Well cast the film together. 13 Thanks, Kid When 11-year-old Jordi Chandler saw the 1991 Kevin Costner movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, he told his dad that it was so bad it should be parodied. His dad, Evan Chandler, was a Hollywood dentist who told as much to his client and screenwriter, J. David Shapiro. Together with Chandler, Shapiro and Brooks wrote the movie where Elwes directly references Kevin Costners terrible English accent. 12 Yes, That Evan Chandler In a different life, the dentist mightve been known as the teeth guy who ended up doing a movie with Mel Brooks. Instead, his name on Wikipedia redirects you to what hes really famous for: Making the first allegations against pop star Michael Jackson. Sadly, Chandlers life would end up taking a very different, very tragic turn. Advertisement Advertisement 11 Almost Starring Sean Connery in Drag After making a brief appearance as King Richard in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Connery wanted to bring old Dickie back only this time in drag. Connery reportedly told Brooks he wanted $1 million for the role and that he planned on donating it all to a bunch of Scottish charities, but Brooks didnt buy it couldnt afford it, and ended up casting Patrick Stewart, who, we assume, didnt demand to play the King as a cross-dresser simply for the LOLs. 9 Trained by the Man Who Trained Robin Hood Paul, who did a lot of coordinated stunt work throughout his career, also trained Errol Flynn, the actor who iconically portrayed Robin Hood in 1938s The Adventures of Robin Hood. 8 Elwes Helped Discover Dave Chappelle Elwes told Brooks he wanted to help cast Robins sidekick, Achoo. We saw a lot of actors and when Dave came in, he was just so amazing, Elwes remembers about meeting the largely unknown comedian for the first time. We knew right then and there, this guy was a star. Advertisement Advertisement 7 A Breakout Star Chappelle was only 19 when he starred in Men in Tights, his first feature film. He was an instant hit so much so that Time ended up replacing a review of the film with a profile of the breakout star instead. Chappelle, in true form, was more interested in the issues cover story about white kids shooting each other than his first magazine profile. Did you see that issue of Time magazine? Black kids have been doing that for years, he said during an interview, fuming. But if a white kid shoots the side of a building, it makes the cover. This country was founded on racism, and it is all still there. 6 Richard Lewis Refused to Ride a Horse In an interview with the legendary Bobbie Wygant, Lewis said that he only agreed to play Prince John mole, tight pants and all because Brooks promised he wouldnt have to ride a horse. Lewis, apparently, has an equine phobia. Advertisement Advertisement 5 Improv Allowed Tracey Ullman said that Brooks allowed her to do her thing and improvise for her character, Latrine, including the joke in the Roger Rees scene where she says, I touched it. He went, I like that, she told PBS. 4 Richard Lewis Got Pretty Sick During Filming I was almost done with the film, Lewis told The Wall Street Journal. I had one scene left, (and then) I got Hepatitis A. Lewis was hospitalized with a 106-degree fever, but according to the comedian, Brooks kept wanting to smuggle him out of the hospital so they could film his last two lines. Advertisement Advertisement 3 Almost Starring Madeline Kahn The iconic actress who starred in many Brooks films, including Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein and History of the World, Part 1, turned down the role of Latrine in Men in Tights. According to some, the money wasnt enough. According to Brooks, the part itself was simply not enough. 2 Step Aside, The Princess Bride Elwes has gone on record saying that his fans want to know more about Men in Tights than The Princess Bride. Advertisement Advertisement More water conservation rebates and incentives? Yes. More Tucson Water collaboration on water issues with stakeholders, including those in the business community? Definitely yes. Water conservation mandates such as limiting what days in the week people can spray their outdoor landscaping? Not likely. Limits on population growth and new development to keep Tucsons water supply whole? Definitely not. Those views highlight the reactions of Tucson Water officials to many hundreds of written comments on the citys newly adopted, long-range water plan. Dubbed One Water 2100, the 118-page document offers a blueprint for how the utility and the City Council that adopted the plan view Tucsons water future. The plans highlights clearly emphasize getting new water supplies and protecting existing supplies from contamination over conservation. Of 13 policies that the plan labels as high priority, only three involve new or expanded ways to conserve water. Six advocate finding new supplies such as treating wastewater to drink, while three others advocate policies to insure our water is protected from additional contamination and that existing groundwater pollution is cleaned up. Favorable, negative responses Tucson Water greeted a number of written comments from business advocacy groups more favorably than it appeared to respond to many of the others from individuals and conservation advocacy groups. The utility repeatedly promised to incorporate some of the concerns of those business groups into the final plan and to make sure that they would be consulted when the city moved to draw up a future, formal implementation scheme. Business groups got about 30 favorable responses to their comments and a handful of negative responses. These groups included the Tucson Metro Chamber, the Southern Arizona Home Builders Association, the Tucson Association of Realtors and the Arizona Multi-Housing Association. Two conservation groups that submitted comments, the Watershed Management Group and the Tortolita Alliance, got 20 negative response to their comments, almost as twice as many as positive responses. Generally, the comments didnt change much of the plans substance. The written comments from numerous individuals and advocacy groups were made on an earlier draft of the plan, before the councils final approval on Oct. 17. The utility offered detailed, written responses only to written comments from the advocacy groups and to questions asked by the Arizona Daily Star about 11 comments from individuals. But it also posted a table online that listed more than 300 comments. The table shows that the utility incorporated about 90 of those comments into the One Water 2100 plan. It sent personal responses to another 245 comments without incorporating them into the plan. The majority of comments incorporated into the plan were technical in nature. They requested things like factual error corrections, changes in emphasis, map colors, word changes, issues with type face or other lesser issues. One successfully sought Tucson Waters acknowledgement that Tucsons development and water use has affected supplies used by the Tohono Oodham Nation. Only a handful of those commenters sought major policy changes. Supply and demands crux In an interview, Tucson Water Director John Kmiec acknowledged that many commenters were interested in multiple items, including the relationship between energy and water use and in environmental impacts. But in general, the majority of commenters were focused on water supply and demand, and they are the two primary drivers in the plans efforts to draw up future scenarios for the citys water system, he said. Prior to when the utility received received written comments about the plan last summer, it held workshops, town halls and many other forms of public meetings and also did some interviews with individuals and conducted surveys of people to get their ideas as to what should go in the plan, said Tucson Water spokeswoman Natalie DeRoock. Many hundreds of people participated in those efforts. Those stakeholder comments were more influential because they started at the beginning of a four-year effort to create a plan, starting in 2019, Kmiec said. Written comments came after a draft plan appeared, where items could be incorporated and adjusted, he said. Focusing on supply and demands, thats the crux. Local stakeholders helped guide that focus, he said. Residents suggestions Here are some samples of written comments, and Tucson Waters responses: 1. GROWTH AND WATER. Several commenters wanted some action taken to limit population growth and/or development. Comment: Patricia Rossi wrote, We are definitely at risk of water shortages, yet building continues. Developers build, take their profits and move on. Residents, businesses and farmers are left with the glass not half full, but almost empty. This is not a new problem. We live in a desert. Wait and see what happens to our local economy, the value of our homes and overall well-being unless the water supply issues are taken seriously. Response: Tucson Water says even under the most pessimistic of four scenarios studied for the plan, called Thirsty Desert, it still expects there to be enough water to serve all expected population growth by 2100, even with a 50% cut in annual Central Arizona Project deliveries of Colorado River water to Tucson. 2. AGGRESSIVE CONSERVATION. Several commenters argued that the city needs to pursue more aggressive water conservation measures to shore up supplies in anticipation of likely future curbs on Tucsons CAP allocation. Several brought up items such as time of day limits on outdoor watering, or odd-even day outdoor watering. Such restrictions exist in Denver, Las Vegas and some Southern California cities. Response: Tucson Water says conservation is indeed a top priority, and it continually explores and implements measures to ensure the sustainable use of our water resources. Tucson Water acknowledges the importance of proactively addressing water conservation and planning for potential reductions in CAP allocations. While we already have water-saving measures in place, we remain open to exploring additional strategies and restrictions if they are deemed necessary to safeguard our water supply. 3. INCENTIVES AND REBATES. A number of commenters said the city should offer more incentives to promote water savings. The city already offers rebates for rainwater harvesting and gray water facilities for homeowners and for low-flow toilets and washing machines. The commenters suggested incentives for replacing grass, still larger incentives for gray water and water harvesting, to repair leaks, to cover existing swimming pools or to replace pools. Response: The annual implementation plan report to the mayor and council will contain further details about conservation measures. 4. MORE ON REBATES. Some comments favored more general incentives, such as groundwater conservation incentives. The Tortolita Alliance suggested incentives for installing weather-based irrigation controllers, which it said could save up to 12,500 gallons per year per home. Response: Tucson Water said, Tucson Water recently had a temporary smart irrigation controller incentive this spring. The amount of water savings and the overall costs of proposed incentive programs have to be prioritized along with our existing incentive programs. Our programs capacity to manage new incentives is also limited. As is true for any program, the capacity of the water conservation program is limited by the budget of the Water Conservation Fund and the number of staff working in the program. The budget of the program is determined by the revenues from the Water Conservation Fee paid by our customers. The City is currently developing a rebate program for commercial properties to replace non-functional turf with native and drought-adapted vegetation. 5. WATER HARVESTING MANDATE. Several commenters suggested the city require rainwater harvesting and gray water use for all non-potable demands, including outdoor landscaping and indoor fixtures such as showers and sinks. . Response: Mandates for water conservation rules received a medium response priority in the plan, based on surveys and stakeholder comments. A strategy for installing smart meters in homes to save water received the highest survey response and is already in process. The department may explore additional demand opportunities in future years of implementation planning. 6. DATA AND COST-BENEFIT ANALYSES. The Southern Arizona Home Builders Association, the realtors association and the multi-housing group asked that the plan both incorporate more factual data to support and prioritize its recommendations, and both recommendations and implemented strategies should contain cost-benefit analyses. While properly managing our water is the top priority, the specific actions necessary to do so should bear a close relationship to the cost or impact, the groups wrote. Response: One of the next steps for the One Water 2100 will be a more thorough implementation plan ... We will take the above two comments into account as we implement the strategies, Tucson Water Director Kmiec replied. 7. GO SOLAR? Commentator Betty Beard wrote, If we get into a situation where we have rolling blackouts, we could have water shortages. Does Tucson Water need to invest more on pumps or its own electricity source like solar? Several other commenters suggested covering the CAP aqueduct and other open water sources with solar panels, to reduce evaporation and provide more renewable energy. This month, the Gila River Indian Community announced a $6.4 million contract with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to cover part of an irrigation canal with solar panels. Also, California is now financing a $20 million project to cover two sections of aqueduct in its Central Valley with solar panels. Response: Tucson Water officials didnt answer Beards question. To the second, they said, Covering the CAP canal with solar panels is a question that should be directed to the Central Arizona Water Conservation District (which runs the CAP). Terry Goddard, president of CAPs governing board, said, At CAP we are watching the various pilot projects on canal covering with great interest. Always looking for cost effective ways to save water. As I understand it, relatively little system evaporation comes from the canals. Its mostly from the lakes. 8. WATER LOSSES. A few commenters said Tucson Water needs to do more to reduce the amount of water lost due to system losses, such as leaks. Response: Water loss control is a priority and we are taking active steps to address it. Our utility is committed to the responsible management of our water resources and the reduction of system losses. The utility over the years has developed a water loss control program. This program explores and tests promising technology solutions, to reduce real losses such as system leakage. 9. LOW WATER USE PROVE IT. Commenter Karl Flessa suggested that the plan include a table to document the plans assertion that Tucson has a low gallons-per-person-per-day water use compared to other cities. Can Tucson Water document that Tucsonans use less water than other Western cities? Response: A Water Research Foundation study in different locations (Denver and Fort Collins, Colorado; Tacoma, Washington; Scottsdale, Arizona; San Antonio, Texas; Toho, Florida; Clayton County, Georgia; Peel and Waterloo, Ontario) found an average of 89 gallons per person daily for total residential water use, both indoors and outdoors. Mesas residential gpcd is approximately 110. Tucsons residential gpcd is is approximately 75. 10. DAMS ON WASHES. Commenters Jeffrey Howell and Brad Thompson suggested building earthen dams in washes to capture rainwater, to slow water flows during storms, and allow it to more easily replenishes the aquifer. Response: None. 11. WATER QUALITY. Julia Fonseca, a retired Pima County environmental planning manager, said that because of the U.S. Supreme Courts Sackett vs. EPA ruling this year that severely limited the scope of federal Clean Water Act protection of ephemeral streams, Tucson needs to take more aggressive measures to protect local washes and rivers from pollution. The city should, among other activities, work with other entities to strengthen local protections around land-surface disposal of contaminants, she said. The whole system of water quality protection needs to be re-examined at the local level to safeguard our underground water supplies in the Tucson and Avra (Valley) Basins, Fonseca said. Response: Tucson Water supports Stormwater Protection Plans that would minimize pollution runoff from the community into the watershed. 12. MORE SOLAR. Commenter Christopher Graber said, Make it easy for many more homes and businesses to have solar panels installed, through further incentives, partnerships, and programs. After ours were installed on our home by Technicians for Sustainability, I couldnt believe the figures they shared on the long term water savings (via using less TEP coal-based power) somewhat more impressive even than the energy production/savings. It was estimated that approximately 500 gallons of water would be saved per month and nearly 27k lbs. would be offset per year. Tucson's One Water 2100 plan High priority items for implementing the new One Water 2100 plan, approved on October 17 by the Tucson City Council: -- Start treating wastewater to meet drinking water standards so it can be delivered to people for drinking, including a full-scale Direct Potable Reuse program, once Arizona has adopted regulations for the practice. -- Working with the Pima County Regional Flood Control District, implement large-scale stormwater capture projects. -- Improve outreach to the public about programs that offer financial help to low-income homeowners and renters to obtain low water-use fixtures and rainwater harvesting tools. -- Maximize the benefits of Tucson's current Central Arizona Project supply from the Colorado River, with such measures as continuing to store that water underground for future use. -- Advocate for Tucson's CAP allocation from the Colorado River in state and federal negotiations. -- Increase water savings incentives for residential and commercial customers, such as offering rebates for retrofitting existing fixtures to save water. -- Partner with other organizations to protect the aquifer, with such actions as cleaning up contamination and insuring that groundwater levels are balanced between pumping and replenishment. -- Accelerate groundwater cleanup efforts. -- Work with the State of Arizona to find other water supplies besides CAP. -- Adopt new policies for water reuse in buildings. -- Explore and invest in new treatment technologies for addressing unregulated and emerging contaminants in groundwater. - Install "smart" water meters in homes and businesses to monitor their water use and provide faster alerts of leaks. -- Research new water conservation technologies and approaches. Response: Commercial and residential solar measures are outside of the scope of the One Water 2100 plan but fits into the citys climate action plan, Tucson Resilient Together. New smoke shops are going to have a tougher time opening in Tucson following a new ordinance the City Council passed last week. The city will now impose limits on where a smoke shop can be built, as well as its operating hours under an ordinance the council approved unanimously Tuesday. It requires any new smoke shop to be at least a half-mile from an existing smoke shop; at least 1,000 feet from any public, private or charter school; and at least 1,000 feet away from any public park. The distance requirements would "ultimately lead to a modest increase in new non-conforming businesses and a decrease in available parcels for new businesses or relocated businesses," according to a geospatial analysis conducted by the city manager's office. There are about 109 smoke shops in Tucson, the city says. They found 7,184 commercial parcels that are located at least 1,000 feet from any school and any smoke shop that is already operating. Under the new ordinance, 54 of the 109 Tucson smoke shops currently operating would not be in compliance with the new distance rules, the city says. The City Manager's Office did not conduct a geospatial analysis that factored in the half-mile separation, which was amended onto the new ordinance Tuesday night by Ward 3 Councilman Kevin Dahl and agreed upon by the mayor and council. New limitations on the operation hours were also put in place. Now, any new smoke shop opened within city limits can only operate from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. The limitation on hours of operation, as well as the distance criteria, do not apply to smoke shops that are already open. "With respect to hours of operation, limiting the hours is not going to affect existing shops, but it might serve as a deterrent to new ones opening up, even if they can't compete after hours," said Ward 6 Councilman and Vice Mayor Steve Kozachik. The ordinance also came with amendments defining a smoke shop as "any establishment in which the area used for sales or display of tobacco products consists of 15% or more of the total sales area of the space." Originally, the idea was to define a smoke shop as any establishment in which at least 15% of all sales came from tobacco or tobacco products, however, that idea was quickly scrapped over concerns that such a definition would inadvertently classify gas stations or convenience stores as smoke shops, too. The city's new definition for tobacco products, also added, is any product that is capable of being used to smoke tobacco. This would not only include vaping devices and cigarette papers but pipes and other paraphernalia that can be used to smoke tobacco. The rules formed after comparing similar ordinances in other cities. In Tempe, smoke shops are required to be at least a quarter-mile from all schools except instructional or vocational schools. Phoenix requires its smoke shops to be separated by at least 500 feet and a quarter-mile from schools, parks, recreational centers, places of worship and shelters. Avondale smoke shops are required to be separated by a quarter mile from not only other smoke shops but "sexually-orientated" businesses, bars, nightclubs and wine bars. In Palo Alto, Calif., smoke shops cannot be within 500 feet of one another. In Bishop, Calif., no tobacco retailers are allowed within 1,000 feet "from primary or secondary schools," the city found. PHOENIX Arizonas Senate president wants to scrap the centerpiece of state water law by no longer requiring residential developers in urban areas to show they have a 100-year supply of water. Sen. Warren Petersen, a Gilbert Republican, calls the 100-year figure arbitrary and wants to replace that mandate with something much looser. He is complaining about the Arizona Department of Water Resources announcing earlier this year it will not issue permits for new subdivisions for some areas on the fringes of Phoenix. That came because a modeling analysis of groundwater at the edges of the basin in and around Phoenix shows there simply wont be enough water to provide the legally required 100-year supply. All that resulted in headlines from coast to coast that Arizona was running out of water. Petersen blamed ADWR. To send a message to the country that we are out of water was irresponsible, he said, even if the stories failed to understand this was only for two areas. Petersen also blamed it on bad modeling of the water supply by ADWR. But he said it is all wrapped up in the 100-year requirement, the heart of Arizonas 1980 Groundwater Management Act. He said that was a figure seemingly plucked from nowhere. Why wasnt it 105 years? he asked. Why wasnt it 95 years? The state with the next highest requirement is California at 25 years, said Petersen, who is a real estate broken with experience in new home sales and development, who is a real estate broker experienced in new home sales and development. We could say well go five years or 10 years higher than anybody in the whole nation, he said. And if that becomes the standard and new modeling of supply, theres suddenly a boat-load of water for housing. Any plan to revamp the mandate will get a fight from Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs. Attacking critical protections for our finite water resources is irresponsible and its not going to happen on my watch, Hobbs said. The 100-year assured waster supply is a strength that gives Arizonans and businesses around the world confidence that Arizona will continue to grow, Hobbs said. She sniffed at Petersens comparison to elsewhere, saying We will never follow Californias lead. Frightening to me The Senate presidents idea alarms Kathleen Ferris, the architect of what eventually became the 1980 Groundwater Act. The idea that we should be changing this because some developers cant get what they want is frightening to me, she said. Ferris pointed out the idea of a 100-year supply predates the 1980 law, having its roots in the 1960s and 1970s when developer Ned Warren made hundreds of millions of dollars selling land in Arizona, generally to those living out of state, without providing access to water. He later was convicted of 20 counts of fraud. State lawmakers put language in place in the 1970s that says developers must tell the buyers of new homes if there is an adequate water supply, defined as 100 years. So its not some arbitrary number, Ferris said. Its been in our states DNA for decades. That, however, was strictly a disclosure law. Nothing precluded the lots from being sold as long as buyers were informed supply is not there. That led to the 1980 Groundwater Act which covers basins in the states active management areas, including Phoenix and Tucson, and added teeth to the supply requirement. But, with few exceptions where cities and counties have adopted their own mandates, the 1970s law requiring only disclosure, with no barrier to construction and sales, still exists. We have enough Petersen said that level of assurance is unnecessary. This is insane, he said. When you go to the gas station, do you get a 100-year gas supply? When you go shopping, do you need 100 years of food? He said theres no reason that number cant be chopped by a lot. We have enough, Petersen said. And we have the modeling and the regulation. Its right for housing. Ferris said the Senate president is way off base. I would say just the opposite, said Ferris, who is senior research fellow at the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University. Why not more than 100? she said. Are we going to just say after 100 years that people are just going to close up shop and move away? Petersen countered that other states seem to do just fine without such a requirement. Ferris said thats not a valid comparison. Have other states had as much land fraud as weve had? she asked. Theres also another relevant bit of Arizona history, Ferris said: The murder of Arizona Republic reporter Don Bolles in 1976 because of his reporting on land fraud schemes. Petersen brushed aside questions of whether Arizona, as a desert state, is different and has different needs in terms of an assured water supply requirement. He said the climate is the same in much of California. Everybody says we dont want to be California, Ferris responded. So Im not sure why thats the comparison, she said. California has been struggling with its water supplies for a long time. While the snowpack of the last winter provided some relief there, Ferris said thats not a solution. There are areas of the state that have mined their groundwater almost into extinction, she said. Created an image of Arizona Much of Petersens push stems from the Arizona Department of Water Resources decision earlier this year to halt new development in areas around Buckeye and Queen Creek on the fringes of the Phoenix metro area. Petersen noted the water shortage cited by the state was 4.9 million acre-feet over the next century, about 4% of the anticipated need. An acre-foot is generally considered enough to serve three families for a year. But that 4% gap in the 100-year supply was enough for ADWR Director Tom Buschatzke to declare those areas off limits to new development and provoke the headlines that Petersen decries. A model that put us off by four years created an image of Arizona that we have no water, Petersen said. Lost in all of that was that nothing in the order brought all development in the Phoenix metro area or anywhere else in the state to a halt, at least not at this point. Thats because all existing municipal and private water companies are currently presumed to have their own 100-year supply. So anyone the utility agrees to serve who is seeking to build homes within that service territory is presumed to have the amount of water required and can start construction without further state approval. Amid housing affordability crisis Petersen isnt the only one unhappy with the ADWR decision. Spencer Kamps, executive director of the Home Builders Association of Central Arizona, said it ignores the reality of what homebuilders have done to conserve, limiting the use of non-functional turf, installing drought-tolerate xeriscaping and integrating water-efficient fixtures and appliances. Despite these unmatched efforts, the ADWR stopped new home construction in non-designated areas (the ones affected by the order) which are also the more affordable markets for home buyers, Kamps said in comments to the Governors Water Council. And it did so in the face of a massive housing supply and affordability crisis, he said. These measures are neither good water policy nor good housing and land use policy. Kamps also proposes some changes in the 1980 Groundwater Act. They deal with issues such as recognizing groundwater replenishment and allowing developers to get credit for some of the water that was being used by farms they are replacing. But none of them involve what Petersen wants: eliminating or revamping the 100-year water supply requirement. Petersen maintains there are good arguments to show the 100-year mandate is out of date. Right now we have homes that have a net zero impact on water, he said, meaning they replenish all the water they use. How many of those homes can we build? Petersen continued. As many as could have a zero impact. Ferris said nobody is doing that on a large scale, though. Developers want to do the cheapest thing possible, she said. And theyre not about to re-plumb all these homes so they can just be stand-alone centers. It might happen someday, Ferris said. But at this point, she said, its wishful thinking that technology might solve it all. She does agree there may come a point when the 100-year water supply requirement is not necessary. But she said it must remain in place for the time being even if it is for the moment holding up new residential construction in some communities until state officials decide that development dependent on groundwater cant continue. Until we say that, no one is going to make good on really doing the hard work and spending the money to make these alternative supplies available, Ferris said. Consider, she said, the idea of taking sewage and treating it to the point where it can be immediately put back into the drinking water supply. You dont snap your fingers and make it happen, Ferris said. This is going to take time and its going to take tons of money to build the kind of infrastructure to make sure that the water supplies that were treating this way are safe. And that doesnt even deal with the question of whether Arizonans will accept whats known as direct potable reuse. Theres still a huge part of the population that is skeptical of that, she said. The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer: On Nov. 14, as your Pima County Attorney, I attended the TUSD Governing Board meeting. The brilliant lawyers in our agencys fully-staffed Civil Division had drafted an Inter-Governmental Agreement for us to provide 10 gun locks to every single TUSD school along with a supporting educational campaign to keep firearms out of the hands of children to reduce accidental and suicidal incidents. The bipartisan TUSD Board approved the agreement unanimously. This is but one of the many Public Health and Safety triumphs we have been marking during our three years in office: another accomplishment that attorneys from the previous administration who chose not to remain after I became County Attorney have missed. It was their choice to leave, and it remains their right to criticize. However, they do not have the right to create their own facts. Misinformation and disinformation cannot go unaddressed. Here is the actual record of the Peoples Office: Violent crime is down. Homicides in particular are at a 34% reduction from this point two years ago, outperforming the nation and the rest of the state. This is County-wide data relied upon by our Office and law enforcement. Prevention is up. We handed out 18,463 gun locks on nights and weekends last year, and the Public Service Announcement about calling 911 in case of overdose that we produced with our Police Chief and County Sheriff is making an impact in keeping people alive. We teach and advocate an aggressive charging and detention standard when we believe a defendant poses an ongoing threat of harm. The only difference now in this current Administration is that our violent crime units are better resourced, holding violent actors accountable, because we have moved substance use disorder and mental health safely back to Public Health instead of criminalizing illness as a felony. Our new Fraud Unit reached $1 million in restitution for victims of scams at its one-year mark. In the Civil Division, when faced with reproductive health litigation, we reversed the Offices previous course, we took on then-Attorney General Brnovich, and we won the Appellate Court Order still in place today protecting reproductive health services statewide. When I took office, there was no Director of our Victim Services in place in January of 2021 ... this at the height of the COVID crisis and critical community need. In fact, in the last seven years of the previous administration, there had been five different directors. Our current director will mark three full years in the post come spring, a stability the division had not enjoyed in a decade. As a pro-employee administrator, in October of 2021, I secured the Offices first agency-wide salary increase since 1997. Further, we left behind a paper file system, joining the modern world online. And as for hiring, while I did not retain one woman in a supervisory position held over from the previous administration, that fact should be put in the context of our record-breaking hiring and promoting of women and people of color. In Civil alone, 6 of 8 supervisors are women or POC or both. Please look at our website at www.pcao.pima.gov to get accurate, up-to-date information. In a first-in-the-nation action, we have specially deputized Pascua Yaqui and Tohono Oodham tribal prosecutors to better serve indigenous victims. Despite extraordinary pressure, we upheld our promise and disbanded the expensive and inherently racist process of seeking the death penalty. (See AZs most recent State report.) We created Arizonas only adult Restorative Justice program and are working on our fourth pilot case. Victims can now be made whole more quickly and more fully as a result. An accurate accusation by the former administration seems to be that I have ushered in significant change. And to that, I must respond, in my patented dark Irish humor way: guilty as charged. Pima County voted for change, and progress is being delivered. The future is bright. We in the Pima County Attorneys Office The Peoples Office are working hard to meet the communitys need for a healthier and safer place to live. And there is so much work yet to be done. Luckily, I am surrounded by extraordinary civil servants who love this community as much as I do. As much as you do. The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer: Where is the Arizona Legislature on the University of Arizonas financial fiasco and the lack of governance by the Board of Regents? Where are the Senate and House appropriations committees and the education committees? Legislators are quick to call hearings when other important and sometimes unimportant issues arise. They also are quick to criticize just about anything emanating from Tucson. An issue both important and arising from Tucson is at the fore: The UA is in a $240 million hole from President Robert Robbins mismanagement and the regents neglectful oversight. Robbins reported on Nov. 2 that campus cash flow was underestimated by that $240 million. We just overshot, he said, a dismissive shrug evident in his demeanor. Regents chair Fred DuVal shed any pretense of a demand for accountability, writing in an Arizona Daily Star guest column: President Robbins enjoys the full support of the board as he makes the tough decisions this situation requires. DuVal had the audacity in that Nov. 14 column to minimize the UAs problems by saying other universities are experiencing similar financial travails. He then went from audacity to mendacity at the Nov. 16 Board of Regents meeting to thank speakers who were highly critical of Robbins for your powerful and impactful comments. Impactful? What a joke. The impact was that DuVal and the rest of the regents continued business as usual, supporting Robbins in his error-riddled, feckless oversight of the university. Watch for the regents obsequious responses when by Dec. 15 he presents his plan to fix the financial problems, likely including spending cuts for academic programs that had nothing to do with his mismanagement. This is at least the fourth major blunder by Robbins, the cardiac surgeon turned university administrator. Lets hope he wielded a scalpel more precisely than he has his responsibilities at the university. In 2019, he muffed the controversy over Border Patrol agents on the campus of his Hispanic serving institution, mocking journalism students who asked him at a regents meeting if he would resign as Latino students demanded. In 2020, he engineered UA purchase of the legally and fiscally troubled Ashford University, a private online institution. That purchase and subsequent unexpected expenses might well be contributing to the UAs current money problems. Last spring, he took full responsibility for security problems after a professor was shot and killed in his campus office in October 2022. Full responsibility included criticizing the faculty for an accurate report on safety and forcing the provost and campus police chief to resign over the safety issues. Legislators, its obvious that Robbins and others who should be leading the university are doing a poor job of it. Time to step in. Finnair hopes to expand capacity here By Lee Min-hyung Finnair has identified Korea as one of Asias most strategic markets, with demand for the country on the gradual rise due to its growing cultural and economic influences abroad, top executives from the flag carrier of Finland said during a recent interview. They displayed strong affection for Korea, as the country comes with bigger potential for further growth, compared to other Asian markets, such as China and Japan. Finnair offers seven direct flights connecting Incheon and Helsinki each week, and it started flying to Korea 15 years ago. During the pandemic, all the demand for passenger flights disappeared, but demand for cargo was strong, and the very first cargo-only flight we flew was to Seoul, which was Mar. 28, 2020, Ole Orver, chief commercial officer at Finnair, told The Korea Times during the interview. We carried important goods from Seoul to Europe, and this is a sign of the importance of Korea to Finland, and Finland to Korea, he said. Finnair Korea General Manager Kim Dong-hwan also spoke highly of the growth potential of the Korean market, citing the countrys growing cultural profile across the globe. We believe there is more growth potential in Korea, compared with the two other Asian markets, he said. This is because of Koreas increasing cultural influence, as K-pop, K-culture and K-movies spread across the world and those are getting stronger day by day. Demand from Europe to Korea has been highly increasing. Finnair is also seeking to attract more Korean customers to the Northern European nation by enhancing its in-flight services. According to the airline, it hired a total of 26 Korean flight attendants this year alone. Two Korean flight attendants are typically on board the airplane while operating routes from Korea to other countries, but Finnair decided to double the number for the Incheon-Helsinki route in November, in a move to increase its market share here. The company also recently clinched an agreement with Hana Tour, the largest travel agency in Korea, to develop new travel products sustainably. Finnair generated almost half of its sales in Asia during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the figure fell to around 30 percent for the time being. Finnair aims to normalize sales in Asia by strengthening marketing and clinching partnerships with companies here. As part of that effort, the airline recently invested 270 billion won ($207 million) to renew cabins for the A350 and A330 passenger jets, which it said will help serve Korean customers better. The airline is leaving open the possibility of launching another route to Korea connecting Helsinki and Koreas southern port city of Busan. The plan was introduced in 2020, but the outbreak of the pandemic forced the airline to delay it. Regulatory hurdles The Finnair executives went on to express their hopes for more deregulation while operating their business here. We wish to expand capacity here, Kim said. Of course, every country has its own regulations and policies. We fully understand that the Korean government protects Korean entities and Korean companies. But Finnair is facing a tough time in increasing its capacity, as Korea has yet to clinch the Open Skies Agreement with the European Union (EU), which is not the case for Japan. We do not have the agreement yet, so there are a lot of restrictions in terms of capacity increase not only for us, but other foreign airlines, Kim said. Under the EU-Japan Open Skies Agreement, all EU carriers can access routes between the two regions without any regulatory hurdles, enabling them to engage in more open and fair competition while operating flights to Japan. Korean Air, Asiana deal The commercial chief at Finnair also conveyed his hopes of Korean Air reaching a middle ground with the European Commission (EC) over the flag carrier's acquisition of Asiana Airlines. The issue is one of the hot potatoes in the global aviation industry and has hit a snag for around three years after Korean Air unveiled the plan to take over the cash-strapped airline. The EC is reviewing a remedied proposal from Korean Air after the regulator urged the airline to rectify its earlier plan and guarantee fair competition. The remedied plan included the sale of Asianas cargo business. It is vital for both Korea and the European authority to find ways to strengthen connectivity between the two territories, the commercial head at Finnair said. On our side from Finnair, we fully trust that both sides will work together on the issue and reach the best possible solution for the benefit of customers, whether it is Korean customers or European customers. James D. Watts Jr. Tulsa World Scene Writer Follow James D. Watts Jr. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Tulsa is currently the epicenter of all things immersively van Gogh, as two multimedia exhibits based on the life and work of the influential Dutch artist are now open. Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience, which opened in October, continues through Jan. 21 at the Exhibition Hub Tulsa Arts Center, 3364 E. 51st St., in the Country Club Plaza shopping center. The just-opened Beyond van Gogh: The Immersive Experience has taken up residence in the building that may someday house the Oklahoma Museum of Popular Culture, or OKPOP, at 422 N. Main St. Both exhibits combine state-of-the-art projection technology to create animated images of van Goghs paintings that literally fill a large room, accompanied by original music, excerpts from van Gogh writings, and ancillary exhibits that provide information on the artists short, troubled life, as well as how his works have become some of the most beloved images in Western art. Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience will be open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thanksgiving Day; Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience will be closed on Thanksgiving. For tickets and more information: beyondvangogh/city/tulsa; vangoghexpo.com/tulsa/ Castalian Quartet The Castalian Quartet will conclude its weekend of concerts under the auspices of Chamber Music Tulsa with a performance at 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19, at the Tulsa PAC, 110 E. Second St. The quartet, which recently was named the resident ensemble at Oxford University, Mendelssohns Quartet in F Minor, Op. 80, La nuit froide et somber by Orlando de Lassus, Ungrievable Lives by Charlotte Bray, John Dowlands Come, heavy sleep and String Quartet No. 3 by Benjamin Britten. Musicologist Jason Heilman will present a pre-concert lecture on some of the music to be performed that will begin at 2:15 p.m. Tickets are $25. To purchase and more information: 918-587-3802, chambermusictulsa.org Film Noir Night Circle Cinema, 12 S. Lewis Ave., will host its regular Film Noir Night, hosted by Tulsa actor, comedian and film noir enthusiast Josh Fadem, 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 20. This months film is He Walked By Night, a 1948 film that starred Richard Basehart as a man who kills a police officer and uses a police radio to stay one steps ahead of the detectives determined to bring him to justice. The film was based on an actual case, that of Erwin Machine Gun Walker, who terrorized Los Angeles in the mid-1940s with a string of burglaries and shootouts. The cast included Jack Webb in his first motion picture role. Webb got to know the films technical adviser, and was inspired by him, and the documentary-style way that He Walked By Night was told, to create the radio and TV series Dragnet. Prior to the films showing, the Stephanie Oliver Duo will perform in the theater lobby. Tickets are $13. circlecinema.org. The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today. James D. Watts Jr. Tulsa World Scene Writer Follow James D. Watts Jr. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Megan McGinnis isnt certain if shes ever seen a ghost. But that doesnt mean she discounts their existence. You cant work in the theater and not have some sense about there being something you cant explain, McGinnis said. Theaters especially ones that have been around a long time are places that have such a unique energy that its very easy to believe theres something there that only comes out once the lights go out. That is one reason why most theaters have what is known as a ghost light a single bulb that is kept illuminated on stage when the rest of the theater has gone dark. The ghost light has a practical purpose, of course to keep people from accidentally stepping off the stage and plummeting into the orchestra pit, for example. But the superstition is that the light also helps keep whatever spirits may be haunting a particular theater at bay. McGinnis said shes never had any sort of experience whether while in a theater or outside of one that she can state for certain was the result of some sort of ghostly interference. But every actor can tell stories of things that have happened that it would be hard to say was the result of simple human error, she said. Maybe its a light that goes out for no reason, or some piece of machinery that keeps breaking down at a certain moment in a show. That the presence of otherworldly creatures is a topic of discussion is due to the fact that McGinnis is part of the national touring production of Beetlejuice, the Tony Award-nominated stage musical adaptation of the 1988 Tim Burton film that starred Michael Keaton in the title role. McGinnis has the role of Barbara Maitland, who along with her husband, Adam, suddenly find themselves in the afterlife after they plunge to their deaths when the floorboards in their house suddenly give way. Its here that they met the title character, a rambunctiously disruptive demon who sees in these two recently deceased people a chance to wreak all manner of havoc in the land of the living. However, the Maitlands manage to join forces with Lydia, the doom-laden daughter of the couple that now owns the Maitlands house to foil Beetlejuices plans. McGinnis said she grew up watching the movie with my mother. Her favorite scene is the dinner party, where people get possessed and start singing (the Harry Belafonte song) Day-O. The first time I saw this show, that scene brought back all kinds of wonderful memories. And the musical has everything fans of the movie love the quirky characters, the taglines, she said. It also has a lot of very catchy songs (written by Australian musician and comedian Eddie Perfect), and its always fun to see magic happen on stage. In movies, you know when things are done with camera tricks and the like, but seeing the same kind of things happen live in front of you is something special. A native of California, McGinnis career has included starring as Belle in Disneys Beauty and the Beast on Broadway, as well as portraying Eponine in the 2007 Broadway revival of Les Miserables. Other Broadway credits include The Diary of Anne Frank, Parade and Thoroughly Modern Millie. McGinnis also created the role of Jerusha Abbott in the musical Daddy Long Legs, earning an Ovation Award for Best Actress during that shows off-Broadway run. Her most recent role was in the national touring production of Come From Away. She said her character in Beetlejuice is one with whom she finds very easy to identify. When we meet Barbara and Adam, they seem so happy and set in their ways, McGinnis said. But they are thinking that maybe its time they start a family, but they are vacillating about if this is really the time to do that. And then, of course, they fall through the floor and die. One of the reasons why they are vacillating so much is due to Barbaras perfectionism, of having everything just so, McGinnis said. But then they connect with Lydia, and she really becomes the child they never had. I have a 6-year-old son, and I draw on that relationship a lot in playing Barbara. Because that part of it is really a love story she and Adam falling in love with Lydia as a kind of surrogate child. McGinnis joined the company just a couple of months ago, in time to perform the show on Halloween night when the tour was playing Memphis. You might think that would have been a pretty extravagant night, but the truth is, every night with this show is kind of wild, she said. Its one of the few shows Ive done where you can tell the audience really wants to be part of it all. We have people coming in costume as some of the characters, and not just on Halloween. Its a show the audience really gets into, and the energy they bring really connects with us on stage. Talk of Beetlejuice being a show audiences react to in enthusiastic ways prompted a question about the productions recent run of shows in Denver, when Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert had to be escorted out of the theater because of her amorous antics with her date for the night. McGinnis laughed, then said, Yes, I was part of the cast that night. And thats about all I can say. Michael Dekker Tulsa World Business Writer Follow Michael Dekker Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Merchants and patrons are concerned about the future of what some consider an iconic, long-established local shopping center. The Farm, at the southeast corner of 51st Street and Sheridan Road, has been a mainstay in Tulsa since the early 1970s, when a barn at the site was refurbished and a retail and restaurant destination were built around it. Historically, with at least 40 specialty shops, restaurants and offices, The Farm was considered by many to be similar to Utica Square, though not as upscale. But the number of businesses at The Farm is now down to 18 to 20. The Farms merchants cite the COVID-19 pandemic and the purchase of the center by an out-of-state property management company as reasons for its decline. Shop Cos. of Dallas bought The Farm in 2021. In the beginning, when they introduced themselves, they said, Were putting in $4 million in improvements in the shopping center. And whats happening is the capital improvements that they are doing, they are passing off as maintenance fees, said Ken Rudzienski, manager of Windsor Market, an antiques and home decor store that is marking its 27th year in business. Windsor Market, which moved to The Farm in 2018 from 68th Street and Memorial Drive, recently signed a five-year renewal lease to stay at The Farm. I was leery about signing another five-year lease because I said its like buying a ticket on the Titanic, Rudzienski said. He and other merchants at The Farm spoke with the Tulsa World recently about their concerns. Theres what we call a common area maintenance or CAM fee that includes taxes, insurance, utilities, security, you name it, Rudzienski said. The CAM fees went up considerably. A lot of us can handle an increase in rent. Everything is going up nowadays, so its expected. But what the rent was going to increase to, and the CAM fees increasing too, it just made it impossible for some of these businesses to stay open. Among the businesses relocating is Billy Sims BBQ, which opened its original location at The Farm 20 years ago, said co-founder Jeff Jackson. Billy Sims now has 34 restaurants in six states. The restaurants lease at The Farm expires at the end of the year, he said. The rents were going to be too high for my budget, Jackson said, adding that increased CAM fees were also a factor. The writing was on the wall. Billy Sims BBQ will be relocating about a mile away to 61st Street and Sheridan Road, probably in January or February, he said. Jackson said that while its unfortunate whats going on at The Farm, he said Shop Cos. has been good with him. Theyve been very nice to work with, he said. I dont know the full direction they want to go, but Im sure they are trying to do the right thing and have a plan. Were absolutely committed to The Farm Daniel Fuller, president of Shop Development, a division of Shop Cos., said the development company is committed to The Farm. We think The Farm is an extraordinary property, he said, adding that Shop Cos. has two partners from Tulsa. We were drawn to it for the very reason its a landmark property. Asked to respond about merchant concerns regarding rising rent and CAM fees, Fuller said the leasing structure for many of The Farms tenants had to be reconfigured to include a more comprehensive fee structure, including insurance and property taxes. Many of the leases at The Farm were structured as gross leases. Theres an industry standard for a retail lease, and the standard is a triple-net lease, he said, including property taxes and insurance, in addition to landscaping and other costs. It makes it easier to make sure the reinvestments are happening at the property as they should be, Fuller said. He added that Shop Cos. has little to no control over insurance rates and property taxes. Shop Cos. has invested millions of dollars into The Farm, he said. We want to think of ourselves as stewards of the property. We are trying to be thoughtful as far as what we want to do in bringing the property forward, he said. Its like any other business: Were subject to the conditions that are affecting our economy, Fuller said. Weve tried to go beyond what is considered typical with upgrades. We are excited to make that reinvestment. But that reinvestment has to come at a price, and thats just an economic reality of business. Were absolutely committed to The Farm. Fuller also said a majority of tenants who were at The Farm when Shop Cos. bought it in 2021 have renewed their leases. I think the good news is that the overwhelming majority of tenants that have come up for renewal have chosen to stay at The Farm, he said. Weve done 14 to 15 lease renewals. The occupancy of the center was not a surprise to us. We knew, Fuller said of Shop Cos. purchase in 2021 and existing vacancies at The Farm. The plan has been to reinvest in the property significantly. Weve invested millions in the property. The Farm is a property we imagine we will continue to reinvest in for many years in the future, he said. We will miss our Farm family The Black Sheep Boutique, a womens clothing store that has been at The Farm more than nine years, is among the businesses that are leaving. The boutique said on social media last month that it was moving to a new location on Cherry (15th) Street and is promoting a moving sale. Thankful for the last 9.5 years at @thefarmshoppingcenter where Black Sheep was originally founded! the shop said on its Facebook page. The relationships, endless memories and more were made here. We will miss our Farm Family. The owner of the boutique did not respond to the Tulsa World after being asked to comment via phone and in-person messages to her employees about the move and The Farms status. Before its announced move, the boutique was burglarized last month and lost thousands of dollars worth of merchandise, it said. But it is not clear whether the burglary was a factor in its decision to move. Tulsa police arrested Terry Dane Drury on four complaints of second-degree burglary after he reportedly left his cellphone in the business and is alleged to have been recorded for about two hours by interior video surveillance. He remained jailed last week in lieu of $16,000 bond, according to jail records. Rudzienski said the level of private security has declined since Shop Cos. bought The Farm. We had on-site security that did not go from shopping center to shopping center. They stayed here. Since the new (management) company came in, that (former security) company went away, he said. Of current security, he said, they make periodic drives through. Weve had break-ins. The manager of another Farm business, who declined to be identified, also said security in the area has diminished. The manager also lamented highly increased rents and CAM fees imposed by Shop Cos. I just think its a shame Karen Kenny is a Tulsa retiree and loyal customer of Windsor Market and The Farm. I just think its a shame whats happening, she said. For 50 years, The Farm has been here. To see it decline like this is just not good for anyone. Someone needs to know what is going on. Otherwise, we might lose something that is very unique to Tulsa, she said. Ive had other customers like her (Kenny) who have approached me and said, What is happening with The Farm? They either live in the area or they frequent The Farm regularly and they are alarmed by the empty spaces, Rudzienski said. He said the shopping centers decline began with the COVID-19 pandemic, when several large stores, including Backwoods and Yutaka Grill, closed. But since then and after The Farm was purchased, many other businesses have also closed or left. I dont know how they expect to lease out a shopping center when the vacancies are so great. Its not an incentive for retailers to say, I want to move into The Farm. Look how well theyre doing, Rudzienski said. My personal opinion is if I would have bought this shopping center, I would have focused on the big, empty spaces that came with it when I bought it, keep everybody that was existing happy maybe raise the rent a little bit to cover some of the improvements that you did and focus on the big spaces and get them leased. You have a better chance of leasing them when all the smaller and medium spaces are full, and you have traffic coming in. Then when youre full, you can call the shots. You can say, OK, were 100% full or 95%, and this is what were going to do. But when you take a shopping center that had that many vacancies and you jack up maintenance fees and rent to the point where the locals cant sustain it and have to leave, its a sinking ship. Nobody in here is out to be a millionaire drive a Rolls-Royce they just want to own a business, provide a service and make a decent living. When you have out-of-town or out-of-state investors that come in here and think that they are going to get Dallas prices for this area, theyre wrong, he said. Fuller refuted that notion and said many new deals for potential tenants are in the works. There are easy opportunities for us to lease the larger spaces, but when you focus on quality, it takes us longer to land the tenants that you want, Fuller said. Theres an art and science to merchandising. There are a dozen new deals working, Fuller said. There are exciting negotiations underway with a dozen or so exciting new tenants. Once we get to a point where there are announcements to make, wed love to reach out to you, he told the Tulsa World. Things change. People get anxious. So now were going to be good stewards and respect the history of The Farm and bring it forward, Fuller said. Considered worthless, this sandy stretch of riverbank was left out of the allotments for individual members of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. So the tribe itself has been stuck with ownership of it since the late 1830s. In the 20th century, Riverside Drive cut through the area south of 81st Street and trapped the property against the Arkansas River, leaving an overgrown and mostly inaccessible shoreline, known to the tribe as the old Mackey Sandbar. Inside the city limits of the states two largest cities, Tulsa and Oklahoma City, this is the one and only tribal site where casino gambling is legal. And thats why this worthless little sandbar has become the tribes biggest asset. On this day in 2014, Creek Nation began work on its $329 million Margaritaville casino and hotel. Take a look back at early construction here: A moratorium on new medical marijuana business licenses that was set to end next year has been extended until 2026, though meeting the requirements by then still isnt guaranteed. Legislation that went into effect Nov. 1 extends the moratorium through Aug. 1, 2026, unless Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority leadership determines all pending licensing reviews, inspections or investigations are complete. The moratorium has been in place for more than a year, but as of late 2023, thousands of license reviews remain pending, according to an OMMA spokesman. Inspections are conducted almost daily, communications manager Michael Kimball said, adding that its hard to imagine an early end to the moratorium. The number of licensed growers has fluctuated as OMMA began to nail down regulations and amid rumors of a possible freeze on new licenses. According to licensing data, 5,905 cultivation licenses were active in November 2020, growing to 9,178 by November 2021. By the time the moratorium went into effect in August 2022, the number of active cultivation licenses had dipped to 7,167, OMMA data show. House Bill 2095 extended the moratorium to maintain a more manageable number of licenses and facilities for OMMA to regulate after lawmakers during the 2023 session initially mulled capping the number of licensed growers at 1,000. Kimball said OMMA employees have been trying to build a plane thats already flying after State Question 788 gave the state just 60 days to set up a medical marijuana program. Since then, OMMA has been trying to keep up with the exploding market. The organization had around 100 employees in 2020, which has grown to nearly 300 employees in 2023. As of Nov. 8, OMMA assisted law enforcement partners more than 114 times, including conducting 13 search warrants, making an arrest and visiting 65 locations to investigate complaints. Earlier this year, the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control said as many as 3,000 marijuana growers were being investigated for operating with a license obtained by fraud and/or moving their marijuana onto the out-of-state black market. The moratorium does not prevent current license holders from renewing their licenses or selling their licenses to someone who wants to get into the business. License transfers are regulated by OMMA. New license holders must meet the same requirements as previous applicants, including residing in Oklahoma and passing a background check. Andrea Eger Tulsa World Staff Writer Follow Andrea Eger Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today The Oklahoma Attorney Generals Office is going after Epic Charter Schools student funds, which apparently are still in the possession of the school founders who are facing criminal charges in a massive racketeering and embezzlement case. The states attorneys filed a motion in Oklahoma County District Court earlier this month seeking to preserve the assets currently in a private business banking account pending the criminal proceedings. A spokesman for the Attorney Generals Office said the state believes approximately $5.5 million of taxpayer dollars intended for Epic Charter Schools student Learning Fund is at stake, though he offered no explanation for why law enforcement hadnt sought to secure the funds sooner. According to publicly available court records, the funds are in a bank account owned by Epic co-founders Ben Harris and David Chaneys school management company, Epic Youth Services, and the Bank of Oklahoma has informed the State that it intends to sever its relationship with Epic Youth Services in the near future. In the new motion, prosecutors claim that more than a year ago now and four months after the criminal charges were filed Harris and Chaney utilized the embezzled funds maintained in (the Bank of Oklahoma account) to acquire over $5 million in investment assets, primarily in the form of treasury bills, through BOK Financial Securities, Inc. Prosecutors want a court order that those investment funds, as well as any funds remaining in the account, are subject to criminal forfeiture because they were derived from or realized through a violation of the Oklahoma Racketeer-Influenced Corrupt (or RICO) Act. After a yearslong law enforcement probe, Chaney, Harris and their longtime chief financial officer, Josh Brock, were arrested and charged in June 2022 in Oklahoma County District Court under the states RICO law. The criminal case alleges 15 counts, including embezzlement, money laundering, computer crimes and conspiracy to defraud the state. A hearing on the attorney generals motion to freeze the assets has been set for early December, and the preliminary hearing for all three defendants, at which the court determines whether the prosecution has sufficient evidence to justify a trial, is scheduled for late January. State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd, whose office delivered damning findings in an October 2020 investigative audit of Epic, has called the case the largest abuse of taxpayer funds in the history of this state. That audit report found that least $145 million in public money Epics governing board allocated for its student Learning Fund was taken into EYS private bank account and expended using personal credit cards between 2015 and 2020. The revelation that Harris and Chaney still have Epic student learning funds in their private business bank account begs the question of why law enforcement didnt act to secure those dollars sooner and whether Epic Charter Schools tried to recoup them from its former contracted management firm on its own. Phil Bacharach, director of communications for the Office of the Attorney General, declined to answer the first question or provide the date that state law enforcement officials were informed of the banks intent to close the EYS account. Unfortunately, our Criminal Division cannot address (those) questions, Bacharach told the Tulsa World. Ethical obligations restrict their ability to comment publicly on pending litigation. Jeanise Wynn, deputy superintendent of finance and treasurer at Epic Charter School, said the school has been engaged in efforts to recover the remaining balance in the Student Learning Fund from EYS since the Fall of 2021. That timeframe would be about six months after Epics governing board divorced itself and the public charter school from outside management and influence by Epic Youth Services. EYS has consistently declined to confirm the balance remaining in the fund and has refused to return the balance to the school, instead claiming that the school actually owes EYS money for transition services that EYS allegedly provided following the termination of the relationship between the two entities, Wynn said in response to the Tulsa Worlds questions. In December 2021, EYS filed a lawsuit against the school seeking a monetary judgment of nearly $7 million for the alleged transition services. The school responded by denying that EYS performed the services in question and filing counterclaims against EYS to seek recovery of the remaining balance in Student Learning Fund and other damages resulting from the misconduct of EYS. The case between the school and EYS has been delayed by the criminal indictments of EYSs founders and CFO. The school will continue to use the legal process to diligently pursue the recovery of all outstanding funds on behalf Oklahoma public school students. The Tulsa World reached out for comment from an attorney of record for both Harris and Chaney in the criminal case, but the message was relayed to a different attorney representing Epic Youth Services. Elizabeth Libby Scott with the firm Crowe and Dunlevy stated that Chaney and Harris continue to insist that the funds became their business own private funds upon receipt from the school and that EYS performed $6.8 million in transition services through September 2021, all under the terms of the Mutual Termination Agreement the school board entered into with EYS on May 26, 2021. The School has refused to honor its obligation under the agreement, thereby forcing EYS to bring an action in Oklahoma County District Court for breach of the agreement. The transition costs owed by the school to EYS far exceed any Learning Fund balance to be donated by EYS in the future, Scott told the Tulsa World. The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today. Oklahomas superagency that handles information technology, budgeting, employee management and state office buildings has little budget transparency of its own and needs to do a better job of responding to agencies for which it provides services, a legislative oversight report concluded. The Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency said its examination of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services found the agencys annual appropriations have tripled in the past five years, reaching $164 million in fiscal year 2024. During the same time, the agencys fee revenue, which comes from other state agencies, rose to $52.4 million, an increase of 285%. The office presented its report to lawmakers at a hearing on Wednesday. Some of the increased spending came in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposed an older technology infrastructure that wasnt built for thousands of state employees working from home. But the LOFT report said a lack of long-term planning on statewide technology needs and an increased reliance on contractors and outside consultants also pushed spending higher. Lawmakers created the agency more than a decade ago to streamline IT purchases and increase efficiency in state spending on common administrative services. But that promise has only partially been fulfilled, the legislative report found. It explored more than 20 policy recommendations for the Legislature to consider, including splitting OMES statewide finance division into a separate agency to increase accountability. OMES is a huge agency with a huge budget, said Sen. Chuck Hall, R-Perry, who also chairs a special Senate oversight committee on OMES. They are handling a lot of services on behalf of the state of Oklahoma and its citizens. We can always be a better service provider, and the LOFT report reflects that there are shortcomings and gaps. The report found that agencies have little recourse when the Office of Management and Enterprise Services increases its fees for services and have little flexibility to control their own costs for shared services. For example, OMES told more than two dozen state agencies they will have rent increases of up to 20% this year. That was to catch up from years of deferred maintenance, but it applied to agencies regardless of how old their buildings were. Jerry Moore, OMES deputy director and chief transformation officer, said the agency continues to evaluate those anticipated rent increases. But theres an estimated $280 million in deferred maintenance expenses to buildings owned by the state, he said. Insurance and utility expenses have gone up, too. The report highlights late payments by OMES to its vendors. The state auditor issued a report in 2020 with those same concerns, but OMES hasnt improved much since then. Authors of the legislative report pulled a random sample of invoices and found that 62% went beyond the 45-day legal limit before being paid. Senate Floor Leader Greg McCortney, R-Ada, said he was at a loss to explain to his constituents that a state agency couldnt perform a basic function like paying its bills on time. How in the world can I defend the continuation of what were doing here? McCortney asked. In response, OMES officials said some of those late payments were because it was having problems collecting fees owed by agencies using the services. We are stuck paying these technology bills at these agencies, and they may have some disagreement about how it didnt go to their satisfaction when they signed the statement of work, said John Suter, OMES executive director and the states chief operating officer. Thats frustrating to me. The report says OMES spending from federal pandemic relief had left the agency exposed to ongoing operating costs from what were described at the time as one-time purchases. It highlighted $100 million that went for a backup data center in Texas. Much of those costs went to cloud-based systems that now require an extra $18.6 million in annual costs. The state also paid the same vendor, NTT Data, $8.6 million per year for desktop support services. But service times were so bad that OMES canceled the contract this year and took the services back in-house. Lawmakers gave the agency an extra $15.8 million in appropriations to resume those functions. Both the new cybersecurity enhancements and the data centers were purchased with CARES money that covered the recurring revenue for the first few years but didnt account for how those recurring charges would be covered afterwards, the report says. Sen. Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, said the LOFT report validates concerns many had for years about consolidation. Ultimately, its the responsibility of the majority in the Legislature to provide long-term strategic planning so that LOFTs recommendations are enacted and provide adequate resources to ensure citizens get the services they need, Kirt said in a news release. In an interview after the hearing, Suter said his agency is agnostic on how the Legislature wants to provide funding for information technology and that he is open to other ideas on agency structure. If people need to report to different people, if we need to be funded in different ways, either in all appropriations or in some hybrid model like we exist now, thats OK, Suter said. It gives us a lot of flexibility once the Legislature looks at all the options. About Oklahoma Watch Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state. The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today. The branch of state-run Vietnam Bank for Social Policies in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam expended VND113 million (US$4,660) supporting male workers to mark this years International Mens Day on November 19. The decision, made by Le Hung Lam, director of the bank branch, benefited 113 male employees at the facility. Accordingly, each of its male workers was awarded VND1 million ($41.2). The amount of money was sourced from the bank branchs welfare fund that was established at the start of the year with the aim of guaranteeing workers welfare, said a representative of the bank branch. The lender mainly taps the fund to celebrate national holidays, and cover worker healthcare fees and travel services, the representative added. As Mens Day is yet to be made official in Vietnam, while few firms held parties for male workers, giving money to male employees at the bank branch drew public attention. Many people threw their support behind the act, explaining that it was necessary to make the day as meaningful as International Womens Day. Various countries see International Mens Day as an important celebration, thereby rolling out a series of activities to delight men. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Despite a downbeat picture of sales, many merchants at Dong Xuan Market in Hanoi, the largest wholesale market in northern Vietnam, do not intend to sell their goods and products online. In reply to a question about the trend of selling online, they insisted that they dislike online sales, or will not launch services over the Internet. Normally, markets become busy and see upbeat sales for the rest of the year due to higher demand of consumers. On the contrary, sales at Dong Xuan Market are slowing to a crawl. According to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reporters' observation, the wholesale market got depressing on Saturday. Most stalls at the market were serving no buyers on Saturday morning, while some souvenir stands were welcoming a few foreign tourists. Due to a handful of buyers, vendors spent their time reading newspapers, surfing the Internet, or knitting. Hang, owner of a stall selling watches and glasses at Dong Xuan Market, said that she has much spare time although the Lunar New Year holiday is drawing near. I have sold the items here for decades but I have seen the market in the doldrums for the first time, Hang lamented. Only one, or two, or even no market-goers have visited a stall a day over the past few days. Hang, a vendor at a stall selling watches and glasses is pictured surfing the Internet due to no buyers at Dong Xuan Market in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre Running a stand selling household appliances at Dong Xuan Market, Hanh said that she has never seen the market experience such a slack period before. Two years ago, when the coronavirus outbreak hit the country, the market was even busy and crowded with customers, but vendors are now struggling to sell goods as there are few clients, and, if any, they are lowering their spending, Hanh said. Due to the economic downturn, paired with online shopping, she voiced concerns over more sluggish sales. I go to the market daily for unprofitable work, while I am living on my savings, she said. In spite of slow sales at the market, the majority of merchants there did not intend to shift to selling their goods online. We have done business here [at Dong Xuan Market] for dozens of years. If we run an online shop, our children will support us, but we dislike this, and are too lazy to change, Hanh explained. Hanh, a merchant, says that she does not like online sales despite sluggish traditional sales at Dong Xuan Market in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre Nguyen Nhu Quynh, a clothes vendor in Ha Nam Province, over 50 kilometers from Hanoi, said that she travels to the capital city to visit some wholesale markets for bulk buying each month. However, plunging demand for the products forced her to change her schedule, meaning that she returned to the city for clothes purchase four months after the previous visit. Some stands serve a few foreign tourists a day at Dong Xuan Market in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! No other country than Iceland is better prepared for volcanos and other natural disasters, its prime minister said Saturday, as authorities brace for a potential lava eruption southwest of the capital Reykjavik. The roughly 4,000 residents of Grindavik, a fishing port around 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the capital, were evacuated on November 11 after magma shifting under the Earth's crust caused hundreds of earthquakes -- a warning of a likely volcanic eruption. Thousands of smaller tremors have since shaken the area along the Reykjanes peninsula, with several homes and other structures suffering severe damage. "No country is better prepared for natural disasters than Iceland," Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said at a press conference. "We have long experience in dealing with volcanic eruptions. We know that it's not necessarily a sound decision to build for example defence mechanisms when you have such a great uncertainty where an eruption can come up," she said. The Reykjanes peninsula had not experienced an eruption for eight centuries until 2021. Since then, three eruptions have struck -- all in remote uninhabited areas -- and volcanologists say this could be the start of a new era of activity in the region. That has raised the prospect that residents may not be able to return to their homes any time soon. "Our main priority is really to embrace those people, ensure that they have adequate salaries and to find proper housing for them for the next weeks or months," Jakobsdottir said. "We have proposed a bill for the parliament to ensure the salaries for the next three months. And we are working as fast as we can to ensure proper housing for those people," she said. Iceland is home to 33 active volcano systems, the highest number in Europe, and towns have been hit before. The country has been on edge for the past week, waiting for a potential eruption near Grindavik.